Taylor nixes Packer talks

by | Jun 23, 2008 | NFL News

When he was being ignored by the higher-ups in Miami and appeared destined to stay stuck with the Dolphins in 2008 it was easier to feel for defensive end-linebacker Jason Taylor. However, when his posse leaked to the media his lack of interest in going to Green Bay because the market isn’t big enough he risked losing some goodwill.

Sure, the Packers reside in middle America. And sure, Brett Favre retired this offseason, making the season ahead much more murky.

But this is a team coming off a 13-3 season during which it surprised the league by reaching the NFC Championship game. Aaron Rodgers, while unproven, comes with a decent enough pedigree to think the team will at least be competitive during the season ahead.

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Vikings to Super Bowl? Dr. Z. says so

by | Jun 20, 2008 | NFL News, NFL Random Thoughts

As mentioned more times than you probably care to read Zoneblitz is operated by a pair of homegrown Minnesota Vikings fans. That’s been more frustrating than joyous for the past six or seven years but you’ve got to stick with your team, don’t you?

Anyway, if Dr. Z at Sports Illustrated is right we Minnesotans might finally get our payoff this year. He’s pegged the Vikes to knock off Dallas, New York, New Orleans, and all other comers to grab the NFC berth in the big game.

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How about Assclown? Or Douchebag?

by | Jun 18, 2008 | NFL Random Thoughts

So, Pacman Jones wants to cut ties with his troubled past. How’s he going to do it? Anger management counseling? Distancing himself from some of his posse? Taking the stripper pole out of his living room (Actually, I suppose if I were him I’d leave that there, since he’s less likely to be arrested cavorting around with strippers in his own house)?

No. But Adam Shefter of the NFL Network is reporting that he’s planning to publicly ask media members not to refer to him as Pacman anymore.

Well, problem solved. What a fantastic solution to his legal problems of the past. There’s no way he’ll be getting arrested anymore now that he wants to be known simply as “Adam”.

My favorite part of this AOL posting on the subject is where the commenters say they quit calling him Pacman in favor of Douchecanoe and/or Inmate 6841324 long ago. They beat me to the punch in better fashion than I could have written it myself.

Dude. Do yourself a favor and stay as far away from the media as you can. Stay out of the spotlight. Stay away from the cameras. You’ve gotten enough chances now where people are going to bait you and they aren’t going to care about your efforts to change – especially when they ring as hollow as trying to erase everything away by changing your friggin’ name.

It appears as though you’re going to get your second, err, seventh chance to succeed in the NFL and, disappointingly enough, you are going to get to do it with the team you wanted to, the Dallas Cowboys. I don’t know that anyone is actively going to root against you and hope that you fail, but you’ve done nothing to engender anyone’s goodwill either. On ESPN a couple months ago you still looked like you were in denial and if I were in Vegas I’d be betting that you can’t do it.

You don’t want to be known as Pacman anymore? More power to you. But Adam, you’ll always be Assclown Jones to me.

Doing “the opposite” catching on

by | Jun 18, 2008 | Fantasy Football

Fantasy football conventional wisdom says grab running backs early and often. And in many cases that’s true. Nobody is saying pass up LaDainian Tomlinson, Adrian Peterson, Brian Westbrook or Steven Jackson if you have one of the top four or five picks. But with the increasing propensity of the running back-by-committee and the humongous passing stats being put up by teams like New England and Indianapolis, that advice now comes with an asterisk.

Let fantasy drafts come to you. It’s no longer taboo to grab a top quarterback – Tom Brady or Peyton Manning – or the top ranked wide receiver in the latter half of round one. Paul Charchian, founder of the Web site Fanball.com, has long espoused a strategy he calls “Doing the opposite” and ever since I started being more purposeful in my own scouting and rankings I’ve had much more fantasy football success.

The truth is in most scoring systems Randy Moss had more points than any running back last season except Tomlinson and Braylon Edwards wasn’t far behind. If you had grabbed the combination of Terrell Owens and Reggie Wayne and then stolen Adrian Peterson in the third round you’d have been well on your way to a championship.

I’d been planning on writing a post like this for awhile. The folks at NFL.com sort of stole my thunder. But the fact remains – there’s more than one way to win a fantasy football championship. If you go RB, RB in the first two rounds you’re as likely to go bust as you are to go boom. Take a gander at this link and then adjust your draft lists accordingly. … and if you don’t, please invite me into your league so I can get a piece of that pot.

Cheers.

What the #$%^ was Walker thinking?

by | Jun 17, 2008 | NFL News, NFL Random Thoughts

I don’t want this post misinterpreted. I’m not arguing in favor of physical violence against anybody nor do I have any respect for thugs who acquire things not through buying them but by beating the hell out of their fellow man and taking it.

But what in the hell was Javon Walker thinking in Las Vegas early Monday morning hanging around with $3,000 in cash and more than $100,000 worth of jewelry?

Various media outlets are reporting details surrounding the events of the evening that might have led to Walker getting his beating. Among other allegations is that Walker was at the Body English nightclub inside the Hard Rock Café into the wee hours of the morning and that he may have had another party earlier in the weekend where he engaged in spraying champagne in the direction of other patrons. (more…)