Sports

[gardenman]

And the regular season is now nearly upon us! Thursday, September third is the one time all year when all 32 teams will be playing on the same day. After that, everything becomes focused on week one of the regular season.

A lot of questions have already been answered through the pre-season, but some big ones remain. We now know that Sam Bradford is healthy and a good fit in Chip Kelly's offense. The Eagles are averaging 39 points per game so far and look better than anyone they've played. We know the RGIII is not the answer in Washington.

Among the questions still remaining are: Can the Cowboys just plug anyone in and replace DeMarco Murray's production? How will the Patriots fare with a rebuilt secondary and Brady's issues? Are the Giants as bad as they looked this pre-season? Will Tim Tebow hang on in Philly? (I think yes, but we'll know more on Saturday.)

[teganslaw]

Now that Brady is able to play, the opening game  next Thursday against the Steelers will probably have huge ratings. I have no comment on the ruling except to say that I  hope Indy beats New England in October. That will make me very happy.

The Colts are preparing to face Tyrod Tayler. Rex Ryan had hoped to keep Indy guessing as to who the quarterback would be, but it was impossible to keep the news quiet.

As the final cuts are made, I'm thinking that RB Vick Ballard, who was injured the past two seasons, might be one of the players gone from Indy. He is a decent player, but just had a lot of bad breaks.

There is an article (one person's opinion) about how Tim Tebow isn't qualified to be in the NFL. According to the aricle, Tebow can't read plays properly, holds onto the ball too long, and isn't quick enough. Kellly seems impressed with Tebow, though, so have to see what happens. Things will become clearer in the next two days.

[gardenman]

I don't know if Tebow will make the team or not, but the one thing I hear is that he's improving every day in practice. Where is his ceiling? I think that's the big question with him. If Chip thinks he can keep improving and ultimately be competitive as a starter, then Tebow will likely hang around. He's got that rare combination of size, athleticism, drive, and high morals that you love in a guy.

His competition for that roster spot is Matt Barkley who's been a bit careless with the ball while Tebow is very, probably overly, cautious with it. If you get down to your third quarterback, a big, strong, rugged guy who won't turn the ball over isn't a bad option.

As to reading defenses, with Chip's hurry up ofense, Chip is on the helmet speaker telling the quarterback what the defense is and where to go with the ball as the ball is snapped, so there's little need for precise reads when the coach is doing it for you. In the NFL that helmet speaker shuts off when the play clock hits a certain time, but Chip's offense is so fast the play is started before the speaker shuts down, so Chip is guiding the QB on what the defense is and where to go. I'm guessing the NFL will revise that rule at some point in the future, but it's largely the reason every quarterback Chip has used has played their best under him. A couple have commented on how weird it is at first to have the coach talking to you at the snap, but all agree it's a big help. 

[gardenman]

On a somewhat humorous note, though I'm not sure Dianna Russini thinks it's all that funny, Scot McCloughan (the GM of the Redskins) learned his wife Jessica tweeted out that Dianna Rossini, the ESPN reporter, exchanged oral sex for scoops. Lots of apologies have come out since then and Jessica's Twitter account has been deleted, but the damage was done. ESPN is not happy about it. We could see a defamation suit come out of this. It has taken the Redskins quarterback chaos out of the spotlight though. 

[gardenman]

TIm Tebow looked pretty good tonight while Matt Barkley underthrew a wide open receiver for an interception. Tebow's looking better tonight. He threw one interception but it was on a fourth and eight when he had to try and squeeze the ball in, so you don't mind that too bad.

[sunshine45]

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@gardenman wrote:

On a somewhat humorous note, though I'm not sure Dianna Russini thinks it's all that funny, Scot McCloughan (the GM of the Redskins) learned his wife Jessica tweeted out that Dianna Rossini, the ESPN reporter, exchanged oral sex for scoops. Lots of apologies have come out since then and Jessica's Twitter account has been deleted, but the damage was done. ESPN is not happy about it. We could see a defamation suit come out of this. It has taken the Redskins quarterback chaos out of the spotlight though. 

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wow......had not heard that story!

that was horrible what mccloughans wife did....

[gardenman]

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@sunshine45 wrote:

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@gardenman wrote:

On a somewhat humorous note, though I'm not sure Dianna Russini thinks it's all that funny, Scot McCloughan (the GM of the Redskins) learned his wife Jessica tweeted out that Dianna Rossini, the ESPN reporter, exchanged oral sex for scoops. Lots of apologies have come out since then and Jessica's Twitter account has been deleted, but the damage was done. ESPN is not happy about it. We could see a defamation suit come out of this. It has taken the Redskins quarterback chaos out of the spotlight though. 

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wow......had not heard that story!

that was horrible what mccloughans wife did....

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Yeah, it was more than a little tacky and uncalled for. It was the perfect example of how not to be a good executive's wife. Dianna had just broken a story on how the Redskins' front office was split on what to do with RGIII. I'm guessing McCloughan's wife thought she was having a private chat with Dianna on Twitter and blowing (pardon the expression) off steam about the leak and speculating on how word leaked out, only to have it blow up on her. It's a mistake she won't make again. ESPN has wisely downplayed the whole thing, it's not ideal to demean one of your own reporters, and other media have been hesitant to give it more exposure, but several sources ran with the story.

Here's a link to the original tweets.

http://blacksportsonline.com/home/2015/09/redskins-gms-wife-tweets-espn-reporter-used-oral-sex-to-ge...

[gardenman]

And it looks like Tim Tebow won the QB derby in Philly. Matt Barkley has been shipped to Arizona for a seventh round pick. Unless the Eagles go with just 2 QB's or pick up someone else, Tim Tebow is back in the league.

[Spurt]

@gardenman  I concur Gardenman--last place finish again, I was thinking 6 or 7 wins myself-Redskin's GM McC,  still has lots of work to day to turn the Redskins around---  (our secondary is a MESS) and the youngsters on the line although promising Moses (who was hurt last year) & Scherff have a learning curve.....the TE position has been decimated by injuries and who knows if Reed can manage to stay healthy......  And let's see if Pot Roast has anything left.....yep, still work to do.......

BTW I thought this was an interesting quote from Capt Kirk---

“I’ve always felt it’s very important as a backup quarterback to not overstep your bounds,” said Cousins, who has backed up Robert Griffin III for most of his career since the two were drafted in 2012. “It’s not your team. It’s not necessarily your offense, and so to be strong and opinionated and say this is how it should be, I think that that’s reserved for the starting quarterback. Or if you have an opinion, I think you need to defer to the starting quarterback.”

"So as a starting quarterback now, I think I need to be a little more outspoken, opinionated, share my thoughts with the offense, with the coaches, with the other quarterbacks, but certainly as a backup there’s a place to step back and allow the guy who is playing to have those opinions and run the show. That’s a balance that you want to be able to walk when you are a backup.”

Even though Cousins praised the way Griffin  has handled the situation after losing his starting job, I wonder if he was sending a polite message to Robert----HMMMMMMM?  

And interesting how a veteran, WR Pierre Garcon,  stepped up and spoke up and described Kirk was a natural born leader.....VERY INTERESTING!!!  No support for Robert from his WRs.....or am I reading too much into all this?????

“Kirk is a very enthusiastic guy,” Garcon said. “He commands the huddle, he has a lot of faith in us, that we can help him do well. He is a natural-born leader, he’s definitely been planning for that for a long time. You can tell from what kind of person he is that he’s a leader, he’s been doing it for a long time and he’s excited about the opportunity. We definitely want to keep him excited and never want to, you know, have him lose that faith in himself. He’s definitely ready and eager to get the season started to prove to everybody what he can do.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dc-sports-bog/wp/2015/09/04/kirk-cousins-says-its-important-for-...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dc-sports-bog/wp/2015/09/02/pierre-garcon-describes-kirk-cousins...

OMG OMG OMG---watching the Redskin/Jag game with my choice for starting QB Colt McCoy---announcer's comment--- look how Colt rolls out of the pocket to make the adjustment to AVOID the pressure....and my personal observation--- he did not hold on to the ball very long either!!!!  BUT the BIGGER news---it appears that the team plans to keep RGIII on the roster for 2015 as the 2nd QB---GARDENMAN, PLEASE tell me that this is only because of the concussion protocol, or perhaps working on a trade---reporter said if the team cuts him still on the hook for 6mill (money well spent to get rid of him-JMHO)--- why take a chance on naming him 2nd QB and if something happens to Cousins (God forbid), RGIII goes in gets hurt and he's guaranteed 16 mill---doesn't even make sense UNLESS this is due to the ACE IN THE HOLE (and I mean toilet bowl) also known as DAN SNYDER!!!! GRRRRRRRRRR

[Spurt]

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@teganslaw wrote:

Now that Brady is able to play, the opening game  next Thursday against the Steelers will probably have huge ratings. I have no comment on the ruling except to say that I  hope Indy beats New England in October. That will make me very happy.

The Colts are preparing to face Tyrod Tayler. Rex Ryan had hoped to keep Indy guessing as to who the quarterback would be, but it was impossible to keep the news quiet.

As the final cuts are made, I'm thinking that RB Vick Ballard, who was injured the past two seasons, might be one of the players gone from Indy. He is a decent player, but just had a lot of bad breaks.

There is an article (one person's opinion) about how Tim Tebow isn't qualified to be in the NFL. According to the aricle, Tebow can't read plays properly, holds onto the ball too long, and isn't quick enough. Kellly seems impressed with Tebow, though, so have to see what happens. Things will become clearer in the next two days.

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@teganslaw

LOL---Yep RGIII, Trent Richardson--they would be quite a pair-- instead of 100 top players or an All Decade Team we can put together an ALL COMPLAINING TEAM---

It's always sad to see a veteran mainstay released without any fanfare despite a good player that gave his all to the team and the fans....glad the Seahawks picked Fred up. 

I was so HAPPY that the Redskins released OL Willie (the seive as I liked to call him) Smith....not to be confused with Will Smith the ACTOR who would've probably played better....(rolling my eyes)..... 

I FINALLY saw that Direct TV commercial with Andrew Luck and "the beard"---TOO FUNNY.......

I read where TEBOW has worked very hard with a QB Coach to improve his game---which is more than someone that wears the burgundy & gold---  and that description---it sounds like someone got their article mixed up instead that sure sounds a lot like someone named Robert Griffin III and NOT Tebow---LOL!!!

As far as Brady---what a crybaby---the judge reversed the decision more on a technicality than whether the evidence, or lack thereof, cleared Brady's name-- oh well, I just wish ALL the networks would just move on and talk about FOOTBALL now that the season is ready to begin---of course everytime the Patriots play on the national TV games we will have to hear the SAME story rehashed OVER AND OVER AGAIN!!!  As NFL fans I think we should sue Brady for all the time the fans had to endure and being bored to death with this story(rolling eyes).....Hey Brady be careful you know what they say about karma--and I'm hoping it can start with a Colt victory & payback