Wishing I had Nate Robinson's hops

Before discussing Matthew Stafford, Maurice Jones-Drew and the Pitt Panthers...

There is no way to better illustrate that we are in a dead spot on the sports calendar than to say the weekend highlight was the NBA dunk contest and that I am looking forward to this week's NFL Combine. The latter is true, though that is primarily due to the insane amount of time I spent this weekend debating where to slot Percy Harvin, the merits of the Eagles taking a tight end over a running back in the first round or the potential of having FOUR centers go in the first two rounds of my latest mock draft. Yes, I have need help.

In between watching You Tube clips of Josh Freeman, I filled up my sports plate primarily with college hoops, a side of the rain-shortened Daytona 500 (I tried getting into it as I mentioned in Friday’s post, but somewhere around Kyle Busch’s wreck and finding Godfather 2 on cable, I lost track. Don’t give up on me NASCAR nation, I just need to ditch the remote) and a dash of the rain-delayed PGA tour stop in Pebble Beach.

(speaking of Freeman, does anyone else think its rather odd that after a season of watching Big 12 quarterbacks rack up numbers larger than the national deficiet that the only QB with a realistic chance to go in the first-round "only" tossed 20 touchdowns? I think Graham Harrell threw that many in a half once)

I didn't watch the NBA All-Star game (though I heard Kobe and Shaq were named co-MVP's. How sweet. Maybe they will start vacationing together), but caught Saturday night's dunk contest. If you haven't seen little, and I mean little, Nate Robinson dunk OVER Superman, a.k.a. Dwight Howard, check out this clip (the "kryptonite" dunk is at about the 1:05 mark). As a vertically challenged man myself, I can’t even imagine the kind of hops Robinson has to perform such acrobatics (if the magical genie offered me the ability to have one super, scintilating sensational sports skill, I go for major hops over say home run power or throwing the long ball. Come on, who doesn't want to be a high riser!).

He will need every inch if he is going to defend his title against King James next season. Great, one more angle the press can use to slurp LeBron next season as they salivate over his 2010 free agency decision. This almost makes me yearn for Brett Favre.

Now, the news (if this was a podcast, you would be hearing that classic news room typing sound effect right about now. Yes, I might have caught Les Nessman on WKRP this weekend. Very underrated sitcom):

 
- The Lions are expected to hold a “private workout” with QB Matthew Stafford at the combine since the former Georgia star announced he would not be participating in the combine drills. As I mentioned in the mock, I am no longer projecting Stafford to the Lions, dropping him to the Niners with the 10th pick.

No, I have not watched all of Stafford’s game film or charted his every collegiate pass like the Kiper's of the world (though even Mel is throwing up some general red flags about his fair hair QB), but I am just not feeling it, at least as far as calling him a lock worthy of going number one overall. I have hard time getting excited about a quarterback who completed less than 60 percent of his passes in two of his three years on the college level. Last season he was up to 61.4 percent, but in the Bulldogs two biggest games (against Alabama and Florida), the inconsistent Stafford was down to 56 percent (42-of-75), throwing for 539 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions.

Combined with the Lions overall ineptness and talent drain, Stafford just does not make good sense in the Motor City. We’ll see if the Lions brain trust agrees…

- This Sports Illustrated article lists some of the top small college players to keep an eye on during the NFL combine. Jackson State CB Domonique Johnson and Liberty RB Rashad Jennings are the best bets to land in the early rounds...

- Buffalo Bills fans and dynasty league owners cannot be thrilled with the news of yet another Marshawn Lynch arrest, this time for felony possession of a concealed firearm. It comes on the heels of a hit-and-run incident in May of last year for which he pleaded guilty and paid a fine. If NFL Commissioner Roger Goddell sticks to his guns – pun intended – and lays down the law as he has for several other players who, Lynch could be in line for a significant punishment from the league. Bills backup RB Fred Jackson has shown to be a viable performer when called upon and his fantasy value could be on the rise if Lynch misses any time or, and this is a reach at this point, the Bills cut ties with their leading rusher. Adding an RB like UConn’s Donald Brown or Clemson’s James Davis on day one of the draft may now also be in the cards...

- One year too late for all of the annoyed Maurice Jones-Drew owners, but the Jags finally cut ties with 11-year veteran Fred Taylor, coming off the worst season of his career. Some team looking for a veteran presence will come a calling (Cardinals, if Edge leaves? Colts?), but the bigger impact is that finally, FINALLY Jones-Drew, a.k.a. The Human Bowling Ball, will finally become a full-time back. With his nose for the end zone and ability in the passing game, the speedy power runner should make the leap to top-5 fantasy running back this season with 1,600+ yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns. Mark it down. Sadly, one year too late for some of us…

- College Hoops takes over the sports universe tonight with a Big East clash featuring #4 Pittsburgh at #1 Connecticut. Obviously the Huskies are viewed as major threat to win reach and win the National Championship game this season (especially when 7-3 Hasheem Thabeet is posting 25 points, 20 rebound and nine blocks like he did against Seton Hall on Saturday), but they hit a bump in the road with the loss of forward Jerome Dyson due to injury. That is why I have the Panthers as my favorite Big East squad to make the final four (Since you asked, right now I'll go with Pitt, UNC, Oklahoma and the semi-sleeper, Arizona State with the Tar Heels to cut down the nets).

Everyone talks about big men DeJuan Blair (his play against tonight against the taller Thabeet should go a long towards determining his NBA draft status) and Sam Young, but don’t forget about Panthers point guard Levance Fields. The stocky point guard is the straw that stirs that drink for the Panthers offense and I am not talking about his 11.1 points per game average or that he is shooting a solid 36 percent from beyond the arc. Fields leads the nation in assist to turnover ratio and averages 7.4 dimes a game, second in the country. The Panthers may not have the most firepower, but Fields keeps the efficient offense humming, a key component for success in March...