Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 582 of 1503)

      Giants should be embarrassed by their effort vs. Panthers

      December 27, 2009 /

      The New York Giants owe their fans an apology after the horrendous effort they gave today in their 41-9 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

      Despite having their playoff hopes on the line and the fact that they were playing their final game at Giants Stadium, New York couldn’t have cared less. Their effort was pathetic on both sides of the ball and it was clear from the start that their players wanted nothing to do with football today.

      This is a loss where somebody losses their job. It won’t be Tom Coughlin, but I can’t see any scenario in which defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan is retained for next season. The Panthers were without DeAngelo Williams, yet the Giants allowed Jonathan Stewart to rush for 206 yards and a touchdown, and for Matt Moore to throw for three scores. I realize Stewart is a fine back and Moore is gaining confidence week to week, but there’s no excuse for a team with playoff aspirations to allow 416 total yards and 41 points at home. None.

      Sheridan has to go; New York has to hire someone that understands that the team’s best attribute defensively is its defensive line. That said, his players should be embarrassed with the way they played today. They didn’t tackle, they didn’t play disciplined and they played with zero emotion.

      The Giants didn’t deserve to go to the playoffs this year and maybe this was a fitting end to their season.

      NFL

      Boston College gets jobbed by refs in Emerald Bowl

      December 27, 2009 /

      The major media outlets are hyping the fact that a Pac-10 team finally showed up in a bowl game this season after USC downed Boston College 24-13 in the Emerald Bowl on Saturday night. But a little more attention should be paid for how Boston College was bent over by the refs not once, but twice during the game.

      Early in the second quarter, Trojans’ QB Matt Barkley found Damian Williams for a 38-yard completion down the right sidelines to set USC up at the BC 6-yard line. But Williams looked out of bounds during live action and in replay, yet the officials reviewed the play at let it stand. The fact that the officials couldn’t tell that Williams didn’t come in bounds was one thing, but they actually screwed up twice on the play because he made the “catch” with his right foot out of bounds at the 8-yard line, not the six. So not only did they let the “catch” stand, but they also gave USC two extra yards just for the hell of it.

      There was also a, uh, questionable call in the second half during a Boston College punt. The ball had clearly hit a USC player first and even though an Eagle recovered it, the refs challenged that since the Trojan was blocked into the ball that it would remain with USC. Yet, it looked like the USC player was coming forward and accidentally kicked the ball, which would have meant that the recovery was just and that the Eagles would have retained possession.

      Now, there’s no way of knowing if those plays would have affected the outcome of the game. If Williams’ catch was ruled incomplete, USC still could have scored on the next play. If the punt would have resulted in BC getting the ball, they could have thrown a pick six on the next play, so nobody can say with absolute certainty that if the calls went the Eagles’ way instead of the Trojans’ that the outcome would have been different. (Plus, BC couldn’t move the ball offensively, which was a much bigger problem then getting jobbed by the refs.)

      That said, the officials blew both calls and that’s the bottom line. And there’s no excuse to get a play wrong when it’s reviewed; it’s just ridiculous.

      College Football

      Report: Two things keeping a Bay-Boston reunion from happening

      December 26, 2009 /

      According to the Boston Globe, there are two distinct things that are keeping the Red Sox from bringing free agent outfielder Jason Bay back to Beantown.

      Could Bay return to the Red Sox? It’s not inconceivable, according to a major league source, who said it would take two things to happen. 1. Bay would likely have to accept a backloaded contract, which would help the Sox remain under the $170 million payroll threshold for avoiding the luxury tax; and 2. the Sox would have to extend their budget, after they gave a two-year, $15.5 million deal to Mike Cameron.

      Then, where would they play Cameron? He could be used against lefthanded pitching to spell Jacoby Ellsbury and J.D. Drew, or the Sox could use Ellsbury in an Adrian Gonzalez deal. But with Mike Lowell back in the fold after he failed his physical with the Rangers, the Sox have less wiggle room in their payroll and on their roster.

      Call it a gut feeling, but I don’t think Bay will return to Boston. The BoSox don’t like to budge when it comes to their payroll decisions, which is why Johnny Damon played the last couple years in the Bronx instead of in Baaaston. In the end, another club will step up and pay Bay what he wants and I think he’ll cash in and move on.

      Plus, as the article notes, the Red Sox already have Cameron to play left field so they’ve probably moved on. I think the only reason why the Bay-to-Boston rumors are staying afloat is because no other team has stepped up and signed him yet and it doesn’t sound like he’s even close to striking a deal with another club.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      MLB

      Rams to trade Steven Jackson? GM says no.

      December 26, 2009 /

      Rams general manager Billy Devaney says that the team won’t look to trade running back Steven Jackson this offseason.

      From the St. Louis Dispatch:

      Devaney shot down such rumors in October as the trade deadline approached. And with the offseason just 10 days away for the Rams, he was more than happy to shoot them down again.

      “It’s something that’s never even crossed my mind,” Devaney said in a recent interview. “It’s something that I couldn’t imagine. We’re trying to bring good players into the building. Why would we want (to trade) our best guy — one of the best players in the NFL regardless of position?”

      The idea isn’t too far fetched; the Rams are many pieces of away from being competitive, so why not trade Jackson and get extra draft picks?

      But it’s hard enough for teams to find a trade partner, nevertheless one that will surrender multiple draft picks to acquire a player. So even if the Rams do find a trade partner, will they find one willing to give up a at least a first and a third round pick to acquire Jackson? And if they don’t find a trade partner, then they have to worry about alienating Jackson in the process.

      The Rams would be better off keeping Jackson and allowing Devaney to build the roster through the draft. They need to find a quarterback and to continue to rebuild the offensive line before they start taking chances like trading Jackson. It just doesn’t seem like a prudent move right now.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Haynesworth already frustrated in Washington

      December 26, 2009 /

      Albert Haynesworth isn’t happy with the way things are in Washington and expressed his frustrations shortly after being sent home early on Friday for missing a team meeting. Haynesworth, who was given $41 million in guaranteed money last offseason, mainly expressed his frustration with defensive coordinator Greg Blache.

      From the Washington Post:

      In a lengthy phone interview shortly after he was sent home from practice by Coach Jim Zorn for disciplinary reasons, Haynesworth for the first time discussed his poor relationship with Blache and provided his most detailed explanation yet about the flaws, in his opinion, of Blache’s disciplined scheme, which has helped the Redskins rank ninth overall in defense. Haynesworth expressed fear that owner Daniel Snyder’s major investment in him — the Redskins guaranteed Haynesworth $41 million in signing him this past February — would be wasted unless he again is given freedom to “create havoc” as he did in his first seven seasons with the Tennessee Titans.

      “If they keep this system the way it is, then they would label Albert Haynesworth a bust who didn’t live up to the contract,” Haynesworth said. “Everybody would say he just took the money and ran off. And I’m still playing as hard as I possibly can. But you can only do so much within the system that’s put around you. And I’m not talking about the players. The players have been great. I couldn’t ask for any better guys. I’m talking about the system. And [the coaches] can say whatever they want about that [the reason he was sent home Friday]. The main thing it’s coming from is what I said after the game about leadership and about the team.”

      Haynesworth will likely get his wish if he wants to see Blache gone, because once Zorn is fired in the offseason the new head coach (Mike Shanahan?) will clean house and bring in his own coordinators. So Haynesworth’s frustrations will probably be short lived.

      That said, it isn’t good when a team invests $41 million in guaranteed money in a player and he gets sent home early, then openly complains about his defensive coordinator.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

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