The Johnson/Finnegan Fallout

The NFL released yesterday that it will impose fines on both Andre Johnson (Texans WR) and Cortland Finnegan (Titans CB) of $25,000. To someone like you or me this seems like a lot, but let's not forget that earlier this season James Harrison of the steelers was fined $75,000 stemming from a helmet to helmet hit on Browns wideout Mohamed Massaquoi that made Harrison "Very Seriously" consider retirement according to his agent Bill Parise.

The decision to only fine the two men has brought a lot of uproar. Should they have both been suspended? Should Finnegan have been handed a suspension and another fine? Finnegan was fined $25,000 just earlier this season for his after the whistle actions and several personal fouls spanning 3 games. The league also had a meeting with Finnegan earlier this season to tell him to watch his actions after the whistle. Johnson on the other hand is known as well mannered, soft spoken and non-confrontational, earning him respect across the league. So what could have caused such a mild mannered man to throw and land 2 solid punches?

Finnegan is known as a "dirty player" an up in your face bump and run cover corner. It's almost as if he was just trying to get Johnson off his game. I understand that getting under the skin of your opponent is a big part of the game, but I think that you do that in a fair and legal way. You do not get your guy off his game by pushing him in the back after the whistle or blocking him in the facemask and not in the chest. Then after the fines come down on them Cortland Finnegan comes out and says that if he had thrown a punch, he would have been suspended. I both agree, and disagree with this. If he (Finnegan) had been the only one to throw punches or he and Andre Johnson went toe to toe, I think if he would have been suspended. The fact that he kind of got his ass kicked worked to his advantage. Had he landed, or even thrown a punch, I think he would have received a suspension. Thank Goodness your face was in the ground the whole time Cortland. Thank Goodness.  I can't say what happened on sunday. I wasn't there and I didn't hear what was said between these two on the field. All I know is that at some point Finnegan Crossed the line and Johnson Snapped.

On the other side of the ball Andre Johnson has not been known for any incidents on or off the field. He has been known only as an upright soft spoken individual with a heart of gold. Johnson is among the leagues elite wideouts and shows no sign of slowing down. The best part is, I don't even know if we've seen Johnson at 100%, since his ankle injury in week 2, and he is still tearing secondaries up. All of this aside, Johson still threw a few punches this weekend. 2 of these punches landing cleanly as far as  I can see. I haven't heard any direct quotes from johnson about the incident, but then again I don't think you're going to. I do know that after the game coach Gary Kubiak gave Johnson the game ball. Kubiak insists it was for Johnson's 9 catches for 56 yards and a TD. Putting Johnson over 60 catches for the 8th straight year. 

Both Players avoided suspension and the situation is diffused with mere pocket change to them. If you ask me I think both guys got out lucky. If I had to put money on it I would have definitely guessed they were both going to be suspended. The game is definitely changing, with the helmet to helmet rules, the protection of the QB, and the defenseless receiver. I'm all for safety but where do you draw the line? What happened to the game that our fathers played? Is the next step to put a red jersey on the QB and he doesn't get hit at all? Put Flags on him? Well no matter where the game goes we'll be there to follow it. It's been a while since we've seen a good NFL fight. We don't get them as often as the NHL, or even NASCAR. This one should hold us over until the next big one gets us talking again. Please send all questions and comments to jl_sports@ymail. com. On a side note, these teams meet up on Sunday December 12th. Enjoy.

Click Here To See The Fight.

Who’s out in Tennessee, Jeff Fisher or Vince Young?

To put it lightly, the Tennessee Titans have had a sort of "revolving door" of starting quarterbacks in recent years. With the Vince Young vs. Jeff Fisher struggle so pressing right now, we want to evaluate what really is best for the Tennessee Titans Franchise.

Round 1) Jeff Fisher jumps out to an early lead due to three reasons more than the rest. 1) Length of service. Jeff Fisher has been with the franchise since he took over in 1994 when he replaced Jack Pardee as head coach of the Houston Oilers. 2) History of Success. Jeff Fisher’s overall record as a head coach is 141-116 (including playoffs) for a combined win percentage of .549. Plenty of teams in the league would chomp at the bit to have a head coach with that kind of reputation. 3) Value. Do you play your cards with the Head Coach with the history or the so-called franchise Quarterback? My vote goes to Fisher here.

Round 2) Vince Young trails closely with some very valid arguments backing him. Here are a few things that tend to get easily overlooked when talking about Vince Young. The fact that he is 30-17 as a starter is quite impressive for a quarterback as young (no pun intended) as he is. While trying to be as unbiased as possible, let me also mention that in those 47 starts Vince Young is only 5-10 against teams that ended up making the playoffs. You frequently hear the statement that Vince Young is a winner plain and simple. But is it simply that Vince Young is a winner against bad teams?

 

With a split decision so far I will let you decide who gets the win on this one. Sure Fisher is accused of being too hard on Young. For those that don’t remember Vince Young has had his share of incidents in recent years. In 2008 Vince Young was the center of attention for supposedly having lost the will to play football and battling depression. His agent strongly refuted these claims, while his mother was quoted as saying her son was "hurting inside and out." And so the saying goes… Mama knows best!

You may agree or disagree with our opinion here at JLSports, and you are welcome to do either. The fact is they are what we call them, opinions. If you have questions or comments email JL_sports@ymail.com

LBJ VS MJ

Confirmed by Nike on black friday to CNBC's Darren Rovell, Lebron James now has a new logo. We all had to know this was coming, especially since his old logo contained the number 23. Since moving to Miami (and the way he moved there) Lebron has come under a lot of fire for a lot of things. This being the most recent. Does Lebron deserve his new logo at nike which contains his initials and a crown (because I hear he is the king). Since it all comes down to a numbers game lets break it down as simply as possible.

These stats compare MJ at the exact point Lebron is currently in his career

                                        

                                           

At the end of Lebron's run who will be the best player that ever lived? Will it be one of them or will someone new come along and up-end all arguments before one is even made between MJ and LBJ? The numbers certainly don't lie and show an advantage to Michael right now. Lebron has a long career ahead of him. Here at JLSports we try to take a non-bias approach at all times. We'll give you the facts to the best of our ability and you make the choice. So who's it gonna be MJ or LBJ?

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Week 12 In The NFL

Well we are definitely getting started late in the NFL season but JLSports will be here for the remainder of forever to take care of all your sports needs. We are New to the blog world so forgive us if we're unorganized at first. We'll only get better. I'd like to quickly break down my Week 12.

Patriots @ Lions- At Halftime I was thinking holy hell can the Lions actually win this thing? The second half showed me that no they could not. Pats win 45-24

Saint @ Cowboys- Would the Cowboys have won this game if Roy Williams had not been stripped after an impressive catch and run? The world may never know. Great game from wire to wire. Saints win 30-27

Bengals @ Jets- With T.O. and Revis Island swapping low blows all week I was thinking it was going to be a bloodbath. The first half was lethargic and uneventful and the Jets took over and went on cruise control in the second half. Jets improve to 9-2 with  26-10 win.

Greenbay @ Atlanta- These 2 NFC powerhouses are hard to choose between. The Falcons are 5-0 in the Georgia Dome but the Injury Laden Packers Still Look Very Impressive. Atlanta gets first loss at home 24-14

Pittsburgh @ Buffalo- As well as Ryan Fitzpatrick has played the last few weeks I'd like to pick the bills to win more games unfortunately I cannot, In good Faith, Choose them to beat Big Ben and the Steel Curtain. Steelers win a laugher 31-17
Carolina @ Cleveland- If you had asked me when the season started if Carolina would be this bad I would not have said yes, but with there 2 headed monster in the backfield out and a big QB issue, I see no way that the Panthers can overcome the Goliath beater Browns and Peyton Hillis. Browns Get the W 24-7

Jacksonville @ NYG- The AFC South has been up in the air to whichever team wants it the most. However The Giants at the New Meadowlands should have no tough time against the Jaguars and the Hail Mary! New York Football Giants Win 28-10

Minnesota @ Washington- With the recent firing of coach Brad Childress (to be replaced by defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier) and Brett Favres, I should have retired season, Minnesota's chances to win anything just went down the drain. Frazier has expressed his interest in relying much more on the run game but I don't think it's enough to win games. Even over a mediocre Redskins team. Skins get the win 14-7

Tennessee @ Houston- A match up of two AFC south contenders (everyone in the south is technically a contender) and two of the leagues top backs. I see a lot of offensive firepower and No defenses in sight. I like Houston's chance at this one despite there being the worst pass and run D in all of football. Houston 31-17

Kansas City @ Seattle- I laugh at the fact that the Seahawks are division leaders at 5-5 but I really do think Kansas City is  a team on the rise over the next few years. Too much team speed, a great wideout in Dwayne Bowe and a lot of wild card guys. Chiefs win easily 27-10

Miami @ Oakland- Everyone was hot on Oakland going into last week then they were pummeled by Pittsburgh 31-3. I see them making a comeback this week against the Fins in the black hole. Raiders 17-7

St. Louis @ Denver- Sam Bradford has looked good in his rookie campaign and Denver's Josh Mcdaniels May be close to the hot seat. He needs to win a few statement games to round out this season. This one is not a statement game but it is a must win, I think Denver gets it 24-10

Philadelphia @ Chicago- Is Philly the hottest team in football right now? after  dismantling the Redskins and their division foes New York Giants I would have to say that I think that the Eagles and Mike Vick are the real deal and are my favorites for the NFC Superbowl spot. Philly Wins 34-21

Tampa Bay @ Baltimore- A lot of talk about whether or not Tampa's record made them seem better than they actually are. This week will be their test as they take on AFC beasts Baltimore Ravens. Hold on tight Tampa fans. This one won't be pretty. Baltimore wins 37-7

San Diego @ Indianapolis- With recent games going to San Diego, they go into Lucas Oil Stadium( where the colts are 4-0 this season) with their heads held high. This game is big for JLSports because I'm(Jesse Lacey) a colts fan. And My Co-Blogger (John Loyko) is a Bolts Fan! May The best team win. My guess Colts win a tight one In OT 24-21

San Francisco @ Arizona- Neither of these teams have impressed much of anyone this year. In what I think will be the lowest rated Monday night football game of the entire season I see SF taking the W. 10-7