InClement Weather: Dog Days of Summer

Sports is coasting right now on fumes. Frankly, many of us are bored to tears with it altogether.

College football, the NFL, MLB playoffs, and final majors for tennis and golf still linger...but they are all still way too far out there. At least the Premier League's 2009-2010 season is upon us...even if it's Newcastle-less (sigh).

While I'd love to deliver something inciteful, it isn't happening in this climate.
Baseball banter can be found all over and anything revolutionary won't be offered up by someone who hardly ever embarks outside the AL East (go Yanks!).

Nevertheless, here are 4 stories on my mind. How about you?

1) The Erin Andrew story is not as joyous as I expected one with her naked could be.

This is a much as Erin Andrews planned on exposing to America.
Which was f-i-n-e for me.
Credit: Deadspin.com

Erin Andrews is the hottest thing in sports today. If you disagree, I want visual evidence. It doesn't hurt she's competent, unafraid to call out players, and doesn't hide behind her beauty (or run away from it). However, the story of a tape being released - in which she was allegedly videotaped naked in her hotel room unbeknowingst to her - is deeply depressing. What it means for female sportscasters, Andrews herself, and the privacy we don't have in this Twitter/blog/YouTube/MySpace world is more apparent than ever.

Words well spoken from Yahoo's Maggie Hendricks are HERE.
Ditto for David Hinckley at the New York Daily News HERE.

I feel for Andrews and her family right now. There's a major difference between posing for a magazine, an SI Swimsuit shoot, and this. Unfortunately, our society continues its foray into the infinite darkness...

2) NBA Free Agency Hot Stove = Overkill

Does Odom really elevate the Heat any higher than 5th in the East (where they were last season)? You tell me.
Credit: BestSportsPhotos.com

Shoot me now. Seriously. The waters are so silent in sports right now that multiple sites are grading performances in the NBA Summer Leagues. ROAR! Ever since Gordon and Villenueva signed in MoTown, the NBA Free Agent Summer of 2009 (just wait for 2010) won't calm down...or at least the news media won't let it. While most of the big names have landed, there's still plenty of talk to be had about the mediocre remains. Do you really care where Ike Diogu lands? DO YOU!?!? Perhaps the biggest story remaining is that of Lamar Odom. Don't get me wrong, he plays a potentially pivotal role in the landscape of the NBA (especially for the champion Lakers); yet, I don't exactly believe this is front page or lead-story news. Or maybe I just don't want it to be. Especially when it's, "Miami interested in Odom". I just wish a decision would be made and we could move on from the former Rhode Island Ram. Maybe that offer sheet the Cavs gave to Jamario Moon will hold us over until training camp opens in the NFL. BOO YA! (Sigh)

3) Is ESPN afraid?
Note: PLEASE don't put anything "extra" into my words either. The claim is just a claim and thedetails are far too hazy for me to even try and speculate.

Why ESPN isn't reporting the allegations, alleged of course, against Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger is beyond me. It may turn out to be untrue. It may be dismissed by the time I post this article. Nevertheless, is it not relevant news?

Posted by Mike Florio, so buyer beware...
A media source tells us that, late last night, ESPN issued a "do not report" memo to all of its outlets and reporters. The directive came without explanation. "Even some of the reporters are wondering why," the source said, "but haven't been told." This time around, ESPN can't claim that the report of a civil suit alleging sexual assault isn't true. Clearly, it is; Roethlisberger has hired attorney David Cornwell, who has denied the allegations in a statement initially sent to us, and then sent to other media outlets. And we've seen, and reported on, the contents of the complaint.

What is true and what isn't may take some time. Seems a little like "All the President's Men" with the controversy about reporting the controversy though.

4) Jason Campbell's status

The future of these two men are totally dependent on each other.
Credit: CNNSI.com

I bet Washington Redskins QB Jason Campbell doesn't put much stock into all the rumors - for better or worse - surrounding his status with the team. All I know is this: his contract is up after the end of this season and the team may have already made their decision by not offering him a new contract (when you think the price might be far cheaper).

People are on different sides of the Campbell argument and I can see why. He has an impressive physical skill set and the right attitude. Contrastingly, he doesn't have every throw in the book other QBs seem to possess and often seems to hesitate a little too much in the pocket, often checking down too regularly.

Personally, I think he's an above average quarterback, but nowhere near the superstar QB the city demands. He might lead a team to the playoffs; however, he isn't a top 10 NFL talent. I felt going after Cutler was wise and avoiding Favre was wiser. Don't even get me started on the potential Vick-storylines in the nation's capital.

Do I think Campbell win end up in DC after this season? No. While looking at the schedule I see another strong start for the Skins only to be undone in the closing campaign due to durability of Portis/the wide receiving corps "talent"/overall talent of the NFC East/Campbell's limitations in Zorn's system. Time will tell though, as always.


That's all I got...for now. Feel free to comment. In fact, I demand it!!!

Tuesday FourCast: Week 5

With a quarter of the season down the chute, we expected trends to start developing and performances to begin normalizing. Did we see that in Week 5? Nope. That said, here’s the Week 5 FourCast …

#1. The Washington Redskins Are For Real (and in October, not March)
Being from the Washington area, I am accustomed to hearing fans celebrating … in the month of March whenever a free agent is signed or whenever the team trades for a high-profile player. For years, I would mock Redskins fans and dub them the “Super Bowl Champions … of March”. In the last couple of seasons, the Redskins organization has discovered this thing called continuity and see that there’s some value. In spite of a new offensive system brought by a new coach, Jason Campbell’s millionth (seventh, actually) since he earned his high school diploma, the organization kept many of its coaches and players in place. They even had draft picks, one of which – Chris Horton – was defensive rookie for the month of September. The only return to business as usual for the Redskins was a trade for perennial Pro Bowl defensive end Jason Taylor; however, many, including myself, would argue that it was necessitated by season-ending injuries to two defensive ends on the same day in training camp and that it was not a move made by Dan Snyder for the sake of catching headlines. Since the nationally televised debacle against the New York Giants, Washington has rattled off four straight victories – two in succession at Dallas and Philadelphia. More importantly, the Redskins #6 offense (351.2 yards per game) has not given away the ball over nearly a third through the season and the defense has forced seven turnovers. Moving forward, the onus will be on head coach Jim Zorn to prepare his team for the next three games, in which the Redskins are expected to be favorites.

#2. Please Relegate the Detroit Lions
I don’t even want to call it football. That’s not what the Lions play. This team (a contradiction in terms, I know) has zero pride. If they had any, they would not fold like a lawn chair every time they stopped onto the field. I have and will continue to call the 11 (and sometimes, 12) people who stand on the field at the same time as their opponents’ offense a “Pop Warner Defense”.

Knowing this, I humbly request that the NFL relegates the Detroit Lions organization to either NFL Europe or the Arena League (or even, the CFL – they are close enough to Canada to become the Windsor Lions). My only requests for the promoted team is (a) that they have a cool name and (b) play as close or closer to the north as the Arizona Cardinals were to the east.

#3. Not Sold on Pittsburgh as a Contender
If you had an opportunity to watch Pittsburgh’s 26-21 victory at Jacksonville, then you are more likely to consider Ben Roethlisberger as one of the game’s best. After throwing a pick six to … you guessed, Rashean Mathis, Roethlisberger was undeterred in his pursuit to win and made plays all throughout the season despite lacking his top three running backs and a cohesive offensive line. Though Big Ben had a gymnast’s dexterity whenever the game hinged on his performance and the defense was impenetrable for much of the game, I am not sold on Pittsburgh’s ability to make a sustained run in the AFC. Despite playing in what many thought was the NFL’s weakest division prior to the season, the Steelers have required heroics to win the last two weeks and are another Big Ben body blow away from missing valuable snaps. Additionally, Pittsburgh is only 20th in rushing yards per game, a far cry from their #3 rank last season.

#4. Awkward Games Are This Season’s Calling Card
Anyone who watched last night’s Minnesota/New Orleans game or watched the highlights know that this was an awkward. It’s not every day that you see a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown, a halfback pass for a score and two punt returns taken to the house (Craig Kluwe is so cut and gets the “Durant Brooks Award” for kicking two low line drives to Reggie Bush in succession after one was already returned for a score).

However, awkward games have been this season’s calling card. Less than thirty hours before the Monday Night game, Indianapolis was down three scores to Houston with less than five minutes to go. I’ll spare you the highlights, because all of our readers have already seen the meltdown and know that Indy has been given a lifeline. As a rule of thumb moving forward, any game involving New Orleans, Denver, Reliant Stadium, Minnesota (against real NFL teams only), Ed Hochuli’s crew, the Wildcat formation and the desert have an elevated awkwardness rating. Let’s call it “Code Orange”.

The Code Orange games for Week 6 include the following:
* Oakland @ New Orleans. The Saints will either lose and give up a 1.5 yards per carry against the Raiders or win and give up 400+ yards of total offense.

* Miami @ Houston. This is actually Code Red due to two factors being satisfied. If Hochuli does this game, we have a trifecta.

* Jacksonville @ Denver. The Broncos can easily win despite giving up 8 yards per carry and 80 yards to three Jags backs. Good luck tackling David Garrard.

* Dallas @ Arizona. Bizarre things happen in the desert. The quicker you accept this fundamental verity, the better you can handle the consequences. Last week, no one knew why the Cardinals were 1-point favorites against then-undefeated Buffalo (I picked them only because I had to for my pick ‘em league) despite not having the services of top-flight wide receiver Anquan Boldin and they won by 24.

Our Thoughts on Last Night's Game

Armin: Was that a tribute to Joe Gibbs? It was as if they completely abandoned the West Coast Offense in the first half, and ran the Gibbs offense. Not quite the same effect as the Missing Man Formation tribute to Sean Taylor. The Redskins didn't officially start their "Jim Zorn Era" (and foray into the WCO) until the 2nd half of the game. Watching Coach Janky Spanky (a.k.a. Clinton Portis) giving a lesson in coaching to head coach Jim Zorn on the sidelines was embarrassing. The Redskins defense dropped several easy interceptions, which Redskins fans have become accustomed to outside of Sean Taylor over the last five seasons. Jason Campbell's alternate reality has him thinking he has 10+ seconds in the pocket to make his reads. However, as bad as the Redskins played, it was only a nine-point game. Should the Giants be concerned?

Sum: That was the Redskins' 6th preseason game, and it's why I thought they should've risked injury and played their starters the entire game against Jacksonville. We've known that the Skins running game would be kept the same, but that the passing game would go Zorn-style, and what we saw last night was them still working the kinks out of that merger. To disagree with Armin, I think that Zorn listens to his team leaders, like Portis, is amazing. Here, the coach allows his star athlete, who has experienced what's going on out on the field, to report back and to give his suggestions on the adjustments they can make. It's the perfect use of consultation in the middle of a game. The Giants looked great on that first drive, but that they only put up 16 points is quite pathetic. The score in this one should've been 24-7, at least. As for my assessment that the new starters on the D-Line would struggle, well, I stunk that one up real good.

Clement: Let's drop any excuses, could-haves, should-haves, or obsolete vernacular. Instead, let's remember that this is Week 1 in the NFL. The Giants are paper thin on the defense; nevertheless, Justin Tuck will be a Pro Bowler and the rookie safety Phillips showed flashes of brilliance all over the field. Eli should've had 3-4 picks; however, several of those Skins DBs were as ill-prepared for the ball to hit their hands as the Giants wideouts were. The Giants were EXTREMELY wise to pay Plax and wiser to not underutilize Jacobs (even with Ward & Bradshaw being talented). The Giants O-Line may be the most underrated unit in the NFL. The Skins looked sloppy and that had to be expected. Jason Campbell has his 7th offensive system in 8 years and DOESN'T have the moxy/poise (yet) to be an above-average NFL QB. Santana Moss/Randle-El are obsolete options and not effectively using Cooley is a MAJOR mistake (the rookie wideouts SUCK too). The Skins are not a 6-10 team; however, they may struggle mightily if they don't start getting 3-4 game-breaking runs a week from CP. The rest of their offense is nowhere talented enough (anywhere) to put up consistent scoring numbers and get this team through a downright brutal division.

Paymon: After jumping out to a quick 16-0 lead, the Giants' offense went on autopilot. Seemingly a comfortable win the Giants, Tom Coughlin has more than enough game film to rip into his team prior to their trip to the Gateway City in Week 2. Pressure was average, tackling was average, catching was average. Special teams coverage and red zone execution after the first drive ... let's not go from there. That said, DBs and O-Linemen (and the decision to run at Jason Taylor) were solid. For the Skins, they had better get their offense in order, because the Saints and Cards can put up serious points. Jason Campbell was stoic in the pocket and nearly got his receivers' head taken off. While I feel for the discontinuity he's experienced, he is a veteran and gets paid to produce.

Fantasy Analysis: Player Spotlight – Clinton Portis

As the fantasy football season rapidly approaches, more and more people have finally sucked up their pride and dished out $7-8 for a fantasy football magazine (or six!).

In most of them you’ll find the typical garbage each is trying to sell you as “insider information”.

Buyer beware!!!

If you’re lucky, you’ll find a staff of writers (of whom you think you might have heard of one or two of them before) partaking in a mock draft and mentioning a few sleepers or busts.

Savvy analysis galore!!!

While we all dole out the bones for it, where are the individual player perspectives? Forget the lunacy of projecting player statistics over a season or even declaring one back “the next big thing” and another a “complete and utter bust”. That's a crapshoot at best. AT BEST!

How many mags can I get for this puppy?
Credit: Smoking Gun

Why not instead check out PHSports for savvy analysis with a PUNCH (and maybe a humorous clip from YouTube hidden in each post)???

Glad you decided to stick around...

Today’s focus is on a man entering his fifth (yes, fifth) season with the burgundy and gold…Clinton Portis...aka Southeast Jerome, Coach Janky Spanky, Bro Sweets, Choo-Cho, Sheriff Gonnagetcha, and Dolemite Jenkins.

Crazy personas and post-game hijinx aside, let’s take a look at what you might expect from the man who offered up this gem…

In defense of Michael Vick, Portis said, "I don't know if he was fighting dogs or not, but it's his property, it's his dog," Portis told WAVY-TV. "If that's what he wants to do, do it." He then added, "I think people should mind their business." He was then asked if dog-fighting is prevalent in the NFL, and Portis answered, "I mean it's prevalent in life... I'm from Laurel, Mississippi. I know a lot of back roads that got the dog fight if you want to go see it."

Likely slotted in most draft boards in the early-to-mid second round (give or take a half-dozen picks or so), plenty of people - from Skins haters to Portis doubters - may have a hard time selecting him as their team’s #1-back.

While I have been quite skeptical in season’s past of Southeast Jerome, let me cut out the numbers (sorry Stat Boys) and give you some cold hard facts as to why you SHOULD make a run, earlier than expected, at the former Hurricane.

Anyone home to this "jingle" has loved it from Day 1.

5 Reasons to DRAFT Clinton Portis:

1) Jim Zorn’s offense should be a lot more vertical than those of year’s past in DC. If the Skins are wise, they’ll use their incredible depth at the TE position to spread the middle of the field to open more lanes around the tackles for Portis to use his speed to cruise deep downfield.

Kid Bro Sweets will likely love what Zorn's offense brings to his number of touches.

Credit: BP3

2) Despite rushing right under 4.0 yds/carry last season, Portis plunged in for 11 rushing TDs last season (despite not breaking open too many big plays). Any time you have a back who can go for multiple rushing TDs (keep in mind he also caught a career-high 47 passes), you draft him without flinching

.

Choo-Cho is targeting a dozen rush TDs...at least!
Credit: Deadspin

3) Tabbed as the 11^th overall talent on Brandon Funston’s Yahoo! Fantasy Board, Portis had an, “impressive show of production, durability, and consistency (in 2007)”. In leagues dominated by backs, he’d be a potentially sick-nasty #2 RB to pile onto an already talented #1.

Dollah Bill a first-round pick? Believe it!!!

Credit: Yahoo! Sports

4) Free Range. Portis can do no wrong in the eyes of owner Daniel “Wonder Boy” Snyder. He got his way when Coach Gibbs was calling the shots, so how do you expect Jim Zorn to tell Clinton anything he doesn’t want? Portis seems more than willing to take himself in and out of games…when healthy, at least...whenever he sees fit.

I wonder who Dolemite Jenkins is voting for in November?
Credit: Redskins.com

5) Jason Campbell has been the talk of the national press – and to a lesser extent local press – out of Skins camp. Entering his third year as a starter, Campbell’s physical attributes are simply waiting for his playmaking and decision making skills to catch up.

Coach Janky Spanky is gonna do more than take a BITE outta crime!
Credit: Redskins.com

I’m sure I could peg out more than a dozen reasons, or hilarious pictures, describing and depicting why you should wait on drafting Portis too early and hope he slips a round or two below your pre-draft expectations.

However, I’ll leave that to my loyal readers.

All 8 of them.

Until next time…and next fantasy analysis.