SB Nation - Keyshawn Johnson

Jet Memories Countdown #1; 3-0 Bucs look like Superbowl team; but don't see the glove come off!!

Niko Houllis — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:33:28 -0000

The Bucs were the talk of the offseason. They were the team doing everything right. They had their playoff year in 97, struggled a bit in 98 then returned with one of the best defenses ever seen in 1999. They went out and picked up Keyshawn Johnson, and took Randall McDaniel and Jeff Christie from the fellow NFC Central Minnesota Vikings. By every account, this was a team that was going to make a run for the Superbowl.

They came out and beat the Pats on the road game one. Then they shut out the Bears 41-0 at home in game 2. They beat Detroit 31-10.... and a date with the Jets was up next.

Curtis Martin is a great runner. The Bucs managed to control him. They managed to keep him in check. They saw Martin do everything...except, take the glove off! A Gloveless Martin then takes the hand off, drops back and throws a clean TD pass to Wayne Chrebet. Keyshawn threw up on himself Im sure. He mouthed off all week long, but Chrebet was the one who became the hero of the game.

The Goat was not Keyshawn, it went to Mike Alstott, who put the ball on the ground when the Bucs were counting on him to run out the game. All this after Ronde Barber returned a pass from Vinny back for 6 and a seemingly insurmountable lead with only 3:55 left in the 3rd quarter.

Vinny was benched, but returned and led the Jets to a TD at the 2:00 warning.

All the Bucs needed to do was run the clock out. The Good Hands People. We were supposed to be in good hands....

But this was 99-00, when Alstott was having a little problem holding onto the rock. He had a three drop day against the Chiefs in 1999. He had his days. He won many more than he lost, that is for sure. The Bucs lost THREE more games in a row, to start out 3-4, and end early SuperBowl talk going on after the close loss to the Rams.

Mike Holmgren's Greatest Managerial Achievement

John Morgan — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:45:48 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Riedel - AP

Even in red, a Seahawk.

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Mike Holmgren selected Steve Hutchinson 17^th overall in the 2001 NFL Draft, seven picks after selecting Koren Robinson and 23 picks before he selected Ken Lucas. If Robinson could have kept off the bottle, that would have been a hell of a start to a draft. He swapped first round picks with Green Bay for Matt Hasselbeck, drafted Heath Evans, Alex Bannister, and John David Booty's older brother, Josh.

Holmgren built the 2005 offense that weekend. He won the draft. In a draft that produced someday Hall of Fame candidates: Richard Seymour, Drew Brees, LaDainian Tomlinson, Steve Hutchinson, Casey Hampton, Steve Smith, Reggie Wayne and Adrian Wilson, Holmgren won. The Panthers picked Dan Morgan, Kris Jenkins and Steve Smith with their first, second and third round selections, but still Holmgren's was better. He built the unit that would lead Seattle to its first and only Super Bowl.

Well, not quite.

The Bears cut Bobby Engram August 29 and Holmgren signed him August 31. Engram signed a two-year contract that paid him less than $500,000 annually. He was the 101^st highest paid receiver in 2001.

Engram received a 60k raise his second season and took on punt return duties to compensate. He averaged 10.7 yards per return and returned one to the house. That was the season Engram became the darling of Football Outsiders metrics. Targets to Engram ranked 26^th in total value and 13^th in value per target. He was ninth and second in 2003.

Holmgren struggled to fill out a roster and his teams were notoriously thin and talent poor defensively, but man did that man know early 21^st-century offense. He squeezed maximum value from slot receivers. Engram wasn't some schlub. He won the first ever Biletnikof trophy in 1994 and still holds most of Penn State's receiving records. Unlike Deon Butler, Engram wasn't a steady four-year starter with time to burn. Joe Paterno suspended him for the entire 1992 season after he was caught burglarizing an apartment and stealing a stereo with teammate Ricky Sayles. All charges were dropped against Engram after police determined Sayles convinced Engram the two were allowed to take the stereo.

The 1996 draft class included Keyshawn Johnson, Terry Glenn, Eddie Kennison, Marvin Harrison, Eric Moulds, Terrell Owens, Muhsin Muhammad, Amani Toomer and Joe Horn. Engram was the eighth wide receiver selected, behind Johnson, Glenn, Kennison, Harrison, Moulds, Alex Van Dyke, Bryan Still and Muhammad. Engram never broke through with the Bears, struggling to receive for 38 year old Dave Krieg, Eric Kramer, Rick Mirer, Steve Stentstrom, Cade "AIDS" McNown and Shane Matthews, but he was good. Engram ended his career with Chicago with consecutive seasons of over 900 yards receiving before an ACL tear ended his 2000 season.

Holmgren didn't cash in a high pick or find a serviceable safety in the second, the kind of feats any GM can stumble into, he did that thing that separates the best general managers from the merely competent: found freely available talent and turned it into a long term asset.

Engram is a free agent after Kansas City cut him earlier this season. His time with the Chiefs was a tornado-obliterated double wide in a Rolls Royce career. Or maybe an efficient Elise is more Bobby's style. His short stop in the nation's dust mite might and probably will end Engram's fourteen-year career.

But maybe week 17, should the Tennessee Titans be out of it, Seattle can IR Patrick Kerney and sign Engram for one last perfectly-timed, Hasselbeck-to-Engram curl route for eight and the first.

Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations

Ted Bartlett — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:30:13 -0000

More photos » by Chris Park - AP

about 1 month ago: Denver Broncos tight end Tony Scheffler dances through the end zone after his 19-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter of the NFL football game Monday, Oct. 19, 2009 in San Diego. Scheffler had six receptions for 101 yards. The Broncos won 34-23 over the Chargers. (AP Photo/Chris Park)

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Happy Tuesday, friends, and welcome to another edition of Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations. I had a fairly selfish weekend, leaving Cleveland on Friday and traveling to South Bend, Indiana, for the Notre Dame-USC game on Saturday afternoon. My friend Ramona has a brother who is a graduate student at Notre Dame, and he was able to get us pretty good tickets. I didn't get home until about 5 PM on Sunday, so I missed all of the early NFL games, and only got to see the second quarter on of a few late ones. I recorded the Short Cuts of the 3 most interesting early games, with a plan of watching them Monday evening, after work and before the Broncos-Chargers game. I apologize if this is a slightly thinner ST&NO than usual, but I don't ever want to be the guy who comments on football I didn't see, scanning the box scores for some stats which may or may not be meaningful. You know who I mean, all of them. Without further ado, let's get this thing moving, ST&NO style. Ready..... BEGIN!!!

1. So, I am writing this at 12:16 AM ET on Tuesday morning, with the rest of the column basically already in the can. Such is life when you have a Tuesday morning time slot, and a back-and-forth, hotly contested Monday night game. I've only gotten to see the game once, obviously, and we're in a compressed time situation, but I'm going to try hard to manage the clock well, and come with some thunder on the short track.

This is a great feeling, isn't it? Frankly, even if I had a lot of time to write, there isn't much to say that I haven't been saying all season. I've covered most "isn't this great" angles, right? It kind of makes writing a column like this difficult, when it comes to finding new material for the Donny Deutsch Big Idea. I can't even really play the disrespect card anymore.

Luckily, I have two weeks to think of new ideas, until the Broncos take on the Baltimore Ravens. I have a feeling that I'll be talking about the 7-0 Broncos after that game, because the Ravens can't defend the Broncos, and the Broncos defense actually matches up very favorably with the Baltimore offense. Until then, let's enjoy this win, this place in the standings, and the feeling we're all feeling right now. I remember this feeling, from the late 1990s. It's the one where your team is a legitimate contender to win the Super Bowl.

ZOMG! That was a new angle in Donny Deutschland, and it just kind of slipped out, didn't it? I knew something was right on the tip of my tongue (err... fingertips). But, yes, I said it, and yes, I mean it. Let's forget about Kool-Aid, and start thinking about Lombardi Trophies. Remember, I'm the crazy man who had the Broncos on 11-5 before the season started, which would now only require playing .500 football the rest of the way. Consider this an enhancement to my original forecast.

2. Information From My Eyes, Broncos at Chargers:

a. The Broncos initially really missed Brian Dawkins when he went out in the second quarter, but they eventually settled down and performed respectably on the back end, until he returned.

b. On the huge Elvis Dumervil strip/sack late in the 3rd quarter, the play was supposed to go to Antonio Gates, who was split out wide to the left, and running a vertical route, which I expect would have been a back-shoulder fade on the sideline. Josh Barrett had him man-to-man, and engaged him with great position and technique off the line. Philip Rivers had to hold the ball on his 3-step drop, and that was what caused the sack. Barrett is the best Safety I have seen in the NFL at covering the top TEs man-to-man.

c. While I am at it, Barrett had Gates blanketed on Dumervil's second sack too, (with Dawkins over the top, for good measure), early in the 4th quarter, and it was clear he was again Rivers' first read on the play. If Barrett could do nothing else well, he'd be worth having around to cover guys like Gates in obvious passing situations, like that 3rd-and-14 was.

d. They got to that 3rd-and-14 by finally blowing up a screen pass. The linemen disengaged, and slid laterally like they knew the screen was coming, and Mario Haggan tackled LaDanian Tomlinson for the 4-yard loss. This was an enormous play.

e. The right side of the Chargers line, Louis Vazquez and Jeromey Clary, aren't nearly good enough to be starters on a winning team. Clary gave up two sacks, and Vazquez got pushed around a LOT by Marcus Thomas and Ronald Fields. I actually thought their replacement Center, Scott Mruczkowski, played very well in the game, considering the low expectations I had for him from seeing the last few games.

f. The Broncos consistently got pressure in the second half, and mixed it with terrific coverage in the back end. This has been a recurring theme this season. Robert Ayers was a beast, and would have gotten about 3 sacks against lesser QBs than Rivers.

g. Only getting to see the game once, in live action, I can't really do much of a Between The Lines feature, but the Broncos offensive line was dominant in pass protection. The only sack they gave up was for 2 yards, and it was well blocked, with Orton running into the sack after a long time holding the ball.

h. Darcel McBath did a great job filling in for Brian Dawkins, and made every key special teams tackle.

i. The Broncos would not be 6-0 without Kyle Orton as their QB. With the exception of the bonehead sack he took late in Week 1, he has completely avoided making the game-losing plays that all post-Elway QBs have made for the Broncos.

j. Did anybody notice that Darren Sproles did absolutely nothing for the Chargers on offense? That was a big key to the game.

k. I already mentioned the overall protection, but Ryan Clady owned Shawne Merriman, and the lights stayed on all night. I loved Keyshawn Johnson and Cris Carter mocking Merriman's stupid dance on ESPN, too. Rare value from the Worldwide Leader.

3. Information From My Eyes, Other Games:

a. I remember that last season when the Broncos went into the Meadowlands and beat the Jets, Michael Lombardi of the National Football Post was positively ebullient in his praise of Jay Cutler. Not everybody likes Lombardi, but I consider him to be very rare, as a guy who primarily shares his thoughts about football in the written space, and actually knows what he is talking about. (Most former participants who know interesting things can't write, and most writers don't know anything beyond the surface level).

Anyway, Lombardi was excited by the way Cutler threw the ball on a really cold and windy day. We know about Cutler's exceptional arm strength, and Lombardi's point was that on a bad-weather day like you get in New York, that characteristic was extremely valuable, and the difference between winning and losing.

If I were Mike Tannenbaum and Rex Ryan, I'd be more than a little worried about Mark Sanchez. He looked terrible Sunday, on every throw he attempted. The five interceptions and 14 other incompletions were mostly not a function of bad decisions, they were a function of the mind being willing, and the body not being able. I know how to dunk a basketball, but I can't jump close to high enough to do it on a 10-foot rim. Sanchez lacked the zip to get his ball downfield effectively, and the weather was only pretty bad, not as bad as it can get in northern New Jersey. Sanchez did tell the CBS announcer crew that he had never played or practiced in temperatures below about 55 degrees, so I don't want to go overboard on making pronouncements yet, with just a one-game sample size. This is a big deal, though, and it will bear watching as the season goes on.

b. He never has the stats to back this up, but stats are merely convenient indicators; Lee Evans is one of the five best WRs in the NFL. If he ever had a good QB throwing him the ball, and an offensive scheme which featured his talents, the stats would be there, believe me.

c. I was asked recently by a reader if I still thought that Bills rookie LG Andy Levitre looked like he couldn't play in the NFL. The answer is, at least in the second half and overtime on Sunday, he looked league-average. When I originally criticized Levitre's play, he got dominated in the preseason by Tennessee's Tony Brown and Jason Jones, who are both Pro Bowl-caliber DTs. Kris Jenkins had already gotten hurt by the time I was watching Sunday, but Levitre was a slight positive in the run game, and a slight negative in pass protection. I still do doubt if he can anchor effectively against a good bull rush.

d. Wow, the Tennessee Titans had an unspeakably terrible Sunday. The Patriots completed 38 out of 45 throws, and the Titans completed 2 of 14. Those two completions were a 15-yard gain by their FB Ahmard Hall, and a 22-yard loss by WR Nate Washington, for a net of (-7) passing yards.

Those stats tell the story of the Titans this season. They were outstanding in coverage the past few years, and they're terrible this year, due to some injuries and shocking regressions by a couple players like Michael Griffin and Cortland Finnegan (who is currently hurt.) They also got good play from Kerry Collins in 2008, and they've gotten extremely lousy play from him this year. He's getting pretty solid protection, but he isn't hitting open men (when men do manage to get open). I don't think Vince Young is the answer, but it's time to make him the starter for the rest of the season, to see for sure.

e. Former first-rounder Jamaal Anderson looked much better for the Falcons at DT than he ever has at DE. He was part of a sack of Jay Cutler late in the 4th quarter, after only having 2 in 2-plus years as an end. He lacked the suddenness to beat a Tackle, but really got off the ball well against the Bears' Guards. He also was in coverage in the zone blitz the Falcons ran on 4th down, and caused Cutler's throw to be offline. The Falcons may be on to something.

f. ST&NO Favorite Thomas DeCoud has been playing at a Pro Bowl level for the Falcons all season, and he intercepted Cutler twice on Sunday night. He gets no recognition yet, but he is very instinctive and has a great feel for zone coverage.

g. Cutler still throws the pass to the seam better than any QB in the NFL, and makes big plays on the run. He's exactly the same player he was in Denver last season, and I mean that exactly how it sounds. The Bears got exactly the guy they saw on film, and I hope that's what they were expecting, because if it was, you'd have to expect that they're happy. I can be happy that they're happy, right? ;)

h. I am shocked that the Raiders beat the Eagles. I didn't watch a lot of the game, because it was my local FOX late game, and crap-tastic WJW FOX 8 had a really annoying sound problem going on. Looking at the stat sheet, it jumps out that the Eagles only ran the ball 14 times, and they were fairly successful in those carries, averaging 4.8 yards. Periodically, Andy Reid's Eagles teams have gotten really unbalanced and pass-happy, and it's a recipe for getting beat, over the years. With Sunday's injury to Jason Peters, coupled with the pre-existing absence of Shawn Andrews, it's hard to imagine why you'd think you can be successful protecting Donovan McNabb, when there is no threat of the run.

i. I have alway liked Sidney Rice, dating back to his days at the University of South Carolina. He's big, physical, and fluid. Brett Favre is turning him into a possible Pro Bowl player this season, and it seems they have a great deal of chemistry. He has 23 catches for 409 yards so far this season, and his impact is growing each week.

j. I actually thought that Michael Oher did a pretty credible job against Jared Allen Sunday, for his second start at LT. The sack Allen got came when Oher and the LG were releasing to the outside, like the play was supposed to be a screen, and since nobody went out to the left to receive a pass, I can only imagine that there was a communication breakdown somewhere on that play. When it came to man-to-man blocking, Oher did pretty well, and wasn't beaten like a red-headed step-child, as Allen claimed on Monday.

k. Anybody believe me yet that Joe Flacco is a true franchise QB? He got hit a lot, but made a lot of big-time throws on Sunday, and he had his team in position to win the game (again).

l. Steve Hutchinson blew up Haloti Ngata several times on Sunday, and as good as he has been in his career, I was surprised to see him win that matchup so convincingly.

m. I hated the Giants defensive game plan on Sunday. They need to be rushing 5 men, because that's how they do their business every week. They seemed like they wanted to sit back and try to play coverage, and it didn't work at all. The Giants really miss Kenny Phillips, who is a good young safety; they were particularly vulnerable in the middle of the field against the Saints.

n. The key to the Saints' offensive success is their ability to run the football. The success they've had in that area this year is the big difference from last season. The perception seems to exist that they're a spread-out, 5-wide kind of team, but they're not. They run frequently and well, and make big yards off their play-action stuff. If the Broncos happen to see them in a Super Bowl setting, the order of the day will be neutralizing the run.

o. Remember 2 weeks ago, when I said that the Steelers' success in running the ball was a function of San Diego's interior weakness, rather than their own strength? Look no further than Sunday's game against Cleveland for proof of that. Shaun Rogers did a great job inside for the Browns, and if you take away 21 yards gained on an end-around by Mike Wallace, the Steelers had 119 rushing yards on 35 carries, a 3.4-yard average. Remember, aside from Rogers, the Browns are very non-descript up front. The Broncos averaged 5 yards against them in Week 2, for purposes of comparison.

p. Ben Roethlisberger was lights-out on Sunday, and Hines Ward played very well again. I've never been Ward's biggest fan, and I considered him to be fading as a playmaker at the end of last season. He's looked rejuvenated this whole season, though.

4. I had some technical problems with Lighting Up The Scoreboard this week, and I ran out of time before I had to leave for Indiana on Friday. I wanted to incorporate some of the graphics I had created for it into today's ST&NO, and talk about a couple things the Broncos showed against New England.

The Trap - A Different Take on an Age-Old Play

This is a standard HB trap play, a traditional staple of the running game at every level of football. There is such a thing as a Tackle trap, but usually the backside guard is going to pull, and hit the NT or DT who was allowed to come across the line. The pulling player's block serves to push the defensive lineman toward the sideline, and the RB runs behind that block, where the play-side players are out hitting somebody on the second level.

For the record, this play works better, from an angles perspective, against a 4-3 look, because instead of a zero-technique NT, you have a three-technique DT right where you want your puller to meet him. The NT's presence makes the angle more difficult. This is the quintessential man-blocked play, so Broncos fans haven't seen a lot of it over the last 15 years.

Last week against New England, the Broncos brought in Russ Hochstein as an extra TE and pulled him. The play looked like this, and I am now showing it against San Diego's base 3-4 look:

This has a slightly different objective, which is to entice the five-technique DE, Luis Castillo (93), across the line, rather than the NT. Both Daniel Graham (89) and Ryan Clady (78) briefly engage Castillo, before releasing to the second level to hit both play-side linebackers. Castillo processes the events as being a misread zone-tandem block, where both O-Linemen thought they needed to get off the initial block to the second level. He crosses the line of scrimmage, looking for a big play, and is hit by Hochstein, who is pulling from the backside. Knowshon Moreno's angle is less severe, and he can run in the B gap, where Ben Hamilton and Casey Wiegmann have doubled the NT.

Of course, I drew and wrote all this up before the Monday Night game, and never saw this get employed against the Chargers, but we should expect to see it again this season. It worked really well a few times against New England. I am sure that, along with the Wild Horses stuff, the Broncos didn't think they needed to use it to run effectively against the Chargers.

5. Enjoyable/Aggravating Travel Note of The Week:

Here's a thought that I think I thunk. Does Enjoyable/Aggravating mean Enjoyable AND Aggravating? Enjoyable OR Aggravating? How about Enjoyable AND/OR Aggravating? That slash leaves a lot to the imagination.

Anyway, on the heels of my Notre Dame trip, I have a wedding to go to next weekend in Dallas. I leave Cleveland Thursday evening, (already wearing my drinking shoes as I deplane, at the groom's request), and return Monday afternoon. Scott, the groom, is the tattooed guy who was enlisted in the Army once, and eventually became an officer. He's now a Blackhawk pilot, and his wife is an Apache pilot, and both just returned from a year in Iraq. Scott is my fraternity brother (we're members of Tau Kappa Epsilon - Any other Tekes out there?) and it will be good to see him and some other guys who are coming in.

This is germane to ST&NO, because I get to write about whatever I feel like, and also because it affects near-term programming. (And also, also because it allowed me to introduce some snark about Peter King, which is always fun, and good for a cheap laugh or two.) Being on the bye week anyway, expect an abbreviated ST&NO next Tuesday, probably limited to some game observations that I am hopefully able to pick up on before the wedding on Sunday night. Obviously, Lighting Up The Scoreboard won't appear this Saturday, but expect it to be back on Saturday, October 31st, in advance of the Ravens game.

6. While we're snarking it up about MMQB, y'all know I am a helpful guy, right? Well, maybe you don't know, but you could guess. Anyway, I am one of these people who gets annoyed when people misuse words, like H-Back or factoid. Ahh, yes, factoid.

Peter King insists on calling a section of his MMQB column "Factoid Of The Week Which May Only Interest Me." I sent him a message once, long before I ever had a competing column, to helpfully let him know that he was misusing the word "factoid." See what a swell guy I am?

From our friends at Webster.com:

Main Entry: fac·toid

Pronunciation: \ˈfak-ˌtȯid\

Function: noun

Date: 1973

1 : an invented fact believed to be true because of its appearance in print

2 : a briefly stated and usually trivial fact

I actually like the Wiktionary.org definition better:

factoid (plural factoids)

An inaccurate statement or statistic believed to be true because of broad repetition, especially if cited in the media.

Usage Problem. A small insignificant fact, but still interesting. (Note: Refer above to the meaning of the suffix. It's ironic that the very definition of factoid has itself come to be a factoid.)

So, for ignoring my helpful advice a couple years ago, Peter gets an ESPN-style C'MON, MAN. By the way, his column yesterday was Bill Williamson Memorial Decent. He is still buying into this silly meme that the Broncos have an impossible schedule, which bugs me.

7. Retired for John Elway.

8. As a follow-up to last week's column, I give credit to Rick Reilly for manning up for his clownishness with all that Boy Blunder stuff. I thought he would stay unaccountable for it, but he surprised me.

9. Expect the Broncos not to do anything at the trade deadline. It's not like anybody is giving away a bigger/better Offensive Guard, and if they were, the Packers, Steelers, or Chargers would almost certainly outbid the Broncos for him. They're desperate for offensive line help, and for the Broncos, it would just be kind of nice to get bigger and stronger at LG.

That's all I have for this week, friends. Have a great one, and look for ST&NO again next Tuesday morning, where my next trick will be to make y'all think you're getting a football column, and instead, probably bring you A Wedding Story, like you were watching (a funny, masculine, fraternity guy version of) Lifetime. If you need me before that, get at me on Twitter at @TedBartlett905.

Poll

OK, I said it, and I want to know what the community thinks, in simple poll form. Is this team a legitimate Super Bowl contender?

Umm, yes. I've been waiting here for you with a cold glass of Kool-Aid, and you're late to the party.

339 votes

My expectations were a little more tempered, but I'd have to say yes, based on the evidence.

1008 votes

I have moved from the 7-9 crowd to the 11-5 crowd, but I think they're one and done. Later for the Super Bowl.

286 votes

I still think the big, bad schedule will keep the Broncos out of the playoffs.

7 votes

I am one of the few Chargers fans who cares enough to come mess up this poll.

9 votes

1649 votes | Poll has closed

On This Day- 10/19/2000 - Keyshawn KO'ed by Lions

Niko Houllis — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:32:37 -0000

The 3-0 Bucs lost three in a row, and needed this in the worst way. They didnt get it. The Bucs blocked a punt but Ronde Barber carelessly was not able to recover in the endzone and all the Bucs got out of it was a safety. Keyshawn Johnson takes a vicous but legal hit, check it out....

Detroit was allowed to stay in the game too long, and late scores sank the Bucs to 3-4, AGAIN, for the 3rd season in a row. Superbowl aspirations were lost...On This Day.

In Defense of the Cowboys Roy Williams

Dave Halprin — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:43:40 -0000

More photos » by Donna McWilliam - AP

Roy Williams, solid contributor or over-hyped bust? We walk the fine line between the two.

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Expectations can color any opinion on a subject. Take the classic example. Your friend goes to the movies and comes over afterward to say the movie was one of the best he's ever seen. He pushes you to see it - it's that good. Then you go to the movie, and you think it's alright, but you're not sure what the fuss was all about. That's because the expectations had been set so high that the movie stood little chance of meeting them. Without the expectations having been set beforehand, you might have walked out with a different opinion.

It can happen in sports, too. Take the case of Roy Williams. Coming out of Texas, he was a high draft pick (#7 in 2004) and that immediately set expectations, and it's probably valid at that point. It may not be fair, but it's a fact, when you're drafted that high and get that kind of money, then you're expected to produce at a high level. Roy has never really produced at that level. So he gets labeled as an underachiever, not as good as he should be, all of that stuff. Meanwhile, he's put up some solid numbers in the league. But he'll never be able to shake that initial expectation. Then, he gets traded to another team for some high draft picks, and it starts all over again.

This time however, the idea that Roy has to justify the trade is not valid. Roy's just the player, and he's given you a record to look at. He's created a paper-trail in the NFL, so it's not like college where you're projecting his potential in the pros. You know basically what he is by now, so if you decide that trading a first-round draft pick on him is justified, that's on management, not Roy. Roy is not going to be able to change his game just because a general manager decided this was the value he was putting on the player. He knew what he was getting; he had the track record to look at. Roy's job is not to justify the trade, but to play as well as he can to help the team.

All this brought me back to another ex-Cowboy receiver who was in a similar situation. He was a high draft pick who didn't live up to expectations out of the gate. Then he got traded, for two first-round picks to another team, and basically went on to be the same receiver for that team as he was for the first team. That receiver played in the league for 11 years, and was an effective, yet not spectacular, receiver. When he teamed-up with a speed receiver on the other side in Dallas, he had some good years.

That player was Keyshawn Johnson. Known more for his mouth than anything, Johnson put together a very respectable resume as a WR. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, (and watching him be an analyst, the hate is really winning out), there's no denying he could play. But, he always came with that asterisk to his reputation - *never as good as he should be. Well, those expectations are the problem, not the player.

In fact, look at the similarity of their first three years in the league.

Roy - 181 catches, 2,814 yards, 23 TDs

Key - 216 catches, 2,938 yards, 19 TDs

I see two players on similar trajectories. (Granted, last year Roy's numbers were a total bust with the in-season trade and the foot injury). They are also similar in other ways. Both were physically in the "big" category for receivers. Both are okay with catching the ball in traffic and going over the middle. Both were good blockers in the running game. For fun, take a look at the long runs Dallas has had recently, and on a good portion you'll see #11 downfield blocking a defensive back out of the way. That's a valuable skill that often gets overlooked in wide receivers.

They were different in one way. Roy is more of a vertical threat than Keyshawn was, as evidenced by their YPC stats in their first three years (Roy was around 15.5 and Key around 13.5). Roy is also more dangerous after the catch.

So what's the point? Let me lay out clearly what I'm saying.

The idea that Roy Williams needs to justify the trade is inverted logic. Dallas knew what he was, or they should have known, just by looking at his track record. He's a good receiver, he can help a team, but he's not a dominant receiver that can take over an offense. He's just not that player. Was getting a player of Roy's caliber at #20 in the 2009 draft acceptable (basically the end result of the trade)? We don't know yet, but that's on the Dallas brass, not Roy. All he can do is live up to his abilities, not the expectations.
So far, Roy hasn't lived up to his previous track record. As mentioned before, last year was a wash-out and so far this year, he's got some work to do. So there's a fine line to walk when evaluating Roy Williams. He needs to pick up the pace a bit to get back to his previous level, but he doesn't have to pick up the pace enough to satisfy the expectations, because they were wrong in the beginning, and it's unlikely he will ever satisfy them.
If the Cowboys decide to put Miles Austin in the starting lineup opposite Roy, we could see an uptick in Roy's play. If Austin can consistently represent a deep threat, then Roy will have his Terry Glenn, like Keyshawn did in Dallas.

Roy Williams is not living up to the hype, but then everybody should have known that going in, so let's quit punishing Roy for something he didn't create. Unreal expectations. If we want to critique Roy, let's say his work so far in Dallas hasn't lived up to his past work. We want to see that Roy again, the guy who produced consistent, not spectacular, numbers in Detroit.

We don't need a justification of the trade. All we need is solid contribution that helps the team win. Here's hoping we see that after the bye week.

Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations

Ted Bartlett — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 12:30:12 -0000

Happy Tuesday, friends. Welcome to the creative process for ST&NO, which I now intend to lend some insight into. If you didn't know, I am told exactly what to write by messengers of the Supreme Commander of La-La Land. It happens subliminally, in the middle of the night, by visits from Fairies, because it almost feels to me like these are my own independent thoughts. Once the season gets going, I generally wake up on Saturday, and watch some college football, and write for a while, then I watch a bunch of NFL football on Sunday (after another, longer, more intensive Fairy visit) and write a lot more. Then, on Monday, I put the finishing touches on it, and it runs Tuesday morning. Voila! From the mind of the Supreme Commander, to the voices of the Fairies, to my ears, and then my fingers, to your eyes. It's like magic.

Well, usually that's how it goes. Sometimes, it's the middle of the 4th quarter of a fairly annoying and sloppy 3rd preseason game, and this pops onto my iPhone, from John Bena, and sent to the whole creative team.

Can someone post a small game recap, along with some thoughts to use as a Post Game Discussion Thread? Please??? Just reply to this if you do it!

I see it, and I kind of groan, because I live in the eastern time zone, it's almost midnight, I have to work in the morning, and the game was annoying, as I mentioned. I'm just not really in the mood, you dig? I decide I will wait for 20 minutes, and see if anybody else will claim the responsibility. Nobody does, so I decide that I should take ownership of the job, and get it done. Dammit.

So, I know what you're thinking. How did the Kool-Aid, subliminal, happy, positive messaging get to me, considering John's very ambiguous language? I mean, hell, all the guy did was ask somebody to write a few thoughts. I could tell from his tweeting that he was personally less than thrilled with the game. I was never asleep, so the Kool-Aid Fairies couldn't have visited me, right? How could I write such a shiny, happy screed as this? Ponder that, and meanwhile, we'll get Shallow and Nearsighted (and Shiny! and Happy!) with it. Ready..... BEGIN!!!!

1. We begin with our dear friend, the Boringest Man In America.

b. Denver running back Floyd Little, on the surface, falls short. He had but one 1,000-yard rushing season, ran for just 43 touchdowns, averaged 3.9 yards-per-carry in his career and rushed for 54.0 yards per game. But he had the misfortune of playing for a team that had a winning record only twice in his career. He won the rushing title in 1972 and had more rushing yards (5,185) than any other back in football from 1968 to '73. He played behind Steve Tensi, Marlin Briscoe, Steve Ramsey and Charlie Johnson.

We talk in the Hall of Fame selection room every year about not discriminating against guys on historically bad teams, which this Denver team was. I guess when I think of jobbed guys on historically bad teams, I think of Tommy Nobis, Claude Humphrey and Cortez Kennedy. I'll need to be convinced a little more on Little.

This is really important, for a couple of reasons. First of all, King indicates that he can be convinced, so that's a starting point. Now, he thinks he knows a lot more football than he actually does, and his treatment of fan email tends to be arrogant and condescending, but this is a good example of a guy who MHR needs to be lobbying. He can be, and needs to be educated.

I can relate, because 16 months ago, I was right there with him on Little. I was new to MHR, and had a very limited reputation, and was at least somewhat the idiot who didn't like Earl Bennett or Chris Williams that much in the 2008 Draft, and who favored Ryan Clady in the first round. Anyway, I looked at Floyd's statistics, and I wasn't blown away. I had never even seen one play that Floyd participated in, because I am only 32, and not tremendously history-minded. In making a point about Jerome Bettis, who doesn't deserve to go to the HOF, but certainly will, I wrote this FanPost, which makes me cringe now. I got crushed, as you can see in the comments. Firstfan cared so much that he sent me an outstanding book, Tales From The Broncos Sideline, which Floyd wrote, with John Elway writing the foreword, and Jim Brown contributing the preface. Turns out, it's a must-read for any Broncos fan.

I offered that copy of the book up once on here, after I finished it, and got no takers. I am glad, because I am going to send it to Peter King at Sports Illustrated. He needs to read it, because it conveys the greatness of both Floyd the player and Floyd the man. Not to steal the HOF committee's thunder, but please consider writing the BMIA a respectfully-worded email, advocating for Floyd's deserved inclusion in the Hall of Fame. It's an effort that won't be wasted, because the backstory is what sells Floyd, not the stats.

I said this King business was important for a couple of reasons, and I have only given one so far. The second reason is that if Floyd doesn't make it in this year, he almost certainly never will. This is not something people are going to come around to, and if those on the veterans' committee who put up his name lose, they won't try again. Only Bob Hayes has ever fallen short from the veterans committee, and then been re-considered and eventually elected later. Hayes was part of the Cowboys hype machine, and he got a lot of support from that. There's no Broncos hype machine. We're the best thing going for that, with all the talent and determination in this community.

Floyd is up against nobody but himself, and his own qualifications. What I mean by that is, the 2010 Class is limited to 5 modern-era inductees, and 2 seniors. If both seniors candidates make it, they don't keep anybody out, who could have otherwise made it, so it's really a yes-or-no vote, unlike the dynamic which kept Shannon Sharpe out in his first year of eligibility. We all know (or should get to know) that Floyd deserves enshrinement, and we need to help him get there. King says Dick LeBeau will get some love for being widely credited with inventing the zone blitz, which King calls a significant accomplishment in the game's history. How about Floyd saving a moribund franchise that went on to play in 6 Super Bowls (winning 2 of them) and average more wins per season, with more consistency, than any team in the last 31 years? THAT is a significant accomplishment in the game's history. Floyd was, and always will be, the Franchise. For somebody to decide that Floyd Little is not a Hall of Famer is analogous to that person stating for the record that fifty years of Denver Broncos football are meaningless in NFL history. No Floyd, no Broncos.

2. Some additional thoughts on Sunday night's game, incremental to the aforementioned shiny, happy screed:

a. Chris Baker looked outstanding on a few plays, and he lost leverage on a few others, and got pushed backwards. It's a technique issue, not an ability issue, and with good coaching and hard work, he is going to be a force. I can't imagine how a guy like this can go undrafted.

b. I think the offense greatly missed Jabar Gaffney. He's a downfield threat, without being a deep threat, and with solid guys like him, you never realize how much they mean to a team until they miss some time. He was an outstanding signing, and the Broncos need him back soon.

c. The Broncos defense has certainly looked better than that of any other AFC West team this preseason, in all three games. They struggle with covering the seams, and will probably continue to do so, but they are much improved from last year, believe that. Mike Nolan is really adding value, and while this is a transitional year, the improvement is very noticeable. The defense last year struggled to get one 3-and-out per game, and the first-teamers got 5 of them in 2 1/2 quarters against the Bears Sunday night.

d. Richard Quinn can catch, and he can get downfield, so don't be the guy who trumpets the inaccurate draftnik line that he can't do either. I believe that the Broncos actually bought low on him, because he's a very smooth athlete and has excellent functional strength as a blocker.

e. The Josh Barrett upper-extremity injury could really hurt, if it keeps him out long. He's a key special-teamer.

f. I think the Broncos have 2 of the 10 best punters in the NFL on their roster. Whichever one doesn't make it will be in high demand right away. I haven't seen them in practice, but I have to think that Britton Colquitt has a slight lead over Brett Kern at this point, based on games.

g. I think Darius Walker looks better than LaMont Jordan, and that he should be the 4th RB kept. Walker's fumble was bad, but he played well both before and after it. I like his burst to the hole, and in fact, he has more burst than either Peyton Hillis or Correll Buckhalter.

3. Observations from other games:

a. The best QB in the NFC this season is going to be Aaron Rodgers, with apologies to Donovan McNabb and Drew Brees. Rodgers is a great example of arm strength not being everything. Brett Favre has a much stronger arm than Rodgers, but Rodgers still throws the hell out of the slant, and is more accurate with it than Favre ever was. Rodgers also showed good athleticism against the Cardinals, with a long run on the opening posession. Rodgers' greatest strength is his decisiveness and command of the offense. He's starting to remind me of Peyton Manning a little bit, in that way, minus the heavy use of audibles at the line.

b. Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie gave up 2 TDs against Green Bay, but it doesn't change the fact that he is getting ready to throw his name into the mix as the best CB in the NFL. That dude can turn and run with anybody, and he has outstanding ball skills, among the best in the NFL. He was a top-10 CB as a rookie, and should have definitely been Defensive Rookie of the Year over Jerod Mayo, who was good, but not nearly as good as DRC.

Of the TDs DRC gave up, one was a back-shoulder throw against a TE, (any CB gets beat on that play), and the other one was a deep ball off a great play-fake from Aaron Rodgers, where DRC got sucked up on the fake, and didn't get any safety help over the top, as Jordy Nelson went 76 yards. Trust me, Rodgers-Cromartie is going to be a great player for a long time.

c. Watching the Arizona-Green Bay game, I believe that both teams are Super Bowl contenders in 2009, assuming good health. The Cardinals defense had a bad day, but they aren't a bad defense. The Cardinals have 4 elite players on defense (Darnell Dockett, Karlos Dansby, DRC, and Adrian Wilson) and they're spread out across all three levels. They will give up some yards, but I've watched them really stiffen up in the scoring area for most of the preseason, and that's what winning defenses do.

Meanwhile, the Packers look like they are taking very well to the 3-4, especially Aaron Kampman. They're really benefiting from the return of Cullen Jenkins on the defensive line. His loss to injury last season basically single-handedly wrecked their defense. Ryan Pickett has done a nice job as the starting NT, also. I like what I see of the Packers trying to strip the ball, also. Charles Woodson doesn't look like he has lost a step either, and I had been hearing rumblings (someplace where you hear rumblings) that the Packers were considering transitioning Woodson to Free Safety sooner than later.

d. For two games in a row now, Vince Young has looked like a real NFL QB. Of course, against the Browns, he fumbled at the goal line going in, and had a bad INT returned for a TD, but we're concerned with nuance here at ST&NO, and he generally threw the ball better, and showed more command than I had seen in a couple of years from him.

e. Mark Sanchez is going to look like a rookie at times, but he is going to be more good than bad, right away. The guy has a feel for the game that you can easily see.

f. Among other New York rookies, Hakeem Nicks looked really good for the first time. He's a little different than most WRs, because he's more of a stout, hard-to-tackle guy, kind of like a more talented Josh Reed. Clint Sintim continued to look really good for the Giants, too, and he may challenge for Defensive Rookie of the Year.

g. The Falcons passing game shredded the Chargers, and their average O-Line did fine in pass protection. I think the assumption that Shawne Merriman's return was going to charge up the Bolts' pass rush is in some doubt, because they haven't pressured anybody this preseason. Merriman has been getting blocked, too.

h. Everybody has been saying Brady Quinn won the job in Cleveland, and I agree. I was watching the game live, and Bernie Kosar was quite prescient, right as Quinn had the team at the line, for his eventual TD pass to Braylon Edwards. Kosar mentioned how the strong safety was creeping to the line, and Quinn saw it, and checked to a slant to Edwards, against single coverage. The read was the key thing, and the throw was good, too. The play encapsulated the reason Quinn is better than Anderson. He's slightly less talented, but he consistently produces better outcomes.

i. I heard Shaun Hill say something during the 49ers telecast that was a really good quote. He said playing QB was the hardest job in sports, with the easiset job description: WIN. That's a great description, and Hill is one of these guys who seems to give his team a chance to win when he plays.

j. Jamie Dukes and I agree on something. That's a little chilling, actually. As I watched the Bills-Steelers snooze-fest Sunday, I was thinking that the Bills profoundly erred in picking Aaron Maybin, and would have been better off taking Michael Oher (or trading up to get an even higher-rated OT). They can't block anybody, and they're going to finish in last place in the AFC East because of it. It's too bad, because they are very good at WR, in the secondary, and on special teams.

k. A guy I didn't love coming out of college was Joe Flacco, but I am 100% sure now that he's a true franchise QB. I didn't see a lot of him at Delaware, hence my initial indifference, but the guy has a great arm, good mobility, and poise that is really rare, for such a young guy. He's what Jay Cutler could have been, with a better personal makeup. I like him better than Matt Ryan too, though Ryan has a lot of redeeming qualities, himself.

l. I think Nate Davis is going to get a look as the starter at QB in San Francisco before the year is out. He's very talented, and he only fell to the 5th round because of concerns about a learning disability that he has. He looked terrific against Dallas this weekend.

m. Has Matt Cassel proven that he's a "franchise quarterback"? I watched NFL Network all day Sunday, and had to hear Steve Wyche call him that like 14 times, and it made me cringe each time. He might be a good QB, but even that's far from known at this point.

n. Contrary to the MSM nonsense you hear, the best player on the Raiders offense is JaMarcus Russell. He really seems to be feeling the game a lot better, and he's right on schedule, if you look at him in a vacuum. Unfortunately, the only other talent on the offense is TE Zach Miller, and 3 RBs (Darren McFadden, Michael Bush, and Justin Fargas). Russell needs help at WR, and I don't think Darrius Heyward-Bey has shown much yet. His O-Line is really bad too, which will hurt.

o. Donald Brown is going to be the bell-cow RB for the Colts, and Joseph Addai will be more comfortable as a complementary 1/3 kind of guy. It's actually pretty funny when Jamie Dukes calls him Pat-Pat (meaning he carries the ball once, and pats his helmet, asking out of the game). Brown got a hard-running TD this weekend, and those are the kind of plays he can make consistently.

p. I will tell you who is a dominant player, whom you may not have heard of. Tony Brown plays DT for the Titans, and wears #97. He's a penetrating, one-gap kind of player, and he's really difficult to handle, which opens up the edges for Jevon Kearse and Kyle Vanden Bosch. Brown's success in 2008 could have been semi-reasonably assumed to be largely due to Albert Haynesworth's presence, but he's looked even better so far this preseason, with no Haynesworth around.

q, Matt Schaub showed a lot by playing hurt on Monday night. He banged up his knee on a scoring drive, kept playing, and then after a Vikings TD, led the Texans about 40 yards in 27 seconds, to steal a field goal before halftime. Those are the kinds of things that wins games.

r. Dan Orlovsky has always been talented enough to be a solid starter in the NFL, and yes, him being a UConn guy is part of the reason I have paid attention to him over the years. He is now getting top-notch coaching in Houston, and you can tell that he's really improved a lot in a little time.

s. Brett Favre looked the same as he did in the first 11 games last year, and ESPN actually had a good point, that with 11 indoor games this season, he'll be greatly helped.

t. I haven't seen the Bengals once this preaseason in anything but highlights, which is a bad oversight by me. I will definitely be DVRing their game against the Bengals, even though it may not tell me much. It's kind of a problem of my own making for not thinking ahead, though.

4. I was asked by Jon Tollerud on Twitter this week (follow me, if you like my work, @TedBartlett905) for a special edition ST&NO about the Brandon Marshall situation. Well, I don't think turd behavior warrants special treatment. That's not why I didn't write one, I just didn't have time, but it's true nonetheless. In any case, I have had some time to marinate on this, and I have some thoughts. I've been having problems with the story editor locking up on me, and this is my third time writing this part, so bear with me if I seem irritable.

I was all set to say that nobody in their right mind could now empathize with #15. Then, I watched ESPN's abomination of a pregame show, and listened to Keyshawn Johnson (it figures), Cris Carter (really, Cris?) and Tom Jackson (are you &&%$#& kidding me TJ?) all beat the Pay-Marshall-Now drum.

The Broncos can't, and they won't. They can't and won't trade him either. This has to do with controlling the football team and establishing a program. Players can't get their way by throwing a hissy fit. Some will say that Jay Cutler did, but I tend to speculate that Josh McDaniels never really wanted Cutler anyway, based upon evaluations of his film, his character, and his comments to the media that he should have some say in team management, as the starting QB. If I have that right, then trading Cutler was sticking to the company line, really, more than it was acceding to the player's wishes.

I frankly don't really care about Marshall's past legal troubles. He was acquitted, and none of us can possibly know the facts, so at worst, we should call him an alleged woman abuser. (Statements that insinuate that he certainly was guilty are inappropriate in the United States, whether we like it or not.) I care that Brandon stays out of trouble in the future, and that's it.

If Marshall gets with the program, and plays well, he will get paid. It may be in Denver, it may be somewhere else, but he'll get paid, for sure. He needs to come back to Dove Valley on September 6th, go out of his way to be humble, work as hard as he can, and get with the program. If he does that, maybe 5 years from now, he can laugh at how immature he was in 2009, and how much he's grown. If he doesn't, he'll be radioactive, and nobody will want him on their team, except the usual halfway houses in Dallas, Oakland, and Cincinnati.

I found Champ Bailey's comments, as relayed by Andrea Kremer, to be very interesting. He certainly was NOT getting Marshall's back, so all this Jamie Dukes "Marshall-Is-A-Team-Leader" and Keyshawn Johnson "McDaniels is losing his locker room by messing with Marshall" stuff seems like total bunk. Brandon needs to win his teammates and coaches back, and get to playing football. Everything else will eventually work itself out.

5. I think Dish Network must think football fans are stupid. Their commercial says (paraphrasing) that DirecTV charges $300 extra for extra NFL games, and why would you pay that? You can get over 100 games on Dish, including your locals.

Wow, over 100 games huh?

That's really something there, 106 games (plus 65 preseason games on NFLN!). That's also known as the games everybody with cable gets (if you take away the 8 NFL Network games for those cable companies who don't have it), and you're even close to the rabbit-ears only set's complement of 81 games (No ESPN or NFLN.) With the digital conversion for broadcast networks, do rabbit ears still work?

I pay for DirecTV's Sunday Ticket, because I am a Broncos fan living in Cleveland. Even beyond that, there's nothing cooler than flipping through a bunch of early games, and this year, I am going to take it to another level. I am going to set up two laptops with games on, in addition to my TV, and have a third laptop to type notes on. (I own 3 of them, and have one for work too, that I can use for whatever. One of mine is too old and slow to play video very well, though.) Good damn thing I am single right now, isn't it? if I weren't, I probably would be soon enough. Some man-cave activities will be definitely going on at my house this fall. The quality and integrity of ST&NO demand that I watch as much football as I can possibly manage, after all, so it's all for you, my loyal readers, and even those who just tolerate me and my schtick. :) It's worth every dollar of the $400, including SuperFan.

6. Let's remember to professionally work on some Hall of Fame voters, even beyond Peter King, for both Floyd Little and Shannon Sharpe. It's important enough to emphasize again. If we get them in, there's already talk of an MHR gathering in Canton for the ceremony. Since John and I are both fairly local to Canton, I am sure we can get something very cool organized, and watch 1 or 2 of our guys get in. Plus, if two Broncos go in, the team will almost certainly play in the HOF game, and get an extra growth opportunity next offseason, not to mention the fact that Josh McDaniels will get to coach an NFL game at the stadium he played his high school football in.

The first round of beers is on me, if we can help pull this off, though we can't have one in the stadium. Funny how high school stadiums don't have kegerators.

7. Retired for John Elway.

8. There's no live national TV coverage for the Cardinals game Thursday, for the first time this preseason, which sucks. I will be listening on 850 KOA's website, Tweeting, and maybe even participating in the game threads, since my eyes won't be as busy as usual, when they're normally getting my information for me. It will be another growth opportunity for the Broncos, which is very exciting.

That's all for this week. There won't be a Lighting Up The Scoreboard this week, since Game 4 tends to be so meaningless, but look for both ST&NO and LUTS next week, leading into the Bengals game. Until then, keep it Shallow and Nearsighted, and if anybody says you're biased, tell them the Fairies made you that way, and you can't help it.

Panther Paw Prints - UDFA Update Edition

Jaxon — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 13:14:21 -0000

Panthers.com writer Andrew Mason has been running a series of pieces on the undrafted players hoping to make the roster. This edition of Paw Prints links to three of those posts starting with former PSU safety Anthony Scirrotto, who had an untimely hamstring injury derail his Pro Day.

Rookie Scirrotto no longer hamstrung
"It (was) still lingering a little (during OTAs)," Scirrotto said. "Just a chronic injury; nothing serious. I just have to rehab and treat it right. Since I got here, they put me on a program where every day it's getting better.

Having pulled a hamstring myself I know how painful it is and how long it takes to get 100%.

One of the guys Scirrotto is competing with is Joe Fields:

Just like starting over for Fields
"There's definitely a lot of new terminology, (and changes) how we've played certain techniques, like looking at the quarterback as opposed to looking at the man last year in zone coverages," Fields said. "It's just nuances that you've got to get used to. "It's like all defenses. You've got a chance at flexibility come down, drop back, lurk in the middle. Coach definitely has a lot of tools for the safeties to be successful; it's just a matter of us learning them and going out and executing."

WR Markus Monk is also a pretty good hoops player:

Hoops helped Monk to another NFL chance
Yet the on-field work wasn't so much about what Monk could do, but what he could learn from Carolina's veteran receivers and their longtime position coach, Richard Williamson. "Coach Williamson, he's teaching me a lot," Monk said. "Coach is on us about splits, getting in and out of your routes, separation, all those small things that you've got to concentrate on. "I'm (also) learning from Moose (Muhsin Muhammad) and Steve (Smith). As far as me as a receiver, I feel like I've gotten a lot better just in a month, just from listening and taking everything in."

Here's a good post that echoes many sentiments we've had about the defense being the key to the 2009 season:

Panthers camp countdown: Defensive line critical to curing Panthers' hangover - Roy Cummings, Vinnie Iyer & Darin Gantt - NFL - Sporting News
Defense: Meeks is a product of the Tony Dungy school of defense, so look for him to play a lot of cover-2 zones and emphasize speed and mobility over size and strength. Meeks won't lean on the blitz but will look to pressure the quarterback with his front four linemen. The back seven will be asked to limit big plays by keeping the ball in front of them, but the safeties will do a lot of filling in the run game. Meeks' approach isn't much different from the one employed by predecessor Mike Trgovac.

Here's one for the Jake Loyalists from the Bleacher Report:

Carolina Panthers Doomed With Jake Delhomme? Don't Count On It. | Bleacher Report
The idea of being no better than your last game is absurd, and shouldn't even be discussed. Jake's not the first quarterback to have a terrible game in the playoffs. Hall of famer Dan Fouts had two five-interception playoff games during his tenure with the Chargers. Peyton Manning threw four against New England in 2004. This happened just a year after an awful game, where in a playoff loss to the Jets he finished with a rating of 31.2.

And from the humor closet, you won't believe this. Former Panther WR Keyshawn Johnson is starting a business, interior decorating. That's funny in itself but check this quote when Kesh was asked about his design style:

Keyshawn Johnson's next book: Give Me the Damn Throw Pillows - Shutdown Cor... - NFL - Yahoo! Sports
That was it. That was the whole answer Not having a "whole bunch of s---" everywhere. What a tremendous design concept. I think I read about it once in "Whole Bunch of S--- Everywhere Magazine."

Just too funny!

Good reader quote regarding the mindless analysis at NFL Network

BigBlueShoe — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 14:58:57 -0000

Image: www.corneredcat.com

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From npb1985 in this thread about NFL Network's segment on the 2009 Indianapolis Colts:

[NFL Network] strikes again with their terrible analysis. That’s what you get though, when you get a group of no brain meatheads with a collective IQ of around 80 to give their "expert" opinions. We don’t invest in defensive "bodies"? I understand, I guess, since we didn’t trade up to take Fili Moala, draft Terrence Taylor and Jerraud Powers, re-sign Ed Johnson, sign Adam Seward, and didn’t draft young guys recently like Clint Session, Phillip Wheeler, or Marcus Howard either. Yep, I guess Bill Polian just doesn’t care about defense, and Ron Meeks was the best DC ever, esp. better than some guy we just got to replace him that’s not even worthy of mention. Right, NFLN?

When I talk to other established bloggers (i.e., people with blogs that give them national recognition, or some junk), one topic that always comes up is the surprising amount of stupidity that comes from former players who try and analyze the game of football. Many of us marvel at just how dumb these half-brain dead morons sound when they discuss basic football topics on TV or in print. There is an old saying that players play, coaches coach, and few know how to do both. When you watch NFL Network's breakdown of the 2009 Colts, I think it is pretty safe to say Jamie Dukes does not have a future in coaching. In fact, if he keeps sounding as ignorant as he did in the Colts piece, his future in broadcasting might be in jeopardy.

Dukes makes the suggestion that the Colts do not invest enough "bodies" on defense. I got the distinct impression "bodies" was Dukes' definition for "first round draft picks." Apparently, in Dukes' world, the only players (or, bodies) worth a damn are players drafted in rounds one through... well, one. Rounds two through seven aren't worth his time, and if you are an undrafted rookie, the team should just give you the Spartan weak baby treatment.

What is funny in all this analysis is that Dukes himself was an undrafted player who managed to eek out a decent career in the NFL: Ten years with three different teams, most years with the Atlanta Falcons. He was an offensive lineman, which (of course) makes him totally qualified to talk about how a future Hall of Fame GM like Bill Polian should build a great defense.

If NFL Network wants to carve a niche in the TV world, why is it trying to be like ESPN? Fans like us stopped watching Chris Berman and his mindless pre-game show because it was short on analysis and long on Keyshawn Johnson (a guy no one likes, and no one respects). We stopped watching Terry Bradshaw and Howie Long do their fake comedy routine because they had about as much insight into the actual games as my 80-year-old landlady. The only reason I watch CBS' show is because James Brown (best sports program host in the biz) does a good job keeping Bill Cowher (a very knowledgeable coach) and Dan Marino on topic. I totally tune out Shannon Sharpe because even at age 40 the man still cannot speak the English language.

If NFL Network wanted to separate themselves from this pack of mindless drivel, why not tailor their content to the knowledgeable fan? Why not bring in people who might not look "flashy" on TV, but do a great job talking about the game. Don't they understand that, to us, the game is everything. Personalities come second to the game.

Why didn't they try to rope in Tony Dungy when he retired? Why not bring Mike Holmgren on set to talk about teams running the West Coast offense? ESPN's Trent Dilfer is one of the best analysts on TV when it comes to breaking down what teams like to do on offense and defense. Why not get him?

Instead, we're stuck with Jamie Dukes, Solomon Wilcotts, and Rod Woodson. Meh.

Maybe I just don't know TV, but I do know this: When just about every NFL fan I know complains that there isn't any good, intelligent pre-game coverage, that suggests to me that an up-and-coming network could have a shot at roping in a very loyal, very attention-starved demographic: The real NFL fan. Because, in all honesty, the only person watching any of these pre-game and post-game shows is an NFL fan. It would be nice if the network that is, you know, owned by the NFL would tailor its content to the NFL fan.

NightLink: How the Cutler-Orton Trade Went Down

Dane Noble — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 22:52:34 -0000

More photos » by Nam Y Huh - AP

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Peter King's name has been mentioned a few times on the blog lately, and I came across another article from him that I found interesting. Apparently, he has talked to a lot of people that were in the middle of the trade talks, and has provided us with a few interesting snippets of info. My make-shift timeline (of sorts):

Broncos informed Bears of their "final terms": first- and second-round picks this year, a first-round pick in 2010 and quarterback Kyle Orton.
Jerry Angelo thought that was too much, but said he'd talk to his bosses. Broncos told Jerry: "You've got half an hour."

Peter King:

A few things went though Angelo's mind, including the last time he was part of a staff that traded two No. 1s for a player. "We did Keyshawn Johnson for two ones in Tampa Bay, and we really got burned by it,'' he told me Friday night. "But this is a quarterback. Maybe a really good quarterback.''

Jerry called the Broncos back and offered two ones, Orton and this year's fourth-round pick.
The Broncos made this compromise: two first-round picks, Orton, and this year's third-round pick for Cutler and Denver's fifth-round pick this year.
Book it... done!

"It was high-stakes poker,'' Angelo said when it was over. "And I couldn't see anyone else's hand.''

...

King then mentions a few things that he learned about the trade...

1- The key to the trade was Kyle Orton.

But as the deal went down, McDaniels, who watched every offensive snap of more than 10 Bears games with Orton playing, got more and more impressed with Orton's arm, his decision-making and his ability to extend plays when the pocket broke down.

2- The Bears were sure the deal was collapsing Thursday afternoon, because the Broncos weren't answering phone calls, e-mails or texts. GM Jerry Angelo thought he'd gotten the rug pulled out from underneath him.

Angelo hadn't heard from the Broncos for about three hours, and got so nervous by mid-afternoon Chicago time that he sent McDaniels a text message that said, in effect, "We gotta get this done. What's it gonna take for the Bears to win this?''

3- The Jets were never in it seriously -- true story.

New York is either convinced that Brett Ratliff or Kellen Clemens is its guy, or the Jets think the New York spotlight would have been too white-hot for a rabbit-ears guy like Cutler to handle, or they didn't want to pay two first-round picks for Cutler after giving a third for one season of Brett Favre.

4- All you Redskins fans who are so sure youwerethisclose to getting Cutler? Total BS.

Yes, Washington was competitive, and the 'Skins would have done whatever it took to get Cutler. But once McDaniels decided Orton was his man -- even though Washington's first-round pick would have been the 13th overall, five slots ahead of Chicago's -- the contest was over. The 'Skins were out of it, even though Cutler and greater Washington were sure it almost happened.

5- In the end, this trade happened so quickly because, first and foremost, the owner of the Broncos felt dissed.

And you do not diss Pat Bowlen. Bowlen is 65. He has owned the team for 25 years. In Bowlen's world, there is a protocol to doing business, and part of that protocol is the players and coaches having respect for the owner, regardless of their personal feelings about anyone else in the organization.

I am not only surprised at Jerry Angelo's aggressiveness in the pursuit of Cutler, but also impressed. I am also surprised that McDaniels was as sold on Orton as he was. It makes me wonder... if he was so stuck on Orton that it eliminated the Redskins from the running, does that mean the Bears could have ended up paying less in the trade? I wonder if Angelo had sniffed this out, if he had low-balled the Broncos, if they would have still made the trade, traded him to the Skins even though they didn't want to, or just not made a trade at all...