411's NFL Round Up 2.26.08

Posted by Emmett Wilks on 02.26.2008

A look at how the big names did at the Combine. Also, trying to make sense of some strange free agency moves in this off-season. All this and more in the Round Up.

Hey everyone. Hope the lack of football hasn't been too hard for everyone. I know it has been pretty brutal for me. Was forced into an Oscar party with the future wife, and it did not go well. I don't know what is more annoying. Watching a bunch of millionaire's parade around in cloths they did not pay for, or seeing the groveling people interviewing them as if they had just cured cancer with their performances that year. Sunday night football would have taken me away from that, but alas, we are in the middle of the off-season. This is not necessarily a terrible thing. My mother always taught me to appreciate what you have, and sometimes, the best way to see that is to lose what you love. The off-season just makes us appreciate even more how much we truly love being fans of the NFL.

QUICK HITS

- Congrats to Zach Thomas for finding a team relatively quickly in Dallas, who signed the 12 year veteran to a one year contract. With incentives and bonuses, Thomas could stand to make around three million this season, which seemed to work for everyone involved. As I've said before, when healthy last year (albeit briefly) Thomas was still one of the great linebackers in the NFL. Dallas is a team with all the tools to win the Super Bowl, so this seems like a great marriage. Not to mention the sheer happiness of Dolphin fans not having to see Thomas in a Patriots jersey this fall.

- In the move that will make some team very happy, the Panthers released starting running back DeShaun Foster for cap consideration. Foster had been a steady but unspectacular back in his 5 seasons with the team, never rushing for more than 900 yards. Even though injuries and the dreaded running back disease FUMBLITIS have struck, he could prove to be a great spell back for a host of NFL teams.

- The Chargers signing of LB Derek Smith is a nice indication of addressing ones needs. The inside linebacker spot was not up to par for Chargers last season, with current starter Matt Wilhelm being a good, but not great player for the 3-4 scheme. Smith's addition will bolster the middle for the Chargers, who are well aware the window will be closing shortly on a title run.

- If I were to get a job with any newspaper of my choosing, I'd want to head to the Oakland Tribune and cover the Raiders. It's like freaking All My Children or Guiding Light out by the Bay. Al Davis is preparing to fire first year coach Lane Kiffin after a season of substantial improvement, just one season after firing a coach who was there for, you guessed it, one season. It's just unreal.

- Rumor mill is spinning about the future of Shaun Alexander in Seattle. Just two and half years removed from a 27 TD season, Alexander's stock has seen a meteoric plummet the last two seasons, both due to injury and an apparent lack of commitment following his contract extension back in 2006. After 1880 yards rushing and 27 TD's in 2005, Alexander has produced 897 in 2006 and 716 last year to go along with just 11 touchdowns. If he does return in 2008, he will be on a short performance lease. Meaning, he doesn't perform, he's gone.


Time may be running out for Shaun Alexander in Seattle

- And the mill turns east of Seattle as well, in the City of Brotherly Love. This concerns Patriots corner Asante Samuel, who is considered to be the best DB in free agency. While most around the Internet have been questioning the Eagles on this decision to pursue Samuel, especially the great Peter King, I understand where the Eagles are coming from. They have too excellent corners in Lito Sheppard and Sheldon Brown, but it is exceedingly difficult to get both of them on the field at the same time injury free. This has forced the Eagles to start woefully mediocre replacements that have cost them games. Let's be serious here, if the Eagles do close this one, I don't see them giving big time money out like they did to Javon Kearse as few years back.

- Rex Grossman's one year contract with the Bears is a big time gamble in my opinion for Chicago. I am firm believer that you need to make your decisions at quarterback firmly, right or wrong as they may be. This will make a lot more sense if they draft a quarterback of the future in the first or second round. With this year's draft, there look to be plenty of talented prospects in the 2nd and 3rd round. If they don't, and are using this year as a final test for Grossman, I just don't like it. The guy just can't get the job done. He has put together one decent year behind a powerhouse defense, and the Bears need to find their solution elsewhere sooner rather than later.

- Though we're getting to the combine in a second, I need to say one thing. If I hear one more time about how a running back's stock was greatly improved by the 40 yard dash, I'll explode. The day a tailback gets to run in a perfectly straight line from a sprinters stance, and then we'll talk. Don't get me wrong, it is a good measure of speed, which is critical, but don't ever put too much stock into that one drill.


COMBINE REPORT


The NFL Network (which I am still too cheap to get) broadcast the NFL Combine from Indianapolis over the weekend, giving all of America to get their looks at the next crop of talent in the NFL. I for one am a huge proponent of the combine. While any good personnel director will tell you that 80-85% of what you need to know about a player is best seen on game film, I believe the combine has several important characteristics to it.

Players can prove a lot at the Combine, as Joe Thomas did last year


1.) Competitiveness

I want guys who want to win at everything. A guy who will go to a foreign environment; run, jump, lift, throw, and catch with the other best players and try the outperform them. That shows a strong character about who they are. Wanting to win is among the best traits of an NFL player, and the Combine is a great place to show that off.

2.) Versatility

This goes with the aforementioned ability to perform in a foreign environment. I don't give a flying hoot where you perform best. Everyone working out at the Combine is doing so on the same surface, so the advantage should be to the best athlete. You won't get to play all your NFL games at your college facilities, so you just as well should get your butt to Indy and show you can play anywhere.

3.) Physical Ability

Lest we forget exactly what the Combine is at its heart, a way to assess the top collegiate athletes prior to the Draft. While many of the drill are a little silly (the broad jump anyone) they still can measure an athletes basic performance levels. This is an important function. People do forget how great a leap it is from college to the Pros. The jump is huge, and teams can use the Combine to better, but not totally assess how some guys can perform at the next level. Some teams have come to regret putting too much stock into Combine workouts, as Chris Widner explains well about one Mike Mamula

Here's how some of the players look this weekend.


So, how did the Combine go for the big name players? This season saw more players than not participating in majority of the drills. Top RB prospect Darren McFadden wowed everyone with his performance. The top skill player prospect coming into the combine, he solidified himself as this year's Adrian Peterson. Though I never have felt he has all the ability as Peterson, I still bank on the fact that he will make a great Pro. Illinois' Rashard Mendenhall and Oregon's Jonathan Stewart also took advantage of good workouts. Stewart is a first rounder, but Mendenhall will likely be slipping to second round, but could creep up out of a need pick. Michigan's Mike Hart apparently did nothing in college over a four year starting career to nullify two sub par 40 times. His stock apparently took a big hit with 4.6-4.7 range forties. That will end once teams take a peak at some Michigan games where Hart carried the team on his back for stretches. I never saw Hart as the next Emmitt Smith but he is far better than the workout would suggest.

And while he went against everything I mentioned above about the positive traits of the combine, make no mistake, Matt Ryan is still the best QB prospect in this draft. The guy single handedly ran the Boston College offense. None of his wide receivers are looking be big time prospect in the NFL, and no other college quarterback had better placement and accuracy. At this point, I am going to be stunned if Atlanta doesn't grad him up. They need to completely start over, and Ryan is a mature young man who will be a great place to begin the new Falcons organization. But then again, so was David Carr for the Texans, so one never really knows. Joe Flacco is fast becoming the little QB who could this season. From 1-AA Delaware, Flacco has done nothing but impress with every workout he has been in. While it will still be tough to break into the first round,

But can we get serious for just one scone. I don't care if Glenn Dorsey doesn't get another workout in before Draft day; he is still a top 5 pick regardless. No one when healthy can do what he does, command a double team every play he is one the field. That is a characteristic that is often times thrown around but rarely appreciated. When Dorsey plays, his teammates are in better position to make plays. He will be a linchpin for the defense of whoever is lucky enough to draft him.


Next week we'll take a look at some of the sleepers coming out this year, and finally, the real debut of the Round Up's Draft Board. Till next week, have a good one.