I'm Back!

I know we still have the Superbowl and the Probowl left, but I must officially be in offseason mode because I'm watching Mr. and Mrs. Smith and somehow enjoying it.

So I figured I'd end my three month hiatus from SoboFo and bring you some of my football thoughts that I'm sure you've been starved for.

1. I raised this question to the guys at work and think it's a good one for Sobo: Who is the worst owner - Dan Snyder or Peter Angelos? I'll start by admitting the answer seems glaringly obvious at first. The Skins are coming off an exciting season driven by emotion from the death of a hot young star not named Heath in which they made it to the postseason. They've been to the postseason twice in the past five seasons and have a jam-packed stadium each week. The team is competitive. However, I would argue that it is far, far more difficult to succeed in baseball than football. Making the playoffs twice in five seasons in the NFL is the equivalent achievement of Brad Pitt landing Angelina Jolie (seriously - give the movie a second shot if you haven't already. It's no Bedazzled, but hey what is?) Being competitive in baseball is hard enough even if you don't play in the AL East. That's more like Vince Vaughn landing Jennifer Aniston. OK, it happens, but let's be realistic - that was a down season for Jennifer. So when you balance out the leagues and prorate the teams' accomplishments this becomes a bit more of a fair fight. Many would argue that aside from the on-field success, Dan Snyder has helped turn the Skins into a Wall Street darling. I would counter that Angelos - as god-awful as he is - at least held MLB to the fire and got a monster of a deal when the Nats moved in. And again, it is much easier to make money in the NFL. But still, I'd give the nod to Snyder in the financial debate. My biggest argument is that the Skins' success is proof that Snyder is just as bad an owner. He finally gets them to be productive and respectable and then he tears them apart. The fact that he is ripping the guts out of the team right now, when the have a solid core and a promising future, is more of a crime than Angelos beating a dead horse by blocking the Bedard trade. Finally, I think it comes down to this - if you switch the teams they own, what happens? If you put Angelos on the Skins, your QB is ... I thought about this for a while and couldn't come up with a good example and this just hit me... it would be Kyle Boller. He would force the GM to trade out of the first round picks (which might not always be bad) and any pick that did sign would miss significant time while Angelos refused to negotiate. If Snyder owned the Orioles, they'd have signed A-Rod and traded for Pedro Martinez this offseason. I think the edge goes to Angelos being worse, but it's a close call.

2. The Ravens offseason! Gold medal. They fired Billick - Brilliant! They didn't get Jason Garrett - score! They hired Harbaugh - Excellent! They picked up Cam Cameron - gnarly! They kept Rex Ryan - perfect! I know some people are microanalyzing these moves and how they came about, but I don't care. I'm happy with the end product. Sure the owner seemed to take a larger presence than would be preferred. But I'm glad he was just smart enough to realize he made a mistake last year with Billick's extension and didn't have too much pride to admit it. Some say that keeping Rex Ryan is a mistake - that there will be too much tension between him and Harbaugh. Bollocks. These are professionals and grown men and they will work together to win.

3. Seahawks. Say what?! OK, well not the team, but a former Greenie. Jeramy Stevens to be precise. The man is a scumbag. Think about what that word really means for a minute. He's a scumbag. If you have a some time, read this article. Even if you think you got the point halfway through it, keep going. You have to read the whole thing to get the full effect.

4. The big game - my breakdown is coming soon. But more importantly - what will I cook? I'm thinking pulled pork bbq.

Sports page run down

Add Jim Fassel, who believed he would have the job by now, to the list of people upset with Dan Snyder, the Washington Post reports.

I thought he was all but written off, but the Baltimore Examiner reports that Steve McNair may QB the Ravens next year.

USA Today looks at Super Bowls that are rematches from the regular season, and finds the winner in the regular season is 1/5 in the Big One.

Hines Ward had his feelings hurt, the Post-Gazette reports.

This chopped AP story reveals that Bill Clinton is supporting the Giants in the Super Bowl, but plays golf with Tom Brady. Imagine the chicks they can get as a team.

One more reason not to watch the Pro Bowl, Brett Favre isn't playing.

Could Drew Rosenhaus have another Willis McGahee sales job? Top CB prospect Jack Ikegwuonu, a junior from Wisconsin, tore his ACL during a workout Tuesday; however, agent Drew Rosenhaus says everything is fine, just like he did with Willis. My heart's still broken he left the Badgers early.

Here's a dose of "I told you so":

He made himself eligible for the draft earlier this month, leaving UW after his junior season, and signed with Rosenhaus on Jan. 5.

Ikegwuonu was pulling a sled, in a drill designed to improve his speed, when the injury occurred.

He exploded out of a start and planted his leg when the knee gave way.

"I blame the agent for telling him to come out, when we told him to stay in," an NFL scout said.

--Nate Sandstrom

Another 180-degree turn for Snyder

Well, the Fassel plan appears to be on hold, according to the Post. Looks like the public outcry had something to do with it, so good job fans.

My guess is they will make another Bill Cowher run and offer him like $8 mil a year to change his mind.

If that fails, I don't know what will happen. Williams has been on hold so long he has no other real options, but my money has him off next year's staff. Fassel also has no other options, so I guess he would accept being choice #2....or 3, 4 or 5.

Despite the clusterbomb this situation is, I'm upbeat that Fassel is on hold. I'm still against trading draft picks for Rex Ryan; then again, it's not like the 'Skins have a coach who will have seen any of the players at the Senior Bowl this weekend.
--Nate Sandstrom

Jim Fassel -- this must be a joke!

Yesterday, I said that there is no chance Gregg Williams is coming back.

Today, the Washington Post's Jason La Canfora cites league sources in laying out the Redskins search with Jim Fassel as the leading candidate.

The Washington Times' Ryan O'Halloran admits he got beat on this, although points to a discussion he had with Fassel on Sunday in which Fassel denied he was a candidate. Perfect.

O'Halloran also makes the same point I did yesterday: that the hiring Fassel likely means Saunders and Williams are out.

I can't figure this out for the life of me, but La Canfora reports that Fassel was apparently the leading candidate for the 'Skins job before Gibbs took it. He instead went on to help manage the Ravens sputtering offense and "develop" Kyle Boller.

As you can tell, I'm not a fan of the move. It seems the only thing that stays the same in Washington is that nothing does.

Check out how popular this idea is with other 'Skins fans.

--Nate Sandstrom

What the hell happened with LT yesterday?

I have yet to hear a satisfactory answer to what happened with LaDainian Tomlinson yesterday.

I haven't seen any news coverage today acknowledge that this was the story at 4 p.m. Eastern yesterday. Fantasy Football Diehards.com confirms my memory:

Tomlinson has been limited to just the first series, but CBS sideline reporter Steve Tasker is reporting LT didn't reinjure the knee he hurt last week. According to Tasker, Tomlinson is being held out due to a "coaching decision."

Sometime between then and now, it has been ruled that Tomlinson was hurt. About all the coverage the San Diego Union Tribune had on it was this column and the game story, which didn't shed much light on what happened.

This Newsday story breaks down the narrative a little more, but still no real answers:

Of all the injured Chargers, LaDainian Tomlinson was the one most likely to play. Philip Rivers, with stretched Silly Putty ligaments in his right knee that likely will require surgery, and Antonio Gates, with a dislocated toe, managed to perform in the biggest game of the year. But Tomlinson sat on the bench huddled in a parka, watching the AFC Championship Game through his trademark tinted visor.

"There were some remarkable efforts," Chargers coach Norv Turner said of his battered team, raving about Rivers' toughness but refusing to call out Tomlinson, who started and took the first two handoffs but did not appear after the team's second offensive series.

"LT tried to go, and he just couldn't go," Turner said. At one point, it was reported that he had "soreness" in his knee and "could return," and a sideline report called the former MVP's being on the sideline a coach's decision. But after the game, Turner defended Tomlinson by saying: "The guy was not able to go. The doctors and trainers said he couldn't go."

Tomlinson hyperextended his left knee early in last week's upset of the Colts, but after an MRI, he practiced Thursday and Friday and was not included in Friday's injury report. But when he caught a swing pass from Rivers for 1 yard on the second possession, he said he sensed he had lost his explosiveness and felt "helpless." Tomlinson also said he tweaked the knee on his 3-yard run to open the game and that he has a sprained MCL.

"From getting it reinjured the first play, I just knew I didn't have it," he said. "I'm kind of at a loss for words."

Not exactly the stuff of Kirk Gibson. I'm not a doctor, but Norv and LT's quotes seem a little bizarre. Did he even get any treatment to his injury?

I'm not satisfied with the answers presented here. I hope someone keeps picking at what's behind this.

--Nate Sandstrom

So much for continuity

When Joe Gibbs stepped down earlier this month, Dan Snyder talked about continuity. At this point, it's hard to believe the Redskins team that takes the field on Opening Day 2008 will resemble the team that had a 4th quarter lead in Seattle in the playoffs.

I'm pretty sure if the 'Skins wanted assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams to be the new head coach, they wouldn't bring him in for four FOUR interviews. As this Washington Times article points out, it's not Gregg Williams holding things up.

It's clear there some reason Snyder doesn't want to hire Williams — and I predict he won't.

Whoever comes in will bring a new staff, and with tge cap issues will get rid of Jansen, Springs, Washington, Griffin and more. It will be another year of a new system and new players. People can talk about Campbell "showing progress" and some of his picks will be chalked up to learning a new system. My early call for next season is 6-10.

Some may say "so what." This team barely made the playoffs and aren't close to being a winner.

I disagree. They are close to winning the weak NFC, which I would consider an accomplishment. I don't know that anyone else will catch the Pats/Chargers/Colts in the next two years, so making the Super Bowl would be good enough to me.

If it were my choice, I'd cut Lloyd, restructure a couple deals and leave pretty much everything else in tact. Let Saunders run the offense and Williams run the defense. Of course maybe Williams is not OK with that, and that's why he's not being hired.

Of course it's all speculation as usual because there's been few straight answers coming out of Redskins Park lately.

--Nate Sandstrom

A shocking result?

It's almost 10 Eastern on Thursday, and before all the media heads release their weekend picks, the Chargers are almost universally 14-point underdogs after opening +14.5. (New England has covered just one of their last seven.)

I think you have to like New England in this match-up, especially given the injury situation (for official NFL reports click here).

The Union-Tribune collects some of the most inflammatory dismissals of the Chargers. Says Charean Williams of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

“ . . . The Patriots did their part, but the Colts choked. So instead of the best rivalry in sports, we get Chargers-Patriots. Sorry, Chargers, but nobody outside of San Diego is excited by this.

“The Chargers are denying us a great game.”

But the Chargers haven't won eight games in a row by fluke. They take away the ball more than anyone, even if the Pats give it away the least.

Another question is whether Moss will be distracted by the off-the-field fiasco of this week. I doubt it, but he's never been known for an even temperment.

Ultimately, I think the Chargers need to follow the Ravens' game plan against the Pats. Tomlinson/Turner can definitely run the ball as McGahee did. And the Chargers front 7 should be able to blitz. Call me Captain Obvious, but Brady doesn't like to get hit. And if you don't give Brady time to work, Welker, Watson, Moss and crew will have a harder time finding a way to get open.

In the end, I'm sure the Patriots will win, even if takes Brady or a Patriots receiver calling for an undeserved flag and getting it (see aforementioned Ravens game). I'm not calling it the NBA, but the more revered players tend to get the benefit of the doubt.

Pick: New England 31 San Diego 28

--Nate Sandstrom

Return of SoBo football

Well, I've been on a six week hiatus, but I'm hoping I can get Mark back here and start to build a few new common features over the off-season.

We'll spend much of the time looking ahead to the 2008 draft class, new recruits, players returning from injuries and talk schedules and possibilities.


I'm going to post a round-up of what's out there on the conference championships Friday and Saturday, but if you're a fan of any of the other 28 teams I'm moving with you in moving on.

Of course, we'll keep updating what to watch and the video clip bar (hopefully) every day or two.

Here's hoping I can comeback like Little Mac!

--Nate