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    Shutdown Corner
    • Players have always bought in to Gregg Williams' message -- like it or not. (AP)

      LOS ANGELES -- In the public eye and to various NFL administrators, Gregg Williams is very much the face of BountyGate, and all that is wrong with football today. But to his players past and present, the current defensive assistant with the Tennessee Titans and former defensive coach and coordinator with seven different NFL teams has a name with a very different ring to it. To most of the men he's coached, Williams inspires profound loyalty, which speaks to the difference between those who want the game to be different from the outside, and those who have to survive it in the here and now.

      “The bottom line is still getting the players to perform, and what I’ve been able to do, I guess, and had the opportunity to do at a lot of different places is, ‘How do you make an average guy good, a good guy great, and if you have a chance to coach a great guy, he’s got to be great on your watch,’”Williams said upon his Tennessee hire. “This is still a production business. You have to get them to do that and people have to understand how to do that.”

      And a Titans defense that finished 19th against the pass and 29th against the run, per Football Outsiders' opponent-adjusted metrics, are looking for that quick fix.

      Akeem Ayers sees Gregg Williams as an agent of change. (Getty Images)Put simply, Gregg Williams improves defenses, and defensive players. Those defensive players appreciate it, beyond what you may hear and know. Matt Bowen, current columnist for the National Football Post and Chicago Tribune, wrote about "crossing the line," and how Williams helped him do it, when Williams coached Bowen as a safety for the Washington Redskins in 2004 and 2005. Bowen is now one of the most astute football minds in the media, but he brought a player's perspective to the Williams issue -- and once you're indoctrinated, it's tough to part that out. Even after the history becomes more convoluted.

      "Williams is the best coach I ever played for in my years in the NFL, a true teacher who developed me as a player," Bowen wrote in March of 2012. "I believed in him. I still do. That will never change.

      "Williams is an excellent motivator. You do what he wants: play tough, push the envelope and carry a swagger that every opponent sees on tape. When you lined up against us, you knew we were coming after you. It was our gig, our plan, our way to motivate, to extra-motivate. I wanted to be That Guy for him, playing the game with an attitude opposing players absolutely feared. If that meant playing through the whistle or going low on a tackle, I did it."

      When I talked to former Jacksonville Jaguars and New Orleans Saints defensive end Paul Spicer about playing for Williams in two different cities, he echoed many of those same thoughts.

      Read More »from Gregg Williams’ players, past and present, don’t hold bounty narrative against him
    • OJ Simpson during his sentencing in 2008. (Getty Images)Here's a Super Bowl party you're probably pretty glad you didn't get an invitation to: according to the New York Post, O.J. Simpson threw a Super Bowl party in his cell at the Lovelock Correctional Center in Nevada.

      Simpson's cell is only 80 square feet, but he still has his own television. (Hope it's a flat-screen.) The Post quoted Simpson's friend Norman Pardo as saying, "If you have the money, you can buy a TV at the inmate store and put it in your cell."

      And as you can imagine, a guy with a television in prison is a popular fellow — "the Godfather of the prison," as Pardo said. The Super Bowl party was apparently quite the must-watch event, and hey, good for O.J.

      We're not going to make jokes about which teams or players he was pulling for, because sometimes you let the easy (and potentially libelous) ones go right by. But we'll bet you can guess.

      Simpson, age 65, is currently serving a 33-year sentence for a September 2007 armed robbery in Las Vegas. He will be in prison until at

      Read More »from O.J. Simpson’s Super Bowl prison party? New York Post says it happened
    • A Giants fan takes in a 2007 game with two snowfans. (Getty)

      Those of you pining for a Super Bowl Saturday may finally be in luck. According to a report in Sports Business Daily, the NFL is putting together a contingency plan for Super Bowl XLVIII should inclement weather hit Metlife Stadium and the New York/New Jersey area.

      The plan reportedly includes moving the game to Saturday, which would be great for those of us at home who need a day to recover from our food and drink but awful for fans traveling to and from the site with set plane reservations.

      It also includes delaying the first Super Bowl played in a cold-weather climate outdoors until later in the week, which would be terrible for us all.

      From Sports Business Daily:

      Read More »from Super Bowl on a Saturday? Bad weather in New Jersey next year could make it so
    • 2013 Pro Day schedule

      It's stopwatch season in the NFL (USA Today Sports Images)

      The 2013 Scouting Combine begins in nine days and the 2013 NFL Draft is just 72 days away. "Shutdown Corner" has already begun to ramp up our draft coverage, with editor Doug Farrar posting his pre-Combine "Big Board" (1-16, 17-32) on Monday.

      A little over 300 players are invited to the Combine in Indianapolis, which means most draft hopefuls will have to impress NFL personnel executives, coaches and scouts at their pro day workout on their college campus. Here's the tentative Pro Day schedule. Dates tend to be fluid as schools occasionally change the date of their pro days to avoid conflicts with local and/or prospect-heavy schools.

      We'll do our best to keep this list as up-to-date as possible.

      March 4: Alabama-Birmingham, Minnesota, Troy
      March 5: Auburn, Buffalo, Northwestern*, Youngstown State, Jackson State, Chattanooga, Tuskegee (*- Michigan State kicker Dan Conroy will be available for testing at Northwestern's pro day)
      March 6: Mississippi State, Pittsburgh, North Alabama, Alabama A&M;, Eastern Washington, Northern Arizona, Kent State
      March 7: Arizona, Illinois, Miami, Washington State, Idaho, New Mexico, Mississippi, Arkansas-Monticello
      March 8: Texas Christian, Florida Atlantic, Southern Miss, Cornell, Wofford, Missouri State, Mount Union

      Read More »from 2013 Pro Day schedule
    • Ray Edwards continues his "boxing" career (Getty Images)

      During the 2011 lockout, then-free agent defensive end Ray Edwards passed his time by pursuing a boxing career. The 6-foot-5, 273-pound Edwards shed 15 pounds for his ring debut, in which he scored a unanimous decision in a four-round bout with 5-foot-9, 210-pound T.J. Gibson.

      Released last November by the Atlanta Falcons, the current street free agent has returned to the ring. His latest match came against an unknown and clearly outmatched opponent at a recent WinterFest boxing event in West Fargo, North Dakota.

      Edwards had a major size and reach advantage over his opponent, who appears to have reached the conclusion that it is better to be embarrassed than pummeled.

      Read More »from Ray Edwards returns to the ring, ‘knocks out’ opponent
    • Ezekiel Ansah (47) is still putting it together, but watch out when he does. (AP)

      The 2013 NFL draft is far more convoluted than its immediate predecessor. With no obvious transcendent talent to fill the top in the form of an Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III, you could easily argue five or six different players for the top spot without sounding too crazy. One thing we do know: the downgrade at quarterback is fairly serious, as evidenced by the presence of just one signal-caller in our first Big Board. Both lines is where NFL teams will find value in this upcoming draft.

      Right now, the Big Board is based more on pure positional talent than team need, and where I think players will actually go. If this was a mock draft, you could see two or three quarterbacks in spots that are one or two rounds above where I think they actually are in the process, but that speaks to the complications of the position in this year's draft. There isn't a sure-fire winner this time around, and the 2012 class may be the ultimate outlier, but teams will always reach for arms.

      So, here's the bottom half of the hypothetical first round; we have Nos. 1-16 here.

      17. Sharrif Floyd, DT, Florida: A fine prospect for the NFL's ever-increasing number of hybrid defenses, Floyd played all over the place on Florida's defensive line. Impressive upper-body strength, rarely gets washed out, nice stack-and-shed, redirects well.

      18. Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri: Classic three-tech tackle who explodes out of his stance. Uses angles very well to get through double-teams. Off-field and one-year-wonder concerns may dog him through the process, but based on pure 2012 season talent, he's upper-echelon.

      19. Xavier Rhodes, CB, Florida State: Lanky, long-limbed pass defender who can play press and also close well in off-coverage. Takes outstanding inside position when asked to trail, and has impressive full-field awareness, for the most part. Big player who tends to get chippy in close coverage; think of Seattle's outside corners for the best comparison.

      20. Ezekiel Ansah, DE, BYU: Raw like sushi, and that shows up all over the place. The former track star from Ghana spent a frustrating Senior Bowl practice week getting mauled by tackles who understood leverage better than he did, but he excelled in the actual game.

       

      21. Jessie Williams, DT, Alabama: Might be overrated a tad on some boards because of the "OMG SABAN!" factor, but there's no doubt that Williams flashes great strength and a lot of potential. Born in Australia, Williams grew up playing rugby, and brought that tough, no-b.s. style to football at age 15. A true nose guard who could clog up blockers in any kind of front.

      22. Jonathan Cooper, OG, North Carolina: Any zone- or space-blocking team in need of a guard with speed and agility will have Cooper at or near the top of their list. Sometimes playing in a two-point stance (unusual for guards), he will block very well at the first and second levels in a "phone booth," and he's the best pulling guard in this draft class. Add the fact that he was credited with knockdown blocks in nine of 12 games in the 2012 season, and you have a total offensive lineman more than ready for the pros.

      23. John Jenkins, DT, Georgia: Won't always put up the sexy numbers, but takes on and moves double-teams on nearly every play. Sets up any hybrid defense to succeed from a 0-tech to 1-tech role, but has the quicks to sub out to 5-tech run-stopping end as Red Bryant has. Amazing speed for his 350-pound frame. Could be even better at 335.

      24: Zach Ertz, TE, Stanford: Ideal new-school tight end, though his willingness to block in Stanford's power running game makes him more than a one-trick pony. Outstanding hands, great boundary receiver, a beast in the red zone, and he's quicker than you think. Any NFL team looking to add a true franchise tight end to its roster? The line starts here.

      Zach Ertz does this a lot. (AP)

      Read More »from The Shutdown Corner Big Board, 17-32: Non-QBs rule the roost this time
    • Keeping Joe Flacco is Ravens' top priority in 2013 (USA Today Sports Images)

      Over the next few weeks, "Shutdown Corner" will pay homage to "Office Space" (TPS reports) as we take a quick look back at each team's 2012 season and a look at what lies ahead for the 2013 offseason. We wrap up the AFC North with the Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens.

      2012 record: 10-6

      What went wrong: It's hard to find many bones to pick with a team that won Super Bowl XLVII and threw a parade last week, but there are few items that threatened to derail the Ravens' storybook season. For starters, the offense was stagnant for much of the season, particularly on the road. In the Ravens' first five road games, the offense produced an average of 256.8 yards per game. Statistically, the Ravens defense took a step backwards, ranking 17th in total defense, including 20th against the run and 17th against the pass. From an advanced metrics standpoint, the Ravens defense that had ranked first in Football Outsiders' defensive DVOA (Defense-adjusted Value Over Average) dropped to 19th in 2012 and was 26th against the run.

      What went right: Head coach John Harbaugh made the bold decision in mid-December to part ways with offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and place Jim Caldwell, who had no play-calling experience, in charge of the unit. It would be a severe understatement to say that decision broke the right way for the Ravens and Harbaugh. Another bold decision was reshuffling the offensive line at the start of the postseason, with Michael Oher moving from left to right tackle, second-round pick Kelechi Osomele moving from right tackle to left guard and Bryant McKinnie moving from the sidelines to left tackle. That retooled line paved the way for a running game that averaged 134.8 yards per game on the ground and allowed just six sacks of Flacco in over 130 called passing plays, including one to a Denver Broncos defense that tied for the NFL lead with 52 sacks in the regular season. While the Ravens defense gave more yardage than they're accustomed to, that unit did rank second in the NFL in the red zone.

      [Also: Ranking the NFL draft's top talents]

      Coaching/front office changes: None.

      Estimated 2013 cap space: $7.56 million

      Read More »from ‘Shutdown Corner’ offseason TPS report: Baltimore Ravens
    • (USA Today Sports Images)The NFL reportedly might consider widening the playing field to Canadian Football League standards, a drastic idea that would be one of the bigger rules changes the game has seen in a long time – if it comes to pass.

      The National Football Post reported that the league has talked about widening the field sideline-to-sideline from 160 feet to 195 feet, which is the CFL standard, and the league might look into the idea again this offseason.

      [More NFL: Michael Vick, Eagles agree to restructured contract]

      The National Football Post said the competition committee discussed the idea a year ago. In theory, a wider field would be safer for a league that has much bigger and faster players than it did decades ago.

      Read More »from NFL has considered widening the playing field 35 feet, and reportedly may revisit the idea
    • Eagles, Michael Vick agree to restructured contract

      Michael Vick agreed to a restructured contract (Getty Images)

      The Philadelphia Eagles announced that they have agreed to a restructured contract with veteran quarterback Michael Vick.

      Details of the restructured agreement were not disclosed. Eagles first-year head coach Chip Kelly is scheduled to address the media at 1 p.m ET.

      According to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Vick has signed a three-year contract which, for salary cap purposes, will void to a one-year deal on March 15. Vick, who will turn 33 in June, signed a five-year, $80 million contract on Aug. 30, 2011 that included a $15.5 million base salary and $16.9 million cap number for the 2013 season. $3 million of Vick's base salary became fully guaranteed when the four-time Pro Bowler remained on the Eagles' roster on the second day of the 2013 waiver wire period, which began on Monday, Feb. 4.

      [More NFL: Dismissed Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan finds new gig]

      Multiple reports have Vick's reworked deal being worth a maximum of $10 million, which is an indication that Vick will be able to recoup some of his pay cut through performance incentives, with the trade off being that he will be eligible for unrestricted free agency in 2014.

      Read More »from Eagles, Michael Vick agree to restructured contract
    • Texas A&M;'s Luke Joeckel may be the most complete player in his draft class. (Getty Images)

      The 2013 NFL draft is far more convoluted than its immediate predecessor. With no obvious transcendent talent to fill the top in the form of an Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III, you could easily argue five or six different players for the top spot without sounding too crazy. One thing we do know: the downgrade at quarterback is serious, as evidenced by the presence of just one signal-caller in our first Big Board. The line is where NFL teams will find value in this upcoming draft, and that's true on both sides of the ball.

      Right now, the Big Board is based more on pure positional talent than team need, and where I think players will actually go. If this was a mock draft, you could see two or three quarterbacks in spots that are one or two rounds above where I think they actually are in the process, but that speaks to the complications of the position in this year's draft. There isn't an overall sure-fire winner this time around, and the 2012 class may be the ultimate outlier, but teams will always reach for arms. That's just the way it is.

      [More NFL: NFL reportedly may revisit widening playing field 35 feet]

      So, here's our pre-combine 16 best; you can find 17-32 right here.

      1. Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M;: The most technically sound lineman of any position in this draft class. Great edge protector, but plays with a right-tackle power. Will only get better with NFL reps.

      2. Star Lotuleiei, DT, Utah: If you took game tape of Warren Sapp circa 1999 and sped it up about 20 percent, you'd have what Lotuleiei looks like at his best. A relentless force as an inside penetrator against the run and pass.

      3. Chance Warmack, OG, Alabama: Classic straight-up mauler with impressive kick speed and lateral agility. The best in this class at sealing the inside edge. When he gets his hands on a defensive tackle or end, that guy is done. Can handle edge speed impressively well for his size and strength.

      4. Eric Fisher, OT, Central Michigan: Plays the run well and can stand up to the bull rush, but pass protection is his specialty. Brings the young Joe Thomas and current Matt Kalil to mind with his kick-slide. Technical marvel with great leverage awareness.

      5. Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama: An ideal pattern-read defender with outstanding spatial awareness and trail speed. Not afraid to get his nose busted. He blitzes and sheds blocks well; looks for a fight in a good way.

      6. Damontre Moore, DE, Texas A&M;: Moore could be the next Aldon Smith, but we're rating him this highly on potential to a degree. Very strong for his size (6-foot-4, 250) and can use impressive speed to get to the quarterback, but needs a bigger palette of hand and foot moves before he'll be a top-level pass-rusher in the NFL. However, the trend toward looping inside rushers (Clay Matthews, Smith, Bruce Irvin) favors Moore more than most.

      7. Lane Johnson, OT, Oklahoma: Another Senior Bowl stud. Like Joeckel and Fisher, Johnson hits the NFL with impressive technique. Keeps his head on a swivel and has a really nice kick-slide. Could stand to put on a bit more weight and played primarily out of a two-point stance, but the team that puts in the finishing work could be rewarded with a multi-year Pro-Bowler.

      8. Datone Jones, DT, UCLA: Starred at the Senior Bowl. Jones is a great leverage player who knows how to use his hands, and will often be seen knifing through blockers with impressive speed. Has the footwork and upper-body strength to move through and beat slide protection, and does it all from different positions. An underrated asset right now -- the scouting combine might change that. 'Tweener size (6-foot-4, 280) will have some teams wondering where he best fits.

      UCLA's Datone Jones: An underrated asset in the right system. (Getty Images)

      Read More »from The Shutdown Corner Big Board, 1-16: Pre-combine list features a lot of big men

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