Wellness

[gardenman]

And Jerry Jones has helped to muddy up the Kyle Orton cutting with some new statements. At the end of the 2013 season Kyle Orton asked to be released as he wanted to retire and not have to pay back his prorated signing bonus. The Cowboys refused and JJ insisted that Orton had to show up for training camp and be the backup if he wanted that money. Orton refused to attend mini-camps and OTA's and continued to insist he wanted to retire, but not have to pay back the $3 million plus he would have to repay to just flat out retire. The Cowboys continued to insist he had to report to training camp.

Recently the Cowboys gave in and released Orton to free up the roster space and cap space Orton was consuming which let Orton keep his prorated signing bonus. It was a smart football move on JJ's part as this was a fight he couldn't really win. He could fine Orton $30,000 a day if he sat out training camp but it would take forever to get back the full amount Orton owed in fines and would be bad for team morale. If Orton showed up for training camp but wasn't trying hard, they'd just have to cut him anyway.

Yesterday Jerry muddied things up a bit by insisting that Orton isn't retiring, wants to play in the NFL this season, but just didn't want to play for the Cowboys, and that they decided to cut him when it became apparent he'd show up for training camp. (Which is exactly what JJ had been insisting he had to do.) I'm not sure I buy the argument that Orton's not retiring and wants to keep playing. As near as I can tell there's been no move to sign Orton, or even bring him in to any training camp, and with camps opening all over the country this week, most of the rosters are already full. Orton's a competent backup, but his days as a starter are pretty much behind him. I don't really see a home for him at this time. I'm guessing JJ got embarrassed at being out maneuvered by a player and his agent and is now trying to spin it into a win for him, but I don't think that's going to work all that well.

While the offensive situation in Dallas is a bit muddied with three offensive coordinators/play-callers (Garrett/Callahan/Linehan) all having some say in the offense, the situation there is still probably better for Orton than anyplace else he'd be likely to land at this late of a date.

[gardenman]

And we have the first torn Achilles tendon of training camp. Running back Vick Ballard of the Colts tore his Achilles yesterday while on a pass route. There seem to be a lot more Achilles injuries in recent years. I'm not sure if it's because guys are getting stronger than the tendon (over training) or if there's something else going on, but you're hearing of a lot more Achilles tendon injuries than you did in the past. I think teams need to focus more on functional strength sometimes than just maxing out every muscle group. It's almost getting to the point where guys are too strong for their bodies and are literally tearing themselves apart.

[teganslaw]

The loss of Vick Ballard is huge. No one knows if Ahmad Bradshaw will stay healthy enough to last the season, so everything now is on Trent Richardson. He needs to step up this year and do well. The Colts also have Herron and Chris Rainey in the background; they seemed to look good in camp.

There are more ACL injuries now. Maybe the teams need to have a special conditioning coach or something. It can't be just the field they play on because that hasn't changed much.

That is sad about the Bronco's owner, Pat Bowlen, having to retire because of Alzheimer's. I haven't had any personal experience with the disease, but it seems to be so terrible. I hope the family gets to spend some quality time together before things get worse.

[gardenman]

teganslaw. You had to go and mention ACL injuries. The Niners just lost running back Kendall Hunter to a torn ACL. I really do suspect that some of these guys are a little too highly trained/conditioned any more. Way too many guys are just dropping while running around and not taking contact. I have a suspicion you'll eventually find teams scaling back on the lifting programs and focusing more on functional strength and flexibility

[gardenman]

So far, so good from the Eagles camp. Two days of training camp in and no major injuries, and the four quarterbacks are all looking really good. The rookies are stepping up and showing their potential. It's a good start. (Now here's hoping I didn't just jinx it all.) The reporters covering the team were not impressed by the backup QB's (Barkley, Sanchez and Kinne) in the OTA's but all three have been laser sharp in the first two training camp practices. The quarterbacks have been so sharp that not one interception has been thrown so far in hundreds of throws. That's pretty remarkable. (And hopefully not a sign that our DB's are hopeless.) I'm thinking Chip Kelly's offensive design plays a big role in that. He's always scheming to have one guy open someplace and if the guy is open then it's hard to throw a pick. It sounds like the QB's are getting good at finding the open guy.

The Niners are setting something of a record for going through running backs in training camp losing their second guy yesterday in LaMichael James who dislocated his elbow. Kendall Hunter had previously torn his ACL. Down two backs this early in training camp is not good. They'll need an extra body or two in camp in order to lessen the burden on their remaining backs. When you get a bunch of injuries at one position the guys left tend to get overworked making them more likely to get injured. It becomes a self-repeating cycle pretty quickly unless you throw some more bodies in there. If you've got five backs and go down to three, those three are carrying the load of five and that extra load starts to take a toll on them. The coaches either have to adjust the practice schedule or get more bodies in there. You can cheat and move a receiver into the backfield to help out for a practice or two, but long term, they need more bodies.

Odd news out of Indy. The Colts, who just lost running back Vick Ballard to a torn Achilles, have cut running back Chris Rainey who the coach was raving about just a few days earlier. Something apparently happened there and I'm guessing it's not football related. When the coach is raving about you one day and you're cut a few days later, there's something else going on. Even things like skipping team meetings will often be overlooked as long as the guy is performing, but something happened there to make the Colts willing to cut him despite a lack of depth at the position. Either the coach is trying to send a message that no one is bigger than the team, or Rainey did something really, really stupid, but it's an unusual move to make this early in training camp. I suspect the Indy press is going nuts trying to find an answer.

[teganslaw]

Rainey violated team rules by some kind off-the-field occurrence. Pagano is not saying exactly what it is. Seems that Rainey has been a short leash, anyway, because of his 2013 arrest. (The reason Pittsburgh waived him.) The Colts had some high hopes for Rainey, and they don't tolerate any rule violation no matter how well he performs on the field.

The Colts are planning to sign another player to replace Rainey, but I have no idea who that would be. I'm getting a bit nervous with preseason next week and all these problems with the players. I hope everything is straightened out by September. Things are not looking real good right now.

[gardenman]

teganslaw. The good news is running backs can come in very late and still perform well running. Running in the NFL is more instinct than scheme and as long as the back figures out where to line up and knows where the hole is supposed to be, he should do fine. I've seen running backs signed just a day or two before a game and the QB point out where to line up each play and even point to where the hole should be based on the play call, and the back will have a good day. As long as he figures out where the ball is coming from (hand-off or pitch) and has some general idea of where the hole should be, the rest is instinct.

The scary thing is pass protection. If the back doesn't know he's supposed to pick up a blitzing linebacker, or chip an edge rusher, the QB can get killed. The last thing a coach wants is to see his QB helped off the field while the running back comes over and asks, "Was that my guy?"

The Eagles finished their first three days of training camp to rave reviews. Somehow the QB's have managed to throw no interceptions despite throwing hundreds of passes. We've had two fights break out showing the defense has a bit more feistiness to it this year. Nobody's gone down with a major injury and there have been very few minor nicks. The rookies have all looked good as have the vets. It's a good start. They have today off so no one should get hurt or in trouble and then back to work tomorrow. So far, so good in the Eagles camp.

[teganslaw]

The Colts have another injury; will this never end? Guard Donald Thomas re-injured his right quadriceps muscle and will require surgery. He's out of the season. He missed most of last season because of the same type of injury.

It's bad when players get injured while playing, but how this is before preseason. I don't understand what is going on. Something needs to be done about the way the players train; the only thing is, I have no idea what. The Colts aren't the only team who is experiencing injuries, but it still doesn't make it easier. The way things are going, this is going to be a challenging season.

[gardenman]

There are lots of injuries so far. The Giants will likely have to give up on David Wilson now. Having new neck issues after neck surgery last year is not a good thing. The Eagles have been pretty lucky so far. There have been a few dings, but nothing major.

[Spurt]

On 7/21/2014 Sheltie Mom said:

Hello again! Thought I better check in before I get too far behind as usual, lol!

Hi Cindy, it's good to meet you! And as your last post noted, a team's forturnes can change quickly with injury.

The Bills have already lost Kiko Alonso, our star rookie MLB from last year to an ACL. He will be out for the year... sigh...

But I went to the opening of training camp last night and Brandon Spikes seems to have things under control. Our acquisition from the Pats is definitely our new field general. Actually everyone looked sharp under the lights except for EJ. Our quarterback still needs to get on the same page with his receivers. Sammy Watkins looked good though.

So did Bryce Brown, our new running back. gardenman, he looked good last night, that young man has some speed!

Thank goodness it's football season again! And the Bills will kick-off the pre-season at Canton the day after Andre Reed gets his induction into the HOF! Whoohooo! Go Bills!

Hey Sheltiemom......IM READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL-----

I am so glad that Andre Reed finally got into the HOF......long overdue......boy he and my Art Monk had to wait a long time...too long!!!!

PLEASE beat my DS's Giants---even if it's only a preseason game....she's treating this game like it was the Super Bowl.....