Thursday, June 7, 2012

Santonio Holmes has meltdown at Jets' practice


Santonio HolmesAP
Last season Jets receiver Santonio Holmes was widely regarded as a divisive figure in the team’s locker room. A report out of today’s Organized Team Activity suggests that Holmes still needs an attitude adjustment.
Rich Cimini of ESPNNewYork.com reports that Holmes was “disgusted” and “bothered” today when he felt that the Jets’ coaches were working him too hard, that Holmes “staged a mini-meltdown” and that he “exchanged words with receivers coach Sanjay Lal.”
After the practice session, Holmes confirmed that he thought the coaches were asking too much of him and that he wanted to ease back into things after missing much of the Jets’ voluntary offseason work while visiting an Air Force base in Germany.
“I was talking to the coach, letting him understand it was too many reps today,” Holmes said. “I’ve been gone for a while, so I can’t be at full tempo like the rest of the guys and where they want us to be at.”
Of course, there was nothing stopping Holmes from working out on his own while he was in Germany so that he could be in good enough shape to keep up with his teammates when he returned. But Jets coach Rex Ryan apparently wasn’t too bothered by Holmes wanting to do less work today.
“He’s a veteran guy, he knows his body,” Ryan said.
And Holmes knows his body isn’t ready to go all-out for a full practice right now, and he’s making sure his position coach knows that, too.



Calvin Johnson determined to get better

Anwar Richardson - MLive


Calvin Johnson TDDetroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson has achieved nearly every individual honor imaginable as he enters his sixth NFL season.
Johnson is regarded as the NFL's best receiver, with Houston's Andre Johnson and Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald usually in that conversation. He was rewarded with the largest contract of any NFL receiver in history this offseason(seven-years, $132 million). Johnson will also appear on the cover of this year's Madden NFL 13 game.
Despite all of Johnson's accolades, the 26-year old believes he still has room from improvement heading into this season.

Jags cut ties with Kampman


Aaron KampmanAP
Defensive end Aaron Kampman’s injury-ravaged stay in Jacksonville has come to an end.
The Jaguars announced that they released Kampman on Thursday. The move isn’t surprising. Kampman hasn’t been able to practice at all this offseason and wasn’t going to be able to get on the field until training campwas already underway, which doesn’t really work when you’re set to make $4.975 million in 2012.
Kampman was coming off a torn ACL when he signed a four-year deal with the Jags before the 2010 season and then tore the ACL in his other knee after eight games. He played three games last season before learning that he would miss the rest of the season because he needed another operation to clean out the knee. Overall, Kampman had four sacks in 11 games for the Jaguars which is far less than they hoped to get from a player who had 54 of them in eight generally healthy years with Green Bay.
The Jaguars will move forward with Jeremy MinceyTerrance Knighton,Tyson Alualu and second-round pick Andre Branch on the defensive line this season. Kampman will need to get healthy to get a shot with another team.



Pats couldn't trade Ochocinco, so they cut him


Super Bowl XLVIGetty Images
Chad Ochocinco is on the way out in New England.
The Patriots attempted to trade Ochocinco and weren’t able to find any takers, and as a result they’ll release him, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Ochocinco’s departure comes after just one season in New England, a season in which he contributed almost nothing to the offense: He caught just 15 passes for 276 yards in 2011.
The 34-year-old Ochocinco, who was once a Pro Bowler with the Bengals and a consistent 1,000-yard receiver, will now become an unrestricted free agent. Given that the Patriots weren’t able to find any takers on the trade market — and given his weak production in New England last season — he’s likely going to find few teams interested in his services in free agency.
Ochocinco joins Terrell OwensBraylon Edwards and Plaxico Burress as once-productive veteran receivers who are now on the free agent market, and who seem to be viewed as more trouble than they’re worth by most NFL teams.



Polamalu: The Tebow offense was so predictable, it was unpredictable

Posted by Michael David Smith on June 7, 2012, 2:50 PM EDT

 

Steelers safety Troy Polamalu isn’t taking anything away from Tim Tebow or the Denver team that beat Pittsburgh in the playoffs, but five months later he’s still baffled that the offense the Broncos were running with Tebow at the helm was able to beat the Steelers.

Polamalu told Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports that he’s accustomed to playing against complex offenses in the NFL, and he never believed an offense as simplistic as the one Tebow ran in Denver could be as successful as that offense was in that game.

“It was an incredibly simple offense that you just don’t think can work in this league, but it worked for them with the kind of talent they had,” Polamalu said.

Polamalu said the Broncos’ offense became so predictable that it was actually unpredictable: The Steelers would be sure the Broncos weren’t going to run the same play over and over again because NFL offenses just don’t do that, and yet the Broncos did it.

“There’s no way they’re going to run that same route again,” Polamalu says he was thinking during the game. “As a safety, part of your job is to eliminate certain routes that you don’t think they’re going to run. I would line up and say, ‘They ran that the last time, there’s no way they’re going to run it again.’ Then they did. The next time, ‘There’s no way they’re going to run that again,’ then they did.”

Whether Tebow can eventually become a quarterback capable of playing well enough to win consistently in an NFL offense remains to be seen — and the Broncos’ decision to trade him suggests that they have their doubts. But at times last season Tebow was very effective, doing things that you wouldn’t think could work in the NFL.

 

 

 

Ochocinco not cut, yet

Patriots Chad Ochocinco has his gloves stuck in his face mask during a practice for the NFL Super Bowl XLVI in IndianapolisReuters
The only thing keeping Chad Ochocinco from joiningTerrell Owens on the NFL’s more accurate Mr. Irrelevant list is the fact that Ochocinco still has a job with an NFL team.  Despite rampant rumors to the contrary, that has not changed.
Yet.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Ochocinco remains a member of the Patriots as of this posting, despite multiple accounts that he was cut.
The team’s official website reports he wasn’t present for Thursday’s practice.  And the Twitter feed for Patriots.com openly asks whether Chad will still be a member of the team at the end of the day.
We don’t know the answer to that question.  But we do know that, as of right now, he hasn’t been cut.
Earlier in the offseason, Ochocinco agreed to drop his base salary from $3 million to $1 million in 2012.  Agent Drew Rosenhaus later said that Chad has unfinished business in New England, which prompted us to point out that some would say Chad’s business was still unstarted.
Though it may never get started, it hasn’t ended.
Yet.
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Fans voted Saints best NFL offense, did they get it right?



If you talk about the 2011 Saints, it is hard to argue.  But with the loss of Meachum and Nicks, Drew Brees' contract issue lingering, and no Sean Payton this season, I am not sure that the Saints will dominate in 2012. 


Lawrence Vickers had ants in his pants, literally


Lawrence VickersAP
Many people have been described as having ants in their pants, but Cowboys fullbackLawrence Vickers knows the reality of the situation.
Vickers hurried off the field during Cowboys practice on Wednesday with what Brent Shirley of the Fort Worth Star-Telegramthought was a groin injury. It didn’t turn out to be a muscular problem that caused Vickers to leave practice, however. It turns out that his pants were infested by ants, which is problematic since Vickers is allergic to the critters.

Forte doesn't need to be highest paid, just wants respect


Matt+Forte+San+Diego+Chargers+v+Chicago+Bears+h7pTRZWJlvwlGetty Images
Matt Forte wants everyone to know that he’s not trying to land the biggest contract of any running back in the NFL.
Forte was on the NFL Network Wednesday night after he was named the 33rd best player in the league in the network’s players poll and was asked whether he was hoping to become the best-paid back in football. Forte said that he wasn’t looking for anything more than a contract that recognized his place among the league’s best backs. He was also asked about feeling disrespected during the negotiation process.

Thursday morning one-liners


Dez Bryant PicGetty Images
Bills third-year WR Marcus Easley is just getting started.
The Dolphins are marketing themselves as a football team.
ESPN Boston’s Field Yates analyzes the Patriots’ secondary.
Former Jets RB Curtis Martin is en route to Canton.
Rookie LB Courtney Upshaw will fit in nicely with the Ravens.

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Eli Manning only 31st in the Top 100 Players?


Giants quarterback Manning holds the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Giants defeated the Patriots  in the NFL Super Bowl XLVI football game in IndianapolisReuters
When NFL Network unveiled its list of the Top 100 players as voted on by their peers last year, one of the biggest subjects of debate was why Eli Manning didn’t make the list. When Manning won the Super Bowl MVP in February, it was obvious that Manning would make the list this year, and he has made it: Manning checks in at No. 31 on this year’s list.
That ranking is already drawing criticism in New York, where some are wondering what more Manning could have done than lead the Giants to another Super Bowl title to get himself into the Top 30.
Among quarterbacks, Manning ranks fifth, a year after he was criticized by some for saying he considers himself one of the Top 5 quarterbacks in the NFL. The Top 30 players haven’t been revealed yet, but it’s obvious from looking at the players whose spots in the Top 100 haven’t come up yet that Aaron RodgersDrew Brees and Tom Brady (in some order) will be the top three quarterbacks, andBen Roethlisberger will be the fourth quarterback ranked ahead of Manning.
The whole Top 100 thing is just supposed to be a fun exercise in seeing how NFL players rate their fellow players, but it’s something for fans to talk about during the offseason. We’re sure PFT Planet will have plenty to say about Manning’s ranking.
How do you think Eli should be ranked?  Higher, Lower, or just right?  Get in on the conversation and cast your vote!


6-year old boy pays Brandon Jacobs to stay with Giants


Sporting News
Brandon Jacobs was released this offseason by the Giants, but at least one fan is opening up the piggy bank to get the running back to return to New York.
Jacobs, who has signed with the 49ers, posted a letter to Twitter on Tuesday night he received from a 6-year-old boy named Joe. At the start of the letter, Joe's mom explains how her son became a fan of the team and how he was disappointed to see Jacobs depart to San Francisco. The mother had to explain that the Giants "didn't have enough money" to keep Jacobs, who was owed $5 million.
Brandon Jacobs said he plans on visiting the 6-year-old boy who sent him $3.36 in hopes it would be enough to get him back on the New York Giants. (Twitter photo)
In the letter, Joe writes:
"Dear Brandon Jacobs,
So you could go to the Giants, here is my money.
Love, Joe"
Attached is a plastic bag of singles and change totaling $3.36.
Jacobs later tweeted, "I almost cried, I am still trying to hold it in. I may have to pay him a surprise visit."
The Giants parted ways with the bruising back after seven seasons in New York, the last of which included just 571 rush yards in Jacobs' 14 games.
In a sports landscape crowded with big contracts and bigger egos, Joe's letter is a nice reminder that fans weren't always jaded, and money wasn't always everything. Think hard enough, and maybe you'll recall a similar memory.
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Banner out as President in Philly


JoeBannerAPAP
After the dust had fully settled on a disappointing season that seemed to entail minimal changes to the coaching staff and front office, the Eagles have finally dropped a bomb.
According to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer,Joe Banner is no longer the president of the team.
Banner, a childhood friend of owner Jeffrey Lurie, has worked for the franchise since Lurie purchased it in 1994.  Banner will now serve as a strategic adviser, but he is able to seek other work.

Vinny Curry injured in what could be another OTA violation


Vinny CurryAP
Add the Eagles to the list of teams that will now be bracing for the long arm of the “live contact” law to take away future OTA sessions.
Bob Grotz of the Times Herald reports that rookie second-round Eagles defensive endVinny Curry sprained an ankle during practice on Tuesday, which caused him to miss practice on Wednesday.  Per Grotz, the injury happened while Curry was attempting to execute a “bull rush” against tackle D.J. Jones.

New-look Julio Jones looking great in camp


Falcons FootballAP
With the Browns hoping to get the most out of the quarterback they acquired with one of the various picks that the Falcons shipped to Cleveland in 2011 for receiver Julio Jones, the Falcons need to get the most out of Jones.
A nagging hamstring injury kept him from having a big impact during his rookie season, but Jones is looking good so far during the offseason.  He’s also looking different; he’s cut his hair.
“There is a little less weight on the top of his head with his dreads gone, but he’s had a very good camp for us as you saw today,” coach Mike Smith said Wednesday, via D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.  “He made some very nice catches and he’s been making those types of catches all through camp.”

Browns allegedly didn't like Griffin, Tannehill or Flynn


Brandon WeedenAP
As the Browns move closer and closer to making a baseball player of the past their quarterback of the present (and, presumably, future), more information is trickling out regarding why the Browns opted to acquireBrandon Weeden with the 22nd overall pick in the draft.
Tony Grossi of ESPNCleveland.com looks at why the Browns wanted Weeden and, perhaps more intriguingly, explores why they didn’t want some of the other quarterbacks who were available.