Trading Culpepper won’t be easy for Miami

By Adam Best  |   Friday, June 08, 2007  |  Comments( 19 )

Miami Dolphins
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Now that Trent Green has passed his physical and is in South Florida for good, Daunte Culpepper is the Miami Dolphins' odd quarterback out. Culpepper's days are numbered, that much is clear, but where will he end up? The Dolphins may have to cut him, but before they hand him his pink slip they will exercise all possible trade options.

FoxSports.com's Ben Maller, a sports rumor guru, divulged four teams that might be interested in Culpepper today -- the Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, New England Patriots and St. Louis Rams.

Here's a closer look the aforesaid hypothetical Culpepper destinations:

Detroit Lions

This may be the most logical destination. Jon Kitna and Drew Stanton are on the roster, and that's really the main point. After spending the No. 2 overall pick on wide receiver Calvin Johnson, the team's fourth first-round wideout selected in the last six years, General Manger Matt Millen's job may depend on getting Johnson the ball. With all the team's talented skill players -- most notably running backs Kevin Jones and Tatum Bell and wide receivers Mike Furrey and Roy Williams -- it's clear that coordinator Mike Martz's offense is what's going to get the job done in the Motor City, not the defense.

That being said, would you trust Kitna or Stanton at this point to lead the potentially lethal offense? It would be hard for Millen to do, and that's why the Lions are legitimately interested in Culpepper. It even seemed as if the Lions were interested in Green before he ruled the option out. The biggest question here is whether Culpepper is a good fit for Martz, who basically has total control over all things offense.

Jacksonville Jaguars

With QBs Byron Leftwich, David Garrard and Quinn Gray already on the roster, why in the world would the Jaguars even consider making that situation any messier? Garrard and Leftwich have both shown the ability to win ballgames, and Gray is a promising player himself. Head coach Jack Del Rio has already stated that he likes the QB situation, and that Culpepper would be acquired strictly to back up Leftwich. Don't expect this to happen, especially considering the Jaguars' past salary-cap problems.

New England Patriots

While it's certainly fun to entertain a Culpepper-Randy Moss reunion, it's just not going to happen. The Patriots are always interested in amassing new talent, but only at the right price. Don't look for Patriots brass to give up anything of value for Culpepper, whose salary would also be a huge problem for the folks in Foxborough. Of course, Culpepper could always renegotiate his deal, but don't look for him to do that only to back up Tom Brady. There is a remote chance that this could happen, roughly about the same odds that Brady will stop running around with supermodels.

St. Louis Rams

Marc Bulger is one of the better QBs in the league, and it seems the Rams are committed to him long term. It's obvious why this is a rumor -- head coach Scott Linehan was Culpepper's offensive coordinator when he served in that role for the Minnesota Vikings from 2002-04. That's really the only reason this makes any sense, considering there are two capable backup QBs on the Rams' roster in Gus Frerotte and Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Rams have spent a ton of money on the offensive side of the ball this offseason, so it's hard to see them spending any more. Linehan was also linked to Ricky Williams earlier this year, so you have to wonder if the former will be linked to every talented ex-player of his who becomes available at this point.

The Forecast

Unless another team steps up its interest in Culpepper, or the Lions really are serious about trading for him, expect the Dolphins to cut the one-time Pro Bowler relatively soon. Until the 30-year-old gets back onto the field and proves that he's not damaged goods, don't expect anyone to give up anything remotely substantial in exchange for him.

Daily Miami Dolphins insight, courtesy of RealFootball365.com
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CommentsComments: 19  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
Anthony		08:59 AM
06/08/2007
Wherever he ends up I wish him well. I don't think he ever got a shot at starting QB at 100% health, but that's life, I guess. I...
No.2
jax		09:04 AM
06/08/2007
Dont believe what you read. Del Rio HATES Leftwich. Leftwich is Shaq Harris' guy. That said, Shaq is in control of whatever...
No.3
not a fan of saban		09:08 AM
06/08/2007
if mr(i know better than everyone )saban made the right choice last year(brees) we wouldnt be in this position.We could have...
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