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The NFL's new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) has brought an issue we haven't faced in a number of years: Tight salary-cap situations.

After jumping considerably in the final few years of the old CBA, the league's cap limit isn't expected to rise much, if any, for the 2012 season. That means teams will have roughly $120 million to work with as they assemble the top 51 players on their training camp roster.

Based on the numbers I've been able to dig up, it appears that three of our four NFC North teams are going to be relatively tight against that number, especially considering they need to save room for signing a draft class. All teams must be in compliance when the new league year opens, and free agency begins, on March 13.

The following is how much each team currently has committed to its 2012 cap. Keep in mind that the numbers probably will change between now and March 13 as teams re-sign, re-negotiate and release players from their rosters.

• Chicago Bears: $101.8 million
• Detroit Lions: $122.8 million
• Green Bay Packers: $115.3 million
• Minnesota Vikings: $115.3 million

A few thoughts:

1. We've already discussed the Lions' situation at some length. Simple math tells us they're going to have to adjust some current salaries just to get under $120 million, and the first candidate is receiver Calvin Johnson, who is projected to count about $22 million against the cap alone. As we've noted, four players -- Johnson, quarterback Matthew Stafford, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch -- account for nearly half of their total cap projection.
2. There are tricks available for teams like the Lions who want to keep or re-sign their players in a tight environment. They come with risks and the potential for future problems, but there is always a way to squeeze players into a given year's cap. The new CBA has a provision that allows teams to borrow against future caps, providing another option.
3. One positive bi-product of the Bears' decision to trade for quarterback Jay Cutler in 2009: It relieved them of the cap commitment associated with two first-round draft picks. That's one of the reasons new general manager Phil Emery has some $18 million to work with if he wants to sign veteran free agents and/or use his franchise tag on tailback Matt Forte.
4. The Packers have a number of veterans they want to re-sign, including tight end Jermichael Finley and center Scott Wells. With about $5 million in wiggle room, based on these numbers, they'll need to make some adjustments to fit both players in. As Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has already suggested, the Packers could carve out some space by either releasing receiver Donald Driver or renegotiating his contract. The same could happen for left tackle Chad Clifton.
5. Still, it should be clear why it seems unlikely that the Packers would place their franchise tag on quarterback Matt Flynn for the purposes of trading him after March 13. Doing so would require a $14 million cap commitment, require more cap maneuvering than would be comfortable and likely exposing either Finley or Wells to the free agent market.

It took longer than expected. Preliminary decisions were questioned. Debates extended into the wee hours. We went through a first draft, then a second and even a third. Countless observers were consulted. It wasn't until I had a full week to mull the 2011 All-NFC North team that I was prepared to make the big reveal.

Via Twitter, @jpberthiaume asked: "Do people really care about these 'teams?'" I guess it's a fair point. I doubt few, if any, of the players listed in the chart wrote a fifth-grade essay about their plans to one day make the All-NFC North team on ESPN.com, even if it was only because the NFC North hadn't yet been formed in those days and ESPN.com was operating out of a Bristol-based closet.

So I'll let you be the judge. This is annually a fun exercise, even if it doesn't lead to a deep understanding of the human condition or even reveal any breakthroughs about the just-completed season. If nothing else, it offers us a blank template to recognize the best-performing players in the division without the hindrance of the politics and reputation.

Some notes on some of the tight decisions, for which I seriously received input from multiple angles:

• One of the fiercest debates came at wide receiver. Everyone agreed that the Detroit Lions' Calvin Johnson deserved one spot, but there was a split about the other two. Did the Green Bay Packers' Greg Jennings, who missed three games because of a knee injury, deserve an automatic bid? And if he did, should the Packers' Jordy Nelson or the Minnesota Vikings' Percy Harvin get the third spot? I thought Jennings' 67 receptions, 949 yards and nine touchdowns in 13 games merited a spot. And ultimately I chose Nelson over Harvin. I realize Harvin caught 87 passes in a punchless offense and added 345 rushing yards to his total, but in the end I couldn't overlook a player who scored more touchdowns (15) than all but four players in the NFL this season. Plus, as Hatterbot pointed out: "Rushing yards don't count in the WR category."

2011 All-NFC North Team

Pos.	Player, Team
OFFENSE
WR	Calvin Johnson (DET)
WR	Greg Jennings (GB)
WR	Jordy Nelson (GB)
LT	Jeff Backus (DET)
LG	Rob Sims (DET)
C	Scott Wells (GB)
RG	Josh Sitton (GB)
RT	Bryan Bulaga (GB)
TE	Jermichael Finley (GB)
QB	Aaron Rodgers (GB)
RB	Matt Forte (CHI)
DEFENSE
DE	Jared Allen (MIN)
DT	Kevin Williams (MIN)
DT	Ndamukong Suh (DET)
DE	Julius Peppers (CHI)
OLB	Clay Matthews (GB)
MLB	Brian Urlacher (CHI)
OLB	Lance Briggs (CHI)
CB	Charles Tillman (CHI)
CB	Charles Woodson (GB)
S-NB	Tramon Williams (GB)
S	Louis Delmas (DET)
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK	Mason Crosby (GB)
P	Tim Mastay (GB)
PR	Devin Hester (CHI)
KR	Percy Harvin (MIN)
ST	Corey Graham (CHI)

• I went with the Lions' Rob Sims at left guard in part on the advice of John McTigue of ESPN Stats & Information, who noted that Sims was the only NFC North left guard to play the position for 16 games this season. Sims also had the best pass-sack ratio (19.7 passes per sack) of the group, based on video study.
• There is no doubt that the Lions' Brandon Pettigrew (83 catches) had a more productive season than the Packers' Jermichael Finley (55). But the Lions often used Pettigrew as a substitute for their punchless running game, and that's why his per-catch average of 9.4 yards was lower than any other tight end with at least 30 catches. According to ESPN Stats & Information, the average pass to Pettigrew this season traveled 6.5 yards in the air. The average pass to Finley traveled 11.4 yards. Finley caught five passes of at least 30 yards. Pettigrew's longest was 27. Both players had their share of drops, combining for a total of 15, but I thought Finley made a bigger impact on his catches than Pettigrew did.
• I really debated the Bears' Julius Peppers and the Lions' Cliff Avril at defensive end. Avril (11.5) had a half-sack more than Peppers (11) and forced twice as many fumbles. But one of the advantages we have on this team is investigating beyond the conventional numbers. Our friends at Pro Football Focus (PFF) credited Peppers with 53 quarterback pressures, the second-highest total in the NFL. Avril ranked No. 8 with 37, but in a close race I chose the maximum number of plays impacted over Avril's slight edge in "playmaking" statistics.
• I used a similar approach in choosing the Vikings' Kevin Williams and the Lions' Ndamukong Suh as my defensive tackles. It's true that the Bears' Henry Melton led the NFC North's defensive tackles with seven pressures, but PFF had Suh with 27 quarterback pressures, an NFL high for an interior lineman. Williams tied for No. 3 with 25. Melton wasn't that far behind at 23, but I also took into account that the Bears nearly benched him for inconsistency at one point in the season. (Coach Lovie Smith in November: "He hasn't showed up as much. Whether teams have adjusted to him or whatever, we need to get more production from him because he's capable of it.") Meanwhile, I thought Packers defensive lineman B.J. Raji took a step backward in 2011. PFF credited him with only 10 stops (the cumulative number of plays made that constitute an offensive failure) in 842 snaps.
• If you want to say I chickened out at linebacker, go ahead. I originally left open the middle and one of the outside spots, but in the end I went with our division standbys: Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs. For starters, Briggs was one of six non-offensive linemen to play 100 percent of his team's snaps in the NFL this season. There's something to be said for being available to your team. And while I do think that the Packers' Desmond Bishop and the Lions' Stephen Tulloch had good seasons, I couldn't find a statistic or an opinion that convinced me they were better than Urlacher. Someday, there will be turnover among NFC North linebackers. But it didn't happen this season.
• Safety play was poor throughout the NFC North, so I'm not at all ashamed to have chosen a third cornerback to replace one of the safeties on this team. It came down to the Lions' Chris Houston and the Packers' Tramon Williams. Both had their ups and downs in coverage. Houston had five interceptions and two touchdowns in 14 games, while Williams had four interceptions and one touchdown in 15 games. In the end, I chose Williams because I think it was pretty clear he was pushing through a really limiting shoulder injury for much of the first half of the season.
• I chose the Packers' specialists, kicker Mason Crosby and punter Tim Masthay. Crosby converted 24 of 28 kicks, including a 58-yarder, and ranked third in the NFL with 49 touchbacks. Masthay downed a division-high 23 punts inside the 20-yard line despite a division-low 55 punts.
• I mistakenly left off a coverage specialist from our original post. There should be no debating that the Bears' Corey Graham deserves that spot.
• Go ahead. Rip away....

Coming later this week: Some supplementary NFC North awards, including our top coordinators.

NEW YORK -- The NFL suspended Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh for two games without pay for stomping an opponent in a Thanksgiving Day game.

The NFL said this was Suh's fifth violation of on-field rules in the last two seasons. He will not be permitted to practice with the Lions or take part in team activities during the suspension.

Read the entire story.

Ndamukong Suh on Tuesday defended his quarterback's actions and his team's style of play two days after a loss to the Chicago Bears in a physical game that featured a fight in the fourth quarter.

Read the entire story.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Jay Cutler admitted Wednesday that the Detroit Lions got somewhat chirpy in the first meeting between the teams, but attributed it to being a “Monday night game for them, first time in a long time. So they were excited.”

Other players around the league have made similar comments about Detroit’s seemingly talkative on-field nature, but Lions coach Jim Schwartz made it clear he’s not worried about how his team or players are perceived.

“First of all, we don’t care about what other people think,” Schwartz said. “And we don’t care about polls and power rankings or any of that other foolishness. It’s a physical game that’s played on the field. We need to play well on Sunday. All the other stuff doesn’t make a difference, what anybody says, what pundits or experts or players or anything else.”

Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who met with Commissioner Roger Goodell to talk about his playing style during the team’s bye week, was recently voted the NFL’s dirtiest player in a midseason player poll conducted by the Sporting News.

The league has fined Suh three times for violent hits, and earlier this season Falcons players accused the defensive tackle of taunting quarterback Matt Ryan when he left a Week 7 game injured.

“I defy … any player in the league is going to talk at some point in the game,” Schwartz said. “Games of football, it’s a physical game. There’s some personality involved in the game. But what matters most is the way you play. And we care about how we play, not what other people think of us.”

DALLAS -- Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh is still waiting to hear if the NFL plans to rescind a $15,000 fine levied against the rookie for a vicious hit on Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.

Suh was flagged for unnecessary roughness after he shoved a scrambling Cutler to the ground in the Bears 24-20 victory at Ford Field. Referee Ed Hochuli called the play "an unnecessary football act" because Suh delivered an illegal forearm.

The defensive lineman appealed the fine.

"No, they haven't [responded]," Suh said Thursday after accepting the NFL Rookie of the Year Award at the Super Bowl media center.

"I'm still in the process right now. As I [understand] it, it [the fine] still stands."

"It was a hit, an aggressive hit. I was just trying to get the ball out. We were down in our redzone and I didn't want them to score. Unfortunately, I got called for it, but obviously I can understand the reasons why I did. But like I said, that's out of my hands. I got to continue to keep playing and move on to the next play."

Detroit Lions defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh has been fined $15,000 by the NFL after drawing an unnecessary roughness penalty for a hit on Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler last weekend.

Read the entire story.

DETROIT -- Here are five things we learned following the Chicago Bears' 24-20 win over the Detroit Lions.

1. Cutler keeps rising to the occasion: Since the bye, few players have raised their level of play more than Jay Cutler, who posted a 117.0 quarterback rating versus Detroit. Cutler hit rock bottom in a loss to Washington on Oct. 24, but he has responded in incredible fashion. He continues to shown the ability to keep plays alive with his feet and check down to the open receiver. If Cutler keeps playing at this level -- and protecting the football -- the Bears will be tough to beat in the postseason. Cutler finally has his first winning season since high school; now it's time for him to accomplish another career first -- lead the Bears to a win(s) in the playoffs. At this rate, he might be able to pull that off.

2. Bennett is Mr. Clutch: Earl Bennett has become the Bears' preferred target on third down because has great hands, can read the defense and runs crisp routes. But the former 2008 third-round pick is also sneaky quick, and tough to bring down in the open field. Bennett wasn't even active Week 1, but yet he's second on the team in catches (39) and receiving yards (457). The numbers say Johnny Knox is the Bears best receiver, but is there a more productive player on the field than Bennett? Doubt it. When the Bears need a big catch, the ball is going to No. 80, and more times than not, he delivers.

3. Moore most pleasant surprise of year: Not only did D.J. Moore fail to get on the field in 2009, he wasn't even sure he was going to make the team in 2010. But Moore has a knack for making big plays, and the starting nickel back delivered a sack and tackle for a loss against the Lions. Sure, he looked bad trying to bring down Calvin Johnson at the end of the first half, but Moore always bounces back because he is supremely confident in his abilities. Moore successfully straddles the fence between confident and cocky, and has a very short memory when it comes to making a mistake or getting burned -- a prerequisite for any NFL defensive back. Although Moore isn't a big guy, he still tackles reasonably well and is always around the football. With his personality and skill level, Moore should be a fun guy to cover over the next several years.

4. The kickers salvaged special teams: It certainly wasn't a great day for the Bears' coverage units after Stephan Logan averaged 38.7 yards on three kickoff returns. But Robbie Gould and Brad Maynard held up their ends of the bargain. Gould booted a career long 54-yard field goal, and is now three of four from 50-plus yards this season. Maynard pinned the Lions inside the 20 on two of his three punts, and averaged 45 yards per kick. Both players hit a rough patch or so during the year, but come playoff time, the kicking game becomes increasingly important. The Bears have the luxury of two proven and dependable kickers -- to go along with flawless long-snapper Pat Mannelly -- and that could be the difference in a tightly contested postseason affair.

5. Suh is a force: If Ndamukong Suh stays healthy, he will be the premiere defensive tackle in the NFL for years to come. His ability to reach the quarterback from an interior defensive line position is amazing. But Suh doesn't just reach the quarterback, he attacks them with extreme force. That hit on Cutler was awesome -- and clean, in my opinion -- and showed you the strength and violence Suh puts behind his hits. Suh may toil in NFL purgatory (Detroit) for much of his career, but even if he keeps playing for bad Lions teams, I'll still enjoy watching him face the Bears twice a year. Why? Because I'm a football fan, and Suh is turning into a great football player.

DETROIT -- Referee Ed Hochuli said the hit by Ndamukong Suh on Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler was a "non-football act," which led to a pivotal unnecessary roughness call against the Detroit Lions rookie on Sunday.

The controversial moment came in fourth quarter of the Bears' 24-20 victory with Chicago trailing 20-17. Cutler scrambled on first down and was jolted to the ground by Suh, who appeared to shove the Bears quarterback at his shoulder pads.

Instead of facing a second and 2 from the Detroit 14, the Bears had a first down at the 7. Cutler passed to Brandon Manumaleuna for a 7-yard touchdown pass to take the lead for good with 8:39 left.

Replays appeared to show Suh legally hit Cutler in the upper back, however, Hochuli felt otherwise when interviewed by a pool reporter following the game.

"I felt it was an unnecessary non-football act -- a blow to the back of the runner's helmet in the process of him going down," Hochuli told the reporter. "When you tackle people, you come in and you wrap up and come with your arms and things like that. I felt he delivered a blow to the back of the runner that happened to be the quarterback. That's why I was down there following it. He's my responsibility."

Not surprisingly, Bears coach Lovie Smith agreed with the call.

"I saw exactly what you saw," Smith said. "I saw him get hit in the back of the head, and I thought he did a good job of calling it. I saw it exactly the way the officials did. It should have been a penalty and it was."
Suh saw it differently.

"I really don't care what he called or if it was a penalty or not," Suh said. "I'm just going out there to make a play."

Several Bears defenders, including middle linebacker Brian Urlacher, have been extremely critical of the NFL cracking down on illegal hits.

"I didn't see it, all I saw was the referee throw the flag," Urlacher said with a grin. "Got to protect those quarterbacks you know. They must have saw it was a quarterback and threw the flag. It's a judgment [call], and they are going to do what they are going to do. I'm just glad it worked out for us."

Said defensive end Julius Peppers: "I take caution when it's a quarterback running out of the pocket. You want to be aggressive, but you also need to be smart."

Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh realizes the offensive he faced in Week 1 is vastly different from the one he will face Sunday when his team hosts the Chicago Bears at Ford Field.

Since that outing, in which the Lions posted four sacks and six hits on quarterback Jay Cutler, the Bears have gone through four combinations of starters up front, leading to improved production for the club’s offense.

Suh points to the return of right guard Roberto Garza, who started on the left side in the opener.

“The biggest thing I’ve noticed is Garza, who I’ll be going against, is back in pretty much his original position, where he played most in his career,” Suh said. “That’s definitely going to be a challenge, and one that I’m definitely up and excited for. They’ve switched around a couple of guys, but they’ve really only added one player, that being the right tackle (J’Marcus Webb). So it’s pretty much all the same guys, just in different positions.”

After starting the first five games at left guard, Garza underwent minor surgery on Oct. 15 to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee, which he suffered in the club’s victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 27. The injury kept Garza out of the lineup for two games, with him moving to right guard upon his Nov. 7 return.

“When they lost three of four (from Oct. 3 to Oct. 24), they were taking a lot of sacks,” Lions coach Jim Schwartz said. “Since then they’re 4-0. I think they did a really good job of settling that down, and they’ve found some continuity.”

Suh also pointed to changes in Chicago’s play-calling as part of its recent success.

“It’s a better scheme,” Suh said. “They’ve allowed themselves to create a good running game, which has definitely helped them out with the pass. Them having a balanced attack, and really being able to run the ball and transition to pass to make big plays and play action and so forth [has helped].”

Suh’s eight sacks rank as the most by a Lions rookie since 1982, when sacks became an official statistic. The defensive tackle posted one sack against the Bears in Week 1, and he says he’s not surprised by his early success.

“I don’t expect to not come in and be a factor,” Suh said. “That was the biggest thing I wanted to be. I wanted to come out, and at least not be the weakest link, be able to learn, and help my team out.”

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Detroit Lions rookie defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh may be the real deal.

At least, that was the vibe given off in the Bears locker room Wednesday, from players who either personally know Suh, or those faced with the task of blocking the No. 2 overall pick of the 2010 NFL draft.

"He's a good player," Suh's former college teammate and Bears cornerbackZack Bowman said. "He was a good player in college, and we came in together. He was strong, fast and basically hasn't changed. The tape speaks for itself. Suh is a great player. Plus they've got Kyle Vanden Bosch who is also a Nebraska guy. They got a good line."

"He tries to be explosive and uses his hands well," Bears right tackle Frank Omiyale said of Suh.

But maybe Suh's most glowing endorsement came in a six-second sound bite from Olin Kreutz.

"His hype is well deserved," Bears center Olin Kreutz said. "He's a good player. Anybody who goes No. 2 [in the draft] has earned it. We'll go out there, play against him, and find out what he's about."

The Bears center rarely heaps praise on an undeserving opponent, so Kreutz's positive comment proves the rookie defensive tackle has looked decent on tape.

The Lions are doing their best not to over-hype Suh before he plays an NFL game, but according to Detroit coach Jim Schwartz, Suh has so far lived up the billing of being a top-five pick.

"That's a hard advertisement to live up to, because he certainly came with a lot of accolades and a big resume," Schwartz said. "We drafted him for a reason. We drafted him because we like everything about him. You don't draft players that high in the draft unless you're totally confident in not only their abilities as a player, but what they bring off the field in their work ethic and maturity and things like that.

"We haven't seen him play in an NFL game that counts yet, so we'll leave those evaluations until we start seeing him in games that count. But he certainly hasn't been disappointing when it comes to work ethic, practice habits and what he does on the practice field."

John Niyo of the Detroit News takes a little time out to discuss the Detroit Lions for Day 3 of our NFC North beat reporters series.

We’ve already covered the Vikings, and Packers, and plan on getting to the Bears on Friday.

Five things the Lions need to worry about

1. The secondary: It’s still a huge question mark. Another offseason overhaul means three new starters among the defensive backs. Although they have upgraded speed at the corners, are these guys really going to be able to play more press coverage? And is anybody capable of filling that starting strong safety spot next to Louis Delmas? Trust me, opponents are going to test them to find out.

2. Middle linebacker: Revamping the D-line was a primary goal this offseason, and there's no doubt they did that by adding Ndamukong Suh, Corey Williams and Kyle Vanden Bosch. But for the moment, it's a second-year guy, Deandre Levy, starting at middle linebacker. Another of last year's rookies, Zack Follett, a guy who started 2009 on the practice squad, is starting on the weak side. You can cover up a linebacker easier than some other positions, but obviously they're putting a lot of trust in Levy.

3. Matthew Stafford: Can Stafford stay healthy? He went down with a dislocated kneecap in Week 4 as a rookie, and then went down for the count with a separated shoulder late in the season. He looks to be healthy again this offseason, but without him -- and honestly, Shaun Hill's an upgrade over last year at the backup quarterback spot -- the Lions' offense isn't going anywhere.

4. Offensive line depth: A bad offensive line isn't what got Stafford beat up last season. But an o-line that's probably average at best did get beat up by injuries, and an offense that couldn't generate enough big plays. They've added weapons like Jahvid Best and Tony Scheffler and Nate Burleson to try to solve that last part. But the O-line depth remains a big concern.

5. Possible slow start: It's hard to look at the Lions' schedule and find a lot of wins. This is a team that's 3-37 the last two-plus seasons. But after an offseason that has people thinking optimistically again, an 0-4 start would be tough to handle. Still, they start with three division games and Philly, and three of those first four are on the road.

Five things not to worry about

1. Scoring: This offense is going to score some points. Stafford's struggles as a rookie -- and really, his numbers were nearly identical to Mark Sanchez's as a rookie -- had as much to do with the lack of talent around him as much as his own mistakes last season. Receivers couldn't get open and running backs couldn't break off big gains -- they had just five runs of 20-plus yards all season. But they've added a big-play back in Jahvid Best, who they can get creative with, a No. 2 receiver in Burleson, who can take some pressure off Calvin Johnson, and maybe most important, another big pass-catching tight end in Scheffler. Expect to see a lot of two-tight end sets with Scheffler and Brandon Pettigrew. Then watch them move Best all over the place to create some mismatches.

2. Ndamukong Suh: He won’t be a bust. Sure, rookie defensive tackles historically struggle in the NFL, and many haven't proven worthy of their draft status. Almost any scout will tell you Suh is a rare specimen. And maybe one of the more underrated offseason moves -- the Lions' trade for Corey Williams -- should give the No. 2 pick a pretty good tag-team partner inside.

3. Free-agent addition Vanden Bosch: He won’t be a bust, either. A lot of people seem to think Vanden Bosch can't get it done anymore. But there's a reason coach Jim Schwartz showed up on his doorstep at the stroke of midnight the first day of free agency. He knows he's got a right-side anchor who knows this scheme, and a guy who will bring it every play, which is what this team has lacked for too long.

4. Calvin Johnson: He’s going to make the Pro Bowl this season, provided he stays healthy, which I suppose might be something to worry about. Johnson and Stafford barely got to know each other on the field last season due to their injuries. But they've had a full offseason together, and I'll be shocked if it doesn't show on Sundays. Burleson is a guy who can play the role Bryant Johnson couldn't last season, and with teams forced to respect Best's speed out of the backfield, Johnson's going to get his chances to shine. Finally.

5. The fans: After all they've been through, they're still here. This franchise has gone 33-111 since the start of Matt Millen's reign of terror, and this city and state have gotten clobbered economically. Yet I'll be surprised if the Lions don't sell out all but a couple of games this season. I don't know that they'll get a winner this year -- I'm thinking 5-11 or 6-10 -- but they certainly deserve one.

While many NFL scouts attended Nebraska's pro day to see former Cornhuskers defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, safety Larry Asante remains an attractive option for the Chicago Bears in the third or possibly fourth round.

According to Omaha.com, Asante ran a 4.55 40-yard dash on Thursday, considerably better then his official 4.63 time at the NFL Combine last month.

"They (scouts) told me they wanted to see me in the 4.5 range," Asante told the Web site, "and that's what they got.'

The Web site estimated that 24 NFL scouts were in attendance on Thursday in Lincoln.