Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 695 of 1503)

      Needing a spark, Browns go back to Anderson

      September 30, 2009 /

      Browns head coach Eric Mangini told reporters on Wednesday that Derek Anderson would replace Brady Quinn at quarterback and start this Sunday against the Bengals.

      From the Cleveland Plain Dealer:

      Mangini said “giving Derek the opportunity is something I think will help us offensively.” He said Anderson’s performance on third down Sunday in Baltimore — including 3-of-4 on a field goal drive — helped him clinch the job. He said he needs to improve on throwing interceptions, after throwing three in Baltimore.

      Mangini had little choice. Quinn wasn’t moving the offense, looked uncomfortable in his decision-making and wasn’t giving his receivers a chance to run after the catch. While Anderson shouldn’t be expected to fix what ails the Browns, he does have a stronger arm, will test defenses vertically and did move the ball more efficiently than Quinn last week against the Ravens. (Granted, Anderson also threw three interceptions against Baltimore.)

      Cleveland’s defense has played well enough to keep the Browns competitive, but the offense has been stagnant and while Quinn isn’t the only one to blame, the quarterback is always the first one to be replaced when a team is losing. If Quinn had showed any signs that he was progressing as a passer, then maybe Mangini would have given the young QB more time. But he wasn’t, and thus it’s time to give Anderson a shot to lead the offense again.

      Mangini needs this move to pay off or else he’s going to start losing the locker room (if he hasn’t already). He got off to a rough start with players like Shaun Rodgers when he was hired, and hasn’t endeared himself to others with his crass attitude and Bill Belichick-like demeanor. It may be too early to suggest that he’s on the hot seat, but if he doesn’t get a win soon he’s going to have a mess on his hands.

      NFL

      Herschel Walker challenges Dana White to a fight

      September 30, 2009 /

      Former NFL great Herschel Walker appeared on ESPN First Take on Tuesday and challenged UFC President Dana White to a fight. Walker’s hostility towards White stems from comments made by the UFC prez after Walker signed a deal with Strikeforce.

      From Fightline.com:

      “I think it’s ridiculous,” White stated about Walker’s signing during an interview on Inside The Ultimate Fighter. “People think we’re anti-competition? We’re anti-dumb competition. Doing stupid things like this, putting a 50 year old guy in the Octagon for the first time, and then going out there putting out press releases like it’s a big deal because you signed a 50-year-old Herschel Walker? Are you serious?”

      Walker took White’s comments to heart, and had some comments of his own for White.

      “Who ever made him the guy to measure athletic talent?” Walker asked the show. “I don’t think Dana knows anything about athletic talent.
      “He knows about fighters, which is different,” Walker continued. “He’s running a show right now with heavyweights and I’ll put dimes to donuts, all the heavyweights on his show right now I will beat. That’s pretty easy to say.”
      Walker went on to issue a challenge to the UFC President.

      “Dana always tells people to put their money where your mouth is. Dana says I’m so old? Why doesn’t he step into the ring with me because he’s been practicing (MMA), as well?”

      It sounds like Walker is biting off more than he can chew. I don’t know enough about the MMA to know who would take down whom, but I think it’s a safe bet that if Walker went against any of the UFC’s top fighters he might struggle. Other athletes-turned-MMA fighters have gone in the ring before, only to be dismantled quickly. But again, I don’t Walker’s fighting style, so I admit I’m talking out of my league here.

      Either way, I’d pay to see a Walker-White clash. (Actually, I wouldn’t…but I’d at least watch the highlights.)

      Mixed Martial Arts, NFL

      Kirwan: Time for Eagles to trade Vick?

      September 30, 2009 /

      Senior NFL.com analyst Pat Kirwan suggested in a recent article that now might be the best time for the Eagles to trade Michael Vick.

      Michael Vick said he expected to be a starting quarterback when he reentered the NFL. When I look at some of the quarterback situations around the league, I think he’s right, but I don’t really see him as a fit in Philadelphia after watching Kevin Kolb for the past two weeks.

      The return of Donovan McNabb, as well as having Jeff Garcia under contract, makes Vick a guy to consider trading. He saw limited duty in his first real game and he will get better with more work, but his contract next year probably means he will not be an Eagle after 2009.
      In the past two weeks, Kolb has completed 55 of 85 passes for 718 yards (8.44 yards per attempt) with four touchdowns, three interceptions and just two sacks. Any young QB that only gets sacked once every 43.5 attempts and distributes the ball to seven different receivers every game is the future — and he’s a whole lot cheaper than Vick.

      In Vick’s career, he has been sacked an average of once every 10 pass attempts. And when it comes to the Wildcat, receivers DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin can handle those duties if the Eagles care to continue using it.

      I don’t think there are any real worries about the fallout from Vick’s off-the-field issues anymore and maybe a team like the Raiders would love to have him on the roster. He has to be worth a decent draft pick. Garcia is the veteran backup the Eagles need for insurance. When the Eagles activated him to the 45-man roster this weekend, they confirmed they see him that way, too.

      Garcia was just released so that the Eagles could make room for middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter, although I don’t think that would change Kirwan’s mind regarding Philly trading Vick.

      Kirwan suggests that Vick “has to be worth a decent draft pick.” Not sure I agree with that. He hasn’t shown enough in his limited time back to convince any team that he can be their starting quarterback and no team is going to part with a draft pick just to use Vick in the Wildcat.

      One thing I do side with Kirwan on is how teams don’t have to worry about the fallout from Vick’s off-field issues. The Eagles essentially took the first blow and they didn’t receive much criticism. But again, I don’t see any team parting with a 2nd or 3rd rounder (what I would deem a “decent” draft pick) to add Vick just based on what we’ve seen so far.

      NFL

      Posnanski: Is Mangini the worst coaching hire ever?

      September 30, 2009 /

      Joe Posnanski of SI.com says it’s not fan hyperbole to suggest that the Cleveland Browns made the worst coaching hire of the last 25 years in Eric Mangini.

      But here’s the thing: Based on the Twitter responses I’ve seen … I’m actually starting to believe that I’m right. I’m actually starting to believe that Mangini really was the worst head coach hire in 25 years. The responses have mostly been to list other coaches who were worse hires than Mangini. But you know what? I don’t think any of those hires WERE worse than Mangini. Remember:

      1. Mangini had just been fired in New York, where he had done a terrible job. He had a losing record. His team had collapsed down the stretch, he had alienated his players, he was a pain in the neck to deal with. Point is: He’d already PROVEN how much damage he could do as a coach.

      2. He came right out of the school of Bill Belichick … and that didn’t work THE FIRST TIME in Cleveland. It seems to me that Cleveland is a working-class town and Browns fans want a working-class coach — not some pompous know-it-all who doesn’t feel like he should have to explain to the commoners what he’s doing.

      3. What had he ever done to convince anyone he could be a head coach in the first place? Why, because he was a defensive coordinator for the Patriots under Belichick for one season? The Browns had JUST HIRED Romeo Crennel, who was ALSO defensive coordinator under Belichick. Attention Cleveland Browns owners, here’s a good hint: BILL BELICHICK IS HIS OWN DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR.

      4. Basically the first thing Mangini did — first thing — was have them tear down a mural of great Cleveland Browns players on the wall in the Browns offices. Now, there are differing opinions about what really happened, whose fault it really was, does it all matter, etc. You know what? The Cleveland Browns have never been to a Super Bowl. Never. Not one. But Browns fans still have a whole lot of pride. Browns fans grow up on a glorious history. If you allow something stupid like that to happen on your watch … just a horrendous hire.

      Posnanski continues by diving into some other bad coaching hires, although he dismisses each one by saying they were still better than the Browns’ hiring of Mangini.

      It’s hard to argue with Posnanski based on how Mangini’s tenure in Cleveland has started. But the only problem I have with his argument is that any coach that has worked under Belichick is going to be sought after to some degree, even if that coach failed in his previous job. And let’s not forget that Mangini won his first year in New York, which made him enticing to employers.

      That said, if the Browns continue to lose the way they have in the first couple weeks, it will be hard to justify why they took a chance on Mangini in the offseason. People in Cleveland are going to grow tired of his act, just as the fans in New York did.

      NFL

      Illinois is wasting Arrelious Benn

      September 29, 2009 /

      In junior Arrelious Benn, the Illinois Fighting Illini houses one of the most talented receivers in college football.

      Of course, you wouldn’t know that based on the way Ron Zook and quarterback Juice Williams waste Benn’s talent every week.

      Zook said this summer that the Illini needed to find more ways to get the ball into Benn’s hands, which included giving him touches on the ground and in the return game. But so far, Benn has only received one carry this season (he gained eight yards on the play), which came last week in a 30-0 loss to Ohio State.

      Granted, Benn suffered an ankle injury against Missouri in the opening week of the season, which limited his production against Illinois State in Week 2. But his ankle was fine last week when he caught just four passes for 33 yards in the loss to the Buckeyes.

      One factor that has affected Benn’s opportunities in the offense has been the play of Williams. Despite Zook and the Illini’s attempt to make Williams the face of the program this summer, the senior has struggled dramatically in the first three games and appears to have regressed as a passer.

      In Columbus on Saturday, Williams struggled with his decision-making and accuracy, and even when he found open receivers he didn’t hit them in stride. Benn was given little opportunity to make plays after the catch, which is something that could benefit Illinois’ passing game immensely.

      If Zook sticks with Williams and the quarterback continues to struggle, we may never see Benn reach his full potential. And for a receiver with NFL-caliber skills, that’s a major disappointment. Zook needs to find ways to get Benn more opportunities to showcase his talent in Illinois’ offense.

      College Football

      « Older posts Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑