He’s the Heisman Trophy winner and was the second overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft.

For today’s Tight End Tuesday, I present to you the newest quarterback for the Washington Redskins, Robert Griffin III.

» Continue reading “Tight End Tuesday: RGIII Edition”

Randy Moss may have sat out last season. But you can not tell!

According to NFL.com, Moss was a complete team player showing off several of his moves to his younger teammates. He was sporting a new, shorter hair style as he had on his 49ers jersey had practice facilities Thursday.

Moss even wow’d his team as he caught a 55-yard pass from Niners QB Alex Smith. ”It’s tough to tell that he missed a year of football. I certainly don’t see any rust,” Smith said of Moss. “He’s running well, catching well. No surprise, he’s a pro and already has a good understanding of the playbook.”

* The Dallas Cowboys and Washington Redskins had a 90 minute appeal hearing Thursday regarding  teams’ objections to the NFL’s reductions to their respective salary caps. Per NFL.com:

According to ProFootballTalk.com, the NFL argued its agreement with the players’ union on the matter prevents the Cowboys and Redskins’ grievance and that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell holds the power to adopt measures to ensure competitive balance. The teams’ briefs, according to sources with knowledge of the contents, argue that any agreement between the clubs to control salaries during the uncapped year shouldn’t be allowed.

The NFL penalized the Cowboys and Redskins for overloading contracts during the 2010 uncapped season despite league warnings. No ruling is expected soon.

Redskins GM Bruce Allen told NFL.com, they were pleased to allow their side of the case  be heard and would now be playing the waiting game. » Continue reading “Friday Morning Mix: A New Look For Moss”

Via Wikipedia

It looks like Browns first round quarterback pick Brandon Weeden will be getting an opportunity to get the starting job for Cleveland this season.

Via Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plains Dealer, Browns GM Tom Heckert said he expects Weeden to be quarterback right away.

Heckert spoke about it on Pro Football Talk Live, earlier on Wednesday.

While Heckert has all but anointed Weeden as starting QB, Browns President Mike Holmgren has offered different feelings. According to Cabot, Holmgren has said to various media outlets that Weeden will be competing for the job with both Colt McCoy and Seneca Wallace.

Weeden was selected with the 22nd overall draft pick in the NFL Draft, several weeks ago. At 28, Weeden is three years older than McCoy, but three years younger than Wallace.

One person already impressed with Weeden is future teammate and fourth overall pick, RB Trent Richardson. Richardson told NFL.com that he’s never seen a quarterback “sling it” like Weeden.

With rookie mini camps starting this weekend, this could be Weeden’s opportunity to show the Browns organization that he should seriously be considered for the starting quarterback job.

Winning his second Super Bowl? An amazing performance this past weekend on Saturday Night Live?

Yes, this week’s Tight End Tuesday should be no surprise.

I present you with New York Giants QB Eli Manning!

» Continue reading “Tight End Tuesday: Eli Manning”

Via Wikipedia

Another former NFL player is confirmed to have suffered brain damage.

Reuters reported Friday that a mental examination given to former NFL quarterback Art Schlichter found damage to his frontal lobe.

The damage, according to the Reuters piece, is likely from numerous concussions Schlichter received while playing college and pro football.

Schlichter’s exam was court ordered as he was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison for his role in a phony ticket scheme.

The frontal lobe is located the around your forehead. It is essential as it focuses on the ability to recognize the consequences of actions, as well as motor functions, memory and impulse control.

Damage to the frontal lobe can include such effects as memory loss, as well as a disturbance in motor functions.

Schlichter’s news comes off of the recent announcement that the brain of former Chargers linebacker Junior Seau was going to be donated to doctors.

Schlichter was selected No. 1 in the 1982 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts. The former Buckeyes quarterback played a total of 13 games in his career, all for the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts.

Terrell Suggs (www.charged.fm)

The breaking news of the morning in the world of NFL was Terrell Suggs sustaining an achilles tendon injury.  He has yet to see a specialist, and no details are known about the extent of the injury at this time.  Suggs himself has already announced that he will be back by the middle of the upcoming season.

His expectations are most likely unrealistic.  While it’s true that professional athletes have access to the best sports medicine care and technology, he has no basis for that statement.  At this point, Suggs is merely trying to reassure his fans, his teammates, his coaches…and even himself.

The achilles tendon attaches the calf muscle to a bone in the heel.  If he sustained a full thickness achilles tear, Suggs needs surgery.  He’ll be immobilized (i.e., in a boot or cast) for a while.  The time frame for full recovery is typically 9-12 months.  If he starts the season on the PUP list, he can avoid IR without costing the Ravens an active roster spot for up to 9 weeks.  It’s still unlikely he would be able to play at the NFL level in 31 weeks from now, although it’s possible.  His challenge as a linebacker, of course, is that he won’t have his initial push-off/burst, which is so crucial for an OLB.  He’ll also be deconditioned.

If it’s a partial tear, he may be able to avoid surgery, but it will be difficult to know when it will heal and when he will be able to play through the pain.  Sometimes platelet-rich plasma treatments (which Peyton Manning and supposedly Kobe Bryant have used in Europe) can speed recovery.  Without a repair, chronic pain is a potential issue.  Often pro athletes with a partial tear will choose surgical repair (they can wrap the tendon with a dermal graft to add support and strength) to avoid a situation where, even after 6 months, there’s no improvement and all that time is lost.  In that scenario, he might be back on the field in the second half of the season.

My overall impression:  Suggs, like all freshly injured athletes, is going to say he’ll play (we’ve seen it a million times, Pouncey, Gronk, etc.).  The Colts teased their fans for an entire season that their QB might return, but Manning never made it past the sideline.  Suggs probably hasn’t even had a chance to consult with specialists yet, so he can’t make a realistic estimate on his recovery.  He’s also probably campaigning to save his roster spot and avoid IR.  I doubt he’ll be a major contributor in the regular season even if he makes it back on the active roster.  My guess is that the Ravens are looking for a FA already.

Melanie Friedlander is a contributer to Steel City Blitz and occasionally sneaks onto Aerys Offsides.  She is a board-certified surgeon.  You can follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/girlsurgeon.

The school of hard knocks arrived at ball so hard university today when the news broke that Baltimore Ravens LB Terrell Suggs tore his achilles and is likely out for six months. Suggs said he expects to return midseason.

Suggs is a star defensive player and was recently awarded the Defensive Player of the Year. He is known for his tough, rock’em, sock’em playing style and his absence creates a huge hole that the Ravens need to fill.

It is hard to find a silver lining in this situation, but is it still early, the start of the season is five months away and they have plenty of time to solve this problem. Last week they drafted Alabama LB Courtney Upshaw who now is even more likely to become a starter this season.

There is already talk of who else the Ravens can pull in to help fill the hole and right now it is anyone’s’ guess as to who that player would be.

Suggs was a major force on the Ravens defense last season, he had career-high 14 sacks and two interceptions.

The Ravens released a statement via their Tweeter feed to say:

“We are in contact with Terrell. He will see a specialist early next week, and we’ll know more at that time.”

It is still too early to know the extent of his injury and the prognosis, until then the Ravens will need to plan for the worst case scenario and find a way to fill the void that Suggs’ injury created.

6:11 p.m. ET: We also have this commercial featuring Seau’s Restaurant. It features both Seau, as well as his mother.

6:01 p.m. ET: Junior Seau. Dennis Hopper. Nike…Need I say more?

5:51 p.m. ET: This photo comes courtesy of Marty Caswell at XX 1090 AM in San Diego. The display is in the lobby of the Chargers office.

5:03 p.m. ET: From NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell via Twitter: All of us are deeply saddened about Junior Seau, a great player loved by teammates who also worked hard to serve his community…Junior and his family will remain in our thoughts.

4:58 p.m. ET Update: Both the New York Times and the North County Times are reporting no suicide note was found at the scene.

4:38 p.m. ET Update: We mentioned earlier that Seau was the eighth player from the 1994 San Diego Chargers team to pass away. Here’s a great post from Jason Lisk over at The Big Lead on those deaths.

4:28 p.m. ET Update: Several pastors, including former NFL player Miles McPherson are currently talking on San Diego television.

4 p.m. ET Update: We’re waiting for additional word as another press conference is expected to take place shortly. Many people have chimed in thus far on the death of Seau, to the media, as well as on Twitter. This include Eric Olsen, an offensive lineman for the New Orleans Saints. Through several tweets, Olsen told a great story about his encounter with Junior Seau at a Jay Fielder Football camp. Definitely worth a read.

New Update: Police announced during a press conference that the death will be investigated as a suicide.

Sad news to report in the NFL. TMZ and various media outlets are reporting that former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau has been found dead in his home in Oceanside, Calif.

According to the TMZ report, police are investigating a shooting, according to several of their law enforcement sources.

Seau, 43, played for 20 seasons in the NFL, 13 of those with the San Diego Chargers. Seau is the eighth member of the Chargers 1994 Super Bowl team to pass.

We will have much more on this story as it continues to break.

Update: Both TMZ and the North County Times are reporting Seau committed suicide. The North County Times reported Seau was found with a gunshot wound to his chest by a housekeeper.

Sometimes in the NFL it is not all about winning.

Wait what did she just say?!

Yea I said it. It’s not ALWAYS about winning.

The Buccaneers proved that to be true by signing former Rutgers defensive tackle Eric LeGrand, who was paralyzed in a 2010 game.

LeGrand played for Greg Schiano, who is now coach of the Bucs, when he was injured in October 2010. LeGrand was in his junior year when he took the field verus Army & sustained two fractured vertebrae and serious damage to his spinal cord.

Originally doctors believed he would be a quadriplegic and would be confined to a ventilator, however LeGrand wasn’t going to settle with that. He resumed breathing on his own five weeks after the injury. Soon after he was able to stand upright with the help of a metal frame.

Schiano knew he had a spot left on the 2012 roster & who more deserving than a young guy, who could’ve been at the top of his draft class this season if it had not been for this life altering injury.

This contract is merely symbolic, so LeGrand will not be paid by the organization. The Buccaneers will send him a helmet, jersey, contract to sign & then he will eventually become a “Buc-For-Life”.

LeGrand was overwhelmed by Schiano & the Bucs organization’s decision. LeGrande told Schiano:

“I was like, `I don’t even know what to say, Coach. This is amazing. Thank you.’ This is something I always dreamed about, going to the NFL and retire and become a sportscaster. Now you know dreams do come true.”

LeGrand currently lives in a New Jersey apartment with his mother until a wheelchair-accessible house is being built nearby is finished. LeGrand vows he will eventually walk again, stating his latest accomplishment is sitting upright for 15 minutes.

I wonder where “being signed as an NFL player” will land on his list of accomplishments.

No bad deed goes unpunished. Four NFL players are learning that the hard way this offseason, as the news broke earlier today that the “punishments” are being handed out for the Saints bounty scandal.

Saints LB Jonathan Vilma has been suspended for the 2012 season for his participation in the pay-for-performance “bounty” scandal. However he is not alone, joining him in suspension will be Scott Fujita, Anthony Hargrove, Will Smith who will be suspended without pay for “conduct detrimental to the NFL as a result of their leadership roles in the “bounty” program that endangered player safety over three seasons from 2009-2011.”

According to NFL.com the suspensions will go as follows:

• Linebacker Jonathan Vilma of the Saints is suspended without pay for the 2012 NFL season, effective immediately per league policy for season-long suspensions.

• Linebacker Scott Fujita (now with the Cleveland Browns) is suspended without pay for the first three games.

• Defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove (now with the Green Bay Packers) is suspended without pay for the first eight games.

• Will Smith of the Saints is suspended without pay for the first four games.

These players have 3 days to appeal but if they were smart they’d just take the sentence & move on.  I do not foresee Goodell having a change of heart in this matter anytime soon. They were involved & will now pay the price. Let’s not drag this scandal out any longer than necessary.

“No bounty program can exist without active player participation,” Goodell added. “The evidence clearly showed that the players being held accountable today willingly and enthusiastically embraced the bounty program. Players put the vast majority of the money into this program and they share responsibility for playing by the rules and protecting each other within those rules.”

* * *

Interested to see what Aerys Lead Saints Reporter, Krissy, has to say on the matter. Check it out on Halftime Voodoo.