Time to thaw out a mind frozen by a weekend of ice cold weather and ice cold thoughts:
So Bill Parcells says Adam Vinatieri would be wise to stay with the Patriots. I say the Tuna would be wise to empty the bank for Vinatieri. His Cowboys were just a competent kicker away from the playoffs and making some serious noise in them.
Maybe conventional wisdom says it's not smart to pay big money for a kicker, but there's nothing conventional about "Adam & Leave." Nothing breaks a team's back more than getting in position to win, only to have someone "Vanderjagt" the game away.
I’m not too worried about Vinatieri going anywhere. I think David Givens, on the other hand, is as good as gone. I can see Romeo Crennel tossing money on him like the father of the bride at a Greek wedding.
Seems Vince Young didn’t score very well on the Wonderlic Test, leading some insiders to speculate the Texas QB could drop significantly in the upcoming NFL draft. The test I was most impressed with was the “Wondrous Licking� he put on USC’s vaunted defense. Maybe he flops in the pros, but I wouldn’t want to be the GM who passed on him because of an off-field exam.
It’s no coincidence the Celtics improved play has come at a time when trade and injury have forced Doc Rivers to shorten his rotation. I can’t wait to see the Green when Kendrick Perkins and Al Jefferson return from injury to replace Michael Oliwakandi and Brian Scalabrene in that rotation.
It took a year and a half, but consider me sold on Delonte West as a point guard. Unlike Marcus Banks, this kid gets it.
So does Ryan Gomes. 39-rebounds over the last 3-games, 17 of them offensive, prove that getting “touches� is all about hard work and hunger. Didn't think I’d go an entire article without taking a shot at Mark “Big Dog� Blount, did you?
Glad to hear the positive reports coming out of Fort Myers about Curt Schilling’s health. But am I the only Red Sox fan not taking it for granted that “Curt on the car phone� will return to his dominant self? I mean, 39-year old athletes generally don’t respond well to major surgery.
If Schilling doesn’t make it back to ace status, he at least went out a warrior and a hero. Which is more than you can say about a certain lefty who walked off the mound in the 2003 World Series because of a bad back. That David Wells got to wear, and is still wearing, a Red Sox uniform is one of the most disturbing things about the breakup of the 2004 curse busters.
Catch this little tidbit from Braves camp last Friday? Edgar Renteria strained a muscle in his left side attempting to avoid a ball that ricocheted off the batting cage. Sounds like the Red Sox cut their losses just in the knick of time.
Of course, Renteria still can’t top the greatest injury of all time in my mind. That honor belongs to Sammy Sosa, who missed nearly 2 months after straining his back while sneezing, and ruining my fantasy baseball team in the process.
54 teams have taken the Lowell Spinners up on the offer to change their name from Yankees to Spinners, two from as far away as Rochester, New York and Oakton, Virginia. Now comes word Lowell’s Single-A club will let those teams pick up their new uniforms April 2nd, while also allowing them to play catch on the LeLacheur Park field for free. I smell another round of national publicity coming up.
This week shapes up as a big one in the effort to save the Lock Monsters. A rumored visit from New Jersey Devils owner Jeff Vanderbeek, who thesunblog.com reported 2-weeks as the man interested in buying the team from Elkim McCallum and keeping it in Lowell, would go a long way toward spurring a surge in ticket sales.
Finally, Curling enthusiasts believe the USA’s bronze medal at the recently completed Olympics will provide a big boost to the upcoming World Curling Championships at Tsongas Arena April 1-9. Need more incentive to run out and buy tickets? Check out the “Babes of Curling� calendar available at www.thecurlingnews.com. If that doesn’t warm your heart to the sport, nothing will!
That’s my take……what's yours?