2008 NY Jets Fantasy Preview August 26, 2008
Posted by Neil in : Uncategorized , add a comment[Syndication note: this is the 1st of several weekly installments that I’m contributing to Fantasy Insights, throughout the NFL Season as the fantasy writer for Gang Green. A big thank you to Shawn McCullough for allowing us to syndicate to our site.]
The Meadowlands will turn into the OK Corral this season as the ‘Ol Gunslinger will be saddling up for Gang Green in what should be one of the most interesting seasons in Jets history. My job in covering the team got a whole lot more entertaining with the arrival of #4 from Green Bay.
While Chad Pennington was a great guy and a winner in most respects, all Jets followers are happy to have the strong-armed and stubborn QB from Southern Miss behind center. In addition, the Jets have added a cornucopia of players to bolster the line on both sides of the ball such as Alan Faneca and Kris Jenkins that should help your fantasies come true if you end up having some Jets on your roster. Also, the addition of Favre will provide some much needed firepower to last year’s languishing and anemic offense. It will be so interesting to see how the Jets previously pedestrian weapons potentially turn into a more explosive arsenal with Brett behind center.
Before the transcation with the Jets fairly friendly schedule (besides the first 3 contests) I had them pegged for a 7-9 season. Despite the worries over the fact that Brett may regress to his old INT prone ways (he is certainly prone to them in even his best years) and won’t be on the same page with his new teammates, I think Favre will excel in the media spotlight of NYC. I look for the Jets to finish 10-6 and nab an AFC Wild Card birth. No matter what happens, this will be the most exciting season for Gang Green since Joe Namath roamed the sidelines (and I am not talking about the time he roamed the sideline and professed his affection for Suzy Kolber)
Position Analysis:
—————————
QUARTERBACKS: Sorry Kellen Clemens, #4 is in town and all Jets personnel are excited about it. Favre will be that same high-risk high-reward player he has always been. If the Jets offense struggles, I worry that he will gamble even more and be prone to a huge INT year. However, the guy will throw for a lot of TD’s and for a good amount of yardage. I would be very wary of selecting him too high based on romanticism, but also will not let him slide too late in my draft. He is certainly a respectable #1 QB for your fantasy team, but there is at least 8 guys that I would take over him.
RUNNING BACKS: Thomas Jones should be excited about Favre’s arrival. Brett can stretch the field which will certainly help Jones out. However, the Jets upgrades on the O-line should put the biggest smile on TJones. Last year. Thomas gained 1119 yards but only had 1 TD. While I expect the yardage to stay around the same, I certainly expect a few more TD’s this season. Jones is a very decent #2 back on your team. Also, I have always liked Leon Washington (353 yards rushing and 3 TD’s last year). Expect some big plays from him this year as always. I wouldn’t really draft him (until the very end of a large draft), but is certainly someone to watch especially if Jones goes down for a week or two.
WIDE RECEIVERS: Jerricho Cotchery this is your year. I expect a breakout campaign from this emerging receiver. Last year he was highly impressive snaring 82 balls for 1130 yards, but with just 2 TD’s. While that season was certainly great, I expect him to be even more productive with Brett this year. Expect the same amount of yardage, but I think he will get in the endzone at least 3x more. He is a solid #2 WR for any team in any league. I also think Coles will have a big bounce back year after an injury plagued season. While it is troublesome that he is having lingering leg problems (which are also affecting his ability to get in sync with Favre), I think he will become Brett’s safety valve on the team. Look for him to improve on his 55 catch, 646 yard season with close to 1000 yards in 2008. While he had 6 TD last year, I expcet that number to go up to at least 8. He is a great #3 WR to have, and not an embarrassing #2 in some big leagues. Expect Brad Smith and Chansi Stuckey to have improved years, but I wouldn’t draft them. They could be good waiver pick-ups of Coles or Cotchery get hurt.
TIGHT ENDS: Last year Chris Baker had a decent season with 41 catches for 409 yards and 3 TD’s. While Favre always loves to find his TE’s in the red zone, I expect Baker’s numbers to reamin the same and not improve much. This will not be due to his own inefficiency, but will be attributed to the fact that the Jets have 3 very viable offensive options at TE. Bubba Franks has always had a special relationship with #4, and rookie TE Dustin Keller from Purdue will quickly become a Favre favorite. The Jets TE position will be a little bit like Denver RB’s the last few years, great production as a unit, but not by one individual to make your fantasies come true. I wouldn’t draft any of them until the very end of a large draft.
PLACE KICKER: Mike Nugent has been very solid in the NFL, which is highly impressive since he has to play half of his games in the swirling winds of the Meadowlands. Last year he was 29 of 36 and made 23 of 24 PAT’s. First off, I think he will have a lot more than 24 PAT attempts. Last year he was 6 of 8 from 40-49, but only 1 of 4 from 50+. I expect him to make a few more long kicks as his confidence builds this year. As kickers go, he is in the top half of the league, but certainly not in the top 8 for fantasy owners.
DEFENSE/SPECIAL TEAMS: The Jets D is not a great turnover defense. They will produce a couple of TD’s and an adequate amount of INT’s, but I wouldn’t waste a draft pick on them as nobody else will. They are a potential team to pick up when they have a good matchup against an anemic offense.
Forget Kobe’s Beef: Here’s Mine… August 20, 2008
Posted by Paul in : Uncategorized , 3comments
We’ve now all heard the rumors and accusations by now. First reported by TheDirty.com, Kobe Bryant has been rumored to have had an adulterous affair with a young 18-year-old Laker girl named Vanessa Curry.
Some major media outlets have shied away from covering this story, as portions of it don’t seem well substantiated. Other less reputable publications have jumped on it, and spilled quite a bit of ink. Listen: I understand that celebrity gossip sells newspapers. I’m not disputing that. I’m not even going to address the veracity of these latest claims against the Laker guard. What I’m more interested in, is the public outcry that usually follows… Talk radio airwaves get littered with callers who get on their high horse and tell us, “How does this so-and-so dare get involved in extra-marital sex?”. The average Joe rants on, “How could this role model let us down, by having an affair with another woman?”. Dave in Toledo gets on air and utterly decries this type of unsavory and repulsive behavior.
Rewind my life a few years; back when I was working in private equity, in Paris. On another average day, a journalist friend of mine invites me to a sponsored event at one of those posh nightclubs that large metropolises are known for… I decided to show up to this swanky affair; as a couple of buddies were already attending, and it seemed like another good diversion from the daily grind. I waltzed in, and after making my way to the buffet, and grabbing a generous portion of various amuse-bouches and canapés, I look for a nearby table to finally settle down at…
I plop myself down in one of the empty seats of the overcrowded dining hall. I look up from my plate full of fancy hors-d’oeuvres and try to situate myself. By pure luck of the draw, I come to realize that I’m seated at the same table as an NBA veteran. Who it was doesn’t really matter, and will remain undisclosed, in this piece. The important thing is that he became an instant source for what goes on in the National Basketball Association. After exchanging pleasantries with him, and finding quite a few points of common ground, I start asking him about the Baller Life. “What is it like playing in the NBA?” Surprisingly this player is both congenial, charming, and open to sharing what it’s like to play in one of the most glamorous league in the world. He starts telling me that NBA stars have the most grandiose of lifestyles. When on the road, he continues, the most beautiful women in that city line up in the team’s hotel lobby, in hopes of scoring with an NBA leading man. If they are not initially successful at enticing these round ball studs for a little bedroom fun at the hotel bar, these bombshells have not been known to give up that easily. Knocking on individual player’s hotel room doors is nothing out of the ordinary.
My counterpart goes on to recount an example that illustrates his point, almost entirely. Every so often–once or twice a year, the National Basketball Players Association puts on seminars for the general education of its members. At these get-togethers, NBA protagonists are given crash-courses on anything ranging from managing one’s finances, to avoiding the pitfalls of being a celebrity. One of the modules, accordingly, was about managing one’s time and varied responsibilities. A pie chart is put up, as a slide, on the projector, and the speaker points to the different slices, “Here are your family obligations….there you’ll find your endorsement responsibilities, here’s your spiritual life, your time off, and here’s the girls part”. The girls part? Other girls had become such a rampant part of NBA players’ lives, that its labor group thought it had to figure prominently and be addressed at the forefront. Groupie women had become so commonplace, so mainstream for these NBA stars, that they were actually devoted a full slice on the Time Management pie chart. “How to deal with extra-curricular girls?” should have been the full title.
With this account as a backdrop, my points on this latest charade are as follows:
1) Why should we even be surprised that Kobe has had other extra-marital sex? Is is PR-smart for him to have done so, after what happened in Eagle, Colorado? Absolutely not. But this leads into my next point…
2) Any average guy off the street just hasn’t been put under the same kind of temptation and duress as NBA players. It’s very easy for you and I to say that we would never cheat, because, at best, our temptations are ephemeral and punctual. A little will power, and you forget about that young intern who batted her eyes at you, during last month’s industry conference. But try doing the same thing when you’re in the NBA, and the most gorgeous women in each harbor are throwing themselves at you, on a nightly basis, while you’re on the road. Very few normally constituted heterosexual males are equipped to keep on refusing such advances. That’s what makes me the most irate about the Public’s reaction these days. First, that it’s surprise that an NBA star would fall to such temptations, and second that they would even get outraged at it, whatsoever. When John in Sherman Oaks calls in to a sports talk show and professes their disgust with another NBA player engaging in “morally reprehensible behavior”, he’s both completely myopic and completely unreasonable. It is incredibly easy for you and I–mere mortals–to come on the radio, and profess our disgust with these lax mores. But unless you’ve been under the constant duress that an NBA star endures at reach road stop, please abstain from giving all of us a lesson in morality.
3) Finally, we turn our attention to NBA wives. They fall in two different categories. On one end, stands a group of women that are either completely clueless or victims of the Ostrich Syndrome. They continue to believe or convince themselves that their Prince Charming retires to a cold bed, on the road at 10pm, only to rise early the next morning, reinvigorated by a good night’s rest. Instead, the husband is resting his head on two very new comfortable pillows, every night. On the other side of the spectrum, you’ve got women who have told themselves that in exchange for great financial security and wealth, they were going to be fine with an “arrangement” between themselves and their husbands. They will be encouraged to drive their brand new Bentleys around town to yet another Spago lunch with girlfriends, followed by a Prada shopping spree, all charged to Hubby’s black AMEX. Allowed such frivolous lifestyles, the NBA player has “bought” himself a little freedom, when he sets sail for the next NBA city. At home, he’s the quintessential Dad. During away games, the single guy in him is unleashed.
The most highly-publicized example of this type of arrangement has been with Mr. and Mrs. Kirilenko. Masha, Andrei’s wife, had decided to give AK-47 one shot at getting off with another woman per year. Some may call this pure pragmatism, by Mrs. Kirilenko. Others, like yours truly, will question whether that quenches this NBA player’s thirst for new escapades. Will a man really be “cured”, when given one free pass per annum? Can’t we ask ourselves if this was not more about acquiring media exposure for the couple, than an actual remedy to an average NBA player’s daily temptation?
To all potential sports talk callers out there: next time you’re about to dial my Show’s hot-line, to discuss the latest steamy affair by a high-profile athlete or celebrity, think long and hard about what you’re going to be saying. If your conversation centers around calling out morally-reprehensible behavior, save your breath as I most certainly won’t give you much air-time. The reality is that top professional athletes live on a different plane than the rest of us. They are in a different dimension when it comes to availability of extra-curricular sex. After hanging up the phone with me, you’ll be returning to your TV dinner, yet another episode of Trebek’s “Jeopardy”, your 2.4 offspring, mortgage, white picket fence, and Volvo station wagon. You’ll be lucky to get the attention of that new young intern at the office, or maybe (if the stars are aligned) you’ll get an awkward smile from one of your wife’s girlfriends. The NBA player, on the other hand, will keep on trucking, turning down opportunities to be with women we’ve only seen on glossy magazine covers…
The Golden Boy August 15, 2008
Posted by Neil in : Uncategorized , 1 comment so farI can rarely say this about most Olympic competition, but I am riveted to the Peacock Network when the Chosen One is about to enter his sacred waters. While Tiger Woods, Rafael Nadal (sorry Roger), and Kobe Bryant (and LBJ) may be considered the preeminent athletes in sport now, one man is more dominating than all of the rest combined. Micahel Phelps has officially left the stratosphere when it comes to the pantheon of greats. While still a young man by any calendar’s count, he is already the greatest Olympian (as evidenced by him now being the richest member of the less XXX-rated Gold Club) of all time and vows to compete in merry ‘Ol London in 2012.
I follow the Olympics and swimming closer than virtually anyone I know, but certainly not enough to make a truly educated statement coming into the Games on whether Phelps had a reasonable chance to win 8 gold medals. While I can certainly tell a backstroke from a breaststroke, I thought as many fairly casual observes did, that Phelps’ longstanding proclomation that he was gunning for an astonishing 8 gold medals in a week was merely a pipe dream and not one that was readily ascertainable.
Phelps has made Olympic swimming must see TV in the United States and throughout much of the globe. It is not just that he is winning every event he partakes in, but the way he is doing so defies rational explanation. Going into tonight’s last individual final for the Maryland native, he has won 6 golds. In each of those Olympic championship performances, he (or his team in the 2 relays he has been a part of so far) have set the world record. Imagine Tiger Woods winning the calendar Grand Slam, and setting the course and tournament record in each event. That is the type of history that the Aquaman is setting each and every night at the ‘Cube.
The thing I like about Phelps most is his attitude and aw-shucks confidence. He is kind of a big goofy kid, that is playful until he enters his aquatic domain and then shreds the competition like a Ginsu knife through warm butter. More importantly, he has managed to gain forgiveness (as he should have been given) for his DUI indiscretion since Athens and is now the Teflon man in the American sporting landscape. He walks on water (or at least swims right through it), and there is only one thing that he could do that could ever tarnish his legacy. I’ll pause for a moment and let Ben Johnson, Barry Bonds, or Mark McGwire think of what would be the only thing that could bring down the Golden Boy of these Olympic Games. For the record, I think he is clean, and I am not guilty of the Ostrich Syndrome.
The thing that impresses me most about all athletes in Olympic sports (as opposed to Olympic athletes since I am not including NBA players or other athletes in which the Olympics is a glorified and patriotic exhibition for them) is that they spend 4 years training for one week or even one minute in the pool or ten seconds on the track. They compete for a couple of minutes and then they have either 4 years or a lifetime to reflect on their achievements or disappointments. Being an Olympic champion in a true Olympic sport is the purest form of athletic joy that one can attain. On the flip side, training for 4 years for one moment and then false starting or not performing can lead even the most positive athlete into the darkest of places. I truly admire Phelps’ ability to bring his best in every event for this one week in the spotlight before he has his few months of fame and then retreats into the shadows of professional sports in America.
Golden Boy, you have 6 down and 2 to go. While usually I root for teams (Giants, Yankees, etc.) , you have my full support and the backing of an entire nation (and in some respects the entire world). Perfection is so rare to find in sports. You are so close to finishing off the greatest masterpeice in Olympic history.
Favre Setting Himself Up for Train Wreck August 2, 2008
Posted by Derek in : Uncategorized , 3commentsYou’ve probably heard by now that Brett Favre is coming out of retirement.
You’ve been reminded about his teary-eyed press conference in March when he said he was hanging up his cleats.
You’ve probably even noticed that he has his own section on ESPN’s bottom line: “Favre”.
For the past month, sports fans have been inundated with a daily dose of Favre. We’ve been subjected to pundits and talking-heads debating the pros and cons of his return. We’ve seen the record-breaking TD pass to Gregg Jennings last year about ten thousand times, and we’ve heard the answer to the question, “Is Aaron Rodgers ready?” just as often (yes, is the common response).
For the record, I am a fan of Brett Favre. I was rooting for him to reach the Super Bowl last season perhaps more so than my own favorite NFL team since birth (the Chargers), in the hope that he could end his career the right way. I have long-admired the childlike enthusiasm and passion he brings to the game of football, as well as his moments of vulnerability and triumph.
There are a lot of opinions about what both Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers should do about his comeback. Myself, not only do I not want to see him in a Packer uniform again, I don’t even want to see him on a football field again.
As of now, we know that if Favre does in fact return, it won’t be as a starter in Green Bay. The Packers are committed to Aaron Rodgers – which is, in my opinion and even that of thousands of Packer shareholders, the best move for the future of the organization – and Favre has stated that he won’t return to Lambeau as a backup. Additionally, there is evidence that tension had been mounting between Favre and the Packers long before his heralded 2007 season, in which he posted the third-highest passer-rating of his career (95.7) and was perhaps one bad throw away from another Super Bowl.
I’m sure Favre’s return has more to do with the love of the game and the “itch” to play football that all former athletes experience than anything else. But there seems to be another (perhaps obvious) element to all of this: Favre wants to stick it to the Packers. He wants to prove that he has more gas left in the tank, and that he should have been given the proper amount of time in the offseason – this most recent offseason, and the one before that, and the one before that – to make a decision. As recently as yesterday, Favre has even said that if he can’t play for the Packers, he wants to play against the Packers in the same division.
If there is any element of truth to the idea that much of Favre’s motivation for coming back is to get back at Green Bay, which there probably is, then Brett Favre may be setting himself up for a tragic ending to an otherwise brilliant career.
Of all the teams that would be a logical fit for Favre, Minnesota, Chicago, Tampa Bay and the New York Jets have been identified as those that could use him most. Not surprisingly, all four of these teams ranked in the bottom half of the league last season in nearly every major statistical category related to passing (except Tampa Bay when Jeff Garcia was healthy). But don’t be so sure that Favre’s presence somewhere guarantees a playoff berth or even a successful season for Number 4.
Let’s assume Favre becomes a Jet, an organization that has been plagued by inconsistency at the quarterback position. They spent a lot of money upgrading their offensive line this offseason and they have a workhorse running back in Thomas Jones, a couple of veteran receivers, a young defense, and a head coach that took them to the playoffs two years ago. By all accounts, the foundation has been set in New York for future success.
But until proven otherwise in 2008, the New York Jets of this year are still the Jets of last year, and thus a bad football team. If Favre becomes a Jet, it’s his job to lead them. And for me, questions abound about how great this comeback could really be.
What if he has trouble learning and executing a new offense? What if he doesn’t really gel with a new group of teammates and coaches? What if he starts throwing interceptions in bunches (as he is prone to doing) and the fans call for Chad Pennington? What if, consecutive-games-started-streak-forbid, he gets hurt?
I wish to offer a bold prediction, or something similar, for Brett Favre’s 2008 season: Favre comes back. He gets traded to the Jets – or Bucs, Ravens, Bears, Chiefs, 49ers, Texans, even the Vikings – amid constant fan-fare and high expectations. Through the first five games of the season, his new team is 1-5 and Favre has thrown 12 touchdowns and 9 interceptions (his exact stat-line through the first five games of the 2005 season, and pretty close to those of 2006, wins and losses included). Favre realizes he needs to do more to help the team win and he resorts to his old “Gunslinger” ways. Two weeks later, he throws 5 interceptions in one game – extreme, but very possible given Favre’s history. If they hadn’t already, fans, pundits, and even Favre himself question his comeback. Three weeks later, Favre gets hurt. The guardian angel of injury that had eluded him for so long in Green Bay just couldn’t make the plane-ride out to New York, and Favre is now, for the first time in his career, out for the season. January rolls around, the Jets miss the playoffs, finishing with a record of 4-12. Favre retires, this time for good.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: that’s a pretty extreme scenario. And you’re right, it is. You’re also a Brett Favre fan, like me, but you think he can do it. You think he can do what Joe Montana did with the Chiefs in 1993 and 1994, and take a new team to the playoffs. You think 2005 and 2006 were outlier seasons (70.9 and 72.7 QB rating, respectively, and 29 INT’s in 2005) and that Favre will perform this year like he did in 2003, 2004, and 2007 (QB ratings of 90.4, 92.4, and 95.7, respectively) if he comes back this year. You probably even think that he can win another Super Bowl if he’s with a good team, say… Minnesota.
Well, I agree. He is certainly capable of doing all of that, because he is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. I just don’t think it’s going to happen. I think there’s a far greater chance something closer to my disastrous situation happens than a run at the playoffs and another statistically productive and healthy season.
I believe in karma, and I don’t like how the Favre saga has played out from March through now. I don’t like how Brett Favre, a player who I truly respect in the game of football, has wavered on the future of his career for the three consecutive seasons. And now there’s speculation that he may take a large sum of money to stay retired. Something just doesn’t seem right here.
If Favre wanted to retire after a season in which he was so close to the Super Bowl, after he enjoyed his best statistical season in recent memory, after the Packers showed the rest of the NFL that all of the pieces are in place to make another run at a championship this season, then what does the future hold? Why would he settle for coming back to a new team, and a potentially disastrous situation?
For the love of the game, you say. For that itch to play again that every athlete has experienced. Well, maybe. But I think it’s for different reasons. And I fear that he may be setting himself up for something disastrous.
