Total bullcrap journalistic practice that needs to die in an incinerator, #26345: The misleading headline/question mark combo. For whatever reason, writers are able to get away with some of the most absurd, heinous implications with the addition of uncertainty, via question mark. For example, if a headline said “[insert your favorite President] Routinely Murdered Grandmothers With His Bare Hands,” you’d know the article wasn’t worth reading because that is absolutely nowhere in the record of facts. But if it was “[insert your favorite President] Routinely Murdered Grandmothers With His Bare Hands?”, all of a sudden you’re thinking, “You know what? Maybe there’s something there.” And then the article’s about economic policy and you’re just irate.

(This uncertainty is so zany!)

So while it’s no surprise, it’s still disappointing that the practice has bled over to PRO FOOTBALL TALK, where a recent headline read, and we quote, “Brandon Jacobs wants to beat up Tony Siragusa?” The article itself had absolutely nothing that suggested that Jacobs was upset; in fact, the only time Jacobs even mentioned Siragusa was to say he didn’t care about him. Booooooo. Poor form.

Or is it poor form? We’re going to print the notes for our fantasy football team, but give it all some fun headlines. Let’s see if we can’t gin up a few cheap pageviews on this one. Read more…

Brett Favre has received doe eyes from the media since, well, since he became culturally relevant after taking over as Green Bay’s starting quarterback nearly two decades ago. In the process, handfuls of NFL reporters and talking heads had to get close to his agent, Bus Cook, to find out what Favre was thinking, and get inside enough to report on it. Now, they have to get through Cook to understand what in God’s name is going on with Jay Cutler, and there’s plenty of reason to believe that while Cook is one of the bus drivers pushing the entire Cutler-Denver controversy, he’s not getting any criticism from ESPN because the network so desperately wants to hire his other, more famous client as an NFL analyst.

(The real reason for Bus Cook’s sudden deification is standing just to the right of him. Here’s a hint about who he is: He’s really famous and wearing a white t-shirt.)

The theory was first postulated this morning by PROFOOTBALLTALK writer Mike Florio, and we think he’s really on to something. After all, if you believe FOX SPORTS’s John Czarnecki, Cook was already asking Denver to trade Cutler, before the Broncos even started tossing his name out to the wolves of the NFL market. Instead of telling the truth about what’s really happening behind the scenes — that Cook is helping Cutler agitate for a trade — ESPN is deifying him as the most upright of all agents, hoping to make inroads into landing Favre for the network’s analyst chair.

Read more…

You know who had a good night on Monday? Devin Harris of the New Jersey Nets. Not only did he score 39 points, but he sunk a game-winning half court shot as time expired to lift his team to a 98-96 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night. The entire play was about as nutty as you can get in the NBA, with Harris having his initial shot blocked before recovering to sink the game-winning basket a fraction of a second before time expired.

As BLACK SPORTS ONLINE points out, Harris’ shot raised a whole host of questions: was he fouled in the act of shooting; did he travel after recovering the initial blocked shot; and did he really get the shot off before time expired.  Take a look for yourself and be the judge (and please pay attention to Violet Palmer, who emphatically waved off the shot, probably because she’s an awful referee):

As for the 76ers: as THE 700 LEVEL points out, this loss was a microcosm of their season: for the sixth time, they lost a game they were leading with ten seconds to go. So the next time you complain about a close game your team lost, keep in mind that it could be worse - you could be a 76ers fan.

If Devin Harris had a good night on Monday, then the New York Knicks’ Nate Robinson continued his great month of February. Not only did he win the NBA Slam Dunk title by (literally) leaping over Dwight Howard, but he’s been a beast on the court as well. Besides blocking Chris Bosh, Robinson has been on a scoring tear. His 41 points against the Pacers marked the fourth time in the last six game he’s scored 30 points or more, helping lead the way to a 123-119 victory.

Meanwhile, not having such a great day or month is Marvin Harrison. It’s hard to imagine the possibly second-greatest wide receiver in NFL history playing for another team than the Indianapolis Colts, but that’s the real possibility after the INDIANAPOLIS STAR reports that Harrison is all but certain to be cut by the team, barring a last-ditch effort by team owner Robert Irsay. Then again, if Jerry Rice can play for the Seahawks…

• Do you want to ask a question to Danica Patrick? Now here’s your chance, as Texas Motor Speedway has opened up a two-way line of communication. Although I suspect any questions with the keywords “white trash tattoo” are going to be unanswered.



• DR. SATURDAY has a riddle for you: guess who bench-pressed more than anticipated Top 12 NFL draft pick OL Eugene Monroe and Michael Oher? If you said USC placekicker David Buehler, take a bow.
• EPIC CARNIVAL has a tale to tell about Randy Johnson, and it’s pretty much the best thing ever. Needless to say, it’s NSFW.
• BLOOMBERG has the latest former MLB player to roll over on Alex Rodriguez: Cal Ripken Jr., who says that Rodriguez’s accomplishments will carry an asterisk with them.
• AOL FANHOUSE wants to introduce you to the first sacrificial lamb on Tiger Woods’ comeback trail: Brendan Jones, his first-round opponent at the Accenture Match Play Championships.
• Would you accept financial advice from Chance Mock, the guy who lost the starting QB job at Texas to Vince Young? Me either, but EVERY DAY SHOULD BE SATURDAY has his video trying to convince you otherwise:
  

• Mike Florio of PRO FOOTBALL TALK has his new book out, called “Quarterback of the Future.” And judging by the front cover on his AMAZON.COM page…it’s looking more and more like a watered-down “Encyclopedia Brown” mystery.
• Last year we told you about Christopher Parr, a top HS football recruit charged with aggravated assault after stealing a teen’s hat and shoes. Now KWTX-TV says he’s back in jail, this time on charges of injury to a child.
• John Ireland is a favorite around here, for being one of the few LA sports talking heads to actually know what he’s talking about. But NESW SPORTS has video of the Lakers’ Derek Fisher playfully upstaging him after an interview.
• Whatever you do, DO NOT play a game at Sharks Ice in San Jose. The SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS says that two recreational hockey players died within hours of each other at the facility. Hollywood is standing by to turn this into a lousy teen horror movie.

I can imagine that one of the greatest honors a member of the military can receive is being selected as part of the Color Guard presenting the American flag at the Super Bowl. You are literally the symbol of the nation you might fight and die for with up to a billion people watching. Even for someone whose closest relation to military service was a dad who was an Air Force mechanic in Korea, it gives me goosebumps.

After being a part of the ceremonies, you would think that the Color Guard would then be rewarded by being able to relax and watch the game. Perhaps not luxury boxes, but at least a block of seats and some free popcorn. But of course, we’re talking about the NFL, and you would be wrong - the league has stuck the servicemen and women with the thousands of other “extras” watching the game on a big-screen TV at an undisclosed location deep inside the bowels of the stadium.

Read more…

I’m happy to report that I’m back in Los Angeles for the summer, after five delightful days driving from Miami. First day back, I was at Game 5 of the NBA Finals, which extended the inevitable Boston series triumph by at least one more 48-minute epoch (has a team ever looked worse in a win than Sunday @ Staples?)

Before the game, I waited for Jerry Buss to pull up with a limo-full of teenie strippers drank in the *electric* atmosphere outside the arena, which featured a chance to admire an embarrassingly outdated display of ABC NBA broadcasters. Best part: Getting to let Stephen A. know how the vast majority of respirating, bipedal NBA fans felt about his past on-air contribution.

The fan photo-op broadcast desk was part of an RV-display that featured cutouts of ABC’s NBA broadcast team, which as you can imagine had passing fans bursting with excitement. One small detail: Smith and Bill Walton aren’t on ABC’s coverage of the NBA Finals.

It’s also nice to see the (Celtics-operated?) Staples-area parking guys weren’t in a mood to gouge Game 5 attendees. Let’s see, buy a quarter-tank of gas, or park for the game?

I traveled around Los Angeles (Pasadena down to Venice) quite a bit yesterday to acquaint myself with how my town was feeling before the game. I was surprised. No car flags, no lines outside of sports bars, no buzz. I know it was Father’s Day, and the Lakers were down 3-1, but I expected at least some excitement around town. But it’s been exceedingly flaccid, especially compared to the early ’90s championship Shaq-n-Kobe era.

Apparently, the country is similarly laissez-faire. The ratings have been better than last year’s putrid numbers, but as Barry Horn of the DALLAS MORNING NEWS wrote, “(ESPN/ABC and the NBA) dreamed of a return to double-digit ratings with Lakers-Celtics, but the numbers have been a disappointment. America knew Michael Jordan. Apparently, Kobe Bryant is no Michael Jordan.”

Rocco Mediate as a poker player, from WICKED CHOPS POKER:

More golf coverage after the jump … Read more…

Mike Florio of PRO FOOTBALL TALK reports today that “Suzy Kolber is a new mother, according to an ESPN spokesman who confirmed what apparently was mentioned at some point late Wednesday night on the air.”

“We reported several months ago (more than three and less than nine) that Kolber is pregnant. Our own MDS told me that he saw her while he was covering the Vikings-Bears Monday nighter in December for AOL, and that she obviously was expecting something other than an alcohol-induced fondling from a retired quarterback.”

Florio has also tracked down the sex and rather coincidental name of Kolber’s new daughter. Read more…

PRO FOOTBALL TALK’s Mike Florio (who else?) reports that the Steelers will hand over a guaranteed $38.7M to Ben Roethlisberger as part of a contract extension (commence catch-up reports on MSM websites and ESPN News).

How can a guy in the hills of West Virginia continue to scoop the big boys at ESPN, NFL Network and FOX? Someone, anyone give this guy a MSM job. Read more…

Ten days ago we reported, via Mike Florio at PFT, that ESPN NFL writer Len Pasquarelli had quintuple heart bypass surgery in Phoenix on February 2. He had been in town to cover the Super Bowl.

Pretty serious stuff, eh? Well, we were tipped yesterday that Len was already back at work last night. And a check of his archive this morning reveals that he filed a piece Wednesday night about the Carolina Panthers locking up safety Chris Harris with “a four-year contract extension through the 2012 season.”

So two weeks after a life-threatening surgical procedure Pasquarelli is already back to work. Pretty damn amazing.

Mike Florio PRO FOOTBALL TALK reports ESPN NFL reporter Len Pasquarelli had quintuple bypass surgery over the weekend. Get well soon, big fella.

This on the heels of Mike Wilbon’s heart attack and Florio also reporting, “Peter King of Sports Illustrated was hospitalized on Sunday with bronchitis, and was unable to attend the (Super Bowl) game.

Mike Florio of PRO FOOTBALL TALK catches all-around sweetheart Len Pasquarelli administering a backhanded swipe compliment to fellow ESPN reporter Michael Smith on ESPN.com.

Smith broke the news of the Atlanta Falcons hiring Mike Smith as head coach, which surprisingly didn’t sit well with the normally cheerful Lenny, who happens to be based in Atlanta. Pasquarelli reacted to the news in an ESPN.com piece on the new coach.

Excerpt: “Perhaps the only failure of (Falcons GM Tom) Dimitroff in the process was allowing word of his choice to leak out. Michael Smith of ESPN knew who the new coach was going to be long before Mike Smith the new head coach did. But, hey, that was a win for the home team in Bristol, and we’ll take it.”

What a nice way of congratulating your ESPN teammate. We still can’t believe Dimitroff had the gall to leak his coaching choice. And who is Michael Smith to think he can actually make a living at reporting something like that!