Around the NFL

A couple of head scratchers, the Pats release S John Lynch and WR Chad Jackson.

Ricky Williams signed an extension with the Dolphins.

The Giants sign a former first rounder to the defensive line.

Chris Brown went on the IR for the Texans.

Joey Harrington got the axe from Atlanta.

A pair of first day picks (edit, thanks Anon) are among those cut by the Bears.

The Pats are still trying to land Ty Law.

The Saints are once again forced to relocate.

Chris Simms was released by the Bucs.

Around the NFL

The Pats cut four players and have another 14 cuts to make in order to get to the 53 man limit.

Former Pats LB Rosey Colvin was cut by the Texans.

Chad Henne looks to have the backup job in Miami secure as Josh McCown was dealt.

Matt Hasselbeck may be throwing to himself this year.

The Cowboys fill a hole on their offensive line while they have some issues at receiver.

Surprise, suprise, Al Davis is feuding with his coach.

Phillip Rivers wants to work on his image…..or he finally realized LT is why he is a winning QB.

Buffalo and their All-Pro LT remain at loggerheads.

The New Jersey Jets are not worried about the play of one of their rookies…..yet.

Cadillac Williams will have to wait to try to reclaim his starting job.

Braylon Edwards says he will be ready for the opener while explaining how he missed three weeks of practice.

Mike Tomlin expects things to improve in the Steel Ciy in his second year.

UPDATES

Kevin Faulk received a one game suspension for drug possession.

Rudi Johnson got his walking papers. 

Quick Look at the AFC South

AFC SOUTH (with teams in predicted order of finish)

Indianapolis Colts

Strengths: The Colts’ offense has been near the top of the league for many of Peyton Manning’s seasons their. With Marvin Harrison returning from injury and second year man Anthony Gonzalez becoming more familiar with the offense, the Colts’ attack could be even better in 2008. The defense was outstanding last season, finishing 3rd in the league in yards allowed and holding teams to under 20 points on 9 occasions….all while Dwight Freeney missed 7 games due to injury and LB Rob Morris saw action in just two games.

Weaknesses: The health of Peyton Manning means everything to this team as back up Jim Sorgi is a very inexperienced QB. It will be interesting to watch Manning recover from a major injury for the first time in his career. Under Manning and Dungy the offense has always been in sync, whether number 18’s absence from training camp disrupts that will also be an interesting story line to follow.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Strengths: The Jags have the best 1-2 punch at running back in the game. Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor combined for nearly 2,000 yards in 2007 with Jones also being a very good receiver coming out of the backfield. David Gerrard more than adequately took over for Byron Leftwich and ended the season with the third best QB rating in the NFL. Should he continue his progression the Jags could open up the passing attack and take advantage of the newly acquired speedster, Jerry Porter. Jacksonville also returns the 12th ranked defense with only Marcus Stroud being the most notable departure.

Weaknesses: Not much of a weakness, but the Jags looked to improve their pass rush from a season ago by moving up in the draft and taking Florida DE Derrick Harvey–however, Harvey has yet to sign meaning they will again have to find ways to get to the QB without a pure rusher. While they return most of their regulars from a year ago, the Jags will be without defensive coordinator Mike Smith who left to take the head coaching position in Atlanta.

Tennessee Titans

Strengths: The Titans return the key players to their defense that finished 5th in the league and added Jevon Kearse. Kearse returns after spending the last 4, relatively unproductive seasons with the Eagles. Barring injury, the Titans should again have one of the NFL’s premier defensive units….

Weaknesses: ….which is good because Tennessee returns one of the weakest offenses in the league. The Titans ranked 21st in total offense, but the true weakness was that under the direction of Vince Young the Titans mustered under 200 yards a game through the air as he threw just 9 TD to 17 picks and the offense broke the 30 point mark just twice. If the Titans are going to go anywhere in the tough AFC South, VY and the offense need to find the end zone on more than just 26 occasions.

Houston Texans

Strengths: The Texans’ offense, despite the injuries to Matt Schaub, played fairly well in 2007 finishing 14th in total yardage. The arrival of Alex Gibbs means the Texans should see even better line play and allow for their running game to top the 99 yards/game average of a year ago. Full seasons from Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson could put the Texans among the top 10 passing offenses in the league.

Weaknesses: Despite the play of Mario Williams and Demeco Ryans, Houston has some concerns on D. They brought in pass rushing specialist Rosevelt Colvin from the Patriots, but starting corner Dunta Robinson will be out for the first half of the season. The secondary got torched for 230 yards/game last season and finished last in the league with just 11 picks. While there are some high expectations in Houston, those could come crashing down very early as they open the season against the Steelers, Ravens, Titans, Jaguars and Colts, with just two of those games at home. Even 2 wins during that stretch would be respectable, but if 0-5 were to happen it would sink their season before they get to the bye week.

2008 OUTLOOK

The Colts will struggle without Peyton Manning under center and would hand the division to the Jags. However, even with a healthy Manning, the Colts are going to be in a battle as the Jags are poised to make 2008 the year the Colts are finally dethroned. These two meet in week 3 in Indy. Meanwhile, given the lack of offense, it was quite surprising that the Titans were able to finish 10-6 last year. This season they will have one of the tougher schedules in the NFL (thanks to the schedule rotation giving them the AFC and NFC North) and without improved play from VY and the offense, the Titans could easily miss the playoffs. The Houston Texans are the darkhorse pick for a lot of people, but they are still a fairly young team with a bad defense and unless the secondary can somehow be shored up, teams will continue to throw at them and be successful. A problem the Texans can do nothing about is the 4 playoff teams they will face by week 5, meaning this team will not get much of an opportunity to iron out their problems.

Look for the Colts and Jags to battle it out for the AFC South crown, while the Titans and Texans struggle to get above .500.

Saturday Morning Quick Hitters

Paul Byrd gets his 1st win in a Red Sox uniform, beating the Toronto Blue Jays 8 – 4. Red Sox right fielder might have a herniated disc.

Tampa Bay stays 4 1/2 games up on the Red Sox by beating AL Central contender Chicago White Sox 9 – 4.

The Minnesota Twins moved 1/2 game ahead of the Pale Hose in the AL Central by beating AL West leaders California Angels, 9 – 0.

The New York Mets and Johan Santana shut out another team, the Houston Astros, 3 – 0 Friday night. Santana pitched 7 very strong innings on the way to the win.

Greg Maddux return to the LA Dodgers was not that spectacular Friday, as the Philadelphia Phillies pounded the Dodgers 8 – 1. The loss puts the Dodgers 2 games back of the D-Backs.

Willie Harris and the Washington Nationals took what looks like a season worth of frustrations out on the Cubs Friday in day baseball. Willie Harris hit a grand Slam and a 2 run HR to cap his biggest day at the plate, helping the Nats to a 13 – 5 blasting of the Cubbies.

The Milwaukee Brewers gained a game on the Cubs by beating the Pittsburgh Pirates 10 – 4. The Brew Crew are no 4 1/2 games behind the Cubs in the Nl Central.

The Arizona Diamondbacks blew a late game lead, losing to the Florida Marlins 5 – 4.

Houston Texans WR Harry Williams was down on the carpet for a long time after a head to head hit on one of his teammates during the Texans game with the Dallas Cowboys. While Williams regained sensations, spinal surgery is needed.

Tom Brady didn’t play again and the offewnsive line was offensive as the Philadelphia Eagles pounded the Patriots 27 – 17.

The San Fransisco 49ers admit failure and name JT O’Sullivan starting QB for the season opener.

San Diego Chargers superstar LB Shawne Merriman tells the North County (CA) Times that he has ligament damage.

The Boston Celtics sign oft injured Darius Miles.

The Denver Nuggets re-sign JR Smith to a 3 yr deal.

Michael Finley officially returns to the San Antonio Spurs.

New Orleans Hornets sign Devin brown.

In Bum Phillips I Trust

With the NFL season just weeks away, it’s time for the annual adoption pick. If you are unaware of what I am talking about, well it’s simple. Each year, along with cheering for my beloved Patriots, I adopt a second squad to support. Now…you may ask yourself why. Isn’t cheering for one team enough? Isn’t it going against the cheering code if you have a second team? Do you have a mental disorder? The answer is no to all of these questions (at least as far as I know I don’t have a mental disorder.) Let me break it down for you.

Being a Patriots fan in the regular season is like cheering for anyone who picks a fight with France; you already know the outcome. And with the easiest schedule this season, there is no doubt the Pats are in the playoffs. I’ll watch them every week, and cheer out loud, but everyone knows it’s a mortal lock for New England to move on. Where is the drama? As for the cheering code, just stay away from a rival. And I did graduate with a 3.0+ GPA in Broadcast Journalism from a University, so I believe I’m still sane…at least I think so.

So the next question should be how the selection is made. It all starts with a series of conditions which may qualify the certain team you are looking to adopt.

Condition 1: It cannot be a rival or in the same division as your favorite team.

Condition 2: They must play at least two games against rivals of your team.

Condition 3: You must have a rooting interest in at least three players on the team.

Condition 4: They must pose no threat to your favorite team, at least at the beginning of the season.

Condition 5: You must be able to name the team’s head coach, starting quarterback, and stadium.

If you and the adoptive team pass these five requirements, then congratulations, you have officially adopted an NFL team.

It just so happens that I have found that team. It’s a team that hasn’t had a lot of success in its young existence…a team that has tremendous upside…a team that has really hot cheerleaders. I have officially adopted the Houston Texans.

Before you ask, the head coach is Gary Kubiak, Matt Schaub is their starter (for now), and they play in Reliant Stadium…Condition 5…check.

They play in the AFC South, and by no means are they a rival…Condition 1…check.

They play the Steelers, Fins, and Colts twice…Condition 2…check.

They have an outside shot of reaching the playoffs. By no means are they a threat to the Pats….Condition 4…check.

The three players I’ll be following are running backs Steve Slaton and Darius Walker, and quarterback Matt Schaub. Slaton is an obvious selection, having gone to the ole alma mater West Virginia. A product of Notre Dame, Walker gets also gets the nod. Yeah I like Notre Dame Football, what of it? Schaub is thrown some love as well, since I continue to claim he is the next best thing…Condition 3…check.

Somebody wake Bum Phillips up from his old-age-induced coma, and raise a shot of Old Crow, because the Texans make the cut, and have been officially adopted as my second team this year. And not a bad team to select, considering they improved their offensive line, have a solid detail at the skill positions, and a young, fast defense. Their biggest issue will be the division they play in. The Colts are the perennial favorites, and the Jags are not far behind. Both the Texans and Titans are long shots in the AFC South, but don’t be surprised if two from the division reach the playoffs.

Chris Sedenka is the host of the PM JAB, which can be heard weekdays between 3-7pm on 95.5FM and AM1440 Sportsradio WJAB in Central and Southern, Maine.