Top 10 Players Who Should Be Quiet

In recent years the NFL has captivated audiences with shoot-interviews and rants that would make Vince McMahon proud. Not because McMahon first picked up on the countries obsession with "athletes behaving badly" when he formed the (awful) XFL (which I can happily state I did attend a game of), but because the NFL has so much turned into the WWE that it wasn't even a huge deal when Ben Roethlisberger decided to "host" an episode of WWE Raw.

Some classic football fans, like myself, who yearn for the days of games on Sunday and nothing but strategy during the week have been sucked into this world of the NFL being nothing more than an abridged version of the WWE cycle, with each Sunday being the Pay-Per-View event where feuds are resolved.

On Monday the players begin to open their mouth, and on Tuesday their wide open. By Wednesday big words are flung around, and on Thursday someone gets arrested. On Friday "everything's cool" and "nothing is personal," and on Saturday the parting shots are made. What happens on Sunday rarely matters.

But here's the thing; in the WWE the crappy wrestlers are rarely given time to talk. It's one thing if Triple H, John Cena, Stone Cold, Sgt Slaughter, or Bret Hart wanna take the mic, they've earned it. But when people like Prince Albert and Maven tried to get a rise out of another superstar, audiences tend to tune it out, or change the channel.

Here's a list of Prince Albert's and Maven's.

10. Reggie Bush - Seriously, Reggie Bush is the Saint to proclaim they're going undefeated? The same Reggie Bush who did that cool flip in the 2006 NFC Championship Game? Man, that flip was awesome. But seriously, what has this guy done since 2006 to warrant opening his mouth about going undefeated? Even Jeremy Shockey wasn't that dumb. It's a shame because this team has a lot of players with class on it; Vilma, Brees, Sharper, Coltson; guys who know what to say and when to say it. Unfortunately Bush, who is a good person, wasn't briefed on the memo that "only critical players should comment on a teams success."

09. Joey Porter - Porter could easily be number one on this list, but in the past he's backed up his words with performance. This year has been a different story, and it looks as if Porter is nearing the end of his career. To be honest, I can't wait.

08. Terrell Owens - The king of smack talk in the NFL, it's hard to put T.O on this list because he's been so good. I also think the media taunt him so much that there's so little Owens can do not to flap his gums. But sometimes he takes it too far, and complaining while in Buffalo is like the homeless guy complaining about the sheets he has to sleep on at the homeless shelter. We all know the reason Owens ended up in Buffalo was because no other attractive offers came across the table, and no attractive offers look to come across his table again. Can't wait until his Hall of Fame speech though.

07. Philip Rivers - If it weren't for his two playoff wins against the Colts he'd be number one. For a quarterback this guy opens his mouth way too much, and eventually he's going to pay for it. His own fans love the way he talks smack to opponents, yells at referees, picks fights with opposing players, and pouts on the sideline after a bad game, but Rivers should take a page out of theElway-Manning-Montana-Favre-Staubach-Aikman-Unitas-Young book of Championship QB's who play the sport with tremendous competitiveness and class.

06. Roy Williams - The Cowboys receiver is honestly becoming the biggest punchline in the NFL. I hate to say it because I do like this player, bur whenever we've heard him talk since coming to Dallas, all we hear are excuses. The guys a clown right now; hopefully he pulls himself together.

05. Jeremy Shockey - Just when you thought he was humbled by the Giants success without him Jeremy Shockey returned from hell to remind us all just how he once turned himself into a huge joke. There's no denying that Shockey is a talented tight end, there's also no denying that he's the Bob Sanders of tight ends (once again, not in the good way). Every time Shockey opens his mouth this season I've wondered whether or not he'd break his arm, or sprain his MCL, or dislocate something. When you consider yourself the best offensive weapon on a team, and that team gets much better without you, you need to shut up until you win. And week 7 regular season games don't count.

04. Aaron Rodgers - I don't want to hear him anymore. He's always saying the most generic things a QB can utter; He makes 2006 Eli Manning look charismatic. Even worse the media continues to defend this guy like he's a great QB; obviously they only follow fantasy QB because as a pro he's been very pedestrian. Don't forget; it's not like he's Alex Smith and took over an awful team; he took over a team that went into over time in the NFC Championship game 8 months before his first start. Start winning and then you can be proud of yourself, mad at the refs, or whatever you wish.

03. Larry Johnson - Though I understand where his frustration is coming from, and LJ has done a lot for the Chiefs franchise, the guy needs to shut up. Since 2006 he has barely been "adequate," and let's not get into the numbers he put up in the 2006 playoffs. He may have one or two good seasons left in his tank if some team wants to give him a chance, but chances are Johnson has not only damaged his playing career, but any career he planned on having after football.

02. Vernon Davis - For a guy who spent the first three years of his career as a disappointment, he sure has a lot to say; especially when his team is one of this seasons biggest disappointments. It makes you really start to feel bad for Frank Gore; what did that guy do to deserve what he's been given?

01. LaDanian Tomlinson - I guess there's a reason he's earned the name Complainian. I've never seen winning kill someone as much as winning at the meadowlands killed LT on Sunday; or how much beating Indianapolis killed LT in both 07 and 08. I think you have to concede that Tomlinson is one of the best running backs in the leagues history, and perhaps the last of a dying breed of every down backs. You just wish that Tomlinson would have the same class that players like Walter Payton, Curtis Martin, Emmitt Smith, and Jerome Bettis had. Maybe class isn't the right word, after all Tomlinson once used the floor of a postgame conference after a loss to New England to remind us how classy he was. The right word is grace, and in the waning moments of his career Tomlinson has shown absolutely no grace, and thus needs to shut up, because LT, if you ever want to get a ring it's going to have to be this year, and if you want to win this year, you're going to have to take a minimal role in the offense.

Oh, and Mr. Tomlinson, playing in a playoff game would actually help. Riding the sidelines on a bicycle while your backup does all the dirty work doesn't count. And I don't want to hear injury excuses because your quarterback played in 07 with an injury that'd put the average QB out of commission.

Ok, so there you have it. The list of players who really need to shut up and stop turning the NFL into a classless sports league. It's a shame that the sport has gotten so popular thanks in large part to this drama, because after all, most of us stopped watching Pro Wrestling by the time we hit puberty.

Weekly Top 10: Top 10 2nd Round Draft Picks of the 00's

Last week I ranked the #1 overall draft picks from 2000 to 2009. This week I'm going to dig a little deeper.

Everybody knows about the hits and misses of the first round and how important the first round is to building a franchise; and there's plenty of noise made about late round hits like Marques Colston and Tom Brady; Rarely do we hear about the successful second round picks.

The beauty of the second round draft pick is that usually the player was on teams first round draft boards, only the team passed. The following list of ten players were, one way or another passed, on by every team in NFL at least once.

10. Pick #33 (2006): DeMeco Ryans; Houston Texans - With the number one overall pick the Texans selected Mario Williams, a pass rusher out of NC State, but it was Ryans, a tackles machine out of Alabama who would go on to be the leagues Defensive Rookie of the Year. Ryans followed up his impressive rookie season with an All-Pro selection in 2007, and an impressive 2008. Entering 2009, Ryans had established himself as one of the leagues top tier Middle Linebackers.

09. Pick # 48 (2001): Matt Light; New England Patriots - Drafting offensive linemen can be tricky. Light was the 5th offensive tackle taken in the 2001 draft, yet to this day he's arguably had the best career. A lot of the success for an offensive linemen has to do with how good your other four linemen are, and how good your passer is. Luckily for Light, the Patriots have had lots of talent on the offensive line, and one of the best Quarterbacks of his generation. As a starting offensive lineman, Light has won three super bowls, played in four, went to two pro bowls, and made one All-Pro Team. Though he's beginning to get to that point in the career of a lineman where he breaks down, there aren't many teams in the NFL who wouldn't have loved to have him from 2001 to 2007 (excluding Super Bowl 42).

08. Pick #61 (2001): Shaun Rogers; Detroit Lions - Coming out of the University of Texas, Rogers was heavily regarded as a prospect, but a failure to run at the combine plummeted Rogers to the #61 spot in the draft. Things worked out well for Rogers though, he started every game his rookie season and made the 2005 and 2006. In 2008 the Lions traded him to the Browns, where he excelled in 2008, earning his third Pro Bowl appearance.

07. Pick #36 (2001) Chad Ochocinco; Cincinnati Bengals - Seven wide receivers were taken before Ochocinco (whose name was Johnson at the time). Since 2001, only one; Reggie Wayne, has outperformed Johnson. Although Johnson has had plenty of locker room issues, no one can argue that he's become one of the leagues elite offensive threats; five Pro Bowls and three All Pro teams would back that up.

06. Pick #51 (2002) Clinton Portis; Denver Broncos - Coming out of the University of Miami, Portis was viewed as a legitimate pro talent, however, questions about his work ethic at Miami lead to him falling into the second round. In 2002 Portis would silence his critics while picking up over 1,500 yards on the ground and the Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Portis also went to the 2003 and 2008 Pro Bowls. In 2004, Portis was traded from Broncos to the Redskins where he continued to rack up yards. In 2008, Portis' seventh season in the league, he was selected to his first All-Pro team. In 2009, Portis is expected to cross the 10.000 yard career rushing barrier. The sign of a great professional career.

05. Pick #57 (2006) Devin Hester; Chicago Bears - Of all the highly touted prospects in the much lauded 2006 draft, none made a bigger immediate impact in the league than Devin Hester, the KR the Bears drafted out of Miami. In his rookie season Hester made the Pro Bowl, the All-Pro Team, NFC Player of the Month for December, and returned the opening kickoff in Super Bowl XLI for a touchdown. As a rookie Hester returned six touchdowns, an NFL record which Hester would tie in 2007, en route to another Pro Bowl and All-Pro berth. In 2008 the Bears converted Hester to wide receiver where he has had some success. His strength is still as a return specialist.

04. Pick #56 (2003) Osi Umenyiora; New York Giants - In 2003 few would have expected that Osi Umenyiora would become arguably the leagues best pass rusher, but by the end 2007 season Umenyiora was widely considered just that. Although he had no sacks in Super Bowl XLII, Umenyiora and the Giants pass rush were heavily responsible for the Giants victory over the heavily favored Patriots. Umenyiora missed all of 2008 with an injury, but so far in 2009 he's already recorded three sacks.

03. Pick #44 (2004) Bob Sanders; Indianapolis Colts - The Colts played a game of trading down and out of the first round in 2004, but Bill Polian still insists he had his eyes on Bob Sanders, a safety out of Iowa the whole time. Sanders would go to the Pro Bowl in 2005, also earning an All Pro selection, while guiding the Colts defense to it's first respectable season since the mid 1990's. In 2006, Sanders would miss much of the year, but that didn't matter because come playoff time, Sanders was completely healthy as he lead the Colts defense to one of the most impressive runs in recent playoff history, including a victory in Super Bowl XLI, which Sanders had the game clinching interception in. 2007 would feature a healthy Sanders once again dominating en route to another Pro Bowl, another All-Pro selection, and the leagues Defensive Player of the Year award. Injuries have haunted Sanders since, but he is still regarded as one of the leagues best and most feared defensive players. If he could stay healthy.

02. Pick #54 (2003) Anquan Boldin; Arizona Cardinals - In 2003 the Cardinals used their first round draft pick to acquire wide receiver Bryant Johnson out of Penn St. The league then used it's #54 pick in the second round to select Anquan Boldin, a receiver out of Florida State thought to complement Johnson, as a third or fourth option. That never sat well with Boldin as would win the 2003 Rookie of the Year award, and go to the Pro Bowl in 2003, 2006, and 2008. So far in his career Boldin has caught over 40 touchdowns, and helped the Arizona Cardinals to their first Super Bowl in franchise history.

01. Pick #32 (2001) Drew Brees; San Diego Chargers - In the last draft before the league expanded to 32 teams, the Chargers used the first pick of the second round to select QB Drew Brees out of Purdue, a player many had projected to go in the mid first round. Brees' career would start slow, but in 2004 he would break out, leading the Chargers back to the playoffs for the first time since 1995. Brees would be selected to the Pro Bowl in 2004 and 2005, before heading to New Orleans as a free agent for 2006. In 06 Brees would lead the Saints to the conference championship game, the furthest the franchise had ever advanced in the playoffs. Brees would earn Pro Bowl berths again in 2006 and 2008; the season in which Brees challenged almost every major passing record in NFL history. Today, Brees is widely considered one of the five best quarterbacks in the NFL.

That's debatable; but I'll save it for a later day. For now, Brees is my #1 second round draft choice of the decade.

Note: How about that 2001 Draft's 2nd round?