CARROLLTON, Texas -- DeMarcus Ware led the NFL in sacks last season with a career-high 20. The Cowboys outside linebacker didn't receive the league Defensive Player of the Year award for his efforts, though -- that went to James Harrison of the Steelers.
But Ware is not too concerned about awards. He wants more pressures, more victories, and of course, more money.
Earlier this week, EA Sports released the player ratings for Madden 10. And now, with the NFL Draft in the rearview, and nothing else to do between now and training camps, we'll ponder the important questions. Like: How is [Player who is obviously rated too high] rated above [Player who is obviously rated too low]?
Though it's been discussed occasionally over the course of the past several months, the NFL never really seemed to look into the charges that the Redskins illegally tampered with Albert Haynesworth before signing him away from the Tennessee Titans. Apparently, that is about to change. According to Yahoo! Sports, the league has opened a formal investigation and began conducting interviews with people closely associated with the signing.
The question at hand is whether or not officials from the Redskins contacted Haynesworth about signing before free agency officially began on Feb. 27. The Titans believe they didn't have a full opportunity to re-up with the gargantuan defensive tackle due to the Redskins' tampering.
Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.
When I anointed Brian Orakpo as the ideal pick for the Washington Redskins in the first round of the draft, I sort of assumed they'd do something about the offensive line later in the draft. You see, heading into the offseason, the Redskins really had one glaring issue: The sack ratio. They allowed 38 -- in a division full of pass-rushing fiends -- and only accrued 24 themselves. I'm aware that Greg Blache's defensive scheme doesn't chase the passer, but pressuring him with a front four means that's less time the coverage has to do their job. Orakpo helps take care of that with his outside push.
It hasn't been a particularly busy draft for Washington, with the Redskins holding just two picks in the first four rounds. But Dan Snyder's team has been productive nonetheless, adding Maryland cornerback Kevin Barnes in round 3 to defensive standout Brian Orakpo, whom the 'Skins took at No. 13 overall.
Both players could turn out to be great pickups, especially given where they were selected. Orakpo, very unexpectedly, fell into the Redskins lap. Barnes, meanwhile, had injury issues in 2008, helping him fly under the radar for Washington.
Everyone makes mistakes. But when those mistakes are magnified by intense scrutiny of the NFL draft, well, they become much more embarrassing than, say, my typical Friday morning, mustard-stain-on-khakis incident.
Which is why the NFL FanHouse braintrust got together to determine who is the biggest bust for each NFL team. They're not listed in terms of stupidity -- they're all stupid relative to a team's total draft performance. Meaning, of course, some teams "bust" is much different than another organization's; we did it this way to avoid just linking you to DetroitLions.com.
Instead, we're putting it in current draft order, sans trades, and allowing this list to serve as a reminder of each's team's ability to properly execute a fail. The "bust factor" was based primarily on three things: statistical production (or lack thereof), position in the draft and other available options during that year's draft.
With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.
The Redskins made the biggest early splash this offseason, luring beastly defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth from Tennessee to anchor their defensive line. Their work, however, is not done. Unfortunately for Washington, it plays in arguably the best division in the NFL. Fortunately, the few holes the Redskins still have on their roster should be perfectly fixable. In fact, many could be done in-house, with younger players developing further.
The Redskins made the big early splash in this year's free-agent market, inking DT Albert Haynesworth to a seven-year, $100 million contract ($41 million guaranteed). But this latest from Terry McCormick of the Nashville City Paper makes you wonder if Washington needed to pay Hayneworth even half that much:
"Tennessee's final offer to Haynesworth, according to a league source, amounted to a four-year package worth $34 million total, with about $20 million in guarantees, The City Paper learned."
Can't imagine ol' Albert had to think too long about that one.
Earlier this week, NFL Network's Adam Schefter put the chances of the Patriots landing Julius Peppers anytime in the near future at roughly 0.1 percent. Yesterday, in an interview with Boston radio station WEEI, New England head coach Bill Belichick, spoke in laudatory generalities about Peppers, which, ultimately, could mean nothing more than he really likes the Carolina defensive end.
Albert Haynesworth was involved in a Dec. 13 accident in Tennessee that resulted in another driver suffering serious injuries after the Redskins' newest defensive tackle attempted to pass another driver, resulting in a collision with the concrete median.
And now Haynesworth has been indicted by a grand jury in Tennessee on two misdemeanor traffic charges: one for reckless driving and one for having an expired registration.
Though it's been discussed occasionally over the course of the past several months, the NFL never really seemed to look into the charges that the Redskins illegally tampered with Albert Haynesworth before signing him away from the Tennessee Titans. Apparently, that is about to change. According to Yahoo! Sports, the league has opened a formal investigation and began conducting interviews with people closely associated with the signing. 
Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.
It hasn't been a particularly busy draft for Washington, with the Redskins holding just two picks in the first four rounds. But Dan Snyder's team has been productive nonetheless, adding Maryland cornerback Kevin Barnes in round 3 to defensive standout Brian Orakpo, whom the 'Skins took at No. 13 overall.
With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.
Albert Haynesworth was involved in a Dec. 13 accident in Tennessee that resulted in another driver suffering serious injuries after the Redskins' newest defensive tackle attempted to pass another driver, resulting in a collision with the concrete median.
