Category: External Sports (Page 475 of 821)

      Eric LeGrand’s injury a painful reminder of how violent football can be

      October 18, 2010 /
      NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ - SEPTEMBER 25: Rutgers Stadium is seen during a Rutgers Scarlet Knights football game against the North Carolina Tar Heels on September 25, 2010 in New Brunswick, New Jersey. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)

      Football is a thrilling sport. The harder the hits, the more fans enjoy the game. The faster the action, the more exciting the sport becomes.

      But when you see Rutgers’ defensive tackle Eric LeGrand carried off the field on a stretcher after sustaining a neck injury, you’re reminded of how violent the game of football can be. How unforgiving the sport is sometimes.

      Replays showed that LeGrand ran full speed into Army’s Malcolm Brown following a 22-yard kick return with five minutes remaining in Rutgers’ 23-20 overtime win on Saturday. Both players hit the ground, but only one got up.

      The 6-foot-2, 275-pound LeGrand laid motionless on the turf for nearly seven minutes before being lifted onto a backboard with his head and body immobilized. He was then carted off the field to an ambulance, which transported him to the medical center.

      LeGrand fractured his C3 and C4 vertebrae and was he arrived at the medical center he underwent emergency surgery in order to stabilize his spine. There’s concern that he will never walk again.

      My heart goes out to LeGrand, his family and friends, as well as Rutgers University. I’m sure everyone will support Eric and give him the hope he needs moving forward. There have been many positive stories about people walking again after neck surgery and while I don’t know LeGrand personally, I’ll be rooting for him in his recovery.

      Get better, Eric.

      College Football, External Sports

      Fantasy Fallout, Week 6: Where Dwayne Bowe says, “Look at me!”

      October 18, 2010 /
      ATLANTA - AUGUST 13: Dwayne Bowe of the Kansas City Chiefs looks on during the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Georgia Dome on August 13, 2010 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

      Heading into Week 6, it took a lot of balls (or desperation) to plug Dwayne Bowe into your lineup. On the season, he was only averaging 2.3 catches for 38 yards and 0.3 TD, but there was a sense that he’d have a chance for a nice game against the Texans, who have been bad against the pass this season. Well, Bowe (6-108-2) did have a nice game, and owners that were ballsy (or desperate) enough to plug him in were well rewarded. Looking at the KC backfield, Thomas Jones (20 touches, 110 yards, TD) and Jamaal Charles (20 touches, 117 yards) split the duties evenly, though Jones got both carries inside the Texans’ five yard line. Meanwhile, it looks like Matt Cassel (201 yards, 3 TD) is coming on after a poor start to the season. He now has six pass TDs in his last three games, and should have had another last week if not for a Bowe drop in the endzone. For the Texans, Andre Johnson (8-138-1) looks fine, and Owen Daniels (5-79) seems to be getting back to his old self. He was the second most targeted (7) Houston receiver. Kevin Walter was shut out. (He wasn’t even targeted.)

      It looks like Seattle plans to use Marshawn Lynch (20 touches, 53 yards, TD) quite a bit. Justin Forsett (11 touches, 56 yards, TD) also got a lot of work. I’m starting to see him hit the waiver wire in a few leagues and he’s definitely worth rostering. Mike Williams 1.0 (10-123, 15 targets) was the big winner with Deion Branch gone, but Deon Butler (4-47-1) made the most of his four targets. Johnny Knox (5-120) was the only standout fantasy player for the Bears, who struggled offensively.

      Speaking of Deion Branch (9-98-1), Tom Brady (292 yards, TD, 2 INT) certainly made him feel welcome, targeting his new/old receiver 12 times, which was the most of any Patriot player. I think it’s safe to cut Brandon Tate (0-0, 4 targets) whose potential value was torpedoed by the Branch trade. I actually had to start Danny Woodhead (16 touches, 115 yards) in two PPR leagues and was rewarded with a nice day thanks to his five catches. He actually got one more carry (11) than BenJarvus Green-Ellis (10 carries, 20 yards, TD).

      I’m a Packer fan, and it was tough to watch Green Bay’s fairly impotent performance against the Dolphins. The Packers said this week that they wanted to get Greg Jennings (6-133-1) involved, and they succeeded. Unfortunately, that was their only success of the afternoon. Davone Bess (5-37-1) scored again for the Dolphins, but Brandon Marshall (10-127) was the big story for Miami in the passing game.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Roy Oswalt, Jimmy Rollins help Phillies even up NLCS

      October 17, 2010 /
      Philadelphia Phillies all-star pitcher Roy Oswalt delivers a pitch during first inning San Francisco Giants-Philadelphia Phillies NLCS Championship game two at Citizens Bank Park October 17, 2010. . UPI/John Anderson Photo via Newscom

      And that’s why you pony up for a veteran starter like Roy Oswalt when he’s available via trade.

      Oswalt was brilliant in Game 2 of the NLCS on Sunday night, striking out nine batters over 8 innings while allowing just one run on three hits in the Phillies’ 6-1 win over the Giants. His only blemish came in the 5th inning when Cody Ross took him deep to tie the game at, 1-1. But Oswalt has nothing to be ashamed of there, because Ross has proved this postseason that he’s the greatest baseball player ever to have walked the face of the earth. (The home run off Oswalt was his fourth in the playoffs and his third in back-to-back nights in Philadelphia.)

      It was also a great night for shortstop Jimmy Rollins, who has struggled mightily at the plate of late. In the seventh inning, he drove in three runs on a double to deep right off Giants’ reliever Sergio Castillo, who was trying to mop up the mess left by starter Jonathan Sanchez (who allowed Oswalt to reach on a base hit) and Ramon Ramirez (who gave up a single to Placido Polanco, which scored Oswalt to give Philly a 3-1 lead). Rollins’ double scored Chase Utley (who had been intentionally walked), Polanco and Jayson Werth (also intentionally walked) to essentially put the game out of reach at, 6-1.

      For everyone but Ross, it was a night to forget for the Giants, who seemed rather content with taking Game 1 of the series and heading back to San Francisco after earning a split. Granted, that’s what road teams are supposed to do in a seven-game series and the loss certainly doesn’t diminish what the Giants did on Saturday. But they had a huge opportunity to put the Phillies in a hole and instead they came out rather flat. Even Ross’ home run was short lived as Sanchez gave up a run in the bottom half of the inning.

      It’ll be interesting to see if Bruce Bochy makes any changes to his lineup for Game 3. Pablo Sandoval drew a walk in the top of the 8th after coming in to replace Mike Fontenot in a double switch in the bottom of the 7th. Maybe it’s time to give Sandoval a start to see if he can’t shake out of his season-long funk and provide the Giants’ offense with a spark. Andres Torres is a huge reason why San Fran is still playing right now, but he looks completely overmatched at the plate and the Giants don’t lose anything with Aaron Rowand in the outfield. Rowand has been brutal at the plate this year, but he has postseason experience (he won a World Series with the White Sox earlier this decade) and would be motivated to beat his former team. (The only problem is that if you bench Torres, the Giants don’t have a true leadoff hitter.)

      Now isn’t the time to panic, but the Giants need more offense. Matt Cain will oppose Cole Hamels in Game 3 on Tuesday afternoon.

      External Sports, MLB

      DeSean Jackson’s concussion considered severe

      October 17, 2010 /

      According to FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer, DeSean Jackson suffered memory loss when he was concussed today in the Eagles’ 31-17 win over the Falcons.

      Jackson suffered the concussion when Dunta Robinson lowered his shoulder and connected with the receiver’s head, knocking him out immediately. Robinson was flagged for hitting a defenseless receiver and neither of them came back into the game after walking off the field with the help of trainers.

      Chances are that Jackson will miss next week’s game at Tennessee, but the good news is that the Eagles have a bye in Week 8. They play at home against the Colts in Week 9, so hopefully Jackson will be back by then. He took one hell of a hit.

      I would imagine that Robinson will get fined, although it wasn’t helmet-to-helmet and it certainly wasn’t a cheap shot.

      External Sports, NFL

      Frank Gore helps 49ers win first game

      October 17, 2010 /
      SAN FRANCISCO - SEPTEMBER 20: Frank Gore of the San Francisco 49ers is introduced against the New Orleans Saints during an NFL game at Candlestick Park on September 20, 2010 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

      It’s been a long six weeks for Mike Singletary’s 49ers, but they finally earned their first victory on the year.

      Frank Gore shredded the Raiders for 149 yards on 25 carries to lead San Fran to a 17-9 victory. He didn’t have a catch or a touchdown, but his 64-yard scamper late in the fourth quarter helped the Niners ice the game.

      Alex Smith only completed 16 of his 33 pass attempts for 196 yards, but he threw two touchdowns and more importantly, didn’t turn the ball over. He got Michael Crabtree (4 catches, 57 yards, 1 TD) and Vernon Davis (4 catches, 35 yards, 1 TD) somewhat involved, which is one of the many things San Francisco fans have been calling for over the past month.

      On the other side, Jason Campbell was filthy bad. He completed just 8-of-21 passes for 83 yards and was intercepted twice. You would have thought that San Francisco was playing with 20 guys on defense with how poorly Campbell performed. He was atrocious and should get acquainted with the bench for when Bruce Gradkowski (shoulder) comes back.

      This wasn’t a pretty win for the Niners, but it didn’t have to be. They have a long road ahead of them to get back into the race in the NFC West, but maybe this victory will give them confidence.

      External Sports, NFL

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