When a lot of us were growing up and playing in organized and high school sports many of us started out by playing pick-up games in our driveways, for me it was hockey and like my friends we wore the jerseys of our heroes and emulated what they did on the ice. I think it’s safe to say that any pro athlete probably at one time or another had a ball in their grasp and ran in out of defenders while narrating to themselves that it was 3^rd down with the game tied and the clock winding down with just  a few seconds on the clock and their target was an end zone to win the Super Bowl, or at bat there were 2 outs, bases loaded and their team down by 3 in the ninth. Having relived this scenario over and over a select few found themselves in this situation only now with a professional team.

Billy Cundiff and Kyle Williams I’m sure had visions of winning the big one, just waiting when their number was called and suddenly it was time to live that scenario in real life. For Billy Cundiff, a place kicker for the Baltimore Ravens was asked to do something that for most from 32 yards was something he clearly exceeded during pre-game warm-ups but coach Harbaugh didn’t want to take the chance of putting Cundiff in a long FG situation so Joe Flacco moved the ball down field putting Cundiff in a virtual gimme FG from 32 yards away to send the game into OT. What did Cundiff do, he missed wide right, and when I say WIDE I mean he wasn’t even remotely close, he missed it miserably. Some blame Lee Evans for no catching that pass in the end zone while in coverage to simply end the game, but the video clearly showed the ball was stripped no sooner than it went into his grasp and he did not get his second foot down. So Cudiff, vying for the tie wasn’t able to deliver by doing the one job he was paid to do and paid handsomely to boot (no pun intended).  

As I’ve said in previous comments this week, watching HBO Hard Knocks over the last few seasons the place kickers are only considered second class citizens, not required to study play books, they spend a minimum time in the weight room and during games they wait and wait for the chance to kick an extra point or a FG from as much as 50 yards. At 32 yards this was a no brainer or as so the entire planet had thought. He later claimed of chaos on the sidelines when the scoreboard had shown it was third down and when going into kick the FG he said the chaos was still making them hurry. If this was his only excuse it’s not really an excuse being he only had to call a timeout, Belichick saw this chaos and like most great coaches who ice kickers he felt that this very chaos was best left for the Ravens to deal with and they stood pat. The snap was good, the ball threads were rotated and the next thing you know it was so wide left it became a sideline souvenir!

Kyle Williams, who most feel deserves the tag team nod for this week’s Gold Plunger, I hear you and for his inability to carry a football on a professional level to keep it from being yanked away in the same fashion a homeless person would yank away a loaf of day old French bread, I have no problem whatsoever to give him the honorable mention here. But in the grand scheme of things Cundiff blew the low percentage boot, Williams was stripped by his inability to remember the basic fundamentals on tucking the ball to his chest, not juggling it from hand to hand as he tried to avoid the defense from bringing him down and trying to get the ball out o his hands late in the game.

Both of these guys cost their teams big, and in the locker room the politically correct statements were flying around on how it was a team loss, but the facial expressions on the sidelines for both the Ravens and the 49ers not to mention their fandom were worth a 1,000 words…What they said in front of a microphone I'm sure was not was said when they spoke to each other in small groups...with the game close to being in the bag for the 49ers I find it tough to believe they're all fine with carrying around the label of a team loss.

The Gab is sending Stickum to Williams to aid him in keeping the ball in his hands and Cundiff wll be getting a GPS used on measuring the distance for drives and shots on the golf course, this just might help with him lining up shots from here on out when he finds himself in the CFL kicking FG’s and kickoffs for the Toronto Argonauts or one of those other Canadian teams that tend to fill their rosters with the NFL’s has-beens!

Vernon Davis, San Francisco 49ers

 

Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers

 

Carolina has already said they won't trade him.

Mainly because he is their best player, but he is also the only guy on the roster who can consistently get open. 

Smith is a dynamic player who has gone to four Pro Bowls and led his team in receiving the past six years and eight out the past nine seasons.

He has also stood out returning kicks and punts. 

The Panthers are rebuilding, appearing to be several years away from being pertinent again. It would be nice to see the 31-year old wind down his career on a winning team trying to get a ring.

 

 

 

 

Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles

Even if he doesn't take another snap this year, it has been a successful season for Vick. 

Making his first starts since 2006, he showed he had actually improved his game. He was thrown into action because starter Kevin Kolb was hurt. He was hurt himself just three weeks later, and now Kolb is showing everyone why the Eagles let the legendary Donovan McNabb go so he could play. 

It may be a gamble trading Vick, because another injury to Kolb would hurt the team if he were not still with the team. Yet his contract expires after this year, so getting something for him, as opposed to nothing, may be more logical. 

Teams like Buffalo, Cleveland, Minnesota, Arizona, San Francisco, and Carolina need help at quarterback now, or will need help next year. Vick is a three-time Pro Bowler who has shown a new wrinkle to his exciting game. One that he could bring to a team in need of some life offensively.

 

 

 

Bernard Berrian, Minnesota Vikings

 

He gets $5.5 million a year and is basically a fourth receiver now.

When Sidney Rice returns, he will get buried deeper. 

With six catches for 42 yards, and two passes thrown to him the past two games, Berrian has truly become a forgotten man. 

He was signed in 2008 as a free agent by the Vikings in 2008, which he did by averaging over 20 yards per catch. Since then, it has gone downhill for the man expected to stretch the opponents seam. He averaged 11 yards on 55 receptions last year, and it probably will not improve with the arrival of Randy Moss. 

Trading the soon-to-be 31-year old makes the best sense, because Minnesota is an old team that will need to start rebuilding next year. Getting any kind of draft pick, as well as dumping his salary, would help the team immensely.

 

 

 

 

Michael Bush, Oakland Raiders

 

Timing has not been kind to him the past few year.

After a breakout junior year in college, the 6'1" 245 lbs running back seemed destined to be a first round draft pick in the NFL. Then he broke his leg early in his senior year, missing the rest of the season. 

The Raiders gambled on him in the fourth round of the 2007 draft, knowing he wouldn't be able to play until 2008 after having a steel rod put in his leg.

Since then, he's played 34 games, but has carried the ball just 254 times despite averaging 4.6 yards per carry. 

Darren McFadden is the Raiders main running back, and has been excellent so far this year.

Unless Bush gets traded to a team needing a workhorse, like Green Bay, he is destined to keep averaging just over seven carries a game. 

If given the chance, he could be a 1,000 back.

 

 

 

Steven Jackson, Saint Louis Rams

 

He has run for over 1,000 yards in five of his seven years, and appears headed to a sixth.

He is the leader of a young team, and the backbone of the offense. 

So why trade the two-time Pro Bowler? 

Though he hasn't shown any signs of slowing down after almost 2,000 career touches, the longevity of a typical NFL running back is under two seasons.

The Rams are rebuilding, so Jackson would command good draft picks for his services. If he was dealt to a winner, he also could have a shot at earning a ring.

It is something he probably will not get with the Rams. 

 

 

 

 

Rashean Mathis, Jacksonville Jaguars

 

Not only have his number of tackles drastically decreased each season since 2007, Mathis has missed 12 games over that time too. 

He still is the Jaguars top cover guy, but his production has slipped since his 2006 Pro Bowl year.

A change of venue on a winning team in need of a cornerback could reinvigorate Mathis.

 

 

 

 

 

Nnamsi Asomugha, Oakland Raiders

 

He isn't going anywhere, though Oakland just announced every player is available for trade. 

Quite simply, he is the best cornerback in the NFL for at least the past three years. 

If the Raiders are serious about trading anyone, some team should make a serious inquiry about this 29-year old stud about to enter his prime.

 

 

 

 

 

Kyle Williams, Buffalo Bills

 

He has been steady and reliable since the Bills drafted him in 2006, and he has started pretty much his entire career.

A wide body at 6'1" 300, he has been effective mainly against the run. 

A year removed from a career best 66 tackles, Buffalo switched this year from a base 4-3 defense to a 3-4 defense. Williams was moved to nose tackle, instead of pulling an Albert Haynesworth by crying and pouting about it. 

He has responded with 25 tackles and a sack after five games this year, which is an excellent pace.

Though Buffalo may not part with their best defensive lineman, and quite possibly their best defensive player, Williams would help any team in any system.

 

 

 

 

Lee Evans, Buffalo Bills

 

The term underused comes to mind when Lee Evans name gets mentioned.

He is a top-notch deep threat, with three seasons of catches over 83 yards, but he has just two years of over 1,000 in his seven years. 

The biggest reason has been the poor play of Bills quarterbacks, a theme that continues on this year.

Most of them have struggled to get him the ball. 

Though just 29-years old, his speed declining is not as far away as maybe thought.

His going to a team with a solid quarterback could invent a rebirth for him, considering he has never really had one since the Bills drafted him in the first round in 2004. 

If Buffalo is willing to part with Marshawn Lynch, possibly their best running back, for draft picks, they may be willing to do the same with Evans as the team continues to rebuild.