Jonathan Martin said ‘high school will forever haunt me’ in 2013 text to mother

Posted on February 28 by admin

The Ted Wells investigation into the bullying of Jonathan Martin while he was a member of the Dolphins uncovered more than just disturbing behavior by Martin’s teammates — it revealed his deep insecurities dating back to high school.

Martin was arrested Friday after he posted an unsettling photo on Instagram that led to the temporary closing of Harvard-Westlake High School in Studio City, Calif., where Martin attended.

“Everywhere I go, I get punked. I have a disagreeable personality, people are always annoyed by me. And I don’t know how to stop it. I don’t. High school still and will forever haunt me.”

Later that same day, Martin told his mother he was always perceived as “soft” because he wasn’t confrontational.

“I did it at Stanford, and didn’t gain anyone’s respect until I became a star,” he wrote. “Same thing in high school. I had no respect til [sic] I became a prospect.”

As for Mayfield’s off-field record, well, that’s also a bit too similar to Manziel’s for some’s liking. But Mayfield is assuring NFL teams he’s built to succeed in the NFL and not flame out to a spring league in a few years with more headlines on TMZ than ESPN.

“Whoever I’m playing for I’m going to be passionate about it,” Mayfield said Monday after collecting the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award (via Star-Telegram.com). “I’m going to strive to be the face of the franchise so you’ve got to be the guy on and off the field that people want to admire and see lead their team.”

Before leading Oklahoma to the College Football Playoff, Mayfield was arrested in Arkansas for public intoxication, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest in February 2017.

That’s when his public perception went from a competitive, undersized QB with a Russell Wilson-type skill set, to the second coming of Johnny Football.

“I knew that after I got arrested it was going to happen,” Mayfield said of the Manziel comparisons. “But you look at my track record before and after that, I’ve never had a run-in with the law. Never gone out of my way and done dumb things. A lot of things bothered me with that. I knew exactly who I was.

The Blazers remained tied with Denver for sixth place in the it-can-change-daily Western Conference standings.

Posted on February 27 by admin

They are one-half game ahead of New Orleans, 1 1/2 ahead ahead the Clippers and now three ahead of Utah.

“I think it showed what our mentality is and where our focus is, and that’s coming in here and making this push so we can get back to the postseason,” Lillard told the (Portland) Oregonian.

Portland, which has won four of five and eight of 12, could use the next few weeks as a springboard toward a positive playoff push.

The Blazers play eight of their next nine at home, including games against contenders Minnesota, Oklahoma City, Golden State and Cleveland.

“We understand what’s at stake now,” McCollum told reporters. “One game, a loss or a win, could sway the Western Conference playoff race.”

Bucks: Milwaukee scored 42 points in the second for its highest-scoring quarter of the season. The previous high was 39. … The Bucks had a season-high 21 turnovers. … Milwaukee outrebounded Toronto 51-37.

Raptors: Fred VanVleet scored six points, ending a nine-game streak with at least 10. … Toronto shot 1 for 12 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter and overtime.

The Ducks, currently third in the Pacific Division with a 31-20-11 record, are the winners of four in a row, seven of 10 and four of their last five on the road as they get the old reliables working at the same time: timely scoring, consistent goaltending and strong defensive play.

Ryan Miller stopped 41 shots during his 42nd NHL shutout as the Ducks beat the Dallas Stars 2-0 on Wednesday night. A night later, the Coyotes (17-33-10) — still last overall in the NHL but showing signs of improvement — lost 5-2 at home to the Calgary Flames, who had dropped their previous three.

Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf scored a short-handed goal and added an assist, giving him three points in two games. Left wing Rickard Rakell leads the Ducks with 48 points, while Getzlaf is second with 38, just ahead of center Adam Henrique 37 points.

“We recognize where the season is at,” said Miller, who has stopped all 44 shots he’s faced in the third period of his last two games. “Our game has been pretty good. We had a couple of tough outings on the road (where the Ducks are 15-11-7) and then we kind of got it together. It’s been consistent for the last two weeks. We’ve built a good game. We have to stick with it.”

Tebow is going to play in the major leagues and the Mets want to get him there as quickly as possible.

Posted on February 24 by admin

Somebody asked me whether I think he’ll be a major league player at some point, Alderson said after a Sunday workout at First Data Field. I think he will play in the major leagues. That’s my guess. That’s my hope, and to some extent now after a year and a half, a modest expectation.

It took a while to get rolling, though. In App State’s first four games against FBS opponents in 2017, Lamb’s passer rating was just 108.7, his completion rate just 56 percent.

It picked up from there. Senior Ike Lewis had a series of big games, and Virgil went off for five catches and 186 yards against Coastal Carolina. After averaging 23 points through the first five FBS games, the Mountaineers averaged 38 over the last seven. The defense suffered some leaks, allowing 111 points to Coastal, UMass, and ULM (the latter two of which both pulled tight upsets), but both units found an extra gear in November.

Lewis and Lamb are gone, though. The receiving corps has obvious potential, especially when factoring in tight end Collin Reed, Kansas State transfer Corey Sutton, and a foursome of three-star freshmen and redshirt freshmen.
Last season, only 99 pitchers — 49 starters and 50 relievers — met all of these criteria. Included among that group were both Cy Young Award winners, Corey Kluber and Max Scherzer; the Trevor Hoffman and Mariano Rivera relief award winners, Kenley Jansen and Craig Kimbrel; 16 of the 18 pitchers to score Cy Young votes totaling 1,000 of the 1,020 balloting points (98.0 percent); and every one of the top 10 pitchers on our 2017 Player Rater.

Perriman is a member of an underwhelming crop of 2015 first-round receivers that included Kevin White and the aforementioned Dorsett. Injuries cost him his rookie season, and he’s been a little-used piece of the Ravens’ offense in the two years since, making just four starts in that span. What’s more troubling is that he’s caught less than 43 percent of his targets as a pro.

Baker thanked the team and offered his thoughts on the future via a social media post Tuesday.

Posted on February 20 by admin

Martin rushed for 1,402 yards in 2015, second only to Adrian Peterson that season and second most in Martin’s career. He leaves Tampa Bay with 4,633 rushing yards, fourth in team in history behind James Wilder, Mike Alstott and Warrick Dunn. Martin’s 11 100-yard rushing games are tied for second in franchise history.

Frank Ntilikina
Ntilikina is already loved by Knicks fans for having the moxie to go at LeBron James this season, and now he’ll get a chance to endear to fans on a national stage. They say there’s no defense played in this game, but I guarantee you Ntilikina is going to pick someone up full court.

Dillon Brooks
First, let me start by saying that I had no clue Brooks was actually Canadian. Second, if you don’t know him, he can shoot the lights out. He’s already hitting 37.4 percent of his threes in his rookie season and has been the most pleasant surprise out of Memphis.

Buddy Hield
Hield is known by most for being part of the DeMarcus Cousins trade, but he’s better than that. He’s turned himself into a solid player with the Kings, hitting 43 percent of his threes while shooting 42 percent from the field. He’s hitting more than 87 percent of his free throws, too. He just makes shots.

You see it right away. I was anticipating we’d see a little different guy in spring training, and there’s no question, Servais said. Just from a confidence standpoint, his ability get up and lead meetings and talk to the pitchers. It’s about signs, it’s about sequence, things you want to do different than last year.

The confidence level is through the roof, and it should be. He’s a really good player and now starting to show out on the field.

The Mariners begin spring training play Friday against complex neighbor San Diego. Servais said most Opening Day regulars won’t play. … CF Dee Gordon will play against the Padres, getting acclimated to a new position. … Servais said he has the most talent and depth in the bullpen as he enters his third season with the team. … RHP Tony Zych is coming back from forearm soreness and won’t pitch in games right away.

Depending on whom you believe, the Badgers’ last national title was either in 1942 or never. Wisconsin is 14th in winning percentage since Barry Alvarez arrived in 1990 and has eight top-10 finishes over that period. But the Badgers have neither won nor played for a national championship in that span. That said, they were a narrow loss in Indianapolis away from a possible playoff berth in each of the past two seasons.

The owners voted in January 2016 to allow the Rams to move from St. Louis to L.A. and gave the Chargers the option to join them.

Posted on February 10 by admin

The $2.6 billion stadium the Rams and Chargers will share in Inglewood, Calif., is scheduled to open in 2020. It is clear that in the meantime, the Rams and Chargers have work to do.

Some within the sport thought that the option was granted as a consolation prize to Dean Spanos, the chairman of the Chargers, by owners who respected Spanos but preferred the Inglewood stadium proposal by Rams owner Stan Kroenke to the Carson project put forth by the Chargers and Oakland Raiders.

The Chargers have another chance this Sunday when they host the Kansas City Chiefs at StubHub. The biggest number to come out of that game won’t be quarterback Philip Rivers’s passing yardage or pass rusher Joey Bosa’s sack total. It will be the attendance figure.

When the Lions won an instant-replay challenge regarding the spot of the football during their triumph Monday night over the Giants at the Meadowlands, the ball was re-spotted and then the officials remeasured for a first down. So, in other words, the NFL uses high-def replay to determine precisely where to spot the ball, then drags out two poles and a chain to guesstimate whether it’s a first down? Isn’t there a better way? …

I mean, that’s just insulting. Literally anyone else could have done this job. He didn’t win a single game! No one else might have been able to do his job and not get fired after doing it, but that’s a different story. The way Jackson handled DeShone Kizer was way beyond questionable, and there’s no doubt he cost the Browns several games with bad coaching.

The Browns deciding not to blow it all up again is admirable, but it’s hard to fathom a situation where Jackson suddenly wins a bunch of games next year.

The offseason talk about internal strife won’t matter if the Seahawks play well and get back to being among the NFC’s top teams. But if things start to come unraveled even a little bit, any unrest that already existed could become a far bigger issue.

Are you gonna bark all day, little doggy, or are you gonna bite?

Posted on February 7 by admin

Mr. Blonde’s trash-talking inquiry is applicable to the Eagles, the oddest underdog of the 2018 NFL playoffs, cast into the corner of the NFC and now lashing back out at everyone who discarded their championship hopes. And here we are again, with the Eagles checking in as a 5.5-point underdog in Super Bowl LII to the Patriots.

Nelson will step into the NFL and instantly improve a team’s run game, regardless of who’s carrying the football. As a pass-protector, the Notre Dame star uses his strong base and balance to win much more often than not. And he’s incredibly aware of blitzers. He was dominant against the always-stout LSU defensive front. He’s a line-changing guard prospect.

Smith was quiet in the first half of the Rose Bowl, then looked like the best player on the field as Georgia put the clamps down on the most explosive offense in college football in the final two quarters. He had two impact stops in overtime to force Oklahoma into field goal attempts, the second of which was blocked and helped the Bulldogs earn a trip to the national title game. His blend of power and speed are unparalleled in this draft class at the linebacker spot.

Dak Prescott picked up right where he left off during his 2016 Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign, even though Ezekiel Elliott wasn’t on the field for the Week 2 preseason game due to his suspension. With Darren McFadden in the backfield, Dak promptly took charge of the offense, completing four passes on the Cowboys opening drive, including a deep touchdown to Dez Bryant. Get that X up.

Prescott had that pass to Bryant, another 23-yard strike to Dez and a pair of passes to tight end Jason Witten for 24 total yards on the first drive. Dallas probably would have scored a second touchdown — the Cowboys were marching — but a McFadden fumble on the Colts side of the field brought the drive to a halt.

Just like last year, you watch Prescott play and he just looks like he’s comfortable, like he belongs on the field. There wasn’t that question like there was before 2016, but expecting a sophomore slump may be betting against an incredibly talented individual.

New England Patriots have allowed 1.1 points per drive during their eight-game win streak.

Posted on February 5 by admin

The New England Patriots won their eighth game in a row on Sunday, beating the Buffalo Bills, 23-3, giving them a commanding four-game lead in the AFC East. Overall, their offense is scoring a league-high 13.1 points per game more than expected after taking into account each play’s down, distance and field position, and their defense has improved to one of the best in the NFL this season (more on that below). No wonder they are No. 1 in this week’s rankings and the odds-on favorite to be this year’s Super Bowl champions.

While Kaepernick has been unable to latch on with a team since becoming a free agent in March, which many attribute to his social activism, a handful of players began the season staging their own protests, including kneeling, sitting or raising a fist during the anthem. That number ballooned to more than 200 in Week 3, while some teams chose to stand with their arms linked in a show of unity, after Trump sharply criticized the protesting players at an Alabama rally, using the term “son of a bitch.”

On Sunday, there were far fewer protests involving kneeling, amid reports that several NFL teams had told their players to stand. Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, who in the past has vocally supported his players’ right to protest, said, “I think it’s incumbent upon players today, if that’s how the public is looking at it, is to stand and salute the flag.”

It’s easy to forget about this move since it happened last Friday before all the craziness went down, but it involved as talented a player as any moved this past week. Marcell Dareus is arguably the most talented nose tackle in the NFL. He had 19 sacks in 1,549 snaps from 2013 to 2014, but hasn’t been able to replicate that production since.

Papa John’s was the highest-profile sponsor to publicly pressure the NFL to resolve the protests, according to The Post’s Tracy Jan.

At the time, Ritchie, the Papa John’s COO, added that the pizza chain has been the most recognized NFL sponsor for the past two years — hinting that its success is more connected to the league than is the case for other pizza purveyors.

He said that he expected the earnings decline for Papa John’s “to persist” until “a solution is put in place” by the NFL for its player protests. Papa John’s has been a league sponsor since 2010.

After the victory, Young said he wanted to “manage the game” and avoid the mistakes he had made in recent outings.

Posted on February 2 by admin

“I was just showing what I’ve been doing all year, except last week,” said Young, who committed a combined 19 turnovers in back-to-back road losses to Kansas State and Oklahoma State. “Just showing that I can manage the game and get my teammates involved and get them involved early. And they did a great job executing.”

Young’s first 3-point attempt — which he made — didn’t come until there was 15:26 left in the game.

On defense, Richard Sherman has 30 career interceptions and two in his last two home playoff games. Safety Kam Chancellor has three postseason interceptions, including one of 90-yard touchdown return against Cam Newton in 2015. Seattle won four of its last five meetings with Detroit, which has gone to the playoffs twice in the last three seasons.

It would be wise to hang with this game into the fourth quarter, especially if the Lions are trailing. Or maybe just make sure you’re in front of a TV somewhere in the fourth quarter. Detroit has won eight times after trailing in the fourth quarter or overtime. Quarterback Matthew Stafford led the team in those eight wins, the most by a quarterback in a single season since 1970. Stafford has passed for better than 4,000 yards for six consecutive seasons.

In this weekly series, I identify players available in more than 40 percent of ESPN leagues at each position. Some nominations are purely specialists capable of helping in one or two categories, while others deliver more diverse and important statistical offerings. Either way, I believe the names below — ordered by ownership rate at each position — can contribute positively to fantasy rosters.

According to the filing, the NFL’s director of investigations, Kia Roberts, testified that following her interviews with the woman who accused Elliott of domestic violence, she recommended to the league that the Dallas player not be suspended. However, Roberts was left off the NFL panel that decided on Elliott’s punishment, and her recommendation was not included in the league’s final report or official letter to him.

“Arbitrary decision-making and internal inconsistencies continue to plague the most senior level of management of the League,” the NFLPA said in a statement released Friday. “This is the latest and best example of the Players’ belief that independent, transparent and collectively bargained policies generate the best systemic results for all parties.”

МГКСС – Городской клуб служебного собаководства г. Москвы

Month: February 2018