2007 NFL Offseason Stuff Thread

[ice grillin you]

[Seabiscuit36]

who the hell is that IGY, Pryzbylewski from the wire?

[ice grillin you]

drew beezy

[Zanshin]

Wow.  Steelers released Joey Porter.

[paco]

Saints released WR Joe Horn, although the team hopes to re-sign him.

This news was expected, but it's a new development that Horn and the Saints talked contract the last two days. One of the best free agent signings in NFL history and second all-time among Saints in yards and catches, Horn will probably look elsewhere to maximize his final payday. He can still be a quality role player. Mar. 1 - 4:28 pm et

[BigEd76]

Fred Taylor signed a 3-year extension

San Diego released McCardell and Steve Foley

and this Leno headline:

Patriots | Gay receives tender offer
Thu, 1 Mar 2007 13:30:37 -0800

[mussa]

I'd take McCardell or Joe Horn in a heart beat. Porter being released is unbelievable. Some team, not us, is going to get a great player in him.

[Seabiscuit36]

I'd bet cowboys or jets

[QB Eagles]

I live in Pittsburgh and no one here is too upset over losing Porter. He used to be a great player, but last year his production flat-out sucked.

[QB Eagles]

The Cowboys cut Drew Bledsoe.

[Rome]

McCardell is done.  No thanks to that fossil.

All that bullshtein from Horn about loyalty and love for New Orleans and the whole we are family crock of shtein makes me giggle a little.

It's a cutthroat business and if you're overpaid or aren't producing you're gone.  So don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out, motherfarger.

[BigEd76]

More cuts:

Antonio Bryant

Brandon Stokley

Kenyatta Walker

Karl Hankton

[mussa]

r u kidding me? if your from pitt or not joey porter is a player. he's gonna be a player for yrs to come. bad move by pitt.

[BigEd76]

NFL seeks to trademark 'Big Game' phrase
League wants to protect Super Bowl image, but Stanford and Cal have already taken action to oppose move.
By Sam Farmer, Times Staff Writer
March 2, 2007

In an effort to discourage unauthorized companies from using the Super Bowl to peddle their products, the NFL is seeking to trademark the phrase "the Big Game."

But a college football rivalry that began in 1902 might have something to say about that.

Stanford and California, whose annual showdown is known as "Big Game," have taken initial steps to oppose the trademark through Collegiate Licensing Co., and have obtained a three-month extension to mull their next move.

Whereas the NFL says it merely wants to protect its prized mega-event, and the sponsors who pay millions to legitimately attach their names to it, some observers are accusing the league of arrogance.

"The first emotion that jumps to my mind is sadness," said Ted Robinson, Stanford's play-by-play announcer. "How sad that a league as successful as the NFL would try to trademark such an extraordinarily common phrase.

"Why would you want to come across as a corporate bully by interfering with a college game that has such as a long-standing tradition — in a market where you have two franchises."

A league spokesman said the NFL has no issue with any rivalry in college football. Its target are marketers who make obvious references to the championship game without saying "Super Bowl" or "Super Sunday" or the like.

"You hear radio ads or TV commercials where a company would promote its product by saying, 'Come on in before the big game' " said Brian McCarthy, the league's director of corporate communications. "We're in essence trying to stop these companies from doing an end-around on the Super Bowl.

"To some it may be comical, but to us it dilutes the value of the Super Bowl and our ability to sell those rights to our partners."

The NFL is fiercely protective of its brand. Before this year's Super Bowl, league executives noticed an unofficial "Super Bowl Bash" advertised on the website of an Indianapolis church. The next day, the pastor received a cease-and-desist letter by overnight mail demanding the party be canceled.

The action might lead to Cal and Stanford seeking their own collective "Big Game" trademark, just as other schools have done. Auburn and Alabama, for instance, have registered the name "Iron Bowl" in reference to their rivalry.

Last year, Texas A&M, which holds a trademark for calling its fans the "12th man," sued the Seattle Seahawks for infringing on that. The sides eventually settled.

Michael Drucker, vice president and general counsel for Collegiate Licensing, said while the league is within its rights to apply for the trademark and protect its Super Bowl interests, "that in no way means ... the NFL would be able to take action against the universities, who have used the mark for more than 100 years."

[Father Demon]

The NFL should just trademark the words football, uniforom, helmet, field, turf, stadium, referee, pass, block, run, dump, kick, punt, practice, two-a-days, cleats, logo, number, jersey, head coach, and TO just to be done with it.