According to GameDaily.com a star studded bash was held this week to celebrate the gold status of Madden NFL ’08. The festivities took place in Hollywood and they were attended by Ravens WR Mark Clayton who is known to have serious game when it comes to Madden.
GameDaily reports that Clayton “chatted about the horrible hot weather on the east coast and how he’s excited for the Ravens’ new uniforms and getting the season started.â€
New uniforms? As in the Ravens unis for Madden or for real?
Ravens reserve LB Dennis Haley recently went home to Salem, VA to host his first ever Elite Performance football camp. Joining Haley for the three day camp were a few of his teammates including Pro Bowl LB Bart Scott.
Haley was once a Virginia State Champion as a running back. He later went on to play in Charlottesville with the University of Virginia.
Someone to watch in training camp and during the preseason games is speed pass rusher Antwan Barnes, a fourth round pick out of the Florida International. He turned a view heads during OTA’s and some have dubbed him “The Natural.â€
"Everything went pretty good [at the OTA’s]," said Barnes "Everything is fast-paced. [Ravens linebackers] Gary Stills and Bart Scott have been giving me a lot of insight on the defense and what to expect my rookie season.â€
Given the Ravens many looks and morphing defensive style, adapting to such an intricate defensive scheme right out of FIU is a cerebral beast. But the rookie known in college as “El Monstruo†(The Monster) seems to be taking it in stride.
“They’ve told me you can’t do everything in your first year. I’m going to play special teams. I got to get into the playbook more. This Ravens defense is wow, something I have never seen before."
Ed Reed can give opposing offensive coordinators headaches because they have to be continually aware of Reed’s ball skills. In Pittsburgh, Reed might soon give the Steelers’ front office a few headaches as well.
As the Tribune Review’s John Harris reports, Safety Troy Polamalu’s contract is up at the end of the 2007 season and given the recent slump of his agent Marvin Demoff, it’s quite possible that Demoff will use Ed Reed’s contract terms as the starting point for his negotiations with Pittsburgh.
Demoff has lost some high-profile clients recently such as running backs Larry Johnson and Corey Dillon, defensive end Julius Peppers and quarterback Chris Simms. Demoff also represents Jonathan Ogden but of his stable of current clients, Polamalu is the biggest name with the most upside. If Demoff fails to land a market rate contract for Polamalu, he stands to lose much more than fee income from the Steelers.
This will be an interesting negotiation to watch. Typically the Steelers like to extend their core players prior to their final year and it is their policy not to negotiate in season. Of course the team could always franchise Polamula. It is doubtful that the Steelers would ever allow their Pro Bowl safety to hit the free agent market.
