Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Euro Roundup: First-place Manchester City won 1-0 at Aston Villa on Sunday on Joleon Lescott's goal in the 63rd minute, maintaining its two-point lead over Manchester United in the Premier League.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
World Series of Poker commissioner Jeffrey Pollack says his event isn’t about the stars, but about the dream. And as far as what captures the attention of the public, he is right.
The average sports fan can’t just walk onto an NBA court and play against the Lakers. But the average poker fan can sit down at a poker table and match wits against the best players in the world.
That dream, plus the potential for winning a life-changing amount of money, is what attracts people to the game, and in particular, to the WSOP main event.
Bret Forsberg is one of those players. An electrician from the tiny town of Hadlock, Wash., he said he hopes to soon be known as a poker player who used to be an electrician.
Forsberg rides a motorcycle, and looks the part with his long hair, shaggy goatee and leather bandana. He earned his seat at the main event by winning a tournament at the Tulalip Casino in Marysville, Wash.
He’s had success in smaller buy-in tournaments in Washington, but came to Las Vegas eager to prove himself on a much bigger scale.
Forsberg and his wife Michelle were gracious enough to allow me to follow him on Friday as he played in the main event for the first time.
First break: 2:15 p.m.
A mad rush of players leave the room to stampede for the restroom. Forsberg strolls out and greets Michelle, who has been fighting boredom while waiting outside.
He’s feeling good about himself and is up $3,000 to $23,000 just two hours into the tournament.
I watched his hand shake uncontrollably during a key hand early in the first round, which he won with a full house, taking down a nice pot.
Forsberg would explain later that he was pretty nervous during the first round, but was able to settle down later.
I later watch him take down a pot without challenge as everyone folds to his pre-flop raise.
“Nice hand, biker dude,” says a young player across the table.
Dinner break: 7:30 p.m.
Forsberg is down to $20,000 and change, just above the break even point. But he’s still feeling good.
“I’m comfortable with my play, I just have to get some cards now,” he says. “The first round I got a few cards and I got up a bit. The second round I mighta played four or five hands. I just wasn’t seeing anything.”
Michelle advises he play more aggressively to take advantage of the tight image he has crafted for himself. Bret agrees, to a point.
“I don’t mind doing that, and using the persona of a tight player, but you gotta have a little something. You can’t run a bluff with an 8-3 off-suit. And those are the kind of cards I’ve been seeing.”
Bret is also proud of a laydown he made, when he tossed aside ace-queen, sensing that the big stack at the table had a big hand.
“I just knew the guy was going to go big. I don’t know what he had, but I just had a read on him.”
Bret and Michelle also enjoyed some brushes with poker celebrity. Bret ran into poker legend Amarillo Slim, and Michelle took a picture of the two together with her cell phone. Looking for ways to kill time, she has also snared photos of Johnny Chan and Humberto Brenes.
Inside NBCSports.com |
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
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