Category: Jacksonville Jaguars

D.J. Moore is Grateful for that Vanderbilt Education He Received and Other Points of View

Bears

  • The Chicago Tribune writers make their season predictions. The majority of the Super Bowl predictions makes this list darned depressing but you can always count on Steve Rosenbloom to liven things up.
  • Apparently the Bears think the home crowd is going to be pretty noisy today. Apparently they also think the fans won’t have the common sense to pipe down when their own offense is on the field. Via Brag Biggs at the Chicago Tribune:

“The Bears piped in crowd noise at practice this week, something they have done in the past. Typically, teams only prepare for loud environments when they go on the road. But obviously the Bears feel the Soldier Field crowd doesn’t create ideal offensive working conditions.”

  • Dan McNeil at the Chicago Tribune thinks Brian Urlacher might be within sight of the end. It’s way past time time to start taking a serious look at improving the depth at linebacker. He also thinks the Bears will go 9-7 and miss the playoffs. I generally agree primarily because of this point:

“Julius Peppers had an uneventful summer, save the plantar fasciitis from which he has been hobbled. Peppers had 101/2 sacks last year and it wasn’t enough because the Bears weren’t steeped in pass rush threats.

“They still aren’t. Israel Idonije is back. So are Corey Wootton, Henry Melton, Stephen Paea, Matt Toeaina and Amobi Okoye, who was re-signed as the Bears cut Bucs castoff Brian Price, the early-in-camp media darling. First-rounder Shea McClellin is what most of us thought he would be on draft night — a project.”

Skill position players are great. You need them and the Bears are definitely improved on offense with the addition of Brandon Marshall. But football is still played at the line of scrimmage.

  • On a related note, Biggs takes a shot at people like me who think the Bears should have built the offensive line in the offseason:

Those who protested that the Bears needed to add playmakers for [quarterback Jay] Cutler cannot call into question the team’s inability to upgrade the offensive line simultaneously. It was one or the other, and the front office finally answered pleas Cutler had been making since shortly after he arrived.

That’s fair enough though I still maintain that the real problem was that there really wasn’t anyone to add that would have helped. They need a left tackle. Those don’t grow on trees and there was reasonable doubt about whether drafting Riley Reiff would have given you one.

“Since leaving the Bears a cone of silence has descended around former GM Jerry Angelo. As far as I know, Angelo hasn’t uttered a word about his dismissal and he’s given no interviews. Have I missed anything? Does anyone know what Angelo’s thoughts were? Or has he totally fallen off the radar? Bob J., Camarillo, Calif.

“I think it would be safe to assume Angelo has chosen to take the high road. What was it your mother told you to say if you had nothing good to say? You haven’t missed anything, Bob. By the way, with all due respect to Phil Emery, who I think has done an outstanding job, it’s interesting that either 20 or 21 of the 22 Bears starters on opening day will be Angelo acquisitions. That is a credit both to Angelo and Emery, who has been wise enough and secure enough to acknowledge the existing talent on the team. Not all new GMs are so open-minded. The only certain Emery acquisition to start will be Brandon Marshall. Evan Rodriguez also is a possibility.”

Its also worth noting that the one way to ensure that you never get a job as a GM again is to trash your former team. One one is going to hire you only to wait until its their turn when they have to let you go, too.

  • Vaughn McClure at the Chicago Tribune says that Devin Hester will be returning kicks today. It looks like Dave Toub is trying to throw opponents off balance by giving them a look at two different running styles, similar to what a team might do with to different running backs:

“Toub previously explained how Weems’ straightforward style can be more beneficial, but it’s hard to argue
with Hester’s elusiveness.”

  • I thought at the time it was kind of odd that the Bears released Matt Blanchard before the last preseason game rather than afterwards. But it makes sense in light of this comment from Potash

Blanchard, the rookie quarterback from Lake Zurich High School and Division II Wisconsin-Whitewater, was cut before last week’s final preseason game. The Bears knew they wanted him on their practice squad but apparently didn’t want him to put anything on tape that might interest another team.

Potash goes on to say that the Bears almost lost him to the Dolphins as it was.

  • Former Bear Tyler Clutts compares and contrasts Matt Forte and Texan’s running back Arian Foster. From the Tribune:

“Asked to compare Foster to Forte, Clutts told Houston reporters, “Just seeing Arian Foster on film and being around him these last couple of days, they are very similar because they can both do a lot, they both run hard.

“‘Matt Forte is a little more shifty, he’s not really going to put his head down as much as Foster is, which is something you really like to see. You like to see your running back really kind of put his head down and fight for those yards.'”

  • Hey, who said new offensive coordinator Mike Tice won’t be creative? From The Onion
  • If you want to know why head coach Lovie Smith is so close mouthed about injuries, comments from Amobe Okoye about rookie Tampa Bay head coach Greg Schiano demonstrate one good reason why talking about them can only get a coach in trouble. Okoye was released by the Bucs before signing with the Bears in part because he missed much of camp recovering from knee surgery. From McClure:

“‘It didn’t reflect his statement about T.B.A., and it shocked me when I heard that,’ Okoye said. ‘He said the same thing to me during the exit meeting. I reminded him about how I never missed a practice due to my right knee since I’ve been in the NFL. So how is that a history?

“‘I feel like, don’t try to put stuff out there that can mess up my livelihood. I thank him for the opportunity to be a Buc. I just wish the things he said could have been rephrased.'”

  • Former Bear defensive tackle Anthony Adams continues to explain why not having a job in the NFL isn’t that big of a deal:

  • The Sports Pickle asks “How the Rest of the Nation Perceives Your Favorite NFL Team’s Fans”:

“Chicago Bears: Exactly like everyone on the Da Bears sketch, but dumber and fatter.”

Elsewhere

“‘I’m in a good place,’ [Maurice Jone-Drew] said. ‘I did something I felt was right, and I’m always going to feel right. I’m not going to feel wrong for what I did it at all. And that’s why I can come back and not have a negative attitude. I think if you regret things, you’re going to come back salty, be a distraction, things like that.

“‘I don’t feel that way ’cause what I did was right. No one can tell me it was wrong. Not one person here can tell me what I did was wrong.'”

Jones-Drew went back on his word and let his teammates down by holding out of training camp. Thank heavens he’s not a Bear.

  • The Sports Pickle asks, “Which of last year’s non-playoff teams has the best chance to win the Super Bowl?” Here’s my choice:

“Jets – teams with a bad quarterback rarely win a Super Bowl. But TWO bad quarterbacks? No one has tried that before.”

  • Good question:
  • And here are some helpful flash cards for those replacement referees today:

One Final Thought

Joe Cowley at the Chicago Sun-Times quotes defensive back D.J. Moore:

“’I didn’t go to school to learn too much, to be honest with you,’ Moore replied when asked which school was better for an education. ‘Once I got to school and got good, I was like, ‘Man, this is for the birds. It’s time to leave.””

“Asked if he was being overly honest about college athletics, Moore then said, ‘Well, I mean, I’m smarter than some of the kids that went to Florida State or those types of schools, now. Some kids get in school with a point-nothing (GPA). They didn’t even go to high school.'”

 

Quick Comments: NFL Draft First Round

  1. Did the Vikings play the Browns?  Hard to tell. Tampa Bay may have been threatening to move into the pick.  Trent Richardson was considered to be the best prospect in the draft by some analysts.
  2. Why so many trades?  It’s likely because there’s a rookie wage scale. Teams are a lot more likely to trade picks if they know it won’t cost them an arm and a leg in addition to draft picks.
  3. I’m guessing that when Tampa Bay traded back to the seventh pick they thought that they were going to get Morris Claiborne. Then Jaguars took Justin Blackmon and the Rams were likely going to go to another need position.  The Cowboys probably foiled the plan when they traded up to jump ahead of the Bucs. Mark Barron is fine but there wouldn’t have been a thing wrong with Stephon Gilmore in that slot, either.
  4. The Eagles needed to trade ahead of the Rams at 14 because they would have grabbed Fletcher Cox in a heart beat. Nice work getting into the 12 spot by trading with Seattle.
  5. Bruce Irvin at 15, Seattle?  Really?
  6. I was sure the Bears were going to go with left tackle Riley Reiff when he got past St. Louis. Instead they went with the defensive end.
  7. I experienced some disquiet when I saw the Lions benefit from the Bears pass to take Reiff.
  8. Quinton Coples fell but not too far to the Jets at 16.  He’s going to be fascinating to watch.  If he becomes a higher effort guy, he could be one of the best players from this draft.
  9. The Patriots traded up twice in the first round?  Who saw that coming?  I can’t say it was a bad idea, though.  Chandler Jones at 21 and Dont’a Hightower at 25 were both great pickups for their defense.  I’m sure Houston would have nabbed Hightower at 26 and if not them, then Baltimore later in the round.  Jones was a fast riser who might not have lasted long, either.
  10. Shea McClellin does fit the Bears in a lot of ways. I thought the Bears might be scared off by the reported three concussions that McClellin sustained but perhaps they bought into McClellin’s denial that this was the case.
  11. McClellin is apparently a high motor, high effort guy who I think most Bear fans are going to like.  He has the reputation of being a tweener who many thought would be a better fit as a 3-4 linebacker.  Assuming he plays end with the Bears, he won’t see as many double teams with Julius Peppers on the other side.  He’ll probably need work against the run.
  12. Pro Football Weekly has McClellin rated as going at the top of the second round.
  13.  The Bears filled a need but was he the best player available?  I have my doubts.  There were a lot of high rated offensive linemen on the board that the Bears probably didn’t anticipate would be there.  They used their offseason to set up to take a defensive linemen only to see Riley Reiff, David DeCastro, and Cordy Glenn fall to them.  They recently signed guard Chico Rachal with the possible intention of moving Chris Williams back to tackle.  I’m wondering if they might have handled their offseason differently had they known DeCastro and Reiff would be there.

Duerson’s Brain a Cautionary Tale for Critics of New Rules and Other Points of View

Bears

“‘I am very comfortable with these three quarterbacks,’ Martz said when asked if the need for a veteran backup still exists. ‘Nathan will compete with Caleb for the backup position. I would expect that Caleb will end up being the guy, but Nathan is good enough to be that player.'”

I’m guessing that the fourth quarterback on the roster, Matt Gutierrez, must be feeling good about being all but eliminated from consideration in May.

Pompei also had this for those who say Enderle was a reach in the fifth round:

“Critics wondered why the Bears chose Enderle so high when they had other needs. Enderle represented good value in the fifth round. I had a fourth-round grade on Enderle based on opinions from three front-office men from other teams I spoke with prior to the draft.”

“Enderle doesn’t have a cannon like Cutler. That’s OK. The three things Martz prioritizes in a quarterback are accuracy, intelligence and toughness.”

Martz goes on to say that he doesn’t have to make mechanical changes with Enderle, and he played in a “very sophisticated offense” that asked him to do a lot of the things he will be asked to do with the Bears.

I’ll accept that Enderle might be competition for Hanie but the odds are very low that he’ll do so effectively if the lockout doesn’t end reasonably soon.  Despite what Martz says, from what I can tell, Enderle has a lot of work to do shortening that occasionally long wind up of his.

“Nate Enderle took a boatload of sacks at Idaho, so he’ll fit right into Mike Martz’s system.”

“Free safety Chris Conte (California) was quietly viewed by some as the best developmental prospect of this year’s weak safety class. Speaking of developmental prospects, Idaho quarterback Nathan Enderle, at 6-4, 240 pounds, has the build and arm strength well worthy of his fifth-round selection.”

“Now, more than ever, I believe the Detroit Lions, not Chicago, is the team to challenge Green Bay in the NFC North. With Nick Fairley and Ndamukong Suh paired at defensive tackle, the Lions’ D-line becomes an extraordinary pass defense, while the addition of Titus Young gives the club an explosive wide receiver opposite Calvin Johnson. Yeah, I know, the Lions still need cornerbacks, but quarterbacks won’t have much time to exploit whoever is there. I’m already making Detroit this year’s sleeper, and there’s plenty of room on the bandwagon. This is a vastly improved team that won its last four starts — including one over Green Bay — and just beefed up an already impressive defensive line.”

Elsewhere

  • Rob Rang at CBSSports.com gives his thoughts on the draft:

“No. 1 pick Nick Fairley gives the Lions a potential tandem at defensive tackle, with Ndamokung Suh, that is the best not only in the NFC North, but in the NFL. Suh is the Lions’ best defensive player but Detroit strengthened that area in a way that also projects to aid the secondary with improved pass rush.”

Did anyone else notice how angry Fairley looked when they finally called his name?  He wasn’t happy lasting to 13 after being projected so much higher in January.  I would expect he’ll start trying to make the rest of the NFL pay for their doubt.  (Picture from US Presswire)

Fairley

  • Tom Kowalski at mlive.com contrasts current GM Martin Mayhew‘s draft room with former GM Matt Millen‘s.  He repeats this storry about the 2006 draft when the Lions were on the clock debating about whether to take guard Max Jean-Gilles.  Kowalski doesn’t mention it explicitly but the first problem was that they hadn’t worked this out in advance rather than debating it for five minutes while actually on the clock.  Here’s the second problem:

“The Lions spent so much time talking about Jean-Gilles that, when they decided not to draft him, they didn’t have another option ready to go. As they wondered what to do, a voice in the back of the room (the identity of which I haven’t confirmed yet) said ‘Take Brian Calhoun.’ So they did.

“In his two-year career in Detroit, Calhoun had 54 rushing yards and 55 receiving yards and never scored a touchdown.”

“Look, Mayhew isn’t going to be perfect and he’s going to whiff on some draft picks (cough, Derrick Williams, cough). But one of the tricks to a successful draft is limiting your mistakes by being thoroughly prepared. It’s one thing to miss, it’s another thing to not know what the hell you’re swinging at.”

“Don’t tell me the lockout didn’t have an impact on this year’s draft because it did. I’ve never seen so many reaches, starting with Aldon Smith with the seventh pick of the first round, continuing with quarterbacks Jake Locker and Christian Ponder and moving through the bottom of the round, then on into the next two days. There were stretches everywhere, and I have to believe it was because clubs drafted for need. Usually, you hear “the-best-player-available” explanation for choices, but not this year. The past three days clubs gambled everywhere to fill needs they would have already solved through free agency or trades.”

“The Seattle Seahawks allowed opponents to score 33 or more points in nine of their past 12 starts, including the playoffs, and ranked 25th in points allowed. So what do they do? Draft offense with three of their first four choices. Someone please explain.”

Not only did they take offense, they didn’t even take good offense, reaching for guard James Carpenter in the first round:

“OT James Carpenter to Seattle: Most people had him rated somewhere in the middle of the second round, yet the Seahawks took him with the 25th selection … with Gabe Carimi and Derek Sherrod still on the board. The Seahawks envision Carpenter as their next right tackle and say they love his versatility and nastiness. OK, I’ll buy that — just not at the 25th spot.”

How much of a reach was the selection of Carpenter?  Even Alabama coach Nick Saban couldn’t believe it:

Finally, we have this from coach Pete Caroll:

“’We are happy with Charlie and hoping he is going to continue to flourish and blossom. I’m not feeling like we missed out on a quarterback opportunity’ — Seattle coach Pete Caroll on Charlie Whitehurst and the Seahawks’ failure to draft a quarterback.

Bottom line Caroll is starting to remind me why he didn’t make it with the Jets all those years ago.  With him at the helm the Seahawks may have been as good last season as they’re going to be for a few years.

“I’ll tell you what I find intriguing about quarterback Blaine Gabbert: When the Washington Redskins had a chance to choose him they didn’t. Instead, coach Mike Shanahan traded out. Shanahan knows how to develop quarterbacks, and he needs a good young one in Washington. But instead of taking Gabbert after he unexpectedly lasted until the 10th pick, Shananan passed. Then he just avoided the position altogether, refusing to use any of his draft picks on a quarterback. Keep that in mind as Gabbert’s career unfolds”

The guess here is that Washington didn’t “avoid the position altogether” on purpose.  They probably traded back thinking they could pick up Christian Ponder.  The Vikings were rumored to like Jake Locker and the Redskins probably thought they’d pass on Ponder.  They didn’t.

“When one team held an audition for him, no receivers from Auburn showed up. You got to be kidding me. You’re Cam Newton, and you can’t get anyone from your offense to come to your workout?”

I’ve heard people say that Newton’s character concerns don’t necessarily translate to the field.  I think this translates.

“With so many pressing needs on the roster, they still want to fix RB? And they get Murray who is best known for his ability to catch the ball (he had 71 receptions in 2010). This redundancy with Felix’s new-found catching ability is quite a statement.”

“True, Elmore has posted videos of him both jumping out of a pool and into a truck on YouTube. But it’s also worth noting that Elmore actually had more production last season than his more-famous teammate, defensive end/linebacker Brooks Reed.”

Wonder how he would have done without Reed on the other side garnering the attention.

  • Sturm also had this to say about the fact that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones called Larry Lacewell, Butch Davis and Barry Switzer for advice on various picks:

“Previous draft disappointments haunt the Cowboys. And when Jerry tells us that he is not listening to his scouts, but more about how he listens to his old buddies about picks, then we should assume that the draft process has not changed very much. I needed Jerry to tell me that Tom Ciskowski and his staff have targeted this player and we trust them. Instead, he tells me that Switzer signed off on the Cowboys taking an Oklahoma RB.”

Amen.  At least when Jerry Angelo stands in front of the media, he can tell you how much his coaches and area scouts whose business it is to watch these prospects for months and years like the picks and why.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.  No matter what else you think of them, thank heavens the Bears have ownership that doesn’t interfere with the day-to-day running of the personnel department.  Generally speaking it is a route to disaster long term for any franchise.

“Detroit Lions — Nick Fairley and Ndamukong Suh give the Lions two young, strong players who can help carry Matthew Stafford off the field when he’s injured”

One Final Thought

Finally Judge welcomes Patrick Peterson to the NFL with this sarcastic response to a quote from him:

“‘Everybody loves the game of football. I can’t see the world without it. How do you think the world would be without it?’ — Arizona CB Patrick Peterson. I dunno, Patrick, but why don’t you ask the people who survived the 57-day strike in 1982. Better yet, ask someone in Libya.”

I’ll tell you exactly how they the world will be.  Full of people surprising themselves by finding better things to do on Sunday.  NFL beware.

Brandon Marshall Stabbed By Wife and Other Points of View

Bears

“A Jay Cutler image makeover by the guys at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Next time you see Cutler on the sideline during a playoff game, he will be wearing a tailored suit and holding a martini shaker.”

“Chicago Bears: Pick 29

“The Bears love to look offensive and defensive line in round one and if one of the top offensive tackles in the class falls to them here at 29 I definitely think they would pull the trigger. However, if not, I have a hard time seeing Chicago going D-line late in round one, especially if forced into pulling the trigger on a character concern guy like Marvin Austin. Cornerback and wideout are both possibilities at 29 as well, but if there isn’t an OL on the board, I could definitely see the Bears dealing back into round two.”

“Offensive line coach Mike Tice would have pulled calf muscles in both legs jumping for joy if Wisconsin tackle Gabe Carimi were still on the board here. The word on Carimi is he’d have been able to start early at tackle for the line-starved Bears. Sherrod — more of a technician than a brawler — isn’t really Tice’s type, but he is the best available lineman, and the Bears simply have to address this position of major need.”

I’m not so sure his comment is on point as Carimi is really a right tackle.  The Bears already have guys who can fill that role, I think.

On the Clock: Bears. Watch more top selected videos about: Chicago Bears, Sports Studio

Elsewhere

  • Miami Dolphin’s wide reciever Brandon Marshall is in trouble again.  This time he “fell on a broken vase” instead of a McDonald’s wrapper.  Via several contributors at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

  • Mel Kiper at ESPN thinks those good offensive tackles in the draft are still overrated.

  • The Bears have a very definite need at a three technique defensive tackle and Steve Muench at ESPN sees some good ones beyond the first round.
  • Pompei, this time writing for the National Football Post had this truth to say about Auburn quarterback Cam Newton:

“If there are questions about Newton from a character perspective, they have arisen from the way Newton has handled things, and from his actions prior to landing at Auburn.”

“It’s now starting to look like the second tier of quarterbacks – Jake Locker, Christian Ponder, Andy Dalton and maybe Ryan Mallett – could start flying off the board as early as the tenth pick, with the Redskins (they allegedly have a thing for Locker), Dolphins and Jaguars being candidates to start the ball rolling.”

I say go get ‘em, baby.  Make those linemen drop.

“If I were the agent of Andy Dalton, I would have advised him to confound evaluators by shaving his ginger hair before showing up at the combine. Or better yet, I would have given him a Tom Brady wig. He might have been the first pick in the draft.”

One Final Thought

The Sports Pickle talks about sporty license plate slogans.  Here’s one that touches close to my heart:

Twitter, Twitter and More Twitter and Other Points of View

Bears

  • Fred Mitchell and David Kaplan at the Chicago Tribune overheard this:

“‘Times have changed since I played. … Abe Gibron (former coach) and I used to argue when I was nearing the end of my career and I was playing on one leg,’ former Bear Dick Butkus told us. ‘He’d say, ‘Dick, you are better on one leg than the backup is on two.’ That was silly though.'”

Maybe.

“I’d welcome some conversation about how the Bears are going to make him better because the Cutler who now has played five NFL seasons isn’t good enough.”

How about they schedule surgery at Northwestern.  They can install a brain and heart that has the desire to do the tough things necessary to correct those problems.  Oops.  I said “tough” didn’t I?  Sorry, Dan.

  • And yet the Cutler talk still continues.  This time its John Madden on Sirius NFL Radio via Mike Florio at profootballtalk.com.  Like Cutler, Madden’s grandson has Type I diabetes:

“In defending Cutler, Madden was passionate, emotional, and as angry as we’ve ever heard him.

“’I’ve been in football for over 50 years,’ Madden said, prefacing his remarks.  ‘I’ve never questioned a player’s toughness.  I never have.  Whether it was in coaching, broadcasting, whatever.’”

Which is, of course, the most disturbing point.  Only Cutler seems to be receiving this kind of abuse from his peers and it may reflect the deeper problems that he has as a player.

Which means its tough to just set aside the Cutler talk when that talk and the poor play are likely connected.  Again, sorry, Dan.

Here is a recording of the interview:

  • Michael Wilbon agrees with McNeil and Tony Kornheiser calls Twitter a “plague” as PTI debates:

“When the season is over and they don’t have to gear so much of their focus toward game planning, Mike Martz and Jay Cutler could devote significant time to working on mechanics, particularly when it comes to Cutler’s footwork. Martz recently said Cutler has improved in that area since the start of the season, but he admitted that he’s not where his quarterback needs to be yet. ‘I think some of the footwork (criticism) — and (Cutler) knows that — is fair. You can’t go through a lifetime with those kinds of habits and just fix them in one season,’ Martz said.”

Elsewhere

  • Jeff Fisher is out as coach of the Titans.  This is surprising after owner Bud Adams appeared to have chosen to keep Fisher of quarterback Vince Young, who Fisher has problems with.

It would not surprise me if we learned in the coming days that Fisher forced his way out.  Adams is generally believed to be one of the worst owners in the NFL.

“New Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels on how he feels about Steven Jackson as the Rams’ primary back: ‘I know from competing against him that he’s very unique and multitalented. He can create long plays, takes great care of the offense. … I can’t wait to get started to work with him.'”

Cynics will recall that he said the same thing about Cutler when he came to Denver.

“Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver has said that he plans to sell the team eventually but he is not thinking about doing so right now. Some of the Jaguars’ offseason moves, however, hint at the possibility that Weaver is planning to sell after a new Collective Bargaining Agreement is reached. We’re hearing that Weaver’s reluctance to fire head coach Jack Del Rio and his refusal to extend the contracts of the coaching staff could be a sign that the owner is trying to clear the decks before a potential sale.”

I might add that a move to Los Angeles is always a possibility after any sale of th team.

One Final Thought

On a note related to the last item above this comes via Florio.  Packer linebacker Nick Barnett says he wishes he hadn’t popped off via Twitter about not being initially scheduled to be in the team’s Super Bowl photo.  Coach Mike McCarthy called it a “poor decision”.  Via Florio.

I’m constantly amazed by the people in all walks of life who believe that Facebook is “personal” and don’t think that they are “on the record” when they post things to the Internet.  Even people who put things in emails and are shocked when you pull them out and remind them of what was said.

Bottom line, when you put things in writing, you have to assume that the world is going to see it.  And that means you’d better think about it and you’d better mean what you say at the time.  Otherwise regret is sure to follow.