NFL san diego Chargers

Retired NFL quarterback Trent Green is the first-ever guest columnist of MMQB, filling in while Peter King is on vacation. Green provided an interesting read on subjects relating to the league's personal conduct policy, concussions and the expanded season. And of course it wouldn't be a MMQB without a healthy dose of Favre thrown in for good measure.

What jumps out of Green's article is his prediction that 10 quarterbacks will have over 4,000 yards passing this season. He says six are a lock to do it (Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Kurt Warner, Phillip Rivers and Aaron Rodgers), and seven have the potential to do it (Jay Cutler, Matt Cassel, Carson Palmer, Matt Schaub, Donovan McNabb, Tony Romo, Matt Hasselbeck).

Let's put this prediction in context:

Here's something for the person who has nothing: a Ryan Leaf autographed jersey. It would make for a fantastic gift if this was 1998 and you were a downtrodden Chargers fan hoping that Leaf would resurrect the franchise that won just four times in 1997.

Eleven years later, not so much. In fact, it's something you wouldn't be surprised to get from your Secret Santa when there's a $15 spending limit. Except that Ryan Leaf's John Hancock is surprisingly expensive when written on high-quality Pro-Brite nylon with a lycratalic spandex dazzle collar: $449.99 (but only $4.99 for shipping!).

Ryan Leaf, the former No. 2 overall pick of the San Diego Chargers who has come to symbolize the term "draft bust," now has much bigger problems off the field than he ever had on it.

Texas law enforcement officials say an arrest warrant was issued for Leaf on May 20, and Leaf agreed to turn himself in on drug and burglary charges. But he failed to do so, and he is now a wanted man.

Former Cowboys defensive coordinator Brian Stewart has joined the Eagles coaching staff, according to various reports. Stewart spent the last two seasons in Dallas before he was fired following the 2008 season. with one year remaining on his contract.

Stewart did not return a call seeking comment.

In Dallas, Stewart had his play-calling duties taken away from him at midseason and fell out of favor with coach Wade Phillips, whom he considered a close friend. Several players were split about how they felt about Stewart.

The Eagles made this move because of the uncertainty of current defensive coordinator Jim Johnson. Johnson has taken a leave of absence while he undergoes treatment for a cancerous tumor on his spine.

Remember when Eli Manning had that dopier-than-usual look on his face after the San Diego Chargers, against his wishes, took him with the first overall pick of the 2004 Draft? Good times.

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

LaDainian Tomlinson and Darren Sproles threw a wrench into the mock-drafting plans of anyone hoping to predict who the Chargers would take in the first round of 2009's NFL Draft; San Diego had obvious defensive needs, but the future at running back was uncertain as well. Of course, lots of folks had them taking Knowshon Moreno, and he was off the board a touch early anyway.

On Saturday, around 6:30 PM ET, commissioner Roger Goodell made his way to the podium at Radio City Music Hall and announced that, with the 16th pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, the San Diego Chargers had selected Larry English, defensive end, out of Northern Illinios.

The pick was immediately met with skepticism; in the weeks leading up to the biggest offseason event on the NFL calendar, most mock drafts had the Chargers taking a running back. Georgia's Knowshon Moreno would have been an obvious choice, but the Broncos' impetuousness took him off the board at No. 12. Which meant that San Diego would have to settle on the second-best back on their board (assuming Moreno was first), or, perhaps, they had every intention of bolstering the defense all along.

With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.

The San Diego Chargers were one of the earliest contenders to be drafting a running back in the 2009 NFL draft (and they probably would have had their pick, too, if not for those darned kids). But then Darren Sproles got tagged with the old franchiser and LaDainian Tomlinson worked out his feud with A.J. Smith, and, suddenly, the Chargers were back to the secretly-stacked squad that just needs a little defensive help.

Okay, "little" might be off -- it was the absence of Shawne Merriman last year that killed the defense as a whole; without Merriman in the middle of the D to create havoc, the secondary suffered and teams moved the ball almost at will against San Diego. In other words, you should see some defensive picks in this year's draft.

Kellen Winslow signed a six-year extension with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers recently. When we first discussed the signing, the contract numbers hadn't been released. Now they have. And they're sort of insane.

Winslow is getting $36.1 million(!) over the six years, with an astounding $20.1 million of that guaranteed, and apparently, up to $42.1 million available through incentives. That's a whole lot of cash, folks, and it will make him -- at least temporarily -- the highest-paid tight end in NFL history.

I'm generally of the opinion that selecting a running back in the first round is a waste of money. Players of similar talent can be found later in the draft for a fraction of the salary-cap space, and it allows teams to address other, less fungible needs in the meantime.

There are exceptions, of course -- the Vikings and Adrian Peterson, the Rams and Steven Jackson, and the Chargers and LaDainian Tomlinson. But as we're constantly reminded, the NFL is a business with no room for sentimentality. Last offseason, the Seahawks dumped Shaun Alexander two years after he rushed for 1,880 yards, 27 touchdowns and was named league MVP.