Category: External Sports (Page 330 of 821)

      Les Miles to interview for Michigan opening?

      January 10, 2011 /

      According to ESPN.com, LSU’s Les Miles “anticipates” meeting with Michigan representatives to discuss the Wolverines’ head coaching vacancy.

      Miles says no one from Michigan has contacted him directly yet and that he does not know when such a meeting with his alma mater might take place. According to the Detroit News, Miles and Michigan are expected to meet on Tuesday.

      Miles says he cannot speculate about the substance of such a meeting and also says he is “extremely happy” at LSU and that his family is comfortable living in Baton Rouge.

      Boy, Michigan fans have to be torn on this one. On one hand, Miles isn’t Brady Hoke, who could be one of the favorites to replace Rich Rodriguez. Hoke has done a nice job at San Diego State, but he doesn’t exactly rock UM fans’ boat.

      On the other hand, Miles is freaking nuts. I swear he uses one of those origami fortunetellers that girls used to make in grade school to make decisions during games (especially in the fourth quarter). He may win, but it’s only by the stroke of God that he’s able to get away with some of the things he does during games.

      It’ll also cost a small fortunate to convince him to leave Baton Rouge. He makes roughly $3.7 million a year at LSU and if Michigan AD David Brandon isn’t prepared to fork over that kind of money with what happened with Rodriguez, then he’ll have to “settle” for someone like Hoke instead.

      That said, Miles is a true “Michigan Man” in every sense of the word. He knows that he can’t go winless against Ohio State or lose to Michigan State (ever). He gets what Michigan is about and in the end, that might be worth it to someone like Brandon, who obviously needs to hit a home run with his next hire.

      College Football, External Sports

      Report: Haley stripped Weis of play-calling duties during second half

      January 10, 2011 /
      Kansas City Chiefs head coach Todd Haley watches during the third quarter against the Denver Broncos at Invesco Field at Mile High in Denver on November 14, 2010. Denver beat the AFC West division leader Kansas City 49-29. UPI/Gary C. Caskey

      Apparently the Chiefs’ inability to move the ball offensively against Baltimore on Sunday was not coordinator Charlie Weis’ fault, but head coach Todd Haley’s.

      According to Bob Fescoe of 610 Sports in Kansas City, Haley stripped Weis of his play-calling duties during the second half of the Chiefs’ 30-7 loss to the Ravens on Sunday.

      From the Sporting News:

      Jason Whitlock, of Fox Sports, tweeted during the game that the Chiefs’ offensive miscues were a direct reflection of Haley’s play-calling.

      For much of the latter half of the season, rumors persisted that Haley and Weis were having issues working together, and then the announcement came that Weis was leaving Kansas City following the end of the NFL regular season to become new Florida coach Will Muschamp’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

      If the report is true, then Haley has some explaining to do. Jamaal Charles, the Chiefs’ most explosive offensive playmaker, received just three touches in the second half. As John Paulsen put it to me over Skype, “that’s inexcusable.”

      For the game, Baltimore held Kansas City to just eight first downs and 53 yards passing. The Ravens are good, but they’re not that good. If there were an abrupt change in playcallers, then it would make sense that the Chiefs struggled mightily to move the ball during the second half.

      In some respects, I don’t blame Haley for doing what he did. Hey, Weis isn’t going to be around next year and the offense had been a sinking ship ever since he announced that he was heading to Florida, so why wouldn’t Haley try to correct the problem before it was too late? After all, it is his team and he would ultimately be the one who had to answer to why the Chiefs once again lost another playoff game.

      That said, it’s not fair to Matt Cassel and the rest of the players for Haley to make a move like that. The offense had worked under Weis all season and seeing as how the score was only 10-7 at halftime, it’s not like the Chiefs were out of the game. It makes you wonder if that was Haley’s plan from the start and as soon as the offense started sputtering, he was going to remove Weis as the playcaller.

      We’ll see what Haley says in his final press conference later this week.

      External Sports, NFL

      PlayoffBlitz’s Week 1 Results

      January 10, 2011 /

      Last week, I suggested to our readers that they enter PlayoffBlitz’s playoff fantasy contest and the (playoff) Week 1 results are in.

      Boy, second to last. I don’t have much to say in my defense other than that I wasn’t expecting Greg Freaking Jennings and Dwayne Freaking Bowe to combine for one Freaking catch for eight Freaking yards, or zero Freaking fantasy points.

      I did pretty well at QB (Rodgers, 27 points) and RB (Rice, 17 points; Bush, 6 points — before inevitable injury), but WR really killed me. What’s worse is that Jennings now has a tasty matchup with ATL, but I can’t use him. I started him in the first week because PHI hasn’t been playing very good pass defense of late and I was afraid the Packers might get beat and I wouldn’t be able to get Jennings in my lineup. I’m also really excited about my last minute decision to swap out the Ravens (13 points) for the Saints (3 points). Thank you, New Orleans DT!

      I guess it could be worse. I could have been one of the five teams that failed/forget to get a lineup in. Shame on you, guys. Shame on you. I can also take some solace that I beat Anthony Stalter (“Against the Spread”). Eat it, Anthony!

      Looking ahead, the Packers seemingly have a nice passing matchup with the Falcons, while the Falcons have tough matchups all around. The Pats have been playing better pass defense of late, so it’s not necessarily a good idea to start any of the Jets, though the New England rush defense is still having some issues. Baltimore/Pittsburgh could be an ugly fantasy battle while Chicago/Seattle could have a few fantasy stars, at least on the Bears’ side of the ball.

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Reggie Wayne vents about only being targeted once during Jets game

      January 10, 2011 /
      Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne (87) dives for a 17-yard gain against the Dallas Cowboys during the fourth quarter in the Cowboys 38-35 overtime win at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis on December 5, 2010. UPI /Mark Cowan

      After hauling in a whopping one catch for one yard in the Colts’ 17-16 loss to the Jets on Saturday night, receiver Reggie Wayne vented to the Indianapolis Star about his role in the game.

      “It’s bull. It’s bull, man,” the five-time Pro Bowl receiver said after being a non-factor in the Indianapolis Colts’ 17-16 loss to the New York Jets in Saturday night’s AFC wild-card playoff game at Lucas Oil Stadium.

      “I give everything I’ve got no matter what. Every day, I give it everything. And . . . one ball, that’s all.”

      “I shouldn’t have even suited up,” Wayne said. “I should have watched the game like everybody else. I was irrelevant.”

      Like all great competitors, Wayne should be frustrated about only being targeted once in the biggest game of the year. Give credit to Darrelle Revis for shutting him down, but one would think Peyton Manning would have looked his way more than once.

      Of course, it was a combination of factors that kept Wayne in check. The biggest reason was Revis’ performance. But Manning should have given his top target more looks in the passing game and Wayne himself could have outperformed Revis to garner more looks from his QB. I’m not saying he doesn’t work hard because he does. But there had to be a reason why Manning only targeted him once.

      Chances are, Wayne’s comments will be water under the bridge by the time the Colts take the field again. But what’s interesting is that Wayne made a play for a contract extension last season, even though he’s signed through 2012. Will his frustrations boil over into the offseason?

      External Sports, NFL

      Nets appear to be closing in on Carmelo

      January 10, 2011 /
      Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony (L) moves against the New York Knicks guard/forward Landry Fields during the first quarter at the Pepsi Center in Denver on November 16, 2010. UPI/Gary C. Caskey

      Per ESPN…

      As of late Sunday night, sources said, New Jersey was poised to receive [Carmelo] Anthony, [Chauncey] Billups and [Rip] Hamilton, with Denver landing two future first-round picks and six players. The Nuggets’ haul would feature Nets rookie Derrick Favors, former All-Star guard Devin Harris and Nets sharpshooter Anthony Morrow. In addition, the Nuggets would bring in the New Jersey threesome of Quinton Ross, Ben Uzoh and Stephen Graham included for salary-cap purposes.

      Detroit, meanwhile, was to receive Nets big man Johan Petro and the expiring contract of Nets forward Troy Murphy, with the Pistons motivated to join in by the $17-plus million in long-term savings they’d earn by shedding Hamilton’s contract.

      Denver threw a wrench into the works by choosing to play Anthony and Billups in Sunday night’s game against New Orleans. Generally, if a player is about to be traded, the team sits him down until the deal is consummated to avoid a deal-killing injury. The Nuggets’ move indicates that the trade is not as close to the finish line as some would like to believe.

      If this deal does go through, it looks fairly equitable from all sides. The Nets get their man, and they also upgrade (in the short term) at point guard. Billups is getting on in years so one wonders if the inclusion of Harris was at the Nuggets’ request. Denver would get a young prospect at power forward (Favors) and a proven guard (Harris) whom they can plug in at the point or move to another team for another piece to the rebuilding puzzle. I suspect that Ty Lawson is the future at point guard in Denver, and Harris could potentially bring in more talent later. After what happened to the Raptors and Cavs this summer, getting Favors and Harris for Anthony and Billups isn’t a bad haul. I’m sure there will be a first round draft pick or two included as well.

      If anyone is wondering why Carmelo has apparently become agreeable to signing an extension with the Nets, it’s probably due to the Knicks’ inability to offer the Nuggets something equitable. If Melo finishes the season as a Nugget, the uncertainty of the next collective bargaining agreement could mean that Anthony would leave a lot of money on the table by passing on the Nuggets’ extension offer. In other words, he’d like to lock up his contract now, and since the Nets and Nuggets have worked out a deal in principle, Carmelo can start counting his money. Certainly the prospect of continuing his career with Billups in New Jersey/Brooklyn also has to help.

      If this deal does go through as described, the Nets could have a starting lineup of Billups, Hamilton, Anthony, Kris Humphries and Brook Lopez. That might be enough to turn the Nets into a playoff team despite the 10-27 start. After all, they’re only five games out of the 8th and final playoff spot in the East.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

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