SAMUEL INTERESTED IN TAMPA

Posted by Mike Florio on February 26, 2008, 9:46 a.m.
In a move that might be a sign that the market for cornerback Asante Samuel might not be what he hopes it will be, his agent is openly politicking for the Bucs to show interest.
“Tampa Bay is a situation that makes sense,” said Alonzo Shavers, according to the Tampa Tribune. “Tampa Bay is definitely worth considering. It was an organization that was in the Super Bowl not too long ago. It is an organization Asante wants to play for. It’s definitely something that makes perfect sense for everybody.”
Okay, that part isn’t all that bad. But Shavers should have stopped there.
He didn’t.
“We’re not having a large pool of teams to choose from,” Shavers said. “Not everybody will need him or want to pay that kind of money. It’s going to be a select group and Tampa Bay is high on our short list.”
First of all, how does Shavers know how big or small the pool is or might be? The obvious answer is tampering.
Second, why does Shavers think that the Bucs will pay Samuel big money? The Tampa Two defensive system doesn’t rely on high-end cornerbacks with strong downfield coverage skills. So there’s no reason for the Bucs to be interested in Samuel if the price tag will be north of Nate Clements’ seven-year, $64 million contract with the 49ers.
The primary scuttlebutt in league circles is that the Saints and the Eagles are the teams to watch in the Samuel sweepstakes.