Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 113 of 1503)

      2011 NFL Draft: AFC Team-by-Team Draft Needs

      April 22, 2011 /

      A couple of months ago I did division-by-division draft needs for every team. But now that we’re less than a week away from Roger Goodell taking the stage at Radio City Music Hall, I’ve decided to put together an updated post together on all 32 teams. So below you’ll find team-by-team needs for the AFC, as well as a quick summary for each division. (NFC team needs are coming soon.)

      AFC East

      New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick directs his team against the New York Jets during the third quarter of their AFC Divisional NFL playoff football game in Foxborough, January 16, 2011. REUTERS/Adam Hunger (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      Bills: QB, CB, OT, DE, OLB, TE, S
      Dolphins: RB, C, OG, QB
      Patriots: OT, OG, OLB, RB, DE
      Jets: WR, DE, OLB, OG

      Quick & Dirty Summary: While quarterback is definitely a need for the Bills, they’re more likely to go with the best defensive player on the board at No. 3, which could mean LSU’s Patrick Peterson is headed for upstate New York…There’s a good chance that both Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams have played their final downs in Miami, so landing a running back in one of the first three rounds almost seems imperative for the Dolphins…With two first round picks, the Patriots could address their lines on both sides of the ball, but knowing Bill Belichick he won’t stand pat and will look to acquire more picks by trading one of those two selections…The Jets have huge decisions to make at receiver, where Santonio Holmes and Braylon Edwards are both free agents. It’s doubtful that Rex Ryan will address the receiver position in Round 1, but you can never tell what’s up his sleeve.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

      Selig won’t take Barry Bonds’ name out of the record books – not that it matters

      April 22, 2011 /
      Former San Francisco Giants baseball player Barry Bonds leaves the Federal Court House after his perjury trial at the Phillip Burton Federal Building in San Francisco, California April 8, 2011. REUTERS/Stephen Lam (UNITED STATES – Tags: CRIME LAW SPORT BASEBALL HEADSHOT)

      Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig told the media on Thursday that he won’t consider taking Barry Bonds’ name out of the record books in wake of the slugger’s conviction of obstruction of justice last week. This will make a lot of fans angry, but it shouldn’t.

      There was a huge outcry from fans that wanted to see an asterisk next to Bonds’ name in the record books when he broke Hammerin’ Hank’s home run mark in 2006. But that was never going to happen, and neither was Selig striking Bonds’ name from the record books altogether.

      But the fact that Bonds hit 762 home runs in his career only has meaning because we as fans give it meaning. If we refer to Bonds as the current home run champ, then that 762 becomes much more than a number. But if we refer to Bonds as the cheater that pumped himself full of drugs in efforts to break Aaron’s record, then that 762 holds about as much weight as the needle that Greg Anderson used to inject the former slugger.

      Don’t get it twisted: What Bonds did, matters. How he accomplished what he did, matters. The fact that he cheated, matters. But that 762 number? Means nothing. It’s a question at someone’s trivia night. In fact, I didn’t even know the exact number before I started writing this piece. I had to look it up, which should tell you how much it means to me.

      Do true baseball fans wish that Aaron’s number were still at the top of the record books? Yes, but in some ways, it still is. Nobody refers to Bonds as baseball’s all-time home run leader unless they follow it up with a “But…steroids.” And there’s a large contingent that refuse to even mention Bonds’ name when the record is mentioned. They’ll still refer to Hank Aaron as the all-time home run champ and will continue to do so until they take their last breath.

      It would be nice if Selig stepped to the plate and made a statement for once. It would be nice if he gave Bonds his middle finger and said: “Not in my record books, buddy.” But he wasn’t and isn’t going to do that. Baseball is run by conservative men who make conservative decisions. Selig wasn’t going to rock the boat with something like this, just like he will never allow someone as flamboyant and aggressive as Mark Cuban to come in and purchase one of his ball clubs.

      But as long as we the fans don’t allow Bonds’ 762 to have meaning, then Hank Aaron will always live on as the true all-time home run champion.

      External Sports, MLB

      More positive news on Da’Quan Bowers’ knee

      April 22, 2011 /

      For nearly a month, most of the reports on defensive end prospect Da’Quan Bowers and his surgically repaired knee were negative.

      First came the report that his draft stock was falling. Then there was one that his knee surgery was more serious than Bowers claimed. Then came the rumors that he failed at least two physicals, that he was being removed from multiple teams’ draft boards and finally, that he may need microfracture surgery.

      Oh, and he also turned in a less-than-spectacular effort at Clemson’s Pro Day.

      But finally, with less than a week to go before the first round of the draft, we have some positive news surrounding Bowers’ health.

      Lions’ GM Martin Mayhew and Browns’ GM Tom Heckert both said this week that team doctors have cleared Bowers’ knee. Neither GM went into detail, but there’s now reason to believe that the reports on Bowers over the past month have been overblown.

      “Our doctors have looked at him 100 times,” Heckert said. “He went to the recheck, so we’ve done our due diligence. I don’t want to get into all the medical stuff, but we think his knee is going to be all right.”

      Granted, both Mayhew and Heckert could be misleading the media and, in turn, other teams as well. If you’re a GM and you know you’re not going to draft someone, make sure you have nothing but positive things to say about that prospect. You want other teams thinking that you’re going to snag a player that they want so there’s at least a possibility that you can trade and potentially acquire more picks.

      But hey, that said: here’s hoping Bowers’ knee is fine and he’s still a top-10, or at least a top-15 selection. He’s a great prospect and could wind up being a steal depending on where he’s taken.

      News, NFL, NFL Draft

      Baseball to expand playoff system?

      April 21, 2011 /
      Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig speaks during a news conference in New York, April 21, 2011. Major League Baseball (MLB), in an extraordinary move, plans to take control of the day-to-day operations of the Los Angeles Dodgers because of mounting concern over the franchise’s financial plight. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      Commissioner Bud Selig told the media on Thursday that Major League Baseball is moving toward expansion of its current playoff system.

      “The more we’ve talked about it, I think we’re moving inexorably to that,” Selig said. “But there’s a myriad of details to work out.”

      I think an expanded playoff pool would bring more excitement not only to the postseason, but to the regular season as well. Under the current system, all six division winners reach the playoffs, as well as one Wild Card team from each league. It sounds as if Selig wants to add one more Wild Card team to the mix in each league, meaning the clubs with the top two records from each league would each get a bye.

      Some baseball traditionalists might resist the change, but all things must change over time. The current playoff format wasn’t introduced until 1994, so there’s nothing wrong with adapting a new system nearly 20 years later – especially when the new format would keep fans interested and going to the ballpark deep into the second half.

      Think about it: how many times in the past 10 years has a divisional race been decided in early August? And then what happens to the fans of those clubs that find themselves out of contention? They stop going to the park.

      Adding another Wild Card team to the postseason mix would ensure that fan bases of contenders would keep coming to the park, which means more revenue for Major League Baseball and that team. The fans get to see a potential playoff participant, the team can keep selling beer, hot dogs and ballcaps, while the league grows its popularity. It’s a win for all parties involved.

      External Sports, MLB

      Ryan Franklin sounds off about booing Cardinal fans

      April 21, 2011 /
      St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Ryan Franklin flips the baseball to first base during the eighth inning against the Washington Nationals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on April 20, 2011. Washington won the game 8-6. UPI/Bill Greenblatt

      After giving up yet another home run while working two innings in middle relief on Wednesday against the Nationals, Cardinals’ pitcher Ryan Franklin sounded off on the boo birds that have recently come out at Busch Stadium.

      “You should go write stories about the fans booing,” Franklin told reporters after Game 1 of a double-header on Wednesday. “They’re supposed to be the best fans in baseball. Yeah right.”

      Never, in the history of sports, has it ever been wise for an athlete to bash his own fan base. There’s just nothing good that can ever come out of it. Even if the athlete is right (and I’m not saying Franklin is), the fans will likely only respond with more booing. It’s not like 40,000 fans are going to collectively get together and go, “You know what? Ryan Franklin is right. We’re better than this, people! Let’s get behind our red birds whether they have a 1.57 ERA or a 11.57 ERA!”

      Franklin later backed off his remarks and somewhat apologized. The quote below is from a story on MLB.com.

      “Obviously these last 2 1/2 weeks have been frustrating for me, and I’m frustrated with myself,” Franklin said. “I can understand why the fans are frustrated. I’ve loved my time here in St. Louis. It’s my favorite place to play. It’s just a frustrating time for me right now, because I feel like I’m letting everyone down.”

      It’s funny, whatever athletes usually say in the follow up interview is the thing they should have said first. Had Franklin come out and said what he did above, he may still have gotten booed but at least fans would respect him for owning up to the suck. But when a player bashes a fan base and then later says that he’s just frustrated, people tend to have less empathy.

      Ah, well. Do you know how Franklin rectifies this? By pitching well. We fans will turn on a dime when a player starts producing again. Athletes can go from being a bum to a hero overnight.

      External Sports, MLB

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