SB Nation - Mike Williams

Washington Redskins Defeat Oakland Raiders In Front of Hundreds Of Oakland Fans

Sugar — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:24:40 -0000

More photos » by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

Jim Zorn laughs after hearing Sherman Lewis tell the one about a priest, a rabbi, and Vinny Cerrato walking into a bar over his headset.

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Okay, so it may have been more than a few hundred, but at one point on the national feed I could hear individual people clapping. Before the game you knew it was two teams playing for nothing. By the end of the game it was clear one team was acting like a group playing for nothing and the other was playing the part of a group trying to keep the party going. This Redskins team has found something to be sure. When I watch these guys I think, "Wow...this looks like an actual NFL team...this looks like teams around the league that know what they're doing."

We can spend all day kicking each other in the nuts wondering where this level of play has been all year. It is an exercise in futility, though. Here are a few thoughts on that subject:

1) We were still employing this new offensive system with players Zorn inherited from an old regime with a different philosophy.Is there really anything to this? I spent some time yesterday at Comcast Studios and kicked the idea around with those folks and one thing we talked about specifically was the fact that we are getting it done now with guys who were brought in since Zorn arrived and not prior to his arrival. (FYI--this means Vinny gets some credit which kills me.) This is not to suggest that Clinton Portis, Mike Sellers, Chris Cooley, Chris Samuels, Randy Thomas, Ladell Betts, or even Jon Jansen are or were guys incapable of thriving in Zorn's offense. I think what it means is that all these guys coming on and contributing now have been brought up in this new system over the last two years--Devin Thomas, Fred Davis, Malcolm Kelly....well, it would be hard/unfair to put guys like Mike Williams, Quinton Ganther, Levi Jones, and even Derrick Dockery in here, but the idea is that our lineup now is full of guys brought in to support the new ideology. Time for all of us to put on our cups, because Cerrato is most likely sticking around to work our nuts like a collective group of heavy bags.

2) Sherman Lewis is having a very positive impact.I am done with trying to read into what his level of involvement during the week means and whether or not he can be effective as a coach if he only speaks to Jason Campbell via candy-gram. The numbers tell us that since Sherman Lewis came on board, we have done better. Period. I still think you don't assume Zorn is useless in all of this. He is the quarterbacks guru and our quarterback is playing great, so he deserves credit. I don't believe for a second that he isn't partly responsible for this turn-around.

3) Hiring Zorn, implementing his offense and drafting players to fit it was sold to us as a 2-3 year investment. We are right in the meat of that investment and it appears we are getting some returns. I find it troubling to think that things are going according to (their) plan and they are considering starting over.

The game yesterday to me came down to two players. If you saw me on Comcast's Post Game Live (video to come), you would have seen me:

A) give it to Chick Hernandez a little about his earring; and

B) talk about Brian Orakpo and Jason Campbell.

Ganther, Davis, Carter, Landry...they all contributed, but I thought that it was fitting to highlight our best offensive player and our best defensive player and then underline the lunacy regarding the potential for JC to be somewhere else next season.

Orakpo was a beast. He personally accounted for somewhere in the neighborhood of 50-75 negative yards for the Raiders. Four sacks did not even tell the story of his day...how crazy is that?

Campbell was once again on fire. He threw the ball so accurately on the run yesterday (for the most part), I wondered aloud why they didn't purposely move him around more often (picture Mark Rypien rolling and throwing bombs.)

In the comments today, I thought we would try something a little different. I will start a few comment threads with some questions and everyone is encouraged to ask their own questions raising separate issues. Let's all pull together to gain some "public" opinion on these topics so we can determine the direction of the posts this week.

Team Stat Comparison

1st Downs	21	15
Passing 1st downs	11	11
Rushing 1st downs	7	3
1st downs from Penalties	3	1
3rd down efficiency	5-12	4-15
4th down efficiency	0-0	1-3
Total Plays	58	66
Total Yards	295	227
Passing	195	162
Comp-Att	16-28	20-34
Yards per pass	7.0	4.8
Rushing	100	65
Rushing Attempts	27	24
Yards per rush	3.7	2.7
Red Zone (Made-Att)	4-4	1-2
Penalties	7-45	14-118
Turnovers	1	1
Fumbles lost	1	0
Interceptions thrown	0	1
Defensive / Special Teams TDs	0	0
Possession	27:53	32:07

Denver Broncos @ Washington Redskins; Friday Injury Report

Tim Lynch — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:49:13 -0000

DENVER BRONCOS
Player	Injury	Wed. Participation	Thur. Participation	Fri. Participation	Friday Status
Josh Barrett (S)	Hamstring	Did Not Participate	Did Not Participate	Did Not Participate	Doubtful
Ryan Harris (RT)	Toe	Did Not Participate	Did Not Participate	Did Not Participate	OUT
Brandon Marshall (WR)	Back	Did Not Participate	Full Participation	Full Participation	Probable
Ryan McBean (DL)	Knee	Limited Participation	Limited Participation	Limited Participation	Questionable
WASHINGTON REDSKINS
Player	Injury	Wed. Participation	Thur. Participation	Fri. Participation	Friday Status
Chris Cooley (TE)	Ankle	Out	Out	Out	OUT
Ladell Betts (RB)	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Did Not Participate	Limited Participation	Questionable
Clinton Portis (RB)	Concussion	Did Not Participate	Out	Out	OUT
Mike Williams (T)	Ankle	Did Not Participate	Out	Out	OUT
Jason Campbell (QB)	Ankle	Limited Participation	Full Participation	Full Participation	Probable
Hunter Smith (P)	Right Groin	Limited Participation	Did Not Participate	Limited Participation	Questionable
Byron Westbrook (CB)	Knee	Limited Participation	Limited Participation	Limited Participation	Questionable
Stephon Heyer (T)	Knee	Not Listed	Limited Participation	Limited Participation	Questionable

Ail Will the Redskins, Ail My Sprained Knee

KevinE — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:43:34 -0000

More photos » by John Amis - AP

Injury Report for the Redskins vs Broncos will likely need 2-3 sheets of paper.

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Injury Report is a doozy this week.

Redskins will be continuing their patch work as they face the Denver Broncos this weekend. Zorn stated the Redskins will be looking to sign a RB with Portis "doubtful." Any guesses on this one?

Larry Johnson, who was recently released by the Chiefs, is the likely option. Be the first to get your LJ Redskins jersey!! Or, will Anthony Alridge get the hat trick with his 3rd signing this year with the burgundy and gold? Never a dull moment folks! Cerrato must be loving all the fun work he has to bring in another offensive weapon. Hopefully the Redskins don't lose a draft pick out of all this.

In other news, with the Mike Williams injury (ligament damage in ankle 2-4 weeks), Stephon Heyer will move back to right tackle, and Levi Jones will start at left tackle.

Other Injuries: Chris Horton is out 4-6 weeks (toe). Reed Doughty and Jason Campbell will be OK.

It's maddening how many injuries the Redskins have. Brian Mitchell, as expected, went off in the post-game show stating all this, especially the bad tackling, is a result of the easy training camp the players had. BMitch went on to add that the Redskins did not do any tackling drills in camp, which is clearly evident in the games and lack of effort. Again, one can blame Zorn, but Blache to me seems to be the one that doesn't care. His players are continually committing inexcusable, dumb penalties. I can't possibly see him wanting to stay here another year.

The media outlets that went to multiple training camps said the Redskins camp was very light compared to the others. A lot of the retired players on the major networks have also vocalized their distaste for the music over the loud speakers at practice. They said it absolutely sends the wrong message. Since I haven't been to any other NFL camps but the Redskins, it's hard for me to say one way or the other. The week I was there, there definitely were not any tackling drills that I saw, but they did tackle during their scrimmage drills.

Either way, each week just gets more laughable. Anyone want to guess how many of our week 1 starters will be out week 17 due to injury? 50%?

"Look Kids! Big Ben! Parliament!" - Washington Redskins Games Are Actually Reruns Disguised As Live Television

Sugar — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:32:58 -0000

My wife always gives me a hard time when she walks into the room and I am watching reruns of Seinfeld, The Simpsons, Family Guy, Entourage, or Two and a Half Men. "How can you watch the same show over and over again?" she asks me. I know every word, every expression, and every gag cold. And I still laugh, I still cringe, and I still thoroughly enjoy every second of each episode no matter how many times I watch them.

I have another show to add to my syndicated must-watch list: live Redskins games. They call them "live", but you and I know they are really reruns. The same lovable characters involved in the same wacky hi-jinx. My friends ask me, "How can you watch that same show every single week over and over again?" I know every inevitable gaffe, every nad-biting penalty, and every gut-wrenching 4th quarter blown lead. And yet I still tune in on the road games, and I still show up to FedEx for home games to watch these reruns.

I would be lying if I said that I was heart-broken after yesterday's game. I would be lying if I said I became depressed as the last whistle blew on yet another frustrating loss. We would be lying to ourselves if we acted shocked after the game. That doesn't make it any easier to stomach, but it underlines the place we find ourselves as fans.

As Kevin and I digested the outcome, the first thing I said was, "Kev, these are the things that happen to bad teams. And we should know, because they have been happening to this team for a long time, and there ain't no picture of Snyder next to 'good' in the dictionary."

At 2-3, is the season over? Of course not. But with rumblings that Snyder is looking for Zorn's replacement (as reported by NBC this morning), and with consternation and disenfranchisement settling into the locker room, any post-season chances we have or had are evaporating by the second. And on top of that fact, you look around at the landscape of the NFL and the truth is we are not even in the same class as the top and middle thirds of the league.

The obvious answer is of course to blow it up and start over, but Dan Snyder does not deserve to make headlines in Week 5 and 6 by firing coaches and trying to "shake things up" to get it all turned around. He should be sentenced to a full season of having to sit and watch the results of his own handiwork. This is a situation he built himself. To fire a guy like Zorn right now is patently unfair to the players and coaches. Why? Because it is entirely likely that this is the best they can do. And that is not their fault. That is the fault of the engineers of this team, the builders of this roster--the creators of the 2009 Washington Redskins. We all know who that is, and we all know who deserves to be fired. Since Snyder won't fire himself or Vinny Cerrato, it is unfair of him/them to hold a public execution of Jim Zorn. (Also, who in their right mind would walk into this shit-show right now and assume command of this ship?)

In the meantime, I look forward to the rerun they are playing this Sunday. It is the one where we (the Redskins) played our SIXTH STRAIGHT TEAM WITHOUT A WIN. Think about that for a second. Of course, the Giants were an opening day matchup so it is a bit of a stretch, yet still true. So, this team is 2-3...against that. There is a thin veil that separates us from 0-5...THIN. This veil separates us from being a winless team, but is still see-through enough for us to see our team for what they are. We have been calling for the Redskins to establish an identity. Is it possible that they have?

Just like Kramer coming into Jerry's apartment looking for food, just like Homer forsaking all else for a donut, just like Charlie having casual sex with the next in a long line of ridiculously hot women--the Redskins will stumble through yet another 60 minutes of football and I will be watching intently. Why? Because I'm a guy, and no matter how many times I see the same thing over and over again, I always think there is a chance...a chance that Kramer will bring over a bag of groceries, a chance that Homer will embrace dieting and exercise (with hilarious consequences), a chance that ABC will decide that full frontal nudity is okay and show us even more of Charlie's girl of the week--a chance that the Redskins will not leave a game to chance in the closing quarter of the game. If anyone outside this fan base looks at me or us funny for continuing to watch, they can look to my wife for the explanation: I am a big, dumb animal that is easily entertained and no matter how many times I see the same thing over and over, I refuse to think there is not a chance it could turn out differently.

Redskins News and Notes: Jim Zorn said earlier today that Chris Samuels will NOT play this week against the Chiefs. The expected starting right side will be Chad Rinehart at guard and Mike Williams at tackle. That leaves Heyer at left tackle it would seem. Help us Jebus.

Hogs Haven Predicts Redskins Final 53

Ken Meringolo — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:32:30 -0000

More photos » by Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

Robert Henson and Cody Glenn may both benefit from being drafted by Vinny Cerrato. He HATES to cut players he drafts!

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First, the obvious: Sugar has been shelved for the time being. I will be tackling a new writing assignment within SB Nation and I was asked to come up with a cooler name to write under. The best I could come up with was "Ken Meringolo". I know what you're thinking...sounds too much like an undercover secret agent of international intrigue. I guess you could say I followed the lead of one my heroes, Lt. Frank Drebin, and decided to use my maiden name.

Not that many tears (besides mine) will be shed over it, but Sugar will most assuredly be back. I will keep you guys posted on when and where my other writing assignments will end up. But on to the issues of the day.

Here is our crack at predicting the Redskins "Final 53". We have all been watching the preseason closely--there won't be many surprises. But we are picking a couple. Have at it (after the jump):

QB (3): Jason Campbell, Todd Collins, Colt Brennan

RB (5): Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts, Rock Cartwright, Mike Sellers, Anthony Alridge

WR (5): Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El, Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, Marko Mitchell

TE (3): Chris Cooley, Fred Davis, Todd Yoder

OL (9): Chris Samuels, Derrick Dockery, Casey Rabach, Randy Thomas, Stephon Heyer, Chad Rinehart, Mike Williams, Jeremy Bridges, Will Montgomery

DL (9): Phillip Daniels, Albert Haynesworth, Cornelius Griffin, Anthony Montgomery, Kedric Golston, Lorenzo Alexander, Andre Carter, Jeremy Jarmon, Rob Jackson

LB (7): London Fletcher, Rocky McIntosh, Brian Orakpo, H.B. Blades, Chris Wilson, Cody Glenn, Robert Henson

DB (9): Carlos Rogers, DeAngelo Hall, Fred Smoot, Kevin Barnes, Justin Tryon, LaRon Landry, Chris Horton, Reed Doughty, Kareem Moore

P: Hunter Smith

LS: Ethan Albright

K: Dave Rayner

I put Rob Jackson in over Renaldo Wynn, Robert Henson in over Robert Thomas, Rayner over Suisham, and Anthony Alridge in over whomever you want to call the 53rd man to make it.

Why do I continue to keep Renaldo Wynn off my final 53 list? If you think like me, then you think Wynn is not really a guy who is going to get a lot of snaps anyway unless there is an injury. Rob Jackson is still a little young and raw, and I have not heard his name a ton but if you are going to keep a guy around to caddy for the rest of the defensive linemen, why not keep a young guy who has a shot to develop into a serviceable backup instead of a guy at the end of his rope who has played all of his best football already? This is the pick I will most likely be wrong about, as Renaldo Wynn is a pro who knows how to play the game, and was brought in for his leadership and experience this offseason. But I had to stay true to what I have been saying this summer.

The Robert Henson/Cody Glenn/Robert Thomas decision at linebacker is a little more straight-forward. I think Cody Glenn is at the head of the 3-pack. The decision between Henson and Thomas is not so hard when you remember one thing: Vinny drafted Henson. He hates to be wrong about his draft picks. And lucky for him, he is in the position to pronounce his rightness! Henson has made a few mental blunders during games this preseason, and dropping that sure interception against the Ravens hurt him (coming out of TCU, he was actually graded as a sure-handed linebacker.) But in the end, the team will keep the guy they picked in the draft, and drop the guy they signed off the street. Regardless of who is better--though let's not make that out to be a huge deal. Neither Henson nor Thomas factors huge for us this season, and if Henson can figure out to stay on the field for special teams by mid-season, he will be worth the investment. Finally, it says here that Robert Henson will pull off an Alfred Fincher kind of performance against the Jags and earn the spot.

Anthony Alridge...really? Vinny brought him in this offseason and the word from the inside of the building is that Vinny loves him too much to let him go. What's not to love? He is one of those "yards-per-touch" guys. He is going to get the ball in the flat on screens, pitches, and dump-offs and he is going to get upfield in a hurry. I know Marcus Mason has been a fan favorite to make this squad multiple times, but the fact of the matter is he does not give us something we don't already have. Alridge gives us a scatback, speed option off the bench that will prove very useful this season.

I went with Rayner over Suisham even though there seems to be a resounding consensus that Suisham will retain his position. I FEEL LIKE I AM TAKING CRAZY PILLS! How do you hold any benefit of the doubt in a kicking competition when you were last in the league in field goal percentage? Rayner has had the better kickoff leg and neither has blown the roof off with their field goals. If anything, I would be tempted to keep Rayner and then bring in either Mike Nugent (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) or Brandon Coutu (Seattle Seahawks)--helps to watch every preseason game!--to compete with Rayner in the week leading up to the regular season. Coutu has a good chance to make the Seahawks' roster, but if he doesn't, we wouldn't be the only ones trying to sign him.

Practice Squad Predictions: Edwin Williams, Scott Burly, Keith Eloi, Robbie Agnone, Chase Daniel, Eddie Williams

WaTimes 53-man roster [Redskins 360]
WaPost 53-man roster [Redskins Insider]
Redskins Blog [Terl took his link down...I swore it was there?]

What do you guys think?

Poll

Which player that I put in do you think is most likely NOT to make the team?

Robert Henson

113 votes

Anthony Alridge

226 votes

Rob Jackson

263 votes

602 votes | Poll has closed

Stephen Strasburg vs. Michael Crabtree: Showdown at the $$$ Corral

Fooch — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 20:36:44 -0000

It wouldn't be a complete week without a Michael Crabtree post and today is a good time for it given the significance of midnight eastern tonight. The Washington Nationals have until then to come to terms with their #1 draft pick, phenom pitcher Stephen Strasburg. Strasburg is considered the proverbial "once-in-a-generation talent" and he also happens to be represented by Scott Boras. Needless to say, that has caused much consternation in the Nationals attempts to sign Strasburg.

The highest bonus given to an MLB draft choice was $10.5 million to Mark Prior. The Nationals have reportedly offered Strasburg a contract worth anywhere from $12.5 million to $17 million. Additionally, one report indicates incentives could make it worth over $20 million. If you're interested, you can follow this deadline dance at our Nationals website, Federal Baseball.

So why do I bring this up in relation to Michael Crabtree? Well, Boras has indicated he thinks Strasburg should get a contract similar to that of a Daisuke Matsuzaka. When he came over from Japan, the Red Sox paid $50 million to the Japanese team for the rights to negotiate, and then handed Dice-K an approximately $50 million contract. Boras thinks Strasburg deserves that kind of $50 million contract (not the posting fee mentioned first). It basically comes down to a philosophical belief, sort of like the issue we have with Crabtree.

Now obviously the situations have two big-time differences:

First, and most important for the Nationals, If they do not sign Strasburg by midnight, they'll receive the #2 overall pick in next year's draft as compensation. They actually failed to sign their 2008 #1 pick and received I believe the #10 overall pick as compensation. The 49ers would get no such compensation.

Second, Crabtree's options are much more limited at this point. If Strasburg doesn't sign, he can play for an independent league in the US or head over to Japan for a season. I also think he can go back to college, but I don't know the rules on that if he's already signed Boras as an agent (as opposed to just an advisor - I'm pretty sure though he can go back for his senior year at SDSU). Crabtree can't go back to school and his only real comparable option is the UFL, but if he goes to another league he's locked down to the 49ers even longer.

Just looking at those two differences, there is definitely a lot of good and a lot of bad for the 49ers. While it's true the 49ers would potentially lose a draft choice if Crabtree went back into the draft, such a move remains a big problem for Crabtree. His only leverage on the 49ers is that they lose his rights. On the other hand, Crabtree is pretty much guaranteed to lose money if he doesn't sign with the 49ers. And when I say lose money, I think it would be a whole lot of money. Not only would he likely drop pretty far after sitting out a year, but I'd imagine he could turn into another Mike Williams in terms of long term value.

I remain convinced he'll sign by sometime in September (maybe even right before the first game). However, I personally find it interesting to compare this situation with that of other teams and leagues. There are plenty of differences, but not so surprisingly, the whole "philosophical difference" creeps up every time.

Is Washington Redskins' Vinny Cerrato a Watered-down Matt Millen? (Comparison Chart)

KevinE — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:53:02 -0000

I recently came across a Washington Post article from 2005, where Mike Wise spoke with Vinny Cerrato about his worst decisions and lessons learned:

"Biggest regret? Probably in 2000, signing all those older guys," Cerrato said. "I learned you can't put a lot of signing bonuses on veteran players cause they're not going to play out those years. That was a mistake I made and learned from. Bruce Smith, Deion and Mark Carrier were the big ones...Now, we try to avoid dead money, money that counts against your cap and doesn't go to anybody."

(The Redskins are among NFL leaders with $16 million of their 2005 salary cap devoted to players no longer on the roster).

This is pure comedy. Fast forward four years to today and the Redskins are almost exactly at $16 million in dead cap money (Brandon Lloyd leading the charge at $5mil+). In my opinion, Cerrato correctly fixed the problem with signing veterans past their prime, but we certainly have not fixed the problem of building through the draft. It's the blue-print every Super Bowl team has, yet the Redskins front office chooses to go the George Steinbrenner route. Assuming Washington doesn't lose a draft pick for the Haynesworth tampering, the Redskins will have all their 2010 draft picks (minus the 6^th round pick due to the Jason Taylor acquisition). Not bad! Let's just pray the Skins stay healthy so the trigger happy front office doesn't unload them for more free agents.

Even today, the distaste for Cerrato in DC is quite high, so that got me thinking (it is known to happen), how many similarities does Cerrato have with Matt Millen, arguably the worst GM of all time? Here's my findings:

Matt Millen		Vinny Cerrato
	loves to draft WRs in the first 2 rounds¹
	has drafted only bust QBs²
	passed on Demarcus Ware & Shawn Merriman in the 2005 draft³
	had/has a website lobbying to getting that person fired
	supported by the owner but none of the fans
	under .459 total win percentage in tenure
	less than 1 year as an ESPN analyst
	given extension/promotion despite not making the playoffs
	has a Super Bowl ring with the Redskins
	fired by potential future Hall of Fame coach⁴
	demoted draft day decision-making by Hall of Fame coach⁵
	had a losing record in his collegiate playing career
	has cool, Chuck Norris-esque mustache

1	Calvin Johnson, Mike Williams, Roy Williams, Charles Rogers <---> Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, Fred Davis, Taylor Jacobs
2	Joey Harrington, Drew Stanton <---> Patrick Ramsey, Todd Husak, Sage Rosenfels, Jordan Palmer
3	Joe Gibbs was running the show this year so Cerrato cannot take all, if any, of the blame. We'll dole this one out to the Skins as a whole (although Cerrato did take some credit for the Sean Taylor pick, which I thought was all Gregg Williams).
4	Marty Schottenheimer
5	Joe Gibbs

I couldn't find much on Cerrato's times at Notre Dame when they won the championship, though Dan Steinberg uncovered a gem, which led the NCAA to add a rule named, the "Vinny Cerrato Rule."

Cerrato's resume included a stint as chief recruiter for Lou Holtz at Notre Dame, where he'd gained notoriety for impressing prospective recruits by standing on the Notre Dame sideline during televised games feeding them play calls in advance via cell phone--a tactic the NCAA later banned with a special "Vinny Cerrato rule."

I guess when it comes to tampering, the Redskins' front office know how to safely tip-toe around the boundaries!!

"They were all watching the game," Cerrato said. "I knew they would be. So I called their houses all over the country, and I said: 'This is Vinny Cerrato from Notre Dame. I'm on the sidelines at the Orange Bowl. You watching?' And then I'd tell them what the next play was going to be."

Maybe the Chiefs Shouldn't Mess with USC Either

Joel Thorman — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 12:45:07 -0000

via www.pe.com

Yesterday we talked about the shortcomings of University of Texas players in the NFL, mostly because Brian Orakpo is an option for the Chiefs with the 3rd overall pick. I wasn't trying to knock the Texas program, especially after I sat in the stadium in Austin with 80,000 people yelling Hook 'em Horns as they put a pummeling on Missouri last season. But I just wanted to point out an interesting trend (is it a trend?) about players from Texas.

That said, I wanted to note the recent 1st round picks by some of so-called NFL factories. Like Texas, USC sends a good chunk of their roster each season to the NFL. And like Texas, a number of those are 1st round picks.

The Texas list of pro talent wasn't so compelling. How does USC stack up in the last decade?

DT Sedrick Ellis (7)
LB Keith Rivers (9)
T Sam Baker (23)
DE Lawrence Jackson (28)
RB Reggie Bush (2)
QB Matt Leinart (10)
WR Mike Williams (10)
DT Mike Patterson (31)
DE Kenechi Udeze (20)
QB Carson Palmer (1)
S Troy Polamalu (16)
WR R. Jay Soward (29)
LB Chris Claiborne (9)

Taking into account the general rule that you can't fully judge a draft class for three years, I see three busts (Williams, Udeze, R. Jay Soward), Claiborne hasn't been in the league since 2006, and then Bush and Leinart who haven't necessarily justified their draft position yet. Of those nine picks, Patterson, Palmer and Polamalu are the only three of the nine that have fully panned out so far.

Other schools, like LSU and Tennessee, have better first round talent than USC in the last decade. Yet USC has played in a third of those national title games.

I know this argument is a bit of a stretch because ultimately the school doesn't really determine what kind of NFL performer the player will be. Mark Sanchez, Rey Maualuga, Clay Matthews and Brian Cushing could all be fine players. But the first round talent out of USC in the last decade isn't quite what I thought.

I don't expect Scott Pioli or any of the other Chiefs' scouts to put much stock into something like this. While there may be a few busts or players that haven't necessarily justified their draft position, there's also a franchise quarterback and arguably the best safety in the game. High risk can also create high rewards.

Besides, now that Carl Peterson is gone, it's about time the Chiefs get some USC players on their team. I don't suspect Pioli, being from Central Connecticut State University, will bring his college grudge with him.

Wednesday Notes: Lions Line Up More Visits with Free Agents

Sean Yuille — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 14:07:25 -0000

Defensive tackle Grady Jackson, who last played for the Falcons, is expected to sign today if he passes a physical. The deal will reportedly be two or three years long.
Tight end L.J. Smith, formerly of the Eagles, was reportedly headed to Michigan last night and will probably meet with the Lions today. (The story didn't specify when the meeting was scheduled to take place, but generally the formal sit-down will be during the day.)
Offensive lineman Daniel Loper, who can apparently play both guard and tackle, also was on his way to Michigan last night for a visit today.
Cornerback Chris Carr will probably end up deciding between the Titans, Browns, and Lions.
The Lions and Broncos both are reportedly interested in quarterback Chris Simms, who played for the Titans last season. No visit has been scheduled yet for Detroit, but Simms is probably going to meet with the Broncos today.
Speaking of the Broncos, they have decided to not trade Jay Cutler and have made that clear to the public. Cutler is going to have a meeting with new coach Josh McDaniels next week, which likely will be the last of this story before it fizzles out. It was a pipe dream that the Lions would somehow trade for Cutler, but it was fun to think about for a few days. Just look at the havoc Martin Mayhew helped create. Unlike Matt Millen, it wasn't to his own team.
In case you needed more incentive to not give a damn about what Mel Kiper says about the draft, check out The Big Lead, which put together a look back at Kiper's 2005 draft grades. My favorite evaluation of all is on Mike Williams.

Detroit Lions: C+
Give the Lions credit for going away from their biggest needs to take receiver Mike Williams, who was clearly the best player available at No. 10 overall, but you have to wonder if they got enough help for the defense. Williams gives Detroit perhaps the best young receiving corps in the league, but defensive linemen Shaun Cody (a versatile end-tackle combo) and end Bill Swancutt (a one-dimensional pass rusher) may not be enough of a boost up front.
While he did correctly predict that Shaun Cody and Bill Swancutt would not help the pass rush that much, how on earth do he miss so badly on Williams? On top of that, Kiper said that Cedric Benson "has all the makings of a star running back," and he offered this analysis on the 49ers' decision to draft Alex Smith.

San Francisco 49ers: B
A good first day but an average second day. There were no trade opportunities compelling enough that San Francisco wanted to give up the No. 1 overall pick, but quarterback Alex Smith is a player who's easy to like.
Since Kiper is busy trumpeting Matthew Stafford to be the top overall pick, this is only more evidence to go in a direction other than QB.

Cris Carter Is Full of It

Sean Yuille — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 20:17:24 -0000

I mentioned earlier today that former Vikings receiver and current ESPN analyst Cris Carter ripped Matt Millen for drafting Charles Rogers and Mike Williams. Carter criticized Millen for not asking his opinion on either of the two busts since Carter worked out with both of them prior to their drafts and knew they wouldn't be good NFL receivers. Here's Carter's exact quote:

"Matt Millen, do a little undercover work," Carter said today. "Williams and Charlie Rogers both worked with out with me before the draft, and I could have told them, 'don't draft neither one of them.' ... Never asked me."

As it turns out, Carter is nothing more than a big liar. Yahoo! Sports' Charles Robinson dug up a couple quotes from Carter that prove just that.

That’s interesting because here is what you said about both players just before they were drafted. Carter’s comments about Rogers, to the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel just before the 2003 draft: “He’s very similar – and I don’t like to make a lot of comparisons – to Randy (Moss) in a sense, a big basketball player playing wide receiver. He’s the only receiver that’s come out since Randy that you can make an honest comparison to. He has a yearning to learn.”

And Carter’s comments about Williams, to the St. Paul Pioneer Press just before the 2005 draft: “I think he’s going to be a great player. I think people will be surprised at the kind of person he is. He’s really a hard worker. He takes his training very seriously and wants to be very good.”

I would be very interested in hearing Carter's excuse for making such different statements about Rogers and Williams now compared to back when they were each going into the NFL. Why would Millen ask for Carter's opinion when his opinion was known to the public? On top of that, would Carter's opinion behind closed doors be different than what he said to those two papers? Regardless of the answer to that question, it's pretty obvious that Cris Carter is a liar and really shouldn't be calling out anyone. Although Matt Millen is an easy target for criticism, at least be truthful when bashing him. It's not that hard.