Sunday, July 31, 2011

Plax Is Back

I'm glad to see that WR Plaxico Burress is getting a second chance to resume his NFL career after spending the last two years in jail on a gun charge.

The New York Jets announced his signing to a one year contract. This is a low risk move for the Jets and lets Burress get free agency after one year.

All of the hype around his courting was a bit awkward. He went public to indicate the type of coach he would like to play for. He met with his former head coach Tom Coughlin to see if they resolve their differences and work together again.

He ended up having more options than I thought he would. I'm glad he is back for another chance, but the burden is on his shoulders to prove that he can be a good teammate and citizen.

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Chad Is In the House

I always thought that Chad Ochocinco would end up in Foxborough at some point. He spent 10 seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals before being traded to the Pats. He is so glad to be here.

He appears to have a unique relationship with Coach Belichick. Both have spoken fondly of one another. Belichick coached Chad in the Pro Bowl. Much to the consternation of Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, Chad made his debut at cornerback in one of Belichick's defenses.

I really see this working out. This is different from Randy Moss. We can never forget the buzz he created when he first arrived. He did a great job while he was here.

Chad might be 33, but I think he can have a great season. The Pats allegedly signed him to a three year contract, but in the NFL that doesn't mean anything.

This is a great signing.

Friday, July 29, 2011

A Little Trimming

The last few days have been very hectic with the large amount of player movement throughout the league.

The cuts made by the Pats today came as no surprise to me. Some of the players had some rather large cap numbers. Those include Ty Warren, Alge Crumpler, Nick Kaczur and Marcus Stroud.

Crumpler might be re-signed at a lower number, but Warren has expressed interest in returning to his home state of Texas to play for the Cowboys or Texans.

There is no room for the NFL for sentimentalism. Players are discarded much like old clothing. Matt Light is fighting for his survival on the team after being a stalwart at left tackle for the last ten seasons. Nick Solder is the new kid in town and the team is ready to plug him into Light's position. If Light wants to finish his career in New England, it will be for less money and at a different position.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

A Slight Risk

The Pats certainly made some news today with the trade of a 2013 5th round draft choice for DT Albert Haynesworth of the Washington Redskins.

Haynesworth brings a huge amount of talent and baggage with him. He has a reputation f or quitting on his team and has been involved with numerous off the field incidents.

The team is minimizing its financial risk. If Haynesworth is on the opening day roster, his salary is guaranteed. The team has not said whether his one year salary of $6 million will be renegotiated.

The bigger issue the potential bad publicity about the signing. The Pats are going with a player who has some high profile behavioral issues. If he plays well, all will be forgotten. The key is what happens after he makes the opening day roster.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Bad Trades

Bill Belichick has always been the master of the under statement. With the first regular season game in seven weeks, it will be a long journey and process to the final opening day roster.

Between the four pre-season games and the expanded roster, there will be a lot of new names. Coach Belichick has no plans to sit idle. Hopefully, the trades he makes prove to be beneficial. His trade record has some issues.

We could spend a lot of time talking about Derrick Burgess, but it wouldn't get us any better this season. We need to move on.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

The End of Tully

There are so many personnel moves around the league that it's difficult to keep up with them. LB Tully Banta-Cain is expected to be released Thursday. At first , the move looked like it was an attempt to clear salary cap space. Banta-Cain was due to count $4 million against it.

Yesterday, Banta-Cain announced that he would need surgery for an abdominal injury and would be out 4-6 weeks. This seems very strange on the eve of training camp. Why is the decision taking place at this time? How long has this been a problem?

The team is probably not happy with the decision to have surgery now. They can always sign him in September. As it looks right now, he is a man without a team.

Monday, July 25, 2011

The Game Is Back

It's hard to believe we have football again. It looks like we are all set. It's taken a very long time to negotiate an agreement that will last for 10 years. It finally got resolved in the last few hours.

I don't think this will effect the quality of play around the league. I think players will be ready to go out there and give it their best effort to play the game that America loves so much.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Is Wright Right?

Every team in the NFL has players who are questionable this season because of injuries. The Pats placed 14 players on Injured Reserve in 2010. Some are still question marks for this year.

Ty Warren and Leigh Bodden never made it out of training camp. Have they fully recovered? One of the biggest questions might be DL Mike Wright who suffered a severe concussion last year. He missed the last six games of the season before being placed on IR prior to the playoffs.

Will Wright make it back? Another concussion could be a serious issue. Unfortunately, many players have their playing fate determined by injuries. It's one of the sad realities of this game.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Practicing Smarter

The Ivy League football teams have taken a step which is sure to draw discussion among fans of the game.

In order to address the issue of concussions, the league has decided to limit full-contact practices to twice a week. The NCAA allows five.

They will also limit contact to one session during pre-season two-a-day workouts. They also plan to further educate players on the proper tackling techniques and the symptoms of concussions.

Some purists feel this is reducing the game to flag-football. I don't believe this to be the case. If left unattended, the dangers of concussions will destroy the game. Too many players suffer career ending injuries because of them.

It's one thing to play a violent game, but the health of players after they are done is too big of an issue to ignore.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Another Tragic Death

As NFL fans await for the final vote by the NFLPA for the ratification of a new CBA, the death of a former player barley registered on the radar screen.

Forest Blue was a four-time Pro Bowl center on the San Francisco 49ers, helping them win three division title in the early 1970's. He was a first round selection in the 1967 draft, the 15th player taken overall. He never missed a game from 1969-1974 and finished his career in 1978, playing four years with the Baltimore Colts.

He died at assisted living facility in Carmichael, California last weekend at the age of 65. He had suffered from dementia and memory loss over the last 15 years and had lived in the facility for the last 22 months.

Most of his medical expenses were covered by the NFL's 88 Plan which provides up to $88,000 for annual medical coverage for disabled players.

He is believed to have suffered from CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) caused by repeated blows to the head. His brain is being donated to the research center at Boston University which has been studying the brains of deceased former NFL players.

There is a very bad trend that is difficult not to notice. Former NFL players die at an age that is much younger than the general population. The crippling orthopaedic issues pale in comparison to the frequency of dementia and Alzheimer's.

The players of today face that same fate.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Before the Frenzy

There are 400 players in a league of 1,900 currently without contracts. Once the new CBA is signed, teams will have a three day window to sign their own free agents. In particular, the Pats need to decide what to do about Matt Light and Benjarvis Green-Ellis.

After the three day period, a feeding frenzy will start as almost a quarter of the players will be looking for a new team. This will be especially challenging for the personnel people as they will need to grasp all of the details of the new CBA.

The training camp roster for the Pats should have quite a few surprises.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Marketing Meaningless Games

There are too many college football bowl games. It gets to the point where a pair of mediocre teams are playing in meaningless games. A great example is the Pinstripe Bowl to be played in Yankee Stadium on December 30.

It will be a classic match-up between the fourth-place Big East team against the seventh-best in the Big 12. To combat potential soft sales, the game will be packaged with the Nov 30th contest between Rutgers and Army. Fans will be forced to buy tickets for both games or none at all.

This seems like a rather heavy handed type of marketing. Fans should be able to attend their game of choice. If a game can't sell enough tickets on its own merit, it should be allowed to meet its own demise.

If the Pinstripe Bowl is not played, nobody will miss it except the players, coaches and their families.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Sizing Up the Draft Picks

I read a review of the 2011 draft picks of the Pats. Based on some of the comments, one might wonder why they made some of their selections. The comments came from personnel people from various NFL teams.

CB Malcolm Williams, taken in the 7th round, was seen as the player most likely to have the shortest NFL carer. They said he was not a good player, but had a great workout at the Scouting Combine to get himself selected.

LB Markell Carter, taken in the 6th round, apparently will end up on the practice squad because he was "a real stiff. Not a very good athlete. Marginal speed. Didn't think he dominated on the Division 2 level". That endorsement must make fans feel comfortable.

Depending on who you talk to, QB Ryan Mallett might be the biggest steal or a total waste of a 3rd round pick. "He doesn't have the feet right now. He's got a little baby fat around him now. We thought of him as the best pure passer in the draft. Makes bad decisions when he is under pressure".

Mallett's comments sound like he will fight for the 3rd QB spot. He will make the team and linger on the roster for a couple of years before they give up on him. Either that, or he is the heir apparent to Brady.

You never know with draft picks.

Friday, July 15, 2011

Not Looking For A Splash

With the pending labor agreement on the horizon, the sports talk shows are buzzing about potential free agent activity by the Pats. Many callers and "experts" want the team to make a huge splash by signing a big-name player, especially a pass rusher.

They fail to take into account that throwing large amounts of money at free agents is not the road for success. The team might need to open its wallet a bit if they find someone that can fit their needs, but they have their limits as to how much they will spend.

The salary cap will be reduced to around $120 million this season. The team has flexibility with its cap space. I just don't see them blowing a ton of money for any individual player. I would not be surprised to see some type of trade.

Thursday, July 14, 2011

The Long Road For Crouch

The UFL and the Arena League are often seen as the last chance for my players with dream of playing with the NFL. Former Nebraska QB and 2001 Heisman winner Eric Crouch is trying once more after being out of football since 2006. He signed a contract with the Omaha Nighthawks.

Crouch has a long road ahead of him. It seems that winning the Heisman is a ticket to going nowhere in the NFL. He was drafted in the 3rd round in 2002 by the St Louis Rams. He was considered too short to play quarterback and was switched to wide receiver.

He is a great example of how misleading statistics can be. He is only one of three QB's in Division I-A history to rush for 3,000 yards and pass for 4,000.

He signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in early 2005 and was allocated to the Hamburg franchise of NFL Europe. He was converted to safety where he recorded 25 tackles. He failed to make the Chiefs regular season roster.

He finally got a chance to play quarterback when he signed with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL in 2006. He was fourth on the depth chart headed by Michael Bishop. He finally made his debut in a game against Saskatchewan when he lead his team to a second half comeback victory.

Injuries struck him again in 2007 and he was given his release. He returned to Nebraska where he opened a business selling playground and recreational equipment.

He is back playing with the home team knowing that he may never make it to the NFL, but wants to give it another try.

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Timing the Game

I often wonder how they come up with some of these sports statistics. A study indicated that during a typical NFL game, the ball is only in play for 11 minutes. What happens during the other 49 minutes?

I find this fact to be credible when you think about it. They are only talking about the ball being in play. Once the ball is snapped, the play itself usually lasts less than ten seconds. If the average game has about 70-80 offensive plays, this number would seem correct.

More time is used on kick and punt returns, but incompleted passes stop the clock and don't take much time unless the quarterback is scrambling.

This number isn't that bad when you think of how much time the ball is actually in play during a baseball game.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Too Much Control

Most fans will agree that the contracts for early round draft choices are out of control, especially for some of the picks in the first round. The are numerous stories of draft picks who got millions in bonuses, but never played down in the league.

Those contracts have become a point of contention in the NFL labor talks. Owners wants to cut the size of the contract while keeping the player under control for up to five years.

I believe in lowering the dollar value of these contracts, but players should have access to free agency sooner as a result. Neither side can have it their way. Free agency and salary control go hand in hand at this point.

Unless both sides agree to some limitations, there will be no football played.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Mike Vrabel Moves On

Former Pats LB Mike Vrabel often talked about coaching at his alma mater, Ohio State after his playing days are over. Apparently, they are as he agreed to become the linebackers coach. The move was made possible by the firing of Head Coach Jim Tressel in light of an NCAA investigation and subsequent sanctions imposed on the school.

Vrabel ends a 14 year career which saw him play for three different teams. He won three Super Bowl rings with the Pats after signing as a free agent prior to the 2001 season

He was drafted in the 3rd round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1997. He reached his zenith with the Pats where he was named to the Sports Illustrated All-Decade team.

He was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs, along with QB Matt Cassel, prior to the 2009 season for a 2nd round draft pick.

His retirement comes as a surprise as Vrabel was very involved with the ongoing NFL labor negotiations as a member of the NFLPA Executive Committee.

His new boss will be Luke Fickell who was elevated to head coach after the firing of Tressell. He was a former teammate and roommate of Vrabel's during their Ohio State days .

Saturday, July 9, 2011

The Legacy of John Mackey

John Mackey was a Hall of Fame tight end with the Baltimore Colts from 1963-1971. His ability to catch the ball off the line of scrimmage was considered a key factor in the evolution of the NFL to a pass-driven offense.

His great speed and soft hands, along with punishing running skills, allowed him to become a favorite target of Hall of Fame QB Johnny Unitas. He revolutionized the tight end position with his pass catching and run blocking skills.

He later became head of the NFL Players Association. He lead the battle for better treatment and benefits for retired players, especially for those with with conditions related to dementia and Alzheimer's. In 2006, he helped negotiate the "88 Plan" named after his playing. This provided former players up to $88,000 annually for care in assisted living facilities or $50,000 for home care.

It was quite ironic that Mackey died this week from dementia while living at a long term care facility.His dementia was considered to be linked to his playing days.

Mackey's efforts at long term care provided financial relief for his family. It will also benefit many other former players in the years ahead.

As players and owners debate how to split $9 billion in annual revenue, a group of former players have filed a lawsuit contending they have been left out of the negotiations.

Players are often cast aside during their careers. The treatment of former players is getting better, but the NFL should be ashamed of how they are treated overall. The players of today will face the same physical and mental challenges long after their careers are over.

Friday, July 8, 2011

Kerry Collins - Done

Looking back at all of his problems, it's almost a miracle that QB Kerry Collins was able to spend 16 years and have a great career.

Collins was staring at being 38 and a free agent. Perhaps, that might have been one of his motivating factors for retiring. He could still play effectively.

He was the first draft choice of the Carolina Panthers in 1995. He managed to get involved in drinking problems and inappropriate comments that hastened his exit from the team. He was banished to the poor teams of the New Orleans Saints.

After seeking treatment for alcoholism he got a four year contract from the New York Giants, leading the to a Super Bowl appearance.

In 2004, the Giants drafted Eli Manning and signed Kurt Warner. Collins requested his release before signing with the Oakland Raiders, another bad team.

He ended up his final years with the Tennessee Titans where he mentored Vince Young before replacing him as the starter.

It was five teams in 16 years, one Super Bowl appearance and some teams with bad records. He was able to finish with some very impressive career NFL rankings with passing completions 3,439 (9th), passing attempts 6,163 (9th) total yards 40,441 (11th) and 29 TD passes (29th).

He is a great example of someone with some really big numbers who will never make it to the Hall of Fame.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Aiming For July 15

We shall see how the date of July 15th plays out. That is considered the "drop dead" date for salvaging the entire 2011 season. Training camps are scheduled to open 10 days later. There would be a very short free agency period that would be quite hectic.

Many news reports indicate that an agreement is almost at hand. We have been down this road before. Now, we are in the final minutes of the 11th hour. Pretty soon, serious money will be lost. Once that happens, all bets are off.

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Losing Big Time Money

The NFL is facing the possibility of having its preseason schedule effected by the ongoing lockout. Some consider the games to be useless and a potential way to get injuries.The owners want to drop two and extend the season with two more regular season games.

One thing they produce is revenue. For every week where games are not played, there will be a loss of $200 million in revenue. Losing all four games would cost $800 million.

Under new proposals, the players would lose $384 million of this revenue while the owners would forfeit $146 million.

With training camp getting closer, there will be additional pressure to have a plan put into place. This is going down to the wire.

Monday, July 4, 2011

Brady Tops the List

The NFL Network concluded their series of the Top 100 Players of 2010 as determined by the league's players.

It was no surprise that Tom Brady and Peyton Manning were number one and two. QB's get all of the glory in the league. RB Adrien Peterson was 3rd with LB Ray Lewis and Safety Ed Reed rounding out the top five.

The top 10 looked very interesting. Everyone can come up with their own list. That is one of the problems. How do you separate number 40 from 50?

With 100 players on the list, it almost becomes unmanageable. I'm sure the NFL Network felt that 100 would be a good number to build a series around.

They did a live phone interview with Brady at the end of the show. He sounded in mid-season form with his comments praising his team mates and coaching staff. He has learned well from Coach Belichick.

Friday, July 1, 2011

Vick & NIKE Part 2

Back in 2007 when Michael Vick was in the depths of his legal problems, NIKE severed their contractual relationship with him. It cost Vick millions of dollars in lost endorsements.

After two seasons in his NFL return, NIKE announced that they will be involved with Vick again. This is unprecedented among companies who have dropped clients because of legal problems.

Vick is playing to the level before his legal problems. NIKE must realize there is money to be made with Vick. His number #7 jersey with the Philadelphia Eagles was the 6th most popular selling shirt among fans.

NIKE wants to ensure that they are part of this money making machine.