James Farrior will be following Hines Ward and Aaron Smith out the door according to the Steelers' team website. The site said the cuts would be before the start of the NFL year, March 13th.

Farrior, who had been with the Steelers since 2002, played in all but 6 games since arriving in Pittsburgh. Farrior was never the premier linebacker that the Steelers are notorious for churning out, but he was a solid player for many years with the Steelers.

Farrior, 37, may decide to call it a career, but his most impressive statistic has been his durability over the years. During three separate seasons with the Steelers, Farrior missed two games, including the 2011 campaign. In his five seasons with the Jets ('97-'01), Farrior missed a total of four games, all of which came in his second year with the team. Considering Farrior's uncanny ability to stay healthy at one of the most brutal positions in the game, it's not crazy to think he could sign a short-term contract with a linebacker needy team to extend his career a little longer.

The move to release Farrior should surprise no one. Farrior was due $2.8 million according to Rotoworld, and that's simply more than the Steelers can afford to pay while trying to hang on to their younger players, most notably, Mike Wallace.

It's beginning to appear as though the Steelers have pushed their salary cap situation further than they normally intend on doing. Usually, the Steelers are kings of being able to cycle players while pushing the cap year in and year out. Sure, Ward and Smith were both on the decline, but James Farrior has continued to be productive from the beginning of his time with the Steelers until the very end. It'll be tough to replace that kind of veteran leadership, and we'll finally get to see just how resilient that organization can be.

Like TGS on Facebook

Follow TGS on Twitter

The rebirth and regeneration that has blossomed from Drew Brees' time in New Orleans has been among the most unprecedented in NFL history.  The person, the franchise, and the city itself have been transformed since Drew Brees arrived in 2006.  Brees came to New Orleans when both he and the city were broken.  Brees recovering from a shoulder injury that threatened his career after his first choice, the Miami Dolphins, had turned down the chance to sign him.  New Orleans was still grieving and on the long road to recovery from one of the worst disasters to strike American soil, Hurricane Katrina.  The Saints themselves were coming off a 3-13 nomadic campaign playing games in San Antonio and Baton Rouge.

Given all that adversity, the success seen in New Orleans has been extraordinary.  The six years Brees has spent in New Orleans would be shot down if you tried to sell it as a Hollywood script.  Books have been written, tears of joy have been shed, records have been broken, and the team's first ever championship was won in the 2009 season.  New Orleans has embraced Brees and made him one of their own.  The relationship between Drew Brees and New Orleans is perhaps the best between athlete and city in professional sports.  Without each other, Drew Brees and the Saints would have never found the prosperity they have shared since 2006.

For diehard Saints fans like me, the last six years have been something of a sporting nirvana.  We were used to disappointment.  We were used to coaches calling our team "diddly poo" and our franchise saviors wearing wedding dresses.  We wee used to snatching defeat from the jaws of victory in the most improbable, depressing and comedic of ways.  And, we were used to losing.

Since Drew Brees and Sean Payton joined forces in New Orleans, we've seen one of the best offenses in NFL history, an elite quarterback in his prime, the most thrilling games week in and week out, records all across the board, playoff appearances, division titles, a Super Bowl, and most unlikely of all - a winning mentality.  Even with this year's crushing playoff defeat in San Francisco, the Brees Era has been a never before seen time of pride and joy in being a Saints fan.  The Brees Era has been the closest thing to perfection we know.

So why then can't Drew Brees and the Saints agree on a new contract extension?  And why are they putting the future of the franchise in jeopardy because of it?

The Philadelphia Eagles placed the franchise tag on disgruntled wide receiver DeSean Jackson today according to an announcement on the team's web site.  The Eagles are the first team to apply the franchise tag in 2012.

Jackson is a dangerous receiver and special team threat who stressed over an extension to his rookie contract for two seasons. He received a contract consistent with his second round 2008 Draft selection. Jackson was the seventh wide-out selected (which means six NFL clubs have some 'splaining to do).

Four-thousand yards and 21 touchdowns later, Jackson is the most explosive member of a dynamic offense. His middle school behavior of acting out when he did not get his way gives pause. If his performance declined in his unhappiness, when the Eagles needed the best from him, how will he perform when he hits his big payday?

The question is not whether Jackson deserves a rich contract — he does. The question is does he have the emotional maturity to handle success?

Players see as far as their own contract. Teams must balance contracts against the salary cap. Contracts are timed for their impact on the cap. It means that players often wait for preceding move before they get their deal. The Eagles, for example, restructured Cullen Jenkins' five-year contract to reduce the $7.5 million cap hit he would have cost them in 2012. It gives Philly maneuvering room to re-sign Jackson and the free agents they must add beginning March 13.

The franchise tag is a calming influence, especially for Jackson who might have a higher sense of his worth than his team does. From the Eagles web site:

"When Jackson signs, the tender will become a fully guaranteed one-year contract worth $9.4 million. Until Jackson signs, he is free to negotiate with other NFL teams beginning March 13 at 4 PM EST. If Jackson signs an offer sheet with another team, the Eagles have the right to match that offer or receive two first-round draft picks as compensation for Jackson’s departure."

Teams have until March 5 to apply the franchise tag to players who are at the end of their contracts. This should be a busy weekend in the NFL.

The Minnesota Vikings surprised most people by taking Christian Ponder with the twelfth pick in the 2011 NFL draft. Ponder wasn't supposed to be the quarterback of the present, with Donovan McNabb in the fold. McNabb proved ineffective, though, and Ponder ended up starting ten games as a rookie. The results from that playing time were, well, not good. A number of Ponder's mistakes were of the rookie variety and he can cure them himself.

To really improve, though, the Vikings' offense around him needs to improve. Can it in 2012, especially with Adrian Peterson unlikely to be at full strength for at least the start of the year after a horrific knee injury?

Every quarterback's best friend is a good offensive line. If that's the case, Ponder was all alone without a friend in the world in 2011. He attempted 291 passes and was sacked nearly thirty times. That's roughly once in every eleven dropbacks. And it wasn't just Ponder who was sacked, as McNabb and Webb also went down at high rates. The Vikings simply have to improve their offensive line.

Fortunately, there's one logical solution: the Vikings have the third pick in April's NFL draft, and there are two highly-regarded quarterbacks who will almost certainly be chosen first and second overall. That leaves the Vikings with an easy choice of USC left tackle Matt Kalil. Kalil, the younger brother of Panthers' center Ryan, had been a rock for the Trojans the past couple years, and is in Jake Long's class as a prospect.

How good is Kalil? The Cowboys recently announced they're moving Kalil's former teammate Tyron Smith, last year's ninth overall pick, to left tackle. Smith would have played left tackle at USC as well, but Kalil was better, forcing Smith to move to right tackle to get on the field.

Adam Schefter reported via twitter that the Steelers will be releasing long-time defensive end Aaron Smith.

Smith, who many people expected to retire following the 2011 season, has been with the Steelers since 1999. From 2000 to 2008, Smith was extremely durable, missing just five games in that stretch all of which came in the 2007 season.

His durability has become a serious issue in the past three seasons, however. Since 2009, Smith has played in a total of 15 games, and it became apparent that his time in the NFL was drawing to a close.

In his time with the Steelers, Smith accumulated 44 sacks and 453 tackles, but that's not where his greatest value was. As the defensive end in a 3-4 system, Smith was in charge of setting the Steelers' edge and maintaining his gap assignments while allowing the linebackers to shoot into the backfield and make big plays. It's a role that Smith did extremely effectively in the Steelers' system.

While the move does have a certain shock value to it, the Steelers really aren't losing much by cutting ties with Smith. He hasn't been on the field very often over the past three seasons, and he was set to make $2.1 million in 2012. Really, the move was a no-brainer for the cap-burdened Steelers.

I really don't expect Smith to sign with another team. He was a great defensive end, but he's 35 years old, and coming off of multiple injury laden seasons. Expect him to formally announce his retirement in the somewhat near future.

Like TGS on Facebook

Follow TGS on Twitter

Tarvaris Jackson knows nothing about job security. But he played well enough in 2011, leading the team to all seven of their wins, to put his team in a very dicey position when it comes to finding his replacement. With USC's Matt Barkley and Oklahoma's Landry Jones dropping out of this year's draft class, Seattle finds themselves too far away from the elite picks, and perhaps underwhelmed by the remaining alternatives. 

Coach Pete Carroll has to be praised for his ability to build a pair of seven win seasons (with a division title and a shocking playoff win for good measure) despite having a jumble of moving parts across his roster. But sooner or later, a coach seeking longevity wants to pair his fate with a franchise quarterback. Fifteen wins in two years keeps his seat relatively cool, but it also raises the stakes for the team. 

What now, coach? asks the fan base. What now, coach? asks his quarterback. What now, coach? asks Ted Thompson and the Green Bay Packers, ready to tag-and-trade Matt Flynn. What now, indeed? 

The Saint Louis Rams and New Orleans Saints went in two different directions last season - one to the gutter, the other a few seconds (and a Vernon Davis catch) away from the NFC Championship game. In response, the Rams poached Gregg Williams from the Saints to improve their defense ... to which the Saints said "thank you very much," and plucked Rams head coach Steve Spagnuolo to rebuild theirs. 

The ugly truth in New Orleans is that if Williams hadn't been hired away, he may have been run out of town. Such was the state of discontent with his high-risk, low-reward approach to defense this season. What kind of identity will the more conservative Spagnuolo impose on the Saints, and what kind of talent does he need to make it work? 

Spagnuolo will bring a 4-3 defense to New Orleans, which is what the Saints already have. However, he will also bring a new system that involves a lot of coverage and less blitzing. Spagnuolo expects his four down linemen to get pressure and that frees up the secondary to just play in coverage.

Spagnuolo is known for his days as an assistant with the Eagles and for being a great defensive coordinator with the Giants.

The Saints' new defensive coordinator is known for getting the most out of his defensive line and that is exactly what the Saints need. If Spagnuolo can make the Saints' line play great football, then the other units will benefit directly from that.

Spagnuolo should be able to affect change without too much turnover. Here we take a look at what Spagnulo can do with what ingredients he already has in his kitchen.

The Pittsburgh Steelers will soon part ways with long time wide receiver Hines Ward according to the team's website.

Steelers president Art Rooney II told Steelers.com,

"We had a conversation today with Hines Ward and informed him that we plan to release him of his contract prior to the start of the 2012 NFL calendar year. Hines has been an integral part of our success since we drafted him in 1998 and we will forever be grateful for what he has helped us achieve. He has meant so much to this organization, both on and off the field, and we appreciate his efforts over the past 14 years. Hines’ accomplishments are numerous, and he will always be thought of as one of the all-time great Steelers. We wish him nothing but the best."

Ward, who had has exactly 1,000 career receptions, had been featured much less over the past two seasons in the Steelers' offense, having just 59 and 46 receptions respectively in those seasons. To say that Steelers fans will miss Ward smiling after laying a big block on a defensive player is a massive understatement.

It appears that Ward may try to find a team in free agency, but he won't command much money. He would make a lot of sense for a team looking to add a veteran with good hands and a knack for blocking down field, but he's not likely to make a big splash.

Although Ward is now parting with the Steelers, it seems likely that he'll eventually sign a one day contract, ending his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers as he should.

Like TGS on Facebook

Follow TGS on Twitter

One never expects a parent to call their baby ugly. So it come as no surprise that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones thinks the quarterback he has is better than the quarterbacks he has no shot at getting.

Some Dallas area reporter asked Jones the silly question if he would trade quarterback Tony Romo for Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III.  Jones thinks Romo is better than the incoming rookies are.

Stephen Jones, Jerry's son and Cowboys vice president added, "There are not many better than him out there. I hear it -- he hasn't gotten it done yet. I hear it, all of that. But you are not going to find much better than Tony Romo. Every year he improves. As he gets better, our (playoff) chances get better."

Cowboys, love then or hate them. The haters love to deride Romo for the team's lack of playoff success. So media coverage blows up when Jones states the obvious — that Romo is a top-tier quarterback playing well above his draft status who keeps the Cowboys in contention when they ought not be.

Romo has a 47-30 record since starting for the Cowboys in 2006. He has thrown 149 touchdown passes against 72 interceptions. His career passer rating is 96.9. His 102.5 rating was fourth best for the 2011 season. At least 25 teams would grab him in a heartbeat if he were available.

The season captured the frustration about Romo and the Cowboys. Too often, Dallas needed Romo to win games he had already "'won" by leading the team to safe fourth-quarter leads. Even Cowboys fans questioned the comeback win against San Francisco before we know how good the 49ers would become.  The home loss to the Giants fell on Romo after he threw four TD passes to put the Cowboys comfortably ahead with five minutes to go.

The defense squandered the lead, but Romo was criticized for not bringing the team back. Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw said on the NFL Network that the Cowboys would not win a Super Bowl with Romo at quarterback.

"I don't see it happening," Bradshaw said this month. "I don't think they believe it and they are America's Team. If America don't believe it...."

Bradshaw may have been unduly influenced former Cowboys and NFL-N cheerleaders Michael Irvin, who expressed the same thought, and Deion Sanders who crooned "I belieeve in Eli (Manning)."

What's an owner to do?  Jones is not wrong for pointing out that neither Luck nor Griffin have yet to do in the NFL what Romo has accomplished. We only think they will do as well. We do not know if they will lead their team to the Promised Land. Romo, however, will not silence his critics until he leads Dallas to a Super bowl.

The story is not newsworthy, but it's slow in Dallas, where the Cowboys do not figure in trade rumors. Jones' comment is the perfect foil for the media to troll for hits by dropping the names Luck and Griffin.

Lesson learned.

The Baltimore Ravens are heading into a defining season in 2012. The tension in Baltimore will likely be tangible when the season kicks off this fall. It's no secret that they have an aging defense and an elite running back that's about to be given the team's franchise tag. We all know that, but that's not the biggest question for the Ravens in 2012.

That question involves the curious case of Joe Flacco. Flacco's current contract ends following the 2012 season. He'll be making $8.86 million in 2012 according to Rotoworld, and he'll likely be asking for top tier money when the time to begin contract negotiations begins.

The Ravens have some large decisions coming up with their key offensive players, but none looms larger than the statement the team could make by committing - or not - to their quarterback long term in this offseason.