Posted by Michael David Smith on February 16, 2012, 6:57 AM EST
AP
Randy Moss wants back in the NFL, but one longtime NFL personnel man says Moss simply doesn’t have it anymore.
Bill Polian, who was fired last month as president of the Colts, said he doesn’t think Moss could still do it in 2010 at age 33, let alone in 2012 at age 35.
“It was pretty clear he had lost a fair amount of speed and flexibility,” Polian told Alex Marvez of Sirius XM NFL Radio and FOXSports.com. “He was not the same player he was three or four years earlier during his heyday in New England. Since his repertoire of routes was always limited – he was essentially a deep receiver his entire career – losing a step can really hurt your effectiveness.”
Posted by Evan Silva on February 15, 2012, 5:57 PM EST
AP
South Carolina wide receiver Alshon Jeffery was considered a potential top-five pick entering the 2011 college season after an 88-catch, 1,517-yard, nine-touchdown sophomore year. Jeffery’s stats fell to 49 receptions, 762 yards, and eight scores as a junior, and he declared for the draft on January 5.
Jeffery’s supporters cited quarterback musical chairs and defense’s double teams for his 2011 production drop. Appearing on a Wednesday conference call for the media, NFL Network draft guru Mike Mayock said he saw something different.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal on February 15, 2012, 4:35 PM EST
NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock is a big Andrew Luck fan. Luck is the top player on Mayock’s board, and Luck’s passion for the game reminds Mayock of Peyton Manning and Matt Ryan.
Mayock just doesn’t see Luck as some sort of “once in a lifetime” prospect like others have indicated. (Yes, others means ESPN in this case.) Mayock compared Luck’s talent level more to someone like Sam Bradford.
Posted by Michael David Smith on February 15, 2012, 8:47 PM EST
Getty Images
The Marshawn Lynch trade has worked out well for the Seahawks, and as a result it got a little bit better for the Bills as well.
When the Bills traded Lynch to the Seahawks, the compensation was originally reported as a fourth-round pick in 2011 and a sixth-round pick in 2012. But the sixth-round pick could improve to a fifth-round pick if Lynch met certain incentives, and today the Bills confirmed that Lynch did reach those incentives, and they’re getting the Seahawks’ fifth-round pick. The pick will be either the 11th or 12th in the fifth round, depending on the Seahawks’ coin flip with the Chiefs.
Posted by Mike Florio on February 15, 2012, 7:00 PM EST
Getty Images
The news came as a surprise on Wednesday. After five years on Monday Night Football, Ron Jaworski is out, and a two-man group of Mike Tirico and Jon Gruden will call the games.
Jaworski told Richard Deitsch of SI.com that the move is “bittersweet,” given that he’ll be trading his time on MNF for more “expansive” duties with the network.
“I’m excited and thrilled with some of the projects I’ll be working on moving forward,” Jaworski told Deitsch. “I have an opportunity to do some things that can be creative, so in that regard I am excited about the future.”
The removal of Jaworski came suddenly; Jaws says he was told about it on Monday. And yet by Wednesday he had finalized a new five-year contract with all sorts of other new duties.
If it’s true that Jaworski first learned of his removal from MNF on Monday, it looks like the powers-that-be made Jaws a non-negotiable, take-it-or-leave-it offer on Monday, and within 48 hours the offer was signed, sealed, delivered, and announced.
