McNabb and Redskins Have Something To Prove

Don't let the fact that Donovan McNabb is downplaying his return to Philadelphia fool you. This game is not only big for a Washington Redskins team coming off a pathetic loss to St. Louis, but it is big on a different level for the former Eagles quarterback.

McNabb may be known more for the amount of boos he received from Eagles fans than from being one of the best quarterbacks in the league throughout his 11 seasons in Philadelphia. In 1999, when he was drafted in the first round out of Syracuse, he was booed. Those boos continued until McNabb was traded this off-season to Washington. McNabb may say he doesn't have any hard feelings towards Eagles fans, but how can he really feel that way. He was unappreciated there his entire career, so there is no way that he couldn't feel anything. McNabb may say it's just another game, but in his heart, he wants to beat the Eagles more than anybody.


When Washington (1-2) rolls into Philadelphia (2-1) this game is about the Redskins and Eagles ultimately, but don't you think for a second that McNabb doesn't want a little revenge on his former team and the fans that booed him throughout his 11 years wearing the green and white.

Phil Fulmer Might Hate Lane Kiffin

Former University of Tennessee football coach Phil Fulmer had some interesting words for former University of Tennessee football coach Lane Kiffin this past weekend.

Fulmer, who works for CBS as an analyst, commented on Lane Kiffin and his job opportunities at the University of Tennessee and USC. Stating that Kiffin's arrogant attitude turned most people off, and he couldn't believe he was given the opportunities that he has had.

"And often his arrogant attitude turned people off. The bigger question in my opinion is how does a guy like this end up with two jobs with historic football teams like Tennessee and USC?" - Phil Fulmer

While it is obvious that Fulmer probably isn't too fond of the man that replaced him as the head coach of Tennessee, his comments are pretty accurate. Kiffin didn't do anything great in Oakland, so why was he given the reigns at Tennessee so easily? Then he had an okay season at Tennessee, while causing some problems with the NCAA and SEC, but he was handed the USC job pretty much uncontested. While bringing along his father, Monte and other notable coaches is a big perk, what is the appeal to this guy? All I can say is karma is a bitch and when Kiffin gets his, it will not be pretty.

Gators Talent Overpowers Vols

Let's talk a little about rivalries in college sports. None may be bigger than Florida and Tennessee. While their hatred for each other on the field may be even, the talent levels aren't anywhere close to being on the same level. Florida has been a top five program for the past five years, on the other hand the Vols are in the midst of rebuilding. So when the Gators left Rocky Top Saturday with a 31-17 win over the Vols, I was not shocked. At least they didn't get embarrassed like they did the previous week against Oregon.

To say the Vols improved a little bit over the past week is true, but that does not mean they are even close to being where they will be at the end of the year. The systems are new, so things take time. When the talent isn't there those things take longer.

NFL News & Notes

The big news this week was that Saints running back Reggie Bush gave back his 2005 Heisman Trophy. However, he did say that doing this doesn't mean that he was guilty of the accusations of taking money from boosters. So, if he wasn't guilty, why did he give back the Heisman? Very confusing stuff from Reggie.

After he destroyed fantasy football leagues everywhere in Week 1 with three touchdowns, Giants receiver Hakeem Nicks is listed as Questionable on the team's injury report this Sunday night against the Colts with an ankle injury. Nicks suffered the injury during practice mid week and hasn't been able to do much since. This news pisses me off because I had him on the bench Week 1 and I will probably have him on the bench this week because I can't afford to wait around for him to decide whether or not he is going to play.

Vikings receiver Percy Harvin once again did not practice this week and is listed as a game-time decision for this week's match up against the Dolphins with what has been called a hip bruise. Harvin has tweeted that he will play Sunday. At least it isn't the migraines this time, but what the hell is wrong with this guy? I'm starting to think he just doesn't like to practice.

Gators Receiver Arrested for "Aggravated Stalking"

Florida receiver, Chris Rainey, was arrested early this morning on a charge of aggravated stalking a woman he has been dating on and off for about three years.

According to the Gainsville Sun, Gainesville police said the incident began when the woman fell asleep and missed a call from Rainey. Officer Jesse Bostick said Rainey went to the woman's home, and she talked to him for about 10 minutes and then told him to leave. According to Bostick, Rainey sent a text to the woman that said: "Time to die." The woman called police after receiving the text.

Rainey, a redshirt junior is a starting receiver for the Gators and is regarded as one of their top playmakers. It would be a good bet he won't be with the team when they travel to Knoxville this weekend to take on the Vols.

Vols True Colors Show Against Ducks

After last week's win over UT-Martin, the Tennessee Vols didn't really know how they would stand up against some of the top teams in college football. With No. 7 Oregon coming to town, it was going to be evident that we would get an answer to that very question.

The game started out great, even surpassed my expectations for the Vols. They opened the game with a solid drive and settled for a Daniel Lincoln field goal to take an early 3-0 lead. A forced fumble on the ensuing kickoff enabled the Vols to kick another field goal and go up 6-0. After a 90 minute weather delay, play resumed. The Vols and Ducks traded shots and went into halftime tied 13-13. Then all hell broke loose.

When play resumed in the second half, the Ducks came out to play. The Vols on the other hand looked like a completely different team. They didn't have the same fire they did in the first half and by watching, you knew it was only a matter of time before Oregon took control. A couple big plays and the Ducks ran away with it and ended up winning 48-13.

Going into this game, I knew Oregon had the better team. I wasn't going to be surprised if the Vols lost this one. After all, the Ducks were ranked No. 7 in the country. What I did expect is for the Vols to give their all for their fans throughout this game. That did not happen, and that must change. This is a young, inexperienced team and some leaders need to emerge on the field. When things get tough, true leadership shows and the Vols are still waiting for that to happen.

This was a big test for the Vols and while they came up short, it could be used as a real turning point for this team mentally. Tennessee fans will never give up on the Vols, so the players on the field should never give up either. When each player passes the "I will give my all for Tennessee today" sign on the way to the field, they should think about what that truly means and live by it for the full 60 minutes.

NFL Season Is Finally Here

The 2010 NFL Season is finally here as Minnesota travels to New Orleans and attempts to redeem themselves against last season's Super Bowl champions. There are a lot of questions surrounding both teams heading into the new season. Can Vikings quarterback Brett Favre make it through the season with his surgically repaired ankle, or can the Saints be as dominant this season as they were last? Both of those questions and more will be answered as the season progresses, but here are some things Knox Animal is looking forward to finding out this season.

• How will the top draft picks fare this season? Can Sam Bradford make the Rams offense work?
• Can Derek Anderson handle the load in Arizona?
• Is Oakland a better fit for Jason Campbell?
• Are the Jets for real, or is just a bunch of hype?
• Can Donavon McNabb and Mike Shanahan save the Redskins?

Knox Animal 2010 NFL Predictions

Offensive Rookie of the Year: C.J. Spiller
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Ndamukong Suh
Defensive Player of the Year: Patrick Willis
Offensive Player of the Year: Ray Rice
MVP: Aaron Rodgers
NFC East Champion: Dallas Cowboys
NFC South Champion: New Orleans Saints
NFC North Champion: Green Bay Packers
NFC West Champion: San Francisco 49ers
AFC East Champion: New York Jets
AFC South Champion: Indianapolis Colts
AFC North Champion: Baltimore Ravens
AFC West Champion: San Diego Chargers
Super Bowl Champion: Baltimore Ravens

Former Vol Crompton Released By Chargers

News out of San Diego is that former Tennessee Vols quarterback Jonathan Crompton has been released from the Chargers practice squad. Crompton was dropped on Saturday, but they signed him to the practice squad the following day.

After the dreadful camp Crompton had, it wasn't surprising that he was given the boot. He finished the preseason 18-of-33 passing for 203 yards, three interceptions and a quarterback rating of 35.3.

I was hopeful for the fifth round pick of this year's NFL draft, but things didn't pan out for him on the west coast. Based on his up and down career at UT, if anybody can shrug this off it would be Crompton. Best of luck Crompty.

Vols Score 50 Against UT Martin

After Tennessee's 50-0 win over UT Martin Saturday night, it is still unclear what kind of team we can expect from the Vols this season. Sure 50 points is impressive, but when you think about who it was against, the impressive statement is easily replaced by expected. There are definitely some things for Vols fans to be happy about after this win, but until they are done against a credible team all judgments should be reserved.

First of all Junior quarterback Matt Simms looked good. He looked in control and he made some big throws. For a first time signal caller in this offense he looked like a veteran. It was really encouraging to see this during the first game, but let's see how he does against No. 11 Oregon this week.

Running backs Tauren Poole and David Oku ran the ball effectively. Both looked very capable of putting up big numbers this season. Sure the offensive line opened up some massive holes against the much smaller personnel of Martin. Things might be different this week against Oregon, but I expect the running game to be a bright spot this season.

Receivers and Tight Ends aside from Luke Stocker all played pretty well. Stocker dropped three passes that should have been caught. That is uncalled for from a senior that is supposed to be the most reliable target for Vol quarterbacks. He must get better if the Tennessee passing game is going to excel.

Any time there is a shutout, the defense obviously played well. Yes, the defense played great, but let's see what happens against a good team. Linebacker Austin Johnson played out of his mind. His diving interception over the middle was a thing of beauty and he was in on at least a half a dozen tackles. He could have a monster year.

I told my wife before the game started that I would be happy if the Vols put up 50. Sure enough they put up 50, which is more than weird. So overall, I am happy with the performance, but honestly it was what I expected. If they didn't score 50, I would have been dissapointed. The defense didn't give up anything, so that is always great, but like I said before - let's do it against a good team and that starts this week against Oregon.

NFL News and Notes

Arizona Cardinals defensive tackle Darnell Dockett signed a four year, $48 million extension with $30 million guaranteed. The Pro Bowler is the anchor of the Cardinals defense and should be considered the best defensive tackle in the game. While it's not the absurd amount of money Albert Haynesworth received when he signed with the Redskins, it is nice to see Arizona recognize their assets.

In other Cardinals news, Matt Leinart is not a happy camper. Not only is he not the best quarterback on the team, but he opened his mouth up to the media complaining about not being named the number one guy. This didn't sit well with Cardinals management and the former first rounder has been brought up in recent trade discussions. Buffalo, Oakland and New York Giants have all been brought up, but all three have said they are not interested in the soon to be bust out of USC.

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is trying to get his six-game suspension reduced to a mere two or three game ban. Many believe that the suspension will be reduced to four games, but there is still no official word on what NFL commissioner Roger Goodell will do when the two meet Friday to discuss the fate of the troubled quarterback.