I'm trying to confirm this rumor, but it involves The Raiders trading their #7 pick and WR Jerry Porter to The New Orleans Saints and for their #2 pick in the first round of the NFL Draft.
It's no secret that the Saints want to trade down and will not pick Matt Leinart at #2.
Stay tuned.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Falcons Should Draft Michael Vick's Brother Marcus Vick - And Check Out This Video
Yes. The Atlanta Falcons are the best fit for a quarterback some regard as a misfit: Marcus Vick.
Yes, we've seen Michael's brother do some rather stupid things on the field, and read reports of his problems off the field. But I contend that the one person who can help him stabilize and mature is none other than Michael Vick himself.
Plus, it would give the Falcons two of the most effective quarterback's in the NFL and they would secure the one person who many say throws even better than his storied older sibling.
But there are some who think of him as the next Maurice Clarrett or Lawrence Phillips. Ohh. That's bad. It's a comment that makes the younger Vlck angry. "That kind of hurts me," Marcus Vick said to the Associated Press. "Maurice and Lawrence were definitely guys who had a bad past. They're not even in the league anymore. But I'm a hard worker. I'm going to keep on fighting through my ups and downs. That's the difference between me and them."
The organization that picks him should be the Falcons, where exists a great support system for him. Besides, this is the range of things he's done: reckless driving, feeding alcohol to underaged girls, driving on a suspended license, and reportedly pulling a gun on people in front of a fast food restaurant. All of this is bad. But it could be a lot worse. Plus, many of them are the mistakes of immaturity. He can and will grow up in the right environment.
Once he does, the only hell he will raise will be on the football field.
Check out this video of the Vick Brothers.
Profootballtalk.com Reports That Leinart May Slide All The Way To The 17th Pick In The First Round
This could happen. It may simply be because of the idea that USC QB Matt Leinart was the beneficiary of great talent, rather than being a great QB. I personally disagree with this; I think Matt will improve his game. But would I pick him over Vince Young? No.
Here's Mike Florio of www.profootballtalk.com
TEAM LEINART BRACING FOR SLIDE?
At a time when former USC tailback Reggie Bush is dealing with an unwelcome distraction that could disrupt his plan to be the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, his teammate who could have been the first pick in 2004 could now be facing a slide conjuring memories of the Aaron Rodgers plunge in 2005.
A source close to the Leinart camp tells us that Matt's handlers have accepted the reality that the Titans won't be drafting their guy at No. 3, barring a dramatic reversal of the current intention to acquire Texas quarterback Vince Young. Per the source, new Leinart agent Tom Condon has attempted to get some kind of an assurance from each of the teams drafting in the top five -- but has gotten nothing.
At No. 4, the Jets are not expected to draft a quarterback. Word is that they are looking to land Alabama's Brodie Croyle later in the day.
At No. 5, the Packers can't afford to spend another first-rounder on a guy who'll do nothing for them in 2006, especially since Lord Favre is coming back for one more year.
At No. 6, the 49ers have their quarterback in Alex Smith.
We'd initially presumed that the Raiders would take Leinart at No. 7, but we're now hearing from multiple sources that they won't.
The Bills won't touch Leinart at No. 8, unless G.M. Marv Levy is even nuttier than we currently believe.
At No. 9, there's no way the Lions pounce on Leinart.
Then we come to the Cardinals at No. 10. Will Denny Green be able to resist drafting a guy who falls into his lap, just like Randy Moss did eight years ago? We've got the Cardinals taking offensive tackle Winston Justice, given the importance of beefing up the group of guys who are going to be charged with keeping those big-money skill-position players alive.
At No. 11, quarterback is one of the few positions that the Rams have covered.
At No. 12, we can't see the Browns taking Leinart.
Then come the Ravens at No. 13. In our current mock draft, we've got them taking Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler. Though we're feeling a little wishy-washy about whether Brian the Brain will stake his future on another first-round signal-caller, it might be hard for the supposed offensive guru to not take Leinart, if he falls into the team's lap.
And we think that the lowest Leinart would go, if he gets past Baltimore, is Minnesota at No. 17.
So the 2004 Heisman winner won't fall as dramatically as Rodgers did a year ago, when the Jeff Tedford prodigy plunged from potentially being the No. 1 pick all the way to No. 24. But given that Leinart was the presumptive No. 1 choice in 2005, and that he most likely would have been taken by the 49ers with the first pick, the possibility of sliding to No. 10 or lower translates into millions and millions of dollars of money that will never come back.
Off To New York City And The NFL Draft Tonight
I leave on the red-eye and get in Thursday morning. I'm not only going to cover the draft, but all of the events -- the NFL Luncheon and some surprises -- before the Draft.
This year, the NFL Draft's at historic Radio City Music Hall. I'm quite interested to see how this space "works" versus Javitz last year.
Stay tuned!
Brett Favre Elects To Return To Green Bay For One Year - ESPN
I personally believe this could have been handled as a non-issue by the Packers. Moreover, Brett does have the matter of his wife's health to consider. All they had to do was have two plans ready to go: one for if he comes back; one for if he doesn't return. They draft as if he's not going to come back, then they're ready. It made little sense to have this total circus, but we had one. Now, it's over.
From ESPN Wire Service:
Brett Favre informed the Packers on Tuesday that he will definitely play the 2006 season in Green Bay.
The NFL's only three-time MVP shared his decision with general manager Ted Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy in a telephone conversation on Tuesday morning, the sources told ESPN's Chris Mortensen on Tuesday night. Wednesday, Thompson confirmed the news.
"The Green Bay Packers are very pleased that Brett has come to this decision, and look forward to a successful 2006 season," Thompson said in a statement posted on the team's Web site Wednesday.
Packers president and CEO Bob Harlan said he was delighted that Favre was coming back -- something he expected to happen, despite Favre's four months of public wavering on the decision.
"I always said the calendar was working in our favor,'' Harlan said. "If he was going to [retire], he would have told us in January.''
Neither Favre nor McCarthy was available for immediate comment. Bus Cook, Favre's agent, did not return phone inquiries.
Favre, who had a roster bonus pushed back from March to July while he pondered his decision, has said that if he chose to play in 2006 that it would be his final season.
Favre said repeatedly after the 2005 season ended that he wasn't sure if he would come back to play a 16th season, saying he wasn't sure if he wanted to be part of what he saw as a possible long-term rebuilding effort.
Will Aaron Rodgers be a success as Favre's eventual replacement in Green Bay?
Yes
No
He also claimed he wasn't sure if the team wanted him and his hefty salary to be a part of that effort. He hinted that the team's moves in free agency would play a role in his decision to come back. Favre also questioned his own motivation to continue playing.
Favre, 36, is second to Hall of Famer Dan Marino in passing yards, touchdown passes and completions. Marino is the leader with 61,361 yards, followed by Favre with 53,615 and Hall of Famer John Elway with 51,475.
An eight-time Pro Bowl selection, Favre has made an NFL-record 221 consecutive starts for the Packers. He never had a losing record until last season, when Green Bay went 4-12 and he led the league with 29 interceptions.
But the fans at Lambeau Field did not want to see him go. After Green Bay closed a disappointing campaign with a win over Seattle on Jan. 1, Favre left the game with 46 seconds left after throwing for 259 yards and a touchdown and received a thunderous ovation from the sellout crowd.
Favre saluted the fans with a wave and was surrounded by a swarm of photographers as he ran off the field.
Favre extended his NFL-record streak of seasons with at least 20 touchdown passes to 12 and increased his career total to 396. He also established a career high with 372 completions last season, surpassing his previous high of 363 in 1994.
Marino, the NFL's most prolific quarterback, has 420 career TD passes and 4,967 completions.
Favre led the Packers to six division crowns and a Super Bowl title, restoring success to one of the NFL's most famous franchises.
The Packers fired coach Mike Sherman after the final game of the season and replaced him with McCarthy, who was Favre's quarterbacks coach in Green Bay during the 1999 season. They also re-signed running back Ahman Green, who missed most of last season because of a knee injury.
But Favre continued to waffle in the offseason as the Packers struck out on high-profile free agents.
His apparent decision to return comes despite the Packers' failure to answer the quarterback's call to make a "statement" signing in free agency similar to that of Reggie White in the 1990s.
Sticking to Thompson's stated philosophy of not splurging for the sake of splurging in the free-agent market, the Packers lost veteran kicker Ryan Longwell to the division rival Minnesota Vikings and lost out in the bidding for a potential replacement, free-agent kicker Adam Vinatieri, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts.
The Packers' two most high-profile free-agent signings have been former St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Ryan Pickett and former Seattle Seahawks safety Marquand Manuel. The team has also re-signed fullback William Henderson and wide receiver Rod Gardener.
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