Johnson not signed; Rice not top priority
Categories: Lions
Written By: Admin
When are the Lions going to sign wide receiver Calvin Johnson? Will the Lions sign defensive end Simeon Rice?
It might take awhile to find out.
Contract negotiations are moving slowly between the Lions and the agent for Johnson, the second overall pick in this year’s NFL draft. And a lot would have to happen for coach Rod Marinelli to reunite with Rice, one of his former Tampa Bay pupils, whom the Buccaneers released Thursday.
…Marinelli said it wasn’t a top priority to pursue Rice because he was excited about the defensive line as is. But he also said he had “great respect” for Rice and wouldn’t rule it out.”We haven’t sat down and said, ‘This is what we want to do,’ and all those things yet,” Marinelli said. “Obviously, I’m aware of him and know what he can do.”
The Bucs said they released Rice because he failed a physical. Rice has a shoulder problem and is 33, but he also refused to cut his $7.25-million salary. He told the St. Petersburg Times this was about money and he would be back “with a vengeance.”
Detroit would be a logical landing point. Marinelli was Tampa Bay’s defensive-line coach before he became the Lions’ head coach last year, and Rice regards him so highly he once said: “When talking about Rod Marinelli, you are talking about a man, a myth, a legend.”
