It doesn’t take long to remember exactly why you arrived in Tampa this week. The minute I stepped off the plane last night, the Super Bowl welcome committee greeted me warmly, with brochures in hand. Super Bowl XLIII decals are on every elevator and hallway I’ve seen in the city. Bud Bowl and NFLPA ads are on the rest.
Spotting NFL Network's Rod Woodson at baggage claim seemed to be a good omen for the week. He looked conflicted wearing a Steelers shirt and a Falcons cap pulled low over his eyes, but couldn’t be nicer to the guy who asked for him to sign a “Football for Dummies” book.
Unfortunately, my bag never did arrive. It’s supposed to come this morning, which robs the rest of Tampa from seeing me in the same navy hoodie all week.
The media center is located right next to my hotel, so I'll be over there shortly to get the lay of the land. Be back in a few minutes first with some links from the morning.
January 23, 2009
I'm gearing up to leave for Tampa Sunday, using today for some last minute prep for work down there. Plus we're getting the baseball draft guide ready for a Monday launch. Starting Sunday, I'll be blogging non-stop from Tampa.
Reason #4,081 Mike Tomlin is awesome. Here's what he said about Limas Sweed's big drop in the AFC Championship:
"I wasn't mad because he dropped the ball. That kind of mistake can happen to anyone. I was pissed that he'd lay on the ground, fake an injury and cost us our last timeout. My point was, Be a man! Grow up!"
The always-awesome Mike Tanier breaks out his All-Rookie team. A good reminder that the Colts had a quietly productive rookie class. Indy is thought of as an old team because of their offense, but they are actually one of the youngest in the league.
Continue reading "Skinny Posts: Two days till Tampa" »
January 22, 2009
While one famous running back gets mocked by his GM, another fantasy football pillar turning 30 is not getting much attention. Philly's playoff run has already made me re-think my optimistic keeper ranking of Brian Westbrook.
Westbrook wasn't the same after getting 33 carries in Week 14 against the Giants. In his next six games, he averaged 2.9 yards-per-carry. Perhaps more damning, he was held under 30 receiving yards four times in that stretch.
Continue reading "Will playoff run hurt Westbrook's ranking?" »
Tom Brady came out of hiding Wednesday to talk to the Fan590 in Toronto of all places. Brady didn't say much about his injury, except, "S*** happens." As Evan Silva pointed out, apparently you can say anything on Canadian radio.
Brady sounded predictably upbeat about his recovery and said all's well. I suspect we won't know much about Brady's rehab until the day he hits the field again - in game action. Tom Curran thinks that may not happen until midway through next year.
The Patriots are expected to promote Bill O'Brien to quarterbacks coach - not offensive coordinator. This sets up a situation where Bill Belichick looks like the favorite to call plays to start the season, much like 2005.
Tackle Matt Light was asked if Belichick is taking on too many roles:
Continue reading "Skinny Posts: Brady speaks, doesn't say much" »
January 21, 2009
I will be covering the Cardinals primarily down in Tampa next week, so I've inevitably jumped on the bandwagon. Okay, I'm not convinced they will win yet ... but I think they can keep it close. Plus I was assigned to write up ten reasons why the game isn't such a mismatch for NBCSports.com. I posted the column on Rotoworld as well here. The blog will get cranking when I arrive there on Sunday. In the meantime, here is a Three and Out with Tom Curran and myself. We talk Boldin, Warner, and underrated Super Bowl story line.
Bill Parcells has come out of hiding! (I dont have a picture of him handy, so there's Anthony Fasano.) Miami’s signing of CFL star Cameron Wake is interesting, if only because I can’t remember a CFL star getting $1 million guaranteed on a four-year deal.
That’s similar to a contract a late second round pick would get. He got a little less money up front for a little more over the course of the deal. I can’t ever remember a young CFL player getting that type of deal, so Miami must have had competition for him. Parcells doesn't seem to be going anywhere despite Wayne Huizenga's sale of the Dolphins yesterday.
"What does it look like I’m doing?" Parcells asked a reporter at the Senior Bowl. "It isn’t about money. I have more money than I can spend."
Mike Lombardi picks on Andy Reid’s clock management. And I wholeheartedly agree that anyone making McNabb a scapegoat is ridiculous. The Eagles got beat by a better team on Sunday. The defense got manhandled. Let’s not try to look too deeply past that.
Continue reading "Skinny Posts: The Tuna lives" »
January 20, 2009
As I watched the AFC Championship game, I wrote a note to myself in the third quarter to revisit in the blog later: How much has Willis McGahee helped his market value in the playoffs?
He certainly ran with a burst we didn't see most of the season; like the '07 workmanlike McGahee. He still doesn't press the hole enough, but he wasn't bad.
Then his scary neck injury happened, although it sounds like that won't be a long-term problem. And now the Baltimore Sun reports that McGahee would count $11 million against the cap in 2009, even if released.
Well, then. Despite a lot of reporting from Mike Preston this season that McGahee would likely be a goner in the offseason, he's not going anywhere - if that number is true. The figure seems oddly high based on what we know of McGahee's contract, but we probably don't know everything and will have to trust the reporting. If the number is right, McGahee's market value doesn't matter. Baltimore will try to motivate him to get in better shape and put him back into the mix in 2009. Maybe the Ravens backfield can defend their crown as most frustrating backfield next season.
We know how Arizona residents feel about Donovan McNabb – and his lawn. We know that the Eagles want and expect McNabb back.
The real question is whether Donovan McNabb wants to come back. Deion Sanders strongly feels that McNabb wants out, and the mercurial quarterback has hardly denied it.
Like most NFL disputes, this will probably come down to money. McNabb will sit down with the team and either ask to leave or ask for more money. The Eagles may be willing to boost his guaranteed money over the next few years, but McNabb may cause a stink if they don’t give him a big extension. McNabb’s excellent play down the stretch will give him a lot of leverage in the situation. I expect the Eagles will have to pay him quite a bit to keep him. A lot of NFL observers smarter than me believe he’ll try to force his way out regardless. Think this story will get any attention this off-season?
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Terrell Suggs made himself some serious money in the AFC Championship. That performance with one arm? Remarkable. You know T Sizzle is hurt when he can’t celebrate his two sacks.
Continue reading "Skinny Posts: Now comes the fun part for McNabb" »
About a month ago, I pondered the future of Peyton Hillis and thought he had a bright future as a productive member of a backfield committee. That was before The Mastermind was fired, and a few of you have wondered how the hire of Josh McDaniels will effect Hillis.
McDaniels is a pass-first coach, but Hillis should not be hurt by the change. Denver kept coaches Rick Dennison and Bobby Turner to maintain the running game, which will help. If anything, Hillis is exactly the sort of versatile, tough player that McDaniels loves to use in a variety of situations. He's essentially a much younger, more talented Sammy Morris. McDaniels seems likely to use a committee next season, and his game-to-game usage will be unpredictable because it is so matchup-dependent, just like it was in New England. That will create some frustration for fantasy leaguers, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Hillis leading the way in the Denver backfield.
Skinny Posts coming in a bit. And once the Inauguration has wound down, win prizes on the real big event of the day: The Big Game Trivia Blitz!
January 19, 2009
Special Teams
Jeff Reed is an excellent field goal kicker, but punter Mitch Berger is one of the worst in the league and hurt Pittsburgh during the AFC Championship. (Although he can tackle!) Pittsburgh’s coverage teams aren’t bad, but their returns struggled during the regular season. Santonio Holmes has given them a big boost in the playoffs, though.
Neil Rackers is an up-and-down kicker, and he’s the highlight of Arizona’s special teams. Their coverage units didn’t excel all season. Like the rest of the Cardinals, they are playing better in the playoffs. J.J. Arrington and Steve Breaston are average on returns.
Our pick: Steelers
Continue reading "SB Matchups by position: Special teams and coaches" »
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