Talking NFL

As expected, next week’s rematch of last year’s AFC Championship Game between the New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts will determine who goes to Super Bowl 42, and will most likely be a two touchdown favorite to win-

(phone rings)

Hold on a sec, I think that’s my editor…

“Hello? Yes. What?”

(pause)

“The Colts lost? Come on, seriously?!”

(pause)

“Who’s Billy Volek?”

(pause)

“I can’t believe Marvin Harrison couldn’t play- wait…he did?”

(pause)

“Peyton threw two picks and blew two fourth down conversions in the fourth quarter?!”

(pause)

“Did he do the face?! Please tell me he- what? Email? OK, I’m checking it now…got it…downloading the pic…”

“Hehheh, heh. Ha!”

“HAHAHAHAHA!!”

(deep breath)

“AAAAAAAAHHH - HAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHHA!!!!”

“Ah HUH, Ah HUH, Ahhh - Haaaaaaaaaaaa-”

(crying)

“hah, hah……hhhaa……”

Peyton Manning, Indianapolis Colts, vindictive evil happiness is the best

As far as recent NFL drafts go, the images that stand out most are the ones of Brady Quinn and Aaron Rodgers not-so-patiently awaiting their fate as they continued to watch player after player get picked before them in the 1st round.

On the positive side, it helped prepare them for their NFL careers. Grab a seat, guys. You might be here awhile…

First, news out of Cleveland is that general manager Phil Savage is turning his attention to signing Derek Anderson to a long-term contract extension before free agency begins. Should that happen, Quinn will be assured back-up status for the foreseeable future. As Rumors and Rants points out, had Quinn not held out of training camp, he probably would have become the backup to Charlie Frye, and Anderson would never have stepped onto the field.

Now it looks like he’s going to get paid more than Quinn (well, depending on how much Brady’s getting paid for that EAS ad…).

Based on that holdout, it’s hard to feel all that bad about Quinn. However, it’s much easier to sympathize with Aaron Rogers predicament.

Going into the 2005 Draft, Aaron was regarded as either the #1 or #2 quarterback along with Alex Smith. But after the 49ers picked Alex with the overall #1 (and how’s that one working out for ya, Coach Nolan?), Rodgers waited until pick #24 to get scooped up by the Packers. Green Bay figured that Brett Favre would retire soon, and selected Rodgers as his heir apparent.

Well, according to a report out of Mississippi, the young prince has at least another season to wait. Al Jones, writer for the Sun Herald and old friend to #4, wrote that Favre is leaning towards coming back for another season with the Pack. Quote Brett:

“For the first time in three years, I haven’t thought this could be my last game. I would like to continue longer.”

Meaning longer time for Aaron Rodgers to stroll the sidelines. What’s really interesting here is that Rodgers signed a five year contract worth $7.7 million, meaning that if he doesn’t play next season, then ‘09 is shaping up as a make or break year for him.

Whatever happens, might I suggest both QB’s start drawing some comics or painting some landscape pictures on those clipboards as way of a 2nd career? (Unless of course, they’ve started doing that all ready…)

Aaron Rodgers, Brady Quinn, Green Bay Packers, Cleveland Browns, take a number

Today, we’re proud to have our first interview published here at Talking NFL. With the Green Bay Packers getting ready to take on the Seattle Seahawks in this week’s NFC Divisional Round playoff, it’s fitting that the subject of our interview is best known for discovering and recruiting the 2007 SI Sportsman of the Year, Brett Favre.

Mark McHale was an assistant football coach at the University of Southern Mississippi when a few high school coaches changed the course of a quarterback’s life and the USM program. The football coaches told McHale to visit a school to see a player named Brett Favre…

In his new book, 10 to 4, Brett Favre’s Journey from Rotten Bayou to the Top of the NFL, Mark McHale and Brett Favre, with the help of award-winning sportswriter Tim Stephens, detail how the coach’s persistence enabled the gifted, but raw quarterback to prove himself at college football’s highest level and lay the foundation for becoming the winningest quarterback in NFL history and its only three-time consecutive Most Valuable Player.

The book provides a fascinating behind the scenes look at how the college recruiting process works, along with some great stories from Brett’s early career that showed Mark and the rest of the coaching staff at USM just how special he could become. Most of all, it’s amazing to read the early chapters of this book and discover just how close Brett came to not receiving one scholarship from a Division 1 school. Had Mark and the University of Southern Mississippi not stepped up to the plate, we might have never seen this gunslinger step onto an NFL field…let alone become a legend in the game.

• Back in 1986, you were the Offensive Line Coach for the University of Southern Mississippi, and went on a recruiting trip to Hancock North Central High to visit Brett Favre. What we your first impressions of Brett as you watched him play?

I was not impressed when I first watched him play because Irvin (Brett’s dad and head coach) didn’t have him throw the ball but maybe 4 times the whole game! However, I was very impressed with Brett in pre-game warmups where he really showed off his arm. During the second game I went to, I did see one pass that was absolutely phenomenal; it was a 50 yard TD pass that had smoke coming off it.

• What were your first impressions of Brett off the field like when you first met him?

I actually met him before I saw him play, and it was based on those impressions that I decided to come back and see him perform in a game. When I first met Brett at his dad’s field house, he displayed so much confidence in his persona–he was very confident, but not cocky. It gave me a gut feeling to pursue him.

• Is it true that when Southern Miss offered Favre a scholarship, it was to play safety? How did that offer come about?

Every Thursday we would talk about the recruits from each coaches geographical area. When I brought up each prospect’s name, the head coach (Jim Carmody) would always ask me, “can he play another position?” That’s when I saw the opportunity to up the odds to recruit Brett.

I told Jim he was a safety that played like a linebacker–very tough–he could play for us at safety if he didn’t work out at quarterback. This stuck in the back of the head coach’s mind when we lost a linebacker from Atlanta and he offered Brett to fill a defensive slot in that recruiting class!

(more…)

Just a quick note to all you lovely readers that the comments function on this blog (and for that matter, most WordPress hosted blogs on the internet) appear to have been overwhelmed by a tidal wave of spam comments (a subject we’ve lamented on in the past). As a result, Akismet has raised the defense shields to full power, and has blocked damn near everything that tries to get posted here. Even comments from longtime readers, like yourself.

So on behalf of Talking NFL, I’d like to apologize if your comments haven’t gotten through.

If your a spammer reading this, then on behalf of WordPress blogs everywhere, I hope you die a slow and painful death. Might I recommend suffocation by way of enormous Jaguars lineman John Henderson?

…can’t…breathe…

In the midst of these technical gaffs, please feel free to contact me directly at talkingnfl@hotmail.com. Unless, of course, that spam filter gets overloaded, at which point I’ll simply give you my home address so you can just swing by and throw a bomb through my window.

That is all.

spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam, spam spammity spam! wonderful spam!

They do tend to pile up, don’t they?

The smoke has cleared from the first round of the playoffs, leaving us with four victors, four teams facing a long off-season, and a boatload of turnovers. In fact, the losing clubs combined for 11 of them. Let’s take a closer look at the biggest culprits:

Seattle 35 - Washington 14

The Culprit: Santana Moss

No, Moss wasn’t actually credited with a fumble or giveaway, but he should have been. With the Skins down by a touchdown with less than six minutes to play, Todd Collins went deep to Santana. Problem was, he gave up on the route, and the pass was intercepted by Seattle cornerback Marcus Trufant who returned it 78 yards for a score that sealed the game for the Seahawks.

Jacksonville 31 - Pittsburgh 29

The Culprit: Ben Roethlisberger

Big Ben had his best season as a pro this year, and is widely considered on of the top 5 quarterbacks in the league. Unfortunately, on Saturday he gave his worst best Drew Bledsoe impersonation. He had happy feet, and made some poor decisions under pressure, throwing three costly interceptions and losing a fumble.

NY Giants 24 - Tampa Bay 14

The Culprit: Micheal Spurlock

Last month, Spurlock became a Buccaneer hero by returning the first kickoff for a touchdown in club history. Sadly, he’ll be remembered in the off-season as the goat, after fumbling the 2nd half kickoff against the Giants. The fumble was recovered by New York cornerback Corey Webster, who also picked off Jeff Garcia in the end zone on the very next Tampa series.

San Diego 17 - Tennessee 6

The Culprit: Chris Brown

Tennessee was up 3 - 0 and driving early in the 2nd quarter for a touchdown. But at the 12 yard line, Chris Brown fumbled when he was hit by Shawne Merriman, and Shaun Phillips recovered at the Chargers 9. Vince Young and company wouldn’t get into the end zone all day, as San Diego clamped down on defense.

NFL, Wild Card, Playoffs, Turnovers

A new year has arrived, and with it comes a brand new football season - the one that truly matters. The surviving 12 teams reset to 0-0, and prepare to do battle for the Lombardi Trophy along with the right to be called the greatest team in the National Football League…

(I’m excited - are you excited?!)

Having said that, I must admit that the drama for this year’s tournament appears to be a bit muted. Because baring a spectacular upset, the winner of Super Bowl XLII should be determined on January 20th in Foxboro, Massachusetts when the New England Patriots host the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship.

Are we jumping to conclusions here? Yes, but it seems warranted. True, last year the #1 and #2 seeds in the AFC lost their first playoff games, so the top seeds do get upset. However, it was the Colts and the Patriots that did the upsetting. Now those teams get the extra week off, and both clubs are better this year than they were last year.

Take a look at the AFC contenders battling this weekend to get by these two juggernauts; the Steelers and Chargers have all ready been beaten by the Patriots by a combined score of 72 - 27. As for the lower seeded Jaguars and Titans, they’re a combined 1 - 3 against the Colts (and the only reason the Titans won the season finale is because Jim Sorgi was prominently involved).

As for the NFC representatives, well it’s clear that the Cowboys are at the head of the pack. But the Patriots were able to handle them quite easily in Texas Stadium earlier this year. The Colts took on the Buccaneers back in October, and blew them away 33 - 14. Combined, the Patriots and the Colts were 8 - 0 against NFC teams.

Back in the early 90’s, everyone knew that either the 49ers or the Cowboys were winning the Super Bowl and that the NFC Championship Game was the real title game. It’s the same script in a different conference for this decade. If you’re a fan of either team, it just doesn’t get any better.

If you’re not a fan of either club, then just sit back, relax, and watch some of the best football you’ll ever see (without worrying about feeling the urge to hurl your remote at the TV in frustration)!

NFL, Playoff Preview, New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts

Seriously, what’s it take to get fired these days?

NFL, Detroit Lions, Matt Millen, historic ineptitude