1-8-12: Arizona Cardinals Bird Droppings - Haley Coming Back?

Time for some links, including something on the possible and now more likely return of Todd Haley, and Aeneas Williams becoming a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Cardinals' Ray Horton happy with interview with Rams
Cardinals defensive coordinator Ray Horton had never interviewed for an NFL head coaching position before Friday. But there isn't anything he would change about the five-hour meeting he had with Rams officials. "I think things went excellent," Horton said. "When it was over they called my agent and said they were blown away by him and he couldn't have been any better." Horton's interview came a day after the Rams interviewed former Titans coach Jeff Fisher, who has also met with the Dolphins. "I'm not naive enough to believe Jeff Fisher isn't the No. 1 guy," Horton said. "But I think they had to do their due diligence."

Ex-Cardinals defensive back Aeneas Williams a finalist for Pro Football Hall of Fame
Former Cardinals defensive back Aeneas Williams was named among 17 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Class of 2012.

Report: Haley close to rejoining Cardinals | ProFootballTalk
On Friday, there was word that Todd Haley was expected to speak with the Cardinals about a return to their coaching staff. The conversation must have gone well because now there’s a report that he’s on the verge of a second go-round in the desert.

Cardinals QB spot will open season - ArizonaSports.com
The Arizona Cardinals quarterback situation in the upcoming offseason will be similar to the story witnessed in 2011. "We've got a lot of things to go through in looking at our season," head coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "I think that one thing has been consistent: We're always going to play the best player, the player that gives us the chance to win." The John Skelton-Kevin Kolb QB competition will be back in full swing once Kolb has made a complete recovery from his concussion. Though Skelton led the team to more wins than Kolb in 2011, the starting position is up for grabs with no favoritism in tow.

Word From the Birds Blog - Aeneas named Hall of Fame finalist
Former Cards cornerback Aeneas Williams, who was the anchor of the secondary from the time he was drafted in 1991 until he was traded to the Rams after the 2000 season, was among 15 finalists of the 2012 Hall of Fame announced Saturday.

Arizona Sports News:

Shane Doan's hat trick leads Phoenix Coyotes to easy win over NY Islanders
What other way could it happen? After 1,161 games, Shane Doan recorded his first NHL hat trick - as time expired. On the verge for the 39th time in his career, Doan finally did it. Doan sparked a 5-1 win over the New York Islanders on Saturday night at Jobing.com Arena. The Coyotes' offensive effort, which also included goals by Taylor Pyatt and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, was bolstered by a strong effort in goal by Mike Smith.

Short-handed ASU basketball can't sweep LA schools, loses to UCLA
Short-handed Arizona State pulled off one surprise this week. Producing another, however, was too much to ask. UCLA battled back from an early 10-point deficit, routing the Sun Devils 75-58 on Saturday night at the Honda Center. The Bruins are playing at different locations this season while historic Pauley Pavilion is renovated. For the second consecutive game, ASU played with just six scholarship players. Starters Keala King, Kyle Cain and reserve Chris Colvin didn't make the trip because of "unacceptable conduct." The Sun Devils dropped to 5-10 and 1-2 in the Pac-12.

Taking a look at QB Brock Osweiler's NFL draft stock
Now that Brock Osweiler has elected to skip his senior year at Arizona State and enter the NFL draft, we were curious what the draftniks were saying. It's still early, but Wes Bunting at nationalfootballpost.com already has weighed in. And he isn't exactly endorsing Osweiler's decision.

NFL News:

NFL Playoffs 2012: Arian Foster, Texans Dominate; Drew Brees, Saints Offense Explodes Again - SBNation.com
The first day of Wild Card weekend is done. We saw the Texans claim a 31-10 victory over the Bengals and the Saints, as usual, explode offensively in a win over the Lions.

ANIMATED: Andy Dalton Doesn't Understand J.J. Watt's Interception, Either - From Our Editors - SBNation.com
It's always interesting to watch how a quarterback reacts to an interception. Not how they bounce back, mind you -- this is a phrase always used by broadcasters who tell viewers to keep an eye on whether a quarterback is gun-shy -- but how they react immediately after making the mistake. The facial expressions, the hands on their head or the looks of confusion are always interesting to see.

ANIMATED: Jerome Simpson Qualifies For The Olympics - From Our Editors - SBNation.com
Look, the 2012 Summer Olympics are during the offseason, and if there were ever an NFL player that should try his hand at one of the jumping or hurdling events, it's Jerome Simpson. We've already seen him do something ridiculous on the football field this season -- seriously, he did a full flip into the end zone, landing his feet -- and he's shown a tendency for leaping. The man can jump.

PHOTO: Brett Favre Is Waiting For The Call - From Our Editors - SBNation.com
Brett Favre is at the Superdome and while it may look like he's watching from above as a casual observer, you know what he's thinking. One time, Sean Payton. Just make the call and he'll do his best Superman-in-a-phone-booth impression.