Drew Brees Defends Sean Payton's Move To Dallas

When New Orleans Saints Sean Payton decided to uproot his family and move to Dallas, all kinds of bells and whistles went off in New Orleans. The move was signed off by Saints owner Tom Benson and General Manager Mickey Loomis.

The rumors that came out of it were that the Dallas Cowboys were looking at Payton to fill their general manager post. Another was that Payton was having family troubles. Saints quarterback Drew Brees says it's none of that and everyone is making a big deal out of nothing. Where there's smoke there's fire but I don't think Payton is going anywhere right now either. 

"It's a non-issue,'' Brees said. "I think everyone wants to immediately jump to conclusions and all of them are so untrue. The first of which is his family and him are having problems. No, that's not the case at all. The other one is he's taking a job with the Dallas Cowboys. No, not true either. People want to immediately jump to conclusions as to why he's bought a home in Dallas but most players and coaches in the league have a home base, a place where they're either from or where they spent a lot of time before so they have a solid foundation. There's not a guy who's more committed to his team and the city of New Orleans than Sean Payton. I think he's proven that.''



If the Saints struggle early you know the Dallas move will be the focal point behind it. Everyone will say that Payton has an eye on a different job, so the Saints players will feel sold out or why do they want to play for someone who doesn't want to be here. This will be something to keep an eye provided there is an NFL season.

Demar Dorsey's Second Chance

After being denied admission to the University of Michigan and Louisville, Demar Dorsey will finally get a chance to play football after high school. He'll be coming to Michigan, but he'll be playing at Grand Rapids Communtiy College.

Dorsey was a high school All American safety who originally committed to Florida then made a last minute change and signed with Michigan. That's when the wheels came off of that plan as word got out about his past legal troubles and not being able to meet admission requirements. He then sought refuge at Louisville but was denied there also. Being a player without a home he's now taking the JUCO route to get to a BCS school. There's no doubt he has the talent, he'll just have to show the maturity to get there.

Head coach Tony Annese knows all about Dorsey's story and is more than willing to give the young man a second chance.

“It was one of those things where kids get connected with other kids and we've got several kids from that Ft. Lauderdale area and they just talked,” Annese said. “He liked the idea of playing for us and we have been ranked in the nation the last couple of years. We're a second-chance place so we evaluate it that way. We accept the fact that's who we are and we try to do the things that we need to do to help our kids get through those circumstances. We can put all the variables in place and try to direct them the right way, but it's ultimately up to the kid and how determined they want to be to get their life on the right track.”


I hope the guy does well on the field and in life. We all need a second chance from time to time. Prove yourself at Grand Rapids and I am sure an offer will come from a good school. Now is the time to get it right. Michigan could be one of those schools but knowing how they are about JC transfers I doubt it. Get good grades and stay clean.




































   

Quote Of The Week: Charlie Sheen

Charlie Sheen the drug machine was giving a little anti-drug advice to the UCLA baseball team earlier this week. I know it's strange coming from Charlie Sheen as he's battled an addiction to drugs and porn stars for years, so when I heard about his latest bender it didn't surprise me since he's been fighting those demons since the late 1980's.

"Stay off the crack. Drink a chocolate milk. Enjoy your moment. That's all I got." 

Well said Charlie. Maybe his next stop will be at the local high school.

Dusty's Decisions May Have Doomed Harang

In the world of sports it doesn't take much for a player in any sport to lose it. Ask Jake Delhomme, Steve Blass, Jim Everett, Chuck Knoblauch, or Steve Sax. They were mental cases to say the least. Some are derailed by a strange coaching decision, like keeping a star player in a blow out game. San Diego Padres pitcher Aaron Harang was doomed by the latter.

When Harang was with the Cincinnati Reds, he says a relief appearance back in 2008 against, how ironic, the Padres, his current team. It was an extra innings game and Harang was summoned in by manager Dusty Baker, he of the weird pitching decisions. Harang pitched well in that game, but in his next outing, a start against the Pirates, he gave up six runs in four innings. You know Baker has ruined a pitcher before so this is nothing new.

Sometimes you need to conserve a pitcher for the long haul instead of using him for an early season extra inning game, especially if that pitcher is a starter that eats up a lot of innings for you. But you know Dusty, he consulted the wristbands and the wristbands told him to put in Harang.

"What it did," Harang said of the relief appearance to the San Diego Union-Tribune, "is fatigue me beyond the point of recovery. I started to change my arm angle to compensate for the fatigue and that’s when my forearm started to bother me. I feel like I’ve never been able to get back to the consistent, repetitive mechanics that I had," he continued. "The last couple of years have been, 'Try this, try that. Move your arm angle out a little.' I’ve had a couple of my old coaches call me, asking, 'What are you doing? You had so much success before doing the same thing. Now, all of a sudden, you’re turning your back on that?' "I got away from my main thing, which is throwing my fastball and throwing everything off that. I got to thinking I’m going to trick people and it just didn’t work."



I know the bottom line in sports in general is wins and losses. Sometimes you have to let one go early for long term success. The short term gain wasn't worth it for the Reds or Harang that season. Now Harang is working to get back to his old self while Dusty gets to possibly ruin Edinson Volquez or Aroldis Chapman.


http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/feb/11/padres-harang-homing-return-dominance/

Brandon Banks Injured In Late Night Stabbing

Washington Redskins return ace and recevier Brandon Banks was injured following a stabbing outside a Washington, D.C. nightclub early this morning according to reports.

They said the stabbing took place around 3a.m. at a club called 'the Park'. No offense to anyone in D.C. but that doesn't sound like a place that I'd like to be that late at night. Police said there ws an argument and a man attacked Banks and a friend he was with. The friend is in serious condition, while Banks was treated and released. The man that attacked them has been arrested and is in custody.

It's a good thing Banks was relatively unharmed and that it didn't turn into a Paul Pierce situation. I'm not going to sit here and preach, but these athletes need to learn that they're not untouchable. Anyone can get to you if they try hard enough.
 

Rex Ryan Predicts Super Bowl Win For Jets

The NFL offseason has barely started and Rex Ryan has put the pressure on himself and the New York Jets already. Rex and his wife Michelle were taking in a Knicks game last night and Rex predicted a Super Bowl win for the Jets while he expressed his disappointment with the loss in the AFC championship for the second straight year.

"It feeds the competitiveness in you," Ryan said. "You're sick that you missed out again, two years in a row. I know how important it us to this town and our fans, and how important it is to me, this football team. To come up short again, it's a huge blow. "But you do remember. It drives your competitive spirit, like there's no way, no way we don't get it done next year. That's how you feel. That's how I feel. You can't wait to get back and have at it again."



Hey, if you don't have confidence in yourself who will. That's why I like Rex. He has confidence in his team and the team feeds off of it. The Jets had their share of off field stories and the beat goes on with the Mark Sanchez story. But Ryan doesn't see it as a problem.

"Not everybody can play quarterback in this town," Ryan said. "It takes a special person, and Mark can do it. He's proved that he can do it. He's focused and determined. Some guys would wilt under the pressure of New York, of being in the city. But Mark looks forward to it. "You've got to have broad shoulders, he has broad shoulders. I always talk about skin like an armadillo—though I know it's armor, but that's the illustration we make to our guys. He's a great player, a great person, and he can handle this."


Rex has everyone's back on that team and they love him for it. I'm sure he may ruffle a few feathers every now and then but deep down they know short of committing murder or rape, he'll go to bat for them. I'm pretty sure they don't mind him going on record saying they'll win it all. That's what you play the game for and if your not then you shouldn't be playing.



  






"You've got to have broad shoulders, he has broad shoulders. I always talk about skin like an armadillo—though I know it's armor, but that's the illustration we make to our guys. He's a great player, a great person, and he can handle this."














   

Clay Matthews Laying The "Smackdown"

Here's some footage of Clay Matthews' appearance on WWE Smackdown.