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4_9_E_R_S!!!!! ESPN Refugee BS Thread

MHSL82

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I am not a Democrat nor Republican nor a fan of Jon Stewart (I listen to comedians for humor, not for politics), but I thought this was worthy of sharing.

 
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BINGO

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This is so unfair. Sigh---

Expect monster season for Megatron
8:26AM ET
Calvin Johnson | Lions

Children of the 80's will remember Megatron as a toy that changed into a little gun. Later renditions of the Transformers' character became a tank. Then the massive and maniacal bad guy in the ultra successful Transformers' movie franchise was even more terrifying.

The NFL's version of Megatron upgraded as well. Calvin Johnson was the league's best wide receiver in 2011. He should be even better this fall.

"(Detroit wide receiver Nate) Burleson said Johnson looked 'stronger and faster' this spring and should put up more eye-popping numbers come fall," Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free-Press wrote.

Burleson added, "That's pretty much all that counts. He probably dropped a little bit of weight, so he's in extremely good shape. I see him in the weight room, so I know he's stronger. And on the field he's yards ahead of us in conditioning drills; he's still running past guys easily."

Johnson could eclipse 100 receptions, 1700 yards and 20 touchdowns this year -- if he stays healthy. That's rarefied air for a receiver to reach, but Johnson is half-man/half-machine.

- Brent Sobleski​


Christopher Harris
2012 wide receivers fantasy preview

"Calvin Johnson led all WRs in receiving yards, TDs, first downs and catches of more than 25 yards in '11. He hasn't always been the most durable guy, and he does have the occasional game where defenses scheme to remove him to such an extent that Matthew Stafford doesn't look his way. (Megatron had seven targets or fewer in five of 16 regular-season games last season.) But his speed and physicality can't be matched in today's NFL. He should be the first WR off the draft board -- and a first-round fantasy pick -- in all leagues."
 

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AFC's most overrated players
Joe Flacco, Champ Bailey among players whose hype exceeds performance
Originally Published: June 26, 2012
By KC Joyner | ESPN Insider

Joe Flacco has a very important season in front of him to back up his claim.

To paraphrase a John Facenda line, the NFL offseason is a time of hope. It isn't hard to look over the personnel changes that occurred in free agency and the draft and find a path for mediocre teams to become playoff contenders or for playoff contenders to become Super Bowl champions.

That type of positive mindset can be useful, but it can also be damaging when it comes to grading personnel, as it can make mediocre players seem good and good players seem great.

Those types of personnel grading errors cannot and should not go unchallenged, so let's take a look at six players in the AFC whose hype levels exceeds their performance levels.


Joe Flacco, QB, Baltimore Ravens

Flacco put himself on this list by saying in an April radio interview that he thinks he is the best quarterback in the NFL.

That he isn't the best field general in the league comes as no surprise, but Flacco's 2011 season doesn't even place him in the upper half of the league. His 9.6 vertical yards per attempt mark (VYPA -- which measures success on passes 11-plus yards downfield) ranked tied for 25th, and his 10.7 stretch vertical YPA (SVYPA -- passes over 20 yards downfield) ranked 26th.

To get an idea of just how bad those totals were, they each ranked dead last or tied for last in the AFC North. That's right, the Browns' passing offense of Colt McCoy and a bunch of underachieving wideouts posted equal or better downfield productivity passing numbers than Flacco did while throwing to a wide receiving corps that included Anquan Boldin and standout rookie Torrey Smith.



Jermaine Gresham, TE, Cincinnati Bengals

Gresham certainly showed some potential at times last year, but the blunt truth is that his numbers fell quite short of the Pro Bowl nomination he was given.

His metrics by route depth illustrate this:

Jermaine Gresham's Routes by Depth, 2011 seasonCategory Attempts Yards YPA
Short (1-10 yds) 56 265 4.7
Medium (11-19 yds) 24 209 8.7
Deep (20-29 yds) 8 122 15.3
Bomb (30+ yds) 0 0 0.0
Vertical (M, D, B) 32 330 10.3
Stretch vertical (D, B) 8 122 15.3
Overall total 88 596 6.8


The 4.7 short pass YPA was tied for the fourth-lowest total among tight ends in that category, and the 8.7 medium YPA ranked 30th. Gresham was tied for 12th in the deep pass YPA metric, but didn't have a single bomb pass thrown his way all season.

Those last three metrics combined to give Gresham a 10.3 VYPA that ranked 23rd among all qualifying tight ends (32-plus targets needed to qualify) and 12th out of 20 tight ends that had at least 25 vertical targets. They also helped add up to a mediocre 6.8 overall YPA that ranked 29th in the league.

What those numbers show is that Jared Cook (10.8 overall YPA, 19.8 VYPA, 74 targets) and Aaron Hernandez (8.8 overall YPA, 14.8 VYPA, 109 targets) would both have made for better AFC Pro Bowl tight end candidates last year. Even the much maligned Dustin Keller would have been a better pick considering that he bested Gresham in all but one of the metric categories, and did so on a much larger target volume (111, tied for sixth-most among tight ends).



Champ Bailey, CB, Denver Broncos

It's hard to knock Bailey at some level because one always wants to pay respect to an elder statesman of the league, but he was nowhere near deserving of his Pro Bowl nomination last year. His 7.8 overall YPA ranked tied for 47th in that metric and his 12.8 VYPA (tied for 73rd) was downright abysmal.



D'Brickashaw Ferguson, T, New York Jets

Ferguson has the talent to be a great player, but he repeatedly failed to perform at that level last year. ESPN.com AFC East blogger James Walker agreed with this assessment, not only by not naming Ferguson to his 2011 All-AFC East team but also by saying that Ferguson "struggled at times this season and didn't play up to his usual standards" and suggesting that Ferguson's Pro Bowl berth was based on his "reputation and name recognition" as opposed to his level of play. For those needing more than the scout's-eye test, consider this: Ferguson gave up more sacks than pass-blocking liability Wayne Hunter.



Denarius Moore, WR, Oakland Raiders

Moore burst onto the NFL scene as rookie by posting a 14.5 SVYPA that ranked 13th out of 30 wide receivers that posted at least 20 stretch vertical targets. Moore totaled 50 vertical targets, a number that placed him in a four-way tie for 28th place among wide receivers in that metric. The three wideouts he was tied with? Mike Wallace, Greg Jennings and Julio Jones, all three of whom are terrific vertical targets.

The problem for Moore is that he has yet to display any type of ability to beat tough competition. As noted in my 2012 fantasy football guide, when Moore was covered by red- or yellow-rated cornerbacks (the two best cornerback ratings), he was a non-factor. His 4.0 YPA against that coverage level was 46th out of 47 wide receivers with at least 30 targets under the same circumstances.



Joe Haden, CB, Cleveland Browns

Haden was a shutdown cornerback in 2010, as his 6.2 overall YPA that season ranked tied for 18th-best in that metric. His 2011 campaign was another matter entirely, as Haden ranked 51st in overall YPA (8.0), 59th in VYPA (11.0) and 65th in SVYPA (14.4). This wasn't a matter of a low target volume skewing the numbers, either, as Haden's 77 targets last year ranked tied for the 23rd-highest total among cornerbacks in that metric.
 

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London's calling for a NFL team
11:01AM ET
London franchise?

The NFL has been playing individual games in London, England since 2007. At least one NFL owner wants to take it a step further. New England Patriots' patriarch Robert Kraft would like to see a franchise moved to the United Kingdom.

"I personally think we should have a franchise in London and that is something I am going to push for," Kraft told Neil Reynolds of skysports.com. "I think I said that the last time we were over here in 2009 and before this next decade is out, I hope we have a team here. I think that would be right for the NFL and this fan base has proven they deserve it."

The question becomes, would it be an expansion team or a relocated franchise?

Cities such as Jacksonville and Minnesota curtailed relocation talk in recent months. The Buffalo Bills could be a possibility, but Toronto called "dibs." It won't be Kraft's Patriots.

League expansion may be a more likely scenario.

A franchise in Los Angeles also appears to be the immediate priority within the league. It may take longer than the time table Kraft envisioned for a NFL franchise to reside in London -- if it ever does.

But we can always dream. Does the league still own the rights to the Monarchs' nickname? Maybe, the werewolves could stick.

One area Kraft would like to expand is the Patriots' presence in the European market:

- Brent Sobleski​


Mike Reiss
Kraft discussed the Patriots in London

"We lobbied hard to come back after having such a good experience in 2009. We would love to be the permanent visiting team. It was good for team bonding and everyone really enjoyed our last trip to London," Kraft said, before noting the support the Patriots receive from their growing UK fan base."
 

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Meaning of Brees' arbitration win
11:44AM ET
Drew Brees | Saints

ESPN NFL Insider Chris Mortensen reports that arbitrator Stephen Burbank has ruled in favor of quarterback Drew Brees, who filed a grievance over his franchise tag.

A player is allowed to be tagged three times, but vague language in the CBA made it unclear whether that is three times by one team or three times over the course of a player's career. The San Diego Chargers used the franchise tag on Brees in 2005, while the New Orleans Saints used it on him this summer. Per the ruling, Brees officially has been tagged twice now.

"Burbank's ruling means if Brees does not sign a long-term contract this summer and plays out the 2012 season under his current franchise number, the 2013 season is the last time he can be tagged," Mortensen said. "In addition, a tag in 2013 would earn him a pay raise of 144 percent.

"Brees' current tag is worth $16.371 million, which won't change with the ruling. However, taking into account the 144-percent raise, a would-be tag in 2013 would put Brees' cap number at $23,574,240, according to ESPN.com senior NFL writer John Clayton. If the Saints chose to use their exclusive-rights tag on Brees in 2013, that would put his two-year earnings at $39,945,240, or a little less than $20 million per year."

The Saints and Brees have until July 16 to work out an extension or Brees will play the 2012 season under the tag.

- Tom Carpenter​
 

NinerSickness

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Interesting. The phrasing would have to have thw work "career" in the tag limitations for this grievence to have any grounds.

See? Even as long as it took 'em to get a new CBA signed, it's still being disputed. This is just one of the many reasonsn why it takes so long to get one of these deals done. I think it was silly that people expected it to get done right away when they were so far apart on the negotiations.
 
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