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Pro Sports Wrap - Sports Personality of the Day:Kris Versteeg

9/2011 WR Rankings

September 24th 2011 13:50
1. Larry Fitzgerald
2. Andre Johnson
3. Calvin Johnson
4. Reggie Wayne
5. Steve Smith CAR
6. Roddy White
7. Greg Jennings
8. Brandon Marshall
9. Kenny Britt
10. Mike Wallace
11. Miles Austin
12. Santonio Holmes
13. Marques Colston
14. Jeremy Maclin
15. DeSean Jackson
16. Vincent Jackson
17. Anquan Boldin
18. Mike Williams TB
19. Steve Smith PHI
20. Hakeem Nicks
21. Lance Moore
22. Sidney Rice
23. Santana Moss
24. Brandon Lloyd
25. Dwayne Bowe
26. Braylon Edwards
27. Johnny Knox
28. Dez Bryant

29. Wes Welker
30. Austin Collie
31. Mario Manningham
32. Steve Johnson
33. Earl Bennett
34. AJ Green
35. Percy Harvin
36. Jordy Nelson
37. Malcolm Floyd
38. Pierre Garcon
39. Nate Washington
40. Davone Bess
41. Hines Ward
42. Robert Meachem
43. Mike Thomas
44. Donald Driver
45. Lee Evans
46. Julio Jones
47. James Jones
48. Antonio Brown
49. Jordan Shipley
50. Derrick Mason
Musgrave must use him more


Week 3 Picks

Bengals over 49ers
Panthers over Jaguars
Lions over Vikings
Titans over Broncos
Browns over Dolphins
Eagles over Giants
Saints over Texans
Patriots over Bills
Ravens over Rams
Jets over Raiders
Chargers over Chiefs
Packers over Bears

Cardinals over Seahawks
Falcons over Bucs
Steelers over Colts
Redskins over Cowboys (To make this more interesting)
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2011 NFL Kick-off preview

September 7th 2011 16:40
As I sit here in my comfortable abode on an all too crappy netbook typing this post out while blaring Tool, my mind is busy contemplating the rigorous ahead of us (NFL fans). The parity in the NFL makes predicting a difficult task, but I do know one thing for sure; this is going to be one hell of a season. Don't believe me? Well, why don't you just take a look at the season's first game between the Packers and Saints? I don't need to tell you how great these two teams are, and just how great these two teams will be in February. Oh wait...this is the NFL, where crazy happens.

The Eagles, Falcons, Saints, and Packers are the NFC's undisputed Big Four heading into the season. They have very little questions surrounding their teams, and these are the guys who you put your sports' dignity on the line when you make your predictions. But with a full season looming ahead, injuries, poor execution, and the usual unexpected twists and turns that happen during 16 weeks of football will make the guessing game an even more difficult affair. For now, I'll just stick to one game and break down how I think things will end up between the Packers and Saints.

Last year, I did an opening day preview that also involved the Saints, but they were playing against a different marquee franchise; the Vikings. My preview was right on, but the Vikings' season was far from a planned occurance. They were one of the biggest disappointments in football, and they gave rise to the surprise Bears. I don't think either of these two teams will have an epic collapse, but the important thing is that this is definitely the game to be watching.

Everybody raves about the Saints offense, and that's definitely for good reason. Drew Brees is unquestionably one of the elite quarterbacks in the game right now, and he has seven legitimate receiving threats to help him out. Jon Stinchcomb was a huge liability at right tackle, and Zach Strief should be an upgrade over him. Strief is relatively unknown, and he is an underrated player who you should become familiar with soon.

As far as the other parts of the line, Jerome Bushrod is a poor left tackle who was one of the two reasons- Stinchcomb was the other- why Brees had more picks than he should have last season. The man was constantly on the run because of pressure from the outside, but the interior remained calm thanks to one of the top guard tandems in the National Football League. The veteran Olin Kreutz replaces Jonathan Goodwin at center, and there really won't be a noticeable upgrade or downgrade at the position.

Defensively, I don't think the Packers line is going to win their battle against the Saints O-Line. Clay Matthews should be able to get some pressure on Brees, but I think the Saints interior should be able to get the better of the Packers D-Line. There isn't a huge disparity between both lines, but I like the Saints just a little bit better.

While the Saints have a plethora of receiving weapons, the Packers have enough talent in their secondary to mitigate their opposition's passing attack. Great passing offenses always beat great secondaries, but I honestly don't expect this to be a game where Brees completely rips the Pack apart. What should worry Saints fans the most is if Matthews forces Brees to make bad throws downfield that can get sucked in by Nick Collins, Tramon Williams, or Charles Woodson. And heck, Sam Shields isn't a guy you want to mess with either.

People talk too much about Gregg Williams's complex blitz schemes, and they don't realize that the Saints just don't have much of a pass rush at all. Roman Harper and Cameron Jordan are their only two legit QB threats who are healthy, and Harper is a safety who won't blitz all the time. I pointed out his ability to force quarterbacks to make mistakes in last year's preview against the Vikings, and a Harper hit on Favre caused a key interception for the Saints. And really, that's all the Saints want when they blitz; they want to make the opposition give them a gift (so to speak).

However, Aaron Rodgers doesn't waiver under pressure. It's yet another reason why I believe that the-guy-who-needs-a-way-bette r-nickname-than-A-Rod is the best quarterback- nay- best player in the game today.

While I do think that the Saints secondary is a tad overrated, they're still pretty good at the back with guys like Jabari Greer and Malcolm Jenkins. However, I do think that Rodgers will rip these guys apart because there are way too many weapons to cover.

These are two great teams and picking a winner between the two of them is a daunting task, but it has to be done otherwise this whole post is pretty pointless. Aren't you glad I didn't say "moot"? Man I hate that word, and it also reminds me of Fred Smoot. If you actually know who that is, then I think you need to stop being like me and get a life.

Anyway, I see the Packers taking this game in a relatively close game. I still think the Packers are the best team in the NFL, and that has a lot to do with the fact that they have Aaron Rodgers leading this badass bunch. My final prediction is 30 Packers 21 Saints with Aaron Rodgers being the game MVP.

Other Week Predictions

Titans over Jaguars
Texans over Colts
Bengals over Browns
Chiefs over Bills
Steelers over Ravens
Falcons over Bears
Eagles over Rams
Lions over Bucs
Panthers over Cardinals
Seahawks over 49ers
Giants over Redskins
Chargers over Vikings
Cowboys over Jets
Patriots over Dolphins
Broncos over Raiders
Best player in football
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I honestly think that Kyle Williams is the best defensive tackle in the game, and he is one of the the most underrated players in football. He's the Bills' best player, and they rewarded him by giving Williams a 6-year extension worth 39 million. Even though it is technically a reward, the deal is very cheap for the Bills. Williams is one of the best defensive players in the game, and to lock him up over the span of 6 seasons for 6.5 million per season is a terrific move.

"Meatball" was absolutely monstrous last season, and he should have been the Defensive Player of the Year. Of course, nobody gives that award to defensive tackles, but Williams should have at least been on the Pro Bowl squad. Even though the players around him are terrible, that doesn't mean that Williams shouldn't get recognized for the work he does. If you go back to the Bills' very interesting game against the Steelers, Kyle Williams was murdering Maurkice Pouncey. He showed all that he is capable of by consistently disrupting plays in the backfield, blowing up rushing lanes, drawing double-teams, collapsing the pocket, and pressuring the quarterback. Trust me, this guy more than deserved this pay check.

It was always pretty obvious to me that Chris Johnson wasn't going anywhere, because nobody in their right mind would trade their best player and only offensive star. Heck, CJ might be the Titans' only star player on the roster. In any case, losing Johnson would really hurt the Titans as a team and as an organization. The fan base would be enraged, and the team would lose respect. While I think that Chris Johnson's holdout is ridiculous, he doesn't deserve the money he wants, the Titans should pay him more than he is receiving right now.

The whole shelf-life ideal for running backs is like that weird guy from Star Wars lightsaber; it has two sides to it and can be tricky. Running backs don't last long in this league, so it's natural for the Titans to be cautious with this situation. However, Johnson needs to get paid in full now if his career really won't last that long (which is sad but true). CJ needs to make sure that he at least gets the money he deserves for what should be a good career, and the Titans should reward him accordingly. I think nine to ten million per year is fair enough, and Johnson really needs to lower that outrageous asking price.

Another star running back on a poor team is requesting a holdout, but this one is definitely less-publicized. Frank Gore- as well as Chris Johnson- want DeAngelo Williams money. The contracts that get thrown out there skew the market and jack up contracts, so we have Carolina to thank for what was an awful deal. Williams is a great running back, but 5 years and 43 million is ridiculous for a 27 year old. In any case, Gore needs to just stay put and take his five million a year. It's not like he's always healthy to begin with.
RB Holdouts
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8/2011 QB Rankings

August 24th 2011 14:50
1. Aaron Rodgers
2. Peyton Manning
3. Tom Brady
4. Drew Brees
5. Philip Rivers
6. Tony Romo
7. Ben Roethlisberger
8. Matt Ryan
9. Michael Vick
10. Matt Schaub
11. Eli Manning
12. Joe Flacco
13. Josh Freeman
14. Jay Cutler
15. Matthew Stafford
16. Kyle Orton
17. Matt Cassel
18. Sam Bradford
19. Kevin Kolb
20. Colt McCoy
21. Mark Sanchez
22. Donovan McNabb
23. Ryan Fitzpatrick
24. David Garrard
25. Jason Campbell
26. Chad Henne
27. Alex Smith
28. Matt Hasselbeck
29. John Beck
30. Tavaris Jackson
*Rookies Not Included
Not Overrated
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To qualify a running back must have at least 100 carries. Thanks guys for your feedback, and feel free to comment and criticize. Do you think I should give an extra bonus to the guys with more carries? It seems as if the players in the 100-199 range have the advantage, but this is- after all- and efficiency stat. (The groupings should not be interpreted as tiers, as they are only used to make it look less messy)


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I have finally formulated a decent looking total efficiency statistic to evaluate running backs. There is a huge craze over quarterback stats, but I decided to come up with a simple, yet efficient running back stat. It isn't great, but I think it is better than what we've had. It isn't objective only because of the way I account for the run blocking variable.

Yards per carry is the single most important statistic for a running back, and it's efficiency in its simplest point. However, running backs who carry the rock more tend to have lower yards per carry totals. Also, backs with poor lines- in terms of run blocking- in front of them take hits in that department. YPC also doesn't take into account fumbles or touchdowns either. Although both of those factors aren't as important as once thought, they are necessary to come up with a running back stat that can actually work


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2011 NFL Draft Rankings

May 7th 2011 11:25
This post overviews all of the five parts and ranks which teams did the best and worst in the 2011 NFL Draft.

Great


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Philadelphia Eagles B plus- The Eagles usually do a solid job in the draft, and they did a good job this year. Danny Watkins is definitely going to start at guard, and he's a huge upgrade on the line. The Eagles' linebackers were poor last year, so the addition of Casey Matthews in the fourth round was a huge one for Philly. He was a nice deal there, and he will start. Dion Lewis can be a solid running back in the draft, and he was a nice pick in the fifth round.

Pittsburgh Steelers D plus- I really didn't like the draft the Steelers turned in this year. I love the Cameron Heyward pick a lot, but there was really nothing of note besides him for Pittsburgh


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2011 First Round Draft Notes

April 29th 2011 15:07
I can't say that I'm happy, but I'll have to give Cam Newton a chance. I didn't want the Panthers to take him at number one, but I don't want him to bust now that he's "the guy" for my favorite team. I wish the Panthers took a Marcell Dareus or A.J. Green and give Clausen and Moore another shot. After all, it is rare that a QB does well after just one year. It takes time. Smart teams like the Bucs wait three years for their QB, and the Bucs were rewarded when Josh Freeman had the year he had last season.

Newton is one of my least favorite players already, but I can't deny his athleticism. I just wish he had better footwork and was a better person. Jake Locker deserved to be picked at number eight by the Titans. He was high on their board, fits their system well, and he wasn't a reach. There are plenty of unintelligent people that dropped Locker from the first choice over Sam Bradford the year before, to somebody values in the late teens. And why? Well, that's because suddenly mystifying accuracy problems arose. This happens when those said unintelligent "experts" read stats- meaningless in college football- like completion percentage and don't watch what actually happened. Locker's receivers were terrible, and he was almost always under pressure due to an incompetent line


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2011 Pre-Draft Team Needs List

April 28th 2011 14:18
Patriots- O-Line Depth, Pass Rusher, Vertical Wide Receiver, depth RB, Safety
Jets- Pass rusher, offensive line
Dolphins- RB, Guard, QB


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2011 Second Round Mock Draft

April 25th 2011 14:31
33. New England Patriots- RB Mikel LeShoure
34. Buffalo Bills- QB Christian Ponder
35. Cincinnati Bengals- QB Ryan Mallett


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2011 First Round Mock Draft

April 24th 2011 12:48
1. Carolina Panthers- DT Marcell Dareus
2. Denver Broncos- CB Patrick Peterson
3. Buffalo Bills- LB Von Miller


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3/2011 NFL Mock Draft: 6-10

March 20th 2011 15:49
Note: each mock draft is reset monthly.

6. Cleveland Browns LB Von Miller


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3/2011: NFL Safety Rankings

March 10th 2011 15:58
1. Troy Polamalu- Do I even have to explain his impact?
2. Quintin Mikell- He is one of the most underrated players in the league. Mikell doesn't get appreciated much, and he is the best coverage safety in the league who also plays some nice run support D. Reed gets the picks, but Mikell is the true star in coverage.
3. Ed Reed- A pick machine


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2/2011 Top 75 Wide Receiver Rankings

February 26th 2011 14:29
1. Larry Fitzgerald- Still put up big numbers with nightmare QB carousel. Can catch absolutely anything. Has height, leadership, and athleticism.
2. Andre Johnson- Speed, height, and athleticism. Nuff said.
3. Brandon Marshall- If only he was reunited with Cutler


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2/2011 Early NFL Mock Draft 6-10

February 13th 2011 14:19
6. Cleveland Browns LB Von Miller

Although I was tempted to reach for WR Julio Jones and fulfill the Browns' biggest need, I felt that the Browns wouldn't be able to pass up on the talent of Von Miller. Besides, Cleveland needs a linebacker as well especially a blitzing player like Miller. The Browns want a pass rusher that is versatile enough to play as a standup DE. Miller looks like a solid seven technique player already


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