Chiefs rookies face baptism by fire at New England
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- First, Branden Albert is moved from the guard position where he's comfortable to left tackle -- where he's not.
Then, with a vital new position to learn, he hurts his foot just five days into training camp. So instead of spending the summer learning how to play left tackle in the NFL, Kansas City's first-round lineman could only stand around and try to stay in shape.
Then he finally gets clearance to practice this week, and guess who awaits him and a raft of other Chiefs rookies for their NFL debut on Sunday?
None other than five-time Pro Bowl defensive end Richard Seymour and all the rest of the talented, savvy AFC champion New England Patriots.
Is Albert ready?
"I'm going to have to be ready," the 6-foot-5, 315-pounder said Wednesday. "I've just got to keep working hard all through the week. Hopefully, I'll be ready on Sunday."
One of at least five Chiefs rookies who'll see plenty of action as huge underdogs in their first NFL game, Albert said he's not going to worry about all the practice time he missed and all the lessons he still hasn't learned.
"I don't know what I'd be like if I didn't miss camp. Like I said, I've just got to perform on Sunday," he said. "It was frustrating. Who knows? That time could have helped me. But I can't get time back. So I've got to move forward and just play football."
Albert played mostly guard during a three-year career at Virginia, but immediately after the Chiefs made him the 15th overall draftee last April, he learned he was moving to left tackle.
"It's not that much different," he said. "It's a lot more space to cover, faster players to defend, but it's not much different."
Also making his debut, and no doubt presenting a tempting target, will be cornerback Brandon Flowers. Another rookie cornerback, Brandon Carr, will probably be the nickel back. On the defensive line, the Chiefs will count on first-round pick Glenn Dorsey to help make up the difference for the loss of Pro Bowl defensive end Jared Allen, who was traded to Minnesota.
Altogether, the rebuilding Chiefs will probably take 11 rookies to New England.
"I don't think it's too big for any one of them," said head coach Herm Edwards. "We're going to take 11 rookies and they're going to play. I just think that's part of the process of building a football team. You don't worry about those things. You worry about the game plan, and is (Albert) going to be in shape to do a good job. If he's fatigued, you get him out. Right now, he's worked his way into a position to play."
The Chiefs ended last year on a nine-game losing streak and purged many veterans. Edwards has been insisting all week that he's not worried about his fuzzy-cheeked youngsters.
"Most of these kids played as (college) freshmen," he said. "They didn't redshirt, so they played. A lot of these kids, the high-round picks, played at big-time programs. They went in there right out of high school and played."
Edwards said the Chiefs have actually been planning for this weekend for years.
"You look at the last two (Chiefs) drafts previous to this one, it was basically the same scenario. That was intended. It wasn't by accident," Edwards said.
"When they were 17 and 18 years old, they walked on a college campus at a big university and they handled that pressure. So when they get to this level, it's really no different. First time playing? Guess what? You should be able to handle it."
Flowers admits to a few butterflies when he watched film of the high-powered wide receivers who'll baptize him into the NFL.
"It's a challenge I'm willing to take on," Flowers said. "Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Tom Brady. Top of the game right now. What a better way to start a season, see where I'm at. I think I'll be ready. I like to take on challenges."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Wrong time for Romo to trip
IRVING, Texas Let the parade of sarcastic jokes start to flow.
Like this: Did you hear Jessica Simpson was going to remake the Go-Go's song "Vacation" with Tony Romo starring in the video?
Or maybe this: Did you hear that Nick Lachey has completed more passes since he divorced Simpson than Romo has since he started dating her?
Yeah, it's going to be a rough offseason for Romo and the Dallas Cowboys. They completed their fall from 11-1 at the end of November to losing three of their final five games, culminating in a stunningly ineffective performance in Sunday's 21-17 loss to the New York Giants in the second round of the NFC playoffs.
Topping the list of the listless for the Cowboys was Romo, who was 18 of 36 for 201 yards, one touchdown and an interception. All of that came after Romo caused a stir last week by spending Thursday through Sunday in Mexico with Simpson.
As controversies go, the Romo-Simpson getaway to Cabo San Lucas is about as lame as taking Simpson's singing and acting seriously. But here's one thing that goes with a high-profile vacation in the midst of your team preparing to defend the No. 1 seed in the NFC: You had better play well, or you'll suffer the consequences.
Romo, the same guy who dropped to his knees in shame a year ago when the Cowboys lost to Seattle in the first round of the playoffs, is now about to really hear it from his adoring fans.
"I don't live with regrets," Romo said when he was questioned about his decisions over the past few weeks. "I'm content in my own skin. If I try and be a good person and I'm strong enough in my faith, if I'm strong enough in what I'm trying to do, then I feel like I'm doing it the right way."
Romo might want to reconsider that approach because most fans aren't going to want to hear that right now, especially since a lot of people saw this coming with the Cowboys. Over the final month of the regular season, Dallas lost to Philadelphia and Washington and barely got by Detroit and Carolina. All of that came after a commanding performance against Green Bay, which will host the Giants in the NFC championship next Sunday.
It also came after sweeping the Giants in the regular season behind two strong offensive performances; teams with two victories against another team usually win if they face them a third time. Instead, the Cowboys reversed the trend as their offense disappeared in the second half Sunday.
With 53 seconds remaining in the first half, Dallas was on pace to complete a sweep of the Giants. The Cowboys had taken a 14-7 lead on the strength of a nine-play, 96-yard drive and then a stunning 20-play, 90-yard drive. The second of the drives featured the Cowboys going six-for-six on third down.
But in the final seconds of the first half, the Giants turned this game on its ear. They drove 71 yards on seven plays in the span of 46 seconds, with quarterback Eli Manning going four of seven to account for all of the yardage. It was Manning's second straight efficient performance as he completed 12 of 18 for 163 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. Among the throws was a pretty 22-yard toss to rookie wide receiver Steve Smith.
During the second half, Dallas couldn't get in any type of rhythm offensively. Gone were the big plays Romo and the Cowboys use to get their offense moving. They had only three plays longer than 10 yards the entire second half, topped by a 20-yard completion to tight end Jason Witten.
"That's what we were focused on taking away all game," Giants cornerback Aaron Ross said. "If we gave up something big, we just talked to each other and stayed focused on not giving up another one."
That was the plan in the secondary. Up front, the defensive line stopped thinking so much. In the two previous games, the Giants had focused on keeping Romo in the pocket instead of allowing him to freelance. In this game, the Giants threw caution to the wind and just chased Romo however they could.
"We just wanted to get in his face however we could, get his feet moving so he couldn't throw it that well," defensive end Osi Umenyiora said. The results were good, particularly in the second half. On two different occasions, Romo either threw the ball short of his receiver or couldn't throw it at all even when a receiver was running open.
Dallas hurt its own cause with a series of penalties ranging from major to minor. The result was that the Cowboys had 12 situations in the second half in which they faced second or third down needing 10 yards or more.
That's a recipe for disaster. Moreover, it's a recipe for plenty of second-guessing. Was Romo ready? Did coach Wade Phillips push the right buttons at the end of the season? Should wide receiver Patrick Crayton, who talked a lot of trash and then dropped two key passes in the second half, just have shut his mouth?
If there is a good development from Dallas' loss, it's that the players seemed to rally together. In particular, wide receiver Terrell Owens showed great support of Romo. This is the same Owens who once trashed teammate and quarterback Donovan McNabb and before that ripped his coaches in San Francisco.
"This isn't about Tony," Owens said. "You guys can point the finger at him. You can talk about the vacations. And if you do that, it's wrong. It's not fair. It's really not fair. That's my teammate. That's my quarterback. If you guys do that, it's not fair. We lost as a team."
Likewise, Owens defended coach Wade Phillips. For a guy who was perceived as a cancer for so long, Owens played the role of tactful leader in the face of adversity.
Unfortunately, the adversity in the aftermath of this game isn't going to end anytime soon.
Copyright 2008 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.
Playoff tickets not hard to get in Green Bay for a price
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) -- While tickets to the four divisional playoff games officially are sold out, plenty are available -- at a price.
In Green Bay, ticket brokers say they've been surprised at the number of people wanting to resell their tickets to Green Bay's game Saturday against the Seattle Seahawks.
There's about what I expected with the same amount of buyers," said Josh Anderson, manager of Ticket King near Lambeau Field. "Sales have been great, we've sold a ton of tickets; it's just more for sale than I thought there would be."
Anderson said with so many sellers, seat holders have been surprised tickets just haven't been that profitable to resell, despite a matchup with the former Packers head coach.
"I don't know if they think it's Mike Holmgren or they tell me that it's going to be Brett Favre's last game," Anderson said. "They think they're going to get rich."
Anderson was selling $108 face value tickets in cheaper areas of the stadium for between $199 and $249 this week. That's a lower profit margin than what scalpers across the country are getting for the tour of 15-year-old Miley Cyrus, star of the Disney Channel's "Hannah Montana" TV show.
Brokers and fans say they believe there are two reasons so many tickets are available in Green Bay: the weather and the large number of "snowbirds," seniors who hold the seats but head to Arizona or Florida in the winter.
"I don't see the same regulars when it gets colder," said beer vendor Al Hale, who works two sections behind the visitor's bench.
Bob Geitner, 57, has been a season ticket holder since 1981, when his family passed down the tickets to him. He said he's been conflicted whether to sell because he's a restaurant owner in Sturgeon Bay and game days are when the bar is busiest.
Geitner said he attends about half the games each year and sells the rest.
"I've never sold them for more than face value, but I might this weekend," Geitner said. "None of the family members can make it and we have a wedding at the restaurant, so we're just going to sell them to neighbors or friends."
Geitner doesn't sell to strangers because at Lambeau Field, if a fan's conduct is unruly, the season ticket holder can have the tickets revoked no matter who is in the seats.
The secondary ticket market is a sticky situation for clubs. In Massachusetts, for example, it's illegal to scalp tickets, and season ticket holders caught could lose their seats.
"Reselling tickets is a revokable offense," Patriots spokesman Stacey James said.
While tickets for New England's game with Jacksonville start at $80 for standing room, a glance at online outlets shows fans can get a standing room in the stadium for $112, and the first pair of seats in the nosebleeds start around $148 apiece. More than 700 tickets on one site were still available Thursday, with tickets for the AFC championship game, if played in Foxborough, starting at $300 each.
The Colts, meanwhile, promote StubHub as the official secondary ticketing partner of the club. On the site, about 800 tickets remain for their game against the Chargers, starting at $98.
The Cowboys use Ticketmaster's TicketExchange as the only approved secondary marketplace for tickets. But ticket broker Scott Baima, owner of Texas Tickets in Dallas, said his sales have been strong for the Cowboys' first playoff game in Texas Stadium since 1999; they play the Giants on Sunday.
"Any seat is worth money," Baima said.
Both Anderson and Baima said the real profit would come in future rounds, especially if the Cowboys and Packers met for the NFC championship at Dallas.
"It's big. Everybody's hoping that the two teams win and meet in the championship game," said Baima, who estimates tickets would go anywhere from $200 to $1,000 each.
"It'll be huge," Anderson added. "I'll guess $375 to $1,000, I'm sure. Especially at Texas Stadium, where the good seats are going to really go for big money."
As for an NFC title game in Green Bay, Anderson said getting in the door might be tougher, but the premium seats wouldn't be worth as much.
"New York would be very popular, but I would predict that championship would be $425-$450," Anderson said. "On the high end, you wouldn't bust that $1,000 mark."
It doesn't seem to matter who goes to the Super Bowl for the AFC, either.
With both the Colts and Patriots winning titles in the past three seasons, the real draw will be the Cowboys or Packers, whose fans travel well. Tickets valued at $700 and $900 would sell for $2,000 to $3,000, brokers said.
"The Super Bowl is still much bigger," Baima said. "Green Bay or Dallas makes it big either way."
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Colts hold 11 players out of practice
INDIANAPOLIS -- Eleven Indianapolis Colts players, including eight-time Pro Bowl receiver Marvin Harrison, missed practice Wednesday.
Harrison has not played since Oct. 22 because of a left knee injury and may miss his 10th consecutive game Sunday. Coach Tony Dungy has expressed hope Harrison would return and remains optimistic that Harrison will be available for the playoffs.
But the lingering knee injury has forced Harrison to miss 10 games this season, including the last nine, and generated plenty of questions whether he will play again this season.
"I'm not confused at all," Dungy said before practice. "When they say he can come back and have no further risk of injury, he'll be back. With the playoffs and more on the line, he might be able to go with the same injury that has kept him out. So I don't think it's confusing at all."
Whether Harrison plays Sunday against Tennessee could dictate how many snaps Super Bowl MVP Peyton Manning gets.
On Monday, Dungy said if Harrison played this week he might keep Manning in the game longer to work on their timing. That was the case last year when tight end Dallas Clark returned in the regular-season finale after originally being diagnosed with a season-ending knee injury.
Clark has credited that game with helping him become one of Indy's key contributors during its Super Bowl run.
Manning, who said he has not practiced at all with Harrison recently, would like to see Harrison back on the field as soon as possible.
"Any time you have a chance to get some injured players back, it's always a positive," Manning said. "Dallas Clark was a great example of that last year, and it's a great credit to him that he got back on his own. The more games you play, the more advantageous it is."
Harrison could be part of a large contingent sitting out a game that has playoff implications for Tennessee and Cleveland but means nothing to the Colts' postseason positioning.
Anthony Gonzalez, Harrison's replacement, also sat out Wednesday with a concussion.
Dungy already said it's doubtful second tight end Ben Utecht (shoulder), defensive tackle Raheem Brock (ribs) and right tackle Ryan Diem (knee) would play against the Titans. All three missed Wednesday's workout.
Defensive end Robert Mathis, who has two sprained knees, safety Antoine Bethea (knee), defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock (groin) and defensive back Tim Jennings (concussion) also were out Wednesday.
Fullback Luke Lawton and defensive end Josh Thomas did not practice because they were ill.
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
NFL rejects players' union's appeal for suspended Titans cornerback Pacman Jones
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The NFL rejected an appeal by the players' union Thursday on behalf of suspended Titans cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell turned down Jones' request for leniency Nov. 6. The NFL Players' Association appealed that ruling as excessive and had a hearing by telephone Dec. 14. But Jones must serve the final two games of his seasonlong suspension.
Commissioner Goodell notified Adam Jones today that his suspension for the 2007 season will not be modified," the league said in a statement.
"Once the Titans have concluded their 2007 season, Jones may begin limited activities at the club's facility and, assuming no further problems, will be eligible to participate fully in Tennessee's off-season workout program."
Jones' attorney, Manny Arora, did not immediately return a message left on his cell phone. The players' union did not immediately return a message left by The Associated Press.
The Titans (8-6) are contending for their first playoff berth since 2003.
Goodell suspended the sixth pick overall in the 2005 draft for the season in April. Las Vegas police said Jones incited a strip club fight that led to a triple shooting Feb. 19, leaving one man paralyzed. He pleaded no contest in early December to a disorderly conduct charge, agreeing to a year probation, random drug testing, community service and anger management classes.
Jones has been arrested six times since being drafted, including two arrests in Georgia in 2006 that the Titans did not learn about until 2007.
Charges in two other cases are pending. A felony obstruction charge in Georgia from February 2006 is on a court docket for March, and public intoxication and disorderly conduct charges in Tennessee from August 2006 are on a court docket for Jan. 3.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Hard time: Browns' Lewis understands what Vick faces in prison
BEREA, Ohio (AP) -- Jamal Lewis once lost his freedom, stripped of life's simplest pleasures by a stupid, youthful mistake. The misstep landed Cleveland's running back in prison and nearly cost him his NFL career.
He has walked in Michael Vick's shoes.
Lewis knows better than most what lies ahead for Vick, the disgraced Atlanta Falcons quarterback sentenced this week to 23 months in federal prison for running a dogfighting operation.
"What he's facing is a tough time," Lewis said before the Browns practiced on Wednesday, "and it's the fear of the unknown. You don't know what to expect. You hear all the horror stories about jail."
Lewis, too, heard them before he began serving four months at a prison in Florida two years ago on cocaine conspiracy charges. He was sentenced after pleading guilty to using a cell phone to try to set up a drug deal in 2000, not long after he was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens.
For Lewis, the toughest part of his confinement -- he also spent two months in a halfway house in Atlanta -- was not serving the punishment. As Vick will learn, the challenge is staying mentally strong.
"The hardest part is finding a routine and finding a way to deal with the day-to-day stresses of not being able to have the things you had when you were out on the street," said Lewis, who signed with Cleveland as a free agent in March.
"It's not being able to get up and scramble some eggs. It's not being able to go to the store and buy a Gatorade. That's the hard part, not being able to do those little things."
Lewis learned to adapt over time. Forced to get up before dawn, he worked in the prison's tool shop. To fill up his day, he read, lifted weights and talked with fellow inmates, many of whom were serving much longer terms than his.
"There's dudes in there doing 15, 20 years," he said.
Speaking in depth about his time in prison for the first time since joining the Browns, Lewis said he was confident he would be able to adjust to being incarcerated. Once he accepted the penalty, he vowed to make the best of his time away.
"I just saw myself as I can go into any situation, that's me," he said. "I can go anywhere and fit in with anybody. That's the mentality that I took in, that hey, I've got to put my mind-set here and that's what I did. I just took it in stride and just put myself in that environment and fit in as best I could."
Above all, Lewis used his prison time to improve himself as a man. Vick would be wise to do the same.
"You have to better yourself as a person, period, because you have the time to do it," he said.
The experience of losing his freedom had a profound effect on Lewis, who came away changed by prison. He learned not to dwell on small inconveniences and was rewarded with a new perspective on life.
"I was always a humble person," he said. "But prison makes you more humble after you've been through that because you come out and the things that go on off the field, things that go on with your family and things that go on in your day-to-day life are not that hard anymore.
"They're not that big of a deal anymore. Sometimes people don't understand that. Now things will happen and I'm like, 'Oh, well, there are a lot worse things that can happen."'
At some point, Lewis plans to reach out to Vick, whom he has met but doesn't know well.
"Once the storm quiets down, then I'll be able to give some advice to him," he said.
Like Vick, Lewis once stared at an uncertain future as daunting as any defensive front he ever encountered. He managed to resurrect his career and rehab a tattered image. And now at 28, the 2003 Offensive Player of the Year is viewed as a team leader with the Browns.
He learned from his errors and Lewis straightened out his life. He's convinced Vick can follow him.
"He will," Lewis said. "Trust me, he's already suffered enough punishment. This time right now is something that he has to do. It's time that he has to sit back and reflect on the things that he had, the things that could be taken away from him.
"He still has a chance to get out and do some good things with himself. He has a lot of time. When he gets out, he's still going to be young. Right now, it's what does he do from this point on?"
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved
Suspects involved earlier in Taylor break-in
NEW YORK (TICKER) -- At least two of the four men charged in the murder of Washington Redskins star Sean Taylor were involved in a burglary of his Miami-area home eight days before his fatal shooting, the New York Times reported on its web site.
According to the report, football memorabilia and large amounts of cash were found in at least one of the suspects' homes.
Richard Sharpenstein, Taylor's former lawyer, told the Times he was aware of the connection.
This wasn't a random burglary," he told the newspaper. "This was a dime-a-dozen wannabe criminal who has been to the house before. They stole his life thinking they were going to steal a few dollars from him."
In an earlier break-in at Taylor's home on November 17, someone pried open a front window, rifled through drawers and left a knife on a bed.
Eric Rivera, 17; Jason Mitchell, 19; Charles Wardlow, 18; and Venjah Hunte, 20, have been charged with first-degree felony murder and armed burglary. Their arraignments are December 21.
In the grand jury indictment, Rivera, who will be tried as an adult, was identified as the shooter.
Taylor, 24, died November 27, a day after he was shot in his bedroom in what police described as a burglary gone bad.
Copyright 2007 PA SportsTicker. All Rights Reserved
|
