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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The regular season starts next Sunday! For most of us, that day can?t come soon enough. Technically the schedule kicks off on Thursday night, but I?m one of those traditionalists that just can?t quite accept NFL action any time other than Sunday and Monday night.
The final week of preseason football is a dead spot in the lineup, but it leads to what I find one of the most fascinating days of the NFL calendar: final cutdown day. That reckoning hour hit at 6PM on Saturday and did not disappoint.
$.01-- Matt Leinart doesn?t just lose his starting job in Arizona, he loses his job, period. What a stunning fall for the Golden God, one that I must honestly say shocks me. I actually buy into Coach Ken Whisenhunt?s explanation which essentially stated that if Leinart wasn?t going to be the starter, both parties are better off with him not on the Cardinals. That doesn?t make Leinart?s release any less of a jolt, however. This is perhaps the greatest college QB of my lifetime, an incredibly successful winner with very few visible flaws coming out of USC.
Alas, Leinart apparently had masked two flaws that have proven fatal to his Cardinals career. Even though there were questions about his arm strength, he appears to have lost some zip off his already mediocre fastball. But the larger problem was his almost complete lack of outward passion for the game. The coolness and laid back attitude that makes so many women want to sire his children simply doesn?t translate well to the NFL locker room and practice field. Despite repeated exhortations from teammates, coaches, broadcasters, and critics, Leinart just hasn?t displayed the sort of intensity or drive to improve and succeed in the NFL. Now he gets to try and learn those attributes elsewhere. The fact that he got beat out by Derek Anderson and visibly outplayed by undrafted BYU rookie Max Hall doesn?t lend confidence that he?ll ever be anything close to what many of us expected.
*Late note: less than five minutes before I was set to submit this column, Leinart signed with the Houston Texans. My initial reaction is that is a perfect spot for him: good receivers, solid but injury prone starter ahead of him, coached by a former QB.
$.02-- The Darrelle Revis holdout drama has apparently reached a conclusion, with the Jets agreeing in principle on one of those ?it says this but really is that? sort of contracts commonplace amongst big-time free agents. Initial reports indicate it?s a 7 yr/$45M deal with approximately $32M guaranteed, one that voids down to four years. That?s a far cry from the 10 yr/$120M deal the Jets offered early this summer and isn?t even as much as what the team gave C Nick Mangold, who not incidentally was in camp all summer. It?s true that Revis got more guaranteed dollars out of the deal, but that?s not really the number that anyone pays attention to when judging the contracts.
Considering his old contract had three years and $21M left--all guaranteed had he shown up for camp--this acrimonious holdout netted Revis a loss of $4M in overall yearly value but a bump of $11M in guaranteed cash. He gave back almost $1M of that in holdout fines, but the real damage here is to his reputation, both with fans and in the locker room. Fans saw a favorite, likable, marquee talent selfishly make grossly unrealistic demands and posture himself as better than the team, insulting the hard-working mantra embraced by both the Jets and their fans. Teammates saw a guy put himself over the team for what appears to be not much tangible gain. Considering the gigantic void of leadership on this team with the release of Tony Richardson and all the early offseason cuts (Faneca, Jones, Rhodes), Revis comes back to a team incredibly tired of the drama and lacking the strong leadership presence (Bart Scott excepted) to smooth it over. I think he would have been better off sitting out a couple of games, if only to show teammates how much they really need him. That tactic certainly would have worked better with the fans, who would theoretically pressure the Jets even more to bring back Revis ASAP. But he blinked first, unable to stomach the funky chicken game, a game that I believe will help scuttle what could have been a very promising season for the Jets. I don?t see this team winning eight games now, let alone make the Super Bowl like so many think is their destiny.
$.03--Now that Revis Island is settled, fans need to pay closer attention to the remaining holdouts. I don?t think most people realize just how valuable Logan Mankins is to the Patriots and the Vincent Jackson/Marcus McNeill duo is to the Chargers. Those teams are more realistic Super Bowl candidates than Revis? Jets, in my opinion, but not without those holdout players.
Mankins appears the most likely to sit out the entire season, and he probably has the most to gain by such a tactic. He?s the Patriots? best lineman by a country mile, and I suspect their rushing offense will decline precipitously in his absence. This is already perhaps the thinnest New England roster since Tom Brady took over all those years ago, so not having such a key player severely crimps their ability. The Patriot offense is going to have to outscore opponents this year instead of just scoring enough to win, a subtlety that comes with having a subpar defense already ravaged by injuries. Without Mankins paving the way, I don?t think New England wins their division. That?s a golden opportunity for a young Miami team to pull off a stunner.
$.04-- It?s not just Sleepless in Seattle, it?s freaking chaos. The Seahawks have brought in and shipped out more players than a Vegas strip joint, creating a revolving door of roster upheaval that keeps changing right to the last minute. The release of highly compensated WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh wasn?t necessarily unexpected, but it still counts as a major upheaval.
The big surprise was the stunning retirement of legendary OL coach Alex Gibbs. Granted Gibbs is beyond retirement age (he?s 69) but for him to step aside so suddenly and so completely unexpectedly is not a good sign for Seattle. New Head Coach Pete Carroll loses a top lieutenant at perhaps the weakest part of his team, and he must replace one of the most respected OL coaches in league history with zero notice. There are various reports and rumors floating about Gibbs? motivation, but one of the commonalities to all those is that Carroll?s mind is too flighty to make a decision and stick to it, which drives everyone around him crazy. Witness the near-unprecedented turnover: of the final 53 roster members, just 22 played for this team a year ago, and 12 weren?t on the Seahawks roster August 1st. I actually like some of the moves, but the constant carousel in and out saps team chemistry and evaporates any sort of progress. It sure looks like another long season in Seattle, and if Carroll doesn?t quickly find a plan and stick to it, yet another long season for naught.
$.05-- It was a rough weekend for some recent high draft picks. Recent 2nd rounders Jarron Gilbert, Pat White, Chris Henry (for the 2nd time), James Hardy, Troy Smith, and Cody Brown, and recent 3rd rounders Joaquin Iglesias, Patrick Turner, Tyrone McKenzie, Jason Hill, and Tank Tyler all failed to make their respective teams. Bobby Carpenter proved it wasn?t just Dallas that was the problem, as the 1st rounder failed to make the Rams. In addition, recent high picks Reggie Nelson, Justin Tryon, Josh Wilson and Alphonso Smith were all traded for bags of peanuts rather than face the ignobility of being cut. This is a strong indication that teams are increasingly impatient and unwilling to hold a roster spot for a player that just isn?t what they thought he?d be, and they are more willing to admit their own mistakes. It?s also another indication that the scouting process has gotten away from the scouts and too heavily influenced by coaches and GMs that aren?t as versed on the scouting game. Almost every player I listed there was considered a draft reach by most knowledgeable draftniks, myself included save Carpenter. Had the scouts of the various teams had more say, pretty much all those mistakes would have been avoided.
$.06-- The Tennessee Titans made a couple of interesting moves involving a pair of grossly divergent rookies. Talented but personally troubled RB LeGarette Blount was released, not long after slugging a teammate in practice. That echoes the infamous Boise State Incident, and it proved more than Jeff Fisher was willing to deal with for a slow 3rd string running back. On the other end of the personality spectrum, Rhodes Scholar safety Myron Rolle just couldn?t show enough to make the team but was quickly snatched up on the practice squad. Rolle is the kind of person you want your children to grow up and become, and here?s one of many media members that is rooting hard for the Florida State product to make it despite his athletic limitations.
$.07-- The Curse of Rocky Colavito apparently lives strong in Cleveland. Not content with LeBron James holding a giant party to celebrate leaving his hometown, the sports gods decided to rain on the Browns as well, as highly promising rookie RB Montario Hardesty was placed on IR with a torn ACL--his third such injury. About the only positive that can be gleaned from that injury is that it saved a roster spot for fellow rookie QB Colt McCoy, who was in real danger of not making the team. I think Peyton Hillis will take over the power back role just fine, but at some point the sunshine will have to fall on the city of Cleveland instead of raining misery as it has for over 40 years.
$.08-- Looking ahead to the next draft, I focused my meager viewing time on Florida State QB Christian Ponder and came away very impressed. Granted Samford isn?t much competition, Ponder looked very sharp and accurate with his fastball in the Seminoles opener. His footwork was excellent and he did a fine job of using his eyes to look off the safeties. The more I?ve watched of Ponder, the more he reminds me Matt Ryan. He?s battled inconsistency in his FSU career, but if he continues to show such desirable NFL attributes all season he stands a fair chance to be not just a top 10 pick, but perhaps #1 overall. Color me bullish.
$.09-- 5 college quick hits:
1. Michigan doesn?t have a lot of talent, but they are damn fast at every position. That speed is going to give some teams some problems, as it did to UConn. The Wolverines are going to threaten to make a bowl game this year.
2. The East Carolina Hail Mary victory over Tulsa sets up the Pirates as a legit bowl spoiler and pretty much cements a spot in the CUSA title game. Beware this team, Hokie fans!
3. Kansas State RB Daniel Thomas is going to get a lot of Heisman attention, but he has a much better chance to win the Doak Walker award as the nation?s top RB. Not bad for a JUCO quarterback.
4. North Carolina is learning the hard way that success with Butch Davis comes at an awful high price. I believe every single allegation levied against the Tar Heels coaching staff, and it?s not going to end pretty in Chapel Hill.
5. The definition of karma: Jacksonville State upsetting Ole Miss, which features disgraced former Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli. He?s a convict, and the Rebels sold their soul to gain his services for a year. That?s what you get, Houston Nutt!
$.10-- On a personal note, my family is relocating from West Michigan to Houston this coming week. Longtime readers know that I?m a die-hard Ohio State Buckeye and my beautiful wife?s biggest flaw is her unabashed love of the Michigan Wolverines. This has left our children confused, which spawned my wife and I to conclude that we need to find a ?local? team that we can all root for. The thing is, none of us have any allegiance or leaning towards any school within a day?s drive of southeastern Texas. We need your help! Anyone with a compelling reason to root for any schools down there (A&M, Texas, LSU, TCU, Houston, Rice, Arkansas), send them to me at Jeff.Risdon@RealGM.com and persuade me why we should swear our secondary allegiance to your school. I?ll post the best result in a couple of weeks.
