My Ultimate March Madness Team for This Season

With the conference tournaments in full force and March Madness looming, I've gotten a good solid look at pretty much every team in all the major conferences, as well as the key "mid-majors". To me, it's fairly clear which players will bring it come tournament time, and which players may fold under the pressure. Knowing that, I wish I could build a team, with five starters and three key subs, that I think would be well rounded, balanced, and generally unstoppable. It can't be all me-first scorers, as you need bodies in the paint for rebounds. The more versatile you are, great, but if you have one superior skill, there's a chance you'll find a spot on my team. If I could build my ultimate 8-man team for the tournament, it would look something like this.

Point guard: Jordan Taylor, Wisconsin

Taylor is extremely efficient, with a phenomenal assist to turnover ratio, which is probably the #1 statistic I look to in evaluating a point guard. He can also fill the hoop, as evidenced by his 39-point outing, but is very comfortable feeding the hot hand. Taylor can also knock down clutch shots, which is a HUGE plus in March.

Shooting guard: Ben Hansbrough, Notre Dame

Maybe more of a combo guard, but he can fill the hoop but is unselfish as well. Can get his shot off pretty much anywhere, and when he gets hot, there aren't many players better. Another great defender as well.

Small forward: Derrick Williams, Arizona

With such talented guards, I want an absolute sniper at my 3 spot. A guy who is 6-foot-8 and shoots 60% from three will suffice at this position.

Power forward: JaJuan Johnson, Purdue

Versatile at the 4, meaning he can stretch the defense out to 17 feet while still average 8+ rebounds a game. Very athletic at 6-foot-10, he'd get plenty of chances to finish on this squad.

Center: John Henson, North Carolina

Very long, blocks 3+ shots per game and alters countless others. Paired with Johnson in the post, not many players would get to the rim and if they do, it would not be a clean look.

Bench

Jimmer Fredette, BYU

I would love to be able to bring this guy in at either guard position and watch him go off. He's been tearing up teams' best defenses, so if he was heading against their second teams, watch out.

Jon Leuer, Wisconsin

Can stretch the defense out to the 3, but has a polished post game too. At 6-foot-10, he could easily fill in at the 4 or 5.

Kemba Walker, UConn

If I was bringing in Jimmer to score, I'd be bringing in Kemba to close. Chances are games wouldn't be close with this squad, but I would for sure want Kemba on the court in the last two minutes.

Very close calls:

Nolan Smith, Duke: Does everything well, and deservedly a 1st team All-American. He'd probably be the 9th guy I put on this team, but if I'm building a well-rounded team, I'm not sure who I'd bump in favor of him.

Jared Sullinger, Ohio State: Big body and knows how to use it. Great in the post, but too-one dimensional in my opinion.

Kenneth Faried, Morehead State: Can crash the boards with the best of them, averaging 14.5 rpg during the season, tops in the country. Wouldn't be looked to for scoring on this team, but is capable, at 17.5 ppg.

Marcus Morris, Kansas: 17 and 7 for what I think is the best team in the nation. A little small for what I'd like on my front line, but versatile and efficient.

Honorable mention: Jacob Pullen, KSU; Marshon Brooks, Providence; Dwight Hardy, St. John's.

Final Pre-Super Bowl Thoughts

I've come to the conclusion that I don't blog very often. I don't have a very good excuse for it, but I'd have to go with my schedule being the excuse I'm going to rationalize. I get up each morning sometime between 10 and 11, usually get some sort of workout in during the early afternoon hours, cook some food before and after my workout, and get a little bit of actual work done before I head to work again at seven-ish. That, combined with excellent daytime television, leaves me little time to blog. But since this week is extra Super and I've heard everybody give their take on what is going to happen, I'll break down what is really going to happen, in 140 characters or less.

Green Bay able to run, our defense makes 2 big plays, Rodgers to Driver for dagger. Woodson gets MVP. Packers 27, Steelers 17.

I'm being completely rational and have thought this through. I think the Packers are younger but more consistent, and have the playmakers to win the game when it counts. And I'm going to list the five main reasons below, which in my mind, have been the best parts of this packers season.

1) Aaron Rodgers: Like I do every April, I watched the NFL draft where Rodgers fell to 24th, and I was very pleased when we selected him in 2005. It was a position where we could draft the best available talent, I'd say we made the right pick. And the way things have shaken out in the past three years, it's clear Ted Thompson went with the right guy too. I was pleased when we drafted him, happy when we chose him over Favre, I'm ecstatic about the way he's playing now, and I'm jubilant that he's our quarterback of the future. His accuracy, composure, swagger and ability to slice up defenses are incredible. It's a quarterback's league, and we certainly have one of the best.

2) Clay Matthews: He's our Claymaker, and he's made the Packers that much more formidable on the defensive side of the ball. He's got the hair, the guns and the motor to be an effective pass rusher, and his personality easily makes him a fan favorite in Wisconsin.

3) No-names: We seem to have players popping up that were either late-round draft picks, cast offs, street free agents or bums off the street that are making gigantic contributions for our team on both sides of the ball. Tim Masthay has been huge, which is saying a ton for a punter: he was an undrafted free agent who was previously cut by the Colts. Erik Walden is on his fourth team in three years, and he's been crucial as a linebacker to complement CMIII. Howard Green has been a valuable component on the defensive line, James Starks has been critical in our backfield and by this point we're all familiar with what Sam Shields did for Green Bay in Chicago.

4) Players making a jump: One of the main reasons the Packers have made the jump from good to great is there have been a number of players who have taken the individual jump from serviceable to key component. Jordy Nelson and James Jones have made our receiving corp formidable from one through four, BJ Raji has exploded onto the scene this postseason and Tramon Williams was deserving of (or at least to be considered for) the Pro Bowl.

5) Every game was good: This season, the Packers have played 19 games. We've won 13 of of them, which is nice. Of the six losses, four were by three points each and the other two were each by four points. We've also not trailed by more than seven points at any point this season. That's pretty good. What that does mean is that the heart attack tally in the state of Wisconsin probably rose even higher than it normally is. But the Packers are quite good that they really only beat themselves, which is encouraging knowing that heading into the Super Bowl, the Packers can certainly win if they play their game.

Quarterbacking

The news that Andrew Luck is returing to Stanford, forgoing the chance to become this year's #1 pick in the draft, was surprising, but by no means shocking to me. He would be heading into a pretty horrendous situation in Carolina, with no head coach, an owner that doesn't want to spend a whole lot of money, limited skill players, and just not too bright of a future. He couldn't do much worse than the Panthers, so going back to school for another year. Plus, if he really is as good as everyone says he is, it won't matter if he gets hurt. He'll still be the #1 pick a year from now.

This whole situation raises a different discussion, about quarterbacks and the situations they are drafted into. It's tough to argue that a team can be successful in today's NFL without an elite quarterback, so success is about finding the quarterback that can help deliver that success to your franchise.

It depends on whether the QB was drafted with the intention to start right away, learn a few years under the tutelage of a veteran, or is thrust into duty after the season has been lost. And that is just for QBs and the team that drafts them. On rare occasions, a team can bring in a quarterback via free agency or trade and find great success. But more times than not, great teams find their QBs in the draft.

Let's look at this years playoff teams and how their QB situations came about:

AFC

1. New England - Football fans should be familiar with the Tom Brady situation, and this is an extremely unlikely scenario all things considered. A 6th round pick in 2000, he only found the playing field after Drew Bledsoe went down. The Patriots went on to win the Super Bowl in 2001, and so on and so forth. He probably would have gotten his chance eventually, but the way he seized the job and never let go is really the sign of an elite QB.

2. Pittsburgh - Ben Roethlisberger had quite the story, going 13-0 in his rookie year and winning ROY, but he started the season third on the depth chart behind Chuck Batch and Tommy Maddox. Some fortuitous injuries for Big Ben allowed him to start, and 2 Super Bowls later, he's still hitting on girls in line for the bathroom at seedy night clubs.

3. Kansas City - Another pretty crazy story for Matt Cassel. Drafted in the 7th round out of USC, he backed up 2 Heisman Trophy winnners (Palmer, Leinart) and then sat behind Tom Brady. He got his chance in NE when Brady's knee was blown out, and then flipped success that season into a long-term deal with KC. If it wasn't Brady, he might have kept his job, but he essentially moved to NE West, with Pioli, Weis and Crennel in Kansas City.

4. Indianapolis - Peyton Manning - Drafted #1, started from day one, hasn't missed a game since. The gold standard for any #1 pick.

5. Baltimore - Took a chance on Joe Flacco later in the first round, and have been in the playoffs in each of his (and John Harbaugh's) first three seasons. Fought for the job from day one, won it over Kyle Boller and Troy Smith, as he probably should have. The risk was a relative unknown guy with a big arm from a small school, but it's panned out so far for the Ravens.

6. New York Jets - Mark Sanchez was a sexy first round pick from a big school coming to a big town with a big coach and big expectations. So far, he has delivered. AFC championship game in year 1, playoffs again in year 2.

NFC

1. Atlanta Falcons - Matt Ryan was drafted #3 overall, with the idea that he was going to be the new face of the franchise after all that had happened with Michael Vick. Started from day one, led the Falcons to the playoffs. Slightest of regressions in year 2, before a breakout season this year. Has Hotlanta atop the NFC standings, and could make the leap to the elitest elite level with a Super Bowl run.

2. Chicago - Conned Denver into giving up Jay Cutler for Kyle Orton and some picks. Up and down success for the Bears, capped off with a first-round bye this year. Was a first round pick with high expectations, and is just starting to fulfill those - with a different team.

3. Philadelphia - I give Andy Reid all the credit in the world for getting rid of Donovan McNabb and signing Michael Vick, but even this isn't how he thought the situation was going to turn out. This was supposed to be the year of Kevin Kolb, the later round pick that was the rationale for getting rid of McNabb. Kolb met his Claymaker, and Vick got his chance, and really hasn't let go.

4. Seattle - Not really a playoff team, and they have the QB situation befitting a struggling team. Aging veteran that has been established in Seattle, with a flyer as a backup. Neither Hasselbeck nor Charlie Whitehurst started their careers with the Seahawks, and IMO, they will never be an elite team with either behind center.

5. New Orleans - After years of Aaron Brooks, Billy Joe Tolliver and Shane Falco as QBs for the Saints, they decided to make a move for Drew Brees. It didn't pan out into immediate success, missing the playoffs two out of three years before last year's title run. When he and Sean Payton really began to gel is when the Saints took off.

6. Green Bay - All the credit in the world to Ted Thompson for drafting Aaron Rodgers when the Packers were not in immediate need, and then sticking with him when he though Favre was done. It's worked so far in GB, albeit without the postseason success the Cheesehead faithful may have hoped for, but all signs point to that tide turning over the next few years.

Other positive -looking situations around the league

St. Louis - Sam Bradford will have the Rams winning the NFC West on a regular basis.
Detroit - If Matt Stafford can stay healthy, the Lions are potent.
San Diego - Philip Rivers is legit, SD just needs some special teams.
NYGiants - One Super Bowl already, so Eli is there to stay.
Denver - Jesus H. Tebow showing promise.
Tampa Bay - Josh Freeman is the real deal. 10 wins this year should be the standard.

Terrible Situations

Minnesota - Favre's done, TJax can't stay healthy, and I doubt anyone thinks Joe Webb is the long term answer.
Washington - The McNabb experiment clearly didn't work.
Cincy - Palmer puts up stats, but the team can't win.
Carolina - Clausen isn't cutting it, and they lose out on Luck.
San Fran - The Alex Smith era looks awful compared to what A-Rodge is doing in Green Bay
Dolphins - Henne not the answer.
Buffalo - Hooray for Ryan Fitzpatrick, but can he lead you to the playoffs in the AFC east?
Titans - VY is gone, and Kerry Collins ain't getting any younger.
Cardinals - John Skelton?


Decent Situations

Jacksonville - Garrard shows promise, but isn't a Super Bowl QB
Houston - See above for Jax, but with Schaub.
Oakland - Good team, Jason Campbell shows flashes, but again, see above.

NFL Playoffs

Well, its 2011 and I've realized how much I've been slacking on this whole blog thing. To some, I know that makes me a bad person, but I'm going to try to rectify that a little bit this year.

First and foremost, the Packers are in the playoffs and that makes me happy. Watching football yesterday, I know now more than ever how important the quarterback is to quality teams in the NFL. Of the 11 playoff teams (I'm not counting Seattle, they are 7-9. Screw them.), all of them have very stable situations at quarterback. These are the stars of their team, the stars of the league. There is no question from week to week as to who is leading that team out of the tunnel. In fact, these 11 are probably in the top 13 of who I would want as my teams QB in 2011. Let's rank them, without looking at numbers and simply going with my gut.

1. Tom Brady

2. Peyton Manning

3. Aaron Rodgers

4. Ben Roethlisberger

5. Drew Brees

6. Michael Vick

7. Matt Ryan

8. Philip Rivers

9. Joe Flacco

10. Josh Freeman

11. Matt Cassel

12. Jay Cutler

13. Mark Sanchez

The only two players on that list not in the playoffs are Rivers and Freeman. The Chargers are not in the playoffs, but it is not Phil's fault. The Bucs are on the verge of the playoffs, thanks almost entirely to Josh Freeman (10-6 this year). Both could easily be in the playoffs in 2011. The next few names on that list are Eli Manning (1o-6 ain't bad), Matt Schaub (horrendous D) and Sam Bradford (rookie).

I can't put anyone besides Brady or Manning in my top 2, but I don't think I'm being a homer by putting Rodgers at #3. The two below him do have Super Bowl rings to their names, but Rodgers kind of feels like Peyton Manning to me. He makes the players around him better, but he can scramble to create a play if needed (just remember to slide!). He has suffered injuries to every conceivable aspect of that team, yet the Packers find themselves in the playoffs with as good a chance of anyone to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. Much of this credit goes to Ted Thompson, but I am all-in on Aaron Rodgers.

I obviously want the Packers in the Super Bowl, and I don't care who they play. But if that can't happen, here are the top 5 games I would like to see.

1. Philadelphia vs. Pittsburgh - Pennsylvania rivalry, disgraced QBs. Great TV.

2. Falcons vs. Colts - Dome teams

3. Philly vs. Baltimore - Very close geographically, run games, Vick vs. Ed Reed/Ray Lewis

4. New England vs. Atlanta - Top seeds

5. Saints vs. Jets - Defending champs vs Rex Ryan

Pro Sports Contracts

I am continuously amazed by professional sports contracts. Somehow, someway, Donovan McNabb got a 5-year, $78 million dollar contract extension, WITH $40 MILLION GUARANTEED after a very mediocre season so far. An overreaction by the Redskins front office? I'd say so. They have no young quarterback, so the gave this money to someone that their head coach yanked from the game last week! Unbelievable. How fast do you think his agent agreed to that contract after it was offered?

The NBA might be even worse at this. Teams shell out money for very undeserving players, often when they miss on the people they really want and overpay for lesser players to somehow "salvage" their offseason. Let's take Darko Milicic. He was traded twice, not re-signed by another teams, and then his most recent team gave him $20 million after playing only 32 games last season. I'm baffled, I just don't get it.

Some teams are able to overcome bad contracts, such as the Giants winning a World Series despite Barry Zito's $100 million-plus contract (he wasn't even on San Fran's WS roster!). The Cubs, however, are a team that (much to my delight) are strapped by overpaying certain "talents". $175 million-ish for Soriano and Zambrano? That makes me laugh.

The Unpredictable NFL

Heading into Week 8, many peoples' lock of the week was taking the Jets (-6) to cover the spread versus the Packers. But as those people and many others find out, it's tough to cover a spread when you don't actually score any points. I didn't see this game coming either. I actually nodded off for a while after the Packers went up 3-0 and woke up in the third quarter utterly confused that the game had not changed scores. However, this unpredictability is one of the many reasons Americans love the NFL (England - I'm sorry for what we had to send overseas).

Despite the unpredictability, I'm going to tell you what is going to happen the rest of the season. My preseason picks can be found here, and many of them have different while a select few have remained dead-on. Shall we?

Playoff Teams: Six teams have to make the playoffs from each division, and in the cases of both conferences, I don't think that will match up exactly with the six best teams in each conference.

AFC: I like the Chiefs to pull away and win the West. I think then Chargers have been a disappointment, but will rebound to 8-8 at best. KC looks like an 11-5 team to me, good enough to win the AFC West.

The AFC North should have two teams in the playoffs, those teams being Pittsburgh and Baltimore. Both have looked a little shaky at times, but their above average play is better than many teams' best efforts. Ravens with 12 wins, Steelers 11-5.

The AFC East will be interesting, but I like the Patriots to emerge as division champs at 13-3. They have plenty of weapons on offense to be able to overcome deficiencies on defense. The Jets showed their vulnerabilities against Green Bay, but still should solidify themselves and emerge 11-5.

The AFC South looks like it will only have one team break through into the playoffs, with the winner of tonight's MNF game between the Texans and the Colts having a leg up throughout the rest of the year. The Colts have looked un-Colt-like so far, and I would not be surprised to see them finish at 10-6, but still a game out of the playoffs. Texans at 11-5, Titans at 10-6 as well, and the Jags at 9-7 is how I think the division will end up, but only one team can emerge into the playoffs.

1 seed: Patriots 13-3

2 seed: Ravens 12-4

3 seed: Chiefs 11-5

4 seed: Texans 11-5

5 seed: Jets 11-5

6 seed: Steelers 11-5

Steelers over Chiefs, Jets over Texans in wild-card round

Steelers over Patriots, Ravens over Jets in division round

Epic Steelers vs. Ravens matchup in AFC Championship - Leaning towards Raven still, peaking at right time

Onto the NFC...

North: The Packers lead the division somehow right now at 5-3, and I think will find a way to hold on, duplicating their first half to finish 10-6. I like the Bears to finish 9-7, the Lions to finish an impressive 7-9, and the Vikings to flounder to 7-9 as well.

NFC West: Someone's gotta win this division, and it's certainly not going to be Seattle or Arizona. San Fran could bust out behind Troy Smith, but if that happens I think they are at best 9-7. That could win the division, but I like the Rams to sneak in at 9-7, earning a tiebreaker over the Niners.

NFC South: A crazy division that could end up with both wild card teams. The Buccaneers have surprised everyone, and could parlay their 5-2 start into a 10-6 finish and a postseason birth. New Orleans and Atlanta both look like 10 or 11 win teams, which in the NFC, just might be good enough to make it to the playoffs.

NFC East: I thought all four teams were going to be good, but at this point, I think the Cowboys are done and the Redskins are all but. The Eagles could rebound with Mike Vick in the second half, but I still don't like Andy Reid. The Giants might do the least wrong, and could end up 12-4 and the #1 seed in the NFC.

1 seed: Giants 12-4

2 seed: Atlanta 11-5

3 seed: Green Bay 10-6

4 seed: St. Louis 9-7

5 seed: New Orleans 10-6

6 seed: Tampa Bay 10-6

New Orleans over St. Louis, Green Bay over Tampa Bay in wild card round

NYG over New Orleans, Atlanta over Green Bay in division round

NYG vs Atlanta - I give the edge to NYG here, only bc the game is at home.

Giants vs. Ravens Super Bowl - Matchup of the Kerry Collins vs. Trent Dilfer CLASSIC

Top 10 Teams: The top of the NFL is very AFC top heavy to me at this point.

1. Ravens

2. Patriots

3. Steelers

4. Chiefs

5. Jets

6. Giants

7. Colts

8. Falcons

9. Packers

10. Bucs

Battling for #1 Pick:

Buffalo, Dallas, Carolina, Denver

I'm not sure any of these teams should pick a quarterback #1 overall, despite the pressure to do so. I like a trade in this position. The Bills perhaps, but I actually like them to pull out a few games in the 2nd half. Fitzpatrick has looked competent. Marcel Dareus/Adrian Clayborn/AJ Green could get looks as the #1 overall pick.

Best Sports Times of the Year

In my opinion, the period from mid-October to mid-November is one of the two greatest stretches in the year, as far as sports are concerned. The other stretch would be mid-March to mid-April. Here's why.

Mid-October to Mid-November:

In the fall, you tend to think football, football, football, which is largely true. Right now, we are in the thick of the college football schedule, the middle of the NFL season, and fantasy football teams starting to take real shape. It gives people something to look forward to on Saturdays, Sundays, Mondays and sporadic Thursdays, and it's pretty much the "water cooler" talk wherever you work. If you're lucky like me and get to watch sports during your job as a sports writer, well then it's even better.

But this period also brings the start of the NBA season, which for the first time in a number of years is actually quite intriguing to me. I'm looking forward to watching the Bucks, specifically seeing Year 2 of Brandon Jennings, how healthy Andrew Bogut looks, and if our new draft picks and acquisitions will fit in and help out as hoped. I'm also curious to see how the Heat will actually perform, see what players make a jump to elite status (Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose for example), which teams will finally put all the pieces together (Magic, Thunder) and other surprises. It's also good to see which players actually are on each team.

The biggest reason I love this period? The World Series. Screw the TV execs, the Rangers vs the Giants is a Fall Classic I'm definitely excited about. I even called this matchup before the postseason started! Scroll down if you don't believe me. I'm excited to watch the pitching (Lincecum vs. Cliff Lee in games 1, 4 and 7? Sign me up!), Buster Posey, Pablo Sandoval, Josh Hamilton, Vlad Guerrero and whatever is growing in Brian Wilson's beard. If I was a betting man, which I think I should be more of, I'd go with Rangers in 7. Rangers have the better offense, but the Giants have the better pitching to push it to the brink.

March/April:

This period comes down to NCAA conference tournaments and March Madness, but also includes Spring Training/Opening Day in the MLB and the NFL Draft. I go out of my way to watch all three of these things (well, at least the first few games of the Brewers season), which makes this a rival to October/November in my mind.