I'm back from vacation, spending Sunday updating the news, listening to a leaked version of the new Arcade Fire (excellent so far) and getting re-acquainted with all things NFL that I missed while I was gone.

First of all, I want to thank Evan Silva for doing a bang-up job on the the news while I was gone. He may be the Tony Romo to my Drew Bledsoe.

While going over the updates from the last week, here were the most surprising stories I found. I'll add a post about the least-surprising stories post later on.

1. Marty Schottenheimer fired - It sounds like he orchestrated his firing by interviewing his brother for the coordinator position against owner Dean Spanos' wishes. It still doesn't make sense for the 2007 club. I think Rex Ryan is a nice fit, but there is a whole lot of instability for a team that was the best in football. It's bad news for LT2 and Philip Rivers.

2. Luke Petitgout Cut - Lavar Arrington and Carlos Emmons make sense. Perhaps Petitgout does too if LG Dave Diehl is the quality left tackle the Giants must believe he is. But how rare is it to see a Pro Bowl-quality left tackle released when he's only 30? I know he's recovering from a broken leg, but Petitgout should get a huge signing bonus ($10 million plus) as a free agent unless there are health complications we don't know about. He's a great run blocker.

3. The Vikings don't want Jeff Garcia - Call this a pleasant surprise - if you are a Vikings fan. Brad Childress compared Garcia to Brad Johnson and made it clear Minnesota doesn't want a retread. It makes you wonder if the Eagles staff has said anything about Garcia to prospective suitors.

4. Justin Smith franchised - Smith isn't one of the five best defensive ends in the league, but that's no the point. Cincinnati has until July 15th to work out a new deal. It just doesn't make sense to give up starter-quality players anymore for free. Too many teams, including Cincy, has enough cap room to find solutions to keep their good players. If they had to pay him the franchise salary, it's still cheaper in the long run than giving Smith a big signing bonus.

5. Dre Bly dangled on trade market - He's a Pro Bowler, even he doesn't quite deserve the tag. Bly has reportedly had a poor attitude and work ethic under Rod Marinelli, but they are unlikely to let him go unless they get a first day pick back. The Lions shouldn't be trading their best players, but Marinelli wants to clean out the losing culture around Detroit.

6. Bears dragging their feet on Lovie Smith - Chicago reportedly lowballed Smith with their initial offer. This is a joke. It was probably under the amount that Bobby Petrino will make for Atlanta. Coaches make so little in the scheme of things, it's insane that Chicago can't get this squared away. They risk the players revolting if Smith goes much longer with a deal.

7. NFL Europe changed to NFL Europa - Make the league closer to a U2 album name. That will make it relevant and bring in the fans!