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.
PBT: Jeremy Lin wasn't his hot self on Saturday, but he still led the Knicks to victory.
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.
AP file8. Tony Dorsett (1977-88)
He was known as TD – how’s that for a set of initials for a running back? – and he made a career out of taking seemingly innocent handoffs and turning them into huge plays with his impressive combination of speed, agility, surprising power between the tackles and the acceleration of a top-of-the-line sports car. When the galloping Cowboy did just that on Jan. 3, 1983 against the Vikings in a nationally televised Monday night game, it was the longest run in NFL history – 99 yards – and put an exclamation point on a career punctuated by them.
Dorsett gained 12,739 yards in 12 years, including 1,007 as a rookie in 1977 when he convinced stoic, old-school coach Tom Landry that it was perfectly OK for a first-year player to assume major responsibilities. He led America’s Team to a Super Bowl victory that season, the last NFL title for the franchise until 1993. Dorsett is the only member of the college and pro football halls of fame to win an NCAA championship (at Pittsburgh in 1976), a Super Bowl title and a Heisman Trophy.
Noteworthy stat: In addition to the 99-yard touchdown on Monday Night Football, Dorsett had runs of 84, 77 (twice) and 75 yards during his distinguished career.
9. Marion Motley (1946-53, 55)
As one of the first black players in modern pro football, Motley was a pioneer for his sport, much like his baseball contemporary, Jackie Robinson. And like Robinson, Motley had to endure far more physical and verbal abuse than white ballplayers of his era. The Cleveland Browns’ fullback often took extra shots to his head or hands on the bottom of the pile after being tackled. However, that pile was usually several yards beyond the line of scrimmage because Motley, a bruiser at 6-1, 240, was very hard to tackle. “If you didn’t stop him at the line of scrimmage, you were in trouble,” Baltimore Colts’ Hall of Fame defensive tackle Art Donovan said.
Motley, along with quarterback Otto Graham, helped Cleveland win the All-American Football Conference title for four straight seasons. The Browns joined the NFL in 1950 and Motley, at age 30, led his new team to a championship and his new league in rushing with 810 yards and a gaudy 5.8 yards-per-carry average. In 1968, Motley became the first black player to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Noteworthy stat: On Oct. 29, 1950, Motley needed only 11 carries to gain 188 yards against Pittsburgh. The fantastic 17.09 yards-per-carry average remains an NFL single-game record.
10. Bronko Nagurski (1930-37, ’43)
The mere mention of his distinctive name conjures up images of hard-nosed, old-time football, replete with leather helmets and black cleats. Yes, Nagurski was one of the early legends of a sport that hadn’t yet gained the nation-wide popularity it would later in the 20th Century.
He wouldn’t be considered a big back today, but at 6-2, 225 pounds, Nagurski was as big as many of the linemen who tried – often unsuccessfully – to tackle him. He was stronger than most players, having built up his body while working on a farm as a youngster.
He led the Chicago Bears to NFL championships in 1932 and ’33. His blocking helped Beattie Feathers gain 1,004 yards in 1934 to become the NFL’s first 1,000-yard runner. Then, after being retired for five years, Nagurski came back in 1943 at age 35 to help the Bears win the title again. He was named All-Pro six times in nine years and became a folk hero.
“His name is like Paul Bunyan,” said Joe Horrigan of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. “You couldn’t have played in the 1930s and not mention it. It was as if you’d played against Babe Ruth.”
Noteworthy stat: Yardage statistics were not carefully kept during most of Nagurski’s career, but he is credited with a total of 4,301 yards rushing for a 4.9 average.
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.
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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.
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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.