Leaf, Flutie Are Among Players Cut
Two of the NFL’s longest-running sagas came to a close Wednesday when quarterback Ryan Leaf was waived by the San Diego Chargers and the Buffalo Bills ended their divisive quarterback controversy by picking Rob Johnson over Doug Flutie, who was released.
Leaf became one of the more notorious busts in NFL draft history after being selected second overall behind Peyton Manning in 1998.
Mistake-prone on the field and off, Leaf won only four games as a starter, threw 33 interceptions and only 13 touchdown passes.
Leaf also repeatedly ran afoul of management and teammates, once shouting obscenities at former general manager Bobby Beathard. Last season, he was spotted on a golf course at a time when he wasn’t playing because of a sprained wrist.
In the end, the Chargers couldn’t even reach Leaf to tell him he was done.
“I never got a chance to talk to him. We talked to his agent. I understand he may be in Tahiti or some place on his honeymoon,” said new Charger General Manager John Butler, who consulted with almost everyone in the organization about the decision.
The Chargers--who will take a $3.8-million charge against the salary cap because of Leaf--made the move two days before the NFL’s free-agency period begins Friday.
“I always think it’s best to give [players] a chance right now to step out as free agents when it’s ready to get started. It’s better for the player,” Butler said.
Flutie is another newly-minted free agent after the Bills’ decision to go with Johnson, who turns 28 this month and is a decade younger than Flutie, who will be 38.
Johnson, the former USC quarterback, has been injury-prone and criticized for holding onto the ball too long, a factor in the 49 sacks he took last season.
Flutie’s 21-9 record as a starter for the Bills helped make him a fan favorite--Johnson is 8-10--but new General Manager Tom Donahoe and new Coach Gregg Williams picked the bigger and stronger-armed Johnson.
“We know that today’s decision may not be a popular one with our fans,” Donahoe said. “But our responsibility as an organization is not necessarily to make the popular decisions, but to make the right decisions.”
The Bills spent a month weighing the decision as the team worked to comply with the NFL salary cap of $67.4 million by today’s deadline.
By cutting Flutie, the team saved $3 million against the cap. It would have saved $1.66 million by cutting Johnson, though Donahoe downplayed that aspect.
“It was not based on age. It was not based on size. It was not based on how much of a hit we will take on the salary cap. It was based solely on which quarterback was best suited to lead this football team,” he said.
Among other salary cap moves around the NFL on Wednesday was the San Francisco 49ers’ decision to release linebacker Ken Norton Jr.
The Chargers saved a $500,000 roster bonus by making the Leaf move, but had been expected to part ways with him at some point this off-season--partly because after going 1-15 they have the No. 1 pick in the draft and might use it on Virginia Tech’s Michael Vick.
Butler met with Vick at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis last week, and team personnel will travel to Virginia for further meetings with him.
The Chargers also announced they have signed Canadian Football League quarterback Dave Dickenson to a two-year contract at a salary close to the NFL minimum.
The pick of the free-agent quarterbacks is Brad Johnson, a former Pro Bowl player who was with the Washington Redskins and is considered a candidate to sign with the Baltimore Ravens, reuniting him with Coach Brian Billick, who worked with Johnson with the Minnesota Vikings.
The Ravens appear prepared to shop around before talking to Trent Dilfer, who quarterbacked them to the Super Bowl championship on a one-year, $1-million contract and will be a free agent.
The Baltimore Sun reported this week the Ravens had not returned calls by Dilfer’s agent.
A new addition to the market was Elvis Grbac. The Kansas City Chiefs announced negotiations with their quarterback have broken down and he will become a free agent.
Another commodity who is available in a trade is Trent Green, the St. Louis Ram quarterback who was signed to be the starter two seasons ago before his injury gave rise to Kurt Warner’s Super Bowl season.
Besides the Chargers and Ravens, teams in the market for a quarterback include Miami, Seattle and the Chiefs, who are thought to be interested in Green.
Seattle General Manager and Coach Mike Holmgren has inquired about the availability of Green as well as Matt Hasselbeck of the Green Bay Packers, a player Holmgren worked with in Green Bay.
He also expressed what was described by a source as “extremely limited” interest in Leaf.
Even Leigh Steinberg, Leaf’s agent, acknowledged teams will be wary of Leaf, though Steinberg believes Leaf still can prove himself in the NFL.
The Chargers are through waiting--and the fact his teammates lost confidence in him and openly criticized him clearly was a factor.
“All these things are accumulative, and you talk about it for a long, long time,” Charger Coach Mike Riley said. “We all realize his ability but we also have to look out for what might be better for the team and the long run. It’s a move that we were obviously comfortable in making.”
The Bills hope their controversy is over as well, with no more questions about which players were lined up behind Flutie and which ones supported Johnson.
In addition, the team is changing to a West Coast offense.
“We’ve got the right guy for this offense. He can make all the throws,” Williams said.
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Notable cuts:
BUFFALO
QB Doug Flutie
CAROLINA
CB Eric Davis
LB Lee Woodall
KANSAS CITY
DE Chester McGlockton
MINNESOTA
DT John Randle
PITTSBURGH
C Dermontti Dawson
SAN DIEGO
QB Ryan Leaf
SAN FRANCISCO
LB Ken Norton Jr.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.