Archive for the ‘NFL’ Category
Ellis Lankster Shows How Not to Conduct an Interview
One of the veterans had to put him up to this right? This is like rookie initiation – seeing how many “like ums” he could drop in the post game interview. I bet it was T.O. who made him do it.
Week 1 NFL Football Picks
I love this time of year – Its such a great feeling to wake up Sunday morning and have another full day of games after enjoying all the football on Saturday. Here are the picks for week 1 – winners are italicized.
1. Miami @ Atlanta (-4). The Falcons defense looked pretty bad this preseason, but I think they’ll make enough stops and the offense will put up plenty of points against the Dolphins. The Dolphins will take a step back this year after a surprise run last year.
2. Minnesota (-4) @ Cleveland. The Vikings greatly improved their offense by bringing in Brett Favre. If he limits his mistakes this year, and plays more of a game manager role – this team will go deep in the playoffs. I just don’t see the Browns getting back to their surprise 11-5 season from 2007 any time soon – Vikings win big.
3. Detroit @ New Orleans (-14). You know a team is bad when they are 14 point underdogs in the NFL. Starting a rookie quarterback after coming off an 0-16 season – this game is going to be ugly. Especially with as explosive as the Saints offense is. With a much improved defense – watch for them to challenge the Falcons in the NFC South.
4. Washington (+6.5) @ NY Giants. I am not sold on the Giants and Eli Manning without Plaxico Burress in the lineup. Jason Campbell finally has an offensive coordinator for two straight years in the NFL, and you will see him make the jump to the next echelon of quarterbacks this year. I like both defenses, but I like Washington’s offense just a little more this year – this will be a close game coming down to the final plays.
5. Chicago (+4) @ Greenbay. The NFC North this year is going to be the best division in football – it wouldn’t surprise me if they send 3 teams to the playoffs. Greenbay is going to be a tough team, but I see Chicago staying close in this game with a shot to win it in the final drive. Plus you can’t go against a team with so many Vanderbilt alumni on its roster.
Jagz Can’t Hold a Job
TAMPA, Fla. — In a stunning move 10 days before the start of the regular season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have dismissed offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski.
The Bucs announced the move in a statement Thursday morning and said quarterbacks coach Greg Olson will take over as coordinator.
“We needed more direction,” Bucs coach Raheem Morris said in an early-afternoon news conference. “We needed more precision. [We weren't] getting it at the time, so you make the change.”
Jagodzinski was hired by Morris in January three weeks after a rocky ending to his time as head coach at BC. Against the wishes of BC’s administration, Jagodzinski interviewed for the head-coaching vacancy with the New York Jets and was fired the next day, ending his two-season stint in Chestnut Hill.
Seems like Jagz has a problem following direction. Maybe he should have listened to the BC athletic director back in January and he’d still be employed. Fired twice in less than 8 months for being insolent- that can’t be good for your resume.
Brett….C’mon – That’s Not Cool
Seriously Mike Tirico? I love how this minor play in pre-season was being so blown out of proportion. In all fairness to Favre, I wonder how often he’s practiced lining up as a wide receiver to set a block on a player running down the ball. Plus, when was the last time Brett Favre was in an off season training camp for practice? Dude probably forgot all the rules in football.
Matt Ryan is Symmetrical
WSJ - Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons is playing in only his second NFL season but he’s already the league’s top quarterback in at least one category: handsomeness.
According to researchers, his face is almost perfectly symmetrical—a trait that shows a strong correlation to a person’s perceived attractiveness. While the average person’s face is somewhere around 90% symmetrical, Mr. Ryan scored a 99.8%, which puts him in elite territory. Ursinus College professor Jennifer VanGilder and former student Lisle O’Neill, who conducted the study in conjunction with Southern Utah University economist David Berri, said Mr. Ryan isn’t the only NFL signal-caller with a nicely balanced face. In fact, every starter in the league scored above 96%.
Facial symmetry isn’t the only measure of attractiveness, of course. New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez became a heartthrob overnight when he posed shirtless for GQ, yet he only ranks no. 20 among NFL starters in facial symmetry. (He did score 98.4%, which is still darn good). Tony Romo, a favorite of pop starlets, ranked No. 23.
Scientific research overwhelmingly points to facial symmetry as an indicator of success. Studies show infants with more symmetrical faces are given more attention. Symmetrical workers also tend to earn more. Football is supposed to be egalitarian, of course. The players with the strongest and most accurate throwing arms should become the quarterbacks while the biggest, most powerful players should be linemen. Somewhere along the way, it seems, good-looking kids are steered toward the glamour position. “Socially, we’ve been trained to think that the quarterback is the most beautiful person on the team,” says Prof. VanGilder.
The Handsome Meter
Here’s a list of the top 10 best-looking QBs in the NFL, ranked by how symmetrical their faces are, by percentage.
Symmetry Rating
Matt Ryan, ATL 99.82%
Brett Favre, MIN 99.78%
Aaron Rodgers, GB 99.59%
Matt Hasselbeck, SEA 99.56%
Kerry Collins, TEN 99.49%
Ben Roethlisberger, PIT 99.43%
Shaun Hill, SF 99.35%
Tom Brady, NE 99.14%
Philip Rivers, SD 99.04%
Already with a Offensive Rookie of the Year award, Matt Ryan has the most symmetrical face of all NFL quarterbacks – take that dreamboat Tom Brady. The Falcons need to get a special helmet, maybe like the one David Wright wore last night, to protect his face.
This Wasn’t Part of the Plan
Josh McDaniel, aka Boy Wonder, was brought to Denver from the New England Patriots looking to install his playbook and offensive genius on an already great offense and take Denver back to the promise land. Well things didn’t go as smoothly as planned – first he chased off the star quarterback and pro-bowler, Jay Cutler, when he tried to bring in is own guy, lifetime backup Matt Cassel. Now pro-bowl receiver Brandon Marshall wants out of Denver and has been suspended infinitely:
Pro Bowl receiver Brandon Marshall, openly unhappy with the Denver Broncos, was suspended by the team through Sept. 5 for what coach Josh McDaniels called “detrimental” conduct.
Marshall, who has brooded since demanding a trade and asking for a new contract, was informed of the suspension by McDaniels on Friday.
“We tried to handle this situation with Brandon as privately and professionally as we could throughout the entire process with he and his agent, Kennard McGuire,” McDaniels said at a news conference. “This morning, we made the decision as an organization to go ahead and suspend Brandon and that suspension will last through Sept. 5th. We’ll look forward to having him back on Sept. 6th as we begin our preparations for Cincinnati” in the Sept. 13 regular-season opener.
McDaniels did not single out a specific episode, but said the suspension resulted from a series of incidents, though some boorish antics during the team’s practice Wednesday — after Marshall had been warned about such conduct that very morning — seemed to be the final straw for the coach.
“His actions didn’t really change after that warning. That leads us to today,” McDaniels said.
Marshall went out during pre-practice warm-ups and walked while the rest of the team ran. He punted a ball away instead of handing it to a ball boy, and swatted a pass thrown to him. His actions were caught on video and broadcast by KMGH-TV.
The Broncos already have had discussions with the league regarding Marshall’s suspension. They are expected to reassess the situation when the preseason ends Sept. 5. – via ESPN
Dont you love it when multi-million dollar athlete acting like a whiny kid. But in Marshall’s defense – “we only talkin’ about practice”. Last year’s team was loaded on offense, and needed an overhaul on the defense to get things back on track But they did the complete opposite – overhauled the offense and brought in old, castaways from other teams on defense. Hopefully McDaniel knows what he is doing, because this off season has been an absolute train wreck for the Broncos, and they look even further from a playoff team. I don’t think Boy Genius was expecting a Kyle Orton-to-Jabar Gaffney aerial attack when he got hired. But at least Kyle Orton can grow a killer neck beard – I’m sure he’ll have to bring that thing back to keep warm in Denver.
There’s a Minor Flaw in the Design
ARLINGTON, Texas — The Tennessee Titans felt they exposed a major flaw in Cowboys Stadium during the first football game played in the building when reserve punter A.J. Trapasso hit the gigantic HD screen that hangs over the field. But after a 30-10 Dallas win, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he doesn’t think it is an issue. The NFL signed off on the 60-foot long, 90-foot high video board, Jones said, and he does not plan to alter it.
Said Jones after his team’s debut in the $1.2 billion stadium: “You don’t need to move it. You gotta be trying to do it. The rule is very clear. You just kick it over.”
What- you just kick it over??? You’d think if you spend 1.2 Billion on a stadium, the first thing they would check is there is nothing altering the playing area – like a giant fuck off TV. Jerry’s so wily, I bet he had them put a trip wire in front of the goal lines or some land mines under the playing field too, just to make things interesting.
Kick Someone’s Ass the First Day, or Become Someone’s Bitch!
NEW YORK — Facing the prospect of spending at least 3½ years behind bars, one-time Super Bowl star Plaxico Burress on Thursday accepted a plea bargain with a two-year prison sentence for a firearm charge. The charge stemmed from an incident in which Burress accidentally shot himself in the thigh at a Manhattan nightclub.
The former New York Giant wide receiver pleaded guilty to one count of attempted criminal possession of a weapon, a lesser charge than he had faced. He will be sentenced Sept. 22, and lawyer Benjamin Brafman said he expects Burress to begin serving his sentence immediately after.
Another promising NFL career cut short by injury legal issues. Good thing Plax is a wide receiver with good hands, I’m sure he’ll be holding that bar of soap real tight. And without Plax in the G-Men’s lineup, we’ll see if Eli is really worth the ridiculous contract he just signed.
Ron Mexico is an Eagle
Philadelphia, PA - By halftime, the Linc was buzzing: Michael Vick was an Eagle.
Suddenly, no one seemed to care much about the preseason game against the New England Patriots on Thursday night. All that mattered to most fans was that the disgraced quarterback had joined their team.
Even though five-time Pro Bowl quarterback Donovan McNabb is the man on the Philadelphia Eagles, the team gave Vick a one-year deal with an option for a second year.
“I’m a believer that as long as people go through the right process, they deserve a second chance,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said. “He’s got great people on his side; there isn’t a finer person than Tony Dungy. He’s proven he’s on the right track.”
Commissioner Roger Goodell conditionally lifted Vick’s suspension on July 27, allowing him to sign with a team, practice and play in the last two preseason games. Once the season begins, Vick can participate in all team activities except games, and Goodell said he would consider Vick for full reinstatement by Week 6 (Oct. 18-19) at the latest.
The Eagles reached the NFC championship game last season under McNabb, but are still looking for their elusive first Super Bowl win.
McNabb has led the Eagles to five NFC title games and one Super Bowl appearance in the last eight years, and was rewarded with a $5.3 million raise in the offseason. The Eagles tore up his old contract with two years remaining, and gave him a new deal worth $24.5 million over the next two seasons.
The Eagles are a great organization, and will be a good team for Vick. Not really sure what McNabb thinks about the addition – Remember what happened last time when the Eagles added a quarterback to the roster. Or how a mediocre passing quarterback who hasn’t played pro football in 2 years or really put a commitment in to learning the playbook will help the Eagles out. One thing is for sure, the Dome will be rocking on December 6th when the Eagles come down to visit the Falcons in a game that will have huge playoff implications.