By JOSH HELLER
Staff Writer
1. Romo Out for Season, What’s Next?
Just two games after returning from a broken collarbone, Tony Romo re-injured his collarbone, and he will miss the rest of the season.
Romo suffered a broken clavicle in week two, and Brandon Weeden and Matt Cassel combined to replace Romo until week 11. In week 11, Romo led the Dolphins to a 24-14 win, throwing two touchdowns and two picks. Romo and the Cowboys entered week 12’s matchup against the unbeaten Panthers as the slight favorites, but things turned quickly for them. They were down big, and to add injury to insult, Romo was injured on a Thomas Davis sack in the third quarter. Romo threw 0 touchdowns and three picks before the injury.
The Cowboys are now 3-8 in a weak NFC East, and will turn to Cassel in the interim. Long-term, who could the Cowboys look to? One candidate could be Cleveland’s Johnny Manziel. Reports came out following the draft that GM Jerry Jones looked into drafting Johnny Football, but passed. Last week, following a bye-week party, Manziel was demoted to third-string, behind Josh McCown and Austin Davis. Many wonder if the two would fit, but this would involve Jerry Jones giving up on his franchise QB and taking a risk on a young kid. This is a move for the future, and maybe the Cowboys could use their draft pick on a quarterback. But in the interim, the Cowboys will look to Cassel to put them in contention in a weak division.
2. Warriors, 76ers on Opposite Ends of Spectrum
As the NBA season rolls on, the Warriors won’t stop winning, while the 76ers can’t stop losing.
On the positive end, the Warriors went off to an NBA-record 16-0 start, as assistant coach Luke Walton took over for Steve Kerr, as Kerr was recovering from offseason surgery. But, a coach can only do so much. When you have a squad with guys like Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson, it’s hard to lose a lot of games. As of right now, the Warriors stand atop the Western Conference with the Spurs and Thunder. The Warriors look like favorites to defend the Thunder, but the West alone is no cakewalk, and it’s a long season.
Meanwhile, in the East, the 76ers made history, too, but in a more negative sense. Going back to last season (where they finished 18-64), the 76ers set the worst record in major league sports history: 27 straight losses. This came Friday night where the 76ers lost by just two points to the Rockets, led by James Harden’s 50-point night. The Sixers looked to be a bit better this year, led by the strong frontcourt of Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel. Those two have done their part, but the team around them is, simply put, shockingly bad. The 76ers will need a miracle to even get a whiff of the playoffs, and they will seriously challenge for the worst team in history.
3. Dodgers Hire New Manager
After a long search, the Dodgers became the last MLB team to hire a manager.
It was announced last week that the Dodgers would hire former outfielder Dave Roberts to take over the managerial duties. Roberts spent the last two seasons as bench coach for the Padres. Roberts’ father is African-American, while his mother is Japanese, making him the first minority manager in Dodgers history.
Roberts spent 10 seasons as a major leaguer, spending time in Cleveland, Los Angeles, Boston, San Diego, and San Francisco. After retirement, Roberts spent six seasons with the Padres, spending time in the front office, as well as both bench and first base coach. Roberts becomes just the ninth manager in franchise history, as they look to move past the Don Mattingly era, as he moves on to Miami.
4. Hamonic Requests Trade from Isles
In a shocking piece of news, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that Islanders defenseman Travis Hamonic is seeking a trade out of Brooklyn.
According to Friedman, Hamonic, 25, has been seeking a trade since last summer. Other reports have said that Hamonic wishes to be out west, closer to his family.
The right-handed Hamonic has a fantastic, long-term contract, making him a very attractive trade target. His contract is an average annual value of just over $3.8 million for each of the next seven seasons. Some of the teams floated out there in trade rumors include the Flames, Jets, and Oilers. Also according to Friedman’s report, Islanders’ GM Garth Snow is not looking for picks and/or prospects in a potential deal, but rather an equal-level replacement. This may be a turn-off for some GMs, which could be why this deal has not happened as of yet.
Hamonic, a second-round pick from 2008, has spent his entire career in New York. His best season came in 2014-15, picking up 33 points in 71 games, with a plus/minus of +15. If the Islanders do choose to deal Hamonic, they will be losing a great right-handed defenseman with top-pairing potential. The Islanders’ defense core currently consists of top guys like Nick Leddy and Johnny Boychuk, and losing Hamonic could be a big blow to their blue line.
5. Stidham Done for Season for Baylor
The Baylor Bears are down another quarterback, as Jarrett Stidham will miss the rest of the season with a broken ankle.
Back in late October, first-string quarterback Seth Russell suffered a season-ending neck injury, which would sideline him for the entire season. So, the Bears turned their hopes to the backup freshman sensation, Stidham. Both Russell and Stidham did quite well for the Bears, as Corey Coleman and company looked to push the Bears into the college football playoff.
As Stidham’s season ends, Bears fans turn their eyes to sophomore Chris Johnson, who led Baylor to a win over Oklahoma State in the game where Stidham was injured. Johnson will look to replace the combined 41 touchdowns from Stidham and Russell, including 19 from Coleman.
In Johnson’s first starting stint, he threw for just 62 yards, one touchdown, and one pick, as #19 TCU downed #7 Baylor in a double overtime, 28-21 win. Now, rain may have affected Johnson’s ability this night, but if this is a sign of things to come, the Bears’ playoff hopes may be in serious jeopardy.
