FanHouse Mike Smith

Just a little over a year ago (373 days to be exact), Steve Mason made his NHL debut and stopped 22 shots in a 5-4 win against the Edmonton Oilers. He would go on to finish the campaign with the second-best goals against average in the NHL, lead the league in shutouts, win the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year, and be nominated as a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender.

Through his first 14 starts of the 2009-10 season, things have been very, very different. You can call it whatever you want: a sophomore slump, a plain old slump, Jim Carey syndrome ... it doesn't matter. Bottom line is, he's struggling.

Is it time to panic if you're a Blue Jackets fan in regards to your 21-year-old franchise goaltender? Or is there something much larger going on in Columbus that isn't completely on the shoulders of the man between the pipes?

The dust has finally settled from the Sunday's sideline melee between Washington and Atlanta. The skirmish occurred shortly after a late hit by LaRon Landry sent Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan flying and tempers flaring between the Atlanta sideline and a few Redskins players, including former-Falcon DeAngelo Hall.

The NFL office has decided that fines should be handed out to four individuals. Falcons head coach Mike Smith received the biggest fine of $15,000 and Director of Athletic Performance Jeff Fish was slapped with a $2,500 fine. Two Redskins players were also fined -- Albert Haynesworth at $7,500 and LaRon Landry at $5,000.

In light of a brief brawl that broke out Sunday on the Atlanta sideline between a few Redskins and what seemed to be a large group of Falcons -- whom were protecting their quarterback who had just been hit late -- it is no surprise that some fines have been handed out.

Jason Reid of the Washington Post has learned that both Albert Haynesworth and LaRon Landry have been fined for their roles in the skirmish. He's also reporting that Landry -- who was fined for starting the issue with his hit on an out-of-bounds Matt Ryan -- plans to appeal the decision.

ATLANTA -- When the NFL schedule came out at the beginning of the year, the Washington Redskins game at the Atlanta Falcons wasn't necessarily a matchup you expected to be volatile. But DeAngelo Hall sure did.

Hall, who spent the first four seasons of his career playing in Atlanta, did a lot of trash-talking this week. He claimed that Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff lied to him on multiple occasions regarding roster issues, and he dared the Falcons to make him a target this week -- since he knew they probably would anyway.

Was there any doubt that if a skirmish broke out between the two teams that Hall would be involved?

ARCADIA, Calif. (AP) -- What a gal!

Zenyatta overcame early trouble to beat the boys in the $5 million Breeders' Cup Classic on Saturday, running her record to 14-0 in the most impressive effort of her career.

The 5-year-old mare rallied from last after a poor start and fought off Gio Ponti in the stretch to win by a length at Santa Anita, beating a loaded field of 11 males and becoming the first female to win the Classic in its 26-year history.

"There are tears coming to my eyes. I can't believe it," said trainer John Shirreffs, who eschewed a box seat to watch his star horse from the rail near the finish line.

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NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament. Because we have nothing better to do than predict what might happen if head coaches started punching each other in the face.

As Round 1 of our single-elimination fight tournament involving NFL coaches nears its end, let us recap the action we've seen so far. To view the entire bracket or learn what we're talking about, kindly click on the links below.

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The last thing the Atlanta Falcons wanted on Sunday night was to lose Brian Williams to a season-ending knee injury. But Williams landed funny in the fourth quarter of the Falcons 21-14 victory over Chicago and tore his ACL, forcing Williams to be placed on injured reserve, where he'll miss the rest of the season and require reconstructive surgery. Now, the 18th-ranked Atlanta pass defense must find a new cornerback somewhere on their roster.

"This will be an opportunity for Tye Hill, Chris Owens and Chevis Jackson", said head coach Mike Smith in a press conference Monday. Those three will compete for time in the secondary, playing alongside cornerbacks Brent Grimes and Chris Houston.

NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament. Because we have nothing better to do than predict what might happen if head coaches started punching each other in the face.

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NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament. Because we have nothing better to do than predict what might happen if head coaches started punching each other in the face.

Consider this hypothetical: what if two coaches met in a dark alley and threw down in a no-holds-barred brawl? Who would emerge victorious?

First, some background: back when I was in high school, when my friends and I were pretty creative in finding ways to avoid actually paying attention in class, we'd create brackets (think NCAA Tournament) where we'd pit our teachers against each other**. Whoever we thought would win in a fight advanced to the next round. It always ended with our offensive line coach against our wrestling coach in the finals and a huge argument as to who would come out on top.

Anyway, last week, the Back Porch staff somehow ended up discussing whether Rex Ryan or Tom Cable would win in a old school playground scrap. I passed along the above information, and shortly after that, an idea was born -- NFL Coaches Fight Club: the Tournament.

After a poor showing by the secondary in Saturday night's preseason game, Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith tried hard to not to single out the defensive backfield: "It's team defense," he said. "What I mean by that, is that it starts up front, it goes to the linebackers and it goes to the secondary. It's not just one group."

General manager Thomas Dimitroff wouldn't throw anyone under the bus either, but let it be known that between the time the third preseason game ended and the regular season began, the Falcons would be busy scouring the league for possible trades or free agents to sign. Dimitroff didn't waste any time finding someone.

On Tuesday, the Falcons sent a 2010 seventh-round draft pick to the St. Louis Rams for cornerback Tye Hill.