Sports

2012 NFL Mock Draft: 01-16-2012

It is widely assumed that Andrew Luck will go first in the 2012 NFL Draft. Find out where Robert Griffin, III may end up and who your favorite team might be looking to grab in my first mock draft for 2012.

Read more...

Will Peyton and Caldwell be the Next to Go?

With the firing Monday of Bill and Chris Polian in Indianapolis it appears as though the writing may be on the wall as it pertains to the future of the Colts. At the very least it appears that the Polians are the scapegoats for the fiasco of a season the franchise endured in 2011. This is a team that went from 14-2 and being in the Super Bowl after the '09 season to being the worst in the league. We always knew the Colts went as Peyton Manning did, but did we ever expect them to be this awful?

Read more...

NFL Coaches About to be Out of a Job?

Now that the regular season is winding down speculation is about to begin on which coaches will be out of a job.  Some coaches are as good as gone while others will probably have to make some changes to hang onto their current positions.  The Dolphins, Jaguars, and Chiefs have already fired their coaches, the question remains as to who will be joining Tony Sparano, Jack Del Rio, and Todd Haley in the unemployment line.

Raheem Morris, Tampa Bay – Is there any way Morris can save his job after Sunday’s pathetic performance against Atlanta?  Regardless of that, this was supposed to be the year Tampa took another step forward and competed for the NFC Championship.  This was the hot young and up-and-coming team on the rise after last season.  Now they look like just another also-ran.  Josh Freeman seemingly regressed and the defense was a complete mess this season.

Steve Spagnuolo, St. Louis – The NFC West was supposed to be the Rams to lose this season.  Like the Bucs the Rams were supposed to be a young team on the rise and it fell flat and underachieved even more so than Tampa given its lack of overall competition within the division.  With rumors of a new GM coming into St. Louis it seems unlikely Spags keeps his job as he has given the team little reason to retain him.

Norv Turner, San Diego – This season marks the second underwhelming year where the Chargers entered the year as perceived Super Bowl contenders and struggled to hit the .500 mark.  It is probably time for a change in San Diego.

Jim Caldwell, Indianapolis – There has been increasing speculation as the season wore on that Caldwell will not be retained after the season.  A lot will depend on whether the Colts truly believe Peyton Manning has enough left for another run at the Super Bowl or if they are looking at scrapping the whole thing and rebuilding around Andrew Luck.  The entire season cannot be laid at the feet of Caldwell, didn’t we already know the Colts were not even a playoff team without Manning?

Andy Reid, Philadelphia – Reid likely did enough to save his job for one more year by closing the year out winning his last four and five of the last seven games.  They looked like the team everyone thought they were in the month of December.  He may have to make some changes on his defensive coaching staff however.

Tom Coughlin, New York Giants – Coughlin may need to win a playoff game or two to salvage his job.  The Giants have not won a playoff game in the three years since winning the Super Bowl and for the third straight season they have faded badly in the month of December.  He could get a pass for the amount of injuries he had to deal with this season though.

Mike Shanahan, Washington – To date the Shanahan Era in D. C. has been a big disappointment, however, next season will likely be the make-or-break year for him in Washington.

Rex Ryan, New York Jets – Given he led the Jets to back-to-back AFC Championship games the last two years he will probably get a chance to salvage the disappointment that was the 2011 season.  It is hard to see the offensive coaching staff coming back in its entirety though.  They will probably be in the market for a QB guru who can come in and Mark Sanchez’ career back on track.

NBA Things I Think About the Chris Paul Debacle

The whole scenario where the league denied a trade that would have sent Chris Paul to the Lakers really left me scratching my head in more ways than one.

Read more...

MLB: Things I Think About Joe Nathan and the Texas Rangers

Moving Neftali Feliz to the starting rotation and handing the closer role to Joe Nathan seems like a huge gamble and step back for the Texas Rangers.

Read more...

NFL Coaches on the Hot Seat Entering Week 8

As we get deeper into the season more and more coaches will find there jobs in jeopardy as we enter the home stretch of the season. Here are the coaches whose jobs are or could be on the line.

Read more...

NFL Things I Think

These are things I think about the NFL.  I have been thinking…

… Any of the four teams could win the NFC East.

… Tim Tebow = Doug Flutie.  It may not look pretty, but in the end Tebow is a guy who will find ways to win games for the Broncos.

… That I reserve judgement on DeMarco Murray until he does it against a team worth mentioning.  Remember Timmy Smith?  Anyone?

… That I seem to be one of the few that was not bowled over by Christian Ponder’s performance.  He looked pretty much the same as he did at FSU.

… It Seems like teams are starting to figure the Lions out.  To me they are a bit of a one-trick pony on offense and without Jahvid Best they have nobody to make teams respect the run at all.

… Reggie Wayne may have been right about Curtis Painter.  Granted he has not set the league on fire as of yet, but his QB Rating is 20 points higher than Kerry Collins’.

… What happened to the Kyle Orton bandwagon?  Remember when he was a hot commodity this summer?  He seems to be an afterthought now and it appears more and more apparent that his success was more a result of playing in Josh McDaniels’ system than his actual skill as a QB.

… The Carson Palmer trade may eventually pay dividends for the Raiders, I just do not know that it will be this year.

… For all of the talk of Mark Sanchez not progressing he is on pace to set career highs in yards and touchdowns.

… How good would Steve Smith’s career have been if had a QB the caliber of Cam Newton throwing him the ball the bulk of his career?

… Why does ESPN keep trying to promote the idea that NFL teams are tanking games on purpose for the chance to draft Andrew Luck?

… I can’t help but wonder if the Eagles are preparing for life without DeSean Jackson.  It seems like LeSean McCoy is a guy whoo has outplayed his rookie contract and less of a gamble in terms of giving him a big contract.

… Why do Cards fans want the plug pulled on Kevin Kolb already?  Haven’t we already seen that Max Hall and John Skelton are not starting quarterbacks at the NFL level?  Or, is it they want Luck?

… Aldon Smith is the pass rusher the Niners have been looking for since letting Julian Peterson go.

… Chris Johnson is all about Chris Johnson.  I cannot help but think that since he got his money his best days are behind him.

NFL: Breaking Down the NFC East for 2011

Eric Engberg breaks down the NFC East for the upcoming season. Who are Super Bowl favorites, MVP Candidates, and Rookie of the Year candidates. Which coaches may end up on the hot seat this season?

Read more...

Fantasy Football: Pickle’s Picks at Wide Receiver for 2011

As training camps kick off it is time to start thinking about who to target for your fantasy football team. In lieu of assessing every starting WR out there we are going to look at which guys are on the rise, who may be the sleeper picks, who to be wary of, and the rookies that may be worth a look this season.

Read more...

Fantasy Football: Pickle’s Picks at Running Back for 2011

As training camps kick off it is time to start thinking about who to target for your fantasy football team. In lieu of assessing every starting RB out there we are going to look at which guys are on the rise, who may be the sleeper picks, who to be wary of, and the rookies that may be worth a look this season.

Read more...

Fantasy Football: Pickle’s Picks at Quarterback for 2011

As training camps kick off it is time to start thinking about who to target for your fantasy football team. In lieu of assessing every starting QB out there we are going to look at which guys are on the rise, who may be the sleeper picks, who to be wary of, and the rookies that may be worth a look this season.

Read more...

2011 NFL Draft: Breaking Down the NFC East

A breakdown of how the NFC East teams fared in the 2011 NFL Draft.

Read more...

2011 NFL Draft: First Round Breakdown

This year's NFL draft opened about as expected with Cam Newton, Von Miller, Marcell Dareus, A. J. Green, and Patrick Peterson being the first five players picked as was generally expected, but from there things got interesting.

Read more...

2011 NFL Mock Draft: 04-22-2011

With less than a week until the NFL Draft Eric Engberg checks in with his latest mock draft. Who will the Panthers take with the top pick? Will it be Cam Newton, Marcel Dareus, or someone else?

Read more...

2011 NBA Playoffs: Atlanta Hawks vs. Orlando Magic

Eric Engberg checks in with his preview of the Hawks/Magic match up in the first round of the 2011 NBA Playoffs.

Read more...