FOOTBALL

In the NFL, the Minnesota Vikings are trying their best to nab a wildcard spot in the playoffs.  They’ve had a much better season than anybody ever expected, especially because of the re-emergence of running back Adrian Peterson.  But, they also had a great year because of their star receiver Percy Harvin.  Harvin really turned on the juice this fall, and was a delight to all his fantasy owners.  But, it looks like his injury is more serious than the team first thought, and he will be placed on season-ending injured reserve.  This is a huge blow to the Vikings, but they do have a good receiver playing right behind him in rookie Jarius Wright.  Wright played extremely well in the pre-season, after a spectacular career at Arkansas.  There is a chance he fills in quite nicely and still helps the Vikings slide into the playoffs. Although… it’ll be close.  They will pretty much have to win the rest of their games to have a chance.
Elsewhere in the NFL, the Atlanta Falcons may be 11-1, own the NFC South, and be on their way to a #1 seed, and home field advantage through the playoffs, but that didn’t keep one Carolina Panther from talking trash. The Panthers are currently 3-9 and out of the playoff race.  It has been a very disappointing season for them, so now they’re playing for pride.  Their defensive end Greg Hardy said that the 3-9 Panthers are actually better than the Falcons.  The Falcons beat the Panthers earlier this season, but this weekend, it’s time for a rematch and Hardy and Panthers are ready for payback.  When asked if Hardy thought the Panthers were better in that specific game or overall, Hardy said “Both”.  While this may sound crazy, Hardy may have a point.  There have been many moments this season where the Falcons looked fallible.  If the Panthers win this weekend, they will create, basically, a study guide to how to beat the Falcons as an inferior team.  This should be interesting.

Finally in the NFL, there has been a lot of drama circling the New York Jets this week.  Last Sunday, head coach Rex Ryan decided to bench his starting quarterback Mark Sanchez in favor of back-up Greg McElroy.   Sanchez was so horrible in the game, that there was really no other choice but to pull him out.  So, since then, Jets fans were wondering if the Sanchez era was over in New York.  He had a big opportunity to own that city for the next 10 years, and it looks like he may have squandered the chance.  So, this coming week, would Sanchez get the starting job?  The answer: Yes.  Rex Ryan has decided to stick with his young QB hoping that he will bounce back from a dreadful performance.  He thanked Jets owner Woody Johnson for giving him the autonomy to make all player personnel decisions.  However, if Sanchez has another miserable outing, it’s likely he will slip into a permanent back-up role, and the Jets will go shopping for a QB in the off-season.

FOOTBALL

In college football, with the regular season over,  coaches now have the opportunity to interview and take new jobs.  One of the major criticisms of bowl games is that some teams enter big bowl games without their head coach.  So basically, the guy orchestrating their strategy all year long won’t be with them on the sidelines.  And it looks like that will happen this year as well, Wisconsin head coach Bret Bielema is going to take the head coaching spot at the University of Arkansas.  Bielema has led Wisconsin to two straight Rose Bowls, but likely won’t be on the sidelines this year.  Surely, money is a factor here as Arkansas will pay a pretty penny for a good coach, especially after their horrid season under coach John L. Smith.  This exit, as well as other factors, could secure a victory for Stanford in the Rose Bowl.

BASEBALL

The off-season wheeling and dealing has begun, and the Washington Nationals have made one of the first moves.  They had an epic collapse against St. Louis in their 5-game series, and will look to stay on track and keep their franchise tip-top going forward.  Their first move: Bringing Los Angeles Angels pitcher Dan Haren to town.  Haren, 32, signed a 1-year $13million deal with the Nationals yesterday, and gives them a beautiful rotation of Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Ross Detwiler, Jordan Zimmermann… and now Haren.  Haren has had some injuries lately, but when healthy, this 3-time all star has a reputation for being one of the best pitchers in the league.

FOOTBALL

Finally, in some heartwarming news out of the football world, it looks like Twitter has been an effective tool in doing some major good.  In upstate New York, High School student Matt Hardy was badly injured in a car accident that left him in serious condition.  Hardy played most sports for his High School, and that’s something that Tebow can relate to.  Friends and family of Hardy thought that somehow a call from Jets quarterback Tim Tebow would help with his recovery, so they started a Twitter campaign #TebowCallMatt.  Fans tweeted this at Tebow 50,000 times, and Tebow made the call.  His family said that Tebow is a real class act, and Hardy’s condition has been upgraded to stable.