A look at all the recent news and hot rumors around the NFL:

	Brian Griese will have competition for the QB job in Denver.

AFC Central
Cincinnati Bengals: Cincinnati's injury-riddled secondary will be addressed in the draft, and it's likely the Bengals will clean house before training camp. Coaches love Artrell Hawkins' tools and attitude, but they want him to gamble more in order to make increased plays on the ball. The late-season acquisition of ex-Bear Tom Carter provides some reason for optimism, and the staff is hoping the change of scenery will translate into better production on the field. With second-year player Charles Fisher likely on the shelf next season, Cincinnati must land some more cornerbacks to create a more competitive atmosphere in camp. Signing former Giant Phillippi Sparks, who was recently in for a visit, becomes more of a priority considering the thin talent pool available in next month's draft.

Cleveland Browns: Members of both the Redskins and Browns fronts office figured last week's workouts at Penn State and Florida State would distinguish the drafts top three picks. However, inclement weather in Tallahassee, Fla., forced Peter Warrick to work out inside on a slow surface, subsequently running a 4.57 40-yard dash. Warrick's poor time, coupled with the exceptional workouts had in Happy Valley, Pa., by LaVar Arrington and Courtney Brown, has only thickened the plot. Though much has been made of Warrick's surprising time, sources in Washington and Cleveland are indicating their organizations aren't putting much stock in the Florida State workout results. As a result the Redskins held an individual workout last Tuesday, one in which Warrick clocked at 4.44. Chris Palmer and Dwight Clark were both at the Penn State workout, so the remaining questions won't be answered until the Browns travel south for their own Warrick workout.

AFC East
New England Patriots: The Pats re-signed linebacker Tedy Bruschi to a deal rumored to be worth in excess of $3 million, plus an added signing bonus of $1 million. Prior to reaching an agreement with New England, Bruschi showed interest in signing with another teams. However, ultimately swayed by the idea of reuniting with Bill Bilichick, Bruschi re-signed. By inking Brushci the Patriots find themselves with little room under the cap. As a result, right tackle Zefross Moss will likely go elsewhere. Moss is now expendable in light of the acquisition of Seattle right tackle Grant Williams, who is slated to replace Moss as the starter. Another repercussion of the Bruschi signing will be the Patriots resorting to a 3-4 defense next season, featuring the likes of 'backers Ted Johnson, Bruschi, Andy Katzenmoyer and Chris Slade.

AFC West
Seattle Seahawks: The Seahawks were expected to look for a speedy receiver and a sizeable linebacker with their two picks in the first round of the draft. However, recent moves might have shifted Seattle's concerns to the defensive side of the football, particularly the defensive line. Last season's starter at defensive end Phillip Daniels departed for Chicago via free agency, and starting defensive tackle Sam Adams is all but gone as a result of his expensive price tag. New defensive coordinator Steve Sidwell favors an aggressive style of defense, one that counts on explosive defensive line play. This year's draft is deeper at receiver and linebacker than it is up front on defense. So the Seahawks might look for help up font on defense before anywhere else.

Denver Broncos: The Broncos head into next season with another quarterback controversy brewing. Mike Shanahan has tentatively anointed Brian Griese the starter, but he hasn't ruled out competition from Gus Frerotte or a passer to be named later. The Broncos are rumored to be interested in Marshall's Chad Pennington with the No. 10 pick in the draft, and Steve Young still hasn't figured out his status for the upcoming season, something the Broncos are anxiously awaiting. Shanahan believes Griese will only benefit from being pushed by Frerotte in training camp, but additions are still possible.

NFC East
Washington Redskins: The 'Skins have re-signed offensive tackle Andy Heck to a new three-year deal, but sources close to the team say that won't deter Washington from snatching up Alabama tackle Chris Samuels with the second or third pick in the draft. Heck started every regular-season game last season for the Redskins, but will be replaced by Samuels if Washington drafts him. A big reason the Redskins opted to re-up with Heck was because of questions that surfaced about Samuels' weight after he ballooned almost 30 pounds between the Senior Bowl and the combine. However, in his last weigh-in Samuels is rumored to have firmed up, shedding most of his excess weight.

Philadelphia Eagles: The tight-end swap with Green Bay was little more than a footnote on most sports pages, but it could have fairly big ramifications for the Eagles offense. By obtaining Jeff Thomason from the Packers for Kaseem Sinceno, Andy Reid's Eagles finally have acquired a dual-threat tight end who can play every down. Thomason, a backup behind Mark Chmura for most of his career, has never excelled as either a blocker or receiver, but he's also never been a full-time starter. Reid was Thomason's position coach with the Packers, and he believes his former pupil will upgrade the team's running game and allow the Eagles to use increased formation variation. With question marks such as injury (Jamie Asher), inconsistency (Luther Broughton), inexperience (Jed Weaver) at tight end, this could end up being a subtle move that really impacts a rebuilding club.

NFC Central
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: There was a lot of haggling in the Bucs front office regarding the possibility of trading for Keyshawn Johnson but clearer heads prevailed. The overriding factor in the decision to go in another direction was coach Tony Dungy's reluctance to acquire such a strong ego on a team that has a strong group of established leaders such as John Lynch and Warren Sapp. Because the need for a playmaker still exists, the Bucs are strongly considering packaging their two first round picks (Nos. 13 and 27) in order to move up and take Michigan State's Plaxico Burress. Although he has done nothing to validate his status since the Citrus Bowl, Burress' size and red-zone prowess will force Tampa Bay to at least make a run at him.

Green Bay Packers: There are going to be plenty of changes in Titletown this season, most of which will come on defense. However, don't be shocked if the receiving corps undergoes some modifications. General manager Ron Wolf has assembled a unit full of former track athletes (i.e. Bill Schroeder and Corey Bradford), but the desired results haven't been achieved on the field. Green Bay is comfortable with Schroeder as a No. 3 option, and Bradford is still a couple years away from contributing on a full-time basis. While it is unlikely they'll use the 14th pick on a receiver, the Packers are considering trading up from the 13th slot in the second round to take either Florida State's Laveranues Coles or Georgia Tech's Dez White.

NFC West
San Francisco 49ers: After a series of encouraging signs last fall, the prognosis on Garrison Hearst's return for next season isn't positive. In a follow-up procedure administered in late 1999, team medical officials were confident the feared nerve damage in Hearst's lower leg was healing better than anticipated. However, Hearst's status is in question more than ever because the staff recently informed the rest of the running back corps to prepare as if Hearst won't be available next season. The good news for San Francisco is that Charlie Garner, a proven workhorse, and Travis Jervey, now fully recovered from a leg injury that hampered him all of last season, are returning.

St. Louis Rams: The Cowboys are interested in acquiring backup quarterback Trent Green as the eventual replacement for Troy Aikman, and the Dallas front office is working diligently to clear cap space to facilitate the move. Since the emergence of Kurt Warner early last season, many teams have been rumored to be interested in Green, but Dallas' inquiries are real. Although Green will turn 31 at the midway point of next season, his age will not deter the Cowboys from committing big dollars to him. Green, who has just 16 professional appearances to his credit, hasn't sustained any major arm or shoulder injuries and could possibly play for another seven or eight seasons. The likelihood of Green landing in Big D rests firmly on the shoulders of team capologist Steven Jones, who will have to do some of his most creative work to get this done.

Material from The War Room. Visit their web site at http://www.nflwarroom.com