Anyways … 

Onto some football stuff.  I went and played poker at a little place down in Fishers and for a few minutes the conversation turned to football. I was sitting at a table with a Bears fan and so I asked his thoughts on Brandon Marshall.  He said he was in favor of a move for the Denver wide receiver, but saidhe didn’t think it would happen.  I’m in favor of the move and said, ”why not?” They already went and got the stud quarterback in Jay Cutler, why not get the stud receiver?  It’s kind of like going to a five star restaurant, getting the $ 21 appetizer, a bottle of classy wine, the $58 steak and then passing on dessert.  It just doesn’t make much sense.  Marshall is familiar with Cutler and his cannon arm and immediately gives the Bears a legit number one.  I think it’s a good move.  

The guy wasn’t disagreeing, but he brought up another good option for the Bears (or so i think) in going after Anquan Boldin.  Could you imagine Boldin for the Bears? He’s a great all around reciever and a proven pass catcher.  An immediate threat, he would only help open the middle up for Greg Olson and Devin Hester.  Another good fit, I do believe.

The conversation stayed focused on wide receivers and I asked about Marvin Harrison.  The consensus, from most of the guys at the table - the common folk in Indy if you will, was that Harrison would return to the Colts before the season starts.  I’m a bit skeptical, especially now that there are talks that Harrison could go to the Vikings, but I’d love to see him back in the horseshoe helmet. 

Another comment was on former Ram Torry Holt, who has signed with Colts foe Jacksonville Jaguars.  Several guys think he still hasn’t something in the tank and will do well in Jacksonville, I on the other hand disagree.  I think he will have some good games, but he won’t have superstar numbers or produce like he did with Kurt Warner and even Marc Bulger.  The Jags are a run first offense and quarterback David Garrard is no Kurt Warner.

After our little chat we returned to poker. I made it to the final two tables, but after that I faded quickly.  And wouldn’t you know it, before I even knew what happenned, I had forgotten all about Brandon Marshall.

1. Going white water rafting this weekend in West Virginia.  Here’s the story …

It’s one of my best friends bachelor party and he wanted to go rafting, so rafting we shall go.  It’s a revisit of a trip we went on right after high school.  My dad took me and my two best friends, along with their dads, rafting as a graduation present.  It was a blast, and now seven years later we give it another go.  A good time should be had by all.  And if you’ve never been white water rafting, I highly recommend it.

2.   Getting married.  August 1st is the day and I can’t wait for it to be here.  I love my fiance, but I also just really want all this planning to be over, it’s getting to be a bit much.

3. My honeymoon in St. Lucia

4. Going to Wrigley Field - my fiance has never been, so we’re planning a visit

5.  Watching Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in Public Enemies  

6.  Going on a random road trip somewhere; New York, Wisconsin, Baltimore, I don’t care, just anywhere but Dayton, OH … anywhere but that place

7.  Seeing if Milton Bradley is actually going to be worth any part of his huge contract

8.  Going to see The Hangover - again

9.  Watching all the episodes of The Office I have on DVR  

10.  The G.I.Joe Movie.

Besides getting married, this is easily the thing I am most excited about and most looking forward to.  No, like I don’t think you understand me - I love G.I.Joe’s.  I played with them when I was a young, young child (like most boys in the 80’s), but my love did not dissipate as I grew older.  All through middle school and high school, I loved The Real American Hero.  I had the action figures, the vehicles, the lunchboxes, the cards, the games and etc, etc.  At some point I started collecting this seriously and still do to some degree. The passion has waned since I have grown into an adult, but it’s still there and (despite the terrible reviews) I’m freaking pumped for the movie.  I’ve been waiting for it nearly my entire life and now my wait is nearly over.

There it is, the top 10 things I’m looking forward to this summer - non football related.  So now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

None the less, I’m stoked about the return of football.  With training camp only a little more than a month away, I’m starting to get geeked up.  When I see a picture of Peyton Manning or Reggie Wayne, I start to feel giddy like a little school girl.  Yeah, I start to feel a little funny, kind of like when you climb the rope in gym class.

So … with all that said, here it is: 10 Things I’m looking Forward to with the 2009 Colts

1.  Kelvin Hayden and Marlin Jackson being healthy

2.  Seeing Jacob Tamme in action  

3.  Watching Joseph Addai and Donald Brown become a badass tandem at RB

4. Austin Collie lining up in the slot on third down - just like Brandon Stokley did  

5.  Watching Dwight Freeney make quarterbacks question their career

6.  Bob Sanders knocking the soul of a Texans running back into another dimension of space, creating a time warp and spiral of events the world has never known  

7.  Watching defensive tackles that don’t suck  

8.  Seeing teams crap themselves knowing they just can’t stop Dallas Clark

9.  Peyton pump faking right then hitting Wayne deep left for a touchdown

10.  Roy Hall getting a chance to prove himself at WR

Really, these are just a few of the many things I’m pumped about for the 2009 Colts.  We’ve got some awesome rookies, a healthy defensive backfield and a healthy offensive line.  Things are looking good.  There is no reason to think the 2009 Indianapolis Colts will not be better than last year’s version.  Peyton’s health alone is almost reason enough to argue that.  Of course, more on that and many more topics soon to come.

GO COLTS !!!

- Continuing with injury news, Joseph Addai is still taking it easy and not participating in mini camp or team work outs. This is ok, as reports say he’ll be good to go for the start of the season.  I’ll say it again a healthy Addai and healthy Mike Hart, coupled with Donald Brown is a very, very good thing for this Colts offense.

- Plaxico Burress apparently wants to play this year.  I say if you do the crime, you do the time.  If something works out and he plays, great, but I’m not losing sleep over it.  It’s reported that the Bucs, the Bears, and the Jets are interested.  I really don’t want to see him play for the Bears, or the Jets really, so the Bucs it is ?!?

- Speaking of wide receivers, how does Marvin Harrison not have a job? Either no one is interested, he still wants way to much money, or he is just one major mini camp injury away from being back in football.

- So who is going to be the quarterback in Minnesota ?? Brett Favre ?? Tarvaris Jackson ?? Jeff George ?? Sage Rosenfels ?? Owen Wilson’s twin brother that no one knows about ?? Who is it going to be ??

- Talking quarterback, a friend and I were talking, and we started chatting about Mike Vick.  When my friend brought up a good question, could Mike Vick play for the Raiders?  I mean there are some big questions here, like have they given up on Jamarcus Russel and would Al Davis even go for it.  But Davis has been known to make some controversial decisions to show that he is still a football genius.  (See: this years draft, and actually every other draft before that, Lane Kiffin, DeAngelo Hall, and etc,etc)

- And finally, it’s reported that Tom Moore and Howard Mudd will both return to the Colts and have similar roles to years past.  They may not carry the same title, but 18to88, Stampede Blue, The Indy Star and everyone else says they will return to the team.  See, now all is well, and maybe now Peyton Manning will be happy and start focusing on the important things - like showing Curtis Painter how to hold a clipboard.

So just when I was about to start typing a post on how the Colts are finally getting healthy, I see this headline on Yahoo Sports: Colts’ Vinatieri undergoes hip surgery.  UGH.  My heart sanked and my stomach felt empty. 

A kicker ?? Having hip surgery ?? Not Good!!

But as the brief article states that Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri, absolutely one of the most clutch and most successful kickers to ever play in the NFL,  should be back by the Colts season opener on September 13th.  Hopefully this is an accurate estimate for his return.  The Colts minus Vinatieri is not a good thing at all.  In what seems to be a “just in case” or insurance move, kicker Billy Cundiff, formerly of the Dallas Cowboys has been brought in for a try-out.  

In other injury new, Joseph Addai and Mike Pollak were held out of OTA’s.  Not the greatest of news for two players who certainly play major roles in the Colts offense.  The good news is that other Colts are looking to be getting healthy in other areas, Jackson is ahead of schedule on his recovery and running back Mike Hart is also supposed to be back to start the season.  In other news it’s reported that Peyton Manning has spoke with head coach Jim Caldwell and is happy, or at least settled down, on the whole coaching situation.  See, like I said - no big deal. 

And in completely seperate news, I must sign off for now, my sister is getting married and I have to throw on the tux and head out for an evening of complete awkwardness and unrivaled family tension.  Whatever you’re doing - have a better Saturday night than me !!

This really has so importance what-so-ever, only that we are another month closer to football starting again - and I say Hallelujah to that brother!  I love baseball, I mean I love it, but nothing compares to the excitement of the NFL and following your favorite team from week to week.  But unfortunately with it only being June, baseball is going full steam and there is not much football news.   There’s some, but beyond the coaching debacle, not much is happenning Colts related. 

So since there’s no major story to cover and it’s been a few days since my last post, here’s a bunch of quick thoughts:

- I’m a huge Cubs fan … great win yesterday, now I’m watching them get smoked 8-2 … not good  

- 18to88 says Marvin could be headed to the Bucs … ofcourse, more on this later

- I’m sick of Brett Favre - I am NOT in favor of him going to the Vikes (or anywhere really)

- I wish Jay Cutler were a nicer guy.  I love him on the football field, but it seems like he ticked off a lot of fans with the whole Denver situation and now it’s said he’s upsetting fans in Chicago.  Hopefully it’s not all true.

- I am very, very glad there is not a QB controversy in Indy.

- I went to a Roller Derby match last night in Indy, yeah Roller Derby - definitely more on this later 

- OH MY GOSH !! Tom Brady is back !! ESPN reported it about 549 times last week

- With nothing much else football to talk about ESPN (and I believe SI) were talking about Brady vs. Manning - honestly, I doubt Brady returns to his 2007 status.  He had a great year, but I don’t even think he’ll be able to come close to matching those numbers.  Manning, coming off an injury, still won the MVP last season.  There is no reason to believe that with a healthy offensive line and improved running game that Manning couldn’t improve on last year’s numbers. Naturally, much, much more on this later.

-   There are official sports jersey wearing rules … and it upsets me when people break them

- I work at Lowe’s.  I work in the Outside Lawn and Garden department.  It sucks.  I thought it would be a nice summer job and be a change of pace compared to waiting tables.  Well I work about 39.5 hours a week and it stinks pretty good.  I should not be complaining about having a job - but I am.  It’s tiring work, some customers are really rude, and I come home beat and not wanting to do anything but drink a beer and go to bed.

- I just saw a commercial that Will Ferrel is going to be on “Men vs. Wild” with Bear Grylls … I can only imagine how hilarious this is going to be - count me in

And lastly to wrap it up, some good Colts news:

It’s reported that Marlin Jackson has already returned to practice after having major knee surgery last December.  He is supposedly way ahead of the expected rehab time.  This is GREAT news.  Jackson is an extremely solid cornerback and will return to a secondary that actually performed very well without him last year.  A healthy Marlin Jackson and Kelvin Hayden combo at cornerback is a very, very good thing for Colts fans.

Also, it’s reported that Mike Hart’s recovery is also going very, very well and he could return to practice very soon as well.  Once again the return of Hart could be huge for the 2009 Colts and help them improve on a pretty terrible run game from last season.  A backfield with Joseph Addai, Donald Brown, and Mike Hart sounds pretty doggone good to me.

GO COLTS !!

And there’s one person who’s had enough - and that person is Peyton Manning.

"Hey you, yeah you Bill Polian! I want answers!"

The usually quiet quarterback went public today with his unhappiness surrounding the Colts coaching staff and all it’s uncertainty.  Many of the comments seem to be simply out of frustration, but a few also carry that slight tinge of “I’m actually pretty pissed off cause I don’t know what the crap is going on here.”

Manning, who will often give lengthy post game interviews and discuss gameplay in great detail, is usually hush hush when it comes to Colts management and roster moves.  And that’s as he should be in my opinion.  I believe management has a role, they manage and players have a role, they play.  So I always like it when a player does his talking on the field and not in the locker room or to the media.  But today Manning could keep quiet no longer.   

Ofcourse Stampede Blue, 18to88, and Colts blogger John Oesher have all already commented on the situaiton as well, each providing their own take on Manning’s comments.  A link to the original story by Indy Star writer Mike Chappell can be found here.

Now this morning when I saw Peyton Manning’s name on the Sportscenter scroll bar, I had no idea what to expect.  But when I heard what it was all about, I was actually a bit surprised.  Now after mulling it over for most of the day (and seeing it again and again online), I’ve finally decided that really it’s no big deal.

Ok, ok so some of the ESPN guys felt it was out of line and he was throwing the new coaches under the bus.   And maybe he was.  Like I said, I really don’t like this type of stuff, so would I have prefered Manning to maybe not say anything at all? Sure.  But maybe it was good he did say something, maybe now we’ll finally get some clarity on the issue.  Colts president Bill Polian has already commented on the situation and hopefully more answers will be on the way. 

Really I just think Manning was frustrated, but think about it.  Wouldn’t you be too? If there was a major overhaul at your work - and you’re a perfectionist who has worked with basically the same staff for 11 years - wouldn’t you be a little upset? I’m pretty sure I would be.  So I’m chalking it up to frustration and Peyton being a little ticked off that even as the face of the franchise he doesn’t know what is going on. 

So ultimately he did speak his mind, but alas, he’s Peyton Manning and he’s human just like the rest of us.  I think he’s just a little frustrated - that’s all.  And that’s why it’s no big deal.

Making mistakes is a part of life and it’s something that most people learn to deal with and have the maturity to accept.  It’s just as the sayings go - “no one is perfect”  and “we all screw up.”  Heck I’ve probably goofed today more times than I can count.  The problem, however, with mistakes evolves when we try to give weight to our goof ups and say that some mistakes are more important than others. 

Sure, some mistakes are certainly bigger than others and can have larger consequences, can cause severe pain and heartache, and even lead to harsh punishment.  But in the end, whether you forget to pay the cable bill, order chicken instead of beef, or slam your car into a tree head on - we all make mistakes, and that’s what they are - mistakes.  With that said, I believe in forgiveness, and I believe in second chances.

So, yes, I believe Michael Vick deserves a second chance to play in the NFL. 

Now let’s get something clear from the get go, what Michael Vick did was terrible.  It was bad.  Real bad.  And he absolutely committed a crime.  But it was also a mistake.  It was something that he should not have done or even been a part of.  But Vick went to court, was sentenced, and served prison time for the crime he committed.  When he has fully completed his sentence, I say he deserves a second chance.  Ofcourse there are lots of outstanding circumstances here, like if he will even be reinstated into the league, but if everything pans out - I say give the guy another shot.

I may be completely wrong, but I doubt Vick will return to the activities that led to his imprisonment.  And if he does, well then I certainly think his career in football should be over.  But I don’t believe we are looking at a repeat offender who routinely gets in trouble off the field.  Vick made a dumb, dumb mistake and I believe he has paid the price for those crimes and now I believe he deserves a second chance.

And let’s face it folks, I mean let’s just be real with each other, we’re not talking about a third string strong safety or a wide receiver from the Jets no one has heard of.  We’re talking about Michael Vick, a man with an insane talent and ability to play football - and to play extremely well.  Several years ago there were only about three quarterbacks who were actually fun and exciting to watch - Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, and Michael Vick.  You just never knew if Vick would break the pocket and dash down the field for 70 yards.   

Don’t get me wrong, just because he’s good doesn’t mean he deserves to return to football, that’s only to say he has a God given ability and he deserves the chance to show he has learned from his mistakes.  We all need second chances to show we have learned and that we can move on.   

The same can be said for you, me and Ed Johnson of the Indianapolis Colts.  

A defensive tackle with a history of trouble, Tony Dungy gave Johnson a chance to play for the Colts last season with one ultimatum - stay out of trouble.  When Johnson was pulled over for speeding early in the season, police found marijuana in his car.  He was promptly cut by the Colts the next morning.  Colts fans were irate,  considering Johnson was a huge force on our defensive line and DT was an already depleted position.  But many also respected Dungy and his decision.    

Recently Johnson was resigned by the Colts.  He adds experience and depth to a very young and talented position on the Colts roster.  Head coach Jim Caldwell  essentially said that Johnson made a mistake and deserves a second chance.  He did make a very stupid decision, he valued smoking some weed over playing professional football - something most of us can only dream of.  But he sat out the remainder of the season, stuck to think about his decision and if he’d ever get another shot.  Well now he has and hopefully he can make the most of it.

I hope Ed Johnson does succeed with the Colts.  And I hope Vick is able to play football again and succeed as well.  Yes, they made mistakes, but they deserve second chances.  We all do, because sometimes it’s what we really need.

A couple friends have asked me the same question recently and my fiance and i talked about it the other night as well.  The people want to know!  So, assuming Marv does not retire, here are my top three choices of what I’d like to see him do.

1.) Resign with Indy

This ofcourse is a no brainer.  He was let go because he was due a ridiculous amount of money and would not take a pay cut or restructure his deal.  However,  the Colts have around seven million in cap room and no other team has picked up Harrison.  So … if an agreeable deal could be met, it would be a win-win for both parties.  Marvin would still be playing football and the Colts would be favorites to win the AFC south if not the whole AFC.  Not to mention the greatest QB-WR tandem would be back in action.

2.) Sign with Philadelphia    

This option makes sense because Harrison is from Philadelphia and played college football with Donovan McNabb at Syracuse.  I think it would be a cool story and a cool way to retire, playing in front of your hometown and with the same QB who was throwing you touchdowns in college.  However, the Eagles just drafted WR stud Jeremy Maclin in the first round and grabbed another WR in the sixth.  They’ll only add to the youth of second year player Desean Jackson.  Really, I see Harrison going here as a stretch.  It might be nice, for him or even both parties, but i just don’t see it happenning he probably still wants to much money and does not really carry the role of a mentor type guy. 

3.  The Wild Card

There is also a third team I’d really like to see Harrison play for, but as listed above it’s definitely the wild card.  There are plenty of teams who could use a veteran wide receiver - the Giants, the Vikings, the Dolphins and the list goes on.  And then there are several teams who probably would have no interest whatsoever - the Chargers, the Packers, the Steelers, and etc,etc.  So that winds us down to this one wild card team.  Who is you ask? 

Well, I’d really like to see Marvin Harrison go to the Chicago Bears.  Yep - Da Bears.  I have said since the moment they traded for Jay Cutler that now they need to go get some recievers.  They have talent in Devin Hester,  but he is a slot guy and number three reciever, maybe a number two at very best.  And they have depth with Rashied Davis and Earl Bennet who both have much to prove.  The team also addressed the need in the draft, snagging three wide recievers including Juaquin Iglesias from Oklahoma.  So the team has players, but no true #1 and a true WR playmaker has yet to evolve.   

Add Marvin Harrison into the mix and i believe this is a very deadly Bears offense.  Coupled with RB Matt Forte, TE Greg Olson, the stable of young WR’s, and their new gunslinger QB Jay Cutler - the addition of a veteran wide receiver like Marvin Harrison could be the very thing this team needs to push them over the top.

Moore and Mudd each had over 30 years coaching experience and both had long tenures with Indianapolis. Both contributed greatly to the teams success over the last 10 years and were key components to the teams winning formula.

Moore was a master of working hand in hand with Peyton Manning to run the offense and Mudd was the genius behind keeping Manning one the league’s most protected passers.

They are truly coaching legends and their success in Indy is unparalleled. To say that they will be missed, in both Indianapolis and around the entire league, is the absolute understatement of understatements.

The Indy Star has the story up here . And ofcourse Stampede Blue has a great write up as well. More on this news and the coaches immeasurable impact later.