2011 NFL DRAFT: NY JETS overview

The NFL lockout was temporarily halted for a short period of time and players were allowed back into team training facilities early last week. By the weekend however, the ruling was appealed and the lockout continued. Despite the uncertainty of if there will be a 2011 NFL season, the NFL draft went on as scheduled. Here is a list of the Jets picks and an analysis of the pick:

Muhammad Wilkerson

1st round: Muhammad Wilkerson, DE, Temple University 
This defensive end was thought by many experts to be drafted in the top 10 of this years draft. He had a very successful season at Temple University and  slipped to the Jets at the 30th pick. He will be very useful teaming up with veteran Kris Jenkins on the defensive line.

3rd round: Kenrick Ellis, NT, Hampton University
The Jets traded away their second round pick last year so their second pick came in the third round when they picked nose tackle Kenrick Ellis. This 6-5 346 pound monster was number 35 of the jets scouting report so when he fell to pick 94 in the draft they swooped in and drafted him to help clog up the middle and stop the run. He has had multiple off the field issues in college but if he can stay out of trouble he should be a great fit in NY. 

4th round: Bilal Powell, RB, Louisville
The Jets already have two young backs in Shonn Greene and Joe McKnight as well as future hall of famer LaDainian Tomlinson in the backfield so drafting another running back was a questionable move for the Jets because they will probably only be able to keep three on roster. Powell is a one-cut runner who can grow in time as a Thomas Jones type back

5th round: Jeremy Kerley, WR, TCU
This versatile receiver was a big part in the Horned Frogs offense last season. He is an elusive runner who can also line up in the backfield and even throw the ball. He will be very useful for the Jets as a slot receiver and can fill in for Brad Smith who is a free agent.

7th round: Greg McElroy, QB, Alabama
McElroy had a pretty successful career leading the Crimson Tide at quarterback. He is a very smart and talented quarterback who will look to take the number 2 quarterback position from long time backup Kellen Clemens.

7th round: Scottie McKnight, WR, Colorado

Scottie McKnight

The Jets used their last pick on undersized wide receiver Scottie McKnight. He is the all time leading receiver for Colorado however he was not projected to be selected in the draft. What makes this pick special is McKnight is best friends with Jets QB Mark Sanchez. The two have been friends since they were 8 years old and Sanchez threw to McKnight at his pro day. Sanchez and his family were with McKnight as his family at McKnight's home when the Jets announced the pick.

Knicks Down 2-0

On Tuesday night, New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony displayed one of the most dominant playoff performances in history. With starting pointgaurd Chancey Billups already sidelined with a knee injury and the loss of Amare Stoudemire in the first half of last nights game, coach Mike D'Antoni told Anthony that he was going to have to put the team on his back. Stoudemire left the game with four points due to back spasms that began while he was warming up on Tuesday. Anthony posted a staggering 42 point, 17 rebound performance but the Knicks were not able to pull out a victory in Boston. Tuesday night's game was another great game that came down to the final seconds. The Knicks were unfortunatly not able to catch up in time and lost the game 96-93. The Knicks look to even up the series as they and Celtics travel to Madison Square Garden for the next three games, given that there is a game five. 

Knicks go down 0-1

Ray Allen - Boston Celtics

On Sunday night the Knicks and the Celtics started the first of their seven game series in the first round of the NBA playoffs. The Knicks had a comfortable 51-39 lead at halftime but then my fellow Knicks fans and I watched something all too familiar happen. The Knicks had the lead all the way down to 12 seconds left in the fourth quarter when Ray Allen sunk a three to put the Celtics ahead 87-85. Carmelo Anthony attempted a game winning three pointer as time expired but it fell short and the Celtics won the game and took a one game lead in the series.

Yankees in First

Last night the Yankees took sole possession of first place in the AL East. The Yankees were down by five for most of the game but was able to come from behind to beat the Baltimore Orioles in a 6-5 extra inning game. Yankees closer Mariano Rivera was credited with the win. Starter Phil Hughes who has started the season with two poor performances was on the mound again, looking for his first stellar performance. Thursday did not prove to be the day for Hughes, who has let up five or more runs and has pitched fewer than five innings in all of his first three starts this year. The last Yankee pitcher to start a season this poor was Chien Ming Wang in 2009 and he is no longer with the Yankees.

LT Sentenced

Once one of the most dominant line backers in all of football, Lawrence Taylor has been in the news recently for the wrong reasons. Lawrence Taylor played line backer for the New York Giants from 1981-1993 and earned himself his way into the NFL Hall of Fame. In recent years however, Taylor has found himself on the wrong side of the law, most recently he was arrested for rape of a 16 year old prostitute. One of the original charges against him was statutory rape, which would have held a four year prison sentence. He pleaded guilty in january of sexual misconduct and patronizing a prostitute. He was sentenced today to six years probation.  

Yankees Starting Strong

The Major League Baseball regular season is underway and the Yankees have gotten off to a strong start posting a 4-2 record as they wrap up their home series'. The Yankees started the season beating the Detroit Tigers in the first two games of their three game series and then won two of three in a series against the Minnesota Twins. Tomorrow the Yankees will go to Fenway Park to face their bitter rival Boston Red Sox. I have been to Fenway for a Yankee-Red Sox game and it is not a nice place for someone decked out in Yankee gear. The Red Sox have started the season with a record of 0-6 and are looking to bounce back this weekend. With Sebathia, Hughes, and Nova set to pitch this weekend, I am pretty excited to see the Red Sox move to 0-9.

Knicks Clinch Playoff Spot

For the first time in seven years, the New York Knicks were able to clinch a spot in the playoffs. The Knicks have been playing great basketball as of late, beating the Philadelphia Seventy-sixers on Wednesday night to move from seventh to sixth in the playoff race and ensuring their spot to compete for a championship. The Knicks, led by Carmelo Anthony are on a five game winning streak with five games left in the regular season and will play either the Miami Heat or Boston Celtics in the first round of the playoffs.

Bad Blood

One of, if not the most hated rivalry in sports is between the Yankees and the Red Sox. Both teams have very high payrolls, both have all star caliber players, and both find themselves playing at the end of the season to win the AL East. This year should be no different when the season starts on March 31st.

In recent years, the Yankees and the Phillies have had a rivalry building. Through out the past few years both teams have beaten up on each other. This year however the Yankees will not play the Phillies at all in the regular season. This means that the only chance that the Yankees and Phillies will meet this season would be in the World Series, and with Cliff Lee's 5-0 playoff record, that is the last thing that the Yankees want to happen.

Yankees heating up

Alex Rodriguez

After a slow start to their spring training season the Yankees are at a record of 7-11. Last night the Yankees recorded a 10-0 win over the Baltimore Orioles. Pitcher Ivan Nova, threw six no hit innings before being pulled in the seventh. The Yankees bats were hot as well, they recorded 12 hits, including a two run home run by all star third baseman Alex Rodriguez. Manager Joe Girardi called Nova's performance "the best pitching performance of spring training." This outing should solidify Nova as the Yankees fourth starter for the 2011 season, which starts on March 31st when the Yankees take on the Detroit Tigers.

Fighting for a Job

Ivan Nova

Bartolo Colon

The Yankees pitching rotation is still unsure, still with the final two spots open. Ivan Nova is a 24 year old who pitched very well last season starting games in place of injured teammates. Nova was thought to have been a sure thing for the fourth spot but he was beat around last outing and has not been progressing as fast as Yankees coaches projected him to. Nova is pitching tonight against the Orioles in his third start of the spring training season and needs a solid performance to ensure his spot wont be filled by Bartolo Colon or Freddy Garcia.  

Freddy Garcia

Barkley Blasts D'Antoni

Retired NBA all star and current TNT NBA analyst Charles Barkley has recently been quoted blasting the New York Knicks defense and putting blame on head coach Mike D'Antoni:


"Let's just cut the B.S. I like Coach D'Antoni; he's a terrific coach. But he's just not stressing defense. He's just being too damn stubborn, like he's trying to win his way. Just look at his teams in Phoenix. They were good enough offensively to win, but they never got better defensively. They just never got better. I think about that because, looking at these Knicks, it's like he is trying to prove a point that he can win with his system. And dammit, it ain't working. And it ain't gonna work."

Mike D'Antoni 

Charles Barkley

Barkley later went on and stated that the Knicks, since the blockbuster trade for Carmelo Anthony, have the worst defense in the history of the NBA. Since the trade that brought Carmelo to the Knicks and traded away almost all of their bench players, the Knicks have only gone 6-5. Barkley may have went too far by saying that the Knicks defense is the worst in history but he does bring up a great point about coach D'Antoni. Knicks president Donnie Walsh has done his part by creating a lineup that consists of two super stars and a point guard with championship experience. With the offensive fire power that the Knicks have, there should be no reason for them to be losing. 

Rex's Guarantee

Rex Ryan

When Jets coach Rex Ryan came to New York from Baltimore he brought with him a relentless defensive scheme and a lot of high expectations. In his first two seasons as coach of the Jets, Rex Ryan has transformed the defense and entire image of the Jets and has reached the AFC Championship game both years. Rex has publicly voiced his opinions and expectations and said the past two years that he has expected the Jets to reach the super bowl. By falling one game short the past two seasons, Ryan has guaranteed a super bowl victory for the coming 2011 season... if the season ever happens. The 2011 football season is currently in jeopardy as the lockout between the NFLPA and the NFL continues on.

Spring Training '11 is underway

The Yankees and the Mets have both starting training for the 2011 baseball season. Both teams came into camp with many questions and concerns for their upcoming seasons. The Yankees are still looking for a final two pitchers to add to their five man pitching staff. With the first three spots being taken up by returning starters C.C. Sebathia, Phil Hughes, and A.J. Burnett, the final two spots are a toss up right now. Yankees manager Joe Girardeau said that pitchers Ivan Nova and Freddy Garcia are the favorites to land the job. Also in the hunt is veteran pitcher Bartolo Colon, who has been pitching nice in camp and has been turning some heads in the Yankees clubhouse.

Carlos Beltran

The Mets headed into spring training with questions about who will play second base as well as some injuries to key players. Carlos Beltran is an all star caliber outfielder... when healthy. Through out the past two seasons, Beltran has had numerous injuries that have caused him to miss a substantial amount of time both seasons. Beltran is still limited in practice due to tendonitis is his left knee and does mostly non baseball related workouts but he has taken some swings in batting practice from the right side. The Mets also have to deal with keeping 35 year old second baseman Luis Castillo or deciding to bring up some younger players.

Hello 'Melo

The highly anticipated trade for Carmelo Anthony has finally taken place. The Knicks landed Anthony in a blockbuster three-team, 13-player trade Tuesday with Denver and Minnesota. In addition to Anthony, New York also received Billups, Anthony Carter, Shelden Williams, Renaldo Balkman and Minnesota's Corey Brewer. New York sent Wilson Chandler,Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton and Timofey Mozgov to Denver, along with draft picks and cash. The Knicks sent Eddy Curry to Minnesota along with Anthony Randolph for Brewer.

Carmelo and Billups made their Knicks' debut last night against the Bucks. Carmelo had 27 points and Billups had 21 points. Amare Staudemire also has 19 points. With the addition of the two former Nuggets, the Knicks are focussed on making the playoffs this season.

Future Star

This is not really related to New York sports but i found this video online that was made by Johnny McEntee and friends. McEntee is the backup quarterback at Uconn who wanted to showcase his ridiculous accuracy.

The Next Big Three?

Lebron James (left), Dwayne Wade (middle), Chris Bosh (right)

The signing of Lebron James and Chris Bosh by the Miami Heat this past offseason has shaken up the league. Lebron and Bosh joined fellow team USA teammate Dwayne Wade in Miami and the Heat were suddenly the hottest team in the league. That could all change by some key moves by the Knicks front office.

Carmelo Anthony

The Knicks' hopes we high last off season to get Lebron, the first pick in the 2003 NBA draft. Now with Lebron out of the picture, Denver Nuggets small forward and the third pick in the 2003 NBA draft, Carmelo Anthony wants to play in New York. Anthony grew up in New York and was a standout at Syracuse. Recently Carmelo has voiced his wishes to play for the Knicks.

   

Chris Paul

 If the Knicks front office plays this one right, they could have one hell of a team. That appeared to be New Orleans Hornets point guard Chris Paul’s wish for the future.  Last summer he predicted him and his friends --  Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire -- would eventually join forces and play for the New York Knicks while making a toast at Anthony’s wedding in New York City.  Amare is already in place making a huge impact this season but if Chris Paul's prediction is right, the Knicks may become a franchise that no team will want to play.


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STAT first All-Star starter for the Knicks since Ewing

This past offseason the New York Knicks have made some big moves to improve their team. The last few years has been full of heart break and pain for Knicks fans. It seemed like in every close game, or games they had a lead over 10 points, the Knicks would find a way to lose it in the fourth quarter.

Amare Stoudemire

This season is different though. The Knicks signed power forward Amare Stoudemire this offseason and he has provided an immediate spark that the Knicks needed to start being considered as a legitimate contender for the NBA title. Stoudemire is averaging just over 26 points, 9 rebounds and over 2 blocks per game and was a stand out favorite for the East in the all-star voting this season. Amare has been a stand out performer this entire season by setting the Knicks record for most consecutive 30 point games this season with 8 in a row.

Amare will be the first player for the Knicks to be announced a starter for the East All-Stars since Patrick Ewing did it the early 1990's. Tonight the Knicks will face the Miami Heat which will showcase East teammates Lebron James and Dwayne Wade.

Jeter moving to Outfield?

Yankees Short Stop Derek Jeter, who has spent his entire 15 year career stealing away hits from opposing batters with the Yankees, was a free agent when the 2010 MLB season ended. After a lengthy negotiation process over a new contract, Jeter got what he wanted and signed a $51 million contract to remain the Yankees captain for another three Years with an option of a fourth year.

Jeter has won 5 Gold Glove awards at short, most recently last season when he turned 36 years old. Jeter has showed signs of slowing however the past few seasons and many in the Yankees organization have talked about how they want to bring in a young quick player to put in the infield. Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman recently was quoted as saying that he would be surprised if Jeter stayed at short stop for the duration of his contract.

It is possible that Jeter could follow the same pattern as Hall of Famer Robin Yount. Yount moved from shortstop to center field in the mid-1980s, midway through a 20-year career with the Brewers. He had won an MVP in the infield and then won another one towards the end of his career in the outfield. There have been rumors flying this past season about Jeter moving to the outfield but there is no indication that he is going anywhere this season. The Yankees currently have three young all-star caliber players in the outfield, with Nick Swisher, Curtis Granderson, and Brett Gardner so the Yankees might have an issue in the next few years on what to do with Jeter if management feels like he cant still cut it at short stop.

Gardner, Granderson, Swisher

Anybody have any ideas on what they can do? 

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees have recently made some moves to acquire relief pitcher Rafael Soriano from the free agency market. Soriano led the American League in 2010 with 45 saves and now will join the Yankees as an eighth inning set up man for future hall of famer, Mariano Rivera. With the addition of Soriano, the Yankees bullpen will now have a lot more depth at the reliever position and will hopefully end their struggles during the late innings. Another key acquisition recently has been the signing of outfielder Andruw Jones. Jones, who was an all-star five years ago while playing for the Atlanta Braves will be used as a backup outfielder. Jones' productivity has dropped in recent years but he still has a lot of power hitting off lefty pitching. This will allow the Yankees to give more days off to their outfielders, Curtis Granderson,  Brett Gardner, and Nick Swisher.

New York Jets

For the second time in the last two years, quarterback Mark Sanchez and the Jets have reached the NFL playoffs. The Jets stunned the Payton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in the Wild Card round then shocked the sports world with a win in Foxborogh against their division rival, the New England Patriots. Jets head coach Rex Ryan predicted a superbowl appearence during training camp and now he is only one game away from that ultimate goal of bringing a championship back to New York. The Jets will assume their role as the underdogs in this weeks AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.