Quotulatiousness

September 4, 2010

Cut-down day for NFL teams

Filed under: Football — Tags: , — Nicholas @ 10:50

Today is probably the most tense day for NFL players — it’s when all NFL teams must cut down to their final 53-man rosters. Every team in the league must cut about a third of the players who’ve been in training camp and playing in preseason games.

Some of the open questions for the Vikings were resolved yesterday with the trade of Sage Rosenfels and Darius Reynaud to the New York Giants. The quarterback situation is now clear, and including Reynaud in the deal implies that the team feels that Percy Harvin will be healthy enough to return kicks this season (still a question about who’ll be the punt returner). Other areas of interest are almost all competition for backup and special teams roles: the Vikings got all their 2009 starting players back this season, and most of them will continue to hold their top slots for the start of the 2010 season.

The sportswriters at the Pioneer Press put together their predictions on the Vikings final roster before the news broke about the trade with the Giants. Aside from that I think it’s a pretty good guess.

After the trade, the Vikings may try to bring in a cornerback to shore up that position (with two starting-quality players injured, they lack depth for the first few games of the season). It may also mean a stay of execution for one of the receivers not listed in the Pioneer Press, like Taye Biddle or Logan Payne (assuming that Javon Walker has made enough of an impression to stick with the final team).

Judd Zulgad and Chip Scoggins also provide their best guesses at who’ll still be with the team after 5:00 Central time today. As you’d expect, they generally agree with the Pioneer Press predictions, with a few minor points of difference.

Update: With 90 minute left before the deadline here are the players reported waived or released at the Star Tribune blog:

  • DeAndre Wright, CB
  • Garrett Mills, TE. A bit of a surprise here, as Mills is a solid receiver.
  • Ryan D’Imperio, FB. Late draft choice, hopefully he’ll make it onto the practice squad.
  • Marcus Sherels, CB. Another possible practice squad player if he makes it through waivers.
  • Tremaine Johnson, DT.
  • Thomas Austin, OL.
  • Ian Johnson, RB.
  • Chris Clark, OT. His goose may have been cooked by letting a couple of defensive linemen get past him for sacks in the preseason games.
  • Freddie Brown, WR.
  • Logan Payne, WR. A bit surprised he didn’t stick, but he should make the practice squad.
  • Mike Montgomery, DE.
  • Adrian Battles, LG.
  • Rhys Lloyd, K. Signed with high hopes of improving the number of touchbacks, but only managed one two during the preseason.
  • Javon Walker, WR. I thought he’d salvaged his position in the last preseason game. He’s a veteran, so he’s not eligible for signing to the practice squad.
  • Drew Radovich, LT.
  • Colt Anderson, S.
  • Patrick Brown, OT.
  • Marquis Hamilton, WR.
  • Nate Triplett, LB.
  • Taye Biddle, WR.

Swedish army gets serious about recruiting women

Filed under: Europe, Humour, Military — Tags: , , — Nicholas @ 10:24

H/T to Chris Blattman. This is from a collection of recruiting videos put together by Gawker.

When you’ve lost the Globe, you’ve lost the argument

Filed under: Bureaucracy, Cancon, Law, Liberty — Tags: , , — Nicholas @ 09:47

At least it means you’ve lost the argument to keep the long-gun registry:

The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police cannot be faulted for their recent unanimous vote in support of the national long-gun registry. Police will understandably always want as much information about those they investigate as they can lay their hands on. It is in the nature of their business. A national fingerprint registry of Canadians would no doubt also be seen as an aid to police work. But just because police chiefs would like a long-gun registry does not make it good public policy or a wise public expenditure.

[. . .]

If passed, a vote in Parliament on a Conservative MP’s bill to end the long-gun registry would not represent the end of gun control in Canada. Stringent and necessary requirements will remain in place for handguns, and restricted weapons such as automatic rifles. A process that already requires gun owners to be licensed before obtaining a firearm would remain, with safety and background checks required for gun owners. Rules for safe handling and storage of guns will remain in place. What will end is the cost, the red tape and the stigmatization of the “law-abiding duck hunters and farmers,” often cited by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. In the absence of any meaningful evidence of the long-gun registry’s efficacy, the program should be ended.

I can’t possibly emphasize how unlikely an editorial like this from the Globe and Mail would have seemed just days ago. Did we enter an alternate universe with that New Zealand earthquake? Does Spock not only have a beard, but also a Mohawk and body piercings?

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