The Cardinals got a nice jump on their rookie contracts before members of the front office headed off on vacation.

Half of the eight-member draft class in under contract, with the top four picks remaining unsigned.

General manager Rod Graves is working on other fronts, too. He would like to get a deal done with inside linebacker Karlos Dansby, who is working under a franchise tag of $9.7 million.

The Cardinals have until July 15 to reach a long-term deal with Dansby. If they can't, Dansby is likely playing his last season in Arizona.

The Cardinals are unlikely to franchise him in 2010 because his tender would jump to about $14.5 million.

So far, there is no movement in negotiations so things would have to move quickly for a contract to be reached by...

World's saddest man pretends to be Tim Rattay on Twitter (Yahoo! Sports)
A dude in Pittsburgh once pretended to be Ben Roethlisberger and third-string QB Brian St.

Arizona signs sixth-round pick Davis (AP)
The Arizona Cardinals have signed sixth-round draft pick Will Davis. The 6-foot-2, 261-pound Davis was a defensive end in college at Illinois, who will be converted to outside linebacker. He played in all 12 games for the Illini last season, with 36 tackles with 3 1/2 sacks, one forced fumble and a blocked kick.

Cardinals tight end Patrick suspended 4 games (AP)

Arizona Cardinals tight end Ben Patrick has been suspended for four games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. Patrick tested positive for the drug Adderall, an amphetamine, his agent Kevin Omell said on Monday. "He literally took one pill one time driving back from Flagstaff to keep him awake," Omell said.

One thing the Saints have been immune to since Sean Payton became their head coach in 2006 is a quarterback controversy.

They may have one this summer, but Saints fans can take a deep breath and relax. If they do have one, it won't involve two-time Pro Bowl pick and reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year Drew Brees.

Payton indicated in the final days of his team's organized team activities that a training camp competition is looming between incumbent backup Mark Brunell and Joey Harrington, the third-stringer most of last season, to be Brees' understudy.

"Those two are going to compete for that position, much like most of these jobs," Payton said in acknowledging that Harrington, a former first-round draft pick of the Detroit Lions, has a chance to unseat...

Saints lose money in tax credit investment (AP)
At least 16 people associated with the New Orleans Saints, including coach Sean Payton, quarterback Drew Brees and Hall of Famer Archie Manning, are among investors who lost $1.9 million. Kevin Houser, cut Monday as the team's long snapper after eight years, said Thursday he and at least 26 others bought what they thought were state film industry tax credits from Louisiana Film Studios in...

NFP: Five defenders who may surprise (Yahoo! Sports)
New Jets safety Jim Leonhard is among the defenders projected to raise his profile this upcoming season.

Saints deal to stay gets Louisiana legislative OK (AP)
Gov. Bobby Jindal's deal to keep the New Orleans Saints in Louisiana throughout 2025 gained legislative approval Thursday and is close to completion. Two pieces of the deal gained the needed votes in the House and Senate: A plan for the state to lease office space from Saints owner Tom Benson and $85 million in surplus spending on Superdome improvements.

Brees touts Saints' high offseason attendance (AP)
New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees recalled an expression describing "experience" as "something you gain when you don't get what you want." The Saints haven't been to the playoffs in two seasons. And Brees saw a connection between those disappointments and higher attendance for voluntary workouts this offseason than either he or head coach Sean Payton could recall since...

Larry Foote's self-forced exit from Pittsburgh is a rare instance in which a Steelers player asked to be traded or released so he could pursue his career elsewhere.

Players rarely leave the Steelers unless the Steelers no longer want them. Sometimes, they go kicking and screaming, such as Pro Bowl guard Alan Faneca last year.

"I'm just speaking from my knowledge of being around here and that is this is a great place to be," said defensive end Brett Keisel, who could find himself in the Faneca boat next year. "You have great owners who care about you, a great family atmosphere here in the locker room ,so it's a great place for a player like myself who was drafted here."

Keisel has one year left on his contract and wants to sign an extension before the 2009...

Steelers owner Dan Rooney sworn as ambassador (AP)
Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney is making his first official trip as U.S. Ambassador to Ireland, one day after being sworn in by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The State Department says Rooney is traveling to Dublin on Thursday and is to meet with Ireland President Mary McAleese on Friday. By presenting his credentials to the Irish president, Rooney is officially recognized as the Irish...

Steelers sign third-round pick Urbik (AP)
Offensive lineman Kraig Urbik, the first of the Pittsburgh Steelers' three third-round draft picks, has signed a three-year contract. The Steelers have eight of their nine picks under contract after signing Urbik on Monday. Their only unsigned draft choice is first-rounder Ziggy Hood, a defensive end from Missouri.

NFL players among sports' leaders on Twitter (Yahoo! Sports)
Players are using the site to send unfiltered messages, a trend that could force the league to react.

NFL reviewing Plaxico Burress shooting incident (AP)
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has started his review of the Plaxico Burress shooting incident under the league's personal conduct policy. The league confirmed Friday that Goodell was examining the incident in which Burress shot himself in the thigh in late November in a New York City nightclub. The commissioner could suspend him if he finds that the receiver violated the NFL policy on personal...