Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 875 of 1503)

      Friday MMA Review 4/17

      April 17, 2009 /

      Here’s a weekly rundown of MMA content from Ben Goldstein of CagePotato.com:

      – The young angry lion took out the old braces-wearing lion at Strikeforce’s kickass “Shamrock vs. Diaz” event. In the aftermath, Cristiane “Cris Cyborg” Santos lost some respect and Nick Diaz thinks he’s ready to box Roy Jones Jr.

      – Junie Browning’s even dumber and drunker brother Rob left The Ultimate Fighter as quickly as he arrived. And everyone rejoiced.

      – Speaking of MMA on TV, “Bully Beatdown” may be as fake as “The Hills.”

      – Tickets to the UFC’s historic 100th show sold out in a matter of hours. Scalped tickets are going for up to $24,000. Seriously.

      – Sorry Chuck, but if your biggest problem is all the porn stars trying to party with you to advance their own careers, you don’t have that many problems.

      – Bellator Fighting Championships: The most interesting MMA league that nobody seems to care about.

      – Tune in to CagePotato.com tomorrow night starting at 10 p.m. ET for live results of UFC 97: Redemption. Will Mauricio “Shogun” Rua show up in shape for his do-or-die fight against Chuck Liddell? Does Thales Leites have a chance in hell of stealing the middleweight belt from Anderson Silva? Are there any other fights on this card genuinely worth getting exciting about?

      – Also, if you want to win a DVD of “Never Surrender” (starring BJ Penn, Georges St. Pierre, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, and Anderson Silva), enter our latest caption contest!

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Glazer: Eagles to acquire Jason Peters from Bills

      April 17, 2009 /

      Jason PetersAccording to a report by Jay Glazer of FOXSports.com, the Eagles have struck a deal with the Bills to acquire left tackle Jason Peters in exchange for the 28th overall pick and a fourth round pick in this year’s draft, as well as a conditional 2010 draft pick.

      Even though they still own another first round pick, this move would suggest that Philly won’t make a play for Anquan Boldin now. Eagles’ GM Tom Heckert has said all along that Philly’s receiving corps is set and apparently that might not have been a smokescreen after all.

      If the Eagles can sign Peters to a long-term deal, this is a great trade. They still own the 21st pick in the first round and they filled a massive need at the left tackle position, which became an issue when Tra Thomas wasn’t re-signed.

      Obviously this is a nice deal for the Bills too, although now they need a left tackle. At No. 11, they could have the opportunity to land Ole Miss’s Michael Oher, or Alabama’s Andre Smith if either of them fall out of the top 10. Some pundits believe that Oklahoma State tight end Brandon Pettigrew would be Buffalo’s pick at No. 11, but that always seemed highly unlikely. If the Eagles pass on him at No. 21, the Bills might have a shot to land Pettigrew at No. 28.

      NFL, NFL Draft

      Michael Oher unlikely to fall past top 10

      April 17, 2009 /

      The National Football Post is reporting that Ole’ Miss offensive tackle Michael Oher might not slip past the 49ers at No. 10 in next week’s NFL draft.

      Granted, the National Football Post also said last week that Tony Gonzalez had cleaned out his locker in Kansas City and was heading to Atlanta via a trade, but I agree with their projection on Oher, who I have going to Cincinnati at No. 7 in each of my last two mocks.

      Oher arguably doesn’t have the upside of Baylor’s Jason Smith or even the talent of knucklehead Andre Smith of Alabama. But he flashed outstanding athleticism in college and he has great size at 6’4”, 309 pounds. The only problem is that he uses his strength too much instead of relying on having solid footwork, but a good coaching staff will recognize that and make it a top priority for Oher to work on this summer.

      One of the arguments I keep hearing from draft followers is that Oher is slated to go picks 15-20 and that any team that selects him in the top 10 would be reaching. But I’ll say the same thing here as I did in my mock write up on Oher – if he turns out to be a Pro Bowler in two to three years, nobody is going to look back and say, “Well, the Bengals reached for him.”

      If the guy can play, he can play, and Michael Oher can play. He’s a lower risk than Andre Smith and he’s worth a long look from teams like the Bengals, Raiders and 49ers, all teams desperate for offensive tackles.

      NFL, NFL Draft

      Ravens interested in Anquan Boldin

      April 17, 2009 /

      mill

      Throw the Ravens into the mix of teams interested in acquiring wideout Anquan Boldin from the Cardinals.

      In a move that could drastically change this year’s NFL draft, the Ravens have expressed interest in acquiring wide receiver Anquan Boldin from the Arizona Cardinals, a league source confirmed Thursday.

      It would likely take a first- and a third-round draft pick to acquire Boldin, who had 89 catches for 1,038 yards and 11 touchdowns last season.

      This is the third time in five years the Ravens have considered trading for a wide receiver. Their trade for Terrell Owens in 2004 was rescinded, and the team failed to complete a deal for Randy Moss in 2005.

      Asked whether the Ravens have contacted the Cardinals about Boldin, general manager Ozzie Newsome said Thursday: “With the draft coming up, I’ve had a chance to talk to eight different teams over the past 48 hours.”

      Boldin, 28, would be attractive to the Ravens because they couldn’t draft a proven receiver like him with the 26th overall pick.

      As the article points out, if the Ravens are determined to take a receiver at No. 26, then giving up a first and a third for Boldin would be wise. Any receiver they take in the first round would need two to three years to develop and even then, they might not be half the player Boldin is right now.

      Giving Joe Flacco a highly productive wide receiver like Boldin would be an outstanding move. But is it more important than filling their defensive (their identity) holes? Remember, Baltimore lost Bart Scott to the Jets in free agency and released cornerbacks Samari Rolle and Chris McAlister. They did sign free agent Domonique Foxworth, but that still leaves a hole at the other cornerback position. Then again, the Ravens would have one of the better offenses in the NFL if they brought in Boldin, so it’ll be interesting to see if they put together a trade package.

      NFL, NFL Draft

      Collinsworth to replace Madden on NBC

      April 17, 2009 /

      Cris Collinsworth will take over for the now retired John Madden in the broadcast booth for Sunday Night Football games.

      Cris CollinsworthCollinsworth had the role before but never got to perform.

      The former Cincinnati Bengals receiver, who got his TV break working NFL games not deemed worthy of airing in much of the USA, had worked his way up to lead analyst on Fox until NBC lured him back to work games on TV’s most-watched night. NBC’s Sunday night games would supplant Monday Night Football as the NFL’s marquee prime-time package.

      Collinsworth sat out the 2005 season to wait for NBC’s 2006 kickoff. When Madden became available, a prospect no network has been known to resist, NBC suggested Collinsworth could still work the games — but doing play-by-play.

      NBC Sports chairman Dick Ebersol said Thursday that he didn’t want to talk about the analyst who would replace the only announcer to call Super Bowls on all four networks: “I just want to declare this ‘Celebrate John Madden Week.’ ” But then, Collinsworth is used to waiting.

      Collinsworth is pretty solid as an analyst, but he can be hit and miss calling games. He has the tendency to be an obvious-stator, but as he gains more confidence and experience I’m sure he’ll be fine.

      Hey, at least it’s not Bryant Gumbel.

      NFL

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