NFL ANALYSIS
Could ‘The Freak’ make a return trip to Tennessee?
BY TERRY MCCORMICK
Could “The Freak” return to Tennessee?
Jevon Kearse left the then-capstrapped Tennessee Titans as a free agent after the 2003 season, and signed a deal worth $66 million with the Philadelphia Eagles.
The paychecks and uniforms were greener with the Eagles than they were in Tennessee, but that’s about it as far as Kearse was concerned.
Kearse, now 31, has freefallen in Philly, so far that he was a healthy scratch in two Eagles games. The former first-round pick and Defensive Rookie of the Year in 1999 wound up sitting in favor of his former Titans backup Juqua Thomas, an undrafted free agent who was rarely used in Tennessee.
Kearse’s status as a backup who has battled a knee injury makes him a likely target to be cut. His cap figure of around $8.5 million only increases that likelihood. In fact, he told a member of the Philadelphia media at season’s end that he expected to be released by the club, given his hefty salary ($6.46 million base for 2008) and loss of his starting role.
Putting two and two together, it doesn’t appear out of the realm of possibility that, for the right price, Kearse could be a decent fit back with the Titans.
Players who have been coached by the Titans’ Jim Washburn almost unanimously sing the defensive line coach’s praises, and many would jump at the chance to play for him again, as Robaire Smith did in 2006.
Just this past week, Washburn was in Hawaii courtesy of his Pro Bowl tandem of Albert Haynesworth and Kyle Vanden Bosch.
If Kearse, who lost all but two games in 2006 to a knee injury, has anything left, Washburn could probably get it out of him. Kearse’s last strong season was a 9.5 sack season in 2003, his final one in Tennessee. He never had more than 7.5 sacks in a season in Philadelphia and had just 3.5 in 2007.
Besides, it could be difficult for the Titans to re-sign both Antwan Odom and Travis LaBoy, who are headed for unrestricted free agency after combining for 14 sacks.
Efforts to reach Drew Rosenhaus on Monday were unsuccessful.
LINK
http://e-paper.nashvillecitypaper.co...ML&FontSize=g1
Could ‘The Freak’ make a return trip to Tennessee?
Could ‘The Freak’ make a return trip to Tennessee?
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