THIS AND THAT..........MONDAY
A shaky Saint defense took another hit when they placed linebacker Mark Simoneau on injured reserve. This is the second consecutive season Simoneau has been lost for the year, back surgery in '08, torn triceps this summer. This might be the time for Derrick Brooks to get back into the league, the Saints worked him out last week.
Jets outside linebacker, Vernon Gholston, designated as head coach Rex Ryan's pet project, continues to disappoint. He made only 2 tackles in New York's game with St Louis & was a non-factor in the pass rush. The #6 overall pick in the 2008 draft is looking more & more like a total bust.
Steeler rookie #1 pick, Ziggy Hood, got a glowing review from both defensive line coach John Mitchell & defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau. Hood, in limited play, got a sack, a tackle for a loss & he beat a double team to pressure Arizona's Brian St. Pierre into throwing an interception. Mitchell, Pittsburgh's coach with the longest tenure at 16 years, demands his rookies forget nearly everything they learned in college & play the 'Steeler way'. Mitchell says Hood completely bought into this scheme plus he came to camp in superior shape. LeBeau said after watching the game tapes, he & Mitchell determined Hood made zero mental errors as well. The former Missouri Tiger may be a part of the early season line rotation, unusual for Steeler rookies.
I told you over the weekend the Chiefs had worked out WR Ashley Lelie. Kansas City signed him today & to make room on the roster, Jeff Webb, another of Herm's guys, was waived. Webb was Herm's son's best friend, who says nepotism is dead? Lelie's career could only be described as disappointing, a former 1st round pick out of Hawaii, he has but 217 receptions in 7 seasons with only 15 touchdowns. Bobby Engram, Amani Toomer & now Lelie, points to just how Edwards & Peterson left the cupboard bare. Except for Dwayne Bowe, the Chiefs are pretty much devoid of players in their prime or players who will ever have a prime.
Speaking of wide receivers, this Michael Crabtree holdout is just about as stupid a move as I've seen in a long time. He & his handlers/entourage/family or possibly his agents, have decided to break the slotting system used to set the rookie pay scale for years. Because he wasn't drafted in the top-5 as he anticipated, he is now holding out for top-5 money. Sorry, it just doesn't work that way & he's flushing his 2009 season right down the toilet. In the last 10 drafts, only two(2) 1st round wide receivers have caught more than 70 passes their rookie year. Know who they are? I'll give you a hint, it's not Tory Holt, Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, or Andre Johnson, all Pro Bowl players. This points to just how difficult it is to come in as a rookie WR & make an impact. At this point, what incentive can you point to for the Niners to throw more money at Crabtree? The time will come in the very near future, where he actually becomes worth less because he won't be ready to play opening day & he'd actually be making higher per game money than if he'd signed a month ago. And they'll be getting less production for that money than if he'd signed a month ago. So who are the 2 first-rounders who caught 70 or more passes in their rookie season? Tampa Bay's Michael Clayton & Kansas City's own 3rd stringer, Dwayne Bowe. Clayton never has been able to stay healthy since his rookie season & hopefully the Bowe demotion ends this week, Matt Cassel needs him right now.
Tennessee rookie Kenny Britt is the talk of the Titan's camp. He caught 5 passes for 89 yards & a 39-yard touchdown in Saturday's exhibition game. The #1 need, other than replacing Albert Haynesworth at DT, was a deep threat at WR. They signed free agent Nate Washington & drafted Britt with their 1st round pick. He came to camp in shape, his ability to absorb the playbook has surprised Titan coaches & he's worked tirelessly running routes & catching balls from the Juggs machine. The Titan receiving corps, which needed a real upgrade with only Justin Gage as a legitimate starter, could be a real strength in '09. Coupled with productive TE Bo Scaife & the one-two punch of Chris Johnson & LenDale White at RB, the Titans could be a force offensively for the first time since the old Steve McNair/Eddie George days.
One more wide receiver note: Former Dallas Cowboy & Pro Football Hall of Fame wideout, Michael Irvin, will be a competitor on the next season of "Dancing With the Stars". So you'll want to look for that. I will say the football players have faired very well on the show. Emmitt Smith won, Jason Taylor & Jerry Rice finished second & Warren Sapp finished third. Lawrence Taylor stumbled around for a fifth place finish, the one bad finish for ex-pro football players.
Missouri had a full scrimmage Saturday & the guys who were supposed to look good, Blaine Gabbert, Derrick Washington, Danario Alexander, De'Vion Moore, Andrew Jones & the O-line all looked good. One guy who jumped out too was true freshman QB Blaine Dalton. The Blue Springs product was 16-27 for 187 yards & ran for 25 yards on 4 carries. His main competition for the backup QB spot, sophomore Jimmy Costello & fellow true freshman, Ashton Glaser, both had a rough afternoon. Glaser threw 3 picks & Costello was only 11 of 25. Senior wideout Jared Perry was demoted to the 2nd team, possibly a Haley/Bowe motivational ploy.
Today's real name of the day: T'Sharvin Bell, defensive back & kick returner, Auburn.
Jets outside linebacker, Vernon Gholston, designated as head coach Rex Ryan's pet project, continues to disappoint. He made only 2 tackles in New York's game with St Louis & was a non-factor in the pass rush. The #6 overall pick in the 2008 draft is looking more & more like a total bust.
Steeler rookie #1 pick, Ziggy Hood, got a glowing review from both defensive line coach John Mitchell & defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau. Hood, in limited play, got a sack, a tackle for a loss & he beat a double team to pressure Arizona's Brian St. Pierre into throwing an interception. Mitchell, Pittsburgh's coach with the longest tenure at 16 years, demands his rookies forget nearly everything they learned in college & play the 'Steeler way'. Mitchell says Hood completely bought into this scheme plus he came to camp in superior shape. LeBeau said after watching the game tapes, he & Mitchell determined Hood made zero mental errors as well. The former Missouri Tiger may be a part of the early season line rotation, unusual for Steeler rookies.
I told you over the weekend the Chiefs had worked out WR Ashley Lelie. Kansas City signed him today & to make room on the roster, Jeff Webb, another of Herm's guys, was waived. Webb was Herm's son's best friend, who says nepotism is dead? Lelie's career could only be described as disappointing, a former 1st round pick out of Hawaii, he has but 217 receptions in 7 seasons with only 15 touchdowns. Bobby Engram, Amani Toomer & now Lelie, points to just how Edwards & Peterson left the cupboard bare. Except for Dwayne Bowe, the Chiefs are pretty much devoid of players in their prime or players who will ever have a prime.
Speaking of wide receivers, this Michael Crabtree holdout is just about as stupid a move as I've seen in a long time. He & his handlers/entourage/family or possibly his agents, have decided to break the slotting system used to set the rookie pay scale for years. Because he wasn't drafted in the top-5 as he anticipated, he is now holding out for top-5 money. Sorry, it just doesn't work that way & he's flushing his 2009 season right down the toilet. In the last 10 drafts, only two(2) 1st round wide receivers have caught more than 70 passes their rookie year. Know who they are? I'll give you a hint, it's not Tory Holt, Larry Fitzgerald, Calvin Johnson, or Andre Johnson, all Pro Bowl players. This points to just how difficult it is to come in as a rookie WR & make an impact. At this point, what incentive can you point to for the Niners to throw more money at Crabtree? The time will come in the very near future, where he actually becomes worth less because he won't be ready to play opening day & he'd actually be making higher per game money than if he'd signed a month ago. And they'll be getting less production for that money than if he'd signed a month ago. So who are the 2 first-rounders who caught 70 or more passes in their rookie season? Tampa Bay's Michael Clayton & Kansas City's own 3rd stringer, Dwayne Bowe. Clayton never has been able to stay healthy since his rookie season & hopefully the Bowe demotion ends this week, Matt Cassel needs him right now.
Tennessee rookie Kenny Britt is the talk of the Titan's camp. He caught 5 passes for 89 yards & a 39-yard touchdown in Saturday's exhibition game. The #1 need, other than replacing Albert Haynesworth at DT, was a deep threat at WR. They signed free agent Nate Washington & drafted Britt with their 1st round pick. He came to camp in shape, his ability to absorb the playbook has surprised Titan coaches & he's worked tirelessly running routes & catching balls from the Juggs machine. The Titan receiving corps, which needed a real upgrade with only Justin Gage as a legitimate starter, could be a real strength in '09. Coupled with productive TE Bo Scaife & the one-two punch of Chris Johnson & LenDale White at RB, the Titans could be a force offensively for the first time since the old Steve McNair/Eddie George days.
One more wide receiver note: Former Dallas Cowboy & Pro Football Hall of Fame wideout, Michael Irvin, will be a competitor on the next season of "Dancing With the Stars". So you'll want to look for that. I will say the football players have faired very well on the show. Emmitt Smith won, Jason Taylor & Jerry Rice finished second & Warren Sapp finished third. Lawrence Taylor stumbled around for a fifth place finish, the one bad finish for ex-pro football players.
Missouri had a full scrimmage Saturday & the guys who were supposed to look good, Blaine Gabbert, Derrick Washington, Danario Alexander, De'Vion Moore, Andrew Jones & the O-line all looked good. One guy who jumped out too was true freshman QB Blaine Dalton. The Blue Springs product was 16-27 for 187 yards & ran for 25 yards on 4 carries. His main competition for the backup QB spot, sophomore Jimmy Costello & fellow true freshman, Ashton Glaser, both had a rough afternoon. Glaser threw 3 picks & Costello was only 11 of 25. Senior wideout Jared Perry was demoted to the 2nd team, possibly a Haley/Bowe motivational ploy.
Today's real name of the day: T'Sharvin Bell, defensive back & kick returner, Auburn.
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