Month: January 2009 (Page 27 of 61)

      Rams hire former Giants’ defensive coordinator Spagnuolo as head coach

      January 17, 2009 /

      One day after VP of Personnel Billy Devaney said that Cowboys’ offensive coordinator Jason Garrett was the Rams’ “leading guy” to replace Scott Linehan/Jim Haslett, the team hired former Giants’ defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo as their next head coach.

      Steve SpagnuoloUPDATE: The NFL Network is reporting that Spagnuolo and the Rams have agreed on a four-year contract worth $11.5 million. I was unable to independently verify this information and have no idea if it’s accurate.

      Spagnuolo, 49, was the Giants defensive coordinator in 2007 and 2008 and came up with the game plan that resulted in five sacks of Tom Brady and a shocking upset of the undefeated New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII.

      Before that, Spagnuolo learned his trade under acclaimed Philadelphia defensive coordinator Jim Johnson, working as an Eagles defensive assistant from 1999-2006. Spagnuolo came out of the Philadelphia experience with a variety of multiple defensive formations and blitz packages that he put to great use with the Giants.

      Rams GM Billy and Spagnuolo have been friends for many years and that relationship obviously created a trust factor that helped Spagnuolo feel comfortable about taking the Rams job.

      After devising a defensive scheme to beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl last year, Spags became one of the hottest names in the coaching ranks. The Rams are definitely getting a quality coach and one that understands what it takes to reach the Super Bowl. Given the team’s struggles over the years on defense, it’s not a big surprise that the Rams went with a defensive-minded coach, but one has to wonder if they gave up on the next great offensive mind in Garrett.

      Still, defense wins championship so it’ll be interesting to see what Spags can do for a player like Chris Long.

      NFL

      MMA Fighter Profile: Frank Mir

      January 17, 2009 /

      Frank Mir
      Nickname: N/A
      Height: 6’ 3”
      Weight: 250
      MMA Record: 12-3
      UFC Record: 10-3
      Fighting Style: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Wrestling, Kickboxing

      Frank Mir was certainly given the pedigree to fight. His parents run a Kenpo Karate school, he is a former Nevada state-wrestling champion, and he just happens to have a black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
      Growing up he sparred with his father and other students in order to get him ready for a martial arts career and after seeing the Gracies and their jiu jitsu destroy people in the original UFCs, he took up wrestling and jiu jitsu.

      Mir met UFC’s Joe Silva, and talks began about starting to take on local MMA fighters at smaller promotions to see how he’d fair. After going 2-0 he was invited to fight at UFC 34, which he won by submission via armbar. He went on to go 7-1 and fight Tim Silvia for the UFC heavyweight title, which once again he would win by armbar, only this time snapping Silvia’s forearm. This earned him his black belt in jiu jitsu.

      Everything looked to be going well for Mir. He got married, was a champion, and was making a career out of what he loved. Then in September 2004 he was in a tragic motorcycle accident, one in which shattered his leg.

      After finally recovering from the leg injury and getting his mind right again, he finally came back to the UFC.

      He had a shaky start, going 1-2 until he decided to dedicate himself to his fighting career once again. Mir has since gone 3-0 and just won the UFC Interim Heavyweight championship by TKO over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, who had never been stopped. He is set to face Heavyweight champ and former WWE star Brock Lesnar, which would unite the two titles. Mir already owns a victory over Lesnar.

      –Written By TSR Contributor John Duke

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Andy Reid needs to go on “The Biggest Loser”

      January 17, 2009 /

      Folks, you won’t find a more blue-blooded New York Giants’ fan than me. Which means that I hate the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys with a venom that only fellow sports fans can appreciate. But I’m also human. I have a family and take healthy living seriously. Well, for the most part…I love bacon and ice-cream as much as anyone. But I want to make the observation that Eagles’ coach Andy Reid also loves Cheez Whiz, as he mentioned in an interview on ESPN last weekend when discussing the beards he and his team have been growing during the team’s last few games and postseason run. Dude actually said the worst thing about his beard was getting Cheez Whiz caught in it. Have you seen coach Reid lately? Dude is an inflated version of his former self, and I fear for the guy’s life because being that large is unhealthy to begin with. But when you throw in the fact that he is a football coach and probably works 20 hours a day during the season, sleeps little, doesn’t work out and eats really, really bad food, it’s the formula for a heart attack, diabetes and a whole host of other problems.

      No, I’m not a doctor, but I have high cholesterol and know a thing or two about how to live a healthy lifestyle. I also write a blog about NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” for Premium Hollywood, so I follow how folks like Erik a few seasons ago can lose like 200 pounds and win, and gain back years of their life. And Reid, lately especially, appears to be as large as some of the contestants on that show. The fact that he made the Cheez Whiz comment is all the proof we need without being a fly on his office wall.

      Add to this the fact that Reid has dealt with family problems the last 12 months, and his heart attack risk has to be even more prominent. Andy, I know you coach for a team I hate, but as a football fan and someone who cares about the well-being of other humans, I implore you……after the season ends, go on a diet, exercise, and make the time to apply to be on “The Biggest Loser.” Oh, and stop beating up my team in big games!

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Football, General Sports, Humor, NFL

      Hot Stove League: Pitchers Flying Off Shelves

      January 17, 2009 /

      This past week, John Smoltz officially signed with the Red Sox and the Braves inked Derek Lowe to a four-year, $60 million deal, something Atlanta’s rival New York Mets could not match. Imagine that. But what runs deeper here is that the second and even third tier of pitchers continue to be signed and many position players remain team-less.

      Less than a month before pitchers and catchers report, here are some of the big names still available: Manny freaking Ramirez, Adam Dunn, Bobby Abreu, Ken Griffey, Orlando Hudson, Frank Thomas, and to a lesser extent, Kevin Millar (20 homers last season) and Orlando Cabrera. To put this in perspective, the Astros signed pitcher Russ Ortiz to a minor league deal a few days ago, the Dodgers signed reliever Guillermo Mota, the Angels inked Darren Oliver for one year, and the White Sox brought back a Bartolo Colon who is on the downside of his career. Clearly, it’s a pitchers’ market this off-season, and it’s almost mind-boggling that Ramirez has gone almost three full months without being signed.

      Part of the problem here is that the big spenders (ahem, New York teams) have blown their collective load on the likes of CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, Mark Teixeira, Francisco Rodriguez, etc., leaving a team like the Dodgers the likely scenario for Man-Ram in 2009, which at the end of the day is probably best for both sides anyway. But some of those other guys are going to have trouble finding work, or they are going to take a recession-friendly deal from a team they wouldn’t have signed with otherwise. It’s already happened with Pat Burrell in Tampa and Jason Giambi with Oakland.

      In other more recent news, the Red Sox avoided arbitration with Kevin Youkilis on Thursday, agreeing to terms on a four-year deal. And the Dodgers finally released beleaguered outfielder Andruw Jones, who the Braves are considering bringing back for the league minimum salary. The Braves are also mulling over whether to bring back injury-plagued LHP Tom Glavine for one more season.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, Fantasy Baseball, MLB, Rumors & Gossip

      Jason Garrett leading candidate for Rams job

      January 16, 2009 /

      Jason Garrett flew into St. Louis Friday evening to meet for the second time with Rams’ VP of Personnel Billy Devaney, who said the current Cowboys’ offensive coordinator is “the leading guy” for the team’s head coaching vacancy.

      Jason Garrett landed in St. Louis early Friday evening with his wife Brill, and told the Post-Dispatch that he was just here for a second interview and that no job had been offered.

      Minutes earlier, en route to the airport, Devaney was singing the same tune.

      “It’s part of the interview process,” Devaney insisted. “He wanted to look at the facility. We’re not close to moving on Jason Garrett. I’m not even going to say he’s the leading guy.”

      Take that for what it’s worth, but Garrett is the only finalist to visit St. Louis. And he did have his wife with him. Devaney also said that he’d already made his recommendation to owner Chip Rosenbloom on who he wanted to hire as the next Rams head coach.

      Devaney said he hoped to reach a decision by Monday on the next Rams head coach.

      Garrett and Devaney have a lot in common. They’re both from New Jersey. They’re both big Bruce Springsteen fans, and they’re both represented by the same agent _ David Dunn.

      Garrett would be a solid choice for the Rams. I’ve recently taken on the mindset that dome teams are at a disadvantage defensively (you can find my explanation for it here), so it’s wise for them to load up on offense and take advantage of playing on a fast surface eight-plus times a year.

      Garrett is one of the bright young offensive minds in the NFL, although his credibility certainly took a hit with how bad the Cowboys struggled down the stretch. Still, the guy has some innovative offenses and if the Rams can rebuild their offensive line, Garrett’s schemes might flourish.

      What’ll be interesting to see is if the Rams take a flier on Jon Gruden, who was just fired in Tampa. Gruden is another solid offensive coach and obviously has more experience than Garrett and the other head-coaching candidates linked to the St. Louis job (i.e. Leslie Frazier, Steve Spagnuolo and Rex Ryan).

      NFL

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