Sunday Night Football Stuff
Highlighting some of this week's activities will be the ever popular 40-yard dash, the Bench press, the vertical jump, and the infamous Wonderlic test (an intelligence test used for assessing a players problem-solving skills). Some of the invitees that scouts will be watching with a close eye will be; Chris Wells, Ohio State; Shonn Greene, Iowa; Hakeem Nicks, North Carolina; Percy Harvin, Florida; Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech; Mark Sanchez, USC; Matthew Stafford, Georgia; Andre Smith, Alabama; Everette Brown, Florida State; Aaron Maybin; Aaron Curry, Wake Forest; Malcom Jenkins, Ohio State.
While large amounts of data will be gathered and scrutinized throughout the six day event, the recent trend these days has been to focus less on the performance of staged drills, but rather the play of the prospect along with his heart and intelligence. What this means is what we are about to see with all these various workouts at the combine is more for show and has less relevance on how a prospect will likely perform on the football field.
But it still should be lots of fun and worth watching.
My Football Notes:
Now two full weeks into the post Super Bowl XLIII era, it's time to start looking ahead at the impending free agency countdown. With just over a week until the free market opens, teams across the board continue to clean house. The latest edited scenes to hit the cutting room floor; Chicago's WR Marty Booker, Jacksonville's RB Fred Taylor, Denver's DL Dwayne Robertson, DB Chris McAlister, and recent news indicates Tampa's quarterback Jeff Garcia won't be returning.
It's probably no surprise to see the Buc's parting ways with Garcia. Only a week ago did the team sign 27-year old quarterback Luke McCown to a two-year deal. Garcia was not particularly effective last season and spent much of year fighting injuries and not winning. Garcia may no longer have a future in Tampa, but if he's got anything left in the tank he could resurrect in cities like New York (Jets) or Tennessee. Teams that clearly need to address their quarterback situation now, but don't need a big arm or gamer for the immediate fix
Speaking of players with futures elsewhere, another name that has been tossed in the Jets ring, is Derek Anderson. There is a good chance that when the 2009 regular season opens, Anderson may not be the name on the back of the Brown's starting quarterback's jersey. After a dismal 2008 season, Anderson could be looking for a fresh start and greener pastures. I'm not sure if the pastures are green, but at least the Jet's jerseys are.
Last season in Houston, the Texans back-up quarterback Sage Rosenfels started just five games and did not look all that bad as the starter. His numbers were not overly impressive, but with a quarterback rating over 80.0 in four of his starts and a rating over 100.0 in one relief appearance, Rosenfels may have just shown enough to draw some interest from other teams. In his final year of his contract in Houston, there has not been any talk of a trade, but with teams like the Jets, Bears, Vikings, Titans, Lions, and Seahawks in need would it be a surprise to see?
This Week's "Knuckleheads".
That's turruble...
So what else can you say about these guys?
On Feb 11 in Culver City, California Bill's running back Marshawn Lynch was found with a loaded firearm after being approached by police while he was in his 2006 Mercedes-Benz. Didn't he see what happened to Plax last season? I can surely think of smarter players to emulate. All you can do is shake your head and ask why.
On the verge of getting one of the biggest paydays this offseason, Titan's defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth may not be able to escape his past. Last December Haynesworth was on probation for a speeding ticket he received earlier in 2008 and just days after paying the fine he was involved in a careless driving charge that had been dismissed. It now looks like he could end up paying for the mistake afterall, as District Attorney General Kim Helper could bring the case to a grand jury. First speeding, then careless, why is he even driving? (AP Photo by John Russell)
Holy Jeff Reed, what in the wild world of sports is going on here. Since when did kickers ever make headlines, unless they were making or missing a kick in the Super Bowl. And even when they miss, you only talk about them for a day or two. What's going through this guy's head getting in the papers and on the internet by trashing a towel dispenser? Were there not any balls around to kick? Sometimes you just have to wonder about athletes, but what do you say about kickers?
FANTASY FOOTBALL DIGEST
Grading the 2008 Rookie Class...
The class of 2008 produced a very talented group filled with many players that figure to keep their names in the headlines for many Sunday's to come.
Top NFL Students...
QB-Matt Ryan (Atl)
....the Falcon's quarterback enjoyed a very successful rookie campaign leading his team to 11 win during the regular season and a playoff bid. Ryan passed for over 3,400-yards, tossed 16 touchdowns while completing 61% of his passes and added one rushing score. Grade=B+
QB-Joe Flacco (Bal)
....the Raven's quarterback enjoyed even more success than the Falcon's Matt Ryan. Flacco took his team to the AFC Championship winning two playoff games. Flacco completed 60% of his passes and threw for almost 2,800-yards with 14 touchdowns and added two rushing scores. Grade=B
RB-Matt Forte (Chi)
.....the Bear's running back was very impressive and the most productive rookie running back of the 2008 class. Forte finished the season with 1,715 total yards (1,238 rushing, 477 receiving), 12 touchdowns (eight rushing, four receiving), and 63 pass receptions. Grade=A+
RB-Steve Slaton (Hou)
....the Texan's running back was a nice surprise in 2008. He wasn't expected to start initially, but took advantage of his opportunity and totaled over 1,650-yards while scoring 10 times (nine rushing, one receiving) and added 50 receptions. Grade=B+
RB-Chris Johnson (Ten)
....the Titan's running back was solid in 2008 and a big part of the 'Smash and Dash' duo in Tennessee. Johnson showed some versatility rushing for 1,228-yards and catching 43 passes for 260-yards while scoring 10 total touchdowns (nine rushing, one receiving). Grade=B
RB-Kevin Smith (Det)
.....the Lion's running back was a pleasant surprise in the Motor City, where there just wasn't much to smile about. Smith started just 12 games, but finished the 2008 campaign with 976-yards rushing, 39 receptions for 286-yards, and eight rushing touchdowns. Grade=C+
RB-Jonathan Stewart (Car)
...picked to emerge as the team's starter at some point during the 2008 season, Stewart was never able to overtake Williams. He did infact have a solid rookie year for the Panthers rushing for over 800-yards and scoring 10 rushing touchdowns playing in all 16 games. Grade=C
RB-Tim Hightower (Ari)
...the Cardinal's running back is tough grade to give, considering he only started seven games and finished the season with just 399-yards rushing. But from a purely fantasy perspective, you have to give him credit with 10 rushing touchdowns and 34 receptions for 237-yards. Grade=B
WR-Eddie Royal (Den)
....the Bronco's receiver led all rookie wideouts in 2008 with 91 receptions. Royal also had 980-yards receiving to go with five touchdowns in his first season and also added another 109-yards rushing. Grade=B
WR-DeSean Jackson (Phi)
.....the Eagle's receiver almost had himself a season to forget after his miscue on Monday night against the Cowboys, but he was able to rebound in fashionable style. Jackson finished his rookie season with 62 receptions for over 900-yards with two touchdowns. Grade=C+
WR-Donnie Avery (Stl)
....the Ram's speedy wideout showed some flashes of brilliance, but was more inconsistent than anything else in 2008. Avery completed his rookie journey with 53 receptions for 674-yards and three touchdowns. He also added a rushing touchdown. Grade=C-
TE-John Carlson (Sea)
.....the Seahawk's tight end emerged as a nice pass catching option, when all else failed (no healthy receivers). In 2008 without his regular starting quarterback much of the time, Carlson completed his first year with 55 catches for 627-yards and five touchdowns. Grade=B-
TE-Dustin Keller (NYJ)
.....the Jet's tight end did not exactly fit into your ideal prototype at 6'2", but nonetheless he was effective and productive in 2008. Keller caught 48 passes for 535-yards and scored three touchdowns. Grade=C+
We don't do kickers here!
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