ARCHIVOS MR PLAYBOOK (2008)

Not only are there problems with Domenic Rhodes and his number back in Indy, but also in New York there is a similar contreversy... rookie Safety and recently no. 31st pick in the NFLDraft Kenny Phillips of Miami was drafted by the Giants this year...

His number in the University of Miami.... #1, not an acceptable number for Safeties... however... In honor of recently deceased Safety Sean Taylor, he decided to wear #21... whats the real problem with that???
Its that Tiki Barber used to wear #21 in New York... so some fans are not happy about the decision, however its not easy to argue with him cause hes wearing it as a tribute... so its a real conflict back in NY and I like the idea of the tribute, but not if you are playing for the Giants and the Redskins are a division opponent and you see them twice a year... anyways...

If the Giants wanted to preserve that number untouched they would have it retired or reserved for retirement before Kenny uses it....

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The Pittsburgh Steelers sure know how to spoil their players, and you could call it spoiling them or you could call it a genius way of rebuilding a team and making sure you have a winning franchise in the future.

Not only did they sign Big Ben for 8 years and 102 million dollars contract, but also, he had expressed his interest for a big WR, what do they do? they draft big target WR Limas Sweed with the second round draft pick. They are not content with that, they also draft a great RB who has self described as the next LaDainian Tomlinson, Illinois Rashard Mendenhall comes up as a great backup to willie parker and another useful weapon on offense for Mr. Roethlisberger.

It sure does look like the organization is doing everything in its power for another super bowl run, and I would fear the steelers any season, this is one of the teams I like to call: wild card teams... they can play great all of a sudden and be a big competitor for the Playoffs every year...

Other teams in my opinion, that have earned this Wild Card tag recently are the Cleveland Browns, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Tennessee Titans, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Denver Broncos.

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Adarius Bowman, a WR prospect out of Oklahoma State University, could be said that had the worst offseason for any rookie there was this year. Some might say they had horrible performances on the combine, some may have bad senior bowls, but to have been kicked out from a university and then accepted in another one, then arrested for marijuana charges, and sentenced to 12 months in jail after pleading guilty to possession, could be said that is a really really really bad off season for a player.

Here are some personal notes on Bowman, who if it wasnt for his off the field issues, could be a big threat and a huge playmaker on a team....

After transferring to Oklahoma State, Bowman became an All-Big 12 performer as a junior. But his senior season was cut short by injury and followed by a disappointing performance at the Senior Bowl.

Until recently Bowman had been projected to be taken in the top four rounds, but off-the-field issues and a poor performance at the NFL combine hurt his prospects.

Bowman was arrested on April 1 in McMinn County on charges of marijuana possession. He had previously been arrested on the same charge during his freshman year at the University of North Carolina and was subsequently kicked off the Tar Heels’ team.

After pleading guilty to the most recent charge of marijuana possession, Bowman’s sentenced to 12 months in prison.

What a sad fact that this kind of things ruin a promising career, he can now only hope that after serving time, he gets another shot at the big game.

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Ok, the nfl draft has concluded the first day and as always we can all agree that it was awfully crazy.... there were a lot of weird picks and a lot of surprises and here I will list the top 10 surprises of the first two rounds of the draft.

10. Jerod Mayo picked #10 to the NE Patriots
9. Gosder Cherilus goes to the lions at #17
8. TE Dustin Keller taken in the first round
7. RB Chris Johnson to Tennessee
6. All 6 invited players went in the top 6 picks
5. Derrick Harvey picked so high at #8 to the Jaguars
4. Brian Brohm not taken in the top 40 picks
3. Donnie Avery being the 1st WR selected
2. Joe Flacco to the Ravens in the top 20
1. No Wrs taken in the 1st round

* Special Mentions:
- Kenny Philips at #31 to the Giants, barely keeping up with the tradition of a player from Miami, Florida taken in the 1st round for the 14th straight year.
- Rashard Mendenhall lands on the Steelers
- The # of DEs taken in the first round

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Here is my second attempt at a mock draft, this time one day before draft day, Ive made a lot of corrections, and only threw in there another QB.... surprise surprise!!! Green Bay shocks the draft by taking Brian Brohm 30th overall, hope you enjoy this one and lets see if I improved.

1. Miami – Jake Long OT Michigan
2. St Louis – Chris Long DE Virginia
3. Atlanta – Glenn Dorsey DT LSU
4. Oakland – Darren McFadden RB Arkansas
5. Kansas City – Ryan Clady OT Boise St
6. NY Jets – Vernon Gholston DE Ohio State
7. NE – Leodis McKelvin CB Troy
8. Baltimore – Matt Ryan QB Boston College
9. Bengals – Sedrick Ellis DE USC
10. NO – Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie CB Tennessee St.
11. Bills – Devin Thomas WR/KR Michigan St.
12. Broncos – Branden Albert G Virginia.
13. Carolina – Chris Williams OT Vanderbilt.
14. Chicago – Rashard Mendenhall RB Illinois.
15. Detroit – Derrick Harvey DE Florida.
16. Arizona – Jonathan Stewart RB Oregon.
17. Kansas City – Mike Jenkins CB South Florida
18. Houston – James Hardy WR Indiana
19. Philadelphia – Antoine Cason CB Arizona
20. Tampa Bay – DeSean Jackson WR Cal
21. Redskins – Malcolm Kelly WR Oklahoma.
22. Dallas – Felix Jones RB Arkansas.
23. Pittsburgh – Gosder Cherilius OT Boston College.
24. Tennessee – Limas Sweed WR Texas..
25. Seattle – Fred Davis TE USC.
26. Jacksonville – Calais Campbell DE Miami.
27. San Diego – Brandon Flowers CB Virginia Tech
28. Dallas – Mario Manningham WR Michigan
29. San Francisco – Jerod Mayo LB Tennessee.
30. Green Bay – Brian Brohm QB Louisville
31. NE – Casper the Friendly Ghost.
32. NY Giants – Philip Merling DE Clemson


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The Miami Dolphins have made a shocking announcement today, with the first round pick of the 2008 nfl draft, the team has signed OT Jake Long to a 5 year contract worth 57.5 million dollars with 30 million guaranteed. I guess Bill Parcells really wants QB protection to build this team, he might go with Chad Henne with the 2nd round and have Tackle and QB reunited... that could be an interesting decision, and I wouldnt be surprised, knowing Parcells style...

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Here is my version of a mock NFL Draft, dont be so cruel people, remembre its my first attempt at this and I only hope to get better at doing it, hopefully soon youll also see the Mentor's mock draft. Let the Bashing begin!


1. Miami – . Jake Long OT Michigan Jake Long has already signed a 5 yr contract with the Dolphins.
2. St Louis – Glenn Dorsey DT LSU. The Rams will most likely go defensive with this pick and Dorsey is their guy right here.
3. Atlanta – Matt Ryan QB Boston College. With no Vick, and no clear situation, they get a nice franchise quarterback.
4. Oakland – . Chris Long DE Virginia. Like right out of a movie, if no trade occurs here, the raiders pick up Howie Long's son Chris, and continue to make history at the position.
5. Kansas City – Ryan Clady OT Boise St. O-Line is getting old, and they need great improvements there.
6. NY Jets – Darren McFadden RB Arkansas. The Jets get real lucky he falls to their lap right here.
7. NE – Leodis McKelvin CB Troy. Excellent fit for the patriots defensive modes, they could easily go LB also, both areas need great improvements.
8. Baltimore – Brian Brohm QB Louisville. With air McNair retiring from pro football, and Ryan gone, this is a sure pick for them.
9. Bengals – Vernon Gholston DE Ohio State. Big steal by the bengals here at number 9 to get him so cheap.
10. NO – Keith Rivers LB USC. If they dont lose him to NE he is a good fit here for the awful run defense of the saints.
11. Bills – Sedrick Ellis DE USC. The bills get a great pass rusher to improve an already great D.
12. Broncos – Sam Baker OT USC. Excellent fit for the Broncos offensive minded playbooks.
13. Carolina – Kenny Phillips FS Miami. Fills a great hole, big need for the Panthers.
14. Chicago – Johnathan Stewart RB Oregon. They get a good RB and fill a great hole in their offense.
15. Detroit – Mike Jenkins CB South Florida. Need to improve against the pass quickly.
16. Arizona – Rashard Mendenhall RB Illinois. Lets face it, Edge is not getting any younger and Mendenhall fits their schemes perfectly.
17. Minnesota – Chad Henne QB Michigan. Big surprise here, but it is clear that Tarvaris Jackson is not their answer and with the great team they have already they need a really good leader for their offense. Henne is the man.
18. Houston – Devin Thomas WR/KR Michigan State. They get an excellent playmaker to play alongside Andre Johnson.
19. Philadelphia – Antoine Cason CB Arizona. With Lito Sheppard unstable and probably leaving, they get a great playmaker for defense.
20. Tampa Bay – Derrick Harvey DE Florida. Improvements for their awful pass rushing D.
21. Redskins – Malcolm Kelly WR Oklahoma. They get a tall guy to play opposite speedy Santana Moss and great weapons for Jason Campbell.
22. Dallas – Felix Jones RB Arkansas. Julius left via Free Agency… No problem, we get his baby bro here.
23. Pittsburgh – Chris Williams OT Vanderbilt. With Faneca gone to the Jets in free agency, they get help here alongside the line to protect Big Ben.
24. Tennessee – DeSean Jackson WR California. They need to improve Vince Youngs receivers if they want to improve his numbers.
25. Seattle – Fred Davis TE USC. Real bad year for TEs but this guy is worth the pick right here.
26. Jacksonville – Phillip Merling DE Clemson. The Jaguars love taking WRs in the first round and with Manningham available it will be hard not to take him, but they cannot pass on Merling.
27. San Diego – Pat Sims DT Auburn. They already have great DEs and LBs they need some improvement in the middle.
28. Dallas – Mario Manningham WR Michigan. Another pick for the boys, they pick up another offensive player, terry glenn’s future is uncertain.
29. San Francisco – Quentin Groves DE Auburn. Pick up a great player who can also be used as an OLB to help Patrick Willis stop the run.
30. Green Bay – Aqib Talib CB Kansas. Im not so sure about this pick, they might want to improve the O Line to give Rodgers more protection.
31. NE – Forfeited after SpyGate incident.
32. NY Giants – Jeff Otah OT Pittsburgh. Give Eli more protection from their side as well as some improvement to their running game.


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With just 10 days left until draft day make sure to be tuning in constantly to see the MR Playbook Mock Draft-

Its coming soon, with the best analysis and picks for each teams.

Feel free to comment.

- the Staff

Its not easy being a QB in the league, but its way harder if you come from a school that has the tradition of breeding good quarterbacks. This is the case for Michigan's Chad Henne, a school that has seen the likes of Jim Harbaugh, Brian Griese, Tom Brady, Elvis Grbac and Todd Collins, just to name a few of the great ones.

Some have failed to impress in the NFL, specially in recent years, the last great michigan QB is Tom Brady, but Drew Henson and John Navarre who played good in college, failed to make an impact on the NFL. Henson made an effort with the Cowboys and then with the Vikings until he was finally cut, and Navarre is currently a free agent after being cut from the Colts training camp.

Its tough to be coming out of Michigan, but this is not the case for Chad Henne, right now he is really secure of his position in the draft and is ready for whatever challenge comes. He broke a lot of the passing records in the University including most touchdowns, most completions, most yards and most interceptions. He is a great prospect for this years draft, and might come in as the steal of the draft, for he is not one of the favorite QBs this year, but he definitely has the size and strength to be a great player in the league...

He has already drawn interest of 8 teams in the league, who have invited him to work out for them at their facilities, this teams include the Seahawks, the Jets, the Falcons, the Ravens, the Buccaneers, the Dolphins, the Rams and the Redskings... the Bears and the Cowboys have also shown interest on this young player.

Well only have to wait for draft day and see...

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Just for 2 years the NFL draft has been in the Radio City music hall in New York City, home to the famous show the Rockettes. Before that it was held in Madison Square Garden, where the Knicks play, now in 2009 the contract is over, and talks are already surrounding if the draft is still going to be there, or if they are going to use a more football oriented place, not a stadium, but maybe something like that.. or even a traditional stadium like the coliseum in California....

Whatever decision they make, I hope that they do use a more football oriented place...

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Every year there are a lot of experts working on analyzing the best prospects for the NFL, they travel all around the US looking for skilled players, sometimes even to Mexico or Canada in search of the next great star of football... also, each year they do what is called a 'scouting report' which is exactly what it sounds like, in which they list his pros and cons, and teams can use this to make a better selection on their draft day.

This is a fun example of an NFL bust, and how these reports are not always accurate, and even sometimes completely whack. Rashaun Woods, was a WR in the NFL for a little bit, he was drafted with the 31st pick by the San Francisco 49ers in 2004 and now plays for the Hamilton Tiger Cats on the Canadian Football League. Here is the extract of the scouting report posted on NFL.com on 2004:

Rashaun Woods

Positives: Has a well-defined body with solid lower body and calf development and room in his upper body to add additional bulk … Has good quickness in and out of his breaks, showing sudden movements to get open and gain yardage after the catch … Gets off the line of scrimmage and into his routes immediately … Runs outstanding pass routes, showing crispness and explosive stop-and-go agility … Reads coverages well, making proper adjustments on the run … Can turn a short catch into a big play with his speed … Has strong hands and the ability to catch away from the body's frame … Remains focused and has great toughness catching in a crowd (will take the hit and hold on) … His speed and hip swerve allows him to elude defenders after the catch … Has excellent leg drive and strength to break arm tackles and drag defenders for extra yardage … Willing blocker who will not back down from a fight, getting good position and hand placement on the defender … Role model-type who can handle pressure … Has the separation speed to defeat most defensive backs in the deep zone … Relishes his role as the go-to receiver and has proven to be the difference-maker with the game on the line. Negatives: Few, if any flaws in his game, but could do a better job of tracking the ball in over his shoulder on deep routes (has misjudged these passes on more than one occasion).

They describe him as the ideal player that is going to come to your team and make an immediate impact as a playmaker, he looks as the answer to all your needs, a guy who almost has no flaws... tracking the ball over your shoulder is the most important thing in Football... apparently hahahah...

Anyways, he was cut by the 49ers in 2006, picked by the Chargers and dropped in the same year, then picked by the Broncos also on 2006, until he was finally sent to NFL Europe and played for a year with the Hamburg Sea Devils, this past year he played with the Toronto Argonauts and has now been cut and picked up by some other team called the Tiger Cats... next up: The Tigres of the UANL in Mexico, or maybe even Avispones. (Local Jokes haha)

So every team should be aware of the scouting reports, not because it looks great it means its great, because on that report what they offered was a Flying Rolls Royce and what the 9ers got was like a banged up AMC Gremlin or a Ford Pinto.


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Strengths: has the look of a pro-style back. He has the ideal size and strength for the position and is a tough runner with a strong lower body. He is effective as an interior runner showing good acceleration to the hole and also has the power to run through defenders. Above average speed but struggles at times beating defenders to the outside. Labeled as more of a power runner, still possesses the speed necessary to threaten defenses and is a legit home run threat. Has good lateral quickness and cutback ability, but is a bit more of a straight line back.

Weakness: has had a history of being careless with the ball but seems to have improved his ball security. He lacks elite speed for the position but is still effective and plays with good overall game speed.

NFL Comparison: Thomas Jones

Projected Round: Round 1

Note: Some experts believe Mendenhall will be a better back in the NFL than McFadden for a great number of issues, in fact in several draft boards he comes up as the number 1 back so dont be surprised if he comes up in the top 10 on draft day.




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Strengths: Big Guy with ideal size, proven to be intelligent and reads the defenses very well. Hes a good character player and a natural leader on and off the field. Has good mechanics with good, throwing technique and pretty good standing in the pocket. He also has the ability to roll out of the pocket and throw very well on the run. He works hard , has experience running a pro-like offense and is a tough competitor.

Weakness: Doesnt have the strongest of an arm and sometimes his throw power has been described as only average. Also has been noted to force the ball a lot causing many interceptions. Also has problems with the deep ball passing. Durability might also be a concern sometimes, although he is a big guy.

NFL Comparison: Ben Roethlisberger

Projected Round: Top 5 pick





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Strenghts: He has the perfect size for his position, plus plays the game relentlessly. Is very quick off the snap and he has above average instincts and technique. He has a strong torso and very good hands. A very versatile player, he can play on different positions, down on the line and has played both 4-3 and 3-4 defensive schemes. Has above average quickness and he works hard to locate the ball, plus he has a strong work ethic so no off the field issues for him.

Weakness: May have some limitations in the NFL where he might be a better player ina 3-4 scheme, also lacks the size to play inside effectively and lacks some speed sometimes as an edge rusher.

NFL Comparison: Almost a clone of Patrick Kerney

Projected Round: Top 3 pick

Note: Son of hall of famer ex Raider DE and Fox Broadcaster Howie Long





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