Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Update 30/03/11

Just to keep everyone up to speed; -- My ear canal is swollen, throbs, hurts, and I can barely hear anything on my right side, -- Blogger is still playing up, -- I'm currently focusing on the tight ends for the 2011 draft, -- I'll be busy for the next four days or so, so I imagine my report on the tight ends will go up on Saturday. So now you know.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Fuck Blogger

As you'll see in my post below, all the sentences are mashed together. I have no idea why. I've tried everything and Blogger, being the chronically depraved piece of crap that is, just will not accept it. And they wonder why people are falling over themselves to hit up Word Press. Maybe it's something to do with the fact that Google are notorious for setting up customer feedback systems, then just jerking people off with half assed answers, while solving none of their customers problems and just plowing on with their own agenda for changes, changes which often their customers neither asked for, nor can find any reason for. I hate Google and Blogger. More than the Panthers. More than the Texans. Even more than John Fox.

Edit: problem temporarily solved, thanks to a time consuming process involving the constant manual input of html tags. And if you don't know what that means, suffice to say it was a time consuming pain in the arse.

2011 Draft: Wide Receivers

With the draft rapidly approaching, my studies of the 2011 prospects has picked up it's pace. With that in mind I've spent the last day hammering footage of wide receivers and here's what I've come up with.

- Jeff Maehl. I liked Maehl at the combine and what I've seen in-game just reinforces that. Surprisingly quick and really good hands.

- Terrence Toliver. Overall I'm not totally sold on Toliver, but he does have excellent run after the catch skills, something that is in high demand among teams that favour the short passing game (the lumped together "West Coast Offense" teams). There is plenty of potential there given the right scheme.

- A.J. Green. Eventually you knew this name was going to come up and here it is. What can you say about Green that hasn't already been said? He's a great all round receiver. Probably quite a safe pick in the first round.

- Julio Jones. People have been creaming their pants over Julio Jones for the last three months, but I came away from watching his film (oh, such a bad choice of words) with a distinctly underwhelming impression. I'm not saying he was bad, just average. Certainly didn't see anything that would justify a first round pick.

- Torrey Smith. Probably my favourite receiver in the 2011 draft. Yeah I know, Torrey Smith? But he was consistently very good from what I saw. In particular I thought his positioning, working the defenders to get over the top of them on deep passes, was excellent. Will probably slip into later rounds, where someone will bag a bargain.

- Jonathan Baldwin. I'm going to give Baldwin some of the benefit of the doubt, in that all the footage that I watched of him was mired by poor quarterback play. But even then, that's not really a 100% full proof excuse. He just looked a little lazy at times, and even a little clumsy. Not sure how much he would really improve with a better QB throwing to him.

- Randall Cobb. I've been keeping an eye on Cobb for a while now. Very impressed. I love Cobbs technique and I love the adjustments that he makes to his routes to pick his way through a cluster of defenders and get into space. Given time to build a partnership with a smart QB, Cobb could go on to great things.

- Leonard Hankerson. What's not to like about this guy? Speed, size, uses his body to fight off defenders. He has great hands, really safe, and from what I understand he has invested a lot of time in the offseason periods working to make himself better, while juggling college life and two kids. I respect Hankerson for that and I believe he will be rewarded for his hard work.

- Titus Young. There's something a little cocky about Young, which isn't a bad thing necessarily. The guy has great speed, great agility, and superb hands. Another pretty sound pick.

- Jerrel Jernigan. He's quick. He's very strong for a receiver. Pretty damn agile. And smart. Listening to him in an interview rattling off the various things he was looking at on a wildcat play, you get the sense Jernigan will have little difficulty coping with the high mental demands expected of an NFL receiver. Perhaps not a first rounder, but anything less than that seems like a safe bet on Jernigan.

- Greg Little. Speed? Check. Strength? Double check. Spin move? Triple check. He perhaps loves that move a little too much, but whatever works I guess. Bit of a red flag over character though. Can't seem to resist finishing a play with a bit of smack talk and that's the kind of thing that can land a player in trouble, fast. Not sure if I'd want to bite for that reason. Someone will probably take a chance, and if they can tame the attitude a bit then he has a great future.

- Vincent Brown. Talk about ball skills? The start talking about Vincent Brown. Excellent hands coupled with great concentration. Add to that some great route running and you have a winner in Brown. Not the fastest kid in the world on film, but a pretty sound receiver none the less.

And finally, in what is becoming an annoying habit for me, I've spotted another RB that I'd like to mention:

- Daniel Thomas. When I was watching Cobb I came across Thomas again and I delved a little deeper under the surface to see what this kid was about. He's not the fastest back in the draft, nor the most agile, but he has a knack of slithering through space and getting the yards. Could be a handy late round pick for someone.

Friday, March 25, 2011

2011 Draft: Running backs

Every now and again, the planets align, the moon passes through Capricorn, and I manage to produce a post on time. On that note, let's get right down to business by looking at some of the running back prospects for the 2011 draft. There will be some omissions, and by that you can just generally assume that I don't have much faith in them. The players I like are presented here. - Mark Ingram: Without question the best back in the draft. Just... no arguments. The combination of vision, agility, acceleration, speed and power. I don't think I need to belabour this point any further. Just take note when this guy gets the ball. - DeMarco Murray: Real talented player. Did well at the combine and everything I've seen in game tells me that Murray is going to be a hit in the NFL. I don't think he's getting enough credit. - Kendall Hunter: I love watching Kendall Hunter play. Fun back who has real talent, strong, hard working. Hunter will probably drop a little in the draft which is a shame, because he has a lot to bring to the table for whoever drafts him. - Shane Vereen: This kid has simply ridiculous agility. You see him put a foot in the ground one second, and the next he's darting off in a new direction. Just superb. Not sure where Vereen is expected to go, but he has serious potential. He reminds me a bit of Jamaal Charles. - Jacquizz Rodgers: I was a little worried at times a Rodgers's vision, but other than that he's an excellent back. Again, he's fast, very agile, great balance. - Jordan Todman: I wasn't hot on Todman for a long time, but literally in the last few days I've seen more and more of him and I've changed my mind. Todman has a lot of versatility, not fully a power back but not really a speedster either. What he is, is a pretty sound draft pick. - Taiwan Jones: Another agile, tough, well balanced back. Again not such a big name, certainly not one people seem to be raving about, but a lot of talent. At this point I'm risking giving another fairly generic description, so I'll just say that watching Jones reminded me of Ahmad Bradshaw. Now this might seem like an odd thing to tack on to a post about running backs, but I've also seen some film of... - Kevin Riley: Quarterback. Not the best quarterback in the world. But talented. Nice footwork, pretty good arm, good touch and accuracy. This might just be me. I have these moments sometimes when I get caught up watching a player and all the pieces of the jigsaw seem to be fitting in place. I may be wrong. And we may never know. Riley is unlikely to get drafted, but maybe he will work his way up through someones practice squad. I'm rooting for him, and I'm probably going to sneak him on to my 2011 rookie watch list. And finally.... nothing has changed in the labor situation. Both sides are still bitching about how hard off they are. Adrian Peterson still seems to think that being a highly paid football player is like being a slave. And the fans are still getting shafted. Though one Cleveland fan might be about to fight back. He's filed a suit against the NFL for something like "conspiring to deprive him of football" after he purchased a Personal Seat License. I forget the details, because honestly the case has little chance of going anywhere, but it's nice to see that fans are starting to push back.

Keeping you posted

I spent most of the day pouring over the new budget announced by the UK government for the coming fiscal year, which has delayed my "scouting" of the 2011 draft class. I'm now currently pouring over footage of the running back class for 2011. My expectation is that I will present to you my findings tomorrow. And I commend this post to the web.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Serious thinking

A big knock on committees of all kinds and in all places is that they get bogged down in bureaucratic nit picking when they should be dealing with bigger issues. Like the NFL owners for example, who at their latest meeting have decided to move kickoffs from the 30 yard line to the 35. Wow. Heavy stuff. Apparently the over riding concern was player safety, but that fails the horseshit meter because I don't see how five yards makes much of a difference. I can see more touchbacks and less returns, diminishing the value of special teams. I can see the reduced emphasis on return specialists. I can see the need to just keep one kicker who is good at field goals and has enough leg to dump the ball in the end zone. But player safety? Not buying it. They've also voted to allow booth reviews on all scoring plays, at any time during a game. Which is just what we all wanted, more replay timeouts. Yay (ugh). Meanwhile the tuck rule still lives. And I hear no mention of a crackdown on blatant Offensive Pass Interference. Nice to see the league is prioritising the important things first. (I can't do smilies on this blog, but if I could it would be the one where the little face rolls his eyes upwards). The more I think about it, the more I'm in favour of a fan based committee to make these decisions.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

AFC North 2011 preview

Finally, finally, I can round up this series of 2011 previews. I've almost come to resent it by this point (but not as much as I resent the prick at work who pulled the sicky last night). We've reached the AFC North, at last. Starting with: Baltimore Ravens: Once again the Ravens had a solid year. Once again their defense led the way. And once again it was their offense that choked at the most inappropriate moment. Crappy play calling, communication errors in pass protection; it wouldn't be so bad for Ravens fans if it wasn't the same tired old problems every year. But it is. So it just makes the Ravens offense all the more laughable. Free agency won't help. Jared Gaither, the highly competent offensive tackle, will hit unrestricted free agency. So does WR T. J. Houshmandzadeh. And FB Le'Ron McClain. And WR Dante Stallworth. And QB Marc Bulger. Ok, so we can write off the whole Stallworth & Bulger thing, but those other three will be missed. Looking at the defense though, it gets even worse. Chris Carr. Dawan Landry. Fabian Washington. All up for unrestricted free agency. On top of that Naruki Nakamura and Tom Zbikowski are up for restricted free agency and proved themselves as handy little players this past season. The net result could be a severe depletion of the Ravens secondary. Literally, we're talking about down to four or five players, of which only three are starters and the other two are captain nobodies. The Ravens are potentially about to turn into a soccer ball; seriously deficient in corners. Other than that (he says) the Ravens are ok and will have their options open in this years draft. They pick at 26th overall, and other than corner their only real nagging need would be linebacker. Part of that depends on what they choose to do with Sergio Kindle, who missed the whole season with a serious head injury and now has a court date lined up for some infraction which currently escapes my memory and is not sufficiently important to motivate me to look it up on Wikipedia. It could be argued as well that the Ravens could use a true deep threat receiver, with sufficient speed and height to give Joe Flacco a proper downfield target. As for the 2011 outlook? The Ravens should be fine. Providing of course they can sort out that whole problem of not having a secondary. And the lack of a deep threat receiver. And the shortage of linebackers. And if they can teach Ray Rice how to pass block. Or better yet, they can just fix their play-calling (run more and/or stop asking Ray Rice to pass block). Maybe 2012 will be their year? Cincinnati Bengals: Ah the Bengals, desperately trying to convince the word that they can be just as dysfunctional and poorly run as the Raiders or Redskins. A 4-12 season in 2010 wasn't quite what they had in mind, especially after winning the AFC North the season before. The loud thud that could be heard in Ohio at the end of this season was either; a) The sound of a Bengals fan jumping out of a high rise window, b) The sound of Chad Ochocinco being thrown under a bus by his Head Coach, c) The sound of every bodies jaws dropping when Ochocinco made his now semi-famous "they won't give you a new contract because your black" speech to Terrell Owens, d) The sound of both Terrell Owens's and Chad Ochocinco's stock plummeting, or e) The sound of Carson Palmer slamming the door shut on his way out, Either way I think I've sufficiently belaboured the point now about the Bengals downfall. Just be thankful I didn't associate thumping noises with any mention of Tank Johnson. So lets have a look at the Bengals unrestricted free agents and... oh dear!! Not looking good! Say bye, bye to star RB Cedric Benson. And LB Dhani Jones, LB Brandon Johnson, star CB Jonathan Joseph, FB Brian Leonard, OG Evan Mathis, Safeties Chinedum Ndukwe and Gibril Wilson, and of course, WR Terrell Owens. Possibly (re: almost definitely) add Chad Ochocino to that list. Oh yeah, and of course Carson Palmer. You remember him, the teams only real veteran QB. All of those departures certainly open the doors of possibility when it comes to the draft. Picking at number 4 overall, the Bengals have to make a choice. Do they go QB? RB? WR? LB? SS? FS? (shut up, I know they're almost the same thing). The choice will be interesting, and ultimately necessary for the Bengals. Because short of a miracle in the draft and free agency, the Bengals will hit the start of the 2011 season without a true starting QB, with two back up RB (and three back up FB's), a five man wide receiver outfit (maybe a chance finally for Andre Caldwell? Here's hoping), a depleted linebacker corps and no decent starting safeties. That for me is not a recipe for success, especially not when facing the Steelers. Twice. On the other hand, it could go spectacularly right. Stay with me on this one. The Bengals switch their offense to a "ground and pound" style, something which their O-line has proven to be very, very good at. On defense they start to reap the rewards of their investment in the D-line. They don't score much, but it doesn't matter because their well rested defense is more than up to the task of keeping other teams scores down. You're right, it'll never happen. Onwards and upwards. Cleveland Browns: The fact that the Browns finished 5-11 shouldn't come as a surprise. The sacking of Head Coach Eric Mangini should however. I thought Mangini was just starting to get in the swing of things. In his interviews he sounded like he'd mellowed out a little and was just starting to find his feet as the top dog. He had a great young QB in the works and the team was on the up. But then the Dark Lord of the West Coast Offense (Mike Holmgren) swung his axe and it was all over. Now the Browns will be led into the breach for 2011 by Pat Shurmer, formerly the offensive coordinator of the St. Louis Rams in his first outing as a Head Coach. I rather get the sense that the Sword of Damacles is hanging over his head, and Holmgren is just waiting for the right moment to cut him down and assume the throne. Still, at least the Browns have the chance to refresh the team with some slick moves in free agency. Like Franchising their kicker for example. Wait, what? They franchise tagged Phil Dawson? Just...... why? Not LB/DE Matt Roth then? Or safety Sabby Piscitelli (I wouldn't either, but Phil Dawson?). Safety Abram Elam is up for the chop as well, along with RB Mike Bell, CB Eric Wright and WR Chansi Stuckey, plus others. In the draft the Browns pick at number 6 overall. Needs range from a deep threat wide receiver, to a decent tight end, to D-line, to Linebacker, to cornerback and safety. So yeah, not an envious task by any means. It's anyones guess where they'll go, but Nick Fairely might be near the top of their board. In 2011, don't expect much from the Browns. No really, don't. If they go 0-16 I'll just shrug my shoulders and say "at least they scored a few touchdowns". The Browns were undergoing a rebuilding phase, but now that they've dumped the Head Coach that was leading the rebuild and have lost their D-coordinator (Rob Ryan) to the Cowboys (they're now guided defensively by Dick Jauron), I'd say that the team is headed for a 2011 meltdown. It's not going to be pretty. Not at all. Pittsburgh Steelers: So close, but so far. Sort of. It almost seems like tradition now for the Steelers to be in the Super Bowl. I wouldn't be shocked if in the next couple of years the NFL becomes like an episode of Gladiators, where each season a new team comes to challenge the Gladiators for their crown. And let us not forget, they played the first four games minus their starting QB, who then spent the rest of the season getting the crapped kicked out of him. Of course James Harrison made up for it, clocking up fines like they were touchdowns for illegal hits left, right and center. 2011 then will need to start with solidity on the offensive line. Ah. OT Willie Colon. Gone (He was shit anyway. Get it? Colon? Shit? Chortle, chortle). OG Trai Essex, gone. OT Jonathan Scott, gone. That's three down from among the offensive line already, before the wicked mistress of injury works her inevitable charms. Joining the above into unrestricted free agency, which to be fair isn't necessarily a guarantee you'll leave (unless you happen to be good), are; DE Nick Eason, LB Keyaron Fox, CB's Ike Taylor and William Gay, and RB Mewelde Moore (among others). That's five players right there that I wouldn't mind having on my team. In particular, Moore is badly under rated as a running back, as is Ike Taylor as a corner. I could see someone like Rex Ryan over at the Jets swooping on Taylor to fill his roster hole at corner now that Cromartie is on the way out. And to be fair, Taylor could do it and do it a lot cheaper than Cromartie. Overall the Steelers head into the draft in pretty darn good shape. They pick 31st overall being the Super Bowl runners up, and their needs are pretty slim. Cornerback, especially if they can't get either Taylor or Gay to return. Maybe a rangey free safety would go down well. A speedy receiver to replace Santonio Holmes would be handy. But knowing the Steelers they'll do something boring, safe, and ultimately of very sound judgement like taking an offensive linemen who has inexplicably slipped down to them. In 2011 then, plenty to be hopeful for. The O-line is going to be even more suspect than before and the secondary will be a little shaky, but I'd expect a wild card slot at the very minimum. That's the thing about the Steelers, they're built for the long haul. Damn them.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

And the world craps on me once more....

.... because we all have to work, to earn money. And whereas Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com can rake in the ad revenues and money from exclusivity deals just for essentially collecting information from other football sources and bringing it all together in one place, the rest of us have to actually - you know - work for a living. On that note, I have to go and earn money covering someone who no doubt pulled a sicky just so they could sit on their arse and watch crappy television. The prick. Still, it's time and a half, so I can't complain. It just means that the AFC North preview will have to be delayed again. Sorry people. I will get there!

Update 03/20/11

Any new news on the Labor update? Nope. Both sides are sitting on their positions for now. The NLFPA is desperately trying to back track and pretend that it never ever suggested to rookies that the should skip the leagues official NFL draft show in New York (they did) now that they've realised that the fans have unleashed a huge backlash on the NFLPA for trying to ruin one of their favourite events of the year. I'm still pouring over footage of said rookies, specifically the running backs, and I'm nearly there. Nearly. Finally, tomorrow I will be putting up my 2011 preview of the AFC North.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

AFC West, 2011 prospects

So with the labor dispute still rolling on, that means free agency seems a long way off still. Which is lucky in a way because it gives me a chance to finish doing my preview series. We've reached the AFC West now, with just the AFC North to go. So starting with; Denver Broncos: What a 2010 the Broncos had. After what seemed on the face of it like a season to build on in '09, the Broncos traded away Brandon Marshall and went out and spent a first round pick in the 2010 draft on Tim Tebow. Then everything fell apart. Finishing the season 4-12 and minus a Head Coach, Broncos fans are looking on bleakly at 2011. The hiring of Broncos legend John Elway as "Executive Vice President of Football Operations" did little to quell those fears, not least because while Elway may have been a great QB and is co-owner of an arena league team, he has no experience of high level football operations in the NFL. The only thing left for fans to concern themselves with was who would be hired as the teams next Head Coach. There were plenty of names out there, including some very talented coordinator level candidates. The choices were pretty open. The Broncos decided to go with John Fox, of 2-14 Carolina Panthers fame, and my arch Nemesis when it comes to picking winners. Hearts across Colorado sunk. But they mustn't be so hasty. For start, the Broncos look set to come out of free agency probably better off than any other team in the league. They have just five players on the unrestricted list; Defensive Tackles Marcus Thomas and Ronald Fields, OT Ryan Harris, RB Laurence Maroney and FB Kyle Eckel. That's literally it. That means that Denver is likely to head into 2011 with almost its entire team intact. Even though they have a new Head Coach and coordinator line up, the fact that everyone on the team knows each other should help to make the transition easier. It doesn't hurt either that they have the 2nd overall pick in this years draft. There is much speculation as to where they might go with this, but given Fox is a defensive minded coach, I can't see that pick going anywhere other than the defensive side of the ball. The most likely choice will either be a D-tackle or a linebacker, two positions which will probably consume most of the teams attention in the draft, possibly along with offensive line and tight end. So for 2011, the Broncos actually look in pretty good shape. They get OT Ryan Clady back from injury for a start. The lingering question is who will line up under center; Kyle Orton or Tim Tebow? I'll hedge my bets and say that it's not going to be Brady Quinn. Orton will stake a claim based on his performance in recent seasons. Tebow also showed promise, but he's still young and his playing time was limited. To be honest I don't envy John Fox having to make the choice. I still hate Fox though. So there. Either way, expect the Broncos to make a surprise challenge for AFC West glory. I'm tellin' ya! Kansas City Chiefs: Most Kansas City fans looked on glumly as the 2010 season rolled around. Then a surprise upset of San Diego set the tone for what would become a 10-6 season that stunned everyone and saw the Chiefs roll into the playoffs. Of course it all fell apart from there, but it's the thought that counts. The start of the 2011 season will, however, return most Chiefs fans back to their almost ingrained state of pessimism. You only have to look at their list of potential free agents. Thankfully they tied up Tamba Hali with the franchise tag, but the rest of the list makes for ominous reading. And no, I'm not talking about QB Brodie Croyle. Charlie Anderson, Corey Mays and Mike Vrabel are the linebackers potentially on the way out. There's wide receivers Terrence Cooper and Kevin Curtis. There's CB Travis Daniels and FS Jon McGraw. NT Ron Edwards. DE Shaun Smith. TE Leonard Pope. OT Ryan O'Callaghan. FB Tim Castille. And finally Centers Rudy Niswanger and Casey Wiegmann. I probably missed someone out amongst all that, but you get the idea. The Chiefs will potentially have no trained center for 2011, along with only just enough linemen to field the required 5. They'll be left with about 4 D-linemen as well by the look of it. In the draft, Kansas doesn't pick till number 21 which doesn't exactly leave them with much room to play when it comes to drafting down. That's a problem, because the Chiefs need players. They're probably gonna end up fishing in free agency to make up the difference. They have only two quarterbacks, none of which people should really trust too much (Matt Cassel is not a Pro Bowl quarterback). They have two great backs, but absolutely no true depth at the position. At wide out they're relying on Dwayne Bowe and Chris Chambers to stay healthy, because if either of those two go then their next best receiver is Dexter McCluster, who is good, but is also more of a slot receiver type as opposed to a down field beast. Their O-line has a strong core (Albert, Lilja, Asamoah), it just doesn't have anything else. They have no D-line anymore. Glenn Dorsey can only fit one spot at a time. The linebacking corps is ok, and if they can keep restricted free agent Brandon Carr then they won't be too bad at corner or safety. They could use some more depth, but at least the starting lineup should repeat the strong showing from last year, providing the Chiefs shore up that D-line, possibly with the aid of a first round pick. For 2011 then? A lot is riding on the offense, including the ability of Todd Haley and Offensive Coordinator Bill Muir to finally mold that unit into something useful. Last year they absolutely thrived off the back of running backs Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones, only to consistently shoot themselves in the foot by turning their back completely on the running game (see the playoff game versus Baltimore for a prime example). On that note, 2011 is anybodies guess. It might be another 10-6 year in the making. Maybe more? But I'm afraid I'm going to be a little more restrained and say that the Chiefs will probably slump again in 2011, especially if they don't get their respective lines sorted. Oakland Raiders: Just think, without Al Davis and the Raiders who would we all laugh at? That's true, the Redskins. But it's not as much fun as the annual saga that is the Oakland Raiders. This time they fooled us all by having their best season in a while and going 8-8, playing some half decent football along the way. Then right on cue, Al Davis fired the coach who had made it all happen, Tom Cable. Now the Raiders are back to square one. Hue Jackson will be the latest person to step up and take on the challenge of being the Head Coach at possibly one of the worst run teams in the NFL. Good luck with that Hue. Judging by your free agent list, you're gonna need it. Nnamdi Asomugha is the most obvious name. As yet the Raiders haven't used their franchise tag, if that tag even exists when free agency resumes. The deadline for applying it is passed, so unless there is some new provision for putting it in, then the Raiders appear to be happy to let Asomugha walk. That's surprising to say the least, given the Raiders usual lack of qualms when it comes to splashing big dollar amounts on players. Also on the unrestricted list is QB Bruce Gradkowski, Offensive Tackles Khalif Barnes, Mario Henderson and Langston Walker, Center Samson Satele, TE Zach Miller, FS Michael Huff and a few other names. The net result is a Raiders team looking suspect in 2011. The draft is going to be interesting, not least because the Raiders traded away their first round pick to the Patriots (part of the Richard Seymour deal). They could really use another tight end, especially if Miller is snapped up, a decent wide receiver to play opposite Jacoby Ford, a new offensive tackle (or two. Or three), a center, another linebacker and one or two decent corners. In short, a hell of a lot. So what does 2011 hold for the Raider nation? Jesus, I dread to think. Much is obviously riding on Hue Jackson, who we know little about in this kind of lead role. Personally the Raiders currently strike me as one of those teams that consists of a collection of talented names (to a degree), but is a long way from being a team. A long way. If they finish bottom of the AFC West I wouldn't be surprised. San Diego Chargers: In the end, the Chargers finished 2010 at 9-7. But few people would doubt that it was not what the Chargers had hoped for from the season. Special teams mishaps in particular killed more than just the one game. Phillip Rivers was good in general, as was the defense. Statistically the Chargers clocked up yards on one side of the ball and almost refused to give them up on the other. But points mean prizes in the NFL, not yards. And in points the Chargers were found wanting. If free agency finally happens in 2011, it's not going to go well for the Chargers. WR Vincent Jackson is locked up with the franchise tag. But Legedu Naanee is on the way out, along with Malcom Floyd and Kelly Washington. Linebackers Antwan Barnes, Kevin Burnett, Stephen Cooper, Brandon Moore and Brandon Siler are off. DE Jacques Cesaire and Travis Johnson might be joining them. So will TE Randy McMichael. RB Darren Sproles is on the list. Safeties Tyrone Carter, Paul Oliver, Pat Watkins and Eric Weddle will probably go as well. That's a lot of talent being dropped off the cart right there. In the draft the Chargers pick at number 18 overall. They could use a young QB, if only to serve as a backup to Phillips Rivers. They need a half decent receiver for depth. The offensive line has been a perpetual weakness. The D-line looks gutted. They'll be short at defensive back if they can't bring back some of their free agents. And they really, really need to find someone to captain that special teams unit! Other than that, all is well. No really, all is well. The defense might take a bit of a pounding in 2011, but they still have Phillip Rivers throwing the ball, with Vincent Jackson, Patrick Crayton and Antonio Gates playing catch. Jacob Hester is still one of the best Fullbacks in the league right now, and Ryan Matthews is a promising young running back. It's more a question then of whether the Chargers can avoid a) shooting themselves in the foot on special teams and b) avoid giving up large blocks of points on defense. If they can handle those two things, you have to think the Chargers have yet another great shot at winning the division. ---- In other news, just briefly, I've heard that the NFLPA is prodding an old horse again, looking for congress to bust the NFL's anti-trust exemption when it comes to negotiating TV rights. The result would be that each team would then be able to sell the rights to it's home games individually. That would, frankly, be the worst possible news for the players. It would mean teams like the Cowboys, Steelers, Giants and Jets could rake in huge sums for their home games, which wouldn't be shared with the likes of Detroit and Buffalo. While in many ways a full free market system would help the teams, that depends highly on them continuing to share TV money. Honestly, sometimes I just despair at the complete lack of brains that the players and their representatives seem to display.

Monday, March 14, 2011

A 2011 Hail Mary

Well, I've finished looking at the Quarterbacks ahead of the 2011 draft (if there is one). There is always the chance I'll come back to this, especially given the potential for a work stoppage giving me more time for further review. At the very least I'm happy for now that I know enough about most of them. So let's begin. Blaine Gabbert: If I had a ten foot barge pole, I wouldn't touch Blaine Gabbert with it. In fact, if you gave me your ten foot barge pole, I wouldn't even touch him with that. And it has nothing to do with poor hygiene. It has everything to do with the fact that he looks terrible on film. I watched one game where he faced a three man rush on a regular basis, and he was bailing out of the pocket before those three were even close. In the NFL, staring down the face of a high speed blitz, I can see Gabbert collapsing like a wet house of cards. I just wouldn't go near him. Cam Newton: I hate Cam Newton already and he hasn't even entered the league yet. I've never known someone to receive so much hype, while showing such a lack of transferable talent. He runs quickly, I get that. He cuts with an insane level of agility. As a wide receiver or running back, Newton could probably have a reasonable shout providing he could learn to run routes. But as a Quarterback he looks doomed to end as a bust. I don't have enough fingers and toes to count the amount of times I saw him under throw receivers who were open down the field. He just seems to lack any demonstrable consistency or skill throwing into tight windows that will transfer to the NFL. He'll either tear the league to pieces with his feet, or they'll tear him to pieces in the pocket. Ryan Mallett: I'm still undecided on Mallett. Apparently he's an asshole of the highest order. There are question marks over possible drug use. All in all, a lot of things that could seriously impact his career, and they're all things I can't really do anything to assess. On the field, he's fine. I have zero questions about his level of playing ability. But a lack of hard work and leadership, if these things are indeed true, could seriously effect his ability to blend in with a team. I'm just not sure right now. Jake Locker: Much the same as Newton, I worry about Locker as a passer. I'm not convinced. I certainly wouldn't use a first rounder on him. He can run and sometimes he can throw great, but consistency from the pocket? I'm just not happy with Locker. I can see him being a Jimmy Clausen type. Colin Kaepernick: This is a running theme, but I'm not sold on Kaepernick as a passer. A lot of this comes down to the legacy of certain spread offenses in college that encourage QB running and option plays over pocket passing. Unfortunately NFL pockets collapse much quicker and some of the linebackers can run just as quickly as guys like Kaepernick. Christian Ponder: Sold! Excellent footwork, passing and vision. I like Ponder a lot. I think he's slipped quietly under a lot of radars thanks to the Newton/Gabbert/Mallett trifecta of hype. Ponder will probably slip out of the first round, providing someone with a value pick later on. Ricky Stanzi: My favourite. He was ok at the combine, but on film Stanzi looks fantastic. The way this kid drops passes into tight windows over his receivers shoulders is something special to behold. Stanzi might drop right down, maybe even to the fifth round. I'd happily use a first on this kid (I believe in trusting your instincts) but given that he's not highly sought after at the minute, you could hold till the second at least and still pick up the best prospect in this years Qb class (in my opinion). Andy Dalton: At the combine, he barely put a foot wrong, but I'm not completely sold on Dalton. Partly that's because of a chronic shortage of film for this kid, but even the stuff I've seen throws up some question marks. In general though Dalton should do fine. He might take a little more time than some of the others, but he'll get there. Should prove to be a safe pick outside of the top 44. Jeff Van Camp: Will likely still be there when the sixth and possibly seventh round comes about. At that price he'd be a complete bargain. I could happily take Van Camp with a late first rounder, though obviously there is no need. He'll slip. But teams could be looking back on this kid in years gone by and kicking themselves for passing him up. Accuracy? Check. Arm Strength? Check. Vision? Check. Cool in the pocket? Check. Watching Van Camp, the most obvious feature was the total lack of decent protection from his O-line and running backs. Yet he stayed in the pocket, braved it out, and made some great throws under severe pressure. Can't speak highly enough of Van Camp. Kellen Moore: Nobody is talking about Kellen Moore. He'll probably still be there when the last name is called on the final day of the draft. Which is a shame. People are looking at Moore as a backup, as an undrafted rookie that might fill a roster spot for the future. Honestly? I'd take Moore over Gabbert, Newton, Kaepernick or Locker in a heartbeat. Just like that. The kid has a lot of talent as a pure passer, but it would appear being a QB at Boise State isn't enough to draw the scouts attention. Shame. Damn shame. Mike Hartline: QB for the Kentucky Wildcats in case you were wondering. An arrest for alcohol intoxication and disorderly conduct could have scuppered any chance of a career before it potentially begins. Which is unfortunate. I remember watching Hartline for the first time. I was actually looking at Randall Cobb, when Hartline caught the eye. He has great anticipation. It's almost like he's watched the game already and now he's just going back to exploit openings. I hope Hartline gets a shot because he has untapped talent. Of the quarterbacks then, who will make my rookie watchlist? Well, nothing is set in stone yet. There is still plenty of time to do more work and change my mind, but I see these guys making it at the minute: - Christian Ponder, - Ricky Stanzi, - Jeff Van Camp, - Kellen Moore, - Mike Hartline, - Ryan Mallett (for now) - Andy Dalton (for now) I'll probably be concentrating on the world of running backs next me thinks. I'll report back when I've gone through the lot. I'm probably half way through the list of players that I'm interested in. Also I'm working on a piece now, in little chunks when I have the time, about how as an outsider looking I think Football can tell us a lot about America as a whole. Stay tuned.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Anti-trust me on this one

Ok, so we've now entered that bizzaro hybrid land of part lock out, part work stoppage, part nothing has happened. The players Union has shut itself down. The League is calling that a sham, saying that the Union never intended to bargain in good faith (which to be fair, they probably didn't). Thus they're trying to impose a lock out, even though there is nobody to lock out anymore (you can only legally lock out a Union. Well, at least as I understand it. I could be wrong). Among the legal boredom it's been pointed out that one of the lawyers for the Players used to work as a clerk for the very same Judge who is likely to hear the coming anti-trust case. But anyway, that's not what I'm interested in today. I want to look instead at the situation that the players are hoping will happen. The likely hood is that by going for an anti-trust case, they will push the league back to the negotiating table in a position that significantly favours the players, just like they did the last time around. Looking ahead though, further into the horizon, what happens if the owners just say "screw it, let's see how the case pans out"? Of course by 'owners', I actually mean enough guys like Jerry Jones, Robert Kraft, Dan Snyder and those with relatively large pockets, refusing to agree to any new CBA deal, deciding that they'd rather see out the litigation over the next few years. That will either end in: a) A ruling that the league doesn't violate anti-trust laws. The players are screwed. Big time. or b) The league does violate the laws. Now the players (and Jerry Jones, Dan Snyder etc) get their holy grail; complete freedom of trade in the NFL. What would this result in? How would the league shape up? Well as it happens we have a perfect example of what will happen. It's right here in my backyard (not literally). The English soccer "Premier League". Founded in the early 1990's, the Premier league consists of 20 teams, operating in an almost completely free market fashion. Apart from certain restrictions on when trades can take place (called "Transfers" over here), each of the teams is a completely independent business and is free to conduct that business in whatever manner it sees fit. So, put your soccer scarf on, grab a pie and a pint, and let's go! The Draft: Simply put, there isn't one. Young players can be signed to a contract at any time, by any team. Most Premier League teams operate a youth team at the very minimum, and many teams have so-called "academies". Talent scouts for the teams scour the world looking for young players who can be brought to the academy for training. Eventually the best of these young players will find their way through to the full team, while many of the others are "Loaned" to teams in the lower divisions, essentially a temporary trade that allows the player to gain some experience. Imagine the Patriots for example loaning out a young QB to the Seahawks. Both teams benefit. The trouble with this system is that naturally young players are enticed more by a big team with a history of success and big pockets. Eventually the less talented young academy players of the big teams grow older and are discarded, often finding other homes at teams around the country. Free Agency: Free agency in English soccer is absolute. When your contract is up, off you go. No exclusive rights. No restricted rights. No transition tags. No franchise tags. If you sign into the league as a young player on a one year deal then that's that. When your contract is over you're free to sign with whomever you choose, for however much they're willing to pay you. Naturally this would seem to favour the big teams with the big pockets. But it's actually relatively rare for a major player to be let go in this way. Sure some players hit the open market. Either because their talent is under rated or because they are simply just a good player playing for a team full of world class players, the odd gem will find it's way out onto the open market. But for the most part the top players don't come for free. With no tags to guarantee that they can hold onto a top player, teams are more inclined to do deals at an earlier stage, avoiding the risk of losing a player on the open market. With no salary cap or roster size concerns, there is no reason not to hold onto as many players as they wish. When it is clear a player has no intention of signing a new contract or their demands are simply beyond the capacity of his current team, they will shop him around in the transfer market and just take the best deal that they can. Which brings me onto.... Trades: In the NFL it's picks and players. I give you a third round pick and a backup tackle who I have no intention of ever using, you give me your second string running back. Simple. In English soccer there are no draft picks. Some times players are thrown into the deal, but in 99% of the cases it is purely money that changes hands. I give you $10 million, you give me that goalkeeper I want. It's here that things start to get a little ridiculous and really start to favour the big teams. The record transfer fee (the name for trades over here) for an English team was set in January of this year, when Chelsea FC purchased a player from Liverpool FC. The players name was Fernando Torres (Spanish) and although the exact fee was never officially announced, it was basically in the region of £40 million. Depending on the exchange rate that's somewhere between $60-64 million. And this is before we take into account any salary. That's just the expense of moving the player from one team to another. Naturally then this favours teams like the Cowboys, Redskins and Patriots etc, who have deeper pockets than most. Of course, the fact that Torres has so far been utter shit for Chelsea highlights the fact that simply throwing money at a problem isn't always the best solution. But then Dan Snyder should already know that. And speaking of throwing money at something.... Salary: Simply put, there is no cap and no floor. You can pay a player £100 or £10,000 per week. It's entirely down to you. There is no obligation to pay anyone a minimum % of total revenue, providing you at least meet a wage that equates to the legally defined national minimum of £5.97 per hour (a problem not present in the US to my knowledge). So those practice squad players can kiss their $88,000 guaranteed annual checks good bye. The earnings of a Long Snapper will probably amount to about $30,000 per year if they're lucky. And there will be no guaranteed wage increases each year to account for a players veteran status. On the top end of the scale, wages for top soccer players in England now routinely exceed £100,000 per week, which is around $150,000-$160,000 per week. So as you've probably guessed, the removal of the salary cap and the salary floor has the effect of making guys like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning much richer, while making the guys at the bottom of the pile (who really need it) much poorer. I wonder how many players have had this explained to them? Oh, and say bye, bye to all that mandatory money and health care that is channelled to veteran players in their retirement. Team Income: In the NFL there is extensive revenue sharing. Everything from TV money to ticket prices gets counted up and divided between the teams. Expect this to continue to a degree. In England, the Premier League executives bargain for TV deals on behalf of the teams and then share the cash around. Everyone gets their slice of the biggest pie. As for individual teams? They make some of their money out of ticket sales and boxes. All revenue is kept by the teams. They also have concessions naturally, and do all the usual outside football stuff like hosting weddings for crazy fans, renting out function rooms and doing stadium tours. But the big earner aside from TV money is merchandise and sponsorship, which is partly one and the same. Teams are independent businesses in the Premier League. While they collectively bargain for things like TV deals and deals with people like EA sports for video games, each team runs it's own merchandising. Shirts, cups, scarfs, air fresheners for cars, fucking doormats. You name it - no matter how tacky - and there will be a Premier League team that sells it. And all that money goes into the team that sells it. That means teams sign their own apparel deals with whomever they choose, allowing them all to sell to their own highest bidder. The same with sponsorship deals. Be it boards and hoardings around the ground, stadium naming rights, or the big money spinner - shirt sponsors - each team is free to milk it's brand for every last penny that it can. Competition: So, compared to the NFL and it's planned parity, how balanced is the level of competition in the English Premier League? The answer is not very. Since the league formed in 1992, there have only been four different winners; Arsenal, Chelsea, Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United. Of those, Manchester United have won by far the most titles (11) and have never finished lower than 3rd (remember it's one big division with no knockout stage). Apart from the blip that was Blackburns win in '94-'95, the top four spots in the league have largely been dominated by Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool. Hold your horses though. I know you're already thinking that this would be terrible for the NFL, but we have to put this into context. There are two mitigating factors that have driven the large unbalance in English soccer, which wouldn't exist in the NFL. Relegation: Every year the bottom three teams are relegated from the Premier league to Division One and three teams are promoted from Division One to the Premier league. Saddled by huge wage bills and suddenly cut off from the lucrative TV deals, the relegated teams often struggle. The newly promoted teams have a different problem. Given the much lower income they received in Division One, they're team is full of players who otherwise couldn't cut it in the Premier League. The gulf in class is often painfully obvious. This often prevents the lower teams from building themselves up over the course of time and becoming competitive. They are often seen as easy pickings for the big four. Naturally the NFL wouldn't suffer from such a problem UEFA Champions League: If you're wondering what UEFA is, no, it's not a form of waffle. It's an acronym for "Union of European Football Associations", which is the governing body of soccer in Europe and it helps us to explain why there is a "Big Four" in the English Premier League. Every year the top four teams in the Premier League qualify for the next seasons UEFA Champions League tournament, played on weekday nights concurrently with the Premier League season. The added TV revenue from this is immense (often four times the value of Premier League TV money) and with every successive year that an English team plays in it, the money just mounts up, widening the gulf significantly from the rest of the teams in the Premier League. So you see, there are certain factors that are unique to the Premier League which the NFL would not have to contend with. There are also some other factors that should be borne in mind when we compare a potentially fully open and competitive future NFL to the Premier League. -- Premier League teams often spend millions buying players in from European clubs. This would not occur in the NFL because their simply is no other source of high quality football players outside the US. That means that over time, if teams like Washington and Dallas splash the money all around the league to essentially try and "buy championships", they will end up funding everyone else's programs. -- The lack of parity in the Premier League is not helped by the one division system, which sees every team play all the other 19 teams twice, home and away, with points awarded for wins and draws. Over time it reduces the effect of shock losses by better teams to the lesser clubs. It also means that clubs with lots of money can build "strength in depth", rotating high quality players in and out during the 38 game season. For example, if all 32 NFL Teams had to play each other twice, it would have reduced the impact of San Diego's losses due to special teams mishaps in the early season, and likely would have crushed any hope the Seahawks had of making the playoffs. -- With the salary floor removed and no draft, the worst teams in the league wouldn't get themselves into such a financial pickle on such a regular basis. No longer would teams have to bank $50 million on a QB who has never taken a snap, just purely because they had to take him first overall in the draft. Teams would find themselves much better able to cope with disappointing performances from young prospects, without hamstringing their future due to cap restraints. -- With no limit on the number of players that a team could have on it's books (even if they're not permitted on a roster for the season), teams would be able to hold onto a number of young players who they could develop over time. Teams in poor markets like Green Bay and Pittsburgh would thrive in much the same manner that they do now; by playing the long game with quality coaching of a multitude of young prospects. Except now they'd have an even bigger cushion for error. Then when those players were still good but just nearing the point of ultimate decline, they could sell them to Dan Snyder for a big wad of cash while they bring in the next young gun. This is essentially the preferred approach of Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who has a masters degree in Economics and who has over seen three Premier League titles for Arsenal, arguably building some of the greatest club soccer teams along the way (including the '03-'04 team that still holds the record for most consecutive games unbeaten). -- Some people fear that the big teams would simply hoard all the talent. But that is highly unlikely. I can't see Michael Vick and Phillip Rivers being happy to jeopardise their future careers (and thus earnings) by sitting behind Peyton Manning on the hope that he gets injured. Even in the Premier League where teams regularly rotate players in and out of the starting line up, the top paid players get bored and frustrated when they can't get on the field, often taking pay cuts to move elsewhere where they can be guaranteed "first team football". Conclusions: All in all, if we did away with the draft and free agency as it currently stands, it might make the NFL a little less competitive, but given the reigns that some teams have had in the league (70's Steelers, 80's 49ers etc) there is a case to be argued that there isn't as much parity currently as some commentators would believe there to be. What we should also recognise is that the Players are the stupidest fucking people in the world right now. They have a situation so well balanced in their favour, it's almost inconceivable that they would be considering litigation to bring it down. If the NFL sees this thing out, or just openly preempts it by switching to a completely free and competitive business model, the owners would stand - I think - to make a heck of a lot more money than they do right now. Even the poorest teams would be able to dump all the dead weight sagging down on their books and potentially teams like Buffalo and Green Bay could end up cashing in by trading desirable young players to the richer teams for cold, hard cash instead of empty draft picks. The big losers of course would be the lower value players. Johnny Long Snapper would kiss goodbye to his $88,000 per year guaranteed check just for being able to accurately snap the ball a few more yards than the regular center. Kickers and punters would likely be in the same boat, along with a raft of other players. The big winners would be the top tier players like the Quarterbacks, as well as the left tackles and shutdown corners. But then they already cash in big time anyway. Again, I just hope that the situation has been fully outlined to the bottom tier guys. And if I was an owner, I'd be more than happy to ride this one out. If the league becomes open then you win. If the lower tier players realise what the full implications of a successful anti-trust suit would mean for them, then they're bound to turn on the high earners and come back to the negotiating table begging the league to give them a deal, any deal, so long as it protects the salary floor. Another win. On that note, it's time for me to head off to sleep I think. As usual, if you like the blog then do me the honour of sharing it about. There is even a little widget thingy at the bottom of the post where you can automatically share it with your friends on facebook, designed specifically for those of you who are too fucking lazy to type the URL onto facebook yourselves. If you want to e-mail me to complain about the swearing, please send your message to; keepingthechainsmoving@gofuckyourself.co.uk If you want to e-mail me about anything else related to the blog, send it to; keepingthechainsmoving@live.co.uk Night all.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

So it begins

Let me just check, see if they've fixed the whole CBA thing yet.... .... nope. Far from it. With the CBA due to expire in about 3 hours (from when I write this), the two sides have packed it in and the NFLPA has formerly decertified. At this point I would just like to call bullshit on DeMaurice Smith, who has spent the last six months banging on about a lockout and how the players should prepare for it etc, knowing full well that the Union was planning to shut itself down and prevent a lockout, just like I've been saying for the last six months that it would. Now the fun begins. Ten players have filed an anti-trust law suit against the NFL. Those ten are; Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Vincent Jackson, Ben Leber, Logan Mankins, Brian Robison, Osi Umenyiora, Mike Vrabel and Von Miller. Wait, what? Von Miller? He doesn't even fucking play for a team! He hasn't even been drafted yet! How the hell can he file suit? What's this horse shit? Ah well. What now follows is a ton of legal rambling and junk which I kinda have my head around, but really can't be bothered to explain. It's all speculation anyway. Until we hear anything from the courts, then all the networks can say with any certainty is about as much as you or I can. E.G. Jack shit. Free agency should begin at 1 minute past midnight, which is a pain in the arse because I still haven't got round to previewing the AFC West or North. Ah well. Just because it begins, doesn't mean anyone is gonna move. The owners might be sitting in a room right now deciding that they'll all agree not to do any deals until this thing sorts itself out. As for the anti-trust lawsuit? Again, I'm not sure how Von Miller fits into all of this. What catches my eye though is that the players technically filed their suit before the CBA expired. Now God knows I'm not a lawyer, but I'm pretty sure you can't file a lawsuit against someone because of something they might do. I wonder if that might invalidate it? Of course the biggest losers here are the fans, as always. I had a brief look over some of the comments made by people on the various articles over at ProFootballTalk.com and here are some of the my favourites. "Eat sh*t, DeMaurice." (over 125 thumbs up) "I’m kind of tired of hearing about the $1B figure. The league has 32 owners. Splitting that is only a little over $31 million more a year per team. If the owners came down, then it is obviously less than that. In the grand scheme of things, that is close to what Tom Brady and Peyton Manning will make this next year. Using one big figure makes it sound worse than it actually is. I don’t feel sympathy toward either side, but the union and players are a little less sympathetic to me know [sic] with this stunt today." "I saw his statement on TV, and Smith kept suggesting the NFLPA represented the players as well as the fans against the greedy Scrooge ownership. I would have found that more convincing if he said even one thing about making the game more AFFORDABLE for the fans. All these billions of dollars getting tossed around, and not a word about cutting ticket prices? Food? Parking?" (112 thumbs up, 6 down) "Ok so correct me if I’m wrong but the owners are people that have worked hard in their lives and were smart enough to acquire wealth to buy the NFL teams. They are the ones who have made this league this profitable. Now due to the economy and all the expenses that they have their profits have taken a hit and they want a piece of the pie back. Now the players mostly have not even graduated from college yet get a minimum pay of 400K a year, while players with larger roles on teams usually make millions. How much would these players be making in the outside world with no NFL that the owners created. The players are the greedy ones, not even listening to the owners offers." "The question I have is Why are the owners under any obligation whatsoever to show that they are in less advantageous financial position now than they were before the current (now expired) CBA as a basis for this renegotiation? I think the basis for terminating the CBA early was the Owners decided it was not fair to them, not that they were having financial trouble, just htat it was not fair to them. I think a 50/50 split of revenue (revenue, not profit) IS unfair given that the players don’t incur any of the costs associated with running an NFL franchise (team facilities, stadiums, training camps, medical costs, etc etc) why should they get 50% of revenue? I think it would be fair if the players union assumed 50% of the costs of running a franchise if they insist they should get 50% of revenue. The current model probably is unsustainable." "Public opinion has shifted to the Owners. Seeing the deal that the owners were willing to go with just confirms that the Players have no argument when it comes to the fight of who is more greedy. Give me replacements. Every player we like today will be gone in a few years anyway. I’ll get over it. F them. Go work at walmart." "I hope the owners win the injunction or whatever and can lock these bums out and show them what hard times are." "With all this action from the union happening so quickly it’s hard not to believe the owners when they say that the Union never intended on negotiating. Seems like the union had everything in place and lined up to go." "And thus begins the one week of “We are UNITED!” and then the “Oh Sh#T i’m not getting paid…lets do this.”" "So the ink wasn’t even dry on the statement and these guys file suit??? Yeah, the union really wanted to negotiate–not. And Von Miller, you’re a fool–you’re not even in the NFL yet and are already a part of this suit?? If you were hoping to go in the 1st round, I think you’ll be waiting in round 3–if you’re lucky." For those that might accuse me o being one sided with the comments, the reality is that the fans (at least those that read PFT) are overwhelmingly against the players. There are a few pro player comments, but they nearly all have way more thumbs down than up. I guess the fans have chosen their side. And lastly, for those that are interested, here is a summary by PFT.com of the alleged final offer that the owners put on the table for the players.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

AFC South 2011 prospects

Time to take a look at the (potential) future for the AFC South in the coming season. Starting with; Houston Texans: God almighty, you have to feel sorry for Texans fans. They cheer when their team manages a winning season. If they make the playoffs in 2011 there will be a hell of a party in Houston, regardless of whether they make it any further. As ever, the Texans 2010 problems were the same problems they had the year before; all offense and no defense. But it's a testimony to the Texans overall talent level that I look at their free agent list and cant help but think to myself; who? WR Jacoby Jones and FB Vontae Leach naturally ring a bell. And I'm sure the Texans would be gutted if they lost QB Matt Leinart (positively crying). Other than that though, I'm lost. Maybe I just need to pay more attention to the Texans in future. Perhaps I could start by paying attention to their draft. The Texans pick at number 11 overall and they really, really, badly, truly, deeply need to go defense. Looking at the state of their roster, I imagine either D-line or corner will be their priority. It depends who falls to them at 11. There is a chance, likely depending a lot on what my 49ers do at number 7, that either Patrick Peterson or Prince Amukamara could fall that low. If so, I'd imagine that the Texans would pounce. Alternatively there is a chance that someone like Nick Fairley could drop, amidst fears he might have been a one season wonder. That wouldn't be a bad shout either for the Texans. 2011 then should be the year of the defense in Texas. Well, at least the Houston part of it. They (read: HC Gary Kubiak) simply cannot endure another season where the offense does all the work and the defense contributes nothing. As we saw with the Saints in '09, a team with a very strong offense often needs just a little shove on defense to propel itself to success. The ability of the Texans to recruit well on the D and the success of new D-coordinator Wade Phillips (a very strong defensive mind) will decide the Texans fate. Indianapolis Colts: They scraped through the gate to win the AFC South. Then they shit out in the playoffs. Not quite what you expect from the Colts (apart from the shitting out in the playoffs bit). To use a "Football Speak" phrase, could the dreaded "Window" be closing on the Colts? Well, if we're going to talk free agency for the Colts then we have to talk about Monsieur Manning. Who, technically speaking, has been Franchised. Now that sounds great in principle, because nobody ever parts with picks for a franchise tagged player. But this is Peyton Manning. Peyton. Manning. Don't tell me you haven't got a sneaking suspicion as well that Dan Snyder is waiting for the labor situation to resolve itself so he can break the bank to bring Peyton to Washington. I'm not saying it's a great move or that he'll even do it. But this is Dan Snyder we're talking about. He must have at least floated the idea in a meeting with his senior staff. Anyway, Manning aside, who else is on the list? RB's Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai to start. Not sure if Bill Polian has many designs to hold onto Addai. Addai is a good running back who is under used for obvious reasons, and maybe with that in mind the Colts will lean on Donald Brown? It wouldn't surprise me, let's put it that way. Kicker Adam Vinatieri is up for grabs, which could be an interesting departure. LB Clint Session is up, as it Safety Melvin Bullitt. For those that didn't know, Bob Sanders is already gone, potentially off to the green pastures of San Diego (?). Apparently the two sides have agreed a deal in private but there is some legal buff between the league and the Chargers holding things up. On to the draft and the Colts pick 22nd overall. Offensive line grabs my attention, specifically interior linemen. Rodney Hudson anyone? Linebacker would be another good shout. There are rumours in the air that Da'Quan Bowers may be slipping down some draft boards and could fall far enough for Indy to take him. In 2011 then the Colts are in relatively good shape. They had a bit of a freak year in 2010 and an early loss to the Texans surprised many, until the Texans ultimately crashed and burned. The Jaguars gave Manning and co. a run for their money, but even then the Colts pulled through. On balance it would appear 2011 could be the Colts year once more. How far they go after taking the South crown is a matter for debate though. Jacksonville Jaguars: As previously mentioned, the Jags had a pretty good year in 2010. Well, 8-8 is literally an average year, but for the Jaguars that's impressive. That tells you everything you need to know about this team. On the bright side, the Jaguars might come out of free agency pretty well. Safety Sean Considine is on the block (which might not be all that bad) along with LB's Justin Durant and Kirk Morrison, WR Mike Sims-Walker and QB Trent Edwards. All of those would be missed, with Sims-Walker the priority for resigning. In the draft the Jaguars now pick at 16, which is practically unheard of territory for them of late. Priorities are Wide Receiver, Defensive Back and Linebacker. There are plenty of interesting names that will fall that low so the Jaguars should have a pleasant amount of choice. If it was me, I'd be looking at receiver first, but obviously it depends who is on the board. It might be that the Jags can load up in free agency (there are some good, under rated names out there; Jacoby Jones, James Jones, etc). As for 2011 then? Don't get too excited Jaguars fans. Not depressed. Just not excited. There is still a long way to go but the promising signs are there. If David Garrard doesn't pan out I'd like to see Luke McCown get his shot. I thought he showed promise in the 2010 pre-season. Another year in this system under his belt might be all he needs to supplant the inconsistent Garrard. And let's have lashings of Maurice Jones-Drew and Rashad Jennings please. Pretty please. With cherries on. Tennessee Titans: Every division needs it's laughing stock and in the AFC South that role has now been assumed by the Titans. The Vince Young saga. Chris Johnson not living up to the (self-generated) hype in his second year. The debacle involving the departure of Jeff Fisher. Owner Bud Adams could be entering his "Al Davis" stage. New Head Coach Mike Munchak has his work cut out for him. In free agency this year he will lose (potentially); DE Jason Babin, QB Kerry Collins, DT Marques Douglas, DE Jacob Ford, WR Randy Moss and TE Bo Scaife among others. Now to the best of my knowledge that leaves the Titans in the capable hands of either Rusty Smith or Brett Ratliff at QB. Nice. Handy then that the Titans will be picking at number 8 overall in the draft. They need some talent to get them back on track and QB might just be the perfect place to start. You already know the list of names. It would be truly hilarious though if Bud Adams picks Cam Newton, presuming Newton is still there. If not QB, then wide receiver, offensive tackle or linebacker are all priorities. Linebacker is a particular point of weakness in both strength and depth, and unless they make some moves in free agency they could end up in serious trouble come Week 1. So how do the Titans stack up overall in 2011? I just can't see it being anything other than another season of struggling. The QB situation alone promises to be a nightmare to resolve. The defense needs to stay a lot healthier than it was in 2010, and they need to perform some damage control in certain areas. By the end of the year, Adams might be begging Jeff Fisher to come back.

Wednesday, March 09, 2011

Spell it out

Before I get round to finishing my AFC South preview, I just want to have a moan, because God knows I love me a moan. I want to moan about the fact that TV pundits have turned otherwise decent/quiet fans into half knowledgeable ass hats. I was reading an article about Tim "My Parents Couldn't Have Wished For A Better Poster Child On Their View Of Abortion" Tebow. In the comments section I noticed someone bashing Tebow. Now this is not a freak occurrence. Lot's of people bash Tebow. But this was not your normal Tebow bashing. Normally people will just say "he sucks" without any qualifier, which allows me to laugh at their simple brains and bask in my own shining wisdom (uhm, didn't you say at the end of your last post that "Cam Newton sucks" without a qualifier?) This one was different though. It was something about horrible accuracy and not being able to fit the ball into tight windows. This is patently nonsense, as we've seen in his brief NFL career that Tebow can both a) throw accurately and b) fit the ball into tight windows. What we're seeing then is the product of someone who has spent way too much time listening to Sirius Radio and not actually watching what's happening on the field. They're simply regurgitating an answer that was probably provided by their favourite pundit in response to the question "What do you think of Tim Tebow?" What's more worrying for me is it is another example of the English Language (both English UK and English US. Why you people couldn't just call it "American" is beyond me. But I'm digressing... in brackets no less), another example of the English Language being progressively stripped of it's meaning and relevance by overuse, buzzwords and management speak. Tight Windows. Dynamic Playmaker. These kind of terms seem to get thrown up every two minutes and attached to every player that moves. Apparently everyone can either throw into tight windows or they can't. Seemingly anyone capable of running 40 yards in less than 5 seconds is considered dynamic. And while I try to explain why I like certain players and what their particular skills are that attract my attention, all too often I get the feeling lately that TV pundits - and subsequently your average fan - have just got a list of adjectives and superlatives (technically almost the same thing) written on a card somewhere with a key guide to point out which ones to use for good players and which ones to use for bad. It's becoming increasingly hard to figure out just why some pundit or former executive likes this player or that. Instead we just get lists of generic-to-the-position attributes. Maybe it's for the same reason that NFL scouts are notorious for hedging their bets; because generic, catch all statements allow you to leave more doors open than a torture chamber for people with OCD. I'd just like to see people be more committal with their evaluations and stop feeding the public cookie cutter lines that make no sense and share little in common with the facts of the matter. P.S. Cam Netwon still sucks. P.P.S. I've just had a phone call to go out drinking. The AFC South will have to wait till tomorrow.

Update

AFC South 2011 preview is being written as we speak.... ... well, technically I'm writing this now. And we're not speaking. But you get the drift. P.S. Cam Newton sucks

Sunday, March 06, 2011

AFC East 2011 Prospects

After the thumb screw-esque exercise that is the NFL Networks coverage of the combine, it's time to pick up where we left off by examining the potential future in 2011 for the teams of the NFL. And we've reached the AFC East. Buffalo Bills: The Bills eh? 2010 could have been worse. They could be picking number 1 overall in April. As it is they've been pushed into 3rd place after finishing 4-12. But the reality is that the Bills were probably one of the best teams to lose at least 10 games. That's kind of like coming first in a shit eating contest, but hey, first place is first place. A number of Bills players stepped up to the plate (are baseball analogy's allowed in a football post?), including QB Ryan Fitzpatrick who surprised many with his confidence and at times very good play. Is he the future of the Bills? That's maybe a more touchy question. Thankfully for the Bills though, most of those who contributed in 2010 will be back for sure in 2011. They're one of the teams to do quite well out of free agency this year. But it's not all sweetness and light. Akin Ayodele, Keith Ellison and Paul Posluszny will all potentially go walk abouts at Linebacker. The loss of Posluszny would be particularly hard to bear, as he really is a high quality linebacker playing on an otherwise crappy D. The loss of SS Donte Whitner might be a little easier to handle, but certainly the loss of CB Drayton Florence will have an impact. Florence is one of those players who you just know will never get the credit he deserves, which could potentially translate into a return to the Bills for 2011. So what about the draft? As mentioned earlier, the Bills pick at number 3 and it's time for them to make the big decision; How much do they like Ryan Fitzpatrick? Sitting at three they will probably get the first shot at a QB, unless the Panthers are feeling bold. There are plenty of choices out there. But picking up another QB that early wastes a pick that could otherwise be used to bring their defense up to par. While the offensive line and wide receiver positions do need an upgrade, I just think that the Bills would be better off going either defensive line (where they're woefully under manned) or for a corner. Chances are that both Patrick Peterson and Prince Amukamara will be there if they're willing to take the early shot on a skill position. All in all, the Bills might actually get their act together this year. I know I say this all the time about a lot of teams, but they're one good draft away from being reasonably competitive. A focus on defense in the off season combined with another good year from Ryan Fitzpatrick could see the Bills fighting for a wildcard spot. Jesus, did I really just say that? Miami Dolphins: What happened to the Dolphins? The addition of guys like Brandon Marshall and Karlos Dansby was supposed to elevate the Dolphins into prime position to challenge the Jets and Patriots for division glory. But instead the bottom fell out of the boat and although they finished 7-9, it was a struggle. It could get nasty in 2011. Kory Sheets and Lex Hilliard are both up for exclusive rights free agency (essentially sign or retire). FB Lousaka Polite will still be around, but that's 3 running backs, none of whom is considered a starter. All the others are off into the murky waters of unrestricted free agency. That's Ronnie Brown, Ricky Williams and the under rated, under appreciated, Patrick Cobbs. Losing those three will be big. As indeed might be the loss of Tyler Thigpen and Chad Pennington. With the struggles of Chad Henne smothering the back pages of the papers in Miami throughout the 2010 season, Thigpen and Pennington may be more valuable to the Dolphins than many realise. So where does that leave the Dolphins draft strategy? Picking at number 15 it might be a running back or guard, but my guess is the Dolphins will be looking for a D-linemen to supplement their high quality linebacking corps. Cameron Wake may have done the 'phins proud in 2010, but one player can't do it all alone. The Dolphins could really use some help up front to ease the pressure. As for their 2011 outlook? I think the Dolphins are one of those teams sitting on a knife edge. If their draft goes pretty well and maybe they do some work in free agency, they could challenge for the AFC East. But draft poorly and/or fail to find the right guys in the draft, and the Dolphins will drop like a lead balloon. Much rests on the shoulders of Chad Henne and new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. New England Patriots: By virtue of "E" before "Y", we now head up north and a little more to the east to join the Patriots. God help us. I still have unresolved Patriots issues, like their blatant use of 'pick/rub' plays and the way that TV analysts then describe them as being 'legal pick/rub plays'. How can you have a legal pick/rub? A pick or rub is illegal by definition, otherwise it would just be a 'play'. But now I'm getting diverted. So after a stellar regular season that came crashing down around their ears in the playoffs, what do the Patriots have to look forward to in free agency? Well, guard Logan Mankins has had his butt franchised. That then leaves the small matter of RB Kevin Faulk, OT Matt Light, FB Sammy Morris and RB Fred Taylor as the major potential departures. Which in comparison to a lot of teams is quite light, (The Saints for example. Haha! Wankers). And as you can probably imagine, given that this is a Bill Belichick team, the overall roster is looking in pretty good shape heading into a draft in which Patriots will pick 18th. And 28th. And then twice again in the next round. And etc... Given the relative high quality of the Patriots team, don't be surprised to see them trade down, down, further down, and a little bit more down. I imagine there will be more than a few picks that are traded away into next year, as Bill Belichick continues to hoard draft picks like a survivalist hoards tins of canned beef. If Belichick does decide to cash in a first round pick, it'll probably be at either wide receiver, running back or offensive line. If a guy like Rodney Hudson is till kicking about, Belichick is smart enough to pull the trigger. As for 2011? Who knows with the Patriots. Like the Colts they seem to breeze through some games that looked like tough contests on paper, only to struggle against comparatively weaker foes (like the Browns). There really is no reason why this Patriots team can't make a run for the Super Bowl. At the very least I would expect them to make the playoffs. Again. New York Jets: Who didn't want to see the Jets fail in the AFC Championship game? Apart from Rex Ryan of course. And the Jets fans. And the Jets players. And the Jets ownership and back room staff. But other than those few people, who didn't want to see the Jets fail? Well they did. Despite all the hype about winning a Super Bowl, once again the Jets failed to do it. Now normally you would look at two consecutive appearances in a championship game and applaud the team in question, especially given that in the first year they had a rookie QB and in the second he still hadn't improved a huge deal. But that's where Rex Ryan and the Jets go astray. It would have been a great achievement, had they not all spent the entire season blowing their own trumpet about how they were the best team in football and were going to win the big one. Definitely in 2010. Oops, maybe not. Well, Rex is now saying that 2011 will be the season. Forgive me for being a little sceptical. Especially when I look at the list of free agents. Oh dear. Kellen Clemens may not be a star QB, but at least he served as a reasonable back up to "Shaky Sanchez" (trademark). That's one plan B that the Jets probably wont be falling back on. Then we have Drew Coleman and Antonio Cromartie on their way out, unless the Jets can stump up some serious cash. Given that they've basically hailed their receiving corps as the priority, it looks unlikely that Cromartie will return. Braylon Edwards, Santonio Holmes and Brad Smith (you know, the wildcat guy) are the three receivers headed to free agency. Holmes is apparently the priority, with Edwards - for some unknown bonkers reason - as the number two. That means bye, bye Smith, who would make a nice little addition for teams looking to mix up their offense a little. Defensive Ends Shaun Ellis and Trevor Pryce are also on the way out, accompanied by safety Brodney Pool and kicker Nick Folk to round up the list of names you might have heard of. That leaves the Jets in a so-so position headed into the draft. Not picking until number 30 overall, they could probably use a new running back, they need more receivers like I need more cash (i.e. badly), they basically have now one proper offensive tackle (yeah, one), and their safety and corner line up doesn't look great either. My guess is that the offensive line will take priority, given Rex's desire to "ground and pound". But honestly the Jets don't look in great shape, and picking at number 30 in each round is hardly the best way to attract valuable suitors for your picks. Will 2011 bring that allusive championship ring then? Don't bet on it. The Jets can still turn things around with some free agency magic and savvy drafting, but that's asking a lot. Honestly, I feel like the Jets under Rex Ryan might just have ridden the last of their luck and hype. Having soared as high as they have over the last two years, it's time I think for Jets fans to now brace themselves for the down cycle. It's only natural. That's how football rolls sometimes. It ebbs and flows. The key thing for the Jets is to keep their eyes firmly peeled on the future and not get carried away just because 2011 might be a difficult ride.

Update

Currently sitting down and working on the AFC East 2011 preview. Will be up (barring interruptions) in the next few hours.

Saturday, March 05, 2011

What's Chris been up to?

So, how's the CBA coming along? It's not. How's my series of articles previewing the AFC teams coming along. It's not (yet). How's my further study into some of the combine players coming along. Meh. I've been watching Prince Amukamara today (not literally, like with binoculars). This is a good case in point when it comes to evaluating the combine and the performances put on. Essentially Amakumara was nothing special at the combine. He was probably a little below average on the field drills. But in games you can see he has great awareness of what's going on around him. He reacts quickly and he' s not afraid to get stuck in to a tackle. Basically the tape tells a very different story to what we saw at the combine. Maybe there is hope yet for Cam Newton? (cough* bust, *cough, cough)

Tuesday, March 01, 2011

NFL Combine, Day Four round up

I'm now sitting down to watch Day Four of the NFL Combine. In front of me I have my score sheet. To my left I have a big mug of coffee. On the other side I have some live electrodes connected to a wall socket, which I plan to attach to my balls every time I need a break from the pain that is the NFL Network. And another thing: Many players are wearing a mouth guard developed by Under Armor that apparently aids with balance. Yeah. Okey dokey. And another thing: I love the way people are talking about the new Under Armor shirt like a heart rate monitor is some huge revolution in fitness. "What? You mean we can monitor heart rates? What is this Demon magic you speak of?". A fool and his money are easily parted. Just ask Al Davis (Oooh that was low). And another thing: I haven't watched any of the drills yet, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that our viewing of the drills will be interrupted on a regular basis by replays of Prince Amukamara. And another thing: Didn't see that one coming. I thought we might be destined for a replay interruption, but instead what we got was a Deion Sanders interruption, as they went down to the field to show us Sanders walking about. I must admit, it was well worth not showing us the drill for that. Oh wait, no it wasn't. But this isn't a knock on Sanders. He doesn't control the cameras and as you can imagine he is well versed in the technical finer points of playing defensive back. Except maybe tackling. And another thing: There we go, Amukamara replay break time. Why do they need to show us a replay of someone messing up the drill? Jesus. This is the first fucking drill and I'm already staring at those electrodes... And another thing: First advert break of the day. If they'd waited about 3 fucking minutes or so, we wouldn't have had to miss half a drill for the sake of the adverts. And another thing: We just saw a replay of what was, admittedly, a great catch. But it was apparent from listening to Rich Eisen talking that he couldn't care less about the catch. It was all about the "look at our great 'NFL in focus' camera's. Look at the great replays we can show you". Get stuffed. Show me the players, not your damn replays. And another thing: Another ad break already? You just had one like 5 minutes ago? Fuck off! And another thing: One of my favourite DB drills is on, so naturally this is a perfect time to interrupt the coverage so we can fill the screen with an inane question from some douchebag on Facebook. Seriously NFL Network, JUST READ THE FUCKING QUESTION OUT!! You don't need to fill the screen with a graphic. Am I the only person on the planet watching this and thinking that? And another thing: I'm calling the FBI or some organisation in the states that can handle with cross state and international fraud. Because that's what this is. The NFL Network calls it full and exclusive coverage of the NFL Combine. What it actually is, is just a way for the Network to pander to the top 5 guys at each position, so their analysts can then spend the whole season talking about how clever they were to predict the high draft picks and their resulting success. This is such bullshit. And another thing: There are some guys coming up in the drill who I was interested in watching. But no, we have to head over immediately to the vertical jump to watch Patrick Peterson doing his jump. Fuck off. Just record the jump and play it back to us later when you have a chance, you know, like a normal broadcaster would do. Imagine if NBC cut away during the middle of a live play on a Sunday Night Game just to show us a replay of a someone jumping or making a tackle. It wouldn't happen, because nobody at NBC is that fucking stupid. And another thing: Prince Amukamara is about to step up and do a drill so naturally the talking heads are inflating him big time. My money says he shits out on this drill..... ah he did ok. Fuck. On second thoughts though, they're bitching that he didn't finish the drill fast so maybe we'll call it evens. And another thing: I still don't understand why they need to cut away from the action to talk about a player. Just because you're handing over from one commentary team to another, doesn't mean we have to see their faces. It's not like we're going refuse to believe it's them talking until we see their faces or anything. It's tiring and boring to have to keep putting up with this crap. I don't expect the combine to be special or anything. I'm not asking for something fancy. I don't expect it to be like the Super Bowl. All I want is to just be able to watch all the players going through the drills without all the constant fucking interruptions. Is that really so much to ask? I mean Jesus, this is just absolutely fucking ridiculous. And another thing: A cameraman just got clocked on the sidelines and that brings up an issue that bugs me. Given that modern cameras, both of the video and still shot variety, have such powerful lens's now, why in the hell do they need to be positioned so closed to the game, where they often get in the way and pose a serious hazard to players who go out of bounds? Move 'em back. And another thing: I was watching it all online, so I had the choice between two different feeds, but people watching on TV I presume were forced to watch the one feed. In that case, while I was watching Group 11 go through their drills, people watching on the TV were forced to watch Rich Eisen run the 40 yard dash. Now no offense, I think it's actually pretty funny watching him lumber down the track, but that's why I watched the video clip uploaded on NFL.com. If I was watching the TV feed, I would be pissed off that I missed drills in favour of that 6 minute fiasco. It just goes to show what I was saying the other day about TV networks believing that they're coverage is more important than the actual product on the field. What level of arrogance does it take to ignore the actual reason for the combine being held (I.E. assessment of the young draft prospects) just so you can show one of your presenters running a 40 yard dash? It's just absolutely fucking ridiculous. Couldn't they have just waited until the DB's were done and then shown it? Man, you have to love yourself something special to pull that off. Just arrogance in the complete extreme. Personally I'd be embarrassed if I knew we were missing drills just to watch me run the 40. And another thing: A drill has just been running for about 2 or three minutes before the directors finally got the hang of which cameras to switch to and the timing of the switches. Question; how many years has the NFL Network been covering the combine now? How long did the Network have to plan and prepare their shots? Professional film crews are expected to turn up at a site and have everything set up and ready to shoot in less than a day, with a minimal degree of pre-planning and scouting of the site. So why the fuck does the NFL Network not have this covered? On the flip side, they never miss a beat with their stage shots, obviously hinting at where their priorities lay in the run up to the combine. And another thing: One of my favourite drills is up, so it must be time to dick about filling the screen with another pointless facebook question graphic, followed by whoring the screen time with replays of Prince Amukamara. I understand; fuck the little guys, who cares about them? As long as we get our allocation of Amukamara replays, all is well. And another thing: You have to love the way that nobody seems to have any control over the sound, so we get cross overs of a coach explaining a drill, along with the sound of one of the players spitting somewhere else, and the sound of two crew members standing around talking about where they should be set up, all at the same time. Hire a fucking competent sound editor for Christ sake. Well, it's over now. I didn't have to resort to electrocuting myself. It would have made little difference, my brain was fried already. Thank God this thing only comes round once a year and only lasts four days. If it was any more I'd snap. So let's take a look then, starting with... Group 10 - Defensive Backs: -- Curtis Brown. Had a great time on the drills. Impressive -- Kendric Burney. There were moments when I thought he wavered, but was above average overall. -- Chris Conte. Very good. Worked hard, cut well, quick feet. -- Vance Cuff. Stole Group 10 easily. Each drill he looked perfectly at home, like it was routine. Worked hard and was smooth as silk throughout. -- Brandon Harris. Did ok. Put on an above average show. -- Will Hill. Ditto the above. -- Shiloh Keo. Awesome to watch. Not quite as flawless as Cuff, but absolutely busted his balls off during each drill and looked hungry. Very impressive display. -- Prince Amukamara was in this group. He looked about average. Group 11 - Defensive Backs: -- Joe Lefeged. Did ok. I'm gonna say average, but with the caveat that this group did much better overall than Group 10, especially at the high end, so the average standard here was much higher. -- Mark Legree. Slightly above average display. -- Rahim Moore. Very good. Consistently one of the best performers in the group. -- Johnny Patrick. Average for the group. -- Patrick Peterson. Clearly marked himself above Amukamara on most draft boards after this. Very good. -- Justin Rogers. Average for the group. -- Kevin Rutland. Slightly above average. -- Tyler Sash. Pretty good. Appeared to take some of the drills a little easy (a common problem on the day) but overall did well. Bagged himself a cameraman hit. -- Da'Norris Searcy. Weird name, very good show. Consistently above average. -- David Sims. Outstanding one hand catch and good overall. -- Buster Skrine. Apparently did a sub 4.3 40 (too lazy to check). Was very good on the field. Quick feet. -- Josh Thomas. My king of the Group and the day. Excellent performance. Ridiculous foot speed, great agility, great ball skills, smooth and hard working. Superb. -- Brandyn Thompson. Average for the group. -- Devon Torrence. Quietly did very well. With all the talent on display I'm worried he got lost in the mix, but he definitely stood out to me. Among the top five of an excellent group. -- Nate Williams. Would make the top 5 as well. Overall very good display. Right, that's your combine done. What now? Well, for the teams it's time to go back to film rooms across the country and start pouring over the tape once more. Is Prince Amukamara really as good as what people previously thought? Is Cam Newton in fact an over hyped running back? What about some of the lesser known guys? Time to dig out three game tapes and give them another, closer look. For me it's much the same. Time to start working back through the list, comparing what I see in games to notes from the combine. Is Josh Thomas really as good in pads as he was in shorts? Do his game instincts match up to that excellent foot speed, or does a lack of awareness prevent him from putting his physical skills to good use? We'll see. But first it's time for me to crash out for a day or two and have a break. Then I'll be back with preview series again, this time heading around the AFC teams. Hopefully the labor crisis will last just long enough for me to get that whole series in, then resolve itself with plenty of time to spare before the start of major off season camps etc. Till next time, thank you all for stopping by and having a read. Just don't go electrocuting your balls....