2008-09 NFL Thread

[BooCocky]

The 40 is overrated. Anquan Boldin dropped to the second round because he ran a 4.5. Arizona ended up with a steal all because teams couldn't overlook the fact that his 40 time sucked.

I don't quite remember, but didn't Boldin get injured during that season? I thought he hurt his leg, or ankle or some crap. The 40 is overrated but some people think speed kills.

Overall there is too much stock in some of the drills. Peyton Manning has probably the best mechanics of any QB, can you imagine if the Colts passed on him because a different QB could bench press more.

coming to think about it I remember reading something, the Colts wanted to draft Ryan Leaf, but someone talked them out of it.

Williamson was a nobody coming out of college. He played two years at South Carolina. One of the guys that works at the clothing store across the street from my gym went to South Carolina and said he has no idea why the Vikes drafted him.

I thought so. Was he there whenever Spurrier was there?

Peterson is the savior of the team. He almost made that offense playoff worthy. The reason he couldn't, is because Jackson is awful. I was at the Redskins game where we could have clinched the playoffs, and he killed the crowd and the momentum multiple times. He's the definate achilles heel, and I can't see the Vikes being a contender with him at QB. He's got some great physical tools, but his decision making make him more of a threat to us then our opponents.

I love Adrian Petersen, but i was really critical on him in college because of the talent he played with, but damn was he good. He has everything, speed, power, and everything else. great awareness and vision. I don't know, but he is like a top 3-5 running back in the nfl. He could be number 1 in a year or two though.

 

[Slim Pickns]

^^Boldin I believe set a record for most receptions by a rookie. Could be wrong though.

AP will be the man no doubt. The guy is so excited to watch. I'd be fine handing him the ball 30 times a game. When we had it to AP the crowd goes nuts, when Jackson drops back, the crowds gasps in horror. Thats why this Vikings team is so hard to get excited about, Jackson can single handely lose a game.

 

[Lil Wes]

Peterson is a beast. The only thing anyone should be worried about is if he can stay healthy. He had a problem with that at OU but I think he'll be fine but working him like a horse game by game will be a bit risky. I'm still taking Tomlinson over any running back right now, I think Marion Barber could be a big time back somewhere other than Dallas. I want him of course but Phillips is a jackass and shys away from the running game. Either way Minny needs to draft a QB or make a trade down the road. Jackson is atrocious. Division wise with or without Favre, The Pack have enough talent to take that division, it will hurt but people overeact.

 

[Slim Pickns]

Peterson is a beast. The only thing anyone should be worried about is if he can stay healthy. He had a problem with that at OU but I think he'll be fine but working him like a horse game by game will be a bit risky. I'm still taking Tomlinson over any running back right now, I think Marion Barber could be a big time back somewhere other than Dallas. I want him of course but Phillips is a jackass and shys away from the running game. Either way Minny needs to draft a QB or make a trade down the road. Jackson is atrocious. Division wise with or without Favre, The Pack have enough talent to take that division, it will hurt but people overeact.

I don't see it happening as long as Childress is our coach. He is too damn stubborn to admit that he drafted a terrible QB way to high in the draft. Most of us in Minnesota believe we would have made a playoff run if we would have signed Jeff Garcia. I would trade Jackson for any other starter and probably half of the backups too.

Childress is another Vikings member I'm not high on. He was highly touted coming in, but that had to do with him coming out of a great staff in Philly. On his own, he's not doing to good. I think we should have promoted Tomlin and got rid of Childress.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

I don't see it happening as long as Childress is our coach. He is too damn stubborn to admit that he drafted a terrible QB way to high in the draft. Most of us in Minnesota believe we would have made a playoff run if we would have signed Jeff Garcia. I would trade Jackson for any other starter and probably half of the backups too.

Childress is another Vikings member I'm not high on. He was highly touted coming in, but that had to do with him coming out of a great staff in Philly. On his own, he's not doing to good. I think we should have promoted Tomlin and got rid of Childress.

Well, it looks as if Joey Harrington was just released from the Falcons. So this clearly points out that they'll sign a QB in the draft. Maybe Minnesota can sign Harrington now? Weren't they trying to sign him last year, anyways?

Overall, I think Jackson fits for now, since Minnesota should definately concentrate on their running game.. since even with 8 guys in the box, they still manage to produce through it.

Wes was right though, if Peterson goes down with an injury, MN. is f'ed, because I don't think Taylor can produce alone.. especially if they line up to block a run every play, and Jackson isn't the type of QB to lean on when needing a big time play.

Although I think Minnesota's Defense is damn good, and very underrated. So short of getting involved against a team that would try playing in shoot-out mode, I don't think Minnesota will have too many problems keeping the games leveled out, score wise.

 

[Slim Pickns]

Well, it looks as if Joey Harrington was just released from the Falcons. So this clearly points out that they'll sign a QB in the draft. Maybe Minnesota can sign Harrington now? Weren't they trying to sign him last year, anyways?

Overall, I think Jackson fits for now, since Minnesota should definately concentrate on their running game.. since even with 8 guys in the box, they still manage to produce through it.

Wes was right though, if Peterson goes down with an injury, MN. is f'ed, because I don't think Taylor can produce alone.. especially if they line up to block a run every play, and Jackson isn't the type of QB to lean on when needing a big time play.

Although I think Minnesota's Defense is damn good, and very underrated. So short of getting involved against a team that would try playing in shoot-out mode, I don't think Minnesota will have too many problems keeping the games leveled out, score wise.

We did try to sign Joey last year. He did alright in Atlanta, especially considering he wasn't suppsose to be the starter. He entered training camp as the backup, and then was thrust into the starting role. He gets a bad rap because of how shitty he did in Detroit, but look at the QB's before and after him that sucked.

Minnesota's run game will be super. The O line is fantastic and Peterson is amazing. Chester Taylor did very well in Peterson's absence last year, and even Mewelde Moore and Artose Pinner before him, did great behind that line.

The defense is solid. I believe the Vikings finished first or second in run defense last year. There pass defense is bad statistically, but that has to do with the fact that no one runs against them. In the two games we played the Lions, I bet they ran less than 20 times combined.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

We did try to sign Joey last year. He did alright in Atlanta, especially considering he wasn't suppsose to be the starter. He entered training camp as the backup, and then was thrust into the starting role. He gets a bad rap because of how shitty he did in Detroit, but look at the QB's before and after him that sucked.

I don't know who the QB was in Detroit before Harrington, but after him it was Jon Kitna, who statistically had a great season for the previous two years. I believe.

Harrington is okay, not the greatest, but definately not poor. He just needs a decent line to protect him in the pocket. If he gets rattled, he tries to make plays that aren't there.. and thats where he gets messed up.

Minnesota's run game will be super. The O line is fantastic and Peterson is amazing. Chester Taylor did very well in Peterson's absence last year, and even Mewelde Moore and Artose Pinner before him, did great behind that line.

Taylor had a monster game the first game he played solo without A.D., some 200 yds. rushing and like 3 TDs or something, I think. I know he had a huge game, because he was starting in my fantasy team and I loved that man to death.

I think more teams will be inclined to attempt rushing the QB, blitzing and trying to put everyone up in the box to stop the run this year. Teams will force MN. to attempt playing via a passing game, by leaving WRs and DBs in single coverage.

I think with the added help at WR that MN. is getting, it'll be great for them offensively this year.

The defense is solid. I believe the Vikings finished first or second in run defense last year. There pass defense is bad statistically, but that has to do with the fact that no one runs against them. In the two games we played the Lions, I bet they ran less than 20 times combined.

Minnesota's Defense was great with stopping the run. Look what they did to L.T.. the only time MN. ever had trouble was when they gave up plays and points through a passing game, then the offense turned the ball over, forcing them to play defense in tough situations.

 

[finchy]

This message will clearly be biased cause Im from Pittsburgh, but I want to see them in the Ship. We need to work on the O Line but thats fixable in free agency. From an outsiders view I would say a Colts vs. Cowboys superbowl. Honestly nothing can be said for sure before the draft goes down and free agency is still going strong. Pats better watch that division though cause the Jets are putting their dollars on the table. Their O Line should be much more respectable w/ Faneca leading those younger guys. Believe me the dude is nasty. I like Kellen Clemens too even though I would never put that guy on my fantasy team he knows how to play ball. Im peacin til after the draft.

 

[brahma62]

So the draft is this saturday and a couple notes on it

1. Miami - If the dolphins take Matt Ryan like everyone wants them to, it will be a stupid move. Sure Ryans a great QB, but they just drafted John Beck last freakin year. Give Beck at least 1 full year as a starter before you ship him out, see if he can improve and prove himself. Besides, what will it hurt if Beck is your starting QB, it's not like it Ryan comes in he will be the saviour of that franchise, no matter who they draft, in the upcoming season they will probably suck anyways. Take Jake Long, he's a beast. I know everyone says Parcells doesn't like drafting lineman that high, but Parcells isn't a head coach anymore, let the coach make that decision. If you draft Jake Long it won't hurt you, but help you as he can start right away.

So that's my two cents on what Miami should do, and i also think that if Atlanta passes on Ryan, they are idiots. They need a young QB to build around, so Ryan can be that guy. There can't be any second guessing, they must draft Ryan.

I was going to do the first top 5 picks, but i got real lazy.

 

[Slim Pickns]

They just announced about an hour ago that the Dolphins signed Jake Long making him the number one pick in the draft. Eventhough this will not be the most popular choice, it may be the smartest one. When looking at past drafts, OL are always overlooked and never hyped yet the amongst the safest picks. If a team take two first round lineman in consecutive drafts, they can anchor a strong offensive line. Smart move by Miami in my mind.

 

[brahma62]

I just saw that Around the Horn. Im glad because it's the smartest and safest pick. Now St. Louis will draft Vernon Gholston over Chris Long in my mind, i think Gholston is better tha Long, just my opinion. Falcons must take Ryan i can't stress that enough, if they don't, they are dumb as shiz. I wonder where Glenn Dorsey will go though. Some say to the Rams, and if that were the case, Gholston will go to the Pats. The Pats will either take Gholston or Dorsey, maybe Long.

 

[Slim Pickns]

I'm wondering if the Vikes will give up there first rounder to get Allen fromt the Cheifs. They wanted two first rounders but we offered them a first and a third. I think that would be a good move for the Vikes as they will be at the bottom of the DE line in this draft anyway, so they may as well trade for a proven player. If they decide against him, they need to go DE in round one which is not their specialty (see Underwood, Demetrius).

 

[finchy]

Biggest Steal of the Draft???

Rashard Mendenhall... Surprise surprise the Steelers come out on top in just about everything... And Limas Sweed in the 2nd which expands our passing game so much... The other picks were decent including Dixon and Ryan Mundy who I have watched play in highschool and hes a freak... He went to Woodland Hills HS in Pittsburgh and he absolutley dominated... Dixon will do good backing up Ben and learning from Batch, then hopefully we can get dollars out of him when we give him up to another team... Steelers 08

 

[NFLJunkie]

Biggest Steal of the Draft???

Rashard Mendenhall... Surprise surprise the Steelers come out on top in just about everything... And Limas Sweed in the 2nd which expands our passing game so much... The other picks were decent including Dixon and Ryan Mundy who I have watched play in highschool and hes a freak... He went to Woodland Hills HS in Pittsburgh and he absolutley dominated... Dixon will do good backing up Ben and learning from Batch, then hopefully we can get dollars out of him when we give him up to another team... Steelers 08

My biggest problem with Mendenhall is he was a one year wonder out of Illinois. No disrespect to what he accomplished of course I just want to see if all his gears are in motion and he is ready to really help the Steelers down the stretch. Sweed was an awesome pick for Pittsburgh. He is tall, and has some serious leaping talent. He may not be Lynn Swan but anything is possible. And plus, he's from Texas....case closed lol. Dixon is an interesting pick because I think while Ben still has at least another decade of great play in him its always nice to have a change of pace. Dixon is said to have Vince Young speed with a little more accuracy. Not as big of a playmaker but under the right coaches and staying in the system for a few years. You could have a serious backup to come in and manage/win games if things got bad.

The team that really got my attention in the draft was The chiefs. Picking up the best d-lineman (Dorsey) and 2nd best o-lineman (Albert) in the first round. Not to mention getting Brandon Flowers to bolster their defense. Obviously all the rookies won't make the team but we will see some playmakers. Larry Johnson is coming back healthy and their receiving core has at least one sure fire target in Dwayne Bowe. My only question is the QB position. Croyle doesn't seem to have "it" He reminds me a lot of David Carr. Talent but behind a bad o-line, confidence is shaky, etc. Maybe someone will step up but until then who knows. All I know is that the chiefs could surprise a lot of people in 2008

 

[Golden Standard]

Damn i'm mad as shit Micheal Strahan retired today but its all good he was a great football player and will be in the hall of fame one day so congrats to a great career to him. And The G-Men!!!!! will be back this up coming season and repeat as super bowl champions baby!!!!! We proved everybody wrong last season and we gonna do it again this season. Fear Big Blue baby!!!!!! Fear us G-Men!!!!!!! New York!!!! New York!!!!!! Going for a repeat and ring #4.

 

[ShaminThaShamed]

Damn i'm mad as shit Micheal Strahan retired today but its all good he was a great football player and will be in the hall of fame one day so congrats to a great career to him. And The G-Men!!!!! will be back this up coming season and repeat as super bowl champions baby!!!!! We proved everybody wrong last season and we gonna do it again this season. Fear Big Blue baby!!!!!! Fear us G-Men!!!!!!! New York!!!! New York!!!!!! Going for a repeat and ring #4.

Hey mr. G-men... If uhh Favre didn't F up that last pass... yeah... Back the Pack baby. I'm a HUGE packers fan if you can't tell. I do believe this whole outcome with Brett will have him playing for another team of the Packers choosing or re-taking the starting position. It's really a hard decision to determine right from wrong in this situation. Number one, Rodgers has been waiting three years for his chance to play. Number two, favre has proven that he can still play. So it will be a tough one for the Packers staff.

 

[Frank the Frowner]

The Patriots signed LaMont Jordan to a one year deal.

You have no idea how much I love this signing. They're now stacked at running back with Maroney, Jordan, Morris, and Faulk. Jordan is the perfect running back for the Patriots. He can more than capably step in when Maroney needs a play off, and he's also a running back who can go out and be another target for Tom Brady to throw to. The Patriots had a very weak running attack last year, due to the fact that Sammy Morris went down early in the season. This helps the Patriots have even more of a balanced offense now, and I really think that this is going to be another major diamond in the rough signing by Belichick. At 29 years old, Jordan is still very young. This really reminds me of the Antowain Smith signing from back in 2001, and I think this is going to be a pivotal signing.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

Football Season Is T-minus Two Weeks And Counting! (For Pre-Season, anyways)

I have caught full-on Football fever. I'm excited, I'm ready, it needs to start NOW! Look at all of the off-season moves and situations. We are gearing up for a huge season chalk full of excitement!

Brett Favre: He's retired, he's unretired. He's a Packer, he's not a Packer. I don't care, and it's drama.. but one thing is for sure, he's a damn fine QB and where ever he is, if he's on the field in a uniform playing come the start of a season, whichever team he's playing for.. just increased their odds of winning a couple games.

New York Giants: The defending Superbowl Champs! Will they repeat? Seriously though, they've lost Shockey and they apparently feel better for it. Practically everyone on that team suddenly feels they deserve a new long-term contract, and those who aren't complaining over contracts, are still bitching about the coaching issues.

That team can't win for winning. One thing is for sure, come the beginning of Regular season, we are about to see whether or not the Giants were a fluke in a half, or if Eli Manning has what it takes to be the leader of his team and return them to the playoffs in a division that's quite possibly the worst in the entire league.

New England Patriots: 18-1, that 1 loss will out shadow and be forever remembered in their locker room ALL season, over all 18 of those other victories. Why? Because that one loss was all it took, to prove going undefeated before that meant shit! The Pats lose Stallworth, who arguably didn't do much anyways.. and they added LaMont Jordan, to help their backfield which had a bit of issue last season with injuries.

Can the Pats find a way to go undefeated again through the regular season? My guess is going to be no. I doubt they even try to win every game, this time.. they focus on that One victory that eluded them last season, instead of focusing on repeating the 18 that didn't mean anything before hand.

Adam Jones & Dallas: Hopefully he gets fully reinstated. Quite honestly I'm shocked, I mean Dallas has to have a TON of strip clubs.. it must take a lot of self-restraint to not find one. I kid, I kid. But in all seriousness.. Dallas has a nice looking depthful team to make a solid run.

Their one weakness is the Post-Season issues. Since Romo took over, he's been a great answer for them during the regular season, but if Dallas expects to be anything, they have to figure out how to win one in the post season.

Minnesota Vikings: If they ever touch Brett Favre they're instantly guaranteed a playoff season. I'm 99.9% sure of that. Unfortunately, they don't have #4.. and they're stuck with Jackson, who's best hope for a Post-Season birth is his star-studded RB hitting pay-dirt for the second straight season.

Peterson is a stud, guaranteed. But sooner or later teams will be holding 8 in the box, and you gotta believe Minnesota won't get very far if someone figures out how to stop All-Day.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

Apparently Green Bay has offered Brett Favre 20 million over 10 years, with the exception that if he takes it, he apparently MUST stay retired for the entire length of time. (10 yrs.)

To be honest, if Favre takes this deal then I think his unofficial true colors would shine through completely. He wasn't wanting to return for any type of glory of playing the game, but instead for the money. While I don't look down upon that, I do think it's rather selfish of him to continue this on-going saga of being in the spotlight, when it's over nothing more than money.

The fact is, if anyone's broke this down.. that's roughly 2 million a year. And in today's world, Football players technically can't survive off 2 million a year. Especially legends.

Favre has been crying rivers to anyone who'll listen that he only wants to come back and play.. so this deal, regardless of the "easy money" attachment or not, shouldn't even be considered on his part. If he just wants to play, wouldn't he be making more than 20 million within the next two years of playing, alone anyways?

The commish has also apparently stated that he'll not reinstate Favre as long as communication between himself and the Packers are on-going, on the possibility that Favre will stay retired.

However, let's flip this now. This is single handedly destroying the credibility of Green Bay. How? Because I don't recall in the history of Football ever before, that a team literally tried "bribing" someone to "stay retired" merely so they wouldn't have to deal with him.

They won't cut him. (understandable, since he's technically still there's and they should get something for him) They won't trade him to a rival division team. (also understandable, it hurts their chances of a playoff birth) They won't start him. (He retired, it's not fair to everyone else that he suddenly changed his mind, to just forget moving on, and instead say.. oh, here's your spot back.) They can't bench him. (He'd make 12 million alone this season, sitting on his ass.. that's way too much to pay a bench warmer)

So really, Favre has straight up fucked Green Bay in anything they do. All because of what reason? No good one, that's for sure.

 

[Davi323]

I heard a report that they have also offered Brett a paid lifetime job within the Packers organization to stay retired...

Personally, this whole situation sickens me. But, not because of how the Packers are handling the situation, but how Brett Favre is handling it. Favre is essentially blackmailing Green Bay. He chose to retire. If he wants to unretire, that's fine...but, considering he is still under contract with the Green Bay Packers, he is their property, and the Packers don't have to start Favre, they don't have to trade him, they don't have to release him. Brett Favre knew that Green Bay owns his rights, and tried to bluff his way past. Kudos to Green Bay for not blinking. I am sick of seeing athletes "retire" only to change their minds, and force a trade to somewhere else. It makes me wonder if some of the athletes that do this actually planned on using their retirement simply to get out of their contract, which is exactly what it appears Brett Favre is doing. His actions make it look like he had no intentions of staying retired, and was merely using it as an excuse to go to a different team. The NFL should adopt a new rule, that is really simple. This entire mess could have been avoided, had this rule been in place.

Upon the NFL's acceptance of a player's letter announcing their intent to retire, that player's contract with whatever team he played for is considered null and void. Simply put, you retire, you lose the rest of your contract years, but, you gain the ability to rejoin the league as a Free Agent, able to sign with any team you want.

ATHLETE:
PRO: You become an automatic free agent, no longer beholden to the team you retired from. In this case, this would be very beneficial to Brett Favre.
CON: You lose the remaining years on your contract, ie, if you stay retired, no more paychecks until contract runs out. This is iffy...if Brett can find a new team, he gets a new contract, he still gets paid.

TEAM:
PRO: Because the contract would be null and void, you don't have to pay it...which would provide immediate cap relief for those years. This would provide Green Bay with more room to sign players. The advantage of this should be obvious.

CON: Athlete is a free agent, and if he unretires, he can sign with any team he wants. Since you don't have him under contract anymore, you no longer have any say in the matter (unless he wants to rejoin your team, of course) In this case, Green Bay could not control whether Favre signed with Chicago, Minnesota, the Jets, or any other team.

 

[FromTheSouth]

UMM....The Jets? Why would Brett want to go to the Jets. Even though they overhauled the O-Line, they're still going to suck. I hate this move.

You know how a dog, right before he dies, gets up and runs in a circle for two hours? Well, Brett's two hours were last season.

 

[justinsayne]

UMM....The Jets? Why would Brett want to go to the Jets. Even though they overhauled the O-Line, they're still going to suck. I hate this move.

You know how a dog, right before he dies, gets up and runs in a circle for two hours? Well, Brett's two hours were last season.

What the fuck are you talking about this deal is the best option for all involved, It works out for Favre cause he's going to play for a team that not only wants him, but is willing to make him the face of their franchise, and at this point in his career finding a team that is willing to invest and make him the face of their franachise would be a lot tougher than people think, sure there are alot of teams out there that would love to have Favre, but how many of them would be willing to risk everything on Favre?, not to mention he's going to a team who's got a new practice facility in surban NJ, and from what I understand where he'd be living there are plenty of places to go hunting and fishing and shit, all stuff Brett loves doing off the field,

It works out for Pack cause they finally don't have to deal with this shit anymore, and they get a 4th round pick out of this at the very least, with a strong possibility of a 2nd if the Jets make the playoffs, and could even get a 1st round pick if the Jets somehow manage to make it all the way to the SB, this deal is good for the fans cause they still have reason to root for Favre, cause the better he plays and the Jets do the better the pick they get in return for him

The Deal works out for the Jets cause they get Favre a guy who fixes the QB mess that has been haunting the Jets for years now, he is a big money QB who will bring in just that, big money, for the Jets franchise, hell an hour after the deal was done they already had Jets Favre jersey up for sale, LOL, and even at his age he stills gives them a good chance to win, keep in mind the Jets are in one of the most shit Divisions in football, the only real competition in that div. is NE, which is another great thing about this deal, it gives us Favre vs. Brady not once but twice a year, overall this deal is probably the best fucking deal anybody could have hope for, I'm loving this deal right now

 

[as260191]

The Jets have given themselves some security, as have the Packers, in this deal as well. If he's traded to the NFC North, the Jets will owe a whopping 3 first round picks to the Packers, but here's where it's interesting.

According to Adam Schefter of NFL Network, the trade potentially gives the Jets a 2010 Packers draft pick if Favre doesn’t play in 2009.

If the Jets ultimately owe the Packers a first-rounder, the pick in 2010 will be a fifth-rounder.

If the Jets owe a second-rounder, the pick in 2010 will bea sixth-rounder.

If the Jets owe a third-rounder, the pick in 2010 will be a seventh-rounder.

And if the compensation doesn’t move from the current fourth-round selection (which will happen only if Favre plays in 50 percent of less of the snaps on offense), the Jets get nothing back if he doesn’t play in 2009.

Smart move Mr Tannenbaum, Smart move.

 

[Suntan Superman]

Broadway Brett does have a nice ring to it.

Living in Wisconsin, we can't be happier that a.) Brett is gone, b.) he's not a viking or bear.

 

[jmt225]

I have family and friends in Wisconsin, and all of them are heartbroken over the situation. So I don’t think you should be saying "we" in that post of yours as I'm positive it is mostly split when it comes to people's feelings on the matter. But whatever, I’m also happy it’s finally over with. I’m not a big fan of Favre, but something deep down in me wishes he does well in New York. I look forward to seeing how it turns out.

Anyway, mostly stopped in to say that after watching New Orleans’ first pre-season game against Arizona, I am more confident now then ever that if they can stay healthy, there's no doubt that the Saints are going to be seriously contending for a Super Bowl this year. Our defense still has a lot of questions, but our offense couldn't be any better. Well, I shouldn't say that, because our run blocking is still has some problems, but passing wise, I don't think things could be more perfect. We have the right quarterback, our offensive line can pass block a lot better than they can run block for whatever reason, and our receiving core has fucking improved drastically this off-season.

I can't wait for the regular season to start.