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Philadelphia Eagles quarterback, Michael Vick, suffered from a concussion during last Sunday’s loss against the Atlanta Falcons. Vick’s head slammed into his own lineman just after throwing a pass.  Fans are upset that Vick may not play in Sunday’s home-opener against the Giants. If Vick sits out, Mike Kafka, will have to step in. Vince Young is still out recovering from a torn hamstring. Vick missed practice on Wednesday, but did do a walk through. The good news is that Vick returned to practice on Thursday and Marty Mornhinweg, Eagles offensive coordinator, said Vick has pretty much been on routine this week. With that being said, it looks like Philly fans will have their QB playing at the home-opener.

NFL season is now underway as training camps have begun!  Today, nine teams begun their intensive training camps that will lead up to preseason games.  The remaining teams will commence camp on Thursday, Friday, or Saturday.  With the end of the lockout, there are many deals that have been finalized.  The New York Jets have signed Santonio Holmes on a five year, $50 million contract, of which $24 million is guaranteed.  The Seahawks have negotiated and come to terms with Robert Gallery on a three year contract, but the financial negotiations were unavailable at this time.  DeAngelo Williams has signed a deal with the Panthers for a five year, $43 million contract.  Of that, $21 million is guaranteed.

Apparently the lockout was worth it for these players!

There have been rumors in the NFL of a possible expansion to southern California. Those rumors have become true this week since the live entertainment organization AEG and Farmers Insurance expressed their interest in undertaking a 75,000 seat, 1.3 billion dollar project. The project as it stands would be a multi-purpose stadium which would be named “Farmer’s Field”, which would not only serve the NFL but it would have the capability of handling Super Bowls, large concerts and even the Final 4 NCAA event. The facility would be located next to the L.A. convention center campus, the home to one of the oldest most popular facilities in L.A. The L.A. convention center is one of the highest entertainment locations in the nation and houses events like the Adobe MAX, Video Game Awards, L.A. Auto show and the electronic entertainment expo. Another issue at hand is which team will be moving to southern California. Los Angeles has not had a football team in the region in 16 years since the Raiders and the Rams left in 1995. There are more rumors that AEG has contacted seven NFL teams in regards to the move and AEG have even considered paying for the rest of the lease agreements for the teams that want to move to the new location if it’s reasonable. That sounds like a huge rumor more than anything! The teams that have been considered are  the San Diego Chargers, the Oakland Raiders, the Minnesota Vikings, the St. Louis Rams and the Jacksonville Jaguars. The talks have been happening for the last two months and as recently as last week. Some people argue that relocating a hometown team is not going to be easy but that the best decision would be to bring another franchise from another state to help with the budget deficit that L.A. is facing. There are critics of the Farmers field project that comment building another multi-purpose building would take business away from the current locations. Overall the project will likely be profitable for the state and the people by creating new jobs and a new venture fro the locals to experience.

To state the obvious, the NFL lockout is not only affecting the owners and the players, but also the people who work for the team and even the people who work at the stadiums. The owners and the players have to come to an agreement and think about what is in the best interest of the league. NFL Network analyst, Kurt Warner feels that they will eventually come to an agreement and there will be a football season for 2011. “I’m still optimistic that they’re going to find a way to make sure there’s football,” Warner said. “The players have too much to lose. And as much as I hate to say it, at some point, the players have to give in. And hopefully, they can gain some other things on their side. “But ultimately, they have too much to lose.” Many of the players with the most to lose are recent draft picks who signed deals with high annual base salaries, such as New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez. Denver Bronco Elvis Dumervil, the player with the highest base salary for 2011, is said to lose the most from a full-season lockout. All parties involved will insist that they’re suffering more than everyone else. Whether it’s the fans, the owners, or the players, everyone thinks that they are the ones that lose out the most. 

Amidst this NFL off season, much activity has taken place including the Lockout discussions, NFL Draft, and Tweeting?  The latest Twitter incident includes the Pittsburgh Steeler’s running back, Rashard Mendenhall.  As most Americans celebrated the capture of Bin Laden which brought about some closure to the tragic event September 11 attacks occurring more than 10 years ago, few did not. One to voice their concern was Mendenall who stated he had “a hard time believing a plane could take a skyscraper down demolition style.” Everyone is titled to their opinion, but sports apparel company Champion did not agree with their endorsed player who had been with them since 2008. Being let go by Champion, Mendenall and all athletes must do a better job at monitoring their opinions as many times they not only represent themselves, but also million dollar corporations and brands. 

Sources say the league year may not begin until June when the 8th Circuit Court hearing is scheduled.  Until then, players still have no access to facilities and have been spotted playing at local high schools. This situation is cutting into training time. Just to put it in perspective, the first pre-season kick off game is on August 7th between the Bears and the Rams. In the meantime, contracted players will not be traded, free agents will not be signed and undrafted free agents will not be signed by the end of the NFL draft pick. In the end, will it result in an 18-game regular season with 2 pre-season games? Will the owners take more off the top? We’ll know soon enough by mid-June when the court makes its final ruling. Stay tuned.

Those who are fans of Buffalo Bills collectibles may be interested to hear that the Bills have released defensive lineman Marcus Stroud. The 10-year veteran is also a three-time Pro Bowl selection. His position will likely go to either Torell Troup or Alex Carrington, last year’s draft picks. Last season, Stroud had 49 tackles and three sacks. Fans will find a selection of Marcus Stroud signed footballs and photographs available.

Over 56,000 Green Bay Packers fans attended the “Return to Titletown” celebration on Tuesday. Spirits were high as the Packers celebrated their winning season and the return of the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the first time in 14 years. The small Northeastern Wisconsin town had been celebrating since the Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday and captured the coveted Super Bowl title. Fans and collectors of Green Bay Packers memorabilia will find a great collection of jerseys, Green Bay Packers signed footballs, and other collectibles such as Aaron Rodgers signed football helmets and more.

Football fans may be interested to hear that the NFC defeated the AFC in the NFL Pro Bowl. Michael Vick was the starting quarterback for the NFC but was taken off after the first quarter. He completed 5 for 10 passes for 59 yards. Meanwhile Philip Rivers, Peyton Manning and Matt Cassel rotated through the AFC quarterback position but were unable to prevent the NFC from capitalizing on an early lead. Those who are interested in will find signed football helmets, jerseys and photographs from all of the top players in the NFL such as Michael Vick signed collectibles.

Those who are Tennessee Titans memorabilia fans may be interested to hear that Jeff Fisher will no longer reign as head coach. At a press conference last night, it was announced that Fisher and Titans owner Bud Adams had reached a mutual agreement that the change was necessary. Despite a number of losing seasons, Fisher ranks third among active coaches in career wins (147-156). Those who are interested will find a large collection of Tennessee Titans signed helmets and jerseys available.