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      Tony Gonzalez to make one last run?

      January 22, 2011 /

      Tony Gonzalez will go down as one of the best pass-catching tight ends to ever play the game but the man has never won a playoff game, not to mention a Super Bowl. It appears as though he’s ready to take one more crack at winning a championship before hanging ‘em up for good.

      According to his publicist, Gonzo will definitely return next season. He also confirmed his intent the Jim Rome Show, so he’ll play out the final year of his contract at $5.75 million. But considering he was 50/50 on whether or not he would play past 2010, it’s probably not a stretch to think that 2011 will be his final season.

      There’s no doubt that Gonzalez has lost some speed over the years, but he takes great care of his body and is always in tremendous shape. Thanks to his strict eating habits, the Falcons don’t have to worry about him wearing down throughout the course of the season. He finished with his fewest receptions (70) and yards (656) since 1998, but he still managed to haul in six touchdowns and was often Matt Ryan’s second read after Roddy White.

      That said, the Packers proved that the Falcons have a long way to go in order to compete for a Super Bowl. Gonzalez was a non-factor last week, catching just one pass before suffering an injury in the second half. He can still be productive, but he’s obviously not the same player he was in Kansas City.

      And while Michael Jenkins always seems to come up with a couple of big catches throughout the year and is an underrated blocker, he can’t stretch a defense. Atlanta won’t dramatically change its offense because of the Green Bay rout, but there’s no doubt that the Falcons need to add another playmaker. When teams contained White and slowed Michael Turner, they dared Jenkins to beat them one-on-one and he couldn’t. Thus, it’ll be interesting to see if Atlanta targets a free agent such as Malcolm Floyd or even Vincent Jackson now that Gonzalez is set to return.

      External Sports, NFL

      What was Angels’ GM Reagins thinking?

      January 22, 2011 /
      Toronto Blue Jays Vernon Wells backs off a pitch during an American League MLB baseball game in Toronto in this September 6, 2010 file photo. The Blue Jays have traded the three times All-Star outfielder to the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for catcher Mike Napoli and outfielder Juan Rivera, the MLB teams said on Friday. Wells has spent his entire 14-year career with the Blue Jays who made him the fifth selection overall in the 1997 draft. REUTERS/Fred Thornhill/Files (CANADA – Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      In a stunning move, the Angels traded Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera to the Blue Jays in exchange for outfielder Vernon Wells, who is due a whopping $86 million over the next four seasons. The deal frees the Jays of one of the worst contracts in baseball.

      For Toronto, this trade gives the Jays financial flexibility for years to come. What’s shocking is that the Halos got almost no cash in return. There have been reports that Toronto will send L.A. $5 million, but that’s nothing when you consider what Wells will receive over the next four years. This was basically a get-out-of-jail free card for Jays’ GM Alex Anthopoulos.

      I guess the hope is that Wells, Torrii Hunter and Peter Bourjos will give the Jays a solid outfield to go with their strong starting pitching. But not only is that asking a lot, even if Wells puts up good offensive numbers over these next couple of years, it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which he lives up to his contract (nevertheless outperforms it). Chances are he will decline and then what? The Halos are still left holding the bill.

      As Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wrote, most teams are trying to get younger, cheaper and better. The Angels just got older, more expensive and possibly even worse. It’s almost like GM Tony Reagins hit the panic button as soon as Carl Crawford signed with the Red Sox and Adrian Beltre agreed to terms with the Rangers. I can see him sitting in his office saying, “We’ve got to do something! We’ve got to do something!!”

      External Sports, MLB

      Rays in talks with free agent Johnny Damon

      January 21, 2011 /

      ESPN.com has confirmed reports that the Rays are talking with free agent Johnny Damon about a contract, although no deal has been signed yet. The Rays are looking to fill their vacant DH spot and Damon could also play part time in left field as well.

      Damon, Manny Ramirez and Vladimir Guerrero are among several prominent veteran designated hitters still on the market. The Rays have been open-minded in their search, according to sources, but have only a limited amount of money to sign another bat.

      The source said that while a Damon-Rays union “certainly could happen,” the two sides are not yet close to an agreement.

      The 37-year-old Damon hit .271 with eight home runs and 51 RBIs with the Detroit Tigers last season. He has 2,571 career hits in 16 seasons with Kansas City, Oakland, Boston, New York and Detroit.

      Speaking of Man-Ram, T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com writes that the Rangers are pursuing the former Indian/Red Sox/Dodger/woman’s fertility drug user/White Sox to potentially DH for them. The plan is to use Michael Young as their primary DH, but he could also play first base and move Mitch Moreland into a part-time role. Of course, Moreland proved to be the only Ranger that could hit Giant pitching in the World Series, so maybe it would be best if Texas leave Moreland right where he’s at.

      Getting back to Damon, I can’t see the Rays signing him unless he comes cheap. He can’t play the outfield on a regular basis because he has the arm strength of a tyrannosaur and he’s not worth more than a couple of million at this stage in his career. He’s a good clubhouse guy and he would certainly be nice to have in the playoffs but the Rays need to be frugal here.

      External Sports, MLB

      NFL Conference Championship Game Predictions

      January 21, 2011 /
      Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (L) dives for a touchdown on a 3-yard run as Chicago Bears linebackers Pisa Tinoisamoa (C) and Brian Urlacher try and make a stop during the fourth quarter at Soldier Field in Chicago on September 27, 2010. The Bears won 20-17. UPI/Brian Kersey

      Thus far, I’m 6-2 in the playoffs so you know my motto: There’s no better time to fade me than right now. I batted .500 in the regular season so the other shoe might be ready to drop.

      NFC Championship: Packers (-3.5) @ Bears, 3:00PM ET
      While everyone focuses on Aaron Rodgers and Jay Cutler, I think the defenses will decide this game. Statistically, this is a game the Packers should probably win and win rather easily. But this is their third straight road trip and they’ve been playing playoff-type games for over a month now. (At least when you consider they needed to win their final two home games just to qualify for the postseason.) Factor in the weather, the Bears’ home field advantage and the potentially sloppy field conditions and you might as well throw stats out the window. There are, however, two stats that I’d like to focus on when it comes to these two teams and that’s opponent red zone scoring percentage. The Bears are allowing their opponents to score just 50% of the time in the red zone, while the Packers are even more impressive when it comes to that stat, allowing teams to score just 48.65% of the time. This game has low scoring written all over it.
      THE PICK: UNDER 43.5

      AFC Championship: Jets @ Steelers (-3.5), 6:30PM ET
      I’ll fully admit that I wouldn’t mind seeing another Jets upset. I like Rex Ryan and I would love to hear the trash that comes out of his mouth for two weeks leading up to the Super Bowl. But the Jets have to be worn out after playing two emotionally draining games on the road. Their defense can hang with anyone but the Steelers don’t lose in Pittsburgh at this time of year. After the Patriots failed to lay a hand on him last week, Pittsburgh will bring the noise against Mark Sanchez this week and force him to make some poor decisions. I think the Jets ran out of steam at this time last year and they sure acted like their Super Bowl was won last Sunday. I’m picking the Steelers, but they have a habit of bending bettors when it comes to the spread so I wouldn’t be surprised if they only won by a field goal.
      THE PICK: STEELERS –3.5

      External Sports, NFL

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