Davis talked Walker out of retirment

Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com has just reported that Oakland Raider owner Al Davis talked Javon Walker out of retirement as late as last week. Walker, whom apparently was struggling with his own performance in training camp, offered to reimburse Oakland for the eleven million dollar signing bonus he received.

This comes after Bill Williamson of ESPN.com reported yesterday that Walker was off to a slow start, apparently Raiders coach Lane Kiffin has been critical of the receiver in camp.

Denver Broncos will still go 13-3.

2007 was a dark place for Denver. I hope that I never write about it again in this context, at this point it's been brought up again and again, fans now bat it around lacking the tact it deserves. The night after the Denver Broncos lost the opportunity to go to the playoffs against San Francisco, Darrent Williams was murdered, gangland style and died in Javon Walker's arms.

Barely a moment to recuperate from the fact that they wouldn't be making the playoffs and the 23-26 overtime loss to the San Francisco 49ers- and now this... A man amongst the 60 plus of them that had survived the OTA's, the month long hell-hole known as Training Camp; The five to six practices a week, a man who had rose above his age, above his perceived talent level and who had played so well as a rookie in Champ Bailey's shadow that Denver had almost made it to the Super Bowl- was gone. Forever.

Echoes of his smile, Texas accent and young raw talent were everywhere. The death of a friend is haunting enough, the death of a team mate, a fellow soldier is down right devastating- shaken to the core. Every single one of them reminded of their own mortality. Then, after not even a moment to catch their breath- Damien Nash, collapses during a basketball game. Two of their sixty, gone.

How must Denver go on? A month from the time they must reconvene and face the questions when they yet to even come to grips to find the answers. Jay Cutler, who will start, who almost got them to the playoffs- a rookie by any standards, untested and unproven. The new Defensive Coordinator, the new system, the new back with a history of trouble making...

Finally July, training camp, then they all started dropping like flies, no Rod Smith, no Ebenezer Ekuban, no Ben Hamilton, Al Wilson's gone and DJ Williams is going to play middle and we've got Dre Bly, but even the best corner in the league can't fill the gap that the loss of Williams left.

More season, more injuries, seriously how the hell were they supposed to do well? Walker's gone, Travis Henry's not clean, we've got Cutler running for his life and now Tom Nalen's gone... Oh and Bailey, our corner's leading the team in tackles...

Really? 2007??? Really? That's how you want to judge us? That's what you want to give Mike Shanahan credit for? So called experts would like to point out that we can't stop the run, nor the pass rush, guess we can't take Brett Favre into overtime or knock Minnesota out of the playoffs, beat Pittsburgh and Jay Cutler can't go head to head with Vince Young and show him who deserved to stay in Tennessee. Let Philip Rivers talk, because seriously, look at his numbers, compared to the second year Cutler, that's all he is good at, talking. The San Diego Chargers may very well be favorites to go to the Super Bowl this season, but that's never stopped Denver from knocking them on their ass...

13-3 folks, follow me.

Links

• BroncoTalk allowed me to post an article, and participate in Smack Talk Week, regarding the AFC West (thanks guys!).
• Dan Rooney, Jerry Jones and Pat Bowlen amongst NFL's most respected owners.
• More than a few writers are pointing out Javon Walker's situation may have been a drug deal gone bad.
• Some people are confused, this betting site has the Broncos winning nine games, then wraps up by saying they're winning 10? I already said, they're winning 13, nobody listens...
• John Lynch & Mike Shanahan are both quoted in this Hines Ward article. (Bill Williamson must have written it).
• Speaking of John Lynch, coaches voted him the 3rd smartest player in the NFL.
• LaMont Jordan could be heading to New Orleans.
• Champ Bailey & John Lynch on the list among the best Defensive Backs of all time. As I pointed out last month Bailey is already better than Deion Sanders, but this guy agrees.

Arrest Made in Javon Walker Case

Denver's CBS4 is reporting via the AP that there has been an arrest made in the Javon Walker, beating/kidnap.

"Lt. Clinton Nichols said Tuesday that 30-year-old Arfat Fadel is suspected of multiple felonies including kidnapping and robbery. Police said Fadel was arrested Friday and police were looking for a second suspect.

Nichols said police believe the second man is still in Las Vegas."

I was done making posts about this case and was going to continue to just link, however now that Brandon Marshall's name is now showing up, I might have to keep up with it.

Are you ****ing kidding!

Las Vegas Review Journal is reporting that Brandon Marshall was at club Tryst (the same club Javon Walker was at) on Friday.

Here's the blurb:

"LATEST WALKER TWISTS

Metro's investigation into the bizarre Javon Walker case has focused on two critical points after he left Body English nightclub at the Hard Rock Hotel: Who was with him at a party in the Hard Rock penthouse and whom did he leave with?

And just when the story couldn't get any weirder -- on second thought, the hunch here is that it's going to get much wilder -- Walker's former Denver Broncos teammate Brandon Marshall showed up Friday at Tryst.

It was Marshall and his cousin who started spraying champagne at a Denver nightclub on New Year's Eve a year and a half ago, igniting bad blood with some gang members, according to published reports.

Shortly after Walker and some teammates left in a limo, Broncos defensive back Darren[t] Williams was shot in a drive-by and died in Walker's arms."

No wonder Marshall had no comment earlier when The Denver Post wanted to know how he was doing with his hand. However, this blurb could mean anything, was Brandon Marshall there this Friday or the Friday two days before Walker was there? Either way, what the hell is he doing in Vegas at the same club Walker was just in before he got "robbed"? Come on man, someone hire this guy an Eric Murphy and kick his loser brother (cousin) Drama to the curb.

Denver will go 13-3 in 2008

Okay, at worst 12-4. I’m not kidding, allow me to state my case:

Offseason Losses:
Javon Walker – WR
Travis Henry - RB
Ian Gold – OLB
Matt Lepsis - LT
Chris Myers – C/G
Jason Elam – K

Key Pickups:
Dewayne Robertson – DT
Darrell Jackson - WR
Niko Koutouvides – MLB
Boss Bailey – OLB
Marlon McCree – SS
Casey Wiegmann – C/G
Keary Colbert – WR
Samie Parker – WR
Michael Pittman – HB
Dylan Gandy – G/T
Ryan Clady – LT*
Eddie Royal – WR/KR/PR*
Peyton Hillis – FB*
Ryan Torain – RB*
Carlton Powell – DT*
Spencer Larsen – MLB*
*-(Draft Pick)
**- Picks are in order based on what I see as their importance to the team. With the rookies below the free agents.

See that list? Maybe that makes my point, maybe it doesn’t. One thing you will come to learn about me is that I don’t like to make points, I like to over make them. Love leaving someone who felt like they had a point, forgetting what their point was in the first place.

In 2007 Denver played every AFC Playoff team, except for New England, including San Diego twice. They also played a Green Bay Packers team that went 13-3, the Bears, who had lost the Super Bowl the previous season (and barely missed the playoffs in ’07) and teams in Houston and Buffalo who were in the playoff hunt until the very end.

All said, of the 13 teams that Denver played in 2007, six made the playoffs and another two could have easily been there. Granted the Broncos only beat two of those six, but did give Green Bay a run for their money and there were moments of hope at Indianapolis and against Jacksonville. Speaking of Green Bay and I mentioned Chicago earlier, any fans in doubt that had we won those overtime coin tosses Denver would have finished the season 9-7 instead of 7-9?

So what’s in the cards for Denver this season? On paper Denver has the third weakest strength of schedule in the NFL, Oakland has the second and New England (go figure) has the easiest schedule. Despite going 7-9 last season, Denver did finish second in the AFC West. So they are going to play the other second place teams (Jacksonville and Cleveland) in the AFC as well as pulling the AFC East (New England, Miami, Buffalo and New York Jets) and the NFC South (Tampa, New Orleans, Carolina and Atlanta). Of course they’ll have Kansas City, San Diego and Oakland twice.

Not looking so bleak anymore is it?

Or are you still concerned? Many blame last season predominantly on lousy run defense, I focus on an incredibly unfortunate amount of injuries and lack of depth. Over the course of the season Denver lost: their best receiver, their two best offensive linemen, two of their best defensive ends, their starting running back, the backbone to their defense safety and cornerback, their pass catching tight end and their other two starting receivers at different points in the season. Granted some came back during the season, but hardly any were able to return to starting fashion before the end of the season. Brandon Stokley and Tony Scheffler being the exceptions, the best part about that laundry list of injuries is that all (except Javon Walker) will be back, healthy (crossing fingers) for 2008.

Add the list of healthy onto that exciting laundry list of offseason pickups and we’re not built like a 7-9 team. Matter of fact, that’s what I would call a 13-3 team, 12-4 if you want to be an ass. Jay Cutler, whom by now everyone knows, was playing with the worst type of diabetes for all of last season, now has the disease under control. Cutler has thrown for 300 yards in his career only twice. However, he’s coming into his third season in a Mike Shanahan offense: John Elway (twice), Steve Young and Jake Plummer all flourished in their third season in a Shanahan offense.

Selvin Young may not be the answer at running back, but he’s not going to hurt, the exact same thing can be said for Andre Hall, Michael Pittman, Ryan Torain and Anthony Aldridge. Though the thought of any of them running for 2,000 yards may be a little absurd, the idea of them combining for 2,500+ yards is not. Last season Denver ran for a combined 1,957 with a makeshift offensive line. This year, even if there are as many as three injuries to starters on the offensive line, Denver has the depth to replace them with someone equally as talented.

When Javon Walker went down last season, Denver was faced with a second year player in Brandon Marshall and the NFL’s best slot receiver in Brandon Stokley (who played out of his most productive position for the rest of the season). Then Stokley was lost for the last three games of the season. Taking 12 receivers into camp is nothing out of the ordinary for a Shanahan team and due to that practice Denver doesn’t look to topple off talent wise at receiver until they get down near the 5^th or 6^th member of the depth chart.

This couldn’t be said last season, Walker went down and Denver had no depth behind Stokley and Marshall, who combined for 1,960 yards in 2007. Do you not think that with Darrell Jackson, Sammie Parker, Eddie Royal and Keary Colbert the team might be able to do a bit more than that? Not to mention relieve some of the time Stokley spends on the field, possibly allowing for him to stay healthy the entire season?

In fact if I had one concern for the entire Denver Broncos offense, it would be the lack of depth at tight end. Already, before training camp, we can see what Denver would be faced with if they were to start the season. Daniel Graham, Nate Jackson and… Mike Leech (our long snapper) at tight end. Though the late word out of team camp is that Jackson’s looking great.

Now, what am I forgetting about? Fullback, remember Denver’s final pick in the draft? Peyton Hillis, yeah, he was blocking for Darren McFadden and Felix Jones last season. He was also catching passes, both of these abilities will help the Broncos offense punch it in while in the end zone. What a steal, of course still employed at fullback are Cecil Sapp and Mike Bell, though neither were terribly impressive last season, yet who can blame them?

In the NFL it’s a rule, everyone is equal, on paper someone may be better, but on any given Sunday any team can win. Teams that are predicted to do well can have a horrible season losing one player. If a team can stay healthy, the team usually has a season that carries deep into January.

About last night... :-P

Sorry about the lack of posts yesterday, I had some personal issues and now I'm posting the first part of a two part blog that I'll have up completely by tomorrow.

By the way, don't be scared to comment (on Sam's articles, not mine, I'll argue with a brick wall about its thickness). We appreciate you guys checking us out, sometimes multiple times a day looking for content and we're getting ready to kick it into fifth gear before we get into training camp.

Here's some links:

Montrae Holland speaks so Ryan Clady doesn't have to.
I'm done talking about Javon Walker, but the Bellagio says his story's incorrect.
And the Broncos wish him well.
Keyshawn Johnson's got something to say about it too on TMZ.
Former Bronco Mike Anderson may be suspended.

Well, I was going to write about RBs, but

... this thing with Javon Walker came up and it has me thinking about a bunch of other stuff right now.

Some Bronco fans don't like Javon right now because he wanted out of Denver and he's a Raider now. I really hope that hearing about his assault and injury doesn't have too many gloating or telling anyone "I told you so!".

If we truly love this game, we want to see it played, and for that we need opponents. If we respect players and want to see them treated as people and not slaves, we appreciate what their union has accomplished in the area of free agency.

I read some things recently where a Bronco fan was expressing some kind of perverse pleasure about Philip Rivers' painful recovery from his knee injury. Phil isn't the most popular guy in Denver these days (see game #2 at Mile High '08). However, as a fellow human (kind of) who has had some injuries and surgeries, let me encourage all my brothers and sisters out there to feel sympathy for our fellows in pain.

Javon has a serious and painful injury. Let's hope he plays in the season opener against our beloved Broncos. If he doesn't, that won't be fun.

Javon likes to party as many of us do. If I had his money and body, I don't know if I'd even own a shirt ... well ... anyway. One thing that has crossed my mind is exactly why he was so determined to leave Denver? You don't suppose ...? It IS an unsolved murder case. And now this. I sincerely hope there is no connection.

Ever see that show on ESPN about funny sports stuff? You know like the fly ball that hit a bird which drops on the outfielder's head ... stuff like that? Remember the one at a hockey game where the visitor's penalty box is plexiglass and is surrounded by home fans? One of the fans is talking major trash to the guy in the penalty box and he leans on the side of the box a little too hard and ... be careful what you wish for ... let's wish each other well more often than not.

UPDATE: Javon Walker

Okay, before I get into the article, I want to point out that the Javon Walker quote is from a website famous for posting pictures of Arizona Cardinals Quarterback Matt Leinart and Tennesse Titans Quarterback Vince Young. As well as a picture of our own Jay Cutler, I believe. Had they not signed off with a very poor last sentence, I'd be linking to them, but they did. So I'm going to link from ProFootballTalk, whom I know has some type of vendetta against Coach Shanahan. Anyway, here's the article, it's the lesser of two evils:

WALKER SPEAKS, MAKES NO SENSE

Posted by Mike Florio on June 17, 2008, 10:45 p.m.

Raiders receiver Javon Walker has given an exclusive interview to TheDirty.com, a web site that gathered notoriety over the past few months for, among other things, the publication of photographs of NFL players in compromising positions.

Here’s Walker’s claim: “I was just back at my room and at about 5:30 in the morning, I got a knock at the door, I opened it and 3 guys with guns were there, they cracked me in the head a few times knocking me unconcious. They then robbed me of everything I had– my watch– money– everything! Somehow they got me to the car and dropped me off in the street. That’s what happened.”

Our reaction? Perhaps they need to check out Walker’s brain function a little more closely. Because whatever it was that cracked his orbital bone also might have functioned as the equivalent of a lobotomy.

Think about it. Three gun-wielding thugs walk through the lobby and, somehow knowing the number of Walker’s room, show up there, knock on the door, and pistol whip him when he opens it. Then, after ransacking the room, they drag his unconscious body out of the hotel without being detected and leave it in the street.

As we suggested during our Tuesday night visit with Todd Wright on Sporting News Radio, maybe the crooks put Brandon Marshall’s McDonald’s bag over Walker’s head so that Javon wouldn’t know where they were taking him.

If Walker’s story is true (and we’re certain that it isn’t), it’s surely not a random act. Robbers just want the loot — they feel no need to disrespect the victim if doing so enhances the possibility of being caught.

Given this lame-ass explanation, we’ve concluded that any and all jokes about the situation are fair game. And so we present Taco Bill’s Pic of the Day, crafted in honor of the Walker incident.

So if Walker was still signed I'd be making this a Shots Fired article, but he's not so I'm not. And just remember Mike Florio said it, not me.

Updates: Walker was Robbed...

Javon Walker's situation is updated by KVVU Fox 5 in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS -- NFL wide receiver Javon Walker was the victim of an apparent early morning robbery, according to Metro police.

Walker was found unconscious at about 7:19 a.m. Monday near the intersection of Koval Lane and Winnick Avenue, officers said.

The Oakland Raiders player was taken to Sunrise Medical Center’s Trauma unit, where he was listed in fair condition late Monday afternoon, hospital officials said.

Police said Walker had significant injuries.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal columnist Norm Clarke, Walker was seen Saturday night at Tryst at the Wynn spraying the crowd with some of the 15 bottles of Dom Perignon Rose champagne he ordered.

Clarke also said Walker was at Body English at Hard Rock Hotel and Casino until 6:30 a.m. Monday and that his first round of champagne cost him $15,000.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555.

So the good news is he's in fair condition, he was throwing around expensive champagne and ran up a fifteen thousand dollar bill at another bar. How do you spend that much money in a bar? I guess it's easy once you've taken a part in 15 bottles of Dom Perignon at the previous bar. With that much alcohol in your system and throwing around that much money, it's easy to see why he became a target.

About his injury:

Treatment may include:

• A consultation with an ophthalmologist (physician who specializes in comprehensive eye care) may be necessary for a complete evaluation of the eye.
  
  
• Some fractures do not have to be treated immediately. Depending on the injury, time may be allowed for the swelling and bruising to go away before the fracture is treated.
  
  
• Usually, the double vision will resolve without treatment in three to four days.
  
  
• Surgery may be indicated for severe fractures, or if there is involvement of the eye. Surgery may be performed immediately, or up to several days after the trauma.

Thanks to: Virginia.edu

Breaking News: Javon Walker found Unconscious

NFL wide receiver Javon Walker was found unconscious on East Flamingo Road and Koval Lane Monday morning, Metro police said.

The Oakland Raiders player was taken to Sunrise Medical Center’s Trauma unit, where he was listed in fair condition late Monday afternoon, hospital officials said.

Police said Walker had an orbital fracture. They said they are not sure how he received the fracture.

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Walker was seen Saturday night at Tryst at the Wynn spraying the crowd with some of the 15 bottles of Dom Perignon Rose champagne he ordered.

As Broncos fans we can't say that we expected this to happen, but even if he is a Raider now. Our best wishes go out to him, hoping that he can still make it to Week 1.