I’m usually pro-league on stuff like this - and I’m always anti-Cowboy - but how is this anything other than a textbook example of collusion? There was no salary cap, the league knew there wouldn’t be one but they wanted one anyway, so the owners got together and agreed amongst themselves that they would punish anyone who didn’t adhere to the non-existent cap.
It’s not exactly the same as artificially keeping free agent salaries down, but how is it not collusion?
Supposedly the CBA explicitly forbids lawsuits for actions taken during the lockout.
Naturally the NFLPA disagrees with that interpretation. The way I read it is pretty ironclad in the NFLs favor.
“Worth it” in an abstract, moral sense, but IMO McCoy is much, much more valuable, insofar as a team doing a signing is going to base it not on what the player has done, but what they expect the player to do in the future.
The difference between 23 and 26 is huge: probably half of great RBs have already had their best seasons by 26, and the very large majority of them have had their best seasons by 27 or 28. That’s especially the case when guys are used as heavily as Forte – lead back on his team for eight straight years – has been. The odds are that Forte is already closer to the end of his prime than he is to the beginning of it.
Of course, the Bears aren’t in the position of picking one or the other, they’re just trying to make the best decision given what they have. But it would be entirely rational of them to decide that their best move is franchising Forte for a year or two and then moving on.
Oh I don’t think anything will come of the lawsuit. But if I needed any more proof that even the owners were pretty sure that this was an act of collusion, it’s that little nugget in the new CBA right there.
“Whereas we’re pretty sure we’re gonna get in trouble for that whole cap thing, let it be agreed by all parties that, um, anything that happened before we signed this thing never happened so stop talking about it already.”
Things are looking worse for the Jaguars as their big off season addition gets arrested for his second DUI.
To get the conversation going, Pat Kirwan of nfl.com has an article about the top five teams in the NFL in terms of depth. What do you think? Agree?
How about his critical depth positions? How does your team fare? I’ll take the Eagles, because the funny should ensue, if nothing else.
1. A backup quarterback who can go at least 2-2 if he had to take over for a month straight.
Mike Kafka is the projected backup. He came in against Atlanta last year and showed good poise for a rookie and good accuracy. The next week against the Giants he was horrendous. His biggest knock is that he doesn’t have an NFL arm. Early reports this season is that he has greatly improved his arm strength, but “early” is the key there. As in, “probably bullshit.” This is a definite no.
2. A second running back who could be a 1,000 yard back if he had to take over or at least generate 75 yards of offense a week as a runner and receiver.
I really love the Eagles’ potential depth at RB, but between 5’8" Dion Lewis, college super-bust Bryce Brown, and UDFA Chris Polk, this is a definite no. Right now.
3. A third wide receiver who could go in for a starter down and generate 4-6 receptions a game as an X or a Z.
JASON AVANT! GAME OVER BITCHES. Okay, seriously, while I like Avant for what he does, he’s not a starting caliber WR. He could easily get 4-6 catches, but he’d get fewer than 60-75 yards with them. No.
4. A second tight end who could be a legitimate threat as a blocker or receiver.
Clay Harbor just hasn’t lived up to his potential. No on either count.
5. Two experienced backup offensive linemen. A swing tackle for either side and an inside player for the guards/center. Experience required because they will not get many reps in practice until injuries occur.
King Dunlap has experience and shown some flashes of ability on the outside, but the Eagles lack depth inside. I’ll give it a half. A kinda.
6. A third defensive tackle already in a rotation that could play a whole game well if a starter went down.
Most definitely yes. Between #1 pick Fletcher Cox, surprise contributors Antonio Dixon and Derek Landri, the Eagles probably have the most depth at DT in the league. Even Cedric Thornton has potential as a good rotation guy.
7. A pass rush specialist that could play some run down situations if a starter went down.
I’m confident that someone out of 2012 2nd rounder Vinny Curry, 2010 1st rounder Brandon Graham, or Darryl Tapp could fill this spot. Even Phillip Hunt has been really good in his limited opportunities. Yes.
8. A fourth corner back that could bump up to the nickel corner if that player had to replace an injured starter.
Yes. Brandon Boykin will probably be the nickel starter sooner rather than later, which leaves a very experienced Joselio Hanson as the #4. Assuming both have a roster spot in week 1.
9. A third safety that can start or provide a defense with an opportunity to play some ‘Big Nickel’ when needed.
The Eagles just signed OJ Atogwe, which gives them three capable starters with experience and upside. And Jaiquawn Jarrett will get his first real offseason, though admittedly he’s looking like a serious bust so far. Still a solid yes.
10. Four core special team players that could help on offense or defense in a pinch.
Colt Anderson is an elite special teams player who could help in the secondary a little. The Eagles will have at least two LBs playing special teams with starting experience. That leaves one guy on the roster to fill the fourth spot. I’m confident there’s one on offense. Yes.
Four No, One Kinda, Five Yes. Not as good as I thought as I was pretty happy with the Eagles depth overall. But the Eagles miss on the most important depth spots at the top of the list. I don’t think they belong in the top five in the NFL. In evaluating Philly’s depth this way, it’s easy to see where there are some significant holes and potential disasters.
Anything interesting for your team recently?
Out here in 49ersland, the big kerfluffle is that pash-rush phenom Aldon Smith was stabbed at a house party in the San Jose foothills, reportedly while trying to break up a fight. Minor injuries, recovering currently. At least he wasn’t one of the two guys there that got shot (also not life threatening, thankfully).
this come a few months after Aldon was cited for drunk driving in Florida.
Dude, get your shit together.
All is quiet in Bengal-land…for now.
I spoke with our head scout, Greg Seamon (who incidentally coached at West Point) at a sports bar that’s in my neighborhood that we both frequent as he lives here as well, and he gave me a heads up on the standouts from the OTA’s (Terrance Newman, Brandon Ghee, Brandon Tate, Armon Binns, Mohamed Sanu, Benjarvus Green-Ellis) and gave me some poop on our two returnees from injury, Jordan Shipley (not as far along as they’d like) and Leon Hall (apparently way ahead of schedule).
He also told me d-coordinator Mike Zimmer, the author of two top-ten defenses in in the last three years, is experimenting with Nate Clements at safety on obvious passing downs.
I am stoked about the Bengals defensive line. They are going to be a really aggressive pass rushing unit next season and I can’t wait to see what Devon Still and Brandon Thompson can add to the mix along with Geno Atkins and Carlos Dunlap. We have a really good, young core of players in that group.
The biggest battles will be at CB and WR. At WR they have 12 guys competing for 6 spots. And at CB we have 1st round draft pick Dre Kirkpatrick, Leon Hall, Adam Jones (who will be returning punts again), Brandon Ghee, Jason Allen (also being looked at at safety), Nate Clements, Terrance Newman and Shaun Prater.
Greg told me that we are going to have to cut some good players that other teams will likely pick up.
So freaking amped for the season to start. At least the Reds are providing some entertainment in the form of some decent baseball, a welcome change from their dismal years from 1997-2008.
Trying to see how many former first round picks the Bengals have…its a lot. They have excelled recently in reclamation projects from other teams…let’s see (I wish there was an easy way to look this up rather than using Wiki for every player on the roster!)…
Jason Allen (2006)
Jamaal Anderson (2007)
Nate Clements (2001)
AJ Green (2011-Bengals)
Jermaine Gresham (2010-Bengals)
Leon Hall (2007-Bengals)
Derrick Harvey (2008)
Adam Jones (2005)
Dre Kirkpatrick (2012-Bengals)
Reggie Nelson (2007)
Terrance Newman (2003)
Andre Smith (2009-Bengals)
Kevin Zeitler (2012-Bengals)
That’s quite a few…and they have a boatload of 2nd rounders still on their roster as well. Are there any other teams out there with more 1st round picks on their roster than Cincinnati right now? 13 doesn’t sound like a lot, but it seems like a lot to me, given the bust ratio and the turnover/contract crap that all NFL teams go through.
A big issue for the NFL (well, mostly owners of teams) is how to justify the expense of going to games when the TV experience has become so damn good.
Interesting article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303561504577495083707417526.html
“The at-home experience has gotten better and cheaper, while the in-stadium experience feels like it hasn’t,” said Eric Grubman, the NFL’s executive vice president of ventures and business operations. “That’s a trend that we’ve got to do something about.”
No shit, sherlock.
A couple or family on a normal 60k-100k income would have an extremely difficult time justifying season ticket expenses, let alone expenses for a single game, especially since TV has become so awesome for games.
For me? I love going to the games but only get down to the stadium a couple times a year. I just cannot afford it…and frankly, the view from my armchair and my low-cost beers pretty much negates the in-stadium experience…almost.
Last season I went to a game with a female friend, spent $170 on two tickets, $30 to park, $8 a beer (we had, um…a lot of those), $5 for one hot dog, $4 for a bottle of water…it ended up costing me like $400. Its not chump change. I could have watched the game at home in a “better” seat with my own eats and drinks and spent no more than $40 for everything.
Its simple economics.
i’m not an NFL superfan but i do love football as a sport. i go to way more college games than i do pro games. cost is one thing. convenience another ('skins fan. fed-ex is a pain in the ass to get to).
I used to be a Skins fan when I lived in Northern VA in the 1980’s…back when they were a model franchise. Now under Snyder…not so much.
… And now the NFL is loosening the blackout rules, too. My co-workers who are going through the rigamarole about getting shafted with the new 49ers stadium season tickets (with PSLs now, a first for the team), my response is generally, “I have a really big TV.”
" and 15 second rewind and 30 second skip forward buttons, too "
Herm Edwards is always right. In this instance “nothing good happens after midnight”. Its pretty much true.
The Browns have taken Josh Gordon in the supplemental draft (with a 2nd pick).
There was some talk that the Browns didn’t do nearly enough in the draft to address their wide receiver corps. So this is something to consider in that discussion.
I don’t really know what to add to it. Gordon seems to have everything you want in a WR prospect aside from proven production and a couple seasons of experience. A 2nd rounder is a high price for someone with so many question marks, but he’s often called a 1st round talent. Sounds like a bargain to me. And if you’re ging to draft your QB of the future, you need to give him some support. I like the idea of Weeden getting Richardson and Gordon to grow with.
That’s two WRs the Browns have taken that sat out a year in college for disciplinary/eligibility reasons.
I don’t know about this one.
Fuck yeah.
That just means they’re fresh! No wear and tear! Chompin’ at the bit to get to it and put that work in!
… right?
He was projected to get a third round bid. So a 2 is a little overpriced in that regard, but I think he’s worth the chance.