Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc: Syracuse is among a solid group of No. 1 seeds in our latest tournament projections, but the middle of the pack is much more murky.
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.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
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.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
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.
APLeinart, who signed a six-year contract in 2006 for a total of $50 million with $14 million in guarantees, will be given the edge in his battle with Kurt Warner because the younger quarterback is considered the franchise’s future based on his age, talent and the amount invested in him. But if he doesn’t step up and seize the position, the Cardinals could give the ball to Warner short-term and go looking elsewhere next season.
If Bush does not have a superb year in 2008, he could take the dubious prize as the biggest bust of the vaunted troika. Quarterbacks like Young and Leinart tend to take longer to ripen. The position is complicated, and sometimes it can get even more confusing when coaching changes are made. Young is dealing with a new offensive coordinator, while Leinartwill be experiencing his first full season under head coach Ken Whisenhunt and his staff.
But Bush is a running back, which, relatively speaking, is among the easiest jobs on the field to learn. So Bush really can’t use a faulty thinking cap as an excuse.
Bush was the second overall pick in 2006, behind Mario Williams, a defensive end taken by the Houston Texans who, incidentally, has played in all 32 games over his two NFL seasons and had 14 sacks in 2007, tied for third in the league. Bush signed a six-year deal with the New Orleans Saints in 2006 worth an estimated $62 million, with just over $26 million guaranteed.
The Saints were hoping that they spent that money on more than just a specialty back who could occasionally take one to the house. Yet so far, that’s exactly what he’s been, although his statistics have been solid. Last year he rushed for 581 yards, with four touchdowns. He also caught 73 passes for 417 yards and two touchdowns before he went down late in the year with a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.
Bush’s flaw is similar to Young’s. What worked in college doesn’t necessarily work in the NFL. The speed and quickness that Bush wowed opponents with while at USC elicit only yawns in the NFL, because veterans see that level of speed and quickness regularly. Bush has yet to prove he’s a reliable, every-down back who can take a continual pounding.
For these three young stars, they will either skip arm in arm down a path to more riches and glory, or they will head in the opposite direction, to the arena league or card shows or car washes. The third year in the NFL usually reveals the truth, and not even a wizard can change that.
Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
Rotoworld: Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill among the 10 players who will slip down draft boards, but probably shouldn't.
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Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
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.
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.