Bleacher Report - Articles by Bob Fletcher

WEC 43: Sparks, Flames, Fireworks, and More Bad Judging

Bob Fletcher — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 17:22:46 -0400

First things first, after last nights Fight of the Year worthy showing, Benson Henderson has definitely earned my respect. And thank you again to Donald Cerrone for showing class and being a man. I thought he won the fight and many others did too but he didn't whine, b*tch or complain, he took the decision like a man and gave props to a well deserving Henderson.

Now, the only thing more shocking than the dexterity of Henderson's arms is the judging decision. A close fight yes but it should have been a win for the "Cowboy."

I've read in many different posts on sites such as MMAJunkie that submission attempts aren't worth anything. The analogy commonly used was "a submission ATTEMPT is like a takedown or head-kick ATTEMPT and if you miss, it's worth nothing."

In my opinion, comparing submission attempts to takedown attempts to strikes is like comparing apples to oranges to watermelons. It just doesn't work.

Can takedown attempts finish fights? In some cases like a slam, yes but in the takedowns that Henderson used they cannot. Strikes and submissions can both end fights but striking is not grappling and can't be looked at the same. Quite frankly it's a miracle Henderson's arms weren't ripped off.

So, submission attempts should garner points in a fight and based on that alone, round one of the fight was Donald Cerrone's.

Ben Henderson was definitely hitting Cerrone with strikes on the ground but they were nowhere near finishing the fight. The key here is "finishing the fight" and all of Cerrone's submission attempts had Henderson reeling and each time nearly ended it. This is where I think to myself, "Man, I wish some fights were judged like the old PRIDE fights."

Bringing in a brand new judging system for MMA would be far too strenuous, but change is most certainly needed. I think the possibility of having former/current fighters or MMA coaches judging fights would be a good idea. Or allowing rounds that are too close to be rewarded a 10-10 draw. Or even having an overtime round...

With all the scrutiny and anymosity running through me I want to end this little rant on a good note: Donald Cerrone, you are champion in my eyes.

The 10 Greatest (and Most Devastating) Strikes in MMA

Bob Fletcher — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 15:48:42 -0400

First and foremost, I would like to say that this slideshow is part of Harry Smith's "The 10 Greatest..." series. Now, any fight fan knows that one punch can change it all. It can turn a losing affair into a highlight reel knockout. But in MMA with the variety of punches, kicks, knees and elbows, the window of opportunity for a single strike - although possible - to be the finishing blow, is not all that common. That is why this list counts down not only the few great single strikes in MMA, but also the greatest flurry of strikes or combinations. And because this is MMA, ground strikes will also be included. The criteria for making the list includes not only effectiveness, but also frequency. Meaning if it's a one-strike-wonder, it does not make a very strong case for itself. So, without further adieu...

Begin Slideshow

The New Jersey Devils Get Screwed Over in Free Agency

Bob Fletcher — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:27:00 -0400

It seems everything these days is going against the New Jersey Devils hockey team.

Having two goals scored on them in Game 7 of the 2008-09 playoffs in about a minute and thirty seconds for the improbable comeback victory by the Hurricanes, then, coach Brent Sutter departs for the new head coaching position in Calgary.

What more could go wrong?

Well, let's look at what went right for the Devils this off-season. They re-signed two defenceman, Andy Greene, and Johnny Oduya! The question I immediately asked myself was, "That's it?".

After these two bright spots, comes the worst of the worst.

Shut-down forward, and one of the team's few leaders, John Madden signs a one-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks. Brian Gionta, most recognized for his 48 goal 2005-06 campaign, inked a five-year contract with the Montreal Canadiens.

Furthermore, New Jersey lost forward Mike Rupp and goalie Scott Clemmensen to Pittsburgh and Florida, respectively.

As a life long Devils fan it hurts to say all hope seems to be lost.

Other Free Agent News

Mike Cammalleri - Montreal Canadiens

Marian Hossa - Chicago Blackhawks

Martin Havlat - Minnesota Wild

Marian Gaborik - NY Rangers

Mike Komisarek - Toronto Maple Leafs

Nikolai Khabibulin - Edmonton Oilers

Scott Niedermayer and the Sedin twins have elected to remain with their 2008-09 clubs, the Anaheim Ducks and the Vancouver Canucks respectively.

Kimbo Slice Deserves Some Respect

Bob Fletcher — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:29:58 -0400

Let's see here, 99% of the people who read the title of this article probably think I'm retarded, but I think it's safe to say that Kimbo deserves some respect—emphasis on some—not because of his Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) credentials, but because of his "other accomplishments"...

1. No. 1 is his past as a former Street Fighter. Ask anyone and they'll tell you it takes a lot more balls to go out there and slug it out with other uneducated fat slobs than it does to be put into the "safer" environment of a cage.

On the streets, he risks his life, but in the cage, he just gets laughed at because he has no skills and no talent at all.

There is also one other thing I have to get out there. During his street fighting days, he only "lost" once. I must put quotations around the word "lost" because that "loss" was to none other than, Sean Gannon.

If you watch the fight or have already seen it, then you'll have noticed that Gannon put two Guillotines on Kimbo. Talk about cheating. The fight was just a plain old fist fight, no elbows, no knees, no kicks, and obviously no chokes.

Note: If you think that the fight could've been stopped or called off 'cause of that, then you're dead wrong. Gannon had a whole mob of other slobs and Kimbo had a couple of his friends there. No way that mob would let anything stop that felony.

2. Not surprisingly, this is Kimbo's last accomplishment in life. He was and probably still is affiliated with Reality Kings! If you don't know what Reality Kings is, it's probably for the better.

Now as short as his list of credentials is, and how bad of an MMA fighter is, I'm sure none of you, absolutely none of you would want to see him walking towards you in a back alley.

The New England Patriots Needed To Make This Trade

Bob Fletcher — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 08:03:27 -0400

Ever get the feeling that "your" team should've traded for a player or drafted someone other than whom they drafted? Well, here's something the Pats should've done: trade defensive end Richard Seymour.

Well, let's see, yes, he is a fan favorite, and yes, he helped New England win Super Bowls, but everyone on the those teams was part of the win, too.

Yet one can also argue that Seymour is a one-shot-wonder, because aside from his Super Bowl performance against the Philadelphia Eagles, he really hasn't done much else. Take last year, for example; he played in nine games and had 23 total tackles and 1.5 sacks. Astonishing numbers, right? Not so much.

But don't get me wrong about this, Seymour is still a good player.

Now, this brings me to the real reason why the Pats should've traded him. Seymour regularly plays ahead of fellow DE Jarvis Green, who, last year had a good, if not great, year, compiling 39 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles.

And so you can argue again that you can play these two players together in a 4-3 alignment, but other areas of the Patriots' defense need help.

They need fresh legs at Linebacker (the average age of ALL LB's on the team is 27 while the average age of STARTING LB's is 30) even though they already chose 3 of them in '08 Draft; and the Pats also have a suspect secondary now that Ellis Hobbs is the top guy.

Last year, New England, as you should all know, blew their opponents away, averaging nearly 37-points per game, while the opposition averaged a less-than-staggering 17 points/gm.

Here's the catch: From Week One to Week Seven, Richard Seymour was injured, and the Patriots averaged nearly 40 points, while giving up only 17 points per game. Then, from Weeks Eight through 17 (Week 10 was a bye), the Pats only scored 34 points/gm while giving up 17 points/gm again.

Oh well, six points isn't much, is it? But four out of the nine games Seymour played in, the Pats came very close to losing: Week Nine @ IND: 24-20; Week 12 vs PHI: 31-28; Week 13 @ BAL: 27-24; and finally Week 17 @ NYG: 38-35.

One other issue was the pass rush. Seymour had a measly 1.5 sacks, and Green had 6.5 sacks, along with his two forced fumbles. Although Seymour would average more tackles than Green, a quarterback sack has a much stronger affect on a game. A good pass-rush will also aid in their pass coverage.

As of now, you should probably be convinced that Richard Seymour should've been traded, and if you're not, here's more for you. "Who or what would the Pats get in return for him?" you ask.

The Patriots held the seventh-overall pick in the draft, giving them freedom to choose a top-tier player, but Jerod Mayo? He's a fine LB, but he was obviously over-picked...just look at him in the preseason. The Pats could've gotten a first-round pick for Seymour or at least a young and talented LB or CB.

Teams like Cincinnati, Oakland, Atlanta, Washington, Cleveland, the Jets, and possibly even Arizona come to mind. These teams all had holes in their defensive line before the draft, and some still do. All these teams also have a good, young cornerback or linebacker that New England could've gotten. Heck, they could've even packaged Seymour and the No. 7 pick for even more in return.

So, you can see, a Seymour trade would have propelled the Patriots' hopes of again becoming undefeated more so than keeping him would have.

(Sigh) Wouldn't everyone like to have heard this: "...And after finalizing the Richard Seymour deal, the Pats finish off a good offseason by drafting (your choice)."

Please give me your thoughts on this one.