Around the League with David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Reggie Bush, and more

I’m having a great week so far, so let’s get to it. I hope your week is turning out well! It must be the coming summer as I think this is going to be my year. I don’t know why and I don’t know why I’m sharing this, but that’s the fun part of having a blog: You can share a little about yourself as well. Much more fun than writing articles! If you eventually find me on a ledge, you know something went wrong!

A few years ago the NFL made football a 12-months-a-year sport! There is still a lot happening despite the offseason and while much of it is fluff, we love it. Let’s see what has crossed my desk since we last spoke, but first a little baseball:

Former MLB Pitcher David Wells on steroid users: “No 50-game suspension. Ban them right away.”

My Take: Fantasy baseball is heating up with David Ortiz, better known as Big Papi, riding the pine. However, my take is on former big league hurler Wells, who’s big himself— about 250 pounds—lambasting Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, and anyone who has taken steroids! You know what? I love his response.

Steroids have ruined the game of baseball, and it’s still happening. I blame the MLB and the MLBPA, and they only have themselves to blame. If they had it their way, the players would continue taking steroids, because big numbers equal big contracts and ratings.

Look at Manny Ramirez as the latest bombshell! The irony is how the Los Angeles Dodgers built up MannyWOOD as a promotion, and it blew up in their face! Look at his last contract and tell me he didn’t have motive, especially at 37 years old!

You know it’s tough on fans too! Some want to defend him because they want to believe he’s innocent, not because they believe he is. It’s similar to how I felt about O.J. I wanted him to be innocent because of what he represented to me when I was watching him play growing up.

In general the problem with MLB players is that most believe they are guilty. I was talking to a high school friend of mine who not only is a big sports fan, he also knows and follows the game. When I asked him point blank, he hesitated, and then said yes, he believes Ramirez did steroids, and so do I!

What about you? If you own Manny, you have to keep him (Big Papi for that matter) and hope he comes back strong. At least his wife or girlfriend hopes so!

WR Sidney Rice, Minnesota Vikings, on his knee: “I still feel a little pain…”

My Take: Rice needs to heal up 100 percent as he’s still feeling some pain when at full speed. Rice, who suffered the sprained PCL in Week Two, will fall down many rankings as questions continue to surround his health.

Obviously if Brett Favre eventually winds up in Minnesota, Rice becomes much more valuable, but he has been a constant injury risk and he’s not heading in the right direction.

We have awhile before training camps open, so this story is far from over on his health. For fantasy purposes, he’s a late-rounder right now based on his past performance.

GM Jerry Angelo, Chicago Bears, on WR Plaxico Burress: “Are we one of those two teams? No.”

My Take: This week Angelo supposedly shut the door on pursuing Burress. However, he also said they would look at every option and that Burress has life issues to deal with before even thinking of coming back to the NFL. I’m sure if he wins his case, the Bears will take a hard look at him.

It’s about playoff wins now for Angelo. He has been there long enough for the “what have you done for me lately?” mentality to enter ownership’s mind. The Bears like any other team will make a run at Burress if he’s able to play.

Jay Cutler’s value in fantasy drafts will take a hit until the team brings in someone fantasy owners believe will improve his ability to post big numbers.

RB Reggie Bush, New Orleans Saints, on his knee: “I’m about 75 percent.

Where would you draft Reggie Bush?

My Take: The team needs Bush to step up after he had microfracture surgery, which still makes my jaw drop. It was just a few years ago that microfracture surgery gave the player a 50-50 chance of playing again! Technology and medicine can work wonderful magic with the human body.

The question is if he can come back and how much can he contribute. Some will say he can’t be the same and some will say it won’t matter. I think you have to take a wait-and-see approach with him come draft day and simply not overpay. He’s currently going 53rd in Mock Draft Central’s average draft position.

That’s toward the beginning of the fifth round in most 12-man leagues, and I can’t argue it when I look at players going after him. Perhaps he’ll drop further in leagues that don’t offer point-per-reception (PPR), but he will be a steal for someone in PPR leagues as a fourth-round pick if he does come back!

NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement: “… [the owners] are the ones who opted out of the agreement…”

My Take: It appears as if both sides are positioning themselves in what could be a huge showdown with major implications. I mean major for the sports industry, but specifically fantasy sports. The NFL is every sports organization’s cash cow in revenue!

This potential lockout has ramifications beyond the league and players, especially for organizations that are already weathering tough economic times.

NFL rookie salary cap: “When I talk to [veterans] about this issue of a rookie wage scale…”

My Take: I disagree on the take by new NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith that players don’t set the salary scale. It’s a combination of reasons, but he, obviously, will slant it the other way for his players’ benefits. He’s a lawyer, but I hope this doesn’t turn into a tit-for-tat fight in public.

However, if the owners do what’s right—a big if—and redistribute some of those funds from the cap to players, I’m all for it! Remember Eddie DeBartolo and Carmen Policy? They built winners by being frugal; that is, paying when they had to, not because an agent or player demanded it.

Players were happy playing for the San Francisco 49ers, to the tune of five Super Bowls and the most winning decade in football history per DeBartolo’s Wikipedia! Let’s make no mistake about it: The 49ers of old (pre-salary cap) and the current Patriots franchise (salary cap era) are the models for how to win in the NFL.

I think a rookie salary cap would be good for the players in the long run. I don’t think the issue here is with the players or the NFL, rather with the agents who compete to negotiate the contracts.

NFL Pro Bowl: “The Pro Bowl is a player issue.”

My Take: Smith also talks about the Pro Bowl and how the NFLPA was not part of the consultation process before the NFL moved it. FYI, it’s going from Hawaii to South Florida, one week before the Super Bowl.

I believe that will heighten the Super Bowl experience. More importantly, it creates great marketing and promotion opportunities for the players. It’s a win-win, and it’s Smith’s job to get his players to realize this!

They can also work with the NFL to maximize this potential. Once they have a plan to contribute (not control it), then you approach the NFL. The truth is, in recent years, players not taking part in the Pro Bowl or not even going after being selected has hurt the game!

This is a great opportunity to mix business and pleasure for everyone, including the fans!

If anything, the players are employees, and the NFL does not have to discuss the game with them. In fact, if anything, Smith needs to take it upon himself to go to the players and tell the stars to show up! It has become a running joke now on how many will bail and who will be the first to bail.

That’s it for this update, and it feels good to start talking more and more on fantasy football as it’s the cash cow not only financially but for enjoyment as well! As I always say, if you’re looking for breaking news updates that get to you faster than e-mail, follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/wdelpilar.