Joe Thomas agreed to a seven-year contract extension with the Browns on Monday worth $84 million. Thomas is the best lineman in the game and will eventually generate Hall of Fame talk if he keeps playing like he has, so this was a no-brainer for Cleveland. Thomas has made the Pro Bowl in each of his four NFL seasons.
Terrelle Pryor was selected in the third round of the Supplemental Draft on Monday by the Raiders. This would have been inconceivable for any other team, but it's difficult to be shocked with any particular development when the Raiders are involved. Pryor's sub-4.4 40-yard dash made him an immediate and permanent fixation for Al Davis, and no practical concerns can get in Davis' way when he decides he wants a (fast) player. Pryor was unlikely to go any earlier than the fourth round, and no other team would have likely let Pryor play quarterback in any significant capacity this year. Anything can happen in Oakland, though Pryor won't be eligible to practice or play until Oakland's sixth game due to his five-game suspension. Still, Pryor's fantasy prospects for both the short and long term are not good. He simply does not look like a natural quarterback and, despite his great speed, he doesn't have enough quickness or explosiveness to profile ideally as a receiver. A move to tight end would best exploit Pryor's abilities, but it's difficult to see him being open to the idea.
Percy Harvin (ribs) returned to practice Monday. He missed most of practice last week and Saturday's preseason game with the injury, but it doesn't look like something that will hinder him when the regular season starts. Still, we'd like to see him get a little more time with new quarterback Donovan McNabb since he'll be the primary option in the Minnesota passing game.
Steve Smith (finger) is expected to play against Cincinnati on Thursday. Smith noted that the stitches were removed from his left hand last weekend and that he will wear a small pad under his glove to protect the affected area. Barring a setback, he'll be out there in Week 1, at or close to 100 percent, providing whoever the Panthers' QB is (probably Cam Newton) with a talented and experienced wideout weapon.
Jahvid Best (concussion) didn't practice Monday, he is not expected to be out much longer. "Yeah, he was doing well," coach Jim Schwartz said Monday. "I think we'll take a conservative approach, but I'd expect him out here pretty soon." It sounds like Best's latest concussion issue is not a major one, but underlying concerns about his durability persist, given his injury history.
Austin Collie (knee) returned to practice Monday. He missed Friday's preseason game with the injury and it sounds minor. He played in Indy's first preseason game, but didn't have a catch in his first game since his season ended last year due to concussion issues. Still, we'd like to see him play a little more extensively in the preseason before we're fully convinced he's back to full speed.
Roy Williams has looked "pedestrian" and has had "no perceivable connection" with Jay Cutler during practices, CSN Chicago reports. It's getting to the point where it's difficult to believe that Williams has anything to offer an NFL team in a significant role. He says all the right things when recorders are on, but time and time again in Dallas he looked inexplicably ill-prepared and out of place on the football field, and then he showed up to Chicago out of shape. Since he followed all that up with an inconsistent training camp, both in effort and production, it's perplexing that Chicago would pretend Williams is any better than Johnny Knox.
Titus Young tweaked his hamstring again Monday. Young, who was yanked from a team drill Monday, was spotted limping and with his hamstring wrapped up. This is not a good sign, given that he was just back from a hamstring injury that he suffered on the first day of training camp. We expect the Lions to take it slow with Young in order to avoid a further setback, which clearly hampers the rookie wideout's chances of making an early-season impact