Maddux Sports Blog

Interesting developments in the Ricky Rubio story. Apparently he had come to terms on a deal that would have sent him to Minnesota this year, but after the deal was struck he backed out of it and decided he would rather spend two more years developing in the comparative safety of his home country of Spain. I can understand that on some levels, and I can forgive a young kid of a lot, but I can’t help but question his competitive drive just a bit if he backs off of an opportunity to play in unquestionably the best league in the world – especially when he would have been going to a young team with lots of talent that would have been built around him.

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I never thought that the Lions, as bad as they were, would be able to pull off the 0-16 miracle last year, but they did. I don’t think that another team will be that bad this year, but if a few teams get just a little bit too unlucky then anything can happen. Here are the five teams that seem most likely to flirt with the disaster:

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In the first section of this two-part blog on new NFL coaches, I considered five teams’ chances of making the post-season with a new head coach at the helm. Those five, the Indianapolis Colts, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks, I concluded all had the opportunity to earn a shot at the Super Bowl. The final six, I believe, have either less of a chance or little to none of securing a post-season berth. Here they are.

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Matt Cassel is a Chief. Bizarre. It seemed destined to happen – the Chiefs didn’t have a true number one in town, and Scott Pioli left the Pats on good terms to go to K.C. as the main man. What is so surprising, though, is that the Pats essentially gave Cassel away. New England packaged linebacker Mike Vrabel with Cassel, and all they got in return was a second round draft pick, 34th overall. The Chiefs get two starters in two positions of high need, and they give up just a pick that is far from guaranteed to produce an instant (more…)

The Steelers might have the hardware, but the biggest winner in the NFL playoffs is unquestionably Todd Haley, the former offensive coordinator of the Cardinals. Heading into the playoffs few people knew his name, and he wasn’t mentioned with any regularity surrounding coaching vacancies. He put together a phenomenal playoff run, though, and all of a sudden he is the head coach with the Chiefs. Not only did he get the job, but they clearly held it open for him, because it all came about quite quickly. It’s not just that he landed a job, either – he landed a pretty good one. The team doesn’t have a whole lot to work with right now, but they are at least $45 million under the salary cap for next year, and they have the third pick in the draft, so lots can be done. On top of that, his new boss is Scott Pioli , the architect of New England’s success. The Chiefs were far from good last year, but they played with more pride than some bad teams, and there were a few good reasons to believe that the future was bright before this move and thePioli hiring. Now this has to be a team to be bullish about on the longer term. Haley takes over a team with promise, he has new facilities on the way, and that all means a bright future.

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1. Notre Dame is awful. I was pretty sure that the experts who were saying that Notre Dame was going to win nine or ten games this year were crazy. Now I know for sure. They rallied to beat San Diego State, but that’s not much of an accomplishment when you are playing one of the worst teams in division one and you are favored by 21.5 points. The Irish looked confused, lethargic, unprepared and very predictable. They were sloppy, and they got lucky. Charlie Weis is a terrible coach, and I have no faith in his ability to turn ths mess around.

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I don’t know about you, but I am itching for the football season to get here. Aching, really. NFL training camps get under way right away, so America’s favorite sport has been on my mind a lot lately. We’ll obviously spend a lot of time talking about the league in the weeks and months to come, but before we get into any specifics I just wanted to reflect on some of the general thoughts that are bouncing through my mind at this point.

Jacksonville – I like this team. A lot. Their division is a bit softer than it has been. Their offense is solid. Their defense is significantly upgraded. Every year there are a couple of teams that I either make or lose a fortune on. I strongly suspect that Jacksonville is one of those teams. They aren’t going to surprise anyone, and the public is going to be aware of them, but I still thin that they will play well enough to make some money.

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