Buffalo is about to encounter the same questions and controversies that gripped Chicago this week.
Just as Bears wide receiver/return specialist Devin Hester failed to report to training camp, BillsPro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters will do the same.
Just as Hester is hinting at a season-long holdout, Peters is contemplating the same.
Just as it is not pretty in Chicago where Hester is facing fines of $15,116 per day, it will not be pretty in Buffalo, where Peters is regarded as the top young left tackle in the game.
Bills quarterback Trent Edwards will get more pressure and running back Marshawn Lynch will get fewer holes without Peters. But Peters is determined to get more money.
Peters is scheduled to earn $3.25 million in base salary this year, $2.95 million next year and $3.4 million in the final year of his current contract. Buffalo also paid Peters $5.75 million worth of bonuses when he signed an extension in July 2006.
But that extension now pales in comparison to the type of deal that Tennessee's left tackle Michael Roos got last month, when he signed a six-year, $43 million deal.
Barring an unanticipated breakthrough in contract talks, Peters will not be in camp when the rest of his teammates report Friday. Nor is he expected there anytime soon.
Meet the commissioner
Brett Favre is hardly the only player NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is monitoring. Goodell also is tracking the talented but troubled wide receivers, Brandon Marshall and Chris Henry.
Each receiver, Marshall and Henry, was in New York on Monday to meet with the commissioner. Each pleaded his case, hoping to avert or shorten a suspension. Rulings are expected next week.
Marshall is facing a four-to-eight game suspension for a pattern of conduct the NFL does not approve. Losing Marshall for at least a quarter of the season would be a blow to the Broncos.
But Marshall was arrested three times in the span of one year, though he has yet to be convicted. The league now is weighing whether it should suspend Marshall, and how long the suspension would be.
"You are always concerned any time the commissioner calls you in to have a meeting," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said at his Thursday press conference. "It's obviously not a good sign."
Former Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith accompanied Marshall on his trip to the league's New York offices. Smith is a perfect example of a player who once encountered his own off-the-field difficulties and conquered them the way he did cornerbacks. Smith matured and evolved into an example of how every player should carry himself.
Henry currently is on indefinite suspension for his own pattern of poor decisions and bad behavior. Henry was arrested for the fifth time in April.
Henry is trying to have the suspension overturned to play as soon as possible. If Henry is reinstated, it likely will not come until sometime in the middle of the season. But the league believes Henry offered a sufficient argument as to why he should have his suspension lifted.
Cornering the market
Detroit traded defensive tackle Shaun Rogers for cornerback Leigh Bodden and a third-round pick this offseason. Now its trying to ensure Bodden will be in Detroit for seasons to come.
The Lions reached agreement Thursday with Bodden on a four-year, $27 million contract extension. Bodden has two years left on his contract at base salaries of $1.7 and $1.8 million.
Bodden will receive a $2 million signing bonus this year and a option bonus of $8.6 million in March. The option bonus is not guaranteed, however. If the team does not pick it up, Bodden will become a free agent on the first day of the 2009 league year, which in essence shaves the 2009 year off of his contract.
Assuming that the option is exercised, Bodden will be under contract to the Lions through the 2013 season.
Fallen Giant
Wide receiver David Tyree holds a place in Giants and Super Bowl history, producing the most memorable play the game has ever seen.
But he could have a difficult time holding his roster spot this season. Tyree still is recovering from knee surgery in April and opened training camp Thursday on the Physically Unable to Perform List. If Tyree cannot recover quicker than he has, he could open the season on PUP, which would sideline him the first six to 12 weeks of the season.
With the talent the Giants have at receiver, some wonder whether Tyree will stick the way the ball stuck to his helmet in New York's Super Bowl win over New England.
"I guess you could say that I have been a bubble guy for the last 5 years right?" Tyree said. "So what is the difference now? But, it is not that big of a deal. I am here to compete and I am happy to be a New York Giant. I guess when you make what they call 'the best play', I guess that gives everybody something to write about."
Boston's new Cheers
Asked how happy he was to see Taylor out of the AFC East, Brady said: "I think (Patriots offensive tackle Matt) Light and I popped a cold beer when I saw that transaction. We were the two most excited players in the NFL. I appreciate that very much and I let him know it as well."
And Brady said Light had no problem admitting it.
"Oh yeah," Brady said. "We were hugging each other. It was awesome."
