The Conundrum of Carson Palmer

Only a few years back, Carson Palmer was sitting pretty in Cincinnati. He had his team on the brink of playing in the Super Bowl, which would have been their first since the Boomer Esiason era. The Bengals were playing for an AFC title against their division rival (and eventual champion that year) Pittsburgh Steelers, and Palmer was looking to blow the game open with a 66-yard bomb to then-rookie wide receiver Chris Henry.

But then he was hit low (albeit untentionally, according to the official NFL ruling) by Steelers defensive lineman Kimo von Oelhoffen, sustaining tears to multiple knee ligaments and provoking a rule change forbidding intentional contact with quarterbacks below the knees.

Even after he recovered from said injury, he came back with a vengeance in 2006 to throw for 28 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, becoming the first Bengals signal-caller to make two consecutive Pro Bowls since the aforementioned Esiason in 1988-1989. He capped off a great comeback year with Pro Bowl MVP honors. One may have thought he was poised for stardom, about to take his place amongst the league’s elite passers.

Since then Palmer has taken a tumble; 2005-2006 was the last season that he recorded a season total 2:1 ratio of touchdowns to interceptions. While his play has been reasonably productive, the Bengals have only made the playoffs once since then: a one-and-done appearance in which Palmer completed 18 of 36 passes for a paltry 146 yards, one touchdown and one interception (posting a passer rating of 58.3). Some days, I thought Carson and his backup (younger brother Jordan Palmer) could have switched jerseys and no one would notice.

Apologies, that’s not really fair to at least one of the Palmer brothers. Jordan is more mobile than Carson.

Their ultimate capitulation occurred this past season, in which the Cincinnati club posted a 4-12 record and earned the fourth overall pick in the draft. In context, only the 2-14 Carolina Panthers held a worse record, but Denver and Buffalo also went 4-12 and pick ahead of the Bengals. Now Carson wants out, and is threatening to retire if the Bengals don’t trade him to another team.

The reasons for Palmer’s struggles throughout this period are varied, ranging from tragic to just plain puzzling. The unfortunate passing of Chris Henry, who was in the midst of a potential breakout season after a troubled early career, sent shockwaves through the Bengals offense. The addition of the 36 year-old Terrell Owens to accompany an already eccentric and aging Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson at wide receiver produced more highlights on their “TO & Ocho” television show than on the football field. A wildly inconsistent defensive unit (over the course of games and entire seasons) didn’t help matters even when the Bengals were winning, let alone when their offense began to lose productivity. It must also be noted that while the AFC North division is home to the equally lowly Cleveland Browns, it also holds the Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens, two perennial playoff contenders featuring top-ranking defensive units. None of these spell a recipe for success.

It seems little surprise, then, that Carson Palmer wants out of Cincinnati. Maybe he’s tired of having a different offensive line every year (or, perhaps worse, the same wideouts). He could also just not like getting clobbered by Pittsburgh and Baltimore year-in and year-out. Whatever the reason, he has threatened the organization with retirement, admitting that he has at least been frugal in his investments by saving 80 million dollars. There’s also the lingering possibility that he may retire and attempt to sign with another team in an imitation of Brett Favre. Whatever the case may be, the Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Bills, and a host of other teams would be likely to jump at the chance to sign Palmer, who can probably make a decent sales pitch if he just blames all of his problems on the Bengals.

What's Up With All These Rematches?

On Sunday, the Chicago Bears will host the Green Bay Packers at Soldier Field to battle for the National Football Conference Championship. This will be the third time this season that the two division rivals--both of the NFC North--will clash.

On the other side, the New York Jets travel to Pittsburgh to decide who will play the winner of the Bears-Packers contest in the Super Bowl. No problems there, right? Except that both the Jets and the Steelers played a divisional opponent (the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens, respectively) in order to reach their current position.

So why are there all these rematches? Why are teams from the same divisions ousting other divisional champions in order to play each other for a third time? Are these divisions just that much better? Maybe.

In the AFC North, both the Ravens and Steelers posted 12-4 records in the 2010-2011 regular season; as one may guess, this did not bode too well for the other two teams that share their division. The Cleveland Browns went 5-11 while the Cincinnati Bengals were a lowly 2-14. Despite the weaknesses of the declined Carson Palmer and washed-up duo of Terrell Owens and Chad “Ochocinco” in Cincinnati, the fact that Browns were actually able to post five wins in a division boasting the Steelers and the Ravens is a testament to their actual ability. Cleveland was one of only two teams (along with the Jets) to beat Tom Brady and the number-one seeded Patriots, underlying the core of potential they possess in quarterback Colt McCoy and running back Peyton Hillis.

The NFC North possesses a similar situation as its AFC counterpart: two dominant teams in the Packers and the Bears who have almost continually asserted their authority over the other two teams this season. That said, it is difficult to deny the potential ability of the Minnesota Vikings, who were approximately seven Brett Favre injuries away from perhaps having a decent run at the playoffs themselves. It’s not just the Vikings, though; on talent alone, the NFC North is perhaps one of the most loaded divisions in the NFL. Even the Detroit Lions, historically the laughingstock of the league even before their winless 2008-2009 season, possess the likes of quarterback Matthew Stafford, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, and one of the league’s most dynamic players in Calvin Johnson. When your division rivals count Devin Hester, Adrian Peterson, and Greg Jennings on their rosters, that title counts for a great deal.

Potential obviously does not make the playoffs, but the ability for division leaders to play week in and week out against challenging division opponents hones their skills for the playoffs. This helps them against teams from weaker divisions, such as Seattle (the fact that they won their division with a 7-9 record tells you everything you need to know about the strength of their opposition) and Indianapolis, who were a multitude of injuries away from likely coasting to another AFC South title but instead had to fight through a tough stretch to clinch their playoff berth.

But a big question remains as to whether it is beneficial or detrimental from an entertainment perspective for two teams from the same division to play each other a third time. Sure, intra-division rivalries stew up a high level of anticipation from the fans of the participating teams, but from a neutral perspective such a contest excludes a great deal of potential markets by limiting the league’s representation to only a select few divisions.

Week 2 Sobered by Death of Broncos WR Kenny McKinley

As much as I would like to talk about how the Bears managed to trump the Dallas Cowboys this week (I still had to get it in edgewise), the most important story this week is that of Denver Broncos wide receiver Kenny McKinley, a second-year pro who was found dead in his Englewood, Colorado home from a self-inflicted gunshot wound according to espn.com. This has obviously come as a shock to all around the league, especially after McKinley's positive interviews this season concerning his hopes for a burgeoning role in the Denver offense. McKinley was placed on Injured Reserve, but hopes were still high that he could eventually become a regular contributor to the Broncos.

McKinley died yesterday on September 20. He was 23 years old.

Rest in peace, Kenny McKinley, 1987-2010.

QB Chaos Ensues in Arizona, New England

The Cardinals have (finally) cut ties with former Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart. Now we can all release that breath we were holding, or we could shrug our shoulders and ask why we should care about Mr. Leinart. His release honestly shouldn't come as a surprise; the former first-round pick has only played in 29 games since being drafted in 2006, twelve of which came in the 2006-'07 season before current Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt was hired. Throughout that time, he has been bested in his quest for Arizona's starting spot by a resurgent Hall of Famer in Kurt Warner and now a one-season wonder in former Browns signal-caller Derek Anderson. In hindsight, losing a quarterback battle to Warner is understandable, but losing out to Mr. Anderson (despite his select merits) is less so. Especially for a quarterback who won the Heisman Trophy at a program known for producing successful NFL players. But when you assume a job is yours and don't work for it, as Mr. Leinart did, you can never expect to remain employed for long. With the current NFL emphasizing work ethic and character, those few who believe themselves entitled to a position are quickly being winnowed out, as seen with former Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell and now Leinart. The USC man, however, has been significantly more fortunate than his LSU counterpart; while Leinart was signed by the Houston Texans to back up Matt Schaub a day after his release from Arizona, Mr. Russell has been arrested on charges of possession of codiene syrup (also known as "purple drink") and is still without a job.

Meanwhile, Tom Brady has caused heads to shake with a comical haircut that has been relentlessly compared to teenage pop singer Justin Bieber (who, according to , even personally voiced his appreciation for the new do). The Patriots star got into a car accident early this morning (maybe his overly long locks interfered with his vision), but was fortunately unharmed and attended practice later in the day. Fully taking Bieber's comments into account, I think New England's head coach Bill Belichick should force Brady to cut away his tresses. Long hair may work for Drew Brees of New Orleans, but this car accident should be enough of a red flag to prove that it does not do the same for Brady. I don't really have any grudge against long hair, but honestly, an endorsement from Justin Bieber is not positive press. If he doesn't cut it, perhaps an incident reminiscent of Troy Polamalu getting dragged down by his own mane (now insured for one million dollars) will convince Mr. Brady to return to his usual cleaner cut self.

Hall of Fame Overshadowed by Training Camp Flu

After a pretty miserable Major League Baseball Hall of Fame class, I was interested to see who the NFL would bring into the Hall this year. Thankfully, they did not disappoint, with a 2010 draft class sporting multiple NFL record holders (perhaps the greatest wide receiver and running back of all all time in Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith, respectively) and one of the great innovators of the game in former Lions defensive back and Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick Lebeau. In case you didn't watch, rounding off the class were Floyd Little (nicknamed "The Franchise" and the first of Denver's many 1000 yard rushers), Rickey Jackson (who anchored one of the best albeit least winningest linebacker corps of all time in New Orleans before winning a Super Bowl with the 49'ers), John Randle (an undersized defensive end who record 137.5 sacks in his career, mostly with the Minnesota Vikings), and Russ Grimm (a member of the famous Hogs offensive line known for paving the way for multiple championship squads during Joe Gibbs' first stint as head coach). I wish I could say more, but most of these guys played before I was even born, so that somewhat feeble testament will have to stand for their much grander achievements.

In the meantime, the typical off-season affliction has settled in to the NFL. We are tuning out the antics of the Bengal's latest celebrity couple in T.O. and Chad "Johnson", which could possibly even contest the Miami Heat's triumvirate of Chris Bosh, LeBron James, and Dwayne Wade as the year's biggest meeting of the egos. While there is little doubt that all players in either case are determined to win, the price of failure will be exponential for both of them. The NFL faithful (and the Bengals in particular) will simply havee to hope that Terrell Owens realizes he is actually on his last legs as a player. Unless he stays on in Cincy, I find it extremely difficult to believe anyone would take a flyer on T.O. with all the mileage and baggage that he's carrying.

The 'Skins $100 million dollar man Albert Haynesworth also passed his fitness test (finally) after skipping/failing it multiple times due to a nagging swelling in his knee. This strangely comes after Haynesworth skipped all of the optional and mandatory OTA's due to his unhappiness with being forced to conform to head coach Mike Shanahan's 3-4 defensive scheme. Despite the fact that it would be indicative of his change of direction speed and the ability of his knee to resist stress, I personally find it difficult to discern what possible benefit the Redskins could get from making Haynesworth run a 300 yard wind sprint. Practically, when is he ever going to run for than 20 yards on any one play. I think this is Shanahan's way of exerting his influence over the biggest (and I mean that both literally and figuratively) headache that he has inherited from Washington owner Dan Snyder.

Of course, the most commonly recognized symptom of Offseason influenza is Favre-watching. The 40 year-old quarterback recently announced that there is persistent pain in his ankle despite surgery following the completion of last season. In what has already been established as one of the league's most popular running gags, news spread last week that Favre allegedly texted teammate Visanthe Shiancoe that he had decided to retire. He, of course, denied sending any such message, citing that if his ankle was the only obstacle between him and playing for another season. In my opinion, Brett Favre has earned more right than anyone to waffle during the off-season, but we're honestly growing tired of this charade. So I have a suggestion for Brett: stay on the team until you decide to not return for good. No one will care how long it takes, really, as long as you don't keep the media in a frenzy every time someone suspects you're calling it quits.

Black And Blue & Passing Too

The arrival of Mike Martz is more than a move to revive one of last year's most disappointing offenses in Chicago (not that too much was expected of a talented but still young quarterback, a group of fledgling receivers, and a sophomore running back supported by a mediocre offensive line). It was an an omen. A harbinger of the end of the run-first mentality of the NFC North that has led to its nickname: the "Black and Blue Division".

Following last season, it seems apparent that the Bears are no longer going to resist one of the league's new trends. Despite head coach Lovie Smith's insistence that they would stick to the running game, Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler threw the ball 555 times last season. Admittedly, that's not as many as Mr. Cutler threw last year in Denver (616), but 90 more than Bronco and former Bear Kyle Orton threw in his final year in the Midway. For the sake of comparisons (and to show a reason for Cutler's seemingly frantic number of pass attempts in 2008), Mr. Orton attempted 541 passes for Denver last season.

The Bears had little success running the ball last year due to a sophomore slump by Matt Forte, who came off one of the best rookie years in the history of the Chicago Bears and the NFL in which he personally accounted for one third of his teams all-purpose yardage from the line of scrimmage. An ailing defense further aggravated the situation and forced Cutler to throw in situations that he had no business throwing in. This, combined with inexperienced receivers and inconsistent line play, led to Mr. Cutler being sacked 35 times and throwing 26 interceptions last year (he led the NFL in the latter category). Not a good recipe for success, despite the flourishing of passing offenses in the last few years.

The Bears are hardly the only member of the NFC North to have scrapped the running game in some form or another. Green Bay hasn't had a dominant runner in years, since before Mike Holmgren instituted the West Coast offense and established the Brett Favre era. It wasn't until the breakthrough of Ryan Grant that the 2007 Packers even had a bona fide rushing threat. And even with Grant's emergence, they have still relied on Favre (and now his replacement Aaron Rodgers, who has somehow engineered one the league's best offenses despite a terrible offensive line) to put up points and win games.

The Vikings are the latest beneficiaries of Mr. Favre's prowess; Brad Childress' system in Minnesota is essentially the same offense that Favre ran in Green Bay. And even though Minnesota has one dominant back in Adrian Peterson and another quality rusher in Chester Taylor, #4 still attempted 531 passes (only four less than he threw for the running back-less 2007 Packers). In the end, it was Favre's arm that won games for Green Bay, not Peterson or Taylor's legs. The only reason they got away with it is because every defense in the league is still afraid of the the threat of Adrian Peterson.

But perhaps the lamest team in the division has been the Detroit Lions, whose only excuse for their high passing numbers has been their otherwise awful performance. Mike Martz may be renowned as a passing fanatic, but Marshall Faulk is remembered as much for his rushing ability as he is for his ability to catch the football. When Martz's teams have been good, he has allowed a greater degree of rushing into the gameplan. But in the two years that Jon Kitna was in Detroit, he averaged 579 passes a season. Things haven't improved with Kitna's departure; in the ten games new Lions signal-caller Matthew Stafford played last year, he threw 377 passes. Had he played all sixteen games and continued throwing at that rate, he would have had just over 600 passes on the season.

As sad as it sounds, the NFC North is bucking a trend; while many teams have developed their passing games into precise and lethal machines, poor play has made the Black and Blue division flounder, caught transitioning too late to the new era of pass-first professional football.

All stats are courtesy of www.nfl.com.

Martz Arrives in the Midway

The Chicago Bears have decided to shake things up by hiring offensive guru Mike Martz—who engineered one of the greatest offenses in NFL history—as their new offensive coordinator last week. Comments on the Bears website have been mixed to say the least, with some claiming that Martz’s hire will compound the Bears’ current offensive woes. Given the team’s desperate need for receiving talent, they may be right.
I prayed during last year’s offseason that the Bears would not only trade for Jay Cutler but also give a second round pick to the Denver Broncos for receiver Brandon Marshall who, despite the promise Johnny Knox and Devin Aromashadu have shown this season, would be an instant upgrade over the other Bears wideouts based on talent alone (without even mentioning his previous experience with Cutler). Unfortunately, that trade didn’t go through, and now everything is peachy in Denver between Marshall and Josh McDaniels.

I honestly hope that Martz can help the Bears get better, but it’s hard to see this as anything more that a contradiction of philosophies. As if Bears fans needed more proof that Lovie Smith is throwing in the towel for the running game despite his insistent calls for sticking with the run, Chicago hires a coach infamous for his offensive philosophy which, in a nutshell, resembles “pass first, pass later, then pass some more”. Admittedly, Martz’s system performed superbly in St. Louis (where they have been 18-51 since his departure from the head coaching position), where it was hailed as the “Greatest Show on Turf”. But the current Chicago Bears do not compare favorably to a Rams squad that featured a franchise tackle in Orlando Pace (who is on the Bears roster but a shadow of his former self), two fantastic receivers in Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt, and a Hall of Fame tailback in Marshall Faulk, proving that the system is not a panacea for the Bears. Significant funds must be invested in the offense before the real results can be shown.

In the meantime, I fear the Bears may end up looking like the Detroit Lions of 2006-07, who were among the league leaders in passing yardage but had little to show for their productivity. I have no doubt that Cutler is a superior player to Jon Kitna, but he has already led the league in interceptions once. May Bears fans pray that he doesn’t do it again.

Show Some Love for Gang Green

For almost a half century, the crowning moment in the history of the New York Jets has been one game: Joe Namath's infamously guaranteed victory against the Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. Seemingly ever since, they Jets have been the most maligned team in the league, constantly in the shadow of their rival New York Giants, who have one three championships in the last 25 years. Sometimes, they were bad enough that some may have considered their nickname (Gang Green) to be more likenable to an infectious disease, a plague that needed to be purged from the NFL scene.

Sure, the Jets and Giants may not play each other very often (they're not even in the same conference), but they are definitely rivals in every other sense of the word. In what other region are there two NFL teams to root for in such close proximity, both competing for the adoration of a city as well as for Super Bowl rings? The closest you get in San Francisco/Oakland, but even those two teams are separated by a bay. The fans of the winning team get to gloat and show their colors at work or at school, their club having earned them bragging rights for the rest of the year.

At least, that's how it should be. But the cascading spiral of mediocrity that has been the New York Jets over the past 41 years hasn't shown consistency in keeping and fostering their talent, leading to occasional winning seasons puncturing a culture of high expectations and an inability to reach the playoffs. Even when the Jets did secure a playoff berth, they have not been to a Super Bowl since the days of 'Broadway Joe' Namath.

Since Namath's departure, the Jets have not had a true franchise quarterback. Boomer Esiason couldn't win in green despite going to two Super Bowls in Cincinnati. Vinny Testaverde, in two seperate stints with the team, led the Jets to an AFC Championship game in his first year but only played significantly in two of the seasons he was signed to the team. The Jets then signed Chad Pennington, whose nagging injuries and inability to throw deep proved to be his demise in the swirling winds of the Meadowlands. Then head coach Eric Mangini then decided to take a flyer on Brett Favre, who came out of retirement to have a Pro Bowl year despite throwing as many interceptions as touchdowns.

But the new administration had other plans. Following Favre's second retirement, the Jets hired Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan as their new head coach, and drafted USC quarterback Mark Sanchez with the fifth overall pick. Along with a proven defensive scheme, Ryan has brought with him a swagger that the Jets have lacked since receiver Keyshaun Johnson played for the club.

Gang Green certainly has a lot going for them head into their game against the San Diego Chargers. They boast the #1 total defense in the entire league over the regular season despite losing starting nose guard Kris Jenkins to a knee injury, most prominently featuring defensive end Shaun Ellis, linebacker David Harris and shutdown corner Darrelle Revis. They also have an offensive line with three Pro Bowlers in left tackle D'Brickishaw Ferguson, left guard Alan Faneca, and center Nick Mangold, comprising one of the highest paid lines in the league. Veteran runner Thomas Jones, who eclipsed the 1,300-yard mark this year, is accompanied by rookie third-rounder and former Iowa Hawkeye Shonn Greene. Perhaps more importantly, the Jets have some momentum coming off a strong win against the Bengals on Wild Card Weekend. The mettle of their team will be tested against San Diego, who will almost certainly pack the box and force Mark Sanchez to throw. But that's what Cincinnati did last week, and New York persevered.

So raise your heads and break out the green jerseys, Jets fans. Your team is back.

Saying Goodbye to the 2000's In Style

As the end of the decade draws near, so too does the end of a decade of football that will surely go down in NFL lore as one of the greatest in history. The New England Patriots carved out what was probably the first dynasty in the era of free agency, the Steelers reached the record mark of six Super Bowl victories to eclipse the records set by the San Francisco 49'ers and Dallas Cowboys. In a decade of miracle comebacks and amazing victories, I am counting down the most significant trends and events (to me) that have taken place over the past decade.



You Know When You Were An NFL Fan In the 2000's When

7. Two records for consecutive wins were set: The Indianapolis Colts have only last month set a new record for the longest consecutive regular season winning streak, which spanned over two years and 21 games. Indy broke that record against the Jacksonville Jaguars to stay undefeated this season, expanding on a 12 game winning streak started last year. But this week against the Jets they ended their quest for what only one team has managed in this decade: a perfect regular season. The 2007 Patriots made history as the first team to have an undefeated regular season in the history of the 16-game season (the '72 Dolphins undefeated record was still during the time of a 14-game season). In that season, Tom Brady also broke a record held by Peyton Manning, but I'll get to that later.

6. You witnessed the rise of the prima donna receiver: While prima donna receivers have always existed in the league and many arose in the 1990s (see Michael Irvin and Terrell Owens), the increased level of passing has given momentum to a new age of flashy, entertaining wideouts. The aforementioned T.O., the player formerly known as Chad Johnson, and Randy Moss have made their mark on this decade with controversy almost constantly in their wake, whether in their remarks (Owens and Johnson being the most notable repeat offenders) and their antics on or off the field (from Moss "mooning" Lambeau Field and T.O.'s popcorn stunt to Johnson's faux Hall of Fame jacket and customized cleats). The careers of these three receivers have ranged at varying points between good (T.O. before his mouth gets him in trouble and Randy Moss with the Vikings or the Patriots), bad (T.O. in Buffalo, Johnson when he has no Carson Palmer), and ugly (Moss's terrible time in Oakland and the accusations of taking plays off both there and elsewhere). The good news for these three is that they usually walk the walk as well as talk the talk.

5. Your punter is from Australia: Having a punter from down under is not quite a fad just yet, but their style of kicking (which consists of a drop punt that almost hits the nose of the ball) has been brought to national attention due to its undeniable effectiveness. The coffin corner punters of old have been all but wiped out (with Jeff Feagles of the New York Giants being the last such punter of renown) and the Aussies have provided the next breakthrough in punting. While the number of Australians actually in the NFL remains small at only three--Ben Graham of the Arizona Cardinals, Sav Rocca of the Philadelphia Eagles and Mat McBriar of the Dallas Cowboys--their kicking style has permeated throughout the NFL thanks to the efforts of Darren Bennett, a former San Diego Charger credited as the first Australian NFL punter and the first to use the drop kick. From Bennett, many American punters have also picked up the style, and many of them are counted among the best in the league: Mike Scifres of San Diego, Shane Lechler of Oakland, and Hunter Smith (who won a Super Bowl with Indianapolis) in Washington. This may well be on the same magnitude of change as the introduction of soccer-style placekicking, which changed the game in the 1970s and has now become an NFL regularity.

4. The Madden Curse brought misfortune to your favorite player: Ever since Garrison Hearst became the first player to appear on the cover of the Madden football simulation game in 1999, cover athletes for the game have been plagued by poor play or injuries. Thus the so-called "Madden curse" has become a cultural phenomenon over the past decade. In 2005, after Michael Vick's photo graced the cover of Madden, he suffered a fracture in his leg that caused him to miss the first eleven games of the season. Next year's cover athlete Donovan McNabb suffered a sports hernia and missed a large chuck of the season. Shaun Alexander, MVP of the 2006 season and the Madden 2007 featured athlete, suffered a rash of injuries the year after that essentially ended his career. Vince Young made the cover after winning Rookie of the Year honors, but was benched early in the next season for Kerry Collins. Brett Favre, found on the cover of the 2009 edition of the game, had a rough second half of the 2008-09 season after it was revealed that he had torn the biceps in his throwing arm. Even though he didn't miss a game, he ended the season with 23 interceptions (equaling his season total for touchdowns) and no playoff berth. The most recent installment of Madden featured two athletes--Cardinals wideout Larry Fitzgerald and Steelers safety Tryo Polamalu; while Polamalu has been injured for almost all this season, Fitzgerald has struggled to maintain his productivity with inconsistent play from Arizona's quarterback, whether it's been Kurt Warner or Matt Leinart. Thus the curse continues to pervade the league, and I feel for whatever poor soul is on it next year.


3. Your team kicked it to Devin Hester: Despite his removal from his customary role as a return man, Hester is still one of the most feared returners in the league. I don't think any Bears fan will forget his first two seasons in the league, in which he returned a combined twelve kickoffs and punts for scores (not even including the opening kickoff of the Super Bowl his rookie season). Keep in mind that the Bears drafted Hester in the second round specifically for his return ability, and he paid dividends instantly. His contribution was no clearer than during the infamous Monday Night game against the Arizona Cardinals, in which he returned a kickoff for a touchdown to spur the Bears to a 24-21 victory in which their offense scored no points. Let that sink in. Zero points from the epically up-and-down Rex Grossman. Imagine that. As if the game wasn't already a classic, it inspired on of the game's greatest sound-bytes in then Cards head coach Dennis Green's "They are who we thought they were," rant.


But while Hester may be the best punt returner in the league, he has some serious competition for the title of best kickoff returner. Cleveland Browns return man Joshua Cribbs recently set the record for the most career kickoff returns for touchdowns with eight, and continues to thrive while Hester has essentially been replaced on the Chicago special team by fellow standout Danieal Manning. But since there was a period where almost no one in the league kicked to Hester (except for Broncos punter Todd Sauerbrun, who paid for the same mistake twice), he gets the nod from me over Mr. Cribbs as the best overall returner. Congratulations to Cribbs, however, who is now in my opinion the best kickoff returner of the decade.


2. Brett Favre started every regular season game: Since Peyton Manning has also started every regular season game this decade, it would be unfair to not mention him here, but the spotlight deserves to go to Brett Favre, whose streak of consecutive starts remains unbroken in the realm of 285 consecutive games (in a very non-scientific equation, assuming Favre plays half of an hour long game, he has played a total of 5.8 days playing pro football). That's 140 hours of game play, not even counting the rest of the three-plus hour broadcast. That's nuts. After 20 years of pro football, Farve looks more like 60 than 40, and his persisting ability to play at such a high level is miraculous. With surgery to repair the torn bicep in his throwing arm that he suffered last year, Favre has continued his streak with great aplomb and led Minnesota to victory in their division. The Vikings may have lost three of their last four games, but Favre is still having one of his best seasons ever.

1. The record that could never be broken was broken...twice: When Dan Marino set the record for passing touchdowns and yardage in 1982, it was hailed as a record that would never be broken (to put it in perspective, Marino's 48 touchdowns that season equated to 3 a game on average which as any NFL fan should know are miraculous numbers). That was until two lock-in Hall of Fame quarterbacks--Peyton Manning and Tom Brady--came into the league. In 2003, Manning's Colts terrorized opposing defenses with a meticulous and seemingly unstoppable passing game; not only did Manning break Marino's touchdown record, he also snapped Steve Young's record for the highest season-long quarterback rating, which almong with his co-MVP status (shared with the late Steve McNair) proves his tremendous consistency through that season. Their season was ended by the Super Bowl bound Patriots in the AFC Championship game, and seems to have been a changing of the guard. While Manning, who had made his name on gaudy stats and big game meltdowns, won a championship in 2006, the blue-collar mentality was lost to Brady's Patriots, who became reliant on their quarterback's arm. Mr. Brady, who had been praised as the star quarterback with no weapons, had an offensive explosion in 2007 when the Pats decided to resuccitate Randy Moss from his Oakland doldrums. Moss repaid their faith with 23 receiving scores, almost half of Brady's record-breaking 50 touchdown passes. Once again, however, the season for the MVP ended in disappointment as New England fell to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl. Their performances also helped to define the explosion of the NFL passing game that has occured through the past few seasons.

Cardinals @ Bears Second Half & Recap: Late Bears Surge Shot Down By Arizona

The Cardinals scored enough points in the first half for an entire game, but weren't done. Worse news for the Bears: while Hunter Hillenmeyer returned to the game, cornerback Charles Tillman (who was victimized by Larry Fitzgerald in the first half of play) left the game with a shoulder injury late in the second quarter. Meanwhile the Chicago offense (who played reasonably well in the first half despite only calling four run plays) started the game off with a quick first down before sputtering. Swarmed by three Cardinals defenders, Cutler was sacked by Chike Okeafor for a loss of 11 yards, forcing the third Bears punt of the day.



Arizona didn't show any signs of a letdown at first as Fitzgerald made a miraculous diving catch off ato keep a drive alive. The Bears would rejoice, however, as they finally forced a Cardinals field goal (excluding the one in the closing seconds of the first half) after Arizona had gone eight for eight on third down through the first half and beginning of the second.



After burning their first time out of the half, the Bears sustained two straight false start penalties (on guard Josh Beekman and center Olin Kreutz), before Cutler gunned a pass to Earl Bennett for 29 yards and a first down. Four plays later, the Bears signal-caller was called for an unsportsmanlike conduct after an incomplete pass on fourth and four, which resulted in 15 yards for Arizona after the turnover (the first of the day for either team).



Three punts (by both teams) later, the Bears showed some life again as Cutler completed three straight passes (two to Hester, who appeared to be having his way with defensive back Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie) and then, after a single incomplete pass, two more before he found Greg Olsen on a 3-yard toss. Cutler hit four different receivers on the drive, including Matt Forte, who had a 28-yard gain after taking a short pass from Cutler.



Arizona put in backup quarterback and former Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart, whose first pass was ruled incomplete but negated due to a pass interference penalty on linebacker Nick Roach. After two runs by Beanie Wells to bring up third-and-short, the Cards committed their first turnover of the day when Leinart threw an interception to Bears cornerback Zack Bowman, who returned it 39 yards to the 33 yard line before being pushed out of bounds. With renewed vigor, Cutler promptly score another touchdown in three plays, finding Greg Olsen for a 20-yard score (the third of the day for both players).

Things kept looking up for Chicago as Hillenmeyer forced a Kurt Warner fumble, but offensive tackle Mike Gandy recovered it in a fortunate turn for Arizona. The glimmer of hope soon faded for the Windy City as the Cards punted and Cutler threw a pick to Matt Ware on the next drive, giving Warner a short field and, after four plays, his fifth TD of the day (a 4-yard pass to Steve Breaston).

Despite one more drive by Chicago, there was no epic comeback today. Chicago's home unbeaten streak has ended, and the score at the final whistle is 41-21.

Bears Verdict - Defense Reeling, Offense Struggles to Keep Up With Cards: Even as devastated as they are by injuries, there is no excuse to be made for the Bears defensive unit's poor play today. It seems to be a case of Murphy's law with them as the injuries mount, and Tommie Harris is almost definitely going to face further suspension by the league for punching Deuce Lutui. The Bears gave up seven yards per rush in the first quarter and 182 yards in all to the league's last-ranked rushing attack. Warner threw for 5 scores and no interceptions.

When a team is that deleted on defense, the offense needs to step up their game, but the Bears aren't yet polished enough to do that. The offensive line has played poorly, allowing 17 sacks of Jay Cutler; while they cannot take all the blame for this, they have not been consistent by any stretch of the imagination. The one interception aside, Cutler had a great game by the standards of most quarterbacks, completing 29 passes for 369 yards and three touchdowns.

How's this for inexperience on offense? Three of the Bears receivers (including Hester and Rashied Davis) came into the NFL as defensive backs, and their two top receivers (other than Hester), Earl Bennett and Johnny Knox, are a second year player and a rookie, respectively. Their best player today was tight end Greg Olsen, who caught 3 touchdowns. The gimmick plays are not working for the Bears, and the running game needs to get much better in order for them to have any hope of salvaging this season.

Cardinals Verdict - Boldin Sits Out, But Balance Prevails: The Cards didn't need Anquan Boldin to beat up on the Bears defense. Larry Fitzgerald caught 9 balls for 123 yards, and the 182 team rushing yards marked a season high. As mentioned before, Warner didn't turn the ball over (although he came perilously close when he fumbled the ball after being sackedby Hunter Hillenmeyer), making the Cards 5-0 when he doesn't turn the ball over. That being said, some problems still remain. Another fourth quarter collapse was just barely averted when Mike Gandy recovered Warner's fumble, which was the ending point in the game that essentially deflated the Bears. Like the Bears, however, Arizona needs to work on their consistency, expecially at home (where they are winless halfway through the season).

Cardinals @ Bears Halftime Report

In what was an unseasonably warm day at Soldier Field in Chicago (the gametime temperature was at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit), the opening action of the Bears-Cardinals game looked like more of what the Bears have seen this season. Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris was ejected from the game early with a completely unnecessary punch to the helmet of the prone Deuce Lutui. Linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer was injured two plays later and taken off the field, replaced by Nick Roach. The Cards capitalized on the 15-yard penalty on Harris (even though they had already been moving the ball effectively) with a short dump pass to Larry Fitzgerald byKurt Warner. Fitzgerald escaped the coverage by Charles Tillman and walked into the endzone for the opening score.

After a disappointing performance against lowly Cleveland last week, Jay Cutler and the Chicago offense came out fast. A 42-yard catch by Hester brought the Bears into Arizona territory, and a deep bomb to tight end Greg Olsen on 3rd and 9 on a deep post pattern finished a short drive for the Bears. While he appeared to be well-covered by safety Adrian Wilson, Olsen adjusted to the throw and opened up a yard of space across the field to catch Cutler's pass. Surprisingly, Chicago did not call one run play on their opening drive.

On Arizona's next possession, a diving catch by Fitzgerald looked suspect but was not challenged by Lovie Smith Two consecutive red zone runs with Hightower and Chris "Beanie" Wells softened up an already weakened Bears defence, and the 13th TD pass of season for Warner to Ben Patrick allowed Arizona to retake the lead. A Bears punt gave the ball back to Arizona, who gave the ball to Wells to break off their longest run of the season, an up-the-gut run that Wells took to the outside for a 26 yard gain. The Cardinals were clicking on all cylinders, and Kurt Warner's 11th straight completion found Larry Fitzgerald (again being covered alone by Tillman) for another touchdown.

The Cards surprised the usually solid Bears special team with a pop-up kick, but Chicago caught a break as referee Ed Hochuli ruled that possession did not belong to Arizona as it first appeared but in fact went to Jay Cutler and the Chicago offense. After a single first down, Cutler ran right into Darnell Docket and was sacked for a nine yard loss, which ended up forcing another punt by Brad Maynard. Once again, the Arizona offense was held to third down multiple times, but managed to convert two 3rd-and-5's as they moved the ball quickly and decisively. A 15-yard reception by Cardinals tight end Anthony Becht (his first of the season) marked Warner's fourth touchdown pass of the day.

Attempting to will his team back into the game, Cutler made more impressive throws. A laser between two defenders to second-year wideout Earl Bennet picked up a key first down, and was followed by a screen to running back Matt Forte. Set back by an offensive pass interference penalty on Greg Olsen, the Bears could only make up 10 yards out of the 20 that they needed. The Robbie Gould field goal was then blocked, and returned 59 yards by Antrell Rolle after falling short, allowing Arizona to tack on a last second field goal of their own to complete a dominant first half. The halftime score: 31-7 Arizona.

Vikings @ Steelers Second Half & Recap: Minnesota Undone By Steelers D

The second half of this heated contest started much the same way as the first, with a 16-yard rush to the perimeter by Rashard Mendenhall, who made his fourth start replacing the injured Willy Parker. The Steelers followed it up with an end around to Mike Wallace, which was aided by a facemask penalty on defensive tackle Kevin Williams (incorrectly called on defensive back Karl Paymah). The Vikings gave more help in the form of a late hit by Benny Sapp, filling in for Pro Bowler Antoine Winfield, that gave Pittsburgh 15 more yards. But while the Vikes bent, they didn't break, holding Big Ben and the Steelers offense to another field goal.

Favre and Minnesota came back with a vengeance on their first second half drive, completing a fourth-down conversion to Sidney Rice for a big gain to get 1st-and-goal at the 2. The story of stingy defense continued, however, as the Pittsgurgh defense held the Vikings back, forcing a chip-shot field goal from kicker Ryan Longwell.

After a series of punts, things looked bright for the Steelers as Roethlisberger hit Holmes for long gain in which five or six Vikings missed tackles. But Mendenhall fumbled on the next play for the first turnover of the game. Favre moved the ball on the next drive, but his good throws were stymied by three consecutive penalties (including Steve Hutchinson's first penalty in 27 games). A miraculous tiptoe catch by SidneyRice preserved the drive, and after Adrian Peterson bulled his way down to the 10 the Vikings were set back again by a phantom tripping call that erased a Sidney Rice touchdown.



At 3rd-and-goal, the game was turned on its heels as Brett Favre was stripped and LaMarr Woodley took it back 77 yards for a score. Percy Harvin then reinvigorated Minnesota with a kickoff return for a touchdown, aided immensely by a horrible challenge from kicker Jeff Reed.

Roethlisberger was stripped by debutant Asher Allen, but the Vikes could not capitalize as the ball was fumbled out of bounds. On the next possession, Adrian Peterson created another highlight by crushing William Gay, but it proved all for naught as a Favre pass deflected off Chester Taylor's fingertips and was intercepted by linebacker Kieran Fox. In for Lawrence Timmons, Fox returned his first ever pick for six points and deflated the Vikings, who fall out of the ranks of the undefeated teams.


Vikings Verdict - Defense plays well, but needs consistency: The Minnesota defence has proved that they are legit by looking dominant often, but at times they don't look like it. They lack the killer instinct necessary to finish games, and too often allow opposing offenses to get back into the game. It showed against Baltimore last week and in the second half against the Steelers. That star-studded defense will need to step up their game, but most importantly, they need to stop playing Cover-2. For all its sacks, the vaunted Minnesota pass rush has had trouble gtting the quarterback when they rush only their four down linemen.

Meanwhile, Sidney Rice is looking like a Pro Bowl reciever. He finished the day with 11 catches for 136 yards, reaching the century mark in two consecutive games. He should have had more, as his touchdown pass was negated by a bogus tripping penalty, but no one can question the skill and athletic ability required to bring down his great catch on the sideline.

Steelers Verdict - Defense Saves Steelers, Preserves Win Streak: Two fourth-quarter TD's on interception returns lifted Pittsburgh over the Vikings to their fourth straight win, but there is still a great dea of room for improvement. Mike Wallace had a career day with several nice catches and two runs, but Hines Ward (who entered the game leading the league in receptions) had a measly one catch for three yards. Roethlisberger, who has completed 72% of his passes this season, was 14 for 26 for 175 yards and a lone score. Fortunately, he got it done when it counted, picking apart the Minnesota D on the one touchdown drive as well as those that ended in close field goals.

"Da Bears" Off Defending Champion Steelers

On a day where Brett Favre broke the all-time NFL record for consecutive starts by a non-kicker, a potentially bigger story emerged as the Chicago Bears returned to Soldier Field for their home opener to play the Pittsburgh Steelers. With Jay Cutler's four interceptions against Green Bay and the news that star linebacker and defensive captain Brian Urlacher would miss the rest of the season on Injured Reserve after having surgery on a dislocated wrist, there wasn't too much to be excited about in the Windy City.

That being said, the Steelers were coming into town after a close and hardly convincing win over AFC rival Tennessee with problems on the offensive line and no Troy Polomalu. This setup brought about a clash of young ace quarterbacks Ben Roethlisberger and Jay Cutler. At first, the Bears offense looked benign, going 3 and out on their first two possessions while Pittsburgh scored on their opening drive. But after cornerback Charles Tillman intercepted an underthrown Roethlisberger pass, Cutler reinvigorated the offense with a 97-yard drive to end the first half capped off by a 6 yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Davis. The game took on the appearance of a slugfest later on as the Steelers scored again and Chicago responded, but two missed field goals by Jeff Reed proved to be the difference as Chicago's kicker, former Pro Bowler Robbie Gould, hit a strike from 44 yards away.

Bears Verdict - Resilient defense ailing, but offense shows signs of life: The Bears injury woes continued as defensive end Alex Brown joined Urlacher and outside linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa on the list of Bears defenders to go down with injuries. On the bright side, however, Jay Cutler looked much more like the player Chicago knew he could be when they traded two first round picks to get him. The Bears also seem to have struck gold with seventh round pick Johnny Knox, a rookie out of Abeline Christian with blazing speed and good hands who led the Bears with 70 recieving yards and the second Chicago touchdown. Knox also showed off his speed on a 50 yard kickoff return that was called back for a holding penalty.

Steelers Verdict - Inconsistency badgers the defending champs: Last week, the Steelers capitalized on two misses by Titans kicker Rob Bironas, but this time it was Jeff Reed who felt the sting of cracking under pressure (it was hard not to feel sorry for him after seeing his expression on the sideline). Even so, the Steelers D performed admirably even without Troy Polomalu, producing an unforgettable highlight in the form of Tyrone Carter's bonecrunching hit on Bears tight end Greg Olsen. Their offensive line also showed flashes of their championship quality as Willy Parker rushed for more than twice as many yards as he did last week. Regrettably, his tally remained a paltry 47 yards as he was dogged by Bears defenders on multiple occasions.

Brady Shines in First Preseason Game, Others Stumble

The Hall of Fame weekend kicked off the beginning of preseason football. For his part, Tom Brady played well in his first game since returning from injury. The same can be said of few others. Brady was 10 for 15 for 100 yards, 2 TD's and one interception; while not all of his passes were as razor sharp as they might have been during his 2007 MVP campaign, he looked almost like his old self again.

Many of the other high-profile quarterbacks struggled in their first action of the season. Drew Brees and Peyton Manning were both 1 for 2; while this could be attributed to them being held out by their respective teams, Manning didn't look comfortable against a dominant Minnesota defense that recorded three sacks in total. Brees had it easier, playing against a historically lackluster and once again unimpressive Cincinnati team.

Jay Cutler failed to make an impression in his Bears debut, throwing a pick on the first series and nearly throwing another that was fortunately dropped. Even more fortunate for Chicago was the recovery if a muffed punt on the very next play. Even with this advanced field position, Cutler could not get the Bears into the endzone.

But it will be hard to argue that any starting quarterback has a worse game than Kyle Orton, who threw three interceptions for the Denver Broncos before Josh McDaniels substituted him in a seemingly merciful gesture. McDaniels, meanwhile, continues to look the fool for facilitating the trade for Jay Cutler. It should be noted, however, that McDaniels' last protégé (Chiefs QB Matt Cassel, who was with McDaniels in New England last year) also struggled mightily in preseason before going on the throw for 3,600 yards and 21 touchdowns a year ago.

Long story short: anything can happen.

Draft Recap Part 3

12. Denver Broncos – Knowshon Moreno – RB – Georgia: The inauspicious title of my Most Puzzling Pick Award, Denver defied the predictions of most draft analysts when they chose the Georgia back at #12. That is not to say that Moreno is a bad player; on the contrary, he may be the best overall running back in the draft with his quickness, lateral agility, good hands, and youth. My concern is that he is not the best for Denver, who suffered on defense last year with a dismal ranking of 29th in the NFL. The fact that this is a recurring theme (the Broncos have finished 15th on defense in 2005, 14th in 2006, and 19th in 2007, usually due to a porous front seven) makes it even more disappointing that they did not more aggressively pursue a difference maker on the defensive line. I would have loved to see this team move up to #8 to get B.J. Raji, as Jacksonville was attempting to trade down at the time. It doesn’t seem inconceivable that Josh McDaniels could have traded this pick and a second-rounder to move up to the eighth spot, and given the Broncos woeful defensive line Raji would have been a big help. With that possibility come and gone, it seems to me that McDaniels was instead trying to alleviate the loss of Jay Cutler with another stud player in the backfield. If Moreno turns out like Clinton Portis, that’s great, but I must say I was not particularly impressed with this selection, which appears to be make as the result of a mistake and not as the result of a ‘best-player-available’ strategy.

13.Washington Redskins – Brian Orakpo – DE/LB – Texas: It doesn’t seem often that a player has one specific team that they want to play for and that one team ends up picking them, but that seems to be case here. Brian Orakpo was jubilant upon being selected by the ‘Skins, and I’ll bet that Washington was eager to get him. A highly athletic and versatile talent, Orakpo will probably play a hybrid of linebacker and defensive end for the Redskins. The stars seem to have aligned for the former Longhorn and his new team, whom Orakpo stated after his selection was “the team I want.” This is a good fit for Washington given the status of aging pass rushers Andre Carter and Jason Taylor, but they should be wary of Orakpo’s status as a ‘workout warrior’ and hope he does not end up like Vernon Gholston, picked sixth by the Jets last year.

14. New Orleans Saints – Malcolm Jenkins – CB – Ohio State: While they lured safety Darren Sharper from Minnesota, the release of Mike McKenzie left the Saints secondary vulnerable at the cornerback position. Malcolm Jenkins is one of the best cover corners in this draft, and he possesses that rare ability that NFL teams covet in corners: the willingness to tackle. Having played safety as well as corner at (the) Ohio State University, Jenkins is an able tackler who can deliver the hit and give an instant boost to the Saints defense.

15. Houston Texans – Brian Cushing – LB – USC: Houston are building a case for one of the most talented defensive units in the league with the success of Mario Williams, DeMeco Ryans, and Omobi Okoye, and Brian Cushing could be another component in what I see as a future perennial playoff defense. Cushing is an extremely capable linebacker who might not have the most upside of the three USC linebackers, but during his college tenure he showed pass rushing ability and excellent coverage skills, which the Texans could definitely use. So who does he replace? Ryans? Definitely not. Marlon Greenwood, Xavier Adibi, or Zack Diles? Probably.

16. San Diego Chargers – Larry English – DE/LB – Northern Illinois: Larry English adds another talent to an already star-studded Chargers team. While San Diego’s squad has some of the best depth in the league, the loss of Shaun Merriman exposed some glaring weaknesses in the Chargers pass rush. English is a quick and powerful pass rusher who will complement Merriman well, giving the San Diego defense more ability to create chaos in the opponent’s backfield.

17. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (from Cleveland, from NY Jets) – Josh Freeman – QB – Kansas State: This pick wasn’t much of a surprise; Tampa needed a quarterback coming into this draft (even with the remnants of Jon Gruden’s QB carousel still in-house) since Jeff Garcia departed for the Oakland Raiders. Josh Freeman can be for Tampa this year what Joe Flacco was for the Baltimore Ravens last year: a tall, strong-armed pocket passer who can give an ailing pass attack a shot in the arm. With recent star Antonio Bryant back in the receiving corps, Tampa will look to form a potent combination between him and Freeman.

18. Denver Broncos (from Chicago) – Robert Ayers – DE/LB – Tennessee: Let’s just say I was significantly more pleased with this pick than I was with #12. Who better to help fix the Broncos defense than a standout from a school known for producing stout defensive players (Albert Haynesworth, Jerod Mayo, and former Bronco Al Wilson for starters)? His lack of production at Tennessee (3 sacks in his senior year is poor, even on a struggling team), but Ayers has shown that he is a superb talent and potentially well-valued at 18th overall, able to bring an explosive presence to Denver’s new 3-4 defensive scheme.

Stay tuned for picks #19-25 on the next edition of our NFL Draft Recap.

NFL Draft Recap #2

This begins the second edition of our NFL Draft Recap.

5. New York Jets (from Cleveland) – Mark Sanchez – QB – USC: In what would prove to be the first of Cleveland’s three first round trades, the New York Jets moved up to nab Sanchez at #5. The USC quarterback only has one year of starting experience coming out of college, but what he lacks in experience he makes up for with raw talent. While his arm strength is not quite as excellent as Stafford, it is nothing to joke about, and Sanchez has tight, accurate throws that his Georgia counterpart sometimes lacks. He is also a quick learner, as displayed by his strong performances during the second half of last year. He had some injury concerns, so it will be interesting to see how he performs over the long haul of a 16-game season, but the Jets have an expensive and veteran offensive line that should help him along the way.

6. Cincinnati Bengals – Andre Smith – OT – Alabama: Cincinnati has a history of taking players with character concerns, and the theme continued on Draft day. Andre Smith is probably the most talented offensive lineman in this year’s class, but his suspension from Alabama’s Bowl game and his unflattering appearances at the Combine and his Pro Day have raised questions about his work ethic. I don’t question Smith’s skill, but there is reason to question his discipline, and given the Bengals’ inability to effectively handle undisciplined players I’m not sure that it is the best place for him. At Alabama he flourished under Nick Saban’s orderly structure, but someone will have to give him the same discipline in Cincinnati for him to be successful.

7. Oakland Raiders – Darrius Heyward-Bey – WR – Maryland: This pick had a chance to be my Most Intriguing and Most Puzzling, but came up short on both counts. While Heyward-Bey might have been a stretch at #7, Raiders owner Al Davis loves raw speed, which the Terrapins receiver certainly provides as the fastest player at the Combine with a 4.30 second 40-yard dash. That being the case, it is little surprise that Davis picked Heyward-Bey over Michael Crabtree. While Heyward-Bey may not have been the best overall receiver, but with his combination of height and speed he is in many ways a poor man’s Randy Moss and will give JaMarcus Russell and the Raider’s lackluster pass attack a much-needed shot in the arm.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars – Eugene Monroe – OT – Virginia: A common pre-Draft argument was whether Monroe or Baylor offensive tackle Jason Smith would go second overall to the Rams; few other names were even in contention. Despite Jacksonville’s repeated attempts to trade out of this pick, they can’t be too disappointed with Monroe. Regarded by many as the best pure pass protector in this year’s draft (so good that he made last year’s first-round pick Brandon Albert play guard at Virginia), Monroe will give David Garrard some time to drop back and throw after the departure of previous left tackle Khalif Barnes, and like Jason Smith has few character issues to worry about.

9. Green Bay Packers – B.J. Raji – DT – Boston College: The Packers were fortunate and likely ecstatic to land Raji at this spot. As the most highly rated defensive tackle in the draft, the BC product is a dominant force at the point of attack, and at 330 pounds at only 6’1” he is also an excellent space eater. With Ryan Pickett as the only other considerable option at nose tackle, it is highly likely that the Packers will start Raji right away in their new 3-4 defense. His suspension in to 2007/2008 season due to academic ineligibility and positive drug test at the Combine may have raised some eyebrows about his character (or perhaps his intelligence), but Raji is one of the premiere defensive players this year and a special nose tackle in the mold of Steelers starter Casey Hampton. Ironically, both Hampton and Raji teamed up with second-round picks during who came out the same year they did (Browns DT Shaun Rogers and new Patriots DT Ron Brace, respectively).

10. San Francisco 49ers – Michael Crabtree – WR – Texas Tech: The 49ers came into the draft amidst speculation that they were hunting for a new signal caller, but they may have instead gotten the best overall player in this draft with the selection of Michael Crabtree. While his college tape shows he possesses excellent athleticism and natural hands, Crabtree came to the Combine requiring ankle surgery for a fractured metatarsal and did not run there or at the Texas Tech pro day. Without a 40 yard dash, it is not inconceivable to think that his stock might have taken a little dip. Despite TTU’s tendency to be a pass-happy team, it still takes a special talent to dominate games against quality opposition the way Crabtree did against the Texas Longhorns and to win back-to-back Biletnikoff awards as a redshirt freshman and sophomore (in fact, he is the first player to ever win the award twice).

11. Buffalo Bills – Aaron Maybin – DE – Penn State: The Bills are on the cusp of becoming a playoff team after years of shattered expectations, which has featured no playoff seasons in over a decade. The Bills teams that went on a historic run of four straight Super Bowl appearances seem a distant memory. Their defensive line improved tremendously with the addition of Marcus Stroud in last year’s offseason, but Aaron Schobel is close to being on his last legs at 32 years old and Chris Kelsay has not been as productive as the Bills management has hoped, so Aaron Maybin was brought into the fold. Considered to be undersized by the standards of most NFL ends at only around 250 pounds, Maybin nevertheless has superb speed and edge-rushing ability. He will also have the opportunity to be mentored by the veteran Schobel, who is similarly undersized.

Picks 12-18 will be covered in the next Draft Recap, so stay tuned until then.

NFL Draft Recap #1

Now that the last pick has been called, the Draft is officially over, but the drama is not. Now each team must get their players signed and on to the practice field. In the meantime, here is the first installment of our Draft Recap.

Most Intriguing Pick: I will not go so far as to say ‘best’ or ‘worst’ pick, since none of these players’ careers or set in stone. But I can say that the most interesting to me was Mark Sanchez, picked fifth overall by the New York Jets. The Jets made a costly trade to get the rights to Sanchez, and most of their hopes will be riding on his shoulders.

Most Puzzling Pick: Knowshon Moreno (Denver Broncos). With all of the focus for improvement on Denver’s ailing defense, they instead elected to take Knowshon Moreno, a running back from Georgia who many Draft analysts expected to be taken in the middle of the first round at the highest, more in the area of the Broncos’ #18 pick instead of their substantially higher #12 selection.

1. Detroit Lions – Matthew Stafford – QB – Georgia: As I outlined previously, the Lions went with Stafford over USC QB Mark Sanchez or Wake Forest product Aaron Curry. While Curry would have addressed the need for a fresh face at linebacker, Stafford could end up being a much more emphatic stamp on this new Lions regime with his elite arm strength and three years of college starts. Sanchez also had a case to go here, but he had some injury concerns in college and Stafford has the toughness that will probably be needed at the woeful Lions, where he can expect to get beat up for a while.

2. St. Louis Rams – Jason Smith – OT – Baylor: With the release of Orlando Pace who has been a feature on the Rams’ offensive line for the past decade, offensive tackle shot up the list of St. Louis’ needs (keep in mind it was already a concern before Pace’s departure, and thus became even more critical afterwards). They met it well, drafting a strong run- and pass-blocker in Jason Smith. While Alabama’s Andre Smith may have had the most potential of all the offensive linemen in this draft, Jason still has tremendous talent and is a safer pick due to his lack of off-the-field issues. I think that, like Pace before him, Smith with anchor the Rams line for a decade or more.

3. Kansas City Chiefs – Tyson Jackson – DE – Louisiana State: This was my first (but not biggest) surprise of this draft. While Tyson Jackson is ideal for the Chiefs’ conversion to a 3-4 defense with his ability to play 3-4 end or even 4-3 defensive tackle during the transition period, he might not have been worth the third overall selection. He is a solid player, but his potential is limited and he isn’t the type of talent who is necessarily going to change the fortunes of a franchise. Now the Chiefs tried to trade down but were unsuccessful, so while Jackson may have been a bit of reach in terms of talent he was likely one of the best players for Kansas City. He and last year’s fifth overall pick Glenn Dorsey will form a formidable tandem on the Chiefs defensive front along with first-rounder Tamba Hali.

4. Seattle Seahawks – Aaron Curry – LB – Wake Forest: Most of the pre-draft hype had Seattle taking a receiver, but with the acquisition of former Cincinnati Bengal T.J. Houshmandzadeh in free agency the Seahawks elected to go with Aaron Curry. One of the best players in this draft, Curry has excellent size (6’1” and 250 pounds), speed, skill, and raw instinct. He fits Seattle’s defensive scheme almost perfectly and can step right into the spot that Julian Peterson vacated, keeping the strong Seahawk linebacker core alive with Leroy Hill and Lofa Tatupu.

We will have picks #5 through 11 on the second edition of our 2009 NFL Draft Recap.

2009 NFL Rule Changes

At the owners committee today, four new rules were passed, all concerning player safety:

1. A blindside block deliver to a defender's head with the blocker's head, forearm or shoulder will result in a 15-yard penalty. While football is undoubtedly a contact sport, head protection has long been one of the important issues surrounding rule changes, and it's good that the defenders are getting a little protection on the blindside. No offense to Hines Ward, but I trust that most people who witnessed his Week 7 block on Kieth Rivers will agree that it is worthy of being considered for a penalty call.

2. Initial contact to the head of a defenseless reciever is also punishable by a 15-yard penalty. As with the first rule change, this is to protect the player's head in a vulnerable situation (Eric Smith on Anquan Boldin, anyone?). Good rule change from where I'm standing.

3. On kickoffs, any single blocking wedge can be limited to only two players. I'm not familiar with what the previous size was limited too, but I think this is a somewhat detrimental rule. The unpredictablily of the return game is one of the things that makes the NFL exciting, and removing the ability to block with more than two players in a single wedge would seem to make returning a kick to the house a more difficult proposition.

4. On an onside kick, the kicking team can have no more than five players pursuing the ball. This rule seems to stack the odds of the recovery of an onside kick even more in the favor of the recieving team. Don't quote me on this, but most onside kicks fail anyway. I could understand the logic behind this rule if onside kicks were being recovered on a regular basis, but I don't believe that no NFL team currently has a kicker capable of consistently delivering an onside kick just right. I don't see how this affects player safety, and it will likely only marginally affect gameplay.

Cutler and Broncos in Standoff

The Denver Broncos and disgruntled quarterback Jay Cutler have yet to reach any sort of settlement. In fact, things have only looked worse for both parties as the staredown has worn on.

So where does the blame lie? In this writer's humble opinion, it is at the feet of both Cutler and new Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels. Niether of them have handled this situation at all adeptly, and while both of them have reason to defend their own side they are each individually at fault.

Cutler voiced immediate displeasure towards the firing of previous head coach Mike Shanahan. While Cutler claims that Broncos owner Pat Bowlen told him that former offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates would be retained for next season, Bowlen denies that any such conversation ever took place. While it is his right to voice his displeasure (even if it is a breach of professional courtesy), I think Cutler has overreacted towards the coaching changes instituted by McDaniels. Change is rampant in the NFL, with quarterbacks adapting to new systems every year. Why should Cutler by any different? His case for feeling betrayed by Bowlen does not constitute a schism of this magnitude. The rumors about a trade, however, do.

This is where McDaniels takes the fall. Even if Matt Cassel succeeded in the Patriots system last year, there is no telling what Cutler could accomplish until he learns it. McDaniels seemed a little hasty in shopping around for a three-way deal to bring Cassel to Denver, especially when he has a Pro-Bowl caliber quarterback already in camp. While some people have stomped on Cutler for his decision-making last year, he threw more than 600 times (616, to be exact) last year, second only to the Saint's Drew Brees. Since the zone blocking and run game that has become Denver's crutch over the last decade and a half was largely unavailable due to a plethora of injuries to their runningbacks (in fact, it got so bad that Broncos linebacker Spencer Larsen started the game at fullback, making him the first player to start on offense and defense since 2003), Cutler was forced to throw early and often. The 28th-ranked total defense (30th in points allowed) didn't help much either.

Even so, the Broncos had the 2nd-ranked offense in the league, and Cutler has all the tools (elite arm strength, accuracy, and a certain degree of on-the-field leadership) to succeed. Conclusion: if McDaniels tried to leave an indelible mark on Denver, he has certainly done so, but he went about doing it the wrong way. Even if he is trying to follow the creed of his old Patriots team—team first, stars second—McDaniels has violated an even older guideline: don't fix what isn't broken. Even a offensive-minded guy like McDaniels should have realized that the Denver offense was ready to go from the start; in fact, he should have had an easier time seeing it. The defense was what held the Broncos back. Now, he has a rift with perhaps his best player and certainly his most important player.

I still think the best solution is for Cutler to stay in Denver. With a familiar group of players around him, I think Cutler would adapt well to the kind of Patriots-style offense that McDaniels brings to the table. Now that Cassel is out of the equation, Cutler is the Broncos' best chance, and if McDaniels realizes that will keep a great player and, even better a hold over the locker room; if he resolves the Cutler situation, things should be much less tense in Denver. Both player and coach are professionals and will hopefully be able to resolve their differences.

[All stats come from www.nfl.com]