The Sports Roundtable

Jets and Giants Make Lots of Moves at the NFL Draft

The Jets and the Giants were big movers and shakers in the first day of the 2006 NFL Draft.   The Jets resisted temptation and passed up on Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler to take OL Brickashaw Ferguson from Virginia with the fourth overall pick.  The Jets then continued the offensive line motif by drafting Ohio State Center Nick Mangold with the 29th pick.   The Jets then traded down the 35th pick with the Redskins (loved the fact they got a 2007 second round pick out of the deal), then traded back up with the Cowboys to get the 49th pick and took QB Kellen Clemens from Oregon with the 49th overall pick.  Clemens was rated by ESPN's Ron Jaworski, a pretty good QB in his time, as the best QB available in the draft.  Yes, rated higher than Leinart, Young, or Cutler.   The Jets finished their first day by taking LB Anthony Schlegel in the third round from Ohio State and Michigan State safety Eric Smith with the last pick in the third round (the ESPN crew was begging the Jets not to take Marcus Vick, thus having the similar situation of Denver taking Maurice Clarett last year with the last pick of the third round, which forced them to talk about the pick for an hour).  Schlegel was considered a major reach by many, but Jets Linebacker Coach Brian Cox loved Schlegel's workout at the NFL combine, so I think the Patriots South (as I call the Jets now) are onto something.  Perhaps they see the second coming of Tedy Bruschke.

The Giants made some interesting moves themselves.  The Giants moved down by trading their 25th pick to the Steelers for their 32nd pick and two others.  Pittsburgh used the 25th pick to get WR Santonio Holmes, which I thought was a great pick by them, a position the Giants needed, but they made up for it, trust me.  With the 32nd pick they took Boston College DE and pass rush specialist Mathias Kiwanuka.  Draft experts were puzzled why the Giants needed another pass rushing defensive end with Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck, but as GM Ernie Accorsi put it "you can never have enough pass rushers" and perhaps he's right.  Plus, Kiwanuka's connection to BC, Tom Coughlin's old stomping grounds, was an additional feature the Giants couldn't pass up.  The Giants then wisely traded their 56th and 87th overall picks to the Ravens for the 44th pick and got the WR they needed by drafting Sinorice Moss from Miami, considered by many the third best receiver in the draft.  The Giants filled out their picks with LB Gerris Wilkinson of Georgia Tech in the third round.

So how did the Jets and Giants do?   I thought very very well.  Look, the biggest problem with the Jets last year was the complete disintegration of what once was a great offensive line.  Mangini and Tannenbaum know that a great offensive line is the key to the team's success.  When the Jets made the playoffs the previous years, it was based on a powerful offensive line that allowed them to control the clock.  Last year, with the loss of Kareem McKenzie and the injuries to Kevin Mawae among others, the line crumbled.  Leinart would have been nice, but without a line, he won't do much.  Besides, the Jets terrific pick of Kellen Clemens, a quarterback rated higher than Leinart by many made up for that.   Schlegel may be a stretch, but I would rather trust the judgement of an all pro linebacker like Brian Cox then a draft expert.   The Giants may not have needed another defensive end, but it gives them options and more fresh legs to rush the passer.  Moss was a great pick and will be the third receiver at least at the start of the season.

What other teams did the best on the first day of the NFL draft?   Well, value wise, I loved the Arizona Cardinals getting Matt Leinart with the 10th pick.  He's the perfect pick with all the weapons that the Cardinals have on offense in James, Fitzgerald and Boldin.   I thought the Cowboys did a terrific job with LB Bobby Carpenter from Ohio State and TE Anthony Fasano from Notre Dame, a personal favorite of mine.  The Titans did a very nice job with Vince Young and LenDale White.  White dropped down all the way to 45 due to some character issues, but he's the real deal and the Titans may have got the second coming of Eddie George.    And as I said, the Steelers did an awesome job moving up to take Santonio Holmes.  WR hole filled nicely.

What teams didn't do well?  The Houston Texans are the obvious choice for biggest loser.  I'm sorry, but I don't care how good Mario Williams is.  The best, most dynamic player with the potential for the biggest impact on a team is Reggie Bush.  It was a no brainer than the Texans brain froze on.  The Saints just got the best early Christmas present anyone could give them.  This gives the franchise a huge lift after Katrina and the fan base is already energized.  Nice job by them not trading the pick away.  They needed PR help as much as player help. Bush gives both.

The Buffalo Bills could have traded down to get Ohio State Safety Donte Whitner, but panicked.  Then their pick of John McCargo, DT from NC State really had experts scratching their head.  McCargo was seen as perhaps a late second round or third round pick, not a first round pick.   Its one thing to take a reach in the third round like the Jets did with Schlegel.  Its a whole different story taking a reach in the first round as the Bills did.   San Diego's pick of Anthony Cromartie is a huge risk considering Cromartie missed all of last year due to an injury. 

What player had to be the happiest and has the best chance to start immediately?  Well,there are some obvious early picks like Ferguson who should start immediately, but my pick here is Joseph Addai, RB from LSU who was picked by the Indianapolis Colts in the first round.  With Eddgarin James gone to Arizona and only Dominic Rhodes standing in the way, Addai has an excellent chance of starting on a elite offensive team with a great offensive line.   Can't go to a better situation than that.  Santonio Holmes going to the Steelers is a close second.

What to look for on the second day? Well, there are some good defensive tackles still left.  The Jets with the sixth pick in the fourth round could use another defensive tackle (the Jets also have another pick in the fourth as well).  Miami's Orien Harris, Michigan's Gabriel Watson and Texas' Roderique Wright are still available.  The Jets could use a RB as well and Jerome Harrison of Washington State is still available.  The Giants could use some defensive back help.  It will be interesting to see how the second day works out. 

After Two Months Off, Its Back!

The Sports Roundtable is back after its two month hiatus.  Basically, I got caught up all of March with my college basketball blog, now titled Mid Major Hoops.   The Roundtable has lots to cover so lets do some quick thoughts.

• Texans are Idiots - No, not Texas citizens are not idiots, except the chief Texan in the White House.  No, I am talking about the Houston Texans, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays of the NFL.  Only the Texans coming off a two win season in which they had the sixth lowest point total in the NFL would pass up Reggie Bush, perhaps the most dynamic player to come into the NFL in the past several years, to take a player who got just about all of his sacks in three games, Mario Williams.   If I was New Orleans, I would draft Bush immediately.  Don't trade the pick.  You don't know how well Deuce McAllister's rehab will go.  If McAllister is healthy by training camp or during training camp, then you have a nice chip to trade.
• Zambrano Must Go..to the Bullpen -  I know what you are saying fellow Mets fans.  Trade Victor Zambrano for an instructional league player, a batboy, a bucket of used range balls, whatever.  Unfortunately that's not going to happen, but what the Mets can do is put him the bullpen and make him the long man.  If Omar Minaya is thinking that Zambrano can do less damage in the rotation than the thought of hurting the bullpen by putting Aaron Heilman in his place, well he is wrong.   Zambrano hurts the club more by his bad outings which have resulted in early departures and heavy use of the bullpen.  Its a much better solution to have Heilman start, give six good innings and turn the ball over to Bradford, Oliver and yes even Jorge Julio in the seventh inning before turning the game over to Duaner Sanchez (a terrific trade for the Mets) and Billy Wagner (got in trouble last night before an absolutely awesome three pitch strikeout of Todd Pratt).   Of course now with Brian Bannister on the DL, chances are slim that this will happen.  Still, give it some serious thought, Omar, please.
• The Cubs are without Derrek Lee for as many as two months.  So how did they fil their hole?  They put their starting second baseman Todd Walker at first.  Great, fill a hole by weakening another position.   Here's a better thought.  Trade a prospect to the Diamondbacks for Tony Clark.  Clark can still hit and is an excellent fielder.   
• Steve Howe died yesterday when his truck overturned on a road in California.  Sadly, it was a turbulent end to a such turbulent life.  Steve Howe when sober and healthy was a terrific reliever but Howe for years had substance abuse trouble with cocaine and alcohol.  And that trouble led to trouble  with the law until the last few years.   But one got the feeling over the years that Howe was not going to live a long life.  Sadly it ended when he finally had got his act together.   Hopefully drugs or alcohol did not play a factor in his death.
• There are so many players announcing for the NBA draft, some of which have absolutely no business announcing for the draft.  Hopefully most of them will not have agents and come to their senses and go back to college when they are not drafted, or drafted lower than they thought.  As I told a friend not too long ago, any player considering going out for the NBA draft should call Marty Blake, the director of NBA Scouting.  Marty is the best judge of talent there is and would give any player an honest assessment of that player's chances.  I will have more on this on my college basketball blog, Mid Major Hoops this weekend.

That's it for now.  My son is awake from his nap.

Two Weeks Worth of Quick Comments

Geez, I haven't posted anything on here in two weeks.  Lots of quick notes

1) Do you think anyone will ever even remotely criticize Tiger Woods before a match play event ever again.  I think Stephen Ames was just trying to give himself a chance when someone asked him if he had a chance against Tiger in the first round of the Accenture match play event. Ames commented "Well Tiger hasn't been hitting the ball straight".   Tiger went out and beat him 9 and 8.  The match was over after nine holes.  That's like losing 30-0 in five innings in softball.

2) Just watched Sweden win the gold medal hockey game from Finland 3-2.  Henrik Lundqvist, the goalie for the NY Rangers was brilliant in the third period making clutch save after clutch save.  He just became the #1 citizen in Sweden today.

3) Again, another New York journalist is commenting today that Anna Benson was the reason that Kris Benson was traded to the Orioles.  Jon Heyman wrote that in today's Newsday.   As I said in a previous blog posting, its not Anna.  Its the fact that Kris Benson is not worth $16 million over the next two years.  They thought Rick Peterson could turn him around.  They were wrong and they realized it.  He barely strikes out more than he walks, and he is a six inning pitcher.  If Kris Benson had a three to one strikeout ratio and an ERA under 3.00, hell Omar Minaya wouldn't care if Anna Benson stripped nude on the mound of Shea Stadium in front of a full house.   Kris Benson is simply not a good pitcher. 

4) I am so tired of commentators like Dick Vitale commenting about major conference teams should make the tournament.  In last night's Texas- Kansas game, Vitale was saying Colorado should make the NCAA tournament (ok, there is a case for that).  He then goes on to say Texas A&M should make the tournament.  What??!!   They have a RPI of 67 (worse than off the bubble teams like Virginia, Temple and dear god, Louisville).  They have not beaten one decent non conference team this year, in fact in their only non conference game on the road this year, they lost at Pacific.   They are 1-3 vs the other top four teams in the conference, with the sole win a three point win at home against Colorado.  Another example of the bias that major conference teams get.  Dickie V, Texas A&M will NOT be in the NCAA tournament this year . Quinn Snyder will be reinstated at Missouri before that happens (and we all know the chances of that happening).

5) Ok, who at ESPN green lighted the idea to have a reality show on Barry Bonds.  He barely talks to the media and when he does he comes off as a jerk.  Yes, lets base a reality show around him.  Bill Simmons should do an episode of real men of genius based on that.

By the way, have you read his "First Annual Atrocious GM Summit" from the NBA all star weekend.  Hilarious!!  Best line was "Sadly, Wes Unseld was unable to make it after he accidentally traded his first-class Delta Airlines ticket to Houston for three Southwest Airlines tickets to Atlanta."  LOL!
Then there is him having Isiah Thomas say the following;

"And that's one of the reasons I wanted to work for the Knicks. When I screwed up in Toronto, nobody cared. When I ran the CBA into the ground, nobody cared. When I coached the Pacers and lost a series to Boston in which we had 10 of the best 12 players, nobody cared. In New York, they care. Right now, I'm working on a trade with Orlando where we give up Penny Hardaway's expiring deal and Trevor Ariza for Steve Francis. It's an illogical trade in every respect -- Francis' contract is terrible, there's no way he'll mesh with the other guys, he's never won anything, he gives us the same problems that Marbury gives us, it's a disaster right out of the gate. And that's what makes it so great. When we pull this trade off, New York fans might actually riot. I'm not kidding."

LOL!!!!

Ok, I have to run.  More stuff to come, I promise!

Sorry That This is So Late

But I forgot to post Mike Font's quick blog posting on hockey yesterday.  Here's another issue of Hockey, The Fontanetta Way

okay, i'll be brief b/c i know this topic is not a hot one:

Ladies olympic hockey!  Yes, while watching isles/devs today on HDTV, I started flicking to see

what else was on.  yup, the end of the USA/Swiss game.  USA wins 6-0, outshooting their opponent

56-9!  you think that was bad??  Well, the host country automatically gets its team in, so I
taly is playing canada!  does anyone remember the 13-0 score that canada won by over japan in nagano?  Well, after the first 7 minutes, Canada led 4-0.  It is now 6-0 canada with 13 minutes left in the second.  in the first, the Canadians had 21 scoring chances (NOT shots on goal, but legit scoring chances) while the Italians had ZERO!  To this point, I think the shots are 35-4, and all four have been bombs from 40 feet or more.

The Italians should get awarded a goal for every time they skate the puck across center ice.  They'd still be losing!  OUCH! 

Incidentally, the isles beat the devs 2-1... yipeeeeee!

 

As far as gretzky-gate, i have no more thoughts on the topic than anyone else.  let's wait and see for

a few more facts to come out before i start to really lend an opinion.  by the way, in the 5 minutes it's

taken to type this, canada has scored again (7-0) and the scoring chances board lists 30-1... ad-canada!

Update - The Canadians beat their record at Nagano.  They defeated Italy 16-0. 

Two Quick Notes Before Sleep

Great move by the Jets today in making Mike Tannenbaum the GM.  Terry Bradway's NFL drafts have not been very productive to say the least.  Also, the trade of Santana Moss looks quite bad now.  Tannenbaum and Mangini are both disciples of Belichek and Parcells.   They have a common philosophy and should work well together.  If there is anyway to keep Ty Law, Mike Tannenbaum will find a way.

How about this betting scandal with Rick Tocchet.  Apparently, one of his betting "clients" is none other than Mrs. Wayne Gretsky, "actress" Janet Jones (when was the last time she "acted"?).  Do you think Wayne knew about this..hmm, assistant coach for your team and your wife involved in sports betting..uh, doesn't look good.   However, the findings were they did not bet on hockey.  Look for a suspension but nothing too much more than that.  The last thing the NHL wants to do is alienate its greatest player of all time.

Pitchers and catchers report in about a week.  Thank god!!!

Quick Super Bowl Prediction

Since my son is waking up, I have to make this quick :-)

This should be a good game.  The 15-3 Seahawks vs. the 14-5 Steelers.   It simply comes down to this.  Steelers NT Casey Hampton vs C Robbie Tobeck.   All I heard when the Steelers faced Indy is that the Steelers won't be able to be able to rush the passer vs Indianapolis.  Look at what happened.  Then against Denver, my friend, Mal Galleta told me that the Steelers offensive line wouldn't be able to penetrate Denver's great offensive line.   Look at what happened.   Now the Steelers play what I think is the best offensive line in the NFL, the Seahawks.  The Seahawks might have the best left side in the NFL with Walter Jones and Steve Hutchinson and it shows in their running game.  The Seahawks love to run to the left side with Shawn Alexander.

But, it comes down to Hampton, a massive 325 pound NT vs the very solid Robbie Tobeck, a 297 pound 12 year veteran.  If Tobeck can't handle Hampton, the Seahawks have to double team Hampton with Tobeck and say RG Sean Locklear or with Mack Strong, it opens gaps for the Steelers.  This is how the Steelers won against Indy and Denver.  They found the gaps and pressured and sacked Manning and Plummer.  If Tobeck can somehow contain Hampton on his own, this game could turn out very different from what I think.

I think it will be a very close game.  The Seahawks present the Steelers with perhaps the best overall offense they have faced, plus by far the best defense they have faced, especially in the pass rush.  Tatupu, Wistrom, and friends are terrific.  And any team with Matt Hasselbeck and Shawn Alexander, two Pro Bowl players, is dangerous offensively.

However, the same can be said for the Steelers.  This isn't the offensively challenged Redskins nor is it the Panthers with no running game. Remember, this Steeler team was 15-1 last year before New England beat them in the Super Bowl.  This is a very good team that has found its groove in the playoffs.  They can run the ball and Roethlsberger is a very solid quarterback who has nice weapons in Hines Ward, Antwan Randle El and Heath Miller (the Jets already regret trading their pick to get Doug Jolley instead of drafting Miller, a no brainer).   

As for my prediction, It will be the Steelers ability to stop Alexander and put pressure on the quarterback.  Casey Hampton will again be the big factor.  Steelers win 24-17

Mike Font with Another Hockey Posting

Hockey - The Fontanetta Way is back with another posting as only Mike Fontanetta can do.  Today, Font tackles two underachieving teams, the Canadiens and the Islanders and sees striking similarities.  Enjoy!

All Things Look Similar:

Yup, it's time for a little hockey talk.  my team, the Canadiens, look frighteningly similar to those bumbling Isles.  That's why they are both very close in the standings... and on the OUTSIDE looking IN with regards to the playoffs.  Want some similarities?  Let's start with both teams recently losing 3 straight... Montreal got nipped 3-2 at calgary, whipped 6-2 (was 6-0 after 1) in Vancouver, only to get squashed by the Hurricanes 7-3 two days later!  Nice going.  The Isles, losers of their previous two, just got hammered by the Devils last night, 4-0.  I was in attendence for last night's debacle, and will be at the Wacchovia Centre in Philly tonight to see the Habs try to avoid losing their 4th straight... YIKES!

 

More similarities?  Both teams recently fired their head coaches, and while both may have been deserved, you can't say that changing the coaches has changed either team's fortunes!  Last 6 games for these 2 teams combined have produced NO WINS!  So, maybe it wasn't the coaching but ROTTEN, underachieving players.

 

More comparisons:  BOTH teams have good, young goalies that were expected to carry some of the load for their respective teams.  BOTH goalies have been BRUTAL disappointments.  I'll go out on a limb and say Theodore has been worse than DP (Rick DiPietro), if for no other reason than i think Montreal has a better D than the Isles.  Markov, Rivet, Boullion, Souray, Dandenault, Komisarek, and Streit are certainly not stirring memories of Robinson/Lapointe/Savard, but as a group, they are better than the collection of trash the Isles seem to suit-up every night.  Yes, they have breakdowns (Streit/Komisarek have NOT been good & Markov is out another 2-3 weeks), but i'd rather have those guys in front of me than what DP gets to see every 3rd day. 

Still, we are looking at 2 goalies who are CONSTANTLY outplayed by their opponent's keepers.  Any shame in being outdueled by Luongo (I'll get to LUONGO later), Brodeur, or Kiprusoff?  NO, but Theodore/DP are being embarrassed by guys like Miller, Auld, and Ward (WHO)?!?  Each team has played Vancouver in the past 7 days, and BOTH theodore/DP were pulled as both teams went down 6-0 to the AULD-led canucks! 

Montreal and the Isles have also lost their share of close, 1 goal games.  These are the real killers.  DP and Theodore are not expected to make every save, but don't they get paid to steal a game once in a while?  Don't they get paid to stop 28 of 30 shots every-so-often and WIN a game 3-2?  Shouldn't they stop some quality chances, some point-blank shots, some 5-3 situations, some flurries at the buzzer?  YES, THEY SHOULD! 

These are two players that their respective teams have placed a lot confidence in and have built around... Theodore (who unlike DP has already done it before, carrying his team to a few playoff upsets on his young-shoulders) was given a juicy contract and is among the league's highest paid netminders.  DP was taken after the Isles dealt away Luongo to make room for him (the same deal that sent Jokkinen packing)!  The Isles take DP in the draft, passing on both Heatley and Gaborik!  Like to have that one back, Mike, Charles, Sanjay!? 

Alright, enough on these two... you get the picture... BOTH guys are young and may bounce back, but so far, NEITHER is worth his paycheck.  both are BRUTAL underachievers in 2005/2006: 3.37/.892 for DP, 3.37/.885 for Theo!  To give you an idea of how BAD these numbers are... the 50th goalie in the league, by goals against, is at 3.11... Both teams have fans that now cheer the backups coming into the game: DOOBIE for the Isles with snow hurt, and Huet or danis for the Habs, depending on which minor league goalie is showing-up Theodore that particular night!

 

More similarities?  Some small, fast forwards (Blake/Koivu), good PURE goal scorers (Parrish/Ryder), good russian playmakers making significant coin (Yashin/Kovalev), good rookies with success in the minors that has YET to translate into major NHL success (Weinhandl/Hamilton... Perezhogin/Plekanec), etc, etc, etc!   Both teams struggle on special teams, both teams give up late goals in big spots, both teams have more talent than their record shows, both teams have guys that, under the new rules, have been SEVERE disappointments (Hunter/Ribiero). 

Yup, these are two teams headed in the WRONG direction, and that's why they are 10th and 13th in the conference, and both have HUGE negatives in goal differential (Montreal is almost -20, while the isles are about -30).  Last, they are BOTH outworked on a nightly basis, something that will hopefully change with the coming of new coaches! 

 

The Isles seem burried pretty good and will need a big winning streak to get close and jump over so many teams. They will have a chance as they are finished with the west and now play ONLY conference games over the last 30.  Montreal only needs a small spurt, as they are within 5 points of a bunch of teams and have games in hand on all of them.  However, LOSING those games in hand doesn't help... they need points badly.  A win tonight in Philly would be a nice surprise, but i'd settle for a point!

Mike Fontanetta
Hockey - The Fontanetta Way

Benson is traded to Orioles

Part of me is very happy.  Part of me is very sad.  Kris Benson was traded to the Orioles today for reliever Jorge Julio and minor league pitcher John Maine.  I think it was a good trade for the Mets.  Benson is an overpaid mediocre starter.  He had an ERA of 4.13 while pitching half his games at Shea Stadium, a pitchers ballpark.  An alarming stat for you fellow rotoheads is that Benson's strike out to walk ratio wasn't even 2-1.  He only struck out 95 batters in 174 innings.  He also seemed to be a 6 inning pitcher who lost his stuff in the 7th inning.  Benson was simply not worth the $15.5 million left on his contract over two years.

So ok, the Mets return bounty on Benson wasn't great.  Jorge Julio had 35 saves two years ago and has good stuff, but sometimes questionable location.  However Rick Peterson might be able to harness that and he won't be the closer and with Duaner Sanchez, probably won't even be the setup man, but he would be fine in the 7th inning.  John Maine is possibly a career AAA minor league pitcher, but he was a sixth round draft pick in 2002 and he is not even 25 years old yet.

Kris might not have been worth $15.5 million, but his wife Anna was.  Her final appearance with the Mets publicly will always leave an awesome impression on me.  She wore a very revealing dress as a Santa's helper while her husband played Santa Claus at the Mets Christmas fund raiser.   All I can say is she will be sorely missed but probably not by the Mets brass.  One less headache to worry about.

Quick Blog on Mangini

Great hire by the Jets with Eric Mangini.  Learned from the master Bill Belichick  himself.   Should work well with Mike Tannenbaum, who he used to work with in Cleveland under Belichick.  Sorry to see Donnie Henderson let go, but its not surprising given Mangini was the former defensive coordinator with the Patriots.  Was surprised to see Mike Heimerdinger stay on as offensive coordinator.  Perhaps Bradway can give him more offensive weapons to work at in the offseason. 

The Jets need help, someone who is willing to put the time and effort in to build a team from the bottom up.  There are some decent building blocks to work with like Jonathan Vilma, John Abraham, a healthy Kevin Mawae, Kerry Rhodes, Victor Hobson among others.  Jets fans need to be patient.  What's another couple of years to fans who haven't seen a Super Bowl team in 36 years.

Quick Note on Iona Lady Gaels

The Iona Lady Gaels have won their last two games, both impressive wins on the road that ending long losing streaks at the opponent's gyms.   First Iona defeated St Peter's 72-57, ending a 24 game road losing streak to St. Peter's dating back to the 1976-77 season.  Then the Lady Gaels defeated Fairfield 71-56.  Fairfield at the time was undefeated in the conference at 3-0 before their first conference loss. The win ended a 16 game road losing streak to Fairfield. Iona has two home games, Thursday night against defending conference champion Canisius, then home Sunday to Rider before embarking on a two game road trip upstate to Niagara and Canisius.