Dallas Cowboys offensive lineman La’el Collins is back from his five-game suspension this week, and he has no regrets about how it was handled.
Collins was suspended under the NFL’s drug policy based on a number of missed tests. The punishment was made more strict based on an allegation that he had attempted to bribe a drug tester.
On Friday, Collins admitted he had “missed a few tests here and there,” but felt the punishment was harsh because he never failed one. He also strongly disputed the claim that he’d tried to bribe the drug tester and seemed to claim that it had originally started as a joke between him and his teammates.
“All I will say about that is I have no reason to bribe a drug collector. Never have, never will,” Collins said, via Todd Archer of ESPN. “It was nothing like that. It started off as a joke among a few guys and went the wrong way. Like I said, there was nothing in my system that would have led me to try to get out of testing. I knew I was getting tested randomly. I was being tested a lot, 10-plus times a month sometimes. There was no way getting around that and still isn’t. It is what it is.”
Collins was so adamant about his innocence that he unsuccessfully went to court to try to get the suspension tossed. If the bribe allegation was a joke, it apparently became a pretty believable one if the league was willing to use it as evidence for the suspension.
Photo: Jeffrey Beall/Wikimedia via CC BY-SA 4.0
Jose Altuve is not exactly Mr. Popular these days, especially whenever he is playing on the road. But the reception that he got at Truist Park on Friday was particularly savage.
The Houston Astros infielder Altuve heard it from the Atlanta Braves crowd as he led off Game 3 of the World Series. They rained down very loud chants of “Cheater! Cheater!” on Altuve as he stepped up to the plate.
https://twitter.com/MarlyRiveraESPN/status/1454240170610503683
It got even worse from there for the ex-AL MVP. During Altuve’s next at-bat in the top of the third inning, the organist for the Braves played “I’m a Little Teapot” to taunt him, per Emma Baccellieri of Sports Illustrated.
Now that’s cold.
Altuve, who has become the face of the Astros’ cheating scandal, is one of the shortest players in baseball at 5-foot-6. He would go on to strike out in the at-bat, much to the delight of the Atlanta crowd.
This is nothing new for Altuve, who heard profane chants on the road during Houston’s last playoff series. But the Braves organist definitely did him dirty with that song selection on Friday.
Photo: May 22, 2021; Arlington, Texas, USA; Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve (27) takes batting practice before the game against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
The Oakland Athletics could be throwing it back to the mid-2000s with their next manager hire.
Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported on Friday that former Athletic Mark Kotsay will be in the mix for Oakland’s managing job. The team is looking for a candidate to replace longtime manager Bob Melvin, who left this week to take the same position with the San Diego Padres.
Kotsay played for the A’s during their Moneyball era, logging four seasons with them from 2004 to 2007. He returned to the team in 2016 as a bench coach and currently serves as their third-base coach.
The A’s may be likelier to hire this more experienced choice as their skipper. But if they are looking to go with a younger candidate to replace Melvin, the 45-year-old Kotsay will be a strong in-house option.
Photo: Aug 10, 2021; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Oakland Athletics third base coach Mark Kotsay (7) walks on the field in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
There has been a lot of finger-pointing when it comes to why the Miami Dolphins have struggled so much in 2021. Some players believe it’s down to a leadership void that the likes of Tua Tagovailoa aren’t filling.
According to Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel, many in the Miami locker room blame the loss of key veteran leaders from the 2020 team for the team’s 1-6 start to 2021. Among those missed is quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who won the team’s leadership award in 2020 but moved on to Washington in the offseason.
One anonymous player compared Fitzpatrick to Tagovailoa, saying the second-year quarterback is doing his best but simply doesn’t lead as well as Fitzpatrick did.
“He’s great, and he’s trying. But it’s not Fitz,” the player told Kelly.
Whether Tagovailoa can lead an offense has been one of the big questions about him. Coach Brian Flores had praised him for his offseason leadership work, but the fact that Tagovailoa was not elected a team captain raised some eyebrows.
To be fair, the player isn’t necessarily saying Tagovailoa is a bad leader — just not as good as Fitzpatrick. It’s not clear if the team’s brass shares that feeling, but it could be one reason the team appears very interested in bringing in someone new.
Photo: Oct 15, 2021; Ware, United Kingdom; Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) at a press conference at the Hanbury Marriott Manor and Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The Georgia Bulldogs are poised to stick with the hot hand at quarterback for their showdown with Florida.
According to Matt Zenitz of On3, the Bulldogs will stick with Stetson Bennett as starting quarterback for Saturday’s game. This move comes despite the fact that JT Daniels, who opened the season as starter, is healthy and available to play.
Daniels did little wrong aside from suffer an ill-timed lat injury roughly a month ago. Bennett stepped in and made the job his own. He guided Georgia to three convincing wins over Arkansas, Auburn, and Kentucky. He threw five touchdown passes in those games and did not turn the ball over once.
Coach Kirby Smart had hinted that both quarterbacks could split time in upcoming games. However, it sounds like Bennett will get the bulk of the work. It’s tough to say he hasn’t earned it at this point, though Daniels will be disappointed.
Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson has not played since Week 4, and it sounds like there are real questions about whether he’ll play again in 2021.
The veteran back has been dealing with a neck injury, and coach Pete Carroll said Friday that Carson’s condition has not been improving. Carroll admitted that needs to change soon if Carson is to return in 2021.
Carson has been one of the more reliable backs in the NFL over the last few seasons. After back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, issues began to pop up in 2020, and he missed four games. After three touchdowns in four games to start 2021, he’s broken down again.
The Seahawks could really use Carson’s production right now, especially with Russell Wilson still working his way back from injury. All of it is contributing to what is shaping up to be a lost season for Seattle.
The Charlotte Hornets may have played themselves in recent contract negotiations with one of their top players.
Veteran basketball writer Marc Stein reported on Friday that the Hornets topped out at four years and $60 million in their recent extension offer to forward Miles Bridges. The two sides ultimately failed to reach to a deal before the Oct. 18 deadline, meaning that Bridges will be a restricted free agent next summer.
For reference, two guys from Bridges’ 2018 draft class at his same forward position ended up getting lucrative extensions from their respective teams. Mikal Bridges got four years and $90 million from the Phoenix Suns, while Michael Porter Jr. got a five-year max extension worth up to $207 million from the Denver Nuggets.
The decision not to make a more competitive offer to their Bridges has since aged like milk for Charlotte. On a team with the likes of LaMelo Ball, Terry Rozier, and Gordon Hayward, Bridges is their leading scorer this year with an immense 26.4 points per game. He is also chipping in 8.0 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game.
True, hindsight is 20/20, and Bridges had just 12.7 points and 6.0 rebounds per game last year. But the Hornets might have had a much better chance of extending their guy if they had offered something closer to the $90 million that Phoenix’s Bridges got (Porter Jr’s extension from the Nuggets being an anomaly). Instead, Charlotte’s Bridges could easily get $100 million or more on the open market if he maintains his current production. Granted, this is not the first time that the Hornets have lowballed one of their stars.
Photo: Dec 21, 2013; Charlotte, NC, USA; Charlotte Bobcats owner Michael Jordan unveils the new Charlotte Hornets logo at halftime during the game against the Utah Jazz at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports
Metta Sandiford-Artest is known for his unique name, among many other things. So when Facebook announced a significant company change on Thursday, a lot of people thought of him.
Facebook announced Thursday it would be changing the name of its company to Meta, though the social network itself would retain its current branding. Still, the move made headlines, and it attracted the attention of the similarly-named Sandiford-Artest.
Upset about someone stealing his thunder? Quite the opposite. In fact, Sandiford-Artest offered up his testimony about how great a name it is.
https://twitter.com/MettaWorld37/status/1453864150170357762
To make things even better, he even got a response from the social media company.
Sandiford-Artest was first known as Ron Artest when he entered the NBA. The eccentric star later changed his name to Metta World Peace before ultimately settling on the current iteration, though not before a flirtation with his original name. Now he shares a name with a social media corporation. Talk about a truly bizarre set of circumstances.
Jackson State coach Deion Sanders is poised to miss his second consecutive game this weekend amid health concerns.
Sanders did not coach Jackson State’s win against Bethune-Cookman on Saturday, and is expected to miss this Saturday’s contest against Mississippi Valley State, according to John Brice of Football Scoop. Sanders is still recovering from foot surgery in September, and is now hospitalized in a Jackson-area hospital due to an unspecified illness.
Running backs coach Gary Harrell served as interim coach last weekend and is set to do the same on Saturday.
The nature of the illness is the most concerning part of the story. The report characterizes Sanders’ health situation as “very serious,” but no one, including the school, has offered any comment.
Sanders has Jackson State at 6-1 and has brought national attention to the program, not to mention a lot of very famous visitors. Hopefully he makes a full recovery and is able to return to the sideline soon.
Ask your Magic 8 Ball if Matt Rhule is returning to the college game, and the answer you will probably get is “don’t count on it.”
The Carolina Panthers coach spoke with reporters on Friday and addressed the recent rumors linking him to a potential college return.
“I have one of the greatest jobs you can have,” said Rhule, per Panthers writer Joe Person. “I left an unbelievable job at Baylor. … You don’t get to say that you like to build and then be upset at what you inherited.”
Rhule, who is in his second year coaching the Panthers, was the subject this week of claims that he was not all the way invested in the NFL. Carolina has lost their last four straight games to drop Rhule’s career record with them to 8-15 (.348). It probably will not get too much easier in the coming weeks either with Atlanta, New England, and Arizona next on the schedule.
Attractive coaching opportunities beckon at LSU, USC, and also potentially Rhule’s alma mater of Penn State. But it sounds like Rhule is not shying away from the ups and downs of the team-building process in Carolina.
Photo: Feb 25, 2020; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Carolina Panthers coach Matt Rhule speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
