Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 1395 of 1503)

Bears bounce Tank Johnson

According to the Chicago Sun Times, the Bears have decided to waive defensive tackle Tank Johnson.

Johnson was stopped by police in Gilbert, Ariz. after 3 a.m. Friday for speeding, and he was arrested for suspicion of driving while impaired. He took a blood test, and while the results may not be known for two weeks, the Bears aren’t waiting.

With his latest antics, Johnson obviously still felt he was above the team, even after one would think he would settle down after being arrested last year for housing an arsenal of weapons. And while it’s highly doubtful because of his age and talent, I hope no other team takes a chance on him. In a related note, however, the NFC Champions are now severly thin at defensive tackle. Stud Tommie Harris is coming off a season-ending hamstring tear injury, and with Johnson now gone, the team puts a lot of pressure on former 49er Anthony Adams and 2006 third rounder Dusty Dvoracek. The team could look at former Texans’ starter Seth Payne, but at 32 and coming off a torn ACL, he might not be much of an upgrade over Adams or Dvoracek.

Kitna’s comments overblown

Last week on AM1130 WDFN in Detroit, a show host asked Lions’ quarterback Jon Kitna on what he thinks the outcome of the season will be. His answer:

“I thought 10 games (wins) before I saw the schedule. I’ll keep to myself what I think we actually will win, but it’s more than 10 games.”

Obviously with the Lions being dreadful over the years, Kitna’s prediction was a bit surprising, but it wasn’t worth the national attention it’s been given over the last few days. ESPN, AOL Sports and various other national sites are taking aim at Kitna’s comments, but really, they weren’t a big deal.

First and foremost, anyone who has been around Kitna in a locker room or seen him play knows he’s a fiery competitor. Furthermore, he goes to bat for his teammates and believes fully in Mike Martz’s system, so for him to predict 10-plus wins isn’t out of this world. What is he going to say, “We’ll probably win four or five, because that’s usually par for the Lions”? No, he’s going to show that he believes in his squad and not give some cookie-cutter response like most players do. Man, I know it’s kind of dead in the NFL right now, – other than Pacman being a moron, that is – but relax.

Former closer Beck found dead

Former Giant, Cub, Red Sox and Padre reliever Rod Beck was found dead in his home Saturday. The cause of death is yet to be determined, but he was 38.

Many former players, coaches and media members have noted how Beck was always a popular person in the clubhouse, and certainly loved by fans (especially in San Francisco). He also battled some personal demons, however, which was evident when he had to leave the Padres in 2004 for a two-month stint in drug rehab.

The former closer saved 286 games in his career. If you want to read a great article on what kind of man Beck was, check out Scott Ostler’s piece in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Chargers most dysfunctional? What?

In his latest blog for SI.com, Andrew Perloff ranked the 10 teams that had the most dysfunctional offseasons. At the top of the heap were the San Diego Chargers, because per Perloff, Marty Schottenheimer was fired due to not getting along with GM A.J. Smith and Cam Cameron and Wade Phillips left for head coaching jobs.

I get how losing all three of your top coaches could be considered dysfunctional, but it’s not like the Chargers hired three of the Muppets to replace them. San Diego deserves to be noted, but ahead of the Falcons (4th) or Bears (6th)? How could you get any worse than Michael Vick and his trick water bottle scandal or an alleged underground dog fighting investigation? On top of that, Atlanta lost two starters on defense (Demorrio Williams and Rod Coleman) for all of training camp and possibly the start of the season, plus receiver Brian Finneran for the entire year. Need more? Jonathan Babineaux allegedly killed his girlfriend’s dog in a fight (Humane Society loves this team) and – just like the Chargers – replaced all three of their top coaches. And they’re forth behind the Chargers, Dolphins and Chiefs? Wow.

What about the Bears? Lance Briggs and Alex Brown don’t want to play for the team anymore and Tank Johnson is in legal trouble for the second time in less than eight months. Plus their rookie tight end, Greg Olsen, took heat after a rap song he recorded while at the University of Miami got public attention because it degraded women.

Pff, replacing three coaches as the most dysfunctional offseason…please.

Tigers deal Maroth to St. Louis

With injuries sidelining Braden Looper, Chris Carpenter and Mark Mulder, the Cardinals traded for Tigers lefthander Mike Maroth Friday. While Maroth currently boasts a 5-2 record, his ERA is 5.06 and his command has been off for most of the season. However, St. Louis is obviously beat up and with an NL-worst 5.63 ERA, Maroth certainly can’t hurt.

While the deal is final, there’s no word yet on what Detroit will get in return. With Nate Robertson pitching six no hit innings in a minor league start on Thursday and Kenny Rogers set to start tonight, the Tigers obviously had room to deal one of their starters. This is just speculation on my part, but with the offense and starting rotation set, the only thing I could see Detroit getting in return is relief help.

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