February 19th, 2009 11:45pm PST
The Combine is underway...
Over 300 NFL prospects have descended upon Indianapolis and in just days they all will begin their quest to make it to the Big Show. Beginning Saturday Feb. 21 all will participate in a number of various drills and tests, displaying their acute athletic abilities and talents.
With each performance these collegiate athletes could see their futures get brighter and their dreams move closer to reality. They will all be on display for scouts, coaches, and NFL executives alike to meet, observe and interview. Now is the time to shine and standout. For most this is the last step before the draft and for others, this could be just the beginning of an exciting future and it all starts Saturday.
Over 300 NFL prospects have descended upon Indianapolis and in just days they all will begin their quest to make it to the Big Show. Beginning Saturday Feb. 21 all will participate in a number of various drills and tests, displaying their acute athletic abilities and talents.
With each performance these collegiate athletes could see their futures get brighter and their dreams move closer to reality. They will all be on display for scouts, coaches, and NFL executives alike to meet, observe and interview. Now is the time to shine and standout. For most this is the last step before the draft and for others, this could be just the beginning of an exciting future and it all starts Saturday.
The Scouting Combine information:
The workouts...
40-yard dash: Each player is timed at the 10-, 20- and 40-yard increments.
Bench press: Each participant raises the 225-bar as many times as they possibly can.
Vertical jump: Each player stands in front of a pole that has flags at the top of it and tries to hit as many as they can.
Broad jump: Each player from the standing position will jump as far forward as they can. Their jump is measure for distance.
3-cone drill: Each player starts in a three-point stance and has to maneuver around the three cones, each 5 yards apart, which are set up in a triangle shape.
20-yard shuttle: The player starts in a three-point stance, then runs 5 yards, touches the yard line, then runs 10 yards in the other direction, touches the line and then runs back to the starting point.
60-yard shuttle: Like the 20-yard, but with a total of four directional changes and 60 yards covered.
Wonderlic Test: Each player is given 12 minutes to answer 50 questions.
The Group schedule
Saturday: Group 1 (OL, SPECIALISTS), 2 (OL), 3 (TE)
Sunday: Group 4 (QB, WR), 5 (QB, WR), 6 (RB)
Feb. 23: Group 7 (DL), 8 (DL), 9 (LB)
Feb. 24: Group 10 (DB), 11 (DB)
Coverage on the NFL Network will begin Saturday at 11am EST.
The GM Game.
The workouts...
40-yard dash: Each player is timed at the 10-, 20- and 40-yard increments.
Bench press: Each participant raises the 225-bar as many times as they possibly can.
Vertical jump: Each player stands in front of a pole that has flags at the top of it and tries to hit as many as they can.
Broad jump: Each player from the standing position will jump as far forward as they can. Their jump is measure for distance.
3-cone drill: Each player starts in a three-point stance and has to maneuver around the three cones, each 5 yards apart, which are set up in a triangle shape.
20-yard shuttle: The player starts in a three-point stance, then runs 5 yards, touches the yard line, then runs 10 yards in the other direction, touches the line and then runs back to the starting point.
60-yard shuttle: Like the 20-yard, but with a total of four directional changes and 60 yards covered.
Wonderlic Test: Each player is given 12 minutes to answer 50 questions.
The Group schedule
Saturday: Group 1 (OL, SPECIALISTS), 2 (OL), 3 (TE)
Sunday: Group 4 (QB, WR), 5 (QB, WR), 6 (RB)
Feb. 23: Group 7 (DL), 8 (DL), 9 (LB)
Feb. 24: Group 10 (DB), 11 (DB)
Coverage on the NFL Network will begin Saturday at 11am EST.
The GM Game.
Today was the deadline for teams to designate their franchise and transition players. As a result, over the past couple of days many football franchises holding the cards in the poker game of the NFL showed part of their hands by placing the franchise tags on many of their notable veterans.
Teams like Tampa Bay, Oakland, San Diego, and Carolina locked down key players that were due to hit the market as hot commodities this offseason. The initial moves keep these valuable goods in place for possible movement later or long enough to work out a long term deal. While this strategy will make sense for some teams, for others like the Detroit Lions and the Cincinnati Bengals, more work will likely be required.
Let's Play GM..
In Detroit ($26m under the cap)...
In 2008 the Detroit Lions were just flat out the worst team in the NF losing all of their games and becoming the first team in NFL history to 0-16. Looking ahead it's not like they won't have room under the cap to go spending, especially with the recent player cuts. Already on the clock, the Lions have the precarious position of holding the number selection in the 2009 NFL Draft. The last time the Lions were in this position, in 1980 the team drafted running back Billy Sims out of Oklahoma. And while running back Kevin Smith is not the next Barry Sanders or Sims, the team has too many holes to fill and it doesn't look like we have another number 20 in the draft. With the top pick however, the focus will be the best player. The team will keep Culpepper another season and while he's not the long term solution, he could fit for now. The focus will be to rebuild the defense. With Haynesworth on the market, he could be step one, "the building block." The former Titan's tackle comes with a lot of baggage, but at 28 he could be signed to a long term deal and really help get the franchise turned around. The second step will be finding him some help. The Lions have some talent at linebacker with Ernie Sims, but could look to free agency for more. Angelo Crowell (if he's healthy), Andra Davis, or James Farrior could be primary targets, if they hit the market this offseason. This will be a rebuilding process, so help in the secondary may have to come from the draft. Rome wasn't built in a day and the Lions could take a little longer.
In 2008 the Detroit Lions were just flat out the worst team in the NF losing all of their games and becoming the first team in NFL history to 0-16. Looking ahead it's not like they won't have room under the cap to go spending, especially with the recent player cuts. Already on the clock, the Lions have the precarious position of holding the number selection in the 2009 NFL Draft. The last time the Lions were in this position, in 1980 the team drafted running back Billy Sims out of Oklahoma. And while running back Kevin Smith is not the next Barry Sanders or Sims, the team has too many holes to fill and it doesn't look like we have another number 20 in the draft. With the top pick however, the focus will be the best player. The team will keep Culpepper another season and while he's not the long term solution, he could fit for now. The focus will be to rebuild the defense. With Haynesworth on the market, he could be step one, "the building block." The former Titan's tackle comes with a lot of baggage, but at 28 he could be signed to a long term deal and really help get the franchise turned around. The second step will be finding him some help. The Lions have some talent at linebacker with Ernie Sims, but could look to free agency for more. Angelo Crowell (if he's healthy), Andra Davis, or James Farrior could be primary targets, if they hit the market this offseason. This will be a rebuilding process, so help in the secondary may have to come from the draft. Rome wasn't built in a day and the Lions could take a little longer.
In Cincinnati ($22m under the cap)...
What I find interesting about the Bengals is their whole situation. Last year the wheels seemed to have completely come off and the team basically imploded before our eyes. There's no question the injury to quarterback Carson Palmer had a trickling effect. Without the big arm or stable play at the quarterback position, wide receiver Chad Johnson disappeared. The lack of quality depth at the wideout position and the need for a proven durable running back was exposed. Last season's biggest surprise in Cincy was the emergence of running back Cedric Benson. While Benson will be looking for a long term deal, I say the jury is still out and waiting to make an offer will likely play out better for the team, especially holding the sixth pick in the draft. Unless the team is set on rebuilding, bringing back T.J. Houshmandzadeh should be the priority, especially if the consensus is Palmer is going to return healthy to camp this summer. Two seasons ago T.J. and Chad were a dynamite pair with Palmer throwing the rock. The offense will need a little help and the draft may provide some relief, but if this team can return their big-three (Palmer, Johnson, and T.J.) in 2009, the hope is they might find their 2007 form when the offense was ranked 7th in passing. The defense has a little further to go and a player like Albert Haynesworth will likely be out the Bengals rent district, but free agents that could be looked at the help might include; Jermaine Phillips, Sean Jones, and Corey Ivey. There won't be any quick fix in Cincinnati, the road traveled will be long, but they still have talent they can build around.
...Detroit and Cincinnati have the advantage heading into 2009 knowing they can't do much worse than 2008, so improving should be in reachable grasp. While the Lions seemingly have a long way to go in their quest to turnaround their struggling franchise, the Bengals may be a little shorter road to travel, but with free agency around the corner the future could easily change in a hurry!
Keep checking back for more football....
By David G. Ortega
What I find interesting about the Bengals is their whole situation. Last year the wheels seemed to have completely come off and the team basically imploded before our eyes. There's no question the injury to quarterback Carson Palmer had a trickling effect. Without the big arm or stable play at the quarterback position, wide receiver Chad Johnson disappeared. The lack of quality depth at the wideout position and the need for a proven durable running back was exposed. Last season's biggest surprise in Cincy was the emergence of running back Cedric Benson. While Benson will be looking for a long term deal, I say the jury is still out and waiting to make an offer will likely play out better for the team, especially holding the sixth pick in the draft. Unless the team is set on rebuilding, bringing back T.J. Houshmandzadeh should be the priority, especially if the consensus is Palmer is going to return healthy to camp this summer. Two seasons ago T.J. and Chad were a dynamite pair with Palmer throwing the rock. The offense will need a little help and the draft may provide some relief, but if this team can return their big-three (Palmer, Johnson, and T.J.) in 2009, the hope is they might find their 2007 form when the offense was ranked 7th in passing. The defense has a little further to go and a player like Albert Haynesworth will likely be out the Bengals rent district, but free agents that could be looked at the help might include; Jermaine Phillips, Sean Jones, and Corey Ivey. There won't be any quick fix in Cincinnati, the road traveled will be long, but they still have talent they can build around.
...Detroit and Cincinnati have the advantage heading into 2009 knowing they can't do much worse than 2008, so improving should be in reachable grasp. While the Lions seemingly have a long way to go in their quest to turnaround their struggling franchise, the Bengals may be a little shorter road to travel, but with free agency around the corner the future could easily change in a hurry!
Keep checking back for more football....
By David G. Ortega
No comments:
Post a Comment