Here's tonight's lineup of new shows and events (all times Eastern). Check your local TV listings for additional information.
* = Series/Season Premiere ** = Series/Season Finale # = New Day/Time
If you already forgot about this morning's festivities, the networks and cable outlets offer a recap to refresh your memory.
6:00 to 7:00 Cartoon Network: 'Batman: The Brave and the Bold' (6:30 start)
7:00 to 8:00 Cartoon Network: 'Ben 10: Ultimate Alien' (7:30 start) Versus: 'NHL Playoffs' (second-round action between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Washington Capitals)
8:00 to 9:00 ABC: 'Shark Tank' CBS: 'The Royal Wedding: Modern Majesty' CW: 'Smallville' FOX: 'Kitchen Nightmares' NBC: 'Friday Night Lights' PBS: 'Washington Week With Gwen Ifill' and 'Need to Know' Cartoon Network: 'Generator Rex' CMT: 'Singing Bee' CNN: 'Piers Morgan Tonight' (120 minutes, royal wedding recap) Discovery: 'American Loggers' Disney Channel: 'Phineas and Ferb' and 'Fish Hooks' ESPN: 'NBA Playoffs' (game 6 between the San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies) ESPN2: 'NFL Draft' (150 minutes, rounds 2 and 3) ID: 'Main Street Mysteries' (8:30 start) SyFy: 'WWE SmackDown' (120 minutes) TLC: 'William and Kate: The Royal Wedding Presented by TLC' (120 minutes)
The rest of the schedule and the late night talk shows after the jump.
With these picks, we now have addressed the need at OLB and a huge need for the Lions at OT. Culbreath is also known to play at the OG position, so he could be used in either role.
No one knew what the Lions would do during this draft. They stayed the course and went for the best players available. Martin Mayhew (GM) and Jim Schwartz (head coach) reported feeling good about the players they drafted this year. They felt that they got the guys who would bring the most to a team that now has the attention of the entire NFL.
With the addition of DT Nick Fairley, WR Titus Young, RB Mikel LeShoure and now OLB Doug Hogue and OT/G Johnny Culbreath, the Lions have built on their present and their future.
More players will be added through free agency. Our corners will be dynamic or get an upgrade in the offseason. Our offensive line now has so many weapons, no team will know how to cover them.
Our defense...well that brings us to the rest of the story.
The defensive line got another DT who will help take some of the pressure off of Ndamukong Suh and create a bigger and scarier front than the Vikings' "Williams Wall."
It was suggested that the Lions get a nickname for their new line. Whatever it is it should strike fear as soon as it it uttered. Suggestions? Maybe something to do with the strength of the Motor City itself. We are not the steel capital of the world...we are the comeback city of the world.
No, we did not suffer the devastation of a hurricane, but we did and still are experiencing a financial crisis that almost brought the city of Detroit to it's knees. What could have been a situation of hopelessness is now a situation of hope based on the city's tenacity. We don't know what giving up is and neither do the Detroit Lions.
For the last round picks, the Detroit Lions score an 'A'. Not based on what I or anyone else, believed they would do, but what they did do. There is hope in Detroit.
Say goodbye to "Hockey Town". This is THE "Detroit Lions Football City"
Terrell Owens, the Bengals leading receiver in 2010, isn't mad at Carson Palmer for wanting out of Cincinnati. In fact, he thinks it says more about the Bengals' shortcomings than Palmer's.
In the NFL Network studio with Solomon Wilcots and Warren Sapp, Owens got honest about the state of the 4-12 Bengals. And yes, if you want to, you can see it as Owens selfishly shoving his team into a woodchipper, but to me, nothing about it feels malicious or me-first. I see only a guy being honest and making a lot of sense.
The highlights:
"If you have your franchise quarterback who is supposed to be that guy for your team [and he's] trying to get out of there, that’s kind of telling the organization something, and that’s telling a lot of people out there something as well."
"Even before I got there, they said the owner was a little different. Obviously, I saw that. You start with the head coach, and then you start with the staff on both sides of the ball."
"Offensively, we really didn’t have the coaching that we really needed to muster what we had on the offensive side of the ball."
In summary, the things holding back the Bengals organization are the two small matters of the front office and the coaches. Anyone want to tell him he's wrong?
Owens will be a free agent this summer, and could end up, just like last summer, scrambling for a job.
According to a GPD initial report about the incident and two sources familiar with the case Talib allegedly attempted to pistol-whip his sister Saran's boyfriend, Shannon Billings, and then, after a struggle, used his mother Okolo's pistol and fired several shots at Billings as he fled the scene on foot.
If you're scoring at home, that's a pistol-whipping and a borrowing of mom's gun to shoot at your sister's boyfriend, all in one paragraph. Yikes.
Police currently describe Talib as a "person of interest" in the shooting. Billings, the alleged victim, has been involved in two other family-violence cases involving Talib's sister, Saran.
It's pretty ironic that EA Sports' Madden: 2012 would use a video of Steve Johnson as it dropped the ball on keeping the Buffalo Bills' new jerseys a secret, but if you're a Bills fan, you're probably used to this sort of thing.
A promo for the new game showed Johnson running across the middle (screengrab, via Buffalo Rising, above) with a Bills uniform that consisted of a white helmet that looked different than anything the team had been sporting in years past. The EA people quickly yanked the YouTube video showing the new uniforms after getting heat from the NFL about the leak, but said they had showed the NFL the promos before going live with them.
It seems that the Bills had planned on unveiling the new uniforms during a fan appreciate event later in 2011, but the Madden game had players sporting the new look, that ESPN's Tim Graham will describe.
The helmets will be white with the blue charging buffalo and gray facemasks. Jerseys will have broad stripes on the shoulders instead of the sleeve bottom. Pants will be blue or white, the opposite of the jersey. Blue pants will have red-between-white piping. White pants will have red-between-blue piping.
Socks will have blue-and-white striped tops, and players will have the option to wear blue or white shoes as opposed to black. Belts are believed to be gray.
I mean, no way this is a bad thing, right? It's bringing attention to the Buffalo Bills, who have finished better than .500 just once in the last 11 seasons, and probably has fans a little excited for a new look, if football is actually played this year.
Also, it seems a perfect time to actually unveil these bad boys as the draft kicks off on Thursday. Have the new players sport them in front of the cameras as they join the Bills, and start selling them as the buzz goes around about this leak by Madden. All in all, it seems like a good thing for the Bills if they can embrace it and try to make it worth their while. Trust me, it could be the most exciting moment all year for Bills fans.
The ink's dried on the NHL's $2 billion, 10-year deal with NBC, and the general opinion from pundits is that it's a winner. It may even be as far-reaching as to influence the NHL to return to the Olympics for the 2014 Sochi Games, should NBC win the bid.
There's still a segment of fans and media, despite compelling arguments to the contrary, that believe ESPN would have been the better destination for the NHL's U.S. television contract.
John Ourand of Sports Business Journal had a piece this week that detailed the NHL's negotiating process with NBC, ESPN, Turner and FOX. In it, we get some interesting details on what the WWL was offering the League as a television partner. Here's Ourand, writing about Gary Bettman and Comcast's Brian Roberts:
Though the two are friends, Bettman had a tough message to deliver: Days earlier, ESPN told the league that it would make an aggressive bid on the NHL's media package. Bettman told Roberts that ESPN's planned bid of $160 million to $170 million per year would test NBC's and Versus' right-to-match clause, which several media executives described as the tightest such clause they had ever seen. The clause gave NBC the right to match any deal the NHL signed with another network.
But it would be hard for NBC to match ESPN's planned offer. ESPN told the NHL that it would televise every Stanley Cup playoff game nationally. ESPN said that it would stream the games to authenticated broadband and mobile users. And ESPN guaranteed an international component as part of its planned offer. ESPN's deal would include a regular-season Game of the Week, but it was not making the broadcast network ABC available. The details were new for Roberts, who did not want to lose the NHL. In early discussions with the league, the NBC Sports Group had resisted the idea of televising every Stanley Cup playoff game nationally. And Comcast could not match ESPN's streaming plans or international offerings.
Comcast/NBC's reaction? The deal that was eventually agreed upon that gave the NHL 100 broadcasting "windows" on NBC and whatever VERSUS will become and a nationally televised game the day after Thanksgiving.
SBJ reports that the NHL never went back to ESPN for a counteroffer, nor did ESPN ever submit a formal proposal.
Again, there were virtues to hitching the wagon to ESPN: There's no question the post-lockout product on the ice, the current crop of stars and the growing audience all position the NHL to be more palatable to the ESPN marketing machine than in their previous contract. It's still a network that drives the conversation for a large segment of fans that aren't (yet) watching hockey.
But it's clear that for what the NHL wanted out of this network contract, NBC was able to provide it ? if not the ESPN casual fan seal of approval.
Kareem Jackson, second-year cornerback for the Houston Texans, took a recent vacation to the Dominican Republic.
While there, he took in a little bit of the local culture, which apparently includes making chickens fight each other until one of them is dead. We know this because he tweeted about it.
"My first time ever seeing chicken fight till the death it was crazy… "
"Look at all these people that be at these chicken fights, you would think its a college football game."
He also posted the picture you see to the right.
Lopez rakes Jackson over the coals for the offending tweets, but personally, I don't see that Jackson did anything wrong here.
I see the harm in cockfighting, of course -- it's a brutal, inhumane thing to do to an animal, and I'd be thrilled if the practice was somehow abolished worldwide. And maybe Jackson shouldn't have tweeted about it, only because of the scrutiny and media attention (for example, this post) it will bring.
But that Jackson did something he should be ashamed of? I don't see it.
When you visit another country, that's what you do. You take in the local culture and the local activities, and if you see something crazy -- like cockfighting, for example -- you tweet that you just saw something crazy.
It's not Jackson's fault that cockfighting is legal and popular in another country, and it's not like he endorsed the activity. It's not like he tweeted, "Hey, I'm at a cockfight, and it's awesome, and I'm going to do this every day!" It's not like he helped strap a razor blade to a chicken's foot.
He was there. He saw it. He said it's crazy. I see no reason for the guy to apologize.
In a ruling that was expected ? and expected Monday ? Judge Susan Richard Nelson has ruled for the players in the Brady v. NFL case, not only lifting the lockout, but refusing to grant a stay pending an appeal. The more conservative ruling would have been to stay the injunction and prevent any action between now and the inevitable process in the Court of Appeals, but initial reports indicate that she has not done so.
The question is, what happens now? When the ruling is filed, the assumption is that between that filing and whatever happens upon appeal, the league would essentially be open for business regarding free agency, players able to visit team facilities, etc. But the other assumption is that the NFL was expecting this ruling, which has been the case all along ? the league knew that Nelson would rule this way and was simply waiting to argue its case in front of the Court of Appeals.
Nelson originally heard Brady v. NFL at a hearing on April 6, and said that she would take approximately two weeks to make her ruling. She encouraged the owners and players to engage in further negotiations while she weighed the arguments, but those talks broke down after four days. Previously, two weeks of mediated talks broke down in Washington, D.C., leading to the lockout on March 11.
Depending on whether the stay is granted pending appeal, we could have quite the little Wild-West situation going on in the days leading up to the draft. It's possible that teams could rush to sign and trade free agents, and it's also possible that the owners could refuse to sign or trade anyone, which would probably lend credence to the collusion case that the NFLPA already has going.
The NFL released a statement with a predictable message: "We will promptly seek a stay from Judge Nelson pending an expedited appeal to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. We believe that federal law bars injunctions in labor disputes. We are confident that the Eighth Circuit will agree.�But we also believe that this dispute will inevitably end with a CBA, which would be in the best interests of players, clubs & fans."
It's a complicated process in the short and long term, but a ruling for the players is a major step to a full season. That's the good news. Stay tuned for more details as they become available.
The competitors on "Dancing With the Stars" should prepare themselves to be blindsided by Hines Ward -- perhaps with his elegance and grace, or maybe by a jaw-crushing block.
The Pittsburgh Steelers receiver will be joining the cast of ABC's "Dancing With the Stars," following in the footsteps of other prancing NFL'ers Emmitt Smith, Jerry Rice, Michael Irvin, Warren Sapp, Chad Ochocinco,Jason Taylor,Kurt Warner and Lawrence Taylor.
Gridiron superstars have a pretty good track record on the show. Warren Sapp, Jerry Rice and Jason Taylor all finished second, and Emmitt Smith won the whole thing in 2006.
Ward, though, has never been known as the lithe, elegant type. He's best known for his tenacious blocking, which sometimes results in gruesome collisions, and sometimes convinces his peers to call him "the dirtiest player in the league."
Joining him on the cast will be Sugar Ray Leonard, Petra Nemcova, Kirstie Alley, Chris Jericho, Mike Catherwood, Lil' Romeo, Chelsea Kane, Wendy Williams, the great Ralph Macchio and Kendra Wilkinson, the wife of Minnesota Vikings receiver Hank Baskett.
If there was any doubt that the Titans were reaching when they selected the Washington Huskies quarterback in the top 10, it was put to doubt by the reaction of the normally mild-mannered NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock, who audibly gasped when he heard the pick and then proceeded to tear into Locker's game film:
That highlight package was obviously put together days or weeks ago, suggesting that Mayock was prepared to dog Locker's game even if he was drafted in the teens or twenties, as expected. Him going No. 8 was a surprise, but not a complete shock. Though Locker may have mechanical flaws, he fills a need for the Titans and went relatively close to his projected draft slot.
The same can't be said of the Vikings pick, Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder. With Brett Favre finally gone and Tarvaris Jackson not instilling confidence in the coaching staff, Minnesota needed a quarterback. Was Ponder at No. 12 the way to do it?
Our draft expert, Doug Farrar, didn't have the FSU product going in the first round, let alone at No. 12, mainly due to pre-draft concerns about Ponder's injury history and weak arm. (The name Chad Pennington was bandied about more frequently than any team would like for a guy taken early in the first round.) He wasn't alone in that sentiment. Though there had been some speculation in recent days that a team like the Washington Redskins could trade down to the mid-first round to take him, Ponder's best-case scenario figured to be getting picked late on Thursday night.
UFC 129 could very well be the end of an era for UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre.
Obviously a loss to Jake Shields would mean that St-Pierre’s reign as champion would be over, but a win may mean it’s the last time we ever see him fighting at 170 pounds.
Rumors continue to build that a super-fight between middleweight champion, Anderson Silva and St-Pierre is a very real possibility in the near future, perhaps even by the end of the year.
With Silva having been booked for a fight at UFC Rio against Yushin Okami, though, there may be one more fight for Georges St-Pierre at welterweight.
So who are the most likely opponents for GSP’s next fight?
(Note: The Browns traded up from 27 to get Kansas City's 21st overall pick).
Pros: Incredibly agile for his size (6-foot-4, 337 pounds), Taylor's faster in a five-yard radius than anyone this big should be. Very quick off the snap, and it doesn't take him long to get his weight redistributed if he needs to get off a pass rush and back off to cover or help stop a running play. Locks on well and can fool blockers with a quick spin move. Will split double-teams with speed more than power. Taylor isn't limited to zero- and one-tech looks, he'll occasionally shade outside the guard and become a real problem as a huge three-tech - he has the skill set to do so.
Taylor has surprising sideline-to-sideline speed, and he doesn't get gassed after a 20-yard run.�He is excellent at sliding off single blocks and accelerating to the ballcarrier. Flashes decent pass-rush for his size and role; as a three-tech tackle, he can get pretty low and get around a blocker to harass the quarterback. Would seem to transfer well to a role right over center if need be because he engages double-teams and doesn't lose them - this would be a crucial attribute for a player his size. Good with his hands; has the upper-body strength to push a guard out of the way with a quick slap. Really turned it on at the Senior Bowl and should impress in the agility drills at the scouting combine.
Cons: For a one-gap tackle, Taylor is disturbingly easy to push sideways and out of the play - if he doesn't get the first burst, he doesn't always win the power battle. Hasn't run a lot of loops and twists and doesn't seem particularly effective when doing so; the Baylor defense seemed more straight-ahead with its defensive linemen, so this may be a matter of technique over time. Transferred to Baylor after two years at Penn State; was suspended and then kicked off the Nittany Lions' roster after his alleged role in a fight at a student union function and sat out the 2008 season as a result. Occasional lapses in play; he'll need to find more consistency at the next level.
Conclusion: It's difficult for me to grade Taylor as a nose-over-center tackle in the mold of Casey Hampton, Kris Jenkins or Vince Wilfork; those players are less likely to get pushed aside by guards. And for all his size, Taylor isn't a squatty guy - he's a bit more lean and muscular in a way that makes me wonder if a 3-4 team might not want him to put on 10 pounds or so.
Right now, he's an interesting hybrid player who would most easily succeed in a system where he's all over the line - he could have a Justin Smith-style impact if he's on a 3-4/4-3 line where he's all over the place. Looking at the height/weight and immediately assuming that he's an instant nose tackle who just has surprising speed would be a rather large mistake. If he answers any character concerns and finds the right spot, Taylor could be a dominant defender for years to come.
Pros: Castonzo has tremendous power and footwork at the second level -- he's rare in that he's almost more effective with leverage once he gets up a head of steam off of chips and at linebacker depth. Attacks aggressively in run blocking -- he could do so even more if he added strength to his 6-foot-7, 305-pound frame. Can pull and trap very well for his height -- he's got very good short-area agility. Backpedals and blocks areas very well; could have a bright future as an NFL zone blocker. Gets good push in goal-line and other shorter-area situations, and he showed more in-line power at the Senior Bowl.
Cons: Needs to learn to extend the block, turn the corner quicker, and flash more aggression in pass protection -- he'll lose elite edge rushers on the back half and give up sacks behind the pocket. Occasionally stands too upright at the snap and can get led by defenders who get under his pads. Doesn't always finish blocks; he'll tend to swipe and push off and let defenders where they shouldn't be. Has a good kick-step outside, though it can get choppy at times and disappears when he gets too upright.
Conclusion: Each of the first-round tackles in the 2011 draft class have little things -- little adjustments they need to make -- before they'll be able to take on the NFL full-bore. Castonzo has the experience and intelligence needed, as well as many aspects of the technique set. What he needs is more pure power, more consistent footwork, and better pad level. Primarily, he'll need to gain weight and strength for point-of-attack battles. But there's no question that he's worth a first-round pick as is, and given a season or two to round out his skill set, Castonzo might have elite potential, simply based on the development he's shown already.
Because Judge Nelson said they could, a lot of players around the National Football League are showing up to work this morning.
What they're doing when they get there, I couldn't tell you. No one thought to make a plan for that. �I imagine it's a lot like one of those days at school where something weird happens, like, I don't know, a gas leak or an rabid opossum loose in the building, and then the teachers decide to just throw all the kids in the gymnasium where they'll play tic-tac-toe all day because no one has any idea what to do with them.
"Be advised any player going to work tomorrow is doing so under the ruling that Judge Nelson rendered today," the e-mail read. "Judge Nelson's court order prevents the clubs from locking out players under contract, so they can show up for work. Unless and until the judge issues an order for a stay (delay of the injunction), the teams will be in violation of Judge Nelson's order if they don't allow access."
So if a player, like Ferguson, was scheduled to receive a workout bonus this offseason, it would behoove him to get to team facilities, so if it comes up later, no one can withhold a bonus by saying, "Hey, we were open for business, but you weren't here."
The NFL is trying to get a stay on the decision, but they don't have it yet, and from what I can tell, we won't know if they'll get that for at least a day.
It's still hard to tell what will happen, what anything means, or when football will be truly be back in business. It's open for today, though, so ... yay?
Britt has been charged with lying to an officer and obstructing governmental function, both misdemeanors, and also with eluding a police officer, which is a felony.
Tell us about it, Jay Glazer and Alex Marvez.
According to a police report, the incident occurred at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday when Britt was clocked driving his blue Porsche at 71 mph in a 50-mph zone. When an officer attempted to enter the roadway to stop the vehicle, the Porsche accelerated and began weaving in and out of highway traffic. The Porsche then exited the highway and was spotted on a local street with Britt and [23-year-old Jerel] Lord walking away from the vehicle.
The officer ordered them to stop and began questioning Britt and Lord, both of whom denied being in the vehicle. At one point during the interview, Lord ran away on foot, but he was apprehended a block away by a pursuing officer.
Britt, who was recognized as a Titans player, admitted that the Porsche was his after being asked by the officer about the Tennessee plates on the vehicle. Britt, however, claimed he wasn't the driver.
I'm no master criminal, so maybe I'm wrong about this, but it seems like a bad idea to ever run from the cops. I don't recall ever hearing a conversation that went like this:
"Hey man, I just ran away from the cops. And I got away!" "Really? What happened then?" "Well, they left me alone and I lived happily ever after."
I don't think it works like that. When police decide they want to talk to you, they're pretty well set on that idea. Unless you're willing to flee to Venezuela and never come back, they're probably going to get their way.
Commissioner Roger Goodell has vowed, when the lockout ends, to punish players for violating the league's code of conduct during the lockout. Britt has that to look forward to.
Pros: Takes as quick a first step off the snap as you'll see, and he takes near-perfect angles to the quarterback. Fast even for a stand-up pass rusher. Has to be taken on one-on-one - he shoots through chip blocks as if they aren't happening. Extremely impressive footwork allows him to bait tackles inside or outside and move the other way to get an open lane.
Great speed to redirect after losing the back end of the pocket. Some of his sacks come as a result of his determination to chase quarterbacks down as they're leaving the pocket. Shoots inside with extreme quickness - unless the guard and/or center are prepared for it, Miller's going to shoot right past them. Can stack-and-shed very well for his size (6-foot-3, 237 pounds) to bring running backs down. Not a bad open-field tackler when the situation arises, but this is a guy whose gearbox is set to "forward" almost all the time.
Cons: Will need to put on a few pounds to succeed at the NFL level. Sometimes� Miller is just winning speed battles against guys who don't have serious NFL futures. Lack of experience in coverage shows on tape, but there's no reason a player with his athleticism couldn't develop into a good intermediate pass defender. He displayed some coverage ability during Senior Bowl week. No real bull-rush to speak of; he lacks the upper-body strength to do that at this time.
What he brings to the team: Miller has had the late Derrick Thomas as his NFL model for success for a long time, but he puts me more in the mind of Clay Matthews because of his ability to stunt inside and play the LEO position in hybrid fronts. Matthews has become a nonpareil quarterback disruptor out of any front, and Miller has already proven to be the same. However, he's not scheme-transcendent - he'll have to put on far too much weight to be a legitimate 4-3 end against the run -- he's a pure pass-rusher.
Is it the right pick? For� a Broncos team transitioning back to a 4-3, Miller is a great pick ? he'll bring a dominant sense of edge rush that some have compared to DeMarcus Ware, and when you put him with Elvis Dumervil, Denver's defensive line just got a lot scarier.
The Eagles filled one of their biggest needs on their team with the selection of guard Danny Watkins, a solid, athletic mauler, who the Eagles can plug and play on the right side of the line.
The Eagles will have to address many other needs on defense though, but with nine picks, they can do just that.
Here are top positions of need, and players the Eagles can fill at the position of void.
"I'll tell you this ? Ryan was in his hotel room by about 10 o'clock," [Mallett's agent J.R.] Carroll said.
Carroll said Mallett did meet with Panthers offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski the next morning, but he had to miss the rest of that day's planned meetings ? because he had genuinely fallen ill, not because he was hung over or bleary-eyed from a long night out.
"I'm pretty sure Ryan was really, really sick," Carroll said. "He told me he was sick the night before. And I know Ryan wasn't out late night. I know that for sure. He's not an idiot."
Normally, there wouldn't be much need to pay a story like this any attention. Stories get out there about guys around draft time -- sometimes they're true, sometimes they're not, and most of us will never know the truth. But it's particularly troubling for Mallett, as he's had drinking issues before. He was arrested in 2009 for public intoxication.
Most drafties don't have Mallett listed among the top two or three quarterbacks in the draft, and it was probably a longshot that he was going to be drafted by Carolina, anyway. Something like this, depending on what other teams believe, could hurt his stock leaguewide, though.
"We wish Tiki nothing but the best, and when we are able to make the transaction, we will release him from our reserve-retired list," the Giants said.
I did not see this coming.
The first question that comes to my mind is "why?" Why on earth would a 35-year-old running back be so eager to return to a physically punishing league that, quite frankly, treats 35-year-old running backs like garbage? Especially when that league isn't even certain to have a 2011 season?
Jon Wertheim of SI.com passes this along:
Barber's personal and professional life have been in shambles recently. In April 2010, Barber reportedly left his wife of 11 years, Ginny, for 23-year-old Traci Johnson, a former NBC intern. Ginny was eight months pregnant at the time. Soon after, NBC cited its morals clause and terminated Barber's contract, which reportedly paid him more than $300,000 per year.
In June 2010, the New York Post reported Barber was broke and couldn't pay his divorce settlement with his ex-wife.
If money is truly his motivation, this story starts to lose some of its charm. I hope he's coming back because he loves to compete and feels like he can still run with the young whippersnappers.
If it's true that he's doing it because he needs the money, it feels less like Rocky IV, and a little more like Mike Tyson vs. Kevin McBride.
Barber, who has served as an NFL analyst for Y! Sports, retired after the 2006-2007 season at the top of his game. He ran for over 1,600 yards in his final season, with 58 receptions and 465 receiving yards on top of it. Barber, especially later in his career, was able to keep himself relatively injury-free. He still had something in the tank when he walked away.
Think about that: It probably took you longer to get through the supermarket checkout line than Niemi lasted in Game 5. And you got to flip through the pages of Cosmo (don't lie) while Niemi gave up three goals on four shots as his defense let him down.
It was the second game in this series in which he was pulled, and he's given up an unforgivable eight first-period goals in five games.
Well, almost unforgivable: Coach Todd McLellan's giving him the start in Game 6 against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night, of course -- a show of confidence in what could be the series finale for San Jose.
For Game 6 against Los Angeles, Niemi almost has to turn off his brain and use what has worked for him over the last 2 months of the season. Sometimes thinking about making changes while you are making them results in the puck finding the back of the net. Building on the success he had last year after being pulled against Vancouver, and on earning a win in Game 4 after being pulled a game earlier, Niemi expressed confidence in himself and in his preparation.
"It is always a new time when you have to come back," Niemi said. "It takes careful preparation, just getting ready and not thinking about it too much."
Niemi bounced back in Game Four-- whether he bounces back in Game Six won't be known until the game gets underway, even if historical data suggests that Niemi does play well after a bad start. With San Jose facing down Los Angeles' Jonathan Quick, who was absolutely brilliant [in Game 5] during the course of his 52 save performance, all eyes will be on Niemi to match that type of game-changing ability.
Sure, but they're also on Quick. He has a shutout and that 51-save stunner to his credit; but he also gave up 12 goals in Games 3 and 4 on home ice. He needs to be better than Niemi, which has been easy for most of the series, given where Niemi has set the bar. More importantly, he has to keep the Sharks from scoring goals in clusters as they did in their Game 3 rally and their Game 4 win in LA.
For both goalies, it's about establishing confidence for their teammates. The Sharks want to end this thing. The Kings want to extend this thing; and as Dustin Brown told the LA Times, they've learned a bit since the last time they were in an elimination Game 6:
"Going into Game 6 last year at home it was a different team, just as the result of not being in that situation [before], win or go home," Brown�said. "I think everyone understands playing in that game it wasn't a big mistake, or a couple of big mistakes. It was stuff that probably the average fan doesn't recognize. ... I think the message that needs to be in this [dressing] room is eliminating those tiny mistakes because that's what's going to be the difference here tonight."
So will we see a Game 7 in this series? Time to get pumped, courtesy of the Kings Game 6 Jumbotron video:
Pros: Extremely intelligent player who has the potential to process multiple reads quickly and decisively, Ponder has a great command of all underneath routes and can throw any pass up to 20 yards in the air with consistent precision. Does not lose accuracy on the move - can roll out and keep the reads where they need to be. Throws slants and crosses and other timing routes with excellent anticipation; he can hit a receiver in stride repeatedly on any short to intermediate route, and this may be his best attribute.
Great ability to improvise under pressure and he really showed this during Senior Bowl week; even when the pocket collapsed around him, Ponder could juke his way out of trouble and make the quick completion. No problem with his mechanics - Ponder has a compact delivery and a quick release. Excellent accuracy on downfield throws when he hits the distance. Displays escapability and agility on the quick quarterback draw out of shotgun.
Cons: Injuries to his right (throwing) shoulder and elbow are cause for concern and have seen Ponder's stock descend from the top of draft prospect lists before the 2010 season to the middle of the pack. Though he can read defenses, Ponder may struggle early on in the NFL due to his tendency to telegraph his first read. He will gamble too much when leaving the pocket - he absorbs major hits when he should slide and he occasionally tries to fit stick throws where he shouldn't, leading to a high number of interceptions. Deep ball is evident but not consistent; in an offense requiring a lot of vertical throws, Ponder could leave his receivers hanging. At the combine, people will be watching his deep throws very carefully.
What does he bring?: At the Senior Bowl and Combine, Ponder checked out medically, was the most consistent quarterback in the practices, and won the game's MVP award with a two-touchdown performance. He proved a lot there about the two primary concerns facing him - his injury history and supposedly weak arm. He'll never be mistaken for a rifle-armed quarterback, but any team looking to lead a West Coast offense could do a lot worse in the long term.
Is it the right pick? Well, it's interesting. I see it as a reach, but for any team looking to run a pure West Coast offense, Ponder is the best choice. His command of the complexities of the position will make him an asset to the team — as long as he stays healthy. Interesting that with all their defensive line needs, the Vikings left Robert Quinn and Nick Fairley on the board.
"We wish Tiki nothing but the best, and when we are able to make the transaction, we will release him from our reserve-retired list," the Giants said.
I did not see this coming.
The first question that comes to my mind is "why?" Why on earth would a 35-year-old running back be so eager to return to a physically punishing league that, quite frankly, treats 35-year-old running backs like garbage? Especially when that league isn't even certain to have a 2011 season?
Jon Wertheim of SI.com passes this along:
Barber's personal and professional life have been in shambles recently. In April 2010, Barber reportedly left his wife of 11 years, Ginny, for 23-year-old Traci Johnson, a former NBC intern. Ginny was eight months pregnant at the time. Soon after, NBC cited its morals clause and terminated Barber's contract, which reportedly paid him more than $300,000 per year.
In June 2010, the New York Post reported Barber was broke and couldn't pay his divorce settlement with his ex-wife.
If money is truly his motivation, this story starts to lose some of its charm. I hope he's coming back because he loves to compete and feels like he can still run with the young whippersnappers.
If it's true that he's doing it because he needs the money, it feels less like Rocky IV, and a little more like Mike Tyson vs. Kevin McBride.
Barber, who has served as an NFL analyst for Y! Sports, retired after the 2006-2007 season at the top of his game. He ran for over 1,600 yards in his final season, with 58 receptions and 465 receiving yards on top of it. Barber, especially later in his career, was able to keep himself relatively injury-free. He still had something in the tank when he walked away.
Arguing why one player "deserves" the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy over another is a little squirmy, because it's essentially a contrast in hardships.
Does a disease trump a concussion? Is a personal tragedy a more formidable obstacle than a hockey-related injury? It's like arguing over which worthy charity most deserves your dollars, and we don't even get to put a magnetic ribbon on our cars after it's over.
Goaltender Ray Emery of the Anaheim Ducks, forward Daymond Langkow of the Calgary Flames and forward Ian Laperriere of the Philadelphia Flyers are the three finalists for the 2010-11 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, which is awarded "to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey."
The Professional Hockey Writers Association nominates 30 players, one from each team chapter, and then votes on three finalists. A $2,500 grant from the Professional Hockey Writers' Association (PHWA) is awarded annually to the Bill Masterton Scholarship Fund, based in Bloomington, Minn., in the name of the Masterton Trophy winner.
The trio up for the award offers its own tales of harrowing hardships and triumphs over adversities; who wins the 2010-11 Masterton?
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Why Ray Emery Deserves the Masterton
From the NHL:
Ray Emery battled back from a career-threatening injury to reach the NHL and played a major part in the Ducks' successful push for a playoff spot. Emery underwent a complicated bone-graft surgery last April to repair a deteriorated ball joint in his right hip, the result of a disease called avascular necrosis which interrupts blood flow to the area and causes cells to die. After months of rehabilitation he signed with Anaheim as a free agent on Feb. 7 and went 7-2-0 with a 2.28 goals-against average and .926 save percentage in 10 NHL regular-season appearances.
Emery's story goes well beyond the injury of course: The fact that he blew his chance with the Ottawa Senators, was exiled in Russia, earned a job with the Flyers and then went through injury hell makes his a compelling narrative. There are still those who�simply don't like Emery no matter how he's reformed his life; but there are others who look beyond past foibles to accept how impressive this comeback is.
Why Daymond Langkow Deserves the Masterton
From the NHL:
On more then one occasion, it appeared Daymond Langkow's NHL career was over. After suffering a serious neck injury on March 21, 2010 against Minnesota, Langkow was twice forced to stop working out in the hopes of return. He made a third attempt and finally the recurring problems subsided. More than a year after being hit on the spine by a puck and suffering a fractured vertebra, Langkow made the comeback complete on April 1 when he laced up for his 1,014th NHL game and recorded an assist and +2 rating in the Flames' 3-2 win at St. Louis.
Again, the visuals speak much louder:
Ouch indeed. He willed his way back to the NHL, and fought through incredible setbacks and long odds to make it happen. He's a fan favorite in Calgary as well. Deserving candidate, and it's more than a little miraculous that he made it back.
Why Ian Laperriere Deserves the Masterton
From the NHL:
Ian Laperriere sustained a severe injury during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs when he blocked a shot with his face against New Jersey and suffered a concussion and fractured orbital bone. He returned a little more than a month later to finish the Flyers' playoff run that ended two games short of a championship. Laperriere attempted to return in training camp, but could not overcome his concussion-related symptoms and has been on the long-term injury list all season. Nevertheless, he has served the Flyers in several capacities, particularly as a mentor for young players in the organization.
As we said in handicapping the field, he's a tricky candidate. No question he's made of the sort of stern stuff that the Masterton is intended to celebrate. But should this award go to someone that actually played in 2011?
The counterargument: The award is given "to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey." He didn't play, but he is a player; and there's no question that what he did while out with that injury fits the criteria.
Prediction
Emery. His injury was so rare, and his rehabilitation so impressive, that we expect him to win.
Langkow is completely worthy, but we felt Bouchard was another player that persevered through a prolonged rehab filled with setbacks, false hopes and, finally, overcoming the odds to be a solid contributor to the Wild. But we also felt he was symbolic of the concussion issue in the NHL, too. If these things can have a snub, he's a snub.
In the end, Emery's tale is the stuff of Lifetime Original Movies. Which means it's the stuff of the Masterton.
Though Brady's hair looked less Cyrus-like during a recent visit to Disneyland you could still see the influence of Barry Melrose peeking from under that ubiquitous black hat:
After the photo was snapped, Brady asked Rapunzel (who looks thrilled to be there) for hair-care tips.
It's Draft Day and the 2011 NFL Draft will begin tonight at 8 P.M. EST. The Baltimore Ravens hold the 26th overall pick in the draft and here's my prediction on what they will do with it.
The Ravens have had one of the most dominant defenses in the NFL for a while now, but its time to get younger in order to continue that for the future. They started by taking a few guys in last year's draft, and now its time to work on the secondary.
That's why I have them taking Colorado CB Jimmy Smith.
Talent wise, he's comparable to Prince Amukamara so why isn't he going in the Top 15? Well, the one knock at Jimmy Smith are his character issues.
But when you're on a team with veteran leaders like Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, you better be in line because they won't tolerate it.
This is a dream scenario for not only the Ravens but Smith as well.
Colorado CB Jimmy Smith (Sr.) 2010 Stats: 68 Tackles
It's a Wednesday edition of Puck Daddy Radio, and we're chatting about the following and much more:
? Note: No Puck Daddy Chat today, as we're going to have Live Chats for the Game 7s this evening.
? Special Guest Star: Matthew Sekeres of the Globe & Mail on the Vancouver Canucks' win over the Chicago Blackhawks and the rest of the playoffs.
? Centers Pavel Datsyuk of the Detroit Red Wings, Ryan Kesler of the Vancouver Canucks and Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks are the three finalists for the 2010-11 Frank Selke Trophy, which is awarded "to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game." Who wins?
Puck Daddy Radio is on Monday through Friday, from 1-2 p.m. ET/10-11 a.m. PT on The Score Radio Sirius Channel 98. Featuring Wyshynski and Rob Pizzo, it's your show: Calls, tweets, special guests and a ton of hockey goodness every day.
? Gay lands buzzer-beater to end Memphis's losing streak ? Toronto Raptors land Peja Stojakovic in five-man trade
Rudy Gay landed a 15-foot buzzer-beater over LeBron James to end the Memphis Grizzlies' five-game losing streak with a 97-95 win over Miami Heat on Saturday.
Zach Randolph led the Grizzlies (5-9) with 21 points and 13 rebounds, Mike Conley had 16 points and Gay added 15 as Memphis snapped the Heat's three-game winning streak.
"This was the most unified we've been," said Grizzlies head coach Lionel Hollins. "That's how you win tough, close games, everybody rooting for each other, everybody picking each other up."
It was a tight contest throughout with the teams trading the lead constantly in a back-and-forth second half.
"That's a tough loss," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We just could not find a way to get over the hump."
James and Chris Bosh carried the Heat (8-5) in the absence of Dwyane Wade, who did not play due to a left wrist injury. James scored a game high 29 points and added 11 assists while Bosh scored 20 points and had 10 rebounds.
Eddie House came off the bench to score 20 points, including six three-pointers, but there was more bad news for the Heat when the forward Udonis Haslem collided with Randolph late in the third quarter and was carried off the court.
"It's huge," James said of Haslem's injury. "He's like our heart of our team. He's our power. He's our pride. He brings everything every night. Size never really matters to him. He always plays above his height, plays above his weight."
The New Orleans Hornets and the Toronto Raptors completed a five-player trade featuring the former All Star Peja Stojakovic on Saturday.
The Hornets acquired the point guard Jarrett Jack, Australian center David Andersen and guard Marcus Banks from the Raptors in exchange for the guard Jerryd Bayless and Stojakovic as well as cash considerations.
"We are excited about the players acquired today and feel that our short-term and long-term goals will benefit from this move," said the Hornets general manager Dell Demps.
"Peja has been a valued contributor as a Hornet for years and we wish both Peja and Jerryd all the best in their future and thank them for their recent contributions in helping us get off to a strong start."
Stojakovic is in his 13th season in the NBA, averaging double figures in scoring in all but one season with a career best of 24.2 points a game in 2003-04 when he was selected as a second-team All-Star. In six games this season he has averaged 7.5 points.
You might have noticed that the Cleveland Browns had a few lapses in the secondary last year. You also might have noticed that cornerback Eric Wright was involved in a few of them.
From Mary Kay Cabot at the Cleveland Plain Dealer:
"I went from people expecting me to be a top cornerback in the league to receiving death threats," Wright said. "It was a lot to deal with."
[...]
Wright never reported the death threats to the Browns or police, attributing them to the extreme passion of Browns fans.
"I wasn't fearing for my life," he said. "As serious as a death threat may be, I wasn't going to let a few bad apples ruin the whole tree."
Weird. It's almost like the people of Cleveland are bitter and frustrated with their local sports teams. Hm.
Give Wright credit, though. He says he still wants to be in Cleveland, and after having a productive sit-down with team president Mike Holmgren, is determined to make himself a better player in 2011.
I'm not sure it's the right attitude to just ignore a death threat -- you really can't be too careful with something like that -- but his attitude towards football is right where it should be. He's played some quality ball before. I'm sure he will again.
The veteran keeper improved to 6-0 in elimination games, shutting out the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 7, 1-0. Roloson made 36 saves, getting strong support from his teammates but making several key stops in a 14-save third period.
The Habs center scored a pivotal shorthanded goal in the second period to tie the game at 2-2, and then sent a cross-ice feed to P.K. Subban for another game-tying goal on the power play that sent the game to overtime. His 25:25 time on ice was second on the team and he was even for the game. One drawback: He was dominated to the tune of a .200 winning percentage on faceoffs.
Here's tonight's lineup of new shows and events (all times Eastern). Check your local TV listings for additional information.
The competitors on "Dancing With the Stars" should prepare themselves to be blindsided by 
Tiki Barber, former star running back for the 
You might have noticed that the 
