No Matter How Harsh The Charge, Mike Leach Will Be Just Fine.....

Talk about a bizarre story to end the decade.

Yesterday Texas Tech University fired its head football coach Mike Leach after allegations of mistreatment of player Adam James (who is the son of ESPN college football analyst Craig James). Leach allegedly ordered James to stand in a dark shed away from practice because Leach believed James was faking a concussion. Leach had James under the watch of others and told the people watching James to not let him sit down.

Now in the grand scheme of things this treatment of James doesn't sound too harsh to me. If James indeed had a concussion, I am sure that there were proper procedures taken to make sure if he did or not. With the recent discussions by both the NFL and NCAA on how to handle players who suffer concussions, I am sure the right steps were taken.

Now if they were not....that's a big problem and that is a reason for termination.

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Carlos Zambrano Is Untouchable As Any Chicago Cub.....

Checked out this article in today's New York Post from Joel Sherman (twitter.com/nyp_joelsherman).

Near the end of the article, Sherman talks about a Carlos Zambrano rumor and if it could be a possible trade idea for the New York Mets.

"The Mets determined a power bat was their number one quest this off season, but that should have paled to finding a high-end compliment to Johan Santana.

Two AL officials say the Cubs are definitely dangling Carlos Zambrano, who has three years at $53.75 million left. The same officials say Zambrano, for comfort reasons, has no desire to waive his no-trade clause and leave Chicago. But in Santana, Francisco Rodriguez and Kelvim Escobar, the Mets have three pitching friends from Zambrano's native Venezuela to offer for comfort. So maybe there still is a chance to import the volatile but talented Zambrano."

If I am the Chicago Cubs, there is no way I am trading Carlos Zambrano.

If I am the Chicago Cubs, I am especially not trading the ace of my staff Carlos Zambrano to the Mets.

Have you looked at the Mets roster??

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Del Negro Shouldn't Fall Alone, John Paxson Must Join The Party....

Earlier this year I wrote about needing a reason to care about the NBA (especially the Chicago Bulls) this year. It just seemed to me like most NBA teams are taking the year off and building themselves toward that free agent class of 2010. I guess that is the sentiment that most NBA fans share.

So why should I care about Vinny Del Nergo's job status?

Isn't it the same argument?

Obviously when the season began we (Bulls fans) all knew that the "rumors" about Vinny Del Negro leaving the Bulls were at some point going to be around. We (Bulls fans) all knew for the most part that he would not be the head coach going into the 2010-2011 off season. We (Bulls fans) knew that the Bulls have to bring in a coach that is as much of an attraction to some possible free agents so that the coach could be a selling point for the organization.

So why can't they (Bulls management) make up their minds yet?

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Win Or Lose, The Results Don't Matter......

After a wonderful holiday vacation, it's good to be back and I am looking forward to a strong 2010 w/ChicagoNow.com.

On top of taking time off to be with family and gaining about five pounds in the process, the Bears beat the Vikings last night.

Yep!

The Bears beat the NFC North division champion Minnesota Vikings by a 36-30 overtime score and therefore the first thing that is on everyone's mind is "Lovie saved his job last night."

Did he really?

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Will Peer Pressure Lead To A Ban On Fighting In The NHL?

With all the recent changes to the NFL when it comes to addressing players who have concussions, the NHL is possibly the next professional sports league to take the next step.

The New York Times reported last week that researchers posthumously examined former NHL bruiser Reggie Fleming and found brain damage brought on by repeated blows to the head from his playing days. Another former player in the article said that his memory is so bad that he'd write a book about his career if it weren't for the fact that he can't remember anything about it. Both men began playing in the league before protective head wear was made mandatory in 1979 and there will likely be other aging veterans who complain of cognitive and behavioral difficulties.

So with the recent stand by the NFL to protect its players from lingering effects of head trauma and the recent article in the NY Times, is it time to consider seriously banning fighting in hockey?

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Jerry Angelo Is Showing Confidence Rather Than Voting On It

The vote of confidence. What exactly does that mean?

Do the fans and media need a statement on how much the GM and upper management support Lovie Smith as their head coach?

Here's an even better question, what good does a vote of confidence do if your a head coach of a team in professional sports? Isn't the vote of confidence the first sign that management is planning of moving on from you and your staff?

That is why this whole "Jerry did not give a vote of confidence" thing is just stupid. It upsets the fans and the media that Angelo did not step out and give a statement in support of Lovie Smith because that is the first sign that something is officially in the works.

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Milton Bradley Traded!! Yes!! For Carlos Silva? Eh?

The Cubs have traded troubled outfielder Milton Bradley to Seattle for pitcher Carlos Silva and some cash.

Here's the terms according to Jon Heyman of SI.Com

The Mariners and Cubs reached agreement on a deal that would send outfielder Milton Bradley to Seattle in exchange for pitcher Carlos Silva and $6 million, SI.com has learned.

The money, which will be paid out over two years, is to offset the difference in salaries (Bradley is owed $21 million over the next two years and Silva is due $25 million over the same period) and to make up for Silva's poor performance.

The correct reaction for this trade should not be:

"Thank God Milton is gone!"

The correct reaction for this trade should be:

"We traded trash for hot garbage?"

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Everybody's Got A Price....Do You?

Something that I've been throwing around with friends and co-workers as of late is the idea of pay per view sports. Not the WWE or UFC or anything of that sort, but MLB, NBA, and especially the NFL.

Yesterday's thrilling Colts/Jaguars tilt which finished in a 35-31 final kept the undefeated streak alive for Peyton Manning and company. The game was extremely entertaining as both teams fought a back and forth contest which ended with Peyton Manning throwing for four touchdowns and leading his team closer to the promised land.

However most specialty networks like the NFL Network (channel 168 on Comcast HD), still aren't in every home because of fees associated with the channel and the cable/satellite provider. Even with the fact that more people than not do not have the NFL Network, the numbers of viewers remains for the most part the same.

For example, when you compare Sunday Night football (which averages among 14-20 million viewers a night) and Thursday Night Football on the NFL Network (highest game ever 12.1 million viewers), the numbers watching the NFL Network games are creeping up game after game. This proves that football is intoxicating no matter if you have to pay for it.

So, the question that needs to be asked is if the numbers for the NFL Network continues to go up, this is the first sign that NFL fans are willing to pay for their football. What is to stop the NFL from going to a pay per view type of system rather than sticking with the contracts of the national television stations (FOX, CBS, NBC)?

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The Bad Guys Continue To Win......

This is always one of my favorite times of the calendar year, when all the sports "awards" are handed out. Everything from the "Sportsman Of The Year" to the "Athlete Of The Decade," someone will disagree with almost every single "award" recipient.

However as we turn the page on another decade of sports, yesterday's "Bad Timing Award" goes to the Associated Press who named Tiger Woods as their "Athlete Of The Decade."

Let the debate rage on!!

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These Aren't Your Daddy's Chicago White Sox.....

The White Sox continue to bolster their lineup today by adding outfielder Juan Pierre to the roster. Pierre who played the last three seasons in Los Angeles is a career .301 hitter who loves the leadoff role and loves stealing bases. Just what the White Sox were looking for.

General Manager Kenny Williams seems to be as aggressive as ever this off season (counting the in season moves he made as well) to make sure the White Sox will be the best team on paper to win the American League Central. With the additions of Jake Peavy, Alex Rios, J.J. Putz, Mark Teahan, and now Juan Pierre...the makeup of this White Sox roster is almost completely reconfigured from the 2005 Championship team.

The White Sox as of right now do not look like the South Side hitmen of old. In fact it's a much more balanced team than anything when you mix the speed of players like Juan Pierre and Alex Rios with the power of Carlos Quentin and Paul Konerko. It's also a great blend of old and new with veterans like A.J. Pierzynski and Omar Vizquel with the budding youth of Gordon Beckham.

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When The Outcome Doesn't Matter, The Positives Should Shine More

Bears/Packers!!!

Throw out the record books!!

"The greatest rivalry in the National Football League."

Sure

Let's take this past Sunday's thriller in proper perspective rather than over blowing everything like we Bear fans tend to do every day after a game. This was a initially a match up of one team who needed a win and one team who needed a challenging scrimmage. The Packers had everything to play for while the Bears didn't. The outcome of the game mattered to only one team yesterday, and that's the truth.

The finality of the game doesn't matter anymore when it comes to Chicago Bears football. The result of the sixteen game season doesn't matter anymore because we all know what's happening next season. For as much time as we spend on harping the same issue, we know it's not going to change. So why do we get upset with the outcome of each game anymore this season?

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Bears/Packers Rivalry Is No More....Just Another Game

Have you checked your Bears schedule lately?

It's Bears/Packers week!!!

And a collective sigh is all the city of Chicago can provide.

It's sad to say, but there is NO hated rivalry anymore among DA Bears and the hated cheeseheads. Do not tell me that Bear fans still get up this game because they hate the green and gold and their polka music. Please!

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Advice To Tiger Woods: "Retire"

Tiger Woods should retire.

The most dominating golfer of my lifetime has turned into the biggest phony in the world. The same person who was a clean cut African American considered by many as the world's most famous and trustworthy athlete is nothing more than a dirty lying cheat.

He dominated the PGA for the last 13 years winning 14 major championships, ten time PGA Player of The Year, and nine time PGA Tour money leader. He has been on the covers of People Magazine, GQ and the only athlete to be named Sports Illustrated's Sportsman Of The Year more than once.

He has grossed over a billion dollars among his tour earnings and endorsements (before taxes of course) ranging from Nike to General Motors. The guy has his own brand of Gatorade for god sakes.

However the last two weeks for Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods have shown that this man is not the man we believed in. He is not the perfect family man we all believed he was. He is not the role model kids should be looking up to in an age where athletes are in the papers or jail more often than not.

He is a fraud.

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Chicago Bears Fans Got The Scrimmage They Asked For....

Who knew "Winning ugly" could be so boring?

Then again, isn't this what Bears fans wanted for the remainder of the season?

I know a win is a win, but yesterday's game at Solider Field against the 1-11 St. Louis Rams was a glorified scrimmage. These were two teams that obviously did not care what the outcome of the game was.

They cared about what plays worked and what plays did not. Either way you look at it, the Bears used this game against an inferior opponent to try some things that they normally would not try in a game that mattered.

Some worked....some did not. That fake field goal was pretty ugly.

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Blackhawks Should Concentrate On The Now And Not Tomorrow

Over the last couple of days I've noticed all sorts of opinions on the Blackhawks and how they will work the NHL's salary cap for the next few seasons. The extensions of C Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Duncan Keith currently put the Blackhawks at 60.609 million (per Mike Kiley) for next season which is estimated to be a little over the estimated salary cap of around 57 million or less.

The Blackhawks will have to make some tough decisions on who goes and who stays, but here's my thinking on this.

Why don't the Blackhawks just go for it with the guys they have on the roster?

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Tiger Woods Shows The World He's Only Human.....

I've never been able to understand how people who achieve great success in their careers seem to find their weak point more often than not. Today Tiger Woods who will go down as the greatest professional golfer ever to walk the plant was what I will term "next."

In our current society where camera phones, texting and internet access surrounds us, you would figure that we would be more educated on the term privacy. There is no privacy anymore. In fact, while I am typing this blog I am sure there is some camera, IP tracker or whatever watching my every move. In other words, "big brother" is always around and watching you.

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No Matter The Coach, Notre Dame Will Never Be A Dynasty Again

LET THE BIDDING BEGIN!!!

The search is on for the next victim head coach of the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana. Yesterday it was made official that the Irish will no longer be headed by Charlie Weis after a five year run at the university finishing with a record of 35-27 and a ton of unfulfilled expectations.

That is what Notre Dame has a problem with however. Expectations.

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