Pennington will not be traded

Pennington will not be traded

Chad Pennington is not going anywhere this season. The New York�Jets will not trade him the New York Daily News reported.

Even though he has a chance to win back the job he lost to Kellen Clemens last season, a source told the Daily News Sunday that at the scouting combine in Indianapolis last month, Pennington's agent and Tannenbaum, the Jets' GM, had one conversation about whether the Jets would trade him. Tannenbaum's answer: No.

Pennington wants to start, and Tannenbaum and agent Tom Condon discussed whether the Jets intended to provide him with an opportunity elsewhere. No demands were made by Pennington.

Cowboys and Titans can't agree on price for Pacman
Sooner or later, Pacman Jones is going to be a Cowboy. The Cowboys want him, no one else does, and there's no way the Titans will allow him to infect their roster for another whole season.

And despite the fact that the Cowboys are the lone Pacman suitor, the Titans keep jacking up the price. From ESPN:

A source close to the negotiations told ESPN's Ed Werder on Sunday night that trade talks between the Cowboys and Titans have stalled over the issue of compensation.

The Titans are seeking a fourth-round pick in this year's draft and another selection next year, according to the source. The Cowboys are so far unwilling to provide either, believing they are the only team pursuing Jones, who remains suspended for violations of the personal-conduct policy.

The Titans have been steadfast in their position, apparently convinced that Jones' trade value will not worsen.

The Titans believe that Pacman's trade value will not worsen? I guess they haven't been paying a lot of attention to the career of Pacman Jones. Every time he gets horny, he does something to lower his trade value.

I guess both teams have a point. The Titans are giving up a young elite-level talent, so they'd like something decent in the way of compensation. And the Cowboys are trading for someone who isn't currently eligible to play, and may never be, depending on Roger Goodell's mood and Pacman's willingness to stay away from clear heels.

Still, I'm confident that they'll eventually find some middle ground and work this out.

Eagles expected to work on trade for Sheppard

It appears one of the objectives for the Philadelphia Eagles this week is to gauge the interest in former All-Pro cornerback Lito Sheppard according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.��Despite some sentiment that the Eagles would be better served by keeping Sheppard and moving Sheldon Brown to safety, the trade scenario remains far more likely.

Trade talks concerning Sheppard figure to pick up this week at the owners' meetings, which take place today through Wednesday in West Palm Beach, Fla. A team source said the Eagles already have received some significant offers for the cornerback and will continue to listen. A deal is likely to get done before the start of the April 26 draft. The Eagles have been told by several teams that they will make offers after they finalize their draft boards. With the draft less than a month away, those offers should be coming soon.

The Dallas Morning News speculated a potential landing spot for Sheppard might be Cincinnati where the Bengals are dealing with an unhappy Chad Johnson.

Marinelli outlines Detroit's draft plan

Detroit Lions coach Rod Marinelli says he is determined to do a better job in the draft, and his plan seems pretty clear the Detroit Free Press reported.

Start researching earlier. Spend more time with prospects. Address four major needs — defensive end, linebacker, offensive tackle and running back. Take players the Lions really like, even if others think they aren't worth the pick.

Marinelli thinks the Lions have done well in the first two rounds since he arrived in Detroit in 2006. But he knows they must improve overall.

Mangini, Tannenbaum will return in 2009 regardless of record

With lots of speculation around the NFL that GM Mike Tannenbaum and head coach Eric Mangini must win now to keep their jobs with the New York Jets after going 4-12 last year, owner Woody Johnson attempted to put an end to that talk according to the New York Daily News.

No matter what happens this season, neither Mangini nor Tannenbaum will be fired, Johnson said. He told The News that Tannenbaum and Mangini "absolutely" will be back in 2009 regardless of the Jets' record this season. "I really think it takes time to build," Johnson said. "You can't do it in one season."

In a wild spending spree, the Jets handed out $63 million in guaranteed money in the free agent/trading market. But Johnson was emphatic that Mangini and Tannenbaum were his guys and were under no greater pressure because of their decision to acquire Alan Faneca, Calvin Pace, Kris Jenkins and Damien Woody.

Trade talks for Pacman Jones hit snag

Pacman Jones wants to go to Dallas, and the Cowboys apparently want him. How much they'll give up to get him is a different story.

A source close to the negotiations told ESPN Sunday night that trade talks between the Cowboys and Titans have stalled over the issue of compensation.

The Titans are seeking a fourth-round pick in this month's NFL draft and another selection next year, according to the source. The Cowboys are so far unwilling to provide either, believing they are the only team pursuing Jones, who remains suspended for violations of the personal-conduct policy. The Titans have been steadfast in their position, apparently convinced that Jones' trade value will not worsen.

New England interested in McFadden?

The New England Patriots have considerable talent and depth at running back, yet that isn't stopping team officials from flying Darren McFadden up to Foxborough for a visit the Boston Globe reported.

NFL teams are allowed to host up to 30 out-of-town prospects before the draft, and the Patriots' visit with the Arkansas back — scheduled for April 10-11 - should generate buzz relating to New England having the seventh overall draft choice.

Is there genuine interest in McFadden? Might it be a smoke screen? Or is it just due diligence as part of the scouting process? As most of the heaviest hitters arrived in South Florida yesterday for the league's annual meeting, McFadden — who rushed for 1,830 yards and totaled 16 touchdowns last season — drew raves among some personnel executives. Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome called him "a great player."

Speculation growing Umenyiora will hold out
Osi Umenyiora will be attending the New York Giants' offseason program, but there is growing speculation he will�holdout from training camp this summer if he doesn't get a new contract according to the New York Daily News. In fact, someone who talked to him recently told The News: "I guarantee you he's not coming to camp."

This is all a lot of speculation, and camp is still four months away, but this is all important because Umenyiora has been asked about a potential holdout several times in the last few months and has yet to deny the possibility. In fact, on several occassions he's appeared to hint that it might happen.

This will be very interesting to watch over the next few months because Umenyiora is just two years and three months removed from signing a six-year, $41 million contract extension that included $15 million in guarantees and extended his deal through 2012. That contract called for him to make $21 million in the first three years of the extension. That's a healthy average of $7 million per year. It's hard�to imagine the Giants renegotiating a contract that still has five years remaining on it. It's also hard to see them doing it while they're considering raises for Michael Strahan and Plaxico Burress, and pondering how much they'll have to pay Chris Snee to keep him off the free-agent market.

Matt Leinart is not struggling to meet women




If you're a Cardinals fan, and you were concerned that Matt Leinart wasn't having enough fun this offseason, please let these pictures assuage some of your fears.

That's Matt Leinart above, in a hot tub featuring a few wandering hands, and then being gracious enough to hold up a beer bong for a young lady. What a gentleman. I assume it's apple juice in there, because TheDirty.com, from whence these pictures came, says that some of these girls might not be 21.

Gracias, Deadspin.