Posts from the Nfl Fans Category at FanHouse - AOL Sports Blog

I always had a sneaking suspicion that Greg Olsen hated Rex Grossman's guts. Now I have confirmation:



Yeah, maybe I overstated* it a bit there in the lead; Olsen admits that the Bears would never land Brett Favre because of their NFC North rivalry with the Packers, and the second-year tight end remarks that "I think we're happy with the two guys we got."

Of course, he said it with all the conviction of Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti pledging his support for Brian Billick -- right before firing him -- but whatever. Olsen continued: "I think we have a good quarterback competition right now with Kyle and Rex, and I think the team is real comfortable with one of those two guys being the guy for us for the future."

He then added, "But, yeah, who the hell wouldn't want Favre? I mean, we could have Kyle and Rex on the field at the same time and wouldn't be as successful with Favre under center."

Okay, I definitely made up that last sentence, and to Olsen's credit, he handled the Favre-to-Chicago talk about as well as you could expect. And as he explained to First Take's Jay Crawford, given the history between these two organizations, it's ain't happening so it's not even worth discussing.

Ideally, Favre would go to an organization that was a quarterback away from making a deep postseason run. The Bears, as currently constituted, don't qualify, but there is that other NFC North team...

* overstated = lied

Kevin Burnett is really getting into this whole blogging thing. Recently he posted about what it means to be a professional athlete, and the off-field responsibilities that come with it; namely: not getting cuffed and stuffed. Apparently, it's a lot easier than some people make it seem.

From serious encounters with the law to players homes getting broken into. I understand and see the root of some incident but others I am in the dark. How any player can be arrested numerous times still to this day makes me wonder. Is it something the player is doing or is it someone he is hanging around or is it just wrong place at the wrong time. I really believe it's a combination of all things. Every player must do his part to ensure safety and well being at all times.

Well, in the case of your teammate, Dig Dug Jones, I'd say most of it was his doing. To Burnett's credit, he asks fans what players can do to make sure they don't even sniff trouble (other than, you know, not breaking the law). He admits that "you have to do your part to get arrested more than twice for the same thing," but wonders if players "out trying to have a good time" are "leaving themselves in a position to easily become a statistic."

So it looks like Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was lying through his teeth when he said he "had a lot of confidence in [backup quarterback] Brad Johnson." Of course, he could've been joking (or just being a good general manager). Whatever, I'm guessing Dallas fans were a little concerned.

Well, some good news on the Tony Romo Understudy position: apparently the Cowboys are in the market for a younger, less brittle backup quarterback. From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Mac Engel's multiple sources:

The current plan is to use veteran Brad Johnson for the second consecutive season to play behind Romo, with former Grapevine star Richard Bartel again returning to the practice squad for another year of grooming. But whereas last year, when the Cowboys liked their slotting of these three, there is more of an urgent feeling to upgrade behind Romo ... you know, just in case.

And the name currently floating round Cowboys HQ? Chris Simms. He's 13 years younger than Johnson with one less spleen. Simms is unhappy with his present situation in Tampa Bay and Engel writes that he has told friends he'd definitely be interested in playing for the Cowboys.

If Simms isn't the guy, though, there's not much to choose from. I mentioned last weekend that given the dearth of quality backup quarterbacks looking for work, the Cowboys would be hard-pressed to do better than Johnson. That said, I don't think that'll keep Jones from trying. You know, just in case Romo has to drive Nick Lachey's ex-wife to the airport or something.

More than a month ago it looked like running back LaMont Jordan's career in Oakland was officially over. He didn't participate in the team's last minicamp practice because head coach Lane Kiffin had informed him that the team was moving on without him.

I took that to mean that the Raiders would either trade or release Jordan, but here we are, eight days into July, and he's still with the team. So now what?

Hashmarks' Bill Williamson writes that Oakland wants to trade Jordan but the there may not be much demand. He lists the Bears, Saints and Patriots as possible destinations, but his offseason has seen former starting backs flood the waiver wire. In addition to Jordan, there's Shaun Alexander, Travis Henry, Kevin Jones and Najah Davenport. Consequently, clubs in need of running back help aren't in any rush to sign the first warm body they come across.

What this means for Jordan's future isn't quite clear, although, presumably, he won't be in Oakland when the seasons starts since, you know, there are already 10 running backs on the roster. Then again, we're talking about Oakland; short of Jordan being abducted by aliens while sitting in the Raiders locker room, nothing would surprise me.

Hmm. Apparently Phil Simms was against Brett Favre's retirement before he was for it. Two years ago, during Favre Retirement Scenario No. 4, Simms had this to say during a radio appearance: "Play as long as you can. When you think it's over, play another or two years . . . because life after football, it's forever."

And that's exactly what Favre did, until he officially retired earlier this spring. Now, a few months later, something's afoot. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel caught up with Simms to get his thoughts now that speculation has Favre still wanting to play. Again:

"Just my opinion, I hope he stays retired," Simms said, referring to Favre. "He'll get over it, the fact that he is not playing. For the Green Bay Packers, I think they have moved on. If they had to give you an answer since he said he was retired, I believe their answer would be, go ahead let him stay retired. We're moving on and let's see what's in the future for them and for the new quarterback.

How the latest episode in the never-ending Brett Favre saga ends up is anybody's guess, but just in case he somehow makes his way back to Green Bay (even though Peter King doesn't see it happening), you have nothing to worry about, Cowboys fans.

At least according to the Dallas Morning News' Jean-Jacques Taylor.

If you cheer for the Dallas Cowboys, then you want Brett Favre wearing a Green Bay Packers uniform this season.

That's because he's one of the most overrated, overhyped, good quarterbacks of this generation

Such sentiments should go over well in Wisconsin. Of course, Packers fans could soon be directing their ire at general manager Ted Thompson if the organization chooses to part ways with the future Hall of Famer.

Taylor readily admits that Favre is an excellent player but points out that he's "as capable of throwing the game-winning touchdown pass as he was the gut-wrenching interception." And look no further than Favre's last NFL pass (to date) for proof.

Fair enough, but it's hard to argue that the Packers aren't a better team with Favre under center than the unproven Aaron Rodgers. And since the Packers won 13 times last season and have virtually the same team intact for '08, they would naturally be among the favorites in the NFC to make it back to the Super Bowl, right?

Sure, the Cowboys could beat a Favre-led Packers team, but Taylor makes him out to be more Vinny Testaverde or Drew Bledsoe than the guy who threw 28 touchdowns last season. But this is all conjecture, of course, because Favre's happily retired.

There's a reason Lions fans show up to games sporting paper bags over their heads. The obvious answer is Matt Millen, who has become something of the anti-Karl Rove for the greater Detroit sports scene.

Rove, whose political "genius" became legendary after George W. Bush was elected to a second term, was soon responsible for everything from setting up Dan Rather, to using Barack Obama to torpedo Hillary Clinton's bid for the Democratic nomination (wait, wasn't that Bill's job?). For the Lions' faithful, every time something goes wrong, the natural inclination is to just assume Millen had something to do with it. Which provides the perfect explanation for the team's marketing campaign for 2008 season tickets.



"All that matters is, right here, right now." Um, okay. Pride of Detroit offers some advice to the team's marketing department (all of whom, no doubt, were hired by Millen):

...if they are having trouble selling season tickets thanks to their increase in prices and the failing economy, they ought to come up with a better commercial. And if they can't do that, well they at least ought to come up with a better catchphrase, because I laugh every time I hear it.

Or here's a novel idea: win a few games. Fans really respond to that.

[Can't Stop the Bleeding]

One of the few benefits to getting shot by an off-duty cop? Assuming you survive, there's a chance to make a little coin via litigation. In the case of Steve Foley, whose NFL career was abruptly ended when he was shot twice (in the knee and the hip) by Coronado police officer Aaron Mansker, it comes in the form of 5.5 million big ones.

San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Foley settled his civil lawsuit against the city and Mansker last week for $5.5 million. The suit stemmed from a Sept. 3, 2006 incident in which Mansker, who suspected Foley was driving drunk, ended up putting two bullets in the former Chargers linebacker.

Of course, no amount of money will give Foley the chance to play in the NFL again, and his lawyer confirms as much (as he collects his fee):

"There's really no way to be happy with any resolution in this case," [Jordan] Cohen said. "It wasn't about money. I think Steve wanted to have certain vindication of having Officer Mansker on the stand and the truth come out about that night. "Significant violation of policy and procedure were made," he said.

According to the trial testimony, Foley has since undergone 12 surgeries, has difficulty walking, and suffers pain from nerve damage resulting from the shooting.

And while this is an unbelievably sad ending to a solid NFL career, there is something to be said for not driving drunk. Now, though, Foley can devote more time to his new hobby: raising pit bulls.

For those of you sitting around pining for the golden age of "SportsCenter," some good news via the New York Times' Richard Sandomir: the band's getting back together ... on NBC!

Dan Patrick, who left ESPN last year to create his own syndicated radio program and write a column for Sports Illustrated, will join NBC Sports where he will be reunited with Keith Olbermann to call the N.F.L. highlights on "Football Night in America."

Olbermann left ESPN in 1997 amid some controversy, but he's now arguably more popular than ever after emerging as MSNBC's left-of-center answer to Fox News' "fair and balanced" political coverage.

Anyway, according to Sandomir, "NBC is looking to recreate the chemistry and quirky humor that Patrick and Olbermann demonstrated when they were co-anchors on ESPN's 'SportsCenter,' which they dubbed 'The Big Show.'"

Olbermann was with the "Football Night in America" crew last season serving as something of a social commentator (you may remember him from such forgettable segments as, "Michael Vick, Not Michael Victim"). Whatever, I welcome the change, if for no other reason than a) I grew up watching Patrick and Olbermann, and b) less Bob Costas for everyone!

I was talking to a Patriots-loving friend of mine the other day and I asked if the whole Spygate silliness had soured him on his hometown team. Before I could get the sentence out of my mouth he cut me off: "already forgotten."

I then asked if he was upset that Tom Brady wouldn't be winning any Father of the Year awards in the near future. Again, he seemed unfazed.

And just about every NFL head coach agrees, apparently. Hashmarks conducted a wide-ranging survey recently and in addition to finding out stuff most of us just assumed to be true, there's also this:

Twenty-two coaches said they thought Brady would be the first player selected [if there was a supplemental-style draft]. Six head coaches went with Peyton Manning. One head coach apparently wasn't taking the survey as seriously. Either that or he's a huge Jason Taylor fan. Taylor received one of the 29 votes.

Word on the street is that Matt Millen instructed Rod Marinelli to vote for Jason Taylor because "Millen loved him in 'Gridiron Gang.'"