Sound_n_Fury

Yeah, once I found out Gragg played the right side it seemed a lot less viable. I'd love to find a list of potential June 1 OT cap casualties somewhere on the net, as I too think our starter at LOT isn't on the roster yet. I feel Gandy's just going to be a tease, like Lawrence Smith was last year. I like McFarland and would like to know what his weight's up too...if he added 20+ pounds of muscle in the off-season, he could be a nice find, but he's probably too green to rely on yet. I keep having a nagging feeling the Peters experiment is not going to pan out.

I thought they might have worked together, but wasn't sure. If that's the case, Gragg might want to end his career with McNally. And the fact the Bills are a team on the rise might make them attractive as well. I know this has been discussed ad nausum, but if we got a ROT like Gragg, could the "svelte" MW possibly shift over to the left side or would that just be too big a disruption of the OL continuity?

I guess Gragg plays ROT, so he probably couldn't slide over to the left side side. But I was wondering if anyone had any opinions on him anyway. He seems like a savy vet that McNally might be able to use if he comes at the right price: 49ers | Impending Gragg Cap Savings - from www.KFFL.com Sat, 7 May 2005 07:54:26 -0700 Matt Maiocco, of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, reports the impending June 1 release of OT Scott Gragg by the San Francisco 49ers after June 1 will save the team $3 million in salary cap room, which should allow for them to sign all 11 of their draft choices this year. Height: 6-8 Weight: 315 lbs. Pos: Offensive Tackle 2004 Scouting Report - Football Scouts Inc. Name: Scott Gragg Position: Offensive Tackle Grade: 70 | Key Alert: A Comment: Gragg is extremely durable and despite turning 32 during the off-season he has yet to show any signs of slowing down. Plays with a mean streak, works to sustain his blocks and can be dominant at the point of attack. Shows excellent footwork, plays under control and rarely overextends. Plays with balance and shows the ability to redirect in pass protection. Uses long arms to ride defenders past the pocket and does a great job of forcing edge rushers to take wider angles to the quarterback. Gragg however, is a better football player than he is an athlete. Lacks ideal range, doesn't appear comfortable in space and isn't a great downfield blocker as a result. Overall, Gragg is on the downside of his career but he should have one or two more seasons left before time robs him of his skills.

If anybody still cares, here's the definitive article on KW's accident. I hope the Browns recind his contract after seeing how stupid this guy is: Wild rides lured Winslow Winslow's wild ride Injured Brown emulated stunt cyclists, but lacked their training Saturday, May 07, 2005 Mary Kay Cabot Plain Dealer Reporter One afternoon in March, Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. was playing paint ball with friends in the back yard of his Westlake home when he heard a rumbling in the parking lot behind his house. He looked and saw someone performing wheelies and other stunts on a motorcycle. He went to the lot and introduced himself to the rider, Jason Campana. Campana and Winslow exchanged phone numbers. Before long, Campana was hanging out at Winslow's house talking about motorcycles, according to interviews with Westlake police and sources close to Winslow. Winslow was so pumped about what Campana could do on his Suzuki GSX-R600 that he decided to buy a bike. Campana, 19, hooked him up with his buddies at State 8 Cycles in Cuyahoga Falls. Because Winslow is 6-4, 250 pounds, Campana thought he would be better suited to the Suzuki GSR-R750 than the 600. It's more powerful than Campana's bike, but Campana and the salesman at State 8 both thought the 750 was the right choice. Winslow, a novice, bought the shiny, red bike about April 9 and received it a few days later. Soon, Campana was teaching him how to ride, how to shift gears and operate the clutch. Campana, who has been riding motorbikes since he was about 8, advised Winslow to take a safety course at Polaris Career Center, but the tight end did not follow the advice, he said. Before long, Winslow and Campana were riding around Winslow's Westlake neighborhood, much to the chagrin of neighbors. On April 16, one got fed up and called the police. "He was going up and down the street about 50 miles per hour," said the neighbor, who asked not to be identified. "He was popping wheelies and dogging it. I got tired of it and called the police. There's eight to 10 children right around where he lives." Lt. Ray Arcuri of Westlake police said a sergeant was sent to the Cornerstone development where Winslow lives, "but by the time we arrived, we were unable to locate anybody doing it." Another neighbor, Dr. Robert Nahigian, a dentist and president of the Cornerstone Homeowners' Association, tried to stop Winslow. "One day he and someone else went down the street about 15 times doing wheelies," he said. "One of them did a wheelie right in front of my house. After about 15 minutes, I waved him down." Nahigian told Winslow that he didn't think he should be doing stunts in a residential area. "I also told him that I was concerned about his own safety," Nahigian said. "He told me he wasn't going over the speed limit." Nahigian questioned why Winslow would perform such dangerous acts when he was still rehabbing from a broken right fibula and ligament damage in his ankle. "He would walk his dog and he wasn't even walking well before the accident," said Nahigian. When he wasn't practicing, Winslow would often pop in a tape of the Starboyz, a stunt riding team whose three main riders are from Akron. The Starboyz travel all over, performing stunts. A day or two before Winslow's motorcycle accident, he burned out the clutches on his bike attempting a burnout, a trick that involves spinning the back wheels, said Scott Caraboolad, president and founder of the Starboyz. Caraboolad said one of his Starboyz associates works at State 8 and sold Winslow the new clutches. Then, Caraboolad said, the State 8 guys fixed his bike for him. "The guys at State 8 were trying to get Kellen to come take private lessons with us," said Caraboolad. "We wish we would've gotten the chance to teach him how to do things the right way." On May 1, Winslow, Campana and a few friends rode their bikes to Canton to watch the Starboyz perform live at Hardings Park Cycle. After the show, Winslow and friends went inside to shop for motorcycle paraphernalia. Working security was Eric Stanbro, an off-duty Canton-area policeman who always works the show - even though he has a general disdain for the Starboyz, who wear "Cops Lie" T-shirts and other anti-police messages. "Some guy said, 'Grab a paper and pen, Kellen Winslow's in here,' " said Stanbro. "I went over and looked and it was him. He spent about an hour in there shopping and looking at things. He signed about half a dozen autographs and took some pictures with fans." When Winslow and friends left, they turned onto Ohio 62 and some popped wheelies. Stanbro said Winslow, who was last, was one of them. "He popped up his front wheel and just gunned it," said Stanbro. "He was going about 40-50 mph and held it about 100 feet. He was just flying. A bunch of people were watching him and I think he was showing off." Stanbro said he's positive it was Winslow because he was wearing a bright red Budweiser jacket, the same one that appeared later that night on the security video at Corporate College in Westlake. "All of the other guys were wearing leather and looked like much more experienced riders," said Stanbro. But one of the other riders, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it's doubtful that the inexperienced Winslow could perform such a difficult wheelie. "He was in back of us, but I don't think Kellen is able to do that yet," he said. "He was taking it slow and being responsible on the bike. He enjoyed the ride down there and we were watching out for him." When the riders got home, they split up for a while, but agreed to meet again later that evening at Corporate College because one of the riders' friends wanted a picture with Winslow. Winslow and Campana brought their bikes. They took the picture, and then Campana and Winslow started riding around the lot. According to interviews, they were practicing stunts and tricks while the other two watched. Then came the accident. Campana was off in one corner of the parking lot and Winslow was in the other. The two others were half-watching, half-talking to each other. Suddenly, Campana wheeled around only to see Winslow fly over his handlebars and land in the shrubbery. The three men rushed to Winslow's side and found him unconscious. According to sources, the friends didn't know if he was dead or alive. One of them grabbed his hand and began saying, "Kellen, Kellen, Kellen." Winslow regained consciousness, but was in extreme pain and they didn't move him. They called 911. Winslow was transported by ambulance to Fairview Hospital and then taken the next day to the Cleveland Clinic, where he remains with potentially serious injuries to his right knee and shoulder, along with internal injuries. The Browns said Friday they had no further update on Winslow's condition. There is concern within the organization that Winslow has multiple injuries to his right knee and leg. There is also concern Winslow injured his kneecap in addition to suffering ligament damage and a possible hairline fracture of the right femur. The eyewitnesses gave their accounts to police but the versions conflicted. One thought Winslow was attempting a reverse wheelie or "endo" and the other thought he was trying something else. Campana told police he had no idea what Winslow was doing and wishes he could ask him. He told police it could've been a freak accident. Caraboolad, the Starboyz president, said the accident could have been prevented. "I was so busy performing that day that I didn't have a chance to talk to Kellen," he said. "If I had, I could've given him some advice and maybe talked him into attending one of our wheelie schools to learn the right way." Caraboolad said one of the first things he would've told Winslow is to not practice stunts in a parking lot. "It's totally the wrong place," he said. "Even professional stunt riders have a hard time in parking lots. You need a race track a half-mile long to accelerate." The Starboyz, who used to "raise hell on the streets of Akron and Canton" and have been arrested for performing on roadways, now have an operating agreement with Thompson Raceway Park outside Painesville. It's where they teach their increasingly popular wheelie classes. "The sport is so dangerous that we decided to start a wheelie school so that guys wouldn't kill themselves," he said. "I've seen 30 or 40 people wreck right in front of me." He said the Starboyz are scheduled to teach Michael Jordan and his race team how to do stunts this summer. "We wish we could've done the same for Kellen before it was too late," he said. "He's very lucky to be alive."

It's getting terrific reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes site: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/star_wars_3/ (is there such as thing as too much hype/anticipation...leading to a letdown??)

Relax...have a Snickers.

IMO, WM would be great on traps. CV is mobile enough to execute trap assignments, but I have my doubts about Anderson. Maybe TT could help out as well.

I remember Kelly saying something like the no-huddle only had about half a dozen set plays...that's how he could run it so efficiently!! But seriously, I think it would be a HUGE mistake to throw JP into the fire by making him have to call his own plays as well...let him get his feet wet, then add the odd shotgun, 3-wide set from time to time to mix it up. I'd hate to see JPs confidence get rattled if he made a few early mistakes from a no-huddle scheme. Gotta crawl before you walk.

I think we'll see shotgun, but no-huddle would put too much pressure on JP to get his reads right...too much, too soon.

Sort of Conrad Dobler-ish! http://www.anecdotage.com/index.php?aid=9160

I think we'll see more shotgun (the formation JP was in much of the time at Tulane), from which WM can run the draw and pick his holes, which he seems very adept at (a'la Thumal in the good 'ol days). In other words, be able to spread the field with 3 WRs AND go Smashmouth when needed....a nice flexible combination to keep teams guessing/honest.

You could have played OL for Tulane...that's how bad they were

It would be really funny if the kid who lost the finger sued this guy and won... Flip him the bird, indeed!

How do you figure? All he has to do is out-play Mario Haggan, the only true backup ILB on the team, who was also an UDFA. Haggan's making $380,000 versus $230,000 for Ezekiel: http://www.billszone.com/mtlog/archives/20...ry_cap_page.php If it's close, go with the younger guy who's got some good upside potential.

http://x2.putfile.com/5/12120335418.jpg

I think that NU columnist is a swallower, myself....

What time period are you talking about...the TD era or the team's history in general? I seem to recall we had a pretty expensive D-line a few years ago and spent bumpkis on safeties. The Bills big investment at LB and S may simply be due to that fact that good players (Spikes, Fletcher, Vincent, Milloy) were available when the team had cap room to make a run at them...

I think Clayton's logic is backward to some degree... ( gee, like that's never happened before!) Maybe the reason so many starters are drafted from rounds 1-3 is because these guys carry larger salaries, so teams feel compelled to have them on the field rather than riding the bench. A personnel guy or coach who has a lot of high-round picks riding the pine doesn't last long...and if the player fails to make it on the field, the coach/GM can always say "Hey, I gave him a shot...it's his fault (not mine) that he failed." The other thing I found funny was the quote from the Steelers operations director: “We've always believed you have to get your starters from rounds one, two and three. I remember looking at a study that said 70 percent of the Pro Bowl comes from the early rounds of the draft.” Perhaps the reason so many Pro Bowlers come from rounds 1-3 is because these guys tend to: (a) be better known, (b) have better agents and PR people and (3) I'll throw them a little credit--have had more experience/better coaching than low round picks from small schools, so it takes them less time to develop (and if they're from big schools--allows them to be comfortable playing in front of 70,000+ fans). How many times have we seen guys who "should be in the Pro Bowl" (Pat Williams, an UDFA comes to mind) get bypassed for some "name" player...

Well, I could see replacing Justin Bannan...

Hey, its only 60 miles down the Thruway if you're in Buffalo...

"He turned me into a newt...."

I agree. TD likes to look one year ahead and draft "replacements" for guys coming up on FA. IMO, Preston will be a dynamite replacement for TT with a year of full-time weight training and playbook review under his belt.

"The FBI spent two years investigating the lyrics before declaring they not only were not obscene but also were "unintelligible at any speed." Absolutely priceless! ROTFLMAO!

Winslow shows his Evel side with stupid cycle stunt Published May 5, 2005 Orlando Sentinel David Whitley When it comes to risking disaster, one phrase fits all. Until now. "I read about it in the paper," The Phrase said. "It's staggering, really." The words came from Evel Knievel. They concerned Kellen Winslow Jr., who is in a Cleveland hospital with his career in a sling. Actually, it's hard to tell exactly what's in a sling. Nobody is saying how damaged Winslow's body is. What's beyond dispute is that his reputation has crashed. The Browns' tight end wrecked a motorcycle Sunday night. The mere fact Winslow was even on one makes you want to strangle some sense into him. Unless you are his agent, in which case you are too busy dissecting his contract to find out how much money the kid may have blown. For all we know, Winslow may have totaled his entire football future. All because he was trying to be like Evel Knievel. There it was, the phrase that launched 10 million mishaps. Knievel's motorcycle stunts gave him a unique place in the English language. He is the human metaphor, and not just when it comes to daredevil stuff. A Washington Post obituary said an overprotective mother made other moms feel "like the Evel Knievels of parenthood." On a Fox News show about Social Security reform, senior citizens were looking "like Evel Knievel jumping into a void." A food critic in Reno wrote, "Eggplant falls short, like Evel Knievel attempting to jump the Snake River with that silly jet car." Parenting. Economics. Eggplant? Whatever the topic, "Like Evel Knievel" is the go-to reference for foolish risk. Maybe we should change it to "Like Kellen Winslow Jr." Knievel was a risk-taker, but not a fool. Flying over cars, buses and fountains was his profession, and he did very well at it. OK, maybe that was a tad foolish. But Knievel was at least smart enough not to endanger his livelihood by playing tackle football before the Snake River Canyon jump. Thirty-one years later, Winslow bought himself a Suzuki GSX-R75. Why anyone needs a motorcycle that can go 172 mph is beyond me, especially when they still need training wheels to ride. Winslow was trying to learn in an empty parking lot. But he lost control at 35 mph, hit a curb and flew over the handlebars. His helmet, which wasn't fastened, flew off. Hadn't he ever heard of Jay Williams, the Chicago Bulls rookie who ruined his career acting like Evel Knievel two years ago? "I feel sorry for these players," The Phrase said. "They're finding out how hard that asphalt is. It hurts a lot more than being tackled by an entire team." It's pointless to scold Winslow now, but geez, does he have eggplant for brains? Riding a motorcycle may have violated his $40 million contract. He was just coming back from a leg injury that ruined his rookie season. When the Browns drafted him, they thought they had the best tight end since Kellen Winslow Sr. The father said his son could be even better, and Jr. obviously believed it. He nicknamed himself "The Chosen One." He was famous at Miami for two things -- being cocky, and being able to back it up. He shaved his arms and chest to accentuate his chiseled body. You never mind seeing a guy like that taken down a peg or two. But not like this. "I give him my condolences," Knievel said. "That's all I can say." And all anyone can do is hope Winslow Jr. has learned his lesson and hasn't crashed for good. When it comes to doing really stupid things, one human metaphor is enough.

Now I see why Thomas left Buffalo without a contract: Cowboys | Thomas Contract Update - from www.KFFL.com Wed, 4 May 2005 16:35:52 -0700 DallasCowboys.com reports the one-year contract signed by RB Anthony Thomas with the Dallas Cowboys was valued at $1 million. He received a $400,000 signing bonus and he is scheduled to make a $600,000 base salary for the 2005 season.