For 19 seasons, Trey Junkin labored in anonymity, his private badge of honor the fact that NFL special teams coaches didn't need even five fingers to enumerate the errant deep snaps he had produced during his career.

Then all that changed on Jan. 5, when Junkin's botched placement snap deprived New York Giants place kicker Matt Bryant the opportunity for a 41-yard, game-winning field goal, and set off a Keystone Kops sequence in which the game referees blew a pass interference call in San Francisco's 39-38 first-round playoff victory.

That final play, with panicked holder Matt Allen scrambling to his right and launching a desperation heave far downfield, focused much attention on the officiating crew headed by referee Ron Winter, and essentially earned many of the zebras involved public reprimand from commissioner Paul Tagliabue. Alas, it also ended a mostly faceless professional existence for Trey Junkin, brought out of retirement by Giants officials just to snap in the playoffs.

One of the greatest postseason comebacks in NFL history also represented a humbling comedown for Junkin, a class act who stood up to tough postgame questioning, and then announced he would never play again.

LAST WORD

Parcells "This is a business that can wear you out. It can wear me out. You know what kind of personality I am. A 'Type A' personality. I'm all past that. This is a different enterprise for me now. I'm enthusiastic. I'm energized. I look forward to it. Will it beat me down again? Yes. The answer is yes, it will. But until it does, I'm giving it everything I've got." -- Bill Parcells, on his return to coaching, after a three-year hiatus

The shame of the matter is that after years of having his brilliance ignored, albeit it while playing a position in which the art form is about as esoteric as yodeling, Junkin will be largely recalled by fans for the letdown nearly three months ago. It is reminiscent of another standout deep center, the late Dan Turk, who while playing for the Washington Redskins muffed a field goal snap in a 1999 playoff loss at Tampa Bay, then died of cancer before he ever got the opportunity to redeem himself.

In virtually all of the obituaries following Turk's death, that botched field goal snap was prominently noted, a bit unfair for a player who rated as one of the league's best at his position for 15 seasons.

There is some irony, though, in Junkin's plight.

For two decades he worked hard to raise the consciousness, and the salary level, for NFL deep snappers. Still it took the most abject moment of his career to succeed on the first count but also, somewhat providentially, on the second one as well. In large part because of the attention afforded Junkin and his poor snap in the playoff game, more teams now realize the value of having a dependable deep snapper.

And in a trend that has stayed most below the radar during this offseason, but which is nonetheless undeniable, that value is being reflected for the first time in the contracts to which deep snappers are being signed.

"There's no doubt that the (New York-San Francisco) playoff game resulted in the higher profile and bigger paychecks we're seeing now at the position," acknowledged agent Kevin Gold, who represents three clients in the NFL, all of them deep snappers. "The teams are working to lock up deep snappers with long-term contracts and much bigger signing bonuses. The sad part is that, after snapping flawlessly for nearly 20 years, it took one bad play (by Junkin) to fuel this trend."

Gold operates a web site (longsnap.com) that is exclusively dedicated to news about guys who make a living hunched over and staring back through their two legs. It might rank as the ultimate niche site, and his championing the cause of deep snappers as the consummate cottage industry, but his hits are increasing commensurate to the pay increases snappers are realizing.

Just since the end of the 2002 season, there have been contracts awarded to deep snappers that not too many years ago would have been unfathomable, given the pay scale at the position. According to NFL Players Association salary documents, Junkin collected an aggregate of just $103,000 in signing bonuses in 20 seasons, with $68,000 of that coming in his rookie deal with the Buffalo Bills in 1983.

In the final 17 years of his career, Junkin banked just two signing bonus checks, totaling a paltry $20,000. But his errant snap, and the significance that it held because it occurred in a playoff game, means long snappers are now starting to see some long green. The misery of one man has turned into money for others.

Consider these recent deals: Philadelphia re-signed Mike Bartrum, cited by many as the league's premier deep snapper because of his coverage skills, to a five-year contract which included $280,000 in upfront money. A bidding between Cleveland and the Giants over Ryan Kuehl grew so heated, the six-year veteran was able to elicit from New York a five-year deal that included a record signing bonus of $325,000. New England deep snapper, barely known outside the Patriots locker room, landed a five-year contract with a $305,000 signing bonus.

This week alone, deep snappers Derek Rackley of Atlanta and Seattle's J.P. Darche signed new four-year contracts with upfront bonuses of $300,000 and $200,000, respectively. The lone unrestricted free agent snapper still available, longtime veteran Aaron Graham, is still being pursued by at least two teams and could realize a six-figure bonus. Most of the base salaries in the recent deals are for the league minimum but, in landing signing bonuses never before seen at the position, deep snappers are gaining some security.

To be fair, there have been some six-figure signing bonuses awarded deep snappers in the past, but those were isolated occurrences. Patrick Mannelly of the Chicago Bears received a $300,000 signing bonus on an extension of five years in 2001. Gold negotiated an extension for Indianapolis snapper Justin Snow in 2002 that featured a $240,000 signing bonus. James Dearth of the New York Jets received a $150,000 signing bonus in 2002. And last year also the Dallas Cowboys paid former Rams deep snapper Jeff Robinson upfront money of $800,000 on a four-year, $4.8 million contract.

One caveat on the Robinson deal, though, is that he also plays tight end and his contract reflects that. Most of the other deep snappers with the contracts noted above are exclusively special teams performers.

For years, special teams assistants around the league have sought to have their franchises retain exceptional deep snappers when they locate one, and now it seems those entreaties are being heeded by several clubs. A position that historically has been an afterthought, and where backup linebackers and tight ends were often pressed into duty, has gained in relative prominence.

"People don't understand how demoralizing it is to have a deep snapper who is scattering the ball all over the lot," said St. Louis Rams special teams coach Bobby April. "It affects the mentality of your special teams, really of your whole roster, maybe even the city where you play. I mean, the fans see that you can't even do something they consider pretty mundane, and they've got to feel like something is rotten about the whole deal, you know? It's sort of like: 'My, gosh, you guys can't even do that right? What a bunch of screw-ups!' Your team can fall into that same attitude when your deep snapper is just some scattershot guy."

Even with the recent emphasis on the position, April agrees there are still some teams who afford the deep snapper spot short shrift, basically because they feel that just about anyone can be taught the chore. Despite that take, more teams are selecting players who are exclusively deep snappers, feeling that the 53-man roster affords such a luxury now.

When the Rams lost Robinson in free agency last spring, April pointed out, team officials invested a seventh-round choice in the 2002 draft to take deep snapper Chris Massey. Not until about the sixth game of the season, April conceded, did he quit fretting that Massey might launch a snap high into the rafters. Now he feels St. Louis has a deep snapper for the long-term.

And that, it seems, is what more teams are seeking.

Early in his career, Junkin played some tight end, enough to have totaled 17 catches, 144 yards and seven touchdowns in his long career. But in the final two-thirds of his career, Junkin played only on special teams, and that is now the case for an increasing number of deep snappers.

"It used to be that, if you had a deep snapper," Gold said, "teams would say to you, 'So what other position does he play?' You really don't hear that too much anymore. That one bad snap of Trey Junkin's career, because it came in a playoff game, really raised the recognition level (of the position)."

And raised the compensation level, finally, for deep snappers as well.

Around the league

	Lewis

Rookie head coach Marvin Lewis has provided much-needed structure to the Cincinnati Bengals organization and, when it comes to the franchise's draft plans, it is clear he has his house in order. During this week's annual league meetings, Lewis donated a headline of sorts to an otherwise news-challenged confab in Phoenix, essentially announcing the club has narrowed its candidates for the first overall selection to four: quarterbacks Carson Palmer of Southern California and Marshall's Byron Leftwich, cornerback Terence Newman of Kansas State and Michigan State wide receiver Charles Rogers. In truth, what Lewis and Bengals owner Mike Brown prefer to do is trade the pick, but there aren't a lot of suitors. Lewis insisted the team has yet to make a decision from among the four, and will delay until after the Leftwich workout on April 7, then weigh the strengths and weaknesses of the prospects in the elite quartet. Word is, though, that Lewis is more sold on Palmer, the Heisman Trophy winner, than he is publicly acknowledging. Palmer worked out for Bengals officials last week and threw the ball well by all accounts. Cincinnati officials are wary of the fact Palmer enjoyed just one big college season and of the rumors he does not quickly assimilate an offense. But if Lewis is going to be around a while, and it certainly seems he is, he doesn't necessarily need to grab a guy with his first-ever choice as a head coach who will start as a rookie. The signs, from talking to folks close to Lewis, is that Palmer is the frontrunner. No matter who takes the top spot, Lewis made it clear the player will be signed well in advance of the draft, and negotiations figure to begin at least two weeks prior to the lottery. "It's not going to be a surprise on draft day," Lewis said. "As quick as we can, we want to come to a consensus, and a decision. There's no question we'd like to get our pick signed prior to the draft. There's no secret there."

	Gruden

At last spring's annual league meetings, Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden surprised reporters by announcing he planned to move starting strong-side linebacker Shelton Quarles to the middle linebacker vacancy created by the departure of Jamie Duncan in free agency. The moved worked brilliantly, as Quarles enjoyed a superb year in the middle, notching 159 tackles, which more than doubled his previous career high. Now it seems that Gruden and defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin are at it again. The Bucs staff plans to work No. 3 cornerback Dwight Smith at free safety, where the free agency departure of Super Bowl most valuable player Dexter Jackson to Arizona has left a void, during the spring mini-camps. The move, just like the switch of Quarles a year ago, could be a brainstorm. A two-year veteran, Smith is a tremendous "on ball" defender, with great range, toughness and a knack for the big play. As the team's "nickel" corner, Smith had four interceptions last season, and 10 passes defensed. Then he added three more thefts during the playoffs, including two in Super Bowl XXXVII, both of which the former Akron star returned for touchdowns. If the transformation works, Gruden and Kiffin will look like geniuses again. And if Smith somehow falters, the Bucs will probably just elevate second-year pro Jermaine Phillips, a safety with size and run support skills, into Jackson's former spot. But don't bet against Gruden being right on Smith as a young guy ready for a starting spot. After all, the Bucs coach has a pretty good track record, and you can ask Shelton Quarles about it.

	Taylor

Look for the Jacksonville Jaguars and tailback Fred Taylor to complete a contract extension within the next week or two. Taylor is entering the final year of his contract and is scheduled to earn a base salary of $816,000 for the 2003 season. Taylor demonstrated again in 2002 that, when healthy, he is one of the game's premier all-around backs.

	Newman

Atlanta owner Arthur Blank has sometimes made himself an easy target (we know, since we've taken aim a few times) by overpaying to acquire or retain players. But since the signing of cornerback Tyrone Williams two weeks ago, a deal in which the former Green Bay starter received a signing bonus of $3 million, the Falcons have settled into a fine-tuning mode in their annual roster revamping. And they've done a very nice job, indeed, of adding depth and filling in holes, and done it in very thrifty fashion. The club retained blue-collar tight end Brian Kozlowski and added "nickel" corner Tod McBride, linebackers Keith Newman and Twan Russell, and wide receiver MarTay Jenkins, and doled out a total of only about $1.5 million-$1.6 million each to do so. All of the players should contribute to a team that should contend again for a playoff spot, and is capable of challenging Tampa Bay for the NFC South crown, and personnel chief Ron Hill clearly has worked hard to tweak the roster with solid mid-level veterans. McBride is a proven "nickel" player and, while his contract looks like a four-year, $9.38 million deal, the structure shows it will actually be for one year at $1.3 million or two years at $2.33 million. Russell adds speed on special teams and Jenkins speed on offense and kickoff returns. But the pickup we like best was that of Newman, a three-year starter in Buffalo, and a very productive player when Falcons defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was the head coach of the Bills. In 2000 under Phillips' stewardship, Newman posted eight sacks, and we felt that number would increase when new coach Gregg Williams installed a "46" defensive scheme. It didn't happen, though, and Newman fell out of favor. Playing under Phillips again could resurrect his career. The guy is just 26 years old and, even if the Falcons signed him for depth, the bet here is that he will vie for a starting job.