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| Boselli |
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars showed just
how intent they are on fixing their salary cap troubles Tuesday
when they surprisingly placed left tackle Tony Boselli on the
expansion draft list.
Boselli, a three-time All-Pro, was the first draft pick in
Jaguars history, the cornerstone of their franchise. Now, the
seventh-year veteran could become the cornerstone for the Houston
Texans, who will choose players in the expansion draft Feb. 18.
"I'll be sad to leave Jacksonville, but I'll approach it the
way it needs to be approached," Boselli said, in a story posted on
the Jaguars official Web site Tuesday night.
Boselli, who missed most of last season because of surgery on
both shoulders, said he expected the Texans to bring him to Houston
for a physical.
Texans coach Dom Capers wouldn't say whether Boselli was high on
his list.
"Until we get the official list, I'm always kind of cautious
about commenting," Capers told The Associated Press.
Teams were supposed to submit their lists by Tuesday. The NFL
will make the names public Friday.
But clearly, if Boselli checks out physically, he'll be a prime
consideration for Houston. When healthy, he has been one of the
most dominating linemen in the NFL.
Boselli's agent, Jack Mills, said he has had preliminary
discussions with Texans officials.
"I think they were trying to be pokerfaced, but it was pretty
obvious they were excited about the prospect," Mills told AP.
The decision comes as a shock in Jacksonville, where Jaguars
fans were bracing for some rebuilding, but had no idea it would be
to this extent.
Boselli was not only one of the best Jaguars on the football
field, he was a pillar in the community, one of the
most-recognizable faces in the city and a very close friend of
quarterback Mark Brunell.
Brunell took less money in a contentious contract negotiation
last offseason so he could stay in Jacksonville and play with
Boselli.
Boselli, meanwhile, has long been willing to restructure his
contract to help the Jaguars with their salary-cap troubles. But
all those restructurings have simply pushed the bills into the
future. If the Texans take Boselli, the $6.5 million to $7 million
he's supposed to count against the Jaguars cap next season will be
erased.
It's clearly the strategy the Jaguars want to take as they try
to clear their books and get out from under the salary-cap mess
they're in.
"It looks like they're going back to square one," Mills said.
"It goes back to the bottom line of what we're doing here. It is a
business, unfortunately. I think the Jaguars put themselves in this
position, and now they're trying find way to get out of it."
The Jaguars Web site said coach Tom Coughlin went to Boselli's
house Saturday to personally deliver the news.
Coughlin did not return messages left at his hotel room in
Mobile, Ala., where he was scouting players at the Senior Bowl.
Mills said Coughlin was not happy having to make this decision.
"He loves him. I think this is eating him up. He's clearly not
excited about this," Mills said.
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