In an effort to repair his incredibly damaged image, Michael Vick is going to team up with the Humane Society in a program aimed at eradicating dog fighting amongst urban teens.

“He indicated that he’s tremendously remorseful about this, and now he wants to be an agent of change, to work to end dogfighting and to specifically get young kids to cease any involvement in these activities,” Pacelle said.

I’m going to assume what everyone’s assuming, and that’s that Mike is only doing this to better his chances at getting back in the NFL. That said, give the guy some credit for swallowing his pride and teaming up in an effort he more than likely couldn’t care less about.

Next thing on everyone’s mind: Where does he sign? The obvious choice is Oakland, because Batshit Crazy Al Davis runs the team, but they’ve got their quarterback (”JaMarcus Russell is a great quarterback — get over it!”). Other teams would be the Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49′ers, Seattle Seahawks, St. Louis Rams, Buffalo Bills, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, or, in something I consdier a long shot, the Tennessee Titans. The Falcons still have him under contract, and are currently asking for a 7th round draft pick in the year 2029.

[AJC]

I’m not somebody that really cares about draft grades the day after a draft — how many times have these so-called “experts” been wrong in the past? — but since NFL is officially over, and since we’re stuck with a few boring NBA series right now and 145 more MLB games, I figure I may as well milk this post for what it’s worth.

It’s the last time we’ll be discussing the NFL until a Bengals player gets arrested in the offseason.

How’d your team do over the weekend? I’ve got lots of different opinions from lots of different people. Click here and you can see how Pete Prisco of CBS Sportsline rates the picks; click here to see how Larry Weisman, writer for USA Today, breaks down all seven rounds. Clifton Brown, writer for Sporting News Today, has his take here; for Yahoo! Sports, go here.

I’d give you Todd McShay or Mel Kiper, Jr., but they’re douche bags and charge you $39.95 a year for their services — if I could charge everyone $39.95 to be completely wrong about how a player will turn out, I would. McShay isn’t that bad, but Kiper’s looked like a weatherman with some of his recent predictions.

Enjoy the grades. They mean nothing. At the end of the day, Calvin Johnson has to catch Matthew Stafford’s passes, and DHB wasn’t a stretch by Oakland until he officially busts in Oakland. I think I speak for a lot of people when I say I’m counting down to September. Fall, you couldn’t get here soon enough.

ESPN has a nice little piece on each team’s strength of schedule for 2009. It also notes that if you went from worst to first in the NFC South, then you’re pretty much screwed (see: Falcons, who have the fourth hardest schedule this year, with opponents’ records being a combined 150-105).

An interesting note: The Cardinals, who made the Super Bowl, have the 27th hardest schedule, or sixth easiest next year; the Minnesota Vikings, who won their division and played a first round playoff game at home, have the second easiest schedule. The Patriots, who missed the playoffs, have the third easiest schedule.

You can see all teams here. With the addition of Jay Cutler, and with the easiest schedule in the NFL, it looks as if the Bears might have an easy ride to the playoffs next year.

[ESPN]

He’s had off field issues. When he’s on the field, he’s likely on the sidelines with crutches or some other ailment. And now, a year after having poor stats and a major staff infection, Kellen Winslow is the richest tight end in the history of the NFL.

As The Big Lead points out, he’s going to receive $20 million in guaranteed money. Guaranteed. I’ll say it again: Guaranteed. Is it just me, or is this a bit much to give to a guy that’s had issues since college and, given one year of his four year career, really hasn’t done anything.

And you have to question the strategy in Tampa: They didn’t re-sign former QB Jeff Garcia, who just signed with the Raiders, and they let go of Derrick Brooks, who has anchored the Tampa 2 for years now. There’s a new coach, a new D-coordinator, a new captain on defense, no quarterback, an oft-injured runnning back, and an overpaid tight end. Could be a while before Tampa makes noise again.

[The Big Lead]

[Free From a Staph-Infected Locker Room, Wealthy Solider Prepared to Truck NFC Safeties]

If you don’t get the title, then you haven’t watched enough Seinfeld, and desperately need to (I’ll still say it: Best. Show. Ever.)

Anyway….

Geno Hayes, who spent his college career at FSU — where we’ll never be able to tell you how many victories he was a part of since some of them may be taken away — was stabbed by his girlfriend over the weekend. Once with a pair of scissors. Then with a knife. In the neck. Clearly a bad breaker-upper.

The incident began with an argument Saturday, and Bagley grabbed a pair of scissors, stabbing Hayes and causing a superficial wound to Hayes’ head, Carter said. Hayes got the scissors away from Bagley. Then Bagley “grabbed a knife and stabbed him in the neck,” Carter said.

The good news is he’s alive. The bad news is his girlfriend’s a crazy bitch, and a break up like this can be hard to repair.

Deputies Say Bucs’ Hayes Stabbed By Girlfriend [TBO]
[The Big Lead]

I’ve noted many times that the NFL Combine is the most overrated event in sports when it comes to gauging talent, yet every year I get caught up in what a guy runs or what a guy jumps or what a guy throws (combine studs that probably went a bit high: JaMarcus Russell, Donte Stallworth, and just last year, Vernon Gholston).

That said, via The Big Lead, here’s some guys that impressed, and some guys that didn’t. A couple of notables on my end, from what I’ve seen on NFL Network:

Pat White, QB/WR: He ran an unofficial time of 4.49 in the 40, and then it was adjusted to a 4.55. He also jumped a solid nine feet in the broad jump, which is real important once you’re actually in the game. I know I often see guys stand in place, squat, and leap as far forward as possible. Like I said: Great gauge at talent.

Darius Heyward-Bey, WR: This guy was being talked about as a second rounder, but after running a 4.3 flat, he’s probably going to end up cracking the top 15. Michael Crabtree is still “the guy” when it comes to receivers, but Heyward-Bey is sure creeping up.

Derrick Anderson, WR: This is the guy that I think will be a solid NFL player — probably a good number two receiver — but his 4.58 40 will have schools not paying attention to whether or not he can run a route and catch the ball, and just say he’s too slow to play.

Beanie Wells, RB: I can’t tell if a 4.59 40 is good or bad for him. On one side, it’s slower than most strong safeties. But he’s 235 pounds, and at that size, how fast do you want him to run?

[The Big Lead]
Getting Listy With The Combine

Julius Peppers has made it clear that he wants out of the 4-3 defense, and that there’s four teams — one of them the Cowboys, and two others teams in the NFC South — that he’s willing to go to.

As it turns out, the Panthers have tagged their former first pick, and Peppers is set to receive $16.83 million for 2009. Peppers’ agent expected the franchise tag, but also expects him to be traded. The problem with the trade is that, under the rules, no other team can sign Peppers without giving up two first round picks, which is a hefty amount for a guy that’s had 16.5 sacks over the last two years, with 14.5 of them coming last year.

It’s the day after the last day of the regular season, which can only mean two things: There will be lots of coaches fired, and we’ll hear lots of rumors about who will replace them over the next few weeks.

The most notable coach fired is Eric Mangini, who took over a team in shambles three years ago, won 10 games in his first season and went to the playoffs, and then won nine games this season. Also to go was the winless Rod Marinelli, which was no shocker, and also not too shocking was the ousting of Romeo Crenell, who guided a team that scored one offensive touchdown in its final six games.

There’s rumors circulating that the Browns contacted former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher, but reports say Cowher has “no interest.” Rumors are being shot down that Cowher is interested in the Jets gig, but I gotta imagine if he wanted it, he’d get it.

Who’s next to go? John Gruden?

There’s one game left — and it’s essentially a playoff — between San Diego and Denver right now, with Denver up 6-3. The winner of that game will advance to the playoffs and play at home against the Colts next week. Here’s the rest of the playoff picture.

-Baltimore Ravens @ Miami Dolphins: The first time these two teams played, Baltimore killed them. But Miami’s done a lot of growing up since then.

-Indianapolis Colts @ Denver/San Diego: The Colts will be rooting hard for Denver in this one. The Chargers have given them absolute fits over the last couple of years.

-Philadelphia Eagles @ Minnesota Vikings: Are the Eagles the hottest team in the NFL right now? Minnesota can’t be happy about drawing them in the first round.

-Atlanta Falcons @ Arizona Cardinals: The Cardinals will need to play better than they have the last few weeks to win this one. Atlanta can run, and they don’t turn the ball over often.

What you’ll notice is that Dallas is out. That’s because they sucked balls against Philadelphia, and there’ll surely be some heads rolling soon. And Tampa Bay is out because they lost again, only it was at home to the Raiders, which isn’t really excuseable.

Here’s how I’m doing against Vegas this year. Sorry for the abbreviated run down again this week, but I’ve got a real time crunch with work and Christmas coming up. Enjoy the picks.

Last Week: 7-6
On the Season: 115-100
Locks of the Week: 14-6

Indianapolis Colts @ Jacksonville Jaguars (+6)
Baltimore Ravens @ Dallas Cowboys (-4)
Pittsburgh Steelers (-2) @ Tennessee Titans
Miami Dolphins (-4) @ KC Chiefs
Arizona Cardinals @ New England Patriots (-7)
Cincinnati Bengals (+3) @ Cleveland Browns
Philadelphia Eagles @ Washington Redskins (+5)
SF 49′ers @ St. Louis Rams (+5.5)
Atlanta Falcons (+3) @ Minnesota Vikings
New Orleans Saints (-7) @ Detroit Lions
Carolina Panthers @ New York Giants (-3)
New York Jets (-4) @ Seattle Seahawks
Houston Texans (-7) @ Oakland Raiders
Buffalo Bills @ Denver Broncos (-6.5)
San Diego Chargers @ Tampa Bay Bucs (-3)
Green Bay Packers @ Chicago Bears (-4)