At 4/6/10 12:31 AM, Idiot-Finder wrote:

At 4/5/10 11:30 PM, michelinman wrote: Al Davis = Senile.

Actually he was dead since 2003 Super Bowl but he's too stubborn to admit it.

Really? I always thought he was just trying to outrun father time and death by drafting guys with 4.2 and 4.3 40 times and draining the life from their careers.

At 4/6/10 06:00 PM, phileeguy wrote:

Really? I always thought he was just trying to outrun father time and death by drafting guys with 4.2 and 4.3 40 times and draining the life from their careers.

That too, remember the movie POTC? He's hardly human...at least not what he used to be anyway.

Regardless of whether or not Al Davis is bionic, we've still got one spark in the team that could make us contenders next year. We won 3 out of 4 with him, and the Bengals and Steelers are no easy task. He man-handled them. Come on Doc B!

Epic Heisman pose.

Well the Rooney's seem to want to punish Roethlisberger if the commish doesn't, which is highly unlikely. The question is, how long will the suspension be for? I'm guessing two, but who knows. I find it fortuitous for the Steelers that this is going on before the full schedule is out, and maybe the schedulers will find cupcake games for Pittsburgh the first few weeks. Then again, they lost to Cleveland, Kansas City, and Oakland last year, so maybe no team is a cupcake to them.

lolpenis

At 4/15/10 11:33 PM, Molotov wrote: lolpenis

He's gotta be raping somebody

Or women think he looks like someone they could accuse of rape

He is a creeper

I love seeing mad Pittsburgh fans, this would be wonderful. :D

Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers haven't talked with other teams about dealing embattled quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, but they've had significant internal discussions about the matter, a source with knowledge of the situation said Thursday.

According to the source, Steelers ownership remains dismayed and embarrassed by Roethlisberger's actions in a Georgia college town this offseason and finds his string of off-the-field incidents troubling. The team has been closely monitoring the public backlash against Roethlisberger.
Goodell stresses conduct policy
NFL Commissioner
Roger Goodell issued a memo to all clubs last Wednesday, stressing to all parties the importance of the league's personal-conduct policy. More ...

"The Rooneys are livid," the source said.

A Georgia district attorney decided not to hand down sexual-assault criminal charges against Roethlisberger on Monday, but the Steelers, as well as the NFL, could impose their own discipline on him.

Roethlisberger met with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Tuesday. Goodell said Wednesday that he would make a decision on Roethlisberger's status "in the near future."

The Steelers' front office has talked internally about possible trade scenarios that could be feasible and what makes sense for the team. According to a source, if other teams called about Roethlisberger, the Steelers would intently listen.

The Steelers could envision several trade scenarios, but they're skeptical about other teams taking on Roethlisberger, given his baggage. However, they also realize his contract is tradeable in an uncapped year, with the bonuses already paid and Roethlisberger signed for six more years at a manageable salary for a franchise quarterback ($8.05 million in 2010, $11.6 million per year from 2011 to 2014, and $12.1 million in 2015).

In particular, the Steelers are enamored with likely No. 1 overall draft pick Sam Bradford. They essentially view Bradford as a sure-thing franchise quarterback and have considered what it would take to move up to the No. 1 pick in a trade with the St. Louis Rams, according to a source. However, the Steelers know executing such a move would be highly difficult, and they figure the Rams have limited interest in Roethlisberger.

Steelers officials aren't worried about how Roethlisberger's return will impact the locker room. The Rooneys' concern is born of the history and prestige of their franchise, the recent fan backlash and public perception about Roethlisberger and their belief that no player is bigger than the team.

However, the source noted that this isn't "a Santonio Holmes situation," alluding to the Steelers dumping the talented but troubled receiver for a fifth-round pick over the weekend as he faced a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy.

"This is not a case of having to get rid of this guy,'" the source said. "There would have to be fair value."

Roethlisberger, drafted 11th overall in 2004, has performed at an elite level for the Steelers. He's among the winningest quarterbacks for his age and already possesses two Super Bowl rings. His size, improvisational skills and ability to escape the rush and deliver the ball to all parts of the field make him among the best in the league.

Should Roethlisberger have another off-the-field misstep, however, his Steelers career likely would be over, according to team and league sources. And, if a legitimate trade scenario materialized, that end could come much sooner.

Teams that aren't committed long-term to a starting quarterback include the Rams, Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders, San Francisco 49ers, Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers, Seattle Seahawks and Arizona Cardinals.

The Steelers refused to entertain dealing Holmes within the AFC North, and that would apply with Roethlisberger as well. A trade likely would have to involve a quarterback or put the Steelers in position to draft one they like (Pittsburgh is high on its young backup, Dennis Dixon, however).

Finding the right deal is remote, the Steelers know, but not necessarily impossible.

At 4/3/10 11:58 PM, Gobblemeister wrote: Do you guys think Buffalo should take take Clausen or chance getting Tebow?

Considering how Ralph Wilson, the owner, is more senile than Al Davis, they would probably pass on those quarterbacks and get someone else. If I had to choose one, It would be Clausen.

To be honest Buffalo has been in such a rut I find it hard to get excited anymore. If we keep getting screwed by the injury bug we'll never get anywhere.

Not a lot of free agents want to go to Buffalo, due to the fact that they never get out of last place of their own division, and it's brutally cold almost all season. Not to mention they only have 7 games in Buffalo and one in Toronto every year for the past couple of seasons really dilutes sales and proves that the Bills will not be in Buffalo for much longer.

Buffalo has always been so up and down, they've given me hope and crushed it. I can always put my faith in Green Bay but it just doesn't do it for me like watching the Bills win.

4 Super Bowl losses in a row will do that for ya. I guess you could say they are the Phillies of the NFL, before 2006, that is.

P.S The Giants suck, they time is done and they won't win again for at least the remainder of this decade

Giants will be back, As long as they have Manning, they will still be in contention.

At 4/16/10 03:33 PM, orangebomb wrote:

At 4/3/10 11:58 PM, Gobblemeister wrote: Buffalo has always been so up and down, they've given me hope and crushed it. I can always put my faith in Green Bay but it just doesn't do it for me like watching the Bills win.

4 Super Bowl losses in a row will do that for ya. I guess you could say they are the Phillies of the NFL, before 2006, that is.

I give you a B+ for effort on that analogy, but a D- for accuracy, especially coming off of 2008 and last year's WS appearances. Sure they may have lost more than won in the WS, but at least they have some wins. I you're going for overall most losses as the analogical reference, you're closer, but still not right. Arizona has the most losses in the NFL.

Personally If I were to compare the Bills to a team I would compare them to the '51-'53 Knicks as they lost in the championship round 3 times in a row, haven't done much since and stink today. Or maybe the '67-'69 St. Louis Blues as they also lost 3 times in a row. Oddly enough the more apt Philadelphia comparison to the Bills in my opinion is the Eagles; 4 straight NFC championship appearances, just 1 win, but no SB.

Fuck Roethlisberger, for a variety of reasons.

Patiently waiting for the draft and the hopeless pining for Al Davis to make an intelligent decision in the early rounds of the draft for the first time in years. *sigh*

At 4/17/10 06:44 PM, Buddhist wrote: Fuck Roethlisberger, for a variety of reasons.

Patiently waiting for the draft and the hopeless pining for Al Davis to make an intelligent decision in the early rounds of the draft for the first time in years. *sigh*

More like decades

At 4/16/10 06:13 PM, phileeguy wrote:

At 4/16/10 03:33 PM, orangebomb wrote:

At 4/3/10 11:58 PM, Gobblemeister wrote: Buffalo has always been so up and down, they've given me hope and crushed it. I can always put my faith in Green Bay but it just doesn't do it for me like watching the Bills win.

4 Super Bowl losses in a row will do that for ya. I guess you could say they are the Phillies of the NFL, before 2006, that is.

I give you a B+ for effort on that analogy, but a D- for accuracy, especially coming off of 2008 and last year's WS appearances.

What I meant in the comparison was the Phillies before the 2006 season, not the Phillies of 2007-09. Hope that clears it up somewhat.

Sure they may have lost more than won in the WS, but at least they have some wins. I you're going for overall most losses as the analogical reference, you're closer, but still not right. Arizona has the most losses in the NFL.

I would agree with that, although the Cardinals date back over 100 years, whereas the Bills go back to 1960 as an AFL franchise. Therefore, the W-L records would be skewed to some degree.

Personally If I were to compare the Bills to a team I would compare them to the '51-'53 Knicks as they lost in the championship round 3 times in a row, haven't done much since and stink today. Or maybe the '67-'69 St. Louis Blues as they also lost 3 times in a row.

The Knicks actully won the NBA title in '72 and '73 and made a Finals apperance in '99 against the Spurs. Though after that, they stunk it up and continued it today.

Oddly enough the more apt Philadelphia comparison to the Bills in my opinion is the Eagles; 4 straight NFC championship appearances, just 1 win, but no SB.

That's what I was thinking of now, but the Phillies argument I made in an earlier post poped first into my mind. Hopefully, that cleared up any confusion.

Tony Scheffler goes from Denver to Detroit and Ernie Sims from Detroit to Philly, with a couple picks being tossed Denver's way.

Scheffler is def a good pickup and a good replacement for the retried Casey Fitzsimmons, who Scheffler is better than when it comes to receiving and about as good at blocking. Interesting that McDaniels keeps exiling former Shanahan players every offseason...Scheffler was underused in McDaniels' system anyway so it works out better for him, but for the Broncos, Daniel Graham is nowhere near the receiver that Scheffler was/is.

But who the fuck knows what crazy ol' Joshy McD is up to in the Mile High City.

At 4/19/10 06:38 PM, Buddhist wrote: But who the fuck knows what crazy ol' Joshy McD is up to in the Mile High City.

He's going to use the 5th round pick he acquired from Philly to draft Tebow. No, he's not going to package that with a 2nd or 3rd round pick, Tebow will fall to the fifth round. Of course I'm kidding, but that would be great television seeing Tebow not get selected Thursday night, then not Friday. And then finally on Saturday, when Tebow is looking all scraggly because he couldn't get an extension on his Manhattan hotel room because Tony Bennett is in town and his entourage needs it he finally gets picked and walks over to Mel Kiper, kisses his perfectly coiffed hair, and with a huge smile says that he thanks god for the opportunity to play in the NFL, and then subsequently gets told that he's going to be the replacement Tight End for Scheffler.

Of course I personally have nothing against Tebow, I just find that specific set of possibilities occurring to be delightfully entertaining.

There's a story on ESPN saying that there is rumors that Darren McFadden and Shawne Merriman might be on the block sometime tonight. This years draft is pretty good on running backs, and McFadden hasn't showed much production, so I doubt my Raiders have done anything worthwhile except piss of McFadden by saying he's trade bait. I don't see anyone making an offer for him. As for Merriman, that could make things interesting if San Diego wants to trade up for an earlier pick. 3 hours til things kick off. Lets see who Oakland shocks the world with this year. A kicker? A punter even though we have the leagues best? Maybe a waterboy?

At 4/20/10 02:51 AM, phileeguy wrote:

At 4/19/10 06:38 PM, Buddhist wrote: But who the fuck knows what crazy ol' Joshy McD is up to in the Mile High City.

Of course I personally have nothing against Tebow, I just find that specific set of possibilities occurring to be delightfully entertaining.

Except that Tim Tebow isn't going to go to New York for the draft. I made a list of my own opinions on who Denver should draft and listed my top 5's at each position. It's in my newspage.

I knew that despite what people said, someone would take a jump at Tebow in the first round. The Broncos bit with the 25th overall pick. He's one of the greatest college QB's of all time, and regardless of his style, you have to respect his ability to become the absolute best at what he does. The question is can he take that ability and use it to become an NFL great considering all the things about his style he has to overcome. Time will tell with the pick. I'm not happy about him being in our division though, I can tell you that. The guy is dangerous for sure.

The main surprise for me during this draft is that Jimmy Clausen is still in it. He was predicted in the top 10 in most mock drafts I saw, and he didn't even get in on the top 32. I kind of expected Tebow would get picked before him, but I figured he'd go in the first round. I also figured Colt McCoy would go in the 1st round, but that didn't happen either. We'll see where those guys head tomorrow. The Raiders picked up ILB Rolando McClain with the 8th overall pick.

A little early to take an inside linebacker, but he's definitely the best one, and should provide an instant spark to reviving our terrible run defense. On a team where not a lot of shit makes sense, this pick kind of makes sense. I'll take it. I'm interested to see all you Broncos fans reaction to Tebow. You like the pick? I mean Tebow has outstanding raw talent, but you've already got Kyle Orton who can hold up for now, and Brady Quinn, who has a good chance of developing now that he isn't drowning in that cess pool in Cleveland. I'm sure they were hoping Dez Bryant would have slipped one more pick so they could have something to try to begin to fill the enormous shoes that Brandon Marshall leaves behind, (shoes Marshall should still be filling IMO.) What do you guys think?

Does anyone else think the Chargers made a ridiculous pick?

They traded up to get an unknown runningback.

I think the Chargers should have traded down, picked up Toby Gerhart and used him as a HB/FB hybrid to block for Sproles and run for shorter yardage.

I don't even know who they picked, some nobody if you ask me.

As for my team's pick, the Bills, I find it odd. I can see the need for a playmaker but seeing things turn out as they did Mccoy and Clausen would have been available for the second round. SO why go deeper in the RB position if you have no intention of trading Lynch?

Also, Oakland, good one, lulz for another year

Gosh, I love football, but this draft stuff is too complicated for me...

Jason Campbell to the Raiders, and Lendale White to the Seahawks (lol Pete Carroll).

At 4/24/10 04:39 PM, 36Holla wrote: Jason Campbell to the Raiders, and Lendale White to the Seahawks (lol Pete Carroll).

linky to comferm. Good deal for the Raiders. Sadly they've been making some sounder draft decisions too. Looks like they're on the road to being vaguely competitive again to me. If Renaldo McClain turns out right, they could actually be good this year. They beat some good teams towards the end of last year, and they're only getting better this off season. Jason Campbell kicks Bruce Gradkowski's ass.

This is the first year in prolly half a decade that I've had a shred of optimism regarding our upcoming season, especially after a draft that we managed to NOT fuck up for the first time in mad long and making trades that actually make sense for us as a team (Kamerion Wimbley from the Browns, Jason Campbell from the Redskins, amongst other moves we've made).

Also, Leon Washington got traded to Seattle, along with a seventh-rounder, for the Seahawks' fifth-rounder. New York selected Kentucky fullback John Conner with that pick. After that, the Jets released 9x Pro Bowl guard Alan Faneca.

Pete Carroll's fantastic NFL-ready offense in Seattle now looks like this:

QB: Matt Hasselbeck, Charlie Whitehurst, Mike Teel
RB: Leon Washington, LenDale White, Julius Jones, Justin Forsett, Louis Rankin, Quinton Ganther
WR: TJ Houshmanzadeh, Reggie Williams, Mike Williams, Deion Branch, Ben Obumanu
TE: John Carlson, Chris Baker

gonna be a long year for Cap'n Carroll.

Elsewhere, the Steelers picked up CB Bryant McFadden from the Cardinals for fifth-round and sixth-round picks in the draft. McFadden joins Antwaan Randle El, Larry Foote and Byron Leftwich in returning to Pittsburgh, a team that once never brought back players after they left.

Oh, and K Mike Nugent signed a two-year deal with the Bengals.

p.s.: was shocked to see Tebow go in the first-round (actually, angry is probably a better response, given that he has no actual technical skills at the position), but was not shocked to see him go to Belichick disciple McDaniels in Denver...I'm starting to think McDaniels just wants to see how crazy he can fuck with Denver's roster. I mean...Kyle Orton, Brady Quinn and Tim Tebow as your QBs?

I saw Darren Sharper outside begging just now.

He's unemployed as of now.

At 4/24/10 04:45 PM, TheSongSalad wrote: linky to comferm. Good deal for the Raiders. Sadly they've been making some sounder draft decisions too. Looks like they're on the road to being vaguely competitive again to me. If Renaldo McClain turns out right, they could actually be good this year.

Whether or not they picked the best position to fill up with their first pick, they picked the best player available at that position. Typically, Davis picks height/weight/speed guys that aren't the best player in their position. For example, Darrius Heyward-Bey when Crabtree, Harvin, and Maclin were all still on the board. Picking up Robert Gallery with the first overall pick and Sebastian Janikowski, first kicker ever to get selected in the first round. Just glad to see him making some sane decisions for once. We got a DT with our second pick to help patch up the holes that runners made huge gains against us with. Then 3rd and 4th picks were both offensive lineman, which was one of their biggest needs coming into the draft. Really happy with the decisions this year. Not sure if letting Kirk Morrison go was necessary, but Wimbley and McClain should be able to hold the middle.

They beat some good teams towards the end of last year, and they're only getting better this off season. Jason Campbell kicks Bruce Gradkowski's ass.

Very quietly this offseason, Oakland has picked up J.P. Losman, who failed to develop with the Bills, Kyle Boller, who failed to develop with the Ravens, and now Jason Campbell, who failed to develop with the Redskins. Add that to the already present Charlie Frye, who failed to develop with the Browns, and JaMarcus Russell, who failed to develop at life, and we've got enough wasted potential to fill a fucking mack truck. Right now, they're picking up guys that have the tools physically, but never developed mentally, and hoping one of them will sack up and take the job next year. I see Gradkowski getting the job though, because he's a leader. He may not be the most physically gifted, but he gives 110% and makes everyone else on the field better. All these other guys are first round draft busts. Ryan Leafs.

Russell and Boller have both had opportunity after opportunity and pissed them all away due to complete douchebaggery on their part. They're burnouts in my eyes, and I don't think either of them has the drive to prove me wrong. Charlie Frye is a gym rat. He's getting better and better every day, and took Russell's first string job when Gradkowski got hurt and played better than Russell while doing it. Losman I think might have some fire left in him, and from what we got him for out of Washington, and shit I've heard from their fans, he's nobody. If he isn't 100% ready to step up and be a leader, then someone else is going to do better and beat him out. The Raiders starting QB job is going to be one of the most interesting races going into the regular season. We'll see how it all pans out.

At 4/25/10 04:09 AM, michelinman wrote:

They beat some good teams towards the end of last year, and they're only getting better this off season. Jason Campbell kicks Bruce Gradkowski's ass.

Russell and Boller have both had opportunity after opportunity and pissed them all away due to complete douchebaggery on their part. They're burnouts in my eyes, and I don't think either of them has the drive to prove me wrong. Charlie Frye is a gym rat. He's getting better and better every day, and took Russell's first string job when Gradkowski got hurt and played better than Russell while doing it. Losman I think might have some fire left in him, and from what we got him for out of Washington, and shit I've heard from their fans, he's nobody. If he isn't 100% ready to step up and be a leader, then someone else is going to do better and beat him out. The Raiders starting QB job is going to be one of the most interesting races going into the regular season. We'll see how it all pans out.

Russell is a total bust, I will say that. Any QB who reports to camp at 300 lbs has serious commitment issues to football. I wouldn't say Boller was a total bust, as he had a decent year or two with Baltimore before he got ousted in favor of Flacco. But it is a sign that they felt they needed that much a better QB than him. Losman was a reach for his first round status in the first place, so I think it's a bit unfair to call him a bust in the same way it's hard to call Hayward-Bey a bust. Both never should have been picked that high, and he did decent for where he should have been picked.

Campbell is IMO, by far the best QB the Raiders have. Everything you hear from Washington fans about him is bullshit. I watched him really closely after he came out, and he has been on pace to become a pro bowler before Washington got rid of him. I think fans in Washington are just like fans in Philli. Donovan McNabb is 8 times better than they make him out to be, and Campbell has shown nothing but class when trade rumors started swirling. And when Washington refused to commit to him, he was still committed to them, which is a hell of a lot more than someone by the name of Jay Cutler did. I wouldn't say he's as talented at all as Cutler or McNabb, but he could be a very good QB in the NFL. My only worry about him is that Oakland will try to stunt his development, just like Washington did.

Oh yeah, I forgot this place has an above average amount of Raider fans here.

36Holla, it's draft week. This is the Raiders holiday to dominate the headlines with the questioning of their calls. I'm the only Raiders fan here I think honestly. Haha.

At 4/25/10 04:00 PM, TheSongSalad wrote: Campbell is IMO, by far the best QB the Raiders have. Everything you hear from Washington fans about him is bullshit. I watched him really closely after he came out, and he has been on pace to become a pro bowler before Washington got rid of him. I think fans in Washington are just like fans in Philli. Donovan McNabb is 8 times better than they make him out to be, and Campbell has shown nothing but class when trade rumors started swirling. And when Washington refused to commit to him, he was still committed to them, which is a hell of a lot more than someone by the name of Jay Cutler did. I wouldn't say he's as talented at all as Cutler or McNabb, but he could be a very good QB in the NFL. My only worry about him is that Oakland will try to stunt his development, just like Washington did.

Well Oakland picked up Hue Jackson this offseason, and he developed Joe Flacco into quite a QB, so hopefully he can do the same with either Russell or Campbell. As a Raiders fan, you'll hear us talk about how big a piece of shit Russell is and how we all want him cut and blah blah blah, but in reality, we all just want him to develop into the QB we all know he's capable of being. The man has the potential to be better than McNabb, IE the best black NFL QB of all time. When you watch him warm up before games, he looks like Joe Montana. He may be a bust now, but he could be 30 years old and suddenly decide you know what? I want to quit fucking around and be the best I can be. The day his mind makes that decision is the day that he becomes a Pro Bowl caliber player. We're all just terrified that day IS going to come eventually, and he won't be wearing silver and black when it does.

You've definitely reassured me about Campbell. I've always looked down on Philly fans and the Eagles organization for not giving McNabb credit where it was due. That man LED them to the NFC championship game 4 years in a row. He's a hell of a QB. I remember that game against the Cowboys last year when McNabb would've gotten sacked 17 times if he hadn't had the pocket presence and awareness he has. But he got sacked like 4 or 5 times and everyone said he did a piss poor job of getting rid of the ball. It was ridiculous. If Campbell does well in Oakland, he'll get all the credit he deserves and then some. If he comes out and wins the starting job and shows why every Sunday, his jersey is going to sell. We're starved for a spark on offense, and if he can bring that, look out. We have a lot of dangerous weapons on both sides of the ball, and I'm sure we'll all learn just how dangerous if the teams morale gets rejuvenated by a new face for the team. He won't get neglected in Oakland, I can promise you that.

Heyward-Bey was a good pick IMO, it just didn't work out in the win column because Russell didn't get benched fast enough. When Gradkowski took over, we won 2 out of 3 against good teams because Heyward-Bey was doing his job damn well. His numbers don't reflect the fact that he took a CB and a Safety deep with him nearly every pass play because his speed demands double and even triple teaming. Louis Murphy was a back up 2 years ago on a college team, and last year he was suddenly finding open spots in NFL defenses and making plays? Zach Miller, who was widely known as the only person on our offense that you had to cover on passing downs, is STILL finding ways to get open? No sir. DHB is something defenses had to plan around regardless of his hands just for insurance, which instantly made our passing offense better. We saw Gradkowski capitalizing on that near the end of the season. He really just CAN'T catch a football though. He dropped a wide open game winner against KC last year.

Hopefully they're focusing on a Miller/Schilens/Murphy short range passing attack with DHB going deep and taking defenders from the middle with him, combined with McFadden attacking the outside and Michael Bush going up the gut. We've got a lot of talent on offense right now, and our 3rd and 4th round picks were offensive lineman, and both of them have good chances of stepping up and being succesful their first year. I'm really excited about the season. Russell lost a lot of weight this offseason and apparently has been eating healthy and doing all the right things, so that is still part of the equation too. Like I said, one decision is the only thing stopping him from making us a division contending team. I would be very surprised if Davis got rid of him any time within the next 3-4 years. Still not feeling it happening next year though. Now Campbell just has to come in and take the job from Gradkowski. Charlie Frye can't be counted out either. He looked pretty damn good when he instantly got thrown from 3rd string to 1st after injuries. Not easy to deliver in that situation, but he did better than Russell at least.

At 4/26/10 02:32 AM, michelinman wrote: As a Raiders fan, you'll hear us talk about how big a piece of shit Russell is and how we all want him cut and blah blah blah, but in reality, we all just want him to develop into the QB we all know he's capable of being. The man has the potential to be better than McNabb, IE the best black NFL QB of all time. When you watch him warm up before games, he looks like Joe Montana. He may be a bust now, but he could be 30 years old and suddenly decide you know what? I want to quit fucking around and be the best I can be. The day his mind makes that decision is the day that he becomes a Pro Bowl caliber player. We're all just terrified that day IS going to come eventually, and he won't be wearing silver and black when it does.

That's just the thing. He's been around for what, 3 or 4 years now? When is he going to stop fucking around and do things like show up for practices on time, which in the NFL is being early to practice. Right now he's got the money from being the #1 overall, he's got crazy Al Davis behind him, and he's on a no pressure team pretty much, so why would he want to change his ways? Campbell probably will win the starter over him, but do you think Al would let Russell go? Could he be a great QB? Maybe, but I think if he comes around it'll be too late, or if he finds himself on another team he'll be in for a rude awakening. I'd love to be proven wrong though.

At 4/25/10 04:00 PM, TheSongSalad wrote: I think fans in Washington are just like fans in Philli. Donovan McNabb is 8 times better than they make him out to be
You've definitely reassured me about Campbell. I've always looked down on Philly fans and the Eagles organization for not giving McNabb credit where it was due. That man LED them to the NFC championship game 4 years in a row. He's a hell of a QB. I remember that game against the Cowboys last year when McNabb would've gotten sacked 17 times if he hadn't had the pocket presence and awareness he has. But he got sacked like 4 or 5 times and everyone said he did a piss poor job of getting rid of the ball. It was ridiculous.

You're right, it was ridiculous. The point about him doing a piss poor job of getting rid of the ball is completely accurate. Yes, him escaping a few sacks - perhaps not 17 - was beneficial for the Eagles' offensive situation had he done something with the ball. It's hard to fully appreciate a slipped tackle when your QB misses an open DeSean down-field or throws behind the receiver after getting away from a sack. Whether the play ended up in a sack or an incomplete pass, both possible results of that play end up not helping the Eagles offense. Yes, not getting sacked is better than getting sacked, but when you're playing from behind against a good team you need all the help you can get.

That's what frustrated Eagles fans with McNabb. He has the talent to be an all-time great, but a lot of times he has a sub-par decision making process in terms of when and where he should pass (or run for that matter, a weapon he rarely uses anymore), and you couple it with an accuracy of below 60% and you've got a QB that will sometimes struggle to win games he should, i.e. vs. Raiders last year, and will definitely struggle in games where you're against the toughest of opposition in the playoffs.

And of course the lack of winning a Super Bowl with ample opportunity to do so will be the legacy for him in Philly. McNabb is definitely a good QB, the problem is he wasn't good enough. He always seemed to hit the wall when the team needed him the most. Will he end up having a John Elway type career? Who knows? Shanahan could shoe-horn him into a better offensive system and they could be a playoff team.

Now, in the interest of being fair and after all those points I made against McNabb, I will defend him a bit here. I honestly think Andy Reid didn't use Don properly. He never did give Don a proper running game to protect his passing game, he overstressed the idea that a short pass was as good as a run, and he underutilized Donovan's ability to run as well. Only recently did Reid draft a good receiving corps. Andy always seems to have issues coaching on game day, whether it be stubborn play selection, clock management, or letting Donovan have no real autonomy to call audibles on the field.

I don't know if I've typed this before, but I'll type it again to further drive my point home. If you asked me who I would've rather seen let go - Reid or McNabb - I would've said Reid. Granted McNabb has his issues, but I think the bigger culprit in the failures of their 11 year relationship was Reid. Unfortunately they gave him a 3 year extension last year.

The two characters that shoulder blame in football are usually the QB and head coach. Did Donovan get an unfair share of the blame in comparison to Reid? Yes. But are Philly fans being ungrateful? I don't think so. We wanted a Super Bowl win, we saw that this combination of Reid/McNabb wasn't going to do it and we wanted a change. Hell, the Eagles own President of football operations said, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting different results." And that was after the 2008 season, and they went with the same thing in Reid/McNabb for another season. So basically they did their due diligence on what he thought the "definition of insanity" was and was proven right, at the cost of a season.

So in the upcoming future we will see whether it was the right or wrong decision to move McNabb. It'll probably be a year or two to be certain because with Kolb I'll need to see him play for a while to make my decision on him. I think Don will do about the same in D.C., with maybe a slightly elevated completion % but fewer overall yards as they don't have receivers as good as Philly.

So hopefully this is my last hurrah on the Eagles and Donovan. I'd love to see Don do well. I'd love to see him win a Super Bowl, but I'd love more to see the Eagles win it and unfortunately it wasn't happening with them together.

Quick hits:

- RBs LenDale White and Leon Washington traded from the Titans and Jets respectively to the Seahawks (good moves)
- LB Adalius Thomas released by New England (Denver? NYG? back to Baltimore? who knows...)
- DE John Henderson released by Jacksonville
- Titans signed RB LeGarrette Blount
- Green Bay released OLB Jeremy Thompson, who will retire due to a neck injury
- LB Kirk Morrison traded from Oakland to Jacksonville as part of a draft-day deal
- Former Oakland DT Gerard Warren was signed by New England
- G Alan Faneca was released by the Jets
- Recently reacquired CB Bryant McFadden received a 3yr, $7.5 million extension from Pittsburgh
- Jets DE/LB Vernon Gholston reworked his contract so it becomes front-loaded, allowing for the Jets to release Gholston if he flops at DE this season in the same way he flopped at LB

At 4/25/10 11:40 PM, 36Holla wrote: Oh yeah, I forgot this place has an above average amount of Raider fans here.

actually a Broncos fan, I just know way, way too much about football, so I like discussing every team really.