Month: November 2012

Kenny Britt is excited about the promotion of Dowell Loggains to offensive coordinator and the addition of veteran Tom Moore with the Tennessee Titans.

Britt was asked what he expects to see out of Loggains' offense, and his reply was very to the point – “To see the ball more” per TitanInsider.

Chris Palmer, fired on Monday, was criticized for not using his big play players the right way, a style that led to a disconnect between coach and players.

Now Britt is among those excited about the switch to Loggains. Also, with the Titans bringing in Moore as a consultant, the veteran coach has been talking to Britt and the receivers about attention to detail.

“He showed me how to make a million dollars yesterday. He said, 'Let me show you how to make a million dollars.' Just yesterday in the red zone, he showed me how to run the fade the correct way,” Britt said of Moore's first day. “He said have the quarterback tell you where he wants the ball at, whether it's over the shoulder. He really helped me out in the end zone and we weren't even doing red zone yesterday. So he's come in and helped us out a lot.”

Follow me on Twitter @TerryMc13

Terry McCormick covers the Titans for TitanInsider.com

Unless they happen to meet in the playoffs, the Baltimore Ravens won't see Ben Roethlisberger face off against them this year.

The Steelers announced in Friday's injury report that Big Ben will miss his third straight game with the shoulder injury he suffered against Kansas City.

Instead, Charlie Batch, who threw three interceptions last week in a loss to Cleveland, will get his second straight start after both Roethlisberger and Byron Leftwich were injured.

Follow me on Twitter @TerryMc13

Terry McCormick covers the Titans for TitanInsider.com

Rookie wide receiver Mohamed Sanu looks to be out for the season with a stress fracture in his foot, the club announced on Friday.

Sanu had just been coming into his own and had two touchdown catches last week for the Bengals, but was injured in Thursday's practice and likely needs surgery to fix what is believed to be a fifth metatarsal injury.

Follow me on Twitter @TerryMc13

Terry McCormick covers the Titans for TitanInsider.com

Devin Street WR Junior Pittsburgh 6040 E 190 E 4.60 E

Many college receivers arrive with great fanfare because they were regarded as great high school players and then when they produce early in their college career they are labeled as “future superstars” and expected to be first round picks. However, when it comes to receiver this could not be farther from the truth as there is a long list of highly productive college receivers who were not drafted early and even more who never panned out at the NFL level. Unfortunately, from what I have seen Pittsburgh receiver Devin Street is not an elite NFL prospect despite being hyped as such.

US PRESSWIREPittsburgh WR Devin Street runs after the catch.

Blessed with great height, long arms and natural hands, Street’s ability to be a clutch receiver in the redzone is unquestioned. Able to shield defenders while getting up to pluck high passes enables him to consistently win jump ball battles. His body control, coordination and concentration allow him to adjust to make tough catches on off-target passes with surprising ease. Being tall and having good hands is great, but that does not guarantee success in the NFL.

Street’s thin frame allows physical cornerbacks to jolt him with a punch to slow his release and are able to get him off his stem with physical play. He will need to add weight and improve his playing strength in order to deal with the physical coverage of NFL cornerbacks.

He does not however have good initial quickness off the ball, which limits his ability to get behind cornerback off the line. Lack of foot quickness and long legs also make it tough for him to change directions fast enough to avoid jam on line and contact during route.

While Street’s long strides definitely hide some of his speed, the reality is that he lacks the explosiveness and playing speed to get separation of deep pass routes. At Pittsburgh he has been able to make plays down the field by keeping the cornerback on his hip and shields him to make the catch deep. Against NFL cornerbacks his lack of quick acceleration and playing speed will greatly limit his ability to make big plays down field. Additionally, he does not have the speed to run away from defenders to score long touchdowns and he cannot out-run defenders who have the angle on him.

Despite being a smooth athlete with good body control, Street’s height hinders his ability to get in and out of his cuts fast. He lacks a burst out of cuts to consistently get separation from man coverage. He does however, have a good feel for finding open spots in zone coverage. He shows toughness holding onto the ball when he gets hit hard right after the catch.

As a junior, Street has been rumored to likely leave Pittsburgh early to enter the 2013 NFL Draft, but from what I have seen I think he would definitely be better suited to stay in school for his final season. He reminds me of two recent prospects, one who was a bust, Marquise Walker, and the other, Malcolm Floyd, who has turned into a good NFL receiver after entering the league as an undrafted free agent. If I were to bet, Street will be a mid-round pick and if he can improve his strength and route running he could develop into a contributing receiver in the NFL.

Email Russ at Russelllande@yahoo.com and Follow Russ on Twitter @RUSSLANDE

Colin McCarthy is arguably the best player on the Tennessee Titans not-so-good defense.

But for the fifth time in 12 games this year, the Titans are prepared to play a game without their starting middle linebacker. The Titans host the 10-1 Houston Texans on Sunday.

McCarthy did not practice all week and will be out Sunday, according to TitanInsider, due to a concussion suffered last week vs. Jacksonville.

The linebacker has missed four other games this season due to a high ankle sprain suffered in the season opener.

To replace him on Sunday, the Titans will try two different players, using Tim Shaw in the base package and Will Witherspoon in the nickel.

Follow me on Twitter @TerryMc13

Terry McCormick covers the Titans for TitanInsider.com

The Dallas Cowboys will be in prime time on Sunday night, a spot that might not be best for them at this point in a season that has not met expectations.

But they’re expected to get a boost as running back DeMarco Murray appears to be on track to finally return from a sprained left foot that has kept him out of the previous six games. Calvin Watkins of ESPN Dallas reports the team is “leaning” toward playing Murray against the Philadelphia Eagles, another NFC East club that has fallen on even harder times.

“It looks like that, we'll see how well he responds,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on KRLD-FM, according to the report. “The key day was (Thursday), he came back better than (Wednesday), which was his first day out and usually that's a leveling off or setback day.”

Felix Jones has been below average in place of Murray and the running back, if healthy and ready to roll, could give the offense a needed boost. Too much pressure has been on quarterback Tony Romo, who has been forced to do it all. Dallas must balance out the offensive attack and Murray’s return could help in that direction.

Follow me on Twitter: @BradBiggs

Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune

The Detroit Lions brought second-year wide receiver Titus Young back to practice this week after a timeout for what was described as insubordination.

Young was quiet after practice today, saying he did not want to dwell on the past, according to reports out of Detroit.

But Lions center Dominic Raiola, an outspoken leader in the locker room, made it clear the players are not going to put up with anymore nonsense from Young, a second-round pick from a year ago who reportedly was blowing his assignments on the field during games.

“We've moved on from him. He wants to be an a**hole, let him be an a**hole,” Raiola said, according to Chris McCosky of the Detroit News. “It's not my problem.

“What we can control is the guys who want to be here. And when you act like that, you don't want to be here. We've got good guys on offense. Don't be an a**hole and don't be a jerk.”

Sounds like Young is down to his final strike in the Lions locker room if he’s not already blown it with teammates. Here is a question worth pondering: When will the Lions players admit they’ve had enough with defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh?

Follow me on Twitter: @BradBiggs

Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune

Want to compete with Matt Bowen for a chance at the $2,000 prize pool from the NFP and FanDuel? Then sign up for this week’s fantasy challenge. It costs $10 to play and you can select up to three rosters for a shot at the cash.

Its easy. Scout the matchups, grab some talent and submit your lineup before kickoff on Sunday.

US PRESSWIREBowen likes the matchup of Richardson vs. the Raiders' defense.

Let’s take a look at Bowen’s roster this week:

QB: Matt Schaub, Texans
RB: Trent Richardson, Browns
RB: Alfred Morris, Redskins
WR: Reggie Wayne, Colts
WR: Hakeem Nicks, Giants
WR: Randall Cobb, Packers
TE: Jason Witten, Cowboys
K: Lance Zuerlein, Rams
Defense: Seahawks

Click here to sign up for the Week 13 NFP/FanDuel Fantasy challenge…

Follow the NFP on Twitter: @FootballPost