Many football fans have been cringing over the last couple of days with the enormous amount of injuries at the quarterback position since Sunday.
The list includes Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Michael Vick of the Philadelphia Eagles, Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears and Alex Smith of the San Francisco 49ers.
Cutler, Smith and Vick all suffered concussions while Roethlisberger went down with a shoulder injury. Unless Cutler and Smith make significant improvements, next Monday’s prime time game featuring the 7-2 Bears and 6-2-1 49ers, will see Jason Campbell versus Colin Kaepernick at the helm. Yikes!
Getting back to the 49ers, they tied this week at 24 against St. Louis on Sunday. It was the first game that ended in a tie since 2008 when Philadelphia and Cincinnati tied at 13. From the San Francisco-St. Louis game Sunday, ESPN was reporting last night that many players didn’t realize the game could end in a tie. It made Donovan McNabb not look so dumb after all.
For the second consecutive Super Bowl famous female personalities have dominated the Super Bowl headlines.
Last year it was four-time Grammy Award winner Christina Aguilera missing a line during the Star Spangled Banner and now this year it was Tom Brady’s wife and Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen as well as the British rapper M.I.A. who are the top post Super Bowl stories.
M.I.A. (real name Maya Arulpragasam) of Sri Lankan descent, inappropriately extended her middle finger to the cameras during the halftime show. While many, including me thought it would be Madonna that might decide to pull a controversial stunt based on her history, it was the lesser known M.I.A. instead. Madonna meanwhile was on her best behaviour.
Bundchen meanwhile made headlines for publicly stating she couldn’t believe her husband’s receivers dropped the ball so many times and that Tom Brady simply can’t throw and catch footballs at the same time. Come to think of it, didn’t Brett Favre catch his first professional football pass himself? Bundchen obviously has a point but it doesn’t strengthen her relationship with Brady when she criticizes his co-workers on the world’s greatest stage.
The Seattle Seahawks will have a new look offense in 2011.
General Manager John Schneider and Head Coach Pete Carroll have elected to go with a little bit more speed.
On Friday the news was made official that the Seahawks had signed quarterback Tarvaris Jackson and wide receiver Sidney Rice. Jackson hasn’t seen much action the last two years because he has been the backup in Minnesota to Brett Favre.
He did have an effective rookie season in 2009 however, completing 88 of his 149 passes for 1056 yards, nine touchdowns and two interceptions.
Rice, meanwhile, didn’t play for the first half of last season due to hip surgery. It was in 2009 where he became Brett Favre’s primary target, leading the Vikings with 83 catches and 1312 receiving yards. Rice’s contract is five years worth $41 million, of which $18.5 million is guaranteed.
With the decision to go with Jackson at quarterback, the Tennessee Titans picked up Matt Hasselbeck from Seattle. Hasselbeck, 35, will be the undisputed number one quarterback in Tennessee with Vince Young going to Philadelphia to back up Michael Vick and the retirement of Kerry Collins.
In another key signing Friday, the Kansas City Chiefs have signed Steve Breaston from the Arizona Cardinals. The addition of Breaston should compliment Dwayne Bowe in Kansas City quite nicely and offer quarterback Matt Cassel a second viable offensive threat.
The Washington Redskins have traded quarterback Donovan McNabb to the Minnesota Vikings for a sixth round pick in 2012 and a conditional sixth round pick in 2013, dependent on McNabb’s performance in 2011.
The Vikings needed a quarterback when they couldn’t come to terms with Tarvaris Jackson, who is expected to sign with the Seattle Seahawks, and the retirement of Brett Favre. When have we heard that before?
McNabb saw his numbers go down significantly with the Redskins last season. He had 14 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, and a quarterback rating of 77.1, his worst since his rookie season with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1999.
After several productive seasons with the Eagles, where he played in six pro bowls, McNabb could not find the same success in the nation capital in 2010, as the Redskins finished with a 6-10 record.
The Redskins were not done there. They then traded defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth to the New England Patriots for a fifth round pick in 2013. In 2009, Haynesworth signed a 7 year deal worth $100 million with the Redskins, of which $41 million was guaranteed. After being considered the best player at his position while with Tennessee, Haynesworth frequently did not connect with head coach Mike Shanahan. After constant feuding over defensive systems, Haynesworth was actually suspended for four games.
Super Bowl XLV takes place Sunday. So, there’s no better time than to do a breakdown of the NFC Champion Green Bay Packers and the AFC Champion Pittsburgh Steelers.
Both the Steelers and Packers have rich histories in the NFL. Green Bay won the first two Super Bowls in 1967 and 1968, and then with Brett Favre leading the way, Green Bay knocked off New England in Super Bowl XXXI in 1997.
The Steelers have won six times. Led by Terry Bradshaw, they won four times in six years from 1975-1980. Then over the last decade, Pittsburgh defeated Seattle 21-10 in 2006 and Arizona 27-23 in 2009.
Super Bowl XLV should be the highest attended game in Super Bowl history. A total of 103,985 fans watched the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Los Angeles Rams 31-19 in 1980 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. Dallas’s Cowboys Stadium has a capacity of 111,000, and even if the weather continues to be poor in Texas, expect a sell out.
It’s time for another 15 Minutes of Fame video for your enjoyment.
This week, the boys talk about the rash of concussions NHL players seem to be playing with. Is it an issue with the players? With management? With NHL team’s medical staff?
They then talk about all of the players begging out of the NHL All-Star game next week. Then they talk about the NHL scandal of the week – LA Kings GM Dean Lombardi coming out against NHL VP Mike Murphy and getting fined for it. They finish the first stage of the video with more rumours about Lance Armstrong’s doping.
In this week’s GABBYs, first the good: The NHL Sabre’s Nathan Gerbe scores two goals in five seconds. Vernon Wells is dealt to the LA Angels and Saku Koivu makes his return to Montreal.
On the bad side, the woes of the Ottawa Senators, The National Lacrosse League’s Boston Blazers’s lap dance half-time show and yet another scandal involving Brett Favre.
In Quick Hits: Peter Forsberg practices with the Colorado Avalanche, Evgeni Nabakov won’t report to the New York Islanders and Jim and I are hosting a sports hot stove.
Check it out:
Lot’s more after the jump. Click “continue reading.” ———————>
If it feels like we’ve been through this song and dance before, it’s because we have been.
Brett Favre filed his retirement papers with the NFL this week, which appears to close the book on the career of a legendary Super Bowl winning quarterback after a 20th season in the pro ranks. That news comes at the end of a dreadfully disappointing 2010 season that saw his numbers drop off, injuries get the best of him and his prized “consecutive starts” record come to an end.
Is Brett Favre done for good though?
It looks that way – he’s said time and again that “it’s time” and he has come to peace with that idea. Further to that, Vikings coach Leslie Frazier says he isn’t interested in trying to convince the old gunslinger to come back for another season.
It seems like if the NY Jets aren’t talking trash in the lead up to a big game, there is something wrong…Don’t worry though, Jets fans, there is plenty of smack-talk coming out of that locker room this week!
Coach Rex Ryan is once again declaring an upcoming match as “personal” – last week it was “personal” between Ryan and Colts QB Peyton Manning, this time around, Pats coach Bill Belichick is his target. Ryan says there’s “no question” its personal after he admits he was “outcoached” in a 45-3 loss to the Patriots at the start of December.
For his part, Belichick says…well…not too much, but that’s what you expected, isn’t it?
The coach isn’t the only one running his mouth: Did you hear what Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie said this week about Pats QB Tom Brady?
When asked what kind of guy Brady is, Cromartie replied that he’s an a-hole and threw in another swear word for good measure! He’s upset that Brady apparently pointed to the Jets bench after scoring a touchdown in that lopsided win on December 6th. What do you think Brady said about that? (more…)
When Fox News analyst Tucker Carlson went on TV last month and said the words “Michael Vick” and “execution” in the same sentence, he wasn’t talking about his passer rating.
No, he was talking about how the Philadelphia Eagles QB should have been put to death for his abuse of dogs, which Vick spent two years in prison for.
Hold your applause.
This week he was back on “Hannity” to address those comments and showcase some of the other ridiculous things that go on inside his silly little head.
First off, despite a monotone delivery when he uttered the phrase “I believe fervently in second chances, but Michael Vick killed dogs,” Carlson says he just got “too emotional” when the subject came up.
Carlson says he’s not even comfortable with the death penalty, so of course he doesn’t think Vick should be executed. Here’s the thing though, he said it on national TV. If you thought that was good, just wait until you hear what comes next! (more…)
It’s Monday morning and that means that it’s a new episode of 15 Minutes of Fame.
This week, Jim and Geoff talk about the Edmonton Oilers and the loss of Ryan Whitney, their leading point-getter and their best defenseman. Then Geoff and Jim debate the successes and the failures of the Winter Classic in Pittsburgh this week.
In this week’s GABBYs on the good side: Dustin Byfuglien’s scoring prowess, Tiger Woods’ cash haul and Canada’s success at the Spengler Cup.
On the bad side: PETA’s anger with Nate Robinson, Yao Ming and the NBA all-star game and Brett Favre’s career.
In Quick Hits: Dwayne Roloson is traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning, did Steve Yzerman steal him away from the New York Islanders? The University of Connecticut women’s basketball team ends its consecutive wins streak.
Check it out:
Lot’s more after the jump. Click “continue reading.” ———————> (more…)
I’ve realized something. It is difficult to make predictions in the National Football League when I am trying to figure all 32 teams in the league out and late in the season, when teams that are in the playoffs start resting their talent and those who are out are looking at possible prospects for next year.
I have now had two straight 6-10 weeks. My overall record now is 147-93.
One last week to go folks. Here are my picks for Week 17:
11am
Atlanta over Carolina–The Falcons win the NFC South with a win, so expect them to dress their starters throughout.
Pittsburgh over Cleveland–Like the Falcons, the Steelers will probably dress their starters regularly because a win guarantees them first place in the AFC North. Expect a regular dose of Ben Roethlisberger and Rashard Mendenhall.
Remember last week when the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team set an NCAA record with an 89th consecutive win?
Well, they squeezed one more win out of that impressive run before finally losing to ninth-ranked Stanford on Thursday night, ending the streak at 90 straight victories. Believe it or not, a loss to Stanford back on April 6th of 2008 was the last time the UConn Huskies tasted bitter defeat. It looks like they have their number!
Oddly enough, the UCLA men’s basketball team that held the previous record of 88 straight wins ended up losing to the same team, Notre Dame, on either side of their streak as well. (more…)
No, I’m not talking about his career just yet. I’m talking about the NFL’s investigation into the allegations that he sent dirty pictures to a former NY Jets sideline reporter during his time in the Big Apple. So, did he send them after all? What about that video that people say he asked her for?
Well, the probe is over but we still don’t actually know.
The league fined Favre $50,000 on Wednesday for what it calls his failure to cooperate with investigators. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the 41-year-old was “not candid in several respects” which resulted in a longer investigation and extra bad press for all parties involved.
The league said he didn’t violate its workplace-conduct policy though, which means no one is really sure if he actually sent those “below the belt” picture messages or not. The ruling leaves it pretty open, but I think most people will assume that his apparent evasiveness means he probably did it! (more…)
There’s no question that above all else, the NY Jets have been one thing this year: Controversial.
That trend continued this week, with the latest episode involving coach Rex Ryan! This one isn’t so much a controversy in the way that the Brett Favre sexts, the treatment of a female reporter at Jets practice or the ‘sideline trip’ were – this one is more just a fairly embarrassing thing that has come to light.
One thing it does have in common with the Favre text story though is that it was brought to us by the website Deadspin.
Without further ado, here’s the scoop: A series of foot fetish videos have surfaced that appear to star a woman who looks a lot like Rex Ryan’s wife Michelle. The guy working the camera in one of the videos even sounds kind of like Ryan. The similarities between “Ihaveprettyfeet” and Michelle Ryan don’t seem to end there – both are 47-year-old housewives, both have a master’s degree and both once lived in Ellicott City, Maryland. (more…)
Goodbye Brett?
All Good Things…
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