Minicamps & the Offseason

Ahhh the offseason of football, which is smaller than most suspect and is the nuts and bolts of the season for us true fans of the sport. This is the time when the big changes happen, new faces are brought in via free agency and the draft, than the mini camps and used ot be June 1st cuts, which was really slim this year due ot teh CBA being renegotiated and rising a kewl 10 million dollars higher. Yes it came and went.

The offseason is when bad teams try to turn good, good teams try to become steller, and stellar teams are in trouble. Bad teams can only go up, middle teams try to stay afloat or rise to the top, and stellar teams try to avoid the fall back to the bottom. The cycle of life.

This year, though, was kind to both stellar teams, that being the Seattle Seahawk and Pittsburgh Steelers. Followed closely in my opinion by the Carolina Panthers and Indianapolis Colts. Often, these 4 teams are gutted or picked apart during free agency, this year was no different as the Vikings went after Seattles OG Steve Hutchinson, a few teams picked apart the Steelers, losing WR Randle El and FS Chris Hope and the Colts lost a pro bowl RB in Edgrin James to the Arizona Cardinals, who's one of those bad teams I was talking about. Free Agency lived up to its rep of being a vulture.

The draft wasn't disappointing either. The biggest guess of Vince Young going to the Texans was quickly squashed. On draft day the world was shocked again as the Texans, who were on the clock at the end of the SuperBowl, quickly took DE Mario Edwards over RB Reggie Bush, who was the second lock pick. Then draftniks saw the stock of one Matt Leinart drop considerably straight down to the 10th pick by Arizona Cardinals. Reggie Bush was selected by the Saints and new Head Coach Sean Payton at the number 2 slot, and first guess Vince Young fell to the third pick by the Tennesee Titans, who then proceeded to have a instant QB dilemma. One would figure 1 year at least with pro bowl life long QB Steve "Air" McNair, but no, they are going with either Billy Volek or starting the rookie. After that amazing stock drop, the draft went about its merry way with a few trades and a few reaches, but most teams went with need over greed, it was nice to see.

Then we quietly entered the minicamps, which are fun to see, if you've ever gone. The teams are trying out their rookies, brought in tons of free agents that went undrafted or been sitting a year, mostly a time to see what the young blood can do for your team. No pads, no hard hitting, just watching speed, technique, and tons and tons of weight training. Teams want players at a certain weight and those players want to get on the field.

Few teams like to run only rookie minicamps, some like to combine the two, vets and rookies from the beginning. This has advantages and disadvantages right away. Either the speed of the game is too fast for the rookies and the vets get impatient, or it can develop the chemistry of the team right away; giving the rookies time to adjust to their new team. This is about the time most rookies' eyes are wide open, as they witnessed first hand the leap from college to the pros. After signing the great contract and they begin collecting their funds, their bodies regret their hands holding that sacred pen and begin the arduous journey of their career.

Also, about this time, teams are filled to the bring the roster close to 80 and it could reach as high, as 100 guys are trying to get on the 53 man squad or at the very least the 8 man practice squad, which in another segment i'll write about regarding the cuts or as some coaches call it, "trimming the fat" and begin to feel out the new team, as some old faces don't make it, or some unknown players' time has come to a quick end.

Also the camps are great that changed faces at the important spots, the coaches, oh yes, the coaching carousel, all of them, not just the head coaches. This year we've seen some good ones come and go. Former Detroit Lions head coach Steve Mariucci was released, along with former Saints coach, Jim Haslett, Jets Herm Edwards, and the Texans Dom Capers, so all those teams went out and got new head coaches and they need all the time they can before the new season so their personnel can get their views and ideas into the teams and they can try and change them around. A few teams went for some staffing changes, most notable, the Washington redskins, who picked up Kansas City's Al Saunders, who most thought would be a head coach this year. He got paid a hefty sum to an already stocked coaching staff.

So with all those huge changes the new coaches have around 4 to 5 months before the preseason to install everything they want, plus insert new players into a 53 man squad to field for the opening day of the new season and have their cities rejoice for the all mighty trophy that 32 teams all start in the hunt for.

I do enjoy the mini camps and training camps, which come up next. I feel its the nuts and bolts of the sport and watch with other deep fans of the sport, as our teams bring in the new faces to compete with the old faces and see who makes the real life cuts and aches and pains of their careers, who continues with their team and who goes back into the pool to fight for another team and latch on with them.

The investments are all but done and the teams are gearing up for their returns, will it be a repeat by the Pittsburgh Steelers or will another champion arise from the dredges and claim that which every team desires? Well, in this first installment, we've seen how some of the teams went about that and which ones will cut their teams down to a lean mean grueling machine to compete for the big one. 32 armies with 53 soliders to compete for the biggest prize in their world. Who will hoist the prize of all prizes and who will the confetti fall for this year?

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