A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
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It’s morning. While you get out your favorite coffee mug, pour a glass of orange juice, and make sure you have enough milk for your bowl of cereal, get yourself back up to date with the happenings in, or at least somewhat near, the sporting universe.
The following are links that we’re certain Emmanuelle Chriqui would love.
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When Joe Theismann was in college, he changed the pronunciation of his name from Thees-man to Thighs-man so that it would rhyme with Heisman, as in college football’s most prestigious award. He didn’t win the award, but to this day it is clear that Theismann continues to treat actual last names as mere suggestions when referring to people.
And yesterday, during a taping for the NFL Network, Theismann changed up someone else’s last name, and in the process he uttered the funniest words ever uttered in the history of mankind and all the world.
At least, you’d think so based on Deion Sanders’ reaction.
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Sure, the NFC doesn’t have the brutal divisional tussles of the AFC in the Divisional playoff round, but there’s still plenty to be intrigued with here.
The Packers and Falcons play again in Atlanta, where last time Tony Gonzalez may have dropped a pass that was ruled a TD, but in the end it really wasn’t the overarching reason they won, ultimately on a late field goal, 20-17.
Last week I said that only if we were still talking about the Seahawks this week, would we be interested in them? Since Saturday, it’s fair to say we have certainly become interested, although the better word is probably flummoxed. And I think that first-round bye just made people all the more unsure about the Chicago Bears, The Great Mystery of the NFL.
Unlike the established feuds and big names of the AFC, there’s still a lot to be figured out as the playoffs whittle away at the NFC totem pole. These games will separate a few more concrete answers from the many lingering questions in this conference, giving us a clearer indication as to what has been real or fake this year.
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Twitter has done many things since it exploded onto the scene a couple of years ago. From the perspective of a die-hard, obsessive sports fan like myself, one of the great effects of Twitter has been to give us peeks behind the curtain, so to speak, at what our favorite athletes and sports figures are like.
Well, there is perhaps no more entertaining and off-the-rails curtain to peek behind than that of Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay. He joined the micro-blogging site not too long ago and quickly became a prolific, must-follow tweeter. Knowing a little something about Irsay’s backstory – especially his indefatigable love of music – will help you to put his tweets into context. This quick Irsay biography tells you all you need to know.
What did Jim Irsay? is our daily (for the most part) segment that celebrates the most compelling of Irsay’s tweets. In today’s episode, we highlight just one tweet…but it’s advice everyone should heed.
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Update: Broncos vice president of football operations John Elway announced Thursday that former Panthers head coach John Fox will be Denver’s next head coach. Elway praised Fox as “a dynamic and proven leader who will energize our entire organization”. Fox responded to his hiring with the words: “I am very thankful to (team owner) Pat Bowlen and John Elway for giving me the opportunity to coach a football team with such a proud tradition. The Broncos have a culture of winning, and I am excited to continue that legacy.”
Fantasy Impact: Fox was clearly the most experienced and qualified of the candidates that the Broncos were considering hiring and despite a 2-14 season for the Panthers this year, due largely to ownership cutting payroll and parting ways with key veteran players, Fox has put his share of skins on the NFL head coaching wall through his nine years in Carolina. He took over a team that went 1-15 the year before he was hired and had them in the Super Bowl in his second year at the helm, and had a team that was almost always competitive and that appeared in the playoffs several teams with the inconsistent, oft-injured Jake Delhomme as his franchise quarterback for seven of his nine years. Fox has proven that he can win with a smashmouth ball-control approach, which will help in the development of and taking pressure off of last year’s first-round pick Tim Tebow. The main challenge for the organization now is to have a strong offseason and for Fox to have a strong offensive coordinator at his side.
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Update: The San Diego Tribune is reporting that the Chargers have reportedly discussed making a run at free agent Nnamdi Asomugha this offseason.
Fantasy Impact: Head coach Norv Turner has coached Asomugha in the past but do not expect the Chargers to make a blockbuster offer. This doesn't seem like a natural fit for Asomugha but just goes to show that many teams will pick up the phone and show interest.
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Update: The Denver Broncos have announced that former Panthers' coach John Fox as the 14th head coach in franchise history.
Fantasy Impact: Fox beat out Rick Dennison who was believed to the the front runner at one point due to his organizational ties. Fox had a 2-14 season last year with the Panthers, but had a very solid stint in his 9 years with Carolina. He will most likely employ a run first offense.
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Update: The Sacramento Bee is reporting that Jim Harbaugh's offensive line coach at Stanford, Greg Roman, is considered the favorite to land the 49ers' offensive coordinator job. Roman recently was passed over for Stanford's offensive coordinator David Shaw for the head coaching job at the school.
Fantasy Impact: Harbaugh has said he will make the calls on offensive for the Niners, but bringing in Roman will only help get the Niners offense back on track as they were dismal this past season.
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The Browns of Cleveland were embarrassed in their final game of the 2010 season by the hated Pittsburgh Steelers 41-9 on January 2nd. On January 3rd the Browns fired head coach Eric Mangini after a much maligned two-year stint that featured a 1-11 start last year, flashes of good play this year, and a struggle down the stretch to end up 5-11.
The rumors immediately started swirling. Many thought it was obvious that Mike Holmgren would come down from the front office and take over the sidelines for the Browns. Others thought maybe John Gruden would return to Ohio and coach the team. There were rumblings of big name coordinators such as Marty Mornhinweg in Philadelphia and Mike Mularkey in Atlanta.
Well, the rumors are done and now Cleveland has it’s man.
And it’s….drumroll please…
Pat Shurmur!
(Note: I almost put Paul as his first name at first…I hope this isn’t a sign of anything).
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Update: NFL.com is reporting that Houst Texans offensive coordinator Rick Dennison is picking up steam as the candidate to beat for the Broncos' head coaching job. NFL Network's Jason LaCanfora and ESPN's Adam Schefter both consider Dennison the early front-runner.
Fantasy Impact: Dennison is tight with Elway and has very strong ties to the Broncos. This may mean Tim Tebow can be the starting QB in Denver given Dennison's run first mentality.
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I grew up around college athletics and know first hand the tight rope that players have to walk to stay eligible and just how closely coaches have to monitor them. So when I see a player is declared ineligible, I am never surprised. I’m only surprised that it doesn’t happen more.
My dad was a position coach for many years at IU, as I’ve mentioned on MSF before, and my mom constantly had her maternal instinct shot down because even things as seemingly innocent and harmless as giving a kid a ride to the airport, or helping him afford a plane ticket home for the holidays, or buying him a player of gloves for Christmas, was off-limits thanks to the NCAA and its notorious rulebook.
The fine folks over at ReeseNews.org, which is run by journalism students at the University of North Carolina, put together a fun little quiz game that gives you the chance to make a series of decisions and see if you make enough correct calls to stay eligible. I passed on my first try, in large part because I know from experience: when in doubt, don’t.
Take the quiz and see how you do. Record your score in the comments and let’s if MSF can field a full roster next season, or if some of you will have to sit out because you accepted an improper benefit.
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Update: ESPN's Adam Schefter is reporting via Twitter that the Cleveland Browns today named Pat Shurmur as the 13th full-time head coach in franchise history.
Fantasy Impact: This hiring is no surprise and Schurmur now takes over a team that was run into the ground by Eric Mangini. It will be interesting to see how this team responds to a new voice in the locker room as they did pull off a few upsets this season.
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Update: The Dallas Morning News' Gerry Fraley writes that wideout Roy Williams will be back with the Cowboys next season "only if he takes a pay cut."
Fantasy Impact: There is no way the Cowboys are going pay Williams the $9.25 million he is due in 2011 and with the emergency of Miles Austin as the go to guy, Williams will have to restructure his deal or he will be looking for a new team.
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It’s morning. While you get out your favorite coffee mug, pour a glass of orange juice, and make sure you have enough milk for your bowl of cereal, get yourself back up to date with the happenings in, or at least somewhat near, the sporting universe.
The following are links that we’re certain January Jones would love.
