Inland Waterways » arren McFadden on a one-year deal worth up

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- The Oakland Raiders opened free agency on Tuesday by agreeing to a five-year, $42.5 million contract with offensive lineman Rodger Saffold and keeping oft-injured running back Darren McFadden on a one-year deal worth up to $4 million. Oakland and former New York Jets right tackle Austin Howard also agreed to a five-year, $30 million contract, with $15 million guaranteed, according to two people with knowledge of the deal. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the Raiders had not announced the signing. ESPN first reported Howards deal. But the day was just as notable for the players who left town. Left tackle Jared Veldheer and defensive end Lamarr Houston, considered building blocks in the rebuilding plan, signed as free agents with Arizona and Chicago, respectively. Also, last years leading rusher Rashad Jennings said on Twitter that he was flying to New York and was looking forward to signing a deal with the Giants. After two years of being hamstrung by bad contracts that left little room to manoeuvr, general manager Reggie McKenzie was able to spend for the first time with about $60 million in cap room at the start of the league year. But he chose not to use the franchise tag on either Veldheer or Houston and gave the biggest contract of his tenure to Saffold. Saffold is guaranteed $21.5 million in the deal. He will be paid $16 million for next season and $27.6 million over the first three years in a sign that the Raiders valued the injury-prone Saffold over the home-grown Veldheer. ESPN first reported the terms. Veldheer, a third-round pick in 2010 out of Hillsdale College, had been one of the better acquisitions by late owner Al Davis in his later years running the team, starting 42 consecutive games at left tackle before tearing his triceps in training camp last summer. He missed 11 games last year and did not play up to the level he was at in 2012 after his return. Saffold is a versatile blocker with experience playing both tackle spots and right guard in four seasons with St. Louis. But he has had problems with durability, missing 17 games with a variety of injuries. Howard spent the last three years with the Jets, and started every game the last two seasons after winning the job at right tackle over Wayne Hunter before the 2012 season. The 6-foot-7, 333-pound Howard signed with Philadelphia as an undrafted free agent out of Northern Illinois in 2010. He joined Baltimores practice squad in 2011, and signed by the Jets to their active roster a few weeks later. McFadden had been considered one of the many first-round disappointments in Davis final draft. Picked fourth overall out of Arkansas in 2008, McFadden has missed 29 games in six seasons and never gone through a full season healthy. McFadden had his biggest success in two years with Hue Jackson calling plays, averaging more than 5 yards per carry in 2010 and 11. But he has averaged just 3.3 yards per carry the past two seasons, second-worst in the NFL in that span to the recently retired Rashard Mendenhall. A move from a zone-blocking to a power scheme was supposed to spark McFadden last season but he rushed for just 379 yards and averaged 3.3 yards per carry in 10 games. Jennings was considered a stronger possibility to come back after setting career highs with 733 yards rushing, 292 yards receiving and six touchdowns. Houston, a second-round pick in 2010, had been Oaklands most consistent defensive player the last few years, but the Raiders chose not to pay him as an elite pass rusher because he had only 10 sacks the past two seasons. C.J. Mosley Womens Jersey . The group of Slava Fetisov, Igor Larionov, Vladimir Konstantinov, Sergei Fedorov, & Slava Kozlov were a dominant force for The Wings at one point in the 90s. Wayne Chrebet Jersey .Y. -- That hangover from the Big East tournament is gone for Villanova. http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Jets-Cj-Mosley-Jersey/ .C. -- With a chance to start over and maybe drive in any series he wanted, Juan Pablo Montoya thought long and hard about what mattered most at this stage of his career. Wayne Chrebet Jets Jersey . The 17-time Grand Slam champion, who lose three straight finals in Monte Carlo to Rafael Nadal from 2006-08, has not played in the tournament since 2011, when he lost to Jurgen Melzer in the quarterfinals. Chuma Edoga Womens Jersey . Ferguson told Uniteds in-house TV channel on Saturday that he has no immediate plans to walk away from the game, and that he still hungers for more trophies even after 25 years in charge of the club.We also came across this Tweet from Darren Rovell featuring some young future MLB stars....shirtless. Classic Pic: MLBs young shortstops in 1997 w//A-Rod & Jeter in front (Source: SI) pic.ddddddddddddwitter.com/LziELo7DEs — darren rovell (@darrenrovell) April 4, 2014 ' ' '