NFL Rookie of the Year: The Sports Opinionated Picks

As Week 17 approaches and most of the playoff spots are decided, I like to look back on the season for some of the stand-out performances. MVP races get heated debate and so do late-season coaching decisions like sitting your starters or throwing your quarterback under the bus….yes Tom Cable, I’m talking to you.


One of the debates that gets knocked out of the spotlight is the Rookie of the Year award. This year, we’ve got some great, multi-positional debate to look forward to. I’ll give you my opinion, some stats and obviously my recommendations, but I’d love to hear your thoughts as well.

For each category, I narrowed it down to three candidates based on season stats, what I saw when I watched them play and the opinions of a few “experts” from the media.

Offensive Rookie of the Year
This seemed like a three-horse race from the outset. Knowshon Moreno, Percy Harvin and Beanie Wells all contributed mightily to their teams. As I looked a little deeper, honorable mention would also go to Hakeem Nicks, Austin Collie, LeSean McCoy and Mike Wallace. Michael Crabtree has the talent to be in the group, but he dug his own hole in the competition with an early season holdout.

None of this year’s candidates were clear cut starters on their team. Harvin often played as a slot receiver or Wildcat back. Moreno split carries with Correll Buckhalter and Wells slowly earned more playing time in place of Tim Hightower.

Here is a breakdown of their statistical impact:

Wells is clearly superior to Moreno as a running back. His yards-per-carry is much better and his DVOA shows a much better impact per play than Moreno. Not only that, but Wells’ success rate was the 5th highest ranking in the entire league.

That leaves Wells and Harvin as the two to choose from. Statistically, they’ve had very similar impacts in yardage and touchdowns. That said, having watched both of them play multiple times, I felt Harvin was a much more integral part of the Vikings offense. They relied on him for crucial third down plays and he was frequently the weapon that Vikings opponents had difficulty designing a defense for. Wells, on the other hand, was more of a complementary weapon. Opponents focused on Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and the rest of the passing game, and Wells made them pay for it when given the ball.

I believe that Wells could be a top 10 running back in the NFL within a few years, but Percy Harvin is the Sports Opinionated Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Defensive Rookie of the Year
In my mind, there were really only two possible winners here, Jairus Byrd or Brian Cushing. I included Brian Orakpo just because so many people are raving about him although Clay Matthews has almost identical stats to Orakpo, with a few extra fumble recoveries and a game-changing touchdown.

By the numbers, you can see the biggest differences between Cushing and Byrd.

Byrd does one thing extremely well, defend in the passing game. He was tops among rookies with 20 passes defensed and top in the NFL with 9 INTs. He’s had an absolutely fantastic season and the Bills have a keeper at the free safety spot.

That said, I don’t believe he’s had the same impact that Cushing has. Cushing is a more versatile defender who is harder to gameplan against because it’s tough to predict what role he will be playing on a given snap. He is equally adept at rushing the passer, dropping into coverage or chasing down a ball carrier, and his stats show it.

Cushing is first among rookies in total tackles, 3rd in sacks, 4th in passes defensed and 2nd in interceptions. Rarely do we see a player this well rounded, especially as a rookie. Watching him play, I believe he has the chance to be one of the most well rounded defenders in the league in the next few years.

The Sports Opinionated Defensive Rookie of the Year is Brian Cushing.

Many of the stats in this post are derived from the publicly available and premium database statistics at FootballOutsiders.com, NFL.com and ColdHardFootballFacts.com

Sports Opinionated Back Pages: Of Horses and (Wo) Men

Some say Serena Williams is built like a horse. Powerful, quick and strong. Well in this year’s voting for the Associated Press’ Female Athlete of the Year, Serena almost lost to one.

As the end of the calendar year approaches, the various year-end sporting awards are announced. One of the most useless and dim-witted sporting awards is the Associated Press’ (AP) Athlete of the Year Award. The Associated Press has been awarding their “Athlete of the Year” award since 1931 and was the first award of it’s kind in the United States. It tries to celebrate both a top male and a female athlete based on the voting of various AP sports contributors. Instead it leaves a true sports fan scratching their head and thinking the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating contest is more respectful (big ups to 3 time champion Joey Chestnut, future recipient of AP male athlete of the year).

After this year’s votes were counted one thing is clear, the Associated Press are idiots.

Apparently 2009 was a slow sports year in their mind. The AP voted for NASCAR racer Jimmie Johnson and tennis star Serena Williams as their 2009 AP Athletes of the Year.

For those who don’t know, Jimmie Johnson drives a car. He drives it around an oval, driving as quickly as he can while only making left turns. Yes, here is your 2009 top male athlete of the year!



Jimmie watch out for the right turn! Ha! Just joking…

Serena Williams, on the other hand, uses her athletic ability to compete at her sporting events. She was the top female tennis player of the year, winning 2 of the 4 major tournaments. She had a great year however it was far from dominating. She won the award for top female athlete despite losing an important match for threatening a line judge, not just once but twice. This famous moment came during the US Open semi-finals against Kim Clijsters. This is where she might have had her biggest and most costly sporting meltdown.

Clijsters won the closely fought match when Serena was docked a point for repeatedly threatening the line judge. Her monumental outburst was one that hasn’t been witnessed in female tennis in decades and possibly ever.

Despite showing a lack of class on the court, the AP found her to be the top female athlete of the year.

Ok, so the AP has a tough time looking outside the United States. Only 16 times since 79 awards has a non-American won the award. Worse yet is that outside of tennis or golf, a female athlete doesn’t stand a chance of winning the award. WBNA Candace Parker is the only non-golfer or tennis player to win the award in the past decade.

So who finished second you ask? Why the Breeders’ Cup champion of course. No not her jockey Mike Smith but the actual horse Zenyatta. Yes, a horse came second.


The obvious question is can we rightfully consider a horse an athlete and make them compete in a category against humans. However if we compare the careers of some of the best horses ever, we quickly notice how undeserving Zenyatta’s second place finish truly is. Affirmed, the last triple crown winner wasn’t even mentioned in the 1978 voting for AP male athlete of the year.


Not only is Zenyatta undeserving of the award but it demonstrates the ignorance of the AP voters. How is it that her jockey doesn’t get a mention however the “jockey” for the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet wins male athlete of the year?


What is clear is how irrelevant the award has become. Sanya Richards, who dominated female track & field in 2009, didn’t get a mention. Double world record breaker Usain Bolt has never figured in the voting, neither has the most dominant male tennis player of the last decade, Roger Federer. How is this? I will unvail the truth, it is quite simple.

The AP is comprised of 60 year old, Viagra popping, blue-haired men who all live in a town of less than 200 hundred people, with no internet or any outside influence (apart from themselves) and believe sports are only played in the land between the states of New York and California.

I wonder how Zipper would figure in the voting if he ever got on a hot streak at the local AP casino.




Future AP Male Athlete of the Year, Zipper, coming on strong in the inside lane.

WJHC: Team Canada goes for 6th Straight Gold!

From Guest Writer Dustin Borotsik:

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That’s right, we’ve won 5 straight. Impressive, EH?

Actually it’s the second time in the last two decades we’ve

won 5 straight as Canada also took 1^st place each year from 1993 to 1997. In fact – if truth-be-known, we’ve won 12 golds, 4 silvers and 2 bronzes in the last 20 World Junior Hockey Championships.

Which brings me to one reason why the World Juniors are so great – 60% of the time we win EVERYTIME!

Figure 1: To Show Ryan P that Graphs are Cooler than Charts

The US may dominate the Summer Olympics and squeak out victories at the Winter Olympics*, but like the land mass that is North America – when it comes to World Junior Hockey we’re BIGGER and we’re ON TOP!

* We will beat them at the Vancouver Olympics

Russia? Puh-Leeze! They may be the main competition, but just have four Golds in the past 20 years to show for it. And one of them was under the psudo-nom of “CIS”. What-the-shit Russia? If we actually knew that was you back in 1992, we probably would have found a way to pound you that year too!

Picture 1: For all their personal and team success at the NHL level, neither Malkin nor Ovechkin ever tasted World Junior gold. (Editors note: This picture could be a 2010 Olympic Preview)

Sweden? Well, let’s just say that in World Junior Hockey, Canada is my new little puppy and Sweden is my hard wood floor. You would be correct to assume that Canada does a lot of pooping on Sweden. In fact, Canada has beat Sweden in the last two Gold Medal games. This past weekend Sweden even tried to say “Enough is Enough” in Regina during pre-tournament action. They brought it physically and even got a little dirty, but by the time the clock had run out it was a 6-2 win for the Canadians and the Swedes refusing to shake hands after the game. They even left the ice before the player of the game presentation. Wow – Kent Forsberg must be teaching these youngsters all he knows about class.

Who’s-Who: Team Canada 2010?

Nobody likes clichés, but when it comes to Canadian Junior Hockey there are a couple worth repeating as they ring so true. These young men truly do play for the logo on the front and not the name on the back. They have yet to be spoiled by stardom nor has their love for the game been subdued by the business side of the professional ranks. These guys LOVE the sport and LOVE their country and it shows on every shift. It is an honour for them and they take it seriously. I once heard that pulling on that jersey with the Maple Leaf on the front makes each of them an inch taller and 20 lbs heavier. Perhaps that’s not possible – but SHHH!! Let’s not tell the team that. They believe it, and I appreciate the passion!!

Captain

Patrice Cormier – Typical Canadian player. Not overly blessed with finesse or dangle, but a huge heart and he never stops working!

Returnees

Six in all, including Cormier, Stefan Della Rovere, Jordan Eberle, Ryan Ellis, Alex Pietrangelo and Colton Teubert. Three forwards, three D-Men. Nice and balanced. And really, do you think Eberle even had to try-out for the team after his heroics last year? (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8v8C3scwvg)

The other five returnees other than Cormier will alternate the “A” duties, as is tradition with Team Canada.

Goalies

Jake Allen has won for Team Canada at the under-18s. And he plays for the Fog Devils of the Q. Spectacular numbers while playing through all that Fog?? – I’m very optimistic! ;-)

It seems like Martin Jones from our own Clagary Hitmen will play the role of the backup. Martin is one of the few players who lacks international experience and while nobody doubts he could get it done, it certainly seems like Allen’s job to lose.

D-Men

Much talk about our “Shutdown” tandem of returnee Colten Teubert and Marco Scandella. While from different ends of the country, they are actually being re-united from those under-18 days. Team Canada has always had a shut-down pair of bone-crushers on the blue-line (Myers / Aulie, Parent / Staal, Phaneuf / Webber) and this year is no different. It was mused this week that if Teubert was a comic book character, he would be The Punisher.

After those two, the main talk revolves around the amazingly skilled Ryan Ellis. Picked 11^th overall in last June’s draft despite being just 5’10” and 170 lbs, Ellis is such an effective Powerplay QB that they actually dusted off an old LA King PP scheme for the team last year which clicked at 50% early on in the 2009 tournament.

The remainder of the guys round out with a big shot (Hamonic), a big body (Cowan) and great all-around returnee in NHLer Alex Pietroangelo. I don’t know much about the guy pegged to be the 7^th D-Man, Calvin de Haan, but he went 11^th overall to the Islanders so I’m willing to say he’ll be OK.

Forwards

We have the three returnees: Eberle, Cormier and Stefan Della Rovere. Della Rovere is another guy who plays the traditional brand of Canadian Hockey. He is not afraid to go to the tough areas of the ice and isn’t afraid of anything. In fact, I’ve been told that before he goes to bed at night, the boogie man checks his closet for SDR.

Eberle (Pats) currently sits 2^nd amongst WHL scorer and is joined on Team Canada by the #1 overall scorer in Brandon Kozun (Hitmen) and the #5 scorer Brayden Schenn (Wheat Kings). Kozun is under-sized but dynamic, while Schenn almost made an over-achieving Kings team out of camp and actually signed a one-game “Try Out” contract to play a big-league game with them earlier this month in Vancouver.

As a Westerner I hate to admit it, but most of the flash up-front will come from the OHL this year. We have an entire line from the Memorial Cup winning Windsor Spitfires, including the projected #1 overall pick in 2010: Taylor Hall. Many are expecting John Travaras type heroics from this young man, and he should certainly feel at home with line mates Greg Nemisz (Flames 1^st round pick in 2009) and Adam Henrique. Together with Ryan Ellis, this group makes up Windsor’s “Fab Four”.

FYI - The last time one Major Junior team sent four representatives to a World Juniors it was from the Memorial Cup Winning Kamloops Blazers in 1996. (Jarome Iginla – tournament leading scorer, Nolan Baumgartner, Hnat Domenichelli and Jason Holland). And that year - Team Canada won gold!

Leaf top pick Nazem Kadri battled off a slow start to selection camp to make the squad.

3^rd overall in Q scoring, Luke Adam, rounds out the forward ranks with Gabriel Bourque, Brandon McMillan and Jordan Caron. Of those four, look for Brandon McMillan of the WHL to become a quick fan favourite.

By The Numbers

- 8 WHLers, 7 OHLers, 6 from the “Q” and 1 NHLer (Pietrangelo – STL)

- 6 players are captains on their current team, 10 are assistants.

- 10 first round picks, 6 second round picks and one draft eligible 2010 player. (Taylor Hall)

- For the first time in five years, there are no members of Team Canada from US College Hockey.

Who is not on Team Canada

It always blows my mind how Canada continues to dominate this competition without drawing from some of their elite Jr talent. Only during the NHL work stoppages of 94/95 and 04/05 did Canada field a team of our very best – and those two tourneys were blow-outs in favour of the guys wearing the Maple Leaf. This year is no different to most as at least 8 players will be missing from our squad….and I’m not even sure if my list is complete. It is certainly impressive. The following players are all age-eligible but are holding down NHL jobs:

- John Tavaras, NYI

- Steven Stamkos, TB (Getting Olympic consideration)

- Matt Duchene, Col

- Evander Kane, ATL

- Ryan O'Reilly, Col

- Tyler Myers, Buf

- Michael Del Zotto, NYR

Add to the list Cody Hodgeson (Van), who would most likely be in the show if not for a back injury

Finally, the biggest surprise cut from this year’s team was Tyler Seguin. He is second in OHL scoring and is discussed along with Taylor Hall as a potential 2010 #1 overall pick. This was his first camp and Tyler felt the pressure. It happened to Taylor last year. Don’t worry Ty – if you’re not in the NHL next year you’ll be running this team!

The Pool

Canada has Latvia (Dec 26^th), Switzerland (Dec 28^th), Slovakia (Dec 29^th) and the US (Dec 31^st) to contend with. More on all the non-Canada teams in a future preview article.

Quick Flash Back

I should really write an entire piece on just the 2005 team, but if I haven’t convinced you yet that this is the greatest tournament on Earth I thought I’d just quickly list some players who have donned the Red-and-White over the past five gold medal teams. For brevity – I tried to keep the list to only players who are locks or contenders for Canada’s 2010 Olympic Team.

- John Tavaras (08 and 09)

- Steve Mason (08)

- Steven Stamkos (08)

- Drew Doughty (08)

- Jonathan Toews (06/07)

- Dion Phaneuf (05)

- Shea Webber (05)

- Brent Seabrook (05)

- Jeff Carter (05)

- Sidney Crosby (05)

- Ryan Getzlaf (05)

- Corey Perry (05)

- Mike Richards (05)

Yes – if you are a hockey fan you should be watching this tournament. Chances are, you’re getting a peek at the captain of the next Stanley Cup champion or the Top line of the next Olympic Team.

Oh – and for those of you who are wondering, Kent Forsberg is Peter Forsberg’s dad. And he’s a huge douche bag.

Dustin B

A New GM’s Dilemma: The Washington Redskins

As I sat and watched the Monday Night Football debacle last night, they kept flashing the camera up to the booth to show Bruce Allen, the new General Manager of the Washington Redskins.


I kept wondering what he might be thinking as he watched his newly inherited team mail it in for the first half of the game.

From what I remember of Bruce Allen’s reign as GM in both Oakland and Tampa Bay, he had a reputation for signing a lot of mid-level, veteran free agents, giving his coaches an abundance of depth and a variety of options to work with. The Redskins need just that.

Then I started thinking about what I would do if that job was mine – you know, besides adding a 65” TV and an Xbox to my office so I could challenge all the coaches to a game of Madden.

Here is a breakdown of each area of the team, from my point of view.

The Offense

Quarterback
As I mentioned in my column a few weeks ago, I believe that Jason Campbell is a very serviceable quarterback. Against the Giants, he looked awful, but how good can a guy be when his receivers are constantly covered, he gets hit within 2 seconds of snapping the ball and his offensive play-caller refuses to work out of the shotgun despite being down 24-0?

Allen might want to think about a new backup quarterback though. Todd Collins needs to be replaced with a young draft pick with some upside and, what do you call it? Oh yeah….talent.

Running Backs
This is a tough call. Both Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts are decent backs but got hurt. At the very least they could use a good change-of-pace back with some speed. Other than that, they just had some bad injury luck this year.

Receivers
This group is either really terrible or the gameplan really blows. I think it’s both. Santana Moss only shows up for 2 or 3 games per year, Antwaan Randle-El has been a free agent bust and there is no one else showing signs of life. This group needs a solid veteran free agent and a couple good draft picks. The only bright spot is Chris Cooley, but he’s injured. There’s a reason the Redskins didn’t throw a ball farther than 5 yards from the line of scrimmage on their first 3 drives last night.

Not only do the receivers hurt the passing game, but they block on running plays like they’re going to contract H1N1 if they touch anyone. It’s pitiful.

Offensive Line
I realize that the Redskins have had injuries here, but just in case they haven’t noticed, injuries happen every year in the NFL. The depth on the line is terrible. On one play last night, Justin Tuck took one step like he was going wide and then stunted to the inside behind the tackle. This standard pass-rush technique completely fooled the Redskins right guard and he took a free shot at Campbell. Coaching also has an affect here. I rarely saw the backs chipping or max-protect schemes despite the Giants pass rush getting to Campbell on every play.

The Defense
A real eye-opener for me, was the television crew flashing the stat on Red Zone effectiveness for the Redskins defense. They ranked 1st in the league in RZ TD% with only 29%. That is phenomenal. Championships are built on the back of Red Zone effectiveness, both offensively and defensively. That’s an Albert Haynesworth-size indicator that the ‘Skins defense is well put together.

Defensive Line
The defensive line is pretty stout, especially with reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Albert Haynesworth in the middle. The downside to Haynesworth has always been that he gets nicked up throughout the year, so it wouldn’t hurt the ‘Skins to acquire a solid tackle in the draft to rotate in every 3rd or 4th series just to give him a rest.

Andre Carter and Philip Daniels are both very capable starters at defensive end, but neither is exceptional.

Linebackers
London Fletcher is still patrolling the middle like a demon and Brian Orakpo seems to have added a pass-rush presence the Redskins haven’t had for a while. The linebacker group has good starting talent and decent depth as well.

Defensive Backs
LaRon Landry is a fantastic player, as long as he’s used more in the strong safety role, rather than as a free safety. He’s a big hitter and does a decent job over the tight end in coverage.

Carlos Rogers and DeAngelo Hall do a solid job in man coverage, although Hall will get caught gambling at times. Hall is also a liability in run support, given that he tackles as well as Jay Cutler avoids interceptions. Fred Smoot provides decent veteran depth and is good as a nickel corner, but is another who avoids tackling whenever possible.

The Redskins could use some young depth here, and possibly an upgrade at the safety position over Chris Horton.

Coaching
Jim Zorn just does not seem like a head coach. He looks lost on the field, his team plays sloppy and he doesn’t seem capable of making the adjustments needed. A new head coach is needed, badly.

The Sherm Lewis experiment is a disaster. How do you run a team when Lewis calls the passing plays, another assistant calls the running plays and Zorn calls plays inside 2 minutes? Scrap this terrible idea and have the offensive coordinator call plays, just like on any other team.

Greg Blache deserves to not only keep his job, but to get a big fat raise, and possibly a shot at the head coach position. He’s worked wonders with the defense this year.

Overall
In the end, if Allen could overhaul the O-line and the receiving corps while adding some depth in a few other areas, I really believe the talent on the team is capable of making the playoffs.

The coaching changes will be a bit trickier. Almost everyone says that Jim Zorn is a great guy and that makes it harder to cut him loose while still maintaining decent morale. That said, if the Redskins really do have a shot at Mike Shanahan, the team won’t be in mourning over Zorn for long. Shanahan could turn Campbell into a top 10 quarterback and revive a running game that needs some work.

Terrible calls of the night
Down 24-0 and in a 3rd and Long situation, Redskins play-caller extraordinaire, Sherm Lewis, decided to call a fake run, fake end-around pass which took forever to develop. Not only that, but it took potential receivers out of the patterns needed to get a first down. Jason Campbell once again had no one to throw to and took a huge hit. There’s a reason Sherm Lewis wasn’t still in the NFL.

At the end of the first half, the Redskins had worked themselves into field goal position. Before the snap of the ball, they motioned 5 or 6 players way to the left and had the Giants confused. Tom Coughlin called a timeout. I liked the original ingenuity here. However, when they came back after the timeout, the Redskins did the exact same thing, only this time the Giants were ready for it. As predicted, the play disintegrated faster than a buffet at Vince Wilfork’s house. Why would you call the exact same play when the element of surprise had been lost?

Great call of the night
The Giants called a beautiful middle screen to Ahmad Bradshaw in the Red Zone on the opening drive. Bradshaw should have finished it for a TD, but looked a little tentative. What made it great, however, was how well Bradshaw and the O-linemen sold it. The tackles and guards set up like pass protection, pushing pass rushers wide while Bradshaw stepped up in the pocket to “pick up the blitz”. At the last minute he turned for the ball, while the center stepped up to pick up a linebacker. Great call.

Week 15 Deep Outs

Week 15 is (almost) in the bag, so that means it’s time to look at the pl

ayoff situation...and really, most of it is set in Styrofoam (not quite as strong as stone). Well, the NFC anyways.

After the Vikings lost their third road game in four tries, we know the Saints are going to be the first seed in the NFC. The Vikings SHOULD hold onto the second seed, although the Philadelphia Eagles, who are currently in the third seed, are riding a 5 game win streak, and breathing down the Vikes neck. Arizona has won the NFC West, and is entrenched into the fourth seed.

In the NFC Wildcard spots, it’s basically decided already. Both Green bay and Dallas are currently two games up on the New York Giants, although the Giants will take on the Redskins on Monday night with the opportunity to inch closer to that elusive wildcard spot.

The AFC is a lot more fun!

Indianapolis is first seed, San Diego (riding an 8 game win streak) is second, and the other division leaders, New England and Cincinnati are fighting for 3rd and 4th. Neither the Pats nor the Bengals have clinched, although their magic number is 1.

And then there is the wildcard...and I emphasize the WILD in wildcard!

As of now, the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens share identical 8-6 records, and hold the 2 spots. Behind them is a group of SIX teams mangled together at 7-7. Jacksonville, Miami, Tennessee, Houston, and Pittsburgh, and the New York Football Jets.

The Broncos have games remaining at Philly, and home to KC. If they drop one of those (Quite possibly the game next week, across the country against the HOT Eagles), they could quite possibly be caught by that group of sharks circling behind them. The Ravens play in Pittsburgh, and in Oakland...Two games that have proven to be difficult to play.

If either of those teams drop a game, and one of the six teams tied at 7-7 win out, tie-breaker hell could break lose! Basically, for them, the playoffs start this week. You lose, and you are out.

Let’s take a look at the 7-7 teams and see who COULD win out:

Jacksonville: @NE, @Cleve. I predict a loss in New England next week, followed by a meaningless win in Cleveland to finish 8-8

Miami: Houston, and Pit, both at home. Two very tough games, both at home. Just for sake of the experiment, I will say Miami does do the improbable, and win out.

Tennessee: San Diego, @Seattle. I think the Titans win both of these games, as the chargers have nothing to play for, and the Titans are playing for their season. Seattle has just rolled over and died, so that is a sure win.

Houston: @ Miami, NE coming to town. They lose out, and Gary Kubiak is fired on ‘Black Monday’, January 4th, 2010.

Pittsburgh: Baltimore, @Miami. I believe they beat Baltimore, and lose in Miami on week 17 to be eliminated for the playoffs.

The New York Jets: @Indianapolis, Cincinnati. Sorry Jets Fans. This just isn’t your year for the playoffs.

So as per my predictions, we will be left with Baltimore getting the first spot, and the last playoff sport between Denver, Miami, and Tennessee. And according to the NFL Tie-Breaking Procedures (http://www.nfl.com/standings/tiebreakingprocedures) I believe we will have Denver getting the spot because of their conference record.

Sheesh, what a Cluster____.

Pet Peeve of the week:

Tony Siragusa. I am not sure how this guy continues to have a job being a sideline commentator. I refuse to say sideline reporter, because sideline reporters actually shut up for most of the game, and just give updates on stupid stuff like what coaches said coming back from the half, but Siriagusa continues to throw out his two cents throughout the game, and they alllllll suck!

Line of the week:

In the first 3 quarters of the Miami-Tennessee game, Vince young had 8 completions on 19 passes for 182 yards and 3 touchdowns. That is making the best out of your limited completions!

What else I noticed on Sunday:

- Vince Young’s first pass of the day is tipped THREE times before it is intercepted by Vonte Davis. The best part is that the passer himself lays out Davis for the tackle.

- Late in the game, Michael Griffin bobbles a sure interception that is eventually grabbed by Brian Hartline for a key 57 yard gain. Bounces were just not going the Titans way today.

- Dolphins committed 3 turnovers inside the Titans 35 yard line. You don’t win games like that!

- I am sick of all the names for the Wildcat formation. The Wild’Pat’ now in Miami? The Seminole with the Jets (prior to Leon Washington’s broken leg). Just call it the Wild cat, and leave it at that.

- Love the Rams Throwback unis this week...When I see those, I think about the winning days for the Rams. It was a game they COULD have won, but they just couldn't channel the Rams of ’99.

- It still bothers me every time an announcer mentions that a player is heading to the sidelines for a ‘Blow’. Really? Am I the only one that has my mind in the gutter with this one?

- I have ALWAYS been a big fan of Steven Jackson, and seeing him, helmetless, taking on the Texans safety Bernard Pollard was awesome. Keep up with the grittiness, Steve!

- Andre Johnson had 193 yards LAST week....he felt it was necessary to one up that this week with 196 yards.

- Mark Sanchez completed just one pass in the first quarter this week. Fortunately for the Jets, it was a 65 yard touchdown to Braylon Edwards.

- Twice in the 2nd quarter, Sanchez lead the Jets down inside the red zone, and could not muster a single point. This happened again in the 4th quarter. 3 trips inside the red zone, and 3 missed FGs. That equals a loss.

- I almost used Jerome Harrison’s numbers as the Line of the week. Has there ever been a quieter 286 yard week? It’s the 3rd largest rushing game in NFL history, and no one is talking about it the man from Kalamazoo, via Wazoo!

- Kudos to Harrison as well for the Madden move with his last touchdown, running laterally with the goal line

- Matt Cassel now leads the NFL in 4th quarter TDs with 9. That is pretty impressive seeing he has just 15 TDs on the year.

- If you haven’t seen it, go watch the highlights of the Detroit-Arizona game just to see Drew Stanton’s attempt at a Lambeau Leap. It’s the second best jumping celebration, only to Gus Frerotte.

- Beanie Wells has finally taken over as the main ball rushers in Arizona. And he is looking damn fine doing it. O-H-I-O!

- Dan Deirdorf never ceases to amazing me with the things that come out of his mouth while doing color commentator: 'Fred Jackson had a tough time getting to the NFL. He did not arrive in a limo. He arrived in a car.' Thanks Dan.

- Buffalo Bills lost 124 yards due to penalties, and another 41 to sacks. That is 165 yards against your offense.

- This was the first road win for the Pats in the USA this season.

- Quick, who lead the Bengals in receiving this week? Wrong. It was J.P. Foschi with 7 catches for 81 yards.

- Carson Palmer had his first 300 yard game since November of 2007.

- It’s hard to believe that Phillip Rivers is 17-0 in December as a starter. That is VERY impressive

- There was a JP Losman sighting for Oakland this week. As he entered the game, the color man said: 'I would be surprised if JP Losman could even call a play'. Funny stuff. He went 0-1 with a VERY crappy pass thrown.

- The Raiders dropped 281 yards rushing on the #3 defence in the league. I love this sport.

- If you watched the Denver-Raiders game, there was a very strange delay in the game as a fan in the end zone was shining a laser pointer in Brandon Marshall’s eyes. Once play resumed, Tommy Kelly lost his pants on the next play. Kinda funny to watch.

- The Bronco’s have lost 6 of their last 8 games. They are the Anti-Titans.

- Not much to say about Tampa Bay Vs. Seattle. I am a huge Seahawk fan, and am disgusted on how this team has given up this season. Just disgusting.

- The last time a QB through for over 500 yards was Drew Brees in 2006. Ben Roethlisburger topped 500 this week in an awesome game.

- Almost 900 yards passing in the Packers-Steelers game. Only 125 yards rushing in that game. Who wouldn’t want to see a massive shootout between two heritage teams in the NFL! Instant Classic!

- The fans in Philly began throwing snowballs in the 4th quarter. Color man Daryll Johnson know the Philly fans well from his days in Dallas, and said the line of the day: 'I'm surprised it took this long!'

- I didn’t think I would ever see the day that Leonard Weaver would get more carries in a game than Frank Gore. Weaver was 17-52. Gore was 16-107. By the way, what happened to L. McCoy?

- Is the re-emergence of Alex Smith over? His 3 interceptions on Sunday were brutal.

- Joe Flacco had just 8 incompletion all day. In comparison, he had 4 touchdown passes. That is a pretty good day!

- Jay Cutler added 3 more picks on his quest for 30. He now sits at 25! YOU CAN DO IT, JAY!

- I caught a post game interview with Ray Rice on ESPN radio. He was asked ‘How do you prepare differently for a late game, than an early game?’, his response was ‘Well, we get to sleep in, and sleeping is healin....aww dang, the Steelers just scored!’. He was making note of the Steelers last play win. It’s nice to know the rivalry is alive and well!

- Minnesota has now lost 3 of their last 4 road games. Not a good sign for a team that just gave away home field advantage in the playoffs with this loss in Carolina.

- Steve Smith found a new BFF in Matt Moore. 9 catches for 157 is a good way to say bye to Jake Delhomme.

Hockey Season Finally Starts....At Least On My Calendar

Yes…hockey season is finally here. Several thousand of my Canadian brothers just put down their Molson product and cracked their knuckles at my stupidity. Just hear me out.
I’m not a one-sport fan. I’m not a specialist. I’m like the Bo Jackson or Deion Sanders of sports fans, if they played in five leagues. I’m a multi-sport addict. I train my remote control thumb and couch-based criticism skills all year to be cynical and sarcastic about the prospects of teams and competitors in everything from football, to soccer, UFC and yes, Canada’s most beloved activity, hockey.

Given that I have to hold down a job, pretend that I’m a good husband, connect with friends and even carve up the ice a little in the Calgary beer leagues, I can’t possibly watch every game of every season in every sport.

The NHL season is over 80 games long, and really, it’s just practice for the Stanley Cup playoffs. The season is currently only 35 games deep, so we’re just getting to the point where things get interesting. Through most of the fall, my attention has been on the NFL regular season and soccer, with a few Flames games sprinkled in. The only other teams I watch are Pittsburgh and Washington, just because Crosby, Malkin and Ovechkin deserve any fan’s attention whenever they step on the ice.

Since I don’t know how to write a column without a chart, here is my best representation of my main sports “responsibilities” throughout the year.

A couple things to take note of:

• I don’t count “Bowl Season” for college football. There is a national championship game and that’s it.

• NFL Sundays, the NHL playoffs, Olympics, March Madness and World Cup are all-encompassing events. These are all extremely damaging to my marriage given the extreme amount of time I spend yelling at a TV.

• Thank the sports gods that July and August are mostly built around free agent and transfer rumors. It’s a lot easier to follow by just checking a few web pages and let’s me play some soccer and golf, so my body actually sees the sun a few months per year.

• Only two golf events (The Masters & British Open) and two tennis tournaments (Wimbledon & US Open) matter to me, I will not accept arguments to the contrary.

• UFC fights aren’t represented here. They’re sporadic and I only follow certain fighters religiously. Chant it with me, “G-S-P, G-S-P, G-S-P”. Suck it Matt Hughes.

OK, what was I talking about again…oh yeah, the hockey season.

What really kicks off my hockey fan interest for the year is the World Junior Hockey Championship. I look forward to this tournament like Tiger looks forward to road trips, and for the same reason, plenty of scoring.

In my mind, the WJHC represents the best the game of hockey has to offer - fast, free-flowing gameplay with plenty of skill and offensive talent. Every year, we get to see the future offensive stars of the NHL and watch open ice hitting that should be required tape for all NHL defencemen.

No team goes into the WJHC with a tight defensive gameplan and focusing on their penalty kill strategy. With only a short time to prepare for the tournament, coaches focus on free-flowing offensive play built around skilled forwards and puck-moving defencemen, rather than systematic play built on muckers and grinders. I love checking lines as much as anyone else, but for fans, the free-flowing style is the great aesthetic pleaser. Welcome to the Megan Fox of hockey - simple, uncomplicated and pleasing to the eye.

The World Juniors start in only a week, and I can tell you that it’s time for this fan to start practicing “Oh Canada”!

Team Canada - Sports-Opinionated Style

Once every 4 years, hockey fans around the globe are treated to a display of hockey like none other: the Winter Olympics....And for a year leading up to said Winter Olympics, every journalist in Canada makes their picks as to who should wear the Maple Leaf and represent Canada in the two week tournament to decide who is the world power of hockey.

First, a little background: Canada spent an entire 50-year span wallowing in mediocrity in Olympic hockey... until 2002 in Salt Lake City when the whole country was pulled together by 23 players. Led by the aging Mario Lemieux, the team brought home gold thanks to great play, great defence, great goaltending, great coaching, and one small loonie buried under center ice. In 2006, the location was Italy and the outcome was disastrous, as Team Canada not only was denied a medal, but played without heart and finished in a distant 6th place. In Canada, the only option is to finish first (even 2nd place is a disappointment), so a 6th place showing was a setback to Hockey Canada as a whole.

Now, heading into 2010, expectations are high! They are led

by a new superstar, Sidney Crosby, and even have home ice advantage, as the tournament will be hosted at Canada's left coast, Vancouver. I hate to throw more weight on the back of Canada's heroes, but anything less than gold will be a complete and utter failure.

I refuse to call myself a journalist, but because I write a column, I get to put my $0.02 into who I think should be representing up in Vancouver. These are my opinions, and are meant to be discussion points. Please add some comments to tell me if you think I have the roster dead on, or if you think I am crazy!

The Shoe-In Line: Nash-Crosby-Iginla
Is there any question about these three players? Guessing these three are going to make the team is as easy as guessing Canuck fans will bail on their team as soon as they hit a 5 game losing streak. GUARENTEED! I am just curious if Sid knows how to play with wingers that aren't softer than Charmin (Malkin).

The Shark Line: Thornton-Marleau-Heatley
Why break up the highest scoring line in the league? Because one of them turns soft in games that count? Cause another hates playing in Northern Alberta? And because the third couldn't lead a cat out of a wet paper bag? Not enough reason for me! Keep the line together!

The Young Line: Getzlaf-Carter-Perry
This is where things get a little cloudier. I am taking two scorers off of one of the worst teams in the NHL (Anaheim), and throwing them in with a big centre man who hates to get his hands dirty. It's pretty easy to say right now that these three would be a LOCK to be on Team Canada in 2014 in Russia. On a side note, these three played together in Grand Forks during the 2006 World Junior Hockey Championship, so maybe they can reignite that gold medal flare.

The Checking Line: M. Richards-B. Richards-B. Morrow
These lines get harder to predict the deeper we get. As usual, Canada needs to have a checking line to shut down the likes of Russia's top line (Malkin-Ovechkin-Kovalchuk), and there aren't many top-line penalty killers and defensive forwards who can still play a regular shift out there other than this trio. I love the idea of having a shutdown line that can put up 75 goals an NHL season, combined. Depth is where Canada will dominate the other teams.

The Extra's: Stamkos
On my Team Canada, the 'Extra' rostered player came down to two people, Steve Stamkos and Shane Doan. It was youth and potential vs. leadership and experience, and for me, I took the potential. This team is stacked with true leaders (basically everyone minus Thornton and Marleau) so having another Up-And-Comer on the team that can take this experience forward to 2014 is important.

No team in the tournament will be able to match up Blue-Lines against what Team Canada's line-up will look like. This group of six (plus one spare) is chalk full of talent, experience, scoring, toughness, and overall Canadian-style grit. The best part is that there is a talent pool large enough that Steve Yzerman can take scorers that are still tough, and stay-at-home'ers that are still quick. It’s quite a great dilemma to have to choose from this group.

The Smashers: Pronger-Regehr
How would you like to be a smallish, European forward flying down the wing with these two monsters lining you up? Its lights out for the likes of Hemskey!

The Shooters: D. Boyle-D. Keith
Personally, I think Duncan Keith is one of the most under-rated D-men in the NHL today. He is defensively consistent in all three zones and can be that trigger man on the point for the power play. Dan Boyle is nothing but one the best two-way D-men in the league. He would also make for four Sharks on the Olympic team, which as a Flames fan, I love. The more Sharks NOT getting rest, the better!

The Skaters:

Bouwmeeseter-Niedermayer
Ok, 'The Skaters' isn’t the best title for these two, but I had to go along with the alliteration of the category. Really, what I wanted to call these two was the 'All-Arounders', but if you've ever watched these guys play hockey you know why I went with the skaters. Bouwmeester's skating has been described in the past as being 'sex on ice'... it's just so fluid and smooth. But the best part of these two is that they can also be a formidable duo when it comes to stopping the opposition and turning the puck up ice to the talented group of forwards.

The Spare: Weber
Weber would be a top four D-Man on any other country's blue line in the Olympics. Unfortunately for Shea (remind me never to name my boy that!), there is just too much bloody depth at the position on Team Canada.

I would like to give a massive shout out to Drew Doughty as well. If the Olympics were in 2011, he would be a shoe-in for the team. I wouldn't blame you for ordering a Team Canada Doughty jersey... you'd be able to wear it for YEARS to come.

The goalies are the easiest roster spots to fill on Team Canada. The only question is which one of these all-stars is going to backstop Canada as the games become more important. My guess is that it will be Marty because of A) his past Olympic experience and B) his great name! Fleury probably won’t even lace up the skates at all in the tourney unless an injury occurs, but he could be anointed the new starter for Canada in 2014, as Brodeur's run as 'Canada's Goalie' may be nearing an end. Although he does have one more Gold Medal run in those pads of his.

The Starter: Brodeur
The Backup: Luongo
The Youth: Fleury

As I was writing this article, I realized just how much depth Canada has at all positions. I started having some gruesome thoughts about 'what if Team Canada was in a plane crash on Feb 6th, who would be on the second Team Canada, and how would they finish in the Olympics?' Honestly, I think Canada should be able to put in two teams (hell, we get to put in MULTIPLE speed skaters, and bobsledders... why not hockey teams too???) and I think this second one would push for a silver or bronze. The weakest part would be goaltending, and even that is better than most other countries! (Names in bold have the best chance of still making Team Canada.)

2ND TEAM:

M. St. Louis - P. Bergeron - M. Camallarri
D. Penner - Eric Staal - J. Spezza
J. Toews - J. Neal - V. Lecavalier
M. Lucic - M. Savard - R. Smyth
STILL: W. Wolski, N. Horton, D. Roy, J. Tavares

M. Green - D. Doughty
B. Seabrook - D. Phaneuf
T. Myers - B. Campbell
F. Beauchiman - M. Staal

C. Ward
S. Mason
C. Price

From the Sports Opinionated Backpages: An acceptance speech not even Kanye West would interrupt...

I usually don’t pay much attention to award ceremony speeches. Unless Kanye West is around to declare Beyonce Knowles his choice for the award, award ceremony speeches tend to be quite lame and predictable. After the selection of the winner of the 2009 Heisman trophy as college football’s most outstanding player, I might be persuaded to listen to more acceptance speeches.

Whether you agree with the selection of Alabama’s Mark Ingram or not, anyone with a pulse would find it hard to cheer against him. It was surprising and refreshing to see an athlete being genuine and truthful.

His story is almost as unbelievable as the fact he is the first Heisman award winner from a school as prestigious as Alabama.

From the working class city of Flint, Michigan, Mark Ingram had football in his blood. A standout high school athlete, he fell in love with the campus at Tuscaloosa. Being the only “northerner” on the roster, he developed a great sense of team-first camaraderie at the school. Playing behind the equally emotional and passionate running back Glen Coffee, he developed into a powerful, explosive running back reminiscent of Adrian Peterson.

What makes this story so unique is his relationship with father, ex-NFL wide receiver Mark Ingram SR. On January 3rd, 2009 the day after Mark Ingram and the Crimson Tide lost to Utah in the 75th anniversary of the Sugar Bowl, Mark Ingram SR was arrested in a Flint, Michigan hotel room after his failure to surrender to authorities on various criminal charges including money laundering, bank fraud and breaking and entering.

Alabama coach Nick Saban had previously coached Mark Ingram Sr. while he was a standout wide receiver at Michigan State. Ingram Sr. became a first round NFL draft choice of the New York Giants and went on to a long career as an NFL player.


Just a few miles away at a federal penitentiary in Queen’s New York, Ingram Sr. was unable to attend his son’s Heisman trophy presentation. Despite facing years of incarceration, Mark Ingram Sr. remains a strong figure in his son’s life.

During his tearful and emotional acceptance speech, it is clear to see how much the award meant to Ingram. Fighting through tears and his wavering voice, he displayed all his emotions on his sleeve and it gave scouts and sporting fans alike a true vision of who this star athlete is. I don’t think he should have a tough time facing the scouting interviews when it comes time to be drafted into the NFL.

Ingram may not have been the best player at his position (Toby Gerhart). He may not have been the best player on his team either. Despite being 12th in the nation in yards per game, it was no more obvious how much Ingram meant to his team than when he ran for 113 yards and 3 touch downs against Florida’s (then) top-ranked defence.

Upon receiving his surprise award, he gave thanks to all those who came to his mind including his mother, his father, grand parents, coaching staff, an intern and teachers. He also demonstrated his respect by commenting on his appreciation for the relationships he has developed with the other Heisman nominees.

We hear all too many times of athletes being shallow and irresponsible. I hope that all the fame and fortune that awaits Ingram doesn’t change the emotional and passionate individual we got a glimpse at during the Heisman presentation.

NFL "Choice" Analysis - Colts Defensive Improvement and More

The Colts defense is one of the most under-rated stories in the league this year. New defensive coordinator, Larry Coyer, has brought a more aggressive edge to a team that already was quite solid. The element of pressure he’s added with a few blitz packages has really seemed to help on 3rd down defense.

They’ve markedly improved on 3rd and short situations but will always struggle somewhat since most of the players on the defense are cut from the “smaller and faster” mold.

That said, they have the best 3rd and Long ranking in the league by a long shot. To this point in the season they have a DVOA 30% higher than the next team in 3rd and Long situations.

While it seems odd to see them slip on 3rd and Mid situations, it may be from the more riskier blitzing approach. With the overall ranking for third downs at 2nd in the league, I would assume that they’re forcing more third and long situations than most.

Great teams step it up on third downs and the Colts defense is definitely doing that in 2009.

Terrible Decisions of the Week

Josh McDaniels’ made a monstrous rookie mistake on Sunday by deferring possession when the Broncos won the coin toss. The whole point to the coin toss is to take the ball and hopefully jump out to an early lead. It’s even more ridiculous when you realize that he willingly put the ball in the hands of the red hot Colts offense.

Jake Locker made a terrible decision to stay at the University of Washington. In a variety of mock drafts, Locker is generally listed as the top quarterback prospect and an almost universally acknowledge top 5 pick, with some ranking him as high as first overall. By going back to school, Locker is risking between $20-40M in guaranteed money and possibly more on his next contract. Just ask Sam Bradford how his decision has turned out.

Great Play Call of the Week

I love watching creative play calling, both on the offensive and defensive side of the ball, so I’ll be adding this section to the weekly Analysis Post from now on.

With the Bengals in the Red Zone versus a very stingy Vikings defense, offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski called up a great passing play. With Minnesota cornerback overplaying the run, Chad Ochocinco motioned to his right as if to trigger a WR Reverse play. As Winfield over-pursued the reverse, Ochocinco reversed field to the left and took a pass in the flat, which he waltzed into the end zone. The play call was a classic example of taking advantage of your opponents strengths and using them to your own advantage.

Another Sign that College Football Needs Help

Despite the ridiculous bowl game situation that we explained last week, the bowl game system also destroys coaching credibility.

My prime example is the circus that surrounded Notre Dame’s head coaching search. As you all know, they settled on Cincinnati head coach Brian Kelly. There’s nothing wrong with the coaching search, but the timing of the bowl games along with head coaching changes has ruined at least one bowl game in my mind. The unbeaten Bearcats are set to face Florida in the Sugar Bowl.

This game should have been Brian Kelly’s final game with his team and a chance for all of them to finish the season in a special manner.

Instead, since the recruiting season is starting, Kelly needs to leave his former school before the end of the season and has left his players disappointed. There is no need for the recruiting season to start before the bowl games are over, but the NCAA just doesn’t think these things through.

NFL Coaching Changes

Mark me down for the prediction that Wade Philips will be replaced by either Mike Shanahan or Bill Cowher is offseason.

The Swedish Meatball made #4 on our coaching hotseat rankings.

With all the talk about how terrible Dallas has been in January, that falls on the head coach, not the quarterback. Wade Philips looks lost and the Dallas job would be extremely attractive to either coach, especially with Jerry Jones desperate to win in his new stadium.

Shanahan will love the offensive weapons available to him in Big D. Jason Witten might catch 120 balls in a Shanahan-designed, play-action offense.

Cowher would have much of the defensive talent for the 3-4 defense he loves and the big stage he would want for his comeback.

The Cowher-Shanahan debate may not approach the walrus-like proportions of Andy Reid vs Mike Holmgren but it is about to happen this offseason.

Philips is gone, trust me.

Milan Mid-Season Report: The Good, The Bad, and The Transfer Period

With the mid-season break almost upon the Serie A, it’s time for many teams to take stock and evaluate the progress their squad has made to this point.


The Rossoneri are currently sitting in second place in Serie A, five points off Inter in the race for the Scudetto. Milan have also advanced to the knockout stages of the Champions League and await the draw to find out their next match-up.

After a rough start to the season, the manager, Leonardo, has righted the ship and has the club in contention for both the Scudetto and a decent run in the Champions League.

The Good

After an experiment with a 4-3-1-2 formation in order to play Ronaldinho behind the strikers, failed miserably it appears that Leonardo has finally molded Milan into his image. In their favored 4-3-3 formation with Ronaldinho and Alexandre Pato terrorizing the wings, the formation’s use has coincided with the Rossoneri’s strong run of form and has helped give the team an identity.

Seeing Alessandro Nesta return to top form has been a dream come true for Milan management and fans alike. Nesta has patrolled the middle with the style and class that made him one of the best defenders in world football. What is probably most amazing is how quickly Nesta reverted to his old form upon taking the pitch again.

Alongside Nesta in the middle of the defense, Thiago Silva has cemented his place in the starting lineup. Silva has used his tremendous athletic ability to excel as a defender on the ball and in the air. He has even found ways to contribute on offense with 5 goals on the season.

Ignazio Abate has proven to be the versatile player that Milan needed to fill a variety of roles. Despite being a fairly young player, Abate has played at right back, right midfield and right wing so far this season. That versatility and his excellent work ethic have quickly made him a favorite of coach Leonardo and the Diavolo fans

Ronaldinho has found his role within the team. He has dropped deep from his left wing position and has consistently provided quality service to Pato on the far wing as well as the strikers in the middle. His ball possession has become less wasteful and he is no longer under any illusions that he still has top pace. I may have to take back my reports of his early demise.

The Bad

I continue to be amazed that Mathieu Flamini has such a hard time finding a role in the Milan midfield. He started for Arsenal alongside Cesc Fabregas and looked phenomenal. In the two seasons he has been with Milan, he has played aggressively, with pace and adding more offense than either Gattuso or Ambrosini. He has young, fresh legs and has played on a top-flight club. Leonardo needs to use this asset in a more efficient manner if Milan are to make deep runs in all competitions.

Massimo Oddo and Marek Jankulovski are clearly no longer capable of starting for a top club. Neither one has pace, any desire to play defensively and have lost their pinpoint crossing ability. Milan needs to cut them loose and look for younger replacements.

The lack of depth at center back behind Nesta and Silva is appalling. With Silva out for a few games, the options are Kakha Kaladze and Giuseppe Favalli. While Favalli can hold his own against the lesser clubs, Kaladze is a shadow of his former self. Oguchi Onyewu may be the answer, but injuries have kept him from seeing the field at all this year.

I may be the only one who believes this, but Marco Borriello has done very little for Milan this year. While the hot run of form has coincided with his prominence at the striker position, he is usually the recipient of great service, rather than making chances out of his touches. Milan is denying Klaas-Jan Huntelaar the chance to earn a starting spot, by awarding it to a player that has done very little to impress.

Transfer Window Rumors Involving Milan

The first and most prominent rumor at the moment is that of Klass-Jan Huntelaar either joining FC Twente on loan or being sold to Manchester United. I believe that the only situation in which either of these moves makes any sense, is if Milan has already sewn up a deal for Edin Dzeko. Huntelaar has excellent pedigree, displayed his class by snatching a victory in the final minutes of the match against Catania, and has been given very little opportunity to prove his worth. With only 5 starts on the season, he really hasn’t been given much playing time.

Edin Dzeko of Wolfsburg has again been making noise about his desire to play for Milan. If Galliani and Berlusconi are serious about acquiring top young talent, then Dzeko is the perfect acquisition. If they do acquire him in January, he will be cup-tied for the UEFA Champions League and will only be available for league play. That said, this may be the best opportunity to acquire him as Wolfsburg has been knocked out of the Champions League and appears unlikely to qualify for next year’s competition.

Another recent rumor is that Milan would like to acquire Goran Pandev as cover on the wings for Ronaldinho and Pato. This would be an excellent acquisition for Milan, as Pandev has proven to be a fantastic offensive catalyst in Serie A and would take some of the workload off the Brazilian duo.

If you haven’t heard of the return of David Beckham to Milan, you probably haven’t been following soccer. The hope at the San Siro is that Beckham will provide cover or enter into a rotation with Clarence Seedorf and Andrea Pirlo in the midfield. Currently Milan don’t have another play-making midfielder, so they lose an element of their attack when either the Dutchman or the Italian international need a break. Obviously this one is a done deal and not a rumor, but definitely worth mentioning.

Another player who was being linked with Milan a few months ago, but less so now is Milos Krasic, of CSKA Moscow. In my mind, this was one of the better options for the Rossoneri. Krasic is a 25 year old midfielder from Serbia with the ability to contribute offensively. He has been excellent for CSKA in the Champions League and has 13 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions this year. He could be the ideal replacement for Seedorf at the point of the midfield.

The final name to be regularly linked with Milan in January is Dominic Adiyiah. The Ghanian absolutely set the U-20 World Cup on fire by winning the MVP, the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot. While most media has reported the transfer to Milan from Fredrikstad in Norway as a done deal, nothing official has been completed. This would be another great signing for Milan, but obviously more for the future than for immediate dividends this season.

Despite having extremely poor play at the fullback spots so far this year, Milan has not been linked with any players of note on either the right or left side. Either this is a fantastic strategy by Galliani and company to disguise their intentions, or once again he is only focused on offensive players. That would be a grave mistake given the vulnerability that Milan have shown down the wings.

2010 holds a lot of promise for the Rossoneri, but their ability to nab 1 or 2 players in January could be the difference between a top finish in all competitions or a slightly deflated finish by an exhausted squad.

Week 14 Deep Outs

The week started off with a bang! Two teams scored on their first offensive play; Houston connected on a 64 yard Touchdown from Matt Shaub to Andre 'Big Dog' Johnson, and Green Bay released Ryan Grant on a 62 yard gallop to pay dirt.

And that was the start of a very explosive day.

We were graced with some incredible halves of football. In the morning games alone, we saw Matt Shaub lead the way by racking up 336 yards, and 2 touchdowns in the first 30 minutes of game play. He threw only 11 passes in the 2nd half for 29 yards, but the game was well in hand at that point, and not much more was needed. His teammate, Andre Johnson was another player who had a large first half, putting up 10 catches for 184 yards and 2 TDs. Just sick numbers from the Texans on a day that would be over before it began.

We saw Brandon Marshall break a record for most catches in a game with 21. To put that in perspective, Roy Williams has 32 catches in 11 games this season. Pretty classy move by McDaniels calling one last play to get the ball to Marshall as time expired to let him get the record. Classy play by the colts as well, letting him catch it. But then again, they had been letting him catch these passes all game.

It's been an interesting year for Marshall who started out training camp begging for a trade, and acting so childish to a point where Josh McDainels sent him home, and told him not to come back. It seemed like it had been a point of no return, and Marshall's days as a Bronco were numbered. Both coach and player were able to put the train back on its proper tracks, and the combo led the team to a 6-0 start. The highpoint of the season starting streak was Marshall busting a 52 yard TD for a late game win over the Cowboys. At a press conference following the game, the coach and player embraced in a slightly homo-erotic hug on the podium.

Well, Marshall's 21 catches for 200 yards and 2 TDs were a good sign for the Bronco's in a losing cause.

Ray Rice blew the doors off of the stadium, and racked up 151 yards rushing on just 9 carries in the first half, including a 59 yard scamper for a TD.

And to finish off an awesome day of big plays, and wow moments, we had a Sunday night game full of explosive plays. 5 touchdowns in all were scored from 60+ yards out.

Now that was a great day of football! Every Sunday should be like that!

Just huge days all around the league. Here is a list of all the TDs over 50 yards on the day:

- Jamaal Charles, 76 Yd run

- Andre Johnson 64 yard TD pass from Matt Schaub

- Ryan Grant 62 yard Run

- Bernard Pollard, 70 Yd interception return

- Derrick Mason, 62 Yd pass from Joe Flacco

- Ray Rice, 59 Yd run

- Michael Jenkins, 50 Yd pass from Chris Redman

- Chris Johnson, 66 Yd pass from Vince Young

- Sheldon Brown, 60 Yd fumble return

- Hakeem Nicks, 68 Yd pass from Eli Manning

- DeSean Jackson, 72 Yd punt return

- Domenik Hixon, 61 Yd pass from Eli Manning

- DeSean Jackson, 60 Yd pass from Donovan McNabb

Special thanks to plays over 30 yards:

- Thomas Jones 33 yard TD Run.

- Steve Smith 41 yard TD Reception from Matt Moore

- Chris Johnson, 39 Yd run

- Vincent Fuller, 45 Yd interception return

Pet Peeve of the Week:

Ever notice that announcers will always say something about the game they are commentating, and how it is the 'Best in the Business', or 'greatest player in the NFL'? It bothers me that week in, week out, I watch a game between different teams, and every team has a cornerback or wide receiver that is one of the best in the game. Just once I want a color guy (*Cough*Deirdorf*Cough*) to say 'This WR is good, but He's probably barely in the top 15 in the league.'

Stat line of the week:

After talking about big games, and explosiveness in the early games, there was one line that really stuck out. Josh Freeman was struggling...His first half numbers were 3/9 for 19 and an interception. Tough to win a game with only 19 yards passing in the first half. But don’t worry, he finished the game with 93 yards passing, and decreased his interceptions from 5 last week (3 in the red zone) to 3 this week, none of which were in the red zone.

COMING SOON TO SPORTS OPINIONATED: THE DIGNITY BOWL!

3 writers, 3 football fans, 3 moms.

Who will keep their dignity?

What Else I noticed on Sunday:

- Remember when Derrick Ward was a 'great signing', and a sleeper going into this season. This week he had 4 carries for 6 yards. Just another normal week for him

- In the first half, Tom Brady had just 59 yards passing. Randy Moss caught just 1 pass for 16 yards all day. Way to kill Fantasy teams, boys! I would have been more successful starting D. Rosario and his 26 yards.

- I think it’s safe to say that Matt Moore might not give the Panthers a better chance of winning, but he sure doesn't give games away like Delhomme tends to do 3 or 4 times a year.

- Brett Favre has now thrown as many picks in the last 2 weeks as he did in his first 11 games combined...is the long season grind finally affecting his aging arm? It’s bad news for the Vikes, regardless.

- The leading receiver in the Vikes-Bengals game, two teams QBd by Favre and Carson Palmer, was B. Berrian with just 43 yards on 4 catches. So much for Offensive outburst.

- Matt Cassel now has 1 td and 7 interceptions since beating the Steelers in OT the weeks ago. Add one lost fumble to the equation, and you'll understand why the Chiefs are 0-3 in that stretch. Oh, and the fans in Arrowhead have taken to booing Cassel immensely!

- In the same stretch, Jamaal Charles has 387 yards combined, and 3 TDs. He is definitely not the reason the Chiefs are losing. Larry who?

- All 3 of the TDs scored in the Jags-Dolphins game were from 1 yard out.

- Chad Henne was 14-16 in the first half, and at one point had 17 straight completions. Pretty decent stats for a young QB that should be a full time starter for this team going forward....Although he did throw a pick late in the game to give the jags more life. Gotta be more careful with the ball, Chad!

- If you saw the 62 yard completion to Tory Holt (Did you realize he was still playing???), were you a little surprised that he didn't take it to the house? In 2004, that would be 7 points 10 times out of 10.

- For the second week in a row, the Colts got off to a fast start, scoring TDs on 3 of their first 4 possessions....Then proceeded to take their foot off of the gas pedal to let the opposition right back in the game. Keep throwing the ball, Peyton! It seems to be pretty successful for you and the Colts.

- I still can't fathom 21 catches by B. Marshall. That is only 2 less touches than their leading RB (K. Moreno) got in carried.

- Right back to a 50-50 split of touches for Julius Jones and Justin Forsett. My god.....

- Hassie spread his throws around, splitting the 24 completions between 8 WRs, 6 of which had 3 or more catches.

- For me, there is nothing better than a late season game in the cold weather. We saw it in Cleveland on Thursday, and again in Chicago yesterday. It’s the way football is meant to be played!

- The Jay Cutler interception count is now at 22. He tacked on 2 more to the total this week!

- Trivia time: Who has more TDs this season, Johnny Knox, or Greg Jennings? If you guess Knox has 2 more than Jennings (5 to 3), you would be correct.

- See my boy Troy Smith (from THE Ohio State University) take one to the house this week? I still maintain that he could start on 10 teams in the league right now.

- This Detroit team proved something that we all knew this season: Even though they won 2 more games this year than last year, they are still really bad. Especially when their franchise QB is out. Now Kevin Smith tears a knee. Yikes, those injuries usually take two years to fully recover.

- The Lions tackling on Derrick Mason's TD was atrocious. My god, I have seen better tackling in pop Warner highlights.

- Love seeing Mike Smith smash his headset! That is what I want out of my coach! To his credit, it was a BAD PI call that he was pissed about.

- Redman to Jenkins! I am sure that changed FF outcomes all across the continent!

- I like the ballsy call for New Orleans to go for the fake the field goal with a minute left, I just hate the call. Even if it was a completed pass, it would have been 2 yards short of the first down.

- Take a look at Drew Brees in his post game interview. He's using FAR too much hair grease, and it is making him look like a kid that took punches from bullies all through middle school.

- MCFADDEN SIGHTING: Darren McFadden combined for 11 touches for 105 yards!

- Washington led Oakland 17-10 in the 3rd quarter when Bruce G. injured his knee. After J. Russell took the reins, the Redskins scored the same number of points while Oakland could only muster a FG. Russell is a bad QB, and this team doesn’t play for him.

- Chris Johnson. Nuff said.

- Did you know who Keith Null was before this week? Did you know he was a protégé to Ryan Leaf at East Texas A&M? My guess is that after throwing 5 picks, you may never hear the name again.

- I would like to see the Titans win out, and have a shot at the final wild card spot. Their remaining games are against Miami, SD, and Seattle, so they COULD do it...They are going to need some help from the teams in front of them, and they have to hope VY's hammy heals fast!

- I love the fact that Romo keeps losing in December, even though you cannot pin either loss this year on him. With a game in New Orleans on Saturday, the trend quite possibly will continue.

- I love the fact that SD keeps winning in Dec, too. Cincy and Tennessee are going to try to stop this trend.

- Hakeem Nicks must be well liked by Eli Manning. Drops a sure TD, and on the next play, drops a sure first down. 3rd play of the sequence, Manning went right back to him for his 68 yard TD.

- I mentioned it earlier, but 5 TDs of 60+ yards in the late game. That is just awesome football to watch!