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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers entered the first round of the 2009 draft with the expectations of selecting a quarterback. It was highly unlikely that either Matthew Stafford or Mark Sanchez would fall close enough to their position at 19, so the main focus was on Kansas State’s Josh Freeman. As their target began to move down the board, sliding towards the possible quarterback nabbing Broncos, the Bucs pounced, trading with the Browns to occupy the 17th spot. But to ensure that there would be no bidding war with anyone also having interest in a trade to obtain their prospect, they signed a $7.5 million decoy to give the impression of a priority change.

Make that five out of six series that the Dbacks have lost, so far, to start the season. After falling 5-1 to the Giants Friday and 5-3 on Saturday, the D’backs assured themselves of another losing series. The story seems to be more of the same. Here is my top ten list of reasons why the Dbacks are not winning.

Two rounds of the 2009 NFL draft are now complete. It was a day that featured some surprises and head-scratchers, but most projections were accurate or at least close to being so. The University of Southern California delivered another 4 players to NFL rosters, including three first-round selections to increase their record total to 74. And though the program flirted with history, they failed to set a new mark…

With the 32nd pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers chose to pick up Missouri defensive tackle Evander “Ziggy” Hood. This automatically makes everyone think, “What about offensive line needs?” or “What about Casey Hampton?” Well, the Steelers are obviously showing some faith in the offensive line, after all, they did win the Super Bowl. It’s not a bad pick and should really boost the offensive line’s confidence. As far as Casey Hampton goes, he’s entering the final year of his contract this season and is 31 years old, 32 come September. That’s not even factoring his problem with showing up to camp within his designated weight limit.

What seems to be a mockery and a blunder of all things, it’s that Steven Jackson is being forgotten about. Not altogether. Just by the majority of sports writers and NFL pundits who are not mentioning anything about him. And when they do mention Jackson’s name, they do not speak of how he excels on the football field when there’s actually a cohesive offensive line and a confident, competent quarterback at the helm. They don’t speak of the myriad amount of hits he takes as soon as he receives the ball thanks to the o-line’s recent inabilities to hold up to protect him. They don’t speak of how poorly former head coach Scott Linehan headed the ship or the management difficulties that interim coach Jim Haslett had when he was trying to weather the storm in St. Louis.

Mel Kiper is one of the most recognizable figures in football. He also has the most recognizable hair in football. One has to wonder how Mel can break down tapes of potential draft picks throughout the year, all the while keeping the Kiper hair brand going. Well, that’s where Kim Kiper comes in. She keeps the Kiper brand flowing smoothly. Whether it’s the NFL draft expertise or Mel’s stationary locks. “She does virtually everything except scout players. So while her husband is in his study watching video, or in a soundproof home studio recording ESPN television spots, she answers the phones, sometimes volunteering that she is Kim Kiper to quiet an argumentative customer. And she often takes work in her car, so she can tend to it while watching their 14-year-old daughter, Lauren, at softball practice.

Okay, there isn’t quite the urgency for a mob gathering as my headline is suggesting. For all I know, Matthew Stafford could be the next great quarterback in the NFL. Hell, at this point, after witnessing the past failures of Joey Harrington, and now an NFL record of 0-16, The Lions would be happy if their top pick just turns out to be “very good”.

On the eve of the 2009 NFL draft, Mark Sanchez has occupied the media focus. But somewhere among the pre-draft ritual of hyping and highlighting the biggest names, three of his Southern California teammates find themselves in line to make NFL draft history. When the stock of Clay Matthews escalated over the period of draft evaluation, it lifted his projection to the first-round, joining fellow linebackers Brian Cushing and Rey Maualuga. If Saturday proves the accuracy of those projections correct, it will be the first time in NFL draft history that three linebackers from a single program are selected in the first round.

What do you have to do??? post in the designated thread between Noon on Draft Day Saturday (April 25th) and Sunday (April 26th). That’s all you have to do. Sound Easy? It is. Good luck and while you are here…check out the best draft talk and coverage available.

Some hard-core NASCAR fans accuse me of disrespecting NASCAR. They say I make fun of it. However, I don’t diss NASCAR. I’m just the kind of guy who finds certain elements of sports to be funny…and I point them out. You see…there’s so much REAL funny stuff in sports…