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Volume 8, Issue 85 (Wednesday, July 18th)LIMITED TIME OFFERS THIS WEEK ONLY: 5% off of FantasyHeadquarters.com fantasy football league entry fees! Click Here!Your Mantra, "DOMINATE IN 2007". Your Action... Purchase Excellent FF Book with 40% Discount code... FBG Hi Folks, Hope you're doing better than Mike Vick and Arthur Blank this morning. Our first two news stories feature a couple of opinions as to how this might play out for Vick. I'm not sure how it'll go although the feeling Wednesday night seems to be that both the league and the Falcons are taking a wait and see approach. Amazingly, Arthur Blank hasn't asked me for counsel but here's what I'd do if I owned the Falcons. I'd spend the next 48 hours pouring every resource I had into determining how accurate these allegations are. I'd want to know everything about every witness that's named here and I'd want to know everything about every charge that's in that indictment. More pointedly, I want to know as well as I can what the chances are that the charges are true. I'm going to guess that I'd find out that from what I know of Federal indictments, the prosecution is going to be able to prove some, if not all of these charges. I'd guess they are going to be able to place a legit witness on the stand that under oath says Mike Vick killed pups that weren't up to grade and Mike Vick was an active part of the dog fight operation and Mike Vick was an active participant in the dog fighting events and Mike Vick won and lost a lot of money gambling on dog fights. If that's the case, I'd get rid of him Friday. Whether it's release or suspend or whatever it is that was best to protect myself, I make a clean break and move on with a fresh start. The fallout would be awful. Blank would be called everything from racist to bigot to the Duke Prosecutor to laughingstock. But I'd still do it. I'd cut Vick loose and wish him well. It wouldn't be personal. It would be about protecting the business of my team. There are lots worse things that can happen than Joey Harrington or Daunte Culpepper quarterbacking your team. OK, not "lots" worse but there are worse things. I'd try that path. Because the path with Vick isn't working anymore. Sorry for the rant. Let me step down off the soapbox as we've got lots of News and Notes plus a TON of new content on the website. You're going to be busy here. Let's get to it. JSITE NEWS A.
Footballguys Podcast Interview Transcript - Vito Stellino (JAX)
B.
The Big Picture - Tracking Status And Change For Every Team
C.
Opportunity Breeds Success
D.
Wide Receivers That Change Teams
E.
Keys to Training Camp: AFC South
F.
Keys to Training Camp: NFC East
G.
Managing Risk on Your 2007 Fantasy Roster
H.
Pre-Camp Buy Low/Sell High - Quarterbacks
I.
Average Magazine Rankings
J.
Footballguys Podcast - The Audible - Jeff Duncan (NO)
K.
Footballguys Podcast - The Audible - Brian Terry From Phear Creative
INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1. ATL - Can Falcons QB Vick Expect Suspension From NFL?2. ATL - NFL May Proceed With Caution In Vick Case 3. ATL - Falcons Sign Three Draft Picks 4. CIN - HC Lewis Wants More Yards Per Rush 5. PIT - Steelers G Faneca Auditioning for 2008 6. NYG - Giants QB Wright Slated As Top Backup 7. PIT - Extension For QB Roethlisberger Will Wait 8. DET - Lions Rookie WR Johnson Remains Unsigned 9. NE - Patriots Make It Official: Re-Sign WR Brown 10. DEF - SEA - Seahawks Grant Moving To Strong Safety ATL - Can Falcons QB Vick Expect Suspension From NFL? Source: Jason Cole, Yahoo! Sports According to Jason Cole at Yahoo! Sports, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick can expect to face a suspension from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell as the result of his indictment in connection with dog fighting in Virginia. "Where (Vick) is in the most trouble is that he lied to the commissioner," an anonymous league source said. "He told (Goodell) in April that he didn't know anything about this. The commissioner gave (Vick) every chance to come clean, be straight about what was going on. Instead, he just kept denying it." [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] This is what we were saying yesterday about Vick's meeting at the NFL Draft. It's one thing to be in trouble. It's another thing to be in trouble then get caught in a face to face lie to the one guy that controls your fate. Even more worrisome is the timing. Here are the two items that I'm having a hard time reconciling. #1 From the indictment: "In or about April of 2007, Peace, Phillips and Vick executed approximately eight dogs that did not perform well in 'testing' sessions at 1915 Moonlight Road by various methods, including hanging, drowning and slamming at least one dog's body to the ground." #2 from our Email Update 7/18: "As (NFL Network's Adam) Schefter said, Goodell and Vick had a meeting on April 28 at the NFL Draft where Vick told Goodell that he was not involved in the dogfighting and that he was rarely present at the house in Virginia." We haven't lived long with enough Mr. Goodell to know everything. But I think we all know he's not a guy that takes being made the fool very lightly. If Vick is killing puppies that won't fight aggressively enough one day and a few days later is smiling to the commissioner looking him in the eye saying he's not involved, that will not sit well with Goodell. And unfortunately for Vick, how this sits with Goodell plays a huge role in how this goes. Stay tuned.ATL - NFL May Proceed With Caution In Vick Case Source: Peter King, SI.com The most telling 23 words regarding Michael Vick's immediate future as a football player came late in the NFL's statement about the alleged heinous, dastardly and despicable acts that led to charges being filed against the former savior of the Atlanta Falcons. Michael Vick's guilt has not yet been proven, and we believe that all concerned should allow the legal process to determine the facts. With that, rookie commissioner Roger Goodell sent a strong message: This is not going to be the Duke lacrosse case. The NFL is not going to preemptively strike against a player with a relatively clean slate, as Vick has. And to those who want Goodell to take Vick off the field for 2007, such as the Humane Society of United States, the league is in full agreement that the allegations are grievous ones. But Vick hasn't had 10 run-ins with the law, like Pacman Jones. He hasn't been arrested as many times as Chris Henry. So Goodell is not going to ban him from the game. Not now, at least, from all appearances.[ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] Peter King offers a different view point and opinion than Jason Cole. King seems to feel that the league will take the public relations hit that will surely follow and ride this out while the legal system handles this. ATL - Falcons Sign Three Draft Picks Source: Steve Wyche, Atlanta Journal-Constitution The Atlanta Falcons signed third-round pick WR Laurent Robinson, fourth-round pick TE Martrez Milner and sixth-round C Doug Datish Wednesday. Atlanta still has five more players to sign. All three players signed four-year deals. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] Believe it or not, the Falcons do have other players on the team besides Mike Vick. They added three more yesterday. CIN - HC Lewis Wants More Yards Per Rush Source: Mark Curnutte, Cincinnati Enquirer In a question-and-answer session with the Cincinnati Enquirer and Bengals.com, Bengals HC Marvin Lewis addressed several topics Tuesday morning. The first thing he said he wanted to emphasize was their yards per carry, saying "our yards per carry are important." Last season, the offensive line was without bookends tackles Willie Anderson and Levi Jones for several games last season, and RB Rudi Johnson had a career low per-carry average. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] I love how Marvin Lewis toys with the press at times. Of course he wants a better yard per rush. He also wants to avoid turnovers, be efficient in the Red Zone and limit the other team's big plays. Like every coach. Kidding aside, the team should be able to run the ball more effectively if they can keep their offensive line healthy and together. A healthier Carson Palmer will likely be a factor as well in keeping the defense honest. PIT - Steelers G Faneca Auditioning for 2008 Source: Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post Gazette.com Pittsburgh pro-bowl guard Alan Faneca reiterated today that he will be in attendance at the team's training camp this Monday, but that he won't be happy about it. Faneca is entering the final year of his contract but says he has not received a worthy extension offer and therefore has has little to no hope of continuing his career with the Steelers. "It's about playing with the guys next to you and playing for a job as well. It's a true sense of playing for a job, it just happens to be somewhere else the following year," Faneca said. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] Expect to hear some grumbling from Faneca but I don't expect this to be a significant factor for 2007. Faneca is a pro and he'll come to work everyday and do his job well. He's not the kind of guy that will let down in blocking for Willie Parker or protecting Ben Roethlisberger because he's mad at the front office. Big deal for 2008 but not a big deal for now. NYG - Giants QB Wright Slated As Top Backup Source: Adam Streicher, Giants.com Of the three backup QBs for the New York Giants, veteran Anthony Wright appears to have the backup position locked up. His 19 starts and 28 games played dwarf that of QB Tim Hasselbeck's five starts or zero starts for QB Jared Lorenzen. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] This is terrible news if you're like me and a fan of Jared Lorenzen. How can you not like a 6' 4" 285 pound QB? PIT - Extension For QB Roethlisberger Will Wait Source: Ed Bouchette, Pittsburgh Post Gazette Amid contract negotiations with S Troy Polamalu, talks that generated between the Steelers and QB Ben Roethlisberger earlier this spring will be put on hold until next offseason. Roethlisberger will still have two years remaining on his contract next summer on a deal he signed in 2004. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] An extension might have been nice but this doesn't seem like any big deal. Expect Roethlisberger to go out and play as well as ever this year. DET - Lions Rookie WR Johnson Remains Unsigned Source: Nicholas J. Cotsonika, Detroit Free Press With only a week before training camp, No. 2 overall draft pick WR Calvin Johnson remains unsigned by the Detroit Lions. Johnson's agent Bus Cook and Lions Chief Operating Officer Tom Lewand initially spoke Monday. But as is typically the case with early draft picks, they will try and wait until another draft pick in front or behind them is signed. Raiders top pick QB Jarcus Russell's negotiations are reportedly going slowly. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] I always hate this time of year when agents play "chicken" with the team to see which side blinks first. It shouldn't be that hard. Johnson has a fantastic opportunity with this Mike Martz offense but he needs to be there for as much as he possibly can. Let's hope they get a deal worked out soon. NE - Patriots Make It Official: Re-Sign WR Brown Source: NFL.com As has been rumored for the past few weeks, the New England Patriots announced on Tuesday that they have officially re-signed free agent wide receiver Troy Brown to a one-year contract. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] Just making official what we reported for you last week. Brown will be a quality guy to have around and he'll hopefully be a good influence for fellow Marshall alum Randy Moss. DEF - SEA - Seahawks Grant Moving To Strong Safety Source: Doug Farrar, Seahawks.net S Deon Grant told the NFL Network that he'll be manning the strong safety position for Seattle this season. Grant will add some weight to his 6"2', 210 pound body and join Brian Russell as the other starter. Grant filled in for SS Donovan Darius in Jacksonville last season. "I guess (the coaching staff) saw enough (on film) last year," Grant said. Grant was signed to a six-year contact (worth in excess of $30 million) with the Seahawks in March of 2007, The signing bonus of $11 million is said to be the highest for any safety in league history, and makes Grant the third-highest paid safety behind Dallas Roy Williams and Baltimore's Ed Reed. Grant would replace Michael Boulware at the strong safety position. Boulware came on strong in his rookie year of 2004, but the Florida State graduate was benched for several games last year after proving to be ineffective against the pass.[ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ [ OUR VIEW ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] ] You IDP guys take note here. Grant's pulling down big dollars for a safety and the team will be expecting a lot from him. That'll do it for today, Folks. Have a great Thursday and we'll see you tomorrow with the update. J |
