2011 Sports Preview

 

Husky forward Mathew-Bryan Amaning looks to bring the Huskies to the Big Dance in March.

2010 was a great year full of sporting events. 2011 is sure to have exciting NFL playoffs, the rest of the NBA season, and the start of the next great MLB season.

 

2011 Winter Classic

Sidney Crosby and the rest of the Penguins will host Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals in the annual Winter Classic, which is to be played outside at Heinz Field. The forecast calls for a high of 50°, which is the same as the forecast in PHOENIX, ARIZONA. Along with unusually warm weather, there is also a chance of rain. Due to the weather threats, the game has changed from 1 p.m. EST to 8 p.m. EST. Crosby recently had his 25-game point streak snapped against the Islanders. The two of the best players in the NHL will go against each other in one of the biggest hockey games (aside from the Stanley Cup Playoffs) in the year.

NFL Playoffs

As the NFL regular season is about to come to an end, one cannot forget what all has happened in 2010. 2011 is sure to not disappoint. The MVP of the season is to be chosen and it is most likely between Tom Brady and Michael Vick, one of the most intriguing athletes of 2010. Those MVP candidates have a chance to lead their teams to the Super Bowl in Dallas, Texas. Along with great teams, there are some disappointments. In the NFC West, also known as the NFL Worst, a 7-9 team could make the playoffs. Also, some high profile teams had some upsetting seasons. The preseason Super Bowl favorite Dallas Cowboys lost their “star” quarterback Tony Romo early in the season leaving the team to only have one win heading to November. The Arizona Cardinals had a disappointing season after their Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner retired. The Cardinals had three different quarterbacks (Derek Anderson, Max Hall, John Skelton) start a game, and two of them were rookies, one being undrafted. The Cardinals finish their season in San Francisco and will most likely receive a 10th overall draft pick and will seek for a franchise quarterback.

2010-11 NBA Season

Many people expected the Miami Heat to have the best regular season record of all time and easily make it to the NBA Finals after they got LeBron James and Chris Bosh in free agency and resigned Dwayne Wade, creating their own Big 3. After a slow start, many people questioned their decisions to take their talents to South Beach, but they quickly got their act together. They have won 15 of their last 16 with the lone loss coming to one of the best teams in the Western Conference, the Dallas Mavericks. The Heat are currently .5 games behind the Eastern Conference leading Boston Celtics. In the West, it seems that the season will be a race between three teams: Spurs (28-4), Mavericks (24-7), and the back-to-back champions Lakers (23-10). However, the young OKC Thunder (Sonics forever!) led by Kevin Durant can be a threat in the playoffs.

2011 MLB Season

The next MLB season does not start for a few months, but it is never too early to talk about baseball. The Giants surprised everyone and one the World Series. They were able to win it all with Cody Ross, a normal outfielder from free agency, and Edgar Renteria along with some of the best pitchers in the MLB. The question is… can they repeat? The LeBron James of baseball this offseason was Cliff Lee, the man everyone wanted. Lee ended up with the Phillies, the team he played with 2 years ago in the World Series against the Yankees. Another star free agent was Jayson Werth, previously with the Phillies, who took $126 million for 7-years with a team who has never had a winning season, the Washington Nationals. The Nationals will also have the 18-year-old star Bryce Harper most likely start in the minor leagues but will probably play in the majors by the end of the season. However, “star” pitcher Steven Strasburg will be out for the season from recovering from surgery. The 2011 baseball season is far from starting and predictions will be made later.

BCS Title Game

On January 10, 2011, Auburn and Oregon will play each other to see who is the best team in college football. Click here for previous coverage of BCS Title game.

Husky Basketball

The Huskies ended 2010 on a high note by beating USC and UCLA in Southern California. They are currently 10-3 (2-0 PAC-10) with 2 of their losses coming from the Maui Invitational against then #9 Kentucky and #2 Michigan State. Though the Huskies are no longer ranked, they are still one of the best teams in the country and the best in the PAC-10. 16 of their next 17 games will come against the other PAC-10 schools and they will play Seattle U. The Huskies should easily make the enlarged NCAA Basketball Tournament and have a chance to be a ranked team by the end of the year. Currently they are 3rd in the country in points per game with 87.9 and are no lower than 26th overall in rebounds per game (40.5), assists per game (18.1), and field goal percentage (.483). Senior forward Mathew Bryan-Amaning has developed into a strong post presence and Junior guard Isaiah Thomas has become one of the best guards in the PAC-10.

Super Bowl XLIV

The Super Bowl “Big Game” will be played in Miami for the second time in  four years. The last time the Colts were in the Big Game, it was in Miami also (XLI). This game could have been better if both teams actually tried in the end of the year. The Saints ended the season with a 3-game losing streak and the Colts lost their last two games. This could have easily been the battle of the unbeaten for the Lombardi Trophy.

This game will have another underdog, like the Cardinals of last year, the Giants in XLII, the Bears in XLI, the Seahawks in XL. Let me say this, there have been a lot of likable underdogs playing football in February. Now, let me start talking about the game.

The Colts have the upper hand in most categories.

• Quarterback: Advantage Colts (Manning has experience in the playoffs)
• Receivers: Advantage Colts (Reggie Wayne, Pierre Garcon, Dallas Clark, must I say more?)
• Defense: Advantage Colts (Even though the Saints have Darren Sharper and the Colts will not have a healthy Dwight Freeny, the Colts are better)
• Coach: Advantage Saints (The Colts have a new coach, while Sean Payton is a veteran.)
• Experience: Advantage Colts (They’ve won in Miami in the playoffs before)

I think the Colts will win over the Saints, but it will not be easy. People have been saying that Peyton Manning will throw for over 400 yards, which is very unlikely. The Saints have been preparing for the Colts and Peyton Manning for two weeks. If they cannot stop him despite practicing for two weeks for one opponent, the Saints do not deserve to win.

For some reason, this game does not interest me at all. I’ll probably watch parts of the game and the Halftime Show for sure. In the first half, the teams will be conservative and not go for any big plays. Hopefully, the first half of commercials is more entertaining than the first half of low-scoring football.

My Picks: This will not be a low-scoring game. It will be two strong offenses against okay defenses. No one will score more than 35 points this year. I think the Colts will come through in the second half and grab their second victory in four years.

Kurt Warner – Should He Retire?

A lot of the talk during the playoffs has been about a loser, Kurt Warner. It is unknown if Kurt Warner, the Arizona Cardinals quarterback, will retire. The main question is “should he retire?”. I say yes. I am a Cardinals fan and want the best for the back-to-back NFC Champions. The Cardinals are lucky. They have a decent back-up in Matt Leinart. Leinart hasn’t had many opportunities to play since the 2007-08 season. During training camp last year,the main discussion is who will start: old Kurt Warner or the recently injured Matt Leinart? Leinart suffered a season ending injury which forced Warner to start. Ken Whisenhunt chose Kurt Warner to start the 2008-09 season, which wasn’t a bad choice. The Cardinals lost in the Super Bowl won the NFC Championship.

Warner has often contemplated his career. He has thought about retiring several times but this truly may be the year. This season, he suffered a concussion during a game which caused Leinart to finish that game and play against the Tennessee Titans. Leinart played decent but the defense couldn’t stop Vince Young and the Titans in the fourth quarter.

The thing about Leinart is, he never lost his job. If he didn’t get hurt, he would have been the Cardinals starting quarterback last year and possibly this year. However if he did start, they might not have made it into the Super Bowl without Kurt Warner’s experience.

My overall opinion on this situation is that Kurt Warner should retire. His inconsistency makes me and other Cardinal fans red in anger. Especially after suffering a big hit on an interception yesterday, he should consider retiring.

Is Kurt Warner a great quarterback? Yes. Will he be in the Hall of Fame? Yes. Is he injury-prone? Yes. Is Kurt Warner the best quarterback in the league for the Cardinals? No.

Leinart could easily be a starting quarterback on a struggling NFL team. It is now time for Leinart to prove his value to the Cardinals and prove to the 9 teams that passed on him in the 2006 Draft that they are missing out.

NFL Week 17 Overview

Today is the final week of the NFL regular season. There is only one key match-up in the NFL, in my mind. The game that will decide the NFC Playoff Standings is the Cowboys vs. Eagles in Dallas today. The winner of the game will win the NFC East. If the Cowboys win, the Arizona Cardinals will have a chance to be the number 2 seed and receive a first round bye, as long as Minnesota loses also. The Dallas defense will give the Eagles a run for their money, and Tony Romo is having his best year of all time. Coach Wade Phillips might be fired if Dallas loses today, and later into the playoffs. I believe that he will secure his job with a win today, and not be embarrassed in the playoffs.

Most other games don’t affect the playoffs in the NFC, but the AFC Wild Card teams have not been decided yet. If the New York Jets and the Baltimore Ravens win today, they will punch their ticket to the playoffs. All 6 teams in the NFC are set for the playoffs. It will be a good post-season in the NFC because all teams could beat each other. We will see where the NFC teams are seeded by tonight.

2010 Pro Bowl Rosters Announced

With the rosters released, there are a few surprises swirling around the NFL.

Main Surprises:

1. No Cincinnati Bengals players
2. Ben Graham (P- AZ) did not make the team
3. Kurt Warner (QB- AZ) did not make the team
4. Matt Schaub (QB- HOU) did not make the team

Cincinnati is having one of the best seasons they’ve had in a long time. They are heading to the playoffs and all of the team is in sync. Quarterback Carson Palmer is having a great year along with receiver Chad Ochocinco.

Ben Graham, the punter for the Arizona Cardinals, is one of the best in the league. Sports Illustrated ranked him the second best punter in the NFL, first in the NFC. He averages 47 yards/punt and places 47.6% of his punts inside the opponents 20-yard line.

Kurt Warner and Matt Schaub are both having great years. Both of their star receivers are in the Pro Bowl (L. Fitzgerald, A. Johnson) and are brining their teams to their best records of all time. Houston has a chance of making the playoffs for the first time and boast their best record of 8-7 with their final game being against New England. Both could have been the 3rd quarterback for both conferences. Aaron Rodgers is the 3rd quarterback for the NFC and Tom Brady is the 3rd QB for the AFC.

Standout Selections:

All of these players are having amazing years. Drew Brees (NO) and Peyton Manning (IND) almost brought their teams to undefeated seasons. Here are some standouts, in my opinion. The ‘*’ means that the player is a reserve

AFC:

Defense

• Ray Lewis – BAL – 10th selection
• James Harrison – PIT – 3rd selection
• Dwight Freeny – IND – 2nd selection
• Ed Reed – BAL – 6th  selection
• Brian Dawkins – DEN – 8th selection
• Champ Bailey – DEN – 9th selection *
• Mario Williams – HOU – 2nd selection *

Offense

• Peyton Manning – IND – 10th selection
• Reggie Wayne – IND – 4th selection
• Andre Johnson – HOU – 2nd selection
• Chris Johnson – TEN – 2nd selection
• Jake Long – MIA – 2nd selection
• Phillip Rivers – SD – 2nd selection *
• Tom Brady – NE – 5th selection *
• Maurice Jones-Drew – JAC – 1st selection *

NFC:

Defense

• Darnell Dockett – AZ – 2nd selection
• Darren Sharper – NO – 4th selection
• Jared Allen – MIN – 3rd selection
• Demarcus Ware – DAL – 4th selection
• Adrian Wilson – AZ – 3rd selection
• Jonathan Vilma – NO – 2nd selection *
• Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie – AZ – 1st selection *

Offense

• Larry Fitzgerald – AZ – 4th selection
• Desean Jackson – PHI – 1st selection (Jackson is first player ever to go to the Pro Bowl for Offense and Special Teams)
• Vernon Davis – SF – 1st selection
• Adrian Peterson – MIN – 3rd selection
• Drew Brees – NO – 4th selection
• Brett Favre – MIN – 11th selection (most all-time for QB) *
• Aaron Rodgers – GB – 1st selection *

Those are the main players who stood out to me. I may do full rosters and/or individual spotlights as the game comes closer. For the first time since 1979, the game will not be held in Hawai’i. It will be played in Miami the week before Super Bowl XLIV.

Vikings keep spiraling down with OT loss to Chicago

At first it was a blowout. Then it was close. Finally, it was just another loss for the Vikings.

The Bears were up 16-0 at halftime at Soldier Field in Chicago. The Vikings came back to put up 30 points in the second half, which was enough to tie the game and send it into overtime. The Vikings eventually gave up a touchdown in overtime, ending the game and giving the Vikings their 3rd loss in their last four games.

After starting out 10-1, the Cardinals defeated the Vikings on a blowout Sunday night game. The Vikings then beat the Bengals and then lost to the Panthers on Monday Night Football last week.

These losses haven’t come without controversy. Brett Favre seems to bring two things to each team. Media (which comes with the controversy) and late season losses. Last year, Brett Favre and the New York Jets lost 4 of their last 5 games, ending their playoff hopes. The Brett Favre and Brad Childress saga will most likely play-out into the playoffs.

Steve Smith breaks arm in Giants Stadium Farewell

Steve Smith of the Carolina Panthers scored a touchdown with 13 minutes left in the third quarter in a rout of the New York Giants. He broke his arm on the initial collision and had a second effort into the end zone. He also fell on the broken arm in the end zone.

Carolina beat the Giants 41-9 in the last game at Giants Stadium. The Giants will leave and go to the New Meadowlands Stadium, which cost about $1.4 billion. With the loss, the Giants were officially eliminated from the playoffs. The Giants won their first 5 games but only won three of their last ten.

Saints lose against Tampa Bay

The New Orleans Saints lost their second straight game in a row and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won their second straight game in a row. Tampa Bay (3-12) beat Seattle last week and beat Green Bay in Week 9. Last week, New Orleans lost their first game of the season at home versus Dallas, making the Colts the only undefeated team left in the NFL until this week.

The Saint’s leading rusher, Pierre Thomas, left the game with a rib injury. He has 5 TD on the season and 733 yards with 141 attempts. To end the season, New Orleans will play Carolina.

Jets stun Colts – End pursuit of perfection

The Colts cannot do what Tom Brady and the Patriots did two years ago, which may be good. The Colts finally lost a game, ending their perfect season and their NFL-record 23-regular season game win streak.

The quarterback comparison for the past few years has always been between Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. People will always remember the Patriots going 16-0 in the regular season. However, the season didn’t end as perfect as they wished. They lost Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, AZ, ending their season with a record of 18-1.

The Colts look to end the same way the Patriots did, 18-1. They finally lost a game, which they would like to lose in the regular season and not in the playoffs.

This loss, however, will end with controversy. Peyton Manning and other starters were benched in order to conserve their energy for the playoffs, despite already having a first-round bye. Jets coach Rex Ryan hoped that the Colts’ starters would be benched but he did not think his dream would come true. The Jets came back to win 29-15

Cardinals Make History

For the Arizona Cardinals, their 31-10 victory over the St. Louis Rams was more than a win. Their Week 16 win was their 10th of the season. The Cardinals franchise has not had 10 wins or more in a season since 1976, when quarterback Kurt Warner was four years-old. The ten win season came when the Cardinals were 12 years away from moving to Arizona.

Kurt Warner, currently 38 years-old, joined an elite club along with Safety Adrian Wilson. Kurt Warner became only the second quarterback to throw 100 touchdown passes with two different franchises. Today, he threw #99 and #100 against his former team, the team in which he threw 102 TD passes with. The opponent seemed fitting for the occasion. Also, Adrian Wilson became the 10th player to join the 20/20 Club. The 20/20 Club’s members need 20 career sacks and 20 career interceptions. Wilson had his 23rd interception of his career and with 1:52 left in the game, he sacked Rams quarterback Keith Null, the 20th of his career.

“To me it’s not an individual goal, it’s team goals,” Wilson said.

Warner disagreed saying, “We’ve all known he’s a great player for a long time here. The one thing about guys like that is they never get the attention they deserve until they accomplish those kinds of records.”

Also, a newcomer in Arizona’s “Big 3″ receiving corps is making himself known. Early Doucet, a second-year player out of LSU got his first career touchdown. Docuet missed much of last year and parts of training camp due to injuries. Despite being the #4 receiver on the Cardinals, he could easily be a starter on any other football team. Docuet has the chance to learn from some of the best receivers in football; Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston.

Boldin is also looking to acheive a personal record. Going into the game versus St. Louis, he was 125 yards away from 1,000 yards on the season. After catching eight passes for 116 yards, he is only nine yards away from having 1,000 yards in a season, looking to do so for the 5th time in his 7-year career which has recently been plagued with injuries including fractured paranasal sinuses last year which came from helmet-to-helmet contact with New York Jet Eric Smith.

The Cardinals aim for a first-round bye in the playoffs with a win against the Packers next week. Most likely, Green Bay will return back to Glendale to take on the Cardinals in a Wild-Card Playoff Game.