Eli deal could haunt Giants
You can bet at that moment the Vikings felt they'd bamboozled the Cowboys and were about to begin a run to glory.
Instead, it was the Cowboys who built a dynasty with the five players and seven draft picks acquired in the deal. One of those picks was used on a better running back than Walker could ever hope to be -- future Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith. That deal is generally regarded as the worst in NFL history.
But to hear some of the comments coming out of New York these days, maybe the Vikings are finally off the hook. Is it really possible that Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi made a Walker-style trade in 2004 when he traded with the San Diego Chargers' A.J. Smith for quarterback Eli Manning?
Did Accorsi fall in love with a name? Did the old PR guy fall for the hype? Did he let the next Lawrence Taylor get away?
Not only did the Chargers wind up with promising young quarterback Philip Rivers, who reminds Smith of Dan Marino, but they also used the extra first-round pick they received on linebacker Shawne Merriman, a Defensive Player of the Year candidate before being suspended four games. Kicker Nate Kaeding also came to the Chargers as part of that deal.
A few weeks ago, Manning, who forced the trade when his family told Smith before the draft that he wouldn't play for the Chargers, told Newsday that the deal worked out great.
''It's worked out for everybody,'' Manning told the newspaper. ''I don't look back with any regrets. I felt very strongly at the time about what I did, and I'm glad I'm with the Giants.''
Of course, Manning has been in a free fall of late as opposed to a slow decline. His numbers are down. His confidence seems shot. His teammates seem angry. If the Chargers are watching, they have to be amused. Smith is still angry at the way he was browbeaten into making a deal, but he said recently that he's ecstatic over the results of that trade. He should be.
Manning likely would be better off in San Diego and out of the glare of the New York media. Accorsi has said the guy he would've taken if he couldn't pull off the trade for Manning was Ben Roethlisberger and not Rivers. Even with Roethlisberger winning a Super Bowl last season, that move might've been a mistake. Roethlisberger was protected by a great running game in winning the Super Bowl and has struggled mightily since then, injuring himself in an offseason motorcycle accident and crashing back to earth on the field with uneven performances.
Rivers might be the best long-term prospect of the quarterbacks, and Merriman, who returns from suspension today, might be the best player of the group. The Chargers erred in letting Drew Brees bolt via free agency and getting nothing in return, but will that matter if they win the Super Bowl this season?
It will take years before you know for sure who won that trade, but right now it's the Chargers in a landslide.
Originally a third-round draft pick (No. 58 overall) by the then-Phoenix Cardinals, Proehl, 38, joined his sixth NFL team when he came out of retirement to sign with the Colts. Proehl was the Bears' leading receiver in his one year in Chicago, 1997, catching 58 passes for 753 yards with seven touchdowns. He has 666 career catches for 8,848 yards and 54 touchdowns in 16 previous seasons. He retired from the Panthers last season but finally decided to join the Colts after repeated overtures. Proehl will serve as an insurance policy in case receiver Brandon Stokley, who has been hurt most of the year, can't return from a knee injury. The Colts are fearful tight end Dallas Clark will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury and are desperate for another weapon in the passing game. Proehl will make $350,000 for the last five games of the season.
''It was a no-brainer,'' Proehl told reporters in Indianapolis. ''This is a great situation, a great opportunity. My kids were all for it. My wife was all for it. So here I am.''
Running back Edgerrin James may be laughing all the way to the bank, but perhaps not to the Hall of Fame after deciding to shun the Colts' offense and bolt to Arizona as a big-money free agent. James is on pace for only 1,011 yards after getting only four carries last week against the Vikings. The Cardinals ran the ball only six times, tying an NFL record for fewest rushing attempts in a game set by the old Chicago Cardinals back in 1933 and matched by the Patriots in 2004. The Cardinals would've had the record to themselves were it not for a call by officials that quarterback Matt Leinart's wide receiver screen attempt to Anquan Boldin was backward and therefore a fumble and a rush attempt.
"Hey, they're saving my career,'' James joked to a reporter after the game. "The thing about running the ball, there is so much that goes into it, the defense they are playing, if you are playing from behind. ... Whatever happens, happens.''
James has yet to produce a 100-yard rushing game and is averaging 3.1 yards per carry.
Life's a Brees
There are only eight quarterbacks who have taken every snap for their team this season. One of them, Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer, will give way to rookie Jay Cutler this week. The others are the Saints' Drew Brees, the 49ers' Alex Smith, the Panthers' Jake Delhomme, the Bills' J.P. Losman, the Lions' Jon Kitna, the Colts' Peyton Manning and the Giants' Eli Manning.
Brees, whose 1,954 passing yards over the last five games are an NFL record for a five-game stretch, said his arm has gotten stronger every week after offseason shoulder surgery.
"I don't think I'm quite there yet,'' Brees said. "I still feel like it's going to get better."
Just for kicks
Cowboys coach Bill Parcells launched kicker Mike Vanderjagt last week and replaced him with Martin Gramatica. Could the move portend greatness?
Parcells changed kickers in both of his Super Bowl seasons with the Giants in 1986 and 1990.
"Always when I had a good team, I had to make changes," Parcells said.
It was a curious move. Vanderjagt is the most accurate kicker in league history, even if he was only 13-for-18 this season, and signed a three-year, $5.4million deal in the offseason.