It All Starts Now

Some thoughts on the recent NFL news:

- Sean Taylor of the Washington Redskins was fined $17,000 for spitting in the face of Bucs RB Michael Pittman. Should Taylor have been fined $100K and suspended for a game (as Michael Wilbon suggests in today's Washington Post), or was the fine appropriate considering the deed?

I'm sure you've discovered that I'm a Seahawks fan, and I make no apologies about that. A suspension of Taylor would benefit the Seahawks, since he's an impact player on defense, which is the area of the game the Redskins will need to be at their peak to beat the Seahawks. So, although I'd have done it a bit differently than Wilbon suggests, I do agree with what he is saying.

The NFL spends millions of dollars on it's public image and when a player steps way over the line (and spitting at an opponent is about the worst thing you can do on the field), the league slaps that man on the wrist. Now, I'm not of the opinion that Taylor should've been suspended for this weekend's game. That's penalizing the team for the actions of one moronic individual. But they should've levied a much larger fine (at least $50K) and suspended Taylor for the 1st regular season game of the 2006 season. Maybe that would send a message to knuckleheads like Taylor, because fines are clearly not going to cut it.

- Some NFL team is going to take a chance on Marcus Vick. That same NFL team is going to be laughed at by 31 other NFL teams, as well as every sportswriter in America, and they'll deserve every last ounce of it. This is a kid that was suspended by Virginia Tech for the 2004 season for providing alcohol to three underage girls, flipping off the fans in West Virginia and reckless driving and possession of marijuana charges. Then came the "stomp heard 'round Charlottesville" when he cleated Louisville DE Elvis Dumervil's exposed calf in a bowl game.

Virginia Tech did the right thing, about the only thing they could do at this point, and booted Vick off the team for good. "No problem", Vick mused "I'll just go to the next level". And within 3 day, we saw what the "next level" really is: a jail cell. This time for brandishing a gun at three people in a McDonald's parking lot. What, Marcus? Did someone take the prize out of your Happy Meal?

And some team is going to invest a draft pick in this turd? Not likely. About the only team that would possibly do so is the Atlanta Falcons, and everyone will immediately know who is calling the shots down there.

- Drew Rosenhaus has received permission to seek a trade for his client, Terrell Owens. The hot rumor reportedly has Owens landing in Tampa Bay. Why the Bucs would want to go through another Keyshawn Johnson situation is beyond me, but this is a team that desperately needs another WR for Chris Simms to throw to. This was evident in the Bucs wild card loss to the Redskins, when Odell Shepherd dropped an easy TD pass that would've tied the score.

- Herm Edwards to the Chiefs. Carl Peterson was right. This was the worst kept secret in the NFL, as everyone knew that there was overt interest from Kansas City and the denials from Herm Edwards were quite transparent.

I think it's a good fit for both sides. I've always admired Herm Edwards style of coaching, and I expect him to turn around that defense in a hurry. The talent is certainly there, as KC has spent plenty of money on that side of the ball.

Naturally, there are some pretty bitter people in New York. My advice for them is to get over it. He didn't want to coach there anymore, so let him go. If you want to bring up the fact that Edwards should've honored his contract, that's fine and a very valid point. But let's not pretend this is anything new.

Bill Parcells, everyone's favorite prickly head coaching legend/genius, has never honored the full duration of any contract. In fact, he left New England early to come coach the Jets, so maybe there's some karma at work here.

Early Leans

It's only Tuesday, and there's a lot of analyzing to be done over this weekend's matchups, but I thought I'd clue you all in to what I'm seeing in the games, as of right now:

Seattle, 31-20
Denver, 27-24
Indianapolis, 34-28
Chicago, 13-10

Big shock, eh? As of now (Tuesday), I'm on board with the favorites for this weekend. Hey, home teams are 31-9 in the divisional playoff the last 10 years, and these 4 teams are 30-2 at home this season. Denver and Seattle went 8-0.