Here is a the rest of the story. He was raised in a small town in Michigan. He was the all American kid. He served his country during Vietnam. He later married, helped raise two kids, and worked a lot of hours. He believes in doing things right and doing the right thing. He cares about other people and loves to talk to people every where he goes.
As his son got older and started getting into sports he supported him all the way. He went out of his way to be involved with his son and his teams. He coached him in almost every sport. He usually spent most of his free time throwing a ball around the yard with his boy than anything else. One time he tore his ACL. It happened in the 80's when arthroscopic surgery was still somewhat new. During October, football season for his son and for NFL, his son’s birthday fell on a beautiful October Saturday. He spent almost the entire day playing all time QB and throwing passes to all his son’s party guests as they played two hand touch football, all while having a cast from his foot to his hip on. It is these days that are always remembered so fondly.
His son was a wrestler as well. He wrestled for so many years it was a second family. In wrestling there is a lot of travel involved much like hockey parents. The weigh-in times are always very early so it meant getting up even earlier on Saturday’s and Sunday mornings. The thing was he was a truck driver who had difficult hours. He was very low in seniority so he had the toughest of everything. Some days on call he would go back 8 hours after his last shift. This means he somehow found a way.
He went to the practices, went to every tournament, and coached all the other kids as well. He made it so many times without any sleep but never complained once. He was very vocal and passionate as a coach as well. All the other wrestlers liked him. Almost twenty years later his son still gets asked how his dad is doing every time he runs into someone from the past. He has left an impact on so many lives and doesn’t really know it directly.
Earlier this year he was diagnosed with Cancer. But like the man he has always been he kept his head up. Instead of saying "why me!" he said "Why not me?". He had insurance, some money, a good job, a supporting wife, a supporting family, and he isn’t very old. He has chemotherapy every other week and they only get harder as they go. The chemicals really impact the body. The numbness in the fingers and extreme sensitivity to the cold and touching colder objects along with the laundry list of other side effects.
He has always been there for smart advice, coaching his son, keeping his class clown of a son in line, supporting his family, and is now a very proud grandpa! He is my father Dan Green! I wanted to put this out for Fathers Day because I go to wrestling camp on fathers day and I know I will be thinking of many fond memories on the mats as I now take his place in kids lives through coaching. Thank you dad for making me the man I am today!
Well it isn't like the Vikings organization is known as the example of the class of the league. With all the publicity the "Sexboat Scandal" received in 2005, the organization was forced to rebuild.
In 2007 the Vikings don't have another boat scandal, they have another image problem. The Vikings have lowered the bar again.
Last Sunday WR Troy Williamson missed the Vikings win over the Chargers that saw Adrian Peterson break the NFL record for rushing yards (296) in a game and surpass 1,000 yards after only eight games. Williamson was in South Carolina attending his maternal Grandmother's funeral.
from Twincities.com:
After the death last week of his maternal grandmother, Williamson rejoined the Vikings on Wednesday and participated in practice. But he lamented that he could not spend more time with his family, particularly his brother Carlton, who is still in a coma after a car accident, even after the club withheld his paycheck.
"I don't care if (the Vikings) would have took my pay for the rest of the year, I was going home," Williamson said. "It wouldn't have mattered to me. No matter what (Brad Childress) would have said, if I had to stay up here or not, I would have been at my house (in South Carolina) for that week."
Williamson regretted that he could not spend more time with Carlton after his car accident two months ago. But when his grandmother Celestine, who helped raise him and taught him to cook and drive, died, Williamson said he had to go home.
"I feel like the thing with my brother, I let that slide," Williamson said. "This is something I couldn't put on the back burner. But when this came up, I had to get up out of here."
Williamson declined to comment, when asked if Childress was understanding.
"It's really been hard for me," Williamson said. "I was glad to go home and see my family. It was something that really helped me. I just got to push through the season."
I guess they don't have Bereavement pay, they have a death tax. How is it that an organization can do this to someone who has "play" in his job title. When you play football or any other sport, keeping perspective on life is getting dimmer it seems. Even our armed forces come back from a real war for something like this. They don't get docked a weeks pay do they?
" The Minnesota Vikings are reacting to public pressure -- and public embarassment -- by giving back a game check to wide receiver Troy Williamson for missing a game to attend his grandmother's funeral. The Vikings probably were within their rights not to pay a player who did not participate in a game. But that doesn't make it right. As I once heard when I covered horse racing, somebody who'd gotten the shaft said: "That may be correct, but it ain't right." The Vikings need a director of common sense."
The NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award has been given out after every season since 1972, except for 1985 when no winner was selected. The player named Comeback Player of the Year shows perseverance in overcoming adversity, in the form of not being in the NFL the previous year, a severe injury, or simply poor performance. Garrison Hearst is the only player to have won the award twice (1995 and 2001).
So here we are in 2007 and there a few choices emerging already. The early favorite in many eyes is Randy Moss. He went from a dreaded situation in Oakland to one of the best teams in the league in New England.
Randy Moss has been lighting it up this year with the accurate passing of Tom Brady. The last time Moss was this effective was when he last played with Daunte Culpepper in Minnesota. Ironically the Oakland Raiders traded Moss shortly before signing Culpepper in Oakland. Maybe Al Davis wants to try to get another top 5 pick in next years draft.
Randy Moss so far in 2007 is leading the league in receiving yards with 779. Moss has already surpassed his 2006 total in only eight games. Moss has 11 TDs already which ties his last two seasons combined. Moss is one of the biggest reasons the Patriots are smashing every opponent on the way to their 8-0 record heading into Indianapolis. Randy Moss has become relevant again.
One other candidate that comes to mind is Kevin Jones of the Detroit Lions. He is coming back from a serious foot injury known as the Lis Franc injury. This injury is said to have a one year rehabilitation and Jones returned almost three months early. It was said he would go on the PUP list (physically unable to perform) to start the season, thus missing the first six weeks. The Lions decided to keep him off the list and let him come back and to get into game shape week-by-week.
Kevin Jones so far has started two games for the Lions and played in five. Jones has rushed 62 times for 272 yards averaging 4.4 yards per carry with four TDs. The workload keeps getting bigger each week for Jones and it only helps his team more. The Lions are currently 5-2.
Another player on the radar for comeback player of the year is Brett Favre who everyone said needs-to-retire two years ago and is now leading his team to a 6-1 start.
Celebrating life through sports? sometimes in the midst of another Lions loss I tell myself that life could be worse. I have a great family and live in the #1 sports city. I still see so many fans living and dying on game-by-game results. Never once looking at the bigger picture. Well this was one of those "looking at the bigger picture" moments for me.
"It was halftime at the Lake Fenton-Mount Morris game, seemingly just another high school football contest during another homecoming week on another October Friday night in another American suburb.
But this time the fix was in.
Four Lake Fenton (Mich.) football players and a co-conspirator on the golf team arranged it. Seniors all, they'd used their cell phones to hatch and agree on the plan, and then met outside the school building the afternoon before the big homecoming game to nail it down.
Lose on purpose?
Jake Kirk, the ringleader and a Blue Devils' running back, saw the decision differently: "We knew we'd all be winners if we did it."
By game's end, they'd done it. The scoreboard at Lake Fenton Stadium claimed the Blue Devils lost to Mount Morris 37-20, their lone defeat of the season so far.
But scoreboards can lie.
Last Friday, Kirk and fellow seniors David Bittinger, Lucas Hasenfratz, Matthew Tanneyhill and Ethan Merivirta scored one of the biggest victories of their lives.
Candidates for the senior royal crown, they each gave up the chance to become Lake Fenton's homecoming king."
Lake Fenton is a sub school of near by Fenton. The city is located 10 miles south of Flint in Michigan.
" They fixed it so Eli Florence won instead.
Eli is a 5-foot-7 former offensive lineman. He's only a sophomore. The doctors say there's nothing more they can do for him. He's at home, barely able to speak, getting regular blood transfusions. Eli Florence, 15, is dying of leukemia.
"I'm praying for a miracle now," said Trina Florence-King, his mother.
In these days filled, it seems, with it's-all-about-me athletes and iPod-wearing, text-messaging teenaged zombies, these Lake Fenton High athletes did something special for a special classmate.
"He's taught us never to give up," Kirk said. "And if you keep fighting, you can overcome the odds. We're happy he's still around because he wasn't supposed to be."
It's etched in her memory: Aug. 20, 2003, Hurley Medical Center, Flint, Mich., a short drive from Lake Fenton.
That's when Trina Florence-King learned her son was suffering from acute myelogenous leukemia.
That day, her wise little boy boldly consoled her.
"I've got something to tell you," she remembers him saying. "Me and God, we had a heart-to-heart. I told him I was available for whatever he needed."
And Thursday, Trina Florence-King told ESPN.com: "Since then, I've seen him working on other peoples' lives, working on people for four years. I'm not saying this because I'm his mother, but this is a special boy."
From one remission to two cutting-edge stem cell transplants to one stint of 13 straight months in the hospital, from Flint to Ann Arbor to Minneapolis and now back home, Eli Florence traveled and endured.
"Eli has become an icon for strength and perseverance and character for this entire community, and especially our student body," said Lake Fenton principal John ####ko.
But last month, the awful, final, numbing news came. Eli's mom reported it on a Web site set up by friends to monitor Eli's health.
"Tonight I come with a broken heart," she wrote. "Eli has been given just a few weeks to maybe one month to live here on this Earth with us. … This process of 'losing my son' is going to be very soon. When I look at him, even today, it just doesn't seem possible."
That was Sept. 16. Word spread around the school and the town of about 5,000.
The nicest kid in school, the one who's out of class so often, was fading.
Then, it came to Jake Kirk, as crisply and clearly as his two syllable name: Eli should be homecoming king. King Eli.
It felt so right.
On Oct. 4, on his way to school, Kirk got the plan under way. A neighbor had given him an orange ribbon -- orange is the color of leukemia awareness -- and it triggered Kirk's vision.
"It had been in the back of my mind," Kirk said Thursday via phone from the high school. "I've had people say, 'Wouldn't it be cool if Eli could get to be king?' I thought, 'Wouldn't it be cool if the five candidates gave it to Eli?'"
Kirk phoned Tanneyhill. Tanneyhill was with Hasenfratz. Before Kirk even got the entire concept out of his mouth, "They immediately said, 'Yes!'" Kirk said. Soon after, the other two senior candidates for homecoming king agreed.
By lunchtime, they'd planned their announcement for what was to be the king candidate-selection assembly.
Kirk took the microphone in front of the entire student body of 538 students and said there wouldn't be any vote this year for king.
"We, as the king's court, decide there is nobody in this school who deserves this more than Eli Florence,'' Kirk said. "This year's homecoming king is going to be Eli.''
The entire audience cheered and clapped in unison.
But Eli was too sick to be in school that day.
"The whole school knew, but Eli did not know," said Sticko.
That night, Trina Florence-King received a text message on her cell phone.
Eli would be crowned the next night at halftime of the football game.
She didn't tell her son.
There was a problem. Halftime was approaching and the king-to-be was at a local clinic receiving a necessary blood transfusion, getting energy, getting life. He was scheduled to escort his friend, Ashley Look, a member of the sophomore royal court, to midfield. He didn't have a clue he would be the center of attention.
Barely in the nick of time, Eli, in a wheelchair, and Ashley joined the other members of the court and their parents at midfield, surrounded by the Lake Fenton band, clad in blue and white.
The public-address announcer said: "Your 2007 king, as designated by the five candidates is … is Eli Florence."
The king was stunned.
"It's like he heard his name, but it was sort of surreal," his mother said.
"But I'm not a senior," Eli told others around him. "I'm not a senior."
The crowd of 2,000 people, including homecoming queen Brooke Hull, 17, stood. Many cried.
The four Blue Devils football players who ceded their kingship opportunity to Eli missed the moment. They were in the locker room trying to make adjustments for the second half to hold off Mount Morris.
Eli's mom brought the telephone to Eli in his bed Thursday morning.
He spoke softly of the five boys who honored him.
"It was definitely a sacrifice to take that step down to let someone else get it, to be homecoming king," he said. "The guys were really sincere. They honestly were OK with it."
Even ####ko, who sees a lot as a high school principal, was taken aback by the action of the Lake Fenton Five.
"There's not much that surprises me, but that did," he said. "We can't lump all kids into the same bucket. We see so much character development in so many kids in so many ways. This was just amazing."
Said Trina Florence-King: "I'm so proud of those boys. They wanted to honor him and make him feel special."
Saturday, Eli has another football date. Through a friend, he's been invited to visit the University of Michigan bench before the Wolverines' game against Purdue.
"It's going to be really cool," Eli said.
It's Michigan's homecoming game, the perfect place for the toughest little homecoming king of this, or any, football season."
ESPN.com correspondent Jay #### writes from St. Paul, Minn. He can be reached at jay@jayweiner.com. A Web site has been set up to chronicle Eli's battle. A benefit will be held Sunday to help Eli's family cover medical expenses.
This is a local story from where I live that I thought needed to be shared. I give special thanks to ESPN.com and Jay ####.
It is hard to believe that the first quarter of the 2007 NFL season is over already, for most teams. However, how many NFL games are won or lost in the first quarter? The NFL is a fourth quarter league. Some teams look out of it and some pretenders look like contenders. There is a fine line between these teams though. Who is good and who is bad? It’s very simple to see isn't it? Not really, but there are a few signs to know if your team is a pretender or an actual contender.
First sign that a team is a contender is the record. After all it is the way teams get into the playoffs. No matter how bad you may think a team is, if they have a winning record they are one step closer to making the playoffs.
Another sign that a team is a contender is, how many times per game do they "shoot themselves in the foot". In other words how many penalties/yards and turnovers are they committing? Is their teams name the Browns? The Bears and Patriots are the only two teams in 2006 that were in the top ten for both sides of the ball in penalty yards. Both ultimately lost to the Colts, a team that made teams pay all year for making such mistakes.
Who have they beaten so far? It doesn’t matter. It really doesn’t. When playoff times comes, they don’t rank the teams based on who you beat, the playoffs are determined by how many of all the who’s you have beaten.
Remember the old adage "Any given Sunday?" This is when pretenders get beat the most. They lose to teams they are supposed to beat. It is also the same when they win the games they are supposed to lose. You never know which team will show up.
Based on one quarter of the season here is a list of Contenders and Pretenders. It is hard to determine these teams after only 3-4 games but in order to cut down a forest you have to cut one tree at a time. Some teams don’t even know what to cut down a tree with at this point. Others are ready for the Outdoor Games on ESPN. The other factor involved is the schedule ahead.
Contenders-
First the obvious, going into week five all four undefeated teams have a legitimate shot at glory. These teams include Dallas, Green Bay, Indianapolis, and New England. All four teams are 4-0. The Patriots already have a three game lead after only four weeks.
There are a few teams that are 3-1 that are contenders as well. The Detroit Lions and Seattle Seahawks are both in position to contend. Both teams have big road games this week. Seattle at Pittsburgh and Detroit at Washington. Detroit has never won a road game at Washington either. The Lions are 0-19 against the Redskins in Washington. The last time the Lions won a road game against the Skins was back in the 30's when they were the Boston Redskins. Even if both teams lose this week they are still contenders.
Seattle is the more balanced team of the two but has a much more difficult schedule. The Lions have one of the best offenses in the entire NFL and have just enough defense to make the playoffs.
Pretenders-
Tampa Bay fell to this category when they lost Cadillac Williams for the season and Tackle Luke Petitgout. They do look to be the best team in their division with the Saints playing like the Aints again. Jeff Garcia may still have enough mojo left in him to lead them to the playoffs but they seem to still be pretenders.
The Raiders are 2-2 which matches their 2006 season total for wins. But they still haven’t figured out the QB situation and the running game is still suspect if Lamont Jordan is hurt for a long period of time. However Dominic Rhodes who they signed to replace or compete with Lamont Jordan has just finished serving his four game suspension and returned to the team this week. Culpepper was named the AFC offensive player of the week last week for his performance against the Dolphins. Yes he scored five touchdowns overall but Culpepper completed just five of 12 passes for 75 yards. They also have to play the Broncos, Chiefs, and Chargers twice. With all these teams combined to be the division of pretenders.
Other pretenders include Arizona and San Francisco. Both teams are 2-2. The Cards employ two QBs which means Leinart has not played well enough to take and hold the starting job and Kurt Warner has one more TD pass also. The 49ers have no offense and have not gelled the defense completely. With Alex Smith’s shoulder injury they may not have a chance to gel the offense again once he comes back, not that it was very good before he was hurt.
The San Diego Chargers became pretenders when they fired Marty Schottenheimer after a 14-2 season and hired Norv Turner. Norv Turner as a head coach has not had a winning season since 1999. He also has a 41% winning percentage for his career with a record of 59-85-1. Schottenheimer had a 200-126-1 (61% winning percentage), had 11 double digit winning teams in 21 years of coaching, and had three straight 10 plus winning seasons with of all teams the Browns.
The Bears are pretenders this year. Defense wins championships when the offense isn’t horrible. Well there offense is horrible. No passing game, no running game, and no quarterback. All this equals a top ten draft pick. Maybe they should take a QB next year.
New York, Jacksonville, Detroit, Cincinnati, Green Bay, Kansas City, Washington, New England, and Denver
For some players in the NFL the next few months will determine if they make or break their career. There are several veteran players who may be cut or benched this season early on. The most important thing some players don't understand is how important the off season really is. If you are a player on the apex of making a roster you better be at every off season meeting, mini-camp, and any injury treatments you need. Some players just won't ever get it no matter how many chances they are given either.
At least Lawrence Taylor had the thought to at least wait until his career was over to really get into his drug problem. In his book he talked about the last six years of his career in which he said he could not wait to retire so he could smoke crack.
A couple guys around the league will be cut, benched, or have their play reduced this season. I will touch on a few around the league.
Jacksonville - Mike Williams OT The weight problems that prompted Buffalo to cut offensive lineman Mike Williams have followed him to Jacksonville, even threatening his chances to make the team. Buffalo drafted him 5th overall in 2002 and cut him after last season. If he doesn't make the team he will be picked up elsewhere. Top five picks usually get a few more chances than most other players.
Green Bay - Ahman Green RB He is only 29 years old but he was already slowing down before his quadriceps burst in Minnesota last season. It remains to be seen when Green will return during training camp. And it's a greater mystery if he can fully recover from such a brutal injury. Samkon Gado is a lock to make the team and this year it may be up to Ahman Green and Najeh Davenport to get that final roster spot. For fantasy owners, stay away from all of these guys because they still don't have a line to block for them.
Denver - Ashley Lelie WR It has been rumored that he was part of a three way trade with New England for TE Daniel Graham and New Orleans RB Michael Bennett. Lelie would go to New England, Graham would go to New Orleans, and Bennett to Denver. With the addition of Javon Walker the Broncos have found Lelie to be expendable. If they are really look to trade him, why not call Philadelphia? I think they needs some WRs. Besides why does Denver need more RBs? Didn't they draft Maurice Clarrett?...........oh wait
Detroit - Mike Williams WR He was dismissed from practice last week and may not be in the immediate plans for the Lions offense. The Lions will have a three wide look that, at this point, is lined up as #1WR Roy Williams, #2 Corey Bradford, #3 Mike Furrey. The Lions may be married to Mike Williams but he is not going to be a player you want to draft in a fantasy league as he may not even be activated some weeks.
Green Bay -Robert Ferguson WR Ferguson had the chance of his life last season and proceeded to drop the ball. After Javon Walker went down in the season-opener, Ferguson had every opportunity to prove he was the No. 1 wide receiver he'd claimed to be for years. But Ferguson was arguably the Packers' most disappointing player and might be out of chances in Green Bay.
Kansas City - Priest Holmes RB his days may be numbered in Kansas city with the emergance of Larry Johnson. Holmes has already said he still wants to play. He may just have to do it elswhere. He has said in years past that he may retire but has played on. If the Chiefs do decide to trade or release him there will be plenty of teams looking to acquire his services.
Green Bay - Rod Gardener WR The Packers are in a transition stage right now that may take longer than the fans will like. Coming off a 4-12 year they have Brett Favre returning for one more year. They add Gardener to the list of players who may be out sooner than later. A washout in both Washington and Carolina, Gardner looked like a former first-round draft choice during his brief stay in Green Bay last winter. Gardner, picked up on waivers with two weeks left in the regular season. But Gardner irritated the coaching staff when he missed a large portion of the current organized team activities. He has good size but does not run well. The Packers drafted two recievers in 2006 so Gardener and Ferguson will be fighting for spots.
Washington - David Patten WR Patten may be cut by the Redskins this month. With the additions of Atwaan Randle El and Brandon Lloyd also having Santanna Moss, Patten's days are numbered. However New England is in need of a WR so he may go back to play in Foxboro with another possible former player Ty Law.
New York Jets - Chad Pennington QB Coming off his second rotator cuff surgery in as many years the Jets have competition for him. Patrick Ramsey was traded for from Washington for a sixth round pick. This QB controversy will only heat up if Pennington is healthy. If he is healthy then rookie head coach Eric Mangini has his work cut out for him. He has already announced, and rightfully so, that the job is wide open. Pennington told the Star Ledger newspaper in May, that he's "full go" and "throwing every route in the playbook." But he recently toned down his comments -- saying simply that he's making progress. Seriously, why can't they just find a decent quarterback named Benny?
Cincinnati - Chris Henry WR Henry pleaded not guilty this morning to providing alcohol to three underage women at a hotel on Covington’s riverfront. This marked the fourth time in six months Henry had been arrested. He finally made it into the third recieving spot last season and it may have been his last of his career. He faces up to a year in jail on these charges. He still has the other cases pending against him that he will later this month be in court for. He will spend more time in court than the Miami Heat will play on this summer.
Chicago - Vasher joins the list of angery Bears. According to the Chicago Tribune: "Cornerback Nathan Vasher is the latest Bear to leave organized team activities over dissatisfaction with his contract, which has two years remaining and is scheduled to pay him $425,000 in 2006." The list is growing and growing and may force a few other players to be cut or back loaded contracts.
Green Bay - Veterans still continue to skip practices. "No, maybe and yes. That's apparently what Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy has heard from Al Harris, Charles Woodson and Ryan Pickett or their representatives in recent conversations regarding the veterans' availability for the team's five remaining voluntary practices." The team is still in need of Offensive line help and the group needs to be together to form some kind of continuity. New head coach Mike McCarthy needs to nip this in the bud quickly. Hey at least they have Favre there right?
Miaimi - On Tuesday, they had a visit and are working on a contract with Bennie Anderson, who was cut by Buffalo last week after starting 15 games last season. Free agent defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson's agent said Tuesday his client likes Miami, and negotiations continue. Wilkinson was recently cut from Detroit and could likely end up with former QB Joey Harrington.
New England - No "sign" of Law. Ty Law has had talks with both Arizona and New England. No doubt the former Patroit would like to return home after a one year stint with the rival Jets in which he had 10 interceptions for last year. Arizona is also very interested in Law and still have $10 million under the salary cap. New England has another issue with hold out wide reciever Deion Branch. The Patriots could always try to put the squeeze on by trading for underachieving Denver receiver Ashley Lelie or disgruntled Saints wideout Donte' Stallworth, but with David Givens gone to the Titans, what they have right now as far as receivers. They aren't Deion Branch. And Branch knows it. I'm Deion Branch bit%^!
Detroit - Mike Williams was sent home early from Lions mini camp last week because he missed a treatment for his sore hamstring and then was late to a meeting. This also stems back to last season when he reportedly missed treatments and was late for meetings as a rookie. The Lions however won't give up on him now. Besides they can't. All his bonus money would prorate this year and next year which would bump $12 million on to the cap. They are financially committed right now and must find a way to untap the potential and cap off the foolishness. Also with the signing of free agent offensive lineman Ross Verba the Lions hope to have shored up a dismal offensive line that had breakdowns all season long. They are currently trying to work out a long term deal with left tackle Jeff Backus. Backus was hesitant to sign the one year tender offer by the Lions but that had given him their word they will work out a long term deal before training camp. Charles Rogers was pictured working out with the first team during mini-camp and this may not sound like much but that is the closest he has been to starting in a long time. It has been rumored several times that he may not even make the team.
Pittsburgh - With the motorcycle accident of Ben Roethlisburger the Steelers have to look at another option for this season at least early on. It has been rumored that Tommy Maddox may come back. They do still have Charle Batch but we all know what he can do. They may have to look into a slim market of free agents that are free agents for a reason. Unless they think they can win with QBs like Tony Banks or Ty Detmer. They do still have Kerry Collins and Jeff Blake they can talk to at least.
This past weekend the football world was entralled in the NFL draft. Chat rooms and forums were lit up in anticipation of each teams picks and what Detroit was going to do with theirs. The Detroit Lions have always been the biggest "hot button" in Detroit. They have only won one playoff game since the 1957 NFL Championship.
The Detroit Red Wings played game five in their best of seven series against the Edmonton Oilers. They lost game five and head back to Edmonton facing elimination. Detroit won the Presidents trophy this season for the best overall record. However they are in danger of doing it all for not. Have we seen Steve Yzerman play his last game? Game six in Tonight in Edmonton at 8pm.
The Detroit Pistons also had the best record in their respective league. The also lost on Saturday to the Milwaukee Bucks. Michael Redd scored 40 in a 20 point win at home against the defending Eastern Conference Champion Pistons. Game four will be played tonight in Milwaukee at 8:30 pm.
Last but not least the Detroit Tigers swept the suddenly inept Twins out of town yesterday with a 6-0 shutout and outscored the Twins 33-1. The Tigers had their best April since 1993 which just happens to be the last season that the Tigers had a winning record. The Pitching has been outstanding and the hitting has been timely. Both add up to wins and are only 1 1/2 games out of first behind the World Champion White Sox.
Having said all of that what does the Detroit Sports report decide to run? You guessed it a Ron Mason spotlight. Makes sense right? Have all this action people care about and run a half hour spotlight on Ron Mason, the athletic director for Michigan State University. What a joke.
This is a long line of blunders they have made at this station. In an attempt to help them out I have put a short list of things to do to get better ratings and fan support.
1. Check all name pronunciations (before the show) 2. Broadcast from Detroit more than once or twice a year. 3. Here is a an idea, show all of the highlights from the games. you have a half hour to kill, show me all the Tigers runs, Red Wings goals, and every draft choice. 4. Listen to the fans, like this blog and all who comment on this. Most fans in Detroit follow all four pro sports, and are very passionate about them. 5. No more spotlights on anyone, I never watch them and have never heard anyone talk about them.
Well it turns out that Mario Williams is the man. The Houston Texans today announced that they will select Mario Williams from N.C. State. Charlie Casserly says it is a football decision and they have reached a tentative contract of six years, $54 million.
This is not what most Texans fans ever really wanted. Most want Vince Young from Texas. That is not really what the team needs however. They believe that Mario Williams fits their 4-3 defense perfectly. The Texans already have a 1,000 yard running back and a number one draft pick of David Carr at quarterback. Reggie Bush may go to New Orleans but they have Deuce McCallister. He would NOT slip past the Jets (who don’t need a quarterback anyway) at number four. The Titans will be taking a quarterback with the number three pick. The Titans are interested in all three top prospects at quarterback. But will it be Leinart or Young though in Tennessee?
New Mock draft without any trades made in the top ten.
Things you see and thoughts you have are based on what type of perspective you have on life. It is easy to pick apart people for slipping in the slightest way on a daily basis. It can be seen any where at almost anytime of the day. We all complain and over react. But a simple apology can make the difference for being to harsh on someone, or being to hasty toward some ones opinion. It isn't about being right, it is about getting it right.
In sports, sometimes what one general manager see in his players or future players can be much different from what other GM's and fans may think. The one factor is that it is their decision to make. It is so easy to sit back and criticize each team or GM for draft picks this weekend or trades made in baseball this summer. There are so many factors into what makes great players great anyway.
The fact is, millions of fans play fantasy sports every year. If you are a fantasy manager of any of the sports leagues out there, how many have you ever won. I follow every sport I can digest in a day and I have never won any league. I always think it is funny to see how quick people can throw out hate but are absent when they stand corrected. Ghandi once said "you must be the change you want to see in the world". why is it everyone so afraid to show some love to people for the great things they have accomplished, big or small, even if they don't like them as a person.
Barry Bonds has had a syringe thrown at him, he is booed every at bat on the road, and fans yell at him every chance they get. The thing that bothers me most about this is that Bonds has never tested positive for anything. Steroids weren't even illegal in MLB at the time and I have seen multiple men use steroids in my life that don't even play sports! People have even said that the stats he has should have asterisks next to them. Isn't this America? We have found him guilty without even testing him positive? Raphael Palmero tested positive after testifying to congress and pointing at them while he said he never took steroids.
What about all the current players that have tested positive, including pitchers? No one really ever talks about it. The U.S. Government launched an investigation into Bonds and steroids in baseball. This is actually being lead by Senator George Mitchell. I have an idea, how about we launch an investigation into why gas is almost $3.00 a gallon now. How about why we are still in Iraq. I would like to see money they spend on this investigation (which could be hundreds of thousands) put into our school systems! How about an investigation into why we have cut backs in education year after year or why so many jobs keep going over seas day after day with out any hope that will change. "Nothing is more important to me than the integrity of the game of baseball," said Selig, commenting on the investigation after the publication Game of Shadows, a book written by two San Francisco Chronicle reporters that details alleged steroid use by Bonds and others.
Matt Millen in Detroit has been highly criticized for the down fall of the Detroit Lions for the past five seasons. The fans had a fire Millen rally before the last home game last year. In his defense most fans agreed with all his top draft picks and locally the Lions receive high grades for their drafts (we call it cornbread). The thing is the Lions have never really been a great drafting team anyway. For every Barry Sanders they drafted, they have an Andre Ware and Chuck Long draft pick to match it. If they had been a good drafting team over the years, they would have had more than one playoff win since the 1957 NFL championship. Best advice on all of this, never judge a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes.
This year in the 2006 Nfl draft it appears that there are more safe picks in round 1 than in years past. Even with the top five to ten players there seems to be more stability with some of these players. Reggie Bush will go number one and Mario Williams will go number two. That may be the way it goes down but, we may have someone other than the New Orleans Saints picking at two. New Orleans hold a key piece to the puzzle of what will happen in the top ten.
The Vikings and Rams have both expressed interest in Detroits pick at number nine to move ahead of Arizona and take Jay Cutler from Vanderbilt. Detroitis interested in Michael Huff and that will factor in what they will do with the no.9 pick. They also like Ernie Sims the LB from Florida State. He has had five concussions and that will be a risk factor for which ever team drafts him. The upside is that he is compared to Derrick Brooks from Tampa Bay.
The Jets are rumored to like Matt Leinart, but D'Brickshaw Ferguson may be the safest pick in the entire draft. Besides the Jets just traded for Patrick Ramsey and already have Chad Pennington. They need someone to block for these guys is what they really need. Look for the Jets to take D'Brickshaw Ferguson with their first round pick.
TheBills appear to be willing to trade out of number eight but maybe they should take Cutler. I havent exactly seen a Buffalo quarterback light up the league since Jim Kelly.
There are some good picks that are available outside the top 10 as well. However the good news for NFL fans. This draft class appears that it will make an impact on tomorrows NFL for the better. The question is who will be this years Andre Ware and who will be this years Tom Brady.
The 2006 NFL draft has many questions still to be answered and will really only be answered this weekend when it actually takes place. When looking around the internet you see all kinds of advertising and stories about draft "gurus". First of all if the were real draft "gurus" they would actually be drafting for one of the 32 NFL teams this weekend. Really everything is just speculation. Until the draft and some trades actually happen no ones know who will be drafted after Reggie Bush. Here is my shot, with trades, at the top 10 picks of the 2006 NFL draft.
2006 Nfl mock draft
1. Houston Texans - Reggie Bush - RB - University of Southern California
2. San Fransisco 49ers- Mario Williams - DE - North Carolina State*
3. Tennessee Titans - Matt Leinart - QB - University of Southern California
4. Oakland Raiders - Vince Young - QB - Texas**
5. Green Bay Packers - A.J. Hawk - LB - The Ohio State University
6. New Orleans Saints - D'Brickashaw Ferguson -OT - Virginia***
7. New York Jets - Winston Justice - OT - University of Southern California****
Ricky Williams lost his appeal of his suspension, and as a result, he will be out all of next season. The appeal was heard April 10 in New York by NFL attorney Jeff Pash, who then gave his recommendation to league Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. This means he will have missed two of three seasons when he comes back at age 30. There is good and bad news with this all around for the Dolphins. Lets take a look at a few things that are effected by this.
Lets start with all the negative stuff and get it out of the way right now.
Negatives:
1. The team still holds a federal court judgment of $8.6 million against Williams for breach of his contract in 2004.
2. He will have missed two of three seasons
3. He has three kids and a fourth on the way with his long time girlfriend. He has nearly $9000 in child support each month.
4. The Dolphins will be without their best back once again.
5. If Williams had won his appeal, the Dolphins had planned to offer Williams around the league in trade. Can't do that now and his value only goes down more and more now.
Okay enough of the negatives. Lets move on just like the Miami Dolphins should.
Positives:
1. The Dolphins can now see exactly what Ronnie Brown is made of featuring him as the number one back.
2. Ronnie Brown has one season under his belt so the game should dtart to slow down a bit for him.
3. The Dolphins can now see what they have in the post Ricky Williams era, which they have already kind of started but not really.
4. At least they didn't trade away their whole draft to get him and then smoke a cigar afterwards!!
5. He is one of the best running backs in the league, or at least once was. Now they have a younger back with a whole lot less miles on him.
6. They don't have Ricky Williams around anymore. I guess he really needs to lose himself before he will ever really find himself.
Carson Palmer of the Cincinnati Bengals held a press conference Wednesday at Paul Brown Stadium in Cleveland. He addressed the media for the first time since his Jan 10. reconstructive knee surgery. The news conference was originally scheduled for Tuesday but was delayed by a snow storm. An upbeat Palmer told the media that he's "where he should be, 10 weeks into rehab." It seems it is still far too early to project a return date for Palmer. The Bengals have a may minicamps and he knows that is too early, but the season return date is to be determined.
One of the biggest concerns this off-season for the Bengals is, who will back up Carson Palmer or be the starter until he returns? The Bengals made an inquiry Monday to David Dunn, the agent for Joey Harrington, the former no. 3 overall pick in the 2002 draft, who's career is done in Detroit. There is interest on both sides but there is not a visit scheduled at this time.
Brian Griese and his agent Ralph Cindrich visited last Saturday but agreed to a five-year deal in Chicago on Tuesday. Griese was looking for a more competitive situation than having Carson Palmer in front of him. "The one thing he told me after visiting with those guys is that he didn't want to string along Marvin (Lewis) and all the coaches there," said Ralph Cindrich, Griese's agent. "He's looking for more than a year, and it was never going to be more than a year in Cincinnati because of Palmer."
The team has also visited with former Rams quarterback Jamie Martin. Martin may be out of options in St. Louis now that the team has signed Gus Frerotte.
The Bengals made contact with the agent of Aaron Brooks but the Bengals situation didn't fit his client because Brooks views himself as a starting quarterback.
The weapons that the Bengals have put together on offense may be stifled a little bit early on in the season if they start the season with a new quarterback. The Bengals may have some growing pains with a new quarterback starting for them. Jon Kitna who recently left Cincinnati for Detroit was a key leader and veteran that this team will miss. In a statement issued through the team Palmer said, "I guess you could you say I have mixed emotions. I'm extremely happy for Jon and his family for the great opportunity he has there. But I also consider him irreplaceable as a player, as a teammate, and a leader in our locker room."
This will have an impact on the fantasy value of all the offensive players for the Bengals. The season after the injury is often a down year for any player. You first have to get your confidence back and feel good moving around at full speed.
Timing is very critical on offense. Chad Johnson may not click well with a new quarterback like back up Doug Johnson or Craig Krenzel. The running game will no doubt be effected by the lack of a passing game. The Bengals may have to rely not on their offense but their defense to start the season. Unfortunately for Cincinnati their defense ranked no. 28 in the National Football League in 2005. The good news is that they still have a solid starting running back in Rudi Johnson. He ran for 1458 yards last season seventh best among all running backs. In 2006 Rudi Johnson may be the more solid of the big three fantasy players the Bengals have. We still have five and a half months to see this play out though.
His son was a wrestler as well. He wrestled for so many years it was a second family. In wrestling there is a lot of travel involved much like hockey parents. The weigh-in times are always very early so it meant getting up even earlier on Saturday’s and Sunday mornings. The thing was he was a truck driver who had difficult hours. He was very low in seniority so he had the toughest of everything. Some days on call he would go back 8 hours after his last shift. This means he somehow found a way. 
Last Sunday WR Troy Williamson missed the Vikings win over the Chargers that saw Adrian Peterson break the NFL record for rushing yards (296) in a game and surpass 1,000 yards after only eight games. Williamson was in South Carolina attending his maternal Grandmother's funeral.
Randy Moss has been lighting it up this year with the accurate passing of Tom Brady. The last time Moss was this effective was when he last played with Daunte Culpepper in Minnesota. Ironically the Oakland Raiders traded Moss shortly before signing Culpepper in Oakland. Maybe Al Davis wants to try to get another top 5 pick in next years draft.
One other candidate that comes to mind is Kevin Jones of the Detroit Lions. He is coming back from a serious foot injury known as the Lis Franc injury. This injury is said to have a one year rehabilitation and Jones returned almost three months early. It was said he would go on the PUP list (physically unable to perform) to start the season, thus missing the first six weeks. The Lions decided to keep him off the list and let him come back and to get into game shape week-by-week.
It is hard to believe that the first quarter of the 2007 NFL season is over already, for most teams. However, how many NFL games are won or lost in the first quarter? The NFL is a fourth quarter league. Some teams look out of it and some pretenders look like contenders. There is a fine line between these teams though. Who is good and who is bad? It’s very simple to see isn't it? Not really, but there are a few signs to know if your team is a pretender or an actual contender. 
There are a few teams that are 3-1 that are contenders as well. The Detroit Lions and Seattle Seahawks are both in position to contend. Both teams have big road games this week. Seattle at Pittsburgh and Detroit at Washington. Detroit has never won a road game at Washington either. The Lions are 0-19 against the Redskins in Washington. The last time the Lions won a road game against the Skins was back in the 30's when they were the Boston Redskins. Even if both teams lose this week they are still contenders.
Tampa Bay fell to this category when they lost Cadillac Williams for the season and Tackle Luke Petitgout. They do look to be the best team in their division with the Saints playing like the Aints again. Jeff Garcia may still have enough mojo left in him to lead them to the playoffs but they seem to still be pretenders.
The San Diego Chargers became pretenders when they fired Marty Schottenheimer after a 14-2 season and hired Norv Turner. Norv Turner as a head coach has not had a winning season since 1999. He also has a 41% winning percentage for his career with a record of 59-85-1. Schottenheimer had a 200-126-1 (61% winning percentage), had 11 double digit winning teams in 21 years of coaching, and had three straight 10 plus winning seasons with of all teams the Browns.
Green Bay - Ahman Green RB He is only 29 years old but he was already slowing down before his quadriceps burst in Minnesota last season. It remains to be seen when Green will return during training camp. And it's a greater mystery if he can fully recover from such a brutal injury. Samkon Gado is a lock to make the team and this year it may be up to Ahman Green and Najeh Davenport to get that final roster spot. For fantasy owners, stay away from all of these guys because they still don't have a line to block for them.
Denver - Ashley Lelie WR It has been rumored that he was part of a three way trade with New England for TE Daniel Graham and New Orleans RB Michael Bennett. Lelie would go to New England, Graham would go to New Orleans, and Bennett to Denver. With the addition of Javon Walker the Broncos have found Lelie to be expendable. If they are really look to trade him, why not call Philadelphia? I think they needs some WRs. Besides why does Denver need more RBs? Didn't they draft 
Washington - David Patten WR Patten may be cut by the Redskins this month. With the additions of Atwaan Randle El and Brandon Lloyd also having Santanna Moss, Patten's days are numbered. However New England is in need of a WR so he may go back to play in Foxboro with another possible former player Ty Law.
Green Bay - Veterans still continue to skip practices. "No, maybe and yes. That's apparently what Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy has heard from Al Harris, Charles Woodson and Ryan Pickett or their representatives in recent conversations regarding the veterans' availability for the team's five remaining voluntary practices." The team is still in need of Offensive line help and the group needs to be together to form some kind of continuity. New head coach Mike McCarthy needs to nip this in the bud quickly. Hey at least they have Favre there right?
Detroit - Mike Williams was sent home early from Lions mini camp last week because he missed a treatment for his sore hamstring and then was late to a meeting. This also stems back to last season when he reportedly missed treatments and was late for meetings as a rookie. The Lions however won't give up on him now. Besides they can't. All his bonus money would prorate this year and next year which would bump $12 million on to the cap. They are financially committed right now and must find a way to untap the potential and cap off the foolishness. Also with the signing of free agent offensive lineman Ross Verba the Lions hope to have shored up a dismal offensive line that had breakdowns all season long. They are currently trying to work out a long term deal with left tackle Jeff Backus. Backus was hesitant to sign the one year tender offer by the Lions but that had given him their word they will work out a long term deal before training camp. Charles Rogers was pictured working out with the first team during mini-camp and this may not sound like much but that is the closest he has been to starting in a long time. It has been rumored several times that he may not even make the team.
