The NFL is the king of sport betting because it has learned to market and promote what goes on off the field as much as what goes on during the games themselves.  There is no off season or break, just different segments to the NFL calendar year.

The coaching carousel and “Silly Season” has just ended with Greg Schiano leaving the college ranks ofRutgersto take over the woeful Tampa Bay Buccaneers and now free agency and the draft will be on the minds of everyone.

The big question as the off season kicks off is the status of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, who just saw his little brother Eli win his second Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants at “The House That Peyton Built,” Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Colts and host to this year’s Super Bowl.  Peyton has but one Super Bowl ring and his team was fully exposed as unprepared to win without him as Indy went 2-14 as Peyton missed the season.  The Colts are expected to use their number one overall draft to select Stanford QB Andrew Luck and the $28 million question is whether they ask Peyton back for a last and final run while Luck awaits his turn or if the Colts throw Luck right into the fire.  The Green Bay Packers kept veteran Brett Favre around for a final run at glory in 2007 while top draft pick Aaron Rodgers learned the ropes. But Peyton himself was thrown right into the fire as a rookie with the Colts. It won’t be an easy decision.

Meanwhile, one has to wonder if the New England Patriots will make it back to Super Sunday, as they were proven to be a cast of overachievers in this year’s AFC title run. Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Houston all figure to be challenging, and the New York Jets will be shopping for a quarterback to take them to glory.

The NFC will be looking quite strong as Green Bay, Detroit, New Orleans, Atlanta, and San Francisco all can lay claim to being the top shelf favorites heading into the off season.

It’s evident that even after three-seasons in the NFL, America still has not forgiven Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick.

In a recent poll done by Forbes, Vick was voted number one in ‘America’s Most Hated Athletes of 2012? for the second straight year. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to many Eagles fans, at is seems every time Vick’s name is tossed out around any other fan, it is followed by an immediate frown and negative comment. There is still no almost no respect or love for Vick outside of the city of Philadelphia, and people are struggling in finding any reason to forgive him.

Click HERE to Read the Rest at Eagles Gab!

The St. Louis Rams have finally settled on a new general manager, as reports say the team is working on a contract that would make Falcons Director of Player Personnel Les Snead their new GM.

Snead has been in the Falcons organization for the last 13 seasons, spending the last three as the team’s Director of Player Personnel, where he has overseen the college and pro scouting departments. Prior to joining the Falcons, Snead spent three seasons in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ scouting department.

Snead was reportedly a candidate for the San Francisco 49ers’ general manager position last January and was one of two finalists for the Rams job. Minnesota Vikings Director of Player Personnel George Paton was a finalist, and believed to be the front-runner for the position, before he was promoted to Assistant General Manager by the Vikings on Saturday.

Heading into the offseason, the Cowboys have work to do as they look up at the Super Bowl champion New York Giants, who topped them the last week of the season to get to the postseason.

The Cowboys have 18 players that will be unrestricted come March 13th when they can sign with other teams. You can see the complete list below, and give your thoughts about what players the team should keep, and what ones they could let go.

Exclusive Rights Free Agents (4)

RB Chauncey Washington
WR Jesse Holley
OT Jermey Parnell
DE Clifton Geathers

Restricted Free Agents (3)

QB Chris Greisen
FB Tony Fiammetta
WR Kevin Ogletree

Unrestricted Free Agents (11)

RB Sammy Morris
WR Laurent Robinson
TE Martellus Bennett
OG Derrick Dockery
OG Montrae Holland
LB Bradie James
LB Anthony Spencer
CB Alan Ball
CB Frank Walker
S Abram Elam
P Mat McBriar

Whitney Houston sings the National Anthem before Super Bowl XXV

Whitney Houston, who ruled as pop music’s queen and sang the most memorable Super Bowl National Anthem of all time, has died. She was 48.

Houston’s publicist, Kristen Foster, said Saturday that the singer had died, but the cause and the location of her death were unknown.

News of Houston’s death came on the eve of music’s biggest night — the Grammy Awards. It’s a showcase where she once reigned, and her death was sure to case a heavy pall on Sunday’s ceremony. Houston’s longtime mentor Clive Davis was to hold his annual concert and dinner Saturday; it was unclear if it was going to go forward.

Houston will always go down as signing the best Super Bowl anthem of all-time, just minutes before the Giants topped the Bills at Super Bowl XXV in Tampa, FL in 1991.

At her peak, Houston the golden girl of the music industry. From the middle 1980s to the late 1990s, she was one of the world’s best-selling artists. She wowed audiences with effortless, powerful, and peerless vocals that were rooted in the black church but made palatable to the masses with a pop sheen.

Her success carried her beyond music to movies, where she starred in hits like “The Bodyguard” and “Waiting to Exhale.”

She had the he perfect voice, and the perfect image: a gorgeous singer who had sex appeal but was never overtly sexual, who maintained perfect poise.

She influenced a generation of younger singers, from Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey, who when she first came out sounded so much like Houston that many thought it was Houston.

But by the end of her career, Houston became a stunning cautionary tale of the toll of drug use. Her album sales plummeted and the hits stopped coming; her once serene image was shattered by a wild demeanor and bizarre public appearances. She confessed to abusing cocaine, marijuana and pills, and her once pristine voice became raspy and hoarse, unable to hit the high notes as she had during her prime.

“The biggest devil is me. I’m either my best friend or my worst enemy,” Houston told ABC’s Diane Sawyer in an infamous 2002 interview with then-husband Bobby Brown by her side.

It was a tragic fall for a superstar who was one of the top-selling artists in pop music history, with more than 55 million records sold in the United States alone.

She seemed to be born into greatness. She was the daughter of gospel singer Cissy Houston, the cousin of 1960s pop diva Dionne Warwick and the goddaughter of Aretha Franklin.

Houston first started singing in the church as a child. In her teens, she sang backup for Chaka Khan, Jermaine Jackson and others, in addition to modeling. It was around that time when music mogul Clive Davis first heard Houston perform.

“The time that I first saw her singing in her mother’s act in a club … it was such a stunning impact,” Davis told “Good Morning America.”

“To hear this young girl breathe such fire into this song. I mean, it really sent the proverbial tingles up my spine,” he added.

Before long, the rest of the country would feel it, too. Houston made her album debut in 1985 with “Whitney Houston,” which sold millions and spawned hit after hit. “Saving All My Love for You” brought her her first Grammy, for best female pop vocal. “How Will I Know,” ”You Give Good Love” and “The Greatest Love of All” also became hit singles.

Another multiplatinum album, “Whitney,” came out in 1987 and included hits like “Where Do Broken Hearts Go” and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.”

The New York Times wrote that Houston “possesses one of her generation’s most powerful gospel-trained voices, but she eschews many of the churchier mannerisms of her forerunners. She uses ornamental gospel phrasing only sparingly, and instead of projecting an earthy, tearful vulnerability, communicates cool self-assurance and strength, building pop ballads to majestic, sustained peaks of intensity.”

Hines Ward has been saying from day one that he wants to retire as a member of the Steelers.

It’s sounding more and more like he’s not going to get the chance.

The record setting wide out for the Steelers, and Super Bowl XL MVP is on the verge of being with the team no longer according to Jason LaCanfora of NFL.com.

La Canfora cites unnamed sources in its report concerning the veteran receiver.

As the Steelers work to restructure contracts and manuever below the salary cap, the circumstances are dictating the twilight of Ward’s 14-year career. On the books, he has one year and $4 million left on his current contract. On the field, Ward also took a backseat to youngsters Mike Wallace and Antonio Brown, posting his lowest receiving totals since his rookie season in 1998.

Ward has left the window open to playing elsewhere next season, but the choice might not be his if he can’t work out his own restructured deal.

There’s no doubt that there’s going to be a lot of backlash at the team if Ward does end up getting released, and Steelers fans might as well get ready for it if the reports from LaCanfora are indeed true.

Free agent frenzy starts in the NFL on March 13th, which is a welcome sight since last year we had to sit out a lockout and didn’t have free agency until August.

Today we start our position by position breakdown of free agents, and thanks to the good folks at Pro Football Weekly, they have a list of free agents by position, and today we start with the quarterback spot.

The number next to the players name represents the number of years they have been in the league.

Derek Anderson, Carolina 7
Richard Bartel, Arizona 2
Charlie Batch, Pittsburgh 14
Kyle Boller, Oakland 9
Tom Brandstater, St. Louis 2
Drew Brees, New Orleans 11
Mark Brunell, New York Jets 19
Jason Campbell, Oakland 7
David Carr, New York Giants 10
Kellen Clemens, St. Louis 6
Kerry Collins, Indianapolis 17 (retired)
Chase Daniel, New Orleans 3
Jake Delhomme, Houston 12
Dennis Dixon, Pittsburgh 4
A.J. Feeley, St. Louis 11
Matt Flynn, Green Bay 4
Jeff Garcia, Houston 10
Chris Greisen, Dallas 3
Rex Grossman, Washington 9
Max Hall, Arizona 2
Caleb Hanie, Chicago 4
Chad Henne, Miami 4
Shaun Hill, Detroit 10
Brian Hoyer, New England 3
Josh Johnson, Tampa Bay 4
Jon Kitna, Dallas 15 (retired)
Byron Leftwich, Pittsburgh 9
J.P. Losman, Miami 7
Josh McCown, Chicago 9
Luke McCown, Jacksonville 8
Kevin O’Connell, New York Jets 4
Dan Orlovsky, Indianapolis 7
Kyle Orton, Kansas City 7
Tyler Palko, Kansas City 2
Brady Quinn, Denver 5
Chris Redman, Atlanta 9
Sage Rosenfels, Minnesota 11
Alex Smith, San Francisco 7
Drew Stanton, Detroit 5
Charlie Whitehurst, Seattle 6
Vince Young, Philadelphia 6

Top Five QB Free Agents:

1. Drew Brees
2. Matt Flynn
3. Alex Smith
4. Kyle Orton
5. Chad Henne

Top Five QB Free Agent Question Marks:

1. Matt Flynn
2. Vince Young
3. Charlie Whitehurst
4. Caleb Hanie
5. Richard Bartel

Oldies but Goodies – QB’s that will get Jobs by Name Only:

1. Luke McCown
2. David Carr
3. Rex Grossman
4. A.J. Feeley
5. Jason Campbell

Breakdown – Not a bad class, but almost all focus will turn to Flynn after Brees gets his mega deal done with the Saints. There’s a lot of names on the list that make you scratch your head, like Young, Whitehurst, and even Hanie, who has shown some promise over the last year plus.

Flynn’s suitors appear to be the Dolphins, Redskins, and even the Browns have been mentioned. Look for him to get a huge deal, much like Scott Mitchell did from the Lions years ago. Whitehurst is another interesting name to look out for, as he never really panned out with the Seahawks.

I would expect Vince Young to get a deal, but likely as a backup, and he could wind up back in Philly as Michael Vicks’ backup.

Going to be an interesting class to watch.

Free agent cornerback Stanford Routt has visits lined up with the Bills and Titans, but the Cowboys, Vikings and Chiefs have reached out to express interest in the veteran cornerback.

As of now, no official visits have been scheduled with those three clubs.

A native of Austin, Texas who played his college ball at the University of Houston, the 28-year-old Routt spent much of his first five seasons in a reserve role before starting 30 of 32 games over the last two seasons, totaling 104 tackles, six interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown, with 28 passes defensed.

The Raiders signed Routt to a three-year, $31 million contract prior to last year’s lockout that included $20 million in guarantees.

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left ankle this morning according to the team.

Gronkowski injured his ankle while being tackled by Baltimore Ravens safety Bernard Pollard in the AFC Championship Game. The second-year tight end returned to the game with his left ankle taped heavily and was able to play in Super Bowl XLVI, though surgery after the season has always been the likely scenario.

The recovery time is expected to take 10 weeks, which means Gronkowski will be ready to go well before training camp.

The 6-foot-6, 265-pound Gronkowski caught 90 passes for 1,327 yards and an NFL-high 17 touchdowns in 2011, with his yardage and touchdown totals setting single-season records for tight ends.

Despite a back injury raising red flags on Gronkowski coming out of college, Gronkowski was selected with the 42nd overall pick and has 132 receptions for 1,873 yards and 27 touchdowns with zero games missed over the last two seasons.

The Titans have agreed to terms on a contract extension with wide receiver Lavelle Hawkins, a move that will stop him from reaching free agency next month.

The Titans have confirmed the multi-year agreement, though financial details were not disclosed.

A fourth-round pick out of Cal by the Titans in 2008, Hawkins caught 19 passes for 239 yards and zero touchdowns in 29 games over his first three seasons before hauling in 47 passes for 470 yards and his first NFL touchdown in 16 games in 2011.

Hawkins could have been an unrestricted free agent in March.