Category: NFL

NFL

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New England Patriots

A Tale of Two Cities: Schilling’s shocking discovery of New York-Boston animosity

“Wise men speak because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something.” -Plato

Curt Schilling reminds me of the generic and requisite Real World stock character: the cantankerous jackass who falsely assumes his “candor” is anything more than pathetic and offensive white noise. The guy whose audition tape sounds something like, “I dont give a $%^& what people think. I just keep it real and say what no one else will say. I’m not afraid to go there.” And while he’s initially embraced by the other housemates, he ultimately alienates himself from the group, leaving him with nothing left to do but self-indulgent confessionals.

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San Francisco 49ers

The Demise of Alex Smith

In the name of Tim Couch, what has happened to Alex Smith? If you take a closer look, past the recent shoulder injury, past the loss of his starting job, and even past now being labeled as a bust, you have to ask yourself, how the heck did we get here?

The truth is, the blame cannot and should not be put squarely on Alex Smith’s shoulders. As the number one overall pick in the 2005 NFL draft, Smith entered the league with as much hype as any quarterback in recent memory, only to throw one touchdown to 11 interceptions.

This less than desirable outcome had the San Francisco front office shaking their heads, wondering if they had made the right decision. Then came signs of progress in year two, with Smith posting admirable sophomore numbers, throwing for 16 touchdowns and almost 3,000 yards.

But now two years later, all we can remember is Smith as the underachieving, athletic quarterback who could never grasp the system, find his receivers, and realize his potential.

But therein lies the problem: the system.

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NFL General

Week 1 2008 NFL Power Rankings

One huge injury, and the entire NFL is shaken and destroyed.

But it wasn’t just Tom Brady’s injury that hit the league. Big names like Vince Young, Brodie Croyle, and Drew Bennett all found out they’ll be missing significant action with injuries.

We found out that Brett Favre is comfortable as a Jet, and likely to get more comfortable, that Aaron Rodgers isn’t shy about leaping into the stands, and Michael Turner is the real deal.

But away from all the injuries lies an even more interesting phenomenon: the impact of rookies immediately to start the season.

From the Titan’s Chris Johnson, to Philadelphia’s DeSean Jackson, rookies throughout the league turned in huge performances to help their teams go 1-0. See for yourself. The teams moving up in the rankings after week one, for the most part, all have a rookie or two playing a huge hand in their success.

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New York Jets

Laveranues Coles is Still a Hero

This is not topical. Not at all. It is not breaking news; heck, it barely was three years ago. It should have been, but things like this never are. We don’t think of NFL stars as people.

About three years ago, Laveranues Coles, a Pro Bowl receiver, then as now a New York Jet, admitted that he had been raped, not sexually abused as he tried to portrait it, but raped by his step-father when he was a pre-teenage boy. Raped.

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NFL General

Week 1 2008 NFL Picks and Podcast

Football is back! And we’re running down all week 1 picks on the podcast or you can check our picks here. We’ll be heavy on the gambling advice this year so check back to see how we’re doing with our betting accounts.

You can download the podcast directly (running time 90 mins) or subscribe to the feed.

If you use iTunes, just click here and then click subscribe and iTunes will take care of the rest.

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NFL General

2008 NFL Power Rankings: Week 0

Brett Favre is a Jet.

The Packers are starting over with Aaron Rodgers.

Everything has gone to hell.

How disastrous, or dare I say beautiful, would it have been if Ted Thompson and the Packers caved to Favre’s demands, and we started the season with a Favre v.s Rodgers epic battle?

Sadly, we will never know. Unless, of course, the stars align just right, and we see the Jets and Packers in the Super Bowl.

Then we have the Chargers, last year’s AFC Championship surprise, trying to re-assemble their team with four stars who are, for all intents and purposes, still pretty banged up.

Antonio Gates is still stumbling around with his big toe, Rivers and LT are still recovering from knee surgery, and Shawne Merriman doesn’t want to go under the knife. Something’s got to give, and I get the feeling it’s Merriman’s knees.

Last but not least, the constant over-analyzation of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning’s injuries, or lack there of.

What happened to routine surgery and letting a guy relax for a chance? I guess when you’re famous commerical-doting, Super Bowl winning quarterbacks, you can’t exactly go limping around the mall without making Sportscenter.

And this was just the off-season.

Without any further haste, because we all would hate to keep the drama train from running wild off the tracks, here are the Power Rankings for the end of the pre-season:

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Dallas Cowboys

Hold you horses Cowboy Nation

Wait just a minute. Before anyone out in the football world starts saying that Dallas is the team to beat they need to step back and look at the overall situation when it comes to the Cowboys. Now I am the biggest Cowboy backer in the world and it is painful to write a column like this but since I want to become a professional, unbiased columnist its a tough pill to swallow. Lets look at some of the things this team will face this year.

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NFL General

Any way you look at it- Favre is one of a kind

We all know who Brett Favre is, what he represents, what team he’ll really be remembered by, and everything that has to do with this summer-long saga that has, for the time being, been put to rest.

But what you don’t know is that Brett Favre is not Joe Montana. Not because he didn’t win three additional Super Bowls or didn’t have Jerry Rice, but because he, at 38, still has it.

Brett is not Dan Marino. Not because he’s better in every meaningful statistical category after passing Marino, and not because he actually won a Super Bowl, but because nearing the end of his career, he isn’t playing with hobbled ankles.

Our beloved number four is not John Elway. Not because the odds are against him to go out on top winning a championship, let alone two in a row, but because he isn’t limping into the 2008 season, and he doesn’t look like he’s 50 when he’s only pushing 40.

Brett Favre is Brett Favre, and there has been no one like him, and undoubtedly we will never see anyone like him again. And because of that, I will explain to you why Favre and the Jets will shock us all.

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NFL General

Fantasy Position by Position: Running-Back Breakdown

Anyone can analyze the quarterback position, mostly because youre usually only looking at one guy under a microscope. But take a look at the Oakland Raiders backfield, even for a second, and you have to start to wonder: Who is the starter, the third down back, and will it even matter?

That’s what happens when you have a sure fire talent, a couple of injury riddled busts, and a collection of all around solid talent at the position.

It’s not really about DO you have the talent, it’s what you do with it.

So, in doing my best from digging too deep in the cookie jar and trying to pretend like the Pittsburgh Steelers’ signing of Mewelde Moore will actually shake your fantasy football world up, even a little bit, here is my perspective on each team’s running back issues, by player, as insignificant as they may be.

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NFL General

Sunday Night Football

To some, Sunday is a time to unwind. To many, it is a day of worship. I spend my Sundays relaxing while praising the football gods. It is an American tradition to participate in the great sport of football. Unlike with most other sports, you do not need to physically be in the game to be a football participant. It is as much of an experience for the player as it is for the spectator. The trials and tribulations experienced by players on field translate to fan emotion off field. Therefore, for this past November’s Sunday Night Football game–this  season’s undefeated team to beat, the  New England Patriots took on my favorite team, the struggling Philadelphia Eagles–I decided to focus on the onlookers of the game instead of on the game itself (being a fan of the game, this was harder to do than it may seem).

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