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      Rex Ryan to stick with Mark Sanchez

      November 23, 2009 /

      According to a report by the New York Daily News, Rex Ryan won’t bench struggling rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez in favor for Kellen Clemens.

      Sanchez has followed poor outing after poor outing the past couple months and is now only two interceptions behind league-leader Jay Cutler. Sanchez has also seen his completion percentage drop to 52.1 as the Jets have lost six of their last seven games.

      But wasn’t all this expected? Just because Sanchez and the Jets got off to a hot start doesn’t mean that it was going to last all season. After all, he’s a rookie quarterback that didn’t have a ton of experience in college and is struggling in his first year. That’s not uncommon.

      It’s important that Ryan stick with Sanchez and see him through the rest of the year. If Sanchez can get through this season, then he’ll see that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that he can play in this league. But he needs to learn from the mistakes that he’s making or else he’ll never develop. It’s Ryan’s job to do everything he can to help Sanchez transition to the next level, which includes supporting him when he isn’t playing well.

      Confidence is everything to a young quarterback. Ryan chose Sanchez to be his starter in preseason and unless the young signal caller turns into Ryan Leaf over the next couple weeks, then he should remain the starter. Don’t forget that Peyton Manning struggled in his first season with the Colts, yet he remained the starter the entire season. I’m not trying to compare the two players, but the situations could wind up being similar in the end if Ryan allows Sanchez to suffer through his growing pains.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Real Salt Lake captures MLS Cup, proves penalty shootouts aren’t that cool

      November 23, 2009 /

      Real Salt Lake

      Under its current system, fans got a pretty great MLS Cup last night. Although the league would have undoubtedly benefited from a Galaxy victory, the game will be talked about favorably by those who watched it. (Legitimate Galaxy fans will concede that this was an exciting final.)

      While the Galaxy dominated the first half and notched a goal courtesy of Mike McGee, Real Salt Lake turned it on in the second, pounding shot after shot at the Galaxy’s backup goalkeeper Josh Saunders. With David Beckham playing on a bone-bruised ankle, the Galaxy’s offense had trouble putting the pressure on Real and containing their lead. In the 64th minute, the ball bounced off multiple players in the Galaxy’s box until Real forward Robbie Findley knocked it into the net.

      Real would continue to control the remainder of regulation play and then the two 15-minute intervals of extra time. Still, the Galaxy defense somehow prevented a deciding goal. Saunders, who saw hardly any action this season over the team’s exceptional starter Donovan Ricketts, was surprisingly confident between the posts. A mid-game addition for the injured Ricketts, Saunders was up to the task.

      The game entering shootouts, I realized I wanted to turn off the TV. After 120 minutes of play, a team’s entire season was about to be decided in about five minutes. Now, I wasn’t rooting for either club. I just wanted an outcome that was best for the league — suffice to say, that wasn’t Real winning. If that Galaxy won, media outlets across the globe would discuss David Beckham’s success in three professional leagues. His supporters and haters would have no choice but to include the MLS in their rants. Instead, with a Real championship, nobody would care outside of Utah.

      But the Galaxy didn’t win. Lined up for the penalty kicks, most of their team looked like they wanted to go home and sleep. They were understandably exhausted, but they were also unfocused mentally. The team’s top scorers, Landon Donovan and Edson Buddle, both missed their shots. Tied at 4-4, Real Salt Lake midfielder Robbie Russell sent in the final goal past Saunders. Considering Real’s strange season, it’s fitting that Russell — a midfielder who hadn’t scored during the regular season or playoffs — ended the Galaxy’s chances. Real squirmed into the playoffs with a losing record of 11-12-7. As the eighth seed, they faced an uphill battle, but they managed to upset the Columbus Crew and the Chicago Fire. Nobody expected their luck to follow them into the final against the powerful Galaxy.

      Shootouts. Stupid shootouts.

      Of course, I don’t blame Real Salt Lake in the slightest — they outplayed the Galaxy for most of the game. I just don’t respect the outcome. I hate the format. It’s like having the NBA Finals decided by free throws.

      Soccer

      Garnett hits game-winner against the Knicks

      November 23, 2009 /

      “With that amount of time, you’re not switching, you’re stepping up.”

      I’m not exactly sure what the analyst meant by this. If Lee jumps out and hedges (stepping up?), Garnett would still have been open at the top of the key. With that little time remaining, one of the guys covering Rasheed Wallace (Al Harrington) or Eddie House (Larry Hughes) needs to rotate over to Garnett because it is unlikely that he’s going to have enough time to make another pass. Harrington did rotate, but it was way too late. Hughes was hugging House, which was unnecessary once Pierce dribbled towards the other side of the court.

      NBA

      Is Notre Dame still an elite coaching job?

      November 23, 2009 /

      Dan Wetzel of Yahoo Sports thinks so:

      Anyone who thinks Notre Dame isn’t still an elite job doesn’t know anything about how college football works. By beating USC, Florida and Texas for more than his fair share of coveted prospects the last few years, Weis dispelled the theory that top talent no longer want to play at a tradition-rich, academically strong school that’s on national television every week.
      He had enough players to go 10-2 this year. He just couldn’t coach them.

      Weis’ recruiting work is why this is actually a better job today than five years ago.

      I don’t think there’s any question that Notre Dame is still an elite job. The program is always in the national spotlight and a head coach could become one of the kings of college football if he wins in South Bend.

      But the problem is that the job has become a black hole for failure and the microscope that head coaches are constantly under while coaching at Notre Dame can certainly wear on someone. (Although maybe that was only true for Weis given the way Tyrone Willingham was ushered out before him.)

      Wetzel references Cincinnati’s Brian Kelly as the perfect replacement for Weis. Given how Kelly has won everyone he’s gone, that certainly wouldn’t be a bad fit – especially if Jimmy Clausen (who could put up even better numbers in Kelly’s offense) sticks around another season. Plus, considering the way Kelly had no qualms about leaving Central Michigan in the lurch to join Cincinnati, I’m sure he’d have no issues about pulling the ripcord on the Bearcats in order to coach in South Bend.

      College Football

      What would a college football playoff look like this year? (Version 3.0)

      November 23, 2009 /

      Every Monday through the end of the college football season, I update my “what if” eight-team college football playoff. (Want to see how this bad boy has developed? Here are links for Version 1.0 and Version 2.0.)

      Here are my assumptions:

      1. The six BCS-conference champs get an automatic bid unless they are ranked outside the top 15. If they are ranked behind a non-BCS school, and have a head-to-head loss to that team, then they give up their playoff bid to that team. (I debuted this rule last week to account for Boise State’s head-to-head win over Oregon. I call it the “I Drink Your Milkshake” Rule.)

      2. If a conference champ is ranked lower than #15 in the rankings, they give up their automatic bid and it becomes an at-large bid. (This rule is to ensure that the regular season keeps its meaning and only the elite teams make the playoffs.)

      3. Seeds and at-large bids are distributed based on the current BCS standings. Certainly, these rankings need to be tweaked to place more of an emphasis on head-to-head matchups, but they are fine for now. If an at-large team has a better BCS ranking than a conference champion, they will get a higher seed.

      4. There will be three rounds of playoffs. The first round will be held at the home stadium of the higher-seeded team. The semifinals and the final will rotate amongst the four BCS cities (Miami, Pasadena, Tempe and New Orleans), so that those cities don’t lose the revenue from the bowl games.

      Continue reading »

      College Football

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