ch19079 Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 and i was one of those guys saying how dumb it was to let him go. www.nj.com Jets: Cowart wants trade; Abraham tagged Wednesday, February 16, 2005 BY DAVE HUTCHINSON Star-Ledger Staff Jets veteran middle linebacker Sam Cowart, who lost his starting job to rookie Jonathan Vilma after suffering a sprained left knee in Week 2, has asked the club to trade or release him, a team official said yesterday. And in another development, the Jets have officially notified the representatives for Pro Bowl defensive end John Abraham of their intention to place the franchise tag on him. Abraham will earn $6.66 million this season. Cowart, who just completed his seventh NFL season, has told the team he wants to go to a team where he'll have an opportunity to start. At 29, Cowart feels he still has a lot of football left in him and doesn't want to sit behind Vilma, who was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year. Cowart's agent, Paul Healy, would neither confirm nor deny his client wants out. "Any discussions between myself, Sam and the Jets are private," Healy told The Star-Ledger. "I spoke with the Jets last week but what was discussed is none of your business." Cowart, a former Pro Bowler with the Buffalo Bills, has three years left on his contract. He has a base salary of $1.5 million in 2005 with a $500,000 roster bonus due next month. His cap number is $2.9 million. He provides the Jets with quality depth and the flexibility to switch from a 4-3 to 3-4 alignment. After struggling in his first two seasons with the Jets while playing outside, Cowart returned to the middle last season and began the year strongly. In the opener against Cincinnati, he had a team-high 13 tackles and forced a fumble that was returned 41 yards for a touchdown by cornerback Donnie Abraham. The following week, he was injured in the second quarter against the Chargers and was sidelined six games. He finished the season with just 23 tackles in nine games, two starts. Abraham, who earned his third Pro Bowl berth last season, was officially designated the Jets' franchise player on Monday when his representatives received a letter from the club. The Jets have yet to make an announcement. "It wasn't a surprise," said agent Rich Rosa, who represents Abraham along with Tony Agnone. "John knew it was coming. At this point, we're going to move in the direction John wants us to and that's working toward a long-term agreement." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch19079 Posted February 16, 2005 Author Share Posted February 16, 2005 i think the rams will be very interested. as long as they put him at MLB, he will play well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
/dev/null Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 on the day some folks are ranting on TDs mistakes, this refutes their argument letting cowart go and signing fletcher was a great move Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gavin in Va Beach Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 Poor Sam. What a frakin' stud LB he was pre-Achilles injury. Now he's probably on the cusp of fading away... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loadofmularkey Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 Cowart, who just completed his seventh NFL season, has told the team he wants to go to a team where he'll have an opportunity to start. 241762[/snapback] Wouldn't you have to stay healthy for more than two weeks at a time to accomplish this goal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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