Red Zone Links – March 31, 2010

March 31, 2010 – Dr. Wedge Buster

March 31, 2010 – Capt. Gridiron

NFL Players give Maxim Magazine their favorite curse words. Given the content of the video I can push it toward the NSFW corner but they did ‘bleep’ out all the naughty bits to be safe.

In the video you will see Maxim spoke with Percy Harvin, Shawne Merriman, Jared Allen, Shaun Alexander, Mark Sanchez, Miles Austin, Josh Cribbs and Eli Manning but it’s the dirty mouth of Eli that sets him apart from the bunch.

And to think he kisses Peyton’s mother with that mouth.

Chad Ochocinco, Erin Andrews Dance the Foxtrot

March 30, 2010 – Dr. Wedge Buster

Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Ochocinco showcased his dance moves with partner Cheryl Burke for the second week of “Dancing with the Stars” with a rather stiff performance of the Foxtrot. It appears that Chad will need to practice a bit more if he wants to move on in the competition.

The judges panned the dance and stated Ocho’s moves as being stiff and cumbersome. Len even compared it to a snowstorm you just wished would get over. The overall score for Ocho’s Foxtrot was a low 16/30.

Last week’s Cha-cha scored only an 18/30 so hopefully Ocho will get the backing of viewers and Twitter fans to help him advance to the next round.

Of course we can’t forget Erin Andrews. There was good news for ESPN starlet as her Foxtrot with partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy netted them a score of 23, up from 21 last week. The couple remain in third place overall and have also been heating up the rumor mill as a possible couple.

And guys take note. About midway through the dance Erin showcases how limber she is by doing the splits? Enjoy!

Arena Football Is Back

March 30, 2010 – Dr. Wedge Buster

After a one year hiatus, the Arena Football League is set to return on the NFL Network starting April 2nd. Maybe you noticed the League was missing, maybe you didn’t. Most people probably didn’t know it was gone.

But the AFL will return in High Definition every Friday night through the summer. The NFL Network will air the games but the NFL is not running the organization. They simply bid to air the games for a one-year period. The hopes, of course, will be that the AFL can return to success and land some funding by the NFL as a kind of development league.

The original AFL ran from 1987 to 2008 and also consisted of the smaller AFL2 which was a development league. Due to large debts and a bad economy, the League went into hiatus for the 2009 season to remodel their business operations. The new League will run on a leaner business model in hopes of succeeding in the long run.

New AFL divisions will be comprised of 15 teams from the AFL and the AFL2 with Chicago being the largest market. Tampa, Arizona, Cleveland, Orlando, Dallas and Utah were all former AFL locations and they return. But they are mixed up with smaller markets like Spokane, Wash., Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Okla., Milwaukee and Bossier-Shreveport, La.

AFL “Game of the Week” Schedule on NFL Network(games to start at 8:00 PM ET)
Week 1 – April 2, Chicago Rush vs. Iowa Barnstormers
Week 2 – April 9, Cleveland Gladiators vs. Chicago Rush
Week 3 – April 16, Orlando Predators vs. Jacksonville Sharks
Week 4** – April 24 (Saturday), Oklahoma City Yard Dawgs vs. Iowa Barnstormers
Week 5 – April 30, Iowa Barnstormers vs. Orlando Predators
Week 6 – May 7, Jacksonville Sharks vs. Tampa Bay Storm
Week 7 – May 14, Utah Blaze vs. Milwaukee Iron
Week 8 – May 21, Arizona Rattlers vs. Iowa Barnstormers
Week 9 – May 28, Tampa Bay Storm vs. Orlando Predators
Week 10 – June 4, Jacksonville Sharks vs. Chicago Rush
Week 11 – June 11, Tulsa Talons vs. Dallas Vigilantes
Week 12 – June 18, Jacksonville Sharks vs. Orlando Predators
Week 13 – June 25, Bossier City/Shreveport Battlewings vs. Tampa Bay Storm
Week 14 – July 2, Chicago Rush vs. Tampa Bay Storm
Week 15 – July 9, Tampa Bay Storm vs. Dallas Vigilantes
Week 16 – July 16, Spokane Shock vs. Iowa Barnstormers
Week 17 – July 23, Chicago Rush vs. Spokane Shock
Week 18 – July 30, Tulsa Talons vs. Oklahoma City Yard Dawgs
**game to start at 9:00 PM ET

Draft Preview: Sam Bradford’s Pro Day

March 29, 2010 – Dr. Hut Hut Hike

Heisman Trophy winner Sam Bradford took his team to a BCS Championship, but the former University of Oklahoma quarterback threw his most important passes this week in front of just a handful of people.

On Monday, NFL scouts got their first look at Sam Bradford during his Pro Day. And with less than a month until the 2010 NFL Draft, teams were wanting to know one thing: Was his shoulder healthy?

Bradford is coming off major shoulder surgery to reconstruct his AC joint last October and has only been throwing for the last 4 weeks. There seems to be very few signs of the injured shoulder to worry about, however.

NFL scouts were on hand to watch Sam Bradford toss around 70 passes during his workout and the overall feeling is that Bradford looked very strong and healthy. Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll tweeted that Bradford “lit it up” and Gil Brandt, who was Vice President of player personnel for the Dallas Cowboys from 1960 to 1988, stated in his NFL.com blog:

“… I think everyone here was in awe of Bradford’s performance. In fact, he put on the best quarterback workout by a draft prospect that I’ve seen since I watched a private workout Troy Aikman put on for us with the Cowboys in California.”

Now those are some very strong words of praise.

At 6 ft 5 in and 236 lbs., Bradford is the prototypical quarterback NFL Draft scouts love. One key issued addressed is that Bradford has added about 12 lbs. to his frame to strengthen up. Many scouts believed he was too skinny or fragile to survive the rigors of an NFL season.

By showcasing that his healthy shoulder Bradford is not an issue it looks like the biggest decision about Bradford is whether the Rams will use their #1 pick on him or not. The Rams passed on Matt Ryan two years ago and Mark Sanchez last year and will have to address their QB situation very soon which makes the Bradford pick a seemingly logical choice.

Crackhead Steals Metal Bleacher Seats Donated by NFL

March 29, 2010 – Dr. Crackback

I guess students at Chicago’s Orr Academy High School looking for great seats to their football game will be let down. That is because bleacher seats donated by the NFL last year to the school have slowly been disappearing.

Some crackhead thief has slipped onto the school property at night and walked away with pieces of the bleaches over the last three months. Now the seats are all gone leaving only bare, metal posts in their place. The school board is looking at a bill of about $45,000 to replace them.

How the thief was able to get in and out of the school for three months is baffling but security almost caught the man once before he was able to run away. The seats, which are made of aluminum, are most likely stolen for some quick cash at one of the local scrap yards.

UPDATE: Police believe they have the bleacher thief. 46-year old Quincy Miller was arrested and is being held on a $275,000 bond. (…more…)

Joey Porter arrested on multiple felonies outside of Taco Bell

March 28, 2010 – Dr. Crackback

Freshly signed Arizona Cardinals linebacker Joey Porter was arrested outside a Taco Bell on suspicion of driving under the influence early Saturday in his hometown of Bakersfield, California.

Porter had signed a three-year contract with the Cardinals earlier this month after being released by the Miami Dolphins where he had played the last three years.

On early Saturday morning Porter was turning into a Taco Bell, presumably to get his 7-layer burrito fix, when Porter’s friend was pulled over by the California Highway Patrol. Porter apparently got involved in the situation which led the CHP to notice the smell of alcohol coming from Porter.

When the officers asked Porter for his license he refused. Then Porter allegedly rolled up his window and then the officer reached inside to open the door. Porter slapped the officer on the hand which led to this:

According to the CHP, the officer decided to grab Porter’s arm — and that’s when things got crazy. Porter allegedly got out of his car “in a confrontational manner.”
The officer claims he drew his pistol and ordered Porter to the ground, but he wouldn’t comply — though he did ultimately agree to place his hands behind his head.
Additional officers were called to the scene to aid in the arrest. Porter was eventually taken in to custody and booked at a nearby jail. He was eventually charged with 3 misdemeanors — DUI, resisting arrest and assault on a peace officer. [via]

NFL News: Will McNabb be a Ram or Marshall a Seahawk?

November 5, 2009 – Dr. Hut Hut Hike

Chris Mortensen on what the Eagles will do with their quarterbacks

Philadelphia Eagles

If you believe the rumors, Donovan McNabb is headed toward St. Louis. I call Shenanigans. I bet they deal Vick before McNabb [...read...]

Pittsburgh Steelers

The much hyped Ben Roethlisberger case is falling apart. Still. Is the damage already done? [...read...]

Detroit Lions

The Detroit Lions are interested in Pacman Jones. Guess Matt Millen is still calling the shots in Motwon [...read...]

Seattle Seahawks

Pete Carroll wants WR Brandon Marshall. They might have to give up a first rounder for him. Is it worth it? No! Two words: Deion Branch [...read...]

New England Patriots

Patriots get a TE back, Sign Alge Crumpler to new deal [...read...]

New Orleans Saints

Saints coach Sean Payton is not a fan of the new NFL OT rules. He flat out ‘hates’ the new rules. [...read...]

NFL Adopts New Overtime Rules

March 24, 2010 – Dr. Crackback

When it comes to the NFL overtime rules I must admit I am not a fan. For 60% of the teams since 1994 the OT has been decided by a coin toss. That’s a hefty winning percentage for simply having a strategy of “Heads” or “Tails.”

For us fans who have disliked the archaic NFL OT rules we just had to take it on the chin and wonder what it would be like if our team had a chance, any chance, to get on the field in overtime and try to score instead of going home without so much as one offensive snap. We complained but it did not seem like the NFL had any interest in changing the rules.

But on Tuesday the NFL Owners took a step in the right direction and approved rule changes that would alter the ‘sudden death’ overtime and allow both teams to have the possibility to score. It’s not perfect but it’s better than the old version.

Here is how it works. First of all, it only works in the postseason. Regular season games will stay the same for now and that’s a shame. I would have liked to have seen these rules apply to all the games.

Second, the rules only kick in if the team which wins the coin toss scores a field goal. Not a touchdown. If that team scores a touchdown the game is over. If that team only gets a field goal then the opposing team will get the ball kicked back to them. This would, in theory, help prevent a team from getting a decent kick return, tossing a couple of passes and then kicking a long field goal to win the game.

Indianapolis Colts president Bill Polian and Atlanta Falcons president Rich McKay, co-chairman of the competition committee, have stated that the Vikings-Saints game in the NFC Championship last year in which that scenario happened played a key role in the decision to look at rule changes.

Brett Favre and the Vikings went home without ever touching the ball in OT. And a similar fate was handed to Peyton Manning the year before in a Wild Card Playoff Game against San Diego.

What is odd is that Vikings owner Zygi Wilf was one of the four teams to vote against the rule changes. He stated that he objected to the rules not being consistent through the regular season and playoffs and he is right.

While we finally get a chance to see an OT not decided by a randmo flip of a coin, it does seem less than satisfying to have it only in the postseason.

ESPN Video – NFL outsmarts itself with new OT ruling

Picture Of the Day: The Future Of Football

March 23, 2010 – Dr. Hut Hut Hike

In 1997, Esquire Magazine ran the cover story of the future of football featuring a cover shot of a the 2-time NFL MVP Brett Favre (he would win a third following the ’97 season) and a young talent by the name of Peyton Manning from the University of Tennessee who would end up become the #1 draft pick the next year.

The young Manning had just come back to UT for his senior season and a chance to take the Vols to their first Championship in over 40 years. Meanwhile, the veteran Favre had won the Super Bowl the year before and had a fistful of MVP awards to brag about.