Free agency begins with many teams in trouble

The NFL free-agent period that starts today could be a strange one.

With the notable exception of expansion Houston, many teams have had to release players to get under the $71.1 million salary cap. And with many of the league's best already signed to long-term deals, there will be relatively few prime players available.

Some of the best, in fact, may be players released for cap reasons in the past week or so.

They include big names cut Thursday, including linebacker Jessie Armstead, dropped by the Giants; quarterback Rob Johnson, released by the Bills; safety Blaine Bishop, waived by the Titans; and linebacker Kevin Hardy, released by the Jaguars.

"The trend at the beginning of free agency was to let your players go, then tell them to come back to you. But players didn't come back and teams lost them," says Charley Casserly, general manager of the Texans, who have approximately $30 million in cap room.

"Now it's come full circle. Teams will pay their own players to keep them, and sometimes overpay them. That's why you have so many teams in the salary cap position they're in."

That has been evident for a month.

Marquee players either have been released, gone to Houston in the expansion draft, or had their salaries significantly slashed. One is Denver running back Terrell Davis, who was MVP of the 1998 Super Bowl and then the league MVP the next season when he ran for 2,008 yards.

But because of injuries, he has played in just 17 games since and reluctantly redid his contract this week.

Two examples of the current state of the NFL are the Ravens and Giants, who 13 months ago played in the Super Bowl. The Ravens have essentially dismantled the defense that carried them to the title. The Giants have released four starters from that team and could lose a couple of others to free agency.

The Ravens let linebacker Jamie Sharper and premier kick returner Jermaine Lewis go to Houston in the expansion draft, then released safety Rod Woodson, tight end Shannon Sharpe, defensive end Rob Burnett and wide receiver Qadry Ismail. Defensive tackle Tony Siragusa retired and cornerback Duane Starks will become a free agent today.

The first few days may not be busy -- they coincide with the draft scouting combine in Indianapolis, which draws almost everyone involved in free agency: general managers, coaches, agents.

Most of the best available free agents are like Starks -- good, but not the kind of impact player who can turn around a team.

One player who could elicit interest is Johnson, released Thursday by the Bills, who hoped when they signed him that he would be their long-term quarterback.

Others include linebackers Hardy, Earl Holmes of Pittsburgh and James Farrior of the Jets; running backs Warrick Dunn of Tampa Bay and Antowain Smith of New England; offensive linemen Olin Kreutz of Chicago; Ron Stone of the Giants and Flozell Adams of Dallas; and defensive backs Brian Kelly of Tampa Bay and Shaun Williams of the Giants.

More attractive to teams that think of themselves as contenders (and who doesn't these days?) could be veterans like Armstead, Sharpe or Woodson.

The NFL and the players association have agreed to count only $450,000 (the veteran minimum) of the salary of a newly signed veteran against the cap. That will allow teams to pay veterans more without taking a cap hit, as long as almost all the money is in salary.

The signing bonus must be $25,000 or less to qualify for salary cap relief.

In other moves Thursday:

--The Miami Dolphins cut defensive tackle Tim Bowens, then re-signed him an hour later to a five-year, $15 million contract. The deal includes a $3 million signing bonus. Under Bowens' old contract, he would have made $7 million in 2002 and counted $8.75 million against the salary cap.

The Dolphins also released safety Brock Marion and receiver O.J. McDuffie but hope to re-sign both players.

--Tennessee released four-time Pro Bowl safety Bishop, linebacker Eddie Robinson, receiver Chris Sanders and cornerback DeRon Jenkins.

--The Jets renegotiated the contract of cornerback Ray Mickens, who figures to start with Aaron Glenn and Marcus Coleman gone through the expansion draft. They also released safety Victor Green, who started 108 straight games.

--Jacksonville released cornerback Aaron Beasley and voided the contract of defensive end Renaldo Wynn.

--Wide receiver Bobby Engram re-signed for one year with Seattle and likely will be the Seahawks' main punt returner.

--Chicago made offers to five restricted free agents, including receiver Marty Booker and linebackers Rosevelt Colvin and Warrick Holdman.