NFL Felons, Disaster in Denver, WBC

I have kind of neglected the blog the last week or so. I'm writing an article on the Rugby 7s for ForUs magazine's website (my friend Kristen is the editor) and it is taking up my time. Here are some quick thoughts on the past week's events.

• Its about that time of year for NFL players to start getting into legal trouble. Matt Jones was jailed for testing positive for alcohol, a big no-no since he was caught cutting up lines in his car and is now on probation. Upon his release from jail, he was also released from the Jaguars. Foolish. Donte Stallworth is likely to be charged for running a man over in Miami and killing him while presumably driving under the influence. Charges are going to depend on the toxicology report, which has yet to be released. While he is innocent until proven guilty, the fact that another multi-millionaire sports star is under suspicion of getting behind the wheel when they are wasted is getting really old. The NFL actually has a number that you can call and they will send you a ride, free of charge. Finally, the NFL's newest $100 million dollar man, Albert Haynesworth, has been indicted on two traffic charges. While they are misdemeanors, Haynesworth will be sued by a man who was badly injured in an accident caused by him. The 'Skins PR department might be in for a busy year. Also, Brandon Marshall got into a domestic dispute, and may be seeing an 8-game suspension due to his repeated violations of the league's personal-conduct policy. Speaking of bad PR and Denver Broncos...
  

• The Jay Cutler saga has turned into a complete fiasco. I put blame on both sides of this one. First of all, Cutler should know by now that the NFL is a business and that the Broncos are inclined to consider all scenarios, including ones that involve trading him. He is having a hard-time with the vote of no-confidence and instead of taking it like a man and saying to McDaniels "I will prove to you I'm your guy," he instead turns around and throws a fit like a child and asks to be traded. In Sunday's meeting, Cutler said that new coach Josh McDaniels "made it clear he wants his own guy" and that he did pursue Cassel because he has developed him from when he first entered the NFL. By initially lying to Cutler about his pursuit of Matt Cassel, McDaniels lost the trust of the Broncos' franchise quarterback. While Cutler hasn't won any playoff games, he is still a rising star, played in his first Pro Bowl last year, and was the leader of the second-best offense in the league. He has excellent chemistry with receivers Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal, who make up one of the most potent 1-2 receiver combos in the league and is also well-liked in the locker room. In the end, I just don't understand why they would even think about trading Cutler if they want to win now. The Broncos go and spend all of this money in free agency in an attempt to shore up their terrible defense, but then botch their relationship with the most important member of the team. The AFC West is not strong and the Broncos should have won last year. Now Cutler will miss the teams first non-mandatory workout and the Broncos start preparing for next season with a big question mark on who will be directing their offense. What a mess.

• March Madness begins on Thursday! More on this, plus maybe some useless picks, later in the week.

• Team USA gets mercy-ruled 11-1 by Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, then comes back and handles the Netherlands, eliminating the cinderella-story Dutch. Jake Peavy is gonna have to pitch better than that, he got shelled by Puerto Rico giving up 6 runs in two innings. USA will have to win tomorrow and then on Wednesday in order to win their pool and qualify for the semifinals.

• There are a lot of key MLB players who may be starting the season with injury issues. Cole Hamels may need an MRI with elbow soreness (gulp). Johan Santana had an MRI for his sore elbow cancelled and made his spring debut last week, so that is promising but needs to be watched. Dustin Pedroia, Chipper Jones, and Ryan Braun all suffered injuries in their WBC game versus the Netherlands. Manny Ramirez aggravated a hamstring in his spring debut. Its only three weeks til Opening Day and these guys all need to be healthy for their teams to perform well.
  

• Upcoming posts: Swagger of the Week probably tomorrow. March Madness brackets Thursday. There will also be a big MLB 2009 preview with team-by-team analysis coming out in the week before Opening Day, which I will be co-writing with my esteemed colleague Santo Anthony Scrimenti, you know you are excited.