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      Jeremy Shockey chooses Panthers over Dolphins

      March 3, 2011 /

      When he was hired in January, new Panthers coach Ron Rivera said that he would target a “do-it-all” tight end this offseason.

      He can now call off the search.

      Rivera found his tight end in former Saint Jeremy Shockey, who has decided to sign a one-year deal with the Panthers instead of the Dolphins, who were also interested in his services.

      “Looks like I’m signing with Carolina,” Shockey wrote via his Twitter page.

      Whether he wound up with the Panthers or Dolphins, Shockey presumably was going to have an opportunity to make plays next year. Carolina offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski has a history of utilizing tight ends, as does new Miami OC Brian Daboll (almost to a fault in Daboll’s case). But in the end, it’s not surprising that Shockey chose the Panthers seeing as how Chudzinksi was his former tight end coach at the University of Miami nearly a decade ago.

      It’ll be interesting to see if Shockey winds up catching passes next season from Jimmy Clausen or if the Panthers will select a quarterback with the top overall pick in April’s draft.

      External Sports, News, NFL

      2011 Fantasy Rankings: Third Basemen

      March 3, 2011 /

      All 2011 Fantasy Articles | 2011 Position Rankings

      Third base: it’s almost as bad as shortstop.

      In retrospect, we’d like to add a twelfth MLB player we would not want to be in 2011, and that is Jose Bautista. Going undrafted in most leagues, he scored over 200 points more than any other third basemen in one of our leagues last season, which means he now has a giant fantasy bullseye on his chest, and if he doesn’t finish in the top five among third basemen this year, he’ll be considered a bust. The reason? The sixth-ranked third baseman in the draft projections is a second baseman (Martin Prado). Yikes.

      San Francisco Giants 3B Pablo Sandoval watches a splash home run head for the water as Arizona Diamondbacks catcher John Hester (L) looks on at AT&T Park in San Francisco on September 30, 2010. The Giants completed a sweep of the Diamondbacks with a 4-1 victory. UPI/Terry Schmitt

      “Ski-doosh.”

      But fear not, fellow roto-geeks. There are some bargain picks to be had at the hot corner once the big five (Evan Longoria, Alex Rodriguez, David Wright, Ryan Zimmerman, and Bautista) are off the board. Obviously your best bet is to get one of them, but if that is not an option, stock up on as many other positions as you can, and with some luck, these men below will hopefully keep you competitive.

      Kevin Youkilis, Red Sox
      The Greek God of Walks will obviously do more than just keep you competitive, but you’ll need to wait a few games (ten in most leagues) before you can play him there. Once he’s set, though, just sit back and enjoy the show. And by the show, we mean the shots of Youkilis cursing at himself on the bench whenever he makes an out. Competitive bugger, that Youkilis.

      Pablo Sandoval, Giants
      The Panda lost 38 pounds this offseason, and is already tearing the cover off the ball in spring training. We love players who have something to prove, and after compiling a limp .268-61-13-63 stat line in 2010, Sandoval is that guy. But is he really sloted to bat eighth in the order? That’s a little disconcerting.

      Aramis Ramirez, Cubs
      Contract year, ahoy! Yes, the Cubs have an option for 2012, but it’s at $16 million, and it will only be guaranteed if Ramirez wins the MVP or the Cubs go to the World Series. (In other words, it will not be guaranteed.) He looked like his old self by year’s end after a putrid first half, and with the addition of Carlos Pena, the Cubs lineup has the potential to be dangerous. It could also implode at a moment’s notice – witness yesterday’s dugout dispute, which involved the normally laid-back Ramirez – but we expect Aramis to sing for his supper.

      Continue reading »

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB

      President Obama will not get involved in NFL CBA talks

      March 3, 2011 /
      U.S. President Barack Obama speaks during a news conference with Mexican President Felipe Calderon (L) in the East Room of the White House in Washington March 3, 2011. REUTERS/Larry Downing (UNITED STATES – Tags: POLITICS)

      At a press conference today with Mexican President Felipe Calderon in the East Room of the White House, President Obama answered several questions, including one about the ongoing collective bargaining talks between the NFL owners and the NFL players. Obama was asked whether he planned on mediating the talks or getting involved in any way, given that the two sides are on the brink of a possible lockout.

      Obama was quick to respond that he had no intention of getting involved.

      “My working assumption, at a time when people are having to cut back and compromise and worry about making the mortgage and paying for their kids college education is that the two parties should be able to work it out without the President of the United States intervening.”

      Obama noted the obvious – that he had much more important things to focus on.

      “I’m a big football fan, but I also think that for an industry that’s making nine billion dollars a year in revenue, they can figure out how to divide it up in a sensible way.”

      In the current economic environment, this is a hardly surprising response.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, External Sports, NFL

      Donald Sterling’s Black History Month ad raises eyebrows

      March 3, 2011 /

      This ad ran recently in the L.A. Times. Take a good look.

      On the surface, Clippers owner Donald Sterling was trying to do something nice. He wanted to admit 1,000 “underprivileged children” free to the Clippers/Rockets game on March 2 in honor of Black History Month.

      Only Black History Month is in February. Why is he celebrating it in March? And why is he associating “underprivileged kids” with Black History Month in the first place? Is he implying that all “underprivileged kids” are black? And how did the Staples Center employees know if a kid was “underprivileged” or not when he/she showed up for the game? By the color of his skin?

      If this were any other owner, people would have a chuckle and write it off as poor planning by the team’s public relations department, but Sterling has a long history of racial missteps, from discrimination lawsuits in his real estate ventures to comments he allegedly made in the Clipper locker room.

      The guy just can’t get out of his own way.

      External Sports, NBA, News

      Oregon’s De’anthony Thomas questioned by NCAA

      March 3, 2011 /
      Oregon Ducks head coach Chip Kelly greets the Ducks fans before the Ducks game against the Auburn Tigers at the BCS Championship game at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, AZ, January 10,2011. UPI/Art Foxall

      De’anthony Thomas of Crenshaw High was one of the most decorated prep players to ever come out of the city of Los Angeles. He was ranked No. 16 in the ESPNU 150 and in early February, he signed his letter of intent to play for the University of Oregon.

      It’s not surprising that a top recruit would want to play for a program that just appeared in the national title game, nor is it shocking that a prep running back would want to be a part of Chip Kelly’s explosive spread offense. But what was surprising was that Thomas had already committed to USC and then flipped to Eugene later on.

      Granted, even though he committed to the Trojans at first, the young man has the right to change his mind. He did say that he felt comfortable at Oregon and always had his eye on the Ducks despite committing to SC. But just one day after a report was released that Oregon may be outed for major recruitment violations, Thomas left this on his Twitter page (hat tip to SPORTSbyBROOKS for the link):

      JUST GOT. OUT OF A MEETING WIT THE NCAA PEOPLE MAN IT FELT LIKE I WAS TALKING TO THE POLICE

      There’s a good chance that the NCAA just wanted to talk to Thomas about his decision to flip from USC to Oregon and wanted to make sure everything was on the up-and-up. It’s their job to ensure that gifts aren’t given to recruits in order to sway them into choosing a certain school. (It’s also their job to ruin college football by using the BCS format instead of a thrilling playoff system that would make most fans happy, but that topic is best left for another post.)

      Thus, the fact that the NCAA spoke with Thomas doesn’t mean that Oregon is the subject of major recruiting violations. In fact, it might not mean anything. The story that came out earlier this week may have nothing to do with Thomas being subjected to the heat lamps of the NCAA.

      But it does make you wonder…

      Update: Thomas apparently has been caught in a lie about the NCAA tweets. Rut-roh.

      College Football, External Sports

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