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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.
ESPN Chicago's Mike Wright suggests the Bears might pursue free agent David Garrard as a backup to Jay Cutler this offseason.
Garrard is actually eligible to be signed immediately because he was cut last year and never resurfaced. New Bears OC Mike Tice was on staff with the Jaguars when Garrard broke into the league in 2002. We can't even recall the last time the Bears had a serviceable backup QB. Garrard could end that trend.
Jaguars coach Mike Mularkey expressed optimism about grooming Blaine Gabbert in the same mold as what he did with Matt Ryan in Atlanta.
Gabbert had the NFL's worst quarterback rating in his rookie year. "I think [Gabbert] wants to be good," said Mularkey. "It's important to him." Of Gabbert's tendency to panic in the pocket, Mularkey added that "there were things in his head even before the ball was snapped," and Mularkey "went through the same thing with Ryan" as recently as last month's playoff game against the Giants. Gabbert's pocket presence issues go far deeper than Ryan's, of course.
Jaguars DE John Chick (knee surgery) has shed his crutches.
He is reportedly still walking with a limp, however. Chick underwent surgery in December after tearing his patella tendon in Week 13. Under contract for $465,000, Chick will have little chance of cracking the Jaguars' roster during his age-29 season if he's not 100 percent healthy for training camp.
Jaguars MLB Paul Posluszny (shoulder surgery) is "out of his sling."
Posluszny still doesn't have a concrete timetable for a return to football activities, but has a shot at being ready for OTAs. Barring a setback, the Jaguars' leading tackler from 2011 will be ready for training camp.
Jaguars G/T Eben Britton ran this week for the first time since suffering a back infection in October.
Britton's back is structurally sound after minor surgery to repair a herniated disc last summer. After the setback cut his 2011 season well short, Britton hopes to participate in OTAs and expects to be fine for training camp. "I'll be full-speed ahead, 100 percent," he said. "I don't feel injured. I have no pain anymore. At this point, it's a matter of getting my body back to even."
Jaguars DT Tyson Alualu may need offseason knee surgery if his program of rehabilitation and strengthening doesn't fix the problem.
Alualu has been playing through a balky knee since entering the league in 2010. The cartilage problem in the knee was a major factor in Alualu grading out 86th out of 88 defensive tackles in Pro Football Focus' ratings.
Jaguars MLB Paul Posluszny has "no doubt" that he will be ready for the start of the 2012 season after undergoing shoulder surgery on January 11.
Posluszny does not consider the procedure to be "major." After having his sling removed in a few weeks, he'll meet with doctors to get a timetable on his return. It sounds like he will be fine for training camp.
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.
The Red Wings have finally started to embrace a record they've been chasing.