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Interesting insight here from Tim McManus on the relationship between the Philadelphia Eagles and agent Drew Rosenhaus and what that means for the prospects of a long-term contract extension for running back LeSean McCoy. The Eagles and Rosenhaus haven't always been the best of friends, and hard feelings persisted for a time from both ends after the Terrell Owens years. But the Rosenhaus-Eagles relationship this offseason has looked as strong as ever, with the long-term deals for DeSean Jackson and Evan Mathis serving as evidence:

"Every relationship needs to be worked on," said Eagles general manager Howie Roseman. "If you don't work on relationships -- especially in high-pressure situations -- they can deteriorate. I think as you go further along and you have more history with someone, you understand different perspectives."

It seems clear that the relationship in question is in a good place from which to arrive at the long-term deal McCoy is seeking. The Eagles obviously have plenty of cap room with which to work. (They already did a month ago, and since then they've unloaded Asante Samuel and his $10.5 million cap number.) And they consider McCoy a vital piece of their offense, especially after he scored 20 touchdowns last season.

But running back deals aren't easy in this day and age, when the position is becoming more undervalued and wear and tear on backs leads to shorter and less productive career primes. So it's not as though the issue is going to be resolved simply or quickly. I believe the Eagles and McCoy will get a deal done eventually. I do not know if it will or can be done before training camp, before the regular season or before next offseason. I don't think McCoy will make a huge issue of things if no deal is done -- i.e., hold out of training camp or skip the first few days as Jackson did last year -- but only McCoy and possibly Rosenhaus know that.

A lot of this stuff is more fragile than fans give it credit for. As Tim points out, McCoy fired Rosenhaus twice last season, so it's always possible the agent-client relationship could surface as an issue before this is resolved. I know Eagles fans won't be comfortable until this is all wrapped up, but in the meantime I guess you can be encouraged by the idea that at least the sides are talking and friendly.

PALM BEACH, Fla. -- There still is a chance free-agent tight end Jeremy Shockey could return to the Carolina Panthers.

A team official said the Panthers remain in contact with Shockey's agent and the tight end has told the team he wants to play another season. No deal is imminent but the two sides are keeping an open dialogue.

For the record, “the snitch’’ on this was not Warren Sapp.

Shockey, 31, joined the Panthers last season. Although Shockey produced a career-low 37 catches, the Panthers believe he's a perfect complement to Greg Olsen, the team’s top pass-catching tight end. There were previous reports that Shockey had told the New York Giants he was interested in playing for them. That’s where Shockey began his career before being traded to the New Orleans Saints in 2008. There have no indications the Giants have any interest in bringing Shockey back.

Update: Shockey's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, just arrived at the NFL owners meetings and confirmed that he and the Panthers continue to talk, but said no deal is imminent.

Not so fast on the Terrelle Pryor appeal.

Earlier Sunday, the NFL Network reported that Pryor will appeal his five-game suspension. However, ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that it isn't clear if the Oakland Raiders’ rookie quarterback -- who was taken in the third round of the supplemental draft last month -- has given his attorney consent to go forward with the appeal.

Schefter reports that Pryor’s attorney, David Cornwell, filed a letter with the intent to appeal on his own, reserving Pryor’s right to appeal. Cornwell has since suffered a stroke. Schefter reports that when Pryor made a deal with the NFL to be declared eligible for the supplemental draft, he was told that the only way he would be allowed in would be to serve a five-game suspension.

Pryor has wavered publicly on whether he’d consider appealing. In the meantime, his suspension starts now. He is eligible to join the Raiders’ active roster Oct. 10. Until then, he can’t play or practice. He can, though, meet with coaches and study the Raiders' playbook.

We're expecting a pretty fluid weekend here in the NFC North, so let's dispense with a soon-to-be-irrelevant BBAO post and move straight to the news. First up: Chicago Bears linebacker Lance Briggs' formal request to be traded, as first reported by Vaughn McClure of the Chicago Tribune.

As you know, Briggs approached the Bears this summer about renegotiating his contract, which has three years remaining on it. The Bears apparently (and unsurprisingly) have rejected his request, prompting Briggs to escalate the situation. According to NFL rules, players can be traded at any point between now and Week 6 of the regular season, but it's hard to imagine the Bears complying given their lack of depth at the position.

To put it bluntly, Briggs has no leverage other than the absence of an in-house replacement. Based on typical NFL protocol, the Bears are justified in asking Briggs to honor the fourth year of a six-year deal. Let's be clear. Briggs is halfway through the contract but has already earned about two-thirds of its total value. All along, Briggs knew that the tradeoff for a $23 million payday in the first three years would be stepping back to $13 million over the final three years.

ESPN business analyst Andrew Brandt put Briggs' strategy in plain language Friday morning via Twitter:

Lance Briggs/Drew Rosenhaus gameplan: Ask for new contract; when denied ask for trade; when denied cause distraction. Rinse and repeat.

Yes, this is not the first mid-deal distraction Rosenhaus has presided over. (The guy literally wrote a book called "Next Question" after his infamous Terrell Owens news conference.) The truth is Briggs and Rosenhaus made a calculated and risky decision when they agreed to their original deal in 2008. They were betting Briggs' play would justify a new deal at this juncture. Otherwise, why would they agree to relatively modest salaries of $3.65 million this season and $3.75 million in 2012?

That expectation, however, was almost impossible to achieve. Briggs was already an All-Pro linebacker in 2008. He signed the deal at the height of his market value. Was it realistic for him to be a better player in 2011 than he was in 2008? The only way to justify a new contract is to argue you have outperformed your current one.

It's not the same thing to say that Briggs is undervalued with a $3.65 million salary, because that figure was part of the total package he originally agreed to. Say you let your kids watch five hours of television a week. By Tuesday, they've used up four of the five hour-allowance. Do you add more to that total to stop the inevitable whining about one more hour over the next five days?

I think that's a fair analogy, and it's clear the Bears plan to hold their parenting ground. Briggs' market value was $6 million per year in 2008. He wants $6 million this season, according to McClure, but has conveniently forgotten that he earned about $7.5 million per year in 2008, 2009 and 2010.

The question now is how difficult Briggs wants to make it on the Bears. He told McClure that the situation is "not going to take away from what I do on the field," and normally I would say that a contract dispute wouldn't distract a veteran team like the Bears. But Briggs isn't just a player. He is one of their captains and a foundation of their veteran structure. The Bears will have to gauge if they can squeeze a productive year out of him before taking a harder look at this in the offseason. I'm sure that's their preference.

Free safety Dashon Goldson has been with the San Francisco 49ers since 2007. Coach Jim Harbaugh has been with the team since January.

Let's consider how both men are approaching the 2011 season to better understand why Goldson and the 49ers haven't secured a long-term contract extension.

More than a year ago, Goldson fired his agent, hired Drew Rosenhaus and set out to secure the fattest contract he could get. He watched another safety and Rosenhaus client, Antrel Rolle, sign a five-year, $37 million deal with the New York Giants. At the time, Goldson said he saw Rosenhaus as a "shark" who would "smell blood" and leverage the best deal.

"Obviously, they are real patient about it and careful about who they give the money to," Goldson said last offseason, "but I don't see myself not getting a deal done here. I know they respect me and like what I'm doing here and I want to be here, so I'm sure something will work out. I don't think they have a problem paying athletes."

If the 49ers were careful about who they targeted for long-term agreements previously, imagine the level of care as the team breaks in a new coaching staff.

Goldson and Harbaugh have no history together. The 49ers' pass defense was among the worst in the NFL last season. Goldson did not take a big step forward in his development. Meanwhile, the lockout has prevented Harbaugh from getting a better feel for players. Like any new coach, he wants players to prove it to him. He wants to establish a standard, see who meets that standard and then reward players accordingly.

The 49ers have tried to protect themselves. They signed Madieu Williams for experienced depth at safety. They re-signed Ray McDonald to a deal that made him a likely starter at defensive end. They appear prepared to have Isaac Sopoaga play nose tackle.

Another reason to question old assumptions: It's not yet clear what the 49ers' new coaching staff values in its defensive personnel. The new staff might view differently the traits that made Goldson, Franklin or anyone else carry a certain level of value.

The timing does not appear right for Goldson or Franklin to secure the types of deals they wanted, particularly if the market isn't supportive. Shorter-term deals might make more sense for them under the circumstances.

San Francisco 49ers running back Frank Gore will be 29 years old when his current contract expires following the 2011 season.

Gore apparently -- and correctly, in my view -- realizes teams won't be lining up to pay him lavishly at that time.

That's the best explanation for Gore's decision to hold out when the 49ers open training camp Thursday, as ESPN's Adam Schefter says Gore plans to do.

A few facts and opinions:

• Gore's contract pays him $2.9 million in salary with a $2 million roster bonus this season. His cap number is $7.1 million thanks to more than $2.1 million in bonus proration. The deal averages $6.9 million.
• The 49ers need Gore. Finding a way to resolve this issue and get Gore on the field will serve the team well. But there's no way the 49ers can give into Gore's demands while general manager Trent Baalke and coach Jim Harbaugh are still establishing themselves. This is a chance for Baalke, Harbaugh and the 49ers to take a stand. Gore will show up eventually.
• Running backs tend to wind down near age 30. Gore missed the final five games to injury last season. This was going to be his final big-money contract, most likely.
• Gore will take heat publicly if he does stay away, I predict. His timing is poor following the lockout. Fans love Gore, but it's tough for some to relate to someone turning up his nose at millions.
• Gore's agent is Drew Rosenhaus, who has experience taking these things public. I'm not expecting any driveway news conferences, however.

This is no way for the Harbaugh era to begin on the field, but he's in it for the long haul. He'll be there long after Gore is there. The 49ers have been talking all along about the long term. I doubt they'll cave to short-term demands here, even for a highly-respected player such as Gore.

A few thoughts while wrapping up a frenetic but ultimately unsatisfying first day to the NFL free-agent negotiating period:

• ESPN's Adam Schefter caught my attention Tuesday night with a tweet regarding Minnesota Vikings receiver Sidney Rice and San Francisco 49ers safety Dashon Goldson. According to Schefter, Seattle and Minnesota are targeting Rice, while Oakland and San Francisco go after Goldson. There weren't many bidding wars on Tuesday, leading me to believe some of these situations could play out a little longer. Players cannot take free-agent visits until the signing period opens Friday, making it tougher for teams to know what opportunities actually exist for players. In the past, a player emerging from a visit without a contract would lose leverage. In the current climate, top agents such as Drew Rosenhaus, who represents Rice and Goldson, can negotiate without the usual checks and balances. It's high-stakes poker.
• Seattle's interest in Rice comes as no surprise. The team chased receiver Brandon Marshall in trade talks last offseason. Vincent Jackson was another big-name receiver under consideration. Rice would fit especially well in the Seahawks' offense now that former Vikings offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell is installing Seattle's passing game. Seattle also has ample salary-cap space to land Rice. Bevell's familiarity with Rice could help ease concerns over the hip problems that have bothered Rice in recent seasons.
• The 49ers want to bring back Goldson, but at what price? Goldson wasn't what was wrong with the 49ers' pass defense last season. Neither did he break through with a Pro Bowl-caliber season, as the 49ers had hoped. Still, San Francisco needs to keep together some of its defensive core. The 49ers could lose nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin. Linebacker Takeo Spikes agreed to terms with San Diego. Nate Clements' contract could precipitate his release. Keeping Goldson would help.
• The Arizona Cardinals appear in strong position as they consider options at quarterback. The way they sat back and projected patience Tuesday is looking like a smart approach. I can't think of another team likely to trade for Philadelphia's Kevin Kolb. The Cardinals should be in no rush. Teams cannot sign players or visit with free agents from other teams until Friday. Kolb could not practice with them until Aug. 4 if Arizona acquired him and signed him to a new contract. Even if Kolb is the Cardinals' top choice, the team might be wise to play up interest in other candidates. Why not seek permission to meet with Kyle Orton? Why not bring in Matt Hasselbeck? There's no reason for Arizona to overpay for Kolb unless another team emerges as a serious suitor.
• New York Giants defensive tackle Barry Cofield and Raiders guard Robert Gallery were free agents to watch in the NFC West as the negotiating period opened. It's looking like we catch remove Cofield from consideration for the St. Louis Rams after Cofield reached agreement with the Washington Redskins, according to Schefter. Cofield's ties to St. Louis coach Steve Spagnuolo made him a natural fit for the Rams. Losing him to former Rams coach Jim Haslett won't sit well with fans who hoped Cofield would land in St. Louis. Gallery's ties to Seahawks assistant head coach/offensive line Tom Cable still make him a natural fit in Seattle. The team needs a starting left guard.
• Back in Seattle, meanwhile, the Seahawks are trying to re-sign defensive tackle Brandon Mebane. The money Cofield commands could help shape the market for Mebane and other defensive tackles. Removing Cofield from the market also leaves one fewer defensive tackle available for teams to sign.

Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday night. Wait, it's Wednesday already in the Eastern time zone. Must be free agency.

All right, all right. Enough complaining. Yeah, it's been five hours since the last post, but (a) I've spoiled you guys in just two months and (b) I wasn't going to show up in Bristol, do TV and then not go spend time chatting with my bosses who are in the very same building. I mean, they saw me on TV. They know I'm there. What are they going to think if I don't go up and say hi?

Also, the food in the cafeteria here is good.

Finally, the suit was not "mustard" as some have said. Get the color on your TVs fixed, grouches.

Anyway, I'm back, because I'd never abandon you guys. And one thing that came up this morning while I was on TV was that Ahmad Bradshaw's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, went on the radio in Miami and said Bradshaw would be interested in playing for the Dolphins if the Dolphins wanted him. I have no doubt that (a) this is true, (b) the Dolphins would love to have him and (c) this does not constitute any good reasons for Giants fans to panic about whether Bradshaw will be back with the Giants in 2011.

There are no sure things in free agency, and it could very well be that the Dolphins or some other team comes along and lures Bradshaw away from New York. If that were to happen, it would dramatically alter the Giants' offseason priority list and could adversely affect their ability to keep some of the other free agents they'd like to bring back. Bradshaw is their top priority, and if there is indeed going to be a three-day window before the market opens during which teams can re-sign their own guys, I'm sure the Giants would like to get Bradshaw locked up in that three-day window.

But Rosenhaus is Bradshaw's agent, and as such it's his job to get Bradshaw the best possible deal. And the way to do that is to maximize leverage. If no other teams are interested, the Giants have no incentive to pay him a dollar more than they want to pay him. So Rosenhaus, with this statement, is doing two things: First, he's putting in the Giants' heads that they're likely to have competition for Bradshaw. And second, he's inviting the Dolphins to be that competition, since they have a need at running back and would make sense for Bradshaw if he wants to leave New York.

I don't think Bradshaw wants to leave New York. I don't think the Giants have any intention of allowing him to leave if they can stop him. I'll bet he stays put. But he'll want to get the best possible deal he can get from the Giants if he does stay put. So Rosenhaus is just out there doing some agenting.

Thoughts and questions after former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor and agent Drew Rosenhaus issued statements Tuesday:

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AP Photo/J Pat CarterFormer Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor, right, and his agent Drew Rosenhaus discuss Pryor's future at a news conference in Miami Beach, Fla.
• Rosenhaus said he expects an NFL team to select Pryor in the first round of the supplemental draft. I've heard nothing from anyone in the NFL suggesting Pryor would command that much value. Rosenhaus might have a better idea, or he might be simply promoting his client. But if Pryor does go early in the supplemental draft, I cannot see him landing in the NFC West.
• The St. Louis Rams have their current starter. The San Francisco 49ers have their current and projected future starter. The Arizona Cardinals have multiple developmental quarterbacks. They need a veteran to step in and start right away. Pryor does not fit. The Seattle Seahawks said they could not afford to invest early draft choices in a quarterback given the state of their roster in other areas, notably the line. They addressed the line, but still have holes.
• Rosenhaus represents more NFL players than any agent. However, he generally is not the choice for quarterbacks. Does Pryor even project as a quarterback? Depends who you ask.
• Pryor does not perform like the typical quarterback on the field, having rushed for 2,164 yards at Ohio State. His choice for representation also goes against convention for quarterbacks. Three of the 145 signed players Rosenhaus represented during the regular season were quarterbacks, according to NFL Players Association records from November. Rex Grossman, Thaddeus Lewis and Billy Volek were those quarterbacks. David Dunn (17) and Tom Condon (13) had more than 28 percent of quarterbacks.
• The dynamics change if Pryor remains available late in the supplemental draft. There's much less risk at that point. In the meantime, ESPN's Chris Mortensen says we should expect to see Pryor meeting with Jon Gruden for a session similar to the ones Gruden put together for Cam Newton and others. Gruden reveled in putting pressure on prospects to prove how much they understood about offense. How well Pryor understands the game from a quarterback's perspective will affect how well he would fit even as a No. 3 quarterback.

Rosenhaus and Pryor refused to answer questions following their statements.

"I think I've said it all," Rosenhaus told reporters.

We are, as you know, without the minicamps and news conferences that would normally provide interview opportunities this time of year. But if you go to the right charity event, you may have a chance to stumble upon an NFL newsmaker. So it was that, two days after Plaxico Burress was released from prison amid swirling rumors of the Eagles' interest in him, Eagles coach Andy Reid fielded a question about Burress and the Eagles' interest in him.

Reid said ... pretty much exactly what you'd expect him to say:

"I haven't even looked at that. We're not there yet. There's nothing you can do. It's like any of the other free agents, there's nothing you can do there," Reid told reporters during an appearance at the Eagles' annual school playground build. "I really haven't gotten into him at all, so far. Howie [Roseman] and I will somewhere, will look at it. But that's not where we're at. There's nothing we can do with anybody, so that's how it is."

Look, there's nothing to see here, folks. It's impossible to believe that, with all of their downtime, the Eagles' front office and coaching staff honestly haven't discussed Burress. But there's also no way Reid's going to come out and say, "Yeah, we like him and we're going to pursue him." First of all, he's apparently not allowed to say that per the league's lockout rules. Second of all, Drew Rosenhaus, Burress' agent, would print that quote out and bring it to the first negotiating session. So Reid's words on Burress are effectively meaningless and only appear here because (a) we're scraping for content right now and (b) you were going to hear about them somewhere and I wanted it to be here. I don't want you guys cheating on me with some other NFC East blog. I couldn't take the pain.

The situation with Plax and the Eagles continues to be this: He makes a lot of sense for them in a limited, specific role. They should not try to outspend a team that's going to pay him No. 1 WR money, because he is not that anymore. And from Burress' standpoint, the Eagles make sense as a place where he knows (from the Michael Vick example) that the coaching staff will look out for him above and beyond what he can contribute on the field. Reid was right, later in the story, when he said building a new playground for kids was more important than anything he's going to say about Plaxico Burress right now.

ESPN.com's offseason NFL Power Rankings continue later Tuesday with a look at the 10 best offensive players among non-quarterbacks heading into the 2011 season.

Paul Kuharsky will have the story on his AFC South blog.

My ballot will take into account the way I ranked running backs, tight ends and wide receivers earlier in the series (see chart). A few NFC West thoughts after revisiting past rankings:

• The St. Louis Rams' Steven Jackson ranked fourth on my ballot for running backs even though some say he's lost a step. I appreciate the passion and toughness Jackson shows in playing through injuries and amid unfavorable circumstances. Those qualities might have led me to rank Jackson higher than his 2011 production would merit.
• The San Francisco 49ers' Frank Gore must bounce back from a hip injury to maintain such high standing. Clearance from agent Drew Rosenhaus is consistent with expectations the 49ers set previously.
• Beanie Wells didn't come close to cracking the list of running backs, a disappointment after the Arizona Cardinals made Wells the 31st player chosen in the 2009 draft. This looks like a make-or-break season for Wells in Arizona.
• Another NFC West disappointment: Seattle's John Carlson got no votes in balloting for tight ends. Carlson's production as a receiver has diminished every season, following an overall offensive nosedive. He was a player former coach Mike Holmgren coveted. Might the Seahawks' return to more of a Holmgren-style passing game benefit Carlson?
• The NFC West should have more than one tight end cracking the top 10 in the next few seasons. The division has stocked up on the position. Vernon Davis, Carlson, Lance Kendricks and Rob Housler were all drafted in the first three rounds.
• The Arizona Cardinals' Larry Fitzgerald has been, at times, the best wide receiver in the NFL. The two receivers I ranked ahead of him -- Andre Johnson and Calvin Johnson -- combine Fitzgerald's size with superior speed. Fitzgerald's playoff production following the 2009 season set him apart for a while.
• The 49ers' Michael Crabtree has the talent to challenge for a spot among the top receivers. He needs quarterback help and greater consistency. Davis' role in the offense could make it tougher for Crabtree to amass raw numbers in terms of receptions.

What about offensive linemen? They'll be part of the overall top 10 as well. We're ranking left tackles next week.

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Oakland Raiders' wild spending spree in the past week has been the talk of the NFL combine.

Last week, Oakland re-signed defensive tackle Richard Seymour to a two-year, $30 million deal. Thursday, Oakland surprised the league by handing cornerback Stanford Routt a three-year, $31.5 million deal and giving linebacker Kamerion Wimbley the franchise tag for $10. 1 million. The Raiders then signed 31-year-old potential defensive tackle John Henderson to a two-year, $8 million deal.

Personnel from many teams were quietly amazed how much money has spent. Many league observers said the Denver Broncos were lucky they secured star Champ Bailey to a four-year, $43 million deal before news of Routt’s deal broke. The Bailey deal now seems like a bargain.

Here is a column that says Raiders are undermining the rest of the owners by attacking their free agents now before teams know if there will be a salary cap and what the terms of it will be.

I don’t see it that way. The Raiders only need to worry about themselves and if they want to take a risk now, that’s up to them. But they must live with the fact that there may be repercussions. It’s not the rest of the league’s business what the Raiders do. Oakland owner Al Davis, 81, wants to win now. He is making his own decisions based on his own timetable.

Agent Drew Rosenhaus said Friday at the combine that he wished the other teams would follow the Raiders’ lead and take care of business. Of course Rosenhaus feels that way, the Raiders are paying players now instead of making them wait.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings are down to their final seven days of evaluating the progress of receiver Sidney Rice's surgically-repaired hip. The assumption has long been that Rice would be ready for Sunday's division matchup against the Green Bay Packers, but let's just say the situation grew darker Wednesday.

(We're not in "Theatre of the Absurd" territory, but we're getting there. For now, let's call it "Theatre of Getting Stranger By the Minute.")

Coach Brad Childress admitted that he didn't know if Rice would return at all this season, while Rice posted an angry message on his personal blog to defend his longer-than-expected absence. Even agent Drew Rosenhaus got into the fray, telling ESPN's Adam Schefter that "we've never given any consideration to him not playing this season."

First, the facts: Rice's 21-day practice window closes Nov. 24. At that point, the Vikings must either add him to their 53-man roster or shelve him for the rest of the season.

The team's medical staff cleared Rice for full practice two weeks ago, and it was believed he would be activated as soon as he got his conditioning up to speed. Childress has said the timing of his return is up to Rice, and on consecutive weekends Rice has told the Vikings he does not feel ready to play.

Asked Wednesday if he is confident that Rice would play at some point this season, Childress said: "I don't know. I don't know. I know what I see with my eyes in terms of him practicing, how many snaps he could give you, how many realistic snaps. Would he break down again? Those are all things you'd have to guess on."

What's going on here? Didn't the Vikings suggest in August that Rice would be ready to play by midseason? Why is everyone getting so touchy?

In essence, we have a player in the final year of his contract. The team hasn't offered a new deal, knowing that under the current collective bargaining agreement, he isn't eligible for unrestricted free agency until 2012. The Vikings have sorely missed Rice this season, raising his value to an all-time high, and the dirty fact is Rice would only hurt his value if he plays -- and produces -- at less than 100 percent during the remaining games of this season.

No one has suggested Rice is intentionally dragging his feet, either to jump-start negotiations or portray himself as more injured than he really is. But that aura has hung over the situation ever since Childress publicly put the ball in Rice's court.

It makes sense to listen to how a player says he is feeling. At the same time, however, Rice has been painted into a corner. If he doesn't return this week or next, he'll be portrayed as a player who tapped out. Few NFL players want that moniker.

In a Wednesday blog post titled "A Bunch of Bull," Rice said he was still feeling "significant discomfort" in his hip at the end of last week. He added: "My objective is to get out on the field and play when I'm healthy and it has nothing to do with my contract."

Ominously, Rice also wrote that the still-unspecified surgery he had was "very serious" and that there is "way more" to returning from it than people might realize. He wrote that he hoped to play Sunday against the Packers, but that he will make a decision Saturday based on how he feels after a week of practice.

If you're a conspiracy theorist, you're thinking that at the very least, Rice is feeling cornered and passively pressured to return. Even if you believe everything at face value, you can see Rice is conflicted about how to handle a delicate situation and concerned about the perception the team has created.

I have no idea what to believe at this point. I'm sure this happens often in the NFL, but rarely do you see it being played out in public. I will say this: Any time a player feel compelled to title his latest blog post "A Bunch of Bull," you've got trouble.

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- A year ago, Roscoe Parrish wanted out.

The Buffalo Bills signed Terrell Owens, a move that would squash Parrish at the bottom of a depth chart he already felt was oppressive. Parrish was the NFL's leading punt returner in 2007 and 2008 but couldn't convince the Bills to use him more in their atrocious offense.

Parrish went to his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, who also happens to be Owens' agent, and told him to request a trade.

The Bills refused. Rosenhaus floated reports that Parrish was on the trade block in hopes of stimulating some action. That didn't help either.

Why the Bills insisted on keeping Parrish isn't clear. He rotted on the sideline. Even more bizarre, former head coach Dick Jauron named Parrish the third quarterback.

"In this profession, you can never feel down on yourself," said Parrish, who caught a grand total of three passes for 34 yards last year. "Last year was a tough year for me, and I just had to handle myself like a professional and have a good attitude. You never know what tomorrow will bring."

That's the truth.

Parrish loves playing for the Bills again. In Saturday night's 35-20 preseason victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Ralph Wilson Stadium, he had a team-high four receptions for 56 yards and a touchdown.

"He's a big weapon for this football team," new Bills coach Chan Gailey said.

To be considered a weapon is contrary to Jauron's feelings. But Jauron was offensively unaware, a defensive coach through and through who would always claim he was working on ways to get Parrish more involved but never did.

Gailey, meanwhile, has a respected offensive mind.

"He just likes to get the ball in his playmakers' hands," Parrish said. "I heard a lot before, but that is in the past. Right now is right now. I just have to control my own destiny, and that is to take advantage of all the opportunities that come my way."

Asked if he knows why Parrish wasn't used more in the past, Gailey replied "I don't know anything about that."

The main criticisms of Parrish are that he is 5-foot-9 and sometimes plays small, unable to beat press coverage and unable to get physical. But when I spoke to Parrish last year about the outside perceptions of his limitations, he rattled off a list of receivers who play bigger than their height: Santana Moss, Steve Smith, DeSean Jackson, Eddie Royal.

Parrish might finally get his chance to see if he can make an impact, too.

"I've been a punt returner for a while in this league," Parrish said. "My speed and my quickness have been helping me out a lot. I'm just trying to transfer that over as a receiver."

» NFC On the Radar: East | West | North | South » AFC: East | West | North | South

A player, coach or issue that should be on your radar as training camp approaches.

The San Francisco 49ers finally gave Dashon Goldson a chance at free safety last season and it was the right call. Goldson's athleticism enhanced the defense. A breakout game against the Arizona Cardinals on "Monday Night Football" validated Goldson as an up-and-coming player in the division.

Where does he go from here?

Goldson's decision to fire his agent during contract negotiations early this offseason came amid reports Goldson was determined to leverage a contract far more valuable than the 49ers were prepared to pay for a player with only one good season on his résumé. It sounded as though Goldson might be getting ahead of himself. Goldson hired Drew Rosenhaus, then watched another Rosenhaus client, Antrel Rolle, jump from the Arizona Cardinals to the New York Giants for big bucks. Rolle was coming off a Pro Bowl appearance. He had been a top-10 overall draft choice and had shown playmaking ability over time. Goldson was just starting out by comparison.

I caught up with Goldson after a 49ers practice this week and tried to get a feel for his mindset and how it might affect his approach to the season. Goldson did say he was seeking a more aggressive approach to negotiations. He described Rosenhaus as a "shark" who "smells blood" and will show the aggressiveness Goldson sees in himself on the field. Goldson also seemed to realize he'll need another strong season to command the sort of deal he wants. He described his tackling as better than some critics have suggested while acknowledging he needs to become more consistent by taking better angles and showing more patience in coverage. A little patience on the contract front could be in order as well.

"Obviously, they are real patient about it and careful about who they give the money to," Goldson said of the 49ers, "but I don't see myself not getting a deal done here. I know they respect me and like what I'm doing here and I want to be here, so I'm sure something will work out. I don't think they have a problem playing athletes."