Best & Worst of NFL Week Ten

Week Ten in the National Football League has come and gone and things are really starting to take shape in the league. This week in the league had a little bit of everything. Look no further then the game of the day, Dallas and Pittsburgh. Both teams left it all on the field, but in the end it was Ezekiel Elliott who stole the show for Dallas. While Dallas has been riding high, winning eight straight, the Vikings are hitting the schnide, having lost four in a row (after starting the year with five straight wins). It was a bad week for trying to hit two point conversions. The Dolphins and Giants have now won four straight, while Kansas City has won five in a row. Jacksonville and Pittsburgh are now on four game losing streaks, San Francisco has lost eight in a row and the Browns still haven't won a game yet. Not only did teams have a good week, so did some players. With that, here's some of the best and worst performances from week ten.

Best:
Ezekiel Elliott, Running Back Dallas Cowboys
This seems like its been a theme here, putting Zek Elliott on this list, but its been happening. Lets not misconstrue the facts the big three right now in Dallas, Ezekiel Elliott, Dak Prescott and Dez Bryant, actually managed to out play the Steelers big three of Ben Roethlisberger, Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown. Of the big three in Dallas, Ezekiel Elliott stole the show out of everybody. Zek rushed for 116 yards on 21 carries, scoring twice on the ground, including the game-winner with just seconds remaining on the clock in the fourth quarter, on a fantastic play. He also caught two passes for 95 yards, including an incredible 83-yard touchdown on a screen pass, his first NFL receiving TD. It doesn't hurt that the Cowboys have the best line in the league. But I think with all the talent this guy has, he can be special all by himself.

Worst:
Jay Cutler, Quarterback Chicago Bears
One of the biggest things that was a plus for Jay Cutler is that he has fantastic arm strength. He can make plays that some other Quarterbacks can't make at all. Which is why he's hung around as long as he has in the NFL. At the same time, he also has terrible judgement. Think about this, since entering the NFL as a rookie out of Vanderbilt in 2006, Cutler has averaged more than one interception per game. Sunday, it wasn't a good day against the Bucks, as Tampa downed the Bears 36-10. The real Jay Cutler came to play Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Before halftime, he had already thrown two interceptions…on consecutive drives. The second interception resulted in six points the other way as Chris Conte took a terrible throw by Cutler to the end zone for a touchdown Here's what the day looked like for Chicago on Sunday. Punt, INT, INT TD, FG, Fumble, Fumble, Punt, Hail Mary TD, Punt, Punt, Safety, Punt, End of Game. Not a good day for Jay or the Bears.

Best:
Ryan Matthews, Running Back Philadelphia Eagles
Its been a very weird year in Philly this year, more so when it comes to the running back position. That's been a revolving door, who knows who's going to be taking the handoffs. This week, Philly went back to Ryan Matthews. He had 19 carries for 109 yards and two touchdowns in Philly’s 24–15 win over the Falcons, which was a huge victory for the Eagles. He added a key two-point conversion late in the fourth quarter, and looked every bit the part of the lead back in the Eagles offense. Matthews had the hot hand this week, because he ran with explosiveness and vision, carrying the ball up the gut and bouncing it outside when nothing opened up in the middle. Will he go back to taking the ball next week? Who knows. But at least this week he was feeling it against Atlanta.

Worst:
Phillip Rivers, Quarterback San Diego Chargers
Rivers is a good quarterback. I'll even go so far as to say he maybe even a hall of fame quarterback. But every once in a while, a great quarterback has an off week. That's what happened to Rivers this week. It was nowhere near as bad as the week that Jay Cutler had, but still it was a bad week. He had 326 yards and three touchdowns. That was good. Now here's the bad. Rivers threw four interceptions in the fourth quarter, all of which sunk the San Diego Chargers in a 31-24 loss. His worst play was a pick-six to linebacker Kiko Alonso in the final two minutes of a tie game. Alonso showed blitz before the snap, dropped into coverage, and Rivers never seemed to see Alonso before he broke on a short pass to Tyrell Williams. Alonso went 60 yards for the game-winning score with 1:01 left. With this loss, the Chargers now sit at 406 and with how tough their division is, it may make it almost impossible for them to make the playoffs.

Best:
Marcus Mariota, Quarterback Tennessee Titans
Some people start to wonder about the play of Mariota this year. Sometimes his inconsistencies passing the ball have shone through, but this weekend he was FEELING it right from the word go. He completed 19 of 26 passes against a good Green Bay defense for 295 yards and four touchdowns while keeping his rushing to a minimum. All four touchdowns came at big moments in the game as the Titans rolled over the Packers. It was a display more of what he can be than what he has been so far. If it can continue then the Titans offense, which is already one of the better rushing attacks in the NFL, could become truly deadly. Mariota has finally started to show a little bit of why he was a top five pick in the draft. Now can he keep it going over the coming weeks? Only time will tell

Worst:
New Orleans Saints
You talk about a rough way to get beat, look no further then Sunday between Denver and New Orleans. This is on this list not for what the Saints did, but for what happened to cose them to lose the game. It was late in the game. Drew Brees threw an unbelievable pass to Brandin Cooks, who made a great catch in the end zone, and all the Saints needed was the extra point to go ahead with 1:23 left. And then before the celebration over Cooks’ touchdown could even die down, the Broncos were taking a blocked extra point the other way. According to reports, this is only the third time an extra point has been returned for two points by the defense. That rule went into effect in 2015. It was the first time in NFL history that a returned extra point accounted for the winning points in a game. On top if it all, it looked like Broncos defensive back Will Parks stepped out of bounds on the return, but his white cleats near the white sideline provided enough doubt that the call on the field wasn’t overturned. Talk about a very crappy way to lose a game.

Best:
Kansas City Chiefs Defense
For three quarters, the Kansas City offense was stumbling. The Panthers had dominated the game. That's why the NFL plays four quarters and not just three. Down by 11 points in the final stanza, Kansas City’s defense roared to life. All-Pro safety Eric Berry got things started when he picked off Cam Newton and miraculously took the ball 42 yards to the house for a touchdown. Then the offense took over. Alex Smith hit Travis Kelce on the two-point conversion to cut the deficit to three points. Then the offense scored its second field goal of the fourth quarter shortly afterwards to tie the game at 17-17. Once again the Defense came up big thanks to Marcus Peters. Newton hit receiver Kelvin Benjamin in stride for a first down. Peters ripped the ball from Benjamin, setting up the Chiefs in field-goal range. Three plays later, the game was over after Cairo Santos drilled a 37-yard field goal as time expired to give the Chiefs an incredible three-point road win. That win helped keep KC in the hunt in the AFC West.

Worst:
New York Jets vs Los Angeles Rams
Horrible, horrible football game. Los Angeles came away with a 9-6 win over the Jets in a game in which New York scored the only touchdown. In half of the Rams’ wins this season, they didn’t score a touchdown. Los Angeles got three field goals on Sunday in a truly awful game. The Rams became the first team since the 1997 Buffalo Bills to win two games with just three field goals in each. Jets quarterback Bryce Petty got his first NFL start and he looked overmatched. Rams quarterback Case Keenum wasn’t much better, and even with the Rams win, it wasn't enough as Jared Goff will get the start this week. There were 15 combined points and 15 combined punts. If you sat through this game, I’m sorry

UFC Invades NYC

One of the most popular sports in America is about to hit one of America's biggest cities. Ultimate Fighting Championship is set to make its debut in the Worlds Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden, for tonight's loaded card for UFC 205! In what has already been a very impressive year for the UFC, this card tonight is projected to blow everything else out of the water. This card marks the UFC's first visit to New York City and comes just eight months after the state passed a bill lifting a ban on mixed martial arts that dated back to 1997. This also marks the second ever event in the state of New York, with the first one being UFC 7: The Brawl in Buffalo, which took place on September 8, 1995, at the Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo. This is the first time ever that the UFC and MMA will hold an event in NYC. Headlined this event is UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, as he has his first title defense against 145-pound champion Conor McGregor. According to UFC President Diana White, UFC 205 will break Madison Square Garden's record gate of $13.5 million, set in 1999 by a heavyweight boxing unification match between Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield. That would mean it would also break the UFC's all-time gate record at UFC 129 in 2011.

So lets get right down to it. Here's how the Card shapes up. We will break down and predict each of the fights on the card.

Middleweights: Rafael Natal (21-7-1) vs. Tim Boetsch (19-10)
Should be one of the good opening fights on the card tonight. Natal is 95-1 in the UFC, which means he's got a bit of experience under his belt with the company. He had won four straight fights before losing to Robert Whittaker back in April, so he'll be looking to rebound in this fight. Natal has 36 takedowns in UFC competition, most all-time in middleweight division. Meanwhile Boetsch comes in at 19-10 record (10-9 UFC). The guy knows what he's doing in the cage, as 14 of his 19 wins have come by stoppage. On average, Boetsch lands 53 percent of significant strikes in UFC middleweight fights, which is sixth-highest among active UFC middleweights. And Boetsch is coming off a big win in his last fight over Josh Samman back in July. Boetsch has a good deal of one-punch knockout power, which is going to keep Natal back on his heels during this fight. Natal is durable and will probably have an advantage with judges simply because he does more.

Winner: Rafael Natal!

Welterweights: Vicente Luque (10-5-1) vs. Belal Muhammad (10-1)
This is a bit of a homecoming of sorts for Vicente Luque, who stepped in for Lyman Good, who was removed from the event after being flagged for a potential doping violation. Luque was born in New Jersey and lived there until the age of six, but visited New York City on a regular basis. Luque is 3-1 in UFC fights, and riding a three-fight win streak. Michael Graves was the last guy to beat Luque, that coming back in 2015 during the Ultimate Fighter. Nine of the ten fights that Luque has won, he has done so by stoppage (four by knockout, five by submission), so he can beat you in many different ways. Meanwhile, Muhammad is 10-1 in his career and 1-1 in UFC fights. In fact, six of his ten wins come by way of a decision. Muhammad has also had five takedowns in two UFC fights. Muhammad is a busy boxer-wrestler who mixes in both attributes well enough. But he's going against Luque, who is a heavy hitter, with a fight-changing right hand and a solid repertoire of knees and elbows from his Muay Thai background. He's definitely more dangerous.

Winner: Vicente Luque!

Lightweights: Khabib Nurmagomedov (23-0) versus Michael Johnson (17-10)
If Nurmagomedov can defeat Johnson tonight, he will have won eight consecutive fights inside the Octagon. He has already vowed No. 9 will be for nothing less than a lightweight title. Nurmagomedov has a right to be a bit of a grouch going into this fight. According to reports, Nurmagomedov says the UFC sent him two bout agreements for a title fight against Eddie Alvarez, only to turn around and book Alvarez to a title defense against Conor McGregor. Nurmagomedov suggested, in a recent radio interview, that he would never fight in the UFC again if it were to deny him a title shot after this fight. For the time being, however, he is focused on the task at hand. Nurmagomedov has had 23 fights, including seven in the UFC, and he has never lost a fight yet. He's scored a takedown in 5 of 7 UFC fights, including UFC-record 21 against Abel Trujillo. Meanwhile Johnson, who is 9-6 lifetime in the UFC, has nine knockdowns landed, which is the most in UFC lightweight history. Johnson has lost six of his ten career losses come by submission. Johnson's hand speed rivals that of any opponent, and an 81 percent takedown defense in his UFC career jumps off the page, especially in this matchup. But he's going up against a guy who has let to lose a fight, and I don't see that changing tonight.

Winner: Khabib Nurmagomedov

Featherweights: Frankie Edgar (20-5-1) versus Jeremy Stephens (25-12)
Frankie Edgar was hoping, before the year was out, to get another shot at Conor, but he hasn't been able to get that chance. So now its on to facing Jeremy Stephens. I don't think Edgar minds, he's just looking for a good fight. Edgar is 14-5-1 in the UFC, and is 5-0 in non-title featherweight fights. He's also got a ton of striking ability. Edgar's 1,871 total strikes landed in UFC competition are the fifth most in UFC history. But lets not get the facts mixed up, Jeremy Stephens is no slouch. Sure he's 25-12 lifetime in MMA fights, but he's just 12-11 when he steps inside a UFC cage. He does have one thing going for him though, in that 17 of his 25 wins have come by knockout. Stephens has struggled a bit as of late, allowing six takedowns in past four UFC fights. Stephens' reputation is very much tied to his knockout power and although he has put in work to elevate the other areas of his game, it's no secret that power is his best attribute. But Edgar is much quicker, and his wrestling backround should give him an edge. Edgar has the footwork and timed shots advantage, which will be big in this fight.

Winner: Frankie Edgar

Women's bantamweights: Miesha Tate (18-6) versus Raquel Pennington (8-5)
This is going to be a fun one to watch, as both Tate and Pennington are pretty evenly matched. Tate has been on her game, for the most part, as of late. She's 18-6 record, and 5-3 in the UFC. Tate had a 5-fight win streak snapped in loss to Nunes back in July at UFC 200. So she's going to look to rebound in this fight. Oh and Tate has scored takedowns in 6 of 8 UFC fights (9 total takedowns). She's not afraid to take this fight to the ground, where she can excel. Raquel Pennington is 8-5 lifetime, including going 5-2 in the UFC. Pennington is riding a 3-fight win streak, her last loss coming to Holly Holm back in February 2015. Pennington has a +71 significant strike differential in UFC fights (356-285). Pennington has an all around game, without much a definitive style. Tate figures to have a grappling advantage, especially if she's able to create scrambles with regularity. Tate has always flourished when a fight falls under a little chaos.

Winner: Miesha Tate

Welterweights: Kelvin Gastelum (12-2) versus Donald Cerrone (31-7)
This fight has been removed from the card because Gastelum missed weight.

Middleweights: Chris Weidman (13-1) versus Yoel Romero (11-1)
Another hometown kid comes to his backyard for a fight. Chris Weidman, a native of Baldwin New York, gets a shot to fight on a very big stage in his backyard. Weidman put in hours and hours of work into the UFC's lobbying efforts to legalize MMA in New York. His dream finally came true tonight and he's on the card. Weidman almost missed the fight due to a herniated disk in his neck. But his health came to fix itself out, so here he is. Weidman is 9-1 lifetime in the UFC, this fight tonight being first non-title fight since July 2012. Weidman has a 56 percent takedown accuracy, which is the second highest among active UFC middleweights. he's going up against Yoel Romero, who is 11-1 in his career and a perfect 7-0 in UFC fights. in fact, nine of the eleven wins Romero has have come by knockout Romero has a 78 percent takedown defense, which is the fifth highest among active UFC middleweights. This one is a little tough to predict. Weidman will pressure and should have success doing so, but his guard needs to be up at all times. Romero is good but Weidman is better.

Winner: Chris Weidman

Strawweight championship: Joanna Jedrzejczyk (12-0) vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz (10-0)
Battle of unbeatens for the Strawweight title! A battle of wills to see who has the best in the business today. Jedrzejczyk is unbeaten at 12-0 and is 6-0 in the UFC. This is her fourth defense of UFC women's strawweight title and she has outlanded opponents 575-195 in significant strikes in her UFC title fights. Meanwhile her opponent, Karolina Kowalkiewicz is 10-0, and is 3-0 in UFC fights. She has won her past five fights by decision Kowalkiewicz has a +95 significant strike defense in UFC fights, which could make things very tough for Joanna. Kowalkiewicz can be very, very efficient with her knees in the clinch, which could zap the energy of a Jedrzejczyk (who cuts a good amount of weight to fight at 115), but Jedrzejczyk's offensive firepower still wins out.

Winner: Joanna Jedrzejczyk

Welterweight championship: Tyron Woodley (16-3) vs. Stephen Thompson (13-1)
A very solid fight between these two guys should be on the slate for the night. Woodley is 16-3 lifetime and 6-2 in UFC fights. Five of the ten previous champions have defended welterweight title at least once. Woodley has a 68 percent significant strike defense, which is best among active UFC welterweights. He's going up against Stephen Thompson, who's 13-1, while going 8-1 in UFC fights. Thompson has a seven-fight win streak. His last loss came at the hands of Matt Brown at UFC 145 back in April of 2012. Thompson has a 4.7 strikes landed per minute rate, which is sixth-highest among active UFC welterweights. Tyron Woodley has a background in wrestling, since he did it in college. Here though, I don't think it will be much help, because Thompson has not surrendered a takedown since 2012, which was also the last (and only) time he suffered a loss. Thompson's size and style creates so much real estate between himself and an opponent, which will be a big edge in this fight.

Winner: Stephen Thompson

Lightweight championship: Eddie Alvarez (28-4) vs. Conor McGregor (20-3)
This is the big one. its the fight that everybody has been talking about leading up to tonight, and for good reason. Its a battle of two of the very best in the business. With all his talk, its easy to see why Conor McGregor is the man in MMA right now. He can run his mouth, which makes for great TV, and he can back it up in the cage as well. Eddie Alvarez is coming to this fight to try and shut McGregor up for good. McGregor is 20-3 in his career and 8-1 in the UFC. he is seeking to become just the third man ever to win UFC titles in two divisions, with Randy Couture and BJ Penn being the other two. McGregor has earned 17 of 20 wins by knockout, six of which have come in the UFC, which is tied for most since 2013. Eddie Alvarez is no slouch. He's 28-4, with a 3-1 UFC record. oOf note, none of the previous seven lightweight champions lost in their first title defense. Oh and Alvarez has earned 15 of his 28 wins by knockout. So many have doubted McGregor's ability to handle a well-conditioned grappler. The inevitable matchup has been given its own name: "The wrestler question." This should get answered one way or another.

Winner:  Conor McGregor

(Stats and info provided by ESPN.com)

MLB Gold Glove Winners

Ah the Gold Glove award. Handed out every year at the end of baseball season. This prestigious awartd is given out every winter to the players. In order to win the award, players are judged to have exhibited superior individual fielding performances at each fielding position in both the National and American League, as voted by the managers and coaches in each league. Managers are not permitted to vote for their own players. Additionally, a sabermetric component provided by Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) accounts for approximately 25 percent of the vote.

So here are the winners of the Gold Glove Awards for the 2016 Major League Baseball season.

National League
Catcher: Buster Posey, San Francisco Giants (1st Gold Glove)
1st Base: Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs (1st Gold Glove)
2nd Base: Joe Panik, San Francisco Giants (1st Gold Glove)
3rd Base: Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies (4th Gold Glove)
Shortstop: Brandon Crawford, Giants (2nd Gold Glove)
Left Field: Starling Marte, Pittsburgh Pirates (2nd Gold Glove)
Center Field: Ender Inciarte, Atlanta Braves (1st Gold Glove)
Right Field: Jason Heyward, Chicago Cubs (4th Gold Glove)
Pitcher: Zack Greinke, Arizona Diamondbacks (3rd Gold Glove)


Anerican League 
Catcher: Salvador Perez, Kansas City Royals (4th Gold Glove)
1st Base: Mitch Moreland, Texas Rangers (1st Gold Glove)
2nd Base: Ian Kinsler, Detroit Tigers (1st Gold Glove)
3rd Base: Adrian Beltre, Texas Rangers (5th Gold Glove)
Shortstop: Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Indians (1st Gold Glove)
Left Field: Brett Gardner, New York Yankees (1st Gold Glove)
Center Field: Kevin Kiermaier, Tampa Bay Rays (2nd Gold Glove)
Right Field: Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox (1st Gold Glove)
Pitcher: Dallas Keuchel, Houston Astros (3rd Gold Glove)

So there you have this years Gold Glove winners! Did they get it right?

Best & Worst Of NFL Week Nine

We've just cleared the halfway point of the National Football League season, and its already starting to help clear up the playoff picture around the league just a little bit. Some teams are starting to pick up steam after slow starts. Miami has won three straight games and are now back at the .500 mark. The New York Giants have also won three straight games, now sitting at two games over .500 and are only two back of first place in the division. On the other end of the spectrum, we’re seeing teams that started hot taking turns for the worst, like the Minnesota Vikings, who have now lost three in a row after starting the season unbeaten. Then there's the Philadelphia Eagles who have lost two straight and have fallen to .500. Week nine also meant a good week for some of the mediocre teams in the league, like the Panthers, Lions, Colts and Ravens all picking up some measure of respectability. Here's just some of the best and worst of week nine in the NFL.

Best:
Jason Witten, Tight End Dallas Cowboys
Well well well, look who finally decided to show up. Jason Witten has been known throughout his career as one of the best pass catching tight ends in the game. This year, he had been quite for the most part, except for a decent game against the Giants in week one. Well in week nine, a Cowboys 35-10 win over the Cleveland Browns, Witten had his best game of the year so far. He had eight catches (on just 10 targets) for 134 yards and a touchdown. That’s more yards than he’s had in any two games combined this season. Oh and also more catches than in all but one game this year. I know it was against the Cleveland Browns but still those are solid numbers no matter who was catching the passes. Witten can do a little bit of it all all and had himself a week and showed that he can still be a very effective pass catcher.

Worst:
Travis Kelce, Tight End Kansas City Chiefs
Under normal circumstances, you might not consider Kelce to make this list. But with what happened this week in the Chiefs win over the Jaguars. Kelce got so mad at a referee for failing to call what he thought was pass interference that he was flagged, causing him to yank a towel out of his back pocket and throw it at the referee. That earned him another flag (although the referee had already used his flag, forcing him to use his hat) and ejection from the game. Kelce had to leave the field, will probably get fined, and, worst of all, he got made fun of by the Jaguars as he left the field. You'd think that a guy with that kind of talent level, who had a pretty good week last week over in London, he'd be able to keep his cool and stay on the field to be able to help out his football team. Didn't happen this week, and Kelce was kicked out of the game because he wasn't able to use his head.

Best:
Mark Ingram, Running Back New Orleans Saints
It's been no secret around the league that Mark Ingram is a very solid running back. He's become one of the stars in this league at the running back spot and Sunday in the Saints 41-23 victory over the 49ers, you saw why. Ingram had 15 carries for 156 yards and a score in the victory. Sure, he's not as flashy as a guy like say for example Adrian Peterson, but Mark Ingram can produce in his own right. His stat line from Sunday is a very good indication of that. Ingram had the 2nd most rushing yards of any running back in the league in week nine, the only back who ran for more yards was Melvin Gordon of the Chargers (he ran for 198). Ingram is a good back and should not be taken for granted. Now lets see if he can keep this kind of play up next week against a very tough Denver defense.

Worst:
Carson Wentz, Quarterback Philadelphia Eagles
When the season started, Carson Wentz looked great through the first three weeks of the season. The second overall pick from this years draft came out like a house of fire at the start, looking like he might blow off the doors in Philly and make that team his outright. Well. since then, Carson has seemed to hit the wall. He's thrown five picks the last five games, including two in the Eagles 28-23 loss to the Giants. The worst aspect is that his two interceptions came on consecutive drives, and both led directly to touchdowns for the Giants. It was just an ugly game for the rookie, who appears to be overthinking things midway through the season instead of playing without a care in the world. He has the talent to make a great QB, he's got eight TD's on the year but he really has seemed to slow down the past few games.

Best:
Dallas Cowboys Offense
We already talked about a part of this offense before with Jason Witten. Let us not forget the other two bigtime players that had a major hand in the Boys big win over the Browns on Sunday. First, there's Ezekiel Elliott, who had a strong day against the Browns. Zek finished with 92 rushing yards and two touchdowns on just 18 carries. This kid continues to make the most out of every opportunity Dallas’ amazing offensive line gives him. Then there's the Cowboys other surprise strar rookie, Quarterback Dak Prescott (feels like I've been saying this a lot lately). Dak Prescott was nearly flawless Sunday, finishing with 247 yards, while going 21 of 27 to go along with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He rebounded nicely after struggling in Week 8. Dallas has been one of the top teams in the NFC and with the way the Boys have been playing as of late I see no reason to make any player changes unless somebody gets hurt.

Worst:
Jacksonville Jaguars Offense
Lets face facts, the Jaguars offense really has stunk up the Joint the last couple of weeks. Jacksonville came up short in a 19-14 loss to Kansas City. Blake Bortles threw an early interception that lead to quick points by Kansas City. He's not the only one to make mistakes on this day for the Jacksonville offense. Chris Ivory, Bryan Walters and T.J. Yeldon all coughed up the ball, resulting in three recovered fumbles for Kansas City’s defense. Jacksonville now sits at 2-6 on the season, and there is not a single reason to believe Bortles is going to turn his season around, and head coach Gus Bradley, who now has a career coaching record of 14-42, has never given us any reason to trust he knows how to help the franchise become a winner.

Best:
Odell Beckham Jr, Wide Receiver New York Giants
OK I know he's had people on his case because he's been more of a diva this year then a superstar wide receiver. Don't get me wrong, this guy has all the talent in the world to be the best in the game. He showed up this week in a big way against the Eagles. Beckham didn’t explode with a huge game yardage-wise, as he finished with four catches for 46 yards, but half of his catches were for touchdowns. In the process, he made some history by becoming the first player since 1967 with 30 receiving touchdowns in his first 35 games. It wasn't the biggest yardage day of his career, he had one of those earlier this year against Baltimore. But his two scores came at a big time and helped the Giants, who were without Victor Cruz, to their third straight win. New York’s offense has the potential to become one of the most dangerous in the NFL from week to week. We got a taste of what it can accomplish in Week 9 against a very good Philadelphia defense. Now they just need to keep it rolling against the Bengals on Monday night.

Worst:
Chris Boswell, Kicker Pittsburgh Steelers
Boswell is a decent kicker, but he's horrible when it comes to on-side kicks. On Sunday, Pittsburgh came up short against the Ravens, falling 21-14. Boswell had the worst onside kick attempt in history. No, really, in all of football history. I defy you to find a worse decision to one, try this soccer trick, then find worse execution of any athletic move in any sport. It went viral after the mishap and I really don't think he's going to be trying that silly move again anytime soon.

Memo To Andrew Ladd

This past off season was supposed to be a big one for the New York Islanders. They we're coming off a 2nd round playoff appearance for the first time since 1993. Once summertime rolled around, the Islanders were supposed to try and build on last season's success and take another giant step forward. New York lost Kyle Okposo, Franz Nielsen and Matt Martin all to free agency. The only player of note they signed to a deal was giving a seven year contract worth $38.5 million to Andrew Ladd. So far, Ladd's experience here on Long Island hasn't been a very good one.

So far, threw eleven games this season, Ladd has just one point. ONE POINT! You would like to hope and think, at least from an Islanders Fan perspective, that he is only going through a phase and he will snap out of it fast. Over the course of his career Andrew Ladd has been a pretty productive player. When he plays a full 82 game season, he can average 50-60 points in a given season, which are solid numbers. he's not going to set the world on fire like some of the other left wingers in the game today. Guys like Johnny Gaudreau, Alex Ovechkin, Jamie Benn. Daniel Sedin, and Taylor Hall, just to name a few, are all placed higher on a talent level list than Andrew Ladd. Facts are Ladd is no slouch, he has scored 466 points in 769 career games. He's won two Stanley Cups during his career with the Blackhawks. The guy can produce and he knows that winning feeling. Right now, at this exact moment, its not there for Andrew Ladd. He was a 25 goal scorer last season, so he has no problem putting the puck in the back of the net.

One of the reasons he was brought in to play with the Islanders was that scoring ability. For whatever reason it hasn't materalized. It maybe lack of chemistry with Isles captain John Tavares, who many people had Ladd pegged to be playing with all year. At this point, Ladd's play has been so subpar that he's slated to play on the 4th line. Head Coach jack Capuano (Who I'm not really of fan of personally but that's another argument for another day), has moved Cal Cluterbuck and Josh Bailey to the top line to play with Tavares for a little while. Memo to Andrew Ladd, you're getting paid quite a bit of money START EARNING YOUR PAYCHECK! I know its easier said then done, and yelling at Ladd on this blog may not help but you never know. I'm sure Ladd has been hearing a lot of talk like this over the last couple of weeks and he knows that he hasn't been playing very well. I know it takes players a little while to get adjusted to new surroundings and new teammates, but once they find their groove and get comfortable, the game comes back to them and they play to their full talent level.

Ladd hasn't found that level yet. Maybe the pressure of the contract is getting to him. Maybe he hasn't found that level of comfort playing in Brooklyn yet. Maybe he left his game in Chicago. Who knows. But whatever is getting to Andrew Ladd he needs to get it figured out and get it figured out fast otherwise, it could end very poorly for him. I usually give players the benifit of the doubt. After all they are playing in the National hockey league, the best hockey league in all of the planet. If your able to play in the NHL, you are the very best in the world. Even the worst player in the NHl is better than 97% of every other hockey player on earth. Andrew Ladd is one of those few special talents that's playing in the worlds best league right now. But he sure isn't playing like it through his first almost dozen games with the Islanders and he better get it together fast. The Islanders are in the middle of the pack in scoring right now, without Ladd really producing. If he doesn't get it going soon, things could get away from him quite quickly

Championship To Chicago! Cubs Win Series!

Is the Champagine cold? It has to be, its been on ice for 108 years! Cubs fans, and the franchise as well, have been waiting a long, long time to celebrate and now they have a chance. Think about this, the Cubs haven't won a world championship since 1908 and they haven't played for a wold title since 1945. Its been a struggle for the Cubs, but they finally got over the hump and claimed a championship, beating the Cleveland Indians (a franchise dealing with a drought in its own right) in a hard fought seven game series. Before we even get to break down game seven, here's a quick look back at what happened to get us to that point.

Game one was supposed to be a pitching duel between Corey Kluber and Jon Lester. But Lester had trouble holding runners on (which the Cubs couldn't really do) and the Indians ran with it. Roberto Pérez hit two home runs to power the Tribe offense in a 6-0 win in the opener. He became the first ever ninth-place hitter with two homers in a World Series game, the first Indians player to hit two homers in a World Series game, and the first Puerto Rican-born player to hit two homers in a World Series game. So yeah, Perez was in a hitters groove in the first game. Andrew Miller and Cody Allen finished the victory for the Indians despite Miller having to pitch out of a bases loaded jam in the seventh. But that's been something that has been a major strength of the Indians all playoffs long. If the offense gave the Tribe a lead, it was almost a lock that the pen would shut the door. They did just that in game one.

Game two saw Chicago bring their bats, as Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo got the party started, giving the Cubs an early lead. Ben Zobrist, Kyle Schwarber and Addison Russell helped add to the offense, powering the Cubs to a 5-1 win to even the series. Jake Arrieta went five and two thirds, striking out six. Aroldis Chapman entered in the eight to finish the game for the Cubs, mowing down Tribe hitters left and right. The win marked the Cubs' first World Series win since 1945 and tied up the series at one game all. The win marked Indians manager Terry Francona's first loss in ten World Series games. Game three, the first World Series game played at Wrigley Field since 1945, but for some reason, the Cubs bats failed to show up. They were held to just five hits in the 3rd game. The game's only run came off a Coco Crisp RBI single that scored Michael Martínez in the seventh inning. Josh Tomlin, Andrew Miller, Bryan Shaw, and Cody Allen combined to shut out the Cubs. Allen earned his sixth postseason save as Javier Báez struck out swinging to end the game, leaving the tying and winning runs in scoring position (the last two strikes Baez swong at pitches that were out of the strikezone and could have loaded the bases had he just held his swing). It was the fourth time in which the Cubs had lost in a shutout during the 2016 postseason.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Cubs got spanked by Kluber in game four. Cleveland walked away with a 7-2 win and a commanding 3-1 lead in the series. Chicago did score in the opening inning, but for the remainder of the game (which only went six innings for Kluber) Cory shut the door on the Cubs. Jason Kipnis put the Indians ahead 7–1 with a three-run home run in the seventh, although the Cubs got one run back in the eighth, on a Dexter Fowler home run off Andrew Miller, the first run he gave up in this post-season. With Cleveland up 3-1 in the series, it didn't really look good for the Cubs. It was a long shot, but there have been five other times in history where a team had come back from down three games to one in the World Series and won the series. It happened in 1925 (Pittsburgh Pirates over Washington Senators), 1958 (New York Yankees over Milwaukee Braves), 1968 (Detroit Tigers over St. Louis Cardinals), 1979 (Pittsburgh Pirates over Baltimore Orioles) and 1985 (Kansas City Royals over St. Louis Cardinals). It has been done before. So the Cubs had to do what hasn't been done since the 1979 Pirates and that is win the final two games of the series on the road.

Game five saw Chicago squeak out a 3-2 win to pull within 3-2 in the series. Chapman got another long save, this win being the first World Series win in Chicago for the Cubs since October 10th, 1945. Game six goes back to Cleveland and the Cubs brought their offense this time. Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, and Anthony Rizzo all homered in this game as the Cubs put a whooping on Tribe starter Josh Tomlin. Addison Russell drove in six of the nine runs for the Cubs in this game, which tied a World Series single-game record. Jake Arrieta became the first National League starting pitcher to notch two road wins in a single World Series since the St. Louis Cardinals' Bob Gibson in 1967. But for some reason, Joe Madden again wanted to use Aroldis Chapman in this baseball game, which was totally pointless in a blowout game. I know he wanted to leave a mark on this game but it showed me how little trust he had in the rest of the pen in the playoffs. That would loom large in game seven.

After Dexter Fowler gave the Cubs an early lead and David Ross added on to it (in his last ever game) with the long ball, it looked like it was a lock for the Cubs. Then, with a 5-1 lead late, it looked like it was a lock for Chicago. Cleveland wouldn't quite and were down 6-3 going into the 8th. The Indians tied the game in said inning, thanks to an RBI double by Brandon Guyer and a monster, line drive,  two-run home run by Rajai Davis off Cubs closer Aroldis Chapman. See what happened when you over use your closer. He gets burned. So as we get ready for extra innings, Cleveland gets hit with rain, causing a 17-minute rain delay. This would be huge for the Cubs and hurt the Tribe. Cleveland had the momentum going into the 10th, but they got cooled off, while Chicago was able to regroup themselves. Chicago scored two runs in the top of the tenth inning on a double by Zobrist and a single by Miguel Montero. The Indians scored a run on a single by Davis in the bottom of the tenth inning, but Mike Montgomery finished the game for Chicago, ending the series. Ben Zobrist won the World Series MVP award.

Game seven had all the high drama you could ask for. Drama of the highest order. Late game heroics, clutch hitting. it had everything. One thing that will I think stick with most fans in this series was Joe Madden and his mismanagement of the Pitching Staff. He showed a total lack of trust in his bullpen for guys other then Aroldis Chapman. Had the Tribe won the series, Joe Madden would have gone into the history books as a true goat instead of looking like a genius. It leaves one scratching ones head what exactly Madden was thinking at times during this series.

It doesn't really matter at the end of the day, the Chicago Cubs are the World Champions!

Best & Worst NFL Week Eight

We've hit the halfway point in the National Football League season. Week eight provided plenty of stuff for us to talk about. We got a tie game for the second week in a row in the league for the first time since 1997. There were shanked kicks in overtime, comeback victories, second-half collapses. These are just a few of the big events that unfolded this past week in the NFL. Tom Brady reminded Rex Ryan and the Bills who runs things in the AFC East. The Cleveland Browns reminded us all why they’re referred to as the Factory of Sadness. Green Bay spread the ball around a lot, but it couldn't help them out against Atlanta. Dallas established themselves as a big threat to come out of the NFC East, Jacksonville sucks and the Panthers are starting to look like themselves from a year ago. A lot went down in week eight. Here's some of the best and worst from the week that was.

Best:
Derek Carr, Quarterback Oakland Raiders
I think its now safe to be able to go on record and say that he's better then his brother David. There's little debate to at this point in their careers. Oakland put a beating on the Bucs, coming away with a 30-24 win. Carr had himself a fantastic day, going 40 of 59 for 513 yards and four touchdowns. Amari Cooper did have a fine day in his own right, with 12 catches for 173 yards and a score, but Carr has been the big leader for Oakland this year. Oh yeah, all of this coming with the Raiders having one of the worst days in league history by racking up 23 penalties for 200 yards. Oh and most of the numbers Carr put up came in the 2nd half, after he helped the Raiders erase a Bucs 10-3 halftime lead. Carr became the 3rd QB in NFL history with 500 pass yards, 4 TD passes and zero picks in a singe game, joining Ben Roethlisberger (2014) and Y.A. Tittle (1962) (ESPN Stats and Info).

Worst:
National Football League Officials
Its a rough life of an official in professional sports, and the National Football League officials are no exceptions. They are getting ripped on a lot around the sports world, by the players, the fans and the media. Well there was plenty of trashing of the officials that was going on around the league in week eight. A lot of players went off about the refs this week. Washington Redskins cornerback Josh Norman can expect a fine after ripping field judge Brad Freeman (Norman got hit with five flags, four for “hands to the face” of WRs, which tells me that Norman needs to change his style of play a little if he knows the flags are coming). Cam Newton got in on the act as well. After taking a low hit from Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Calais Campbell that didn’t result in a flag, Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton said he is sick of not being protected like other quarterbacks. Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman thought most of the calls went in the New Orleans Saints’ favor on Sunday, and let people know about it. It’s not uncommon for players to be upset with officials, but it is rare when they call officials out publicly. The NFL office won’t like that. Not a good look on the league.

Best:
Matt Forte, Running Back New York Jets
Well well well, what have we here. The Jets are actually really using their running backs. What a novel idea! The Jets are now riding a two game winning streak and they've been using Matt Forte pretty well the last two games. He caught two passes for sixteen yards and carried the ball 25 times for 82 yards and ran in two touchdowns. Think about the numbers here. In the three wins that the Jets have they've given the ball to Forte a lot. Sure he had a lot of carries in the loss to the Bengals week one, but the Jets should have won the ball game. In the Jets losses this year, the passing game has looked awful. A lot of it has to do with the fact that Forte never really touched the ball. In their three wins, Forte got plenty of touches of the football. So I hope the New York Jets take notes. Unless the Jets feed Forte like the beast he is the rest of the way, they can count on missing the playoffs.

Worst:
Cleveland Browns
They had the Jets right where they wanted them. Cleveland had a 20-7 halftime lead and they were dominating the football game like it was nobody's business. Josh McCown, playing in his first game back since his injury, and Terrelle Pryor were cooking early in this one. They connected on six passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. McCown showed no signs of rust and finished the first half with two touchdowns. Then the Browns took the field for the second half and the wheels fell off the wagon. McCown threw two second-half interceptions that led mercifully to just three points. Unfortunately for him, the Browns and their long-suffering fans, that was the difference in the 31-28 win for the Jets. While the Browns offense crapped the bed, the Jets offense woke up. Cleveland now sits at 0-8 on the year. No matter how bad things may look for your NFL franchise, you have no right to complain out loud anywhere near a Browns fan.

Best:
Jordan Reed, Tight End Washington Redskins
He's missed the last two weeks dealing with a concussion. First game back ended in a tie with the Cincinnati Bengals in London, but it was a statement game for both Reed and Tyler Eifert (who had nine catches for 102 yards and a score). Reed had nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown, showing that he has a flash for brilliant play still. Lets face facts, there's a good chance that behind Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots, Jordan Reed will probably be the best tight end in the game of football. Oh yeah, reed made nine catches out of thirteen targets from Kirk Cousins. Reed is good and looks like he may have found his game again.

Worst:
Jim Caldwell, Head Coach Detroit Lions
There's no promise made that this ruling could have turned the game around at all, but you never know. Detroit came up short against the Texans on Sunday, falling 20-13. With the Houston Texans leading 14-3 in the third quarter, it seemed like the Detroit Lions caught a break. DeAndre Hopkins caught a pass over the middle, seemed to gather himself with two short steps, then the Lions knocked the ball loose. Detroit clearly recovered. But it was called an incompletion. Caldwell never challenged. Instead of the Lions having the ball, the Texans kept possession and went on to kick a field goal. Even though it’s hard to get a play like that overturned on review, it could have been a turning point. According to the Detroit Free Press, Caldwell said his assistants told him “it did not look like it would be one that would be overturned because I think they applied the [catch] rule correctly.” Sometimes human error is made, so you did still have a chance to get the call overturned. If all else failed it gave your team a chance to rest and maybe come up with a plan to get back in the game

Best:
Dak Prescott, Quarterback Dallas Cowboys
Romo who? Yeah exactly. Dallas is without their star QB but they haven't really seemed to be missing him.  Dallas is 6-1 and are on top of the division. After dropping the opener against the Giants the first week, they have won six straight, including a come from behind 29-23 overtime win over the Eagles. Dak had a rough start to the game, but managed to settle down nicely and finished the game strong. Dez Bryant had 113 yards receiving, including a 22-yard TD catch with 3:04 left to tie the game and help the Boys overcome a 10-point deficit. Dak finished the day going 19 of 39 for 287 yards, two touchdowns and a pick. Prescott's TD pass to tight end Jason Witten tied Troy Aikman's rookie franchise record of nine scoring passes. With the way he's played, Romo shouldn't be put under center the rest of the way, Dak has played that well.

Worst:
Seattle Seahawks Offensive Line
You'd like to think that the Seahawks would be contenders in the NFC. They have one of the best defenses in the league. You've got an offense that has talent with Russell Wilson, Doug Baldwin and Jimmy Graham. So why are the Seahawks struggling this year? Seattle let starting left tackle Russell Okung and starting right guard J.R. Sweezy walk this past offseason, and looked to fill the void with a collection of first-contract draft picks and veteran journeymen. Unsurprisingly, Seattle’s offensive line struggled to protect Wilson throughout Sunday’s 25–20 loss to New Orleans,  he was sacked once and hit three times by the Saints, but was under pressure on almost every snap , and the normally dominant Seahawks run game once again failed to launch. Seattle had one game last year where they didn't rush the ball over 100 yards. Now, against the Saints, they ran the ball only 74 times, the fourth straight game that the Seahawks couldn't run the ball for over a hundred yards.