SBNation.com User Blog: football mensa

Draft watch ..........Oct 27

football mensa — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 19:54:32 -0000

Well well well whadda ya know ? We actually have a game outside of the SEC that should be enjoyed by casual and die hard fans alike as well as draftnik nation. We have db's galore on display as well as the best mlb in the nation who should win the Hesiman but won't. And allow me to introduce you to the best defensive player you haven't heard about...

We have a running qb who will most likely play wr in the pros but could be the ultimate wildcat draftee. I love football 'playa's. And to go with all of this we have some qb prospects who are trying to justify their once lofty draft status.

Ohio St vs Penn St. A few reasons to watch this game. One is Ohio St Dt Jonathan Hankins. He is one of the two best dt's in college football. He is also very large and nasty checking in at 6'4" 320 lbs. Even moreso the player I want you to watch is John Simon. He plays de for the Buckeys as well as olb when they are in their 30 front. This is one of those football 'playa's' I am speaking of. His motor never stops and is terrific at rushing the passer.

For Penn St watch Donovan Smith. He is a red shirt freshman. He was highly recruited and will likely have a sucessful pro career. He is immensely talented and I mention him to say this. Smith could have left Penn State and went to any other college he wanted. Even through all of the sanctions and tribulations that come with it he stayed. Silas Redd the teams best rb last season left for USC. This speaks volumes about a players character or lack thereof. Penn St has been playing well as a team lately, though they don't have any super duper offensive talents on the team. I applaud these young men for coming together as a team and sticking together. Take note Dallas fans, PSU didn't throw in the towel because they lost their best player. Last but not least FRICK YOU NCAA.

It's known as the biggest cocktail party in the world. If you are an SEC fan you know which two teams are playing. The #2 ranked Florida Gators vs the Georgia Bulldogs. If you have not seen the Gators defense and you are a fan of defense you will like this game. This game features some of the best safety pospects in the nation. The Florida prospect of most interest to Dallas fans should be Matt Elam. FS 5'10' 210 lbs Elam has been playing lights out the last 3 weeks. He attacks the ball. He is currently considered a second round draft choice. The Gators defense also features 3 d linemen worth watching. The highly rated Shariff Floyd and Dominique Easley along with dt Omar Hunter checking in at 6' 315lbs.

Not to be outdone of course is the Georgia defense. Olb Jarvis Jones. Nt John Jenkins and they have two safties of their own. Shawn Williams who has been rock steady and the better known Baccari Rambo. On defense this game has some players that Dallas should have much interest in. If you like hard hitting , intimidating safties this game should not dissapoint. All 3 on display in this game will "lay the wood".

The offensive side of the ball offers some superb talent as well. However most of them are underclassmen who won't be eligible for the 2013 draft. Though there are a few players to keep an eye on for next years draft and later. Aaron Murray is the Bulldogs qb. He has been compared to Brees because of his stature. Murray has been very streaky this season and that has been his career m.o. He is facing a great defense vs the Gators and this will be a stiff test for him. Mike Gillislee is the Gator rb to watch. He has had a breakout season. He is fast and gets to the second level in a blink. He has no wasted motion when he runs. He checks in at a compact yet stout 5'10" and 210 lbs. Keep an eye on Florida qb Jeff Driskell. He was highly recruited when he arrived at Florida. He started as a freshman last season and was benched. He gets better with each game. He throws one of the best spirals in football. He is 6'4" 235 lbs and can run. Look to see if he continues to develop because if he does , he and Teddy Bridgewater may be the two top rated qb prospects for 2014.

Miss St vs Bama....Don't look now but Miss St is undefeated. This game features the two top rated cb's in college. It also features one of the better safties in college, Robert Lester. Dee Milliner cb for Bama is not what you would call an uber athlete. He is however very instinctual and like Mo Claiborne has excellent body control. One of the most important traits for a cb to posess is the ability to not take false steps. Milliner excells at this. The Bama linebacker to watch is CJ Mosley. Nico Johnson was supposed to be the star lb this season. It's been Mosley. Jesse Williams is of course the nt for Bama. He projects to either nt/dt or de in the pros. He played de for the Tide last season.

If your looking for for a tandem of cb's look no further than Miss St's duo of Jonathan Banks and Darius Slay. Slay isn't as well known as Banks but he can flat out ball. These two held Justin Hunter and Cordarrel Patterson in check last week. Miss St features one of the better guard prospects this year in Gabe Jackson. As a developing qb State's Tyler Russell has grown by leaps and bounds this year. He is large at 6'4" and 220 lbs. He has only thrown 1 int all season but this will be his stiffest test of the season as Bama is ranked number 2 in pass defense. Russell's primary wide out is Johnny Bumphis. He is in the mold of Kendall Wright who was drafted by the Titans in April's draft. If Miss St can prevent the Tide from running with ease this game should be close through the first half. The best individual matchups in this game will be Jesse Williams vs Gabe Jackson and Bumphis vs Milliner.Bama should win handily in the end though.

K-State vs Texas Tech...when did they start playing d at Tech ? This game is not littered with pro prospects but for pure football excitement this could be the funnest game of the evening. Qb Collin Klein (a football playa) will lead the Cats offense. Either of these teams can drop 50 plus on an opponent at any time....

And now the main event of the evening....Wearing crimson and white, from Norman Oklahoma , the Oklahoma Sooners. Wearing gold and blue from South Bend Indiana, Notre Dame. For those of you who are wondering why Notre Dame is so good this year look no further than their defense. They have an SEC defense and their d line imo is better than Alabama's as a unit.

Notre Dame plays a 3-4. Their nt is Louis Nix 6'2" 330 lbs. He is flanked by the best defensive player you haven't heard about. Sophmore de Stephon Tuitt. All 6'5" 305 lbs of him. He isn't eligible to come out until 2014. As of right now I think he will be the second ranked defensive player behind Clowney in the 2014 draft. He is everything you are looking for in a 3-4 defensive end. Behind Nix and Tuitt is the best player in college football this year. Manti Te'o. 6'1" 250 lbs of linebacker who will crush ball carriers. He has improved his coverage ability 10 fold this season. He is dominant. Whoever lands Te'o in the draft will be getting a pro ready prospect.If all things were equal Te'o should win the Heisman....but that isn't hoing to happen.

The Sooners have a formidable offense. It will be hands down the best offense Notre Dame has faced this season. They are led by the once highly touted Landry Jones. Jones' stock has fallen this season as he becomes erratic in pressure situations. However he is talented and will be drafted by an nfl team. He has some very capable rb's to hand the ball to and wr Kenny Stills is one of the better wr's in the country. The one on one matchup to watch in this game is Stephon Tuitt vs Oklahoma lt Lane Johnson. 6'6" 306 lbs. Johnson is very good. He could further his draft stock with a good game vs Tuitt.

Texas A&M vs Auburn....Auburn is abysmal this season so this will be short. Watch Domantre Moore from Texas A&M. He is hands down the best pass rusher in the SEC not named Clowney. For Auburn Corey Lemonier is one of the better pass rushers who fans don't know. However the scouts know. He plays de for the "other" Tigers. He checks in at 6'4" 246 lbs. He just happens to play on a defense with no help.

Mensa Shots: I think there might be 80-90 points scored in the USC vs Arizona game. Neither team has a d.

Oregon could score 100 vs Colorado if they wanted. The Colorado defense is so bad they don't have words in the dictionary to describe them. Oregon has kicked 4 fg's this season.

Speaking of Colorado maybe Tyrann Mathieu should consider a move if you get my drift.

Quick raise your hand if you know where qb John Richt plays.....If you guessed Mars Hill you would be correct and yes his dad is the coach of Georgia.

Name of the day....cb Blidi Wreh Wilson

Tyler Wilson , Tyler Bray , Tyler Russell...I want a qb named Mac.

The best fs you haven't heard about: Phillip Thomas , Fresno St. 6'1" 215 lbs.

The best wr you haven't heard about: Quinton Patton , vs Texas A&M he had 21 catches for 233 yards and 4 td's.

Unknown player part 2...Sheldon Richardson , Missouri dt. Most dt's at this juncture of the season have accumulated 22-28 tackles. Richardson has a mind blowing 52.

Editors note * For Tarheel Paul. North Carolina vs N.C. State. For North Carolina watch Giovani Bernard. For NC State Mike Glennon...both are outstanding players. Bernard is a legit Heisman candidate.

Draft watch 10/20

football mensa — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 15:50:50 -0000

Remember when ? Remember when this was THE game of the college football season ? Remember when every college football fan in America would watch this game even though they openly hated both teams ? Remember when this was the game you would plan your Saturday accordingly ? Remember when draftniking was becoming en vogue ? This was THE game. You didn't miss it. Whether is was a 3:30 eastern time start or in prime time it was THE game of the year.

One helmet was gold with a spear. The opposing helmet was white with da "U" embedded on the side. Da U had Howard Schnellenberger, Jimmy Johnson and Dennis Erickson as head coaches. Florida State had the iconic Bobby Bowden. The southern gentleman. Calm , cool , collected, never see him sweat, win or lose. He handled both with aplomb. Jimmy was the raucous bombastic ants in his pants step on your throat, peddle to the metal take no prisoners force behind the feared Hurricanes.

Both programs were where future nfl players plied their craft. They were the best of the best. They knew it. If a player excelled at either institution a professional contract was on the horizon. Da U in 2001 had an improbable 13 number 1 draft picks on it's roster. When Jimmy was roaming the sidelines no school had more d line nfl talent than the Hurricanes. FSU simply had the most famous and best cb to ever play in the nfl in Deion "Prime Time" Sanders. Saturday evening FSU plays Miami.

Neither team as of late has been the powerhouses they once were. FSU though has had a resurgence led by coach Jimbo Fisher. Fisher is from the Saban coaching tree. Al Golden is the coach of the Miami Hurricanes. The Canes have suffered from the scandalous fallout from the two previous regimes. However Golden has the Canes moving forward and will once again make da U a team to contend with. He is a teriffic coach and has brought new life to the downtrodden Cane program.

Most of the soon to be pro's are on the Scarlet and Gold team. On offense EJ Maunel has really matured into a leader and very good qb. Manuel is huge for a qb checking in around 240 lbs. He has a strong arm and can run. He has a calmness about him that was lacking last season. On defense is where FSU has a plethora of talent. Lars' (OCC) favorite college player is the German born , talented ball of energy de Bjoern Werner. 6'4" 273 lbs. Werner reminds me of Justin Smith from the 49'ers.On the other side is the fast rising Cornellius Carradine. He is 6'5" 265lbs and he is beginning to flash. This is a very very talented kid. It will be interesting to see if he declares for the draft or stays another year. These two vs the Hurricane ot tandem of Seantrel Henderson and Malcolm Bunche will be worth watching. The Miami ot's are big. Especially Henderson. FSU also has a teriffic cb in Xavier Rhodes. Big , fast and instinctive. Some think he would be just as dynamic playing safety.

This might be your first chance to get a glimpse of the future at rb for the Canes. He is a freshman by the name of Duke Johnson. He has the skill set of another rb playing in Miami. The other back plays for the Dolphins.

Kansas St vs West Virginia.....Folks if you ever want to watch a player who embodies all of what college football is about tune in to this game. Collin Klein is the KSU qb. When he arrived at KSU he was being groomed to be a wr. Injuries dictated otherwise. He is not a pro caliber qb. He will have to play wr in the pros. He is 6'4" 225 lbs. Imagine Bill Bates playing qb. This what you get with Klein. He is an absolute joy to watch as he competes on the field. The best KSU defender is lb Arthur Brown. 6'0 230 lbs.

For West Virginia all eyes will again be on qb Geno Smith. Amazingly he STILL has not thrown an interception this season. He has a completion percentage of over 75% and has thrown 25 td passes. For those of you wishing for a legit threat at slot reciever I give you Tavon Austin. At 5'9" he is everything we wish Dwayne Harris would have been. This game might become the game of the weekend. KSU is scrappy and undefeated. They beat Oklahoma and are well coached. WVU lost for the first time last week after climbing into the top 10 in the polls. They were beaten soundly by Texas Tech. Solid KSU defense vs WVU's high powered offense....this is why we watch.

Alabama @ Tennessee.....The Vols are the Dallas Cowboys of the collegiate football world. They have talent all around. They have some of the very best skill players at wr you could ask for. Justin Hunter and Cordarelle Patterson are the most talented duo of wideouts in college. Though some will argue Robert Woods and Marquise Lee from USC are better. The Vols wr's are bigger with equal athleticism is why I give them the edge. At qb they have Tyler Bray who is 6'5" and has a whip for an arm. If Bray stays in school this year I predict he will be no worse than the number 2 player selected in the 2014 draft. The Vols o line has some very good talent. Sophmore LT Antonio Richardson is a fantastic talent that you need to watch for the 2014 draft. He flat out stonewalled Jarvis Jones in their one on one matchup. At guard there is Dallas Thomas who has been featured many times by posters on BTB. I think he is a second round talent and would love to have him in Dallas. Playing rt for the Vols is JaJuwan James. He too held Jones in check when Jones moved to the other side of the line. This o line was superb vs the big athletic Georgia d line. Unfortunately the Vols leading rusher will not be playing in this game

....but oh man do the Vols have their work cut out for them. They face an Alabama d line that is just anihlating o lines. The d line is led by nt Jesse Williams 6'4" 320 lbs who is versatile enough to play a 3-4 de in the pro's. He is known as the tattooed monster from down under. He bench pressed 600 lbs in the summer. He is nasty and athletic. For those of you looking for an impactful d lineman Williams may be the answer. The de's for Bama are Damion Square and Ed Stinson. The Bama 30 front vs the Vols o line should be a lot of fun to watch.

CB Dee Milliner and safety Robert Lester vs the Vols wr's is worth watching. Milliner is considered one of the two best cb's in college. This game will say a lot about Bray. Bama is rugged, big, athletic and fast. They will hit you over and over. Bray has a chance to showcase his toughness vs the Bama defense.

The Bama o linemen to watch haven't changed. Barrett Jones and Chance Warmack. Keep an eye out for the Vols de's and blitzing linebackers. The Bama ot's have had trouble against quick olb types. Both of the Bama ot's are huge. Fluker is a monster in the run game but he can get caught spreading his feet too wide and get out of position in pass blocking.

LSU @ Texas A&M....everyone knows who to watch in this game. Everyone knows it's the A&M ot's vs the M&M boys. Joeckel and Matthews vs Montgomery and Mingo...This game could say a lot about who and if they decide to turn pro. Mingo has had a down year stats wise but he has been double and tripled teamed in some games. I don't think you will see any double or triple teams in this game. This game features some teriffic players. The A&M defense has de Demontrae Moore 6'3" 250 lbs. He has an olb build but he is uber quick and was lights out vs Florida. They also have olb Sean Porter 6'2" 230 lbs. He is not a 3-4 olb but he is fun to watch and may sneak into the latter part of the first round because he is that good. I won't take the time to divulge all of the defensive players from LSU. We can do that at a later date.

On offense for A&M you will see one of the more dynamic qb's in all of college. He can run and throw and is a blast to watch. The guy has the heart of a lion. His name is Johnny Manziel. He is a red shirt Frosh. He is only 6'1" and it will be interesting to follow him over the next couple of years to see if he can become a legit pro prospect. LSU better buckle up for this game or they could find themselves on the short end of the stick. Manziel will be in my top 3 heading into the 2013 season for the Heisman trophy.

Fla vs South Carolina....Fla has really gelled as a team over the last couple of weeks. They have a stout defense led by some outstanding pro prospects. Dt Shariff Floyd 6'2" 305lbs. I mention him because he may project as a 3-4 de. He doesn't have the height preferred for 3-4 de's but who cares ? If you're good then you're good. He is flanked by Dominique Easly. Easly is 6'2" 290lbs and is very quick and able to get leverage on the opposing o lineman.

The secondary is led by safety Matt Elam. Elam started the season slowly but he has turned it up as of late. This is a player who is a legit second rounder and would fit very well in the Dallas secondary.

South Carolina is led by you know who. Clowney. One day football fans will say Clowney. Everyone will know who you are talking about. He faces Xavier Nixon in their Saturday afternoon showdown. Nixon is a very capable ot and will be drafted no later than the second round imo. The Fla o line vs the Gamecocks d line is the key matchup. This will be a great battle and uber fun to watch for draftniks. The Gamecocks also have a safety worth watching in DJ Swearinger. The Gamecocks boast the best punt return man in the nation. This game is worth watching just to see Ace Sanders have a chance to return punts.

Kentucky vs Georgia....Not a lot of potential pro talent on the Wildcats team...However keep an eye on Larry Warford the huge guard for Kentucky. Watch to see how he does vs the Georgia nt John Jenkins and how he gets to the second level to block the linebackers. The Bulldogs should crush the Wildcats in this game but this game features the best name of the day...and he is a legit pro prospect, NT Mister Cobble. He plays for the Wildcats and is 6'0" 334lbs. Cmon how can you not love a name like Mister Cobble.

Sorry if it went to long....some great games this weekend and just had to take a little nostalgic stroll down memory lane with Miami and FSU...

Draft watch...Oct 13

football mensa — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 13:50:50 -0000

As we begin to reach the miday point of the college football season , this weekend's games doesn't offer the number of marquee matchups we saw last weekend. Saturday should have offered the best o line d line one on one matchup of the season as the uber talented Jaevadon Clowney of South Carolina would have faced Chris Faulk of LSU.. Sadly Faulk tore his acl in practice 3 weeks ago and has really been missed.

Don't be discouraged however as we have two GREAT one on one matchups this weekend. Mississippi St has one of the best cb's in the nation in Jonathan Banks. He has very good size at 6'1", physical and will play in your face defense. His opponent for this highly anticipated one on one matchup is none other than Tennessee Vols wr Justin Hunter. Hunter is the number 2 rated wr in college right now just behind Kennan Allen. Hunter is super smooth with superior body control and great hands. The Vols also have another wr who is big and has tremendous talent. He is dynamite after the catch. He reminds me of Terrell Owens when he has the ball in his hands. His name is Cordarrel Patterson. Ironically enough the Vols had another 5 star wr in Da'Rick Rogers who left the team. He now plays at Tennesse Tech.

Second key one on one matchup of the day is ot Taylor Lewan of Michigan vs de/olb Michael Buchanan of the fighting Iliini. Buchanan will probably play olb in a 3-4 at the pro level. He has elevated his game this season and as of right now he is a solid second day pick and maybe with a good showing this weekend can move even further up the boards. Lewan is one of the better ot prospects and is a solid first day pick. Depending on who is available from the junior pool of ot's will determine his status. Either Lewan or Buchanan can really improve their stock this weekend when they face each other.

Next up is Notre Dame vs Stanford. The key individual matchups aren't as prevelant as the others previously mentione but there is some highly rated lb's that will be on display. Manti Te'o is a 6'1" 250lbs thumper who is one of the hardest hitters on the collegiate level. He is a throwback kind of player who has improved his pass coverage skills this season. Notre Dames opponent , Stanford also has two good linebackers. Olb Chase Thomas and ilb Shane Skov.

Those who are interested in some small school prospects I would like for you to keep an eye on qb Zac Dysert. 6'3" 215lbs Miami (of Ohio). Very accurate passer whose 2011 season ended with a lacerated spleen. Dysert should surpass 10,000 yards this season and though he won't go high in the draft he is definitely someone worth keeping an eye on as he may be someone who Dallas could draft and develop. The expected boon of college qb's this season hasn't exactly materialized. The juniors and seniors who were expected to have really good season have struggled thusfar in the collegiate season. Right now someone like Dysert could really improve his stock. Next on the small college list is ot Eric Fisher of Central Michigan. Fisher is one of the better ot's in all of college football. I expect him to be selected in the second round.

Now for the games....Texas vs Oklahoma....Jackson Jeffcoat, Alex Oakafor, Carrington Byndom, Kenny Vaccaro (safety) are all defensive players for the Longhorns that warrant watching in the Red River shootout to be played in Dallas. For the Sooners on defense Tony Jefferson is their best player and he too is a safety. At this point I have him as a second rounder. The Sooners aren't as stocked with pro talent this year as they usually are. However they are playing some younger players and next season should look better for them. As usual they do have some young dynamite rb's .

On offense they are lead by qb Landry Jones. Jones has regressed since he replaced number 1 pick Sam Bradford. Still keep an eye on him and see how he contends with the Longhorn db's. This is a very good matchup for draftniks because of the need for safety and possibly another olb for the Cowboys.

Next up is South Carolina at LSU. What should have been will not be. LSU will be missing 3 o line starters this game and sadly I think they get taken to the woodshed in the second half. However LSU does have some defensive players to watch...Bennie Logan (dt), the M&M boys , Mingo and Montgomery. Eric Reid (fs), Tharold Simon (cb). South Carolina has the ALL WORLD UBER TALENTED aforementioned Clowney. Devin Taylor is the other de who is tall and has long arms. As stated last week the SC has one of the best rb's in the nation in Marcus Lattimore. He still isn't 100% recovered from last seasons acl tear but he is beginning to assert himself.

I was going to hi-lite the Bama Mizzou game but this is not a game that would give a true evaluation of the Bama players. Though if you do want to tune in, watch Mizzou true frosh wr Dorial Green- Beckham. He has been compared to Megatron at the same point in thier careers. Have a great weekend draftnicks, next weekend I will focus more on the o line.

Draft Watch Oct.6

football mensa — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 12:43:16 -0000

The college schedule is beginning to heat up. The matchups are becoming jucier as we see top 10 teams begin to play one another. Of course most of the top 10 teams are from the SEC and they have two games today that offer a plethora of talent and some nice matchups regarding the 2013 draft.

There are however some matchups outside of the SEC that will showcase some of the best talent that could be available in next April's draft. One of the great things about following collegiate ball is watching players emerge as the season begins to unfold. The SEC does not have dibbs this year on all of the defensive studs.

There are some offensive and defnsive players who will and won't be draft eligible for 2013 that will be on the big stage today that Dallas may have some interest in for 2014. With that said let's get to it.....

To fellow BTB poster TYRONE JENKINS....today is Christmas for you. Javedeon Clowney will be on display this evening as South Carolina plays Ga. To all the BTB'ers who haven't seen Clowney here is your chance. He averages over a sack a game .He will not be draft eligible until the 2014 draft. His bookend is Devin Taylor 6'7" 270 lbs. Taylor imo is a 4-3 de unless he can pack on some lbs. He has a large wingspan.

On offense the Gamecocks have one of the top rated rb's in the country in junior Marcus Lattimore. Lattimore was highly recruited coming out of highschool and was teriffic last season until he tore an acl. He has not fully recovered. The way he is playing right now reminds me a little of a younger Cedric Benson. When fully healthy he is faster than Benson.

Georgia is one of the few colleges that play a true 3-4 defense. The starting nt is John Jenkins who weighs in at 355 lbs, His backup is Kwame Geathers who weighs in at a svelte 350 lbs. This defense is stacked with prospects. Jarvis Jones plays olb and weighs in at 245 lbs. If you have not seen Jarvis play you should. Teriffic athlete . However he was held in check by the Tennesse Vols o line last week. I will high light the Vols o line another day. At safety the Bulldogs have two highly thought of players in Baccari Rambo and Shawn Williams. Both will flat out lay the wood to opposing wr's.

On offense the Bulldogs are led by Aaron Murray. His stature reminds of Drew Brees. Murray is inteligent and can be deadly accurate at times. However he is a streaky passer and it will be interesting to see him play vs an outstanding defense. Murray has two of the best freshman rb's in the country in Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall.. Both are averaging close to 8 yards a carry and both should be teriffic prospects when the become elgible.

This is a must see game for draftniks.

The next game on the dockett for tonight is West Virgina vs Texas. For those who have not seen Geno Smith play. Tune in. Smith has thrown 20 td's and no int's. Yes you read that correctly. His completion percentage is 83.4%. He is playing against a Texas defense with 2 superb pass rushing de's in Jackson Jeffcoat and Alex Oakafor. Also posing a threat for Smith is safety Kenny Vaccaro and the quickly rising cb, Carrington Byndom. This defense will be the stiffest test to date for Smith and it will be interesting to see if he can continue his onslaught of the record books.

For those who watch this game and are concerned about the wr position in Dallas , keep an eye on Marquise Goodwin. Goodwin is Percy Harvin fast if not faster. As they say...if he is even , he is leavin.

Next is LSU vs Fla. The LSU offense has been terrible this year since they lost a certain first round pick in Chris Faulk. Faulk played lt and was teriffic in pass protection and a straight up mauler in the run game. I won't delve into the LSU offense in this post as all eyes will be on their defense. Everyone knows the M&M boys in Mingo and Montgomery. Very few know of Bennie Logan. He plays dt . Logan is a baller and a better athlete than Michael Brockers. He is a penetrating dt who is very good at moving the pocket. He is the key to the LSU d line. He will be flanked by 2014 draft eligible Anthony "Freak" Johnson. Johnson is a mix between Brockers and Logan and will be a sur fire first round pick when he decides to come out. At safety LSU has one of the better fs's in the nation in Eric Reid. Reid is more cerebral than McDonald from Usc. Other defnsive players to watch on LSU are Lavar Edwaeds and Throld Simon.

However the Tigers will be facing a very formidable Florida offense. Florida has a very good young qb named Jeff Driskell. He gets better with each passing game. Keep an eye on him as he is an outstanding qb propect for the 2014 draft if he decides to leave early. Montgomery will be facing Xavier Nixon who plays lt for the Gators and is a second tier prospect at his position. It should be a great one on one matchup. If you're looking for a Harvin type keep an eye on Andre Debose. This should be a very good game as both teams play many freshmen.

Miami vs Notre Dame.For the Golden Domers watch Tyler Eifert. He plays te and is uber talented. Yes like Witten but faster. I don't need to explain why he might be on the Cowboys radar. Louis Nix is 6'2" 330lbs and would play nt for Dallas. Nix is a very good player.

For Miami though and speaking of nt's the Canes offer 6'2" 360 lbs nt Darius Smith. Yes 360 lbs, The Canes also have a good second or third day prospect in in guard Brian Linder. 6'5" 310 lbs. This game will offer some of the better individual matchups of the day.

That's my game day choices for Oct 6. Enjoy.

My thoughts....

football mensa — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 04:29:54 -0000

Before the season began I tried to believe. I wanted to believe like I do every off season. Hell I even wrote a post about it. I am not one to be induced by the media or kool-aid fans. I always try to remain objective and take a realistic approach to the upcoming season. I don't ever buy into hype it's not my style. More than any other season I was pulling for our pathetic owner to prevail because of what the nfl did with our salary cap.

However you can't deny the facts. These are facts. No more denying the obvious. This team is infected with losing. This version of the Cowboys are one of the most mentally weak teams I have ever witnessed in all my years of watching the nfl. It saddens me to watch this once proud franchise reach the depths it has at the hands of it's current owner/gm. This team will not and can not win a superbowl with anything close to the current cast of men masquerading as Dallas Cowboys. When adversity hits this team in the mouth they run for cover. They tremble in fear and implode.

This team is a reflection of their coach. Garrett ,Lovie Smith beat you like a drum. He turned you every which way but loose. He made in game adjustments and let you hang yourself. RR you are just as bad as Garrett. Neither one of you know how to exploit another teams weakness. The Packers sacked Cutler 7 times. 7. How many sacks did we get ? 2. How many times did he just evade our rushers ? Still no adjustments. No adjustments just like vs the Sea Hawks. Coach Carboard you're the head coach. It's your job to make sure your team is ready. Ready even if a little adversity comes your way and it did vs the Bears. You and your team folded again. Same song and verse , different game.

Jerry Jones these are YOUR Cowboys. You built them. You drafted the players. You signed the free agents. You make it abundantly clear you are the gm. You have admitted you would have fired yourself if you weren't the owner. Which brings me to my next point. Winning isn't as important to you as it is for you to be the gm. Your ego is more important than winning. You hired Wade because he was soft and wouldn't buck you. There was no way you would turn over control of the team. You can't. It means more to you to be the face of the team than it is the team itself. It starts with you and ends with you. You are failure of epic proportions. The debacle we saw vs the Bears has your finger prints all over it. Still you won't let go. You aren't qualified to be gm of the Dallas Cowboys. You built a magnificent palace for your team to play in. Fan friendly and apparently opposing team friendly too. Yet what you saw vs the Bears bothers you not. The stadium was full albeit with many Bears fans and your team was pummeled yet you made your money. We fans aren't as dumb as you think. It's all about the money.

My thoughts on some of the players.....

Dez Bryant...I am done with you. You are stupid. You won't learn the playbook and you don't get any more mulligans. You are blessed with talent that makes me envious to a fault. And you waste it. You're lazy. You don't concentrate. You don't care. You got popped vs the Hawks and you haven't been the same since. You don't deserve to wear 88. Irvin embodied everything about toughness. You embody everything that is wrong in Dallas. You are the poster child for mentally weak.

Romo , sometimes there aren't enough superlatives to describe you. Your Houdini escapes are beyond a thing of beauty. I don't blame the pick 12 on you this time. With a pea brained wr and getting your arm hit because of a pathetic o line....well those things happen. However the other 3, there is no excuse. You are 32 years old. You have been a starter over 5 years. 5 int's is unacceptable. Period. I can't make excuses for you. I feel bad for you. Your gm wasted your career. You have played for a coach who quit on you. Then Wade. Nuff said. Now you play for coach carboard with the most unimaginative offense I have seen in a while. Your gm was more interested in building his stadium and drafting line backers and wasting valuable draft picks on a commatose wr. Yet game after game you vallaintly went out there and gave it your all. Props to you for your career and again I sincerely apologize for your inept gm. However I see regression this year. It happens. Even to the best of them. You will own every passing stat in Cowboys history.

Ware...1 sack vs Jamarcus Webb. You went phantom in this game.

D line you played the Bears o line...where were you all ?

Lee....you should be voted all pro by seasons end.....you were magnificent / stupendous and any other superlative in the dictionary...

O line...you couldn't run block if there were no defenders on the field...huge fail...you should be embarrassed.

Witten good to see you catch some passes.

Murray....I just shake my head at the pathetic blocking you recieve. Sorry .

Sadly this team could go 0 for October....IF that happens do we think about trading Jenkins ?...or any other player ?....I would like BTB's feed back on this subject.

Archie this is for you ...

football mensa — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 19:08:08 -0000

Archie this is for you ...

Dan Sileo former Cane dt.

The morning after....

football mensa — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 14:20:25 -0000

No weekend in professional sports is as highly anticipated as opening day in the nfl. Playing only 16 games, each game has signifigance like no other sport. A season is not won or lost on opening day or is it ? You have a 45% better chance of making the playoffs when you win your season opener.

With a full slate of games yesterday we got to see which teams look like they will live up to expectations and who won't and who may exceed preseason pronostications. We got to see the highly anticipated rookie debut's of Trent Richardson, Andrew Luck , RG3 and Russell Wilson. Who wasn't intrigued to see Peyton Manning in Denver ? Will Cam win games or will he be a fantasy stud only ? So many storylines and drama to be played out over the next 16 weeks.

We witnessed the coaching debut of Greg Schiano. This is one of the most compelling storylines of the season imo. No college coach has ever had the success of our own Jimmy Johnson. Few have the intestinal fortitude to even try. Even more baffling is the reluctance of owners to hire college coaches .Most pro coaching changes come from within the nfl via oc or dc to hc. Few truly ever work. Seems too many times coaching hires are just rehashing the same ol guys in the establishment.

The more I watched yesterday the more excited I became. The schedule this year has me more excited than the last few seasons. We get to play the big bad boys from the AFC north and I can't wait to see Dallas impose their will, dominate and WIN !

With that said , here are my thoughts on the morning after the opening day 2012.

Can a rb please rush for 100 yards not named Spiller, Murray or Gore ? I know it's a passing league but fantasy owners around the world are shaking their heads this morning in disbelief.

The Cleveland Browns had the correct game plan defensively to disrupt Michael Vick. Constant pressure up the middle making Vick continually have to move left or right and take him out of his comfort zone.

Playing with a rookie qb , a rookie rb and very little at the wr position the Browns had Filly fans staining their pants through out the game.

Uh Filly , we aren't the Browns !

The Saints missed Sean Payton. Dallas fans missed Sean Payton too because who wants to see Wahington win ? RG3 is is credible. I wish the lad well but do we really want to see a burgeoning dynamo at the qb position in Washington ? NO !

Von Miller , Tebowing was classic after sacking big Ben.

You just thought our o line was bad....anyone want to trade with Pittsburgh ?

Peyton Manning still looks funny in a helmet. He's still good too.

The Russell Wilson lovefest by fans and analyst alike may quickly become lukewarm.

There isn't a qb in the nfl who throws a better looking pass than Aaron Rodgers.

Great to see the Packers lose.

Ever notice how you hate a team more when they are good ? San Fran I am looking at you.

The Niners defense could challenge the 2000 Ravens defense. I am not jealous. I am envious.

Jim Harbaugh's head will explode on the sideline by mid season.

Ryan Tannehill made it 5 rookie qb's starting on opening day. He threw 3 int's. Jerry draft a qb in 2013 so we don't have a Quincy redo.

Greg Schiano I think will be very successful as an nfl coach. Tough as nails and smooth as butter. Talk about culture change.

Cam Newton....will he win ? ...will he be Mr. Fantasy ?....is the sophmore jinx in place ?....does he explode vs Dallas ?...

How many of you picked up Mark Sanchez last night in ff ? .....he won't throw 3 td passes the next two games

Quick , someone copy right "Megatree"

So glad I drafted Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler in my money league.....jus sayin

Jeff Fisher can coach. The Rams who were severely out talented vs the Lions, made one think that the Lions are good on paper.

I don't know if anyone remembers but the New York Giants lost. Pinned ! 1,2,3 Shoulders to the mat. It wasn't a title match however.

Anyone scared of the Falcons ?

Matt Forte is good....but we have Felix Jones...uh nevermind

The Bills and their 100 million dollar man....uh, lost to the Jets. Maybe he isn't Steve Austin after all.There was only one bionic man. Though he was only 6 million dollars. Inflation and all , ya know.

Should Joe Buck stay with baseball ?

Overall the Niners look like the best team. They aren't unbeatable.

I still hate the Patriots.

Did I mention that Dallas won ?

Happy Monday to everyone !! Football is back !!

With that said , here are my thoughts on the morning after the opening day 2012.

Can a rb please rush for 100 yards not named Spiller, Murray or Gore ? I know it's a passing league but fantasy owners around the world are shaking their heads this morning in disbelief.

Playing with a rookie qb , a rookie rb and very little at the wr position the Browns had Filly fans staining their pants through out the game.

Uh Filly , we aren't the Browns !

Von Miller , Tebowing was classic after sacking big Ben.

You just thought our o line was bad....anyone want to trade with Pittsburgh ?

Peyton Manning still looks funny in a helmet. He's still good too.

The Russell Wilson lovefest by fans and analyst alike may quickly become lukewarm.

There isn't a qb in the nfl who throws a better looking pass than Aaron Rodgers.

Great to see the Packers lose.

Ever notice how you hate a team more when they are good ? San Fran I am looking at you.

The Niners defense could challenge the 2000 Ravens defense. I am not jealous. I am envious.

Jim Harbaugh's head will explode on the sideline by mid season.

Ryan Tannehill made it 5 rookie qb's starting on opening day. He threw 3 int's. Jerry draft a qb in 2013 so we don't have a Quincy redo.

Greg Schiano I think will be very successful as an nfl coach. Tough as nails and smooth as butter. Talk about culture change.

Cam Newton....will he win ? ...will he be Mr. Fantasy ?....is the sophmore jinx in place ?....does he explode vs Dallas ?...

How many of you picked up Mark Sanchez last night in ff ? .....he won't throw 3 td passes the next two games

Quick , someone copy right "Megatree"

So glad I drafted Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler in my money league.....jus sayin

Jeff Fisher can coach. The Rams who were severely out talented vs the Lions, made one think that the Lions are good on paper.

I don't know if anyone remembers but the New York Giants lost. Pinned ! 1,2,3 Shoulders to the mat. It wasn't a title match however.

Anyone scared of the Falcons ?

Matt Forte is good....but we have Felix Jones...uh nevermind

Should Joe Buck stay with baseball ?

Overall the Niners look like the best team. They aren't unbeatable.

I still hate the Patriots.

Did I mention that Dallas won ?

Happy Monday to everyone !! Football is back !!

2200% and BTB

football mensa — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 00:03:31 -0000

As training camps are set to convene, fan speculation increases. We've had rookie camps, OTAs and offseason workouts. All of which say much and mean nothing. We've all read the reports and listened to the coaches talk about player A looking fantastic. Player B is stronger this year. Player C has really worked hard this off season and we expect big things from him.

The Cowboys' offseason has received superfluous reviews. Warranted or unwarranted. We have been over PFF grades and the extrapolation explanations of why this unit or that unit was better than you thought. Yet there the Cowboys sat at 8-8 in 2011. Mediocre, middle of the pack, again sitting at home watching the playoffs.

We fans entered the offseason pontificating over another failed season. We replay it in our minds time and time again. This play , that play. IF we would have not dropped that INT. If we would have converted that 4th-and-goal. If Garrett would have....and on it goes. The offseason commences and the media jockeys begin to tell us how smart they are and why your team wasn't worthy enough to be in the playoffs.

In our case it's Tony Romo (tongue planted firmly in cheek). Fortunately for fans we get a bone in April via the NFL draft. For some of us the draft is our other life. The end of the 3-day jubilee brings with it an even larger void as the off season drags on....until July. July brings with it a new beginning for football fans. Finally the prior failed season is but a fading memory as the new and hope is now the primary focus.

As I was perusing through the roster I began to wonder what percentage of improvement will manifest itself with each position group. This can be an exercise in futility as we don't yet know who the starting 22 will be. Furthermore, breaking down the percentage of improvement is but mere speculation by any fan or pundit. As I delved further into my thought process I began to break down the percentage of each of the starting 22 players and how much improvement is necessary to make the playoffs.

Assigning each player a maximum 100%, the cumulative total would equal 2200% for the starting 22. Now the X-Factor comes into focus. For example, if Tron's highest possible value is 100% , what percentage did he play at in 2011? I graded Tron at 85%, which is stellar for a rookie offensive tackle. Costa , I graded at 35%. Free at 65%. Lumpy at 70%. Kosier at 36%. No one was as bad as Costa. Cumulative total for the O-Line: 291% out of a possible 500%.

Now that you understand how this exercise works, let's look at all of the position groups (I'll be using a 2-back set) and how much improvement we need to make a serious playoff run. We will look at the variables like special teams after the breakdown. Jump to it !

POS Group	Max Grade	2011 Grade	2012 Grade	2012 Starters
Offense
O-Line	500%	291%	375%	Tron, Nate, Mac, Leary, Free
WRs	200%	120%	185%	Dez, Austin
RBs	200%	75% (injuries)	190%	DeMarco, Vickers
TE	100%	90%	85%	Witten
QB	100%	90%	90%	Romo
Defense
D-Line	300%	180%	210%	Liss, Rat, Hatch
LBs	400%	285%	355%	Ware, Carter, Lee, Spencer
DBs	400%	145%	295%	Carr, Mo, Sensi , Pool

The 2011 total for the offense is 666%. Projected total for the 2012 offense is 925%. Which equates to a 259%-age points improvement for the offense. 2011 total for the defense is 610%. Projected total for the 2012 defense is 860%, which is a 250%-age point improvement for the defense. Total team improvement for the 22 starters equals 509%. This represents a substantial upgrade for the team, embarking upon the 2012 season. With a percentage increase of over 500% the playoffs should be just a formality. A deep run and even the superbowl should be a realistic attainable goal. With the improved cb play both the d line and linebackers have an opportunity to increase their posiiton groups percentage to an even higher number.

On to the unknown variables, including special teams:

Will Dallas find a legit replacement for Dez as a returner? Dallas averaged 7.1 yards a return last season on punt returns. That is pathetic. In letter grades if would be an F-. This needs to be addressed as special teams play a huge role in the outcome of a game. Imagine the offense getting a minimum of 10 yards closer to the goal line 3 times a game. Over an entire season it begins to add up. I don't want Dez to return punts as it would make him more susceptible to injury.

3 WR sets. This is the great unknown. Our starters are as good a pair as you could ask for. Who will be the third WR? What percentage will he figure into the team totals at the end of the season? Will one player step up and own the position ? Or will it be 3rd wr by comittee ?

Coaching. What percentage of increase will there be? I think Garrett needs a 50% improvement from last season. With the new assistant coaches I believe as group they will be greatly improved and motivated. I am certainly looking forward to the changes in the secondary and o line. Last seasons coaches at those respective positions had long since grown stale. New voice , new fervor , much anticipation.

Obviously this is all speculative on my part and my opinion. I am interested in what the retinue of BTB thinks.I look forward to and would appreciate your opinions on whether you see the marked improvements I am expecting, and/ or what your percentage totals might be . All projection systems are flawed. There are few absolutes in the game of football. It is a game unlike any other. For instance, qb's needing 10 other players working in unison to succeed. No other sport commands the necessary team work as football. I love this game !

I would like to thank OCC for helping me with the tables in this post.

Jerry ain't playin...win now !!

football mensa — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 22:19:26 -0000

Prior to 1993 there was an investment firm that carried the name of its founder. Their commercials were almost recognized by all as the iconic phrase went "when E.F. Hutton talks , people listen". The same can be said for our iconic owner Jerry Jones. Not long ago at the nfl spring meetings Jerry said the "title window is closing". When Jerry speaks two things happen immediately. The national media jockey's wet their pants and the attempt to decode or translate what Jerry said begins.

Never has Jerry been more clear with words and actions coming together in harmony as his actions have a direct correlation with his words. Actions have always spoken louder than words , except with Jerry. Now , even that has changed. With the number of free agent signings it is obvious that Jerry sincerely believes the window is closing. Additionally the trade up for Claiborne only fuels the speculation that Jerry is in win now mode. On top of that his resistance to trading Jenkins (which may still happen) says to me that he wants his secondary to be stacked in case of an injury. He doesn't want an Alan Ball redux. I believe he listened to RR when the dc said he is only looking at db's. Jerry , getting back to his Maverick roots signed the best free agent cb on the market. One that I prefer over Namdi.

Jerry isn't in rebuild mode. An obvious conclusion reached by his trading up in round one. Rebuilding teams like the Rams, who traded down twice in the first round and desperately need players are the kind of teams that are looking long term especially having a young qb. When you draft a player in the top 10 you aren't expecting a decent player or a pretty good player. Top 10 players are expected to be studs. 10 year starters. Pro Bowlers. When you take a cb in the top 10 you are expecting a shut half the field down type of player. A player who is feared. A player who will make an opponent lose sleep at night. This is what Jerry moved up for. He wants a suffocating secondary to enhance the pass rush.

Teams of today aren't as strong as the last Dallas dynasty. There isn't a way to avoid roster churning. The salary cap doesn't allow it. That's why more teams who enter the playoffs via wildcard have had playoff success. Jerry has taken notice. The teams that have won the past five years have had one strong position group and a splash of pretty good to good players at other positions. The best o line group to win in the last five years has belonged to the Saints. The best lb group has belonged to the Steelers. The best wr group has belonged to the Packers. One thing the winners have in common is a good qb. Dallas has a good qb. A qb good enough to win a superbowl with. Dallas also has the best 3-4 olb in the game. Wasting time isn't an option with Jerry anymore.

Jerry realizes you don't need 53 all pro's to win the superbowl. The Giants have a better o line than Dallas but they aren't dominating. The Steelers didn't have a dominating o line in their latest superbowl wins. With the free agent signings Jerry made , I believe he thinks if the o line is 50% better than it was last year it will be enough. I happen to agree. A team doesn't need a perfect d line just one that is opportunistic (see the Saints). However if you don't have a dominating pass rush , the most critical position group on d is the secondary. The nfl has changed. Few if any teams worry about balance. The rules favor the offense . The wr's have been given carte blanche .Coaches attack and why shouldn't they ?

With the contract of Romo about to expire and the amount it would take to resign him. Along with the cap implications that will come with a new contract. (I am not implying Romo is gone when his contract is finished) Jerry is in it to win it this year. There is no waiting bone in his body. It's now. Feb 2013 is Jerry's target. The last time we saw Jerry this anxious was in the mid to late 90's as he was trying to squeeze one more superbowl out Aikman and co. It never materialized. Deep in Jerry's heart he knows his buffoonery compromised what should have been a very rewarding time in Cowboyshistory. Don't try and convince yourself that we have 4-5 years. The two drafts prior to the 2012 draft put a spark in Jerry. He realized that good drafting expedites the journey. . He feels it. He can see it. He wants to win now. Now is the time. Not 2 years or 3 years. Now ! This season. It's exciting. Jerry ain't playin.

Sizzling pissed !

football mensa — Fri, 06 Jul 2012 19:44:35 -0000

As I travel through this finite journey we call life. I take on heavy burden's to keep my life black and white. Life's gray area's lend to much speculation and subjection that is impossible to solve. Sports however is different. To avoid the gray would mean to not participate or be a fan. I choose to not embark down that path because of the thrills and anticipation that come with NFL football.

Like many on this blog I am an avid listener to nfl radio on sirius radio. This morning's show included a debate about Eli and Romo. The debate lasted for more than an hour with fans of both teams calling in as well as fans from other teams. Amani Toomer stated that he would choose Romo over Eli. The other host Ross Tucker said that Eli is better. Another part time host (Dave LaGreca) went through the career of Romo high lighting every gaffe in every big game Romo has played in. By the end of his rant , my eyes were bloodshot red. Steam was filling up my truck so much that I had to put down the windows.

Two games stuck out in my mind. First was the playoff loss the hated Giants. Tucker and LaGreca were talking about how a quarterback has to be able to will their team to a win. The conclusion was Tony hasn't done it. "It" being the it factor. Football like no other sport is the consumate team game. In baseball a dominant pitcher can prevent his opponent from scoring. In basketball , a Jordan or Bird or Majic Johnson can take over a game. They can dominate and will their teams to wins. Football is different. With 12-15 possesions a game in football the opportunities to score are few. Football like no other sport is dependent on all of it's pieces to work in unison to attain the ultimate thrill of winning the game.

Here is why I became sizzling. In the 07 game the host correctly acknowledged both teams had good o lines. One goes on to surmise that Eli was the difference. This is where I call b.s. Romo not once in his career has ever played with a defense like the Giants had/have. Amani stated that "if Romo had got better coaching and not had to deal with Wade , he would have more playoff wins". I couldn't agree more. Jerry ( I will get to him in a bit) never put a team or coach around Romo like Eli has had. Listening to Tucker embellish Eli's ability and belittle Romo and never once did I hear about the dropped passes by Crayton. Crayton dropped two wide open passes and later admitted quitting on his route to the endzone where Romo had , with navy seal accuracy placed the ball where it should have been. Yet David Tyree makes the most improbable catch in nfl history, in the superbowl. Nate Jones and Jacques Reeves give a up a td right before halftime.Yet Romo can't get it done.

The other game LaGreca pointed out that bothered me was the 44-6 game. How can one judge a qb in a game that was over as soon as the team got off the plane ? To blame Romo for not willing his team in a game where his coach was taken to the woodshed shows a serious lack of fundamentally sound appraisal by a supposedly well informed media jockey. That game should have been the end of the Wade era in Dallas. Player for player the Iggles weren't 44-6 better than Dallas.

Now to the gm / owner of the Dallas Cowboys. To rehash my opinion's and feelings about Jerry would make this post an unpleasurable read. I am not going in that direction today. The nfl owners across the board have lined their pockets with cash because of one Jerry Jones. The nfl today at the moment you are reading this post is as big as it is because of the innovative marketing genius of one Jerry Jones. mr. mara ( used small case intentionally) cheating the Cowboys out of 10 mil in cap space is akin to stabbing your brother in the back. Mara and his supporting cronies don't deserve the benefits they recieve from the leadership of one Jerry Jones. Jerry bashing by media nationwide has even made his harshest critic (football mensa) have a special interest in Jerry's good will this season.

Join me this season as we take on critics , backstabbers and bashers as we win the superbowl in Feb. 2013. I know many think my takes are caustic and cause friction with some. Some say I am not a Dallas fan. Some think I am a Giants fan. Both presumptions are inaccurate. I love my Cowboys. This year it's US vs everyone else. At no time in all my years of fandom have I wanted my team, my qb and my owner to win like 2012-2013. I don't want Dallas to just win. I want domiantion. I want to see resolve and the intent to break the will of opponents early and often. I want to see sad faces on other fans and the opponents . Go Cowboys !!

Sincerely , Football Mensa

Grain of Salt !

football mensa — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 16:57:53 -0000

The names are now familiar. The 40 times , the reach , vertical and broad jumps. The results are in. Stars were born. The contorted wishes of this guy falling and that team drafts him and we get this guy and then we can trade down and maybe they trade a second for Felix ( always love the over value of fans) . Or I would never take that guy, he is going to be a bust. The machinations have only just begun.

When you realize the combine is over and your bills are due and life goes on and wondering , what am I going to do now with my scout wannabe life. Allow me to ease your mind and fill the void. We still have pro days. Enough time for potential players to get fat and slower or busted. Enough time for you to view youtube one million times in the next 5 days.

The combine in this case is not a machine for harvesting rice. It's an event. For draftniks it's our time to show Nfl gm's how dumb they are. It's where former college players assemble, Running , jumping, catching, slapping blocking dummies All of this in tight spandex that has to make botox injections palatable..There isn't one fan who hasn't said " I would ___________" fill in the blank. So now is your chance. Do you have the right stuff ? Could you do it better ? Do times matter ? How many times has 40 reps or more on the bench been the watermark for stardom regarding d linemen ? Short shuttle. Three cone drill. Are these drills really indicative of an all pro or a special teams player ? Let's look at rb. The year is 2009. His pro day, this running back ran a 4.69 40. He benched 225lbs 23 times.. His short shuttle times were .03 above normal for his position. All of this without pads or getting pressured from defenders. He is 6'1" and weighs 230lbs. Would you draft him ? The 40 yard dash says he is slow. His short shuttle time says he can't change direction. Could you pull the trigger ? Would you put your job on the line ? He didn't get drafted. Gm's said he wasn't worthy of a draft choice. You'll have an occasional lobotomy pick , I am looking at you Tennessee Titans and Chris Henry. Jets and Gholston.

And now 50% want Poe. 50% want Irvin. The other half wants DeCastro. The remaining 40% want Melvin Ingram. Sitting in front of your tv watching these Titans participate in a job interview. Suddenly every fan in unison has a eureka moment. WOW , did you see Irvin's time ? WOW did you see Poe ? He of the 346lbs body jettisoning himself down the field like a Freightliner. Ingram shows quickness that we haven't seen in a certain lolb in Dallas. DeCastro was being hailed by the nfl tv crew as the greatest thing since money. Irvin runs like a gazelle. He has to be the pick says poster a. Poster b , after seeing Poe no doubt, take him and never look back. Poster c, maybe we can trade down and still get Poe in the first and Irvin in the second and, and ,and so it continues.

Relax folks. The combine is a lot of fun for us fans. I look forward to it every year. I love the discussion and passion it brings. However now is the time for scouts and gm's to see how the combine results correlate with the film. And if it doesn't to try and fill in the blanks. In the mean time we fans can continue our fantasy about being a gm or scout and cuss or discuss players, trades and future cuts and what we would do. Oh and that rb from 09, well he has scored 33 td's in three seasons. If he played in Dallas he would easily be the best rb in Dallas since Emmitt. He can run by you or over you. His name is Arian Foster.

Instincts, mental aptitude, physical ability are all given equal consideration. Of those three how would you prioritize them ? Footwork, explosion off the line. Hand punch. Wasted movement. Sloppy feet . Clean release. Ability to jam and turn and run. How quickly can you get to full speed ? These are just a few of the things on the field to consider. How many kids do you have ? How many times have you been arrested ? Why did you attend Alabama and why did the coach give you a Hummer to drive ? How many girl friends do you have currently ? These are just a few of the things off the field to consider. So as you have your daily epiphany ,remember to enjoy the ride folks and relax. It was one player, no pads vs air. Exercising the grain if salt theory would do one well over the next few weeks.

Poll

One player. One pick Combine drivel notwithstanding.

DeCastro

120 votes

Irvin

9 votes

Ingram

27 votes

Kirkpatrick

29 votes

185 votes | Poll has closed

Winners win

football mensa — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 12:32:32 -0000

and loser's lose.

The culture at the Ranch was supposed to be changing. Winning comes from leadership and this team is seriously void of leadership. Last night's game was an epic fail. National spotlight. Main event of the evening. The new look Cowboy's. The want, to believe in this team was at an all time high.

I know, it was one game. First game of the season. A precedent setting game. New coaching regime. New o line. New defensive scheme. All an epic fail. Rip your heart out loss. A loss like this makes you start breaking down the game looking for positives. Like Sean Lee looked good. Tyron Smith acquitted himself well. It doesnt matter. They lost. They snatched defeat out of the jaws of victory. It's a habbit for Dallas. Losers lose. They find ways to lose. They create new ways to lose. You have heard me say before you have to create your own luck. There is no denying Dallas creates their own luck.

Tony Romo you can no longer be defended. In my last post I said you were better than Sanchez. I included Sanchez's stats. I hate stats and think they are for loser's.Romo you're a loser. Sanchez is a winner. His stats don't matter. He wins at crunch time. Game on the line he makes the plays. You don't. You will always be a great ff qb. Your stats will be in the top 10. Unless you win a superbowl you will go down in history as an epic loser. Winners win , losers lose. Tony you choked again.

Jason Garrett don't think I will absolve you for your responsibility in Sunday nights fiasco. You RHG are anything but. You started the meltdown. Your fail was definitely epic. You set the team up to lose. Ball on the 3 yard line and you call two passing plays. We have a new and improved o line or so you want us to believe and you show no faith in them. Epic fail coach. You melted down. You wanted to show how cute you could be. Trickery and tomfoolery instead of just lining up and cramming it down their throat. Garrett your play calling was suspect under Wade. Nothing has changed. Losers lose. Garrett you proved last night you could beat a team with your play calling and you did. You helped beat the Cowboys.

As Vince Lombardi once said "there is no second place". Dallas fans last night went to bed with a churning gut, wondering what they just saw. it really shouldn't have been a big surprise. Losers lose, remember Saints last year. Remember the Cards last year with Skelton at qb and they couldn't make a stop ? Winners make their own luck. Winners control their own destiny. Winners grab chance by the throat and squeeze it. Dallas loses. Sad. Hurtful. Most of all expected.

We can take solace in the fact that it is football season. We can speculate what would make them better. There will be lots of opinion on who should start and who should sit and what the coaches are doing wrong. It's part of being a fan. We have the draft to look forward to. It's understood from this end there will be scathing quips about the author of this article. There will be the usual "it's only one game" , "give the defense a chance to learn the system" , "all we need is one more draft" et al. As of right now ? Losers lose, winners win , the stage doesn't matter.

7 reasons why Dallas will beat the Jets

football mensa — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 00:48:57 -0000

The facade is over. Preason is complete. Every team, every fan, is full of hope and excitement. After all, regardless of the previous season's record every fan thinks their team is going to be the surprise team. The draft and free agency are complete and you will hear fans spout "wow, I can't believe we got him, he is going to be dominant, all pro, a superstar" and too many other superlatives to list.

With that said I will give you 7 reasons why I think Dallas will beat the Jets. Every fan on this blog is as pumped as the other. All with varying opinions about why or how Dallas will be much improved over the debacle known as the 2010 season

I am just a construction guy who isn't proficient with charts and graphs and all of the other bells and whistles that are found on these computers. So I'm gonna just let my words do the 'splainin'. I will list them in inverse order so as to build to a crescendo.

7. Roy Williams...now that you have uttered the acronym wtf and finished giving me the double rod salute listen up. We don't have Roy to kill our drives any more. There won't be the continuous untimely drops. Romo will know where his wr's are. He will trust the hands of his wr's. Confidence is a large part of success.

6. The NEW AND IMPROVED offensive line. You don't always have to drive your man backwards or pancake the defender. Actually engaging the defender will be a huge plus for this team. Remember Davis whiffing game after game ? Remember Felix getting tackled the instant he received the ball from Tony in the Titan game ? Nope, we won't be perfect. Yes, we will allow some sacks but this O-line will be exponentially better than last year.

5. The defense. Everyone knows the D line has been a weak link. The Jets love to run the ball. You counter that with run blitzes. Confusion from disguising run blitzes is a weapon that wasn't shown much in preseason. This should be a stat padding game for the safties. Alan Ball, who was short on safety fundamentals, no longer mans the position. This in itself will be an upgrade.

4. Wade Phillips. Surely I don't need to expound on this.

3. Mark Sanchez. Sanchez had a 54.8% completion percentage. He averaged 6.4 yards per attempt. He had a QB rating of 75.3. Comparatively speaking Chad Henne who threw 30 int's last season had a rating of 75.4. He averaged 206 yards per game. Does this man scare you ?

2. Jason Garrett. This game will be Jasonpalooza. Do you not think Jason is excited to match wits with the legend-in-his-own-mind Rex Ryan? Name the last coach that churned the roster like JG. We know the answer. The man has been stupendous in his abbreviated time as the Dallas Cowboys head coach.

1. Last but certainly not least.............WE ARE THE DALLAS COWBOYS !!

Dallas 27

Jets 13

2012 Draft....nt's

football mensa — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 21:33:35 -0000

I have made mention that I think Dallas need s a pocket crushing nt. I love Rat and appreciate what he has done in his career but at 285 he won't hold up at nt. RR run's a truer 3-4 than Wade meaning 2 gap responsibility. Josh Brent has been a little dissapointing this training camp. I expected more from him and I just haven't seen the explosion needed to move the pocket backwards.

If you were to offer me the chance to sign any dt/nt from any team or Namdi in free agency I would have chosen Paul Soliai the 355lb nt from the Miami Dolphins. Next year's draft is chock full of cb's and to a lesser extent safties. This is great news for Dallas because even casual fans reconize the need for db's.

That said let me take you in another direction that I think could make this d what we all envision. Nt. A huge athletic nt. I will give you some names to follow this year. Some will be available for the 2012 draft and some will stay in school.

rSr = red shirt senior

rJr = red shirt jr

rSo = red shirt sophmore

Asa Chapman Liberty College rSr 6'4" 368lbs The boy is huge and athletic.

http://www2.godanriver.com/sports/2010/sep/16/flames-chapman-mountain-man-heart-defensive-line-ar-508151/

Dontari Poe Memphis rJr 6'5" 350lbs

Jesse Williams Alabama Jr 6'4" 326 not as large as the previous two but is an outstanding player.

Kwame Geathers Georgia rSo 6'5" 346lbs Kwame has so much talent , the question is can he put it all together

Marcus Felker Northern Colorado 6'1" 370lbs that is not a misprint. Why he is so intriguing is his wrestling background.

Jonathan Jenkins Georgia jr 6'4" 340lbs he is actually the better dt of the two Georgia dt's.

Cory Grissom South Fla. rJr 6'2" 335 lbs

T.j. Barnes Ga Tech rJr 6'6" 335lbs TJ has a ways to go as far as refining his game. He is someone who I will keep a close eye on.

Deangelo McCray Memphis 6'3" 335lbs He was very highly recruited coming out of high school however he wasn't able to make the grades as he chose the fighting Illini.

Alameda Ta'amu Washington sr 6'3" 335lbs. Alameda weigh 380lbs when he entered college. He is down to 335 and finally began to show his potential late in the season. He needs to learn to keep his pads down but if you pick one nt to follow this year I would suggest Alameda. Don't cheat yourself though. If you get a chance to see a Memphis game or Bama or a Georgia game please watch. You just might find another unknown player.

As you see I posted some small school guys. This was intentional. The Cowboys are in such dire need of db help I think this is where they will go in the first round. Some of these nt's are mid to late round prospects. Which is fine by me because I am ok with getting such a player after the first round .Alalmeda is a first round prospect.

The reason I am pining for disruptive nt is because he is the closest defender to the ball. Jamal Williams at 6'3" 348lbs was the best nt I have ever seen . When you have such a large disruptive player in the middle it certainly makes the linebackers job much easier be it filling the hole on a running play or blitzing. Jesse Williams could also play strong side end. He is that talented.

What you say ?

rSr = red shirt senior

rJr = red shirt jr

rSo = red shirt sophmore

Asa Chapman Liberty College rSr 6'4" 368lbs The boy is huge and athletic.

http://www2.godanriver.com/sports/2010/sep/16/flames-chapman-mountain-man-heart-defensive-line-ar-508151/

Dontari Poe Memphis rJr 6'5" 350lbs

Jesse Williams Alabama Jr 6'4" 326 not as large as the previous two but is an outstanding player.

Kwame Geathers Georgia rSo 6'5" 346lbs Kwame has so much talent , the question is can he put it all together

Marcus Felker Northern Colorado 6'1" 370lbs that is not a misprint. Why he is so intriguing is his wrestling background.

Jonathan Jenkins Georgia jr 6'4" 340lbs he is actually the better dt of the two Georgia dt's.

Cory Grissom South Fla. rJr 6'2" 335 lbs

T.j. Barnes Ga Tech rJr 6'6" 335lbs TJ has a ways to go as far as refining his game. He is someone who I will keep a close eye on.

Deangelo McCray Memphis 6'3" 335lbs He was very highly recruited coming out of high school however he wasn't able to make the grades as he chose the fighting Illini.

What you say ?

Why I hate Jerry Jones

football mensa — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 22:44:58 -0000

I have been a fan since 1970. I have seen all the superbowls. I cried when they lost and was ebullient when they won. The players were more heroic than Superman and Batman. Bob Lilly ,Staubach , Landry were respected men. Great competitors. The names that live in Cowboy folklore is endless. The vision of Tex Schram. How Dallas became America's team and how they achieved their status. Other fans hated Dallas but respected the class of "The Hat".

When the team struggled in the mid 70's and were in need of a talent infusion the Cowboys drafted the dirty dozen. High motor guys. Impact players. In 76 they added my favorite Cowboy of all time, Tony Dorsett. Building through the draft and finding free agent gems along the way. There was a purposeful plan by the men in charge. Even though they didn't win consecutive superbowls you knew they would have a chance. You knew they would be in the playoffs.You knew this team had a chance with 1 minute remaining and down by 6. As a fan you almost wanted it to be that way. How painful for the other team and their fans to lose to America's team on a last second fg or td ?

By the late 80's Tex and Landry's time had passed. It was time for a new regime. The game evolves, the rules change and what had worked in Dallas before had ceased. Dallas is sold to an energetic oilman from Arkansas. This owner was passionate. He wanted to win. He hired a new young hot shot coach. He named himself as gm. The first season winning 1 game was hard to take as a fan but you knew things would be different. You saw the roster churn almost every week. You saw a different persona on the sideline , an intense man who demanded 100% and would lead. That man won two consecutive superbowls. His players loved him. Then he and the gm have a public spat. The spilt was inevitable.

Now the gm is in full control. The gm hires a new coach. The first coach of the Dallas Cowboys to taint the position. A college rah rah sort. Then Chan Gailey , then Dave Campo. Did I just type that ? The Boys by this time were in a full fledge free fall. He tried to rite the ship by bringing in Parcells but the collateral damage was done. Then Wade.The first number 1 draft pick by the gm is Shante Carver. Soon to follow is Kavika Pittman. and it got progressively worse from there. He drafted a baseball playing pothead to play qb. Then a string of baseball qb's. He had become a vacuous cartoon of a gm. There was never a plan. There was never an intent with longevity in mind. All of his moves are herky jerky. He couldn't build through the draft. He signed free agents. Never creating the right team chemistry. He is still smug. He still tries to speak as if he is qualified as a gm. Dallas finally has a good qb and 4 years were wasted under Wade.

No one knows how this team is gonna do this year. No one. To watch this team become a league wide joke because of the status that is the Dallas Cowboys is detestable. After one playoff win in fifteen years and to still be in this position is laughable. It's all on the gm. I love my Cowboys, and to all the players, go kick some a$$ in spite of the gm.