Vick in Philly

Mike Vick is back!




I don’t care if you like him or not, Vick and Donovan McNabb together in a backfield together is going to be insane. Plus having Vick with the Philly fans is going to be even crazier.

This could go either way with the Philly fans, these are people who booed Santa Clause, and threw snowballs packed with batteries in them at refs and opposing coaches and players, so expect anything with them from lavish adoration, to mean spirited rated R language.

Think of what you could do with Vick and McNabb in Madden 10, (once they update the rosters to have Vick in the game) especially since Madden has installed the Wildcat offense into the game this year. They could be the most used team in Madden this year.

Plus, the Eagles have a great foundation to help Vick. Since 2001, they have been one of the best teams in the NFL year in and year out.

McNabb is one of the best players in the league on and off the field, their head coach Andy Reid is Mormon, and is very dedicated to helping young men overcome struggles in their lives. Couple that with the advice he is getting from another deeply religious man in Tony Dungy and a firm foundation for Vick to succeed is definitely in place in Philadelphia.

So Vick landed on his feet, and luckily it isn’t in a place like St. Louis or Detroit, where he would not have much of an impact on a downtrodden team. Philly will be there at the end of the season, like they are every year, and with Vick, they add another weapon to an already dangerous offense.

Check out the playmakers Philly has now around McNabb; Brian Westbrook and rookie LeSean McCoy will be the running backs, along with Vick more than likely. Their wide outs Desean Jackson and another rookie Jeremy Maclin, are quick as a whip and have the chance to be a special combo together, and their tight end Brent Celek is a good receiver.

So what does this all mean for Mike Vick’s future? Well he signed a two year deal, but in all actuality it will be a one year deal.

Vick signed up for the first year at $1.6 million. He has an option for a second year at $5.2 million with the Eagles, but unless something bad happens to McNabb, and Vick shows that he is fully back to what he was, Philly will more than likely cut him after this season and either let him go, or re-work another contract.

Vick needs money worse than a 16 year old kid who wants to party, but only has a 20 dollar allowance a week, so Mike will be on his best behavior, and hopefully at his peak performance.

If he can show flashes of his old self, then he should be able to earn a nice paycheck next season, and hopefully compete for a starting spot somewhere else.

His conditioning and reflexes are going to be tested right away, and who knows if he still has them after 19 months in a federal penitentiary. But at least he has a chance to test those skills, and we the fans will get to see something special this season.



It could be a train wreck, or it could be spectacular, regardless we will all be watching.

A Open Letter

Dear Bucs and Broncos fans,

I am writing this letter to you on August 7th, 2009. You don’t know it yet, but your respective teams are going to be harder to watch this season than Paul Bearer in a speedo on Siesta Key.



Let’s start with the Broncos.

What can I say; the damage already speaks for itself. In a span of 6 months, Denver went from having one of the most promising offensive football teams, to a squad that has Kyle Orton and Chris Simms as its quarterbacks.

Which is more depressing? Having Orton and Simms as your QB’s or the state of our Economy? If you are a Broncos fan, it’s easily the former.

Head Turd, err I mean Coach, Josh McDaniels and owner Pat Bowlen are squarely to blame.

Bowlen fired Mike Shanahan at the end of last season, mainly because of a late season collapse that saw Denver blow a three game lead, with three games to play.

This was hardly Shanahan’s fault, as the Broncos were on their 6th string Running Back (Tatum Bell, who had been out of the league because he stole a teammates bag of belongings in Detroit, was signed to be the starter; if that doesn’t scream desperation, I don’t know what would), and had numerous injuries up and down the defense.

They even had player, Spencer Larsen, who started at both Linebacker and Fullback in the same game, which isn’t a big deal if it’s Pop Warner, but is when it’s the NFL.

So Shanahan gets the axe, and they bring in Josh McDaniels, who had been New England’s offensive coordinator for the past three seasons.

McDaniels comes in and immediately looks to try to trade for Matt Cassel, who he coached in New England. The Chiefs wound up acquiring Cassel, and eventually word leaked out, that McDaniels tried to get Cassel.

This set-off a chain of events that ultimately saw Jay Cutler, one of the top young quarterbacks, to be traded to the Bears for a 2009 First round pick, a 2010 First round Pick, a 2009 Third Round Pick and quarterback Kyle Orton.

I’d rather have Randy Orton, than Kyle F. Orton on the Broncos. At least Orton could RKO McDaniels for being an idiot.



With Cutler being traded, the Broncos top wide out, Brandon Marshall has now become disgruntled, asked to be traded, and is making up injuries, so he doesn’t have to work out with the team in training camp.

Compounding matters is Denver’s schedule. The Broncos have home games against San Diego, Dallas, New England, the New York Giants and Pittsburgh.

On the road they have San Diego again as well as games against Baltimore, Washington, Philadelphia, and Indianapolis.

Expect a 6-10 season from Denver at the best and a 3-13 at the worst.

On to the Bucs.

They are not in as bad of shape as Denver is long term, but 2009 looks really tough.

I think this story about the Bucs off-season pursuit of then free agent, defensive tackle, Albert Haynesworth will sum up everything you need to know about the Bucs in 2009.

The Bucs were the leaders in the clubhouse to sign Haynesworth, and offered him more money than the team that eventually signed him, The Redskins did.

So why did Big Al go to D.C. instead of the Bay Area? Simple, new Bucs head coach Raheem Morris said the ugliest word a proven, veteran football player can hear… The R word…. REBUILDING.

As soon as that word left the lips of Morris, Haynesworth was all but a goner, and he took the 2009 season with him.

Tampa Bay would then go on to release the face of the franchise, Mr. Derrick Brooks, even though he pleaded with them not to, and offered to take a pay cut to stay around for one more season.

The Bucs also let go of Warrick Dunn, Joey Galloway, Ike Hilliard, Jeff Garcia, and Cato June. Granted, these players are older, but are their replacements any better?

Byron Leftwich? That dude is slower than the kids on the Short Bus.

Derrick Ward? He has never been THE MAN, at any point of his NFL career, and two years ago, was rated in the low 70’s in Madden 08. Highly doubtful that he will be the answer in the Bucs oft-injured backfield.

Besides the trade for Kellen “The Soldier” Winslow (this never gets old http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I82BPA5QAaQ ) what else do Bucs fans have to look forward to this season?

These Hideous Things?



A rookie quarterback that no one had ever seen play a game in college? Ask Vikings fans what they thing of Tarvares Jackson, because that’s pretty much what Josh Freeman is.

And, just like the the Broncos, The Bucs also have a killer schedule looming in front of them.

Their whole home schedule against Carolina, Atlanta, New Orleans, Dallas, The Giants, New England, Green Bay, and The Jets, are all going to be tough. I can see maybe two to three wins tops against those teams.

Couple those with their away games at Carolina, Atlanta, New Orleans, Buffalo, Washington, Philadelphia, Miami, and Seattle and I forecast a 5-11 season for the Bucs.

So good luck watching these two teams compete for the higher draft pick come next April. Because that is the only thing to look forward to.

Signed,
Disappointed.