What is interesting, however, is how there seems to be lots of players being moved who were once considered mainstays of teams. Players who spent ten or more years with one team were traded or tested free agency.
Today's news of the Rams releasing Orlando Pace, the #1 overall pick in 1997, is just one example of a player who many figured would spend his whole career with one team. Now, he could go anywhere. I know it will be weird for me, personally, when Brian Dawkins (pictured, left) suits up for the Broncos and Lito Sheppard plays for the Jets. Both were players I figured would never leave Philadelphia and I can't imagine their defense without them.
Marvin Harrison may be catching passes from a quarterback not named Peyton Manning and Torry Holt will not be in St. Louis next year. Strange.
Players are not the only people changing colors. This past offseason saw Tony Dungy and Mike Holmgrem retire and Jon Gruden, Mike Shanahan, and Herman Edwards fired, five coaches who have been around for as long as I've been an NFL fan. It will be odd seeing Jim More Jr. stoll the sidelines in Seattle and someone other than Dungy coaching the Colts.
I'm sure a large part of the reason for the high turnover is the fact that the Falcons, Dolphins, and Ravens had great success with young coaches. The salary cap is obviously another reason but teams like the Ravens and Chargers found ways to
keep their long-time faces on the team despite potential salary cap hits.Still, the 2009-2010 NFL season will be one of new faces all over the league. Players and coaches alike have changed teams and I wonder how guys like Harrison and Holt will do on new teams (Jerry Rice had a tough time as a Raider and Seahawk, and how weird was it seeing him there?) and what kind of impact Pace, Dawkins, Shepperd, etc. will have on their respective teams.
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