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Time to take a run through the top headlines from around the NFC South.

• Interim New Orleans coach Joe Vitt said he’s been pleased with what he’s seen from the Saints so far in their offseason program. We’ll hear more from Vitt and players this afternoon, because the Saints have media availability after their workout.

• New Orleans rookie defensive tackle Aikem Hicks talked about adjusting to defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.

• Tom Jones runs through the positives and negatives of Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano’s disciplined style. We’ll see how the Bucs take to Schiano in the long run. But I like what I’ve seen out of Schiano so far. He has brought structure to a team that didn’t have any last year, and that’s what led to the 10-game losing streak to end last season and cost predecessor Raheem Morris his job.

• Carolina defensive end Thomas Keiser has been commuting between California and Charlotte each week. He’s working to finish his degree at Stanford, but also has been taking part in the team’s offseason program.

• Falcons guard Justin Blalock will serve as a spokesman for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.

• Atlanta tight end Tony Gonzalez came in at No. 53 on the NFL Network’s list of the top 100 players for 2012. Not bad for a guy who is 36.

• New Orleans linebacker Jonathan Vilma came in at No. 58 on that same list. That one is more than surprising. Vilma had an off year in 2011, when he was slowed by a knee injury. He also is scheduled to be suspended this season, unless he wins an appeal.

If I had to pick one undrafted rookie to make an NFC South roster right now, it would be Tampa Bay offensive lineman Desmond Wynn.

That’s because the Bucs obviously thought very highly of Wynn when they signed him. I just got a look at the contract details for all the NFC South undrafted rookie free agents and Wynn’s $15,000 signing bonus was easily the highest. That might have something to do with the fact Wynn played for coach Greg Schiano at Rutgers.

A lot of undrafted rookies got a signing bonus of $1,000 or $2,000 and a fair amount got no signing bonus at all. But, as he’s been known to do at times in the past, Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik handed out several signing bonuses that were well above the league average. Offensive lineman Bradley Sowell got $10,000, offensive lineman Mike VanDerMeulen got $8,000, cornerback Leonard Johnson got $7,500, safety Tramain Thomas got $7,000 and fullback Cody Johnson got $5,000.

Let’s take a look at the rest of the division and see which other undrafted rookies got at least $5,000 to sign.

The Falcons gave out only one signing bonus of $5,000 and that went to defensive end Louis Nzegwu.

The Saints gave running back Travaris Cadet, offensive lineman Brian Folkerts, offensive lineman Aderious Simmons and safety Johnny Thomas each a $5,000 signing bonus.

The Panthers gave receivers Jared Green and Rico Wallace each $7,500. Defensive tackle Nate Chandler got $6,000. Offensive linemen Will Blackwell and Matt Reynolds each signed for $5,000.

Tampa Bay’s trade of Kellen Winslow might have been about more than just the tight end and new coach Greg Schiano not being on the same page.

The move might have been made with an eye toward the salary cap and the future. Yeah, I know that may sound a little weird because the Bucs haven’t been big spenders. In recent years, they’ve had one of the league’s lowest payrolls and easily have stayed under the salary cap. That’s still true this year as the Bucs have a little over $12 million in cap space remaining. They currently have used about $133.5 of their $146 million of cap space this year and Tampa Bay’s cap includes $23.5 million of space for a rollover for space not used last year.

But the Bucs spent big in free agency this year and next year’s going to be a different story. The cap isn’t expected to be much more than $120 million in 2013. Prior to the Winslow deal, the Bucs already had $117.4 million committed toward next year’s draft. By trading Winslow, the Bucs erased his $5.6 million cap figure for 2013, so that drops them down to $111.8 for the moment. But that’s going to change quickly. First-round draft picks Mark Barron and Doug Martin will sign contracts that will take up several million dollars of cap space next year. And the overall view of Tampa Bay’s cap situation could change dramatically after the 2012 season because some of the young players could trigger escalator clauses and it’s possible the team could look to extend the contracts of quarterback Josh Freeman and some others between now and next offseason.

The Bucs are going to have to be very cognizant of salary-cap space in 2013. They already started to address that with the Winslow deal. This is a work in progress because Schiano still is getting to know his personnel. But, if a player doesn’t seem to fit Schiano’s style and has a high cap number for 2013, that player could be joining Winslow.

I'm looking at Tampa Bay's numbers for 2013 and I'm seeing guys like linebacker Quincy Black ($5.75 million), guard Davin Joseph ($6 million), defensive tackle Gerald McCoy ($10.9 million), tackle Donald Penn ($6.3 million) and thinking it would be wise for those guys to get on Schiano's good side and stay there.

NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas talks about the role Dallas Clark will play in Tampa Bay.

Trent Dilfer, Gary Horton, Mel Kiper Jr. and Matt Williamson got together and came up with an outstanding project that looks a few years down the road. Check out this Insider post in which they have NFL Future Power Rankings for all teams.

The rankings are based on what the panel projects teams will look like in the 2015 season. The panel used the following criteria -- roster, quarterback, draft, front office and coaching staff -- and weighed each in order of importance to come up with the rankings. You can see a more detailed explanation of the methodology here.

From an NFC South perspective, the rankings don’t look all that different from results in recent years or what most people are projecting in 2012.

The panel says the New Orleans Saints, who have won two of the past three division titles, will be the division’s best team in 2015. The panel notes the bounty scandal and its punishments, but the consensus seems to be that the Saints can overcome that because there’s a strong nucleus in place, as well as a good coaching staff and front office. Horton notes the Saints have to build around guys like Jimmy Graham and Mark Ingram in the future. I think it’s true that the Saints have to develop some more young stars in the next few years. But, as long as Drew Brees is the quarterback, the Saints should be a top-10 team.

After the Saints, there’s a bit of a surprise. Although the Saints and Falcons have been the class of the division in recent years, the panel doesn’t see that quite being the case in 2015. The Falcons are No. 13 and the Panthers are No. 12.

Let’s start with why the Panthers are viewed as a team on the rise. Dilfer sums it up well by saying quarterback Cam Newton has an incredibly high ceiling. In 2015, Newton will be just approaching that ceiling. There’s no doubt the future looks bright for Carolina, but the Panthers may have to replace longtime stars Jordan Gross and Steve Smith before too long.

I disagree with the panel slightly on the placement of the Falcons. I think Atlanta will be a top-10 team in 2015 and probably each year between now and then. I agree with the panel that the Falcons have some old players at several positions, but I think general manager Thomas Dimitroff gradually will address those issues. As long as Matt Ryan and Julio Jones stay healthy and linebacker Sean Weatherspoon continues to emerge as a defensive star, I think the Falcons will be an annual playoff contender.

The Buccaneers are No. 19. While that ranking is last in the division, the Bucs have been in the 20s and 30s in a lot of recent rankings. The panel sounds optimistic about the Bucs in discussing the young talent and the new coaching staff. But there are a lot of unknowns. If quarterback Josh Freeman can get his career back on track and coach Greg Schiano can make the transition from college to the NFL, I think the Bucs have a real chance to jump up in the rankings when 2015 actually rolls around.

There’s a perception out there that Tampa Bay quarterback Josh Freeman relied too much on tight end Kellen Winslow last season.

Just watching the Buccaneers play last year, I shared that perception. But let’s turn to ESPN Stats & Information for some evidence that Freeman was forcing too many throws to Winslow, who was traded to Seattle on Monday night.

Freeman and Winslow formed a pretty good tandem back in 2010 and that led to some talk from Winslow about how he believed he could double his statistics in 2011. That didn’t happen.

In 2010, Winslow, when playing with Freeman, was targeted 94 times and had 66 receptions (a 70.2 completion percentage) while averaging 7.8 yards per attempt with five touchdowns and one interception. Winslow also had three drops. Freeman turned to Winslow even more frequently in 2011, targeting him 111 times. But the rest of the numbers weren’t as good as the previous season. Winslow and Freeman connected on only 64 percent of their passes last year and averaged just 6.5 yards per attempt. More importantly, Winslow caught only two touchdown passes from Freeman, but the quarterback was intercepted 10 times when targeting his tight end.

Over the past four seasons, the only quarterback-receiver tandem that combined for more interceptions when a specific receiver was targeted was Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer and Terrell Owens in 2010.

It appears as if NFL commissioner Roger Goodell might not be done punishing New Orleans.

Goodell said at Tuesday’s league meeting in Atlanta that New Orleans, along with Honolulu, is a candidate to host this season’s Pro Bowl. New Orleans already is the site for this season’s Super Bowl.

In the distant past, I would have said getting the Pro Bowl would be a wonderful thing for New Orleans. But, have you watched the Pro Bowl in recent years, particularly this past season?

If you did, you saw a game in which offensive and defensive linemen barely touched each other and a stadium filled with fans in Hawaii booed an obvious lack of effort. The Pro Bowl has outlived its usefulness and the NFL knows it.

The game used to be played the week after the Super Bowl. In an attempt to make it more relevant, the NFL moved it to the week before the Super Bowl. That didn’t help and it might have made things even worse because Super Bowl participants can’t play in the Pro Bowl.

There even has been some talk about simply doing away with the Pro Bowl. The league still is having discussions about what to do with the Pro Bowl and nothing has been resolved.

“If we can’t improve it and can’t make it more competitive, then we shouldn’t play,” Goodell said.

I vote for scrapping the Pro Bowl. I don’t see how the league can improve it or make it more competitive. Players don’t want to risk injury after their season is over. The product is unwatchable.

But Goodell said, if a Pro Bowl is held this season, it will be held either in New Orleans or Honolulu.

Is that really necessary? I say no. I say Pro Bowl teams still should be elected. Hold some sort of ceremony in New Orleans the week of the Super Bowl to honor the Pro Bowlers. But there’s no sense playing a game players and fans don’t care about.

Time for a look at the top headlines from around the division.

Jeff Schultz writes that the Saints still are playing the “victim card’’ by saying they’ve been “railroaded’’ in the bounty scandal. It’s a point worth pondering. Sure, the suspended players have a right to the appeals process. But, if the suspensions are upheld, there comes a time when the Saints have to start moving forward.

Commissioner Roger Goodell knows he’s not a favorite among New Orleans fans these days. But Goodell insisted he has to act in the best long-term interest of the game and isn't worried about popularity contests.

Goodell said he would encourage Atlanta to bid to host a Super Bowl if the city gets a new stadium in the future. There’s a perception out there that Atlanta never will get another Super Bowl because the city was crippled by an ice storm when it last hosted the game in 2000. That was a fluke. If Atlanta does get a new stadium, it almost certainly will get a Super Bowl within a few years. That’s pretty much how things work in the NFL these days -- build a new stadium and you get a Super Bowl.

Mike Tolbert thinks he can be “the missing piece’’ for the Carolina Panthers. Remember how that worked out after Ray Edwards said he’d be essentially the same thing for the Atlanta Falcons last year? Tolbert’s got a real chance to help the Panthers. They’re saying he was brought into play fullback and I’m sure he will. But Tolbert’s versatile and I think he’ll also get some playing time in a backfield that already includes DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. But Tolbert just needs to be one of many pieces for the Panthers. Their offense already is good, but they need a lot of pieces to emerge on defense.

Check out this column by Daniel Cox. It discusses the possibility of the NFC South being the NFL’s strongest division when it comes to quarterbacks. I think there’s a pretty strong case for that. Drew Brees has a great track record and Matt Ryan has a good one. If Cam Newton can build on his outstanding rookie season and Josh Freeman can get back to his 2010 form, I don’t think there’s any way any other division has as deep a crop of starting quarterbacks.

Tampa Bay backup quarterback Dan Orlovsky played a role in encouraging free-agent tight end Dallas Clark to sign with the Buccaneers. The two previously were teammates with the Indianapolis Colts.

Yet another difference between new Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano and predecessor Raheem Morris. Instead of “beating the heat’’ the way Morris did by practicing early or practicing indoors at practice field, Schiano wants to embrace the Florida heat and use it to get his team in better physical condition.

Don’t look for quick rulings on the appeals of the suspensions of New Orleans linebacker Jonathan Vilma and defensive end Will Smith.

Wrapping up an owners meeting in Atlanta, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he will not rule on the appeals until after grievances filed by the NFL Players Association have been resolved. One grievance previously was heard by an arbitrator, but not ruling has been issued. Another grievance is scheduled to be heard by a system arbitrator May 30. Goodell also said he can foresee a release of evidence in the Saints’ bounty scandal after the appeals process is over.

Goodell declined comment on a defamation lawsuit filed by Vilma.

Goodell said he knows a lot of fans are unhappy with the suspensions he’s handed out to players, coaches and Saints general manager Mickey Loomis. Appeals for Loomis and the coaches already have been heard and their suspensions have been upheld. But Goodell said he’s looking forward to meeting with the players during the appeals process.

“That’s what the appeals process is for,’’ Goodell said. “You want to hear what the players have to say. When we get to the appeals, we’ll be able to talk about it and we’ll be able to hear from one another.’’

TAMPA, Fla. -- Less than 24 hours after officially parting ways, Greg Schiano and Kellen Winslow will be back together again. Sort of.

Schiano, the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, is scheduled to appear on NFL32 on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Winslow, the tight end that Schiano and the Bucs traded to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday night, is scheduled to appear on the same show.

Schiano and Winslow will be interviewed individually. We don’t have the exact times on their appearances or what order they will come in. But, if you tune in promptly at 6, you should be able to hear both Schiano and Winslow.

TAMPA, Fla. -- You could suggest the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stepped out of character when they signed free-agent tight end Dallas Clark late Monday night.

Before adding Clark, the Bucs had only two players on the roster who were 30 or older. One was 37-year-old cornerback Ronde Barber, but he literally is grandfathered in because he has spent his entire career with the team and is a Tampa Bay icon. The other is defensive tackle Gary Gibson (30). He’s also an exception. Gibson, a career backup, played for coach Greg Schiano at Rutgers, is here for depth and there’s no guarantee of him making the regular-season roster.

Other than them, every other player on the roster has an age that starts with a 2. This is a team that's made it clear it will build primarily through the draft.

Clark spent nine seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, and as recently as the 2009 season was one of the league’s most productive tight ends -- when he had 100 receptions. But Clark suffered a season-ending wrist injury in the middle of the 2010 season. Last season, Clark had an assortment of injuries and was limited to 11 games, in which he produced 34 catches. That led to speculation that Clark’s career might be over.

“I’m not done playing,’’ Clark said Tuesday after his first workout with his new team. “You’re an NFL player. Every day you are proving yourself. The second you stop, you are out the door.’’

Clark said he’s over last season’s injuries and isn’t hampered by anything.

“I believe whole heartedly that he is going to return to his form and play the way he is capable,’’ Schiano said. "That’s what we need. I think he can do everything we are going to ask him to do. And it is really good to have strong veteran presence in that tight end room as well.”

But the thing is, Clark really isn’t all that much different than Barber or Gibson. The Bucs are hoping he’ll be their main pass-catcher at tight end, but they also plan to play Luke Stocker in a lot of situations. Their investment in Clark isn’t all that huge. They signed him to a very simple contract.

It’s a one-year deal. He’s scheduled to make $2.7 million in base salary and only $1 million of that is guaranteed. There was no signing bonus or any incentives. That comes after the Bucs freed up $4.8 million in cap room by trading tight end Kellen Winslow to Seattle.

If Clark bounces back and produces anything similar, the Bucs got a bargain and they’ll be thrilled. If the injuries linger or Clark isn’t the same player he was before, it’s not like the Bucs have made a huge long-term investment in him.

In short, the Bucs entered into a low-risk deal that at least has the potential to bring a lot of rewards. If it doesn’t, there’s really no harm.

In other financial news, the Bucs have given wide receiver Preston Parker a one-year contract extension. Parker still will make the same $540,000 in base salary this year that previously was scheduled. But he received a $50,000 signing bonus and his 2013 salary will rise to $1 million.

TAMPA, Fla. -- Kellen Winslow had been gone from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for all of about 12 hours. From the way coach Greg Schiano answered a question about why he traded away the tight end, you would think Winslow had been gone for 12 years.

“I’m going to hesitate to look back," Schiano said. “I’m going to focus on the guys that are here.’’

Read into it what you want, but I think it’s pretty obvious what’s going on here. Schiano’s cleaning house of guys that don’t fit the new style he’s bringing to the Buccaneers.

Winslow said Schiano told him he wasn’t happy the veteran tight end had spent most of his offseason in San Diego, rather than working with his teammates. Winslow got the message on Saturday night, after he had arrived in Tampa with plans to join the Bucs on Monday. But that was too late for Schiano, who also might have had some doubts about relying too heavily on a tight end that missed a lot of practices with a sore knee over the last three seasons, even though Winslow never missed a game with the Bucs.

Schiano is a Bill Belichick disciple. He believes players should practice, at least most of the time. Schiano also believes in doing things his own way.

Schiano made it clear when he took the job that every player on the roster was getting a fresh start. That was true in some ways, but some guys were starting off with a strike against them. Winslow was one. Tanard Jackson was another. Both had issues in the past. Schiano kept them around for a bit, but he parted ways with both of them at the first sign of trouble.

The Bucs weren’t happy with the approach Jackson was taking in the offseason as he attempted to come back from injury last year. The Bucs weren’t able to trade him, so they simply released him. I’m pretty sure there will be some more casualties along the way. Schiano has made it very clear guys have to toe his line, which is about 20 yards away from the blurry line Raheem Morris used to stand behind.

“There’s really not a message," Schiano said. "It is not one of those situations. The only message I want to address is we need to be the best football team we can be. Time is our enemy. We are running out of time. Teams in our division have a head start on us.''

Intentional or not, I think Schiano has sent a very clear message. It doesn’t matter if you’re cornerback Aqib Talib, who seems to be starting off with an 0-2 count and Stephen Strasburg on the mound, or a guy with a spotless background.

If you take one step over Schiano’s line, you’re going to be talked about as a former member of the Bucs.

TAMPA, Fla. – I just arrived out at One Buccaneer Place and the Bucs already are on the practice field.

I’m heading out there and taking roll will be my first task. Just want to make sure no one else has been traded or released overnight.

I’ll be back after practice and interviews. Coach Greg Schiano is scheduled to talk after the workout and I’m pretty sure we’ll hear his logic behind trading away veteran tight end Kellen Winslow and signing Dallas Clark as his replacement.

Let's take a look at the top Tuesday morning headlines from around the division.

This one sounds a little strange at first. Carolina coach Ron Rivera said Brandon LaFell “encapsulates who we are’’. Think about that for a minute. LaFell is a young player that has shown some flashes of promise. But, overall, LaFell hasn’t done all that much. He hasn’t even been able to permanently lock up the No. 2 receiver job, but the hope is he can fill that role and start showing more consistency. So, in a way, LaFell does represent the Panthers. They’re a young team with a lot of potential, but they have yet to arrive.

Joseph Person takes a look at the top position battles for the Carolina Panthers' defense as they begin workouts on the field. The top one is for the No. 2 cornerback job. Fans might not want to hear this, but it looks as if that’s Captain Munnerlyn’s job. He remains undersized, and that makes him a target for opposing offenses. But unless Brandon Hogan, who played little as a rookie as he recovered from knee surgery, takes a huge step forward, I don’t see anyone else on the roster ready to challenge Munnerlyn.

There is one slight positive to New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees being unsigned and not participating in offseason workouts. Safety Roman Harper said that makes it easier to install the defense of new coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. Harper said if Brees was around, he would show no mercy on a defense that’s going through some big adjustments.

Gary Shelton writes that Kellen Winslow shouldn’t be surprised by the Buccaneers' decision to trade him. He’s right. It was pretty obvious that Winslow’s a guy who is used to doing things as he pleases. It’s also pretty obvious coach Greg Schiano runs a very tight ship. If Winslow really wanted to play for Schiano, he should have realized it was time for some changes. At the very least, he should have first talked to the new coach about his plans for the offseason. I’m not sure Schiano would have been excited at the prospect of Winslow spending some of his time working out in San Diego. But it’s at least possible the coach and player could have worked out a deal if the situation was put on the table before workouts started.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t take long to unload Kellen Winslow, after telling the veteran tight end he was on the market for a trade.

The Bucs announced late Monday night that Winslow had been traded to the Seattle Seahawks for a seventh-round draft pick in 2013 (that can rise to a sixth-round pick if Winslow meets certain playing-time and statistical requirements in Seattle) and they quickly turned around and signed veteran Dallas Clark to replace him.

The move came after Winslow broke the news to Sirius XM NFL Radio on Monday morning that coach Greg Schiano had said the Bucs wanted to trade him. Winslow said Schiano expressed unhappiness that he wasn’t taking part in offseason workouts with his teammates.

Although the Bucs only got a late-round pick for Winslow, it’s a still victory that the Bucs were able to get anything for a player who probably would have been released if no one offered anything in trade. Schiano is in the process of cleaning up Tampa Bay’s locker room and Winslow follows safety Tanard Jackson, who previously was released, as another player that didn’t fit the team’s new personality.

Clark may be a better fit in the locker room and he and Winslow might be an even exchange on the field at this point in their careers. Winslow had 218 catches for 2,377 yards and five touchdowns in three seasons with the Bucs. Winslow never missed a game in that span, but missed lots of practice time.

Clark may be on the downside of his career, but he may be a better fit in Schiano’s system. Clark spent the past nine seasons with Indianapolis. He started 111 of 114 career games, while catching 427 passes for 4,887 yards and 46 touchdowns.

"Dallas Clark is a consummate pro and proven playmaker," Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik said. "He will be another asset, on and off the field, for our team. In addition to Luke Stocker's continued improvement in his ability as an every-down tight end, we feel we have both talent and depth at the tight end position."