During the #10 Arkansas - Vanderbilt football game Saturday afternoon, Arkansas gunner Marquel Wade LAID OUT Commodores' punt returner Jonathan Krause - so much so that Krause was writhing in pain after that hit.
Deservedly so, Wade was ejected from the game - you can see in the above video that he was showboating, taunting and gloating after his hit - UNCALLED for in this day and age of football safety.
The play reminded me of a similar hit the Carolina Panthers gunner Dante Wesley made on punt returner Clifton Smith. The only difference was that a fight did not break out in this weekend's college football game.
It's now two hours until kickoff, and as we get ready for the 2-1 Redskins (WOOT, WOOT!) to face off against the 0-3 Rams at the Edward Jones Dome, I fear the inevitable will happen: the favorites (Redskins), picked by many to win this game, create mistake-after-mistake to cost them a victory against the heavy-underdog Rams team. It's happened before - actually two times the last three years:
2008 The Pete Pickup-and-Fumble Game
Click the above picture to see highlights from this game
Yikes! And to add insult to injury, Rams offensive lineman Richie Incognito blew his fuse and got a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty near the end of the game, but kicker Josh Brown nailed a 50-yard field goal (instead of a 30-some-yard FG) to win the game.
2010 We-Didn't-Come-to-Play Game
Click the above picture to see highlights from this game
This game involved the 0-2 Rams against the 1-1 Redskins (again, favorites for this game). But this time, w/ McNabb at QB, the Redskins didn't show up. The big 40+ yard run by S-Jax (Steven Jackson) in the 1st quarter was the big dagger/big hole that we were unable to overcome come the second half. Despite him leaving with a groin injury in the 2nd quarter, we just could not stop the Rams offense offensively.
So, my question to you is this: Which Redskin team will show up? The one that defeated the Giants, or the one that created multiple blunders against the hapless 2011 Cowboys team/2008 + 2010 Rams teams of the past three years?
The Johnny Knox TD that would have made the game only a one-score deficit was not to be; there was a holding penalty that brought the whole play back and cost the Bears a chance of a comeback.
But, WHAT A FAKE by punt returner Devin Hester!
One of the better offensive linemen this past decade has passed away at the young age of 40 - ex-Raven and Cleveland Brown, Orlando "Zeus" Brown - according to NFL Network's Jason LaCanfora:
If the name sounds familiar to you, then you must remember the Ravens in their glory years. Once he left the Ravens for their not-so-great division rivals the Cleveland Browns, he had an incident with referee Jeff Triplett.
Triplett threw a flag that "accidentally" hit Brown in his right eye.
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL? I sure am. With the start of the NFL season just hours upon us, I thought it would be a good time to unveil the 2011 Ultimate NFL Player Bracket. If you remember during this past summer, NFL Network aired its 100 Top NFL Players in chunks of 10. In addition, various other networks/blogs/websites made their "own" Top-100: CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated's Peter King and Scouts Inc. I, too, made my own top-100 with no biases (*Note: NO rookies were used in any of the rankings, and non take in part the offseason changes over the past month*). I then compiled the rankings and sorted based on an average ranking.
Since you guys LOVE brackets, I took the top 64 of those NFL players to make a 2011 Ultimate NFL Player Bracket. Below, you will see a downloadable Excel bracket:
Once completed, please send me your Final Four AND Top NFL Player to: sameermalla@gmail.com (email); @skinsballr (Twitter) or post your comment below this post.
During yesterday's high-scoring preseason game between the high-powered Saints and the lowly Raiders, former Redskin quarterback Jason Campbell passed the ball to former Redskin and Maryland Terrapin lineman Stephon Heyer. Take a look:
What I am really enjoying about this Redskins draft is the way the Redskins are doing their business - the Bruce Allen + Mike Shanahan method - of trading back picks to fill in the multiple holes both on offense and on defense. I am so used to the Vinny Cerrato + Dan Snyder method of picking players on where they are at and becoming busts - because they don't try as hard - the Shanahan system will force these players to earn their spot instead of players with guaranteed money playing half-as-hard for the team. From eight 2011 picks to now 12, the Redskins are moving against what they normally do during the draft and instead trying something new.
1st Round Pick (#16 overall)
OLB Ryan Kerrigan
A great pick-up by the Redskins, who trade their #10 overall pick to the Jaguars for the #16 pick and #49th overall pick. They: a) Did NOT go after fast-falling quarterback Blaine Gabbert, who did not fit their system and b) Solidified a horrible defense with a great pass-rusher. Think the white version of Orakpo.
I am so glad the Redskins did not draft a QB in the first three rounds - like four of the top 12 teams in the draft were doing on Thursday night. The common Redskins/NFL fan would be like: "WTF? Why aren't the Redskins drafting someone like Ryan Mallet or Collin Kaepernick? Are they stupid? Let's fire Shanahan and Snyder and Allen. They can't be resorting back to Rex Grossman again, can they?"
My answer, along with the Redskins coaching/managerial staff, is this: We already have two decent quarterbacks in Rex Grossman and John Beck. None of the passed 2011 QB's seem franchise-worthy and fit our West Coast Offense/Zone Scheme. Don't forget, we traded a player to the Ravens to get Beck, who was a 2nd round pick by the Dolphins. He has talent, and possibly enough to be our temporary franchise quarterback for the future. Just take a look at this video:
2nd Round Pick (#49 overall)
DE/DT Jarvis Jenkins
Using the Jaguars 2nd round pick, the 'Skins picked up a solid defensive line player in Jenkins - ESPN980 has said that two other teams behind the Redskins' pick would have picked up JJ had they not grabbed him. He's Haynesworth without the heavy baggage and complaints. He is great on run defense, but weak on the pass rush. I'm glad they chose him and NOT his teammate defensive end DeQuan Bowers, who has a history of leg problems.
NOTE: The Redskins traded their own second-round, third-round, fourth-round and fifth-round picks for later picks in the draft.
3rd Round Pick (#79 overall) - from Miami
WR Leonard Hankerson
This pick was probably the best and safest pick the Redskins have made in the draft. One of their biggest holes on offense over the past decade was the lack of a big-time tall wide receiver. We tried that with the 2008 draft debacle with both Malcolm Kelly (likely to be released by the team) and Devin Thomas (now with the NY Giants). If Moss returns to the team - a BIG if, since he is a free agent this season - we could go far, with Moss, Armstrong, Cooley and Hankerson as our receivers.
4th Round Pick (#105 overall) - from Houston
RB Roy Helu Jr.
The Redskins traded up a couple of spots ahead in the fourth round to nab Helu. He's most likely the backup to starting running back Ryan Torain and has more of a Darren Sproles/Noel Devine kind-of-feel. He's small, quick and elusive and fits perfectly for the Shanahan zone-running system. The downsides are that he's not Clinton Portis in terms of pass-protection (no one can PP [pass-protect] like CP; and he's not a durable, strong runner that gains yards-after-contact (YAC)).
I don't know much about Gomes, other than that he fills a backup/possible starting position at safety and possible cornerback, and it's the second consecutive Cornhusker pick.
From ESPN Insider: "Gomes is a SS-type player who excels against the run with good angles and technique as a tackler. He will have some limitations on the backend due to lack of fluidity and top-end speed."
5th Round Pick (#155 overall) - from New Orleans
WR Niles Paul
The pick of Paul makes it three straight Nebraska Cornhuskers chosen in a row and the second WR picked in the draft. I really thought the Redskins would go offensive line here, since their big-play threat was filled by Hankerson's pick yesterday. Don't get me wrong - Niles may be just as good of a player, but the Redskins really need to fill their weak offensive line sooner rather than later. The good part about Niles is that he is great in pass/run blocking - a plus for any team's offense and special teams.
From ESPN Insider: "Paul is a big, physical WR with a RB's build who can contribute as a receiver after the catch and bring added value on special teams a returner. However, he is a bit tight as a route-runner and is a bit inconsistent catching the ball outside of his frame."
The Washington Redskins schedule was released moments ago, and if you don't know it, here it is:
(that is, if we have an NFL season). White = Predicted Loss; Green = Predicted Win
We have an early, EARLY bye week (week 5), and the meat of the schedule (Cowboys/Seahawks/Jets/Pats/Vikings/Eagles) is not until the end of the season
The supposed easy part of the schedule is in the middle, where we face the Panthers/Bills/49ers in consecutive weeks
There are A LOT of 1:00 games this year - 12 of the 16 games are the early afternoon version
We, the Redskins, need to be up and running as the season starts, as we face two NFC East foes to start the season - including @ the Cowboys on Monday Night Football
We have to face the Jets and the Pats in CONSECUTIVE WEEKS, and BOTH in December? Talk about a double-whammy there! (the one good thing is that both games are at home...)
Prior to those games, we are at Quest Field and face the noisy - and I mean the REALLY NOISY - twelfth man
If McNabb is somehow traded to the Vikings, we don't face them until the penultimate game of the regular season - on Christmas Eve. Hopefully, McNabb will be McSanta Claus and give the Redskins faithful a gift that day!
We have to face the pesky Rams again - the last three times we faced them, we got BLITZED by Bradford (last year) and then we had the Pete Kendall incident (2008) that is still branded into my brain to this very day
Luckily, the guy who returned the fumble for a 75-yard TD is on our team now (Oshiomogho Atogwe)
We have the 29th hardest schedule - which means easy, but not when we hit the winter season!
Last time we beat the Pats at home was the loss that sparked their 21-game winning streak
I am predicting an 5-11 season... with some losses coming against the terrible teams (happens to the 'Skins every friggin' year) and some surprise wins - even though we have the sixth-easiest schedule in the league. We have too many holes offensively (RB/WR/OL/QB - basically, our entire offense outside of TE) and we had one of the worst defenses in the League last year. We might blow another top-10 pick come next April.
Annually, during the tail end of the NFL Combine in late February, NFL analyst Rich Eisen runs the famed 40-yard dash - then NFL Network shows the same clip plastered on with other scouting combine invitees - from quarterbacks to running backs to wide receivers and even the big guys - the offensive linemen.
This post will show the current and past editions of Eisen's 40-yard dash:
As a die-hard Redskins fan, I used to love watching Clinton Portis suit up for the team on a weekly basis. We got CP at the perfect time - he was just about to excel for the Denver Broncos when we did a two-for-one deal for him, sending coveted corner Champ Bailey and a 2004 draft pick (running back Tatum Bell, who did well for only a couple seasons with the team) for Portis.
I remember his first carry with the 'Skins - a 64-yard touchdown run right up the middle, with perfect blocking to the left and right of him:
But, the best of all was his blocking. No running back in the league could block as well as Portis. That was why he was so vital to the team from 2005-2007. His pass-blocking ability could not be matched - which is why we loved him.
And, then, of course, there was his shenanigans - and by Portis's shenanigans, I'm referring to his multiple alter-egos he displayed in 2005.
We all, the Redskins Faithful, will miss you, Clinton Portis!
The last time there was someone other than Jerry Sloan as head coach of the Utah Jazz, the first Bush was vice president, point guard Deron Williams was a wee 4 years old and a gallon of gas cost $1.08. The change was coming, since now the two longest tenured head coaches in the NBA and NFL have now been removed of their positions (the other being Tennessee Titans head coach Jeff Fisher, who was the only Titans head coach in their franchise history).
One has to be the fudged-up lyrics by famed singer Christina Aguilera during her 'rendition' of the "Star-Spangled Banner":
According to ESPN.com:
"When she was supposed to sing the line "O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming," she instead repeated an earlier line, with a slight variation.
She sang, "What so proudly we watched at the twilight's last reaming," repeating and mangling an earlier lyric, with the word 'watched' instead of 'hailed' and 'reaming' instead of 'gleaming.'"
And that was not all. The halftime show was a 'DUD', mainly because we have all heard the same songs sung by the Black Eyed Peas over and over and over again. Another reason was that the microphones/audio were semi-working, and without auto-tune, the songs that Fergie and all were belting at the top of their lungs were god-AWFUL. I watched the same songs being sung by the same group prior the 2010 World Cup festivities, and they were 1000X better than what I saw yesterday.
In case you didn't watch:
Thousands, if not, millions of people have proclaimed this Super Bowl halftime show as one of the worst ever. But the game and commercials were not half-bad.
Super Bowl? What Super Bowl? Oh, you mean the one that ended 31-25 Packers? Oh yeah, I watched that, but the highlights were of the commercials - some great and some awful. Here, I'll be showing my favorite sixteen advertisements from yesterday
Since today is the Super Bowl and a match-up between the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, two historic franchises, I thought it would be a good time to look back on a great battle between these same two teams two years ago late in the season:
Unbelievable weekend of divisional playoff NFL games - every bird lost (Ravens, Falcons and Seahawks), all due to poor play by the team's offense (3 second-half turnovers for the Ravens, two costly first-half interceptions for the Falcons and a terrible all-around offensive performance by the Hawks)
But what was most shocking was the beat-down the Jets put on the New England Patriots today. Nearly every NFL fan (outside of the typical trash-talking Jets fan) and NFL writer had the Patriots going to the Super Bowl, including me, after their stellar run during the regular season. What was most shocking was the incapability of New England's passing game. Despite the trash talking by Jets' cornerback Antonio Cromartie and head coach Rex Ryan, the Jets prevailed - mainly through their shut-down pass defense.
This post-game interview by ESPN's San Paoantonio of Jets' linebacker Bart Scott sums up the Jets' emotional level after the game:
Next week should look like a great AFC Championship game - the physical, physical Pittsburgh Steeelers against the lots of bark and lots of bite New York Jets at 6:30 PM EST next Sunday!
Such a dominant performance was made by the Seattle Seahawks in their stunning 41-36 victory over the defending champs, the New Orleans Saints. What really sealed the deal was this miraculous 67-yard run by veteran running back Marshawn Lynch, who showed a little AP in him with the brute strength on his way to the end zone.
The Cleveland Browns, trying to surprise the Ravens today, pulled off this gadget play during their game early in the first quarter:
So, this is what happened:
The Browns changed their offensive formation
Backup quarterback Seneca Wallace took the snap
Wallace pitched the ball to stud running back Peyton Hillis
Hillis, on a double-reverse, flipped the ball to Mohamed Massaquoi
Massaquoi then threw a 30-yard pass to seldom-used wide receiver Terry Robeskie for a TD
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Every Monday, I will show the top players at each offensive skill position - fantasy-style, with the percentage owned and started in parenthesis. All data is from espn.com.
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