Category: External Sports (Page 348 of 821)

      Chris Johnson cries “bogus” again

      December 30, 2010 /

      Remember back in 2008 when Chris Johnson said it was “bogus” that Matt Ryan won the rookie of the year award and not him?

      Here’s what he said if you need a refresher:

      “He’s a good player, and he played quarterback and did a good job this year,” Johnson said of Ryan. “But the whole thing is bogus, because people are voting for it that are not on the same field as the people who are playing.

      “I’m disappointed. I did all I could to win it. I feel I did the best. I feel I did all I could do to win it; it just didn’t come my way.”

      After the Pro Bowl rosters were announced on Monday, Johnson once again took issue that he had been slighted.

      “I think it’s bogus,” Johnson said. “I figured I should be a lock. I am top three in the league. … I didn’t think there was a way I wouldn’t get in. It was disappointing. I was surprised. But there’s not much I can do about it.”

      Does he have those couple of lines saved on a Rolodex somewhere? Come up with something new, Chris.

      Johnson currently ranks as the league’s third-leading rusher although the three guys going to the Pro Bowl rank first (Arian Foster), second (Jamaal Charles) and fourth (Maurice Jones-Drew). Johnson can cry foul about MJD getting the nod instead of him, but at least the Jaguars are still in postseason contention (although their chances of making the playoffs fall somewhere between slim and none). Granted, it’s certainly not Johnson’s fault that the Titans struggled this year – he did all he could. But number of wins factor into whether or not a player is going to get voted into the Pro Bowl. (Unless you’re Foster, who leads the league in a major statically category like rushing).

      Johnson has every right to voice his displeasure about not getting nominated to go to the Pro Bowl because in terms of pure talent, he’s easily a top 3 back. But it’s not like he was a total snub when you consider the stats. If I were starting a team tomorrow and I had the choice of taking Johnson, Foster, Charles or MJD as my starting back, I would probably take Johnson. But players aren’t nominated to the Pro Bowl based on that.

      The good news for Johnson is that he’s probably heading to Honolulu anyway. There are reports that state Jones-Drew needs knee surgery and if that’s the case, he won’t be making the trip. If he doesn’t think it’s too bogus that he got in because another player was injured and therefore skips the game, then Johnson will be playing in two weeks anyway.

      External Sports, NFL

      Could the UConn women beat a men’s D1 team?

      December 30, 2010 /

      Gene Wojciechowski of ESPN doesn’t think so, but he’d pay to watch:

      No D-I men’s program with a roster of players on full scholly would get beat by the UConn women. But I’d pay to watch the game. I’d pay to watch Maya Moore, UConn’s electric senior forward, run through the layup line.

      Adam Walsh, the head coach of Centenary — the worst D1 school based on Jeff Sagarin’s ratings, due to its transition from D1 to D3 — thinks his team (which only has four scholarship players) would be able to beat the UConn women, but admits it could be tough.

      I played D3 ball from 1991-1996 at UW-Platteville for (now Wisconsin head coach) Bo Ryan. We won a National Championship in my junior year and our team consisted mostly of players who had a few D2 scholarship offers but instead elected to play in a great program under a great coach.

      We wouldn’t have lost to a women’s team…any women’s team, other than maybe a team of WNBA all-stars, and even that would have been a stretch. In pickup games, I’ve played against very good female players and they’re fine as placeholders, but a team of women wouldn’t have been able to compete against us physically. We went 6-5, 6-8 and 6-8 across our front line. Defensively, we led the nation in points allowed. Our point guard was the D3 player of the year and was good enough to get a tryout with the Milwaukee Bucks. We went 31-0 that season and beat three or four scholarship D2 teams along the way, so maybe that’s not the best comparison.

      Or maybe it is… If the best D3 team in the country can beat the top D1 women’s team, what does that say about the state of women’s basketball or the amount of television exposure it gets on the various ESPN channels? A hypothetical contest between UConn and Centenary (or any other men’s team, for that matter) might answer a lot of questions. Would you rather see the UConn and Duke women play in a half empty arena or a battle between two of the top D3 teams in the country in a sweaty, jam-packed 3,000-seat fieldhouse? ESPN has that choice every season, and they continue to choose the former.

      College Basketball, External Sports

      Should the Dolphins fire Tony Sparano?

      December 30, 2010 /

      Tony Sparano is currently in the third year with the Dolphins, which is right around the time front offices start to get antsy about the development of their teams.

      Sparano made the playoffs in his first year with Miami but the Dolphins haven’t shown much improvement since. Their defense got remarkably better under new coordinator Mike Nolan, but the offense has been a disaster under playcaller Dan Henning. In fact, only the 2-13 Panthers have scored fewer touchdowns (16) than the Dolphins (25) this season.

      Speculation is running rampant that Sparano will be fired by“Black Monday” of next week. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen said that Sparano’s last game with the Dolphins will be this Sunday, although NFL Network’s Michael Lombardi reports that Bill Parcells has convinced owner Stephen Ross to keep Sparano for at least another season.

      But if they do fire Sparano, whom will the Dolphins hire as his replacement? Some rumors state that Bill Cowher’s second choice after coaching the Giants would be the Dolphins, but thus far there haven’t been any hard facts to support those claims. And if Cowher doesn’t want to take his talents to South Beach, then the Dolphins could be stuck with either another first-year head coach or a Josh McDaniels-type retread. Would someone like McDaniels really be an improvement over Sparano?

      There isn’t just one thing wrong with the Dolphins – it’s a collection of issues that are holding them back. First and foremost, they need a consistent quarterback because Chad Henne isn’t it. They have scattered talent in Brandon Marshall, Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams, but this team lacks an identity offensively. The defense has been fixed, but what happens if Sparano is let go? What happens to Nolan (who is behind Miami’s resurgence on defense)? If the Dolphins fix one leak, they may spring two more.

      Of course, Sparano has done very little to prove that he deserves to keep the job. His decision-making (particularly late in games) has been questioned several times this season and he shows an unwillingness to adjust and adapt. Miami’s fourth quarter collapse last week against Detroit didn’t help, nor did its massive struggles this year at home.

      The bottom line is that the Dolphins’ brass has a tough decision to make regarding their head coach position. Miami doesn’t want to waste another year if Sparano isn’t the right man for the job but as of now, it doesn’t have any clear-cut choices to replace him either.

      External Sports, NFL

      Vick out, Kolb in versus Cowboys

      December 30, 2010 /

      As expected, Michael Vick won’t play against the Cowboys in the Eagles’ season finale on Sunday. Vick hurt his quad on the first play from scrimmage Tuesday night in Philly’s loss to the Vikings and with the Dallas game being meaningless in terms of playoff seeding, the Eagles don’t want to take any chances with their star player.

      With the No. 3 seed locked up, Kevin Kolb will get the start against the Cowboys. Depending on the outcomes from Week 17, the Eagles will play either the Packers, Giants or Bucs in the first round of the playoffs next week. If Green Bay beats Chicago on Sunday, then Philly will host the Packers. If the Packers lose to the Bears and the Giants beat the Redskins, then the Eagles will host New York. If both the Packers and Giants lose and the Bucs beat the Saints, then Tampa Bay will head to Philly next week.

      Vick’s regular season ends with 3,018 passing yards, 676 rushing yards and 30 total touchdowns. He also finishes with a QB Rating of 100.2, which is a career high for him. He finished with an 81.6 QB Rating in his second year with the Falcons, which was his previous high (when he attempted at least 300 passes) before this year. If it weren’t for what Tom Brady has accomplished in New England this year, Vick would probably win the MVP award.

      It’ll be interesting to see if Vick is healthy enough to play in the first round of the playoffs. Considering he stayed in the game against Minnesota, chances are good that he’ll start against the Eagles’ first round opponent next weekend. But how effective will he be?

      External Sports, NFL

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