General Discussion > Sports Talk!
THE OFFICIAL 2012 NFL SEASON thread
RVR II:
Um.. Not sure this is a good move.. :-\
--- Quote ---Sources: Vince Young to Bills
Updated: May 11, 2012, 1:20 PM ET
Quarterback Vince Young has agreed to a one-year, $2 million contract with the Buffalo Bills, league sources told ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen.
Young can earn another $1 million in incentives, sources said. He is expected to join the team Monday.
Young worked out for the Bills at the beginning of the month.
Young spent last season with the Philadelphia Eagles. He struggled in six games and threw for 866 yards, four touchdowns and nine interceptions. Young also had a career-low 60.8 passer rating in 2011.
He has had an up-and-down career since being selected third overall by the Tennessee Titans in the 2006 draft. He was the NFL's offensive rookie of the year, but lost his starting job on several occasions in Tennessee before the Titans ran out of patience with him.
--- End quote ---
D.B. Barnes:
It's not.
RVR II:
Alright we're getting close peoplez!! :cheers:
From the Carolina Panthers..
--- Quote ---Strickly Panthers: Kalil's Super Bowl goal
Pro Bowl center Ryan Kalil penned an open letter to Panthers fans in the form of a full page ad in the Charlotte Observer on Wednesday, emphatically ending it with "CAROLINA PANTHERS – SUPER BOWL XLVII CHAMPIONS!" and then his signature.
Later Wednesday, at the conclusion of a three-day camp leading up to training camp, Kalil's head coach and teammates signed off on his sentiment.
"If we don't have 53 guys with that same attitude walking in the building, then we need to find 53 guys that do," Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. "Ryan put it out there, and he wants his teammates to know he put it out there. The great thing is the reaction I've gotten from some of his teammates, from Jon Beason and Charles Johnson and Steve Smith. They said, ‘OK, let's go.' "
Beason has used different forums to say much the same thing for months now. In fact, just two days after the Panthers concluded the 2011 season by winning four of their final six games to finish 6-10, Beason said in an interview with News 14 Carolina: "I really think we're going to win the whole thing next year."
Beason said Wednesday, "Back in January and February, anytime somebody put a mike in front of me, I was saying that we were going to win a Super Bowl as well. Ryan killed it the way he did it - putting it in the paper and not letting anybody paraphrase it at all. I loved it. I took a picture of it with my phone and got it out to the world on Twitter.
"That's the first part of it – the confidence. You've got to set a goal and believe in it, and then what you do day to day to work toward it is what makes it come true."
Before practice, Beason posted on his Twitter account: "Well said my brother! Belief is the 1st step to reality. 2013 Champions!"
Kalil's letter isn't the first time a current Panther has expressed such confidence in this team, and it's far from the first time such a thing has happened league-wide.
When previous predictions haven't ended with the Lombardi Trophy in hand, the prognosticating parties have been portrayed as having put their foot in the mouth.
Kalil's proclamation, however, feels more like a call to commitment than a call to coronate.
Two years ago, New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan famously predicted that his team would win the Super Bowl. Ryan said he did it to maintain confidence in a team that had come within one game of the big game the year before, but his brash persona made it impossible regardless of his motives for such a statement to not haunt him.
The Jets again fell one game short, and Ryan again predicted a Super Bowl title last season. That only amped up the ridicule when the Jets didn't even make the playoffs.
Also last season, as the Philadelphia Eagles stockpiled talent before training camp that quickly vaulted them into a favorite's role, reserve quarterback Vince Young referred to his new team as a "dream team."
The Eagles, however, lost eight of their first 12 games and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2007. Given the widespread belief that the Eagles would contend entering the season, Young's comment – fair or not -- came to be viewed as a sign that the Eagles believed their own press clippings and allowed overconfidence to affect their preparation.
Kalil's statement, by contrast, comes from a leader on a team that's excited about the chance to embrace growing expectations but hasn't been saddled with great expectations.
The Panthers haven't been a play or two away from the Super Bowl in recent seasons, nor did they make any major splashes in free agency that put the spotlight on them. Rather, they've steadily improved since bottoming out with a 2-14 season in 2010, they have a young quarterback that's the talk of the league, and now they're earnestly yearning for good things to come their way.
Rather than a conceited declaration that we're better than anyone else and we know it, Kalil's powerful prose reads like a concerted effort to call for fans and his teammates to dream along with him about what could come to fruition if the Panthers put in the labor.
"Do we know what's going to happen? No. But based on how he feels and what he believes, I'm right there behind him," Rivera said. "In fact, I'll step out in front and say the same thing: This is a group of men that if they understand and work hard and put it on themselves, who knows?
"The sky can be the limit, but first and foremost we've got to go out and do it now, do it during training camp to develop and become the football team that gives itself a chance to win every Sunday."
--- End quote ---
And my Bills..
--- Quote ---Expectations high as Bills set to open camp
Updated Jul 25, 2012 9:33 PM ET
PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP)
The time for talking is over as far as Buffalo Bills running back Fred Jackson is concerned.
With training camp set to open in suburban Rochester on Thursday, Jackson said it's time the Bills start showing they're capable of playing to the high expectations that followed a productive offseason.
''You want to be respected, but at the same time, it's just talk until we get out there on the football field,'' Jackson said Wednesday after the team held a voluntary conditioning session. ''So we've got to go out there and make it worth it.''
For a team that hasn't made the playoffs in 12 seasons, there's a big buzz of belief that these Bills could be in store for a breakthrough. It began with Buffalo re-signing receiver Stevie Johnson in early March, and was followed by the even bigger splash that came with signing defensive end Mario Williams three days into free agency.
The addition of a pass-rushing specialist such as Williams - at a whopping $100 million price tag - was part of a major overhaul of a defense that ranked among the NFL's worst last year.
On offense, the Ryan Fitzpatrick-led unit returns mostly intact after showing flashes of production last year. Despite a late-season swoon, the unit still produced 5,624 yards, Buffalo's most since 1992, and finished 14th in the NFL in yards, the best ranking since Drew Bledsoe's first season in 2002.
Add it up, and that makes the start of camp this year as one of the most highly anticipated in Buffalo since Bledsoe's arrival in 2002. Though they failed to make the playoffs during Bledsoe's three-year tenure, the Bills did enjoy a 9-7 finish in 2004 - the last time Buffalo had a winning season.
''We have work to do, and we are all optimistic and excited to be here,'' veteran defensive end Chris Kelsay said. ''If we can stay healthy with the guys we have, we will be making a push and we will be contending.''
Even general manager Buddy Nix isn't couching his expectations.
''I believe losing and not being in contention throughout the year will be a huge disappointment for all of us,'' Nix said a day earlier. ''It's time to close it out and win some games. And until we do, it is not complete.''
The Bills are coming off a 6-10 season in which injuries and inexperience led to the team losing eight of its last nine games.
That was a switch from Nix and head coach Chan Gailey's first year together in 2010, when the Bills lost their first eight en route to a 4-12 finish.
Now, Gailey would like to see his team put it together for an entire season.
''The majority of our team has been through a fast start and a slow start, so I think we are mentally capable of handling whichever happens,'' Gailey said.
There's cause for optimism because the Bills believe they've significantly addressed their needs on defense while also adding experienced depth at most positions.
That should lead to several intriguing competitions for roster spots at several positions.
At receiver, the competition for the No. 2 job opposite Stevie Johnson is expected to involve Donald Jones, Marcus Easley and rookie third-round pick T.J. Graham.
At left tackle, rookie second-round pick Cordy Glenn and second-year player Chris Hairston will vie to replace free-agent loss Demetress Bell. And the Bills have a logjam at defensive tackle, leaving third-year players Torrell Troup and Alex Carrington competing for one of the last backup jobs.
Though Fitzpatrick returns as the starting quarterback, there's a battle for the No. 2 job between free-agent addition Vince Young and returning backup Tyler Thigpen.
Nix hasn't ruled out the possibility of adding a safety to improve the team's depth at that position.
The Bills are also healthy. Jackson, center Eric Wood, linebacker Shawne Merriman, defensive tackle Kyle Williams and cornerback Terrence McGee have all been cleared for practice after overcoming season-ending injuries last year.
''I think our mindset is where it needs to be,'' Gailey said. ''But you can have mindset, you can have attitude changes, you can have culture changes, but until you do it on the field on Sundays it doesn't count.''
--- End quote ---
We'll see how they progress as the season goes along.. 8)
Bob:
My season tickets are supposed to come this week.......along with two lanyards and two NFL Rams hats. My sister and brother-in-law (and my 5 neices and nephews) are VERY happy since they will get most of the games and get to stand in the special season ticket patio they are buidling in training camp for training camp. Darn me for living in Houston!
The Houston football team called me and sent me an e-mail with a customer account set up saying that they had special season ticket specials for people like me who's season ticket teams are out of town. They must have broke into the Rams' office or something. Me and my wallet said NUP to that.
JimJ:
Desperately need players for my Yahoo fantasy league if anyone is interested: http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com/f1/register/joinleague
League ID: 209334
Password: ravens
Right now it's just me and a guy I work with, so I need as many people as I can get.
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