celticdb15
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Here's a pretty well written article regarding 15 players(9/15white) from the Montana Grizzlies that are in NFL training camps. You may wonder why I would start this topic? The reason for doing so is to highlight the efforts of some of these guys who have had to take the long route to the league. I find it amazing that most of these guys are from the Big Sky state with a very rural and "lily" white population. On the other hand it shouldn't come as any surprise to the people on this site. It appears these guys were isolated way up there and are not afraid to compete with the "real" athletes.
*On a side note Anderson showed a lot more than being a fill in player. If anything he was one of the only bright spots on that D last year. How do the Eagles reward him? Bring in some real affletes this offseason to compete at Safety.
Butte’s Anderson leads list of 15 former Griz, Cats fighting for NFL roster spots
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July 23, 2013 12:15 am • By Trent Makela Montana Standard
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Former Butte High and Montana safety Colt Anderson is one of 15 former Griz or Cats who will be taking part in NFL training camps this week, with exactly half of the league’s clubs already on the field as of Monday.
Anderson, a free safety and special teams ace for the Philadelphia Eagles, could find himself on somewhat uncertain footing this season in Philly, even with a 2011 Pro Bowl special teams appearance and four 2012 starts on his recent resume. That’s because Andy Reid — his head coach each of the last three seasons — is now running the show in Kansas City. Also gone, after just one season, is defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, under whom Anderson bounced back strong last year from a torn ACL suffered in December of 2011.
Offensive-minded former University of Oregon coach Chip Kelly is the flashy new man in charge for the Eagles, while Billy Davis has been charged with cleaning up a defensive unit that allowed 444 points last season — one of many reasons the team wound up 4-12 and at the bottom of the NFC East. As was to be expected, the Eagles brought in fresh faces at just about every position as well, with safety being no exception. Anderson will fight to maintain his spot on the depth chart against proven veteran newcomers in Kenny Phillips and Patrick Chung, as well as rookie fifth-round pick Earl Wolff.
Even so, at least three Philly sportswriters have voiced confidence recently that Anderson’s versatility, strong play a year ago, and obvious work ethic should earn him a roster spot when teams trim down to 53 players for the regular season on August 31.
When csnphilly.com’s Andy Schwartz picked out five Eagles to watch at training camp on Thursday, Anderson’s name topped the list.
“Will Anderson return for a fourth season with the Eagles? He should,” Schwartz said in the article, which can be read for free on the website. “He’s a fourth-year veteran. He’s the best special teams player on the roster (he had a team-high 166 special teams production points last season, a criteria used by the coaches). And come Week 1, he’ll be nearly two years removed from his torn ACL.”
Philadelphia Magazine’s Sheil Kapadia ranked Anderson on his third tier of Eagles players when he broke down the 90 athletes expected to take the field for training camp this week on Monday. He tabbed the Butte product in the “likely backups” category, just below “the contributors” and “the difference-makers”.
“I had some trouble deciding where to slot him,” Kapadia said of Anderson in the lengthy breakdown which can be read on phillymag.com. “If Kelly is serious about fixing the Eagles’ special teams, keeping Anderson is a no-brainer. And last year, in four starts, he showed he’s fine in a temporary fill-in role on defense.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane likes Anderson’s prospects as well, saying in a look at the Eagles’ key position battles on Monday that can be read on philly.com:
“Anderson’s special-teams abilities should guarantee him a roster spot.”
Listed at 5-foot-10 and 194 pounds, Anderson is a couple inches shorter and at least 15 pounds lighter than Phillips, Chung and Wolff. But then again, the Butte product has stuck in the league for four years now while plenty of prospects with “ideal size” have come and gone.
Sturgis was the first kicker selected this season and, with a $2.3 million deal over four years, appears to be on even footing with Carpenter if not the favorite in their training camp battle. Carpenter’s 2013 contract is worth $3.02 million and the team may be looking for a cost-effective change after he missed a handful of makeable kicks for the points-starved Dolphins in 2012.
Early reports are looking favorable for Carpenter, however, after he took all of the reps on Sunday and made 10 of 10 attempts at one point, including a pair of 49-yarders, according to ESPN blogger James Walker. Sturgis got his chance to kick on Monday, but made just one of two attempts.
But Mariani will get an opportunity to regain his spot, and John Glennon of the
Tennessee Daily News Journal said in an article available on dnj.com that Mariani has stood out during his recovery this offseason.
“He’s slightly ahead of schedule in recovering from last year’s gruesome injury, one that left many wondering if his career was over,” Glennon said. “He didn’t have all his strength and mobility back during OTAs, but he was moving in the right direction as training camp neared.”
“It’s one of those things that if they were to say, ‘Hey, we want you to be a fullback. We want you to learn that position,’ then I’m all in on that,” McSurdy told the Morning News. “Or if they say they want both, then I’ll figure it out. I’ll just do whatever I got to do.”
Other Bobcats in training camps include Chicago Bears defensive tackle Zach Minter and Seattle Seahawks offensive tackle Mike Person (Glendive).
*On a side note Anderson showed a lot more than being a fill in player. If anything he was one of the only bright spots on that D last year. How do the Eagles reward him? Bring in some real affletes this offseason to compete at Safety.
Butte’s Anderson leads list of 15 former Griz, Cats fighting for NFL roster spots
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Uh oh.. another Jason Collins ? Nope thats Jimmy Wilson
Buy Now
AP file photo
Former Butte High Bulldog and Montana Grizzly safety Colt Anderson, left, will look to build on a strong 2012 season under the Philadelphia Eagles’ new coaching regime this month.
July 23, 2013 12:15 am • By Trent Makela Montana Standard
(0) Comments
Former Butte High and Montana safety Colt Anderson is one of 15 former Griz or Cats who will be taking part in NFL training camps this week, with exactly half of the league’s clubs already on the field as of Monday.
Anderson, a free safety and special teams ace for the Philadelphia Eagles, could find himself on somewhat uncertain footing this season in Philly, even with a 2011 Pro Bowl special teams appearance and four 2012 starts on his recent resume. That’s because Andy Reid — his head coach each of the last three seasons — is now running the show in Kansas City. Also gone, after just one season, is defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, under whom Anderson bounced back strong last year from a torn ACL suffered in December of 2011.
Offensive-minded former University of Oregon coach Chip Kelly is the flashy new man in charge for the Eagles, while Billy Davis has been charged with cleaning up a defensive unit that allowed 444 points last season — one of many reasons the team wound up 4-12 and at the bottom of the NFC East. As was to be expected, the Eagles brought in fresh faces at just about every position as well, with safety being no exception. Anderson will fight to maintain his spot on the depth chart against proven veteran newcomers in Kenny Phillips and Patrick Chung, as well as rookie fifth-round pick Earl Wolff.
Even so, at least three Philly sportswriters have voiced confidence recently that Anderson’s versatility, strong play a year ago, and obvious work ethic should earn him a roster spot when teams trim down to 53 players for the regular season on August 31.
When csnphilly.com’s Andy Schwartz picked out five Eagles to watch at training camp on Thursday, Anderson’s name topped the list.
“Will Anderson return for a fourth season with the Eagles? He should,” Schwartz said in the article, which can be read for free on the website. “He’s a fourth-year veteran. He’s the best special teams player on the roster (he had a team-high 166 special teams production points last season, a criteria used by the coaches). And come Week 1, he’ll be nearly two years removed from his torn ACL.”
Philadelphia Magazine’s Sheil Kapadia ranked Anderson on his third tier of Eagles players when he broke down the 90 athletes expected to take the field for training camp this week on Monday. He tabbed the Butte product in the “likely backups” category, just below “the contributors” and “the difference-makers”.
“I had some trouble deciding where to slot him,” Kapadia said of Anderson in the lengthy breakdown which can be read on phillymag.com. “If Kelly is serious about fixing the Eagles’ special teams, keeping Anderson is a no-brainer. And last year, in four starts, he showed he’s fine in a temporary fill-in role on defense.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane likes Anderson’s prospects as well, saying in a look at the Eagles’ key position battles on Monday that can be read on philly.com:
“Anderson’s special-teams abilities should guarantee him a roster spot.”
Listed at 5-foot-10 and 194 pounds, Anderson is a couple inches shorter and at least 15 pounds lighter than Phillips, Chung and Wolff. But then again, the Butte product has stuck in the league for four years now while plenty of prospects with “ideal size” have come and gone.
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Sixth-year Miami Dolphins kicker Dan Carpenter, a Helena High grad and former Grizzly, has made 82 percent of his field goal attempts and 154 of 155 extra point attempts in a stellar career thus far in Florida. Still, that didn’t stop the Dolphins from drafting Caleb Sturgis — who broke the career and season field goals made records at the tradition rich University of Florida — in the fifth round of April’s draft.Sturgis was the first kicker selected this season and, with a $2.3 million deal over four years, appears to be on even footing with Carpenter if not the favorite in their training camp battle. Carpenter’s 2013 contract is worth $3.02 million and the team may be looking for a cost-effective change after he missed a handful of makeable kicks for the points-starved Dolphins in 2012.
Early reports are looking favorable for Carpenter, however, after he took all of the reps on Sunday and made 10 of 10 attempts at one point, including a pair of 49-yarders, according to ESPN blogger James Walker. Sturgis got his chance to kick on Monday, but made just one of two attempts.
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Third-year Titans returner/receiver Marc Mariani, a former Havre Blue Pony and Grizzly, wasn’t just a Pro Bowl return man for Tennessee in 2011, he set Pro Bowl records for number of returns and total return yards in the game. Still, he’ll face a tough task in unseating Darius Reynaud, who stepped in after Mariani suffered a devastating broken leg in the third preseason game of 2012, returning two punts for touchdowns while averaging the third-most yards per punt return (13.2) in the league.But Mariani will get an opportunity to regain his spot, and John Glennon of the
Tennessee Daily News Journal said in an article available on dnj.com that Mariani has stood out during his recovery this offseason.
“He’s slightly ahead of schedule in recovering from last year’s gruesome injury, one that left many wondering if his career was over,” Glennon said. “He didn’t have all his strength and mobility back during OTAs, but he was moving in the right direction as training camp neared.”
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Second-year Cowboys linebacker Caleb McSurdy, a former Grizzly and 2012 seventh-round draft pick, has made a strong return from rupturing his Achilles and has participated in all of Dallas’ organized team activites. Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News said he sees McSurdy as a potential starter in a recent article on dallasnews.com, but not on defense. McSurdy has been taking reps at fullback with the Cowboys, who recently released veteran Lawrence Vickers — the only fullback on their roster.“It’s one of those things that if they were to say, ‘Hey, we want you to be a fullback. We want you to learn that position,’ then I’m all in on that,” McSurdy told the Morning News. “Or if they say they want both, then I’ll figure it out. I’ll just do whatever I got to do.”
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Fourth-year Patriots linebacker Dane Fletcher, a Bozeman High and Montana State product, took over Brandon Spikes’ inside linebacker spot for New England while the incumbent starter chose to train away from the team rather than join their organized activities this offseason. Fletcher suffered a torn ACL in 2012’s preseason opener after starting five games for the Pats in 2011.- - -
Sixth-year Jets fullback Lex Hilliard, a Flathead High grad and former Grizzly, started nine games last season for New York, but will face a training camp battle with rookie fullback/tight end Tommy Bohanon to regain his spot on the depth chart. The Jets selected Bohanon in the seventh round in April and signed him to a four-year $2.2 million deal in early May.- -
Other Grizzlies in training camps include Atlanta Falcons defensive end Kroy Biermann (Hardin), Falcons safety Shann Schillinger (Baker), St. Louis Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson, Rams running back Chase Reynolds (Drummond), Indianapolis Colts running back Dan Moore and Colts wide receiver Jabin Sambrano.
Other Bobcats in training camps include Chicago Bears defensive tackle Zach Minter and Seattle Seahawks offensive tackle Mike Person (Glendive).
