I don't think its a secret that 2011 could be a big year for Detroit in the sports world. While the 2010 seasons ended in disappointment for the Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons, 2011 is already looking up. The Lions are on a 3 game winning streak for the first time since the Kennedy administration, the Red Wings are at the top of the Western Conference again, the Tigers are making moves to be a contender for years to come and the Pistons... well, they have a chance at the #1 pick.

We have plenty of time until we figure out whether any of these great things will materialize, so now is the time for resolutions. Of course, no one actually keeps their New Years resolutions, so we thought we'd share some of the more realistic promises people might make for 2011 (and yes, these are totally meant to be broken).

Carlos Guillen will not be hampered by injuries in 2011.

Joe Dumars will trade Rip Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince for young, cheap talent.

Jiri Hudler will score a goal. Just one.

Fox Sports Detroit's "April in the D" ad campaign will have a catchy song that no one will get sick of.

Tom Izzo will have a voice after a basketball game.

Rich Rodriguez will refrain from doing something to embarrass the Michigan football program and the University of Michigan.

Greg Robinson will have a job.


So will John Kuester.

Textbook companies will realize that their prices are outrageous and work to meet the needs of the students that purchase them by lowering prices and relaxing copyright laws (/end rant).

Jim Leyland will give up smoking (yeah, too easy).

Charlie Villanueva will become a lockdown interior defender and learn how to rebound from Ben Wallace.

Terrelle Pryor will learn how to read.


Jim Harbaugh will coach at Michigan.

Mark Dantonio and Mike Babcock will collaborate to write a book called "Smiling: The Cure for Whatever Ails You."

Brett Favre will retire.

There's really no other way to put it: Rex Ryan likes feet and everyone is making a big deal about it. Do I like feet? No way (kinda makes you wonder how I'm going to be a physical therapist one day). However, Rexy does and that's his deal. What Deadspin, Kissing Suzy Kolber, and even The Chicago Tribune fail to realize is that no one wants to think about Rex Ryan having this kind of party with his wife.


[SB Nation]

Terrelle Pryor and four other Ohio State football players have been suspended for the first 5 games of the 2011 season (not including their bowl game next week) for selling awards, gifts and university apparel. I don't need to make jokes about how dumb this is, especially after Georgia's A.J. Green missed 4 games this season for the exact same thing. Of course, we've already seen how eloquent Mr. Pryor can be.


The players are supposed to repay the "improper benefits" to charity. Naturally, we here at D4L have a better idea. Since the NCAA is all about their own bottom line (seriously, why else do we still have the BCS?), they should put Pryor and Co. to work on a new(ish) reality TV show.


Seems like a perfect fit already.

[ESPN]

As much as I hate the Bears (and all Chicago sports teams, for that matter), Devin Hester is one of the most exciting players in the NFL. In less than 5 seasons, he's already set the NFL record for kick/punt return touchdowns. Here's video of Hester's record-breaking return from tonight's Vikings-Bears snowfest.


In semi-related news, the ESPN-Brett Favre lovefest was cut short when Favre was knocked out of the game in the 2nd quarter. The Bears lead 37-14 and are well on their way to clinching the NFC North division with the win.

[SB Nation]

The Packers-Patriots game last night was surprisingly close (the line was at -13), largely thanks to a big night from Packers backup QB Matt Flynn. One of the biggest plays of the game came from one of the biggest players on the field, offensive lineman Dan Connolly.

Connolly's return led to a New England touchdown, cutting their halftime deficit to 3 points. Strangely enough, Connolly didn't play in the 2nd half due to a "head injury." Something tells me Connolly was a little winded after running 71 yards and took the rest of the night off. Hey, it's not the first time we've seen a big man need a little boost after a long run. Am I right, Shaun Rogers?

[Guyism]

A good friend of mine is at the Redskins-Buccaneers game right now. This is not him.


In his defense, I'd also be a bit ornery if I were outside in the rain for 5 hours while my team failed to kick a game-tying extra point. At least Bucs lineman Derek Hardman (yup, Googled that) seems to be enjoying himself.

UPDATE: Here's video of why our buddy above may have been upset.


[@dcuniverse]

Not only do the New York Giants get an extra night of sleepover fun, but now all of Detroit is invited. The Giants-Vikings game originally scheduled for 1 pm today in Minnesota has been rescheduled for an 8:20 pm start tomorrow evening at Ford Field. Early word is that the game will be televised on ESPN, because who wants to see the Houston offense go against Baltimore's D when you can see more hijinx like this?


The game was originally postponed due to a mini Snowpocalype in Minneapolis yesterday that caused the Metrodome roof to collapse. Apparently that state has never seen snow in December before and they weren't able to get everything cleaned up in time for a game this weekend.

Tickets will probably be on sale at some point are free to the public, though it's not like this game is an improvement over what fans usually see in that stadium. Still, it's disappointing to know that the first Monday night game in Detroit in what seems like forever won't even feature our beloved Lions.

UPDATE: Here's video of the Metrodome roof collapsing and dudes shoveling snow off of the roof.


[Pride of Detroit]

After weeks of begging and days of fort planning, the New York Giants were finally allowed to have a sleepover before tomorrow's game against Minnesota. The team pilot, sick of hearing Eli Manning ask, "Are we there yet?" landed the plane in Kansas City. Reports suggest that DEs Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora were in charge of games, while RB Brandon Jacobs was responsible for the snacks. There is no word yet on whether a pillow fight will be taking place.


The Giants, tied with the Philadelphia Eages atop the NFC East, hope that the scary movie marathon won't keep them up too late and make them grumpy in the morning. Meanwhile, Vikings players were seen earlier this afternoon building snow forts and preparing snow balls to throw at the Giants' team bus when they get to the stadium.

[ESPN] 

The entire country went nuts today when FIFA announced that, despite the U.S.'s strong push, Qatar would host the 2022 World Cup.

Yup, that little booger hanging off of Saudi Arabia (honestly, you can't even see it because of the fucking circle) is going to host the biggest tournament in the world in under 12 years.

This isn't so much about the game of soccer and its growth in the United States as it is about common sense, patriotism, and good old American arrogance. Seriously, I wish I were making these quotes up.

Qatar, an oil-rich nation that has been independent since 1971, has a population of about 1.7 million -- 500,000 less than Houston.

Qatar, which has promised to overcome heat of up to 130 degrees with air conditioned outdoor stadiums, led on every round of balloting...

Seriously, WTF.

The World Cup was played in the United States for the first time in 1994, setting a record with 3.58 million tickets sold...

At 4,416 square miles, [Qatar] is smaller than Connecticut...The stadiums will all be within an hour of each other.

FIFA's inspection report highlighted a danger posted by heat -- the average high in late June is 106 degrees.

Qatar, which has never even qualified for a World Cup, used its 30-minute presentation to underline how the tournament could unify a region ravaged by conflict.

To be fair, "Guns and Goals" is a pretty catchy slogan.

Qataris and others...blew the vuvuzelas that became synonymous with the World Cup in South Africa.

Oh fuck no.

[ESPN]

This week's highly anticipated matchup between Northwestern and Illinois has caused a fair bit of controversy, mostly revolving around the most-talked about end zone in recent memory.

Now, the two teams will play by the same "Losers Walk" rules we all used as kids.

Today, the Big Ten announced some rule changes that were necessitated by the unique layout challenges posed by squeezing a football gridiron into Wrigley Field; some normal rules were waived by agreement in order to maximize safety for the players:

1) All offensive plays will head toward the West end zone, including all extra points and all overtime possessions.

2) All kickoffs will be kicked toward the East end zone.

3) After every change of possession, the ball will be repositioned for the offense to head toward the West end zone.

I'm not really sure what idiot in the Northwestern athletic department can't operate a tape measure, but you'd think someone would have thought this threw before trying to turn Wrigley Field into the Arena Football League.

[SB Nation Chicago]

[Busted Coverage]