NFL Lockout in 2011? Really?

The NFL owners and players are talking about a possible lockout in the NFL season.  Why?  Players want more money and owners want to pay less money.  Maybe the owners  just don't want to pay more money than they already are.  Regardless, the owners' main reason is so they will make more money.

I am not one of those that complains because players make millions of dollars, and I don't care that owners can make billions of dollars.  I hate that it's so expensive to go to a game, with tickets, parking, and concessions, but I get a choice there and that choice is to watch it on a large HD TV in my living room instead.  Anyways, even if players didn't make that kind of money, owners are still going to charge as much as fans are willing to pay, and stadiums are sold out, so that's that.

My problem is about the fact that NFL owners and players can't just all get happy and the negative public image that causes about the greatest sport in this country - football.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American earned $43,460 in 2009.  I didn't do the math, but my guess is that the average cost of living to go with that was probably more than half of that.  So, who thinks the average American wants to hear about an NFL lockout due to salaries and other financial complaints?  Let's see. . .

In 2009, the average base salary for an NFL player was $990,000.  The minimum NFL salary was $310,000.  Of course, that means that out of the 53 players on each team's roster, the 53rd player made at least $310,000.  That's a lot of money.  Maybe the NFL owners have a legitimate complaint.  Well, according to the USA Today, in September 2009, the average NFL team value was over $1 Billion.  Value takes into account things like players' salaries.  That means that AFTER owners pay their players, their teams are still worth over $1 Billion.

Hey,  if all these guys want to fight about money, I'm not mad.  I just think they should get behind a closed door and get a deal done. People who make $43,000 per year just don't want to hear about it.

No, You Carry My Shoulder Pads Roy!

Roy Williams says it's a rookie tradition to carry the shoulder pads of veteran players.  Dez Bryant thinks he should carry his own pads.  I'm all for traditions and who knows - maybe Bryant should carry someone's pads.  Patrick Crayton was ranked #60 in 2009 among NFL wide receivers with 622 receiving yards.  Miles Austin was #3 with 1,320 yards and 11 touchdowns.  Maybe he could carry Austin's pads, but Roy Williams should maybe carry Bryant's pads after last season's #67 ranking and only 596 receiving yards.  Dude - shut up and catch the ball!

And that ends the shortest blog post I've ever written.  The End.

Top 10 NFL Hall of Fame Running Backs

Aren't Top 10 lists fun?  I like them because everyone's list is different.  If you follow sports, you have a Top 10 List of your own, probably several Top 10 lists.  This particular list is so much fun because it's a list of great running backs - the most exciting guys on the field - those who touch the ball more than anyone other than the Quarterback and the Center.  Because of that, the great ones become household names that younger backs have to live up to for all time.

The "modern era" of the Pro Football Hall of Fame consists of 27 running backs (halfbacks & fullbacks).  Many of those players are so old and have been retired for so long (and in some cases have already passed away), that many younger football fans have not heard of them, and that's really too bad.  Most of the names on the list, however, are very well known.  You'll find names like Doak Walker (SMU) and Paul Hornung (Notre Dame - Go Irish!), and everyone knows Frank Gifford from Monday Night Football.  But, like I said, so many of those names are of players that even I had to look up.  With that said, my Top 10 list of NFL Hall of Fame running backs is filled with "household" names and greatness.

1.  Walter Payton
2.  Barry Sanders
3.  Emmitt Smith
4.  Earl Campbell
5.  Jim Brown
6.  Tony Dorsett
7.  Eric Dickerson
8.  Marcus Allen
9.  Gale Sayers
10.Thurman Thomas

Players who were edged out of my Top 10 List were:  O.J. Simpson, Larry Czonka, Franco Harris, and John Riggins.  Czonka played on the famous Dolphins undefeated team.  Harris is known for "The Immaculate Reception".  John Riggins was a total bruiser (and too bad he was a Redskin).  And O.J. . . . .

You tell me - where did I go wrong with my list?  Who should be there and who shouldn't be?  Any arguments on who's number 1?  If so, provide feedback on my blog and let me know.

NFL Divisional Rankings Predictions

Today is the start of preseason in the NFL and I've put together my list of divisional ranking predictions for the end of the 2010/2011 NFL season.  First of all, I believe that the worst teams by the end of this NFL season will be (in order from worst to bad):  Rams, Raiders, Browns, Bills, Chiefs.  The best teams will be (in order from best to very good):  Cowboys, Saints, Colts, 49ers, Ravens.

With that said, these are my predictions for the NFL divisional rankings as of the end of the 2010/2011 NFL Season.

I think at this point, I'll hold off on giving playoff and Super Bowl predictions until I've seen at least a few games of the NFL regular season.

Top NFL Fantasy Picks

Running Backs - The most important fantasy football position.

1.  Chris Johnson
2.  Adrian Peterson
3.  Maurice Jones-Drew
4.  Michael Turner
5.  Ray Rice

Wide Receivers

1.  Andre Johnson
2.  Miles Austin
3.  Sidney Rice
4.  Randy Moss
5.  Calvin Johnson

Quarterbacks

1.  Drew Brees
2.  Tony Romo
3.  Peyton Manning
4.  Aaron Rodgers
5.  Matt Schaub

Tight Ends

1.  Vernon Davis
2.  Dallas Clark
3.  Jason Witten
4.  Tony Gonzalez
5.  Jermichael Finley

Team / Defense

1.  49ers
2.  Saints
3.  Cowboys
4.  Jets
5.  Broncos

Kickers (sorry - had to add them)

1.  Nate Kaeding
2.  Matt Prader
3.  David Akers
4.  Rob Bironas
5.  Ryan Longwell

My 9-Year Old Son's Football Memory

OK, so today is July 20, 2010 and I sat down with my youngest son Aaron, who is 9 years old and I asked him to tell me the outcome and the score of random NFL games from the 2009 season.  I made sure to ask him about the Cowboys because that keeps it fun for him.  He made me specify which stadium each game was played in so that he was sure to get the right answer.  For example, the stadium they played in makes a difference when Dallas plays Washington in Washington D.C. versus playing them another week in Dallas. 

On each of the match-ups below, the bottom team is the home team.  The 1st column of numbers was Aaron's answer to the score.  If there is a second column, it's because he was wrong on the score.  Otherwise, I wrote "Correct" next to his answer.

I asked him about 28 games from the 2009 season:  21 Regular Season Games (including 1 Trick Question), 6 Playoff Games (including 1 Trick Question), and the Super Bowl.

Results:  Aaron got 100% of the Correct Winners and 54% of the Scores + Trick Questions Right.  When he was incorrect on a score, he was only off by an average of 3.5 points.  The raw data is found below.


Cowboys 17 Correct

Redskins  0

Redskins 24 Correct
Eagles     27

49ers      10 Correct
Falcons   45

Raiders   36 20
Broncos  30 19

Cowboys 26    Correct
Chiefs      20    Aaron reminded me this was in overtime.

Cowboys   35 34
Buccaneers 21 21

Jets     17 19
Bills    10 13

Redskins   6 Correct
Cowboys  7

Eagles       24 Correct
Cowboys  0

Cowboys  28 24
Giants       31  31

Giants       33 Correct
Cowboys  31

Packers      24 28
Buccaneers 33 38

Packers      31 21
Bears         28 14

Seahawks   17 Correct
Cowboys    38

Patriots      Trick Question:  These Teams Never Played and Aaron Called Me On This.
Raiders

Jets         14 14
Patriots   37 31

Bills         17 16
Jets         10 13

Jets         38 Correct
Raiders    0

Packers   38 34
Lions       10 12

Miami     10 17
Patriots   38 27

Raiders     7 Correct
Cowboys  24

Super Bowl
Saints       31 Correct
Colts        17

Playoff
Jets          17 Correct
Colts       30

Vikings    27 31
Saints      24 28   Aaron reminded me this was in overtime

Cowboys 3 Correct
Vikings    33

Jets         17 17
Chargers 13 14

Vikings   Trick Question:  I asked him who the Vikings Beat In Order to Play the Cowboys.
Aaron said the Vikings had a Bye Week.   Correct

Jets         23 24
Bengals   17 14

NFL Teams I Hate the Most

I'm a Cowboys Fan. What would you expect.
   1.  Washington Redskins
   1a. Philadelphia Eagles
   1b. New York Giants

Denver Broncos - Never liked them and I don't have a good reason.

San Diego Chargers - The Raiders are a team I want to see do well.  So, down with the Chargers!

Buffalo Bills - Boring!

St. Louis Rams - They Suck!

Seattle Seahawks - Whose idea was those uniforms?  Also - Boring!

Top 10 All-Time NFL Quarterbacks

This is my Top 10 List of All-Time NFL Quarterbacks.

1.  Joe Montana

  

2.  Roger Staubach

3.  Brett Favre

4.  Peyton Manning

5.  John Elway

6.  Terry Bradshaw

7.  Troy Aikman

8.  Dan Marino

9.  Steve Young

10.Jim Kelly

If I left yours off or you disagree with my order, leave me a comment and let me know.