Tag: Anthony Stalter (Page 73 of 133)

      A case against an 18-game season

      September 15, 2010 /
      NEW ORLEANS - SEPTEMBER 09: Quarterback Brett Favre of the Minnesota Vikings grabs his torso as he lies on the turf after taking a hard hit from Roman Harper of the New Orleans Saints at Louisiana Superdome on September 9, 2010 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

      If an 18-game regular season schedule facilitates the crap football we saw last weekend in the NFL, then as a fan I want nothing to do with an 18-game schedule.

      It all started last Thursday night when Brett Favre (who shockingly wasn’t on the same page with Percy Harvin after skipping all of training camp) used the Vikings’ opener with the Saints as a personal practice. Outside of the touchdown drive right before halftime, Brett used virtually the entire game to shake off the rust that had been accumulating since January.

      The Saints defense is good, but they’re not as good as what Favre made them out to be last week.

      I understand that offenses aren’t going to be firing on all cylinders in the first week of the season. But what we saw last week out of teams like the Vikings, Cowboys, Jets, Falcons, 49ers, Chargers and even the Saints for that matter was akin to watching two drunken fathers try to assemble a kid’s tricycle in the dark. And we’re talking about teams that are supposed to be contenders this year.

      If the league subtracted two preseason games and added two regular season games, then coaches would probably limit starters’ playing time to only a couple of series during the first preseason game in effort to avoid injuries. That means the offenses would spend the first two or three regular season games trying to get in sync and therefore, produce the same lackluster football we saw in Week 1 this year.

      If the players are going to put themselves even more at risk for injury by adding two regular season games and the first couple of weeks are going to be garbage hour, then I’ll pass. Keep the four preseason games and hopefully by Week 2 the action will be more crisp and exciting. As much as I would love to see another two weeks of football that counts in the win-loss column, I couldn’t stand watching any game where Favre skips passes to receivers for four quarters – especially in what should have been a thrilling opener to start the season.

      External Sports, NFL

      Belichick names Maroney full-time starter. Nah, just kidding – he traded him to Denver.

      September 14, 2010 /
      New England Patriots running back Laurence Maroney (39) spikes the ball in the endzone after scoring a touchdown in the first quarter against the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts on November 8, 2009. The Patriots defeated the Dolphins 27-17. UPI/Matthew Healey Photo via Newscom

      There have been times over the course of the last couple of years where it looked like Laurence Maroney was finally going to turn the page in New England.

      Like the time when he rushed for 125 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries against the Bengals his rookie year – a performance that earned him both FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week and Diet Pepsi Rookie NFL Player of the Week honors.

      Or like during the 2007 playoffs, when he compiled 244 rushing yards and two touchdowns in two games before being limited to 36 yards on 14 carries (with one touchdown) against the Giants in the Super Bowl.

      But whenever it appeared that Maroney was ready to make more out of his career, injuries, inconsistent play or Bill Belichick’s desire to keep Corey Dillon, Kevin Faulk or Fred Taylor relevant would get in his way.

      After receiving zero action in the final two preseason games this year, Maroney appeared to be in Belichick’s doghouse for good. And even when Belichick insisted that his former first round pick was still in the Patriots’ plans, you got the sense that Maroney wasn’t long for New England.

      On Tuesday, Belichick shipped Maroney and a sixth rounder to Denver in exchange for a fourth round pick. Maroney will now be reunited with Josh McDaniels, who was his former offensive coordinator in New England. He joins a backfield that also includes Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter, although the latter has shown signs of decline, which is probably why the Broncos felt the need to acquire Maroney.

      Maybe now that he’s out of Foxboro, Maroney will start to live up to his first round status. He’s still going to have to split carries, but at 25 he has plenty of time to turn things around if he can make the most out of the situation.

      In New England, Belichick is now relying on the combination of Taylor, Faulk and Sammy Morris in the running game. Should be interesting.

      Knowshon Moreno owners can relax. He’s the clear RB1 in Denver. If anything, the main guy hurt by Maroney’s arrival is Correll Buckhalter, who may not get as many reps if Maroney thrives with the Broncos. I think the big benefactor from this trade is probably Fred Taylor, who is now even more cemented in as the Pats‘ RB1. Maroney was up-and-down while in New England, but he clearly has some talent and he was still a threat to Taylor’s touches. Now Taylor will surely be the main ballcarrier while Kevin Faulk takes all the third-down and receiving duties. It looks like BenJarvus Green-Ellis (5 carries on Sunday) is next in line for carries if Taylor were to go down.

      External Sports, NFL

      Clinton Portis weighs in on Jets/female reporter situation

      September 14, 2010 /
      Aug. 07, 2010 - Ashburn, Virginia, United States of America - 07 August 2010: Washington Redskins Running Back CLINTON PORTIS.

      After spending the offseason keeping a relatively low profile, Clinton Portis decided to chime in on the situation in New York, where Jets players are under scrutiny after a few players allegedly made catcalls at sideline reporter Ines Sainz.

      Here’s what Portis said on his weekly radio appearance on 106.7 The Fan (via ESPN.com):

      “I think you put women reporters in the locker room in position to see guys walking around naked, and you sit in the locker room with 53 guys, and all of the sudden you see a nice woman in the locker room, I think men are going to tend to turn and look and want to say something to that woman,” Portis said in his weekly appearance on 106.7 The Fan.

      “You put a woman and you give her a choice of 53 athletes, somebody got to be appealing to her,” Portis said. “You know, somebody got to spark her interest, or she’s going to want somebody. I don’t know what kind of woman won’t, if you get to go and look at 53 men’s [bodies]. … I know you’re doing a job, but at the same time, the same way I’m going to cut my eye if I see somebody worth talking to, I’m sure they do the same thing.”

      Quite frankly, I don’t disagree with anything Portis (who seemed to be talking more in generalities) said. I’m sure there is bound to be someone that a female reporter is going to be attracted to in a locker room. And after spending the majority of their time around male teammates, obviously some players are going to be attracted to her as well.

      But that’s not really the point here. I get that boys will be boys, but you have to be careful. Even though football is a game, the NFL is still a business and when players are at practice, they’re at work. They should think of it as an office setting and therefore, should respect female reporters just as they would anyone else. It should be a business like atmosphere at all times.

      Now, is that realistic? No, and I’m not naïve to think that players are going to be on their best behavior when a hot female reporter is around them. And throwing a couple of passes in her direction (which apparently is one of the things that the Jets players did) is one thing – that’s harmless. But it’s quite another if she was made to feel uncomfortable while she was on the job. That’s not right.

      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Power Rankings: Week 2

      September 14, 2010 /
      HOUSTON - SEPTEMBER 12: Running back Arian Foster of the Houston Texans runs for a touchdown in the NFL season opener against the Indianapolis Colts at Reliant Stadium on September 12, 2010 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

      Week 1 is the week where every fan thinks their team shouldn’t be rated higher in the power rankings because they’ve been drunk on their team’s Kool-Aid for the past six months.

      Week 2 is the week where half of those fans thinks their team is a pile of excrement.

      Ah, fans.

      Check out Week 1’s Power Rankings

      1. Green Bay Packers
      Previous Week: 2
      It’s not easy to travel into Philadelphia in the opening week of the season and beat the Eagles on the road. Aaron Rodgers was far from perfect and Ryan Grant’s injury is a concern, but the Pack are off to a great start.

      2. Indianapolis Colts
      Previous Week: 1
      I don’t want to drop the Colts too far down because they had that beating coming to them for a while now. The Texans were tired of being bullied and they finally did something about it. Now, if the Giants run all over the Colts this Sunday night in Indy, then we may have a problem.

      3. Baltimore Ravens
      Previous Week: 3
      Anquan Boldin made Antonio Cromartie and rookie Kyle Wilson look like…well, he made them look like an average corner and a rookie. Still, Ozzie Newsome’s prized offseason acquisition came through in his first real test as a Raven and I think Joe Flacco is going to love targeting Boldin early and often from here on out.

      4. New Orleans Saints
      Previous Week: 5
      The Saints’ performance last Thursday night left something to be desired, but the defense played well and you know the offense is going to produce more times than not. It’ll be interesting to see how NO fares in San Francisco next Monday night against what should be an embarrassed but motivated Mike Singletary team.

      5. New England Patriots
      Previous Week: 6
      The Bengals’ defensive effort was pathetic last Sunday in Foxboro, but it was impressive to see the Pats’ offense rolling on all cylinders in the opening week of the season. I loved seeing Wes Welker catch the first touchdown of the year and it wasn’t only because he’s on my fantasy team…all right, all right – it was only because he’s on my fantasy team.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

      Ravens win white-knuckle thrill ride over Jets on Monday Night Football

      September 13, 2010 /
      New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez throws against the Baltimore Ravens during the first half in their NFL football game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, September 13, 2010. Ravens' Trevor Pryce is at left. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      Well, that was fun. Watching the Jets’ offense was roughly about as exciting as a three hour root canal in which your dentist has to jab you with a Novocain needle six times because he keeps missing the nerves in your mouth.

      The only difference between Mark Sanchez and Trent Edwards right now is $7.25 million a year. The second-year quarterback did nothing Monday night to silence critics that say he’s the one thing that will hold the Jets back from competing for a Super Bowl berth.

      In his team’s 10-9 loss to the Ravens, Sanchez completed 10-of-21 passes for 74 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. For those scoring at home, his average completion averaged a measly 3.5 yards. There’s a good chance that if he purposely tried to trip over one of his offensive lineman every play, he could have fallen forward for more yards then if he attempted a pass.

      Drop back, look down field, hold for one second, check down to running back, repeat.

      When the Jets’ offense came back onto the field down one point with under two minutes left, they had no shot to get into field goal range because Sanchez wasn’t going to throw vertical. And even when he went temporarily insane and threw the ball further than three yards on a crucial 4th and 10 at the end of the game, tight end Dustin Keller caught the ball and ran out of bounds one yard short of the first down marker when nobody was around him. Keller must have felt that the Ravens played hard enough to earn the win, so he’d just give it to them. Of course, he was hit so hard by Ray Lewis the play before that it’s possible he didn’t know what down, quarter or team he played for by that point.

      Speaking of the Ravens, they didn’t set the world on fire with their offensive performance tonight, but at least they moved the ball. Turnovers killed them in the first half and they couldn’t run against the Jets’ stingy front seven, but how good did Anquan Boldin look in his Baltimore debut? He beat Kyle Wilson so many times that the New Jersey highway patrol is going to have to stop the Ravens’ bus before it heads to the airport so they can integrate Boldin about domestic abuse.

      Does anybody else feel like they just got done watching a fourth preseason game?

      External Sports, NFL

      « Older posts Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑