Tough Times

Today's edition of The Salt Lake Tribune features an article about former ProUte Luther Elliss, a tough defensive lineman who has come upon tough times. A first round draft pick and two time Pro Bowl player, Elliss spent 10 years in the NFL but as a result of poor investments he has lost homes in Utah and Michigan and has declared bankruptcy. A big man with a big heart and a big family (six of his eleven children are adopted), Elliss also has big debts that he cannot pay back. To his credit Elliss does not blame the NFL or the Lions organization, which provided financial seminars to players. That credit won't pay his bills or save his home, sadly. Since retiring from the Denver Broncos in 2004 Elliss has sold insurance but could not sustain an income equal to his expenses. He left the University of Utah a few classes short of graduating, which has limited his options. It may be time for Elliss to come back to where it all began and complete his education!

Six Out Of Six

Kelly Isleib was selected with the sixth pick in the sixth round of the Women's Professional Soccer draft on Friday. Sky Blue FC of New Jersey, the 2009 WPS champions, drafted the senior midfielder 53rd overall. Isleib, a Park City native, was a four year all-conference player at the University of Utah. She made All-Region three times and has been to camp with the U.S. national team twice.

ProUtes in the Playoffs

Jonathan Fanene had more tackles (4) than Sione Pouha (1 assist), but the Bengals lost to the Jets in their AFC wildcard game. It was the second straight weekend that the Jets celebrated a convincing victory over the Bengals. The Jets get a new opponent this week, and it's a formidable foe: Eric Weddle and the Chargers.

Paul Kruger and Kelly Talavou did not record any stats in the other AFC wildcard game, but the Ravens beat the Patriots and moved on to face the Colts. That means Kruger may get another shot at that [to borrow a phrase from The Office] "arrogant and smudge" Austin Collie!

Over on the NFC side there are no ProUtes in the playoffs. Although the AFC only holds a 10-7 advantage in the number of ProUtes, it's a matter of distribution. There are 7 AFC teams with ProUtes on their rosters, whereas there are only 3 in the NFC (and that's after the Redskins signed Quinton Ganther). The 49ers and Panthers each have 3 ProUtes on the payroll, but the rest of the conference has shown little interest in players from the University of Utah. As a result I have little interest in the NFC playoffs.

Dark Horse

This week a dark horse candidate emerged to win the ProUte of the Final Week of the regular season: Barry Sims. The veteran offensive lineman, seen here blocking for fellow ProUte Alex Smith in an earlier contest, started 7 games for the 49ers this year. Against St. Louis the Niners scored 3 rushing TDs in the second half. Frank Gore got the stats, with over 100 yards and 2 TDs, but Barry Sims and the O-Line get the credit. Alex Smith's success in the spread offense coincides with the debut of rookie receiver Michael Crabtree, the dependable running of Gore, and the development of tight end Vernon Davis, who tied the record for most TDs by a TE in a season with his long score (also in the second half). But what hampered Smith when he came into the league as the #1 pick in 2005 was the lack of protection from his line. This year his line played better and so did he. Sims just concluded his 11th season in the NFL and at the age of 35 he isn't going to start every game, but he contributed to the win that gave the 49ers their first non-losing season since 2001. For that Barry Sims is our ProUte of Week 17!

No ProUtes to Pro Bowl

This year's Pro Bowl will not include any ProUte players - no starters, reserves, or alternates. Steve Smith's numbers (65 receptions, 982 yards, 7 TDs) were down compared to last season (78, 1,421, and 6), when he went to his fourth Pro Bowl. That decline in production had more to do with the struggles of Smith's quarterback than the injury that ended his season early. His teammate Jordan Gross, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, missed almost half of the season with a broken leg, however.

But in a season when Steelers safety Troy Polamalu was hampered by injury, were there really three other safeties better than Eric Weddle in the AFC? He doesn't have Ed Reed's reputation or Jairus Byrd's 9 interceptions, but he has nearly twice as many tackles (82 to 45) as both of them. Brian Dawkins has more total tackles (108), but Weddle would have kept pace if he hadn't missed two games with an injured knee. He has the same number of interceptions (2), and his 1.5 sacks offset the 1 forced fumble that Dawkins has in his favor. Weddle's numbers are comparable to Byrd's, Dawkins's, and Reed's, if not better outright. So why wasn't he at least chosen as an alternate?

The Cincinnati Bengals received the biggest snub, sending no one to the Pro Bowl despite winning the AFC North. Chad Ochocinco has reminded Cincinnati fans that the objective is reaching the Super Bowl, not the Pro Bowl. That's a fine team-oriented outlook, but it overlooks the Colts, Chargers, and Patriots in the process. Should the Colts reach the Super Bowl again that would vacate both starting defensive end positions for the AFC. Reserve Mario Williams would fill one of those slots, but it would be great to see Jonathan Fanene, who has 6 sacks to Williams's 8, be added to the team. The Bengals have not released any information about alternate selections and Fanene's name has not been in the mix, but he is on par with any deserving defensive end behind the top three.