Winston puts his best foot forward at combine

INDIANAPOLIS - Jameis Winston used the phrase "face of the franchise," or a slight variation of it, no fewer than six times in his meeting with the media yesterday at the NFL Scouting Combine.

The Florida State quarterback understands the issues that cloud whether he will be the first overall selection in the 2015 NFL draft. Yesterday's Winston message was carefully crafted, delivered with enthusiasm and conviction. What effect it will have on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who pick first overall, is unknown, but it certainly bought Winston some credibility with the NFL media.

As was the case with Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota the day before, most of the reporters gathered around Podium C cover the NFL, not the colleges, and had never met the man they were questioning. He made a strong impression.

For an Eagles fan, the interest here might be that if Winston goes first overall, Tampa is the only team in the top five or so that definitely seems committed to taking a quarterback; Mariota theoretically could slide to within trading distance for the 20th-picking Eagles and Mariota's former college coach, Chip Kelly.

"First off, before we start anything, I want to let you all know I know made mistakes, and I know I have a past, but right now it's about me moving forward and earning the trust of all these 32 teams out there. And by saying that, I'm a competitor, and I know what I'm capable of doing, so I will be throwing tomorrow at the combine," Winston said.

This last bit was especially revelevant in the wake of an ESPN report that medical tests had uncovered "weakness" in Winston's throwing shoulder, possibly nerve-related, which led to Winston undergoing an electromyography, or EMG.

Winston brushed shoulder questions aside, asserting that his shoulder is fine and that he'd had an MRI at the combine "just like everyone else," though, in fact, every prospect does not get an MRI. And an MRI isn't an EMG. But no one called him on that.

Winston, just a shade under 6-4 and 231 pounds, seems to have everything teams covet between the lines. Away from the field, though, he has been at the very least extremely immature on several occasions, and the 2012 rape allegation Tallahassee police are accused of mishandling goes well beyond that.

"My actions," he said, when asked how he intends to go about building trust. "I have to do everything by my actions. It's not time to explain about what I'm going through, but when I do get to a city and a team, I plan on getting involved in the community and [plan to] create an image, a positive image, and put everything else behind me."

Later, in response to another question, Winston said: "I'm a young man, and I'm going to the next level to take a grown man's position. That's important to me. Football is my passion. I've been doing this since I was young, and I know the responsibilities that I have to take upon when I'm going to be the face of someone's franchise."

Asked why the Bucs should draft him instead of Mariota, Winston said: "I'm in it to win games and be the face of someone's franchise. This is no competition between just me and Mariota, because one thing about me, I plan on winning the Super Bowl next year, so it's going to be me vs. Peyton Manning and Jameis vs. Tom Brady. I want to be viewed like that. After all this combine stuff, you're not going to hear no more about Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota. I want my name to stay relevant for the next 15 or 20 years of my career."

An agent who dealt with the Eagles recently on a player contract matter said yesterday he spoke exclusively with Howie Roseman, did not hear from Chip Kelly. There was a report at the Senior Bowl that Kelly was giving agents his cellphone number, but this agent said he sees no difference in the team's contract setup, from his perspective.

Another agent who met with the Eagles in Indianapolis said he sat down with a triumvirate - new personnel vice president Ed Marynowitz, Roseman and director of football administration Jake Rosenberg.

It has been unclear, since the front-office restructuring announced Jan. 2, exactly how this dynamic will work. Will Roseman control every aspect of contract negotiations, make decisions on what the team can afford, or will he work within parameters established by Kelly? No one from the team has been made available to speak to this.

The release of reserve tight end James Casey Thursday might be the first of several salary-cap-sensitive moves. Word yesterday was that the Birds have not talked to Cary Williams' agent about their plans for the cornerback, who has an $8.1 million cap figure in 2015, the final year of the 3-year contract he signed in 2013.

The team already is expected to go into the market to replace Bradley Fletcher, a pending free agent. Signing two starting-quality free agent cornerbacks this year might be tough, and even if the Birds draft a corner early, good teams seldom start rookie corners. Hard to say whether it might be worth it to try to restructure Williams, 30, who has started every Eagles game since he arrived.

One alternative, if the team wanted to part with Williams, would be to play Nolan Carroll in his spot; the Eagles have made it clear they don't feel Brandon Boykin has ideal height to start outside.

Meanwhile, in addition to 32-year-old outside linebacker Trent Cole, whose cap number this year is $11.65 million, right guard Todd Herremans has a $5.2 million cap charge. Herremans is a 10-year mainstay on the offensive line, but he's also 32, and has missed 16 games with injuries over the past three seasons. Indications are that Herremans is not receptive to taking less money to stay, should the Eagles broach that subject, which they have not thus far, a source close to the situation said. There was no word on Cole.

Another situation to be hashed out is that of running back Chris Polk, set to become a restricted free agent next month. There are three tender levels for restricted free agents: A top-level tender means a team gets a first-round draft choice as compensation, should another team sign that player and the original team decides not to match.

The 2015 tender levels haven't been announced, but last year, a top-level tender was worth $3.113 million. A second-level tender nets a second-round pick as compensation. Last year, that level was worth $2.187 million. The lowest tender level, the compensation is a draft pick of the same round as the one used to draft the player originally. That tender was $1.431 million a year ago.

But Polk was not drafted, so if the Eagles decide to tender him at the lowest level, they would have to match another team's offer to keep him, or lose him without compensation.

So far there has been no indication what the Eagles might do there. This is a really good running back draft, which might make Polk replaceable, but also might limit the interest in him elsewhere. The Eagles have a lot of money tied up in LeSean McCoy ($11.95 million cap figure for 2015) and Darren Sproles ($4.1 million cap figure in 2015). A rookie might be the economical choice there, absent a possible McCoy restructuring.

Blog: ph.ly/Eagletarian