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INDIANAPOLIS — The fact that Darren Sproles is likely headed to unrestricted free agency doesn’t necessarily mean the dynamic running back will leave the San Diego Chargers.

Sproles

The team’s strategy in deciding not to put a restricted tender on Sproles is simple. They don’t want to give him a 10 percent raise from last year, when he was designated with the franchise tag. The team will continue to try to strike a long-term deal with Sproles. The two sides are talking at the NFL combine and they will continue to talk next week.



There is risk involved. If Sproles gets to the open market — free agency begins March 5 — he could be very popular. San Diego could lose him.



Sproles is a multifaceted threat. He is a good change-of-pace back and is dangerous as a receiver. He is also one of the premier return men in the NFL.



Teams will be interested. Already, at the combine, a special-teams coach of a contending team asked me if I thought Sproles would really hit the open market. The coach would love to work with Sproles.



It would hurt San Diego to lose him. The Chargers would have to address both the backfield and the return game to replace Sproles. Still, with fellow potential restricted free agents Vincent Jackson, Marcus McNeill and Shawne Merriman, not everyone can be tendered. It looks like Sproles won’t be. But don’t write off his San Diego career just yet.

INDIANAPOLIS — For years, Mike Shanahan hasn’t had a presence at the NFL combine. Even with Broncos beat writers staking out every exit of his hotel, Shanahan’s stealth-like approach allowed him to get in and out of Indy without being noticed.



That’s what made his appearance Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium so unusual. He arrived at 10:45 a.m. ET and spent more than an hour visiting with reporters and other bystanders. At one point, Shanahan said, “Two more questions, guys.” Then he stayed and did one-on-ones for the next 30 minutes. I’m not saying Shanahan’s going to turn into an open book, but it’s obvious that he’s now the face of the Washington Redskins.



Now, if he’d just come out and tell us who he’s going to take with the No. 4 pick in April’s draft. Shanahan was predictably coy with most of his answers, although he didn’t hide his passion for free-agent running back LaDainian Tomlinson when I broached the topic.



But the main thing on everyone’s mind is the quarterback situation in Washington. Shanahan didn’t exactly give incumbent starter Jason Campbell a ringing endorsement Friday, although he expressed his “admiration” for the way Campbell overcame so much adversity in ’09 — namely preserving most of his body parts while playing behind an injury-ravaged offensive line. Shanahan confirmed that the Skins will offer Campbell, a restricted free agent, a tender that probably will have first- and third-round compensation attached. If he signs the tender, Campbell would make $3.268 million in 2010 — otherwise known as Sage Rosenfels money.



Campbell is well within his rights to wonder why the Redskins would ask him to potentially start at quarterback while paying him second-string money. And while he’s the ultimate team player — as evidenced by his behavior last offseason while owner Dan Snyder fawned over other quarterbacks — there’s a chance Campbell could decide not to sign the tender and skip Shanahan’s offseason workouts. General manager Bruce Allen is scheduled to meet with Campbell’s agent Joel Segal during the combine, according to a league source. Maybe they’ll flesh out some of the details. For now, though, Campbell’s focused on remaining the starter in 2010.



“No matter who they take, I plan on winning the starting job,” Campbell told me Friday. “My plan is to come out and have a great year.”



Shanahan has had the good fortune of working with Hall of Famers Joe Montana, Steve Young and John Elway in the past. He knows better than anyone that this is a quarterback’s league and that’s what led him to trade the 15th and 68th overall picks in the ’06 draft to move up and select Jay Cutler at No. 11. He made this move despite the fact that Jake Plummer had led the Broncos to the ’05 AFC Championship Game. And by November of the ’06 season, Shanahan had made Cutler the full-time starter.



I’m told that Shanahan became obsessed with getting a new quarterback after spending a lot of time with Peyton Manning during Pro Bowl week five years ago. He couldn’t believe that Manning was actually studying for the Pro Bowl, something that a free spirit such as Plummer might avoid.



Obviously Shanahan’s not going to tip his hand at this point, but you can guarantee that he already has a strong opinion on the top quarterbacks in this draft. I asked him how much college football he watched during his season away from the game and he admitted that it was more than usual. And you can bet that he was paying particular attention to Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen and Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford before he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. Shanahan said he plans on going to the pro days for both of those quarterbacks.



“You just look at the film,” said Shanahan, referring to Bradford. “He’s played enough that people should have a strong opinion.”



Of course, there’s a decent chance Bradford will be off the board when the Redskins pick at No. 4. The St. Louis Rams could use a franchise quarterback about now. That leaves Clausen in the mix and perhaps Texas’ Colt McCoy in the second round.



I think Shanahan definitely respects what Campbell has done with the Redskins, but the coach’s track record suggests he’s going to try to make a splash in this draft. And no matter how much you like offensive tackles Russell Okung or Bryan Bulaga, the game’s not about the left tackle.



On Friday, Shanahan didn’t say anything particularly revealing, but in a lot of ways, his past speaks for itself.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — As mentioned in our previous post, the NFC South blog caught up with Carolina running back DeAngelo Williams at Disney’s Hollywood Studios this afternoon.



In our previous post, Williams strongly defended quarterback Jake Delhomme. But that wasn’t all we talked about. Williams was getting around with his right leg on a scooter and wearing a large boot on his right ankle.

Williams

He had surgery last week.



“It was just to clean some things up,’’ Williams said. “It’s not the same ankle that I had problems with this season. That’s fine now and this was just to clean out some old stuff. It all should be fine.



Williams said he expects to be running in three to four weeks and should be able to participate fully in the offseason training program. Obviously, I also had to ask Williams for his reaction to the biggest offseason story out of Carolina — the decision to let defensive end Julius Peppers walk away as a free agent.



“I hadn’t heard much about it because I was kind of out of pocket,’’ Williams said. “I was asking fans out here today if we kept him or let him go.’’



I then gave Williams the full rundown on general manager Marty Hurney saying the Panthers would not place the franchise tag on Peppers, thus making him a free agent.



“Wow, that’s big,’’ Williams said. “Peppers is a game-changer and a difference-maker and he was the face of Carolina for a number of years. We’ve got to move on and replace him and find somebody who can live up to the standards of Julius Peppers because he’ll always be compared to Julius Peppers.’’



Throughout his career, Peppers has drawn criticism from people who say he takes plays off and wasn’t a leader. I asked Williams for his thoughts on those perceptions.



“I would say, ask the guys who lined up across from him,’’ Williams said. “I’ve seen where he completely dominated a game. No disrespect to anyone, but the Vikings game, he completely dominated that game and disrupted Brett Favre.’’



I also asked Williams if he was concerned that the Panthers were letting go of arguably the best player in franchise history.



“It doesn’t concern me,’’ Williams said. “This is a business at the end of the day. They want to win. Their goal is to win championships. If you don’t win championships, you break up the team and try to make a playoff push and try to win the Super Bowl.’’

INDIANAPOLIS — Quarterback Tim Tebow just finished holding court with a large group of reporters at the NFL combine.



Once the session ended, Tebow picked up digital recorders from the podium and handed them to their owners in the media.



It was good form, but not the kind of good form NFL teams care about. Tebow has adjusted his throwing delivery to appease NFL personnel people, but like most of the top quarterbacks, he won’t be throwing at the combine.



That struck me as ridiculous even though it’s typical.



Consider: The most effective quarterback in college football might not be a good fit for the NFL. Said quarterback expresses strong determination to prove himself, then passes up a chance to demonstrate the one skill every good quarterback must possess — an ability to throw the football — to every coach and scout in the league.



Former Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren is scheduled to address reporters here shortly. Back in a bit with thoughts on his comments.

INDIANAPOLIS — Few receivers in the draft were bigger playmakers than Notre Dame’s Golden Tate last season. He recorded 93 receptions for 1,496 yards and 15 touchdowns as a junior.



With both the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals searching for a big-play receiver, would Tate be a golden match?



Tate said he has scheduled interviews with the Ravens, Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers this week at the NFL combine. But he doesn’t have a preference.



“I want to play for whoever thinks I can help them next year,” Tate said. “Whoever thinks I can come in, make a difference right away and help them go to a Super Bowl, that’s who I want to play for.”



Despite having two strong-armed quarterbacks in Baltimore’s Joe Flacco and Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer, the deep ball was very limited on those teams last season. Meanwhile, Tate averaged 17.2 yards per reception in his three-year career at Notre Dame.



On the field, Tate believes his skills are similar to Carolina Panthers receiver Steve Smith and Percy Harvin of the Minnesota Vikings, who are definitely big-play receivers. If Tate’s projections are correct, he could be a potential prospect who could add excitement and playmaking ability that the Bengals and Ravens currently lack.



“I’m the kind of a guy who’s going to go out there and make plays,” Tate said. “I try my best to catch it and turn a 3-yard gain into a first down, or a 20-yad gain, or maybe even a touchdown.”

Houston doesn’t sound optimistic that receiver will re-sign with team.

PFT Daily: Mike Florio talks about the thrill of the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine and says Clemson’s C.J. Spiller could be this year’s Chris Johnson, who amazed scouts with his 4.24 time in 2008. (NBC Sports)