Demarco Murray: on a Flight to Philly

The star RB will meet with Eagles management today

                Four days ago, the Eagles seemed certain that they had snagged their running back to replace LeSean Mccoy when it was announced that they had agreed to terms with Frank Gore. Twenty-four hours later, Gore had a change of heart and the Colts swooped in to sign him. Just yesterday, the NFL Network reported that the Eagles had come to a deal with free agent RB Ryan Mathews, formerly of the Chargers. However, Mathews has still not physically appeared in Philly to put pen to paper on the contract, so the Eagles might have yet another RB turning their backs on them during this free agency period. Enter Demarco Murray, who took it upon himself on Wednesday to reach out to the Philadelphia Eagles and express his interest to play in Chip Kelly's spread offense, according to ESPN's Chris Mortensen. Demarco Murray attended the University of Oklahoma, along with newly acquired Eagle, QB Sam Bradford. There are connections within the roster and organization that seem to suggest a perfect fit for Demarco Murray in Philadelphia, presenting an excellent opportunity for the physically dominant RB to play against his ex-team twice per season. Redemption could be sweet for Demarco this coming season, who declined an extension from the Cowboys which would've paid him $5M per season. So perhaps missing out on Frank Gore wasn't so bad, right Chip? 

a Pair of Shock Retirements

 Two Highly Established LBs set to Retire

  

                 Patrick Willis called all the shots on the field as a dominant linebacker, and now he's calling his way off of it. At the age of 30 and after eight seasons in the league, Willis has decided to retire. His 7 consecutive Pro Bowls to start his career sits behind only Lawrence Taylor and Derrick Thomas as the longest streaks in history for a defensive player. He missed 10 games last season with nagging foot injuries, which played a large role in his retirement decision.

  

                While the retirement of Willis was mildly shocking, it wasn't quite as dumbfounding as the departure of Jason Worilds. The 27 year old linebacker had established himself as the primary pass rusher in the Steelers defense, racking up 15.5 sacks over the past two seasons. Worilds was expected to be paid in the $7M-$9M range annually had he signed a new deal, so money is certainly being left on the table with this decision. There is no knowledge of a lingering injury to Worilds. He simply stated that he would like to pursue other interests. These types of retirements could become a more common occurance in pro sports as new information about long-term health effects become available.

Vezina Watch: Carey Continues to Dazzle

Habs netminder is dominating the pipes

                 The blazing play of Carey Price continued last night as he turned aside 35 out of 36 shots against the league's highest scoring offense. The Lightning average 3.25 goals per game to lead the NHL but could only muster a 1-0 overtime win against Carey's Habs. He has now turned aside 93 of the last 96 shots he has faced. Price has turned in a season which can be described as simply stellar thus far; his team sits at the top of the Eastern Conference despite ranking 22nd in the league in terms of scoring. That's because Carey Price has been stealing games for them with his ridiculous numbers. A Vezina Trophy seems like a forgone conclusion for Price at this point, assuming his performance doesn't drop off a cliff. But will he also win the Hart Trophy as MVP of the regular season? As things currently stand, it would certainly be a justifiable choice. The last time a Vezina and Hart were awarded to the same player was in 2002 when Jose Theodore posted 30 wins and 7 shutouts to go along with a 2.11 GAA and .931 save percentage for the same franchise, Montreal Canadiens. Below are some seasons' stats for the top Vezina candidates:

Carey Price, MTL: 54 GP, 37 W, 1.87 GAA, .937% SV, 7 Shutouts (facing 29.7 shots per)
Pekka Rinne, NSH: 52 GP, 36 W, 2.11 GAA, .927% SV, 3 Shutouts (facing 28.9 shots per)
Braden Holtby, WSH: 58 GP, 32 W, 2.15 GAA, .925% SV, 7 Shutouts (facing 28.0 shots per)
Marc-Andre Fleury, PIT: 52 GP, 30 W, 2.14 GAA, .925% SV, 9 Shutouts (facing 28.2 shots per)
Jonathan Quick, LA: 57 GP, 28 W, 2.37 GAA, .913% SV, 4 Shutouts (facing 26.4 shots per)
Corey Crawford, CHI: 45 GP, 26 W, 2.23 GAA, .923% SV, 2 Shutouts (facing 28.7 shots per)
Cory Schneider, NJ: 58 GP, 24 W, 2.25 GAA, .926% SV, 4 Shutouts (facing 28.8 shots per)

Revis Returns to the Jets

5 Years and $70M for the star Cornerback

               It appears that Darrelle Revis will be ending his career in the same place it began, as the New York Jets have signed the free agent cornerback to a sizeable deal spanning 5 years. The Jets traded up in the 2007 draft to ensure that they landed Revis out of the Unniversity of Pittsburgh. It was in New York that Darrelle established 'Revis Island', as his dominating play with the Jets put him at the top of the cornerback heap until a torn ACL in 2012. He was then dealt to the Buccaneers leading into the 2013 season where he played out the last year of his contract before joining the Patriots. The veteran cornerback is fresh off of a Super Bowl winning season with New England in which he played all 16 games, logging 44 tackles, 16 pass deflections, 2 interceptions and 1 fumble recovery. He recorded an additional interception in the playoffs, and in the week leading up to the Super Bowl, many were debating who was the best cornerback in football: Darrelle Revis or Richard Sherman? There's no simple answer to that question, but we all know who came out of that final game of 2014 feeling the best. 

Cavs Keep Rolling

Cleveland dismantled the Mavericks on Tuesday night

                 Lebron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers (41-25) are clicking on all cylinders right now, as evidenced by a 127-94 destruction of the Dallas Mavericks (41-25). The Cavs have now won 22 of their last 27 games. Timofey Mozgov was the only Cleveland starter to score less than 20 points, as he put up 17 to go along with 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. Cleveland was unstoppable from the beginning of the 2nd quarter as they outscored their opponents 101-63 over the final 3 frames and shot 51% from the field. Chemistry has clearly been established in Cleveland as they project to be an extremely dangerous opponent for any team once the playoffs arrive. The Mavericks have now dropped 5 of their past 7 games, continuing a season of hot and cold runs. Nowitzki shot 30% from the field in 29 minutes of floor time and Rondo had only 4 points and 3 assists. 

Colts Land 2 Offensive Vets

Gore and Johnson join the Blue Horseshoe

               As rumoured yesterday, the Colts have indeed signed veteran running back Frank Gore. The Colts were immedtiately mentioned yesterday as the target for Gore when we learned that he was reconsidering his decision with the Eagles. The unforseen part of the equation unfolded just a few hours ago, when Gore was joined by fellow veteran free agent Andre Johnson on a flight to Indianapolis aboard owner Jim Irsay's plane. Both Gore and Johnson attended the University of Miami. The Colts offense is suddenly infused with a ton of experience from a pair of highly successful players who are hungry to make a deep playoff run late in their careers. In regards to Andrew Luck, it would seem that the deadly just became even deadlier. Frank Gore is not only a physical runner of the football; he's also in the top flight of running backs in terms of pass protection. He may even be the best there is. This should have Andrew Luck salivating, assuming Frank Gore can stay on the field consistently throughout the season. Andre Johnson should be able to garner attention as a big-body red-zone threat for Luck, while simultaneously creating even more room to manuever for the speedy T.Y Hilton. 

Jimmy Graham: a Seattle Seahawk

Trades Are Piling Up in the NFL on Tuesday

                The dominoes continue to fall in the NFL, as the New Orleans Saints have traded their star tight end to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for offensive lineman Max Unger and at least one 1st round draft pick. All of the details have yet to be disclosed, but the Seahawks reportedly offered multiple draft picks to acquire Graham. Unger has been the anchor in the middle of the Seahawks offensive line for years, so they give up a player they like a lot as well. The opening day of NFL free agency has been more like NFL trade day; the Baltimore Ravens traded their long-time nose tackle Haloti Ngata to the Detroit Lions, as Detroit looks to fill the void left by their former nose tackle Ndamukong Suh, who signed a massive $114M contract with the Dolphins. It was also reported that the Philadelphia Eagles swapped QBs with the St. Louis Rams, as Nick Foles was traded for Sam Bradford. Hang on tight, folks. More is coming. 

Stroman Suffers Major Injury

Blue Jays' string of bad luck continues

                    It appears that 23 year old Marcus Stroman will miss the entire 2015 season after suffering a torn left ACL in practice on Tuesday morning. The injury occurred as Stroman was attempting to field a bunt during a defensive drill. This is obviously a devastating piece of news for Blue Jays fans as Stroman was essentially the projected "Ace" of the Blue Jays rotation, backed by veterans Mark Buehrle and R.A Dickey. Stroman was reportedly developing a fantastic early chemistry with newly acquired catcher Russell Martin. This is the second knee injury for the Jays this spring as outfielder Micheal Saunders tore his meniscus when he stepped on a sprinkler on February 25th. The team is not expected to make any knee-jerk reactions in terms of big spending or trades, so pressure will likely be on the young arms of Aaron Sanchez and Daniel Norris to step up, as well as veteran Marco Estrada, who started 70 games for the Milwaukee Brewers between 2009-2014. 

Gore Returns to the FA Pool

Eagles left in limbo as veteran RB reconsiders his decision

                It seemed that the Eagles had their new multi-purpose running back locked down about thirty-six hours ago, when it was reported that they had agreed to terms on a 3-year deal with Frank Gore. All of that has now been flipped on its head, as the new report from the NFL Network suggests that Frank Gore has notified the Eagles that he is considering alternate destinations. The Indianapolis Colts were immediately revealed as a team with top-tier interest in acquiring Gore. The Eagles, who were sure they had their replacement for LeSean Mccoy, are now left in scramble mode as Free Agency officially opens in less than 24 hours. This comes on the heels of a very bad publicity day for the team as a popular ESPN personality made earlier suggestions of a potentially racist "culture" that exists in the Eagles locker room, explaining the departures of players like LeSean Mccoy, DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, and the retainment of Riley Cooper. Did this talk of a "racist culture" sway Frank Gore into signing with a different team? We'll probably never know. 

Raptors Travel to San Antonio

a Texas-sixed opportunity awaits them

                  The Toronto Raptors (38-25) have fallen on hard times recently, winning only a single game in their last nine outings. That one victory was an 11-point triumph over the lowly 76ers (14-49). Overall, the schedule has indeed been very difficult since the all-star break, with losses coming against the likes of the Warriors, Rockets and Cavs, but the Raptors need to get some positive momentum swinging back in their direction before the playoffs begin. A victory in San Antonio against a surging Spurs (39-23) squad could potentially be that spark they need. The host Spurs are currently riding a 5-game winning streak, their most recent win over the Chicago Bulls (39-25). If Toronto can manage to snap their own streak of bad outings and poor confidence while simultaneously haulting the Spurs winning roll, the team morale could see a dramatic improvement. 

Andre Johnson Officially Released

The End of an Era in Houston

               

                The legendary run of Andre Johnson has finally come to a conclusion as the Texans officially released the future hall of fame receiver on Monday afternoon. Johnson is 33 years old and coming off of a season in which he recorded 85 receptions and 3 touchdowns while playing in 15 games. With NFL's free agency period officially opening in less than 24 hours, it would be hard to imagine a world where Andre Johnson doesn't receive any offers. Johnson remains in excellent physical shape; it will come down to his willingness to return for a stint with a new team. He has only played in 4 playoff games during his 11-year career with Houston, so his hunger for a true playoff run may be enough to coax number 80 into a new uniform. Andre Johnson sits at number 12 on the all-time receiving yards list with 13,597 yds. He caught his 1,000th pass as a Texan this past season.

Rodney Hudson leaves KC

Chiefs lose their starting Center to a division rival

              The Oakland Raiders are going to be big spenders for this upcoming free agency period. A chunk of that spending money will be going towards former Chiefs center Rodney Hudson, who will be signing a 5-year deal worth $44.5M to play for the Raiders. Earlier this season, Hudson declined a Chiefs extension offer which would've paid him $6M per season to stay in KC. He will instead earn $9M per season to play for a franchise which is trying desperately to increase its value both on and off the field, with rumours swhirling that the Raiders could potentially be moving back to Los Angeles in the near future. 

Jeremy Maclin Gets Paid

Andy Reid Organises an Expensive Reunion

               Andy Reid has successfully recruited Jeremy Maclin to join the Chiefs next season. It's a no-brainer for both parties, as the Chiefs' lethargic pass offence is in desperate need of a rejuvenation, and Jeremy Maclin is already fully acclimated with Andy Reid's offensive schemes thanks to their prior working relationship in Philadelphia. The University of Missouri receiver spent the first four seasons of his professional career under the guidance of coach Reid, enjoying a highly successful tenure. In 59 regular season games under Reid, Maclin caught 258 passes for 3,453 yards and 26 TDs. He also played in two playoff games for the Eagles, catching 10 passes for 219 yards and 1 TD. After missing the 2013 season due to a knee injury, Maclin returned in 2014 and looked extremely healthy playing in Chip Kelly's offense; healthy enough that the Chiefs were willing to swoop in and ink him to a fresh 5-year contract averaging $11M per season.

Kadri Remains in the Doghouse

The negative energy continues in Toronto

              On Saturday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs were dismantled 6-1 by the playoff-bound St. Louis Blues. On Sunday morning, the negativity continued when Nazem Kadri was sent home by interim coach Pete Horachek after showing up late to the team practice facility. Coach Horachek suggested that Kadri's lack of punctuality was due to an absence of preparation, dismissing any notion of incliment weather. While Horachek didn't specifically verbalise it, it would seem that Kadri fell victim to the Daylight Saving Time hangover. Kadri, who sits fourth on the Leafs scoring list with 36 points, is likely to be a healthy scratch for the Monday night clash with the Islanders. Brandon Kozun will be re-inserted as his replacement. Zach Sill will move from wing to centre.