Terrell Owens has always been an island of sorts. His brash personality and self-absorption routinely alienated his teammates during an NFL career that teetered between terrific and toxic, leaving him to fend for himself.

Now, at 38 and out of football, he's lonelier than ever, and running out of money. In a GQ profile, Owens comes across as wounded, broke and desperate. When people text him to ask where he is, he replies back: "I'm in hell."

But is it his own fault? That's the perennial debate on T.O., who had a heartbreaking childhood but continually pointed fingers at everyone but himself once he became an adult.

It's bleacher report from last year, but even still there's some good ones, include a couple the Broncos played a part in - see if you can guess which ones!

I assume they'll have to include Saturday in the list...

Included is this analytic breakdown of the Steelers' game: "The formula here isn't anything new. Run the ball, run the ball, go play-action at an opportune moment and see if you can get a big play. It places a constant strain on the opposing team's safeties because it forces them to guess right, over and over again, until they exhibit clear tendencies. That's when a sound offensive coordinator can exploit the safeties. Once his team lost starting defensive linemen Casey Hampton and Brett Keisel to first-half injuries, LeBeau didn't believe that his front seven could stop the Denver running game. He had to bring extra help into the box, and that extra help was Polamalu and Mundy. He hoped that Taylor could handle Thomas one-on-one, but 204 yards later, it was clear that LeBeau's hopes were in vain."

"The Broncos didn't punt once during the first 29 minutes of the game, and the only way the Patriots were able to stop them during the first half was through a series of unfortunate turnovers. With a 16-14 lead halfway through the second quarter, the Broncos promptly fumbled the ball away inside their own territory on back-to-back drives, spotting the Patriots offense the ball with a short field. Then, after the teams traded punts inside of two minutes, New England punted the ball to Quan Cosby with 14 seconds left. All Cosby needed to do was get out of the way for the game to go to halftime, but instead, he tried to field the ball inside his own 20-yard line and fumbled. The Patriots recovered all three of the fumbles and turned them into 13 points, giving them a 27-16 lead. Brady also recovered a bad snap on his own 11-yard line on the first drive of the third quarter, so the Patriots recovered four of what would eventually be five fumbles on the day, each of which had a dramatic impact on the game. That the Patriots were able to recover each of those four amounts to randomness, and there's no reason to think it's likely to happen again."

One game doesn't make a career. For all we know, we might have just seen the best passing performance of Tim Tebow's life, a fleeting glimpse into what could happen if Tebow got to play backup free safeties with excellent pass protection every week. With that being said, if any other rookie quarterback from the past three years put up numbers similar to what Tebow did against anything resembling the Steelers pass defense in the playoffs, we would be falling all over ourselves to describe it as the first big sign that a new franchise quarterback had arrived on the scene. It's time to file Brady Quinn's name away and stop the debate about whether Tebow deserves to keep the Denver job for 2012. After a year in which Tim Tebow occasionally got more credit than his play deserved, on Sunday, Tebowmania lived up to every bit of the hype.

This nugget buried in the current rankings according to Football Outsiders:
" New England is the only team from last week's top seven to go up in Week 15, and even there, the Patriots went up because of opponent adjustments on their past games, not because of their win over Denver. The Patriots get only 8.3% DVOA for this game; they recovered four of five fumbles in the game, and they actually averaged fewer yards per play than Denver (6.8 for Denver, 6.3 for New England)."

The stat bandied about with regard to Tebow's comeback has been that he started the game 3-for-16 against the Bears defense. Chicago's pass defense played a sound game and actually induced Tebow's second interception of the year in the first half, but 3-for-16 grossly undersells how Tebow was playing. His receivers dropped six passes, and one of them was an easy touchdown to Demaryius Thomas that the second-year receiver flat-out dropped. It's also worth noting that, for whatever weaknesses he has as a passer, Tebow is playing with arguably the worst group of receivers in football. Thomas, Eric Decker, and former Patriots special teamer Matt Willis are not the sort of players who should be combining for 28 targets a game, as they received on Sunday.

In fact, Tebow's begun to turn the corner from gimmick quarterback to something resembling a legitimate NFL passer. The Broncos have gotten away from the option stuff they installed as their offensive base after the Lions shellacking, and Tebow's been given more responsibilities as a standard dropback passer. Sunday was the first game since the Lions contest where the Broncos threw more than they ran, and while part of that is related to the 10-0 deficit they were in during the second half, Tebow threw 13 times in a scoreless first half. Tebow drew two roughing-the-passer penalties to extend drives while exhibiting a legitimate skill, his ability to extend passing plays by making rushers miss. Tebow is getting better at improvising when plays break down as he develops a rapport with his receivers, and as those bonds get stronger, he should be even more improved when he gets out of the pocket. Tebow may never be a great pocket passer at the professional level, but teams are going to be very afraid of what he can do when he's outside the hashmarks and looking downfield. As bad as his receivers are, secondaries can't cover them for eight or nine seconds while also worrying about the possibility of a Tebow scramble.

On the night before he delivered the Denver Broncos to their fourth straight win, Tim Tebow was asked by coach John Fox to address his teammates.

According to the Denver Post, Tebow turned to the Bible, quoting Proverbs 27:17: "Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

Tebow's motivational message worked. The Broncos put together their third fourth-quarter comeback since Tebow took over for starter Kyle Orton, rallying past rival San Diego for a 16-13 overtime win.

"He said iron sharpens iron and men sharpen other men. And I think that's totally true," rookie linebacker Von Miller told The Post. "He gave us a great speech. We came out (for the game) fired up. And that was a wrap."

______________________________________________
(NJ Bammer aside)
I know TT gets a lot of flak for his constant bible quoting, but speaking as a motivated christian myself, there's quite a lot in it which will inspire men to be men. TT is often portrayed in a pretty negative light for his beliefs and his outspokeness about them, but it seems that Mr. Fox and the Broncos do not find him an object of ridicule.

Something to cheer up a fanbase which needs some cheering up right now...

Philadelphia Eagles

For all the talk of how the defense has failed to meet expectations in Philadelphia, the stat that most clearly separates their good and bad games is offensive turnovers. In their three wins, the Eagles' offense has turned the ball over just three times. In their four losses, they've given the ball away 14 times. Their offense has recovered six of their 12 fumbles, which is average, but it's been distributed irregularly; they recovered all three of their fumbles against the Giants and both fumbles against the Cowboys last week, but just one of the other seven fumbles in their other five games. It's a shame, too, because teams just don't stop the Eagles on offense, as no team in football has punted less frequently. On the other hand, only the Chargers have turned the ball over more frequently. If Philly solves the turnover problem, they make the playoffs. If not, they don't. It's that simple.

New York Giants

We forget to see this coming every season with the Giants; we get distracted by something and forget that the Giants are known for their second-half disasters. Since 2006, the Giants are 30-10 in the first half of the regular season and 18-22 in the second half. Their pass defense has declined in four of those five seasons, but the biggest reason why is usually that their schedule gets much tougher. 2011 is no exception. Their narrow victory over the Dolphins last week was the final pushover left on their schedule, as the Giants now have a home-and-home left with the Cowboys, home games against the Eagles and Redskins, and this absurd out-of-division slate: Patriots, 49ers, Saints, Packers, Jets. You know how newspapers prepare obituaries for aging public figures before they pass away? I am guessing the New York Post already has its op-ed pieces about the Giants quitting on Tom Coughlin written. It would be a great shock if the Giants were still in first place on Christmas Day.

'I asked Greg [Cosel] if he thinks the Eagles are generally using Asomugha to his (and their) best advantage. "This is not a knock on [the coaching staff]; it’s just my opinion of what Asomugha is," Greg said. "I don’t think he’s a great slot player. I don’t think he’s a great change-of-direction athlete. I don’t think he’s a short-area burst athlete. I don’t think he’s a physical player. I think he’s a press-man corner who has a great feel for using the sideline. He’s very balletic in his movements as a press man corner. He’s very fluid and smooth, which is very different from being a great change-of-direction athlete.

"I don’t think he fits inside, but he’s being used that way –- obviously, the Eagles believe he can play there. That would just be a difference in evaluation between myself, watching him on film, and what the Eagles obviously believe. Time will tell, but I don’t believe he’s a slot player."'

This year, Vick is allowed to call the offensive line protection -- and to change it up on a given play if he sees something in the defense that dictates that he should. That's new this year. It's something new offensive line coach Howard Mudd likes quarterbacks to be able to do, and Eagles head coach Andy Reid said it's part of Vick's continued development as a quarterback. Reid said the coaching staff loaded Vick up with tape and information on protection and opponent blitzes from last year and that Vick's lockout assignment was to study it. And once training camp started, Mathis said, there was a heavy emphasis on strategy and game plan, with Vick taking a leading role in the meeting rooms.

"It's finally time to get to the cream of the crop. After three previews traversing the league's pretenders, we're finishing up our NFL preview today by looking at the contenders. Today, we analyze the eight teams we expect will compete for this year's Lombardi Trophy. While our previous dispatches haven't ranked the teams in any discernible order, this fourth edition of our preview will list the Super Bowl contenders in reverse order of their chances to be celebrating in Indianapolis this February."

....

"2. Philadelphia Eagles

Odds to win Super Bowl XLVI: +834

We're not going to rehash the past few months here. Suffice to say, the Eagles won the offseason handily; their biggest weakness was at cornerback, and they added the second-best corner in football. "
..

"But even after you account for the possibility of Vick losing a bit of his edge or missing time, this should still be a great football team. The Eagles get four games against the NFC West, and since the Giants have been torn asunder by injuries during the preseason, the NFC East doesn't look all that complicated anymore."

I think these mean less than usual, given the offseason, but FWIW, the Eagles are projected as the best team in the NFC and to play (and lose to) the Steelers in the SB.

Also, St. Louis is projected to have a terrible, terrible, terrible offense, second worst only to Seattle, so we'll see what's up this weekend. If the Birds look really good on D, it might just be the other team's fault...

1.Bleach: You’ll use it to clean. Before the hurricane hit here last time, I became a whirling dervish. I cleaned EVERY piece of laundry. The house was spotless. The first thing that happens when the hurricane comes through — no electricity, no sanitation, no public works. Think about it. Think about not flushing your toilet. Yeah.
2.Extra paper goods: Toilet paper, paper plates, plasticware, garbage bags, baby wipes (no showers), etc. You can’t have too much.
3.Camp lamps: You know those propane camp lamps? Make sure you have fuel, too. But when you lose electricity, you’ll want to sit around in the sweltering heat and do something. Get cards, books (no iPad), board games.
4.Landline for telephone and MAKE SURE you have an old-fashioned phone that doesn’t need batteries.
5.Buy more perishable food than you think. Fruits, veggies. Dried goods get boring after a couple days.
6.CASH IS KING. ATMs won’t work. Banks will be closed. You will need money to buy things from whomever is still open. Their credit card machines WON’T work.
7.Fill up the car with gas. This could save your life. Your car engine is a generator. It can charge your phones. It can get you the hell out of Dodge. Fill it up.
8.Buy a chainsaw now. Laugh if you will, but we helped many people get out of their driveways and out of neighborhoods with our chainsaw. People were stuck. Don’t be one of them.
9.Buy a handcrank NOAA radio. You will use this. When the reality of no electricity settles in, you’ll start panicking because you don’t have enough batteries. Hand cranks work no matter. Buy one here.
10.Guns and ammo. Make sure and have it ready. There was no looting in Houston. Know why? Self protection. People get desperate. When we left and finally evacuated a week after the last hurricane, we stopped at a private gas station that our friends are part owner of — we needed to top off the tank after doing some running around. A very frantic dude came up (he was armed) who wanted gas. We all were armed (four men and me and the kids). It was a good thing we were.
11.High calorie food and multi-vitamins. Chocolate. PB&J. Boxed foods. Get a variety. You’ll be sick of it all before it’s all over.
12.Clear plastic covered containers and plastic bags. PUT ALL VALUABLES in clear plastic bags. Put plastic bags in the bin. Be ready to put them in the car and go. 12.5 Have a container with emergency items — hunting knife, rope, tarp, duct tape, etc.
13.Gas stove works. Everything else won’t. You’ll need a grill and charcoal and matches or a lighter. Keep em dry.
14.WHEN IN DOUBT EVACUATE. What’s the worst that can happen? You’re wrong? Who cares? It’s better than being stuck in a flooded city, I can promise you.
15.Get water. During the first hurricane, we had surprise guests. Friends and extended family lived in a mobile home. They couldn’t afford to leave but the hurricane was on a direct path. We had them come to our house. It was a good thing we had lots and lots of extra water. You want to be in the position of helping people–not needing help.
16.You have a short window to make contact with family. The government will take over the cellular and landline network for emergency channels. This will piss you off. Don’t panic. Addendum: Make sue someone knows what your plans are. Give out back up phone numbers. People will be worrying about you.
17.Extras: Duct tape (for windows and blowing and stuff) and LED flash lights. FIRST AID kit. Aspirin, antibiotics, butterfly bandages, etc
18.Take pictures for insurance. Right NOW, get out your phone. Go around your house and take pictures of everything. Save the photos somewhere safe. Insurance. Someone mentioned emailing them to yourself. This is a good idea. Get it in the cloud in case you need to make claims.
19.Last thing before all else fails: Fill the tub with water. And as @chrisofrights says, the water tank has extra.
20.Plastic bags. You really can’t have too many between trash and clean up. RT @FineCalliCat: wipes..don’t forget wipes.

I don't know about you guys, but I'm about sick and tired of all this F-ing RAIN!!!!!

It was the best game of Michael Vick's career: six TDs -- four passing, two rushing -- 20-for-28 passing, 333 yards. In fact, it was the NFL's best offensive performance of this century. And it could have been even better. "I easily could have been 28-of-28," the Eagles QB said of the 59-28 win over the Redskins on "Monday Night Football." Here's the inside story of the Nov. 15, 2010 game some of the participants said was like the "Madden NFL" video game come to life.

Anyone else feel that?

Everyone got all loopy over the Goodell comment, but here's more revealing quotes:

"I had lost confidence and was losing my love of the game. Football wasn't fun anymore," Vick told ESPN The Magazine. "If I had stayed in Atlanta, I'd be a year or two away from retiring."

"In the NFL, schemes make great quarterbacks," he added in the ESPN The Magazine interview. "I love Atlanta, but I wish now I would have been drafted by the Eagles."

It has been widely presumed that Vick's 21 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to financing a dogfighting ring altered his perspective. But Vick told GQ that prison wasn't where he decided to make changes.

"No ... I had changed my life long before then. I was just with the wrong team at the wrong time," Vick told GQ.

"I was turning the corner. I was cutting my braids off. I was changing my life. I wanted to live the life where football and family were the only things that mattered. I was ready to do it. I felt like time was running out on my career. I needed focus," he said, according to GQ.

So, would he still be an elite quarterback if he'd never went to prison or was never discovered to have been involved in dogfighting?

"Only if I had gotten traded to the Philadelphia Eagles," he told the magazine. "They never tried to change me."

Am I the only one who has been refreshing BGN trying to find out what the big announcement was supposed to be today? Anyway, Reid said "Today, right? Well possibly today. We haven’t finished today, I don’t think. We have a few hours." which is pretty much what you expect the giant sphinx to say when he wants to be opaque, which is always...

I was talking to Herremans after about the eighth or ninth day of training camp practice, so it was still a work in progress. And I'm sure he's grown more comfortable in the week-plus since I spoke with him that he was in the new system that day. I just found it interesting, an inside look at what's different about the way the Eagles will play offensive line this year, and I thought I'd share it with you. I wouldn't worry about Herremans, though. Yeah, he's a giant at 6-foot-6, 321 pounds, but he's too good a player not to fit into the new scheme, even though Mudd is known for preferring "athletic" linemen to huge ones.

"He likes to keep active feet. He wants your feet to be active all the time, and that's tough to do if you're 400 pounds," Herremans said. "But we've always been drafting athletic linemen. With Juan, he wanted great big athletic linemen. Howard just wants athletic linemen. He doesn't care. If you can get the job done at 280 pounds, you're fine. If you can get it done at 370 pounds, you can still get it done. As long as you're productive with what you have, that's what it's about."