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.
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.
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The Broncos finished 2004 fourth in total defense and fifth in total offense but changes had to be made because they again were destroyed in their first playoff game by the Colts and are 0-3 in the postseason since John Elway retired in 1999.
Coach Mike Shanahan was once considered an offensive genius, but those credentials are being questioned these days after being unable to win a single playoff game without Elway running his offense. Yet the bigger problem was the inability of his defense to get to opposing
quarterbacks, putting his secondary under too much pressure when facing elite throwers such as Peyton Manning.
Denver had only 38 sacks and forced only 20 turnovers, then lost Reggie Hayward's 10 1/2 sacks in free agency and inexplicably tried to replace them by importing the Cleveland Browns' front four. That group was more the Maginot Line than the Steel Curtain in Cleveland, so new defensive line coach Andre Patterson has staked his future with Shanahan on convincing him to bring in the group he coached while with the Browns. If they don't pan out, they'll be out and so will he.
This was especially curious because former No. 1 pick Gerard Warren has been a dreadful underachiever and ex-No. 1 Courtney Brown has been so consistently injured he's missed 33 games in five years, including 14 last season. Brown has finished four of his five seasons on IR, so unless mountain air is the cure, he doesn't seem likely to solve the defensive problems.
The Browns were 32nd in the NFL in stopping the run, which is last by the way, which doesn't make this move any more understandable. The return of former Pro Bowler Trevor Pryce from injury should help even if the Gang of Four does not. Certainly something had to be done after the Broncos got drilled by the Colts for the second straight season in the playoffs, giving up 530 yards in a 49-24 defeat. But relying on three of the Gang of Four (which is about how many tackles they make in a game) and a cornerback in Lenny Walls who is coming off three shoulder dislocations seems suspect. Still, Denver will start Warren next to Pryce and Michael Myers next to Brown when he's back to full health after injuring his hip in training camp and hoping a change of scenery helps them all improve.
One guy Denver felt wasn't in doubt was running back Tatum Bell, who was to have replaced departed 1,200-yard rusher Reuben Droughns. Droughns was part of the cost of importing the Gang of Fou,r but Shanahan believes his system hemorrhages 1,000-yard rushers and there's ample proof of that. In Bell he thinks he has a playmaker who would have turned some of Droughns' short gains into long ones. Bell has the size-speed combination of Clinton Portis and he averaged 5.6 yards a carry in the final five weeks of the season when Droughns was limping. That convinced Shanahan to make the move, but by the end of the summer a more familiar face was carrying the ball.
Mike Anderson, once a 1,000-yard rusher himself was back in the starting backfield and looking like he's ready to get the tough yards again. Shanahan probably will platoon him with Bell, who will be the home run hitter while Anderson grinds out the tough yardage between the tackles.
HOT SEAT: Jake Plummer. Despite posting the best statistics of his career, the Broncos' quarterback continues to struggle with turnovers and inaccuracy at crucial times. He threw for a club-record 4,089 yards and 27 touchdowns last season, but Plummer must avoid a repeat not only of his 20 interceptions but his 51.5 percent passing accuracy on third down of a year ago. In his eight years as an NFL starter, Plummer has thrown 132 touchdown passes and 141 interceptions. That ratio has improved in Denver, but the Broncos can't win if he keeps making mistakes at key moments.
OVERHEARD: Even though Rod Smith, 35, again produced a 1,000-yard receiving season, concerns have grown that he's on the downside of his career and no longer the consistent game breaker he once was. Denver is counting on Ashley Lelie to blossom into the No. 1 deep threat after averaging a spectacular 20.1 yards per catch, turning 54 receptions into 1,084 yards last season. Denver's offense needs a deep threat to open up the areas underneath. Smith is no longer consistently that player so it's time for a change. If Lelie can't do it, who will?
OUTLOOK: If the defense can get to the quarterback more regularly and take some pressure off the secondary and running backs coach Bobby Taylor can make Bell or Anderson his latest 1,000-yard rusher, Denver should reach the postseason again. It's what happens next that Shanahan has to worry about.
PREDICTION: Second.
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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.
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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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.
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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