The Cincinnati Bengals did indeed sign a free agent receiver, but it wasn't the one that Chad Ochocinco(notes) wanted. It's Antonio Bryant, who had a really good year once.

Chad wanted Terrell Owens(notes). He wanted him so badly that last night on Twitter, he volunteered to let Owens be Batman while he'd take the Robin role. He then he went on to cast the rest of "Batman" with various other members of the Bengals organization. Carson Palmer(notes) got stuck being Alfred, the poor guy.

Chad's taking the news well.

I admit, I'm disappointed that we won't be seeing Owens and Ochocinco on the same team. I try not to make it a habit of wishing for things that make Carson Palmer bleed out of his eyeballs when he thinks about them, but I honestly think this would've worked. Chad and Ocho could've helped each other.

I think they'd have been a calming influence on one another. If there's anyone on earth who understands what it might be like to be Terrell Owens, it's Chad Ochocinco, and vice versa. If they were together, I think the volume would get turned down a little bit on each of them. They'd keep each other in check, because attention-grabbing forces like that tend to cancel each other out. They don't multiply.

Anyway, it's Bryant that's a Bengal. After failing to fill his potential in three other cities, Bryant ended up with the Buccaneers, where he was a force in '08: 83 receptions, 1,248 yards. In '09, the Bucs tabbed him as their franchise player, giving him big money in the process, and with injuries nagging him, he wasn't anywhere close to the player he was a year before.

Owens remains available on the free agent market.

The NFL is supposed to keep scores on the Wonderlic -- an intelligence test given to potential NFL rookies -- to themselves. Every year, though, some scores leak out, and every year, there's tremendous interest in those scores.

I think it's mostly because people like to believe that they're smarter than athletes. People see a young man playing football on television, and he's athletically gifted, rich and famous -- let's not ignore race as a factor here, either -- and to comfort themselves, they like to believe that they're at least smarter than that guy.

"He has everything in the world I wish I had, but he's dumber than a rock," the thinking goes.

So every year, some scores come out, and we hope that we hear that someone had a really low score, so we can make fun of him and confirm our feelings of superiority.

I feel a little bit weird about knowing a guy's score anyway. I guess it's unavoidable, and if I were about to give that guy $30 million to play football for me, I'd want to know. But as just some random dude, it feels like that's too much for me to know about a person. It feels like someone just showed me the entire contents of his medicine cabinet.

And then there's the question of whether low scores even means anything. Vince Young(notes) was reported to have done very poorly on the test, and he just made the Pro Bowl. Dan Marino's score was said to be very low, and he's in the Hall of Fame. Can the test predict anything at all about a guy's NFL future? Do we put way too much stock in standardized tests in all areas of life?

Anyway, if you're curious about the scores that have surfaced Wednesday, they're being reported on Twitter by Edgar Thompson of The Palm Beach Posts's Daily Dolphin. They're the scores of high profile quarterbacks.

The Green Bay Packers, who sport one of the most classic and distinctive looks in all of sports, appear to be giving into the alternate/third jersey temptation.

There's no word yet on what the alternate jersey will look like, though it's expected to be unveiled on Friday. The rumors point to a throwback jersey, as opposed to a new design or an alternate color, which I consider good news. A throwback would be far less egregious than some trendy new black uniform, with a stylized font and green and gold trim.

If they do go the throwback route, there are some slick options. The Packers actually wore blue in their earlier years, and I'd like to see a representation of one of the following sets of duds:

I think the one on the right would have to be considered highly unlikely, though it would be awesome. The rumors first popped up on UniWatch, then here and here.

For most teams, there's nothing wrong with a third jersey, but when you have a look as distinctive and classic as the Packers, it feels a bit like messing with perfection. I'm not saying it's a bad idea, but for whoever's in charge of the design, the pressure's on. The Packers' look is not something to be trifled with.

Gracias, National Football Post.

The Buffalo Bills and St. Louis Rams were thought to be potential suitors for Michael Vick(notes), the most highly sought-after third-string quarterback in history. That doesn't appear to be the case anymore.

Sal Paolantonio did an interview with 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia, and (via PFT), said that neither team wants Vick anymore.

I guess that's an indication that they did want him before, and what might have changed between then and now to dissuade them, I couldn't tell you. Maybe they felt like the Ed Block Courage Award for bravery and strength in the endeavor of refraining from dog murderer (note: that may not be the official name of the award) was going to his head.

So if anything is going to happen with Vick, it looks like it will be coming later rather than sooner. Perhaps those teams are fixated on getting a quarterback in the draft, and if that doesn't pan out, they'll take a look back at Vick. We'll see.

Sal also says, though, that the Eagles are getting calls from the Seahawks, who are hot to acquire either Donovan McNabb(notes) or Kevin Kolb(notes).

The most interesting thing I take from that is, if true, Pete Carroll must not be a big believer in Matt Hasselbeck(notes). I think the general consensus out there on Hasselbeck is that he's still a quality quarterback, but just needs a little good luck on the health front, and perhaps some healthy receivers.

But, if one were so inclined, one could read into this that maybe the Seahawks feel like that health isn't coming, and/or Hasselbeck, who will turn 35 this year, just doesn't have it anymore. Maybe that's true. He played in 14 games last year and only managed a 75.1 quarterback rating.

I feel like the man still has some good football in him, but I'd be curious to hear from Seahawks fans on whether they believe Hasselbeck can get his mojo back.

For some NFL players who get released, it's difficult to leave a team, because they've grown to love the organization, fans and city.

But that is not the case with Derek Anderson(notes). After being cut in the wake of the Cleveland Browns acquiring Seneca Wallace(notes), Anderson is leaving Cleveland with anger, resentment and vengeance flowing from his fingertips.

Jeff Schudel of The News-Herald in Ohio e-mailed Anderson to ask for his thoughts on being released. Anderson sent the following back:

"The fans are ruthless and don't deserve a winner. I will never forget getting cheered when I was injured.

"I know at times I wasn't great. I hope and pray I'm playing when my team comes to town and [we] roll them."

Goodness. The fans of Cleveland, perhaps the North American city that has experienced the most sports suffering in history, don't even deserve a winner? That's some anger.

Anderson has since kinda/sorta apologized, saying Wednesday in a statement: "I said some things [to Schudel] earlier that I regret. … I wasn't taken out of context, but I was speaking out of my frustration after my career with the Browns came to a close."

The incident Anderson is so bitter about is this: In late 2008, Anderson went down with a knee injury in the fourth quarter of a loss to the Colts. The fans cheered as he squirmed on the turf in pain. Evidently, he hasn't gotten over it.

It's hard to blame the guy for it. Someone else cheering your misery is cruel, ridiculous and absolutely senseless. And all Browns fans got out of their cold-heartedness was to see Ken Dorsey(notes) and Bruce Gradkowski(notes) go 0-4 over the last quarter of the season, losing those games by a combined score of 102-19. So, yeah, everything was Derek Anderson's fault.

Anyway, being still young and physically gifted, Anderson will get another chance somewhere else. As for getting a chance to stick it to the Browns, well ... let's worry about getting that career quarterback rating above 70 first.

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For our second Shutdown Corner mock draft, we're going throw a couple semi-likely scenarios into the mix. First of all, as most mocks tend to reflect need as opposed to the Best Player Available mantra, free agency decisions will weigh heavily on many picks. Second, we'll throw in two hypothetical trades, just to make life a bit more interesting. Let's assume, for whatever reason, that the St. Louis Rams get cold feet on Sam Bradford and trade a second-round pick to the Eagles for Michael Vick, in order to run more of an option offense in the short term to mitigate their lack of playmakers not named Steven Jackson. Then, let's say that the Seattle Seahawks pull the trigger on the Brandon Marshall deal, but give up the 14th overall pick they got from Denver last season in a trade, instead of the sixth-overall pick they'd have to give up for Marshall if there were no negotiations.

How would the first round look under those conditions? Here's one man's opinion, in two parts (picks 17-32 below; picks 1-16 here):

17. San Francisco 49ers: S Taylor Mays, USC -- Mays' straight-line athleticism might be a bit overrated in an NFL prospect sense, but certain pre-draft stories take on a life of their own and can drag a player down. Specifically, the notion that Mays' lack of elite hip turn and instincts for the position seems to have grown in some circles to the point where he's not even considered a first-round pick. But he's strong against the run, has good recovery speed, and could develop into a top-tier safety under the right conditions. With Mike Singletary as a supreme motivator, Mays has every chance of justifying his draft position here.

18. Pittsburgh Steelers: ILB Brandon Spikes, Florida -- The Steelers' obvious need is on the offensive line, but there's an ancillary need in the middle of their defense that will grow as time goes on. Brandon, cousin of Takeo, shares the elder Spikes' mean streak and tough inside game. Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau has an unbelievable track record with guys like Spikes who, as Spikes himself recently said, want to "go to the league and grab it by the neck."

19. Atlanta Falcons: DE Jason Pierre-Paul, South Florida -- The Falcons had two problems with their defense last year -- a subpar pass rush, and a secondary that couldn't hold up under the pressure. With the signing of cornerback Dunta Robinson, GM Thomas Dimitroff can turn his attention to the front four. Pierre-Paul has the edge speed and athleticism to complement the team's improved coverage with consistent quarterback pressure.

20. Houston Texans: CB Kyle Wilson, Boise State -- And speaking of Robinson, the Texans will need a replacement. Wilson hasn't had the press enjoyed by Joe Haden, but he might be just as good in the long term. Not a run support guy, but his cover skills make up for it.

21. Cincinnati Bengals: S Earl Thomas, Texas -- Assuming that the Bengals sign either Antonio Bryant or Terrell Owens, the next need goes to the middle of their defense, where the best cornerback duo in the business (Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph) need coverage assistance. Thomas has the kind of range safety skills so attractive in today's pass-happy offenses.

22. New England Patriots: WR Golden Tate, Notre Dame -- The most pro-ready of this class' receiver corps, Tate has already taken a course in Patriots Offense 101 under Professor Charlie Weis. Fearless in traffic and with a running back's instincts after the catch, Tate would be the perfect bridge between the deep threats and underneath targets currently no New England's roster.

23. Green Bay Packers: G Mike Iupati, Idaho -- Green Bay's offense is just about set -- great quarterback, the second-most efficient running back in the NFL last year according to Football Outsiders, and an outstanding group of receivers. Problem is, there are holes along the offensive line that simply re-signing Chad Clifton won't solve. Iupati will help with run-blocking and pass protection right away even as he works to refine certain technique issues.

24. Philadelphia Eagles: DE Carlos Dunlap, Florida -- With great size and speed, Dunlap could be the perfect match for Trent Cole as the Eagles look to solidify their front four in a way that neither Juqua Parker nor Victor Abiamiri have allowed them to do.

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During a media conference call with Jacksonville Jaguars general manager Gene Smith today, it was revealed that in a poll of 800 Jags season ticket holders, 55 percent voted against the idea of the team drafting Tim Tebow -- in any round and in any capacity (this according to Jags beat writer Vito Stellino). This is an interesting wrinkle, because team owner Wayne Weaver has been quoted as saying that he'd be amenable to Tebow on the roster if the Florida Hero of Intangibles put butts in the seats.

"The game is such an important part of this community, and Tebow is such an iconic figure that people would legitimately think, 'Wouldn't it be great if he was a Jaguar,'" Weaver told the Associated Press last September. "I'd be silly to sit here and think that's not going to be a huge thing. Clearly there's going to be a groundswell for Tebow, and we'll have to make that evaluation if we have a draft pick that's going to be anywhere near him,"

Well, with the sample size alert in full effect, it would appear that the community isn't so sure. The Jags have lost thousands of interested fans in the last few years, and expected a full string of local TV blackouts even before the 2009 season began. That said, Weaver might want to take a step back before assuming that Tebow's arrival in teal and black would be some sort of panacea for those attendance issues. He may be the apple of every media member's eye these days, but as Tebow works to adjust his throwing motion and turn himself into the very model of a modern NFL quarterback, the fans don't appear to be quite so convinced. How much will teams beg off his "intangibles" if one of them isn't the ability to sell tickets? We can but wait and see...

The NFL RedZone Channel was nearly flawless last season. No commercials, great decisions in when to cut from game to game, a reliable host who keeps the action flowing and never tries to get in the way; the channel made NFL Sundays even more enjoyable than before. But there was just one problem: We couldn't watch it while waiting in line at the grocery store or driving to get our friend from the airport or, heaven forbid, at a should-be-illegal Sunday afternoon wedding.

That won't be a problem any more.

The league signed a new distribution deal with Verizon Wireless that allows the wireless carrier to air live footage of every Sunday game. It's the first time the NFL has given live games rights to a mobile carrier.

As The Wall Street Journal reports:

The deal marks a significant shift in strategy for the NFL, which has never before allowed mobile access to its games on Sunday afternoons. Doing so was long considered by broadcasters to be a threat to the NFL's golden goose-its Sunday afternoon broadcasts that generate some $1.4 billion in license fees from News Corp.'s Fox and CBS Corp's. CBS, whose executives have said they will keep a close eye on the impact of mobile distribution on their ratings.

Brian Rolapp, the NFL's vice president for media strategy, said distributing live games over mobile phones on Sundays won't cannibalize the league's audience.

"We've been adding this stuff every year for the last three years, and ratings just keep going up," Mr. Rolapp said.

That makes perfect sense, because nobody who has access to a television would ever choose to watch a game on a cell phone. It's nice that the NFL has finally realized this.

As the Journal points out though, signing this deal sort of undercuts the NFL's argument to the player's association that revenue growth is slowing. It also further illustrates how preposterous an NFL lockout would be. People love the NFL so much that a phone company is willing to spend $180 million per year to give customers access to watch live games on a four-inch screen. Why would the league and its players do anything to risk jeopardizing such love?  

And it should also be noted that today's news is only going to be very exciting for people who have Verizon, people who want to switch to Verizon, people who have phones that can support live viewing (Blackberry and Android phones are good to go) and people who are willing to pay for the right to watch games on a phone. That may or may not be you. Regardless, it's a step in the right direction for the NFL. 

Tennessee Titans linebacker Keith Bulluck(notes) surprised nine high school students Monday night by presenting them with $1,000 in scholarship money in the name of his late teammate Steve McNair(notes).

The scholarships were presented at the 44th annual National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame awards dinner. Bulluck chose nine winners (the same as McNair's jersey number) from among 54 recipients of a separate scholar-athlete award for Middle Tennessee high schoolers. The nine players didn't know about Bulluck's gesture beforehand.

"This was a nice surprise because I don't think any of us knew about it," scholarship winner Juwan Turner told The Tennessean. "[Bulluck] is a role model."

He also took the job of finding scholarship winners quite seriously. The Tennessean reports:

"They all filled out applications and it really was a lot of work picking nine,'' Bulluck said. "I read through all of them, looked at their GPAs, looked at their extracurricular activities, looked at their coaches' comments, saw how much they were involved in things and how many years they lettered on teams."

It's a great gesture from Bulluck, but even more so considering that he isn't expected to be in Tennessee much longer. He's an unrestricted free agent coming off an ACL injury and insiders expect Tennessee to part ways with the 10-year veteran.

It brings to mind Scott Fujita donating money to New Orleans on his way out of town. There are plenty of good guys out there in the NFL. It's nice to hear about them every once in a while.

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For our second Shutdown Corner mock draft, we're going throw a couple semi-likely scenarios into the mix. First of all, as most mocks tend to reflect need as opposed to the Best Player Available mantra, free agency decisions will weigh heavily on many picks. Second, we'll throw in two hypothetical trades, just to make life a bit more interesting. Let's assume, for whatever reason, that the St. Louis Rams get cold feet on Sam Bradford and trade a second-round pick to the Eagles for Michael Vick, in order to run more of an option offense in the short term to mitigate their lack of playmakers not named Steven Jackson. Then, let's say that the Seattle Seahawks pull the trigger on the Brandon Marshall deal, but give up the 14th overall pick they got from Denver last season in a trade, instead of the sixth-overall pick they'd have to give up for Marshall if there were no negotiations.

How would the first round look under those conditions? Here's one man's opinion, in two parts (picks 1-16 below; picks 17-32 can be found here):

1. St. Louis Rams: DT Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska -- Even if Bradford aces his March 25 private workout and puts to rest every question about his shoulder, Suh is still the best player in this draft class. There are those who believe that the signing of Fred Robbins tips the Rams' hand away from a defensive tackle in the draft. That would be more plausible if Robbins wasn't a 32-year-old prototypical nose tackle coming off microfracture surgery. If the Rams decide to pass on Bradford for any reason, Suh is the only reasonable choice.

2. Detroit Lions: DT Gerald McCoy, Oklahoma -- Lions head coach Jim Schwartz might be a bit disappointed to miss out on a supreme quarterback disruptor like Suh, but that will be cast aside with the selection of McCoy, whose ridiculous first-step quickness brings Kevin Williams to mind.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: S Eric Berry, Tennessee -- Russell Okung might be tempting here, but Berry's ability to cover center field will prove invaluable to a Bucs team that proved all too vulnerable against the deep ball last season. A Combine star, Berry lived up to every expectation of him in Indianapolis.

4. Washington Redskins: QB Sam Bradford, Oklahoma -- Offensive tackle is the desperate need, but I do not see Mike Shanahan passing on a talent of Bradford's stature. The hope is that a new zone-blocking scheme will mitigate some of the line concerns as Bradford, who usually played pitch-and-catch in 2008 behind the best line in college football, finds his way in the pros.

5. Kansas City Chiefs: OT Russell Okung, Oklahoma State -- If the Chiefs take a flyer on Thomas Jones in hope that their offense finally takes flight, they'll need a dominant left tackle to lead the way. The jury is still out on Branden Albert at the position after he allowed nine sacks in 2009. Okung, more of a natural on the outside, could help the Chiefs further by pushing Albert inside or to the right side.

6. Seattle Seahawks: OT Bryan Bulaga, Iowa -- There's no point in surrounding your quarterback with playmakers if he's eating turf all the time. There are some who are concerned that Bulaga isn't a natural fit for Alex Gibbs' scheme, but Gibbs ran more of a power zone in Atlanta, and nobody is better at assimilating the talent on the roster.

7. Cleveland Browns: CB Joe Haden, Florida -- The slow times at the Combine were cause for concern, but Cleveland's new front office will go to the film and see the real Haden In coverage.

8. Oakland Raiders: OT Bruce Campbell, Maryland -- The Raiders point in this direction because of their obvious over-interest in measurables, and an apparent lack of facilities in which they can watch actual game tape of college players. Al Davis signs off on the pick because he's a big fan of the "Evil Dead" movies.

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