Caps Make Big Trade for a Big Enforcer

On Monday the Capitals announced they had traded captain Chris Clark and defenseman Milan Jurcina to Columbus in exchange for left wing Jason Chimera. Chimera is known to Caps' fans as the guy who injured Ovechkin earlier this season. The trade came as a complete surprise to most especially as the the Caps were currently the first place team in the NHL. Many wonder why risk team chemistry when they are playing so well together? Also, trading away your captain can leave your team with a major leadership void. Its affect can be seen on the last two games in which the Caps have lost both by a three goal margin. It's one thing for a guy to step up into a leadership role, it's quite another for a guy to be forced into one, and that is not always a recipe for success.

There were many reasons, however, that made this move not only smart, but necessary. Clark has been plagued by injuries the last three seasons, playing only 88 games. Though he has remained healthy this season, his playing time has diminished substantially. Milan Jurcina has struggled for a regular spot on the Caps' crowded blue line. One thing the Caps did not have, however, was a consistent enforcer. Both Clark and Matt Bradley aren't ones to shy away from a fight, but the Caps didn't have another player to really put the hurt on opponents other than Alexander Ovechkin. After receiving a 2 game suspension earlier this year and an upper body injury that kept him out of the lineup for two weeks, the Caps really needed another physical presence on the ice to take some of the physical pressure off Ovechkin. Chimera gives the Caps the enforcer they desperately needed, but without taking away from the lineup. Many can point to Jon Erskine as a legitimate enforcer, but he has the same problem as Donald Brashear: he's a terrible hockey player. Unlike Brashear, however, Erskine is a defenseman. Erskine's complete lack of talent really hurt the Caps in their own zone. Whenever he was caught out of position, which was frequently, he gave up a goal or a penalty. Chimera adds skill and speed to the lineup. If he knocks Erskine out of the regular rotation on the blue line, he may have made the team a lot better than anyone would have thought.

The Caps also added $2.2 million of cap space with the trade. Last season the Caps decided to make no moves at the trade deadline. The result: well, the Caps may not have hurt the team chemistry, but they watched Boston, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia get better. The Caps aren't going to make the same mistake this year. If Varlamov can stay healthy and consistent, the Caps are one solid defenseman away from seriously contending for the Cup. After sending Michael Nylander to the minors and making this trade, the Caps are gaining a lot of cap space. Watch for the Caps to make a move to bring in a big name defenseman and counter moves made by Pittsburgh, New Jersey, Buffalo, and whoever else tries to compete. The front office is looking at the future of this team.

Christmas Day Sports

On Christmas Day fans saw one NFL game and five NBA games including a huge matchup between the LA Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers. Basketball has had games on Christmas day for several years now, but not everyone is a fan. Magic coach Stan Van Gundy was clearly not happy about his team playing on Dec. 25 sayng:

"I would rather not play on Christmas. This is a day to spend with your family. The league has been good to all of us in terms of what we get out of these TV games, so it would sound a little disingenuous to complain too much. But if I had my way, we'd take a five-day Christmas break....I think we get a little carried away with ourselves with sports thinking we're more important than everything else. But that's the way it is. 'There's nothing more important than the NBA on Christmas Day'....I won't watch one second of the other four games. I have no interest. That's not great advertisement for the league, but I actually feel sorry for people who have nothing to do on Christmas Day other than watch an NBA game."

And coach Van Gundy is absolutely right. The desire to play on Christmas day I believe stems from the Thanksgiving football tradition. Football isn't just something to watch that day, but has actually become a part of Thanksgiving to many people. While being away from your family must be hard for the players, coaches, and personnel who make such games possible, it is not a religious holiday. Christmas is religious and the last thing on my mind that day is 'who's playing?" While I understand the desire to try and tap into the huge popularity the NFL enjoys from Thanksgiving games, how low are both leagues willing to go? Neither league is struggling for money or ratings. What do they lose by giving teams the day off? I really don't think the fans will complain if they have to wait until December 26 to watch their team again.

I have to wonder who's going to these games? The stadiums are packed and my guess is that the ratings must be pretty high if the NBA is pushing five games, but I can't imagine asking my family to go to a basketball or football game on Christmas day. While it does seem like there are a lot of people with nothing better to do that day, I'm sure they could find something to tide them over for 24 hours. At some point you have to ask what's more important? Does the NBA have to give these people a game to go to or can they allow people like Van Gundy to spend Christmas with his wife and four children? People can live a day without basketball. There's an entire offseason and somehow we manage to avoid the apocalypse every year during that time.

The day after Christmas I heard an interview with Washington Capitals winger Matt Bradley. Earlier this month, his wife gave birth to their first child. In the NHL, there were no games on Dec. 24 or 25 and he was talking about how special it was to spend time with his son on his first Christmas. Those moments are ultimately more important than the ratings you get on Christmas Day.

Minority Rule in NFL Helps No One

The Washington Redskins have begun their search for their next head coach as numerous sources have reported that the team has already interviewed defensive coordinator Greg Blache, secondary coach Jerry Gray, and are in talks with Mike Shannahan. The Fritz Pollard Alliance, an organization formed to monitor the league's hiring of minorities, has launched an investigation regarding the Redskins' hiring process after both Blache and Gray have denied interviewing for the head coach position. The team is now locked in an awkward situation going forward, one they have been forced into by the ridiculous Rooney Rule.

The Rooney Rule mandates that at least one minority candidate be interviewed for head coach and top executive positions. The FPA's interest in the Redskins began when both Blache and Gray denied interviewing for the head coach position. Here is the position the team is in. The Redskins have decided that Jim Zorn will not return next season as head coach. They have not publicly stated this, but they have made it abundantly clear. Daniel Snyder is very interested in Mike Shannahan who will no doubt be one of if not the most sought after coaching candidates in the offseason. Because of this, the Redskins decided to jump the gun and go after him before the season even ends. According to NFL rules, a team cannot hire a new head coach before the season ends and, according to ESPN, the Redskins have decided to interview minority coaches in order to get it out of the way and continue their talks with Shannahan. While Blache and Gray may claim they have not been interviewed, they clearly have, but since they work for the current head coach, they feel they have to deny it.

The question raised by the situation in Washington is who benefits? How would it make you feel to interview for a position in which an organization has no interest in you? To me, this belittles those minority candidates more so than not interviewing them at all. The Redskins will seek Shannahan to coach and if he refuses they will go after Bill Cowher or John Fox (if available) and it has nothing to do with race. These candidates have simply established themselves as good head coaches. Gray has no head coaching experience, and because of the success Zorn has had, Snyder is more likely to sell the team before he tries that again. Blache will only be considered once the big name coaches are not available. That's when you interview him; if and only if you are seriously considering him as a candidate. Interviewing him now is a waste of time and he knows it. Not only that, you've put him in a terribly awkward situation in which he has to deny that he was ever interviewed since he still works for the current coach.

To say the Redskins were racially motivated to seek Shannahan is absurd. If Tony Dungy were to come forward and say he was interested in the Redskins' job, Snyder would be all over him. He would probably prefer Dungy even to Shannahan. The Rooney Rule has helped no one in this situation in Washington. There is the argument that by making teams interview minorities, an unexpected candidate can emerge as the best fit, but this ignores the simple realities of the NFL. When it comes to these positions, teams usually know everything there is to know about the candidates they consider. The job in Washington is Shannahan's for the taking and nothing short of Shannahan whipping his pants down during the interview and mooning Snyder can make him seriously consider anyone else. In the NFL the interviews are usually a formality and a way to gauge a candidates' interest in the position, not a serious step in considering a candidate.

With a candidate already in mind, the Redskins have held "show" interviews with Blache and Gray that they want to be very public so everyone knows they followed the rules. This has put the very people the Rooney rule is trying to help in a terrible position. The candidates both have to go through an interview process that they know is just for show for the job of the man they currently work for. Great job FPA.

Redskins are Routed by Division Rivals, 45-12

I don't want to dwell on this game because I'm simply too mad, but a lot of things went wrong last night and it shows us a lot about his Washington Redskins team.

1. Jason Campbell needs to go.

Everyone has been sympathetic to Campbell this season because he has no offensive line. True, but I refuse to believe that if you put Peyton Manning or Drew Brees on this Redskins team they would not be able to do any better. Last night I think he proved that. I can already hear the protests "Campbell was sacked five times, he couldn't do anything!" True, again Campbell was tossed around like a rag doll, but watch his interception to Terrell Thomas in the third quarter. Campbell rolled out, had no pressure on him, had two wide open receivers about 7 yards in front of him, and he threw it over both their heads into the waiting arms of Thomas who took it in for a touchdown. THAT WAS AN INEXCUSABLE PLAY! There was no reason for Campbell to miss that throw and it proves he can't make it as a starting quarterback, period. If you keep arguing that it's because of his offensive line, ok, let's take a look. The Redskins are 27th in the league in sacks allowed. Five teams have allowed more sacks than the Redskins. Two of those teams are Green Bay and Pittsburgh. Who is having the worst season between Aaron Rodgers, Ben Roethlisburger, or Campbell? Both Green Bay and Pittsburgh are in the playoff hunt. Some of the blame must be put on Campbell's shoulders. GET HIM OUT OF DC!!! And why was he in the game so long? When Campbell was injured in the first half, Todd Collins came in and in one play threw for more yards than Campbell had. The Giants pulled Eli Manning but Campbell stayed in the entire game. While I may be biased against Campbell, Coach Zorn, who has stuck by him, needed to pull him out. After that first interception, any NFL coach would have pulled Campbell. That was a disgusting throw and the game was not in doubt; it was over. Unless Zorn was hoping the Giants would knock Campbell out for the season, there was no reason to keep him in the game.

2. Jim Zorn is not a head coach.

Watch the end of the first half. The Redskins line up for a field goal with 2 seconds left and then shifted the line to the left and Hunter Smith lined up as a quarterback. The Giants were caught completely off guard by the formation and Tom Coughlin called a time out. I applaud the decision to go for the fake. The Redskins were down 24-0 with 2 seconds left in the first half. You might as well go for it and give your team a chance. But then, after the timeout was called, the Redskins lined up for a field goal and again shifted the line to the left. Let's think about this. One reason why fake field goals work is the element of surprise. Teams are prepared to defend a field goal, but they aren't prepared to defend an actual play. They don't always work, but the fake field goal and punt the Redskins have successfully pulled off this season worked mostly because the other team wasn't prepared for it. What do you think the Giants talked about when they called the timeout? The coaches no doubt told the players "Hey, if they do that again, here's what you do..." The Giants set up for a defensive play and were ready in case the Redskins tried that formation again. You give yourself no advantage by running the exact same play again. They might as well have put the offense back in. Instead they ran the play, the Giants knew exactly how to defend it, and they picked the ball off. By the way, what was that play? "Throw the ball as high as you can to the left side of the field"? That's what Zorn drew up? Time for him to move on.

3. The defense isn't our saving grace any more.

So many times this season, fans have walked away saying, well at least our defense played ok. That doesn't really work anymore. The Giants scored TDs off their first two possessions and a field goal on their third. Even if our offense wasn't lead by a hopeless quarterback and a nonexistent offensive line, it's hard for professional teams to match three straight scores. In the end the Giants managed 382 offensive yards and that was only through 2 1/2 quarters since the Giants essentially gave up. This entire team needs to start over.

4. What did we expect?

When an entire organization starts looking ahead to the next season, the team responds as we saw last night. How can you expect Zorn to coach when candidates are being interviewed for his job? How can you expect players to play when the organization has already given up? People may be critical of Daniel Snyder and his quick trigger when it comes to firing coaches, but he might as well have fired Zorn earlier in the season. It's clear that he made up his mind pretty quickly about Zorn's future. Telling the media that Zorn will be the coach "hopefully into the future" while at the same time interviewing candidates helps no one. If Zorn is out, then fire him and send a message to your team that they still have something to play for this season. Why not? Could the season have been any worse if they had fired Zorn earlier? I didn't think after the Detroit game that it could get worse, but it did last night. If players want to give up on this season then they shouldn't even show up. It may not mean anything to them but it still means a lot to the fans who still go to the games to cheer on their team. My calendar still says 2009, so that's what I'm worried about. The goal of this season is not next season, it should now be to finish with a 6-10 record. We'll see if anyone in this organization can send a clear message to a team clearly going in different directions.

Wizards Get Desperate as They Seek Help From the Fans

ESPN Insider is running a contest for the Washington Wizards. Fans can submit an inbounds play for the team to use during an actual game. Contestants submit their play to ESPN by Wednesday December 23 and a panel of experts will then choose the best and give it to the Wizards.

No doubt many fans have felt frustration over the Wizards' lack luster performance this season. I can certainly understand the feeling of watching a team and knowing you can do better, that is partly the motivation for this blog, but this is simply appalling. Head coach Flip Saunders is being paid $18 million to design these plays. He has an entire coaching staff to design these plays. If he can't figure out a way for the team to get the ball inbounds, then he can't coach the team. Period. What does this say about the state of the Wizards? Can you imagine this happening with the Lakers or the Celtics? Absolutely not. This contest reeks of desperation.

There isn't much the Wizards stand to gain from this contest, other than actually managing to get the ball inbounds without turning it over, but it clearly shows that this team has no idea what they're doing.

The Wizards aren't going to find hidden coaching talent somewhere among their fan base through an in bound play. I don't see what they gain from this contest other than scrutiny from real teams. Best case scenario is that they receive a well drawn up play that works a few times. That's it. The Lakers manage to keep filling the stands without stupid contests. This doesn't give much hope to an already skeptical fan base. It seems as if Saunders is already throwing in the towel after only 25 games. If a fan can help the team get the ball in bounds, that is a sign of Saunders inability to coach more than anything else. A contest such as this is a sign shows to the rest of the NBA how bad the Wizards really are.

Vinny Cerrato Out, A Step in the Right Direction for the Redskins

Yesterday the Redskins' general manager Vinny Cerrato resigned and Bruce Allen was hired as his replacement. Cerrato has been general manager for Snyder ever since he bought the team, but now he has finally been forced out. Despite resigning, it was made clear that Cerrato was told to either resign or be fired. "This is obviously the right time for change," Snyder said yesterday.

Getting rid of Cerrato was definitely the right move. Cerrato has been criticized for many years as being nothing more than a "yes man" for Snyder. While Snyder seems committed to winning he definitely doesn't know how to build a team. Having a general manager with no spine doesn't help if you don't know what you're doing.


Bruce Allen also appears to be the right choice as a replacement. Allen was the general manager for Tampa Bay for five years, but was fired along with Jon Gruden in January. Despite Tampa's recent struggles the Buccaneers were a constant playoff contender. Allen clearly knows how to build and maintain a competitive team. He also knows a bit about the Redskins organization being the son of the great Redskins' coach George Allen. While the Redskins clearly need help building a team, Allen will first need to find a new coach. This is what makes Allen's hiring so encouraging.

The Redskins clearly struggled to find a replacement for Joe Gibbs. By hiring a coaching staff before a head coach, Snyder made it clear that he was going to ultimately run the team himself, alienating most available coaching candidates. As I have written numerous times before, there will be several well established NFL coaches available at the end of this season. If Snyder were to run the process the same way, the Redskins would again find themselves with an unproven commodity as their coach missing out on more deserving candidates such as Mike Shannahan, John Gruden, Bill Cowher, and possibly John Fox and Mike Holmgren. None of these coaches would come to DC if it meant being Snyder's puppet. The real fear for Redskins' fans was that Snyder would again hire his own coaching staff, retool the team, seek these candidates who would refuse to work for him, disregard their objections, and hire the only people who were left. A few weeks ago, Greg Blache publicly defended Snyder, possibly throwing his hat into the ring for possible consideration for the head coaching position. While Blache has done well as defensive coordinator, I'd rather have any of the other candidates I listed above instead of Blache. To hire Blache would most likely mean another two years of lack-luster performance at least and then there's no guarantee that there will be any good candidates available.

By bringing in a general manager who knows what he's doing and maintains a good relationship with numerous NFL coaches, the Redskins have taken a huge step forward. Let's hope Snyder continues to do what's right for the team.

Time for Mike Green to Become a Defenseman

Friday night, I went to the Washington Capitals game against Carolina and I was shocked to hear from the fans outright frustration and anger towards Mike Green. The 24 year old broke a record last season for longest consecutive point streak for a defenseman and amassed 31 total goals and 42 assists leading all defensemen. So far this season Green is third on the team with 32 points. Despite being immensely talented, Green was also the subject of much criticism last season during the playoffs with only 1 goal and 8 assists in 14 games. Green was clearly out of shape and his game suffered because of it.

Green focused on his conditioning in the offseason and came into the season in much better shape. Why all the criticism now? Because the one thing he doesn't seem to be improving on is his defensive play. On Friday, Carolina, the league's lowest scoring team, scored three goals. The first goal, Green took the puck from the defensive zone and skated deep into Carolina's zone. He made a bad pass that was intercepted and then he was sent sprawling with a huge hit. He got up slowly and Carolina managed an odd man rush to score. Later in the game, the Capitals had a 3-2 lead with a power play. Green skated around the point deeper into the zone and tried to pass over to the other side of the ice. The pass was intercepted by Tim Gleason who scored off of the breakaway. Green did manage to score the game winner in OT, but the game would not have gone into OT had he not allowed those two goals.

Green has a very offensive style of play. While this in its self is not a bad thing, it can be when Green leaves the team defensively shorthanded. The Capitals are the highest scoring team in the league by far, but they are only ranked 16 in goals allowed. Defense needs to be a higher priority for the Capitals as a whole. I'm not saying that Green needs to abandon his offensive ways. That would be stupid since that's what makes him such a great player. He has clearly, however, made a conscious effort to improve his offensive play and his conditioning. Now it is time to work on his defense. After all, he is a defenseman.

Already one can see a difference in his style of play. Last season he had 31 goals while this season he is on pace for about 15. His 32 total points, however, puts him on pace for 77 points, above even his 73 point mark last season. He may not be scoring as much, but he is contributing to the offense. This also shows that while he may still be caught out of position, he is not as aggressive as he has been. More importantly, it shows he can see plays developing. This makes him a potentially invaluable asset as a defensemen. The reason why a playmaker like Sergei Federov could play both offense and defense is because he knew how offensive plays develop. Green has this same ability.

The Capitals are the best offensive team in the league. What they need is consistent defensive play. With Alexander Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Niklas Backstrom, and the numerous other offensive playmakers the Capitals have, they will continue to put points on the board even if Green holds himself back. What would you feel safer with, Ovechkin alone up top or Jeff Schultz alone on defense? That's a no brainer.

Semin's Future in DC

Capitals' winger Alexander Semin is in the final year of his contract and negotiations between his agent and the team stalled a few weeks ago and have not continued. The Capitals have said that they hope to resume talks soon, but this situation has had many analysts speculate about Semin's future in DC.


Why would they ever let someone with Semin's talent leave? The biggest reason is money. As a young team, most of the Capitals' players had low, entry level contracts. As these young superstars have developed, they are now looking to be rewarded with higher contracts. Now the Capitals have to account for the $56.8 million NHL salary cap. With stars such as Alexander Ovechkin, Semyon Varlamov, Mike Green, and Niklas Backstrom, Semin may be the odd man out. The Capitals are going to do whatever it takes to ensure that those players are signed. Semin will no doubt be looking for a high contract and if there is no cap space, then he will get the boot.

Compared to their other stars, Semin is definitely lower on the totem pole. He is very injury prone, having played only 63 games in 2007-2008 and 62 games in 2008-2009. So far this season he has missed 9 of the team's 33 games. He also has the disadvantage of playing the same position, left wing, as Ovechkin. With the Capitals' weakness on defense and in goal, Green and Varlamov have become huge priorities to sign. Backstrom has also proven to be a tremendous talent not so much for his scoring, but his play making abilities. Of the five, Semin is the only one truly expendable.

What does this mean going forward? Well, that's up to Semin. The Capitals may have more leeway than they originally thought with Michael Nylander and his huge salary being sent to AHL Grand Rapids as announced today. The Capitals certainly don't want Semin to leave. In 14 playoff games last season, he had 14 points. If Ovechkin isn't producing, Semin is usually there to pickup the slack or at least take some of the defensive pressure off of the Great 8. The problem is he probably won't get as big a contract as he may want or deserve. If he wants to stay in DC then he has to be prepared for that. The Capitals have said they wish to start negotiations again and we will have to see. If talks break down again, look for him to be traded in March at the trade deadline. A player of Semin's capabilities will not be allowed to walk away with the Capitals getting nothing in return. While this is probably not the scenario anyone wants, it is, I believe, the most likely.

The Otherside of Instant Replay

Instant replay has become a major issue for several sports. Either you have it and it works great, or leagues are dragging their feet to the dismay of most fans. What most people think about when they think of instant replay are games like the now infamous France vs. Ireland game with Theirry Henry's blatant handball or the Yankees/Angels ALCS game with umpire Tim McClelland making two awful calls against the Angels. What people don't see, however, is the otherside of the argument. Many who argue against instant replay say that it will slow games down. These argument are largely ignored because its implementation in the NFL has been a huge success. Baseball which has been one of the most resistant has instituted replay for homerun calls and it doesn't seem to affect the flow at all. Hockey has had replay for years and no one complains. Friday night, however, I finally saw the argument.

On Friday, William and Mary took on Villanova in the football Division 1AA semi-final game. I caught the game midway through the third quarter. In that one and one half quarter, four plays were reviewed. I have to say, it really slowed the game down. I have always supported instant replay in pretty much all sports, but I also recognize that replay run amok can be a bad thing. The problem on Friday was the specific system used. There were no coach challenges, rather every play was subject to review. I recognize the importance of making sure the right call is made every play, but there has got to be a limit. You cannot replay every close play just to be sure. Of those four plays that were reviewed, only one was a close call that really warranted a review. In fact, that was the only play that was overturned. The other three seemed pretty clear cut and I felt replay was unnecessary. If replay were limited to coach challenges as we see most often used in football, I think only the one overturned play would have been challenged by the coaches.

What this shows us is why soccer and baseball have refused instant replay. Part of soccer's international appeal is the constant flow. To stop that for replays would really hurt the game. The length of baseball games is already becoming an issue for fans. Extending the game further would do more harm than good. While I have a new appreciation for these arguments, I still believe that, like Friday's game, a form of limited replay would not hurt. The NFL and the NHL have shown us that limited reviews help officials make correct calls on big plays without really stopping the game. Also, how long do you think a review of Henry's handball or McClelland's calls would have taken? How long did it take for you to see the wrong call was made? A referre could make the correct call in a matter of seconds. The fact is that you can add more officials to soccer games or put better umpires in important games, but they are human and will still make mistakes. Making a scapegoat out of Henry as FIFA is attempting to do is not the answer. Replay is. Unlimited replay will slow down a game, but limited replay will help officials make correct calls which is what's ultimately important.

Brian Kelly to Notre Dame, Irish Hope he Brings Luck With Him

Reports have confirmed that Cincinnati head coach Brian Kelly will be the next coach of Notre Dame. Kelly leaves a 12-0 Cincinnati team that narrowly missed the National Title game and is poised to play Florida in the Sugar Bowl. Kelly will not be on the sidelines for that game, nor will many of his assistants as many will follow him to South Bend.

The coaching search was extremely well executed by Notre Dame, suggesting to me that they may finally have found a candidate that can lead them into the future. First, Kelly was hired only 10 days after Charlie Weis was fired. The Irish didn't waste any time with their unrealistic wish list, quickly ruling out Oklahoma coach, Bob Stoops, and Florida coach, Urban Meyer. While Notre Dame would have loved either one of these coaches, neither coach was going to leave their respective program. There was no point in alienating prospective candidates to pursue a situation that just wasn't going to happen. Second, Notre Dame recognized Kelly as the man for the job very quickly and did what was necessary to bring him in. Kelly refused to publicly acknowledge any interest in the job. Then on Wednesday of this week, reports came out saying there was mutual interest between the Irish and Connecticut coach, Randy Edsall. The next day Kelly accepted the job. While we don't know for sure how negotiations went between the two parties, it looks like the Irish may have played a little hardball to bring him in.

Why was Kelly so sought after? Well, the Irish may finally realized what it takes to be successful in South Bend. Lou Holtz has been reporting on ESPN that the coaches that make it in Notre Dame are the ones who come in already well established and successful as a college head coach. Charlie Weis came in as a great NFL offensive coordinator. Tyrone Willingham was the head coach of Stanford going 44-36-1, but was inconsistent to say the least winning the Pac 10 in 1999 while still losing to teams such as San Jose State. Bob Davie was Lou Holtz's defensive coordinator. The last successful coach for the Irish was Lou Holtz himself, and he had 17 seasons as a head coach coming into Notre Dame. Kelly comes to South Bend with 18 years of head coaching experience and an overall record of 171-57-2. The Irish may finally have found the coach they need instead of the coach that fits.

Portis Out for the Season, Future Unclear

The Washington Redskins announced this week that Clinton Portis will miss the remainder of the season due to a concussion. This has called into question what Portis' future will be in DC. Portis will turn 29 next season which is old for most starting running backs and is injury prone. He only has one touchdown in 2009 and it is also well known that Portis and head coach Jim Zorn have not gotten along since Zorn first came to DC. Perhaps it may be time to look for another running back to take over.

It may be a little early, however, for the Redskins to turn away Portis. First, the running backs behind him are not starting quality players. Ladell Betts and Rock Cartwright are great back ups, but I'm not sure they're good enough to take over. Rookie Quinton Ganther may evetually develop into a good running back, but he's certainly not there yet. What's more, Portis' stats remain solid. He averages 4.0 yards per carry and has only one fumble in 124 attempts. Portis was one of the league's leading rushers in 2008 with 1487 yards. His single touchdown this season is more because of a weak offensive line rather than any drop off in Portis' play.

As for Zorn, he will most likely be gone at the end of the season. With the Redskins ready to start over in the offseason, is the running back position another thing they Redskins want to add to the laundry list of things they need to improve on? With no starting quality running back to turn to, the Redskins would have to persue another probably expensive running back to take over. Portis still has plenty left in the tank. Let's focus on a head coach, quarterback, offensive line, and secondary before we decide we aren't happy with our running back.

The BCS Messes Up Again

On Sunday night, the BCS made its bowl selections. Coming in, we already knew that three undefeated teams were not going to make the National Championship Game. Everyone expected the winner of the SEC championship would face Texas, even if they managed to win the Big 12 with a miraculous last second field goal. This left out Cincinnati (a BCS conference champion), TCU, and Boise State. Nobody likes this system and everyone argues for playoffs for these occasions since three teams did everything right and were still not given their shot. That, however, was not the big issue for me this year because I knew this was going to happen. I may not like it, but I was prepared for it. What bothered me a lot was the Fiesta Bowl selection.

The Fiesta Bowl, to be played on January 4, will be played by TCU and Boise State. Both teams have proven themselves this season and both deserve a BCS spot, but the fact that the two non-BCS teams have been pitted against one another is absurd. This completely defeats the purpose. The point of the BCS systems for teams like TCU is so that a non-BCS team that has proven itself throughout the season gets a chance to play against the best of the BCS teams. It's a chance for them to prove themselves to the rest of the country. By putting TCU and Boise against one another, the BCS has completely devalued the Fiesta Bowl.

In 2008, Utah, a non-BCS team, managed an undefeated season and received a spot in the Sugar Bowl. They met SEC runner up Alabama and crushed them 31-17. No one thought Utah could compete against one of the best teams in the country and they dominated from start to finish. The game gave legitimacy to Utah's entire season and most of all it gave them respect. What does a Fiesta Bowl win do for either TCU or Boise State? Both teams had a legitimate claim for a spot and now won't even get a chance to justify that claim.

Non-BCS teams don't get much respect over the course of a season. While they may go undefeated, many claim it is merely because of a weak conference schedule. That's what makes the bowls so important. It gives teams a chance to compete against the best BCS teams and prove that they are just as good. Both TCU and Boise State are great teams, but what can they claim at the end of the season? They have been cheated out of a chance to compete for a national title and now won't even get a chance to justify their season.

Redskins Lose Through Collective Effort

Despite dominating the undefeated New Orleans Saints, the Washington Redskins lost 33-30 in overtime. While the Redskins were certainly expected to lose, it was the way they lost that was so infuriating. With less than 2 minutes left to go in the game, the Redskins led 30-23 and had the ball on the Saints' 4 yard line. The Saints had no timeouts left. If you put any team in the NFL in this position, they win the game. Not the Redskins.

On fourth down, the Redskins lined up for a 23 yard field goal. A chip shot. Two yards closer is an extra point. Shaun Suisham, however, missed the kick. From the moment he kicked it, it was clearly wide. A 10 point lead at that point in the game would have forced New Orleans to score twice with less than 2 minutes and no timeouts. Instead, the Saints got the ball on the 20 yard line down only by one touchdown. I understand that sometimes kickers will miss kicks. Missing this kick, however, was unacceptable. Professional kickers who get paid millions should make those kicks whether they are winning by 7 or 70. Despite how much money Daniel Snyder likes to spend for players, the Redskins have not had a dependable kicker for several seasons. Suisham also cost the Redskins against Dallas with two missed field goals. A football team needs a kicker they can depend on to score from close yardage and in clutch situations. Suisham has shown he is not dependable in either situation.

Despite missing an easy field goal, the Redskins still held a 7 point lead with 1:52 left to go. It took the Saints only five plays and 33 seconds to score. After one play, Albert Haynesworth gave the Saints a time out as he went down with an injury. Even though Haynserworth played a good game, he seems to get injured at least once every week. Going down in such an important situation allows the Saints to regroup and get ready for the rest of the drive. If Haynesworth is injured, he's injured and there's nothing really he can do, but I'm getting pretty tired of watching him go down every game. He's getting paid too much money to sit out the majority of a game.

The biggest mistake that drive, however, cam from LaRon Landry. When it comes to stoping the run, Landry is very aggresive and seems to always be in the play. When it comes to the pass, however, he is constantly beat deep. His aggresiveness constantly gets him into trouble. What he doesn't seem to realize is that he is a safety, meaning he is the guy in charge of making sure the defense DOESN'T get beat deep. Robert Meachem managed to get behind Landry for a 53 yard touchdown that tied the game. Landry is a three year pro and should know his responsibility. It doesn't matter if he he can stop the run. If receivers can get behind him at will, he is useless to the team.

Even with the game tied, the Redskins still had a great opportunity to win the game. There was still 1:19 left on the clock and they had two timeouts. But, we can't forget the man playing quarterback, Jason Campbell aka Mr. Dependable. At the New Orleans 45 yard line, Campbell threw an interception right into the hands of Jonathan Vilma. People can show me all the stats they want on how Campbell played and I'll admit, to that point he had a good game. This interception, however, was terrible. There was little pressure on Campbell and Fred Davis was CLEARLY covered. An NFL quarterback should not have made that throw. I don't know what Campbell saw or how he could have missed Vilma standing right in front of Davis, but still the ball was thrown. I'm not going to blame Campbell for losing the game because for the most part he played well, but did anybody believe the Redskins were going to be able to drive for the win? Drew Brees is a great quarterback because he can lead foruth quarter come backs. So can Peyton Manning, so can Brett Favre. Jason Campbell? He tries to throw through the invisible Vilma. Further evidence that come the offseason, Campbell needs to go.

Was this all the Redskins had in store? Nope. In overtime Mike Sellers fumbled the ball on the Redskins 37 yard line, giving the Saints the ball at the edge of field goal range. All this capped off a game ending collapse for the Redskins. We also can't forget their earlier mistakes such as a miffed punt, and an interception by Kareem Moore who was stripped by Saints' receiver Robert Meachum who managed to return the fumble for a touchdown. Only the Redskins could lose a game in such spectacular fashion.

Is Ovechkin a Dirty Player?

The NHL announced on Tuesday that Alex Ovechkin would be suspended two games for his knee-on-knee hit during Monday's game against Carolina. In the first period Ovechkin tried to size up Hurricanes' defenseman Tim Gleason who saw him coming and skated to avoid the hit. Ovechkin then stuck out his leg and led with his knee sending both players sprawling onto the ice. Ovechkin seem to bear the brunt of the hit and had to be helped off the ice. He then received a 5 minute major penalty and a game misconduct ejection. Ovechkin has been listed as day to day so the suspension may not actually be a bad thing as it will keep Ovechkin from trying to rush back immediately from the injury. It appears his injury will not be serious and the Capitals have already proven this season that they can win without him so the bigger question this raises is what type of player Ovechkin really is.

Ovechkin's game misconduct was his second in three games. Ovechkin received one in the game against Buffalo the day before Thanksgiving for boarding. This has led some people to ask if Ovechkin is a dirty player. The answer, quite simply, is no. Ovechkin is fun to watch not only for his skill but for his physical style of play. He's such a dangerous player because not only can he deke you, but he can skate right through you. Compare him to one of his biggest rivals, Sidney Crosby. Pittsburgh fans will tell you Crosby is better, Washington fans will tell you Ovechkin is better. Most hockey fans, however, including those who cheer for Pittsburgh, will tell you Ovechkin is better. Why? Crosby won't play physical hockey. Ovechkin, on the other hand, plays the game the way it should be played. If Crosby gets hit, he looks like he's on the verge of tears and immediately complains to the referee. If Ovechkin gets hit, he hits right back. In a game as physical as hockey, it's nice to see a supers star who doesn't hide behind his enforcers.

The problem with Ovechkin's play is that he really walks the line between physical and reckless. Against Buffalo, Ovechkin was just a little late. You can't argue against the call, but it wasn't a dirty play, it was a reckless play. Watch the replay of the hit on Gleason. Ovechkin is clearly skating in for a body check and Gleason sees him coming. It is Ovechkin's competitiveness that doesn't allow Gleason to skate past him. You can't really argue that he was trying to hurt Gleason because in those types of hits, you can't tell who's going to get the worst of it. If you hit someone full speed with your shoulder, the other guy is the one who goes flying. If you hit with your knee, it really could go either way and that's why Ovechkin went down.

While many may see this suspension as a turning point for Ovechkin in which he realizes he needs to turn it down, I wouldn't count on it. Ovechkin himself has already come out and said "I'm not going to change anything" and for the most part, that's a good thing. What is probably the best game of Ovechkin's career is his performance against Montreal on January 31, 2008. In it Ovechkin broke his nose after a hit from Francis Bouillon, was hit in the lip with a puck, and refused to back down going on to score four goals including the overtime winner. Without his physical style of play, this performance never happens, nor does the amazing spin around goal last season which Ovechkin was only able to finish when he pushed pass defenseman Kyle Chipchura. You can also forget about the spectacular goal against Phoenix during his rookie season too (which if you haven't seen yet, where have you been? Look it up on youtube immediately). If there is any reason to pull back on the reins its because of injury worries. While the Caps have been successful this year without Ovechkin, he still remains the face of the franchise and the road to the Stanley Cup will not be possible without him. Two game misconducts in three games? That's a result of bad timing more than a reflection on Ovechkin. With the way Ovechkin dazzles us every time he steps on the ice, do we really want him to change who he is? If he does I think everyone is going to miss out on something special.

Weis, Groh, Bowden Among First Victims of the College Football Offseason

After many teams finished their seasons last weekend, all eyes turned to coaches on the hotseat to see who would be fired, who would step aside, and who would be given another chance. Among the first coaches to go were Charlie Weis, Al Groh, and Bobby Bowden.

Charlie Weis was fired yesterday by Notre Dame after another lackluster season finishing with a record of 6-6. When Weis was first hired, he held a firey news conference and gave the ironically prophetic statement "you're a 6-5 football team. And guess what? That's just not good enough. That's not good enough for you, and it's certainly not going to be good enough for me." Well in Weis five seasons he went 9-3 (with predecessor Tyrone Willingham's recruits) in 2005, 10-2 in 2006, 3-9 in 2007 giving Notre Dame its worst record in school history, 6-6 in 2008, and 6-6 in 2009. Basically he proved he could win with other people's recruits, but not with his own. Many expected this would be Weis' last season. The only reason Notre Dame would keep him at this point would have been the $18 million it took to buy him out. With a record of 15-21 over the last three seasons that just wasn't enough. The search now begins for the next Notre Dame coach.

After a 3-9 football season for UVA including losses to AA William and Mary, Southern Miss, Duke, and a sixth straight to rival Virginia Tech many were not surprised by the firing of long time head coach Al Groh. Groh was hired in 2001 succeeding George Welsh who retired as the winningest coach in ACC history. Al Groh had some success winning ACC coach of the year in 2002 and 2007. He came under scrutiny, however, in 2008 when UVA started the season 1-3 including a 31-3 loss to Duke. UVA rebounded slightly finished 5-7. After another bad season, UVA officials saw a team on the decline with little hope of competing with rival Virginia Tech for Virginia recruits and Al Groh was sent packing.

Many reports indicate that Bobby Bowden will announce his retirement either today or tomorrow. Out of the three, this is perhaps the coach that was treated the most unfairly. Bowden was hired in 1976 to coach a team that had won four games in the past four seasons. Bowden's only losing season was his first in '76. He won two National Titles in '93 and '99. Florida State began to look ahead and named Jimbo Fisher as Bowden's successor to take over the team whenever Bowden chose to leave. Apparently having the second most wins of any coach in history including 315 wins with Florida State wasn't enough for the Seminole faithful who began calling for his retirement. Chairman of the university board of trustees, Jim Smith, stated "I think the record will show that the Seminole Nation has been more than patient. We have been in decline not for a year or two or three but I think we're coming up on seven or eight. I think enough is enough." Well in the last eight seasons, Florida State has won three conference titles with an overall record of 65-38. Despite essentially building the program itself, Bowden became a victim of his own success when he couldn't compete with the soaring expectations. This led to the absolutely outrageous and absurd treatment of Bowden this season by the trustees. As they were unable to fire him, it seems they did everything in their power to force him out on his own. Quite an undeserved ending for such a great coach.

With the offseason just beginning and the bowl games to come, no doubt there will be many more stories to come.