More from Tim Leiweke on stalemate with Drew Doughty

Emptying out the digital notebook . . .

I have a few more tidbits from my interview today with Tim Leiweke, the Kings’ biggest fan and the chief executive officer of parent company AEG. I had requested the interview a few days ago and these were Leiweke’s first public comments on the stalled contract negotiations with defenseman Drew Doughty.

I referred to one of Leiweke’s comments in a tweet earlier today but didn’t get the full explanation into my earlier blog report or into the story that will appear in print. Here’s a complete recap, in more than 140 characters.

I asked Leiweke why the Kings don’t just raise their offer and end this dispute if the difference between their proposed $6.8 million average annual salary and Doughty’s demands is $200,000 or $300,000. He repeated that this is an allocation issue, meaning the Kings are willing to spend up to the salary-cap limit but want to leave room to add players at the trade deadline and budget for the future to retain key players. He also said General Manager Dean Lombardi has “the right to budge here,” and that he would support Lombardi’s decision on that.

“But here’s the funny thing that I don’t get in all of this,” Leiweke said. “I look at it and say, boy, there’s a complete miscommunication here. Drew Doughty can step in here tomorrow and from an endorsement standpoint, being a cornerstone and a nucleus of this franchise long term, he can make more money on endorsements than we’re fighting over for whatever he’s asking for and whatever we’ve offered. And the way you protect that is goodwill, being a guy that’s a team player.

“If he burns the bridges with everybody, then he loses that revenue. So what I’m mystified by is, his value to this marketplace is not just his salary, it’s what he’s going to earn being part of a team that has the potential of competing for the Stanley Cup every year now for long term. Instead of fighting over a little bit here and a little bit there, let us save that money to go after the final pieces. He’ll make more on endorsements than he ever would on what we’re fighting over. It makes no sense at all.”

Leiweke repeatedly said the Kings see Doughty as a long-term franchise player and they will not trade him.  Doughty has not signed an offer sheet with another team, probably because those teams are aware the Kings have deep pockets financially.

What Avery and Simmonds Said, in Their Own Words

PHILADELPHIA — The Rangers had already started boarding the buses that would take them to the Philadelphia airport and from there to Prague on Monday night as Wayne Simmonds was answering reporters’ questions about the homophobic slur he may have used against Sean Avery.

It all started in the first period, when Philadelphia’s Tom Sestito rammed the Rangers’ Andre Deveaux into the boards from behind, a play that will almost certainly result in a multigame suspension from the N.H.L.’s new, tough disciplinary boss, Brendan Shanahan.

In the aftermath of the hit, Simmonds and Avery wrestled and exchanged angry words, an exchange that continued after they separated. Simmonds was caught on video seeming to mouth the slur.

Simmonds is the black player who was the object of an apparent racial slur last week in London, Ontario, when a fan threw a banana peel on the ice as Simmonds was taking a penalty shot. Avery, who is white, was suspended and ordered to undergo anger management training in 2008 for his own vulgar remarks regarding former girlfriends, but he also publicly urged the New York State Legislature last summer to legalize same-sex marriage.

It is the recent histories of the two principals that makes this particular controversy all the more trenchant.

Below, Avery’s postgame remarks to reporters, followed by those of Simmonds:

Q: What exactly happened out there?

AVERY: Well, what are you guys asking me?

Q: Did he call you what we think he called you?

AVERY: Yes. Yeah.

Q: Is he going to say that there was anything you said that made say what he said?

AVERY: I certainly hope not. Are you implying that it would be from something I said?

Q: No, I’m just asking–

AVERY: From my end, there was certainly nothing.

Q: Are you aware of what happened with him last week?

AVERY: Yeah. It’s really disappointing. When I saw that I thought, first of all, who would do that, and why would you do it? It’s such an unnecessary thing. It’s something that’s not even an issue with us, or our sport. So to be here now and to have to answer questions about what he did is disappointing for me. I’m disappointed for him.

Q: Do you feel like, when something says something like that, that should be treated in a similar context?

AVERY: I mean, Kobe Bryant got fined a hundred grand. Everything’s different now. It’s an issue. It’s an issue that people are dealing with and trying to overcome. I guess 10 years ago maybe it wasn’t so much an issue. But it’s certainly an issue politically, with people in the game, and just in life in general.

Q: Is there concern or a feeling that because you’ve been vocal on the issue this summer with the video you did that players will come back and use that against you?

AVERY: You know what, I haven’t even — I mean, it’s been said for years, whether I thought about it in that sense … I don’t know.

Q: Did you think he just said it out of emotion?

AVERY: Again, I have no idea.

Q: Would you like to see the league make a stand on this?

AVERY: That’s something that I’m not going to really comment on. I think that first of all, me commenting on things like that, the backlash that I could receive is unknown. I don’t want to put the team in a situation where they would have to deal with something because of me wanting to see something happen, or anything along those lines. So I’m not going to go there.

In an odd coincidence, Avery was speaking the same night that Columbus’s James Wisniewski was suspended for the rest of the exhibition season and eight regular-season games and fined almost $537,000 for an illegal hit. Last season, Wisniewski was suspended two games for directing a vulgar homophobic gesture at Avery.

After Avery spoke, Simmonds appeared in the Philadelphia dressing room and spoke to reporters.

Q: Could you tell us the nature of the exchange you had with Sean Avery?

SIMMONDS: You know, it was just a scrum. I felt that he sucker-punched me. We were going back and forth for the rest of the game, and emotions run high. We both exchanged words with each other.

Q: On the video it looked like you might have said a particular thing to him, a slur or something. Was that the case?

SIMMONDS: Honestly, we were going back and forth for a while there, and I don’t recall every single thing that I did say to him. He said some things that I didn’t like, and I said some things that he didn’t like. But I can’t recall every single word I said.

Q: What did he say to you?

SIMMONDS: Things get said out there. It’s not necessary that I repeat it to the media. So I’m not going to say what he said.

Q: When we talked to Avery in the room he said very definitely that you called him what we’ll call a homophobic slur. And he said he didn’t think that he said anything that would have prompted that.

SIMMONDS: He didn’t think he said anything? I mean, he’s Sean Avery, come on now. Who knows what comes out of his mouth.

Q: He didn’t say anything to you that would have prompted that, or did he not?

SIMMONDS: Well, we were going back and forth, battling the whole time. So he definitely said some things to me I wasn’t too happy about. But that’s where it is.

Q: Did he say anything that crossed the line?

SIMMONDS: I don’t know. I can’t recall every single word that was said. So I can’t really– I’m not here to say that he said this, and I’m not going to rat him out. It’s in the heat of a hockey game, that’s what it is.

Q: Did you feel that you said anything to him that crossed the line?

SIMMONDS: I don’t think so. It just got heated, like I said before. If you have to write a couple stories on it, that’s just what happens sometimes.

Q: Just considering what happened with you earlier, last week, is it surprising to find yourself on the other, kind of, end of this?

SIMMONDS: You know what? It’s something that happens every game. Guys say stuff, and you know what? It’s just the heat of the battle, of the game. It’s not necessarily things are said to hurt people. Sometimes it happens.

How the N.H.L. handles this incident — and even how it determines whether there is evidence of an actionable offense in the first place — will be fascinating to watch in the coming days.

Kings, Ducks update: Moving day (for some)

Just call it Moving Day around Kings’ HQ.

The Kings were trying to get out of town –- fast -- before local roads and airspace became snarled by President Obama’s afternoon arrival in Los Angeles. They play Tuesday night against Pittsburgh at Kansas City and Wednesday at Colorado.

Several players were moved out, too. Four were sent off to the minors in Manchester, three others reassigned to their respective junior teams, and another released from his tryout agreement.

Kings Coach Terry Murray had another message, for floundering right wing Scott Parse, along the lines of moving. As in, move your feet. Or skates, if you will.

“I’m putting him in a situation with (Jarret) Stoll and (Kyle) Clifford, trying to give him an opportunity, giving him some time,” Murray said Monday. “With the understanding he missed (almost) the whole year last year.

“I’m trying to give him a little more time, a little more compassion, I guess, with what I’m looking at. At the same time, after a couple of games, I need more. I need more work. I need more skating. I need to see him moving his feet, just to show that it is starting to come."

Murray said that Parse has been “reluctant” to grab hold of a position on the third line, and that he would not play in the Kansas City game. The player indicated it was a mental thing more than a physical issue.

“There is something,” Murray said. “I want to talk to him here (today) before he gets away. There’s something going on and I just want to hear what he has to say. Those plays that are happening, that he is not finishing right now are things that he has been able to make with ease in the past.

“He’s a skilled player. He’s got good hands, good vision. He’s always able to make the nice little five-foot, six-foot pass. Right now it’s coming right back down into our zone.”

Staying behind in Los Angeles for treatment will be enforcer Kevin Westgarth and defenseman Jake Muzzin, who did not practice. Muzzin has been out with a stiff neck since last week and Westgarth took a punch to the head in his second-period scrap with Brian McGrattan of the Ducks on Sunday night.

“He (Westgarth) is not going to skate for a couple of days,” Murray said. “We’re going to hold him off the ice and let him settle down for couple of days before getting him going again.”

::

The Ducks had the day off but were in housekeeping mode too. They reduced their roster to 30, sending seven players to their minor-league team in Syracuse: Nick Bonino, Mat Clark, Nicolas Deschamps, Peter Holland, Kyle Palmieri, Dan Sexton and Sean Zimmerman.

MORE:

Tim Leiweke: Kings won't blink in Doughty negotiations

Ducks show more passion in 3-1 win over the Kings

NHL officials decry throwing of banana on the ice

--Lisa Dillman

Critiqued by Namath, Ryan Stands Ground

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Rex Ryan has never been one to bite his tongue. His unconditional confidence borders on irritating cockiness to some, and he is not afraid to express his opinion that Jets are best team in the N.F.L.

Some embrace Ryan’s confidence, others do not. Joe Namath, the franchise’s most iconic player, blamed that arrogance for the Jets’ 34-24 loss to the Oakland Raiders.

“I think these guys might be believing that they’re better than they are,” Namath said Monday in an ESPN Radio interview. “Rex has been the only coach that we know, in maybe the history of the game that I’m familiar with, that keeps continually telling his guys how good they are. And they have been pretty good — pretty good — but they haven’t won a championship yet. I think they’ve got to remember that there’s room for improvement.”

Ryan was aware of Namath’s comments and, as expected, does not plan on changing anything.

“I welcome him to come out here and watch our guys prepare,” Ryan said. “He would see a team that, in my opinion, prepares as well as any team I’ve been around. S I disagree with him.”

Ryan then came up with an idea.

“I’m not going to change who I am because Joe Namath said something,” Ryan said. “Joe Namath can come in here and if he can still throw, we’ll have him as a backup quarterback. He doesn’t know our team. He’s on the outside. Even though he’s a Jet — and once you’re a Jet, you’re always a Jet — he’s on the outside. He’s not in these meetings. I think if he was, he’d be shocked at the preparation.”

For the Bears, a Fake That Was Almost Fabulous

Coming soon to a playing field near you is a trick play so clever it’s likely to be imitated on punt returns throughout the land. Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, speaking for the team that got duped, called it “the most incredible play I’ve ever seen,” a convincing pantomime that left people “wondering what the heck just happened.” His teammate Greg Jennings thought it was “the best play I’ve ever seen.”

With just over a minute left in the Packers 27-17 beat-down of the Bears, Green Bay punter Tim Masthay got off a towering kick meant to pin Chicago deep in its territory. The ball was heading left but return man Devin Hester pretended it was going right, staring into the sky at a pretend pigskin and moving into place behind a wall of play-acting teammates. Ten of the Packers, looking at Hester rather than the ball, ran toward him like autograph hounds at a Justin Bieber sighting.

Johnny Knox of the Bears had lined up in position to block one of the Green Bay gunners. Just prior to the snap, he raced backward, putting himself in position to catch the kick over his shoulder. The only Packer following the actual arc of the punt was Masthay himself, and he proved no match for Knox, who had two blockers ahead of him to clear the path to the end zone. It appeared to be an 89-yard touchdown, which would have made it a 27-24 game and put the Bears in position to win or tie if they recovered an on-side kick.

Instead Chicago was penalized for holding. Corey Graham, re-signed this year by the Bears for his usually-heady special teams play, had grabbed one of the Packers up field. “It was a bad play by me,” Graham confessed later, pointing out the obvious, that he had committed a foul 30 or 40 yards away from the ball on a player who was soon running in the wrong direction. “I should have let him go, just don’t even touch him.”

The Oscar goes to: Devin Hester. The Razzie to: Corey Graham.

Jets Bring Injuries Back From Oakland

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. – The Jets announced Monday that quarterback Mark Sanchez sustained a minor break in his nose in the Jets’ 34-24 loss to the Raiders on Sunday and will have to wear a visor for a few weeks.

The team said he would not be limited by limited by the visor and could decide after a few weeks if he wanted to continue to wear it. Despite the injury, Sanchez threw for a career-high 369 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The news was not as pleasant for tight end Jeff Cumberland and cornerback Antonio Cromartie.

A magnetic resonance imaging test revealed that Cumberland, the team’s backup tight end, tore his Achilles’ tendon and is out for the season. Cromartie, who fumbled a kickoff return and in the secondary, bruised a lung and his ribs. His status for Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens is not certain.

Chris Dufresne looks back at Week 3 in college football [video]

Times college football columnist Chris Dufresne discuss a controversial ending from Week 3, Wisconsin vs. Nebraska, and Texas A&M going to the SEC.

 

 

For Bills Fans, Now More Than a Glimmer of Hope

Bills fans didn’t make off with the goal posts at Ralph Wilson Stadium on Sunday but after the stunning come-from-behind, 34-31 win over the Patriots, beleaguered Bills backers everywhere are feeling strangely optimistic about a team few believed in prior to the start of the season.

One fan texted the team’s flagship radio station that he “cried in his mother’s arms” after the win. Hundreds of Bills backers sang the team’s fight song–”Shout”–outside the Laughing Man bar in Washington, D.C., after the game to the bewilderment of passersby on the street. A high school friend who loves the Bills wrote on Facebook: “I feel like its 1987 and the Bills are at the dawn of the Kelly/Reed/Smith/Thomas/Talley era…and this team is on the verge of something great.”

My cousin colored her Facebook profile with a photo of a t-shirt emblazoned with Tom Brady’s face with a word that is not printable in a family newspaper’s website beneath it. A fan from Boone, N.C., posting on the Buffalo News’ site, compared the win to the 1980 U.S. Hockey team’s triumph over the Soviets at Lake Placid.

Perhaps the Bills didn’t help end the Cold War, but they did finally manage to slay Buffalo’s equivalent of an evil empire: Tom Brady and the Patriots. Brady seemed to represent everything that Bills’ fans hate–the kind of good-looking, wealthy, successful elite who looks down his nose at places like Buffalo. In truth, he’s never uttered a bad word about the city or its fans, but somehow we’re sure he looks down on us. But on Sunday, Bills’ fans could finally rejoice, as Brady was humbled to the tune of four interceptions and was reduced to standing idly on the sideline as Buffalo ran out the clock before banging home the winning kick with just three seconds left in the game.

Are Bills fans like me getting carried away? Of course we are. But let’s take stock of the situation. A team that started the season ranked #31 in ESPN’s power rankings, and #30 on Fox Sports’ list, is 3-0 and in sole possession of first place in the A.F.C East. No N.F.L. team has come back from deficits of 18 points or more to win two weeks in a row in at least 60 years. With 113 points scored, they lead the N.F.L. with an average of nearly 38 points per game.

Heady stuff for a fan base that has been more preoccupied with Ralph Wilson’s mortality and the nightmare of the team potentially leaving town than any realistic playoff dreams for the last decade. Realists have brought some us back down to earth with a reminder that in 2008 the team started out 4-0, but finished the season 7-9. A cautionary note to be sure, but a look at the teams the Bills beat to start that season reveals that that hopeful 4-0 start was essentially a mirage. Those Bills beat Seattle, Jacksonville, Oakland and St. Louis–four teams that went a combined 16-48 that year with none winning more than five games. The Bills’ first victim–the Chiefs–are obviously not a good team, but the Raiders and the Patriots look very much like playoff contenders.

It’s also worth noting that undefeated starts have also propelled the Bills deep into the playoffs in the past. The ’91 and ’92 teams, which made it to the Super Bowl, started 5-0 and 4-0. And in ’88, a Bills squad that had missed the playoffs six times in a row started 4-0 and finished 12-4, before losing to Icky Woods and the Bengals in the A.F.C. Championship game.

According to ESPN, 76 per cent of teams that start the season 3-0 make the playoffs and the Bills’ remaining schedule appears to be favorable. If they go 3-2 in their remaining division games, which should be realistic given the fact that the Dolphins appear to be weak, the Bills would probably need just a 4-4 split against their eight remaining non-division opponents to make the postseason. The Bills are favored to win at Cincinnati next week, and home games against Tennessee, Washington and Denver look like winnable games for Buffalo, at least at this rather giddy moment.

But of course, Bills fans know better than most that there’s still plenty of time for everything to fall apart. Western New York and the Buffalo diaspora are in love with this team and at the moment, no one wants to dwell on any of the Bills’ glaring weaknesses. After an 11-year playoff drought, who can blame us for seeing rainbows where others notice storm clouds off in the distance?

Sunday was a great day for the Rust Belt, with big wins for the Lions, Browns and the Bills. Perhaps 2011 will be the year when these cities finally become associated with something more positive than gloomy economic forecasts and lame jokes from people who live in more glamorous locales.

When Ryan Fitzpatrick’s second pass of the day deflected off of Bills’ wide receiver Donald Jones and right into the hands of Patriots’ cornerback Kyle Arrington early in the first quarter, it looked like it was going to be yet another day where the ball simply didn’t bounce the Bills’ way.

But soon thereafter, the team’s luck changed, and by the end of the game, even a call that went against them–the Fred Jackson touchdown that was overturned after video review with 1:43–worked in their favor. The football gods may or may or may not be ready to smile on the Bills as the season unfolds, but for the first time in years there is justifiable hope in Buffalo.

Indianapolis Colts say Peyton Manning may return this year

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning may make it out of the coaches' box and back onto the field this season, according to a tweet Monday by team owner Jim Irsay.

Isray wrote on Twitter that there is an "outside chance" Manning might return in December, updating Colts fans on the quarterback's status after comments he made during a private breakfast with Super Bowl donors.

"I didn't say Peyton out 4season FOR SURE, keeping him on ActiveRoster n taking it month by month/Outside chance of return n December possible," Isray wrote.

Team spokesman Avis Roper said Manning's status has not changed and he has not been placed on injured reserve, which would end the four-time league MVP's season.

It was really weird seeing Manning in the coaches' box while Curtis Painter attempted to lead a Colts comeback against the Pittsburgh Steelers on "Sunday Night Football." Manning had started 227 consecutive games before off-season neck surgery caused him to miss all three games so far this season.

Painter, the team's third-string quarterback, came into Sunday's game in the fourth quarter after the struggling Kerry Collins left to be evaluated for a possible concussion. The Colts lost the game, 23-20, and dropped to 0-3 this season.

ALSO:

Bill Plaschke: Michael Vick isn't working out for Eagles

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-- Chuck Schilken

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Photo: A fan holds a sign about injured Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning earlier this season. Credit: A.J. Mast / Associated Press

Serena Williams behaving like a grown-up as she turns 30

Serena Williams turns 30 Monday. Although she recently received plenty of attention for her childish behavior during the U.S. Open final, Williams will have a chance to show her grown-up side in her new role as international goodwill ambassador for UNICEF.

The organization announced the appointment last week, saying Williams' status will help promote UNICEF's mission to provide a quality education for vulnerable children through the Schools for Africa and the upcoming Schools for Asia initiatives.

Williams said the new role would give her an opportunity to work on children's issues, which have always been important to her.

"I believe all children deserve the chance to make something of their lives," said Williams, who started playing tennis at age 4 while living with her family in Compton. "I am committed to helping UNICEF provide a quality education to children to help them build a brighter future for themselves, their families, and their communities."

Williams joins a list of UNICEF ambassadors from the past and present that includes soccer star David Beckham and figure skater Kim Yuna. The 13-time Grand Slam winner first worked with UNICEF in 2006, when she visited Ghana on a health campaign.

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-- Chuck Schilken

Photo: Serena Williams. Credit: Geoff Robins / AFP/Getty Images

Torrey Smith feels good before game, even better after three TDs

Torrey Smith's pregame tweet Sunday -- "I have a good feeling about today" -- may have seemed a bit optimistic for a rookie who had never caught an NFL pass and had only been thrown to one time all season.

But it turned out to be right on target, as Smith turned the first three receptions of his career into first-quarter touchdowns in the Baltimore Ravens' 37-7 victory over the St. Louis Rams.

"I never doubted myself for a minute," said Smith, who finished with five catches for 152 yards. "I've been playing football forever. I've been making plays forever."

Smith hooked up with quarterback Joe Flacco for a 74-yarder at the 12:20 mark, a 41-yarder at 3:38 and an 18-yarder at 1:48 to give Baltimore a 21-0 lead going into the second quarter.

"Torrey had no choice but to keep his confidence up. Our guys have been riding him for a month straight, and they were led by Terrell Suggs," Ravens Coach John Harbaugh said. "They are a band of brothers on the defensive side. They toughen you up quite a bit. Torrey fought through it and the last couple of weeks, he has really been catching the ball well in practice. I think he and Joe are starting to tie this thing together."

Linebacker Ray Lewis added: "He went out today, and everyone knew that this guy could flat-out run, and the scariest thing to do is to give him confidence."

And that's just what this game appears to have done. Smith may have been feeling good going in, but he was feeling even better about himself following his breakthrough performance.

"For me, that's what I can do," said Smith, a second-round pick out of Maryland. "I can stretch the field. To have a game like this, it definitely helps me knowing I can go deep."

ALSO:

NFL Week 3: Comebacks are order of the day

Steelers need last-minute field goal to beat Colts

-- Chuck Schilken

Photo: Torrey Smith makes his second touchdown catch during the first quarter against the St. Louis Rams. Credit: Kenneth K. Lam / Baltimore Sun / MCT

Leading Off: World Goes Mad, or at Least Football Does

If you went on vacation for a few weeks, left the country, put the iPhone on airplane mode and left it there, it would be easy to return and wonder if the sports world had gone completely off the rails. We know this from personal experience. But, as it turns out, it was not necessary to leave the country and turn off your smartphone to feel unmoored. In fact, you could have watched every second of the Lions and Bills starting the season 3-0, with a few glimpses over at the Browns going 2-1, while still trying to wrap your head around the Colts without Peyton Manning and still wonder what the heck is going on.

This is clear from the number of plugged-in football people who have been paying close attention and still reacted to Sunday’s developments by saying, “What the heck is going on?” This crowd is led by the Boston Globe’s Dan Shaughnessy, who absorbed the Patriots’ defeat-from-the-jaws-of-victory against the Bills and decided the laws of the universe have been rewritten. O.K., sure, maybe there are subatomic particles that can travel faster than light and scientists can stumble on new planets orbiting more than one sun, but Tom Brady throwing four interceptions and the Bills taking over as the new Kings of Karma? This cannot happen. The Buffalo News’s Mike Harrington even says so. The Bills even had a touchdown overturned and it ended up helping them. And thus, perhaps the rustiest of the Rust Belt cities has a reason to go wild, writes Yahoo.com’s Les Carpenter.

Yes, as Dan Wetzel writes on Yahoo.com, it’s Bizarro World. In the case of the Lions, they gave some hints last season that this was possible, but as Don Banks writes on SI.com, the mind-blowing part is that both the Lions and Bills have developed resilience neither team could have imagined. SI.com’s Peter King throws the Browns into the mix and heralds a new day for the Terrible Trio.

The weirdness hardly stops there. Not only is the Eagles’ once seemingly indomitable ship taking on water, the lifeboats are getting pretty crowded for a team that’s 1-2 and was being called the Dream Team about eight seconds ago. A loss to the hated Giants and Michael Vick’s broken hand are only the edge of their problems, writes Clark Judge on CBSSports.com, and The Philadelphia Daily News’s Sam Donnellon even goes so far as to say Coach Andy Reid might soon be reaching for a pair of water wings. While ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano believes Vick missing a few weeks might actually help the Eagles get organized and stop relying so heavily on him, the Philadelphia Daily News’s John Smallwood is wondering if Vick’s playing style may be his undoing. Against the Giants, a calamitous 14 minute, 51 second stretch was the Eagles undoing, and the Giants were happy that for a change, they did not engineer that calamity, writes Ohm Youngmisuk on ESPN.com.

In other calamities with Philadelphia echoes, Donovan McNabb is now being hooted toward the sideline in his latest city (Minneapolis), with the Star-Tribune’s Jim Souhan rushing to the head of the pack calling for Christian Ponder to start at quarterback after the Vikings torpedoed themselves for a third straight game. In Baltimore, Ravens fans not only have a win over Pittsburgh to enjoy already this season, they watched rookie receiver Torrey Smith turn his first three N.F.L. catches into touchdowns. Not bad for a day’s work. The Panthers’ Jonathan Stewart might be saying the same thing about his amazing, 60-yard, waterskis-would-have-helped touchdown if it hadn’t been overturned on replay.

Yes, there were other sports with forehead-slapping developments going on over the weekend as well. The Red Sox elbowed into the picture in dramatic fashion, interrupting their epic collapse with a dramatic 14-inning victory over the Yankees, which pulled them at least momentarily back from the ledge, writes Jeff Passan on Yahoo.com. It might be only a momentary reprieve, writes Joe Lemire on SI.com, but they’ll take it. As Danny Knobler writes on CBSSports.com, they are desperately trying to rewrite their own story.

There was a golf story this weekend that did not involve Tiger Woods until Woods decided to hijack the news and hire a caddie away from Dustin Johnson. But if you could ignore that little tempest, you are likely trying to figure out just how Bill Haas managed to make off with the FedEx Cup jackpot. We’re not even sure Haas knows how.

If all that isn’t strange enough, it’s worth taking in one more sight: a fantastically low-budget ad featuring Diego Maradona and his Dubai driving license.

But, not it’s still not stranger than the Bills and Lions being 3-0.

Follow Leading Off on Twitter: twitter.com/zinsernyt

Jacoby Ellsbury pulls Red Sox from brink of disaster

Jacoby Ellsbury has been a bright spot in what has been a disastrous month for the Boston Red Sox. And on Sunday night, he just may have saved the season for his team.

His three-run home run in the top of the 14th inning against the New York Yankees lifted the Red Sox to a 7-4 victory and a split of a day-night doubleheader. More importantly, it prevented them from slipping into a tie with the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League wild-card race, which Boston led by nine games at the beginning of September.

Ellsbury, who also hit a pair of home runs in a 6-2 loss to the Yankees earlier in the day, now has seven home runs and a batting average of over .350 for the month of September, during which his team has gone 6-18. He also is the seventh player in major league history to have at least 30 home runs, 30 steals, 100 RBIs, 100 runs and 200 hits in a season.

But none of that likely would have mattered much if Ellsbury hadn't hit home run No. 31 late Sunday night to give the Red Sox a one-game lead over the Rays with just three games remaining in the season.

“This is a huge win. It allows us to control our own destiny,” Ellsbury said. “We know if we win out that we're in. We don't have to scoreboard-watch or anything like that. We know if we play like we can, it's in our hands. We know what's at stake, so it's definitely a huge win for us.”

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No California teams in baseball playoffs?

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-- Chuck Schilken

Photo: Jacoby Ellsbury hits a three-run home run in the 14th inning to save Boston's bacon against the New York Yankees. Credit: Anthony Gruppuso / US Presswire

London 2012 Olympics: Smart phone strategy needed to secure memorable Games

What will everyone be saying about London and how the city coped with hosting the Olympic Games when it comes to 2013 or 2023?

Will it be that the city, a global financial centre, didn't miss a beat? That the Olympics saved the British economy? Tourists flocked to London? The transport system heaved but coped?

While transport and security are the two big unknowns, the Mayor of London Boris Johnson last week noted what he thought was a real reputational risk to the city – communications. He highlighted his concerns about the increasing reliance on smart phone technology and the challenges the city faces in keeping up with that demand as well as the exponential pressures hosting the Olympic Games will put on the communications systems.

His nightmare could be the world thinking: "London Olympics was a communications disaster."

Johnson is right, because the main commentators and journalists who arrive in London from afar rely on that technology and if it doesn't work adequately the whole world will know.

The London organisers haven't helped matters by charging each journalist £150 for computer access at the Olympic venues. So the first story written about London will be how WiFi and computer access is expensive. That fact, coupled with the constant phone drop outs in the middle of the city, even now, ahead of the Games, give potential for widespread negativity.

But as historians well know, the further in the past an event is, the larger the discrepancies of the facts are. In the past eight months at various breakfasts and conferences there has been a revision of history of previous Olympics and the reputational risks they encountered. The Sydney 2000 Olympics boosted the city’s tourism or caused dramatic falls in tourist numbers, depending on the speakers point of view. Atlanta was, according to various politicians and experts, a complete disaster because of the traffic congestion. And Beijing, despite its spectacular opening ceremony, couldn't attract crowds to the competition.

That all of these statements are incorrect matters for naught. As London will experience, it is the perception rather than the reality that is important.

Sydney did suffer a small drop in tourism numbers the following year because of the 9/11 terror attacks. Atlanta's traffic was not a problem, it was the hub and spoke system of transporting athletes that caused issues, and the city's reputation collapsed because of poor technology, a failure to control street vendors and the pipe bombing. As for Beijing, tickets were officially sold out – just as they are for London – but some events had a poor turnout of Communist Party officials from distant regions, who had been given corporate tickets, while government security fears restricted access to some open events like the road race.

All of this means, of course, that London officials need to make sure their communications system is robust enough to deal with the spike during the Olympics. Johnson is talking positively, saying he is confident all well be well. He knows, at the very least, to make it appear as if London is coping.

Plaschke-Simers video: Should Clayton Kershaw win the Cy Young award?

In his final start of the season Sunday, Clayton Kershaw led the Dodgers to a 6-2 victory against the Padres. He went 7-1/3 innings, holding San Diego to two runs on four hits and a walk, and striking out six.

The 23-year-old leads the National League in earned run average (2.28) and strikeouts (248) and is tied with Arizona Diamondbacks' Ian Kennedy for most victories this season (21). Should he win the Cy Young award?

Times columnists T.J. Simers and Bill Plaschke disagree on the answer to that question.

Simers says no way. Kennedy deserves the award because he carried his team into postseason play.

Plaschke says team records are irrelevant. The only thing that matters is that Kershaw is the best pitcher in the league.

This is the second installment of a new weekly video series, L.A. Loud, moderated by L.A. Times sports reporter Melissa Rohlin. Check out the first video, in which Plaschke and Simers debate whether Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant should play overseas.

MORE:

 Dodgers-Padres box score

Clayton Kershaw makes his Cy Young closing statement

Dodgers statement: MLB trying to force distressed sale of the team

-- Melissa Rohlin

View From Buffalo on the Bills

Sometimes the most enjoyable movie reviews are when critics skewer flops. It can be the same with sportswriting. In the last few years, The Fifth Down has chronicled some of the Bills’ black days by highlighting excerpts from columns by Jerry Sullivan of The Buffalo News:

Sept. 15, 2009, on a big Patriots comeback in the Bills’ opener: This is becoming an annual rite, but I have to ask the question again, the same one I asked after the Dallas game two years ago, and the Cleveland game a year ago. How much more of this can a Bills fan take?

Jan. 19, 2010, on the Bills’ hiring of a coach: Really? Chan Gailey. It’s an uninspiring pick, and if my math is correct, about their eighth choice.

Oct. 4, 2010: OK, it’s only the quarter pole, but the Bills look like donkeys running with thoroughbreds.

Nov. 29, 2010, on Stevie Johnson’s reaction to a botched catch against the Steelers: Wow. I suspect the Creator has bigger concerns than a rising NFL star dropping a pass that costs his team a game.

So it’s only fair that we sample a Sullivan column after one of the biggest Bills victories in recent memory:

It was the first time the Patriots had ever lost a game after leading by 21 points in the Tom Brady era. It was the first time since 1950 — which is as far back as the NFL’s records go — that any team came from at least 18 points behind to win in successive games.

Oh, and the New England streak finally ended. Wave goodbye. Say so long to the Losman safety, the Bledsoe bootleg, the McKelvin fumble, the Holcomb sack, the bookend 31-0 loss, Dick Jauron fumbling with the challenge flag. All of it. Gone. Say it loud: One-game winning streak against the Pats.

Peter King wrote in his Monday Morning QB on SI.com:

I can remember only two Buffalo crowds as giddy and loud as Sunday’s — though I’m sure I’m missing some. The 2007 Monday night crazyfest with Dallas, won 25-24 by the Cowboys, is one, and the comeback from a 32-point deficit in the 1993 playoff game against Houston the other.

Extra point A great story, but is anyone willing to throw cold water on a hot team? When the season ends, will the Bills really be in the playoffs?

Victor Cruz in His Words

Victor Cruz, who before Sunday was the Giants’ Mr. August, filled in on an injury-ravaged receiving corps and had two touchdown catches to help defeat the Eagles. On one of them, he beat double coverage and outleaped cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha. (At the bottom of this post, Eli Manning admits he probably shouldn’t have thrown the ball because Asomugha read the play well.) Here are a few excerpts from Cruz’s discussion with reporters after the game. The full transcript is at Giants.com

On whether he saw the two defenders on his second touchdown catch:
“I saw it when I came in initially. The safety was supposed to bite on the play-action but he kind of played it well and stayed back and then I just continued my route. I knew it was going to be a jump ball, I knew that both defenders would be there and I just jumped up and tried to make the best play I can and came away with the ball.”

On when he realized he had jumped against Asomugha:
“Probably after the play when I looked up and I saw the replay and I saw who was on the ground and then I realized who it was.”

On what he was thinking watching the replay:
“I did fumble the ball but I was fortunate enough to recover it right after I dropped it, so I was sweating a little bit. You know, any time those refs go to that booth, you never know what the outcome may be, especially on a touchdown call, so I was sweating a little bit, but once they confirmed it I was cool.”

On how many times this week he heard that this was his opportunity:
“If I had a nickel for every time I heard it I’d probably be a millionaire right now. It was just driven into me every week, every day, every hour, opportunity, opportunity, opportunity. Once the game started, once that ball went in the air, and that first kickoff, all that kind of just went to the side and I got to relax and just go out there and play.”

On how he hung onto his preseason performance last year against the Jets as a confidence booster:
“I hung onto it a little bit, but I understood, obviously in the back of my mind , that it’s a preseason game and I obviously wanted to prove myself in the regular season and get that opportunity to do things against rival opponents like the Philadelphia Eagles and teams like that.

Eli Manning on how tough Cruz’s second touchdown catch was:

“It’s just a great effort by him. [CB] Nnamdi [Asomugha] played it well. We kind of had a corner route and then a higher corner route over the top. I thought he was going to jump the tight end but he played it back there and really probably not a great decision by me to throw it in the first place but great job by Victor just going up there kind of with the attitude of either I’m going to catch it or nobody, and that’s what he did.”

Is Michael Vick Being Treated Unfairly by Officials?

Michael Vick said that he wasn’t complaining and that he wasn’t blaming the officials … and then, if my reading comprehension skills are still O.K., he complained and blamed the officials.

Below is a partial transcript of his talk with reporters — after the Eagles’ loss to the Giants – in which he says officials have been looking the other way as he has been battered in the pocket. The full conversation is at Eagles.com.

Let us know whether you agree with him. On Sunday night, the ESPN analyst and former quarterback Trent Dilfer was adamant that Vick had not been treated differently by the officials, saying essentially that it was all in Vick’s head. (Vick’s head is a different story.)

On the play in which he hurt his hand: “It was on the pass to (WR) Jeremy (Maclin).  (It was) Just an unfortunate situation, after such a great play, and I felt like I got hit late.  There was no flag. Broke my hand.”

On whether his hand was on his helmet when he got hit: “It really doesn’t matter where it was at. I was trying to protect myself.  Still didn’t get a flag and that’s pretty much been the story for the last three weeks. I mean obviously at some point something catastrophic is going to happen and I broke my hand. Not to blame the refs or say that it was their fault. It’s just one of those unfortunate situations and I just think more precautions should be taken when I’m inside the pocket. I mean if you look at all the replays, I’m on the ground every time and it’s unfortunate for myself and it’s unfortunate for my team and I’ll be lying if I said I wasn’t, if I were to sit here and say I wasn’t frustrated right now because of that.”

On whether he feels he’s not getting the calls other quarterbacks do: “Absolutely.”

On why he feels he doesn’t get the calls: “Why? I mean, you all see it. There’s no reason for me to go into a big dissertation about why I’m not getting the calls.  The refs, they have to do their job as well. I even mentioned it in training camp to the refs when we had our little meeting, so just for precaution. But hey, I don’t know.”

On whether he felt that there were other late hits on him: “Everybody saw the game. I was on the ground constantly. All of the time. Every time I throw the ball in all my highlights and just watching film in general, every time I throw the ball I’m on the ground, getting hit in the head and I don’t know why. I don’t get the 15-yard flags like everybody else does but hey- I’m not going to complain about it. I’m just making everybody aware and hopefully somebody will take notice.”

Metro Pucks Report: Staal, Streit, Avery, Josefson, Parise, Nabokov

The uncertain status of their best defenseman looms over the Rangers as they prepare to leave Monday night on a European road trip that includes four exhibition contests and the first two games of the regular season.

Marc Staal, the 24-year-old anchor of the club’s blue line, participated in an hour-long, non-contact practice on Sunday, but he will not travel with the team to Prague, where the Rangers play the first of four European preseason games on Thursday. Staal is still experiencing symptoms from a concussion sustained in a game in Carolina in February, when he absorbed a punishing hit from his brother Eric, a star forward with the Hurricanes.

Rangers Coach John Tortorella told reporters on Sunday that Staal was continuing a series of tests and treatments, including acupuncture. The club’s medical personnel should be able to provide an update on his condition by the end of the week. Tortorella would not rule out the possibility that  Staal would meet the team in Europe and be in the opening day lineup. The Rangers play the Los Angeles Kings on Oct. 7, and the Anaheim Ducks the following day. Both games are in Stockholm.

“We’re going to try and get him on the trip,” Tortorella said. “Once he feels better and we know he can get into all the stuff we need for him to be ready for the regular season, he’ll come out.”

While the Rangers wait for answers, the high hopes of the franchise and its fans for Stanley Cup contention are tempered, at least temporarily. New York added the first-line center Brad Richards as a free agent in July, addressing the roster’s primary need. The Rangers have a balanced attack at forward and an All-Star,  Henrik Lundqvist, in goal. But without Staal, the team’s leader in ice time and a defender who plays in every crucial situation, the coaching staff will struggle to find effective matchups against Evgeni Malkin, Alexander Ovechkin and the other high-powered forwards of the Eastern Conference.

As coaches do, Tortorella tried to spin Staal’s absence as a chance for other defenders to showcase their ability. But Tortorella, who does not go about his profession with a lack of zeal, was a bit halfhearted in his pronouncement.

“Everybody bumps up,” he said. “Everybody gets more of an opportunity. I guess that’s the best way to put it.”

Tortorella may have no other choice. The roster includes a veteran shutdown defenseman in Dan Girardi and the emerging young talents Ryan McDonagh and Michael Sauer. All are capable of logging extensive minutes in a pinch. But over the six-month grind that is the N.H.L. regular season, no one on the Rangers’ roster can replace Staal if his absence is prolonged. In the salary cap era, there is also no way to replace a player of his caliber with a trade or free-agent signing.

“If we don’t have him,” the Rangers’ captain, Ryan Callahan, said of Staal, “there’s a huge hole.”

Expect the Rangers to continue to be cautious with Staal. He can always meet them further down the road.

TRENDING

Up: Mark Streit – On Saturday the Islanders defenseman reminded the league what his team missed last season when he was sidelined for all 82 games with a serious shoulder injury. In his first game in 17 months, a preseason contest against the Devils at Nassau Coliseum, Streit played 24 minutes and had a goal and two assists in a 6-2 Islanders victory.

Down: Sean Avery – The Rangers’ shift-disturbing wing has neither played nor misbehaved his way out of the lineup. Avery appears to trail Mats Zuccarello for the final forward position available and is joined in the battle for a job by the youngsters Dale Weise and Carl Hagelin and the veteran shootout specialist Erik Christensen. The Rangers possess more depth than they’ve had in years. Unless Avery shines in the team’s final five preseason games, starting Monday in Philadelphia, he could be placed on waivers and start the season with the minor league affiliate in Connecticut.

SHOW OF HANDS
The Devils are counting on 20-year-old center Jacob Josefson to be a playmaker on a line with Zach Parise or Ilya Kovalchuk this season. As Josefson, New Jersey’s 2009 first-round pick, demonstrated in this goal on Friday against the Rangers, assisted by Kovalchuk, the Swede can finish, too. His rapid release gave Rangers goaltender Martin Biron no time to react.

NOTES

In the league’s worst-kept secret since the Atlanta Thrashers’ springtime relocation to Winnipeg, the details for the 2012 N.H.L. Winter Classic will be announced on Monday in Philadelphia. The combatants, whose prize is four weeks of strong, uncensored exposure on the HBO documentary series “24/7,” are the Rangers and host Flyers. The outdoor game will be held on Jan. 2 at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Over the last two weeks, the Islanders named Streit as captain and the Rangers selected Callahan. Next up are the Devils. Their choice is expected to be Parise, the gifted goal scorer and United States Olympian who could become a free agent at the end of this season.

After starting Rick DiPietro in Boston on Friday and Al Montoya at home on Saturday, Coach Jack Capuano figures to give Evgeni Nabokov his shot this week in the Islanders’ goalie competition. The team plays its final exhibition games on Tuesday in Calgary; Friday in New Jersey; and Saturday in Bridgeport, Conn. against the Bruins. Also, look for the team to sign 37-year-old defenseman Steve Staios, who has impressed management during his training camp tryout with gritty play and inspiring leadership.

Chris Botta will report all season on the Rangers, the Islanders and the Devils.