Catch a glimpse of your favorite NFL teams logo re-designed and inspired from European soccer badges. You’ll probably never see these logos ever actually hit circulation in the NFL, but it might be kind of neat if any of these teams ever designed alternate logos or uniforms with this type of inspiration. See all 32 alternative logos here, you may have even found your newest twitter avatar of Facebook profile picture by clicking here.
If things weren’t already bad enough for Manti Te’o, his trip to Indianapolis for the NFL Combine surely couldn’t have made things worse. Oh, but wait just a second, because that it did. Te’o and his stock have been reportedly plummeting every minute that he’s been in Indy. To top it off, while running his abysmal 40-yard dash, world champion Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh was caught on camera showing his disappointment in the former golden domer linebacker.
But it didn’t stop there. While performing in the cone drill… Lennay Kekua, Manti’s imaginary girlfriend reared her ugly head again and tripped Te’o in the middle of the drill. This poor kid is officially the laughing-stock of the sports world right now. But don’t feel too bad for him, because in April, when he’s selected in the NFL Draft and we’re all laughing at him… He’ll be laughing even harder because he’ll be a millionaire and we aren’t. One more month Manti, one more month… keep fighting the good fight, sir. (Click the photo to watch the fall.)
Check out the simulated Super Bowl match up generated by Madden 2013. The powers that be have predicted the Baltimore Ravens to top the San Francisco 49ers, but what do you guys think? Cast your vote as Super Bowl week is officially underway!
As the New England Patriots brace for a rematch of the 2012 AFC Championship, we present a collection of playoff pump-up videos to help everybody ramp up the week! The road to the Super Bowl goes through New England folks, prepare for a battle on Sunday.
Sunday’s AFC Wild Card match-up between the Baltimore Ravens and the Indianapolis Colts marked the end of an era for arguably the greatest field general to ever play the game. Ray Lewis was introduced for the last time at home as a Baltimore Raven. Lewis made a triumphant return to the field after suffering what was supposed to be a season ending triceps injury in week six of the regular season, against the Dallas Cowboys. Lewis vowed to return to the field this season, and that he did this weekend in the first round of the AFC playoffs. But before he took the field, the 13-time Pro Bowler announced that this would be his “last ride.”
Love or hate Ray Lewis, as a football fan No. 52 should be universally respected for the talent he’s brought to the game of football for the last 17-years. Lewis was built to play this game and he was built to anchor a defense, just as he has his entire career. The speeches that Lewis has made himself famous for is something almost written from a Hollywood script. You can’t help but get goosebumps when the man speaks and feel like you are ready to go to battle with him.
Below is a highlight from Lewis’ final introduction at M&T Stadium. We’ve also included an ultimate Ray Lewis highlight to get you a little fired up. With the Ravens victory over the Colts, the last ride will continue for at least another week when the Ravens square off against Peyton Manning and his No. 1 seed Denver Broncos.
Whether you’re a Ray Lewis fan or not, the guy epitomizes what an NFL linebacker represents on every front. From physical play, leadership, dedication, you name it and that guy bleeds it. One of his trademarks is his ability to motivate his teammates and everybody else around him. We came across this clip from his “Nothin’ But A Grind” documentary based on his 360 Football Academy and were blown away. The 360 Football Academy prepares high school students with aspirations of playing division I football and professional football on and off the field. It’s a camp the prepares these athletes for every aspect of success, with the main goal of academics. We’re going to check this documentary out and offer up a review ASAP. In the mean time, if this clip doesn’t get you a little fired up, well… then you should probably have your testosterone levels checked out.
Here are several examples of why 40-yard dash times tend to be just a bit overrated. Of the 15 all-time fastest times, we’ve selected a few gems that reflect why a prospects ability to run a blazing 4.2-4.3 doesn’t exactly translate to success in the NFL.
College: LSU
NFL Scouting Combine 40-Yard Dash Time: 4.29
Drafted: 6th Round of the 2011 NFL Draft
Career Statistics:
Holiday was selected in the 6th round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. He was placed on IR his rookie season with a fractured thumb. In 2011, Holliday was cut, then signed to the practice squad, cut from the practice squad, signed to the active roster and then cut again. For his career, Holliday has zero receptions and zero career returns.
College: University of Southern California
NFL Scouting Combine 40- Yard Dash Time: 4.24 (According to NFL Network)
Draft: 2nd round pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 2010 NFL Draft
Career Statistics:
Mays was drafted in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. Mays was publicly upset when his college coach Pete Carroll, who had just been named the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks, passed on him in favor of Texas safety Earl Thomas in the first round. Mays, a highly decorated safety at USC only produced 38 tackles for the Niners his rookie year. The following season he was traded to Cincinnati Bengals where he racked up a total of 10 tackles.
College: Clemson
NFL Scouting Combine 40-Yard Dash Time: 4.30
Draft: 1st Round of the 2006 NFL Draft
Career Statistics:
Tye Hill was selected 15th overall in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams. Hill was impressive in his rookie season as he started 10 out of 16 games, putting together 50 tackles and 3 INT’s. Following his rookie season, Hill put together two disappointing seasons and was traded to the Atlanta Falcons in 2009. Hill was released after just one season, he has also played for the Tennessee Titans and the Detroit Lions. Tye Hill is currently a free agent and has not played in the NFL since 2010. For his career, Hill has 111 tackles and 5 INT’s.
College: Kansas State
NFL Scouting Combine 40-Yard Dash Time: 4.30
Draft: 3rd round of the 2007 NFL Draft
Career Statistics:
Figurs was selected in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. Of this group, Figurs has been able to produce the most. After the Ravens primary kick-returner B.J. Sams was lost for the season to injury, Figurs stepped in as the teams starting kick/punt returner. That season Figurs returned 46 kickoffs for 1,138 yards and one touchdown. Two seasons later Figurs was cut. Since then, he has bounced around the league spending time with the Detroit Lions, Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns and Tennessee Titans. For his career, Figurs has returned 85 kicks for 1,956 and one touchdown.
College: Hampton
NFL Scouting Combine 40-Yard Dash Time: 4.28
Draft: 4th round of the 2005 NFL Draft
Career Statistics:
Mathis was selected in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Houston Texans. Mathis shined in his rookie season with the Texans returning 54 kicks for 1,542 yards, earning the starting role for the AFC in the Pro Bowl as the return specialist. The following two seasons, Mathis was plagued by injuries and was eventually arrested. He was released by the Texans and has bounced around to both the CFL with the Toronto Argonauts and the AFL with the Pittsburgh Power.
Step 1: Shave That Stupid Mustache And You Might Be Taken More Seriously
A common tweet that could be seen during last weekend’s playoff actions was a reference toward Joe Flacco. “Tried to type Flacco and got auto-corrected for #Flaccid.” Flaccid might be a good way to describe Joe Flacco’s current situation as he takes the 12-4 Baltimore Ravens into Foxboro against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots for the opportunity to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl.
During a weekly press conference that took place last week prior to the Ravens playoff match-up against the Houston Texans, Flacco made some pretty bold statements on how he thinks he should be viewed.
“If you look at the teams that won, yeah you can look at the quarterbacks but that’s just because you guys, ESPN, everybody wants to pump them up as being the best quarterback that year. It’s really going to come down to what team is the best,” Flacco said. “I’m sure if we win, I’ll have nothing to do with why we won according to you guys.”
Flacco normally does a pretty good job of staying quiet and conducting himself in a professional manner. He’s not know for being overly flashy or vocal. Apparently Joe had a New Years resolution and decided to all the sudden step out and make a bold statement. His moment to step-up and self- assert himself as a top-tier quarterback.
Since being named the starter in 2008, Flacco has gone 40-22 for the Ravens. His career numbers are solid, posting 13,816 passing yards with a 60.8 completion percentage (could be better)to go along with 80 passing TD’s and 46 interceptions. Normally, those numbers would translate to perhaps those of an elite quarterback. Unfortunately for Flacco, the NFL is represented by several other quarterbacks that have ushered in an era of passing dominance. A handful of other quarterbacks are far more superior statistically than Joe Flacco. Not only do their numbers trump Flacco’s, those stats help translate into quality wins. Not just regular season wins, playoff wins. Guys like Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers and Eli Manning have taken their teams deep into the playoffs and brought home a Lombardi trophy.
Another thing these quarterbacks all have in common, they all do their job like they’re expected. Roethlisberger might be an exception here seeing as how he been accused of forcing himself on multiple women. But bottom line, he wins. They don’t all of a sudden think it’s funny or endearing to grow a stupid mustache and stand up at the podium demanding respect. They’ve never publicly whined about wanting to being considered one of the best. They’ve gone out on the field and they’ve earned it.
So here’s a little advice Joe. Shave the mustache, because it’s not funny. It’s a little uncomfortable because many of us have never even really heard you speak. Harness the C.A.D (Center Of Attention Disorder) and play your game. You’re a good NFL quarterback that has the opportunity to one day be great and win a Super Bowl. Next piece of advice, you really want to be in the elite class? March your team into New England this weekend on the road and stuff it down the throat of Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Then you’ve shut the mouth of all of your critics and are one step closer to being great.
The Meat Locker Sports 