Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 27 of 1503)

      Don’t buy what Irsay is selling – Luck will be the No. 1 pick.

      March 27, 2012 /

      Colts owner Jim Irsay said on Tuesday that it isn’t a foregone conclusion that his team will take Andrew Luck with the No. 1 pick in next month’s draft. Irsay also suggested that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny are in fact real, and Tiger Woods is a virgin.

      Here’s what Irsay said: “It’s up in the air. We have to look at this thing completely open-minded. You have two outstanding athletes, two great pure passers, two great guys from families that are incredible.”

      Every year around this time an owner, general manager, head coach, or talking head from the media reports that the sure-thing-No.1-overall-pick isn’t such a sure thing at all. I remember last year the Panthers weren’t going to take Cam Newton because they wanted to upgrade their defense. Marcell Dareus, Patrick Peterson, and even Da’Quan Bowers were thrown around as potential choices for Carolina at No. 1. But when the rubber met the road, the Panthers took the obvious choice in Newton.

      And so will Irsay and the Colts. (The obvious choice, that is – not Newton.) Irsay is right when he says that Luck and RGIII are two outstanding athletes and two pure passers. But Luck has been a slam-dunk to the Colts for months now and outside of the Stanford QB opting to join the Peace Corps or something, he’ll hold a blue and white No. 1 Indianapolis jersey come April 26.

      That said, even though I don’t believe a word of what Irsay is saying, by no means do I think he’s going about this situation the wrong way. Even if what you’re going to do is already a foregone conclusion, you still don’t tip your hand when it comes to the draft. Ever. Outside of hammering out a contract with Luck to ensure that he gets to camp on time, there’s no benefit for the Colts to announce their intentions at No. 1. And now that the NFL has a rookie salary structure, the negotiation process has become simplified, so the Colts have less to worry about when it comes to being able to sign Luck.

      Thus, if you’re Irsay, why not give the Redskins and other teams something to think about by suggesting that Luck won’t be your pick? It’s a benefit to keep everyone else on the back of their heels.

      But again, Andrew Luck will be an Indianapolis Colt come next month. I don’t care what Jim Irsay is saying right now.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

      Bill Parcells would be the ultimate coup for the Saints

      March 26, 2012 /

      Leave it to Sean Payton to call the right audible at the line of scrimmage to put the Saints into scoring position.

      Roger Goodell is trying to punish the Saints for their “bounty program” and Payton is about to turn the entire situation into a positive for his team. How so? ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported earlier today that Payton has approached Bill Parcells about coaching the Saints during his year-long suspension, which starts April 1. While the NFL Network’s Jason La Canfora considers a Parcells-Saints union “unlikely,” FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer reports that Payton will meet with Parcells this week. Parcells has been out of the league since 2006, but he’s known as one of the best talent evaluators the NFL has ever seen.

      Parcells and a ready-made Super Bowl contender? So much for being punished.
      In Parcells, not only would the Saints land a Super Bowl-winning head coach to fill in for Payton, but they’d also have a tremendous talent evaluator study their roster for a year. If you’re a musician, that would be like having Mozart playing your songs while simultaneously giving you helpful hints to improve your music for years to come.

      While there are probably a number of hurdles that the Saints would have to jump to bring Parcells in, it seems like a great fit for both sides. After all, Parcells’ skin starts to crawl if he’s in one place too long, so knowing that this is just a one-year stint he could try to win one more Super Bowl before calling it quits for good. Hey, why not if you’re him? He’s one of those guys that need to stay busy and he’s constantly looking for the next big thing.

      That next big thing could be the New Orleans Saints, who would essentially cancel out the punishment that was levied by Goodell last week if they can land the “Big Tuna.”

      External Sports, NFL

      Saints claim they’re not getting rid of Vilma but their actions say otherwise

      March 25, 2012 /

      Mickey Loomis says that middle linebacker Jonathan Vilma is “still
      a big part of our team,”       but the Saints’ latest signing would suggest that the GM is blowing smoke.

      The Saints signed free agent middle linebacker Curtis Lofton to a five-year deal on Saturday night and while the financial terms have yet to be released, chances are the former Falcon is being paid like a starter. (After all, he was the defensive captain for the past four years in Atlanta.)

      My point is that the Saints didn’t sign him as an insurance policy for Vilma, or for emergency starts. Some have suggested that new defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo could use Lofton on the outside, but that’s a dangerous proposition for the Saints. L0fton is a solid two-down “thumper” in the middle of a 4-3 and that’s where he needs to play in order to be successful. Granted, he has improved his coverage skills since his rookie year in ‘08, but pass defense will never be one of his strengths. Thus, to expect him to hang with tight ends and running backs as a strong-side ‘backer isn’t a realistic option. (To strengthen my point, let me point out that the Falcons have been re-signing their own players left and right this offseason and yet decided to let Lofton walk. That’s because they plan to play more nickel under new DC Mike Nolan and thus, Lofton wasn’t worth the money to essentially be a two-down run-stuffer.)

      Which leads me back to Vilma. Despite what Loomis says, there’s still a very good chance that Vilma has played his final down in New Orleans. The Saints will probably wait until they know the severity of his punishment for his involvement in the team’s “bounty program” before they do anything. But I doubt we’ll see Vilma and Lofton lining up in the same linebacker corps next season.

      If Vilma is suspended for half the season, the Saints could try to trade him for a late round pick. I doubt another team would bite with Lofton already on the roster, but it’s worth it for the Saints to try and see. And if he’s only suspended four games, Vilma’s trade value obviously goes up, so there’s no reason to release him now.

      But either way, Lofton is the team’s long-term answer at middle linebacker. Don’t let the Saints fool you into thinking otherwise.

      External Sports, NFL

      Jets wise to create competition for Mark Sanchez

      March 24, 2012 /

      Tim Tebow might not be able to hit the ocean if he threw a rock while standing on shore. But he certainly serves a purpose for the New York Jets.

      Some have criticized the Jets for parting with 2012 fourth and sixth round picks to acquire a quarterback in Tebow, who isn’t really a quarterback at all. From a passing efficiency standpoint, Tebow ranked among the league’s worst passers in 2011 at ProFootballFocus.com. But the Jets don’t need him to be Peyton Manning to benefit from the trade. In fact, they’re already benefiting from the deal.

      The Jets made a mistake by signing Mark Sanchez to a three-year, $40.5 million contract extension last week. The guy hasn’t earned an extension and given his current skill set, he’s not likely to live up to the contract. But at least the Jets didn’t compound the mistake by not finding a backup that wants to compete for the starting job.

      Tebow wants to start and if this New York Daily News report is accurate, he believes he can unseat Sanchez as the starter. He’ll push Sanchez from the start, which is something Sanchez has yet to experience since he was drafted in 2009. Even someone lacking in as much self confidence as Sanchez knew that Mark Brunell wasn’t a serious threat to take his job. But Tebow, who despite his lack of passing skills, proved that he can win last year. And the moment he arrives in the Big Apple he’ll put his hand on Sanchez’s shoulder and say, “I’m going to be right here, kind sir.”

      No, Tebow isn’t a good passer and he may never become one. But his arrival to New York means that Sanchez will be pushed like he’s never been pushed before. Competition in general is a good thing in sports, and Sanchez is about to receive his stiffest challenge since entering the league. Take Tebow’s lack of quarterback skills out the picture and the Jets did well here.

      External Sports, NFL

      The price of a World Series title? For Cardinals, it may be Chris Carpenter.

      March 23, 2012 /

      There’s always a price to pay in life. Success doesn’t come without failure and often times, elation doesn’t come without desolation.

      For the St. Louis Cardinals, the price of their miraculous 2011 championship wasn’t losing Albert Pujols (like many had thought), but perhaps ace Chris Carpenter.

      You could certainly make a case for Pujols or World Series hero David Freese being the most valuable player on last year’s Cardinals team. But in my eyes, it was hands down Chris Carpenter. Nobody threw as many innings in the big leagues last year than Carpenter, who was marvelous in the postseason. He won five of the six games he pitched, with his only loss coming in a 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Rangers in the World Series. In that game he pitched seven innings of two-run ball while striking out four and allowing just two earned runs. He wound up pitching just four days later and beat the Rangers for the second time in the Series, limiting Texas to two runs on six hits over six innings while helping St. Louis win its 11th championship.

      Now, with just two weeks before the start of the 2012 MLB season, Carpenter is dealing with a nerve issue in his right shoulder. The initial diagnosis was that he had a bulging cervical disc in his back and there was actually some positive news on his condition earlier this week. But it has been discovered that the discomfort he has experienced in his shoulder is actually nerve damage and nobody knows how long it’ll take for him to recover – or if he even will.

      The word “retirement” and Chris Carpenter don’t really go together. He’ll be 37 years old at the end of April but it would take an army to pull him off the mound. But it really isn’t up to him on how his body will react over these next couple of days, weeks, and months. He rejected surgery on Wednesday because quite frankly, it wouldn’t help. It’s not like he has a tear – he’s dealing with nerve damage. All he can do now is wait for the nerve to heal itself (which could take some time), test his arm out, and then go from there. The nerve could essentially heal itself next month but then become damaged again when he attempts to throw. It’s just hard to predict what will happen next.

      For the Cardinals’ sake, hopefully the nerve does regenerate quickly and he can get back on the mound at some point this season. But the news out of St. Louis right now isn’t good and there’s a chance that 2011 was the last we’ll see of Chris Carpenter in a baseball uniform. And if that is indeed the case, at least he and Cardinal fans will remember him for being the warrior he was in the 2011 postseason.

      The Giants paid their World Series debt in the form of losing Buster Posey, Freddy Sanchez, Pablo Sandoval and Brian Wilson for extended periods of time last season, which prevented them from qualifying for the postseason. Now the Cardinals are paying the price for theirs and it’s a shame that it has to come in the form of Carpenter.

      External Sports, MLB

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