Evan Mathis and Michael Vick find new homes:

Former Philadelphia Eagles teammates Evan Mathis and Michael Vick found new homes on Tuesday in moves that couldn’t be more different. Mathis will move into the starting line up for a Denver Broncos team that is thin at guard after Orlando Franklin left the team in free agency. On the other hand, Vick will provide the Pittsburgh Steelers with the flashiest and laziest backup quarterback in football. Apparently Charlie Batch wasn’t available.

John Elway announced the Broncos signing of Evans via Twitter on Tuesday, calling the veteran “an accomplished vet who has played at a very high level in recent seasons.”

Mathis, a 10-year pro, isn’t the kind of player he once was, but he has experience and savvy which makes him a logical choice for a team likely making one last run with Peyton Manning. Mathis signed a one-year, $4 million contract with the Broncos, and will step in to start at right guard, a position that would otherwise be manned by rookie (Florida) Max Garcia.

The value in the Vick signing isn’t as easily apparent as the Mathis signing, as the veteran quarterback proved a season ago that he no longer has interest in playing football, and he’s hoping to hold onto a clipboard for as long as he can, for the paycheck.

Last year, Vick was behind a quarterback in Geno Smith whose situation was tenuous at best.  Had Vick applied himself and acted like a guy who actually wanted to play football, there were plenty of opportunities to take that job from Smith.

Instead, the Jets waited until Smith struggled so mightily that they felt they had no choice but to give Vick a shot, hoping the veteran quarterback might give the offense a boost. Vick’s performance was so atrocious, that the quarterback admitted to being completely unprepared to go into the game.

Vick was so bad that he decided it was better for him to admit that he wasn’t ready for an opportunity he should have known would come his way, than having people believe his skills had diminished to the point they had that day.

If Vick was prepared to be a lazy slug behind a quarterback who could actually cough the position up to the veteran quarterback, how much effort do you think the Steelers, who boast one of the league’s best quarterbacks think they’ll get out of the guy?

The Steelers better hope that Ben Roethlisberger doesn’t get hurt, because the only one who wants to see Vick thrusted into Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback role less than Steelers’ fans, is Vick himself. He has proven he wants a paycheck more than an opportunity, and if given an opportunity, he’ll fall flat on his face, because he just isn’t going to work that hard.

Seriously, what were you thinking, Steelers? There has to be a young, hungry quarterback with some kind of potential out there, and instead you signed a guy who has spent years proving that his football character is almost as bad as his actual character.

Cowboys lose corner Orlando Scandrick for the season:

For all the time spent complaining about the opportunity to be injured during preseason games, one thing is lost on many. A reduction of preseason games would certainly come with more practices, and more physical practices that might even include some tackling. While nobody wants to get hurt in the preseason, it’s not any better to lose your season to an injury during practice, just ask Dallas Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick.

Scandrick, who has been up and down in his career, was lost to ACL and MCL tears at Cowboys practice on Tuesday.

While the Cowboys have some interesting depth behind him, Scandrick is a huge loss, as he’s been the Cowboys best cornerback in recent years, despite the team having a high priced free agent in Brandon Carr and a first-round pick in Morris Claiborne.

Claiborne, who’s been a disappointment in Dallas since being drafted sixth-overall in the 2012 NFL Draft, will likely step into the role left open by Scandrick’s injury, but don’t be surprised if this year’s first-round pick Bryon Jones is nipping at his heels.

In a division that could boast a couple of explosive offenses in Philadelphia and New York, the loss of Scandrick is a big one for the Cowboys. The pair of first-round picks behind him will need to step up big if the Boys have are to have any hopes as repeating as division champions in the NFC East.

Ryan Mallett disappointed Bill O’Brien chose Brian Hoyer as Texans starter:

Ryan Mallett isn’t happy with Bill O’Brien’s choice to start newcomer Brian Hoyer at quarterback for the Houston Texans, and he made it pretty clear when he spoke to the Houston media on Tuesday.

“Obviously I’m disappointed and I don’t agree with it, but I’ll be ready,” Mallett explained.

While Mallett is upset he won’t be the team’s opening day starter, he still expects to get an opportunity after what the team went through a season ago.

“We played four quarterbacks last year. So I’ll do what I have to do to better the team,” Mallet explained.

Mallett made it clear that he would prepare like he’s starting every Sunday, but also made it clear that he wasn’t sure why he wasn’t given the role.

“I don’t know what else to do except work my ass off, Mallett said. “I don’t look at it as a setback. I thought I did enough to win the job.”

There’s a lot of bad signs for Mallett when you think about the Texans’ situation. Mallett was in Houston last season, and should have been more comfortable in the system, even if Brian Hoyer was very comfortable with the concepts. The fact that Hoyer was able to take the starting job from Mallett this quickly isn’t a great look for Mallett.

Mallett’s comments that he thought he did enough to win the job are concerning as well. We’ve all felt like we’ve done enough to earn a job that we’ve been passed over for before, and Mallett’s reaction to it is the wrong one. You didn’t earn the job, now figure out why instead of talking about how you felt you should have been the guy.

The ability to be self-critical is important anywhere, but especially at a position like quarterback where you need to be evolving and improving constantly. Perhaps Ryan Mallett is a guy who will look inward to figure out what he’s not doing to get the opportunity he believes he deserves, but he doesn’t sound like it right now.