Monday Morning Mehta 2/21/05

Edition # 107
February 21, 2005

NFL/Eagles

The Official 2005 Philadelphia Eagles Off-Season Guide Special Sponsored by America On-Line
Part 2

Last week we covered the offense, lets talk defense and special teams this week. We will do a draft special in a few weeks. Incidentally, the Tight Ends portion was cut off in some editions last week. You can find the full version of the offense, defense, and special teams on the website.

Note: UFA means Unrestricted Free Agent, RFA means Restricted Free Agent which means his current team has the right to match any offer.

Defensive Ends
2004 Grade: B-
Javon Kearse made his presence felt in many games, especially early on in the season. Unfortunately he showed signs of wearing down late in the year. Derrick Burgess came on real strong but is a UFA. The tandem of Kearse and Burgess can be a weapon but can also be proven a liability since they are speed guys and can be pushed around somewhat (see Super Bowl). As a UFA, Derrick Burgess may get a big offer from another team. This scares me. If Burgess asks for anything close to $4-$5 million/year and I would let him walk. Plug Jerome McDougle in and move on. Hugh Douglas (UFA) is likely gone but with his recent surgery, could be available cheap again. My scenario calls for the starters to be Kearse and a rotation of Jerome McDougle and one of:

a. Marques Douglas, UFA, Ravens. Douglas was an underrated part of the Ravens defense last year. He's also only 27 and really coming into his own. This can be an ND Kalu type pickup for cheap, but only Douglas is actually good. 6' 2" 290 lbs so it fits my big 2nd DE theory.

b. Bryce Fisher, UFA, Rams. Fisher replaced Grant Widstrom and did a very good job.

Other Free Agents
Darren Howard (UFA, Saints) - Saints are going to use their franchise tag on Howard and rightly so. He's the best DE available this year, sorry John Abraham.

John Abraham (UFA, Jets) - Just gets hurt too much

Reggie Hayward (UFA, Broncos) - a speed guy, someone will overpay for himJason Gildon

Defensive Tackles
2004 Grade: C
This position was close to getting a D or an F until the emergence of Sam Rayburn and the late season play of Corey Simon. Rayburn is a keeper. Hollis Thomas and Darwin Walker I couldn't care less about. Simon's play the 2nd half of the year was something that only made some people angrier that he skipped camp and came back not in playing shape. He was also hurt a lot of the year. I think the Eagles brass remembers when players don't come to camp, etc. Placing the franchise tag on Simon is just a slap in the face in my mind. They'll make teams believe they're going to sign him, then at the last minute pull the franchise tag and let Simon go. If you think there isn't precendence for this, the Eagles did this same exact thing to Jeremiah Trotter a few years back. Now, the only problem with this is whom to replace Simon with. DT is a very weak position in the NFL these days. Here's some options:

Free Agents (let me know when somehere here excites you, or you've even heard of)

Marcus Bell
Leonardo Carson
Devone Claybrooks
Chartric Darby
Eric Downing
Luther Ellis (in his 11th year)
Josh Evans
Jason Ferguson
Chris Hovan (has completely been terrible the last two years)
Junior Ioane
Cedric Killings
Lance Legree
Seth Payne
Derrick Ransom
James Reed (no not Ed Reed)
Joe Salave'a
Kenny Smith
Tony & Pat Williams

Yikes. Can I change that scenario to keep Corey Simon?

Linebacker
2004 Grade: B-/C+
Jeremiah Trotter gets an A. Dhani Jones gets a C. Nate Wayne & Mark Simoneau get F's. Keith Adams and Ike Reese (both UFA's) get B+'s in limited action. Trotter is an UFA and it seems pretty clear both sides are going to get something done. Dhani Jones probably gets one more year, even though I'd like to see him gone. That leaves one LB spot. Don't expect a big signing here, the Eagles will want someone with experience in this type of defense, whatever that means.Free AgentsKendrell Bell, UFA, Steelers - would be a great pickup

Chris Claiborne, UFA, Vikings - always hurt but he's still only 27

Ed Hartwell, UFA, Ravens - if the Trotter resigning doesn't work out, this would be a great signing at MLB

Defensive Backs
2004 Grade: A
This is the strong suit of the Eagles defense and it only can improve next year. Lito Sheppard, Sheldon Brown and Michael Lewis are all going to improve. Lewis is a little overrated but certainly can do the job. Dawkins still has 2-3 Pro Bowl years left. There probably isn't much to be done here in free agency or the draft.

Special Teams
2004 Grade: B+
Special Teams has really given the Eagles an advantage over many teams the last few years. David Akers and Dirk Johnson were excellent again this year. JR Reed looks like a real threat on kickoff returns. The Eagles probably need to find a full time punt returner, as it seems that Brian Westbrook isn't going to be the full time guy.

NFL Quick Hits

Free agency opens in a little over a week, there are some interesting rumors of players that will be available most notably from the Titans camp. Derrick Mason of the Titans is one of those names that will be a cap casualty. If I had known about this last week, Mason would be # 1 on my WR wish list. Also probably being cut by the Titans is Samari Rolle, Fred Miller and Kevin Carter. The Eagles need to be ready to swoop in on many of these players, as the Titans have all kinds of cap issues.

Trade Rumors
Travis Henry to the Cards for OL LJ Shelton.

Randy Moss rumors bring a lot of mixed signals. Some reports have the Jets very interested, but new Vikes owner Reggie Fowler said he will have no interest in trading Moss once he takes over. ''I think Mr. Moss is, if not the finest, one of the finest receivers in the league today. And I think he's a winner. A lot of times when you want to win, you get excited.'' We'll see...

From the everyone's thinking it department:
It's a travesty what happened to Tedy Bruschi. There isn't any clear word from Boston but most reports have him suffering a stroke. I feel terrible for him and his family, but word is he should have a full recovery, whether he can play again is doubtful. I realize saying this means I'll got to he&l (or turn into an ant in my afterlife according to my religion), but if it had to happen why didn't it happen two weeks ago!

NBA - Derreck Sura

-The Sixers (26-27) went 1-1 last week, and are barely holding on to the 8th seed in the East by .001 of a percentage point over Indiana. Loyal MMM reader Tom D emailed wanting to know "What is the scoop on Glenn Robinson?" Well, Philly GM Billy Knight has been holding out for another expiring contract in return for the Dog all season long. He came close to that in a rumored deal for Latrell Sprewell (contract up after the year). Depending on who you believe, either BK pulled the plug when Minnesota asked for Willie Green to make the numbers work, or Timberwolves' GM Kevin McHale decided that the Dog wouldn't help his team chemistry after all. Another deal I heard was Dog and Corliss Williamson to Milwaukee for Keith Van Horn and Joe Smith. This one makes no sense to me, because Smith makes more then Corliss (both have 2 years left after this), and KVH has another year at 15.7 million too. For BK to get a good player in return for Dog, said player is going to have to have more then 1 year remaining on his contract. I'm not sure if that fits into the Sixers' plan for the future, or if they even have a plan at all, but if BK is really itching to trade the Dog, he should be able to. All of these players are within 15% of the Dog's contract, and could probably be had straight up for him. Brian Grant (2 years left after this), Eddie Jones (2), Antonio Davis (1), Tim Thomas (1), Kerry Kittles (0), Damon Stoudamire (0), and Nick Van Exel (0). Not exactly a role call of the all time greats there. The only "untouchables" on Philly's roster before Thursday's trade deadline should be Allen Iverson, Andre Iguodala, Samuel Dalembert, and Kyle Korver. ANYONE else should be available for the right price. The Sixers have a nice long 7 days off between games to recharge their batteries for the final 29 games of the season. This week brings Philly: @New York, Sacramento. With the way the Kings have been playing lately, a 2-0 week, and an above .500 record for the first time since 11/14 (4-3), is a definite possibility.

- While watching the All-Star festivities over the weekend, I got to thinking about what the best individual match-ups in the NBA might be. These three are always worth tuning in for whenever they get together.

#1 Tim Duncan (28 years old, 6'11, 260 lbs.) vs. Kevin Garnett (28, 7'0, 237)- The two best players in the league have got to be tops on my list. TD's career accolades far exceed KG's, but that does not mean this isn't a great individual battle. TD gives KG problems with his bulk down low and plethora of post moves. KG is a great defender, but his only chance of stopping TD is to guess right and use his superior athleticism to beat TD to the spot, or block his shot. On the other hand, KG's movement without the ball and overall versatility exploits TD's lack of foot speed. TD is also a superior defender, but he flat out can not stick with KG on the perimeter. A KG pump fake, one dribble, and it's either a foul on TD, or a dunk. Being that these two player's strengths on offense, play into each other's weaknesses on defense, a classic 7 game series is the only way to decide who the better man is head to head. That's why I'm still waiting for these two to meet up in the playoffs. Someday, I hope.

#2 Kobe Bryant (26, 6'6, 220) vs. LeBron James (20, 6'8, 245)- Even though we were somewhat cheated in their two meetings this year (injuries), the two most complete perimeter players in the league, and "Air" apparent's, must be next. While Kobe has the vast edge in game experience and NBA accomplishments, Bron's maturity beyond his years makes up for some of it. On the court, these two can do it all. Shoot, pass, drive, rebound, finish, you name it. The one skill that really separates them right now is Kobe's ability to lock people up on the defensive end. Bron is a much better teammate, and seemingly enjoys sharing the ball more then Kobe does. I'm sure Bron's defense will improve over time, much as Kobe's leadership ability will. This is my dream Finals' match-up. I couldn't think of anything better then watching these two competitors go at each other for 7 games with a ring on the line.

#3 Shaquille O'Neal (32, 7'1, 325) vs. Yao Ming (24, 7'6, 310)- The two biggest players in the NBA round out my top three. Right now Shaq is still a much better player the Yao is, and Yao may never even approach Shaq's top level of play. That does not mean this isn't a top flight individual clash. I've never seen anybody give Shaq as many problems as Yao does. Some will point to their age difference, or Shaq's general regular season malaise, but I think it's more Yao's sheer size that gives Shaq trouble. There's not many people in the universe that can make Shaq look small when standing next to him, and Yao does. Yao has the bulk to move Shaq off his spots down low, and the height to alter or block Shaq's shots. Yao also has quicker feet then Shaq does at this point of their career's. Combine that with his size, and Yao has the unique ability to put fouls on Shaq, even when the Diesel is trying to avoid picking them up. If these two were to meet in the Finals in a few years, when their skill level's have evened out a bit (Shaq 35 & Yao 27), the Wilt Chamberlain-Bill Russell comparison's won't be too far off.

- With only 2 months left in the season, I'm very interested to see how the race for the 8th seed in the West shakes out. It will come down to one of 3 teams - Minnesota, Denver, or the Lakers - that all have had a coaching change. Only one can make it, meaning the other two will have very long summer's to think about their missed opportunities. Los Angeles (26-24) currently occupies the final playoff spot, but their hold on #8 is tenuous at best. The Lakers have 19 road and 13 home games remaining. Kobe Bryant is back from his injured right ankle, and GM Mitch Kupchak said interim coach Frank Hamblen is expected to be in charge for the rest of the year. Those are two positives L.A. has going for them, but they still face their longest road trip of the year (6 games from 3/10-18), and play 9 of their last 11 games against teams currently in the Western Conference playoffs. The Timberwolves (27-27) are next and have 16 road and 12 home games left. Kevin McHale taking over as coach in Minne may lead them to few a extra wins in the short term. Conversely, Kevin Garnett's sore right knee, and Sam Cassell's nagging right hamstring injury, could be too much for the Wolves to overcome in the long run, even though they finish the season playing only 2 current playoff teams over their last 8 games. The Nuggets (24-29) have the most favorable schedule of the three with 12 road and 17 home games remaining. Denver still has their longest home stand of the year (7 games from 3/13-26) to come, and plays 5 of their last 11 games against current playoff teams. If new coach George Karl can keep his team focused, while continuing to improve their team defense, the Nugs should have a chance to make a late season push for the last Western Conference post season berth.

- Last Monday New Jersey GM Rod Thorn acquired veteran big man Clifford Robinson from Golden State for two 2nd round picks (Clippers' in 2005 & Nets' in 2007) and a 5.3 million dollar trade exception. This deal gives Warriors' GM Chris Mullin back the 2 second rounders he sent to Phoenix for Zarko Cabarkapa. Cliff's contract is up after the season, and I don't think he was in the franchise's future plans, so Mullin did a nice job parlaying him into something. Cliffy gives the Nets an experienced big man that can defend every front court position, hit open jumpers, and has range out to three. I can understand Thorn adding Cliff and Elden Campbell to New Jersey's (23-30) roster, because they are only 4 losses out of the Atlantic Division lead, and 3 losses from the 8th seed in the East. However, I'm not sure either Cliff (38 years old) or Elden (36) has enough gas left in their tank to really put the Nets over the top as they try and make run at a playoff spot.

- In a new feature this year, I'll be ranking my top 10 teams each week from now until the playoffs begin. A few disclaimers first. These rankings are not a reflection of how I think teams will fare in the post season. Nor are they an indication of who I think will win the title. They are simply meant to show who I think the top 10 teams are as play begins for the week. While overall record does play a significant factor, it is not the sole aspect I look at. Team record for the week, winning or losing streaks, and record over the last 10 games, all play a part in my rankings. The last thing I take into consideration is if a head to head match up occurred between two teams during the previous week. For example: Last Thursday in Phoenix the Mavericks, minus 3 key players, beat the Suns 119-113. If those two teams hadn't played each other, Phoenix would've been ahead of Dallas, but since the Mavs handled the Suns, Mark Cuban's club receives a bump. With all that out of the way, here is the inaugural MMM NBA top 10:

1. San Antonio
2. Miami
3. Dallas
4. Phoenix
5. Houston
6. Detroit
7. Seattle
8. Memphis
9. Sacramento
10. Cleveland

Correction: There are 9 roster spots per team in the 'Rookie Challenge', not 8 as I reported last week.

NHL Week in Review By: Ed Wasser

- Remember the scene from 'Pet Semetary' were the little kid named Gage walks out on the road and gets squashed by a Mac truck and after the funeral his father digs him up and re-buries him except this time in the pet cemetery so he can come back to life, which he does, only now instead of being a cute little kid he's a cute little murderous maniac and then Fred Gwynn appears and you thought 'man did Herman Munster get old!' and he says "sometimes dead is better"? Well, that's what I feel about the NHL right now. The league died, they tried to resurrect it over the weekend just like little Gage, and like Gage it would have come back as a monstrous version of itself but ultimately they just left the season buried. Amen fellas...just leave it dead. Take a few weeks off, go to Hawaii and relax, come back in the spring and hammer this thing out. Now a few thoughts about this mess....

- 1.) I don't want to say that the owners absolutely positively knew this would happen but I saw two articles in 'The Hockey News' that told the story.....one said the Detroit Red Wings did not have any season tickets printed this year. None. Zero. If the CBA had been settled before the season started the Red Wings would have found themselves in quite a pickle. Think the owner of the Red Wings knew something that he wasn't telling the Wings fans? The other article was about the company that makes the pucks for the NHL having to lay off workers because the league did not order one puck this year. None. Zero. Hockey without a puck is a little tough, without a puck the players might as well have on fish costumes and call it 'Finding Nemo on Ice Featuring the Flyers'.

- 2.) The most important thing to get rid of with the next CBA is arbitration. Arbitration is the reason the Rangers are hockey's evil empire. Example...the Rangers gave Bobby Holik a 5 year, $45 million contract. $45 million for a player who's main role is as a defensive player. So let's say you're some stiff defensive player like Philadelphia Flyer Radovan Somik and you're granted arbitration. Somik could go into the arbitration meeting and say 'my stats are fairly close to Holik's and he got $45 million so just give me $25 million' and he could conceivably get it, after Bobby Clarke had a heart attack. Of course Clarke could refuse to pay the arbitration award but then what? He makes the organization look cheap. And what do they do after that? Settle on $20 million which is still ridiculous? You can't win.

- 3.) A 25 game season would have been a complete waste of time for everyone. I'm sure the Flyers would have won the Stanley Cup though because that's the way the luck of the city of Philadelphia has been going. No championships since 1983 then we win some meaningless one that would have had an asterisk the size of a gorilla next to it. If they played a 25 game schedule they shouldn't even have awarded the Stanley Cup. Just give the winners of the playoffs a nice certificate like the one I got from my school for perfect attendance in 5th grade. And instead of a parade just have a little party at Pizza Hut. The whole allure of the Stanley Cup is it's the culmination of a marathon, a 25 game season is a sprint.

- Another cinematic question I've had for the past 20 years. So Rocky's walking to his first fight against Clubber Lang in 'Rocky III' and during the pre-fight melee Mickey gets thrown against the railing of the stairs and starts having an issue with his heart. Adrian takes him into the locker room to lay down. The question is how could Adrian not get a doctor? I mean the guy was as old as a goat and he had heart problems but she just lets him lay there?!? It's a professional fight, there's doctors all over the joint and Adrian lets Mickey just lie there from the pre-fight brawl, through the fight, and he's STILL laying there when Rocky gets back from getting his ass kicked by Clubber. I blame Adrian for Mickey's death.

- 4.) From the department of 'it's not broke so let's fix it' the TV show 'Cops' changed their format. They added background music, they follow a case or two through to the trial, and they focus on a few detectives trying to solve a murder while they gather clues, etc. I don't like it. I liked it better when they just showed drunks in trailer parks getting arrested for breaking a beer bottle over their mother in law's head. From the 'it IS broke so let's fix it' the NHL, whenever they do come back, will have a different game. First of all, no more ties. Thank God!! The games will be followed by a 5 minute sudden death, 5 on 5, overtime then a shootout if it's still tied. Also they'll have a wider blue line and a touch up icing rule. It's all meant, as Flyer coach Ken Hitchcock put it, "to create chaos on the ice. Goals come from chaos".

- 5.) How would you like to be an NHL player watching millions of dollars fly out the window because you're trying to be supportive of the union and not accept the salary cap then you find out last week that union head Bob Goodenow had planned to agree to it all along?

- 6.) So here's the plan...believe me this will get settled in the summer. If it looks like this will go into next year the players will lead a coup against Bob Goodenow and it won't be bloodless. Here's what has to be done....first of all a MASSIVE ad campaign needs to be devised that's clever, humble, and features players from the past and present. Second, just three words...GIVEAWAYS, GIVEAWAYS, GIVEAWAYS!!! Knock money off the price of season tickets, hire bands to give free pre-game concerts, have players autograph 1000 things a day and give them away to every man, woman, and child in North America, and have the players out in the community...ahhhh...and I don't mean just in strip clubs. This could actually work in the favor of the NHL. All the talk leading up to the 2005 - 2006 season will be about the return of hockey. They could create a real sense of anticipation, like a countdown until hockey's return...the opportunities are limitless.

- So Fairway Miss ran last Monday. If you remember last Monday was a miserable day. It was raining off and on all day. I was in the paddock before the race and when Fairway got there she was soaking wet so I knew the weather out on the track was probably a little worse then I thought. Ohhh...real quick. As I said before Fairway's trainer is an ornery lad. Well, Fairway was starting from the 2 spot with a horse named My Favorite Miss starting from the #1 spot and a horse named Tri Like The Devil starting from the 1A spot. Horses start from 1 and 1A if two horses with the same trainer are entered in the same race. The trainer in the stall next to us is our trainer's arch enemy. The rival trainer wears a toupee that looks like some sort of pelt. In fact I think I saw P.E.T.A. protesting his head. Also the rival trainer, who is AT LEAST 60 years old, has a move were he brings strippers that he's met in his travels into the paddock with him before a race. So we're standing there and our trainer starts saying LOUDLY "look at that hat of hair". The rival trainer pretends not hear him so our guy ups the ante "LOOK AT THAT TOUPEE HEAD OVER THERE WITH THE STRIPPER!" I was looking for the closest hole to climb into. One of these days I'll find out the origin of this feud. Back to business..so when he wasn't picking a fight the trainer tells jockey David Mello to stay in the middle of the track
because the rain water tends to collect by the rail. The race starts and of course Fairway breaks last. She makes a move during the turn and I see that Mello (this is why I like David) does exactly as he was told and he breaks to the middle of the track. Fairway has clear sailing the rest of the race. But she couldn't finish it off. The track was just too sloppy and difficult for her to run on. There was a photo for 3rd place between Fairway and two other horses. She finished 5th but was only a foot or so from 3rd. In retrospect Fairway should have been scratched. But if she had been then it would have been 30 days in between races so she would have had to complete a timed workout with the racing stewards watching which would have been rigmarole. It's time for her to get dropped in class slightly. But she's got bigger fish to fry right now. I went to the morning workouts the day after the race and I see Fairway standing in her stall with her two front legs in a giant bucket filled with ice. I was thinking 'ohhhh...boy. This can't be good'. Turns out she has some shin splints and ankle troubles. She was kept out of morning workouts for a few days and now will run in a claiming race because it will be a race she can win without running her heart out. At least we hope. That, of course, is assuming she can shake these injuries.

The population of Bada Boom Racing Stables has now doubled. A few weeks ago we took the money that Fairway Miss had won and claimed another horse named Clemente from John (Smarty Jones) Servis. He's a 4 year gelding that has two wins at Aqueduct. One thing is for sure, if this business was based on looks Clemente would be undefeated. He's big, I mean HUGE, and he's head to hoof muscle. He intimidating too. When you pet Fairway Miss she'll be nice and let you go; when you pet Clemente, the groom has to be holding him and he stares at you like he wants to bite all your fingers off one by one and eat them. Also when you're behind him he keeps his leg cocked like he's going to kick you in the face any second. Clemente is racing in the 6th race on Wednesday. There's no odds out yet but he should be close to the favorite. He'll be running against a horse named Jimmy Moon which I know nothing about except that he's named after Lucy Camden's first boyfriend on the TV show '7Th Heaven'. We better beat him. I'll have a recap of the race in next week's MMM.