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 three goals as the New York Rangers beat Philadelphia 5-2 on Saturday for their seventh straight win over the Flyers.
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
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.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
Move over, Hollywood and NFL types, golf's two real A-listers take center stage Sunday at Pebble Beach, both in need of a win.
The United States swept favored Switzerland out of the Davis Cup on Saturday when Mardy Fish and Mike Bryan beat Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Luis Suarez's refusal to shake hands with Patrice Evra overshadowed Manchester United's 2-1 win over rival Liverpool that lifted the defending champions to first place in the Premier League on Saturday.
Marlies Schild of Austria won her sixth World Cup slalom of the season Saturday after overall leader Lindsey Vonn and defending champion Maria Hoefl-Riesch crashed out in the opening run on the windy Pyrenees course.
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.
AP
ARLINGTON, Texas - The phenomenon that is Manny Pacquiao grew with a series of wins against some of the biggest names around. Now he has a fight to win against a guy who has nothing to lose.
It wasn’t supposed to be that way, but things rarely turn out as planned in boxing. Instead of fighting in one of the biggest bouts ever against Floyd Mayweather Jr., Pacquiao will have to settle for fighting in one of the biggest stadiums ever.
The opponent is Joshua Clottey, and he’s what the wise guys in Las Vegas would call a live dog. A talented boxer who has never been stopped and briefly held a piece of the welterweight title, he brings some credentials of his own into Saturday night’s 147-pound fight at Cowboy Stadium.
But while he may be fighting on the star, there’s only one star in this show. Little guys aren’t supposed to fill big stadiums, yet some 45,000 fans are expected to be on hand to watch Pacquiao up close and personal — and on the huge overhead video screens that will show every drop of sweat and blood.
“The best fighter I’ve ever seen,” said promoter Bob Arum, who includes Muhammad Ali in that group. “No one has ever punched with equal power from both hands like Manny.”
Arum has a financial interest in saying that, of course, but there are few in boxing who would argue that Pacquiao is a talent unlike any the sport has seen in recent years. He’s coming off a stoppage of Miguel Cotto that cemented his credentials at 147 pounds, and he has created a buzz about boxing the sport desperately needed.
Twelve years ago he won his first title at 112 pounds. Now he’s a champion in seven weight classes who will make at least $12 million in a gleaming new stadium far from the bright lights of Las Vegas.
Just as importantly, Pacquiao’s doing it without Mayweather, now a bitter rival after talks for their megafight collapsed over Mayweather’s insistence on blood testing — and what Pacquiao believes was the inference he bulked up on performance-enhancing drugs.
“Some fighters like me, we can be the greatest fighters without fast words and trash talk,” Pacquiao said. “His (Mayweather’s) style is talking a lot of trash and it is not a good example for everybody.”
Pacquiao is a 5-1 favorite in the scheduled 12-round fight (HBO pay-per-view beginning at 9 p.m. EST) which is expected to sell out a stadium scaled down for boxing.
Pacquiao weighed in at 145¾ pounds for the fight while Clottey weighed in at 147 pounds on Friday.
The odds are probably more lopsided than the talent differential between the two fighters, but it takes long odds to get anyone to bet against Pacquiao these days.
He was already a well-respected fighter when he began his current streak by stopping Oscar De La Hoya and forcing him into retirement. He followed that with a knockout of Ricky Hatton before stopping Cotto in November.
Now he plans to add Clottey to his list of victims, and then take some time out to run for congress in his native Philippines. Mayweather could await in September, assuming Pacquiao wins and Mayweather beats Shane Mosley on May 1, but Pacquiao has also hinted it may be time to hang the gloves up after fighting as a pro for 15 years.
“This is my last fight before the election,” he said. “I am not saying I’m going to retire. It is hard to say right now when I’m going to retire, but this is my last fight before the election and I’m very excited about that.”
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.
NEW YORK (AP) - As the glow fades from the Giants' Super Bowl triumph, some New York sports fans are tuning in to basketball and hockey, with the Rangers in first place and the Knicks' overnight sensation, Jeremy Lin, sparking "Lin-sanity.''
Robins: This year, six new breeds will be making their debut on the green carpet for the Westminster Dog Show, which begins Monday.
 | Slide show |
 | The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
| Slideshow |
 | Who's hot on Twitter? Check out which of your favorite athletes have the best pages and most followers! NBCSports.com |
 | Special feature |
 | NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 | Presidential candidates and sports How do President Obama and his Republican rivals stack up when it comes to their sports backgrounds? |
Inside NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 |
The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Doron Lamb hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to put No. 1 Kentucky ahead to stay, and the Wildcats took a big step toward a Southeastern Conference regular-season title by beating Vanderbilt 69-63 Saturday night for their 17th straight win.
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.