What I Learned from the NFL Scouting Combine

As you all know, I am a NFL Draft nut.  I love it.  I am happier on NFL Draft weekend than I am on Thanksgiving.  I don't have to travel, I get to eat food I really enjoy (sorry, just not huge into the traditional spread), and the Cowboys and Lions are only occasionally talked about.  So the Scouting Combine the past few days is like the official beginning of the Draft year, which makes me a very happy man.  Here are some of the players I liked/disliked and things I learned watching the Combine this year:

- Blake Bortles took full advantage of being the only top QB on display this year.  With Manziel, Bridgewater and Carr opting not to throw.  Was he perfect?  No.  But he got stronger as the day went on with unfamiliar wide outs.  He showed great agility in the running/jumping drills, and a strong arm.  He has prototypical QB size at 6-5, 232.  He could fit right into the style that Bill O'Brien brings to the Texans.

- We knew that Jadeveon Clowney was a freakish athlete.  He ran a 4.5 40 and a defensive lineman.  The question as always been about his drive, his motor, his heart, etc.  As a Redskins fan, I know the pain of getting a guy with a ton of talent that really doesn't care much about football (Hellooo Albert Haynesworth).  He would scare the bejesus out of me if I was considering him.  If I were a team in the Top 5, I would use the thought of drafting him as trade bait, because I know there are other GMs that would love him more than I do.  Could he be a Hall of Famer?  Of course.  He has that talent.  But I'd rather have a guy with no questions than one with a ton of them.

- That guy, by the way, would be Khalil Mack, OLB/DE, Buffalo.  Mike Mayock says he is the best player in the draft at any position.  I know he looked damn good at the Combine.

- If all of the Top 5 teams didn't have questions at QB, then this could be known as the year of the Offensive Tackle.  Greg Robinson from Auburn, Jake Matthews from Texas A&M, and Taylor Lewan from Michigan are amazing.  I, personally, would rate all three of them higher than I would Eric Fisher or Luke Joeckel, the top 2 picks from the 2013 draft.  They all show up the tape, and they all had amazing workouts, Robinson especially.  Some folks were comparing him to Hall of Famer Larry Allen.  That's high praise.

- I don't know if I have ever heard of a defensive lineman being underrated when he won pretty much all of the awards he was up for, but that was the case with Pitt's Aaron Donald.  He is an amazing college DT, and should make an impact in the pros.  He doesn't have the same size as Louis Nix III, the Notre Dame nose tackle who has drawn comparisons to Vince Wilfork, but he may be more talented and more explosive.  He benched 225 lbs 35 times, which is 14 times more than athletic freak Clowney did.  He probably secured a place in the first round, and made himself a nice chunk of change.

- The WR class is extremely deep.  Lots of guys impressed, but if I am a team with a need in the late 1st or early 2nd round, I am looking at Davonte Adams from Fresno State.

- My favorite MLB- Jordan Zumwalt, UCLA.  He may not be a top talent, but I thought he had a great combine.  Excellent size, looked fluid in all of his movements, and showed surprisingly good hands for a linebacker.  In the modern NFL, possessing the ball may be the most important aspect.  I think he could be a steal in the 4th or 5th

- Michael Sam will be able to handle the media frenzy and any slurs thrown his way.  His press conference and Q&A with the press over the weekend was fantastic.  His combine wasn't terrible, but showed that he can compete.  He is a pass rusher, and in a pass first league, they are always needed.  Someone will draft him, and he will make a positive impact both on and off the field

- History was made.  Rich Eisen ran a sub-6 40 yard dash.  Amazing.


More to come from Pro Days as the Draft nears, and my 2014 NFL Mock Draft will be coming in April!

JFLANland's Super Bowl Pick

I don't think I have been this torn on a Super Bowl pick in a while. On the one hand, I think that the Seahwaks have an advantage is almost every relevant stat and trend. The top defense usually beats the top offense. Their style of football is more conducive to an outdoor night game in 40 degree temperatures.  They have the kind of secondary that can completely cancel out Thomas, Decker and Welker.  Every number tells me to pick Seattle.

However, I love Peyton Manning. I wholeheartedly believe he is the greatest quartback of all time.  No other QB has had to win multiple championships with his numbers to prove that. !arino has none. Favre only has 1, and now has one fewer appearances in the big game than Peyton does.  He has been stellar this season, and I believe has the drive and leadership to will his team to a victory today.

So, what is my pick? Do I go with the numbers and my head, or do I pick my the better story and my heart...

The heart wins.  Give me Denver, 27-23.

Enjoy the Super Bowl, everyone!

AFC and NFC Championship Picks

I went 4-0 last week, picking the favorites.  Home field held true for 3 of the 4 teams, and I just have a hunch that it will today... for one team.  That being said, I am unsure which home team that will be.  But here it goes, my picks for the Conference Title games!

- Denver Broncos over New England Patriots 34-31

- Seattle Seahawks over San Francisco 49ers 20-16

I'll take the home teams to win, setting up a Broncos-Seahawks Super Bowl in MetLife Stadium.  I don't know if it is the best matchup for the NFL to have, but it is a possibility.  I expect to get at least one of these picks wrong, but it is just so hard to tell.  Any given Sunday...

Enjoy the games!

NFL Playoffs: Divisional Round Predictions

So, I only went 1-3 in my Wild Card Weekend picks.  I thought home field mattered.  I still think it does, so here is some more of the same in my Divisional Round predictions.

- Seattle Seahawks over New Orleans Saints 24-14

- New England Patriots over Indianapolis Colts 21-20

- San Francisco 49ers over Carolina Panthers 14-10

- Denver Broncos over San Diego Chargers 35-27

That's 3-1 for the home teams.  Maybe I will be right this time.

Enjoy the games!

My Wild Card Weekend Picks

Here are my picks for Wild Card weekend. I apologize in advance to the teams I am jinxing.

- Kansas City Chiefs over Indianapolis Colts 24-21

- New Orleans Saints over Philadelphia Eagles 28-27

- Cincinnati Bengals over San Diego Chargers 20-17

- Green Bay Packers over San Francisco 49ers 31-28



Enjoy the games, and try to stay warm!

Can Someone Fix The Redskins?

Ok.  I know.  No one really wants to read about how much of a train wreck the Redskins are.  But, since they are my hometown team, I can't help but spend hours thinking of how the hell they keep getting themselves into this mess.  For 20 years, with only a few fluke exceptions, the Skins have stunk.  Eli and the Giants have 2 rings.  The McNabb/Reid Eagles dominated for years, and now Chip Kelly and Mick Foles are in 1st too.  Even the Cowboys, who always seem to make huge mistakes, have been more competitive in the regular season than the Skins.  So, how the hell can the Redskins finally right the ship?  How can this franchise, who may be among the league's worst the past two decades, finally turn it around and become a model franchise like the so many others in the NFL (including that one 40 miles up I-95)?  Well, here are some of the options:

- Get a new owner!  This is the most popular answer.  It is also the most unrealistic.  There is no way Dan Snyder is selling the Redskins.  Even though they have been garbage since he took over, they are still one of the most profitable franchises in all of professional sports (Forbes ranks them as the 8th most valuable, behind only the Cowboys and Patriots in the NFL).  Why would Dannyboy want to sell the golden calf?  He will continue to make money because the Skins have an extremely devoted fanbase.  They will show up no matter how terrible the team is.  They've been doing it every year since 1992, haven't they?

- Change the name!  Maybe it is a curse.  Maybe, much like building a house on an Indian burial ground (thank you Poltergeist), having a name that is racist has brought all the bad spirits to FedEx Field, and put a hex on the team.  I know a lot of people in DC don't want to change the name.  To be honest, I would be a bit perturbed if they did, even though I know it is the right thing to do.  But it has to happen at some point.  If it happens soon, the curse could be lifted while RG3 still has a few healthy knee ligaments left.  The new name?  The Washington Warriors.  It is alliterative, it fits in the fight song, and it can still apply to the proud Native American spirit Snyder claims that Redskins does.  Also, Danny already owns the name, so it just makes sense.

- Move back to DC!  I do really like this idea.  I never saw a game at RFK, but I have seen a few at FedEx.  It is a dump.  It is just an awful stadium.  I have no idea what Jack Kent Cook was doing building his new home out in Landover, MD, but it was not a good idea.  Much like the name, the curse of not playing in DC makes some sense.  The Skins were successful when they played in RFK.  They stink at FedEx.  Currently, only DC United play in RFK, and they are getting a new stadium down the street from my Nats.  All Snyder would have to do is buy the land and build a new field.  Jerry Jones did it, and now that field hosts every major sporting event.  Imagine if DannyWorld was able to pull in the Super Bowl, the BCS title game, the NCAA Final Four, and Wrestlemania?  All that money in his pocket and into DC businesses would make the city start to like him a little.  Plus, it is a prime location.  It is on the metro, there is parking all around it, and one could even walk from Capitol Hill/Eastern Market/Potomac Ave areas if they wanted to go to a bar before or after the game.  This should happen!

- Get a new coach!  Well, more and more it seems like this will happen.  I understand that Mike Shanahan was a big name.  I also understand that he only won with John Elway.  He was alright with Brian Griese.  He was ok with Jake Plummer.  He's been decent with RG3.  But he has a lower winning percentage with the Redskins than Norv Turner did, and Snyder couldn't wait to fire him when he bought the team.  Furthermore, his staff isn't exactly stellar.  Jim Haslett has one of the worst defenses in football.  Mike's son Kyle Shanahan is only a mediocre offensive coordinator, who seems unwilling to build a respectful relationship with the team's franchise Golden Boy.  So, they all go and the Skins start over from scratch.  A new report said they would try to get Baylor's head coach Art Briles, who of course coached RG3 during his Heisman campaign.  Would it be worth a shot?  Sure.  Really, anything would be better than Shanny and Danny fighting in public.

- Get RG3 to take some blame!  At first, I really liked RG3.  Hell, I still do.  He seems like a genuinely good guy who just wants folks to be happy with him.  However, everything that Donovan McNabb and Santana Moss have said about him seems to be coming true.  Rarely does he say that he was responsible for a loss.  He can seem more concerned with his newest Subway ad then with his airmailing open receivers.  The great QBs always take the blame for bad games.  Tom Brady may yell at his guys on the sidelines, but the first thing out of his mouth after a loss is "I could have done better".  RG3 is young.  He is famous.  Maybe this year's massive failures will humble him and restore that drive to win as top priority over that drive to be known.

- Build through the draft!  My biggest complaint with the Redskins is that they don't take the draft seriously enough.  It seems like they are always trading away picks when they have massive holes to fill.  Free agency can only help you so much.  At some point, you need to have homegrown prospect that help you win.  Look at the Ravens.  Ozzie Newsome may be the best GM in all of football.  He knows how to draft players.  He drafted Terrell Suggs, Haloti Ngata, Marshall Yanda, Paul Kruger, Lardarius Webb, Joe Flacco, Ray Rice, Ed Dickson, Dennis Pitta, Jimmy Smith, Torrey Smith, Kelechi Osomele, and Matt Elam.  He signed John Harbaugh.  He is responsible for putting together a complete team that has made the playoffs the past 5 years and is the reigning Super Bowl champions.  You have to have a good GM who is dedicated to the draft and to building a true team over putting together a group of stars.  That is how you win titles.


Some of these changes are pretty easy ones.  Some are a bit harder.  One, the new owner, simply isn't going to happen any time soon.  So, can someone actually fix the Redskins?  I think so, but it will be a process.  They should try, at least, cause it can't get much worse than it has been.

My Heisman Ballot So Far

I do not have an actual Heisman vote, seeing as how I am just a blogger.  However, I should have one, because I am awesome, and I do not get caught up in the hype of one good or bad game like so many of these voters do.  So, that being said, here is my Heisman ballot for the season thus far.  I am going to follow the official ballot rules, meaning I only get to pick 3 players.  Spoiler alert, they are all QBs.  Let's look at them from 3rd to 1st.


3. Derek Carr, QB, Fresno State

          I'm not going to lie, I am a little biased.  I loved watching David Carr when he was at Fresno.  He could have been a great pro if the Texans believed in providing any kind of protection for him at all.  Now, his little brother Derek might be even better.  His play is the main reason why Fresno is undefeated and looking to crash the BCS party.  He also has the kind of heart-wrenching/life-changing story that Heisman voters eat up: His newborn son underwent two surguries in the first few days of his life to combat a potentially deadly condition.  David White of the NY Times wrote about it here.  Not only is Derek a fantastic football player, but he is mature enough now to realize it is just a game and that there are more important things.  Certain other college stars who are not in my Top 3 still haven't gotten that.  Will Derek win the Heisman?  No.  Does he deserve to be in New York for the finals based on his play?  Absolutely.


2. Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State

          Barring some kind of collapse, Jameis Winston is going to win the Heisman.  He is ridiculously good.  He destroyed my Syracuse Orange last week.  FSU is undefeated, and most of their games have been complete runaways in a better-than-expected ACC.  So, why the hell am I putting him at 2 instead of 1?  Well, it has to do with the talent that is around him and my #1 pick.  There is no doubt in my mind that Winston is insanely gifted, and will probably be a solid pro.  I think that FSU can compete with Alabama in the BCS title game, and maybe even win it.  But that is not just because of Jameis.  FSU has an amazing defense which is only giving up 11 points a game, #3 in FBS.  FSU's offense averages just under 200 yards a game rushing, which is in the top 1/3rd of FBS.  They are a well-rounded and complete team.  I think that, in an award that is supposed to honor individual achievement, having a team that great around you should hurt a little.  AJ McCarron isn't on my list for the same reason, though he is not as talented as Winston.


1. Bryce Petty, QB, Baylor

          Baylor is a great team.  They are not as good all around as FSU is, though.  That makes me give the slightest of edges to Bryce Petty in my Heisman vote.  Their offense is the best in the country, averaging 61 points per game in the Big 12 (10, but who's counting?).  Their defense is playing better as well, but it usually doesn't matter because the offense can score at will.  Petty is the leader of that unit, and his numbers back up my praise.  He has only thrown 1 INT all year to go with his 24 passing TDs, and has a QB rating of 206.2, a full 11 points higher than Jameis Winston.  Additionally, he has 10 rushing scores to help his campaign.  This could all be a moot point if Petty stumbles down the stretch, because Jameis Winston doesn't look like he will.  But, assuming that they both go undefeated, my vote goes to Baylor's Bryce.