AND THE WINNER IS...
We are less than 48 hours away from kick off to the college football season and this is the most important week of the year because this is the week where everyone makes their picks of who will win every major conference, well I am no different. We get a solid opening week end of games before we get the best week end of the past 5 years in sports, but there is pleanty of time for that let's breakdown conferences shall we?
I will give you winners from each conference starting with the easiest conference while working towards the toughest conference. So here you go, all 6 of the conference winners...
Big East: Pittsburgh Panthers
I am really undecided on this conference winner. The best player in the conference is Noel Devine, the best qb is Zach Collaros in Cincinatti, but the best collection of talent is in Pittsburgh. Coach Dave Wanstedt has done a great job rebuilding the Pitt program and has them set for a run for the BCS. Dion Lewis could be a sleeper for the Heisman Trophy if a 4th straight Sophomore is gonna win it.
Pac 10: USC Trojans
Go ahead and admit it...all of you SEC homers loved the off season turmoil that USC faced (like your programs are squeaky clean). You are all waiting for me to give you some team who will win this conference other than USC, well keep waiting because USC will win the Pac 10. I realize they will not play in a bowl game, and I realize about the loss of scholarships, but this is not the year that it will hurt USC. Since they will not represent the Pac 10 in the Rose Bowl i have to find someone else. It will be settled in a battle that has been deemed "The Civil War" I like Oregon in a battle of 2 of the best running backs in the country, LaMichael James and Jaquizz Rodgers. Oregon just has a better team and will find a way to win in a very hostile enviroment.
Big 12: Oklahoma Sooners
I want to pick Nebraska to win this conference so badly. I do think they win the North and think it would be great if they found a way to win the Big 12 this year and the Big 10 next year. However, Zac Lee has been way too inconsistent and Oklahoma is loaded. As bad as the Sam Bradford injury was, the expierence Landry Jones gained last year will be huge. If they can survive the shoot out with FSU on September 11, this team will be in a good spot to return to the BCS Title Game.
Big 10: Ohio State
I will admit that there is not a conference in football that I like less than the Big 10. The conference gets a ton of love nationally and then goes out and gets beat in the major bowl games they play in. I like the fact that Iowa has a veteran qb in Ricky Stanzi. I have even seen some picking Wisconsin (you should have your media credientials revoked) winning this conference, I don't think so. The best player in the conference is Terrelle Pryor, the best coach is Jim Tressell, and the most talented team is the Buckeyes. Unfortunately this may get us another Ohio State v SEC school for the National Championship...the poor ol buckeyes deserve better.
ACC: FSU Seminoles
HOMER!!! I already see all of the comments flying in now. You are crazy there is no way they are winning the ACC. Well sit down boys and girls because the Seminoles are a legit sleeper for the BCS Title Game. They have a schedule that if they are able to survive will automatically put them in the BCS Championship game. The 2 big dates are September 11 with Oklahoma (this could propel one of these teams into the Title game) and an Ocotber 9th matchu at Miami. They Seminoles don't play Va Tech or Ga Tech and Boston College, UNC, and Clemson all come to Tallahassee. November 27 could be HUGE for Seminoles fans when Florida comes to town (could both of these teams be in the top 5 again?). On the Coastal side the same thing I just said about being a legit BCS Title game sleeper could be said for Miami. They have their own brutal road game on Septmeber 11 against Ohio State, however for Miami they do play at Ga Tech and the next week at home against Va Tech. If they are able to survive (which they will), They will matchup with the Noles in the ACC Title game. I know the "experts" all love Va Tech, but I don't. Tyrod Taylor is inconsistent, the defense is young, and Beamer never seems to meet the full expectations that are set for his team. Just remember this, this could be the year where a one loss ACC team is still alive for the BCS Title game, Miami, FSU, and Va Tech all could possible be looking at BCS Bowl Games.
SEC: Alabama Crimson Tide
I want to write someone else here so badly, but Alabama is so talented that it is just hard not seeing them in the Title game again. Greg McElroy was outstanding last year. Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson make him look great. Julio Jones is a beast. The only question mark with this team is the defense. They lost alot after last season, but if they can survive a September 25 match up at Arkansas, then the schedule sets up nicely, Yes I know they play Florida the following week, but the Florida loss would not be nearly as bad as a divisional loss to a team that is talented enough to win the SEC West and would have all of the confidence in the world with a win against the defending champs. The Iron Bowl will be brutal to close out the regualr season. The west has 3 teams who could win that division with Auburn & Arkansas being the other 2. On the Eastern side of things, the Florida Gators are clearly the most talented team in the division, they are also one of the youngest teams in terms of experience. They lost, arguably, the best player in college football history, their leading rusher, the top 2 receivers, and several key pieces on defense. Of course they still have coach Urban Meyer and its hard to think he won't be successful, so Florida gets the nod out of the East. Georgia is going to challenge, and could make it to a BCS game because they will not be playing in the SEC Title game and therefore should not have to deal with the extra loss.
There you have it, all 6 conference winners. I know there are another 4 at large teams to fill out the BCS and I will give them to you over the next couple of days. Let me know your predictions. I look forward to hearing from you.
UNTIL NEXT TIME...
Monday, August 30, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
I HAVE SEEN THE ERROR OF MY WAYS…
I HAVE SEEN THE ERROR OF MY WAYS…
The College Football Season get started on Thursday night and really gets going one week from today, with the “big game” being played here in Atlanta between LSU and North Carolina. There is so much info that I need to make sure you all have prior to the start of the season, so I am going to have to make sure I am positing every day this week. However, before I start giving you conference winners, Heisman contenders, and BCS Matchups, I have to come on here and say I was wrong with some of my earlier comments. Let me explain…
A few weeks back I posted a list of the major games this season in College Football and that led to a discussion between Dr. Phillips and I about the possibility of Boise State playing for the National Championship (I believe they could potentially), and should they be allowed. I have been arguing for the last coupe of years that they have closed the gap and should be given that opportunity. I then heard some numbers this past week that I could not believe…Boise State is 6 – 7 against the BCS schools since 2002. After seeing the facts, Boise State UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO PLAY FOR THE BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP EVER!!! The one knock on Boise State (and every other non-BCS conference school) has always been the schedule. People like me have argued they are playing anyone who will play them. The mindset is they are beating everyone who will play them, however, when you look at Boise State’s record against BCS schools, there are 2 impressive wins and I will explain to you why those are not that impressive.
First off let me give you the teams they have beaten: Oregon (2 times), Oregon State (2 times), Oklahoma (Fiesta Bowl), Iowa State. They have lost to: Georgia, Oregon State (2 times), Boston College, Louisville, Boston College, and Arkansas. The one thing I notice about this list is (except for 1 of the games against Oregon, and the Oklahoma game) non of these teams were near the top of their conference the years the played, however Boise St has still not even been .500 against them. When you look at the schedule that Boise State plays, the worst schools in the SEC, Big 10, or Big 12 would all be favored to win 9 games against that schedule. So when you look at this, there is no way to say that OVER THE COURSE OF THE SEASON BOISE STATE IS ONE OF THE 2 BEST TEAMS JUST BECAUSE THEY WON ALL OF THEIR GAMES!
I know, they beat Oregon who played in the Rose Bowl (they are the only school in the last 50 years to allow Ohio State to win a Bowl Game, but they did play in it), and what about that great game against Oklahoma (yes, that is dripping with sarcasm). Let me address Oregon 1st. Game 1 of the season in an offense based strictly off of timing is not something that I am going to hang my hat on. Yes it was a good win on paper, but that game was terrible. Both teams looked terrible and the only offense in the entire game was when LaGarrett Blount sucker punched the kid from Boise. As for the Oklahoma game, yes it was a great game. Yes it was a great win for the Broncos. However let’s call it what it was, it was Rocky III. Boise State was Clubber Lang in Rocky III, and Oklahoma was the mighty champ Rocky. You remember that training sessions that Rock had going into that first fight, he was at the heavy bag getting kisses, there were kids running all over the place, it was a show. I am going to give this undeserving punk a shot because there is no way that he can match punches with the great Rocky Balboa. Guess what, nobody told Clubber he couldn’t win. He out trained Rocky, Lang was training for a fight and he had a no nonsense attitude going into the fight. Well going into that Fiesta Bowl, Oklahoma spent a month listening to the experts talk about how this was a huge mismatch. They saw ESPN run the total that said 87% of America thought they were going to win. They were the champ on top of the world, but Clubber was coming for them and they pitied the fool that would show up in Arizona that night in January because they were going to pull everything they could think of that January night in Tempe. We all know what happened next with nothing to lose, Boise State went off to pull a magical upset and “cement” themselves with the big boys. Only problem is, just like Clubber Lang, this fairy tale has an expiration date. You let them schedule mediocre teams from major conferences consistently and let’s see how they fare. Let them go looking for the Boston College, Georgia, Texas Tech, USC (don’t tell me USC was afraid to play them, they played everyone). And let’s see how they would do.
Sorry to anger everyone but Boise State should never play for a BCS Title EVER.
Until Next Time…
The College Football Season get started on Thursday night and really gets going one week from today, with the “big game” being played here in Atlanta between LSU and North Carolina. There is so much info that I need to make sure you all have prior to the start of the season, so I am going to have to make sure I am positing every day this week. However, before I start giving you conference winners, Heisman contenders, and BCS Matchups, I have to come on here and say I was wrong with some of my earlier comments. Let me explain…
A few weeks back I posted a list of the major games this season in College Football and that led to a discussion between Dr. Phillips and I about the possibility of Boise State playing for the National Championship (I believe they could potentially), and should they be allowed. I have been arguing for the last coupe of years that they have closed the gap and should be given that opportunity. I then heard some numbers this past week that I could not believe…Boise State is 6 – 7 against the BCS schools since 2002. After seeing the facts, Boise State UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO PLAY FOR THE BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP EVER!!! The one knock on Boise State (and every other non-BCS conference school) has always been the schedule. People like me have argued they are playing anyone who will play them. The mindset is they are beating everyone who will play them, however, when you look at Boise State’s record against BCS schools, there are 2 impressive wins and I will explain to you why those are not that impressive.
First off let me give you the teams they have beaten: Oregon (2 times), Oregon State (2 times), Oklahoma (Fiesta Bowl), Iowa State. They have lost to: Georgia, Oregon State (2 times), Boston College, Louisville, Boston College, and Arkansas. The one thing I notice about this list is (except for 1 of the games against Oregon, and the Oklahoma game) non of these teams were near the top of their conference the years the played, however Boise St has still not even been .500 against them. When you look at the schedule that Boise State plays, the worst schools in the SEC, Big 10, or Big 12 would all be favored to win 9 games against that schedule. So when you look at this, there is no way to say that OVER THE COURSE OF THE SEASON BOISE STATE IS ONE OF THE 2 BEST TEAMS JUST BECAUSE THEY WON ALL OF THEIR GAMES!
I know, they beat Oregon who played in the Rose Bowl (they are the only school in the last 50 years to allow Ohio State to win a Bowl Game, but they did play in it), and what about that great game against Oklahoma (yes, that is dripping with sarcasm). Let me address Oregon 1st. Game 1 of the season in an offense based strictly off of timing is not something that I am going to hang my hat on. Yes it was a good win on paper, but that game was terrible. Both teams looked terrible and the only offense in the entire game was when LaGarrett Blount sucker punched the kid from Boise. As for the Oklahoma game, yes it was a great game. Yes it was a great win for the Broncos. However let’s call it what it was, it was Rocky III. Boise State was Clubber Lang in Rocky III, and Oklahoma was the mighty champ Rocky. You remember that training sessions that Rock had going into that first fight, he was at the heavy bag getting kisses, there were kids running all over the place, it was a show. I am going to give this undeserving punk a shot because there is no way that he can match punches with the great Rocky Balboa. Guess what, nobody told Clubber he couldn’t win. He out trained Rocky, Lang was training for a fight and he had a no nonsense attitude going into the fight. Well going into that Fiesta Bowl, Oklahoma spent a month listening to the experts talk about how this was a huge mismatch. They saw ESPN run the total that said 87% of America thought they were going to win. They were the champ on top of the world, but Clubber was coming for them and they pitied the fool that would show up in Arizona that night in January because they were going to pull everything they could think of that January night in Tempe. We all know what happened next with nothing to lose, Boise State went off to pull a magical upset and “cement” themselves with the big boys. Only problem is, just like Clubber Lang, this fairy tale has an expiration date. You let them schedule mediocre teams from major conferences consistently and let’s see how they fare. Let them go looking for the Boston College, Georgia, Texas Tech, USC (don’t tell me USC was afraid to play them, they played everyone). And let’s see how they would do.
Sorry to anger everyone but Boise State should never play for a BCS Title EVER.
Until Next Time…
Friday, August 20, 2010
DO YOU WANT PEYTON MANNING ON YOUR TEAM?
DO YOU WANT PEYTON MANNING ON YOUR TEAM?
I was driving to work this morning and I jokingly made the comment that Peyton Manning was going to be traded to open the door for Curtis Painter in Indianapolis . The thought then entered my head…how many teams in the NFL would take Peyton Manning on their team today? I know that Manning will never leave the Colts, but what if he was available? Now for the purpose of this article, I need you to play along with a couple of things…
1. There is no salary cap, if a team wants him, they can have him and they do not have to worry about the financial side.
2. He is the starter from day the day the trade is done. There is no way you bring in a guy like Peyton Manning as an insurance policy in case your guy goes down.
3. You will only have to give up a 6th round draft pick to get him. You are not giving up any contributor to your team, YOU DO NOT INCLUDE YOUR CURRENT QB IN THE MOVE, HE STAYS ON THE TEAM.
4. I am not saying these guys who are going to be on this list are better than Peyton Manning. There is only one guy better than Manning and that guy resides in New England . However, just because you add talent does not always mean you will be successful, look at the Chargers as proof.
So here it is, my list of teams that would say thanks for the offer, but no thank you…
1. New England Patriots. This is an absolute no brainer (as would be the discussion if it was a how many teams would take Brady, there is no way the Colts would take anyone over Manning). New England loves the guy they have and why shouldn’t they, he has more playoff wins, more Super Bowl rings, plays better when the talent around him is not as good, and is without a doubt a 1st ballot Hall of Famer. Please do not waste your time telling me how wrong I am with this one.
2. Baltimore Ravens. They do not make this list because they want nothing to do with the Colts, like most teams on this list they have a really good young quarterback and the trade would ruin his career with the Ravens. I know that Flacco is not in Manning’s league, but he is young, been in the playoffs both year as a starter, and will be around for another 10 years while Manning only has another 3 or 4 left in him.
3. Cincinnati Bengals. This is the 1st one where I really had to think. Palmer is not as good, has not won, and has injury questions. That being said, I think they would keep him simply because of the fear of what removing him as the starter would do to the rest of the team. What would the fall out be with Ochocinco and T.O.? maybe none, but there may be as these guys have all gotten to be pretty good friends and if they OL can keep Plamer healthy, he is an elite QB.
4. Houston Texans. Again, I know what you are saying, how can this team possibly want their current Qb over Manning? It is simple, this team is still young and they have a top 5 offense. The problem for this team has always been the defense and that is coming around, I think the long term damage you would do by benching Schaub would be very damaging long term and does anyone really think the offense will be that much better with Manning over Schaub? I thought so.
5. San Diego Chargers. This is simply about age. Rivers has 10 years left in him and because of that, there is no way the Chargers would take anyone and put in his place. When you look at the trouble that teams like the 49ers (Steve Young), Cowboys (Troy Aikman), Dolphins (Dan Marino), Bills (Jim Kelly), and Broncos (John Elway) have had trying to replace Hall of Fame qb’s, it is easy to see why you don’t let a guy with 10 years left to play at a very high level slip away for a good 3 or 4year run.
6. Dallas Cowboys. See the comments about Phillip Rivers. Yes, I know about Romo’s postseason failures, but this is Manning we are talking about and therefore, you can not talk about the postseason, because when you study it out, he has been very mediocre in the postseason.
7. New York Giants. See Phillip Rivers. Not to mention during his brief career baby brother has played better than big brother in the big games.
8. Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers is the next best qb in the league. What he has done during his few years as a starter has been amazing. After this great group (Brady, Brees, Manning retires, Rodgers is THE next guy).
9. Detroit Lions. See Phillip Rivers. He has a great relationship with Calvin Johnson and if you remove Stafford , he would be viewed as the sacrificial lamb, when this team has problems at so many other places.
10. Atlanta Falcons. Matt Ryan has played very well and I don’t think Arthur Blank would mess up the good vibe this team has with the city by removing Ryan.
11. New Orleans Saints. Do you even have to ask?
Again, I want to make this clear, not all of these guys are better than Manning. Please do not base your whole argument on Manning is better. I have listed reasons for why I would take every guy ON HIS TEAM over Manning. What do you think? How crazy am I? Please share, I am really looking forward to these comments.
UNTIL NEXT TIME…
I was driving to work this morning and I jokingly made the comment that Peyton Manning was going to be traded to open the door for Curtis Painter in Indianapolis . The thought then entered my head…how many teams in the NFL would take Peyton Manning on their team today? I know that Manning will never leave the Colts, but what if he was available? Now for the purpose of this article, I need you to play along with a couple of things…
1. There is no salary cap, if a team wants him, they can have him and they do not have to worry about the financial side.
2. He is the starter from day the day the trade is done. There is no way you bring in a guy like Peyton Manning as an insurance policy in case your guy goes down.
3. You will only have to give up a 6th round draft pick to get him. You are not giving up any contributor to your team, YOU DO NOT INCLUDE YOUR CURRENT QB IN THE MOVE, HE STAYS ON THE TEAM.
4. I am not saying these guys who are going to be on this list are better than Peyton Manning. There is only one guy better than Manning and that guy resides in New England . However, just because you add talent does not always mean you will be successful, look at the Chargers as proof.
So here it is, my list of teams that would say thanks for the offer, but no thank you…
1. New England Patriots. This is an absolute no brainer (as would be the discussion if it was a how many teams would take Brady, there is no way the Colts would take anyone over Manning). New England loves the guy they have and why shouldn’t they, he has more playoff wins, more Super Bowl rings, plays better when the talent around him is not as good, and is without a doubt a 1st ballot Hall of Famer. Please do not waste your time telling me how wrong I am with this one.
2. Baltimore Ravens. They do not make this list because they want nothing to do with the Colts, like most teams on this list they have a really good young quarterback and the trade would ruin his career with the Ravens. I know that Flacco is not in Manning’s league, but he is young, been in the playoffs both year as a starter, and will be around for another 10 years while Manning only has another 3 or 4 left in him.
3. Cincinnati Bengals. This is the 1st one where I really had to think. Palmer is not as good, has not won, and has injury questions. That being said, I think they would keep him simply because of the fear of what removing him as the starter would do to the rest of the team. What would the fall out be with Ochocinco and T.O.? maybe none, but there may be as these guys have all gotten to be pretty good friends and if they OL can keep Plamer healthy, he is an elite QB.
4. Houston Texans. Again, I know what you are saying, how can this team possibly want their current Qb over Manning? It is simple, this team is still young and they have a top 5 offense. The problem for this team has always been the defense and that is coming around, I think the long term damage you would do by benching Schaub would be very damaging long term and does anyone really think the offense will be that much better with Manning over Schaub? I thought so.
5. San Diego Chargers. This is simply about age. Rivers has 10 years left in him and because of that, there is no way the Chargers would take anyone and put in his place. When you look at the trouble that teams like the 49ers (Steve Young), Cowboys (Troy Aikman), Dolphins (Dan Marino), Bills (Jim Kelly), and Broncos (John Elway) have had trying to replace Hall of Fame qb’s, it is easy to see why you don’t let a guy with 10 years left to play at a very high level slip away for a good 3 or 4year run.
6. Dallas Cowboys. See the comments about Phillip Rivers. Yes, I know about Romo’s postseason failures, but this is Manning we are talking about and therefore, you can not talk about the postseason, because when you study it out, he has been very mediocre in the postseason.
7. New York Giants. See Phillip Rivers. Not to mention during his brief career baby brother has played better than big brother in the big games.
8. Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers is the next best qb in the league. What he has done during his few years as a starter has been amazing. After this great group (Brady, Brees, Manning retires, Rodgers is THE next guy).
9. Detroit Lions. See Phillip Rivers. He has a great relationship with Calvin Johnson and if you remove Stafford , he would be viewed as the sacrificial lamb, when this team has problems at so many other places.
10. Atlanta Falcons. Matt Ryan has played very well and I don’t think Arthur Blank would mess up the good vibe this team has with the city by removing Ryan.
11. New Orleans Saints. Do you even have to ask?
Again, I want to make this clear, not all of these guys are better than Manning. Please do not base your whole argument on Manning is better. I have listed reasons for why I would take every guy ON HIS TEAM over Manning. What do you think? How crazy am I? Please share, I am really looking forward to these comments.
UNTIL NEXT TIME…
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
DIVISIONAL BREAKDOWN...part 2
DIVISIONAL BREAKDOWNS…part 2
I’m back!!! I am ready to tell you everything you need to know about the NFC and the upcoming season. Now as many of you know, last week I broke down the keys to the AFC season and now you get the NFC. Without a doubt, there are many more storylines going into this upcoming season for the NFC, then there are over in the AFC. So let me give you the most important info on this upcoming season for the NFC…
NFC SOUTH…
We will start with the home of the defending Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints. What a magical run they made last year. The flirtation with perfection, the losing streak, the Who Dat Nation, and oh yeah there was that little game in Miami. However, in all of my years of seriously following football, I do not remember a champion who has been discounted more without losing any major pieces then the New Orleans Saints. There was no major roster moves made, however most everyone has them behind the Colts in the “Power Rankings”. Why you ask…This team was very successful because of the number of turnovers that they were able to create from that defense last year. It is always dangerous to go into a game and believe that you have to create a turnover or two to win, but that is exactly what they did (and they did get them and that is why they won), much less go into a season hoping to duplicate the turn over’s from a year ago. With Brees and co. on offense, they will have no trouble scoring, but will they be able to score enough if the defense is not creating the turnovers…that is the million dollar question for the Saints. The Atlanta Falcons are sitting in a good spot, they are coming off of a “disappointing” 9 – 7 2009 season that saw the team record the 1st back to back winning season in franchise history. It was a disappointment, because there were many who believed that when they added Tony Gonzalez, they had added the piece that would push them from good team to elite team, and that did not happen due to injuries. Matt Ryan and Michael Turner both missed time last year with injuries. If this team can stay healthy, they will be as good on offense as anyone in the NFL with Turner, Roddy White, Michael Jenkins, and Tony Gonzalez all looking to get this team to the “elite” level. This is the 1st of many teams who made major improvements to their team through the draft. I love the addition of Sean Weatherspoon from Missouri. This kid is going to be a beast in this league. He is big and fast and is a playmaker that is always around the ball. This team lacked an identity on defense last year and I believe this kid is going to bring a certain swagger to this side of the ball. When you add Daunta Robinson to the cornerback position, I think this will be a much improved defense and that will mean trouble for the rest of the NFC. Let me just say that I do not believe the Panthers are going to be competing for the division crown this year (I could be wrong, it did happen that one time…kinda, I’ll explain later), I do think they had the best off season of any team in this division. They got rid of Jake Delhomme, they got a franchise quarterback in Jimmy Clausen, got a solid LB in Eric Norwood, and got depth at WR with Brandon LaFell and Armanti Edwards (who could create nightmares in some type of wildcat formation with Steve Smith and either Jonathan Stewart or DeAngelo Williams). The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are doing nothing more than getting Josh Freeman experience and hoping to earn the rights to draft Mark Ingram (Yes, I think he will come out early) so therefore, I am not wasting my time on them.
NFC WEST…
Much like the AFC West, I am very intrigued by this division even though I do not think this is the best division in the Conference. There are 3 legit teams who I could see winning this division. We will start with the only team who has no chance and that is the Rams. I do think Sam Bradford will be a good QB, however, do not play him to soon, he is not Peyton Manning and he does not have the supporting cast of Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco, if this kid takes a beating to soon, he will never get over it and you will have thrown $50 million down the drain. As for the rest of the division, the Cardinals have owned it for the last couple of years, but how things have changed. Good-bye Anquan Boldin and Kurt Warner, Hello Derek Anderson. They had a good draft, but the question has to be asked, who will take up the slack left by Kurt Warner? As great of a player as Boldin is, Warner was the leader. He was the guy who was calm when it mattered and he found a way to keep everyone healthy. Neither Derek Anderson or Matt Lienart (who is scheduled to be the starter tight now) have been consistent through out their NFL careers and with the lack of a consistent ground game (No, I do not trust Beanie Wells), this team has some serious issues that they must find a way to resolve. Next, you have the Seahawks, who have been taken over by Pete Carroll in his attempt to get out of L.A. regardless of a really bad situation with the Trojans (REALLY, WHO LEAVES L.A. FOR SEATTLE?). This team has had more turnover than any team in the league. They have had something like 90 player transactions since Carroll took over. Say what you want to, but this is HIS team. The best thing he did was to trade for Charlie Whitehurst from San Diego. This kid could develop into a fine QB in the NFL with the right guidance. The Seahawks had a great draft adding Russell Okung to an offensive line that must play better for this team to have any chance of doing anything. With their second pick of the 1st round Carroll drafted the hard hitting play making safety from Texas, Earl Thomas. Both of these guys should be starting the minute games start to count and they look like they will be in the league for a long time. They also added Golden Tate, a talented WR from Notre Dame, and sent their 5th round pick to the Jets for Leon Washington (find me a player who will give you more production in the 5th round than Leon Washington---you can’t do it). Pete Carroll had a great 1st off season and has created a lot of excitement in Seattle this year. However, the team that I am most looking forward to seeing this season is the San Francisco 49ers. Alex Smith played really good late in the season last year and who knows how much better he will be this year with a healthy Frank Gore, Michael Crabtree for an entire season. The Niners went OL with the2 1st round picks they had and then took hard hitting safety Taylor Mays in the 2nd round (He could be an impact player as a rookie, I really thought this was a steal at the spot where they got him). You can tell this is Mike Singletary’s team, they will be physical. The defense will be led by Patrick Willis, and they should be good enough to win this division.
NFC NORTH…
As badly as I want to start off talking about Detroit, I just can’t do it. The biggest key to this Division is the same as it has been for the last 5 years…Is Brett Favre coming back? As of now, it is being reported by his kicker, Ryan Longwell, that he will be back. There are a couple of interesting things to consider before you just assume they will win the division and be back in the hunt for the Super Bowl, 1. Are there any hard feeling between the guys and Brett? Obviously, I have not spoken to any of the Vikings players directly, however, I have seen interviews and heard the comments. Jared Allen seems to getting tired of talking about it. Shiancoe seemed irritated by the way he was perceived after “The Text Heard Round The World.” And regardless about who is the better QB, the Viking players are people and many of them have grown close with Tarvaris Jackson. Many of the guys in the locker room made a playoff run with Jackson. I wonder how many of these guys have issues with the way Brett has handled this and made himself bigger than the team? Meanwhile, in Green Bay there are 2 people who are loving every moment of this, Ted Thompson and Aaron Rodgers. The Packers were smart enough to part ways and turn the reigns over to Rodgers and he has been nothing short of spectacular during his time as starter. This offense looks like it will pick up where it left off, but the Packers must get better play from a defense that allowed over 50 in a PLAYOFF GAME to Arizona. The corners are getting older, they are still productive, but as Arizona showed, they can be exposed and scored upon if you can go after them. Clay Matthews is a really good LB who should really establish himself as a leader on defense going into his 2nd season in the league. I really do not know what to make of the Chicago Bears. I seem to be the only person alive who is not sold on them. If you read the “experts”, they all suggest this team is going to contend for the Divisional crown…I just don’t see it. The offensive guru who has been brought in for Jay Cutler likes to throw the ball all over the place and for Cutler that means lots of picks. This guy forces too many throws and that will cost his team too many games. They failed to do anything at the WR position and this will hurt them because they still do not have a # 1 receiver. The addition of Julius Peppers to the defense was nice, but Cutler is going to keep this defense on the field too much for them to be very successful. And last but not least, The Lions. I love the off season they have had. It seems like everything they wanted they got best case scenario for it. They acquired depth on offense with Nate Burleson, and Tony Scheffler, they got the 2nd best running back in this draft in Jahvid Best, and the guy named Suh is a game changer along the DL. They did all of this while Matthew Stafford, last seasons top overall pick, is going into his second year and they still have the most physical receiver in the league in Calvin Johnson. We know this team will score, and therefore, they will be as good as the defense allows them to be.
NFC EAST…
This has been the best division in the NFC for the last several years, and this will be no different. I could easily see 3 of these 4 teams making the playoffs or I could see only 1 team getting in. There is no team in football that made greater strides towards improving this off season than the Washington Redskins. This team in one move was able to make themselves significantly better and hurt another team in the division at the same time. Of course, I am talking about the addition of Donovan McNabb. Say what you want about the Kevin Kolb, but the truth is we have no idea what he will be. HE threw for a lot of yards, but I am not talking fantasy football, I am talking the real thing and he is still very unproven. Meanwhile, Washington added a Hall of Fame QB with several good years left in him. They added a coach who knows how to run the ball in Mike Shannahan. HE will come in and try to make something work with a group of guy who most believe are finished. However, there were very few people who thought that Terrell Davis, Mike Anderson, Olandis Gary, Reuben Droughns, or Tatum Bell was going to be productive backs? Shanahan knows how to be production from his RB’s and for the 1st time since John Elway retired, he has a QB he can trust. The Philadelphia Eagles will be tied to the Redskins for the next several years. Any success the Redskins have will have to be attributed in a small part to the Eagles. The Eagles begin the season without McNabb for the first time since 1999. Again, I realize that they have stud receivers in DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Machlin and a solid back in LeSean McCoy, but where is the leadership in that group. Do any of you really believe that Jackson or Machlin are going to listen to Kolb if he struggles knowing that they have been more successful than he has through their brief careers? Of course not, this has all of the makings of a train wreck if the Eagles do not get off to a good start to the season. The New York Giants were hurt by the injury bug as much as any team in the league last season. This team was torn apart with injury after injury. The injury bug got the likes of 2 offensive linemen, Ahmad Bradhsaw, Brandon Jacobs, and Justin Tuck. Eli Manning had great numbers but they have to get more from the running game and they will have to get back to pressuring the QB. They are hoping the addition of Jason Pierre – Paul will do this. Another key to this will be finding a way to get Osi Umenyiora happy and back on the field. His bad attitude has moved him to 3rd on the depth chart. A happy Umenyiora will go a long way to helping this team get back to the playoffs. As bad as this defense was against the pass last year, they really tried to improve that by adding a ball hawking safety in Antrel Rolle and Deon Grant. And finally, we have the Dallas Cowboys---AMERICA’S TEAM. There has never been a team to host the Super Bowl and play in the game and many experts believe this will be the first. It may very well be. A lot of that is going to depend on all of these personalities not blowing up and killing themselves. The Cowboys have as much talent as any team in the NFL and are really set to get to the next level. They finally got that whole not won a playoff game in 12 years monkey off of their back, but where do they go from there? They got one of the biggest steals in the draft when the best receiver fell to them at ---. IF Miles Austin can perform at the level he performed at last year, that will give Dallas a very good 1 – 2 punch and when you add in Jason Whitten and Patrick Crayton, the passing game will be fine. The Cowboys have the best stable of running backs in the entire league with Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice. Jerry Jones has said that Jones will get the bulk of the carries, but all 3 of these guys will see the field and all bring different things. Jones is the fast back with break away speed, Barber is good for those tough yards, but he has a tendency to wear down over the course of the season, so Choice will get his carries as well. Yes, this offense is the major story about this team, but make sure not to forget a defense that has one of the best pass rushers in the game in DeMarcus Ware. Any time you get to the QB, you will be able to create turnovers and that always leads to good things. Keith Brooking came in last year and brought some much needed leadership to this team and that is what I think helped this unit to finally come together and become one of the better defenses in the league. This team has all of the talent and they have to be considered one of the favorites to be playing in the last game of the 2010 season.
There you have it, an introduction to all 32 teams in the NFL this season. What do you think, what are the keys for YOUR TEAM? I am not looking for predictions just yet, those are coming. What team do you think is going to have the biggest turn around from a year ago? GIVE ME FEEDBACK AND SOME OF YOUR THOUGHTS.
Until Next Time…
I’m back!!! I am ready to tell you everything you need to know about the NFC and the upcoming season. Now as many of you know, last week I broke down the keys to the AFC season and now you get the NFC. Without a doubt, there are many more storylines going into this upcoming season for the NFC, then there are over in the AFC. So let me give you the most important info on this upcoming season for the NFC…
NFC SOUTH…
We will start with the home of the defending Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints. What a magical run they made last year. The flirtation with perfection, the losing streak, the Who Dat Nation, and oh yeah there was that little game in Miami. However, in all of my years of seriously following football, I do not remember a champion who has been discounted more without losing any major pieces then the New Orleans Saints. There was no major roster moves made, however most everyone has them behind the Colts in the “Power Rankings”. Why you ask…This team was very successful because of the number of turnovers that they were able to create from that defense last year. It is always dangerous to go into a game and believe that you have to create a turnover or two to win, but that is exactly what they did (and they did get them and that is why they won), much less go into a season hoping to duplicate the turn over’s from a year ago. With Brees and co. on offense, they will have no trouble scoring, but will they be able to score enough if the defense is not creating the turnovers…that is the million dollar question for the Saints. The Atlanta Falcons are sitting in a good spot, they are coming off of a “disappointing” 9 – 7 2009 season that saw the team record the 1st back to back winning season in franchise history. It was a disappointment, because there were many who believed that when they added Tony Gonzalez, they had added the piece that would push them from good team to elite team, and that did not happen due to injuries. Matt Ryan and Michael Turner both missed time last year with injuries. If this team can stay healthy, they will be as good on offense as anyone in the NFL with Turner, Roddy White, Michael Jenkins, and Tony Gonzalez all looking to get this team to the “elite” level. This is the 1st of many teams who made major improvements to their team through the draft. I love the addition of Sean Weatherspoon from Missouri. This kid is going to be a beast in this league. He is big and fast and is a playmaker that is always around the ball. This team lacked an identity on defense last year and I believe this kid is going to bring a certain swagger to this side of the ball. When you add Daunta Robinson to the cornerback position, I think this will be a much improved defense and that will mean trouble for the rest of the NFC. Let me just say that I do not believe the Panthers are going to be competing for the division crown this year (I could be wrong, it did happen that one time…kinda, I’ll explain later), I do think they had the best off season of any team in this division. They got rid of Jake Delhomme, they got a franchise quarterback in Jimmy Clausen, got a solid LB in Eric Norwood, and got depth at WR with Brandon LaFell and Armanti Edwards (who could create nightmares in some type of wildcat formation with Steve Smith and either Jonathan Stewart or DeAngelo Williams). The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are doing nothing more than getting Josh Freeman experience and hoping to earn the rights to draft Mark Ingram (Yes, I think he will come out early) so therefore, I am not wasting my time on them.
NFC WEST…
Much like the AFC West, I am very intrigued by this division even though I do not think this is the best division in the Conference. There are 3 legit teams who I could see winning this division. We will start with the only team who has no chance and that is the Rams. I do think Sam Bradford will be a good QB, however, do not play him to soon, he is not Peyton Manning and he does not have the supporting cast of Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco, if this kid takes a beating to soon, he will never get over it and you will have thrown $50 million down the drain. As for the rest of the division, the Cardinals have owned it for the last couple of years, but how things have changed. Good-bye Anquan Boldin and Kurt Warner, Hello Derek Anderson. They had a good draft, but the question has to be asked, who will take up the slack left by Kurt Warner? As great of a player as Boldin is, Warner was the leader. He was the guy who was calm when it mattered and he found a way to keep everyone healthy. Neither Derek Anderson or Matt Lienart (who is scheduled to be the starter tight now) have been consistent through out their NFL careers and with the lack of a consistent ground game (No, I do not trust Beanie Wells), this team has some serious issues that they must find a way to resolve. Next, you have the Seahawks, who have been taken over by Pete Carroll in his attempt to get out of L.A. regardless of a really bad situation with the Trojans (REALLY, WHO LEAVES L.A. FOR SEATTLE?). This team has had more turnover than any team in the league. They have had something like 90 player transactions since Carroll took over. Say what you want to, but this is HIS team. The best thing he did was to trade for Charlie Whitehurst from San Diego. This kid could develop into a fine QB in the NFL with the right guidance. The Seahawks had a great draft adding Russell Okung to an offensive line that must play better for this team to have any chance of doing anything. With their second pick of the 1st round Carroll drafted the hard hitting play making safety from Texas, Earl Thomas. Both of these guys should be starting the minute games start to count and they look like they will be in the league for a long time. They also added Golden Tate, a talented WR from Notre Dame, and sent their 5th round pick to the Jets for Leon Washington (find me a player who will give you more production in the 5th round than Leon Washington---you can’t do it). Pete Carroll had a great 1st off season and has created a lot of excitement in Seattle this year. However, the team that I am most looking forward to seeing this season is the San Francisco 49ers. Alex Smith played really good late in the season last year and who knows how much better he will be this year with a healthy Frank Gore, Michael Crabtree for an entire season. The Niners went OL with the2 1st round picks they had and then took hard hitting safety Taylor Mays in the 2nd round (He could be an impact player as a rookie, I really thought this was a steal at the spot where they got him). You can tell this is Mike Singletary’s team, they will be physical. The defense will be led by Patrick Willis, and they should be good enough to win this division.
NFC NORTH…
As badly as I want to start off talking about Detroit, I just can’t do it. The biggest key to this Division is the same as it has been for the last 5 years…Is Brett Favre coming back? As of now, it is being reported by his kicker, Ryan Longwell, that he will be back. There are a couple of interesting things to consider before you just assume they will win the division and be back in the hunt for the Super Bowl, 1. Are there any hard feeling between the guys and Brett? Obviously, I have not spoken to any of the Vikings players directly, however, I have seen interviews and heard the comments. Jared Allen seems to getting tired of talking about it. Shiancoe seemed irritated by the way he was perceived after “The Text Heard Round The World.” And regardless about who is the better QB, the Viking players are people and many of them have grown close with Tarvaris Jackson. Many of the guys in the locker room made a playoff run with Jackson. I wonder how many of these guys have issues with the way Brett has handled this and made himself bigger than the team? Meanwhile, in Green Bay there are 2 people who are loving every moment of this, Ted Thompson and Aaron Rodgers. The Packers were smart enough to part ways and turn the reigns over to Rodgers and he has been nothing short of spectacular during his time as starter. This offense looks like it will pick up where it left off, but the Packers must get better play from a defense that allowed over 50 in a PLAYOFF GAME to Arizona. The corners are getting older, they are still productive, but as Arizona showed, they can be exposed and scored upon if you can go after them. Clay Matthews is a really good LB who should really establish himself as a leader on defense going into his 2nd season in the league. I really do not know what to make of the Chicago Bears. I seem to be the only person alive who is not sold on them. If you read the “experts”, they all suggest this team is going to contend for the Divisional crown…I just don’t see it. The offensive guru who has been brought in for Jay Cutler likes to throw the ball all over the place and for Cutler that means lots of picks. This guy forces too many throws and that will cost his team too many games. They failed to do anything at the WR position and this will hurt them because they still do not have a # 1 receiver. The addition of Julius Peppers to the defense was nice, but Cutler is going to keep this defense on the field too much for them to be very successful. And last but not least, The Lions. I love the off season they have had. It seems like everything they wanted they got best case scenario for it. They acquired depth on offense with Nate Burleson, and Tony Scheffler, they got the 2nd best running back in this draft in Jahvid Best, and the guy named Suh is a game changer along the DL. They did all of this while Matthew Stafford, last seasons top overall pick, is going into his second year and they still have the most physical receiver in the league in Calvin Johnson. We know this team will score, and therefore, they will be as good as the defense allows them to be.
NFC EAST…
This has been the best division in the NFC for the last several years, and this will be no different. I could easily see 3 of these 4 teams making the playoffs or I could see only 1 team getting in. There is no team in football that made greater strides towards improving this off season than the Washington Redskins. This team in one move was able to make themselves significantly better and hurt another team in the division at the same time. Of course, I am talking about the addition of Donovan McNabb. Say what you want about the Kevin Kolb, but the truth is we have no idea what he will be. HE threw for a lot of yards, but I am not talking fantasy football, I am talking the real thing and he is still very unproven. Meanwhile, Washington added a Hall of Fame QB with several good years left in him. They added a coach who knows how to run the ball in Mike Shannahan. HE will come in and try to make something work with a group of guy who most believe are finished. However, there were very few people who thought that Terrell Davis, Mike Anderson, Olandis Gary, Reuben Droughns, or Tatum Bell was going to be productive backs? Shanahan knows how to be production from his RB’s and for the 1st time since John Elway retired, he has a QB he can trust. The Philadelphia Eagles will be tied to the Redskins for the next several years. Any success the Redskins have will have to be attributed in a small part to the Eagles. The Eagles begin the season without McNabb for the first time since 1999. Again, I realize that they have stud receivers in DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Machlin and a solid back in LeSean McCoy, but where is the leadership in that group. Do any of you really believe that Jackson or Machlin are going to listen to Kolb if he struggles knowing that they have been more successful than he has through their brief careers? Of course not, this has all of the makings of a train wreck if the Eagles do not get off to a good start to the season. The New York Giants were hurt by the injury bug as much as any team in the league last season. This team was torn apart with injury after injury. The injury bug got the likes of 2 offensive linemen, Ahmad Bradhsaw, Brandon Jacobs, and Justin Tuck. Eli Manning had great numbers but they have to get more from the running game and they will have to get back to pressuring the QB. They are hoping the addition of Jason Pierre – Paul will do this. Another key to this will be finding a way to get Osi Umenyiora happy and back on the field. His bad attitude has moved him to 3rd on the depth chart. A happy Umenyiora will go a long way to helping this team get back to the playoffs. As bad as this defense was against the pass last year, they really tried to improve that by adding a ball hawking safety in Antrel Rolle and Deon Grant. And finally, we have the Dallas Cowboys---AMERICA’S TEAM. There has never been a team to host the Super Bowl and play in the game and many experts believe this will be the first. It may very well be. A lot of that is going to depend on all of these personalities not blowing up and killing themselves. The Cowboys have as much talent as any team in the NFL and are really set to get to the next level. They finally got that whole not won a playoff game in 12 years monkey off of their back, but where do they go from there? They got one of the biggest steals in the draft when the best receiver fell to them at ---. IF Miles Austin can perform at the level he performed at last year, that will give Dallas a very good 1 – 2 punch and when you add in Jason Whitten and Patrick Crayton, the passing game will be fine. The Cowboys have the best stable of running backs in the entire league with Marion Barber, Felix Jones, and Tashard Choice. Jerry Jones has said that Jones will get the bulk of the carries, but all 3 of these guys will see the field and all bring different things. Jones is the fast back with break away speed, Barber is good for those tough yards, but he has a tendency to wear down over the course of the season, so Choice will get his carries as well. Yes, this offense is the major story about this team, but make sure not to forget a defense that has one of the best pass rushers in the game in DeMarcus Ware. Any time you get to the QB, you will be able to create turnovers and that always leads to good things. Keith Brooking came in last year and brought some much needed leadership to this team and that is what I think helped this unit to finally come together and become one of the better defenses in the league. This team has all of the talent and they have to be considered one of the favorites to be playing in the last game of the 2010 season.
There you have it, an introduction to all 32 teams in the NFL this season. What do you think, what are the keys for YOUR TEAM? I am not looking for predictions just yet, those are coming. What team do you think is going to have the biggest turn around from a year ago? GIVE ME FEEDBACK AND SOME OF YOUR THOUGHTS.
Until Next Time…
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
DIVISIONAL BREAKDOWNS...
DIVISIONAL BREAKDOWNS...
It is the most wonderful time of the year. The kids are back in school (almost), the weather is getting cooler (hopefully), and football is upon us. I know, this is the time of the year that we all look forward to. Kickoff for the college season is just 2 short weeks away, and on Thursday Night September 9th, the NFL will get under way. Before that happens, there is so much I need to tell you, so here are some thoughts for the upcoming NFL Season from every division...
AFC SOUTH...
I do not think there is one division in football where there is a clear cut favorite going into the season. As we look at the divisions, the closest thing to a lock is the AFC South where the Colts have dominated in recent memory (yes, I remember the '08 nonsense with Tennessee). However, I am really worried for Manning and co, because there are several questions that have yet to be answered. Is there a running game? Can Garcon & Collie play like top notch receivers once again? What will they get from Anthony Gonzalez? Is that defense going to come together to play like a tight nit unit? I truly believe that for Indy to be successful this upcoming season, they are going to have to find some type of running game. This division has been getting better for the last several years, and I think with no running game that defense is going to be in trouble. Houston has been improving for several years and 2009 was the 1st time in franchise history that they had a winning record. They had a good draft getting the cornerback they needed (Kareem Jackson) and a solid backup for Steve Slaton in Auburn RB Ben Tate. They already had a super star qb in Matt Schaub and one of the better TE in the game in Owen Daniels. I am not really sure what you will get from Vince Young in Tennessee, but he is a winner and if he puts it together, this will be a solid team. You know that Chris Johnson is a beast and if Young limits the mistakes, this team could regain the South and end the Colts dominance. Tennessee had a solid draft and picked up several guys who should be able to contribute immediately (Derrick Morgan - 1st round, Damion Williams, Rennie Curan, and Myron Rolle - who will turn into the next great safety in this league if he avoids going off and curing cancer). As for the Jaguars...well there's nothing really to say, this team will not contend for a playoff spot and therefore, there is no reason to even discuss them.
AFC WEST...
This division will be extremely interesting and I think this may be the most improved division in all of football this year.The Chargers have won the division 4 straight years, and 5 of the last 6, however there have been major changes in San Diego this off season. It started with LaDanian Tomlinson and Antonio Cromarte leaving to go East. There are also problems with Shawne Merriman (who is supposed to report to camp this weekend) and top wideout Vincent Jackson. When you factor in Jackson's hold out with te 4 game suspension he has to start the season with, and the fact that for the 1st time in almost 10 years the Chargers have no LT, you have to be worried about the boys in Powder Blue. Rivers is there and he is a top 7 qb in the league and all reports say rookie Ryan Matthews looks great, but who knows how the rookie will do over the course of the long season, and what will Rivers do now that there is no fear from opposing defenses of his running game? Year 2 of the Josh McDaniels experiment in Denver got off to a shocking start with the trade of Brandon Marshall to Miami (I do not know anyone who had Miami in the discussion). Then they had a draft that can not be graded. McDaniels in true Belichik fashion, he moved all over the draft board, finally drafting Demaryus Thomas (after passing on Dez Bryant) and Tim Tebow (while Jimmy Clausen - a guy who fits his system much better than Tebow, or so I thought). This team was 8 - 8 last year, and you would have to think they get a little better before they ever play a game, this is year 2 in McDaniels complicated system for Kyle Orton (who did not play terrible last year). The Chargers have lost several key pieces from last year. I would not be any more surprised to see the Broncos to go 10 - 6 and win the division, then I would if they went 6 - 10. The Chiefs are going to be much improved. The biggest addition to this team is not a player. I do like the Thomas Jones pick up, he will be a nice addition to Jamaal Charles. However, the biggest pick up in this off season was the addition of new offensive coordinator, Charlie Weiss. You can say what you want to about his head coaching ability, but the man was GREAT during his time in New England. He has a solid qb, a good running game, and let's be honest, N.E. was at its best when they had no name receivers who teams and Brady could not rely on just one guy to carry the bulk of the load. This team may be up to 6 wins or so this year and be on their way back to being respectable. This past off season, the team in the NFL that needed more work than any other was probably the Oakland Raiders. They had no qb, a history for messing things up in the draft and a terrible history for getting free agents. However this year, they did not look like the Raiders at all. They were able to trade for Jason Campbell (who can be a really good qb in this league), and they drafted surprisingly well. They drafted Rolando McClain (who may win Rookie of the Year this season), Lamarr Houston to help on the DL, Bruce Campbell (who some had as a 1st rounder), and Jacoby Ford to help the passing attack. The biggest thing they did was release Jamarcus Russell. Just go ahead and admit it, as good as this off season was, this was the Raiders and we all expected them to ruin it by starting Russell over Campbell. Like K.C. I see this team as a 5 or 6 win team and definitely appears to be headed in the right direction.
AFC NORTH...
This division comes down to offense. Who ever would have guessed that the division with the Steelers and Ravens would be about offense, but it is. Let's go ahead and get the Browns out of the way, they are a couple of years away. I do like the addition of Colt McCoy to that team, but he's a rookie and they will be led by Jake Delhomme...Cleveland fans go ahead and get ready for your top 5 draft pick next year (you may want to go ahead and send reps to Tuscaloosa to talk to Mark Ingram). This division is a 2 team race thanks to Big Ben. Polamolu is back, but Big Ben will miss the 1st 4 games of the season, and they will not be able to overcome his loss to make the playoffs. That leaves us with dueling WR's: Anquan Boldin v. Terrell Owens. This is not even close, Boldin is clearly better, however the Ravens just have to many questions going into the season. Ray Lewis is another year older and Ed Reed is going to start on the PUP list. I thought they did ok getting Sergio Kindle, but then he injured himself. Boldin is a nice addition, and Flacco matured last year and played well and should raise his game to another level with Boldin, but I do not know if that will be enough to jump the Bengals (this could change closer to the season). The Bengals took the biggest gamble of any team this off season, not only did they add 1 troubled WR, but they added 2 in TO and Antonio Bryant. I have read many people say that Owens will be a problem for this team, I do not think so. He is playing with his buddy Ochocinco, he is getting paid, and nobody wanted him, so he has something to prove. They added some nice pieces in the draft by getting TE Jermaine Gresham out of Oklahoma to stretch the middle of the field and Jordan Shipley from Texas (I think this guy will be very similar to what Wes Welker is to the Patriots, a hard worker, will return punts, very good route runner out of the slot, a true professional football player). Carson Palmer will throw for a lot of yards and this team will score plenty of points this year and that is real bad for a team with secondary questions (Pittsburgh) and an aging defense (Baltimore). I really think this may be the best chance that Cincinnati has to legitimately challenge for a Super Bowl in over 10 years. The defense looked great last year and there is no reason to think that will change.
AFC EAST...
The Patriots have won this division 7 of the last 9 years (also known as the time when that Brady guy took over).However, there are more questions surrounding this team than at any other point during this run. This team has always been led by the mindset of me second, team first, The players have bought into that starting at the top with Brady and going all the way down to the 53rd man on the roster. However, things have changed over the last few years, they let Asante Samuel walk away and never found a replacement. They traded away Richard Seymour as opposed to paying him and they never found a replacement. They have lost numerous coaches over the years and have not replaced them. Now, Logan Mankins, the man who protects Brady's back side has requested a trade because they will not pay him and is involved in a nasty dispute with management with no apparent hope in sight. Tom Brady meanwhile is entering his 2nd season after tearing up his leg and is in the final year of his deal. Brady has reworked his deal to help with the salary cap many times. On top of the, Brady is weekly hearing the Colts owner say the he will make Manning the highest paid qb in NFL history, and Manning is great, but what about Brady, he has more division titles, more playoff wins, better playoff winning %, and more Super Bowl rings (that's what the game is about). I know I am being told I am crazy, but if Brady plays this season without getting his deal, I truly believe it may be his last in New England. This is the problem with this division, all of this talk and it is all about off the field stuff, let me shift gears and get back on the field, there are 2 teams in this division who are going to be VERY GOOD, the Jets and the Dolphins. I still think the Bills have no chance of winning anything but the rights to draft 1st in next years draft (start thinking Christian Ponder). The Jets were very busy this year adding Santonio Holmes, Antonio Cromarte, LaDanian Tomlinson, Jason Taylor, and Kyle Wilson. This is a huge collection of names who are nearing the end of their careers, the big question is will they be able to stay healthy and make a solid contribution? One of the things this team will need to figure out is who will be the leaders for this team, Mark Sanchez has really taken a vocal role as a leader, but how will that play out if he has any kind of a "Sophomore Slump"? The team lost high character leaders in Thomas Jones and Alan Faneca. There is also the whole contract situation of Darrelle Revis, how long will this go on, for the rest of the division, hopefully for a long long time. The Miami Dolphins are coming off of a disappointing 2009 season that saw them go 7 - 9, but showed them they had finally found the qb to lead the franchise, something they had desperately lacked since Dan Marino retired. Chad Henne took over for Chad Pennington and the team never looked back. They added one of the best receivers in football in Brandon Marshall, added a quality line backer in Karlos Dansby, added a pass rusher in Charles Grant, and in typical Bill Parcells fashion, had a great draft adding several key pieces. There are not only 3 legitimate threats to win this division, but there are 3 legitimate threat to make the Super Bowl from this division.
That's it, there is my AFC divisional breakdowns. Tell me what you think. I know there is a lot of information, but how else are you going to get ready for the upcoming season. I will post the NFC tomorrow.
UNTIL NEXT TIME...
It is the most wonderful time of the year. The kids are back in school (almost), the weather is getting cooler (hopefully), and football is upon us. I know, this is the time of the year that we all look forward to. Kickoff for the college season is just 2 short weeks away, and on Thursday Night September 9th, the NFL will get under way. Before that happens, there is so much I need to tell you, so here are some thoughts for the upcoming NFL Season from every division...
AFC SOUTH...
I do not think there is one division in football where there is a clear cut favorite going into the season. As we look at the divisions, the closest thing to a lock is the AFC South where the Colts have dominated in recent memory (yes, I remember the '08 nonsense with Tennessee). However, I am really worried for Manning and co, because there are several questions that have yet to be answered. Is there a running game? Can Garcon & Collie play like top notch receivers once again? What will they get from Anthony Gonzalez? Is that defense going to come together to play like a tight nit unit? I truly believe that for Indy to be successful this upcoming season, they are going to have to find some type of running game. This division has been getting better for the last several years, and I think with no running game that defense is going to be in trouble. Houston has been improving for several years and 2009 was the 1st time in franchise history that they had a winning record. They had a good draft getting the cornerback they needed (Kareem Jackson) and a solid backup for Steve Slaton in Auburn RB Ben Tate. They already had a super star qb in Matt Schaub and one of the better TE in the game in Owen Daniels. I am not really sure what you will get from Vince Young in Tennessee, but he is a winner and if he puts it together, this will be a solid team. You know that Chris Johnson is a beast and if Young limits the mistakes, this team could regain the South and end the Colts dominance. Tennessee had a solid draft and picked up several guys who should be able to contribute immediately (Derrick Morgan - 1st round, Damion Williams, Rennie Curan, and Myron Rolle - who will turn into the next great safety in this league if he avoids going off and curing cancer). As for the Jaguars...well there's nothing really to say, this team will not contend for a playoff spot and therefore, there is no reason to even discuss them.
AFC WEST...
This division will be extremely interesting and I think this may be the most improved division in all of football this year.The Chargers have won the division 4 straight years, and 5 of the last 6, however there have been major changes in San Diego this off season. It started with LaDanian Tomlinson and Antonio Cromarte leaving to go East. There are also problems with Shawne Merriman (who is supposed to report to camp this weekend) and top wideout Vincent Jackson. When you factor in Jackson's hold out with te 4 game suspension he has to start the season with, and the fact that for the 1st time in almost 10 years the Chargers have no LT, you have to be worried about the boys in Powder Blue. Rivers is there and he is a top 7 qb in the league and all reports say rookie Ryan Matthews looks great, but who knows how the rookie will do over the course of the long season, and what will Rivers do now that there is no fear from opposing defenses of his running game? Year 2 of the Josh McDaniels experiment in Denver got off to a shocking start with the trade of Brandon Marshall to Miami (I do not know anyone who had Miami in the discussion). Then they had a draft that can not be graded. McDaniels in true Belichik fashion, he moved all over the draft board, finally drafting Demaryus Thomas (after passing on Dez Bryant) and Tim Tebow (while Jimmy Clausen - a guy who fits his system much better than Tebow, or so I thought). This team was 8 - 8 last year, and you would have to think they get a little better before they ever play a game, this is year 2 in McDaniels complicated system for Kyle Orton (who did not play terrible last year). The Chargers have lost several key pieces from last year. I would not be any more surprised to see the Broncos to go 10 - 6 and win the division, then I would if they went 6 - 10. The Chiefs are going to be much improved. The biggest addition to this team is not a player. I do like the Thomas Jones pick up, he will be a nice addition to Jamaal Charles. However, the biggest pick up in this off season was the addition of new offensive coordinator, Charlie Weiss. You can say what you want to about his head coaching ability, but the man was GREAT during his time in New England. He has a solid qb, a good running game, and let's be honest, N.E. was at its best when they had no name receivers who teams and Brady could not rely on just one guy to carry the bulk of the load. This team may be up to 6 wins or so this year and be on their way back to being respectable. This past off season, the team in the NFL that needed more work than any other was probably the Oakland Raiders. They had no qb, a history for messing things up in the draft and a terrible history for getting free agents. However this year, they did not look like the Raiders at all. They were able to trade for Jason Campbell (who can be a really good qb in this league), and they drafted surprisingly well. They drafted Rolando McClain (who may win Rookie of the Year this season), Lamarr Houston to help on the DL, Bruce Campbell (who some had as a 1st rounder), and Jacoby Ford to help the passing attack. The biggest thing they did was release Jamarcus Russell. Just go ahead and admit it, as good as this off season was, this was the Raiders and we all expected them to ruin it by starting Russell over Campbell. Like K.C. I see this team as a 5 or 6 win team and definitely appears to be headed in the right direction.
AFC NORTH...
This division comes down to offense. Who ever would have guessed that the division with the Steelers and Ravens would be about offense, but it is. Let's go ahead and get the Browns out of the way, they are a couple of years away. I do like the addition of Colt McCoy to that team, but he's a rookie and they will be led by Jake Delhomme...Cleveland fans go ahead and get ready for your top 5 draft pick next year (you may want to go ahead and send reps to Tuscaloosa to talk to Mark Ingram). This division is a 2 team race thanks to Big Ben. Polamolu is back, but Big Ben will miss the 1st 4 games of the season, and they will not be able to overcome his loss to make the playoffs. That leaves us with dueling WR's: Anquan Boldin v. Terrell Owens. This is not even close, Boldin is clearly better, however the Ravens just have to many questions going into the season. Ray Lewis is another year older and Ed Reed is going to start on the PUP list. I thought they did ok getting Sergio Kindle, but then he injured himself. Boldin is a nice addition, and Flacco matured last year and played well and should raise his game to another level with Boldin, but I do not know if that will be enough to jump the Bengals (this could change closer to the season). The Bengals took the biggest gamble of any team this off season, not only did they add 1 troubled WR, but they added 2 in TO and Antonio Bryant. I have read many people say that Owens will be a problem for this team, I do not think so. He is playing with his buddy Ochocinco, he is getting paid, and nobody wanted him, so he has something to prove. They added some nice pieces in the draft by getting TE Jermaine Gresham out of Oklahoma to stretch the middle of the field and Jordan Shipley from Texas (I think this guy will be very similar to what Wes Welker is to the Patriots, a hard worker, will return punts, very good route runner out of the slot, a true professional football player). Carson Palmer will throw for a lot of yards and this team will score plenty of points this year and that is real bad for a team with secondary questions (Pittsburgh) and an aging defense (Baltimore). I really think this may be the best chance that Cincinnati has to legitimately challenge for a Super Bowl in over 10 years. The defense looked great last year and there is no reason to think that will change.
AFC EAST...
The Patriots have won this division 7 of the last 9 years (also known as the time when that Brady guy took over).However, there are more questions surrounding this team than at any other point during this run. This team has always been led by the mindset of me second, team first, The players have bought into that starting at the top with Brady and going all the way down to the 53rd man on the roster. However, things have changed over the last few years, they let Asante Samuel walk away and never found a replacement. They traded away Richard Seymour as opposed to paying him and they never found a replacement. They have lost numerous coaches over the years and have not replaced them. Now, Logan Mankins, the man who protects Brady's back side has requested a trade because they will not pay him and is involved in a nasty dispute with management with no apparent hope in sight. Tom Brady meanwhile is entering his 2nd season after tearing up his leg and is in the final year of his deal. Brady has reworked his deal to help with the salary cap many times. On top of the, Brady is weekly hearing the Colts owner say the he will make Manning the highest paid qb in NFL history, and Manning is great, but what about Brady, he has more division titles, more playoff wins, better playoff winning %, and more Super Bowl rings (that's what the game is about). I know I am being told I am crazy, but if Brady plays this season without getting his deal, I truly believe it may be his last in New England. This is the problem with this division, all of this talk and it is all about off the field stuff, let me shift gears and get back on the field, there are 2 teams in this division who are going to be VERY GOOD, the Jets and the Dolphins. I still think the Bills have no chance of winning anything but the rights to draft 1st in next years draft (start thinking Christian Ponder). The Jets were very busy this year adding Santonio Holmes, Antonio Cromarte, LaDanian Tomlinson, Jason Taylor, and Kyle Wilson. This is a huge collection of names who are nearing the end of their careers, the big question is will they be able to stay healthy and make a solid contribution? One of the things this team will need to figure out is who will be the leaders for this team, Mark Sanchez has really taken a vocal role as a leader, but how will that play out if he has any kind of a "Sophomore Slump"? The team lost high character leaders in Thomas Jones and Alan Faneca. There is also the whole contract situation of Darrelle Revis, how long will this go on, for the rest of the division, hopefully for a long long time. The Miami Dolphins are coming off of a disappointing 2009 season that saw them go 7 - 9, but showed them they had finally found the qb to lead the franchise, something they had desperately lacked since Dan Marino retired. Chad Henne took over for Chad Pennington and the team never looked back. They added one of the best receivers in football in Brandon Marshall, added a quality line backer in Karlos Dansby, added a pass rusher in Charles Grant, and in typical Bill Parcells fashion, had a great draft adding several key pieces. There are not only 3 legitimate threats to win this division, but there are 3 legitimate threat to make the Super Bowl from this division.
That's it, there is my AFC divisional breakdowns. Tell me what you think. I know there is a lot of information, but how else are you going to get ready for the upcoming season. I will post the NFC tomorrow.
UNTIL NEXT TIME...
Sunday, August 8, 2010
A RIVALRY IS BORN...OR IS IT?
A RIVALRY IS BORN...OR IS IT?
Rivalries are what make sports great! Some rivalries were born out of location, and do not matter to anyone other than the people in that area. Some rivalries are on a national level because of the impact that they have on their sports championship. For instance, the Lakers and Celtics are one of the all time great rivalries despite not being in the same conference or even on the same side of the country because it makes such an impact on the NBA Championship. There are many great rivalries in sports, Red Sox v. Yankees, USC v. Notre Dame, Ohio State v. Michigan, Packers v. Bears, etc.
However I am not here to discuss any of these GREAT RIVALRIES, I want to talk about what has the potential to turn into one of the best rivalries in years. I am talking about the rivalry that seems to be developing between Fantasy Geek (Mr. Anonymous) and yours truly. I started writing this blog in January of this year because I had something to say about sports and thought this might be a fun way to share my thoughts. On June 28, I posted a blog explaining why soccer will never be popular in this country, and on the 29th, this rivalry was born. Mr Anonymous surfaced and let me know about the ONE MISTAKE I made in my article, I out the wrong day that the game was played (this just proved my point, nobody else caught the mistake because nobody cares about soccer, but that is irrelevant). Then on July 3 I posted something talking about hypocrisy in sports and Mr Anonymous pops up again by saying I was wrong for picking on athletes because we all break laws and I needed to stop picking on the athletes. When I reminded him the athletes I was picking was been Rothlisburger who had been accused of sexual assault, and asked him to explain how this relates to my occasional heavy foot. Over the next month or so, I'd post something this clown would post something anonymously, and then I'd respond only to never hear from him again.
However, earlier this week, this rivalry reached a whole other lever (or so I thought). I posted the fact that Brett Favre is a bad teammate. I listed many reasons as to why this was. Mr Fantasy Geek (he got the title from this post), copied and pasted Brett Favre's career stats and thought I should be impressed...I WAS NOT! When I let him know this, he responded with a challenge to a sports debate. I agreed to his challenge. I offered to record the debate and post it right here for all of you to watch. The only problem with this is HE WILL NOT TELL ME WHO HE IS. I posted my email address and told him if he'd just tell me who he is, I would contact him immediately...NO RESPONSE.
My question is this, why would anyone be so brave and make such an offer if they are not prepared to follow up on it. My questions is this (because you do read this blog) why are you such a coward? I will allow you to have your computer so you can get all of your meaningless stats. What are you waiting for? Are you really that afraid of the discussion? I promise you, I don't bite and I like to debate, so this is will be fun, that is if you can hold your own.
This is the only way I know to reach out and try to get this guy to follow through on HIS SUGGESTION! Thank you all for reading this, and Fantasy Geek, I am begging you to put your name in the comments section so we can arrange this debate.
Until Next Time...
Rivalries are what make sports great! Some rivalries were born out of location, and do not matter to anyone other than the people in that area. Some rivalries are on a national level because of the impact that they have on their sports championship. For instance, the Lakers and Celtics are one of the all time great rivalries despite not being in the same conference or even on the same side of the country because it makes such an impact on the NBA Championship. There are many great rivalries in sports, Red Sox v. Yankees, USC v. Notre Dame, Ohio State v. Michigan, Packers v. Bears, etc.
However I am not here to discuss any of these GREAT RIVALRIES, I want to talk about what has the potential to turn into one of the best rivalries in years. I am talking about the rivalry that seems to be developing between Fantasy Geek (Mr. Anonymous) and yours truly. I started writing this blog in January of this year because I had something to say about sports and thought this might be a fun way to share my thoughts. On June 28, I posted a blog explaining why soccer will never be popular in this country, and on the 29th, this rivalry was born. Mr Anonymous surfaced and let me know about the ONE MISTAKE I made in my article, I out the wrong day that the game was played (this just proved my point, nobody else caught the mistake because nobody cares about soccer, but that is irrelevant). Then on July 3 I posted something talking about hypocrisy in sports and Mr Anonymous pops up again by saying I was wrong for picking on athletes because we all break laws and I needed to stop picking on the athletes. When I reminded him the athletes I was picking was been Rothlisburger who had been accused of sexual assault, and asked him to explain how this relates to my occasional heavy foot. Over the next month or so, I'd post something this clown would post something anonymously, and then I'd respond only to never hear from him again.
However, earlier this week, this rivalry reached a whole other lever (or so I thought). I posted the fact that Brett Favre is a bad teammate. I listed many reasons as to why this was. Mr Fantasy Geek (he got the title from this post), copied and pasted Brett Favre's career stats and thought I should be impressed...I WAS NOT! When I let him know this, he responded with a challenge to a sports debate. I agreed to his challenge. I offered to record the debate and post it right here for all of you to watch. The only problem with this is HE WILL NOT TELL ME WHO HE IS. I posted my email address and told him if he'd just tell me who he is, I would contact him immediately...NO RESPONSE.
My question is this, why would anyone be so brave and make such an offer if they are not prepared to follow up on it. My questions is this (because you do read this blog) why are you such a coward? I will allow you to have your computer so you can get all of your meaningless stats. What are you waiting for? Are you really that afraid of the discussion? I promise you, I don't bite and I like to debate, so this is will be fun, that is if you can hold your own.
This is the only way I know to reach out and try to get this guy to follow through on HIS SUGGESTION! Thank you all for reading this, and Fantasy Geek, I am begging you to put your name in the comments section so we can arrange this debate.
Until Next Time...
Friday, August 6, 2010
THE GREATEST EVER...NOT EVEN DEBATABLE!!!
THE GREATEST EVER?...NOT EVEN DEBATABLE!!!
Football is finally back. I do not know about all of you, but I can't wait for Sunday night. Sunday night in Canton the NFL Season gets underway with the Cincinnati Bengals will play the Dallas Cowboys in the 2010 Hall of Fame Game. This is the game that kicks off the time of year that we all refer to as "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year." For my inaugural thoughts on the 2010 I have to share with you my thoughts on the greatest to ever play the game. I know what you are thinking...I do not want to read another posting about how Tom Brady is better than Peyton Manning...I really do not want to have to write another blog about this (If you have not already gotten this, then you are hopeless).
This blog is about not just about the best qb
of all time. It's not about the best team of all time. It's not even about the best game of all time, THIS POST IS PAYING TRIBUTE TO THE BEST ATHLETE TO EVER PLAY ANY POSITION IN ANY SPORT IN ALL OF SPORTS HISTORY---JERRY RICE! Let me ask you this, who is the best qb to ever play in the NFL? Is it Manning, Brady, Montana, Favre? You pick your guy and I will make a solid argument for everyone else that you left out. What about the best running back ever? Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Jim Brown, Walter Payton? I will say the same thing about running backs that I said about the quarter backs, I can make a solid argument for any of them. However, there is one position that not even I can make an argument for a second guy and that comes at the position of Wide Receiver. Jerry Rice is without a doubt the greatest receiver to ever play the game of football. When I tried to think of another receiver who deserves to be in this discussion, I can't think of one. The numbers are so far above those of other wide receivers that it is crazy. Rice holds over 200 NFL records and many of the major categories will never be challenged...Rice scored 208 touchdowns, the next closest receiver is Randy Moss who only needs 59 more touchdowns to catch Rice. Moss has played 12 NFL seasons so he is averaging just over 12 tds a season, that means he needs 5 more seasons at this pace, I do not think that is possible. Rice had 1,549 receptions, # 2 on that list - Marvin Harrison, good Hall of Fame Career, but he was 447 receptions short of Rice's total. Rice is more than 7,000 yards ahead of Tim Brown in receiving yards. This is a no brainer---JERRY RICE IS THE BEST FOOTBALL PLAYER IN HISTORY!!!
Here is the important question...IS JERRY RICE THE GREATEST SINGLE PLAYER IN ANY SPORT EVER? Nobody dominated his particular sport and distanced himself from everyone else in his sport like Jerry Rice. In every sport, you can debate the best, is Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jy, or Mickey Mantle the best baseball player ever? In basketball, is it Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, or maybe even Kobe Bryant? All of these players can have a case made that they are the best at their sport, but Rice, there is no discussions, HE IS THE BEST. None of these dominated their sport like he did, and he did it week in and week out against double coverage. He was amazing.
Saturday in Canton, Jerry Rice will take his rightful place in the Hall of Fame, however, there are no words to describe just how great he was.
Congrats Jerry, YOU TRULY ARE THE BEST EVER!
UNTIL NEXT TIME.
Football is finally back. I do not know about all of you, but I can't wait for Sunday night. Sunday night in Canton the NFL Season gets underway with the Cincinnati Bengals will play the Dallas Cowboys in the 2010 Hall of Fame Game. This is the game that kicks off the time of year that we all refer to as "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year." For my inaugural thoughts on the 2010 I have to share with you my thoughts on the greatest to ever play the game. I know what you are thinking...I do not want to read another posting about how Tom Brady is better than Peyton Manning...I really do not want to have to write another blog about this (If you have not already gotten this, then you are hopeless).
This blog is about not just about the best qb
of all time. It's not about the best team of all time. It's not even about the best game of all time, THIS POST IS PAYING TRIBUTE TO THE BEST ATHLETE TO EVER PLAY ANY POSITION IN ANY SPORT IN ALL OF SPORTS HISTORY---JERRY RICE! Let me ask you this, who is the best qb to ever play in the NFL? Is it Manning, Brady, Montana, Favre? You pick your guy and I will make a solid argument for everyone else that you left out. What about the best running back ever? Barry Sanders, Emmitt Smith, Jim Brown, Walter Payton? I will say the same thing about running backs that I said about the quarter backs, I can make a solid argument for any of them. However, there is one position that not even I can make an argument for a second guy and that comes at the position of Wide Receiver. Jerry Rice is without a doubt the greatest receiver to ever play the game of football. When I tried to think of another receiver who deserves to be in this discussion, I can't think of one. The numbers are so far above those of other wide receivers that it is crazy. Rice holds over 200 NFL records and many of the major categories will never be challenged...Rice scored 208 touchdowns, the next closest receiver is Randy Moss who only needs 59 more touchdowns to catch Rice. Moss has played 12 NFL seasons so he is averaging just over 12 tds a season, that means he needs 5 more seasons at this pace, I do not think that is possible. Rice had 1,549 receptions, # 2 on that list - Marvin Harrison, good Hall of Fame Career, but he was 447 receptions short of Rice's total. Rice is more than 7,000 yards ahead of Tim Brown in receiving yards. This is a no brainer---JERRY RICE IS THE BEST FOOTBALL PLAYER IN HISTORY!!!
Here is the important question...IS JERRY RICE THE GREATEST SINGLE PLAYER IN ANY SPORT EVER? Nobody dominated his particular sport and distanced himself from everyone else in his sport like Jerry Rice. In every sport, you can debate the best, is Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jy, or Mickey Mantle the best baseball player ever? In basketball, is it Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, or maybe even Kobe Bryant? All of these players can have a case made that they are the best at their sport, but Rice, there is no discussions, HE IS THE BEST. None of these dominated their sport like he did, and he did it week in and week out against double coverage. He was amazing.
Saturday in Canton, Jerry Rice will take his rightful place in the Hall of Fame, however, there are no words to describe just how great he was.
Congrats Jerry, YOU TRULY ARE THE BEST EVER!
UNTIL NEXT TIME.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
IT HAS TO BE SAID!!!
IT HAS TO BE SAID!!!
In life there are some things that should never be said. Just because something is true does not give us an excuse to say it. I am a big believer in the fact that sometimes IT IS BETTER TO JUST KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT!!! This is not one of them, so I will just say it...
BRETT FAVRE IS A BAD TEAM MATE!
Before I explain to you why he is a bad team mate, let me say I LOVE WATCHING BRETT FAVRE PLAY! I sat on mt bed watching Sports Center on Wednesday and they played a highlight of memorable Favre plays and soundbites and I was reminded how much I enjoy this guy. I have to admit, there is nobody that I like more, that I like less. I respect what he has accomplished as a quarterback. I love the way he plays the game.
However, make no mistake about it, Brett Favre is a bad team mate. One minute he is coming back, the next minute he is retiring. This has been going on for FIVE YEARS! He held the Packers organization hostage, with the will he or won't he retire. Then he retires, and they make Aaron Rodgers the starter...Just Kidding guys, I want to come back. Green Bay refuses and sends him to the Jets. EXACT SAME THING IN NEW YORK, However this time he got himself a release so he could go to the Vikings (the team he wanted to play for all along). Minnesota says take all of the time you need and he does. I had then and still do not have any problems with the way Minnesota has handled this. Let him come in when you want.
The problem with this is BRETT FAVRE GOT US AGAIN!!! It was announced on Tuesday that he had texted in that he would be retiring.On Wednesday, Favre says he did not text anyone. The problem with this is Visanthe Shiancoe is saying that Favre told him he was retiring and this was a major setback for the Vikings. When asked about Shiancoe's comments, Favre says that why I love him. What does that even mean?
Brett Favre is the most selfish man in all of sports. He is one of the all time great qb's, but he has held up 2 franchises, forced 1 trade, 1 release, had 2 retirement press conferences only to be the starting qb on the 1st game of the following season. Jared Allen sounded like a very frustrated man when he made the comments "Regardless of what he does, the sun is gonna come up, we are gonna have football to play, and we all have to be here practicing." Shiancoe now says he does not know what to believe, and why should he, Favre threw him under the bus by saying he had not texted anyone even though Shiancoe was already on record as saying he texted me.
There is another factor here...THE MONEY!!! Go ahead and tell me how he does not need the money. If money can't impact this decision, the why did the Vikings add money to his salary this year. This was not a case of reworking a deal, there are no extra years to be reported. There are no salary cap ramifications. Why would the Vikings feel the need to call and say "By the way if you play this year, I want to give you an extra $3 million, just because I am trying to get to an even number with our payroll. NO, On Tuesday, they were under the belief that Favre was done and so they did the only thing they could do...OFFER MORE MONEY! If money has nothing to do with this, then DON'T TAKE IT! Please do not pull a LeBron on me and take the money but "give it to charity". SAY NO TO THE MONEY!
At least this would mean that it was not about money, and that would make you a man of your word...AT LEAST FOR ONCE!
Sorry, Brett.
Until Next Time...
In life there are some things that should never be said. Just because something is true does not give us an excuse to say it. I am a big believer in the fact that sometimes IT IS BETTER TO JUST KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT!!! This is not one of them, so I will just say it...
BRETT FAVRE IS A BAD TEAM MATE!
Before I explain to you why he is a bad team mate, let me say I LOVE WATCHING BRETT FAVRE PLAY! I sat on mt bed watching Sports Center on Wednesday and they played a highlight of memorable Favre plays and soundbites and I was reminded how much I enjoy this guy. I have to admit, there is nobody that I like more, that I like less. I respect what he has accomplished as a quarterback. I love the way he plays the game.
However, make no mistake about it, Brett Favre is a bad team mate. One minute he is coming back, the next minute he is retiring. This has been going on for FIVE YEARS! He held the Packers organization hostage, with the will he or won't he retire. Then he retires, and they make Aaron Rodgers the starter...Just Kidding guys, I want to come back. Green Bay refuses and sends him to the Jets. EXACT SAME THING IN NEW YORK, However this time he got himself a release so he could go to the Vikings (the team he wanted to play for all along). Minnesota says take all of the time you need and he does. I had then and still do not have any problems with the way Minnesota has handled this. Let him come in when you want.
The problem with this is BRETT FAVRE GOT US AGAIN!!! It was announced on Tuesday that he had texted in that he would be retiring.On Wednesday, Favre says he did not text anyone. The problem with this is Visanthe Shiancoe is saying that Favre told him he was retiring and this was a major setback for the Vikings. When asked about Shiancoe's comments, Favre says that why I love him. What does that even mean?
Brett Favre is the most selfish man in all of sports. He is one of the all time great qb's, but he has held up 2 franchises, forced 1 trade, 1 release, had 2 retirement press conferences only to be the starting qb on the 1st game of the following season. Jared Allen sounded like a very frustrated man when he made the comments "Regardless of what he does, the sun is gonna come up, we are gonna have football to play, and we all have to be here practicing." Shiancoe now says he does not know what to believe, and why should he, Favre threw him under the bus by saying he had not texted anyone even though Shiancoe was already on record as saying he texted me.
There is another factor here...THE MONEY!!! Go ahead and tell me how he does not need the money. If money can't impact this decision, the why did the Vikings add money to his salary this year. This was not a case of reworking a deal, there are no extra years to be reported. There are no salary cap ramifications. Why would the Vikings feel the need to call and say "By the way if you play this year, I want to give you an extra $3 million, just because I am trying to get to an even number with our payroll. NO, On Tuesday, they were under the belief that Favre was done and so they did the only thing they could do...OFFER MORE MONEY! If money has nothing to do with this, then DON'T TAKE IT! Please do not pull a LeBron on me and take the money but "give it to charity". SAY NO TO THE MONEY!
At least this would mean that it was not about money, and that would make you a man of your word...AT LEAST FOR ONCE!
Sorry, Brett.
Until Next Time...
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