Tony Dungy made some interesting comments on the Dan Patrick show today, including how Florida quarterback Tim Tebow should be drafted high in the first round.

From SI.com:

Dungy also had interesting comments on Tim Tebow. Dungy loves winners. He thinks Charlie Ward would have been a great NFL quarterback because he won at every level. Dungy said that Tebow is like that. He just wins, and that will translate to the NFL.
Dungy said if he ran St. Louis, he’d draft Tebow high in the first round. “Franchise quarterbacks are hard to fine, and I believe in this guy,” Dungy said.

Dan asked Dungy if Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy, Jake Locker and Jimmy Clausen were available, would he take Tebow over all of them. Dungy said yes, he’d take Tebow.

Far be it for me to question a man of Dungy’s stature, but Tebow isn’t a high first round prospect. I know he’s won at Florida, but he’s also had some of the best talent in the country around him, so it wasn’t all him. Tebow isn’t a prototypical drop back passer – he’s a battering ram built for the Wildcat or maybe even the H-back position.

Some Gator fans argue that Tebow can make all the throws at the next level. I disagree. He might be able to make all of the throws some of the time at the collegiate level, but he’s not a guy that is going to take a seven step drop and complete a 10-yard out route without having the defensive back jump it for a pick six. He just isn’t.

That said, Tebow is one hell of a football player and there is a place for him in professional football. I would think that a team would take a shot on him in the third round and use him in a variety of ways. But he certainly isn’t a franchise quarterback like Dungy is suggesting. Not in my humble opinion anyway.

While appearing on ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike In The Morning” on Tuesday, former NFL head coach Tony Dungy indicated that free agent quarterback Michael Vick could be signed sometime this week.

From NBCSports.com:

Said Dungy: “I think something’s gonna happen this week.”

Dungy also explained that his comments from Sunday night’s Hall of Fame game broadcast on NBC regarding the level of interest in Vick arises from the fact that a dozen NFL coaches have called Dungy for input on Vick.

Dungy said that Vick needs to “get with a football family,” and that the sooner it happens, the better off Vick will be.

We’ll see. Teams have only been in training camp for a little over a week, so general managers and coaches are still trying to figure out what they have on their rosters. Given the baggage that Vick will carry with him, teams aren’t going to just take a flier on him without considering how he could fit into their offense.

Regular readers know that I maintain the notion that the Seattle, Oakland and San Francisco are the most likely destinations for Vick.

Last month we started looking at last season’s statistics for position players in fantasy football land, and today we’ll look at a position many often overlook. That’s fantasy defenses, which can sometimes put up just enough points to earn your team a victory once in a while. It’s always smart to try and grab one of the top units, although as we’ve seen before, things change, sometimes drastically, from year to year with fantasy D’s. Me? I like to grab my defense before my kicker. This list is based on point totals from one of my leagues, so keep in mind that stats vary from year to year.

1. Baltimore Ravens—The Ravens’ defense is perennially awesome, and we’ll find out for sure how much of that was due to former coordinator Rex Ryan, who is now the head honcho for the Jets. Ryan took plenty of players with him too, like LB Bart Scott and S Jim Leonhard, but the Ravens still have Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Terrell Suggs. Reed just keeps getting better every year, and his sick nose for the ball is one reason the Ravens had a league high 26 picks. They will keep scoring low as always, but their 34 sacks last season isn’t much to get excited about. Bottom line: The Ravens won’t be a number one this year, but are still top 10.

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After recently meeting with the troubled suspended player in prison, former head coach Tony Dungy said that Michael Vick is seeking a second chance.

He enjoys helping troubled young men, and Vick, in Dungy’s eyes, is simply one of them. Vick is serving a 23-month sentence for bankrolling a dogfighting conspiracy. Dungy wouldn’t offer details about his meeting with Vick, but compared the quarterback’s situation to many of the ex-offenders at the resource fair Wednesday.

“I think Michael is just like so many other guys that I have seen, so many other people who are nameless, faceless in that environment,” Dungy said. “It’s a young man that made a mistake and is looking for a chance to recover and move forward. That’s where he is and that’s where so many of the men who are here today are.”

Dungy is doing a lot of good in this world and I for one hope that he can help Vick get his life back on track. But in the end, everything is in Vick’s hands. He must surround himself with positive influences that will help him stay on the straight and narrow and keep him out of trouble. It appears that the wrong people heavily influenced Vick when he set up the dog-fighting ring, so it would be beneficial for him to only surround himself with folks that make sound decisions.

According to a report by ESPN.com, long-time Colts offensive coordinator Tom Moore is set to retire due to his dissatisfaction with the NFL’s revised pension plan for coaches. Indianapolis already lost its offensive line coach Howard Mudd to retirement over the same issue.

Mudd has coached 35 consecutive seasons in the NFL and Moore has been an assistant for 32 years. Both are considered among the finest assistant coaches in league history and their 12-year Indianapolis union as offensive coordinator and line coach has been considered a major factor to the success of the Colts and quarterback Peyton Manning.

NFL owners passed a resolution at the league meetings that allowed the 32 teams to opt out of a uniformed pension plan, which has been a generous incentive for coaches to remain at the pro level. Many teams have yet to decide on their specific plans for non-playing employees but Kennan painted a picture of betrayal.

“Howard was already researching the strategy of when to take a lump sum payment when the owners pulled this fast one,” said Kennan. “Let me tell you something: The owners did this at the league meetings and they never informed me of anything. They didn’t notify the [coaches] within their own organizations, with the exception of two classy organizations — the Atlanta Falcons and Baltimore Ravens — that there were changes coming. No advance warning and no information after the fact.

“So you take a guy like Howard Mudd, who is pretty diligent about everything, and he was already concerned about losing some money because the market index was going to change in July. Then you throw this at someone like that — and he finds out that several teams have not fully funded their pension plans at an 80 percent level, the mark they need to hit for any employee to take a full lump sum payment. …Well, Howard Mudd’s not waiting around to see what happens with all these signals. And he’s a guy that a lot of other coaches respect — especially Tom Moore — so they could follow his lead.”

I don’t know enough about the league’s pension plan for coaches to comment on that situation, but I do know that losing Moore and Mudd would be a bigger hit to the Colts than people would generally think.

One of the reasons Manning has been so successful over his career is because he has had the fortune to work with Moore year in and year out. Some quarterbacks have to work with three or sometimes even four coordinators throughout their careers and each time there’s an adjustment period. Yet Manning has the luxury of knowing Moore’s system as soon as he reports to camp every year and the two make a perfect pair on game days.

Then again if Moore does retire, the Colts probably already have already been grooming his replacement, ala Jim Caldwell when Tony Dungy stepped down.

Former NFL head coach Tony Dungy visited Michael Vick at a federal prison in Leavenworth, Kansas recently and according to Vick’s agent Joel Segal, the meeting was “private” and “positive”.

Vick met with Dungy to discuss his life after he gets out of prison. He is scheduled to leave Leavenworth May 20 and serve the remainder of his sentence under home confinement at his five-bedroom home in Hampton, Va., with his fiancée and two of his children.

“I am going out there to really talk about life. To talk about the Lord,” Dungy said on the show. “I know he has made a profession that he has accepted the Lord into his life. Talk to him about what he’s going to face. Most people are going to be against him. He’s got to understand that.”

Considering all the work Dungy does with his youth boys programs, I would imagine the conversation with Vick was very positive. But everything is in Vick’s hands now. Dungy can’t be with him every second of every day to ensure he’s staying out of trouble and making something of his life. It’s up to Vick to show remorse for what he has done and to move forward with his life in a positive manner. Returning to the NFL should be the last thing on Vick’s mind right now and here’s hoping he continues to seek Dungy’s guidance from here on out.

Vinnie Iyer of SportingNews.com did an interesting piece on five NFL playoff teams who have big issues heading into the 2009 season.

1) Baltimore Ravens. Joe Flacco has had a great start to his career, but to take the next step as a quarterback, he probably could use a young receiver with No. 1 potential. The more pressing issues, however, are with Baltimore’s backbone, its defense. First, it’ll be a challenge to find a coordinator and play-caller to match Rex Ryan, who left to become head coach of the New York Jets…

2) Philadelphia Eagles. To some extent, the Donovan McNabb question was answered, at least for the ‘09 season. His support system may be different, however. Aging offensive tackles Tra Thomas and Jon Runyan will be free agents. Top guard Shawn Andrews will need to come back from back surgery, and also may need to move outside. Backup running back Correll Buckhalter also wants to explore options out of Philadelphia. Defensively, stalwart safety Brian Dawkins could also walk…

3) Carolina Panthers. Will Carolina need to address the quarterback position after Jake Delhomme’s six-turnover fiasco against Arizona in the divisional playoffs? It seems unfair to judge Delhomme on his first truly bad playoff game, when his play and leadership has been huge for the Panthers in the big picture. But still, with his age (34) and the fact he’s just one year removed from major elbow surgery, it might be time to draft a project passer to groom. In addition, Delhomme’s Pro Bowl left tackle, Jordan Gross, can become an unrestricted free agent….

4) Indianapolis Colts. Tony Dungy and general manager Bill Polian were hoping for a smooth coaching transition with Jim Caldwell taking over, but it hasn’t been necessarily easy in the early going. Offensive coordinator Tom Moore, 70, and offensive line coach Howard Mudd, 66, nearly opted to follow Dungy into retirement. Defensive coordinator Ron Meeks flat-out resigned on Tuesday, and Caldwell fired special teams coach Russ Pernell. Caldwell isn’t a Dungy clone — there will be a different feel around the team….

5) New York Giants. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo left to be head coach of the Rams, and there’s a chance offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride gets the same gig with the Raiders. The unit that Gilbride may leave behind has plenty of issues…

Iyer goes into more detail on every team, so check out the entire piece.

I agree on all of Iyer’s takes, although these problems are nothing new for any playoff team. Good teams have their coordinators stripped from them to become head coaches in other cities. Star players in contract years bolt for bigger paydays elsewhere, while other standouts get another year older or slower.

All five of the above teams have the potential to face major change and that’s what makes them a risk not to make a repeat playoff appearance next year. The most interesting team is the Ravens because they have so many questions to answer about their defense, which has been their identity the past eight or nine years.

- THE WORLD OF ISAAC has video of the Michigan State game where Tom Izzo was mic’ed up, and someone apparently forgot to hit the “bleep” button. The site also has a list of the 11 Hottest Sports Movie Tomboys, which includes the delectable Kate Bosworth from “Blue Crush” (right).

- In light of the Cardinals/Eagles tilt this Sunday, DEADSPIN provides an informative FAQ for those of us that have been ignoring the Cards all these years.

- TONYBLOGS brings us the bizarre story (and that’s an understatement) of the (male) limo driver (and convicted burglar) that brought sexual harassment charges against Eddy Curry.

- SHUTDOWN CORNER examines the coaching record of Tony Dungy’s successor, Jim Caldwell. Not pretty.

- Remember the video of Chris Berman’s temper tantrum? Well, DEADSPIN has a photo of Berman showing up late to the “Sunday NFL Countdown” set. Way to walk the walk, Chris!

- FSU free safety Myron Rolle is a smart, smart man. He is a Rhodes Scholar and intends to forgo the NFL Draft (where he is projected to be drafted in the first round) and instead attend Oxford University — that’s right, the Oxford University — for a year before entering the draft in 2010. SPORTSbyBROOKS has all the details.

Jay Glazer of FOXSports.com is reporting that Tony Dungy will step down as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts.

Tony Dungy is stepping down as head coach of the Colts — at least that’s what he’s telling those inside the team headquarters, sources told FOXSports.com.

While the team has scheduled a 5 p.m. press conference, Dungy is walking around the team’s complex saying goodbye to players and team employees and informing them that the transition should be a smooth one for new coach Jim Caldwell.

According to one source, Dungy explained that he has talked it over with his family and they believed this was the proper time to step down, while the Colts’ nucleus was still intact.

Dungy is perhaps the most respected head coach among peers and players of this era. He won a Super Bowl two seasons ago and at that time many thought he would step down. Again last year it was predicted by some he would step down, but he decided instead to pick his predecessor and stay on for one more year.

Dungy’s Indianapolis tenure will finish after seven seasons with a record of 92-33, and a postseason berth in all seven years with the club.

Dungy has always talked about continuing his work with youth programs and has a lot more going on in his life than football. He’s an outstanding football coach and a great mentor of young men. Outside of Marvin Harrison’s incident last year, you don’t hear much about Colt players getting in trouble off field and that has a lot do with Dungy’s leadership.

Assistant head coach Jim Caldwell is expected to replace Dungy, which is a great thing for Indy. Caldwell is familiar with the players and the players are familiar with him. Consistency is vital for a franchise that is so used to winning. Caldwell should make a smooth transition.

The Indianapolis Colts have a lot going for them these days. They’ve won nine straight, will play the San Diego Chargers Saturday in the opening round of the NFL playoffs, and their starting quarterback just won his third career MVP award.

About the only thing working against the Colts, is the amount of injuries they’ve amassed over the past couple weeks, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

The most notably injury is to strong safety Bob Sanders, whose knee continues to bother him. Tony Dungy says he expects Sanders to play Sunday, although it’s unclear at this point whether or not he’ll be slowed by the injury.

One player who won’t suit up is linebacker Gary Brackett, who missed the entire week of practice due to a fibula injury, and has missed the past four games. Defensive tackle Eric Foster, wideout Pierre Garcon, guards Jamey Richard and Mike Pollack, and defensive back Keiwan Ratliff are all listed as questionable.

Philip Rivers has been outstanding all season despite his top receiving weapon Antonio Gates missing time due to injury, as well as LaDainian Tomlinson having a rare down year. Point being, for as well as Manning has played over the second half of the season, the Chargers are more than equipped offensively to get into a shootout with the Colts.

Having a healthy Sanders in the defensive backfield is the key for Indy. He’s a game changer and he can erase mistakes in the blink of an eye. But if he can’t play, or is slowed by his knee injury, it’s no secret opponents have been able to run the ball effectively against the Colts’ defense. And if the Chargers can get LT and Darren Sproles rolling like they did against the Broncos in their division-clinching win in Week 17, there’s no reason to think that San Diego can’t pull away in the second half and force Manning and the Colts’ offense to be one-dimensional.

Before their 23-20 win over the Chargers on November 23 of this year, the Colts had lost their previous three games against San Diego, including a 28-24 playoff loss in Indianapolis last season. Every team struggles with certain opponents, and the Chargers could be the Colts’ thorn.

It’ll be interesting to see how the Colts’ injuries will affect their play on Saturday. One named not previously mentioned was Indy linebacker Freddy Keiaho, who is expected to play. If they can get a healthy Sanders in the mix, the Colts will be more than ready to take the Chargers best shot. But if Sanders and company can’t go, there’s a chance not even a three-time MVP will save them.