NFL Offseason Thread

[SlowwHand]

He'll catch on somewhere. Bears are trying to cut the negatives.

[Lord Avalon]

Originally posted by -Jrabbit

I haven't judged him; the Bears have. I stand by my previous statements, and I wish him well.

Didn't say you did, was just thinking you might critique the Bears.

[Ming]

The Bears told him ZERO TOLERANCE... and he screwed up. I would assume that they had a talk with him, and he told them the likely results of the blood test.

[SlowwHand]

Here's one writers opinion on off-season acquisitions.

Shopping review: Who improved most, least?

By Vic Carucci
National Editor, NFL.com




(June 26, 2007) -- At one end of the offseason spectrum are the New England Patriots, who took the proverbial shop-'til-you-drop approach toward improving a team that seemingly didn't need a whole lot of improvement.

At the other end are the Tennessee Titans, who waved goodbye to so many key players that brought them to within striking distance of the postseason but welcomed almost no significant replacements to finish the job.

With only weeks to go before NFL training camps open, teams soon will begin to learn whether they have done enough to help make themselves stronger for the 2007 season.

We're not even going to wait that long.

Our choices for the five teams that did the most and five teams that did the least to improve follow:
FIVE THAT DID MOST

--New England: There isn't a more obvious choice. The Patriots signed arguably the best free agent at any position in former Baltimore linebacker Adalius Thomas, who brings off-the-charts athleticism to a well-coached scheme that surrounds him with other talented and smart players. Trading for former Raider malcontent Randy Moss was bold, but Bill Belichick should keep him in line well enough to provide at least a season's worth of big plays. Free agents Donte' Stallworth (Philadelphia) and Kelley Washington (Cincinnati) also look like nice additions to Tom Brady's growing arsenal. Wes Welker (trade, Miami) is a younger version of Troy Brown with game-changing returns and effective work as a slot receiver.

49ers took on the chore of upgrading their defense with zeal. They spent huge money to acquire free-agent cornerback Nate Clements (Buffalo), who provides tight coverage and is a high-impact playmaker. Other free-agent additions -- safety Michael Lewis (Philadelphia), outside linebacker Tully Banta-Cain (New England), and nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin (Baltimore) -- should do plenty to help make for a smooth transition from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense. The 49ers also landed a highly talented and versatile linebacker, Patrick Willis (Mississippi), with their first-round pick.

--Detroit: Calvin Johnson (Georgia Tech), the second overall choice and the most talented player in the draft, is the crowning jewel of one of the most explosive receiving groups in the league. Trading with Denver for tackle George Foster and signing free-agent guard Edwin Mulitalo (Baltimore) should help tighten up pass protection and make the offensive line tougher. Free-agent defensive end Dewayne White (Tampa Bay) brings extensive knowledge of the scheme he learned when Lions coach Rod Marinelli was an assistant with the Bucs. Detroit added good depth at running back by trading with the Broncos for Tatum Bell and signing free agent T.J. Duckett (Washington).

--Tampa Bay: It might be overkill, but the Buccaneers are determined not to encounter a repeat of the quarterback depth problems that did plenty to wreck their 2006 season. That's why they grabbed free agent Jeff Garcia (Philadelphia), who has a thorough understanding of Jon Gruden's offense and is the frontrunner to begin the season in the No. 1 spot, and traded with Denver for Jake Plummer, whom the Bucs are trying to pressure into changing his mind about retirement. Incumbent starter Chris Simms, who missed 11 games last season with a spleen injury, is still very much in the picture. If free-agent tackle Luke Petitgout (Giants) fully recovers from a broken leg he suffered last season, the offensive line will be instantly better. Free-agent outside linebacker Cato June (Indianapolis) has the necessary speed and knowledge to excel in Monte Kiffin's Cover Two scheme.

--Cleveland: It's hard not to be impressed with the Browns' offseason work, even if they still appear a long way from contention. General manger Phil Savage rates high marks for the maneuvering that allowed the Browns to get immediate help at offensive tackle (Joe Thomas, Wisconsin) and their franchise quarterback of the future (Brady Quinn, Notre Dame) in the first round. Cleveland further helped its offensive line by signing free agent Eric Steinbach (Cincinnati) and, depending on how much gas is left in his tank, might have gained a one-year solution at running back in former Browns-killer Jamal Lewis (Baltimore).

FIVE THAT DID THE LEAST

--Tennessee: The season-long suspension of Adam "Pacman" Jones might be the least of the Titans' worries. Free agent Nick Harper (Indianapolis) could prove helpful to fill Jones' cornerback void, although the Titans will be hard-pressed to find another game-breaking return man. Larger problems figure to loom within an offense that lost a highly explosive running back (Travis Henry, to Denver) and two good receivers (Drew Bennett, to St. Louis, and Bobby Wade, to Minnesota).

--Chicago: Although the Bears reached Super Bowl XLI, they still had plenty of work to do to maintain their perch atop the NFC. Making tight end Greg Olsen (Miami) their first-round draft pick doesn't look as if it will be nearly enough to get the job done. Nor does their trading with Washington for safety Adam Archuleta or signing free-agent defensive tackle Anthony Adams (San Francisco). Shipping running back Thomas Jones to the Jets for next to nothing could backfire, especially if Cedric Benson doesn't step up to the challenge of being the lone featured back. It just seems that too much of the news emanating from the Windy City this offseason has been negative, including linebacker Lance Briggs' rants over his franchise tag and the release of troubled defensive tackle Tank Johnson.


--Green Bay: Brett Favre is sticking around for another season, but will the Packers be able to take advantage of whatever their iconic quarterback has left? He didn't get any help at receiver, despite his best efforts to convince management to sign Randy Moss. Tight end also remains a concern for a team that had the NFC's worst production in the red zone. Running back Ahman Green bolted for Houston in free agency, but the Packers used their first-round draft pick on defensive tackle Justin Harrell (Tennessee). Maybe second-rounder Brandon Jackson (Nebraska) will step up to fill Green's spot, along with Vernand Morency, but that remains to be seen.

--Minnesota: The Vikings did add a dynamic playmaker in first-round draft pick Adrian Peterson (Oklahoma), but their offense could muddle along with second-year project Tarvaris Jackson or unproven Brooks Bollinger at quarterback. Second-rounder Sidney Rice (South Carolina) helps at wide receiver, but the Vikings still appear to be lacking at the position. They didn't do much of anything to upgrade an inconsistent pass rush.

--Baltimore: As a 2006 playoff team returning most of its starters, the Ravens didn't have much to fix. But they did lose one of the NFL's best defensive players in Adalius Thomas. Their most notable acquisition, running back Willis McGahee (trade, Buffalo), has yet to consistently resemble the top-flight player that he has loudly boasted to be. First-rounder Ben Grubbs, an offensive guard from Auburn, was a solid pick. However, a revamped offensive line needs to show significant improvement, especially in the running game.

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by Ming
The Bears told him ZERO TOLERANCE... and he screwed up. I would assume that they had a talk with him, and he told them the likely results of the blood test.

IS THAT CLEAR!

[SlowwHand]

Who do you think has the most pressure to perform this year? I vote Eli Manning.
I'm not even thinking about people like...what's that guys name in Chicago at QB?

[-Jrabbit]

Sexy Rexy.

But yeah, Eli's a good choice.

[SlowwHand]

I'm posting this because it's just a damned shame.

Toll of glory for Earl Campbell

Heisman winner paying price for punishing running style

08:55 AM CDT on Saturday, June 30, 2007


By CHIP BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
chipbrown@dallasnews.com


AUSTIN – While Tony Dorsett played with his kids and Archie Griffin and George Rogers played golf Friday at Barton Creek Resort, Earl Campbell was struggling to walk.

Wearing a burnt orange, Texas golf shirt, white knee-length shorts and new Nikes with a Longhorn logo, Campbell used a walker to inch down a window-lined hallway overlooking one of his favorite golf courses.

He took roughly six minutes to cover 40 yards – a distance he used to breeze through in less than five seconds as a punishing running back at Texas and during an eight-year, Hall of Fame career in the NFL, mostly with the Houston Oilers. Still wearing his trademark beard, now gray, he stands at a 45-degree angle, unable to straighten at his lower back. He can no longer straighten his knees, either.

When the walker becomes too much work, he uses a wheelchair that he travels with at all times. During a 40-minute interview with a few reporters on Friday, Campbell was totally lucid one second and struggling to recall names and prominent dates the next.

"The doctor says I'll be playing golf by October," Campbell said in eternal optimism, even though he hasn't swung a club in six years.

Campbell is being honored this weekend along with former Texas A&M running back John David Crow by the Heisman Winners Association. The event, sponsored by Triton Financial, has attracted more than 20 former Heisman Trophy winners to Austin to help raise funds for charity and to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Campbell's Heisman win (1977) and 50th anniversary of Crow's win (1957).

The subject of Campbell's health became a topic of discussion among the former NFL players gathered in Austin this weekend because of testimony before Congress on Tuesday by aging NFL retirees.

Those retirees told horror stories of endless surgery, dementia and even homelessness while fighting with the NFL for better pensions and health insurance. Retired NFL players receive health insurance for the first five years after their playing career and then are on their own, when insurance is often unaffordable.

The league and the players association said pensions are improving and that there's no need for Congress to step in.

"I stay focused and prayerful that I won't have to deal with the situation of Earl Campbell one day," said former Tennessee Titans and Cowboys running back Eddie George, who won the Heisman at Ohio State in 1995.

Fortunately for Campbell, he is in his 16th year as a special assistant to the athletic director at Texas, a job that pays him $50,000 a year and provides his health insurance.

Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds on Friday called Campbell "an important ambassador for the university."

"Thank God for the University of Texas," said Campbell, whose latest back surgery came on March 26 to remove bone spurs. He goes to physical therapy three days a week and regrets quitting on the physical therapy prescribed after previous back surgeries.

"They wanted me to lift some weights, and I told them I didn't know how to do that," Campbell said. "I never lifted weights when I played football. (Former Oilers coach) Bum Phillips took $10,000 from me because I didn't lift weights."
Close to home

For Dorsett, Griffin and Rogers, Campbell's physical condition hits close to home. They are contemporaries who shared a position known for collisions akin to car accidents. Dorsett, who won the Heisman at Pitt in 1976, is 53. Campbell and Griffin are 52. Rogers, the Heisman winner at South Carolina in 1980 before an eight-year NFL career, is 48.

They all talk about ailments that still bother them today. Dorsett, a Hall of Fame running for the Cowboys, temporarily lost feeling in his left arm a while back. Rogers can't raise his right arm above his shoulder.

"Earl's an example of what can happen playing that game," said Ohio State's Griffin, the only two-time Heisman winner (1974-75). "He's paying the price for that today. But Earl never brings attention to himself. He's not going to complain. He still has a great outlook and is still bigger than life."

It's obvious to everyone but Campbell that his physical condition, on the decline for years, is the direct result of his bullish running style. Campbell repeatedly led with his helmet when taking on defenders, raising the question of concussions in addition to the toll taken on his neck and back.

Campbell, however, maintains his physical condition is genetic.

"It's not because of football," Campbell said angrily when a reporter inferred otherwise. "The most serious injury I got from football was a broken finger and broken ribs."
Still a legend

A few of Campbell's business ventures have failed, but he remains a figurehead for Earl Campbell Meat Products. Campbell keeps an office near downtown Austin, where his Heisman Trophy is kept in a glass case.

Campbell has been known to show up at the Shoal Creek Saloon, a local bar and popular hangout among New Orleans Saints fans, where he will drink Budweisers with fans and sign baseball hats that read "20 – The Legend" for $20.

On Friday, he said he can't believe he hasn't been offered more endorsements in Austin over the years.

"With all the computer companies here, not one of those companies have said, 'Would you be interested in representing our company?' " Campbell said. He then asked one of the reporters to help him get a car deal with a BMW dealership.

"I need the biggest BMW they got, black and loaded," Campbell said.

Campbell covered a lot of topics Friday, including a car accident near his hometown of Tyler last Sunday, when he was run off the road by an 18-wheeler.

"Man was I lucky," said Campbell, who was uninjured in the wreck.

On Ricky Williams, Texas' only other Heisman winner who has fallen out of the NFL after repeated failed drug tests, Campbell said, "That's his family's fault, Texas' fault and mostly Ricky's fault. If he would have played for Darrell Royal, that stuff would have stopped. But we as a Heisman group should let Ricky know we still love him."

On Vince Young, who led Texas to the national title in 2005 and then skipped his final year of eligibility for the NFL, Campbell said, "Athletes are great when they get a degree."

Campbell said he would like to see the Heisman Trophy presentation ceremony move to Austin, where the former winners "can play golf" instead of "just sitting around in a cramped hotel drinking."

When Campbell mentioned the idea Friday to former Nebraska running back/receiver Johnny Rodgers, the 1972 Heisman winner, Rodgers chuckled and patted Campbell on the shoulder.

During Friday's interview, Campbell repeatedly called this year the "20th anniversary" of his Heisman win and continued to refer to NFL Players Association chief Gene Upshaw as "Art Shell" even after being corrected twice.

But he is absolutely beloved by his peers. Only they truly know what kind of punishment he handed out – and absorbed – on the field.

"Earl Campbell was my idol," Rogers said. "When I was a player, I tried to be just like him."
Best friends

Of all the Heisman winners, Campbell said he considers Dorsett his best friend because Dorsett calls on Campbell regularly.

Dorsett, who lives in Frisco, is a part owner of Hall of Fame Mortgage in Dallas and also has his own food company – Tony Dorsett Food Products, which makes precooked foods for the military.

"I called Earl and told him to sell his meats to the military because they use sausage in meals just about every day," Dorsett said. "Earl told me he wasn't sure about it because he doesn't like to travel that much."

Having won the Heisman in back-to-back years, Dorsett and Campbell tried to outperform each other during their pro careers – a fact they learned after they retired.

"One time, I asked Earl, 'Why don't you let one man bring you down sometimes?' " Dorsett said. "He said, 'I got to get them. They're talking that noise.' "

When asked about that conversation Friday, Campbell said, "Tony had his style, I had my style."

Dorsett sounded like an excited little boy when naming several defenders Campbell threw around like rag dolls on highlight reels.

"Earl was the biggest, baddest player in the game," Dorsett said. "He was my Skoal brother. But no matter how big or strong you are, the game ultimately wins."

[Lord Avalon]

Auf Wiedersehen, NFL Europa

NFL folds Europe league, to focus on regular-season games abroad

FRANKFURT, Germany -- The NFL folded its development league in Europe after 16 years on Friday, calling the decision a sound business move that will allow for a stronger international focus on regular-season games outside the United States.

The announcement came less than a week after the Hamburg Sea Devils beat the Frankfurt Galaxy 37-28 in the World Bowl title game in Frankfurt before a crowd of 48,125. Five of the league's six teams are based in Germany, with the other in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

A statement on the German-language edition of the NFL's Web site said the NFL decided to concentrate its "strategies and resources" on regular-season games outside the United States in an effort to reach as many people as possible.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell thanked the fans for their support but said it was time to develop a new international strategy, terming the move to fold NFL Europa the ``best business decision.'' The league reportedly was losing about $30 million a season.

"From now on we will focus on regular-season games and use new technologies to make NFL more popular worldwide," he said.

NFL team owners decided in October to play up to two regular-season games outside the United States. The first such game is Oct. 28 in London between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants.

The league said it is looking toward other regular-season games in Germany, Mexico and Canada, with Germany a strong candidate for 2008.

"NFL Europa has created thousands of passionate fans who have supported that league and our sport for many years," said Mark Waller, senior vice president of NFL International. "And we look forward to building on this foundation as we begin this new phase of our international development."

The league began in 1991 as the World League of American Football, with 10 teams from the United States and Europe, spreading from Scotland to Spain. After closing for two seasons in 1993 and 1994, the league returned with six European teams and retained the same format until the end.

The league was used by NFL teams to test young talent and produced players such as quarterback Kurt Warner, who led the St. Louis Rams to the 2000 Super Bowl championship and won two NFL Most Valuable Player awards; Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme; and star Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri.

NFL Europa managing director Uwe Bergheim said the league had succeeded in establishing a fan base for football in important European markets.

"Despite the great support of fans, business partners and the cities where we were active, we decided that it was time to change the strategy," Bergheim said.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2920738

[-Jrabbit]

When Europa started, it was a true devlopmental league. The NFL was desperate for QBs and a successful NFL Europe QB had a shot to become a starter (e.g. Jake DelHomme). All that's changed now.

They still need a developmental league, but an NFL-E star is lucky to make a roster in the US, so it's tough to justify underwriting a league overseas. The bloom is off the rose.

I expect some sort of US minor league thing to develop. Where guys like Maurice Clarett can beat up on guys like Donegeal.

[Lord Avalon]

Originally posted by -Jrabbit

I expect some sort of US minor league thing to develop. Where guys like Maurice Clarett can beat up on guys like Donegeal.

Not another Longest Yard remake!

[Donegeal]

The TAZER can work wonders on the football field!

[-Jrabbit]

Blood tests revealed that former Bears DT Tank Johnson wasn't legally drunk while speeding in Arizona last week.
Tank's alcohol-blood level was .072, just below Arizona's legal limit of .08.

FWIW...

[Zopperoni]

Originally posted by -Jrabbit
When Europa started, it was a true devlopmental league. The NFL was desperate for QBs and a successful NFL Europe QB had a shot to become a starter (e.g. Jake DelHomme). All that's changed now.

Indeed, another problem is simply audience. A lot of the original NFLe teams were disbanded (e.g. London Monarchs, Barcelona Dragons, Scottish Claymores), and we were left w/ five German teams and the Dutch Admirals.
I actually know one of the members of the Admirals' supervisory board. I'll send him a note this week to see what his thoughts are.

The Admirals drew only ~15,000 visitors per game (in a 50,000+ capacity stadium), and there was no TV coverage at all. Early efforts to televise games thru Fox failed miserably due to the time difference.
Last season, I watched football at a bar, but I hope the NFL will invest in distributing the footage thru new media (e.g. a Joost-like system w/ footage on demand). I'd definitely be up for something like that.

[Drake Tungsten]

Originally posted by JRabbit

Blood tests revealed that former Bears DT Tank Johnson wasn't legally drunk while speeding in Arizona last week. Tank's alcohol-blood level was .072, just below Arizona's legal limit of .08.

FWIW...

Give Tank his job back!!!