thundercleetz

You are right, we have too many good bats, but not great ones (yet at least, I am thinking Reimold and Wieters are going to put up breakout numbers this season). Tejada (.922), Jones (.882 OPS), and Markakis (.924 OPS) all raked out of the #2 spot last season, but these guys did not do nearly as good in the #3 spot (Tejada had an OPS of .728, Jones .587, Markakis .811). Over the past three years Tejada has an OPS of .852 in 343 ABs batting clean-up, so he does have good production there. Wieters raked out of the #3 spot in 50 ABs (which became his regular spot toward the end of the season) with an OPS of .909. Reimold batted almost everywhere in the order and produced (except 48 ABs batting 6th). I have a feeling you could stick this guy anywhere and he would hit, he is a very professional hitter. With his power, he could be an ideal clean-up hitter. Then we have Luke Scott whose best spot is batting 6th (.969 OPS) as he was pretty terrible elsewhere. With all that said, how about a line-up of this? 2B. Roberts CF. Jones RF. Markakis 3B. Tejada C. Wieters DH. Scott LF. Reimold 1B. Atkins SS. Izturis Another variation I like is: 2B. Roberts RF. Markakis C. Wieters 3B. Tejada CF. Jones DH. Scott LF. Reimold 1B. Atkins SS. Izturis A similar lineup to this which would be just as good is batting Wieters clean-up with Markakis third and Tejada second.

Here is one prediction from me: Nolan Reimold is going to have a big year. I definitely think he is capable of hitting 30-35 homers this season. He could be our #4/5 hitter when it is said and done.

Everyone was way too critical of her. I did not think she was that bad. 105.7 the FAN is a pretty mediocre station in general if you ask me, 106.7 the FAN (DC) is of much better quality.

I myself like the bravado and swagger. However, I see the obvious reasons for not liking it.

I like dc's lineup. Although it would not surprise me to see Tejada bat #2. Last year he thrived in the #2 spot hitting at a .922 OPS in 289 ABs. I would like to see Reimold high in the lineup as well. I think he is already a better hitter than Scott. Although Scott is so streaky, his batting spot will probably change depending on how hot or cold he is.

I disagree with you on Dragon Age and Oblivion. I loved Dragon Age a lot better, I thought the storyline in Dragon Age was epic. The storyline in Oblivion is pretty diluted in my opinion. I guess it comes down to how open ended you like your games. Oblivion is obviously a lot more open ended than Dragon Age, but I prefer more linear games with solid storylines. BTW, MW2 is $45 on Amazon.com right now. That is probably the lowest price you will get it at. http://www.amazon.com/Call-Duty-Modern-Warfare-Playstation-3/dp/B00269QLH4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1264427125&sr=8-1

Wow, this game really pounds home the statement that Manning is the best QB in the league. He tore up the NFL's best defense. Rex had Manning early, but Manning made the adjustments and won the chess match.

Damn, who awakened the sleeping giant? I haven't seen max pull out a post like that in awhile. LOL

Don't get me wrong, I like Meachem, but he is nowhere near as good as Colston. Meachem is kind of a one-dimensional deep threat at this point, but he is quickly diversifying his game. Colston is the total package (he is also a very good blocker). He might not be at the level of a Fitz, Calvin or Andre Johnson, Marshall, or Wayne, but he is a tick below that. And that is not a knock either, the guys I listed above are HoF talent, Colston may not have that type of talent, but he is perennial Pro-Bowl talent. I would definitely say he is better than guys like Sydney Rice, Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin, Anquan Boldin, and Chad Ochocinco. I guess the point I am making is that Brees does have a legitimate #1 receiver, but he also has multiple solid #2 guys. I think if there is anything to take away from the Saints, it is that Henderson, Colston, Meachem, and Moore are all homegrown talents, and only Meachem was a #1 pick (they also drafted Donte' Stallworth who gave them a couple years of solid production). They just kept drafting until guys panned out. This is something we should have been doing at the position the past few years. We just have to hope that guys Justin Harper, Marcus Smith, and Eron Riley can come in next year and compete. Who is to say one of these guys cannot be our Miles Austin or Colston next year? Very unlikely, but we have nothing to lose giving them a fair chance when you already have your receivers dropping seven passes in a divisional playoff game. Harper is a guy who I think should have gotten field time. Yes, his hands were terrible, but Clayton and Mason had plenty of drops themselves. The bottom line with Harper is that he knows how to get open and has very deceptive strides that allow him to get behind the coverage. All the coaches kept saying how good of a job he was doing in practice emulating the opposing team's best receiver. And Harper was said to put in a lot of film study watching these guys trying to pick up what he could. Harper should have at least been given a shot.

You are right, the Saints have a lot of quality receivers that allows Brees to spread the ball around, but living down here in New Orleans and watching most of their games I must say that Marques Colston is a superstar receiver, or pretty close to it. He does everything you would want a number one receiver to do (soft hands, goes over the middle, can stretch the field, and goes up strong for balls in the air), he bailed Brees out on bad passes into double/triple coverage multiple times this season. Robert Meachem is also quickly becoming a very good receiver as well, he has that same aggressive playing style where he does not get beat for balls in the air. IMO, Meachem would be the best receiver on the Ravens by far. For all you fantasy players, he is going to blow up next year.

83.0 IP, 90 Ks (only 34 walks), 2.82 ERA. Yeah, he gets injured a lot, but 83 innings of that kind of pitching will help any team. The most important thing about Bedard is that I am sure there are plenty of little tricks he could teach a similar LHP in Brian Matusz. Matusz has already expressed interest in wanting to pitch with Bedard. The bottom line is with SP is that you never end the season with the same rotation as you started the season with. Last year we were struggling to field a five-man rotation. Bedard would not take starts away from our young guys Tillman, Matusz, Bergesen, or Arrieta. Instead, he gives us the option to give our young guys better matchups and extra days rest if needed. Bedard will not even be ready to pitch until at least May, so this would not be a step backwards, IMO. As for the Tejada signing, I see this as a great signing. Josh Bell is not ready, so this being a one-year deal is perfect. Tejada also can play back-up SS, which could save a roster spot. Tejada is well liked in Baltimore, he loves it here, and is a charismatic leader who the players take after. I am sure he will be a big hit with the fans returning to Camden. This is not a Garrett Atkins-type deal, we know Tejada can hit. Trembley will be able to stick Tejada anywhere from 2-5 in the lineup providing protection for either Markakis, Jones, Reimold, or Wieters. Where this will help us the most is against LHP and hitting with RISP, we struggled in both areas last year. Welcome back Miggy, we missed you!

From the man himself!!!!

So how do you think we do this season, dc? Me personally am thinking .500 (which would be a big step for us). I think Wieters and Jones are going to take big steps forward. However, I think the guy that is going to impress the most is Nolan Reimold. The guy is just a hitter, and I love his power. He is supposedly 100%, and he should be ready to rake. I seriously think 30 homeruns at a .275 average is in the cards. It all comes down to the pitching. Matusz will be our ace by the end of the season, no doubt. I think Tillman will struggle a little, but hopefully will settle in.

I guess I should be good for hopefully a few more years!!!

More than anything I was measuring progress. These things do not change over night. We had some impressive performances against quality opponents. We had 363 total yards against the Pats (regular season), 448 yards against the Vikings, and 393 (first time) and 323 (second time) yards against the Steelers. I am not defending Cam at all for the Colts game (or the two Bengals games for that matter), I am just saying we have shown progress in each of his two years, collectively. I think we started a below-average offense when Cam arrived, we took the step to a little above average offense, and now next season we need to take the step to a top ten offense. For us to take that next step, we are going to have to do the things you mentioned, make better adjustments, let Joe make audibles at the line, and more quick passes to counter the blitzes (and better blitz recognition for that matter). Most of all, we need consistency and better redzone efficiency. If we get a new offensive coordinator we have to start all over. It is a risk. It could work out, it could backfire. Given the lack of weapons we have in the passing game, I am not sure. Right now our best bet is to let Cam continue to work with the offense in its third year and hope that Ozzie gets him some weapons.

Gresham, provided he is fully recovered from his injury, would be a GREAT pick for us. We know how much Ozzie liked Pettigrew, you can be sure he will have his eyes on Gresham. Spear is right, Mays is definitely a guy who is going to be a workout warrior and probably be taken higher than he should. At the same time, he could end up being a Kenny Phillips taken at the end of the first round. I think there is some merit to that. But the fact that Ngata is doubled on every play (and he legitimately is) should open opportunities on the outside. Dwan Edwards, as you mentioned, was a great surprise for us and needs to be re-signed. He is Pryce's long-term replacement. So what we need is a guy who can win one-on-one matchups on the outside. I don't care if the guy is a one-dimensional pass-rusher, we need someone who we can just let loose on the QB. Suggs should be able to be that guy who wins the one-on-one matchups, but he is inconsistant. Hopefully the fact that he will be taking part in offseason workouts will help him this season. A guy like Elvis Dumervil came into the league as a one-dimensional pass rusher and got 8.5 sacks his rookie year. Orakpo came in and notched 11 sacks and Clay Matthews got 10. These are guys who got their sacks from just winning one-on-one matchups, nothing really to do with scheme. Look at the Skins pass rush. Last year it was horrible. They got Haynesworth, and they drafted Orakpo. Orakpo got a lot of these matchups because teams double Haynesworth, we need a guy who can make teams pay for doubling Ngata. On the other side Andre Carter got 11 sacks as well. Carter is similar to Suggs, a guy who plays the run well, but cannot be "the guy" as the pass rusher. When Suggs got 12 sacks, he had Boulware. If we can get a legitimate pass rusher on the other side of Suggs, it will take a lot of pressure off of him as teams will have to account for Ngata and two good pass rushers.

Good points guys! It would be interesting to see how Flacco does with good receivers! Have fun at the Pro-Bowl, Spear. Joe needs to get some strength in his legs too! Get that boy in the gym doing some squats and then feed him some hamburgers!!! Big Ben is a fat ass, but it makes him a better player because he is so hard to take down. If Flacco can get up 250 pounds, he would probably be able to take the punishment a little better.

I would hope that if Flacco's injury was as bad as everyone said it was, that he would not play even if chosen. It could very well be the case that they asked Flacco to replace Rivers, but he declined due to injury, thus Young got in. Can anyone believe that Young is a two-time Pro Bowler? His stats suck, but granted the guy wins ball games. The Titans could be trouble next season.

Dez Bryant (the best receiver) is going #10 to the Broncos (Kiper is assuming they trade Marshall) and Taylor Mays is going #23 to the Pack. Golden Tate (the next receiver drafted) is going #29 to the Jets.

LOL, I was about to say the same thing. It doesn't matter though, I won't be a student this season... Don't get too down dc, Tejada could be coming back to play third! If anything, it will be exciting to see how the young guys Matusz, Tillman, Bergesen, Arrieta, Pie, Reimold, Weiters, and Jones do this season. These guys are going to be much better prepared coming into this season than they were last season. Hopefully Nick has a nice rebound year as well.

Oh come on! We are being a little hard on Cam, aren't we? I do not think we should judge him until the end of next season. His first year the offense was 18th, this year it was 13th. If the offense stays around the same ranking, I will be more willing to agree with you. But I have a good feeling that this will be a top ten offense next season. Cam is going to add some more wrinkles to the offense, and will open up the playbook and give Joe more control with him heading into his third year. Ozzie knows what needs to be done, and he will get some more weapons.

Kiper's first mock draft: Definitely seems like an Ozzie pick. We knew how high he was on Pettigrew last season, Gresham is a more complete player than Pettigrew was coming out.

I know the Raiders would not be the best situation for Hue, but at the same time he has a chance to be an OC in this league, something I know he wants badly to be. Hue is a smart guy though, and I am sure better opportunities will arise. Nevertheless, Hue could use this interview as experience for future jobs as well. I for one would love to have Hue as the OC of this team some day.

With long-term extensions for our own guys that would probably be a good idea. The point dc was making is that under the former collective bargaining rules, we would only be able to sign one free agent in an uncapped year for about $3 million. So what dc was saying was could we pay the guy $3 million this year, then maybe $6 million next year, and so on. If I had to guess, there are probably years stating how large of a contract you are allowed to give.

From what I am hearing, if the CAP goes it will be very difficult if not impossible to bring it back in the future. Even if they did, it would have to be at a substantially higher number than ever before. Owners are not going to agree to a low cap after an uncapped year where they have spent money on their team.