RAVENS LET SOME GO BUT GAIN SOME HELP

  For Ravens fans the free agency scares them. They don't know who will stay or who will go. This free agency has seen the exit of Michael Oher, Jameel McClain and Vonta Leach for a second season to clear cap room for other signings. The Ravens as many know always have a trick or two up their sleeve and with the exit of those three players replaced them with resigning Eugene Monroe, Dennis Pita got a greaaat contract and brought in Carolina Panthers long time wide out Mr. Steve Smith. The ravens were looking for a guy that could replace the lost of Boldin especially with not doing very good on third down last year. I believe they have found the guy that will get those tough three to five yards in Steve Smith. I know in football years he's old but look at the Panthers season last year and he had a very successful season for a so called old man. I think the offense will regroup after last season especially with a healthy Pita and a healthy Rice and Scott who didn't have a strong season as a back field unit after the Ravens super bowl run. 

   Defenseeeeeeee!!! The Ravens are known to have a great to good defense each season and they didn't pretty good this past season. The Ravens did lose a good LB in Jameel McClain to the Giants but will keep the majority of the defense in tack. The Ravens are trying to keep Ihedigbo who finished second on the team in tackles with 101. I did see that the Ravens were fishing in the Steelers back yard a little and looking at veteran free safety Ryan Clark but nothing has been etched in stone yet. That would be a very very wild season to have a guy like Clark on the squad that has roamed the defensive backfield for the Steelers for 10 season only to play against them this season if the deal goes through. I will sit back and wait for more tricks to come out of the bag of the Ravens and Mr. Newsome.

FREE AGENCY HAS EXPLODED!!!!

    I believe this time of the year for the NFL is the most anticipated part other than the actual football season and the super bowl. Free agency in the eyes of owners and teams especially those teams that are looking for a much needed lift to help their road to a championship. So, with that said letsssssssssss goooooooo! In the above picture you see that the Jets have struck gold. I think adding Decker to their offense and to a average receiving core will boost their numbers up. The big question is how will the offensive coordinator adjust the offense to fit Deckers style of play especially coming from a heavy crossing route Broncos offense. While watching Decker play in the Broncos offense it showed that having other receivers such as Welker, Demaryius Thomas and Julius Thomas help to increase his receptions and receiving yards. The other question will be how will Decker handle being the number one go to receiver in the Jets run base offense. 
  
     The Broncos loses a key part of their offense in Decker but picks up a huge reward for their defense in Demarcus Ware. I am still in disbelief that the Cowboys decided to cut ties with the all pro sack leader. Ware isn't your typical defensive player. Ware depending on the defense plays down as a strong defensive end with his size and speed is very dangerous coming off the edge against offensive tackles and making key sacks that he has made. The other side to Ware is standing Ware up in a 3-4 defensive and allowing him to be athletic and cover tight ends, slot receivers and running backs leaking out the backfield. I understand the salary cap and wanting to get younger, cheaper and new players but does Jerry Jones being to involved in the football operations of the Cowboys hurt them? Along with Ware the Cowboys released veteran Miles Austin freeing up more money for the Cowboys. Miles def. brought a explosive approach to the Cowboys offense that helped take attention off of Witten the Cowboys TE and created fame for the undrafted receiver. After two pro bowl seasons Austin didn't have a great 2012 and 2013 season which was plagued with hamstring injuries keeping him off the field. Will Miles Austin land some where else before the draft or after the draft?

    The Broncos are building to take the final step in sealing up a championship during this free agency period. They have added DeMarcus Ware to their defense and in the same week added Aqib Talib to their secondary. I have heard coaches say time after time that defense wins championships. So with that said it seems as if the Broncos are saying we have the offensive components now lets beef up the defense and make this work! Talib according to the Patriots reports is coming off of a injured second half season and looks like they didn't want to bring him back if they couldn't get a full season of production out of the big play and aggressive cover corner. Talib did mention that he never had a injured hip and that the Patriots worded their injury report incorrect and stated that in the AFC championship game he had a deep bone bruise but no hip injury in the regular season. In the eyes of the Broncos he is exactly what they need and they made that clear with the contract and their check book. The draft haven't came yet but the Broncos are trying to make a statement early.

   Chip Kelly brought a explosive style offense to the Eagles from his days as the Oregon Ducks head coach. The Eagles showed major signs of explosiveness during the season especially with Nick Foles at the helm. Nick took ownership of the offense and never gave up the starting position to his back ups. The Eagles were stopped short in the playoffs but it did give a great outlook to the Eagles and Kellys offense for the seasons to come. The infamous two headed monster in the backfield of NFL offenses have become a staple to teams. What if you add a shifted back that can run, catch, return and split out as receiver to Kellys offense? Well it has been done. The Eagles have added the shifted Darren Sproles to an already dynamic offense. Seeing that acquisition made me say wow! that component will add more explosion to the Eagles offensive especially with having a dynamic receiver in Jackson now you have to respect Sproles which will free the tight end and receivers up more down field. Sproles plays bigger than his physical stats say and will play a major role in the Eagles run to the NFC east title again.

UVA GO HOOS GO!!!!!, ACC CHAMPS AND #5 IN THE NATION

WE DID IT! WE DID IT! yes I say we because I am an alum of The University of Virginia. The ACC championship has come back to the town of Charlottesville. The basketball team has been strong but couldn't finish strong over the years since the Ralph Sampson era. The UVA basketball team after their 85 to 52 lost to the Volunteers on December 30th went on a power surge. They have only one lost after that game to Duke which was only by 4 points. The basketball team played as if they had something to prove and you can see it in their game play and really with their ACC championship victory over the Syracuse Orangemen 75 to 56 a very convincing win in Charlottesville. 

     The Cavaliers will end the regular season before going to the ACC tournament at the University of Maryland on March 9th. The most pleasing thing to me is the mens basketball team will be heading to College Park with a very impressive ranking of #5 in the nation and a ACC ranking of #1. A big question for me is will the seniors be able to walk away with a bigger smile after the Grand daddy of them all tournaments have ended which is March Madness or will the seniors be content with a ACC championship? To my fellow Cavaliers WAHOO WA!!!! and good luck   

WILL MEGATRON GET A PARTNER? HOW WILL FREE AGENCY PLAY OUT

RIGHT HERE! RIGHT HERE!, free agency has hit the NFL and some big names are in that mix. This image posted on NFL.com with out words tells a hugeeeee story. Hakeem Nicks a major contributor to the Giants offense has hit the market and the question is could he be opposite MEGATRON? How good would that be for Caldwell to add Nicks to his offense. This would be a dream snatch for the Lions but there are other teams in the hunt for a player like Nicks to increase their offensive productivity. Nicks does have a few negatives in his game which might decrease a big deal for him personally. Nicks is coming off of his worst season to date. He ended the 2013/14 season with only 56 receptions for 896 yards and no touchdowns which could hurt him when it comes to getting a strong contract. Also with him not being durable during the season it could make coaches and GMs hesitant about signing him. In Nicks defense in his 6 season career he has compiled 311 receptions 4,622 yards and 27 touchdowns. So Nicks averaged a little over 770 yards a season. So whether its the Lions, Eagles or whomever is seeking to upgrade their offense would get a solid receiver in Nicks. Nicks along with other veterans around the league will face roster cuts, contract negotiations and free agency in the next month. Seeing where they will or will not land will be the news that fans are looking for.

AMERICAS DUO CLAIMS SILVER IN SOCHI, WILLIAMS WOULD OF MADE HISTORY BUT FELL SHORT BY 0.10s

                                             



      The United States finished 2nd in the medal count at the end of the winter Olympics but a great finished by the american duo of Lauryn Williams and Elana Meyers. The duo out did their american counterparts that unfortunately did not place in the medal standings of Lolo Jones and Jazmine Fenlator. Both Williams and Meyers medalist from prior Olympics where unintentionally push to the shadows by Jones and Fenlator because of Jones stardom in the summer Olympics. It was obvious the silver medalist had other plans for Sochi and they proved it by barely losing the gold by 0.10 seconds to Canada. 

    Elana Meyers spent the summer training along side Humphries the Canadian bobsledder who beat her and Williams out for gold. Meyers a Douglasville, GA. native became the first U.S. womens bobsledder to win multiple Olympic medals. Lauryn Williams from Rochester, PA. and of trinidad descent could of become the first female and the 2nd Olympic athlete ever to earn a Gold medal in two different Olympic games. Williams earned a gold medal in the summer Olympics in the 4x100m relay team and fell short by 0.10 seconds in the Sochi Olympic games in the bobsled event. Williams a strong runner and now a strong bobsledder was compared to Jesse Owens by Lolo Jones. Numerous athletes including the other american bobsledders stated that watching Williams in the bobsledding event was incredible. 

    My thoughts: This was my first time hearing and reading about Lauryn Williams, to be compared with the likes of Jesse Owens then you're a dominant and explosive athlete. As a former Professional Athlete and high school all-american track runner I respect those that have paved the way before me. I know from being a sports enthusiasts Jesse Owens is the Jim Brown of track and for Lolo to compare Lauryn Williams to Mr. Owens than she's one to watch from this point on. 

PUBLICITY STUNT OR SELF RELIEF?

      The identity of sports continues to evolve daily and yearly. From the racial equality to gender equality in sports and now with in the past few years athletes are more open and comfortable with their sexuality being exposed. The NFL will play a major role in the history of sports and also how the players will handle Sams coming out about his homosexuality. The question is the platform that Sam decided to express his sexuality is was it for publicity or was it really self relief? His coming out as open tons of doors for the talented linebacker that will be apart of the draft in April and those doors have been a media blitz of magazine covers, television exposure and more. Some may say it puts the NFL in predicament where they have to draft him because if he doesn't get picked  than it's because of his sexual status. 

       This issue is a double edged sword because of the manor that Sam chose to let everyone know of what he has been hiding and battling with. So I ask just as the title ask is this publicity or true self relief. The main focus of sports is to win and perform at your highest ability. The personal side is allotted by athletes if they want the world in their lives. I recall a segment on HBO series sports with Bryant Gumble where retired football players came out about their sexuality after their career because of fearing the potential backlash by players. The retired players feared for their safety and current players at that time stated aggressively that if it was known that a player was gay that it would be a bounty on their heads. I know that times have change since the 90's but will the NFL be ready to take on this type of situation in the league? and how will the players handle Sam especially with him being a possible draft pick that will  be playing very soon? 

I BET THE SO CALLED EXPERTS DIDN'T SEE THIS COMING.......

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     Total domination on sunday by the Seahawks on all aspects of the game. The predictions were similar to those made by analysts for the Ravens championship run last season that Manning and Brady would defeat the Ravens but low and behold it didn't happen. So will the experts change their views on teams from putting their all into one player and see the entire view or will it remain the same. Manning is a great player but hasn't had very much success in the post season since his superbowl post season victory against the bears. The opening snap of the Super Bowl set the tone for the rest of the game. Manning could not get into sync with his offense and when they did show some light of success it was to late to manage a comeback. I believe that the Broncos put a lot of their energy in beating Brady and the Patriots that they felt they could breeze through this game and probably didn't believe they needed to prep heavy for this game. 

     

     The Seattle Seahawks came to play and that they did. Russel Wilson was calm, poise and the leader of that offense as he has been all season. One of the key points to the success beside their excellent defense was their offensive line. The Seahawks offensive line made it seem easy for Wilson. He was able to operate his system perfect with minor hiccups. I believe having Percy Harvin in the mix was the ultimate steal for the Seahawks. When you have that much speed and agility from a player and especially a rested player you will get 100% effort from him. Now! the defense, you couldn't ask for more effort from a defense. The Seahawks defense held up to their talk and their ranking. They said this is what we will give you Manning and we want you to beat us and as said defense wins championships and they demolished the competition. Congrats to the Seashawks and I am looking forward to the sequel.