Jumbotron-Gate: Jerry Jones went all out on the new Cowboys stadium, and the largest HD video screen in the world was the centerpiece of his vision. One problem… the dang thing is too low. How the hell the NFL didn’t put out guidelines for this pre-construction baffles me. They seem to have a guideline for every other little thing to do with their game. Even if the NFL didn’t say anything it would have been wise to send out the punter for some dry runs before committing to something that will now cost about $2 million to fix.
It seems Jerry Jones has the League in his pocket and will not be asked to raise the roof per say, rather the NFL has instated a new rule regarding balls hitting the screens. It’s ridiculous that a game already hampered by the million stoppages will now have to endure another one thanks to the screen sitting atop Cowboys Stadium.

Twitter-Gate: Unlike the NBA, the NFL is a lot less accepting of changes in the way fans and players are interacting with the help of social networking platforms. Some of the most recognizable players like Terrell Owens, Shawne Merriman and Chad Ocho Cinco have adopted the new technology and successfully built a strong following on Twitter. But the NFL, even though they claim to be moving with the times, laid down the law yesterday by creating a game day social media policy.
Ocho Cinco’s plans to have guests tweeting for him during games are essentially squashed with the new media policy. I was planning to live blog the upcoming Eagles game as a test run for the regular season, but the new policy implies I would be breaking the law. When the NFL started penalizing TD celebrations – I was mad. When they decided to change up the rules on a catch by a player pushed out of bounds – I was scratching my head. With this new policy, the league has set themselves back a few years.

The season haven’t started yet, but even for a beginner like me, it looks pretty obvious that the Bills might have some problems. Last game against the Packers started with a really bad first half. What looked the worst for me was our passing – while the Packers threw and caught the ball like in a video game, the Bills rewarded us with a handful of incomplete passes and turnovers. What I noticed also was the fact, that every player on a lineup has his specific role, way more defined than in basketball. That led me to a little research about the positions in football.

Each team has 11 players on a field and way more of them in the roster. There are three unit on each roster – offense, defense and special team.

The role of the offense is to advance the ball as far as possible towards the opponent’s end zone. It consists of:

Center – the player in the middle, he starts the game by passing the ball to a quarterback. He also has blocking functions.

Quarterback – after taking the ball from center he’s the player you want to watch – it’s his decision to either pass the ball to a running back, throw it or run like mad towards the end zone.

Running back – usually the most small and fast dude on the field, he’s the one who runs the most, trying to find a hole in the (wall of screaming crazies) defensive line.

Wide receiver – runs fast towards the end line without the ball and catches the pass. (If the defense lets him).

Offensive line consists of guards and tackles – the big dudes usually without the ball. They’re supposed to (punch the hell out of) block the defense, clear the way and protect the passer.

Tight end – they can play like the wide receivers (catch the ball) or like offensive linemen (block).

Defense basically makes everything to stop the offense.

The defensive line tries to clear the way for linebackers and make the offensive linemen busy by (attempting to murder) blocking them. They also try to send the running back or quarterback (the one with the ball) to the ground, before he passes the ball or gains the yardage.

Linebackers defend against the offense by trying to catch the passer before he manages to pass or covering the receivers so they cannot get the ball.

Cornerback – his job is to prevent the receiver from getting the ball either by punching the ball away or grabbing it by himself.

Safety – the last line of defense, usually helping the cornerbacks against deep passes.

Special teams are used only in some circumstances – punter to handle the punts, kicker to kick off the ball or attempt the field goal, holder to hold the ball for the kicker, long snapper who gets the ball to the holder or kicker. On the other side there will be a kick returner who will try to catch the kicked ball and push it into other direction and a wedge buster who runs full force in his direction to stop him and disrupt (the horde of wild beasts) the offensive line. Ouch!

So it’s not just a bunch of fat guys running in one direction and other bunch of fat guys trying to stop them! Surprise, surprise!

Michael Vick remains the story in Philadelphia as the Eagles went into week 3 of pre-season. Once the regular season starts things will get back to normal – Fans will be complaining about McNabb, worrying about Westbrook’s health and questioning the decisions made by new defensive coordinator Sean McDermott. Until then, it’s all Vick all the time.

Last night Vick saw his first game action in over 2.5 years and though it was nothing to write home about (4-4 for 19 yards), the team did try to throw some curve balls. On two separate occasions, Michael Vick and Donovan McNabb were on the field at the same time but both times were used as decoys. When Vick was brought in, there was speculation that he would line up at multiple positions but when it comes to game time (one that matters) its highly unlikely that the team will waste plays with the gimmicks.

Philadelphia 76′ers player Louis Williams, jumped in yesterday to show his support for the much maligned fallen star – @TeamLou23: Tonight. i will be wearing my ” Get Off His Vick ” shirt at the game….How yall love that?

Mural of Michael Vick Depicts Him Choking a Puppy Wearing a Cowboys Jersey – The 700 Level
Awkward but Happy Debut for Michael Vick in Philly – NFL Fanhouse
Your take on Vick’s return – Goal-Line Stand
Shawn Andrews Needs A Reality Show – Inside the Iggles
Here’s Our First Eagles’ Vick Jersey… – With Leather
Why Your Team Sucks: Philadelphia Eagles – Deadspin
Buzz over Vick Is Troubling – NFL Fanhouse

Video of Vick’s post game presser (via ESPN)

With the NFL season around the corner, my focus has been on building my fantasy teams for the upcoming season.

See, when I got into the game, a friend told me the best way to learn all the players and get a feel for the intricate parts of the game, I should join a Fantasy Football League. I was familiar with Fantasy Basketball and Hockey but this was a whole different level. I dove in, purchased a stack of magazines, fired up the excel sheet and was on my way to build my dream team.

Fast forward 6 years and I have got it down to a science. No magazines needed (but if someone offers me a few I will not decline), Excel sheet is simplified (there are enough sites that do all the work for you now) and emotions are kept out of draft day.

Fantasy Football brings out the competitor in me. Hours are spent coming up with a team name – akin to naming your first born in some ways. You don’t wanna end up with a lame name (especially for keeper leagues), it sets the tone for the rest of the season. Draft day is treated like Christmas, and come kickoff the gloves are off. The smack talk starts flowing, injuries to complete strangers can cause broken TV remotes and you find yourself cheering for the unlikeliest teams due to fantasy implications.

This past summer, I debated taking a season off to see if I could enjoy the game with a pure heart but alas I caved. I love the multitude of emotions it brings out. The thrills, the agony, the anger, the gloating. I am not prepared to turn on the Eagles, but come Fantasy Football Playoff time – I give no guarantees.

Signs that Fantasy has taken over your reality:

• You spend weeks thinking of the perfect team name.
• You have nightmares that your sleeper pick was taken one pick ahead of you in your draft
• On game day, you pay more attention to your fantasy team rather than your favorite football team.
• You smack talk the TV screen when a player your fantasy team is up against has a bad game
• When the news reports an injured player you scream- “Shit! He’s on my team!”
• When your team scores you get mad because they are up against your fantasy team’s defense
• You cheer for a rival team because the QB is starting for your Fantasy team and you need those passing yards
• You keep one eye on the TV and the other glued to your computer waiting to see your players stats update.
• You have to sacrifice the beer in order to manage the remote with one hand and the computer with the other
• You have another browser tab open right now and are reading this to kill time before your next draft starts

On The Nightstand:
Why Fantasy Football Matters: (And Our Lives Do Not)
Committed: Confessions of a Fantasy Football Junkie

He wont be playing in a game for while, but the signing of Michael Vick has been sending tremors through the interwebs a week after the event. If it wasn’t for Brett Favre’s “un-retirement“, Vick would probably dominate the NFL news wire through the rest of pre-season.

Brotherly Link Love will be a feature on this blog every Friday – a collection of the best Eagle’s posts for the week. Miss KJ did her thing writing about the man behind the mask, but there were others who had something to say

Video of Vick’s first practice – (H/T NESW Sports)