Manning

Describes motivation process for creativity with emphasis on intrinsic motivation by Corey K Katir

In a move sure to cause some reaction in Knoxville, Tenn., USC Coach Lane Kiffin has added former Volunteers quarterback Tee Martin to his staff as receivers coach.

Chivas USA will sport a new look at home this season — and the team went a long way to unveil it, breaking out their redesigned jerseys Wednesday at 30,000 feet on a flight from Guadalajara to Southern California.

Two IndyCar drivers came to Auto Club Speedway in Fontana to test the series’ new race car Wednesday, only to have the test washed out by rain after it barely had started. But one driver, Charlie Kimball of Camarillo, said…

When Peyton Manning underwent neck fusion surgery back in September, the procedure was widely reported as the third time in two years that the Indianapolis Colts quarterback had underwent neck surgery. But a report on SI.com, citing unnamed NFL sources, says Manning actually had neck surgery four times during that period.

Peyton Manning is welcome to return to the Indianapolis Colts — as long as he is willing to restructure his contract. So said Colts owner Jim Irsay on Tuesday. Writers from around the Tribune Co. discuss whether they believe Irsay when he says the decision is Manning’s to make.

The 2011 NFL season may be over, but itas hard to tell with all the football coverage out there. From Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck, to Elias aelitea status, and free agency, if it werenat for Linsanity, ESPN could be mistaken for the NFL Network. But why this glut of coverage more than a week after the Super Bowlas final whistle? Itas easy to say that the NFL and media nurture hype for profit and ratings, but the answer also is in footballas DNA.Read full article >>

Now that the Super Bowl is over, do you remember the NFL lockout? Me neither. Instead, Iave been Tebowing about these five things:

1) When did NFL fame become more about off-field drama than winning?

Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Tim Tebow walk into a bar. Thatas a either a joke or a headline, and then there would be a half-hour documentary on three different networks a aThe Ballad of Tom Brady and Yoko Bundchen.aRead full article >>

Ten thoughts on the New York Giantsa Super Bowl XLVI triumph.

1) Was it just me, or did Sundayas game feel a little off until the Giantsa fourth quarter touchdown drive? It just didnat have the feel of a Super Bowl, or at least not the feel of a memorable one. That isnat to say that the Giantsa game-winning drive wasnat remarkable, or that anyone should be disappointed by a game that literally came down to the last play, but it just didnat have the feel of the biggest game of the year.Read full article >>

The Circle City, Nap Town, or just Indy has been used for years by Indianapolis natives, but I like the moniker British writer Simon Veness gave us: The City of Dreams.

Indianapolis and I grew up together. I was thirteen when the infamous Mayflower trucks brought the Colts to Indy in 1984. Indy was growing up, too, as the Hoosier Dome indicated. Every Sunday we Colts faithful put on our blue jerseys and cheered for our team, even when losing was the norm. It would, we understood, be worth the wait, and we were so right. In the decades since then, Market Square Arena gave way to a new field house, and the RCA Dome was replaced by the house that Peyton Manning built, Lucas Oil Stadium. At 40, I am filled with pride at this, my city of dreams, which is now the ultimate host of Super Bowl XLVI.Read full article >>

Letas face it, the NFL playoffs are a crapshoot. We all know that you need a great quarterback to get you to the playoffs on a consistent basis. But when it comes down to wins and losses in January, a quarterback or team simply needs a good dose of good fortune.Read full article >>

With the NFL regular season having ended, the fantasy football season is over. There were many great players who were deserving of the Fantasy Trackeras Year-End awards, particularly at quarterback, but Iam going to take this time to look at the best of the best at each position from the 2011-12 season.

Quarterback: Drew Brees

Just like the MVP race, Brees and Aaron Rodgers are neck-and-neck for the best fantasy QB award (with Tom Brady, Matt Stafford, Eli Manning and Cam Newton close behind). The wonderful thing about fantasy football is that weare not looking at intangibles or records, just statistics.

REUTERS Statistically, Brees was the best quarterback. Brees threw for 5,476 yards and had 47 combined TDs. Compare that to Rodgers, who threw for 4,643 yards and had 48 combined TDs (in 15 games), and itas clear who the superior fantasy QB was this year.

Runner Up: Aaron Rodgers

Running Back: Ray Rice

Rice finished second in rushing to Jacksonvilleas Maurice Jones-Drew (1,606) and behind Philadelphiaas LeSean McCoy in TDs (20) but Rice was the top fantasy back this season.

Getty Images Rice led all running backs with 2,068 combined yards, making him the only player at the position to top the 2,000-yard mark. Rice also had nine games where he surpassed 100 total yards and even had a game where he threw for a TD.

Runner Up: LeSean McCoy, Maurice Jones-Drew

Wide Receiver: Calvin Johnson

If this award were based on value, the best receiver this year would have been the Giantsa Victor Cruz. Unfortunately, Iam handing these awards out based on who the best player at the position was. No one was close to Calvin Johnson this year, plan and simple.

AP Johnson started the season on a historic pace, scoring nine TDs in his first five games. There was a bit of a lull from Weeks 10-14 (one TD), but Megatron was able to dominate when it mattered most, the fantasy playoffs. In Weeks 15-17, Johnson caught 24 passes for 560 yards and four TDs. He was as dominant an offensive player that there was in the league this year.

Runner Up: Victor Cruz, Wes Welker

Tight End: Rob Gronkowski

As sick as it sounds, Rob Gronkowski might be a first-round draft pick next year. Gronkowski was a touchdown machine this season, scoring an NFL-record 17 TDs (he added one rushing TD) at tight end.

AP If that wasnat enough Gronkowski also edged out New Orleansa Jimmy Graham for the NFL record for receiving yards by a TE with 1,327.

Gronkowskias record-setting production, along with seven multiscore games, set him apart from the field and solidified his status as the NFLas elite tight end.

Runner Up: Jimmy Graham

Defense/Special Teams: San Francisco 49ers

Even though the 49ers scored one defensive TD all season, San Francisco managed to lead all defenses in scoring (standard format leagues).

AP The 49ers had the NFLas top-ranked rushing defense, allowing 77.2 yards per game, and were borderline historic after allowing three rushing TDs all season (the first came in Week 16 against Seattleas Marshawn Lynch).

San Francisco also led the league in fumble recoveries (15) and total turnovers (38) and were second in the NFL in points allowed (227). Its 42 sacks were also tied for the fifth-highest total in the NFL.

Runner Up: Chicago

Biggest Surprise: Reggie Bush

I find it highly unlikely that anyone though Reggie Bush would be more than a placeholder for rookie RB Daniel Thomas this season, but if you drafted the former first-round pick, you were pleasantly surprised.

Getty Images Bush was mediocre early this season, but began to hit his stride in Week 8 after having his first 100-yard rushing game of the season. Bush finished the season with five 100+ yard games, including a 203-yard performance in Week 15 against the Bills.

Bush passed the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career and had the highest YPC out of any running back who rushed for 1,000 or more yards. Bush silenced his doubters and will be a legitimate RB2 next season.

Runner Up: Victor Cruz, Marshawn Lynch

Biggest Disappointment: Tie a Peyton Hillis, Andre Johnson

It was difficult to decide which player was the bigger disappointment, Hillis or Johnson. Some will argue that Hillisa injury-prone season was to be expected following his appearance on the cover of Madden NFL a12 (another curse victim), but I will argue that because of the nature of the position, Johnsonas injury was more managable.

Getty/AP Johnson was projected to be the top-ranked WR according to Yahoo! Rankings entering 2011, but due to two hamstring injuries that limited him to seven games, Johnson caught 33 passes for 492 yards and two TDs.

Hillis, whose breakout season in 2010-11 made him a fantasy legend, bounced back late but was unable to recreate the 1,654 yard 13 TD performance from a season ago. Instead, in parts of 10 games, Hillis rushed for 587 yards and three TDs, adding 130 yards and zero TDs in the passing game.

Runner Up: Chris Johnson

Rookie of the Year: Cam Newton

I hate to toot my own horn, but I am going to. Out of five leagues, I either drafted Newton or picked him up right after the draft in three of them. Newton was absolutely unbelievable this season, throwing for 4,051 yards and 21 TDs. Newtonas real value came outside of the pocket though. The rookie QB rushed for 706 yards and 14 TDs.

REUTERS Newton will only get better with time and will benefit from a full training camp next season. He’s a surefire top-five QB heading into the 2012-13 season.

Runner Up: A.J. Green, Julio Jones

What a time for the Giants to put up a stinker!

For the most part the Giants were a major disappointment for fantasy owners who were depending on Eli Manning, Ahmad Bradshaw and Victor Cruz to carry them to the Super Bowl.

In fact, the Giantsa dismal performance most likely has those same owners playing for the Sacko rather than the Shiva this week (For those who do not know, that was a nod to one of the best comedies on TV, FXas “The League”).

Paul J. Bereswill Manning, who has been a borderline MVP candidate this season, had the worst game of the season last Sunday against the Redskins, throwing for 257 yards and being picked off three times. Manningas 45.5 QB rating was the lowest of the season thus far and he has now thrown for 528 yards, zero TDs and four interceptions against the Redskins this season.

Manning was not the only Giants player who let down fantasy owners. The entire Giants receiving corps was disappointing, with Hakeem Nicks notching the most catches (five) and highest yardage total (73) of the group. Cruz, the Giantsa leading receiver, had five catches but totaled 44 yards, his lowest total since Week 6 against the Bills.

Paul J. Bereswill The Giants also lost TE Jake Ballard to injury against the Redskins and will likely be without the breakout TE for Week 16 against the Jets.

While there was a bright spot in the Giantsa running game against the Cowboys, the two-headed monster (or disappointment) of Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs combined for a meager 91 yards and a garbage-time TD against the Redskins.

The Giants face two must-win games if they want to win the NFC East, make the playoffs and save Tom Coughlinas job, which may bode well for fantasy owners. Unfortunately, the teamas next two matchups come against the Jets (7th-ranked defense) and Cowboys (13th-ranked defense).

Roaring Back

Despite being an absolute beast early on this season, Lions WR Calvin Johnson had been a big letdown in the second half of this year. Prior to Sundayas 28-27 comeback win against the Oakland Raiders, Johnson had one TD (a three-yard score in Week 12) and had not surpassed the 100-yard receiving mark since Week 8.

Johnson had his best game all season against the Raiders, catching a season-high nine passes for 214 yards and two TDs. Johnsonas performance ranked him first overall for non-QBs and only Saints QB Drew Brees outscored him for the week.

Getty Images Johnson wasnat the only Lions player to turn in a superstar performance. Matthew Stafford threw for 391 yards and four TDs against Oaklandas defense. It was the second time all year Stafford has surpassed the 390-yard mark and the third time he has thrown for at least four TDs.

The Lionsa passing attack remains one of the NFLas best, and should provide nice returns against the Chargers (tied for seventh-worst with 24 TD passes allowed) and Packers (second-worst pass defense) in the closing weeks of the season.

Twin Billing

C.J. Spiller has been nowhere near as productive as Fred Jackson was earlier in the season, but against Miami in Week 15, the Clemson product looked like the dual threat everyone though he would be coming out of college.

Getty Images Spiller not only rushed for 91 yards and a score, but also caught a season-high nine passes (the same number as Calvin Johnson) for 76 yards and a TD. Spilleras ability to make plays in the passing game is what makes him so deadly, especially when he is getting 20+ touches like he did against the Dolphins.

For the rest of the season Spiller is a solid RB2 candidate and even projects as high as an RB1 in PPR leagues.

I wrote last week about how the Jets offense was filled with solid fantasy starts, and they proved me right in Week 13 against the Redskins.

RB Shonn Greene had his best game of the season, compiling 114 yards on 25 touches (22 rush, 3 receptions) and scoring an incredible three TDs in the 34-19 win.

Greene has not been the most consistent or impressive running back early on in his career and despite his struggles he has continued to be ranked as a high end RB2 in most leagues. Green has only rushed for 100 or more yards five times in his three-year career (two of which came in the 2009 AFC Playoffs) and his highest rushing total this season is 112 yards (Week 7 vs. SD).

Jeff ZelevanskyShonn Greene. I mention Greeneas issues only because they are a minor concern for anyone starting him as most fantasy leagues head into the playoffs. Over the next three weeks, the Jets play the Chiefs, Eagles and Giants, each of which has a rushing defense that is ranked in the bottom half of the NFL (Philadelphia is the best at 17th.). Greeneas value has also increased due to the injury woes of LaDainian Tomlinson (Knee) and although he is expected to play, Greene will be carrying the workload for the foreseeable future.

For the playoff run, Greene should be considered a top-10 fantasy RB and could finally come through on the preseason predictions most had for the Iowa product.

Hardy Har Harvin

If youave tuned into my weekly live chats (first off, thank you), you will know that I am not the biggest fan of Vikings WR Percy Harvin as a fantasy player.

That has changed with the injury to RB Adrian Peterson.

Since Peterson went down with a Grade 1 ankle sprain in Week 11 against Oakland, the Vikings offense has been centered around Harvin, and his fantasy value has skyrocketed.

Getty Images In the two-plus games without Peterson, Harvin has caught 22 passes for 324 yards and four TDs, including the best single-game performance of his career in Week 13 where he caught eight passes for 156 yards and two scores against the Broncos.

Peterson has not practiced yet this week and is not expected to be 100 percent before Sundayas game against the Lions so Harvin once again is a good start for Week 14.

Heas certainly Eli-te

Eli Manning turned heads earlier this season by comparing himself to Tom Brady and saying he is among the NFLas elite class of QBs. For all of the commentary and doubt that his statement brought on, Eli has proven that he belongs in that class, at least fantasy-wise.

In 12 games this season, Manning has passed for 250 yards or more in all but one of those contests (Week 2 vs. St. Louis. Manning also has nine multi-touchdown games thus far in 2011.

Getty Images For any of the detractors, Manning’s numbers prove he certainly belongs in the conversation when it comes to elite fantasy QBs (Iam not going to delve into the other aspects that put him in that class). Manning is currently ranked 4th in the NFL in yards (3,705), 5th in TD passes (23) and 6th in fantasy points (standard format leagues).

As an added bonus, Manning is also yielding some of the best value in terms of preseason ranks. According to Yahoo! Rankings, Manning was projected as the 10th best QB (71st overall) coming into this season and is currently the 7th highest-scoring PLAYER in standard leagues.

Eli Manning was back in his element Monday in the Giants locker room a couple of days after his guest host spot on aSaturday Night Live.a He said teammates teased him about wearing a dress on the show a they told him he looked good a and threw a few bananas at him, a takeoff on a somewhat risquA(c) portion of a skit he did.

On a night when Eli Manning Tebowed, took some indirect shots at Brett Favreas texting habits and even poked fun at his own manhood, he saved his best shot on aSaturday Night Livea for his older brother, Peyton.

Peyton Manning cursed out a bunch of children and taught them how to break into a car. Derek Jeter wore a dress. So what will Eli Manning do to get a laugh on Saturday Night Live?

Eli Manning is finally ready for primetime. When Manning turned down a shot to host aSaturday Night Livea in 2008, it was because he didnat want to follow in the footsteps of his famous brother, Peyton, who hosted the show to rave reviews in 2007.

When Eli Manning turned down a shot to host Saturday Night Live in 2008, it was because he didn’t want to follow in the footsteps of his famous brother. Now he’s willing to stand up and try to prove he’s the funniest Manning of them all.

When Deion Sanders spent four days filming a commercial for DirecTV with Eli Manning a few weeks ago, he found out something about the two-time Super Bowl MVP that he never knew. Eli is funny. Really.

Despite early talk, singer did not appear in any of episode’s skits.
By James Dinh

Marking her third appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” Rihanna proved that the third time’s a charm when the pop titan took over the Studio 8H stage on Saturday for a pair of eye-popping performance sets during the Eli Manning-hosted episode.

Standing before an oversized crystallized spider web in the middle of the black-lit stage, Rihanna began her first number with the buzzing sounds of “Birthday Cake.” It was a surprising song selection that momentarily suggested the possibility of an onstage reunion with birthday boy Chris Brown, but “Cake” ended quickly, instead leading into a medley of her tune “Talk That Talk.”

” ‘SNL,’ put your hands together like this,” she told the crowd.

With her backup dancers on hand, Rih kept the performance straightforward, offering viewers some simple shakes, pelvis thrusts and plenty of swag. One complaint was with the echo effect that was added to her microphone, which made the singer’s vocal sound shaky at times.

However, any issues with the opening number were soon forgotten when the pop star took to the stage for her follow-up performance of her brand-new single, “Where Have You Been.” Fronting an Arabian-themed backdrop and human props, Rihanna threw on a fierce game face and danced her way through the track with steady energy. It was a welcome change to see the Barbadian singer show off some footwork.

Unfortunately, the episode ended without any mention of “Shy Ronnie,” her first digital short, or any Rihanna-featured skits at all, even though “SNL” head honcho Lorne Michaels had told reporters on Wednesday that he was trying to work out the details on incorporating Rihanna into the sketch lineup.

Shy Ronnie may have not made an appearance, but Saturday’s gig was the perfect vehicle to promote her just-released single as well as her big-screen acting debut in the summer flick “Battleship,” which hits theaters May 18.

What did you think of Rih’s “SNL” performances? Let us know in the comments below.Related Artists

• Rihanna

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