Thursday, January 20, 2011
Agassi gets Hall of Fame nod
Andre Agassi, who won eight Grand Slam tournaments, including four Australian Opens, will be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame this summer. Daily News sportswriter Josh Krueger was on a conference call with Agassi on Thursday, so check out Friday's edition to get his reaction.
Who's the MVP?
In a few weeks, it will be announced that Tom Brady won the 2010 NFL MVP award. But should Brady be the MVP? Sure, if you only count the first 16 games.
The Patriots' untimely demise in the playoffs is further proof that the NFL needs to revamp its annual awards and consider postseason accomplishments. Yes, I'm aware that MVP, Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and every other award is based on the regular season. But why?
Wouldn't playoff success go a long way in determining who is the league's Most Valuable Player? I'm not trying to rub salt in the wounds of Patriots fans, but how can a guy be considered the most valuable when he was unable to lead his team to a home playoff win against a team it smacked around a few weeks prior?
Of course, Brady can't do everything himself, but the very notion of an MVP suggests that player does a lot of it by himself, or with little help. For 17 weeks of the regular season, Brady was that guy, without question. Take him off the Patriots and maybe they get a wild card spot, but there's no way the Patriots finish 14-2.
Hence, I submit for your ridicule and hostility, the man who is the league MVP (so far): Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Despite losing his starting running back, tight end and right tackle, Rodgers passed for 3,922 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions during the regular season. Sure, those numbers don't compare to Brady's 36 touchdowns and four picks (although Rodgers did have 22 more yards). But in the playoffs, Rodgers has thrown for six touchdowns (and run for one) with no interceptions.
There are plenty of reasons why the Packers are a No. 6 seed competing for a Super Bowl berth, but Rodgers is a huge one.
Sorry, Patriots fans, but this postseason, Rodgers has been much more valuable to his team than Brady was to his. Fortunately for Brady, playoffs don't factor in the award, so while some team other than New England will win the Super Bowl, shortly before the big game, Brady will be named league MVP.
The Patriots' untimely demise in the playoffs is further proof that the NFL needs to revamp its annual awards and consider postseason accomplishments. Yes, I'm aware that MVP, Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and every other award is based on the regular season. But why?
Wouldn't playoff success go a long way in determining who is the league's Most Valuable Player? I'm not trying to rub salt in the wounds of Patriots fans, but how can a guy be considered the most valuable when he was unable to lead his team to a home playoff win against a team it smacked around a few weeks prior?
Of course, Brady can't do everything himself, but the very notion of an MVP suggests that player does a lot of it by himself, or with little help. For 17 weeks of the regular season, Brady was that guy, without question. Take him off the Patriots and maybe they get a wild card spot, but there's no way the Patriots finish 14-2.
Hence, I submit for your ridicule and hostility, the man who is the league MVP (so far): Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Despite losing his starting running back, tight end and right tackle, Rodgers passed for 3,922 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions during the regular season. Sure, those numbers don't compare to Brady's 36 touchdowns and four picks (although Rodgers did have 22 more yards). But in the playoffs, Rodgers has thrown for six touchdowns (and run for one) with no interceptions.
There are plenty of reasons why the Packers are a No. 6 seed competing for a Super Bowl berth, but Rodgers is a huge one.
Sorry, Patriots fans, but this postseason, Rodgers has been much more valuable to his team than Brady was to his. Fortunately for Brady, playoffs don't factor in the award, so while some team other than New England will win the Super Bowl, shortly before the big game, Brady will be named league MVP.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Go ahead and cry, Patriots fans
After a wintry week in which our valued intern Cheyenne wasn't able to make it to The Daily News, he really brings it this week:
The New England Patriots have been knocked out of the playoffs by the New York Jets. As I have said before, the Patriots will not go to the Super Bowl. Hey, Brady OVERRATED much? What happened?
I am so happy I don’t have to watch the Patriots anymore. Brady definitely is not as good as Ben Roethlisberger, who could win a third ring next month. Not to mention, Brady was outshined by Mark Sanchez.
Bill Belichick won’t win another ring unless he again cheats. I hope this loss shows Patriot fans that their team was overrated, fans who made the stupid mistake of thinking their team was the best.
As for the Jets, why aren’t you talking trash about the Steelers? What are you scared your going to get beat?
The New England Patriots have been knocked out of the playoffs by the New York Jets. As I have said before, the Patriots will not go to the Super Bowl. Hey, Brady OVERRATED much? What happened?
I am so happy I don’t have to watch the Patriots anymore. Brady definitely is not as good as Ben Roethlisberger, who could win a third ring next month. Not to mention, Brady was outshined by Mark Sanchez.
Bill Belichick won’t win another ring unless he again cheats. I hope this loss shows Patriot fans that their team was overrated, fans who made the stupid mistake of thinking their team was the best.
As for the Jets, why aren’t you talking trash about the Steelers? What are you scared your going to get beat?
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Playoff panic?
When Tom Brady and the New England Patriots culminated the 2004 season with a victory over the Philadelphia Eagles for a third championship in four seasons, the sky was the limit for the star quarterback. Brady and Patriots coach Bill Belichick comprised the most-feared duo in the NFL, the pair nobody could beat, a modern-day Bill Walsh and Joe Montana.
The win over the Eagles was Brady’s ninth straight playoff victory to start his career. Since then, though, he’s just 5-5 in the postseason, looking more like Jim Kelly than Montana. That record includes a 27-13 setback against the Denver Broncos in 2005 and a 38-34 loss against the Indianapolis Colts in the 2006 AFC championship game, a contest in which the Patriots led 21-3.
Of course, it also includes the 17-14 loss to the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII, which could have completed the league’s first 19-game perfect season. The other two losses came in the last two seasons, Brady’s first two home playoff losses. In 2009, it was a 33-14 drubbing at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens, and on Sunday, the New York Jets, nine-point underdogs entering the game, claimed a 28-21 win at Gillette Stadium.
In these five losses, Brady hasn’t been overwhelming. He has completed just 59.5 percent (122-for-205) of his passes for an average of 258 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Sure, Brady will go down as one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history and one of the league’s all-time great winners. But after this latest postseason defeat, that win over the Eagles seems oh so long ago.
- Like many of you, I watched the game from the comfort of my own home, meaning I couldn’t really get a grasp of what Brady was seeing. But I noticed that with the exception of an overthrown ball to Brandon Tate, who was facing double coverage, the Patriots didn’t really attack the Jets downfield. Most of Brady’s passes were intermediate, or screens. Yes, the dink-and-dunk method is how they got to this point, but I was just waiting for the time when that compact offense would allow for a game-changing play.
It never happened. There were too many times when New England was lined up in a two-tight end set, too many times when Brady was under center. I kept screaming at the television, “Spread them out! No backs and five receivers!” But no, instead, they ran the ball and took time off the clock, even when they were facing a double-digit deficit.
Let’s face it, Rex Ryan talked the talked and from a coaching standpoint, he walked all over Belichick in this one.
The win over the Eagles was Brady’s ninth straight playoff victory to start his career. Since then, though, he’s just 5-5 in the postseason, looking more like Jim Kelly than Montana. That record includes a 27-13 setback against the Denver Broncos in 2005 and a 38-34 loss against the Indianapolis Colts in the 2006 AFC championship game, a contest in which the Patriots led 21-3.
Of course, it also includes the 17-14 loss to the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLII, which could have completed the league’s first 19-game perfect season. The other two losses came in the last two seasons, Brady’s first two home playoff losses. In 2009, it was a 33-14 drubbing at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens, and on Sunday, the New York Jets, nine-point underdogs entering the game, claimed a 28-21 win at Gillette Stadium.
In these five losses, Brady hasn’t been overwhelming. He has completed just 59.5 percent (122-for-205) of his passes for an average of 258 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Sure, Brady will go down as one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history and one of the league’s all-time great winners. But after this latest postseason defeat, that win over the Eagles seems oh so long ago.
- Like many of you, I watched the game from the comfort of my own home, meaning I couldn’t really get a grasp of what Brady was seeing. But I noticed that with the exception of an overthrown ball to Brandon Tate, who was facing double coverage, the Patriots didn’t really attack the Jets downfield. Most of Brady’s passes were intermediate, or screens. Yes, the dink-and-dunk method is how they got to this point, but I was just waiting for the time when that compact offense would allow for a game-changing play.
It never happened. There were too many times when New England was lined up in a two-tight end set, too many times when Brady was under center. I kept screaming at the television, “Spread them out! No backs and five receivers!” But no, instead, they ran the ball and took time off the clock, even when they were facing a double-digit deficit.
Let’s face it, Rex Ryan talked the talked and from a coaching standpoint, he walked all over Belichick in this one.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Coping with a loss
Has everyone picked up his or her jaw off the floor by now? If so, you’ve probably moved on to the second stage of grief: pain. Once the sting of the Patriots’ 28-21 loss to the Jets on Sunday wears off, you may feel anger that your team’s once-promising season is over.
Then comes depression, which unfortunately likely will be enhanced by watching the Steelers and Jets in the AFC championship game on Sunday. But stay strong, there is light at the end of the tunnel. You’ll begin to come to grips with the fact that the Patriots won’t play again until September (unless you count the few of them who will play in the Pro Bowl). You’ll work through the loss and eventually accept reality.
I share this information to poke fun, but not just at Patriots fans, at all of us. Most sports fans have been there at some point or another. The last time Patriots fans likely were there was the same season I was. A couple weeks before the Giants pulled off the upset of all upsets and ruined New England’s bid for a perfect season, those same Giants (with some help from Brett Favre) ruined a couple of days for me.
The Packers loss in the 2007 NFC title game was, by far, the most devastating of my life as a Green Bay fan. And I’m embarrassed to say a football game sent me into a funk that lasted far too long. I promised my wife that won’t happen if the Packers lose again this season, but if they do, there’s no denying I’ll experience at least some of what you’re going through right now.
Taking one for The Daily News sports team, I missed most of the Patriots-Jets game to cover the University of Rhode Island basketball game. But, working under the assumption that Scott is too wrought with grief to comment right now, I figured I'd get the ball rolling.
Certainly some things I did see late in the game struck me as odd — a 2-point conversion to make it a three-point game after a third-quarter touchdown, going for it on fourth and 13 instead of trying a field goal. But I suppose you have to trust your future Hall of Fame coach on those decisions.
Overall, though, cliched as it is, it just seemed like the Jets wanted it more.
What’s your take?
Then comes depression, which unfortunately likely will be enhanced by watching the Steelers and Jets in the AFC championship game on Sunday. But stay strong, there is light at the end of the tunnel. You’ll begin to come to grips with the fact that the Patriots won’t play again until September (unless you count the few of them who will play in the Pro Bowl). You’ll work through the loss and eventually accept reality.
I share this information to poke fun, but not just at Patriots fans, at all of us. Most sports fans have been there at some point or another. The last time Patriots fans likely were there was the same season I was. A couple weeks before the Giants pulled off the upset of all upsets and ruined New England’s bid for a perfect season, those same Giants (with some help from Brett Favre) ruined a couple of days for me.
The Packers loss in the 2007 NFC title game was, by far, the most devastating of my life as a Green Bay fan. And I’m embarrassed to say a football game sent me into a funk that lasted far too long. I promised my wife that won’t happen if the Packers lose again this season, but if they do, there’s no denying I’ll experience at least some of what you’re going through right now.
Taking one for The Daily News sports team, I missed most of the Patriots-Jets game to cover the University of Rhode Island basketball game. But, working under the assumption that Scott is too wrought with grief to comment right now, I figured I'd get the ball rolling.
Certainly some things I did see late in the game struck me as odd — a 2-point conversion to make it a three-point game after a third-quarter touchdown, going for it on fourth and 13 instead of trying a field goal. But I suppose you have to trust your future Hall of Fame coach on those decisions.
Overall, though, cliched as it is, it just seemed like the Jets wanted it more.
What’s your take?
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