NFL Jabber | OTA Time!

The Brian Urlacher drama seems to be over for now. He told the Chicago tribune that he will be attending the Bears three-day mini-camp starting today.

The Chiefs MLB Napoleon Harris is a good example of the difference between what a team is doing and what the media is telling us. Apparently he doesn’t know anything of his job being in danger except for what he is reading.

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NFL Free Agency | Trade Jabber 2/29/08

The melting pot of the NFL, Free Agency has begun! With that we see teams shooting trades and cutting players, trying to beat the deadline as well. Let’s have a look around at the NFL Free Agency and trade happenings.

 

It appears that the Saints have finally got another big name LB after all these years. Well, was a big name before injuries and the 3-4 defense hampered his productivity in New York. Word is that Jonathan Vilma will be going to the Saints for a conditional draft pick. If he can get past the bum knee, Vilma is what the Saints have been missing for some time and they can shift the focus of their $30 Million in cap space elsewhere. After it appearing that Brian Young and Mark Simoneau would be set out to pasture, the Saints worked deals out to keep them In New Orleans. The Saints are still rumored to be looking at Asante Samuel and his hefty price tag.

 

The Eagles gave the boot to Jevon Kearse. Poor fella has never really lived up to that Freak in Tennessee.

 

“We tried to work out a restructure with the Eagles and it didn’t work out,” Drew Rosenhaus said last week at the NFL Scouting Combine. “He had a wonderful career there.”

The Eagles could also be looking to bulk up their defensive backfield with Gibril Wilson and Asante Samuel.

 

Ty Law’s days in Kansas City appear to be coming to an end. The Chiefs have told Law that he will be released, likely in the next week. This type of thing cracks me up. Why tell him that and wait a week? That’s like your girlfriend of couple years telling you your going to break up…but not until next week, me and the girls are going to be going to Spring Break and when i get back we can break up then.

 

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3 Round NFL Mock Draft|Football Jabber

The Mock Draft has grown into three rounds! Here are the Top Ten and links to the rounds.

Round One | Round Two | Round Three

Round One
#1 Dolphins - Chris Long, DE, Virginia

Long becomes the anchor end for the Tuna’s new 3-4 defense. Although many may argue that Dorsey was the more worthy 1.01 choice, Dorsey would not make a good 3-4 NT. Thus the choice is Long.

#2 Rams - Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU

The Rams happily snap up Dorsey facilitating last year’s 1st round pick Adam Carriker to play more end. The Rams defensive line will be feared if Dorsey is the choice and Leonard Little can stay healthy.

#3 Falcons - Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas

The Falcons take the best player available and gamble that they will be able to grab a decent signal-caller later in the draft. With an aging Warrick Dunn and unproven Jerious Norwood as the components of a lackluster RBBC, Atlanta needs more of a power back than rookie Jason Snelling can provide. McFadden gives them a solid thunder and lightning running attack.

#4 Raiders - Sedrick Ellis, DT, USC

The Raiders take Sedrick Ellis to shore up their poor run defense. Ellis have been skyrocketing up the top 100 charts lately and one needs look no farther than his performance at the Senior bowl to find out why. Ellis will make an impact on a heavily regressing Raider defense.

#5 Chiefs - Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College

Word on the street is that Carl Peterson is feeling a bit of man-love for the BC pivot. Dwayne Bowe proved to be a pleasant surprise for the Chiefs last year and Peterson make look to grab a first round QB to get him the ball more often.

#6 Jets - Jake Long, OT, Michigan

The Jets grab Jake Long, the best offensive tackle prospect in the draft to bookend D’Brickashaw Ferguson. If Long pans out, the Jets may have one of the better offensive lines in the league for years to come.

#7 Patriots - Vernon Gholston, DE/OLB, Ohio State

The Pats select Gholston to infuse some youth into their aging linebacker corps. Gholston will likely be moved to WOLB and I am betting that Adalius Thomas moves inside more often. Not that the Pats LB are ever stagnant anyways. This move is made in anticipation for the eventual retirement of Junior Seau and Tedi Bruschi.

#8 Ravens - Ryan Clady, OT, Boise State

Rumor has it that Johnathan Ogden will call it a career after this year. If that is the case, expect the Ravens to select Ryan Clady here. Clady has all of the makings of a franchise tackle and will be able to step in and take over for the former pro bowler, Ogden.

#9 Bengals - Keith Rivers, OLB, USC

The Bengals hand is forced to select a linebacker as injuries, suspensions and poor play had them signing guys off of the street last year. With lone bright spot Landon Johnson likely to leave via free agency and Odell Thurman expected to return to the team, the Bengals go with Keith Rivers as a more natural OLB fit to Lewis’ defensive scheme.

#10 Saints - Kenny Phillips, FS, Miami

The Saints are forced to upgrade a terrible secondary that was repeated torched throughout the season. It’s too early to cut bait with Jason David despite his poor play at CB last year so the Saints select Kenny Phillips to replace Josh Bullocks. Phillips’ good coverage skills will allow Roman Harper to play more in the box.

tag: NFL, Mock, Draft, Football, Sports, Rankings, Dolphins, Rams, Falcons, Raiders, Chiefs, Jets, Patriots, Ravens, Bengals, Saints, Round One, Round Two, Round Three

Football Jabber’s Top Ten Super Bowls

We are just days away from the biggest game of the year. The Patriots are up to becoming the first team to post a 19-0 record and the first team since the 72′ Dolphins to run the table. What better time to take a look back at the Top Ten Super Bowls played? Of course some of the games can be up for debate. Things taken into consideration were lead changes, comebacks, game deciding scores, and when the game was decided, among others things.

#10 Super Bowl III Jets 16- Colts 7

MVP: Joe Namath QB, Jets

What makes it great? I could catch some flack for this but this game barely gets in here. It bumped out the Niners and Bengals Super Bowl XVI and Joe Montana’s first MVP performance. The game wasn’t even close and the Jets were never threatened. That, however, is why it is looked at as one of the greatest Super Bowl (and Football) games in history. We all know about the guarantee. The Jets were 18 point underdogs. This is the game that showed that the AFL could hang with the big dogs, which gives us the NFL we have today.

#9 Super Bowl X Steelers 21- Cowboys 17

MVP: Lynn Swan WR, Steelers

What makes it great? The Cowboys went into the fourth quarter with a 10-7 lead. The Steelers scored four straight times with a safety, two field goals and capped it with a 64 yard from Terry Bradshaw to Lynn Swan. The Cowboys scored another touchdown with a little under two minutes to play but the game was decided. Lynn Swan becomes the first WR to be MVP. He only has four catches but he gained 164 yards and that TD mentioned above.

#8 Super Bowl XXV Giants 20- Bills 19

MVP: Ottis Anderson RB, Giants

What makes it great? The Giants come in as underdogs and they don’t have their starting QB. They go into the second half trailing 12-10. Halfway through the fourth quarter the Giants go up 20-19 on a Matt Bar field goal. The Bills have a chance to seal the deal but Scott Norwood’s filed goal sails wide right with seconds remaining. The Giants held a HUGE time of possession advantage having the ball over 40 minutes of the game.

#7 Super Bowl XIII Steelers 35- Cowboys 31

MVP: Terry Bradshaw QB, Steelers

What makes it great? The Steelers enter the fourth quarter with a small 21-17 lead. With half of the quarter scoreless the Steelers tack on two more scores with a Franco Harris run and Bradshaw to Swann TD pass. The Cowboys do not lay down and score on two Roger Staubach touchdowns in the last two and a half minutes of the game. Once again the Cowboys fall just short of beating the Steelers in the Super Bowl.

#6 Super Bowl XXXIV Rams 23- Titans 16

MVP: Kurt Warner QB, Rams

What makes it great? The Rams go into the second half with a 9-0 lead. Halfway through the third quarter Kurt Warner hooks up with Torry Holt for a nine yard TD pass. Trailing 16-0 the Titans begin their comeback and have three straight scores that tie the game. Kurt Warner hits Issac Bruce for a 73 yard TD with a little under two minutes to play. The last two minutes are some of the most exciting in Super Bowl history as the Titans drive down into scoring position. With six seconds to play and the clock running, Steve McNair hit Kevin Dyson on the three-yard line. Dyson appeared to be going in for the score when a hail marry of a tackle by Mike Jones stopped him. Dyson stretched for the score but time expired with the ball marked on the 1 yard line.

#5 Super Bowl XXXII Broncos 31-Packers 24

MVP: Terrell Davis RB, Broncos

What makes it great? The Broncos come into the game as underdogs. After giving up the first score to Green Bay, the Broncos score three times before the Packers score again just before the half. Going into the second half the score was 17-14 in the underdogs favor. The Packers tie the game up just minutes into the 3rd quarter. Within minutes of the end of the 3rd quarter and start of the 4th, the Packers and Broncos exchange blows with two more scores. In an act of desperation as the Broncos are driving for the winning score, Mike Holmgren says he lets the Broncos score so they could get the ball back. 1:45 later the game is over and John Elway has finally got that ring.

#4 Super Bowl V Colts 16-Cowboys 13

MVP: Chuck Howley LB, Cowboys

What made it great? This game is a good example of staying with it and not giving up. The Baltimore Colts had three interceptions and lost four (of five) fumbles to the Cowboys. They trailed from the first quarter, never having a lead in the first half. At the end of the second quarter the Colts trailed 13-6. The Cowboys were shut out in the second half. The Colts tied the game in the fourth quarter and then with five seconds left in regulation, Jim O’Brian hit a 32 yard field goal to win the game for the Colts.

#3 Super Bowl XXXVI Patriots 20- Rams 17

MVP: Tom Brady QB, Patriots

What made it great? The Patriots were 14 point underdogs. The largest spread since Super Bowl III when the Jets upset the Colts. The “Greatest Show on Turf” of the Rams were held to a field goal until the fourth quarter. Trailing the underdog Patriots 17-3 the Rams began a fourth quarter comeback when Kurt Warner ran a two yard TD in. With 1:30 left in the game Warner hit Ricky Proehl from 26 yard out to tie the game. As time expired Adam Vinatieri hit a 48 yard field goal to mark the biggest upset in the Super Bowl in over thirty years. In the times of 9/11 the Patriots were victorious.

#2 Super Bowl XXXVIII Patriots 32- Panthers 29

MVP: Tom Brady QB, Patriots

What made it great? The score was locked at zero until the final three minutes of the first half. The Patriots scored…then the Panthers…then the Patriots…then the Panthers, going into the half with the Patriots leading 14-10. The third quarter was another stalemate as neither team could find a way to score. Eleven seconds into the fourth quarter the Patriots started the electric final quarter of the season. The Panthers scored twice, taking a 22-21 lead. The Patriots struck back and added a 2 point conversion making the score 29-22. The Panthers would tie the game with just over a minute left when Jake Delhomme hit Ricky Proehl (yeah the one ironically mentioned at this point in game # 3 above). The Patriots, in Patriot fashion, drove down and kicked a winning field goal with four seconds left on the clock to take them to 2-2 in Super Bowls.

#1 Super Bowl XXIII 49′ers 20- Bengals 16

MVP: Jerry Rice WR, 49′ers

What made it great? Neither team could do more than a field goal in the first half. The teams exchanged another field goal each before the first touchdown was scored on a 93 yard kick return by the Bengals at the end of the third quarter. The underdogs were up 13-6 going into the final period. Joe Montana hit Jerry Rice for a touchdown within the first minute of the 4th quarter, the 49′ers first steps in the endzone in the game making the score 13-13. With just over three minutes left in the game the Bengals hit another field goal taking a 16-13 lead. From here, Joe Montana does what Joe Montana does. With 34 seconds left in the game, Montana hits John Taylor for the winning touchdown and the third ring for San Francisco.

As we go into Super Bowl weekend and the Patriots are well favored to defeat the New York Giants, hopefully I will feel like this list needs to be updated next week. Take a look at game #3…just ask the Patriots…you never know who can come out on top!

tag: Bills, Colts, Cowboys, football, Football Jabber, Giants, Jets, nfl, Rams, Rank, Steelers, Super Bowl, Titans, Top Ten, Broncos, Packers, Patriots, Panthers, 49′ers, Bengals

Let the Speculation on McFadden Begin

Who wants to have the next stud running back in the NFL? Or we can ask…who doesn’t want to pass on what could be the next Adrian Peterson? Darren McFadden has officially announced he will enter the 2008 NFL Draft. Let the speculation begin.

The Dolphins? Last year there were a lot of people that thought the Dolphins would have taken Adrian Peterson despite having recent high pick Ronnie Brown on board. Rumor has it that The Tuna will try to net one of his running backs from Dallas.

The Rams? Could you imagine a backfield with SJax and McFadden? That’s Madden material, won’t happen.

The Falcons? It is getting time for the Falcons to possibly think about a stud runner. But they have a very serious QB situation to fix first.

The Raiders? A crowded backfield already, but none of those guys are a franchise back. Michael Bush may be but we won’t know that until he can play in the NFL. Could Al Davis grab the guy to pair with JaMarcus Russell? They have a lot of other holes to fill but this is a very interesting spot.

The Chiefs? These guys could go in any direction as they need help everywhere. They have a guy, if not injured, that they appear pretty happy with at RB though.

The Jets? Watch out Thomas Jones. Just when you think you have the starting spot and have done nothing to lose it, you could see your team take a RB once again. Another team with other needs but if he falls this far he could be hard to pass up.

The Patriots? By now McFadden is likely either picked by one of the above teams or someone (very likely) traded into position to pick him already. Just for “what if” sake…could you imagine this guy joining the Patriots? There is nothing wrong with Maroney but the Patriots could care less about having one go to guy at any particular position. Scary stuff…

Thoughts from the readers? Speculate my friends!
tag: NFL, Draft, Darren McFadden, Arkansas, Football, Patriots, Jets, Dolphins, Chiefs, Raiders, Falcons

Football Jabber NFL Mock Draft 1.0

Football Jabber Mock Draft 1.0

by TJ Ford

*Order subject to change based on playoff finish.

#1- Glenn Dorsey, DT, LSU
The Fins will be forced to address their defensive line as they ranked dead last in rushing yards allowed. Dorsey has been the game-changing type of tackle this year and will instantly make an impact on the Miami line.

#2- Jake Long, OT, Michigan
This year’s edition of the Rams showed everyone how easily a great offense can crumble without good offensive lineman. Orlando Pace is getting long in the tooth and St. Louis would be wise to pick up a new franchise tackle.

#3- Matt Ryan, QB, Boston College
The Falcons will be desperate to rebuild their shattered franchise after a horrible year. I don’t believe that Ryan is worth a 1.03-1.05 type of pick but the Falcons need a quarterback badly and this year’s QB class doesn’t offer the second round type of talent (Kolb, Stanton, Beck etc.) that last year’s class had. After Ryan, Brohm and Woodson, Atlanta may have to wait until the 4th round to get proper value in a remaining QB to warrant a pick. And with many teams, including the Ravens and Bears, heavily in the market for a signal caller as well, the Falcons won’t gamble with their pick, and will take the best QB available, Matt Ryan.

#4- Chris Long, DE, Virginia
I can honestly see the Raiders trading up to land Glenn Dorsey to shore up their own rush defense woes with Chris Long becoming a cornerstone for a new Miami 3-4 but for now, Oakland takes Long to improve a terrible pass rush and a defense that has taken a big step back from last year. The Raiders believe in Mike Bush and do not select McFadden.

#5- Sam Baker, OT, USC
The Chiefs need to protect their young quarterback better than their poor effort last year. The Chiefs gave up over 50 sacks last year and will need to give Brodie Croyle more time in order for them to be successful. Kansas City makes the first reach ala Levi Brown of last year to get Baker at 1.05.

# 6- Darren McFadden, RB, Arkansas
The Jets should go defensive line here as the Jets were not the best defensive team last year but I believe that Mangini likes the defensive personnel that he has currently. I look for the Jets to trade Johnathan Vilma use the pick coming back to get defense later in the draft. McFadden proves too much for Mangini to pass up and the RBBC waters in New York get murkier.

#7 (fr/49?ers) Patriots - Vernon Gholston, DE/OLB, Ohio State
The perfect Patriots linebacker. Gholston can stand up, is dynamite for pass rush and can tackle well. Belicheck drafts Gholston to get some young blood into his severely aging LB corps. Don’t count out the trade possibility also, the Pats always manage to do something.

#8- Andre Woodson, QB, Kentucky
The Ravens are another team desperate for a quarterback. McNair and Boller are not the answer and Brian Billick’s firing will likely mean that the pick here will be a new franchise QB. Woodson’s physical abilities will be necessary to buy time for a weak receiving corps to get open.

#9- James Laurinaitis, LB, Ohio State
Laurinaitis gives Cincinnati the playmaker that they need to help out a badly depleted linebacker unit. His mean streak and leadership will make him the cornerstone of a rebuilt Bengal defense.

#10- Kenny Phillips, FS, Miami
The Saints are forced to upgrade a terrible secondary that was repeated torched throughout the season. It’s too early to cut bait with Jason David despite his poor play at CB last year so the Saints select Kenny Phillips to replace Josh Bullocks. Phillips’ good coverage skills will allow Roman Harper to play more in the box.

THE REST OF THE STORY—>

tag: NFL, Football, College, NCAA, Draft, Mock, Sports