Sunday, October 28, 2007

Chris Chambers, Michael Bennett on the move

They probably won't get many headlines Monday morning, but Chris Chambers and Michael Bennett each scored touchdowns with their new teams Sunday, Chambers with San Diego and Bennett with Tampa Bay. I'm glad these guys are getting a chance - Chambers to play with a real team and a real quarterback, and Bennett a chance to get some carries in a situation were he's not stuck behind Larry Johnson, Reggie Bush, or four bums who Mike Tice likes to rotate.

The bigger issue is that here are two more ex-Badgers involved in trades (Bennett for the second time, I think) in a league where players are not traded nearly as often as the other major leagues. Jamar Fletcher, Ron Dayne, and Brooks Bollinger are other recent examples. These guys are in a kind of NFL limbo - not good enough to be untouchable, but not bad enough to give up on altogether.

Given their college pedigrees - Fletch and Dayne especially - it's surprising they haven't been able to establish themselves as key players on a team. Especially Bennett. I think most honest observers would have projected him as the best pro of this lot, based on his explosive 2000 season.

Note: Chambers, in my opinion, can still become a cornerstone guy. The Dolphins weren't necessarily dumping him, they're building for the future. Hopefully having a respectable QB like Rivers and weapons like Gates and LT around him will give Chris's career the boost it needs.

And Vikings fans, tell me if I'm wrong on this prediction: Erasmus James is the next former Badger to be traded, for something like a conditional sixth-round pick, if he's not released outright.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think Chambers and Bennett are two great examples that as athletically gifted you need to be to make it to the NFL, it takes more than just speed and strength to become a notable player. Agree with you that Chambers has the best shot of boosting his career to the next level. And Bennett should have less wear and tear on his body, so he has a chance to turn his career around as well.

Having watched Dayne as much as anyone here since he entered the NFL, I think he struggled with the following:

1. Barber - much to his credit - transformed himself from a third-down back with a fumbling problem to a franchise back. And Dayne's running style is not the one where you can plug him in for a carry or two.

2. Dayne and Fassel never appeard to be on the same page during his coaching tenure. It might have something to do with conditioning.

3. Dayne's running style, although very successful at UW needed an adjustment once he made it to the NFL to compensate for the speed and strength of pro linemen and linebackers.

Other quick hits (not sure if you're going to blog about this stuff).

-- UW game on Big Ten network. Yikes! Guess I will need to make it to Kettle of Fish for the game.

-- Georgia team celebration: What do you think of that? Richt often gets abuse for not showing much emotion, but did that go over the line?

-- The Trinity multi-lateral game. Reminds me of a certain intramural football team from Madison.

Anonymous said...

Oh, and I don't believe Dayne was traded.

Matt said...

1. Not to hijack this thread but, I guess I will anyway. I hate the effin BTN. Obviously, I don't have satellite so I don't get it. For them to take the stance that they should be a first-tier package or whatever is ridiculous given that you are catering to a very specific audience (granted the Big 10 has a large following). I think this pissing match is hurting the league more than anyone else. Wouldn't you want as much exposure as possible for your league?

2. Georgia team celebration. I liked it in that it was a pre-planned team thing and it was clear the way they acted that they were instructed to not specifically taunt anyone, just celebrate. If it had been without the coaches' consent, I'm not sure. I wonder, though, if Georgia loses that game Richt doesn't come under a lot more criticism.

3. Trinity stole that play right from the Tri-Lam playbook! I did not see their center get into the act though, nor eat any grass.

Matt said...

Oh, and to remain off topic, Taps: Did you see Bobby Sura was cut by the Rockets today? A sad day for you I'm sure.

To be honest, I didn't know he was even in the league any longer.

Anonymous said...

As another person who doesn't have the BTN, let me say that I share in Matt's frustration, but I really blame both sides. Neither the conference or the cable companies have their customers in mind during this little spat, and we're all losers.

I knew that the basketball season was going to suck if they didn't come to a deal, but I thought going into the football season that it wouldn't really affect UW, and this weekend pisses me off. The BTN gets to pick two weekends where they have the 2nd choice of games. When ABC picked MSU/UM for it's 2:30 game, the BTN jumped on UW/OSU for it's 2nd pick. So we, as cable subscribers, are screwed.

I actually went through the process of checking into getting rid of Comcast (a service that I actually really like, and have phone, internet and TV through them) for a Qwest bundle with phone, DSL and DirecTV. We'll see if I go through with it or if I'll just suffer through this.

Anonymous said...

The NFL network has the rights to one of the bowl games and there was a big stink here last year because it was the game that had Rutgers. The local bigwigs made some noise and Goodall (sp?) made the game free for one day.

Obviously, that's not going to happen here, but we can all dream. But it does stink, especially since I don't have the option of putting a dish outside my apartment. I'm hoping we'll see the NFL Network/Big Ten networks available soon.

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