The Pick - A.J. Green WR Georgia
It has been a long time since the glory days of Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas and Andre Reed.
The Bills are currently a team without an identity. The team ranked in the bottom half of the league in nearly every major team statistic (passing, rushing, rush defense). The only bright spot being the team ranked 3rd in the league in pass defense. Of course, when the more talented teams in the division are kicking your ass they usually don't need to pass the ball. They're running out the clock with run plays while you're desperately passing to get back into it. Volume is the problem. Opponents ran 571 run plays against the Bills while only throwing 473 times.
With all that said, the right move for a franchise this far down in the league is to draft the best player available. In this case that is A.J. Green. Green has been a star since he stepped foot on Georgia's campus. His impact on the Bulldogs season was apparent when he returned from one of the more ridiculous suspensions in modern history. (Reggie Bush's parents lived in a $250,000 paid for by agents/boosters and it took 5 years to investigate. Green sells something that belongs to him and the NCAA cracks down in a few months.) In any event, the Bulldogs were a completely different team with Green's athletic ability and incredible skill back in the lineup. Green dominated all comers and showed his superior talent during the second half of the season, while the Bulldogs went from also ran to bowl eligible status.
I've seen some mock drafts saying that the Bills are "okay" at wide receiver with the emergence of Stevie Johnson. Johnson is a good player. Lee Evans is definitely serviceable. However, the team needs an identity. Ryan Fitzpatrick can get the job done as a signal caller. The team should give him another year to develop while adding an uber-talented weapon to give this team a much needed identity. It is time for the team to be something other than simply "okay" or more accurately "mediocre" at every position. If Fitzpatrick doesn't get it done then they can draft another QB next year, a la the Cowboys drafting Michael Irvin just before getting Troy Aikman. At the least the new QB would have a ton of targets.
The Bills need to address issues with offensive line, pass rushing linebacker and perhaps tight end later in the draft.
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
Mock Draft - Pick 2
On the Clock - Denver Broncos
2. Denver Broncos - Nick Fairley
One of the top players in this draft, and at a position of need this just makes way too much sense. I doubt he'll have the impact that Suh provided the Lions last year, but honestly no one can be expected to. This pick has the opportunity to be one of the huge tipping points in the draft however, and could go a lot of different ways.
First, if someone wants to take a quarterback early, this is the spot to trade to. Ryan Fitzpatrick has shown once again that he can start and quarterback and run an offense well enough that fans won't change the channel, but long-term if the Bills want to be competitive he's not the answer. So they may be inclined to take Gabbert with the third pick. If not there is no way he falls all the way past Arizona at 5, with Carson Palmer ready to retire if he isn't traded, and a mannequin dressed in Kurt Warner's old jersey Arizona's best option one of these teams will take Gabbert, and one of them may even move up in front of the Bills to do it.
With Champ Bailey likely to depart Patrick Peterson (or P.P) as he will be known from this point forward will also factor in. Taking a CB this high is risky though, and until P.P runs the short shuttle and 3 cone drill and shows he has the agility and change of direction to hang in the NFL I can't slot him in here.
Also if John Fox isn’t sold on Tim Tebow he could take Gabbert here as well. But I think it’s worth giving Tebow a shot after what he showed at the end of the year, knowing that if it goes bad Gabbert real wasn’t a once in a lifetime quarterback that you missed out on, and you can probably draft someone comparable next year.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Mock Draft - Carolina Panthers on the Clock
Brian and I will be putting together a mock draft by alternating picks. I'm up first
1. Carolina Panthers - Da'Quan Bowers - DE Clemson
Bowers is the top pass rusher available in this draft. The Panthers roster is depleted at virtually every position. The Panthers need to start rebuilding. In the NFL there are three marquis positions that define the modern franichise: (1) Quarterback; (2) Left Tackle; and (3) Pass Rushing defensive end or linebacker. It's no secret the modern game is based on passing. The three key players in every pass play are those listed above. With the departure of Julius Peppers the Panthers lost the best overall talent available at this position.
The only other possibility here would have been Fairley from Auburn. Fairley is a player in the Warren Sapp mold which makes him valuable against both the pass and the run. However, defensive tackles can be limited in their impact on the game because they often play a limited number of snaps. As a result using the number one pick on a player that may play only half your defensive snaps is not necessarily a good plan.
The last piece that makes this the smart pick is the possibility of a collective bargaining agreement. If a new CBA is reached then it will almost certainly include a rookie wage scale. The enormous price of the number one draft pick has forced many teams to reach for the best QB available in recent years, regardless of that player's grade. A franchise can only justify paying $50 million guaranteed to the quarterback position. A rookie wage scale means that other positions are more likely to factor into the number one pick. It would also increase the potential to trade the top picks in the draft because with less money invested the top picks would no longer be an all or nothing proposition.
1. Carolina Panthers - Da'Quan Bowers - DE Clemson
Bowers is the top pass rusher available in this draft. The Panthers roster is depleted at virtually every position. The Panthers need to start rebuilding. In the NFL there are three marquis positions that define the modern franichise: (1) Quarterback; (2) Left Tackle; and (3) Pass Rushing defensive end or linebacker. It's no secret the modern game is based on passing. The three key players in every pass play are those listed above. With the departure of Julius Peppers the Panthers lost the best overall talent available at this position.
The only other possibility here would have been Fairley from Auburn. Fairley is a player in the Warren Sapp mold which makes him valuable against both the pass and the run. However, defensive tackles can be limited in their impact on the game because they often play a limited number of snaps. As a result using the number one pick on a player that may play only half your defensive snaps is not necessarily a good plan.
The last piece that makes this the smart pick is the possibility of a collective bargaining agreement. If a new CBA is reached then it will almost certainly include a rookie wage scale. The enormous price of the number one draft pick has forced many teams to reach for the best QB available in recent years, regardless of that player's grade. A franchise can only justify paying $50 million guaranteed to the quarterback position. A rookie wage scale means that other positions are more likely to factor into the number one pick. It would also increase the potential to trade the top picks in the draft because with less money invested the top picks would no longer be an all or nothing proposition.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
The Book of Challenges
Brian and I have always talked about writing a book called the Book of Challenges. The book would center on how to properly use your coach's challenges in a NFL game. This subject comes up because in the Pittsburgh-Ravens game Mike Tomlin used a challenge on the opening play of the game for approximately 15 yards of field position. On the play the return man, Webb, was tackled at the 35 yard line, but the referees ruled he was not down. He got up and ran to the 50 yard line before being tackled again. Tomlin challenged the play and won. The announcers, Dierdorf and the guy I always mix up with Bryant Gumble, praised Tomlin for challenging the play. They are both idiots.
Here is how the Book of Challenges looks:
Chapter 1 - Turnovers
Chapter 2 - Touchdowns
Chapter 3 - Turnovers that lead to Touchdowns
Chapter 4 - That's it. You do not challenge anything that does not result in a turnover or a touchdown. The only possible exception being third down plays that would result in a fourth down, which are essentially turnovers.
The point is simple. With only two challenges those challenges must be reserved for plays that result in points. Turnovers result in points. Touchdowns result in points on the board. Herm Edwards once said something smart (it might be the only time) "You play to win the game." Well, points win the game. 15 yards does not win the game. In fact, it wins nothing.
If you blow your challenges on 15 yard plays then you might end up running out of challenges. You only get 2, unless you are right about both. Even then you only get three. Any time there is a questionable turnover a coach should use their first challenge in order to save points or gain points, depending on your prospective. However, if you've used one of your challenges on the first play of the game then you really can only afford to risk a challenge if it is a turnover that leads to a touchdown. You cannot challenge a regular turnover and must rely upon your defense to make it up. Either your defense gets a stop after turnover they caused or they make a stop after your offense turns it over.
In the aforementioned Pitt-Baltimore game Tomlin had to use his second challenge in the first quarter when Big Ben coughed up the ball and everyone except Corey Redding stopped playing. Redding scored a touchdown on the turnover and Tomlin had to try to stem the tide. Now if this game comes down to a questionable call in the subsequent three quarters Pittsburgh has to live with whatever call happens on the field.
This is especially dangerous because so many NFL officials have adopted a wait and see approach to fumbles and other calls. Rather than blow the whistle and risk depriving a team of the fumble recovery or extra yardage, the officials rely upon replay to sort it. The replay of plays when a whistle makes a challenge impossible has trained the referees to swallow the whistle rather than make the right call immediately. It is a matter of preventing them from embarrassing themselves.
Turnovers. Touchdowns. Turnovers that lead to Touchdowns. That's it.
Here is how the Book of Challenges looks:
Chapter 1 - Turnovers
Chapter 2 - Touchdowns
Chapter 3 - Turnovers that lead to Touchdowns
Chapter 4 - That's it. You do not challenge anything that does not result in a turnover or a touchdown. The only possible exception being third down plays that would result in a fourth down, which are essentially turnovers.
The point is simple. With only two challenges those challenges must be reserved for plays that result in points. Turnovers result in points. Touchdowns result in points on the board. Herm Edwards once said something smart (it might be the only time) "You play to win the game." Well, points win the game. 15 yards does not win the game. In fact, it wins nothing.
If you blow your challenges on 15 yard plays then you might end up running out of challenges. You only get 2, unless you are right about both. Even then you only get three. Any time there is a questionable turnover a coach should use their first challenge in order to save points or gain points, depending on your prospective. However, if you've used one of your challenges on the first play of the game then you really can only afford to risk a challenge if it is a turnover that leads to a touchdown. You cannot challenge a regular turnover and must rely upon your defense to make it up. Either your defense gets a stop after turnover they caused or they make a stop after your offense turns it over.
In the aforementioned Pitt-Baltimore game Tomlin had to use his second challenge in the first quarter when Big Ben coughed up the ball and everyone except Corey Redding stopped playing. Redding scored a touchdown on the turnover and Tomlin had to try to stem the tide. Now if this game comes down to a questionable call in the subsequent three quarters Pittsburgh has to live with whatever call happens on the field.
This is especially dangerous because so many NFL officials have adopted a wait and see approach to fumbles and other calls. Rather than blow the whistle and risk depriving a team of the fumble recovery or extra yardage, the officials rely upon replay to sort it. The replay of plays when a whistle makes a challenge impossible has trained the referees to swallow the whistle rather than make the right call immediately. It is a matter of preventing them from embarrassing themselves.
Turnovers. Touchdowns. Turnovers that lead to Touchdowns. That's it.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Heisman Trophies and Blood
Tonight War Criminal Cam Newton will win the Heisman Trophy temporarily. There remains little doubt that Newton was aware that his father was receiving payment for his attendance at Auburn. Needless to say the SEC is not necessarily known for fairness and honesty in competition. All of that is beside the point.
The point that young Cam is missing out on concerns the attendance of his father at the event. The elder Newton announced this week he will not attend the ceremony to avoid robbing his son of a sacred moment. An action that is no doubt intended to keep him from having to answer any tough questions about his actions on behalf of his son. In terms of Cam, the question remains should he accept an award at a place where is father is clearly not welcome.
I was daydreaming about this particular circumstance earlier this week. What if I was the clear front runner for the Heisman, but some hypocritical douchebags (the NCAA and College Football in particularmake billions of dollars off the work of these individuals) claimed my father could not attend for some reason? Now I understand that Cecil's actions preempted people from banning him from the ceremony, but what if he had not. My answer would be tough. Any organization that is not willing to have my family present can stick it up their asses.
I would attend the ceremony. I would leave myself eligible to win the award. Once I won the award I would refuse to touch the trophy. I would step to the microphone and express my feelings concerning the hypocrisy of college football. I would tell them thank you, but no thank you. The Heisman Trophy is a piece of bronze and blood is thicker than even bronze. I'd call the second place vote getter to the podium and declare him the winner. Then I'd ride off into the sunset of professional football, millions of dollars and mega babes. I'd be a legend. The only guy to ever turn down the Heisman.
Cam, turn it down. Do it for your dad.
The point that young Cam is missing out on concerns the attendance of his father at the event. The elder Newton announced this week he will not attend the ceremony to avoid robbing his son of a sacred moment. An action that is no doubt intended to keep him from having to answer any tough questions about his actions on behalf of his son. In terms of Cam, the question remains should he accept an award at a place where is father is clearly not welcome.
I was daydreaming about this particular circumstance earlier this week. What if I was the clear front runner for the Heisman, but some hypocritical douchebags (the NCAA and College Football in particularmake billions of dollars off the work of these individuals) claimed my father could not attend for some reason? Now I understand that Cecil's actions preempted people from banning him from the ceremony, but what if he had not. My answer would be tough. Any organization that is not willing to have my family present can stick it up their asses.
I would attend the ceremony. I would leave myself eligible to win the award. Once I won the award I would refuse to touch the trophy. I would step to the microphone and express my feelings concerning the hypocrisy of college football. I would tell them thank you, but no thank you. The Heisman Trophy is a piece of bronze and blood is thicker than even bronze. I'd call the second place vote getter to the podium and declare him the winner. Then I'd ride off into the sunset of professional football, millions of dollars and mega babes. I'd be a legend. The only guy to ever turn down the Heisman.
Cam, turn it down. Do it for your dad.
Friday, December 3, 2010
Ron Santo...Hall of Famer
The Baseball Hall of Fame is not all about numbers. My brother would argue otherwise as he holds up his "Mazeroski, You Don't Belong!" sign. With all due respect, and remember I am saying with all due respect, my brother is wrong, the truth is the Hall of Fame is about one word "fame." Fame is about importance and significance to us all.
Let's review the initial Hall of Fame class. The legendary 5. Ruth, Cobb, Johnson, Matthewson and Wagner. While each of these individuals had some of the most impressive numbers in history at the time, it was not all about the numbers. Ruth was the most famous baseball player ever. Cobb was a son-of-a-bitch on an epic scale, and therefore endlessly entertaining. Matthewson lost it all in the Great War. Wagner, well he might have been about the numbers. Johnson was an incredible talent, but like Wagner, had incredible numbers. However, a lot of the numbers guys, Young and the deadball era players, had to wait behind their more famous colleagues.
The point of the Hall of Fame is not to just reward numbers. If it were the Bert Blyleven would already be in. The Hall is about being important to us as a society. Ruth altered baseball forever. Johnson was unprecedented in his dominance. Cobb lead the most important statistic of his time, batting average, by a large margin. Mazeroski created one of the most indelible memories in baseball history.
Very few players of his time are currently more important to baseball than Santo is today. Santo is the high priest of Cubs suffering. His passing marks, for us Cubs fans, another sad milestone. Another one of us that passed away before seeing the Cubs break the curse. I heard someone today say that no one deserved to see the Cubs win the World Series more than Santo. I wholeheartedly agree.
Santo's passion and love for the lovable losers make him a paragon of what baseball should be about. The child in all of us loving unconditionally something that means nothing at all. (Thanks to Mike Greenberg) Santo didn't just love. he didn't just love unconditionally. He loved completely and we loved him back. He should have been in the Hall of Fame anyway you look at it...numbers...fame...importance.
Finally, no one should overlook Santo's work as a humanitarian. His efforts with Juvenile Diabetes and diabetes awareness are immeasurable. I read somewhere today that Santo would personally call diabetes patients that wrote him about losing a limb. He thought it made it more memorable for them. I'd like to see evidence Cobb made one call that did not involve money or getting laid.
The fact Santo was not voted into the Hall of Fame during his lifetime is one of the great tragedies of baseball history. Sadly, it can never be corrected. Even posthumous induction will rob us all of the opportunity to watch Santo bask the universal love he so deserved from the entire baseball world.
Let's review the initial Hall of Fame class. The legendary 5. Ruth, Cobb, Johnson, Matthewson and Wagner. While each of these individuals had some of the most impressive numbers in history at the time, it was not all about the numbers. Ruth was the most famous baseball player ever. Cobb was a son-of-a-bitch on an epic scale, and therefore endlessly entertaining. Matthewson lost it all in the Great War. Wagner, well he might have been about the numbers. Johnson was an incredible talent, but like Wagner, had incredible numbers. However, a lot of the numbers guys, Young and the deadball era players, had to wait behind their more famous colleagues.
The point of the Hall of Fame is not to just reward numbers. If it were the Bert Blyleven would already be in. The Hall is about being important to us as a society. Ruth altered baseball forever. Johnson was unprecedented in his dominance. Cobb lead the most important statistic of his time, batting average, by a large margin. Mazeroski created one of the most indelible memories in baseball history.
Very few players of his time are currently more important to baseball than Santo is today. Santo is the high priest of Cubs suffering. His passing marks, for us Cubs fans, another sad milestone. Another one of us that passed away before seeing the Cubs break the curse. I heard someone today say that no one deserved to see the Cubs win the World Series more than Santo. I wholeheartedly agree.
Santo's passion and love for the lovable losers make him a paragon of what baseball should be about. The child in all of us loving unconditionally something that means nothing at all. (Thanks to Mike Greenberg) Santo didn't just love. he didn't just love unconditionally. He loved completely and we loved him back. He should have been in the Hall of Fame anyway you look at it...numbers...fame...importance.
Finally, no one should overlook Santo's work as a humanitarian. His efforts with Juvenile Diabetes and diabetes awareness are immeasurable. I read somewhere today that Santo would personally call diabetes patients that wrote him about losing a limb. He thought it made it more memorable for them. I'd like to see evidence Cobb made one call that did not involve money or getting laid.
The fact Santo was not voted into the Hall of Fame during his lifetime is one of the great tragedies of baseball history. Sadly, it can never be corrected. Even posthumous induction will rob us all of the opportunity to watch Santo bask the universal love he so deserved from the entire baseball world.
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Qatar and the bottomless abyss
Listen, I don't mean to offend anyone here. However, the questionable decision to hold the World Cup in the middle of nowhere deserves some discussion. As I understand it the expected game time temperatures for Qatar during the World Cup will be 130 degrees. That's right. 130 degrees.
How are humans supposed to survive in that kind of environment? Can our cruisers repel firepower of that magnitude? Is it indeed a trap? Is this a conspiracy to have an African team finally succeed in World Cup play? How many overweight fans perish in this inhospitable environment?
I cannot imagine a bigger competitive disadvantage for European teams (I'm looking at you England) than playing the games on Satan's left asscheek. Those poor limeys will be melting before half. I suppose coaches can attempt to counteract this problem by having their team train (see, aren't I informative? I know soccor lingo) in oppressive heat in the time leading up to the game. But how does one simulate 130 degree heat? Is is possible to fit a soccor field within a microwave oven? Do you get portable heaters?
In any event, the end result of this type of thinking, first Russia then Qatar, is the outlandish concept of holding the tournament in a bottom less pit. Much like the famous Simpson's episode where Ozzie Smith falls down a bottomless pit, this scenario is not unrealistic. It would truly test the fortitude of international footballers to find out that they can only compete for the sport's greatest prize by willingly subjecting themselves to an eternity falling through blackness. At least they wouldn't need to air condition the stadiums.
How are humans supposed to survive in that kind of environment? Can our cruisers repel firepower of that magnitude? Is it indeed a trap? Is this a conspiracy to have an African team finally succeed in World Cup play? How many overweight fans perish in this inhospitable environment?
I cannot imagine a bigger competitive disadvantage for European teams (I'm looking at you England) than playing the games on Satan's left asscheek. Those poor limeys will be melting before half. I suppose coaches can attempt to counteract this problem by having their team train (see, aren't I informative? I know soccor lingo) in oppressive heat in the time leading up to the game. But how does one simulate 130 degree heat? Is is possible to fit a soccor field within a microwave oven? Do you get portable heaters?
In any event, the end result of this type of thinking, first Russia then Qatar, is the outlandish concept of holding the tournament in a bottom less pit. Much like the famous Simpson's episode where Ozzie Smith falls down a bottomless pit, this scenario is not unrealistic. It would truly test the fortitude of international footballers to find out that they can only compete for the sport's greatest prize by willingly subjecting themselves to an eternity falling through blackness. At least they wouldn't need to air condition the stadiums.
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