Redskins/Bears: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

1. Deangelo Hall- Cant say enough. He was a monster playmaker today, by far the most impactful player on the field today.

2. Ryan Torain- I will cut him some slack on the fumbles, he rushed for 100 yards for the second straight. CP's run with the redskins looks all but over

3. Santana Moss- Another pretty big game, contributing the only Redskins offensive TD

4. Albert Haynesworth- Made plenty of big plays, the defense looks good when he is at his best

5. Rocky Mcintosh- All over the place today, hes becoming extremely reliable

6. London Fletcher- Had his hand in another fumble today

7. Brian Orakpo- 2 more sacks today

The Bad:

1. Offensive Line- Mcnabb had no time to throw on multiple occasions

2. Mike Shanahan- Get that passing offense together

The Ugly:

1. Donavan Mcnabb- His performances are getting to be resemblant of JC17

2. Chris Cooley- Fumbled and dropped an easy one

3. Anthony Armstrong- Dropped one of Mcnabb's best passes of the day

Redskins/Colts: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

1. Brian Orakpo- Another sack, this time with a forced fumble that gave the Skins life in the 3rd. Can't emphasize it enough, he is an incredible player.

2. London Fletcher- Huge hit on Addai that caused a fumble

3. Lorenzo Alexander- Continues to make big plays. This time- forced fumble off a bad Hunter Smith punt

4. Ryan Torain- Ran for 100 yards and 2 tds. Ran with passion, and was the life of the offense

5. Anthony Armstrong- Congratulations on his first NFL start, a great story

6. Keiland Williams- Don't know why he was in at the end, but contributed in cutting the lead to 3

7. Phillip Buchanon- Was phenomenal on Reggie Wayne to give the ball back to the skins in a position to win

The Bad:

1.Donavan McNabb- Erratic, and starting to become the theme this season. Hey shanny, please reconsider that long term deal

2. Santana Moss- Didn't have a bad game, and not a knock on him. Teams are starting to zone in on him and not let the big play happen, mostly because nobody else can beat them

3. Mike Shanahan- Didn't let Haynesworth play

4. Kyle Shanahan- offense has no consistency

5. Jim Haslett- Ouch, its becoming hard to watch teams methodically move down the field

6. Kareem Moore- A huge dropped INT and numerous missed tackles

7. Graham Gano- Missed a big kick. Lost by 3

The Ugly:

1. Carlos Rogers- No need for further explanation. He gets "The Ugly" all to himself this week

Redskins/Packers: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

1. Laron Landry- The hero of the game. 13 tackles, a forced fumble, and the huge INT in OT. If only number 21 was with us.

2. Brian Orakpo- Best player on the field today, and that included Clay Matthews. Brian had 2 sacks, drew ANOTHER holding penalty, and would have had about 5 sacks if they called the rest of the holds. The sack in OT caused Fedex to erupt

3. Chris Cooley- Those broken tackles in the fourth quarter were unbelievable

4. Santana Moss- Hello, pro bowl. Another 100 yard day, quickly becoming Donavan's go to guy

5.Anthony Armstrong- Gave the skins a huge lift with that great TD catch

6. Graham Gano- Could have easily been in the ugly, but hey, he made that kick to tie the game, and that was enormous

7. Mike Sellers- Had 2 huge hits on special teams, and had a nice reception as well

The Bad:

1. Casey Rabach- Literally got owned by B.J. Raji and on multiple occasions.

2. Mike Shanahan- Why in God's name did he run that play at the end of regulation? Didn't learn from what the Cowboys did in week 1? Trent Williams also got injured on the play

3. Donavan Mcnabb- Missed several open recievers. Looked like JC17 for most of the first 3 quarters. Stepped up when it mattered though

4. Redskins offensive line- They were miserable today

The Ugly:

1. Carlos Rogers- Continues to drop crucial interceptions

2. Redskins running game- Torain was decent early, but Shanahan went away from him completely

4.

Redskins/Eagles: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

1.Ryan Torain: 18 carries for 70 yards and a TD. D.C. may have found a back

2. Clinton Portis: He got hurt, but he ran harder than we have seen in a long time

3. The entire offensive line besides stephon heyer: I didnt hear anybody else's name. Thats a good thing

4.Deangelo Hall: The game ending pick, and pretty much shut down desean jackson

5.Brian Orakpo: He is fucking good. Got held on numerous occasions, and got to Kolb once

6. Brandon Banks: Showed a burst as a punt returner that we havent seen since Brian Mitchell

The Bad:

1. Mike Shanahan: Had to take 2 timeouts in the first minute of the second half. brutal

2. Kyle Shanahan: Clearly not on the same page as his father

3. Donavan Mcnabb: Got off to a great start, but missed plenty of open recievers

4. Anthony Armstrong: Inexplicably fell down after the bomb from Mcnabb. Ended up costing the skins a TD

5. Jim Haslett: Something just isn't right about this defense

The Ugly:

1. Stephon Heyer: Speaks for itself, a pink slip is in order

2. Josh Bidwell: A miserable performance may have Bidwell getting a pink slip as well

3. Carlos Rogers: Another dropped INT, would have ended the game, too

4.Santana Moss. Zero catches? how does that happen

5. Rocky Macintosh: Had quite a bit of missed tackles

Redskins/Rams

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

1. Santana Moss- 6 catches for 124 yards and a TD. The only player on offense that seems to want to contribute

2. Phillip Daniels- Great block on the FG at the end of the half.. impressive

3. Brian Orakpo- Great chase down sack on Bradford. He will be on this list every week

4. Ryan Torain- Actually lets somebody tackle him before he goes down

5. Reed Doughty- Great play on special teams to force a fumble after a week of criticism

The Bad:

1. Mike Shanahan- Gotta get your team ready to beat a team that has lost 44 of 50 and 14 in a row at home

2. Clinton Portis- Come on, man. Stop falling down before you get tackled

3. Donavan Mcnabb- Outplayed by a rookie

4. Dick Stockton- I literally can't listen to him, considering the mute button in the future

5. Jim Haslett- He tries, but he just doesn't have the personnel for the 3-4 defense

The Ugly:

1. Stephon Heyer- Boy did the skins miss Trent Williams. Horrible holding foul on a big play to moss

2. Chris Cooley- He is supposed to be the biggest playmaker on the offense. Absolute no show

3. Danny Smith- Worst special teams coach in the league

4. Graham Gano- Kicked the opening kick out of bounds. Inexplicable

5. Carlos Rogers- Does he know he's allowed to start at the line of scrimmage?

6. Kareem Moore- Two horrendous open field tackle attempts that resulted in Rams TD's

7. Deangelo Hall- Shut Up

8. Albert Haynesworth- It's like he isn't even on the field

9. Roydell Williams- He is awful

10. Derrick Dockery- Didn't get a snap on Sunday

Strasburg Jaw-Droppingly Good in Debut

Wow. That is really the only way to describe what was seen on Tuesday night before a sell-out crowd at Nationals Park. One bad pitch was roped into the right field seats, and besides that, he was nearly unhittable. Strasburg retired the last 7 batters all by strikeout, and with every pitch the crowd grew more electric. The three pitches he features were unlike anything any Pirate hitter had ever seen before. "You see a lot of pitchers who throw like 97-98, but hes got everything- a nasty curve, a changeup," said Pirates shortstop Roger Cedeno. "His changeup is like 89-90-91 miles an hour, man. That's hard to hit." Of course Cedeno wasn't the only Pirate hitter baffled at home plate, there were 13 other strikeout victims. It is pretty safe to say that Sunday's start against the Indians will be even more hyped up than the last, considering everyone has now seen the phenom pitch. Welcome to D.C. Mr. Strasburg, and please, never leave.

Nats Desperately in Need of Help; Comes in Strasburg Tomorrow

After a promising April and a good half of May, the Washington Nationals were hovering around first place in the N.L. East. The last few weeks have not been kind to Riggleman's troops. After a 20-15 start ending with a pummeling the Rockies at Coors Field, the Nats have lost 16 of their past 23 games, and are a season high 4 games below .500. Could there be a better time for their phenom pitcher to make his Major League debut? Absolutely not. Tomorrow is the biggest day in the history of Nationals Park, and everyone will be watching. The MLB network will cover the game, and Baseball Tonight will be live from Nationals Park on ESPN. A strong start from Strasburg and a win tomorrow could jump start this team to make a run. The Pirates, Indians, White Sox, Royals, and Orioles loom on their schedule the rest of the month. These are 5 bad teams, and it isn't like the Nats have been getting blown out lately. They keep losing one run heart breakers, and that is bound to change soon. Whenever they hit, the bullpen can't keep a lead. Whenever they get strong pitching, the hitting is absent. Tune in tomorrow for Strasburg's first start, and hopefully a good one that gets the Nats rolling in the right direction.

Skins Still Bottom Feeders in the Beast

There is a lot of hope surrounding the Redskins these days, just like every other team in D.C. The Redskins have definitely improved this offseason, but they still have so much work to do to get better. With Shanahan at the helm the Redskins are clearly going in the right direction. However, this will not be the year they leap the Cowboys, Giants, and Eagles. I still think the Cowboys and Giants are far above the Skins, with experienced and proven quarterbacks in Romo and Manning. The Eagles have Kolb behind center now, but have much less holes on their ball club. The Skins still have a borderline abysmal offensive line, with only Derrick Dockery a proven one. You could say Casey Rabach is too, but he is a mediocre and old center. Trent Williams was a gamble with the 4th pick and we are going to have to wait to see how that works out. It does not matter who is behind center if the offensive line won't block, and that could spell early injury for number 5. There is only one position on the offensive side of the ball that the Redskins are deeper than anyone in the division. With Cooley and Fred Davis, the Skin's tight ends could give fits to opposing defenses with their recieving abilities. However, neither is known for their blocking. The Redskins might also have the worst defense in the division. The Cowboys defense was great down the stretch last season, and the Eagles is always formidable. The Giants are the only question mark, but have made more moves on that side of the ball than the Skins have. Bad safety play and a questionable pass rush could spell doom for Haslett's troops. Expect the Redskins to be much more competitive in the division, but finish 7-9 and last place in the Beast.

Celts/Lakers Breakdown

A great rivalry has been renewed. From Russell/Chamberlain to Magic/Bird, and now to Kobe vs the big four for the second time in three years. This will be a phenomenal matchup. I want to look at each of the possible individual matchups for this series. Fisher will be on Rondo at the start, but do not expect that to last. Rondo is too quick for the long time veteran, a completely different cover for him than Nash in the previous series. Kobe will be on Allen, shadowing him at the 3 point line. This matchup clearly goes to the Lakers. Artest and Pierce is the most important matchup. Pierce has turned his game back on, and when he plays well the Celtics are tough to beat. Since Artest isn't relied on for any offensive production, he can totally concentrate on Pierce at the defensive end. Advantage Lakers. The Gasol and Garnett matchup went to Garnett and the Celts 2 years back. KG is older and gimpier these days, and Gasol has proven to be the best big man in the league. Advantage Lakers. Bynum and Perkins will go at it, and this is an interesting matchup. Bynum is hurt but has the size to dominate Perkins. Perkins gives little to nothing on the offensive end. Once again this one goes to the Lakers, who are better at 4 of the 5 starting matchups. I also like the Lakers bench more, with Lamar Odom being better than any player off the Celtics bench. Farmar is a better backup point guard then Nate Robinson. Rasheed Wallace has been on and off in this postseason, so I have no idea there. Shannon Brown will get plenty of minutes in this series, for his athleticism and defense. In 2008 the Celts had home court, three hungry superstars still at the edge of their prime, and a much better bench. The Lakers are a better team now, and Kobe will have that chip on his shoulder from losing that series embarrassingly in game 6 by 39 points. The Lakers have home court and are better. They will win this series in 6 games.

Caps/Pens to Play at Heinz Field in Winter Classic

How hungry will these two superstars be in this game? On a big time national stage after disappointing premature exits from their seasons, I expect Ovechkin and Crosby to be on another level next season. Not as if they aren't on one already, I just really think they are going to kick it up a notch. Both high powered offenses got shut down by the surprising Habs, and questions loomed about Ovechkin. Ovechkin got a lot of unwarranted criticism for the Caps early exit, but they just lost to a better team with an even hotter goaltender. These two are still so young, and I expect multiple championships for both. I am really looking forward to this matchup, and I expect the Ovechkin-Crosby rivalry to get a little more intense and be a featured playoff series next spring.

The Unlikeliest of Heroes

Just a few minutes after taking a horrible shot with 23 seconds on the shot clock and a 3 point lead with less than a minute left, Ron Artest, the defensive stopper, hit a game winner off the glass as time expired. Staples Center followed with an absolute frenzy, and the Lakers escaped with a Game 5 win before heading back to Phoenix. Did anyone see his interview right after with Craig Sager? After Sager mentioned the bad three pointer he launched, Artest says, "Well there was once a time when I shot 40 percent from the three point line in this league." This was an extremely irrelevant point made by Artest. Hey Ron, that time is not now! You are now a miserable three point shooter, and that erroneous heave almost cost your team the game. Kobe said it perfectly after the game. "I'm glad he made that shot." Kobe looked like the most furious person in the building after that shot, and if the Lakers had lost you would have heard about it from him. Once again the Lakers survive a game they easily could have lost, they have now gotten away with a game in each one of their three playoff series. The Suns made a valiant effort and played just about to their maximum potential, but too much talent is on the floor in the form of Kobe, Pau Gasol, and Lamar Odom.

3-0 Seems Like a Long Time Ago for the City of Boston

Imagine if the Celtics drop Game 6 at home on Friday night, the pressure that will follow in a Game 7 on the road, after once being up 3-0 in their series with the Magic. Imagine the same city blowing a 3-0 series lead in two sports in a matter of 2 weeks. It has only happened 4 times in sports history, and never in basketball. The Bruins just blew a 3-0 lead to the Stanley Cup bound Flyers, and that is now known as one of the biggest chokes in sports history. This one will be right up there. After dominating the first 3 games while containing Dwight Howard, the tides have turned. Orlando now has their swagger back, especially the man in the middle. 21 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks for Dwight, finally taking over a must win game. Just 6 years after the Red Sox became the 3rd team in sports history to come back from 3-0 against their biggest rivals, 2010 could be a year to remember for all the worst reasons in Boston.

Flyers Cup Birth Shows Parity of NHL

The Stanley Cup Finals are finally here, where the Chicago Blackhawks will face the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers are the 7th seeded team in the Eastern Conference, and made the playoffs on the last day of the regular season in a shootout over the New York Rangers. The Flyers run shows exactly what the NHL is all about. The teams that
make the finals get hot at the right time. Everything comes together, with stellar goaltending leading the way. On their
way to the Finals, the Flyers did everything you will never see in the NBA. The Flyers lost their number 1 goalie Ray Emery mid-season, then lost their playoff goalie Brian Boucher against the Bruins. Their current goalie is Michael Leighton, who was not even in the NHL when the Flyer's season started. They were the 7 seed in the East, and they came back from a 3-0 deficit against the Bruins in the East Semis. No team in NBA history has come back from a 3-0 hole, and this season the San Antonio Spurs became the first 7 seed in NBA history to win a playoff series. The Flyers did not even need to play the heavyweights of the East to get here, thanks to the Canadiens, who they beat in the East Finals. The Habs knocked out the Caps and Penguins in two grueling 7 game affairs. If the 7 and 8 seeds made the Eastern Conference Finals in the NBA, it would have featured the Bobcats against the Bulls. Would never happen. The NHL may not quite get the ratings that the NBA does, and the casual fan might not care at all about the NHL. I advise everyone to tune into the NHL playoffs, as it is a tournament of 16 teams that can all win it. The NBA probably has a maximum of 6 teams that are capable of winning the title. The NHL's claim to fame is its parity, and its showing its true colors in these playoffs.

Stoudemire Deserves Max Contract

He is one of the premiere free agents this summer. He is an all star player still playing in the conference finals. Meet Amare Stoudemire, who exploded for 42 points to get the Suns a game 3 win and back into their series with the Lakers. I've heard a lot of chatter around the league that Amare doesn't deserve a max deal like Lebron, Wade, Bosh, and Dirk. I am not a fan of this talk, as it is unjustified. In a do or die game 3 for his Suns, Amare was an absolute animal, simply unguardable. He was abusing maybe the best power forward in the game in Pau Gasol. I can not say the same for Mr. Howard, who shrunk in a do or die situation with his team. Amare was the best player on the court last night, in an arena that hosted Kobe Bryant. Chris Bosh seems to be the featured big man in free agency, but I'm not buying it. Bosh has proven nothing to me, has been far from a winner. This is not the first time Amare abused a premiere power forward. This game looked similar to when Amare destroyed Tim Duncan in the 2005 Western finals for 42 points and 16 rebounds. He is an elite level athlete, and a very skilled forward. My message to the Knicks, Heat, Clippers, Wizards, and Bulls is to go after Stoudemire before Bosh. Hey Amare, come to D.C.!

Beltway Series Shows Where Nats/O's Stand

Josh Willingham's 10th inning blast gave the Nats a much needed series victory over the lowly Orioles on Sunday. Matt Capps blew his first save of the season, but the resilient Nats didn't let that cost them the win. This series really showed which direction each team is heading. The Nats were struggling coming into the weekend, having dropped 6 of their past 7 games. The Orioles have been the worst team in baseball all season, but they got first blood on Friday night. However, they could not build on an early lead on Saturday as well. Their woeful bullpen blew the game, then lost the series on Sunday. The O's inexplicably keep getting worse year after year, and really seem to be one of the worst franchises in sports right now. The Nats showed their true colors in this series, battling through some adversity on the path to a win. It's a long season, so there will be hot streaks and cold streaks. The Nats were on a cold streak and now look to get rolling in the right direction after the series win over the O's. Up next, a 10 game road trip going West. This stretch is an important one for D.C. Lets go Nats!

Dwight Not So Dominant

7 points? 3-10 from the field? I was under the assumption that Dwight Howard was a dominant player in this league, an elite level game changer in the playoffs. This was a do or die game for the Magic, and big Dwight was awfully small. I'm not putting all of this on Howard, as his teammates were equally terrible last night. How does somebody that big down low have only 10 shots from the field and 7 points? He is a great defensive player and he is a great rebounder. Yet last night he had 7 rebounds. He can dominate a series when its the Bobcats or the Hawks, or the center-less Cavaliers of a year ago, but is absent when the challenge arises. Howard must get better offensively. If Shaq in his prime was playing a playoff series against Kendrick Perkins, he would have averaged 35 points and 17 rebounds. That is dominance, something Howard only knows about against the Eastern Conference scrubs. All this talk about Howard being a superstar needs to halt until he steps up to the challenge.

Run Ricky Run

I just got a chance to watch the ESPN 30 for 30 on Ricky Williams. I thought it was very well done. I learned a lot about his life that I never knew, such as his accusation of his father sexually abusing him and then being absent for the rest of his childhood. I found it just fascinating how his personality relates to his playing style, which it doesn't at all! On the field he is an absolute beast. He trucks over linebackers and has phenomenal breakaway speed. Even at age 32, it's like he hasn't lost a step. Off the field, he is passive, has a social anxiety problem, and only feels comfortable when he is alone in the dark. If you hear him talk, he might say something completely normal followed by something very odd. He is just a weird guy, but a very likeable guy. Everyone hated him for retiring early in 2004 to go to Australia to smoke weed and live in a tent. People needed to realize that he isn't like all the other football players. He felt overwhelmed and stressed, and he needed to leave the game. Smoking pot made him feel comfortable. Is that so horrible? He realized during his absence that he loved to play football so he came back. He accepted his role as a backup to Ronnie Brown, as he should have. Ricky is very aware that he is different, and that makes it better. He is still running like a freight train, and I am one of his biggest supporters after watching this. I hope he runs for 1500 yards this season and makes the pro bowl. People need to stop judging, and start understanding. Run Ricky run!

Lebron talk too much

Go to ESPN.com, click on the NBA, and scroll down about half the page. There you will see the Lebron tracker, which is a countdown to July 1st when he becomes a free agent. Am I the only NBA fan who is still watching the conference finals? How does Lebron talk a month in a half before he is even eligible for free agency outweigh the playoffs? I think the playoffs have been great, even without a lot of the matchups being very competitive. We saw the emergence of the Thunder and Durant, who will without question be making noise in the west for years. We have seen the domination of the Lakers front line and Kobe not missing a beat despite his age. And possibly the most intriguing part of the playoffs has been the Celtics turning on the light switch in beating the Cavs and taking the first 2 in Orlando. So stop reading every article on where Lebron might land, and start getting ready for a matchup of the last 2 NBA champs, and one of the most storied rivalries in sports. Lebron's decision will shift the balance of power in the league for the next 10 years, but lets look at that in late June after the finals. I am not downplaying the relevancy of Lebron's free agency, but rather concentrating on whats going on now in the NBA that is clearly more intriguing.

Strasburg/Harper creating buzz in D.C.

Hello hope! Two miserable 59 win campaigns could be the reason for the Washington Nationals quick transformation into a contender in the N.L. East. Since coming to the District in '05, there haven't been many memorable moments for the Nats. But back to back abysmal seasons have led to a phenom pitcher just weeks away from becoming the nation's top story, and a potential "Lebron James" type athlete, according to Sports Illustrated, finally hitting the baseball front. Strasburg and Harper are two can't miss talents, and the Nats may just have both. The numbers are absolutely staggering! In 3 starts in Triple A, Strasburg has a 0.00 ERA, which last time I checked, was perfect. He has struck out 22 batters to just 4 walks. That says impeccable location. He has given up a whopping 4 hits. As long as that arm stays intact, he is a lock to be an elite level pitcher by next season at the latest. If you watched last night's start, Strasburg had a devastating, knee buckling 12 to 6 curve that was literally unhittable. As for Harper, one homer at age 15 says it all. A 570 foot bomb at Tropicana field, deepest shot ever there. After 5 years of being a laughing stock, these two studs could lead the resurrection of a franchise to more then just relevance. Yes folks, I'm talking championships. A lot of good young pieces already intact with a few vets, these two could put them over the edge. I'm gonna throw out a prediction here. The Nats will make the NLCS before the Capitals win a Stanley Cup!

Wall is similar to Celtics' Rondo

In 12 of the last 13 draft lottery's, the Washington Bullets/ Wizards either stayed in their draft order or moved DOWN. One of the most ridiculously unlucky statistics you will ever hear and impeccable to D.C. sports. And even when they did move up and got the number 1 pick in 2001, they had Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry, and Kwame Brown to choose from. We all know how that worked out. On Tuesday, May 18th, D.C. got its first stroke of luck in a decade. The Wiz will pick first in June's draft, and will without question take star point guard John Wall. It could be a transformation of a franchise out of the gutter. People compare him to Derrick Rose, but I see alot of Rajon Rondo. He struggles with his outside shot but he will get better. He has a devastating crossover dribble and is as quick as I have ever seen anyone on the court. He has a will to get into the lane and finish. You are seeing the maturity of Rondo in these playoffs, how he is becoming more of a dominant scorer. You will see all of that and more from Wall, who could be the biggest lock of an all star player since Lebron James was selected in 2003. It is D.C. though, so anything can happen. Coming from the district, stay pessimistic.

Moss linked to Galea

Just when things were starting to look up in D.C., the Buffalo News reported this morning that Santana Moss received performance enhancing drugs from Canadian doctor Anthony Galea in the form of HGH. Moss has been the leading receiver for the Skins since '05. How big of a deal is this? And how will Commissioner Goodell handle this situation? PED use in the NFL is nowhere near as big a deal as it is in the MLB. In baseball, the use of PED's creates a distinct advantage for the individual. Especially when such a small percentage of players use it. Lets be real here. How many players in the NFL have at one time taken PED's? And with it being such a physical sport, is there really any advantage being had by these beasts? Moss has been plagued by nagging injuries since he got here in '05, and just had minor knee surgery. Galea claims his treatment is for healing purposes only, and Moss has been injured. So lets put a pin in this for now and say it wont negatively effect the Skins upcoming campaign, unless Moss gets a suspension. Coming from the District, stay pessimistic.