Maddux Sports Blog

The NHL playoffs get underway tonight. As a Canadian I am legally obligated to be a hockey fan, so this is always a bit of an exciting time of year. I don’t think that there is a championship any harder for a team to win than the Stanley Cup. This should be a very good playoff tournament as well – there are several teams that are legitimate contenders in each conference, and no clear, runaway favorite. That being said, I don’t think that the first round is particularly interesting this year. Actually, it’s a bit dull. In my mind seven of the eight higher seeds are legitimate favorites to should be able to come out ahead if they play their game, and the eighth, New Jersey, can as well as long as they play up to their potential. Here’s a quick look at each series:

(more…)

I know which way I think I am leaning in both of the NFL conference championships, but there is still a long time before the games kickoff, and that means I have lots of time to drive my self crazy with speculation and analysis. Before I can be totally comfortable with my picks, there are several questions I have to wrestle with. Among them:

(more…)

Before we get to the games, I want to look at the reports out of Denver for a second. Word is that Josh McDaniels, the 32 year old offensive coordinator of the Patriots, is going to be named the new head coach. I have mixed feelings about this one. On one hand, I like that Denver wants to break into new blood to get some new ideas. I wish Cleveland had done the same thing. They also got a guy who is hot after turning a raw QB into a budding star. On the other hand, though, Bill Belichick has yet to really prove himself as a breeder of strong coaches. Far from it, in fact. Romeo Crennel got fired after creating a mess. Eric Mangini takes over that messing after failing in his first try. You can throw in the disaster that is Charlie Weis, too. The first coach after a legend like Shanahan is going to have it tough at the best of times, so I am not convinced that a young coach with a bad pedigree is a great gamble. A more established assistant might have been a better risk – especially since they are in a very winnable division.

(more…)

1. Joe Flacco was 9/23 for 135 yards. Eery isn’t it just how good Baltimore is at looking good in the playoffs with barely adequate quarterbacking?

2. I’m not sure that I have ever seen a defense more in the head of a decent quarterback than the Ravens were in Chad Pennington’s. It’s like Ed Reed was in the Miami huddle.

(more…)

1. Larry Fitzgerald is a freak. He changed that game several times over.

2. Kurt Warner – he may be old and all, but it’s hard to count him out when the chips are down. It’s not impossible to imagine him taking them a long way. Not likely, but possible.

(more…)

Starting today we are into the last series of the baseball season. We haven’t been talking baseball much recently, but with the playoffs around the corner we will be ding much more, and this is a good pace to start. The last series is only meaningful for a couple of teams – those trying to make it into the playoffs. The rest are either counting the seconds until their season ends, or trying hard not to get anyone hurt before the playoffs start. Teams that have clinched also spend the series trying to get their rotation into the order they want it to be in for the playoffs. For fans this weekend doesn’t mean much in most of the series either. It’s hard to care, and this is just a chance to catch our breath before the long playoffs.

(more…)

The NBA playoffs get going this weekend. The first round series range from the totally uninteresting – Boston and Atlanta – to the wildly unpredictable – New Orleans and Dallas or Phoenix and San Antonio. When it comes to early playoff action my interest in always in finding the potential upsets. I generally assume that the first round will go to seed form unless I can come up with a good reason for an upset. Here’s how I see the matchups breaking down in terms of the likelihood of an upset.

(more…)