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Draft King Analysis

January 4, 2010
Lou Pickney, DraftKing.com

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I know it's not NFL-related, but I urge everyone reading this tune in to Spike TV tonight for TNA Impact! live at 8 EST/7 CST. Pro wrestling (yes I know it's all a work) on television has, in recent years, deteriorated into intelligence-insulting programming filled with short, formulaic matches. From what I hear, tonight's TNA show will reflect a move toward a more sports-based product and away from the unfunny "comedy" sketches that have turned off pro wrestling fans in droves. If nothing else, give it a look during the commercial breaks and halftime during tonight's Fiesta Bowl game.

Sam Bradford
We could see the Redskins draft Sam Bradford. (Icon SMI)

The debates are raging over who the top quarterback prospect in the 2010 NFL Draft is. Barring an eleventh-hour change of heart by Washington QB Jake Locker, it appears at this point to be a two-person race between Notre Dame QB Jimmy Clausen and Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford. At this point Clausen may have the edge since he's healthy and he seems to be perhaps a better fit in the Rams' system than Bradford would be. But if the Rams take Suh, it could put the Redskins in a spot to select Bradford at #4 overall, even if Clausen is on the board.

Jason Whitlock wrote an interesting piece on New Year's Eve (which I missed out on until today) in which he referenced KDVR (FOX 31 in Denver) sports reporter Josina Anderson and the success she has had in finding out some captivating inside information. That station has, incredibly, broken story after story about some pretty big NFL news. At times I'm sure the leaks that have made their way through KDVR have infuriated the NFL brass (especially about drug suspensions), but it's nice to have a name to attach to the station's success as breaking NFL news stories.

Something that surprised me last night on the final edition of ESPN's "The Blitz" segments in the Sunday night SportsCenter was to hear Chris Berman and Tom Jackson speaking of St. Louis drafting Ndamukong Suh at #1 as if it was a given. At this point I disagree with that assessment, but we have a long way to go until late April.

It's worth noting that, in my estimation, Berman and Jackson continue to produce the best NFL wrap-up segments of anyone out there. One negative to NBC landing Sunday Night Football is that, as part of the deal, they managed to work in as part of the deal a clause that limits other outlets (like ESPN) from showing extended highlights as they once did during the great "NFL Primetime" era. Unfortunately, NBC doesn't show nearly enough highlights for my liking, using their timeslot to over-analyze things and, more off-puttingly, to pimp the Sunday night matchup that follows "Football Night in America". Is it really too much to have a show that is heavy on highlights in that 7 p.m. ET timeslot on Sunday night?

It's a battle of unbeatens with Boise State vs. TCU tonight in the Fiesta Bowl. It's a shame that there's no playoff system for I-A/FBS college football. There is overwhelming support for one, enough so where President Obama endorsed the idea on national television on ESPN in 2008 during his successful run for the presidency.

College football has a 16-team playoff for I-AA/FCS, Division II and III football, and there's no reason that we couldn't have such a system for I-A/FBS. A playoff system would almost surely generate more overall revenue than the mess of a system in place now, but the problem is that the people in charge now (the major conference school presidents) would have to cede a great deal of control to the NCAA. Change on that front will come someday, but I suspect that it will take some time for it to finally happen.


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