Report says Pacman close to drug dealer

The investigation by WTVF NewsChannel 5 continued Tuesday night with Part Two of a story linking Pacman Jones to a convicted drug dealer. The information comes from wiretapped telephone conversations which were part of a major drug investigation.
Among the allegations are that Darryl Moore, a friend of Pacman, a convicted felon, and “alleged major drug kingpin” partied with Pacman, sometimes stayed at Pacman’s house, made drug deals from Pacman’s house, and left Pacman’s house shortly before he was arrested with nearly 2,000 pounds of marijuana and cocaine.

Titans Offseason Positional Analysis – Nickelbacks

When the Titans drafted Cortland Finnegan in the seventh round of the 2006 draft some people wondered what position he would play. A safety in college, Finnegan was listed as a “DB” by the Titans when they drafted him. They touted his 40-yard times of 4.33 and 4.35 at his Pro Day and hinted he could also be a cornerback.
Finnegan quickly settled in as the nickelback during training camp last year, moving ahead of Vincent Fuller, who started the 2005 season as the nickel before breaking his ankle. The decision to play Finnegan at nickel paid immediate dividends, which continued throughout the season.
The Titans also have three other experienced nickelbacks, which gives them a variety of options in the secondary. These options are dependent on other moves the Titans may make at corner and safety.

Drug Dealer Talks About Pacman

There’s more disturbing news and bad publicity this morning on the Pacman Jones front.
WTVF NewsChannel 5 in Nashville has obtained copies of taped telephone conversations of convicted drug dealer Darryl Moore, a friend of Pacman. Moore is the man who was the focus of a drug investigation last year which resulted in nine arrests, the confiscation of nearly a ton of drugs and 20 vehicles, including an unregistered Cadillac connected to Pacman.
According to Moore, Pacman was smoking marijuana heavily at the time of the conversations and betting thousands of dollars on college football games.
My question is this: How much dope does a person have to smoke before a drug dealer thinks he’s smoking “heavily”?

Former Titan Nash Dies

Denver Broncos and former Titans running back Damien Nash collapsed and died Saturday after playing in a charity basketball game in his hometown of St. Louis. He was 24 years old.
The game was to benefit the Darris Nash Find A Heart Foundation, which raises money for heart transplant research. It’s named after Damien’s older brother Darris Nash, a heart transplant recipient.

“The Denver Broncos organization is once again struck with profound sadness over the tragic loss of one of our players,” said Broncos owner Pat Bowlen. “This is a tremendous tragedy and our hearts go out to the entire Nash family.”

Total Titans offers its condolences to the Nash family, his friends, and teammates. Rest in peace, Damien Nash.

Pacman’s Future in Doubt

After a triple shooting at a Las Vegas strip club, Tennessee Titans officials maintained silence during the week. On Friday they spoke up, and what little they said offered much insight into the possible future of star cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones.
What they had to say was a clear message about Jones, who has been linked to the shootings.
General Manager Mike Reinfeldt said he could see the potential of a roster without Jones.
Coach Jeff Fisher showed his extreme displeasure by repeatedly referring to Jones as “Adam,” a name Jones hates. Fisher almost always called him “Pac” or “Pacman” until Friday.

Zach Piller Released by Titans

In a move which didn’t come as a surprise to anyone, the Titans released eight-year veteran guard Zach Piller on Monday.
After missing most of two seasons in the last three years, Piller must have seen the writing on the wall. The line improved after Piller was injured last year and finished the season on Injured Reserve.
In a time when too many athletes cry, sulk and pout, Piller exhibited a healthy perspective.

“It is a privilege, not a right to play, and I am thankful for my time,” said Piller. “I feel real fortunate about being able to play for the coaches I had and all the teammates I had and the fans, people treated me well. Coach Fisher treated me the right way. The way (the release) went down, it was handled properly and I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Titans Offseason Positional Analysis – Safeties

As noted in the positional analysis on cornerbacks, part of the reason for the poor secondary play last year was due to inconsistency by the safeties.
One question seems to be on everybody’s mind regarding the safeties. What will be done about the inconsistent play at the free safety position?
Here’s a review of the five safeties on the roster:
Strong safety Chris Hope was signed in free agency last year and had his moments early in the season but settled down and became solid. Hope led the Titans in interceptions with five last season, including a key pick-six in the win against the Jaguars. He’s become the leader of the secondary and is under contract through 2011. There’s no question that the job is his heading into the 2007 season.

An open letter to Mike Reinfeldt

Hello Mike,
Welcome to Tennessee. You’ve come into a good situation here. It’s a plum job that many of your peers coveted.
You’ll be working with one of the best coaches in the business and you have a superstar in the making for your quarterback. The team has rebounded from a 4-12 season to finish only one game out of the playoffs last year at 8-8. The corner has been turned and rebuilding is nearing completion.
You inherit a good salary cap situation, with $36 million to work with, and you’ll have ten picks in April’s draft.
Bearing that in mind, you should be aware that Titans fans will be expecting a lot from you.

Titans Introduce Reinfeldt

The Titans held a press conference Tuesday afternoon to officially introduce Mike Reinfeldt as their new general manager. A lot has been said about him by former colleagues and this was an opportunity to hear some things said about him by his new colleagues, Titans COO Steve Underwood and coach Jeff Fisher.
More importantly, it was an opportunity to hear what he had to say.
Here are some highlights of the presser:
Steve Underwood:

In choosing Mike Reinfeldt, Mr. Adams has selected a person with deep roots in our organization as a player but who has since become known as an NFL front office executive with both administrative and personnel experience, unblemished integrity, a solid reputation for hard work and leadership and the ability to work in collaboration with his colleagues.

Mike Reinfeldt:

I’m of the belief that you don’t have to go into salary cap jail. I think you can maintain it on a consistent basis. I would like for us to be consistently a playoff team and you can do that. Teams have shown that you can do that. We will work hard going forward to make that a reality.

Jeff Fisher:

I’m excited about the direction we’re headed. Mike has great ideas. He understands people, and he understands needs. So I’m looking forward to the future.

I like what everyone had to say, especially Reinfeldt’s comments about the salary cap.
The transcript of the press conference can be read here.

Reinfeldt Named New Titans GM

After more than a week of negotiations, the Titans have agreed to contract terms with new General Manager Mike Reinfeldt.

“I am very pleased that we were able to bring a former Oiler back home to our organization,” said Titans owner K.S. “Bud” Adams, Jr. “He was a fabulous player for us, has been an outstanding football man at Seattle and Green Bay and I have every confidence that he will do a great job here as well. He has helped two franchises win multiple titles over the last 15 years and that experience will be implemented here as he shapes the Titans.”

I’m a little disappointed things took this long, but am glad he’s now in place. I hope he can roll his sleeves up right away and hit the ground running.