Kaspers Korner

Minnesota Vikings center Matt Birk is going into his 11th season with the Vikings.  Apparantly it will be his last as Birk is entering the last year of his contract, and the Vikings look not interested in all at resigning him.

There is really only one word that can descibe how the Vikings are handling this, and that is stupid.  Centers are a integral part of the offensive line, and no matter how old they are you need the solid ones right till the very end.

For example, the Buffalo Bills have not found another quality center, since the retirement of Kent Hull over ten years ago.

Birk is the brightest at the position, since he graduated from Harvard University with a economics degree.  Something that is needed dearly at the position, since centers need to read the opposing defense, and thus make adjustments accordingly.

Birk can come off the wrong way, since he says what is on his mind.  That sometimes rubs people the wrong way.  However, that is what you need, because sometimes things are going wrong, and you just need that perverbial swift kick in the pants occasionally.

In the end if the Vikings let Birk walk, then they are going to regret it everyday, because Birk has all the qualities you want from your center.

Pro Football Talk.com is usually right on their assesment of things in the National Football League.  However, they are completely wrong in regards to the issue of who should be the starting quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens.

According to Pro Football Talk, quarterback Troy Smith will most likely be the starter for the prseason, and the regular season.  However, editor Mile Florio disagrees with that, citing what happened with the Cleveland Browns.

However, there is the flip side of the coin, and that being Ben Roethlisberger in his rookie year. 

Going into the 2004 season Tommy Maddox was the starter for the Steelers.  Maddox got hurt in the second game of the season.  Roethlisberger came in, and won the game.  Roethlisberger has been the starter ever since.

The fact of the matter is that rookie quarterbacks should never start right from the start of their rookie season.  When a quarterback does start from the very on set of their career, and never sees the bench, they most likely will fail.

Of the quarterbacks that have started right from the begining of their career there is only one quarteback that is still with their original team.  That being Vince Young of the Tenneessee Titans.

Flacco came from a Division 1 AA team.  There is a huge difference just between Division 1 AA and Divison 1 A.

In the end if Flacco comes in, and starts right away, he will fail miserably.  Then the only question that will remain is how horrible  of a car crash it will be.

The Indianapolis Colts have been one of the best teams in the AFC for several years now, along with winning the AFC South the past five years.  With five starters starting training camp on the physically unable to perform list; it looks like the Colts downward slide into oblivion is starting.

The five starters are wide receiver Marvin Harrison, who turns 36 in August, saftey Bob Sanders, 27, defensive end Dwight Freeney, 28, linebacker Tyjuan Hagler, 27 in December, and most importantly quarterback Peyton Manning.

It is only a matter of time before all the extra playoff games take a toll on a players body.  Sanders is good, but is constantly hurt.  Of his four seasons he has only twice played in more than fourteen games.

Harrison is simply on the downside of his career.  Even the ledgendary Jerry Rice could not stop father time from catching up.  How effective Harrison will be this year reamains to be seen, as he missed most of last year.

Freeney missed nine games with a Lisfranc injury.  It usually takes surgery to heal, which he did do.  However, according to about.com one complication of the injury is post-traumatic arthritis.  It is a more accelerated version of degenerative arthritis, and may neccesitate fusion of the joint to prevent debilitating pain. Such a proceedure would end his season, again.

Hagler tore a pectoral muscle while lifting recently.  According to the Tribstar.com the pectoral injury is only the latest in a variety of injuries, since Hagler arrived in 2005 as a fifth round draft pick.

However, all eyes will be on Manning.  Manning had a infected Bursa Sac removed, which is known as Septic Bursitis.  According to medical websites it is common to think that a infected bursa sac is just inflammed, because the symptoms are similar.  

The fact that Manning had surgery to deal with it means two different things.  Either the bursa sac was hard to get to, or it was a sevre infection.  The reason being the most common way to treat Septic Bursitis is with draining it with a needle, and then a round of antibiotics.

The numerous injuries are troubling, and if they continue into the season, then the Colts could miss the playoffs for the first time in years.

The Buffalo Bills offense was one of the worst in the league for several years.  Finally, that could change as a offense being installed fits the offensive personel.

Outside of second round draft pick James Hardy, the Bills have nobody that is over six feet tall, that plays a significant role that is.

The main point of contention about a West Coast offense is getting the ball out of the quarterback’s hands to gain some positive yards.  Also, yards after the catch is an important part of the offense, due in part a lot of the passes are short.

The Bills have players that do have tremendous ability with yards after the catch.  Receivers Roscoe Parrish and Lee Evans do just that, because of their blazing speed.  Also running back Marshawn Lynch is a load to bring down.

The only problem that can be foreseen about this offense is the tight end position.  In this offense the ball is spread out, and thrown to whoever is open, and the tight end position has been unreliable even when open.

One of the problem last year with the tight end was the Kevin Everrett was lost due to his spinal coard injury, and he was a going to be a big part of their passing offense last year.  Robert Royal has proven to be unreliable, due in part to a pass that he caught in the endzone wide open, and still came down out of bounds.  That was due to him n ot paying attention to where his feet were.

The one good thing is that they drafted tight end  Derek Fine also used a lot in the Kansas Jayhawks passing offnese.

In the end the Bills should be a force to reckon with on offense.  If they are anything but that, then the whole coaching staff could be at risk to be fired.

Four of the Rooney brothers are looking to sell their share of the Pittsburgh Steelers, due to them owning businesses with gambling.  Now, the story has took a 180 degree turn in favor of Dan Rooney.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Allegheny County Controller Mark Patrick Flaherty has accounced that the county will seek reimbursement of $281 million in construction costs, they incurred for building Heinz Feild, if ownership changes outside of the Rooney or McGinely family.

There are two ways that the Rooneys can avoid paying the money.  First, they can sell their stock to their brother Dan.  Or, new ownership could agree to the Steelers remaining in Pittsburgh for the next 75 years. 

What it means is that the the value of the stock, to the Rooneys, is going to be no more than $108 million, after paying their share of the $281 million back to Allegheny County.

In the end it means that they can get more pocket money for their share in the Steelers from their brother Dan, than they can get from New York investor Stanley Druckenmiller.  Unless, Druckenmiller pays way beyond what is the actual value of the team, or agree to the 75 years, yeah right like that is going to happen. 

The Atlanta Falcons selected quarterback Matt Ryan with the third overall pick.  So, when the season seems lost many people will be calling for Ryan, and the Facons need to resist that.

Since the 2000 Draft, only three quarterbacks have more touchdowns than interceptions in their rookie year.  Of those three, only one started more than half of the teams games that year.  That of course being Ben Roethlesberger.

The real telling signs of a franchise quarterback is in his second year of starting.  There are three telling signs that a quarterback must have in their second year to go on to be a franchise quarterback. 

First, the quarterback’s completion percentage is 60 percent, or better.  Secondly, the quarterback must acheive 3,000 yards or better.  Last, the quarterback must have more touchdowns than interceptions.

No quarterback that had less than two of these went on to be franchise quarterbacks. 

Most quarterbacks that start in their first year, more than half the year, go on to be busts.

In the end the best thing for Ryan is riding the pine, and never get a sniff of the feild. 

Arizona Cardinals general manger Rod Graves earliers this offseason franchise tagged linebacker Carlos Dansby.   During negotiations Graves has contradicted himself, thus putting him in a bad spot.

We certainly have a high opinion of Karlos and his value to our team,” said Graves.  That opinion led the team slapping Dansby with the one year Franchise tag.   The one year deal is worth $8.065 million this year for linebackers.

However, when in negotiations with Dansby agent, Kirk Wood, Graves offered contracts of only six million a year.  Which, is not even close to the Franchise tag.

There is only one way that can describe Graves during these negotiations, and that is stupid.  If you slap someone with a certain tag, then common sense would lead you to believe that a long term deal needs to be with in that range when it comes yearly average salary.

There is no excuse for Graves not getting a deal done.  If the deal that Graves offered was a little more than eight million per a year, with a little be more guarantee money than what Calvin Pace got from the Jets, it would already be done.

What Graves did was just plain dumb, and insulting.  The Cardinals could have gotten Dansby at a relatively fair price.  However, the insulting contact offer has raised the bar for what the dollar amount will be to get a deal done.

In the end the Cardinals will lose a quality player, that should never have happened.

Kansas City Cheif running back Larry Johnson suffered a foot injury that ended his season after only half of the season.  Now, it looks like that Johnson’s days as the Cheifs main running back are numbered.

Johnson turns 29 in November, and that means Johnson is one year away from the point that most National Football League insiders consider is the starting point of the diminishment of running back skills.

Head coach Herm Edwards realizes this as he has announced that Johnson according to CBS Sportsline, “Johnson will be lucky to get 30(carries).”

That means that second year running back Kolby Smith will get about ten carries a game. Also, rookie Jamal Charles could see time as a third down back.

According to Kansas City Star’s Adam Teicher if Johnson gets hurt again Charles would be the starter, as they like Charles over Smith right now.

Also, Teicher states that first round pick offensive lineman Branden Alberts will most likely be the starter at left tackle this upcoming season. 

Still the Cheifs are a very young team that is in the midst of rebuilding.  In the end that means it is going to be a very painful season for the Cheifs.

For many years now Native American Indians have been challenging the names of teams at all levels, including the National Football League’s Washinton Redskins.  It is simply getting to the point of it being comical.

I have nothing against these people.   They are honorable people, and I even dated a Cherokee indian girl. 

However, the lawsuit against the Redskins has pushed these type of law suits to the point that they are losing credibility.  For crying out loud the team has had the name the Washington Redskins for 75 years.

The first lawsuit against the Redskins was brought up in 1992.  That is nearly 60 years after the teams inaugural season. 

So, why has a lawsuit been not brought up before then?

The answer is a two folded answer.

First, before 1988 indian tribes really did not have the money to bring it up.  Since, the late 1980’s Indian tribes have been using Settlement Claim Acts to buy land to use for casinos.  Thus, giving them a boat load of money.

Secondly, the NFL has become one of the biggest business entities in the US making over six billion a year.  The plaintiffs most likely have thought up that the lawsuit would bring bad plubicity, and thus they would most likely settle on something to make it go away. 

If the plaintiffs win their case against the Redskins they would lose their trademark protection, and thus anyone could sell Redskins merchandise.

However, this is the NFL, and owners are not stupid.  If the Redskins lose the fight, then they will simply change their name, and apply for a new trademark.

In the end, if Native Americans keep pursuing this issue, then they will become the bully that they are trying to beat.

It is being reported today by ESPN’s Chris Mortensen that Brett Farve has asked to be released by the Green Bay Packers, with his preference being to play with the Minnesotta Vikings.  That just plainly is a pipe dream.

The only time a general manager of an Nationall Football League team trades a player to a team in his division is if that player is perceived to be washed up, or they feel he is no threat to the team.

However, Farve had a great season last year.  So, there is a lot left in the tank, thus giving any team a quick fix at quarterback. 

The team added defensive end Jared Allen to bolster their defense.  Farve would do the same  for the offense, thus making the Vikings the favorite to win the division, and maybe even the top team in the NFC Conference.

The only way the Vikings would get Farve is if they give the Packers their first round pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.

In the end nobody knows whay is going to happen.  Especially, after everyone thought that the New England Patriots were going to win the Superbowl.