NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer reportsthat defensive end Darryl Tapp has been traded to the Philadelphia Eagles for a draft pick and linebacker/defensive end Chris Clemons.

Danny O’Neil of the Seattle Times got clarification of the draft pick, reporting it as a fourth-round selection.

The trade comes shortly after it was announced that Tapp had signed a one-year offer to remain in Seattle.  That announcement came Monday.

In other news, ProFootballTalk reports that guard Rob Sims will be the next to leave the Emerald City.  Sims is a restricted free agent worth a fourth-round pick.  The ProFootballTalk report indicates Cleveland and former Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren are in the running to sign Sims.

DR. HUNT BATJER  of Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and DR. RICHARD G. ELLENBOGEN  of the University of Washington School of Medicine have been named the new co-chairs of the NFL Head, Neck and Spine Medical Committee, COMMISSIONER ROGER GOODELL announced today.

Drs. Batjer and Ellenbogen are each the professor and chairman of the department of neurological surgery at their respective medical schools.

Commissioner Goodell also announced that DR. MITCHEL BERGER, chairman of the department of neurological surgery at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, has agreed to serve on the committee (formerly known as the NFL Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee).

"In our ongoing commitment to the health, safety and well-being of our players, we conducted an extensive search to find the new leaders of our committee and we are extremely pleased that Dr. Batjer and Dr. Ellenbogen have agreed to lead the team," Commissioner Goodell said. "Along with Dr. Berger, these doctors are renowned experts in the field of head and spine injury and they will strengthen our leadership role in research, education, prevention, and treatment of these injuries in sports. I personally interviewed all three doctors and was enormously impressed by their knowledge, experience, and passion for working with us."

Drs. Batjer (pronounced BAY-chur) and Ellenbogen will be responsible for appointing other members of the committee.

The mission of the NFL HNS Committee is multi-faceted:

• Ensure that NFL team medical staffs have access to the best technology and research on the prevention and treatment of head, neck and spine injuries.

• Study injury data and equipment research to assist the NFL, its teams and its players in providing the safest environment for minimizing injuries to the head, neck and spine.

• Examine the latest treatment strategies and recommend to club medical staffs and players the best practices regarding treatment of injuries to the head, neck and spine.

• Join with the NFL Alumni Association to expand on existing programs such as the 88 Plan and support additional research on the long-term impact of concussions and related injuries.

• Encourage and support research and education to increase public awareness about head, neck and spine injuries, their prevention and treatment.

Dr. Batjer is the Michael J. Marchese Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Chair of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. He is past president of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons and Society of University Neurosurgeons, and past chair of the American Board of Neurological Surgery. He is currently vice president of the Neurosurgical Society of America.

Dr. Batjer joined Northwestern in 1995 from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, where he was professor of neurological surgery and was twice voted outstanding teacher. He attended the University of Texas on a baseball scholarship and was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles as a left-handed pitcher. He is a graduate of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.

"I am deeply honored to have been selected for this important role by Commissioner Goodell," Dr. Batjer said. "I take this responsibility very seriously and find it a great fit joining my passions for neuroscience and athletics. The players – past, present, and future – and the public can be assured that our committee will be vigilant in working to make the game safer through injury prevention, education, treatment, and advocacy."

Dr. Ellenbogen, UW Medicine Professor and Theodore S. Roberts Endowed Chair of Neurological Surgery at the University of Washington School of Medicine, chief of neurological surgery at Harborview Medical Center, and attending neurosurgeon at Seattle Children's. He is past president of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons and currently an officer with the American Society of Pediatric Neurological Surgeons. He is also co-director of the Seattle Sports Concussion Program and a key advocate for the "Zackery Lystedt Law," the first state law requiring medical clearance for a young athlete suffering a concussion. He was formerly chief of neurosurgery and residency program director at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., was deployed with the XVIII Airborne Corp in Desert Storm and was awarded a Bronze Star for his work with head injured soldiers.

Dr. Ellenbogen is a graduate of Brown University, the Brown University Medical School, and was trained in neurosurgery at the Brigham/Boston Children's/Harvard Medical School program.

"I am humbled and honored to be participating in a program by the NFL that recognizes the widespread problem of concussion, which occurs in a wide spectrum of our population, from student-athletes to soldiers to professional athletes," Dr. Ellenbogen said. "I hope through our actions, research and advocacy, we can improve the prevention and treatment of this public health issue for athletes in all sports and at all levels of play."

Dr. Berger is a graduate of Harvard and the University of Miami School of Medicine. He was a high school football All-American at Coral Gables High School in Miami, an All-East and All-Ivy League defensive end at Harvard, and was signed by the Chicago Bears in 1974 as a free agent rookie.

"I am honored to serve the commissioner, the NFL, and its players on this important committee," Dr. Berger said.  "My number one goal is to make the game safer at every level and to ensure that the players will have a healthy future after they finish playing."

In January, the NFL announced two other new members of the committee – DR. JEFFREY KUTCHER, a neurologist at the University of Michigan and chairman of the sports section of the American Academy of Neurology, and former NFL player MERRIL HOGE, who testified at a congressional hearing on concussions last October and has followed the issue closely after retiring from the NFL due to post-concussion syndrome.

Courtesy of The NFL

Who cares whether the Giants play before the Jets opening day, right?  Well… Woody Johnson cares — he owns the Jets and feels like the Jets got snubbed by the comish with a "secret" or "invisible" coin toss that decided the Jets will host the first Monday Night Football of the Meadowlands' new stadium come September, while the Giants debut the new digs on Sunday afternoon.

And Johnson is not keeping his mouth shut about it, either.

But beyond the spectacle that is one very rich guy calling out another one… there is another issue that may or may not come to a head with the timely release of Johnson's blow up. The Meadowlands may now be out of the running to host the Superbowl in 2014.

Gary Myers of the Daily News has the following:

It's astounding they've constructed a $1.7 billion stadium as 50-50 partners and have worked together to position New York-New Jersey as the favorites to get the 2014 Super Bowl when they couldn't even agree on who would play their first regular-season home game on the opening Sunday of the season and who would play on Monday night.

The Giants won the toss and they elected not to defer. Johnson said in a statement last night that when Goodell could not resolve the issue on the "merits," the owner "suggested a coin toss as the fairest way to resolve this issue. The league rejected that idea. Then, I was told on Friday that a coin toss had taken place at the league office and that the Jets had lost. We rejected a process in which neither team was present."

Johnson mentioned how both parties have always been present when the NFL flips a coin, whether it's breaking ties in the draft order or kicking off a game. When Goodell couldn't break the stalemate, he decided to toss the coin.

Now Johnson has tossed him under the bus. It will be interesting to see if that affects Goodell's relationship with Johnson and whether he will be quite so vocal discussing the positive aspects of a New York Super Bowl that Johnson wants so much.

It would be a shame after all this time, city after city dropping out due to the economic crisis — after being labeled the favorite to take the Superbowl 2014 final bid…. that it all becomes moot because of a stupid, ridiculous, childish, and totally insignificant in the end….. coin toss.

Rumor has it that former Dolphin Joey Porter is heading into Washington for a meeting this Thursday.

Via Twitter:

@jasonlaconfora LB Joey Porter to visit Skins on Thirs. Wash moving to a 3-4, so he makes sense. Cards also interested

I don't know how to feel about this… because the last 3 years since he joined the Dolphins, Porter has had totally inconsistent years.  In 2007 when the Dolphins ran a 4-3 scheme, Porter was a middle of the road OLB with a great pass rush but not so good run stopping abilities. In 2008 when the Dolphins became a 3-4 team — Porter KILLED IT on sacks… but again, horrible run stopping. And in 2009, he beefed up on the running aspects but pass rush and sacks suffered.

The rumor seems to suggest that Porter would be a great addition if the Skins transition to a 3-4, however I think he is definitely past his prime in terms of consistently making tackles, he's not that great against the run which is still going to be a huge issue in the NFC East, and the best thing he can offer this team at this point is a consistent coverage LB with an occasional sack.

The only person he would be even reasonably replace in the current scheme is Rocky McIntosh. And if they move to a 3-4, I have my doubts that the right side of the LB core would see any improvement in production with Porters presence, atleast on the stat sheet.

But… then again he is a big name that might provide an intangible spark to the middle of the defense – perhaps he's worth bidding on insofar as seeing what Arizona will pay for him.

The 49ers have confirmed the trade of Shaun Hill to the Lions for one of the Lions' 2011 seventh round picks. The Lions have two seventh round picks in the 2011 Draft due to trading QB Kevin O'Connell to the Jets last August.

This transaction is a great example of how opportunistic GM Martin Mayhew is. Last summer when the Lions claimed O'Connell, they had little to no interest in him for themselves. Mayhew claimed him because there were several former members of the Patriots organization that we with new teams.

Scott Pioli was in his first season as GM of the Chiefs and he was one of the people that pulled the trigger on drafting O'Connell. They were looking for a backup QB familiar with the style of offense the Chiefs were installing. Denver Head Coach Josh McDaniels was looking for a backup quarterback that knew his system, and McDaniels coached O'Connell while he was with the Patriots. Lastly, the New York Jets, the Patriots most bitter rivals, have made it a habit to bring in former Patriots players over the years.

Mayhew understood that he could potentially claim O'Connell for free, and have three interested suitors that would bid against each other. The situation played out just as Mayhew expected, and the Lions got a seventh rounder for O'Connell. While it didn't seem like much at the time, consider that trade helped the Lions acquire a veteran backup in the prime of his career.

Hill is familiar with the Lions system after learning it in Minnesota under Scott Linehan, he is 10-6 as a starter, he's had plenty of recent game experience and he is completely healthy. With Stafford starting, Hill backing up and Stanton developing in the third slot, the Lions are in the best situation they've been in at the quarterback position.

The latest topic hitting the Big Apple like a speeding bullet is that of the Jets newest running back – LaDainian Tomlinson.

The question is, was this a good move by the Jets. Answer, of course it was. I know, I know, he did nothing last year and Thomas Jones did so much more, but the fact is Jones was owed too much money. Tomlinson inked a deal worth 5.1 million for the next two years. Jones was to make 5.8 million for one year. Personally, even though this is an uncapped year, it might not be for long and the Jets need to do everything to keep it as if the year was capped.

The Jets needed two things, a red zone back and a team leader. A team leader not only to the offence but to their rookie back Shone Greene. Now there is not one Jets fan or football that can tell me the Jets didn't know what they were doing. They drafted Greene for a reason. and that reason was to be their star running back in the future. Well, the future is now Mr. Greene and the torch has been passed. Now, it may be too soon to make him and every down back and the Jets knew that. That's why Tomlinson is here.

The second reason was they needed a red zone back. Thomas Jones was great in the red zone, but so was Tomlinson. Jones averaged 122 yards and 12 touchdowns in the red zone. Tomlinson averaged 106 yard 11 touchdowns. Pretty close and pretty outstanding as well. The Jets needed a guy to ground and pound the ball and the fact of the matter is Thomas wasn't that guy anymore. Is it just me, or did he look extremely fatigued in that AFC Championship game?

Look, here's what it come down to, money and change or scenery. The fact that Jones was to make almost 6 million at the age of 31-32 was not sitting well with the organization. Leader is one thing, but in my opinion the guy was on his last leg. Yes Tomlinson is almost the same age, but I think behind our stellar line he'll be a force. My opinion is the Jets revitalize his career. Call me crazy, but I think it's possible. Hey look at Jones. Who was he before he came here? Well I know he was on the Bears, that's pretty much about it.

Tannenbaum is known the change it up and change it up he sure did. This is not the first time he's made a great move, but again I'll get into that at a later time. Hint, look for Enough Said: Tannenbaum, in Jets Fans We Trust. The change in scenery was much needed in our backs and to bring in a veteran like Tomlinson is huge.

Jones to you I say this. Thank you for the three excellent years you've produced for us, but hey the fact is you were getting too old and wanted too much money. Was the acquisition of LT a good move? Yup!

Enough said!

Next week, or maybe even a couple of days I tackle the famous quote by our beloved ex coach Herm Edwards, "The Same Ol' Jets".

The Trib this morning talked about the very real chance that it looks as if Ben Roethlisberger may end up sitting the bench with a suspension if he’s charged in anyway in the latest sexual harassment case in Georgia.

If Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is charged following accusations of sexual assault, authorities are still investigating the March 12 incident that took place in Milledgeville Ga., his latest off-the-field troubles go to another level and probably to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s office. Under the league’s player conduce policy, Goodell has taken a hard line against those that tarnish the league’s image and punished players before they have been convicted of any crime. If Roethlisberger, who has been accused of sexual assault twice within the last months, is charged in the coming days or weeks in Georgia, he will be staring down the barrel of a league suspension and possibly a lengthy one.