AFC Breakout Players

The middle of the preseason schedule is a fine time to pick a breakout player for the 2019 NFL season from each team. Now it's the AFC's turn.

Baltimore Ravens
Orlando Brown, OT
-Offensive linemen can break out. And the son of Zeus is the perfect candidate.

Cincinnati Bengals
Jessie Bates III, S
-Bates looks like a long-time, ball-hawking centerfielder.

Cleveland Browns
Christian Kirksey, LB
-Kirksey has been a terrific linebacker for a while. But he's never had a line in front of him quite like the one that he has now.

Pittsburgh Steelers
Devin Bush, LB
-Bush's breakout is inevitable.

Buffalo Bills
John Brown, WR
-Brown has teased with breaking out with a couple teams. His best chance is now.

Miami Dolphins
Kalen Ballage, RB
-Big and fast. The Dolphins offense should depend on him.

New England Patriots
Sony Michel, RB
-Michel is the most talented Patriots back since Corey Dillon. If he stays healthy he's bound to break out. No matter how many backs the Patriots routinely use.

New York Jets
Jamison Crowder, WR
-I've been a fan of Crowder for a while. He should get his opportunity to break out in New York with Sam Darnold.

Houston Texans
Jordan Reid, S
-He's no longer Eric Reid's little brother.

Indianapolis Colts
Parris Campbell, WR
-All Andrew Luck needs is another weapon. Campbell should be a playmaker in Indianapolis for a long time.

Jacksonville Jaguars
DJ Chark, WR
-The Jaguars need Chark to break out.

Tennessee Titans
Derrick Henry, RB
-His break out was actually at the end of last season.

Denver Broncos
Courtland Sutton, WR
-Sutton's emergence made it easy to part with Demaryius Thomas.

Kansas City Chiefs
Mitchell Schwartz, OT
-Seeing as the best right tackle in the league has never made it to the Pro Bowl, Schwartz is a breakout candidate.

Los Angeles Chargers
Hunter Henry, TE
-All Henry has to do is stay healthy and he'll break out.

Oakland Raiders
Josh Jacobs, RB
-The Raiders need their rookie runner to break out. Jacobs has the talent to do so.

NFC Breakout Players

The middle of the preseason schedule is a fine time to pick a breakout player for the 2019 NFL season from each team. The NFC is up first.

Minnesota Vikings
Dalvin Cook, RB
-Cook just has to stay on the field.

Chicago Bears
David Montgomery, RB
-Jordan Howard didn't really fit Matt Nagy's offense. Montgomery does.

Detroit Lions
Jarrad Davis, LB
-Davis is the leader of a Lions defense that has to improve.

Green Bay Packers
Jaire Alexander, CB
-According to Alexander he broke out the moment he was drafted.

Dallas Cowboys
Tony Pollard, RB
-If Ezekiel Elliott pulls a Le'Veon Bell, Pollard will have no choice but to break out.

New York Giants
Lorenzo Carter, LB
-Carter probably gets the nod simply because he became a favorite of mine leading up to the 2018 NFL Draft.

Philadelphia Eagles
Miles Sanders, RB
-If their Super Bowl run is any indication the Eagles offense is at it's best with a capable stable of running backs. As as rookie, Sanders might already be the best back on the team.

Washington Redskins
Terry McLaurin, WR
-The Redskins have to get the ball in the hands of McLaurin.

Atlanta Falcons
Calvin Ridley, WR
-Playing opposite Julio Jones helps but Ridley is a terrific receiver on his own.

Carolina Panthers
Brian Burns, DE
-The Panthers could use a speedy pass rusher off the edge. Burns happens to be one.

New Orleans Saints
Jared Cook, TE
-Picking Cook doesn't feel right seeing as he's been one of the better tight ends in the league for a while. Cook in this offense has the possibility of a different sort of season.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Devin White, LB
-White immediately steps into the spot vacated by Kwon Alexander.

Arizona Cardinals
Christian Kirk, WR
-Kirk should shine in Kliff Kingsbury's offense.

Los Angeles Rams
Taylor Rapp, S
-This one might be a reach. I think that Rapp is going to force the Rams to start him and he's going to be around the ball for the rest of his career.

San Francisco 49ers
Jalen Hurd, WR
-I'm going with the rookie receiver that reminds me of a big Percy Harvin.

Seattle Seahawks
Tyler Lockett, WR
-Some might say that Lockett has already broken out. I think that he's just getting started.

Black College Player of the Year Watch List

Everyone knows about the quarterbacks from Alabama and Clemson. Everyone knows about the running back from Wisconsin. A lot of people know about the receiver from Colorado. Several people know about the tackle from Iowa. Too few know about the best football players from the Historically Black Colleges and Universities. On Wednesday, the Black College Football Hall of Fame released it's 2019 Watch List for the Black College Football Player of the Year Award.

Four finalists for the Black College Football Player of the Year will be announced on December 3, 2019. The winner will be presented the Deacon Jones Trophy during the Black College Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on February 15, 2020.

The Watch List candidates have been selected based on past performance and future potential. Additions to the list may be made as the 2019 season progresses. The finalists and the winner will be chosen by a Selection Committee.

2019 Watch List for the Black College Football Player of the Year Award

Alabama A&M
Jordan Bentley, RB
Aqeel Glass, QB

Alcorn State
Qwynnterio Cole, DB
Noah Johnson, QB
Javen Morrison, DB
Solomon Muhammad, LB
DE'Shawn Waller, RB

Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Taeyler Porter, RB

Benedict
Traviontae Brown, DB

Bethune-Cookman
Marques Ford, DL
Marquis Hendrix, LB
Trevor Merritt, DB
Jimmie Robinson, WR/KR

Bowie State
Joshua Pryor, DL

Central State
Kevin Greenhow, WR

Delaware State
Brian Cavicante, LB

Fayetteville State
Stevie Green, QB
Brandon Smith, KR

Florida A&M
Xavier Smith, WR

Fort Valley State
Camron Young, DB

Grambling State
Joseph McWilliams, DB
Anfernee Mullins, DL

Hampton
Deondre Francois, QB

Howard
Kyle Anthony, WR
Jequez Ezzard, WR
Caylin Newton, QB
Dedrick Parson, RB

Lincoln (PA)
Solomon Bassett, DL

Miles
Austin Stephens, LB
Leonard Tyree, WR

Morehouse
Santo Dunn, RB
Michael Sims, QB

Morgan State
Rico Kennedy, LB
Ian McBurrough, LB

North Carolina A&T State
Elijah Bell, WR
Mac McCain III, DB

North Carolina Central
Isaiah Totten, RB

Prairie View A&M
Jalen Morton, QB
Ju'Anthony Parker, DB
Dawonya Tucker, RB

Saint Augustine's
Joseph Harris, Jr., LB

Shaw University
Devon Hunt, LB

Tennessee State
Chris Rowland, WR

Tuskegee
Davoris Thomas, LB

Virginia Union
Sterling Hammond, DB
Tabyus Taylor, RB

Winston-Salem University
Daryus Skinner, DB

Look at all those defensive players. Does the "Heisman Watch" ever track defensive players?

Throwback Thursday: August 18, 2009

This Flicker was originally posted on 8/21/14. It's now been 10 years since Brett Favre joined the Minnesota Vikings and it still feels like some strange dream. 


Five years ago this week, on August 18, 2009, the Minnesota Vikings signed former adversary Brett Favre. Though rumored, it was a shocking event that rocked two, rival franchises. Families may even have been divided. Brett Favre wearing his familiar #4 in a very unfamiliar purple jersey. The whole day was a circus. News helicopters. A convoy of cars from the airport to the Vikings Eden Prairie facility. Stunned fans everywhere.

The Minnesota Vikings entered the 2009 season with a talented, veteran football team. They were 10-6 in 2008 with a brief playoff appearance. They could do so much more if they only had a quarterback that had the respect of any defense that they faced. There was a fierce quarterback battle in Minnesota between Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfels. Both are fine quarterbacks. Both are better as backup quarterbacks than starters. Neither throws much fear into an NFL defense. Head coach Brad Childress knew that he needed a better quarterback if he ever wanted to have more than a brief playoff appearance. He needed Favre. And, Favre apparently needed the Minnesota Vikings. He wanted to face the Packers twice. He wanted to face the team that he led for 16 years. The team that he forced to trade him somewhere. The team that traded him to the New York Jets. The Vikings were the perfect team for Favre and he was the perfect quarterback for the Vikings. Some Vikings fans could never accept it but most were thrilled beyond belief. Brett Favre is the Minnesota Vikings quarterback! It just didn't seem possible.

Before he was the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, Brad Childress was Andy Reid's offensive coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles. Reid was Favre's quarterback coach on Mike Homgren's staff with the Green Bay Packers. Childress had installed an offense in Minnesota that Favre could run in his sleep. The Vikings offered an array of offensive weapons that included running backs Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor and receiver's Sidney Rice, Percy Harvin, and Bernard Berrian. With his experience in this offense, Favre was a plug-and-play quarterback from the moment that he signed his big contract. He didn't need any stinkin' training camp in Mankato. He could come to the Vikings facilities during the third week of August and be ready to play NFL games for a new team in about three weeks. Five years ago this week, on August 18, 2009, he did just that.

Minnesota Vikings Specialists

The Minnesota Vikings have made some tweaks to their specialists. When training camp started just over two weeks ago the group looked like this.

Kicker
Dan Bailey

Punter
Matt Wile

Long Snapper 
Kevin McDermott
Austin Cutting

Holder
Matt Wile

Now, it looks something like this:

Kicker
Dan Bailey

Punter
Matt Wile
Kaare Vedvik

Long Snapper
Austin Cutting

Holder
    ?

The easiest position tweak to explain is the one that was pretty much decided at the draft. When the Vikings selected Air Force long snapper Austin Cutting with their final pick in the seventh round, Kevin McDermott's days of handling the snaps were numbered. The rotation at the long snapper position through two weeks of training camp wasn't doing the consistency of the kicking battery any good. McDermott was released on Sunday.

While releasing McDermott did answer one question, another Sunday transaction introduced several new questions. The Vikings traded a 2020 5th-round pick to the Baltimore Ravens for Kaare Vedvik. That's a significant price to pay for a kicker, or a punter, or both. Vedvik can kick and punt really well. The Ravens had both positions covered so four teams reportedly called about the availability of the talented specialist. Now, he's in Minnesota. So, what position will he play? Media and fans are asking. The Vikings are basically saying, "we'll see." Media and fans don't like vague answers. If Vedvik's first couple practices are any indication, it looks like he's the punter. More accurately, he's competing with Matt Wile to be the Vikings punter. But, a team doesn't trade a 5th-round pick for a punter and then release him. As with Cutting basically having the long snapper job the moment he was drafted, Vedvik had a roster spot as soon as the Vikings traded for him. I'm presently thinking that he's the punter. Unless, he becomes the kicker. While I believe that Dan Bailey will keep the kicker job, the possibility that the team turns to Vedvik is out there. A much more remote possibility is Vedvik handling both positions. The only certainty with the Vikings specialists is that Austin Cutting will be the long snapper and Kaare Vedvik will have a role with the team.

At recent press conferences, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer spoke well of Bailey. That and Vedvik spending much of yesterday's practice punting leads me to believe that each will handle those duties. I'm guessing that Vedvik will kick off as well as provide insurance as a kicker. Maybe he even handles longer field goals. The possibility of him kicking at times might explain why receiver Chad Beede was the holder for all of Bailey's field goal and extra point attempts. The Vikings typically have their punter hold for kicks. Another player would have to hold if the punter has to come in to kick a field goal. After all, what team wants to have a second holder to accommodate a second kicker?

So, until something to the contrary is announced I'm presently going with the Vikings specialists for the 2019 season looking something like this:

Kicker
Dan Bailey

Punter
Kaare Vedvik

Long Snapper
Austin Cutting

Holder
Chad Beebe

My thinking for the above group being the Vikings specialists in 2019 relies heavily on Zimmer's recent kind words for Bailey and yesterday's practice. A practice which had Vedvik concentrating on punting and Beebe holding. There's a chance that each was doing what they were doing simply because Matt Wile had sliced his hand during Friday's preseason game and needed stitches to close the wound. So, there are still questions about the Vikings specialists. There are more questions now than there were two weeks ago. There are always questions throughout the roster this time of year. Just because the specialist positions are usually the most settled positions in training camp doesn't mean a little uncertainty is a bad thing. Having a player as versatile as Vedvik is intriguing. He gives the team unique options. It would be a mistake to not explore those options. But, it'd be nice to get the kicking battery settled pretty soon. The longer that group has to work together the better it will be for the season. The kicking has to improve. It's been a mess since Blair Walsh missed that kick. I don't think that I've been relaxed for a Vikings extra point or field goal attempt since. That has to change and the hope here is that this unusual specialist group will do so.

Centennial Class Predictions

In celebration of 100 years of APFA/NFL football as many as 20 players/coaches/contributors will make up a special 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame Class. The Centennial Class will break down like this:

5 modern era players
10 senior players
3 contributors
2 coaches

I'll probably be doing a bunch of these predictions by the time this "giant" Centennial Hall of Fame Class is announced. For now, this is the Class that I have.

Modern Era
Troy Polamalu, S, Steelers
Patrick Willis, LB, 49ers
Tony Boselli, OT, Jaguars
Steve Hutchinson, OG, Seahawks, Vikings, Titans
Steve Atwater, S, Broncos, Jets

I'd like to see the honor of being a first-ballot inductee limited to players that were truly special. Troy Polamalu and Patrick Willis were two of the best, most fun players I've ever watched play their positions. That strikes me as special. Tony Boselli and Steve Hutchinson were among the best at their positions at the time that they played. In the case of Boselli, he was among the best at his position at a time when players like Jonathan Ogden, Walter Jones, and Orlando Pace played it. The voters have finally started getting deserving safeties into the Hall. That continues with Steve Atwater.

Senior Players
Duke Slater, T, Badgers, Independents, Cardinals
Lavvie Dilweg, E, Badgers, Packers
Ox Emerson, G/C/LB, Spartans, Lions, Dodgers
Al Wistert, T, Eagles
Mac Speedie, E, Browns
Alex Karras, DT, Lions
Cliff Harris, S, Cowboys
Drew Pearson, WR, Cowboys
Cliff Branch, WR, Raiders
Randy Gradishar, LB, Broncos

When talking heads honk about the players that should be a part of the Centennial Class they start with players that played in the 1970s. If the voters also focus on those players the purpose for the Centennial Class will have eluded them. Too many people think that the NFL started with the first Super Bowl. Nearly half of the NFL's existence came before that game. If Duke Slater, Lavvie Dilweg, Ox Emerson, Mac Speedie, Al Wistert, and Alex Karras aren't part of the Centennial Class what's the point of celebrating all 100 years. The voters clearly aren't. If those players don't make the Hall in this Class they never will. Slater, Dilweg, and Wistert should've made it long ago.

Contributors
Ralph Hay, Canton Bulldogs Owner, co-founder of the APFA/NFL
Steve Sabol, NFL Films
Eddie Kotal, Scout/Coach, Packers, Rams

One would think that the man that called and hosted the meeting that started the APFA/NFL and owned the most dominant team of the new league's first five years would already be in the Hall. Ralph Hay did all of that in Canton. He really should be honored there. Nothing really needs to be said on Steve Sabol's behalf. He's a Hall of Famer. There are a few scouts/personnel men that are deserving but I'm going with arguably the first scout with Eddie Kotal.

Coaches
Buddy Parker, Cardinals, Lions, Steelers
Don Coryell, Cardinals, Chargers

There are a few coaches that deserve consideration. Buddy Parker, Don Coryell, Postsy Clark, Tom Flores, and Jimmy Johnson come to mind. Today, I'm going with Parker and Coryell.

Some Football Thoughts

Week 1 of the 2019 NFL Preseason is in the books. Here are some of the football things that have been on my mind.

1. One of the great curiosities of the NFL's preseason is the fan and media reaction to it. When Week 1 hits, everyone is thrilled that football is back. By Week 2, maybe Week 3, everyone is sick of the sloppy play and absence of "real" football. Everyone complains that most of the players in the games won't be around in a month. They also complain if a star player sees a hint of action. Basically, everyone starts complaining about the preseason mere days after trumpeting the preseason.

2. Personally, I've always enjoyed preseason games. I understood early on that the games are practice games. They are just part of the process, an extension of training camp rather than the start to the regular season. They were never meant to be real games. They were never advertised as such. And they absolutely should not be priced as real games. One of the great wrongs that the NFL has ever committed has been forcing fans to pay real game prices for practice games.

3. I can not wait to see the regular season version of the Minnesota Vikings offense. I can not wait to see how a diverse, talented tight end group is used in the offense. And I absolutely can not wait to see Dalvin Cook play in the offense.

4. Antonio Brown is out of his mind.

5. Most of the talking heads and all of the football haters have enjoyed pointing their pointy fingers at the NFL over the issue of brain injuries. In their minds, the NFL is the only party deserving of blame. For some reason all of the other levels of football have always received a pass. The NFL absolutely does deserve blame but there is a lot of blame to go around. Everyone involved in the game is responsible for the current situation. And "current" really isn't accurate. Brain injuries in football aren't a new thing. All levels of football deserve blame. From youth leagues to the NFL. Many football coaches, at all levels, have long encouraged big hits over fundamentally-sound hits. Hell, fans routinely encourage those hits. So, fans deserve some of that blame as well. Oakland Raiders fans loved, and encouraged, the sort of hits that Jack Tatum used to end the football career of Darryl Stingley. In a preseason game. The players have always been seen as the victims. In reality, they are part of the problem. Tatum was an excellent example of this. He showed zero consideration for his peers. He showed zero consideration for his own welfare. Most players don't. They routinely ignore concussions. They'd ignore concussions today, despite all the information that's out there and a supposedly eye-opening movie, if given the chance. Antonio Brown wants to use an outdated helmet, one that doesn't pass current safety standards, because he's comfortable with it. So comfortable that he's willing to risk his own brain. It seems that in this case the NFL has greater concern for Brown's current and long-term welfare than he does.

6. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is a magical place. So is Canton, Ohio.

7. The Vikings have themselves a new kicker, or punter, or kicker-punter. They traded a 2020 fifth round pick to the Baltimore Ravens for Kaare Vedvik. Over the last seven years the Vikings have addressed the kicker position with three draft picks, a 6th to select Blair Walsh in 2012, a 5th to select Daniel Carlson in 2018, and now a 5th in 2020 to acquire Vedvik. While I don't like seeing the Vikings invest more draft capital on a kicker, the position has to get settled. Too many games have been given away to missed extra points and field goals. Too many playoff games and games to get into the playoffs have gone the wrong way. If Vedvik is the kicking answer he's easily worth the fifth round price. He's also an accomplished punter. He kicked four field goals (55,45,26,29) and two extra points as well as booming two punts over fifty yards in Thursday night's 29-0 preseason win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. If he wasn't on the radar of kicker-needy teams last preseason, he certainly was after the first game of this preseason. Will Vedvik handle both kicking and punting for the Vikings? It would be tempting to open up a roster spot for one of the hotly contested position groups (defensive line?) but I think that's a gamble that's probably not worth taking. Until I see different, I'm guessing that Kaare Vedvik is the Vikings kicker moving forward. Maybe the punter. Or kicker-punter.

8. It just feels right for the Vikings to have a Norwegian player on the team.

9. Every multiple-round mock draft that I did for the Vikings (and I did a lot of them) included Baylor receiver Jalen Hurd. So it was real disappointing to see the San Francisco 49ers grab him from me in the third round.

10. Rest In Peace Darryl Drake.