NFL Rumors : Red-faced Reid tells Eagles 'jobs are on the line'


Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid believes a steady boat sails best and he doesn't rock things too often, even in private, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. He made an exception this week, though, and if you are searching for a pulse on this team, hoping for a little entertainment before the season expires, it's at least good to know the coach is as mad as the fans are. "I guess he felt his normal mild-mannered self wasn't working," linebacker Omar Gaither said. "With Coach Reid, when the volume goes up and he starts turning red, you start paying a little more attention."Reid lit into the team Wednesday at the morning meeting and let everyone know that not only was the season on the line, there were jobs on the line. Unspoken, of course, is that his will eventually be one of them if this sort of play keeps up. Long before he goes, however, a whole lot of players who disappoint him will find the door.Reid's address to the team was followed quickly by a players-only meeting called by safety Brian Dawkins, who is the team leader by default, even though his place on the field isn't as dominant as it once was."Hopefully, everything

got through," said Dawkins, who has been around too long to think meetings are a silver bullet. "We'll see. Talking only goes so far."

Source: Philly.com

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NFL Rumors : Belichick throws red flag on instant replay angles



Bill Belichick's talked Friday about the number of angles provided by instant-replay cameras. The New England Patriots coach was angling for better coverage, enabling the decision-makers on the field to make a better determination of whether to challenge a play. "Well, that is the whole issue with instant replay," Belichick said. "When you challenge a play, you have no way of knowing what the camera angles are. That's why I said, going all the way back to the Denver game in 2005, if we at least had a camera placed like in tennis, on the goal line, the end line, and on the sideline so you have six cameras [and] you know that [if] the play involved any one of those positions, you at least have a camera angle on it, so you know what you are challenging."Belichick said he understood the play "that happens out in the middle of the field" to determine placement or possession of the ball often can be "the luck of the draw.""But a play that was on the goal line like [Benjamin] Watson's play with Champ Bailey [in the 2005 playoffs] was, or a play that was on the sideline, you don't know for sure that you have an angle on that," he said. "You think you would but you don't know, and that is what happened in the Denver game [when Bailey was ruled down at the Patriots' 1, although Watson had separated him from the ball, which went through the end zone]. All the cameras are down at the other end and they didn't have a good angle on it, supposedly."So I don't understand why we can't put six cameras in every stadium and just say, 'OK, here is where they are,' whether the game's a division championship game with 25 cameras [covering] it or whether it is a regular-season game with how

ever many they have on that [game]."

Source: Boston.com

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Bears' Orton practiced like a starting quarterback



Chicago Bears quarterback had his sprained right ankle wrapped, but he prepared during Wednesday's practice like a starting quarterback.I'm preparing like I am [playing]," Orton said. "Just going to go from there, day in and day out."Coach Lovie Smith was asked whether Orton needed to be 100 percent to play."100 percent? Now that's pretty strong," Smith said. "Who is 100 percent at this time of the year? We won't let Kyle play if he can't protect himself. ... We'll know if he's ready to go."If Orton is unable to go, Rex Grossman would get the call for the second straight week."I have to prepare like I'm playing the whole game," Grossman said. "I don't know what's going on, but that's how I am approaching it."

Orton has yet to play at Lambeau Field, while Grossman has enjoyed great success in Green Bay.

"I'm 3-0 as a starter up there," Grossman said. "I'm feeling pretty good about that stadium."

Source: Chicago Tribune

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Romo, Owens could be connecting more often this week


Terrell Owens said the Cowboys have "tweaked" some of what they do offensively over the bye week. Tony Romo coyly talked about some "different things" that have him excited about what is ahead for the offense. Neither player would go into specifics, of course, but would any of those things involve freeing up Owens?

"You could possibly say that," Romo told the Dallas Morning News.

At 5-4, the Cowboys are entering their most critical part of the season Sunday at Washington and need Romo, who has missed the last three games with a fractured right pinkie, to play like the two-time Pro Bowl quarterback he is. And for Owens to be Owens.

"We're looking forward to it," Owens said. "He's a lot healthier than he was last week. He's throwing the ball better. He's taking snaps. Obviously he's feeling better. We need to win, so we have to make sure these practices count."

In many ways, how Owens and Romo go, the Cowboys go, even if Romo disagrees.

Source: Dallas Morning News

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Street may not be in Colorado long, either


MLB.com noted, it's reasonable to assume that the 75 percent of polled Colorado fans who didn't think the Rockies got enough in return for Matt Holliday may have jumped the gun just a tad. Reports indicate that Colorado Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd might just package Huston Street in a follow-up deal. There are plenty of teams in the market for a closer — foremost among them the St. Louis Cardinals, the New York Mets and the Cleveland Indians — all teams which had called him about Brian Fuentes prior to the July 31 non-waiver Trade Deadline. Or, Monday's conditional deal may have been the first step in a transition for the 2007 NL champs, as they move to a greater emphasis on pitching. Coors Field may seem an unlikely place for that, but Clint Hurdle's club ended the 2008 season with a solid top-of-the-rotation (Ubaldo Jimenez and Aaron Cook combined for 28 wins and a sub-4.00 ERA). Greg Smith adds another 200-inning arm, and the Rockies expect to add more frontline pitching in an eventual trade of third baseman Garrett Atkins. The Angels, Phillies, Indians and Dodgers are all eager for a third baseman. Or Street could be a keeper, in a bullpen needing to replace Fuentes' 30 saves.

Source: MLB.com

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