Continued from NFL All-Cut Team: Offense
Hours. That's all that's left before kick-off tonight in Indianapolis.
A few thoughts before we get to the defense and special teams portions of the 2007 NFL All-Cut Team:
1. I'm in a fairly large suicide pool, and it seems a ton of people are going for either New England over the Jets or San Diego over Chicago.
As a huge Pats fan (and you know this about me by now), I would absolutely never pick them as the best bet this weekend. First, the Jets always play them tough. Always. Second, Richard Seymour is on the PUP list and Rodney Harrison is suspended. Those are two of the most important players on run defense. I was already worried about the Thomas Jones/Leon Washington combo. Without Seymour and Harrison, I'm at least five times as concerned.
And though the Pats have added several huge names in the offseason, this is game one of live fire. It would be foolish to expect everything to click off the bat. I still think they'll win (of course), but I wouldn't lay any money on them (especially not at -6).
As for San Diego, I love them as a team. And Rex Grossman playing against a fierce Chargers D sounds like a great proposition for Bolts fans. But betting all your marbles against the Bears defense is risky business. I just don't see any reason to do it if it's not necessary.
2. So who am I taking in the pool?
For the first time ever, the Houston Texans.
And it's not even so much the "revamped" offense with Matt Schaub and Ahman Green (although the Chiefs' loss of DE Jarred Allen to suspension can't be underestimated). I'm actually far more attracted to the Texans defense against a Chiefs offense that has looked positively terrible this preseason. If you believe Herm Edwards, Larry Johnson is going to be eased into action, giving a large percentage of the carries to Michael Bennett instead. And with Dwayne Bowe still trying to figure out what's going on, we're back to watching Eddie Kennison and Tony Gonzalez against double and triple coverage.
On the other hand — and I have no idea why I think this — this is the year the Texans defensive line makes its mark. With rookie Amobi Okoye joining Mario Williams, Travis Johnson, and Anthony Weaver/N.D. Kalu, there will be pressure. And with Damon Huard still looking a little hobbled with a bad calf (at least according to last night's episode of "Hard Knocks"), it'll be more like chasing Drew Bledsoe than Vince Young.
One stat that may come into play: Huard may have only thrown 1 pick last year, but he fumbled 9 times in 10 games, losing 5. If he gets sacked, there's a decent chance the ball is coming out.
3. You can never draw too much on the preseason. I'm sure watching "Hard Knocks" has biased me against the Chiefs more than I am against than, say, Arizona, who had equally as bad of a preseason.
You have to take that into consideration, even though there's nothing you can really do about it.
***
Okay, on to the All-Cut Defense and Special Teams. As I mentioned yesterday, these are the best of the worst, the guys who gave it their all, only to get word they had to go give it somewhere else.
As much as possible, I'm including only guys who haven't yet picked up with another team. So if a GM or pro personnel director happen to be reading this (because they have nothing better to do), give one of these guys a call. You never know.
Defense
DE: Kenard Lang (Denver), Renaldo Wynn (Washington)
Lang played 154 career games with Washington, Cleveland and Denver, with 50 career sacks. Wynn played 152 career games with Jacksonville and Washington, with 21.5 sacks.
Honorable mention: Bobby Hamilton (NY Jets), John Browning (Denver), Jorge Cordova (Miami), Ellis Wyms (Tampa Bay)
DT: Sam Rayburn (San Francisco), Joe Salave'a (Washington)
Only five years out of college, Rayburn was a key contributor on the 2004 Eagles team that made it all the way to the Super Bowl, recording 6 sacks that season. Salave'a played 100 career games with Tennessee, San Diego and Washington.
Honorable mention: DT Kendrick Allen (Cincinnati), DT Jimmy Kennedy (Denver), DT Orien Harris (Cleveland), DT Seth Payne (Jacksonville)
LB: Edgerton Hartwell (Cincinnati), Dhani Jones (New Orleans), Chad Brown (New England)
Hartwell is one of the most notorious ex-Ravens linebackers to escape the shadow of Ray Lewis, only to fall flat on his own. After playing all 16 games during each of his four years with Baltimore, recording a combined 331 tackles, 6 sacks, and an interception over his last three years, Hartwell played only 13 games combined over the past two years with Atlanta due to injuries. I thought he was a great get for Cincinnati, but apparently Marvin Lewis disagreed.
Jones has been a steady, if unspectacular (ie. not fast), contributor to the Giants and Eagles for seven seasons, missing just one game since the 2001 season. He has 446 career tackles, with no fewer than 70 in each of the past five years. Still only 29, I find it hard to believe he won't find a roster spot before the leaves start turning.
Brown gets the last starting spot over the other guys simply out of respect. With 79 sacks over 14 years, including a career-high 13 during the last season of his first stint in Pittsburgh (1996), Brown was once as feared a pass rushing linebacker as there was in the NFL. He was a three-time Pro Bowler ('96, '98, '99) and, though he probably won't make it, will at least garner some conversation in the Hall of Fame debate. That's a lot more than most of the guys on this list will ever be able to say.
Honorable mention: Colby Bockwoldt (San Francisco), Jamie Winborn (Tampa Bay), Nick Greisen (Jacksonville), Chris Claiborne (Jacksonville)
CB: Dexter McCleon (Houston), Jerametrius Butler (Washington)
In 11 seasons with St. Louis, Kansas City and Houston, McCleon played in 148 games, with 31 interceptions (including a high of 8 in 2000 with the Rams) and three forced fumbles. Butler had 149 tackles and 9 interceptions between 2003 and 2004 with St. Louis before injuring his knee.
Honorable mention: Sammy Davis (Tampa Bay)
S: Donovan Darius (Oakland), Omar Stoutmire (Washington)
Darius was only with Oakland for about a month, having spent all nine years of his career with Jacksonville. He was a mainstay on one of the best defenses of the past decade (in terms of prolonged success), making 376 tackles with 14 interceptions and forcing 5 fumbles. He also had one of the most vicious tackles I've ever seen, clotheslining Green Bay receiver Robert Ferguson in 2004.
Stoutmire played 133 games over 11 years with Dallas, both New York teams, Washington and New Orleans. He made 273 career tackles, with 7 interceptions, 5 sacks and 5 forced fumbles.
Honorable mention: Bhawoh Jue (San Diego), Nick Sorensen (Jacksonville), Reggie Lewis (Buffalo)
SPECIAL TEAMS
K: Dave Rayner (Green Bay)
Rayner lost his job to rookie Mason Crosby from Colorado, but he should be at the top of the list for teams who look for new kickers once the season begins. He has made 26-of-36 career attempts over the first two years out of Michigan State, including a long of 54, and made all of his kicks this preseason.
Honorable mention: Billy Cundiff (Atlanta), Josh Huston (NY Giants), Aaron Elling (Cincinnati), Connor Hughes (Pittsburgh)
P: Dirk Johnson (Philadelphia)
Johnson would still have a job if it hadn't been for Aussie sensation Sav Rocca. In four seasons as the Eagles punter, Johnson averaged a 41.6 yards per punt, with a net of 36. He was also a three-time Division II All American — twice as a defensive back — at Northern Colorado, which won the D-II National Championship his final two seasons.
Honorable mention: Scott Player (Arizona), Danny Baugher (New England), Josh Miller (New England)
KR: Mike Mason, Cleveland
Mason has sub-4.4 speed, but has a problem with getting arrested. In college, he returned 60 kickoffs for 1,521 yards — a 25.3 average — with a score between three years at North Carolina and one at Tennessee State, where he went after being booted out of UNC. The All-Cut Team does not care about morals.
Honorable mention: Bethel Johnson (Houston)
PR: Az-Zahir Hakim (Miami)
With Tedd Ginn, Jr. around, the Dolphins didn't need him, but "The Wizard of Az" was once a major threat as a punt returner — both to the other team if he caught it, to his own if he fumbled it (25 fumbles, 11 lost).
Still, the Rams' career all-time leader in punt returns, Hakim was also a very decent receiver, catching 316 passes for 4,191 yards, and running a bunch of reverses.
Honorable mention: Jeremy Bloom (Philadelphia), Kevin Kasper (Detroit), Tim Dwight (Jets), Clarence Moore (Baltimore)
Already picked up:
DT Kimo von Oelhoffen (Cut by NY Jets, signed by Philadelphia)
LB Jeremiah Trotter (Cut by Philadelphia, signed by Tampa Bay)
DE Quentin Moses (Cut by Oakland, signed by Arizona)
CB Aaron Glenn (Cut by Dallas, signed by Jacksonville)
S Marquand Manuel (Cut by Green Bay, signed by Carolina)
PR/KR Eddie Drummond (Cut by Detroit, signed by Kansas City)
Re-signed to team's practice squad:
S Raymond Ventrone (NY Jets)
Seth Doria is a freelance writer based out of St. Louis. For the only daily column that mixes sports, politics, and entertainment news in one, visit The Left Calf.
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