Are You Ready for Some Football

[-Jrabbit]

Cowher is almost certainly going to take a year off. He's supposed to make an announcement today.

Then in 2008, he will likely become the highest-paid coach in history. Somewhere.
Unless Jimmy Johnson comes back in Miami.

[Imran Siddiqui]

For Ned

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2718180

NEW YORK -- DeMeco Ryans came into the NFL as Houston's second choice to bolster its defense. He leaves his first pro year as The Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year.

The linebacker, chosen at the top of the second round of last April's draft -- 32 spots after the Texans made defensive end Mario Williams the first overall selection -- was a runaway winner of the award announced Wednesday. Ryans led the league in solo tackles with 126, and his 156 total tackles were 33 more than the next-best rookie, Detroit linebacker Ernie Sims.

In fact, no rookie in the last 20 years had more tackles than Ryans, who was an All-American at Alabama in 2005. And Ryans had more tackles than any of the other five linebackers who won the award this decade, including Brian Urlacher and Shawne Merriman.

"It's always nice to be touted as one of the best and have a big-time stat, but I credit that to the other 10 guys that are around me on defense," Ryans said. "We wouldn't be talking about me without those other 10 guys out there."

Well, we might be, because Ryans came into training camp, was moved to the middle and almost immediately established himself as the premier rookie defender on the roster. Better -- by far -- than Williams.

And Ryans never let up.

"It wasn't a big 'Wow' moment to me and there wasn't any nervousness or anything like that. I was comfortable from the time I began," he said. "Nothing really just shocked me going through the year. I played in a big game atmosphere in college, so I was used to that. I knew what the competition level would be like. Nothing really surprised me."

The ease with which Ryans won the award might have been surprising. He received 36 of the 50 votes by a nationwide panel of sports writers and broadcasters who cover the NFL.

Second was Chicago end Mark Anderson, who was Ryans' teammate at Alabama, with five votes. Green Bay linebacker A. J. Hawk was next with four, while Cleveland LB Kamerion Wimbley got two votes.

Williams, Cincinnati DB Johnathan Joseph and Baltimore DB Dawan Landry each received one.

Gary Kubiak, in his first head coaching job, was concerned about moving Ryans to the leadership role in the middle of a revamped unit. He shouldn't have worried.

"I knew he was a special kid when he was here through OTAs and stuff," Kubiak said of offseason workouts. "Just how smart he was, and the coaches were coming back saying we hit it big on this kid, he's going to be something.

"I think when you really knew he was fixing to be a great player was about midway through training camp when we were in meetings and having a problem at [middle] linebacker and started having a conversation. We said: 'Let's just put the kid in there and go.' You say, 'Well it's a lot to handle, it's the whole defense. We may set him back. We don't want to do that.'

"We made that decision and within about a two-week period you knew that he was going to be fine with it."

More than fine -- the best of all defensive rookies.

He is the first Texan to win an individual award since Houston entered the league in 2002.

Merriman won the award last year.

Though Anderson did finish second .

Final vote tally:

Defensive Rookie of Year voting
Player Team Votes
DeMeco Ryans Houston 36
Mark Anderson Chicago 5
A.J. Hawk Green Bay 4
Kamerion Wembley Cleveland 2

[Imran Siddiqui]

And now the Dolphins are looking for a new coach - bye Nick Saban.

[Lord Avalon]

Sheesh, Saban was there only two years, and now he's gone. WTF?!?!

Well, given the way he never gave a convincing denial about the Bama job, I can't say I'm surprised.

I hope Miami gets a good coach who wants to be there and stay long enough to get them back into playoff and Super Bowl contention.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Miami knew what they were getting into with Saban. This was unsurprising.

[Tuberski]

Originally posted by Lord Avalon
Sheesh, Saban was there only two years, and now he's gone. WTF?!?!

Well, given the way he never gave a convincing denial about the Bama job, I can't say I'm surprised.

I hope Miami gets a good coach who wants to be there and stay long enough to get them back into playoff and Super Bowl contention.

I'm hoping that they hire......... Mike Shula. It just fits my sense of the absurd.

ACK!

[-Jrabbit]

I expect Miami to put on another full-court press for Jimmy Johnson.
Oh, how I would love to see him go down there and fall on his face...

Wishful thinking I guess...

[Lord Avalon]

by Dan Marino, Inside the NFL, "Say Something" segment

Dolphin fans, there is hope! Don Shula lost 32 pounds on Nutrisystem, and he's coming back!

[SlowwHand]

[Quote]Young caps 2006 with AP Offensive Rookie of Year award

By TERESA M. WALKER, AP Sports Writer
January 4, 2007

AP - Jan 3, 3:42 pm EST




NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The question almost angered Vince Young: Is he an athlete first and a quarterback second?

"I want to change the game a little bit. They say quarterbacks aren't supposed to run. You want to show them that you can run, and then you can also deliver the ball down field. Keeping the defense on the edge of their feet, that's how I like it," Young said.

"I'm a quarterback. Everybody is saying I'm not. I don't care."

Young went 8-5 as a starter for a team that had won only nine games the previous two seasons combined. He capped a year in which he led Texas to the national championship in the Rose Bowl by winning The Associated Press Offensive Rookie of the Year award on Wednesday.

He became only the second quarterback in the award's 49-year history to win, joining Ben Roethlisberger (2004).]/Quote]

[Imran Siddiqui]

"I'm a quarterback. Everybody is saying I'm not. I don't care."

With Young and Vick perhaps NFL teams will realize that there isn't just one way to QB.

Though, in OROY, I've read that Marcus McNeil, OT for San Diego, may be the best Left Tackle in the ENTIRE NFL. If that is the consensus, I'd give it to him, but linemen never win this award.

[Imran Siddiqui]

The right person wins Comeback Player of the Year

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2719493

NEW YORK -- One rotator cuff injury often is enough to ruin a premier athlete's career. Chad Pennington overcame two in two years to win The Associated Press NFL Comeback Player of the Year award.

The New York Jets had become too accustomed to seeing Pennington leave the field with a damaged right shoulder. After the 2004 season and again midway through 2005, he underwent surgery to repair his right rotator cuff.

There's was so much doubt about Pennington returning to form that the Jets had four quarterbacks in training camp last summer, including a second-round draft pick.

So all the seven-year veteran did was lead the Jets to a surprising 10-6 record and a wild-card berth one season after they went 4-12 -- most of it with him sidelined -- and changed coaches. Pennington's precise execution of a short passing game made Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery into 1,000-yard receivers and offset a mediocre running game.

Not surprisingly, Pennington didn't see winning the award, announced Thursday, as an individual honor.

"The organization has been great in providing me with all kinds of special resources to get back healthy and play at a high level," he said. "My teammates have been behind me since Day 1. For us to be able to put it together out on the field would mean a lot ... it's been such a team effort."

Pennington's efforts earned him 27 votes in balloting by a nationwide panel of 50 sports writers and broadcasters who cover the NFL. He finished far ahead of two other quarterbacks, Drew Brees of New Orleans (8½) and Carson Palmer of Cincinnati (5½).

"He never reinvented himself," Coles said of Pennington, who passed for a career-best 3,352 yards and finished second in the AFC with a 95.7 passer rating. "You all [in the media] were the ones who left him for dead. I'm pretty sure he didn't leave himself for dead or he wouldn't be in this situation. And I definitely didn't. He never went anywhere."

Well, actually Pennington went under the knife twice, and because he's never had a particularly strong arm, his return to prominence was highly questioned. But through rehab and meetings, he clearly had mastered the offense of new coach Eric Mangini and coordinator Brian Schottenheimer by early August.

And there never was any doubt he would beat out the other three QBs in camp once Pennington began throwing as accurately as ever.

When Pennington was hit hard or sacked, he bounced up and went right back to work. Most notably against Houston, he took a huge hit and stayed down because he had the breath knocked out of him. Well aware of the hushed crowd, Pennington pumped his fist as he walked off the field, assuring the fans he and his right arm were fine.

"Chad is a tough guy," veteran guard Pete Kendall said. "I think anybody who stands back there is a tough guy, it's just that some guys unfortunately have been injured more than others. But that doesn't necessarily have anything to do with toughness.

"When you talk about toughness, you have to talk about mental toughness as much as, or moreso than physical toughness. Chad is way up there; he's a mentally tough guy. To be quarterback in this market, with the ups and downs that comes along with playing quarterback, and to go through what he has gone through, then come back and still play well, you have to be a tough guy to do that."

Cleveland tight end Kellen Winslow received five votes, followed by two Eagles: QB Jeff Garcia with two, RB Correll Buckhalter with one.

Denver receiver Javon Walker, New Orleans RB Deuce McAllister and Tennessee RB Travis Henry each got one vote.

Pennington is the fifth quarterback to win the award in its nine years; Drew Brees won it in 2004. He is the first Jet to win.

Last year's recipients were New England linebacker Tedy Bruschi and Carolina receiver Steve Smith.

[Tuberski]

How did you get that story but miss Tomlinson wins MVP?

Tomlinson voted AP Most Valuable Player

By BARRY WILNER, AP Football Writer
January 4, 2007

NEW YORK (AP) -- Spell this year's NFL MVP: L.T.

Record-setting LaDainian Tomlinson of the San Diego Chargers ran away with The Associated Press NFL Most Valuable Player award Thursday the way he eluded defenders in leading his team to the AFC's best record (14-2) and a favorite's role for the Super Bowl.


"When you're MVP of the league, it's a great accomplishment," Tomlinson said, adding the honor means "that I've had a great year, that's all, on a great team."

But with so much more on the horizon, he hopes.

"I would feel so much better about winning if we win the Super Bowl. It would feel like it would be everything," Tomlinson said.

Tomlinson, who broke Shaun Alexander's league record for touchdowns by scoring 31 (28 rushing) and also threw for two scores, had one of the greatest seasons in NFL history. He rushed for a league-high 1,815 yards on 348 carries, had 56 receptions for 508 yards and was 2-for-3 as a passer, both completions for scores, giving the Chargers running back six in his six-year career, tying him for second among non-quarterbacks.

All of those are merely numbers -- impressive numbers, but just stats. Tomlinson's attributes go way beyond that as a solid citizen and a player who lets his on-field actions represent him.

"It couldn't happen to a better person, a man who is the face and the perfect representative of the National Football League," fullback Lorenzo Neal said. "He represents what every player should be."

Few players have approached what Tomlinson achieved as San Diego won its final 10 games. Alexander, last season's MVP, understood what L.T. did.

"He won't realize it until after the year is over. Because when you're in a groove you're just about winning games," Alexander said late in the season. "Their season almost looks like ours last year; it's kind of funny. He won't recognize it until it's all over with, and then he'll be like, 'Dang that was sweet."'

So sweet that he received 44 of the 50 votes from a nationwide panel of sports writers and broadcasters who cover the NFL. Former teammate Drew Brees, now starting quarterback for the New Orleans Saints, got four votes, and Indianapolis QB Peyton Manning got two.

Tomlinson rushed for at least 100 yards 10 times this season, including nine in a row, and scored two or more TDs in 10 games. The highlights were four-touchdown games against San Francisco in a 48-19 romp and Cincinnati in a 49-41 shootout in which San Diego trailed 28-7 at halftime.

Those performances prompted coach Marty Schottenheimer to declare L.T. the best running back in pro football history. Yes, better than J.B. (Jim Brown), O.J. (Simpson) and W.P. (Walter Payton).

And Schottenheimer saw all of them play, along with the likes of Emmitt Smith and Gale Sayers.

"One of the things that we all strive for in our chosen field, whatever that might be, is the respect of our peers," Schottenheimer said. "I think that's the most important qualities that any individual can ever possess, the ability that those that know him look at him with the respect that, 'This is a person that I admire.'

"I think with a certainty that everybody in this building and most everybody in this community probably has that sense about LaDainian Tomlinson. He is an individual who engenders the respect of everybody that he comes in contact with."

Tomlinson is the first Charger to win the MVP award. He joins Brown (1957 and '65), Simpson (1973) and Payton (1977) among brilliant running backs to take the honor.

ACK!

[Imran Siddiqui]

'Cause that one was a foregone conclusion.

[Tuberski]

So was Pennington.

ACK!

[Imran Siddiqui]

Not really... a lot of people were pushing Carson Palmer and Drew Brees. Pennington started to come out ahead after the Jets were in position to make the playoffs.