I've been looking at potential RBs in the second round, and I took a notice at Ryan Mathews out of Fresno State. 

Mathews is 5'11", 220 lbs and runs a 4.4 40 time. As I watched highlights of him, I analyzed some great things about him:

1) He has above average speed. He can break it from the outside, inside, and his speed works great with his weight and toughness.

2) His toughness. Each time I saw him about to get tackled, he lowers his shoulder, and either breaks free or gets 2-5 more yards. Also, he keeps his feet moving. I saw him bounce off of people, get hit to the side, etc, and he maintains balance and keeps his feet moving.

3) Balance. He has the necessary balance that running backs like frank gore and shonn greene has(yes, shonn greene has great balance).As I said above, he bounces off of people, and sometimes uses a second tackler to eliminate the first tackler, and break free(sometimes). If he gets knocked back, he keeps his balance, and I like that(unless of course that the hit overpowers him).

4) Vision. As I stated, he can run in and outside of the line. When he sees a hole, he bursts through. If not, he goes to the outside. Even if the hole is sort of small, he cradles the ball and bursts forward. When he goes to the outside, he knows he has a better chance(in other words when he feels that the line is too clogged, he uses the assumption that the outside is where less defenders are, and goes in the logical direction). 

5) Power. This guy is mostly a power back, especially a guy his size(under 6 feet with 220 lbs.) and speed. At least, when I watch him it always seems that at least 1-3 guys try to tackle him(especially from the side) he basically shrugs them off. Pushing them aside with the stiff arm, or keeping the legs moving and wrestle the guy off. And when he bursts through the line, and goes through the tackles, defenders try to get a hold of him. Key word is try though.

6) Quickness. Although the guy has good power, his quickness surprised me. Out in the open, he's awesome. He has great quickness to make a great juke, and he has the vision to know which direction he's going to. He makes people miss tackles. 

Here's his 2009 stats against opponents:

UC Davis(W: 51-0): Att-11, Yards- 106, Avg- 9.6, Long- 60, TD- 1.

@ Wisconson(L: 34-31): Att- 19, Yards- 107, Avg.- 5.6, Long- 55, TD- 0, Rec- 2, Rec yds- 9

Boise State(L: 51-34): Att- 19, Yards- 234, Avg.- 12.3, Long- 69, TD- 3

@ Cincinatti(L: 28-20): Att- 38, Yards- 145, Avg.- 3.8, Long 11, TD- 1, Rec- 2, Rec Yds- 32

@ Hawaii(W: 42-17): Att- 24, Yards- 149, Avg.- 6.2, Long- 19, TD- 0

San Jose State(W: 41-21): Att- 20, Yards- 233, Avg.- 11.7, Long- 59, TD- 1

@ New Mexico State(W: 34-3): Att- 25, Yards- 157, Avg.- 6.3, Long- 68, TD- 2, Rec- 1, Rec Yrds- 27

Utah State(W: 31-27): Att- 23, Yards- 185, Avg.- 8, Long- 46, TD- 2, Rec- 2, Rec Yds- 26

@ Idaho(W: 31-21): Att- 26, Yards- 143, Avg. 5.5, Long- 77, TD- 3, Rec- 3, Rec Yds- 18

@ Nevada(L: 52-14): Att- 8, Yards- 32, Avg- 4, Long- 20, TD- 0, Rec- 1, Rec Yrds- 10

Louisiana Tech(W: 30- 28): did not play.

@ Illinios(W: 53-52): Att- 32, Yards- 173, Avg- 5.4, Long- 42, TD- 3

No fumbles either.

I know that it's basically a wasted post just talking about one guy. So I might as well throw in a poll of all RBs in the 2nd round. But this guy caught my eye. Gerhart seems great too. Also, I went onto that draft site, and couldn't find info on Mathews, so I'll post the link to his 2009 highlights video here: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlZOFsVkjAo

He reminds me of a slightly more of a frank gore, with a dash of LaDanian Tomlinson.

I had a poll on here as well on which RB in the second would be the best to pick. And just to make this post slightly relevant, if we trade McFadden away for another pick(maybe late second), then we should pick him up to be a tandem with Bush. That would be awesome. However, I know LB comes into play with our second round pick, so getting a LB is a must. If dwyer is at san diego's pick, they would definitely pick him up, which leaves mathews more or less available in the early second. Unless there are no MLBs that we can get from a late second rounder, then It can be slightly worth considering(just because bush would get tired from carrying the rock 24 times a game. imo).

I basically brought this post up again just because we were talking about who would be busts and who will not.

I haven't done a post in a VERY long time. I mostly just like to listen to you guys and comment. We have enough smart people here. 

Anyways, I'd like to give my thoughts on what happened on the offseason. Keep in mind, I have sort of a bad memory, and I may forget some guys.

Offseason: 

FA signings- Wilfork, Bodden, Banta-Cain, Stephen Neal, Marques Murrell, Faulk

Verdict: Some people complain that we don't get the BIG signings. Some people are smarter than those people(not exactly a knock on them, but you'll see why I said this).

The biggest FA out there was Wilfork. Almost every team needs a Nose Tackle, and we signed him right back to a long deal. I give that signing an A+.

Bodden- One of the best, perhaps the best, free agent CB. And we signed him back. Without him, our CB corps looks to be very weak again(assuming Butler isn't ready to start). I give this signing, an A(only because he isn't the BEST CB, but he's the best the FA had, and we signed).

Banta-Cain- Why not? He played very well for us last year, and was basically the only pass rusher we had. Of course there were better LBs in free agency, but they don't come cheap. So signing a guy who is a good pass rusher(more situational rusher as well), know the system, and comes cheap. I give this signing an B+.

Stephen Neal- One of the best OL in free agency. I don't know any better Guard in FA than Neal is. He knows our system, has chemistry with the other OL on our team, and is a leader and veteran. And he still plays good for us. Signing him was a good move for us. I give this signing a B+(I was considering a B, but then I thought if any of our younger guys can replace him or not on our line).

Marques Murrell- I don't know much about him except that he is young, and has been on the jets a couple of years. He may be an above average special teamers. Also, apparently he was projected to be very, very good. So maybe he'll be a contributer with us. maybe the next McGinist? I give this signing a B, simply because he is young, and he has above average potential.

Faulk- Need I say why this signing was great? Besides the fact that he IS OLD, I give this signing an A.

Overall, I'd say that we have been very successful in free agency. We signed the players we needed to, and they were very important to our teams success.

Draft: What I think should happen.

What we need- DE, OLB, TE, HB, CB, OL

1st Round- DE Jared Odrick. He reminds me of Seymour, but other than that, here's why I think we should be picked up. For one thing I think we should trade down, and get an extra pick. And with the pick in the 1st round from the other team, we should get him. He has the size, strength, and height to play end, and I even heard that he played a bit of OLB. Green was  good starter, but not good enough. he was a great backup, but he was not exactly starter calibur. We are very successful at getting great DEs in the 1st. Odrick can help us with pass rush, and stopping the run. Besides, there are OLBs we can get in the second.

(1) 2nd Round- OLB Daryl Washington- He seems like an OLB that can be a great pass rusher, and he has the strength to compete with the tackles, and has the fluid movement to cover TEs and maybe WRs. He needs to work on his tackling a bit, and improve his awareness a bit more as well.

(2) 2nd round- CB Devin McCourty- I think that just in case Wheatley or Whilhite don't work out, we can have one CB in the draft with at least a year under his belt(after this year), and with great potential. He has great vision, strong, has the speed and fluid movement to stay with the receiver and knows how to play zone as well. 

(3) 2nd Round- RB Montario Hardesty- he's tall, strong, and has above average vision. We need another young RB, and he can be a very good one. He has the speed to beat the LBs, he has great balance and can break tackles really good too, and he has nasty spin moves. This guy will be a diamond in the rough.

3rd Round(if the team gives us a 3rd round pick)- WR Andre Roberts- He has great speed, vision, has excellent hands, and he is a special teams god. Watching highlights of him, he looks like a very underrated WR. He can run the routes needed as well Because I haven't heard any talks about him, here's his profile: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1662379?tag=pageRow;pageContainer

And look at highlights on youtube if you can.

4th Round- OT Ed Wang- he is quick for a guy his size at 6' 5", and is a very smart fella. He plays TE as well, and he has above average strength to handle the speed rushers. If has anything to improve on, it's being able to not let guys with excellent spin moves to the inside. Other than that, I think he is solid.

5th Round- TE Andrew Quarless- This guy has belichikian TE written all over him. He has speed, can catch, and he can block very well(needs a BIT of improvement). Here's his profile: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1117622?tag=pageRow;pageContainer

Try to watch some highlights of him, I think he is worth the investment.

6th Round- OG Chris DeGeare- Neal is getting old, and this guy has the potential. I'll try to find things on him.

7th Round- OLB Larry Hart- Just another OLB to get. Just to have depth, and maybe have a gem. I'll look him up more.

So far, I'll look up the 6th and 7th rounders tomorrow. 

So the way I see it, We should have plenty of guys coming in with full of potential. Hardesty and Maroney should be a good tandem, our CBs have more depth and gained the extra skill set with McCourty, we have another TE from the draft who looks to be good, and we may get someone else in the offseason as well, I like the OLBs, and I feel that Washington will be a good surprise for us, Odrick will be a great pick as both he and washington can pass rush very well, we got a tackle and a guard(maybe we should get at least 2 OTs in the draft, or get one in FA), which should be added depth to an already above average depth at our OL, and Andre Roberts may be a bug sleeper in the draft for us.

Note that this is just my opinion on the prospects(with some help from nfldraftscout) and what they'll be like on our team.

The way I see it, since we got our important guys in FA, and no matter who we draft(as long as it addresses our needs), I can see no reason that we can still be top in the AFC, and be a top superbowl contender. 

I never exactly attempted this, but I'll give it a shot. (I'm not very knowledgeable in every team, so If I make a wrong judgment on a team regarding it's offense or defense, sorry)
RD 1
1) Rams: Sam Bradford- Why? Because They need a leader on the Offense. They need someone who can give the ball to Avery and pick out blitzes. On defense, I think they can survive. If anything, I think they need a secondary, but as much as Suh and McCoy are projected to be, they can still have the ever improving Carricker at DT. Besides, there are plenty of DTs in the draft, and not many QBs, so taking a QB will not eliminate a DT with great potential(ie. Cam Thomas and Linval Joseph)

2) Lions: Suh or McCoy(one of them will be a bust, and I'm not sure which one fits their system more)- They have the weapons on offense, they need to get better in defense. Either one of these guys will be great picks for them, as they are in need of a DL. The LBs are not bad, and their secondary also needs to be desired. But I always think a defense needs to start with their front seven, then work some key secondary players into their squad. Suh or McCoy will be an anchor for the lions defense, and can help stop the run and help the DL rush the passer more efficiently.

3) Tampa Bay: Suh or McCoy- Tampa Bay is 32nd in rush defense, and 10th in passing defense. Which leads me to believe that they need to stop the run more. As I said above, Suh will be an asset for tampa's defense. They need someone in the middle who can help clog the holes, and prevent teams from running the ball. Suh is big and strong, and he can make a big improvement on the DL.

4) Redskins: Jimmy Clausen or Okung- Redskins looked pretty well on defense. Offense should be a focus of their draft. But they need a WR, QB, and a RB. RBs can be taken in the second, and WRs also have potential in the second. But not QBs. Which is why I have Clausen. Cambell is pretty good, but not a franchise QB, and Clausen can help the franchise. At this moment, they need a QB first, and get the rest later, and cheaper. Okung can provide with their scrambling QB with more time, and help the offense running game and passing game. I might pick Okung, because he is great, but it's up to you guys(undecided).

5) Chiefs: Eric Berry or Okung- Why? Because he looks great, and can make the chiefs secondary lok even better. they already have Brandon Flowers, but lack a good starting safety. Berry will add leadership, and physical presence on the chiefs defensive side. I believe their running game should be all set with Jones(although I think he is slightly overrated) and charles, cassel will only improve(i know he will), and they can find a WR in the second. If Berry is taken, maybe dez bryant or a DL will be taken instead. Knowing Pioli, he would take either an OL or DL instead. Which means *Okung* is the likely pick. Again, your choice for this one.

6) Seattle: Colt McCoy or Derrick Morgan- Either is fine to me. McCoy is said to be overrated, but seattle needs a QB. Morgan can provide the defense with a reliable pass rush, and help stop the run. Both are a need(good thing they have 2 picks in the 1st). McCoy seems a bit early here as well, and derrick morgan will be worth the pick here, and provide help on their defense. And if McCoy falls to their second pick, it will be between Spiller and McCoy. Which I would take Spiller(although I think he is, too, overrated) and that would leave seattle QB-less. It's all up to you guys.

7) Browns: Dez Bryant or Colt McCoy or Okung: A good-great WR, or an average QB on a QB-less team? Well I think Quinn can start, and I'm hearing trade rumors involving Anderson or Quinn with Seattle. However, I really have to go with McCoy. They NEED a QB. It's like their weakest position. All you need is a QB to perform average-above average, and your WRs won't matter much(as long as the QB does good, he can make receiver look good). McCoy can provide what Cleveland needs, while Bryant MAY provide what cleveland needs. Your choice guys, but Il have to choose *McCoy* personally. If Okung is available though, he should not be passed up.

8) Raiders: Okung or Anthony Davis- Obviously, if Okung is off the board, Davis is the logical pick. Knowing Al Davis, it might not be the case, but if they want to draft someone who can help them A LOT better, they should pick Anthony Davis.

9) Bills: No way Okung gets past this point so, I have to go with Trent Williams. I saw how loosing Jason Peters affected their passing and running game. I project either him or Bulaga, so either one should be fine. However, I'm hearing Bulaga is not up to his draft stock, so Williams is my choice here. He can help anchor the left or right side, and prevent their QB from getting pass rushed against them less frequently.

10) Jaguars: Dez Bryant- No doubt they will pick Bryant. WR has been their need this year, and with up coming Mike Sims Walker, they need someone next to him to help produce with Garrard at QB. Bryant should more than well provide them the talent.

11) Broncos: Either Dan Williams or Bulaga- Williams will give their defense a lot better at stopping the run, and make it easier on their secondary. He is strong, and has great vision. Bulaga can help Orton out, with what lack of WRs(except the awesome Eddie Royal). he can be solid at Guard, and help Moreno produce an even better season. I personally pick Williams, because defense wins championships, and he can improve their defense more grearly than Bulaga can improve the offense(imo). But it's your choice.

12) Miami: Jason Pierre Paul- With Williams gone, they need to find someone else to help bolster their DL. Pierre Paul should provide them with good pass rush now that the noisy joey porter(couldn't resist) is gone. He provides what help the dolphins need on defense. Brian Price can be a option if they trade down.

13) 49ers: Bulaga- Why? Because they need OL help. Bulaga can provide better rushing support, as well as an easier time on Alex Smith(who I think can be good). 

14) Seattle: Spiller- They need a running game, or a passing game. They have TJ, who is a great receiver, but they don't have a good RB at the moment. They also don't have a QB, so if you guys want to pick McCoy here, that's fine. I'd rather pick spiller because he is great in special teams, and can be a playmaker on the seahawks. 

15) Giants: Brian Price- The need a DT. They have Osi and Tuck, but they don't exactly have a DT(I think Mathias can be used elsewhere on the defense, or be next to Price). Price has the explosion off the line, and the strength to pass rush and the vision to locate the ball. The DL was the strong point of this defense, and it needs to be strong again.

16) Titans: Brandon Graham- Although I'd love to have him on the pats. Anyways, they need someone to rush the passer. At the moment, their LB(what's his name) is gone, and they need someone to replace him. he can play 4-3 end, and 3-4 OLB. He can provide extreme amounts of pass rush, and he can stop the run good as well. He should be able to improve the Titans defense overall.

17) 49ers: Taylor Mays- They could use some safety help, and Mays may be the next Rodney Harrison(judging by his hits and his fire). Mays can play strong safety next to Goldson, and you now have a strong hitting safety, and a pass defending safety. Mays can help improve the defense not only by his fire, but by his ability to sniff out the run. 

18) Steelers: Mike Iupati- They need help on the OL, no question about it. Lupati is versatile, and he is very good. McClain will be interesting as well, seeing how Farrior is not getting any younger. Either one, you guys can choose.

19) Falcons: Joe Haden: I kinda forgot about him, but here he is dropping to #19. Falcons have been needing a secondary, and Haden can provide it. Great in man-man, and above average in zone. Haden will prove to be an asset on the falcons D.

20) Texans: Ryan Mathews- I don't see Slaton there on the depth chart. :(  So it has to be Mathews. Their defense is already pretty good, all they need really is a corner(and I'm not exactly a fan of Earl Thomas), so I have to take Ryan Mathews for the sake of their running game. So maybe Kyle Wilson would be an option here.

21) Bengals: Golden tate- Their defense is all set, their running game seems to be turned on. So all that's left is a better passing game. I say Golden Tate, next to Chad(Johnson?). That should make it better in my good ole' opinion. He's fast, great awareness, quickness, and hands. I project him(as a pro potential) as the next reggie wayne.

22) Patriots: Jared Odrick- Why? Because Belichek says so. Also because he has a great history of picking great DL. Odrick is pretty fast for a guy his size, and looks to be the next seymour. He can also play DT, and I think has even played OLB before. He should be great opposite of Warren, with Wilfork back in the middle. Ricky Sapp is another option, but I think Odrick is the safer pick.

23) Green Bay: Jonathon Dwyer- They need a Rb who can produce better than Ryan Grant(who I think is already pretty good). Dwyer is fast, and very tough. He can hit the holes hard, and he can maneuver around pretty well for a guy his size.

24) Eagles: either Carlos Dunlap or Everson Griffen- The need a DE who can be a good at pass rushing. Well... they need a DE period. They both fit the 4-3, and they can provide what the eagles need, so either pick is fine.

25) Ravens: Sean Witherspoon or Brandon Spikes- Both can be Middle LBs in a 3-4, and both seem like they can be great in them. It's your choice Baltimore fans. If CB is your priority, I say pick Earl Thomas(if anyone else, just say so). He can be great in their system, and he is also a good tackler. But I think they need a MLB, simply because Ray Lewis might retire in a couple years, and he needs to groom someone like Weatherspoon or spikes, so they can be dominant in the future. If McClain falls to here, grab him(because I don't think the teams after the steelers really need him). 

26) Cardinals: Kyle Wilson- They need secondart help, and Wilson can be great opposite of Rodgers Cromartie. He has great awareness, and he can tackle and make plays, and he's tough. He's the best CB on the board at the moment, so I say take him. 

27) Cowboys: Maybe Jon Asomoah or Jerry Hughes or Earl Thomas- I personally say earl thomas, so they can have better pass defense. The safeties are not VERY exciting at the moment, and Thomas would be a better addition for their secondary.

28) Chargers: Jahvid Best- He's the best available. They need a RB. Best is climbing up the charts, and he has breakout potential. He's also like a kevin faulk. But besides that, he is tough, very fast, very quick, and he can maneuver around tackles very well. Sorry Charger fans. I know you guys wanted Mathews or dwyer instead. He, if the texans do pick a Corner, you guys should be able to get one of those guys.

29) Jets: Best available WR, which may be Damien Williams.- I could be unfair and say Damaryius Thomas(who in my opinion, if you can't run good nfl routes, you won't be successful), but I'm a fair person, who thinks everyone should get the best available person, so imo, the jets should pick up Williams. Good at route running, average-above average hands, pretty good speed and a decent blocker, and very good at catching on the run.

30) Vikings: Devin McCourty- Because I think they need help in their secondary, I think McCourty is up to the task. He has great movement, strong which means he can press a guy, pretty good speed and man coverage skills, as well as average-above average zone coverage skills. I think he'd make a great viking.

31) Colts: Maurkice Pouncy- He seems to have the build to move to guard along side Saturday(he has played it before as well), and he can be their Center of the future. He is very smart, and very skilled. He is great at pass, and run blocking. And he's even better in the shotgun(good news to colts fans). The guy would be great there.

32) Saints: Sergio Kindle or Ricky Sapp or Sean Witherspoon- They need someone who can help with defending the run, and defending the pass. Either one of these guys would be great in the saints defense. the Saints do need help on defense, and maybe another LB may just do the job. Sean Witherspoon is also an option here, and he can provide everything of what I've just stated as well. The all can pass rush, and have enough vision to stop the run. But it's al up to you guys.

This has taken me 2 and a half hours to make. I tried to do as much research as I can on your teams, and the players I chose. I may try and do a second round mock, but I feel that I kinda missed people quite a few times, and the fact that it took a chunk of my day out. Like I said, this is all just me. i expect to hear criticisms of my mock, but I hope I've done all right.

Good luck on draft day fellas!

We all know that when the offseason comes around, there'll be nothing but Favre Favre Favre. I'm going to tear my ears out when the time comes. I even despise myself at the moment for even mentioning what his future will be. But, Brett will forever be stubborn. 

He went from the jets, to the vikings. Where will he go next? Will he retire? Will he stay retired? May the people of the Pulpit discuss!

There's going to be plenty of talk this off-season. There's going to be plenty of re-signings, free-agent talk, trade talk, and, of course, draft talk. Now I know this is still early, but this is my most favorite time of the year, and i like to start early.

I'm not too knowledgeable to who are free agents this year(besides wilfork), but I like to introduce you guys to a site that I use to analyze different prospects in the draft. This site I use is so knowledgeable and it's very useful to figure out players. 

Here's the site, and get crazy(if you feel like talking draft).

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft

ps: I don't know if you guys use this site already, but whatever.

As all of you know, i'm a big fan of maroney. But when it comes to figuring out "who's the best," I need to give a valid analyzation. I'l do the best I can, so here it is(I'm not much of a stat guy, so I don't know if this post will still be good without it):

Morris: Unfortunately, we haven't seen too much of Morris at running back. Lately(i don't know if he's still injured) he's been switching between full back and halfback, and has done well for us when needed. He seems to have quick decision making, the right speed and strength to get through the holes, and has pretty decent hands. his blocking is pretty good as well. He's consistent when healthy, and(just my opinion) i'd give his season a B.

Taylor: when healthy, he has been consistent. he has more speed than morris, and seems to be quicker. When he was healthy, he was switching between morris and maroney, and has done well in the 3 RB rotation. He seems to find the holes as well, and can get the quick 2-3 yards before getting tackled. But I don't think he's that good at running in goal line situations. His blocking is okay, but not as good as morris. He is an above average mentor for the other guys as well(especially maroney). Wish he was healthy so I can watch him play more, but I'd give his season a B-, for the times he was healthy this year.

Maroney: At the beginning of the year, we saw maroney dance a bit, and having trouble reading the holes. He was indecisive, and was liable to get 2 yards at the most on most carries. As the season progressed, we've seen some sparks from the Tennessee game, where he's shown less dancing, and more north/south running that morris had. His consistency to be more reliable i believe started on the first miami game, and his vision seemed to get better, and better. His dancing is 88% non-existent now, and he's showing the toughness and strength we've been hoping to see. He's cutting well, and is a great catcher out of the backfield, especially on screen plays. His blocking could use a bit more work, as well as his vision on the blocking. He's been very consistent of late, but I'm not yet sold on calling him the #1 draft pick we hoped to have(don't know why, but I expect a bit more from him). For now, i'd give him a B+.

Faulk: This guy is the f**kng man! There's a reason why he's "Mr. Dependable." He can run, catch, and block well for a guy his age, and has been dependable when we counted on him. He's a great mentor, and has great character. He's been very important to us the entire season, and he's like the welker of our backfield. There's nothing I can complain about this guy, but i'll give him an A, simply because I think A+ is still too high for him.

Green-Elis: There's not much for me to write about this guy. He played a few snaps here and there, and I also like him. He reminds me of a smaller, and a bit stronger maroney(almost as the pro potential as a frank gore, although slower(key word *pro*)). The problems I seen of him lately have been the same for maroney early in his career. He needs to work on his vision to read blocks, and needs to block better. It's too unfair for me to give him a grade, so I won't.

I'd like to give an assessment of keys to winning the game, from a perspective of a pats fan. 

Keys to winning the game:

Defensively:

1) Keep the running game from the jets in check. They have 2 very good RB's, and the jets like to run the ball(#2 in Rushing yards). Keep that in check, and not giving up big running plays will force sanchez to throw, and eventually make a mistake.

2) Capitalize on the turnovers. I don't want to see our defense face their offense over and over again, and making our defense tired and the jets and their running game will eventually be too much for them.

3) STOP THEM ON 3RD DOWNS! With the type of running backs they have, you need to prevent them from converting as much as possible Although they are 32% on 3rd downs, sanchez never really helped them in that category. like i said in #1, keep the running game in check, force sanchez to throw, instead of having the jets run for the 1st.

Offensively:

1) take advantage of the middle with the run. Without Jenkins, i fear that the jets may have lost the best cog in their defense. Make them pay for it! But if it doesn't work, running and play-action would work well. The raiders need to be really creative with their plays because how rex ryan knows how to get a good defensive scheme going, and might figure out what the raiders might do next.

2) They need to watch blitzes on almost every play. therefore the raiders need to use screen and quick passes to take turn their blitzing into an advantage. A draw play might also come in handy!

3) They have an OUTSTANDING corner in Darrel Revis. Respect the guy, and hope russel avoids passing in his direction at all times, because 70-80% of the time it will either be a pass breakup or int. 

4) MIX IT UP! don't rely on just the run or just the pass! Make the defense guess, and you will win.

I hope these were not bad keys to the game. I'd hate to share info. you already know, but thought it might be worthy to discuss about. Any ways, from a pats point of view, this game will be very difficult, and Ryan will likely yell at his player's performance last week against the bills. I doubt you'll see 5 ints from sanchez, or anything you saw against the bills, so lets hope for a great game next sunday!

GO RAIDERS!!!!

well, i'm back! i've been mostly busy filming for my high school football team, and mostly school work, but i'm done for now.

Now this post is about my assessment of our offense, mostly on tom brady, but an overall assessment regardless.

Our offense, admittedly is not performing up to some fans standards, which i think are kinda high considering what happened. But i didn't expect more than an around an average offense, especially considering the factor of tom brady.

Now, Tom Brady, looking at some video of his this season, obviously has some accuracy issues. Now, i tried to analyze what makes a throw accurate, and imo  the biggest factor of any accurate throw, is the legs. the back leg does the most work, but they both are very important for the QB.  I'm sure many of you know this already. Now, without playing doctor, i don't expect brady to be 07 brady by next week. in fact, i don't expect him to be that good until wk 12-14. the timing still needs to be worked on, and so is the chemistry, but i'm not too worried about brady, until someone actually hits his knee.

with that being said, let's look at his weapons.

1) Randy Moss: What could you want more in a receiver than moss's ability to get pass defenders and make awesome catches? Although we haven't seen him get many TD's or catches, he's the same old moss like he was in 07. except for the fact that, if brady was healthier, he would be A LOT more dangerous just because i see him going more over the middle than he did in 07. them soccer feet must be paying off. He can also block! :)

2) Wes Welker: I don't think he needs an explanation of how Awesome he is.

3) Joey Galloway: He's the main reason why I wanted to talk about brady's weapons. while i admit that he's been inconsistent and not much of a target, i just keep thinking "If he catches a ball, how many YAC could he get?" imo, YAC is the reason he's on the #2 or 3 spot next to moss or in the slot.I think he was #1 in YAC last year, but i'm probably wrong. But IF he catches the ball, he can quickly turn into The Flash. But that's if he catches the ball.

4) Julian Edelman: I think this guy should be in the slot instead of galloway, seriously. This guy is SOOOOO similar to welker in so many ways, even the announcers one time mistaken edelman for welker one game. How the hell did we find this guy? He's more consistent than galloway, and can get open easier. 

5) Sam Aiken: I like how Sam is playing right now, even if you don't hear him too much in the game. he skills reminds me of how gaffney and his skills were in 07. Great special teamer too. he's also consistent besides that one play in the falcons game. I ike to see more from him, and see some game changing plays when needed.

I like how our RB's are, even when people don't like this guy, or that guy, and "that guy should start instead of this guy." because no matter who's in, they've been a consistent group whether you see it or not. hey get the yards when needed, and they are doing their job as a whole. surprisingly, imo, i found that our running attack has been more consistent than our passing attack so far. i say this just because i haven't seen too much on our passing plays besides brady to welker. but when we go to the running attack, it seems to work better!

Well, looking at brady's weapons, there's nothing wrong with them, besides maybe galloway. It's all brady and when that accuracy and chemistry comes back. I have no worries about the offense as a whole, including the running game, is still a work in progress despite, there's no question about it. and as a side topic, our defense is still feeling like they're keeping us in the games, which is a good thing, and i like where they're at in terms of how they're playing.

Like I said, work in progress. don't be too concerned, because, after all, we should expect this at the moment. we might see some magic later in the season, but we never know. I'll be worried if we're into next season, and brady is still playing like peyton manning did early in his 08 season, which is very similar of how brady is playing at the moment.

I'm open to any knowledge you guys possess, so rebuttal my assessment freely if you wish!

first of all, i was writing an excellent post yesterday about our team, but i accidently clicked refresh and i didn't feel like writing all that over again. so here's a summary(i think).

Our defense should not be taken lightly. this is by far the best patriots defense i have ever seen in recent years. i saw thing that i didn't even expect o sunday, and more. 

for the first time in recent memory, i've seen TACKLING! for the first time in recent memory, i've seen COVERAGE IN THE MIDDLE(no one appeared to be WIDE open in the middle so far). and most of all, in recent memory, i've seen PASS RUSHING! all the things we needed to work on, definitely look like they have been WORKED on, and it's all thanks to our players.

meriweather was everywhere on the field! he was tackling left and right like he was the jerod mayo of the secondary. not to mention he made several key break ups and i was stunned by his performance. he kinda reminds me of an ed reed, but let's not get into that. our cb's performed better than i expected. i didn't see too much picks this year, but i've seen plenty of pass breakups which is more than i can ask for. butler, bodden, and springs were the clear standouts in the secondary(along with meriweather). when in the game, butler was a relentless in pass breakups, making very key plays when thrown to, and i haven't seen his kind of performance since asante samuel(although butler seems to get to the ball a bit quicker, and break it up instead of always going for the interception). bodden was quiet, which i like. i believe he was covering kelly washington, and kelly was VERY quiet in the game, catching 1 or  2 passes i think. springs made some of the best tackles i have never seen a corner on our team tackle like springs did last night. he was above average as a corner, but great as a tackler, and our secondary as a whole suddenly became tackling machines as well. covering: great     tackling: perfect

our de's and lb's played GREAT! we were stopping the run, pass rushing, and making some of the greatest tackles as well in recent patriot history. jarvis green and mike wright performed very well, and certainly earned their recognition as GREAT AND WORTHY starter next to wilfork and opposite of ty warren.

Let me say first, Raider fans are one of the loyal, if not THE most, loyal fans I have ever been part of.

This post, however, is about my fanhood of the Raiders. It seems that some bloggers here think that I'm just a pats fan on a Raiders blog.

Everyone has a favorite team, I have 2 Favorites, which all of you know. One is not more of a favorite than another, I like both teas as if they were my kids(although i'm too young to have kids). 

I became a raiders fan 1 or 2 years after being a pats fan, when my step dad was dating my mother at the time. My step dad was born in Arizona, and raised in Orange County, he lived through the erras of bo jackson and jack tatum, and told me of how teams were feared by the raiders for their ferocious defense. They were the reason why many people chose not to play in the nfl, for fear that they would play against the raiders and their defense. I liked every bit of his stories of the Raiders, especially Raider greats.

I've been a football fan for 4 or 5 years now, and I've bee rooting for the raiders every year since then. I'm the only raider fan amongst my friends, my school, and they used to laugh when i told them i was raider fan. They respect my fanhood of them now, although my friend matt, every time i say the raiders are going to win, he'll say that the raiders suck, and that they'll get blown out. 

Now people laugh when i tell them i'm a raider fan and a pats fan. they sometimes say that i'm more of a pats fan than a raider fan right? I tell them, wrong, I'm just as much a pats fan as i am a raider fan. I can't pick between the two because i've been a strong fan for both teams for a long time.

my dad is more of a pats fan, and roots for the raiders, my step dad is more of a raiders fan, and roots the pats as well.

I root for both teams STRONGLY. No more or less than the other.

It's weird, i know, to be a fan of the raiders and pats, but it's the truth. I get mad when people question my fanhood. I even have the DVD of the Raiders, The Complete History. I also hate when I go onto a blog, my fanhood is biased just because my name is patriotguy. I can make another name, but I'd rather have you guys see me as a pats fan, as well as a raider fan, without my screen name being a factor.

This may have been a pointless post to those who believe I'm a die-hard Raider fan, but i'd like to get this off my chest.

Win, Lose, or Tie, Raider till I Die! 

i thought i'd give a breakdown our defense with the addition of seymour, plus the other positions. 

last year our DL consisted of scott, warren, kelly, and burgess. 

burgess is gone, but is replaced by another successful pass rusher in greg ellis, who has a good-great pre-season in my book.

then we added seymour.  with the addition of seymour, we should have an easier time in stopping the run. i don't think he'll turn this defense into a top 10 team in stopping the run(maybe he will, but i doubt it), but we'll certainly not get run all over the place. i think they'll put him in the middle with kelly, to provide morrison more freedom in pursuing the runner when there's not a blocker in his face.

so i don't know if scott or someone else will start at the end opposite of ellis, but whoever does, he has to to able to stand up to the right tackle so howard and morrison can make a play before the RB gains 5 yards. which begs the question that would it be better if seymour started opposite of ellis? i don't know, but it should work anyways.

for the LB's we got howard, morrison, and...... whoever wins this position.  howard and morrison are, in my opinion, no doubt talented LB's who have speed and great coverage ability, as well as good-great run defending. now the question is, who would start at the left side?

brown and alston are the two likely candidates, and i heard they both done well this preseason. but i don't think alston or brown will be able to defend that side as well as howard(although i don't expect them to play at his level), but maybe we'll see how one of them does does at the position this season. I've also been hearing that we should pick up derrick brooks. if we do, that would be awesome, but i'm not sure how he'll do at that side because he played middle and right outside LB, and i'd be like vrabel or howard playing at opposite ends(although i think even howard can make the transition pretty easiliy). but brooks will be a great veteran to pick up.

for the cornerbacks, we got asomugha(hope i spelled it correctly), johnson, routte, and bowie(just naming 4 for now). i don''t need to talk about asomugha's awesomeness, for he is god at corner. so on to johnson. johnson has speed, lots of it. his coverage is great, but not THAT great. he still needs some work, but i will say that he's like ellis hobbs opposite of samuel, but maybe better. i'm not too knowledgeable about him. i know routte is inconsistent, so to me the best thing is to use him as a nickle, or not use him that much at all. he is the reason why we must grab another corner that is consistent and more reliable. i haven't looked at any corners on the market at the moment, so feel free to fill me in. i don't know anything about bowie, so i'll take your guys word for it that he is worse than routte(if not then correct me). 

and lastly, safety positions. tyvon branch is a definite starter. all i know is that he needs a bit more work in coverage and reading plays. he is more of a big hitter, but can't always rely on the big hit. michael huff is a coverage type safety(i think). he needs to turn into that 1st round draft pick that we've been hoping for. if he continues to be inconsistent, then we'll be seeing more of our rookie mike mitchell. mike is a BIG hitter, but needs to be a smart hitter, and cannot throw slam his own body against a big TE or a very elusive RB or WR, because chances are it might not happen. i hear his coverage is good-great, but i haven't seen him perform with the raiders yet in pre-season, so i don't much at the moment.

seymour and the new DL should help the secondary more, and the LB's as well.

That's the end, and i'll probably write an offensive version tomorrow. If i made any mistakes about a players ability or whatnot, feel free to tell me. Im open to gain more knowledge, and im pretty sure you guys are more knowledgeable about the raiders than i am. :)

how would you guys feel if michael vick signs with the raiders? I can honestly see that.

we all now of his speed and arm strength, and i think would be perfect if we were to incorporate the wildcat.

imagine having the speed package of vick, dmac, and dhb? 

vick:qb, rb

dmac: qb, rb, wr

dhb: wr, rb,(maybe qb)

I think that's scary!

but without going into too much reasons, i'd much rather hear yours

Hello Raider nation. I am a distant raider fan in hopes to hear some news on few players. 

I'd like to know how jamarcus and mcfadden are doing in training camp. Also, how better will they be in the upcoming season?

Is Heyward-Bey looking up to expectations or exceeding them? And do you think he'll be a worthy target for russel?

And one particular player i'd like know about, michael mitchell. Is the 2nd round pick for him seem worth it? Would he start, and would he be a key factor for the raiders secondary? Would he flatten brandon jacobs with his jack tatum like hits?

And any other additional info that you guys might want to add, i would be very grateful. Thank You.

We have talked about so many things during the offseason. We talked about the return of brady, how the pats can compare to the 07 season, rookies, free agents, trades, and statistics. Just being here for about 5 months or so, i'm proud i joined The Pulpit. 

Now in the slump of making new topics, i'd like to discuss something that I hope can be worthy to discuss.

There is always a hidden talent amongst many rookies who get drafted or any other average player, but finding that talent is very challenging. 

Ex. I found Law-Firm become a solid RB in just a couple games , and picked up his first 100-yard game against the bills last year which, I believe, was his 4th game. To me, I think he has plenty of hidden potential, and can't wait to see what he could do in a full season. He also had back-to-back 1,000 yard seasons in college, and went undrafted.

I see talent in pierre woods. People say he's only good against the run, but i remember last year when he filled in at LB, he was doing a good-great job(how can we forget the jets game, i remember a pass rush when he was in that game). I also remember that he did a good job against the giants in SB42, and when he had the fumble. He has been a solid LB for us. 

We all know about maroney.

i see talent in butler, chung, brace, and tate; and jerod mayo will get a few sacks this time this year.

Without explaining about the rookies, unless you want me too, i'd like to have a discussion about the possible talent in any player on our roster you choose, and if you want, discuss his future on our team.

As many people know, there is much speculation about an uncapped season. I don't have numbers or anything that could give you guys an idea of how the nfl's cap has recently been for the last 5 years but i would like to give an opinion. 

I don't want to have one. Football is too interesting with cap.

With cap there is strategy, it keeps the good teams from getting too overpowered and helps bad teams compete.

If at all possible, keep the cap system.

If anyone can copy and paste the average football cap in the last 10 years, that would be a great, and could also help me understand the cap system better. 

Anyways please give opinions and/or statistics about the cap situation and how it can affect the future.

we all seen the wildcat as a popular offensive attack with the dolphins, and they were usually successful. we know how it works and what type of weapons we must have to use it. 

my post is about the fact that people think we can or should get a player to utilize for a wildcat offensive. that i don't think the pats should use the wildcat offense at all. 

my arguments are that the wildcat does not fit the patriots scheme, and that i'm sick of hearing "oh, we can use this guy for a wildcat offense." also i think the wildcat is overrated. we stopped it the last time we faced them. 

even though teams are incorporating the wildcat offense into their system for its uniqueness, i think instead of using the wildcat, we should make up our own unique offense, that way we'll surprise the dolphins this year instead, and teams will have something else to worry about!

Right now, it seems that our LB corpse is the only one that we may need to be concerned about. I hear football analysts think that we NEED a playmaker at LB or our LB corpse will be in trouble(I just when on patriots.com and read the debate on whether we should get jason taylor or not).  

They also thought we a QB last year after brady was injured. after the first game i was confident cassel could lead us to the playoffs, they thought 8-8, 10-6 the most.

Anyways I made this post because unlike most analysts who go completely by numbers, think we NEED Jason Taylor, I am confident that our LB corpse is still very good.

We know thomas and mayo are very talented players at their positions, but they are looking at LOLB an another MLB. I think pierre woods is a player who most analysts think he won't contribute due to his numbers, but when i watch the guy, i see him put constant pressure on the outside(he also did well in the 07 superbowl, almost recovered the fumble too.), and make plays.

Guyton is also a guy who could definitely be a great contributer next to mayo. He's very fast and instinctive. Although he may not be as fluent as mayo when it comes to diagnosing the run, but he is also a great pass defender. I see him as the starter for this year(even though it might be still bruschi). 

But I am confident in our LB corpse now. they're young, fast, and are very underrated.

I'm from the pats blog seeking an improbable trade that would likely never happen.

First of all, this is just a wild scenario that we would never happen, but give me an opinion on it anyways.

My only trade scenario for peppers would be to trade a 3rd rounder and Richard seymor(or would ty warren be good). It would free up our cap space and we would get what we need.

I understand he still hasn't signed the tendor but if he did, or getting peppers would actually seem LIKELY it would happen, i don't know how to free our cap space while getting Peppers at the same time. So truly I think the deal is long gone.

But just give me an opinion anyway.

seeing as how we got patrick chung and darius butler, who do you forsee at the top of the depth chart.

In my opinion i see meriweather and sanders still at the top, with chung rotating in with both safeties. I see Butler as a #1 or 2 CB with bodden at #1 or 2. Slot corner will probably be up for grabs with the rest of the cb's.

I guess we can also talk about any other position.

I think vollmer and kaczure will be an interesting matchup in camp, but i think kaczure will ultimately win it out due to his experience.

I also see McKenzie starting next to mayo.

hi from pats pulpit. just want to ask if you guys would accept a trade from the pats to get ur 15th pick for our 23rd and on of our late second rounders. i don't know if u guys are expecting to get anyone at 15 that won't b there at 23, but what would u guys say? My pick at 5 would either be moreno or pettigrew. u guys can still trade up with our pick and any other pick to get mauluga.

if we were to trade up, what picks would u guys use and what number would u move up to. also give the name of the player u would pick if he was there. 

If I were to trade picks to move up, i would trade our 1st round pick and one of our late 2nd round picks to get the 16th-19th pick. I would probably get mauluga or knowshon moreno(one, two punch with taylor, morris, and maroney(one,two,three, four puch :))or just in case maroney maroney gets injured and is a bust.)

but yea tell me what you guys would do.  You could also trade the draft picks for other players as well.

Boldin is a fantastic #2 and #1 WR threat. If we get boldin on our team, our wr corpse would basically be unstoppable. Not only can moss and boldin can switch sides to be creative, we'll have welker in the slot dominating up the middle.

The cardinals are lookin for a 1st and 3rd round pick for him. we can provide that. we can also give them galloway and the greg lewis along with a 2d rounder can be a possibility as well. we have so many picks on the first day, it doesn't look like it shoul be a problem.

due to the amount of money he wants, trading galloway and lewis and a second round pick seems pretty logical. it can get rid of more cap space and trading a second round pick means we'll spend less money on a guy we pick in the 3rd round than a guy we would pick on one of our second round picks.

I think if we do get boldin, our wr corpse would be on of the greatest ever, i would like that.(even though us getting bolding is only 30% likely)

There are a few things i'd like to comment on our current roster.

1-WRs. Moss and Galloway are our 1 and 2 WR, with welker in the slot, and Lewis at #4. Welker will NOT be a #2 reciever because moss and galloway have top end speed, currently hold the 1 and 2 spots for YAC(Yards a Catch i think) in the nfl, and welker is more dangerous in the slot.

2-RB. RB is a question for many of us. Maroney will be battling taylor for the #1 spot, and will likely get it because this is supposed to be his comeback year( DeAngelo Williams, who knows Maroney personally, says that if he can make a breakout season, Maroney should have no problem). Morris will likely share the #2 spot with Taylor. "Law Firm" I believe will be on the practice squad again this season. I also think they might draft a RB this year to add competition for practice squad (Shonn Greene would be nice).

and #3- DBs. I think Rodney will play one more season, if not then merriweather will step in. For CB's, starters will be Bodden, Hobbs, Springs, then weately (Springs will likel take on owens though).

Additional information- We don't need to worry about our O-Line this year, however i think we might draft an OL, hopefully Max Unger. Our DL is solid, I think Woods would battle a rookie in place for vrabel (hope woods gets it) but have a solid LB corpse none of the less ( I think we will draft an inside LB in the draft to add depth with bruschi and guyton and mayo). Chris baker is a great TE that can both block and recieve, but I'd like to take pettigrew for our #1, or draft a TE sometime.

So please comment on not just the additional information part, but also everything else.