Best And Worst Of NFL Week 12

Well another week gone, and things are getting more and more interesting in the NFL as time goes by. The playoff picture, in the AFC at least, has gotten a little interesting. There was a little separation in the wild card race. The Jets and Dolphins had a chance to pad their leads in that area and they blew it, allowing for San Diego and Baltimore to remain very much in the hunt with them. The Titans managed to launch themselves into that last wild card spot in the AFC, Pittsburgh has seemed to recover from their worst start in 45 years, and things are starting to really bunch up. With the NFC we can see the separation amongst some of the teams. The East and North are weak, just based on the fact that the division leaders stand at 6-5 in each division. Things are really going to come down to the wire, and teams that are sitting on the bubble are going to have to play great the rest of the way if they want to get in. Week 12 in the NFL helped change the complexion of the playoff picture a little more. So with that in mind, here's some of the best and worst performances from this past week in the National Football League.

Best:
Philip Rivers, Quarterback San Diego Chargers
The Chargers are still in this wild card chase in the AFC at 5-6. San Diego pulled off a huge win, beating the Kansas City Chiefs, a very good football team. How good was Rivers on Sunday? With his team trailing by four points with 1:22 remaining in the game, Rivers led a seven play, 78-yard drive that culminated in a 26-yard touchdown pass to Seyi Ajirotutu with 24 seconds remaining. Rivers finished with 392 yards passing for three touchdowns and zero interceptions in San Diego’s 41-38 win. Now we know from past experiences that Philip Rivers is a very good quarterback. Would I put him up in the elite status.....no. But is he up there as one of the best in the game....yes. He showed me Sunday that he still has something left in the tank.

Worst:
Geno Smith, Quarterback New York Jets
This is infuriating to no end, it really is. The rookie quarterback was dreadful in the Jets’ 19-3 loss to Baltimore, completing 9 of 22 passes for 127 yards and throwing two key second half interceptions to Ravens cornerback Corey Graham. Smith has only thrown one touchdown in his past six games (along with 10 interceptions during that time). After the game, head coach Rex Ryan did not commit to starting the second-round pick in the team’s Week 13 game versus Miami next Sunday. Geno has thrown 8 touchdowns on the season, but 18 interceptions. That's been a problem with the Jets this year, they can't be a pass first offense I'm sorry but they really can't be. They are built to be a running team and they don't do that enough. Smith isn't the type of Quarterback I can look at and say he is going to be the guy to build my team around. You need to give a decent QB something to work with at receiver and the Jets didn't. Some of this is Smith's fault for making bad decisions with the ball, but at the same time he can only do so much with the targets he has to throw to, and those targets aren't all that great. It's pathetic to watch at times it really is.

Best:
Josh Gordon, Wide Receiver Cleveland Browns
Despite losing his starting quarterback Jason Campbell to a concussion in the third quarter, the Browns wideout set a team record with 237 yards receiving in Cleveland’s 27-11 loss to the Steelers. Gordon was targeted by Campbell and his replacement Brandon Weeden a combined 17 times. He caught 14 of those passes, including one for a late game touchdown. To say that Gordon was in a groove on Sunday would be an understatement. The win helped keep Cleveland, at least for the moment, above water.

Worst:
Greg Jennings, Wide Receiver Minnesota Vikings
Now I love Greg Jennings, i think he one of the best wide outs in the game today, when he's on his game. Sunday, in a return to Green Bay, he wasn't exactly on his game. Actually he wasn't much of a factor at all in this ballgame. He was targeted three times by Christian Ponder, catching two passes for 29 yards (and hearing loud boos from the Green Bay fans on the first one.) His biggest impact ended up coming on a 3rd and 5 from the Minnesota 44 late in overtime, when he dropped what would have been a sure first down for the Vikings. A continued drive could have set up kicker Blair Walsh for a potential game-winning field goal try but instead Minnesota was forced to punt as their defense held on to preserve a 26-26 tie.

Best:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Secondary
Already playing without suspended safety Dashon Goldson, the Bucs defense suffered another setback when Darrelle Revis didn’t return for the second half after suffering a groin injury. No worries. The team finished with four interceptions, including a crucial late game pick by rookie Johnthan Banks off a Calvin Johnson deflection that sealed Tampa Bay’s 24-21 win.

Worst:
Bruce Carter and Jeff Heath, Defensive Backs Dallas Cowboys
The two Cowboys defenders didn’t bother to touch Giants tight end Brandon Myers after he caught a ball and fell to the ground at the Dallas 8-yard-line on a 4th & 3 play late in the third quarter. Myers got up and ran the ball into the end zone for a touchdown. The defensive lapse allowed to Giants to narrow the Cowboys’ 21-6 lead and start a rally that eventually resulted in a 21-21 tie late in the fourth quarter. The only lasting consequence of the play was likely just a lecture from their coaching staff, as Tony Romo and Dez Bryant were able to lead a crunchtime drive that resulted in a game-winning Dan Bailey field goal as time expired. I know the Cowboys won the game, and the Giants couldn't stop Tony Romo on the drive late, but those two guys should be ashemd of themsleves for that kind of play. You play in the NFL that's a bush league move, that can't happen.

Best:
Karlos Dansby, Linebacker Arizona Cardinals
Arizona isn't a team to be sleeping on anymore this season. They pulled out a big blowout 40-11 win over the Colts, and Dansby had a big impact on that end result. The Cardinals linebacker picked off Andrew Luck for a 22-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter of Arizona’s 40-11 rout of the Colts. Dansby was also his team’s leading tackler as the Cardinals dominated on both sides of the ball to improve to 7-4. Arizona is very much alive in this playoff chase in the NFC, and should make a lot of noise the rest of the way. They are a team that isn't getting much attention, when they should be for a team as good as they are.

Worst:
Trent Richardson, Running Back Indianapolis Colts
The Colts gave up a first-round pick earlier this season to acquire what they thought would be their most dominant running back since Edgerrin James. The second-year back, who was battling a calf injury all week, hasn’t run for more than 60 yards in any game since joining Indianapolis. Richardson was outrushed by both Dan Herron and his quarterback Andrew Luck against the Cardinals, gaining only 15 yards on seven carries. Richardson is a very good running back, but it seems that he hasn't been able to really find his groove since joining the Colts in that blockbuster trade. He could be that bigtime back that the Colts have looked for since James, and Richardson could be that guy for Indy. He just needs time to get healthy and find his game, he shall be just fine.

Best:
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Quarterback Tennessee Titans
He's Back! The Titans’ backup quarterback hit Kendall Wright on a 10-yard touchdown pass with 10 seconds left to give Tennessee a 23-19 win over the Raiders and keep his team in the mix for the AFC’s sixth seed. Now this is all coming after franchise QB Jack Lockhart went down with Injury against the Jets. It left Titans fans wondering if they could be able to rebound and stay in the playoff hunt. Well it looks like that question has been answered.

Worst:
Robert Griffin III, Quarterback Washington Redskins
The Redskins were outplayed by the 49ers on Monday Night Football, falling 27-6. RG3 really hasn't looked like himself this year. Around this time last year, there was talk that he could be the next big thing in the NFL. I think he still can be, but he hasn't been able to comeback mentally from his injury last year. It's hurting the Redskins this year. He is still a very good quarterback, and will still be a factor in the NFL for a long time to come, but this year just isn't his year.

Game Of The Year Nominee
New England Patriots 34, Denver Broncos 31 (OT)
This game was hands down the best game of the week, maybe the entire season. Denver had a 24-0 lead at the half, and Tom Brady looked off, as he had trouble holding onto the football. But the 2nd half started and Tom Brady came back, helping lead the Patriots to a thrilling 34-31 overtime win. This game showed me two things. One is that Payton Manning really does seem to have trouble playing in cold weather games, going 19 of 36 for 150 yards 2 touchdowns and 1 pick. Those numbers are below what Manning has been putting up this season. What kept Denver in this ball game was the 249 rushing yards, helping keep Denver in this ballgame on offense. This could be a situation Denver could be in again come playoff time against the Patriots, so they had better really learn from it. As for New England, this game was a statement by Tom Brady. It told me that even though he had a rough start and rough first half, he can still pull out a big win when its needed. Brady, by turning the game around in the 2nd half, launched himself into the status of one one the greatest quarterbacks to every play this game.

Alex Rodriguez Case Gets More Interesting By The Minute

We all read the sports pages and listen to sports talk radio. We all know what's been going on with Alex Rodriguez and the steroids case. The new twist yesterday just turned the heat up on the case and made things more interesting. Rodriguez is appealing his 211 game suspension for steroids. The case took an interesting turn during the hearing yesterday when Rodriguez walked out of the hearing. Why did he leave? Because baseball commissioner Bud Selig didn't show up at the hearing. Selig was asked to show up to testify on the case, but wasn't forced to show up thus not giving the time to the case. This angered Rodriguez, with good reason.

This, and subsequently what Rodriguez told local radio station WFAN afterwards, made me rethink this whole case. First things first. Bud Selig no showing at the hearing tells me something. I know he is a busy man, with running Major League Baseball and all, but still this case is a big deal and he needs to make time for this case. It's his prized story and he wasn't there for it. That tells me one of two things. Either he doesn't have time at all, or he just stopped giving a damn about this case. This is making a statement that Selig and baseball aren't trying to push this hard for this incident anymore. It's telling me that Baseball is sort of turning their back on this incident.

Which leads me to my next point with Rodriguez. He went straight from the hearing to WFAN in New York and went on the radio to give his side of it. When asked if he had done any steroids, any interfering with witnesses, or anything he has been accused of, Rodriguez answered no to all of it. Rodriguez maintained his innocence. Today Rodriguez attorney's said that they will not show anything else to baseball until baseball steps forward and the commissioner agrees to testify. It may not be the smartest of moves but I like that idea. The reason is because it's fully calling the bluff of Major League Baseball. Its saying to me that Rodriguez's people are done busting their humps to get this resolved since baseball doesn't seem interested in getting more involved.

Based on what has happened in the last two days, i'm starting to see that Rodriguez may be in the right here and the suspension should be reduced. Did he do steroids? I have no idea. Lets say that he did, based on everything that has gone down the last two days, Rodriguez should still be suspended but it should be cut in half.  Why? Because baseball doesn't seem to have as much conviction anymore. With Selig not showing up it shows that baseball just wants this out of the way already and its not going to happen. Baseball is shooting themselves in the foot on the whole issue.

Here's what I would do. I would say get Rodriguez and his people in a room with Commissioner Bud Selig and his people. Lock them in a room and nobody leaves until we get all the facts straight and a final decision is reached. Do I think A-Rod is guilty? Yes but now it doesn't appear to be as bad as baseball made it sound.

I know this is getting confusing, trust me its confusing for me too. But we will keep an eye and ear on this story as more information becomes available.

Rangers, Tigers Pull Off Blockbuster Trade

The first trade of the Major League Baseball offseason has been made and it is a HUGE one. Straight up, player for player, the Texas Rangers send 2nd baseman Ian Kinsler to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for 1st baseman Prince Fielder. But wait there's more. As reported by ESPN, besides trading the two players, as part of the deal, the Tigers are sending $30 million to Texas to offset Fielder's cost. Fielder still has $168 million due to him over the next seven seasons, so Texas will pay him $138 million over that period. Kinsler is guaranteed $62 million over the next four seasons, which includes a $5 million buyout on his 2018 club option. In total, Detroit will pay $92 million in the deal -- $62 million to Kinsler and $30 million to Texas for Fielder.

Fielder, 29, hit .279 with 25 homers and 106 RBIs in 2013, his second season in Detroit. He gives the Rangers a power-hitting, left-handed hitter for the middle of their lineup, something Daniels listed as the top priority heading into the offseason. Fielder will be the primary first baseman and that the club is still figuring out Mitch Moreland's role. The Tigers get a three-time All-Star second baseman and someone who has hit in various parts of the lineup. Kinsler, 31, batted .277 with 13 homers and 72 RBIs last season (ESPN). He adds good speed, replacing what was lost by Omar Infante hitting the free agent market.

Now here's how both teams benefit from the trade. First Texas is getting a big addition to their lineup. Nelson Cruz isn't, as of now, going to be back in the mix for Texas, meaning that Adrian Beltre is the only real heavy hitting power threat in the Rangers lineup, at least on paper. Fielder put up respectable numbers a season ago playing in Detroit, hitting 25 homers and driving in 106 runs. But Fielder's batting average (.279), home runs (25), OPS (.819) and slugging percentage (.457) were all down from 2012. The slugging, OPS and homers were the lowest of his career (ESPN). One theory as to why those numbers are down is the ballpark he was playing in. Comerica Park is more of a pitcher friendly park, where as the Ballpark at Arlington is more of a hitter friendly ballpark. So Texas adds a big power bat to the middle of the lineup and solidify the position of 1st base. This should help the Rangers be more of a threat to Oakland in the American League West.

Now from a Tigers perspective the move was a good one too. Sure it stinks to lose Prince at first base, but in the long run, the move will be of benefit to Detroit. Now they have the option to move Miguel Cabrerra back over to 1st base if they so choose, which would be an easier position for him to play compared to 3rd. By getting rid of Fielder, it frees up some salary cap space and give Detroit more financial flexibility, with Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer a season away from free agency. I think the Tigers are really going to want to lock up Scherzer long term and they needed the money to be able to do it, so they pulled the trigger on the trade. Also adding Kinsler fills a couple of holes for Detroit to fill for next season. They lost a little bit of speed from the lineup with Omar Infante leaving due to free agency, so Kinsler can fill that hole he left. Also Kinsler is a proven 2nd baseman, and lets face facts the Tigers just improved the position because Kinsler is better than Hernan Perez who is listed as the Tigers 2nd baseman.

So the trade is a perfect balance as both teams are able to fill holes in their ballclubs both short and long term. It is a good deal for both sides.

Best And Worst Of NFL Week 11

Well its that time of the week again. Its time where we look back at some of the best and worst performances from this week's action in the National Football League. With what has gone down, we finally have every team in the league with at least 1 loss, as the Chiefs fell to Denver. The Jets continue their jekyll and hyde type season, other teams are starting to hit their stride, like the Giants, and still other teams manage to surprise you, like the Panthers knocking off the Patriots on Monday Night Football. So with all of this in mind here now is the best and worst of week 11.

Best:
EJ Manuel, Quarterback Buffalo Bills
What a difference a week makes. Buffalo’s rookie quarterback, who looked overwhelmed a week ago in his first game back from injury, made a big statement against a tough Jets defense on Sunday. Manuel completed 20 of his 28 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns in a 37-14 Bills win, outplaying fellow rookie Geno Smith and looking like the franchise quarterback Buffalo was hoping they’d drafted. Manuel had himself a very solid day, and was able to avoid pressure form a good front attack from that Jets Defense. He played a great game, showing he could come back from injury and still play well.

Worst:
Geno Smith, Quarterback New York Jets
I really could possibly give this to the entire team, as Nick Folk missed a field goal, the defense looked average and un Jets like, if you want to call it that. But Geno Smith looked horrible. Smith went 8 for 23 for 103 yards and was picked off 3 times, one of which was run back for a touchdown. This is the 4th time that Smith has had a pick returned for a TD this year, and he has already been picked off 16 times on the season. Some nights, Smith looks really good and looks like he could be a good quarterback at this level. Then theres nights like last weekend where he looks like he shouldn't be in the NFL. If this kinda stuff keeps up the Jets are going to have to do some major overhauls during the offseason.

Best:
Bobby Rainey, Running Back Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Here's a guy who sort of came out of nowhere. Rainey, who started the year as Tampa Bay’s third-string running back, tore apart a bewildered Falcons defense in a 41-28 Buccaneers romp. He had 30 carries for 163 yards and two touchdowns, one of which was a 43-yard run in the second quarter. It was the best day, yardage wise, by any running back in the league in week eleven, and it was done against a defense in Atlanta that seems to really be struggling a lot as of late.

Worst:
Maurice Jones-Drew, Running Back Jacksonville Jaguars
For Jacksonville to be able to go on a winning streak this year,, they need to be able to run the football. They weren’t able to do that against the Cardinals on Sunday, as Maurice Jones-Drew carried the ball 14 times for 23 yards. The Cardinals do have a good defense, but Jones-Drew only averaging 1.6 yards a carry is inexcusable for a back of his quality. If he wants to generate interest from other teams and get out of his situation in Jacksonville, he needs to do more. The way things are going at this point for Jones-Drew, he may be finding himself on another football team before the start of next season. He's the Jaguars best player and right now he doesn't exactly look like it.

Best:
Nick Foles, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
If there was any doubt about who was in charge of the offense in Philly on the field, that is now a memory. Foles has the job outright over Michael Vick. Foles had another strong outing for Philadelphia on Sunday, throwing for 298 yards and finishing with a 104.3 passer rating. He scored a touchdown on a four-yard run as well. Foles is proving that mistake-free football and an ability to find open receivers is all you need to be a successful “Chip Kelly quarterback.” Philadelphia won the game, 24-16, and with a 6-5 record find themselves atop the NFC East. So yeah as good as Vick is, or was I should say, that has been surpassed by the play of Foles. this is his offense there is no longer any doubt.

Worst:
Robert Griffin III, Quarterback Washington Redskins
After a slow start against the Eagles, RG3 rallied his team, throwing for two scores and converting two two-point conversions, one through the air and one using his feet. It wasn’t enough for Washington, though, and most fans will only remember Griffin’s two turnovers from the game– a costly red zone fumble, and his last throw, a back-foot heave to the back of the end zone that was intercepted easily by the Eagles’ Brandon Boykin. Griffin still has flashes of his old self, but the turnover in the red zone late in the game is what did him in. RG3 is usually better at being able to hang on to the football. He needs to settle down and do a better job of ball and clock management if the Redskins want to grab this wide open NFC east.

Best:
Vontaze Burfict Linebacker, Cincinnati Bengals
This guy was all over the field on Sunday, reaking as much havok as was humanly possible on a football field. The second-year defensive star logged 15 tackles, including 10 solo tackles, and returned a fumble for a touchdown in a 41-20 Bengals win. Burfict, who went undrafted a year ago after a poor combine, is leading the Bengals in tackles for a second straight season, and has more than twice as many tackles as the next one of his teammates.

Worst:
Solider Field
I'm not blaiming the field itself for the Bears and Ravens performances on Sunday, but it did play a factor in the ballgame. After a period of severe weather in Chicago that delayed the game between the Ravens and the Bears, the two teams returned to a muddy, sloppy turf at Soldier Field. The weather approached so rapidly that the field crew was unable to get a tarp down, so the field was drenched in a torrential downpour. The teams did their best to play a football game after the delay as players from both sides slipped, stumbled, and slogged their way around the chewed-up field. The Bears won the game 23-20 in overtime.

Best:
Calvin Johnson, Wide Receiver Detroit Lions
Megatron played like well Megatron. He had six catches for 179 yards with two touchdowns on Sunday, including catching five passes for 163 yards in the second quarter alone. Strangely, the Lions didn’t find Johnson once in the third quarter, and the Steelers rallied to beat the Lions 37-27. I just feel bad for him that the rest of the Lions couldn't get their act together and help him out in the game, but the Lions still sit atop the NFC North, so he's pretty happy about that at the moment.

Worst:
Case Keenum, Quarterback Houston Texans
The Texans quarterback was benched in the third quarter of their game against the Raiders after the Houston offense sputtered in the second half. Keenum was replaced by Matt Schaub, who also struggled and got into a shouting match with wide receiver Andre Johnson during the fourth quarter. Perhaps most troubling for Texans fans was that both Keenum and Schaub were outplayed by Oakland rookie quarterback Matt McGloin, an undrafted free agent out of Penn State making his first NFL start.

So there you have it, the best and worst from week eleven in the NFL!

2013 MLB Awards. Did They Get Them Right?

The votes are in and the Announcements have been made. Major League Baseball has made their selections for the Awards winners for the 2013 season.  Some of the Awards went to the right people and some didn't. Lets not forget that these awards are given out for the regular season only, so playoff performance has no real influence on who wins these awards. We will be looking at the awards for Cy Young, Manager of The Year, Rookie of The Year and League MVP.  So with all that in mind, lets now take a look at who walked away with the hardware. We start it off with Manager of The Year.

Manager Of The Year:
AL: Terry Francona Cleveland Indians
NL: Clint Hurdle Pittsburgh Pirates

This one has sparked a little bit of a debate. The National League was an easy choice. Clint Hurdle deserved the Award for leading the Pirates to their first winning season, and first playoff appearance, in 20 years. That one was almost a given. The Braves and Dodgers both had good years, I'm not taking anything away from the work of Don Mattingly in LA or Freddy Gonzalez in Atlanta. But the difference between the three is this. The Pirates weren't a given to make the playoffs, where as both LA and Atlanta were expected to get there. Granted LA had a rough start to the year and turned it around to take the West, still the Pirates had had the biggest turn around from the year before and Hurdle had a lot to do with that.

The American League I was a tad surprised by. It's a well deserved honor for Terry Francona I'm not taking that away from him. But I just personally feel that John Farrell should have won the award. Having the Red Sox win the title had no influnce for me, as this is an award for the regular season. I just felt the Red Sox had a bigger turn around than the Indians did. Sure both Boston and Cleveland had bad years last year, Cleveland lost 94 games and the Red Sox lost 93. Both teams had a huge turn around, but I just felt the one by the Red Sox was tougher to do, considering that the AL East is a tougher division to play in than the AL Central. That's all I'm saying.

Since the award was instituted in 1983,  this is the 2nd time an Indians Manager has won the award (Eric Wedge won it in 2007), and this is the 3rd time that a Pirates manager has won the award (Jim Leyland won it back in 1990 and 1992). This is the 1st time that each manager has won the award

Rookie Of The Year:
AL: Will Meyers Tampa Bay Rays
NL: Jose Fernandez Miami Marlins

In both cases I think the writers got the winners right. Jose Iglesias was the next closest in the AL and I still think Meyers beat him out. Granted Meyers only played in 88 games for the Rays, he still had a bigger impact on the team than Iglesias did.

Same thing can be said with the National League. Yasiel Puig made the race close in the National League, but Fernandez was just better. Sure Puig was one of the reasons that sparked the Dodgers to their turn around in winning the NL West, but Fernandez put up great numbers on a bad baseball team in the Marlins. In fact, Fernandez was the best player on that bad Marlins team, clearly being the only bright spot for the club.

Since Rookie Of the Year started being given out in 1949, this is the 3rd Tampa Bay ray to win the Award, with Meyers following Evan Longoria (2008) and Jeremy Hellickson (2011). As for the NL, this is the 4th time a Marlin has won the award, with Fernandez following Dontrelle Willis (2003), Hanley Ramírez (2006) and Chris Coghlan (2009).

Cy Young Award:
NL: Clayton Kershaw Los Angeles Dodgers
AL: Max Scherzer Detroit Tigers

The AL Cy Young Award wasn't even close. Scherzer had the best year in the American League, hands down. The only one in the voting for the award who was even close was Yu Darvis of the Texas Rangers. Scherzer was the only pitcher in the bigs to win 20 games this year, going 21-3 with a 2.90 ERA and 240 strikeouts. Scherzer won the award not because he had a high scoring ball club behind him, which he did. Scherzer won the award because he was able to find different ways to get people out. He was, by far, the most dominating pitcher in the AL this season.

With the NL Cy Young, Clayton Kershaw took home the award with a 16-9 record with an 1.83 ERA and 232 strikeouts. This was another landslide win for the award, much like the American League. The only one close to Kershaw this season was Adam Weinwright of the Cardinals, but even he was a bit of a ways back. Kershaw was just outright dominant. The only shocker in Kershaw winning the award was that he didn't win it in a landslide.

The Cy Young award has been given out to the best pitchers since 1967. In the NL, this is the 11th time a Dodger has won the award. Kershaw had won the award back in 2011 so this is his 2nd trophy. before the 23011 win, the other dodgers to win the award were Don Drysdale (1962), Sandy Koufax (1963, 1965 and 1966), Mike Marshall (1974), Fernando Valenzuela (1981), Orel Hershiser (1988) and Éric Gagné (2003).  As for the Tigers, this is the 1st win by Scherzer and the 5th win by a Tiger. Besides Scherzer the Other Tigers to win the award were Denny McLain(1968 and 1969), Willie Hernández (1984) and Justin Verlander (2011).

Most Valuable Player
AL: Miguel Cabrera Detroit Tigers
NL: Andrew McCutchen Pittsburgh Pirates

Miguel Cabrera wasn't able to pull off back to back triple crown wins in the American League, but he was able to pull in a 2nd straight league MVP award. Only ones close in the league voting were Chris Davis of Baltimore and Mike Trout of Anaheim.  Cabrera still finished the year hitting .348 which is his career best. Sure the power and RBI numbers weren't quite as prolific but they were still damn good. And think about this he had a groin injury too that wasn't revealed till towards the end of the season.  He as hurt in September, and the Tigers struggled, going just 13-13 in the final month of the year. That right there should tell you just how big of an impact Miggy had on the Tigers lineup. He was that good of a ball player. Now I feel also that if Baltimore or Anaheim had been able to pull into the playoffs, this race would have been a little closer. But it wasn't and Miggy walked away with the award.

With the National League, it has been a long time coming for the Pittsburgh Pirates, with Andrew McCutchen walking away with the MVP award.  He finished the year hitting .317 with 21 homers and 84 RBI's. Not the greatest numbers ever produced by an MVP winner, but still damn good numbers never the less.  Much like the AL MVP Race, this one was just as much a landslide win for McCutchen, as he beat out Paul Goldschmidt of Arizona and Yadier Molina of St. Louis. Molina's platform was built on respect and reputation. Goldschmidt had the standout numbers. But McCutchen was recognized more for driving teammates on than for driving them in. His 84 RBIs are the fewest for an NL MVP (in a full season) since Kirk Gibson -- saluted as a similar driving force on the Dodgers -- earned the 1988 award after a 76-RBI campaign. (courtesy of MLB.com)

Since the League MVP Awards have been handed out in 1931, the Tigers have had  12 MVP winners. Miguel Cabrera has won the last two, so prior to that the other winners have been Ty Cobb (1911), Mickey Cochrane (1934),  Hank Greenberg (1935), Charlie Gehringer (1937), Hank Greenberg (1940),  Hal Newhouser (1944), Hal Newhouser (1945), Denny McLain (1968), Willie Hernández (1984) and Justin Verlander (2011). As for the Pirates, this is the 8th time one of their players have been named MVP. Aside from McCutchen, the others are Barry Bonds (1990, 1992), Roberto Clemente (1966), Dick Groat (1960), Dave Parker (1978), Willie Stargell (1979), Paul Waner (1927).

So there you have it. The Award Winners for Major League Baseball in 2013!

Best and Worst of NFL Week Ten

We just passed week ten in the NFL season, with things really starting to take shape on the field of battle. Finally, we no longer have winless teams in the league, as both Jacksonville and Tampa Bay picked up their first wins of the season. We still have one more unbeaten team in the league in Kansas City. The playoff picture in the league has been muddled just a bit. Some division races are wide open, while others look to be runaways. So many things can happen over the final seven weeks of football season, that it's going to really make you want to tune in just to see what the hell is going to happen next. With all that being said, lets now take a look back at some of the best and worst from week ten in the NFL.

Best:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars
We have to give both teams their props here. Both teams coming into this week, were sitting at 0-8 and looked really bad. But they showed up for their respective games this week, got a little bit lucky, and picked up their first wins of the season. Jacksonville did it  by forcing turnovers by the Titans, in their 29-27 victory. Don't get me wrong the Jaguars made mistakes of their own, but the defense had done enough to force Tennessee to make more of them. Tampa Bay did the same thing against Miami, pulling out the 22-19 win on Monday Night Football. Tampa Bay just caught Miami off guard, took full advantage of it and came away wit the win.

Worst:
Tennessee Titans and Miami Dolphins
These two clubs didn't fair so hot this week, giving the NFL's two winless teams their first wins of the year. The Titans just played a bad game, its a simple as that. They are really starting to show just how big a loss Jack Lockart is, not having him there to lead the offense. As for Miami, I think they are a decent football team, but I think they let what's been going on off the field with Martin and Incognito get to them on the field. They didn't play as sharp as they normally would, and it cost them a victory.

Best:
Tavon Austin, Wide Receiver St. Louis Rams
Austin had a breakthrough game for St. Louis, something the Rams have been waiting on for a while now. He returning a punt 98 yards for a touchdown and breaking free for two long touchdown grabs (57 and 81 yards, respectively). The three scores helped contribute to St. Louis’ surprising 38-8 rout over Indianapolis but may have also given the West Virginia product some confidence to build on heading into the season’s final seven games. Those two long touchdown grabs were the only catches he made all day long on offense. It was well worth it though, as it helped in a big way lead the Rams to victory.

Worst:
Arian Foster, Running Back Houston Texans
You wanna talk about a bad break. Houston’s Pro Bowl running back will not complete his fourth consecutive season with more than 1200 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. Foster will undergo season-ending back surgery to fix a ruptured disk he initially suffered in training camp. The team will attempt to replace Foster’s production – he’d been fighting injuries all season – with Ben Tate, but it’s just another setback in a season of many for the reigning AFC South champs, who dropped to 2-7 with a loss to Arizona. Things just really seemed to be going from bad to worse to Houston, a team who many had picked to be a playoff team again this season.

Best:
Nick Foles, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
Nick Foles had another good week this week, proving to me that last week's performance was really no fluke. Foles also made a strong case that he should be the starting quarterback for the Eagles. Why? In Sunday’s 27-13 win over the Packers, Foles went 12 of 18 for 228 yards and three touchdowns. He’s now thrown for 16 touchdowns and zero interceptions on the season. More importantly, four of the Eagles’ five wins have occurred in games where the second-year player has attempted more than 15 passes. He may not be the prototypical quarterback to run Chip Kelly’s offense, but he’s definitely been effective in doing it lately. He's showing to me that he can lead this offense and this team as well as Michael Vick.

Worst:
Terrelle Prior, Quarterback Oakland Raiders
Oakland’s signal-caller seems to be having an opposite string of fortune than Foles, throwing eight interceptions since his last touchdown pass, which occurred in the first quarter of the Raiders’ Week 6 loss to Kansas City. Pryor was even worse than Eli Manning in Oakland’s 24-20 loss to the Giants Sunday, completing just 42.3 percent of his passes for 122 yards and an interception. Pryor also committed a key fumble on a sack on the Raiders’ final drive late in the fourth quarter. Save an early QB sneak for a touchdown, Pryor’s vaunted running skills remained dormant as well. Both teams didn't look all that great on Sunday, that much was obvious. Oakland looked worse off than Big Blue, which is saying something.

\Best:
Luke Kuechly, Linebacker Carolina Panthers
Talk about stepping up big on defense. The 49ers have one of the better offenses in football this season, and Kuechly just plain shut them down on Sunday. Carolina came away with a 10-9 win over the 49ers, and Kuechly was a big part of the Panthers defensive effort in the win. He had a big day on Sunday, leading the team with 11 tackles, a sack and a pass deflection. With five wins in a row, the Panthers defense has established itself as one of the best in the NFL, with the second-year player from Boston College emerging as its star.

Worst:
CJ Spiller, Running Back Buffalo Bills
Because we’re sick of harping on Ray Rice’s inability to gain more than two yards per carry, we look to the Buffalo tailback, who gained only 23 yards on eight carries in the Bills’ 23-10 loss to the Steelers. Pittsburgh had the second-worst run defense in the league coming into the game, but the Bills’ combined 95-yard day (50 yards below their season average) ought to change that ranking. Yeah Ray Rice doesn't seem all that bad by comparison any more does he?

So there we have it. Some of the best and worst from the NFL in Week Ten!

Changing Times: The Martin/Incognito Situation

(Written by: Gregory Delaney, Producer for “Solly & Steve on Sports”)

*The views represented are solely those of the author and do not represent those of Solly & Steve on Sports*

The biggest story to come out of the NFL over the past week has been the alleged hazing incident between Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito, teammates on the Miami Dolphins, sending shockwaves throughout the NFL concerning what some may consider a tradition. Having rookies take care of certain things, such as paying for doughnuts or paying for a team dinner within reason, has long been a part of the NFL lore, but with the allegations that are coming out of the Miami Dolphins locker room, perhaps this tradition is being taken advantage of by seasoned veterans.

Let’s take a quick look at what the alleged allegations are in this case.

-Alleged texts sent to Martin from Incognito consisting of vulgar and very crude language detrimental to a person
-A Vegas trip with a bill for $15,000 that Martin didn’t even go on.
-Martin allegedly being told by Coach Philbin to “strike” Incognito to take care of the situation
-Incognito claiming that Martin sent him threatening messages afterwords.

Now look, rookies should go through an initiation process involving small to medium sized tasks that are in no way harmful to any party involved, but if what Incognito allegedly did is true, then perhaps it’s time to re-examine where the lines are drawn. If the cynic in people were to come out, it would say that this type of behavior is more prevalent than we’re led to believe, but while I think this is just a unique case, it whole heartily deals with the macho attitude prevalent in sports. Over the last 15 to 20 years, societies have taken a more PC approach in dealing with people and in language used, and while some people can’t stand the use of such PC language, it’s a change that we must get used to and one that needs to be addressed. Instead of waiting until it blows up at the collegiate level or the NFL level, the issue needs to be addressed in the Pop Warner leagues and at schools so that it is eventually engraved into the minds of kids and adults alike. Change will take some time, and it might end up being a generation or two before we see these changes in full effect, but it needs to start now so that incidents like these don’t become the norm.

Richie Incognito will have his chance to tell his side of the story, which he has every right to do so. But the way things are playing out, and if his past actions are any indication, this whole affair will turn out to be the nail in the coffin for Incognito’s career as we know it. As for Mr. Martin, only time will tell whether he’ll play again, as rumor has it some of his fellow Dolphins teammates aren’t comfortable with him around in the locker room. Personally, I feel as though he took the high ground in this case and made a very mature decision that some grown men apparently aren’t able to do and hopefully, we’ll see him back in the NFL in the near future. Once we hear both sides of the story, we’ll get a better sense of the situation in its entirety, but as most people would say, this has been an eyesore for what has been some great football over the last two weeks.

Best and Worst From The NFL Week 9

It's that time of year again. We have hit almost the halfway point of this NFL season, with things really starting to take major shape around the league. Teams continue to surprise people, like the jekyll and hyde type teams such as the New York Jets. They will be good one week, then play horrible the following week. Then we have teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars, who you just know going into the week are going to have a bad time. Some teams continue to surprise people and deliver, like the Kansas City Chiefs. Also you have teams like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who continue to leave their fans scratching their heads. We have also had more big name stars go down with injury. Aaron Rogers will miss playing time with a broken collar bone, while Broncos coach John Fox had to have heart surgery, and Texans coach Gary Kubiak collapsing at halftime, on the field, during the Sunday night game against the Colts. With all that going on, there were still some good and bad performances from this past week in the NFL.

Best:
New York Jets Running Game
Coming into the game Sunday against the New Orleans Saints, the Jets knew the Saints had a bad run defense. The Saints are ranked 25th in the NFL against the run this year. When the game started, the Jets didn't really use the run game very well and had no answer on defense for Drew Brees and Jimmy Graham. But the defense found its groove and shut the Saints down, while Chris Ivory had a solid day, with 18 carries for 139 yards and 1 touchdown. It is indeed safe to say that the Jets running game was in a groove on Sunday. And this performance goes to show that when the Jets running game is a success, the team, as a whole, plays better and comes away with wins that most figured they wouldn't.

Worst:
New Orleans Saints Offensive Line
Now when the game started, New Orleans had their offense in a groove and going. But at some point during the 2nd and 3rd quarters, the offensive line just sort of fell apart. Don't get me wrong, Drew Brees still had a very good day, but he was rushed during the middle of the ball game, couldn't get too many great throws off, and had a tough go of it during the day. The line didn't do much to help Brees during the middle of the game, and he had sort of a rough go of it, by his standards.

Best:
Nick Foles, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
Foles had a day for the ages Sunday against the Oakland Raiders. He went 22 of 28 for 406 yards. That's good enough. What made this day so special is he threw for SEVEN touchdown passes, the 2nd quarterback this year to do it (Payton Manning did it week one), and the 7th all time to do it. The performance helped power the Eagles to a 49-20 victory. Foles had a chance to go for eight in the game, but Eagles coach Chip Kelly not pulled him with more than nine minutes left in the fourth quarter. Still it was one of the top performances this year, and maybe the greatest game Foles will ever play in the NFL.

Worst:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Late Game Defense
It's been a really tough year for Bucs fans down in Tampa Bay. The team is 0-8 on the year, sitting in dead last of the NFC South. Last year Tampa showed up for most of the ball game against the NFC's best team in the Seattle Seahawks. They only showed up for MOST of the game.  The defense chocked late in the game, giving up a 21 point lead, en route to a 27-24 overtime loss. The Bucs deserve the bulk of their 0-8 record, but certainly played better than that mark for three quarters on Sunday. It’s the closest they got to a win since Week 1, when Lavonte David’s questionable penalty on a late hit against the Jets set New York up for a game-winning field goal.

Best:
Chris Johnson, Running Back Tennessee Titans
This is the Chris Johnson Titans fans have been waiting to see all season. At one point during his career, he was a 2,000 yard rusher, who had a ton of talent and can be a top teir back. This year he had been a little on the quite side, coming into Sunday’s game against the St. Louis Rams without a touchdown or 100-yard performance. He broke free, against former coach Jeff Fisher and the Rams for 150 yards and two scores (including a 19-yard game winner with 2:54 left) as Tennessee left the Edward Jones Dome with a 28-21 win. So is this a sort of coming out party for Chris Johnson? Only time will tell.

Worst:
Baltimore Ravens Offensive Line
At some point the Ravens’ inability to run the football goes beyond Ray Rice. Joe Flacco led the team’s ground game with 25 yards rushing in Baltimore’s 24-18 loss to Cleveland, a game in which he was also sacked five times by Browns defenders. For a team to be good, even remotely good, they have to have an offensive line that can pass block with regularity. I'm not saying they have to be perfect all the time, but this kind of stuff can't keep happening if the Ravens want to get back to the promise land. If the reigning Super Bowl champs want to get any sort of offensive consistency, it’s going to have to start with the guys up front.

Best:
Tony Romo, Quarterback Dallas Cowboys
The fourth quarter is never boring with the Cowboys quarterback. After the Vikings scored with 5:40 left to go up 23-20, Romo’s pass to Terrence Williams was picked off by Minnesota’s A.J. Jefferson on 3rd & 9 several plays later. The signal-caller shook it off and led a nine play, 90-yard drive on the next series, which culminated with a 7-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Harris with 35 seconds to play. This goes to show that Tony Romo is still one of the top Quarterbacks in the entire league during the regular season. Now if he could only play like this come playoff time, the Cowboys would be all set.

Worst:
Christian Ponder, Quarterback Minnesota Vikings
Despite Adrian Peterson’s best efforts, the Vikings couldn’t escape the performance of their beleaguered quarterback, who fumbled the ball in his own end zone for a Cowboys touchdown in the third quarter, threw an early fourth quarter pick and failed to convert any first downs following Romo’s key turnover late in the game. Given one last opportunity to throw a Hail Mary pass from the Dallas 47, Ponder’s last-second heave didn’t even reach the end zone. It's been a really tough year to play quarterback in Minnesota this season.

Best:
Tom Brady, Quarterback New England Patriots
After an underwhelming first eight games, Brady compiled a 151.8 passer rating in New England’s 55-31 win over Pittsburgh, hitting three receivers for over 100 yards each. With the Pats now 7-2 and a healthy Rob Gronkowski, Danny Amendola and Stevan Ridley at his disposal coming out of next week’s bye, the quarterback looks poised to put up some more Brady-like numbers in his final seven games.

Worst:
Pittsburgh Steelers Secondary
A week after they let Terrelle Pryor fly by them with a 93-yard touchdown run, the Steelers defense gave up a franchise record 55 points in a 55-31 loss to the Patriots. The team’s usually solid safeties were victimized by a series of big plays, including several by Rob Gronkowski on the Patriots’ second drive.

So there you have it. The best and worst from Week Nine in the NFL!