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06-15-2003, 12:08 AM
Faced with the looming possibility of releasing running back Thomas Jones, the seventh overall pick in the 2000 draft, the Arizona Cardinals pulled off the blind-squirrel-and-acorn routine, thanks to the gross misconduct of former Cards running back Michael Pittman.
The Cardinals snared second-year receiver Marquise Walker from Tampa in exchange for Jones.
Walker was a third-round pick from Michigan in 2002, and he didn't play at all as a rookie.
Predictably, the Bucs downplay the loss of Walker. "Marquise was caught in a situation where playing time would have been limited," said G.M. Rich McKay. "Therefore, this trade will give him a chance to go and compete for more playing time."
But Walker, the first draft choice of the Gruden era, represents something that the Bucs don't have at the receiver position -- youth.
Keyshawn Johnson will be 31 when the season opens. At any given moment, Meshawn is a wild hair away from retirement, especially since he's gotten his long-coveted Ring.
Likewise, Keenan McCardell is 33, Karl Williams is 32, and Joe Jurevicius is 28.
Maybe the Bucs saw something in Walker they didn't like. Or maybe they assume that they'll find other young receivers on the open market. Regardless, giving up Walker was a fairly stiff price to pay for a grossly underachieving running back (who couldn't beat out Pittman when both were in 'Zona), and it tells us that the Bucs definitely are planning for life without Pittman in 2003.
Jones will cost the Bucs $535,000 in salary, and the Cards took a $1.43 million cap charge for the final year of Jones' prorated signing bonus. Walker, who will earn $300,000 this season in salary, will cost the Bucs roughly $150,000 this year and $150,000 against the cap, based on the signing bonus of approximately $450,000 that he received when he signed a three-year deal in 2002.
http://profootballtalk.com/weekendrumors.htm
The Cardinals snared second-year receiver Marquise Walker from Tampa in exchange for Jones.
Walker was a third-round pick from Michigan in 2002, and he didn't play at all as a rookie.
Predictably, the Bucs downplay the loss of Walker. "Marquise was caught in a situation where playing time would have been limited," said G.M. Rich McKay. "Therefore, this trade will give him a chance to go and compete for more playing time."
But Walker, the first draft choice of the Gruden era, represents something that the Bucs don't have at the receiver position -- youth.
Keyshawn Johnson will be 31 when the season opens. At any given moment, Meshawn is a wild hair away from retirement, especially since he's gotten his long-coveted Ring.
Likewise, Keenan McCardell is 33, Karl Williams is 32, and Joe Jurevicius is 28.
Maybe the Bucs saw something in Walker they didn't like. Or maybe they assume that they'll find other young receivers on the open market. Regardless, giving up Walker was a fairly stiff price to pay for a grossly underachieving running back (who couldn't beat out Pittman when both were in 'Zona), and it tells us that the Bucs definitely are planning for life without Pittman in 2003.
Jones will cost the Bucs $535,000 in salary, and the Cards took a $1.43 million cap charge for the final year of Jones' prorated signing bonus. Walker, who will earn $300,000 this season in salary, will cost the Bucs roughly $150,000 this year and $150,000 against the cap, based on the signing bonus of approximately $450,000 that he received when he signed a three-year deal in 2002.
http://profootballtalk.com/weekendrumors.htm