There are two easy ways to improve your team in a hurry in the NFL.  1. Sign the right free agents (see: Denver Broncos) or 2. Draft well.  This Thursday, the Rams and Chiefs will get their opportunity to improve by adding the best young talent they can find.

The Rams pick 6th this year and are prepared to take one of the elite players in this year’s Draft.  Will it be Matt Kalil, Trent Richardson, or Justin Blackmon (since the Rams need help primarily on offense).  The Chiefs are picking 11th and while many believe the only need they really have is at Quarterback (and no QB worth the 11th pick will be available) so it seems reasonable to believe they’ll be looking for the best player still left.

Joining KTGR once again is the owner/founder of FootballFanSpot.com, Steven Lourie.  He joined Brian Freeman to talk about the draft needs of both teams, as well as what this weekend holds for Mizzou seniors like Michael Egnew and Dominique Hamilton.

Check out all four segements of the conversation and stay tuned for more exclusive podcasts right here on KTGR.com.

The term “bandwagon fan” has gotten such a bad rap recently.  It’s like it’s some kind of plague that makes others want to avoid you, curls your car’s paint, and probably had something to do with your failed math test in 3rd grade.  It’s used to describe people who jump on a team when they get good, only to bail when a team starts struggling.

Real fans wouldn’t do such a thing.  They’d never bail on a team regardless of what their record was, right?  They’d make it to every game they could and they’d bleed blue, red, orange, whatever their teams colors were.  I mean, we’re all true fans here, right?

Not so fast.  Some of us had to hitch a ride to the Stanley Cup Finals.  And I’ve been a steady hockey fan for many years, but I haven’t always had a team.  I finally got one in 1999 with the Atlanta Thrashers.  But when your team is unfairly stolen from you by an organization you wouldn’t trust to run your fantasy team, you’re left with few options. I went into this hockey season as a free agent, free to root for whoever I wanted.

What I’ve learned in this season as a free agent fan…is that being a bandwagon fan isn’t so bad.  Turns out it’s actually kind of fun.  You’re able to move from team to team and you never get bogged down with terrible.  Everything you do is focused on interesting.  It’s a LOT of fun.

I got on the Blues bandwagon because of proximity.  That’s pretty much it.  They’re the closest hockey team.  I’ve had fun having a team to root for and yes, it’s nice to actually be a part of something with the people I live around.

I haven’t gotten to enjoy much of that.  Last year, while everyone enjoyed the Cardinals magical run to the World Championship, I had to sit by and stew over my team, the Braves, having completed one of the greatest collapses in MLB history. I’m not begrudging the Cardinals or any of their fans.  It just gets lonely being the only one who doesn’t get to really enjoy it.  So jumping on the Blues bandwagon makes me part of something I get to finally participate in.

So I got on the Blues bandwagon.  What a great ride it’s been so far.  They’re on the brink of advancing to the conference semifinals and I want to move to the front of the bus.  I want to be there for all the action.  But I also know the bandwagon is more of a train, with scheduled stops that allow you to hop off at any time, so it’s possible my ride isn’t very long.  I’m enjoying it so far, so why worry about the future just yet?

Listen, if you have YOUR team, I’m not saying to give them up.  That’s silly.  If you’ve already invested in the team, don’t give that up.  But if you’re a casual fan of a sport and really don’t have a specific rooting interest, why not bandwagon hop.  Sure, it’s gotten a bad rap, but until you’ve tried it, there’s no reason to knock it.  Turns out, you might just get addicted.

Is there a better few months than the Cup playoffs? No cheap goals, no accidents, playoff beards, and ultimately, the greatest championship trophy in sports. So everything’s shaping up to be another exciting few months on the ice.

KTGR’s Brian Freeman was joined by the producer of the Big Show, Jeff Gatti and head honcho of KTGR, Cosmo, to talk the coolest game on Earth. It was Blues heavy, with two die-hard Blues fans in the KTGR.com podcast studio. Brian, whose team was stolen by Winnepeg, just tried to keep up.

Enjoy the podcast and the predictions sure to end up in the penalty box.

The guys talked about the biggest stories of the upcoming season, the Cardinals and Royals, award winners, and made predictions on both the AL and NL.

Enjoy each of the segments and be sure to follow all the guys on Twitter.  Don’t forget you can follow the Big Show and KTGR on Twitter as well (and The Eagle 939).  You can hear the Cardinals all season long on The Eagle 93.9 and ESPN 100.5 KTGR as well.

Play Ball!

If you weren’t a Mizzou fan you would have marveled at the atmosphere. You would have looked in the face of Kyle O’Quinn and seen the smile of a team beginning to believe. You would see the look of a favorite turn from looks of confidence to dejection and frustration.

If you weren’t a Mizzou fan, you would say it was the best tournament game you had seen in a while, maybe ever. You would exhale at the end wanting more.

It was the best game Mizzou wanted no part of.

As someone who went to Mizzou, but did not grow up a Missouri fan, I can’t sit here in the media workroom at CenturyLink Center and say this loss hurts worse than Tyus Edney, or Belmont or the closing game at Hearnes. I’m removed enough to the point to appreciate the game, but also feel for the fans and people this hurts the most.

This hurts most for Marcus Denmon, whose 20 points and sharpshooting had saved Mizzou many times this year.

It hurts most for Ricardo Ratliffe and Steve Moore, who had gotten by quality big men before in this year but could find no answer for Kyle O’Quinn.

It hurts most for Missouri’s most outspoken senior Kim English, who usually has the right words to say to move his team forward. He opened his mouth after Friday night’s game and all that came out was silent shock.

This loss does not define the winningest senior class in Mizzou history, but it does leave it with a sour ending. One where English could not deliver on his freshman year promise, “Before we graduate we’re gonna win a national championship”.

I can see the fans’ side of the coin, from people in Columbia who are torching their brackets, to Mizzou fans who made the trip to Omaha trying to cancel non-refundable hotel reservations. You will step back, though, whether its a month, five years, or even one hour after a single solitary basketball game and ask:

Aren’t moments like this what makes this game great?

-Will Palaszczuk

Special thanks to Tucker’s Fine Jewelry for sponsoring our coverage.

When your beer league softball or bowling league is just not exciting enough for you!

FootballFanSpot.com’s Steven Lourie joined the show once again and talked everything from the Rams swindling the Redskins to move down 4 spots in April’s upcoming draft, to his reaction to Mizzou at the NFL Combine.

Take a listen and remember you can hear The Sports Wire every Saturday Morning from 8-10 on ESPN 100.5 KTGR

This time, they’re talking Linsanity and Dwight Howard.  They’re talking trades and if anyone can beat the Heat.  They discuss mid-season awards and the biggest surprise team so far.

You may even hear the boys give a “mea culpa” in response to the KTGR NBA Mega-Podcast.

Check out both parts and enjoy a recap of what we’ve seen in the NBA so far and what could be in store for the second half.

This is a very interesting question that the Blues brass must ask before pulling the trigger on any deals.

The Blues have made massive jumps in almost every statistic category this season.  Especially when it comes to the Goaltender position and on Defense.

If you look at history most Stanley Cup teams that make that long push from Winter into Spring and hoist Lord Stanley have that solid, lock down netminder. Check for the Blues…and who would have thunk it they have TWO!  The Blues are an organization that has been trying to find the right goaltender for years now! Remember the Roman Turek and Chris Osgood days…now you are set there with both Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliot setting records almost every night on the ice.

The Defense is very solid and keeps getting better. The Offense? not so much BUT do you make a trade to help push this team over the top? Very rarely does the trade for a rental player work out.  The Blues sure need some help on Offense but they are still missing some key offensive playmakers to injury Alex Steen was leading the squad before his injury. 

My gut tells me not to mess with this team’s chemistry..BUT I also am a firm believer in GM Armstrong and I am drinking his Blue Kool-Aid by the gallons, so if he feels the right opportunity is there for the taking and won’t cost the Blues to much then I think he needs to make a deal.

Ben Bishop, the St. Louis kid has been a stud in goal for Peoria and I still think that he is there goalie of the future but if he is traded for a scoring winger then get it done!

Will be an interesting deadline in the NHL and the Blues are primed to make a serious run but the Redwings and Cannucks are massive hurdles in the Conference. Don’t be fooled by Nashville either.

Do you think the Blues should make a  deal?

Thanks for reading