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Most would not describe a guaranteed one-year salary of $7 million as a "slap in the face."

Last month, however, Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork described the franchise tag, which pays a player a guaranteed one-year salary of the average of the top five salaries at his position, as a "slap in the face." The average salary of the top five defensive tackles is $7 million.

Today the Patriots "slapped" Wilfork in the face by assigning him as their franchise player unless the two sides can reach a long-term deal, which is the team's goal according to a statement released by the team.

"...It is because of Vince's importance to this organization that we have assigned the franchise designation as we continue to work toward a long-term agreement. We are hopeful that Vince will remain a Patriot for many years to come."

The tag is of the non-exclusive variety meaning that other teams can offer Wilfork a contract, however, the Patriots would have the ability to match the offer. If they declined, the other team would owe the Patriots two first-round draft picks as compensation.

Wilfork, the team's first-round pick in 2004, is a two-time Pro Bowler (2007 and 2009). He has 303 career tackles and 7.5 sacks in six seasons.

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

Receiver Randy Moss is about to enter the final year of his three-year contract with the Patriots and he doesn't "think they going to extend my contract," according to Christopher Gasper of the Boston Globe.

“It’s the business of it, man. You’ve got to understand the business of football,’’ said Moss. “There is not bad blood. There is no animosity on my side or their side. I think it’s just the nature of the business of the NFL. You know the Patriots don’t really pay, so when I got my second contract from them that was a blessing in disguise. I understand the business. I don’t think they’re going to re-sign me back. I’m not mad. I’m not bitter. It’s just the way things are in this NFL, so like I said after this year I’ll be looking for a new team.’’

Moss is due to make $6.4 million with the Patriots in 2010. But is it possible that Moss has already played his final season with the Patriots?

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk speculates about the possibility of Moss getting traded, especially after these comments, back to Minnesota.

If you remember, one of the differences that Brett Favre had when he was still in Green Bay was that the front office did not pursue Moss before he landed in New England.

"It is disappointing," Favre said in May 2007. "We could have gotten him for less money than New England did. He wanted to play in Green Bay for the amount of money we would have paid him. It [was] well worth the risk."

With or without Moss in Minnesota, it's been my opinion that Favre would return for another season. As Florio points out, however, adding Moss to the weapons in the Vikings' offense, which ranked second only to New Orleans in scoring, would help to ensure an earlier commitment of a Favre return.

That said, a trade seems unlikely to me.

After having knee surgery at the beginning of this month, the status of receiver Wes Welker is in question for the start of the 2010 season. And his recovery could take up to 12 months, which would keep him out for the entire year.

So if Moss is traded and Welker isn't ready to go, that could potentially leave the Patriots with Julian Edelman, who played well when Welker was out, as the team's top receiver to enter week 1.

Although Moss says that he separated his shoulder in week five, he still finished the season tied for the league lead in touchdown receptions (13) and tied for fifth in receiving yards (1,264). However, Moss didn't reach the 100-yard receiving milestone in any of his final seven games despite doing so in five of his first nine games.

With a recent history of deals with Oakland (acquiring Moss, trading Richard Seymour, etc.), wouldn't it be funny if the Patriots could convince Al Davis that Moss is the big-play threat that the Raiders need to help JaMarcus Russell reach his potential?

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 12:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Not only did the Patriots lose to the Texans in the season finale today, they lost receiver Wes Welker to a knee injury in the first quarter.

Although there hasn't been an update to the status of Welker for the playoffs, it's not usually a good thing when a player suffers a knee injury making a cut.

“Not too good," [Wes' father] Leland Welker said, per Adam Kilgore of the Boston Globe. "We’re sick. We’re absolutely sick. We take all those hits and stuff all season long. And then just one fluke cut, and he just blows it out.”

Despite missing weeks 2 and 3, Welker leads the NFL in receptions with 123 for 1348 yards and four touchdowns. Both his receptions and yardage totals set career bests for Welker.

The Patriots would rely on rookie Julian Edelman, who had 10 receptions for 103 yards today, to step up and fill the role that Welker plays.

Next week, the Pats will host a wildcard-round game as either the three seed (if Cincinnati loses tonight) or the four seed (if Cincinnati wins).

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 06:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Every week, I pick three NFL games against the spread (ATS) and here are my week 13 picks:

Patriots -4.5 (over Dolphins): The Patriots are coming off a tough loss on a short week. And they are on the road against a division rival. The Saints held Tom Brady and the Patriots to no passing scores. But the Dolphins are coming off a disappointing loss as well against the Bills. Brady should bounce back against the league's 23rd-ranked pass defense. Meanwhile Laurence Maroney has scored a rushing TD (or two) in six consecutive games. The last time the Patriots lost two consecutive games was in November 2006.

Titans +6.5 (over Colts): I'm not necessarily calling for an outright upset here (although I wouldn't be shocked to see it happen). With the exception of a meaningless week 17 game last year, here are the point differentials in games Vince Young has started against the Colts: -1, +3, -2, +6. There's nothing wrong with winning close games, especially when you're 11-0, but the Colts have engineered come-from-behind victories in the fourth quarter in their past five games. With Chris Johnson running all over opponents (six straight games with 125+ yards), the Colts playing close games recently and the historical trend of close games in this series, give me the points.

Vikings -3.0 (over Cardinals): The Vikings are as complete as any team in football. With five weeks to go, they rank fifth in total offense and eighth in total defense. And despite all the will-he-or-won't-he-return drama, Brett Favre is a legitmate MVP contender. He's tied with Peyton Manning for second in TD passes (24) behind Drew Brees (27), but Favre has thrown only three interceptions. I expect Kurt Warner to return this week, but the Cardinals' pass offense is considerably less explosive with Matt Leinart under center.

Click here to see picks from all of our "handicappers."

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

With the fantasy football playoffs on the horizon, here are my top 5 wide receivers for week 13:

1. Randy Moss, Patriots (at Dolphins): In his first matchup against the Dolphins, who rank in the bottom 10 in passing yards allowed (233 ypg), Moss had six receptions for 147 yards and one TD. On the season, Moss leads the NFL in receiving yards (992) and is only one behind the leaders in TD receptions (eight). After getting their ass whooped on prime-time TV, expect the Patriots, Tom Brady, Moss & Co. to come out swinging.

2. Andre Johnson, Texans (at Jaguars): Johnson is one of the league's most complete receivers and perhaps the most underrated. This week, Johnson gets a favorable matchup against the Jaguars, who have allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to receivers this season. On the season, Johnson ranks fourth in the league in receiving yards (945).

3. Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals (vs Vikings): The Vikings have been without Antoine Winfield, the team's best cornerback, for the past five games. On the season, the Vikings have allowed the 10th-most fantasy points to opposing wide receivers. My expectation is for QB Kurt Warner to return from his concussion as Fitzgerald had his worst game of the season with Matt Leinart as QB last week. Fitzgerald is tied for the league lead in touchdowns (nine) including four TDs in the last three games in which Warner has played.

4. Reggie Wayne, Colts (vs Titans): Wayne is second in receptions (79), second in receiving yards (987) and tied for first in touchdowns (nine) in the league. In addition to their improvements with Vince Young under center, the Titans have improved on the defensive side of the ball as they are healthier now. Only the Lions (27) have allowed more receiving touchdowns than the Titans (25) on the season. During their five-game winning streak, however, the Titans have allowed only the 18th-most fantasy points to opposing receivers.

5. Sidney Rice, Vikings (at Cardinals): In three of his past six games, Rice has 136 receiving yards or more including a game with 201yards. With the exception of his game at Green Bay, Rice has had 89 yards or more in five of his past six. Favre and Rice have built chemistry quickly and they have a favorable matchup against the Cardinals, who have allowed the seventh-most fantasy points to receivers this season.

Click here for top 50 wide receivers for week 13.

More rankings: top 25 QBs | top 40 RBs | top 20 TEs | top 20 kickers | top 20 team defenses

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

With the fantasy football playoffs on the horizon, here are my top 5 running backs for week 13:

1. Thomas Jones, Jets (at Bills): The first time that Jones faced the Bills this season, he rushed for 210 yards and a touchdown. The Bills have allowed the most fantasy points to opposing running backs this season and only the Raiders have allowed more rushing TDs than the Bills (16). Since the Jets want QB Mark Sanchez to air it out less and less (his attempts have gone from 35 to 30 to 21 to 17), Jones better bring his lunch-pail tonight.

2. Chris Johnson, Titans (at Colts): As well as Johnson has played in the past six weeks (125+ rushing yards every week), you can consider Johnson 1(a) -- not #2 -- in this week's rankings. During their five-game winning streak, Johnson has rushed for seven touchdowns. Although the Colts have a middle-of-the-pack run defense on the season, they've given up the 11th-most fantasy points to opposing RBs in the past three weeks.

3. DeAngelo Williams, Panthers (vs Buccaneers): DeAngelo has cooled off a bit with no touchdowns in the past three weeks and only one 100-yard game during that span. The first time that Williams faced the Buccaneers this season, he carried the ball 30 times for 152 yards and two scores. Expect more of the same against the league's third-worst rush defense.

4. Adrian Peterson, Vikings (at Cardinals): The Cardinals were the league's top-ranked run defense earlier in the season, but they have dropped to 14th in the NFL against the run (108.6 ypg allowed). In four of the past five weeks, they have allowed an opposing running back to eclipse the century mark. Surprisingly, Peterson has only three 100-yard games on the season, but he is second in the league with 12 rushing touchdowns.

5. Maurice Jones-Drew, Jaguars (vs Texans): MJD has rushed for more rushing touchdowns (13) than any other running back. (Of course, none of those are as famous as the TD that he didn't score.) That said, Jones-Drew faces a Texans run defense that turned itself around after the first three weeks. In week 3, however, MJD rushed for 119 yards and three touchdowns.

Click here for top 40 running backs for week 13.

More rankings: top 25 QBs | top 50 WRs | top 20 TEs | top 20 kickers | top 20 team defenses

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 05:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (1)

It's time to put up or shut up. If you haven't yet clinched a playoff berth in your fantasy league, it likely comes down to week 13 for you as most fantasy leagues start their playoffs in week 14.

And to paraphrase Bill Parcells, this is why you buy those cheat sheets, do those mock drafts, etc. -- to get into (and win in) the playoffs.

Here are my top 5 quarterbacks for week 13:

1. Peyton Manning, Colts (vs Titans): Manning is the only QB to average over 300 passing yards per game (310.5) and is second in passing touchdowns (24). While the Titans and their defense have been playing better lately, they have allowed the second-most passing touchdowns (25) this season.

2. Brett Favre, Vikings (at Cardinals): In his past four games, Favre has thrown 12 touchdowns and no interceptions. On the season, Arizona allows the fourth-most passing yards (258.3 ypg).

3. Drew Brees, Saints (at Redskins): Brees is coming off a five-TD performance against the Patriots in what was arguably the most important regular-season game in team history. Although this week's opponent (Washington) allows the fewest passing yards in the NFL (170.4 ypg), Brees and the Saints offense are firing on all cylinders right now.

4. Tom Brady, Patriots (at Dolphins): Brady failed to connect on a TD pass last week, but he had 332 passing yards against the Dolphins in their first match-up. With targets like Randy Moss and Wes Welker, it's not likely that Brady goes TD-less in back-to-back games.

5. Philip Rivers, Chargers (at Chiefs): Rivers has posted three consecutive 100+ QB ratings and this week he faces the Browns, who have allowed the ninth-most passing yards (233.4 ypg) this season. In the past four games, Rivers has thrown eight touchdowns and only two interceptions.

Click here for top 25 quarterbacks for week 13.

More rankings: top 40 RBs | top 50 WRs | top 20 TEs | top 20 kickers | top 20 team defenses

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 06:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

For some, this is the do-or-die week in fantasy football as many leagues begin their playoffs in week 14. Fortunately for fantasy owners, there are plenty of favorable matchups for some second-tier running backs.

Here are five running backs that are starts for week 13:

Matt Forte, Bears (vs Rams): Since his bye in week five, this first-round draft pick has exceeded 41 rushing yards only once. However, Forte has been a contributor in the passing game as he ranks second in the NFL in receiving yards (433) among RBs. During typical fantasy football playoff weeks (14 to 16), Forte will face three elite run defenses (ranks): Green Bay (4th), Baltimore (6th) and Minnesota (2nd). In week 13, however, Forte faces St. Louis, who has allowed the most fantasy points to opposing running backs in the past three weeks.

Knowshon Moreno, Broncos (vs Chiefs): Moreno has rushed for 80+ yards in three consecutive weeks. In week 13, Moreno faces Kansas City, which has allowed the third-most fantasy points to opposing running backs over the past five weeks.

Rashard Mendenhall, Steelers (vs Raiders): Mendenhall has rushed for 400 yards against the first three AFC West opponents he's faced. The Raiders, this week's opponents, has allowed a league-high 17 rushing touchdowns in 11 games. And only the Bills and Browns have allowed more fantasy points to opposing running backs this season.

LaDainian Tomlinson, Chargers (vs Browns): While 28 running backs have rushed for more yards than LT, only six have rushed for more touchdowns. Tomlinson has rushed for seven of his eight TDs in the past five weeks. This week should be more of the same as he faces Cleveland, who has allowed the second-most fantasy points to opposing running backs this season.

Laurence Maroney, Patriots (vs Dolphins): Another RB that has had the nose for the endzone has been Maroney. Maroney has rushed for a score in six consecutive games and he has scored all eight of his touchdowns during that six-game span. In the last six games, Maroney is averaging over 14 fantasy points per game. While the Dolphins rank in the top 12 in fewest rushing yards allowed, only six teams have given up more rushing touchdowns than Miami has.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 11:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (1)

Last week was my worst week of the season in picking games against the spread (ATS) as I had my first O-for of the season. My goose egg dropped my 2009 cumulative record to 18-15 ATS.

With no help from me, collectively, we (our four "handicappers") went 7-5 in week 11 to improve to 72-59-1 (55%) versus the spread on the season.

Reader beware but here are my week 12 picks:

Dolphins -3 (over Bills): What the Dolphins do well the Bills do poorly. Despite having one of the league's best pass defenses, the Bills rank 31st in the NFL in rushing yards allowed (165.9 ypg) and rushing touchdowns (15). Even without Ronnie Brown, the Dolphins have an explosive running game as evidenced by Ricky Williams' three-TD (two rushing, one receiving) performance in prime-time against the Panthers last week. Winners of five of their past seven, Miami has gotten itself back on track and into the playoff picture while the Bills are conducting seven-hour interviews with potential coaching replacements.

Seahawks -3 (over Rams): The Seahawks are bad. The Rams are bad. But in this case, "bad" does not equal "bad." Granted the Rams are playing better lately, but if you remember, the Seahawks beat the Rams 28-0 in their first matchup in week 1. The Rams' offense is one-dimensional with Steven Jackson and the Rams will be without QB Marc Bulger this week and perhaps the rest of the season. Facing eight-men fronts, it really is amazing that Jackson is second in the NFL in rushing yards. But the Seahawks have a much more balanced team than the Rams and should be able to put this one away early.

Patriots +1.5 (over Saints): The Saints face their biggest challenge to their unbeaten streak when they host the Patriots on Monday Night Football. The Saints have scored 24 points or more every game this season, but they have allowed five of their past six opponents to score 20+ points and they haven't yet faced an offense nearly as explosive as the Patriots' offense. Tom Brady has thrown for 300+ yards in five consecutive games. During that five-game span, the Patriots have held four of their opponents to 17 points or less. The lone exception was Indianapolis, who scored 21 of their 35 points in the fourth quarter. With two high-powered offenses, I'm taking the defense that has been more consistent lately.

To view the picks of all of our "handicappers" for week 12, click here.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 10:57 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Here are three running backs that I would sit on my bench for week 11:

Marion Barber, Cowboys: The last time that Barber had over 53 rushing yards was in week 2 against the New York Giants. And MBIII has reached paydirt only once in his past five games. Meanwhile Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones wants to see more of Felix Jones as JJ said, "I certainly understand balance, but I'd sure like to see [Felix Jones] with the ball more." I would expect Barber to get more than five carries like he did last week. Since the Redskins have allowed the fourth-fewest fantasy points to opposing running backs this season, however, Barber's production may be limited even if he were to receive a full workload.

Marshawn Lynch, Bills: After serving his three-game suspension, Lynch has played six games and hasn't reached 70 rushing yards in any of them. And he has only one rushing touchdown this season. On the season, Lynch is averaging 42.3 rushing yards per game and 3.2 yards per carry. In the past two games, Lynch has had only nine carries in each game. Until Lynch shows that he's worthy of a starting spot on your fantasy team, he should remain on your bench.

Laurence Maroney, Patriots: In the past four games, Maroney has rushed for a touchdown every week. Considering his best performance in the first five weeks of the season was a 32-yard game with no touchdowns, Maroney has been a nice surprise for fantasy owners lately. But last week Maroney only received one more carry than Kevin Faulk and Maroney had a critical fumble inside the 5-yard line. Meanwhile Sammy Morris is a game-time decision so Maroney could receive a couple less carries should Morris play. Over the past five weeks, only five teams have allowed fewer fantasy points to opposing running backs than the Jets have.

See my RB studs for week 11.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 10:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Here are the stats (receptions and receiving yards) for Patriots receiver Randy Moss in his first three games of the year: 12-141, 4-24 and 10-116.

Can you guess in which of those three games Moss faced Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis?

If you recall, Moss said that it was safety help over the top that led to his lack of production in week two and that there is no such thing as a "shutdown corner."

That said, it's time for round two between these two and Revis is standing by his words.

“Everybody saw the game, everybody knew I was in man coverage,” Revis said (via the Boston Herald). “He’s supposed to say that . . . (That) day wasn’t his day. He got shut out, and he was frustrated about it. Cool. I don’t have nothing against him. I still think he’s one of the best receivers in the league. If that’s what he said, that’s on him. We play them twice a year. I have to see him again, he has to see me again.”

“I don’t feed into talking and all that crazy stuff. I’m a 12-year vet. So that stuff don’t bother me,” Moss said. “My biggest thing is, when you talk like that, you better back it up. So, we’ll see. We’ll see what goes down.”

In his past four games, Moss has 28 receptions for 524 yards and six touchdowns including three 100-yard games.

If you have Randy Moss on your fantasy football team, he's a must-start even when he's facing arguably the league's top cornerback (no disrepsect intended for Oakland's Nnamdi Asomugha). That said, I would temper your expectations if you expect another 100-yard, multi-touchdown performance from Moss.

Posted by Kevin Hanson at 03:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's the easily the best modern-day rivalry in the NFL.

And tonight it didn't disappoint.

The Colts, who trailed by 17 points in the fourth quarter, scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns to edge the Patriots 35-34 to remain unbeaten.

The Patriots and coach Bill Belichick set up the Colts in their final drive by going for it on fourth and two and coming up short on a pass to Kevin Faulk.

Had the Patriots held on to win, the Colts would have fallen to 8-1 with only a one-game lead over the Patriots, who would have held the tie-breaker, and the Bengals.

The Colts have now won 18 consecutive regular-season games -- nine wins to end 2008 and nine wins to begin 2009. They trail only the Patriots for the longest streak (21).

The Colts next four games are against Baltimore, Houston, Tennessee and Denver.

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“You go out from the first quarter on, from the first play on, and try to embarrass them,” Rhodes said, per Gary Myers of the NY Daily News. “Not just go out there and try to win, try to embarrass them. Try to make them feel bad when they leave here. We don’t want to just beat them. We want to send a message to them, ‘We’re not backing down from you and we expect to win this game, and it’s not going to be luck, it’s not going to be a mistake.’ ”

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Continue reading "2009 AFC East Prediction" »

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"I had a broken bone and I was trying to play with it," said Maroney. "It's kind of hard to sit here and play and not tell people what is going on. Everybody is going to think one way because they don't really know what's going on. I dare anybody in this crowd to play football with a broken bone in your shoulder and you tell me how long you're going to last out there.

"Doing it the second game and still trying to play, I feel like it still shows my toughness and my dedication to the team and how much I really want to contribute. The shoulder is great. Not good, great."

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"We might even get a few draft picks out via Twitter before they are announced on TV, so any Patriots fans following the draft closely are encouraged to begin following RealPatriots on Twitter," Patriots Vice President of Media Relations Stacey James said in a statement.

"After the draft, we will review how the teams are announcing their picks and determine whether we need to develop a policy," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said Friday.

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“I know there’s teams that have interest,” he said, “but I haven’t visited with anyone. As I said, I haven’t decided what I’m going to do, that’s the truth. I’ll see what I want to do in the next couple of months. By June 1, I will have made my decision, definitely.”

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"You're telling me that Tom Brady is going to play a regular-season game that would have been a preseason game for $1,200," said Thomas. "You got four preseason games that you're paying people, and you got a set salary from somebody that would make their normal salary. If you made $5 million that year, you're almost making a $1 million a month based off the football season, so instead of getting paid your regular check you're going to get paid [$1,225], and you're telling me I'm getting paid. ...

"You're telling me you're going to add a week, but you'll pay me like preseason; you're going to just stretch the payments over 18 weeks," said Thomas. "No, we're not doing that. You can mark me down on the injured list for two weeks. You can put that in your books. You've done lost your mind."

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"By the rules of the [collective bargaining agreement] we cannot and have not had any conversations with other teams about Julius," Panthers general manager Marty Hurney said in a statement. "Under the non-exclusive franchise tag, Julius and his agent, Carl Carey, are within their rights to talk to other teams about a potential contract. However, at this point, we are not aware of any such conversations."

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Per Carucci's source: "One of the things (the Patriots) are looking at is the fact that, in passing situations, they can have Peppers up front with (Richard) Seymour and (Jarvis) Green. That makes it easier for them to take (nose tackle Vince) Wilfork out of the game in (passing situations) and just play him on running downs."

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"The ankle injury suffered last year is behind him," Trell said in an email. "The Patriots would not have made this move if they didn't believe the same. The fact is that at the end of last season Joey remained the faster player on the Buccaneers..."

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"I am very excited about the opportunity to play for the Jets and Mr. (Woody) Johnson," Izzo said in a statement. "I'm grateful for the chance to be reunited with Coach Westhoff, who played a key role early in my career, and look forward to playing for Coach Ryan as he brings his passionate, physical style of football to New York.''

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"It gives him a chance to grow and become a playmaker," [Sanders' agent Steve] Feldman said. "He stays in the same system with a championship team. They know him. He knows them. It was the right fit."

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“He was offered $15,000 to sell it, but he said no. He just borrowed some money and never came back,” said Rick Harrison, owner of the Gold and Silver Pawn Shop on the Las Vegas Strip.

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“I think initially I said there was [a setback],” Brady said. “Since then, there has been nothing. Just working hard on my rehab. I’m feeling great. I’m feeling really good. Everything is progressing just as I expected."

“You know, Bill never likes us to forecast anything. It’s like me asking you guys ‘are you going to be doing your job in eight months?’ Yeah, you certainly think so. There is no reason why I shouldn’t,” he said.

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"I guess he was going up and down the halls," [Irving Police spokesman David] Tull said.

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"Matt has been a pleasure to coach his entire career and last season in particular, when his years of hard work and commitment resulted in a most impressive performance," said Belichick. "We look forward to working with Matt again in 2009."

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"Based on anybody else doing an ACL rehab, he's going right along. He had a shaky start, but he's caught up," said the source.

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"If you look at professional sports franchises over the last 10 or 12 years and you say ‘name the top five,’ the New England Patriots are going to be there someplace. If you look at ownership of organizations and franchises and you say ‘okay, name the top five owners,’ Mr. Kraft and his family are going to be in there someplace. And if you look at the top coaches in any sport, Bill Belichick will be someplace near the top. I just want to say it’s a real honor and privilege for me to be a part of it," [Reese] said.

"...In Nick and Floyd, we have two outstanding men who each bring a wealth of knowledge and flexibility to this organization. I look forward to joining with both of them and working toward the common goal of our team's improvement and success,” Belichick said.

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“Would you take a Mark Sanchez or a [Matthew] Stafford out of college in the first round, or would you take a Matt Cassel, who has won big games, is 11-5 already, and has experience under his belt for a first-rounder? You’d take Matt Cassel, I would think,” Mariucci said.

“He’s a healthy young guy who has experience. So yeah, he’s a first-round [pick] easy. More than a first round. First and something else.”

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"We are very excited to welcome Scott to the Chiefs," team chairman Clark Hunt said. "With his proven track record of success, Scott is the finest player personnel executive in the NFL, and we look forward to his leadership in building a championship organization."

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“He’s a tremendous X’s-and-O’s coach,” Harbaugh told the Post. “Players will respect him. He’s a great organizer, a motivator. He’s just a real good man.”

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"He's smart, makes a lot of defensive adjustments and calls for us there. He runs well. He's tough. He's a good all-around football player, very mature, very professional. For a rookie, he's probably as professional as anybody I've coached."

"Jerod's taken his leadership up," Vrabel said. "I think he came in as a rookie and obviously learned the playbook and learned everything in and out and physically can go out there and make any play that we needed him to."

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"He [Cowher] wanted to tell me [Lerner] personally that he did not anticipate coaching in 2009. I wouldn't say Bill Cowher was the first choice, but I would say Cowher was the clear, no-questions-asked, guy you wanted to ask where he stood."

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Continue reading "Week 17 playoff scenarios" »

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"I think that both these guys want to play and if they're ready to go, they'll play," Whisenhunt said. "But I think also, you have to be smart with that situation.

"If this was a game that for us meant to get into the playoffs, it would be a completely different scenario."

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1. Tennessee Titans (12-2)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers (11-3)
3. New York Jets (9-5)
4. Denver Broncos (8-6)
5. Indianapolis Colts (10-4)
6. Baltimore Ravens (9-5)

Continue reading "AFC Playoff Picture" »

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"What it took was a coach that you respect made a call, come out and help guys that you have a lot of love for," Seau said. "Obviously, there's a lot of history here with us and it wasn't a hard decision. You just care for the guys in this locker room and you care for the coach and organization and that's the only reason I'm here."

"He's ready to play football," Belichick said. "He's a football player. You look football player up in the dictionary, Junior Seau, Troy Brown, those are the guys. They just define it in every sense of the word."

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"I didn't necessarily have something to prove," he said Wednesday after signing with the Patriots. "It wasn't like I was scratching walls trying to get back in the game. (But) it's definitely a benefit and a plus to have an opportunity."

"We got depleted at outside linebacker," coach Bill Belichick said. "Rosie has been here before. He certainly knows what we are doing and knows the defense. There is a much smaller learning curve with him."

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1. Tennessee Titans (11-1)
2. Pittsbugh Steelers (9-3)
3. New York Jets (8-4)
4. Denver Broncos (7-5)
5. Indianapolis Colts (8-4)
6. Baltimore Ravens (8-4)

Continue reading "A look at the AFC playoff picture" »

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"We have had a lot of memorable moments in recent years," Patriots chairman Robert Kraft said. "I think it is fitting that New England's first game to be played outside of North America will be in England. I know that the UK is home to some of our most passionate Patriots fans and we look forward to the experience."

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"I had no idea what was going on," Gostkowski said. "I was just worried about them falling on my leg. I didn't want to get hurt from something like that."

"These guys are competitors," Sparano said. "At the same time, there's a right and a wrong way to do things. We have a standard here right now that we're trying to put in place. And for 10 solid games we've done that. Yesterday, we kind of got off the path a little bit for about eight minutes and that's not good enough. It has to be addressed."

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"My message to the players is that if you walk through the door on Wednesday and your heart's not racing a million miles an hour, then you don't have a pulse," Sparano said, according to AP. "This is why we do what we do. We put ourselves in position to have a big game at home at the end of November. That's where we are. That being said, I don't think too much has to be said this week."

"We don't like them," Porter said, according to The Associated Press. "They don't like us."

"They let us know how they feel about us," Porter said, according to AP. "Then they start punting over our heads -- like, you want the whole 100-yard field? You don't do that."

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"I just know he's not a Tom Brady," Porter said. "So if it's not Tom Brady, it shouldn't be that hard." (insert your own joke here)

Yet Porter said "It'll be good to go out there and get our first victory."

"You treat him like you treat a backup," Porter said. "How do you prepare for a backup? He don't get that many snaps, right? So you throw the kitchen sink at him. That's what we're going to do."

"He's a guy we'll prepare for, but that was his first start since high school," Porter said. "So you can take all the reps you want to. This is a totally different game, a totally different league. He's only had one start in the NFL. Take that for what it's worth. He won it, but if you compare him to Brady, there's no comparison.

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