Heading East

TCU announced today that they will be joining the Big East in all sports starting in the 2012 season.  Thats right, a Texas school, located about 400 miles west of the Mississippi will be playing in a conference featuring UCONN, WVU and Syracuse.  Now, given the recent string of non-BCS schools getting the short end of the stick when it comes to the National Championship game, you can't blame TCU for making the jump to a major conference.  What is surprising, however, is that they didn't have a better offer.  The now 10 team Big 12 wasn't interested in adding a new member to replace the recently departed Nebraska or Colorado?  TCU gets national media coverage every day and is located perfectly in Big 12 territory.  Even the expanding Big 10 makes more sense than the Big East.

This appears to be a desperation move by a school who know's what it's like to be snubbed by the flawed BCS system.  If the Big East was their only option, they HAD to take it.  Perhaps if TCU goes undefeated in 2012 they can prove to the world that these non-BCS schools are legitimate title contenders.  If they don't, then perhaps we will see an epidemic of schools jumping ship to the major conferences.  Leaving the likes of the Mountain West without any major attraction.

Vikings Quarterback Options in 2011

The Minnesota Vikings certainly have a number of issues to address before next season (see previous post re: Coaching Options) none are bigger than figuring out who will be under center next year.  With Favre likely retiring, for good this time, Tarvaris Jackson and rookie Joe Webb are the only quarterbacks currently on the roster.

In all likelihood Tarvaris is out next season now that Childress is gone.  It has been pretty obvious for a while now that Tarvaris was Chilly's baby, the guy he picked and nurtured.  He wanted him to succeed more than anything and he refused to believe it when it has been shown he simply doesn't have the talent.

 So this leaves us with 4 major options:

McNabb

1. Donovan McNabb
With obvious controversy in DC, its not out of the question to invision McNabb wearing purple next season.  Given the structure of his recent contract extension the Skins could let him go this offseason without losing to much.  If McNabb becomes a free agent, it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Vikings go after him.  McNabb also has connections to multiple Vikings coaches, namely Leslie Frazier and QB coach Kevin Rogers, which could help land him in Minny.

Vince Young

2. Vince Young - After the past two weeks in Tennessee, it is obvious there is something going on between Vince Young and Jeff Fisher.  In fact, you can't turn on ESPN without someone talking about how "its not going to work" and how "One of them [likely Young] will be gone", despite what the Titans owner says.  If Titans decide to get rid of Young, a young athletic quarterback could be what the Vikings are looking for.  Despite his flaws, Vince could become a solid franchise quarterback if put in the right situation.  Because of the recent injury and controversy he might be available at a decent price.

Kevin Kolb

3. Kevin Kolb - With the emergence of Michael Vick as an all star caliber starter in Philly, Kolb should again find himself on the trade block this offseason.  If the Eagles are willing to come down on their absurd asking price of at least two first round picks, the Vikings should certainly be in the mix for grabbing Kolb.







4. The Draft - Lets face it, the Vikings are having one of the most disappointing seasons in the NFL.  Although there is some new energy under intrim coach Leslie Frazier, the chances of the Vikings ending up over .500 isn't all that great.  If the Vikings fall even worse than that, they're looking to be a very talented team with a top draft pick.  And while guessing the draft is always a crapshoot, there is a chance they could find someone to their liking there.

Minnesota's Options in 2011

At 3-7, playoff hopes are just about beyond any hope for the Minnesota Vikings.  What appears to be lost in the disappointment of what is (likely -- hopefully) Favre's last season, is the question: "What will the Vikings do in 2011 to utilize the immense talent that brought them to the NFC Championship less than a year ago?"

First things first, they need to find a new coach.  Intrim-Coach Leslie Frazier seems to be a legitimate candidate, and he should be able to form a camaraderie with the players throughout the remainder of the season which could give him a small advantage over other candidates.  Although the in house option may seem to be the easiest solution, you can't forget about the group of elite level coaches that have been away from the sidelines the past few seasons.  I believe the Vikes have a good shot at signing one of these guys... And heres why.

1. Jon Gruden - To me, he seems the most likely candidate to come out of 'retirement' for next season.  Although he will likely come with a high price tag ($30 M +), owner Zygi Wilf has shown he's not afraid to spend money to better the team.   Gruden is also a proponent of the Tampa-2 defense, which Frazier and the Vikes already have in place.

2. Tony Dungy - The possibility to return to the state of his Alma Mater as well as getting to coach for the team he once worked for may be enough to help entice Dungy to return to Minnesota.  Again, Dungy appears that he will be making a return to coaching in the next couple years.

3. Bill Cowher - The former Steelers coach is also reported to return sooner than later, but perhaps not next year.  While he will certainly be in high demand (Cowboys, Vikings, as well as any team with a vacancy at the end of the year.)

Check back tomorrow where I will discuss the QB options that the Vikings face in 2011

Problems In Paradise

The Miami Heat's 95-104 loss to in state rival Orlando Magic dropped the "dream team" Heat to 8-7 on the season - a horrific start for a team that many believed could surpass the 72 win mark set by Jordan's '95-'96 Chicago Bulls.  Worse yet, the only inside presence on the heat, Udonis Haslem, looks to be out for the season, leaving Miami without a true post defender and rebounder.  In a desperation effort Pat Riley has brought in center Erick Dampier to fill in for Haslem, butt can Dampier bring what the Heat need?  I don't think so.  Dampier won't make them a better defensive team - especially at age 35 - he won't make Chris Bosh turn it on when it really counts, and most importantly, he won't improve what appears to be a lack of focus and execution the Heat are suffering from.  It's too early to count them out, especially in a subpar Eastern Conference, but the heat need to start to put it together.  My prediction? Pat Riley will be coaching the team by Christmas.

Sorry!

Hey readers,

Sorry for the lack of posting in the past two or so weeks.  There was a death in the family followed with a bunch of schoolwork.  But not that Thanksgiving break has arrived - lets get back to work!

D'Antoni out in New York?

Although we're only about 10 games into the season there are rumors floating around about the future employment status of Knicks head coach Mike D'Antoni.  After two disappointing years, Knicks fans had to wait until this last summer to find out who the man (or men) who would save their franchise would  be.  Namely, they were expecting to cash in on the LeBron James lottery, or at least snag Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.  As we all know, none of that happened.   So, in a knee-jerk "ahhh fu*k we didn't get ANY of them?!" reaction, the Knicks overpaid the often injured Amare Stoudemire to have the spotlight in the Big Apple.  So "renovated" franchise now consisted of the same horrible players from last year, with an Amare Stoudemire (without Steve Nash) and minus David Lee.  That is small improvement if anything.  So what exactly has D'Antoni done that says his job should be secure.  The result is? A 3-8 start to the 2010-2011 season.

To me, the only way you keep D'Antoni as coach is to keep Amare happy AND if the free agents they pursue this summer (namely Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul) actively want  to play for D'Antoni's system.  Is it possible? Sure.  But I have a feeling we'll one day have a post saying D'Antoni should be fired because of his inability to win a title with CP3, Melo and Amare).

Fantasy Vault

Here's our new weekly post on who's hot and who's not in the world of Fantasy Football.  Make sure to follow all season long with SportsBank for all the Fantasy tips and breaking news.  So lets hit the ground running with all the results from Week 10:

Stock Up:

• Fred Jackson, RB, Buf - Dont expect those monster numbers each week, especially with a tougher schedule coming up, but Jackson has shown that he still has fantasy relevance.  He's more of a matchup start from this point on, but he's worth having on your team. 
• Percy Harvin, WR, Min - Harvin is now a fantasy must start.  Each week he seems to be hobbling around, sidelined with migraines at practice, only to go for double digit points on Sundays.  As long as he's active, he is an automatic start the rest of the season.   
• Peyton Hillis, RB, Cle - No big news here, but Hillis has proven that he is a top 8 fantasy RB in the NFL now.  There were some thought he might not be a great start this week, but he came out and proved the naysayers wrong with 14 points (ESPN leagues) against the Jets.

Stock Down:

• Brett Favre, QB, Min - Although Favre has been up and down all year, he is WAY down now.  His interceptions are killing him and he's simply not putting up points.  If you're in a bind, Favre is always capable of putting up a decent game, but it's a risk, and there are better options out there. 
• Mike Sims-Walker, WR, Jac - Despite being one of the biggest pickups after last week, his inconstancy came out again in week 10.  He's worth keeping, but start him knowing he could put up 2 as easily as he could put up 20.
• Jahvid Best, RB, Det - He just doesn't seem to have the same burst he did when he took the fantasy world by storm at the beginning of the season.  With fantasy RB's at a premium, you probably need to keep him on your roster, but, remember, he hasn't put up double digit numbers since week 2.  Hes only put up 50+ yards in that same timeframe. 

Week 11 Pickups:

• Benjamin Watson, TE, Cle - Available in 69.9 of ESPN leagues, Watson has proven he has some fantasy value.  He is the obvious favorite target of QB Colt McCoy, and with games coming up against Jacksonville, Carolina, Miami, Buffalo and Cincinnati he could be a good option at the Tight end position.  
• Mark Sanchez, QB, NYJ - Another quarterback with an up and down season, Sanchez has strung together two 21+ games.  He's available in 30% of ESPN leagues, and has favorable match-ups against Houston and Cincy in the next two weeks.  Worth a look.  
• Josh Freeman, QB, TB - Mr. Consistency.  He won't put up game winning numbers, but you can count on him for solid production each week.  With some decent matchups ahead, he's worth a look.  He's available in 42.9% of ESPN leagues.
• Rob Gronkowski, TE, NE - If you're looking to fill a void at TE, Gronkowski may be worth a look in 12 team leagues.  As the Patriot offense starts to find its post-Moss identity, Tom Brady and Gronkowski are starting to built rapport.  He drops a lot of passes, but he's high risk/high reward

Toss 'em out:

• Bernard Berrian, WR, Min - After putting up solid numbers against Arizona two weeks ago, Berrian didn't play against Chicago with an apparent groin injury.  Berrian's biggest asset is his speed, and if his groin is bothering him, his value drops significantly.  Additionally, with Sidney Rice set to come back next week Berrian should see less balls thrown his way.

T-Jack To The Rescue?

Tavaris Jackson

After Sundays loss to division rival Chicago, might the Minnesota Vikings be looking at handing over the reigns to backup quarterback Tavaris Jackson?  With Brett Favre ailing (ESPN.com reports that Favre told Ed Werder that he has a shoulder injury that requires an MRI, in addition to his ankle and throwing elbow) and having the 31st ranked quarterback rating, it might sound like a viable option.  

Of course, if Favre is ok to go next week, that means Brad Childress would have to end Favre's streak by choice, something that could create a huge controversy in Minny.

Right now, most people (myself included) think Favre gives the Vikes the best chance to win each Sunday.  But if the purple and gold keep losing, each week speculation of starting Jackson will grow- and maybe, just maybe, it should.

Fantasy Impact:
Although most people aren't relying on Favre as their starter in Fantasy anymore, if you are, I wouldn't worry about Favre being benched.  The Vikings put all their eggs in the Favre basket, and it just doesn't make sense to jump out now.  He'll start next week against the Packers. If Favre continues to struggle or is hurt, it could have impact on a couple other Vikings:

Percy Harvin, WR - Even with Sidney Rice coming back next week if Favre is hampered, expect the Vikes to hand the ball off to Adrian Peterson more the rest of the season.  If this happens, expect to see Percy's value drop.

Adrian Peterson, RB - On the other hand, if the Vikings rely heavily on the run game, it can only mean good news for Adrian Peterson owners.  With a weaker second half schedule, expect AP to put up some monster numbers in the coming weeks.

Unrest In The Desert

Larry Fitzgerald

It's no breaking news that the Arizona Cardinals have been falling back into irrelevance since losing quarterback Kurt Warner to retirement and wideout Anquan Boldin for a mere 5th round pick last offseason, but might another Pro-Bowler be on his way out? Although Larry hasn't made any public comments, his younger brother, Marcus Fitzgerald, may have stirred some discussion late Sunday night via Twitter.  Marcus tweeted "I want to see Larry play for the Vikings soon.  That's all I want for Christmas" jokingly adding he was staying in Arizona "Until Larry's QB situation gets handled."  Finally, Marcus, admitting what Cardinal fans have known all season, said "This year [is] most definitely very frustrating."  While it could all just be the words of a frustrated family member, it wouldn't be shocking if Larry and he shared the same opinion.  Although its too late to move him this offseason maybe the Cardinals will be best suited to move the talented wideout, entering the final year of his contract, in 2011.

Moss Struggles in Titans Debut

Randy Moss (pitching?)

While controversial wideout Randy Moss has been filling the headlines this year, he certainly didn't fill up the box score this Sunday.  Moss was held to one catch for 26 yards in his Titans debut, a career debut low for the well traveled receiver.  In fact Moss historically has some of his best games in his first week with a new squad, averaging 122 yards and at least 1 score in each game.  To be fair, there is still a chance Moss gels with the Titans - he has only been there a week - and quarterback Vince Young should be back for next weeks game against the Redskins.  What Moss and his fantasy owners should be worried about is how Randy is likely to become a major decoy on the field in the Titans offense.  With Vince Young and Chris Johnson in the backfield, Coach Jeff Fisher isn't going to change the game plan to fit Randy Moss.  He knows what they're good at, and thats running the football.  Moss can still be effective stretching the field, taking that extra man out of the box and hauling in the occasional deep ball, but if you ask me, his days of monster numbers are behind him.  At least for the 2010 season.  

Fantasy Advice: 

The fact of the matter is Moss is still a big name, thus he still has some legitimate trade value.  I would recommend trading Moss as soon as possible, the worst thing that could happen is waiting and watching his stock fall after a few unproductive weeks.  

Wild's Burns begins 2 game suspension

Brent Burns

Minneapolis, MN - Wild defenseman Brent Burns begins serving his two game suspension from his late game "punch" on Panthers winger Steve Bernier.  After Burns took exception to a hip check in the final minutes of last weeks 2-1 Wild loss, the two rumbled when Bernier was on the wrong end of an accidental stick to the face.  While it looks like Bernier will have to miss significant time as he needs surgery to repair a broken cheek bone, the suspension seems a bit much for a player like Burns.  He has no prior history of cheap hits, and as the video shows, the stick to the face was obviously unintentional.  In fact, reports are that Burns was physically ill on the bus after the game.  Wild fans can only hope that Burns comes back with a little fire in his belly to try to turn around the Wilds mini losing streak.

Here's Video of the incident courtesy of sports.yahoo.com

Cowboys & Longhorns - Everything's badder in Texas

Above: Something that makes most Americans very, very happy

What the hell is going on with football in the state of Texas this year?  With both the Cowboys AND Longhorns struggling there's not much to root for if you're a Texas fan.  And it's not like they were supposed to have down seasons, I mean, the Cowboys returned 6 Pro-Bowlers and were a legit contender to come out of the NFC.  So what happened? Sure it's easy to blame Wade Phillips for the Cowboys struggles, but was he really the whole problem? I certainly don't think so, and more importantly, I don't think Jason Garrett is the solution.  They need someone who can bring out the immense talent they have and translate it to wins.  Of course Jerry Jones and most ignorant 'boys fans are going to want the "big name" hire, but I think they should look at a less discussed option - Vikings D Coordinator Leslie Frazier.  A defensive specialist like Frazier would be a great first step in improving a poor Dallas defense.   Will Jones go for a "not Bill Cowher" type hire? Probably not, but he should.

Leslie Frazier 

Longhorns fans, however, may have a little more optimism than their Dallas counterparts.  They'll return Quarterback Garrett Gilbert.  More importantly they'll bring in the number 1 recruiting class in 2011, headed by OT Christian Westerman (#1 tackle in the country) and RB Malcolm Brown.  If Mack Brown can turn things around in Austin, which he certainly can, things could look up for Texas in 2011.

Free Kevin Love!

For weeks sports writer Bill Simmons has filled up the Twitter world with discussion of Timberwolves PF Kevin Love.  His 18.0 PPG and 14.60 RPG would almost certainly gain him starting minutes on most teams, never mind the lowly T-Wolves.  Yet coach Kurt Rambis is hesitant to start him... much to the dismay of most Wolves fans.  The question is, after Loves 31-31 night, can Rambis still justify not starting him?  After all, it's a feat that hasn't been accomplished since 1982 by Moses Malone.  Even more impressive, the past 4 30-30+ games have been by Malone, Malone, Robert Parish and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.  (Perhaps even more interesting, 2 of the last 5 30-30 games have been against the Knicks).  If Rambis keeps benching Love it can only be a matter of time before the ultimate team player starts demanding a trade.  If the Wolves plan on turning anything around, they'll wise up and start Mr. Love.

-SportsBank

NFL Picks: Sunday November 14th

Here's this weeks picks from our contributors, this will be one of our weekly posts. Unfortunately Jordan and Dave aren't here this week, so they'll have to start next week.

Game                         Tom                    Joel         
Det @ Buf                Detroit                Detroit
Min @ Chi               Minnesota           Chicago
NYJ@Cle                NYJ                    Cleveland
Cin @ Ind                Indy                    Indy
Ten @ Mia              Tennessee          Tennessee
Car @ TB                Tampa                Tampa
Hou @ Jac              Jacksonville       Jacksonville
KC @ Denver         KC                      KC
Dal @ NYG            Giants                 Giants
Sea @ Ari               Arizona               Arizona
Stl @ SF                 San Francisco    San Francisco
Ne @ Pit                 Pittsburgh            Pittsburgh
Phi @ Wsh             Philadelphia         Philadelphia  
Totals                     0-0                       0-0
Last Week              0-0                       0-0

Welcome to SportsBank

Hey Everyone,

Thanks for taking a look at my new blog SportsBank.  Obviously things are just getting started, so keep an eye open for new posts and changes in the site.  In the next day I should have a few of my weekly posts up, so you can start to get a feel of the type of material that will be on here.  If you have any suggestions or comments please let me know!

-SportsBank