Tannehill Set For Good Things

Things didn't work out too well the other night for the Dolphins or Ryan Tannehill, last year's first round pick for Miami.  Not to fret, the Dolphins are still 3-1 and Tannehill is only going to get better.  What I really like about him is his overall athleticism and his tight, efficient throwing motion.  He will continue to improve as a QB as he adds snaps to his resume and his mechanics will keep him close to his targets.

Peyton Manning Out of This World

When John Elway jettisoned Tim Tebow for Peyton Manning, who was trying to return from serious neck issues, there were plenty of questions left to be answered.  2012 was a pretty good year for Manning and the Broncos and could have been magical if not for a defensive brain-fart in the AFC Championship game.
Fast forward to 2013 and Manning has taken the new rules of patty-cake treatment for wide receivers catching passes and exploited it to what may turn out to be the most prolific and efficient season on record, which is no easy task.
Through four games, he has a record 16 TD passes and is just making it look to easy.  There really is no answer from the defensive side, other than to beat a lineman and knock him down before he is ready to throw.  But, he has made that very difficult as well by getting rid of the ball quickly and keeping the offense running at a very high tempo and thus keep the defensive linemen tired and frustrated.
If the Broncos offensive linemen can keep Peyton upright all year, John Elway may have made the  managerial move of the century--albeit only 13 years thus far!

Buckskins Might Be Better Name Than Redskins

I am a traditionalist.  I like to keep things the way they have been unless there is a compelling reason to change and I am usually politically incorrect.  I would rather the Redskins keep on being the Redskins, just because that is what they have been.  I believe that team mascots are revered above all to their followers, so being a fan of the Redskins means you hold them in high regard.  That said, there is no easy way to make the argument that the term itself isn't and wasn't derogatory from the start.  Having a specific race of people as a mascot, although it might represent a mighty and fierce force, it is a mascot on the same level with mostly animals and that is not a great comparison.  Pirates, Raiders, Cowboys and the like are not a race of people, but a characature of a lifestyle!

I have been doing some reading out of a bible that I purchased a few months ago called The Founder's Bible, by David Barton.  It details much of the history of America's founders and their struggle for independence from Britain and how so much relates to the bible.  It talks about George Washington and his struggles to keep a fighting force together and about his divine providence (a reference to Psalms 90).  How he was shot at many times by expert marksmen, but failed to be injured.  And how following these battles, he even met up with some of the enemy forces who told him that he was protected by God, because they had shot multiple times at him and couldn't hit him, even though they never missed a target like that and they just wanted to meet the man protected by God.

In one of the stories, Washington took BUCKSKINS into the battle with him.  Buckskins are horses with a beautiful tan color.  What a great replacement for the Redskins name!  Buckskins still hold the reference to color, but now it would be on a beautiful horse that had been used in battle to help save the revolution and create the United States of America!  There is no better mascot for the team in the nation's capital, named after the great general and President of the United States!  It would be a great change and it would end all argument.  Not only that, it would help preserve some history as many would do a little homework to find out about the buckskins!

I know many will put their nose up to this suggestion as well, as you can never please everyone, but I do believe it would be a change of which we could all be proud!  And if you don't like that one, how about just making them the Generals, once again referencing George Washington and the history of the successful battle for America and all Americans!

Patriots, Belichick Unsure How They Will Use Tebow

Players find different roles on their teams.  Sometimes a wide receiver becomes a kick-off return specialist and other players that don't find starting roles, find their niche on special teams, but rarely does a team sign or draft a player without knowing what they plan to do with him.  After being on the open market for a number of weeks without a suitor, Tim Tebow signed with the New England Patriots and Head Coach Bill Belichick said he doesn't know where Tebow will fit in.

The common thought is that the Patriots were one of the few places Tebow could go because of their ability to handle players that bring extra scrutiny, albeit the past players brought in had negative associations for their ability to get along.  Tebow gets along quite well it seems, but brings a storm of media no other player in the NFL does. 

With Tom Brady entrenched at QB, there is no story to write about Tebow moving in like everyday in New York.  The story is will offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels go out of his way to incorporate him into the offense in a way that will actually make Tebow the terror that he was in college?  Tony Sporano had no plan to integrate him into the offense and the weak effort to run a few spread option plays were pitiful. 

Remember back to the beginning of the "Wildcat" with Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown of the Miami Dolphins.  It was successful first because no one had seen it and it caught teams by surprise.  Secondly, it was successful because defenses were forced to defend two points of attack with two good runners.  The New York Jets could have been a force on offense if they had used Tebow as the Ronnie Brown runner coming in fast-motion across the formation past Brady.  Brady can give it to Tebow on the move to his left in a run/pass option, where the corner is threatened by a 250 pound fullback.  Come up to tackle Tebow and leave the receiver uncovered and Tebow will dump the ball just like he did at the University of Florida.  Stay back and cover the receiver and he will hurt you big-time on the ground.  After Tebow does that a couple of time, Brady fakes it to Tebow and pulls it back out and finds his receivers more open than usual because they had to react to Tebow taking the ball outside.  This offense would actually look a lot like what Tebow was doing with the Gators when he either gave it to Chris Rainey or Jeff Demps (two of the fastest guys on the planet) and pulled it out and ran it or threw it to an open Aaron Hernandez (yes, the Pats TE).  Josh McDaniels made Tebow a first round pick and caused much of this problem, because if Tebow had been a fourth round pick (where his QB ability justified his draft status), there would not have been nearly the expectations that have been on this player that if used properly can actually have the value of his original draft status, just not at the quarterback position!

New Football Camps for Girls Only!

Summer football camps across America number in the thousands for boys playing the nation's favorite sport!  But football camps for girls playing flag football number exactly zero!! 

Gridiron Girls is going to change that very soon.  At the end of June, Gridiron Girls will offer its first 3 day football camp exclusively for girls 10 and up (GirlsOnlyFootball.com) on the campus of Tampa Catholic High School.

Former NFL QB Jeff Carlson has teamed up with experienced flag football high school coach JJ Koski to give girls a chance to get the quality teaching, drills, techniques and strategies that until now have only been offered to boys. 

Title IX has been in place for 40 years now and opened an amazing door of opportunity for young women to explore their passion for sports at the collegiate level.  Unfortunately, flag football has not quite made the jump to college, but Gridiron Girls is hoping to be a major piece in the puzzle to breaking onto the collegiate scene very soon.  But in the meantime, let's get the girls game as good as it can be, so get out to the Gridiron Girls Football Camp on Friday June 28th (June 28-30).  Sign up today at GirlsOnly Football.com!