Hakeem Nicks

Hakeem Nicks, who had one of his best performances as a Tar Heel a year ago in the Meineke Car Care Bowl tweaked his hamstring last week against the Washington Redskins. He didn’t practice this week, but is listed as probably against the Carolina Panthers for today’s game. The wide out has had a decent rookie season, catching 40 passes from Eli Manning amounting to 751 yards and six touchdowns. You have to wonder what the Tar Heels could have been if the receiver had stayed in Chapel Hill, however he was ready to go and did the right thing in jumping to the National Football League.

(NFL) Week Four - Part One

Like every Tuesday during the National Football League season it’s time to get going with the three/four part post about the ex Carolina players in the NFL, which I call “Heels in the League” (NFL). As I do all the time I divide this into many posts so that it is not overwhelming to read. Look for the second part of this post to be put on The Fifth Corner later today and the other two to be post tomorrow during the day. But for now enjoy this edition of “Heels in the League” (NFL) for the fourth week of playing…

First game with a touch of carolina blue is the one that has the Seattle Seahawks (+9.5) going east to take on the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium, in front of 66,112 fans. For the home team it’s ex Heel starting center Jeff Saturday, an eleven year veteran, who is the corner stone of the line that protects Peyton Manning. As far as the game is concerned Indy beat Seattle by the final score of 34 to 17. This puts the Colts at 4 and 0, while the Seahawks slide to 1 and 3. Over at the NFL Gridiron Gab Stephen Rhodes says Colts Successful Despite Absence Of Harrison. On the same site, they have Week Five’s Power Ranking, where they ranked the Colts second, behind the New Orleans Saints.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

The next game with some ex Tar Heels in it is the one between the New York Giants (-10) and the Kansas City Chiefs, played at Arrowhead Stadium in front of 69,238 fans. For the G Men there are two ex Heels on their roster, fullback Madison Hedgecock, a five year veteran who has the starting role at the position and had one catch for nine yards, plus rookie wide receiver Hakeem Nicks, who had one catch (3 ball thrown at him) for 54 yards and his first touchdown in the NFL. In the end it was New York winning the game by 11 points, defeating Kansas City 27 to 16. With the win the Giants still undefeated at 4 and 0, while the Chiefs are still winless at 0 and 4. Over at Giant Football Blog there is a small post about the road win. At the Giants Gab the title of the post says it all: Giants Beat Chiefs 27-16. And at the NFL Gridiron Gab, where they have Week Five’s Power Ranking, the Giants are ranked third on it.

Hakeem Nicks celebrates his 1st NFL touchdown (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

In the last game for this post it’s a game where both squads, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+6) and the Washington Redskins, have ex Carolina players on their rosters. Played at FedEx Field, in front of 86,412 fans, in all there are two ex players from Chapel Hill. For the visiting team it’s Ryan Sims, an eight veteran at the defensive tackle position, who had five tackles (4 solos) and a quarterback hit. While for the Redskins it’s their long snapper, fifteen year veteran Ethan Albright, playing on special teams. When it was all said and done it was Washington defeating Tampa Bay by a field goal, with the final score being 16 to 13. Washington goes back to .500 at 2 and 2, while Tampa Bay stays winless at 0 and 4. From the NFL Gridiron Gab, their thoughts are Campbell Rallies Redskins, Edge Winless Buccaneers 16-13, while at the Power Rankings Washington is 27th and Tampa Bay is 30th.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

(NFL) Week Three

So, as Week Three comes and goes in the National Football League it is once again for The Fifth Corner to give a run down on the games that were, in the post I call “Heels in the League” (NFL). As usual, check out my small recap about the ex Heels in the games and then click on the links provided to read about the complete game. Once again, like the weeks before, I will divide this into several posts so not to make it way too long and boring. For now enjoy part one of this edtion of “Heels in the League” (NFL)…

In the first game with a touch of carolina blue it’s the Atlanta Falcons (+1.5) going north to Gillette Stadium to take on the New England Patriots in front of 68,756 fans. For the visiting Falcons it’s offensive tackle Garrett Reynolds, who is listed as a second stringer for the time being. On the other side, the Pats have a pair of wide receivers from Chapel Hill, rookie Brandon Tate (third on the depth chart) and seven year vet Sam Aiken (second on the two deep). While neither of the two wide outs had any catches, Aiken had a couple of ball thrown his way in this game. In the end it was New England winning the game, defeating Atlanta by the final score of 26 to 10. With that both the Pats and the Falcons are now 2 and 1 on the season. Over at the NFL Gridiron Gab my good friend Jeff Sack entitles his recap Patriots Keep Falcons From Taking Flight With 26-10 Win! Which now has to ask, are the Pats back, or not? By the way, Jeff Sack is also on a Pat’s blog, the Patriots Gab, with this recap Patriots Clip Falcons Wings With 26-10 Victory. At the Falcons Gab, the recap done by Matt Loede, talks about Falcons Fall in New England 26-10.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

The second game of this recap also has ex Tar Heels on both side of the ball as the Tennessee Titans (even) take on the New York Jets in front of 75,863 fans. For the visiting squad it’s nine year vet Alge Crumpler, getting four catches (on six passes) for 41 yards. The tight end’s longest catch was for 27 yards. The other player from Chapel Hill is line backer David Thornton. The eighth year man had five tackles (4 solos) in the game. For the New York Jets, who also have one ex UNC player on their roster, wide out Wallace Wright. The third year man for the Jets, who is third in the depth chart, got no action on offense in this game. When it was all said and done it was New York defeating Tennessee by a touchdown, with the final score being 24 to 17. The Jets are now 3-0 on the season, while Tennessee, who won its division a year ago, starts this season 0-3. At the Titans Gab they talk about being Worried Yet?.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

The final game with a touch of carolina blue is once again one that has players on both rosters. The game is played in Raymond James Stadium in front of 63,689 fans as the New York Giants took on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Giants have two players on their roster from UNC, rookie receiver Hakeem Nicks, who is out in this game (but should be back to practice this week), and starting fullback Madison Hedgecock, who is in the fifth year in the NFL. While the Giants have two offensive players from UNC, Tampa Bay’s touch of carolina blue is on the defensive side. It’s defensive tackle Ryan Sims. The ex Heel, an eight year vet of the league, had three tackles (3 solos) in the game. In the end it was the visiting squad that won it out, as New York blanked Tampa Bay, with the final being 24 to 0.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

(NFL) Week One

As I keep going in this edition of “Heels in the League” (NFL) I assure you that next week I will be taking the games and splitting them in posts in two days. That is so you do not have to get post after post after post about the ex Carolina players now in the National Football League. All I can do this week is to apologize and hopefully not bore you to death as I give you the third part of Week One. There should be one more, which I will do either later tonight (but more likely tomorrow morning). For now all I can do is to hope you enjoy this next post about the “Heels in the League” (NFL) for the opening week of play…

The first game has a touch of carolina on both squads with the Washington Redskins (-4) came north to take on divisional rivals the New York Giants. In what will be their last season there, the game was played in Giants Stadium in front of 78,206 fans. For the Redskins their ex Tar Heel on the roster is Ethan Albright, a 15 year veteran who does the long snaps for the Washington squad. On the other side, it’s rookie wide receiver Hakeem Nicks, who had two catches (18 yards) before coming out of the game hurt, while the other is Madison Hedgecock, who started for the G-Men at the fullback position but didn’t have any stats for the boxscore. In the end it was the home team taking this game as the Giants came away with a 23 to 17 victory in their first game of the season. At the NFL Gridiron Gab Jeremy Fuchs says Giants Kick Off Season Holding Off Washington 23-17.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

The next game that featured someone that once played at Kenan Stadium is in the game between the San Francisco 49ers (-1) and the Arizona Cardinals. The game was played at Univ. of Phoenix Stadium in 61,981 fans. The home squad doesn’t have any ex Tar Heels, but the visiting team does, not just one, but two of them and both playing on the defensive side of the ball. One is San Fran’s first rounder, defensive end Kentwan Balmer, who had one tackle (one solo) in the game. The other player is eleven year vet Dre Bly’, who plays corner and had a heck of a game with three tackles (3 solos & 1 for a loss) and with three pass deflected. Thanks to this defense the 49′ers beat the Cards by the final score of 20 to 16. Checking once again the great web site NFL Gridiron Gab, here is what the said about this game.

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

Finally, the last game in this post that we talk about an ex Carolina player now in the National Football League is in the game between the St. Louis Rams (+6.5) and the Seattle Seahawks. This game was played at Qwest Field in front of 67,610 fans. The team that has ex Heels on it is St. Louis, who carries not just one, but two of them on their roster. Brooks Foster, a rookie wide out, did not touch any pass in this game, while Jason Brown, the first string center for the Rams, started and played well (from what I could see of the game). In the end it was not to be for the Rams, as Seattle shut out St. Louis by the score of 28 to nothing. Devon Heinen at NFL Gridiron Gab entitles his piece on this game Seahawks Open Mora Era w/ Impressive 28-0 Shutout of Rams, and you really can’t disagree with that!

Box Score — Play-By-Play — Drive Chart

Heels in the League (NFL)

With the National Football League opening up its season tonight it is time to check out how many ex Tar Heels will be playing in the NFL. From what I was able to gather (checking the rosters and the official web page of the Tar Heels) there are two dozens in all, of which twenty-three in rosters of 15 teams and one on the practice team of the Dallas Cowboys. That means that each week you can look forward to a very lenghty “Heels in the League” (NFL), and hopefully it will be filled with tidbits of what the ex Carolina players did along with many links to the games they were in. For now enjoy the list of the UNC players that now are at the next level, and with which team:

Garrett Reynolds, OT Atlanta

Julius Peppers, DE Carolina
Hilee Taylor, DE Carolina

Jesse Holley, WR Dallas (practice squad)
Gerald Sensabaugh, S Dallas

Vonnie Holliday, DE Denver
Richard Quinn, TE Denver

Jeff Saturday, C Indianapolis

Willie Parker, TB Pittsburgh
Jeff Reed, PK Pittsburgh
Greg Warren, DS Pittsburgh

Sam Aiken, WR New England
Brandon Tate, WR New England

Madison Hedgecock, FB NY Giants
Hakeem Nicks, WR NY Giants

Wallace Wright, WR NY Jets

Greg Ellis, LB Oakland

Kentwan Balmer, DT San Francisco
Dre’ Bly, CB San Francisco

Jason Brown, C St. Louis
Brooks Foster, WR St. Louis

Ryan Sims, DT Tampa Bay

Alge Crumpler, TE Tennessee
David Thornton, LB Tennessee

Ethan Albright, DS Washington

(NFL) - 08/17/09

As the pre season part of the NFL begins to take shape last night there was a game that had a couple Tar Heels that are two different stops in their careers, and you could say probably in two different mind sets. I am talking about eighth year pro Julius Peppers (Carolina Panthers) and rookie Hakeem Nicks (New York Giants), who met last night on Monday Night Football (and was visible thanks to ESPN). You are talking about the veteran who does not want to stay with the team he is on, as Peppers was tagged with the franchise tag to keep him, while the other just wants to make something of himself on his first team in his first year, as Nicks was the Giants’ first round pick. It’s experienced talent against raw talent. Basically it is two players that have their paths and must follow them. (On a side note: Thanks to The_Rob_Moore I found out that the average years in the NFL is 3.5, so being in the league 8 is a long time).

In the game, played at Giants Stadium in front of 72,768 fans, the Carolina Panthers and the New York Giants played their first pre season game of the 2009-10 season. For the visiting team we had Julius Peppers, who didn’t play much, but got a tackle in the first quarter. On the other hand, on the home team, Hakeem Nick got a catch for nine yards, coming after all of the first team was sitting for the Giants. In the end the best thing to say about this game was that New York won the game on a fumble return, on the last play of the game, beating Carolina 24 to 17. After watching this game on the world leader in sports all I can say is that if the season began next week we would see plenty of Peppers and not so much of Nicks. Hopefully, since the season doesn’t begin in seven days, the rookie wide out will be able to step it up some.

Box Score — Play-By-Play

As the National Football League draws closer and closer I found a piece about last this year’s first round pick by the New York Giants, Hakeem Nicks. And while he is mentioned in two sentences and it does not sound like he is doing as well as the Heel fans and the Giants thought he would. To be fair, it also sounds like he is breaking out of the slump and getting into ”the zone” as the season arrives. The article/blog is from the Daily News, entitled Giants offense goes deep on D, has all the feeling that this year New York might let Eli Manning stretch the defense more than it ever did before.

This should be welcome news for Nicks, who might not have the breakaway speed, but loves an open field enviroment to play in. Unfortunately, Ralph Vacchiano, the author of this article, begins like this when talking about the ex Tar Heel:

Hey, Hakeem Nicks is here. The first-round pick has been quiet all summer,

Hakeem Nicks

That does not sound like a seal of approval, not one that is going to make the Giants’ fans forget about their departed wide receivers anyways. Yes, let’s always remember that he is a rookie in the toughest league to be in, and that there will always be a learning curve. And that curve exist from the top player in a draft all the way to the ones in the seventh round. Hakeem Nicks is not immuned from this, and no one expected him to be. On the other hand, with a team looking for a receiver with their top pick in the draft shouldn’t he be stepping up? I would have to say the answer to that should be a definite yes. 

Mr. Vacchiano goes on to say:

but not today. He made a Willie Mays-style catch on a deep pass from Carr. A few plays later he made a nice turning catch on a pass from Woodson. And then he made a great leaping catch on a pass from Rhett Bomar.

Hakeem Nicks

That should be a positive sign. I would be a bit more optimistic if not for the fact that this seems to be the first time that the ex wide out from Chapel Hill has had a decent work out/practice, or at least one that is worth to be mentioning. Again, we can talk all we want about young players needing time to adjust to the next level, but when you have lost your best players at that position I am sure that the team goes for a player in the first round that can come in and contribute from the get go. Not replace the lost players, but give enough to help out the team. On the other hand no one should panic, not the Giants, not Nicks, not the fans. There are still many practices and plenty of pre season games for the ex Heel to get into gear and be for the Giants what he was for North Carolina.

I am definitely going to watch this story as it develops, since it is going to be one of the stories for a team that has just made their quarterback very rich in a year where he lost his two weapons. As I do with every other Heel, I wish all the best for Hakeem Nicks as he works more and more in order to be as much of a force in the NFL that he was in college.

As the pre season work outs are going it seems like Hakeem Nicks is getting better and better, or so the reporters following the New York Giants think so. An online article by Bob Glauer over at NewsDay describes as play where the ex UNC wide out went up for a ball, bobbled it a bit, but came down with it over two defenders. And then says “things to come?” My answer to that question would have to be: I truly believe so. Maybe the key to why Nicks is playing like a first rounder is because he is not trying to replace Plaxico Burress, but is trying to find his role with the Giants.

“I feel like it’s going to come naturally,” said Nicks, the 29th overall pick. “I just want to find my role, whatever that is, and perfect that.”

When asked if he needs to become a viable alternative to the ex Giants wide out Nicks answered:

“No. No. That is what is in my job description – a wide receiver to catch the ball – and that is what I do. I just have to be myself,” Nicks said. “That’s what got me here. I just want to go out and play the game that I have been playing – do what I have been doing to get me up to this point. Nothing is guaranteed.”

Again, to me that is showing that he wants no part of this Nicks/Burress comparison. I think that is a great idea, because it is just another added pressure that a rookie doesn’t need to have as he works his way onto the NFL. This is even more when you see that he is in the spotlight of New York City, where the city never sleep and the media never rests. Let’s be realistic, this is the city that has cut down many players that came to one of the Big Apple’s teams and were not rookies but veterans. Now, for this young man from Chapel Hill it can not be the case, and I believe the best way for that to happen is to steer clear of anything having to do with Burress.

On another note, at CBS Sports Store they have the Hakeem Nicks jerseys for sale (and while they have him as #1 it’s going to be #18). If you are going to follow the wide out in the pro’s and are planning to go see some games on Sunday it might be worth the cost. I am sure there are other places to get that type of jerseys, I am just giving you the one I found.

Hakeem Nicks

For the first time ever I am going to talk about Hakeem Nicks and Trimane Goddard in the “Heels in the League” (NFL) and not in the UNC FB section, but that what happens when you go from impressing people on the ncaa fields to doing the same when working out with your new pro team, the New York Giants. And from the several articles I found on Tar Heel Times (a must go to web site about anything/everything Carolina) about the ex wide out for head coach Butch Davis he seems to be making many heads turn while on the field. On the other hand, the ex UNC safety might have made some eyes rolls in the first practice with the Big Blue. But let’s see what they say and what I think about their comments…

First off in a piece by the Associated Press it says of the ex receiver from Chapel Hill:

If one play was any indication, the first-round draft pick from North Carolina certainly showed he could provide a deep threat that the Giants lost when they waived the troubled Plaxico Burress early last month.

To that comment I say this: one play, one game, one week, one month, one season, it is always going to get better as Hakeem Nicks is going to be that type of player that will not only make the Giants forget about Plaxico Burress, but become one of the wide outs that people in the Big Apple will always remember. There will be learning curves, bumps in the road, but in the end I truly believe that this pick is going to be favorable for both the player and the team.

But Nicks, smartly, wants to avoid the comparison to the Burress, and wants to be Nicks:

Nicks insisted that he wants to be himself and do the things that made him a first-round pick. He caught 21 touchdowns in his Tar Heels career, averaging almost 16 yards a reception.

I think that is the right way at going at this and I think this is going to make Nicks even a better player. The last thing that a rookie needs while playing in the media crazed atmosphere of New York is to put un needed pressure on himself. I have to say for someone who does not follow the pro game, with the exception of the teams that have a touch of carolina blue, I can not wait to be able to see this young man in action in real games.

However there will be the pressure, especially when you are compared to a great ex receiver:

Butch Davis, Nicks’ coach at North Carolina, went even further, comparing him to Hall of Famer Michael Irvin. And if that’s a lot for a 21-year-old receiver to deal with as a rookie . . . well, the real Irvin says, that’s just tough.

But it’s not just his ex coach giving the wide out high praises, so is his new team:

The Giants even turned up the heat when they compared their first-rounder to Pro Bowler Anquan Boldin.

You have to admit that with the high praises will also come the high expectations. Hopefully in the family that is the New York Giants there is that meshing that keeps young men, such as Nicks, from falling not because of the lack of talent, but because of the too high goals that one puts on himself. With the money and fame comes the goals and expectations that sometimes a player with the talent that the ex UNC wide out didn’t have to worry about when running wild in the back field of college teams.

The Star Ledger says this in their recap of the rookies:

Nicks also did a great job of creating separation on CB Vince Anderson on a pair of hooks. Again, the stuff you expect from a “polished” veteran. Nice ball from Bomar on the second one.

You have to like the fact that they see a polished player that could be passed off as a veteran. I know that this is just the beginning of the road, but if you see the day by it’s morning, Nicks’ should have a very sunny day (or career) ahead of him. In another piece head coach Tom Coughlin said “we will see if they (speaking of all the rookies) can come back and do it a couple of days in a row”, and you have to agree with that, and probably would not be shocked if Nicks has a down day here and there, but there signs to be happy about and so I will be.

However, speaking of down days, that could be the case for Trimane Goddard or so tells us the Star Ledger, who is trying on with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agents:

You can’t afford to make mistakes as a tryout and S Trimane Goddard had back-to-back drops in individual INT drills. He then battled the next ball but was able to hang on.

As Tar Heel Smitty said in a comment on another piece about Goddard, there might be something to worry about when it comes to his speed, but not when it comes to his smarts/football IQ. Hopefully those drops were just first day butterflies that will go away and the ex UNC safety will show the Giants the talent that he has. I wish Goodard, and of course Nicks, all the best as they persue the ultimate goal of playing football on Sundays.