Where will Plaxico Burress land?

July 8, 2011 - Well Plaxico Burress is out of jail. You know, the once superstar of the NFL who played for the Giants and had a game-winning catch against the Patriots in the Super Bowl. Or do you know him as the dumb NFL player who shot himself in the leg after carrying an unregistered gun with him?

 

Either way, he's out of jail, and he's looking for a team to grab him. A big segment on NFL Network showed him being interviewed by the panel and what teams might be a good fit. That link is at the bottom of this post.

So some of the choices:

The Chicago Bears - Jay Cutler needs some help on offense after a pretty bad season for them. He threw countless picks and doesn't have any go-to receivers.

The Houston Texans - Sure, they have Andre Johnson. Can you name another one of their wideouts? This could possibly give Texans the amazing deep threat that keeps defensive coaches up at night. This would also help them open up their run b/c you've got to respect it if those two guys are lined up on the outside.

The St. Louis Rams - Sam Bradford, Rookie of the Year. One of the youngest WR cores in the league. With Donnie Avery and Mark Clayton, their 2 top WRs, getting hurt last year. They need a veteran out there. Also Steve Spagnuolo, head coach of the Rams, used to be the Giants D-Coordinator. So he knows Plaxico. I say he goes to St. Louis and the Rams have a sure-fire offense.

The New York Jets - Yes the Jets. Young Veteran Mark Sanchez has been in back-to-back playoffs but he can't ever get over the hill to the Super Bowl. Maybe a big threat wide receiver is what they need. I know Braylon Edwards is there, but do you see how many catches he drops? He doesn't even look the ball in sometimes. I've seen him drop 7 passes in one game. How careless can you be? I mean, that's like shooting yourself in the leg.......... oh, sorry Plaxico.

That's the situation with Plaxico Burress. Will he go to a team? Most definitely. But who? My guess is that he ends up with the Rams.

Plaxico on NFL Network

July 4th Nathan's Hot Dog Contest Controversy!

The Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest is a huge event in American culture, and even the world. Takeru Kobayashi had won the contest from 2001-2006 in landslide victories. But Joey Chestnut came along and won 2007-2010. The IFOCE (International Federation of Competitive Eating) is the main sponsor and company who runs the event. They are the federation that hires the competitive eaters and has them compete internationally.

Joey "Jaws" Chestnut (true champion?)

Word is that Kobayashi did not want to sign with the IFOCE, so they kicked him out of the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest this year. Some say that's what happened. Others say that Kobayashi was afraid of Joey 'Jaws' Chestnut. But Kobayashi did compete this year.

As the squad of IFOCE warriors battled on the Nathan's Center stage at Coney Island, Kobayashi was on a roof-top bar in Manhattan. He started the contest at the same time the Nathan's official contest did, and he ate the same hot dogs. Chestnut finished with 62 hot dogs in 10 minutes and won the Nathan's contest at Coney Island. But supposedly, Kobayashi ate 69 hot dogs in the 10 minutes, "unofficially" because there were no judges there. However, cameras and a large crowd was there with him.

Takeru Kobayashi (true champion?)

So, is Kobayashi the true champ? Did Chestnut actually get beat out for the yellow mustard belt in actuality? Nobody knows. It is all speculation. I want to see the official tape of Kobayashi eating all of his hot dogs on the roof. This would be a shocking discovery! To prove that he is once again the king of competitive eating??!! Hopefully, the IFOCE will release some sort of statement on the matter.

NBA Lockout now on hand

With little time on the clock, they couldn't get a deal done

Amidst all the NFL lockout and labor disagreements, the National Basketball Association has now entered its own lockout. The owners and players had to strike a deal by midnight on June 30th going into July 1st. But just like Lebron on a buzzer beater, they couldn't get it done. This puts the 2011-2012 basketball season in a lockout as of now. David Stern has said, "The goal here has been to make the league profitable and to have a league where all 30 teams can compete." Even though several last minute meetings were held, nobody could reach an agreement. 

The players' final proposal was to raise the average player salary to $7 million in the sixth year of the deal. OKC Thunder star Kevin Durant said, "We're going to stand up for what we have to do, no matter how long it's going to take." 


Owners on the other hand wanted a stricter salary cap, reduced contract lengths, and overall the proposal would have cut players' salary by $500 million over five years. David Stern says the players and owners are nowhere near a decision at this time. 

Derek Fisher, the Lakers guard and union president said, "We'll just continue to ask our fans to stick with us and remain patient with us. As players we want to play. That's who we are; we're basketball players." 

Fisher in negotiations

So what will fans do this upcoming sports season? With the possibility of having no football OR basketball, will we be forced to watch....Hockey? Soccer? I really hope not.But one of the sides has to give in. Will it be the players, who are the ones that bring the fans and revenue in? Or will it be the owners, who bank off the players and profit. Either way, both sides are definitely greedy, but they have a right to be. Let's just hope something gets done, because I for one, cannot stand the thought of NOT seeing Dirk Nowitzki's neanderthal self hitting ridiculous fade-aways from the baseline. 
 

Longest NFL Talks Coming up

The NFL has been in negotiations forever now, and have gotten nowhere. For those of you who don't know, here's the problem. The owners and players are battling over what percentage of money made should go to them. Of course the owners are greedy, but at the same time the players are the ones making the profits, so they want more. This has led to the lockout we are currently seeing.

But starting today and running through Friday, players and owners will be meeting up in Minneapolis to discuss the lockout. Those 4 days will be the longest talks since the lockout has started, hopefully meaning something will get done. With only 40 DAYS! until the Hall of Fame Game between the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears, something must be done quickly.

Here's the problem though. Teams are usually together at this point in the offseason, working out together and going over plays and the offensive/defensive schemes. Well they technically aren't allowed to do that as of now since their has been no agreement. This gives problems to rookies who will have to learn schemes VERY FAST if the lockout ends. This also poses a problem to teams with new coordinators and coaches coming in. That means the entire team will have to learn new playbooks in a very short amount of time. Let's hope this lockout ends this week, so the teams can get together and start getting ready. This will in turn make the season more enjoyable to the fans.

We don't want to see players out there who don't know what they're doing!!!

Tony Romo has been in the position of not knowing what to do before!

My Winner and Loser of the Month (JUNE)

The winning athlete of the month, actually goes to two guys. They are Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd. Yes, the long time veterans who have NEVER won a championship, finally got their title against the star-studded Miami Heat. You have to give it up to these guys. They never backed down from any team, even beating the former champion L.A. Lakers 4 games to 0. They came together and really put it down in the championship and you've got to love seeing them win their first championship of their career (and possibly their last).

WINNERS

My losing athlete of the month is Danny Hultzen, the UVA star pitcher. The story goes like this: He was facing South Carolina in the College World Series recently, and started great. The, number 2 overall pick to the Seattle Mariners, started off the game by striking out 8 of the first 9 batters. But suddenly, he's taken out of the game?!! Actually, he is the one who decided to leave the game because he was 'sick'. Here's why he is the losing athlete of the month. This is the College World Series. Your team is depending on you, especially when you're throwing like that in the beginning of the game. But you leave the game??!! I don't care how sick you are Danny Hultzen, but suck it up, be a man, and give it your best for another half hour at the most. This is pathetic. To me, this is like professional football players who go on the injured reserve for a blister, or sprained finger. Man up. That's all I have to say.

LOSER

Maybe Hultzen should take notes from one of the winners, Dirk Nowitzki. Because guess what? Dirk played in Game 4 of the Finals this year with a sinus infection, coughing, weezing, and a 101 degree temperature. He had 21 points and 11 rebounds and more importantly, didn't let his team down!

Kobe and Shaq Through the Years

I thought this was pretty cool. Just a short timeline of Kobe and Shaq's times together. How they went from young, friendly champions to old, broken down, 'frienemies'.

Here they are during their championship era. All smiles. Young and in control of the NBA.



Now here they are. Different teams. A little older, maybe heading out of their primes. Some love lost between the two.



Getting even older now. Shaq is on to different teams. They are definitely past their primes at this point.



The final year. Kobe and Shaq's legacy on the court together is long gone. Shaq is with his last team, Kobe has won championships with his new team, but he knows there will never be one like when the two were together. The end of their careers are both upon them. Sort of like the end of a great legacy.

NBA Free Agency/Draft

June 26, 2011 - Well the NBA Draft is officially over. Teams have picked up players, and made trades to hopefully help their team. But that doesn't mean all teams are set. There are a few free agents creating a buzz this offseason.

RESTRICTED:
- Wilson Chandler (Denver)
- Rodney Stuckey (Detroit)
- Marc Gasol (Memphis)
- Mario Chalmers (Miami)
- Greg Oden (Portland)

UNRESTRICTED:
- Tyson Chandler (Dallas)
- J.R. Smith (Denver)
- Yao Ming (Houston)
- Tim Duncan (San Antonio)
- Jamal Crawford (Atlanta)

Most of these guys will probably get signed by their team and be done with the process. But there are a few interesting players here. Where will Marc Gasol go? The big man who showed up this year in the playoffs (especially since his brother turned out to be so soft), could go to a team who needs a center. Greg Oden has been injury plagued for years now. Is his time in Portland finally done? I think it might be. But mark my words, whoever picks him up is getting a great player. Granted, he has to stay healthy. But Oden really is a monster on the court.
Then you have Tyson Chandler, with his newly acquired championship. He showed his skills big time in the post-season. Will that be enough to keep him in Dallas for one more run at the title? I think so. Yao Ming is getting old. He is big and goofy, beside being prone to injury. Houston has dropped off lately, and I think Ming will be gone....back to China. Tim Duncan has a major decision to make. Try to get that championship one more time before retirement with the Spurs? Or does he want a REAL chance with another team next year. I say Duncan leaves for another team, but doesn't get close to the championship ever again in his career.
Besides that, you have these other guys who are up in the air. We'll have to give it some time to see just where they end up. Assuming there is an NBA season next year (because they're dealing with all this stupid lockout stuff too now), I think the offseason will be very interesting.

Either way, the Lakers win it all next year vs. the New York Knicks. That's my early prediction.