Being in the NFL market that is currently on the clock(St. Louis), I felt it necessary that I write about the NFL.
First, we'll discuss the mess that is the Chad Johnson situation
Ocho Cinco needs to quit being a baby and decide whether or not he wants to play football or try to be a whiner who is a poor man's T.O. when it comes to end zone celebrations. Don't get me wrong, I think Chad Johnson is one of the top WRs in the NFL. However, he needs to get to training camp and play hard this season for the Bengals. Cincinnati is not going to trade him in the offseason so he needs to do what T.O. did in Philly, which is shut up and play the season. I see Johnson being traded next off season, not this one.
Second, I like the move of Jared Allen to the Vikings. Allen will solidify the D-Line for the Vikings, which has struck out on defensive ends in the past few years(Ukeze is the main one I'm thinking of). This will allow the Chiefs to draft a DE in the draft on Saturday.
Third, the NFL stated that, for the time being, the Rams can not negotiate with the player(s) that they want to pick #2 in the draft. I think the league will allow the Rams to negotiate with either Chris Long of Virginia or Glenn Dorsey of LSU.
Lastly, here's what I think will happen from Picks 2 to 7(I'm not Mel Kiper or Todd McShay-thank goodness) 2-Rams: DE Chris Long-Virginia 3-Falcons: QB Matt Ryan-Boston College 4-Saints(trade with Raiders): DT Glenn Dorsey-LSU 5-Chiefs: OLB/DE Vernon Gholsten-Ohio State 6-Jets: RB Darren McFadden-Arkansas 7-Patriots-LB Keith Rivers-USC
People always tell me about how their team is the best. If ya talk to a Saints fan, it's because of Drew Brees and the RB tandem of Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister. If ya talk to a Patriots fan, it's due to Bill Belichek and Tom Brady and that awesome defense. If ya talk to a Colts fan, it's because of Peyton, Marvin, Reggie, and Brandon. If ya talk about Da Bears, ya think about Thomas Jones, Cedric Benson, and the Monsters of the Midway....Urlacher, The defensive line, Briggs, Vasher, Manning, and Devin Hester.
The fans of these 4 teams are great. I know plenty of them, more Bears fans than any because I live in Illinois. Here are my picks...
NFC Championship Game New Orleans @ Chicago, 2 PM FOX. It is a classic matchup o####reat offense(New Orleans' is ranked #1) verses a great defense(Chicago has a top 5). Here are 3 questions to ponder before watching this game: Can Drew Brees pick about Da Bears D? Which RB tandem will lead their team to victory? Will Rex Grossman have a short leash?
Here are the answers to the questions above. 1. No, Brees has had a great season. However, a great defense normally shuts down a great offense. Brees has not seen a cover 2 defense in a while and I don't think he'll be able to hit the seams along the sidelines that a quarterback needs to do to defeat a cover 2. 2. I think Reggie and Deuce are the better pair, but Jones and Benson willed the Bears to victory last weekend and I think they can do it again. 3. Rex will not be pulled because he will only have to complete about 50% of his passes(probably a 11 for 20 game). I'm going with Da Bears to make it back to the Super Bowl for the first time in 21 years, 21-13.
AFC Championship Game New England @ Indianapolis, 5:30 PM CBS. This game has some questions that need answered too. 1. Can Tom Brady continue is mastery of Peyton Manning? 2. Will the Patriots be able to run against the Colts D? 3. Can Peyton finally win the big one?
The answers are...1. No, Peyton breaks through because of the weakened Patriots secondary. 2. Maybe, Corey Dillon has become a north-south runner. These runners haven't given Indy much problems in the playoffs(see Larry Johnson and Jamal Lewis). The types of runners that gave Indy problems in the regular season are the cut-back runners(like Maurice Jones-Drew, Fred Tayler, Travis Henry). This is the type of back Laurence Maroney is. I don't believe that the Patriots will run the ball that much anyway. 3. Yes! Manning will lead his team to victory because of the vertical passing game. There will not be any Ty Law or Rodney Harrison sightings on the field today. Indy 31-21.
NFL Draft Preview: RB These running backs are the top 5 at the position... 1. Adrian Peterson, Jr.-Oklahoma 2. Marshawn ####, Jr.-California 3. Michael Bush, Jr.-Louisville 4. Tony Hunt, Sr.-Penn State 5. Garrett Wolfe, Sr.-Northern Illinois
I think the first 3 are at least first round picks. Wolfe reminds me of a smaller Marshall Faulk.
Has this week been the longest week for football fans? I've been anticipating this weekend since the middle of December. Here's the predictions, enjoy:
Saturday
Indianapolis(13-4) @ Baltimore(13-3): Both quarterbacks are big time, the running backs are struggling, and both defenses(after last week's performance against KC for Indy) are playing well. The question is...Which playmaker will make the plays. I'm going with the Ravens winning on an old Titans pair, McNair to Mason on a 27 yard post pattern for a touchdown. Ravens 19, Colts 13
Philadelphia(11-6) @ New Orleans(10-6): I've been back and forth on this game all week. How can you pick against New Orleans? They won the NFC South, they have probably the best QB in the NFC in Drew Brees, they have Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister and a great group of receivers(Joe Horn should be back for this one). Philly though is a team of destiny. Jeff Garcia is playing like his old self and Brian Westbrook will be able to run the ball against this defense. I'm going with Philly, 27-17
Sunday
Seattle(10-7) @ Chicago(13-3): Is Seattle a team of destiny, according to some in the media? Will Rex Grossman play like he potentially can? Can the Bears turn it on? I'm guessing that the Bears Defense and Thomas Jones carry this team like they have all year, Chicago 20, Seattle 7
New England(13-4) @ San Diego(14-2): The best game of the weekend. Can Marty Schottenheimer win the big game? I said in an earlier post that you don't bet on a Marty-coached team in the playoffs, but can you really not pick the Chargers. They're 14-2, they have possibly the greatest running back of all time in LaDanian Tomlinson, and they have a great defense. New England has, well, the second best clutch QB of all time in Tom Brady(behind only Joe Montana in my book) and a pair of good running backs(St. Louis's own Laurence Maroney and Corey Dillon) and a great defense of their own. It's hard to pick against the Patriots, but they're not in Foxboro and I think Marty can finally get the #### off of his back. Chargers 21, Patriots 17
NFL Draft Preview-QB
here's a list of quarterbacks that I feel will be picked in the NFL draft and in the order I'm projecting them. Just to let ya know, I'm not Mel Kiper. Here's my top 5 anyways
I am an avid sports fan who attempts to watch/read about as many games as possible. Growing up in St. Louis, I am a die-hard St. Louis Cardinals fan. Not having an NFL team for most of my life, until the Rams showed up, I am a Tennessee Titans fan and I am also a University of Tennessee fan. I am a recent graduate of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
