2012 NFL Free Agency: Day Two posted by Joe Anello

The second day of free agency may not have been as fast and furious as the first, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t plenty of headlines made. Let’s get right into the news of the day!

-News flash: Calvin Johnson is pretty damn good. And now he’s pretty damn rich, signing the richest contract in NFL history on Wednesday. The extension, which tweaks the final year of his previous deal, adds seven more with a dollar value of $132 million. Johnson may not be actually “worth” the money, but the Lions couldn’t afford not to lock him down for the long term.

- As expected, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers continued their spending spree, signing guard Carl Nicks to bolster their offensive line. I’ve already heard some pundits talking of the Bucs’ line as if it could be the best in football next season. Slow your freaking horses boys. It takes a LOT more than a really great guard to make a successful offensive line. That being said, it was a position the Bucs desperately needed to upgrade.

-DeSean Jackson was punished y the Eagles, franchised by the Eagles, and then rewarded by the Eagles. His newly signed five years, $47 million deal is just Philly rewarding his unprofessional behavior with long-term security. I know they’re banking on him settling down with less financial woes to trouble him, but this isn’t a wise decision in my books. At least we’ll see more of this…

Painful year for Philadelphia Eagles fans posted by Eagles Fan

It was an interesting and somewhat painful year for Philadelphia Eagles fans, but given that the city’s been on a bit of a roll with sports and the Eagles are still very well setup for the future, fans’ disappointment shouldn’t last too much longer. Heading into the 2011 season, the Eagles signed a number of noteworthy free agents, and seemed primed for a fantastic season, as well as a potential playoff run. In fact, some even went as far as to call the Eagles a “dream team,” and some predicted outlandish things like undefeated seasons and surefire Super Bowl contention. Everything from jersey sales to Philadelphia direct tv action seemed to spike as an always-faithful fan base grew even more excited than usual. Unfortunately, the season didn’t go as planned, and the Eagles wound up missing the playoffs – however, they were still a dangerous team, and here are a few r easons to expect a very good season next year.

- The first reason is as simple and obvious as any analysis that can be made on the NFL: Michael Vick. Vick didn’t quite have the year some were expecting following his stunningly sharp 2010 campaign, but this was partially due to injury concerns. Michael Vick is a proven winner with as strong a will to compete as just about anyone in the league, and he is perfectly capable of putting Philadelphia on his back. As long as he’s still around – and in 2011, he will be – this team will be a playoff threat.
- LeSean McCoy is another very clear reason to expect the Eagles to stick around as contenders, despite the disappointing 2011 season. McCoy reached a new level this season, rushing for 1309 yards at 4.8 per carry, with 17 touchdowns to show for it (stats according to ESPN.com). It’s common knowledge that Vick will have huge offensive games, and that when it’s on the Philly defense is a force to be reckoned with – but McCoy’s numbers on top of this are essentially an added bonus, and could be the “x-factor” that pushes a healthy Eagles team toward the Super Bowl.
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Reid and Turner back for 2012: Really? posted by Joe Anello

Black Monday came and went, but the coaching news continued on Tuesday with releases in Chicago and major retentions in San Diego and Philly. Were they the right moves? Let’s break ‘em down!

San Diego Chargers retain General Manager A.J. Smith and Head Coach Norv Turner

OH COME ON!!! I was finally ready to break-up the Turner/Philips romance. However, you can chalk up this stay of execution to a few select reasons. First, key players (i.e. Rivers) probably bitched enough to convince management that it would cause chemistry issues to change coaches. Second, who were they going to get that was even marginally better? Turner’s still got swagger when it comes to his offense, so I’m not sure who was out there (that would come to San Diego) that would be a marked improvement. Maybe Cowher or Gruden if they got extraordinarily lucky, but I’m sure they were rejected outright on those fronts. Finally, it’s the AFC West. A couple plays would have made the difference in getting the Chargers to the playoffs, so they don’t need to improve much to get there next year.

Fudge no. I’m sure team President Dean Spanos thought it’d easier to improve with continuity than an overhaul. I don’t care. I still think both of these guys needed to be put down. I’m still shocked they have their jobs. You let me down Dean.

The Final Drive: Week 17, 2011-12 posted by Joe Anello

The 2011 NFL regular season ended with a bang with some great finishes and superb drama on Sunday. Records were set by a back-up QB, a team captain was benched for “quitting” and a fat-handed QB lost missed out on the post-season. The Final Drive must begin!

This makes me beyond furious. Mike McCarthy takes out his MVP quarterback and starts a fourth year back-up with one career start in Matt Flynn, and f*cking records are broken. Six touchdowns? 480 yards? Who wouldn’t want to be Matt Flynn right now? That guy is about to make BANK as a free agent. Blow me Green Bay. Take your awesome quarterback development and blow me.

(6-10) Miami Dolphins 19
(8-8) New York Jets 17
Mark Sanchez: 3 interceptions. Santonio Holmes: benched and called out as a whiny quitter by his teammates.  (Seriously. Worst team captain ever.) Bart Scott: flips off a photographer and refuses to talk to the media (For once). Finally seeing theses loathsome Jets miss the playoffs is SO satisfying to me. Take it Rex Ryan. Take it hard.

I don’t give a crap about the result of this game. What I do care about is DeSean Jackson deciding to actually play like he means it and be remorseful for his completely idiotic actions this season in the last game of the year. I’d be surprised (not stunned though) if the Eagles kept Jackson around. Maybe franchise him and get him on a one-year deal, but you would have thought he’d have been on better behavior once he showed up to 2011.

The Final Drive: Week 16, 2011 posted by Joe Anello

It was a Christmas Eve of meaningful NFL action as all the remaining playoff spots were nearly filled and draft orders are beginning to finalize. Miss any of the action? No need to worry, because the Final Drive starts right now!

Indy… what are you doing??? After all the speculation, you could single-handedly win yourself out of a franchise quarterback. Knock it off. (Or play more scrubs.) To Houston, I say congratulations. You’re in the playoffs. Now get ready to go home before anyone else.

This was about as disappointing a loss as you could find on Sunday. For a division-leader that could have locked up their playoff berth to lay down to a team that had nothing to play for is unacceptable. The Teebs magic was all used up apparently as Timmy tossed four interceptions, two of which were boomerangs. I wish I had been able to watch this one. It would have felt SO good.

It was looking awkward when the ‘Phins were up 17-0 at halftime, but Brady rallied and made sure his team clinched a first-round bye. I’m expecting the Patriots to take the number one seed in the AFC, but I don’t feel very confident about their postseason chances.

PFFT. I’m glad this turned out to be less of a game, because if it had been overly dramatic I wouldn’t stop hearing about it all week. And the rumors that the Jets aren’t completely sold on Sanchez for next year? Frosting on the cake baby. And this picture of Jacobs and Ryan jawing afterward? Weird.

The Opening Drive: Week 16, 2011 posted by Joe Anello

Christmas Eve or not, there’s no way I’d let a schedule of great NFL action slip past my nets! The playoff positioning is settling in, but there’s some unresolved business in the NFC East with two pivotal games on Saturday. There’s plenty to talk about in week 16, so let’s get right to it!

John Skelton gets another chance to prove how little publicity the Cardinals can garner, despite his Tebowian winning ways. They travel to Cincy to take on the Bengals, who are desperate to climb back into the playoffs after stumbling the past few weeks. (I mean, they didn’t exactly blow out St. Louis.)

Can a game between a 7-7 and 8-6 team be any more unnecessarily hyped? I know there’s playoff hopes on the line and it’s between the two New York squads, but please, can we settle down slightly? The Jets defense has been utterly mediocre and Mark Sanchez has regressed. Give me Eli and the inconsistent Giants in this one.

This one would be almost not worth writing about except for Big Ben’s injury. Instead, the ancient Charlie Batch will get the start against the lowly Rams, a team that is now in the running for the first pick in April’s draft. I’m picking the Steeler defense in this match-up… because not much else excites me.

The Final Drive: Week 15, 2011 posted by Joe Anello

I’m not sure what else you could have wanted from week 15 in the NFL. Two impressive streaks ended, the “Trap of the Week” proved to be true once again and one win never mattered as much as it did for Indianapolis. (And Candlestick Park was sans light… for a few second before auxiliary lighting come on. Not as much drama.) Many a-loser won on this day. Oddsmakers be damned! Get ready for The Final Drive!

Oh Tennessee. How could you? You somehow managed to give their first lowly Colts a victory whilst in the midst of your own playoff hunt. For shame. While it’s nice to get a win (I’m sure), Jim Caldwell should still get effing fired.

Another streak brought to a necessary conclusion! Honestly, as much as we generally thought the Packers COULD do it, it’s probably better that they didn’t. Injuries to their offensive line killed them yesterday against the Chief pass rush, just one facet of a defense that made it difficult on Aaron Rodgers. Well done Romeo Crennel. Oh yeah, and the Chiefs can somehow still get into the playoffs.

BOOM! You got TRAPPED Eli! This was such an obvious upset to pick, even in a day that ended up with a metric ton of stunning results. How the Giants could come out and lay an egg like this when they had a chance to put some distance in front of the Cowboys is appalling. (And hilarious.)

The Opening Drive: Week 15, 2011 posted by Joe Anello

Week 15??? Really? Time goes by so fast! With the playoff races tight and Tebow versus Brady on the schedule, week 15 has everything you want. Let’s set-up for The Opening Drive!

We’re starting this week’s drive by diving right into the “Trap of the Week!” The Giants are coming off a huge win against the Cowboys, with whom they’re tussling for the division title. It would be fitting of this annually inconsistent team to lose a game late in the season that they absolutely should win.

I seriously have no idea what’s going on in this game. Two aggressive defensive lines, but two very different offenses will take the field. The Lions can’t run the ball to save their lives and the Raiders would prefer to simply pound you into the dust. Something has to give.

Speaking of something has to give… I will do anything to be able to see a beatdown of these Broncos. Tom Brady… I will do ANYTHING. Just have the Patriot PR person get in touch with me. Away from divine interference on the field, I simply don’t see the Broncos keeping pace offensively with the Patriots. Brady should have a two-touchdown lead going into the fourth quarter, which should be more than enough. If the Pats score more than 24, they should win.

Going Forward: The Playoffs Begin Now for the Dallas Cowboys posted by Amari Harris

Going Forward

I think there is a general consensus in the football world that the Dallas Cowboys are in a heap of trouble.  For two consecutive weeks the 'Boys have had an opportunity to distance themselves away from the NFC East pack after taking the division lead during a four game win streak.  But for the last two weeks the Cowboys have gotten out coached and out hustled by the Arizona Cardinals, and then they let the New York Giants ring the door bell, break into their house, and steal their division.  To make matters worse, of the Cowboys 6 losses they had ample opportunity to win every game except the "Imma piss on you like R. Kelly"  Eagles game (I'll have to tell you about that one day).  But as a famous former Cowboys coach once said, "You are who you are," and these are the Cowboys.  They always have the talent compete and with Tony Romo at quarterback, but sometimes they find the most perplexing ways to lose games

The last two losses hurt like hell. They should have been wins, but they are losses and now the Giants control the NFC East.  So should Cowboys fans just put their collective heads in the sand and hide themselves from the inevitable collapse of the Cowboys season?  Or should they dust off their shoulders and push forward for three more games?  I think the answer is obvious.

The last 3 games (Tampa Bay, the damn Eagles, and the damn Giants) are no cake walk but I know I am not alone in thinking that the Cowboys can pull off a three game winning streak.  They pulled off a 4 game streak not too long ago. They've lost steam, but it's just a matter of the elements coming together.  Last week vs. Arizona, the Cowboys met the "good" Cardinals team that upset the Cowboys and the 49ers in successive weeks instead of the bad Cardinals team that was eliminated from playoff contention about a month ago.  In that game it appeared the Cowboys were playing to "not lose" the game while the Cardinals played like it was their Super Bowl (guess that's what being knocked out of the playoffs does for you).  But the blunders and mistakes of that game did not keep the Cowboys from getting ready for those G-Men and they had them dead to rights with 5:32 left in the fourth quarter.  Of course that is where things unraveled on offense, defense, and special teams and the Cowboys allowed a team to come back from more than two scores in the fourth quarter for the third time this season.  Hurts like hell.

The Final Drive: Week 14, 2011 posted by Joe Anello

Heart attacks were felt across the nation on Sunday (especially by me), leading to plenty of hospitalizations. While you’re incapacitated, why not get the full scoop on week 14’s heart-stopping action?

So maybe the Texans aren’t absolutely screwed with T.J. Yates at quarterback. Who knew? They probably won’t make a lot of noise in the playoffs depending on the seeding, but they should stay competitive. Unfortunately for Cincy, there may be too many “respectable losses” on their record.

If the Titans weren’t in the middle of a playoff chase, I’d say it was time to start Jake Locker. Though with Hasselbeck’s injury, it might happen anyway. Kudos to the Saints for not falling into the “Trap of the Week.”

Oh Tony Sparano, we hardly knew ye. Wait, I did. You were a mediocre coach. Its obvious management was waiting for him to lose just ONE more game after that streak of wins they went on. Dropping one to the Eagles wasn’t going to cut it.

Sparano wasn’t the only coach let go today, as Todd Haley was relieved of his duties in Arizona following this shellacking. When you make Mark Sanchez look good… nothing good can follow. The Jets inch closer to the playoffs with a surprisingly lop-sided win.

Vegas sportsbooks release NFL spreads for every game through Week 16 (Shutdown Corner)

If you're the type of person who's already interested in the line for the Week 8 game between the Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers -- and, let's face it; you're on Shutdown Corner on a Wednesday afternoon four months from the start of the season, so we know the answer -- then you may want to clear the next 20 minutes. Cantor Gaming, a company that runs a number of Las Vegas sportsbooks, has released lines for every NFL game through Week 16 of the 2012 NFL season. Want to bet on the Lions-49ers rematch? Hoping to get on the RGIII bandwagon early? Eager to throw some money on your favorite team to win after their bye week? Desperate to find another way to lose your paycheck in Vegas? You're in luck, my degenerate friends. What do the odds show? Vegas loves the Philadelphia Eagles, has no idea what to do with Peyton Manning's Denver Broncos, wavers on the decimated New Orleans Saints and is fairly certain how Mike Mularkey's first season in Jacksonville is going to go. The season spreads contain few surprises -- the Indianapolis Colts are expected to be bad, the Green Bay Packers are expected to be good -- but are a good way to kill some time during the NFL's May doldrums. A week-by-week selection of the most interesting lines (via Covers.com ): Week 2 Detroit Lions (+3.5) at San Francisco 49ers Week 3 New York Giants (PK) at Carolina Panthers Week 4 New York Giants (+4) at Philadelphia Eagles Week 5 Green Bay Packers (+9.5) at Indianapolis Colts [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

With just 2 players sanctioned, Saints can move on (Yahoo! Sports)

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From Yahoo! Sports

Are the Pittsburgh Steelers Contenders to Win the AFC After the 2012 NFL Draft?: Fan's Opinio

Every season there are trendy picks to win the Super Bowl. Last season everybody jumped on the Philadelphia Eagles' bandwagon and the "Dream Team" didn't even make the playoffs. Meanwhile, every season the Pittsburgh Steelers quietly go about their business and more times than not they are a top contender in the AFC. After a disappointing first round loss to the Denver Broncos the Steelers are trying once again to get on top. Did the NFL Draft make the Steelers contenders once again? [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Why they fell: Draft prospects picked later than expected (Shutdown Corner)

Each year, there are players who fall in the draft for a number of reasons. We all remember the sight of Aaron Rodgers and Brady Quinn waiting far beyond expectations for their names to be called, and the divergent paths their careers have taken give us one more reason to say that the draft is, in the end, pretty much a total crapshoot. Here are this year's latecomers, with Nebraska's Alfonzo Dennard as the all-time cautionary tale regarding taking it easy the week before the draft. [ Michael Silver's rankings: Gus Frerotte gives Kirk Cousins advice in Redskins quarterback race ] Courtney Upshaw, OLB, Alabama (35th overall pick, Baltimore Ravens) -- Upshaw, a dynamic pass rusher who was expected by most pundits to go in the mid-to-late first round, apparently started to drop when he showed up to his Pro Day weighing 279 pounds . The Ravens let the draft come to them and selected a great value pick who could really shine opposite Terrell Suggs. Jonathan Martin, OT, Stanford (42nd overall pick, Miami Dolphins) -- Expected to be a sure first-rounder at one point, Martin's game tape bugged enough teams to have them looking in different directions. A good player without a strong anchor point who was protected in college by a conservative heavy-blocking offense. [ Les Carpenter: NFL 'Die Hards' sit through all three days of the draft ] Vinny Curry, DE, Marshall (59th overall pick, Philadelphia Eagles) -- This one is hard to explain, because Curry flashed a great deal of potential as a pure pass-rusher or LEO end even when he was facing stout competition. Might be small-school bias, because there are no obvious red flags. Down the road (and very much like Upshaw), Curry may be much happier in an ideal situation despite the lower pick -- he's a perfect fit for the Eagles' aggressive defense. Rueben Randle, WR, LSU (63rd overall pick, New York Giants) -- The Jacksonville Jaguars traded up to get Justin Blackmon, so the alleged bias against one-speed receivers with outstanding overall characteristics doesn't seem to apply. Could be that Randle was dinged because he played in an offense that was anything but friendly to receivers, but the Giants put a first-round grade on him, and Tom Coughlin had a cake-eating grin on his face when explaining the pick on TV. Kirk Cousins, QB, Michigan State (102nd overall pick, Washington Redskins) -- Could have been a second-round guy but for his tendency to lose his mechanics under pressure. People question the Redskins picking him in the same draft as RGIII, but Cousins is the ideal Shanahan project quarterback, and could be a very reliable backup and spot starter over time. [ Shutdown Corner analysis: Why some top prospects fell down the NFL draft board ] Bobby Massie, OT, Mississippi (112th overall pick, Arizona Cardinals) -- Concerns about conditioning, toughness, and schematic fits (not a zone blocker at all) pushed Massie down, but the Cardinals picked up an excellent run-mashing right tackle with the ability to protect the quarterback from the right side. Jared Crick, DL, Nebraska (126th overall pick, Houston Texans) -- Steal of the draft, and the best mix of player and scheme on this list. Crick is a second-round prospect based on his tape, but he lost most of the 2011 season to injuries and fell under the radar. Really impressed me in 2010 when he kept his production up even after Ndamukong Suh left for the NFL and he became the primary focus of every offensive line he faced. In Wade Phillips' multiple schemes, Crick can be a 3-4 one-gap end, provide pass rush in big fronts, and even slip inside as a nose shade if Wade's feeling particularly creative. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Eagles deal Samuel to Falcons

The Atlanta Falcons gave up only a seventh-round draft pick onWednesday when they acquired four-time Pro Bowl cornerback AsanteSamuel from the Philadelphia Eagles. [read full article]

From FOXSports.com News for NFL