News and Personal Thoughts:
Ravens: Now that was a Super Bowl
that I enjoyed watching. Saints looked like crap the first quarter, but then
shook off the jitters and found creative ways to keep the ball out of Manning's
hands. The Saints played boldly. Going for it on 4th down at the 1 early on was
risk that did not pay off at first, but strengthen their claim in the field
position battle for the remainder of the first half. The play call stunk, but
the move was gutsy. Of course, nothing can top the on-side kick to start the 2nd
half. High risk, high reward. That really set the tone for the second half.
Whomever came out of the bottom of that heap with the ball would receive the
full momentum: The Colts would either have a short field, or the Saints would
have a re-energized attitude. The Saints came out on top of the scrum, and that
gave them what they needed to play a strong 2nd half. Of course the Stover
missed field goal (There must have only been one man that thought he could make
that kick -- the head coach) and the Pick-6 contributed greatly to the final
score, it was one of the best super bowl games in a long time... and the refs
let them play!
The biggest off-season question will revolve around the stalled negotiations between the owners and the players union.
Orioles: Reliever Dennis Sarfate cleared waivers and was sent outright to AAA Norfolk. The Orioles have yet to announce the signing out Mark Hendrickson, which would trigger another rooster move, most likely designating reliever Armando Gabino for assignment. The Orioles continue to negotiate with Jeremy Guthrie in an attempt avoid salary arbitration, scheduled for later this month.
The Orioles have signed veteran left-handed reliever Will Ohman to a minor league deal with an invitation to big league spring training. He'll compete with Alberto Castillo, Wilfrido Perez and non-roster invitee Mike Hinckley to win the job as the situational left-hander in the Orioles' bullpen.
The Orioles finally announced the re-signing of Mark Hendrickson to a 1-year deal, with a 2011 option.
Crystal Palace Baltimore F.C. (Home games at UMBC): 2011 season has been posted, with the Place opening the season at home against FC Tampa Bay on April 16.
Crystal Palace Baltimore have signed three players with proven abilities at the second division level, adding critical depth and experience to the 2010 squad. Defender Shaun Pejic joins from the Vancouver Whitecaps, while attack-minded pair Randi Patterson and Tsuyoshi Yoshitake were both with the Charleston Battery.
Alouettes: Former Stallions QB Tracy Ham, and Linebacker Elfrid Payton were selected to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame.
Blast: The Baltimore Blast (5-6) lost their 4th in row and dropped to 4th place, 1½ games back, after losing away and home games to arch-nemesis Milwaukee. Next game is Friday, February 12 at home against Philadelphia.
Next game is a road trip to Milwaukee on Saturday, a team that traditionally presents the Blast with a very tough game.
Tickets have been received for the February 19 game.
Mariners (See website for more details): The Mariners Cheerleading team has been announced.
See their website for a biography of J.R. Cipra, Baltimore City teacher, and Mariners kicker.
Capitals (See website for more details): The Caps (41-12-6) winning streak has reached 14 games, and now boast the best record in the NHL, 1 point better than San Jose.This past week, they posted wins against Boston, the Rangers, Atlanta, and the Penguins.
Coming up this week, they will travel to face Montreal (28-26-6) on Wednesday, Ottawa (33-22-4) on Thursday, and then St. Louis (25-25-9) on Saturday, before the Olympics break.
Wizards (See website for more details): This past week, the Wizards (17-32) split games against the Knicks and Orlando, before having the home game against Atlanta postponed.Today's snapshot has the Wizards tied for 2nd worst record in the Eastern Conference with Detroit, only percentage points behind Indiana, and 1½ games behind the Knicks and Philadelphia. Pretty much the opposite situation from the Caps.
This week, they are scheduled to travel to Charlotte (24-25) on Tuesday.
What do you want to see in the Ravens report? What should be scrapped? Actually, nevermind. No one is reading this anyway so you probably won't know the difference. Send an email to iggy at tealdragon.net. Thanks!
Although the NFL has not officially released their schedule for 2010, the matchups are predictable assuming a continuation of the current methodology.
| Home | Away |
|---|---|
| Cincinnati Bengals (15-13, 9-5) | Cincinnati Bengals (15-13, 6-8) |
| Cleveland Browns (15-7, 8-3) | Cleveland Browns (15-7, 7-4) |
| Pittsburgh Steelers (11-19, 7-8) | Pittsburgh Steelers (11-19, 4-11) |
| Buffalo Bills (2-2, 2-1) | New England Patriots (1-5, 1-3) |
| Miami Dolphins (4-5, 1-1) | New York Jets (5-1, 1-1) |
| Houston Texans (3-0, 1-0) | Denver Broncos (5-3, 1-3) |
| New Orleans Saints (3-1, 2-1) | Atlanta Falcons (2-1, 1-1) |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-2, 0-1) | Carolina Panthers (0-3, 0-2) |