Knowshon Moreno, Donovan McNabb, Mike Shanahan and David Garrard enter pivotal seasons where they will be scrutinized if they do not perform at a high level.
The Eagles seemingly came out of nowhere to sign Nnamdi Asomugha as they eye a trip to the Super Bowl.
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All teams have started training camp within the last week, which means we have real, legit football on the immediate horizon!
The Bengals and Cowboys kick things off this weekend in Canton for the Hall of Fame game. Even though you won?t see any names you know after the first quarter, it?s still a thousand times more entertaining than the 315th meeting this year between the Red Sox and Yankees.
In lieu of major breakdowns, here are 10 quick impressions on some recent events around the NFL. One of my most valued professors in college, and a strong personal mentor as well, Dr. Mike Kukral often advised me that my first impressions and gut reactions are worth trusting, even if they seem rash or illogical. I?m sticking with Doc?s advice on these.
1. Brett Favre tweets to teammates, ?This is it.? He must think we?re all damned fools. I will believe he is retired when he isn?t taking all the snaps for Minnesota?s Week 2 game. Why Week 2? Because I think that competitive fire will burn hotter than ever having to sit and actually watch a game played without him, and also because Tarvaris Jackson will go 16-33 for 168 yards and 2 INTs in a loss in the opener and Favre knows he could do better than that when he?s 50.
2. The Darrelle Revis holdout. It?s a bold move for him to play his leverage card, one that I believe is rife with unintended consequences for his team. The Jets have a whole host of players with their hands out, and their ownership and management is smart enough to know that if they acquiesce to Revis, they have to grease all those other palms too. Even with a new stadium and unprecedented fan enthusiasm, owner Woody Johnson cannot cross that line. Revis can?t sit out the whole year like his uncle Sean Gilbert once did, because there might not be a next year and that?s a hell of a long wait between paychecks. Advantage Jets, but it?s at the peril of torpedoing what could be a special season before it even starts.
3. Albert Haynesworth vs. conditioning drills and Mike Shanahan. I touched on this earlier this summer regarding holdouts, and how many coaches and GMs don?t really mind having certain veterans miss a few days of camp. The knee issues are certainly legit, and when was the last time Haynesworth had to sprint 25 yards on the field? The larger issue here is that Mike Shanahan has clearly taken over the Redskins from top to bottom, and Skins fans should rejoice in that sea change. I expect Big Al to be as strong and effective as the last couple of seasons once the games start counting.
4. Denver RBs dropping like flies. They are being unusually optimistic about Knowshon Moreno?s hamstring and Correll Buckhalter?s leg injury that will keep both sidelined for at least the rest of this week. This offense is already without their best two passing game weapons from a year ago (Marshall and Scheffler) and the stud LT (Ryan Clady) is gimpy. Plus they traded JJ Arrington away over the weekend, which means the depth chart is pretty barren. It sure seems like this is setting up for a disaster...or a trade for a RB like Marshawn Lynch.
4a. I?ve had two people very close to the situation tell me they?ll be surprised if Brady Quinn makes the team. Put those last two above sentences together...
5. Ndamukong Suh still holding out. This is terrible news for the Lions, who have had the most positive offseason this lifelong Lions fan can ever recall. He is the centerpiece of the defensive rebuild, and he must assume that mantle right away. That cannot be done when he?s haggling over voidables and incentives while the players taken before and after him in the draft are signed and practicing already. Shame on Suh for letting his agents break his word. If he?s not in camp by Thursday, my expected Lions win total won?t be above 2. Again.
6. Colts owner Robert Irsay says he?ll make Peyton Manning the highest paid QB no matter the cost. That?s a no-brainer decision for one of the better owners in all of pro sports, but I like how it pours gasoline onto the Patriots? escalating fire with Tom Brady over extending that franchise QB to a fat new deal. It?s also an interesting reference point for the NFLPA to use against the owners in the CBA negotiations, as the Colts are often rumored to be one of the teams hard-lining for cost containment.
7. Andre Johnson wants a new contract in Houston just two seasons into a 7 yr./$60M deal that made him the highest paid NFL WR. His ego is bruised that some other receivers have passed him on that pegboard, and his new agent sure won?t let him forget that ?slight?. Johnson is not a troublemaker and wisely reported to camp, knowing that creating friction would only hurt his cause. But at some point these players have to honor their end of the deals and understand that one of the tradeoffs for long-term contracts and bigger up-front bonuses is that you cannot demand more money so quickly.
8. Pacman Jones uneventfully attends Bengals camp. By several accounts--including his own--Jones did not look very good on Monday, having trouble keeping his footing and adjusting to NFL speed. But his comments after practice showed a self-awareness and a respect for both the game and the process of going about being a professional that have heretofore been foreign concepts to Pacman. As one of his new teammates told me when they signed him, ?Dang, that just might be crazy enough to work.? Indeed.
9. Dez Bryant scoffs at Roy Williams, then suffers an injury that will keep him out until at least the regular-season opener. I find it intriguing that Bryant would not buy into the team-building tradition of carrying a veteran?s pads when he?s a guy that fell in the draft in no small part because his own selfishness cost his college team last year. While I think the rookie initiation traditions are cheesy at best, you have to play along or suffer the consequences...which in Bryant?s case was some seriously bad karma and a high ankle sprain. I still think he?ll be a dynamic impact rookie for a team that sure looks like the one to beat in the NFC.
10. Ronnie Brown is trying to come back from yet another injury. They ran a nice feature about the Dolphins RB in Tuesday?s USA Today, from which two things stood out to me. First, there are no ?fluke? injuries in football, not even non-contact injuries. It?s freaking football! Second, doesn?t it seem like Ronnie Brown has been in the NFL for like 12 years already? I was shocked at the reminder that he?s only entering his 6th season.
