Category: NFL (Page 460 of 1282)

McNabb to the Vikings? Don’t count on it being this year.

Thanks to Andy Reid’s admission that the Eagles are at least entertaining trade discussions with other teams about all three of their quarterbacks, Donovan McNabb has become a hot topic over the last 24 hours. (And more specifically, where McNabb could wind up if he is traded.)

The latest buzz comes from the Philadelphia Inquirer, which notes that the Vikings are atop McNabb’s trade wish list if things don’t work out in Philadelphia. Minnesota makes sense given that McNabb once played under head coach Brad Childress and is therefore familiar with the Vikings’ West Coast Offense. They’re also a contender, which is what McNabb wants to join if he is dealt.

But there’s a simple reason why McNabb won’t be a Viking in 2010: Brett Favre.

All right, so I don’t know for a fact that Brett is coming back. But the lack of buzz surrounding his decision this year is an indication (to me anyway) that he does plan to return. And the fact that Childress has said on multiple occasions that Favre can take his time with the decision is another indication that Brett is indeed coming back, but only on his terms (i.e. he’d rather crawl through a pit of used paper diapers then go to training camp). It seems to me that if Childress didn’t know whether or not Favre would return, he would be more unsettled in his comments to the media. After all, this is the same man that went through hell and high water to insure that the 40-year-old QB would play last season. So I’m not buying his newfound calmness.

McNabb seems like more of a fit for the Vikings in 2011. Even if he is traded this offseason, there’s no guarantee that he’ll sign a contract extension with whichever team he winds up with. Therefore, if he wants to play for Minnesota next year, he could sign a free agent contract with them in the offseason.

But as far as 2010 is concerned, I highly doubt we’ll see McNabb suiting up for the purple and white.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

Eagles want a top 42 pick for McNabb

NBCSports.com is reporting that the Eagles are willing to trade quarterback Donovan McNabb, but only for a top 42 pick.

After months of saying McNabb would return for another year, Eagles coach Andy Reid acknowledged Wednesday he was listening to offers for McNabb, Kevin Kolb and Michael Vick.

Oakland, Buffalo and St. Louis are considered to be most interested in McNabb. Each team has two picks in the top 42.

It’s unlikely any of those teams would give up a first-round pick for McNabb. The Rams have the first overall selection, the Raiders pick eighth and the Bills are ninth. In the second round, however, the Rams have the 33rd pick, Raiders are 39th and Bills are 41st.

A rumored deal that would’ve sent McNabb to St. Louis for the 33rd pick and safety Oshiomoghe Atogwe was strongly denied by several Rams officials, including coach Steve Spagnuolo.

Outside of needing a quarterback, none of the three teams mentioned above make sense as a suitor for McNabb. Even if the Eagles were to accept a second round pick from the Raiders, Bills or Rams, what makes any of those teams believe that McNabb would be the missing link between them being the doormats in the league and a playoff contender?

Not to mention, McNabb’s contract expires at the end of the year. So unless whatever team acquires him can convince him to sign an extension, he’ll be on lease for one season. Is that worth giving up a second round pick? If said team can sign him to an extension then my opinion changes a bit, but it still doesn’t make a ton of sense for the Raiders, Bills or Rams to take a flier on McNabb when he clearly won’t be a long-term solution.

Either way, if the source in the report is telling the truth, then maybe the Kevin Kolb era in Philadelphia is going to get kicked off sooner rather than later.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

Rams begin contract negotiations with Bradford

Sorry for the fake out headline, but the Rams have actually begun preliminary contract negotiations with Ndamukong Suh and Gerald McCoy too – not just Bradford. (Oh, whatever – you might as well stay and read the entire article now.)

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

“All the people who are in the discussion (for No. 1 overall), we’ve talked to their agents,” Demoff said. “We’re really just comparing notes. Also, it may take some time, so we figured we’d get a head start.”

In the past two drafts, the No. 1 overall pick (quarterback Matthew Stafford and offensive tackle Jake Long) had their contracts completed before the draft. But Demoff said that isn’t necessarily the goal for St. Louis.

“The goal is to get the right deal for the right player that you want to draft,” Demoff said. “If that happens before the draft, great. If it doesn’t happen before the draft, then we’ll spend May, June and July working on it.”

According to the report, the Rams have also had contact with Jimmy Clausen’s agent and while nothing has been confirmed yet, the team plans on talking with the representatives for all 600 draft-eligible players as well. Don’t laugh – the Rams can’t screw this one up. Kicker Leigh Tiffin had a great year for Alabama and he’s going to be sitting there with the top overall pick so the Rams have to do their due diligence here.

I don’t know if this means anything, but I find it interesting that the article essentially refers to Clausen as a throw in (oh-by-the-way, Clausen’s people were also contacted, although that’s because the Rams mistakenly thought they were ordering Thai food). That tells me that they’re down to Bradford, Suh and McCoy. If that’s indeed the case, then I’m sticking with my latest mock draft projection in that they’ll select Bradford at No. 1.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

Woman being uncooperative in Roethlisberger case

According to KDKA 2 in Pittsburgh, the women accusing Steelers’ QB Ben Roethlisberger of sexual assault has declined to be re-interviewed by the police. She has already skipped one interview, so it appears that the case is falling apart.

Not only do prosecutors apparently not have any physical evidence of a crime, they may also be lacking a cooperating victim at this point.

Sources close to the investigation say that investigators have had trouble re-interviewing the woman since the night of the incident.

Sources say the 20-year-old co-ed did not show up for a scheduled interview a week ago yesterday and that as of Friday she still had not come in to be questioned.

Del Greco says if the victim does not cooperate, the case falls apart.

“Bottom line is no cooperative victim under these circumstances, probably no crime,” he said.

It’s very possible that the young woman is so traumatized by the situation that she is afraid and embarrassed to come forward. But why would she make these allegations in the first place if she wasn’t prepared to step forward and do what’s necessary to ensure that these charges go through?

If Roethlisberger is guilty of something, then I hope that the woman finds the strength and courage to step up and be interviewed by police. But as of right now, it’s hard not to draw conclusions that Big Ben did nothing wrong and this is just another case of someone looking for a big pay off from an athlete.

Update: The alleged victim’s lawyer is now saying that his client will cooperate with police and that she will re-schedule the interview.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

Donovan McNabb to Rams? Trade rumor debunked.

Earlier today, Andy Reid admitted that teams are entertaining the Eagles with offers for all three of their quarterbacks and not soon after, the Internet rumor mill went into hyper mode as people dreamed up possibly landing spots for Donovan McNabb, Kevin Kolb and/or Michael Vick.

The least juiciest rumor comes from Ashley Fox of the Philadelphia Inquirer, who writes that there is little-to-no market for Vick as a starting quarterback. Apparently even teams like the Rams and Bills aren’t interested in him, even if the Eagles would be willing to back off their ridiculous demands of a second-round pick. If Philly does put him back on the market, it may have to take a mid-round selection and the team acquiring Vick would also get to punch one member of the Eagles’ front office staff for even having the notion that they could get a second-rounder in return for the QB.

The more intriguing rumors started developing earlier this afternoon as the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported that the Browns are not among the teams entertaining trade proposals for McNabb. The Philadelphia Daily News then reported that Reid and McNabb haven’t spoken in months and that the team lowered its asking price from two-first round picks and a third, to only a second-rounder.

Continue reading »

« Older posts Newer posts »