Akili Still Stinks

[Section 310]

http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm

Apparently Akili has not been impressive in NFL

Europe thus far. I wonder if his dad is still running

at the mouth about his boy's lack of opportunity.

Not jumping on the New Orleans offer has to be one

of the all time worst moves by the Bengals...akin

to selecting Homer Rice over Bill Walsh.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

And the beat goes on for Akili...I guess he won't even earn a starting nod in Europe?

[jjakq27]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/8304257

A scout's eye view of the best show in town

By Mike Carlson

Special to NFL.com

TAMPA, Fla. (March 18, 2005) -- It's the third set of combined scrimmages at the NFL Europe training camp and the atmosphere at the University of Tampa stadium is relaxed. Relaxed for everyone except the Hamburg and Berlin players.

Their backs and ends did 7-on-7 skeleton drills against the other team's linebackers and secondary, and linemen were pass blocking and pass rushing in one-on-ones.

For me, it's like old home week. Standing alongside the drills, I catch up with coaches, officials, media and scouts, many of whom have moved on but are back to keep an eye on what's going on. One such person is Doug Graber, who coached Frankfurt to a World Bowl championship in 2003. Now he's working with the media in Tampa. Also, Buccaneers coaches Jon Gruden and Paul Hackett were out there watching their new quarterback, Akili Smith. Gruden's also keeping an eye on defensive backs and doing a little scouting.

The real action is right in front of us. Standing that close to the drills, you really feel the intensity. These guys are literally battling for the chance to go to Europe and show coaches for 10 weeks that they can do it all in real NFL game situations. They know every drill, every play, is being taped and watched. Coaches will evaluate them and, after the final full-scale scrimmages March 19, make the last cuts.

But before that happens, there's a bigger audience at the field.

There's a brand-new section of stands that contains a scattering of people -- curious students, the occasional passer-by, families and friends of the players. The word hasn't reached the public that this may be the best free show in town. It's football the way baseball's spring training used to be, before the state-of-the-art ballparks and major-league ticket prices took away from the informality.

But one row of the stands is nearly filled -- the one at the very top -- by a line of some three-dozen men in polo shirts, bearing the logos of various football teams: scouts who have come to watch more closely than anyone, seeing everything that goes on down at field level. The teams move to full-scale scrimmaging, and as the intensity increases, so too does the activity in scout's row.

Akili Smith is getting a good handle on the Galaxy's offense in his new team's back yard.

They move in unison, like a long dashboard filled with bobblehead dolls. Someone unleashes a pass with zip on it and heads nod together. Stopwatches click on punts and hands reach for notebooks or pocket recorders, as if on cue.

Jim Criner, former head coach of the Scottish Claymores who now scouts for the Chiefs, is here to check on the players Kansas City has allocated. They include QB Casey Clausen, who is fighting to back up Trent Green, and LB Rich Scanlon, who is hoping to follow in the footsteps of Mike Maslowski. Others are using NFLE to try changes, like Heisman Trophy-winning QB Eric Crouch, who is playing safety for Hamburg. Big-framed RB Joe Hall wants to prove he can play TE and H-back. Safety Ed Canonico has to translate Arena League skills to the full-sized field, but he's 6-foot-1, 200 pounds, and according to Cologne defensive coordinator David Duggans, "He can fly."

Criner's other task is to see who else stands out. There are fewer free agents this year because there are more NFL allocations than ever. But many allocated players eventually get released or placed on practice squads, and there may be someone who down the line fits the Chiefs' needs or system better than they do on their own team.

Criner's specialty is offensive line, and his Claymores produced many good ones for the NFL, including Marco Rivera, Joe Andruzzi, Barry Stokes, Cornell Green and Barry Sims. Sims' story illustrates just how delicately balanced a career in the NFL can be. As a former head coach at Boise State, Criner knew about Sims at Utah, where the tackle missed most of his last two collegiate seasons due to injury. Criner took him as a free agent and his play at left tackle for the Claymores by season's end had attracted attention. Moreover, whenever NFL teams called asking who the best free agents in Europe were, Criner told them all that Sims was the absolute best bet. He laughs when he gets to the punch line that only Oakland believed him. The Raiders signed Sims and he's been a bargain starter at left tackle. He's so well entrenched that even first-round pick Robert Gallery couldn't beat him out last season and had to settle for the right tackle position.

Did anyone spot another Sims battling in the trenches during scrimmages? Will one emerge during the season? If the scouts did, they aren't telling.

[jjakq27]

http://www.profootballtalk.com/rumormill.htm

DAILY RUMOR MILL

by Profootballtalk editor Mike Florio

POSTED 8:13 a.m. EST, March 21, 2005

AKILI SMITH "HORRIBLE" IN NFL EUROPE CAMP

Word around the league is that Bucs quarterback Akili Smith looked "horrible" in the NFL Europe camp that concluded after three weeks of joint workouts among the six franchises in Tampa.

Smith, who was out of the league in 2004 after being cut by the Packers in August 2003, was the third overall selection in the 1999 draft. The first round of that draft featured quarterbacks Tim Couch (first overall pick), Donovan McNabb (second), Smith, Daunte Culpepper (eleventh), and Cade McNown (fifteenth).

Eyebrows were raised throughout the league when Smith was signed by the Bucs earlier this year. But given the manner in which coach Jon Gruden has rehabilitated the careers of guys like Rich Gannon and Brian Griese, it makes sense that Gruden would at least be intrigued by the challenge of helping Smith fulfill the potential that he displayed under the tutelage of Jeff Tedford at Oregon.

Of course, Gruden has yet to have a chance to work directly with Smith, and we question whether the decision to allocate him immediately to Europe makes sense, given that Gruden would be in better position to determine whether Smith can be fixed if the former Oregon Duck works directly with the toe-headed tempest in minicamps and voluntary workouts.

The persistent failures of Smith at the pro level likely will renew the debate regarding the question of whether Tedford's proteges are capable of NFL success. Smith was a complete bust. Joey Harrington, the third overall choice in 2002, is a couple of regular-season bounce-passes away from getting benched. And the jury's still out on 2003 fast-riser Kyle Boller, who parlayed one year of a sub-50 percent completion rate into a first-round selection by the Ravens.

This year, of course, the scrutiny falls on Aaron Rodgers, Tedford's latest wunderkind from Cal. Widely regarded as a sure-fire top-three pick next month after a reportedly stellar workout last week, the real question as to Rodgers is whether he's another product of the Tedford magic -- or whether Tedford's track record finally enabled him to attract a guy who has the genuine ability to succeed at the next level.

Smith's poor performance thus far in NFL Europe, and his prior failure in Green Bay, also should put to rest once and for all the notion that Smith was merely a victim of the Bengals' chronic inability to develop quarterbacks. As Smith languished, some wondered whether McNabb or Culpepper would have suffered the same fate in Cincy -- and whether Akili would have developed into a Pro Bowler with the Eagles or the Vikings

[jjakq27]

Ask Akili! Don't crowd....

http://www.nfleurope.com/news/story/8337912

Ask the Pros

March 29, 2005

NFL Europe

Throughout the 2005 NFL Europe season, NFLEurope.com invites you to take a look inside the world of a player from one of the six NFLEL teams with our Ask the Pros feature. You can send in questions to a player, and they will reply on NFLEurope.com the following week.

Frankfurt Galaxy quarterback Akili Smith will be the first candidate to field your questions. The exciting Tampa Bay Buccaneers allocated passer was the third overall pick in the 1999 draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, and is looking to make a big impact in NFL Europe to get his NFL career back on track.

Smith started 17 of 22 career games in Cincinnati, completing 215 of 461 passes for 2,212 yards with five touchdowns and 13 interceptions before his Bengals career ended after the 2002 season.

The Galaxy open their 2005 NFL season this Saturday April 2, with a game against Berlin Thunder in a rematch of last year’s World Bowl.

Send in your message now, and Akili will come back with his responses early next week.

In order to ask Akili a question, send your message to enquiries@nflp.co.uk, and be sure to include your full name, city and state. Those entries that do not include full name, city and state cannot be considered by NFLEurope.com.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

TV Guide has the game being aired on Sunday the 3rd at 2pm EST on the NFL Network (channel #212 DirectTV).

[HoTbOy]

I use to think that throwing Akili in the fire too soon was his demise, or maybe our system because Klingler sucked also...but now I see we just did a bad job of trying to draft a QB. Akili had all the talent in the world, but could not put it to use on Sundays...

[UK Bengal]

The exciting Tampa Bay Buccaneers allocated passer was the third overall pick in the 1999 draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, and is looking to make a big impact in NFL Europe to get his NFL career back on track.

exciting thay have to be kidding right ????

[cincy9275]

akili may have been a bust here his problems here where a mix of bad coaching and him just not getting it. i don't hate him because he failed here. i wish him the best and hope everything works out for him

[Bobcat Bengal]

akili may have been a bust here his problems here where a mix of bad coaching and him just not getting it. i don't hate him because he failed here. i wish him the best and hope everything works out for him

co-signed.

many players bust out the league.

Yall know what NFL stands for....dont play coy.

[jjakq27]

Frombengals.com:

MORE NFL EUROPE: Two Bengals make their NFL Europe debut Saturday on TV. Defensive end Derrick Crawford wears No. 98 for former Bengals quarterback Akili Smith's Frankfurt Galaxy in their game against Berlin on Direct TV Channel 704 at 11 a.m.

At noon on the NFL Network, defensive lineman Greg Scott wears No. 93 for Rhein against Amsterdam.

When does Casey meet Akili? April 23 in a game expected to be on TV. Bramlet's TV debut is April 16.

[jjakq27]

Akili was 6 for 11 for 68 yards, 1 TD, 1 Int. 65.7 Rating vs. Berlin today.

[ShulaSteakhouse]

So he only threw 17 passes the entire game? Did he play the whole game do you know?

[schweinhart]

So he only threw 17 passes the entire game? Did he play the whole game do you know?

Akili only played about half the game and the team he's on couldn't do jack on O. He threw 11 passes and I saw 3 dropped. Had he played more instead of being subbed w/ some dude who will never be on a NFL roster, the game would've been closer.

The more interesting about the game was the play of Bengals DE Derrick Crawford. He looked even better than he did in pre-season and if he's not on the 53-man this year, he'll get plucked from the practice squad like Elton Patterson was.

Crawford has extreme speed from LDE off the snap and down-the-line pursuit. The other team maybe ran at him 4 times and ran away from the rest. Crawford sacked Dave Ragone after he flew about 15 yds across the backfield to ankle tackle him. He also exploded through on a stunt to force a INT by a DT on a blown up screen plus he had another QB knockdown.

Crawford should stick if he continues to play the way he's showing he can.

[jjakq27]

So he only threw 17 passes the entire game? Did he play the whole game do you know?

http://www.nfleurope.com/#

Go down to Galaxy v Berlin and then click on PDF if you have Adobe Acrobat. It is a play by play sheet just like the NFL does during the season. It has all of the game stats also.

It looks like Dave Ragone had a good game though. 107 Rating.

[jjakq27]

Week 2

http://www.nfleurope.com/news/story/8371042

http://images.nfl.com/images/nfleurope/sta...s_fra_stats.pdf

Galaxy lift off after slow start

April 9, 2005

NFL Europe

Frankfurt Galaxy 23

Amsterdam Admirals 14

Commerzbank Arena

THE Frankfurt Galaxy turned a nightmare start into a dream finish as they blasted back to beat the Amsterdam Admirals in front of 31,644 excited fans at the Commerzbank Arena.

Amsterdam scored two early touchdowns to take a 14-0 lead but Ahmaad Galloway, the San Diego Chargers running back, rushed for 161 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries to help Frankfurt turn the game around with 23 unanswered points.

Quarterback Akili Smith, the former Cincinnati Bengals starter allocated by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, launched the comeback with a touchdown run and completed 9 of 12 passes for 95 yards, while Kevin Eakin hit on 8 of 11 for 84 yards.

For Amsterdam, Seattle Seahawks-allocated quarterback Gibran Hamdan completed 12 of 25 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown while Jarrett Payton rushed for 67 yards and a score.

Amsterdam took the lead on their second possession after a 15-yard run on a reverse by Ataveus Cash put them in scoring position. Hamdan floated a 12-yard pass to the corner of the end zone, where Ruvell Martin, allocated by the San Diego Chargers, made a leaping catch.

Frankfurt had a chance to narrow the Amsterdam lead but Steve Scaldaferri was wide left with a 33-yard field goal, and the Admirals offense responded with a 23-yard dash by Tennessee Titans running back Payton and a 24-yard hook-up between Hamdan and John Booth. From the 20-yard line, Payton – allocated by the Tennessee Titans – ran left, breaking tackles on the way, and dived in for a touchdown. Payton had gained 53 yards on four plays on the drive.

The flow of the game was interrupted by a series of yellow flags but, pinned at their own one-yard line in the second quarter, the Galaxy launched their best drive of the game. Smith found his range with some important third down completions, while Ahmaad Galloway burst through the middle for a 31-yard gain. It was Smith who capped the 99-yard drive himself by taking off on third down and burrowing into the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown.

New York Jets quarterback Kevin Eakin opened the second half for the Galaxy, hitting Hubert Whittaker and Jamal Jones for big gains on third-and-long plays. Galloway then became the key player on the drive, taking his own rushing yardage past the 100-yard mark and charging 8 yards up the middle for a touchdown. A missed extra point left the home side still trailing, 14-13.

Frankfurt were soon back on offense, with the composed Eakin driving them downfield once more. Englishman Marvin Allen gained a first down with his first career catch, a 9-yarder, and then Eakin fired a 6-yard touchdown pass over the middle to tight end Mark Anelli for a 20-14 lead inside the final minute of the third quarter.

The momentum continued to swing in the Galaxy’s direction when linebacker Kellen Brantley picked off Admirals quarterback Kurt Kittner, and when the Admirals fumbled a punt deep in their own territory, Frankfurt had the chance to take a decisive lead. More good yardage by Galloway and a penalty for a late hit on Smith set up a 23-yard field goal by Scaldaferri with 2:55 remaining.

[jjakq27]

http://images.nfl.com/images/nfleurope/sta...a_col_stats.pdf

http://www.nfleurope.com/news/story/8391602

4/7 for 52 yds, 2 sacks, 1 fumble, 0 TDs, 80.7 rating vs. Cologne (04/16).

[HairOnFire]

Whenever the draft goes to commercial I flip to the NFL Network to see the Akili vs. Casey "Three Eggs" Bramlett duel.

Casey just threw a perfect fade pass for a TD. Just perfect.

[BengalByTheBay]

HOF -- how did this game end up anyway??

[HairOnFire]

Hamburg in a total blowout. I didn't catch the end of the game but the score was 30-3 the last time I tuned in. Among the action I managed to catch while ignoring the commercial breaks during the draft was an Akili Smith interception on a deflected pass, the sweet fade pass for a TD by Bramlet, and another TD drive led by Bramlet where he went 6-6 for some pretty serious yardage.

[BengalByTheBay]

Sounds like we can wait on drafting a backup QB?!

[Tampa Bengal]

In todays Tampa Tribune it says "Smiths two interceptions and a fumble on a sack lead to 13 first-half points for the Sea Devils."

Yeah that sounds about right.