A few days ago, wide receiver David Clowney was happily employed with the Jets, ready to embark on a season that’s sure to be an exciting year with New York looking like a major contender for the Super Bowl.

But after being cut loose over the weekend to free up space for former Dolphins receiver Patrick Turner, things couldn’t have been worse for Clowney, with most teams set to begin the season with the roster they’ve reached, at least for the time being.

All of that could change tomorrow, as Clowney is slated to fly out to Kansas City, presumably to visit with the Chiefs, who have a definite need at wide receiver with Chris Chambers and Dwayne Bowe being the only experienced threats at the position, followed by rookies Dexter McCluster and Jeremy Horne.

While no indication of a visit has yet been given by the team, Clowney did offer up this message on his Twitter account, making it fairly obvious that he expects to receive a workout at the very least.

Clowney is a former high school and college teammate of current Kansas City cornerback Brandon Flowers. The two attended high school at Atlantic Community High in Delray Beach, FL before joining up again at Virginia Tech.

The prospects of quarterback Matt Leinart hitting the field as a starter in the NFL are hovering just above slim to none at this point, but if he gets over that desire and accepts his future as a backup to an already established quarterback, Leinart will find his job opportunities increasing exponentially.

One such team with a standout player already entrenched behind center that has an interest in bringing Leinart in is the Texans, and according to the Houston Chronicle’s John McClain, they are definitely open to taking a look at Leinart in the near future.

Houston doesn’t exactly have a solid option behind starter Matt Schaub, making it semi-imperative that they find a player capable of filling that role in the near future. And while Leinart won’t inspire a whole lot of confidence from fans of the Texans should Schaub go down to injury this season, he’s definitely a much better option then current backup Dan Orlovsky, who struggled immensely this pre-season.

The other likely landing spot for Leinart as of right now is Seattle, but for the time being, the front office is holding tight to their belief that he isn’t a viable option for the club, while head coach Pete Carroll is firmly on the opposite side of the fence.

It’s little surprise that Carroll would want to bring Leinart in, as there’s no one who knows him better, given Carroll’s time spent coaching Leinart at USC, but it remains to be seen if he’ll be able to win over the rest of the team’s decision makers.

It’s also possible that a dark horse club like Kansas City could sneak in and sign Leinart to a contract after week one, but given the disdain shown towards him by Chiefs head coach Todd Haley during his time in Arizona, it’s doubtful at best that such a marriage would ever work.

The bottom line still depends on Leinart’s ability to put aside his childish opinions of his viability as a NFL starter and as of right now, there’s little to indicate that’s the case. Until that happens, Leinart will remain unemployed and as time goes by, he’ll likely find his future prospects dimming more and more each day.

The list of teams interested in looking at free agent quarterback Matt Leinart was never all that long to begin with, and if the latest reports are to be believed, that group may drop all the way to zero very soon.

Citing sources close to the organization, CBS Sports’ Clark Judge is reporting that Seattle has no interest in bringing in Leinart right now, as he would block the development of fellow quarterback Charlie Whitehurst.

The Seahawks acquired Whitehurst earlier in the off-season from San Diego, and seem to be confident in his ability to take over the reins on offense from long time starter Matt Hasselbeck sooner or later.

Leinart has a significant connection to Seattle with head coach Pete Carroll, who was his collegiate head coach at USC, and chose him over Kansas City quarterback Matt Cassel as the starter for the Trojans.

With Seattle out of the race, the most likely teams to show any semblance of interest in the former first round pick would be Kansas City and Jacksonville.

The Chiefs recently cut two quarterbacks from their roster and definitely have a need for a quality backup capable of staying healthy on a consistent basis; something Brodie Croyle has never been able to do.

Jacksonville lacks a clear backup as well, and if David Garrard falters this season, the calls for him to be replaced will definitely rise in intensity, making it important to have someone capable of coming in and playing reasonable if that scenario plays out.

As always, we’ll keep you posted.

Here’s the latest on each team’s moves to reach the 53 man roster limit in the AFC West. We’ll be updating this with any additions that we find throughout the night, so be sure to check back often.

Feel free to leave any thoughts you may have in the comment section.

Denver Broncos

• WR – Britt Davis, Brandon Stokley, Alric Arnett
• TE – Marquez Branson, Riar Geer, Nathan Overbay, Kory Sperry
• OL Seth Olsen, Paul Duncan
• DL – Jeff Stehle, Jarvis Green, Chris Baker
• LB – Worrell Williams, Darrell Reid, Kevin Alexander, Jammie Kirlew, Johnny Williams,
• S – Kyle McCarthy

Kansas City Chiefs

• QB – Tyler Palko, Bill Stull
• RB – Javarris Williams, Kestahn Moore
• WR – Verran Tucker, Rich Gunnell, Lance Long
• TE – Leroy Banks, Cody Slate
• OG – Colin Brown, Darryl Harris, Ike Ndukwe, Lemuel Jeanpierre, Dan Santucci
• OT – Bobby Greenword, Tyler Eastman
• DT – Derek Lokey, DT Garrett Brown, Dion Gales
• LB – John Russell, David Herron, Pierre Walters
• CB – Mike Richardson
• S – Ricky Price, DaJuan Morgan

Oakland Raiders

• QB – Colt Brennan
• FB – Manase Tonga
• WR – Todd Watkins, Shaun Bodiford
• TE – John Owens
• C – Chris Morris
• OG – Brandon Rodd, Alex Parson
• DT – Kellen Heard, William Joseph, Chris Cooper
• DE – Jay Richardson, Grayson Gunheim, Alex Daniels
• LB – Slade Norris, David Nixon
• CB – Joe Porter, Joey Thomas,
• S – Jerome Boyd
• K – Swayze Water

San Diego Chargers

• QB – Jonathan Crompton
• RB – Shawnbrey McNeal, Curtis Brinkley
• FB – Richie Brockel, Billy Latsko
• WR – Richard Goodman, Jeremy Williams, Seyi Ajirotutu, Josh Reed
• TE – Dedrick Epps
• C – Ryan McDonald, Jeff Hansen
• OG – Cam Stephenson
• OT – Nick Richmond
• DE – Derrick Jones
• LB – Kion Wilson, Mike Nixon
• CB – Traye Simmons, Nathan Vasher
• S – Quinton Teal,
• P – Glenn Pakulak
• K – Nick Novak

The discussion surrounding Seattle wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh and his future with the Seahawks has taken a definite turn towards his exit from the club in recent days, with the team making a strong push to find a trade partner prior to Saturday’s roster cut down deadline.

According to Danny O’Neil of the Seattle Times, the Seahawks are on the verge of reaching a “point of no return” with Houshmandzadeh, as the coaching staff has reportedly come to the conclusion that he’s no longer a vital part of the team’s offense.

The other motivating factor in all of this is the Seahawks interest in acquiring Pro Bowl receiver Vincent Jackson from San Diego, and while it’s theoretically possible that they could make a deal for Jackson without sending Houshmandzadeh packing first, the most likely scenario would have Seattle handling their internal business first before venturing out to get Jackson.

At this point, the Seahawks could very well end up deciding to grant Houshmandzadeh his outright release if a viable trade partner cannot be found, but the preferred course of action would be to get something back in return.

If Houshmandzadeh is released, teams likely to be interested would include Minnesota, Kansas City, Jacksonville, Clevaland, and Pittsburgh.

It’s been rumored for quite some time now that Seattle has a significant interest in acquiring embattled Chargers wide receiver Vincent Jackson, and while the Seahawks would seem on paper to not have the space or financial flexibility to make such a move, things are beginning to shape up in that direction.

According to NFL Network’s Jason LaCanfora, the Seahawks are making a major push as we speak to move wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh elsewhere in an attempt to gain enough room to complete a deal with San Diego for Jackson.

Houshmandzadeh was productive in first year in Seattle last season, but his struggles thus far in the pre-season have opened the door to the team looking at releasing him at the cutdown deadline this Saturday. He’s not seen as being a good fit for the new offense installed by first year offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates.

If they can find a decent trade offer for Houshmandzadeh’s  services, a deal to obtain Jackson could come about shortly thereafter, as the Seahawks would have a definite need at that point for a quality receiver. The Chargers have reportedly asked for a 2nd round pick in the next draft and a third round pick two years from now.

Teams likely to be interested in acquiring Houshmandzadeh include Minnesota, St. Louis, Kansas City, Cleveland, and Jacksonville.

It’s not often that former first round picks are traded or released by their respective club without having spent a significant amount of time as a starter first, but in the case of Arizona quarterback Matt Leinart, it seems likely that very scenario will be playing itself out at some point this week.

According Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer, the Cardinals have been quietly shopping Leinart around the rest of the league over the past few days, and are expected to make a move one way another very soon (H/T to NFP)

Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic seconded Glazer’s post with his own thoughts, adding that an outright release is a very real possibility if Arizona is unable to find a trading partner of their liking before Saturday’s deadline to cut the roster to 53 players.

Leinart has been a major disappointment since he joined the Cardinals in 2006 as the 10th overall pick, struggling throughout his first two seasons to distinguish himself as the starter, and took a seat on the bench seemingly for good at the start of the 2008 campaign behind veteran Kurt Warner.

With Warner off to retirement this year though, Leinart was expected to be the starter once again, but after struggling immensely throughout the pre-season thus far, his hold on a position in Arizona is tenuous at best. Given his poor play, it’s doubtful that the Cardinals will receive much in the way of compensation for Leinart, but a team in need of a capable backup at quarterback may be willing to part with a late round draft pick to get him into the fold.

Looking over the league’s current slate of quarterbacks, teams that are likely to express some interest in the former Heisman Trophy winner include Kansas City, Cleveland, Seattle, and Jacksonville.

With standout Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant in the fold, Dallas now has the luxury of having a solid trio of receivers for quarterback Tony Romo to work with.

Unfortunately for the other players at the position, that means the Cowboys will more than likely be shopping them around throughout the remainder of this weekend’s activities, and the first one to go is expected to Sam Hurd.

According to Calvin Watkins of ESPN Dallas, the Cowboys have initiated discussions with teams that may have an interest in acquiring Hurd, and should be able to find a suitor for his services in exchange for a low round pick.

Hurd is a special teams ace, with 19 tackles to his credit last season, and has the ability to become a solid receiver in the right situation. In Dallas, he’s had to work behind a big group of competitors for playing time, making the learning curve a bit steeper.

The most likely candidate to obtain Hurd at this point is Kansas City, as they definitely have a need at wide receiver, and have experience with Hurd’s abilities courtesy of head coach Todd Haley’s time spent coaching the Cowboys receivers. Hurd would also give the Chiefs a much needed boost on special teams as well.

Can’t believe I’m finally writing this… as a lifelong Chiefs fan, I’ve wanted to see Eric Berry playing on Sundays at Arrowhead Stadium for a long time now.

Okay enough with the personal bias… in Berry, the Chiefs are getting a premier safety capable of changing the game with his physical presence in both the running and passing game.

Highlights baby…

Seattle is officially on the clock… time for me to take a much needed break!

This is the fourth part of our series, analyzing every division in the league headed into next Thursday’s draft. You can read our previous posts covering the AFC East, AFC North, and AFC South here.

As always, feel free to let us know what you think in the comment thread… enjoy!

Denver Broncos (8-8)

The Broncos had a miserable end to their season last year, finishing things off on a 2-8 streak that left them on the outside looking in for one of the final AFC playoff spots. Injuries, attitude problems, and poor coaching decisions led to much of the frustration, and as such, Denver has gone to great lengths this off-season to build up their depth chart at key positions and send off players who were unwilling to toe the line set by head coach Josh McDaniels. The Broncos still have more than a few holes to fill, but with four picks in the first 80 selections, they should emerge from this draft class, well equipped for the 2010 campaign.

• Players added: QB Brady Quinn, DT Jamal Williams, DE Jarvis Green, CB Nate Jones, DE Justin Bannan, RB J.J. Arrington
• Players lost: WR Brandon Marshall, RB Peyton Hillis, C Casey Wiegmann, RB LaMont Jordan, DE Kenny Peterson, LB Andra Davis, QB Chris Simms

Major Needs:

• Wide Receiver – Sending Brandon Marshall packing for Miami was the right move for the Broncos, but it leaves them extremely weak at the position, and as such they’ll have to devote at least one high value pick towards a receiver, if not two to replace Marshall’s production.
• Linebacker – Denver has one of the league’s best pass rushers in Elvis Dumervil, but the interior of their linebacker corps needs a lot of work. Expect to see this need addressed fairly early next week.
• Center – With Casey Wiegmann headed back to Kansas City, the Broncos have to find someone capable of backing up Ben Hamilton effectively. It can likely wait until the middle part of the draft, but if Denver has one of the top players at the position drop into their laps early on, they’ll likely pull the trigger to get him into the fold.

2010 Draft Picks:

• 1st (11)
• 2nd (43, 45)
• 3rd (80)
• 4th (114)
• 6th (183)
• 7th (220)

Kansas City Chiefs (4-12)

With just 10 wins in the past three seasons, the Chiefs have set a new standard for futility in their franchise, and are pushing hard this off-season to right the ship so to speak. Bringing in the top two coordinators available in Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel should free up head coach Todd Haley to focus on managing the game as a whole, and certainly lends credibility to a team in dire need of it. That said, there’s still a ton of work to be done if Kansas City has any desire to get back to the consistent level of play they had in the 1990s, and finding a multitude of quality players in this draft is the first step.

• Players added: RB Thomas Jones, C Casey Wiegmann, OG Ryan Lilja, DT Shaun Smith, WR Jerheme Urban
• Players lost: OG Andy Alleman, OG Wade Smith, OG Mike Goff

Major Needs:

• Linebacker – The Chiefs have seemingly been lacking a physical presence in the middle of their defense since the dawn of mankind, and it’s caused all sorts of wailing and gnashing of teeth among their fans, with missed tackles often outnumbering the legitimate ones. Tamba Hali was a pleasant surprise last season and should be primed for another solid year, but outside of him, Kansas City really doesn’t have a whole lot, so they’re going to need to address the inside LB and outside LB spots early on.
• Safety – There is no way the Chiefs can go into this season with Jon McGraw and Mike Brown as their starters at this position, as they both provide little in regards to defensive production, and give up too many big plays. Fortunately for KC, they’ll likely have an opportunity to take a top notch safety at some point in this draft, and should be better next season as a result.
• Defensive Tackle – Kansas City has a bevy of solid players on the outside of their defensive line, but the nose tackle spot is a big hole at this point, and they’ll need to fix it with one of their top picks to ensure they’ll be better against the run next fall.

2010 Draft Picks:

• 1st (5)
• 2nd (36, 50)
• 3rd (68)
• 4th (102)
• 5th (136, 142, 144)

Oakland Raiders (5-11)

Seven consecutive losing seasons tells the story here, and a large part of the blame for that has to fall on the shoulders of the Raiders front office… errr… Al Davis, as their draft classes over that span have been abysmal as a whole. Oakland has found several quality players as of late though, and could make the turn back towards respectability with a reasonably decent slate of choices next week, but that will require Davis to stay away from the controls and unfortunately for Raider Nation, that’s not happening anytime soon.

• Players added: QB Kyle Boller, LB Kamerion Wimbley
• Players lost: DT Gerard Warren, OT Cornell Green, DE Greg Ellis, WR Javon Walker, LB Jon Alston

Major Needs:

• Offensive Tackle – The Raiders have really struggled as of late to find anyone capable of keeping opposing pass rushers at bay on a consistent basis, and as such, they’ll need to use a high round pick this year to address this need. It could come in round one or potentially even in round two, depending on which player Davis fell in love with at the Combine.
• Quarterback – For some strange reason, Davis still thinks of JaMarcus Russell as a legitimate quarterback at the pro level, and is determined to have him as his starter when the Raiders open up their season this fall. Oakland doesn’t have all that much behind Russell to sway Davis’ opinion, but anyone would be better at this point.
• Cornerback – One side of the field is locked down under Nnamdi Asomugha, but things aren’t quite the same on the other half, with a rotation of players struggling to contain opposing receivers. Finding a quality player at this position next week would go a long way towards fixing that.

2010 Draft Picks:

• 1st (8)
• 2nd (39)
• 3rd (69)
• 4th (106)
• 5th (138, 158)
• 7th (215, 251)

San Diego Chargers (13-3)

The Chargers are clearly the team to beat in this division, and that isn’t likely to change between now and the season opener in September, even if another club puts together an excellent draft. With one of the league’s best signal callers in Philip Rivers and an outstanding group of receivers led by Vincent Jackson and Antonio Gates, San Diego should have little difficulty on offense next fall against much weaker competition on the other side of the ball. That said, their defense is going to need some work, and if they’re unable to find a worthy replacement for their longtime stalwart in the middle, Jamal Williams, the Chargers could have have difficulty stopping opponents throughout the season.

• Players added: RB Marcus Mason, CB Donald Strickland, CB Nathan Vasher
• Players lost: RB LaDainian Tomlinson, RB Michael Bennett, DT Jamal Williams, QB Charlie Whitehurst, CB Antonio Cromartie, TE Brandon Manumaleuna, WR Kassim Osgood, WR Demetrius Byrd, C Eric Ghiaciuc

Major Needs:

• Running Back – Saying good bye to a future hall of fame rusher in LaDainian Tomlinson wasn’t easy, but in the end, it was the right thing to do. It could cause some issues with the Chargers offense early on, as players get adjusted to life without him, but if San Diego plays its cards right, they should be able to grab a solid player to step into the gap early on next Thursday.
• Defensive End – The Chargers really don’t have much outside of Luis Castillo at this spot, making it a high priority for the club in this draft class. Finding a five technique defender is easier said than done though, and they may have to bide their time a bit until someone worthy of a selection comes along.
• Defensive Tackle – The loss of Jamal Williams cannot be overstated, in that he gave the Chargers the dominant presence in the interior of their defensive line that they need to make their 3-4 defense a force to be reckoned with. Williams has been injured often in recent years though, so San Diego should be fairly well versed in playing effectively without him around. Look for the Chargers to go after a player with the ability to play big in the middle with one of their high round picks.

2010 Draft Picks:

• 1st (28)
• 2nd (40)
• 3rd (91)
• 4th (126)
• 5th (159, 168)
• 7th (235)

Over the last week or so, many teams have lined up meetings with players set to be available in the nearing 2010 NFL Draft, but none have been as intriguing and thought-provoking as the ones confirmed to have been scheduled today with Eric Berry, who is considered one of the top-ranked prospects and the most dominant Safety in college since Ed Reed performed in the NCAA over eight years ago. He has negotiated with the Browns, Buccaneers, and Chiefs regarding workout dates, but the most surprising bit of information came when it was learned that he agreed to visit Philadelphia later in this month or early in April. Seeing that Berry is projected to immediately impact the defense of whichever professional club he goes to, his presence as an Eagle would help, but it places a big question over what the Philly officials are planning to do on Draft day; they hold the 24th pick in the first-round, but Berry is all but a lock to go within the first ten selections.

A trade would provide the Eagles with a legitimate chance of nabbing Berry (Donovan McNabb, anyone?), but for now, the focus is going to be on how he performs in front of the birds’ staff when he visits. While at the NovaCare Complex practice facility in Philly, he is expected to run through various drills and routines testing physical skills and attributes. In addition, it has been mentioned he is likely to sit down with members of the team personnel and front office and discuss a variety of things (which could range everywhere from contract expectations to where the defender feels comfortable playing in the secondary). Of course, the same can be said when he visits Kansas City, Cleveland, and Tampa Bay. It was simply interesting to know that a team picking later in the first-round has so much interest in a player predicted to go very early.

Berry has impressive collegiate credentials. In his three seasons with the University of Tennessee, the 6-foot, 200-pound defensive back notched 241 total tackles and 14 interceptions (seven of which came in his astounding ’08 campaign). Three sacks, a forced fumble, and trio of touchdowns add to his phenomenal statistical record, which also helped him garner various All-American honors and other prestigious awards. He has been ranked among the best defensive players set to be in the draft by many professional scouts and analysts, and has widely been regarded as the best safety.

The Kansas City Chiefs have reached an agreement with the top available free agent interior lineman, Ryan Lilja.

Lilja started 59 games on an Indianapolis Colts team that had the league’s best regular season record throughout his tenure there.

This move, in a way is admitting they were wrong; the Chiefs cut Lilja in 2004, hoping he would make their practice squad, and he was claimed by the Colts a day later, eventually starting in a pair of Super Bowls and actually beating the Chiefs in the 2007 playoffs.

The Chiefs have had a solid off-season coming off a 4-12 record last year, landing pro bowl running back Thomas Jones, and a pair of starters along a revamped offensive line in Lilja and center Casey Wiegmann, who’s back in Kansas City after his two year stint with the Denver Broncos.