Monday, February 28, 2005

Clarett lays a monster egg at combine workouts

Former Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett, given a chance to be in the upcoming NFL draft, had a great opportunity to show scouts and NFL team execs that he was in great shape and still had the magic he showed in his season at OSU, but when he ran a 40 for them, he couldn't crack 4.7 seconds, not too good for a running back. A good 40 time could have really boosted his stock in the 2005 draft. If he can't improve that considerably he may not even get drafted. To make matters worse, he bailed early on the rest of the workout, showing he may still have maturity issues to deal with as well.

Read it here:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=1357&e=1&u=/ap/20050227/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_nfl_combine_clarett&sid=95745805

Thursday, February 24, 2005

Moss to the Raiders

The Minnesota Vikings have apparently reached agreement to trade Randy Moss to the Raiders for draft picks and Napolean Harris. I think its a good move for the Vikings, as good as a player as he is, he is not worth all of the distractions he causes. Nate Burleson came on this year, and I would look for the Vikes to either draft a receiver or try to get one through free agency. The Raiders seem to be a home for malcontents, so Moss should fit right in there. The trade won't be official for a few days but should happen.

You can read about it here, from AP via Yahoo:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1393&ncid=1393&e=8&u=/ap/20050224/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_vikings_moss_traded

Franchise player roulette

I figured there would be plenty of activity the last day that teams could franchise players, and I was right. The Seahawks surprised me by signing Hasselback so quick, especially with no GM, and then franchising Shaun Alexander, their outstanding running back. The Colts, to no surprise at all, franchised Edgerrin James, the Pats did the same with Vinateri, and the Raiders franchised Charles Woodson after resigning Jerry Porter.

Next to come for the NFL, free agent signings and the draft.

My man Gordon wins Daytona!

Unfortunately I was not able to watch the race live, had to work instead but saw the replay today. That was one of the best race finished in a long time. Also, true to superspeedway form, there were quite a few crashes, especially towards the end of the race.

I was just happy to see that my man Gordon one the race, hopefully its just the start of a Nextel Cup championship sesaon for Jeff Gordon.

Saturday, February 19, 2005

What, Jones not franchished for once?

Wow, this was a shock, the Seahawks actually reached a long term deal with All Pro left tackle Walter Jones after what seems like years of annually making him their franchise player. I don't feel too sorry for ol Walter, being franchised means you get paid in the top 5 at your position, which is pretty fair since he is easily one of the top 5 left tackles in the game today. Now the real question in Seattle is who will they use the franchise pick on? QB Matt Hasselback or RB Shaun Alexander. I think it will be Hasselback unless they manage to reach a deal with him first and then can franchise Alexander. Not real likely that we will see a deal that quick, especially when the team still does not have a general manager.

You can read the story here:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1393&ncid=1393&e=1&u=/ap/20050217/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_seahawks_jones

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

Who will get the Franchise tag?

We should see alot of activity in the next couple of weeks with teams using the franchise tag. Free agency starts in early march, and anyone who is franchised gets a tender offer of the top 5 of their position and if they sign with another club, that team that gave them up gets two first round draft picks as compensation. The Bengals wisely franchised Rudi Johnson, you can read about that below. I expect the Colts will franchise Edge as well, they can't risk losing him for nothing.

Here is the link:
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylc=X3oDMTBpZ2NvMjltBF9TAzk1ODYxMDU5BHNlYwN0aA--?slug=ap-bengals-rudi&prov=ap&type=lgns

Miami Vice the movie? Sweet!

I think its just awesome that they are making a movie out of Miami Vice, the cutting edge series from the 80's, and Micheal Mann is again involved. Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx will be playing Crockett and Tubbs so it should be good. Miami Vice was a good cop show to begin with, one of the first to deal with fighting drugs as well, but it was also very hip. It was, if I remember correctly, to mix modern hit music with the plot of the show. I remember songs from Don Henley, Glenn Frye and Phil Collins among others being on the show. It was the first tv show to really have a soundtrack (not to be confused with either Don Johnson or Philip Micheal Thomas weak albums that they put out- yikes).

Check out the story here:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=493&ncid=762&e=3&u=/ap/20050214/ap_en_mo/film_minute_miami_vice

Quarterback roulette in the NFL

Its started, quarterback roulette in the NFL. As you can read in the story from MSNBC and Fox Sports at the link below, it looks the Bills are going with J.P. Losman as their guy for 05 and are going to release Bledsoe. There is already specualtion that Bledsoe could go to Dallas where Drew Henson is probably not ready and Testeverde is not the answer. The Browns are going to cut Jeff Garcia, the Bucs may have to cut Brian Griese if they can't resign him cheap enough, Brad Johnson will be gone for sure, the Dolphins could cut Fielder and the list could go on and on.

Starting next week you will likely see those and more big names released, and then in early March teams can start signing free agents, which should be interesting. So big names might be on the market like Edge, Burress and maybe even Vinateri if he wants the money.

Check out the Bledsoe story here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6976433/

Time for NASCAR!

Hey race fans, the Nextel Cup season (that still sounds funny doesn't it?) is about to get underway with this weekend's Daytona 500, and I personally can't wait. I am rooting for Jeff Gordon, followed by Jimmy Johnson and Mark Martin this year. I would love to see Martin finally win a cup in his last season, hard to believe the guy is that good and has never win the series, although he has come very close.

I would have to say the Chase for the Cup was a big success, the last race was literally right down to the wire, probably as aggressive of racing as I have ever seen when it was all on the line. Lets hope this year will be as good.

Saturday, February 12, 2005

Is the NHL done for the season

Unless they reach an agreement this weekend, the NHL season is over without even having started. I can understand the teams wanting to keep costs down (although they are the ones that are paying the salaries they are complaining about) and the players want to keep what is theirs, is either side any better for not playing this year? The players probably lost more this year than they would lose during a 3 or 4 year contract, and any NHL team that was making a profit probably lost more not having a season than they will recoup even under better terms of a 3 or 4 year deal. I challenge anyone to name a professional sports strike where either side really benefitted for all or part of a season being wiped out. Baseball didn't, don't think football did either. If the season is wiped out, that takes the pressure if reaching a quick deal since the next season is many months away. I would truly not be surprised if next season does not start on time. Its a bummer, I was looking forward to watching some hockey this winter.

You can read the story here:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=565&ncid=716&e=10&u=/ap/20050209/ap_on_sp_ho_ne/hkn_nhl_lockout

Special teams great Mitchell to retire a Redskin

Brian Mitchell announced that he will retire from the NFL next week, and he will do it as a member of the team where he saw his greatest success, the Washington Redskins. Believe it or not, counting return yardage, Mitchell retires 2nd in total all purpose yards behind only Jerry Rice. Personally I think that should merit consideration for the Hall of Fame, but I think Mitchell will be a long shot, time will tell I guess. Mitchell had over 23,000 total yards in his career. I remember Mitchell being a great athelte, a great returner, and also a great special teams player in general. I think he would also have made a great 3rd down back, a role which he played a little for the Skins but not as much as he should have. Mitchell even played quarterback for about a quarter when all of the other QB's were hurt in a game against the Eagles a few years ago.

You can read about it here from Yahoo:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1393&ncid=1393&e=3&u=/ap/20050211/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_redskins_mitchell

The Mailman delivers himself to retirement

Karl Malone, a.k.a the Mailman (because he always delivers) announced his retirement this week after and distinguished career that left him as the #2 scorer in NBA history. He ends his career only 1459 points behind the great Kareem Abdul Jabbar, had he played the whole year Malone might have been able to reach that record. Malone retired as a member of the Utah Jazz, only fitting since he played all but one year of his career there. Karl never got a ring, but he was a force in his day, I loved watching him play when he was with the Jazz, the guy was a monster out there with a great jump hook. It seemed like he hardly ever missed within 10 feet of the rim and he was also a great rebounder as well.

We will miss you mailman!

You can read the story here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6924356/

Thursday, February 10, 2005

Congrats to the Pats

Congrats to the New England Patriots for winning their 3rd Super Bowl in 4 years. I would have liked to see the Eagles win since they had never won a title before, but it was not meant to be. They hung pretty tough, but they really blew out managing the clock in the last half of the fourth quarter. What is up with throwing a 3 yard pass up the middle with a minute left in the game. I think the first item of business at Eagles camp this summer should be the 2 minute drill. As you may recall, its not the first time the Eagles have had problems with clock management.

Wednesday, February 02, 2005

The sad story of Barrett Robbins

Has this guy fallen from grace or what. He has gone from pro bowl center to this disaster. He was recently shot in an altercation with police, and it is uncertain if he will even survive. Pretty sad, this guy obviously has some mental problems (we have known that since the super bowl that he missed) and now he may not even live.

Here is a story from yahoo about the incident where he was shot:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20050124/ap_on_go_ot/nixon_terrorism

The sad story of Mike Webster

One of the things I most remember about watching football as a kid was the size of the Pittsburgh Steelers lineman. I heard alot about the steelers growing up since my older brother is a die hard fan. I remember Mike Webster, Steve Courson, Larry Brown, Steve Furness, and Jon Kolb, these guys all were pumped up weightroom warriors before serious weightlififting was as common. These guys looked pretty damn intimidating with their huge pipes.

But at least some of them used steriods, likely before we knew how bad they were, Courson died, and so did Webster. The story of Webster is especially tragic. This guy was probably the best center ever to play the game, and he died broke, and with many health problems. Click the link to read one part of a five part story about him from ESPN, a sad ending for one of the best ever, maybe THE best ever at playing the pivot in the NFL:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=1972289