NFL Offseason: The Big Moves, Complete With Reactions

Ah, summer. Time to put your feet up, kick back, get some sun...that is, of course if you manage to find the time outside a 40-hour work week.

This particular summer has brought some 400-hour work weeks for NFL executives. With the absolute feast of offseason moves that have taken place in the last week, it's a great time to be a sports glutton. Here are the biggest moves of the offseason and the Sports Casual spin on all things NFL.




The Cincinnati Bengals trade Chad Ochocinco to the New England Patriots for a fifth- and sixth-round pick
-New England fans have to be extremely excited about this move. The parallels between this trade and the Randy Moss trade of 2007. I love this deal. Not just because Ochocino (which is still a ridiculous name) brings some additional talent for Tom Brady, but because the New England Patriots will have entertaining press conferences for the first time since the 1990s.


Reggie Bush signs a 2-year, $10 million contract with the Miami Dolphins
-Moving to Miami will resurrect Reggie Bush's career. I'm not saying he's going to vault to superstar status because of the move. He'll never be an elite back in the NFL. But he'll certainly put up better numbers than he did in New Orleans. The truth is, Reggie Bush never made sense in the pass-happy New Orleans offense. He'll get the ball a lot more in Miami, mainly because the Dolphins will be doing anything they can to take the football out of Chad Henne's hands. Expect Reggie Bush to finally achieve mediocrity.


The Philadelphia Eagles trade Kevin Kolb to the Arizona Cardinals
-Why does the media care so much about Kevin Kolb? He's a 2nd round pick who has proved one thing and one thing only: he is extremely average. And yet, he just landed an outrageous new contract worth over $60 million. Congratulations, Arizona, you still aren't very good.


The Washington Redskins trade Donovan McNabb to the Minnesota Vikings
-This deal is merely a fallback in case the Vikings find out that Christian Ponder isn't very talented. Good thing, too, because Christian Ponder isn't very talented.

Vince Young signs a 1-year, $5.5 million contract with the Philadelphia Eagles
-I can think of a lot better things to spend $5.5 million on. You could, for example, get 5.5 million items from the dollar menu.


The Chicago Bears trade Greg Olsen to the Carolina Panthers
-Olsen didn't fit into Mike Martz' offensive scheme in Chicago, but it's a shame he had to go. Carolina got a very talented player and only had to give up a 3rd-round pick. The move is especially smart because a first-year quarterback needs a great tight end to adjust to the NFL.


Daniel Manning signs a 4-year, $20 million contract with the Houston Texans
-If Houston can fix up a god-awful secondary, they'll have all the necessary utensils for making the postseason. I think they've done enough with this move (and a few others). Texans in the playoffs.

The Washington Redskins trade Albert Haynesworth to the New England Patriots for a fifth-round pick
-And so ends the saga of fat Albert in Washington. New England got the big man for a great price, but Patriots fans should meet this deal with trepidation. It's not as if Washington has a hack of a coach in Mike Shanahan. Will Belichick be able to whip Haynesworth into shape? Or will he keep complaining and stomping on heads?


Nnamdi Asomugha signs a 5-year, $60 million deal with the Philadelphia Eagles
-The prize of 2011's free agent class lands in Philadelphia. The deal is exactly what we'd expect: a lot of money for a very talented player. The location was a surprise. Philadelphia has made some great moves this offseason, and fans will be expecting a lot from them this season. When the Eagles don't win the Super Bowl, there will be lots of unrest in Philly.