Quarterback situation in Arizona

The most glaring need for the Arizona Cardinals at present is the lack of a quality quarterback under centre. The Cardinals started three different players at quarterback last season, not including 2006 10^th overall pick Matt Leinart who was released during the preseason! As a Cardinals fan the instability at QB last season was painful to watch at times.

Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb has been suggested by many as the best fit at QB for the Cardinals; now that he has lost his starting job to Michael Vick. I think Kolb would be a good fit under centre in Arizona but obtaining him in a trade could prove to be costly. Speculations have been made that a trade for Kolb would require a second round pick or perhaps more. Other rumours are in circulations that Pro Bowl Cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie may be involved in any potential trade.

Fifth round pick John Skelton would seem to be the most promising QB on the Cardinals roster at present. Skelton started four games for the Cardinals last season with a win ratio of 0.500. In his first game as starter he steered the Cardinals to a 43-13 victory over the Denver Broncos to break a seven game losing streak. Also in his first game as starter, Skelton proved he can keep a calm head under pressure; by staying cool even after his first four passes fell incomplete; three of which had been dropped. However, though I think he may have potential for the future I don’t think Skelton is the immediate answer for the Cardinals at the QB position.

It has also been suggested that Carson Palmer could be a possibility for the Cardinals. However, it has to be wondered that after his threats to retire does he still have the love of the game he once had. Furthermore I don’t think Mike Brown will give in to his desire to be traded as I discussed in a previous post; http://nflfansuk.blogspot.com/2011/06/will-carson-palmer-return-to-bengals.html

One way or another, the Cardinals need somebody to stabilise their offense and to get Larry Fitzgerald the ball. I just hope we are not in for another season like in 2010.

Could Farve come back?

Yesterday at www.nfl.com Gil Brandt voiced his opinion that Brett Farve could possibly make a comeback in 2011, for what would be his twenty first season in the NFL. Brandt has based this opinion on the fact that Farve has enquired about helping rookie Panthers quarterback Cam Newton workout whilst the lockout is in place. Brandt claims that Farve would not be doing this if he wasn’t giving some consideration to returning to the NFL.

His opinion is backed up by the uncertainty which many teams have at the quarterback position at the moment; Arizona and Seattle to give but a couple of examples. This uncertainty is compounded by the ongoing labour dispute which has so far prevented any kind of free agency.

However, I believe that the odds are too strongly stacked against Farve making yet another return. Farve’s 2010 stats were far from his most impressive, he threw for 2500 yards with 11 TDs, 19 interceptions and a QB rating of 69.9. Furthermore I think that at almost 42 Farve simply wouldn’t be able to take another season of physical punishment like he did in 2010 and so, should stay firmly in retirement.

Go to www.nfl.com/videos to check out the interview with Gil Brandt. 

Is Brady deserving of the No1 spot?

The New England Patriot’s Tom Brady has been revealed as the number one player in the Top 100 as voted for by the players. The question is; does he deserve to hold the number one spot? A quick glance at the figures he chalked up in 2010 shows that he has added another outstanding season to an already hugely impressive career.

·        W-L                            14-2

·        Comp Pct                  65.9

·        Passing Yds               3,900

·        TD-Int                        36-4 (That’s a ratio of 9!)

·        Passer Rating           111.0

As if all that wasn’t enough he threw an incredible 339 straight passes without throwing a pick and was named league MVP for 2010. Furthermore Brady seems to be capable of producing this standard of play no matter what the weather conditions are. Brady’s career stats are no less impressive with three Super Bowl rings, two NFL MVPs and six pro Bowls to his name.  

I believe that the only other possible contender for the number one spot is Payton Manning, who was voted in at number two. The Indianapolis Colts Quarterback threw for an impressive 4,700 yards and 33 touchdowns this season finishing with a win-loss record of 10-6. However, he balanced out those 33 TDs with 17 interceptions in contrast to Brady’s mere 4 picks. Ultimately I think it was that clinical precision from Brady which helped see the Patriots produce four more wins than the Colts thus earning him the right to be crowned the best player of 2011.

Chad Riding Shotgun

Chad Ochocinco has had a more eventful lockout than most of the other players in the NFL. Firstly he tried out for major league soccer team, Sporting Kansas City followed up by a 1.5 second bull ride down in Duluth Ga. In Chad’s latest outing he has been riding shotgun with U.S stock car racer Jeff Burton.

Although Burton didn’t let loose completely he and Chad still reached speeds in excess of 150mph. As he did after his bull riding in Duluth; Chad also credited the NASCAR racers saying “How the hell they are able to do that with 30 other drivers on the track is beyond me”.

All these antics will likely put further strain on the relationship between Chad and Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis. It is strain that Chad could probably do without now that there is further competition for him at the wide receiver position, after the Bengals drafted A.J. green fourth overall in the 2011 draft. Furthermore Marvin Lewis probably has enough problems; not knowing if Carson Palmer will be back to start under centre for him. http://nflfansuk.blogspot.com/2011/06/will-carson-palmer-return-to-bengals.html

As the lockout draws on; this leaves us wondering: What will Chad get up to next? There has been talk of him heading off to Florida to catch alligators and with Chad I don’t think you can rule anything out!

Tiki Barber Returning to the NFL

After filing his retirement papers in February 2007 Tiki Barber has announced his intentions to return to the NFL. If Barber is successful he will have done what no other running back has done before and return to the game after four years away from it.

Barber’s decision to retire in 2007, at the age of 31 was a very unpopular one. Many were upset that the Giant’s running back was retiring when he was right at the peak of his career. He recently gave his reason for retiring when he did as simply; “I didn’t want to do it anymore”.

In an interview with HBO Sports Barber stated that he needs the sport and that he knows he is going to be successful. Some have said that he is returning to the NFL for financial reasons, after an expensive divorce from his wife. However, this is a claim which Barber denies.

Whatever his reasoning for returning to the NFL, he seems to have regained his passion and hunger for the game and it is that which I think will ultimately make his return a successful one.

“Coach, Wrong Ball!”

This is a video I stumbled across recently on youTube; it features something called the “wrong ball play” and believe it or not it’s completely legal. I can’t imagine this play ever working at NFL level but it is entertaining nonetheless. Take a look and let me know what you think.

Plaxico at Philadelphia

Wide Receiver Plaxico Burress is due to be released from prison today after serving a two year sentence for weapon charges. This leaves us wondering where he will end up on his return to football.

At the age of thirty three Plaxico should still have a few years of play left in him. Football players are generally considered to be able to take a finite number of hits, over the course of their career, so not having taken any hits over the last two years may prove to be advantageous for Plaxico. In the past players have also seemingly been rejuvenated after having a rest from football. This was well demonstrated with the case of Kurt Warner who after being dropped by the Giants in favour of Eli Manning; went on to take the Arizona Cardinals to Super Bowl XLIII. All this would seem to indicate that Plaxico should still have a few plays left in the tank.

To me the best fit for him would be in Philadelphia. After two years away from the game I don’t think he can be expected to perform at the level he once did, right from the word go. The Eagles already have a lot of talent at the Wide Receiver position and so can afford Plaxico some time to regain his form. The other main reason I think Plaxico would be a good fit at Philadelphia is the precedence they set with Michael Vick.

Vick, who also spent two years away from the game due to criminal charges, could offer a lot of help to Plaxico from his own first hand personal experience. Furthermore it shows that the Eagles are prepared to take a chance on someone in a situation such as this and that they have the means to make it pay dividends. As was shown when Vick took over from Kevin Kolb as starting quarterback.

Other possible teams which have been suggested for Plaxico are the St Louis Rams and the Chicago Bears; for the simple reason that these teams have need of talent at the wide receiver position. However the fact that they may want immediate return from him in my opinion means they would not be good match ups for Plaxico. Please comment and let me know where you think Plaxico Burress might end up (when we eventually have free agency that is).

Will Carson Palmer return to the Bengals?

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, Carson Palmer has now found a buyer for his house in Indian Hills, Ohio after putting it up for sale earlier this year. This would seem to add further weight to his threat that he will retire from the NFL if the Bengals refuse to trade him.

However, Cincinnati Bengals President, Mike Brown has said that they have no intention of trading Palmer and wishes for him to return to the franchise. Brown also said that they will go with rookie Andy Dalton at quarterback should Palmer stick to his guns and not come back once play resumes in the NFL, but ideally he would like to have both of them.

Quarterback, Andy Dalton who the Bengals drafted in the second round out of Texas Christian University would seem like a good prospect at the position. Nevertheless it would likely be of great benefit to him if he could spend some time learning from an eight year veteran like Palmer.

It would seem like a difficult position to be in for the management in Cincinnati. If Palmer does decide to retire then they will have lost quite a valuable player. On the other hand if he comes back they will have to choose whether they want to start him or Dalton. If Carson is as unhappy playing in Cincinnati as he seems to be then he probably won’t give it his all, meaning it may of more benefit to the Bengals to trade him. However Mike Brown is a stubborn man and I don’t think he would be prepared to set such a precedence by giving in to Palmer’s demands; whatever the situation is, after all  he didn’t give in to Chad Ochocinco’s desire to be traded in the past. If I was Carson Palmer I wouldn’t get my hopes up for a trade.

Bringing an NFL game to Wembley

For the fifth straight season the NFL has decided to bring a regular season game to Wembley stadium, with this year’s game is to be contested between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Chicago Bears.

The Buccaneers will be the first NFL team two have played two games in the United Kingdom. They will no doubt be hoping to set the record straight after a comprehensive 35-7 defeat at the hands of the New England Patriots on their previous outing to the U.K in 2009.

The Bears finished the 2010 regular season with a winning record of 11-5; making it all the way to the NFC championship game where they lost out to the eventual super bowl champions the Green Bay Packers.

Although they didn’t make it to the playoffs, the Buccaneers did put up a solid 2010 performance recording a total of 10 wins. This was a vast improvement on their 2009 season where they finished with a record of 3-13, earning them the third overall pick in the draft.

All in all I think we have a very interesting match up to look forward to this year at Wembley and I for one can hardly wait. However, whether or not the game goes ahead is dependent on the current labour dispute being resolved by August 1^st. If the two sides cannot come to a solution before that date then the game is to be relocated to the Buccaneer’s, Raymond James Stadium; which will lead to the disappointment of thousands of U.K fans.

On a more positive note you can register your interest in tickets at www.nfluk.com.