Harry Potter and The Deathly Lockout

Saturday, Jul 16, 2011 at 12:00 pm ET

I went and saw the last Harry Potter film last night. Opening weekend was something else. It's a rare occasion where you get to see people in costume (some good...some not so good) at a movie theater. I haven't read any of the Potter books, but I have seen all of the movies. In addition to watching a good film, I was able to check off the movie at IveWatchedIt.com, a site that lets me track the movies I've watched) and get the Hogwarts Award Trophy. I'm a movie lover and it looks like I've seen more than 500 movies total (Movies I've Watched). I've enjoyed the Harry Potter franchise and wish there were more films. Just as the Harry Potter franchise came to an end, the NFL lockout is just about over as well.

Several sources have reported that all remaining major hurdles were cleared yesterday. This weekend the lawyers and staff from both sides are working on the contractual language for an agreement early next week. The NFL Players Association will need to re-certify as a union. Yesterday was considered by many to be the drop dead date to prevent any impact on the preseason. Sources close to the private discussions have indicated that with the progress this past week concluded, there shouldn't be any impact on the season. That's something to be happy about!

As soon as player movements are allowed, I anticipate a flurry of activity. Sports Illustrated thinks that Donovan McNabb would be a great fit in Minnesota. McNabb could certainly fill the role of mentor for young Christian Ponder.

I enjoyed reading Steve Schwarz's column on The Sports Network regarding his Ten pre-training camp fantasy thoughts. He brings up a great point when considering whether to draft Michael Vick or Aaron Rodgers first among QB's. Vick has only played all 16 games just once in eight seasons. Rodgers on the other hand has only missed 1 game and he could have probably played that game if he really had to (concussion).

ESPN is reporting that James Harrison has issued an apology regarding his comments in an interview for Men's Journal. Maybe there's hope for him yet!

ESPN is also reporting that Randy Moss is ready to return to his former self in 2011. After a pathetic 2010 season and being voted the Fantasy Football Nerd's Bust of the Year award by FFN users, Moss is apparently in great shape...no make that "freakish shape". "He is determined, motivated and quite frankly has a huge chip on his shoulder. Whatever team ends up getting Randy, they're going to know they're getting the old Randy Moss," Segal told NFL.com. "He's not just coming in to be on the team, he's going to be Randy Moss -- a difference maker." I was one of those owners who had Moss last year. I'm not sure I want Randy Moss on my team. Once bitten, twice shy...