Tusekan Raiders

Lol. You’re a feisty little fella.

That’s a good pick, although I’d like to see them at a more intimate venue, like CBGBs. I don’t know if the Clash ever played CBGBs, so GNR there in 1987 would be on the list. Elvis with Johnny Cash opening for him at any random honky tonk in the South…or maybe Johnny Cash debut at Ryman in 1956, the night he met June. But if I only have one, it would be seeing the Beatles at the Cavern Club.

It was a dive bar by old Tiger Stadium. It must have been 1999 because we went to go there before it closed and they were playing the Red Sox. I encountered Bob by chance in the pisser and engaged him in a debate on whether or not he was an idiot. After vanquishing him in the debate, he was a sore loser and yada, yada, yada, my group was escorted out.

@Mike FF Today you dissed me man

Get up to Chicago for Bears-KC game. I’ll have ticket for you and even wear my fftoday T-shirt. You skipped out on me for your cousin’s niece’s friend’s birthday last time I was in KC, if I recall...I have long memory TBT Geek Meet-Up

Good to see some people haven’t changed since I’ve been gone. CH seems to be in same standing

There is no other place worthy of my FF wisdom This is still the best FF community around. Life just got in the way

Has anyone seen ditkanate? I dropped him off at the Sanctuary 10 years ago after a Bears game and haven't seen him since. I thought this would be a good place to pick up the search. I've admittedly only had a kind of O.J. Searching for Real Killer effort about it, but really starting to worry now.

Weak RB class. Mark Ingram is good, but number 1 by default. Ryan Williams is the most talented RB in the class. He battled injuries and had a down year, but he was amazing last year. Not as well-built as Ingram and Mikel LeShoure, so we'll see if he can bulk up and take the pounding w/o losing his quicks. LeShoure, just like Mendenhall, was waiting for his opportunity and blew up when he got it. He's not as fast as Mendenhall, so he might not have as much upside, but he's better between the tackles. Those are the top three. I'd probably put Demarco Murray next. He is the definition of injury-prone, but it's impressive how he has transformed from speed and quickness guy through the injuries into a solid pounder. Doubt he can hold up as a feature back. Daniel Thomas is a converted QB and runs like one. Still learning, but not a burner and I don't know if he'll take the punishment at the next level if he doesn't evolve. Interesting sleeper, but not top tier. I like John Clay. Clay isn't long for the league, but is a Brandon Jacobs type who could have a couple big years. Not as fast as Jacobs. Bilal Powell and Roy Helu have been moving up, interested to see their workout numbers. Shane Verneen is a typical Cal RB who be a back-up, spot starter. Haven't seen a lot of Jay Finley or Anthony Allen, they get mixed reviews. Noel Devine, Dion Lewis and JacQuizz Rodgers, great college players, but too small, Darren Sproles types and becoming a player like him is their ceiling. Lewis has a bit more bulk potential, maybe he could be a poor man's Ray Rice if I'm underestimating him. Kendall Hunter is decent, maybe a bit more upside, but I think that OK ST O was underestimated. I like Delone Carter best of the smaller backs in this class. He has some bulk and delivers the blow to finish the run. He's a really nice sleeper in this class.

Until you develop the powers to discourage a player from juicing and getting a four game suspension, intervene in an arguement with his baby momma and showing up for work any given Sunday without his head screwed on right, stop him from staying up until 4am at a strip club and spend more time on game film, prevent him from getting injured, improve his rehab with your medical techniques, decide playing time and call the plays for every team in the league, force a GM to tell a coach to play a guy more and make his draft decisions, referee the game, manipulate the standings to dictate which players need to play all out at the end of the season, do all this for all the players in the league and control the weather and edit the waiver wire in your league every week to get the top pick, the game is mostly luck. Just like many forms of gambling, there's a certain amount of skill that can improve your chances for success, but most of the result is dictated by events completely out of your control, aka luck. Two things aren't luck or skill and don't belong in this thread are the example of bad record and high points scored. That's poor league design. There's all kinds of leagues with double-headers, power standings or points-based leagues, leagues with playoff spots allocated to points leaders, etc. to mitigate match-up luck. If you play in a league where you think you got screwed by the design, blame your decision to play in the league, not luck. The second is quality of opposition. All the guys pointing to skill in their consistent success, honestly evaluate the quality of your leagues. That probably explains your success more than some imagined higher level of "skill". Which leads to not confusing skill with effort. The exact same information and exposure (i.e. ability to watch any games and highlights) are available to everyone and finite. Those who spend more time utilizing it will have an advantage. If you take 12 guys of similar mental capacity who put in the exact same amount of effort, the results would be consistently random, as somewhat demonstrated by the so-called expert leagues (although commenting on alleged experts is a whole 'nother topic of nonsense).

I thought the combination of Martz and Cutler would either be a stunning success or a disaster. I never thought it would be just plain good. This team tried to play vertical early and after brutal loses at home to Washington and Seattle, I'm impressed how both adapted. They overhauled the offense and have made Cutler more of a game manager, which is counter intuitive to both coach and player, but resulted in a 6-1 record since. The OLine is the only significant problem on this team, unfortunately it's a big one. Cutler has had a ton of pressure this season and has responded well. After last year, I was fearing he was another coach-killer, Jeff George type, but he really seems to have matured this year and shown more fire and competitiveness then his normal uninterested facial and body expressions give the casual observer. The Lovie Smith sucks comment is interesting. I'm not a big fan, he's not a great coach per se, but in the face of what still seems to be the consensus opinion even in Chicago, I continue to respond with it's hard to argue with his results. Apparently it's been too easy for Bears fans to forget the Wanny/DickJar years. I know the problem in Chicago, it's impossible to get out of the Ditka shadow in this town, it would take at least 2 Super Bowls wins and needs to be done with more yelling, but I don't get it nationally. I'd expect a little more practical view from fans of other teams. There's 8 active coaches with 3+ division championships and at least 1 conference championship. Among those you have Mike Shanahan, whose made some of the worst decisions of his career in Washington and has unbelievably turned it in to even more of a mess than Dan Snyder achieves by himself. John Fox is another, and his coaching star has fallen. That leaves Belichick, Reid, Coughlin, Fisher and Tomlin. Obviously Belichick is in a class by himself and even though their fans try to run Reid and Coughlin out of town at the drop of a hat too, you have to give both their due. I like Tomlin, but he's in a bit of a George Seifert realm right now, he was handed the keys to a Lamborghini and so far has successfully kept it running. He's had to deal with some reloading, but let's see what he does once he gets some real adveristy, like losing some key coordinators and Roethlisberger finally going to jail. Fisher is the prime comp here for me. He's been doing it a hell of lot longer, but has had his poor seasons and his post-season success is no greater than Lovie's, yet I think he's generally respected and viewed as one of the better coaches in the league. I just don't get the overwhelming lack of respect for Lovie. Like I said, he's not a great coach and I can agree with not even liking him that much, but in this era of parity, it shows a complete lack of football acumen to say he sucks or dismiss his accomplishments.

Ditkanate and his funnier brother.

The Bears line sucks and Cutler has horrible pocket presence. Lions line looked better, but Cutler ran right in to Suh when he could have stayed in the pocket and another time he held on to the ball way to long and got strip sacked from behind.

Yeah, they have a plan. They have the underpants gnome business plan from South Park. Phase 1 - Dismantle team, draft crap Phase 2 - ? Phase 3 - Victory!

3.12 Major Wright, S No surprise here. I think most targeted a safety at this pick and Angelo loves FLA players. Missed Morgan Burnett by 4 picks, but Wright has been a late riser after his development went in reverse to a job share last year. He is pure centerfielder and not a hitter, but that's fine, we have enough slow-footed hitters to play SS. Guys we might regret passing on: CB Brandon Ghee, OT Bruce Campbell and a sh!t ton of decent WR prospects 4.11 Corey Wootton, DE Clearly not a position I was hoping they'd address, but probably a case of BPA, so it's hard to be too critical. Wootton was projected as a first rounder before blowing his knee in 2009 Alamo Bowl. He returned in time for the 2010 season, probably too quickly, and wasn't the same player last season, hence why he fell. He had 10 sacks as a junior, but doesn't project as a top pass rusher. Most saw him as five-technique in 3-4, so he's slotted for anchor end on the left, which would be a nice fit opposite Peppers, if he pans out. Guys we might regret passing on: DB Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, OLB Thad Gibson, DT Geno Atkins, OT Jason Fox, CB Dominique Franks, CB Perrish Cox 5.10 Joshua Moore, CB Hopefully this is Angelo's annual hidden defensive gem. Came out early for money, not b/c of talent. Brutal at Combine, but played well on the field, especially in big games. Definitely a project, they just missed on Franks or Cox passing them in the previous round. Guys we might regret passing on: DE Greg Hardy, WR Carlton Mitchell 6.12 Dan LeFevour, QB Home town product was productive winner in MAC. Appeared to have helped his stock w/strong Senior Bowl performance, still fell, could be a steal as a nice career back-up. Mobile QB, good athlete, offers potential in gimmick packages. 7.11 J'Marcus Webb, OT And here's where Angelo goes deep again. Took some searching to find something about this guy. 6'8" 330lbs w/36" arms, cousin of former Dolphin Richmond Webb, lettered as a freshman at Texas, but couldn't cut it academically. Went on to be a JUCO AA and then was headed to Arizona, but was short on credits. Finished as one of the top DII tackles at West Texas A&M. Fred Mitchell and David Kaplan of the Trib nailed this call a week ago, saying Mike Tice coveted this guy as a prospect. He must be a box of rock and/or have some character concerns for no one to touch him, b/c he sounds like a fairly exciting prospect for a 7th rounder. Pretty typical Angelo draft. Heavy on DLine and DBs, no skill players to get excited about. If Wright can be a solid starter at S and Wootton a quality part of the end rotation, this draft was a success. Anything else is a bonus.