The Football Fan Spot

The object is simple. Build a 53 man roster out of active (non-injured) NFL players. Each team must be represented at least once. So, anyone want to play us?

QB: Tom Brady*, Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning*

RB: Adrian Peterson*, Chris Johnson*, Arian Foster, LeGarrette Blount

FB: Vonta Leach, Greg Jones

WR: Andre Johnson*, Calvin Johnson*, Larry Fitzgerald*, Roddy White, Mike Wallace

TE: Antonio Gates*, Jason Witten*

OT: Jake Long*, Joe Thomas*, Andrew Whitworth, Kareem McKenzie

G: Carl Nicks*, Josh Sitton, Logan Mankins

C: Nick Mangold*, Matt Kalil

DT: Kyle Williams (NT/3-4 DE), Ndamukong Suh, Haloti Ngata (3-4 DE/NT), Antonio Garay (NT)

DE: Justin Smith (3-4 DE)*, Dwight Freeney*, Julius Peppers, Tamba Hali (3-4 OLB), DeMarcus Ware* (3-4 OLB)

OLB: Clay Matthews (3-4 OLB), Lance Briggs, David Hawthorne, Chad Greenway (3-4 OLB)

MLB: Patrick Willis*, Lawrence Timmons, London Fletcher

CB: Asante Samuel, Nnamdi Asomugha, Champ Bailey, Darrelle Revis*

S: Troy Polamalu*, Ed Reed, Quintin Mikell, Nick Collins

K: Sebastian Janikowski*

P: Shane Lechler

KR: Brad Smith (WR)

PR: Tramon Williams (CB)

Congratulations to the Seattle Seahawks. They made the playoffs. They didn’t make them because they were one of the top 6 teams in the NFC, but rather because of where their stadium is located.

They will make the playoffs, and even host a home playoff game, because they won the NFC West with a record of 7-9. Meanwhile, the 10-6 Giants and the 10-6 Buccaneers will miss the playoffs, even though the Giants beat the Seahawks 41-7 and the Buccaneers beat the Seahawks 38-15, a combined score of 79-22.

I dream of a world where teams don’t make the playoffs based on the location of their stadium, but rather the quality of their football team. My idea: the 6 best teams, regardless of division, make the playoffs. Seems like common sense to me.

The tiebreakers are as follows, head-to-head record (only for tiebreakers between 2 teams), divisional record, conference record, and strength of schedule. That way, divisional games will still be valuable and the division rivalries will continue, but a team with 3 fewer wins (not to mention a drastically easier schedule) can’t make the playoffs over two teams that destroyed them head-to-head matchups.

It will also lead to more teams trying in their week 17 games, because winning your division alone no longer cuts it when it comes to making the playoffs. Teams not caring about week 17 is a huge issue to the NFL (and to fantasy football players).

Homefield will be determined simply on seeding and seeding will be determined by record. Let’s take a look at what the playoffs would look like this year with this new system.

AFC

BYES

1. New England Patriots 14-2

2. Pittsburgh Steelers 12-4

Wild Card

3. Baltimore Ravens 12-4 vs. 6. Kansas City Chiefs 10-6

4. New York Jets 11-5 vs. 5. Indianapolis Colts 10-6

NFC

BYES

1. Atlanta Falcons 13-3

2. New Orleans Saints 11-5

Wild Card

3. Chicago Bears 11-5 vs. 6. New York Giants 10-6

4. Green Bay Packers 10-6 vs. 5. Philadelphia Eagles 10-6

UP

Cincinnati Bengals +1 win

TO stretching the field is exactly what this team didn’t have last year and now that TO has looked significantly better than the player we saw in Buffalo last year, the Bengals don’t have many weaknesses on either side of the ball. The have a strong defense, led by one of the best cornerback tandems in the league, a strong running game with Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott, field stretching receivers, as well as solid possession ones like Jordan Shipley and Jermaine Gresham, a quarterback who can make all the throws needed, their only two potential downfalls are their offensive line and their ridiculously tough schedule.

Cleveland Browns +3 wins

I’ll admit I thought Delhomme was done as a solid signal caller, but he has proven me wrong this preseason. They have a lot of holes, but if Delhomme can be decent, they won’t be horrible this year as I once thought they would.

Green Bay Packers +1 win

A healthy Donald Driver only adds to Aaron Rodgers weapons. You would have a hard time finding a more explosive offense than this one and that defense isn’t too bad either.

San Francisco 49ers +2 wins

Despite missing key players with minor injuries, the 49ers have looked great this preseason, especially because of the strong play of Alex Smith at quarterback. Once those players are back, as they should be for the season, they could definitely win double digit games in that weak division.

Pittsburgh Steelers +1 win

Big Ben’s suspension  was cut from 6 games to 4 by commissioner Roger Goddell, which should mean at least one more win for the Steelers this year. If they go 2-2 in the 4 games Ben misses, and the defense stays healthy, they could win 10+ games and go back to the playoffs.

DOWN

Minnesota Vikings  -1 win

First they lose Sidney Rice, now there are major questions about the health of Brett Favre’s ankle. This team is a clear 2nd to the Packers in that division.

Arizona Cardinals -1 win

Matt Leinart can’t lead a successful drive, 7 points in 9 drives, and then bitches about losing his job because he has a great completion percentage on short throws that get you nowhere and because he’s being blitzed and he feels that’s not fair and because he feels his receivers can’t run routes. Derek Anderson has been better, but only by default as this team doesn’t look like one that’s going anywhere offensively this year.

San Diego Chargers -2 wins

Key holdouts Marcus McNeil and Vincent Jackson may hold out the entire season. Jackson is replaceable by Malcom Floyd, but the Chargers have yet to find a halfway decent replacement for McNeil, guarding Rivers’ blindside.

New York Jets -3 wins

Revis is still not in camp, in fact the Jets have admitted that they don’t even know where he is, and also Calvin Pace could miss the first month of the season. Mark Sanchez is not progressing at quarterback the way he was supposed to in his 2nd year in the league, really struggling this preseason to lead drives. 

Power Rankings, Season Preview, Mock Draft all to be updated this weekend

The object is simple. Build a 53 man roster out of active (non-injured) NFL players. Each team must be represented at least once. So, anyone want to play us?

Starters in Bold

QB Drew Brees Peyton Manning Tom Brady (3)

RB Chris Johnson Steven Jackson Adrian Peterson Ray Rice (4)

FB Le’Ron McClain Leonard Weaver (2)

WR Andre Johnson Larry Fitzgerald Calvin Johnson Miles Austin (4)

TE Dallas Clark Antonio Gates Jason Witten (3)

OT Joe Thomas Jake Long Jared Gaither Damien Woody (4)

G Jahri Evans Chris Snee Carl Nicks (3)

C Nick Mangold Jeff Saturday (2)

DT Jonathan Babineux Kevin Williams Vince Wilfork (NT) Jay Ratliff (NT/3-4 DE) (4)

DE Jared Allen Dwight Freeney DeMarcus Ware (3-4 OLB) Elvis Dumervil (3-4 OLB) Justin Smith (3-4 DE) (5)

OLB Daryl Smith Thomas Davis Brian Cushing (3)

MLB Patrick Willis (3-4 MLB) Ray Lewis (3-4 MLB) Lofa Tatupu Brian Urlacher (4)

CB Darrelle Revis Charles Woodson Brandon Flowers Leon Hall (4)

S Troy Polamalu Nick Collins Jairus Byrd Tanard Jackson (4)

K Sebastian Janikowski

P Shane Lechler

KR Joshua Cribbs (WR)

PR DeSean Jackson (WR)

Many people around the NFL whose reports I believe and opinions I respect say that there is an almost 100% chance that the NFL’s schedule will expand from 16 to 18 games in the near future, with some saying it could happen for as soon as the 2011 or 2012 season. Accompanying the expansion would be the shortening of the NFL’s preseason from 4 games to 2. We all know the reasons why this is potentially a good thing, more money, more football. Even as a huge football fan, I wouldn’t like this move and here are some reasons why.

More stress on a player’s body- I know what you’re thinking, but there aren’t anymore games being added, just two games now count. That’s not the case. You’re taking away the two games from the preseason where starters only play about a quarter or two, and turning them into regular season games, where starters play four quarters. They also play them a lot harder and a lot more physically because they do now matter. It’s going to shorten careers, increase injuries, and increase potential post-retirement injuries more than you think and this is already a sport where careers are short, injuries are widespread, and post-retirement injuries are already a huge issues, especially when you consider head/neck injuries. Going along with this, players may play each game with less intensity, to avoid injuries, and/or we will see more tired players in the playoffs, leading to worse performances in the playoffs.

Cheapens accomplishments- 4000 yards passing, 30 passing touchdowns, 10 receiving touchdowns, 10 rushing touchdowns, 1000 rushing yards, 1000 receiving yards, 2000 rushing yards, these are all impressive NFL milestones. If we add an 17th and 18th game, suddenly those accomplishments are easier to achieve, cheapening the value of the accomplishment. This is a major slap in the face to everyone who has achieved those accomplishments in the past, in 16 game seasons, or even back when there were only 14 games. 16 games to 18 games is an increase of 12.5%. Making the season 12.5% longer makes it that much easier to reach any given milestone.

1972 Miami Dolphins- It’s bad enough that the 1972 Dolphins got to pop champagne in 2007 when the Patriots lost in the Super Bowl, even though the Pats did match and surpass (at one point) their record of a 17-0 undefeated season. With an 18 game regular season, that would mean you’d mean 21 wins in a row for a perfect season. Forget it. That’s not happening. Lengthening the season would have a reverse effect on teams like the 1972 Dolphins as opposed to the effect it has on 2000 yard rushing seasons like Chris Johnson’s. It’s going to make it seem like the accomplishment is actually greater than it is, however great it already is. Lengthening the season makes the 12.5% harder to go undefeated in the regular season and 10.5% harder to do it through the playoffs, and this doesn’t even account for the fact that the Miami Dolphins did it with 14 games in the regular season. I hate to take shots at the 1972 Miami Dolphins, but it makes it that much harder for anyone to do what they did and that’s not really fair to today’s players.

Messes with the scheduling process- It’s a minor one, but I love how the NFL’s schedule process works. 2 games against all 3 of your division opponents, 8 games against teams in two other divisions, randomly chosen, and the other 2 games against teams in your conference that finished in the same spot in their respective division the year before. I love it. How can you add two more games? It messes it up.

Each game counts for less- With 18 games, each and every game is going to count for less. Each win becomes less valuable. I love how the NFL makes sure every game counts with a 16 game schedule. It’s not like the NBA with 82 games or the MLB with 162. There are 16 NFL games and each and every one of them is about as important as a playoff game. Adding 2 more games hurts that. Each game now is 12.5% less important.

Overall adding 2 more games will water down the NFL. It will make milestones that once meant something mean less. It could make players approach each game with intensity, both to avoid injuries and because each game now counts for 12.5% less. It will also increase the likelihood of major injuries and potentially lead to sloppier playoff performances from even more exhausted players. It changes the meaning of a perfect season. Oh, and it ruins the symmetry in the scheduling that I love about the NFL, but that’s not as important as the other stuff. 

There has been a lot of talk about NFL Commissioner Roger Goddell possibly suspending Ben Roethlisberger indefinitely in the wake of the recent sexual assault charges that has been accused of. That would be ridiculous. What ever happened to innocent until proven guilty. Roger Goddell should not go out and suspend Ben Roethlisberger just because some girl cried rape. Granted, I do not know anymore about the case than anyone reading this does, but I know he has not been convicted and in this country that makes him a free man.

Roger Goddell could want to suspend him for hurting the league’s image, but imagine how hurtful to the league’s image would it be if Goddell were to suspend Big Ben, the Steelers were to miss the playoffs because of it, and then he were to be proven innocent. Roger Goddell would look like one of the biggest idiots in the world. David Stern didn’t suspend Kobe when he was going through his rape trial, and that process was even further along than Big Ben’s. Why? Imagine how stupid he would have looked for suspending Kobe, destroying the Lakers for at least a season, only to see Kobe be proven innocent. In addition to being wrong against the principles of this country, it would have made him look foolish.

Big Ben does not, as is commonly believed, have a history of questionable activity. The question activity normally mentioned, not wearing a helmet on his motorcycle and crashing (yes, stupid, but that doesn’t make him a bad person) and a previous rape allegation from last summer, an allegation that was proven false. Where exactly is the questionable activity?

Of course, there are going to be the people who bring up race in this issue. Roger Goddell suspended other black athletes when they were going through legal trouble, but not Big Ben who is white. This is definitely a case of someone shoving race issues into a place where it should not be. Let’s take a look at some of these previously suspended black athletes.

Pacman Jones

2005 arrested for assault and felony vandalism

2006 arrested for disorderly conduct and public intoxication

2006 misdemeanor for spitting in a woman’s face

2007 speeding in an unlicensed car

2007 caused a shooting at a Las Vegas night club

2007 suspended

Chris Henry

2005 speeding, marijuana possession, driving an uninsured car without a driver’s license

2006 illegal gun concealment and aggravated assault with a firearm

2007 supplying alcohol to minors

2007 DUI

2007 suspended

Tank Johnson

2005 illegal weapons possession

2006 aggravated assault, resisting arrest

2006 possession of unregistered firearms

2007 jailed for 10 counts for illegal weapons possession, 120 days in jail

2008 suspended

Michael Vick

2004 allowed his truck to be used by men who were selling marijuana

2005 had sexual relations with a woman without telling her he had genital herpes

2006 flipped off fans

2007 indicted on chargers of illegal dog fighting

2007 suspended

I really don’t think you can argue that Big Ben’s past “offenses” are anywhere near as bad as what these people did. Yes, they are all African-American, but they happen to also all be thugs. Ben Roethlisberger is not a thug. He has never proven himself to be a thug. He does not merit a suspension unless he is convicted, or at the very least, indicted of the charger.

This offseason has already been a crazy one for trades in the NFL as guys like Antonio Cromartie, Kerry Rhodes, and Anquan Boldin have switched teams. The amount of trades this offseason has already surpassed the number of trades from the entire last offseason, but most likely it’s not done. The Eagles are the most stacked team in the league at the quarterback position, with star starter Donovan McNabb, top young backup Kevin Kolb, and former NFL star and wildcat Michael Vick, but earlier this week they put all three on the trade block (in hopes of getting some picks to fix other parts of their team) and the rumors have not stopped swirling since.

I think if any of these quarterbacks are traded, it will be either be Michael Vick or Donovan McNabb. Kevin Kolb is the only quarterback on their roster that is under contract for 2011. Coach Andy Reid is a quarterback’s coach. He’s not going to let his team go into 2010 without a solid plan in place for 2011. Kevin Kolb, because of his age and contract length, could probably get more value for the Eagles in exchange, but he’s not going anywhere. Now, Donovan McNabb makes a lot of sense to trade. He could leave as a free agent in 2011 for nothing so they might as well trade him, knowing they have other solid quarterbacks on the roster, and pick up a pick in the 25-40 range in the process. Now, where could McNabb go?

St. Louis Rams:

The Rams are going to target a quarterback with the first pick, most likely Sam Bradford, but Bradford would be best if he sat in the bench for a year behind an accomplished starter. Bring in McNabb and that solves that problem. The issues, as a rebuilding team, do they really want to bring in a quarterback for only one year if they had to give up the 33rd pick in the process. 

Probability: Very low

Cleveland Browns:

Mike Holmgren is in charge of this team and would love to get his hands on a guy like McNabb with experience in the West Coast style offense that the Browns run. However, like the Rams, the Browns are rebuilding and McNabb would probably not resign after this year so I doubt they would give up a 2nd rounder for a quarterback for one year. Plus, the Browns already are paying Jake Delhomme 7.5 million for next year. That’s a lot of money in one position.

Probability: Low

Oakland Raiders:

This is one of the more prominent rumors out there with the Raiders trading Nmandi Ashmouga and their 38th pick to the Eagles for McNabb and Asante Samuel. The fact that that rumor is out there so prominently makes this more likely than the Browns and Rams combined. This would make a ton of sense for the Raiders. They always give up picks that could help them in the future for veterans with expiring contracts that make them only a little better (see Richard Seymour, Kamerion Wimbley). Plus, McNabb is like 100 times better than JaMarcus Skittles. 

Probability: Possible

Buffalo Bills:

The Bills’ name is out there as a possible destination, but McNabb has basically said that he doesn’t want to go there. They could make sense. Their supporting cast isn’t awful, but playing in the cold in Buffalo is a notorious deterrent to quarterbacks. I can’t see this happening because Buffalo wouldn't want McNabb for just one year.

Probability: Very Low

San Francisco 49ers:

This one makes sense. The Niners are quietly building a solid supporting cast by the bay, but the quarterback position is still a bit of a question. The Niners could be attractive enough to McNabb that he would likely resign there for the longterm, but this rumor isn’t out there very much. Also, the Niners’ don’t have a pick in the top 42 (other than the 13th and the 17th which are too high), so they would also have to trade something else to go with their 49th pick and I don’t know if that will be enticing enough to the Eagles. This could happen, but it could be complicated.

Probability: Don’t count on it

Arizona Cardinals:

I am surprise this one does not get very much hype out there. They have one of the strongest supporting casts in the league on offense with guys like Beanie Wells, Larry Fitzgerald, and Steve Breaston and they run a type of offense that fits McNabb’s arm well so they could resign him longterm. If I were them, I would definitely consider trading the 26th pick for McNabb and a later pick. This one makes more sense than any deal out there.

Probability: Most likely

Minnesota Vikings:

The Vikings are the only team on this list that McNabb has actually said he would like to play for, but they have repeatedly told the media that they are willing to give Brett Favre as long as possible so, unless Favre announces his retirement and they belief him, this deal is nothing more than smoke to try to get Favre to hurry up with his decision and come back to workouts.

Probability: Don’t count on it

Restricted free agency. Most NFL fans have heard of it, but have never really quite needed to know what it means. After all, so few players were actually restricted free agents that fans could just assume that it meant that they were a free agency, but their original team had both the first and last say as to whether or not they would be part of the team the next year. This offseason, it will be a big deal. There is about a 99.9% chance that there will be no salary cap next year and that will come with a few rules. Teams that made the final 8 in the playoffs can only sign as many free agents as they lose. There is no maximum or minimum to your payroll, as long as you meet the minimum salary figure for all of your players. And, instead of players becoming restricted free agents if their contract runs out after 3 years with their original team, they will become restricted free agents if their contract runs out after 3-5 years with their original team. And all of a sudden, there will be a lot more restricted free agents, so I believe it is important for the fans to know what exactly that means.

Restricted free agency works like this. There is a certain amount of time a team has to give their restricted free agent a tender. If they don’t, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent. The team can choose from 4 different tenders, each is worth a certain amount of money, which has yet to be announced for the 2010 NFL offseason. The first one, worth the most, is a 1st/3rd tender. The 2nd, worth the 2nd most, is a 1st round tender. Continuing to fall in value, the 3rd is a 2nd round tender. And the least valuable is the so called default tender.

Now, any team can sign these restricted free agents after they have been tendered. However, to sign someone with a 1st/3rd round tender, you must give up a 1st and a 3rd round pick. To sign someone with a 1st round tender, you must give up a 1st round pick, and so forth. To sign someone with a default tender, you must give up a draft pick that equals the round the player was drafted in, with a maximum of a 3rd round pick. To sign someone with a default tender that was undrafted, you don’t have to give up anything. Then, the original team has a week a match the offer their restricted free agent receives. They can choose to match the contract, or let him walk and take the draft picks. 

11. Outside Linebacker (4-3 only)

Not quite as much of a versatile defensive player as a middle linebacker, and you can get away without great outside linebackers as shown by the fact that neither the Saints nor the Colts have good outside linebackers this year. Their main job is cleaning up the messes of the defensive line and chasing down running backs out of the backfield. They can also be blitzed.

Best in the league: Daryl Smith, Brian Cushing, Lance Briggs

12. Tight End

They may be more important to rookie quarterbacks than veterans, but most quarterbacks enjoying having a good safety value tight end who can catch the ball over the middle. Their job description includes both catching the ball like a receiver and blocking like a lineman, but because of their hybrid type status, they aren’t extremely important.

Best in the league: Jason Witten, Antonio Gates, Tony Gonzalez

13. Center

The most underrated position on the field, there’s a reason that Peyton Manning does so well, he has had the same center snapping him the ball for his entire career. That definitely helps. They are also the smartest offensive linemen in terms of football knowledge, oh, and they also have to do some blocking. Just look at what happened to the Eagles after Jamaal Jackson got hurt for the first time in many seasons, Donovan McNabb looked uncomfortable and the entire offensive line fell apart.

Best in the league: Jamaal Jackson, Jeff Saturday, Nick Mangold

14. Safety

They aren’t necessary to a good team, but they certainly help. The Steelers have given up 10 more points per game over the last 2 years in games in which safety Troy Polamalu missed than in games he played in.

Best in the league: Troy Polamalu, Ed Reed, Nick Collins

15. Kick Returner

Nothing energizes a team more than a kick return touchdown, and they also give you good field position, the only issues, the difference between good ones and bad ones in terms of yards per return is minimal and even a good one will only score like once or twice a year. Their career length also isn’t very long.

Best in the league: Joshua Cribbs, Clifton Smith, Johnny Knox

16. Punt Returner

Basically the same as a kick returner, but because of the situation, they often get a much smaller chunk of yards per return. 10 yards is good. Their career doesn’t last long either.

Best in the league: DeSean Jackson, Joshua Cribbs, Quan Cosby

17. Full Back

Not all offenses even use one, but having a big fullback that can run and catch the ball, in addition to block, adds an extra little element to your offense.

Best in the league: Leonard Weaver, Le’Ron McClain, Ovie Mughelli

18. Punter

A good punter can make a good defense even better by setting them up with good field position, the only issue, they are only used when struggling so if you’re a good team, they aren’t extremely necessary.

Best in the league: Shane Lechler, Andy Lee, Ben Graham

19. Kicker

They can kill you or not kill you, the issue, one who doesn’t kill you one game, can kill you the next. They are extremely inconsistent.

Best in the league: Matt Prater, Sebastian Janikowski, Stephen Gostkowski

20. Special Teams

There’s a reason all the special teamers are the backups of other position that you can risk getting hurt. Much love for the position, it takes a lot to suck up your pride and play special teams, but they aren’t super important. You can only really tell when they are bad and miss a tackle. The holder and the long snapper are a little bit more important, but not much.

Best in the league: Tim Shaw, HB Blades, John Wendling