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Just updating this to let people know that the first post in this thread now has links to some good websites with mock drafts and player analyses listed. If anybody knows any other good ones, let me know and I'll update the first post. Also, we still have 3 teams without owners. The Giants, Steelers and Jaguars are still available to anyone who wants them and doesn't currently have a team. The combine starts Feb. 24, so in a week or so we'll start doubling up if people don't take those three teams.

The National Football Post's Wes Bunting has released his first mock draft:

He obviously wasn't a main contributor, but Aromashodu did play for the Colts and received some snaps for a year or two.

It does have something to do with what he'll get. The fact that he's asking for $3.4 million likely isn't what's annoying Hendry. It's probably that he's unwilling to negotiate from it. Hendry has always avoided arbitration by finding a point in the middle of the club's offer and the player's demands. It appears that Theriot won't budge from what he's asking, though. If it goes to arbitration, it'll be the first time a player has gone to arbitration under Hendry and one of the two numbers will be selected. So Theriot's asking price has a lot to do with this. I'll clarify what I meant by that statement actually. Just because Theriot is ASKING for 3.4 this year, doesn't mean he'll be getting 5 mill next year or 10 mill as his 3rd arb year. I really see him losing his case this year personally anyway. And when I saw the numbers exchanged, I thought 2.6 was very fair and I think Hendry SHOULD stick to his guns on this one. I agree with you that Hendry has to be steamed though, since it appears as if Theriot isn't budging from his figure at all. But, it also seemed like Hendry thought the 2.6 figure was extremely fair as well, if I can remember what Bruce had blogged.(could be mistaken, but I got the impression that neither side was going to give in this time)Either way though, Jim has always taken pride in not having to go to arbitration with anyone and this seems destined to do just that. And it probably steams Jim even more that it's Theriot, who has always kind of seemed like a "teachers pet" to Hendry and Lou, at least to me. In the end, I think that the wall is being written on as we speak and ironically, 2010's goat will be Theriot. Castro should be ready by 2011, if not sooner and this could just be the early start of unceremoniously dumping Theriot for next to nothing over the next offseason, or even non-tendering him possibly. It's the Cub way to make guys look bad when they're on the way out the door in most cases and I'm starting to think that this is the start of a year long Theriot bash in the infant stages...... Ok, I get what you were saying now. I do think Theriot will be dealt by next offseason, but I don't know that Hendry will come out and publicly criticize him. If Castro takes over for him at some point this year, though, that'll really hurt his trade value.

I can see a range of wins for this team all the way from mid-70s (if Aramis is hurt a lot, the rotation doesn't come together and Soriano/Soto/Fontenot/Byrd are terrible) to mid-90s (if DLee repeats, Aramis is fully healthy, the rotation is great and Soriano/Soto/Fontenot rebound well). I definitely think we'll be close enough to the division crown at the deadline to be buyers, though, and hopefully Ricketts will be willing to add some salary. That'll be a key to us actually winning the division, I think.

It does have something to do with what he'll get. The fact that he's asking for $3.4 million likely isn't what's annoying Hendry. It's probably that he's unwilling to negotiate from it. Hendry has always avoided arbitration by finding a point in the middle of the club's offer and the player's demands. It appears that Theriot won't budge from what he's asking, though. If it goes to arbitration, it'll be the first time a player has gone to arbitration under Hendry and one of the two numbers will be selected. So Theriot's asking price has a lot to do with this.

source? I could definitely see them trying to trade him, but they wouldn't let him go for nothing. Not over $3.4MM. Not sure if he's referencing this or something else, but from the Cubs upset with Theriot thread first post:

Can we contend? Yes. Will we contend? Depends on a few things going our way. I feel fairly confident about rebounds from Soto and Soriano and a healthier season out of Aramis – and those are three things this team will really need to contend. I think most of the rest of the lineup is pretty stable with the only guy who could fluctuate a lot being DLee. I don't think he'll be as good as last year, but I think he can give us another good year this season. Otherwise, I expect a solid improvement out of Fontenot, but likely a bit of a drop from Baker. Byrd and Fukudome should be similar to last year. The pitching staff's top 3 (Z, Demp, Wells) should be fine. After that, I like the potential of a guy like Shark, but I'm not sure he's there yet. Marshall should be solid wherever they put him and I hope Gorz will pitch solidly. The rotation should be fine if Lilly comes back fully recovered. The bench should be much better and I think the bullpen will be a little better. Overall, this team can really have a wide range of win totals, but I tend to think they'll settle into the 85-88 win range. Thus, I do think we can compete at least for the division if not more. As we've seen, teams can get hot in the postseason and we certainly have a solid 1-3 playoff rotation (assuming Lilly's health). Should we be out of it by the deadline, however, I'd look to trade guys like Lilly, Aramis, Lee, Soriano and Theriot (assuming waving of NTCs/10/5 rights) to re-stock the farm a bit more and might consider guys like Fukudome and Z. The likelihood is that most wouldn't be moved, however, and the likelier avenue would be dealing guys like Theriot, Fontenot (if he's hitting well) and Dempster.

Yeah, Sharpe and Brown were a couple more I didn't think would have to wait to get in.

HOF has always been bad to WR's but I think voters didn't want to put him in until Rice was in because they are the same era. I think Carter gets in next year. That's I can think of at least. That was the thought last year as well, but I would've thought they'd be ok with putting the two in together. Leaving Carter out of the HOF because you want Rice in there first is rather weird (though entirely possible). All it takes is enough people on the list to think that way and it is impossible to get Carter in. Doesn't have to be all of them or even most of them. It could be that some thought that putting Carter and Rice in together makes them seem like equals. Oh, I fully understand that. I wasn't dismissing it, just trying to figure it out.

HOF has always been bad to WR's but I think voters didn't want to put him in until Rice was in because they are the same era. I think Carter gets in next year. That's I can think of at least. That was the thought last year as well, but I would've thought they'd be ok with putting the two in together. Leaving Carter out of the HOF because you want Rice in there first is rather weird (though entirely possible).

What exactly is keeping Cris Carter out? He's easily one of the top WRs of all time and was certainly one of the top (if not the best) WRs during his career. He's 8th all time in receiving yards, 4th in receiving TDs, 5th in yards per reception, 8th in touchdowns, 3rd in receptions and went to 8 pro bowls. Interestingly, he's also 3rd all time in successful two point conversions (with 5). I always thought he'd be a no-brainer, but I guess not.

You're kidding, right? Kennedy career OPS: .721 Fontenot career OPS: .761 Baker career OPS: .782 Kennedy is also 33 while Fontenot is 30 and Baker is 29. Career fielding: Kennedy: 8.2 UZR/150 Fontenot: 10.4 UZR/150 Baker: 2.3 UZR/150 OPS isn't the best stat, but that's just a quick rundown.

Yeah, if he has time, he'll just pick a defense apart. The way to beat Peyton (not foolproof, obviously) is to confuse him and continue to do so. You can't be predictable or repeat pretty much anything. If you do, he'll pick up on it like he did against the Jets and torch you. A mixture of blitzes and coverage would be the best strategy, I think.

totally free. All you need is a yahoo account. Ok, great. I figured it's be free, but I know some on here like to play for money so I wanted to make sure.

I think he exaggerated a bit with the comments, but I do think the Saints will blitz some because that's what Gregg Williams does. He'll just have to be creative with timing, where the guys come from, etc. The Saints have to at least try to blitz. If it doesn't work and you can't get to Manning, then switch things up. But they can't just sit back from the start. They didn't blitz Brady all that much during the Patriots game and it worked quite well. The Patriots played a really, really bad game too. It's hard to expect that bad a performance to happen twice in a year – especially against the best QB in the NFL.

I'd be up for it - assuming it's free.

I think he exaggerated a bit with the comments, but I do think the Saints will blitz some because that's what Gregg Williams does. He'll just have to be creative with timing, where the guys come from, etc.

In case anybody cares:

Another part of my childhood dies. I know MLB has rules and such governing broadcasts on superstations, but listening to Harry and Steve and watching 154 games a year on WGN was one of the best memories of my childhood. The crappy thing is I live JUST out of the range of CSN. If I were 15 miles further south I could get it in my cable package. I still credit a large part of my being a Cub fan to watching games after school on WGN.

Yeah, I would expect Joker to be heavily involved. That said, I hope Randy does well in Kentucky. I thought he did fairly well at UT and was hoping he'd get another opportunity at being an OC. There's no question the man can develop QBs.

Will Randy Sanders be the offensive coordinator for Joker or will he do it himself?

I have no problem with trading Theriot and would probably prefer it if we got a real good deal in return. That said, it'd truly have to be a case of selling high for me to be interested. If we can't make a clear improvement to the team, I see no benefit in trading him.

I must say, NFL Network is awesome. They have live coverage of the Super Bowl and the goings ons in Miami every day this week from 11 am to 6 pm (EST). It's mostly just interviews, but still it's cool.

Blanco's career minor league stats: .256/.318/.326/.644 A .725 OPS would be pretty impressive for him.