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    Shutdown Corner

    • Justin Veltung can go horizontal, but that's not his best thing. (AP)

      The news release from the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday, announcing the signing of undrafted free agent receiver Justin Veltung, was about as vanilla as you're going to get:

      The Seattle Seahawks have signed wide receiver Justin Veltung, the team announced today.

      Veltung, from nearby Puyallup, played 43 career games at the University of Idaho and collected 62 receptions for 901 yards with eight touchdowns and returned 80 kickoffs for 1,743 yards with two touchdowns in his career. He left Idaho as its all-time kickoff return leader (78) and kickoff return yardage leader (1,743), and 11th on its all-time all-purpose yardage list with 2,972 yards.

      Veltung attended Seattle's rookie minicamp on a tryout basis from May 10-12.

      So ... yeah. That's not why Veltung made Shutdown Corner today. He made Shutdown Corner today because he can rock a 56-inch (4-foot-8) standing box jump at 5-foot-11. To put that in perspective, NBA draft prospect DJ Stephens recently got a lot of attention for a 46-inch vertical leap while working out for the Brooklyn Nets. Box jumps and verticals are different, but still ... wow.

      You can view Veltung's super-jump below:

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    • The Honey Badger has signed his first NFL contract (Getty Images)

      Arizona Cardinals third-round safety Tyrann Mathieu has signed his first NFL contract, the team announced on Thursday.

      Because Mathieu had failed multiple drug tests at LSU, who booted "Honey Badger" off the team before the 2012 season, the terms of Mathieu's contract were the subject of a mini-controversy following his selection in the 2013 NFL draft. Peter King of Sports Illustrated reported that the Cardinals could receive permission to test Mathieu for drugs on a weekly basis and that the deal might not contain any guaranteed money.

      Mathieu's agent, Patrick Lawlor, quickly denied that his client would accept a deal that contained any guaranteed money. As "Shutdown Corner" noted at the time, since the 2006 season, no rookie had signed a contract that contained zero guaranteed money. In that post, we suggested that the Cardinals and Lawlor could model Mathieu's contract after the rookie deal of New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez, who had some failed drug tests while at Florida and fell to the Patriots in the fourth-round of the 2010 draft.

      Hernandez was scheduled to receive a four-year, $2.29 million contract that included a guaranteed signing bonus of around $500,000. Instead, he received a $200,000 signing bonus, but his deal had a maximum value of $2.69 million as Hernandez could earn an additional $388,000 in weekly roster bonuses (for being on the 53-man roster, injured reserve or physically unable to perform list, i.e., not suspended for violating the substance abuse or personal conduct policies) during all four seasons of the contract, essentially exceeding the guaranteed amount dedicated to his draft slot.

      According to Albert Breer of the NFL Network, it appears as though the Cardinals and Mathieu took the same approach New England took with Hernandez in 2010.

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    • Robert Griffin threw during the Redskins' OTAs on Thursday (USA Today Sports Images)

      Four and a half months after undergoing surgery on his right knee, Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin was throwing to Pierre Garcon and Fred Davis while working alongside other players who are rehabilitating injuries during the team's OTA practices. (Garcon is recovering from chest surgery, Davis is coming off a torn Achilles.)

      According to multiple reports out of Redskins Park, Griffin, who had surgery to repair tears of his anterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments in January, was not moving at full-speed, but was able to plant his right leg and made "crisp" throws to his targets.

      “The knee feels great," Griffin said. "I’m able to do all the stuff out there without any hesitation, so that’s the best part about it. I’m excited about that. It’s all about having that confidence, and if you put the work in you’ll have that confidence when you get back out there on the field. It’s about playing like you were never injured."

      Whether or not Griffin will be available for the start of training camp has yet to be determined. Though Griffin is ahead of schedule in his rehab, the 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year acknowledged that he needs to work on "explosive sprinting" and "cutting" before he will be ready to play. Griffin hopes to be ready for training camp, but has the proper perspective in that he knows he's entering Year 2 of what it is expected to be a very long and productive NFL career.

      "Yes, I'm all-in for Week 1 but I'm also all-in the rest of my career," Griffin added.

      Griffin also said that he has been taking "mental reps" and doesn't feel as though he needs offseason or preseason snaps to play against the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2013 regular season-opener. Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan would not be as comfortable with that scenario.

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    • (Instagram)San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree had surgery on Wednesday to fix the Achilles tendon he tore during one of the team's OTAs. But while 49ers fans may be depressed over the news, Crabtree sent out the above message using his Instagram account to put them in a more optimistic mood .

      Like the Terminator, Crabtree says he will be back.

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    • Jim Harbaugh may have to slow his roll on Sunday. (USAT Sports Images)

      If you're watching the Indy 500 this Sunday, and you're a hardcore pro football fan, your worlds will intersect in ways you did not expect. San Francisco 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh will be driving the pace car -- a 2014 Corvette Stingray -- this year at the legendary race.

      "I'm awaiting my coaching and instructions, and then ready for practice,'' Harbaugh said at the team's OTAs on Wednesday.

      Harbaugh has a lot of history with the area, and with racing in general. The 14-year NFL quarterback played for the Indianapolis Colts from 1994 through 1997 (when he was replaced by that Peyton Manning guy), and his name is in the team's Ring of Honor. He's also a part owner of Indy-based Panther Racing, which has two drivers in this year's race -- JR Hildebrand, who starts 10th, and Townsend Bell, who starts 22nd. Last September, Harbaugh had an Indy race car parked near the practice fields at the team's headquarters in Santa Clara.

      Harbaugh is also well aware of the history behind Indy 500 pace car drivers, and he's eager to live up to the legends.

      "As the No. 1 fan of the Rockford Files, to follow in the footsteps of James Garner, who did it three times, and also Morgan Freeman, and Colin Powell, and Chuck Yeager and so many others, it's just a real honor and a privilege,'' he said. "I'm going to do my best to do a great job at it.''

      The coach is still concerned with football, especially the fact that he lost receiver Michael Crabtree to an Achilles' tendon injury for an unknown stretch of time, but that doesn't mean that he isn't jazzed about his new role.

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