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Reads, Listens, Views 12/9

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David Dodds in Japan spreading his method of fantasy draft domination. (Sorry DD, I couldn't resist).

Fantasy Football

Congratulations to Footballguys.com David Dodds, who was elected to the Fantasy Sports Writers Hall of Fame. Although there are some who wonder why we have a Hall of Fame, if accountants can have one I suppose fantasy writers can, too. That being the case, Dodds is most deserving of the honor. He’s an innovative mind in the fantasy sports industry and his work spans more than just writing, but shaping content that has made Footballguys a leader in the industry.

Are your really running your fantasy football team?: Cognitive Bias in our favorite fake sport. by Renee Miller. It’s a good piece, it’s a topic I thought about covering at some point after writing about this professor’s research. Continue reading →

Fond Memories(?) of a Violent Game

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Playing the game of football holds amazing memories, but I never got seriously injured. How do you feel about its long-term effects on former players? Photoby LC Nottassen

The sum of my experience playing organized football is one season in a DeKalb County Pop Warner league in Atlanta, Ga. I missed tryouts because my family had just moved there from Cleveland, Ohio and I joined the team a week before its first game. I had no experience playing in pads and like most kids I wanted to be a running back or wide receiver. Continue reading →

RSP Contest Results

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Randall Cobb was one of the more common answers I got in the RSP Contest. It was a great answer. Unfortunately, it was the wrong answer. Photo by Elvis Kennedy

In case you missed it, I held a contest last week. I provided evaluations of three NFL players when I studied them at the college level. The first three people to correctly name the three prospects would win a past issue of the RSP from 2006-2010.

The contest had a good response, but the question proved difficult and only one person named all three players correctly. Continue reading →

RSP Contest Update and Reads, Listens, Views 12/2

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Hint: Hakeem Nicks is NOT one of the receivers in this week's Name the Prospect RSP Contest. Photo by Romec1

The Name the Prospect Contest has earned a great response and a lot of readers are asking me if I have revealed the answers. You’re going to have to wait a little longer because only 1 reader out of nearly 100 entries has correctly identified all three players. I love a good contest and the fact only 1 out of 100 entries were correct is a strong indicator that the question was a worthy one.

I’m going to let the contest run a full week. If I don’t get three readers with correct answers by the end of Day Seven, Continue reading →

RSP Contest: Guess the WR Prospect

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I heard TV analysts once compare one of these receiver prospects described below to Percy Harvin. I can see that comparison in some respects, but not completely. Photo by Mark Trammell.

Here’s a guessing game for you. Below I have described three receivers that teams drafted or signed as rookies in the last 3-5 years. All three receivers see significant time with their respective offenses and they all have a similar role.

Can you guess each player? The first three people to guess all three players correctly will win a free copy of a past issue of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio (your choice from seasons 2006-2010). Just complete the form at the end of the post and I’ll announce the winners as soon as I have three readers correctly identify them. Continue reading →

Reads, Listens, Views 11/25

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Did you know 40 percent of Vince Young’s career wins are fourth quarter comebacks?

I Know How Kevin Smith Feels

I was going to play football today for the first time in 22 years – an annual post-Turkey day contest in the neighborhood where I grew up. Then I started running last week. Before you get the wrong idea, I’ve been biking 10 miles a day for nearly six months so I’m in decent cardiovascular shape.

I learned that your knees also need to work up to the pounding.  Continue reading →

Reads, Listens, Views 11/18

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I love how all the non-football players in this peice are ranting about Hester as NFL Films’ No.1 return ace of all time, but the former players all see the truth before the stats proved it.

Thanks. Thank you for reading. Thank you for subscribing. And thank you for recommending this blog to friends. Most of all, thank you for purchasing the Rookie Scouting Portfolio.

If you haven’t purchased the 2011 RSP yet, it’s available here for a lockout price of $9.95 that was just plain stoopid.You can also email me if you would like to purchase the RSPs from 2006-2010. It’s my RSP customers that help make this blog possible and here is what they have to say about their investment.

Let’s kick off this week’s Read, Listens, Views… Continue reading →

Penn State Scandal Updates

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Joe Paterno's nickname inside the Penn State program was "The Rat." Former Penn State grad assistant Matt Paknis explains. Photo by Vicenteb_d

I think we’ve really lost in this country—and maybe in many countries—a certain value of leadership. The idea that power can be wielded for the common good is kind of up for grabs these days, because there are so many competing commercial interests on governance as we know it.

– Investigative reporter Jason Berry on the Penn State scandal

Many of you probably want this story to go away. I understand. It’s painful. But I think our country likes to be comfortably numb. Booze. Drugs. Video games. Sports. “Reality” TV.

There’s nothing wrong with having some escapism in your life. But expressing the initial horror over the Penn State story and then slipping back to a medicated or electronic semi-coma isn’t the answer. It doesn’t help us become more educated on the subject of preventing sexual abuse in our communities.

It also doesn’t teach us how to spot the evils that exist within a power structure that happen at every level of a university, business, or government institution. Moreover, we need to learn why the initial reactions to defend this power structure are not unusual and why we shouldn’t have been as surprised as we were.

Here are some links worth reading that I think will help us continue to become more cognizant of the big-picture issues as this story continues to unfold:

Matt Paknis’ blog entry – The former Penn State grad assistant talks about his experiences working with the football team and his impressions of the power structure as well as the behaviors he witnessed from Jerry Sandusky. Paknis did not witness sexual acts, but he did see Sandusky show questionable judgment with physical boundaries between the defensive coordinator and children in public. He also doesn’t mince words about what he thinks Joe Paterno knew. This is a must read. Here’s a podcast with him on Mike Francesca’s CBS show if you just don’t feel like reading.

What the Catholic Church Can Teach Us About the Penn State Scandal – The Atlantic features a Q&A between culture writer (and terrific sportswriter) Patrick Hruby with investigative reporter Jason Berry who has “written extensively about child molestation charges against the church.” Berry says there are striking parallels, but a lot more credit should be given to Penn State for its swift reaction.

Sunday Mailbag 11/13

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Find out which rookie receiver reminds me of the late Chris Henry in this week's Mailbag. Photo by Donkerdink.

Fusue Vue via Twitter: Does Denarius Moore remind you of Brandon Lloyd?

MW: Fusue, I can see where Moore and Lloyd’s games have parallels. Both receivers do a tremendous job adjusting to the football. However, I think each player has some distinct differences.

I think Moore is a better player with the ball in his hands. He’s faster, a little more rugged, and he can also make defenders miss. The comparable player that immediately came to mind for me as a ball carrier as well as their physiques and skill at adjusting to the football was Continue reading →

Donate to Sexual Abuse Prevention

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Let's do something to help prevent sexual abuse and promote greater awareness. Photo by Arianna Marchesani.

I think one of the best things about the community of football fans is its generosity with good causes. I think in light of the events at Penn State, I’d like to remind everyone that one of the organizations I had scheduled to donate a share of the revenue from the 2012 Rookie Scouting Portfolio is Darkness to Light.

[Just to be clear, while I would love for you to buy the RSP if you haven’t in the past – and I’m certainly going to use this as a way to make your decision a bit easier. But in the grand scheme of things, it’s more important that you donate to reputable organizations that focus on the prevention of these types of crimes – RSP or not.]

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I found Darkness to Light on Charity Navigator last year and chose it based on its mission:

“Darkness to Light is a national organization and initiative. Our mission is to empower people to prevent child sexual abuse. Darkness to Light’s public awareness campaign seeks to raise awareness of the prevalence and consequences of child sexual abuse.

Again, even if you don’t purchase the Rookie Scouting Portfolio publication I encourage you to find an organization like Darkness to Light or RAIN to assist.

If you are an annual reader of the Rookie Scouting Portfolio publications, I had a poll available on this page for you to determine how much of the allocated percentage of sales revenue I donate to Darkness to Light. I’ve decided instead that I’m going to play benevolent dictator on this decision. I’m giving that percentage solely to Darkness to Light.

Even if you don’t have the dough to spare, you can donate something far more important: your time and willingness to learn how to prevent this from happening in your life. This weekend, I have added pages to help us learn about this epidemic in our society and how to minimize its impact in our homes and communities. If you can learn football stats you should commit some of these stats about sexual abuse to memory. Once you read the facts, learn how to protect children from becoming another statistic.

I think as football fans it’s a good idea we send a message that while we get idiotic about the sport, we’re not a complete bunch of idiots.