We close out the 2009 edition of the PFT Heroes with the award named for Boomer Esiason, the man we selected because of his highly underrated career, his great success after football in broadcasting, his tremendous work in connection with the fight against cystic fibrosis, and his status as a great friend of the site.

This year, the finalists are Peyton Manning, Brett Favre, Drew Brees, and Kurt Warner.

Make the case for your favorite.  And don't waste your time with a write-in vote for Ben Roethlisberger.

Despite some Twitter entries suggesting that Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson has gone to Philly and left with a new contract, we're told that Jackson has not yet obtained a new contract from the Eagles.

Jackson is eligible for an extension because he has completed two NFL seasons.  Unlike other young players whom the Eagles have extended early in their years before they became stars, Jackson already is a star.

And so if they want to do a new deal it won't be cheap.  Which makes us think that they'll be dragging their feet on this one.

We thought that there would be no further items to add to the Baby Mason auction.

We thought wrong.

On the same day that it became even more clear that yours truly will be hanging out in the broadcast booth with Paul Allen and Pete Bercich of the Vikings radio network on the evening of September 9 in New Orleans, our friends in Minnesota came up with an excellent addition to our 34-item collection:  Four tickets to any Vikings regular-season home game, with four pregame sideline passes. 

The package has a value of $500; we've added for this item a "buy it now" option for $1,500.  Otherwise, you've got 24 hours to bid on the thing.

UPDATE:  Within an hour, someone plunked down $1,500 for the tickets, after some impromptu auctioneering by yours truly on our Twitter page.  (And if you don't follow us on Twitter, what the hell is wrong with you?)

The Rams are suddenly the most active team in phase two of free agency.

St. Louis will meet with defensive end Jimmy Wilkerson Friday, according to Pewter Report.  The 28-year-old recorded 11 sacks over the last two seasons, but tore his ACL in December.

He looks like a good possible value and the Bucs remain interested in signing him.

The Rams met with four free agents Thursday: running back Willie Parker, defensive end Reggie Hayward, fullback Jason McKie, and cornerback Kevin Dockery.

In today's edition of "Seriously, Terrell Owens isn't going to end up a Bengal," coach Marvin Lewis was asked about the possibility of adding another receiver to the team.

 "Well, we've signed a receiver and I feel really good about that," Lewis said. "I feel good about the direction we took this season and so far with our organization."

Lewis' words about new acquisition Antonio Bryant should prove instructive.

"He's straightforward; he's certainly not a prima donna, and part of that is what we're looking for,"  Lewis said. "We're looking for gritty guys."

Bryant, meanwhile, quickly snapped up the No. 81 jersey.   Lewis wouldn't exactly close the door on Owens, but it's very hard to imagine that other No. 81 ever lining up in Cincinnati.

Free agent guard won't be meeting with Scot McCloughan, but he will still make his scheduled free agent trip to San Francisco Thursday night, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The long-time Texans guard met with the Lions Thursday in Detroit. 

Pitts is recovering from microfracture surgery and it's unclear when he will be ready to play football again.

The Cleveland Browns placed quarterback Brady Quinn on injured reserve in December with a foot injury. But in his first public comments since being traded to the Denver Broncos, Quinn said the foot is no longer an issue.

"The foot is good, I appreciate you asking," Quinn said at his press conference in Denver today.

Quinn suffered what has been described as a severe Lisfranc sprain in his left foot during the Browns' December 20 against the Kansas City Chiefs, but after two months in a walking boot he's healthy, passed his physical and is working out with his new team.

Those workouts, he says, have been strenuous.

"The guys on the team are unbelievable," Quinn said. "Working out with them, you see their competitive nature, the way they work, their dedication. The only tough adjustment now has been the altitude, going up and down the stairs has been a little rough here. That, amongst other things [strength coach Rich] Tuten has us doing."

Quinn says he's also been watching film and studying the Broncos' playbook. One thing he hasn't done yet is touch base with fellow Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton. That meeting is expected to take place on Friday.

Pacman Jones will work out for NFL teams on the Tulane University campus Friday morning, the same place I showed up as a freshman back in 1997.

(Since everyone around here says I look 12 years old, I was roughly -2 back then.  Yet bars still didn't card me.)

At least four teams are expected to be present to watch Pacman: The 49ers, Lions, Jaguars and Saints, according to NFL Network's Jason La Canfora.

It's unclear how many teams will leave immediately after my alma mater's Pro Day, but I'd hope more than four teams show up for that.   And yes, it's sad that Pacman is the source of the Tulane football program getting some rare attention.

San Francisco and Detroit appear to have the most interest in Jones. 

The 49ers met with Pacman last week, and the Lions will meet with him Friday morning.  Lions head coach Jim Schwartz coached Jones in Tennessee.

UPDATE:  It's unclear whether the 49ers actually are interested.  Last week, reports emerged that coach Mike Singletary will attend the session.  Earlier this week, Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee reports that Singletary will not be there.

Derrick Johnson's fifth season in Kansas City didn't go as well as his first four. But he's still expected to return for a sixth.

Adam Caplan of Scout.com reports that Johnson, a restricted free agent linebacker, is expected to sign his tender in the coming days.

Johnson's tender is a one-year contract with a salary of $2.475 million, or 110 percent of his 2009 salary of $2.25 million.

Johnson was the Chiefs' first-round draft pick in 2005, and he started all 16 games as a rookie and 58 games in his first four seasons. But in 2009 he started only three games and had career lows in tackles and sacks.

As opinion among the so-called draft experts continues to shift toward a belief that the St. Louis Rams will take Sam Bradford with the first pick in next month's NFL draft, the Rams' actions are continuing to signal a strong interest in Bradford.

League sources told St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bryan Burwell that Rams General Manager Billy Devaney and offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur took a trip to Florida this week to meet with Bradford.

Bradford, the Oklahoma quarterback whose 2009 season was cut short because of a shoulder injury, has been rehabbing in Florida, so that's where the Devaney and Shurmer traveled for a two-on-one discussion. Devaney and Shurmur also met with Dr. James Andrews, who performed Bradford's shoulder surgery.

Bradford will work out for NFL coaches, executives and scouts on March 29.

We passed along a report a little while ago that Alge Crumpler was close to agreeing to terms with the Patriots.

Now we can pass along one that a deal has been reached. Albert Breer of the Boston Globe writes that Crumpler has told the Titans he's agreed to a contract with the Patriots.

Tight end remains a huge area of need in New England, but the team has found someone that can take up some space.

We've debated the importance of the main event in the Underwear Olympics plenty around here.

The forty-yard dash has an influence on draft stock, we know.  How much influence it has could be reflected in where Florida linebacker Brandon Spikes gets drafted.

Spikes was timed in the 5.0 range Wednesday at Florida's pro day.  (Some scouts had him in mid 4.9's, others had him higher than 5.)  That's extremely slow for an inside linebacker, even one that wasn't expected to run fast.

Spikes is known as an instinctive, tough player.  He's a classic inside linebacker for 3-4 teams, and there aren't a lot out there.

Before the forty time came out, the general consensus was that Spikes was roughly an early second round pick.  We've now heard he could slip as late as rounds 4-5. ESPN's Todd McShay said Thursday Spikes could still go in round two or three. 

A league source says Spikes met with Mike Tomlin and the Steelers staff Tuesday, and Bill Belichick Thursday, so the 3-4 teams are interested.

How interested they are and where Spikes is taken will be a telling litmus test for how teams really view the forty.

The 49ers have now had 18 hours since news first came out that G.M. Scot McCloughan may be out, and the organization still hasn't figured out what to say publicly about it.

While the rest of the organization stalled, McCloughan spent part of the day taking in Murray State's bracket-busting win over Vanderbilt in San Jose. 

"I know what I did for the organization and I'm really good with it," McCloughan wrote in a text to Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee.

McCloughan is the subject of a lot of speculative chatter, and this latest nugget certainly doesn't answer any questions. 

With veteran Jeff Feagles dangling in the wind, the Giants signed another punting option Thursday.

Multiple reports indicate Australian rules football player Jy Bond is the newest member of Big Blue after working out for the team Thursday.

Bond was cut last summer by the Dolphins, but has been working with former Austrialian rules players in the meantime to improve his game.  Feagles and the Giants are in a contract standoff.

Ten days after free agent tight end Alge Crumpler paid a visit to the Patriots, he's reportedly close to a deal.

Terry McCormick of the Nashville City Paper is reporting that Crumpler and the Patriots are close, although a contract probably won't be signed until next week.

Waiting until next week gives both the Patriots and Crumpler time to look elsewhere, which has already happened with the Patriots and a free agent tight end once this offseason, when Daniel Fells appeared close to a deal only to re-sign with the Rams.

The Patriots are in need of a tight end after the departures of Ben Watson and Chris Baker this offseason.