Category: External Sports (Page 335 of 821)

      Did Donald Sterling really bring women into the Clippers’ showers?

      January 7, 2011 /

      Former Clippers GM Elgin Baylor is suing the franchise for wrongful termination, and with owner Donald Sterling’s reputation, is anyone really surprised?

      Anyway, in documents obtained by ESPN’s TrueHoop, there was this startling paragraph:

      “While ignoring my suggestions and isolating me from decisions customarily reserved for general managers, the Clippers attempted to place the blame for the team’s failures on me,” Baylor said in the declaration. “During this same period, players Sam Cassell, Elton Brand and Corey Maggette complained to me that DONALD STERLING would bring women into the locker room after games, while the players were showering, and make comments such as, ‘Look at those beautiful black bodies.’ I brought this to Sterling’s attention, but he continued to bring women into the locker room.”

      Whaa?

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, Rumors & Gossip

      Are NFL teams starting to cool on Jim Harbaugh?

      January 7, 2011 /
      Stanford Cardinal head coach Jim Harbaugh celebrates winning the 77th Annual Discover Orange Bowl at Sun Life stadium in Miami on January 3, 2011. Stanford defeated Virginia Tech 40-12. UPI/Martin Fried

      In the past 24 hours it seems like Jim Harbaugh went from being the hottest name in sports, to being as attractive as one of Kristen Wiig’s deformed characters on “Saturday Night Live.”

      It’s hard to know where the Harbaugh rumors start and where they end, but all of a sudden two teams (the Dolphins and Broncos) that were pursuing him as their next head coach suddenly have no interest at all. On Thursday night, Jay Glazer of FOX Sports tweeted that the Dolphins were sticking with Tony Sparano (the man that owner Stephen Ross was so willing to kick to the curb just days ago) and on Friday morning, the Denver Post reported that the Broncos are bowing out of the Harbaugh race, too.

      Whose baby did Harbaugh punch in the last 24 hours to make these teams turn and run for the hills?

      The fact that the Broncos have backed out isn’t a surprise. As Rotoworld.com points out, they’ve just been a “backburner” team for Harbaugh all along. But the Dolphins’ about-face is strange to say the least.

      Ross, GM Jeff Ireland and new football czar Carl Peterson flew cross-country to talk to Harbaugh earlier this week. There were also reports that Ross offered Harbaugh $7-8 million to coach in Miami, which would have made him the highest paid head coach in the NFL. During this time, Miami’s brass left Sparano hanging (which was a bush league move by the way) while courting Harbaugh.

      And now they’re out? Hey Tony, we realized that you were the one for us all along? No, it’s over with Jim…we swear?

      It doesn’t make sense.

      So now we’re back to square one with Harbaugh: It’s between Michigan (his alma mater) and the 49ers (assuming they haven’t backed out since I started writing this post). And I guess we might as well entertain the idea that he’s going to stay at Stanford with Andrew Luck and I don’t know, win another Orange Bowl or something.

      My money would be on him winding up at Michigan but at this point, who knows.

      College Football, External Sports, NFL

      Five reasons to tune into NFL Wildcard Weekend

      January 7, 2011 /

      This series is brought to you by T.G.I Fridays®, encouraging you to Rush in and Tackle their new Game Time Menu!

      It’s the NFL Playoffs – we know you don’t need us to tell you to watch. But here are five storylines that will definitely peak your interest as you tune into Wildcard Weekend in the NFL.

      1. Can the Seahawks do the unthinkable?
      Everyone believes it’s a foregone conclusion that the Saints will beat the Seahawks by about six touchdowns. But if the NFL has taught us anything over the years it’s to expect the unexpected. It’s safe to say that the Saints aren’t the same team they were a year ago when they hoisted the Lombardi Trophy. They still have Drew Brees to lead Sean Payton’s explosive passing attack and Gregg Williams’ defense can still bring the heat. But Brees has thrown 22 interceptions this year, Payton lost his inside runner in Pierre Thomas (who was placed on IR earlier this week) and Williams’ defense has been less opportunistic than it was a year ago. (They led the NFC in interceptions last year with 26, but picked off a league-low nine passes this season.) The Seahawks are easily the most overmatched team in the playoffs and the only reason why they’re playing this weekend is because they were fortunate enough to play in the NFC West. That said, you know Pete Carroll will rally the troops this Saturday and give the Saints all he’s got. It still may wind up in a six-touchdown defeat, but on any given Sunday (uh, or Saturday)…

      2. Can Rex Ryan get the Peyton Manning monkey off his back?
      In six games against Ryan-led defenses, Manning is 5-1 with 1,513 yards, 12 touchdown passes and only two interceptions. And the lone loss came in Week 16 last year when the Colts had already locked home field advantage and Curtis Painter played the majority of the second half as Peyton looked on from the sidelines. Ryan hasn’t had an answer for Manning yet and once again he must try to defeat Peyton in his house. Everyone was concerned with Mark Sanchez when these two teams met in the AFC Championship last year, but it was Ryan’s defense that failed as Manning shredded the Jets for 377 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. Whatever Ryan has thrown at an opponent’s offense, Manning has diagnosed it and has figured out a way to beat it. Peyton is a film junkie and will never be caught unprepared. Thus, Ryan better come up with a new wrinkle or two if he wants to put an end to Manning’s hold over him.

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      External Sports, NFL

      Fantasy Points Per Target: WRs

      January 7, 2011 /
      Pittsburgh Steelers Mike Wallace pulls in a pass and runs away from Carolina Panthers Nic Harris for 43 yards and a touchdown in the second quarter at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on December 23, 2010. UPI/Archie Carpenter

      A few days ago, I calculated the fantasy points per touch for the running back position, and today I’m looking at fantasy points per target for wide receivers. It’s important to note that not all targets are the same. A wideout will register a target if a QB throws the ball in his direction, so it really doesn’t matter if the ball goes off the receiver’s hands or if it sails 10 feet over his head. Generally speaking, the better the QB, the better the quality of targets his receivers will see, so all else being equal, fantasy owners should usually take the WR with the better QB. (But we knew that already, right?)

      A few takeaways:

      – These numbers don’t include a point per reception, so they’ll skew more towards the big play, TD-heavy wideouts. I also limited the scope of the table to those receivers who saw at least 80 targets. Of the players who were targeted 30-79 times, a few names stand out: Kenny Britt (1.80 FP per target), Austin Collie (1.57), Ben Obomanu (1.50), Malcom Floyd (1.40) and Dez Bryant (1.26) would have likely finished in the Top 20 in FP/T had they stayed healthy. Jerome Simpson (1.90) was only targeted 24 times, but obviously did a lot (20-277-3) with those looks.

      – Mike Wallace is explosive. If he gets his targets into the 120+ range, he’d have a great shot at becoming fantasy’s top WR. Wallace saw 4.8 targets through the first four games (with Ben Roethlisberger suspended) and 6.6 targets over the final 12 games, with Big Ben under center, so his final 2010 numbers may be a little depressed.

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      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      NFL Wildcard Weekend Preview: How the Seahawks can beat the Saints

      January 6, 2011 /
      A New Orleans Saints’ quarterback Drew Brees is seen in the slide line as the Saints play the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Banks Stadium in Baltimore on December 19, 2010. UPI/Kevin Dietsch

      I hate standard game previews. Do we really need to know that Team A needs to run the ball to beat Team B? Thanks for the thrilling commentary, captain obvious.

      That said, I do love me a good X’s and O’s piece, so below I’ve broken down how the Seahawks can beat the Saints (and vice versa) in the teams’ Wildcard matchup this weekend. Feel free to let me have it in the comments section if I write something along the lines of, “If they run the ball effectively.” There’s no need for me to repeat something Mark Schlereth is going to tell us on “NFL Countdown” leading up the game.

      SAINTS WIN IF: They show up? Seriously though…Pete Carroll announced on Thursday that Matt Hasselbeck will start for the Seahawks this weekend. If that’s the case, New Orleans’ defensive coordinator Gregg Williams may actually want to dial down his pressure. Charlie Whitehurst has been a career backup and has zero playoff experience, so it makes sense to force him to make snap decisions by sending pressure. But although he’s struggled mightily over the past couple of weeks, Hasselbeck is a playoff veteran who knows he has to get the ball out of his hands quickly when faced with a heavy rush and he usually can find his hot routes. When the Hawks played the Saints in Week 11, Hasselbeck went 6 for 6 for 128 yards with a touchdown and a perfect passer rating of 158.3 when New Orleans sent six or more pass rushers. Williams has always been known for being an aggressive playcaller and there’s no reason to change that approach now. But there’s obviously a difference between being aggressive and being overly aggressive. The Seahawks’ running game has been inconsistent so if the Saints can get them in obvious passing downs, they may have more success sitting back in coverage and making Hasselbeck throw into tight windows. We know the Saints’ offense can score but that doesn’t mean they need to get into a shootout. If Seattle strikes for a couple of big plays early in the game because Williams is too aggressive, the Seahawks may start believing they can win.

      SEAHAWKS WIN IF: There’s no doubt the Hawks are up against it. They’re outmatched in almost all phases of the game and nobody would be surprised if Drew Brees marched the Saints up and down the field on them. That said, the Seahawks still need to be aggressive. I don’t want to say they don’t have anything to lose because that’s garbage; they have a playoff game to lose, which is pretty significant. But at 7-9 they are playing with house money so there’s no reason to be conservative. Hasselbeck (366 yards, 1 TD, 104.9 QB Rating) will have to play just as well as he did in the first meeting between these two teams for the Seahawks to have a shot. The defense also needs to be aggressive, especially if, as expected, the Saints can’t run the ball. If Brees is going to beat you, make him beat you while throwing under duress. He may throw for 300 yards and a couple of touchdowns, but he also threw 22 interceptions this year so obviously he’s prone to turning the ball over. One or two turnovers can make all the difference in the final score. (Just look at the Bucs’ win over the Saints in Week 17.)

      External Sports, NFL

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