We are currently in the closest thing to an offseason that the NFL has these days. Players are working out and coaches are scheming, but for the rookies have been drafted, and most of the significant free agents have new homes. We have the best sense we’ve had yet of what teams are going to look like next year, so it only makes sense that this is a good time to look at the Super Bowl futures that are available to see what is interesting. There are three teams that stand out to me as being lousy bets, and three more that are at least a little interesting that their current prices (all odds are from Bodog):
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I want to talk about the obvious story today – JaMarcus Russell – but before I do I just want to hit on the Red Wings’ game for a second. It’s in the first intermission as I write this, but the Wings, facing elimination, have jumped out to a 5-0 lead. More remarkable (or unexpected given the way the two teams have played up to this point) than that is the fact that the first four goals scored in the game – over a span of five minutes and 36 seconds – were all scored by Johan Franzen. Franzen is one of the best pure scorers in the league, but he has struggled with injuries this year and had been in a bit of a slump so far in the playoffs with only two goals in 10 games up to this point. This explosion, coming against a very good goalie in Evgeni Nabokov, is probably unprecedented in playoff action. It’s pretty much impossible to believe.
My favorite part of the draft are the stories of the guys who don’t get any attention from the scouts, but who go on to have fantastic careers. Here are five nfl picks who could fill that role this year:
Here are five guys that will likely go today who should make their teams and nfl gamblers very happy:
1. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas – There has been little talk of him in the first round, but there really should have been. He’s a better player than Clausen in my eyes – more athletic, a better arm, more successful, and a much better leader. The arm injury in the championship game is irrelevant, and McCoy is ready to be a starting QB in this league.
2. Terrence Cody, DT, Alabama – Though he has the skills to get picked in the first round, size issues could make him a second day bargain. Cody is massive and may not be able to control that weight, and his body may not stand up to the strain of the league. He’s a run stopping machine, though, and he shows surprising bursts of athleticism for his size. He’s not a pass rushing demon, but he’s very useful as the relatively unique type of player that he is.
3. Brandon Spikes, LB, Florida – He has good linebacking bloodlines – his cousin is Takeo Spikes. Spikes is the leader of his defense at Florida, and could take that same kind of role in the pros. He has brilliant instincts, and knows where he needs to be almost before a play happens. He doesn’t have the flashy numbers to be a first-rounder, but he looks like he could be a long term solution in a crucial position.
4. Dexter McCluster, RB, Mississippi – This isn’t a great running back class, but McCluster could be the best of the whole group. What I love about watching him is his ability to read the line in the backfield, adjust instantly, and find the hole. He has downfield vision that is very rare. He’s also very patient, and is capable of throwing in a stutter step to wait for a hole to develop.
5. Navorro Bowman, LB, Penn State – He comes from a linebacker factory, so his credentials are sound. Bowman is an above average linebacker in all aspects of his game except for one – against the run he is absolutely incredible. It’s like he has running back sensors in his brain – he gets to them and almost never lets them past. That, along with solid skills in other areas, will make him a nice addition to any team. There are some concerns about his behavior, but the bulk of his issues were back n 2007 when he has going through hard times, and I think they are in the past. He’s worth a GM’s nfl bet.
All NFL Draft, all the time the next three days. The title make’s today’s offering self-evident:
Guys I Love
1. Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma – What’s not to like about this guy. He was brilliant from the very start at Oklahoma, and he has the look of a guy who can take that to the next level. He crushed the college football point spread at Oklahoma. He has a good arm, he’s mobile enough without using that as a crutch, he’s incredibly smart, and he just wins. Top rated quarterbacks aren’t always successful, but Clausen will be.
Continue reading “Five First Rounders I Really Love, And Three I Don’t”
Now that the first series of the season is out of the way in baseball, we have our first chance to look at what we have seen so far and which players have done things that we like. On guy who really jumps out on that front is Vernon Wells. The Toronto slugger is talented – MVP talented – but there is a disconnect somewhere near where his brain meets his body, and he has never really been able to capitalize on what he is capable of. So far this year, though, he’s on fire – four home runs in three games, and in just 10 at-bats he has six hits and seven RBIs. With guys like Adam Lind and Travis Snyder in town Wells doesn’t have to be the only big bat for the Jays, and expectations aren’t very high for the team, so maybe he’s finally in a situation where he can have the massive year he is capable of. He’ll be worth watching.
I was fully intending to write about baseball tonight, but two things changed that – the opening night game between the Yankees and the Red Sox was a total dud with abysmal pitching on both sides, and the Eagles lost their minds. There really is only one story tonight, and it’s a good one.
A couple of solid if not overwhelming games to finish the path to the Final Four today. Michigan State squeaked out a close one, though for much of the game they looked like the better team – though not by much. The edge here, if you want to oversimplify things, came down to coaching. By that measure, a narrow Michigan State win was appropriate. Coach K and Tom Izzo have a unique ability to get the absolute most out of their team – and more – in March regardless of what has happened before then. Amazing. Speaking of Coach K, he benefited from playing a team that wasn’t as deep or nearly as experienced as his. Baylor played well enough, and for moments they looked brilliant, but they just couldn’t pull it off in the end. It never ceases to amaze me how the tournament works – teams can look brilliant and all but unbeatable for a game or two or three, but sooner or later they meet a team who is too much for them and they look mortal again. The tournament does an amazingly good job of sorting out the best teams from the rest – even if it doesn’t look like it.
This whole Zydrunas Ilgauskas situation, now that it has officially come to pass, make me want to shower. It’s slimy. Just one day after he became eligible to rejoin the Cavs he has a new deal in place for the rest of the year. He joins Antawn Jamison – the guy that he was traded for. The only real cost to the Cavs in this whole deal was that they had to live without Ilgauskas for 30 days, but that’s hardly a big deal for the team because they were already extremely secure in a playoff spot. They could have used a backup center as it turned out, but they still went 16-4 without him, and now they have a rested veteran to join them for the playoffs, and they get him at a very low cost. This absolutely should not be allowed in the NBA. It’s a total joke.
Another day, another high profile pitcher making his two-inning spring debut for his new team. Unlike Roy Halladay and Aroldis Chapman before him, though, Stephen Strasburg was only solid and not jaw-dropping. The Nationals’ future ace didn’t allow any runs, but he did allow consecutive hits with two outs in the second. He threw 27 pitches – 15 of them for strikes – and he topped out at 98 mph. Two things in particular stood out when I watched the game. First he ended the second inning – his last – with a stunning breaking ball. It was clocked at 81 mph, and it looked like it was bending around a corner. That’s a serious major league out pitch. Beyond that, though, Strasburg definitely looked like a guy who is in need of some time in the minors before he hits the big time. His talent is obvious and massive, but he struggled with his location throughout his outing, and he doesn’t quite look like he believes he belongs and can dominate the pitchers he faces. It’s not like Washington is going to do anything this year anyway, so I think it would be a real mistake to rush him along. Regardless of the rough edges, though, it was exciting to finally see him pitch in the pros, and it’s not hard to see why we have heard so much about him.
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