Sports

Redskins letter to fans omits Robert Griffin III

© Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images Sport Robert Griffin III's name was missing from a letter to Redskins fans.
By Jason Rowan
A letter written to Washington Redskins Premium Club members mentions the team’s head coach, its general manager and a handful of players, among others, as it touts how things should be looking up for the squad in the upcoming season. But it is a startling omission — a player one would expect is considered an integral component of the team’s plans for the 2015 NFL season and beyond — that is causing quite a few raised eyebrows.
There appears to be no mention whatsoever of Robert Griffin III.
A relevant portion of the letter sent out to the team’s “premium” fans (via D.C. Sports Bog):
“Dear Premium Club Member,The Washington Redskins thank you for your continued loyalty and support. Redskins fans are the best in the NFL and we greatly appreciate your dedication over the years.“Head Coach Jay Gruden, new General Manager Scot McCloughan, and Defensive Coordinator Joe Barry will lead a nucleus of Ryan Kerrigan, DeSean Jackson, plus Pro Bowlers Trent Williams and Alfred Morris. The Redskins are poised to rebound next season!”It’s difficult to believe that failing to mention RG3 is some kind of colossal screw-up, a regrettable oversight, what have you. Perhaps he is mentioned later in the letter, but even that would nevertheless remain something of a slight.
Given that the relationship between the team’s once-presumed franchise quarterback for the next decade and head coach Jay Gruden is considered dicey at best, to suspect that the omission of Griffin’s name was at least in part intentional is a reasonable theory. After all, Gruden in November felt compelled to publicly apologize to his quarterback for calling him out in the media.
RG3’s 2014 campaign was utter disappointment, to put it mildly. From suffering a horrible ankle injury early on in the season — a setback the quarterback believes God played a part in but also intervened in speeding up his recovery — to being benched, things didn’t go at all as envisioned.

Familiar names finish atop team recruiting rankings

© AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, James Borchuck Armwood defensive end Byron Cowart signs a letter of intent to attend Auburn during a ceremony, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2015, at Armwood High School in Seffner, Fla.
On a day when the new faces of college football made their school choices official, some familiar names finished atop the team recruiting standings.
Here's a look at some of the notable events on a day that revealed the drama doesn't necessarily end after a recruit makes a nationally televised announcement.
DUEL AT THE TOP: Which school fared the best? It depends on which recruiting service you follow. Southern California topped the Rivals and Scout team recruiting rankings as of 6 p.m., while Alabama led the ESPN and 247Sports standings. USC's rise is noteworthy because this marked the first year it could sign a full class since coming off probation. "It's a Pete Carroll type of class," said Mike Farrell, the national recruiting director for Rivals. "Now they've just got to put it together on the field." It came as no surprise that these two schools led the way, as evidenced by Rivals' annual rankings. Alabama topped the Rivals rankings from 2008-09 and from 2011-14, while Southern California finished first from 2004-06 and in 2010. The only school other than USC or Alabama to top the Rivals rankings since 2004 is Florida in 2007.
BIG DAY IN LA: USC wasn't the only Los Angeles-area school with reason to celebrate. UCLA soared up the team standings Wednesday by getting late commitments from some top prospects, including tight end Chris Clark, running back Soso Jamabo, offensive lineman Josh Wariboko, safety Nathan Meadors and wide receiver Cordell Broadus (the son of rapper Snoop Dogg). In the process, UCLA showed its ability to recruit nationally. Clark is from Connecticut, Wariboko from Oklahoma and Jamabo from Texas. "They had some guys that a lot of people predicted might stay closer to home," Farrell said.
KEEPING UP THE SUSPENSE: In nationally televised announcements Wednesday morning, defensive end Byron Cowart selected Auburn and linebacker Roquan Smith declared he was going to UCLA. But that didn't stop the drama surrounding the recruitments of these two heralded prospects. Auburn wasn't sure it had Cowart — rated by Rivals as the nation's No. 1 recruit — until his letter of intent arrived nearly seven hours after his announcement. UCLA still hadn't received Smith's paperwork by 6 p.m. Wednesday, which at least raised the possibility the Georgia prospect might be reconsidering.
GATORS RISE FROM DEPTHS: Buried below most Power 5 programs in the team recruiting standings for the last few weeks, Florida closed with a flourish under new coach Jim McElwain. The Gators' flurry of late commitments was headlined by consensus five-star offensive tackle Martez Ivey and defensive end CeCe Jefferson. Ivey is rated as the nation's No. 2 overall prospect in the 247Sports Composite, which takes into account all the major recruiting services. Florida's late surge helped the Gators rise to a Top 25 team ranking in most services. It still isn't a great class by Florida's lofty standards, but it's a whole lot better than what some Gator fans had feared.
CREATIVE ANNOUNCEMENTS: The recruits found plenty of interesting ways to make their decisions without resorting to the standard practice of choosing from a group of hats. Iman Marshall, rated as the nation's No. 1 cornerback by the 247Sports Composite, disclosed his choice with the online release of an elaborate video that ended with him putting on a USC hat as he walked toward the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown spoke in French and German as well as English at the press conference in which he announced he was signing with Notre Dame. Jamabo put his own spin on the "hat game" when he pulled out a pair of caps to indicate what he said were "his top two schools," but both hats were from UCLA.

Curry scores 51, Warriors rally from 22 down to stun Mavs

© Kyle Terada/USA TODAY Sports Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry shoots against Dallas Mavericks forward Al-Farouq Aminu (7) during the third quarter at Oracle Arena. Curry scored 51 points as the Warriors defeated the Mavericks 128-114.
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- In the midst of his highest-scoring performance ever at home, Stephen Curry figured he'd call a play for someone else. Instead, teammate Draymond Green looked him and shouted, "Get 50."
No problem.
BOX SCORE: WARRIORS 128, MAVERICKS 114Curry raced down court and made his 10th 3-pointer to finish with a season-high 51 points, capping an electrifying effort that rallied the Golden State Warriors from an early 22-point deficit to down the Dallas Mavericks 128-114 on Wednesday night.
"Sometimes Steph plays his best when we're down big and he just senses that he has to put the Superman cape on," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. "And he's so good at it. He loves the freedom of being down and saying, `All right. I'm going to let it fly and bring us back.' And that's what he did."
Curry connected on 10 of 16 shots from beyond the arc and 16 of 26 overall. The All-Star point guard and MVP candidate put on a dazzling dribbling display to match his streaky shooting stroke, scoring 26 points in the third quarter alone to help the NBA-leading Warriors (39-8) complete their biggest comeback of the season in front of a roaring sellout crowd of 19,596.
"If I had any kind of daylight off the pick-and-roll, I was going to shoot it," Curry said. "I had a good feel and a good rhythm."
Chandler Parsons scored 24 points, and Tyson Chandler had 21 points and 17 rebounds in a disappointing defeat for Dallas, which played without injured point guard Rajon Rondo again. The Mavericks led 40-18 in the first quarter before Curry carried Golden State back.
"He had one of those extra-special nights. I've never seen anybody in this league hit shots like that from that distance," Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said.
Curry finished just shy of his 54-point masterpiece at Madison Square Garden on Feb. 27, 2013. He made a career-high 11 3-pointers in that game, a 109-105 loss to the Knicks, but could savor a home victory this time.
Curry had 41 points and nine 3-pointers to give Golden State a 101-98 lead through three quarters. The Warriors stretched that margin to 112-101 early in the fourth with Curry on the bench, then called him back when the Mavericks moved within seven.
The quick-footed guard guided the Warriors in the right direction, putting the game out of reach when he chased down an errant pass by Devin Harris in the backcourt and drew a foul on Dirk Nowitzki while going for a layup. Curry made both free throws, then hit another pair the next time down to put Golden State up 124-113 with 1:35 remaining.
Curry cemented another career night with the step-back 3-pointer, setting off chants of "M-V-P! M-V-P!" throughout the building.
His hot-shooting performance only highlighted an impressive display by the Warriors, who hit 19 of 38 shots from 3-point range. The Mavericks made 10 of 30 from beyond the arc.
Klay Thompson had 18 points, and Marreese Speights and Leandro Barbosa scored 14 each off the bench as the Warriors won their third straight game. They begin a stretch of 10 of 11 on the road Friday night at East-leading Atlanta.
The Mavericks (33-18) had won three in a row and looked poised at the outset to extend their streak in the NBA's toughest venue for visiting teams.
Dallas went ahead 24-4 in a little more than six minutes, stretched its lead to 22 and held on for a 42-25 advantage at the end of the first quarter. It was the most points the Warriors had allowed in any quarter this season.
The Warriors trimmed Dallas' lead to 62-58 at halftime and went ahead early in the third quarter, with Curry creating his own shots and bringing fans screaming out of their seats after every swish.
"It's one thing for him to hit the spot-up shots, but he hit shots in traffic, he makes tough floaters," Chandler said. "An incredible all-around game."
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TIP-INS
Mavericks: Rondo missed his second straight game after he broke an orbital bone in his left eye and fractured his nose during Saturday's win at Orlando. He remains out indefinitely. ... Al-Farouq Aminu was called for a technical foul late in the third quarter after arguing with an official.
Warriors: Golden State improved to a league-best 23-2 at home. ... Andrew Bogut had eight rebounds to eclipse 5,000 for his career.
SILVER ON HAND
Curry treated a special guest to his performance: NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who also attended Golden State's win at Sacramento on Tuesday.
UP NEXT
Mavericks: At Sacramento on Thursday.
Warriors: At Atlanta on Friday.

Tinder girl apologizes for bragging that she slept with Julian Edelman

© Christian Petersen/Getty Images Sport A girl apologized for bragging on Tinder that she slept with a Patriots player.
By Steve DelVecchio
New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman earned the right to celebrate nonstop after the way he performed in Super Bowl XLIX. The only mistake he made was partying with a young lady named Sabrina.
Edelman apparently hooked up with a girl named Sabrina after they partied together on Tuesday night. We know this because she bragged about it using the "moments" feature on Tinder, and the photo she shared went viral.
(You can see the photo here)
People are not happy with Sabrina. One Boston club promoter told TMZ that he is rallying local club owners to ban her from the area’s nightlife scene. TMZ later got in touch with Sabrina, and she admitted she feels “terrible” about the whole situation.
“I made a mistake. I feel really bad about it,” she said. “He passed out and I was bored I guess. I was drunk … and I made a mistake and I feel terrible about it.
“Some of the players were texting me that they were really disappointed. I obviously made a mistake and I can’t take it back.”
While she expressed regret, Sabrina didn’t seem concerned about promoters and club owners banning her from their establishments.
“I’ve definitely gotten my fair share of clubbing in Boston — and I have friends who work there who say I’m still welcome,” she said. “I don’t know if I’ll go out anytime soon — but that’s my choice.”
If that sounds like a girl who is confident enough to sleep with an NFL player and then brag about it on Tinder, well…
The important thing is Sabrina’s dumb Tinder post didn’t stop Edelman from tearing it up at the Super Bowl victory parade on Wednesday.

Super Bowl Champions Parade

 

Benjamin Brady (L) holds the Lombardi trophy next to his dad, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, on a duck boat during the New England Patriots victory parade on Feb. 4 in Boston, Massachusetts.
© Scott Eisen/Getty Images

Ryan and Lauren Tannehill

Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill and his wife, Lauren, arrive at the 4th annual NFL Honors on Jan. 1 at the Phoenix Convention Center Symphony Hall in Phoenix.
© Jordan Strauss/Invision for NFL/AP Images

Sports scandals throughout history

Deflategate

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady faces members of the media at a news conference in Foxborough, Mass., on Jan. 22, 2015, to discuss "Deflategate." The Patriots were accused of using underinflated football during their AFC championship game victory over the Colts, leading to an investigation by the NFL, and plenty of poor jokes.
© Elise Amendola/AP Photo

Sports stars and their tattoos

From soccer players to boxers, here's a look at the body ink donned by some famous sports stars.