Posts Tagged ‘NFL’

Digital Ticket Is The New Black

Posted: January 7, 2019 by Daniel Kupres in baseball, basketball, football, hockey, NFL picks, sports, Tickets
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On December 28, 2018, an old friend of the show, Al Yellon of Bleed Cubbie Blue wrote “Going to all-digital tickets is a bad idea for the Cubs and here’s why”.  This article details why he is in agreement with Kelsey McKinney from Dead Spin (F^*K Digital Tickets).  Neither is in love with major sports eliminating paper tickets and going digital.  Al, a season ticket holder was informed that they, the season ticket holders will no longer receive hard tickets and if they want them, it could cost up to $150.00.  Both view these tickets as a souvenir that is free, essentially because today the only thing I have personally found below $5 are the team reusable bags in the gift shop, which I by at every game I attended because I generally try to go to a bobblehead game for my “free souvenir.”   

Me personally, I have no issue with it all.  I am all for it.  Sure, I have file cabinet with an overstuffed folder full of old tickets, scorecards and programs but since the evolution of smart phones and apps, having the box score on my phone and being able to upload my pictures from the games I have attended into the Ballpark app, I am as content as can be.  While I have yet to let go of those old tickets, but I have done what all are doing today and Pinned some ideas for a project to display all my tickets in a framed sort of way.  Time will tell when or if I ever get around to it.   

Years ago, I started traveling to see the Cubs play at different ballparks across the country but to be honest the last Hard Copy tickets I have received was back in 2006 for a Cubs/Cards game.  But since then it has been all Print-at-Home tickets.  Sitting 1st row in front of the tarp and being able to interact with Andrew McCutchen in his rookie season before the Cubs beat them was a cool experience or when I stuck my hat out to catch his fly ball during batting practice at Wrigley only to have hit smack my wrist and bounce down to Francisco Liriano are memories that I will always have. 

One complaint that both have are about the scanners that the teams use to check your digital tickets and what if they go down.  What I think they have forgotten is that whether it is a digital ticket, print-at-home or a hard copy, they all get scanned at the gates now.  So, no matter what ticket you have, lets hope those scanners do not go down or lose power.   

Al gives us reasons why the Cubs want to go to an all-digital ticket system which pretty much aligns with why the NFL went to an all-digital ticket.  Basically, it allows the Cubs to track every ticket and who the season ticket holders are selling them to and how many and if they are violating any agreements between the team and season ticket holder.  The Cubs of course package it must nicer 

While Al and Kelsey, which I do encourage you to read their articles, may not be excited about digital tickets, I seriously doubt either will stop attending games because of this.  If they do, it sounds just like my Uncle Bob – he stopped attending Cubs games when they started the presale of bleacher tickets but of course, since they won the World Series, he’s back on the wagon.   

When I used to blow my entire tax returns on Cubs tickets while I was living with my parents, it was never about the hard copy tickets, it was about the game and experience.  I embrace the digital ticket and encourage you to download the Ballpark App.  However, I do not understand why the other major sports leagues have not created this type of app.  

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How was your week

Posted: January 2, 2016 by Sports Time Radio in basketball, football, hockey, sports, Uncategorized
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I’m sure you know that we’re not huge college football fans at Sports Time Radio, but it seems as though the bowl season has been disappointing. New Years Eve had the Final 4 match ups and both games ended up being blowouts. The first game was Clemson vs. Oklahoma. Oklahoma actually led this game 17-16 going into halftime and then didn’t score again in the game as Clemson cruised to a 37-17 victory. The second game; if you can even call it a game was Alabama vs. Michigan State. Neither team scored in the first quarter. After that Alabama went on to score 38 straight points while not giving up any points as they easily advanced to the title game with a 38-0 victory. I only saw a little bit of each of these games, but unless you are a fan of these teams was there a reason for you to stay with the game after they became blowouts. Here’ hoping the Clemson vs. Alabama championship game will be better than these semi-final match ups turned out to be.

If you’re still interested in college football the last 4 bowl are are on the schedule for today. It starts off with the Taxslayer Bowl featuring Penn State vs. Georgia. Then there’s the Liberty Bowl with Kansas State vs. Arkansas. The Alamo Bowl is the 3rd bowl game on the schedule with Oregon vs. TCU. The night wraps up with the Cactus Bowl which has West Virginia vs. Arizona State. I’m sure I’ll flip over to check the score a time or two in these games, but I won’t watch more than a minute or two at a time. There are just way too many bowl games for me,but give me your reason for watching one of these or all of these games.

It’s the last week of the regular season in the NFL and the league is doing the best they can to make sure teams don’t know if they can rest their players. Originally the Carolina Panthers where suppose to play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Noon on Sunday. While Schaumburg Stu and I where doing the Thursday podcast I notice that the Panthers/Buccaneers game had been moved to a 3:25 p.m. start time. This game was moved because the Seattle Seahawks vs. the Arizona Cardinals game was scheduled at 3:25 p.m. all along. If Carolina and Tampa Bay had played early and Carolina had won the game they would claim the #1 seed in the NFC. Once Carolina had won that game the Cardinals would be able to rest their players because they would be the #2 seed no matter if they won or lost their game with Seattle. I like this move by the NFL; I’m not sure how it will work out, but will see if any teams will try and get their players some rest during Week 17.

There where reports all week that the Indianapolis Colts won’t be bringing back there head coach Chuck Pagano. This isn’t really a big surprise. This was the last year on Pagano’s contract and after the Colts offered him just a 1 year extension you had to think there where some issues between coach and front office.  The Colts are a very disappointing 7-8 this season and while there still is a chance for them too find there way into the playoffs I wouldn’t count on that happening. This is Pagano’s 4th season as Colts head coach. In Pagano’s first 3 season with the Colts they finished 11-5 every season and made the playoffs. The Colts where a trendy Super Bowl pick at the start of the season, but with the u=injury to starting quarterback Andrew Luck the Colts have struggled to get to 7-8. There was another report that came out this week that said Pagano and General Manager Ryan Grigson don’t even speak to each other. That sounds like a difficult way to run an NFL team when the guy coaching the players and the guy picking the players don’t talk. Pagano has no say in personnel decisions as Grigson handles all of that. This is a big rif for any NFL team to deal with and someone has to go and since Pagano is in the last year of his deal it appears as he’s the one who will be leaving Indianapolis.

The Miami Dolphins where the first team t let there coach go this season. Then the Tennessee Titans fired their head coach. The Philadelphia Eagles made that same move this week letting Chip Kelly go. If the Colts do let Pagano go there are 3 head coaching openings, but what other teams may try to change coaches. It’s been reported that the Cleveland Browns will be joining this list after the season.  Will the San Diego Chargers, New York Giants and Detroit Lions be looking for new head coaches as well. What are the chances that the New Orleans Saints or Dallas Cowboys look to change head coaches. In the Saints case it may be a head coach leaving as Sean Payton seems to be linked to every NFL opening. Minus the Cowboys and the Saints; which opening would be the best one for a new head coach? Would you lean to taking the Colts job where a healthy Andrew Luck could get you right back into the playoffs. Maybe the Lions job looks good to you with a quarterback in place and a couple of capable wide receivers. The Chargers and Giants also have veteran starting quarterbacks in place. Maybe you would lean to taking a team with a young quarterback you could develop; like Marcus Mariotta in Tennessee. If you had the choice what job would you take? and how would you rank these teams if the jobs become open?

There are 11 games on the NBA schedule today with 2 of those games being carried on NBA-TV. The Phoenix Suns vs. the Sacramento Kings start the NBA-TV coverage at 4:00 p.m. The second game on NBA-TV is the Houston Rockets vs. the San Antonio Spurs at 7:30 p.m.

After featuring the outdoor game yesterday which the Montreal Canadiens won 5-1 over the Boston Bruins the NHL has 23 games on the schedule today. While there are a lot of NHL games today the only one I could find on national television is the New York Rangers vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins on the NHL Network at 6:00 p.m.

You can listen to the Sports Time Radio podcast on BlogTalkRadio.com

You can find me on Twitter @Burketime

 

How about them; wait who now

Posted: October 2, 2015 by Sports Time Radio in football
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The Dallas Cowboys are 2-1 and in sole possession of 1st place in the NFC East going into their Week 4 game against the 0-3 3 New Orleans Saints. You’d think a team that was in 1st place wouldn’t have to many more concerns other than winning games, but the Cowboys are in a unique situation. Dez Bryant was injured in Game 1 of the season and isn’t expected back for 4-6 more weeks, but there are some experts saying he might be done for the season. Even though it was an injury to one of the top wide receivers in all of the NFL; well it’s the NFL and injuries happen. The in the 2nd game of the season Tony Romo goes down with a broken clavicle. Romo needed surgery and is scheduled to return Week 11 against the Miami Dolphins. So now the Cowboys top 2 offensive players are injured and out for quite a few games. How does the team stay afloat in what is shaping up to be a winnable division even without Bryant and Romo. Terrance Williams and Cole Beasley will be expected to step up and fill the void left by Bryant at wide receiver. The Cowboys traded for Brice Butler to help at receiver, but he hasn’t appeared in a game since being acquired; so he doesn’t look like he’ll be able to help fill in for the injured Bryant. Now you can still piece together a solid receiving core with what the Cowboys have and with some good performances from tight ends Jason Witten and Gavin Escobar. Maybe there’s a chance they add a veteran like Wes Welker or Hakeem Nicks; who are still out on the free agent market. While this group could never replace a receiver like Bryant they could help the team tread water until Bryant can get healthy and return. Now the void that Romo created with his injury is more difficult to fill. Brandon Weeden was the back up quarterback coming out of training camp and made the start Week 3 a 39-28 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. The Cowboys did send a draft pick to the Buffalo Bills for quarterback Matt Cassel. Cassel is in his 11th season and most people remember him as the quarterback who filled in for Tom Brady in 2008 and went 10-5 as their starting quarterback. Cassel has 72 career starts at quarterback and may be a better option under center than Weeden once he learns the Cowboys offensive scheme. I’m not sure if the Cowboys or anyone else in the NFL know what they have in Weeden. Weeden is in his 4th NFL season, but is almost 32 years old. He’s a former 1st round draft pick; 22nd overall by the Cleveland Browns in the 2012 draft. He started 15 games for Cleveland that season. Dallas signed Weeden as a free agent in 2014 and he played in 5 games, starting 1. No announcement has been made; so it looks as though Weeden will be the starter against New Orleans this week. Too be fair Weeden played well in the loss against Atlanta. He went 22 of 26 for 232 with 0 touchdowns and 1 interception. Weeden seemed to mostly be throwing check downs  routes which seemed to be the Cowboys game plan with him. Running back Lance Dunbar led the team in receptions wit 10 for 100 yards. Weeden is not the most mobile quarterback and even behind what is considered a great offensive line he was sacked twice by Atlanta. With the Cowboys quarterback position in a bit of flux maybe they should turn to the running game with that great offensive line they have. Remember DeMarco Murray was allowed to leave in free agency this past off season and the Cowboys signing to help replace him at running back was Darren McFadden. McFadden has always been injury prone, but last season he did play in all 16 games for the Oakland Raiders, but he wasn’t there #1 running back. At one point in time McFadden was considered a #1 running back and even topped a 100 yards rushing in 2010, but he doesn’t look like the answer in the backfield and has really been the Cowboys #2 running back with Joseph Randle getting the bulk of the carries with Dunbar coming in on passing downs. Now Randle has put up pretty good numbers trough 3 games behind that Cowboys offensive line. Randle has 48 carries for 203 yards and 3 rushing touchdowns. He has also caught 6 passes for 74 yards. The question is; can Randle handle the load a #1 running back is expected to? and carry the team while Bryant and Romo recover from there injuries? Now I’m not sure who’s sold on Randle as that guy and who’s not, but what really matters is are the Cowboys sold on him? Now there may be some help out there in the form of a top running back if the Cowboys where interested in making a deal. Is it time for te Cowboys to pick up the telephone and place a call to the 0-3 Chicago Bears and see what it would take to get Matt Forte in a Cowboys uniform. If you noticed this week the Bears sent Jared Allen to the Carolina Panthers for a draft pick and Jon Bostic was dealt to the New England Patriots also for a draft pick. The Bears are clearly in rebuilding mode and while no one in their right mind would take Jay Cutler and his bad, bad contract the Cowboys should be talking a look at his best weapon; Forte. If the Cowboys came to the Bears with an offer of a 2nd round pick, a 5th round pick and a player like McFadden; so the Bears aren’t short handed in there backfield; would that be enough? That’s pretty good value in the NFL as far as trades are and looking at the Bears by the time the team is ready to contend again Forte might be at the end of his career.Forte is one of the top running backs in the game both rushing and receiving. He’s even managed to average 4.7 yards per carry this season behind a terrible Bears offensive line and let’s not forget he had 102 receptions last season to go with 1038 rushing yards. Now Dallas may have to try to make some other moves to get a player like Forte under there salary cap and that may actual be the biggest hold up to a deal like this happening. If the Cowboys could find takers for players like Randle and Dunbar that would assist in this deal. While you think that might hurt the Dallas backfield; Forte is an every down back and the Cowboys did trade for Christine Micheal before the season started. Forte is definitely  the player who could keep the Cowboys contending in the NFC East while Bryant and Romo get healthy. Looking at the NFC East the Philadelphia Eagles looked better last week, but they still don’t seem to have that Chip Kelly offense under control yet. The New York Giants are still the dumbest team in the NFL and dumb teams find ways to lose games not win them. The Washington Redskins are well the Washington Redskins and while they looked good in their 1 win they reverted to form last week and aren’t expected to contend. Just think of the numbers Forte would put up running the football behind that Cowboys offensive line. He’d be a perfect check down guy for either Weeden or Cassel which ever one is playing quarterback and then imagine the weapon he’d be with Romo under center and Bryant out at wide receiver. Can or will the Cowboys find a way to make this move and would Matt Forte save the Cowboys season.

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Sports Time Radio’s 2015 NFL predictions.

Posted: September 11, 2015 by Sports Time Radio in football
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It’s that time again; Dan the Man Schaumburg Stu, Mr Fantasy and I have made our predictions for the upcoming NFL season. Here they are and let;s see how we do.

AFC East

Schaumburg Stu: 1-Patriots 2-Bills 3-Dolphins 4-Jets

Dan the Man 2-Patriots 2-Bills 4-Dolphins 4-Jets

Mr. Fantasy 1-Dolphins 2-Patriots 3-Bills 4-Jets

The Big Jack 1-Patriots 2-Dolphins 3-Bills 4-Jets

AFC North

Schaumburg Stu 1-Ravens 3-Steelers 3-Bengals 4-Beowns

Dan the Man 1-Bengals 2=Ravens 3-Steelers 4-Browns

Mr. Fantasy 1-Steelers 2-Bengals 3-Ravens 4-Browns

The Big Jack 1-Ravens 2-Steelers 3-Bengaks 4- Browns

AFC South

Schaumburg Stu1-Colt 2-Texans 3-Jaquars 4-Titans

Dan the Man 1-Colts 2=Texans 3-Jaquars 4-Titans

Mr. Fantasy 1-Colts 2- Texans 3-Titans 4-Jaquars

The Big Jack 1-Colts 2-Texans 3-Jaquars 4-Titans

AFC West

Schaumburg Stu 1-Denver 2-Chiefs 3-Chargers 4-Raiders

Dan the Man 1-Broncos 2-Chiefs 3-Chargers 4-Raiders

Mr. Fantasy 1-Chiefs 2-Broncos 3-Chargers 4-Raiders

The Big Jack 1-Broncos 2-Chargers 3-Chiefs 4-Raiders

AFC Championship

Schaumburg Stu Colts over Patriots

Dan the Man Patriots over Bengals

Mr. Fantasy Colts over Patriots

The Big Jack Colts over Patriots

NFC East

Schaumburg Stu 1-Cowboys 2-Eagles 3-Giants 4-Redskins

Dan the Man 1-Cowboys 2-Eagles 3-Giants 4-Redskins

Mr. Fantasy 1-Eagles 3-Cowboys 3-Giants 4-Redskins

The Big Jack 1-Giants 2-Cowboys 3-Eagles 4-Redskins

NFC North

Schaumburg Stu 1-Packers 2-Lions 4-Vikings 4-Bears

Dan the Man 1-Vikings 2-Packers 3-Lions 4-Bears

Mr. Fantasy 1-Packers 2-Vikings 3-Lions 4-Bears

The Big Jack 1-Packers 2=Vikings 3-Lions 4-Bears

NFC South

Schaumburg Stu 1-Saints 2-Falcons 3-Panthers 4-Buccaneers

Dan the Man 1-Saints 2-Panthers 3-Falcons 4-Buccaneers

Mr. Fantasy 1-Saints 2-Falcons 3-Panthers 4-Buccaneers

The Big Jack 1-Saints 2-Panthers 3-Falcons 4-Buccaneers

NFC West

Schuamburg Stu 1-Seahawks 2-Cardinals 3-49ers 4-Rams

Dan the Man 1-Seahawks 2-49ers 3-Cardinals 4-Rams

Mr. Fantasy 1-Seahawks 2-Cardinals 3-Rams 4-49ers

The Big Jack 1-Seahawks 2-Rams 3-Cardinals 4-49ers

NFC Championship

Schaumburg Stu Packers over Seahawks

Dan the Man Saints over Packers

Mr. Fantasy Packers over Seahawks

The Big Jack Cardinals over Seahawks

Super Bowl!

Schaumburg Stu Packers over Colts

Dan the Man Patriots over Saints

Mr. Fantasy Colts over Packers

The Big Jack Colts over Cardinals

Offensive M.V.P.

Schaumburg Stu Aaron Rodgers

Dan the Man Tom Brafy

Mr. Fantasy Andrew Luck

The Big Jack Drew Brees

Defensive M.V.P.

Schaumburg Stu J.J. Watt

Dan the Man J.J. Watt

Mr. Fantasy Justin Houston

The Big Jack Luke Kuechely

Offensive Rookie of the Year

Schaumburg Stu Nelson Agholor

Dan the Man Amari Cooper

Mr. Fantasy Amari Cooper

The Big Jack Marcus Mariotta

Defensive Rookie of the Year

Schaumburg Stu Vic Beasley

Dan the Man Vic Beasley

Mr. Fantasy Bud Dupree

The Big Jack Randy Gregory

Wish us luck; we always seem to need it.

Let’s call it Christmas Eve

Posted: December 24, 2014 by Sports Time Radio in basketball, football, hockey, sports
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Going into Week 17 Mr. Fantasy has taken a 3 (three) game lead in our Sports Time Radio National Football League (NFL) pick contest. In Week 16 Mr. Fantasy, Dan the Man and Schaumburg Stu all went 10-6 while I was at the bottom again at 8-8. For the season Mr. Fantasy is 158-80-1. Schaumburg Stu has moved into 2nd place with an overall record of 155-83-1. I’m hanging onto 3rd place with a record of 154-84-1. While Dan the Man is stuck in the cellar with an overall record of 150-88-1. We’ve got one (1) week left to catch Mr. Fantasy. Can we do it?

Let’s take a look at the Greg vs. Mr. Fantasy challenge for Week 16. Greg liked Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers as the highest scoring quarterback of the week while Mr. Fantasy liked Matt Ryan of the Atlanta Falcons. Roethlisberger scored 10.50 points in Week 16 and ranked 18th among all quarterbacks for the week. Ryan finished the week in 15th place among quarterbacks with 13.64 points. Russell Wilson led all quarterbacks for the week with 34.58 points. Greg liked Fred Jackson of the Buffalo Bills to be the highest scoring running back of the week while Mr. Fantasy went with Joique Bell of the Detroit Lions. Jackson finished with 18.55 points for the week which was good for 19th place among running backs for the week. Bell scored 19.45 points which out him in 16th place among running backs for the week. C.J. Anderson of the Denver Broncos was the highest scoring running back for the week with 30.30 points. Greg liked Calvin Johnson of the Detroit Lions to be the highest scoring wide receiver of the week while Mr. Fantasy went with Odell Beckham Jr. of the New York Giants. Johnson ended up 23rd among wide receivers with 15.05 points. Beckham Jr. was the highest scoring wide receiver in Week 16 with 33.30 points. At tight end Greg liked Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs to be the highest scoring tight end of the week while Mr. Fantasy thought Julius Thomas of the Denver Broncos would lead all tight ends in scoring. Kelce 6.10 points in Week 16 which was good for 22nd place among tight ends for the week. Thomas finished one spot behind Kelce in 23rd place for the week with 6.05 points. At kicker Greg went with Mason Crosby of the Green Bay Packers to lead in scoring for Week 16 while Mr. Fantasy liked Matt Bryant of the Atlanta Falcons. Crosby scored 9 points for the week which was good for an 8th place tie. Bryant put up 16 points for the week which was good enough for a 2nd place tie in Week 16. Sleeper picks for the week where Lance Dunbar of the Dallas Cowboys for Greg and Houston Texans quarterback Case Keenum. Dunbar scored 3.40 points which was good for 67th place among running backs for the week. Keenum put up 4.60 points which was good for 29th among all quarterbacks for the week. There’s one (1) week of picks left; so who will they go with in Week 17. Remember they’re not allowed to select the Top 5 scorers at any position. That means at quarterback they can’t pick Andrew Luck, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. At running back DeMarco Murray, Le’Veon Bell, Matt Forte, Marshawn Lynch and Arian Foster are off the board. At wide receiver there’s no picking Antonio Brown, Demaryius Thomas, Jordy Nelson, Dez Bryant and Emmanuel Sanders this week. The Top 5 tight ends they can’t pick are Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham, Greg Olsen, Antonio Gates and Martellus Bennett. They’re not even allowed to touch any of the Top 5 kicker who are Stephen Gostkowski, Cody Parkey, Matt Bryant, Dan Carpenter and Adam Vinatieri.

Has the National Basketball Association (NBA) taken over your Christmas Day? Do you have to try to sneak away from your family like Dan the Man does to check the scores of the game or watch a few minutes of on court action? Hopefully you have a game plan in action for tomorrow as the NBA has 5 (five) games on the schedule for your viewing pleasure. Game one (1) has an 11:00 a.m. start time; that’s Central Standard Time (C.S.T.) and features the Washington Wizards at the New York Knicks. Game two (2) a 1:30 p.m. C.S.T. start time has the Oklahoma City Thunder vs. the San Antonio Spurs. Game three (3) a 4:00 p.m. C.S.T. start time has the Cleveland Cavaliers vs. the Miami Heat. Game four (4) a 7:00 p.m. C.S.T. start time has the Los Angeles Lakers vs. the Chicago Bulls. The 5th and final NBA game of the of the day is scheduled to tip off at 9:30 p.m. C.S.T. with the Golden State Warriors vs. the Los Angeles Clippers. The first game will be shown on ESPN. The next two (2) games move over to ABC. The final two (2) games will be telecast on TNT and NBA-TV. How do you rank these games 1 (one) through 5 (five)? You’ll be able to watch three (3) of the Top 5 scorers in action tomorrow. LeBron James 2nd in scoring averaging 25.2 Points Per Game (P.P.G.), Kobe Bryant is 3rd with 24.6 P.P.G. and Carmelo Anthony is 5th with 23.7 P.P.G.. Only one (1) of the Top 5 rebounders will be in action tomorrow. Pau Gasol is averaging 11.4 rebounds per game and that’s good for 5th in the NBA. Watch for John Wall, Chris Paul and Stephen Curry to pass the ball tomorrow as they are three (3) of the Top 5 leaders in assists. Wall averages 10.4 assists per game (A.P.G.) which is good for 2nd in the NBA. Paul is 4th handing out 9.7 A.P.G. and Curry is 5th with 7.7 A.P.G. Look for Wall, Curry and Paul to get a couple of steals tomorrow as well since all 3 (three) are in the Top 5 of the category as well. Wall and Curry are tied for 2nd in the NBA in steals averaging 2.1 per game and Paul is right behind them tied for 3rd with 2.0 steals per game.

The National Hockey League is taking a 3 (three) day Christmas break and will be back in action December 27th with 13 (thirteen) games on the ice. While they’re on holiday break let’s look at some of the league leaders. Jakub Voracek of the Philadelphia Flyers is leading the league in total points with 46, He has a four (four) point lead over Tyler Seguin of the Dallas Stars who has 42 points on the season. Seguin is leading the NHL in goals with 25. That puts him just 2 (two) goals ahead of Rick Nash of the New York rangers who’s scored 23 goals this season. Vorachek is leading the league in assists with 32, but his Philadelphia Flyers teammate Claude Giroux is just a couple of assists behind at 30 on the season. Filip Forsberg of the Nashville Predators is leading the NHL in plus/minus with a +24. Tyler Johnson of the Tampa Bay Lighting is right behind him at +23. In goal Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators is leading the NHL in wins with 22. Marc-Andre Fleury of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Carey Price of the Montréal Canadiens and Frederik Andersen of the Anaheim Ducks are all tied for 2nd in wins with 19. Fleury leads all goaltenders in shutouts with 6 (six) followed by Henrik Lundqvist who has 5 (five). Michael Hutchinson of the Winnipeg Jets is leading all goaltenders in two (2) categories. Goals Against Average (G.A.A.) with a 1.67 and Save Percentage with .944. Brian Elliott of the St. Louis Blues is 2nd in G.A.A, with 1.82 while Calvin Pickard of the Colorado Avalanche is 2nd in save percentage with .939. Is your favorite player on this list? If not don’t worry there’s still a long way to go in this NHL season.

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

You can follow on Twitter @Burketime

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How was your Week? 11/1/14

Posted: November 1, 2014 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, basketball, football, hockey, sports, Uncategorized
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The San Francisco Giants won their 3rd World Series title in 5 tears with a 3-2 Game 7 victory over the Kansas City Royals. Jeremy Affeldt came out of the Giants bullpen first and had the longest outing of the season pitching 2 1/3rd innings before turning it over to Madison Bumgarner who pitched the final 5 innings of the game. Affeldt was credited with the win while Bumgarner picked up a save. Bumgarner threw 21 innings in 2 starts and 1 relief appearance with an Earned Run Average (E.R.A.) of 0.43. He allowed 9 hits and 1 walk while striking out 17. While Bumgarner dominated on the mound and was awarded the World Series Most Valuable Player (M.V.P.) Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval led the Giants hitting attack. Pence hit .444 getting 12 hits with 1 home run and 5 Runs Batted In (R.B.I.) adding 3 doubles. Sandoval also had 12 hits in the World Series batting .429 with 3 doubles and 4 R.B.I.’s. As the question start for the Giants on if the can repeat on the Royals side the questions become can they get back. The Royals had a big playoff run; not losing a game until the World Series and while the Royals may not be here next season their future is bright. Under the bright World Series lights rookie pitcher Yordano Ventura came through and looks like he’ll turn into a quality starting pitcher. Ventura threw 12 innings in the World Series in his 2 starts. While he did give up 11 hits and walked 5 matters in those 12 innings his E.R.A. was just 1.46; so he was able to get himself out of trouble. Ventura added 6 strikeouts as well. At the plate Kansas City catcher Salvador Perez led the team with a .333 batting average. Perez totaled 8 hits with a double and a home run for the Royals.

With the World Series over the baseball off-season begins and the Chicago Cubs didn’t waste any time getting their off-season started. The Cubs fired manager Rich Rentaria after just one season and on Monday will officially announce Joe Maddon formerly of the Tampa Bay Rays as their new manager. While there haven’t been any terms to Maddon’s deal released yet there is a report that the Rays are either going to or have asked Major League Baseball (MLB) to investigate the Cubs for tampering with Maddon. There was a report out that the reason Maddon opted out of his Rays contract was because he had contact with the Cubs and he knew he had a job waiting. The report is also saying that the Rays would look for player compensation in the form of Addison Russell or Javier Baez.

If you’re a fan of the Oklahoma City Thunder or just a fantasy basketball player you have to start thinking this team is cursed. They start the season with their best player Kevin Durant out with a foot injury and then in the 2nd game of the season their other star player Russell Westbrook goes out with what turns out to be a broken hand. Westbrook should miss about 4-6 weeks for the Thunder. Westbrook did out up 38 points in the Thunder’s opening game 106-89 loss to the Portland Trailblazers. On Thursday night the Thunder dropped their 2nd game of the season to the Los Angeles Clippers 93-90. It looks like Serge Ibaka will have to try to keep the Thunder hanging around in the Western conference until Durant and Westbrook can return. Another National Basketball Association injury that happened last night was Derrick Rose spraining his ankle and having to leave the Chicago Bulls 114-108 overtime loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers Friday night. Rose finished with 20 points, four rebounds and four assists in 25 minutes of action and the injury is being reported as minor.

Dan the Man and I have gotten off to good starts in the Sports Time Radio fantasy hockey league. It’s early in the season, but Dan;s team is the #1 rated team in our league which is 18 teams. Dan’s team has four 4 goal scorers leading his team; Tyler Bozak of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Nick Bonino of the Vancouver Canucks, Damon Severson of the New Jersey Devils and Brent Burns of the San Jose Sharks. Tyler Johnson of the Tampa Bay Lighting has 11 assists to lead Dan’s team. Besides Goals and assists we have some interesting categories for our league. Plus/minus, penalty minutes, power play points, short-handed points, game winning goals, shots on goal, faceoffs won, hits and blocks. Of course you must have goaltenders on out team and Dan has a good one in Frederik Andersen of the Anaheim Ducks who is off to a 7-1 start and a Goals Against Average (G.A.A) of 1.60. Besides wins, losses and goals against the other two goalie categories are save percentage and shutouts. There are times a hot start can propel a team through the season, but since I’m in this league against Dan I’m hoping his team comes back to the pack.

I mentioned Anaheim earlier and behind Andersen play they have the best record in the National Hockey League (NHL) at 9-3 and 18 points. The Montreal Canadiens are right behind then at 8-2-1 with 17 points. On the other end of the standings the Carolina Hurricanes are still looking for their first win of the season. Through 8 games the Hurricanes are 0-6-2 with just 2 points so far this season. Anaheim’s Corey Perry leads the NHL with 10 goals while the New York Rangers Rick Nash is one goal behind at 9. Jakub Voracek of the Philadelphia Flyers leads the league in assists with 12 while Henrik Zetterberg of the Detroit Red Wings, Tyler Johnson of the Tampa bay Lighting and Claude Giroux of the Philadelphia Flyers all have 11 assists. Voracek is tied for the league lead in points with Tyler Seguin of the Dallas Stars and Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Each guy has 15 points for the season.

I know, I know there was a Thursday night football game. Schaumburg Stu was the only one of us smart enough to pick the New Orleans Saints to beat the Carolina Panthers. The Saints (4-4) piled up 375 yards to snap a seven-game losing streak on the road that dated back to last November. Brees finished 24 of 34 for 297 yards and Mark Ingram turned in another solid performance with 100 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Brees threw an interception and fumbled in the first quarter before settling down late in the second quarter and leading touchdown drives on four out of five possessions. The Saints’ defense sacked Cam Newton four times and forced two turnovers. Newton, who spent much of the night under heavy duress playing behind an offensive line without three of its regular starters, was limited to 151 yards passing. The Saints won 28-10 to take the lead in the NFC South division.

So how was your week?

You can find Sports Time Radio on BlogTalk Radio and you can find me on Twitter @Burketime.

10/8/14 Let’s call it Wednesday.

Posted: October 8, 2014 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, football, hockey, sports, Uncategorized
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Week 5 was a better week for us in picking games as everyone had 10 wins or more. I actually won the week at 12-3. Mr. Fantasy and Schaumburg Stu finished a game behind me at 11-4 while Dan the Man was at the bottom for a change at 10-5. In our season totals Mr. Fantasy has caught Dan the Man and they’re tied at 45-31. I am just 1 game behind them with a record of 44-32 while Schaumburg Stu just 2 games off the pace at 43-33. Will see what Week 6 brings for us.

Mr. Fantasy is coming off his best week of picking high scoring players; so let’s see how Week 5 went for him. At quarterback he had Eli Manning of the New York Giants as the highest scoring quarterback, but it was Russell Wilson who was the highest scoring quarterback in Week 5. Eli Manning finished as the 14th highest scoring quarterback. At running back Mr. Fantasy went with Cincinnati Bengals Giovani Bernard. Bernard finished 22nd among running backs in Week 5 as it was San Diego Chargers rookie Branden Oliver who was the highest scoring running back. At wide receiver Mr. Fantasy went with Atlanta Falcons Julio Jones. Jones finished 11th at the wide receiver position for the week. It was the Denver Broncos Demaryius Thomas who had the break out week at wide receiver and led them in scoring. At the tight end position Mr. Fantasy went with his guy and New York Giants Larry Donnell. Donnell didn’t catch a pass and scored 0 points in Week 5. Greg Olsen of the Carolina Panthers was the highest scoring tight end for the week. At kicker Mr. Fantasy decided to go with Nick Novak of the San Diego Chargers. Novak finished 19th among kickers in Week 5 while it was San Francisco 49ers kicker Phil Dawson who led kickers in scoring. For his sleeper pick Mr. Fantasy went with Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Louis Murphy. Murphy caught 3 passes for 35 yards and 1 touchdown. If you had Murphy in one of our leagues he would’ve scored 11.75 points for you. Murphy was the 32nd highest scoring wide receiver of Week 5; so he would’ve been a solid sleeper pick.

So the championship series are set for Major League Baseball (MLB) and they’ll start on Friday. So the team with the best record in baseball the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim were swept out of the playoffs by the Kansas City Royals. The team with the best record in the National League (N.L.) the Washington Nationals were knocked out of the playoffs by the San Francisco Giants 3 games to 1. The St. Louis Cardinals eliminated the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-1 in their series as well. In the other American League (A.L.) series the Baltimore Orioles swept the Detroit Tigers out of the playoffs; even though the Tigers had 3 former Cy Young award winners start for them in the series.

Nelson Cruz of the Orioles led the A.L. in hitting in the division series. Cruz hit .500 going 6 of 12 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI’s for the Orioles. Eric Hosmer was the Royals leading hitter going 4 for 10 (.400) with 2 home runs and 4 R.B.I.’s in their series. On the N.L. side Buster Posey was the Giants leading hitter going 7 for 18 (.389) in the series. I’m not sure if you could guess who the Cardinals leading hitter was, but if you said John Jay you where right. Jay was 5 for 11 (.455) in the series. Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis was the leading N.L. hitter in the division series. Ellis hit .538 going 7 for 13 with a home run and a double for the Dodgers. Mike Trout was 1 for 12 and Josh Hamilton was 0 for 13 for the Angels as Erick Aybar was the Angels leading hitter going 5 for 11 (.455) against the Royals.

We start with the Kansas City Royals at the Baltimore Orioles on Friday. James Shields is starting for Kansas City while the Orioles starter hasn’t been announced yet. Game 2 of this series will be Saturday with Yordano Ventura listed as the starting pitcher for the Royals while again there is no Orioles starter listed. Saturday os also the start of the N.L. series. The San Francisco Giants are at the St. Louis Cardinals. Adam Wainwright is starting Game 1 for the Cardinals and while there’s no listed starter for the Giants it’s being reported that Madison Bumgarner will be the starter for Game 1.

The NHL opens their season tonight and they won’t have to go up against any baseball games on television tonight. The NBC Sports Network has 2 games on tonight. At 6:30 p.m. Central Standard Time (CST) the Philadelphia Flyer take on the New York Rangers. Then at 10:30 p.m. CST the San Jose Sharks take on the reigning and defending Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings. The two non televised games have the Montreal Canadians at the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Vancouver Canucks at the Calgary Flames. The Bruins will play tonight without center David Krejci who was placed on injured reserve with an undisclosed injury. The Bruins also placed Marc Savard on long-term injured reserve. There doesn’t appear to be any other significant injuries listed for the other teams playing tonight, but you know how the NHL can be with injuries.

Tonight on Sports Time Radio Schaumburg Stu is Back.

You can find Sports Time Radio on BlogTalk Radio and you can find me on Twitter @Burketime.

9/27/14 How was your Week?

Posted: September 27, 2014 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, football, sports, Uncategorized
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I realized after I posted the blog on Wednesday that I never did go through and see how Mr. Fantasy did picking his high scores at each position. Mr. Fantasy has struggled this year picking high scorers; so let’s look and see what Week 3 was like. He went with Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, but Andrew Luck of the Indianapolis Colts was the highest scoring quarterback. Rodgers ended Week 3 in 28th place for quarterbacks. At the running back spot Mr. Fantasy went with DeMarco Murray of the Dallas Cowboys. Marshawn Lynch of the Seattle Seahawks was the highest scoring Week 4 running back. Murray ended up tied for 3rd place. Ay wide receiver Mr. Fantasy chose another Green Bay Packers player; Jordy Nelson. Julio Jones of the Atlanta Falcons was the highest scoring wide receiver in Week 3. Nelson ended the week as the 50th highest scoring wide receiver. At the tight end position Mr. Fantasy’s choice was Delanie Walker of the Tennessee Titans. Walker was the 18th highest scoring tight end in Week 3. Chicago Bears tight end Martellus Bennett was the leading scorer at tight end in Week 3. I even make Mr. Fantasy select a kicker and he went with Mike Nugent of the Cincinnati Bengals. Nugent was the 19th highest scoring kicker in Week 3 while Adam Vinatieri of the Indianapolis Colts led the kickers in scoring. Mr. Fantasy’s sleeper pick was New Orleans Saints running back Khiry Robinson. Robinson scored 11.40 points in Week 3, carrying the football 18 times for 69 yards, but no touchdowns. Tune in tomorrow (Sunday) from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. to see who Mr. Fantasy’s picks for high scorers for Week 4.

We may have actually watched two of the highest scoring players from Week 4 already play. In the New York Giants 45-14 victory over the Washington Redskins; Giants Quarterback Eli Manning and Tight end Larry Donnell put up some big numbers. Manning was 28 for 39 throwing the football. Manning threw for 300 yards with 4 touchdowns and 1 interception. 3 of Manning’s touchdown passes find Donnell who ended the game with 7 catches for 54 yards. Even through Donnell’s yardage numbers are low those 3 touchdowns will put him at the top of tight ends for Week 4. Even Manning’s other touchdown pass went to a tight end as Daniel Fells caught that one. Victor Cruz put up solid numbers with 6 catches for 108 yards. Ruben Randle led the Giants with 8 catches, but for less yardage (89 yards) than Cruz had. Rookie Andre Williams was the Giants leading rusher with 66 yards on 15 carries and 1 touchdown. Rashad Jennings had 55 yards on 13 carries and even Peyton Hillis had 8 carries for 31 yards. Dan the Man was the only one of us to pick the Giants to win this game as Schaumburg Stu, Mr. Fantasy and I all had the Redskins winning. Kirk Cousins struggled for Washington. Cousins was 19 of 33 throwing the football for 257 yards with 1 touchdown and 4 interceptions. Alfred Morris had good rushing numbers for Washington. Morris carried the football 12 times for 63 yards and a touchdown. If the game had been closer Morris would’ve had even better stats. Running Back Roy Helu was the Redskins leading receiver with 5 catches for 78 yards. Niles Paul was on his way to having a good game until he was injured. Paul had 3 catches for 60 yards. Paul was starting for injured Jordan Reed/ 3rd string tight end Logan Paulsen came in for Paul and added 3 catches for 28 yards. Depending on the size of your league the Washington passing touchdown may not have helped you. Cousins threw an 18 yard touchdown pass to Andre Roberts. I’d be surprised to see if Roberts was owned in a high percentage of leagues. So the last two Thursday night games have been blow outs. Week 5’s match up is an NFC North match up as the Minnesota Vikings are at Lambeau Field to play the Green Bay Packers.

On the late night Friday show, I pointed out how some people just seem to have things go their way. Derek Jeter is one of these people. Thursday night was Jeter’s last game at Yankee Stadium and the weather forecast all day was predicting rain. Not only was there no rain, but the game had an ending Hollywood would’ve wanted. The Yankees had a 5-2 lead going into the top of the 9th inning. Yankees closer David Robertson is in to finish the game. Nick Markakis walks to start the top of the 9th inning. Alejandro De Aza strikes out for the 1st out. Adam Jones hits a 2 run home run to cut the Yankees lead to 5-4. Nelson Cruz strikes out for the 2nd out and the Yankees are 1 our away from a victory. Steven Pearce is the batter for the Orioles and he hits a solo home run to tie the game 5-5. J.J. Hardy flew out to en the top half of the 9th. Evan Meek came in to pitch the 9th inning for Baltimore. Jose Pirela led off the 9th with a single and Antoan Richardson came out to pinch run for Pirela. Brett Gardner laid down a sacrifice bunt moving Richardson to 2nd base and now who’s up for the Yankees; you got it Derek Jeter. With 1st base open and 1 one you wonder how the crowd would’ve reacted had the Orioles decided to intentional walk Jeter, but they didn’t. Jeter proceed to hit the first pitch he saw to right field for a walk off single in his last game at Yankee Stadium. Now I’m sure if it would’ve been a movie, Jeter would’ve hit a solo home run to win the game, but this has to be just as good and it was real. Now can we please put an end to the pitchers grooving pitches to Jeter. The Orioles where playing for home field advantage throughout the playoffs and I doubt they would’ve wanted to give a game away with that on the line. I have to go on record and say I am not a Yankees fan, but Jeter transcends that and it was a fitting ending to a great career in his home ballpark. Jeter’s career comes to a close in Boston’s Fenway Park. Jeter has said he won’t play shortstop Saturday or Sunday, but should be in the Yankees line up as a Designated Hitter (DH) for the Yankees. Here’s my question for you. In 5 years Derek Jeter will go into the baseball Hall of Fame on his 1st ballot. While I doubt he’ll go in with 100% of the votes because no one does. Will Jeter go in with the highest percentage of votes ever? Tom Seaver is the player who received the highest percentage of votes going into the Hall of fame at 98.84% he is followed by Nolan Ryan at 98.79%. Will Jeter get a higher percentage than that?

So how was your week?

You can find Sports Time Radio on BlogTalk Radio and you can find me on Twitter @Burketime.

This Old Stub: Chicago Bears preseason

Posted: September 8, 2014 by Sports Time Radio in football, sports, Uncategorized
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It’s opening day for the NFL and as I sit here watching the Bears vs Bills at Soldier Field. it takes me way back for a throwback thursday if you will, to just a couple weeks ago, when I was able to go to the Jacksonville Jaguars vs Da Bears. Yes that is grammatically correct, anytime you put da in front of bears, they are automatically capitalized like so, Da Bears! Now, just because I know a season ticket holder but that doesn’t mean he just throws me the tickets all season long, I wish, but he did give me a set of preseaon tickets that had a face value of approximately $100 per ticket. For Preason! Sadly seeing what it costs to go to a Bears game, I will probably never go to regular season game. Something the Big Jack and I have discussed numerous times on Sports Time Radio. When I looked online, the seats I sat in two rows higher were going for about $350 a piece. If I were to have purchased these tickets, it would be more than my mortgage for the month. The Big Jack and I have talked about today and it being so much easier and cheaper to just stay home and watch on your big screen tv. I have a 55in. Its not a 70in but it still a great view. I have a bathroom close by and theres almost always never a line. I can buy a six pack for the price of one beer. Although I enjoy all the conveniences of home, there still is nothing like go to a live sporting event. Look at this view.

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I had four tickets, one for me and of course my wife, she could care less what we are going to see as long as there is some good food. She prefers the live version than sitting on the couch. She loves a Super Bowl party, where I would rather watch the game at home. Two more tickets left but its a no brainer, I called my dad and my sister, to ask if my nephew could go? Check and Check. First thing you must know when going to a Bears game, is where to park. It’s the NFL, its not the MLB, so don’t drive down and look for parking. Be prepared, go to http://soldierfieldparking.comand buy your parking in advance. My seats were by the North Gate and there is a north gate parking lot which was $50 but it was sold out. Parking by the Planetarium was $100, I’m sure this is where the serious tailgaters are set up. There was a parking lot south of Mc Cormick Place for about $40. You could tailgate there and bring alcohol. There are shuttles to take you to the tunnel that goes under Lake Shore Drive and brings you to the South Gate. I chose the $50 family parking, which was a parking lot near 18th street. The parking lot allows tailgating but no alcohol but no shuttle bus needed because the lot is where the shuttle bus drops off and picks up. Either way your going to do some walking. My suggestion when you’ve decided on parking no which way to go. If you picked the Planetarium, North lot or 18th street, take Lake Shore Drive North. If your going to the south lots. Go south and follow the signs.

My wife works in the loop of downtown Chicago, and she came to the game with a few co-workers and even received free drinks at the bar before the game. Our seats were great, on the aisle and only four rows from the tunnel to the seats. My dad and my nephew went down to the field seats but were unable to snag any autographs. My wife arrived just before the national anthem. It was exiting to be apart of the ceremonial introductions. It seems to go by much quicker when you are there. Before you know it, it’s kickoff and the game is on. It’s very hard to get a whole lot out of a preseason game. Cutler and his offense were out there for a little bit and to be honest, it was the Cutler we’ve seen year after year. It was all about the experience of being at Soldier Field and watching the game. We got a good look at back up running back, Shaun Draughn. Also, Blake Bortles was pretty impressive against the second string defense. Through out the game my wife, father and I had to take my nephew to tour Soldier Field. My nephew surprisingly didn’t want anything from the gift shops. My father, on the other hand, came back from his turn with a t-shirt for my mom. All I went home with was the souvenir cup that went with my hot dog, which my dad bought. Thanks Dad.

Even though it was pre season, it was still a great experience. My dad hadn’t been to game in over 10 years, and it was the first game for my wife, nephew and I. One day, I may have throw away income to spend thousands of dollars for one day watching Da Bears live. That or I will be the proud buyer of season tickets to the Chicago Bears. Which I still have trouble deciding weather or not to sell the whole season as a package or try to sell all but one game to make enough money to pay for the game I attend. Either way, it will be a while before This Old Stub documents my experience at Soldier Field. Unless of course, I am given these tickets again next year.

03/15/14 How was your Week?

Posted: March 15, 2014 by Sports Time Radio in baseball, basketball, football, sports, Uncategorized
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NFL free agency kicked off this week. Did your team sign a player you wanted them to? I woke up this morning (Saturday) to find out the Julius Peppers signed with the Green Bay Packers. When it comes to the years on these deals they don’t really matter; it’s the guaranteed money that’s important. The Denver Broncos signed the most well-known names this week. They added safety T.J. Ward, cornerback Aqib Talib and linebacker DeMarcus Ware. As Denver tries to build a defense to go with that #1 offense that went to the Super Bowl last season. Cleveland filled Ward’s spot by signing hard-hitting safety Donte Whitner and also added linebacker Karlos Dansby. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and new head coach Lovie Smith made a big splash in free agency this week. The Buccaneers added quarterback Josh McCown, defensive end Michael Johnson, cornerback Alterraun Verner, defensive tackle Clinton McDonald, center Evan Dietrich-Smith, plus tackle Anthony Collins. While Tampa Bay was bringing in all these new free agents they released cornerback Darrelle Revis after one season with the team. Revis went on to sign with the New England Patriots. Don’t panic if your favorite team hasn’t signed a free agent yet; their are still plenty of players on the open market. Does your team need a pass rusher? How about Brian Orakpo. Does your team need some help in the defensive backfield? How about two guys with the same last name. Antonio Cromartie and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie are available. Michael Vick is still a free agent if your team needs a quarterback with a bit of an injury history. Ben Tate is probably the #1 running back on the free agent market, but he comes with an injury history as well. If your team can’t find the player they want in free agency maybe they could make a trade. There where three made this week and the San Francisco 49ers were involved in two of them. The 49ers sent a 6th round draft pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars for quarterback Blaine Gabbert and then the 49ers sent a 2015 conditional 7th round draft pick to the Miami Dolphins for Jonathan Martin. Yes that Jonathan Martin; he’s going to play for his old college football coach Jim Harbaugh. Martin won’t be asked to start for the 49ers and Harbaugh should be able to give him some protection from any bullying or any type of locker room hazing that might go on. Martin can play both tackle spots and should be a solid back up for the 49ers. In the other trade this week the Philadelphia Eagles sent a 5th round draft pick to the New Orleans Saints for running back Darren Sproles; who seems to be tailor-made for a Chip Kelly offense. Sproles is a good back up for LeShon McCoy and I’m sure jumped way up all the fantasy boards looking at next season all ready.

It’s getting close to playoff time in the NBA and the Miami Heat seems to be in a bit of a funk. The Heat lost last night (Friday) to the Denver Nuggets and the Heat have dropped five of their last six games. I don’t think Miami cares if they end up with the #1 seed in the Eastern conference. One expert mentioned that the Heat are on “cruise” control. Miami has dropped a couple of games to conference opponents Brooklyn and Chicago. A lot of talk seems to think that Brooklyn is the team if there is one that could get by the Heat in the playoffs. The Nets do have Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, but how much do the veteran players have left fun a playoff run. Garnett has played limited minutes this season and has taken games off just to be ready for the playoffs. Some where lost in all of this are the Indiana Pacers who right now are the #1 seed in the Eastern conference. You’d think the Pacers would be the team to knock off the Heat this season, but they’ve seem to have gone unnoticed these last few weeks. The Pacers where in a bit of a slump, but have seemed to came out of it with victories over Boston and Philadelphia. While the Celtics and the 76ers aren’t playoff teams they’re still on your schedule and you need to win those games. In the end will anyone be surprised if it comes down to the Heat against the Pacers in the Eastern conference finals. In other big NBA news Phil Jackson has agreed to a five year contract to become President of the New York Knicks. Jackson won 2 championships as a player with the Knicks. Jackson was also the head coach for 11 championship teams with the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Lakers. Jackson has no front office experience; so you have to wonder if he’s the guy to turn the Knicks around. Jackson is scheduled to be introduced by the Knicks on Tuesday and you have to wonder if Mike Woodson’s job is in trouble. Jackson is an advocate of the triangle offense and no one knows if that will suit Carmelo Anthony’s game. Of course even more of a question is will Anthony still be with the Knicks next season. Jackson has his hands full with fixing the Knicks. The Knicks don’t have a 1st round draft pick and they don’t have any money to bring in a top-notch free agent. This will be a monstrous test for Phil Jackson and if he can find a way to turn this Knicks team around or at this point just become a contender he’ll ensure his legacy in New York forever.

Baseball season is getting close. Mr. Fantasy and I have our first fantasy in eight days, but I know there are some people who have already had there drafts. I hope in one of these drafts you didn’t end up with Atlanta Braves pitcher Kris Medlen. Medlen left his spring training start last week with elbow pain and during his examination they found a torn ligament in his pitching elbow. Medlen will under go a 2nd “Tommy John” surgery and be out for the entire 2014 season. That’s one of the reasons I’ve never been a big fan of those early fantasy drafts. Drafting can sometimes be the best part of a fantasy season, but when you do them that early you can lose guys like Medlen before the season even starts. Hopefully soon will get a Mr. Fantasy draft list for you to follow.

So how was your week?

You can listen to Dan the Man, Mr. Fantasy and I on http://www.blogtalkradio.com and http://www.ultimatesportstalk.com

You can follow me on Twitter @Burketime

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