The Great iBoldin

Honestly, as much as people don't put stock into pre-season, and say it's a joke, it doesn't translate over to the regular season. Well, in some cases that's definitely true, Detroit went 4-0 before going 0-16, so obviously it's different in some ways, but it's starting to matter more and more. Jacksonville's starters went DEEP into the third quarter. Chad Pennington was still out there for Miami till about the 4 minute mark of the 3rd quarter. Coaches are starting to believe it matters, so I think that label of pre-season meaning [expletive] is starting to go down the tube now. I hate to say it, but I'm a little worry about how Philly will come out this season. Jason Peters looked worse then he looked all of last year, Derrick Harvey was having a field day with him on some drives and the Jags' D got way too many uncontested shots at McNabb. I truly believe the offense will come out flat and have people searching for answers, calling for Andy's head (maybe not that extreme - maybe homers?). The defense has looked good though - real good. The defense looks like they've actually gained steps with McDermott rather then taking a few steps back, or looking a little out of sorts.

Kid Cudi - Make Her Say (Poke Her Face)

Looks great, a heartwarming story. I'll probably go out and see it first night, his story is truly incredible.

Like the article, Universe, you make quality points on each viable city to hold a NBA team. I think all of those locations are good enough to hold a franchise. I think it's tough to shake the hockey label though, as much as some people want to. Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa are all hockey first, and that's why I find it's tough to grab people away from potentially buying tickets for two major sports. I think if the NBA came back to Canada, it would also come back to British Columbia. We're becoming highly populated and with the Olympics, our sports infrastructure (stadiums, transportation wise) is becoming one of the best in the world, much less North America/Canada. Plus, Basketball BC is taking steps to becoming one of the best in Canada, as evident by the recent Canada Summer Games (Placed fourth, but remained highly competitive with tournament winner Quebec and powerhouse Ontario - only lost by 5). Montreal would be the other location. I also wonder if the NBA would ever have the guts to branch out into the Atlantic, say the rock? (Newfoundland, Nova Scotia?)

Well, we'll have to take a wait and see approach to the whole situation with Stafford, but I think they give him the keys like Atlanta did with Matt Ryan, let him take his lumps. He'll be fine I think. Bryant and Calvin Johnson on the outsides are fine enough targets and he has the arm and smarts to get rid of the ball and toss it far. He has a solid and dependable running game behind him (Mo Morris was one of the most dependable players for Seattle last year) and the offensive line is just alright, it's pretty bad though. I think Daunte could play to start the season, though.

Another spam thread? What's really the point of this? Sooooo pointless.

Played Truth on XBox Love, lost 35-12 but I thought I played well, I had to start chucking the ball on every play at the end and he ended up with two pick sixes. He also had 2 kickoff returns for touchdowns, and that pissed me off a bit, but all in all I had a chance to win, at least I'm getting better.

Because he makes plays on the football field.. or because he has one of the better arms in the league.. or because he has a wonky throwing motion? Hands down a top five quarterback in the league right now.

LT - Michael Roos, Tennessee Titans LG - Steve Hutchinson, Minnesota Vikings C - Nick Mangold, New York Jets/Kevin Mawae, Tennessee Titans RG - Chris Snee, New York Giants RT - Davis Stewart, Tennessee Titans 1. Tennessee Titans 2. New York Giants 3. Carolina Panthers 4. Baltimore Ravens 5. Philadelphia Eagles I put Mangold in because I think he's already the anchor of a potential top five line, but Mawae's experience and overall technique is still wonderful in my opinion, so it's a tie for me. Before Eagles fans throw fits because I put B-More over them, let me explain. Pair of bookends in Gaither (an absolute monster) and Oher provide more certainty for me right now then a potentially lazy Jason Peters (although I don't believe he'll play lazy, but not necessarily motivated either) and the question mark laden Shawn Andrews. I still question Philadelphia at center, but there's no doubt that they have a talented line. I just think they haven't had the time to gel much. I know Baltimore hasn't either, but they brought in a very veteran Matt Birk and Michael Oher is definitely a bright and solid player.

http://sports.espn.go.com/photo/2008/0825/nfl_u_beason_580.jpg I select Jon Beason.

He'll probably be a Joe Smith. He's still got a vast amount of potential. Whether he decides to dedicate himself in the off-season and progress towards being an actual franchise quarterback is more or less the question. It always has been. I was a fan of Russell to Oakland, and I still am. Lee Higgins and Heyward-Bey can cater to his armstrong, Chaz Schillens is going to have a break-out year once he gets past his foot injury. He has a solid, potential laden backfield with big play ability in McFadden, and he has a developing offensive line that has the roots solidly in the ground ready to move forward. It's really - more or less - a question of whether he actually wants to work towards it. He held out for his deal, and he's hasn't done much since. He's like a guy who disappears after a good contract, except he never really was anyone to begin with.

Oh yeah, I totally agree with you on Felix Jones. He's one of the best weapons you can have as a back-up runner. I think it all comes down to Garrett again. His playcalling was so bland last year, it was tough for the Cowboys to open up the run and pass at the same time, but this formation will definitely do it. McGee is also interesting. Could be a Wildcat QB, but he's also shown the ability to be an athletic quarterback who can make some throws. I still think Kitna stays as the back-up right now, experience and veteran-ship and whatnot, but McGee is a potential player in this league for sure. I think he can start down the line, provided he's allowed to develop and learn a playbook. Bennett is on every one of my fantasy teams right now. 5-7 touchdowns, 40+ catches is what I'm expecting. He's gonna find a lot of M2M coverage with the linebacker this year, and that bodes well. He and Witten can be moved around too. Witten's been flashed in full house packages, split out wide, used as a full back, that's why I really like his versatility, a blue collar player. Bennett should fill out to be the same. Dude's an animal in the run game.

The only thing that worries me about Jones-Drew is his durability. I don't think he'll be able to play all 16 games without being banged up with his 5'7" frame. And I don't trust a 2nd year Washington and a 7th round rookie to pick up the slack, much less Greg Jones, whom I like very much as a versatile player, but still. The Jaguars offense depends solely on play action and rollouts with Garrard. The only way people are going to respect that is if MJD can stay healthy and put up monster numbers. Straight rushing yards? Frank Gore.

I actually went with Jefferson. The Spurs have lacked that 3rd or 4th scoring option (whichever way you look at it) and player who can step in if Manu ever goes done, which has been proven to happen before, obviously. Jefferson gives him a guy who can create oppurtunities and chances with the ball in his hands, and his defense is going to be invaluable on the wing. Could go him, Artest, or Turkoglu though. Artest does a lot of the things that I previously mentioned as well and is definitely an upgrade over Trevor Ariza. I think it probably comes down to personal preference in the end. Whoever you like more in certain situations, probably.

Romo looks very, very good this year. He's showing tremendous touch on his passes, looking off corners and safeties before releasing a ball that looks very sleek thus far. Maybe without the distractions, we can see Romo climb into the upper echelon of quarterbacks. Right now I think he's a borderline top ten guy, could make the jump with a solid year though. Felix Jones was impressive, but I don't think he'll be a top five back in this league, especially sharing carries with Marion Barber and Tashard Choice having his hand in the offense a little more after last years solid showing. Don't forget that this is still pre-season, Tennessee had their second team defense and even third unit for most of the game. I'm actually in the progress of writing an article discussing the 2-TE offense Garrett has going on down in Texas. It's going to be an excellent thing to see, especially since both Witten and Bennett are such exceptional blockers. The ability to open up the ground game, developing play action and still being able to utilize the aerial assault is something that sounds awfully tempting. The Cowboys are still a team to beat, chemistry issues or not. I've always thought they were a bit overrated, but you took a look at the talent on the team and it's top five in the league, strictly talent wise. They just have 2 things to overcome; 1. Wade Phillips 2. Jason Garrett If they're able to overcome the two, then the 'Boys are likely in the NFC Championship game or even in the Bowl.

Do you really think Bolt would be on the field, in the slot, blocking a strongside linebacker? The only reason he would be playing football is to run fly routes and streaks.

Supposedly the guy scrambled back up here, about an hour and 15 minutes from my town, interestingly enough.

And I have a question, what has Limas Sweed done outside of six catches in a marginal receiving core and marginal production in a spread offense in college? He's 6'4" - great, I'll name you 10 guys that are just as good or better at that size (or around so) in the NFL. Not to mention he dropped that brutally easy catch in the Championship game a 10-year old could have got. Sweed gets a lot of credit for a lot of average play.

Dude, Ramses Barden is a freak, he's 6'6" and is already proving to be a helluva red zone target already for Eli in Camp. No Giants' corner has been able to contain him yet, from what I've seen and what I've been told by people who have gone to Camp. Honestly, he could even be a number one or two by the end of the year. It's not like the Giants receivers are total [expletive] anyways. Hakeem Nicks has had a tough run so far, but he's got potential, great target over the middle who has underrated speed and unbelievable body control. Domenik Hixon is a decent deep threat, average receiver though. Steve Smith is a 3. Barden is probably a 3 right now or a guy who is on the outside, not a slot player. It's not totally awful, although it's not GREAT. Not to mention Kevin Boss and rookie Travis Beckum at tight end. I'm sure the Giants would much rather run the ball anyways.

First - great call on Bennett. He's just not the best WR out of the '07 Class, otherwise I would agree with you. Not only is he Cutler's old college teammate, he's looked great and is producing in camp. He burned Nathan Vasher on a beautiful double move (a post) in 7-on7's last Wednesday and had moderate success against Buffalo's first-team in their game. Hopefully he's more productive then last yea. Dude didn't even catch a pass last year, so he's going to do better obviously. On that note, another great player in Camp has been Brandon Rideau. Didn't catch a pass against the Bills, but has torn it up in Camp. He also made Nathan Vasher his [expletive] last practice (although who hasn't made Vasher look that way this season? Vasher has been God-awful, could lose his starting gig). Out of the list you have, I would probably say Maclin.

Simple ball control. I honestly ate up the entire half last night and scored a TD with two seconds left on a QB sneak with Matt Flynn (I was the Packers). 15 plays, 84 yards, 10 minutes. It happens when you meet someone who loves to run the football (like I do at least, I haven't been able to play ECN yet due to connection problems I think).

LOL, he definitely changed the game speed. Greasy is the only way to define that.

Why, what's your record? I'm sure you can find a challenge somewhere.

Well in different ways you don't really center your gameplan around a left tackle like you would do to a receiver or runner, that's obviously a given. But lots of teams will in fact gameplan around a line (not one certain lineman) in different ways. Shifting or balancing your 3 or 4 man fronts to overload a side, showing different packages, moving linebackers around - or motioning any defensive players around the line of scrimmage. You don't account for just one elite lineman, because any football mind realizes that an offensive line has to have an area of cohesiveness and interaction amongst them. It's extremely difficult for a guy to come in and recognize snap counts and all that jazz. I'm not a big mind on how lines work, so I can't really comment on how. I've never been a lineman. It's only a given that a team will gameplan around a skill player. But that doesn't mean a good lineman doesn't provide just as much of an impact.

Rightfully so. The Jets have long had an underrated line, and I certainly believe it's borderline top-five material.