In your opinion does this season look interestingly similar to seasons past for the Washington Redskins?

In watching a few of the preseason games it seems to me that the Redskins actually look like they could be decent. The main issues I see are in the expected areas. The biggest problem is potentially the weapons at receiver. We all know that Mike is going to force the run game down every opponents throat and he will do it by committee so there is no real issue there despite it being one of the most talked about issues so far. Frankly, I have never been a fan of Santana Moss, he is simply one of those players who has the potential to break free but never seems to catch the ball at the right time. And I don't think McNabb is going to change his abilities all that much. Then there is Joey Galloway. Joey has been solid for many years and a good addition but he isn't a game changing receiver, not by a long shot. After these two guys who is there?

Behind Santana there is Anthony Armstrong and Joey is backed up/supported by Bobby Wade. Well if you were thinking who are these guys then we are getting on the same page here. After breaking things down it becomes more and more obvious that Chris Cooley is potentially the Skins primary receiver, a scary thought indeed. Now don't get me wrong Chris is a very reliable and solid option but he too isn't a game changing receiver.

The bottom-line is that if McNabb might find himself in a very similar situation to when he was playing in Philadelphia. That being said, also keep in mind that just because a receiver has a recognizable name it doesn't make him a high quality player.

Thanks for reading.

As I sit here listening and reading about the profitability of the Pittsburgh Pirates only one solution comes to mind….. the MLB should abandon its revenue sharing and adopt a plan that institutes a salary cap with an add-on clause forcing teams to dedicate a certain percentage to player payroll. If a team wishes to extend itself beyond the cap then there are substantial penalties and if a club falls shy fulfilling their cap minimum allocation, while remaining profitable, then they should too be faced with a forcible penalty.

In the case of the Pirates it isn’t hard to establish the idea that the baseball fans in Pittsburgh are getting the short end of the stick. According to cbssports.com the Pirates made 29.7 million both in 2007 and 2008. Think about the talent the Pirates could have brought in with those funds, or at the very least the talent they could have kept. The fact remains that Pittsburgh ownership, like the owners of the Royals and arguably the A’s, are not interested in fielding a competitive team. But the bottom-line is that it shouldn’t be up to the fans to force a team into submission or, more accurately, into competition.

The league should recognize these facts and act to stop the manipulation. The ole’ theory that weak market teams can’t be competitive has been totally abolished by the recent success of the Diamondbacks, Rockies, and Rays. In other words, if these teams can win against the likes of the Yankees, Phillies, Braves, and Red Sox then a historic program like Pittsburgh should have no problems.

However, adversely even if and when new regulations are enforced teams like the Pirates are still going to have trouble signing adequate talent. Players are in the market for long-term deals with high rewards but this doesn’t mean subjecting themselves to substantial misery in the process. In other words, the league can force a team to pony up but can’t impose rules and regulations for building the proper chemistry, coaching or cohesiveness necessary to handle the variety of egos and talents the league harbors. While directly we might all think that cleaning up the talent issue in Pittsburgh will automatically result in a better team there remain other expensive factors that might not be included in the new regulatory rules, thus ownership can still find a way to copout on their duty to the fan.

So for better or worse Pittsburgh seems to be in a mess for the duration despite a recent article in Sports Illustrated that suggests that Pittsburgh’s new ownership is working toward building a better franchise. What’s even more appalling is that even with league intervention we will find ourselves asking who will ultimately be the end benefactor?

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It’s that time of year again. Last night officially marked the beginning of the NFL season for me. I know the starters only played for 2 or 3 sets but it certainly hit the spot. However, last night proved more than just the start to another grueling NFL campaign; it just reminded me of why I am a monstrous proponent of the NFL’s campaign to expand the regular season by two games. The NFL has had the four preseason game schedule only for a blip of its overall existence but as a “paying” customer it isn’t hard to see why the NFL wants to extend the season into the month of August. The question is whether despite my personal feelings it will be better or worse for the NFL as a whole?

While fans would love to think that schedule expansion is truly about them it remains important to keep the wool off their eyes. Sure your favorite team potentially gets one more important home game out of the affair but that game will in effect come at a high cost. Over the course of its recent history the NFL has done nothing to demonstrate a willingness to simply engulf change for free. If you look at expansion a little deeper some of the additional costs have already floated to the surface. The Players Union will immediately return fire with the need for expanded rosters, better player insurance, and greater overall compensation. An increase in these basic costs alone will quickly and not so quietly be passed onto the consumer and they aren’t costs that big wig corporations and their hefty box seats are going to feel the brunt of. Instead, the dad who wants to take his three kids the game will suffer or even better yet the blue collar worker who already has to invest his whole paycheck to buy nose bleed seats will no longer be able to attend games. The list will go on and on. In the end the actual economic costs of attending events and/or watching them on television will become adequately more consuming and expensive, thus making the games loss some of their current luster.

While the expenses go up there are definite benefits to expansion as well. For years I have been an adamant proponent of increasing health benefits for former players. If the Players Union plays their cards right expansion could provide the best chance to get a deal worked out. Instead, of constantly worrying about direct player compensation first the Union could help all player evenly across the board by protecting their medical needs further down the line. The current NFL system provides insurance benefits for players ranging as far out into retirement as 5 years. Ironically enough, most health issues, particularly those associated with head injury; don’t show up within that realm. That means players are left to suffer extreme costs associated with injury caused by playing. Sure for a player like Peyton Manning this might not be a huge deal because the money he makes certainly allows him to purchase an extensive medical coverage plan well into his retirement. However, an offensive lineman who merely makes the league minimum might not be able to pay for extended coverage deep into his retirement due to the high risk nature of his profession. Here is where a deal would help. The Union should secure a deal that extends medical benefits in return for the two additional games. If they make this a top priority then something can finally be done to help prevent so many sad cases of brain trauma victims losing their coverage simply because they chose to play football. In this regard not only will the NFL help appeal more to their fans by giving them more of the product they so desperately want but the league would be taking on a more progressive atmosphere which could help pave the way for safer negotiations later on as matters become relatively more sticky.

In the end, I can see why schedule expansion can be bad but I see the potential as outweighing things substantially. I am not sure about you but I am willing to embrace some additional cost to get a slightly longer, yet still not overwhelming, schedule expansion in place. That being said, ultimately two more regular season games is definitely for the better.

Thanks for reading.  

Once again we find ourselves right in the thick of several highly contested divisional races in baseball. While all division races are exciting, none can compare to the race happening in the National League East.  With the Braves leading the division there are many fans that are riddled with excitement because a Braves divisional crown could mean one last crack at a championship for the tandem of Bobby Cox and Chipper Jones. However, leave it to the Philadelphia Phillies to try and foil the celebration.

Right before the trade deadline crept past the Phillies signed a deal with Roy Oswalt formerly of the Houston Astros. Oswalt has proved that wins make up just a fraction of a pitchers overall worth and should be a sufficient piece in Philadelphia’s process of returning to their third straight World Series, but was he the best choice?

While Oswalt’s 3.25 earned run average and 143 career wins solidify his position as a great addition to the Phillies pitching stable the move still leaves me scratching my head. Without diving too much into the particulars of the deal Roy is set to make a salary that equates to the $15,000,000.00 he signed in Houston. With a payout that substantial I am left wondering why the Phillies didn’t just keep Cliff Lee and his $9,000,000.00 salary. When comparing the two pitchers the numbers really don’t show that big of a gap. Lee has a career earned run average of 3.81 and 99 wins. While it seems Oswalt has been slightly better over the duration an argument could be harbored that Lee has been more consistent and dominate this season as well as the past two. When taking a look statistically Oswalt portrays a 3.53 earned run average, 6 wins and 13 loses this season and Lee sports a 2.51 earned run average, 9 wins, and only 5 losses. In recent weeks Oswalt defenders have bent the “no supporting offense” excuse to help justify his acquisition, but it is clear to me that the same argument could have been made for Lee.  In fact, when comparing the former clubs we find that Houston is 6 games ahead of Seattle in the win column. An even more in-depth look shows that Houston also scored more runs with 839 compared to Seattle’s 825. In proving that Seattle’s team is even more inept than Houston’s one begins to shed some light on the mistake that Philadelphia made in the off-season when it shipped Lee to Seattle.

After watching Oswalt get pummeled by the Washington Nationals in his Philadelphia debut it is even more difficult to clear the debris away from the decision to acquire him. While there is no question that Oswalt is a meticulous and consistent pitcher it seems that his better years might have been left in Houston. That being said, the fact that Oswalt is no-longer in the ace role could be the light at the end of Philadelphia’s tunnel. With a majority of the pressure removed Oswalt has the freedom to under perform and still provide Philadelphia with the quality starts they need to run deep into the playoffs. However, if the team had really desired to maintain their dominance in the East it seems that Lee would have clearly been the better choice. I guess hindsight is 20/20, and for better or worse the Fighting Phils are now stuck with their decision.

Thanks for reading.

 The NBA has tested our patience several times this off- season, and honestly, I’m not sure if that fact makes the league more interesting or more controversial. What I do know for sure is that things were amplified by Lebron James’ “me” first mentality. However, despite my personal distaste for his pre-“decision” antics, his Lebron-athon, or his post announcement championship celebration in South Florida, I do agree that it was his decision to make. Such is not the case with Chris Paul. Paul has let his envy expose his immaturity and unwillingness to work hard with the fortune he has been given. Sure the Hornets might not have a Dream Team roster but screaming for legalized defection isn’t going to help matters any. In my eyes Paul has already brandished himself beneath James.

 When the facts are all analyzed it is easily determined that Paul is a bigger prima-donna and egotist than James; and that’s saying something. Paul feels like the Hornets owe him something they simply cannot provide, championship caliber players. In reality the Hornets owe Paul nothing more than fulfilling their contractual obligations. Now if the contract states that the Hornets will guarantee Chris Paul a championship ring during his obligation in New Orleans then by all means Chris has a valid argument. This is not the case, therefore Paul needs to shut up, the media needs to stop chumming the story, and David Stern is right to warn teams about tampering.

 Meanwhile the Hornets are essentially between a rock and hard place. If New Orleans sticks to their guns and don’t trade Paul they will have a bitter locker room, a superstar unwilling to work hard to win, and fans who don’t feel a connection with their star. If the Hornets grant the trade the fallout from caving to the demands of a player who still has two years on contract could cause a cataclysmic ripple across the league, not to mention the New Orleans program. The best scenario for New Orleans would be to start the season, let the waters calm, see what position their team is in come the trade deadline and potentially move Paul at that time. At the very least they can publically claim a lost case to help alleviate some of the league backlash. Toronto was in a similar situation this past season and made the mistake of not getting anything valuable back for an extremely disgruntled Chris Bosh. Now he plays for a division rival and the Raptors are left picking up the pieces of their fractured franchise.

In the end New Orleans has a chance to turn an extremely bitter and disastrous situation into something worthwhile. The only thing I dread is the ripple effect from a bad decision by a newly managed franchise.

Thanks for reading.