Monday Morning Mehta 1/16/06
Edition # 149
January 16, 2006
www.mondaymorningmehta.blogspot.com
Next week: The 2nd annual Official Philadelphia Eagles Offseason Guide.
NFL
Steelers 21 - Colts 18
In what will probably be the Game of the Year, the Steelers hold on for dear life to beat the Colts on a last minute missed FG by the "idiot kicker" Mike Vanderjadt. There's tons to talk about on this game, I'll start with my Peyton Manning diatribe.
Peyton Manning. He's now 3-6 in the postseason. He was 0-4 vs. his rival in college Florida. He's 3-9 vs. the Patriots. As I've said for years and years, the guy is a choker. He's a choker until he wins a Super Bowl, period. All the stupid gyrations and finger pointing that he does all game are ridiculous. People in Philadelphia rip Donovan McNabb's play in the clutch, but the fact is that McNabb has been better than Manning in the playoffs. McNabb's made a Super Bowl. What makes it even better is the media darling Manning, who gets very little criticism, ripped into his offensive line after the game saying, "Let's just say we had protection issues". Shut up Peyton, just shut up. This is the playoffs, you're not playing the Houston Texans or Cleveland Browns. Defenses are much better and smarter. You're going to get pressure. On top of the fact that Indy throughout Peyton's career has "max protected". 90% of the time they have 2 tight ends in the game to block, sometimes 3 tight ends. They Colts M.O. is max protect Manning and let Wayne & Harrison get open. And I watched the game, and in the first half Manning had plenty of time on multiple occasions and just missed WR's.
Another point on Manning. You can't keep 30 seconds on the clock, 2 timeouts, and expect your kicker to kick a 46 yard FG. Anything over 35 is an adventure late in the game especially in playoff pressure. Manning has to drive the ball inside the 20. He had 2nd and 2 and decided to throw the ball deep twice, instead of moving the chains. I place that blame fully on Manning. You have to get the first down there especially with all that time and timeouts left.
Bettis' fumble. I completely agree with Bill Cowher's move to run the ball with over a minute left at the 2 yard line. The Colts have all 3 timeouts left and if the Steelers took 3 knees, kicked a risky FG, the Colts would've gotten the ball back, only down 6 points with about a minute left. No thanks. Did I mention Peyton Manning is a choker?
Seahawks 20 - Redskins 10
The injury to Shaun Alexander completely changed this game. But Matt Hasselbeck stepped up as did his favorite target Darrell Jackson. The Redskins offense was better than they were last week, but too many missed opportunities hurt this team. Joe Gibbs will need to work on offense in the offseason, as he needs a WR opposite Santana Moss, but this defense will be a force for many years.
Broncos 27 - Patriots 13
The score and the game here tell two different stories. The score indicated Broncos won comfortably. Watching the game it was clear the Patriots outplayed the Broncos. The Patriots out-gained the Broncos 420 to 286. But the Patriots made way too many mistakes and turned the ball over 5 times. FIVE TIMES. You won't win playoff games on the road doing that. Bad calls by the refs aside, the key play in this game was the interception by Brady deep in Bronco territory which Champ Bailey took 100 yards back to the 1 yard line (on another iffy fumble call). But, in the end, there's no crying in baseball and still...no threepeats in football.
Panthers 29 - Bears 21
The Monsters of the Midway...NOT. This was very reminiscent of the Eagles playoff game in Chicago in 2001. The Bears coming off of a freak season playing their home game after a bye. Same outcome. Bears disappoint again. The defense was completely dismantled by Jake Delhomme, who obviously deserves a lot of credit. I've always said what separates the good from great QB's is winning road playoff games. Delhomme is making a habit of it now (@ StL, @ Philly, @ NYG, @ Chic). Steve Smith is an absolutely amazing WR, but his antics are ridiculous. My only question to Lovie Smith is this: Why did you start off the game firing the ball all over the field? RUN THE BALL!! That's what got you here.
Championship Previews
Steelers @ Broncos (-3.5)
There's one player that will determine the outcome of this game. Jake Plummer. If Mike Shanahan can lead Jake Plummer to the Super Bowl, they should just put Shanny into Canton immediately (sorry Tang). Would I bet on it? He!l no. Especially the way the Steelers have been playing the last 6 weeks. I'm not going to embarrass my self and even make a pick on these games anymore. I'll just say this, look for the Steelers to pound the ball on the ground much more than vs. the Colts. For the Broncos, they really need to throw the ball. The Steelers still have some weaknesses vs. the pass, in my opinion and Plummer will have to take advantage to win.
Panthers @ Seahawks (-5)
I look at this game as the battle of the 2 QB's who are looking for respect. Matt Hasselbeck and Jake Delhomme will get a chance to emerge as top flight QB's in the NFL. Making 2 Super Bowls for Delhomme would be incredible, especially considering he would have had to win 4 straight road games to get there (don't forget Atlanta at the end of the year). Matt Hasellbeck has been solid, and almost spectacular all year, and could cap the year with a trip to Detroit. Shaun Alexander's health is a key here. With DeShaun Foster out with a broken ankle, Seattle has to have the advantage.
The Phillies should go after David Wells or Jeff Weaver. Drexel stinks. Peyton Manning is overrated (DE - CAF .. DE - CAF!) BTW, how annoying has that Peyton Manning commercial gotten? Let's move on to the NBA...
NBA - Derreck Sura
- Philadelphia managed to hold on to the 7th seed in the East by going 2-1 for the week. The Sixers (18-18) beat two bad teams, which is what they should do, but it's hard for me to get exited about that. I discovered a new statistic this week called strength of schedule (SoS). It's pretty basic in that it tabulates your opponent's winning percentage. Philly's SoS ranks 27th so far, or 4th easiest, with a .487 winning percentage for the teams they've played. That further illustrates what I've been saying for weeks now that the Sixers' schedule is about to get noticeably tougher.
With the season approaching the half way mark, the dog days of the NBA are upon us. Rookies are hitting the wall, the constant travel is wearing the players down, and injuries are taking their toll. Which is why having a decent bench is so important. This is an area where the Sixers are lacking big time, and as the quality of their opponents starts to get better, I think this weakness is about to catch up with them. Just look at the scoring numbers. John Salmons leads this motley crew with 7.8 points per game. Followed by Steven Hunter 5.1 ppg, Lee Nailon 4.1 ppg, Shavlik Randolph 2.6 ppg, Matt Barnes 2 ppg, Michael Bradley 1.7 ppg, and Kevin Ollie 1.7 ppg. Yikes. The minutes they play are no better either. Salmons again leads the charge at 22.9 minutes per game. Then Hunter 18.3 mpg, Nailon 10.8 mpg, and Ollie 10.2 mpg are the only guys averaging double digit playing time. Shav 9 mpg, Barnes 7.8 mpg, and Bradley 7.4 mpg bring up the rear. Even though most of those dudes stink, I think coach Maurice Cheeks would be wise to play four of them 15+ minutes a night so his main players have something left for the second half of the year.
This week brings Philly: @Washington, New Jersey, Memphis, @Minnesota. The Wizards have been playing better lately, and are on a three game winning streak. You can expect tonight's game to feature plenty of offense and next to no defense. The Nets have slipped a little with Richard Jefferson out of the lineup, but this will still be a tough test for the Sixers. I don't give Philly much of a chance to beat the Grizzlies. The Timberwolves on Sunday will be another difficult game for the Sixers. 2-2 would constitute a good week for them in my book.
- Everyone that follows the NBA closely knows that Shaquille O'Neal's career has been on the downward slide for the last three years (including this one). I'm here to tell you that I've noticed another super star who is starting to lose half a step or so. The player is Kevin Garnett. I know he's only 29, but this is already his 11th season in the NBA. I think all that banging down low is finally starting to take a toll on KG's slim frame. His numbers are basically the same across the board with a few exceptions. His assists are down from 5.7 apg last year to 4.9 apg this, but that's more because of his teammates then anything else. His shooting percentage has improved from last season (50.2% to 54.7%). I think that comes with maturity and experience though. However, the telling dip is in KG's rebounding numbers. He is down to 11.2 rpg, which is his lowest average since 1998-99 (10.4 rpg). Rebounding is all about energy and athleticism, and from watching "Ticket" play this year, he seems to be lacking in both departments (from what he used to be of course).
I suppose he could be depressed or something about the Timberwolves (17-17) prospects for the future. Or maybe he's realized that the prime of his career was wasted by poor management in Minnesota. I think that's selling KG short though. The guy has never given less then 100% every night, and has always been a team player with less then great talent around him. Which is exactly why I think he's starting to slip. Look, Garnett is still a great player. His Player Efficiency Rating (John Hollinger) is third overall at 27.64. His +/- (Roland Rating) is ninth at +12.9. Not to mention he ranks 2nd in FG%, 5th in rebounds, and 16th in points. He's obviously still a top five player in the league. KG is not on the down hill slide yet, but my point is that he has reached the top of the mountain, and now has the bottom clearly in sight.
- Carmelo Anthony's career has been up and down, to be kind. Even though Denver's record (19-19) doesn't show it, I think Melo has turned a corner in his development as a player. The Nuggets still have no outside shooter, and have been without their entire projected big man rotation basically all year. With Kenyon Martin looking like he may never be the same again, Anthony has assumed the vocal leadership role for Denver. Being a vocal leader means nothing if you can't produce on the court ( i.e. K-Mart), which is why Melo's teammates are listening to him now. I shutter to think where the Nugs would be this season without the new and improved version of Anthony.
Gone are the days of Carmelo jacking up wild shots to "get his". I'm not sure if it's more experience, George Karl's coaching, or just plain old maturity that's made the difference, but Melo clearly has a better understanding of how to be a big time NBA scorer. He's shooting a career high 46.6% from the field. Not great, but much better then his first two seasons (42.6% & 43.1%). What makes it more impressive is that he's taking the most shots of his young career too (18.8 FGA's). There's still more. He's also getting to the free throw more then ever ( 9.4 FTA's, tied for 5th overall).
What does this all mean? Well first off he's averaging a career high 25.4 points (8th overall), but it's how he's getting them that makes the difference. Melo mixes up his game much better now. He can still shoot the mid-range jumper, either by spotting up or off the dribble, with the best of them. That's nothing new. The difference in his game now is that when his shot isn't falling he doesn't force it anymore. Now he'll take slower players to the hole and post up smaller players on the nights when his J is off. Now whether that translates into an All-Star appearance in February remains to be seen. In the long run though, he'll be a better teammate and win more game as a result of diversifying his game.
- Richard Jefferson has missed the last three games for the Nets with back spasms. Not surprisingly, New Jersey (19-15) has lost all three. RJ had an MRI on Friday, which was negative, but it did show a muscle strain. He already tried to come back on Saturday in Dallas, but re-aggravated it warming up. He says he hopes to return Monday for Indiana, but I'd say the smart money is on him returning for Philadelphia on Wednesday. The Nets have used Jacque Vaughn in RJ's place, sliding Vince Carter over to SF and Jason Kidd to SG. Needless to say, that hasn't worked out very well. NJ's weakness is their depth, and as this injury shows, they can't survive for long without their "Big 3" healthy.
Indiana (20-15) has been without starting PG Jamaal Tinsley for seven games with a torn right biceps muscle. Tinsley was originally supposed to miss only three games, but according to him he's "not close to coming back". He goes on "You can't set a timetable on this. It ain't no telling when I'll be ready." Poor English aside, Jamaal is an important piece to the Pacers when healthy. Thing is, that hasn't been very often over the past three seasons. Indy should be fine in the short term with veteran Anthony Johnson replacing Tinsley in the starting lineup and Sarunas Jasikevicius backing him up. The scary news for the Pacers is that Jermaine O'Neal sprained his left ankle Saturday in Chicago. It's not supposed to be too serious, but JO is questionable for Monday's game in New Jersey. Indy is struggling as it is, and they can ill afford to be without O'Neal for an extended period.
Elton Brand has missed the Clippers (19-14) last two games with a bruised right hip. Los Angeles won both of those games, but will not be able to maintain for long minus their best player. Brand dressed for Saturday's game against Seattle, but didn't play. Supposedly he's day to day, so all you Clips' fans out there can breathe easy.
The Houston Rockets' big free agent signing this summer, Stromile Swift, has missed the last three games with a scratched left eye. I wonder if anybody even noticed? The Rockets (12-23) are the most injury ravaged team in the NBA by far. Which is why I've been puzzled all season at coach Jeff Van Gundy's refusal to play Swift more. If Vice President Carroll Dawson didn't know about Stro's low basketball IQ before signing him for four years and 22.4 million, he just didn't do his homework.
Last Tuesday Utah's Carlos Boozer had his third setback rehabbing his injured left hamstring. This is the second consecutive time he was "close" to being back only to have it "tighten up" again. Honestly, this is some kind of joke right? Who misses an entire season with a strained hammy? I'm sure the Jazz (19-18) would love to move Boozer for some back court help, but finding someone to take the 47.4 million and four years left on his deal is pretty much mission impossible at this point.
NHL Week In Review By : Ed Wasser
- Well, that didn't take long. 11 games into his tenure as the new Penguins head coach and after a lazy, "I don't feel like washing my hair so I'm not going to sweat during this game", 3 - 1 loss at home to the Oilers Michel Therrien held a post game press conference and baby, IT WAS ON!!! Therrien didn't have a Hal McRae-esque melt down but he certainly took the players to task. Therrien speaks in broken English so I'm going to paraphrase some of his remarks. Therrien said the Penguins are "pathetic", the players don't care, they only pretend like they care, the player's paychecks should be cut in half because they only play half the time, the defense is "soft", and he believes the defensemen are actively "trying to be the worst defensive squad in the league. And they're doing at great job at it". But the nuclear bomb that Therrien dropped that really got everyone's attention was when he blasted the Penguins sparkling new $25 million free agent pick up, defenseman Sergei Gonchar. Therrien called Gonchar a......well, my mother reads this column so I won't repeat it but trust me it wasn't pretty.
The day after the Therrien blasting I was looking at the games coming up on my NHL package and I see the Penguins are playing the Blue Jackets in Columbus. Normally I wouldn't gravitate to that game but I was curious to see how the Penguins would react after being called "bleeping bleeps that don't bleep for bleep" by their coach. OK, so the stage is set. Now imagine the absolute worst case scenario humanly possible for the Penguins in this game, multiply that by 17, and you'll have the result of this game. First of all, a few hours before the game, the Penguins found out that their number one goalie, Jocelyn Thibault, is gone for the season. The Penguins had to start rookie goalie Dany Sabourin (who?). 10 seconds, that's one and zero seconds, into the game Sabourin tried to clear the puck but put it right on Blue Jacket Rick Nash's stick who could have got on his knees and blew the puck into the net if he wanted to. Naturally Nash buried the chance for a goal. Therrien looked like he had just seen the Creature From The Black Lagoon crawl out of his toilet, I mean he just couldn't believe it. 10 freaking seconds!!! Then before the first commercial break it was 2 - 0. The game was 6 - 1 after 2 periods and that's the way it ended. Please believe me when I tell you that 6 - 1 makes the game sound closer then it was, the Blue Jackets pretty much quit playing after the second period. The Penguins are ATROCIOUS and Therrien was right...they don't care.
- From the Conspiracy Theory Department.....did you ever notice that the ultra wacky, drug guzzling members of Celebrity Fit Club members aren't really all that fat? Daniel Baldwin, Gary Busey, Jani Lane, and now Jeff Conaway are portly but not morbidly obese. Could it be that the producers of Celebrity Fit Club are sacrificing chubby for nutty? Could it be that the producers are knowingly putting drug addicts on the show to increase ratings? Could it be that I wrote this blurb because I couldn't think of anything else to write? We may never know the answers to these questions.
- Reason number 77,098 why referees, umpires, and officials in all sports from college on up are inept and generally out of control. Last Tuesday San Jos? Shark Joe Thorton made his much anticipated return to Boston, a game that may have been the biggest hockey game in Boston since the Bruins were in the finals in 1990. 6 minutes into the game Thorton hit Bruin and his off ice best friend Hall Gill from behind, the hit was certainly a penalty but it was just a normal hockey hit. Gill hit the ice and hurt his shoulder, but the shoulder Gill hurt was left shoulder, Thorton hit him on the right. Not only did referee Chris Rooney give Thorton a penalty, he gave him a game misconduct a.k.a. throwing Thorton out of the game. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, was stunned. It was a total joke. Bruins fans were even booing. After the game guess who also said the game misconduct was a joke? Hall Gill. As soon as I think the worst officials are in college football I see a horrifically officiated game in the NFL. As soon as I think the worst officials are in the NFL I see a horrifically officiated game in the NHL. As soon as I think the worst officials are in the NHL I see a horrifically officiated game in the NBA. As soon as I think the worst officials are are in the NBA I see the grand daddy of all bad officials....BOXING!!!!
- While I'm on the subject of boxing Mike Francesa had a GREAT point about boxing on the "Mike and The Mad Dog" show on The Fan in New York. Francesa was talking about the HBO show "Real Sports" and his point was simply this.....has there ever been a sport that deserved it's own segment on "Real Sports" more then boxing? Boxing is more crooked and corrupt then the presidential voting in Cuba but HBO never mentions it. Why? Because HBO is in bed with boxing that's why. Obviously I agree with Francesa but I'll take it a little further....ever see the stories about boxers on "Real Sports"? They make them out to be modern day, noble gladiators of meager means who have achieved excellence which may be true in some cases but enough with the infomercials, how about a real story.
- I dunno, you all tell me. I think this may have been a tad racist but it happened a few weeks ago and I haven't heard anything so maybe I'm off base. The Vancouver Canucks have a line that features Henrik Sedin, his twin brother Daniel, and Anson Carter who is a black guy. The Hockey News had a blurb that said "we have a suggestion for a nickname for the Sedin, Sedin, and Carter line in Vancouver. The Three Brothers Line". When I read it it just seemed like it was, maybe not racist but certainly inappropriate. Maybe I'm nuts.
- I'm was watching Nashville playing Carolina on the NHL Package last Friday night, it was the Nashville broadcast and during the commercials I start fiddling with my computer. That's when I heard former Flyers player, former Flyers coach, and current Predator color man Terry Crisp do a promo and saying "and don't miss T.B.D.S.S.P. because tonight yada, yada, yada" Huh? What the hell is T.B.D.S.S.P.? So later in the game I hear it again and that's when they flash the graphic, Crisp was talking about "The Best Damn Sports Show Period" but he either wouldn't say the name of the show (which is hard to believe because Crisp is Canadian and they curse on TV in Canada) or he wasn't allowed to say it. Nashville is the buckle of the Bible belt after all.
- Before I start this I wanna say A.) I am quite aware that hockey is a business and that businesses exist for the sole purpose of making money and B.) nobody owes anybody a living. With that said the way the Tampa Bay Lightning handled first ballot Hall Of Famer and Lightning captain Dave Andreychuk was a disgrace. GOD I WISH I COULD CURSE IN THIS SPACE!!! They have crazy wording but for all intents and purposes Andreychuk was released by the Lightning last week and, despite the fact that he willed (WILLED!!!) the Lightning to that Stanley Cup in 2004, he was forced to hold a humiliating press conference in which he was pretty much expected to either become a minor league hockey player, riding a bus 12 hours a day in between games, or quit the game. Andreychuk decided to quit. Seriously, think about this, every reporter at the Andreychuk press conference last week was in tears because it was obvious to all that a stone cold shafting was in progress. Andreychuk said in his press conference with an ear to ear grin on his face "people tell me that the new game is too fast for me. Well, the game has been too fast for me for the last 10 years. Hey, I tried. The only person I can think of that left the game on his own terms is Ray Bourque. So well, if nothing else at least I can say I went down swinging". Wow. So after an amazing 1759 games played before winning a Stanley Cup, being second all time in points scored by a left winger, and being a no doubt about it first ballot Hall of Famer it's over for Dave Andreychuk. That's cool but Lightning coach John Tortorella and GM Jay Feaster should be, and I predict will be, embarrassed by the way they handled the whole thing.
- The Flyers ended their 11 game road trip and have finally returned home. The final 3 games on the road trip were a 3 - 0 loss in New Jersey, a 5 - 2 win against the pathetic Blackhawks, and a 6 - 3 loss to the Red Wings. The loss to the Red Wings was understandable, after an 11 game road trip it's tough to keep up the momentum. When the Flyers got home they had a game against the Avalanche. The Flyers lost the game 4 - 3 but it was brought along by a ridiculous hooking penalty called in overtime against Flyers defensemen Mike Rathje. On the penalty Rathje just touched Joe Sakic who promptly dove like Greg Louganis and drew the penalty. So the Flyers lost 3 out of their last 4 but most people aren't concerned, the road trip, which I would argue was unfair, is finally over so I believe the Flyers will now get back to their earlier winning ways.
January 16, 2006
www.mondaymorningmehta.blogspot.com
Next week: The 2nd annual Official Philadelphia Eagles Offseason Guide.
NFL
Steelers 21 - Colts 18
In what will probably be the Game of the Year, the Steelers hold on for dear life to beat the Colts on a last minute missed FG by the "idiot kicker" Mike Vanderjadt. There's tons to talk about on this game, I'll start with my Peyton Manning diatribe.
Peyton Manning. He's now 3-6 in the postseason. He was 0-4 vs. his rival in college Florida. He's 3-9 vs. the Patriots. As I've said for years and years, the guy is a choker. He's a choker until he wins a Super Bowl, period. All the stupid gyrations and finger pointing that he does all game are ridiculous. People in Philadelphia rip Donovan McNabb's play in the clutch, but the fact is that McNabb has been better than Manning in the playoffs. McNabb's made a Super Bowl. What makes it even better is the media darling Manning, who gets very little criticism, ripped into his offensive line after the game saying, "Let's just say we had protection issues". Shut up Peyton, just shut up. This is the playoffs, you're not playing the Houston Texans or Cleveland Browns. Defenses are much better and smarter. You're going to get pressure. On top of the fact that Indy throughout Peyton's career has "max protected". 90% of the time they have 2 tight ends in the game to block, sometimes 3 tight ends. They Colts M.O. is max protect Manning and let Wayne & Harrison get open. And I watched the game, and in the first half Manning had plenty of time on multiple occasions and just missed WR's.
Another point on Manning. You can't keep 30 seconds on the clock, 2 timeouts, and expect your kicker to kick a 46 yard FG. Anything over 35 is an adventure late in the game especially in playoff pressure. Manning has to drive the ball inside the 20. He had 2nd and 2 and decided to throw the ball deep twice, instead of moving the chains. I place that blame fully on Manning. You have to get the first down there especially with all that time and timeouts left.
Bettis' fumble. I completely agree with Bill Cowher's move to run the ball with over a minute left at the 2 yard line. The Colts have all 3 timeouts left and if the Steelers took 3 knees, kicked a risky FG, the Colts would've gotten the ball back, only down 6 points with about a minute left. No thanks. Did I mention Peyton Manning is a choker?
Seahawks 20 - Redskins 10
The injury to Shaun Alexander completely changed this game. But Matt Hasselbeck stepped up as did his favorite target Darrell Jackson. The Redskins offense was better than they were last week, but too many missed opportunities hurt this team. Joe Gibbs will need to work on offense in the offseason, as he needs a WR opposite Santana Moss, but this defense will be a force for many years.
Broncos 27 - Patriots 13
The score and the game here tell two different stories. The score indicated Broncos won comfortably. Watching the game it was clear the Patriots outplayed the Broncos. The Patriots out-gained the Broncos 420 to 286. But the Patriots made way too many mistakes and turned the ball over 5 times. FIVE TIMES. You won't win playoff games on the road doing that. Bad calls by the refs aside, the key play in this game was the interception by Brady deep in Bronco territory which Champ Bailey took 100 yards back to the 1 yard line (on another iffy fumble call). But, in the end, there's no crying in baseball and still...no threepeats in football.
Panthers 29 - Bears 21
The Monsters of the Midway...NOT. This was very reminiscent of the Eagles playoff game in Chicago in 2001. The Bears coming off of a freak season playing their home game after a bye. Same outcome. Bears disappoint again. The defense was completely dismantled by Jake Delhomme, who obviously deserves a lot of credit. I've always said what separates the good from great QB's is winning road playoff games. Delhomme is making a habit of it now (@ StL, @ Philly, @ NYG, @ Chic). Steve Smith is an absolutely amazing WR, but his antics are ridiculous. My only question to Lovie Smith is this: Why did you start off the game firing the ball all over the field? RUN THE BALL!! That's what got you here.
Championship Previews
Steelers @ Broncos (-3.5)
There's one player that will determine the outcome of this game. Jake Plummer. If Mike Shanahan can lead Jake Plummer to the Super Bowl, they should just put Shanny into Canton immediately (sorry Tang). Would I bet on it? He!l no. Especially the way the Steelers have been playing the last 6 weeks. I'm not going to embarrass my self and even make a pick on these games anymore. I'll just say this, look for the Steelers to pound the ball on the ground much more than vs. the Colts. For the Broncos, they really need to throw the ball. The Steelers still have some weaknesses vs. the pass, in my opinion and Plummer will have to take advantage to win.
Panthers @ Seahawks (-5)
I look at this game as the battle of the 2 QB's who are looking for respect. Matt Hasselbeck and Jake Delhomme will get a chance to emerge as top flight QB's in the NFL. Making 2 Super Bowls for Delhomme would be incredible, especially considering he would have had to win 4 straight road games to get there (don't forget Atlanta at the end of the year). Matt Hasellbeck has been solid, and almost spectacular all year, and could cap the year with a trip to Detroit. Shaun Alexander's health is a key here. With DeShaun Foster out with a broken ankle, Seattle has to have the advantage.
One side note: Ever notice that EVERY team, after they win, says that "Nobody gave us a chance, nobody thought we could win" blah blah blah. No matter who wins next weekend, they'll say "Nobody gave us a shot". Brutal. It's purely a self motivational "us vs. the World technique".
The Phillies should go after David Wells or Jeff Weaver. Drexel stinks. Peyton Manning is overrated (DE - CAF .. DE - CAF!) BTW, how annoying has that Peyton Manning commercial gotten? Let's move on to the NBA...
NBA - Derreck Sura
- Philadelphia managed to hold on to the 7th seed in the East by going 2-1 for the week. The Sixers (18-18) beat two bad teams, which is what they should do, but it's hard for me to get exited about that. I discovered a new statistic this week called strength of schedule (SoS). It's pretty basic in that it tabulates your opponent's winning percentage. Philly's SoS ranks 27th so far, or 4th easiest, with a .487 winning percentage for the teams they've played. That further illustrates what I've been saying for weeks now that the Sixers' schedule is about to get noticeably tougher.
With the season approaching the half way mark, the dog days of the NBA are upon us. Rookies are hitting the wall, the constant travel is wearing the players down, and injuries are taking their toll. Which is why having a decent bench is so important. This is an area where the Sixers are lacking big time, and as the quality of their opponents starts to get better, I think this weakness is about to catch up with them. Just look at the scoring numbers. John Salmons leads this motley crew with 7.8 points per game. Followed by Steven Hunter 5.1 ppg, Lee Nailon 4.1 ppg, Shavlik Randolph 2.6 ppg, Matt Barnes 2 ppg, Michael Bradley 1.7 ppg, and Kevin Ollie 1.7 ppg. Yikes. The minutes they play are no better either. Salmons again leads the charge at 22.9 minutes per game. Then Hunter 18.3 mpg, Nailon 10.8 mpg, and Ollie 10.2 mpg are the only guys averaging double digit playing time. Shav 9 mpg, Barnes 7.8 mpg, and Bradley 7.4 mpg bring up the rear. Even though most of those dudes stink, I think coach Maurice Cheeks would be wise to play four of them 15+ minutes a night so his main players have something left for the second half of the year.
This week brings Philly: @Washington, New Jersey, Memphis, @Minnesota. The Wizards have been playing better lately, and are on a three game winning streak. You can expect tonight's game to feature plenty of offense and next to no defense. The Nets have slipped a little with Richard Jefferson out of the lineup, but this will still be a tough test for the Sixers. I don't give Philly much of a chance to beat the Grizzlies. The Timberwolves on Sunday will be another difficult game for the Sixers. 2-2 would constitute a good week for them in my book.
- Everyone that follows the NBA closely knows that Shaquille O'Neal's career has been on the downward slide for the last three years (including this one). I'm here to tell you that I've noticed another super star who is starting to lose half a step or so. The player is Kevin Garnett. I know he's only 29, but this is already his 11th season in the NBA. I think all that banging down low is finally starting to take a toll on KG's slim frame. His numbers are basically the same across the board with a few exceptions. His assists are down from 5.7 apg last year to 4.9 apg this, but that's more because of his teammates then anything else. His shooting percentage has improved from last season (50.2% to 54.7%). I think that comes with maturity and experience though. However, the telling dip is in KG's rebounding numbers. He is down to 11.2 rpg, which is his lowest average since 1998-99 (10.4 rpg). Rebounding is all about energy and athleticism, and from watching "Ticket" play this year, he seems to be lacking in both departments (from what he used to be of course).
I suppose he could be depressed or something about the Timberwolves (17-17) prospects for the future. Or maybe he's realized that the prime of his career was wasted by poor management in Minnesota. I think that's selling KG short though. The guy has never given less then 100% every night, and has always been a team player with less then great talent around him. Which is exactly why I think he's starting to slip. Look, Garnett is still a great player. His Player Efficiency Rating (John Hollinger) is third overall at 27.64. His +/- (Roland Rating) is ninth at +12.9. Not to mention he ranks 2nd in FG%, 5th in rebounds, and 16th in points. He's obviously still a top five player in the league. KG is not on the down hill slide yet, but my point is that he has reached the top of the mountain, and now has the bottom clearly in sight.
- Carmelo Anthony's career has been up and down, to be kind. Even though Denver's record (19-19) doesn't show it, I think Melo has turned a corner in his development as a player. The Nuggets still have no outside shooter, and have been without their entire projected big man rotation basically all year. With Kenyon Martin looking like he may never be the same again, Anthony has assumed the vocal leadership role for Denver. Being a vocal leader means nothing if you can't produce on the court ( i.e. K-Mart), which is why Melo's teammates are listening to him now. I shutter to think where the Nugs would be this season without the new and improved version of Anthony.
Gone are the days of Carmelo jacking up wild shots to "get his". I'm not sure if it's more experience, George Karl's coaching, or just plain old maturity that's made the difference, but Melo clearly has a better understanding of how to be a big time NBA scorer. He's shooting a career high 46.6% from the field. Not great, but much better then his first two seasons (42.6% & 43.1%). What makes it more impressive is that he's taking the most shots of his young career too (18.8 FGA's). There's still more. He's also getting to the free throw more then ever ( 9.4 FTA's, tied for 5th overall).
What does this all mean? Well first off he's averaging a career high 25.4 points (8th overall), but it's how he's getting them that makes the difference. Melo mixes up his game much better now. He can still shoot the mid-range jumper, either by spotting up or off the dribble, with the best of them. That's nothing new. The difference in his game now is that when his shot isn't falling he doesn't force it anymore. Now he'll take slower players to the hole and post up smaller players on the nights when his J is off. Now whether that translates into an All-Star appearance in February remains to be seen. In the long run though, he'll be a better teammate and win more game as a result of diversifying his game.
- Richard Jefferson has missed the last three games for the Nets with back spasms. Not surprisingly, New Jersey (19-15) has lost all three. RJ had an MRI on Friday, which was negative, but it did show a muscle strain. He already tried to come back on Saturday in Dallas, but re-aggravated it warming up. He says he hopes to return Monday for Indiana, but I'd say the smart money is on him returning for Philadelphia on Wednesday. The Nets have used Jacque Vaughn in RJ's place, sliding Vince Carter over to SF and Jason Kidd to SG. Needless to say, that hasn't worked out very well. NJ's weakness is their depth, and as this injury shows, they can't survive for long without their "Big 3" healthy.
Indiana (20-15) has been without starting PG Jamaal Tinsley for seven games with a torn right biceps muscle. Tinsley was originally supposed to miss only three games, but according to him he's "not close to coming back". He goes on "You can't set a timetable on this. It ain't no telling when I'll be ready." Poor English aside, Jamaal is an important piece to the Pacers when healthy. Thing is, that hasn't been very often over the past three seasons. Indy should be fine in the short term with veteran Anthony Johnson replacing Tinsley in the starting lineup and Sarunas Jasikevicius backing him up. The scary news for the Pacers is that Jermaine O'Neal sprained his left ankle Saturday in Chicago. It's not supposed to be too serious, but JO is questionable for Monday's game in New Jersey. Indy is struggling as it is, and they can ill afford to be without O'Neal for an extended period.
Elton Brand has missed the Clippers (19-14) last two games with a bruised right hip. Los Angeles won both of those games, but will not be able to maintain for long minus their best player. Brand dressed for Saturday's game against Seattle, but didn't play. Supposedly he's day to day, so all you Clips' fans out there can breathe easy.
The Houston Rockets' big free agent signing this summer, Stromile Swift, has missed the last three games with a scratched left eye. I wonder if anybody even noticed? The Rockets (12-23) are the most injury ravaged team in the NBA by far. Which is why I've been puzzled all season at coach Jeff Van Gundy's refusal to play Swift more. If Vice President Carroll Dawson didn't know about Stro's low basketball IQ before signing him for four years and 22.4 million, he just didn't do his homework.
Last Tuesday Utah's Carlos Boozer had his third setback rehabbing his injured left hamstring. This is the second consecutive time he was "close" to being back only to have it "tighten up" again. Honestly, this is some kind of joke right? Who misses an entire season with a strained hammy? I'm sure the Jazz (19-18) would love to move Boozer for some back court help, but finding someone to take the 47.4 million and four years left on his deal is pretty much mission impossible at this point.
NHL Week In Review By : Ed Wasser
- Well, that didn't take long. 11 games into his tenure as the new Penguins head coach and after a lazy, "I don't feel like washing my hair so I'm not going to sweat during this game", 3 - 1 loss at home to the Oilers Michel Therrien held a post game press conference and baby, IT WAS ON!!! Therrien didn't have a Hal McRae-esque melt down but he certainly took the players to task. Therrien speaks in broken English so I'm going to paraphrase some of his remarks. Therrien said the Penguins are "pathetic", the players don't care, they only pretend like they care, the player's paychecks should be cut in half because they only play half the time, the defense is "soft", and he believes the defensemen are actively "trying to be the worst defensive squad in the league. And they're doing at great job at it". But the nuclear bomb that Therrien dropped that really got everyone's attention was when he blasted the Penguins sparkling new $25 million free agent pick up, defenseman Sergei Gonchar. Therrien called Gonchar a......well, my mother reads this column so I won't repeat it but trust me it wasn't pretty.
The day after the Therrien blasting I was looking at the games coming up on my NHL package and I see the Penguins are playing the Blue Jackets in Columbus. Normally I wouldn't gravitate to that game but I was curious to see how the Penguins would react after being called "bleeping bleeps that don't bleep for bleep" by their coach. OK, so the stage is set. Now imagine the absolute worst case scenario humanly possible for the Penguins in this game, multiply that by 17, and you'll have the result of this game. First of all, a few hours before the game, the Penguins found out that their number one goalie, Jocelyn Thibault, is gone for the season. The Penguins had to start rookie goalie Dany Sabourin (who?). 10 seconds, that's one and zero seconds, into the game Sabourin tried to clear the puck but put it right on Blue Jacket Rick Nash's stick who could have got on his knees and blew the puck into the net if he wanted to. Naturally Nash buried the chance for a goal. Therrien looked like he had just seen the Creature From The Black Lagoon crawl out of his toilet, I mean he just couldn't believe it. 10 freaking seconds!!! Then before the first commercial break it was 2 - 0. The game was 6 - 1 after 2 periods and that's the way it ended. Please believe me when I tell you that 6 - 1 makes the game sound closer then it was, the Blue Jackets pretty much quit playing after the second period. The Penguins are ATROCIOUS and Therrien was right...they don't care.
- From the Conspiracy Theory Department.....did you ever notice that the ultra wacky, drug guzzling members of Celebrity Fit Club members aren't really all that fat? Daniel Baldwin, Gary Busey, Jani Lane, and now Jeff Conaway are portly but not morbidly obese. Could it be that the producers of Celebrity Fit Club are sacrificing chubby for nutty? Could it be that the producers are knowingly putting drug addicts on the show to increase ratings? Could it be that I wrote this blurb because I couldn't think of anything else to write? We may never know the answers to these questions.
- Reason number 77,098 why referees, umpires, and officials in all sports from college on up are inept and generally out of control. Last Tuesday San Jos? Shark Joe Thorton made his much anticipated return to Boston, a game that may have been the biggest hockey game in Boston since the Bruins were in the finals in 1990. 6 minutes into the game Thorton hit Bruin and his off ice best friend Hall Gill from behind, the hit was certainly a penalty but it was just a normal hockey hit. Gill hit the ice and hurt his shoulder, but the shoulder Gill hurt was left shoulder, Thorton hit him on the right. Not only did referee Chris Rooney give Thorton a penalty, he gave him a game misconduct a.k.a. throwing Thorton out of the game. Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, was stunned. It was a total joke. Bruins fans were even booing. After the game guess who also said the game misconduct was a joke? Hall Gill. As soon as I think the worst officials are in college football I see a horrifically officiated game in the NFL. As soon as I think the worst officials are in the NFL I see a horrifically officiated game in the NHL. As soon as I think the worst officials are in the NHL I see a horrifically officiated game in the NBA. As soon as I think the worst officials are are in the NBA I see the grand daddy of all bad officials....BOXING!!!!
- While I'm on the subject of boxing Mike Francesa had a GREAT point about boxing on the "Mike and The Mad Dog" show on The Fan in New York. Francesa was talking about the HBO show "Real Sports" and his point was simply this.....has there ever been a sport that deserved it's own segment on "Real Sports" more then boxing? Boxing is more crooked and corrupt then the presidential voting in Cuba but HBO never mentions it. Why? Because HBO is in bed with boxing that's why. Obviously I agree with Francesa but I'll take it a little further....ever see the stories about boxers on "Real Sports"? They make them out to be modern day, noble gladiators of meager means who have achieved excellence which may be true in some cases but enough with the infomercials, how about a real story.
- I dunno, you all tell me. I think this may have been a tad racist but it happened a few weeks ago and I haven't heard anything so maybe I'm off base. The Vancouver Canucks have a line that features Henrik Sedin, his twin brother Daniel, and Anson Carter who is a black guy. The Hockey News had a blurb that said "we have a suggestion for a nickname for the Sedin, Sedin, and Carter line in Vancouver. The Three Brothers Line". When I read it it just seemed like it was, maybe not racist but certainly inappropriate. Maybe I'm nuts.
- I'm was watching Nashville playing Carolina on the NHL Package last Friday night, it was the Nashville broadcast and during the commercials I start fiddling with my computer. That's when I heard former Flyers player, former Flyers coach, and current Predator color man Terry Crisp do a promo and saying "and don't miss T.B.D.S.S.P. because tonight yada, yada, yada" Huh? What the hell is T.B.D.S.S.P.? So later in the game I hear it again and that's when they flash the graphic, Crisp was talking about "The Best Damn Sports Show Period" but he either wouldn't say the name of the show (which is hard to believe because Crisp is Canadian and they curse on TV in Canada) or he wasn't allowed to say it. Nashville is the buckle of the Bible belt after all.
- Before I start this I wanna say A.) I am quite aware that hockey is a business and that businesses exist for the sole purpose of making money and B.) nobody owes anybody a living. With that said the way the Tampa Bay Lightning handled first ballot Hall Of Famer and Lightning captain Dave Andreychuk was a disgrace. GOD I WISH I COULD CURSE IN THIS SPACE!!! They have crazy wording but for all intents and purposes Andreychuk was released by the Lightning last week and, despite the fact that he willed (WILLED!!!) the Lightning to that Stanley Cup in 2004, he was forced to hold a humiliating press conference in which he was pretty much expected to either become a minor league hockey player, riding a bus 12 hours a day in between games, or quit the game. Andreychuk decided to quit. Seriously, think about this, every reporter at the Andreychuk press conference last week was in tears because it was obvious to all that a stone cold shafting was in progress. Andreychuk said in his press conference with an ear to ear grin on his face "people tell me that the new game is too fast for me. Well, the game has been too fast for me for the last 10 years. Hey, I tried. The only person I can think of that left the game on his own terms is Ray Bourque. So well, if nothing else at least I can say I went down swinging". Wow. So after an amazing 1759 games played before winning a Stanley Cup, being second all time in points scored by a left winger, and being a no doubt about it first ballot Hall of Famer it's over for Dave Andreychuk. That's cool but Lightning coach John Tortorella and GM Jay Feaster should be, and I predict will be, embarrassed by the way they handled the whole thing.
- The Flyers ended their 11 game road trip and have finally returned home. The final 3 games on the road trip were a 3 - 0 loss in New Jersey, a 5 - 2 win against the pathetic Blackhawks, and a 6 - 3 loss to the Red Wings. The loss to the Red Wings was understandable, after an 11 game road trip it's tough to keep up the momentum. When the Flyers got home they had a game against the Avalanche. The Flyers lost the game 4 - 3 but it was brought along by a ridiculous hooking penalty called in overtime against Flyers defensemen Mike Rathje. On the penalty Rathje just touched Joe Sakic who promptly dove like Greg Louganis and drew the penalty. So the Flyers lost 3 out of their last 4 but most people aren't concerned, the road trip, which I would argue was unfair, is finally over so I believe the Flyers will now get back to their earlier winning ways.
posted by Monday Morning Mehta at 9:37 AM
1 Comments:
Give Manning a break, he's a top 2 or 3 QB in the NFL...
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