Monday, February 2, 2009

Last Football Post- The 10 Players You'd Want on Your Team



1. Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers- Big Ben, with already his second Super Bowl win, is the best QB under 30. In my opinion is one of the best ever, but with this last win, literally yesterday, he has come from behind and won a game 18 times! The kids only been around a few years, but he's just as "clutch" as Tom Brady, if not more.

2. Larry Fitzgerald, WR, Arizona Cardinals- Moss and Owens get all of the fame, but Fitzgerald is king in the NFL. A first round draft pick, the Cardinals were nervous that his 4.7 40 time wouldn't cut it against faster corners. He makes up for his average speed with his insane leaping ability and agility, Jerry Rice hands and his 6'3" 220 pound frame. Make no mistake, Kurt Warner is good but Fitzgerald was a bigger part of that Cardinals Super Bowl team--it sure wasn't that defense...

3. Chad Pennington, QB, Miama Dolphins- Pennington has a lifetime QB rating of 90, one of the best in the league, yet he was never looked upon as a superior QB because of his average arm and injury history, Pennington is no athlete, he has size 14 feet--lineman feet-- and his arm isn't strong by any stretch. The former Rhodes Scholar made up for his shortcomings with his brain and his accuracy. He's incredibly smart and very accurate, hitting his targets usually well over 2/3 of the time. My favorite player, I was heart broken when Parcells saw what I saw and took him to the Dolphins. If you need proof how good he is, just look how the Dolphins went from zero to hero with him as their only notable free-agent aquisition.

4. Peyton Hillis, FB/HB, Denver Broncos- Hillis, at 6'1" 250 is an absolute beast in the backfield. His freight train-like running style would make Brandon Jacob's piss his pants. Its rare a team has a fullback that can make the plays Hillis does, but he can block receive and run with the best half backs in the league. In the five games he started he rushed for 5 touchdowns, had a 5.0 rushing average and 343 yards on the ground. They lost him in the final weeks of the season with a leg injury, but if the Broncos can get a fast guy to complement Hillis they'd have the thunder and lighting that the Giants have.

5. Wes Welker, Slot WR, New Englad Patriots- Once cut from the Chargers and let go by the Dolphins, Welker came to the Pats as a special teams guy. In a poor preseason 2007 he was losing hope, but Belichick saw something and the Pats decided to slot him in the, well, slot and he quickly became Brady's favorite target, catching 112 passes in 2007. Moss gets the press but the Pats can't win without Welker. He's super fast, leading the league in YAC in '07 and he brought down another 111 passes in '08. Its too early to tell if the Pro Bowler is hall of fame material, but if he keeps playing like this for three to four more years he'll be a lock.

6. Alan Faneca, LG, New York Jets- Faneca is the best at his position hands down. The Jets signed him in 2008 and he quickly showed his worth by clearing lanes for Thomas Jones to add over a yard to his yards per carry. His run blocking is fantastic but his pass blocking is his strength and he keeps nose tackles in their spot and once in a while chips and rails the line backers with his plus speed.

7. Michael Turner, RB, Falcons- Adrian Peterson and Brandon Jacobs are very good, don't get me wrong, but Turner is the league's unsung hero. The stocky 244 pound Turner was always good for San Diego but the Falcons saw someone really good. He scored 17 touchdowns in '08 and rushed for second place in the league. He can do it all, break it to the outside, catch a pass or truck up the middle. Now that Dunn and T.J. Duckett are gone the Falcons might make the playoffs yearly with this guy.

8. Albert Hayneworth, DT, Tennessee Titans- That tightens defense was a wrecking ball for offensive lines in '08. Hayneworth had 6 sacks in '07 and then a league leading 8.5 (among defensive tackles) in '08. More of a passing threat, he can still block the run and made 51 tackles in '08.

9. Mike Vrabel, OLB, New England Patriots- Vrabel does it all, picks off passes, sacks the QB, and stops the run. He has 55 career sacks and 11 career picks over the eight seasons in which he started. A 3 time Super Bowl winner, he Bruschi and Colin dominated opponents in the red zone, and usually stopped dead in their tracks. Vrabel also can play offense, and the Patriots run a famous trick play when they're in a jam where Vrabel catches a goaline pass for a touchdown.

10. Brian Dawkins, FS, Philadelphia Eagles- Dawkins has been around forever, for twelve seasons he's been picking off opposing quarterbacks and destroying receivers that brashly come over the middle to catch a floater. He forced 6 fumbles in 2008, a number that Darren Woodson and Jon Lynch could only dream of. To me he's a sure fire Hall of Famer and I know I'm not the only one. He'll continue to make Terrell Owens shit his pants in 2009. If you're wondering why he wears that visor its because he suffers from migraines- yeah he's that hardcore.

1 comment:

  1. I gather from your blog that you enjoy watching big, strong, black men use their hands in a forceful fashion. But I kinda already knew that.

    ReplyDelete

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