CHRIS HENRY:

In the world of sports we sometimes get so caught up with the athletes and their abilities and stature that we forget that like all of us they are still human and can have their life cut short at any time. The death of Chris Henry this past week was tragic. It had appeared that Chris was getting his life back in order and it was only an injury that was keeping him off the field but just when he may have thought he turned the corner on his life, tragedy struck. Maybe a lesson for all other athletes to make sure they appreciate what they have and remember that they too are human.

TITANS BEAT DOLPHINS:

It was about 10 weeks ago that the Tennessee Titans were 0-6, ready to fire Jeff Fisher and wondering what to do with Vince Young. Well Fisher is going nowhere and Mr. Young has gone 7-1 and looks better than he did at any time in his career. Yesterday he threw for 3 TD’s and helped the Titans stay alive for the playoffs. Yes they are going to need some help but when you start 0 – 6 what do you expect. It’s going to make for interesting football in the final 2 weeks in Nashville

PEYTON STANDS ALONE:

After Saturday nights Dallas win over the Saints it is clear that Peyton Manning and his undefeated Colts stand alone as the top team in the NFL. Its true Manning has won only 1 Super Bowl but its hard not to say he is the best QB to ever have played the game. He basically does what he wants on the field and continues to win despite having a new coach, injured players and their B squad surrounding him last week when the game against the Jaguars meant nothing for the Colts. To top it all off, he does great commercials.

Welcome to our inaugural sports uniform blog.

It will be a weekly update on changes, observations and some cool links from the world of sports uniforms.

We call it UNI-VERSITY!

Your comments are welcomed.

So what’s news?

With the BCS Bowl season upon us, it will be interesting to see what new design the Oregon Ducks will be sporting.

Have you ever seen more changes to a uni in 1 year?  12 Different ones so far this year!

The school must have a ‘Uniform Design’ class that submits their weekly assignments to the sewing dept!

Have a look: DuckTracker 2009 Uniforms ‘Ninja Duck’ is the best!

What is with the new Florida Panthers 3^rd jersey? Have a look

Logo is OK – But why the colour change? (True – they’re regular ones are about the ugliest in the league) Did they hire the designer from the Penguins?

When they played each other last week it looked like a Pittsburgh dark/light practice game.

Did you know how strict the NFL is on their UNI requirements? You hear every week of guys getting fined – here is why:

$5000 fines
- High/Low whites on socks
- Pants not covering knees (no skin should show below the waist)
- Bandana
- Wrong nasal strip
- Hand towel alterations – towel must be 7 to 8 inches and have no tape on it
- Tape not the same color of the shoe.
- Jersey untucked (usually there is a warning for this one)
- Jersey cut too short
- Sleeves coming out of jersey – only QB can have this and only a certain amount can come out
- Chinstrap undone ($7500)

$10,000 fines
- Personal messages
- Any second offense fine
- Wrong attire 90 minutes previous and after a game – clothes must be Reebok apparel
- Tinted visor – must have a doctors note for a tinted visor

There is also a special fine schedule for the post season. The minimum fine in playoff games will be between 10 and 20 thousand dollars. The minimum in the NFC Championship is between 50 and 75 thousand and for the Super Bowl the minimum is 100 grand. It’s been made very obvious the NFL and it’s sponsors want the players to dress accordingly.

And finally: We would like to hear your thoughts weekly on The BEST & WORST UNI’s from around the world of sports

THIS WEEK: BEST NHL UNI  -

I’ll Start us off : BlackHawks white!

See you next week.

….and remember if you don’t look good – you ain’t gonna play good.

Heading into our final weeks, every spot on your roster is crucial and has to be scrutinized so here are some suggestions for the all important week ahead !

 Quaterbacks

Tony Romo

At this stage in the game, you have to pick the players that are not your usual suspects, so far Mr. November has extended his hours of service to include December as well.

Matt Schaub

So much for that theory, Schaub is on form again and St Louis is going to be in for a long day.

Kurt Warner

No team has rebounded better from a loss than the Cardinals, look who’s next, the Detroit paper Lions.

Carson Palmer

This is a make or break pick for your team, remember the game Brett Favre had after his dad died, maybe we’ll get the same results from the Bengals after the tragic death of Chris Henry this week.

Jason Campbell

The Giants defense is in shambles right now, if you need a pick that may produce time like he did 2 weeks ago against New Orleans , Campbell is your guy.

Running backs

Josh Cribbs No doubt the best player no ones ever heard of until last thursday. What took Cleveland 13 weeks to give him the ball ? Mangenious ? I dont think so.

Chris Johnson

The Titans are really trying to get him the ball to reach the yardage record, always good to know when playing fantasy football.

Frank Gore

The Eagles defense showed they are sieve like last week, the 49ers can play very physical when they want too.

Cedric Benson Bengals saw a chink in the Chargers D last week in stopping te run, look for Benson to run wild.

Quinton Ganther

Here’s a make or break player for your roster, one good thing about Ganther, he runs hard and the Giants defense stinks, a beautiful combination !

Wide Receivers

Andre Johnson A regular in this column, what else can be said about his immense talents.

Randall Moss He laid an egg last week, after everyone taking a bullet for him this week, he better produce !!

Brandon Marshall Superman was simply……..Superman last week, look for more of the same as the broncos must win to stay ahead in the playoff hunt.

Desean Jackson Just an explosive playmaker, one more 50 plus yard td and he will have the record.

Tight Ends

Fred Davis Emerging as a rising young star for the Redskins, they know what Witten did to the Cowgirls 2 weeks ago, look for Davis to have a big game.

Vernon Davis Simply the tight end with the most talent in the league….and he’s actually starting to use it !

Jason Witten Mr. November will be under a lot of pressure on saturday night, he will look to his release valve quite often.

Antonio Gates The same can be said for Phillip Rivers, he will feel the heat of the Bengal Defense and he will look for Gates to bail him out as he always does.

There you go, now take care of business !!

It was last month when Mike Shanahan spent 7 quality hours with the Bills alleged brain-trust.  It was said that the meeting went well and that the 2 sides would keep in touch over the coming weeks.  Immediately thereafter, pretty much everyone and their uncle grenaded the thought that Shanny could ever end up in Buffalo.  Impossible, ludicrous & ridiculous, were just some of the adjectives bandied about by the ‘experts’ to describe the Bills chances.  It got me thinking, how could they be so sure?  What I came up with is this – the only thing more ridiculous than Shanahan going to Buffalo, is that he shouldn’t even consider it.

Insiders allege that Shanny is after 3 things - 1. complete football control  2. a guaranteed 50 million in salary & 3. a stake in the team.  Let’s for a moment assume this is accurate.
Let’s look at some of the potential openings and see who might meet Mike’s criteria.

Oakland - No argument required, the chances of Shanny returning there are worse than me getting or even wanting that gig.

Washington - If Shanahan is serious about his criteria, this would be a pretty quick conversation.  Snider is about as likely to give up complete football control as I am likely to give up the double quarter pounder.

Dallas - the only thing less likely than Dan Snider giving up complete control of his team, is Captain Plastic giving up control of his.  Even if Jerry tells him he will have control, all Mike would have to do is call the Tuna or Jimmy Johnson and ask him if he means it.

Seattle - With the resignation last week of the GM, speculation began to percolate.  Ownership made it clear though that the replacement would have to be willing to play by their rules, in other words likely keep Jim Mora Jr. as coach.  Does that sound like complete control?

Jacksonville - While it is likely they miss the play-offs with their schedule, it’s unlikely they will make a change. There has been a dramatic improvement in the Jags over last year, and since its only year one with Gene Smith making the personnel decisions, it’s unlikely a change is imminent. Besides, even if the job opened up who would take this job over Buffalo?  The attendance in Jacksonville is worse than a WNBA game.

Carolina - What a huge mistake it would be to fire John Fox. That being said, if they did fire Fox,  it would probably be to hire Bill Cowher.  At least that’s what everyone seems to think.  Personally, I don’t think the Panthers will make a change at all and if Cowher gets the feeling that it won’t be anytime soon,  he may be more interested in throwing his hat in the ring for other jobs (maybe I’m just hopeful because he is so terrible on TV).

Tennesse – Fisher isn’t going anywhere.

Now things get a little interesting,

Chicago - With the obvious connection between Shanahan & Cutler it makes sense. Too, its Mike’s home state. Realistically though what are the chance that both Lovie Smith and Jerry Angelo get fired?  I say not good, they are only a couple years removed from the Super Bowl and it seems unlikely after one bad year that they both would get punted.

Cleveland – Owner Randy Lerner seems desperate for a winner and seems willing to give everything that Shanahan would want but for now Lerner has been said to be flirting mostly with Mike Holmgren.  Too, just think about it, if Buffalo is a crappy job what would make the Cleveland job so much more attractive? Ok, maybe the load of draft picks they have stockpiled.

Tampa -With the ownership here, who the heck knows what they will do.  They may still be in love with Raheem Morris or they may think he is already over the hill.  One thing is for sure, if they follow the same hiring pattern and keeping hiring younger coaches they may hire one of the Jonas brothers instead of Shanahan.

Houston – Now this one is interesting.  Kubiak is said to be on the hot seat after another mediocre year.  Every year they are on the verge and every year they come up short.  It’s also interesting because when Kubiak got the job in Houston they employed the Bronco/Shanahan GM philosophy, which is basically that the coach has the control over personnel.  So if Kubiak was let go, the Owner Mcnair is already familiar with the organizational structure that Shanahan is comfortable with.  Whether that is a plus or a negative remains to be seen.  Finally, what impact will it have that Mike’s son is on the staff in Houston and that Kubiak was his protégé?  Again time will tell.

Have you learned anything from this exercise?  Well I firmly believe that there is a decent chance of the Bills landing Shanahan. While it is certainly to soon to tell, the Bills have made it clear that they are agreeable to meeting his demands. Let’s see if anyone else will.

NR

If there was a ‘Be careful what you wish for…’ category at your local Barnes & Noble, you would no doubt find among other interesting reads – The Jay Cutler story.  No one is asserting that it would make the N.Y. Times bestsellers list, but at the very least it would be a compelling read for the football fan.  Read the full story

Roy Halladay:

Rumours this past week at the winter meetings were flying in regards to Halladay being traded. It is no surprise since Roy has made it clear that he wants to play with a contender. This is the part I wonder about and fans (especially Toronto fans) hate to hear, that one of their athletes wants to leave for a better team. Yet hasn’t society in general taken this approach? Don’t people end their marriages to go on to what they feel is a “better marriage” instead of making their existing marriage better. Don’t people want to get a “better job” instead of making the company they work for better? So why ask Halladay to stay to make the Jays’ better when he wants to go to a “better team.

Saints and Colts Stay Undefeated:

In an era when we constantly hear that the NFL has parity, can someone explain how we have 2 teams (13-0 Colts and Saints) that are so far ahead of the rest of the league and 2 teams (1-12 Bucs and Rams) that are so “behind” the rest of the league?  Maybe the only parity we have is that all teams (except the Jaguars) are making a boatload of cash. To make matters worse, this past week we are hearing about how the NFL wants to cut 100 million dollars of revenue sharing.  And this is going to help the parity?

Toronto Maple Leafs:

This past week the Maple Leafs won 3 of their 4 games.  Their one loss was to the Bruins and they almost came back to tie that one up.   2 of their 3 wins were against 2 top teams in their conference – the Atlanta Thrashers and Washington Capitals. Let’s give credit to Ron Wilson who after the Leafs had that horrible start where they won 1 game in their first 13 starts did not panic and kept his cool and has now won 8 of his last 12 games. Look out NHL the Leafs are no longer a push over and could surprise many come April.

The NCAA proves every year that you don’t have to be good at something to succeed.  Admittedly, they are good at making money.  But when it comes to honouring the sports they claim guardianship over, they are embarrassingly inept.

Not that you need me to remind you of the litany of proofs, but I need to get this off my chest.

Firstly, the BCS.   Really, this is like shooting fish in barrel, but here goes anyway.  It starts with the refusal to have a playoff for the national championship, instead the BCS would rather have a group of figure skating judges and computers determine the 2 best teams in the country and then wait five weeks to play the game.  One of my favourite arguments against having a playoff that they use is that ‘we don’t want to interfere with exams in December’.  So let me get this straight. There is no time for a playoff because the students study for five weeks for their exams?  I think not. If that where the case, then why do they start playing Bowl games on the 19th of December?  The solution isn’t rocket science; just start a playoff on the same day the bowl games begin. Start with eight teams and play two playoff weeks and then a championship game. Now how hard was that?

It’s bad enough they don’t have a playoff, but just as bad is their stubborn refusal to give us the games we want.  For instance, TCU vs. Boise. What a joke; the cowardly BCS instead of giving the two mid-major powers a chance to go toe to toe with some BCS teams, they get them to play again for the second year in a row. Why?  It’s to ensure that next year when both teams are great again the BCS can again talk about them not playing anybody and thus have a lousy preseason ranking which basically precludes them from having a legit chance at a national title.  How much better would a TCU/Florida match-up be and Boise/Cincinnati game? Oh, what could have been!

This leads me to another complaint I have: the outright stupidity of the pre-season rankings. Without even playing a game, teams are ranked and these rankings later become part of the equation when determining rankings later in the season and ultimately may be a determining factor in playing for the National Championship.  How fair is that? NCAA is on par with those bastions of fairness boxing and figure skating.  Again, how difficult would it be to just not start ranking the teams until week 4, or even later.  Last year a mediocre Georgia team was the consensus preseason number one.  Too, did you realize in the 2006 season Notre Dame was ranked second and third in the respective pre-season coaches and AP polls?  That fact alone should bring the system down.  The BCS likes this system though, why?  Because it ensures that the championship game will be played between a couple of BCS schools.  What does the guardian of all that is fair the NCAA do about all this manipulation by the BCS? Yup, you guessed it, sweet tweet!

According to the NCAA their job is as follows: “The NCAA serves as the governance and administrative infrastructure through which representatives of colleges and universities enact legislation and set policy to establish recruiting standards and competitive equity among members, protect the integrity of intercollegiate athletics, ensure the enforcement of its rules and provide public advocacy of college sports…The NCAA also has the responsibility in Division I-A football to protect the integrity of the game and the sanctity of the subdivision itself. While there are 117 institutions in Division I-A, the BCS represents an agreement among 64 of those institutions to participate in the series with guaranteed participation for the champions in the six conferences, plus two additional at-large berths. Any team from a non-BCS Division I-A conference (Conference USA, Mountain West, Western Athletic, Sun Belt and Mid-American Conferences), or an independent can qualify if it is ranked in the top six in the BCS standings.”  Who is their watchdog so that they live up to these lofty standards?  Again you guessed it, themselves!

While we are talking about fairness, what is it about hiring coaches from bowl teams before the bowl games? This week Brian Kelly of Cincinnati wouldn’t even commit to coaching his team in the Sugar Bowl because of considering an offer from Notre Dame – which he has since accepte.  Is that fair?  There is so much made of the fairness to kids, and the NCAA claims to be the guardian of these student athletes. While a kid who wants to transfer to another school to play has to sit out a year first, a coach who is under contract can walk away before the year is even finished, leaving the kids that he recruited hanging.  In spite of this he’ll usually even get his school and the NCAA’s blessing. What kind of a system is that?

My last beef is the policy on student athletes and holding down a job. Under NCAA rules, the maximum an athlete can earn at a job is $2000 for the year, including a summer job.  How ridiculous is that? That’s an average of $170 a month.  They may say they are trying to prevent boosters from giving kids bogus jobs for big bucks, which is understandable.  Yet how fair is it that when they sign television deals worth billions of dollars, you can’t tell me there isn’t enough cash to offer student athletes a modest stipend.  It is true that these kids are getting a free educational ride, but come on.  These are kids often from very humble means and can’t rely on relatives for spending money.  By refusing to offer a modest stipend, the NCAA is actually encouraging these kids to explore temptation.

The NCAA is run like a cell-phone provider or cable company.  They basically blackmail and hold us hostage because we can’t live without what they provide.  The NCAA has one of the greatest sports products available and, like a big bully, make stupid contrary decisions to remind us that they hold the cards.  It sucks to be us!

NR

With the playoffs starting in many fantasy leagues, it’s time you really pay attention to SportsRuckus.net as we set you on your way to yet another victory !!

If you have to make a gutsy play this week, Randy Moss is your man, he will either win your matchup single handedly or send you home packing after what’s happened to him lately. 

Quarterbacks

Dr. Drew Brees

The former Charger is just having an MVP type season and apart from a few hiccups against AFC East Teams like the Jets and Bills, he’s performed surgery without the anaesthetic on the rest of the league. Look for the Dr. to continue his practice

Tom Brady

Brady has been embarrassed by the performance or lack thereof from the Patriots the last 2 weeks, look for the leader to re-establish himself once again this week.

Donovan McNabb

If Mr. November can light up the Giants (in December may I add) look for the smiley one (even smiles after missing wide open receivers in the end zone) to do a number on this Giants team that’s running out of duct tape .

Aaron Rodgers

Obvious pick here, since his linemen have been getting healthy, they’ve only allowed 2 sacks last 2 games while allowing 43 the first 11 games (in turn sending 4 Viking Linemen to the pro bowl) Rodgers has been taking full advantage putting up huge numbers in the last few weeks 

Sleepers

Quarterbacks

Bruce Gradkowski

Showed some Moxie lately as he put up some big numbers against the Steelers, Redskins aint the Steelers ! 

Running Backs

Ricky Williams

Look for Ricky to outduel Maurice in the battle of the 2 star running backs in the “most nerdy name  bowl”

Chris Johnson

Another duel of amazing backs, Johnson outduels Jackson in the “son bowl”

Joseph Addai

He’s making his first appearance in these pages, the way to beat Denver is with a grinding running game, not that Peyton is a slouch, just that you will have to run Addai if you’re up in the second half

Felix Jones

He hasn’t really lived up to his billing this year, playing the Chargers is an instant remedy for any ailing running back

Ray Rice

He’s been laying low of late, after Cedric Benson ran for a 110 yards to soften up the Lions, look for Rice to Roni up on the Lions

Correll Buckhalter

If the Donks have any chance of beating the Colts, you will hear his name a lot on Sunday. 

Wide Receivers

Brandon Marshall

Someone has to step up and show the Colts secondary has no experience !! Brandon doesn’t respect anyone anyways so he’s the perfect man for the job.

Andre Johnson

Every receiver has been torching the Seahags this year, unfortunately for Seattle, Johnson is not just another receiver.

Wesley Welker

He’s been Brady’s No 1 Target (Randy no likey) which makes him an easy play this week against hapless Carolina.

Randy Moss

Was sent home for showing up to practice (Practice?) late. He will either respond with an amazing performance or lay an egg !

Every New Orleans Receiver !!

Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson, Marques Colston… Mamma mia ! Take your pick…no wonder Brees (former Charger) is going to be MVP 

Tight Ends

Vernon Davis

Just playing like he was on a playground in his hometown, a must start for teams that have to play a tight end.

Antonio Gates

It’s going to be a track meet in Dallas this Sunday, Gates is on pace for a 2400 yard season his last 2 games.

Jason Witten

The number 1 reason Tony Romo may get rid of his Mr. November name tag is because of the numbers Witten has been producing lately.

Brent Celek

Just follow the wheelmarks that Jason Witten left on the Giants last week for over 155 yards (had 156) and you’ll be fine. 

There you have it, hope you have success !!

Let me start by saying I am not a New England Patriot fan, but I did love Bill Belichick’s fourth down call against the Colts. I’ve thought about this very carefully over the last two weeks and I’ve come to the conclusion that it really was the right decision. Here’s why. First, I am tired of watching football coaches constantly making conservative calls playing the entire game with a “not to lose ” Italian soccer strategy instead of the “going for the win” approach. Second, when you think about it, which was the riskier move, having Tom Brady and his offense get the 2 yards for the first down or giving Manning the ball with 2 minutes left and 60- 70 yards to go. In reality Belichick did what most baseball fans, who I feel are in the same category as Star Wars/Star Trek convention-going fanatics, would say a great manager would do. Make a decision on percentages.  Yes, a baseball manager looks at all his options and who his opponent is in every situation and figures out what his best percentage to succeed is and goes for it. Successful or not if he plays the percentages he is always considered to be making the right decision. In baseball what Belichick did is called strategy but to football fans it’s crazy. Go figure.

As for the thinking that what Belichick did would get his defense to feel like he doesn’t trust them is also ludicrous. Does a relief pitcher that gets pulled out of a game because the next batter he faces has a better chance of getting a hit on him than another pitcher on his team get offended? No he understands the percentages. Belichick knew that his offense facing the Colts defense has a better chance of success then his defense facing Peyton Manning.

So for all you Belichick haters that are just waiting for him to make a mistake and jump on him on what was the right call, just chill out and remember a very important fact. He hasn’t won 3 super bowls with a constantly changing line up and low-drafted players because he guesses and uses emotion in making his decision. He also hasn’t won because he has had great coordinators as Charlie Weiss, Eric Mangini, Romeo Cromell and Josh McDaniels have not exactly gone on to great things without Belichick. He has won because he is a football genius.

Mr. “Sports” Bean

It is time for my fearsome predictions of teams headed for playoff bliss and teams headed for playoff whiffs in the NFC – the contenders versus the pretenders, the players versus the dreamers, and the combatants versus combustibles.  

With 4 weeks left in the regular season and no more byes to be had, the margin for error for most teams to make the playoffs save the Colts or the Saints is slim to none and as the saying goes slim is out of town. 

Let’s begin by taking a look at the contenders. 

Contenders

Minnesota (10-2)

The Vikings no doubt got more than one wakeup call by the time the left Arizona.  But this is a team that of course will be playing meaningful football come January, and certainly along with the Saints the current favourite to go deep into the post-season.  It certainly would be an interesting matchup with the Saints potent offense against the Vikings vaunted defence.  They say defence wins championships.  If that’s true the Vikings are in good position, notwithstanding their loss yesterday.

Arizona Cardinals (8-4)

They are starting to look like the team that went to the big dance last year.  Much like Philadelphia, they are not a team you would like to play in the first round of the playoffs or anywhere the temperature is above freezing.  As long as Warner can stay healthy, they have too many weapons to not be considered an elite team in the NFC. 

Philadelphia (8-4)

A very resounding win yesterday against a depleted Falcons team doesn’t hurt this team’s chances.  Going down the stretch and given the choice I would take my chances with McNabb at crunch time over Romo.  Their schedule isn’t much easier with matchups against the Giants and Broncos.  If they do make it to the playoffs and I think they will with an 11-5 record, I think this is one team nobody wants to face.

N.Y.Giants (7-5)

What has happened to that fearsome Giants D?  This is not your infant’s defence from 2 years ago.  A nice surprise has been the WR position which was thought to be a glaring weakness going into the season.  If it comes down to the last game of the season against the Vikings it may come down to whether the Vikings have anything to play for.  This one may be the hardest to call.  The Giants could conceivably run the table against the Eagles, Redskins, Panthers and Vikings or they could lose 3 or 4.  I’m hedging they will go 3-1 and finish at 10-6 – which puts them in the playoffs.

New Orleans (12-0)

They have a swagger don’t they?  Add to that the coach says they will not rest starters but will play for an unbeaten record down the stretch and you can feel the confidence oozing out of New Orleans.  I seem to remember a lot of confidence in Oklahoma this year too, until a certain QB there hit the injury shelf. 

Green Bay Packers (8-4)

Much like the Cowboys, something doesn’t feel right with this team.  Perhaps fittingly their only win against a team with a winning record this year was against those same Dallas Cowboys.  I don’t see much changing with this team, and given the fact that of the 5 games remaining on the schedule 3 will be against .500 teams or better they are in tough.  But it says here there will be one more playoff reunion with the frozen tundra  this year but not with Brett Favre.

Pretenders

Atlanta Falcons (6-6)

They aren’t who we thought they would be.  Hopes reigned high in Atlanta after last year’s success.  But the fine folks in Atlanta better look to the Hawks for their next post-season success.  You can take away yesterday’s loss to the Eagles because they were certainly undermanned – but this team is still average at best.  Their schedule bodes well for them with three of the four remaining games against the likes of the Jets, Bills, and Bucs.  But, even at that they are still a long shot to make the playoffs.

Dallas (8-4)

It is hard to figure this team out – starting with the offense.  In many ways it seems like a collection of parts that put together look more like a Lada than a Lamborghini.  However, at 8-4 they sit atop the NFC East after beating Philly earlier this year.  That said, the Eagles may very have something to say about that on the last game of the season.  That game could very well decide the division and may even decide who packs up and goes home.  However, with games against San Diego and New Orleans still ahead, I think this team is in danger of finishing the season with a 9-7 record.  I don’t think that will be good enough.