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Kurt Warner announced his retirement from the game at age 38. He said he was walking away from the game after 12 seasons while he could still walk. That right there is a smart man. His career is something that was special. He made it to the NFL after spending time playing in Europe, the Arena League and stocking shelves at the Hi-Vee Grocery Store back home in Iowa. He made it to three Super Bowls, winning two MVP awards and making four Pro Bowl which is to me Hall of Fame credentials. What is crazy though after his last season with the Rams we would not have been talking about HOF. He was benched by the Rams, Giants and Cardinals and it appeared Warner would finish his career as a backup. Warner has admitted he likely will go through withdrawal from the game, but has long said he had many other things in life to accomplish. You have to respect this guy because he is going out a winner no matter the outcome of his last game.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh made it clear that the team is happy with its backup quarterbacks Troy Smith and John Beck. But he predicted that the Ravens could receive some offers from other teams involving them. "My guess is there’s going to be some people that are going to be interested in those two guys, so we’re not going to hold them back," Harbaugh said. "But we’re going to make sure we do what’s best for the Ravens.” Harbaugh also touched on the possibility that Smith and Beck could battle for the No. 2 spot behind starter Joe Flacco. We think we have two good, young backup quarterbacks – obviously, two guys that want to start in this league," he said. "So, I think we’re very happy with our situation. We’re very content to have those guys as a strong two and a strong three, and even battling it out within those roles as we go forward."
Michael Vick said he wants to be a starter somewhere in the NFL next season, but he is prepared to return to Philadelphia in a backup role. "Everybody wants to be a starter in this league and everybody wants to play," Vick said Sunday, via the Philadelphia Inquirer. "That should be your goal. The ambition you should have is to want to be great. ... I know I can still play at a high level." Vick returned to the NFL in 2009 after a two-year layoff serving a federal sentence for a dogfighting conviction. The Eagles signed him to a deal that gives them a $5 million option (perhaps too expensive for a second- or third-string QB) on Vick next season. Vick has attempted to rehabilitate his image and improve his behavior this season. And he hopes that helps him earn a shot as a starter. "I would hope so," Vick told reporters. "I tried to be the best ambassador that I could be in the community, the best football player that I could be. And that won't stop. I'll continue to do that, and I'll continue to work hard." Vick played in 12 games for the Eagles. He is behind Donovan McNabb and Kevin Kolb on the Eagles' depth chart, but he said he's ready to try and reclaim the level of play that made him a three-time Pro Bowler earlier in his career. "I feel like I'm probably better than I ever was in my career, as far as the mental aspect of the game," he said. " Physically - that will come. There are plenty of teams that need a QB but he needs to be in a good environment with people around him that can help rebuild his career. He is only 29. I mean Favre is 40 and still is playing. Vick just has to show people that he is worth the risk.
Sounding like a player dead-set on retiring, Kurt Warner told ESPN's Rick Reilly that playing football has lost its fun. "You have a game that isn't that great and people are like, 'What's wrong with Warner?' That wears on you," Warner said. "You don't have the joy and the fun and satisfaction of having one of those great games because everybody expects you to. You never get to exhale." Warner, who turns 39 in June, has been named NFL MVP twice, played in three Super Bowls, and made a strong case for Hall-of-Fame enshrinement. Reilly, for what it's worth, came away from the interview convinced Warner is done. After taking hits like he did in the last game and not making it back to the Super Bowl, that's probably helping him make his decision.
Source: ESPN.com
Tony Gonzalez has confirmed he will return to the Falcons in 2010. This will be a huge boost to the Falcons next season. “I’ll be around for sure next season,” the 13-year veteran said in an interview on the Falcons' website. His 999 career receptions are the most by a tight end in NFL history and seventh-best among all receivers. "I’m excited about the direction this team is going in. We’ve got a really good football team and I really do believe this could be the best football team I’ve ever played on coming up next year,” he said. Gonzalez finished his first season in Atlanta with 83 catches for 867 yards and six touchdowns. He must feel that they can win the Super Bowl if his team stays healthy. That is the only reason why he wanted to go to the Falcons and it was to make the playoffs and go to the Super Bowl. Because of injuries, that did not happen.
All players listed in this section have decided to forgo their college eligibility and declare for the 2010 NFL Draft.
Quarterbacks:
Sam Bradford, Oklahoma
Jimmy Clausen, Notre Dame
Jevan Snead, Ole Miss
Running Backs:
Toney Baker, North Carolina State
Jahvid Best, Cal
Jonathan Dwyer, Georgia Tech
Toby Gerhart, Stanford
Stafon Johnson, Southern Cal
Darius Marshall, Marshall
Ryan Mathews, Fresno State
Shawbrey McNeal, SMU
Joe McKnight, USC
Wide Receivers:
Chris Bell, Norfolk State
Arrelious Benn, Illinois
Dezmon Briscoe, Kansas
Antonio Brown, Central Michigan
Dez Bryant, Oklahoma State
Carlton Mitchell, South Florida
Golden Tate, Notre Dame
Demaryius Thomas, Georgia Tech
Damian Williams, USC
Mike Williams, Syracuse
Tight Ends:
Jermaine Gresham, Oklahoma
Rob Gronkowski, Arizona
Aaron Hernandez, Florida
Linebackers:
Navorro Bowman, Penn State
Rennie Curran, Georgia
Rolando McClain, Alabama
Secondary:
Eric Berry, Tennessee
Morgan Burnett, Georgia Tech
Dominique Franks, Oklahoma
Joe Haden, Florida
Kareem Jackson, Alabama
Reshad Jones, Georgia
Joshua Moore, Kansas State
Jerell Norton, Arkansas
Dennis Rogan, Tennessee
Amari Spivey, Iowa
Earl Thomas, Texas
Donovan Warren, Michigan
Major Wright, Florida
Game #1
The real Cowboys showed up Sunday and did not disappoint.I at least felt that it would be a close game with Romo blowing it at the end. But it was the opposite but Tony Romo and his stats did come back down to earth on Sunday. Romo lost two of his three fumbles and threw an interception in a 34-3 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. But if you were to take away those turnovers then Romo had his best individual season of his career completing 22 of 35 passes for 198 yards. There was a more impressive stat though and it was the Vikings had six sacks and 10 hurries. I don't know if the bigger story is Favre and his pants on the ground song or the Cowboys crying about the score being run up. First of all there is no such thing Keith Brooking who was complaining when the last touchdown was scored. But to call one of the best quarterbacks ''classless'' is terrible. We aren't playing recreation or middle school. You get paid to stop things like that. But in other news (as of right now) Wade Phillips is currently going to return as the coach of Cowboys.
Game #2
So maybe Rex Ryan was not crazy about his whole pre-playoffs statements. But I am not even going to lie I thought they were going to be out in the first round. I mean they barely made the playoffs to begin with and now they are 1 game away from the Super Bowl. The Jets gain was the Chargers lost. The Chargers made several key mistakes in the Jets’ 17-14 victory. One is their kicker missing field goals that he normally make. Then you have players causing penalties and just doing dumb things. For the second straight week though, rookie Shonn Greene ran for over 100 yards, while Thomas Jones picked up key yards when the Jets needed them. The rookies have been quite a surprise for the Jets. And what is sad for the Chargers is that, that may have been LT's last game in a Charger uni. This was suppose to have been the Chargers year but it looks like it is Joe Namath, I meant Mark Sanchez.
Well I get from class and I get disappointing news. Lebron James is not one of the contestants for the dunk contest. I am sure that there has to be a misunderstanding somewhere as Lebron assured us all he would be in the 2010 dunk contest. Looks like that it will be a "dream" of mine (MLK Day pun intended). But the dunk contest must go on even without the King. Defending champion Nate Robinson will return to the slam dunk contest, trying to become the first three-time winner. He will be joined by Gerald Wallace and Shannon Brown (who has been calling out Lebron). The fourth contestant will be determined by a dunk-off during halftime of the rookie game between the Clippers’ Eric Gordon and Toronto rookie DeMar DeRozan. Personally I hope DeMar gets it but they all better bring something fresh to the table come Feb. 13.
Reggie Bush of old showed up yesterday in the playoff game against the Cards. Reggie Bush set the tone for the Saints before they even kicked off though. He took coach Sean Payton’s symbolic gesture of giving the players baseball bats inscribed “Bring the wood” one step further by carrying his bat with him as he and the team ran on the field during pre-game introductions. The Saints runner/receiver/punt returner had 217 all-purpose yards — 84 rushing, 24 receiving, and 109 on punt returns — and scored touchdowns on a 46-yard run (the longest run by a Saint in the playoffs) and an 83-yard punt return. Bush had seldom seemed like the same player for most of the past two years because of a knee injury suffered last season. Darren Sharper said that Bush looked like ''vintage'' Reggie Bush and I couldn't agree any more.
If the Bobcats want to keep winning and make noise in the playoffs, they are in need of help at power forward. Larry Brown says he's “begging” general manager Rod Higgins for a trade, so even the most dense among us will get the point. Something really must happen before the Feb. 19 trade deadline, and Larry will keep asking for it. Brown needs someone reliable to back up Boris Diaw at power forward. You can spend all day saying what rookie Derrick Brown might be, but he's still a rookie. Gerald Wallace can pretend to be an NBA power forward and Stephen Jackson can, too. But the more time they spend banging bodies with men 50 pounds heavier, the more they wear down. But I will give the Bobcats props so far but I am not ready to crown them as one of the teams to watch out for. I mean they still can't win on the road although lately they have had some quality wins. They are maybe a player or two from being ''there''
