"Good Idea, Bad Idea" (Wednesday Morning Bonus)

In an interesting twist to a weekly segment we've instituted on "That Sports Blog", something very intriguing transpired over the last 12 hours or so. I'll get right into this morning...

"Good Idea"
Vikings Taking Advantage of Bill Belichick's Ego And Nabbing Randy Moss

Bottom line; Randy Moss is still one of the top receivers in the NFL. The Viking saw an opportunity and jumped on it, just as they attempted (and failed) to pry Vincent Jackson away from the Chargers. Minnesota appears to be serious about one last run at the Super Bowl and are giving Brett Favre the pieces he needs to be successful in what should be his final season. This move immediately puts Minnesota back in contention for the NFC crown. And what did they have to give up to get a pro bowl caliber play maker? A third round pick. Advantage Vikings.

"Bad Idea"
New England Trading Randy Moss"

You can't tell me this man doesn't have some sort of ego complex. The Patriots are becoming notorious for letting key players walk away , and I'm willing to bet the house Belichick has everything to do with it. They let Ty Law go a few years back when they refused to pay him. They let Mike Vrabel, who was a very big part of their championship teams, walk and he has had a nice impact on Kansas City so far. They pretty much threw Richard Seymour out the door and shipped him to the Raiders. Granted, Moss might have been becoming a problem in the locker room, but there is no disguising that he is great on the field. Maybe that hasn't translated so far this season, but could it be that he was being phased out of the game plan to make trading him easier? Possibly. Either way, I do not see how this move makes them better. It actually makes them worse. It appears that Belichick is preparing for the future as the Patriots now have two picks in each of the first 3 rounds, so maybe we haven't seen the end result of this most recent trade. All I have to say about the move is, "J-E-T-S, JETS JETS JETS!"

-ALR

NFL Week 4 "Good Idea, Bad Idea"

With another week in the books and the NFL season beginning to take shape, we have a more clear view of who's a real contender and who's "pretending". Some key injuries (most notably Michael Vick) and expiring suspensions (Ben Roethlisberger for the Steelers, Santonio Holmes for the Jets & the "Juice Man", I mean Brian Cushing for the Texans) will bring a few new faces back to the playing field, giving Week 5 a nice set of subplots to watch for. But this is all about the best and worst from Week 4. So shall we get to it?

"Good Idea"
Signing LaDainian Tomlinson

Someone forgot to tell LT that running backs are "supposed" to be on the decline after they hit the big 3-0. So far this season Tomlinson has looked to regain that quickness that made him one of the top running backs in the NFL from '01-'07 (when his numbers started to see a dip). He and Shonn Greene have given the Jets a nice compliment to their big play passing game and has also made fans quickly forget about Thomas Jones (who gained over 1,400 yards last season). True, the Jets have gotten a lot of pub for a team that finished 9-7 in 2009, but what is also true that their front office is looking like geniuses with the additions they have made the last couple of years. Gotta give credit where it's due.

"Bad Idea"
Flipping the bird at officials.

No, that isn't a picture of Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Chuck Cecil, but you have to admit it's pretty funny. Cecil as fined a $40,000 for making the above gesture at officials in Sunday's game against Broncos after a penalty called on the defense. TV cameras caught him in the act and we all know that's a big no-no in the NFL. This isn't the first time Cecil has been fined for his conduct as he also saw his pockets $20k lighter last December for unsportsmanlike conduct. Let's just say that Roger Goodell won't be on Cecil's Christmas card list any time soon.

"Good Idea"
Rams letting Sam Bradford start from day 1.

The St. Louis Rams won all of one game last season. One. The started 3 different quarterbacks in 2009. They all stunk. The Rams haven't had a true franchise caliber QB since they let Kurt Warner walk back in '04 (and looked how that worked out for them). With the first pick in the draft they could have gone with defense as they had done in previous seasons, but they elected to go with Oklahoma and former Heisman Winner Sam Bradford, who missed a huge chunk of his junior season with a shoulder injury. Bradford won the starting gig over A.J. Feeley (that was easy) and has taken every snap so far this season as is playing like a vet. He's calm in the pocket and you can see his confidence throughout the course of the game. Of course with any rookie their will be speed bumps, but as it stands right now Bradford is looking like the real deal and the Rams have already doubled their win total. You can already classify this season as a small success and Rams fans finally have something to be excited about.

"Bad Idea"
Watching yourself run on the video screen and losing a fumble on the 1-yard line.

I'll refrain from putting Ahmad Bradshaw in the "he's gonna cry in the car" file since he did finish Sunday's game against a tough Chicago defense with 129 yards and the G-Men got the win, but nonetheless he should be embarrassed by this fumble. A cardinal sin for a running back in fumbling the football and to add salt to the wound he coughed the ball up during what was on the way to being a sure touchdown. Why the hell are you watching the screen anyway when you're on the field?! I can't be too tough on him since he snatched Brandon Jacobs spot and is having a nice season so far, but Ahmad Bradshaw, please do better.

"The Ugly (Bonus)"
Dwayne Jarrett.

Not only has Dwayne Jarrett been a bust in his NFL career (35 receptions, 428 yards in four seasons so far), he has always been labeled as lazy and also recently lost his starting spot to a rookie. Looks like that wasn't disappointment enough as he was arrested for a second DWI in less than 3 years early Tuesday morning. Jarrett had a lot of promise after a nice college career at USC but it hasn't translated to the pros. Now Jarrett will possibly be facing a suspension from the NFL, not to mention his freedom may be in jeopardy. It's difficult to have sympathy for someone who brought all this upon themselves. Dwayne Jarrett, you sir, have a problem. Get help.

-ALR

NFL Week 3 "Good Idea, Bad Idea"

It was definitely an interested week in the NFL. A few surprise teams are undefeated (Chicago; who predicted that?!) and a couple other contenders finally got their first W (it's about time Dallas & The Minnesota Fav/I mean Vikings). So let's get into the good, bad, and ugly for week three...

"Good Idea"

Letting Peterson Run!!

Minnesota Vikings are finally realizing what everyone else in the league already knew; they have the best workhorse running back in the NFL. After putting up a total of 19 points in the first 2 games while depending on a rusty and out of shape Brett Favre and banged up receiving core to try to win close games, the Vikings finally put the ball in Adrian Peterson's hands in the fourth quarter and he responded with an 80 yard TD run to seal a 24-10 victory over the Lions. Peterson is also leading the NFC in rushing by a pretty hefty margin. Hopefully this becomes a trend and not just a flash in the pan. Brad Childress can thank me later (#NoDrake).

"Bad Idea"

Letting Garrard Pass

Garrard was once considered a solid starting quarterback who limited turnovers and kept the Jaguars in a good position to win. They have a solid running game with Maurice Jones-Drew and a nice set of receiving options for him to get the football to. But it seems like Garrard is getting worse by the minute. He started off stellar with a 3 touchdown performance against Denver, but in the last 2 weeks he has thrown only one TD against five INTs. The writing might be on the wall for Garrard as Jacksonville has brought in three new quarterbacks in the past week. One more bad performance from Garrard and we may be seeing the Trent Edwards era for the Jags and them targeting a QB early in the 2011 NFL Draft.

"Good Idea"

Indianapolis Colts Draft Decisions

It seems as if since drafting Golden Boy Peyton Manning, the Colts can do no wrong. They perennially win 12+ games a season and always appear to make the right personnel decisions. From plucking Tony Dungy away from Tampa Bay, to handing the reigns over to successor Jim Caldwell they continue to come out on top. The latest move that is looking genius was drafting receiver Austin Collie out of BYU in the fourth round in 2009. Collie was primarily to be used in the slot along side starters Reggie Wayne and Pierre Garcon (another steal) but with Garcon nursing a hamstring injury Collie stepped in and responded with 12 catches for 171 and 2 TDs. This wasn't his first big game of the season as he racked up 11 catches for 163 in week 1. Collie is currently leading the NFL in receptions, receiving yards and is tied for TD receptions with 4. I'm not saying he can keep up this torrid pace, but he has been a valuable cog in Manning's passing attack.

"Bad Idea"

Dating a 19-year-old who has a laser scope and a crazy ex"

Yes, you read that correctly. According to this this story first seen on Black Sports Online, Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Kassim Osgood (pictured above) was in the middle of a love triangle between a 19-year-old Mackenzie Rae Putnal (photo courtesy of blacksportsonline) and her ex boyfriend, who was armed at the time and held a pistol to both their heads. You have to click the story for full details, but apparently there was gun fire exchanged between the young lady and the ex boyfriend. Wow.

First question is; why is a 30 year old NFL receiver at the house of a 19 year old? I KNOW why, but again, at his age he should be smarter than that. You are putting yourself in a bad position from all points of view.

Second question.... where did the girl get a gun with a LASER SCOPE?!?! Those don't come in cracker jack boxes nor are they available at the local pawn shop. That's military/special ops type equipment we're talking about. Wow.

That's all I have for you this week in the best reality show of all time, the National Football League.

-ALR

NFL Week 2 "Good Idea, Bad Idea"

My apologies for slacking on the posts in the last week; your favorite blogger's favorite blog was on vacation in beautiful South Beach, Miami. I even made a trip by the home of the "NWO" (the 2010/2011 Miami Heat) and had to fight the urge to pin a "Runner Up" banner across the front of it (LAKERS!)... If you recall last month, fellow "Los That Sports Blog" contributor Rod mentioned an old segment of the classic 90's cartoon series Anamaiacs titled "Good Idea; Bad Idea". I figured, why not make this a weekly addition to the blog? So without further ado here are my picks for good moves and bad moves from a very good Week 2 in the NFL...

"Good Idea"
NY Jets opening up the passing game.

Now I'm not saying the Jets should allow Mark Sanchez to attempt 30 passes every game. But letting Sanchez throw the football against a weak New England Patriots defense was a brilliant game plan. The result; 21-30, 220 yards, 3 TDs. Not bad for a quarterback who was heavily criticized for his shaky & timid performance in week 1.

"Bad Idea"
Washington Redskins not triple teaming Andre Johnson.

Fact: Andre Johnson is arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL. With your team up 17 points over the Texans, who would you not force Matt Schaub to throw to someone else in the clutch? Granted, Washington did a solid job of bottling up RB Arian Foster (who racked up 231 yards against Indy) but giving up 497 passing yards at home is borderline embarrassing. Losing in overtime wasn't much better, either.

"Good Idea"
Eagles decision to let Vick start.

If you follow us on twitter (@a_ramsey, @marcusjnorris & @lostherod) then you may have noticed an ongoing debate we had last week regarding who should be the Philadelphia Eagles starting quarterback, Michael Vick or Kevin Kolb. My argument was that despite Vick's spectacular play early in the season, the Eagles should stick to their original plan and let Kolb start when/if healthy. My point of view was based on a few different factors; Kolb is clearly the future of the franchise (just turned 26) and needs reps to continue to grow with a young offense (DeSean jackson, Jeremy Maclin, Brent Celek & LeSean McCoy are all 25 or younger). But after watching the atrocity that currently is the Eagles offensive line, it's clear that Vick's athleticism gives them a better chance to stay competitive. Kolb would get killed behind blocking that bad. It has been enjoyable to see Vick making the plays that once made him the most exciting and highest paid player in the NFL. But nonetheless, Kolb has to be scratching his head at this point...

"Bad Idea"
Brett Favre missing virtually all of training camp.

Unless you were under a rock during the summer, you heard about Brett Favre returning to play quarterback for the Vikings (for the record, he was not retired and was under contract for 2010, meaning he was a holdout). Only problem was, star receiver Sidney Rice was to miss 10 weeks due to a hip injury, leaving Favre with very little to work with besides TE Visanthe Shiancoe & Percy Harvin (who has battled injuries himself). So far this season Favre has looked every bit his 40 years and has channeled his inner Cutler having turned the ball over 5 times in 2 games. Who knows, maybe if Favre would have attended camp he may be better in sync with the receivers Minnesota does have healthy. The Vikings have a chance to rebound this week against the Lions, so we'll see if they can get it together and save their season.

"The Ugly" *bonus*
Someone must have switched the DNA of Joe Flacco & Jay Cutler. Cutler has yet to throw a pick this season after leading the league in 2009, while Flacco has thrown a league leading 5 so far and is completing less than 50% of his passes...

As if Braylon Edward's beard and his version of "the Dougie" after he scored Sunday against NE wasn't bad enough, he compounded it by getting arrested for a DWI earlier this week. And you wonder why he didn't get much camera time on HBO's Hard Knocks...

A whopping four starting quarterbacks were benched last Sunday, Carolina's Matt Moore, Tennessee's Vince Young (surprise, surprise), Oakland's Jason Campbell and Jacksonville's David Garrard were all pulled for backups due to ineffectiveness. Where's the trust?

Just another week in the world's best reality series. Long Live the NFL!

-ALR