McNabb's Ankle Still Sore, Cause for Concern?

Donovan McNabb will not play in the Redskins' final preseason game against Arizona the team has announced. There is no real reason to be concerned about his anlke at this point, however. Coach Mike Shanahan rarely plays his starting quarterback in the final preseason game and there is no real point in risking further injury to your starting quarterback. So this ankle injury is probably nothing to worry about, but it does bring into question what the Redskins will do if McNabb should go down sometime during the season.

Throughout his career, McNabb has had injury problems. McNabb has been a starter since 2000 and has only played 4 full seasons out of 10. He is also 33 years old, which is older for a quarterback. He will gradually become less mobile and more injury prone. The question is if the team is prepared to play 2, 3, 4, or even 5 or more games without him.

Along with McNabb, the team also acquired quarterback Rex Grossman as the backup in the offseason. Grossman used to start for the Chicago Bears and the team made it as far as the Super Bowl. He, however, was less than impressive. Most people thought Chicago made it in spite of Grossman, not because of him. While I feel very comfortable with Grossman as a backup, the question with McNabb starting is whether I am comfortable with Grossman starting 2-5 games a season. Backups can be tricky because a quarterback that you feel comfortable with playing several games usually leaves to start for another team. A good example is Matt Cassel. In 2008 Tom Brady was injured in the first game of the season and Cassel had to start for the Patriots the rest of the year. He led the team to 11 wins and was immediately traded to Kansas City the next season to be their starter. The Redskins used to have Todd Collins as a backup and he played extremely well every time Jason Campbell went down and more importantly he played well when he was needed to start, but he was released by the team in March. The reality is that Grossman will probably need to start 2 games this season at least and the team cannot afford to lose every game in which he plays. Judging by his preseason performance, however, he has yet to fill me with confidence.

So while McNabb's ankle is no reason for concern and Grossman appears to be an excellent backup quarterback, what I wonder is whether he is good enough to lead the team for an extended period of time. With McNabb as the starter, that is the role Grossman will have to fill as the backup.

Ravens Bring Redskins Back to Earth, Haynesworth Still Unhappy

The Redskins had a bit of a reality check Saturday night with a 23-3 preseason loss to the Balitmore Ravens. After their big win over Buffalo, fans began to raise their expectations dramatically and this loss may have brought them back down to Earth. The headlines have been stolen however by the latest bizarre chapter in the Albert Haynesworth saga, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

The way to evaluate a preseason game is to throw out the score, evaluate how the first team offense and defense played, and then look at the individual performances of the backups. The score is meaningless so despite how one-sided it was, it really is not a big deal. The first team offense did not look too bad, but they still need some work. Donovan McNabb looked good, but his timing was a bit off. He under threw several passes, but that is to be expected with all the different receivers the team is trying out and it is easily fixable when the roster gets set. Speaking of receivers, Anthony Armstrong had another strong performance. I would be surprised if he did not earn a roster spot at this point. Santana Moss also had a good game, but Devin Thomas still has failed to impress. The problem facing this team is that they have one solid starter in Moss, but no one has established themselves as the number 2. Joey Galloway and Malcolm Kelly have had injury problems in the offseason, but Shanahan knows what he gets in Galloway, where as Kelly has shown nothing since he was drafted. If I were to pick the top 4 receivers heading into the season I would say it would be Moss, Thomas, Galloway, and Armstrong.

Clinton Portis looked very good, but his spot is not in question. Larry Johnson may have left the door open for the previously thought "odd man out" Willie Parker after a lack luster performance. And then we come to the offensive line. First round pick Trent Williams had no answer for Terrell Suggs. The offensive line as a whole looked pretty weak. McNabb and Grossman were obviously briefed about it as they reacted to pressure by quickly getting rid of the ball. Still, with an older quarterback who has faced injury problems through out his career you would like to see better protection.

Defensively the team looked pretty solid. The starters only allowed one touchdown and that was after a fake punt that was taken 51 yards to the goal line. Brian Orakpo, who always seemed to be a defensive end/linebacker hybrid is now thriving in the new 3-4 defense. The team constantly pressured quarterback Joe Flacco who was only saved by multiple uncalled holding penalties. LaRon Landry has clearly worked on committing too early. He reacted well to the run, as he always has, but he also seemed more cautious. It is a good step forward. The secondary did take a hit, however, as the only true free safety on the team, Kareem Moore, suffered a knee injury that will keep him out 4-6 weeks.

And then we get to Haynesworth. After the game, Haynesworth let loose saying that he was angry about playing with the backups and then released the big bomb shell saying that the team intentionally underplayed his "condition" to make him look bad for not practicing. Haynesworth is claiming that last week he suffered a muscle condition called rhabdomyolysis. Haynesworth sat out of practice last week with what the team called dehydration and head aches. Before we get into exactly what this condition is, let's take Haynesworth at his word. Has the team done something wrong? No. NFL teams constantly underplay injuries. Teams want opponents to prepare for players who may or may not be playing. What's more, Hayneworth has been enough of a media headache. Why would the team come out and say he has some random muscle condition that would spark another media circus?

So did he have it? Well, there is some speculation. You have a player who does not want to practice who is now claiming he has a condition that will not allow him to practice and it clears up just in time for him to get angry about not starting. Sound suspicious? Sure. When I used to play football in high school you would constantly see magical injuries and illnesses that would last all week and disappear on game day so there is definitely some question as to whether he is telling the truth, especially when the team was completely unaware of what can be a serious condition.

Rhabdomyolysis is a muscle condition that causes an abnormal amount of muscle breakdown that releases a large amount of protein into the blood stream that can be very dangerous to the kidneys. It can be serious if not treated and it would certainly prevent a player from practicing or playing. Its symptoms include dehydration and headaches so they are consistent with what has kept Haynesworth out. The most important thing to know about this condition is who gets it. According to Dr. Michael Kaplan of ESPN, "Typically we see it more often in someone who's not as well conditioned and particularly if they have sudden and significant onset of exertion...." So Haynesworth refuses to work out with the team in the offseason saying he can get in better shape with his own personal trainer. He comes to camp and repeatedly fails the conditioning test. When he does begin to practice he gets a muscle condition that is brought on when someone that is "not as well conditioned" faces significant exertion. Essentially, if he had this condition, he got it because he is out of shape. Period. And, what is even more perplexing is that in his little temper tantrum he already said that he's not going to offseason work outs next year either. You have failed the conditioning test and faced a potentially serious condition because you are out of shape. This guy just doesn't get it.

At this point what can you do with him? He's getting paid too much money to simply cut unfortunately. I thought heading into the season that if both sides resigned themselves to working with each other they could make it work, but Haynesworth's immaturity will not allow for this to happen and his conditioning is so bad that he constantly needs to be subbed out. Best case scenario at this point would be for another team to lose their starting defensive tackle for the season with an injury that would force them to make a deal for Haynesworth. If we're lucky we could turn it into a 2nd round pick, but my guess is that at best we get a 3rd round pick. After all the money we've paid this guy, we are now keeping our fingers crossed for a 3rd round pick, that's sad.

This Week in Review: Bryce Harper, Brett Favre, and Roger Clemens

Bryce Harper Signed

For the second year in a row, the Washington Nationals signed the number one overall pick in the draft in an eleventh hour deal just beating the deadline. A lot was made out of this because of the similarities between Harper and Stephen Strasburg and because of Strasburg's comments, but I do not think there was any real doubt that Harper was going to sign. His entire amateur career has been sped up so that he could get into the majors. He completed his GRE after his sophomore year in high school, he signed with a college that plays in a wood-bat league; I really had a hard time believing he was going to let the deadline pass and sit out a full year for next year's draft. This is just how agent Scott Boras operates. He drags out these talks so that he can get the best deal possible for his players.

Any tension between Strasburg and Harper was purely a media concoction. Strasburg was badly misquoted earlier this week regarding Harper's negotiations. Far from being a negative comment, Strasburg was being very neutral and unconcerned saying that if he wanted to play in Washington then the deal would get done and if not he could go elsewhere. That's all. It was not a shot at his now teammate, it was just him being unconcerned.

Now the story will be whether Harper can behave himself. He will no doubt start out in the minors next season and if he doesn't climb the ladder as quickly as he thinks he should, then there may be some trouble.

Brett Favre Comes Back...Again

After all the debate, after all the "indecision" Brett Favre announced he would be joining the Minnesota Vikings for another season. What a shock. Before you listen to any of his press conferences or any statements by him or the team, there are a few things that you need to bear in mind. First, he came back on the Tuesday after the first preseason game. This matters because that is the exact time he came back last season. I have a very hard time believing this is a coincidence. That means all the apparent indecision, all the soul searching, all of that was a blatant lie. He was stalling just so he could miss camp just like last year. The second thing you need to keep in mind is that I predicted this. I'm not pointing this out to stroke my ego, I'm pointing it out because everything he did was completely predictable. Everyone knew he was coming back which he did, everyone knew he was just trying to avoid training camp which he did. All this talk about it being about the team, everything he says he thought about and all the reasons he gave for coming back are false. This is what he was planning all along and most people saw it coming.

Now some people may say that he really was on the fence until some of his teammates came to Mississippi to beg him to come back. I do not know exactly what happened here, but it just goes to show you how big his ego is. Some of the best players on the team had to miss practice to get on their knees and beg him to come back. This is ridiculous.

If Favre can still play, which he proved last season, good for him. The reason I hate Favre is not because I do not think he should play or that he's old and should step aside, it's because he has made it all about him. You cannot sit out of training camp just because you don't want to do it. You cannot handcuff an entire organization by not telling them what you're planning to do. If Favre went to camp, listened to his coaches and teammates, and decided quickly whether he was staying or retiring, he would still be a great quarterback. Aren't you curious why head coach Brad Childress is on the hot seat despite having a team most people would classify as a Super Bowl contender? It is because he has completely mishandled the situation. If Minnesota does not make a deep post season run, he may be out of a job. What's more is that he has been a terrible influence to the younger players. Adrian Peterson reportedly left practice early because he did not want to participate anymore that afternoon. When your team leader can do it, the whole team gets the message. This whole situation has shown how selfish and egotistical he really is.

Roger Clemens Indicted

Speaking of egotistical, it is hard to have any sympathy for cheating baseball players desperately trying to repair their legacies. Roger Clemens has apparently decided to take the Barry Bonds route of denying ever taking steroids despite the fact that everyone knows he did. Clemens was indicted this week for making false statements to congress for which he faces a maximum of 30 years. He was offered a plea bargain in which he would receive no jail time if he simply admitted to using steroids and he refused. Maybe Bonds and Clemens can share a cell.

Yes, everyone is innocent until proven guilty. I also think it is also worth mentioning that if I were charged of a crime I was innocent of, I would not admit to it just to avoid jail time either. But looking at the rampant cheating scandal through out baseball, Clemens' character, and the evidence against him it is hard to believe anything he says. The story began when the Mitchell report was released documenting the use of performance enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball. Clemens was mentioned 82 times in the report. He denied ever using steroids even while numerous other players in the report were coming clean. Then former trainer Brian McNamee came forward saying he personally injected Clemens with steroids numerous times and reportedly brought forward several syringes he used on him and bloody gauze (why he would keep it is a good question). Again, Clemens denied it and even tried to sue McNamee but the case was thrown out.

So, you have a player named mutiple times in a credible report, accused by a former trainer who has a box of evidence, and who now faces 30 years in jail and he refuses to admit that he's done anything wrong. If he is telling the truth, then good for him. If not, and it is hard to ignore the evidence against him, I do not know what he's trying to prove. His reputation is in the toilet, what is he holding on to? I do not understand what fantasy land these players like Clemens and Bonds are living in. Nobody believes them, their reputations are in shatters, and at this point neither will be getting into the hall of fame. Is it worth going to jail to protect a lie that no one believes?

Caps Agree to Terms with Center Eric Belanger

The Capitals have signed Eric Belanger to a one year deal for next season filling the void at second line center. The team was originally hoping to bring up prospect center Marcus Johansson, who will most likely still receive a full time roster spot this season, but who failed to impress (me anyway) during the team's development camp. Belanger played tremendously after he was acquired by the team from Minnesota at the trade deadline last season and I for one am greatly relieved by this move. Johansson will be a significant addition to the third and fourth lines this season, but frankly he was not a good fit or ready for the second line.

There also could be more moves in the mix. The team has not officially announced the signing and general manager George McPhee refused to comment. It is believed the team is waiting to announce the signing because they are working out other "roster changes" and will make the announcement once those are completed. The offseason may not yet be over for the Capitals.

This is a Drill, No Reason to Panic

There are many reports out there saying the Brett Favre has retired and I do not believe it for a second. We've gone through this several times before. It seems that Favre cannot commit to another season without hinting that he is retiring at some point. How many years did he tell EVERYONE he was retiring in Green Bay? He tearfully announced his retirement before signing with the Jets. He told everyone he was leaning towards retirement last season, then decided to come back halfway into training camp. This is not time for Vikings' fans to panic.

Why all the fuss? Why all the reports? Why is Favre not rushing to the nearest news station to tell people he isn't retiring? Because this is what he does. At this point, Favre has proven himself to be such a narcissistic jerk I actually think he likes this kind of attention and build up. What other reason could there be? Bard Childress may be saying the Vikings are prepared if Favre leaves, but they are not. They are going to go to Favre on bended knee and beg him to come back. Meanwhile, a 40 year old quarterback is the headline story of every sports page in America.

While I do think Favre is coming back, I really hope he does not. I cannot stand watching him act so selfishly in the offseason then talk every week about how it's about the team. I hate that to some people he justifies his behavior by having a good season. And, I especially want to see the Vikings suffer for not being prepared for what everyone saw coming. On the radio today I heard signing Favre compared to dating a stripper. Is she amazing? Yes, but you know one day you'll wake up and the bed is empty and she's gone. How if you are the Vikings do you not have a backup quarterback better than Tarvaris Jackson when your starter is Brett "I'm a selfish, narcissistic jerk who refuses to go to training camp and wants to retire every five minutes" Favre? How do you not FORCE Favre to make a decision? This is the NFL and you have a team that can make it to the Super Bowl if you have a quarterback. The Vikings could have gotten someone if they wanted. Now they may have to reap what they sow.

Still, not time to panic. This is just a drill.