NFL Week 5 MVP, COY and ROY power rankings

You think it’s hard to predict the games and standings from week to week? Try picking MVP candidates. There are five or six different candidates emerging every week. We’ll do this as one post again today and start separating them out next week. And I’m sure by this time Tuesday everything will be turned upside down again. Enjoy the games today everyone!

MVP Power Rankings

1. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—He didn’t play last week and yet the Eagles still won, but barely, on the road in San Fran. Against a team that still hasn’t won a game yet. And hence my case is made again. And when Kolb and the Eagles lose at home to the Falcons today, fans in Philly will be chanting Vick’s name, which will have made my case again.

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Bad year for Pittsburgh sports

Let’s recap 2010 for the Pittsburgh faithful:

– Ben Roethlisberger is accused of sexually assaulting a woman…for the second time in less than a year. His six-game (which might be reduced to four games) suspension leaves the Steelers with Byron Leftwich or Dennis Dixon as their starting quarterback to start the 2010 season.

– While nobody expects anything from them anyway, the Pirates, although currently not in last place, are six games below .500 and on pace to finish in the NL Central cellar once again this season (although not if the Astros can help it).

– The defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins were shocked by the Canadiens Wednesday night in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals – on their home ice, no less. What’s worse is that the game was damn near over with 3:30 left in the second period as Montreal somewhat cruised to a 5-2 victory. The Habs have become a great story, but the Pittsburgh faithful can’t be too thrilled that the Pens lost to a less superior team. (I know, I know – “on any given day.”)

– Pittsburgh doesn’t have a NBA team, but if they did, I’m convinced that they would be facing elimination right now in the playoffs. Either that, or gearing up for the NBA Draft Lottery.

The Sporting News made Pittsburgh No. 1 for its annual “Best Sports Cities” rankings in October last year. I’m thinking “The Steel City” won’t take home the honors this year.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

2009 BCS Bowl Projections Version 1.0

SI.com’s Stewart Mandel compiled his projections for all 34 bowl matchups and this is how things shook out in the BCS Bowls:

BCS Championship: Alabama vs. Texas
Orange: Georgia Tech vs. TCU
Fiesta: Iowa vs. Boise State
Sugar: Florida vs. Pittsburgh
Rose: Ohio State vs. Oregon

Is it just me or are those some pretty lousy matchups outside of the BCS title game (Colt McCoy vs. ‘Bama’s defense is intriguing, I don’t care what anyone says)? I’m not saying that those teams aren’t deserving of those bowls, but I’m not entirely sure I’d like to see Iowa play Boise in one of the “big” bowls.

That said, a Georgia Tech-TCU matchup would be intriguing because I would love to see the Horned Frogs try and defense the Jackets’ potent triple-option. TCU has one of the fastest and most aggressive defenses in the nation and it would be a thrill to watch them try and contain Jonathan Dwyer for four quarters.

Something tells me an Ohio State-Oregon matchup wouldn’t be that bad either outside of the fact that the Buckeyes always lay duds in bowl games. OSU has a solid defense, although Jeremiah Masoli and company might tear them to pieces.

Perhaps the most interesting takeaway from Mandel’s projections (outside of the fact that he has ‘Bama beating Florida in the SEC Championship Game, that is) is that he predicts Pittsburgh to beat Cincinnati in two weeks. The Bearcats can light up a scoreboard, but teams that can run straight at their defense have had success and the Panthers might be able to do that when the two teams square off next Saturday for the top spot in the Big East.’

For those of you who are like me that would rather see a playoff system determine the champion in college football, check out John Paulsen’s breakdown of how a postseason would look like this season.


Photo from fOTOGLIF

Couch Potato Alert: 3/27

There is less than three weeks left in the NBA season, and teams are fighting to secure home-court advantage for the gauntlet playoff run. And both conferences have highly contested races for the #2 seed. The Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic are in a virtual tie in the Eastern Conference, while three teams (San Antonio, Houston and Denver) are battling it out in the Western Conference. At stake is the opportunity to play a seventh game in front your raucous fans, and this prize is well worth the grind of the regular season.

All times ET…

NBA
Friday, 7:30 PM: Boston Celtics @ Atlanta Hawks (NBA TV)
Saturday, 10 PM: Memphis Grizzlies @ Portland Trail Blazers (NBA TV)
Sunday, 1 PM: Dallas Mavericks @ Cleveland Cavaliers (ABC)
Sunday, 8 PM: San Antonio Spurs @ New Orleans Hornets (ESPN)

NHL
Saturday, 1 PM: New York Rangers @ Pittsburgh Penguins
Saturday, 7 PM: Boston Bruins @ Toronto Maple Leafs (CBC)
Saturday, 10 PM: Minnesota Wild @ Calgary Flames (CBC)

NCAA Tournament

Friday, 7:07 PM: (12) Arizona vs. (1) Louisville (CBS)
Friday, 7:27 PM: (3) Syracuse vs. (2) Oklahoma (CBS)
Friday, 9:37 PM: (3) Kansas vs. (2) Michigan State (CBS)
Friday, 9:57 PM: (4) Gonzaga vs. (1) North Carolina (CBS)
Saturday, 4:40 PM: (3) Missouri vs. (1) Connecticut (CBS)
Saturday, 7:05 PM: (3) Villanova vs. (1) Pittsburgh (CBS)
Sunday, TBA: Midwest and West Finals (CBS)

PGA
March 27-29, see your local listings for times: Arnold Palmer Invitational, Orlando, FL. (NBC/TGC)

Couch Potato Alert: 3/6

If you could pry yourself away from the televised coverage of the T.O. ordeal for just one minute, you could tune in to a couple of key marquee matchups on the hardwood this weekend. It begins with Cleveland visiting Boston tonight, and with a victory the Cavs can confirm their status as a legitimate title contender. They’re no longer LeBron James and the Cavalettes coming to your favorite NBA arena. On Saturday, it’s #1 UConn versus #4 Pittsburgh in a crucial Big East matchup. Then, travel down Tobacco Road for Duke-North Carolina in an ACC heavyweight matchup this Sunday. This could be a dress rehearsal for next week’s conference tournament final, with the winner getting a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

All times ET…

College Basketball
Saturday, 12 PM: #1 Connecticut @ #4 Pittsburgh (CBS)
Saturday, 2 PM: #25 Syracuse @ #14 Marquette (ESPN Full Court)
Sunday, 12 PM: #20 Purdue @ #8 Michigan State (CBS)
Sunday, 4 PM: #7 Duke @ #2 North Carolina (CBS)
Sunday, 6 PM: #19 Clemson @ #10 Wake Forest (Fox Sports Net)

NBA
Friday, 8 PM: Cleveland Cavaliers @ Boston Celtics (ESPN)
Friday, 10:30 PM: Denver Nuggets @ Utah Jazz (ESPN)
Saturday, 8:30 PM: Washington Wizards @ Dallas Mavericks (NBA TV)
Sunday, 3:30 PM: Phoenix Suns @ San Antonio Spurs (ABC)
Sunday, 7 PM: Philadelphia 76ers @ Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA TV)

NHL
Saturday, 1 PM: Chicago Black Hawks @ Boston Bruins
Saturday, 10 PM: San Jose Sharks @ Vancouver Canucks (CBC)
Sunday, 12:30 PM: Boston Bruins @ New York Rangers (NBC)

World Baseball Classic
Saturday, 2 PM: Canada vs. United States from the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada (ESPN)

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