Ben Roethlisberger

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, currently suspended under the league’s personal conduct policy for the first six games of the season, thinks the length of his punishment could be cut in half.

Per ESPN’s Sal Paolantonio, Roethlisberger and team president Art Rooney II will meet with commissioner Roger Goodell on Friday to discuss Big Ben’s suspension. All along, Goodell has alluded to decreasing the six-game ban if Ben passed the conditions and behavioral evaluations that were handed down by the league. He has since passed with flying colors and kept himself out of the media headlines after a tumultuous offseason.

David Cornwell, Roethlisberger’s attorney, will ask for three-games to be taken away from the suspension but most who are close to Roethlisberger believe there’s almost no chance of that happening. Goodell previously stated he’d cut it down to four games, so that’s about the best Ben and his reps can hope for.

The meeting will take place in the league’s headquarters in New York, so be sure to check back on Friday to see what the final verdict was.

Matt Leinart

Now that Cardinals quarterback Matt Leinart is on the trade block, three teams have their eye on acquiring the former Heisman Trophy winner.

According to Adam Schefter, the Buffalo Bills, Oakland Raiders, and New York Giants have begun discussions on a trade for Leinart. No deal is on the immediate verge of getting done, but, as Schefter points out, Leinart could/should be wearing a different uniform by the end of the weekend.

No word yet on the compensation that ‘Zona’s looking for, but they’d be lucky to get a late-round pick for a guy who’s doing all the wrong things right now.

Leinart wouldn’t start in New York, obviously, with Eli Manning at the helm, however they could use a backup option after Jim Sorgi was put on injured reserve. Same deal in Oakland as they apparently have their starting quarterback of the immediate future in Jason Campbell.

Buffalo, on the other hand, lacks talent pretty much throughout the roster, especially at QB. As it stands now, Trent Edwards is the starter for the Bills with Ryan Fitzpatrick as his backup. Though I think even (Bills coach) Chan Gailey realizes Leinart’s best suited to hold a clipboard for now.

It’s a foregone conclusion that Leinart will soon be an ex-Cardinal; it’s just a matter of when and where the struggling signal-caller will end up.

Donovan McNabb

With exactly two weeks until their opening game against the Cowboys, the Washington Redskins are not sure if their star quarterback, Donovan McNabb, will play in the divisional showdown.

According to an ESPN report, ‘Skins head coach Mike Shanahan stated that he’s uncertain McNabb will be available for the game.

“I really don’t know for sure,” Shanahan said Sunday. “That’s why it’s day by day. We’ll see how it goes.”

McNabb suffered a sprained ankle in the team’s second preseason game against the Ravens and hasn’t practiced, or played, since. He missed the third preseason game against the Jets as a precaution.

McNabb and backup Rex Grossman have already been declared out for this week’s fourth and final preseason matchup against the Cardinals on Thursday. Third and fourth-stringers John Beck and Richard Bartel, respectively, will split the reps accordingly.

The news gets slightly better for Washington, though. Running back Clinton Portis, who sprained his right ankle against the Jets, will be fine and should be good to go for the season.

“I don’t think it’s too serious. It’s not a big setback,” Shanahan said. “I would anticipate him being able to practice in a couple of days.”

Antonio Bryant

The Bengals have officially given up on their “major” free-agent acquisition.

Per the team’s official Twitter page, Cincinnati released wide receiver Antonio Bryant today. Bryant signed a four-year, $28 million deal in March and was expected to be a starter opposite Chad Ochocinco. That changed when a bad knee kept him sidelined for most of the offseason, and the writing was really on the wall when the team signed Terrell Owens last month.

Bryant, who spent the last three seasons with the Bucs, didn’t make it onto the field in each of the four preseason games.

Sort of ironic, isn’t it? When free-agency opened, many thought an Ochocinco-Owens union was coming, but the team opted to go with Bryant. Now, he’s cut and Owens is locked into the number two position on the depth chart.

Don’t despair for him, though. He’s already collected over $7 million dollars having never played one snap for the team. That’s not too bad of a parting gift.

In other news, the Bengals also announced today that safety Gibril Wilson was placed on injured reserve, effectively ending his season. Wilson has damaged ligaments in his left knee that require a complete rehabilitation.

Calvin Pace

Big blow to the league’s top-ranked defense.

According to Adam Schefter, Jets outside linebacker Calvin Pace suffered a broken foot in Friday night’s loss to the Redskins and will undergo surgery on Monday; he will be out 4-6 weeks.

The operation will take place in North Carolina, with foot specialist Robert Anderson set to correct the injury. Although there has been conflicting reports on just how much time Pace will miss, the Jets want to get Anderson’s opinion before making a definitive prognosis.

With their best pure pass-rusher out, the team will turn to Jason Taylor, whose playing time just skyrocketed to 100%. The soon-to-be 36-year old will join Bryan Thomas, Bart Scott, and David Harris as the starting linebackers.

“It’s a big loss, there’s no doubt,” Ryan said Friday. “But we’re fortunate. We have a lot of depth at that position.”

In 12 games last season (he was suspended for the first four), Pace recorded a team-high eight sacks.

Donnie Avery

In a big blow to the St. Louis Rams’ offense, the team has lost up-and-coming wide receiver Donnie Avery for the season.

According to Howard Balzer of the Globe-Democrat, Avery tore his right ACL in last night’s preseason game against the Patriots and will undergo surgery; he’s obviously done for the 2010 season.

Avery, who looked to have good chemistry with quarterback Sam Bradford, went up for a pass attempt and came down awkwardly, immediately reaching for his knee in obvious pain. Shortly after, coach Steve Spagnuolo admitted that he probably had a “significant knee injury” but wanted to wait for further tests to be done.

This outcome confirmed their worst fears for the promising Avery, who finished 2009 on a good note with 47 receptions for 589 yards and 5 touchdowns.

Brandon Gibson and Mardy Gilyard, the team’s fourth-round draft pick, will have to step up and fill a void in an already weak receiving corps.

Vincent Jackson

As we move closer to the start of the regular season, there are two major storylines that remain — and they both involve holdouts. Cornerback Darrelle Revis in New York and wide receiver Vincent Jackson in San Diego. We’ll be focusing on the latter for this post.

In an interview with NFL Network’s Jason La Canfora, his first in months, Jackson made it known he’s ready and willing to sit out the entire 2010 season if he doesn’t receive the new deal he’s been seeking.

Jackson claims he’s never asked the team to trade him and would like to remain with the Chargers, but will do whatever it takes to get that new contract, including not getting busted for another DUI.

Ironically enough, Revis and Jackson have the same people representing them – Jonathan Feinsod and Neil Schwartz. It’s obvious they’ll use whatever tactics possible to get their clients (and themselves) paid. At least in Revis’ case, the team is reportedly warming up to the idea of handing over a contract that would well exceed $100 million, even possibly going as high as $150 million over 10 years.

With San Diego and Jackson, general manager A.J. Smith is taking more of a hard-line stance and unwilling to budge on his position. Time is ticking away to get something done as the season approaches and the real games begin.

Darrelle Revis

I’ll say one thing: Tim Cowlishaw has some damn good sources. After he broke the news via Twitter that Jets holdout cornerback Darrelle Revis would sign a new deal this week, no Jets beat writer — and there are some good one’s — could corroborate his story.

As it turns out, the Around The Horn guy might’ve scooped everybody with this one.

Following reports of the Jets meeting with Team Revis tonight, which were later refuted, talks between the Jets and Revis have definitely heated up. In fact, according to KDKA Pittsburgh reporter Bob Pompeani, the All-Pro defensive back is on the verge of signing a record deal.

Revis is reporting “getting closer” to agreeing to a possible 10-year, $150 million contract that includes a whopping $65 million in guarantees. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen passed along the tweet, warning that it’s just hearsay and should not be called official just yet.

Pompeani seems to have some pretty good connections, too. He was the first to get an interview with Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger during his troubling times this offseason. There’s also connections that make this seem legit. First, Pittsburgh is where Revis went to college and Pompeani has ties to Aliquippa, Revis’ hometown. Also, Cowlishaw previously stated that he heard and dismissed a rumored deal because the numbers were so high, so maybe this has legs.

I can’t imagine the Jets forking over that much guaranteed money, along with $15M per season, which would mean they essentially caved in. I don’t doubt that there could be a deal in place, but I expect the numbers to be different. Stay tuned for more.

Nick Mangold

As the internet went nuts about a rumored deal with the Jets and holdout cornerback Darrelle Revis, it turns out it’s another Jet that’s about to get paid.

According to the Newark Star-Ledger, the team is nearing a contract extension with center Nick Mangold that could be announced as soon as tomorrow. The deal is expected to be worth more than the five-year, $37.5 million deal that Rams center Jason Brown signed last year, which would make Mangold the league’s highest paid center.

Mangold, a first-round pick of the Jets in 2006, is due to make $3.3 million in 2010, which is the last year of his rookie deal. Earlier in the offseason, he made his presence known that he wanted a new deal but decided to be a good teammate and go to work without one.

Two of the Jets “Core Four” will be signed long-term (left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson and now Mangold), with two more to go (linebacker David Harris and Revis.) There’s a chance that this transaction could expedite talks with Revis, but no one’s holding their breath on that happening.

Vincent Jackson

One high-profile wide receiver could soon be moving conferences, while remaining in the West division.

Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports reports that the San Diego Chargers have given the Seattle Seahawks permission to discuss contract terms with hold-out Vincent Jackson. Although Chargers general manager A.J. Smith declined to comment on this story, Seahawks GM John Schneider has already confirmed that they’re currently talking numbers with Jackson’s agents.

Cole cautions that nothing significant has happened, but states that the Chargers want to trade Jackson, who’s seeking more than $9 million per year. The two sides have apparently been talking for “at least several days.”

This isn’t the first we’ve first of Seattle’s interest in Jackson. Remember, they were one of the reported three teams interested in him a couple months back, not to mention how close they were to signing Brandon Marshall to an offer sheet before he was dealt to the Dolphins. It’s obvious the Seahawks want to complement T.J. Houshmandzadeh with another viable threat.

Both teams have longer than usual to get a deal worked out; Jackson is suspended for the first three weeks of the regular season. I get the feeling there’s definitely something brewing here, so be sure to stay tuned for more.