Checkdown Chatter

In continuing the theme from earlier in the week; I’m picking up on my divisional power rankings/offseason recap with the NFC North.

NFC North

The division yielded 2 playoff teams last year, and, another had their season derailed by an untimely injury. Meanwhile, the Vikings are waiting to see how Christian Ponder’s development affects their 2012 hopes.

Green Bay Packers - Its easy to forget with the early playoff exit that this team was unbeatable for an entire calendar year; however, when looking at the offseason it remains a distant memory. They lost Matt Flynn and failed to replace him, and didn’t make a lot of noise in free agency, replacing a departed centre with 5 time pro bowler Jeff Saturday. Anthony Hargrove was a solid free agent signing to shore up the defense, until he lost half his season to a bounty suspension. They did land Jerel Worthy and Nick Perry (to play the outside opposite Mathews) while addressing need at other positions throughout the draft, though. Add to this the expected development of Randall Cobb in the slot and the Packers will again be dangerous.

Chicago Bears – with what Jay Cutler and Matt Forte were able to do behind that o-line, in an ill suited Martzian system, without any pass catchers last season you have to feel good about the outlook for 2012. The Bears added Brandon Marshall who does not appear to be subject to supplemental discipline entering the season and drafted Alshon Jeffery. Provided Matt Forte gets to the field in time to avoid a CJ2K like start to the season (and even if he does, Michael Bush is in town) the Bears enter the season looking good. Yes, they could have spent a draft pick or two addressing the o-line, but, with Mike Tice in charge of the offense those issues should, in part, take care of themselves anyhow.

Detroit Lions – The Lions made the playoffs last year for the first time in recent memory, and, they haven’t regressed in the offseason – Matt Stafford and Calvin Johnson will again, no doubt, light things up. But, the Lions did nothing to address their backfield situation and Mikel Leshoure and Jahvid Best are very questionable to return to full health. Grabbing Riley Reiff in the 1st round will help open some lanes for whoever is toting the rock; and Ryan Broyles should be primed to contribute in year one as a receiver; but, with Titus Young developing it might have been a bit early for a wideout with holes in the secondary. If the corners drafted in the 3rd, 5th and 6th contribute the Lions will have made a step forward, but, the offseason hasn’t fixed their biggest flaws and they may be losing ground to the Bears.

Minnesota Vikings – The Vikes had a difficult offseason; with their stadium situation and commitment to Minnesota unclear it was hard to bring in any free agents or make long term plans. Adrian Peterson seems as if he’ll be all set for game one; whether he’ll be at 100% remains to be seen but Matt Kalil might help him overcome deficiencies by opening some holes. Chris Carr should be a helpful addition to the secondary if he is healthy enough to contribute. They addressed this area in the draft with Harrison Smith and Josh Robinson in rounds 2 and 3. This all helps the Vikings, but, the season will be all about how Christian Ponder develops – and, regardless, in an ever competitive division they are destined for 4th place.

This is the time of year where you hear nothing but sunshine coming out of team headquarters about their draft, rookie mini-camps, OTAs and the like; and, we won’t know much about which teams have really improved until they take the field in August and even through the first month or so of the season.

With that said, there are a lot of NFC teams that seem to be making the right moves this offseason. Four in particular I am very fond of are the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers – all of whom missed the playoffs in 2011. In fact, looking at the 3 divisions I’m speaking about (the NFC East, North and South) it is almost hard not to see 3 playoff teams coming out of each one of them. That, of course, is a mathematical impossibility but it is safe to say that these four teams have certainly taken steps to make themselves more competitive.

Briefly, I’ll outline the divisions in the NFC over the coming days- in order of strength – and the offseason progress of each squad.

NFC East

Legitimately, I find it challenging to picture a situation in which the NFC East doesn’t send three teams to the playoffs. In fact, the Redskins were close enough last season and no matter what RGIII brings to the team this year, its hard to suggest that they aren’t stronger behind centre.

New York Giants – Last year’s champs spent the offseason getting healthy (the secondary, provided everyone is ready to go on day 1, suddenly looks much stronger) and making the right moves on offense. Mario Manningham, the 4th quarter hero in the SuperBowl departs for San Francisco and Brandon Jacobs joined him. While letting the two men walk and replacing them with quality players in the draft. David Wilson at the end of the first round represents an upgrade over Jacobs (though, he has a tendency to run too much to the outside) and Rueben Randle is younger and should boast more sure hands/less route running issues than Manningham. Truthfully, their offseason has been quiet but provided these two picks pan out, and, Osi comes back into the fold its hard to envision the Giants giving ground this season.

Dallas Cowboys – The Boys were just a blink away from replacing the Giants in the playoffs last season; and, they identified the issue that kept them out of the dance. The defensive side of the football. There aren’t a lot of changes on offense, but, things were working pretty well last season (provided Laurent Robinson’s production can be replaced; and DeMarco Murray returns to form), and they made a big splash on defense. Jerry Jones knew who he wanted in free agency and the draft and got the best cornerback’s available in each including an aggressive draft day trade (Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne), which means better coverage in the secondary, and, more opportunities for the line to get at the quarterback. Coming into the season, the Cowboys have definitely improved.

Philadelphia Eagles – Last season the Eagles made a lot of noise in free agency, and, it didn’t pan out – at least, not until the latter half of the season. However, it seems that they finally gelled and should be able to carry that into 2012. The Jason Peters injury (and setback) is not insignificant, but, provided LeSean McCoy shows up ready to work, he’ll find his holes all the same. Draftees Fletcher Cox and Mychal Kendricks bring athleticism to the defensive front; and, with Asante Samuel out of town and DeSean Jackson signed the Eagles aren’t facing a lot of distractions.

Washington Redskins - In 2011 the defense was strong and they fared well within the division. It is hard to see the Redskins as anything more than 4th place in what is arguably the league’s best division, but, with a few breaks they could be in the picture. The defensive shell remains intact, and, free agency sees more weapons joining the offense in Pierre Garcon and Josh Morgan things are looking up in Washington. Make no mistake, though, the 2012 offseason will be judged entirely by the success of Robert Griffin III both this year and beyond.

Concussions, brain trauma, and resulting issues are a significant issue. However, the lawsuits we are seeing are a contradiction. While the league owns some responsibility, it is the players themselves, and their refusal as a group to take responsibility for safety is as much an issue.

Players are joining concussion lawsuits against the NFL that a rate that hardly makes them noteworthy these days; but, I took pause to reflect today when I noticed that Jamal Anderson had done so. Anderson was my first ‘favourite player’ when I fell in love with the game at the age of 15 or so (it takes us a while to catch on up here in the great white north), so, seeing his name was noteworthy.

JAM joins some 1600 players who are suing the league based on current difficulties or the threat of future health complications based on their participation in the game.

When the player safety controversy first came to the forefront during the 2010 season I was one of few fully in support of the league, commission Goodell et. al in trying to limit blows to the head, risks of concussions, etc. At the end of the day its a game, and, yes players are compensated extremely well for entertaining us by playing it, but, its a game and their safety needs to be paramount.

That’s all fine and good, and, I think that the adjustments to the way that head injuries are treated on the field, and, off the field in terms of their diagnosis and treatment will have a positive effect on the long term health of NFL players.

I don’t see a lot of potential lawsuits coming from current players because a) they are now fully aware of the risks and b) the league is taking legitimate steps to make the game healthier for them.

Also, I view the current lawsuits as frivolous. Don’t get me wrong, I view the issues facing the players as significant – particularly in light of the loss of Junior Seau and the (possible) link to head trauma, CTE, and concussions – but the suits themselves don’t make any sense to me. Part of that is my wanting to protect the game that we all love, and, I’ve never had the experience of being a pro player and therefore I can’t say what it is like to be a retiree suffering with health consequences, but, I can say that even if the league were aware of the risks at the time these players suffered their injuries, the players themselves must have known – its common sense. But, that’s not actually my point today.

The statement I’d like to make now is simple: players, in large part, are rejecting moves to make the game safer as they have been implemented in recent years. They, (this is a generalization of course) don’t seem to care about measures to protect themselves and their peers now; and, one would have to assume that this culture has been consistent throughout the history of the game. The players in the 70s and 80s surely viewed aggression and collisions as a vital part of the game, as do current participants.

I can’t find the quotes I’m looking for to support my viewpoint, aside from this business on James Harrison and some other misinformed Steelers, but, I don’t think that its a stretch to say that well over half the time I read a quote from a player on rule enhancements/player safety they are reacting negatively to it/discussing the wussification of the game. This mindset, and, the pervading culture of a league focused on being macho is at fault, not the league itself. Until players are ready to acknowledge that safety is a shared responsibility – and, certainly, for the most part they haven’t seemed to be doing so over the last few years and didn’t do so in earlier eras either – then the finger needs to be pointed internally first and foremost.

Trent Richardson looks awfully happy for a guy who is holding a Browns jersey. Doesn't he realize that the stadium is a "factory of sadness"?

I was ready to write this article as soon as the trade with the Vikings was announced, and, certainly as soon as Richardson held up his freshly pressed Browns jersey. The subsequent selection of Brandon Weeden gave me pause, but, I think the question is still worth asking.

After being selected by the Cleveland Browns, who, coming into the draft were certainly more than a running back away from contention Trent Richardson surely was thrilled, but, looking into the crystal ball four years down the road; one must wonder how he will feel as he seeks to sign his second contract.

The Browns haven’t been very good for some time, and, even their most recent Derek Anderson led successful season seems to be more aberrational than a true step towards contention. They reside in the AFC North, a division which has been dominated by the Steelers and Ravens for years and which likely will be their domain for years to come, and one that is also home to the Cincinnati Bengals who seem to be on the rise with two consecutive strong drafts. The playoffs will be a tough nut to crack.

Of course, we don’t know yet that Richardson will turn out to be the superstar that most anticipate, but, we know he was a high draft pick who should be ready to carry the load in 2012. However, given the typical short window for a running back to perform at a high level in the NFL, we must wonder if the much celebrated pick will really lead to a career wasted.

Look at Steven Jackson, for example, who has been ably carrying the rock for the for 8 impressive seasons for the St. Louis Rams; posting 7 consecutive 1000 yard seasons, even in the injury shortened campaigns. During that timeframe, the Rams have had exactly 0 winning seasons, despite the efforts of their workhorse back. Frankly, I can’t see anything but the same coming out of Richardson’s Browns.

Again, I think that the Brandon Weeden pick was a wise one, and, there are things to like on the Browns defense, but, they have a long way to go to become a legitimate playoff threat – for Richardson’s sake, and for the NFL fans who deserve to cheer an elite talent at the game’s highest levels, I hope that I’m wrong.

I've got a nagging feeling that Robert Griffin III may develop into the better overall quarterback than his draft class peer, but, if I'm the Colts it still makes sense to go with Luck rather than what lies behind door #2.

I apologize for the bad Luck pun, we were all subjected to it during this season’s ‘Suck for Luck’ campaign, and, we’re going to have to put up with it for the foreseeable future… it is just too easy. Knowing that, I got on the bandwagon.

Now, onto the analysis. I’ve been stumping for Robert Griffin III as worthy of consideration for the number one pick to anyone who would listen, and, for his part the consensus #2 overall selection spent a lot of time angling for number one, too. He seems to be resigned to playing his football in Washington now, with reports that he is taking multiple weekly meetings with ‘Skins OC Kyle Shannahan, but, there is still a possibility that the Colts could buck the conventional wisdom, and grab RGIII off the draft board when their name gets called.

And, I’m writing about nothing as I’m essentially making this post to say that the Colts should stick with the gameplan here. Imagine where they’d be had they picked the recently incarcerated Ryan Leaf instead of Peyton Manning when making their last decision along these lines. I don’t think this is a Leaf/Manning debate here, as most experts would suggest that both Griffin and Luck are starting caliber NFL quarterbacks, at worst, but I do think there is a possibility to screw this up by trying to get too fancy. Word is that, as they should, the Colts are keeping an open mind about the first overall pick. While this is the prudent approach, the trouble comes in over thinking it.

Andrew Luck spent the entire season as the no-brainer #1 pick. Dating as far back as this time last year, if not before, he was the odds on favourite to go number 1 and has been called many times the “most pro ready QB to come out since _________ (Elway, Manning?)”. Robert Griffin impressed during his Heisman trophy winning campaign and did enough to prove that he is likely to be a pro-caliber, if not SuperStar caliber, quarterback. The problem is that Luck didn’t really do anything to diminish his stock in his final year as a college QB either. So, if he was an absolute lock at number one 12 months ago, and, until very recently and nothing has changed with the quarterback from a physical, mental or overall skill set stand point, isn’t he still the smart pick at number 1? Griffin gave the Colts lots of reasons to want to gamble on him this season, but, even with a player of his stature that is what the pick represents – a gamble. Luck is a lock, and, while Griffin has upside the smarter pick is to go with the guy you know is ready to step in and lead the team, even if the other player might have the higher ceiling.

Earlier this week it was leaked that LSU prospect Morris Claiborne posted a poor score on his Wonderlic test, but, the test score reveals more about the league's procedure than the prospect's status.

The Stanford-Binet IQ test was designed to measure suitability of a student to fit within the school system and achieve a certain measure of success. It was never supposed to become synonymous with intelligence. But, it did.

The Wonderlic test is built on a similar model and, in theory, it gauges a prospect’s ability to assess an NFL playbook, make adjustments on the fly, and fit in in the mentally arduous pro-game. In reality, its a dated measure that doesn’t show much of anything. I listened to Bill Polian explain on SiriusXM NFL Radio today that executives tend to analyze the Wonderlic as a piece of the puzzle, but, they were more interested in the learning style of members of their teams, and, about encouraging coaches to communicate with players in a manner that fits their individual style and ensures that they will get the most out of meetings, film sessions and playbook review. This is based in strong pedagogical theory and in terms of educational value, its actually quite progressive, which is why it is surprising that the league still relies on the Wonderlic as part of the employment process, and, why its even more surprising that the league fails to accommodate students with learning disabilities – rather, it subtly chastises those who do poorly on a test that doesn’t suit their style of expression.

LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne is an example of the testing procedure failing a prospect. Claiborne is viewed as the top corner in the draft and a surefire top 5-10 pick. It is known (though, recently forgotten when media outlets all but called him a complete idiot when discussing his recently alleged 4 out of 50 on the Wonderlic) that he has a learning disability; presumed to be dyslexia or some other condition that affects his ability to read and process information. The topic is timely for me because, in my ‘day job’ I’m currently studying how to teach and accommodate adult students with learning disabilities. The summary of that learning: students with disabilities must be accommodated, the additional supports are not a way of artificially propping them up, but, of leveling the playing field.

I know very little about the process through which the NFL administers their testing, though, the National Football Post does shed some light on it in a recent article. Admitting my ignorance here, I’m going to assume that it is not a culture accustomed to providing accommodations. Claiborne very likely went through secondary and post-secondary education receiving accommodations as part of his testing procedures, simple things like extra time to write a test, audio accompaniment for written tests/notes, and things of that nature, designed to make sure that he has a fair shot to express himself and share the knowledge that he possessed. He graduated, so, presumably it worked well for him (though, some have questioned the perks given to student athletes recently, perhaps rightly so), and yet, these accommodations are very unlikely to be available in the NFL’s testing procedure and the culture of the league makes it difficult for a learner with a disability to advocate for themselves. This simply isn’t fair. If students are going to be subjected to the testing (and not be able to opt out, as they are with running the 40, etc.) then the NFL needs to do its best to provide a testing setting whereby they can achieve success. Further, there is the fact that someone leaked this information – likely in an effort to hurt Claiborne’s draft stock and secure the player for themselves – and severely violated his privacy.

If the league insists on incorporating dated intelligence testing as part of its hiring process, it needs to at least modernize the manner in which it delivers the test.

Update: It turns out, per PFT, that an accommodation is available, and, while I don’t love the selection of this particular accommodation, it appears that they aren’t complete out to lunch in terms of learning disabilities.

We all remember what happened to a playoff hopeful team when Caleb Hanie stepped in behind centre last season. The Broncos are hitching their hopes to Peyton Manning and his surgically repaired neck; with Hanie waiting in the wings.

I expressed earlier this week that Manning to Denver (and thus, Tebow out of town) was a move I could support. I definitely see the logic behind the decision and bringing in one of the best the game has ever seen instantly places the Broncos in the playoff/Super Bowl conversation.

That’s fine. The move is a good one, but, its not without risk, I think that we can all acknowledge that. The Broncos have hitched their wagon to a 36 year old quarterback, one year removed from live action with a myriad of health factors, most notably a nagging neck injury. While we’re told that the fusion procedure was a success and things are nice and durable in there, we won’t know whether Manning can stand up to a hit until he takes one. If he does, or, if he takes several behind the Broncos offensive line we could see a season/career ender before too long. I hope it isn’t so, and, clearly, the Broncos do too.

They’ve gone all in on Manning and it appears that they have brought Caleb Hanie in to back him up. As mentioned in the title, I’m no doctor… but, neither is John Elway or any other member of the Broncos brass, so, I’d think that they’d exercise a little more caution with the backup position. Some docs say he’s better than ever, some are more cautious, and, still others suggest that while he’s cleared surgically to play, in game action the skills may never be the same.

Last season he league provided fans and General Managers alike two very clear examples of what can happen to a team’s hopes and dreams when they are ill prepared with quarterback depth in the form of the Bears and the Colts. These two teams are particularly relevant in this mixup as the Colts, obviously, are Manning’s former squad and the backup quarterback who stepped in for the injured Jay Cutler and subsequently helped to flush the Bears playoff hopes down the crapper was Caleb Hanie.

Perhaps the Broncos are intending to add depth through the draft, or, through free agency (who is left?… Vince Young?), and, perhaps they see Caleb Hanie as work in progress and potential futures project for when Peyton departs (one way or another his tenure in Denver is going to be reasonably short). After all, it wasn’t that long ago that the strong-armed Hanie was viewed as a potential starter, but, he makes absolutely no sense as a back up to Peyton Manning.

Manning’s former team is in the position to draft his successor because they were ill prepared to be without him. Meanwhile, the Bears were cruising towards the playoffs in 2011 until Cutler went down with a thumb injury. There were many other factors involved in their fading from view, but, a lot of the problem was that Hanie was ill prepared to fill in. In his four starts the Bears scored a total of 47 points. Last season in total Hanie completed 50% of his passes and threw for a 3:9 TD:Int ratio. That… is… awful, and, it very well could be leading the Broncos at some point next season (though, I suppose they are accustomed to mediocre passing numbers from the position at this point).

None of this matters if Manning stays healthy, however, given the potential for injury and the massive downgrade represented here one would think that the Broncos would want to be better prepared at the position. Adding Manning (and solving what Elway perceived as a problem with Tebow) was a smart move. Rolling with Hanie as #2 on the depth chart could prove to be totally boneheaded.

I don’t often do this, but, I wanted to pass along Larry Brown’s take on Shockey’s outing of Jeremy Shockey as the supposed snitch in the bountygate scandal.

I don’t care for the word, its implications, or anything to do with not protecting whoever it was who came forward with information that the league needed to know – and, I definitely don’t care for it if reports (like those from PFT and CBS) are correct that says that Sapp was just plain wrong about this.

Check the article from Larry Brown out now, which speaks to my own viewpoints, for the most part.

John and Peyton are beginning an old QBs club in Denver, leaving Tim Tebow as the odd man out; which is why this is the move that we should have seen coming all along.

So, the saga has concluded and Peyton Manning will attempt to re-launch his career as a member of the Denver Broncos. At the outset of this whole process I suggested that pursuing Manning would not be a smart choice for a lot of teams. I knew there would be suitors, of course, but I thought many of them would be ill advised. I stand by that contention, but, when making my argument I didn’t really think about the Broncos.

I won’t recap the substance of the argument, but, the gist was: if your team isn’t playoff ready, then adding Manning is only going to set you back. Short term, it will cost you development time of a new QB, and, by adding a handful of wins, draft stock, all for 3 or so years of Manning and likely 0 SuperBowl rings to show for it.

Despite the fact that the Broncos were a playoff team a year ago, this is likely to remain the case in Denver, and, it may not be the most logical landing point for Manning (of the ‘final 3′ San Francisco certainly seemed most likely to add Mannning as the missing piece and make it to the big game) from the player’s perspective, but, from the team perspective he’s a perfect fit.

There are a number of reasons for this, number 1, the team is run by a former quarterback who won a Super Bowl and played some of his best football at the end of his career, so, John Elway can relate to Peyton’s situation and was ready to take a shot. Of course, most of the reasoning revolves around the incumbent starter in Denver.

I’ve discovered in listening to analysis of this trade that, there are two camps involved here – the Tebowmaniacs, and, true football/team fans. True Denver fans are thrilled that the team rolled the dice, true Miami fans are apprehensive that their team might go after the QB who strikes the thinker pose, but Tebowmaniacs view this as a complete affront and an exciting new opportunity. In fairness to Tim, he led an otherwise unexciting team to the playoffs and even a first round victory, and, he probably earned the right to start for the Broncos this year because of that, but, he still wasn’t the long term answer.

Manning is likely the only quarterback that Elway, who, despite his public comments of (semi-)support was never in the Tebow camp anyhow could have brought in to replace the young starter without totally upsetting the base. Provided that Peyton stays healthy and the Broncos win 10+ games next season, people will forget about Tebow pretty quick. So, it solves the quarterback question in the short term for Denver and Elway, Bowlen et. al are probably feeling pretty good about that – but, its good for their long term propects as well.

Again, I argued earlier that a team like the Redskins would be unwise to sign Manning as they would improve their draft stock, change their offense, and find themselves in the same quarterbackless situation upon Manning’s retirement/re-injury as they were at the outset. The Redskins heeded this advice and made a play for RGIII. The Broncos, though, would have been stuck with Tebow, who, even if he enjoyed another season or two of success seems destined to never develop into a truly elite NFL calibre QB, and, as we learned with the wildcat formation gimmick style offenses only work for so long. Sooner or later, teams would learn how to defend the read option (the Patriots did a pretty good job

of this, twice) and without a dropback style quarterback the Broncos would find themselves unable to compete. This moves helps the long term outlook at the position as well. Denver can begin immediately succession planning for the next man in line, rather than waiting for Tebow to flame out before looking elsewhere.

At the end of the day, its a raw deal for a guy who has done nothing but win since making it to the league, but, its a good football mo

Matt Flynn and his supporters expected to see millions of reasons to pump the minute the door opened on free agency, but, he remains unsigned and while an offer is coming, the market has cooled. Kevin Kolb is, at least in part, to blame.

What can you truly learn about a player in 2 starts? Very little, of course, but what we’ve seen of Matt Flynn we like. He’s looked polished against two talented teams in his first two full games behind center and seems ready to contribute as an NFL starter. Aaron Rodgers spent 3 years waiting behind a great quarterback in Green Bay (with even less on field time as the guy ahead of him on the depth chart refused to take a day off) and turned out to be an outstanding starter, and, most analysts would suggest that Flynn – while not necessarily on the same trajectory – has bennefitted from his time behind Rodgers as well.

Surely, then, some team would be willing to offer him a big contract to be their next franchise quarterback. This was the sentiment entering into the 2012 offseason, however, the market for Flynn’s services have been pretty dry.

There are a number of reasons for this. Despite the overwhelming number of quarterback hungry teams, this has been a unique offseason in terms of the talent available at the position. For starters, there are two top tier quarterbacks available in the draft in the form of Robert Griffin III and Andrew Luck, and, there are others (Ryan Tannehill) gaining momentum as draft day approaches, too. Plus, Peyton watch has certainly cooled the market for Flynn’s services as the most needy teams have all expressed an interest in the former Colt (interest that was reciprocated to varying degrees by Manning).

The biggest reason in my eyes, however, is that teams are becoming increasingly timid to turn over the reigns to the franchise to a quarterback. After watching the pursuit of Kevin Kolb last season turn into the spectacle that was a 60 million dollar contract and cost the Cardinals their top corner and seeing limited on field results (he’s competing with John Skelton for the starting job this year, things are no more settled than they were in 2011 in the desert) general managers around the league have to be feeling timid. No one wants to be the next guy to lavish praise, power and payment onto a QB who hasn’t proven anything. Kolb is not the only example, of course, the Seahawks pursued the unproven Charlie Whitehurst prior to the 2010 season and he accomplished very little in his tenure in Seattle, so, he’s now on his way back to the Chargers. Still, the biggest stumbling block for potential Flynn suitors has to be the Kolb situation.  Interestingly enough, the Seahawks are one of two teams remaining in the very anti-climatic Matt Flynn sweepstakes.

Flynn will find a new team, and, it sounds like he’s set to sign any day now but I don’t think that it can be debated that Kolb cost this guy some serious guaranteed jack. In the league, players often exchange cash in accordance with certain unwritten conventions… “you want my number? Sure, you can have it, but donate to my favourite charity” (… “you knocked their QB out, hey, way to go here’s 10 grand”)… and, I think that in light of the way Kolb stuck it to Matt Flynn he should step up likewise. Who knows, the gesture could start a new trend in terms of market value sportsmanship. What remains to be seen is if Flynn will have to pay it forward next season. Depending on how things work out for the aspiring star in 2012 he may have to turn to the next man up (Brian Hoyer, perhaps?) and say “Hey, sorry I didn’t live up to expectations… I didn’t mean to Kolb you like that.”