July is over, and unless you’re a Minnesota Twins fan, which means you have had the pleasure of watching panels of experts rub their nipples over your team for 2 hours each night, you’re ready for some football.
Luckily for you, football is exactly what you are going to get. Training camps have opened on sleepy college campuses across this great land of ours. Soon, the preseason begins, and we’ll get our first look at the rookies we so diligently dissected back in April, and we’ll also undoubtedly see best laid plans changed at the snap of a knee tendon for many NFL teams.
While the cable network shows might give you a 30 second snippet on your favorite teams or players, you and I both know that’s not enough. If you want more, I’m here to give it to you. I’m your NFL pusherman. Take my hand, dutiful reader, and together you and I will traipise thru the giant nutcracker drill that is an NFL August, starting right now.
NFC EAST
– Giants’ TE Jeremy Shockey has been making a lot of news lately. First, he gave an interview where he owned up to being a notorious drinker, then a couple days later was feeling decidedly punch drunk after sustaining a concussion in practice. The Giants will have to monitor this throughout the season, because once you’ve had one concussion, they seem to keep on coming after that, and they’ve been known to end careers.
– Joe Gibbs has been coaching in the NFL for a long time. This year, though, he’ll be doing something he’s never done as a head coach. He’ll be delegating play calling to somebody else. That responsibility will fall to Al Saunders. Saunders has spent the last few seasons as the offensive mind behind Kansas City’s productive offense, and is seen as one of the NFL’s elite offensive architects. With Gregg Williams running the defense, and Saunders in charge of the offense, Gibbs has now seemingly fully delegated responsibilities and will serve in a CEO type role. Think of him as Vince McMahon, only less batshit insane, and Williams and Saunders as Eric Bischoff and Teddy Long. There you go, now you’ve got it.
– By all reports, the mood around Redskins camp is an extremely positive one. The team is coming off a pretty successful 2005 campaign that saw them reach the playoffs for the first time this decade, excited about new wideouts Antwaan Randle El and Brandon Lloyd, glad to be without malcontent linebacker LaVar Arrington, the team’s top draft pick, linebacker Rocky McIntosh is signed and in camp, and for the first time in years there is no controversy over who is the team’s starting quarterback (Mark Brunell). Yes siree, things certainly are wonderful in Redskin Park. Not with WR David Patten though, he’s been hospitalized with viral meningitis. So that kinda sucks for him.
– Cowboys’ Head Coach Bill Parcells signed an extension this offseason that will keep him in Dallas thru the 2007 season. Ahahahahahahaha. Yeah, right. If you believe Parcells is going to stick around for year 2 of T.O. in Dallas, given the track record of how things went after year one with Owens in Philly, then you, my friend, aren’t too smart. T.O. will be somebody else’s problem next year, not Parcells’.
– While Owens has been the picture of contentment during camp so far this year, defensive end/outside linebacker Greg Ellis has been anything but. Ellis, who had 8 sacks for the Cowboys last year, and has had 8 or more sacks for 3 seasons in a row, says he no longer wants to play for the Cowboys. The Cowboys want him to move from defensive end to outside linebacker, and he no like that.
– Eagles’ WR Todd Pinkston missed all of last season with an injury, and his status for 06 is also in doubt after the early days of training camp left him struggling with pain in his healing Achilles tendon. The Eagles’ other projected starting wideout, Reggie Brown, has also been missing practice time with a sore hamstring. These mishaps have led to speculation that the Eagles might trade for disgruntled Broncos wideout Ashley Lelie.
– And in keeping with the Eagles’ yearly tradition of having a horrible training camp, their first round pick remains unsigned. Defensive lineman Brodrick Bunkley remains a holdout, and with the first preseason game only days away, and not a whole lot of practice time between the first two exhibition contests, it’s looking more and more like Bunkley’s holdout will severly cut in to his prep time for his rookie year.
This Rookie Hopes To Be The Cowboys’ Firestarter
NFC NORTH
– No team plays politics like the Bears. Why else would you relegate a running back who rushed for 1300 yards last season, Thomas Jones, to second string, in order to elevate a second year back (who you happened to use the 4th overall pick in last year’s draft on, because, you know, you REALLY needed another running back) who carried for 272 yards before getting injured last season? Well, the biggest reason is that above all else, Bears GM Jerry Angelo likes to be proved right. It’s the reason why the Bears keep waiting for Rex Grossman to evolve into a viable NFL starting quarterback they way Linus waits for the Great Pumpkin, and it’s the reason why one of the league’s premier backs will be riding the pine at the start of this season.
– Meanwhile, while you have a 1300 yard rusher on the bench, the Bears apparently will be starting a wide receiver, Bernard Berrian, who has 471 receiving yards in his first 2 NFL seasons combined, and a tight end, Desmond Clark, who has barely over 500 receiving yards in his first 2 seasons combined. With the defense the Bears have, and the sorry state of the rest of their division, it’s going to be very hard for the Bears not to win the NFC North this year, but rest assured, they seem to be doing everything they can to accomplish that unlikely feat.
– Minnesota’s first round draft choice, linebacker Chad Greenway, is in camp, but the status of the starting QB, Brad Johnson, is up in the air. Johnson is still playing under the contract he signed before last season to be Daunte Culpepper’s backup, paying him backup money. Culpepper’s gone now, Johnson is the starter, and wants to be paid as such. Johnson agreed not to hold out of training camp, but as of right now he is still trying to renegotiate his contract.
– The Vikings have reached out to a couple of unemployed veteran players in hopes that they can contribute this year. Safety Dwight Smith, who was released by the Saints, and who also once took two INT’s back for touchdowns in the Super Bowl for Tampa, was signed to provide secondary depth. The Vikings also signed former Bears and Falcons wideout Dez White. White will try to stick as the team’s 4th or 5th receiver.
– A potential rookie holdout situation was nipped in the bud when the Lions signed their first two draft picks, linebacker Ernie Sims and safety Daniel Bullocks, after they had missed the opening of camp.
– Lions’ WR Charles Rogers, who was the second overall pick in the 2003 draft but has floundered with injuries in substance abuse issues, is in camp and is said to be looking good. His weight is down to 195, which is the lowest of his career. Rogers downplayed his off-field issues, telling the Detroit News, “Yeah, I’ve got control of my life,” Rogers said. “I probably wasn’t doing anything that you all weren’t doing when you all were 24, 25. You all went to college.”
– While the whole offseason in Wisconsin has been spent slicing open goats and reading their innards to try and determine whether Brett Favre would decide to play this year or not, the Packers have a less documented problem of having a pair of prodigal cornerbacks. Al Harris showed up for the opening of training camp, but not with his happy face on. He’s been skipping lots of offseason programs and wants some new paper. Former Raider and free agent signing Charles Woodson chose not to participate in team workouts this offseason, instead working out on his own at home.
– While Brett Favre has been sitting in a golf cart for most of camp, second year quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been getting starters reps in many practices. The plan is for Rodgers to play with the first team during any morning practices on days the Packers have two practices. Favre doesn’t need to be in all the practices, because he played so great last year. Should be an awesome season for the Pack, they seem to really be focused on one thing, winning. Or kissing Brett Favre’s ass, I forget which.
Peanut Will Try Not to Get Roasted This Year
NFC SOUTH
– It’s probably nothing to be alarmed about, but if Steve Smith has any kind of injury, the Panthers have to be at least a little concerned. Coach John Fox has said that Smith, who had 1563 receiving yards and 12 TDs last season, is “day to day” with a hamstring injury. Meaning, don’t expect to be seeing much of him in the preseason. Most likely, don’t expect to see any of him.
– -Meanwhile, the man who will line up on the side of the field opposite Smith this year had some unexpected profound advice for his new teammates. New WR Keyshawn Johnson weighed in on the high expectations for his new team, telling reporters, “I can remember when I was in Tampa, every single year we were picked to win it all and we were always at home at the end of the day. You don’t win anything right now. I want to be picked on Super Bowl day.”
– Speaking of Keyshawns’ old team, this will be the Bucs’ first training camp with Chris Simms as their starting quarterback. Simms made a great deal of progress in 2005, his third NFL season. He took over for injured QB Brian Greise midway thru the season, and played well enough to remain the team’s starter. He also got the opportunity to start a playoff game, an experience that may prove valuable to the Bucs come January.
– If Michael Vick wants to make an effort to be a real quarterback this season, he’s going to have to do it without his top wideout from last year. Brian Finneran, who led all Falcons WR’s with 611 yards last season, is lost for the season after suffering a knee injury in practice. Finneran projected as the team’s third wideout this year, a role that will now have to be filled by either 6th round pick Adam Jennings or rookie free agent Cedric Bonner. Expect the Falcons to be inquiring about Broncos’ receiver Ashley Lelie like, now.
– Ah yes, the magical, enchanted, “revolutionizing the position” Michael Vick. He came out and told USA Today this week that he basically didn’t give his full effort in the team’s season ending 44-11 defeat against Carolina last year. “That will never happen again. I apologized to my teammates, my coaches and myself and my family for doing that.” My view on this is, admitting you did something doesn’t make it OK. If you tanked a game, you probably shouldn’t go public with that info. That’s an awesome way to get your coach fired. As long as he can stand on two legs, somebody’s going to give Michael Vick a job as an NFL starting quarterback. Jim Mora, on the other hand, is on thin ice already in Atlanta, and Vick telling a national newspaper that he sandbagged the last game isn’t going to help him any.
– After a week of bandying about “Will he sit out the season?” nonsense, Reggie Bush and the Saints have agreed to a contract. The New Orleans Time Picayune reports it will be a 6 year deal that will guarantee Bush $26 million dollars.
– The Saints have given WR Devery Henderson a chance to beat out Donte Stallworth for a starting wideout job, but so far he has dropped the ball, literally and figuratively.
Reggie Kicks It 1981 Topps Card Style
NFC WEST
– The biggest news coming out of Seahawks camp is the return of safety Ken Hamlin. Hamlin was beaten, almost to death, outside of a bar last fall, and the injuries caused him to miss the remainder of the season. Hamlin suffered a fractured skull in the incident. The Seahawks are not yet sure whether he will be able to play this season, and will be monitoring him closely.
– The Rams have got their first round pick signed and in camp. Cornerback Tye Hill agreed to a five year deal which guarantees him $6 million dollars.
– Cardinals’ QB Matt Leinart is the highest profile holdout of this year’s draft class. Leinart was the 10th player taken in this year’s draft, and is a quarterback, so you would think the closest comparable player would be the player selected immediately after him, Broncos QB Jay Cutler. Cutler is signed to a six year deal with $11 million guaranteed. With Leinart unsigned, it looks as if John Navarre will open camp as the Cards’ number 2 quarterback.
– Arizona’s offensive line took a hit when right tackle Oliver Ross injured his knee in practice. Reports say the injury could keep him out from 3-10 weeks.
– The Niners added depth to their secondary by signing former Green Bay safety Mark Roman shortly after he was released by the Packers. Roman is a 6 year veteran who played in all 16 games for the Pack last year and had 2 interceptions and 90 tackles.
– You can cross Cody Pickett off of SF’s very long QB depth chart. Pickett, who not only started a few games at quarterback for the Niners last year but also played on kick coverage teams, was traded to the Texans last week for a conditional draft pick.
Rated R Superstar- You Think You Know Him
AFC EAST
– Tom Brady has missed 3 straight practices, leading to speculation that he may be nursing an injury. If he is, coach Bill Belichick isn’t going to let anybody know. The man in the hooded sweatshirt told the Boston Herald, “”The guys that aren’t out there, it’s either because of their practice routine or because they’re day-to-day.”. Translate that comment to English, and it says, “Brady’s not practicing because he’s hurt, or because he isn’t hurt, one of those two things.” Okay then.
– The real reason Brady hasn’t been practicing may be that the team wants to take a long look at backup Matt Cassel. The second year QB is currently the team’s #2 should Brady go down, so the Pats probably will want to see as much of him as they can in the preseason, since he’s an inexperienced player in what could be a very important role.
– Dolphins’ coach Nick Saban turned down an invite to dine with President Bush last week, while Bush was in South Florida. Saban said he would have loved the opportunity to eat with the president, but it being during training camp, he had nighttime meetings that prevented him from doing so. Bush instead ate with some members of the 72 Dolphins.
– The Dolphins are just chock full of juicy non-football related news. DE Jason Taylor’s wife has filed for divorce. She also happens to be the sister of Dolphins’ linebacker Zach Thomas. Taylor told the Miami Herald there would be no animosity between the 2 players as a result of this situation, saying, “I think it’s ridiculous that anyone would even think that . We’re professionals, guys.”
– You can pretty much cross Craig Nall off your list of potential Bills’ opening day quarterbacks. He suffered a hamstring injury in camp that will sideline him for much of the preseason. That leaves the Bills with the same choice they had last year, JP Losman, Kelly Holcomb, or ritualistic Seppuku.
– The Bills are 1 for 2 so far in getting their first round picks signed. Pick 1b, defensive tackle John McCargo, was signed last week, but safety Donte Whitner, who made Mel Kiper’s head explode when the Bills used a top 10 pick on him, is still a holdout. I guess maybe the Bills thought they could get a discount on him since he wasn’t expected to go so high. I guess they thought wrong.
– D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold, the Jets 2 first round picks and what they hope will be the cornerstone of their offensive line for years to come, are both in camp and are both practicing. Both have been playing with the first team.
– It’s looking like the quarterback Brick and Nick will be protecting, at least early in the season, will be Chad Pennington. He has looked healthy in camp and it appears he has the inside track to the starting job.
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Culpepper and The Dolphins Are The Cool Pick in the AFC East
AFC NORTH
– Steelers coach Bill Cowher is a free agent after this season, and progress on a contract extension is moving slowly. Rumors have been bounced around that this season, Cowher’s 15th in Pittsburgh, will be his last and that he will “retire” after this season. He has recently bought a house in North Carolina, so read into that whatever you want.
– The Bengals continue their mission to be the Portland Jail Blazers of the NFL. Second year linebacker Odell Thurman, who had a stellar rookie season in 05, will miss the first 4 games of the 06 season while serving a drug suspension. Thurman was contrite when reporting to camp, saying, “”I want to say that I did make a mistake. I want to apologize to my teammates, the guys who sweat with me, this organization, my friends and family and, most of all, to the fans and the kids that look up to me.”
– Carson Palmer is being handled with great care during camp as he attempts to be ready for the season opener after suffering a grisly knee injury in the playoffs last year. The Bengals have a schedule for him where he is held out of certain practices. Palmer’s backup this year will be former Ravens QB Anthony Wright. So the Bengals better hope Palmer can stay healthy.
– Most of the attention in Ravens camp has been focused on new quarterback Steve McNair, but equally important is the question of whether running back Jamal Lewis can rebound after an ineffective and injury-plagued 2005 season and return to being one of the league’s elite running backs, or at the very least a pretty good one. Lewis knows that the fate of the Ravens’ season may rest with him. He told the Baltimore Sun, “”I have to prove to myself again what (Ravens GM) Ozzie Newsome and (Head Coach) Brian Billick already know, that I’m still a great running back.”
– You’ve probably already heard this one, but I think it bears repeating. Browns’ TE Kellen Winslow, who I think has missed each of the last 8 seasons with injuries, has said he will never be 100% the player he was before the injuries, but that “90% of him is better than any tight end out there”. In what league, Kellen? Arena Football 2? Please crack 100 career receiving yards before you are declaring 90% of yourself better than 100% of Antonio Gates or Tony Gonzalez okay Evel? You’re about to get the reality check that you play for the Browns and Charlie Frye is going to be bouncing passes off your shoelaces all year. Good luck with that, superstar.
– Of course, it just wouldn’t be a Browns’ preseason without some key player suffering a season-ending injury. This year, it’s their prize free agent signing, two-time Pro Bowl center LeCharles Bentley. Bentley blew out his knee in the second practice of camp, and is out for the year.
McNair and The Ravens Hope To Rap at Pittsburgh’s Chamber Door In 06
AFC SOUTH
– The Colts almost had disaster happen in a recent practice when WR Reggie Wayne suffered an apparent eye injury after being poked by corner Jason David. Wayne returned to practice and seems to be OK.
– RB Dominic Rhodes rushed for over 1000 yards in his rookie season, after Edgerrin James went down with an injury. The Colts are hoping he can at least duplicate that effort his year. Rhodes told USA Today, “I’m so hungry I feel like I haven’t eaten in five years.” I’m assuming he means hungry for yards and the chance to be a star, not hungry for Ding Dongs. That would make him Lamont Jordan.
– Jags QB Byron Leftwich is impressed with one of his new receivers, TE Marcedes Lewis, who Jacksonville drafted with the 28th pick in this year’s draft. Leftwich marveled to the Florida Times-Union regarding a catch Lewis made in practice, “He made one of the top five catches I’ve seen since I’ve been a pro. I’ve never seen anybody catch the back of the ball. For somebody that big, he’s got special hands. He was tripping coming out of the break and he wasn’t even looking at the ball and he caught the back of the ball. That’s so hard to do.” I think somebody has a crush on someone.
– Jacksonville RB Fred Taylor, who ranks somewhere between Kerry Wood and Balsa Wood on the durability scale, is nicked up again. He’s been nursing a hamstring injury throughout camp. The Jags prepared for the possibility that Taylor would be in and out of the lineup this year by stocking their roster with 3 backup running backs. LaBrandon Toefield, Greg Jones, and this year’s second round pick Maurice Drew.
– Titans’ rookie QB Vince Young laid a hit on DT Randy Starks after Starks intercepted a pass at the line of scrimmage in practice last week. The media responded by all dropping whatever it was they were doing and rubbing their nipples in unison.
– Meanwhile, Titans’ running back Chris Brown has let it be known he wants out of Nashville. The Titans are likely to tell him, too bad, you’re staying, because they don’t have a lot of other viable options at running back.
– As usual it’s nothing but good times for the Texans. Their best player, running back Domanick Davis, has been struggling with a knee injury during training camp that has forced him to miss numerous practices. Davis wants to get back on the practice field as soon as possible because the Texans are installing Denver’s running scheme of zone blocking that was built by new Texans’ head coach Gary Kubiak.
Young’s First Camp Will Be a Blur For Him
AFC WEST
– As mentioned earlier in this column, Broncos receiver Ashley Lelie is unhappy with his contract and wants out of Denver. Since his name sounds like a stripper’s, then you could say the Broncos aren’t in love with this stripper. Okay then.
– Taking Lelie’s spot as the Broncos’ 3rd wideout could be 4th round draft pick Brandon Marshall. The 6-5 receiver from UCF has wowed the Broncos in training camp and has been given the nickname “Baby T.O.”.
– The Chiefs got an unwelcome surprise when 11 time Pro Bowl left tackle and future Hall of Famer Willie Roaf announced his retirement last week. Roaf missed 6 games with injury last year, and KC was 3-3 in those games. In the games he played in, they were 7-3. So, as you can see, this is a big deal for them. The Chiefs are attempting to slide recently signed nut case Kyle Turley into Roaf’s left tackle spot.
– This happened a long time ago, but since I was reporting on the World Cup when it went down, I haven’t mentioned it. The Chiefs signed former Pats and Jets corner Ty Law. Now that he plays on the Chiefs’ defense, expect him to become really really bad.
– One final note coming out of Herm Edwards’s wigwam, the Chiefs traded for former Vikings and nominally a N.O. Saint running back Michael Bennett this week. He is expected to back up Larry Johnson in the likely event that Priest Holmes is finished.
– In 2003, the Chargers used a first round draft choice on corner Sammy Davis. After 3 seasons of disappointing returns from Mr. Bojangles, they traded him to San Francisco for another first round washout, wide receiver Rashaun Woods. This week the Chargers cut Woods, and the circle of life is complete.
– This year’s first round Charger corner, Antonio Cromartie, isn’t a slam dunk prospect either after missing all of last year with a knee injury. He was signed to a five year contract, and the team is working hard to get him familiarized with the defensive scheme.
– Raiders’ wideout Jerry Porter, who has come up just short of 1000 yards in back to back seasons, wants out of Oakland. He has demanded a trade, and Raiders owner Al Davis has told reporters that he will accommodate him, provided the Raiders get back equal value for him and Porter returns a $4 million bonus he received this year. Porter wants out of a five year, $20 million contract that he’s in the second year of, and he’s taken to walking around wearing a belt with huge gold dollar signs on it. Sounds like he’s a great guy to have around.
– More good news for the Raiders. They had to place left tackle Robert Gallery, the second overall pick in the 04 draft, on the physically unable to perform list due to an injured quad. That doesn’t mean he will miss any time during the season necessarily, but it’s probably not near the top of the list of moves the Raiders wanted to be making.
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The Bolts Will Go As Far As These 2 Can Take Them
THAT’S A WRAP
And that’s it for this week. This weekend, we’ve got a real, live, fake football game to watch when the Raiders and Eagles meet in the Hall of Fame game, and attempt to recreate the first football game I remember watching in my lifetime, the 1981 Super Bowl between the Raiders and Eagles. I remember it because I had the flu during it and was vomiting during the whole game. I probably will be for this one too. Okay then.
