Mayne Street, 4.1: "You Don't Know Pain"
This episode features daredevil Travis Pastrana and some very stiff acting by Matthew Berry, a.k.a. The Talented Mr. Roto.
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Washington Redskins 2010 Team Needs
As part of our 2010 NFL Draft coverage, I will be breaking down individual needs for all 32 teams, starting in reverse alphabetical order. First up, the Washington Redskins.
1. Offensive Line
People can blame former head coach Jim Zorn for all of the Redskins’ offensive woes last season, but the fact of the matter is that if the team doesn’t re-build their offensive line this offseason then Mike Shanahan won’t succeed either. Shanahan will implement the zone blocking scheme in Washington, but the problem is he doesn’t currently have the right players to fit the scheme. Chris Samuels (neck) career is in jeopardy, Randy Thomas isn’t durable and is aging, and the team lacks serious depth at all five positions. There’s a large contingent that thinks the Skins should draft a quarterback in April, but offensive line is far and away their biggest need and might be addressed with the No. 4 overall pick in the first round.
2. Running back
Clinton Portis has clearly lost a step, but what’s worse is that he began the offseason by criticizing Jason Campbell for not being a leader and just recently, he admitted to asking for fullback Mike Sellers to be benched during a game last season. The problem is that even if the Skins did want to rid themselves of Portis, he’s guaranteed $6.43 million in 2010. Regardless, running back remains a need, as Laddell Betts, Quinton Gantehr and Marcus Mason should be viewed only for depth purposes.
3. Quarterback
This is all contingent on whether or not Shanahan views Jason Campbell as the right player to run his offense. Campbell isn’t Joe Montana, but he would be fine if he had more weapons at his disposal and played behind a real offensive line. But if Shanahan wants to draft a quarterback at No. 4, then Campbell will likely serve as the starter until the young signal caller is ready to take over. But if the Redskins do go that route, they run the risk of alienating Campbell (which Daniel Snyder did last year too by pursing free agent Byron Leftwich), who may request a trade. We’ll see what Shanahan decides.
Cornerback and overall depth in the secondary are also needs for the Skins this offseason.
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Will the Saints look to trade Bush this offseason?
One of the main questions that the Super Bowl champion Saints will need to answer this offseason is whether or not they will retain Reggie Bush for 2010. He’s still under contract for another year, but he’s due $8 million, which is hefty price tag for a part-time player.
Bush has never shown the ability to consistently run between the tackles and his durability is always a concern, but he will still be a hot commodity if the Saints decide to move him this offseason. He’s a threat to score with the ball in his hands, is a dangerous punt returner and is also the very definition of a playmaker. Some team would want him if he were to become available, especially if New Orleans agrees to pay part of his salary (or even if they don’t).
I can’t help making the obvious connection between Bush and the Seattle Seahawks, who recently hired former USC head coach Pete Carroll and who are in desperate need of offensive playmakers. If anyone knew how to best utilize Bush’s talent, it would be Carroll and offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates.
But let’s get back to the original question: Will the Saints look to move Bush this offseason? An outright release seems unlikely given that he’s only 24 and still adds value to their offense and on special teams. He proved his worth in the playoffs and even at $8 million, he’s worth 10 touchdowns a year in some capacity.
The problem is that the Saints have 18 restricted free agents, including Bush’s fellow backfield mate Pierre Thomas, All-Pro guard Jahri Evans, safety Roman Harper and offensive tackles Jermon Bushrod and Jammal Brown. Even in an uncapped year, $8 million would go a long way for a team that needs new deals for the aforementioned starters, not to mention unrestricted free agents like Darren Sharper and Scott Fujita.
The Saints have an interesting dilemma on their hands this offseason when it comes to whether or not to retain Bush. Considering they just won the Super Bowl, now isn’t the best time to start ripping their team apart but $8 million is a lot of dough to give one player when a team has 21 pending free agents to worry about.
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Why would the Sixers do a three-way deal for Stoudemire?
The Arizona Republic is suggesting that the Sixers could do a three-way deal that would send Amare Stoudemire to Detroit instead of dealing directly with the Suns.
Possibilities with Philadelphia could be stronger with two fronts, a deal between bringing in swingman Andre Iguodala for Stoudemire with perhaps young power forward Marreese Speights or a three-way deal involving Detroit with Pistons guard Ben Gordon winding up in Philadelphia and the Suns getting Iguodala and Detroit power forward Chris Wilcox. The rub with Iguodala, a 26-year-old former Arizona star, is inheriting a contract that will pay him $56.5 million over the next four seasons.
This sounds like wishful speculation. First, both Marc Stein and Chad Ford have confirmed that it's the Sixers holding up an Iguodala-and-Dalembert for Stoudemire deal, so why would Philly give up the promising young Speights instead?
Secondly, why would they trade Iggy, an elite defender who can score, for Ben Gordon, an excellent shooter but just a mediocre defender? It's not like Gordon's contract (four years, $48 million) is that much better than Iguodala's (four years, $57 million). Not enough to justify the drop off on defense, anyway.
While I love the NBA trade deadline, I'm ready for it to get here already. The amount of misinformation and speculation that happens on a daily basis is mind-boggling.
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Four landing spots for Julius Peppers
Julius Peppers is ruling out a long-term deal with the Panthers, making it more and more likely that he won’t return to Carolina next season.
With that in mind, here are four possible landing spots for the defensive end next season.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles are loaded with depth at the defensive end position, headlined by Trent Cole and rounded out by Juqua Parker, Darren Howard, Victor Abiamiri, Chris Clemons and Jason Babin. But they still lack that playmaker opposite Cole that could really wreak some havoc in defensive coordinator Sean McDermott’s aggressive scheme. Unless a sleeper prospect falls to them in the middle rounds, it’s unlikely that the Eagles will be able to address their defensive end need via the draft. That’s where Peppers comes in. If Philly decides to be aggressive this offseason, they may try to acquire Peppers whether the Panthers decide to franchise tag him or not. (They may be in line to acquire more draft picks if/when they trade Kevin Kolb, Donovan McNabb or Michael Vick.) Paired with Cole, the Eagles would have one of the best pass-rushing tandems in the league.
Atlanta Falcons
Jamaal Anderson hasn’t turned out to be the pass-rushing force opposite John Abraham that the Falcons envisioned he would be when they selected the former Razorback with the eighth overall pick in 2007. Worse yet, after racking up 16.5 sacks in 2008, Abraham (the team’s best pass rusher) only produced 5.5 QB take downs last season and will turn 32 in early May. Some feel as though Abraham has lost a step, but he would flourish playing opposite Peppers on the same defensive line. Pep would also make the vastly underrated Jonathan Babineaux and 2009 first round pick Peria Jerry even more dangerous on the inside, but the question now becomes whether or not the Falcons will be active in free agency. GM Thomas Dimitroff didn’t make any significant splashes last offseason, instead opting to build his roster via the draft. But if Dimitroff decides to be aggressive, then Peppers makes a lot of sense for a team like Atlanta, which is clearly on the rise but needs to plug some of its defensive holes.
New England Patriots
Rumors surfaced last offseason that New England was a possible landing spot for Peppers, so it makes sense that the Pats would be viewed as candidates again this year. The Patriots definitely have a need for a pass rusher and Peppers said last year that he wanted to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme. Given that Adalius Thomas has fallen out of favor with Bill Belichick, there could be a spot opening up in the Pats’ defense. But considering players like Tom Brady, Vince Wilfork, Logan Mankins and Stephen Gostkowski all need new contracts, New England might decide to spend its money on retaining its own players instead of acquiring outside help like Peppers. Plus, keep in mind that the Patriots were burned in the Thomas deal, so they may be reluctant to shell out big bucks for another pass-rusher.
Carolina Panthers
There’s still a possibility that the Panthers will franchise Peppers again like they did last year. The problem with that is it'll cost them roughly $20.1 million and therefore, it’s unlikely that they’ll go that route. Instead, they’ll probably make Pep their best offer and if he decides that the grass is greener in another stadium, then he’ll exit Carolina stage left. Of course, they could always franchise him and then try to trade him in order to get some form of compensation, but if they don’t find a willing trade partner than they could wind up footing the $20.1 million bill for him next season. Carolina seems like an unlikely destination for Peppers next year, but given how much history the two have together nobody should be surprised if he has a change of heart and returns to the Panthers in 2010.
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NFL Network pursuing Chris Berman…why?
According to the Big Lead, the NFL Network is heavily pursuing ESPN talking head Chris Berman, whose contract expires at the “World Wide Leader” in three months.
If Berman were to move to the NFL Network, it would reunite him with longtime ESPN associate Steve Bornstein, who rose in the ranks alongside Berman in the 80s. A separate source says that Berman and Bornstein – currently President of the NFL Network – are very close, having known each other for almost 30 year.The question for Berman is simple: Will the lure of more money for less work trump Berman’s love for baseball and the significantly broader audience at ESPN? In addition to Berman’s NFL duties at ESPN, he’s been calling the Home Run Derby for over 20 years and occasionally calls baseball games for the network as well as hosts Baseball Tonight from time-to-time. Two years ago, ESPN VP of production Norby Williamson said of Berman, “He is our most important person, he is the face of ESPN.”
Berman stopped being funny in the late 90s and his shtick is old. He’s a shell of his former self and I don’t know why any network would fork over tons of dough in order to woo him into their broadcasting chair. But hey, that’s just me.
The kicker is that DirecTV is also rumored to be hot and heavy for Berman, too. Apparently neither network has watched ESPN since 1998. That's the only reason I can think of as to why both the NFL Network and DirecTV would fight (if you can even call it that) over Chris Berman.
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#5 Villanova beats #4 West Virginia
The Wildcats upended the Mountaineers, 82-75, in Morgantown behind 21 points from Scottie Reynolds and 17 points from Corey Fisher.
In Reynolds, Fisher and Reggie Redding, Villanova certainly has the guard play to make a deep run come March, but they lack the size inside to handle the likes of Kansas's Cole Aldrich or Kentucky's DeMarcus Cousins. I think 'Nova will run into trouble in a matchup with Kansas and Kentucky because both teams have good guard play and the requisite size down low.
The Mountaineers look like another Bobby Huggins-coached team. They're physical and play good defense, but can go through long stretches where they have trouble scoring.
NBA.com's David Aldridge does not like to write trade columns, but fans love them, so he relented. Here are a few of the more interesting tidbits:
...by this time next week, it's almost a certainty that Caron Butler will be gone from Washington, and highly likely that Tyrus Thomas will no longer be a Bull. By the 18th, Indiana's Troy Murphy and Philly's Andre Iguodala are certain to have new addresses as well, though those teams may well go right up until the 3 p.m. deadline to max out their suitors' offers.
Not a bad start. Aldridge predicts at least two stars (Butler, Iguodala) and two starter-quality players (Murphy, Thomas) will be on the move. Here's what he says about Butler:
The Wizards' desire to move Butler has only increased in recent days, since they found out they will indeed get some cap relief from the NBA this season after losing Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton to suspension for the rest of the season. Washington's cap number will be reduced almost $4 million, according to sources -- pro-rated amounts of the remainder of Arenas's $16.1 million and Crittenton's $1.47 million salaries -- taking its cap number to a little more than $74 million. The cap threshhold is $69.9 million, meaning Washington could avoid paying tax if it can pare another $4 to $5 million in salaries off its books.That means Butler, though I suspect the Wizards will ask inquiring teams to remove Mike James and/or DeShawn Stevenson from their payroll as well.
Butler winding up somewhere in Texas is most likely, with Washington probably deciding between Dallas' and Houston's competing offers before next week's All-Star Game. The Wizards are determined to get a young player back, though, and the Mavericks' only non-geezer is rookie guard Rod Beaubois -- while Houston has a young guard like Kyle Lowry and an expiring big man contract in forward Luis Scola to pair with McGrady's $22 million expiring deal.
With the way Antawn Jamison has been playing (22-10-2 in February), some consider him to be the Wizards' most valuable trade asset. But at 33 years old and with a tough contract to swallow (two more years at the tune of $28.4 million), I believe Caron Butler is the better acquisition. Butler is four years younger and has just one year remaining ($10.6 million). Butler has had his ups and downs this season, but he's a swingman in his prime and he proved he still has it in a brilliant 31-point, nine-rebound effort against the Magic the other night.
From a pure personnel standpoint, the acquisition of Butler makes more sense for the Mavericks, who would like to upgrade from Josh Howard. A small-ball lineup of Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, Caron Butler, Shawn Marion and Dirk Nowitzki would be pretty scary.
The Rockets already have Trevor Ariza and Shane Battier at small forward, so Houston's interest seems to be more of the "buy low" variety, and that's not a bad way to go about things. Daryl Morey has T-Mac's $22 million expiring deal and several young assets -- Lowry, Carl Landry and Chase Budinger -- to dangle.
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2010 Super Bowl surpasses finale of “M*A*S*H”
Super Bowl XLIV between the Saints and Colts was watched by more than 106 million people, which surpassed the 1983 finale of “M*A*S*H” to become the most-watched program in U.S. television history.
From ESPN.com:
Nielsen estimated Monday that 106.5 million people watched Sunday's Super Bowl. The "M*A*S*H" record was 105.97 million.The "M*A*S*H" record has proven as durable and meaningful in television as Babe Ruth's record of 714 home runs was in baseball until topped by Hank Aaron. Ultimately, it may be hard to tell which program was really watched by more people. There's a margin for error in such numbers, and Nielsen's Monday estimate was preliminary, and could change with a more thorough look at data due Tuesday.
"It's significant for all of the members of the broadcasting community," said Leslie Moonves, CBS Corp. CEO. "For anyone who wants to write that broadcasting is dead, 106 million people watched this program. You can't find that anywhere else."
And people wonder why companies spend so much on one 30 second commercial during the Super Bowl. It’s incredibly hard to get that many people to tune into your product or brand at one given time, so companies have no problem shelling out millions for ads on Super Bowl Sunday.
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Will the Saints become a dynasty?
I know what you’re thinking: Great, the Saints win one Super Bowl and now the media wants to anoint them the Steelers of the 70s, the 49ers of the 80s or the Cowboys of the early 90s.
Relax – I’m not doing that. But I bring the topic up because there’s a case to be made that the Saints have all the pieces in place to become a mini-dynasty this decade.
Over the next couple weeks, the Saints will ensure that centerpiece Drew Brees finishes his career in New Orleans by giving him a very large contract extension. Whenever the time is right, they’ll also do the same with head coach Sean Payton and make sure that defensive coordinator Gregg Williams is happy where he’s at in order to keep their two playcallers intact for years to come as well.
With those three vital pieces in place, the Saints could challenge for multiple Super Bowls and not be a one-year wonder. Continuity breeds success and considering they have a family-like atmosphere in their locker room, the team won’t have a hard sell on its hands in trying to bring free agents like Darren Sharper back to New Orleans next season.
But as I’ve highlighted below (after the jump), they do have some huge hurdles to overcome if they want to build upon their success from the 2009-2010 season.
No team repeats in the NFC
Over the last five years, there has only been one team to make a repeat performance in the NFC Championship Game, which ironically enough, was the Saints (2007, 2009). Since 2002, there has been a different NFC representative in the Super Bowl every year, unlike in the AFC where the Steelers, Patriots and Colts made multiple appearances. This is perhaps the weakest argument against the Saints becoming a dynasty because it has more to do with history than what actually happens between the hash marks, but it’s worth noting that no team has repeated in the NFC since the Cowboys in 1993 and 1994.
Decisions, decisions
The Saints have several key decisions to make this offseason, including what to do with their 18 restricted free agents. They have the right to matchup any offer for All-Pro guard Jahri Evans, running back Pierre Thomas, safety Roman Harper and offensive tackles Jermon Bushrod and Jammal Brown, but will one or more teams price the Saints out for these starters? Will the Saints try and keep key reserve players like Anthony Hargrove or David Thomas? Is Reggie Bush (a role player at this point in Payton’s offense) worth the $8 million he’s scheduled to receive next season? Mickey Loomis has a ton of decisions to make to ensure that the Saints can make a run next year, not to mention the next couple years.
Is their defense good enough?
For three quarters on Sunday night, Williams’ defense shut down Peyton Manning and the Colts’ offense. They were impressive in all three levels and it’s a testament to the job Williams did this year in reviving a unit that has held the Saints back over the years. But the numbers suggest that New Orleans’ D wasn’t as improved as many made it out to be. They finished 25th overall, including 26th against the pass and 21st against the run. They also finished 20th in points allowed after surrendering 21.3 PPG this season. Granted, anyone who watched the Saints play this year knows full well that their defense produced in the clutch. Tracy Porter’s interception of Manning with less than four minutes remaining in the Super Bowl is evidence of that. But if Sharper and/or Harper don’t return, they’ll need to fill both safety positions next year and they could also stand to get more athletic at linebacker. Even though the Saints’ offense is outstanding and the defense played well this season, it doesn’t mean that Williams’ squad couldn’t stand an upgrade at some spots.
The NFC South is tough
If history is any indication, then the Panthers are going to be playoff contenders again next year. They’ve been the model for inconsistency under head coach John Fox over the years, but they’re due to be “on” again in 2010. The Falcons also have a solid young core and gave the Saints trouble twice this season and if they continue to add pieces to their defense, Atlanta will be in the playoff hunt again next season. The Bucs are presumably still a couple of years away from competing for a playoff spot, but they did beat the Saints in New Orleans late in the year and turnarounds in the NFL happen quickly. If the Saints are to go on a run over the next couple years, it’s not going to be easy playing six games against the Panthers, Falcons and Bucs every season. Not to mention the fact that they'll have a first place schedule and will become the targets of every team in the league.
Keeping all of these factors in mind, can the Saints become a dynasty in your mind?
n
{democracy:197}
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Tebow’s Super Bowl ad hardly worth the stir
The most anticipated Super Bowl ad came and went on Sunday night without causing the stir many people thought it would. In fact, it’s safe to say that one could have seen it and still completely missed its message.
Leading up to the Super Bowl, the conservative group Focus on the Family put together a 30 second ad starring Tim Tebow and his mother, in which the former Heisman Trophy winner’s mom talks about how she nearly lost him during her pregnancy. The commercial sparked debate before it was even broadcast because of its expected anti-abortion overtones.
Here’s the ad:
When I first heard about the ad, I thought it was going to be an in-your-face message speaking out against abortion. Instead, the ad was light – almost hokey even, and I thought it did its best to steer away from controversy. It makes you wonder what all the fuss was about before it aired. (Although I get why some people didn’t want it to be shown when they first heard about it.)
On a related note, did anyone else feel as though the commercials for the Super Bowl this year were average at best? The laughs came and went for me after Betty White was trying to run a dig route over the middle of a tackle football game and got plastered. But even that one fizzled at the end.
I must admit the Doritos samurai guy was pretty funny too, although anyone that had a full laugh come out of their mouth during that Bud Light auto-tune commercial featuring T-Pain needs to be beaten with a sack of dirty underwear. The same goes for that beaver ad.
Did Manning and Wayne display poor sportsmanship?
Following their 31-17 loss to the Saints on Sunday night, Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne jetted off to the locker room like losing players of the Super Bowl always do. But what was noteworthy about their exit was that they ran off without shaking hands with their opponent.
From FOXNews.com:
Manning reacted stoically Sunday night after wide receiver Reggie Wayne dropped his team's last gasp -- a fourth-down pass in the end zone late in the fourth quarter. With hands on hips and his helmet still on, Manning returned to the sideline and stared at a video-board replay. He then headed toward the locker room before the final seconds expired in New Orleans' 31-17 win.Was it poor sportsmanship for not shaking hands with Saints players? Sure. But after what had just transpired in Super Bowl XLIV, I wouldn't want to look back either.
The Boston Globe reports that Manning ran into Darren Sharper on the way out of his postgame press conference and congratulated him “profusely” while shaking his hand and giving him a hug.
"I’ll certainly talk to Drew," Manning said. "I certainly know how it was three years ago when we won. There’s not much consolation for the guys who didn’t win. There’s the stage getting set up and there’s the celebration. That’s the time for the Saints to celebrate. It’s their field. They deserve the moment. I certainly congratulate all their players, their organization. I will speak to Drew Brees, speak to Sean Payton. They deserve all the credit."
Manning is all class and I don’t think he was being a poor sport. Sure, it would have been better had he and Wayne sought out Brees and the Saints on the field, but what’s the difference in them congratulating them immediately after the game or a day later? Showing your respect is the most important thing and it sounds like Manning and Wayne are or did do that.
Neither of those players have history of being poor sports, so I don’t think much should be made out of this.
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Players' union not pleased with proposed CBA
In the strongest comments yet by a players' union official since NBA owners made a new collective bargaining proposal, vice president Adonal Foyle of the Orlando Magic said the offer put forth last week by commissioner David Stern's office is "ludicrous.""I think it's a proposal that's far-reaching," said Foyle, the union's second-in-command behind president Derek Fisher. "This [new proposal] has gone too far. It wants a hard cap, it basically will create no middle class and which, in effect, means none of the Bird rules would apply," Foyle added, referencing the so-called Larry Bird exception that allows teams to exceed the salary cap to retain their own free agents.
In addition to a hard salary cap to replace the current system of a "soft" cap, with its accompanying luxury-tax penalties for teams that exceed a certain payroll threshold ($69.9 million this season), owners have asked that contracts be shortened to a maximum of four years, Foyle said.
A hard cap would likely increase parity. The NFL has a hard cap, so teams have to decide which players to keep even if they have an owner with deep pockets that would be willing to re-sign everyone. This is why dynasties are extinct in the NFL.
NFL stars understand that every dollar they make is a dollar that the club can't spend somewhere else, which is why we often see star players restructure their contracts to free up cap space. A hard salary cap provides a completely level playing field, which is one reason why there is so much parity in the NFL.
The downside to the hard cap, especially in the NBA, is that with only five starters and 7-10 bench players, it's difficult to keep continuity year-to-year. Fans want their teams to be able to keep their star players, which is where those "Larry Bird rights" come in.
I don't see the soft cap as a major problem, but if you look at a list of the top payrolls, there is a direct correlation between money spent and regular season wins. Is it fair? Not really. A hard cap would certainly level the playing field for small market teams like Milwaukee, Minnesota and Sacramento, as they would become far more competitive in the free agent market.
The larger problem is the length of guaranteed player contracts. The proposed CBA would lower the maximum length to four years, which is a good idea. One of the biggest reasons for bloated payrolls is the guaranteed contract. They should shorten the max length or make the last two years of a six-year deal non-guaranteed, which would allow the team to cut the player and only pay, say, 50% of his salary.
In any case, Foyle's comments (i.e. ludicrous, rash, unfair) are worrisome, as it indicates that the two sides are very far apart at this point in time.
Freeney shows his toughness in Super Bowl
One player that will be overlooked in the Colts’ crushing 31-17 loss to the Saints in Super Bowl XLIV is Dwight Freeney, who played the entire game despite having a tear in his right ankle.
Freeney missed two weeks of practice in hopes that his ankle would be completely healed by kickoff and while he wasn’t 100%, he gutted the pain out and turned in a banner first half. In fact, he made one of the best plays of the half when he sacked Drew Brees and forced the Saints to settle for a field goal attempt when they were driving deep into Indianapolis territory in the second quarter.
But following the game, Freeney admitted that the long layoff for halftime hampered his ability to play in the second half. He said his ankle stiffened up and despite his best efforts to loosen up on the sidelines, he just wasn’t the same player that he was in the first half.
Regardless, his teammates respected his effort.
From ESPN.com:
"He worked is tail off, three, four times a day," Colts safety Melvin Bullitt said. "I knew he was going to play. There was no doubt in my mind he wouldn't. That's just the type of person Dwight is. It's hard we couldn't get the win for him with him coming back so soon off an injury like that. It's very disappointing. He came up with a big play at a crucial time for us."
We could play the “what if” game until we’re blue in the face. But had Freeney been healthy and played the entire game at 100%, there’s a possibility that Brees wouldn’t have completed 32-of-39 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns.
Of course, none of that matters to Freeney or the Colts but considering many people (myself included) thought he wouldn’t be effective, what he did in the first half was impressive.
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Bill Simmons' Super Bowl XLIV pick
Like most of us, Bill Simmons fondly remembers when he's right and quickly forgets when he's wrong. For posterity, here is his Super Bowl XLIV pick:
"For me, it comes down to this: I can't pick against Manning in a big game. It's just a bad idea. Hence, I like a relatively close game with Indy prevailing 31-23 (covering the 4½-point spread but hitting the under of 57½). Then we can spend the subsequent week wondering whether Indy could have gone 19-0. That will be a barrel of laughs."
If you were deciding between Simmons and Stalter, let's hope you went with the latter. Stalter picked the Saints outright.