Dallas Cowboys: Cause for Preseason Concern?

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With one more game remaining in the preseason, the Cowboys have been a hop topic for discussion since their horrible performance last Saturday in that 23-7 lost to the Houston Texans.

In that game, the Cowboys looked out of sync, discombobulated, and worn down as they were physically beaten by the Texans and raised some eye brows about the super bowl contender.

Will the red zone woes from last season carry over to this season? Can the offensive line hold up enough to keep Romo off his back? Or, can Alan Ball and Gerald Sensabaugh provide the consistent play at the safety positions this defense has desperately needed in past years.

So, here are four concerns for the Cowboys going into the last preseason game.  More importantly, these are areas they need to address with the regular season right around the corner: Read more

Questions? in the Big 12 South for the 2010 Season

You can find more great Big 12 content from Jay at Turf Burner

The summer of 2010 will officially be in the rear view mirror with the kick off of the football season this weekend. And what a summer it was for the Big 12. The conference was on life support, and then flat-lined, then was brought back to life, albeit minus a couple limbs. But that is for another time; there’s a football season to play.

The Big 12 is starting the 2010 campaign with three teams ranked in the top 10 of the preseason polls. And there are several others that hope to crash the party and make the final season of the Big 12 as we know it a special one.

Ah, yes, optimism reigns supreme in early September for nearly everyone. Despite the positive vibes coming from around the conference, this weekend will bring with it the reality that not everything is perfect. Here is a look at the Big 12 South and the questions each team needs to answer if they hope to turn that optimism into something real.

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Trading Jarrod Saltalamacchia Could Be a Bad Move

Over the last few years the Rangers have made some pretty good personnel moves: the signing of Vladimir Guerrero, The Cliff Lee Trade, Edinson Volquez for Josh Hamilton and of course the famous Mark Teixeira Trade. They have also made some bad ones: Chris Young for Adam Eaton, Alfonso Soriano for Brad Wilkerson, and John Danks for Brandon McCarthy.

The most recent move by the Rangers was trading catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia to the Boston Red Sox for right hand pitcher Roman Mendez, first baseman Chris McGuiness, a player to be named later and cash considerations. The move was done because they were disappointed in Saltalamacchia’s performance, but it was also done to bulk up their roster as they make a serious run for the post-season.

Getting to the post season in Major League Baseball is probably more difficult than other professional sports such as the NHL or the NBA, so making deals that help a team in short-term is commonly accepted. However; are the Rangers hurting themselves in the long-run by parting with a catcher who has the potential to be one of the best in the league? Will this move join the list of regrettable trades made by the Texas Rangers?

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Maverick’s Off Season Moves Smart, Strategic

This year’s NBA free agency made a big splash, mostly in South Beach. While other teams made high profile moves and Lebron James broadcasted his decision on prime television, the Mavericks acquisitions were expected and relatively quiet.

They managed to keep Dirk Nowitzki at a discounted rate and they re-signed center Brendan Haywood. In typical Maverick fashion, they also traded away Eric Dampier for center Tyson Chandler from the Charlotte Bobcats.

The Mavericks moves also received their fare share of criticism. Everyone expected them to keep Dirk, but many felt Brendan Haywood was overpaid. Their have also been questions about Tyson Chandler’s health status. Despite all this, the Maverick’s free agency was both smart and strategic. Read more

Lebron’s Decision = Implosion

In the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA) no one ever dreamed that a free agency signing would be broadcasted on ESPN as a prime time special. That’s right, millions had the luxury of watching Lebron James announce where he will play next season on a one hour show titled “The Decision”.

After watching “The Decision” the following words came to mind: diatribe, debacle, mockery, a spectacle and most importantly disrespectful. We haven’t seen such a circus act since P.T. Barnum’s “Great Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Hippodrome” was unveiled in 1875. Of course after 40 minutes of fluff, Lebron made his decision: the Miami Heat. The fan reaction in Cleveland was grim and full of despair. The reaction in Miami had band wagon fan written all over it. The entire scene was disrespectful to the Cleveland Cavaliers, their fans, and anyone who enjoys the NBA.

There is no sense in gripping about this. It’s a business plain and simple. The important question now is how this impacts the league and Lebron. Now that Lebron is teaming up with Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh and a cast of other unknown characters, will they be successful? Is the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy returning to South Beach? Will Lebron be doused in champagne come next June?

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Rangers-Astros Rivalry Needs a Spark

The Rangers have wrapped up inter-league play and just recently concluded the annual Lone Star Series with the Houston Astros. Once again, the Rangers have won the series. But did anybody really notice or even care?

Before we start this discussion, a little back ground on the series is needed. The series began in 2001. It’s a six games series and the winner is awarded the Silver Boot – a 30-inch tall display of a cowboy boot cast in silver. To date the two teams have played sixty games. The Texas Rangers lead the series with seven silver boots and thirty three wins. The Astros have three silver boots and twenty seven wins.

Over the years there have been some memorable moments, but is this series on par with the classic cross-town inter-league rivalries we see in other baseball towns? Does the Lone Star series fuel a competitive fire between the two teams that spurs fan interest?

There are many cross-town rivals/series that do. The Freeway Series (Angels vs Dodgers); the Windy City Show Down (Cubs vs White Sox), The Bay Bridge Series (Giants vs Athletics) and the Subway Series (Yankees vs the Mets). These series generate fan interest and create atmospheres similar to Texas-OU weekend.

The reason these series are so successful is because of two key ingredients: a rich history and both teams being located in the same city or metropolitan area.

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Baylor Needs to Move Forward Without Their Big 12 Counterparts

The big sports news in our great Metroplex the last couple of weeks has been the possible extinction of the Big 12.

This all started a few months ago with a short lived rumor about Texas possibly joining the Big 10. Recently, a much larger bomb was dropped when we learned Texas, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Colorado had received invitations to join the Pacific–10 Conference (PAC 10).

This invitation is part of a nationwide movement by “the best of the best” to create super conferences that are highly competitive and maximizes profits (i.e. television contracts and merchandising).

An interesting part of this whole story is Baylor University not being invited by the PAC 10, despite being in the Big 12 Conference with these schools. As a result, Baylor has been politicking in Austin. Last week, A Baylor Alumni and prestigious Texas Lobbyist, Buddy Jones, sent a letter to several Texas State Legislatures urging them to make sure the other universities board of regents included Baylor in any deal.

In a state known for good old boy politics that combines horse trading and back scratching to make deals happen, Baylor’s politicking has been successful in the past. In the mid 1990’s The Big 12 was formed between the old Southwest Conference and the Big 8 to create a more competitive conference that would generate more revenue. Despite Baylor’s small size, they were able to utilize their political capital and gain a spot in this new elite conference. In the process, they left their small private school counterparts TCU, Rice and SMU to fend for themselves in smaller conferences.

If Baylor’s political maneuvering gains them a spot in the new PAC 16, as they are now calling it, will it benefit them in the long run? Will they be able to compete and will their fans actually see their team win championships?

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Dallas Cowboys: Is Patrick Crayton Hurting Himself?

OTA’s are voluntary, but still help everyone get better. But Patrick has decided to sit this one out, and find a better deal. So far, no takers. Word is, apparently Crayton is not sending a message by skipping now according to his agent Fred Lyles. The reality of the situation is this, the Cowboys, and Crayton, might find it difficult in finding a trading partner as Crayton’s two years into a $14 million, four-year contract (with a base salary of $2 million for 2010). Unless a team is willing to trade for him and plans to start him, that’s a fair bit to be paying a backup.

Still today, Crayton remains one of the most reliable wide receivers since moving into the spotlight when Terry Glenn went down in 2007 (ending the year with career highs in catches (50), yards (697) and touchdowns (7)). That December Crayton signed a five-year contract extension and entered the 2008 season as the starting wide out opposite T.O. With the arrival of Roy Williams, Crayton dropped back on the depth chart to the 3rd option ending with 39 receptions, 550 yards and 4 TDs.  In 2009, Crayton racked up 37 receptions, 626 yards, and 5 TDs.

In 2010, the Cowboys are obliviously stacked at wide receiver, but that isn’t always the worst problem to have. After all, show me a recent high profile first round wide out, just turned multi-millionaire (with a little bit of an attitude) — that turned into an impact player in year one. Certainly, Dez has talent, and Roy Williams has something to prove. But to date, Crayton remains the most reliable wide out on the Cowboys – certainly capable of helping some team this season, but his best opportunity might be here in Dallas.

Play on Crayton.

Brian Cushing Re-vote Sends the Wrong Message

Congratulations to Brian Cushing for winning the rookie of the year award again. After receiving a four game suspension for the use of performance enhancing drugs, The Houston Texans Linebacker received the award for the second time after the league called a re-vote.

The most head scratching part of this story is not so much the suspension, but the re-vote on the rookie of the year award. In most sports, athletes are stripped of their medals, titles, or awards for using these substances.

By allowing him to keep the award, is the NFL sending the wrong message about the use of performance enhancing drugs? Is there a more appropriate way to handle this issue?

The NFL’s recent action is sending the wrong message and the main reason is they haven’t had anyone pushing them to do so. The NFL and other leagues have escaped scrutiny and investigation during the last decade because all eyes were on Major League Baseball and their problems with steroid use. Consequently, the NFL has not made a concerted effort to really address the issue. By the NFL allowing for a re-vote on the rookie of the year award, they are basically telling their fans and players that they really do not take this problem seriously. Read more

Questions about Lebron James Future

And now the most anticipated sports contract ever – finally upon us. After falling to Boston 4-2, NBA free agencies season has officially begun. Stay? Go? Are the tools in place in Cleveland? Move and build? Shaq did it. What about a change of scenery? New York? Chicago? Miami? Sacramento? Yes, apparently the Kings are on the radar. The sports world remains a buzz.

Win a championship in Cleveland this year and Lebron stays? Likely. Lose in the in the conference finals and Lebron stays? Possibly. Our world seems rocked that the Cavs lost to the Celtics in six.  Coming off the game 5 performance, James faced criticism for his lackluster 3-for-14 performance. In game six James responded with a triple-double (27-19-10), but during the final minutes remained somewhat carefree, emotionally spent.

Not to say an entire career decision rests on a week of poor play, or a series, but the larger factors need to be considered. Are the pieces in place? It seems every year Cleveland tries a new player here, or there. The plan changes, but the outcome remains the same. Back to Cavs, the real loser in this entire scenario is the city of Cleveland. This was supposed to be the year the Cavs won the title — or at least reached the NBA Finals. Now, it seems the Cavs’ poor showing against the Celtics will make it more likely James will sign elsewhere this summer.  One more win, one more series, and this might have had a different outcome.

July 1^st is right around the corner.