Category: External Sports (Page 249 of 821)

      Could the Bengals take a flier on Christian Ponder in the second round?

      March 1, 2011 /

      A week ago Christian Ponder was viewed as a third round prospect at best. But after impressing scouts at the combine, you would think that the guy is ready to go in the top 10 based on some media reports.

      Rob Rang of CBS Sports is reporting that Ponder is generating first round buzz after his workout in Indianapolis over the weekend. He even says that Ponder is now “viewed by some as the top true West Coast Offense quarterback in the draft.”

      I know Ponder looked good in his workout but I highly doubt he’ll go in the first round. He’s still a mid-round prospect, but one team that has emerged as an interesting candidate for the former FSU quarterback is the Cincinnati Bengals.

      The Carson Palmer situation is getting a little hairy in the ‘Natti. He wants out and with each passing day, it appears as though the team is willing to abide by his wishes. If they trade or release Palmer, then quarterback becomes the biggest need for the Bengals, although I’m not convinced they’ll take a signal caller at No. 4.

      Cam Newton isn’t a fit for Jay Gruden’s West Coast offense and neither is Ryan Mallett. The same goes for Jake Locker, who doesn’t have the accuracy to play in the system and while you can make a case for Blaine Gabbert, there’s a good chance that if the Bengals wait they could nab Ponder at the top of the second round (or later if they trade back or attempt to wait until the third round to nab him) and pay him significantly less than if they take Gabbert at No. 4.

      Ponder fits in the West Coast because his best attribute is his accuracy. He also has a strong enough arm to make all the throws at the next level and as long as his confidence stays up, he could wind up developing into a nice quarterback down the road. Depending on how the situation plays out with Palmer, Ponder seems like a logical fit for the Bengals.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL, NFL Draft

      Is there a tape that implicates Cam Newton?

      March 1, 2011 /

      Dave Miller of the National Football Post is reporting that a host of a Huntsville, Alabama sports talk radio show says he has heard audio tapes that implicate Cam Newton and his father in a pay-for-play scheme.

      Heisman trophy winner and Auburn Tigers quarterback reacts with fans before the BCS Championship game at the University of Phoenix stadium in Glendale, Arizona on January 10, 2011. Auburn beat the Oregon Ducks 22-19. UPI/Gary C. Caskey

      Scott Moore, an Alabama fan and a college football speaker, said Friday during a radio interview with WNSP in Mobile, Ala., that he heard tapes of Cecil Newton selling his son’s services to Mississippi State while Cam was in the room. Moore also claimed that Cecil Newton said he had received an offer from Tennessee for $200,000, but that he’d give Mississippi State a $20,000 discount.

      If it’s proven that Cam Newton knew about being shopped around, he would be retroactively ruled ineligible for the 2010 season and all hell would break loose. And you’d have millions of college football fans saying, “I told you so.” But why would either Bond or Bell sit on the tape(s) without turning the evidence over to the NCAA? The evidence can’t really exist, right? Or, perhaps the audio does exist but it was deemed inconclusive, whether by the NCAA, Bond or Bell.

      Whether there’s an audio tape or not, this story hasn’t given its last breath. The smoking gun has yet to come out and while Newton jets off to the NFL to make millions, Auburn has to hold onto its seat and hope that incriminating evidence isn’t released to the NCAA.

      Of course, if the program is clean then nothing will come out and the situation will eventually die out. That’s the nice thing about being innocent.

      College Football, External Sports

      Fitch feels he won UFC 127 over Penn

      March 1, 2011 /

      According to HeavyMMA.com, Jon Fitch believes he defeated B.J. Penn at UFC 127 but after further thought, Penn changed his mind about the outcome.

      Jon Fitch has finally seen the fight with B.J. Penn and feels he definitely won.

      The judges rendered a majority draw decision following UFC 127’s main event between Jon Fitch and B.J. Penn, a score neither agree with.

      “Finally watched the fight back myself. first rnd draw and I won rnd 2 and 3. I will prove myself if I must. But I know I won that fight,” Fitch posted on his official Twitter account on Monday. “Much respect to BJ. He is the legend I thought he was. I think that was the best BJ ANY of us have ever seen.”

      Following the fight, Penn told the crowd in Sydney, Australia and millions watching at home that he thought Fitch won the fight.
      Moments later, backstage at the Acer Arena, Penn wasn’t so sure.

      “The more I’m sitting here thinking about it, I definitely got the better positions and the more dominant positions,” said Penn to UFC.com. “I guess the first thing I was thinking was just the last round, but now, the more I’m sitting here thinking about the first two rounds – I did. I had much better positions than he had.

      Read the full article.

      External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

      Dim-witted Nets fan pulls a Bartman

      February 28, 2011 /

      During Monday night’s Suns/Nets game, there was an incident when Steve Nash went to save a ball that was going out of bounds. As he attempted to make the save, a fan sitting courtside (wearing sunglasses, no less) reached out and hit the ball away. Here’s a snapshot of the play.

      After the refs discussed the play, the ball was awarded to Suns, even though Corey Hart was seen celebrating his shady move. (Sorry, couldn’t resist.)

      Way to hurt your team, buddy.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, Humor, NBA, Television

      How worrisome is Mark Ingram’s 40-time?

      February 28, 2011 /

      Mark Ingram ran a 4.62 in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, which is considered to be on the slow side of average. In fact, the average 40-time for a RB since 2005 is 4.56, and that’s from a sample size of 163 RBs over six years.

      Seven of the top eight rushers in the NFL — Chris Johnson (4.24), Jamaal Charles (4.38), Adrian Peterson (4.40), Maurice Jones-Drew (4.39), Michael Turner (4.49), Steven Jackson (4.45), Rashard Mendenhall (4.41) — ran a sub-4.5 in the 40-yard-dash.

      There was one notable exception, and it was the top rusher of 2010, Arian Foster. He reportedly ran a 4.69 at his pro day, which just goes to show it doesn’t take elite speed to rack up yards.

      Still, with so many of the top rushers with good to excellent speed, isn’t it worrisome for a team thinking about drafting Ingram? I posed this very question to our NFL guru, Anthony Stalter, who currently believes Ingram will go #15 to the Dolphins, and here is what he said:

      There are a lot of fans and draft pundits who get too caught up in 40-yard dash times. When I watched Ingram last year, I saw a physical back but one that has great short-area quickness when he went through holes. It’s true, he doesn’t have great top-end speed and he’ll never be a back that can rely on straight-line speed (which is what the 40-yard dash measures). That said, Ingram is a very solid prospect.

      I think one of the most overrated factors when sizing up a running back prospect is speed, with vision being the most underrated attribute. When I watch Ingram play, he reminds me of Emmitt Smith. The former Cowboy didn’t have great straight-line speed like Chris Johnson or Adrian Peterson, but he was a natural runner with tremendous vision, instinct and balance. I’m certainly not suggesting that Ingram is the next Emmitt, but he bears a resemblance to Smith when he runs.

      That said, as John has pointed out, speed kills and the proof is in the pudding. When all of the elite running backs in the league are running in the 4.3s or 4.4s (or in CJ’s case, a freakish 4.2), it makes you wonder whether or not Ingram can be an elite back in the NFL. Then again, I haven’t heard one analyst deem him an elite prospect, so it’s all relative. It would be great if every top 15 pick were elite, but the draft remains the ultimate crapshoot. If the Dolphins were to take him at No. 15 and he wound up being a solid feature back for the next 6-8 seasons, went to 1-2 Pro Bowls but was never considered an elite player, wouldn’t their selection of him be considered successful?

      After running a 4.62 forty at the combine, there’s a good chance that Ingram could drop into the bottom half of the first round. I still like him at No. 15 to Miami, but some teams are overly reliant on the forty so I could see him potentially falling come April. It would be too bad too, because I think he’s a nice overall player who has worked hard to shed some weight in the offseason.

      Foster is the exception that proves the rule: Speed kills. It’s great that the undrafted Foster landed in a good situation in Houston and made the most of it. But Ingram is widely regarded as the top prospect in a weak RB draft, and in all likelihood will be a first round pick. If the Dolphins are drafting him in the middle of the first, isn’t it their expectation that he’ll be elite? And what are his chances of becoming elite without top-end speed?

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

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