Yardbarker: T.J. Duckett

Fantasy Football Week 5 Waiver Wire

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 01:28:54 -0500

What an interesting week of games it was as the Indianapolis Colts came back from a 17 point deficit late in the fourth quarter to overtake the Houston Texans, the Washington Redskins defeated another division foe in the Philadelphia Eagles on the road, and the Cincinnati Bengals, despite being 17 point underdogs, were close to winning their first game at Dallas. Injuries and suspensions continue to pave the way for more players to step up and become relevant in fantasy football. These are guys that will get the football as well as the opportunity to produce, so don't ignore them because they're a former backup or somebody who has yet to shine on the big stage. Without further ado, it's onto the Week 5 Waiver Wire. -------------------- QUARTERBACKS Matt Ryan (Atlanta Falcons) Ryan has appeared on the Waiver Wire Watch List for a couple of weeks now, but it's now time for the Falcons QB to make the jump to the actual Waiver Wire list. In Sunday's win over the Green Bay Packers, Ryan completed 16 of 26 passes for 194 yards, 2 TDs, and 1 INT. The rookie looked good on the road and it appears the Falcons are more willing to let him air it out. Despite just being a rookie, Ryan has plenty of experience thanks to ample playing time during his four years at Boston College. He has adjusted to the NFL nicely, and thanks to the Falcons running duo of Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood, opposing defenses will not be able to simply drop back into coverage. He's not a weekly start in fantasy leagues, but is a nice play if the match-up is right. -------------------- TO FIND OUT WHO ELSE IS WORTH A WAIVER WIRE MOVE, CLICK THE LINK...

Week 4 Waiver review - Brady Quinn to start soon?

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 15:55:58 -0500

Le'Ron McClain has a tough Week 4 matchup, but he appears to have earned himself a backfield role, says Mike Harmon. See what other QB, RB, WR and TE you should be scouring the waiver wire for.

NFL News and Fantasy Football Views - Week 4

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 02:07:39 -0500

Week 3 of the fantasy football season came and went with many newsworthy tidbits, but the biggest thing that I can't get out of my head is the fact that Week 4 represents 25% of the season already having almost been played. Hopefully everyone is doing great right now with their rosters, but if you aren't don't worry! There is still plenty of time to right this ship, so utilize the Bruno Boys website to your utmost ability! This week we talk about Brian Westbrook's ankle injury, Ronnie Brown's 5 TD game performance, Julius Jones and his great start to the season, as well as Frank Gore possibly being one of the best bargains in fantasy football so far this year! So nestle snugly into your computer chair, close the doors, and turn off the phones! It is time once again for another edition of the RED HOT Newz and Fantasy Football Viewz from two whacky, insane, Detroit Lions fans, Bruno Boys Larry and Bruno Boys Ziza! ------------------------- Red Hot NFL Newz: Brian Westbrook left Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers due to injury and he looked like he was in severe pain. What should fantasy footballers be thinking right now? Bruno Boys Ziza Viewz: This news is going to be a cause of concern and many sleepless hours for a lot of fantasy football owners this week... TO READ MORE NEWS & VIEWS, CLICK THE LINK...

Risers & Decliners: Week 4

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 20:31:21 -0500

Every week this list will give you the players whom you should expect to see a change in fantasy value due to performance, injury or splitting time at his position. Derek Anderson leads this week's list of Decliners, as he may be losing the grip on his starting job as Browns QB. See who else is having a shift in fantasy value this week.

AccuScore: NFL Waiver Wire Wonders

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 15:46:30 -0500

After the FCC blocked his real life waiver claim, AccuScore's Tim Williams has an increased appreciation for fantasy football, where you can easily fill a void on your roster through waivers.

Week 4 Waiver Suggestions

Tue, 23 Sep 2008 11:38:31 -0500

Rudi Johnson looked very good this week against the 49ers and the surprising part is that he had the majority of the carries even though Kevin Smith was healthy. The Lions are one of the worst teams in the NFL and have a week off followed by a game against the Bears and the Vikings. Don't expect much from him in the coming weeks but any time you can pick up a potential starter at RB on waivers you have to try. Find out who else you can pickup this week that could help out your team.

Sundays From the Cellar: The Battle of Missouri

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 15:55:23 -0500

Rather than let this season go to waste, we decided that one way to celebrate the absolutely horrific St. Louis Rams was to put together a simple "diary" every Monday afternoon. That way we can share with our audience the trials and tribulations that come with being a fan of the worst team in football. It's pretty much the exact opposite of a Bill Simmons column.

What a treat for NFL fans in St. Louis on Sunday. Prior to the 3:00 start of the Rams-Seahawks game, CBS chose to air the Kansas City Chiefs taking on the Falcons in Altanta. It was our opportunity to gauge where the Rams stood in the battle to be the worst team in football.

Through two weeks, the Chiefs had an equally impressive resume in pursuit of the consensus 32nd spot in the league power rankings. In Week 2, they single-handedly saved Lane Kiffin's job for one more week, when they got smoked by the Oakland Raiders at Arrowhead.

Meanwhile 250 miles to the east, the Rams were winless and the architects of both the league's last ranked offense and defense. The total package.

The race to be the worst was on.

The Chiefs came out and dazzled early, notching zero first downs in the first quarter, daring the Rams to suck worse than them.

The Falcons took advantage and opened up a 24-0 lead. But just as the blowout seemed imminent, Herm Edwards' bunch closed out the first half with a Tyler Thigpen touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe and then opened the second half with a lengthy drive culminating in a Larry Johnson TD run.

Two touchdowns in two consecutive drives threatened to undermine their claim as #32, but before they were accused of actually being competitive, the Chiefs offense went back into hibernation and ultimately fell 38-14 to improve to 0-3.

No doubt sensing the challenge, the Rams came out fired up to establish their rightful place as the worst of the worst. They went down 3-0 on the opening drive and then on their first offensive possession Marc Bulger was flattened, coughing up the ball in the process of being planted in the turf by Julian Peterson. Minutes later someone named Michael Bumpus caught a touchdown pass and just like that it was 10-0, Seahawks.

They were off to a rousing start.

Meanwhile, the Rams defense was summed up perfectly by a Julius Jones 30-yard run in which several Rams players literally had no idea where the running back was on the field (hint: he's that guy sprinting towards the endzone with a football in his hands):

The offense put the first quarter to bed with another three and out, tallying an impressive 14 total yards in the first 15 minutes. With 4 minutes left in the first half, on their 26th drive of the season, they finally made an appearance inside the 20-yard line of their opponent.

They could muster only a field goal.

Like the Chiefs, the Rams had a brief spurt in the beginning of the second half in which they looked somewhat competitive. A Dane Looker touchdown reception cut the lead to 27-13, but it was more symbolic than anything - symbolic of the fact that this is still a team which gives significant playing time to Dane Looker.

The Seahawks pulled away in the fourth with 10 more points for a 37-13 win. The Rams defense allowed a staggering 245 yards to a team featuring Julius Jones and TJ Duckett in the backfield.

Total scoring tally for the Rams season: 29-116

In the end, the Rams and the Chiefs both went on the road this week against mediocre teams, got drilled by 24 points and remain true threats to go 0-16. So who is worse?

Only one thing is for sure - the crappiest team in the NFL no doubt resides in Missouri.

Up Next: Scott Linehan takes one more step towards the unemployment line when he leads the Rams against the undefeated Buffalo Bills in St. Louis.

Fantasy Football Week 3 Waiver Wire

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 00:00:34 -0500

What a great week the third one of the NFL season was. Two games were decided in overtime, the Dolphins beat New England on the road as Ronnie Brown accounted for five touchdowns and key players, such as Donovan McNabb, Ben Roethlisberger and Brian Westbrook were injured. Meanwhile, teams like the Browns, Bengals and Rams continue to suck. Now, we're three weeks into the season and by now you should have an idea of what kind of fantasy team you have. Even the best teams can use some help, so no matter if you're 3-0 or 0-3, take a look at our Week 3 Waiver Wire and find out what players are available in free agency that can help your team out. Note that there won't be any quarterbacks included in this week's waiver wire as three were listed last week, and the few remaining that haven't been discussed (Joe Flacco, JaMarcus Russell, Tyler Thigpen) aren't worth looking at right now. -------------------- RUNNING BACKS Ronnie Brown (Miami Dolphins) Before the season started, it was announced that Ricky Williams would be the starter in Miami and people panicked, most particularly fantasy owners. But, Brown was involved plenty in the offense the first two weeks, then single-handedly defeat the Patriots as he accounted for five touchdowns, four on the ground and one on a pass to Anthony Fasano.... TO READ MORE, CLICK THE LINK.

Rams at Hawks: All aboard the busted knee express

Fri, 19 Sep 2008 16:36:31 -0500

Last week's debacle of a football weekend sent me fleeing toward the relative refuge of my day job. Get away for a couple days, immerse myself in other things. To paraphrase character Steve Dunne from one of my favorite movies "Singles" - work is all I need. Work is good. Work. Unfortunately, I work for a rather large Seattle-based financial institution that's been in the papers a little too much lately. So, between local football follies and the financial crisis/meltdown/emergency/catastrophy/depression, my week hasn't really panned out for me. Crap. So, here we go on Week 3 of the Seahawks season as we welcome the Rams to Qwest Field. Or as I like to call it, a short train ride into the bye week aboard the busted knee express. But hey, congratulations to Koren Robinson for getting his new/old gig. No sooner had the ink dried on Koren's 1-year deal, he went and tweaked his knee in practice yesterday. According to reports, he worked through some individual drills today, but mostly watched practice and collected a pay check. Nice work. The Beelzebub of Torn ACLs isn't even waiting anymore for one of the receivers to enter the game. He's taking them down in warm ups. Quarterback and receiver stand-in Seneca Wallace didn't even break a sweat before the 49ers game Sunday when he pulled a calf muscle....

TAKE THE "NFL: ON A ROSTER OR OFF" QUIZ

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:31:22 -0500

To celebrate the start of another NFL season, we're going to play a little game, inspired by my viewing of every NFL roster multiple times due to recent fantasy football drafts and my brother and I asking each other, "Does _____ still play?" about eight times a day.

Here's how it goes: I name the NFL player (or coach), and you guess whether they're on an NFL roster/coaching staff or not. In honor of this season ending with Super Bowl 43, the quiz will be 43 men deep.

How well do you know your NFL rosters and coaching staffs? (Rosters as per footballguys.com, answer key and scoring chart follows the quiz).

The players: on a roster right now or not?

1. Fullback Mike Alstott

2. RB Anthony Thomas

3. Fullback Lorenzo Neal

4. QB Brad Johnson

5. QB Patrick Ramsey

6. RB JJ Arrington

7. QB Jared Lorenzen

8. WR Josh Reed

9. RB Nick Goings

10. Coach Mike Mularkey

11. Coach Mike Zimmer

12. QB Brian St. Pierre

13. WR Antonio Bryant

14. RB Onterrio Smith

15. QB Chris Simms

16. QB Mark Brunell

17. QB Trent Green

18. RB Ron Dayne

19. Coach Jim Fassel

20. QB Marques Tuiasosopo

21. DL Gerard Warren

22. WR Ike Hilliard

23. RB Najeh Davenport

24. QB Charlie Frye

25. RB TJ Duckett

26. Coach Dennis Green

27. LB Lavar Arrington

28. Coach Ron Rivera

29. Coach Jim Mora (the son, who apparently isn't "Junior")

30. WR Koren Robinson

31. RB Kevan Barlow

32. Coach Jim Haslett

33. Coach Bill Callahan

34. DE Courtney Brown

35. RB Travis Minor

36. QB Chris Weinke

37. Coach Chan Gailey

38. DB Hank Poteat

39. WR Mike Williams

40. Coach Dom Capers

41. Coach Mike Tice

42. WR Troy Brown

43. WR Quincy Morgan

ANSWER KEY:

1. No- The 6-time Pro Bowler retired in January of 2008.

2. No- He's currently after a free agent, most recently suiting up 10 times for Buffalo in 2007.

3. Yes- He'll be clearing the way for Willis McGahee in Baltimore.

4. Yes - He's Tony Romo's primary backup in Dallas.

5. Yes - He's the top backup to Jay Cutler in Denver.

6. Yes- He's still kicking around as a backup for the Arizona Cardinals

7. No - The hefty lefty is currently unemployed after spending 2008 training camp with Indy.

8. Yes- He's listed as the 4th WR in Buffalo.

9. Yes -The former Pitt Panther is still a Carolina Panther.

10. Yes- The former Steeler assistant is now the QB coach in Atlanta.

11. No- The well-traveled assistant is the defensive coordinator for Cincinnati.

12. Yes- The man once impersonated in Pittsburgh is Ken Whisenhunt's 3rd option in Arizona.

13. Yes- After missing the entire 2007 season, Bryant is a Tampa Bay Buc.

14. No - "The Whizzinator" was released by Minnesota in 2006 and never played in the NFL again. He was arrested with a DUI in May, 2008.

15. No- He was cut by Tampa in 2008 and is looking for work.

16. Yes- The ageless Brunell will backup Drew Brees in New Orleans.

17. Yes - Green is still alive and backing up Marc Bulger in St. Louis.

18. No- The 2007 Houston Texan is currently a free agent.

19. No- The former Giants head coach is now a broadcaster for Westwood One.

20. Yes- He's back in Oakland after spending 2007 with the Jets.

21. Yes- The 3rd overall pick in 2001 in Oakland for a second season.

22. Yes - The 7th pick in the 1997 draft will suit up for Tampa Bay in 2008.

23. No - The former Packer and Steeler became a free agent on June 28, 2008.

24. Yes- The Browns' 2007 opening-day starter is Seattle's third-stringer.

25. Yes- The man Steelers fans have long desired is also with Seattle.

26. No - Green was fired by the Cardinals on January 1, 2007.

27. No- He was released in February, 2007 by the New York Giants.

28. Yes- Former head coaching candidate du jour, he is now the linebackers coach in San Diego.

29. Yes- The old Falcons coach is now a DB coach in his beloved Seattle.

30. No - The troubled WR is currently out of the league, released by Green Bay in May, 2008.

31. No - He was cut by the Steelers prior to the 2007 season.

32. Yes- The former Saints head man is currently the defensive coordinator in St. Louis.

33. Yes- Former Raiders and Nebraska coach Callahan is the offensive line coach of the New York Jets.

34. No- The 2000 #1 overall pick retired prior to the 2007 season due to knee problems.

35. Yes- He's the third option at running back for the St. Louis Rams.

36. No - He started the last game of the 2007 season for San Francisco, where his services were no longer needed in 2008.

37. Yes- The former Cowboys head coach and Steeler assistant is now the offensive coordinator in Kansas City.

38. No - He was among the final cuts in 2008 Jets camp.

39. No- The former USC superstar was released by Tennessee in July, 2008.

40. Yes - The one-time coach of Dallas and Houston is now in charge of the Patriots' secondary.

41. Yes- The creator of "The Randy Ratio" in Minnesota is currently Jacksonville's tight ends coach.

42. No - The part-time DB appears to have finally played his last game as a Patriot.

43. No- The KR supreme was released by Denver in September, 2007.

SCORING CHART:

0-10: Someone want to buy this person a clue?

11-20: Not bad, not outstanding. If you were an NFL team, your effort would be a 6 or 7-win season.

21-30: A nice, meaty score. Well done. You're surely on your way to becoming an NFL team's director of football operations.

31-35: A fantastic effort, but like the Patriots, a bit short of perfection.

36-43: I'm guessing you either A. Looked at the answer key (also called "Belichicking") or B. Know waaaaay too much about the NFL.

Hawks at Bills: Ground Holmgren?

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 12:44:22 -0500

It's a good thing the Seahawks are carrying six running backs on the roster. They may need every one of them this week on the road against the Buffalo Bills. Until proved otherwise, the precision Mike Holmgren aerial attack is flying on fumes with two busted landing gear.

Top 10 performances that will set the tone for the 2008 season

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 20:41:22 -0500

Ahhhhhhhhh. That early renewal payment for NFL Sunday Ticket finally pays off on Sunday, as the most anticipated day of the year returns. After a short hiatus, I will be back, providing gameday analysis, top 10's and, when I get my bearings on the season, predictions! I'll list mine anyways, because I have a new office pool to dominate. Not every team needs to come out of the gate at full speed, but the following ten players, coaches and units need to turn in a strong performance if they want to win. Or just keep their jobs.

NFL PREVIEW: SEATTLE SEAHAWKS

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:45:22 -0500

by DMtShooter, Five Tool Tool

Hey, Seabag Fan! No one who works for or reads this site actually knows any of you, or will admit to it in the wake of your post-Super Bowl conspiracy puling that the Steelers had the refs in the bag. So it's been left to me, your Epic Garbageman, to take out the trash that is your team. Let's go to the tape!

When we last saw the Seahawks, they were disrespecting the ghost of Sean Taylor (when they beat the Redskisn the week before, they took possession) by falling apart in the snows of Lambeau Field. Since then, they've sent Shaun Alexander to a nice farm up state, lost a ton of wideouts to injury, signed some fourth tier running backs and welcomed the farewell tour for Walrus Holmgren, who will be put on an ice flow at the end of the year.

The net effect of all of this is more or less even, and the team continues to be sheltered by the kitten-soft NFC West and their strong homefield advantage. But this team was positively gutless against good opponents, and while there is talent here (Lofa Tatupu is among the five best LBs in the game, and Marcus Trufant is the best corner that no one knows about), it almost seems aimless... like an Atlanta Braves-esque constant playoff presence without any real danger of actually breaking through.

Hope for 2008 starts with the running backs. Julius Jones, Maurice Morris and TJ Duckett are all unlikely to be in the league in 3 years, and Seahawk Fan is not going to be buying their jerseys in big numbers... but they can't be worse than Alexander, who redefined the term "Spent" last year so much that he remains unemployed despite not actuall retiring. Even if these guys are just mediocre, the Seahawks could rise from the absence of suck.

Next, Matt Hasselbeck. He had a sneaky good year last year, especially for all of the fantasy honks that got him on the cheap after a bad 2007. By the end of the year, he looked like his arm was going to fall off from overuse, but he knows the system back and forward, and the offensive line is still tolerable, especially in pass protection.

The wideouts are another matter entirely. It's Nate Burleson -- himself hardly a paragon of virtue -- and the utter unknowns, with Deion Branch and Bobby Engram on the shelf, and even Ben Obomanu banged up. Assuming that he can't make Courtney Taylor into a rookie sensation, and that Will Heller and Jeb Putzier don't turn into a two headed Antonio Gates. In a West Coast offense, the quarterback can cover for a lack of wideouts to some extent, but this is getting ridiculous.

Defensively, the Seahawks are a schizophrenic bunch. At home, they rely on their exceptional crowd and get after the passer. On the road, they get pushed around and give up big points. So that makes them a playoff pretender, and it's hard to imagine how that's changed a lot in the past year.

The schedule should help them get off to a fast start -- at Buffalo, then St. Louis and the Niners at home before the bye. They should then struggle big, with a road date in New York, the Packers at home, at Tamopa and San Fran before hosting the Eagles. The last three games if the year is about as easy as two out of three road games can get (at St. Louis, New York and at Arizona). I'm seeing 10-6, with a stirring stretch drive and a Week 17 showdown win in Arizona that puts them over the top... just in time to lose in the first round of the playoffs. You know, like always!

TOP TEN FANTASY FOOTBALL KEYS TO FAILURE

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 00:42:11 -0500

by DMtShooter, Five Tool Tool

Which big names will be on teams that suck this year? Well, these guys. And if they don't, feel free to come find me at the end of the year and demand your money back. Finally, if you've already drafted them and are now bent out of shapre that I'm naming them... well, take solace in the fact that I'm An Idiot And You're Very Smart, Neener Neener. Let's get on to the bloodletting...

10. Stephen Jackson... with a twist. No, not the dreadlocked Rams RB and consensus top 5 pick, but the scrub with the same name who toils for the Chiefs practice squad. Early in August, many online auctions were enlivened by some jokester tossing out the Evil SJax out there, getting people who didn't check the merchandise well enough to pay through the nose for him, and then laughing themselves stupid as teams crippled themselves right at the start. Similar hijinks could be pulled with Adrian Peterson and Steve Smith, of course, but the Jackson Gambit earns special points of awfulness, in that it's the first year it's worked. If you are in a league with someone who did this, do not trade with that guy. If you are the guy that did it, my hat's off. And I'm backing away from you slowly, and never turning my back...

9. Willie Parker, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers. The best thing that can happen here is that Rashard Mendenhall gets hurt and/or has continuing fumble issues. The worst case scenario is Reality, in which Mendenhall becomes the lead back by mid-season and Parker becomes the de facto caddy, in kind of a Julius Jones / Marion Barber far from useful platoon. I've seen Parker go in the high third round, as if he still had the lead job or those 2006 touchdown numbers were coming back. They aren't, he isn't, and your 2008 is about to get Highly Frustrating.

8. Carson Palmer, QB, Cincinnati Bengals. The schedule is hard. He kinda stunk last year -- look at the per-game rates, and if it wasn't the Brown blowup game or the Week 17 Who Cares fest, he wasn't good at all. His deep wideout is batshit loco, playing with a broken shoulder and on the wrong side of 30. His #3 WR is the clubhouse leader in the Who Will Get Arrested First prop bet. His running back just let town on a slab, and his coach is probably starting at a pink slip at the end of the year. Oh, and he's not mobile. Ladies and gentlemen, bid early and bid often on Carson Palmer!

7. Willis McGahee, RB, Baltimore Ravens. A consensus second round pick, despite the fact that he's (a) been cut on, (b) getting a pea-green rookie as his new QB, (c) on a team that will be behind early and often, and (d) spent the pre-season watching his eventual replacement (Ray Rice) give everyone some hope for the future. Let's just saw he's not on any of my

6. Marvin Harrison, WR, Indianapolis Colts. This just in... they didn't need him back. Anthony Gonzalez gave them a better #2 wideout down the stretch last year, and he didn't spend his off-season not commenting on gun troubles. Oh, and Marvin also has knee issues on astroturf. That's good. Finally, in his absence last year, Dallas Clark picked up some of that Peyton Manning mind-meld stuff. And yet, people were drafting him in my leagues as if he were a lock-solid #2. The times, they are a changing.

5. Tony Gonzalez, TE, Kansas City Chiefs. Last year was wonderful, but the yards helped to hide the fact that he doesn't red zone looks anymore, and Kansas City is just plain terrible. Gonzo isn't a terrible pick in and of himself, but it's more what he represents -- an outdated mode of thinking (i.e., Tight Ends Are Scarce), which is usually indicative of an owner that isn't paying enough attention. He won't help many people win this year.

4. Any Seattle Running Back (Julius Jones, Maurice Morris, TJ Duckett). None of these guys are very good, and neither is the Seattle offensive line, which didn't open holes for anyone last year. Add the fact that two of the three guys were brought in as free agents, and you've got a three-way suckfest where no one is walking away satisfied. If you draft any of these guys, rest assured that you will be played along for months waiting for Some Magical Injury to come along and give your guy the featured role... only to discover that 20 carries behind this line will get you a whopping 30 yards more than the 10 carries did.

3. San Diego defense. First off, the guy with the first defense taken off the board usually tanks, because there's way too much chance that a defense from nowhere (remember the Titans last year?) will provide real value, while a highly regarded unit (say, the mostly folding their tent Ravens) will struggle. People who take the Charger defense will do so without degrading them for the inevitable Shawne Merriman injury, and even if Lights In His Head Are Out is most of what he usually is, they weren't going to perform as well this year, because teams aren't going to throw near Antonio Cromartie again, and they didn't get many hurries to go with their sacks. The division is still bad, but if you were drafting these guys in the 5th through 7th rounds, the rest of your lineup has to have suffered in comparison.

2. Derek Anderson, QB, Cleveland Browns. Last year's 7th ranked player in Yahoo (and 5th overall quarterback) spent the tail end of the 2007 undermining his status before signing a front-loaded extension. He's got one year to claim this franchise as his own over backup Brady Quinn, and so far, he's reacted to the pressure in a Hoying-esque fashion, driving always calm Browns Fan to start puling for the Bradycat.

He does have a great line to work behind and fine weapons in Winslow and Edwards... but both of those guys have been very injury prone in their lives, and it's not as if his division or schedule is a walk in the park. There's a reason this guy was a sixth round pick who couldn't beat out Charlie Frye for the starting job on Opening Day in 2007, and I'm betting we're reminded of that reason at length in 2008.

1. Rudi Johnson, RB, Maybe Detroit. The surest sign of team that is auto-drafting cannon fodder was the guy taking the former first-round Bengal stud who was released late last week. Drafting him might work out in the long run, as the World Wide Lemur is reporting tonight that he's part of an extremely underwhelming committee in Detroit... and then again, it might not, given that he's fantastically old, slow, and hard to get through metal detectors with that fork in his back.

Add your favorite objects of hate in the comments...

Hawks Fall Late to Chargers 18-17 in San Diego

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 12:48:27 -0500

In the best preseason football I can remember the San Diego Chargers eek out the Seahawks by the score of 18-17. Late in the 4th quarter the Chargers scored and converted the two-point play to take the lead and then backup Seneca Wallace threw an interception to seal the deal. However the quarterback of the day was not Wallace, it was all about the former Akron Zip. Someone forgot to tell Charlie Frye that he is the third quarterback on the roster playing in a preseason game. Frye finished his outing completing 19 of 29 passes for 219 yards and 2 touchdowns. From the opening drive the third-year QB played like he has been in this system forever. Frye connected with Nate Burleson on his first pass attempt for a 68-yard touchdown reception. Unfortunately the defense did not look as impressive. Darren Sproles ran for 102 yards in just three quarters of play. Lofa Tatupu and his defense had no answer for the 5?6? running back. It didn't matter if Sproles ran inside or outside of the tackles, he was gaining yards, and he was gaining them. On the list of players with the most tackles the top 7 were linebackers and DBs showing that Sproles always made it to the second level of the defense. There was a lot of talk about the triad of Maurice Morris, TJ Duckett and Julius Jones. These three were supposed to jockey for the starting spot. The Seahawks hope that Jones returns to his 2004 form where he gained over 800 yards in only 8 games with the Dallas Cowboys, but he did not look like the workhorse that Seattle wants him to be. Mike Holmgren tried to bring it out of him by calling his number more times than any other running back on the squad, but Jones came up with the least amount of yards of those same backs. None of the backs did anything spectacular, but they all ran hard and steady. There was no change of pace with any of them. Morris and Julius traded series in the first half while Duckett and four other backs handled the latter half. Even with this constant switching, it was hard to tell who was on the field because nothing changed about the play calling and running style. Rookie receiver Jordan Kent looked like he could become a viable weapon. Kent had 4 receptions for 47 yards and one of those grabs was for a touchdown. He even had a kick return for 19 yards as well as a tackle on punt coverage. Having your name said over the PA system that many times as a rookie is a great way to make an impression on the coaches. The Seahawk secondary played an average game holding Phillip Rivers to 11 of 21 passes for 143 yards. Between the DBs always being in the correct spot and Rivers nursing his plant-leg the Chargers only had 1 reception for any amount over 25 yards. The Seahawks' passing game showed great promise in this game while the competition for the starting tailback spot got nowhere. Maybe the final preseason game against the Oakland Raiders, which normally is harder to watch than the Pro Bowl, will help determine the running back for the opener against the Buffalo Bills.