Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 190 of 1503)

      Brewers, Fielder avoid arbitration with $15.5 million deal

      January 18, 2011 /

      Prince Fielder and the Brewers successfully avoided arbitration on Tuesday by agreeing to a new deal worth $15.5 million. The contract makes him the highest-paid Brewer in team history and it’ll likely be his last arbitration contract.

      Craig Calcaterra of NBC Sports Hardball Talk brings up a good point about Joey Votto’s deal with the Reds as it relates to Fielder’s new contract:

      Attention Reds fans who keep asking me why the team would agree to buy out Joey Votto‘s arbitration years for $38 million while not getting any free agent years from him: this deal is the reason. If Votto had gone to arbitration for all three years, he’d easily exceed $38 million given the precedent set by Ryan Howard and Fielder’s arbitration deals. It gave the Reds cost-certainty and saved them several million dollars. That’s not nothing.

      Calcaterra goes on to mention that Fielder has apparently lost weight and is “poised for free agency” after the 2011 season. That makes it sound like Fielder doesn’t want to be a Brewer beyond next year, although I think the main point is that he’s looking to cash in big after the upcoming season.

      Fantasy baseball owners should take note because it looks like the Prince is in for a monstrous season.

      External Sports, MLB

      Ten QB-needy teams that passed on Aaron Rodgers in the 2005 draft

      January 18, 2011 /
      Green Bay Packers’ quarterback Aaron Rogers calls out a play against the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland on October 10, 2010. The Redskins went on to defeat the Packers 16-13. UPI/Kevin Dietsch

      The sight of Braylon Edwards doing back flips after the Jets beat the Patriots on Sunday must have made Brown fans want to puke. He didn’t help their team win anything in Cleveland and now the jagoff is knocking on the door of a Super Bowl appearance.

      What makes the situation even tougher for Cleveland fans is that the Browns could have had the quarterback that absolutely shredded the top-seeded Falcons the night before Edwards and the Jets beat the Patriots. Twenty-one slots after the Browns selected Edwards with the third overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, the Packers nabbed California quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Where would the Browns be today had they taken Rodgers instead?

      Granted, no two situations are ever exactly alike – especially in the NFL. There’s no guarantee that had Cleveland selected Rodgers over Edwards that the Browns would be where the Packers are today. It just doesn’t work that way in sports – or life for that matter. Rodgers could have turned out to be the next Tim Couch for all we know and as I point out below, had the Browns drafted him that year, they may have never acquired feature back Peyton Hillis in 2010.

      But for a moment, let’s play the “What if?” game. Let’s pretend that everything would have worked out for Rodgers in Cleveland, just like it has in Green Bay. Let’s assume that the quarterback-needy Browns would have set themselves up by taking Rodgers at No. 3 and with that in mind, what other teams blew it by not selecting the California gunslinger?

      Come with me on a journey back to Saturday, April 23, 2005. Below is a list of 10 quarterback-needy teams that passed on Rodgers that fateful day and at what pick in the draft. Also listed are the players those teams took ahead of Rodgers, and a brief look at their current situation.

      No. 1 San Francisco 49ers
      Who they took instead of Rodgers: Alex Smith, QB
      This one probably stings the most. Smith and Rodgers were the only quarterbacks that were worthy of taking at No. 1 and the Niners were set on taking a signal caller. They decided on Smith because they fell in love with his athleticism, which was something Rodgers supposedly didn’t have enough of. Thanks to constant coaching turnover and an unstable situation, Smith hasn’t panned out and Rodgers is running around the Georgia Dome carpet making plays with both his arm and legs. So much for not having any athleticism…

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

      Maroney kicks off free agency by being arrested on weapons and drug charges

      January 18, 2011 /

      Running back Laurence Maroney’s rookie contract expires this offseason and considering he’s largely been a bust since being selected in the first round of the 2006 NFL Draft, one would think he would spend his free time training.

      But one would be wrong.

      According to KMOV.com, Maroney was arrested late Monday night and is being held on unlawful weapons and drug charges. While there aren’t many details at this time, it appears that Maroney was in a car with three other men when the police pulled them over in St. Louis. Oh, and apparently there was a high-speed chase.

      Maroney’s publicist Jane Higgins told KMOV that her client was not with the car involved in the chase, but he just so happened to be behind the car by “pure coincidence.” Per the report, Maroney has a permit for the gun he was carrying, but the permit was in a wallet that wasn’t on him at the time. (You know, because guys carry multiple wallets to match their shoes.)

      For his sake, I hope this was just a misunderstanding and he can clear his name. Otherwise, he’s not going to receive much offers this offseason.

      Update: TMZ is reporting that Maroney was released and not charged with a crime.

      From Rotoworld.com:

      Updating an earlier item, TMZ.com reports that Laurence Maroney was arrested for possession of marijuana and unlawful use of a weapon Monday night, but Maroney’s rep says he has been released and not charged with a crime.
      “Mr. Maroney was unlawfully arrested for possession of weapons. He holds a permit to carry a concealed weapon and he had his permit on his person when he was arrested. He was not arrested for any drugs nor was he involved in a high speed chase. He was released without being charged with any offense and we do not anticipate he will be charged with any criminal offense.” We’ll update this if more unfolds, but it sounds like Maroney has somehow dodged a bullet here, no pun intended.

      Well that’s certainly good news for Maroney.

      External Sports, NFL

      Three ways to fix the Patriots and Falcons

      January 18, 2011 /
      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)

      It turned out to be a disappointing year for the two No. 1 seeds in the NFL playoffs. The Falcons were completely overmatched by a much better Packers team on Saturday night, while the Jets outplayed the Patriots on New England’s home field on Sunday.

      But these two teams did a lot of good things this season, which is why they combined to win 27 games and earn the top seeds in their respective conferences. All is not lost for either of them, but the Packers and Jets proved that both Atlanta and New England must improve this offseason.

      While there are more changes that certainly need to be made for both teams, below are three ways to fix the Falcons and Patriots.

      1. Add more pass-rushers.
      Add more pass-rushers. Wow, thanks, Anthony. Add pass-rushers? Sure thing. I’ll just hop on down to Target and pick some up. Are they still down aisle three?

      I know, pass-rushers don’t fall off trees and they need time to develop. But the Patriots’ biggest concern coming into the season was their inability to rush the QB. Their lack of a pass rush wasn’t the only reason they lost on Sunday, but teams won’t win many games when they can’t get to the quarterback. They didn’t sack Mark Sanchez once and that, in part, led to him throwing three touchdown passes. If Sanchez was able to do what he did last weekend, what do you think Ben Roethlisberger, Jay Cutler or worse yet, Aaron Rodgers would have done to the Pats had they advanced?

      As for the Falcons, John Abraham and Jonathan Babineaux turned in great seasons but Kroy Biermann faded after having some early-season success. Abraham isn’t getting any younger and while Atlanta’s coaching staff has done a nice job keeping him fresh and healthy throughout the past three seasons, the Falcons need another bona fide edge rusher. The development of rookie linebacker Sean Weatherspoon should help, as should a fully healthy Peria Jerry. Backup DE Lawrence Sidbury has a ton of raw talent as well, but GM Thomas Dimitroff must add to his defensive line this offseason, whether that comes via the draft or free agency.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

      SEC losses another star, as Georgia’s Houston opts for NFL draft

      January 17, 2011 /

      Chris Low of ESPN.com reports that Georgia All-SEC outside linebacker Justin Houston has decided to declare early for the NFL draft. Houston finished second in the SEC this season with 10 sacks, which gave him 17.5 sacks over the past two seasons.

      Houston is the latest SEC underclassmen to turn pro over the past month. Teammate A.J. Green announced last week that he was skipping his senior season to enter the NFL draft, which means the Bulldogs will lose four linebackers and their star receiver this offseason. (Darryl Gamble and Akeem Dent were seniors, while Marcus Dowtin is transferring to another school.)

      Late last week, quarterback Cam Newton and defensive tackle Nick Fairley of Auburn decided to forego their senior seasons and enter the draft. Kentucky will also be without Randall Cobb next season, while Alabama will lose running back Mark Ingram, receiver Julio Jones and defensive end Marcell Dareus to the NFL.

      Fairley could have company in the top 5 if scouts view fellow SEC player Ryan Mallett (Arkansas) as a top selection. At 6-6 and 238 pounds, Mallett certainly has the size and arm strength to develop into a starting quarterback at the next level, but some have questioned his inability to close out big games and lead his team in crunch time.

      LSU’s Patrick Peterson and Stevan Ridley are two more names that the SEC will lose this offseason, but the conference is always producing new talent. It will repopulate.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL

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