While it's still going on, here's a Ducks/Avs update. After an excessively boring first period on Tuesday night, the two teams managed to put a pretty entertaining game together. Anaheim didn't get any goals by players not named "Joffrey Lupul", but it wasn't because of a lack of effort or opportunity. The Ducks have played very well so far, and they have faced some solid goaltending from the normally inconsistent Jose Theodore (it's safe to say that the Theodore/David Aebischieve swap didn't work well for either Colorado or Montreal). Theodore made some magnificent saves early on Tuesday to keep the Avalanche alive, and he kept it up throughout the game as Colorado struggled to handle the speed of the Ducks' forwards. Colorado finally solved the Ilya Bryzgalov puzzle, but they still aren't doing the little things they need to do to beat a team like Anaheim. The Avalanche aren't doing a good job getting back on defense (after three games, there aren't a lot of excuses for underestimating Anaheim's speed up the ice). They don't get nearly enough traffic in front of Bryzgalov (give Anaheim some credit for using their size to push the Avs around). And they aren't playing very smart on their power play, looking about as tentative as humanly possible with the man advantage. If there's a team that deserves to be down 3-0 in a series right now, it's Colorado. The first three games of this series have underscored how lucky the Avalanche were to advance to this round.
College impact continues. Zach Parise has played well for New Jersey. Maine's Dustin Penner has been a godsend for Anaheim. Guys like Matt Greene, Brad Winchester, Tom Preissing, David Hale, and Mike Commodore, among others, have played significant roles for their teams so far in the postseason. On top of the 18 former Hobey Baker Award winners and finalists still playing (I chronicled that last week), college hockey's presence is really being felt through these role players. I felt they merited a small mention for their contributions. No matter how many of these guys make it in the NHL, I always perk up a little bit when I hear an announcer call a familiar name (though I have to admit it was more like a "double take" when Jim Hughson called Matt Greene's name last night).
Speaking of Jim Hughson...I had never heard him call a real NHL game before. Just the video games for EA Sports. Hughson's awesome, but it was thoroughly weird to hear him call a real game. I kept waiting for him to say "____ has the puck on a string!", "____ just missed the net on that slapper!", or "____ has it in the big trapper!". Either way, it was fun to listen to. I'm all for more CBC feeds of NHL games, since I don't get CBC (memo to DirecTV: I want CBC!).
Quick thought on the NBA. First off, whoever is responsible for the night off today should be whipped. I don't care that TV rules the roost. There's no reason to not have any games tonight. Teams that played on Tuesday don't need to wait until Saturday to play again.
Also, I'm all for ripping Kobe Bryant, but let me bring something else up here. I agree that it's fishy that Bryant only took three shots in the second half of LA's blowout loss to Phoenix in Game 7 on Saturday, especially with how active he was in the first half. And I agree that Bryant may very well have packed it in and decided to put his crappy team on full display for everyone to see. But...
What happens if Bryant takes 20 more shots in the second half? The Lakers lose by double-digits, anyway, because they couldn't defend the Suns' fast break or half-court offense, nor could they rebound consistently against a terrible rebounding team (see: West Semifinals Game 2 rebound margin - Clippers 57, Suns 26). And Bryant gets ripped by everyone for taking 40 shots in a Game 7 and trying to do it all by himself.
Instead, Bryant tries to set his teammates up and let them show what they can do, and the Lakers get blown out of the arena.
Please keep in mind that I'm just playing devil's advocate to a certain extent. I can't stand Bryant. And I think he quit on Saturday. I think he got sick of carrying this team, and he let them fall off the map in the second half. As evidence of this, I'll not only offer the fact that Bryant only took three second-half shots, but I'll also offer that there were multiple possessions where Bryant didn't touch the ball, and since the Lakers' offense was basically run through Bryant all year, I found this to be quite odd.
But no matter what you say about Kobe, he was a legitimate MVP candidate this year. The second half of Game 7, with Bryant invisible, only underscores how amazing it was that he was able to get this horrible team to a seventh game against the second-best team in the West.
Larry King is here again...Javon Walker signed his new contract in Denver yesterday. I credit him for making sure everyone understands that Brett Favre didn't "drive him out of Green Bay". Whether I agree with the idea that GM Ted Thompson "disrespected" Walker by simply saying that the team wasn't going to redo Walker's contract or not, I'll give Walker some credit for getting Favre out from under the bus by saying he'd play with Favre anywhere, except Green Bay... Jaguars WR Jimmy Smith is retiring after a stellar career. Smith fought through serious adversity, both from injury and off-field issues, and had himself a very good career, mainly in Jacksonville... Kyle Lohse lowered his ERA to 8.33 by allowing one run over six innings. I'm sure Twins fans think he's worth every penny he won in arbitration... Apparently, habitual diving is bad for your ankles. Peter Forsberg could be out until January 2007 after surgery to repair bad ligaments in both ankles... While I've never gotten in trouble for blogging, Mark Cuban is a pro at it. Cuban was fined $200,000 by the NBA this week, both for going on the floor during Game One of the Mavericks-Spurs series Sunday, and for the linked entry on his blog, where he talks about improving playoff officiating. Unfortunately for Cuban, he has criticized officials too many times to get away with it now, no matter how much sense his ideas make (why are there 33 officials eligible for playoff games?). Cuban's last point in the blog is the best: "Giving less qualified officials an opportunity to officiate playoff games as a reward gives the official a nice attaboy, but it risks the quality of our product." Perfect. And, apparently, worthy of a fine from the league... I will give the NBA credit for one thing: They get television. All their playoff games are available nationally, either on ESPN, TNT, TBS, ABC, or NBA TV. The NHL doesn't get television. At all. No game last Saturday night. Two games at once twice in the conference semifinals, which only feature four total series. This is stupid. I shouldn't have to rely on Comcast to stream the Ottawa-Buffalo game on the internet for free so I can watch it because OLN is already tied up with a game. As long as the NHL is going to be this lackadaisical about scheduling games so they can be televised to everyone, they will lag well behind an inferior product (the NBA) in viewers and overall interest.
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
I'd normally leave this for the Fire Joe Morgan crew, but this is ridiculous...
You know them. The link is in one of the menus on the right of this page.
Anyway, Emmy-winner Joe Morgan was a guest on SportsCenter last night. It was there that he discussed with anchor Steve Levy the ridiculous and somewhat insulting proposition that the hatred toward Barry Bonds is racially-motivated. As the anchors teased this segment, I was given no idea that Morgan was going to be the guest, but I decided to watch anyway, because I was intrigued by the possibility that, as was intimated in the tease, there are MLB players who think people are racist in their handling of Bonds.
The Emmy winner was asked about this notion - the notion that the treatment of Bonds this past week was somehow just a bunch of racist Milwaukee and Philadelphia fans, even though the big sign in Philadelphia Sunday night talked about how "Aaron did it with class" (the other part, about how "Ruth did it with hot dogs and beer", was hilarious). It's an idea that basically dismisses the thought that fans despise Bonds because heprobably likely definitely took steroids, which is, you know, true.
Morgan's rambling 45-second response, which I didn't make a transcript of but should have, talked about how there's racism everywhere you go, and how there are probably people who are treating Bonds like this because he's black, and how there are probably people who don't want Bonds to break Aaron's record because he's black (they somehow, evidently, forgot that Henry Aaron is black, too).
At no point in this rambling, incoherent babble did Morgan either come anywhere close to completing a rational thought, or did he mention that maybe, just maybe, people hate Barry Bonds because he's a jerk who took steroids.
MEMORANDUM
To: Joe Morgan
From: Someone who desperately wants to save you from the wrath of Ken Tremendous
Re: Steroids
Steroids are bad, Joe. And Barry Bonds took them.
As a result, there are a lot of people who would just as soon watch the Yankees win a World Series before they watch Barry Bonds break the record of Henry Aaron, a man who has continued to live a life of class and dignity long after he stopped hitting home runs.
It's okay to talk about steroids. Hell, everyone else does.
It's certainly not okay to never mention them when Bonds is involved in the discussion. Please never do this again.
Thank you.
EOM
Anyway, Emmy-winner Joe Morgan was a guest on SportsCenter last night. It was there that he discussed with anchor Steve Levy the ridiculous and somewhat insulting proposition that the hatred toward Barry Bonds is racially-motivated. As the anchors teased this segment, I was given no idea that Morgan was going to be the guest, but I decided to watch anyway, because I was intrigued by the possibility that, as was intimated in the tease, there are MLB players who think people are racist in their handling of Bonds.
The Emmy winner was asked about this notion - the notion that the treatment of Bonds this past week was somehow just a bunch of racist Milwaukee and Philadelphia fans, even though the big sign in Philadelphia Sunday night talked about how "Aaron did it with class" (the other part, about how "Ruth did it with hot dogs and beer", was hilarious). It's an idea that basically dismisses the thought that fans despise Bonds because he
Morgan's rambling 45-second response, which I didn't make a transcript of but should have, talked about how there's racism everywhere you go, and how there are probably people who are treating Bonds like this because he's black, and how there are probably people who don't want Bonds to break Aaron's record because he's black (they somehow, evidently, forgot that Henry Aaron is black, too).
At no point in this rambling, incoherent babble did Morgan either come anywhere close to completing a rational thought, or did he mention that maybe, just maybe, people hate Barry Bonds because he's a jerk who took steroids.
MEMORANDUM
To: Joe Morgan
From: Someone who desperately wants to save you from the wrath of Ken Tremendous
Re: Steroids
Steroids are bad, Joe. And Barry Bonds took them.
As a result, there are a lot of people who would just as soon watch the Yankees win a World Series before they watch Barry Bonds break the record of Henry Aaron, a man who has continued to live a life of class and dignity long after he stopped hitting home runs.
It's okay to talk about steroids. Hell, everyone else does.
It's certainly not okay to never mention them when Bonds is involved in the discussion. Please never do this again.
Thank you.
EOM
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Randomization: 05/05/06
NHL conference semifinals are set. And there aren't any universally distasteful teams left. It's going to be hard to build up any real disdain for the Colorados, San Joses, Ottawas, or New Jerseys of the hockey world so I can root for their opponents in the conference semis. The matchups should be interesting, and there certainly is some historical significance to what has happened this year in the NHL. The top four seeds in the Western Conference all have tee times as of today. As discussed yesterday, Detroit lost in six games to Edmonton. The second seed, Dallas, lost an excruciating series to Colorado (three OT losses out of five games played). Fourth seed Nashville lost in five games to a clearly superior San Jose team.
And then there's Calgary.
Stupid Flames. I had them in the Finals, but they decided to break out the golf clubs early, failing to even put up a fight in a Game 7 loss to Anaheim.
That leaves the fifth-seeded San Jose Sharks as the top remaining seed in the Western Conference.
Let that sink in for a moment, especially after you consider that the seeds held form in the East, where the top four all advanced quite convincingly (with the possible exception of Carolina, who had some close shaves after losing two straight at home to start their series with Montreal).
I'm going to spare you positional breakdowns and such, because I examined these teams quite closely before the first round (though, in the West, I apparently didn't examine them enough). But here are some quick thoughts on the four series:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Buffalo vs Ottawa --> This is what I expected to see happen, and I picked Buffalo at the start of the playoffs. Nothing I saw in the first round makes me think differently. Ottawa is extremely dangerous, but the Sabres' balance and goaltending are superior. The Senators aren't as strong defensively as Buffalo, either. The Sabres will ride Ryan Miller and the play of all four scoring lines to a win in a great series.
New Jersey vs Carolina --> With the play of Martin Brodeur in the series against New York, combined with Carolina's serious struggles against Montreal, this is the closest I will probably come to changing a previous prediction, something I really don't like doing. But I'm going to stick to my guns. Cam Ward has been great for the Hurricanes in goal after Martin Gerber flamed out, and the 'Canes are getting big goals from their veteran players, along with improved play from their less-experienced guys. If I'm going to be wrong, it's probably going to be on this series, but I think Carolina will win and advance to the conference final.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Colorado vs Anaheim --> Did anyone think Anaheim would end up with home-ice in the conference semifinals? Me, neither. They're a good team, though. I like their speed, and Scott Niedermayer was nothing short of incredible in the Calgary series. The Ducks got great goaltending from Ilya Brzkiginlasdaddygov, who stepped in after Jean-Sebastien Giguere was ineffective in Game 5. Colorado, to a certain extent, was lucky to advance, even though they won in just five games. Three of their wins were in overtime, and they had a couple games in there that they honestly didn't have any business winning. I think the lucky streak will end here, as the Avalanche just don't have the speed or defensive prowess to stay with Anaheim. Ducks win in six games.
Edmonton vs San Jose --> After they shocked Detroit (and did it with some amazing comebacks and bouncebacks), nothing that Edmonton does should be considered a surprise. The Oilers have speed, skill, depth, great goaltending from Dwayne Roloson (whose great play against the Red Wings was a huge, but somewhat forgotten, factor in the series) and an elite defenseman in Chris Pronger, who was on a level with Anaheim's Niedermayer in the first round. Pronger was on the ice in almost every key situation, and he was still able to avoid taking a penalty until Game 6. San Jose, however, is clicking up front. Jonathan Cheechoo, Joe Thornton, and Patrick Marleau will be hard to shut down, and Vesa Toskala had a great series against Nashville. This should be a great series. Edmonton has the speed and skill, and they are also very tenacious. The defense matches up better with the Sharks' top players than Nashville did, and I think Edmonton is better-equipped to cause problems with Toskala than Nashville was. Edmonton gets a second straight upset, this one in seven games.
For those who try to discredit college hockey...The influence that the college game is having on the NHL increases practically every year. This year is the best it's ever been. There are three former Hobey Baker winners still playing, including two (Chris Drury and Ryan Miller) on the Buffalo Sabres (Matt Carle of San Jose is the other). Counting Miller and Drury, who was a two-time finalist before he won the award at Boston University, there are 18 former Hobey finalists still playing. The full list of former finalists:
ANAHEIM – LW Chris Kunitz (2003, Ferris State), C Andy McDonald (2000, Colgate). BUFFALO – G Miller (2002, Michigan State), C Drury (1996, 1997, Boston University), RW Mike Grier (1995, Boston University). COLORADO – D Rob Blake (1990, Bowling Green), C Jim Dowd (1991, Lake Superior State), D John-Michael Liles (2003, Michigan State). EDMONTON – G Ty Conklin (2000, 2001, New Hampshire), C Shawn Horcoff (2000, Michigan State), G Dwayne Roloson (1994, UMass-Lowell). NEW JERSEY – RW Brian Gionta (1999, 2000, 2001, Boston College), C John Madden (1997, Michigan), LW Jay Pandolfo (1996, Boston University), C Zach Parise (2003, 2004, North Dakota). OTTAWA – LW Dany Heatley (2001, Wisconsin), Bryan Smolinski (1993, Michigan State). SAN JOSE – D Tom Preissing (2003, Colorado College).
With great young talents like Travis Zajac, Drew Stafford, Ryan Potulny, Robbie Earl, and Danny Irmen among a ton of college players about to make an impact in the pros, you can look for more lists like the above in future years. More and more highly-touted athletes are making their way into college hockey, and the trend will continue as those players find their way into big-time roles in the NHL.
Two more quick notes on the NHL playoffs so far. I promise I'll stop for now after I mention these two other notes. Through the conference quarterfinals, scoring is up an average of 1.5 goals per game from 2004 (5.9 goals this year, 4.4 goals in 2004). And through the conference quarterfinals, there have been 27 lead changes in games, compared with 10 through the same number of playoff games (44) in 2004.
If you didn't believe that the NHL was serious about opening up the game, or if you were like me and very skeptical about the officials making the same penalty calls in the playoffs that they made in the regular season, you've got some evidence now that the league was indeed serious about the players being allowed to play the game within the rules.
Full credit to Gary Bettman and officiating supervisor Steven Walkom for making sure the officials did their jobs in the playoffs. So far, so good.
Saying "No" to Barry. Give credit to baseball commissioner Bud Selig, who has managed to almost completely distance himself from controversial slugger Barry Bonds without doing anything stupid (i.e. suspending Bonds). Bonds' Giants were in Milwaukee this week, with Bonds just two homers away from tying Babe Ruth for second all-time, and Selig was nowhere to be found. Baseball has also made it clear that they won't celebrate Bonds passing Ruth, and they used the right reason publicly (they don't want to get in the habit of celebrating second place), even if that reason is somewhat bogus.
Suns survive undisciplined stupidity. The Suns beat the Lakers Thursday night to force a Game 7. That came after Raja Bell's warranted one-game suspension for a clothesline on Bryant in Game 5. I'm all for clotheslining Kobe Bryant, but it has to be done in the context of the game. Bell intimated that he was retaliating for some elbows he got from Bryant during the game, but he needs to learn that he's better retaliating when he actually gets hit than he is waiting until the game is basically over to gutlessly throw a random clothesline. It was a silly lack of discipline from Bell, and he's lucky his absence didn't hurt his team. Game 7, which is Saturday, should be a great game.
Larry King wants me to mention these notes. Prince Fielder almost killed Todd Greene on Thursday afternoon in Milwaukee. I hope Greene's okay, but that was a great collision at home plate. Pretty sure you don't want to stand in Prince's way unless you're wearing full body armor... Can't wait for the NCAA Baseball Tournament. I expect that defending national champion Texas will be the best team out of a major conference (the 'Horns have been hot lately after a rough start to their title defense), but look out for Nebraska out of the Big 12. With Joba Chamberlain at the top of the rotation and the bats having come alive even without Alex Gordon, the Cornhuskers are a serious threat. Rice, Cal State Fullerton, and Notre Dame are also very dangerous. Star WR Jeff Samardzija is also a pitcher on the Irish baseball team, and he's developed into one of their top starters. Kentucky has emerged as one of the best teams in the SEC, sitting at 34-11 overall entering this weekend. It should be a great tounament, with no real clear-cut favorite... Follow-up to the World Cup - Team USA will be without defender Frankie Hejduk in the tournament, as he has a bad knee. Chris Albright has been brought up from the list of alternates to the main roster for the tournament, which starts June 9 in Germany.
Time off. I will be taking a long weekend. Any posts between now and Wednesday will be brief, but I'll be back with something that will at least closely resemble a full post on Wednesday.
And then there's Calgary.
Stupid Flames. I had them in the Finals, but they decided to break out the golf clubs early, failing to even put up a fight in a Game 7 loss to Anaheim.
That leaves the fifth-seeded San Jose Sharks as the top remaining seed in the Western Conference.
Let that sink in for a moment, especially after you consider that the seeds held form in the East, where the top four all advanced quite convincingly (with the possible exception of Carolina, who had some close shaves after losing two straight at home to start their series with Montreal).
I'm going to spare you positional breakdowns and such, because I examined these teams quite closely before the first round (though, in the West, I apparently didn't examine them enough). But here are some quick thoughts on the four series:
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Buffalo vs Ottawa --> This is what I expected to see happen, and I picked Buffalo at the start of the playoffs. Nothing I saw in the first round makes me think differently. Ottawa is extremely dangerous, but the Sabres' balance and goaltending are superior. The Senators aren't as strong defensively as Buffalo, either. The Sabres will ride Ryan Miller and the play of all four scoring lines to a win in a great series.
New Jersey vs Carolina --> With the play of Martin Brodeur in the series against New York, combined with Carolina's serious struggles against Montreal, this is the closest I will probably come to changing a previous prediction, something I really don't like doing. But I'm going to stick to my guns. Cam Ward has been great for the Hurricanes in goal after Martin Gerber flamed out, and the 'Canes are getting big goals from their veteran players, along with improved play from their less-experienced guys. If I'm going to be wrong, it's probably going to be on this series, but I think Carolina will win and advance to the conference final.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Colorado vs Anaheim --> Did anyone think Anaheim would end up with home-ice in the conference semifinals? Me, neither. They're a good team, though. I like their speed, and Scott Niedermayer was nothing short of incredible in the Calgary series. The Ducks got great goaltending from Ilya Brzkiginlasdaddygov, who stepped in after Jean-Sebastien Giguere was ineffective in Game 5. Colorado, to a certain extent, was lucky to advance, even though they won in just five games. Three of their wins were in overtime, and they had a couple games in there that they honestly didn't have any business winning. I think the lucky streak will end here, as the Avalanche just don't have the speed or defensive prowess to stay with Anaheim. Ducks win in six games.
Edmonton vs San Jose --> After they shocked Detroit (and did it with some amazing comebacks and bouncebacks), nothing that Edmonton does should be considered a surprise. The Oilers have speed, skill, depth, great goaltending from Dwayne Roloson (whose great play against the Red Wings was a huge, but somewhat forgotten, factor in the series) and an elite defenseman in Chris Pronger, who was on a level with Anaheim's Niedermayer in the first round. Pronger was on the ice in almost every key situation, and he was still able to avoid taking a penalty until Game 6. San Jose, however, is clicking up front. Jonathan Cheechoo, Joe Thornton, and Patrick Marleau will be hard to shut down, and Vesa Toskala had a great series against Nashville. This should be a great series. Edmonton has the speed and skill, and they are also very tenacious. The defense matches up better with the Sharks' top players than Nashville did, and I think Edmonton is better-equipped to cause problems with Toskala than Nashville was. Edmonton gets a second straight upset, this one in seven games.
For those who try to discredit college hockey...The influence that the college game is having on the NHL increases practically every year. This year is the best it's ever been. There are three former Hobey Baker winners still playing, including two (Chris Drury and Ryan Miller) on the Buffalo Sabres (Matt Carle of San Jose is the other). Counting Miller and Drury, who was a two-time finalist before he won the award at Boston University, there are 18 former Hobey finalists still playing. The full list of former finalists:
ANAHEIM – LW Chris Kunitz (2003, Ferris State), C Andy McDonald (2000, Colgate). BUFFALO – G Miller (2002, Michigan State), C Drury (1996, 1997, Boston University), RW Mike Grier (1995, Boston University). COLORADO – D Rob Blake (1990, Bowling Green), C Jim Dowd (1991, Lake Superior State), D John-Michael Liles (2003, Michigan State). EDMONTON – G Ty Conklin (2000, 2001, New Hampshire), C Shawn Horcoff (2000, Michigan State), G Dwayne Roloson (1994, UMass-Lowell). NEW JERSEY – RW Brian Gionta (1999, 2000, 2001, Boston College), C John Madden (1997, Michigan), LW Jay Pandolfo (1996, Boston University), C Zach Parise (2003, 2004, North Dakota). OTTAWA – LW Dany Heatley (2001, Wisconsin), Bryan Smolinski (1993, Michigan State). SAN JOSE – D Tom Preissing (2003, Colorado College).
With great young talents like Travis Zajac, Drew Stafford, Ryan Potulny, Robbie Earl, and Danny Irmen among a ton of college players about to make an impact in the pros, you can look for more lists like the above in future years. More and more highly-touted athletes are making their way into college hockey, and the trend will continue as those players find their way into big-time roles in the NHL.
Two more quick notes on the NHL playoffs so far. I promise I'll stop for now after I mention these two other notes. Through the conference quarterfinals, scoring is up an average of 1.5 goals per game from 2004 (5.9 goals this year, 4.4 goals in 2004). And through the conference quarterfinals, there have been 27 lead changes in games, compared with 10 through the same number of playoff games (44) in 2004.
If you didn't believe that the NHL was serious about opening up the game, or if you were like me and very skeptical about the officials making the same penalty calls in the playoffs that they made in the regular season, you've got some evidence now that the league was indeed serious about the players being allowed to play the game within the rules.
Full credit to Gary Bettman and officiating supervisor Steven Walkom for making sure the officials did their jobs in the playoffs. So far, so good.
Saying "No" to Barry. Give credit to baseball commissioner Bud Selig, who has managed to almost completely distance himself from controversial slugger Barry Bonds without doing anything stupid (i.e. suspending Bonds). Bonds' Giants were in Milwaukee this week, with Bonds just two homers away from tying Babe Ruth for second all-time, and Selig was nowhere to be found. Baseball has also made it clear that they won't celebrate Bonds passing Ruth, and they used the right reason publicly (they don't want to get in the habit of celebrating second place), even if that reason is somewhat bogus.
Suns survive undisciplined stupidity. The Suns beat the Lakers Thursday night to force a Game 7. That came after Raja Bell's warranted one-game suspension for a clothesline on Bryant in Game 5. I'm all for clotheslining Kobe Bryant, but it has to be done in the context of the game. Bell intimated that he was retaliating for some elbows he got from Bryant during the game, but he needs to learn that he's better retaliating when he actually gets hit than he is waiting until the game is basically over to gutlessly throw a random clothesline. It was a silly lack of discipline from Bell, and he's lucky his absence didn't hurt his team. Game 7, which is Saturday, should be a great game.
Larry King wants me to mention these notes. Prince Fielder almost killed Todd Greene on Thursday afternoon in Milwaukee. I hope Greene's okay, but that was a great collision at home plate. Pretty sure you don't want to stand in Prince's way unless you're wearing full body armor... Can't wait for the NCAA Baseball Tournament. I expect that defending national champion Texas will be the best team out of a major conference (the 'Horns have been hot lately after a rough start to their title defense), but look out for Nebraska out of the Big 12. With Joba Chamberlain at the top of the rotation and the bats having come alive even without Alex Gordon, the Cornhuskers are a serious threat. Rice, Cal State Fullerton, and Notre Dame are also very dangerous. Star WR Jeff Samardzija is also a pitcher on the Irish baseball team, and he's developed into one of their top starters. Kentucky has emerged as one of the best teams in the SEC, sitting at 34-11 overall entering this weekend. It should be a great tounament, with no real clear-cut favorite... Follow-up to the World Cup - Team USA will be without defender Frankie Hejduk in the tournament, as he has a bad knee. Chris Albright has been brought up from the list of alternates to the main roster for the tournament, which starts June 9 in Germany.
Time off. I will be taking a long weekend. Any posts between now and Wednesday will be brief, but I'll be back with something that will at least closely resemble a full post on Wednesday.
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Randomization, 05/03/06
The Wings blow it again. If I told you that the mighty Detroit Red Wings have won exactly one playoff series since their last Stanley Cup win in 2002, would you believe me? The perennial Western Conference powerhouse ran away with the President's Trophy this year, racking up a league-high 124 points and rolling into the playoffs. But something was amiss from the first game the Wings played in the postseason, when it took a lucky bounce goal with less than six minutes left in regulation to tie the game before a fluke shot from the right wing wall won it for Detroit in the second overtime. They never were able to overwhelm Edmonton, as the seedings would indicate should have happened. Not only that, but the Wings were never able to gain a true upper hand in the series.
Detroit won Game 4 to tie the series, but that only came after the Wings got some fortunate bounces and equally fortunate officiating. The Wings were the beneficiary of two offensive zone non-calls that led to goals in that game. That said, goaltender Manny Legace played well, and the Wings had evened the series and regained home-ice advantage heading into Game 5. Their response? They fell behind 3-0 in the second period and couldn't come back, losing 3-2 to Edmonton to trail the series 3-2. They went back to Edmonton for Game 6 facing elimination, and they were eliminated.
The Wings took a 2-0 lead into the third period, and the Oilers looked flat. Edmonton couldn't complete two passes back-to-back, and no one appeared too terribly interested in getting involved offensively. Then Jason Williams took an egregiously stupid roughing penalty during a scrum in front of the Wings' goal, and Edmonton got on the board just 14 seconds into the ensuing power play. The proverbial floodgates were opened by Fernando Pisani's rebound goal. Pisani got free for a breakaway goal a couple minutes later to tie the game. After Detroit regained the lead, they took another senseless penalty, as Dan Cleary was hauled off for interference. During the power play, there was a scramble in front of Legace, and the puck somehow ended up in the net. Despite protests that the puck had been played with a high stick by Shawn Horcoff and then kicked into the Wings' goal by Ales Hemsky, the goal was allowed to stand.
(NOTE: CBC replays showed that there was no high stick by Horcoff, and no intentional kicking motion by Hemsky, who was being shoved from behind by Detroit defenseman Niklas Lidstrom as he moved towards the net. The high stick didn't happen, and the kicking motion was, at best, inconclusive. There was no chance that officials were going to reverse the call based on the available evidence.)
A Hemsky goal off a beautiful feed by Sergei Samsonov with 1:06 left gave Edmonton the game-winner. Hemsky somehow snuck behind Detroit's defense after being stood up between the faceoff dots and letting the puck slide behind him. It was the defining moment of the series for Detroit's defense, which looked a step slow for much of the series, and made far too many mistakes for the great skill on this team to overcome.
Now it's decision time for the management of this Detroit team. Do they try to bring in the skill players needed on defense to keep this team competitive? Do they let youngster Jimmy Howard take over in goal? Will Steve Yzerman come back? Do they want Yzerman or Chris Chelios back, or are the Wings going to commit to getting younger?
Meanwhile, what a story in Edmonton. A team that barely made the playoffs has moved on, thanks to hard work, skill, determination, and goaltending. The eighth-seeded Oilers and seventh-seeded Avalanche are both in the West semifinals, joined by the fifth-seeded San Jose Sharks. The sixth seed, Anaheim, can make the semifinals by beating Calgary in Game 7 tonight. That would mean that the top four seeds would be gone in the West, while the top four seeds all advanced in the East, where Buffalo meets Ottawa and Carolina clashes with New Jersey in the conference semifinals.
Foley is apparently not good. Both Twin Cities newspapers are reporting this morning that Vikings vice president of player personnel Fran Foley is on his way out, just three months into a three-year contract he signed in January. Foley first ran into trouble, according to the newspapers, when it was revealed last month that there were some discrepancies on his resume. Foley's claims regarding his college football career and his time as a college coach were apparently embellished. He played and coached, but he didn't play as much as he claimed, and he apparently falsified his job titles to make his role look bigger than it was.
The St. Paul Pioneer Press says that Foley also had some personality issues with members of the Vikings' staff, including new head coach Brad Childress. Foley apparently had a tense meeting with owner Zygi Wilf on Monday, and began packing his things.
All of this comes after Wilf's silly claim earlier in the week that the Vikings had a great draft. No one will know for at least a couple years whether the Vikings' draft was worth anything, unless the Vikings end up cutting half their draft picks before the regular season starts this year (or if they go on a boat ride before minicamp). The Pioneer Press says Foley tried to hush several people in the Vikings' draft room over the weekend, and it rubbed Wilf the wrong way.
Also rubbing Wilf the wrong way may have been comments by Foley to the media after the second-round selection of Alabama State QB Tarvaris Jackson which were quoted in today's Minneapolis Star-Tribune by Jim Souhan.
And this guy was helping run a professional football franchise?
Souhan makes a valid point in his column today. When you have a rookie owner and a rookie coach, you need a steady, experienced hand in the front office to guide the franchise while everyone learns how things work. Instead, Wilf and Childress were being led along by the equally inexperienced Foley, who had potential as a personnel guy but had never run an organization or a draft.
There's speculation that Foley's position may go unfilled, at least for the time being. That's a mistake. Wilf and Childress can't be trusted to run this thing by themselves. Wilf, in particular, has zero football experience, unless being a Giants season-ticket holder counts. Childress has never been a head coach, and his staff lacks experience, so he's better off concentrating on those duties and staying away from the front office. But for that to happen, Childress needs to know that there is a leader in the front office that he can trust to tell the truth on his resume and to not refer to his future starting quarterback as "the boy".
Team USA World Cup roster set. With the world's biggest sporting event set to begin on June 9, US Soccer coach Bruce Arena set the roster for the World Cup on Tuesday.
Goalkeepers
Marcus Hahnemann
Tim Howard
Kasey Keller
--> No surprises here. Keller is the guy here unless he gets hurt or is suddenly ineffective. Tim Howard should be the first one off the bench. Tony Meola was named as an alternate, so it stands to reason that he would get a shot to start if Keller were injured.
Defenders
Carlos Bocanegra
Steve Cherundolo
Jimmy Conrad
Cory Gibbs
Frankie Hejduk
Eddie Lewis
Oguchi Onyewu
Eddie Pope
--> Alternate Chris Albright is probably the best player not in the group, but it would be nothing more than a minor quibble for me to say he belongs on the main roster. This is a good group of defenders who will play well in front of Keller.
Midfielders
DaMarcus Beasley
Bobby Convey
Clint Dempsey
Landon Donovan
Pablo Mastroeni
John O'Brien
Ben Olsen
Claudio Reyna
--> It's great to have Reyna healthy again, as he is such a steady veteran leader on this team. O'Brien also has plenty of experience, and they also have some dynamic talent in Beasley and Donovan. Donovan is good enough to be a huge star on this team if he is focused and ready to go next month. Some casual observers may be surprised at the exclusion of young star Freddy Adu from the roster (he's also not on the list of alternates), but Adu isn't ready for the World Cup yet. He'd simply be taking a spot from a more deserving player at this point, though Adu may be a factor by the time the 2010 World Cup rolls around.
Forwards
Brian Ching
Eddie Johnson
Brian McBride
Josh Wolff
--> If there is a real surprise on this team, it's that Ching made it over Chris Rolfe and Taylor Twellman. Twellman has tremendous upside, though he may have sealed his fate with a subpar performance in the friendly against Germany. Rolfe is simply explosive. He adds a different dimension to any team he plays on, and he could have been a huge addition to this team over Ching or Wolff. Both Rolfe and Twellman are alternates, so we'll see how Arena handles things if there is an injury.
Ladies and gentlemen, The Prize. Overall, I think this is a good roster. We're much deeper than we've been in a long time in soccer. The team has some good veteran leadership, and there are also some great young talents available for the first time on this stage.
Arena has done a magnificent job with this squad, and while the group (Italy, Czech Republic, Ghana) is insanely tough (well, except for Ghana), Team USA has a real chance to make some noise in this year's World Cup.
Detroit won Game 4 to tie the series, but that only came after the Wings got some fortunate bounces and equally fortunate officiating. The Wings were the beneficiary of two offensive zone non-calls that led to goals in that game. That said, goaltender Manny Legace played well, and the Wings had evened the series and regained home-ice advantage heading into Game 5. Their response? They fell behind 3-0 in the second period and couldn't come back, losing 3-2 to Edmonton to trail the series 3-2. They went back to Edmonton for Game 6 facing elimination, and they were eliminated.
The Wings took a 2-0 lead into the third period, and the Oilers looked flat. Edmonton couldn't complete two passes back-to-back, and no one appeared too terribly interested in getting involved offensively. Then Jason Williams took an egregiously stupid roughing penalty during a scrum in front of the Wings' goal, and Edmonton got on the board just 14 seconds into the ensuing power play. The proverbial floodgates were opened by Fernando Pisani's rebound goal. Pisani got free for a breakaway goal a couple minutes later to tie the game. After Detroit regained the lead, they took another senseless penalty, as Dan Cleary was hauled off for interference. During the power play, there was a scramble in front of Legace, and the puck somehow ended up in the net. Despite protests that the puck had been played with a high stick by Shawn Horcoff and then kicked into the Wings' goal by Ales Hemsky, the goal was allowed to stand.
(NOTE: CBC replays showed that there was no high stick by Horcoff, and no intentional kicking motion by Hemsky, who was being shoved from behind by Detroit defenseman Niklas Lidstrom as he moved towards the net. The high stick didn't happen, and the kicking motion was, at best, inconclusive. There was no chance that officials were going to reverse the call based on the available evidence.)
A Hemsky goal off a beautiful feed by Sergei Samsonov with 1:06 left gave Edmonton the game-winner. Hemsky somehow snuck behind Detroit's defense after being stood up between the faceoff dots and letting the puck slide behind him. It was the defining moment of the series for Detroit's defense, which looked a step slow for much of the series, and made far too many mistakes for the great skill on this team to overcome.
Now it's decision time for the management of this Detroit team. Do they try to bring in the skill players needed on defense to keep this team competitive? Do they let youngster Jimmy Howard take over in goal? Will Steve Yzerman come back? Do they want Yzerman or Chris Chelios back, or are the Wings going to commit to getting younger?
Meanwhile, what a story in Edmonton. A team that barely made the playoffs has moved on, thanks to hard work, skill, determination, and goaltending. The eighth-seeded Oilers and seventh-seeded Avalanche are both in the West semifinals, joined by the fifth-seeded San Jose Sharks. The sixth seed, Anaheim, can make the semifinals by beating Calgary in Game 7 tonight. That would mean that the top four seeds would be gone in the West, while the top four seeds all advanced in the East, where Buffalo meets Ottawa and Carolina clashes with New Jersey in the conference semifinals.
Foley is apparently not good. Both Twin Cities newspapers are reporting this morning that Vikings vice president of player personnel Fran Foley is on his way out, just three months into a three-year contract he signed in January. Foley first ran into trouble, according to the newspapers, when it was revealed last month that there were some discrepancies on his resume. Foley's claims regarding his college football career and his time as a college coach were apparently embellished. He played and coached, but he didn't play as much as he claimed, and he apparently falsified his job titles to make his role look bigger than it was.
The St. Paul Pioneer Press says that Foley also had some personality issues with members of the Vikings' staff, including new head coach Brad Childress. Foley apparently had a tense meeting with owner Zygi Wilf on Monday, and began packing his things.
All of this comes after Wilf's silly claim earlier in the week that the Vikings had a great draft. No one will know for at least a couple years whether the Vikings' draft was worth anything, unless the Vikings end up cutting half their draft picks before the regular season starts this year (or if they go on a boat ride before minicamp). The Pioneer Press says Foley tried to hush several people in the Vikings' draft room over the weekend, and it rubbed Wilf the wrong way.
Also rubbing Wilf the wrong way may have been comments by Foley to the media after the second-round selection of Alabama State QB Tarvaris Jackson which were quoted in today's Minneapolis Star-Tribune by Jim Souhan.
"We're very pleased with everything that we have learned about the boy."Excuse me? What was that?
"We're very pleased with everything that we have learned about the boy."What is this, 1966?
And this guy was helping run a professional football franchise?
Souhan makes a valid point in his column today. When you have a rookie owner and a rookie coach, you need a steady, experienced hand in the front office to guide the franchise while everyone learns how things work. Instead, Wilf and Childress were being led along by the equally inexperienced Foley, who had potential as a personnel guy but had never run an organization or a draft.
There's speculation that Foley's position may go unfilled, at least for the time being. That's a mistake. Wilf and Childress can't be trusted to run this thing by themselves. Wilf, in particular, has zero football experience, unless being a Giants season-ticket holder counts. Childress has never been a head coach, and his staff lacks experience, so he's better off concentrating on those duties and staying away from the front office. But for that to happen, Childress needs to know that there is a leader in the front office that he can trust to tell the truth on his resume and to not refer to his future starting quarterback as "the boy".
Team USA World Cup roster set. With the world's biggest sporting event set to begin on June 9, US Soccer coach Bruce Arena set the roster for the World Cup on Tuesday.Goalkeepers
Marcus Hahnemann
Tim Howard
Kasey Keller
--> No surprises here. Keller is the guy here unless he gets hurt or is suddenly ineffective. Tim Howard should be the first one off the bench. Tony Meola was named as an alternate, so it stands to reason that he would get a shot to start if Keller were injured.
Defenders
Carlos Bocanegra
Steve Cherundolo
Jimmy Conrad
Cory Gibbs
Frankie Hejduk
Eddie Lewis
Oguchi Onyewu
Eddie Pope
--> Alternate Chris Albright is probably the best player not in the group, but it would be nothing more than a minor quibble for me to say he belongs on the main roster. This is a good group of defenders who will play well in front of Keller.
Midfielders
DaMarcus Beasley
Bobby Convey
Clint Dempsey
Landon Donovan
Pablo Mastroeni
John O'Brien
Ben Olsen
Claudio Reyna
--> It's great to have Reyna healthy again, as he is such a steady veteran leader on this team. O'Brien also has plenty of experience, and they also have some dynamic talent in Beasley and Donovan. Donovan is good enough to be a huge star on this team if he is focused and ready to go next month. Some casual observers may be surprised at the exclusion of young star Freddy Adu from the roster (he's also not on the list of alternates), but Adu isn't ready for the World Cup yet. He'd simply be taking a spot from a more deserving player at this point, though Adu may be a factor by the time the 2010 World Cup rolls around.
Forwards
Brian Ching
Eddie Johnson
Brian McBride
Josh Wolff
--> If there is a real surprise on this team, it's that Ching made it over Chris Rolfe and Taylor Twellman. Twellman has tremendous upside, though he may have sealed his fate with a subpar performance in the friendly against Germany. Rolfe is simply explosive. He adds a different dimension to any team he plays on, and he could have been a huge addition to this team over Ching or Wolff. Both Rolfe and Twellman are alternates, so we'll see how Arena handles things if there is an injury.
Ladies and gentlemen, The Prize.
Arena has done a magnificent job with this squad, and while the group (Italy, Czech Republic, Ghana) is insanely tough (well, except for Ghana), Team USA has a real chance to make some noise in this year's World Cup.
Monday, May 01, 2006
Randomization: 05/01/06
Time to grade the ungradeable. The same people who like to tell us about how you can't truly judge a draft until two or three years after it happens are out there grading everyone's draft this morning, doing exactly what they usually are telling us can't be done. I'm not going to fall into that trap. Instead of grading teams, I'm going to look at which teams appeared to draft with a solid focus on what they needed and wanted to add to their teams, and I'm going to talk a lot about the Packers and Vikings, both of whom I think did well, but weren't perfect.
It was an interesting draft, starting with one of the most talked-about storylines in recent draft history. The Houston Texans took Mario Williams over Reggie Bush. Williams, a defensive end out of North Carolina State, was an exceptionally productive player at NC State, and he's undoubtedly a great athlete with great potential, but he's not Bush. Bush is a once-in-a-lifetime difference-maker who is so versatile and so talented that it's unfathomable that any team could pass on a chance to get him. Even with Deuce McAlister in the backfield, the Saints will get Bush on the field, and they'll find a way to get him the ball. The Texans, meanwhile, are hopeful that Williams will improve his consistency and play with more leverage at the pro level. If he doesn't, they'll forever be known as the team that passed on Reggie Bush.
The Vikings should have traded out of the first day after the first round. By reaching for C Ryan Cook and QB Tarvaris Jackson (they traded up for Jackson) in the second round, the Vikings had the look of a team that didn't really have a good grasp of the draft process. Cook could have been easily had on the second day, and there's no chance that the Vikings really needed to move up for Jackson, who is a multi-year project at the NFL level, though he does have a ton of potential (note avoidance of word "upside"). Cook does have some potential, though. He's a tall kid who has the athletic ability to play a number of different positions on the line. That said, the first-round choice (LB Chad Greenway) fills a need with a potentially great player, and the Vikings got some nice players on the second day (DE Ray Edwards, S Greg Blue). It certainly beats the second-round choice of Michael Boireau during the Denny Green Errora. Second-round CB Cedric Griffin fills a need, and Blue was an All-American safety in college, so you know he can play, physical limitations aside (apparently, scouts didn't like his overall athleticism).
The Packers got quantity, as well as quality. Green Bay made some deals, including one for Javon Walker (more on that later). They ended up with 12 total picks in the draft, and they did pretty well when it comes to filling needs with players who fit the systems. The picks of LB Abdul Hodge (third round) and DT Johnny Jolly (sixth round) stand as the best potential values for the Pack. Hodge may step in immediately as the starting MLB, allowing Nick Barnett to move to the strong side while first-round pick AJ Hawk starts on the weak side. Second-round picks Daryn Colledge (OL) and Greg Jennings (WR) were good gets for Green Bay, too. The Packers may have picked up their new starting guards in this draft (Colledge and third-rounder Jason Spitz), and Jennings has the chance to develop into a solid wide receiver. The Packers drafted two linebackers, four offensive linemen, and three wide receivers.
The Lakers got calls?? Shocking! I don't think anyone batted an eye yesterday when three trained and allegedly qualified NBA officials ignored obvious fouls on Phoenix guard Steve Nash when the game was on the line, and the egregious non-calls allowed the Lakers to take a 3-1 lead in their NBA playoff series. That said, it underscores the need for the NBA to fix their officiating problems. Late in regulation, Smush Parker mugged Nash, took the ball away, and fed Kobe Bryant for a game-tying layup to force overtime. That obvious non-call, however, was nothing compared to what we saw at the end of overtime. Nash, admittedly, made a mistake, as he dribbled into a half-court trap near the sideline. That doesn't change the fact that Nash was fouled by Laker Luke Walton before Walton was able to tie the ball up. The Lakers were trying to foul Nash, and the officials ignored it. Walton won the ensuing jump ball against Nash, and Bryant drove the ball down the floor for the game-winning fadeaway jumper at the horn. It's sad, really, that the officials feel it's necessary to help out the number seven seed in the Western Conference. If the Lakers end up playing the Clippers, however, it could all end up being worth the trouble. And exactly three people on the planet who don't have Laker season tickets would root for the Lakers.
Other notes - Larry King style...The Oilers can finish their gargantuan upset of Detroit tonight in Edmonton in Game 6. Edmonton won Game 5 at The Joe, and Rexall Place should be somewhat loud tonight...The Brewers scored 25 runs in two days to beat the sCrUBS twice at Wrigley Stadium. El Caballo set a club record with 10 home runs in April, as Milwaukee finished the month a more-than-respectable 14-11...Detroit Tiger fans are left to wonder when the Twins will show up for the weekend series at Comerica Park. The Tigers outscored the mighty Twins 33-1 in winning three straight. No, that's not a typo. I said "33-1". Even Tiger fans were left upset by the lack of fight in the Twins over the weekend.
It was an interesting draft, starting with one of the most talked-about storylines in recent draft history. The Houston Texans took Mario Williams over Reggie Bush. Williams, a defensive end out of North Carolina State, was an exceptionally productive player at NC State, and he's undoubtedly a great athlete with great potential, but he's not Bush. Bush is a once-in-a-lifetime difference-maker who is so versatile and so talented that it's unfathomable that any team could pass on a chance to get him. Even with Deuce McAlister in the backfield, the Saints will get Bush on the field, and they'll find a way to get him the ball. The Texans, meanwhile, are hopeful that Williams will improve his consistency and play with more leverage at the pro level. If he doesn't, they'll forever be known as the team that passed on Reggie Bush.
The Vikings should have traded out of the first day after the first round. By reaching for C Ryan Cook and QB Tarvaris Jackson (they traded up for Jackson) in the second round, the Vikings had the look of a team that didn't really have a good grasp of the draft process. Cook could have been easily had on the second day, and there's no chance that the Vikings really needed to move up for Jackson, who is a multi-year project at the NFL level, though he does have a ton of potential (note avoidance of word "upside"). Cook does have some potential, though. He's a tall kid who has the athletic ability to play a number of different positions on the line. That said, the first-round choice (LB Chad Greenway) fills a need with a potentially great player, and the Vikings got some nice players on the second day (DE Ray Edwards, S Greg Blue). It certainly beats the second-round choice of Michael Boireau during the Denny Green Er
The Packers got quantity, as well as quality. Green Bay made some deals, including one for Javon Walker (more on that later). They ended up with 12 total picks in the draft, and they did pretty well when it comes to filling needs with players who fit the systems. The picks of LB Abdul Hodge (third round) and DT Johnny Jolly (sixth round) stand as the best potential values for the Pack. Hodge may step in immediately as the starting MLB, allowing Nick Barnett to move to the strong side while first-round pick AJ Hawk starts on the weak side. Second-round picks Daryn Colledge (OL) and Greg Jennings (WR) were good gets for Green Bay, too. The Packers may have picked up their new starting guards in this draft (Colledge and third-rounder Jason Spitz), and Jennings has the chance to develop into a solid wide receiver. The Packers drafted two linebackers, four offensive linemen, and three wide receivers.
The Lakers got calls?? Shocking! I don't think anyone batted an eye yesterday when three trained and allegedly qualified NBA officials ignored obvious fouls on Phoenix guard Steve Nash when the game was on the line, and the egregious non-calls allowed the Lakers to take a 3-1 lead in their NBA playoff series. That said, it underscores the need for the NBA to fix their officiating problems. Late in regulation, Smush Parker mugged Nash, took the ball away, and fed Kobe Bryant for a game-tying layup to force overtime. That obvious non-call, however, was nothing compared to what we saw at the end of overtime. Nash, admittedly, made a mistake, as he dribbled into a half-court trap near the sideline. That doesn't change the fact that Nash was fouled by Laker Luke Walton before Walton was able to tie the ball up. The Lakers were trying to foul Nash, and the officials ignored it. Walton won the ensuing jump ball against Nash, and Bryant drove the ball down the floor for the game-winning fadeaway jumper at the horn. It's sad, really, that the officials feel it's necessary to help out the number seven seed in the Western Conference. If the Lakers end up playing the Clippers, however, it could all end up being worth the trouble. And exactly three people on the planet who don't have Laker season tickets would root for the Lakers.
Other notes - Larry King style...The Oilers can finish their gargantuan upset of Detroit tonight in Edmonton in Game 6. Edmonton won Game 5 at The Joe, and Rexall Place should be somewhat loud tonight...The Brewers scored 25 runs in two days to beat the sCrUBS twice at Wrigley Stadium. El Caballo set a club record with 10 home runs in April, as Milwaukee finished the month a more-than-respectable 14-11...Detroit Tiger fans are left to wonder when the Twins will show up for the weekend series at Comerica Park. The Tigers outscored the mighty Twins 33-1 in winning three straight. No, that's not a typo. I said "33-1". Even Tiger fans were left upset by the lack of fight in the Twins over the weekend.
Thursday, April 27, 2006
2006 NFL Draft - Mock Draft Version ONLY
There have been years where I started doing these things in March and ended up doing five or six different mock drafts. So, I did used to be stupid. Now, I'm less stupid. I know better.
This my mock draft. It is the first. It is the only. It is my "final answer". It has no chance of being right.
Drop some comments or send me an e-mail if you'd like to discuss any of the picks, the needs of the individual teams involved. I'll be watching with you on Saturday as the draft begins, because I'm just as riveted by names rolling across the bottom of the TV screen as you could possibly imagine someone being.
1. Houston - Reggie Bush, RB, USC. Duh. Don't buy the hype. Bush is the most talented player in this draft, and he has the potential to be a true difference-maker in the league if he can show the ability to handle the punishment of being a #1 running back.
2. New Orleans - Mario Williams, DE, North Carolina State. I don't buy the idea that the Saints will take a QB. They spent too much money on Drew Brees to have him in and out for one season. The Saints are probably the top candidate for a trade-down, but they need to find the right offer or they will stay put and bolster their defense with Williams, an outstanding playmaker with tremendous upside.
3. Tennessee - Matt Leinart, QB, USC. Much like the talk of the Saints drafting a QB, I'm having trouble buying the idea that the Titans will draft Vince Young. Leinart is a better fit for the Titans' need, being that he can probably start immediately if Tennessee doesn't work things out with Steve McNair. Yes, Young could learn a lot from McNair, but who will he learn from if McNair departs, as is probably going to happen? Is Billy Volek going to do the teaching?
4. New York Jets - D'Brickashaw Ferguson, OT, Virginia. First off, I'm not going to tell any "D'Brickashaw" jokes. He'd kill me. And I think it's a great name for a lineman. Ferguson will anchor the Jets' offensive line for a decade or more, or at least that's what the Jets will hope.
5. Green Bay - A.J. Hawk, LB, Ohio State. Hawk starts immediately on this defense, and with the signings of Ryan Pickett, Marquand Manuel, and Charles Woodson, the Packers defense will be vastly improved.
6. San Francisco - Vernon Davis, TE, Maryland. Finally, the 49ers get a tight end who can stretch the field. Davis will help young QB Alex Smith a great deal as Smith continues to develop.
7. Oakland - Vince Young, QB, Texas. It's not a great need for the Raiders, but Young is too talented to pass up here, and the Raiders know they have a situation where Young can develop and prepare for a year before he takes over.
8. Buffalo - Winston Justice, OT, USC. He may be a bit of a reach here because of character concerns, but the Bills need a tackle, and Justice is a great talent who should start immediately.
9. Detroit - Michael Huff, DB, Texas. Instead of drafting another wide receiver, Matt Millen does something smart, giving new head coach Rod Marinelli the kind of physical difference-maker he wants on defense. Huff might be a better fit at safety, but he can also play corner because of his exceptional speed and instincts.
10. Arizona - Ernie Sims, LB, Florida State. Pairing Sims with Karlos Dansby would give Denny Green a dangerous group of linebackers, and the Cardinals know they have the offense put together well enough for the time being.
11. St. Louis - Jay Cutler, QB, Vanderbilt. The Rams might not need a quarterback right now, but with the issues Marc Bulger has had staying healthy, they'd be wise to draft Cutler here. He'd be a perfect fit for Scott Linehan's offense.
12. Cleveland - Broderick Bunkley, DT, Florida State. The Browns need to beef up the middle of their defense, and Bunkley is a nice prospect who, despite concerns about his work ethic and character, has been a riser on most draft boards as of late.
13. Baltimore - Haloti Ngata, DT, Oregon. Inexplicably, Ngata has been downgraded by some teams as of late. He's a much more NFL-ready prospect than Bunkley, and he's a great get here for the Ravens, who would love to get a big body for the DT position so Ray Lewis can be quiet and focus on the upcoming season.
14. Philadelphia - Chad Greenway, LB, Iowa. The Eagles have some needs on both lines, but there aren't any players available with this pick that fit those needs. Instead, the Eagles will fill another hole on defense by getting Greenway, an athletic linebacker who can hit with the best of them.
15. Denver - Chad Jackson, WR, Florida. This is heavenly for Denver. The Broncos don't have faith in Ashley Lelie, and they want to get a future #1 receiver out of this draft. Jackson is one of only a handful of quality prospects at the position.
16. Miami - Kamerion Wimbley, LB/DE, Florida State. The Dolphins could pick just about anyone here. They've done a good job in free agency, and Wimbley would be a dream pick for the Fish if he were available here. The Dolphins have enough talent on defense to allow Wimbley to develop.
17. Minnesota - Johnathan Joseph, CB, South Carolina. This is another team that has done a pretty good job in free agency, but the Vikings have holes. Antoine Winfield and Fred Smoot are the only proven cornerbacks on the roster, and Smoot is coming off a rough first season in Minnesota where he lost his starting job to Brian Williams. Joseph has the upside to eventually become a starter, and he can play immediately as the Vikings' nickel corner.
18. Dallas - Donte Whitner, S, Ohio State. I think Dallas will draft a defensive player, and Whitner would give the Cowboys a potentially great player paired with Roy Williams. They could also get a rush linebacker to play opposite DeMarcus Ware in the 3-4 defense that coach Bill Parcells has done a magnificent job building in the past year.
19. San Diego - Santonio Holmes, WR, Ohio State. While the Chargers still have the pre-eminent pass-catching tight end in the game in Antonio Gates, they are still lacking a big-play threat on the outside. Holmes isn't an ideal prospect, but he has the upside that suggests he could be a very good pro. With Phil Rivers now at QB, I expect the Chargers to try to get him some more help.
20. Kansas City - Antonio Cromartie, CB, Florida State. For a guy who missed all of 2005 with a knee injury, Cromartie is a quick riser on the board. He has ideal height, quickness, and ball skills, and he's apparently shown scouts he is going to be ready to play as a rookie after his lost season last year.
21. New England - D'Qwell Jackson, LB, Maryland. I have Jackson rated as a second-rounder, and many boards I've looked at appear similar. But the Patriots need a linebacker, and they are good at going outside the box to find their starters. Jackson was extremely productive in college, and he's a smart player who should be a great fit in the Patriots' system.
22. San Francisco - Manny Lawson, DE, North Carolina State. With a second first-round pick, the 49ers have a chance to bolster their pass rush. Lawson could play as a rush outside linebacker in Mike Nolan's 3-4.
23. Tampa Bay - Jimmy Williams, CB, Virginia Tech. There are character and effort concerns with Williams, but he has top ten talent and can't fall forever. He has great talent, and it's not likely that he'll get away with poor effort while playing for Jon Gruden.
24. Cincinnati - Tye Hill, CB, Clemson. The Bengals would like to get someone to help the middle of their defensive front seven, which still needs some work. But the Bengals also need an upgrade at the cornerback position. Hill has fallen a bit because of the upside of Cromartie and the question marks surrounding Williams, but Hill is a solid first-rounder.
25. N.Y. Giants - Bobby Carpenter, LB, Ohio State. Carpenter, the son of a former Giant, is the best LB on the board here, and even with the presence of LaVar Arrington, the Giants know they have to get better. They could decide to go with an offensive player to help Eli Manning out, but there aren't any great fits available here.
26. Chicago - Jason Allen, S, Tennessee. The Bears signed Ricky Manning to help out at corner, and Manning's character issues aside, they don't need another body at that position. They do, however, need help at safety, and Allen can play safety as well as corner in the NFL.
27. Carolina - Mercedes Lewis, TE, UCLA. Lewis would be a great fit in the Panthers' offense. He takes a lot of pressure off of Steve Smith to produce in the passing game, and he gives QB Jake Delhomme a big target in the unlikely event that someone can actually cover Smith.
28. Jacksonville - Thomas Howard, LB, UTEP. The Jaguars could aim for a tight end or a defensive lineman here, but Howard is the pick.
29. N.Y. Jets - DeAngelo Williams, RB, Memphis. A replacement for Curtis Martin should come out of this draft, and Williams is certainly a solid prospect. In a different year (read: a year where teams actually need running backs), Williams goes in the top 15.
30. Indianapolis - Laurence Maroney, RB, Minnesota. The Colts would be delighted to see Maroney "fall" this far after they lost Edgerrin James in free agency.
31. Seattle - Ashton Youboty, CB, Ohio State. The defending NFC champions don't have many gaping holes, but they do need to upgrade their depth at defensive back. Youboty could contribute immediately for most NFL defenses.
32. Pittsburgh - Sinorice Moss, WR, Miami (FL). Moss could step into an Antwaan Randle-El role in the Steelers' offense, and wide receiver is the closest thing the Steelers have to a pressing need right now.
This my mock draft. It is the first. It is the only. It is my "final answer". It has no chance of being right.
Drop some comments or send me an e-mail if you'd like to discuss any of the picks, the needs of the individual teams involved. I'll be watching with you on Saturday as the draft begins, because I'm just as riveted by names rolling across the bottom of the TV screen as you could possibly imagine someone being.
1. Houston - Reggie Bush, RB, USC. Duh. Don't buy the hype. Bush is the most talented player in this draft, and he has the potential to be a true difference-maker in the league if he can show the ability to handle the punishment of being a #1 running back.
2. New Orleans - Mario Williams, DE, North Carolina State. I don't buy the idea that the Saints will take a QB. They spent too much money on Drew Brees to have him in and out for one season. The Saints are probably the top candidate for a trade-down, but they need to find the right offer or they will stay put and bolster their defense with Williams, an outstanding playmaker with tremendous upside.
3. Tennessee - Matt Leinart, QB, USC. Much like the talk of the Saints drafting a QB, I'm having trouble buying the idea that the Titans will draft Vince Young. Leinart is a better fit for the Titans' need, being that he can probably start immediately if Tennessee doesn't work things out with Steve McNair. Yes, Young could learn a lot from McNair, but who will he learn from if McNair departs, as is probably going to happen? Is Billy Volek going to do the teaching?
4. New York Jets - D'Brickashaw Ferguson, OT, Virginia. First off, I'm not going to tell any "D'Brickashaw" jokes. He'd kill me. And I think it's a great name for a lineman. Ferguson will anchor the Jets' offensive line for a decade or more, or at least that's what the Jets will hope.
5. Green Bay - A.J. Hawk, LB, Ohio State. Hawk starts immediately on this defense, and with the signings of Ryan Pickett, Marquand Manuel, and Charles Woodson, the Packers defense will be vastly improved.
6. San Francisco - Vernon Davis, TE, Maryland. Finally, the 49ers get a tight end who can stretch the field. Davis will help young QB Alex Smith a great deal as Smith continues to develop.
7. Oakland - Vince Young, QB, Texas. It's not a great need for the Raiders, but Young is too talented to pass up here, and the Raiders know they have a situation where Young can develop and prepare for a year before he takes over.
8. Buffalo - Winston Justice, OT, USC. He may be a bit of a reach here because of character concerns, but the Bills need a tackle, and Justice is a great talent who should start immediately.
9. Detroit - Michael Huff, DB, Texas. Instead of drafting another wide receiver, Matt Millen does something smart, giving new head coach Rod Marinelli the kind of physical difference-maker he wants on defense. Huff might be a better fit at safety, but he can also play corner because of his exceptional speed and instincts.
10. Arizona - Ernie Sims, LB, Florida State. Pairing Sims with Karlos Dansby would give Denny Green a dangerous group of linebackers, and the Cardinals know they have the offense put together well enough for the time being.
11. St. Louis - Jay Cutler, QB, Vanderbilt. The Rams might not need a quarterback right now, but with the issues Marc Bulger has had staying healthy, they'd be wise to draft Cutler here. He'd be a perfect fit for Scott Linehan's offense.
12. Cleveland - Broderick Bunkley, DT, Florida State. The Browns need to beef up the middle of their defense, and Bunkley is a nice prospect who, despite concerns about his work ethic and character, has been a riser on most draft boards as of late.
13. Baltimore - Haloti Ngata, DT, Oregon. Inexplicably, Ngata has been downgraded by some teams as of late. He's a much more NFL-ready prospect than Bunkley, and he's a great get here for the Ravens, who would love to get a big body for the DT position so Ray Lewis can be quiet and focus on the upcoming season.
14. Philadelphia - Chad Greenway, LB, Iowa. The Eagles have some needs on both lines, but there aren't any players available with this pick that fit those needs. Instead, the Eagles will fill another hole on defense by getting Greenway, an athletic linebacker who can hit with the best of them.
15. Denver - Chad Jackson, WR, Florida. This is heavenly for Denver. The Broncos don't have faith in Ashley Lelie, and they want to get a future #1 receiver out of this draft. Jackson is one of only a handful of quality prospects at the position.
16. Miami - Kamerion Wimbley, LB/DE, Florida State. The Dolphins could pick just about anyone here. They've done a good job in free agency, and Wimbley would be a dream pick for the Fish if he were available here. The Dolphins have enough talent on defense to allow Wimbley to develop.
17. Minnesota - Johnathan Joseph, CB, South Carolina. This is another team that has done a pretty good job in free agency, but the Vikings have holes. Antoine Winfield and Fred Smoot are the only proven cornerbacks on the roster, and Smoot is coming off a rough first season in Minnesota where he lost his starting job to Brian Williams. Joseph has the upside to eventually become a starter, and he can play immediately as the Vikings' nickel corner.
18. Dallas - Donte Whitner, S, Ohio State. I think Dallas will draft a defensive player, and Whitner would give the Cowboys a potentially great player paired with Roy Williams. They could also get a rush linebacker to play opposite DeMarcus Ware in the 3-4 defense that coach Bill Parcells has done a magnificent job building in the past year.
19. San Diego - Santonio Holmes, WR, Ohio State. While the Chargers still have the pre-eminent pass-catching tight end in the game in Antonio Gates, they are still lacking a big-play threat on the outside. Holmes isn't an ideal prospect, but he has the upside that suggests he could be a very good pro. With Phil Rivers now at QB, I expect the Chargers to try to get him some more help.
20. Kansas City - Antonio Cromartie, CB, Florida State. For a guy who missed all of 2005 with a knee injury, Cromartie is a quick riser on the board. He has ideal height, quickness, and ball skills, and he's apparently shown scouts he is going to be ready to play as a rookie after his lost season last year.
21. New England - D'Qwell Jackson, LB, Maryland. I have Jackson rated as a second-rounder, and many boards I've looked at appear similar. But the Patriots need a linebacker, and they are good at going outside the box to find their starters. Jackson was extremely productive in college, and he's a smart player who should be a great fit in the Patriots' system.
22. San Francisco - Manny Lawson, DE, North Carolina State. With a second first-round pick, the 49ers have a chance to bolster their pass rush. Lawson could play as a rush outside linebacker in Mike Nolan's 3-4.
23. Tampa Bay - Jimmy Williams, CB, Virginia Tech. There are character and effort concerns with Williams, but he has top ten talent and can't fall forever. He has great talent, and it's not likely that he'll get away with poor effort while playing for Jon Gruden.
24. Cincinnati - Tye Hill, CB, Clemson. The Bengals would like to get someone to help the middle of their defensive front seven, which still needs some work. But the Bengals also need an upgrade at the cornerback position. Hill has fallen a bit because of the upside of Cromartie and the question marks surrounding Williams, but Hill is a solid first-rounder.
25. N.Y. Giants - Bobby Carpenter, LB, Ohio State. Carpenter, the son of a former Giant, is the best LB on the board here, and even with the presence of LaVar Arrington, the Giants know they have to get better. They could decide to go with an offensive player to help Eli Manning out, but there aren't any great fits available here.
26. Chicago - Jason Allen, S, Tennessee. The Bears signed Ricky Manning to help out at corner, and Manning's character issues aside, they don't need another body at that position. They do, however, need help at safety, and Allen can play safety as well as corner in the NFL.
27. Carolina - Mercedes Lewis, TE, UCLA. Lewis would be a great fit in the Panthers' offense. He takes a lot of pressure off of Steve Smith to produce in the passing game, and he gives QB Jake Delhomme a big target in the unlikely event that someone can actually cover Smith.
28. Jacksonville - Thomas Howard, LB, UTEP. The Jaguars could aim for a tight end or a defensive lineman here, but Howard is the pick.
29. N.Y. Jets - DeAngelo Williams, RB, Memphis. A replacement for Curtis Martin should come out of this draft, and Williams is certainly a solid prospect. In a different year (read: a year where teams actually need running backs), Williams goes in the top 15.
30. Indianapolis - Laurence Maroney, RB, Minnesota. The Colts would be delighted to see Maroney "fall" this far after they lost Edgerrin James in free agency.
31. Seattle - Ashton Youboty, CB, Ohio State. The defending NFC champions don't have many gaping holes, but they do need to upgrade their depth at defensive back. Youboty could contribute immediately for most NFL defenses.
32. Pittsburgh - Sinorice Moss, WR, Miami (FL). Moss could step into an Antwaan Randle-El role in the Steelers' offense, and wide receiver is the closest thing the Steelers have to a pressing need right now.
Randomization: 04/27/06
So that's why Favre came back. The Packers did decide to sign actual NFL players after all. Welcome, Charles Woodson, who is likely to become the first Heisman Trophy winner since Paul Hornung to be a regular starter for the Packers. Oh, and there's this nugget from the already-linked article in Thursday's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
Woodson is a great athlete, and maybe the chance to play on both sides of the ball will improve his focus and drive, and make him a better player as a result. But the injury risk that comes with this seven year, $53 million (!) deal really makes me nervous.
King Whizzinator...gone. Maybe Zygi Wilf was serious about turning around the Vikings' image after all. As soon as the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported that running back Onterrio Smith was not going to be reinstated by the NFL in June at the end of his one-year substance abuse suspension, the Vikings let him go. Smith played two years for the Vikings after a troubled college career, and Wilf and his mob have apparently decided that Smith isn't worth the trouble the organization has gone through in an effort to keep him around. There's still work to be done to fix the image of the Vikings organization, especially if starters Bryant McKinnie and Fred Smoot are convicted in connection with the Love Boat "scandal" when they go on trial in May.
What the hell are these things? Credit to poster "Moose97" on USCHO.com's message board, which I frequent. "Moose97" found the new uniform design of the Minnesota Vikings and posted a picture of it:
The Packers have Favre to thank in part for Woodson choosing Green Bay.Um. OK. I was queasy about a seven-year deal for a cornerback who has been injury-prone and has lost some of his quicks. Now, I'm really queasy.
But it's not the only reason. According to (agent Kevin) Poston, Woodson picked the Packers because head coach Mike McCarthy agreed to let him play on offense as well as play cornerback.
Woodson is a great athlete, and maybe the chance to play on both sides of the ball will improve his focus and drive, and make him a better player as a result. But the injury risk that comes with this seven year, $53 million (!) deal really makes me nervous.
King Whizzinator...gone. Maybe Zygi Wilf was serious about turning around the Vikings' image after all. As soon as the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported that running back Onterrio Smith was not going to be reinstated by the NFL in June at the end of his one-year substance abuse suspension, the Vikings let him go. Smith played two years for the Vikings after a troubled college career, and Wilf and his mob have apparently decided that Smith isn't worth the trouble the organization has gone through in an effort to keep him around. There's still work to be done to fix the image of the Vikings organization, especially if starters Bryant McKinnie and Fred Smoot are convicted in connection with the Love Boat "scandal" when they go on trial in May.
What the hell are these things? Credit to poster "Moose97" on USCHO.com's message board, which I frequent. "Moose97" found the new uniform design of the Minnesota Vikings and posted a picture of it:
Listen. I hate the color purple. If I had my way, the color would be banned and anything purple would be burned in the world's largest bonfire.
But I liked the Vikings' old look. It may have been plainish, but it was a classy look, and there was some tradition attached to it. This appears to be a more "modern" looking uniform, and that's not a good thing.
I'm not here to mindlessly advocate that the Buccaneers, Patriots, and other teams shouldn't have changed their looks from the 1980s. But if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And the Vikings' look was not broken.
So why, again, did they fix it?
I don't want to say it. Don't make me say it. I'm serious. I have no desire to take the NBA MVP voters to task for being racist. But this doesn't look good. John Stockton owns the point guard position for the better part of a decade. No MVPs. Jason Kidd revitalizes an entire organization with his play at the point guard position. No MVPs. Steve Nash comes along, grows out his hair, takes a stand against the war, stops playing defense, and apparently is now set to win his second straight MVP award. The Suns' point guard had another solid season, and at least he was clearly the MVP of his own team (unlike last year, when one could have argued for Amare Stoudemire). But for the people who vote on this award - people who I would assume are duly qualified to cast such votes - ignored a minimum of two superior candidates, and you could argue that two other superior candidates also got ignored. LeBron James carried a team that isn't as good as the team around Nash, and unlike Nash, James isn't a natural point guard, and he is a much better defender than Nash. Kobe Bryant is the Los Angeles Lakers. And you could argue that Dirk Nowitski is more MVP-worthy than Nash, considering the season he just had in Dallas.
(Side note: Nowitski has come an amazingly long way since his meltdown last year against Phoenix, when he was too busy yelling at his teammates to actually help the Mavericks win.)
I still don't think this is about race, because Stockton would have won at least one of these things if it was. But there is something "cute" about the gangly-haired little Canadian dude. His game, so unassuming on the surface because Nash lacks the superstar "look", makes you want to vote for him.
And I don't think it matters to the voters too much that Nash is white.
It just looks like it does...and that's a bad thing.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Randomization: 04/26/06
Sorry, Brett, but you don't get your own column today. ESPN is reporting that Favre has finally decided on what he will do in 2006, and his decision is to play. Favre reportedly informed the Packers of his decision yesterday, and we now await some sort of formal announcement from either Favre or the team, which could probably come at any time. The Packers, who could make the case that they didn't deserve to be 4-12 a year ago*, certainly benefit from having Favre back.
(*As discussed here on Monday, eight of the Packers' 12 losses in 2005 came by a combined total of 31 points. This came despite a turnover-plagued offense and a defense that was practically incapable of forcing turnovers or making any big plays. It's not exactly a stretch that fielding a status-quo roster in 2006 will produce better results without any other improvements.)
Green Bay still has some work to do before the draft, as final preparations continue. But having the Favre puzzle solved helps the team on a number of levels, especially considering the media attention this story drew. The Packers moved Favre's roster bonus deadline back to July 27 a couple weeks ago. They did it because they were sick of the story being brought up every time the artificial deadline approached, and they wanted the press to back off of Favre a little bit. All along, Favre's relationship with the front office was always good, and their communication remained intact. He kept in touch with general manager Ted Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy, and while he never expressed any public support for the team's offseason moves, he made it clear that he wanted to come back to a contender in 2006. So despite the fact that the team hasn't done much of anything in free agency, Favre must have some reason to believe that this team is going to be vastly improved in 2006.
(Maybe he read this blog on Monday and realized how many close games this team lost while they were suffering debilitating injury after debilitating injury. Eight losses by a combined 31 points, which means a few touchdowns or a few big plays from the defense could have been the difference between 4-12 and 10-6. Even the sure-legged Ryan Longwell cost this team a game last year by missing an extra point (!).)
I went on record last week as saying that the Packers would be a playoff contender, at the very least, if Favre returned. I meant it, and I stand by it. This team will be improved, and Favre will be the ringleader of the improvement.
(EDITED TO ADD: Shortly after this entry was posted, the Packers officially announced Favre's intent to play in 2006. In a short press release, Thompson said, "The Green Bay Packers are very pleased that Brett has come to this decision, and look forward to a successful 2006 season."
Bruce's reaction: Yay!)
Can the Oil pull it off? I picked Detroit to win this series decisively, but that's not looking like such a smart move. The Wings have had trouble throughout the first three games of this series scoring goals, though they did show some explosiveness last night with two goals in :18 to tie the game in the third period. But Edmonton again held off the Wings' charge, and Jarret Stoll won the game for the Oilers in the second overtime to give Edmonton a 2-1 series lead. Game Four is Thursday night in Edmonton, and it's a golden opportunity for the Oil to take command of a series that they were supposed to get blown out of.
I'm not going to get too hard on Detroit here, but the Wings need to pick up their defensive play. They gave up three even-strength goals last night, and all three of them came off of broken plays where the Wings failed to clear the puck out of their own zone, or where they just flat-out got beat to loose pucks in their zone.
The first Edmonton goal, early in the first, came when Detroit netminder Manny Legace gave up a rebound off a shot from the bottom of the right faceoff circle. Legace kicked said rebound behind the net, but Brad Winchester beat his man to the loose puck, brought it around the back, and fed Jaroslav Spacek in the left circle for a one-timer goal. The second goal came on a play where a one-timer from the left point was deflected over to the right wing. Again, Winchester got there first, and he shoveled the puck down the wall and around the corner. Ryan Smyth took the puck behind the net and scored on a backhanded wrap-around shot.
Edmonton's third goal came on the power play, and it was a great setup for a shot by Chris Pronger in the high slot, which was tipped home by Raffi Torres. The Wings didn't defend that power play particularly well, but it was a very nice play by Edmonton to get the goal.
In the second overtime, Stoll's goal started as a pretty innocent-looking play. Stoll took the initial shot from between the top of the faceoff circles. The puck was played behind the net, where Shawn Horcoff, again, got there first. He couldn't play it back out front, but it got to Sergei Samsonov, whose wraparound attempt was thwarted by Legace. But in doing so, Legace turned himself around and threw the puck right up the slot, where Stoll one-timed it home before Legace could get into position, sending the crowd of nearly 17,000 into a frenzy.
(You can watch the highlights, and check out the best goal horn in hockey, here. What a great crowd. By far, that was the best atmosphere we've seen for a playoff game so far, and the best part is that the crowds are only going to get louder as the playoffs roll on.)
As long as Detroit is going to rely on their passing ability to score goals, they are going to have problems. They need someone to take charge, and they need to find a way to get more traffic in front of Edmonton goalie Dwayne Roloson, who has clearly outplayed Legace so far. Edmonton has the upper hand, but it won't last long if the Wings start playing more like the team that was the best in the NHL all season.
Why was Ron Artest suspended? Just curious. After all, his "forearm" or "elbow" was so blatant and vicious that Manu Ginobli, the NBA's answer to Peter Forsberg, barely sold it, and the officials at the game didn't see fit to charge Artest with a flagrant foul.
The Spurs are the top seed, the defending NBA champion, and they beat Sacramento by 34 points in the first game of their series. Did they really need another advantage?
Coming up...More on the NFL Draft, with a mock draft coming tomorrow and Friday. I'll also chime in on other issues as stories warrant.
(*As discussed here on Monday, eight of the Packers' 12 losses in 2005 came by a combined total of 31 points. This came despite a turnover-plagued offense and a defense that was practically incapable of forcing turnovers or making any big plays. It's not exactly a stretch that fielding a status-quo roster in 2006 will produce better results without any other improvements.)
Green Bay still has some work to do before the draft, as final preparations continue. But having the Favre puzzle solved helps the team on a number of levels, especially considering the media attention this story drew. The Packers moved Favre's roster bonus deadline back to July 27 a couple weeks ago. They did it because they were sick of the story being brought up every time the artificial deadline approached, and they wanted the press to back off of Favre a little bit. All along, Favre's relationship with the front office was always good, and their communication remained intact. He kept in touch with general manager Ted Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy, and while he never expressed any public support for the team's offseason moves, he made it clear that he wanted to come back to a contender in 2006. So despite the fact that the team hasn't done much of anything in free agency, Favre must have some reason to believe that this team is going to be vastly improved in 2006.
(Maybe he read this blog on Monday and realized how many close games this team lost while they were suffering debilitating injury after debilitating injury. Eight losses by a combined 31 points, which means a few touchdowns or a few big plays from the defense could have been the difference between 4-12 and 10-6. Even the sure-legged Ryan Longwell cost this team a game last year by missing an extra point (!).)
I went on record last week as saying that the Packers would be a playoff contender, at the very least, if Favre returned. I meant it, and I stand by it. This team will be improved, and Favre will be the ringleader of the improvement.
(EDITED TO ADD: Shortly after this entry was posted, the Packers officially announced Favre's intent to play in 2006. In a short press release, Thompson said, "The Green Bay Packers are very pleased that Brett has come to this decision, and look forward to a successful 2006 season."
Bruce's reaction: Yay!)
Can the Oil pull it off? I picked Detroit to win this series decisively, but that's not looking like such a smart move. The Wings have had trouble throughout the first three games of this series scoring goals, though they did show some explosiveness last night with two goals in :18 to tie the game in the third period. But Edmonton again held off the Wings' charge, and Jarret Stoll won the game for the Oilers in the second overtime to give Edmonton a 2-1 series lead. Game Four is Thursday night in Edmonton, and it's a golden opportunity for the Oil to take command of a series that they were supposed to get blown out of.
I'm not going to get too hard on Detroit here, but the Wings need to pick up their defensive play. They gave up three even-strength goals last night, and all three of them came off of broken plays where the Wings failed to clear the puck out of their own zone, or where they just flat-out got beat to loose pucks in their zone.
The first Edmonton goal, early in the first, came when Detroit netminder Manny Legace gave up a rebound off a shot from the bottom of the right faceoff circle. Legace kicked said rebound behind the net, but Brad Winchester beat his man to the loose puck, brought it around the back, and fed Jaroslav Spacek in the left circle for a one-timer goal. The second goal came on a play where a one-timer from the left point was deflected over to the right wing. Again, Winchester got there first, and he shoveled the puck down the wall and around the corner. Ryan Smyth took the puck behind the net and scored on a backhanded wrap-around shot.
Edmonton's third goal came on the power play, and it was a great setup for a shot by Chris Pronger in the high slot, which was tipped home by Raffi Torres. The Wings didn't defend that power play particularly well, but it was a very nice play by Edmonton to get the goal.
In the second overtime, Stoll's goal started as a pretty innocent-looking play. Stoll took the initial shot from between the top of the faceoff circles. The puck was played behind the net, where Shawn Horcoff, again, got there first. He couldn't play it back out front, but it got to Sergei Samsonov, whose wraparound attempt was thwarted by Legace. But in doing so, Legace turned himself around and threw the puck right up the slot, where Stoll one-timed it home before Legace could get into position, sending the crowd of nearly 17,000 into a frenzy.
(You can watch the highlights, and check out the best goal horn in hockey, here. What a great crowd. By far, that was the best atmosphere we've seen for a playoff game so far, and the best part is that the crowds are only going to get louder as the playoffs roll on.)
As long as Detroit is going to rely on their passing ability to score goals, they are going to have problems. They need someone to take charge, and they need to find a way to get more traffic in front of Edmonton goalie Dwayne Roloson, who has clearly outplayed Legace so far. Edmonton has the upper hand, but it won't last long if the Wings start playing more like the team that was the best in the NHL all season.
Why was Ron Artest suspended? Just curious. After all, his "forearm" or "elbow" was so blatant and vicious that Manu Ginobli, the NBA's answer to Peter Forsberg, barely sold it, and the officials at the game didn't see fit to charge Artest with a flagrant foul.
The Spurs are the top seed, the defending NBA champion, and they beat Sacramento by 34 points in the first game of their series. Did they really need another advantage?
Coming up...More on the NFL Draft, with a mock draft coming tomorrow and Friday. I'll also chime in on other issues as stories warrant.
Randomization: NFL Draft Edition Vol. 1
OMG Reggie Bush CHEATED!! Well, maybe not. But ESPN sure wants you to think so. So does Skip Braynless, who has gone so far as to decide on a proper punishment for Bush - just in case he's convicted of a crime that we're not even certain happened in the first place.
Pathetic. Another "journalist" trying to make the news happen himself. Braynless has one job here. Give me an opinion on what has happened. Tell me whether you think Bush could possibly have had no clue what was going on. Tell me whether you think USC's coaches could have been involved in this, and what it could mean for USC's program.
But you, Sports Journalist, don't get to decide on Bush's punishment - especially when Bush may have done absolutely nothing wrong. I know we're all obsessed with convicting people on TV shows and in newspaper columns (see: "Duke Lacrosse"), but this is getting ridiculous.
More pathetic than Braynless is the behavior of Braynless' employer, ESPN. SportsCenter spent the first five minutes on Monday mindlessly speculating about Bush's draft status, as if the Houston Texans actually care that some seedy marketing dude may have arranged for a sweet house for Bush's family. I could see some actual worry if Bush had actually signed with this particular representative, but that didn't happen. Then ESPN went on to put Joe Schad on TV (which usually a mistake by itself) so Schad, like Braynless earlier in the day, could talk about the Heisman Trophy being taken away.
Maybe I'm just naive, but why would they take the Heisman away from Bush when they didn't take it away from a double-murderer (allegedly)? But maybe I'm wrong.
Don't buy the hype. Bush will be the top pick. As much as I would prefer the Texans draft someone who can actually prevent David Carr from getting killed when he drops back on third-and-eight, they're not taking D'Brickashaw Ferguson. And if they aren't going to fill their greatest need, they should take the best player on the board. The best player on the board is Bush, unless he hauls off and decks a reporter during his tour around New York City on Friday. Any discussion from the Texans about Mario Williams or anyone else is a smokescreen. The only way they won't take Bush is if they trade the pick, and I don't know how seriously the Texans will consider a trade, because I don't know that any team that has the desire to move up has the desire to pay the price for a trade or pay the price for the player they want.
Every team in the top ten of this draft wants Bush signed before the draft. In most years, teams and agents prefer to wait for the top pick to sign before they do any serious contract work of their own. That top pick sets the market for the rest of the draft, and everyone is helped a little bit when he signs before the draft. There will still be holdouts, but teams and agents at least have a basic framework to deal with. This is especially true in 2006, because the cap went up significantly, to over $100 million per team, and there will be some agents who believe that top pick guarantees should rise accordingly. I already think rookies are paid a ridiculous amount of money, so I don't believe that they need any more. But my opinion doesn't matter. The only ones that do are the Houston Texans and the agent for whoever they choose with the top pick. They will set the market in a big year for rookie draft picks.
Don't be surprised to see some big trades. I would expect that the Packers, now that they know they'll have Brett Favre around, might be willing to deal disgruntled WR Javon Walker before or during the draft. The kicker for the Packers is that it's hard to figure out the market for an ego-driven wideout who is coming off a devastating knee injury. However, this might be the time to pull the trigger. You know Favre is coming back, and while he looked terrible last year because of all the injuries around him, you also know that Favre doesn't necessarily need an elite wideout to make the offense click. This draft is short on playmaking wide receivers, so any team looking for a wideout might be willing to swing a deal for Walker. I know Ted Thompson doesn't want to make players think they can force trades when the spirit moves them, but the Packers need to deal Walker so he doesn't cause any problems. Also possibly on the block is Denver WR Ashley Lelie, whose inconsistency is driving coach Mike Shanahan nuts.
All this said, there probably won't be any big trades. Usually, when we media types start talking about big trades in the draft (i.e. "OMG wildest year ever this year; just wait and see!"), nothing happens.
This year's first-round swingers. The "swing" picks are the picks that can change the course of the first round. Every year, there are a couple teams in the top 15 that are hard to get a feel for. Who will they select? What position are they targeting? The way I see it right now, here are the key spots in the first round of the draft:
3. Tennessee --> Will the Titans take Leinart or Young, or will they try to upgrade the offensive line with Ferguson? If the Titans don't take Leinart, it could set up a frenzy later in the top ten, as someone tries to position themselves for Leinart, who could fall out of the top five on Saturday if no one makes a trade to get him.
10. Arizona --> The Cardinals have a few holes, and they might not be able to get the player they really want (Maryland TE Vernon Davis) at the tenth position. The Cardinals may target a quarterback, perhaps Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler. Denny needs help at linebacker. Would he reach for Ernie Sims? (After all, Denny's certainly reached before.) Winston Justice? Jimmy Williams? No one knows for sure, and it could certainly change the course of the draft for the next ten picks.
But if Bush is implictaed in wrongdoing, there is one punishment that wouldn't be toothless. It certainly would hurt much more than leveling some meaningless sanctions at the school he's leaving in his rearview mirror like he left so many would-be tacklers in the dust.
The idea hit me Sunday night. I pushed it on Monday morning's "Cold Pizza." And I was very happy to read Joe Schad's Monday afternoon report on ESPN.com that members of the Heisman Trophy Trust are "doing some soul-searching" about it.
Yes, director Rob Whalen told Schad that the trustees have discussed "revoking" Bush's Heisman Trophy.
Pathetic. Another "journalist" trying to make the news happen himself. Braynless has one job here. Give me an opinion on what has happened. Tell me whether you think Bush could possibly have had no clue what was going on. Tell me whether you think USC's coaches could have been involved in this, and what it could mean for USC's program.
But you, Sports Journalist, don't get to decide on Bush's punishment - especially when Bush may have done absolutely nothing wrong. I know we're all obsessed with convicting people on TV shows and in newspaper columns (see: "Duke Lacrosse"), but this is getting ridiculous.
More pathetic than Braynless is the behavior of Braynless' employer, ESPN. SportsCenter spent the first five minutes on Monday mindlessly speculating about Bush's draft status, as if the Houston Texans actually care that some seedy marketing dude may have arranged for a sweet house for Bush's family. I could see some actual worry if Bush had actually signed with this particular representative, but that didn't happen. Then ESPN went on to put Joe Schad on TV (which usually a mistake by itself) so Schad, like Braynless earlier in the day, could talk about the Heisman Trophy being taken away.
Maybe I'm just naive, but why would they take the Heisman away from Bush when they didn't take it away from a double-murderer (allegedly)? But maybe I'm wrong.
Don't buy the hype. Bush will be the top pick. As much as I would prefer the Texans draft someone who can actually prevent David Carr from getting killed when he drops back on third-and-eight, they're not taking D'Brickashaw Ferguson. And if they aren't going to fill their greatest need, they should take the best player on the board. The best player on the board is Bush, unless he hauls off and decks a reporter during his tour around New York City on Friday. Any discussion from the Texans about Mario Williams or anyone else is a smokescreen. The only way they won't take Bush is if they trade the pick, and I don't know how seriously the Texans will consider a trade, because I don't know that any team that has the desire to move up has the desire to pay the price for a trade or pay the price for the player they want.
Every team in the top ten of this draft wants Bush signed before the draft. In most years, teams and agents prefer to wait for the top pick to sign before they do any serious contract work of their own. That top pick sets the market for the rest of the draft, and everyone is helped a little bit when he signs before the draft. There will still be holdouts, but teams and agents at least have a basic framework to deal with. This is especially true in 2006, because the cap went up significantly, to over $100 million per team, and there will be some agents who believe that top pick guarantees should rise accordingly. I already think rookies are paid a ridiculous amount of money, so I don't believe that they need any more. But my opinion doesn't matter. The only ones that do are the Houston Texans and the agent for whoever they choose with the top pick. They will set the market in a big year for rookie draft picks.
Don't be surprised to see some big trades. I would expect that the Packers, now that they know they'll have Brett Favre around, might be willing to deal disgruntled WR Javon Walker before or during the draft. The kicker for the Packers is that it's hard to figure out the market for an ego-driven wideout who is coming off a devastating knee injury. However, this might be the time to pull the trigger. You know Favre is coming back, and while he looked terrible last year because of all the injuries around him, you also know that Favre doesn't necessarily need an elite wideout to make the offense click. This draft is short on playmaking wide receivers, so any team looking for a wideout might be willing to swing a deal for Walker. I know Ted Thompson doesn't want to make players think they can force trades when the spirit moves them, but the Packers need to deal Walker so he doesn't cause any problems. Also possibly on the block is Denver WR Ashley Lelie, whose inconsistency is driving coach Mike Shanahan nuts.
All this said, there probably won't be any big trades. Usually, when we media types start talking about big trades in the draft (i.e. "OMG wildest year ever this year; just wait and see!"), nothing happens.
This year's first-round swingers. The "swing" picks are the picks that can change the course of the first round. Every year, there are a couple teams in the top 15 that are hard to get a feel for. Who will they select? What position are they targeting? The way I see it right now, here are the key spots in the first round of the draft:
3. Tennessee --> Will the Titans take Leinart or Young, or will they try to upgrade the offensive line with Ferguson? If the Titans don't take Leinart, it could set up a frenzy later in the top ten, as someone tries to position themselves for Leinart, who could fall out of the top five on Saturday if no one makes a trade to get him.
10. Arizona --> The Cardinals have a few holes, and they might not be able to get the player they really want (Maryland TE Vernon Davis) at the tenth position. The Cardinals may target a quarterback, perhaps Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler. Denny needs help at linebacker. Would he reach for Ernie Sims? (After all, Denny's certainly reached before.) Winston Justice? Jimmy Williams? No one knows for sure, and it could certainly change the course of the draft for the next ten picks.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
2006 NFL Draft: What do the Vikings need?
Picture it: 2000.
The Vikings start 7-0 and cruise to the NFC Central title and #2 seed in the NFC playoffs. There was a bit too much cruising, though, as the Vikes blew a golden opportunity to secure the top seed.
Nonetheless, first-year starting QB Daunte Culpepper accounted for nearly 4,000 passing yards and 40 total TDs, and star WR Randy Moss approached 1,500 receiving yards and scored 15 TDs. Even though the Vikings lost a 41-0 heartbreaker to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game that year, the future looked bright for the Vikings. They had budding young superstars at the skill positions, and when Robert Smith retired after the season, they appeared to be simply a #1 running back and a little bit better play on defense away from being an unstoppable force.
At this point (January 2001), the odds are in favor of the Vikings making a Super Bowl within a couple years, and certainly not of the organization practically turning itself upside down within 40 months.
But the defense never rounded into any kind of form, and the Vikings suffered some key injuries on offense while also never finding a reliable top running back. Dennis Greenwas fired didn't return as the Vikings' coach after a disastrous 2001 season, and Mike Tice took over. With a cheap owner demanding that Tice hire assistant coaches on the cheap, and said cheap owner refusing to spend any serious money on free agents, the team really had issues. Tice had trouble getting his young players to turn the corner, but they got close. The 2003 Vikings started 6-0 before crumbling and missing the playoffs after Arizona Cardinal Nate Poole's acrobatic catch in the end zone on the final play of the final game. The 2004 team started 5-1 before finishing 8-8 and backing into the playoffs.
Then the organization tired of Moss' antics and dealt him to Oakland in March 2005. The first-round pick the Vikings got for Moss was used on South Carolina WR Troy Williamson in the 2005 draft, but Williamson wasn't able to even approach Moss' impact as a rookie. With new owner Zygi Wilf opening the checkbook, the Vikings spent more freely than ever before on free agents, with mixed results. The Vikings got off to a horrible start, with Culpepper turning the ball over left and right, and seemingly regressing after posting MVP-caliber numbers in 2004. The Vikings' bye week was marred by a story detailing bad behavior on a Lake Minnetonka boat cruise that was chartered by members of the team. Culpepper, offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, and cornerback Fred Smoot were among those implicated. Culpepper blew out his knee in a loss to Carolina, and the Vikings finished the season 7-2 with Brad Johnson as the starter. It wasn't enough for the team to make the playoffs, and Tice was fired after the Vikings' final game.
Wilf hired Philadelphia offensive coordinator Brad Childress as the new head coach shortly after Tice was fired, and Childress immediately had a falling-out with Culpepper, who refused to rehab his surgically-repaired knee in Minnesota, and then demanded more money be put into his contract for 2006, despite a statistically wretched 2005 season that followed Culpepper forcing the team to guarantee him $8 million during training camp (Culpepper even went so far as to stage a one-day walkout from camp to get the money he wanted). With Culpepper practically begging to be traded from Minnesota for some strange reason, the Vikings ultimately decided to deal their disgruntled franchise QB to Miami for a second-round pick.
So here are the Vikings. No franchise QB. No franchise WR. No franchise RB. Holes on defense. New coaching staff.
Let's look at the team as the Vikings finish off preparation for the 2006 NFL Draft.
WHEN DO THE VIKINGS PICK:
1st round (17) - 17th overall
2nd round (16) - 48th overall
2nd round (19) - 51st overall
3rd round (19) - 83rd overall
4th round (18) - 115th overall
5th round (17) - 149th overall
6th round (16) - 185th overall
PRIMARY TEAM NEEDS
LB --> There are a couple options for the Vikings now that Sam Cowart has signed on with Houston. Cowart was a capable player in the middle, and his presence will be missed if the Vikings can't find a replacement. E.J. Henderson could move back inside, where he played during his college career at Maryland. The Vikings could then draft a player to play Henderson's strong-side position, and this is a pretty good draft for outside linebackers. The Vikings also need to solidify their situation at weak-side linebacker, where Dontarrious Thomas has not come close to developing as the team hoped. So the team is in a position where they can draft the best linebacker on the board and configure the lineup from there to benefit everyone's strengths. Expect the Vikings to look at Florida State's Ernie Sims and perhaps Alabama's DeMeco Ryans in the first round, or they could look at an insider player such as Maryland's D'Qwell Jackson or Virginia's Kai Parham later in the first day.
QB --> This isn't rocket surgery, people. The Vikings traded Culpepper last month for 35 cents on the dollar (assuming he comes back healthy off this devastating knee injury), and they didn't sign any free agent quarterbacks (sorry, Mike McMahon doesn't legally qualify as a "quarterback"). The teams knows that they need to come out of this draft with a quality prospect who could step in if Johnson can't hold up for 16 games, unless they want McMahon and his career completion percentage of 44.5 (gaudy 15-21 TD-INT ratio) to take over. While it's not a certainty that the Vikings would take a QB in the first round (even if Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler becomes available), they should plan on taking a QB during the first day of the draft. Outside of Cutler in the first round, the Vikings could look at Alabama's Brodie Croyle, Clemson's Charlie Whitehurst, or perhaps Omar Jacobs of Bowling Green.
CB --> Even though the Vikings have spent big recently on free-agent acquisitions Fred Smoot and Antoine Winfield, they know they have to upgrade the depth at this position. Nickel back Brian Williams started the second half of last season after Smoot struggled and then was injured, but Williams went to Jacksonville as a free agent. With the need for depth, I expect the Vikings to potentially draft two corners in this draft, as the pool of developmental prospects is quite deep. Prospects like Miami's Devin Hester, Richard Marshall of Fresno State, Will Blackmon of Boston College, and Kansas' Charles Gordon could be available late in the first day or early in the second.
WR --> The Vikings have talent at this position, and they have some depth. However, they don't have anyone who is a solid #1 receiver at this point. Koren Robinson has the most upside, but there are questions about his consistency and his character. Travis Taylor has hands of stone, Marcus Robinson is no longer a spring chicken, and Troy Williamson showed only flashes of ability in his rookie year, and that was only after he spent some time in former coach Tice's doghouse for reported poor practice habits. There aren't any blue-chip receivers in this draft, but the Vikings may look for a developmental prospect with upside in the middle rounds of the draft.
FIRST ROUND BEST BET
I think the Vikings will be aggressive at the quarterback position and look for Cutler, who is likely to fall to the Vikings' pick at #17, barring a team below the Vikings trading up to get Cutler. The depth at linebacker is better than the depth at quarterback, so the Vikings can get a linebacker later in the draft. The chance to get a legitimate blue-chip quarterback in the middle of the first round isn't going to come around every year.
Here's my read on the Vikings' first-round selection, listed in order of likelihood:
1. Cutler
2. LB Ernie Sims (Florida State)
3. Trade up - perhaps for Cutler or Iowa LB Chad Greenway
4. Trade down and stock up on picks for later in the draft
5. CB Tye Hill (Clemson) or Antonio Cromartie (Florida State)
Tomorrow, we'll keep looking at the draft with some news and notes, including the very latest on the OMG REGGIE BUSH CHEATED "controversy".
The Vikings start 7-0 and cruise to the NFC Central title and #2 seed in the NFC playoffs. There was a bit too much cruising, though, as the Vikes blew a golden opportunity to secure the top seed.
Nonetheless, first-year starting QB Daunte Culpepper accounted for nearly 4,000 passing yards and 40 total TDs, and star WR Randy Moss approached 1,500 receiving yards and scored 15 TDs. Even though the Vikings lost a 41-0 heartbreaker to the New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game that year, the future looked bright for the Vikings. They had budding young superstars at the skill positions, and when Robert Smith retired after the season, they appeared to be simply a #1 running back and a little bit better play on defense away from being an unstoppable force.
At this point (January 2001), the odds are in favor of the Vikings making a Super Bowl within a couple years, and certainly not of the organization practically turning itself upside down within 40 months.
But the defense never rounded into any kind of form, and the Vikings suffered some key injuries on offense while also never finding a reliable top running back. Dennis Green
Then the organization tired of Moss' antics and dealt him to Oakland in March 2005. The first-round pick the Vikings got for Moss was used on South Carolina WR Troy Williamson in the 2005 draft, but Williamson wasn't able to even approach Moss' impact as a rookie. With new owner Zygi Wilf opening the checkbook, the Vikings spent more freely than ever before on free agents, with mixed results. The Vikings got off to a horrible start, with Culpepper turning the ball over left and right, and seemingly regressing after posting MVP-caliber numbers in 2004. The Vikings' bye week was marred by a story detailing bad behavior on a Lake Minnetonka boat cruise that was chartered by members of the team. Culpepper, offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, and cornerback Fred Smoot were among those implicated. Culpepper blew out his knee in a loss to Carolina, and the Vikings finished the season 7-2 with Brad Johnson as the starter. It wasn't enough for the team to make the playoffs, and Tice was fired after the Vikings' final game.
Wilf hired Philadelphia offensive coordinator Brad Childress as the new head coach shortly after Tice was fired, and Childress immediately had a falling-out with Culpepper, who refused to rehab his surgically-repaired knee in Minnesota, and then demanded more money be put into his contract for 2006, despite a statistically wretched 2005 season that followed Culpepper forcing the team to guarantee him $8 million during training camp (Culpepper even went so far as to stage a one-day walkout from camp to get the money he wanted). With Culpepper practically begging to be traded from Minnesota for some strange reason, the Vikings ultimately decided to deal their disgruntled franchise QB to Miami for a second-round pick.
So here are the Vikings. No franchise QB. No franchise WR. No franchise RB. Holes on defense. New coaching staff.
Let's look at the team as the Vikings finish off preparation for the 2006 NFL Draft.
WHEN DO THE VIKINGS PICK:
1st round (17) - 17th overall
2nd round (16) - 48th overall
2nd round (19) - 51st overall
3rd round (19) - 83rd overall
4th round (18) - 115th overall
5th round (17) - 149th overall
6th round (16) - 185th overall
PRIMARY TEAM NEEDS
LB --> There are a couple options for the Vikings now that Sam Cowart has signed on with Houston. Cowart was a capable player in the middle, and his presence will be missed if the Vikings can't find a replacement. E.J. Henderson could move back inside, where he played during his college career at Maryland. The Vikings could then draft a player to play Henderson's strong-side position, and this is a pretty good draft for outside linebackers. The Vikings also need to solidify their situation at weak-side linebacker, where Dontarrious Thomas has not come close to developing as the team hoped. So the team is in a position where they can draft the best linebacker on the board and configure the lineup from there to benefit everyone's strengths. Expect the Vikings to look at Florida State's Ernie Sims and perhaps Alabama's DeMeco Ryans in the first round, or they could look at an insider player such as Maryland's D'Qwell Jackson or Virginia's Kai Parham later in the first day.
QB --> This isn't rocket surgery, people. The Vikings traded Culpepper last month for 35 cents on the dollar (assuming he comes back healthy off this devastating knee injury), and they didn't sign any free agent quarterbacks (sorry, Mike McMahon doesn't legally qualify as a "quarterback"). The teams knows that they need to come out of this draft with a quality prospect who could step in if Johnson can't hold up for 16 games, unless they want McMahon and his career completion percentage of 44.5 (gaudy 15-21 TD-INT ratio) to take over. While it's not a certainty that the Vikings would take a QB in the first round (even if Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler becomes available), they should plan on taking a QB during the first day of the draft. Outside of Cutler in the first round, the Vikings could look at Alabama's Brodie Croyle, Clemson's Charlie Whitehurst, or perhaps Omar Jacobs of Bowling Green.
CB --> Even though the Vikings have spent big recently on free-agent acquisitions Fred Smoot and Antoine Winfield, they know they have to upgrade the depth at this position. Nickel back Brian Williams started the second half of last season after Smoot struggled and then was injured, but Williams went to Jacksonville as a free agent. With the need for depth, I expect the Vikings to potentially draft two corners in this draft, as the pool of developmental prospects is quite deep. Prospects like Miami's Devin Hester, Richard Marshall of Fresno State, Will Blackmon of Boston College, and Kansas' Charles Gordon could be available late in the first day or early in the second.
WR --> The Vikings have talent at this position, and they have some depth. However, they don't have anyone who is a solid #1 receiver at this point. Koren Robinson has the most upside, but there are questions about his consistency and his character. Travis Taylor has hands of stone, Marcus Robinson is no longer a spring chicken, and Troy Williamson showed only flashes of ability in his rookie year, and that was only after he spent some time in former coach Tice's doghouse for reported poor practice habits. There aren't any blue-chip receivers in this draft, but the Vikings may look for a developmental prospect with upside in the middle rounds of the draft.
FIRST ROUND BEST BET
I think the Vikings will be aggressive at the quarterback position and look for Cutler, who is likely to fall to the Vikings' pick at #17, barring a team below the Vikings trading up to get Cutler. The depth at linebacker is better than the depth at quarterback, so the Vikings can get a linebacker later in the draft. The chance to get a legitimate blue-chip quarterback in the middle of the first round isn't going to come around every year.
Here's my read on the Vikings' first-round selection, listed in order of likelihood:
1. Cutler
2. LB Ernie Sims (Florida State)
3. Trade up - perhaps for Cutler or Iowa LB Chad Greenway
4. Trade down and stock up on picks for later in the draft
5. CB Tye Hill (Clemson) or Antonio Cromartie (Florida State)
Tomorrow, we'll keep looking at the draft with some news and notes, including the very latest on the OMG REGGIE BUSH CHEATED "controversy".
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