Category: NFL (Page 163 of 1282)

      Sizing up Kevin Kolb’s trade suitors

      March 8, 2011 /
      Philadelphia Eagles QB Kevin Kolb (4) dances away from San Francisco 49ers Manny Lawson (99) and Ray McDonald (91) in the second quarter at Candlestick Park in San Francisco on October 10, 2010. The Eagles defeated the 49ers 27-24 UPI/Terry Schmitt

      Kevin Kolb has become the hottest name on the trade market, which is interesting when you consider:

      A) The Eagles have yet to make him available
      B) The NFL and NFLPA have yet to agree to a new CBA deal

      Thus, even if the Eagles wanted to trade Kolb they couldn’t. But you know the internet, always whoring around with any rumor it can find.

      Make no mistake: Kolb is unlikely to be dealt if a new CBA is not reached until after the draft. The Eagles aren’t going to leave themselves exposed by trading Kolb and rolling the dice that Michael Vick will make it through an entire 16-game season without getting hurt. It’s too big of a gamble on their end and they’re not going to trade a valuable commodity in Kolb without reaping immediate rewards (i.e. 2011 draft picks). The Eagles also won’t know whether or not they have to draft Kolb’s replacement if he a new CBA isn’t in place by the end of April.

      But let’s take a trip down the hypothetical highway for a moment and assume that a deal will be reached before the draft, and the Eagles do plan on trading Kolb. Which teams make the most sense?

      1. Seattle Seahawks
      Matt Hasselbeck is a free agent and Charlie Whitehurst is Charlie Whitehurst. The Hawks could get bye with Hasselbeck for another season, but I’m not sure Pete Carroll is comfortable handing the keys to his offense over to Whitehurst. Kolb is a fit for a couple of reasons. First, the Eagles likely will want a first round pick for Kolb and the Seahawks have the No. 25th overall selection in the first round. The No. 25th overall pick is certainly fair value for a starting-caliber NFL quarterback and if the Hawks were thinking about taking someone like Jake Locker with that pick, why not go with the 26-year-old Kolb instead? Also, Kolb is a perfect fit for Darrell Bevell’s West Coast Offense after spending a couple of years under Andy Reid. Lastly, there have been reports that Seattle was interested in Kolb last spring and if that’s true, then why wouldn’t they be interested again this year?

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      External Sports, NFL

      Which QBs were the most productive in 2010?

      March 7, 2011 /
      Philadelphia Eagles Michael Vick throws a pass in the fourth quarter against the New York Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium in week 15 of the NFL in East Rutherford, New Jersey on December 19, 2010. The Eagles defeated the Giants 38-31. UPI /John Angelillo

      Other positions: QB | RB | WR | TE | DT

      Most fantasy owners focus on total points scored when trying to determine how a certain player performed in any given year. But that total doesn’t always tell the whole story. There are two big factors — strength of schedule and points per game — that should be taken into account when attempting to judge a player, especially when a fantasy owner is putting together his rankings.

      If a QB had an unusually easy schedule in 2010, and his schedule in 2011 is much tougher, we can expect that his numbers are going to take a hit. The opposite is true if a QB projects to have a much easier schedule.

      Likewise, if a player has great per game numbers, but spent a good portion of the year sidelined with one injury or another (think Matthew Stafford, Tony Romo or Michael Vick) then total fantasy points isn’t a good indicator of what that player might be capable of in 2011.

      Below is a list of the Top 40 QBs in terms of adjusted fantasy points per game, which is calculated by dividing the player’s total points by the number of games he played and then adjusting the result by the average schedule bias for his team. The bias for the aforementioned Vick, Romo and Stafford will be off, since the average takes into account all 16 games, and they only appeared in 12, six and three games, respectively. Still, it gives us a pretty good idea how these players rank amongst their peers given their abbreviated seasons.

      Let’s take a look…

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      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Cardinals, 49ers and Seahawks could all have interest in Kolb

      March 7, 2011 /
      Philadelphia Eagles quarter back Kevin Kolb dodges Washington Redskins cornerback Phillip Buchanon during third quarter Philadelphia Eagles-Washington Redskins game action in Philadelphia at Lincoln Financial Field October 3, 2010. Kolb replaced Michael Vick who was injured in the first quarter. Washington defeated Philadelphia 17-12. UPI/John Anderson

      ESPN’s Adam Schefter writes that every team in the NFC West outside of the Rams may have interest in trading for Kevin Kolb.

      Teams still can discuss deals, just can’t complete them (like NBA in June). At least three teams debating deals for Eagles QB Kevin Kolb.

      Hard to pinpoint specific teams interested in Kevin Kolb, but every NFC West team except St. Louis has to consider him and deal with Eagles.

      Obviously the Cardinals, 49ers and/or Seahawks can’t do anything until a new CBA deal is in place, but Schefter’s report makes sense based on those teams’ needs.

      That said, would the Cardinals be willing to give up the fifth overall pick in the first round? Would the Niners we willing to give up the seventh? I could see the Seahawks parting ways with the 25th but I’m having a hard time believing that any team would be willing to trade a top-10 pick of Kolb. (Maybe that’s just me.)

      Another team that has to be considered as a potential landing spot for Kolb is the Vikings. They’re going to run a variation of the West Coast Offense under new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave, so Kolb makes a lot of sense for Minnesota. The Vikes hold the 12th overall pick and if they’re willing to draft a quarterback at that spot, why not trade for a more seasoned WCO vet like Kolb instead?

      Of course, this is all based on the assumption that the Eagles even want to part ways with Kolb. I know they franchised Michael Vick, but given his injury history Philadelphia may want to hang onto Kolb for the time being.

      External Sports, NFL

      Which wideouts had the worst hands in 2010?

      March 7, 2011 /
      Green Bay wide receiver James Jones catches an Aaron Rodgers pass in the endzone for the Packer’s third touchdown in the first half of their NFC divisional game against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia January 15, 2011. Atlanta Falcon’s Brent Grimes is defending. UPI/Mark Wallheiser.

      Certain players take a lot of criticism for dropped passes. James Jones was one of those guys in 2010, especially after he missed an opportunity for a huge gainer in Super Bowl XLV.

      The Packers have to decide what to do with Jones this offseason. There was a report that they didn’t offer him a restricted free agent tender, but he says they did. This got me thinking — just how bad were Jones’ drops this year?

      The number of passes that a WR drops is not a stat that is widely available. I found this table over at the Washington Post, which allowed me to calculate each player’s drops as a percentage of their targets:

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      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Could Browns have hired Gruden if Holmgren wanted to?

      March 7, 2011 /

      Peter King mentioned a pretty interesting quote by Browns president Mike Holmgren about former head coaches Bill Cowher and Jon Gruden in his latest edition of Monday Morning Quarterback:

      “Everyone is not privy to the information. I talked to [Bill] Cowher and I talked to [Jon] Gruden and they’re friends of mine. Of course Jon worked for me. There were a lot of reasons why that didn’t happen. In Bill’s case he wasn’t ready to come back and he was very honest about it and we had a very candid conversation. In Jon’s case, he said he would come back for me, but I said I needed a little more than that. You shouldn’t just come back for me, you should want to do this … He really enjoys TV and he’s good at it.”

      — Cleveland president Mike Holmgren, to KJR in Seattle via sportsradiointerviews.com, on considering Jon Gruden and Bill Cowher for his vacant head-coaching job before hiring Pat Shurmur.

      Holmgren’s comments about Cowher make you wonder if the former Pittsburgh head coach will ever return to the sidelines. After the 2011 season, it will be five years since Cowher last coached. As King hits on, will Cowher ever have the hunger it takes to return to the sidelines?

      I don’t have the faintness idea what it’s like to lose a beloved spouse (Cowher lost his wife Kaye to skin cancer seven months ago), but I would have to imagine that one never gets over it. Maybe Cowher will never have the desire to coach again. Maybe the timing will never be right. Or maybe he’ll be ready to return as soon as next year. Who knows?

      As far as Gruden is concerned, I think it was smart of Holmgren not to try and convince Gruden to return to the sidelines if he’s not 100% ready. As Holmgren pointed out, Gruden would have returned to the sidelines if asked, but that’s not what Holmgren wants. He wants somebody that will have the passion to take over a young team in much need of leadership and direction from their head coach. If Gruden wasn’t all in, Holmgren wasn’t going to be either.

      External Sports, NFL

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