Somewhat Opinionated

There is only 1 person to blame for the fall of Raider Nation

2008-11-05T11:49:00.001-08:00

Deangelo Hall was supposed to be a key addition to an already stoud Raider defense. Today the Raiders cut the controversial cornerback, basically paying Hall 8 million dollars for eight games. The Raiders also gave up a second round pick to Atlanta to bring him to Oakland.

It's not often you see a team cut loose a player they just signed to a 7-year, $72 million contract, but then again anything is possible when Al Davis is the owner/dictator of your franchise. This may only be the beginning too: WR Javon Walker, a guy the Raiders gave an $11 million signing bonus to is rumored to be on the outs as well.

All of these recent moves leave one pressing question that needs to be asked...who is really at fault here?

Lane Kiffin took the fall and the brunt of Davis' rage, but the fact is the Raiders' problems start at the top and work their way down.

I'll be one of the first people to admit that Kiffin wasn't ready for an NFL coaching job. Hell, he could barely manage running an offense at USC. But let's take a minute to look at the coaching history of the Raiders from 1988 to today:

1988-1989
Mike Shanahan
(8-12)
1989-1994
Art Shell
(51-46)
1995-1996
Mike White
(15-17)
1989-1994
Joe Bugel
(4-12)
1997-2001
Jon Gruden
(40-28)
2001-2003
Bill Callahan
(51-46)
2003-2005
Norv Turner
(9-23)
2006
Art Shell
(2-14)
2007-2008
Lane Kiffin
(5-15)
2008-?
Tom Cable
(1-3)

**It's worth pointing out that Shanahan went on to win two Super Bowls with Denver and is still the coach there. Gruden left Oakland because of a riff between him and Davis, then went on to beat the Raiders in the Super Bowl the next year with his new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.**

What's shocking about this list is not only how many coaches the Raiders have been through, but how incompetent some of them were. As for the coaches who were actually good...they ended up either feuding with Davis and/or leaving for better opportunities elsewhere.

At which point do we stop blaming these lame duck coaches, and start pointing the finger at the Owner/GM running the show? The Raiders certainly had their glory days under Davis, and I'm not trying to take that away from him, but in this day and age Davis has the distinction of running one of the worst franchises in professional sports.

Let's look at what Lane Kiffin had to work with for a minute...he had an inexperienced rookie QB that he didn't even want to draft and most of the Raiders offseason moves have backfired. Davis made safety Gibril Wilson the third highest paid safety in the NFL, and while he leads the team in tackles he only has 1 interception this season. Tommy Kelly signed a seven-year, $52.5 million deal and has just 1 sack so far this season. Offensive tackle Kwame Harris signed a three-year, $14 million deal and has been a bust. Deangelo Hall got cut even though he was productive, and Javon Walker is about to be cut.

And that's just 1 offseason. Don't forget, Al Davis was also the guy who traded Randy Moss to the Patriots for a 4th round pick.

This is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of horrible moves Davis has made over the years. How long is he going to keep blaming his coaches until he realizes that the real problem might just be himself?

Trent Dilfer Needs to Chill the F Out...

2008-11-03T15:34:00.000-08:00

Signs you might be done as an NFL QB: You're being replaced by Brady Quinn...

Trent Dilfer was just on Sportscenter commenting on the Cleveland Browns' decision to bench quarterback Derek Anderson in favor of Brady Quinn. To say he seemed upset might be an understatement.

I don't have a transcript of his argument, but allow me to sum it up in my own words:

- The Browns are a bad team, and a quarterback should only lose his job when he is holding his team back. Anderson was playing better than his numbers indicate, and other guys like Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow need to step up.

- The Browns are a dysfunctional organization.

- This is bad news for Brady Quinn, because you have to wonder how the organization will react if he struggles.

Obviously I can't comment on that last statement because I never played for the Browns: Dilfer did. But this rant really makes me wonder if Trent isn't maybe holding a bit of a grudge against one of his many former teams.

Trent argued that Anderson was playing better than his stats might indicate: well that really isn't saying much. As a matter of fact Anderson currently is ranked 31st in the league in QB rating (His 68.9 rating is below the likes of Jamarcus Russell, and J.T. O'Sullivan), 23rd in yards passing, and only had 9 TD passes to 7 interceptions.

Those are some pretty lousy numbers, no matter how you want to spin them. Is this situation all Anderson's fault? Not entirely, considering Braylon Edwards has been pretty bad so far this season and Kellen Winslow has been hurt, but the Browns didn't draft Brady Quinn to sit on the bench. Considering a playoff run is highly unlikely, why not give your future franchise QB a shot?!?

I was just really caught off-guard by how angry Dilfer seemed by the situation, when in reality this was a move that was a few weeks overdue. Maybe Dilfer got so defensive over Anderson because Derek's mediocre play reminded Trent of himself during his career?

How about this Trent...Go home and give that Super Bowl ring a good polish and maybe that will cheer you up? You sure as hell didn't deserve it, but then again in your opinion Derek Anderson didn't deserve to get benched, so I guess sometimes things happen that we weren't really expecting.

**UPDATE**

I did a bit of research into Dilfer's career with the Browns (ok ok, I googled "Trent Dilfer Cleveland Browns") and it was anything but impressive: he threw 12 INTs in 11 games. I also found this interesting tidbit...

Maybe, as Browns Head Coach Romeo Crennel believes, Trent Dilfer is just a tenacious competitor. Then again, maybe he’s not a very good teammate or cut out to be a starting NFL quarterback.
...
Crennel played Frye for the first time this season, on the final series of the first half. Frye received more playing time in a meaningless series in the fourth quarter.

Dilfer was asked how he felt...

His timing was poor, at best.

Dilfer said he didn’t like leaving the game. He wasn’t happy.

He talked about how media members have never been NFL quarterbacks so they wouldn’t know about rhythm. Near as we know, Dilfer never has been at a computer on deadline, writing a story. Therefore, he’ll have no problem taking criticism coming his way.

Dilfer’s comments weren’t the problem. It was his demeanor and body language. Both were out of character.

When a writer asked when he was informed Frye would come into the game, he shot back, “None of your business.”

Soooo...Trent has a bit of an issue with the way Browns coach Romeo Crennel handles his QBs?!? How does that not surprise me? I guess this is the downside for sports channels that use ex-athletes as analysts; sometimes those grudges don't go away when a guy retires.

For what it's worth, I see the Browns situation today ending how the Trent Dilfer-Charlie Frye situation ended then. Anderson will leave for greener pastures in the offseason, but that won't change the fact that he still sucks. As for Brady Quinn...he'll be a bit better than Charlie Frye. Then again, he couldn't be much worse, could he?

PHILLY'S PHINEST HOUR

2008-10-31T00:37:00.000-07:00

They stood, cheered, and waved those white towels no matter what Mother Nature threw at them.

They serenaded the tyrant Bud Selig with boos, and the ageless Charlie Manuel with cheers.

The Philadelphia Phillies are the Champions of Baseball, and while the team deserves every ounce of credit for their gutty performances this postseason, the fans deserve a little bit of credit as well.

This is actually the first Philadelphia Championship I've lived to witness (I wasn't around in '83 when the Sixers won) and I have to say this is a surreal experience. I've watched so many other teams celebrate Championships, but to actually have a team I deeply care about win it all is something I will never forget for as long as I live.

I can honestly say I have never been happier in my life.

Selig Blows it Again...

2008-10-27T22:50:00.000-07:00

I'm not in the mood for bullshit tonight, so let's get straight to the point and be clear on a few things...

1.) There was no way in hell Game 5 of the World Series was going to be called because of rain. As a Phillies fan I don't want to win that way, and it just robs baseball fans in general of a potentially classic ending to a thrilling series. That was NEVER an option.

2.) HOWEVER, Game 5 should have been stopped AS SOON AS THE HEAVY RAIN STARTED! Realistically, the 6th and maybe even part of the 5th inning should have never been played. It was ironic that the moron Fox announcers kept talking about how the rain would affect the Rays, but never took into consideration that average groundballs and flyballs would be ten times tougher to handle in those slippery conditions. BJ Upton's grounder with two outs that got the tying run on base was a play Jimmy Rollins can usually make, but it slipped out of his grasp because the ball and his glove were absolutely drenched.

Honestly, the way the situation was handled reminded me of that notorious All Star game a few years back that ended in a tie.

Am I saying the game was played longer than it should have been to give the Rays a chance to tie it? I'm not sure there is a massive anti-Philly conspiracy within the MLB, but it's certainly a possibility. As soon as the bottom of the inning rolled around the tarp immediately came out only AFTER the Rays scored a run they didn't really deserve.

3.) Finally, I don't want to hear anymore bitching about the umpires from the Rays. The strike zone has been inconsistent all throughout the playoffs for everyone, including the Phillies, and BOTH teams have gotten screwed over on blown calls in this series. The fact that one team is whining about it more than the other though is just plain weak. Joe Maddon needs to shut the fuck up and focus more on his team, not the umps.

Let's just hope fair weather and justice prevail in Game 5.5 tomorrow night, and the Phillies wrap up the World Series title.

World Series Game 1 Recap: What a Bucking Idiot!

2008-10-23T14:25:00.000-07:00

I've never really had too big a problem with Joe Buck. I mean, sure the guy admitted publically he doesn't even enjoy baseball anymore, and sometimes he gets his moral stances a little mixed up (he had such a problem with Randy Moss' mooning of Packer fans yet endorsed the Dodgers trying to beam Shane Victorino in the head in the NLCS)...actually who am I kidding I can't stand the arrogant douchebag. That being said, Game 1 of the World Series was a lowpoint for him and his dimwitted partner in crime Tim McCarver.

I don't even really need to comment on the analysis these two give because it is typically subpar, but last night the emphasis was clearly on the Rays, so much so that for a while it was hard to believe there were actually two teams on the field. It felt like a typical Rays home telecast, more than anything else.

Take for instance the fifth inning...Fox interviewed Joe Maddon (the Rays manager), the proceeded to kiss his ass for the entirety of the inning. Fast forward to the sixth, as Ryan Howard makes a spectacular catch in foul ground to record an out, but Buck shows absolutely no emotion whatsoever. He almost sounded disappointed that Howard made the play. Then to top it all off Fox has the nerve to interview the fucking PRESIDENT OF TACO BELL as part of some dumb promotion...DURING THE GAME! Did they ever interview the Phillies manager Charlie Manuel? Nope, but they took time IN THE MIDDLE OF THE GAME to interview some dumbass trying to sell a couple tacos. And I know Tropicana Field sucks, but could Fox at least TRY to center and level their camera shot from behind the pitcher? It was crooked the entire game, which is unacceptable considering this is the WORLD SERIES FOR CRYIN' OUT LOUD!

Just a pathetic all-around effort from Fox and their dumb and dumber announcing team. If this keeps up, I may just mute the TV and tune in to WPHT 1210's broadcast of the game by one of the all-time greats, Harry Kalas. At least he is somewhat neutral compared to the Rays cheerleaders at Fox.

Phils Take Game 1!

2008-10-22T21:36:00.000-07:00

Photo courtesy of ESPN

Make sure to check back tomorrow for my game recap, and my thoughts on Fox's broadcast (here's a quick preview: it sucked!)

3 MORE WINS!

As if you needed another reason...

2008-10-19T20:55:00.000-07:00

...to hate Tampa Bay Rays "fans."

Seriously, what the hell is Dick Vitale doing at a baseball game?!? Maybe his retirement community got together and bought some tickets?

Either way, seeing perhaps the most obnoxious ESPN personality on the face of the Earth (which is really saying something) at ALCS Game 7 just added an exclamation mark to an argument I was going to make anyway:

The Tampa Bay Rays have the fewest fans out of any team in Major League Baseball.

Think about it...they had the 26th worst attendance in the Majors despite finishing at 97-65 and having some very exciting young players on their roster. It would be easy to say a team like Kansas City could have fewer fans, but keep in mind that team has a long history that does, believe it or not, include a World Series title. While their attendance may have been lower than the Rays this season, they also had a dramatically worse team to watch on a daily basis.

When was the last time the American League representative in the World Series had an average attendance of 22,259?!? Rays "fans" clearly didn't bother showing up till the playoffs, and even now they continuously make a mockery of themselves (cowbells, mullets...what is this Texas?!?)

And what about that abomination of a song the Rays play after they win?!? It sounds like a constipated man is screaming "D-Rays Win" at the top of his lungs while grinding his nails on a chalkboard. And I thought they weren't the D-Rays anymore?!? FIGURE IT THE FUCK OUT PEOPLE!

I guess my point here is this: the city of Philadelphia has gone 25 years without a professional sports championship, and now the only people between us and the World Series are these douches.

For the love of God, we better not blow it.

I Know I'm Pouring it on...

2008-10-17T19:53:00.000-07:00

...but here's another asshole Dodger fan post.

This one comes courtesy of the fine folks over at SPORTSbyBROOKS...

The cops apparently came down to check on some sparring fans, then had beer dumped on them by some Dodger-gear-wearing douches.

Video of the incident can be found here.

Enjoy!

An Addendum to my NLCS Game 5 Fan Report

2008-10-16T23:47:00.000-07:00

Just in case you missed it, the bulk of my report from the Phils Game 5 clincher in LA can be found over at The700Level. I just wanted to share a few more stories from that night that didn't make the cut on the report, mostly involving the ridiculousness that is "INS Dodger" fans.

Around the middle innings, after the Phils added to their lead, one Dodger fan behind me started calling me out. The exchange went a little something like this:

Angry Dodger Bandwagoner: HEY! HEY RYAN HOWARD! (I was wearing my Howard T-shirt) I JUST GOT SOME BEER SPILLED ON ME...BECAUSE OF YOOUUU! IF IT HAPPENS ONE MORE TIME, YOUR A-S-S IS MIIINE!

Me: *Not even looking back, just gave the guy an enthusiastic thumbs up while trying not to laugh*

The best part was the fact that while he was threatening to beat the life out of me, he saw fit to actually spell out ASS. There were quite a few kids in our section, so give the guy credit for being a true gentleman.

At least he had a little more class than the Dodger fan I ran into in the restroom. Shortly after recovering my hat that a fellow LA fan knocked on the ground, another Dodger fan approached me and yelled, "FUCK YOU!" I just smiled, nodded, and said "Thanks for that." I look to my right, and a Dad is changing his young son, and lord knows how many kids were around for that delightful exchange.

Then again if you are being raised by a Dodger fan, you inevitably must get used to language like that. These are the same classy Dodger fans who cheered when Shane Victorino took a pickoff attempt at first into the ribs. As soon as they noticed he was hurt they immediately started cheering. It was the loudest the stadium got all night, except for maybe ManRam's homerun, or that time some lady in our section knocked a beach ball into the lower level by accident (for the record, she got thoroughly booed.)

I will give Dodger fans some credit: there were maybe five or so who after the game either shook my hand, or wished us luck against the Rays. Hell, one even wanted to take a picture with me (incredibly creepy, but I went along with it anyway.) However for each fan who was a good sport there were 10 more who either threatened me, or just flat-out wished ill will on my team (one Dodger fan walking the opposite direction held up his figure, got in my face, and yelled, "SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" Odd thing was I hadn't said a word to him.)

I can now safely say unless the Phillies ever play the Dodgers in the playoffs again you couldn't pay me to go back to that wretched hive of scum and villainy. And if you do ever end up going to Chavez Ravine and rooting for the opposing team, I advise you to bring a rain jacket (to deal with all the crap that will be thrown at you) and a pair of earplugs...you're sure as hell gonna need 'em.

My Fan Report...

2008-10-16T10:27:00.001-07:00

I had the honor of doing the NLCS Game 5 fan report for The700Level. You can check it out here.

Of course, I will have a more detailed report here a little later today.

GO PHILLIES!

NLCS Game 5...

2008-10-15T12:21:00.000-07:00

I'll be there! If any more interesting interactions with Dodger fans occur I'll make sure to update all of you on here tomorrow.

GO PHILLIES!

Foley's Thoughts on the Big Moves at the NFL Trade Deadline

2008-10-14T14:45:00.001-07:00

Dallas gets: WR Roy Williams, 7th round pick in the 2009 Draft
Detroit gets: Dallas' 1st, 3rd, and 6th round picks in the 2009 Draft

The big move at the deadline was the Cowboys acquiring former Lions wideout Roy Williams. Dallas now has two guys named Roy Williams on their squad, but the receiver isn't nearly as overrated as the safety.

The fact is, Williams was under-utilized in Detroit, and never had a decent QB throwing him the ball (Sorry Jon Kitna/Dan Orlovsky.) He is only 26, and has the physical tools to be a top receiver in the league. Pairing him with Terrell Owens and Jason Witten will give the Cowboys offense yet another weapon for when Tony Romo returns.

The downside of this deal for Cowboy fans has the be the fact that Williams' arrival will mean even less passes will be thrown TO's way. This is a guy who bitched after being targeted 18 times in a Dallas loss to Washington, and only had four catches and no touchdowns in a loss to the Cardinals. Now you factor in another guy who has complained about a lack of passes being thrown his way into the situation and you have a locker-room meltdown of epic proportions brewing.

The Cowboys also mortgaged a big part of their future, giving up 3 draft picks for a player they might not be able to sign to a long-term deal. Williams' numbers have also declined over the past few seasons, but I feel like that has more to do with the fact that he was playing for a terrible Lions team with no running game more than anything else.

The Verdict: A gamble by Jerry Jones, a man who has made his career off big gambles. Will Williams play nice with TO? Are there enough passes to go around for both of them? Will Dallas be able to lock up Williams with a longterm deal? These are all big question marks for the Cowboys. As for Detroit, they got great value for a player they likely wouldn't have resigned anyway. Those picks will go a long way towards helping that franchise rebuild after the disastrous Matt Millen era.

Tony Gonzalez stays put in Kansas City:

I feel bad for Tony in this situation, to be perfectly honest. He has to deal with playing for a God-awful team with no quarterback (Sorry Chiefs fans, but Damon Huard and Tyler Thigpen probably couldn't cut it in the Arena league, much less the NFL) and now misses out on an opportunity to join a team that might actually have a change at winning an important game or two. The asking price must have been sky high, because both the Giants and the Eagles have a need at Tight End, and Gonzalez is still among the tops in the NFL. Now whether he likes it or not Tony is going down with the sinking ship, at least till the offseason.

Redskins sign Shaun Alexander to a 1-year deal:

Nothing to see here folks, move along. Alexander is finished in terms of being an effective NFL runningback, and he will sit behind at least Clinton Portis and Ladell Betts on the depth chart (once Ladell gets back from an injury in a few weeks.) Did I mention Alexander sucks? That's kind of important to remember too.

The Eagles cut Tony Hunt and sign linebacker Tracy White:

There was no room on the roster at runningback for Hunt, and he couldn't cut it at fullback. That meant it was time for the former Penn State star to move on. I'm not ruling out a potential future NFL career for the guy, but he had his chances in Philly and never capitalized on them.

As for this linebacker the Birds picked up...I've never heard of the guy. But the Eagles have picked up players off the scrap heap in the past (Juqua Parker immediately comes to mind) that ended up paying dividends.

Am I disappointed the Eagles didn't make a move for Williams or Gonzalez? Absolutely, but before you jump off the Walt Whitman Bridge keep this in mind: the price was extremely high for either player and the Eagles were in the running for both of them. That tells you there was something that kept Andy Reid and Tom Heckert from finishing a deal. Gonzalez wasn't worth a 2nd and 5th round pick (the rumored asking price) and I'd argue that Williams might not be worth a 1st, 3rd and 6th as well. That being said, the Eagles management said this would be the year they make a Super Bowl run prior to the season starting, and now they head into a week 7 bye with a 3-3 record and an embarrassing loss to the Bears (and Kyle FUCKING Orton!) At some point management is going to need to step up and take a chance on a player to push this team over the top. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that is going to be happening anytime soon.

Dodger fans: The most classless fanbase in America

2008-10-13T13:40:00.000-07:00

Last night, I attended Game 3 of the NLCS in Los Angeles, wearing my Ryan Howard jersey of course. I had heard stories about Dodger fans so I was fully prepared to get a hard time for all my Phillies gear, but nothing could have prepared me for what I went through.

1st Inning: Stuck in the parking lot for 45 minutes, I missed the entirety of the 1st inning. Good thing considering the Dodgers put 5 runs on the board. That being said, if anyone tries to tell you parking at Dodger Stadium isn't horrific, don't believe them.

2nd Inning through the 6th Inning: I arrive at my seats to a chorus of boos...entirely expected, and I ignore them. The only problem is, they don't stop. As a matter of fact, it only gets worse from there. A few samples of the comments I heard over the next 5 innings:

"FUCK PHILLY!"
"PHILLY SUCKS!"
"CHEESESTEAKS SUCK!"
"YOU'RE IN THE WRONG PLACE, ESE!"
"YOU BETTER START CALLIN' SECURITY..."
"FUCK YOU!"

...and just about every racial slur for white people imaginable. Yes, a majority of my section was hispanic, and the people sitting in front of me didn't speak English. Thank God, at least they didn't give me a hard time (that I could understand.)

Now I know Philly fans have a reputation for being brutal to visiting teams' fans, but I've been to many sporting events there and the only people who ever got heckled were the drunk lunatics who were asking for it. Me and my friend Mike (also a Phillies fan) did absolutely nothing to deserve this treatment. We sat, occasionally clapped, and just tried to ignore the constant barrage coming from the idiots in our section. The thing is: it gets hard to ignore the screams when they are coming from right in front of you (the Dodger fans started getting in our faces screaming insults, and started getting more physical and threatening as the game went on.)

7th Inning: Dodger fans start filing out...guess that whole "Come late, leave early" thing still applies in the playoffs.

Highlight of the night: drunk Dodger fans behind us start a "FUCK PHILLY" chant, DURING "GOD BLESS AMERICA!" I shit you not.

8th Inning: Dodger fans start pelting 3 girls in front of us in Phillies gear with anything they could get their hands on as the girls tried to take a picture. It gets bad enough where a female Dodger fan steps in and screams for it to stop, but it only gets worse. One male hispanic Dodger fan then started screaming at the girls, and tried to start a fight with them (my friend Josh actually got this on his cameraphone. I'll link to it as soon as he posts it.)

At this point me and my friends decide we've seen enough, and head out to the parking lot. While walking to my car, a TV reporter stopped us for an interview, during which some Dodger fans stole my Phillies hat and doused it in beer.

Perfect ending to one of the worst experiences I've had at any sporting event in my life.

You can try to defend this behavior...one Dodger fan I knew told me "You come here in opponent's gear, you should know what to expect." The problem is some of us just want to go and see our team play: we do nothing to deserve this treatment yet it happens either way. It wasn't just one or two bad apples either, it was a vast majority of our section.

It's one thing to be a bandwagoner (like most Dodger fans, who only gave a damn about the team after they traded for Manny), it's one thing to know nothing about the game of baseball (like most of the people in our section, who started freaking out every time a pop fly was hit to the outfield and didn't understand what was going on half the time), it's something else entirely to harass people who have done absolutely nothing wrong and are just trying to enjoy a game of baseball.

Say what you will about New York, Boston, or Philly fans, but Dodger fans are the worst, most classless fans in America. Regardless of what happens on the field in the rest of the NLCS, Dodger fans are the real losers.

Eli better than Peyton? Are you high?!?

2008-10-08T13:03:00.000-07:00

I've had an issue with Gregg Easterbrook's work for a long time...long story short, his Tuesday Morning Quarterback column on ESPN.com might very well be the worst weekly article on the entire site (and that's saying a lot given some of the slapdicks that work for the Worldwide Leader.)

Well, yet again Easterbrook has managed to get my attention for all the wrong reasons. In this week's TMQ Easterbrook contends that Eli Manning is better than Peyton Manning.

No, I'm not shitting you...

Four games into his fifth season, Eli is 44-30 as a starter and has a Super Bowl ring. At the same point in his career, Peyton was 35-35 and had not won a postseason game. In terms of passing stats, the two players are approximately the same...Peyton is great, and a near-lock for Canton. Eli may be bound for the same place, with his bust in a slightly nicer corner.

Well, let's pick apart Mr. Easterbrook's argument, shall we? First, a large part of Easterbrook's argument revolves around the fact that Eli's Giants have accomplished more in the first 61 games of his tenure than Peyton's Colts did. What Easterbrook doesn't consider is the fact that football is a TEAM sport...I still maintain that the Giants' Super Bowl run last year was a culmination of an amazing defense along with an efficient offense. It's not like Eli carried that team: as a matter of fact he only threw three more touchdowns than interceptions and his QB Rating was among the league's worst...Eli ranked 25th in the NFL behind the likes of Kyle Boller, Brian Griese, and Damon Huard.

It is entirely unreasonable to say Eli is a better QB than Peyton based on the performance of his team, because there are so many other factors to a team's success other than quarterback play. Hell, just ask the Tennessee Titans, who have had success the past few seasons with some of the worst statistical QBs in the game today (Vince Young and Kerry Collins.) Even Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl, so that aspect of Easterbrook's argument is entirely unjustified.

The best way of judging who has been better up to this point in their careers in to look at the stats...Easterbrook clearly didn't bother to before he wrote his article. He writes off the statistical difference between Peyton and Eli up to this point as "approximately the same." You tell me if these numbers look "approximately the same."

Eli Manning's Career Stats (61 Games):
1071/1937, 12,417 yards, 6.4 AVG, 55.3% CMP, 83 TD, 65 INT, 75.2 QB Rating

Peyton Manning's Career Stats (First 61 Games):
1301/2133, 15,804 yards, 7.48 AVG, 61.25% CMP, 108 TD, 79 INT, 85.55 QB Rating

Quick explanation on the numbers: AVG is the average yards per pass, CMP is completion percentage.

I wouldn't say those stats are "approximately the same." Peyton completed way more of his passes for 25 more touchdowns (and 14 more INTs, to be fair.) Peyton did throw the ball a lot more, which has to do with the fact that the Colts are more of a passing team than the Giants. Regardless, Peyton's dramatically better QB Rating should tell you that he was the much better QB through the first 61 games of his career.

While putting all these numbers together the idea came to me to look at the numbers of other NFL QBs through the first few seasons of their careers to get an idea where the Manning brothers rank. The results might surprise you:

Rex Grossman Career Stats (32 games):
489/900, 5,907 yards, 6.6 AVG, 54.3% CMP, 31 TD, 33 INT, 70.9 QB Rating

Philip Rivers Career Stats (41 games):
662/1088, 7,871 yards, 7.2 AVG, 60.8% CMP, 55 TD, 29 INT, 88.7 QB Rating

Carson Palmer Career Stats (First 61 games):
1305/2036, 14,899 yards, 7.3 AVG, 63.98% CMP, 104 TD, 63 INT, 89.75 QB Rating

After comparing the stats, Eli lands more in the Rex Grossman side of the spectrum (aka the mediocre side) while Peyton compares more with Rivers and Palmer. Interestingly enough, Palmer had better numbers almost across the board than Peyton through 61 games.

Don't invest too much into Eli's early season performance in '08 either, he put up terrible numbers against the one tough opponent he faced (Washington), and lit it up against bad teams in St. Louis, Cincinnati, and Seattle. Just wait till Eli has to face tougher teams, and watch his stats plummet.

The point I'm trying to get across: Gregg Easterbrook is an idiot, and is not to be taken seriously.

That is all.

So much for T.O. "maturing"...

2008-09-29T17:54:00.000-07:00

Over the past couple seasons, Terrell Owens has been surprisingly well-behaved in Dallas...aside from the whole "that's my quarterback" ordeal, and that suicide thing.

...

OK, he has been MODERATELY well-behaved, for T.O. standards at least.

But just like in Philly, as soon as the going got tough Owens started bitching. This is his quote after Dallas' 26-24 loss to the Skins:

"Everybody recognized that I wasn't really getting the ball in the first half," Owens said. "I'm pretty sure everybody watching the game recognized it, people in the stands recognized it, I think my team recognized it. I didn't quit. I kept fighting and trying to running my routes and trying to get open."

What's interesting is the fact that according to Brian Davis, Owens was targeted in 18 out of the Cowboys 58 offensive plays. Hell, he even got two carries on a couple end-arounds, which was just six fewer than the Cowboys running back Marion Barber.

This is just a classic case of Owens' true colors coming to light: he is a selfish child who is all about one thing: T.O. That's part of what made his tear-soaked defense of Tony Romo so hilarious, because HE MEANT NONE OF IT!

The truth is, Owens is no more valuable to the Cowboy offense than Marion Barber.

The Cowboys went 13-3 last season: in all three losses, Barber had fewer than 10 carries. The only exception to this would be the Cowboy's playoff game against the Giants, where Barber ran well in a losing effort. I'm more willing to write that off as an aberration though given Tony Romo had a very bad game.

While Barber didn't get the ball in all three losses, there were also three wins where he had fewer than 10 carries. The difference in those games however was the fact that Barber was a threat through the air (18 catches).

The point I'm trying to make here is the Cowboy offense is ten times better when they consistently run the football, or at the very least utilize Marion Barber in the passing attack. So far in 2008 Barber has 16, 18, and 28 carries in three wins, and 8 carries in one loss.

T.O. may be an outstanding receiver in terms of talent, but if he really cared about his team he would shut the hell up and be happy with those 18 targets, because the more Dallas tries to force the ball into his hands and ignore Marion Barber, the more they are hurting their chances of winning the game.

I guess the better team doesn't always win...

2008-09-25T21:35:00.001-07:00

I'm too distraught to form a cohesive blog post right now, so let me just give you a list of reasons why USC lost to Oregon State tonight. (PS I am also downing a beer and a bottle of Skyy vodka as I write this, so cheers!)

1. The Trojans didn't show up in the first half.

Plain and simple, USC wasn't ready to go at kickoff. They expected to roll over OSU and the Beaver's quick score and loud crowd took SC by surprise.

USC also didn't have an answer for OSU's small speedy HB Rodgers until the second half, and by then it was too late. What a game by the freshman!

2. Oregon State played over their heads.

This isn't the same Beaver team we saw against Stanford and Penn State earlier in the season. They looked confident from the beginning and that was the reason they pulled off the upset.

Does this mean the Beavers are a title contender in the Pac-10? Hell no! But for one night they managed to pull off what might be the upset of the year, and Coach Mike Riley and company deserve credit for that.

3. USC's stubborn play-calling ended up costing them.

The Trojans felt the need to keep running the ball all game, despite the fact that they were throwing the ball practically at will through the first 3 quarters. Also, not going for it on a 4th and 5 around midfield late in the 3rd quarter was a questionable decision as well.

4. Mark Sanchez had NO time to throw in the 2nd half.

Oregon State's defense controlled the fourth quarter...Sanchez was running for his life and missed some open receivers downfield because he had blitzers in his face on every passing down. Reminds me of what the Eagles did to the Steelers and a good QB in Big Ben last Sunday...they got so much pressure they made that good QB look awful. OSU's defensive front 7 deserve a lot of credit.

5. The officials were TERRIBLE!

Pac-10 officials may be the worst referees in the nation, and they did nothing to dispel that tonight. OSU's first touchdown was easily two or three feet from crossing the goalline, and the holding call on Anthony McCoy that killed a late USC drive was flat out awful.

The final penalty tally was 7-5 USC, but the yardage difference (84-27) says it all about how "fair" and "balanced" the officiating was. Hmm, remind you of something???

The play that changed the game...

James Rodgers' TD catch at the end of the first half was what ultimately killed USC. It should have been a sure INT by Kevin Thomas, but it went off his hands and into the hands of Rodgers. A great heads up play by the receiver, but the score at the half should have been 14-0 OSU. A two-score deficit is much more reasonable than a three score deficit, and USC ended up coming one score short.

In the end, the better team didn't win, but USC's slow first half is what cost them the game. They weren't ready to play and Oregon State was. That's all there was to it.

Now excuse me while I now go get hammered. In this case, I am adopting the Arizona State philosophy: "Win or lose, we still booze!"

AN ADDENDUM

Can I just say: ESPN's broadcast of this game was pathetic.

Chris Fowler was writing this game off when there was still plenty of time to play in the 4th, and knocked USC fans by basically saying the crowd at Reser Stadium was better than the crowds at the Coliseum.

It's clear ESPN is in the back pocket of the SEC, but to be THAT biased is just pathetic. How about this Fowler: SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH, AND GO BACK TO SUCKING LEE CORSO'S COCK ON THE GAMEDAY SET EVERY SATURDAY WHERE YOU BELONG, YOU DUMB FUCK SEMIN-SHITTING FUCKHEAD!

Wow, either the alcohol is really kicking in, or Fowler pissed me off that much. Probably a little bit of both.

That's all from me. Goodnight, and hang in there SC fans. Last year after one loss the Trojans were still in the National Championship picture, and the top 10 looks particularly weak this year. YOU NEVER KNOW!

Now commence the drunken absurdity!

Brace Yourselves...

2008-09-24T20:59:00.001-07:00

IT'S HAPPENING AGAIN!!!

Les' Controversial Calls, a Bad Weekend for the Pac-10, and Other Assorted Things

2008-09-20T20:13:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Foley weekend in review.

Less about Les really is more.

Can the media love affair with LSU coach Les Miles stop...please?!?

Listening to the ESPN Gameday crew fawn over Miles after LSU's win over Auburn was disgusting, particularly when they were complimenting his play-calling.

This is the same guy who last season against Auburn decided to throw to the end zone with :09 seconds left when a field goal would have won the game:

Yes, LSU won, but that was one of the dumbest coaching decisions I've ever seen. Instead of kicking the relatively short winning field goal, you throw the ball the the end zone and risk an INT or having time expire on you? If that ball was picked Miles would have been destroyed by the media, instead he is considered brilliant.

Fast forward to this Saturday against Auburn:

Let's take a look at this situation. 1:20 left and the clock is running...Auburn has 3 timeouts left but LSU is in chip-shot field goal territory with a 1st and 10 and has a very reliable kicker. ALL LSU HAS TO DO IS RUN THE FREAKING CLOCK AND KICK THE WINNING FIELD GOAL! Instead, Miles decides to call that short pass play that LaFell took to the end zone for the winning score.

This is ridiculously stupid on so many levels! First, if that pass is incomplete the clock stops and LSU just saved Auburn a timeout. That pass could also be picked and LSU would lose.

And while that play did get LSU 7 points, they were still only ahead by 6 with a minute left. Considering Auburn still had 3 timeouts they had a realistic shot at driving down the field to win the game. LSU could have just run the clock, kicked the field goal, and IF there was any time left it wouldn't be enough for an Auburn miracle. Instead, by scoring so quickly, LSU gave Auburn the chance to come back. They couldn't pull it off, but that was still an incredibly dumb move by Miles and LSU.

And those ESPN dumbasses have the nerve to COMPLIMENT the guy's play-calling? Les Miles is a joke, and decisions like these are going to come back to haunt him.

A Tough Saturday for the Pac-10.

With USC having the Saturday off, the national spotlight fell on Sun Devil Stadium, as ASU had a chance to prove Pac-10 superiority over the SEC against #3 Georgia.

They got beat down 27-10 and were never in it.

#17 Oregon was playing host to an unranked Boise State team. Despite a valiant late comeback attempt they fell 37-32.

Go figure the two worst teams in the conference were 2 of the 3 that actually won. Washington State slaughtered Portland State (might be the only time this season they aren't the underdog) and Stanford came back from a halftime deficit to beat "mighty" San Jose State 23-10.

Then of course Arizona beat UCLA easily, but that doesn't mean much considering the Bruins are one of the worst teams in the conference.

What does this tell you? The Pac-10 is just BAD this season, aside from SC. The only way any of these teams beats the Trojans is if USC decides not to show up (physically or mentally). Or if they decide instead of going to Pullman (where the only "fun" thing to do is beat yourself over the head with the nearest blunt object) they'd rather take a weekend off in Hawaii.

Seriously, unless you think vast seas of dirt and cow manure are "scenic", do yourself a favor and NEVER, EVER go to Pullman.

Oh yeah, and the Pac-10 sucks this year. Did I mention that? Stanford and WSU should have to move to the WAC, where they MIGHT be able to go .500 in conference play.

Charlie's no cheat.

Notre Dame head Coach Charlie Weis diffused a potential controversy on Saturday by insisting that a laptop in the coaching box was not used for cheating.

Why is this even an issue? Because Notre Dame sucks so bad they'll use any advantage they can get. Even IF they cheated they'd still probably lose by 30.

According to the story Charlie claimed, "The last thing I ever want to do is lie."

Besides of course when he said he'd turn Notre Dame into a winning program.

Give the guy some credit though, he did promise upon being hired that he'd make the Irish "nasty."

I don't think, however, he meant nasty to watch.

In defense of the fat ass, it's not like he ever had been a part of a coaching staff that was accused of cheating before...

...

**COUGH**THEFUCKINGPATRIOTS!!!**COUGHCOUGH**

Did someone say something?

Monday Night Football Prediction

Screw the game...over/under the number of times Tony mentions the Favre/Packers situation.

I say 30. Seriously Tony, SHUT THE FUCK UP!

USC-OSU Postgame

2008-09-13T20:45:00.000-07:00

I'll have a more full-fledged take on this one in the next few days, but for now let's take a look at my 5 reasons SC would win and see if any of them made a difference.

1. Todd Boeckman is a mediocre QB, and Terrelle Prior isn't ready to contribute regularly.

Boeckman went 14 of 21 for just 84 yards, and threw 2 costly interceptions including one that was returned for a TD. Prior was more effective, but his snaps were limited (for some reason) by Coach Tressel.

On Maualuga's INT, USC was able to get pressure on Boeckman forcing him to get rid of the ball. That was when Maualuga was able to step in front of the receiver to make the big pick.

OSU's offense seemed off-balance all game because of the pressure on their QBs. A few key stats:

- USC sacked OSU's quarterbacks 5 times, including forcing a fumble that the Trojans recovered.

- OSU averaged just 2.1 yards per rush, and 4.5 yards per pass. They couldn't make any plays downfield on USC's defense.

2. Ohio showed a key weakness in OSU's defense.

The Bobcats averaged 5 yards per carry against Ohio State last week: this week USC averaged 5.1 yards per carry and rushed for 164 yards on OSU's defense.

3. Ohio State is overrated EVERY year.

The ESPN personalities kept harping on the fact that THIS was OSU's chance to erase the doubts about their program after getting crushed in the past two title games. If anything, there will be even more doubts after they got destroyed on national TV tonight. For too long the Buckeyes have gotten by beating up on mediocre teams to pad their stats and their win total. Tonight just further proved that OSU is an overhyped, overrated program that does not belong anywhere near another BCS bowl game.

4. The game is at the Coliseum.

The home crowd definitely gave the Trojans a boost. Chants of "overrated" could be heard throughout the Coliseum as early as the first half.

5. USC had an extra week to prepare.

The Trojans were caught off-guard early by OSU's QB-by-committee approach, but quickly figured it out. You could tell there was nothing else that Ohio State did in this game offensively or defensively that surprised USC. OSU Coach Jim Tressel had no answers.

My Prediction: USC 42 - OSU 20
Final Score: USC 35 - OSU 3

By the way, congratulations to fucla on losing to a bunch of mormons by 59 points!!! Good to see the bruins are back to playing typical ucla football.

Seriously?!?

2008-09-13T01:24:00.000-07:00

The frontpage of ESPN.com on the eve of one of the biggest college football games of the year...and I'm not talking about Notre Dame-Michigan.

I think I'd rather watch dominoes on ESPN 8 "The Ocho" than fat ass Charlie and his mediocre Irishmen try to suck less than an equally-inept Michigan squad.

Oh and to answer your question: Yes, the ball Jimmy Claussen tossed in the picture was intercepted and returned for a touchdown.

Foley's Game of the Day

Something new I'm starting this week. Since USC-OSU is too obvious a choice, I'm going to suggest tuning in to see No. 10 Wisconsin @ No. 21 Fresno State at 7:30 PM (PT) on ESPN2. The Bulldogs are better than people think and they are at home...this one should be a doozy and it will probably be a lot closer than the "other" game of the day in LA.

Why Beanie Wells Injury Updates Don't Matter

2008-09-11T18:20:00.000-07:00

Regardless of whether Ohio State runningback and Heisman hopeful Beanie Wells is ready to go on Saturday, the Buckeyes will still lose.

Why you ask? Let me tell you...

1. Todd Boeckman is a mediocre QB, and Terrelle Prior isn't ready to contribute regularly.

Like any QB, Boeckman can get the job done when he has time to set up in the pocket and throw the ball. Against Ohio, however, the OSU O-line struggled with the blitz and Boeckman only completed 16 of 26 against a below average defense. How can anyone expect him to have success against USC's defense when he struggled against Ohio's? Boeckman isn't a playmaker, and he needs his line to step up and handle USC's constant blitzes. That won't happen. Don't expect a true freshman to have much success against SC's defense either.

2. Ohio showed a key weakness in OSU's defense.

While the Bobcats struggled to throw the ball effectively, their QBs and RBs combined to run for nearly 5 yards per carry on 31 attempts against OSU's D. You better bet the Trojans will take advantage of those holes even more than Ohio did with their huge stable of talented backs.

3. Ohio State is overrated EVERY year.

It's a fact: Ohio State beats up on mediocre opponents each season (including Michigan), then gets trounced in their bowl game. It's happened the past two seasons; only difference between then and now is that this season the Buckeyes will be exposed a lot sooner and won't waste all of our time.

4. The game is at the Coliseum.

Had this game been played at the horseshoe, It'd probably be a bit closer. The rowdy crowd might have had a shot at getting to Mark Sanchez and company if OSU got out to an early lead. Without their homefield advantage the Buckeyes don't stand a chance.

5. USC had an extra week to prepare

Don't underestimate what an extra week of preparation will do for the Trojans. They have one of the best coaching staffs in the nation led by Pete Carroll, and all that extra time will not only give the players a chance to rest and get healthy, but it will also give the coaches more time to pick apart weaknesses in this OSU team.

Remember that USC-Oklahoma Orange Bowl back in '05? Nobody thought USC had a chance, but with all that time to prepare, and all that talent on the field, they were able to shutdown world class runningback Adrian Peterson and the SC defense spent most of the evening in the Sooners backfield.

Expect a similar result Saturday night.

Final Score: USC 42 Ohio State 20

He may not be "In-Vince-ible" after all...

2008-09-10T19:13:00.000-07:00

The old saying goes something like this: When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Evidently Vince Young didn't get the memo to not take that too literally.

Now I'll admit, I'm not shy with how I feel about Young: The guy is one of the most overrated players in the NFL. He has incredible physical abilities but that's only half the game of football. The fact is he is too dumb to fully comprehend an NFL playbook and struggles to throw the ball with any accuracy at all. He is one of the worst statistical QBs annually in the NFL, yet also one of the most hyped by ESPN and company.

Now it has come out that Young is considering quitting the game after having his ego and his leg hurt in a Week 1 loss to the Jaguars. Young was booed after throwing his second INT of the game, and refused to go back out on the field until his coach basically forced him to. A couple plays later he got hurt and will likely miss the next few weeks. He also disappeared for a while, which only made a strange situation even more bizarre.

The media always made Young out to be an exceptional leader on the field, but evidently that doesn't apply off the field. When the going gets tough, Vince Young will literally get going.

I'm not going to just pile on the guy though; clearly he has some mental issues he needs to work out. I'm not going to gloat and savor his failure either no matter how much I may dislike the guy. The truth is everything we ever needed to know about Vince Young is now becoming readily apparent through his recent actions. He gets booed one time after one bad game, and he just gives up. Hell, Donovan McNabb got booed ON HIS DRAFT DAY, and that didn't keep him from becoming one of the greatest QBs in Eagles history.

And it's not like the Titans fans or the Tennessee media is that tough. Had Young been playing in a more football crazy town (like Philly) he wouldn't have lasted one day. I'm actually disappointed in Vince...I always knew he was a shitty QB but I never figured him to be one to just give up as soon as he faced even the smallest challenge. Even if he doesn't end up retiring, how can he be expected to lead a football team when his feelings get hurt every time he stinks and gets booed (which is actually pretty often?) Now the Titans may be without their franchise QB, and Vince Young will have to live with the fact that he let his teammates and a city down.

So much for being "In-Vince-ible," eh?

If Phillies Fans Are "Front-runners"...

2008-08-27T00:51:00.000-07:00

...then what does that make New York baseball fans?

Of course by now most baseball fans around the country have heard about Jimmy Rollins' comments about Phillies fans, basically saying they love you when you're winning and hate you when you're losing. Clearly, Jimmy has never had to play in New York before because if life is tough for a ballplayer in Philly it has to be a million times tougher in the Big Apple.

Unless you are on the Mets, in which case nobody really gives a damn how you play...but I digress.

Alex Rodriguez is a guy I have defended for a long time because I feel like he gets a bad rap from Yankee fans. Yeah he makes a lot of money and is mentioned in tabloids about as often as he is on ESPN, but the fact is he is one of the best all-around players in baseball. You wouldn't know this in New York however; If A-Rod is struggling at all he is pure garbage. End of story.

In Philly we boo guys like Carlos Ruiz, who actually suck and deserve to get booed. In New York, they attack their team's best player regardless of whether it is warranted or not. Making the money he does obviously is what makes him a target, but if you are too uneducated of a fan to take a long hard look at your team and what its REAL problems are then you should have no right to boo anyone in the first place.

A-Rod is batting .308 as of tonight with 28 homers and 78 RBIs. He has an on base percentage of nearly .400, which is pretty damn good. Yet the one stat the New York Daily News picks to put on the front page of their sports section: A-Rod is 1 for 10 with the bases loaded this season. Wow, really? 9 missed opportunities by ONE of your players isn't going to make or break your year: having zero starting pitching tends to fuck you over though.

Chien-Ming Wang is out. So are Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain. Hideki Matsui just came off the DL this month, and is hitting just .182 since getting back. Jorge Posada is done for the year, and Ian Kennedy might as well be (aka he is really bad). Same can be said for Pudge Rodriguez, who has a sterling .208 batting average since coming over in a deadline trade from the Tigers. These are some key losses/poor performances for a team that was way too old to begin with. Placing the blame on one guy for all of this is just pathetic and stupid.

In Yankee fans defense: A-Rod's batting average is .221 in August, but his OBP (.349) and power numbers (5 HRs in 68 ABs) haven't taken too big a hit. Plus he is still batting .299 overall since the All-Star break.

None of that really matters though: A-Rod could be batting .400, have one bad game, and still get booed for it. They'll call him A-bum, A-bysmal, Double-Play-Rod, but without him the Yankees would probably be one of the worst teams in the American League.

Hey Jimmy, it could always be worse.

Elisha Manning: Prepare to be Exposed

2008-08-24T15:59:00.000-07:00

Now that Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora is out for the season with a knee injury Elisha Manning is going to be exposed for the mediocre quarterback he/she really is.

The Giants are now without their two most talented defensive ends from last season (Michael Strahan retired). This is going to kill their pass rush, which was the reason their defense was so good.

Without having the benefit of good field position that a great defense provides, Elisha is going to find it a lot tougher to consistently move the ball and get points out of possessions. Also factor in that Jeremy Shockey was traded to the Saints, and you have a recipe for disaster.

But what about those who feel like Elisha made strides in the playoffs last season? Yeah he/she looked good against the Bucs and Boys, but his/her last two games against the Packers and Patriots were anything but solid. He/she could have easily thrown 3 picks if the Patriots took full advantage of the opportunities they had to clinch that game. Hell, Asante Samuel dropped an INT that would have ended the game and that catch by David Tyree was pure bullshit luck. Elisha tried to give the game away but lucked out when the Pats choked.

Without that awesome defense, Elisha is set up to fail miserably, because now he/she will have to actually step up and make plays and not let the defense do the dirty work for him/her. Because of that, the Giants will miss the playoffs in '08-'09 and will be lucky not to finish dead last in the NFC East.

(Thanks to atomicsportsmedia.com for the picture)

Why I Hate the USC Marching Band

2008-08-20T20:56:00.001-07:00

Call me a traitor, call me a closet UCLA fan, but I hate the USC Trojan Marching Band.

Yes, I went to USC for the past 3 1/2 years. I love the University, and will continue supporting the school and its sports teams until the day I die. The one exception to this however is the USC Marching Band.

They claim to be the greatest marching band in the history of the Universe, but allow me to explain why this is anything BUT true in one simple sentence:

The band members are not nearly as cool as they think they are.

So, you are in the band? You have a "training camp" just like the football team, where you basically hog the track on campus for a few days and work on your pointless formations? You spend 75% of your free time playing an instrument no one cares about? You spend the other 25% of your free time "practicing" the lamest dance moves ever conceived by man? You are constantly being screamed at by some old fart with a megaphone? You think you are infinitely more awesome than you really are?

If any of those questions made being in the band sound fun to you then find the nearest blunt object and bash yourself over the head with it. Repeatedly.

Things would be so much simpler if band members just admitted they were losers, but instead for some reason they feel entitled to act like they are God's gift to Trojan fans. Is this true for everyone in the band? Probably not, but the arrogance is widespread enough to be a huge problem.

- 2 Stories to Support my Cause -

- One Saturday hours before game time, I leave Heritage Hall to start walking to the Coliseum. A group of band members are conveniently blocking the entire walkway out of the building. I politely say, "Excuse me," and go to walk between two of them, when the group leader pushes me back and yells at me for trying to walk through. They weren't playing, they weren't doing shit, but HEAVEN FORBID I WALK THROUGH THEIR FUCKING LINE. I ended up climbing through some nearby bushes to get past.

- Just prior to halftime at the Rose Bowl, the band is leaving their seats to set up on the sidelines. One group of flute/clarinet/whatever gay instrument you can think of players starts walking in front of the photographers ON THE FIELD, DURING A USC PLAY in the red zone on that side of the field (these photographers were in the end zone).

One of the photographers says, "Hey, excuse me, we can't see. You are supposed to be walking behind us," to which the group leader responds, "Oh well. Get over it." The photographer replies, "Come on man this is our job! We can't afford to miss plays!" The Band group leader snaps back, "Well at least I don't have a job where I'm on my knees for a living!"

I was so stunned I couldn't say a word.

Someone needs to remind these cocky fucks that without the football team, they wouldn't exist. People don't go to games to see them play, they go to see the ACTUAL FOOTBALL TEAM. GET THE FUCK OVER YOURSELVES!

Oh, and I'm pretty sure the "greatest marching band in the history of the Universe" doesn't recycle the SAME SONGS AND ROUTINES every year, and I'm also pretty sure "greatest marching band in the history of the Universe" has halftime shows that don't suck, and doesn't embarrass their fellow Trojan fans by behaving like a bunch of fucking 10-year olds at sporting events. Not even the greatness of Tusk can make up for the arrogance and general shittiness of our band.

However, I can't finish this argument without adding that as bad as USC's band is, Stanford's is 1,000 times worse. Not only is all (or at least most) of the above true, but they are just generally crude and disgusting human beings who can't play an instrument to save their pathetic lives. But that is neither here, nor there.

Now you know why I hate the USC Marching Band.

Phils Aquire Eyre

2008-08-07T13:39:00.000-07:00

The Phillies picked up that left-handed reliever they were looking for today, getting Scott Eyre from the Cubs.

What I want to know...can the guy hit? Because that seems to be the Phils main issue right now. When you get shutout by the Marlins (who I still think will fade down the stretch) you know you have problems.

Even more troubling: what the hell is wrong with Jimmy Rollins? Here's a guy who was the MVP of the NL last season and had one of his best years as a pro, and now he can barely hit, much less come through in the clutch.

Oh, and how could I forget the two games he was forced to sit out because he wouldn't run out a pop up and showed up late for a game against the Mets. I am going to be very blunt here: J-Roll has transformed from one of the best shortstops in the league into an average-mediocre player. Someone needs to light a fire under his ass, because it doesn't even look like he cares anymore. Just pathetic, Jimmy.

Looking on the bright side, I came up with that brilliant Eyre-aquire piece of alliteration all by myself. Impressive, I know.

Farva's a Jet

2008-08-07T13:30:00.000-07:00

This is a brilliant move by the Pack. Now they don't have to put up with the old man's shenanigans, and Bretty boy will waste away the last days of his career playing for a crappy team, in a crappy stadium, in front of even crappier fans.

On the down side for Jets fans: Favre throws more picks that TDs this season.

On the plus side: at least they can spell. J-E-T-S SUCKS SUCKS SUCKS!

Foley's Thoughts on Brett Favre

2008-08-05T17:56:00.000-07:00

For all intents and purposes this blog focuses more on the Philly side of the sports world, but the one story that has dominated headlines around the country through the summer has been the "Brett Favre Crisis."

For those who have been living under a rock the past few months (or the US equivalent of Detroit) let me break this whole situation down for you: Overly-emotional future Hall of Fame Packers QB retires; is asked to come back; says no; then later decides he wants to come back anyway. It wouldn't be half the story it is today if it weren't for the fact that we've seen this whole act from one Brett Lorenzo Favre before.

I'm going to spare you the further history of the situation...if you really want to know just Wikipedia "Brett Favre" and look it up. This is my take on the debacle...Brett Favre is an utter piece of crap, and the only thing he cares about is Brett Favre.

Look, the guy retired, then continued to insist he was done with football when the Packers offered to bring him back. At that point, as an NFL franchise, the Packers are obligated to move on. They have a QB in Aaron Rodgers who put in the time, waited patiently, and while I personally feel like the guy isn't that good he deserves his shot at NFL stardom.

Here is my list of grievances with Favre, in no particular order:

1. We've been through this before.

Favre admitted that he had lost the will to play NFL football in his retirement press conference in March, then turned around in July and said he wants to come back. This comes after last season, when he also announced he was going to retire then ended up coming back the next season. It's the same shit every single time...MAKE UP YOUR FUC*ING MIND ALREADY!

2. Favre didn't give a damn about the consequences of his actions.

Did Brett consider how big of a distraction this would be to his former team? What about Aaron Rodgers? Rodgers is in a lose-lose situation right now because if he makes so much as one mistake in a game Packers fans will be pissed that they let Favre go, and even if he plays well there will still be those that want to see Favre back in Green Bay.

Speaking of no win situations: keep in mind that the Packers players will be hearing questions about Favre for a long time, which puts them in an awkward position. Do you back your former long time leader, or the franchise?

The fact is Brett Favre is selfish...he only considered what he wanted and not how it would impact those around him, and now his longtime team is suffering because of it.

3. Now Favre wants to go to a rival team.

Further proving Favre's greed was his next move after the Packers rightly refused to let him back: he asked to be released. Now, in an ultimate act of betrayal, he says he wants to come back to one of the Packer's division rivals. How do you think that makes Packers fans feel?

How Brett can go from being with a team for 15 years to wanting to play for that team's rival is beyond me. Does the man have one ounce of loyalty to the franchise that supported him all this time? Some may feel that the Packers turned their back on Brett when they refused to let him back, but what precedent would they be setting if they just let players retire then return whenever they want? What would stop a lazy star from retiring before camp, then un-retiring at the start of the season to avoid the extra work?

Favre knew he would be putting the Packers in a tough spot...then again that was his goal all along.

4. The Brett-Barack Butt-Kissing Effect

Allow me to explain the Brett-Barack Butt-Kissing Effect as simply as possible:

Brett Favre is to the sports media, what Barack Obama is to the political media.

That is, these two men are media darlings, which often means they dodge criticism that is rightfully deserved. In Obama's case his complete lack of experience is brushed over by the media because he somehow represents "change." All of this, of course, is the result of good PR and a gullible media who would eat Obama's shit if he told them to (If it leads to "progress", well why wouldn't they?!?).

As for Favre...well anyone who has watched a Packer game over the past couple seasons knows how bad NFL announcers and analysts can get, but I brought in an example for those who may not know.

In this clip, Brett Favre throws an interception that would cost his team a chance at the Super Bowl (one thing Favre IS good at). This is a TERRIBLE pass...Favre literally could have filed his nails and plucked his eyebrows in that pocket before anyone got to him, but he still throws up a lame duck that ANY quarterback would be ripped for. Except of course, Brett Favre.

"Was it a ball that just slipped out of his hand? Was it something he wasn't expecting from Donald Driver?" Even one of the better analysts in the business, Troy Aikman (yes, I just complimented a former Cowboy), makes excuses for Brett. He resorts to blaming a slippery hand, or even the receiver...but HEAVEN FORBID it be Brett Favre's fault! This isn't even the best example of the media's unnatural love for this man but it will have to do.

The Brett Favre worship is easliy the worst at ESPN. Favre could fart and cough at the same time and it would be the lead story on ESPN.com. It's gotten so bad that ESPN interrupted a live baseball game to show Favre's plane landing in Green Bay during the "crisis", then the announcers went on to talk about the fuc*ing issue for the fifty millionth time DURING THE MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL GAME! Oh wait, BREAKING NEWS! BRETT FAVRE TOOK A SHIT WHEN HE GOT OFF THE PLANE, THEN WENT TO ARBYS FOR A HAM AND CHEDDAR. AHHHHHHHH!!!!!

I can honestly say I hate Brett Favre not only for being a selfish prick, but also for being on the screen every time I try to watch something on ESPN. And they are usually kissing his ass to top it off.

Look, you can say what you want about how the Packers screwed up their end of the situation...the truth is this should have never happened to begin with. Favre shouldn't have retired until he was sure he wanted to go. Even once Favre realized he wanted to come back there were tons of ways he could have handled the ordeal better. Now he has irreversibly tarnished his legacy, and the rat bastard only has himself to blame.

___________________________________________________
Special thanks to FavreSucks.com for the photo. No I'm not kidding...it's a real site.

Back to Updating

2008-08-03T21:01:00.000-07:00

Hey folks! It's been a while, I know. Things just got too busy with school to keep updating the blog. I couldn't go and let this die though, and I sure as hell wasn't going to let my last post be about Michelle Tafoya and Suzy Kolber (although I'm sure they are two fine ladies).

Time isn't really a concern anymore too given the fact that I graduated from USC in May and I am now UNEMPLOYED! By the way, if you happen to own a minor league hockey team and are looking for a play-by-play guy let me know!

Look forward to more angry, biased rants to come. I have a lot of steam to let out about this whole Brett Favre fiasco too, so look forward to that.

Kolber, Tafoya are free on Mondays all of a sudden...

2008-02-11T12:47:00.000-08:00

Michelle Tafoya and Suzy Kolber, two of the few NFL sideline reporters that don't annoy the hell out of me, are supposedly being dropped by ESPN from MNF telecasts.

There has to be some behind the scenes motive for ESPN to do this, because both of them did a terrific job last season and offered more to the broadcast than maybe even John Madden himself.

ESPN hasn't confirmed whether or not they will even replace Kolber and Tafoya, making me wonder if this isn't the beginning of the end of the sideline reporter. Considering ~~Andrea Kramer~~ THE WORST SIDELINE REPORTER EVER...

"SO Peyton, say you threw 5 touchdowns instead of 5 interceptions in this game, how would that have made you feel if that had really happened? AND say I was hot for you and wanted to take you back to John Madden's trailer and ride that hot redneck piece of ass...how would that make you feel?"

...and ~~Tony Siragusa~~ THE DUMBEST HUMAN BEING EVER...

"Yah guyz, so i telked to coch DIT-KA and he sed da bears wud need to score moor points ten da other team ta win da game!!!!!"

...are all still employed by NBC and Fox, the death of the sideline reporter may not be such a bad thing after all.

(On a sidenote, whoever comes up with the funniest caption for that Siragusa picture in the comments section wins a new car...or a pat on the back. If I were a betting man though I'd put my money on the pat on the back.)

The worst trade in the NBA this season...

2008-02-06T18:10:00.000-08:00

...was clearly the Phoenix Suns trading for Shaq. At least the Grizzlies got a huge expiring contract, a good young PG, and picks for Pau Gasol.

If you are Suns GM Steve Kerr, what the hell could you possibly be thinking in giving up Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks for a 35-year-old has-been? Marion is 29, entering the prime of his career, and is a guy who can do it all as an athletic power forward. Marion was perfect for the Suns because he fit in with their run 'n gun style of play beautifully: not only will he haul in nearly double-digit boards a game, but he can shoot the three-ball too! Shaq can barely run the court anymore, much less be a factor in a high tempo offense. Let me put this trade as simply as I possibly can:

The Suns gave up a young PG, and an extremely talented forward who fit the team's style of play for an injury-prone, out of shape center who is 35 and averages fewer points and boards per game than the forward.

Makes a lot of sense, right?

If I were the Suns I would have kept Marion, and instead moved Amare Stoudamire. Yeah the guy is a good, young center, but he can't (or won't) play defense and has lingering injury concerns. Even if I was dead-set on trading Marion, the Suns could have done a lot better than Banks/Marion for O'Neal straight up.

I know we haven't reached the trade deadline yet, but this will likely be the worst deal any GM pulls off in the NBA this season.

RE: The Super Bowl

2008-02-06T18:08:00.000-08:00

Sure, my prediction was just a wee bit off. I blame that on the fact that the Patriots didn't bother to show up. I still called 17 points for the Giants right on the money! That's gotta mean something right?

My Super Bowl pick, and why anyone would possibly pick the Giants...

2008-01-30T00:42:00.000-08:00

From the title of this post you probably already know my Super Bowl pick. But just in case you don't let me make it abundantly clear for you.

There is no possible way the Giants win this game. Tom Brady could have braces on BOTH of his damn feet and I still wouldn't care. Here are my reasons for taking the Pats:

1. The game is in Arizona, not the Meadowlands.

Sure, the Giants played the Pats close back in December. But New England still won. And this time the Giants won't have a packed house behind their back. Oh, and NEW ENGLAND STILL WON!

2. The Patriots have the better QB.

Actually let me correct that previous understatement...The Patriots have the ~~better~~ INFINITELY SUPERIOR IN EVERY SINGLE WAY QB!!!! (Notice the numerous exclamation marks for added emphasis!)

Comparing Elisha, errr, Eli to Tom Brady is like comparing a turd to a gold nugget. Or better yet, the musical stylings of Sanjaya to the Stones. Catch my drift? I don't need any of this "statistical analysis" those so called "experts" at "ESPN" use. (Notice the parenthesis for added sarcasm?) We all know Brady is a hall-of-famer while Elisha is the red-headed stepchild of the retarded Manning brothers.

And the better QB in post-2000 Super Bowls has always won. Just take a look.

SB XXXIV (2000)

Kurt Warner > Steve McNair
(Rams beat Titans)

That was just Warner's year. He was the Super Bowl MVP for a reason.

SB XXXV (2001)

Trent Dilfer > Kerry Collins
(Ravens beat Giants)

A close call, but Dilfer was smart enough to know when to play mistake-free football and let his defense do the dirty work

SB XXXVI (2002)

Tom Brady > Kurt Warner
(Pats beat Rams)

The beginning of the tyrannical reign of Belichick.

SB XXXVII (2003)

Brad Johnson > Rich Gannon
(Bucs beat Raiders)

They both suck, but only one of them threw 5 INTs in the Big Game. So Johnson is the winner by default.

SB XXXVIII (2004)

Brady > Delhomme
(Pats beat Panthers)

Hahahahahanocomparisonhahahahahahaha.

SB XXXwhatever (2005)

Brady > McNabb
(Pats beat Iggles)

#5 will always be my boy, but the better QB won (not saying he didn't cheat in the process though *cough*spygate*coughcough*.

SB XXXromannumeralssuck (2006)

Big Ben > Hasselbeck
(Steelers beat Seahawks)

Neither one is elite, but I'd take Ben over Matt any day of the week. However, if I ever wanted a QB to guarantee a win going into OT then throw the game away I'd definitely have to go with Hasselbeck. If I just wanted a QB to throw away a close playoff game I'd have to go with one Brett Lorenzo Farve.

SB XLI (2007)

Manning > Grossman
(Colts beat Bears)

Hahahahahahanocomparisonhahahahahahaha.

Starting to see my point? Just to further cement my (right) argument, who would you take between these two QBs?

Option A (Also known as the right option)

OR Option B (also known as the infinitely inferior option)

Game. Set. Match. Moving on.

3. The Patriots actually have time to gameplan.

New England had 1 less day to prepare for their Saturday night game against the Giants than they normally would have, yet they still found a way to hold the Giants talented front-7 to just 1 sack. Now the Pats have had weeks to prepare. Then again, so have the Giants, but that won't matter so much because...

4. Bill Belichick is a better coach than Tom Coughlin.

Coughlin was a guy who deserved to be fired last offseason, and I don't invest too much in his team's sudden turnaround this season. When push comes to shove, would you rather have the guy who is 14-2 in the playoffs and 3-0 in Super Bowls coaching your team...the man with the intimidatingly miserably disposition and the obvious ties to Satan? Or this guy:

How can this be so easy?

Seriously? How could ANYONE in their right mind pick the Giants?

Let me tell you why: for the attention. At this point most of America knows who is going to win, so it's a big deal when someone who makes a living as an "expert" picks the vastly inferior team.

Take for instance Dr. Z of Sports Illustrated. Here is a guy who hasn't been popular since the 80's (just guessing cause he's really old) who picks NFL games every week, gets outpicked by a supermodel who can't tell her head from her fine fine ass (at least I think he did, I don't follow that garbage closely enough to care), and writes a shitty column for SI.com. Now he's picking the Giants to win and he wants to world to know it. Hell, they even mention it on the cover of the mag...

So why would Dr. Z do this? Is he insane, or is he taking a calculated risk?

If the Giants pulled off the epic upset and crushed the Pats bid for history, this guy could brag about this pick for the rest of his life (however long/short that may be). If the Giants lose, he just chalks it up to old age/stupidity and moves on.

Low risk - high reward.

So when you hear some random bum you never heard of take the Giants, now you know why, because the rest of us know who will really win.

Final Score:

Patriots 45
Giants 17

Yes, Boston fans are just that obnoxious...

2008-01-29T23:40:00.000-08:00

I'm back! And surprise surprise, my first post has to do with perhaps the most obnoxious fan base in the country.

No Raider fans...believe it or not you have been surpassed by the sheer arrogance that seeps from Patriot fans! Not even other sports are safe anymore. Take a look at this comment
on a Yahoo! Sports story about current Timberwolve(Timberwolf?)/former Celtic Gerald Green possibly being traded...

Hey you Minnesota Fans..... It sucks right being so bad????? Well just so you know you Timberwolves fans Gerald Green Is not a bad player what so ever, you guys just haven't seen him due to the coach not playing the kid. In Boston he was starting to turn his play around and for the better. Hitting the outside Jumper and everything. His only weakness was DEF. But for you guys to think he sucks YOUR NUTZ!!!!! I know very well that any Boston fan would take him back in a second!! The kid can play and he's still so young and has so much more time to improve his game!! Thats why you guys are Timberwolves Fans!! Stick to your Vikings haha MOSS WE GOT MOSS hahah.. Go Pats. 4th Super Bowl in 7 Years hahah

How do I know this a really a Pats fan? Well the poor spelling/grammar is a big hint.

Look, cheap digs aside isn't this getting a bit out of control? Yeah Boston, you've won a lot of titles recently. Good for you. Doesn't mean the rest of the country needs to hear about it on a daily basis. All of this winning is going to stop at some point, and believe me, none of you rat bastards will ever hear the end of it.

Enjoy it while it lasts.

Patrice the Hypocrite

2007-11-08T13:02:00.000-08:00

Patrice Bergeron bitched *errr* "addressed" the media today about Randy Jones' hit that left him with a concussion and left Jones suspended for two games.

First let me say I'm glad Bergeron is ok. It was a dangerous situation, as you can tell in this clip...

Definitely a scary hit, but Bergeron certainly could have done more to prepare himself for the impact. Randy Jones' teammates will attest that he is one of the classier players in the game. He wouldn't go out and try to cripple a man like that.

In this case I'm not here to rip on Jones; I actually have a problem with Patrice Bergeron. He tries to make Jones out to be this monster, when in reality he is a coward and a hypocrite. In the ESPN story Bergeron is quoted as saying:

Hitting is part of the game, but not from behind. It's in the rules. You see a player's name and number, you need to stop. We need to respect the players. Now we see the consequences. Fortunately I can sit up here, I'm not in a wheelchair."

Well Patrice, look what I found on YouTube...

So Patrice Bergeron is bitching about cheap shots, yet he has two in THE SAME YOUTUBE CLIP! Especially that first hit from behind...100 times worse than Jones' hit. While Jones bumped Bergeon and he fell into the boards, Bergeron actually forces the guy down and rides him into the boards purposely.

The evidence speaks for itself. Maybe Bergeron should keep his big mouth shut and consider himself lucky that any of the victims of his own cheapshots aren't in wheelchairs themselves.

The Foley Poll

2007-11-06T11:40:00.000-08:00

Each week I will rank the top 10 teams in college football (including a couple "bubble" teams). There's no complex formula at work here people, just my honest opinion on where the top teams really belong.

#1 Ohio State

I've resisted making them the top team for several weeks, but that win against Penn State really showed me something. We'll find out if they really deserve to be #1 when they play Michigan.

#2 LSU

This is a pretty darn good team, and even though they've played a majority of thier tough games at home they've still played a tougher schedule than most of these top teams.

#3 Oregon

This team is legit, folks. Dennis Dixon is a true Heisman candidate (assuming he stays healthy), and their defense has really stepped it up the last couple weeks against USC and ASU.

#4 Oklahoma

The loss to Colorado is looking more an more like a fluke, and they have a couple impressive wins over Texas and Missouri.

#5 Kansas

They are undefeated, but who have they played? Kansas State was the only ranked opponent they've faced, and prior to their ass-kicking of Nebraska (who sucks, by the way) they barely got by Colorado (19-11) and Texas A&M (19-14). Their only real test will be when they play Missouri on Nov. 24. Either way, this team just isn't that good. Sorry Jayhawk fans.

#6 Missouri

They are coming off a 55-10 beatdown of Colorado, and have an explosive offense led by QB Chase Daniel. I'm looking forward to their upcoming game against Kansas...that's when we'll learn everything we need to know about both teams.

#7 West Virginia

They absolutely man-handled Rutgers, but that loss to mediocre USF really stands out. They haven't played a very difficult schedule either. Then again, they didn't have Pat White for part of that USF game and any team with two Heisman candidates on offense (White and Steve Slaton) deserves some respect.

#8 Arizona State

They put up a heck of fight against Oregon after falling behind early but still lost their first game of the season. Now let's see how they do against USC on Thanksgiving.

#9 USC

Let's get one thing straight: the Stanford game was a complete fluke. Now that we got that out of the way, this team has the talent to be a top 5 team. They just need to avoid the injury bug the rest of the way and they should be able to run the table and get into as BCS bowl game...despite having John David Booty as their quarterback (Don't underestimate that great defense!)

#10 Georgia

This team is quite the enigma...they beat Alabama and Florida on the road, but lose to South Carolina and Tennessee. How does that work?

On the bubble...

Boston College

How can you say this team is for real? They haven't beat any very good teams, they should have lost to VT, and they did lose to Florida State. FLORIDA STATE?!? That's two bad games in a row for over-hyped Matt Ryan too.

Michigan

They haven't lost since that debacle against Oregon, and Matt Henne is finally healthy again. Don't sleep on the Wolverines; they stand a very real chacne of upsetting Ohio State.

Virginia Tech

Rebounded against Georgia Tech after dropping that tough one to BC.

An Open Letter to Terrell Owens

2007-11-05T00:27:00.000-08:00

Dear Terrell,

After the Cowboy's big win over the Eagles tonight, I'd be willing to bet you are feeling pretty good about yourself. I mean 174 yards, a touchdown...not a bad performance by any stretch of the imagination.

Here's the thing: while your team won, you're still a loser.

You showed your true colors when you ripped Donovan McNabb and the Eagles before Sunday's game. Heaven forbid you keep your mouth shut and let your play do the talking. It's not like Donovan has ever said one bad thing about you...ever. The problem with you, Terrell, is it always has to be about TO.

Winning has a tendency of solving a lot of problems so you may not have destroyed the Cowboy's organization yet, but don't let your recent history disguise what you really are...a worthless, immature, self-centered, egomaniac whose only real contribution to sports was necessitating the advent of the Roy Williams rule.

That being said, I honestly can't even say I hate you TO. I feel sorry for you. I really do. You embody everything that is wrong in sports. Every action you perform has to be for you...about you. TO didn't play in that Super Bowl for the Eagles; he played in that game for himself. You wanted more money and you wanted to put the franchise and the fans in an awkward position that would make them look like the villains if they didn't advocate giving in to your selfish demands.

Whatever...that's over and done with. Some may write this off as the angry venting of a frustrated Eagles fan, but at this point in the season I've come to grips with the fact that this isn't our year. I just wanted to remind you that despite the fact you may think you had the last laugh tonight, the truth is, a mere victory on the gridiron will never change what you are and what you stand for.

And for that, I pity you.

Congrats to the Sox...

2007-10-28T22:45:00.000-07:00

We get it. You won. Now shut the hell up. Thanks.

Don't Point the Finger at #5

2007-10-23T11:22:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since the last post, so you may be wondering what prompted me to sit down and vent in the form of a blog post today.

Well I'm fucking pissed, that's why.

With their loss to the Bears on Sunday, the Eagles dropped to 2-4 and cemented their place in the cellar of the NFC East. Obviously, when a team with playoff-caliber talent struggles somebody has to take the blame. In this case, that person is Donovan McNabb.

Here's a little clip from a column from yesterday's Delaware County Times by Jack McCaffery...

The Eagles have a massive problem at quarterback, whether Reid elects or not to activate the alarm. McNabb, never highly accurate, now is slower and duller and so much less effective. Teammates are beginning to wonder, even the ones who understand that McNabb has had a multi-Pro Bowl career and deserves the reward of patience for his courage during a relatively quick return from complex knee surgery. McNabb is the third best quarterback in his four-team division.

First things first, McNabb is actually statistically the second best QB in his division. Tony Romo would be #1 at this point, but McNabb has a higher QB rating (88.4) than Elisha Manning (82.9) and Jason Campbell (78.5). McNabb also has 7 TDs and just 2 INTs this season. Compared to Manning (13-9), Campbell (5-5), and even Romo (16-9) thats not bad at all.

You know what this tells me? Jack McCaffery likes to spout bullshit that he can't back it up. Had he just spent two minutes, gone over the NFL.com and looked up the stats he might have realized that McNabb is actually a whole heck of a lot better than 2 out of the other 3 QBs in the division. He also has a more proven track record than Romo.

Looking at the rest of that quote, it's hard to deny the fact that McNabb is not his usual self this season. He is over-throwing his receievers, and his stats aren't where they normally would be at if he were healthy.

The thing is, McNabb is coming off a serious off-season surgery that usually takes QBs around a year or two to recover from. Carson Palmer experienced similar setbacks after he suffered a similar injury. It is unrealistic to expect a guy to come back from that and regain his Pro-Bowl form.

Are the Eagles' struggles really McNabb's fault? What about the inconsistent defense? What about the shoddy play-calling? What about the lack of an impact WR on the roster? What about all the drops? Reggie Brown dropped a touchdown pass against Chicago, and Kevin Curtis and Thomas Tapeh also dropped crucial passes. Are you going to pin that on McNabb?

What about the injuries to Westbrook and William Thomas? Do you want McNabb to throw for 300 yards and 4 TDs with some useless bastard named Winston Justice at left tackle giving up 6 freakin' sacks to the same freakin' guy in the same freakin' game?!?

The unrealistic expectations of Eagle fans and the Philly media have finally caught up with McNabb. Ever since the franchise drafted Donovan over Ricky Williams the bar has been set unreasonably high for number 5, and now that the team is struggling and he isn't at the top of his game all those naysayers finally have their opportunity to bury the guy.

Fine. Go ahead. just don't come crying to me when McNabb has a Pro-Bowl season next year in Chicago because all of you gave up on him.

Barry isn't the only one to blame

2007-08-08T12:10:00.000-07:00

To me, this whole Barry Bonds steroid controversy is incredibly simple.

Barry is a cheater. The book "Game of Shadows" gives you just about everything you need to know to come to this conclusion. If you haven't checked it out I encourage you to read this excerpt on Sports Illustrated.com.

What we learn from the book is, aside from being a terrible person, Bonds made a concious choice to inject himself with steroids because he was jealous of all the attention Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were getting during their chase of the single-season home-run record.

Barry may think 756 is his last laugh against all those who doubt him, but in reality Barry is just a fraud: it's really as simple as that. He was a great player before steroids, but the drugs took him to an entirely different level. 756 will never mean anything to plenty of baseball fans out there, at least not until someone else manages to break that mark in the future.

But Barry Bonds shouldn't be the sole scapegoat in this situation. As much as I blame him, I blame the entirity of Major League Baseball (including the Player's Association) for letting this happen. But if there is one figure who should take responsiblity for this aside from Bonds himself it should be Commissioner Bud Selig.

Had there been strict testing for steroids and other illegal substances prior to 2000, none of this would be an issue. Instead of confronting the potential reality of performance-enhancing drugs, Selig instead decided to turn a blind eye to this sleeping giant (literally and figuratively) and now it has blown up in his face.

Don't get me wrong; I am in no way defending what Bonds did. He used steroids to unfairly boost his performance. He is a conceited jerk. 756 should absolutely have an asterisk by it. The argument that "he never got caught so it's ok," is bullshit. Bonds has forever tainted the game of baseball and I like to think that one day he will pay for it one day by having his precious record taken away from him.

But let's not forget that Bud Selig is the one who let this happen in the first place. Last night will go down in history as a defining moment for Major League Baseball...8:51 pm West Coast time will mark the very minute that baseball lost its innocence. My insincerest apologies to McGwire, Sosa, Canseco, and Palmeiro, but this trumps anything they ever managed to accomplish throughout their controversial careers. The reality of steroids in baseball has finally hit home in a more palpable way than we could have ever imagined.

Where does baseball go from here? I honestly have no clue, but I do know that Bud Selig is not the man to make the game respectable and trustworthy again.

As for Bonds...he will suffer a fate worse than anyone else in this ordeal. He is already percieved as an ass, and this "record" will do nothing to change that. What is more troubling is what all of these steroids will do to his body and personality once his playing days are long over. We've been told of how he's changed since he joined the league in "Game of Shadows," and we all saw what happened to Chris Benoit and his family; most-likely due to rampant steroid use. Put two-and-two together, and Barry Bonds may not get the last laugh after all.

The new look...

2007-08-04T19:41:00.000-07:00

Just mixing it up a bit. Had to give some love to SC in honor of their summer camp, which starts tomorrow.

Talk about fitting in...

2007-08-03T16:13:00.000-07:00

Fresh off the front page of ESPN.com...

Texas freshman defensive tackle Andre Jones was arrested and booked into jail on an aggravated robbery charge Friday, his 18th birthday.

Does this kid belong at UT or what? Definitely not an 18th birthday to remember though.

In honor of Jones' arrest Texas is considering altering their school logo for their 2007 football season...

The Sound off

2007-07-27T19:26:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first installment of the Sound off! Basically I just spout my opinion on a variety of current stories in the sports world. Simple eh?

Let's start with some guy named Michael Vick. Chances are you've heard him. I'm not even going to get into what exactly is going on because if you don't know then you shouldn't be reading this blog.

I'm sick and tired of hearing about how Vick is not getting his due process because of racism. The fact is, this has little to nothing to do with race. Michael Vick just is not a very good person. Remember that whole Ron Mexico thing? And the drug bust at the airport?

The feds wouldn't be indicting this guy if they didn't have a damn good case against him. And while he certainly deserves his day in court, people are going to speculate whether he really is guilty or not. Hell, some people may even hope he is guilty and gets busted. Us 'common folk' for some reason love watching the rich and mighty fall - we saw the same thing with Paris Hilton and Lindsey Lohan...

Except they weren't accused of brutally murdering tons and tons of dogs.

Now I can't speak for everyone, because there are some sick assholes out there, but a majority of people here aren't looking to take down the rich, black quarterback. Race ultimately has nothing to do with this case, and the only real racists in this ordeal are the people who constantly insinuate that it is there in the first place.

And now for perhaps the most ridiculous statement of the week...

UCLA assistant football coach Eric Scott was recently arrested on suspicion of residential burglary. His attorney came on the Mason and Ireland radio show on 570 AM today in defense of his client, pointing out that the evidence against Scott is iffy at best.

Now I don't know a ton of exact details on the case, but Scott's lawyer at one point hinted that Scott was prematurely arrested because he 'was a figure associated with UCLA of some newsworthiness.'

At that point this guy lost ALL his credibility with me. Are you fuckin' serious?!? I guarantee when Scott was arrested the cops' thought process didn't go like this:

Cop #1: Hey, this guy totally looks familiar!! Isn't that...

Cop #2: Eric Scott! Yeah I immediately recognized him too! UCLA's new receiver's coach!

Cop #1: Wow I can't believe more people don't recognize this guy! Let's screw him over and arrest him for nothing just because he coaches at UCLA!

Cop #2: Great idea Cop #1!

No, I'd be willing to wager it didn't go down like that. Is the guy innocent or guilty - we'll find out. But UCLA did the right thing and suspended him until they find out for sure.

That's it for now, but as more stories start breaking I'll sound off on 'em.

My Encounter with Milton Bradley

2007-07-22T20:11:00.000-07:00

Milton Bradley may have landed in San Diego, but he won't be there for long.

With the Phillies in town playing the Padres, I made the trip down to Petco Park with my mom and sister to cheer on my team. I have to say, if you've never been there you absolutely need to take in a game at that ballpark at some point in your life. It really is a beautiful stadium with a lot to do for the fans there.

The game itself was fantastic too as the Phillies stomped the Padres 9-0. J.D Durban and his 9.00 ERA outdueled All-Star starter Jake Peavy for his first career shutout.

As if that wasn't sweet enough, I also had the pleasure of watching Michael Barrett AND Milton Bradley self-destruct on separate occasions, reminding us all why they were run out of town on their last ballclubs.

Barrett was ejected in the fifth along with Padres manager Bud Black arguing a third-strike call, and of course I couldn't help but cheer Mikey on in the hopes he'd deck the ump just like he did Carlos Zambrano in Chicago. Unfortunately Barrett only spiked his helmet and screamed in the umpire's face. What a shame.

A bit later in the game Milton Bradley really started hearing it from a crowd out in left field. The funny thing is...it was all Padre fans that were on him. I couldn't hear what they were yelling but a group of guys was letting him have it, while a bunch of others cheered them on. Bradley kept looking back telling them to sit down and shut up while giving them some dirty looks, and eventually started staggering and making a drinking motion to tease the evidently drunk fans.

The guy just doesn't get it. When your hometown fans are heckling you you know there's a serious problem, and when the player is responding back in a negative way it's easy to see how Bradley got kicked out of Cleveland, LA, AND Oakland, and ended up here.

Anyway, on to my part in this story. The next inning, a Phillies player hit a high pop up down the left field line near where I was sitting (on the railing in the first row). As Bradley came in to make the catch, I did what any self-respecting Phillies fan would do and yelled at him, "miss it!" He made the catch, I threw my hands up in a pissed off fashion, sat down, and I thought that was the end of it.

However, as I turned my back to Bradley he evidently told me to shut up and stared me down for a good five seconds. I know this, because several people sitting around me started laughing and told me what happened.

Seriously, it's not like I yelled, "HEY MILTON! I SCREWED YOUR MOM, PUNCHED YOUR CAT IN THE FACE, OH AND JEFF KENT SAYS HI!"

When the pop up came towards me it didn't even cross my mind that Bradley was the guy chasing it down, and just about every fan at some point in time yells at a player hoping he missplays a flyball. The fact that Bradley responded the way he did really shows exactly why he gets booted off whichever team he's playing for...the guy is just immature. Well that, and he doesn't always play hard. But if you can't deal with a little heckling then you shouldn't be playing in the majors, simple as that.

I just wish I saw him staring me down cause then I would have given him a plastic bottle to throw at me. That definitely would have got me on Sportscenter.

Now I can say that I've seen what makes Milton Bradley such a problem-child firsthand, and there's no doubt in my mind that he will not be back on the Padres roster next season...if he even makes it through the rest of the summer. Until he learns how to control his temper he won't be staying anywhere for very long, except maybe the fan's doghouse.

Stadium security had to come out between innings in left field to keep Bradley from being heckled by his own team's fans!

A brief, open letter to the country of Mexico...

2007-06-24T21:14:00.000-07:00

Hola mis amigos del sur,

Just a couple days ago, our national soccer team beat you guys for our second-straight Gold Cup, 2-1, in front of an illegal immigration rally (that is, primarily Mexican) crowd of 60,000. Let's get one thing straight: no one in this great nation gives a damn.

Now that we have that little issue out of the way I can get to the main point of this letter. Since 2000, the US is 9-2-1 against Mexico in soccer. Last time I checked, soccer was your national sport while it is maybe the tenth most popular sport here behind poker, darts, cow-tipping, backgammon, and maybe even hockey.

I guess what I'm trying to say is we don't care at all about this sport, yet we still dominate you in it.

On the bright side at least you scored a goal this time. We had shut you out the last eight times we faced you on US turf.

At one point in time Mexico was an international power in soccer...and now you can't even beat a team that choked against Ghana in the World Cup? What the hell happened?!?

Your economy is a mess, your national morale is at an all-time low: there's not much else to say except...get your shit in gear Mexico! If you are going to continue being our neighbor you need to be AT LEAST as athletically competent as Canada; and they sure do beat us in hockey all the time. You guys can't beat us in soccer anymore and on top of that you stink in just about every other sport. How many famous Mexicans are in the MLB? Jorge Cantu???

You could take this as a wake up call for all of you south of the border, but in all honesty I just felt like gloating over yet another US triumph in your national sport.

Adios,
David

P.S. - I almost forgot...do something about that whole illegal immigration thing. Definitely not cool.

P.S.S. - Everytime we beat you in SOCCER, Mexicans everywhere should have to call "futbol" "soccer" till the next time we play. Seriously, there is only one football in North America, and you spell it N-F-L.

Bill Plaschke is utterly ridiculous

2007-06-20T14:05:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you've had the distinct displeasure of reading Bill Plaschke's LA Times column recently, but today he went off on Kobe Bryant with a poorly-written steaming pile of crap that could only come from the desk of one Mr. Plaschke.

The only way you could enjoy reading this trash is if you like stabbing yourself in the eye with a sharpened letter opener...repeatedly.

When are you finally going to get it?

When are you Lakers fans finally going to realize that Kobe Bryant doesn't like you nearly as much as you like him?

When are you going to get it into your painfully loyal souls that Bryant has taken everything you believe about him, casually wadded it up and tossed it on the floor as he heads out of town?

Plaschke, when are you finally going to realize that we don't like you nearly as much as you like yourself? Speaking of wadding up and throwing something out...that's what I do with the Times sports section when I see your garbage column disgracing its pages.

You're not his soul mate, you're his sweat towel.

He has trivialized your loyalty, toyed with your faith and trampled on your tradition.

And still you beg the Lakers not to trade him?

When are you finally going to get it?

Bryant just doesn't want to leave the Lakers, he wants to leave you.

I'm so glad you feel you can speak on Kobe Bryant's behalf, Bill. I almost forgot that you know everything!

And writing in short sentences like this.

Over and over again.

Gets really old, really fast.

You say you love Bryant because he is entertaining.

And he is. He's the best player in the league. He can win just about any game single-handedly, which is good because his teammates suck.

What has happened in the last several weeks is not good entertainment. Blowing up the family car in anger over a sputtering engine is not good entertainment.

At this moment, Bryant is not Magic Johnson, he is Paris Hilton. He is not Jerry West, he is Lindsay Lohan.

He is not the old show-time Hollywood, he is the new spoiled Hollywood, and again I ask, this is entertainment?

Ok, just to clarify:

Kobe Bryant = a skanky drugged-out hoe who has no concievable worth in this society.

Ummm...ok...

and I don't know about you, but I definitely enjoy watching Paris Hilton crash and burn. She has more money than I ever will and she doesn't do shit. I honestly believe people like her exist to keep us common-folk entertained. As for Lohan, I do feel somewhat bad for her because she earned her celebrity status (Mean Girls was legit). But I digress.

Did Plaschke really just compare Kobe to Paris freakin' Hilton?!? Plaschke has just gone so far beyond ridiculous that it's just become hilarious now. How are we supposed to take this guy seriously?!?

You say you love Bryant because he is a winner.

Leveling your organization is not the move of a winner. Whining and crying publicly for a trade that will force the Lakers into accepting something less than full value is not the actions of a winner.

Tim Duncan quietly allowing a tiny little dude from France to win the NBA Finals MVP, that is the move of a winner.

Dwyane Wade's quiet acceptance of Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat, that is the move of a winner.

Three years after being anointed as the solution, Bryant has decided instead to be the problem, and I ask, this is a winner?

Of course Kobe is a winner Bill. He does have three more championships than you do last time I checked.

I take serious issue with Bill's argument here too. When Shaq was in LA he was a fat, overpaid, ego-maniacal crybaby. When he got to Miami he finally started to realize he couldn't carry a team the same way anymore, so he let D. Wade take control of the ship (slowing but surely). Shaq was a lot harder to deal with for Kobe in LA and is a completely different player now.

As for the Tim Duncan analogy...Tony Parker never had and never will have the type of star power that Kobe, Shaq, OR Duncan have so that isn't really a fair example. And in all fairness both Duncan and Parker have admitted that their relationship wasn't always as good as it is now (Timmy barely acknowledged Tony's existence his rookie year).

Kobe Bryant turned this situation into a big issue because the Lakers organization lied to him to get him to resign with the team. They told him they were looking to contend for a title right away, then they went and drafted a project big-man out of New Jersey who would take years to develop. In reality, the Lakers are in the midst of a massive rebuilding project but they sure as hell didn't tell that to Kobe. They deserve this.

The latest Bryant news would be funny, if it weren't so sad.

Just like those women who show their private parts to paparazzi, Bryant has profanely ripped the Lakers to two strangers in a parking lot.

So basically...

Kobe Bryant justifiably criticizing the Lakers for screwing him over = a woman showing her hoo-ha to the media

What. The. Hell.

I will admit that Kobe's profanity-laced video where he slanders Mitch Kupchak and Andrew Bynum that is making the rounds on the internet was not a good move on Bryant's part; then again this wasn't something he could have planned. Kupchak is also a terrible GM and drafting Bynum was a mistake if the Lakers truly wanted to win now, so Kobe may actually have a point either way.

But back to Plaschke...the tired Paris Hilton/Lindsey Lohan/Brittany Spears references are stale, incredibly unfunny, and pretty much tell you the type of writer he is. He goes for the easy joke instead of actually trying to make a real argument with legitamite evidence.

The rest of the column stinks too, but I feel like I've wasted enough time on this douchebag for today. God speed if you plan on subjecting yourself to the full wrath of Plaschke's writing.

Peter King should be rating fast food joints, not QBs

2007-06-19T13:27:00.000-07:00

Continuing the trend of "positive" posts on my blog (see: ESPN is borderline retarded), I felt I needed to comment on Peter King's 2007 Quarterback Rankings on SI.com.

Let me say, I have never had too big an issue with King in the past. He's not a good writer, but that's not really what he goes for. Basically he serves as the fan's eyes and ears when he travels to games or when he visits with teams, which is perfectly fine. The problem is, sometimes he thinks he knows more than he really does.

Take for instance his QB rankings. The fine folks at Fire Joe Morgan took issue with the fact that King created a category to rate a QB for his "Intangibles", which is hilarious in it's own right but I have an entirely separate issue here.

I don't want to waste your time so I'll get right to the point: these rankings blow.

Come on now Peter, you have Marc Bulger, Matt Hasselbeck, Vince Young, Phillip Rivers, JON KITNA, and Jay Cutler ranked above Donovan McNabb (who is #12 on the list)? If this list ranked quarterbacks by who you would want to build a franchise around starting today, I might understand. In that case age would be a more important factor and I wouldn't be as insulted by having guys like Young and Rivers higher up in the rankings.

But JON KITNA?!? Now you've gone too far. King defends having McNabb so low by bringing up his health concerns:

It's not that I don't like Donovan McNabb. I do. I just don't trust him to stay healthy. I rank the Eagles' QB 12th because I have no confidence that McNabb, at 30 and having missed a combined 13 games over the last two years, will be upright in December.

Injuries in the NFL are a crapshoot really. Hell, all of King's top 3 quarterbacks could get hurt next season...that's just the way the league is. Yes, Donovan certainly has seemed to have a penchant for ending up on the IR, but to have him below some of these other guys is borderline ridiculous.

When McNabb is healthy, he is an MVP candidate. A 30-touchdown guy, no doubt about it. When Jon Kitna is healthy and at the top of his game he is still mediocre. What about Vince Young? The guy is heading into his second season after he threw more INTs than TDs last season, AND he lost his top receiving target (Drew Bennett) in free agency. Would you consider THAT a big question mark Peter?

What about Rivers, Cutler, and Romo? All of them are still relatively inexperienced and unproven commodities (Rivers and Cutler though have a hell of a lot more upside than Romo). Either way, for JUST 2007, who would you rather have at quaterback...a guy who can't hold a snap on an extra point, or a QB who could carry your team on his back to a Super Bowl?

And why is Ben Roethlisberger below Jake Delhomme? Jake may not even make it through half the season till he is replaced by David Carr! And how can you give Big Ben a 5 in intangibles when the guy won a freakin' Super Bowl already? Is that not showing enough "intangibles" for you Peter?

How the hell is Steve McNair one spot behind McNabb at #13, when he has just as many, if not more injury concerns? I still can't get over the fact that Vince Young is the #7 QB in the NFL after his rookie season...probably one of the most overrated players in the game right now aside from Mike Vick.

All in all these QB rankings are a complete and total mess. Goes to show you that Peter King may think he knows everything, but in reality the only thing he knows is where the closest Krispy Kreme is in relation to his current position anywhere in this country at any point in time. It's a gift, really.

Or what about your love affair with Tom Brady, Peter? Don't you have to kiss his ass a little more, Peter? I think your next column should be about how handsome he is and how you wish everyone in this country was more like him. Cry yourself to sleep because Tommy doesn't spend every waking moment thinking about you the way you do of him.

Have fun with that, and stop wasting my time.

**Note from the Angry Blogger**
After re-reading this post a few times (believe it or not but I DO proof-read my work here) I have come to the realization that it really sounds like I despise Peter King. Quite to the contrary he actually thoroughly amuses me and I hold very little ill-will toward the man. I'm just not a fan of ridiculous QB rankings, nor his out-of-control adoration of Tom Brady. That is all.

ESPN is borderline retarded

2007-06-18T15:04:00.000-07:00

Watching the College World Series on ESPN 2 right now I can't help but notice this little box below the score on the top left of the screen...

A winning probability percentage.

A winning probability percentage? Seriously?!?

Am I that stupid, that I can't figure out that the team with the 5 run lead has a higher chance to win? It's really pretty hard to insult me, yet the fine folks at ESPN have managed to find a way. The UC Irvine/Cal State Fullerton game is tied at 4 in the bottom of the 9th, with 1 out, and no one on for the Anteaters, yet somehow they have a 59% chance to win.

I know there is probably some complex arithmetic involved to figure out this number, but how the hell is this necessary? The beauty of sports in the unpredictability...no formula is going to tell me who is going to win in the goddamn second inning.

You bastards at ESPN are going to make me listen to Gary Thorne AND put up with this idiocy?!? This win probability garbage needs to go the way of the Fox laser puck; that is, it just needs to go away.
_______________________________________

On a sidenote, I don't know who's doing the color commentary for this game but he just mentioned a "competitive juice flow" while babbling about one of UCI's players.

I think I'm going to hang myself.

Then they show this girl in the crowd who is ducking her head down, "she can't even watch," says Gary Thorne.

Well I can. Show me the damn game, not some dumb fan.

Oh, and UCI just stranded runners at first and third in the bottom of the ninth. So ESPN can take that 59% win probability and shove it up their ass.

Albagate

2007-06-15T00:59:00.000-07:00

For quite some time now I have been a huge fan of Jessica Alba...primarily because she's smokin' hot. So of course I would be incredibly dismayed and humiliated if the woman I had longed for turned out to be a Bruin...

Uh oh...this incriminating photo from Bruins Nation clearly shows Ms. Alba repping some UCLA gear. In one horrible moment my dreams were crushed and I had lost all respect for this beautiful, yet obviously misguided woman.

But hold the phone...in the comments section below the post in question this interesting photo popped up...

So basically one of two things is happening here; either Jessica roots for one school over the other and just happened to get caught in the rival's gear, or she is a bandwagoner. I suspect it's the latter, but either way this is something that needs to be resolved. You can't have it both ways Jessica!

But what about Bruins Nation? They can't dodge any of the blame here...to try to claim Ms. Alba without looking at all the evidence is just a pathetic attempt to tarnish the image of a bright, beautiful young woman. I really felt the need to put those bastards in their place and remind them of some of the famous figures through history that prefer the Cardinal and Gold.

Mahatma Gandhi had no problem showing his true colors. Rumor has it the only time he endorsed violence was when one had to deal with a drunk Bruin fan.

The great Winston Churchill gives his best "fight on!"

The picture really says it all.

Trojan athletics certainly has had their share of big names. Here you see King James during his days at USC.

It looks like Jessica Alba has a little competition in the equally amazing Kate Beckinsale!

I could come up with a thousand more examples of USC's supremacy (and I just may over the coming days), but I think for now I've proved my point. Remember folks, You're a Bruin for four years, but you're a Trojan for life!

On a sidenote, this is my 100th post on Somewhat Opinionated! How appropriate, eh?

The Man, the Myth, the Legend...

2007-06-12T00:33:00.000-07:00

The Great Ron Hextall

Those mediocre 90's...

2007-06-12T00:17:00.000-07:00

If you happen to have a Facebook account (chances are you do if you are under the age of 25) and you consider yourself a hockey fan (considering the ratings the Cup Finals got you probably aren't) then you need to check out this group...

Mediocre NHLers of the 1990's

The brilliance of the title says it all. After scanning through a majority of the thousand or so photos there it's hard to believe guys like Peter Zezel, Brad Marsh, Robert Rychel, or Peter Ing could ever cut it in the bigs.

A couple pictures from the group really brought back memories and I felt the need to share them here...

Wow. Hard to believe an NHL team actually considered wearing these unis at one point. Legend has it then-Blues Coach Mike Keenan flat out refused to make his team rock these sweaters. A shame if you ask me.

You know you suck when you are rated a "1" in a 90's hockey videogame. That's ok Shawn Chambers, at least we can easily photoshop that into a 100 if you ever decide to tell your kids about your pathetic excuse for a career.

How do you even give a guy a 1? He can't skate, he can't shoot, he can't scratch his ass, but he had the balls to try so let's give the schmuck a 1. Hell why not just take him out of the game entirely?

I haven't even gotten into some of the amazing mullets that reside in this group. If you have Facebook, I thoroughly encourage you to join and check this out.

The NHL clearly wants a seven game series...

2007-06-03T14:04:00.000-07:00

Chris Pronger was suspended for game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals today for a hit late in game 3 on the Senator's Dean McAmmond. It certainly wasn't a clean hit, and Pronger probably should have been penalized at the time of the incident. Instead he was punished today by the league.

This is an incredibly hypocritical move by the NHL. Chris Neil hit Andy McDonald in the head earlier the game, but didn't get a penalty for the cheapshot and was not penalized by the league in any way.

NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell said the fact that McAmmond was injured by Pronger's hit contributed to the decision to suspend the Anaheim defenseman, but how ridiculous is that? Had McDonald been hurt, does that mean the NHL would have suspended Neil? It does no good to only punish a play that results in an injury; if you are going to discipline players for hits to the head then every hit should result in a penalty from the league, not just certain ones.

Now the Ducks will be without one of their best players for a crucial game in the Stanley Cup Finals.

All of this comes after several dubious calls by officials in game 3...even the replay officials screwed over the Ducks late in the second period.

Ottawa's Daniel Alfredsson clearly kicked a puck into the net, which is against league rules. The referee on the ice ruled it a no-goal immediately, but the officials reviewed the play upstairs anyway. In that case you need indisputable evidence to overturn the call on the ice. Alfredsson clearly moved his skate to put it in a position to kick the puck in, but the play was still ruled a goal. Ottawa would score 2 more goals and go on to win the game. Had that goal not counted both teams would have been tied heading into the third.

You can call me biased all you want, but the plays speak for themselves. Anyone who has extensively watched this series and knows anything about hockey would be apalled by some of the ridiculous calls that have been made.

If the NHL wants to be taken seriously, they should make sure their games are called fairly and punishments are justified. As of right now the Ducks are at a huge disadvantage because of the NHL's incompetence and that's unfair not just for Duck fans, but for hockey fans in general who have watched this league struggle for far too long.

Tying up a few loose ends...

2007-05-06T23:58:00.000-07:00

Rocket Talk Part II

I forgot to mention in my previous Roger Clemens post...but how dumb is this guy, really? You wanted to play for a World Series contender Roger? The Yankees are going nowhere fast. If he really wanted to win he would have gone to Boston.
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The Ultimate Irony

Phillies pitcher Freddy Garcia was hurt in San Francisco before a game against the Giants. How? So glad you asked...

Phillies right-hander Freddy Garcia was injured Sunday night when he ran into an equipment cart that had stopped along the warning track in San Francisco's ballpark.

Garcia bruised and scraped his left shin in the collision, raising question as to whether he will be able to make his scheduled start Monday night in the opener of a three-game series at Arizona. Garcia, who was running to try to catch a fly ball in center field, toppled onto the cart used by the grounds crew and was clearly in pain. He was quickly carted off the field on the vehicle.

Notice the sentence I've bolded there? The man runs into the cart, then gets taken off the field on the same thing that caused the injury in the first place. Does anyone else find this ironic? That's one hell of a way to expedite the process right there.

Probably Freddy's greatest accomplishment since joining the team. Way to go champ.
________________________________________

Brady Quinn Bust Watch....Day 1

Peter King is ok. Not a great writer, a bit full of himself, but I don't have too many issues with the guy. So I'm reading his Monday Morning QB column on SI.com and I couldn't help but notice Brady Quinn's first day at mini-camp for the Browns didn't go so well...

"[Brady] Quinn threw consecutive balls into a brisk wind that could be described charitably as wounded ducks. Each ball looked to hit a brick wall in midair and plummet, one far short of the intended and uncovered receiver. Quinn compensated on the next pass and overthrew a receiver."
-- Cleveland Plain Dealer veteran Browns beat writer Tony Grossi, observing Brady Quinn's first mini-camp practice Friday in Berea, Ohio, conducted on a windy day.

I'm sure that 5 mph breeze was unbearably tough for Brady to manage. Probably messed up his hair too. Why would the Browns practice on a windy day? They should know better....bastards.

I wouldn't have drafted Brady Quinn with the 22nd pick; hell I wouldn't have drafted him in the second round.
_________________________________________

Hit of the Week

Yannic Seidenberg, meet Shea Weber. Stick around for the replays: it's worth it. Seidenberg catches more hangtime than a Matt Turk punt.

Welcome back Roger...

2007-05-06T23:27:00.000-07:00

Roger Clemens ended months of speculation today and revealed to a packed Yankee Stadium that he'd be wearing pinstripes for the rest of the season for a paltry $28 mil.

That's $4.5 million a month for a guy who is 44 years old. If the rocket were to make 6 starts in June he'd be getting roughly $750,000 every time he takes the mound.

Reeks of desperation, does it not? In Major League Baseball there is no such thing as desperation in May, unless of course you are the New York Yankees and your owner is an insane tyrant.

I have to say though, even if Clemens isn't as dominant as he once was, he's still better than Darrell Rasner and Colter freakin' Bean (freakin' isn't his middle name, but you get the idea).

The Kei Igawa experiment is failing miserably (7.63 ERA), and Carl Pavano, Mike Mussina, Chien-Ming Wang, Jeff Karstens, and Phil Hughes have all spent time on the DL at some point this season (Pavano, Karstens, and Hughes still haven't come back). Obviously the Yankees needed Clemens.

Will he turn around their season? Clemens will absolutely help, but the team as a whole has been underachieving mightily. Assuming most of the talent gets its shit together the Yankees could make a run at the wildcard, but there is no way this ancient lineup gets out of the first round. Let Yankee fans say what they want, but this team isn't a World Series contender. Get that record above .500 first, then we'll talk.

Sir Charles does it again

2007-04-29T20:26:00.000-07:00

Charles Barkley is at war with the Warriors and he's losing as bad as the Mavs are.

On TNT's halftime show during game 4, Barkley let loose on Warriors fans who criticize him for picking the Mavericks...

"Golden State, as a city, sucks."

Granted he was half-joking (at least I thought he was), and he made sure to compliment Baron Davis and Don Nelson.

After the game, Barkley was even more bitter...

When TNT showed Jessica Alba at the game during a highlight...

"What's the world coming to when the Warriors have famous fans?"

On Jessica Alba...

"She was 7 the last time this team made the playoffs."

On Davis' half-court tying shot heading into the half...

"I don't know what the hell that was."

Then he topped it off with...

"The Bay Area sucks."

This is why TNT's studio coverage is so great. Yes, Barkley can be a loud mouth at times, but when hundreds of fans have signs that say "Chuck was wrong" people are clearly listening. It's definitely entertaining, though.

On a sidenote, this Mavs/Warriors series is some of the most exciting basketball I've seen in years, and it has reinvigorated my interest in the NBA playoffs. Oracle Arena was rockin', and the game had an incredible pace start to finish.

By the way, the Lakers - Kobe = a developmental league team. That series is over.

1st Round NFL Draft Thoughts

2007-04-28T13:38:00.000-07:00

Maybe he's just not that good?!?

First things first...nobody should be surprised by how far Brady Quinn fell.

Look at the numbers you say? Alright here we go...

Against the 3 quality opponents Notre Dame played (Michigan, USC, and LSU) Quinn threw 8 touchdowns, 5 picks, and completed just 47.3% of his passes. Also, 3 of those touchdowns came in the USC game, where Quinn was essentially a non-factor.

You can say all you want about Quinn's 37 TD passes, but 21 of them came against some of the worst teams in the country. The Irish had 7 straight games against: Purdue, Stanford, UCLA, Navy, North Carolina, Air Force, and Army, which gave Quinn ample opportunity to pad his stats. At the end of the day when Notre Dame needed him in the big games Brady Quinn disappeared.

Granted, he didn't necessarily have much help from his team in some of those cases, but a franchise QB can make something out of nothing. Brady Quinn does not have the tools to make that happen. Now he gets to toil in Cleveland following in the footsteps of Tim Couch and Charlie Frye. Good luck with that.

Eagles trade pick #26 to Dallas?!?

With all the safeties off the board, the Eagles sent the 26th overall pick to the Cowgirls for their 2nd rounder (#36 overall, that they got from Cleveland), 3rd rounder (#87), and their 5th rounder (#158).

Personally, I would have liked to see the Eagles draft the reciever out of Tennessee, Robert Meachem. I also have a bit of a problem helping Dallas get the DE/OLB they wanted. The Eagles did get good value for the pick though.

Does this mean Sean Considine is the starter at strong safety? I don't know how much I like that. If Philly had any inkling there would be a run on the safeties why didn't they trade up? A lot of questions that I have no answers for.

Worst pick of the first round

Probably Ginn to Miami. If they weren't going to draft Quinn, they had to have more pressing needs than another wide receiver. Plus, 9th overall was way too early to take Ginn. Why not try to trade down a couple slots and get a few more picks?

Running a close second is the Browns giving up a high second rounder, and a first rounder next year to get Brady Quinn. That's way too much to pay to move into the late first round.

The key number from the first round...

10,000 - The number of times the ESPN crew mentioned Brady fucking Quinn during the first four hours of the draft. As much as I relished in his fall, I got sick of hearing about Quinn instead of the needs for each individual team. The ESPN guys didn't even talk about the Falcons or the Texans while they picked, because they were too busy kissing Quinn's pasty white ass. Weak.

The Commercials!

Arguably, some of the commercials during the draft have been better than the Super Bowl ads.

The Sportscenter ad with Big Papi wearing a Yankees cap? Classic! The Madden 2008 ads with Reggie Bush and Devin Hester were pretty freakin' awesome too.

More draft thoughts to come...stay tuned folks

God Bless Youtube

2007-04-21T00:51:00.000-07:00

This one comes courtesy of Deadspin...

Just one of a thousand reasons why the WNBA sucks.

As if Tim Hudson isn't scary enough on the mound so far this season (2-0, .62 ERA, .93 WHIP in 3 starts), here he scares the shit out of Eddie Perez. You gotta be careful here Tim, you might give the guy a heart attack.

My favorite part; Eddie's less-of-a-question-more-of-a-statement "WHY!!!" Why? Cause it's funny as hell that's why! Old man, you just got SPIKED!

When does football season start again?

2007-04-20T22:18:00.000-07:00

Phils lose lead in 9th, game in 10th [Philly.com]

Fate is not the Phillies friend right now.

Actually scratch that: it's probably a gross understatement.

Jon Lieber had a one-hitter through 5 1/3 innings. Brett Myers struck out two in his first relief appearance of the season. The Phils held a 1-0 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth.

Could it be happening? Could the Phillies have their first winning streak of the season?

Two devastating innings later we're back to square one. A Phillies game is the equivilent of an episode of Lost; at the end you're left with more questions than you had in the beginning.

Can Tom Gordon still be an effective closer? Two blown saves in five games...the only "flash" today was the ball coming off the bat of Shane Hatteberg for the two-out game-tying home run in the ninth.

"It seemed like we were asleep most of the game," said Hatteberg. "It was good for us to get that miracle."

If this was "miracle" for the Reds, what would you call it for the Phillies?

Should Myers close or start? I say give him a few more appearances out of the pen to build his confidence then promote him back to the rotation. Then again, I wouldn't have demoted him in the first place.

Clearly answers are not easily obtained for the Phils. But don't wave that white flag yet, folks.

Ryan Howard is coming back (soon, I pray). Chase Utley won't bat .213 all year. The pitching rotation has been pretty solid. Things will get better for the Phillies.

The only question is whether they'll get better in time to save Charlie Manuel's job, much less the team's playoff hopes.

Charlie Manuel will kick your ass...

2007-04-18T16:37:00.000-07:00

Would you want to fight this man on the right? I know I wouldn't.

After a blowout loss to the Mets dropped the Phils to 3-9, manager Charlie Manuel lost it...

After the Phillies were drubbed 8-1 by the New York Mets on Tuesday night, manager Charlie Manuel blew his top in his office, letting loose with a profane tirade and challenging WIP-AM talk show host Howard Eskin, a longtime critic of Manuel, to a fight. Later, in the team clubhouse, he had to be restrained from going after Eskin by two Phillies coaches.

Good old Charlie. First he called Eskin out in a press conference after the notorious talk show host hinted that Manuel didn't show enough emotion. Once the conference was over, the confrontation got worse.

Eskin said when he got to Manuel's office, the manager was waiting for him with a challenge.

"I don't like what you've been saying about me for three years and I'm gonna drop your ass right there," Eskin quoted Manuel as saying.

Eskin said he told Manuel he should be angry at his players, not him -- and that it's not fun coming to games and seeing the Phillies lose.

"We're going to win!" Manuel replied.

You gotta feel bad for Charlie Manuel here. There's been constant talk that he is going to be fired if things don't turn around fast, and his team is just flat-out underperforming. Is it really his fault his team doesn't have a steady relief pitcher in the bullpen?

Leave a comment though and pick your winner in the Manuel/Eskin grudge match!

ESPN.com - Phillies manager challenges radio personality to fight

[UPDATE AS OF 4/19:] The Phillies just lost again to the Nationals, and Brett Myers has been moved to the bullpen. Things just keep getting better and better...

Thanks to Newsday.com for the picture.

Celtic Joke

2007-04-16T21:34:00.000-07:00

I throw around the word "joke" quite a bit when referring to a sports team or a particular player. But this is so bad, you could look up "Joke" in the dictionary and find a Celtics logo.

Yeah, I know they suck. Yeah, I know they locked up the "honor" of having the second-worst record in the league a couple days ago. That has nothing to do with why I cannot take this franchise seriously anymore.

There has been a lot of speculation that the Celtics might be throwing games to secure a higher draft pick to get a prodigy such as Greg Oden or Kevin Durant. Well, now we have our proof.

Ryan Gomes (the charming fellow on the right in that photo) had 13 points through three quarters against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night...not too shabby. You think the guy would play the fourth quarter in a then-close game, right? Wrong. Gomes sat and watched as his team lost 104-102. But what clinched it was Gomes' comments after the game...

"I probably (would have played), but since we were in the hunt for a high draft pick, of course things are different," Gomes said. "I understand that. Hopefully things get better. Now that we clinched at least having the second-most balls in the lottery, the last three games we'll see what happens. We'll see if we can go out and finish some games."

He later tried to take back his comments, but the damage has been done. The Celtics have sold the soul of their franchise...granted Durant and Oden are almost worth it. But at the end of the day nothing excuses benching your players to secure a loss by my book. What else is there to say, really, except I hope the Celtics blow for the next decade because of this.

At least the Grizzlies put forth a bit of effort when they suck.

Thanks to Touching All the Bases for the fine picture.

What happens when a white boy tries to dunk...

2007-04-03T18:57:00.000-07:00

I know I've been gone a while. This will make up for it. Enjoy.

Can we rename it the "All-fat, lazy, stubborn, pathetic, has-been" Game?

2007-01-15T16:55:00.000-08:00

Shaq may be generally loved, respected, and admired by the media, but he has always been a lazy dope. He used to be the best center in the NBA but now he is just washed up, which makes the fact that he may start in the All-Star game pretty ridiculous. The guy has 4 appearances so far this season, but is still ahead of Dwight Howard in the All-Star balloting by more than 150,000 votes.

He defended his decision to possibly play in the game in the South Florida Sentinel:

"I will not be moved or bothered by what people in the media say or the critics say or by what that organization says," O'Neal said. "We all have to wait our turn. He has to wait his turn. I had to wait my turn."

Shaq, your time has come and gone. In 4 games O'Neal averaged 14 points and 7.5 boards. In 38 games, Howard averaged 17.4 points and 12.6 boards.

Seriously, how pathetic is this guy?!? And you wonder why it never worked out between him and Kobe in LA? Not only should Shaq not start in the All-Star game, he shouldn't be there at all. All-Star weekend is for great players in the NBA, not bitter old men who are shadows of their former selves.

A few NFL thoughts...

2007-01-15T16:49:00.000-08:00

Only in Philly...or not.

During Fox's broadcast of the Eagles/Saints game a female white-trash Saints fan showed up on-screen wearing a shirt that simply said, "Fuck da Eagles." Very classy.

During the Bears/Seashawks game, Bears fans loudly booed Rex Grossman after a third quarter incompletion, despite the fact that the guy threw for 282 yards.

Had either of these things happened in Philly, you'd never hear the end of it. Since they didn't, you probably didn't give it a second thought. Just an observation.

Reggie gets rocked...

The hit of the season, perhaps. Props to Bush though, he got back in the game and played really well for the Saints. Had he been healthy, there's no doubt he'd be the rookie of the year instead of overrated-Vince Young.

Welcome to the Hibachi!

2007-01-04T15:46:00.000-08:00

How can you not love Gilbert Arenas? So he's a little strange...he's still one hell of a player. Here's some footage of his 32 ft. game-winner against the Bucks last night, but what you don't see is Arenas turn his back to the basket before the ball even goes in and walk away as if he already knew...soooo badass.

As for the Hibachi thing...wikipedia explains its other definition better then I ever could...

During the 2006 National Basketball Association season, Washington Wizards point guard Gilbert Arenas began to shout the word as he took field goal attempts in games, explaining, "You know, a hibachi grill gets real hot. That's what my shot's like, so I've been calling it that: 'Welcome to the hibachi'." He has also stated that while he is scoring on opponents, he is "cooking chicken and shrimp" in reference to his "Hibachi grill," and that if his opponent wanted to double team him, he would "cook filet mignon" as well.
There was even a banner made for him "Arenas 'hibachied' Kobe". As Kobe is the place where the world famous Kobe steak orginated. This was refering to the game when Arenas outscored Kobe Bryant 60 to 45.

Hibachi indeed.

Brady Quinn Exposed

2007-01-04T14:07:00.000-08:00

LSU's 41-14 drubbing of the Fighting Irish in the Sugar Bowl did more than expose Notre Dame as an overrated program and Charlie Weis as a mediocre coach...it showed that Brady Quinn is nothing special as a quarterback.

I don't care that Quinn threw 37 touchdown passes this season. 21 of them came against Purdue, UCLA, Navy, North Carolina, Air Force, and Army...mediocre opposition at best. In the three games that mattered: Michigan, USC, and LSU, Quinn's numbers were less than impressive...

61/128, 47.6 cmp %, 656 yards, 8 TDs, 5 INTs

In all 3 games where he played quality defenses Quinn was a non-factor. He even had good recievers to throw the ball to in Samarzija, McKnight, and his TE Carlson.

Is Quinn a terrible QB? Not at all. Is he the first overall pick in the 2007 NFL Draft? Hell no!

Sugar Bowl Predictions

2007-01-03T17:07:00.000-08:00

My predictions for the Sugar Bowl, as Notre Dame takes on LSU...

Charlie Weis will down at least 7 doughnuts during the game.

Brady Quinn will look like he's about to cry at least 12 times.

Jeff Samardzija will horrify at least 300 women in the crowd with his ugly mug.

And win or lose, the announcers will kiss Notre Dame's ass at least 500 times during the broadcast.

Just for tonight, Go Tigers!

Dave's Dime: Playoff Edition

2007-01-03T12:30:00.000-08:00

Dave's Dime
"Because Two Cents Just Isn't Enough"
THE INTRO

Well, that's that - the regular season is over. On to the playoffs we go.

But first, how did I end up doing? If you go to ESPN.com and check out the expert's picks (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/features/talent) without the spread, I ended the season with a record better than 5 of the 8 experts. Jaworski jumped me by one game (finishing up 155 - 101) by going 12 - 4 last week. Allen (156 - 100) and Golic (161 - 95) also ended up ahead of me. Theisman (144 - 96), Salisbury (151 - 105), Hoge (149 - 106), Schlereth (151 - 105), and Mortenson (139 - 116) all fell behind.

5 out of 8 isn't too bad, considering how many terribly silly chances I take.

Against the spread (where it counts!), look to cbssportsline.com expert picks (http://cbs.sportsline.com/nfl/features/writers/expert/picks), where I beat everyone across the board. They went on slightly different spreads so ended up with four less ties; Pete Prisco was the only expert who ended his season over .500, going (118 - 117 - 5). Clark Judge (116 - 119 - 5), Greg Bromberg (105 - 130 - 5), Ron Davis (109 - 126 - 5), and Dave Richard (115 - 120 - 5) were all no match against the spread.

So, even if it was a tough season, looks like I'm as good as what these websites have got anyways. Rock on!

Now, last year's playoffs I was nothing short of pathetic, going 3 - 8 with the spread and 4 - 7 without it. Shouldn't be too hard to improve on those numbers... should it?

THE RECORD

Last Week
With the spread: 9 - 7 - 0 (.563)
Without the spread: 8 - 8 - 0 (.500)
$$Money Picks$$: 2 - 2 - 0 (.500)
^^Zen Picks^^: 2 - 1 - 0 (.667)
**Outright Upsets**: 3 - 5 - 0 (.375)

Season (Final)
With the spread: 126 - 121 - 9 (.510)
Without the spread: 154 - 102 - 0 (.602)
$$Money Picks$$: 27 - 30 - 1 (.474)
^^Zen Picks^^: 24 - 22 - 2 (.522)
**Outright Upsets**: 36 - 33 - 0 (.522)

Playoffs
With the spread: 0 - 0 - 0 (N/A)
Without the spread: 0 - 0 (N/A)
OVER/UNDER: 0 - 0 - 0 (N/A)
$$Money Picks$$: 0 - 0 - 0 (N/A)
^^Zen Picks^^: 0 - 0 - 0 (N/A)
**Outright Upsets**: 0 - 0 (N/A)

LAST WEEK'S RECAP OF DAVE'S BRILLIANCE AND FOOLISHNESS
(Often Foolishness)

N.Y. Giants 34 7 - 8 (-2.0) @ Washington 28 5 - 10 (+2.0)
Zen philosophy is no substitute for an awful defense it seems.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *^Washington
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Washington

Atlanta 17 7 - 8 (+8.0) @ Philadelphia 24 9 - 6 (-8.0)
Atlanta is so bad they can't even beat the Eagles' BACKUP squad.. but they did cover.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *^Atlanta
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Atlanta

Buffalo 7 7 - 8 (+9.5) @ Baltimore 19 12 - 3 (-9.5)
A fourth quarter FG by the Ravens was the only scoring in the fourth, and enough to beat the spread. This team looks GOOD.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *Buffalo
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Baltimore

Carolina 31 7 - 8 (-3.0) @ New Orleans 21 10 - 5 (+3.0)
Didn't realize that the Saints weren't going to try AT ALL, but that's alright; they earned that privilege.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *$New Orleans
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *New Orleans

Cleveland 6 4 - 11 (+4.0) @ Houston 14 5 - 10 (-4.0)
Houston's bad, Cleveland's REAL bad.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN $Houston
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Houston

Detroit 39 2 - 13 (+12.5) @ Dallas 31 9 - 6 (-12.5)
Pathetic way to head into the playoffs by Dallas, and Detroit giving away Brady Quinn to the Raiders.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Detroit
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Dallas

Jacksonville 30 8 - 7 (+2.5) @ Kansas City 35 8 - 7 (-2.5)
Forget the whole "playing for pride" thing, Kansas City somehow makes their way into the playoffs.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *Jacksonville
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Jacksonville

New England 40 11 - 4 (+3.0) @ Tennessee 23 8 - 7 (-3.0)
I bet $25 that New England would win, and that the combined score of both teams would be higher than 41. That payed $98. Hooray Patriots!
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *New England
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *New England

Oakland 3 2 - 13 (+12.5) @ N.Y. Jets 23 9 - 6 (-12.5)
Oakland Raiders points on offense this year; 168. LaDanian Tomlinson points on offense this year; 168. No, I'm not making that up.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN N.Y. Jets
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN N.Y. Jets

Seattle 23 8 - 7 (+3.5) @ Tampa Bay 7 4 - 11 (-3.5)
I know Seattle has been nothing to write home about this year, but this spread was stupid.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *$Seattle
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *Seattle

St. Louis 41 7 - 8 (-3.0) @ Minnesota 21 6 - 9 (+3.0)
Strong finish to the season for the Rams, but its too little too late.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *Minnesota
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Minnesota

San Francisco 26 6 - 9 (+10.5) @ Denver 23 9 - 6 (-10.5)
My joy of seeing the Broncos blow this game quickly turned to sadness when I heard the news about CB Darrent Williams being shot and killed Monday morning. My prayers go out to his family and friends.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS $Denver
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Denver

Green Bay 26 7 - 8 (+3.0) @ Chicago 7 13 - 2 (-3.0)
Maybe the Bears are content to head into the playoffs looking like complete garbage, but I wouldn't have been.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS Chicago
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Chicago

DAMN, I'M GOOD

Miami 22 6 - 9 (+9.0) @ Indianapolis 27 11 - 4 (-9.0)
Pretty shocking how far the Colts have fallen off over the last month, as they went from an undefeated, unstoppable team to a team that looks to be booted out as soon as the playoffs begin. I'd love to say that they right the ship and blow the dolphins out this way, but sadly, that isn't how I see it going down. Indy should pull off the win, but it will be by something like a field goal, not 10 points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Miami
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Indianapolis
- When you're on, you're on

Pittsburgh 23 7 - 8 (+6.0) @ Cincinnati 17 8 - 7 (-6.0)
Cinci has to be completely demoralized after last weeks loss. Pittsburgh has come on very strong in the second half of the season, beating pretty much everyone besides Baltimore over that span. Finishing the season at .500 should be plenty of motivation to play one more really strong game and upset their rival Bengals on the road.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *^Pittsburgh
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *Pittsburgh
- Bet $24 that Pit would win AND that the game's total would be under 44. This one paid $122. Nice betting day for me.

Arizona 20 5 - 10 (+14.0) @ San Diego 27 13 - 2 (-14.0)
Yes, Arizona is this bad, and yes, they are missing Matt Leinart now. But this IS the NFL, and a two touchdown spread is pretty offensive. Fair? Perhaps. But I expect the Cardinals to come out playing pretty hard, and while it may be for naught, I'll take my chances with the points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Arizona
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN San Diego
- Looks like Kurt's got a little left in the old arm after all.

THE PICKS

* - Indicates Upset Pick
$ - Indicates Money Pick
^ - Indicates Zen Pick

Since there are only a few games a week from here on out, I will be picking OVER/UNDERs as well as winners.

For those of you that don't know what the OVER/UNDER is, bookmakers decide a number that they think will be close to the two team's scores added together. If the bookmakers think the game will have a final score of 23 - 20, they will set the OVER/UNDER total at around 43. It is the bettor's job to predict whether the actual score will be OVER or UNDER the projected total.

SATURDAY
#6 Kansas City 9 - 7 (+7.0) @ #3 Indianapolis 12 - 4 (-7.0)
In what will certainly be a popular upset pick, one of the league's best running backs in Larry Johnson will go against the league's worst rushing defense. As simple as this looks on paper, the fact of the matter is that Kansas City will have no answer for Indianapolis's offense, either. So, does that mean I'm expecting a shootout? No. I'm going against logic here and saying that the Colts' defense, at home, in the playoffs, finds a way to pull itself together and have a big game. Will they completely contain LJ? Highly unlikely. But I think they'll do enough to keep the game a TD or more apart, and furthermore, keep the total of the game under 51.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Indianapolis
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Indianapolis
OVER/UNDER 51: UNDER

#5 Dallas 9 - 7 (+3.0) @ #4 Seattle 9 - 7 (-3.0)
This game is a disaster waiting to happen, with two of the most unpredictable teams in the game going against eachother. I'm giving Seattle the edge for a few reasons. The biggest one being that the game is in Seattle, and that could potentially rattle Romo a bit, especially considering that this team is the defending NFC champion and knows how to play in the playoffs. Besides that, if you look over the Cowboys season, of their 9 wins only one came against a team above .500 (Indy)... they haven't really been tested. They have been playing terribly, and while Seattle isn't much safer of a bet, I'll take my chances on them. One thing seems pretty obvious though - expect a lot of points, because Dallas hasn't stopped anyone lately, and if anything they still know how to put points on the board.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Seattle
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Seattle
OVER/UNDER 46.5: OVER

SUNDAY
#5 New York Jets 10 - 6 (+8.5) @ #4 New England 12 - 4 (-8.5)
These two teams will meet for the third time this season, and for the third time this season, the Jets are heavy underdogs. In their last meeting, the Jets beat the Patriots; and stunningly enough, it was in New England. But this is the playoffs, and that changes everything... but it's hard to tell in who's favor. On one side, you've got the Patriots, perennial playoff contenders over the last 5 years or so... they know how to play in the playoffs, and they've got a QB who knows how to win. Plus, they are at home, which should make them even more comfortable. But the dangerous thing about this game is how easy it appears to be; ALL of the pressure is on the Patriots because everyone KNOWS they are going to win. No one but Jet fans will be picking the Jets. They are the underdog's underdog, and that should make them a lot looser and potentially dangerous. I'm not brave enough to pick against New England in New England IN the playoffs... but I do expect a low scoring, intense game between these two teams, and 8.5 points is far too many to pass on.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^New York Jets
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: New England
OVER/UNDER 37.5: UNDER

#6 New York Giants 8 - 8 (+7.0) @ #3 Philadelphia 10 - 6 (-7.0)
I've got this feeling in my gut that the Giants are going to win this game. It has nothing to do with stats or momentum - Philadelphia holds the edge in both of those categories by a mile. I'm just terrified that the Giants are going to piece it all together this week and stupidly beat the Eagles. All that said, I'm not a COMPLETE moron (even if I am a bit of one). Philadelphia has taken their game to the next level, and a lot of these guys are no strangers to the playoffs either. Besides, the odds of the Giants as a team or Eli alone collapsing are SO much higher than the Eagles doing so. I'll assume my gut feeling is just something I ate, and take the Eagles.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Philadelphia
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Philadelphia
OVER/UNDER 46.5: OVER

The likelihood of all four favorites actually winning seems slim, but that's the way I've got it. We'll see.

COLLEGE NICKEL: BOWL EDITION

With the spread: 14 - 14 - 0 (.500)
Without the spread: 17 - 11 (.607)
$$Money Picks$$: 3 - 3 - 0 (.500)
^^Zen Picks^^: 5 - 6 - 0 (.455)
**Outright Upsets**: 3 - 6 (.333)

Congrats to the Trojans on proving me wrong and having a great showing in the Rose Bowl, and to Boise State for their remarkable win and undefeated season. Only four bowls left - and just one that matters.

1 / 3 SUGAR BOWL (Re-posted from last week)
Notre Dame Fighting Irish 10 - 2 (+8.0) @ LSU Tigers 10 - 2 (-8.0)
I'll put this to you simply. LSU is just a significantly better football team than the Fighting Irish. They are superior on both sides of the ball, and while 9 points may seem like alot, look what happened to Notre Dame when they faced Michigan and USC. Couple their superiority with the fact that the game is being played IN Louisiana, and you've got a pretty sure thing in the Tigers.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $LSU Tigers
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LSU Tigers

1 / 6 INTERNATIONAL BOWL
Western Michigan Broncos 8 - 4 (+7.0) @ Cincinnati Bearcats 7 - 5 (-7.0)
A pretty lousy bowl game, but certainly no match (in futility) for Sunday's snoozefest. Cincinnati has played more worthwhile opponents, and on top of that, they have covered the spread in 8 of their last 9 games. They play up to their potential almost all the time, and should have no trouble getting pumped up for this bowl game. I don't know enough about Western Michigan to know if they have any tricks up their sleeves that I'm not taking into account - but I'm not going to lose any sleep over it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Cincinnati Bearcats
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Cincinnati Bearcats

1 / 7 GMAC BOWL
Ohio Bobcats 9 - 4 (+6.0) @ Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles 8 - 5 (-6.0)
This has to be the single worst bowl game of them all. On top of the fact that I simply don't know (or care) what GMAC is, these are about the two most boring teams you could find to play in a bowl game. I've been staring at the numbers for about 15 minutes, and it is mind numbing... these are two nothing teams that have played pretty much only nothing opponents. I'm at a total loss. I'll take Ohio.. why? They've got a better record against the spread, they might have a better defense (?), and.. umm... whatever.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Ohio Bobcats
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Ohio Bobcats

1 / 8 BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Florida Gators 12 - 1 (+7.0) @ Ohio State Buckeyes 12 - 0 (-7.0)
You have no idea how much time I put into crunching the numbers on these games! This one is a tough, tough game to call... both teams are just so damn good. Neither seems to have much of a weakness. Earlier in the week when the spread was at 8 points, I was saying that Florida would be a very good bet. I apparently wasn't the only one who felt that way, as bettors have bet Florida heavily enough to move the spread down to 7. After breaking it down... I've gotta go with the Buckeyes. This team has won 19 straight games, and is 16 - 3 against the spread over that span of time. The reason for this is pretty simple - on top of utilizing their talent on both sides of the ball, this team doesn't make mistakes. Forcing mistakes has been the key to Florida's success all year; the offense has had so much success because the defense has given them great field possession and sparked momentum. The Gators are 10th in the nation with 17 interceptions. This is where Troy Smith comes in; he has only thrown 5 interceptions all year. He doesn't make the bad decisions that the Gator's are so accustomed to capitilizing on. Chris Leak, on the other hand, has thrown 13 INTs this year; and he's going against the 2nd best INT team in the nation in Ohio State, who has 21 this year. The numbers also suggest that the battle on the offensive and defensive lines should favor the Buckeyes. If indeed the numbers hold true and the Gators don't get a few bounces their way, Ohio State should finish up their season undefeated, and with a win against the spread. I've got it 24 - 13 OSU.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Ohio State Buckeyes
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Ohio State Buckeyes

Thank you all for sticking with me throughout the regular season! Hope you enjoy the playoff run!
__________________________________________________

For more of Dave's picks check out his LiveJournal. You can also email him at socaltrojan31@aol.com.

Michigan gets their ass kicked...and we get to see a USC song girl's ass.

2007-01-02T19:23:00.000-08:00

Sounds like a win-win to me!
The Trojans stomped Michigan 32-18 in the 2007 Rose Bowl and a USC song girl got caught on national TV goin' commando (although evidently she just had a massive wedgie...you be the judge!) A good day all around I'd say...

Thanks to Deadspin and Awful Announcing for making this awesome discovery.

A few more quick thoughts...and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2006-12-31T19:56:00.000-08:00

What got into Tiki Barber Saturday night? 234 yards?!? 3 TDs?!? AFTER my fantasy league ends? Screw you man.

And if I hear "Brett Farve" and "retirement" in the same sentence one more time from Madden and Michaels on Sunday Night Football I'm going to go insane. Yeah, I get it. He might retire. MOVE ON PEOPLE!

At the same time, Brett has had an incredible career. He just broke down on national TV when asked what his teammate's affection meant to him. Here's what happened next, I kid you not:

Favre: (Crying) "I wasn't planning on doing this."

Andrea Kramer, worst sideline reporter ever: "Well we appreciate it."

Farve: (Half-joking, still crying) "Way to put me on the spot."

Kramer: "What emotions are going through your head right now?"

ARE YOU FRIGGIN' SERIOUS?!? If Kramer is back on Sunday Night Football next year I'll be shocked. She was always bad, but she almost ruined that emotional moment with her sheer, unparalleled stupidity.

Farve is definitely a classy guy though, and if he really does retire (which is what Madden said would likely happen) it will be the end of an era not just for the Packers, but for the entire NFL.

Brett, I salute you.

Not a good night for Bears QBs though. Rex Grossman and Brian Griese struggled mightily against the Packers D...just check out Grossman's QB rating tonight: 0.0. Grossman and Griese also combined for 5 INTs. Yikes!

Well this will likely be my last post of 2006. Happy New Year everybody! Have fun, be safe, and I'll see ya in '07.

NFL Week 17 Observations

2006-12-31T13:41:00.000-08:00

Titans, Young exposed...
Vince Young for rookie of the year? Maybe not. Young completed only 15 of 36 pass attempts for 227 yards, 2 interceptions, and 2 fumbles (1 lost) in a 40-23 Patriots win. VY will still probably still get the award, but he didn't deserve it: defense and special teams are what carried Tennessee over the last part of the season. Call me biased, but I'm not a fan of quarterbacks who can't throw (see: Michael Vick).

Bengals blow it again...
Shayne Graham missed a potential game-winning 39-yard field goal with under 30 seconds remaining, and Santonio Holmes caught a 67-yard touchdown pass in overtime to knock Cincy out of the playoffs. A missed extra point cost them last week, and now this. I feel really bad for Carson Palmer...the guy puts his team in a position to win 2 weeks in a row only to watch his special teams choke the game away. I don't even know what else to say...that just sucks.

Lions stun Cowboys...
It looks like 3 teams from the NFC East will be making the playoffs...and 2 of them don't deserve to be there. The Eagles clinched the NFC East with the Cowboys' 39-31 loss, but by the way Dallas and the Giants ended the season it's surprising that they both managed to make it. Tony Romo went 23/32 for 321 yards and 2 touchdowns, but also threw a pick and fumbled the ball 4 times, losing 2 of them.

Dave's Dime: Week 17

2006-12-30T00:44:00.000-08:00

Dave's Dime
"Because Two Cents Just Isn't Enough"

THE INTRO

And so here we are - the last week of the regular season.

Last week didn't treat me too well, but I can't complain after my 13 - 3 week... even after going 5 - 10 - 1 this week (yuck), thats still an 18 - 13 - 1 run.

Things will hardly get any easier this week.

The biggest problem is the damn Saturday game. If the Giants lose to the Redskins, it will mean that 4 teams in the NFC (Green Bay, Atlanta, Carolina, and St. Louis) will head into Sunday with all the added pressure and excitement of fighting for a now vacant playoff spot. If the Giants win, those four teams officially have nothing left to play for (other than Green Bay who has a minute tie-breaker chance, but, you get the idea).

So, picking the games before Saturday's game without factoring in such a huge emotional swing could be a disaster.

And when there's a chance for disaster, the Dime takes advantage.

Happy New Year Everyone!

THE RECORD

Last Week
With the spread: 5 - 10 - 1 (.333)
Without the spread: 7 - 9 - 0 (.438)
$$Money Picks$$: 0 - 2 - 0 (.000)
^^Zen Picks^^: 0 - 3 - 1 (.000)
**Outright Upsets**: 4 - 3 - 0 (.571)

Season
With the spread: 117 - 114 - 9 (.506)
Without the spread: 146 - 94 - 0 (.608)
$$Money Picks$$: 25 - 28 - 1 (.472)
^^Zen Picks^^: 22 - 21 - 2 (.512)
**Outright Upsets**: 33 - 28 - 0 (.541)

LAST WEEK'S RECAP OF DAVE'S BRILLIANCE AND FOOLISHNESS
(Often Foolishness)

Minnesota 7 6 - 8 (+3.5) @ Green Bay 9 6 - 8 (-3.5)
0 TD for Favre is certainly not what I had in mind.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS ^$Green Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Green Bay

Kansas City 20 7 - 7 (-6.5) @ Oakland 9 2 - 12 (+6.5)
This offense is completely unbearable. It will take years to fix.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *^^Oakland
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Kansas City

Baltimore 31 11 - 3 (+3.5) @ Pittsburgh 7 7 - 7 (-3.5)
This is the team that the Chargers need to worry about in the playoffs.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Baltimore
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *Baltimore

Carolina 10 6 - 8 (+6.0) @ Atlanta 3 7 - 7 (-6.0)
Of course, count on Atlanta to drop the ball in a must-win at home.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS Atlanta
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Atlanta

Chicago 26 12 - 2 (-5.0) @ Detroit 21 2 - 12 (+5.0)
This one was a dropped ball away from being right - but the bounces didn't go my way this week.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: TIE *^Detroit
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Detroit

Indianapolis 24 11 - 3 (-9.0) @ Houston 27 4 - 10 (+9.0)
Saw this one coming with the Zen rules... but didn't bother to accept it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS Indianapolis
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Indianapolis

New England 24 10 - 4 (+2.5) @ Jacksonville 21 8 - 6 (-2.5)
Parlayed New England and the OVER 37, and made a pretty penny on this one.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *New England
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *New England

New Orleans 30 9 - 5 (+3.0) @ N.Y. Giants 7 7 - 7 (-3.0)
Yet another big game for the Saints, who are starting to look like the best team in the NFC.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *New Orleans
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *New Orleans

Tampa Bay 22 3 - 11 (+3.0) @ Cleveland 7 4 - 10 (-3.0)
I got it right, and I STILL don't care.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Tampa Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *Tampa Bay

Tennessee 30 7 - 7 (+4.5) @ Buffalo 29 7 - 7 (-4.5)
As good a game as it should have been, the Titans once again find a way to win.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS Buffalo
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Buffalo

Washington 31 5 - 9 (+2.0) @ St. Louis 37 6 - 8 (-2.0)
Exciting OT game, sure, but still meaningless.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *Washington
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Washington

Arizona 26 4 - 10 (+4.0) @ San Francisco 20 6 - 8 (-4.0)
Biggest story here was Leinart's injury, putting an end to his season.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS San Francisco
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS San Francisco

Cincinnati 23 8 - 6 (+3.0) @ Denver 24 8 - 6 (-3.0)
A bad snap on a routine extra point is no way to end a season...
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Cincinnati
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Cincinnati

San Diego 20 12 - 2 (-4.5) @ Seattle 17 8 - 6 (+4.5)
On top of having raw talent on both sides of the ball, they seem to have a certain magic about them, too. Can this team be beat?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS $San Diego
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN San Diego

Philadelphia 23 8 - 6 (+7.0) @ Dallas 7 9 - 5 (-7.0)
Dallas all of a sudden looks very beatable, and in the NFC, the Eagles just might have to be taken seriously.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS Dallas
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Dallas

N.Y. Jets 13 8 - 6 (+2.5) @ Miami 10 6 - 8 (-2.5)
I changed this pick 5 minutes after I sent out the Dime... and the Jets pulled it off.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS ^Miami
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Miami

DAMN, I'M GOOD

Nothing all that spectacular this week.

THE PICKS

* - Indicates Upset Pick
$ - Indicates Money Pick
^ - Indicates Zen Pick

SATURDAY
N.Y. Giants 7 - 8 (-2.0) @ Washington 5 - 10 (+2.0)
On the one hand, you've got a team that has failed in pretty much every big game they've had the opportunity to play in. On the other hand, you have a team at home with no pressure whatsoever that has the chance to officially eliminate a hated rival. Don't get a much more clear-cut upset opportunity than this one.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Washington
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Washington

SUNDAY
Atlanta 7 - 8 (+8.0) @ Philadelphia 9 - 6 (-8.0)
In what would make my top 3 upsets of the year (Up there with Oak over Pit and KC over SD), I'm taking the Falcons against the hottest team in the NFC in this one. Here's why... Atlanta is going to be extremely motivated for one of two reasons; either their season will be over and they'll want to send Phili into the playoffs with a loss, or they're season will still be alive and they'll want to win to get in. Atlanta should be ready to play the best game they possibly can. The Eagles have not only played three straight division rivalry games, but they've WON all three. They've got to be exhausted... plus, they have clinched a playoff spot, so even if only subconciously, they will be able to relax. With the points, Atlanta makes a really good bet... and if you feel like gambling, take them straight up.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Atlanta
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Atlanta

Buffalo 7 - 8 (+9.5) @ Baltimore 12 - 3 (-9.5)
Buffalo has been one of the hottest teams in the league over the last few months, and it took an equally hot team in Tennessee to beat them by a single point. Even when they weren't winning, they were always keeping games close. Baltimore is a serious Super Bowl threat and should definitely win this game, but I'll give Buffalo the benefit of the doubt and say they keep it to a TD.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Buffalo
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Baltimore

Carolina 7 - 8 (-3.0) @ New Orleans 10 - 5 (+3.0)
Carolina could be playing for their playoff lives, and it still wouldn't matter, contrary to what the betting public might believe. Coach Payton may choose to rest players, but remember, that is what the bye is for; this is a young team, and heading into the playoffs with a loss and having a week to dwell on it wouldn't be nearly as healthy for the team as a win would be. They are talented enough to win this game even if a few players take some drives off.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *$New Orleans
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *New Orleans

Cleveland 4 - 11 (+4.0) @ Houston 5 - 10 (-4.0)
Two teams playing for nothing but pride, Houston is not only the better team, but they also happen to be playing at home. They should be able to give the home fans a win without too much trouble at all.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $Houston
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Houston

Detroit 2 - 13 (+12.5) @ Dallas 9 - 6 (-12.5)
Dallas should easily win this game by a mile, but their defense has been flat out pathetic over the last month and change. I see this game turning into a shootout, with Dallas coming out on top. Maybe by 14, maybe by 10. I'll say 10.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Detroit
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Dallas

Jacksonville 8 - 7 (+2.5) @ Kansas City 8 - 7 (-2.5)
Two teams that came close this year, but couldn't quite make it. Especially unfortunate for Jacksonville, who lost some very winable games that they would love to have back. All the same, this stands as a pride game; and even though its in Kansas City, I think Jacksonville is the stronger team, and will be able to pull off a win.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Jacksonville
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Jacksonville

Miami 6 - 9 (+9.0) @ Indianapolis 11 - 4 (-9.0)
Pretty shocking how far the Colts have fallen off over the last month, as they went from an undefeated, unstoppable team to a team that looks to be booted out as soon as the playoffs begin. I'd love to say that they right the ship and blow the dolphins out this way, but sadly, that isn't how I see it going down. Indy should pull off the win, but it will be by something like a field goal, not 10 points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Miami
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Indianapolis

New England 11 - 4 (+3.0) @ Tennessee 8 - 7 (-3.0)
Apparently this is a week of upsets, because I don't see Tennessee winning this game. They have been outstanding for two months and have done nothing but win, but the Patriots are still the Patriots, and they are two damn good to head into the playoffs with a loss on their belt. Tennessee wouldn't be a bad pick or anything... I just see that "New England +" and I have to take it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *New England
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *New England

Oakland 2 - 13 (+12.5) @ N.Y. Jets 9 - 6 (-12.5)
The game I've saved for last, and I still don't know who I'm picking with the spread as I type this. As usual, everything points towards the Raiders... the Jets have everything in the world to play for and the Raiders have nothing. They should be dangerous... they should be hungry. But the hardest team to read in football is just never a safe bet, no matter how many points you get. The score to this game should be about 28 - 3 Jets. Are the Raiders going to be able to do anything to stop that? I won't bet on it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: N.Y. Jets
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: N.Y. Jets

Pittsburgh 7 - 8 (+6.0) @ Cincinnati 8 - 7 (-6.0)
Cinci has to be completely demoralized after last weeks loss. Pittsburgh has come on very strong in the second half of the season, beating pretty much everyone besides Baltimore over that span. Finishing the season at .500 should be plenty of motivation to play one more really strong game and upset their rival Bengals on the road.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Pittsburgh
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Pittsburgh

Seattle 8 - 7 (+3.5) @ Tampa Bay 4 - 11 (-3.5)
I'm pretty blown away by the fact that a 4 - 11 team is actually favored by more than a field goal over an 8 - 7 team. This season has been a total disaster for the Seahawks, yet somehow they still find themselves heading to the playoffs. I really don't see them dropping this game, and I'll gladly take points while I'm at it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *$Seattle
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Seattle

St. Louis 7 - 8 (-3.0) @ Minnesota 6 - 9 (+3.0)
St. Louis may be coming off of two straight wins, but its two straight wins against the Raiders and the Redskins. Not that the Vikings are too much better... but I've just got a feeling that with their excellent run defense, they can neutralize the Rams and pull of a win at home to close out the season.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Minnesota
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Minnesota

Arizona 5 - 10 (+14.0) @ San Diego 13 - 2 (-14.0)
Yes, Arizona is this bad, and yes, they are missing Matt Leinart now. But this IS the NFL, and a two touchdown spread is pretty offensive. Fair? Perhaps. But I expect the Cardinals to come out playing pretty hard, and while it may be for naught, I'll take my chances with the points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Arizona
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: San Diego

San Francisco 6 - 9 (+10.5) @ Denver 9 - 6 (-10.5)
Denver narrowly made it into the playoffs last week, a total relief after changing QBs so late in what was looking to be a disappointing season. Now, the Broncos get the chance at home to go into the playoffs with a bang... and I think they'll do just that. Look for Cutler to have a huge game through the air and for the Broncos to win big.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $Denver
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Denver

Green Bay 7 - 8 (+3.0) @ Chicago 13 - 2 (-3.0)
Chicago should be resting alot of players, but they should also keep in mind that their defense has looked very vulnerable lately. Having a strong defensive game against a fairly weak offense certainly wouldn't be a bad idea heading into the playoffs. Even with backups in, this team has enough depth to beat the Packers, and I think they'll do so.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Chicago
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Chicago

COLLEGE NICKEL: BOWL EDITION

With the spread: 8 - 9 - 0 (.000)
Without the spread: 11 - 6 (.000)
$$Money Picks$$: 3 - 1 - 0 (.000)
^^Zen Picks^^: 2 - 4 - 0 (.000)
**Outright Upsets**: 2 - 4 (.000)

After starting the bowl season off 5 - 1, I have since gone only 3 - 8, sending me into depression and a mediocre 8 - 9. Hopefully I can regain early bowl form and finish up strong... but there is one game I picked that I HOPE I'm wrong on.

12 / 30 MEINEKE CAR CARE BOWL
Navy Midshipmen 9 - 3 (+6.0) @ Boston College Eagles 9 - 3 (-6.0)
Navy boasts the nations best running stats, in large part due to the fact that they don't pass at all. While Navy has no trouble running all over weak teams, teams with any ability whatsoever on defense can handle them. Boston College should be one of those teams. If Boston College can pass as easily as I expect them to, and even just slow down the run, Navy is in for a long game.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Boston College Eagles
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Boston College Eagles

12 / 30 ALOMO BOWL
Iowa Hawkeyes 6 - 6 (+9.0) @ Texas Longhorns 9 - 3 (-9.0)
Getting Colt McCoy back is just what Texas needed to assure not being caught off guard emotionally in this one. Not only does McCoy bring talent, but he'll bring an emotional boost as well. It would do wonders for him and the Longhorns to end this frustrating season on a blowout - and I expect they'll do just that.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $Texas Longhorns
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Texas Longhorns

12 / 30 PEACH BOWL
Virginia Tech Hokies 10 - 2 (-2.5) @ Georgia Bulldogs 8 - 4 (+2.5)
Over its 6 game winning streak to end the season, opponents scored a combined 29 points. 0, 0, 6, 6, 7, 10. Those kind of defensive numbers are mindboggling. I'd like to pick Georgia since the game is being played there, but I just don't think they have a powerful enough offense to break the trend. Getting the Hokies at only -2.5 is a steal considering the football they've been playing.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $Virginia Tech Hokies
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Virginia Tech Hokies

12 / 31 MPC Computers Bowl
Nevada Wolf Pack 8 - 4 (+3.5) @ Miami Florida Hurricanes 6 - 6 (-3.5)
Admittedly, I'll probably be wrong about this game. Looking at it from a Zen POV though, Miami has been in complete shambles all year, and it has landed them a joke of a bowl. Nevada, meanwhile, has been a total surprise at 8 - 4. This game should mean more to them than it does to Miami, and even if the Hurricanes are the better team, this could mean upset.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Nevada Wolf Pack
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Nevada Wolf Pack

1 / 1 COTTON BOWL
Nebraska Cornhuskers 9 - 3 (+1.5) @ Auburn Tigers 10 - 2 (-1.5)
While crunching the numbers, I'm tempted to take Nebraska... they just look like the better team on paper. But when it comes to the SEC, numbers don't tell the whole story. Auburn just wins football games... with two exceptions, of course. But the point is, at only -1.5, I have a lot of trouble picking against them. This ones a gut pick more than anything. Should be a great game.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Auburn Tigers
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Auburn Tigers

1 / 1 OUTBACK BOWL
Penn State Nittany Lions 8 - 4 (+4.0) @ Tennessee Volunteers 9 - 3 (-4.0)
Tennessee has three losses this year... Florida, LSU, and Arkansas. Penn State has four... Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Notre Dame. In other words, it takes a pretty damn good team to beat these two. So who do you pick? The numbers point at Penn State, but my mind points at Tennessee. Hmm... I'll go against my gut instinct and count on Penn State to control the game on the ground and pull out the upset. It's going to be tough.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Penn State Nittany Lions
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Penn State Nittany Lions

1 / 1 CAPITAL ONE BOWL
Wisconsin Badgers 11 - 1 (+2.0) @ Arkansas Razorbacks 10 - 2 (-2.0)
Its hard to gauge who is going to win a game like this when both teams are so good and neither really shows any glaring weaknesses. Wisconsin has the numbers... but against who? They haven't faced a team with the likes of Darren McFadden. Arkansas won 10 straight games after losing to USC, and since those 10 have now lost two straight. They will be hungry for redemption, and should be able to beat the Badgers.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^Arkansas Razorbacks
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Arkansas Razorbacks

1 / 1 GATOR BOWL
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 9 - 3 (+11.0) @ West Virginia Mountaineers 10 - 2 (-11.0)
While the Mountaineers are definitely the better team, they do have a pretty weak passing defense... on top of that, they are going against a very good rushing defense. I'm sure West Virginia will blow them out, but I find my lack of upset picks this week unsettling... so I'll take the 11 points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: West Virginia Mountaineers

1 / 1 ROSE BOWL
Michigan Wolverines 11 - 1 (+1.0) @ USC Trojans 10 - 2 (-1.0)
A true coin-flip between two great teams, I give the edge to Michigan for a few reasons. First of all, they want revenge from the last rose bowl. Secondly, they have a lot more to prove from this game. Michigan only lost one game - to undefeated Ohio State by 3 - and in their eyes they deserve to be in the championship. Meanwhile the Trojans are only here because they blew it against UCLA; they know as well as anyone that they SHOULD be in the National Championship game, which will make it very hard to get motivated for this one. If Michigan wins this game and Florida loses by more than 3, Michigan can make a big fuss for a playoff system and let everyone know that it should have been them. If USC wins this game... they STILL lost to two unranked teams, and this doesn't change anything. That means to me that Michigan has a lot more to prove in this game, and should want it a little more. Lastly, Michigan's run defense is amazing, and should be able to turn USC's offense into a one dimensional passing attack; and then just wait until Booty blows the game. This one could go either way and of course I'll be rooting for SC, but put a gun to my head and ask me who I think is going to win... and you won't like the answer.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Michigan Wolverines
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Michigan Wolverines

1 / 1 FIESTA BOWL
Boise State Broncos 12 - 0 (+7.0) @ Oklahoma Sooners 10 - 2 (-7.0)
Looking back on it now, how huge was that blown call in Oregon? I thought losing Adrian Peterson would bring Oklahoma's season to a crashing halt, but it did nothing of the sort... they are on an eight game winning streak and in fact, Peterson might even play in this game. Can't find much fault in Boise State's game; they've had a perfect season to this point and have been great on both sides of the ball. No saying how they'll do against a team as strong as the Sooners, though. I'll gamble on the Sooners getting off to a slow start and the Broncos to keep it close - but the Sooners should prevail in the end.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Boise State Broncos
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Oklahoma Sooners

1 / 2 ORANGE BOWL
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (+10.0) @ Louisville Cardinals 11 - 1 (-10.0)
One of the biggest surprises of the season has been the Demon Deacons, who came out of nowhere to earn a trip to the Orange Bowl with a 10 - 2 record, including some pretty impressive victories along the way. The problem? Louisville. Louisville has only failed to beat their opponent by double digits twice this season. Yes, twice, and yes that includes the 1 loss. Wake Forest may have a little bit more magic left in them, but I won't be the one betting against Louisville.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Louisville Cardinals
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Louisville Cardinals

1 / 3 SUGAR BOWL
Notre Dame Fighting Irish (+9.0) @ LSU Tigers (-9.0)
I'll put this to you simply. LSU is just a significantly better football team than the Fighting Irish. They are superior on both sides of the ball, and while 9 points may seem like alot, look what happened to Notre Dame when they faced Michigan and USC. Couple their superiority with the fact that the game is being played IN Louisiana, and you've got a pretty sure thing in the Tigers.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $LSU Tigers
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LSU Tigers
__________________________________________________

For more of Dave's picks check out his LiveJournal. You can also email him at socaltrojan31@aol.com.

Merry Christmas everyone!

2006-12-25T00:05:00.000-08:00

It's Time for the Dime!

2006-12-23T11:40:00.000-08:00

So my good friend David (not me of course, but another David) has been putting out a little something called "Dave's Dime" for quite a while now, where he gives his picks for pro and college football. Granted, he has his down weeks, (coincidentally, most weeks for him are down weeks, but I digress...) but I really believe the man has a knack for picking games.

Well let me put it this way...I think he is better at picking games that those bums at ESPN and Sports Illustrated (which really isn't saying a lot. But yet again, I digress...)

I am ecstatic to announce that Dave's Dime will be hosted here on Somewhat Opinionated for as long as he keeps doing it. So without further ado, here are Dave's picks for Week 16.

(By the way, if you want to check out his website with all his picks throughout the season, you can find his LiveJournal here. You can also email him at socaltrojan31@aol.com.)
______________________________________________________

Dave's Dime
"Because Two Cents Just Isn't Enough"

THE INTRO

Sorry about last week everyone. I let someone who knew football do the Dime for me.

But I'm back now, we can get back to mediocrity and self-loathing.

Seriously though, how scary was this fortelling job in my intro last week?

"I'm due for a 13 - 3 week anyways, aren't I???"

For those of you that don't keep count (and why aren't you?? Don't you live and breathe the Dime?) that is exactly what I turned out. 13 - 3. Thats 80% winners. That's good football.

A fluke or a sign of things to come? With two more weeks, only time will tell. But I do have one more thing to say...

I'm due for a 12 - 4 week anyways, aren't I???

Merry Christmas everyone, and to those of you who don't celebrate it, happy holidays! Whatever you're celebrating, I hope it is wonderful.

Huge Dime this week with 32 games on hand!

THE RECORD

Last Week
With the spread: 13 - 3 - 0 (.813)
Without the spread: 11 - 5 - 0 (.688)
$$Money Picks$$: 4 - 0 - 0 (1.000)
^^Zen Picks^^: 4 - 1 - 0 (.800)
**Outright Upsets**: 3 - 2 - 0 (.600)

Season
With the spread: 112 - 104 - 8 (.519)
Without the spread: 139 - 85 - 0 (.621)
$$Money Picks$$: 25 - 26 - 1 (.490)
^^Zen Picks^^: 22 - 18 - 1 (.550)
**Outright Upsets**: 29 - 25 - 0 (.537)

LAST WEEK'S RECAP OF DAVE'S BRILLIANCE AND FOOLISHNESS
(Often Foolishness)

San Francisco 24 5 - 8 (+9.5) @ Seattle 14 8 - 5 (-9.5)
Seattle is the NFC's quietest playoff bound team, and games like this remind us why.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *^San Fransisco
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS Seattle

Dallas 38 8 - 5 (-3.5) @ Atlanta 28 7 - 6 (+3.5)
Nobody is questioning Dallas's ability to score... but their defense has left a bit to be desired of late.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN Dallas
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Dallas

Detroit 9 2 - 11 (+5.0) @ Green Bay 17 5 - 8 (-5.0)
Picking against Detroit is becoming the cool thing to do.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN $Green Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Green Bay

Jacksonville 17 8 - 5 (-3.5) @ Tennessee 24 6 - 7 (+3.5)
It's truly pathetic to see Jacksonville squander their season, and truly impressive to see the Titans make an amazing story out of theirs.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *^Tennessee
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *Tennessee

Miami 0 6 - 7 (+1.0) @ Buffalo 21 6 - 7 (-1.0)
Too bad for Buffalo (and Tennessee too actually) they aren't in the NFC, or their playoff hopes would still be in tact.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *Miami
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Miami

N.Y. Jets 26 7 - 6 (+3.0) @ Minnesota 13 6 - 7 (-3.0)
Wins against Miami and Oakland could make the Jets the second biggest playoff surprise of the year (see Saints, New Orleans)
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *$N.Y. Jets
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *N.Y. Jets

Pittsburgh 37 6 - 7 (-2.5) @ Carolina 3 6 - 7 (+2.5)
Say what you will about the Raiders, but I think Carolina is the most pathetic team in the NFL. They've actually GOT talent, they just don't use it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS *^Carolina
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS *Carolina

Tampa Bay 31 3 - 10 (+13.5) @ Chicago 34 11 - 2 (-13.5)
Sadly, I actually flirted with picking Tampa Bay. Pretty pathetic effort by Chicago but who can blame them?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: LOSS Chicago
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Chicago

Washington 16 4 - 9 (+9.5) @ New Orleans 10 9 - 4 (-9.5)
Saints fans, don't sweat it... they had to have a slow game offensively sooner or later.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *^Washington
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS New Orleans

Denver 37 7 - 6 (-3.0) @ Arizona 20 4 - 9 (+3.0)
Solid game for Cutler, but hardly the league's toughest defense on the other end.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN $Denver
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Denver

Philadelphia 36 7 - 6 (+5.5) @ N.Y. Giants 22 7 - 6 (-5.5)
McNabb be damned? All of a sudden, Phili is no longer a long shot to make the playoffs this year.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Philadelphia
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: LOSS N.Y. Giants

St. Louis 20 5 - 8 (+2.5) @ Oakland 0 2 - 11 (-2.5)
For the first time in ages, the Raiders don't screw me over. They do embarass themselves as usual, though.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *St. Louis
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN *St. Louis

Kansas City 9 7 - 6 (+9.0) @ San Diego 20 11 - 2 (-9.0)
LT is God, and this team can actually play a bit of defense too. Super Bowl, anyone?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN ^San Diego
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN San Diego

Cincinnati 16 8 - 5 (+3.0) @ Indianapolis 34 10 - 3 (-3.0)
Huge game for Peyton and the offense, but much more importantly, the defense actually held a team to 16 points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN Indianapolis
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Indianapolis

DAMN, I'M GOOD

Cleveland 17 4 - 9 (+11.0) @ Baltimore 27 10 - 3 (-11.0)
This is a tough one. I don't want to show any lack of respect to one of the AFC's best, and Cleveland has been getting bullied around alot lately. Still, a division rival, a hard nosed team... I can't help but think Cleveland is going to keep it respectable.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN *Cleveland
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN Baltimore
- It's just cool to be this right.

Houston 7 4 - 9 (+11.5) @ New England 40 9 - 4 (-11.5)
Coming off of a humiliating shutout loss to the Dolphins, the team on the other side of the "New England -11" line is irrelevent. New England will not let anyone dwell on their weakness, and Houston is in the wrong place at the wrong time.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: WIN ^$New England
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: WIN New England
- Not that it's that big of a deal, but I just love when games go EXACTLY how I imagine them.

THE PICKS

* - Indicates Upset Pick
$ - Indicates Money Pick
^ - Indicates Zen Pick

THURSDAY
Minnesota 6 - 8 (+3.5) @ Green Bay 6 - 8 (-3.5)
In what will likely be Favre's last game in front of the home fans in Green Bay, going against a weak passing defense is just begging for a 4 TD, heroic send off. Or, at the very least, a victory by more than 4 points.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^$Green Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Green Bay

SATURDAY
Kansas City 7 - 7 (-6.5) @ Oakland 2 - 12 (+6.5)
This is a tough, tough game. Zen rules don't really seem to apply to the Raiders - they are just so horribly bad on offense that it doesn't matter what motivation or reasoning they have to win. They are a home underdog against a division rival in their last game at home. They just lost a game at home in embarassing fashion. Everyone is counting them out... It's seriously a Zen dream. And yet, they are so bad, it never seems to matter. What to do? I guess I'll reluctantly take the points... but I just don't see them winning. I wish the defense's heart was enough.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^^Oakland
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Kansas City

SUNDAY
Baltimore 11 - 3 (+3.5) @ Pittsburgh 7 - 7 (-3.5)
This was going to be my big upset pick... until I saw that Pittsburgh was favored! Yes its in Pittsburgh and yes they've been playing great football and yes they'd love to beat a division rival. And that was why I was going to pick them. But you are going to GIVE me points to take one of the AFC's best teams? I'm not going to pass on that, trap or no trap.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Baltimore
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Baltimore

Carolina 6 - 8 (+6.0) @ Atlanta 7 - 7 (-6.0)
Carolina is pretty much dead to me. They are due for a big game and in all likelihood they will have it here... but this team just doesn't ever seem to show up, and I'm through wasting picks on them. I'd probably take the Raiders against them at this point... but the Falcons actually have a REAL chance of winning.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Atlanta
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Atlanta

Chicago 12 - 2 (-5.0) @ Detroit 2 - 12 (+5.0)
Chicago has nothing to play for... nothing. They've clinched home field throughout the playoffs. Detroit meanwhile is playing for their jobs, pride, passion, whatever. While the fact that the Bears cut it close against Tampa Bay makes me a bit nervous they might take this game seriously, the fact remains that this is the kind of game that Vegas makes a LOT of money on.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Detroit
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Detroit

Indianapolis 11 - 3 (-9.0) @ Houston 4 - 10 (+9.0)
While Indy is coming off a huge win and Houston is coming off a huge loss could mean trouble for the Colts emotion-wise, I don't think that will factor in here. Indy needs to regain the intimidation factor that they had throughout the season before the playoffs begin, and squeaking by a team like Houston wouldn't do the trick. Blowing them out in their own stadium is almost manditory, and I think Peyton and the gang are up to the task.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Indianapolis
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Indianapolis

New England 10 - 4 (+2.5) @ Jacksonville 8 - 6 (-2.5)
I understand why Jacksonville is the favorite... they are a shutdown defensive team that, when on, is exceptionally tough to beat. The problem is, they are a scizophrenic team facing a perennial winner. If they can put all the pieces together, they can beat New England. But that's an if... and there are no "ifs" when the Patriots play. Anytime I can get this team WITH points in December, I'll take it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *New England
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *New England

New Orleans 9 - 5 (+3.0) @ N.Y. Giants 7 - 7 (-3.0)
At home in a game that they absolutely must win, the Giants could be pretty dangerous. They also might have the running game to expose New Orlean's defense. All that said, they are too inconsistant on both sides of the ball to take against a team like New Orleans, which is coming off a rare off-game and should refind their grove here.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *New Orleans
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *New Orleans

Tampa Bay 3 - 11 (+3.0) @ Cleveland 4 - 10 (-3.0)
This game should be down in the bowl section below under the "who cares" bowl. Honestly, these are two terrible teams with nothing but pride to play for... I genuinely have no idea who's going to win. I'll take Tampa Bay to build off of their respectable loss to the Bears, I suppose... but I certainly won't be watching this one.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Tampa Bay
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Tampa Bay

Tennessee 7 - 7 (+4.5) @ Buffalo 7 - 7 (-4.5)
Now this is an interesting game, pitting two of the AFC's hottest teams against eachother. These two teams have won against the spread for the last 6 weeks in a row! Now someones gotta lose against it. And I've gotta take the Bills. Tennessee is coming off of three straight divisional games and five straight wins. They are due for a letdown game... and this game is in Buffalo. The magic finally comes to an end this week... I think?
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Buffalo
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Buffalo

Washington 5 - 9 (+2.0) @ St. Louis 6 - 8 (-2.0)
Another good "who cares" game, except this one has two teams that actually had high expectations coming into the season. I've gotta take the Redskins in this one, simply because St. Louis's defense is downright horrible, and one great game against the Raiders won't cure that.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Washington
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Washington

Arizona 4 - 10 (+4.0) @ San Francisco 6 - 8 (-4.0)
At least there is a lot of exciting young talent in this game. Arizona shouldn't have much trouble passing the ball, and San Francisco shouldn't have much trouble running it. I'll take Frank Gore and the running game and home field advantage in this one.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: San Francisco
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: San Francisco

Cincinnati 8 - 6 (+3.0) @ Denver 8 - 6 (-3.0)
Undoubtedly the game of the week, the team that loses this one is likely out of the playoff hunt. The game is pretty much a coin flip... both teams have plenty of weaknesses, and it all depends on who can exploit who's better. As such, I'll take the team I like over the team I hate. This should be a great game to watch, and either team isn't a bad bet... but I say Cinci's passing game has its way and pulls it out.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Cincinnati
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Cincinnati

San Diego 12 - 2 (-4.5) @ Seattle 8 - 6 (+4.5)
Seattle is due for a big game, especially after coming off yet another disappointing home loss to San Francisco. The problem? They are playing what is probably the league's best team, who is also in a tight race for home field advantage throughout the playoffs. While Seattle may very well put it all together, getting the chargers at -less then a touchdown is a bet you simply have to make.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $San Diego
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: San Diego

MONDAY
Philadelphia 8 - 6 (+7.0) @ Dallas 9 - 5 (-7.0)
Another great game with playoff implications written all over it. Phili's three game winning streak has been impressive, but the wins have come against braindead Carolina, weak Washington, and the self-imploding Giants. They haven't faced a team quite like the Cowboys in a while, and with homefield advantage, I've got them winning this game by double digits.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Dallas
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Dallas

N.Y. Jets 8 - 6 (+2.5) @ Miami 6 - 8 (-2.5)
This game hurts, because I DEFINITELY want the Jets to win. I've got a gut feeling that Miami is going to beat them, however... and on top of that, Zen would agree... Miami has nothing to lose and can play the game loose, while the Jets are in a must-win situation. I'll be wearing my Pennington jersey and rooting for the Jets, but I don't think I'll like the results.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^Miami
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Miami

COLLEGE NICKEL: BOWL EDITION

With the spread: 1 - 0 - 0 (1.000)
Without the spread: 1 - 0 (1.000)
$$Money Picks$$: 0 - 0 - 0 (N/A)
^^Zen Picks^^: 0 - 0 - 0 (N/A)
**Outright Upsets**: 0 - 0 (N/A)

Man I'm exhausted... 16 NFL game not enough for you? How about 16 bowl games this week, too?

12 / 21 LAS VEGAS BOWL
BYU Cougars 10 - 2 (-3.0) @ Oregon Ducks 7 - 5 (+3.0)
The line is moving in Oregon's favor, and I'm thinking it might have something to do with their relatively strong passing defense. No matter. While I can't pick favorites across the board, seeing one of my favorite betting teams at just -3.0 is a little too sweet for me to pass up on. Should be a good game to see what both teams are made of.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $BYU Cougars
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: BYU Cougars

12 / 22 NEW ORLEANS BOWL
Troy State Trojans 7 - 5 (+4.0) @ Rice Owls 7 - 5 (-4.0)
The Owls are a decent team on an amazing run, having won 5 straight even WITH the spread. You know what I like to do when teams are on runs like that - bet AGAINST them. Neither team is particularly good, but I'll trust the Zen mindset here and take the team getting less attention.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^*Troy State Trojans
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Troy State Trojans

12 / 23 PAPAJOHNS.COM BOWL
East Carolina Pirates 7 - 5 (+5.0) @ South Florida Bulls 8 - 4 (-5.0)
Both of these teams do very well aainst the spread, and with a fresh Papa John's pizza with that garlic sauce on the line, you just never know. South Florida is not only the slightly better team, but they also would like to carry the momentum of their West Virginia upset into a strong finish to the season. I think they'll be able to.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: South Florida Bulls
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: South Florida Bulls

12 / 23 NEW MEXICO BOWL
San Jose State Spartans 8 - 4 (+3.5) @ New Mexico Lobos 6 - 6 (-3.5)
While it's a big bowl no-no to bet against a home team in bowl games, I'm going to do just that this year. I don't think New Mexico has enough on the defensive side of the ball to keep San Jose out of the endzone, and while the game should be close, San Jose should be able to pull it off... even against a home team.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *San Jose State Spartans
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *San Jose State Spartans

12 / 23 ARMED FORCES BOWL
Utah Utes 7 - 5 (-1.0) @ Tulsa Golden Hurricans 8 - 4 (+1.0)
While I'm a little concerned with Utah's ability to stop the run as well as the fact that they've been playing great football, Tulsa is the statistically stronger team - on top of that, Utah is only favored because they've been playing so well. I'll take Tulsa to put it all together this week and get the win.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Tulsa Golden Hurricanes
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Tulsa Golden Hurricanes

12 / 24 HAWAII BOWL
Arizona State Sun Devils 7 - 5 (+6.5) @ Hawaii Warriors 10 - 3 (-6.5)
Anyone who's paid any attention to the Dime whatsoever already knows who I'm taking in this one. While Arizona State isn't totally useless on defense, stopping the Warriors is a tough tough thing to do. Couple that with the fact that its in Hawaii, and I'll disagree with the betting public (who's been betting Arizona State) and take the Warriors to win in a shootout by the needed TD.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^$Hawaii Warriors
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Hawaii Warriors

12 / 26 MOTOR CITY BOWL
Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders (+9.0) @ Central Michigan Chippewas (-9.0)
Since this IS the Motor City Bowl, Central Mich should have the upper hand. And while I do think they are going to win, I don't think they have the defense to do much to stop the Blue Raiders. This one should be kept within a touchdown, making the +9 a decent bet here.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Central Michigan Chippewas

12 / 27 EMERALD BOWL
FSU Seminoles 6 - 6 (+4.5) @ UCLA Bruins 7 - 5 (-4.5)
For the Seminoles, this season can't be over fast enough. A completely disappointing season followed by a meaningless bowl. The Bruins, however, coming off their win against USC have everything to gain from this game. With a convincing win here, they will have finished the season off super strong, which will look great come recruitment time. This is probably the best bet out of the entire bowl season, as I'd probably take them -9.0 without much hesitation.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^$UCLA Bruins
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: UCLA Bruins

12 / 28 INDEPENDENCE BOWL
Oklahoma State Cowboys 6 - 6 (-2.0) @ Alabama Crimson Tide 6 - 6 (+2.0)
Hardly the most exciting bowl on the schedule, this one matches up two 6 - 6 teams. Oklahoma State has the superior offense, Alabama has the superior defense. You should know who the smart person takes in this situation.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Alabama Crimson Tide
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Alabama Crimson Tide

12 / 28 TEXAS BOWL
Kansas State Wildcats 7 - 5 (+7.0) @ Rutgers Scarlet Knights 10 - 2 (-7.0)
Rutgers is simply the better team on both sides of the ball, and on top of that, can cap off a very impressive season with a strong win in this game. I say they'll do just that.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: $Rutgers Scarlet Knights
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Rutgers Scarlet Knights

12 / 28 HOLIDAY BOWL
Texas A&M Aggies 9 - 3 (+5.0) @ California Golden Bears 9 - 3 (-5.0)
The Zen pick would actually be to take Cal, as they have lost their last 5 against the spread and Texas A&M has gone 6 - 0 - 1 against it over their last 7. This means that Cal is due. Quite frankly, I don't care. There's a reason for that discrepency... Cal simply doesn't show up to big games. Texas A&M does. I think the Aggies have more heart, and will put a bitter end to this disappointing season for Cal.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *Texas A&M Aggies
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Texas A&M Aggies

12 / 29 MUSIC CITY BOWL
Kentucky Wildcats 7 - 5 (+9.5) @ Clemson Tigers 8 - 4 (-9.5)
Interestingly enough, Clemson hardly ever covers against the spread, and Kentucky usually does a decent job keeping things interesting. Still, the numbers are just too enticing in Clemson's favor for me to pick against them. A blowout shouldn't be out of the question.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Clemson Tigers
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Clemson Tigers

12 / 29 SUN BOWL
Missouri Tigers 8 - 4 (+3.5) @ Oregon State Beavers 9 - 4 (-3.5)
Oregon State has not looked back, after getting off to a slow start this season, winning 7 of their last 8 including victories against USC and Hawaii. Missouri, meanwhile, jumped out to a 6 - 0 start and has gone only 2 - 4 since. I can't bring myself to pick against the Beavers, even if the stats do match up favorably for Missouri. This is a big game team, and this bowl win would be big for them.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Oregon State Beavers
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Oregon State Beavers

12 / 29 LIBERTY BOWL
Houston Cougars 9 - 3 (+6.0) @ South Carolina Gamecocks 7 - 5 (-6.0)
Of course - the other SC playing in the good ol' Liberty Bowl. I think the fact that they've got Spurrier and they've played well lately has the spread tilted incorrectly in their favor. Houston has played some great football this season, and I think they can not only cover, but win this game outright while they are at it.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: *^Houston Cougars
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: *Houston Cougars

12 / 29 CHAMPS SPORTS BOWL
Purdue Boilermakers 8 - 5 @ Maryland Terps 8 - 4 (Pick'em)
While I am a bit of a Boilermakers fan, the fact is, their defense is downright pathetic. And while this game is pretty much a coinflip, I don't feel safe betting on a team that can't stop anyone. Besides, Maryland is due for a big game.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: ^Maryland Terps
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Maryland Terps

12 / 29 INSIGHT BOWL
Minnesota Golden Gophers 6 - 6 (+6.0) @ Texas Tech Red Raiders 7 - 5 (-6.0)
Honestly, I don't have a whole lot of INSIGHT on this one. Main thing to look for here however is the fact that Minnesota's pass defense is terrible, and Texas Tech's passing offense is awesome. Put the two together, and you're probably looking at a great game in the air and a win by more than a TD.
PICK WITH THE SPREAD: Texas Tech Red Raiders
PICK WITHOUT THE SPREAD: Texas Tech Red Raiders

If Jim Mora and Allen Iverson had a conversation...

2006-12-22T15:27:00.001-08:00

I'm about 1,000% sure it would go like this...

Props to MisterIrrelevant.com for this one.

Hook'em, Hang'em...

2006-12-22T15:09:00.000-08:00

What happens when a five-star quarterback recruit changes his mind and decides not to go to Texas? John Brantley found out the hard way on his MySpace page... as pissed-off Longhorn fans left some very pleasant comments for him.

The whole story is over at Rumors and Rants and I whole-heartedly encourage you to check it out.

Bill Plaschke is a ridiculous little man...

2006-12-21T14:33:00.000-08:00

LA Times columnist Bill Plaschke on ESPN's Around the Horn today called out the city of Philadelphia, saying it is an "ugly" city full of "mean-spirited" people and that is why they haven't won a sports championship since 1983.

Wow, where do I begin.

Seriously, I told one of my friends about this and his first queston was "who is Bill Plaschke," which is fitting because the man hasn't written a good column since 1983. And I would know, considering my family has subscribed to the Times for a long time.

We also used to live near Philly, and it is a great city full of history, good food, and even better people. Plaschke works in LA, so how the hell would he know what Philadelphia is like on a day-to-day basis?!?

I mean, how does this guy justify saying horrible things about an entire friggin city? You may not like Philly, but to say that everyone there is basically a piece of shit is a ridiculous generalization. It takes a lot to offend me, but what he said was bitter, pathetic, entirely untrue, and deeply offensive.

Plaschke may attack Philly, but the worst sports fans in American can be found in the city that he constantly defends, Los Angeles.

LA sports fans are famous for "coming late and leaving early," even in playoff games, and that is 100% true. People have theories for this, most having to do with the fact that there is so much to do in LA and the weather is so nice that sporting events aren't as big a draw as in other cities.

Regardless, the passion Philly fans have for their teams is non-existent in LA. It's all about winning and hopping on to the bandwagon of whichever team is playing the best. Think Eagle fans are bad Plaschke? Raider and Ram fans were some of the worst in the NFL until both teams relocated, and there is a reason the NFL has not come back to Los Angeles. Not even college teams are safe...Prior to beating USC the only UCLA fans you'd ever see were in Westwood, and the Coliseum should be one of the loudest venues in sports, yest USC crowds are quiet and disinterested most Saturdays. Not even the student section fills up!

Basically...most LA sports fans suck, but that doesn't mean everyone in the city is stupid and indifferent. Criticizing a sports team or its fans is one thing: criticizing a whole city is something else entirely.

That's all I really have to say about this. Honestly I'm more disappointed in Plaschke than anything else because I've met him and he's a pretty decent guy, but that doesn't excuse what he said.

Want some more dirt on Plaschke? Check out Deadspin's "Why Your Hometown Columnist Sucks.

Vince Young for MVP!!!

2006-12-15T12:16:00.000-08:00

The savior of the Titans, and the best rookie QB EVERRRRRRR!!!!

Lately I've been seening a lot of hype for Vince Young to be the NFL rookie of the year. His last couple games have been pretty impressive, and look at the Titans...they are in the playoff hunt! Last time I checked, this was the same team that sucked so bad last season Jeff Fisher's career as their coach was as good as over.

That's why I'm here today to argue that Vince Young should absolutely be the rookie of the year, if not the MVP in the NFL. You heard me right, I am hopping on the VY bandwagon as of this moment forward. How can you not love this guy?!?

I mean, look at his stats.....1704 passing yards in 12 games (10 starts)...that's a whopping 142 yards per game!!! That's 2 yards better than Kerry Collins' average before Vince replaced him! AND Vince has 10 passing touchdowns! Granted, he has 11 interceptions....but so what?!? A lot of great quarterbacks throw more interceptions than touchdowns: like, like, ummmmmm......Jeff George?

WHATEVER! You just argue against Vince cause you're all a bunch of USC bandwagoners.

Not only can Vince pass, but he can run too! You saw that game-winning 39-yard TD run against the Texans right? Geez he has 458 yards and 5 TDs rushing! Granted, that's only 38 yards rushing per game...but he could totally be a starting runningback in the NFL! He makes Mike Vick look like a slug! Hell one Texas fan even told me he is faster than the speed of light!!!! WOW!!!!

Vince's 65.7 QB rating really doesn't do his amazing awesomeness justice...In my opinion his QB rating in terms of value to his team should be 200, if not more...

AND, in 12 games he's only fumbled 8 times!

AND his completion percentage on the season is 51.7%! I mean, he is completing more than half his passes isn't that awesome?!? Matt Leinart is only completing 56.7% of his passes......errr......Vince is STILL BETTER!

Just look at the games he's won for his team...against the Eagles he was 8/22 for 101 yards and a touchdown!!!! WOW, the Titans are clearly winning ALL BECAUSE OF VINCE!

AND he's only going to get better. It's not like all he has are his legs like Mike Vick...........look at what happened to Steve McNair, Donovan McNabb, Daunte Culpepper...those guys are getting older and they can still scramble! It's not like they get hurt all the time!

AND Vince is soooo smart! HE SCORED A 6 ON THE WONDERLIC! That's 3 points better than me!!!!

I think all this evidence makes it clear that Vince Young is the best rookie in the league this season, if not the BEST ROOKIE QB EVERRRRRR!!! VINCE YOUNG FOR ROOKIE OF THE YEAR....AND NFL MVP...HOOK'EM HORNS!!!!!! (/idiocy)

_________________________________________________

UPDATE: 12/16/06 - 4:26 PM

The fine folks over at sportsillustrated.com must read my blog. On their list of the top 10 NFL offseason moves, the Titans drafting Young is #10 on their list. Here is their justification for it...

You really can't understand the impact Vince Young has had by looking at the numbers. He has one of the worst passer ratings in the NFL (65.7), but the guy just knows how to win and teammates get fired up by his competitive spirit. Many experts thought the Titans blew the No. 3 overall pick, but Young has led the Titans to an incredible late-season push. They've won their last four and should be tough to beat down the stretch.

Kindly allow me to translate that for you...

Vince Young absolutely sucks as a quarterback, but you don't understand why he should be the rookie of the year because you are a mere simpleton and I work at Sports Illustrated! I mean, Vince may not know basic math, but he knows how to win!!! The numbers that determine how good a quarterback is are ultimately worthless because I say they are. Instead let's measure players by their knowledge of how to win and their "competitive spirit". Cause that makes a lot of sense...

For the love of God, this is getting ridiculous...

ESPN sure favors those Trojans...

2006-12-15T12:08:00.000-08:00

One thing I keep hearing from USC haters (that's you Brent) is how the media, especially ESPN, favors the Trojans. Well, ESPN released their 2006 All-American team (sorry, there was no direct link) and surprise surprise, there are NO Trojans on there.

How Rey Maualuga, Dwayne Jarrett and/or Steve Smith were left off is beyond me, but I guess I should expect this from the same network that let's idiots like Lou Holtz spout out their nonsensical bullshit every week.

I'm gonna take a wild guess and say Lou will pick Michigan to win the Rose Bowl by 70...

Why I now love Torry Holt: One man's tale of fantasy football tragedy and triumph

2006-12-13T13:49:00.000-08:00

I know not many of you care about my fantasy football team, but I do, and this is a story that trancends just my league. It is a tale of hope, triumph, and the forged bond between two people who have never met and their quests to bring success to their teams.

Heading into the Bears/Rams Monday Night Football game, my fantasy team trailed in the semi-finals of my money league with 8 of my high school friends. The situation looked bleak...

My team: The Broad Street Bullies (7-5)

QB - Tom Brady ----- 1
RB - Brian Westbrook ----- 11
RB - Tiki Barber ----- 11
RB/WR - Donald Driver ----- 22
WR - Torry Holt ----- Still to play
WR - Lee Evans ----- 15
TE - LJ Smith ----- 7
DEF - Chargers ----- 6
K - Nate Kaeding ----- 12

Total: 85

The Opposition: Team Semper Fi (8-4)

QB - Matt Hasselbeck ----- 28
RB - LaDanian Tomlinson ----- 28
RB - Willie Parker ----- 26
RB/WR - Marion Barber ----- 0
WR - Steve Smith ----- 6
WR - Andre Johnson ----- 6
TE - Todd Heap ----- 3
DEF - Seahawks ----- 1
K - Josh Brown ----- 3

Total: 101

Tom Brady's bad game at Miami and two late TDs from LT put me into quite a deep hole, but a goose-egg from Marion Barber kept me within reach. For our league 10 receiving yards equals 1 point, and TDs are 6 points.

Basically I needed a huge game from Torry Holt against one of the best defenses in the league, or else my fantasy season was over. So it begins...

Around 6 pm (Pacific) - Late first quarter Nervously, I check the score on ESPN.com, because at this point I feel my chances are very slim. 7-6 Chicago, but Torry Holt has 30 yards and a touchdown! I am infused with a new hope that Torry and I can pull this thing off. I only need 8 more points from Holt (I'd lose the tiebreaker, so I need to win this thing straight up). Spirits are high, life is good.

7 pm - Halftime Holt is still stuck at 9 points. It looks like the Bears are starting to shut him down. I can't watch!!!

8 pm - Late third quarter I've started watching the game because I can't take following the game on ESPN.com anymore. Holt and the Rams are struggling, and I begin to prepare my consolation speech.

8:30 pm - 9:20 left in the game Holt makes a nice diving 13 yard catch: his first since the opening quarter. 8 points to go.

Minutes later - 8:13 to go Bulger finds Holt open dep down the middle of the field for what should be the fantasy game-winning TD catch. The ball hits him in the hands, and he drops it. I sit on my couch in stunned disbelief. Then I find out Holt has 4 drops in the game. I march into my room, vent to my roomate for a couple minutes about how the football gods hate me, then sit and mope for a few minutes.

7:40 to go While I'm moping, Holt catches a 6 yard TD pass. That gives him 49 yards and 2 TDs on the night for 16 fantasy points. We're tied at 101! I just need ONE MORE POINT!

4:48 to go After Hester's kickoff return for a TD, the Rams go on a long scoring drive, but Bulger doesn't find Holt at all. I'm starting to get really nervous...

4:10 to go Holt catches an 18 yard pass from Bulger. I WIN! I WIN! .....wait.....offensive holding?!? NO PLAY?!? NOOOOOO!!!!

3:09 to go 3rd and 25 for the Rams, and if they turn the ball over here they lose, and my fantasy team loses. Then, it happens. Torry makes an incredible 26 yard, one-handed grab between two defenders and hangs on! THE BROAD STREET BULLIES WIN!!!

Now it's on to the title game to face Team Phoenix, but for one night fantasy football made me the biggest Torry Holt fan out there. Sure, the Rams lost, but I will always be grateful to Torry for coming through with 19 points against one of the toughest defenses in the league.

FINAL SCORE: Broad Street Bullies 104 Team Semper Fi 101

The Fall of Romo???

2006-12-10T22:46:00.000-08:00

I've never been a fan of the ESPN hype machine that seems to anoint a player "the best ever" then crap all over him a month later. Tony Romo is the latest victim of this pathetic attempt by ESPN to get sports fans' attention.

After leading the Cowboys to a big come-from-behind win over Carolina and a close win against previously unbeaten Indianapolis, ESPN "analysts" (I use that term loosely) were ready to call Romo the next Troy Aikman. Now? After a humiliating 42-17 loss to New Orleans, the Sportscenter "personalities" (I use that term loosely as well) are starting to backtrack a bit. "Oh Bill Parcells said there is still a lot of work to do. Romo isn't ready yet...blah blah blah..." All you need to know is: A.) Tony Romo is the next Troy Aikman, but B.) He may not be that good, but also C.) He just may not be ready yet.

Not that you care, but here's my take on this mess; ESPN politics be damned.

Tony Romo is a pretty decent quarterback. Hell he may be the next Drew Bledsoe (except he can run a little....and that wasn't really meant to be a complement.) But let's get one thing straight: as of right now, Tony Romo couldn't hold Troy Aikman's jockstrap. He is about 1,000 TDs and 10,000 concussions away from reaching that level. For all we know, Romo may be the next Quincy Carter. Yeah, remember him???

Romo has shown the consistent ability to throw on the run, and he can certainly throw the deep ball pretty well (even though T.O. may drop half of Romo's long bombs that come his way.) At the same time, Romo has been generally inconsistent and he just makes some mental mistakes that astound the mind. Don't take his numbers too seriously either because they are just a smokescreen hiding his deficiencies.

Want proof? Let's take a look at Romo's performances game-by-game...we'll even give Tony the benefit of the doubt and ignore his pathetic 3 interception effort against the Giants coming in for Bledsoe at the half.

10/29 - Dallas 35 @ Carolina 14
Romo's Line: 24/36, 66.7% comp, 270 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
The Verdict: One of Romo's better performances in his first start. Carolina has a tough defense, but they absolutely collapsed in the 4th quarter. About as good a start for Romo as you could hope for.
The Romo ESPN Hype Scale (1-10): 8.5 (Considering that prior to this game it was at a 1, that's not too bad)

11/05 - Dallas 19 @ Washington 22
Romo's Line: 24/36, 66.7% comp, 284 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
The Verdict: A solid game for Romo, and the Cowboy's monumental collapse was not directly his fault. As a matter of fact he put them in a position to win before Vanderjagdt-ass blew it. HOWEVER, if you look at the Redskins' pass defense: they rank 24th in yards given up per game through the air at 221, and they had given up 23 TDs in 12 games...tied for worst in the league with Tampa Bay and Green Bay. They also only forced 5 interceptions through 12 games. Oh, and all of this was before they surrendered 2 passing TDs to the Donovan McNabbless Eagles this Sunday. Kinda puts things in perspective, doesn't it?
The Romo ESPN Hype Scale (1-10): 9 (They lost, but he is still pretty damn good.)

11/12 - Dallas 27 @ Arizona 10
Romo's Line: 20/29, 69% comp, 308 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
The Verdict: On the surface this looks like a fantastic game, but the Cardinals have a horrible pass defense (29th in yards given up per game) so Romo's big numbers are no surprise. Jeff George (may his NFL career rest in peace) could probably put up 300 yards with a TD or two on these guys. And he's at least 50 years old!!!
The Romo ESPN Hype Scale (1-10): 9.5 (Good game, but it was against the Cardinals so...)

11/19 - Dallas 21 @ Indianapolis 14
Romo's Line: 19/23, 82.6% comp, 226 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT
The Verdict: Wow, look at that completion percentage! And hey his team ended the Colt's unbeaten season! AND the Colt's pass defense is third best in the NFL only giving up 163.7 yards per game! WOW!

Meanwhile, back in reality: No, the Colt's do not give up a ton of yardage through the air. That's because teams don't need to throw to beat them, they just run the ball against their ridiculously bad run D. Let's look at a different stat...the Colt's allow opposing QBs to complete 66.9% of their passes per game. The only team with a worse percentage than that is the Lions. Basically, when teams need to pass on the Colts, they have a lot of success, they just don't need to because they can run on them all day long. OH! And Jeff Garcia went 19/23 against Indy for 140 yards and 2 touchdowns in his first start as an Eagle. OH LOOK...those numbers are almost identical to Romo's...well besides the 2 TDs...hmmmmmm...
The Romo Hype Scale (1-10): 11 (Somebody get Michael Irvin in here to compare this guy to Troy Aikman!!!)

11/23 - Tampa Bay 10 @ Dallas 35
Romo's Line: 22/29, 75.9% comp, 306 yards, 5 TD, 0 INT
The Verdict: WHAT A GAME!!! 5 TOUCHDOWNS...THAT'S CRAZY. RIGHT? Wrong. Tampa Bay's pass defense is one of the worst in the league. Like I mentioned before, they had given up 23 TDs...tied for worst in the NFL prior to this past week. Throw in the fact that their defense gets no field position help from their anemic offense, and you have a recipe for disaster (aka a big day for Tony Romo).
The Romo Hype Scale (1-10): Infinity (I just bought 5 Tony Romo replica jerseys...1 to wear, 2 to frame, 1 sleep in, and 1 to worship.)

12/3 - Dallas 23 @ New York Giants 20
Romo's Line: 20/34, 58.8% comp, 257 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT
The Verdict: Not a great stat line, but Romo made the plays he needed to make to help his team win this game. He was even the holder on Martin Gramatica's winning field goal. The Giants' pass defense is 21st in the league in yards given up per game, which isn't very good, but Romo played well enough to win either way despite the two picks.
The Romo Hype Scale (1-10): Infinity (Even when he doesn't play great he STILL wins! Amazing!)

12/10 - New Orleans 42 @ Dallas 17
Romo's Line: 16/33, 48.5% comp, 249 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
The Verdict: He should have had 3 interceptions, had Mike McKenzie not dropped one in the endzone. Regardless, a poor performance for the whole Cowboys team...but Romo was pretty bad as well. Then again he definitely did not have much time in the pocket to set up and throw.
The Romo Hype Scale (1-10): 7 (Maybe we were wrong about this kid. Maybe not. Whatever. Now how about that DREW BREES!!!)

Who has Romo played here that really was a TRUE test? Yes, the Indy win was important, but it wasn't the first time a QB has had success against their secondary.

Look, I know I'm an Eagles fan, so you are probably taking this with a grain of salt, but I don't feel like Romo has done enough to earn the recognition he has been getting. John Madden was talking about him like he was the next Tom Brady tonight, but at the end of the day I need to see a quarerback face a REAL pass defense before I declare him a potential Hall of Famer. Could Tony Romo be something special? Maybe...although I definitely wouldn't bet my house on it...but let's give him a season or two before we decide whether he is legit or not *cough*cough*ESPN*cough*. As for now, Romo doesn't even belong in the Pro Bowl much less in Canton.

Why Boston, Why?!?

2006-12-06T01:20:00.000-08:00

It's official. The Boston Red Sox signed outfielder J.D. Drew to a five year, $70 million dollar contract. If the Sox end up keeping Manny Ramirez, Drew would probably end up protecting him in the lineup after hitting .283 with 20 home runs and 100 RBI last season for the Dodgers.

But are 20 homers worth $14 mil a year? Probably not. Actually, I think I'm being too nice here...there is no way in hell any reasonable MLB owner should want to pay this guy that kind of money.

You have to consider the fact that Drew has never been able to stay healthy...he played in a career-high 146 games last season, but in the season prior to that he only played in 72 games. Whether it was in LA, Atlanta, or St. Louis injuries were ALWAYS an issue for Drew. I can already see the pained look on Sox fans' faces as Drew limps off the field after landing awkwardly while chasing a pop up in foul territory. Actually, the only thing Drew CAN be counted on is to get hurt.

Now throw in the fact that he is 31-years-old and you have a recipe for disaster. Does anyone really think J.D. will be a starter at age 36? Hell , he may be done by 33 or 34!

The facts are overwhelming indeed, but I have an entirely different reason for hatng this move. I'll be blunt here...I straight up despise J.D. Drew.

Everyone seems to forget that this guy was drafted by the Phillies and refused to sign with the team. Now before all of you jump on me for being a Philly homer let me say my feelings towards J.D. have nothing to do with his snubbing of my hometown. I hate Drew because he is the Eli Manning of the MLB...that whiny bitch who never seems to live up to the hype or come through when you need him to. Does he hit for a high average? Sure. But will he be that consistent, productive presence in your lineup that you'd expect to be getting for $14 mil per season? Not a chance. Not when he is getting hurt and missing 40-80 games every year.

Paying $51 mil to negociate with Matsuzaka was pretty crazy. Signing Drew to this big contract is downright stupid.

---------------------------------------
On a sidenote, according to ESPN Drew's full name is David Johnathan Drew. Wouldn't that make him D.J. Drew? Just a thought.

Wow, just wow...

2006-12-02T17:19:00.000-08:00

A few immediate thoughts after USC's 13-9 loss to UCLA...

-- First and foremost, the Trojans played like shit. Gentlemen, you should be embarrassed.

-- Second, John David Booty will NEVER win a big game for the Trojans. Whatever it was that Carson and Matt had, JD doesn't have it. And I'm not talking a big game as in a random rivalry mismatch (see Notre Dame), I'm talking a game like the USC/Notre Dame game last season. Matt Leinart could make that big 4th and 9 throw and sneak it in from the one...Booty just doesn't have that ability. He doesn't suck, but he's nothing special either. Period.

-- Third, the Pac-10 officials were widely regarded as the some of the worst crews in the NCAA and their reputation will only take a hit after this game. The phantom unsportsmanlike conduct call against Chilo Rachal that killed an early third quarter drive...the phantom call on Dallas Sartz's CLEAN hit on Cowan towards the end of the game...then the ball looks like it hit the ground on the interception and they fail to overturn it, or even challenge it. Hell they might have challenged it but it was hard to tell because...

-- Fourth, Brent Musberger should lose his job. The man is flatout horrible. USC takes a timeout after the "interception" late in the game to, I assume, challenge the call on the field but you'd never know it thanks to the ESPN jackasses covering the game. All Musberger can do it kiss UCLA's ass instead of tell us what the hell is going on in the last minutes of the game. Then he practically hands the game to the Bruins when there was still plenty of time on the clock for a comeback. Musberger always sucked, but he was ESPECIALLY shitty tonight.

-- The final point for now......the loss wouldn't be so hard to swallow if it wasn't to such a classless school as UCLA with such a pathetic coach like Karl Dorrell. The only good news from this game? Dorrell may get an extension now when he really should get fired. This win, in a way, ensures UCLA's shittiness for years to come. The Bruins will get way too much credit for this win, but at the end of the day USC lost the game more than the Bruins won.

What I'm Thankful for...

2006-11-23T11:58:00.000-08:00

I am in a bit of a contemplative mood, and since the Lions/Dolphins game is a complete joke, here are some things I am thankful for in the world of sports on this Thanksgiving day...

- The mute button (for when Joe Theisman, Michael Irvin, Screamin' A. Smith, Woody Page, Jay Marriotti, or Skip Bayless are on ESPN).

- The NFL (until college football institutes a playoff system, pro football will always have the edge in my book. The BCS ruins college football).

- Replay Challenges in pro/college sports (because the refs almost never do their job right. This applies everywhere except the Pac-10, where even the replay officials are incompetent).

- Terrell Owens impending destruction of the Dallas Cowboys (because they had it coming the second they signed him).

- Fantasy Football (shouldn't need an explanation).

- Closed captioning (for whenever Shannon Sharpe is on TV. Seriously, can anyone understand this guy?)

- The World Series (because it means baseball season is almost over.)

- The new NHL (the games are so much more exciting now. Too bad no one watches).

- Trampoline basketball/Youtube...

- Another year without a Yankees World Series win.

- The Turkeys who keep us entertained.

- The broadcasters who are a pleasure to listen to and actually do their jobs (Nantz, Michaels, Nessler...I'm sure I'm missing a few but you get the point).

- The class acts who constantly remind us what really matters.

Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

On a sidenote...

2006-11-23T11:54:00.000-08:00

I just saw the new Bond film last night, Casino Royale, and it was terrific. For your viewing pleasure, here's Chris Cornell music video for the theme song to the movie, "You Know my Name."

I don't really know how this applies to Thanksgiving, but I don't care. This is my blog and I'll do what I want.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2006-11-23T02:04:00.000-08:00

Pardon the Idiocy...

2006-11-22T17:19:00.000-08:00

Ok, I must admit I usually am a huge fan of Pardon the Interruption on ESPN. Definitely a big Kornheiser/Wilbon guy. But today I lost quite a bit of respect for both of them by one simple statement at the end of a T.O./McNabb rant.

I cannot remember what was said word-for-word, but this is close enough:

Wilbon: "But wouldn't you say T.O. has had more success without McNabb than McNabb has had without T.O.?
Kornhesier: "Oh yeah definitely."

Wait, what?!? T.O., the same guy who is tearing apart the Cowgirls...the same guy who is having one of his worst statistical years in recent memory...the same guy who tried to kill himself at the start of the season (and should have succeeded)......is having a better year without Donovan than vice-versa?

Prior to getting injured McNabb was arguably one of the top QBs in the league. He was tied for most TDs with Peyton Manning (18) and was second in the NFL in passing yards to Manning. Granted, his completion percentage took a dive (57%) but his QB rating was still 95.5 in those ten games. That's pretty damn impressive. Keep in mind he did all of this while dealing with injuries to his top WR (Stallworth) and Brian Westbrook.

As for T.O.? In ten games this season he has 53 catches for 724 yards and 7 TDs. To put that into perspective, before he got his ass kicked out of Philly last season he had 47 catches for 763 yards and 6 TDs IN 3 FEWER GAMES! Not to mention the fact that he has had the most drops this season compared to just about any other year in his career. Surely you saw that potentially game-winning TD catch a few weeks ago that he flatout dropped...the man is not having a good season by his standards, and he is only getting worse as each season goes by and he keeps getting older.

Moral of the story? To say Owens is better off with Tony Romo than Donovan McNabb is like saying Iraq was better off with Sadaam than a democratic government. I'm very disappointed in Wilbon and Kornheiser right now.

At least look at the numbers before you say something stupid like that.

Thanks to USAToday.com for the appropriate picture.

How do you NOT see that?!?

2006-11-16T15:27:00.000-08:00

Yeah I know I haven't posted in a while. And you're over it.

There it is folks, the trading card that is causing all the controversy. Supposedly Leon Washington is forming an "E" with his fingers to pay tribute to where he's from, but it really looks like he is just flipping everybody off. My question is...how did the folks over at Bowman let this go? It CLEARLY looks like only his middle finger is sticking out...either way it's a stupid pose and they probably shouldn't have used it.

I just think this whole controversy is hilarious, and all this text is basically an excuse to post that picture. Leon Washington could be a bust in the NFL, but 10 years from now I'll still probably remember him for this card. Actually, probably not...but it's still funny.

Surprise! Two more Texas Football Players Arrested...

2006-09-04T11:02:00.000-07:00

The Cincinnati Bengals of the NCAA, aka the University of Texas, saw two more of their players get arrested early Monday on marajuana and weapon charges.

Starting Longhorn cornerback Tarell Brown and former teammate Aaron Harris (a member of their National Championship team) were booked by police...

Brown was charged with unlawfully carrying a weapon, a Class A misdemeanor in Texas, and both Brown and Harris were charged with possession of 2 ounces or less of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor, the newspaper reported.

According to the story Texas coach Mack Brown was aware of the situation but hadn't spoken to Brown. He probably had more important things to do than address the arrest of yet ANOTHER one of his players....like learn how to actually coach a footnall team. Sorry, but "let Vince do whatever the hell he wants" is no longer in the playbook, Mack.

This arrest is obviously a big hit to UT considering Brown was going to cover Ohio State's #1 reciever Ted Ginn Jr this upcoming weekend. Now his status for that game is in jeopardy. Knowing Texas police, however, they will probably find some way to get Brown into the game much how they did with Cedric Griffin and Ramonce Taylor before the Rose Bowl. Taylor, of course, is no longer a member of the team, but who am I to say he shouldn't have played in the National Championship game against USC? Neither of those two players were officially charged with anything before the game, but judging by the quality of character of UT football players I wouldn't be surprised if there was more going on here than meets the eye.

Congratulations on two more arrests University of Texas...a few more and you'll have more convicts on your team than Adam Sandler did in "The Longest Yard"!

A Moment of Silence Please...

2006-09-03T22:51:00.000-07:00

This one is non-sports related, and entirely serious.

The Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin was killed during a diving expedition on Monday. He was 44 years old and is survived by his wife, daughter, and son.

Having watched Irwin's show countless times I have to say his enthusiasm for nature was infectious, and as much as some people made fun of him he really was a dynamic personality. I always imagined what it would be like to be the cameraman for his shows on some of those amazing trips. Irwin brought worlds to life I never knew existed.

He will be missed.

A few random thoughts from Saturday...

2006-09-03T22:12:00.000-07:00

The first week of the college football season is over (aside from that Monday night Miami/FSU doozy)...here are a few of my thoughts...

- (6) USC 50 Arkansas 14 -

Big time props to Notre Dame fanboy Lou Holtz for adamantly picking Arkansas to win this game. The Razorbacks kept it close through the first half, but the Trojans were the far superior team and proved it in the third and fourth quarter. The defense was solid and created turnovers, and once the offense started clicking they were dominant.

At least Mitch Mustain looked good for Arkansas...because aside from that the night was a complete and utter loss (literally and figuratively).

- (2) Notre Dame 14 Georgia Tech 10 -

The Irish looked pedestrian as they barely held on against unranked Georgia Tech. Calvin Johnson had a terrific game, but credit Notre Dame for finding a way to slow him down in the second half. A so-so night for Brady Quinn...I have to say I don't see what the big deal is about this kid. He's not bad, but not particularly incredible either. Let's just say I wouldn't want to build an NFL team around him. The Notre Dame defense needs a lot of work too. I honestly see this team losing at least 1, maybe even 2 games this season.

- (1) Ohio State 35 Northern Illinois 12 -

The Buckeyes had an easy time with NIU...the real test will come next week against #3 Texas.

- (3) Texas 56 North Texas 7 -

Colt McCoy had a big game against the Mean Green Machine, but who doesn't? I love how all the analysts are ready to anoint this kid the second-coming of Vince Young after a blowout win against a garbage team. College football analysts are like five-year-olds a week before Christmas...they are obsessed with all the new, hip toys, but a few weeks later it is all an afterthought. Colt McCoy is more Erik Ainge than Vince Young: don't get too excited redneck nation.

- (23) Tennessee 35 (9) Cal 18 -

Cal learned a valuable lesson from this game...no matter how good your runningback is: you can't win without a decent quarterback. Nate Longshore looked atrocious, and Joe Ayoob is...Joe Ayoob. And how about that Cal defense? They made Erik Ainge look like the second coming of Joe Montana. A horrible wake up call for the Golden Bears.

- (21) Oregon 48 Stanford 10 -

Now here is a team that could challenge USC in the Pac 10. The Ducks looked sharp against Stanford, and Dennis Dixon and Jonathan Stewart are legit.

- (10) Oklahoma 24 UAB 17 -

It's going to be a long season Sooner fans. No Rhett Bomar = a lot of problems for Oklahoma, even with one of the best RBs in the nation, Adrian Peterson, carrying the load. The Sooners aren't a top 25 team, simple as that.

Season Preview: USC Football (Offense)

2006-08-30T23:25:00.000-07:00

After watching the team through fall camp, I'm ready to hand out grades to each offensive position and give you a detailed preview of the defending Pac 10 Champs.

What? You don't care about USC football? THEN GO JUMP OFF A CLIFF! (or something similarly unpleasant)...

And don't you worry...a preview of the defense is coming soon.

Quarterback:

John David Booty is the starter, but how long will he last? That seems to be the big question: if injuries don't hinder him then Mark Sanchez's rapid development might. Coach Pete Carroll has backed Booty through the Spring and Fall camps, but you have to wonder how long Booty's leash really is. If he struggles against Arkansas and Nebraska Trojan fans may be seeing more Mark and a lot less JD.

That being said, Booty was a higher touted prospect out of high school than Matt Leinart, and he has the arm strength and leadership skills that you look for in a starting QB. He has also had a couple years to learn the ins and outs of the offense. Booty also has a talented supporting cast, including a strong offensive line and some of the best wide receivers in the nation.

Bottom line: I realistically expect Booty to silence his critics much how Matt Leinart did back in 2003. Even if Booty struggles, Mark Sanchez is one of the best backup QBs in the nation (and Booty's her-apparent). A-

Runningback:

USC has 7 runningbacks who, in my opinion, could start for any NCAA team.

The group is led by Junior Chauncey Washington, who has been described as being a combination of Lendale White and Reggie Bush. He was also a member of the recruiting class that saw White and Bush land at SC. Academic issues plagued Washington through his first two years as a Trojan, but he is ready to go this season. A hamstring injury slowed him down in camp and he will not start the game against Arkansas, but he will be a factor in this offense.

Below Washington on the depth chart are 4 very talented freshmen and 3 familar names.

CJ Gable, the week one starter, has drawn numerous comparisons to a young Reggie Bush during fall camp. He runs with great elusiveness and even a bit of power, and it wasn't unusual to see him breaking long touchdown runs in scrimmages. He is an exciting young player that Trojan fans will be lucky to watch overt he next 4 seasons.

#3 on the depth chart is Allen Bradford, who also has experience at linebacker. Bradford runs with power and authority similar to Lendale White, and when his name is brought up in conversations the words "limitless potential" are often used.

Another freshman, Emmanuel Moody, is listed as the fourth-string RB. He certainly showed flashes in camp, and made one particularly impressive run in a night scrimmage where he brough a couple tackles, made some sharp cuts, and dragged several defenders on his back into the endzone. Another exciting young talent.

Stafon Johnson is currently the #5 RB on the chart, which is not as much a crticism of Johnson as it is a compliment to the backs above him. Johnson has shown plenty of promise, but just hasn't been quite as good as Gable, Bradford, or Moody. Again, not a knock on him at all.

Below Johnson is Michael Coleman. He was moved to fullback in camp, then moved back to runningback. I believe Coleman could start if he really needed to...he has the burst to break a long run and the power to run people over. He just seems to be the forgotten man in the SC backfield.

Finally, there's Desmond Reed and John Griffin. Reed suffered a horrible injury at the hands of Notre Dame and their mediocre field conditions, but he has returned in fall camp and looks great. A medical miracle and a great story. Griffin was the main back in the Spring practices due to injuries prior to the arrival of the freshmen. He won't play, but isn't a bad player.

Experience certainly is an issue, and there is no way to be sure who will step up in that first game at Arkansas, but the Trojans have so much talent and depth at the RB position that 'Thunder and Lightning' just might be an afterthought after this season.

Bottom line: Critics can be so obsessed with the loss of Bush and White that they are blind to the immense amount of talent in the Trojan backfield. I may be getting ahead of myself here, but I honestly feel like the combination of Gable, Bradford, Moody, and Johnson has the ability to accomplish as much, if not more than Bush and White did during their time at SC. A bold statement indeed, but not as outrageous as you'd think. They just need experience. B+

Wide Reciever:

Another position of strength for the Trojans. This group will certainly help ease JD Booty into the starting QB role.

Junior Dwayne Jarrett may be one of the top 3 receievers in the nation this season. He has not played much in fall camp due to a series of minor injuries, but he will be ready to go on September 2nd.

Senior Steve Smith will start along with Jarrett, and he is the perfect complement to DJ. What he lacks in size, he makes up for with speed and great hands. A proven commodity, who should draw favorable comparisons to the other Steve Smith (of NFL fame with the Carolina Panthers) by the time the NFL draft rolls around.

Patrick Turner and Chris McFoy are two other wideouts who are extremely talented and ready to contribute.

The future looks just as bright as the present too. Travon Patterson, David Ausberry, and Vidal Hazelton all looked great in camp...especially Patterson. He displayed good hands and made plenty of spectacular plays after the catch. Ausberry looks more like he's 6'7 than 6'4, and certainly uses his size to his advantage. Hazelton is the all-around package who has also showed plenty of potential in camp.

Bottom line:
The Trojans have one of the deepest WR cores in the nation, along with two NFL-calibur players in Jarrett and Smith. No question marks here. A+

Offensive Line:

Anchored by All-American candidates Sam Baker (left tackle) and Ryan Kalil (center), the USC offensive line will be relied upon to open up lanes for the backs and protect JD Booty. The pressure will especially be on Baker, now that he has to protect the blind side of the right-handed Booty. Kyle Williams is solid at the other tackle position, while sophomore Chilo Rachal has impressed coaches at right guard. After a battle in camp, it appears as though Junior Drew Radovich will start at left guard over sophomore Jeff Byers. Freshmen Charles Brown and Thomas Herring will provide depth at the tackle positions.

Bottom Line:

There really isn't one particular weak spot on the line, and Baker and Kalil make the group all the more better with their immense talent and leadership. As long as the O-line stays healthy the offense will be in good shape. If one of the starting linemen gets hurt, however, there would be plenty of uncertainty and a young player would have to step up. B+

Tight Ends:

As if JD Booty didn't have enough wide receivers to throw the ball too, USC also has 3 talented tight ends.

Junior Fred Davis is the big name out of the group. A converted wide reciever, Davis has excellent size and speed for a tight end, which will make him very difficult to cover (especially for a linebacker). He should be a valuable target for Booty.

Dale Thompson is #2 on the depth chart just ahead of freshman Anthony McCoy, who had a tremendous fall camp.

Bottom line:

You will inevitably hear Davis' name called plenty of times this season, but Thompson and McCoy can be counted on to produce when needed as well. A

So what can we expect from the offense as a whole?

The Trojans are set at WR, TE, and along the O-line...the only real question marks are at QB and RB. Can John David Booty step in and at least particially fill the shoes of Matt Leinart? Can the young runningbacks help make up for the loss of Bush and White? Can Booty and Chauncey Washington stay healthy?

These are definitely tough questions that can only be answered ocne the season starts, but if Booty can take care of business there will not be a big drop off for the USC offense between last season and this season.

Official Saturday Prediction...

2006-08-30T18:46:00.000-07:00

It is time for my first USC football prediction of the season...

The #6 Trojans are at Arkansas...on Covers.com most of the sportsbooks list the point spread at 8 (as on today).

David Telly's official prediction...

USC - 34

Arkansas - 17

I'll take USC over the spread. And no, I'm not biased at all.

Arkansas will take an early lead, but it is unlikely star runningback Darren McFadden will play. SC's defense will wear down the Razorback's, and after struggling early the Trojans offense will start to click. A pretty easy win to start the season off right for USC.

Eagles Make Their Move...

2006-08-30T18:27:00.000-07:00

The Eagles made a big splash this week, as they acquired 25-year-old wide reciever Donte' Stallworth from the Saints in exchange for backup linebacker Mark Simoneau and a conditional fourth round pick.

This is a great move for Philly. Stallworth has has issues with staying healthy in the past, but he has played in all 16 games the last two seasons for the Saints. Last year, Stallworth finished with 70 catches for 945 yards and 7 touchdowns.

Stallworth was brought in after it became clear that former Eagles reciever Todd Pinkston was not recovering well from a serious injury last season. In many ways Stallworth is a similar player...he is fast, stretches defenses, and opens up underneath routes for the other recievers. The main difference between the two is that Stallworth is a true playmaker, while Pinkston was an undersized weakling afraid of running routes over the middle.

This really is the missing piece the Eagles needed in a competitive NFC East. As long as he stays healthy, Stallworth brings instant credibility to Philly's oft-criticized WR corps and in my mind makes them one of the top teams in the NFC.

Abreu heading to New York...

2006-07-30T11:02:00.000-07:00

It appears as though the Phillies are sending Bobby Abreu and Cory Lidle to the Yankees for a package of players or prospects that have yet to be named.

GREAT move for the Phils...Lidle is a mediocre pitcher, and Abreu is one of the reasons this team has underachieved for so long.

Now you are probably wondering how Abreu can be responsible for the Phillies problems: well first, it isn't JUST him (I'm looking at you Pat Burrell). At the same time, Abreu is known for having a lazy attitude and is the exact opposite of a clubhouse leader. Derek Jeter he is not. Hell, Bobby barely has a work ethic left, and his production has begun to fall off now that he is working his way into his thirties.

The man is just not worth his big contract. Sure he can hit for a decent average and steal a few bases, but his best years are behind him and his power has disappeared since that incredible home run derby performance in 2005. His defense is also entirely overrated...while he has only made 1 error this season, he is afraid of the wall and does not come up with the big catches you'd expect a former gold glover too. Fact of the matter is Abreu isn't close to being worth the $37 million over the next 2 1/2 years that he is owed.

Wikipedia sums it up best: (Abreu) is often criticized by Phillies' fans for a perceived failure to run out ground balls and to hustle sufficiently in the outfield. They intrepret Bobby's easy-going, relaxed attitude for a lack of intensity and desire.

Is this the kind of guy you want on your team? Watch Bobby play for 5 minutes and his lack of hustle is obvious.

As much as I despise Abreu I will say this...as tough as the New York media is, Bobby might be a decent fit there. The Yankees already have clubhouse leadership, so Abreu could just sit in the back of the bus and quietly produce while A-Rod and Jeter hog the spotlight. How much will Bobby produce though? How long would it take before New York tabloids start roasting Bobby for playing lazy baseball?

From a Phillies perspective this is a tremendous move. Just getting Bobby's salary off the books is huge...this will enable the Phillies to sign some quality free agents and bring in players who play hard every night and want to win. If the Phillies want to turn things around they need more Aaron Rowands and Chase Utleys and fewer Abreus and Pat Burrells. Now they can build this team around Ryan Howard, Brett Myers, and Cole Hamels and look toward the future.

Next on the agenda: trade Pat Burrell. I don't care if we give him away, as long as the other team takes on most of his massive salary. The trade deadline is Monday and I have a feeling the Phillies aren't done. Stay tuned.

Updating the "Trade the Bums" tracker...

David Bell - TRADED to the Brewers (thank God)..........was past his prime 10 years ago.
Bobby Abreu - MOST LIKELY HEADED TO NY..........he just isn't a winner and he never will be.
Pat "No bat" Burrell - STILL HERE..........much like Abreu, just not a winner. Overrated offense; no defense.
Mike Lieberthal - STILL HERE..........he is a free agent to be: might as well try to get something for him.
Jon Lieber - STILL HERE..........he has to be 100 years old by now.

One way of putting it...

2006-07-17T20:37:00.000-07:00

Steven Colbert on the World Cup Final...

'Italy beat France in an overtime shootout. Overtime shootout being the NBA equivalant of deciding the finals with a game of horse.'

The Evil Empire MUST DIE!!!

2006-07-17T20:04:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to lie...I am a Yankee-hater. There are too many reasons for it to list here, but I need to call out the fans of the Evil Empire for their treatment of A-Rod.

I know the guy makes way too much money, but he is consistently one of the best players in the league and he plays hard even if he isn't on a contending team. Now Yankee fans are booing him everytime he makes an out.

Why? I have no clue. He did have 3 errors today, but on a whole Rodriguez has been solid this season.

Remember, it was the Yankers that asked him to move to third base to satisfy the ego of Derek Jeter. Now Yankee fans are booing A-Rod because his defense has taken a hit since he moved from shortstop to third (without complaining, I might add) for the GOOD OF THE TEAM.

Makes a lot of sense to me, too.

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On a side note, congratulations to Jason Giambi......with a home run today he passed Jack Clark and Jeff Kent on the all-time homerun list to move up to #76.

Oh, wait a minute.....Giambi admitted to using steroids and CHEATING!?!

In that case, go to hell you roid-injecting overrated fat ass.

When the Legends Die...

2006-07-17T19:44:00.000-07:00

Now I don't know much about soccer, but I do know that heading into the World Cup Final against Italy Zidane was on the verge of becoming a legend.

Now? His career will be remembered for one regretable moment.

I know it's been a while since the final, but I just had to post these two videos of the now famous/infamous headbutt. Have I ever mentioned how much I love Youtube?

What really happened...

One man's interpretation...

And then there's this...Definitely not for the kids, but brilliant none-the-less.

Italy Officially Ruins the World Cup...

2006-07-04T14:35:00.000-07:00

What a sad, sad day for soccer...

With two goals late in overtime Italy beat Germany to move on to the World Cup final.

Now, instead of getting to see an exciting underdog fueled by a passionate home crowd in the final, soccer fans will be forced to watch the cheapest team in the world flop, fake injuries, and play a dull, defensive game.

To say the Italians are the nemesis of good soccer is an understatement...they ruin the game.

Think back to before the NHL lockout, when the infamous "trap" (started by the New Jersey Devils) neutralized the most exciting players in the world by slowing the pace of the game down dramatically. It nearly destroyed the NHL, and after a lockout and massive rule changes the game is just beginning to recover.

Italy is to the World Cup, what the Devils were to the NHL a couple years back.

And it isn't even so much their style of play: it's the flopping. Watch Italy play, just once, and you will see countless instances where an Italian player falls over and fakes an injury. In one particular case against Germany an Italian player collided with a German in a clean play, fell over, looked up, and when he noticed Germany had the ball close to Italy's net he rolled over and started yelling. This led to a stoppage, and killed any momentum Germany had.

Anybody who saw the U.S. - Italy game knows the drill: an Italian will fake an injury to draw a foul, get carried off the field on a stretcher, have a magical mist that cures all ailments sprayed on him (I'm not kidding), get up, and get back into the game seconds later.

It is pathetic and disgusting. Does the Italian team have any sense of honor or pride? Evidently not.

But don't take my word for it...Deadspin found a great source that backs up my argument. World Cup Statistics from Information Builders keeps track of dives, tantrums, and even cases where athletes aren't singing their anthem. It is an impressive site.

In their Active Report, Italy is second only to Paraguay in their "Foul Play Index", which is a points system that reveals how cheap a team is by using this formula:

Yellow Cards * 1pt + Red Cards * 2pts + Bully Ref * 4pts + Dives * 4pts + Fake Injury * 4pts + Tantrums * 2pts divided by Number of Games

Italy has 40 points, while Paraguay has 45, but the Italians have twice as many dives.

Need more proof? A video on Youtube.com shows the Italian soccer team practicing their dives prior to the World Cup...

"The Physics of the Flop" - Deadspin

Even if it isn't Italy in that video (it is hard to tell), you know they practice the same thing behind closed doors. Their flops look eerily similar to the ones in this video, too.

I haven't even gotten into all the corruption in Italy's own soccer league. Five players on Italy's national team play for a squad that could be punished for fixing matches.

Bottom line...Italy stands for everything that is wrong in soccer. It is a shame they have to ruin an event as exciting as the World Cup with their gutless play and internal corruption.

Screamin' A. Smith Likes Cheese Doodles...

2006-06-30T11:49:00.000-07:00

Evidently Steven A. Smith enjoys cheese doodles...but not getting heckled during the 2006 NBA Draft.

"I AM STEVEN A. SMITH AND THESE CHEESE DOODLES ARE DELICIOUS!"

Can Screamin' A. hear these guys? Probably not. Is it fun to watch? Ooooooo yeah...

Dead Man Walking!

2006-06-26T23:49:00.000-07:00

"Garden chief: Isiah has one year to show progress with Knicks" - Yahoo.com

The title of that story really says it all, but with the firing of Larry Brown as coach of the Knicks, it appears as though Isaiah Thomas will finally have to own up for his mistakes.

I'm saying this right with Isiah here. This is his team," Madison Square Garden chairman James Dolan said Monday. "He made this bed. There's nobody better than him to make this thing go forward.

"But he has to do that and he has one year, one season to do that. At this time next year Isiah will be with us if we can all sit here and say that this team has made significant progress towards its goal of eventually becoming an NBA championship team. If we can't say that, then Isiah will not be here."

We can only hope this collection of selfish, overpaid, overrated losers Isaiah has assembled quit on him by mid-season, and the franchise-destroyer ends up where he ultimately belongs...on the unemployment block.

Good luck getting Steve Francis, Stephon Marbury, Jalen Rose, and Jamal Crawford to coexist peacefully and share the ball. Good luck getting Eddy Curry and Quentin Richardson to play consistently and stay healthy. Good luck getting Jerome James to not suck. Good luck making ANY moves to improve the team with the lack of cap space and without giving up the one decent player on the roster with ANY upside (Channing Frye).

In other words, good luck finding a new job next season. Maybe Isaiah is better suited to running a concession stand? Then again, nobody wants to overpay for a cup of tap water and a half-eaten hot dog...if you catch my drift...