I know this might be a tad early, but here's my guess as to who makes the starting 53-man roster come opening day against the Cowboys on September 12 (Sunday Night):

Offense (Today)
Defense and Special Teams (Tomorrow)



Let's begin:

Quarterbacks

QB1: Donovan McNabb
QB2: Rex Grossman
QB3: Colt Brennan

We know that McNabb is the starting QB and Rex is the backup. The big question is, who will be the emergency third-string backup? My guess is on Colt - I really hope he gets a good chance during the preseason to succeed. We've seen some glimmers of hope, so I hope he gets more reps than Richard Bartel, who is batting Colt for the last QB spot on the roster.

UPDATE (8.1.10):
Coach Mike Shanahan has said yesterday that we might carry only TWO QB's when the season begins. This is a bad sign for the two youngsters - Colt and Richard.

UPDATE (8.2.10):
With the trade of CB Doug Dutch to the Ravens for QB John Beck, Colt Brennan has been released by the team.

So long, Colt! We'll miss you!



Running Backs

RB1: Clinton Portis
RB2: Larry Johnson
RB3: Ryan Torain

If Portis participates well during Training Camp and runs through the D during the preseason, he will claim the starting RB spot. The battle is for the backup and the third RB spot on the roster - fighting for the spots are ex-Chief Larry Johnson, ex-Steeler Willie Parker and ex-Bronco Ryan Torain. Out of the three, I, like many, believe Parker will be cut - the sole reason is that Johnson has a more promising future as the third-down back and Torain has been in Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan's system before in Houston and in Denver.

Fullbacks

FB1: Mike Sellers

No question about it, Mike Sellers is the starting and only true fullback on the current 80+ person roster right now.

Tight Ends

TE1: Chris Cooley
TE2: Fred Davis
TE3: Dennis Morris

The first two spots are entrenched - with Cooley taking the #1 TE spot and Davis the backup. Both are great pass-catching TE's. The third TE spot is what is up for grabs- among the contenders are Dennis Morris (a rookie from Louisiana Tech University), Logan Paulsen (rookie from UCLA) and two-year veteran Lee Vickers. I don't know much, but of the three, I think Morris will excel in Training Camp and in the four preseason games.

Wide Receivers

WR1: Santana Moss
WR2: Devin Thomas
WR3: Joey Galloway
WR4: Malcolm Kelly

The battle here is who will take the slot receiver position (WR2) and who will be the backup WR's. I believe with what I saw from last season - Thomas will be in the slot, and wily vet Joey Galloway will get the third WR position. Kelly, who is coming off surgery in the offseason, will hopefully make it onto the team, since he, unlike the other WR's is the tallest heading into the preseason games.

Left Tackle

LT1: Trent Williams
LT2: Will Robinson

The test here is for the backup LT spot - between second-year Will Robinson and first-year Clint Oldenburg. I do not know anything about either player, but my money is on Robinson.

Left Guard

LG1: Edwin Williams
LG2: Derrick Dockery

Ahh! Our first battle for a starting position - between Maryland alum Edwin Williams and ex-Bill Derrick Dockery. Being a Maryland student myself, I hope Williams starts for the Redskins, but I wouldn't be surprised if the veteran takes the starting Left Guard position.

Center

C1: Casey Rabach

Like the fullback position, there is no one opposing the center position (unless Rabach gets injured)

Right Guard

RG1: Artis Hicks
RG2: Chad Rinehart

This spot is literally up for grabs, since Mike Williams is out for the year with a clogged artery (we wish him the best).

Right Tackle

RT1: Jammal Brown
RT2: Stephon Heyer

After acquiring Brown from the Super Bowl-winning Saints, the battle is for the backup right tackle position - with this position being the premier offensive line position in the NFL. I believe Heyer will beat out the rookie Selvish Capers from West Virginia University.

There you have it, folks. That's 23 22 of the 53 positions already filled. The other thirty will come tomorrow.

The Sad Tale of Albert Haynesworth

Over the past several days months, we have seen a player act like a little kid - whining his way to get what he wants. Yes, I am talking about that Albert Haynesworth. During the offseason of 2009, the Redskins and owner Daniel Snyder, being their normal selves, spent over $100 million to pry him from the Tennessee Titans. As usual, the veteran FA's (Free-Agents) that the Redskins bring in usually disappoint.

We saw lots of this when he was with the Titans

Reason is that, when a player is in a contract year (a la Haynesworth in 2008), they tend to play beyond expectations that year. Once they get paid the big $$$, they tend to regress the following year. What made the past season a lot worse on the defensive side is that Haynesworth would wear himself out on first and second down and go to the sidelines because of a "major injury" (basically, be was fatigued and had little stamina) and would miss the important down - third down. And this did not happen one or twice. This scene occurred frequently - pissing off the fans at the game and watching the game on TV.

But we saw a lot of this when he was with the Redskins
(Courtesy of Yahoo!)

In the offseason, he was to get in game shape with the new regime coming in (New General Manager Bruce Adams and new Head Coach Mike Shanahan) for the 2010 season and beyond. Unfortunately, Haynesworth did NOT report to the voluntary OTA's (Organized Team Activities) - where players would unite as a whole from April - July (the down time in the NFL year) and form a cohesive unit and learn the X's and O's from the new coaches - even though he took the $21 million saying he'll stay with the team.

His main complaint was that he was to be the standard nose tackle in a 3-4 defense - a transition from the 4-3 defense in 2009- that he did not like. Therefore, as childish as it may seem, he boycotted the OTA's until an agreement was made. Jim Haslett, the former New Orleans Saints and St. Louis Rams head coach, was signed as part of the new regime to become the current defensive coordinator - whose defenses rely on stripping the ball and scoring TD's. What Haynesworth didn't realize, however, is that he is not solely the NT. In Haslett's fluid system, defensive tackles and nose tackles can become defensive ends and vice-versa.

What made the situation worse during the offseason was that former Redskins (i.e. LaVar Arrington) and current teammates both ripped him into shreads, mainly because he was a me-first type of player.


 If you read here, Fletcher really believes Big Al is a selfish player



Because of his boycott and his not-so-great conditioning - see here and here - Haynesworth will be participating on the second team to try and get up-to-speed with Shanny's system.

Just because Haynesworth has failed the conditioning test to get into training camp twice does NOT mean Shanny is being very harsh on him - other, more heavier players (i.e. 350 lb. Maake Kemoeatu, 365 lb. Howard Green and  360 lb. Anthony Bryant) all completed the test on their first try. (btw, Haynesworth is 310 - was originally 350, but lost 40 lbs. in the offseason). Shanny is just being the strict disciplinarian, believing that no one player on this team is above the law - what a great head coach should do after the debacle, the circus of Jim Zorn's mess in 2009.

I'm back!

Wow. It has been a long time since my last post - more than a year. Since my last post, we have a new Batman and Robin (move over, A-Roid and Jeter); Spain has taken over the sporting world; the Washington franchises have a bright future ahead of them; and we have seen a plethora of pitching displays unlike any other - this after baseball's steroid allegations have died down.

TO sleeping on the job

Today, I'll be talking about what everyone's been chatting about - Terrell Owens joining the Bungles. Since when did these cats turn into the Cowboys? They have TO, Pacman and Tank Johnson - all of whom played for the 'Boys years ago. I think this match of TO and Chad Johnson Ochocinco will be a perfect fit. Both are identical receivers (outside of Owens' bad hands) and have had a troubled childhood before entering the NFL. Most importantly, though, is that they are were NFL divas. Both have reached a point in their careers as wily old veteran wide receivers who would benefit with a veteran QB. Not only that, but the Bengals have a talented running back in Cedric Benson. With the addition of Owens, the defense will be forced to double-team Ochocinco and thus open running lanes for Benson - who might have a Pro-Bowl-caliber season ahead of him.



The problem is that Owens is a trash-talker, on-and-off-the-field. When he was with the 49ers, he jawed with Jeff Garcia; with the Eagles, he and Donovan McNabb (now a Redskin) would go back-and-forth on the sidelines; the same goes with Tony Romo and Owens. We did not hear much of that when TO was with the Bills, but that's because the whole team was AWFUL. With his age and his contract (only a one-year deal), he should better keep his mouth shut - otherwise disaster may ensue.

Since I am a Redskins fan, I am glad he has joined another AFC team. We will not have to face the Bengals for at least another year.

What do you think of Terrell Owens joining the Cincinnati Bengals?

The Bits and Bites in Sports – MLB All-Star Edition

Wow. The last time I made a post on my blog, Manny Ramirez was not yet suspended, the Wizards were jockeying for the last place crown in the NBA and were terrible, and there were thousands of NFL mock drafts floating around the net.

Since then, 37-year-old Raul Ibanez has been “en fuego,” the Wizards (still terrible) and the Kings got picks outside the top three (which helps the Wiz but not the Kings), and Maryland’s own Darrius Heyward-Bey was picked NUMBER 7 overall in last month’s NFL draft.

First off, lemme get to the MLB All-Star Balloting. After two months, there are lots of surprises in who’s in for the All-Star game. Let’s start in the National League, since the game will take place in the Gateway City – St. Louis. With no surprise, Albert Pujols is leading all first basemen in votes with 1,240,395 – 713,230 votes ahead of Prince Fielder.

Likewise, Chase Utley is also winning the second base job by a large margin over Orlando Hudson. I find this surprising, since the lead between the two should be a lot less.

Based on the totals so far (as of May 30, 2009), Hudson has the better batting average, nearly double the amount of hits and more total bases. Otherwise, most of the other categories (Runs, RBI, Walks and Stolen Bases) are about the same. I would give the slightest of edges to Hudson.

For third base and shortstop, I see no complaints, other than the fact that Milwaukee Brewers fans (like Redskins fans a la 2008) are ballot stuffing. Otherwise, how are Rickie Weeks (out for season), Bill Hall, J.J. Hardy, Jason Kendall and Corey Hart in the top 10 of their positions? They are ALL having mediocre seasons, and thus shouldn’t even be in the top 10.

What also annoys me is that the Kendall and Pudge are 2 and 3 in voting for NL catchers. Both are veterans that are past their prime. To top it off, All-Star candidates Russell Martin and Brian McCann sit in fifth and sixth in voting – and they are having better seasons that either Pudge or Kendall.

Lastly in the NL are the outfielder positions. I agree that Ryan Braun – another Brewer – and Ibanez are 1-2 in the outfield. I disagree that Soriano is third and Manny – yeah, the same guy suspended for 50 games – is fifth. Soriano is having an off-year – and that could be because he’s having knee problems this month. This should be the order for the NL outfielders:

1. Braun

2. Ibanez

3. Beltran – All-Star-caliber season!

4. Shane Victorino

5. Matt Kemp – One of the main reasons the Dodgers are doing well w/o Manny

6. Adam Dunn

Now to the American League. I was listening to ESPN radio on Saturday afternoon, and I agreed with the commentator’s comments about the voting for the AL. First off, Morneau has better numbers than ALL three first basemen ahead of him – and he was AL MVP three years ago – something the top three first basemen haven’t done! Therefore, he should be starting in the All-Star game next month. I have no issues with the other infield slots – which Kinsler, Longoria, Jeter and Mauer are leading in their respective positions.

But I, once again have issues with the outfield voting. Currently, the top ten are as follows:

1. Jason Bay

2. Josh Hamilton

3. Ichiro Suzuki

4. Ken Griffey Jr.

5. Nick Markakis

6. Carl Crawford

7. Nelson Cruz

8. Grady Sizemore

9. Jacoby Ellsbury

10. Torii Hunter

I understand the history behind Hamilton, but this is not 2008! He has had a Disabled List stint, and has not put up All-Star numbers this season. The same goes with Sizemore, who is currently on the DL with left elbow inflammation. The year is 2009, not 1999, people, so why is Junior in the top five in voting? He’s doing horrible as a DH/outfielder compared to the rest of the top 10 outfielders. Markakis, Crawford and Hunter are having career years, and should definitely not be outside the top four.

So here’s my revamped AL outfielders list:

1. Bay
2. Crawford
3. Markakis
4. Suzuki
5. Hunter
6. Ellsbury
7. Hamilton
8. Cruz
9. Sizemore
10. Granderson

Now that is all said and done, here’s my revamped list for the All Star Game.

National League

Catcher: Yadier Molina

First Base: Albert Pujols

Second Base: Chase Utley

Third Base: David Wright

Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez

Outfield: Braun, Ibanez and Beltran

American League

Catcher: Joe Mauer

First Base: Justin Morneau

Second Base: Ian Kinsler

Third Base: Evan Longoria

Shortstop: Derek Jeter

Outfield: Bay, Crawford and Markakis

I hope these are the results come July 14!

Video of the Day

From Haynesworth to Injury Central

As you all may know, today is by birthday! I'm happy to become a full-fleged adult for the first time as I head to college next year.
Today's post will cover various sports clippings, such as Tennessee Titans DT Albert Haynesworth's supposed monsterous deal to the numerous and some devastating injuries in the NBA.

Here's a nice tune to Happy Birthday that I made up regarding Haynesworth's deal:

Albert Haynesworth will be rich
Albert Haynesworth will be rich
Danny boy is giving away 100 million
Albert Haynesworth will be rich

------------->

------------ >

I have quite a bit to say if Redskins owner Daniel Snyder plays Haynesworth. One is that he is coming off a contract year. Typically, players in any major sport (NFL, MLB or NBA) play their best if their season is their last on their contract. That is exactly what Haynesworth did. Also, Snyder is willing to pay $100 million - that's Agent Zero money there! - for one player. Unlike the 2008 Ravens/Dolphins franchises, who built their teams by buying ultiple players off the free-agent market and used the draft to their advantage, Snyder is willing to ONLY pay Haynesworth, less than three other free-agent signees and their four draft picks, of which I presume one of them will be cut. I guess Snyder is going back to his old ways again. Unless the Redskins cut many of their offensive linemen/defense that is 30+ yrs of age, they will still be a mediocre franchise.

Hopefully, Haynesworth won't do this again, since he now sees OL Andre Gurode twise a year now...

Now, to injury central in the NBA. Almost every team has suffered some sort of devastating injury, with multiple mediocre teams (i.e. Washington Wizards and Los Angeles Clippers) getting hit with the injury plague the worst. Here's a list of NBA teams that have dealt with major injuries (major injuries referring to star players getting injured for multiple (3+) games):

Washington Wizards: PG Gilbert Arenas
Charlotte Bobcats: SF Gerald Wallace (Now healthy)
Orlando Magic: PG Jameer Nelson
(B/c of this, ended up trading for Skip to my Lou PG Rafer Alston
Boston Celtics: PF Kevin Garnett
Philadelphia 76ers: PF Elton Brand (Although he was a hinderance rather than a help)
Toronto Raptors: PG Jose Calderon and PF Chris Bosh (Now healthy) and ex-Raptor PF Jermaine O'Neal (now with Miami Heat)
Cleveland Cavaliers: C Zydrunas Ilgauskas (Now healthy), SG Delonte West
Milwaukee Bucks: SG Michael Redd, PG Luke Rindour, C Andrew Bogut and MASCOT Bango (all out for season)


(You can see Bango limping after being hit in the groin. OUCH!)

Indiana Pacers: PF Mike Dunleavy, PG T.J. Ford
Denver Nuggets: PF Nene
Portland Trail Blazers: Oft-injured center Greg Oden (He'll NEVER play a full 82-game season)
Utah Jazz: SF Andre Kirilinko (a.k.a AK-47), PF Paul Millsap (Now healthy), PF Carlos Boozer (Now healthy) and PG Deron Williams (Now healthy)
Minnesota Timberwolves: C Al Jefferson
Los Angeles Lakers: C Andrew Bynum
Phoenix Suns: C/PF Amare Stoudemire
Golden State Warriors: C Andres Bientrins
Los Angeles Clippers: PG Baron Davis (Now healthy), PF Zach Randolph (Now healthy) and C Marcus Camby
Sacramento Kings: SG Kevin Martin (Now healthy)
San Antonio Spurs: SG Manu Ginobili
Houston Rockets: C Yao Ming (Now healthy), SF Ron Artest (Now healthy) and SG Tracy McGrady
New Orleans Hornets: C Tyson Chandler
Dallas Mavericks: SG Jason Terry and SG Jerry Stackhouse (Now healthy)

That is more than 66% of all NBA teams, and 81.25% of ALL current playoff teams. OUCH!

Now, for my Video of the Day:
It's of LeBron James' 55-point outburst against the injury-depleted Bucks. He was shooting three's from near halfcourt, like 40 feet away from the basket!

Shaqawockeez and Krypto-Nate

Let's recap the All-Star festivities that took place last weekend.

First, the All-Star Celebrity Game.




I watched bits and pieces of the contest. I think I saw more airballs than baskets made during the game.

Best Harlem Globetrotters Show: Handles (a Harlem Globetrotter himself), when he started dribbling like crazy at the top of the key in various ways. He even kept his dribble even AFTER the foul! I found that quite amusing.



Best Alley-Oop: T.O. and Handles near the end of the first half. On a fast break, Handles lobs the ball off the backboard and, well, you know what comes afterward.



Craftiest Move During Game: Jon Barry, the analyst during this game, was going to get drenched with Gatorade/water during a free-throw attempt. We will let you see what happens next.



Now, to the Sophomore/Rookie contest. I didn't see the entire contest (like the celebrity contest, I caught bits and pieces of this one as well), although I saw the end of the greatest scoring performance by an NBA player during an All-Star game.




Not much to say about the event, but this is the only point that I saw repeatedly.

Most Overhyped Dunk: With less than a minute left in the game, Kevin Durant notched his final basket - a reverse dunk - as an exclamation point for the game, which gave him 45 points - an All-Time All-Star-Game-High points in a game. It was the one dunk that was shown in every highlight regarding this contest.



Now, onto Saturday night!

First comes the H.O.R.S.E contest. Or should I say "H.O.R.S.E. sponsored by GEICO." But you get the point.

If you did not get a chance to see the contest, here it is in its entirety.



Best Comeback Performance: After coming to G-E-I-C, and on verge of elimination, KD took charge and blew away the competition with an array of EASY jumpers that the other two players - OJ Mayo and Joe Johnson - failed to make.

Best Starting Performance: OJ Mayo, who started off very strong, and was the last player to get a letter in the game. Although he started off hot (He made a shot from the stands at half-court), he ended with a cold streak and gave the game to KD.

Worse Performance: Joe Johnson, who flubbed spinning the ball off his finger TWICE and AIRBALLED a behind-the-back shot from the paint.

Next is the Haier Shooting Stars competition.




The contest was almost what I expected, except for the very end. Here's a recap:



Worst Ending Performance: Team Phoenix (Ex-NBA player Dan Majerle, NBA player Leandro "The Brazilian Blur" Barbosa and WNBA player Tangela Smith) made ALL five shots in FIFTEEN seconds! They had 38 seconds - an ample amount of time to make a half-court shot to win the title in the championship round. Unfortunately, the home team failed to do so and gave the title to Team Detroit.

Third on Saturday's platter is the Playstation Skills Challenge.




There is only two things to comment on in this contest. Here's a recap.



Best Performance: Derrick Rose, who did well and topped the contest off nicely with a double-clutch backwards dunk to clinch the title. But he did get the following award as well

Worst Look Receiving Trophy: As one commenter put it "Rose looked as if someone told him his mother died and was given poop to eat when he was receiving his trophy."


Your decision.

Worst Performance: Tony Parker, who flubbed his way to last place in the competition. According to NBA.com: "The Spurs' point guard now holds the dubious distinction of having the two slowest times ever recorded in Skills Challenge history. In 2003, Parker finished the course in 45.5 seconds." It was Valentine's day, so I bet he cared more about his wife, Eva Longoria-Parker.


I would do the same as well.

The fourth contest was probably the WORST I have ever seen in a LOOONG time.






Worst Performance: Kapono (Couldn't win a third straight contest), Roger Mason (I had him winning the contest!) and Rashard Lewis (How could you go into the championship round and score only 7 points out of 30?)

He Proved Me Wrong Performance: If you read my last post, I made a rant that Daequan Cook shouldn't even be in the contest. He proved me wrong Saturday night, winning the shootout easily.

Last, but certainly not least on Saturday night was the dunk contest.





Worst Use of Attempts: Pau Gasol. Had he gotten the dunk routine correctly, Rudy might have been in the finals. Because he flubbed many times, that cost Rudy possibly a trophy.

Planned? I don't think so: Many NBA fans were saying that the whole dunk contest was planned, that Dwight Howard and Nate Robinson - the two dunk contest champions - were set to meet in the final round, that Dwight Howard did not deserve TWO 50's in the first round, and that the dunks were very unoriginal. I agree with the last two comments but NOT the first comment.

Best Original Dunk: Dwight Howard's third dunk (first in the final round), where he threw the ball against the side of the backboard and dunked it in.

Worst Use of Texting: I disagree that fans should have the first and only say in the final round. I liked the dunk contests where the final round was decided by the judges. Otherwise, what are they there for? Show? I think that the judges should vote on ALL dunks, and IF there is a tie in the final round after both dunks were made, the fans should then decide.

Worst Dunk: DH's 12-foot dunk. I say this because it took 15 minutes for him to go to the "phone booth", draw another hoop out and then do a normal two-hand flush on the 12-foot basketball hoop. EASILY the worst dunk.

Best Creativity: Nate Robinson. Clever that after the first round, decides to change from his normal Knicks uniform and switch to the St. Patrick's Day jersey's, with lime-colored shoes and basketball - just to become Kryptonite to DH's Superman. He deserved to win, although there was too much entertainment and not enough dunks. After all, it's a dunk contest, not an entertainment contest, people!

Now, to the final performance of All-Star weekend, the All-Star game.




This was enjoyable, but, NBA All-Stars, lay off on the defense! Jeez! It's just an All-Star game, not the NBA Finals!

Well, here are the highlights:



Best Single-Player Introduction: Shaquille O' Neal. Or shall I call him the "Big Shaqawockee"? Excellent performance by the big man in what could be his LAST All-Star game, ever. When was the last time Shaq wasnt part of All-Star weekend?



All, in all, the All-Star festivities were okay, at best.

Grade: C+

Now for the Video of the Day. Today's video is of the Dance-off with Shaq, DH and LeBron during All-Star weekend 2007. Like I always say, Enjoy!