NFL GridIron Gab Daily Digest

1. Rashard Mendenhall didn’t lose that game. All the people who wanted Mendenhall to put two hands on it are being hypocritical because they like his running style that carried their disjointed offense through the playoffs. “But, his mistake happened when they had momentum.” Yes, and Ben’s interception – which may fall also on Tomlin and/or Arians if Ben was told that a deep throw would be acceptable in close space at the end zone – gave the Packers 7 points. Clay Matthews made the perfect play in the perfect conditions to force the fumble. If you want to blame someone for the loss…
2. Coaches walk a fine line with injured players. When Jay Cutler couldn’t play up to NFC Championship par with his sprained MCL, Lovie made the difficult decision to pull him. In the case of Tom Brady, it’s been two straight years where he might have been able to pull out a win in the playoffs if he had been healthy. In his case, his replacement likely would not have done much better. I do think that if Rivers had sat out with his torn ACL in 2007, Billy Volek would have beaten New England. Now in a Super Bowl, Troy Polamalu looked ineffective and was a key part of a secondary that couldn’t make a play. Would the Steelers have done better if they had benched a hobbled Polamalu?
3. My argument of talent being more important than coaching is starting to get challenged. In the last twelve Super Bowls, we’ve seen some of the greatest offensive (Mike Holmgren, Sean Payton, Josh McDaniels, Mike Martz, Mike McCarthy, Tom Moore) and defensive mavens (Dick Lebeau, Bill Belichick, John Fox) in the NFL. I think coaching is important but I still maintain that pretty good coaching with great talent will usually win over great coaching with pretty good talent.
4. That was not a boring game. I heard some complain about the Super Bowl a day later. The game featured not one, but two, amazing touchdown throws-and-catches (Greg Jennings catching a perfectly-thrown pass in between two defenders as one of them gets a piece of it, Hines Ward makes a great adjustment back to the ball gently soaring above the Green Bay defense). There was a triple-option two point conversion and a huge sideline Nick Collins interception with him weaving his way to the end zone and putting the ball just past the plane between two Steelers. The offenses were a little out-of-sync early but the game had great runs from Mendenhall, a few sacks, a Houdini act by Rodgers, some great throws, a controversial Shaun Suisham 52-yard FG attempt and the game basically ended on a 4th down incompletion. In fact, the last five Super Bowls have been sealed with defensive plays late in the 4th quarter.
5. I think they need to have a ten-site rotation for the Super Bowl, with only three cold-weather cities (Detroit, Chicago, and New York). If they reward individual players for making the Pro Bowl by sending them to Hawai’i, they should reward teams that get to the Super Bowl by letting them spend a week someone warm. I also think the NFL should have been more hands-on to make sure the problems in Dallas didn’t happen in the first place.

Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Cam Newton worked out for the media today at a suburban high school in San Diego today.

According to the Associated Press, he threw passes and did other drills for about 45 minutes. Newton said he is working hard "on the whole grand scheme of playing quarterback in the NFL," especially taking snaps from under center.

Former NFL quarterback and ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer said, "That was phenomenal. If scouts saw this they'd have been slobbering."

The Redskins will take a look at Shaun Rogers, the NT that was released on Wednesday by the Cleveland Browns. Rogers had two sacks this past season for Cleveland.

Keeping with the strategy adopted by previous regimes of pursing veteran players, a league source said the Redskins are expected to host free agent nose tackle Shaun Rogers on Friday.

Rogers, 32 next month, was released by Cleveland during a roster purge last week as the Browns transition back to a 4-3 defensive scheme.

Rogers is eligible to be signed before March 4 because his Browns contract was terminated. Free-agents-to-be like the Redskins' Santana Moss and Carlos Rogers can't talk to other teams until a new collective bargaining agreement is reached.

The Redskins have vowed to stick with their 3-4 scheme and have a gaping hole at nose tackle, especially one with Rogers' size (6-foot-4, 350 pounds).

According to Steve Reed of the Gaston Gazette, four-time Pro Bowl receiver Steve Smith discussed the possibility of being traded with team owner Jerry Richardson this past season, according to two league sources.

Whether or not the Panthers even consider that idea at the appropriate time remains to be seen.

While general manager Marty Hurney wouldn't discuss any private conversations the Panthers have had with Smith or his agent, he did acknowledge the team's star receiver is extremely frustrated.

"I think Steve is probably not unlike everybody in the building — he was not happy with 2-14," Hurney said. "Different people handle frustrations in different ways, but I think it comes down to frustration. I think it comes down to, in the coming months, we have to make the right decisions that will instill that confidence in the people outside the building and inside the building. It's all part of a process."

63 percent of SportsNation viewers are worried about a lockout now that the NFL and NFLPA have cancelled meetings.

SportsNation co-host Colin Cowherd is also worried, "These people are dealing in billions of dollars and they are hundreds of millions apart. I think the players are digging in their heels and you know the owners are digging in their heels. I don't feel good about this."

ESPN analyst Michael Smith agrees with Cowherd, "I will tell you this much, the owners are trying to crush the players and it comes down to whether or not the players have the money in their pockets to make owners feel the pain. This is at least going into the summer."

Patrick Peterson, CB, LSU, 6′1 222

Position Ranking: #1

Strengths: The new prototype for the position; outstanding combination of size, speed, and strength. Physical stature and strength is that of the ideal NFL strong safety, but skill set and abilities are that of the ideal NFL cornerback. Extremely physical and excels in press coverage. Very good foot quickness in transition and shows an even and quick crossover step. Can turn and shade any wide receiver up to 30 yards downfield; stays on the hip with eyes locked on target. Shows good instincts and awareness when playing off coverage, follows the eyes of the quarterback and quickly plants and drives to the spot of the throw with good anticipation. Consistently breaks up passes or dislodges the ball from the receiver. Thoroughly dominated less talented wide receivers.

A heavy hitter and can handle big skill players on an island when he wraps at the point of attack. Consistently physical in run support and has the strength to contain the edge and force runs inside. An aggressive blitzer who releases off the corner quickly to get in the backfield. Not hesitant to stick his head in a pile or collide with physical runners. A playmaker on punt returns, has the straight line speed and agility in space to go the distance. Mentally strong and plays aggressive through four quarters.

Needs Improvement: Doesn’t show great recovery speed deep downfield to regroup and get back on top of speedy receivers. Lacks suddenness when breaking on the short in and out routes. Shows some tightness in hips. Can be overzealous and play himself out of position or get too physical downfield, incurring penalties. Technique is still a work in progress; knows how talented he is and won’t always work to win leverage. Didn’t play a lot of zone coverage in college, roughly 70/30 at best (man/zone coverage).

Bottom Line: Nine times out of ten, Patrick Peterson is the best athlete on the football field. His immense athletic talent coupled with his physical style of play make him one of the most coveted players available in this draft class. His skill set will translate perfectly to either safety or cornerback and he gives the team that drafts him plenty of versatility in the secondary. Peterson also adds the option of being used on punt returns, he scored two touchdowns this season while consistently putting the LSU offense in favorable field position. He isn’t a finished product from a technique standpoint and will benefit from NFL coaching. If I had to pick one player as a ’sure thing’ in this draft class it would be Patrick Peterson.

Draft Projection: Top ten pick.

Jason La Canfora of NFL Network reports a second day of negotiations in Washington between the NFL and NFL Players Association has been canceled, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

The sides, working to reach agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement by March 3, when the current CBA expires, canceled Thursday’s planned talks after an extended session Wednesday.

The sides met Saturday in Dallas, and future talks are planned. Such setbacks are not out of the norm, but hopes of building momentum through multiple sessions this week will not be met.

Neither side would comment on what was discussed or how fruitful the talks were in Wednesday’s session.

From Ravens Insider:

Ray Lewis made it clear Wednesday that he will continue to man the middle of the Ravens' defense next season.

Earlier this month, The Baltimore Sun reported that there were "a lot of rumors swirling" about the Ravens offering the 35-year-old linebacker a financial package to retire.

"I heard that they gave me a front office job. Come on," Lewis said on The Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday.

Lewis finished sixth in the NFL this season with 139 tackles. According to the Ravens, he missed only five snaps on defense.

A day after the Ravens' playoff loss at Pittsburgh, Lewis scoffed at questions on whether he would consider retiring. He continued that stance on Wednesday, saying he would "absolutely" return.

"No ifs ands or buts about it," Lewis said. "Unfinished business."

This wasn't very surprising. Lewis still is playing well enough considering his age and experience and he is still in very good shape with few lingering injuries. After that who knows.