by Joe Tailgate on August 21, 2009
in NFL News
The Falcons unveiled Thursday the throwback jerseys they will wear for two games this season. The Falcons will wear them when they play host to the defending NFC South champion Carolina Panthers on Sept. 20. They will wear them again when Tampa Bay comes to the Georgia Dome on Nov. 29.
Bears RB Matt Forte likely will get at least half a dozen carries Saturday night when the Bears host the Giants at Soldier Field. “He needs to get some work,” said offensive coordinator Ron Turner.
Eagles coach Andy Reid left open the possibility last night that Michael Vick would play in the team’s third exhibition game next week, but he would not guarantee it. “He had a good week of work,” Reid said. “He got a good workout in today. We’ll see how he does next week. We’re shooting for the third game. We’ll see. We’ve just got to get a feel on him throughout the week.” [click to continue…]
by Joe Tailgate on August 18, 2009
in NFL News
Eagles RB Brian Westbrook experienced pain in his ankle while rehabbing the knee. Westbrook may just sit out the entire preseason and take his first snap in the Sept. 13 opener against Carolina.
The Browns No. 2 receiver spot is up for grabs. It’s a role Joshua Cribbs is seeking, hoping to duplicate his impact as an offensive and defensive special teams ace. Now Cribbs has set his sights on the Browns’ opening at No. 2 receiver. He believes that’s given him something even bigger to prove. ”That’s all I hear. ‘He can’t catch the ball. He can’t do this. He can’t do that.’ I love it,” Cribbs said after practice Monday. ”Now I’ve got to go out there and prove I can catch the ball. I’m working real hard to be in the running to be a No. 2. I’m going to keep showing the coaches I can be that guy.” [click to continue…]
by Joe Tailgate on August 4, 2009
in NFL News
Falcons WR Roddy White, who is the final year of a five-year contract, is holding out from training camp in hopes of landing a contract extension. He’s working out in Birmingham with Darrell Hackney, his former college quarterback and Atlanta native.
“We want Roddy here,” Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said. “There is nothing new,” he said. “We are continuing to have conversations. We are definitely heading in the right direction in my mind.”
The Jets say there is no timetable for Mark Sanchez to work with the starters.
“What we’re doing right now obviously is Kellen is getting the majority of the work with the ones, Mark gets most of the work with the twos,” offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer said Monday afternoon. “We allow them to look at most of the scripts before and really steal a couple plays from each period. That’s just set up so that we can balance the reps and we get some consistency going.”
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by Joe Tailgate on July 8, 2009
in NFL News
- Falcons TE Tony Gonzalez will catch his share of passes in the Falcons offense this season. However, with the offense built around RB Michael Turner, Gonzalez will be relied upon to be a productive blocking tight end. “Tony will help our offense in a number of ways,” offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey said. “One thing he’s going to do is that he’s a productive blocker and that’s important in our offense … As successful as he’s been as a receiver, he’s a good blocker too and he really doesn’t get the credit that he should.”
- Falcons WR Roddy White will be looking to become the second player in team history to post three straight 1,000-yard seasons, joining Andre Rison (1992 to 1994) in the exclusive club. There’s that small matter of White’s contract extension that could get in the way. White’s camp had to like the three-year, $27 million extension that Greg Jennings signed with Green Bay recently).
- Bears RBs coach Tim Spencer said he would like to see second-year RB Matt Forte improve on his yards per carry and yards per catch. Spencer believes both will improve for Forte this season. Spencer said he is not concerned about a sophomore slump. “He’s going to do well,” Spencer added. “We have some new players and we’ve improved on our offensive line. I see no reason why Matt shouldn’t improve this season.”
- Cowboys owner Jerry Jones defended Tony Romo from criticism by Troy Aikman, who said that because success has come so quickly for the undrafted Eastern Illinois product that Romo “hasn’t fully grasped what being the Cowboys quarterback is all about.” “I’ve always been so amused about any talk of Tony and his focus on football and his work ethic,” Jones says. “Tony’s boring. He won’t talk about anything but football and the Cowboys and how to move the ball and what plays we should run. “I don’t know (that) I’ve been around anybody who’s just that into football. I wish he would talk more about spicy things, but I can’t get him to.”
- Browns RB Jamal Lewis should have plenty of opportunities to carry the ball within the team’s new offense. Head coach Eric Mangini wants to control the clock with a power running game, which would seem to suit Lewis. Last year Lewis had 279 carries for 1,002 yards and four rushing touchdowns.
- Browns QB Brady Quinn holds a slight lead over QB Derek Anderson (calf) in the competition for the team’s starting quarterback job. Quinn had a decent, albeit not spectacular, minicamp, while Anderson struggled most of the way through before missing the final two practices with a calf injury. The coaching staff, however, will not make any premature decisions and they will wait until both quarterbacks perform in preseason games, so it is still very much an open competition.
by Joe Tailgate on July 7, 2009
in NFL News
- From the ashes of last season’s disastrous Cowboys December, a strong foundation is being built. “It’s been very football heavy this offseason,” Tony Romo said. “We had a lot of OTA’s (Organized Team Activities) and a lot of minicamps, the most since I’ve been here. The guys have worked their butts off and we’ve tried to put ourselves in position to be successful by doing everything we can this offseason. “Since I’ve been playing in the NFL, this has been the best offseason to date and that excites you as a quarterback. In that regard, it’s been real enjoyable.”
- Brian Leonard appears to be the favorite for the backup running back role for the Bengals this season. Still, Leonard’s role as the No. 2 man behind Cedric Benson is far from cemented with Kenny Watson, DeDe Dorsey and Bernard Scott fighting for the role as well. Leonard was traded to the Cincinnati Bengals on May 7, 2009 for defensive tackle Orien Harris.
- Falcons RB Michael Turner said he is preparing for another heavy workload this season. “Treat every week like it’s Week 1,” Turner said when asked about taking care of his body and getting ready for so many carries. “Don’t take anything for granted. Make sure your body is right and fresh every week. If you don’t do it at the beginning of the season then you’re going to feel the effects later on the year.”
- Word around ProFootballWeekly is getting is that Bills WR and punt returner extraordinaire Roscoe Parrish wanted to be traded more than the club wanted to grant his wish. Parrish’s already mild offensive contributions are expected to be reduced further, but the club is hesitant to part ways with such a dynamic special-teams performer without appropriate compensation. If an attractive opportunity does present itself before the midseason trading deadline, the Bills are still open to pulling the trigger.
- Cardinals DE Darnell Dockett announced on his Twitter page that he has full faith in the Cardinals after meeting with the team. Dockett, who has three years left on his deal, was seeking a new deal but is now apparently backing down from that demand. “I am happy to announce that after meeting with the team recently, I have full faith and confidence in the Cardinals organization and I am looking forward to a great season. From the first day of training camp and on, I will not let my contract issues distract me or my team from reaching our goals. I also look forward to playing with my teammates and defending our NFC championship title and I appreciate the support I’ve received from all my fans this offseason.”
