Month: January 2009 (Page 31 of 61)

      Cowboys to release Terrell Owens?

      January 15, 2009 /

      According to Ed Werder of ESPN.com – who must have a little cot set up at Valley Ranch – the Cowboys are considering releasing receiver Terrell Owens so that the team will have better chemistry in the locker room next season.

      Terrell Owens“I think we all know that chemistry is the problem with this team more than the schemes or anything else,” a Cowboys source said. “Are we going to continue to allow talent to outweigh everything else in the decisions we make with players and putting the roster together? We’re like the Redskins used to be when they signed every player they wanted. There’s more to it than talent. It has to be more about the team.

      “The big one [Owens] didn’t get discussed yet, but I’m sure it will and real hard.”

      The Cowboys released twice-suspended cornerback Pacman Jones last week and Tank Johnson is expected to depart through free agency. Both decisions are at least partly related to the renewed emphasis on creating a different atmosphere in the locker room. The Cowboys began their ill-fated 2008 season with three players on the roster who had been suspended by the league or their previous teams — Jones, Johnson and Owens.

      At least two sources believe that vice president Stephen Jones will attempt to convince his father that Owens should be finished with the Cowboys. But Jerry Jones just last year invested a $12 million signing bonus in Owens, which means there would be salary-cap fallout. In fact, Jerry Jones has suggested that there might be enough damage that the team would find it difficult to sign NFL sack leader DeMarcus Ware to a new contract.

      “I think some of people want to just cut our losses and get rid of all those guys … T.O., Tank, Pacman,” another Cowboys source said. “But I really think Jerry likes the thrill of trying to make it all work.”

      After what happened at the end of the season with the Tony Romo/Jason Witten/Terrell Owens saga, some people (mainly Owens) will read this and say, “There’s that Ed Werder again – making sh*t up.”

      But think about it, Werder is in Dallas 24/7 reporting on the Cowboys for ESPN. I swear the guy is required to sleep on site just in case any story breaks and it’s not like he can go around stirring the pot with fictional stories because then nobody would talk to him. So anyone that thinks this is just Werder trying to get a quick headline needs to get a grip.

      The possibility of Jerry Jones wanting to change the culture in the locker room is very real. He has a new stadium ready to open and despite having some of the best talent in the league every year, the Cowboys never win. If Jones really wants to make a change, parting with Owens might be the first step. It’ll be interesting to see how this story develops this offseason.

      NFL, Rumors & Gossip

      Tucker: Entering draft is best move for college players

      January 15, 2009 /

      The deadline for underclassmen to decide whether or not to turn pro is today and Ross Tucker of SI.com has advice for all of those players on the fence about whether or not to return to school: go pro and never look back.

      Mark SanchezFootball is a collision sport that takes a toll on one’s body, whether it be in the NFL or in college. Therefore, every player’s time in the game is finite, no matter how genetically gifted they may be. At some point the body is going to break down. When that time comes, each player will have the opportunity to reflect on his career and decide whether or not he maximized his earning potential. Any top prospect who returns to school, especially those who would have been taken in the first two rounds, is playing an entire season for which they could have been getting paid. That list currently includes Oklahoma’s Gerald McCoy, USC’s Taylor Mays and a few others projected as first-day picks if they had entered the draft.

      The other rebuttal to my premise concerns education. A player who leaves school early likely leaves without his degree. I thought this was a grave tragedy when I was a youngster. Man, was I naïve. To be clear, I am a huge proponent of education. I chose to attend Princeton because I recognized it was a unique learning opportunity. I would recommend that any player find a way to get his degree so he has something to fall back on when his playing days are over. But you can always go back to school. Besides, most of those who stay for their final year of eligibility drop out of school before the second semester, either to prepare for the Combine or individual workouts or both.

      Much of the compensation for NFL players, especially those not fortunate enough to be drafted in the first round, is based upon tenure. A player’s league minimum goes up virtually every season. More importantly, the benefits players receive are based entirely upon years of service. Beginning with a player’s fourth season, every year entitles that player to another contribution into his annuity, 401k, severance and pension. Every year makes a significant difference.

      I wonder how much of Tucker’s opinions stem from the poor economy. Because you used to hear pundits say, “If you’re good enough, the money will always be there. So stay in school as long as you can and enjoy the ride.” If we weren’t in economic hell right now would he still be instructing young players to, “get it while they can”?

      He makes great points in his article. If a player’s stock is high and he grades out well, then they should enter the draft, make millions of dollars and hopefully go on to have a great career. Strike while the iron’s hot. Mark Sanchez (who is still deciding but is leaning towards entering the draft) and Shonn Greene are two prime examples of players in this year’s draft who are leaving while their stock is high.

      But one thing Tucker isn’t factoring into the decision, and something that must be hard for a young player, is the experience they get from being in school. They only get so many years of eligibility and then their college career is over – forever. It’s hard to pass on experiences in life, even when millions of dollars are staring you in the face. The bottom line is that it’s a tough decision and you can’t blame a kid for going either way with their decision.

      College Football, NFL, NFL Draft

      Digging into home field advantage

      January 15, 2009 /

      In the Jan. 12 issue of ESPN the Magazine, Peter Keating breaks down a number of different reasons why teams enjoy an advantage at home. The entire article is worth a read (though you’ll have to buy a copy since the article isn’t available online), but the part that jumped out at me was a study that was done on soccer officials back in 2007.

      In every major pro sport over the past five years, home teams have benefited from a differential in calls made by the officials. Before you send irate e-mails to David Stern or Roger Goodell about zebras on the take, know this: Researchers say it’s likely that officials are subconsciously channeling fans’ preferences. “Referees get a lot of abuse, and as far as crowds are concerned, the only good decisions they make are those that help the home team,” says Paul Ward, a cognitive psychologist at Florida State. “If you’re looking for a way to deal with the stress of quick decisionmaking, favoring the home team is a way to reduce anxiety”

      To test this hypothesis, Ward and his colleagues strapped a group of soccer refs, coaches and players to EKGs and asked them to call videotaped games. Half watched games with crowd noise, the other half without. The results, published in 2007, showed that the participants subjected to crowd noise reported more mental anxiety–and called 21% fewer fouls on the home team.

      Bingo! This is why the intensity of crowds generates an advantage for home athletes. More fan frenzy equals more ref anxiety.

      It makes sense that if an official is calling a game in front of a packed house of 20,000 screaming fans, that it’s not unlikely that the ref will eventually bend to the fans’ will. They may have every good intention of calling the game right down the line, but it’s human nature to try to reduce your own stress, and the easiest way to do that is to make the people around you happy.

      So if you’re ever at a game and wondering if it’s worth the effort to stand up and cheer (or boo your fool head off), now you have your answer.

      College Basketball, College Football, General Sports, March Madness, MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, Soccer

      An early look at the running back class for the ’09 NFL Draft

      January 15, 2009 /

      LeSean “Shady” McCoy has decided to forego his final two years of eligibility at the University of Pittsburgh and enter April’s NFL draft.

      So how does McCoy stack up against the likes of Knowshon Moreno (Georgia), Chris “Beanie” Wells (Ohio State), Donald Brown (Connecticut), P.J. Hill (Wisconsin) and Shonn Greene (Iowa)? Let’s take a look.

      Even though he had a major setback earlier in the year when he injured his foot/toe in the Buckeyes’ first game of season, Beanie Wells has all of the intangibles NFL teams look for in a back. He’s big (6’1” 237 pounds), fast (he should run in the 4.5-range for the forty at the combine) and might even grade out better than Darren McFadden, who was selected No. 4 overall a year ago. He has had some durability issues, but after watching him over the course of the second half of the season, it didn’t look like he was suffering any lingering effects from the injury. Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel believes that Beanie is a top-5 pick and when you look at the entire package, it’s hard to disagree.

      Knowshon Moreno will probably go somewhere in the first round, but it’s hard to speculate at this point whether or not he’ll go in the top 15 or fall in the 20-25 range. He doesn’t have a ton of experience (he only played two seasons at UGA), but that also means he has fresh legs and he was incredible the two years he played at Georgia. He is being compared to Thomas Jones and Cadillac Williams in that he’s a grinder who doesn’t necessarily have great top-end speed, but makes up for it with outstanding instincts and vision. If he falls past the top 15 picks, he’s going to be a steal for whichever team grabs him.

      At 5’11, 210 pounds, Shady McCoy isn’t the biggest back in the draft, but his change-of-direction skills are unrivaled. After what the Texans’ Steve Slaton (a similar back with great speed) was able to accomplish in his rookie season, as well as the growing popularity of the “Wildcat” formation in the NFL, a lot of teams are going to value McCoy’s versatility and athleticism. His ability to make people miss will certainly separate him come draft time and he should run a forty in the 4.4-range at the combine.

      Shonn Greene is perhaps the most intriguing back in this draft because his stock couldn’t be higher after rushing for 1,850 yards and 20 touchdowns for the streaking Hawkeyes. He also won the Doak Walker Award, which is given to the nation’s top running back and given his powerful running style, he might be a sleeper pick in the top three rounds. He’s overshadowed by Wells, Moreno and McCoy, but his skill set is outstanding.

      Donald Brown rushed for 2,083 yards at Connecticut this season and will likely draw comparisons to Kevin Smith of the Lions come April. Like Smith, Brown racked up a ton of yardage at the collegiate level, but doesn’t have elite speed or athleticism. Instead he excels because of his vision and creativity and unlike Smith (who played at Central Florida), Brown faced some decent defenses in the Big East so the “weak competition” knock shouldn’t be applied come draft day.

      P.J. Hill will be a late round pick given his durability issues at Wisconsin and the fact that he’s not much of a pass-catcher. He’s a bowling ball of a runner, but won’t draw much consideration in the top three rounds.

      College Football, NFL, NFL Draft

      Hockey on the Vegas Strip? Believe it.

      January 15, 2009 /

      Desperate for viewers, the NHL is considering having its next Winter Classic Game played outdoors on the Vegas Strip, or even the Rose Bowl.

      SPORTSbyBROOKS.com has the story:

      Wrigley Field Winter ClassicYou can see why the league is interested in expanding the idea of outdoor hockey: the Winter Classic game between the Red Wings and Blackhawks on New Year’s Day drew the highest rating for the NHL in 34 years. With as desperate as the NHL is for TV viewers, it’s a little shocking that the league hasn’t just gone ahead and made every game an outdoor game.

      The NHL has some experience with outdoor hockey in Las Vegas – an exhibition game between the Kings and the Rangers in September 1991 drew 13,000 fans, who were able to see a sloppy game played on miserable, melting ice. Having the game on Jan. 1 would mean colder temperatures and better ice conditions (unless they have one of those pesky monsoons they get in the desert).

      Of course, having the game on Jan. 1 might be a problem if they select the Rose Bowl as an event location, since I believe the venue has something scheduled for Jan. 1, 2009. And 2010. And 2011. Other possibilities thrown out by NHL officials include Yankee Stadium (a contender for this past year’s game) and Penn State’s Beaver Stadium.

      If the game ends up on the Vegas strip, I could pretty much promise a sell-out, if only from the guys who stand on the street and hand out the pornography. It also would be another step towards Las Vegas finally getting a pro sports team – since they kind of bombed out with the NBA after the All-Star game in 2007, the NHL might need to be their fallback plan.

      That’s a pretty sweet idea. There should be more professional sporting events held in Vegas considering the electricity and excitement that the city breeds. And hookers…you can’t forget about the hookers that the city breeds, too.

      NHL

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