NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

Maybe the Broncos should just end camp now. They have been the team hit the hardest with injuries so far this camp, first with losing a pair of running backs (they did sign LenDale White Thursday to help out there), and they end got word they have lost leading pass rush Elvis Dumervil with a torn pec, probably for the season.

Pro Football Weekly says while the hurts to RB’s Knowshon Morena and Correll Buckhalter are bad, losing Dumervil is maybe the worst news the team could get at this early stage of training camp.

Injuries to RBs Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter were only preliminary bumps in the road compared to the news of OLB Elvis Dumervil’s torn pectoral muscle, which is a potentially devastating development for the Broncos, and while Moreno and Buckhalter are expected back well before Week One, Dumervil’s injury could keep him out for most, if not all, of the season.

Dumervil, who led the league in sacks last season with a team-record 17, was said to be seeking a second opinion after suffering the injury in a one-on-one pass-rush drill Aug. 4, but it doesn’t look promising, the injury usually requires surgery to be repaired, and word is he’ll be out until November, at the earliest.

Denver rewarded the Pro Bowler with a six-year deal that included $43.156 million guaranteed about two weeks before he sustained the injury. With Dumervil sidelined, Denver could open the season with Jarvis Moss and Robert Ayers, who have a combined two starts and 3½ sacks – all of the latter by Moss – in their careers, starting at outside ‘backer.

Head coach Josh McDaniels doesn’t have many good options for replacing Dumervil, but he could also consider moving Mario Haggan, who played opposite Dumervil at outside ‘backer last season, back to the position after shifting him to inside ‘backer this offseason, but McDaniels will have to decide whether to clear a roster spot by putting Dumervil on injured reserve, which would officially end his season.

This time of year, every fan of every team thinks that this could be the year for their team, well maybe not all, sorry Rams fans.

As the press conferences and comments from coaches and front offices make headlines, fans need to keep in mind that deception in the NFL is rampant this time of year. Deception is a constant in the NFL, but this time of year especially, so take what your favorite coach says with a grain of salt. There are three main targets for this game, and every fan should be on the lookout for them.

Number one is to target is the players. Plain and simple, pressure through the press on a player is a big factor. It could be because they are holding out, as is the case in San Diego with Vincent Jackson and the few rookie hold outs that are still out there.

Coaches will talk up a player that is at the same position to make the hold out feel like they could be at a disadvantage in the situation. This won't work with players like Darrell Revis, but it will work for some. A more dangerous pressure on a player could be one that is recovering from an injury that the coaches want to make sure is working as hard as they can to get back on the practice field.

Obviously this can be a double edge sword, as they don't want a guy to come back too early and get hurt again. It could also be to put pressure on a player that is taking training camp too lightly in the eyes of the coaches. They want the starter or competing player to step it up and by hyping the competition at the position as "making progress" or "having a good camp". They are putting pressure on the other player to get focused.

The second target for deception is other teams. Distracting other teams to keep a long term developing guy quiet is typical tactic. They know a guy they drafted in the 5th round is probably not going to make the team, but they want to sneak him on the practice squad, hoping to develop him over the next couple of years.

So the coaches ignore the guy and don't say much about him, while hyping a guy that may have more experience and be better known, but isn't really going to make the cut either. He may or may not be at the same position, but usually is. Both will get cut, but by hyping the more experienced guy, they hope to hide the younger development guy who will make no impact for at least a year. Another reason to distract teams is to hide bright spots and deficiencies of players.

If they can start the season without a lot of film on a particular player, then other teams may not be prepared for what they are good or bad at. So they may hype up how great a player is at all phases, when the player may actually have some holes in their game, and will tell the player that privately. The hope being that they can develop the area of deficiencies over the course of a season.

The third target is the fans. Mostly selling tickets and corporate sponsorships, plain and simple. Some coaches are just high on their whole team, but most coaches are pretty critical in private of their players, knowing their strengths and weaknesses.

But coaches know that in order to sell tickets and corporate sponsorships in the community, the fans and media have to be excited. So they will talk up every player they can to the press and make it seem like the team and each position is better than he might admit in private. The other reason that they might want to hype up the fans is because they know that a full and excited stadium is a big advantage for home games.

This usually only matters for teams that have not been stellar in recent years, but it can help, especially hyping high round draft picks with lots of expectations.
Many times a front office can get all three targets with one comment about a player.

Triple hitter if you will. So keep this in mind as you watch the news reports, especially if you are not local, can't attend practices yourself and can't get much information besides reading about press conferences and coaches comments. Often the local news media will have some quality reporters that are good at discerning the truth from the hype, but some reporters are just as much homers as the fans. Find the local guy that tells it like it is if you can.

Happy camping!

Sports Gab Network Editor Matt Loede previews Sunday’s NFL Hall of Fame Game between the AFC Cincy Bengals and the NFC Dallas Cowboys to be played in Canton, Oh right outside the Hall of Fame.

Hands down, from top to bottom, the most balanced division.  The most unpredictable.  The most highly anticipated, and by far, the most hyped.  The NFC East is the equivalent to baseball’s AL East.  In all likelihood, its a four-team chase for supremacy.  Any team can reach the postseason.  Hope abounds, intrigue abides.

While albeit there’s a tremendous blend of balance in the air, this is still Dallas’ division to lose.  However, it won’t be a walk in the park, as New York, Washington, and Philadelphia all could easily finish at or above .500. With plenty more to say, I’ll leave at this: there will be no loss for drama with these storied franchises colliding head-to-head this fall.  Let the fierce trash-talk begin!  Your NFC East: “Where there is little to no gap from first to last.”

Dallas (11-5) – On paper the most talented team in Big D since ‘95.  They have the ideal mix and right pieces to participate at home come the first Sunday of February.  To lift status from good to great, they need their two most pivotal pieces, Tony Romo and Felix Jones, to elevate their games to the next level.  If this duo rises to their ability, this team will find itself in new places it hasn’t visited since the days of Aikman-Smith-Irvin.

With just as much prowess on the defensive side of the ball as on the offensive side, there’s no reason America’s Team should not exceed last year’s final stopping point.  Two things hold them back from arriving at their ultimate destination:  Safety concerns, and the fact they may not possess home field advantage in the Playoffs.

New York (10-6) – While he has a Super Bowl ring to boast and show, Eli Manning still scares me.  Though proven and loaded beyond belief with such a stellar supporting cast, he still has his old “oh, no Eli” moments where he can be the weak link on a potential Super Bowl candidate.  Why does he still like to visit the old Eli of yesteryear?  Eli Past needs to be put away for good, and Eli Future has to step up to the forefront consistently for the G-Men to excel.  This can’t be the Old Adventures of New Eli.

All of this is frustrating for Tom Coughlin and fans when you consider the play makers at Eli’s disposal.  Call me a bit skeptical of him being able to carry the load if the running struggles persist.  His arsenal sets him up for success, but if the ground game is lacking punch, it could be another long year in the Big Apple -especially if the Jets are successful again.

When you give up more than 40 points in your last three losses, it’ll leave you with a sour taste heading into next season.  Defensively, the pass rush remains, the secondary, when healthy, offer a bevy of sensational options, yet it may come down to injury-prone guys like newly acquired veteran Keith Bulluck and underachieving Michael Boley at LB to get this defense back to where it needs to be.

Championship-level, Super Bowl-caliber defense?  Will a slew of gifted defenders up front and in the back make up for the void left in the middle from the departure of of their retired leader Antonio Pierce?  New stadium and all, someone needs to fill Pierce’s shoes not only on the field, but off it.  This could mean the difference between another mediocre 8-8 season and a satisfying 10-6 playoff appearance.

Washington (10-6) – New mastermind game-planner at head coach, a poised, decorated top-notch signal caller, and a fresh upgrade of bookend tackles —what’s missing?  The arrivals of Shanahan, Donovan, and two quality offensive linemen should propel this squad to at least seven or eight victories.

You cannot underestimate the impact of pairing offensive guru Mike Shanahan with Donovan McNabb.  You saw what McNabb did with Reid and remember what Shanahan accomplished with Elway?  I know you have to reminisce quite a ways with the ladder, but the former is not far from removed.  Clearly, the duo has lots to prove and the urgency is undeniably visible.  They want to show their former clubs/bosses they still can get the job done.  Couple that with Clinton Portis as revitalized man reunited with his former lead guy and the new switch to a 3-4 defense, isn’t this enough for the Nation’s Capital to be gleaming and beaming, bursting with optimism?

So why will they finish third?  Other than the rivals they are looking up to, you can thank the front office and staff for their inability to fancy McNabb’s unglamorous targets.  Only one would imagine if they could land another bonafide pass-catcher to team up with speedster Santana Moss.  You see what McNabb did with Terrell Owens?  A potent big-play, deep-threat away?

Philadelphia (8-8) – The most intriguing of the fearsome fierce fanatic four presents the biggest boom/bust potential based on their electrifying, go-for-broke aerial display.  Led by a Cougar entering his fourth NFL season, the offense will be the Eagles calling card.  You know they can outgun you, but can they out perform and duel you when the gun is out of ammunition?  Kevin Kolb is the real deal, but how much stock can you invest in a three-year pro with only two starts?

Overall, I like what they did via draft, improving the pass rush (Brandon Graham, DE-LB, Michigan) and safety position (Nate Allen, S, USF) but I don’t believe this club will be able to fly beyond the regular season, any further, they would need for two things to instantly happen:  Defense regains its blitzing style and mentality, its luster and mystique from their late great DC genius Jim Johnson and Andy Reid has a complete personality makeover, a stunning rebirth balancing the pass out with the run -I’m sure LeSean McCoy would love for this to come to fruition!

Certainly, you can entertain both ideas, but each seem way more than unlikely, yet, nonetheless, this McNabb-less team features an extremely bright future for many years to come.   If they continue to stick to their ways by rebuilding, remodeling, and reloading the right way, in the month of April, there’s optimism and hope for city of Brotherly Love, Rocky, and Cheese steaks to return to the top of the NFC East, sooner, rather than later.

Reports are coming in that Broncos linebacker Elvis Dumervil may miss the entire 2010 season after suffering a torn pectoral muscle during Wednesday’s practice.

ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson said that the injury will sideline him indefinitely.

The injury is huge for a Broncos team that was expected to be in the mix fighting for the top spot in the AFC West with San Diego.

As Williamson correctly points out, with Dumervil out, Denver will need to get production out of two former No. 1 picks, Jarvis Moss and Robert Ayers.

Dumervil, who had an NFL high and team-record 17 sacks last season, signed a five-year, $58.332 million extension last month, that includes $43.168 million in guarantees.