Courier-Post from Camden, New Jersey • Page 46

6D courierpostonllne.comeagle8 COURIER-POST, Sunday, August 31, 2008 NFL Eagles find a fallback Several notables looking for work Roster Cuts v-J 1 1 fx-7" 7 "7 fVS. I i S' 1 casr- Penn Stater shows enough to win the job By SEAN McCANN Courier-Post Staff Tony Hunt is officially "a former running back." Those were the words used Saturday evening by Eagles general manager Tom Heckert when talking about Hunt's re cent move to fullback, where he has apparently won the start NOTES ing job. Jason Davis and Jed Collins were among the 12 cuts the team made Saturday, leaving itself without a single player who has played fullback in a real game at any level. Still, based on two preseason performances, Heckert says Hunt is more than capable. "Obviously, he's going to be the guy," the general manager said.

"He's the only fullback on the roster, so he's going to get a lot of opportunities here, and we'll see how he does. "We're expecting him to be a top, top guy, and that's going to take some time," Heckert went on. "But I think he's going to be a serviceable guy for us from the beginning of the season. If that wasn't the case, we wouldn't have kept him." Hunt has been outspoken the last two weeks about the lack of time the Eagles gave him to make the jump to fullback. Just a few days before the team's preseason Finale against the Jets, he was asked how long into the regular season it would take before he could feel comfortable at the position, and he said he had no way to answer.

"That would be like me asking you how long it would take you to be an astronaut," Hunt said. Gannett News Service fiel Associated Press Offensive tackle Willie Anderson and running back Rudi Johnson lost their starting jobs with the Cincinnati Bengals during training camp. Now they've lost their roster spots, too. The Bengals released Anderson and Johnson on Saturday as part of their moves to get to the 53-man roster limit. The 33-year-old Anderson was the most tenured Bengal at 12 seasons.

Injuries limited him to seven games last season, ending his streak of four consecutive Pro Bowl appearances. He became a backup to Stacy Andrews in training camp, and declined to take a pay cut to stay with the team. "Very tough," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said of letting Anderson go. "He has been significant to me. He has been significant to this organization, beyond me.

We'll see what happens. It may not be over." Falcons Atlanta released quarterback Joey Harrington, the third overall pick in the 2002 draft by the Lions and a starter in 10 games for the Falcons last season. Patriots AFC champion New England released quarterback Matt Gutierrez and kept Matt Cassel as Tom Brady's backup for a fourth season. Cassel's roster spot appeared to be in jeopardy after he failed to lead the Patriots to a touchdown in 17 series during their winless exhibition season. Other noteworthy cuts were veterans Fernando Bryant, their starting cornerback for most of the exhibition season, and Victor Hobson, a Marlton ROSTER REDUCTIONS 3n native and linebacker who spent all five of his NFL seasons with the New York Jets.

Kevin Faulk, the veteran third-down back, was suspended for one game and will forfeit two paychecks, the result of a no contest plea in July to misdemeanor marijuana charges in Lafayette, La. Ravens Baltimore cut quarterback Casey Bramlet, signed last week as insurance when Troy Smith was ill and Kyle Boiler injured. The Ravens also released special teams ace Gary Stills. Jets Veteran running back Jesse Chatman was suspended for four games for violating the league's steroid policy. Giants New York signed 44-year-old John Carney while Lawrence Tynes recovers from a knee injury, meaning they will have two kickers on the roster.

They also kept just two quarterbacks, Eli Manning and David Carr, placing Anthony Wright on injured reserve. Steelers Pittsburgh placed backup quarterback Charlie Batch on injured reserve. He broke his collarbone in the exhibition opener. Titans Tennessee cut Roydell Williams, the Titans' co-leader in receptions last year, after ie struggled to recover from breaking an ankle days before a playoff game in January. Running back Rudl Johnson was sent packing by the Bengals.

AL BEHRMAN -Associated Press Keenan, LB Danny Lansanah, DT Alfred -r fife Ji A so a chance at playing fullback linemen such as Nick Cole and rookie Mike McGlynn, who can both play center. In fact, versatility was the watchword all over the offen- sive line. Indirectly, it was a key in keeping a sixth wide re- ceiver. "ve always talk about some- times we do keep 10 offensive linemen, and this year we're one short of that," said Heckert, who pointed out that both start- ing guards, Shawn Andrews and Todd Herremans, can play tackle, and starting center Ja- record. It's not an It's certainly not an either.

It's somewhere in between. And it's the kind of thing that's taken the Eagles from an elite team in 2004 to a team that's missed the playoffs two of the last three years. McDougle would have been a nice story if he'd made it. But it doesn't reflect well on the Eagles' draft that a top pick wound up being an underdog you were pulling pull for. It wasn't all McDougle's fault, of course.

He had some injuries. He was shot in a robbery attempt in 2005. And, in the end, he's still a guy worth rooting for McDougle really got his life together in the past year. He'd straightened out his head, gotten himself into great shape and he'd played very well this preseason. "I gave it my all," McDougle said.

"What else can I do?" McDougle did all he could, and more's the pity. The NFL is a bottom-line business, and the bottom line is that Saturday the Eagles were talking about what might have been instead of what was. Reach Kevin Roberts at Tony Hunt made the Eagles' roster, But the Eagles apparently saw the answer they were looking for on the field Thurs- day night. "I think he did a heck of a job for us," Heckert said Satur- day. Numbers games Unlike previous years, the Eagles decided to take nine of- fensive linemen, not 10, into the regular season.

That was bad news for veter- an guard Scott Young, who was cut in favor of more versatile He'll go down in the books as a what-might-have-been story, and a bust. And his name will be added to the list of shaky Eagles drafts. In 2002, the Eagles nailed the draft. Crushed it. Lito Sheppard, Michael Lewis, Sheldon Brown and Brian Westbrook were their first four picks.

Since then, the tops of their drafts have been kind of hit or miss, and it's hard to be a good team if you're not getting a lot out of the top of the draft. Rounds 1-3 have to help you. In 2003, it was McDougle (bust), L.J. Smith (starter) and nothing else. In 2004, it was Shawn Andrews (All-Pro, but now says he's battling depression) and Matt Ware (long gone).

In 2005, it was Mike Patterson (a very good starter), Reggie Brown (a starter) and Matt McCoy (bust). In 2006, Brodrick Bunkley (jury's still out), Winston Justice (bust, so far) and Chris Go-cong (starting, but the jury's still out). Last year it was Kevin Kolb (looking to the future), Victor Abiamiri (injured) and Stewart Bradley (starting for the first time this year). All in all, it's not a horrible KrmA awaits. maal Jackson can play guard, "With the versatility of the guys we kept, we just figured we probably didn't need to keep the 10th guy." Signs Of relief There were a number of Ea- gles who were thought to be on the bubble whose names were not on the cut list Saturday, Chief among them might be third-year tackle Winston Jus- tice, a second-round draft pick in 2006 who has struggled to find his way as a pro.

Eagles Team gets down to 53 Continued from Page ID cult decision for us with Jerome," Heckert said. "He's a great guy. He's worked his butt off to come back from a lot of adversity, and he's played well. I think he's not going to have any trouble finding work." McDougle was followed by number of veterans, including guard Scott Young and tight end Kris Wilson. Fullbacks Jason Davis and Jed Collins were also released, meaning the Eagles have decided on 2007 third-round pick Tony Hunt as the starter.

Linebacker Andy Stu-debaker was the only 2008 pick to be cut. A sixth-rounder out of Division III Wheaton College in Illi- nois, he had trouble making the conversion from defensive end to linebacker in time to make the team. "It's a real difficult situation, where he's athletic, he's big, he can run, he's tough," Heckert said. "It's just a whole new ballgame when you're off the ball like that and blockers are coming from all over the place. "Over time, I think he has a chance to develop into a good football player." The Eagles officially announced the release of defensive tackle Montae Re-agor, who hasn't been with the team for almost a week.

Wide receiver Michael Gasperson was also cut. After three years on the practice squad, he's used up his time there and his release likely signals the end of his Eagles career. That's not necessarily true for other released players, like Studebaker, cornerback Kyle Arring-ton, wide receiver Shaheer McBride, defensive tackle Mike Marquardt and linebacker Justin Roland. If no other NFL team signs them before noon today, the Eagles can sign them to their eight-player practice squad. EAGLES: Released CB Kyle Arlington, FB Jed Collins, FB Jason Davis, WR Michael Gasperson, DT Mike Marquardt, WR Shaheer McBride, DE Jerome McDougle, DT Montae Reagor, LB Justin Roland, LB Andy Studebaker, TE Kris Wilson and Scott Young.

FALCONS: Waived OL D' Anthony Batiste, Eric Brock, OL Michael Butterworth, Deke Cooper, Doug Datish, DE Willie Evans, QB Joey Harrington, CB Wilrey Fontenot, OL Kynan Forney, DE Brandon Miller, DT Rashad Moore, OL Terrance Pennington, LB Mickey Pimentel, TE Marcus Pollard, CB Glenn Sharpe, DT Montavious Stanley, Daren Stone, LB Cameron Vaughn, WR Eric Weems, WR Chandler Williams and TE Keith Zinger. -H RAVENS: Released TE Adam Bergen, QB Casey Bramlet, DL Darrell Campbell, WR Patrick Carter, Adrien Clarke, DT Amon Gordon, WR Justin Harper, RB Alex Haynes, tE Keith Heinrich, Adam Kraus, LB Robert McCune, RB Allen Patrick, CB Ronnie Prude, OT Joe Reitz, OL Chad Slaughter, LB Gary Stills, WR Emie Wheelwright, DL Lorenzo i Williams and WR Matt Willis. BENGALS: Released OT Willie Anderson, RB Rudi Johnson, TE Nate Lawrie, LB Jim Maxwell and CB Deltha O'Neal. Waived LB Ahmad Brooks, DE Antwon Burton, John Busing, DE Eric Henderson, QB Jeff Rowe, Nate Livings, OT Dane Uperesa, James Blair, DE Angelo Craig, Anthony Hoke, LB Dan Howell, RB James Johnson, WR Clyde Logan, WR Maurice Purify and WR Mario Urrutia. BROWNS: Released WR Travis Wilson, LB David McMillan, TE Brad Cieslak, DB A.J.

Davis, WR Efrem Hill, TE Kolomona Kapanui, DB Travis Key, OL James Lee, WR Lance. Leggett, DB Brandon Mitchell, LB Chase Ortiz, OL Jonathan Palmer, DB Jereme Perry, DL Melila Purcell, Jason Reda and WR Steve Sanders. LIONS: Released RB Artose Pinner, WR Kenny Moore, LB Buster Davis and QB Drew 'J Henson. PACKERS: Released RB Noah Herron, RB Vemand Morency, FB Corey White, WR Jake Allen, CB Scorpio Babers, DT Conrad Bolston, Brennen Carvalho, Tyrone Culver, LB CHRIS GARDNERAssoclated Press tile Jerome McDougle, a former first-round pick, never reached starter status with the Eagles. RobertsMcDougle a first-round bust Spencer Havner, TE Joey Haynos, Ryan Continued from Page ID there." It's impossible to call this a bad decision.

McDougle has played just 33 games as an Eagle, started precisely zero and recorded just three sacks. His only high-impact play as an Eagle was probably a penalty against Tampa Bay that played a huge part in costing the Eagles a game. One good preseason when he was on the bubble doesn't quite even the ledger. McDougle had a lot of people rooting for him, and he knew it. "Everybody likes an underdog story," he said.

"Everybody likes a guy who's been through a lot and overcome adversity. I do feel like a lot of people not even the fans, but teammates and coaches want to see me do good. "But there's a difference between people wanting to see you do good, and doing good. After a while, if you're not doing good, that shifts a little bit." Well, there's the rub. McDougle was a No.

1 draft pick. He shouldn't have been trying to make the team as an underdog. Malone, DT Daniel Muir, CB Joe Porter, WR Johnny Quinn, WR Taj Smith, WR Brett Swain and Orrin Thompson. JAGUARS: Waived QB Todd Bouman, RB Ciatrick Fason, LB Tony Gilbert, DT Jesse Mahelona, DE Kenny Pettway, DE Bo Schobel, DB Trae Williams, TE Chris Brown, DE Mkristo Bruce, OT Andrew Camahan, TE Charies Davis, CB Isaiah Gardner, CB Michael Grant, WR Ryan Hoag, OL Pete McMahon, OL Drew Miller, CB Rashod Moulton, LB Lamar Myles and WR D'Juan Woods. VIKINGS: Released Steve Hauschka, QB Brooks Bollinger, WR Jaymar Johnson, WR Nate Jones, WR Martin Nance, CB Marcus Walker, CB Dee McCann, CB Brandon Sumrall, RB Albert Young, TE Braden Jones, LB Leman, LB Rufus Alexander, DE Martail Burnett, Brian Daniels, DE Chris Norwell, Dan Mozes, Tim Mattran, Chase Johnson, WR Darius Raynaud and DT Leger Douzable.

SAINTS: Released KR Skyler Green, QB Tyler Palko, Andy Alleman, Tim Duckworth, LB Jo-Lonn Dunbar, RB Lynell Hamilton, DT Orien Harris, LB William Kershaw, Taylor Mehlhaff, TE Buck Ortega, DE Josh Savage, FB Olanlyl Sobomeheln and WR Joe West. GIANTS: Signed John Carney. Terminated the contract of Stuart Schweigert. Released QB Andre Woodson, OL Andrew Bain, OL Kurt Quarterman, OL Clifford Louis, OL Na'Shan Goddard, FB Robert Douglas, TE Eric Butler, TE Jerome Collins, WR Brandon London, WR Marcus Monk, DE Wallace Gilberry, DE Alex Morrow, DT Ogemdl Nwagbuo, DT Jeremy Clark, LB Tank Daniels, LB James Terry, DB Geoffrey Pope, DB Darren Bamett and Josh Huston. JETS: Announced RB Jesse Chatman was suspended four games without pay by the NFL for violating the league's steroids policy.

Released LB Matt Chatham and DB Hank Poteat. Waived WR David Ball, OL Jacob Bender, WR Larry Brackins, DB Rudy Burgess, RB Jehuu Caulcrick, OL Stanley Daniels. OL Kyle DeVan, OL Nate Gamer, DB James Ihedigbo, DL Thomas Johnson, DL Bryan Mattison, OL Matt McChesney, LB Blair Phillips, DL Ropati Pitoitua, TE Jason Pociask, WR Paul Raymond, LB Brandon Renkart and TE A.J. Schable. Placed Cameron Worrell on Injured reserve.

STEELERS: Waived-lnjured LB Arnold Harrison, LB Mike Humpal and Ryan Mundy. Released LB Patrick Bailey, WR-KR Eddie Drummond, Paul Emster, FB Billy Latsko, OG Doug Legursky, OG Matt Lentz, CB Roy Lewis, Grant Mason, DE Ryan McBean, OT Jeremy Parquet, DT Scott Paxson, DE Jordan Reffett, WR Willie Reid, WR Mlcah Ruckel, TE Dezmond Sherrod, TE Lee Vickers, RB Justin Vincent and CB Travis Williams. 49ERS: Released WR Ashley Lelie, FB Moran Norris, DT Atiyyah Ellison, LB Dennis Haley, DT LaJuan Ramsey, OT Alan Reuber and OT Joe Toledo. TITANS: Released WR Roydell Williams, Calvin Lowry, QB Ingle Martin, FB Jeremy Cain, FB Casey Cramer, RB Omar Cuff, WR Biren Ealy, WR Edward Williams, LB Jerrell Freeman, TE Jamie Petrowskl, OL Isaac Snell, OL Fernando Velasco, 01 Enoka Lucas, OL Jason Murphy, CB Marqutce Cole, CB Tuff Harris, CB Cary Williams, John Vaughn, DT' Antonio Johnson, DT Enc Taylor, DE Sean Conover and Tony Joiner. REDSKINS: Released DT Matthias Askew, DT Ryan Boschetti, FB Nehemiah Broughton, OT Devln Clark, Andrew Crummey, OB Derek Devine, Derrick Frost, WR Horace 't Gant, LB Curtis Gatewood, Patrick Ghee, LB David Holloway, CB Cedrick Holt, WR Maurice Mann, RB Marcus Mason, Fred Matua, WR Billy McMullen, WR Anthony Mix, CB Matterral Richardson, LB Danny Verdun-Wheeler, OT Todd Wade, OT Tavares Washington and CB Byron Westbrook..