Here’s a few quick things on my mind as we get prepared for NFL Total Access tonight:

The idea that Michael Crabtree will sit out a season makes little sense. It rings of empty rhetoric, and, if actually executed, could end up hurting the kid in the short term and long run. I will definitely explore this more on the show tonight.

Also, the notion that Crabtree’s pursuit of a top-five deal from the No. 10 spot is hardly the only reason things are slow from picks 8-12. Some teams are balking at paying what the market might dictate, though the Broncos and Knowshon Moreno, for instance, are making good strides toward a resolution according league sources.

Jacksonville and top pick Eugene Monroe remain at an impasse. I’m told the Bengals and Andre Smith haven’t had much communciation at all the past few days and the Packers and B.J. Raji are essentially in a holding pattern as well.

Talking to people about the Eli Manning contract, it looks like a compromise and a win/win. Manning’s numbners aren’t all that lofty, but he’s won big games for them and is a vital cog. The annual averages are high, but he remains with a manageable figure in 2008 and while the guanrateed money ($35 million) is hefty, it wasn’t nearly as high as some speculated it might be. It sets a nice template for Philip Rivers and the Chargers to build around.

Also, no immediate solution to the Roddy White holdout in Atlanta. Some have reported White wants a Larry Fitzgerald deal, but according to sources, that is not the case. He is not seeking in the range of the $11 million per season Fitzgerald will get in the first three years of his deal. The season-ending injury to Harry Douglas leaves the Falcons short at receiver — Marty Booker is one reveiver Atlanta has discussed takinng a look at, according to a source — but the sides are not close to a resulution right now. White seems pretty resolved to not playing out the final year of his contract.

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