Ryan Grant Agrees to Terms with Redskins

 

Ryan Grant, former starting running back for the Green Bay Packers has reportedly agreed to terms with the Washington Redskins according to Jay Glazer of Fox Sports:

 

Haynesworth charged with assault following “Road Rage” incident

As if Albert Haynesworth wasn’t going to have enough trouble landing another team/contract following his complete meltdown with the Washington Redskins, he’s added to his massive baggage this week. Tom Jackman of the Washington Post reported today that Haynesworth has been charged with “simple assualt” for the alleged road rage incident.

The alleged incident occured on Wednesday mornging when Haynesworth is said to have assaulted a 38 year old man. The report is as follows:

“The driver of the Civic reportedly felt that a pickup truck following behind him was tailgating, and issued a “non-verbal hand gesture” to the pickup driver, said Officer Shelly Broderick.

The report goes on to say that at about 9:16 a.m. the two vehicles came to a stoplight where the driver of the pickup (Haynesworth) “emerged from his vehicle, had a brief exchange of words, and then struck the driver of the other vehicle.”

I guess that just goes to show you… be careful flipping the bird on the road. You never know when a 6’5″ 400 lb beast of a man will get out of the car and “strike” you!

Did a Hangover Keep Haynesworth off the Field?

 

The Washington Redskins are known for making a splash in Free Agency thanks to owner, Daniel Snyder. While there has been no shortage of free agent acquisitions and the team has been unafraid to throw huge contracts out, very few have produced for the franchise. The latest, and perhaps most extreme example, is Albert Haynesworth. After receiving a $100M contract from the Redskins, making him the highest paid defender in the NFL, Albert has been rather disappointing. He wasn’t much of a factor last season and after Mike Shanahan introduced the 3-4 defense, Albert made it well known that he preferred his customary 4-3 DT role and vowed never to play in the 3-4.

By now we’re all aware of the pre-season debacle involving Haynesworth and Shanahan and it hasn’t gotten much better during the regular season. Haynesworth has been largely a non-factor both due to his lack of performance and effort as well as the coaching staff’s lack of confidence in him. He has been reduced to a player that is only on the field during certain packages and situations. Most notably, pass rushing situations where the Redskins are utilizing their nickel package. $100M is an awful lot to pay anyone, let alone a guy who is only getting a fraction of the snaps that he should.

A few weeks ago, in a blowout loss to division rival Philadelphia, Albert gave us a microcosm of his season and really of his tenure in D.C. Albert (as you can see in this video http://bit.ly/hUrxW0) absolutely quits on a play against the Eagles and it is an accurate representation of his entire season.

Fast forward to last week’s game against the New York Giants where the Redskins were again pummeled, primarily on the ground. Haynesworth was inactive after the team claims that he missed team activities on Friday because he “wasn’t feeling well”. The interesting part, however, is that Haynesworth was rumored to have been out on Thursday night and it is alleged that the true reason he wasn’t feeling well is because he was hungover. In this interview with 106.7 The Fan (http://tbd.ly/gKsKJD), Albert admits to being out on Thursday night but vehemently denies being hungover.

Haynewsorth also goes as far as calling other players cowards and accusing the organization of not being serious about winning. You can say what you want about the Redskins and Mike Shanahan, but Haynesworth has not earned the right to criticize anyone. He has been an embarrassment to his teammates, his franchise and to the league all season. He has done nothing to cause anyone to give him the benefit of the doubt and if people close to the team are saying that  he was out and he was hungover on Friday, I tend to believe them over Albert.

I can’t even say he quit on his team because, in reality, he never even started. From day one, he basically said that he didn’t care that he cashed a $21M bonus check from the team and that he wouldn’t play in this system. And while contractually he’s been forced to be there, he has never given an ounce of true effort for this team.

The Redskins are in a tough spot as they have already invested huge sums of money and they’re tied up in a big contract. It’s too late to trade him this season, and I’m not even sure anyone would be willing to take on that kind of contract. Shanahan is schedule to meet with Haynesworth today and there are varying degrees of speculation about this meeting.

Some believe the Redskins have had enough and they are now forced to waive the disgruntled player while others think there is literally nothing they can do until the off-season. We’ll see how it shakes out, but the best move might be to just put Albert on the shelf for the rest of the year and get whatever they can in the off-season. He’s providing no benefit on the field and he’s been more of a distraction than anyone in the NFL this season including T.O., Vince Young, Randy Moss, or Brett Favre.

 

 

 

Jeff Fisher in Trouble in Tennessee?

 

After yesterday’s loss to the Washington Redskins, it appeared that Vince Young would be the taking most of the heat after his apparent hissy fit during and after the game. In case you haven’t heard, Young is reported to have pouted after being pulled from the game after suffering a thumb injury, although he never approached Jeff Fisher to ask to be placed back in or to let him know how his thumb was.

Following the game, and upon hearing boos from the home crowd, Young is said to have thrown his shoulder pads and jersey into the stands. And to top it all off, he bolted from the locker room before Jeff Fisher even addressed the team. All this has lead to speculation that Vince Young’s days in Tennessee are numbered and it would certainly appear that they are. Earlier, I submitted a post  on the top 5 landing spots for Vince Young (http://bit.ly/9OFelf) whether it be this year or next.

But the news this morning is that Jeff Fisher is scheduled to meet with Owner Bud Adams at Adams’ house regarding Fisher’s future with the team. Fisher is the longest tenured Head Coach in the NFL and is largely regarded as one of the best coaches in the league. He is included with the top Head Coaching candidates like Jon Gruden, Mike Holmgren, Tony Dungy, and Bill Cowher. The Titans are certainly still in the race for the AFC South and another playoff birth and the departure of Jeff Fisher would shock me.

If anything, following the loss and Vince Young’s behavior, you would think the two would be meeting to discuss the plans for Vince Young. Whether to keep him on the roster, cut him, work out a trade in the off-season, etc. It’s absolutely stunning that the conversation would be about Jeff Fisher’s future unless Bud Adams sees Fisher’s worth on the open market and wants to lock him up before the Head Coaching feeding frenzy takes place after the end of the season.

Fisher’s contract appears to expire after next season and Bud Adams is either going to try to lock him into another extension or prepare to cut ties and go after one of the big name coaches himself. Fisher has done nothing to warrant losing his job so lets hope Bud Adams isn’t losing his mind again.

 

Remember though, this is the same guy who went to the media and then forced Fisher to start Vince Young despite VY’s repeated immature behavior. And Vince Young has made it clear that he’s not happy with Fisher or the way Fisher handled his benching yesterday following his thumb injury. This is the same owner to extended his middle finger to Bills fans following a game last season. This is not exactly the most logical, responsible, and prudent of owners so I guess anything is possible.

How Much Did McNabb REALLY Make? Details Here.

 

I think it’s safe to say that just about everyone was not just surprised, but shocked with the news yesterday that Donovan McNabb inked a 5 year, $78M contract with $40M reportedly guaranteed. After the benching and blatant disrespect by Mike Shanahan, most of us truly thought McNabb would be out of the Nation’s Capital at the end of the year.

Not only were were shocked that he signed an extension, but the amount was stunning. McNabb is closer to the end of his career than the beginning and he has struggled with injuries. So a 5 year extension with that kind of money seemed out of the question. As we all know, however, NFL contracts are never what they seem.

So what is the true value of the contract?

ESPN’s Adam Schefter has reported that the extension is worth $70M and $78.5M if he’s on the active roster for every game during the 5 years (unlikely). The maximum value would be worth $88.5M if he McNabb leads the team to a SuperBowl victory in each of the 5 years (even more unlikely).

The true guaranteed amount is actually only $3.5M as the Redskins essentially have an out-clause after the 2010 season. If they decide to bring him back for 2011, however, they owe him a $10M option bonus and $2.5M for his base salary in 2011.

If McNabb suffers a career-ending injury this season, however and never plays again, he would receive $25M of the contract.

The details of the contract by year are as follows:

2010: $3.5M signing bonus (additional $250,000 if active for eight games)

2011: $10M option bonus plus $2.5M salary, plus other incentives based on active games, workout and playoffs

2012: $12.75M Salary plus same above incentives

2013: $13M Salary plus same above incentives

2014: $13.75M Salary plus same above incentives

2015: $13.55M Salary plus same above incentives

As usual with NFL contracts, the Redskins have backloaded the contract to allow for financial and salary cap flexibility and to hedge their bet. If McNabb tanks, they just need to cut or trade him and they’re out from under most of the contract. They’re essentially paying him $3.75M this season to have the option to pay him a lot of money in the future. If it works out, they’ll owe him $10M next season and then they can play it by ear each year thereafter.

So while it’s a good opportunity for McNabb, it’s certainly not the $40M guaranteed money that was initially reported and that made everyone’s jaw drop. We’ll see how the relationship with Mike Shanahan progresses, but it’s my belief that Daniel Snyder wasn’t too pleased with his coach’s handling of McNabb and wanted to offer a long-term deal to lock him up and reinforce that he wants McNabb in Washington.

 

 

 

 

Terrell Owens: Jealous, Bitter, Classless

 

 

By now you’ve heard about the shocking contract extension that Donovan McNabb signed with the Washington Redskins. 5 years, $78M with $40M guaranteed. Yep, you read that right. After Shanahan benched McNabb and essentially called him old, fat, stupid and out of shape, he signed a monster extension. It’s my belief that Daniel Snyder was none too pleased with the way Shanahan treated his QB and wanted to be sure to lock up McNabb up and also send a message to Shanahan as to where Snyder’s loyalties lie.

We weren’t the only ones caught off-guard by the blockbuster extension and Terrell Owens isn’t one to keep his opinion to himself. Owens, who has routinely disrespected McNabb and literally every other QB he’s ever played for except Carson Palmer (and he will), is apparently extremely jealous of his former QB’s new contract. Hell, I’m jealous of the contract, I’m sure a lot of players are. But you won’t see anyone else in the NFL or elsewhere display the absolute lack of class, lack of professionalism, petty jealousy, and overall poor taste that Terrell Owens displays on a regular basis.

This is just the latest in his blatant bitterness and disrespect for Donovan McNabb who is, mind you, one of the classiest and purely professional players in the NFL:

 

Owens has been whining about his own contract all season after literally every single NFL team passed on him except the Cincinnati Bengals. And we can see how that turned out for the Bengals. What he continually fails to realize, is his ridiculous bitterness and unprofessionalism is one of the key reasons that he’s unable to draw attention from teams and why he was only signed to a 1 year deal.

If Owens displayed even 1% of the professionalism, class, and character of McNabb who he constantly disrespects, maybe he wouldn’t have such a hard time landing a team and a big contract.

 

 

 

 

lll

Mike Shanahan is BATSHIT CRAZY

Resident NUT-JOB…. Mike Shanahan

 

 

First of all, he just is…. just look into the man’s eyes. He’s completely and totally batshit crazy! Second of all, just take a listen to his recent comments regarding his decision to pull Donovan McNabb in favor of Rex Grossman when the Washington Redskins had a chance to come back and beat the Detroit Lions in the 2 minute drill.

When first asked about the decision on Sunday, Shanahan indicated that he felt Rex Grossman had a better handle on the 2 minute drill and would be better equipped to handle the various plays and formations that they were trying to utilize in the 2 minute drill. Are you kidding me!? Rex Grossman isn’t better equipped than Donovan McNabb to do anything… Shanahan is essentially saying here that McNabb hasn’t been able to learn the offense since his arrival and immediate appointment as starting QB back in APRIL! He’s saying that Donovan is too stupid to run a 2 minute drill despite the countless times he’s done it in his long career.

Say what you will about McNabb, but he is far and away the better option when compared to REX FRIGGIN GROSSMAN! Keep in mind that Grossman was sacked and fumbled for a Lion’s touchdown on his first play in the 2 minute drill for the Redskins.

Shanahan then changed his story on Monday and cited Donovan’s lack of “cardiovascular endurance” as the main reason for going with Grossman. He can try to spin it any way he wants but this is basically saying that McNabb is fat and out of shape and wasn’t equipped t handle the up-tempo offense that is necessitated in the 2 minute drill. McNabb may not be the most physical fit QB in the NFL, but he is certainly capable of running the team’s 2 minute offense and he was the Redskins LEADING RUSHER against the Lions.

Now don’t get me wrong. Mike Shanahan has been around for a very long time and he has had an extremely successful career. He has probably forgotten more about football than I know or will ever know. But there is no doubt in my mind that he has literally gone insane in D.C. IF, and that’s a HUGE IF… you actually believe what you’re saying (and he can’t because he’s changed his story), then fine. If you actually believe McNabb is too dumb and too fat to run your offense then so be it. Announce Rex Grossman as starting QB and either trade Donovan or use him as your backup. But Shanahan has reinforced his confidence in McNabb and said he’s the starter going forward. So if he believes it, he’s crazy for continuing to stick with him especially after he essentially spit in McNabb’s face. If he doesn’t actually believe it, then he’s insane for ruining his relationship with his QB for no apparent reason.

Add to this, the news that came out of the nation’s capital today that the Redskins brought in former #1 overall pick and “PURPLE DRANK” fiend, Jamarcus Russell. So let me get this straight….. McNabb is too stupid, fat, and out of shape to run his offense, but Shanahan actually thinks that Jamarcus Russell who weighs in at around 300 lbs on his BEST day, has probably the worst work ethic in the NFL, and has the capacity of a retarded mule to retain knowledge and comprehend basic sentences is equipped to be on his team!? In his days in Oakland Jamarcus was so hopped up on codeine syrup that he could barely find his helmet, let alone run an effective 2 minute drill. Oh and don’t forget that the fastest Jamarcus moved during his entire stint in Oakland was when he once thought he saw a stray cheeto in the bottom of Sebastian Janikowski’s locker.

I’m honestly not quite sure where the HELL Mike Shanahan is coming from. He clearly has some issue with McNabb and it’s his right as head coach to address it how he sees fit. But there is no denying that he is making himself look completely insane, hypocritical, and is ruining his credibility every time he opens his mouth. I’m sure there are some legitimate concerns he has with McNabb, but there is no question that choosing Rex Grossman or Jamarcus Russell is like choosing Jake Delhomme over Peyton Manning. Shanahan has said over and over again that he’s happy with McNabb and is pleased with his work ethic and the cardiovascular comment was only related to McNabb’s hamstring issues over the past few weeks. But if he was that concerned with his mobility and his hamstrings, he wouldn’t have been in the game, scrambling for a team high 45 rushing yards.

Shanahan was given the benefit of the doubt when he took on Albert Haynesworth in the off-season and in training camp. Albert certainly helped him out with his comments and attitude as well. But Shanahan isn’t going to get the benefit of the doubt in this situation because anyone with a brain can see that he’s full of sh*t. If he’s just sending a message to McNabb, the end of a game that they’re one possession away from winning during the regular season is by FAR the wrong place to do it. Not to mention, I believe he has damaged his relationship with McNabb for good and is on the verge of losing the locker room.