Which team had the best draft?

CHRIS VADNEY: You could argue that many teams filled their needs on draft day but few filled as many as the St. Louis Rams. The Rams had some explaining to do to Sam Bradford after losing his favorite and most productive weapon, Danny Amendola, to free agency this offseason. They addressed that need by trading up to eighth in the first round to draft Tavon Austin, regarded by many as the best receiver in the draft, and then grabbing wideout Stedman Bailey in thethird round (Bailey went to West Virginia with Austin and was actually the more productive of the two in 2012). Linebacker Alec Ogletree was taken late in the first round but had top-10 talent; he slipped because of off-the-field issues. He may have been the best linebacker in the entire draft. Center/guard Barrett Jones and safety T.J. McDonald are the other great values the Rams were able to obtain to fill their needs. Ogletree, Jones, Austin, and McDonald will all likely start, and as far as I am concerned, drafting four potential starters means you nailed the draft.

JORDAN JACKSON: Indeed, the Vikings came out of the draft with three first-round picks, but it was the Chargers who didn’t have to trade away half their draft to get first-round talent in the second and third rounds. The Bolts enlisted some much-needed help on their tattered offensive line by snatching D.J. Fluker at 12^th overall. In the second round, they were there waiting to end Manti Te’o’s highly publicized slide. I know a lot of teams didn’t want to deal with Te’o’s hype, but off-the-field baggage aside, I consider him a first-round talent. In the third round was what I thought was one of the biggest steals of the draft: the Chargers selecting Keenan Allen out of California at 76^th overall. I had Allen going in the first round right up until about the eve of the draft when he was abruptly leap-frogged on the boards by late-rising receivers like Justin Hunter. The Chargers’ first three picks all have the potential to be major contributors in 2013—if not starters.

Which team had the worst draft?

CHRIS: I’m not sure if Dallas even has one of those infamous “Big Boards” because it seemed like they didn’t take the best player for a position at any point in the draft. Initially, when Dallas traded back from 18 to 31 it looked like a solid move, but then they drafted center/guard Travis Frederick, and the move became a head scratcher. Frederick may end up being a fine player but when there is a value like fellow center/guard Barrett Jones available in the fourth round, that is a wasted pick. Tight end Gavin Escobar will probably end up as their best pick but even that was a questionable selection with higher upside tight ends Vance McDonald and Travis Kelce also available. Wide receiver Terrance Williams has all the makings of a top talent in the NFL but since Keenan Allen slipped all the way down to the Cowboys at 74, I was shocked to see Williams go anyway. Allen will thrive in San Diego and Dallas fans will watch Williams drop passes in a limited role. Bravo, as usual, Jerry Jones.

JORDAN: What in the name of Broadway Joe were the New York Jets thinking?! With the Dallas Cowboys and Chicago Bears earning dishonorable mentions, I have to say the Jets hurt themselves the most—or more helped themselves the least—with their head-scratching lineup of selections, beginning with their two chances to fill needs in the first-round. Yes, Dee Milliner might have been a top-five prospect, and thus a relative steal at ninth, but the Jets had so many holes to fill. People seem to have forgotten—along with Milliner’s injury concerns—that the Jets already had an in-house answer to Darrelle Revis’ departure in Kyle Wilson. And how do the Jets plan on using 13^th-overall pick Sheldon Richardson? He’s not a fit for their 3-4 scheme, and even if he was, there are already two viable, young starters up front for the Jets in Muhammad Wilkerson and Quenton Coples. Geno Smith might have been New York’s best pick in the draft, and that should tell you something about the questionability of this class.

Your early prediction for Rookie of the Year, offense?

CHRIS: This award has gone to a quarterback each of the past three seasons, but since I’m not even sure any rookie quarterbacks will enter 2013 as starters, I’ll select Packers running back, Eddie Lacy. He is capable of being a three-down back, which is exactly what Green Bay is looking for, and he’ll catch passes out of the backfield. How well he catches the ball remains to be seen, but I expect that it’ll come a lot more naturally than the scouts think. For that reason I believe he will amass tons of all-purpose yardage and his statistics will dwarf other skill-position rookies making him the first running back since Adrian Peterson, in 2007, to win the award.

JORDAN: I’ll see your Eddie Lacy, Chris, and raise you a Johnathan Franklin. (Chris didn’t have the advantage of seeing my answers before writing his own, unlike I did with his answers.) I had actually thought about Eddie Lacy too, but two factors changed my find. One, Chris picked the same guy as me. Two, just as I was thinking that I need to change my answer, I heard a report on NFL Network that the Packers might actually prefer to start Franklin over Lacy due to Lacy’s lingering shoulder-injury concerns and issues. It’s no secret that Mike McCarthy desperately wants to run the ball. He has wanted to for two or three years now ever since Ryan Grant had that one awesome season. I think he has more faith in Franklin (and Lacy) than he has had in any of his draftees or free agents of the past five seasons. I expect the Packers to run the ball a lot this season. Why? Because it’s finally going to start working.

And defense?

CHRIS: Linebackers have won this award nine of the past ten years and I expect that trend to continue. For me, it comes down to Jarvis Jones of the Steelers and Arthur Brown of the Ravens. Brown will be playing inside linebacker and Jones will be playing outside linebacker. This is why I think Jones is your defensive rookie of the year. Being on the outside provides more opportunities for big plays and those will get him noticed. They both have huge shoes to fill—James Harrison’s and Ray Lewis’, respectively—but I think Jones has more upside and big-play ability than Brown.

JORDAN: I’m going to go with Jonathan Cyprien out of Florida International to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Cyprien was the first pick of the second round and he will start immediately in Jacksonville. The Jaguars spent five of their eight draft picks on defensive backs, and for good reason—the Jags’ secondary had only eight picks in 2013. Cyprien will make an instantaneous difference in the turnover battle. He will be playing behind a tackling machine in Paul Posluszny, but considering how much time the Jags are bound to spend playing defense this season (due to the inevitable inefficiency of their offense), Cyprien’s likely to rack up the tackles too.

Which team has improved itself the most over the offseason?

CHRIS: This may be by default, but the Kansas City Chiefs have improved significantly from last season. In terms of wins and losses, the Chiefs have improved from two wins to at least seven wins in 2013. They added a competent quarterback in Alex smith, two proven corners in Sean Smith and Dunta Robinson, and brought in Mike Devito to replace Glenn Dorsey. They already had a solid defense in 2012, which people will conveniently forget because they only won two games. Their offense immediately improves with the addition of Alex Smith. To me, this adds at minimum five wins and puts them in the wild card discussion.

JORDAN: The Philadelphia Eagles. There hasn’t been much ado about it, but along with the hiring of Chip Kelly, the Eagles have surprisingly given their horrid defense a much-needed facelift, mainly through free agency. To go along with Fletcher Cox, Demeco Ryans, and Trent Cole, the Eagles imported some big-time free agents: Connor Barwin, Cary Williams, Isaac Sopoaga, Pat Chung, and Kenny Phillips. I don’t believe that a championship team can be purchased, but in the weak NFC East, this batch of standout defensive free agents might make the difference between hosting a playoff party in the living room, and hosting a playoff party at Lincoln Financial Field.

Which team is most likely to disappoint next Fall?

CHRIS: It kills me to say this, but I think the New England Patriots are due for regression, especially when you look at their schedule. The Patriot offense relies on the health of their receivers and tight ends and have all shown they are injury prone, especially Rob Gronkowski and Danny Amendola, Wes Welker’s replacement. Amendola has only played 12 games over the past two seasons and Gronkowski still isn’t healthy from a broken forearm, and he is contemplating a fourth surgery on the arm. The defense more-or-less plugged holes this offseason, with safety Adrian Wilson being the only major upgrade. I think the Patriots are looking at nine to ten wins in 2013 which is a step down from their traditional 12-plus. That being said I still believe they are threats come playoff time but be ready for a subpar regular season.

JORDAN: The Minnesota Vikings are destined to be this year’s 2012 Detroit Lions. There’s no way Adrian Peterson has a repeat performance of his 2,000-yard MVP season in his age-28 season. The defense has some big names, but their two most reliable players—Jared Allen and Chad Greenway—are on the wrong side of 30. And if you think their three first-round draft picks are all going to have immediate positive impacts, you my friend, are an optimist, put lightly. Finally, I have very little confidence in Christian Ponder. In reality, he was a game manager at best last season, and a liability in my opinion. The Vikes won’t sneak up on anyone this year.

Which team is most likely to surprise us with success?

CHRIS: The Indianapolis Colts are a popular pick to take a step back this season but, after looking at their schedule and their offseason additions, I find it hard to believe they do. Perhaps the Colts wasted a little bit of money this offseason on free agents, but they had the salary cap room and needed help on defense, so you can’t really argue with the signings. When you look at the final eight games of the Colts’ schedule, the Texans and Bengals provide the biggest challenge, and I think that even if they lose both of those games that they finish with 11 wins. I know that’s only up one game from last season but a lot of things went the Colts’ way for that to happen and fans should be thrilled if the team can duplicate the 10 wins from last season or improve, as I predict, with 11 this season. Also, let’s not underestimate how much of an impact a healthy Chuck Pagano will have on their defense.

JORDAN: It’s kind of a trendy pick, but I’m going to go with the Kansas City Chiefs. I think the fact that the Chiefs had so many Pro Bowlers last season was more a testament to the invalidity of the Pro Bowl than the strength of Kansas City’s roster, but I will say that there is a lot more talent here than their dismal 2012 season would indicate. Throw a culpable quarterback, some other good offseason acquisitions, and a potential future Hall of Fame coach in the mix, and suddenly, the Chiefs just might finish second in the AFC West and vie for a playoff bid, considering how bad Oakland is and the continued deterioration of San Diego’s franchise.

Which game next year are you most looking forward to?

CHRIS: Patriots vs. Broncos, on November 24^th. As an admitted Patriots fan, I can say that Pats fans everywhere look forward to playing against Peyton Manning every year. The Patriots spoiled Manning’s first shot at them as a Bronco last season but I can assure you that Manning and ex-Patriot Wes Welker will come into Foxboro looking to embarrass New England. I’m looking forward to an instant classic that hopefully ends with my Patriots pulling this one out at home.

JORDAN: It’s a tie between Seattle vs. San Francisco, round one; and Seattle vs. San Francisco, round two. Not only are these two teams the best teams in their division, and the best teams in their conference. That’s right, you’ve guessed it—they are the two best teams in the league! Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick are a new breed of quarterback—cerebral runners. Arms like Elway, instincts like Rodgers, mobility like Vick. These teams have engaged in a Cold War-esque arms race throughout the offseason, one-upping each other by trade, free-agent signings, and drafting. Now, they are poised to enter 2013 with perhaps the most complete rosters in the league and some stout, hard-nosed defenses. This rivalry is going to be a whole bushel of fun for the next decade or so if we’re lucky.

When Stephen Curry and the Davidson Wildcats shocked the world in the 2008 NCAA Tournament and made the Elite Eight before ultimately losing to Kansas by two points, it was cute.

Now, in his fourth season in the NBA, the once-darling of The Big Dance is taking the basketball world by storm (again) and dominating the leagues biggest stage.  This time, it’s anything but cute.

After torching the San Antonio Spurs Monday night to the tune of 44 points and 11 assists, the Steph Curry love affair has finally hit its peak.

The baby faced guard nearly broke Twitter on Monday with everyone and their mom proceeding to have their jaw drop lower and lower each time he touched the ball.

Known as one of the most fundamentally sound teams in the league, the Spurs had no answer.

Once regarded as just a pure shooter, Curry has transformed his game into a complete player who averaged 6.9 assists during the regular season and nearly ten a game during the postseason.

Although the Warriors blew a 16 point lead and lost the game by one after Manu Ginobili did this, the main story from Monday night, was without a doubt, how well Curry played.

It wasn’t just the fact that he scored 44 points, its how he scored them.

Step back jumpers, floaters, and scoop shots were all apart of the point guard’s arsenal, seemingly trying to out due himself every trip down the floor.

In yet another display of third quarter heroics, Curry poured in 22 points on 9 of 12 shooting and an even more impressive 4 of 6 from the three-point line.

Those highlights look like the work of some teenager playing Xbox 360 or somebody balling at Rucker Park, not moves that you’re supposed to be able to do on an actual NBA court.

I admit, I’m not much of an NBA nut, and on most occasions would prefer to watch college basketball, but when number 30 for the Golden State Warriors steps on the hardwood, my eyes are glued to the TV.

I also admit its been that case since he was at Davidson, but regardless. Curry is entering into elite status and deserves to be mentioned with the game’s best.

Some may say that’s a stretch, but trust me, this isn’t just a one-time act. Curry’s game has grown year by year and as long as his glass ankles don’t shatter, he should be looking at his first all-star berth next season.

The Warriors have provided tons of excitement this postseason and even down one game to none to the veteran Spurs, don’t expect to see any quit.

If you don’t have a dog in the fight, join me on the Warriors bandwagon if you haven’t already.

During the college basketball season we were asked if he had our “Victor Oladipo Moment”, now with the NBA playoffs in full swing, I ask, have you had your Steph Curry moment yet?

The Playoffs are in full swing now and The Association is back for its final episode. Whether it be Stephen Curry dominating the Nuggets or the Clippers inability to finish down the stretch, Max and Chris break it down and also ask, can anyone stop the Heat from winning their second straight championship?

With only one run the previous night in both games combined, Senior Samantha Heyman got the offense started in the first inning and beat the defense for an infield single. Shannon Cawley followed with a single of her own, then Kassi Farmer was hit by Badgers’ pitcher Meghan McIntosh to load the bases. With only one out, Meaghan Murphy stepped in the batter’s box and rocketed a double to the outfield, bringing in two runs and giving the Hoosiers an early lead.

“The energy was good, and it was good that we scored the first runs of the game,” Murphy said. She pointed out that there was familiarity with the pitcher from yesterday and had an idea what she was going to throw her when she got to the plate.

Meanwhile, freshman pitcher Brooke Boetjer found a way to tame the Badgers’ offense, holding them to one run through the first six innings. Boetjer recorded six strikeouts along the way, which tied her career-high.

“I pitched pretty well,” Boetjer said. “I just have to work on finishing the game and keep working to get better, especially as a freshman.”

The Hoosiers were ahead 2-1 entering the seventh inning, but that lead would soon wither away in an offensive explosion by the Badgers. Wisconsin rallied for two doubles and two singles to score four runs, taking a 5-2 lead. Besides Wisconsin’s offense, the top half of the inning also included a walk, error and catcher’s interference to keep the rally going as the Badgers batted through their lineup. Murphy pitched in relief for Boetjer and registered the last two outs.

The Hoosiers had a tough task of trying to make up the deficit; their bats had been quieted since Wisconsin pitcher Cassandra Darrah entered in the third inning and hadn’t allowed a hit.

“We were too eager to hit the ball far instead of getting it on the ground and getting hits,” Murphy said. “We had good at-bats, but they were going directly to their players.”

With two outs, Cawley hit a single to end the drought and tried to get a rally going, but Farmer struck out to end the game.

The loss is the Hoosiers’ 11^th straight and they fall to 19-31 on the season. They hope to work together and do well in their last series of the regular season against Minnesota to gain positive momentum for the Big Ten Tournament.

“We have to keep battling; have good at-bats, defense, and pitching,” Murphy said.  “It’s not over until it’s over.”

It is generally accepted that steroids are any type of drug which physically enhances your play beyond what it would have been naturally. Bonds took these in the latter half of his career, and many pundits claim that this usage gave him an unfair advantage. Bonds played the majority of his career for the San Francisco Giants, and is suspected of taking steroids prior to the 2001 season in which he mashed a record breaking 73 home runs. He has never been found guilty of taking steroids, as he was only found guilty of obstruction of justice in his trial last year.

I believe that Barry Bonds should be inducted into the Hall of Fame because of his contributions to the game of baseball prior to his suspected steroid use—the prerequisite of cheaters already in the Hall of Fame—and because of all of the other admitted, proven and suspected steroid-users Bonds played against during his time in the major leagues.

The issue of steroids has been a hot topic of discussion pertaining to morality as well as health. Hall of Fame voters are both incredibly torn, and outspoken on this topic. As a result there are a wide variety of opinions published on whether Bonds and company have a case for the Hall of Fame. One writer and voter who is particularly outspoken on Bonds’ case and steroids in general is Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci. Verducci has taken a clear stance against steroid use throughout his career and has published a lot of high-quality content on the topic. He states in one of his columns that “My vote is an endorsement of a career, not part of it, and how it was achieved. Voting for a known steroid user is endorsing steroid use. Having spent too much of the past two decades or so covering baseball on the subject of steroids—what they do, how the game was subverted by them, and how those who stayed away from them were disadvantaged—I cannot endorse it.” This is understandable that Verducci does not want to endorse steroids, as they are incredibly harmful to both a person’s body and mind, and he believes that it is morally wrong to take steroids. While Verducci does make a good point about why he cannot endorse steroids, morality is not what the Hall of Fame was based upon; rather, it is about remembering the greatest players of each generation, and during the proclaimed “steroid era” Bonds was one of, if not the best player.

While there are a plethora of voters who are starkly against ever allowing Bonds and his counterparts fifty feet within the Hall of Fame, there is also a large contingent that believes Bonds should be admitted into the Hall. One of these writers and voters is Sports Illustrated’s Jon Heyman, another highly respected baseball writer and baseball mind. He states in one of his columns that “It’s fair to say that not all his numbers are legit. But enough of them are, in all great likelihood, to suggest he was Hall worthy before he became a steroid user. As I said, I believe he didn’t start using until the 2000 season, by which point he had already: won three NL MVP awards, won eight Gold Glove awards, hit 448 home runs, made eight All-Star appearances, and had the highest WAR in baseball six times.” Heyman brings up a point that I agree with one-hundred percent: even if voters discredit statistics which were attained after he allegedly began taking steroids, Bonds’ numbers are still those of a surefire Hall of Famer.

Another reason why voters should not prevent Bonds from being forever remembered in Cooperstown is that there are already plenty of cheaters who have been enshrined there. One of these admitted cheaters is former San Francisco Giants pitcher Gaylord Perry. Gaylord Perry was a pitcher for the San Francisco Giants in the ‘60s and ‘70s. He is widely regarded as one of the best pitchers of his time, and in the history of baseball. Perry was admitted into the Hall of Fame in 1991 with 77.2 percent of the vote. Perry, however, is known for something which is incredibly illegal in the game of baseball. Perry was known around the league for doctoring baseballs, or in other words using foreign substances such as Vaseline and spit in order to make his pitches move more. All of his methods were illegal, or made illegal while he was playing, and yet he was elected to the Hall of Fame, and was even nominated as a finalist to Major League Baseball’s All-Century Team.

Another one of these cheaters is a player that voters often point to as a morally ethical person, and someone that Bonds should have strived to be, this person is the immortal Hank Aaron. Hank Aaron held the all-time home run record prior to Barry Bonds breaking it, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest baseball players to ever play the game; however, most people forget that the great Hank Aaron also took performance-enhancing drugs. Aaron is an admitted user of amphetamines, which are essentially coffee on, well, steroids. These drugs are known to produce an increase in a person’s energy, and to decrease fatigue. The use of amphetamines is also outlawed by Major League Baseball.  Players who took them said that they made them feel like superman, and that they could run through walls. Because amphetamines are also banned from the game of baseball, this makes Aaron ineligible from the Hall of Fame as well if we are holding Aaron to the same standards to which we hold Bonds.

Finally, let me redefine the term “unfair advantage” as “an advantage that a player gains over his competition, which the competition did not use, or did not have access to.” This is most certainly not the case when we are talking about the relationship between Bonds and the steroid era. I mean, they actually called it the “steroid era,” implying that there were an incredibly large number of players that must have been using steroids. In fact, Ken Caminiti, a former player for the San Diego Padres and known steroid-user, stated that at least half of the league was taking steroids at the time. That statement was also pertaining to the 1990s, and it is believed that his estimate has only risen since that time.

So let me pose a question, is it really an unfair advantage if the majority of your competition is also using this “unfair advantage?” During this time, the use of steroids had become the equivalent of eating a protein bar after working out to enhance a person’s workout. While it is true that not all players took steroids, this should not deter those that did take them. It is not uncommon for some to have advantages that others do not in every facet of life. For instance, look at illegal downloading of music. This act is against the law; however it is commonly done and not looked down upon. It gives the downloader an advantage over those who download the song legally of about a dollar per song. Steroids were viewed the same way as this illegal downloading of music, on the basis that a majority of people participated, and not many got caught doing it.

In summation, voters need to stop holding on to the past and recognize the “steroid era” for what it was, a point in time in which most players were trying to enhance their play in any way possible, even if it was not through steroids. Voters also need to recognize that these superheroes from their childhood also had the same attitude as those who played in the steroid era; they just wished to gain an advantage in any way possible, legal or illegal. These points can only mean one thing: Barry Bonds needs to be elected into the Hall of Fame. If voters fail to elect one of the greatest players in the history of baseball, then I am afraid that the Hall of Fame has become nothing more than a popularity contest among sportswriters, and one that is unjustified.

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Contract years are often the most important in a player’s career; it gives them a chance to convince potential employers that their five years of mediocrity prior to this was just a fluke.

Some examples of these over performing players include perennial all stars such as AJ Pierzynski, Dan Uggla and Heath Bell. These players all had surprising years in the final year of their contracts, convincing one team that they actually don’t suck.

Think about the odds that these players are working with; they only need to convince one team out of 30 that they deserve to be paid and there is not a lot else in this world with those kinds of odds.

Carlos Marmol

Marmol is normally the butt of most jokes about blowing something, but even he has the potential to convince a front office that he can be the solution to their ninth inning woes.

Marmol plays at a position which is consistently overvalued, and it seems that every year there is at least one of these role players who are drastically overpaid. Marmol’s main issue is that he can’t hit the broad side of a barn. If he can muster up some resemblance of control, and string together a good month or two, some sucker will dish out a multi-million dollar contract for this over glorified AAA middle reliever.

I don’t believe that his current situation of not being the closer will prevent him from achieving this feat, because the Cubs have literally nobody else that can potentially close for them, so even a guy as bad as Marmol can do it.

Justin Morneau

Morneau is a perfect example of the fallen star that can convince his potential robbery victims that he can return to his former greatness. Morneau was once not only one of the best first baseman in the game, but one of the best players.

He has the potential to make one special someone forget about his inability to play the field, or to even hit his way out of a paper bag, with just one fluke season.

Mourneau has the potential to be one of these beloved “superstars,” like greats such as Aubrey Huff and Juan Uribe.

Brian McCann

McCann was once considered the best catcher in the game just a few years ago, and then he became riddled by injuries and the ever so common “I have a hole in my bat” disease. McCann used to be one of the best contact hitters in the game before hitting an abysmal .230 last year.

McCann also has the fortune of playing at one of the weakest positions in baseball, as well as the potential of being a DH in the AL. This will cause certain executives to overlook problems like injuries and bad defense, both of which currently trouble McCann

I believe if McCann can simply hit above .260 while continuing to hit the ball out of the bandbox they call a baseball stadium at Turner Field, he could be in luck. Some believer might give McCann a multi-year, multi-million dollar contract, for what will probably be about one below average year of baseball before his body breaks down.