racingmeridian.com

GRID IRON..Peyton Manning faced Rex Ryan four times when Ryan served as the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens. Manning went 4-0…Manning was sacked a miniscule ten times this season, despite launching over 500 balls…if DT Kevin Williams can’t play for the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday it is an enormous boost to the chances of the New Orleans Saints. Williams anchors the ferocious Viking line and simply can’t be replaced. The Vikes should offer updates on his status by early Saturday…Rick Reilly of ESPN is convinced that Arizona Cardinal Kurt Warner will retire during the offseason. Watching Matt Leinart attempt to run the high octane Cardinal offense should be interesting, particularly if you’re not a fan of the Desert Birds…Mike Nolan has officially signed on as defensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins. What a great addition for the Fish, Nolan can improve the unit and should revel in his separation from that little boy Josh…S I has cheekily proclaimed the Buffalo Bills and the Oakland Raiders as the two teams that offer fans “no hope” in the 2010 season…Michael Oher, subject of the book and Hollywood movie, ”The Blind Side”, is still pencilled in as the right tackle for the 2010 Baltimore Ravens, not the left tackle (the protector of the QB’s blind side). If you’ve read the book, it was amazing to see Oher on the field Saturday against Dwight Feeney, a man who was warned by authour Michael Lewis of Oher’s imposing skills while Michael was in high school. Feeney tells the writer, after listening to a list of superlatives, ”Tell him I’ll be waiting”…

ICE..Vancouver Canuck Alex Burrows has 12 goals in his past eight games. Burrows, a poster boy for controversy recently, is thriving while playing with the Sedin twins on the Knuckleheads top line…oh, man, this can’t be true; has the top Toronto Maple Leaf prospect been dubbed Nazim Pogge by scouts after a spate of mediocre play this year in the AHL? Leaf fans really cannot catch a break…I hit The Rail last night in order to check out the current form of New Jersey Devil legend Martin Brodeur. Well, I was able to watch a period and a bit before the braying donkeys who watch the Raptors absconded with my satellite feed. But Brodeur looked spectacular, in absolute top form, as he notched career shutout one oh eight. This is a piece of most welcome news after Marty had hit a rare rough patch recently, including being pulled from Mondays contest against the Isles…here are the stats on Chicago Blackhawk goaltending wunderkind Antti Niemi; 12-3-2, 1.90 GAA, save percentage of .921. If Cristobal Huet repeats a pattern of late season doldrums, would the Hawks turn to this raw rookie in the post season? Despite their stellar play and abundance of superb young talent, a number of weaknesses still exist, with the most prominent vulnerability possibly between the pipes…

 PUG LIFE..Amir Khan, a recent addition to the Golden Boy stable of fighters, is scheduled to fight Marcos Maidana April 17^th. The fight will take place on the undercard of the unfortunate Roy Jones - Bernard Hopkins confrontation. Khan has picked a very tough opponent for his stateside debut, and the bout should give a boost to an unappealing card…Dan Rafael of ESPN is reporting that Bernard Hopkins will challenge the winner of the David Hayes - John Ruiz heavyweight fight after he dispatches Jones. This would provide the 45 year old Hopkins the opportunity to claim the WBA Heavyweight belt and, presumably, retire…a David Hayes 2010 featuring fights against Ruiz and Hopkins is hardly capitalizing on the momentum he engendered by defeating giant Nikolai Valuev…

PONIES..the road to the Kentucky Derby became a tad easier with the word that Bob Baffert’s Take Control will be pointed to summer events instead of the first Saturday in May. Take Control, who boasts stars AP Indy and Azeri as his parents, looked awesome in his racing debut Dec 30^th. His shins are tender, however, and Baffert is pointing towards the Travers in August with pricey colt…

ONE WORD MOVIE REVIEW..Crapatar…