CHIEFS "MORE PROFESSIONAL", MORE HOLDING IN '10, BLAINE GABBERT RATES HIGH & GOLDEN GETS GOOFY
Remember when Chiefs' all-pro guard Brian Waters demanded a trade a year ago? He was upset at not being able to converse with new coach Todd Haley or GM Scott Pioli the week before the draft. I said at the time to give all the parties a cooling off period & things might look better. Yesterday Water said "everybody is more professional & taking things more seriously." In what ways? Waters said "things were too relaxed under the last 3 coaches" referring to Herm Edwards, Dick Vermeil & Gunther Cunningham. It comes as no surprise to me a 4-time Pro Bowl veteran would prefer more structure & discipline, making players more accountable. Sometimes young players get their first monster check & pull back a little, prepare a little less & need some extra "guidance."
All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis of the New York Jets has returned to OTA's despite his unhappiness with his current contract. He said he was returning to be with his teammates & the Jets' current contract offer was "really insulting." The Chargers have allowed safety Keith Ellison to return to OTA's. He had been exiled because of an arrest for possession of a controlled substance without a prescription. He was nailed during a traffic stop after a police office spotted a bottle of 100 Vicodin sitting on his center console. Ellison, a starter last year, is facing a major challenge for his position & it's possible he was trying to keep his recurring knee pain a secret from the team. This happens way too often as players try to keep their roster spot by hiding injury or chronic pain with drugs like Vicodin.
I can see more offensive holding calls coming this season in the NFL. The league has moved the umpire from the defensive side to the left side of the offensive backfield. The umpire's former position was slightly behind the middle linebacker. After 13 umpires were knocked out of games last year, the league decided to move them to a safer spot on the field. The umpire was used by offenses for a pick by receivers running crossing routes & by runners, this is a major reason they were constantly being knocked down. Pursuing defenders, keeping their eyes on a receiver or ball carrier ran into the umps. Now both the referee & the umpire will be positioned behind the offensive line, the ump watching the left tackle, guard & center while the referee will keep an eye on the right guard, tackle & tight end. Both will watch the QB. This move should keep umpires league-wide much safer, but look for more flags.
The Houston Texans sponsored a 5K run/walk over the weekend to raise money for disabled Iraq & Afghani war vets. Players, their wives, a few coaches & office personnel participated & pledged money for the runners/walkers. They raised a whopping $218,000. God Bless them all, truly a worthy cause. The New Orleans Saints did a fund raiser for Louisiana coastal relief from the BP oil spill. The team sent two buses of players to the event. A total of their fund raising hasn't been announced.
Mizzou's Blaine Gabbert has a big fan, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. On their website Kiper has Gabbert ranked as his #1 junior quarterback in the nation. He loves Gabbert's size, 6' 5" 240, his arm strength & his decision making. He thinks if Gabbert can improve his accuracy this year, he could declare for the NFL. Next year might be very good for teams looking for a quarterback. Seniors Jake Locker of Washington, Case Keenum of Houston & Florida States' Christian Ponder along with 3rd year sophomores Ryan Mallett of Arkansas & Andrew Luck of Stanford could all figure in the first two rounds. Gabbert might be there as well. The one thing that could limit the underclassmen from declaring for the draft is the labor uncertainty in the NFL. If there's a lockout, look for these prospects to stay in school.
Over the weekend 6 Packer players participated in a charity golf tournament. Several of the players stayed in a condo on the golf course. One of the players, cornerback Brandon Underwood, ventured into a strip bar & got two of the "ladies" to return to the condo with him. By Sunday morning, the two women had alleged they were raped by several of the players. By this afternoon, police believe they have the real story. According to their investigation, Underwood offered cash for sex back at the condo & the ladies accompanied him there. While one young woman was having sex with Underwood, the other was rifling his pockets & stealing his watch. He caught them before they left & it created a big enough disturbance that condo neighbors called police. That's when the women claimed rape. His teammates are furious with him as is the charity organization who promoted the tournament. So what has yet another immature but well off young man discovered? Money, strippers, alcohol & bad judgment can have terrible consequences. But it won't be long before another player somewhere makes a similarly bad decision.
When the Seattle Seahawks drafted Notre Dame's Golden Tate in the second round, they thought they were getting a potentially great wide receiver as well as a solid citizen. He said in a radio interview "Being at Notre Dame, you're under a microscope constantly, so I won't have a difficult time making the right decision. My mother & my father raised me well & taught me what's right & what's wrong." Well apparently Mr. & Mrs Tate didn't counsel their son about breaking into doughnut shops in the middle of the night. Tate was apprehended inside a Top Pot doughnut & coffee shop at 3AM Sunday morning. The store wasn't open for business but Tate & a friend were feasting on doughnuts when police arrived. He was ticketed for trespassing but no formal charges will be filed. I'm sure this is just a coincidence, but TMZ is reporting that Top Pot just signed a deal in the last 30-days to be the official coffee & doughnut provider for Quest Field, the stadium where the Seahawks play. Yeah, that's a coincidence. I wonder if Tate thought Top Pot was something other than coffee? Having personally experienced that 3AM "craving" way back when, I was just wondering you know?
All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis of the New York Jets has returned to OTA's despite his unhappiness with his current contract. He said he was returning to be with his teammates & the Jets' current contract offer was "really insulting." The Chargers have allowed safety Keith Ellison to return to OTA's. He had been exiled because of an arrest for possession of a controlled substance without a prescription. He was nailed during a traffic stop after a police office spotted a bottle of 100 Vicodin sitting on his center console. Ellison, a starter last year, is facing a major challenge for his position & it's possible he was trying to keep his recurring knee pain a secret from the team. This happens way too often as players try to keep their roster spot by hiding injury or chronic pain with drugs like Vicodin.
I can see more offensive holding calls coming this season in the NFL. The league has moved the umpire from the defensive side to the left side of the offensive backfield. The umpire's former position was slightly behind the middle linebacker. After 13 umpires were knocked out of games last year, the league decided to move them to a safer spot on the field. The umpire was used by offenses for a pick by receivers running crossing routes & by runners, this is a major reason they were constantly being knocked down. Pursuing defenders, keeping their eyes on a receiver or ball carrier ran into the umps. Now both the referee & the umpire will be positioned behind the offensive line, the ump watching the left tackle, guard & center while the referee will keep an eye on the right guard, tackle & tight end. Both will watch the QB. This move should keep umpires league-wide much safer, but look for more flags.
The Houston Texans sponsored a 5K run/walk over the weekend to raise money for disabled Iraq & Afghani war vets. Players, their wives, a few coaches & office personnel participated & pledged money for the runners/walkers. They raised a whopping $218,000. God Bless them all, truly a worthy cause. The New Orleans Saints did a fund raiser for Louisiana coastal relief from the BP oil spill. The team sent two buses of players to the event. A total of their fund raising hasn't been announced.
Mizzou's Blaine Gabbert has a big fan, ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. On their website Kiper has Gabbert ranked as his #1 junior quarterback in the nation. He loves Gabbert's size, 6' 5" 240, his arm strength & his decision making. He thinks if Gabbert can improve his accuracy this year, he could declare for the NFL. Next year might be very good for teams looking for a quarterback. Seniors Jake Locker of Washington, Case Keenum of Houston & Florida States' Christian Ponder along with 3rd year sophomores Ryan Mallett of Arkansas & Andrew Luck of Stanford could all figure in the first two rounds. Gabbert might be there as well. The one thing that could limit the underclassmen from declaring for the draft is the labor uncertainty in the NFL. If there's a lockout, look for these prospects to stay in school.
Over the weekend 6 Packer players participated in a charity golf tournament. Several of the players stayed in a condo on the golf course. One of the players, cornerback Brandon Underwood, ventured into a strip bar & got two of the "ladies" to return to the condo with him. By Sunday morning, the two women had alleged they were raped by several of the players. By this afternoon, police believe they have the real story. According to their investigation, Underwood offered cash for sex back at the condo & the ladies accompanied him there. While one young woman was having sex with Underwood, the other was rifling his pockets & stealing his watch. He caught them before they left & it created a big enough disturbance that condo neighbors called police. That's when the women claimed rape. His teammates are furious with him as is the charity organization who promoted the tournament. So what has yet another immature but well off young man discovered? Money, strippers, alcohol & bad judgment can have terrible consequences. But it won't be long before another player somewhere makes a similarly bad decision.
When the Seattle Seahawks drafted Notre Dame's Golden Tate in the second round, they thought they were getting a potentially great wide receiver as well as a solid citizen. He said in a radio interview "Being at Notre Dame, you're under a microscope constantly, so I won't have a difficult time making the right decision. My mother & my father raised me well & taught me what's right & what's wrong." Well apparently Mr. & Mrs Tate didn't counsel their son about breaking into doughnut shops in the middle of the night. Tate was apprehended inside a Top Pot doughnut & coffee shop at 3AM Sunday morning. The store wasn't open for business but Tate & a friend were feasting on doughnuts when police arrived. He was ticketed for trespassing but no formal charges will be filed. I'm sure this is just a coincidence, but TMZ is reporting that Top Pot just signed a deal in the last 30-days to be the official coffee & doughnut provider for Quest Field, the stadium where the Seahawks play. Yeah, that's a coincidence. I wonder if Tate thought Top Pot was something other than coffee? Having personally experienced that 3AM "craving" way back when, I was just wondering you know?
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