Andre Smith hurts himself at combine.

If you haven't been following the Andre Smith saga, first, he showed up for the combine way out of shape. Which for any guy looking to go to the pros is already a bad step. Then, his one-on-one interviews were said to be going poorly, as he was inappropriately dressed and had been giving a number of conflicting statements as to why he was choosing not to workout at the combine.
With this stunt the big horse from Bama could possibly cost himself a first round draft choice and the great deal of money that comes along with that.
CNBC's Darren Rovell crunched the numbers, and found that if Smith was going to be taken at the top of the first round before this whole mess and he was considered by many the best tackle, or even player, in the draft and now has fallen to the bottom of the first round or early second round, he'll have cost himself $23.8 million at the end of this.
Hopefully, Smith can get it turned around and morph back into a stud before Alabama's pro day. He can still get a lot of that money back. There's no reason to believe he can't do it, either. If he can dominate for five years at Alabama, then somewhere in him is the discipline and desire to get back on top of his game. A man does not win Alabama's "Mr. Football" award in high school, make the SEC All-Freshman first team in 2006, make the All-SEC First Team in 2007, and then win the Outland Trophy in 2008 because he's a lazy head case. Obviously, there's greatness in him somewhere.

Sad way to start off your combine experience.

Northeastern University is not exactly a professional football factory. Dan Ross and Sean Jones came through there, but after that, nothing till now.
The Huskies went 2-10 last year, and haven't had a winning season in five years. So when a guy from Northeastern even gets an invite to the combine, it's a big deal ... which, unfortunately, makes this even sadder.
Tight end Brian Mandeville waited and waited for his invite to the combine, and finally, it came. Before the invite he ventured out to California to prepare at the Velocity Sports Performance Center. When the time came to show up at the combine and impress everyone, doctors instead told him that he should retire before he even got started.
During a routine exam at the combine doctors noticed something out of the ordinary with Mandeville's heart. A further inspection led combine doctors to the diagnosis that Mandeville may have an issue with one of his heart valves.
How's that for soul-crushing? A guy gets an invite to the combine, which is essentially an audition to make a career out of playing football, and when he gets there, the first thing that happens is that they tell him he has no chance to make a career out of playing football. That's like getting a scholarship to the Juilliard School of Dance right before your advisor takes a baseball bat to your knees.
The issues, according to his agent, aren't life-threatening, but they are career-killing. Even his agent grants that it's unlikely now that Mandeville will have a career in football.
For me being a football player this is a crashing blow but this kid seems like a tough guy to take down in more then one way. He is expected to go and see a doctor in California this upcoming week to see a specialist and he already seems like he will be fighting his way back into the other name of draftable tight ends.

Peppers and the Panthers Chess Match.

Thursday promises to be one of the most dramatic days in the history of the Carolina Panthers, a franchise that has had lots of drama in its brief existence. By the end of the day, the Panthers probably will agree to a massive, long-term contract with offensive tackle Jordan Gross. The Panthers have been negotiating feverishly with Gross and all indications are a deal is close and it will average around $9 million a year.
It's also very likely that the Panthers will place the franchise tag on defensive end Julius Peppers, who has made it very clear he doesn't want to stay in Carolina and has given the team a list of four other teams he'd like to be traded to. It seems like the Panthers don't have much choice here. They almost have to franchise Peppers and turn around and trade him for whatever they can get, presumably a first-round draft pick and more.
But let's just think outside the box here and ponder one other scenario: Could the Panthers just let Peppers walk into free agency?It doesn't seem likely because the Panthers would at least like to get something for a guy who clearly has some value. But Peppers, and whoever is pulling his strings, has created a major headache for the franchise and this situation isn't going to end pleasantly, no matter how it plays out.

Bye Bye Favre.

Maybe it was the cowardly teammate who anonymously ripped him in print. Maybe it was the absence of a game-breaking wide receiver or running back. Maybe it was the prospect of playing for a fourth different head coach in five years or maybe Brett Favre simply decided it was time. Time to retire after defying age and injuries for 18 seasons in a league where NFL means Not For Long.
This is Favre's second retirement in 12 months. There are those who think he should have stopped at one his March 4, 2008, supposed career-ending announcement with the Green Bay Packers. (Remember all that management nonsense about wanting to protect his football legacy? Sure, just as long as that legacy didn't include Favre's playing for, say, the NFC North's Minnesota Vikings.) But Favre did a reversal, unretired, got traded to the New York Jets, won nine games (three more than the team that traded him), played with a torn biceps tendon, missed the playoffs and 45 days later called it a career. It wasn't the way he wanted to go out an 8-3 Jets start, a 1-4 finish but his legacy survived just fine.
I think he could have played another year. So did the Jets and, I'm guessing, so did Favre. And maybe he would have returned had it looked like the Jets were going to sign linebacker Ray Lewis, or make a real run at wide receiver Anquan Boldin. Maybe, but who knows for sure? Plus, it's not like Jets fans, numbed by 40 years without a championship, were clamoring for his return. It was more indifference than anything perhaps on both sides.

Pro Bowl hijinx gone wrong.

A gang of Pro Bowl football players had been gathered around the tables, swapping stories, when suddenly the Broncos' quarterback Jay Cutler had 300-pound Nick Mangold pushing from one side and 310-pound Kris Dielman holding the other and his cell phone swindled into the hands of a coy Peyton Manning. Cutler's realizes what they grabbed but he never had a chance. Splash! "We gave him a Pro Bowl baptism," said Dielman, the star offensive guard of the rival San Diego Chargers. Great fun. Big laughs. There was just one problem. Cutler is a Type 1 diabetic, and in his pocket was his blood-sugar monitor not his cell. "That was a prank where I thought we were smart enough to get the cellphone out of his pocket," Dielman said. "But then, 'Oops.' " Oops indeed. In their defense, though, some blood sugar monitors do look slightly cell-phone-esque. Fortunately, Cutler took it all in stride and was able to make a few calls and get a new monitor quickly. Only in a layed back atmosphere as the Pro Bowl would this kind of kid playing around would happen and be this funny.

Show this bull the Money!!!

Coming up right around the corner is when Albert Haynesworth goes up on the the free agent list seeking out the biggest pay check that he can probably get. After the great season he had with the Titans he can see that dream contract right in front of him. But if the Titans would like to keep this bull in there pen they have to do some major wining and dining. By many peoples calculations he may get to see a six-year package valued at about $77 million, or $12.82 million a year. In a normal persons eyes that's a ton of money but to an all-pro caliber defensive tackle that is an ok deal. But the Titans do have a pretty good chance to get this bull back because of three major reasons. 1) The majority of the Titans love their head coach Jeff Fisher. 2) They can ask Jevon Kearse to share his Philadelphia story. 3) They can wave the great caliber team he has to comeback to with that great contract. If I was one of those guys sitting in the front office i would hire a limo to shuttle this man and his family anywhere that they would like to go. Then possibly hire a top notch nanny to watch the kiddies for the weekend and send the mister and misses on a nice vacation by themselves. Cause if the Titans realized when Albert was out their defense fell off the map.

Warner ends it with a FUMBLE!

With only seconds left on the scoreboard and in the game Lamar Woodley was able to get to Kurt Warner and create a fumble with the Steelers only rushing three men. The man to recover this fumble was Brett Keisel. Warner wanted a replay but the booth was the only one that could decide this. Even with a review, if it was not a fumble the the Cardinals would have had under maybe ten seconds to get up to the line and send a five man rush to the goal line and hope that Fitz, Boldin or Breaston can grab that game winning ball.

Great Sixcess in Sixburgh

The number one game of the season and possibly on of the best Super Bowls in the last five years. The Steelers and Cardinals put on a great show. But too bad for the Cinderella Cardinals they could not put everything together till the fourth quarter and by that time the Steelers where already rolling. Oh and they did roll all the way home with this years Lombardi Trophy and their sixth in franchise history. Santonio Holmes took home the MVP with his great plays but there were also two others that possibly could have grabbed that title. Ben Roethlisberger and James Harrison also had big plays and a great game.