Month: November 2009 (Page 6 of 71)

      Colts sink Texans’ playoff hopes

      November 29, 2009 /

      Stick a fork in the Texans – they’re done.

      In a tale of two halves, the Colts beat the Texans 35-27 on Sunday to stay undefeated and drop Houston to 5-6 on the season. In order to secure victory, Indianapolis had to erase first half deficits of 17-0 and 20-7.

      In the first half, Matt Schaub had ample time to throw and the defense harassed Peyton Manning into two key interceptions. But in the second half, Manning picked them apart using the no huddle and Houston started to assume its fate. The Texans have had issues finishing off opponents all season and it was once again evident today.

      The Texans had a golden opportunity to prove that they can take the next step and get the Indianapolis Colts monkey off their back and both slipped through their fingers. Once again, Houston is on the cusp of making the postseason and once again, they probably won’t be playing past the first weekend in January.

      It’s hard to pinpoint exactly what the Texans are missing (outside of a reliable kicker that is). Their young defense has shown flashes of massive potential, but they struggle producing in crunch time. Whether it’s coaching or the need for another playmaker on that side of the ball, it’s apparent that the Texans are missing one final component.

      NFL

      Nikolay Davydenko wins ATP finals

      November 29, 2009 /

      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      Nikolay Davydenko defeated Juan Martin del Potro in straight sets at the ATP World Tour Finals to capture the first big championship of his career. Davydenko overcame world No. 1 Roger Federer in the semifinals before facing del Potro.

      Del Potro had three chances to break Davydenko, but the Russian saved them all to complete a sweep of all three of this year’s Grand Slam champions at the season-ending tournament.

      “For me it was amazing,” Davydenko said. “Coming here as No. 7 and winning the tournament, it was surprising for myself.”

      Davydenko lost in the final of last year’s season-ending tournament for the top eight players in the world, falling to Novak Djokovic in Shanghai.

      The Russian finished the match with 25 winners and only 15 unforced errors, while Del Potro had 20 winners and 19 unforced errors at the O2 Arena.

      Davydenko had a miraculous run at this tournament. After losing his opening match to Novak Djokovic, Davydenko would go on to beat some of the world’s greats. He followed his loss to Djokovic with wins against Rafael Nadal, Robin Soderling, and Federer. This streak reached its peak in the finals against del Potro, where Davydenko outplayed the U.S. Open champion in front of the London crowd.

      Tennis

      Q&A Question of the Week: Week 12

      November 29, 2009 /

      Every week, I pick one question from our Fantasy Football Q&A and post it on Sunday morning. This week’s question comes from RJR, who is wondering how he should cut Dustin Keller for James Casey.

      “Do you think it would be worth dropping [Dustin] Keller for [James] Casey? My TE position is killing me and even though it seems like Keller has a lot of targets he does not put up a ton of points. What do you think Casey’s value going forward is? (or I can wait and drop Finley on Monday for Casey but a few teams in my league also need TE help and he may not last that long) or should I just leave it alone unless he blows up.”

      My answer: At TE, I’d stick with Keller. Like you said, he gets a ton of targets and that’s half the battle. I’d rather have Finley than Casey right now.

      Over the last three weeks, Keller is averaging 5.7-57-0.3, which are very good TE numbers. Clearly, he went through a bad stretch in the middle of the season, but he seems to have developed a better rapport with Mark Sanchez as the season has worn on.

      While Casey does have some upside filling in for Owen Daniels, he is a rookie and it’s not often that a rookie TE becomes a viable starting option in fantasy football. Keller has more experience and a decent QB and should be starter-quality for the remainder of the season.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      NFL Week 11 ROY Power Rankings

      November 29, 2009 /

      Suddenly lots of players are making a case here. Moreno was outstanding against that sieve of a Giants’ defense last night, looking like the guy the Broncos knew they drafted.

      1. Jairus Byrd, Buffalo Bills—Though he didn’t pick one off against Jacksonville last week, Byrd is still on pace for 12. That would be one heck of a season for anyone, let alone a rookie playing on a crappy team.

      2. Percy Harvin, Minnesota Vikings—Another TD catch last weekend from his new best friend Brett Favre, Harvin is making coach Brad Childress look like a genius for taking a chance on him when many others turned their heads.

      3. Knowshon Moreno, Denver Broncos—This guy had over 100 all-purpose yards last night against the G-men, and he could steal this award if he keeps that up.

      4. James Laurinaitis, St. Louis Rams—You aren’t seeing a misprint here. Laurinaitis had 16 tackles against the Cardinals last Sunday, and has 66 solo tackles on the season. That number has him fifth in the NFL, an amazing feat for a rookie on (like Byrd) a crappy team.

      5. Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions—He gets a spot here solely on his guts, and for single-handedly bringing his team back last weekend against the Browns to steal a victory from the jaws of defeat. Sure, he regressed yesterday, but we’ll let that slide.

      Honorable mention: Hakeem Nicks, Giants; Johnny Knox, Bears; Ryan Succop, Chiefs; Michael Oher, Ravens; LeSean McCoy, Eagles; Beanie Wells, Cardinals; Jeremy Maclin, Eagles

      NFL

      NFL Week 11 COY Power Rankings

      November 29, 2009 /

      Once again we can’t ignore the two guys who have their teams at 10-0. Beyond that, there are a few others who are still overachieving, including Josh McDaniels, who brought his team back from the dead last night with a feisty effort against the Giants. Meanwhile, is anyone starting to sense that Jeff Fisher may be on our radar here? If you start 0-6 then win four straight and start to sniff any chance at the playoffs, that is just mind-blowing. It’s safe to say that if he does bring his Titans all the way back, it may be even more impressive than 16-0 would be.

      1. Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis Colts—They just beat the Patriots and Ravens back to back, and are absolutely going to coast to a first round bye. However, they need to finish the job this time as they did three seasons ago.

      2. Sean Payton, New Orleans Saints—Finally the Saints dominated in a game they had to dominate. Now they face their biggest test of the season at home Monday night against the Patriots. Both offenses are so explosive that I’m fully expecting 80 points between the teams. And if Payton’s Saints win, he will have earned his spot here again.

      3. Marvin Lewis, Cincinnati Bengals—A heartbreaking loss in Oakland was a devastating blow, but the Steelers and Ravens also lost. Now, Lewis has a chance for his team to be 6-0 in the division by beating the Browns at home Sunday. Can he do it? Does Howdy Doody have a wooden butt?

      4. Brad Childress, Minnesota Vikings—His team is 9-1 heading into Sunday’s game against Chicago, and if he wins that one, as he should, Childress will continue to remain on this short list.

      5. Josh McDaniels, Denver Broncos—After being 6-0 and losing four straight in horrible fashion, McDaniels and his potty mouth brought his team back from the dead last night. That was impressive (the comeback, as well as the mouth). They will be a tough out for someone in the playoffs, assuming they can still get there.

      Honorable mention: Ken Whisenhunt, Cardinals; Jack Del Rio, Jaguars, Jeff Fisher, Titans; Bill Belichick, Patriots

      NFL

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