By Vince Vitale
St. Louis Rams
Chris Chamberlain -LB – Toe – Out
Michael Hoomanawanui – TE – Ankle – Out
Josh Hull – LB – Knee – Out
Kevin Dockery – CB – Hamstring -Doubtful
Clifton Ryan – DT – Migraines -Questionable
Justin King – CB – Hamstring – Questionable
Steven Jackson – RB – Knee – Probable
Fred Robbins – DT – Foot – Probable
Laurent Robinson – WR – Ankle – Probable
Darell Scott – DT – Knee – Probable
Oakland Raiders
Travis Goethel – LB – Back – Out
Walter McFadden – CB – Hamstring – Out
Chaz Schilens – WR – Knee – Out
Robert Gallery – G – Hamstring – Doubtful
Richard Seymour – DE – Hamstring – Questionable
Michael Bush – RB – Thumb – Questionable
Hiram Eugene – S – Hamstring – Questionable
Chris Johnson – CB – Neck – Questionable
Nnamdi Asomugha – CB – Groin – Probable
Desmond Bryant – DT – Elbow – Probable
Ravens Pats Recap
By Derek Arnold
On Sunday, the Ravens lost.
They lost to a very good football team.
They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach.
They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and a Hall-of-Fame quarterback.
They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and a Hall-of-Fame quarterback, who had two weeks to rest and prepare.
They lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and a Hall-of-Fame quarterback, who had two weeks to rest and prepare, on the road.
All of that, I can deal with.
What makes this loss so difficult to stomach is what I neglected to mention above…
On Sunday, the Ravens lost to a very good football team with a Hall-of-Fame head coach and quarterback, who had two weeks to rest and prepare, on the road…in a game in which they held a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter.
Yeah. That last point is the inexcusable part. For the first 45 minutes of the game, the Ravens beat the Patriots up and down the field, building a 20-10 lead with 14:57 remaining. What was unfortunate, and what ultimately proved to be the difference in the game, was that in the four plays prior to Billy Cundiff’s 25-yard field goal gave the Ravens what would be their final points for the day, Ravens’ receivers dropped two potential touchdown passes. On the first, Anquan Boldin was separated from the ball by a New England safety after a perfect strike from Joe Flacco from 20 yards out. On the second, Derrick Mason heard footsteps and couldn’t haul in what should have been a seven-yard score.
Sure, both plays would have required impressive, if not spectacular, catches. But both Boldin and Mason got two hands on the ball, and in the NFL, those passes should have been caught – especially by veterans like those two. If they are, this recap likely has a much different tone.
Compounding the problem was that, after that series, the Ravens offense (both playcalling and execution) seemed to climb aboard the plane back to Baltimore. With the exception of an 18-yard pass from Flacco to Boldin on the opening play of their next drive, the Ravens offense went 3-and-out, 3-and-out, 3-and-out on their next three possessions of regulation and overtime. The aforementioned Boldin completion came with 10:24 left in the fourth. The Ravens would not pick up another first down until the 10:17 mark of overtime – over a full quarter of play.
Three plays after that 10:24 first down, a sequence that could likely be pointed to as the pivotal one of the game unfolded.
On 3rd-and-1 from their own 47, leading 20-17, Cam Cameron called for a quarterback sneak. A play which, for anyone watching, was obviously doomed from the start. Flacco attempted to go through Pats’ defensive linemen Vince Wilfork and Greg Warren, and didn’t have a prayer.
The talk radio lines will no doubt be lighting up this week with people blaming Cameron for the odd call, and Flacco for not recognizing the defense and audibling out of the play. What is likely to be an even greater point of contention this week in B’More, though, is what happened next.
Facing 4th-and-the length of the football, Coach John “you have to put teams away when you have the chance” Harbaugh elected to punt. To punt the ball back to Tom Brady and the Patriots offense, who were fresh off an 8-play, 60-yard drive where they faced only a single first down, in that situation…puzzling, to say that least. To say a bit more, it was the kind of decision that we just aren’t used to seeing from Harbaugh, who has proven during his 2+ years as the head coach, that he has plenty of “balls” in those type of situations. This time, though, he went timid, and the Ravens paid dearly.
It wasn’t just Harbaugh that went into a shell in the fourth quarter and overtime though. He took the entire Baltimore coaching staff with him.
Cam Cameron stopped picking on the Patriots’ secondary.
Greg Mattison gave Brady the short underneath stuff in the passing game, and Brady took it eagerly.
Now, give New England credit. As mentioned, they have a great coaching staff of their own, and those guys made the necessary adjustments. They took away Flacco’s passing lanes. They threw quick screen after quick screen on offense. They did what was necessary to win the game. What the Ravens’ coaches were up to is anybody’s guess.
Flacco played very well all day, going 27/35 for 285 yards and two touchdowns. I don’t know if the Ravens’ coaches’ tentative mentality was preached to Joe on the sideline during the fourth quarter or what, but he wasn’t the same after those two dropped touchdown passes. He seemed much more willing to check down to Ray Rice, even though Rice was routinely swarmed by New England linebackers.
That’s another area where New England must be commended – they were not going to let Rice destroy them like he did in the two 2009 meetings. Although there seemed to be some nice holes on the Ravens’ opening drive, ultimately Rice ran the ball 28 times for just 88 yards, and his long of the day was just eight. He added eight receptions for 38 yards, but really wasn’t a major factor in the game.
Which brings us to the next puzzling thing about the gameplan of the Ravens’ staff…
Where the hell was Willis McGahee???
McGahee did not see a single touch in Foxborough, and I’m not even positive he was at the stadium. Sure, I was calling for Rice to take over goalline duties from Willis, but to just leave #23 on the sideline all afternoon? Especially considering the relative lack of success that Rice was having? It just makes absolutely no sense to me that McGahee was never even inserted as a sort of change-of-pace, and I’ll be anticipating how Cameron and Harbaugh explain that fact this week.
Before we wrap up, we can’t excuse the Ravens’ defense or special teams here either. While it’s commendable to hold New England to just 23 points, after they had put up 38 in each of their prior two home games, there were some disturbing signs from the “D.”
First off, what the hell is it with the Ravens’ inability to stop white running backs? We all remember Peyton Hillis running roughshod over them in week 2, and in Foxborough, Danny Freakin’ Woodhead had 63 yards and 5.7 per carry. They also had a hell of a time tackling Wes Welker, Aaron Hernandez, and Deion Branch, allowing the Pats to rack up an incredible amount of YAC, after doing such a great job against the Denver Broncos last week.
Next, Mattison’s insistence to only rush three men so often is starting to cost the team. By now we know not to expect the kind of blitzes that we saw when Rex Ryan was in town, but giving Tom Brady 5 or 6 seconds to find a receiver down near the end zone isn’t a recipe for success in any universe. I don’t care if the Ravens emptied the bench and put 12 guys in the end zone covering Pats’ receivers, if Brady can basically take his helmet off back there and stand flat footed, he’s going to find someone. And that’s exactly what he did to get New England to within 20-17. With the exception of Haloti Ngata, the Ravens’ pass rush was disturbingly non-existent, especially considering the past success they have had against the Patriots.
Finally, we come to special teams. While they never came up with the huge game-breaker that we feared, and that they used to beat Miami in week 4, New England was clearly the superior unit on Sunday.
Jalen Parmele needs to be out of a job. His indecision/terrible decisions cost the Ravens a good bit of field position on at least two occasions.
Neither Chris Carr nor Tom Zbikowski can generate anything on punt returns. And when it seems like they just MIGHT, it’s always because someone else is illegally blocking or holding. On top of that, their refusal to come up and field punts that aren’t hit directly to them cost the team additional field position several times. It’s a sad state of affairs for the Ravens’ return games.
Even Billy Cundiff, despite his three touchbacks, had a costly gaffe. After going up 20-10, Cundiff’s ensuing kickoff squirted out of bounds at about the two yard line…two yards too soon, which resulted in the Patriots starting at their own 40-yard line.
The Ravens outplayed the Patriots for three quarters Sunday. Despite the Pats having two weeks to prepare, the Ravens appeared ready to take their best shot and bring a 5-1 record back to B’More.
Unfortunately, they were outplayed and (thoroughly) outcoached during the final quarter and the overtime period, and 4-2 is the result.
Still not a terrible place to be, after four tough road games, and with only a home game against Buffalo standing between us and the bye week.
Oh, and a certain guy who wears #20 is rumored to be coming back this week.
Things could be worse.
http://www.bmorebirdsnest.com/
Ricky Stanzi Scout
Quarterback
Iowa
6-4 223
Draft Board Overall Prospect Rank: #83
Draft Board Overall Quarterback Rank: #6
Rating: 71 (mid 3rd)
40 time: 4.93
3/23/11: Stanzi once again didn’t look great throwing, this time at his Pro Day. He’s still a solid mid round prospect, but I’m moving him down a bit.
2/17/11: Ricky Stanzi isn’t going to amaze you with physical tools, but he has experience in a Pro Style offense and statistically had a very good year last year. He completed 64% of his passes for an average of 8.7 YPA as a season and 25 touchdowns to 6 picks. He did this, however, with a lot of his help from his running game and defense.
Iowa frequently would run the I formation, with two running backs. This is a Pro Style offense and Stanzi has the experience taking snaps under center, dropping back, he’s got very refined footwork, a smart decision maker who makes good reads, but he didn’t ever prove he could carry a team. He has an above average arm when he does throw, but he rarely needs to throw far downfield because he’s frequently operating out of 2nd and 3rd and shorts, with the defense keying in on the running game.
That being said, his above average arm, mature decision making, refined footwork, and Pro Style experience are going to be intriguing to a team in the 3rd round range. He doesn’t need as much work as a lot of the quarterbacks in this class and he’s a relatively safe pick at quarterback. He’s not a huge upside guy. I don’t think he’ll end up a franchise quarterback. He’s got the arm strength, but I don’t think he was tested enough in college and he did show some inconsistencies.
He threw 15 picks to 17 touchdowns in 2009. He improved his decision making from 2009 to 2010, but he still played fairly inconsistently. He was very inconsistent at the Senior Bowl as well, though many note the strong leadership skills he displayed in the game, leading a touchdown drive down 17 points.
NFL Comparison: Chad Henne
Safeties 2012
Updated 4/4/12
QB RB FB WR TE OT G C DE RLB DT NT 3-4 DE OLB MLB CB S K P
Scoring System
100 Once in a decade prospect
95-99 Elite talent
90-95 Solid top 10 pick
85-90 Solid first round pick
80-85 Late 1st-early 2nd
75-80 Solid 2nd round pick
70-75 Solid 3rd round pick
65-70 3rd-4th round pick
60-65 4th-5th round pick
55-60 5th round pick
50-55 6th round pick
45-50 7th round pick
40-45 Undrafted, invite to training camp
<40 No NFL Future
1. Mark Barron (Alabama) 83
2. Harrison Smith (Notre Dame) 79
3. Brandon Taylor (LSU) 72
4. Antonio Allen (South Carolina) 67
5. Trumaine Johnson (Montana) 65
6. Markelle Martin (Oklahoma State) 64
7. George Iloka (Boise State) 63
8. Tramain Thomas (Arkansas) 62
9. Aaron Henry (Wisconsin) 57
10. Christian Thompson (South Carolina State) 57
11. Trenton Robinson (Michigan State) 54
12. Phillip Thomas (Syracuse) 53
13. Sean Richardson (Vanderbilt) 52
14. Janzen Jackson (McNesse State) 51
15. Blake Gideon (Texas) 50
16. Winston Guy (Kentucky) 50
18. Justin Bethel (Presbyterian) 46
19. RJ Blanton (Notre Dame) 46
Saints Outmuscle Vikings
Well, it wasn’t exactly the shootout we all expected. But the Saints’ 14-9 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in the season opener proved a few points:
The Saints don’t need to score 30 points to win a game.
They can win a defensive battle against a strong opponent.
They are just as physical as any other team in the league.
Brett Favre really looked like he could have used training camp.
As the game started, the Superdome crowd was in an absolute frenzy. Seeing that Super Bowl banner unveiled just added fuel to their fire. And the Saints came out fired up as well, marching right down the field to take a 7-0 lead on a 29 yard Drew Brees (27/36, 237 yards, 1TD, 101.3 QB Rating) pass to Devery Henderson.
That was probably the last time all night the normally explosive Saints offense looked like themselves. Minnesota may have had a lot of injuries in their defensive secondary, but their front seven was as good as ever. The Saints ran the ball just 3 times in the first half. That lack of balance gave the Vikings the opportunity to simply play the pass.
Meanwhile, the Vikings offense struggled as well. They did manage two nice drives towards the end of the half, the first ending in a field goal, and the second ending with a Brett Favre (15/27, 171 yards, 1TD, 1INT, 71.7 QB Rating) TD pass to tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. The Vikings took a 9-7 lead into the locker room.
In the second half, the Saints suddenly switched their offensive philosophy and essentially ran the ball into the teeth of that Minnesota defense. Pierre Thomas (19 carries, 71 yards, 1 TD) used a lot of patience and agility to keep the chains moving for the Saints. His 1 yard score midway through the 3rd quarter gave the Saints a 14-9 edge, which they would keep for the rest of the game.
But, it was the Saints defense who were most impressive in the second half. Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams made a great adjustment, taking Visanthe Shiancoe out of the game. Shiancoe seemed to be the only target Favre had a great deal of trust in, and Williams had him covered like a blanket.
Favre didn’t look like a confident player that entire half. And, while he didn’t take nearly the physical beating as he did in last season’s NFC title game, there was enough pressure in his face to disrupt the timing of the Vikings offense.
Although Vikings running back Adrian Peterson had 87 yards on the ground, the Saints did a much better job of corralling the Pro Bowler in the second half. Since the Vikings had no passing game to speak of in that half, it led to a lot of 3 and out series for Minnesota.
While it wasn’t pretty, it was important for the Saints to win this kind of game early in the season. Defending a Super Bowl title isn’t easy. In order to have success in 2010, the Saints will most likely play in more of these slug-fests. It’s reassuring to see that this team can win, even when the offense isn’t clicking on all cylinders. Plus, the offense will no doubt rebound as the year goes along. I do think that coach Sean Payton will have to keep a more balanced attack next week against San Francisco.
The only real trouble spot for the team came from kicker Garrett Hartley, who missed kicks from 46 and 32 yards. Hopefully, that’s just the sign of one bad night and doesn’t become a trend.
Who Dat Awards:
Drew Brees – He wasn’t the fantasy stats hero last night, but he was accurate and played a very smart game.
Pierre Thomas – An outstanding second half. He and the offensive line kept the Vikings offense off of the field.
The Offensive Line – They allowed just 1 sack and took over the game in the second half.
Jonathan Vilma – Had a key interception in the 2nd quarter.
Jo-Lonn Dunbar & Malcolm Jenkins – Both started for injured teammates and were outstanding. Dunbar had 7 tackles and Jenkins nearly made an interception. So much for my concerns there!
Thomas Morstead – His booming punts kept Minnesota in less-than-ideal field position. The coverage units also played very well.
Sean Spence Scout
Outside linebacker/Middle Linebacker
Miami
5-11 231
Draft board overall prospect rank: #68
Draft board outside linebacker rank: #3
Overall rating: 71 (3rd round grade)
40 time: 4.56
Games watched: Ohio State/Miami, Miami/Virginia Tech, Miami/Virginia, Miami/Florida State, Miami/Duke, Miami/South Florida
Positives
· 4 year starter
· Great motor
· Very productive (312 tackles in 4 years)
· 2 years of great production (2010: 111 tackles, 17 for loss, 2.5 sacks, 6 deflections, 2011: 106 tackles, 14 for loss, 3 sacks, 1 deflection)
· Nose for the football
· Takes great routes to the ball
· Fundamental tackler
· Sideline to sideline speed
· Good 40 time (4.56)
· Comfortable in coverage
· Smooth hips
· Leader on and off the field
· Instinctive
· Intelligent
· Great work ethic
· All the intangibles
· Great on special teams
· Gets deep in his drops in coverage
· Solid blitzer
Negatives
· Undersized (5-11 231)
· Minimal strength (only 12 reps of 225)
· Only an average athlete
· Doesn’t shed blocks well
· Not physical
· Has trouble with bigger ball carriers
· Has trouble jamming tight ends at the line of scrimmage
· Too small to stay at middle linebacker
· Not a good fit for a 3-4
· Suspended in Miami scandal
NFL Comparison: Colin McCarthy
Every year there are undervalued players who become starters out of the mid rounds. Sean Spence has a very good chance to be that type of player this year. He’s undersized. There’s no getting around that. He’s 5-11 231 and only benched 12 reps of 225 reps, fewer than any running back had. Those are the guys he’s going to have to tackle at the next level.
However, lack of size aside, he’s a very complete prospect who should be a solid linebacker at the next level. He’s got great instincts, motor, intelligence, leadership, all the intangibles. He’s been very productive over the past 2 years at Miami and he’s a 4 year starter. He’s one of those players who has a nose for the football and always makes plays. You can’t ignore him if you’re watching a Miami game.
At the very least, he can become a very good special teams player. However, I think he has the ability to develop into a good starting linebacker in the NFL. He doesn’t have a lot of positional versatility, as he can only play as a 4-3 outside linebacker (maybe 4-3 middle linebacker), but I think he can become a starter at that position and maybe even in year 1. He’d be best in a cover 2 based scheme because he is above average in coverage and, of course, undersized.
He compares to another former Miami linebacker. Colin McCarthy had many of the same things said about him last season when he was coming out. However, he emerged as a starting linebacker for Tennessee as a rookie out of the 4th round. He had 68 tackles as a rookie and has a bright future in Tennessee’s linebacker corps. Spence should go in the same range and have a similar impact.
South Carolina/Vandy
Spotlight #1: South Carolina WR Alshon Jeffery
Spotlight #2: South Carolina CB Stephon Gilmore
1st quarter
14:16: Jeffery with a nice block on the smaller cornerback on an outside run.
13:21: Jeffery thrown to deep, but he’s covered well by the cornerback and the ball is overthrown anyway.
12:32: Jeffery with the first down reception on 3rd and 8. It wasn’t a great pass by quarterback Stephen Garcia, but Jeffery runs a nice route and makes a nice low catch.
11:10: Casey Hayward, a day 2 prospect at cornerback for Vandy, with the interception. Stephen Garcia is pressured and just throws it up there deep. There’s no receiver in the vicinity and Hayward makes the easy pick. A ridiculous decision by Garcia.
6:44: Devin Taylor, a potential high draft pick, is not fooled at all on the fake on an option play. He gets the ball 9 yard sack.
3:12: Alshon Jeffery gets inside position on Casey Heyward, but Stephen Garcia throws it to the outside. An inaccurate pass by Garcia, but Heyward gets his 2nd pick on the night and returns it for 29 yards. Garcia sucks. Heyward is just taking advantage of that. I don’t blame Alshon Jeffery that much there. Garcia just threw it to the wrong spot while Jeffery had inside position and was breaking inside. There’s no way Garcia makes that decision if Jeffery’s route is to break back outside, so I don’t think Jeffery ran the wrong route.
2nd quarter
11:59: Strip sack fumble on the Vanderbilt quarterback, it’s going the other way when the defender is stripped, and the ball rolls into the end zone where Melvin Ingram, a South Carolina defensive end/defensive tackle and a day 2 prospect falls on it for the touchdown. Ingram somehow has 3 defensive touchdowns on the year.
11:42: Gilmore hasn’t done a lot on this game yet because Vanderbilt has very rarely thrown downfield and when they have, they’ve avoided Gilmore. However, he has a nice ankle tackle on an outside run here.
10:00: The 6-7 Taylor bats down a pass at the line of scrimmage.
8:42: Melvin Ingram with a sack now. This South Carolina pass rush includes Devin Taylor and Malvin Ingram, both of whom figure to be high picks this year, and Jadeveon Clowney, who is a stud freshman who could be a very high pick in 2014 or later.
4:53: Melvin Ingram now with a batted ball at the line of scrimmage. This South Carolina defense is so good that Stephon Gilmore, who might even be their best defensive player, hasn’t had to do anything. Vanderbilt’s quarterback hasn’t had any chances to throw downfield.
4:09: The Vanderbilt quarterback finally decides to try throwing against Stephon Gilmore. Bad idea. Picked by Gilmore. He absolutely blanketed his man one on one and then muscled the ball out of his hands after a great late move.
3:59: Stephen Garcia just throws out one deep and Alshon Jeffery is able to find it and he would have made a big catch if it wasn’t for pass interference by Casey Heyward.
3:51: Jeffery with another catch, but this one is negated by a holding call on South Carolina’s offensive line. Jeffery can’t catch a break. He should have 2 more catches than he has and for big yardage too.
1:14: Melvin Ingram moves inside at defensive tackle on a nickel package and gets another sack despite an illegal formation by the offense.
3rd quarter
4:41: Pass incomplete to Alshon Jeffery.
4:26: Pass incomplete to Alshon Jeffery. Stephen Garcia sucks.
0:28: Jeffery is able to reel this one in deep. Excellent play on 3rd and 16.
4th quarter
13:31: Garcia has another pass picked, this time by middle linebacker Chris Marve. Chris Marve is a day 2 prospect.
11:40: Garcia done. Conor Shaw is coming in. Maybe he’ll help Jeffery, who has 2 catches, but is playing a lot better than that.
11:17: Lattimore with a nice run. He’s not draft eligible as a true sophomore, but when he is, he’ll be the top running back prospect. He’s the best running back in the country. He has 72 yards on 16 carries, with 3 catches for 73 yards, and a score of each kind, rushing and receiving. The powerful 232 pound back has great explosion. He has 534 yards and 7 scores on 87 carries already through 3 games after 1197 yards and 17 touchdowns on 249 carries last year as a true freshman, winning NCAA freshman of the year.
0:00: Stephon Gilmore needed a good game tonight to reestablish himself as the 2nd best cornerback in this draft class. He got it. I know Vanderbilt doesn’t have the best passing attack, but Gilmore was avoided almost the entire night and still managed to get a big pick. Another reason why Vanderbilt’s passing offense didn’t do anything tonight (72 yards) was their amazing defensive line. They got 6 sacks, countless other pressures, and forced two sacks. Devin Taylor had one of those sacks. Melvin Ingram had 2 and scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery. They figure to be high picks in 2011. Jadeveon Clowney, the true freshman, had another 2 sacks. He’s already at 4 on the season. Are we sure he’s a true freshman?
South Carolina’s defensive line also played well against the run, holding South Carolina to negative 1 yards rushing (6 sacks did have an impact there). Taylor, Ingram, and Clowney all did very well against the run, as did defensive tackle Travian Robertson. Robertson doesn’t have a sack this season, but he had 4 last year and he plays well against the run at 6-4 305. He’s a late round prospect who could be moving up.
As for South Carolina’s offense, that’s another story. Stephen Garcia sucks. He was 17 for 31 for 235 yards, 1 touchdown, and 4 picks and that doesn’t even say how bad he was. 1 of those picks was awful. He could have had another pick if not for a great play by Alshon Jeffery. Most of those yards were on short stuff and whenever he threw downfield it was either an overthrow or a pick. 52 yards came on one play, a dump off to Marcus Lattimore that the stud back took to the house. Speaking of Lattimore, he looks like the best back in the country. I won’t spotlight him until next year because he’s a true sophomore, but he’s awesome.
Because of South Carolina’s struggles at quarterback, Alshon Jeffery only had 2 catches for the 2nd straight game. However, Garcia is simply incapable of throwing accurately downfield. That’s not Jeffery’s fault. Jeffery actually had 2 catches negated by penalties. He should have had 4 catches for roughly 70 yards, which is very impressive considering his quarterback. He bailed out Garcia when he just threw one up downfield. Jeffery showed great instincts finding the ball. Jeffery is also a good run blocker. After watching him and Justin Blackmon today, I’d rather have Jeffery, but it’s close. Jeffery is bigger and more fundamentally sound. He also had the better sophomore season in 2010.
Jeffery was covered by Casey Heyward, the Vanderbilt cornerback who projects as a day 2 pick. Heyward played pretty well. He wasn’t targeted often and he still managed 2 picks, but that’s because Stephen Garcia sucks. He held his own against Jeffery. Another one of Garcia’s picks was by Chris Marve, the Vanderbilt middle linebacker who also projects to be a day 2 pick. He played fairly well considering how good South Carolina’s running attack is.
Steve Smith Eagles
I don’t get this. Steve Smith can’t be Jeremy Maclin insurance because he too will probably miss the first 6 weeks of the season. He can’t be an upgrade in the slot because Jason Avant is already very good there. The only thing this signing could possibly be is a move to piss off the Giants. However, it could backfire and piss off DeSean Jackson if he doesn’t get a long term deal. Jackson is set to make 8 times less this season than the 4 million, 2 million guaranteed, the Eagles just gave Smith.
Grade: F
Texans Draft Visits
G Brandon Brooks (Miami-OH)
CB Ron Brooks (LSU)
K Randy Bullock (Texas A&M)
3-4 DE Ronnie Cameron (Old Dominion)
MLB Lavonte David (Nebraska)
S Brandon Hardin (Oregon State)
S George Iloka (Boise State)
MLB Mychal Kendricks (California)
CB Jeremy Lane (Northwestern State)
WR Mario Louis (Grambling
S Kelcie McCray (Arkansas State)
CB Lionel Smith (Texas A&M)
S Tavon Wilson (Illinois)
Todd McClure Falcons
McClure isn’t that great of a center any more, but he still gets the job done at age 35 and the Falcons learned firsthand the value of continuity on the offensive line. This was a very smart move bringing him back for the veteran’s minimum, but they’ll need to find a successor soon, either internally with Joe Hawley, who might be a guard long term, or externally through the draft.
Grade: A
Football Fan Spot 