NotJustaGame.com

Madden 06’s release is right around the corner. For the ump-teenth time I will grab another copy.

The creator in John Madden deserves much more attention than what he gets. The game could have became sloppier when the dollar sign became involved, or Madden could have easily exited calling games and lived a prosperous quiet retirement. Instead, neither his announcing or business side has fell off. His tireless work continues to prove his excellence in the football world.

The term “starter” should be labeled as crutch carries. If the starter is used too much they are going to miss a stretch during a season. The span could be a few weeks to the whole year and be a severe crutch all season for the franchise. If the crutch carries were reduced, who knows how that could have prevented an injury.

Drew Rosenhaus may be the ultimate negotiator in the NFL, but he may be the instigator of a future NFL lockout. Hearing the word “holdout” in the past five to seven years was never a major cause for concern. Approaching the 2005 season though, there is an alarming jump with new agreements not even close. Is this going to be good or bad for the future of the NFL?

Seattle must be ready to submit to the Arizona Cardinals, and also let the 49ers creep back up in the standings. Their poor off-season non-movement with Shaun Alexander has to be ranked as the worst team management planning in a long time. Either they have a great running back in mind to sign next season, or they are ready to sink deep into the Pacific Ocean.

The offensive line is there to make the entire offense mesh together. They give the quarterback enough time to throw the ball down field and the wide receivers enough time to run correct and precise routes. Last but not least they give that so called great running back the holes to get those hard earned yards. See who’s protecting and blocking for an athlete before you make that selection in your fantasy drafts.

The cream of the crop is a given in fantasy drafts, as everyone takes their pickings for the first five to six rounds. Luck has a lot to do with early round success but real success starts when that first questionable pick is made. Sometimes it may look idiotic and out of place, but it gets the rest of the owners thinking aggressively. It may create a whirlwind of early jumping the gun picks, and separate the veteran fantasy owners from the rookies.

Ricky’s return to debut will start in Miami next week as training camp begins. Will Miami go with the a grind it out run style, or send Ricky to another Florida team?

Blowouts on Sundays are bad for ratings, but a major boost for fantasy football teams. First of all while the points pile up for the leading team, it’s usually the most involvement of an entire team. The quarterback, running back, and two or three wide receivers will have game day stats sometimes by halftime. As that happens it comforts the winning team enough to substitute for the second and third string athletes.

Holdout. That’s the one word you can hear an agent yelling. Specifically Drew Rosenhaus telling his clients to do after a successful season. Rosenhaus’s aggressive tactics have been favorable among athletes, and caused nightmares for general managers. The increased pace of athletes holding out is starting to get to a ridiculous level. An agent’s number one job from the start is to get his athlete the best contract.

Injuries are the most common setback in an athlete’s professional career. The recovery time period is often sped up to benefit the their team’s immediate future. In some cases it’s worth the risk, but more than often it causes a prolonged setback that can carry on for an entire season. Rather than let that athlete get the extended rest, it turns into a future problem. What should have took an extra two to three weeks for full recovery, ends up taking a year or two.