TheDailyBlitz.com

Despite earlier reports that Packers linebacker Clay Matthews won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, Matthews actually finished a close second in AP voting.

Instead, this year's award goes to Steelers safety Troy Polamalu (see past winners).

In 14 games this season, Polamalu tied his previous career-high of seven interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown, one sack, one forced fumble and 63 tackles.

Teammate James Harrison, who won the award in 2008, finished third in this year's voting.

So, not only are the top three votegetters playing in Super Bowl XLV (discuss game here), but the past three winners are as well. Last year, Packers cornerback Charles Woodson won the award.

It's the first time that Polamalu won the award and he becomes the sixth Steeler to earn the honor. In addition to Polamalu and Harrison, other Steeler winners include cornerback Rod Woodson (1993), Jack Lambert (1976), Mel Blount (1975) and "Mean" Joe Greene (1974, 1972).

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 08:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Philadelphia Eagles will apply the franchise tag to quarterback Michael Vick next month, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Per Schefter, that means that the Eagles will "entertain offers" for backup quarterback Kevin Kolb, who is under contract for the 2011 season at a salary of $1.4 million.

Plenty of teams are in need of an upgrade at quarterback and as Schefter points out, Kolb will be the most sought-after quarterback this off-season.

In 12 games last year, Vick threw for 3,018 yards and 21 touchdowns, which are both career-highs. In addition, he rushed for 676 yards and a career-high nine touchdowns.

From a fantasy perspective, Vick averaged just shy of double-digit fantasy points (119.6 points in 12 games) from his rushing statistics alone in standard-league scoring.

To put that into perspective, only 22 running backs had more fantasy points from rushing stats alone than Vick, who missed four-plus games. Of those 22 running backs, only 12 averaged more fantasy points per game from rushing than Vick did.

At this point, Vick will be one of my top two fantasy quarterbacks for 2011 along with Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers. (Discuss who should be the first fantasy quarterback drafted in our forums.)

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Two seasons ago, Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson became only the sixth NFL running back to surpass the 2,000-yard milestone. In addition, he set the NFL single-season record for yards from scrimmage.

While it was a stretch, Johnson's goal for himself in 2010 was to reach 2,500 rushing yards.

He wasn't even close.

Johnson finished the 2010 season with 1,364 rushing yards -- or 1,136 yards short of his stated goal.

So, what is Johnson's goal for 2011?

“I have the same goal: 2,500,’’ Johnson said, per Jim Wyatt of The Tennessean. “I want to win more, but I still have the same goals. I want to go for 2,500. It is very realistic. I had a good season last year.

"I know a lot of people said I didn’t have a good year, but I did. When you put the stats up there, I had a good year. Some people say I had a bad year, but I set my standards so high people expect that.’’

While Johnson's goal may not be "very realistic" or even remotely realistic, he has as good of a chance as anyone to lead the league in rushing in 2011.

Speaking of which, discuss who should be the first running back drafted in 2011 fantasy football leagues in our forums.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 05:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Steelers rookie center Maurkice Pouncey left the AFC Championship game after suffering a high-ankle sprain, which put his status for Super Bowl XLV in doubt.

Despite suffering the injury, Pouncey initially said that he expected to play in the Super Bowl.

Based on teammate Chris Kemoeatu's comments, however, Pouncey won't play.

"We are definitely sad that he won’t be able to be with us in the Super Bowl,” Kemoeatu said, per Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “Definitely I feel bad for him. We just have to win it for him.”

If Pouncey, the team's first-round pick in 2010, can't play, Doug Legursky would start in his place.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 06:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A suburban Chicago car dealership cut ties (pun intended) with a salesman for wearing (and refusing to remove) his Green Bay Packers' necktie.

One day after the Packers beat the Bears to advance to Super Bowl XLV (discuss game here), salesman John Stone was fired after he refused to remove his tie.

“He said, ‘You have two options,’” a furious Stone said later Monday, per Kim Janssen of the Chicago Sun-Times. “Remove the tie, or you’re fired. When I didn’t, he said, ‘You can leave, you’re fired.’ Does that sound fair to you?”

Jerry Roberts, the general manager of the Oak Lawn (IL) Chevrolet dealership, said it would have been "salting the wounds" of Bears fans and potential customers.

“We spend $20,000 a month on advertising with the Bears on WBBM during the season, and we have Bears players including Corey Wootten driving loaner vehicles, and here was a salesman openly undoing that work,” Roberts said.

One dealership's loss may be another dealership's gain.

In addition to already receiving an employment offer from another dealership, Stone said, “a guy called from Wisconsin, saying he’ll buy a Tahoe from me.”

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Former NFL running back and Olympian Herschel Walker, who's preparing for his second MMA fight, will turn 49 years old on March 3rd, which coincidentally is the day the NFL's collective bargaining agreement (CBA) expires.

Walker, who will fight Scott Carson on Saturday night, made an interesting comment (joke, I think) during a conference call yesterday to promote the fight.

"I've told everyone that at 50 I might try football again to show people I can do that," Walker said, per ESPN's Franklin McNeil. "I want to be the George Foreman of football, come back and do that one more time."

Priding himself on his conditioning, Walker says that he would play for two teams: Atlanta or Minnesota.

"I'm a much better-conditioned athlete now than when I was playing football," Walker said. "I'm 48 and in better shape now than I was when I was in my early 20s, playing football."

Well, if that's the case, imagine how many draft picks he'd be worth in 2011?

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Bengals receivers Terrell Owens, who will be a free agent soon, and Chad Ochocinco, who's under contract for 2011, most likely will play for a team other than the Cincinnati Bengals in 2011 (provided there is a 2011 season).

If T.O. and Ochocinco had their choice, their stated preference would be the New York Jets.

“They will make it to this point every year,” Chad Ochocinco said of the Jets reaching the AFC Championship Game, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. “I’d do anything to play for someone like Rex Ryan or anyone who has that type of mentality.”

“I’m jumping on that bandwagon, too, because I was thinking the exact same thing, Chad,” Owens said.

Previously, Ochocinco tweeted Ian Rapoport of the Boston Herald about playing with the Patriots. At the Senior Bowl, Rapoport asked Bengals coach Marvin Lewis about that to which Lewis responded, “Belichick’s smarter than that.”

Although it's unlikely that Owens and/or Ochocinco will land in New York, it would certainly be entertaining.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As you already know, Bears quarterback Jay Cutler missed the majority of the second half of yesterday's NFC Championship Game with a knee injury, which turned out to be a Grade II MCL sprain/tear.

Plenty of current and former NFL players have criticized Cutler for being a wuss.

Plenty of folks associated with the Bears organization, such as coach Lovie Smith, general manager Jerry Angelo, teammate Brian Urlacher and Hall-of-Famer Dick Butkus, have defended his toughness.

In a way, Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers, who played in the 2007 AFC Championship Game with a torn ACL, did both.

“Me personally, I’d have to have been taken off in a cart,” Rivers said, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. “That doesn’t mean I’d be right. If they knew he couldn’t throw the ball good, he wasn’t helping anybody ... I’ll never say what he should have done. I can’t even say what I would have done in the same position. I do know I’m not coming out unless I can’t do anything, and maybe that’s how it was (for Cutler).”

“He’s played in 100-something games,” Rivers said. “It’s obviously not like he hasn’t been hit. It’s not like he comes out of a lot of games or misses games. The guy's track record says he plays unless he has a concussion, so it must be bad. Only he knows … Regardless, I really do feel for the guy, not being able to play in the Championship game.”

As Jason Whitlock of Fox Sports points out, nobody is really questioning Cutler's toughness but rather his "love of the game" instead.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Today Saints coach Sean Payton confirmed that running back Pierre Thomas has had ankle surgery that could require a lengthy rehabilitation.

Payton also confirmed today that Saints wide receiver Marques Colston is expected to have scopes on his knee and wrist, per Mike Triplett of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

Colston, who had his knee scoped a few days before the team's regular-season finale, had four receptions for 66 yards in the Saints' first-round playoff loss to the Seahawks.

During the regular season, Colston finished with 84 receptions for 1,023 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games.

With an injury-shortened (11 games) season in 2008 being the exception, Colston has reached the 1,000-yard milestone in four of five seasons in the league.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 08:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Per Mike Triplett of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, Saints coach Sean Payton confirmed that running back Pierre Thomas had an "an extensive scope" on his ankle and the rehabilitation process should last into the off-season.

Thomas, who's contract expires after the 2010 league year, played in only six games this season due to his ankle injury.

In those six games, Thomas rushed 83 times for 269 yards (3.2 yards per carry) and two touchdowns. It was the first time in his four-year career that he averaged less than 4.8 yards per carry. He also caught 29 passes for 201 yards.

Aside from Thomas, running back Julius Jones is also set to become a free agent (depending on what happens with the next collective bargaining agreement).

Rookie running back Chris Ivory, who led the team in rushing (716), is due to earn only $405,000 in 2011 while Reggie Bush is due $11.8 million although he has stated that he'd be willing to renegotiate in order to remain a Saint.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Packers undrafted rookie cornerback Sam Shields became the first rookie and fifth player in NFL history to have two interceptions and a sack in an NFL post-season game.

With his first reception in the AFC Championship Game, Steelers receiver Hines Ward caught the 80th post-season pass of his NFL career. Only Jerry Rice, Michael Irvin, Andre Reed and Reggie Wayne have reached that milestone before Ward.

Per Aaron Wilson of National Football Post, Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti said of getting a labor deal done, “... I think everybody should just hold out hope that we’re going to get things done and I’m confident that we will.”

With the first pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, discuss who the Carolina Panthers should take here.

The Steelers set a franchise attendance record with today's attendance of 66,662.

And in case you missed Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez wipe his "booger" on the jacket of backup quarterback Mark Brunell, here you go:

Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey has a high-ankle sprain, which jeopardizes his status for Super Bowl XLV.

Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald will replace Packers wideout Greg Jennings on the NFC Pro Bowl roster.

In addition, Saints safety Roman Harper will replace Packers safety Nick Collins.

The Vikings signed CFL wide receiver Emmanuel Arceneaux to a three-year contract worth $1.8 million.

Bears tight end Desmond Clark doesn't expect to be back with the Bears in 2011.

Bears quarterback Jay Cutler missed almost all of the second half with a knee injury and he will have an MRI tomorrow.

In addition, teammate Brian Urlacher defended Cutler saying, "Jay was hurt. I don't question his toughness. He's tough as hell. He's one of the toughest guys on our football team. He doesn't bitch. He doesn't complain when he gets hit. He goes out there and plays his ass off every Sunday. He practices every single day. So, no, we don't question his toughness."

Although his Bears teammates don't question the toughness of quarterback Jay Cutler, fans in Chicago are already burning his jersey (via Pro Football Talk).

It's not too early to discuss fantasy football for 2011. Discuss who should be the first quarterback drafted in 2011 leagues here.

Speaking of quarterbacks, the Colts made an offer to quarterback Peyton Manning that exceeded the four-year, $72 million contract that Patriots quarterback Tom Brady signed in September, per ESPN's Chris Mortensen.

Two Chiefs will replace two Steelers on the AFC Pro Bowl roster: defensive end Tamba Hali and safety Eric Berry are in, defensive end Brett Keisel and safety Troy Polamalu are out.

Shameless Plug: Follow us on Twitter and "Like" us on Facebook.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Per ESPN's Chris Mortensen, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer would rather not play football than continue to play for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Earlier today, Mortensen tweeted, "... Carson Palmer will demand a trade from Bengals; willing to play retirement card, if necessary."

ESPN blogger James Walker noted last month that Palmer, who is due $11.5 million in base salary in 2011, would be unlikely to accept a pay cut. Palmer is under contract through 2014.

Of course, retirement would mean a complete pay cut.

As Brian Giesenschlag of Fox 19 in Cincinnati points out, however, it's unlikely that Palmer would retire if the Bengals don't acquiesce to his trade demands as players typically don't follow through with those threats.

Palmer, who was the first overall pick in 2003, hasn't been nearly as effective as he was earlier in his career. In 2005 and 2006, Palmer threw a combined 60 touchdowns and 25 interceptions.

Although Palmer ranked sixth in the NFL in passing yards (3,970) this year, he was one of three quarterbacks to throw 20-plus interceptions in 2010.

His inconsistency, diminishing skills and salary make it more difficult for the Bengals to trade Palmer if they were so inclined to do so. In order to trade Palmer, there would need to be a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) in place as well.

The Bengals have the fourth overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft and many mock drafts have the Bengals selecting Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 09:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Baltimore Ravens and kicker Billy Cundiff have agreed to a five-year extension worth $15 million, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Per Schefter, the deal is expected to be signed during the week.

In the regular season, Cundiff made 26 of 29 field goals with a long of 49 yards. In the post-season, Cundiff made all four of his field goal attempts with a long of only 29 yards.

Only five kickers converted a higher percentage of their field goal attempts than Cundiff (89.7 percent).

In addition, Cundiff tied an NFL record with 40 touchbacks this season as pointed out by Aaron Wilson of National Football Post.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 01:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Although Bengals receiver Chad Ochocinco is under contract ($6 million) for the 2011 season (provided there is one), it's likely that he's played his last game for the club.

As Bengals.com's Geoff Hobson notes, comments by coach Marvin Lewis likely further indicate that the Bengals won't bring back Terrell Owens or Ochocinco.

"We can't allow anybody to steal Carson's thunder," Lewis said, per the team's website. "I can't allow anybody to steal Carson's thunder. Ever again."

And Jerry McDonald of the Oakland Tribune points out the following tweets by Ochocinco this month that suggest Oakland could be a possible landing spot for Ochocinco:

“Congratulations 2 Hue Jackson for becoming the Oakland Raiders new head coach. Best receiver coach I ever had.”

“I would not care where Hue Jackson got a job. I would go play for him, run through a wall, jump in front of a bus, etc. u get the point.”

“Man that was the greatest coach I ever had. Hue Jackson would choke me out, cuss me out, just to make sure I was precise on everything."

“It would be refreshing to be with Hue Jackson again. I know I wouldn’t have to worry about being thrown under a bus again.”

As far as the possibility of being a Patriot, Lewis threw Ochocinco under the bus again.

"Nobody was talking about him; he didn't stand that," Lewis said. "You want them to talk about you, win football games."

In 14 games, Ochocinco had 67 receptions for 831 yards and four touchdowns.

It was the second season in the past three years that Ochocinco fell short of the 1,000-yard milestone and his average of 59.4 yards per game was the third lowest of his career.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 12:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Bears safety Chris Harris has missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday, but he's still optimistic that he'll be able to play Sunday versus the Packers.

Make your prediction for Sunday's NFC Championship Game between the Bears and Packers in our NFL Gameday Forum.

President Barack Obama's prediction: Bears 20, Packers 17.

Packers cornerback Tramon Williams will replace Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel on the NFC Pro Bowl roster. Of course, if Obama's prediction is wrong and the Packers win, they will need to find his replacement.

Per Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post, Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor said of former teammate Santonio Holmes: “I’m not going to hesitate to lay him out.”

Make your prediction for Sunday's AFC Championship Game between the Jets and Steelers in our NFL Gameday Forum.

Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Browns interviewed ex-Cardinals defensive coordinator Billy Davis and ex-University of Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt for their vacant defensive coordinator position.

The Raiders hired Al Saunders, who worked with head coach Hue Jackson in Baltimore, to be their offensive coordinator. In 2010, the Raiders ranked sixth in scoring offense (25.6 points per game), tenth in total offense (354.6 yards per game) and second in rushing offense (155.9 YPG).

The Seahawks have hired Darrell Bevell to replace Jeremy Bates as their offensive coordinator.

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo said yesterday: "I wish the season would start today. I feel good."

Per Jerry Sullivan of the Buffalo News, former Bills receiver and Hall-of-Fame finalist Andre Reed said: "I believe it's my time this year. Over the last six years, I've seen Jim, Thurman, Marv [Levy], Bruce [Smith], James Lofton and Ralph [Wilson] get in. I'm not going to lie and say I shouldn't be in there with those guys. I was just as competitive as them, if not more..."

Weigh on which players should make the cut for the Hall of Fame Class of 2011 and/or see a list of all previous inductees.

Shameless plugs: Follow us on Twitter @EDSFootball and/or Like us on Facebook.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had a remarkable season, one that will likely earn him league MVP honors, although the season didn't end exactly as he would have scripted it.

Despite losing to the Jets in the divisional round of the playoffs, Brady broke the NFL record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception this year. Plus, he led the NFL in passer rating (111.0), touchdowns (36) and fewest interceptions (four). More impressively, he did so with a stress fracture in his right foot.

ESPN blogger Tim Graham notes that Brady first appeared on the injury report with a foot injury on November 10th or with seven games to go. In his final nine regular-season games, Brady threw two-plus touchdowns and no interceptions in every game.

Today Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had surgery to repair the stress fracture, per Tom E. Curran of CSN New England. During the surgery, a screw was inserted into the navicular bone to help prevent a full fracture.

Brady, who is expected to be ready for training camp, may be able to participate in off-season workouts in the spring as well.

But, of course, that hinges on a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) being in place. At this point, that seems as likely as Antonio Cromartie forming the New York chapter of the Tom Brady Fan Club.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 08:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The game between the Jets and Patriots on Sunday certainly doesn't need any extra bulletin-board material to raise the level of intensity and animosity when these two teams face other.

But Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie is giving it his best shot.

Per Gary Myers of the NY Daily News, Cromartie called Patriots quarterback Tom Brady "ass----" and says that he hates Brady.

Cromartie also said that he didn't find Brady's finger-pointing during the 42-point blowout to be offensive.

"Nope. He's playing football," he said. "If you're an a------, you're an a------."

The Patriots have scored 30-plus points for eight consecutive games and Brady has thrown a record 335 consecutive passes without an interception.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

West Virginia junior safety Robert Sands will forgo his senior season and enter the 2011 NFL Draft, per ESPN's Joe Schad.

"This is a great opportunity for me," Sands said. "I can cover receivers or tight ends. I consider myself a ballhawk."

Before the Champs Bowl, Sands said he'd go pro if he were projected to go in the first two rounds of the draft and return if he were projected to go in the third round or later.

"Third round and beyond, I'll stay," Sands said, per Mike Casazza of the Charleston Daily Mail. "Second round, I've got to weigh my options on that. There's a lot of stuff to consider."

Sands, who was named first-team All-American by the Sporting News, has six interceptions, three sacks and 10.5 tackles for loss in his collegiate career.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 12:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In 2009, Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris led the Buccaneers to their worst record (3-13) since 1991 (3-13).

Despite playing in a division with two playoff teams (Atlanta and New Orleans) that combined for a 24-8 record this year, Morris led the Bucs to their biggest turnaround (seven games) in franchise history and only their third season with double-digit wins in the past ten years.

Considering what he's done for the franchise in two short years, it makes sense for the team to keep him around for (at least) two more years. And that's what they'll do.

Per Rick Stroud of the St. Petersburg Times on Twitter, the team exercised their two-year option on Morris' contract that will keep him in the Sunshine State through 2012.

Morris will earn $2 million (and up to $3.5 million with incentives) per season over the next two years.

With the youngest roster in the league aside from Carolina's, the Bucs have a strong foundation on offense with second-year quarterback Josh Freeman, rookie running back LeGarrette Blount and rookie wide receiver Mike Williams.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 03:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe wasn't at the team's practice today since he was "ill," per Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star.

As Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk points out, quarterback Matt Cassel, who missed practice a few weeks ago due to an "illness," had an appendectomy.

That said, Jason La Canfora tweeted, "Kansas City confident Bowe will play Sun. He is sick, but nothing more than that. No hidden injuries. The WR will be ready to go vs. Ravens."

During a seven-game stretch (Weeks 6 to 12), Bowe was nearly unstoppable. He had four (of his five) 100-yard games and caught 13 (of his 15) touchdowns during that span.

In those seven games, Bowe had 49 receptions for 733 yards and 13 touchdowns. In the other nine games this season, Bowe had only 23 receptions for 429 yards and two touchdowns.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 03:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ranking the playoff quarterbacks from 1 to 12, Yahoo!'s Jason Cole ranked New England quarterback Tom Brady number one. No surprise. More surprisingly, he ranked Eagles quarterback Michael Vick number five.

The Packers and linebacker Desmond Bishop agreed to a four-year extension worth $19 million, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The Broncos will want a second-round pick for quarterback Kyle Orton, per Mike Klis of the Denver Post.

Redskins defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth showed up to clean out his locker with a jacket that said "PUNK" on the back. Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post asks, was "the shirt that said "EXORBITANTLY RICH MALCONTENT" ... in the wash or something?"

The Colts are the first team to make the post-season without having a 500-yard rusher for the first time since 1998 (Green Bay Packers). The last time a team won a playoff game without a 500-yard runner was 1991 (Atlanta Falcons).

Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma was added to the NFC Pro Bowl roster.

In a season-ending press conference, Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio said today, "In my eight years here, in six of those years we've been in December with a chance to be in the hunt," Del Rio said. "I can assure you everybody wants more. You want more. Fans want more. Mr. Weaver wants more. Our players and our coaches want more. What I want is a [Super Bowl] ring."

The 49ers have decided to promote Trent Baalke from V.P. of Player Personnel to General Manager.

The Raiders won't pick up the option on Tom Cable's contract and will promote Hue Jackson to become his replacement, per Vittorio Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Panthers are unlikely to trade out of the top pick.

Saturday's playoff game against the Saints will be the first ever for Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch, who led the team in rushing. Lynch said (per Danny O'Neil of the Seattle Times), "We're going to the playoffs. Did I mention that to you already?"

Marvin Lewis will coach the Cincinnati Bengals for another two seasons.

Bucs head coach Raheem Morris hopes to coach most of his coaching staff intact for 2011.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Miami Hurricanes cornerback Brandon Harris has decided to forgo his final year of eligibility and enter the NFL Draft.

"The overriding factor was being able to live out my dream. I've always wanted to play in the National Football League since I was a child. To be this close in the process, it was something I just couldn't turn down,'' Harris said, per Susan Miller of the Miami Herald.

Harris, who started 32 of 39 games in three seasons, was first-team All-ACC selection in 2009. This year, he was named to the All-ACC's second team.

In his updated mock draft, Rob Rang of CBS Sports has Harris being selected by the Eagles with the 24th overall pick. Rang writes, "The Eagles feature one of the league's best corners in Asante Samuel, but have struggled with consistency on the other side without journeyman Ellis Hobbs, who missed almost half of the season with a career-threatening neck injury. Harris struggled early on in the Sun Bowl loss to Notre Dame, but his speed and agility make him one of the draft's top corners and a good value here."

After having at least one player selected in the first round from 1995 to 2008, the Hurricanes haven't had a first-round pick in either of the past two drafts.

In 2009, the 'Canes had only one draft pick: Spencer Adkins by Atlanta in the sixth round. In 2010, they had four draftees, the highest of which was Jimmy Graham, who was drafted in the third round by the Saints (95th overall).

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The only team to make the post-season without a 500-yard rusher this year is Indianapolis as second-year running back Donald Brown, the team's first-round pick in 2009, led the team with 497 rushing yards.

Before this year, the last team without a 500-yard rusher to make the playoffs was the Green Bay Packers in 1998.

While the Saints had a 500-yard rusher this season, they will be without him (rookie Chris Ivory) for the entire post-season.

Ivory, who rushed for a team-high 712 yards this season, was placed on injured reserve (IR) and the team signed DeShawn Wynn today.

Although he missed two games from Weeks 11 to 17, Ivory carried the ball 59 times for 334 yards (5.7 yards per carry) and five touchdowns in the five games he played during that span.

Pierre Thomas, who played in only six games this season, is the team's second-leading rusher (269 yards). Thomas was inactive in Week 17 after he tweaked his ankle in practice two days before the game.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Missouri quarterback Blaine Gabbert will forgo his final year of eligibility and enter the 2011 NFL Draft.

“This is definitely a bittersweet day for me, I was really looking forward to having a chance to do some special things next season with my teammates, but in the end, this is the right decision to make for myself and my family,” Gabbert said in a statement, per the Kansas City Star.

Gabbert, six-foot-five and 240 pounds, has thrown for 6,822 yards (fourth in school history) and 40 touchdowns (third) in his collegiate career.

Former teammate (and current St. Louis Rams receiver) Danario Alexander described Gabbert as the "prototypical quarterback" and that Gabbert has "the size, the big arm to make every throw."

ESPN's Todd McShay has Gabbert going fifth overall to the Arizona Cardinals in his latest mock draft.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 12:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In their most important game of the season, the Seahawks started Charlie Whitehurst under center and he delivered.

Now, when it comes to deciding whether Whitehurst or Matt Hasselbeck will start against the Saints on Saturday, coach Pete Carroll won't commit either way nor will he commit to when he will make that decision.

Instead the two quarterbacks will split reps at practice and Carroll will decide from there.

"We'll find out during the week," Carroll said, per Danny O'Neil of The Seattle Times. "I don't know. I'll let you know. I'm going to see how everybody is. I don't need to determine that yet. I know that you all want me to nail that for you, but I'm not going to because I don't know."

In a matchup between the NFL's first sub-.500 playoff team and the defending Super Bowl champions, the Seahawks are double-digit underdogs at home (discuss game).

Whitehurst passed for 192 yards and a touchdown, which is not spectacular, but he didn't turn the ball over either. On the other hand, Hasselbeck has been an interception machine. In his past four games, he threw only two touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In an interview on Sunday Night Football, Rams rookie quarterback Sam Bradford, the top overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, named his "biggest" purchase since signing his record-setting contract: a ping-pong table.

Texans running back Arian Foster became the second undrafted free agent to win the rushing title.

Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown, who entered today's game with 720 rushing yards, had a $500,000 incentive in his contract if he reached 750 yards. Instead he fell short of the mark by 16 yards.

For the second time in three games, Arizona's Larry Fitzgerald finished with 125 receiving yards.

Jets coach Rex Ryan joked that he started quarterback Mark Sanchez, who handed the ball off eight times without attempting a pass, to keep "the streak alive. Lookout, Brett."

Bears receiver Johnny Knox started and ended the day needing 40 yards to reach the 1,000-yard milestone.

In his past three games, Ravens receiver Anquan Boldin has a total of five receptions for 26 yards combined.

Steelers receiver Mike Wallace closed the regular season with his third consecutive 100-yard performance and finished with seven 100-yard games on the season. That ties a franchise record set by John Stallworth in 1984.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady extended his record of consecutive pass attempts without an interception to 335.

Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware, who had three sacks today, finished as the league leader with 15.5 for the season.

Ware said of interim head coach Jason Garrett, who is expected to have the interim tag removed from his title, “I think he really motivated us, especially when we were 1-7. Hopefully he has the opportunity to coach for the Cowboys.”

After a 2-10 start, the Lions finished the regular season with a four-game winning streak to finish the season with a 6-10 record and three times as many wins as they had in 2009.

Lions tight end Brandon Pettigrew set a franchise record for most receptions (71) by a tight end.

Giants receiver Mario Manningham finished the season with a streak of three 100-yard games. During that span, Manningham had 16 receptions for 346 yards and four touchdowns.

Although the Giants missed the playoffs, coach Tom Coughlin will be back in 2011.

Jets rookie running back Joe McKnight finished with 158 rushing yards against the Bills today. That is the most by a Jets rookie since 1964 (Matt Snell).

Against one of the league's worst run defenses, Chargers rookie running back Ryan Mathews finished with 26 rushing attempts for 120 yards and three touchdowns. It was the first time this season that Mathews topped 100 rushing yards.

Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow completed less than 50 percent of his passes, but he rushed for 94 yards and a touchdown today. In his past three games, Tebow has rushed for a total of 199 yards and three touchdowns.

The Colts, who won the AFC South today, have made the post-season for nine consecutive seasons, which ties a record set by the Cowboys (1975-83).

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In his previous four games, Tampa's undrafted rookie LeGarrette Blount rushed for 100-plus yards three times including a career-high 164 yards last week to put him within striking distance of a 1,000-yard season.

Needing 59 yards in Week 17 to reach the milestone, Blount carried the ball 19 times for 66 yards today as he ends the season with 1,007.

Per Chris Harry of NFL FanHouse, Blount becomes only the second undrafted running back to rush for at least 1,000 yards in his rookie season. (The other was Dominic Rhodes in 2001.)

What makes the feat even more impressive is how Blount did it. Before Week 7, Blount had only ten carries for 30 yards.

Or, in other words, Blount rushed for 977 yards in his final 11 games of the season. Over a full season, that would equate to a pace of 1,421 yards.

Another way to look at it is Blount, who was released by the Titans before the start of the season, outgained Tennessee's Chris Johnson from Week 7 on by more than 200 yards. Johnson had 768 rushing yards in his final 11 games of the season.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

After last night's blowout loss to Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, UConn running back Jordan Todman has announced that he will enter the 2011 NFL Draft, per Zac Boyer of the Hartford Courant.

"I felt like it was the right time for me," Todman said. "I stand pretty good with the competition … me and my family decided it's the right decision for me."

After a three-year career at UConn, Todman ranks second all-time in rushing yards (3,179) and rushing attempts (616) in school history.

Per the San Jose Mercury News, another running back to declare himself eligible for the 2011 NFL Draft was California's Shane Vereen, who graduated one month ago.

“Over the past month my family and I have been discussing a very tough decision,” said Vereen in a statement released by the school . “After much thought and deliberation we decided that this was the best time for us to move forward and enter the 2011 NFL Draft. I cherish my time at Cal and wouldn’t trade it for anything. This was one of the toughest decisions I have made, but feel like I will always be a part of the Cal family. I leave Cal with a degree and great memories. Go Bears!”

Vereen, who backed up Detroit's Jahvid Best for his first two seasons, rushed for 1,167 yards and 13 touchdowns this season.

MockingTheDraft.com ranks Vereen and Todman as their 76th and 91st overall prospects in this year's draft.

The four running backs they rank higher are Mark Ingram (Alabama), Mikel Leshoure (Illinois), LaMichael James (Oregon) and Ryan Williams (Virginia Tech).

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For the few of you that conclude your fantasy football season in Week 17, I've updated my rankings for this week earlier this morning. Here are some notes about wide receivers and pass defenses heading into Week 17:

- Miami receiver Brandon Marshall has ten-plus receptions and 100-plus yards in four games including his most recent two games. After finishing the past three seasons with 100-plus receptions and 1,100-plus yards each year, Marshall has only 81 receptions for 917 yards and three touchdowns with one game to go.

- Tampa rookie receiver Mike Williams, who needs only 76 receiving yards to reach 1,000, leads all rookies in receiving yards. Williams had his first multi-touchdown game of the season last week and has ten touchdowns this season.

- Dallas receiver Miles Austin has scored a touchdown in back-to-back weeks. For the first time since Week 8, Austin had more than 100 receiving yards last week.

- Rams receiver Danny Amendola, who hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 10, ranks eighth in the NFL in receptions (83).

- In his past three games, Ravens receiver Anquan Boldin has only six receptions for 58 yards and no touchdowns. In that same span, teammate Derrick Mason has 11 receptions for 170 yards and three touchdowns.

- Tennessee's Kenny Britt has ten receptions for 217 yards and a touchdowns in his past two games. In his first matchup against the Colts (Week 14), Britt finished with four receptions for 39 yards and lost a fumble.

- Giants receiver Mario Manningham has back-to-back games with 100-plus yards and a touchdown or two and the only team to allow more passing yards than the Redskins has been the Texans this season.

- Houston's Jacoby Jones, the team's third-round pick in 2007, had the best game (five receptions for 115 yards) of his career in Week 16. Jones has three consecutive games with five-plus receptions for 50-plus yards.

Here are my top ten fantasy wide receivers for Week 17:

1. Roddy White, Falcons (vs CAR)
2. Reggie Wayne, Colts (vs TEN)
3. Greg Jennings, Packers (vs CHI)
4. Vincent Jackson, Chargers (at DEN)
5. Mike Wallace, Steelers (at CLE)
6. Brandon Marshall, Dolphins (at NE)
7. Brandon Lloyd, Broncos (vs SD)
8. Dwayne Bowe, Chiefs (vs OAK)
9. Calvin Johnson, Lions (vs MIN)
10. Kenny Britt, Titans (at IND)

See our full top 50 wide receiver rankings for Week 17.

More rankings for Week 17: Top 25 QBs | Top 40 RBs | Top 20 TEs

Feel free to send start/sit questions to me via Twitter @EDSFootball or post your questions in our free Fantasy Football forum.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For the few of you that conclude your fantasy football season in Week 17, I've updated my rankings for this week earlier this morning. Here are some notes about running backs and rush defenses heading into Week 17:

- With one week to go, Texans running back Arian Foster leads all running backs in rushing yards (1,436) and receiving yards (594). With 64 more rushing yards and six more receiving yards, Foster will become only the sixth running back to have a 1,500-600 season.

- Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles trails Foster by 56 rushing yards despite having 80 fewer rushing attempts. Although the Chiefs will host a first-round playoff game, Charles expects to play a lot and said "I’m still trying to get the rushing title."

- Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew, who missed last week's game, will miss Week 17 and have surgery on his knee this off-season. That means, Rashad Jennings will get his second start of the season. Last week, Jennings finished with 15 attempts for only 32 rushing yards.

- Only two running backs have rushed for ten-plus touchdowns and have no fumbles this season: Minnesota's Adrian Peterson and New England's BenJarvus Green-Ellis. It's a great turnaround for Peterson, who fumbled 16 times over the past two seasons. For The Law Firm, he now has 309 rushing attempts and no fumbles in his career.

- Bucs rookie LeGarrette Blount, undrafted and later released by the Titans, leads all rookies in rushing and only needs 59 yards to reach 1,000. The last Bucs' running back to reach the 1,000-yard milestone was Cadillac Williams in 2005. Blount has exceeded 100 rushing yards in three of his past four games.

- Cleveland's Peyton Hillis has had a challenging four-game stretch. He hasn't scored a touchdown and has only one game (versus Buffalo) with more than 60 rushing yards during that span. Hillis, who has missed the last three days of practice, faces the Steelers, who have the league's stingiest rush defense, this week.

- Saints running back Pierre Thomas sat out of Saturday's practice after tweaking his ankle on Friday and will be a game-time decision for Week 17 against the Bucs. Tampa has allowed the fifth-most rushing yards (133.4 per game) and second-most yards per carry (4.7) this season.

Here are my top ten fantasy running backs for Week 17:

1. Arian Foster, Texans (vs. JAX)
2. Adrian Peterson, Vikings (at DET)
3. Michael Turner, Falcons (vs. CAR)
4. Chris Johnson, Titans (at IND)
5. Jamaal Charles, Chiefs (vs. OAK)
6. Steven Jackson, Rams (at SEA)
7. Rashard Mendenhall, Steelers (at CLE)
8. Ray Rice, Ravens (vs. CIN)
9. Ryan Mathews, Chargers (at DEN)
10. Ahmad Bradshaw, Giants (at WAS)

See our full top 40 running back rankings for Week 17.

More rankings for Week 17: Top 25 QBs | Top 50 WRs | Top 20 TEs

Feel free to send start/sit questions to me via Twitter @EDSFootball or post your questions in our free Fantasy Football forum.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For the few of you that conclude your fantasy football season in Week 17, I've updated my rankings for this week earlier this morning. Here are some notes about quarterbacks and pass defenses heading into Week 17:

- Tampa quarterback Josh Freeman threw for a career-high five touchdowns last week against the Seahawks. In an 11-game span starting with his first matchup against the Saints, Freeman has thrown 18 touchdowns and only three interceptions.

- Patriots quarterback Tom Brady set the NFL record for consecutive pass attempts (319) without an interception in Sunday's win over the Bills last week. Although Brady will start against the Dolphins on Sunday, for how long will he play in a meaningless game?

- With Eagles quarterback Michael Vick unlikely to play in Week 17, Kevin Kolb will get his first start since Week 7. However, the Eagles, who have no shot for a first-round bye in the playoffs, will likely rest their skill players for the good portion of the game.

- In back-to-back starts, Denver's Tim Tebow has put up 20-plus fantasy points. Facing the league's worst-ranked pass defense (Texans) last week, Tebow threw his first 300-yard game of his NFL career. In those two starts, Tebow has 18 rushing attempts for 105 yards and two touchdowns.

- Houston's Matt Schaub has thrown for 300-plus yards in four consecutive games. In his first matchup against Jacksonville, Schaub threw for 314 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

- In his last five games, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has no multi-touchdown games. During that span, he has a total of only three passing touchdowns. That said, he threw three touchdowns against the Browns in his first post-suspension game of 2010.

- Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers left Week 14 with a concussion and sat out Week 15. In the last five games that he has finished, however, Rodgers has thrown for 300-plus yards and/or three-plus touchdowns. Last week, he threw for 404 yards and four touchdowns.

Here are my top ten fantasy quarterbacks for Week 17:

1. Peyton Manning, Colts (vs TEN)
2. Aaron Rodgers, Packers (vs CHI)
3. Philip Rivers, Chargers (at DEN)
4. Drew Brees, Saints (vs TB)
5. Matt Schaub, Texans (vs JAX)
6. Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers (at CLE)
7. Matt Ryan, Falcons (vs CAR)
8. Tom Brady, Patriots (vs MIA)
9. Joe Flacco, Ravens (vs CIN)
10. Eli Manning, Giants (at WAS)

See our full top 25 quarterback rankings for Week 17.

More rankings for Week 17: Top 40 RBs | Top 50 WRs | Top 20 TEs

Feel free to send start/sit questions to me via Twitter @EDSFootball or post your questions in our free Fantasy Football forum.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 10:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

When the Saints play the Bucs on Sunday, there is a good chance that they won't have running back Pierre Thomas, who did not practice on Saturday.

Thomas, who tweaked the ankle at Friday's practice, has played in the last three games after missing the team's previous nine games.

"The big thing now is just keeping his weight off it and getting the treatment, and we'll see where he's at tomorrow," Saints coach Sean Payton said today, per Mike Triplett of the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

Last week, Thomas had 102 yards from scrimmage -- 63 rushing yards and 39 receiving yards on seven receptions -- in addition to a touchdown.

If Thomas can play on Sunday, he has a favorable matchup against Tampa Bay, who has allowed the fifth-most rushing yards (133.4 per game) and second-most yards per carry (4.7) this season.

Expecting Thomas to not play, rookie Chris Ivory, who leads the team in rushing (683 yards), is my 23rd-ranked fantasy running back for Week 17.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 07:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)