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      It was time for the Titans to go in another direction

      January 28, 2011 /
      Tennessee Titans head coach Jeff Fisher watches his team take on the Houston Texans in the second half at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas on November 28, 2010. The Texans defeated the Titans 20-0. UPI/Aaron M. Sprecher

      Bud Adams’ organization is a complete mess right now. For the past couple of years, his head coach has been feuding with his once-prized quarterback and despite owning a league-best 13-3 record in 2008, the team hasn’t won a playoff game in six years.

      Call it a firing or a mutual separation – whatever it was, it was time for Jeff Fisher to go. And if Adams is smart, Vince Young will soon be heading out the door, too. Everyone expected Adams to choose between the two but the right decision in the end is to start fresh by ridding himself of both of them.

      The Fisher v. Young feud was a major distraction last year. Even running back Chris Johnson (the true face of the franchise) admitted so after the season. Who was most at fault for allowing things to get that bad? Everyone, from Adams to Fisher to Young, everyone played a role in creating the mess that this team is currently in.

      Young hasn’t shown the ability to lead and his work ethic stinks. Despite what his supporters believe, he won’t fetch much in a trade because the league is well aware of his maturity issues. Fisher is a throw back coach who usually got the most out of his players, but he’s won five playoff games in 16 years with three of those wins coming in 1999 when he took the Titans to the Super Bowl. In 16 seasons with Tennessee, he never once developed a true No. 1 receiver or had a quarterback who threw for 3,400 yards or 25 touchdowns, which are pretty standard numbers these days for good starters. Granted, he’s supposed to be a defensive-minded coach, but his defenses have finished 27th, 19th, 32nd, 5th, 7th, 28th and 26th since 2004.

      It was time for the Titans to go in another direction. Everyone saw what happened last year in Carolina when John Fox rode out the final year of his deal: he had little to no interest in helping a team develop its young players when he wasn’t going to be around to watch them grow up. Maybe things would have been different with Fisher in Tennessee but if the Titans’ front office knew they wanted to eventually make a change, why wait? Part mutually so that both sides could have a clean break.

      And that’s exactly what they did. The Titans have a long way to go to right the ship but at least they’ve started the process by parting ways with Fisher. Next up is Young and then this team can really make some headway.

      External Sports, NFL

      If L.A. builds a stadium, some team will come.

      January 28, 2011 /

      NFL Facts & Rumors (a CBSSports.com blog) is reporting that AEG president Tim Leiweke is willing to invest heavily into a stadium in downtown Los Angeles.

      He recently presented to a LA City Council panel the plans for a $1 billion, retractable-roof stadium that would require no public funding and could be built near the AEG-owned Staples Center and L.A. Live.

      “Zygi (Wilf, the Vikings owner) came down and looked at LA Live,” Leiweke said. “I think Zygi really wants to figure this out in Minnesota. I personally think he will. … I think this is the year they’re going to do it and I think he’s pretty committed to keeping that team and that brand a part of the culture in Minnesota.

      “Because we have roots there and we manage the Target Center, that’s not one that we get all excited about. We would prefer and hope that he solves his problem there and that still leaves us with another half-dozen teams that, I think, [are not] going to solve their problem in their current local marketplace.

      I’ve lived in Southern California for 10 years now and I’m still amazed that L.A. doesn’t have a football team. There are too many transplants and there are too many other things to do to support two teams, which I believe was the root problem when the Rams and Raiders were both here. L.A. can certainly support one team, assuming of course that the team is good. (Southern Californians are notoriously front-running when it comes to sports teams.)

      If they can find a spot downtown for the stadium, it will be a pretty good fit, though traffic will be even more nightmarish than it already is. The fact that most home games will be on Sundays should make things easier. Hopefully, they’ll take the Metro and Metrolink train routes into account when picking a location. I for one enjoy catching the Metro train in Long Beach when I go up to Laker or Clipper games at Staples.

      Los Angeles Chargers doesn’t have a bad ring to it, though it really doesn’t matter. If there’s a brand new stadium built in downtown L.A., some franchise will eventually decide to come. There’s just too much opportunity to pass up playing in such a huge market.

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, News, NFL

      Antonio Cromartie tells Matt Hasselbeck that he would smash his face in

      January 27, 2011 /
      Seattle Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck runs off the field after losing to the Chicago Bears in the NFC divisional playoff at Soldier Field in Chicago on January 16, 2011. The Bears won 35-24. UPI/Brian Kersey

      Ah, Twitter. Where athletes without internal filters can get into trouble using 140 words or less.

      Earlier this week, Jets’ cornerback Antonio Cromartie bashed the NFL and player’s union for the lack of progress in the CBA negotiations. Several players, including Ray Lewis and Darnell Dockett, took issue with what Cromartie had to say and publicly supported the union.

      Seahawks’ quarterback Matt Hasselbeck took things a step further by taking a cheap shot at Cromartie’s intelligence by tweeting: “Somebody ask Cromartie if he knows what CBA stands for.”

      According to ESPN, the tweet was later removed but not before Cromartie found out about it. The cornerback’s response was nothing short of, well, something Antonio Cromartie would say.

      “hey Matt if u have something to then say it be a man about it. Don’t erase it. I will smash ur face in.”

      Realizing he said something stupid and knowing full well that the corner would in fact smash his face in, Hasselbeck quickly issued an apology to Cromartie on Twitter using the standard, “Hey man, I was just kidding about what I said earlier!” excuse.

      “Sorry for the joke man. No hard feelings,” a tweet from his account said. “DB’s & QB’s have a hard time getting along I guess sometimes. lol.”

      Not phased by what any of his NFL mates had to say about his comments earlier this week, Cromartie also defended himself against Lewis and Dockett.

      “I don’t give a who about Ray Lewis or [Darnell Dockett] talking about what I said,” Cromartie said in a message posted on his Twitter account, according to the New York Daily News.

      “There’s 10’s of thousand ppl who will lose jobs. They taking our healthcare away and for players that have surgery can’t even get rehab once March 3rd gets here.”

      What’s interesting is that most fans would agree with Cromartie’s take on the situation. There needs to be less banter and more progress so that we have football next season. But the players don’t need one of their own bashing their union when they’re trying to show a united front. It definitely doesn’t help their cause when one player is telling another that he would smash his face in.

      What a mess.

      External Sports, NFL

      Want to win an autographed Tim Tebow jersey? Enter our Super Bowl contest.

      January 27, 2011 /

      This contest is sponsored by FRS Healthy Energy, who recently announced that Tim Tebow would be joining the FRS team that already includes Lance Armstrong and Derek Fisher. From the company’s press release:

      The FRS Company produces and distributes its FRS® Healthy Energy® products in a variety of formulations – ready-to-drink cans, liquid concentrates, soft chews and powdered drink mixes — to meet consumers’ needs. The key ingredient in FRS is quercetin, a powerful antioxidant found naturally in fruits and vegetables. A large body of existing scientific research demonstrates the positive fitness and performance effects of quercetin.

      To enter, simply answer the five questions and two tiebrakers, and follow the instructions below. Thanks to FRS for providing the grand prize, an autographed Tim Tebow Denver Broncos jersey.

      1. Which team will score first and what type of score it will it be?

      A) Packers – touchdown
      B) Packers – field goal/safety
      C) Steelers – touchdown
      D) Steelers – field goal/safety

      2. Which player will account for more TDs (both passing and rushing)?

      A) Aaron Rodgers
      B) Ben Roethlisberger

      3. Which player will have more receiving yardage?

      A) Greg Jennings
      B) Mike Wallace

      4. Which team will commit more turnovers?

      A) Packers
      B) Steelers
      C) Tie

      5. Who will win the Super Bowl MVP award?

      A) Aaron Rodgers
      B) Ben Roethlisberger
      C) Rashard Mendenhall or Greg Jennings
      D) Troy Polamalu, Charles Woodson or Clay Matthews
      E) Field (any player not listed above)

      In question #5, if there are multiple players listed, the answer will be correct if any of them win the MVP award. So if Greg Jennings wins the game’s MVP, answer C) will be correct.

      The contestant with the most correct answers will win the autographed jersey. In the event of a tie, Tiebraker #1 will be used to break the tie. If two or more contestants are still tied, then Tiebraker #2 will be used to break the tie between the remaining contestants.

      Tiebraker #1

      What will be the total number of points scored by both teams? (The answer closest to actual total wins.)

      Tiebraker #2

      What will be the total number of penalties committed by both teams? (The answer closest to actual total wins.)

      In the event that two or more contestants are still tied, winner will be determined randomly.

      To enter, simply copy the text below into an email and fill in your answers, using the letter in front of the answer (A, B, C, etc.). Send your entry to scoresreport@gmail.com by 5:00 PM ET on Sunday, February 6th, 2011. The winner will be asked to provide a shipping address for his/her prize, which is in hand and will be shipped out within two weeks after the Super Bowl. Only one entry per person, please. Employees of Bullz-Eye, LLC or The Scores Report are not eligible to win prizes.

      Your Name:

      1. Which team will score first and what type of score it will it be?

      2. Which player will account for more TDs (both passing and rushing)?

      3. Which player will have more receiving yardage?

      4. Which team will commit more turnovers?

      5. Who will win the Super Bowl MVP award?

      What will be the total number of points scored by both teams?

      What will be the total number of penalties committed by both teams?

      Want to see the Tebow FRS ad? Check out the video below:

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, NFL

      Aaron Rodgers’ secret weapon vs. Steelers? Kurt Warner.

      January 27, 2011 /
      Green Bay Packers cornerback Charles Woodson (L) and quarterback Aaron Rodgers celebrate after the NFC Championship game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field in Chicago on January 23, 2011. The Packers won 21-14. UPI/Brian Kersey

      Kurt Warner completed 72 percent of his passes for 377 yards and three touchdowns against Pittsburgh in Super Bowl XLIII two years ago. So if there were anyone that could help Aaron Rodgers try and master the Steelers’ defense, it would be him.

      According to Rodgers, he’s already had at least one conversation with Warner and he hopes there are many more in the following week.

      From Packers.com:

      “I reached out to a couple of them. Kurt Warner’s been a great friend, really since I was drafted. And so I reached out to him about any advice he can give me this week, and the next week, it’s readily appreciated. I’m sure there will be more conversations with him. I talked to a number of buddies who played in the Super Bowl before, and I think it’s important to learn from their experiences and try and find ways to stay focused in the midst, I’m sure it’s going to be controlled chaos down there.”

      If you’re a Packers fan, this is what you want to see out of your starting quarterback. He wants to win and in preparing for the game, he’s going to reach out to players who have been there before. Rodgers doesn’t have any Super Bowl experience and instead of winging it, he appears humble enough to ask for advice on how to handle the situation. Of the many attributes that he possesses, his willingness to learn will make him great for a long time.

      On a related note, I’m highly intrigued to see what defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau has in store for Rodgers next week. The Steelers’ secondary can be had, but they’re not going to allow the Packers’ receivers to have a free release off the ball like Atlanta and Chicago (at least in the first quarter) did. I expect Pittsburgh’s corners to try and jam Greg Jennings and Donald Driver at the line in effort to disrupt Rodgers’ rhythm. The Falcons’ defensive game plan was an absolute monstrosity and while the Bears learned from their early mistakes and corrected them, it’ll be interesting to see what LeBeau does from the start.

      Speaking of LeBeau, he announced on Wednesday night that he only wants to coach the Steelers. His contract is set to expire and there’s speculation about his retirement but if he does come back, he promised that if he’s coaching, “it will be the Pittsburgh Steelers.”

      External Sports, NFL, Super Bowl

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