ESPN's All-NFC North Team

ESPN's beat reporters for each of the four NFC North teams got together and selected 2016's best of that division. It's really no surprise that their All-NFC North teams starts with Aaron Rodgers.

Offense

QB	Aaron Rodgers	Green Bay Packers
RB	Jordan Howard	Chicago Bears
RB	Ty Montgomery	Green Bay Packers
WR	Jordy Nelson	Green Bay Packers
WR	Golden Tate	Detroit Lions
TE	Kyle Rudolph	Minnesota Vikings
LT	David Bakhtiari	Green Bay Packers
LG	Josh Sitton	Chicago Bears
C	Cody Whitehair	Chicago Bears
RG	T.J. Lang	Green Bay Packers
RT	Bryan Bulaga	Green Bay Packers

Defense

DE	Everson Griffen	Minnesota Vikings
DT	Linval Joseph	Minnesota Vikings
DT	Mike Daniels	Green Bay Packers
DE	Danielle Hunter	Minnesota Vikings
	Akeem Hicks	Chicago Bears
LB	Eric Kendricks	Minnesota Vikings
LB	Nick Perry	Green Bay Packers
LB	Anthony Barr	Minnesota Vikings
CB	Xavier Rhodes	Minnesota Vikings
CB	Darius Slay	Detroit Lions
S	Harrison Smith	Minnesota Vikings
S	Ha Ha Clinton-Dix	Green Bay Packers

Specialists

K	Matt Prater	Detroit Lions
P	Sam Martin	Detroit Lions

Ret

Cordarrelle Patterson

Minnesota Vikings

Special teams:

	Kentrell Brothers	Minnesota Vikings
	Don Carey	Detroit Lions
	Sherrick McManis	Chicago Bears
	Jayrone Elliott	Green Bay Packers

It's a fine, deserving team. It's tough to argue with any of their selections. I'd probably have Danielle Hunter alone as one of the defensive ends. Akeen Hicks had a very good year. Hunter had a great year. He was unstoppable most of the time that he was on the field.

One of the most impressive players in the NFC North this season was Bears rookie running back Jordan Howard. He was a nightmare for the Vikings defense in both games. He was a nightmare for a lot of defenses. He doesn't look anything like some of the other Bears rookie running backs that have flashed early and faded. Howard looks like he's going to be a nightmare for defenses for a while. The Bears also had another one of their rookies shine in center Cody Whitehair. With Josh Sitton, Whitehair, and a healthy Kyle Long in the middle of the Bears offensive line Howard could have a lot of room to run next year.

Cal's New Coaches

Cal overhauled their entire football coaching staff following the firing of Sonny Dykes on January 8. Less than a week later, they hired Wisconsin defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox to replace Dykes. The late coaching change has put severe time constraints on everyone associated with the Cal football program. Wilcox has been working to put his coaching staff together and recruit ever since. It's a tough multi-task ask for a first-time head coach but he seems to plowing through it as best he can. He did find some time to attend Cal's thumping of Stanford in basketball last night. Go Bears! Being a defensive coach, Wilcox had to get the coaches on the offensive side of the ball into Berkeley first. He has to be able to show current Cal commits and possible recruits what his offense, and hopefully their offense, will look like. Considering the time constraints that he was under it looks like Wilcox put together the foundation of a fine coaching staff in a very short time.

Head Coach: Justin Wilcox
Offensive Coordinator: Beau Baldwin
Defensive Coordinator: Tim DeRuyter
Quarterbacks Coach/Passing Game Coordinator: Marques Tuiasosopo
Offensive Line Coach: Steve Greatwood
Wide Receivers Coach: Nicholas Edwards
Defensive Backs Coach: Gerald Alexander
Strength and Conditioning Coach: Torre Becton

The most important hire for Wilcox was that of offensive coordinator. Wilcox has to concentrate on fixing a simply horrible defense. He also has to go through the growing pains of being a head coach for the first time. He needed to be able to turn the offense over to someone and let that person run with it. It's hard to imagine a better coach to do just that than Beau Baldwin. He's been the head coach for little school powerhouse Eastern Washington for the last nine seasons. He posted an 95-35 record at EWU. He's led his team to the FCS playoffs six times. Winning it all in 2010. His offenses have routinely been among the best in the nation. He's also given Pac-12 teams fits over the years.

2011 L UW 30-27
2012 L WSU 24-20
2013 W OSU 49-46
2014 L UW 59-52
2015 L Oregon 61-42
2016 W WSU 45-42

Having an experienced head coach on the staff can only help the first-timer Wilcox. Baldwin's spread offenses will fit the players that Cal has recruited the past four years under Sonny Dykes. Perhaps more importantly, Baldwin is adaptable. He fits his offenses to the skills of his players. Wilcox wants some more traditional power football. That's seen in Cal recruiting tight ends and fullbacks for the first time since the Jeff Tedford days. Baldwin's offense should be the sort of offense that won't leave Cal's defense gassed because they get no breaks and are on the field way too much. And this defense needs any help that it can get. Baldwin brought his EWU receiver coach Nicholas Edwards with him to Berkeley.

Wilcox's first hire was offensive line coach Steve Greatwood. He was the offensive line coach for most of his 30+ years at Oregon. He's had success on the field and in developing NFL-ready linemen.

Wilcox hired former Fresno State head coach Tim DeRuyter to assist him in improving Cal's defense. His experience as a head coach and four decades coaching defenses can only be a benefit to Wilcox moving forward.

One of the most underrated yet most important coaches on a football team is the strength and conditioning coach. The players spend more time with this coach than any other coach on the staff. Becton is well respected within his industry for his educational approach to the profession. He's familiar with the Pac-12 as he coached at Washington from 2011-15 and USC in 2016. He's also familiar with his new head coach. Wilcox was the defensive coordinator at Washington from 2012-13.

Likely remaining positions to be filled:
Running Backs Coach
Defensive Line Coach
Linebackers Coach
Tight  Ends Coach
Special Teams Coach

Some colleges have one coach handling a position and special teams so a couple of those positions could be filled by one person.

Once Cal finishes up recruiting this week Wilcox will probably switch his focus to filling out the rest of his coaching staff.

Most Alumni In Super Bowl

NFL.com's CFB 24/7: Path to the Draft routinely has fun football stuff. This past week they posted a list of the 26 colleges that have sent the most players to the Super Bowl since the AFL-NFL merger.

Most alumni in Super Bowl since 1970

1t. Tennessee, 61
1t. Miami (Fla.), 61
3. USC, 59
4t. Michigan, 52
4t. Nebraska, 52
6t. Ohio State, 51
6t. Notre Dame, 51
8t. Penn State, 50
8t. Florida State, 50
10. UCLA, 49
11t. Colorado, 47
11t. Georgia, 47
13. California, 46
14. Florida, 43
15. Alabama, 40
16t. North Carolina, 37
16t. Washington, 37
16t. Texas, 37
16t. Oklahoma, 37
16t. Stanford, 37
21t. Pittsburgh, 36
21t. Texas A&M, 36
23t. Michigan State, 34
23t. LSU, 34
23t. Arizona State, 34
23t. Clemson, 34

California at 13 jumps out. Go Bears! For a school that hasn't been much of a college football factor since 1970, actually they haven't been much of a factor since the 1950s, 46 Super Bowl participants is impressive. All of the schools ahead of them have won at least one national title (or in the case of UCLA had realistic dreams of one) since 1970. The same can be said of many of the teams behind Cal on the list. Despite Cal's lack of wins they have had many very godd, some great, football players. This list shows that. Go Bears! The 13 ranking is nice. It's even nicer to be ranked several spots above Stanford.

Seeing Miami with the most alumni is no surprise. The Hurricane rosters from the late 1980s to early 2000s were loaded with difference-making football players. Some of those teams might have rivaled an NFL team or two for top football talent. It's bit of a surprise to see Tennessee tied with Miami. Without thinking too hard on the matter I would have guessed that Tennessee would place somewhere in the middle. Clearly I'm forgetting about some former Volunteers.

The colleges leading the way in Super Bowl LI are Alabama, LSU, Stanford, and Rutgers with four alumni each. Rutgers!
Cal has one. Atlanta Falcons center Alex Mack. Go Bears!

Senior Bowl Prospects

The biggest college all-star game will be played this afternoon in Mobile, Alabama. The Senior Bowl was once considered the final call on the most recent college football season. Now, it's seen more as the start to the NFL Draft evaluation process. The Senior Bowl is bigger now than it's ever been because of the NFL potential of the prospects playing in the game. The funny thing about the game being bigger than it's ever been is the fact that the game is something of an afterthought. It's the week of practices leading up to the game that draws all the attention. This is the first chance for coaches and general managers to meet with the kids and see their technique, football talents, and practice habits up close. That's more important than the sometimes sloppy play of an all-star game. Most of the NFL people don't even stick around Mobile for the game.

Many of the draft people in the media have passed out their opinions, and will continue to do so, on the prospects playing in the Senior Bowl. Here's NFL.com Draft analyst Chad Reuter's top 15 players at the 2017 Senior Bowl.

1.   O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
2.   Forrest Lamp, T/G, Western Kentucky
3.   Ryan Anderson, edge rusher, Alabama
4.   Dan Feeney, G, Indiana
5.   Antonio Garcia, T, Troy
6.   Desmond King, CB, Iowa
7.   Montravious Adams, DT, Auburn
8.   Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE, Villanova
9.   Carlos Watkins, DT, Clemson
10. Jourdan Lewis, CB, Michigan
11. Jordan Willis, DE, Kansas State
12. Justin Evans, S, Texas A&M
13. Cooper Kupp, WR, Eastern Washington
14. Dawaune Smoot, DE, Illinois
15. Gerald Everett, TE, South Alabama

I'm really looking forward to hearing the announcers handle (or mishandle) Tanoh Kpassagnon's name.

O.J. Howard was a prime prospect before the Senior Bowl practices. He might be a top-10 selection in the draft now.

One thing that stands out in Reuter's rankings is the number of players from small schools. Western Kentucky, Troy, Villanova, Eastern Washington, South Alabama. This is an opportunity for players from those schools to practice with and play against the "big boys." It's a huge opportunity for them.

As a Minnesota Vikings fan, I'm particularly interested in the offensive linemen. That's priority #'s 1-4 this offseason. The Vikings offensive line has to be fixed. Unfortunately, the 2017 offensive line class isn't considered a strong one. That's really only because there are no linemen considered top 5-10 picks. There are still some good linemen. The Vikings have no first round pick so they have to hope that some of those good linemen are still available in the middle of the second round. Forrest Lamp and Dan Feeney are a dream. Maybe Antonio Garcia is still available. Bucknell's Julie'n Davenport, Temple's Dion Dawkins, Western Michigan's Taylor Moton are some of the other top linemen taking part in the football festivities in Mobile. Each is from a small school and each is ready to make the leap to the NFL. Maybe they can make that leap in Minnesota. One can hope and dream at this point.

Here are the players recognized as the best of the Senior Bowl practices:

Top Practice Player: O.J. Howard, TE, Alabama
Quarterback: Davis Webb, Cal-Go Bears!
Running back: Jamaal Williams, BYU
Wide receiver: Cooper Kupp, Eastern Washington
Offensive line: Dion Dawkins, Temple
Defensive line: Dalvin Tomlinston, Alabama
Linebacker: Hasson Reddick
Defensive back: Rasul Douglas, West Virginia
Specialist: K, Memphis



Happy 57th Birthday Minnesota Vikings!!!

Ranking Super Bowl-winning Coaches

In a column yesterday, ESPN Senior Writer John Clayton ranked the 31 coaches that have won a Super Bowl. It's an interesting, timely endeavor. 11 of the 31 Super Bowl-winning coaches have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Those 11 have accounted for 22 Super Bowl titles. Clayton's ranking isn't dependent solely on Super Bowl success. He factors in regular season success as well as impact on the game. Here's his ranking.

1. Vince Lombardi, Green Bay Packers
Super Bowl titles: I, II

2. Bill Belichick, New England Patriots
Super Bowl titles: XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX

3. Chuck Noll, Pittsburgh Steelers
Super Bowl titles: IX, X, XIII, XIV

4. Bill Walsh, San Francisco 49ers
Super Bowl titles: XVI, XIX, XXXIII

5. Don Shula, Miami Dolphins
Super Bowl titles: VII, VIII

6. Joe Gibbs, Washington Redskins
Super Bowl titles: XVII, XXII, XXVI

7. Tom Landry, Dallas Cowboys
Super Bowl titles: VI, XII

8. Bill Parcells, New York Giants
Super Bowl titles: XXI, XXV

9. Jimmy Johnson, Dallas Cowboys
Super Bowl titles: XVII, XVIII

10. Mike Shanahan, Denver Broncos
Super Bowl titles: XXXII, XXXIII

11. Mike Holmgren, Green Bay Packers
Super Bowl title: XXXI

12. Tom Coughlin, New York Giants
Super Bowl titles: XLII, XLVI

13. John Madden, Oakland Raiders
Super Bowl title: XI

14. Hank Stram, Kansas City Chiefs
Super Bowl title: IV

15. Tom Flores, Oakland Raiders
Super Bowl titles: XV, XVIII

16. George Seifert
Super Bowl titles: XXIV, XXIX

17. Tony Dungy, Indianapolis Colts
Super Bowl title: XLI

18. Pete Carroll, Seattle Seahawks
Super Bowl title: XLVIII

19. Bill Cowher, Pittsburgh Steelers
Super Bowl title: XL

20. Dick Vermeil, St. Louis Rams
Super Bowl title: XXXIV

21. Mike McCarthy, Green Bay Packers
Super Bowl title: XLV

22. Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh Steelers
Super Bowl title: XLIII

23. Jon Gruden, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Super Bowl title: XXXVII

24. Mike Ditka, Chicago Bears
Super Bowl title: XX

25. Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints
Super Bowl title: XLIV

26. John Harbaugh, Baltimore Ravens
Super Bowl title: XLVII

27. Brian Billick, Baltimore Ravens
Super Bowl title: XXXV

28. Gary Kubiak, Denver Broncos
Super Bowl title: L

29. Weeb Ewbank, New York Jets
Super Bowl title: III

30. Don McCafferty, Baltimore Colts
Super Bowl title: V

31. Barry Swtizer, Dallas Cowboys
Super Bowl title: XXX

It's a fine list and Clayton has reasonable reasons for ranking the coaches as he did. Personally, I'd make a few changes. I'd bump Joe Gibbs ahead of Don Shula for the simple fact that he led three mostly different teams to Super Bowl titles. Shula led one great team to back-to-back titles. Then he watched the offense on his great team gutted by WFL defections. Gibbs had an excellent 17-7 postseason record. Shula was 19-17 in the postseason. I think that Jon Gruden is a little high. He took over a Super Bowl-ready team, made ready by Tony Dungy, and lead them to a Super Bowl title. Maybe Gruden got that talented Buccaneers team over the hump but he didn't really sustain that level of play. He had has many losing seasons as winning after winning it all. I'd switch Gruden and John Harbaugh in the rankings. In addition to winning Super Bowl XLVII Harbaugh has a sparkling 10-5 playoff record. I don't understand the ranking of Weeb Ewbank way down at #29. He's a Hall of Fame coach. His best coaching days were in the decade before the Super Bowl days with the 1950s Colts but he led the Jets to one of the biggest upsets in sports history. The Jets upset of the Colts in Super Bowl III is one of the most significant games in NFL history. That has to count for something better than the bottom of a ranking of Super Bowl-winning coaches.

One of the more interesting aspects of Clayton's list, and really any ranking of Super Bowl-winning coaches, is the spot held by Jimmy Johnson. Clayton has him at #9. That respect is expected. Any reasonable ranking should have Johnson somewhere near Tom Landry and Bill Parcells. If that's reasonable why isn't Johnson in the Pro Football Hall of Fame? Is it because he didn't lead the Miami Dolphins to the same title success that he led the Cowboys? He led the Dolphins to the playoffs in three of his four seasons with two postseason wins. Was his success with the Cowboys too sudden? Few coaches have ever built a powerhouse team more efficiently. He built a team that was so good that it even got Barry Switzer on Clayton's list.

Fun football stuff, John Clayton.

Throwback Thursday: What Might Have Been

The Throwback Thursday has had a run on the 1970s Pittsburgh Steelers. That's what reading Michael MacCambridge's terrific book Chuck Noll: His Life's Work will do to you. This week's nugget comes from the Steelers' outstanding 1974 draft class. That's the one that brought them Lynn Swann, Jack Lambert, John Stallworth, and Mike Webster. They found a ridiculous four Hall of Famers in a single draft. It was a draft that was a part of a string of drafts that smashed Pete Rozelle's vision of parity.

Steelers head coach Chuck Noll and the scouts, led by Art Rooney Jr. and Bill Nunn, didn't see eye-to-eye very often but they certainly had a productive working relationship. They made it work. The Steelers needed to improve their receiver position in the 1974 NFL Draft. Noll had fallen for Alabama A&M receiver John Stallworth. He liked him even better than the more highly rated Lynn Swann. The scouts thought that they could get both but the team had to take Swann first. They understood that a receiver from itty-bitty Alabama A&M was going to get overlooked. Especially when there was one can of film on him and Nunn had dawdled on returning it to the school in the week's leading up to the draft. Not many teams knew about or had the chance to watch the small school star. Noll couldn't bare the thought of missing out on Stallworth so he wanted to grab him when they had the shot. In the end, he listened to the scouts, as he usually did, but he wasn't happy. The Steelers drafted Swann with their pick in the first round and made Noll happy again when Stallworth was there for the taking in the fourth. The Steelers had a pair of pass-catching difference-makers for their Super Bowl runs.

In the second round the Steelers faced another draft day decision. They needed a middle linebacker. They liked Iowa State's Matt Blair and Kent State's Jack Lambert. Blair was the prototype at 6-foot-5 and 230 pounds. Lambert was the size of a safety. I found this particular draft day decision interesting as Blair ended up being selected by the Minnesota Vikings and was one of my favorite players. Since I watched closely the type of player that he was it wasn't difficult to picture him as the middle linebacker in the Steelers defense. He was far different to Lambert in size as well as temperament but he would've excelled. Lambert was something of a madman on the field. A madman that roamed all over the field and made tackles in a manner that didn't at all fit his slight frame. Blair was a tremendous football player but he he didn't play this violent game with the manic aggression of many of his peers. He was more smooth, more graceful in his play. His lifelong passion for photography off the field was more thoughtful man than violent football player. The cover-2 defense so often associated with Tony Dungy had it's birth with Bud Carson and the 1970s Steelers. That's where Dungy learned it. The middle linebacker in the cover-2 must be able to come up to defend the run as well as drop back into the deep middle zone to defend the pass. When I think of Matt Blair possibly being called upon to do this I think of Brian Urlacher. They had similar size and range. Urlacher was a fantastic middle linebacker in the cover-2. Perhaps the ideal. Blair didn't quite have Urlacher's bulk but he had his height and both could run. While it's easy to picture the long. athletic Blair excelling in the Steelers defense there's really no question that they made the right decision in choosing Lambert over him. Lambert's Gold Jacket settles that debate nicely. Joe Greene might have been the leader of the Steelers devastating defense but Lambert was the face of it. Especially with those missing front teeth. Despite being smaller than most that have played the middle linebacker position then and since he did it so well. Besides, if the Steelers had chosen Blair I wouldn't have been able to enjoy his excellent Vikings career.

The Steelers' scouts showed Noll (again) that they knew what they were doing when John Stallworth was still available for their pick in the fourth round. It might have gotten testy and loud at times but the working relationship of Noll and the scouts was an effective one.

Swann, Lambert, Stallworth, and Webster in one draft. One draft! And they added Donnie Shell as an undrafted free agent. Incredible.

Vikings Coaching Changes

January is the time of year for coaching changes for many NFL teams and the Minnesota Vikings have made some. The team's most significant change actually took place during the 2016 regular season. That's when offensive coordinator Norv Turner suddenly resigned in October. Tight ends coach Pat Shurmur immediately and fairly smoothly stepped into the interim offensive coordinator role. It was hardly a surprise when the "interim" was removed from his title at the end of the season. The Turner family made a complete exit from the coaching staff when quarterbacks coach Scott Turner and the Vikings parted ways at the end of the season. Those moves resulted in the need for a new tight ends coach. It also resulted in the need for a new running backs coach because the Vikings hired one. Last season Kevin Stefanski coached the running backs. Despite being one of the youngest coaches on the staff Stefanski has been with the Vikings the longest. He joined the team when Brad Childress was hired as head coach in 2006. From 2006-08 he was an assistant to Childress. He was the assistant quarterbacks coach from 2009-13. In that time he saw, dealt with, and coached the likes of Brett Favre, Joe Webb, and nearly every sort of quarterback in between. Stefanski coached tight ends from 2014-15 and running backs last season. He's handled much of the offense in his time in Minnesota so it wasn't much of a surprise when it was announced that quarterbacks are his next responsibility.

The Vikings offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach positions were filled from within the organization. The running backs and tight ends coaches were imported. 

Minnesota Vikings Coaching Changes

Offensive coordinator

In: Pat Shurmur

Out: Interim Pat Shurmur

Quarterbacks:

In: Kevin Stefanski

Out: Scott Turner

Running backs:

In: Kennedy Polamalu

Out: Kevin Stafanski

Tight ends:

In: Clancy Barone

Out: Pat Shurmur

Kennedy Polamalu coaching history:
UCLA (1992-93)
Graduate assistant
San Diego State (1994-96)
Running backs/Special teams
Colorado (1997-98)
Running backs
San Diego State (1999)
Linebackers
USC (2000)
Running backs
USC (2001)
Special teams
USC (2002-03)
Running backs/Special teams
Cleveland Browns (2004)
Running backs
Jacksonville Jaguars (2005-09)
Running backs
USC (2010-12)
Offensive coordinator/Running backs
UCLA (2014-15)
Running backs
UCLA (2016)
Offensive coordinator

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer has stressed teaching from his coaches. Some of the best football "teachers" are found in the college ranks. Polamalu has a lot of college experience. The surprising thing about his coaching career is his start at UCLA and his eventual return there. How does a USC guy do that?

Clancy Barone coaching history:

American River (1987-90)

Offensive line 

Sacramento State (1991-92)

Offensive line 

Texas A&M 1993

Assistant Offensive line 

Eastern Illinos (1994-96)

Offensive line

Wyoming (1997-99)

Offensive line/Offensive coordinator

Houston (2000-02)

Offensive line/Offensive coordinator

Texas State (2003)

Assistant Head Coach/Offensive coordinator

Atlanta Falcons (2004)

Offensive line 

Atlanta Falcons (2005-06)

Tight ends 

San Diego Chargers (2007-08)

Tight ends

Denver Broncos (2009)

Tight ends 

Denver Broncos (2010)

Offensive line 

Denver Broncos (2011-14)

Tight ends 

Denver Broncos (2015-16)

Offensive line 

The development of Broncos tight end Julius Thomas under Barone's tutelage from 2011-14 is a highlight. As is his work with Chargers tight end Antonio Gates. It appears that Barone works well with former basketball players. Kyle Rudolph was a highly recruited basketball player in high school.

Just when it seemed like the Vikings coaching staff was set for 2017, UCLA came in and tapped assistant offensive line coach Hank Fraley to be their offensive line coach. It was only a matter of time before some school or team was going to come calling on Fraley as he's ready to coach a line of his own. Now the Vikings have an assistant offensive line coach vacancy. That's a position that doesn't have to be filled but routinely working with at least 10 players is a little much for one person.

Pro Bowl Week

The Pro Bowl will take place Sunday January 29 at 8PM ET at the Orlando Citrus Bowl. The game caps a week of fun. The NFL is doing the Pro Bowl a little differently this year. Well, Pro Bowl Week is being done a little differently this year. There are loads of events/activities taking place in and around Orlando. The NFL doesn't do anything small.

There will be youth football clinics, the NFL flag football championships, sessions for coaches, the Women's World Football Games, a Women's Careers in Football Forum, Special Olympics Flag Football, a 5K Run, and loads of other football fun.

Somehow there's time for player practices.

AFC Team Practice Schedule

• Wednesday January 25: 11:45AM - 12:45PM
• Thursday January 26: 9:45AM - 10:45AM
• Friday January 27: 11:20AM - 12:20PM
• Saturday January 28: 9:45AM - 10:45AM

NFC Team Practice Schedule

• Wednesday January 25: 11:30AM - 12:30PM
• Thursday January 26: 11:20AM - 12:20PM
• Friday January 27: 9:45AM - 10:45AM
• Saturday January 28: 10:00AM - 11:00AM

The NFL added some skills competitions this year. The 2017 Pro Bowl Skills Showdown will pit AFC and NFC All-Stars against each other in a series of competitions. Each team will feature a mix of Pro Bowl quarterbacks, running backs, receivers, tight ends, linemen, linebackers, and defensive backs. It looks like everybody but kickers and punters take part. That's not right. Kickers and punters have feelings.

Here are the events.

Best Hands
Quarterback and wide receiver duos from each team will show off their skills, connecting on as many pass attempts as possible before time runs out.

Epic Pro Bowl Dodgeball
Pro Bowlers will compete in a game of dodgeball.

Power Relay Challenge
Four team members will compete in a timed relay race.

Precision Passing
Two players on each team will battle it out, trying to hit moving targets of varying size and distance.

Pro Bowl Skills Showdown will air on ESPN, January 26 at 7PM EST.

I'm going with Larry Fitzgerald in the Best Hands Competition.
The Dodgeball game should be epic.

Then there's the game. The 2017 Pro Bowl.

Conference Championship Thoughts

Super Bowl LI is set.

New England Patriots vs. Atlanta Falcons

The Falcons are making their second trip to the Super Bowl. Their lone previous appearance was Super Bowl XXXIII. A 34-19 loss to the Denver Broncos in John Elway's final game.

The Patriots are a frequent Super Bowl participant. This will be their league-leading ninth trip.

Both teams got to the big game by winning big in their conference championship games.

NFC Championship:
Green Bay Packers 21
Atlanta Falcons 33

AFC Championship:
Pittsburgh Steelers 17
New England Patriots 36

The large margins of victory have been a trend in this year's playoffs. 8 of the 10 playoff games were won by the home team by double digits. Here's hoping that Super Bowl LI is more like the two games that weren't blowouts.

I like this comment from USA Today's Tom Pelissero in advance of the Packers-Falcons game.
"Packers RB Christine Michael (Back) just completed a workout in front of trainers by doing a backflip, which seems like a good sign."
It was a good sign but good things were fleeting for the Packers yesterday.

With the Packers struggles on defense this season they knew that they were going to have to score on every opportunity to keep pace with the high-scoring Falcons. It looked like the Packers offense was going to keep pace with the way that they moved the ball on their first two possessions. They just couldn't finish those possessions with scores. Packers kicker Mason Crosby was dynamite in the win over the Cowboys last week. He missed a 41-yard field goal on the first possession. Fullback Aaron Ripkowski fumbled inside the Falcons five-yard line on the second possession. If the Packers had come out of those nice drives with 10 points to match the 10 that the Falcons had scored maybe this is a different game. They didn't and the Falcons took off.

It was 24-0 at the half. The Packers opened the second half with a three-and-out. A possession that took 11 seconds. Two of the three plays were drops by tight end Jared Cook. Dropped passes were a problem all game for the usually sure-handed Packer receivers. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been damn near perfect over the past two months. He'd been hitting small targets with stunning frequency. He was off yesterday. Passes were low. Everything had been looking so easy for him. Nothing was easy yesterday.

Everything looked easy for Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. His first half stats looked like those from a full game. 271 yards. Two touchdowns. He also added a 14-yard scamper for a score. He cruised to full game stats of 27/38 for 392 yards and four touchdowns.

Some first half comparisons:
First downs
Packers 6
Falcons 20

Yards
Packers 127
Falcons 325

Falcons receiver Julio Jones is really good.
9 catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns.

The Packers undermanned secondary was over-matched by Jones, Mohamed Sanu, Taylor Gabriel, and the passing-catching backfield duo of Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman. The Falcons offense can stress a defense in so many diverse ways.

The Steelers-Patriots game was still a game when Steelers all-everything running back Le'Veon Bell left with a groin injury in the second quarter. He gave the injury a try in the third quarter but left for good after a single snap. There were some reports that he'd come into the game with the injury. No matter when it happened he wasn't the same player and the Steelers weren't the same team.

Bell on his injury:
"I couldn't be myself. I had no burst anymore."

DeAngelo Williams did a fine job, more so in the passing game, but he's no Bell. Especially the way that Bell's been playing over the last eight weeks. Few backs have ever played better.

Even with a healthy Bell the Steelers would've been in a bad way because they weren't too successful at covering the Patriots receivers. They rarely seemed to be anywhere close to Chris Hogan. The occasionally-used Hogan posted Julio Jones-like numbers. 9 catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns. Looks familiar. Julian Edelman added 8 catches for 118 yards and a touchdown.

The Super Bowl LI matchup will be dissected and bisected over the next two weeks but the one thing that I most look forward to seeing is how Bill Belichick and defensive coordinator Mike Patricia approach the Falcons diverse offense. Belichick's defense typically picks the opposing offense's best player and tries to take that player out of the game. The Falcons best and most explosive offensive player is Julio Jones. I think that the Patriots will target the Falcons two-headed backfield of Freeman and Coleman instead. Those multi-skilled backs are what make this offense so difficult to defend. I see Belichick and Patricia tasking corner Malcolm Butler with following Jones wherever he goes and focusing on taking the Falcons backfield out of the game. Just a thought.

I found this little nugget of trivia interesting.
Most alumni on Conference Championship rosters (total/active)
Stanford 11/8
Alabama 7/5
LSU 6/5
Miami 6/5
Auburn 6/4

Congratulations to the Walter Payton Man of the Year Finalists.
Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
Eli Manning, New York Giants
Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers
There is no wrong choice for this prestigious award as all of the nominees are doing tremendous things in their community. Still, it would've been nice to see Minnesota Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway move to the finalist stage. He's been so active doing big things outside of the game since he arrived in Minneapolis in 2006 and 2016 might've been his last season.

Pro Bowl next week!

Flea Flicker Conference Championship Game Predictions

Conference Championship Sunday! Four terrific teams. Four great quarterbacks. Perhaps the best quartet of Conference Championship quarterbacks since the 1992 quartet of Troy Aikman, Steve Young, Jim Kelly, and Dan Marino.

Green Bay Packers @ Atlanta Falcons
Pick: Falcons
With the way that he's been playing it's real tough to pick against Aaron Rodgers. It's too bad that his defense hasn't stopped too many teams. The Falcons offense is tough to stop. Rodgers might keep the Packers in the game but the Falcons have too many weapons.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ New England Patriots
Pick: Patriots
The Steelers offensive trio of Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell, and Antonio Bell are dynamite. Perhaps the best trio of playmakers in the league. Each, especially Bell, was great last week and the Steelers still couldn't get into the end zone. I can't shake that. Field goals aren't going to be enough to beat the Patriots.

Should be a great day of football.

Final Tally of Early Entrants

The NFL announced yesterday the 103 college football players that have been granted early entry into the 2017 NFL Draft. That's the most players with college eligibility remaining to enter the draft. Each has met the league's three-year eligibility rule and each has submitted a written application that renounced his remaining college eligibility. Eight of the 103 players have fulfilled their degree requirements.

The players granted special eligibility for the 2017 NFL Draft:

» Jamal Adams, S, LSU
» Budda Baker, S, Washington
» Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee
» Garett Bolles, OT, Utah
» Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida
» Noah Brown, WR, Ohio State
» KD Cannon, WR, Baylor
» Devin Childress, WR, North Park
» Michael Clark, WR, Marshall
» James Conner, RB, Pitt
» Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State
» Zach Cunningham, LB, Vanderbilt
» Malachi Dupre, WR, LSU
» Jerod Evans, QB, Virginia Tech
» Jeremy Faulk, DT, Garden City CC
» Tarean Folston, RB, Notre Dame
» Isaiah Ford, WR, Virginia Tech
» D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas
» Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
» Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M
» Shelton Gibson, WR, West Virginia
» Davon Godchaux, DL, LSU
» Chris Godwin, WR, Penn State
» Isaiah Golden, DT, McNeese State
» Jermaine Grace, LB, Miami
» Derrick Griffin, WR, Texas Southern
» Chad Hansen, WR, Cal
» Charles Harris, DE, Missouri
» Carlos Henderson, WR, Louisiana Tech
» Brian Hill, RB, Wyoming
» Elijah Hood, RB, North Carolina
» Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
» Titus Howard, DB, Slippery Rock
» Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama
» Adoree' Jackson, CB, USC
» Roderick Johnson, OT, Florida State
» Aaron Jones, RB, UTEP
» Josh Jones, S, N.C. State
» Nazair Jones, DT, North Carolina
» Sidney Jones, CB, Washington
» Brad Kaaya, QB, Miami
» Alvin Kamara, RB, Tennessee
» Tim Kimbrough, LB, Georgia
» DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame
» Jerome Lane, WR, Akron
» Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
» Carl Lawson, DE, Auburn
» Elijah Lee, LB, Kansas State
» Keevan Lucas, WR, Tulsa
» Marlon Mack, RB, USF
» Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech
» Josh Malone, WR, Tennessee
» Damien Mama, OL, USC
» Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford
» Malik McDowell, DL, Michigan State
» Isaiah McKenzie, WR, Georgia
» Deon-Tay McManus, WR, Marshall
» Raekwon McMillan, LB, Ohio State
» Jeremy McNichols, RB, Boise State
» Joe Mixon, RB, Oklahoma
» Al-Quadin Muhammad, DE, Miami
» Montae Nicholson, S, Michigan State
» David Njoku, TE, Miami
» Speedy Noil, WR, Texas A&M
» Marcus Oliver, LB, Indiana
» Aaron Peak, DB, Butler County CC
» Jabrill Peppers, LB/S, Michigan
» Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma
» Elijah Qualls, DL, Washington
» Devine Redding, RB, Indiana
» Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama
» John Ross, WR, Washington
» Travis Rudolph, WR, FSU
» Curtis Samuel, H-back, Ohio State
» Ricky Seals-Jones, WR, Texas A&M
» Adam Shaheen, TE, Ashland
» David Sharpe, OL, Florida
» Garrett Sickels, DE, Penn State
» JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, USC
» ArDarius Stewart, WR, Alabama
» Damore'ea Stringfellow, WR, Ole Miss
» Teez Tabor, CB, Florida
» Vincent Taylor, DT, Oklahoma State
» Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford
» Mitch Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
» Darius Victor, RB, Towson
» Anthony Walker, LB, Northwestern
» Charles Walker, DL, Oklahoma
» T.J. Watt, LB, Wisconsin
» Marcus Williams, S, Utah
» Stanley "Boom" Williams, RB, Kentucky
» Howard Wilson, CB, Houston
» Quincy Wilson, CB, Florida
» Joe Yearby, RB, Miami
» Ishmael Zamora, WR, Baylor

The following eight players have in timely fashion under NFL rules officially notified the league office that they have fulfilled their degree requirements. Consequently, they are eligible for selection in the 2017 NFL Draft:

» Alex Anzalone, LB, Florida
» Gareon Conley, DB, Ohio State
» Wayne Gallman, RB, Clemson
» Bucky Hodges, TE, Virginia Tech
» Artavis Scott, WR, Clemson
» Khari Waithe-Alexander, DE, Southern Illinois
» Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
» Mike Williams, WR, Clemson

The National Champion Clemson Tigers lose their top offensive playmakers to early entry into the NFL. It's a nod to Dabo Swinney's program and the players that he recruits that each has their degree in their pocket as they skip off to the NFL.

Brooks' Top Draft Prospects

NFL Media Analyst Bucky Brooks posted his top draft prospects at each position. As a former player and scout Brooks isn't some media/blogging hack with a strong opinion. He knows more than most doing these projections. It's also good to remember that it's very early in the draft evaluation process. It's fun to compare and contrast his prospect opinions with those of his fellow NFL Media Analyst Daniel Jeremiah. The two of them have a fine podcast Moving the Sticks.

Quarterbacks

1. DeShone Kizer, Notre Dame
2. Deshaun Watson, Clemson
3. Mitch Trubisky, North Carolina
4. Brad Kaaya, Miami
5. Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech

Running backs

1. Leonard Fournette, LSU
2. Dalvin Cook, Florida State
3. Christian McCaffrey, Stanford
4. D'Onta Foreman, Texas
5 (tie). Alvin Kamara, Tennessee
5 (tie). Joe Mixon, Oklahoma

Wide receivers

1. Mike Williams, Clemson
2. John Ross, Washington
3. Corey Davis, Western Michigan
4. JuJu Smith-Schuster, USC
5 (tie). Isaiah Ford, Virginia Tech
5 (tie). Dede Westbrook, Oklahoma

Tight ends

1. O.J. Howard, Alabama
2. Jake Butt, Michigan
3. David Njoku, Miami
4. Evan Engram, Ole Miss
5 (tie). Jordan Leggett, Clemson
5 (tie). Bucky Hodges, Virginia Tech

Offensive tackles

1. Cam Robinson, Alabama
2. Ryan Ramczyk, Wisconsin
3. Roderick Johnson, Florida State
4. Garett Bolles, Utah
5. Dion Dawkins, Temple

Offensive guards/centers

1. Dan Feeney, Indiana
2. Ethan Pocic, LSU
3. Forrest Lamp, Western Kentucky
4. Pat Elflein, Ohio State
5. Dorian Johnson, Pittsburgh

Defensive ends

1. Myles Garrett, Texas A&M
2. Jonathan Allen, Alabama
3. Derek Barnett, Tennessee
4. Solomon Thomas, Stanford
5. Taco Charlton, Michigan

Defensive tackles

1. Malik McDowell, Michigan State
2. Chris Wormley, Michigan
3. Caleb Brantley, Florida
4. Carlos Watkins, Clemson
5. Elijah Qualls, Washington

Outside linebackers

1. Tim Williams, Alabama
2. Takkarist McKinley, UCLA
3. Zach Cunningham, Vanderbilt
4. Ryan Anderson, Alabama
5. Devonte Fields, Louisville

Inside linebackers

1. Reuben Foster, Alabama
2. Raekwon McMillan, Ohio State
3. Jarrad Davis, Florida
4. Kendell Beckwith, LSU
5. Anthony Walker, Northwestern

Cornerbacks

1. Marshon Lattimore, Ohio State
2. Marlon Humphrey, Alabama
3. Sidney Jones, Washington
4. Teez Tabor, Florida
5. Quincy Wilson, Florida

Safeties

1. Malik Hooker, Ohio State
2. Jamal Adams, LSU
3. Jabrill Peppers, Michigan
4. Marcus Williams, Utah
5. Justin Evans, Texas A&M

Throwback Thursday: When They Were Woeful

If the Pittsburgh Steelers can get by the New England Patriots on Sunday they'll move on to the Super Bowl for the ninth time. A win there and the Steelers would bring a Lombardi Trophy back to Pittsburgh for a seventh time. That's pretty good. It hasn't always been so good. The Steelers have won so often over the last five decades that it's hard to believe that they were mostly terrible over their first four decades. Here are some bits taken from Michael MacCambridge's terrific book on the Steelers franchise-changing head coach, Chuck Noll: His Life's Work.

Player-coach Johnny "Blood" McNally once showed up to watch a Green Bay game, unaware that his own team was playing somewhere else that same day.

During the manpower shortages of the Second World War-when more than six hundred NFL players were fighting overseas-the Steelers and Eagles merged for a season in 1943. "Had to do it," explained Bert Bell, then the owner of the Eagles. Pittsburgh had no backs left, and Philadelphia had no linemen." The "Steagles" went 5-4-1, and a year later, with Philadelphia back on its own, the Steelers merged with the Chicago Cardinals. "Card-Pitt," or the Carpets, as they became known throughout the league, went 0-10.

In 1946, the Steelers hired Pitt coaching legend Jock Sutherland, and a year later, managed to tie for the 1947 Eastern Division title with the Philadelphia Eagles, only to lose the playoff, 21-0. Sutherland died the following spring on a scouting trip in Kentucky, and it would be eleven years before the Steelers won more than six games in any single season.

The team seemed perpetually behind the times. They were the last NFL team to move from the single-wing to the T formation, in 1951. To Chuck, playing in Paul Brown's state-of-the-art system in Cleveland, the Steelers of the era looked like haphazard misfits. "They didn't seem to wear the same helmets all the time," he said.

The team's first full-time scout was an undertaker.

In 1955, with the very first pick in the NFL draft, the Steelers selected a defensive back from Colorado A&M named Gary Glick, based solely on a letter of recommendation sent to the Steelers' head coach, Walt Kiesling.

Even when they found good players, they often didn't know what to do with them. In the 1950s , the Steelers would release or trade away five different quarterbacks-two of whom would later be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame-who would go on to start a total of twenty-one league championship games or Super Bowls over the following fifteen seasons. None was more famous than Pittsburgh's own Johnny Unitas.

"Unitas was totally ignored," said Dan Rooney. "They never did anything with him. It wasn't a question of misjudging him. They would have had to judge him first. But they never did a thing with him."

He wasn't the only one. Jack Kemp, who played in five championship games in the AFL, was released in the preseason of 1959. Future Hall of Famer Len Dawson, who would become one of the most accurate passers in league history, was drafted first overall in 1957, but he never really got a chance to prove himself. It was (Buddy) Parker's first year, and he traded instead for veteran Earl Morrall.

In 1958, the Steelers lost their first two games behind Morrall.
"You guys are too tight," Parker told his players. "Go out and get drunk and come back in here on Tuesday. We will have this problem solved."
That Tuesday, at the weekly quarterback meeting to watch game films, Morrall was gone. Shortly into the meeting, in the dark, someone walked into the meeting room and sat down next to Dawson.
"Hi, partner-how ya' doing?'" he asked.
It was Bobby Layne. Parker had traded Morrall and two draft choices (a number two in 1959, and a number four in 1960) for Layne, a legendary carrouser-"I want to run out of money and breath at the same time," he once said-whose lifestyle was not conducive to the finer points of football.

There were further problems with Parker's reign. But the biggest may have been his fondness for veterans at the expense of draft choices. Under Parker in 1959, the Steelers traded away their top seven choice; in 1960, they drafted Jack Spikes of TCU in the first round (but lost him to the Dallas Texans of the AFL) and traded away their next six choices. I both 1961 and 1962, they traded five of their first six draft choices. In 1963, they dealt each of their first seven choices. "That was his downfall," said Steelers' running back Dick Hoak. "What he did, he traded all of our draft choices, I mean, if you were from Texas, he was going to trade for you."

Parker's last season was 1964, but he'd already dealt Pittsburgh's first rounder in the 1965 draft, which the Chicago Bears used to select Hall of Famer Dick Butkus.

After a 1965 season with interim coach Mike Nixon, the Steelers hired former Packers assistant Bill Austin.

"He wanted to be Vince Lombardi, and he wasn't Vince Lombardi," said Dan Rooney.

"Bill Austin wanted to be Vince Lombardi and Steve McQueen rolled into one," said John Brown, who came to the Steelers in 1967.

***

Just like most of the Steelers' coaching hires since 1933, the hiring of Bill Austin didn't take. After three sad seasons, they were again looking for a new head coach. Chuck Noll was that coach and everything changed in Pittsburgh. And it's been pretty good ever since. 

East-West Shrine Game Coaches

The 2017 East-West Shrine Game will be played this Saturday. An interesting aspect of the Shrine game this year is the coaches that are coaching in it. The NFL is partnering with the all-star game to give development opportunities to their assistant coaches. The league will supply the coaching staffs for the two teams from assistant coaches on teams that didn't make the playoffs. At the conclusion of the NFL regular season, teams nominated deserving assistant coaches who were then reviewed by a panel that included NFL football operations staff, East-West Shrine Game leadership, and two members of the NFL's General Mangers Advisory Committee. Once the game's head coaches were selected, each then filled his 11-person staff from among other NFL assistants nominated by the clubs. It's a nice change to an old system and a terrific opportunity for the coaches.

The panel selected Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator George Edwards as the West head coach and Arizona Cardinals defensive line coach Brenston Buckner as the East head coach. Here are the coaches that will be assisting each head coach.

West Head Coach: George Edwards
Offensive coordinator/QB: Kevin Stefanski
RB: Jemal Singleton
WR: Cam Turner
TE: Andrew Janocko
OL: Hank Fraley
Defensive coordinator: Larry Foote
DL: Drew Wilkin
LB: Dave Borgonzi
DB: Greg Williams
DB: Deshea Townsend
ST: Marquice Williams

East Head Coach: Brenston Buckner
Offensive coordinator/RB: Duce Staley
QB: Press Taylor
WR: Bobby Engram
TE: Richard Angulo
OL: Frank Guifre
Defensive coordinator: Brad White
DL: Sam Mills Jr.
LB: David Lippincott
DB: Curtis Fuller
DB: Dino Vasso
ST: Chase Blackburn

Who knows if this opportunity for these coaches will lead to bigger things but it sure can't hurt.

As a Minnesota Vikings fan it's great that a handful Vikings coaches (Edwards, Sefanski, Janocko, and Fraley) get an up close look at several college football players that could be Vikings football players in a few months.

Bolting for the NFL

Yesterday was the deadline for college underclassmen to declare their intentions to enter the 2017 NFL Draft. Here are the 95 underclassmen that have done so.

Jamal Adams, S, LSU
Alex Anzalone, LB, Florida
Budda Baker, S, Washington
Derek Barnett, DE, Tennessee
Garett Bolles, OT, Utah
Caleb Brantley, DT, Florida
Noah Brown, WR, Ohio State
KD Cannon, WR, Baylor
Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
James Conner, RB, Pitt
Dalvin Cook, RB, Florida State
Zach Cunningham, LB, Vanderbilt
Malachi Dupre, WR, LSU
Ukeme Eligwe, LB, Georgia Southern
Jerod Evans, QB, Virginia Tech
Isaiah Ford, WR, Virginia Tech
D'Onta Foreman, RB, Texas
Leonard Fournette, RB, LSU
Wayne Gallman, RB, Clemson
Myles Garrett, DE, Texas A&M
Shelton Gibson, WR, West Virginia
Davon Godchaux, DL, LSU
Chris Godwin, WR, Penn State
Jermaine Grace, LB, Miami
Derrick Griffin, WR, Texas Southern
Chad Hansen, WR, Cal 
Charles Harris, DE, Missouri
Carlos Henderson, WR, Louisiana Tech
Brian Hill, RB, Wyoming
Bucky Hodges, TE, Virginia Tech
Elijah Hood, RB, North Carolina
Malik Hooker, S, Ohio State
Marlon Humphrey, CB, Alabama
Adoree' Jackson, CB, USC
Roderick Johnson, OT, Florida State
Aaron Jones, RB, UTEP
Josh Jones, S, N.C. State
Nazair Jones, DT, North Carolina 
Sidney Jones, CB, Washington 
Brad Kaaya, QB, Miami
Alvin Kamara, RB, Tennessee
DeShone Kizer, QB, Notre Dame
Jerome Lane, WR, Akron
Marshon Lattimore, CB, Ohio State
Carl Lawson, DE, Auburn 
Elijah Lee, LB, Kansas State
Marlon Mack, RB, USF
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Texas Tech
Josh Malone, WR, Tennessee
Damien Mama, OL, USC 
Christian McCaffrey, RB, Stanford
Malik McDowell, DL, Michigan State
Isaiah McKenzie, WR, Georgia
Deon-Tay McManus, WR, Marshall
Raekwon McMillan, LB, Ohio State
Jeremy McNichols, RB, Boise State
Joe Mixon, RB, Oklahoma 
Al-Quadin Muhammad, DE, Miami
Montae Nicholson, S, Michigan State 
David Njoku, TE, Miami 
Speedy Noil, WR, Texas A&M
Marcus Oliver, LB, Indiana
Jabrill Peppers, LB/S, Michigan
Samaje Perine, RB, Oklahoma 
Elijah Qualls, DL, Washington
Ryan Ramczyk, OT, Wisconsin
Devine Redding, RB, Indiana
Cam Robinson, OT, Alabama
John Ross, WR, Washington
Travis Rudolph, WR, FSU 
Artavis Scott, WR, Clemson
Curtis Samuel, H-back, Ohio State 
Ricky Seals-Jones, WR, Texas A&M
Adam Shaheen, TE, Ashland
David Sharpe, OL, Florida
Garrett Sickels, DE, Penn State
JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR, USC
ArDarius Stewart, WR, Alabama 
Damore'ea Stringfellow, WR, Ole Miss
Teez Tabor, CB, Florida
Vincent Taylor, DT, Oklahoma State
Solomon Thomas, DL, Stanford
Mitch Trubisky, QB, North Carolina
Eddie Vanderdoes, DL, UCLA 
Anthony Walker, LB, Northwestern
Charles Walker, DL, Oklahoma
Deshaun Watson, QB, Clemson
T.J. Watt, LB, Wisconsin
Marcus Williams, S, Utah
Stanley "Boom" Williams, RB, Kentucky
Mike Williams, WR, Clemson
Howard Wilson, CB, Houston
Quincy Wilson, CB, Florida
Joe Yearby, RB, Miami
Ishmael Zamora, WR, Baylor

The official list of underclassmen accepted by the NFL will be released to NFL teams on January 20.

The underclassmen really gave a boost to the running back class. Dalvin Cook, D'Onta Foreman, Leonard Fournette, Wayne Gallman, Alvin Kamara, Christian McCaffrey, and Joe Mixon could all be selected in the first couple rounds of the draft. It shouldn't be a shock if Cook, Fournette, Kamara, McCaffrey, and Mixon are first round picks. It's been quite a while since running backs have had that sort of presence in the first round.

It's a good thing that National Champion Clemson isn't lacking in athletes. They are losing nearly all of their offensive playmakers.
DeShaun Watson, QB
Wayne Gallman, RB
Mike Williams, WR
Artavis Scott, WR
Don't worry. They'll just reload.

The same is true for Ohio State. They are losing a bunch of players.
Curtis Samuel, H-back
Noah Brown, WR
Marshon Lattimore, CB
Malik Hooker, S
Raekwon McMillan, LB
Gareon Conley, CB
They too will reload.

The 95 players fell short of the record of 98 early entrants set in 2014 but it's still far more than the numbers seen a decade ago.
2006: 52
2007: 40
2008: 53
2009: 46
2010: 53
2011: 56
2012: 65
2013: 73
2014: 98
2015: 74
2016: 96
2017: 95

Good luck to all of the football players putting an early end to their college days.

Divisional Thoughts

The first day of the divisional round went to the teams that had a week off. The home teams.

Seattle Seahawks 20
Atlanta Falcons 36

Houston Texans 16
New England Patriots 34

The second day of the divisional round went to the teams that had to play last week. The visiting teams.

Green Bay Packers 34
Dallas Cowboys 31

Pittsburgh Steelers 18
Kansas City Chiefs 16

The second day's games were much more competitive than the first. The Packers-Cowboys game was a classic.

The first quarter of the Seahawks-Falcons took a grand total of 26 minutes in real time. That's efficient offensive football. The Seahawks first drive was the highlight of the game for them. The Falcons answering touchdown drive stretched into the second quarter. That sort of efficiency sucks for the advertisers but it's outstanding for the fans.

The old Devin Hester looked like the Devin Hester of old on Saturday. Few players have ever scared this Minnesota Vikings fan more than Hester did when he was with the Chicago Bears. In his prime he was a nightmare for opponents. He looked like his old self against his former team as he tried to take over the game as a kick returner. The Falcons eventually got a handle on his returns. That went a long way in the Falcons cruising to the win.

Many talking heads were talking about how vulnerable the Patriots looked against the Texans. Sure, the Patriots offense might've looked a little less efficient than usual but to say that they look vulnerable takes away from the terrific game played by an excellent defense. If the Texans can get themselves a competent quarterback they can be a scary football team. The defense is ready. Add in the return of a healthy J.J. Watt, fergetaboutit!

Tom Brady has led the Patriots to 11 AFC Championships in 15 full seasons as the starting quarterback. Incredible. That's nearly Otto Graham-like.

I hate when the media badgers a veteran player about retirement the moment their season ends. They did it again with Texans nose tackle Vince Wilfork. It's an emotional, disappointing time. Give the guy some time and some space. Let him approach his future on his own terms.

Brock Osweiler's best throw of the night dropped right through the hands of rookie receiver Will Fuller. It would've/should've been a touchdown. It might've been a different game if he'd caught the football. The Texans would've been within four points late in the third quarter. Fuller's inconsistent hands were the one real knock on him coming out of Notre Dame last year. He can be an explosive playmaker but he has to make those catches. Every NFL receiver should.

It looked like the Packers were going to put the Cowboys away early. 21-3 halfway through the second quarter. The Cowboys offense looked rattled and the Packers defense looked formidable. The only thing that looked like it should was the play of Aaron Rodgers.

The Cowboys dusted themselves off and made a game of it and it was quite a game.

Cowboys rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott carried the ball 22 times for 125 yards. 22 carries is a decent number of carries but it didn't feel like nearly enough. There were extended stretches of the game during which he didn't touch the ball. Maybe the Packers big early lead put the Cowboys running game on hold. Whatever it was, he has to touch the ball. Often. With the line that he has in front in him and the talent that he possesses each carry feels like an automatic minimum of five yards. He slips on a sweep and gains nine. He stumbles on a burst up the middle and gains 15. I've never seen a back run untouched to the second level as often as he does.

Aaron Rodgers is ridiculous.

The Cowboys and Packers combined for three field goals of more than 50 yards in the final two minutes of the game. Actually all three were in the final 1:33. That's never been done before in the postseason. I'd be surprised if it's ever been done.

This Packers-Cowboys game ranks with the Chargers-Dolphins 1981 classic as two of the best playoff games I've ever seen. After six less than competitive playoff games we needed a good one.

We got another good one, at least a close one, with the Steelers-Chiefs.

Steelers kicker Chris Boswell scored all of his team's 18 points. The six field goals are a postseason record.

Other than Boswell, Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell was the star of the game. Even though he couldn't get into the end zone. 30 carries for 170 yards. The total gave him back to back playoff games of at least 160 yards. The Steelers leaned on him in this game the way that it felt like the Cowboys should've leaned on Elliott.

Bell is so much fun to watch. His patience. His vision. His terrific running talent. He's my pick for the best runner in the game.

The Chiefs got in their own way far too often. There's never a good time for penalties but they seemed to commit them at the worst possible times. Third-and-short becomes third-and-long. A nice play is negated. The most glaring mistake was the holding penalty that took away the two-point conversion that had tied the game at 18.

It's on to the Conference Championships.

AFC
Pittsburgh Steelers @ New England Patriots

NFC
Green Bay Packers @ Atlanta Falcons

From Around the NFL's Chris Wesseling:
For the 13th time in 14 years, the AFC will send one of Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, or Peyton Manning to the Super Bowl.

That Geico commercial with Tiki Barber as a barber is hilarious.

Three more games to play. Four, if you count the Pro Bowl.

This and That

This is just some football stuff outside of the playoffs.

The San Diego Chargers are no more. Very sad. It's a terrible day when a sports team bolts the city that loves them. It's not terrible for the team. There's often a damn shiny pot of gold waiting for them in their new city. Chargers owner Dean Spanos is happy. In a few years he's going to play in a spectacular new stadium and only have to pay his landlord (Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke) a buck a year to do so. That's so sad for him. Getting a new stadium built is a difficult and controversial thing. It's a touchy subject and I understand a public that doesn't want to vote up the cash to help a team build a stadium. They just won't have a team in their city. It's as simple as that. Despite what most seem to think very few of the 32 NFL owners truly have the funds to build a stadium on their own. It should be a joint team-public venture for the simple reason that both will benefit from it. I followed the Minnesota Vikings path to a new stadium much more closely than that of the Chargers. From my distant perch, it didn't seem that the Chargers efforts came anywhere near those of the Vikings. Vice President-Stadium Development Lester Bagley was a star in the Vikings efforts. He was a constant presence in the city and state offices. He worked towards something rather than trying to get something. San Diego Union-Tribune sports writer Kevin Acee followed the Chargers efforts closer than anyone and he said that Spanos routinely approached public officials with his hand out. He wanted a sweet deal more than a stadium. Acee says that the Chargers and the city share the blame. The people that lost are the people that should matter the most. The fans. Roger "the goods" Goodell routinely spouts that everything thing that the league does is for the fans. Actions rarely show that to be true.

And for those that think that Los Angeles is still so close to San Diego. It's only close geographically.

More moving. The Oakland Raiders filed paperwork with the league to move forward with a move to Las Vegas. It appears that an NFL vote is the only standing in the way of that move becoming a reality. Very sad. The Raiders belong in Oakland.

Coaches.

Six NFL teams entered the offseason looking for a new head coach. Five have found one.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Doug Marrone
Denver Broncos: Vance Joseph
Buffalo Bills: Sean McDermott
Los Angeles Rams: Sean McVay
Los Angeles Chargers: Anthony Lynn

It's going to take some time to get used to Los Angeles Chargers.

The biggest surprise of the five hires is probably the Rams hiring Sean McVay. The surprise being that he only turns 31 in a couple of weeks. For comparison, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer was 58 when he got his first head coaching gig. Bruce Arians was 60 when he got his. McVay's defensive coordinator is Wade Phillips. He's 69 and started his football coaching career before McVay was even born.

In talking about McVay's quick rise to a top job many talking heads have called him the youngest head coach in modern NFL history. They have to add the "modern" tag because he isn't the youngest ever. Here are a few coaching kids that were younger.

George Halas was 25 when he coached the Decatur Staleys in 1920.
Curly Lambeau was 23 when he introduced the Green Bay Packers in 1921.
Guy Chamberlain was 28 when he led the Canton Bulldogs to the 1922 NFL title.

The lone head coaching vacancy left is that of the San Francisco 49ers. They are the only team apparently intent on hiring a coach that coached for a successful franchise in 2016. If the 49ers want to hire a coach from a playoff team (Kyle Shanahan or Josh McDaniels for example) they have to wait for that team to exit the playoffs. Now they have no competition.

Congratulations to the new head coaches. To Doug Marrone, hopefully this shot turns out better than the last one.

Playoffs!

Hopefully we'll have a close game. I've kinda forgotten what those look like.

Flea Flicker Divisional Playoffs Predictions

The average margin of victory in the Wild Card round was 19 points. That's not very competitive. This weekend's games look fantastic. Here's hoping that they play out that way.

Seattle Seahawks @ Atlanta Falcons
Pick: Falcons
The Seahawks have a terrific defense. Even without Earl Thomas. I just don't see them stopping the Falcons terrific offense enough and I don't see their offense scoring enough.

Houston Texans @ New England Patriots
Pick: Patriots
This is the one game that could get out of hand. Maybe the Texans defense keeps the game close and the offense does a couple surprising things. But I don't think so.

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Kansas City Chiefs
Pick: Chiefs
Stopping the Steelers potent offensive trio of Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell, and Antonio is a tall task. I'm thinking that Tyreek Hill makes a play or two that turns this game the Chiefs way.

Green Bay Packers @ Dallas Cowboys
Pick: Packers
Aaron Rodgers has been ridiculous and he's the difference in this game. His defense has to help him.

Cal Finds A Football Coach

The only surprise with Cal's firing of head coach Sonny Dykes last Sunday was that it happened last Sunday. Typically college football coaching changes are made in November or December. The closer the change is to February the more it messes with recruiting. The kids have to know who's going to coach them. Dykes did some great things in Berkeley. He turned around the academic standing and culture of the program in an incredibly quick and efficient manner. That should be applauded rather than dismissed as a pleasant side. His offense had some brilliant moments. But. Cal's defense was a complete disaster for nearly every minute of his four years. The defense was so bad that it made every game a difficult and frustrating watch. That could be seen in declining season ticket renewals. Then there was Dykes' annual interest in other jobs. It would be best for any college sports program if their coach shows some commitment to that program. Cal Athletic Director Michael Williams didn't see that commitment from the football coach. The only surprise was that he waited until the second Sunday of January to fire Dykes.

Who replaces Sonny Dykes?

According to Bruce Feldman of FOX Sports, Cal's new coach will be Wisconsin defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox. Negotiations took place last night and it's expected that Wilcox signed a term sheet. The contract must still be approved by UC Regents so it might not be official official for another 10-12 days. Wilcox has a Cal connection as he was the linebackers coach under Jeff Tedford from 2003-05. He might have had a longer stay in Berkeley if not for the fact that Bob Gregory was doing a fine job as Cal's defensive coordinator. The only way for Wilcox to move up was to move on and he did.

Boise State defensive coordinator 2006-09
Tennessee defensive coordinator 2010-11
Washington defensive coordinator 2012-13
USC defensive coordinator 2014-15
Wisconsin defensive coordinator 2016

Justin Wilcox has plenty of experience on the defensive side of the ball and Cal needs a lot of help there. It's been rumored that he might bring in current Alabama linebackers coach Tosh Lupoi as defensive coordinator. Lupoi has an interesting Cal history. First, he played for Wilcox. Then, he coached Cal's defensive linemen from 2008-11. He probably made his biggest mark on the program as a recruiter. He was so good at it that he was named Rivals recruiter of the year in 2010. In January of 2012 he bolted to Washington and took some of his recruits with him. It wasn't a pretty parting and some Bears fans might not be too thrilled about a possible reunion.

As for the offense, perhaps 2016 offensive coordinator Jake Spavital is retained in the same capacity. That would probably be the most smooth transition. He's been the interim head coach since Sunday and interviewed for the permanent head coaching job on Tuesday. It sounds like the Cal decision-makers are high on him and several players have thrown support his way. He's widely considered one of the bright, young offensive minds in the country. He's not far from his own shot as a head coach but a couple more years as a coordinator couldn't hurt. He's only 31 and his coaching future is a bright one. It could be a nice combination to have Wilcox run the team and fix the defense (possibly with Lupoi) while Spavital handles the offense. For four years Cal has recruited players that fit Dykes' hurry-up/spread-em out/flood the field with receivers offense. It's an offense with players that Spavital was brought to Berkeley to coach. Wilcox might even offer him more independence to run an offense than he's ever had.

Then there's the chance that Wilcox will want to scrap the offense that Dykes installed and Spavital knows. Bruce Feldman reported, after the Wilcox news slowed late last night, that a Cal coaching reunion is a possibility. Feldman mentioned Eric Kiesau as a possibility at offensive coordinator and Ron Gould perhaps as running backs coach. Both were offensive assistants during the Tedford days.

With letter of intent day coming up in about three weeks Wilcox doesn't have much time to put his coaching staff together, keep current Cal commits, and recruit others. Busy days are ahead.

For what it's worth, Cal reportedly interviewed Wilcox, Spavital, Illinois defensive coordinator Hardy Nickerson (a Cal alum), Navy head coach Ken Niumatololo, and long-time NFL assistant Bill Musgrave for the head coach position. They reached out to Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera but he said that he has unfinished business in Carolina. They also reached out to the suddenly available Chip Kelly but he declined.

Justin Wilcox will be the 34th coach in the history of Cal football.