It's July, the slowest month of the year for the NFL, and it's driving you nuts. You need a fix. A hit. Anything NFL to pull you through the dog days. FanHouse is here to help with an in-depth look at each division that should have you plenty prepared for training camp. We're calling it the Summer Scramble, and today we look at the AFC South's looming position battles.
Among the most tired arguments against fantasy football are that people playing it need to "get a girlfriend" or "get a life." First of all, as an avid fantasy football player, I'd like to point out that my wife probably wouldn't appreciate it if I got a girlfriend. Secondly, when seven well-known NFL players play, how can you really question if it's "cool" while comparing it to Dungeons and Dragons? Just get over yourself and try it before knocking it. It's fun.
With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.
What started off as a promising season for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers turned into an embarrassing finish, as the team lost its final four regular season games in 2008, missing the postseason for the third time in four years. When all was said and done, it was enough to cost head coach Jon Gruden his job, while the team said goodbye to several starters, including Derrick Brooks, Jeff Garcia and Cato June.
Marvin Harrison has been out of work for six weeks now, and there's no reason to think that'll change anytime soon.
Teams have shown no interest in the 36-year-old, 13-year veteran and Hall of Fame lock. He barely cracked the top-10 in FanHouse's list of top available free agents, which is remarkable when you see such luminaries as Byron Leftwich, Cato June and Dre Bly ahead of him.
After releasing Cato June and Derrick Brooks to open the offseason, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have quite a need for some help at the linebacker position. Apparently, they're not only willing to scour the free-agent market, but also think outside the box -- or blindly throw darts at the wall, depending on your perspective -- when it comes to improving the position.
On Wednesday, the team signed free-agent linebacker Angelo Crowell, formerly of the Buffalo Bills, to compete for the strongside linebacker spot. The Buccaneers also plan to move safety Jermaine Phillips to weakside linebacker.
Aside from having a new coaching staff and a new front office in 2009, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are also going to have quite a few new faces on the field.
In addition to being the day when Tampa Bay essentially clinched the NFC South, Sunday was also June's birthday. And at 3 a.m. he was pulled over in Tampa because police suspected he was driving drunk. He refused to take a breathalyzer test and was booked into the Orient Road Jail.
It's disgraceful that NFL players, all of whom can easily afford a cab or a limo, still haven't learned that if you're going to go out drinking, you need to find a sober person to drive you home. That it happened after June celebrated his birthday is a reminder of Rams defensive end Leonard Little, who got drunk on his birthday in 1998 and killed a woman he crashed into on his drive home. June is lucky the same thing didn't happen last night.
Welcome to another successful installment of Five Questions with an Enemy Blogger, where each week, via email, I will be exchanging hot questions and [sometimes] answers with a rival blogger about their team and the upcoming matchup.
This week I sat down with Jamie Kiefer of Atop the Crow's Nest, a Most Valuable Network column that covers the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Dan Benton: "Although he was a little shaky last week, Jeff Garcia has played very good football this year. Has he been everything Bucs fans had hoped for, or do they still miss Chris Simms?"
Jamie Kiefer: "Jeff Garcia has been basically everything the Bucs fans had hoped for. You can't go wrong with a guy who had zero interceptions in the first seven weeks of the season. Chris Simms appeared to be the franchise quarterback, but due to a shaky beginning of the season last year, and his injury, he hasn't really had the chance to prove himself. I feel bad for him with all that he's been through, but I can't ignore what Garcia has done for the Bucs. The first seven weeks he had a passer rating over 100. If Garcia sticks around for the next few years, Chris Simms will be a distant memory."
OK, so I was wrong. I didn't think the Lions could beat the Bucs at their own game. But they did. Jon Kitna played conservatively, not completing a pass over 20 yards. They ran it 24 times for 147 yards, including 76 yards, 5.1 yards a carry, and a touchdown for Kevin Jones. And the defense stepped up with timely turnovers. It was anti-Martz football. And it won.
Jeff Garcia, returning to Detroit for the first time since taking no responsibility for anything bad, completed 82.2% of his 45 pass attempts for two touchdowns, showing some Brady-esque precision. But Tom Brady actually produces points and doesn't typically fumble twice, as Garcia did, both of which led to Lions touchdowns. Both teams also had fumbles overturned, one of which would have given the Bucs another touchdown on the return.
This was undoubtedly the most convincing win of the Lions' season. They played outside of their comfort level and won convincingly. They showed the ability to do things playoff teams do. And they're -- gasp -- 4-2, close to taking over the NFC North.
Ummmm ... is it just me, or does Cato June look a little sad in this photo?
Why would he be sad, anyway? He won a Super Bowl ring in Indianapolis last February. He just signed a three-year, $12 million deal with Tampa Bay last March, and he's expected to be a central cog in coordinator Monte Kiffin's famed Cover-2 defense, which the Bucs are trying desperately to make younger and faster. He's showing off those skills in the Buccaneers' camp, too.
June turned in his best performance since camp began, while Tampa Bay's defense dominated during morning drills. June, who earned a Super Bowl ring with Indianapolis last year, leveled a Bucs offensive lineman during an 11-on-11 drill, roamed the field making tackles and caused a fumble that CB Ronde Barber recovered in a seven-on-seven scrimmage.
'He's an impact player for us,' Gruden said of the fifth-year veteran. 'June's made more plays for us than any guy on the team, and I think our players would tip their hat to that. He's not fast ... he's real fast.'
Yet I look at this team photo of "Juneimus the Great," and he looks like someone just told him his pet iguana died, or worse, that Chris Simms is going to be the Bucs' starting quarterback after all. Perhaps at this moment, he was just thinking about how the Colts didn't seem to want him anymore. That chip on June's shoulder may be all the motivation he needs -- which could be bad news for everyone else in the NFC South.
Among the most tired arguments against fantasy football are that people playing it need to "get a girlfriend" or "get a life." First of all, as an avid fantasy football player, I'd like to point out that my wife probably wouldn't appreciate it if I got a girlfriend. Secondly, when seven well-known NFL players play, how can you really question if it's "cool" while comparing it to Dungeons and Dragons? Just get over yourself and try it before knocking it. It's fun. 
With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.
Marvin Harrison has been out of work for six weeks now, and there's no reason to think that'll change anytime soon. 
After releasing Cato June and Derrick Brooks to open the offseason, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have quite a need for some help at the linebacker position. Apparently, they're not only willing to scour the free-agent market, but also think outside the box -- or blindly throw darts at the wall, depending on your perspective -- when it comes to improving the position. 
Aside from having a new coaching staff and a new front office in 2009, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are also going to have quite a few new faces on the field.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Cato June was arrested Sunday on charges of driving under the influence just hours after the Bucs beat the Atlanta Falcons.
Welcome to another successful installment of Five Questions with an Enemy Blogger, where each week, via email, I will be exchanging hot questions and [sometimes] answers with a rival blogger about their team and the upcoming matchup.
OK, so I was wrong. I didn't think the Lions could beat the Bucs at their own game. But they did. Jon Kitna played conservatively, not completing a pass over 20 yards. They ran it 24 times for 147 yards, including 76 yards, 5.1 yards a carry, and a touchdown for Kevin Jones. And the defense stepped up with timely turnovers. It was anti-Martz football. And it won.
Ummmm ... is it just me, or does Cato June look a little sad in this photo?
