tonytalkssports My Take on Sports, particularly the Yankees, Maple Leafs and Browns

Tuesday’s Thoughts

While wondering what it would be like if there was a college football playoff with Oklahoma State, Stanford, LSU and Alabama involved, here is what's on my mind this morning:

* The Maple Leafs face off against the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at the ACC and it marks the beginning of 9 out of the next 10 games being played at home. If they are to make the playoffs they need to win 6 out of those 9 games. Good news out of practice yesterday was that Mike Brown and Mike Kommisarek could be back by the weekend.

* After watching some of the Fiesta Bowl last night, if the Cleveland Browns have the opportunity to draft Justin Blackmon with their first pick they better just do it. This kid would immediately become their best wide receiver.

* Was stunned yesterday when it was announced that the Colts had fired Bill Polian and his son, Chris. Conflicting reports as to what this means for Peyton Manning and Jim Caldwell. Colt fans have to be concerned as to who Irsay will hire to take over the team.

* Interesting note, the Bengals, Broncos and Titans were all vying for a playoff spot heading into Sunday's games. The Bengals and Broncos lost and are in, the Titans won and they are out.

* Yankee pitchers and catchers report on February 19th and as it stands right now this will be the quietest off season in the team's recent history.

* Kudos to Chan Gailey for sticking to his guns and benching Bills wide receiver Stevie Johnson. Wonder if Gailey does the same thing if the Bills needed to win on Sunday to make the playoffs.

* Can't see how Stevie Johnson stays in Buffalo. His actions on Sunday, while not as bad as his act against the Jets, resulted in a 15 yard penalty for the Bills. As a result, another selfish act that hurt is team. Johnson represents a bigger problem: the ever-present me first attitude by many players in the NFL.

* Johnson was also pretty gutless yesterday by skipping out on the media in the morning but appearing on his afternoon radio spot on WGR 550 with Schopp and the Bulldog. The morning slight prompted a twitter confrontation between Buffalo News reporter Mike Harrington and WGR 550's resident genius Paul Hamilton. Was rather comical.

* After a sluggish first period, the Winter Classic turned into a very entertaining game. Some observations from the game: 1.) the Flyers still have goaltender issues which could hurt their chances in the playoffs, 2.) Henrik Lundqvist right now may be the best goalie in the NHL and 3.) the refereeing in the NHL has been brutal this year.

* The duet of Kate Smith and Lauren Hart singing "God Bless America" was awesome.

* During the Bills game on Sunday, resident NFL know-nothing Jeremy White tweeted that the Bills have showed improvement this season. Really, Jeremy??? The defense has progressively gotten worse and the offense has been inconsistent. Ryan Fitzpatrick is a good guy but I still say that the Bills are crazy if they think he is a franchise quarterback.

* No surprise that Raheem Morris and Steve Spagnuolo were fired yesterday. What is surprising is that reports out of San Diego are that Norv Turner and A.J.Smith may not lose their jobs.

* And finally, would you be surprised if Prince Fielder signs with the Washington Nationals??