Archive for March, 2009

Mocking the Cardinals with a Burrito

March 31st, 2009

Earlier this month, Fantasy Football Fools got the chance to participate in a mock draft put together by Football Burrito with one blogger representing each NFL franchise.

Since the Dallas Cowboys, who I should have been representing, don’t actually have a pick in the first round—fingers crossed for Roy Williams—I had the honor of drafting for one of the unrepresented teams, the Super Bowl runner-up Arizona Cardinals.

Even after they almost won it all, the Cardinals still get picked last in gym class.

So, with the 31st pick of the NFL mock draft, I was going to pick the obvious solution to all the Cardinals’ problems, a highly-touted but overrated USC quarterback…

Realizing they already had one of those, I went with this guy.

2009 NFL Scouting Combine Day 5

With the 31st pick, the Arizona Cardinals select Michael Johnson, DE, Georgia Tech.

While it would be nice to grab a shifty playmaker like LeSean McCoy to pair with Tim Hightower, Arizona’s greater need is on defense. Their linebackers aren’t getting any younger — three of the four are over 30 — and the the Cardinals could use some more youth in their defensive rotation at OLB and DE.

Physically, Michael Johnson is one of the most gifted athletes in the draft. He has great size at 6’7”, and he’s drawn comparisons to Julius Peppers from the likes of Jon Gruden. Coming off his much-improved senior season and an impressive Combine, Johnson will have to overcome his motivational issues and grow into a dominant force for the Cardinals.

I was surprised to get Michael Johnson so late considering his nice showing at the Combine and the hype surrounding him, but the drafters in this mock had more of a liking for wide receivers and corners than I expected. I think we’ll see more offensive and defensive linemen come off the board in the first round unless Al Davis has anything to say about it.

The big shocker of this mock draft was Chris “Beanie” Wells falling out of the first round. I guess the blogosphere representatives for this one are not impressed by a bruising back with a stiff arm.

So what do you say? Should I have drafted Beanie Wells at the 31st pick for the Cardinals?

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Houshmandzadeh upgrades Seahawks, downgrades self

March 10th, 2009

With the departure of Bobby Engram to free agency, Seattle was hurting for a reliable target — especially one who wasn’t also hurting like most of Seattle’s receiving corps. Playmaker Deion Branch has been too injury-prone during his time with the team, and none of the Seahawks’ young prospects showed that special spark last season when the wide receiver positions were up for grabs.

That’s probably why they dropped the big contract that T.J. Houshmandzadeh was seeking, five years for $40 million with $15 million guaranteed.

With a limited window for Matt Hasselbeck, the Seahawks need to try to make a run or two at the Super Bowl soon, and I’m sure Housh recognized the Seahawks desire and likelihood of making the postseason out of the relatively easy NFC West.

Other than two rebuilding franchises, the San Francisco 49ers and the St. Louis Rams, the Seahawks only have the Cardinals to contend with in 2009. The Cardinals, dormant for years, could suffer a setback with the loss of some free agents and the post-Super Bowl slump, which would leave the door open for Seattle.

Holes at running back aside, Housh upgrades Seattle’s ability to move the ball and score in the red zone. As the most trustworthy hands in their arsenal, he’s likely to see most of the action from Hasselbeck, who jumps a couple of notches up fantasy quarterback rankings as long as he’s back in good health this preseason.

If he keeps drinking those Myoplex shakes, he’ll get there.

Hasselbeck’s been pretty low on my list, even last year, with the general evaporation of all that was good out of Seattle. Jumping up a spot or two still won’t break him into my list of reliable starters, but he could be a top backup with Housh as a target.

From Housh, I expect a little less than his usual. 2008 was an off year with Carson Palmer sidelined for the majority of the season, but his 2007 numbers — 1,143 yards and 12 touchdowns — are probably his ceiling in Seattle.

A guns-blazing Carson Palmer was putting everything in the air in 2007, but Hasselbeck will likely more limiting early in 2009. Seattle might put the ball on the ground as much as they can despite their lack of a legitimate running back. 

Housh could, however, blow us away with his scoring in the red zone. Without knowing how exactly he’ll fit in the offense for the moment, he probably hits around the third tier at wide receiver. Karabell’s got the right idea.

For now, I wouldn’t call Houshmandzadeh a safe top-10 wide receiver but rather a borderline choice. In his recent Top 200, colleague Matthew Berry placed Houshmandzadeh at No. 46 overall, good for 14th among wide receivers, and with this move he bumped him up to No. 9 among receivers. I slot Houshmandzadeh in at No. 11, behind Larry Fitzgerald, Andre Johnson, Calvin Johnson, Greg Jennings, Reggie Wayne, Steve Smith, Randy Moss, Roddy White, Marques Colston and Terrell Owens.

Although I have never seen him as a worldly talent, Houshmandzadeh has outplayed Chad Johnson for several years now. His good hands and ability to run the possession routes should become a trusted asset for Hasselbeck.

Now the Seahawks just have to look to Deion Branch and Nate Burleson to provide the speed and maneuverability on the outside to keep defenses off of their new toy.

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T.O. got to go: Cowboys cut controversial receiver

March 5th, 2009

According to ESPN, the Dallas Cowboys just cut Terrell Owens. Not only does this defy some good logic, it also might be the best move for the Cowboys after all.

Jerry Jones obviously spent a lot of time over the offseason speaking to his coaching staff and players about what went wrong in the bust of a season that was 2008. Outside Tony Romo’s injury, the entire team struggled to find an identity on offense, and that confusion allowed the one player that did have one, T.O., to take control.

With that much power, Matt Mosley notes that T.O. had to go, even with the loss of value.

But in the end, the people he trusts at Valley Ranch may have finally convinced him that T.O. was too divisive a force in the locker room. I talked to a source at Valley Ranch late Wednesday evening who said that T.O.’s future was discussed in meetings Wednesday, but that Jones hadn’t made a final decision when most people left the building.

This is a clear admission on Jones’ part that the team couldn’t get to the next level (winning a playoff game) with T.O. If you just go on the receiver’s production (38 TDs in three seasons), it’s hard to believe the Cowboys would move on without him. But T.O. had become the most powerful voice in the locker room and head coach Wade Phillips and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett couldn’t compete with him.

By putting Owens on the street, the Cowboys are dropping the passing game — some pun intended — in the hands of Williams and attempting to justify all those picks they spent to get him.

While he hasn’t quite fallen off yet, T.O. would have begun to decline over the next few seasons, and he probably won’t take it very well as he degrades into a No. 2 receiver. Jones is abandoning the money and reputation he sunk into Owens in order to have Williams fill the void early and save the team more grief.

Let’s hope they saw something in Williams this offseason that looked better than he did last season.

Williams’ fantasy value jumps now that he moves to the No. 1 role, but can we trust a guy who had just 19 catches in a Cowboys uniform in 2008? He doesn’t assume T.O.’s spot in my fantasy wide receiver rankings, but floating the gap between the second and third tier, he’s got some big upside when he clicks with Romo.

Opposite Williams, Miles Austin or Patrick Crayton will have to step up in a big way — and perhaps if Austin wins the job, he’ll finally become that explosive receiver we saw flashes of last season.

It’s likely that this move signifies the Cowboys shift towards the run game. Jason Garrett didn’t know what to do with what he had last season, but in 2009, he knows he can feed the ball to Marion Barber, Felix Jones and Tashard Choice.

Maybe this move will turn the Cowboys around and get them a playoff win, but we all know Jon Kitna’s going to be the real reason they make it to the postseason … right?

The real tragedy here is for T.O. who just wanted to end his career as a Cowboy.

Owens told the Dallas Morning News in May 2008 he “definitely” wanted to finish his career with the Cowboys.

Now we have another unemployed, aging industry veteran who’s got to find a new job while re-examining his personal life in his new reality show. Blame the economy.

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