Does anyone watch this anymore? I've heard several explanations as to why the NHL is losing fans, but here's my take on it.
Maybe part of the problem is the fact the season starts the 1st week of October. Call me crazy (you wouldn't be the first), but why does anyone want to watch guys on skates with golf clubs on steroids when the weather is still fairly nice throughout most of the country, and possibly some of Canada as well?
College Football
I'm not sure anyone wants it this year.
Last week 5 top ten teams managed to lose, and not look very good in doing so. This week, as I write this, Wisconsin has just layed an egg at Illinois. From what I've seen of the Badgers, they didn't deserve to be ranked #5 in the country had it not been for everyone else losing.
What I'm wondering right now....actually, I'm going to go ahead and predict it....no more than 1 team will manage to go undefeated, and I'm not so sure anyone will. Time to really earn your money BCS selection committees, when trying to decide which pair of 1-loss teams deserve to play for the Nat'l Championship.
MLB Playoffs
Having glanced at a couple blogs and listening to the so-called experts on TV, nobody seems to think Arizona or Chicago deserve to be in the playoffs. I have to respectfully disagree. Granted, the Cubs won the least impressive division in the game, thanks in large part to Milwaukee's 3 month long collapse, but the rule only states you have to win the most games in your division to get in. They did that.
With Arizona, the debate seems to center around their negative run differential. To me, the fact that they managed to win 90 games tells me that they deserve it even more. How you win that many games while scoring 50 fewer runs than your opponents means you won alot of close games, while probably getting waxed in a handful. My guess is that was mostly due to the back end of their rotation getting shelled a couple times, or a couple guys in the bullpen doing the same.
That probably won't matter that much, because your worst pitchers generally don't make the playoff roster, or at least don't see much action unless the game is already a blowout.
By the way, how are the Yankees and Phillies-teams that I guess did "deserve" to be in-doing?
Speaking of the playoffs, how about A-Rod?
Sounds like he's performing to his recent post-season level. If the Yankees fail to advance, it won't be all his fault, but the fans are going to remember his struggles more than anything else.
So, Yankee fans, keep in mind how you respond to him in the next few days could go a long way in determining whether he remains a Yankee or signs elsewhere. Sure, he'll probably opt out either way, but he could always re-sign for more money. I think the odds of that go down quite a bit if the fans boo him mercilessly for another bad post-season performance.
More Steroids
I guess the Floyd Landis mess is close to being behind us. Now it's Marion Jones' turn.
Remember when we used to make fun of the Russian and German women in the olympics because we thought they looked like men and swore it was a result of some type of steroid use?
Kind of sad that more and more of our own athletes feel the need to resort to performance enhancing substances to keep up with the rest of the world. I thought we were supposed to be the best athletes in the world, and not need to cheat to win.
(I don't normally do this, but I want some opinions on this)....the Gieco cavemen now have their own TV show...?
Are we this hard-up for programming that we're reduced to this now? It's bad enough you can't turn the TV on without finding 2/3 of programming being called "reality television" but now we're making sitcoms out of commercials.
The only, and I mean ONLY good thing is they didn't opt for the little green booger that talks.
Is it NBA season yet?
With the regular season of baseball now over, the NHL about as intriguing as a root canal, and football mainly played on the weekends, I need something to fill my rare weeknights at home. Plus, I need something to listen to on my way to work, and baseball on the radio is simply too boring even if it is the playoffs.
....Just a throw-in
I'm going to change my last name to Cash, so I can get a girl named Moore to want to marry me.
What woman doesn't want her name to be ______(insert first name here) Moore-Cash?
(If that was lame, blame cuziffer, he told me lame jokes are gold. I probably should have opted for a Paris Hilton joke, but I think they've all been told already)
We're 2 games into the season, and after the pounding that I took from the mass of "intellectual" respondants, I thought we should revisit my predictions and see how they've panned out so far.
NFC East
I'm completely wrong so far in this division. I picked the Eagles to win the division, and they're 0-2. I picked Washington to finish last, and they're currently 2-0. I had Dallas and the Giants fighting for a possible wild card berth. Dallas is 2-0 (in part due to having alot of offense, and a so-so defense), and the Giants look like the same trainwreck they've looked like for the past couple seasons under Tom Coughlin.
Still time for this division to spin around in my favor, but I'm not holding my breath on the Eagles coming out on top at the time being.
NFC South
This division looks worse than I thought so far. New Orleans has even less defense than last year (and that's saying something) while their offense looks offensive. Tampa Bay and Carolina are tied for 1st place at 1-1. I figured TB to battle it out with Atlanta for the cellar, so I'm half right there at least.
Again, still time for this to shake out the way I predicted it, but the Saints need something to go right defensively. Is it possible last year was a fluke? I hope not, but you never know.
NFC North
I thought picking Chicago was a no-brainer here. Obviously, I underestimated the "Rex Factor." This looks like a repeat of last year, where they need the defense and special teams to score an average of 2 TD's per game to have a chance to win. I have no idea how Grossman hasn't been run out of town yet, but it can't be too much longer before it happens if he can't learn to hang on to the ball, and throw it to his own teammates. Is it possible he's completely color blind, and can't distinguish the difference between his own team's jersey and helmet markings and the opponent?
The surprise teams of the year so far in this division are Detroit and Green Bay, neither of which I picked to make much noise in the hunt for postseason play. Minnesota still has no reliable QB, and the guy who was supposed to be the man is already on the hot seat, not only because of poor play but also for what some say was a minor injury late in last week's game. I know I'm not the only one who thought Kelly Holcomb would become their starter sooner rather than later. (Just maybe not this soon)
NFC West
San Francisco is leading this division at 2-0. Seattle is 1-1, as is Arizona. The Rams are winless. I picked Seattle to win this division, with SF battling for a wild card spot. While the 49ers are winning, it hasn't been pretty. QB Alex Smith is regressing this year, but the defense has been good enough to get a pair of victories.
The Rams are starting to make me think they won't put up much of a fight, and aren't going to help my predictions any if they don't turn it around soon.
Now, over to the AFC
AFC East
Hey, I got one right. Well, I picked New England to win this division. They're off to a 2-0 start, and look like the team to beat in the AFC. Everyone else in the East is 0-2, and don't look to be going anywhere this season.
AFC North
I, umm, picked Baltimore to win this division, followed by Cincy. I picked Pitt to finish 3rd and Cleveland to bring up the rear.
So far, Pitt looks like the best team. Cleveland just scored on Cincy again, and Cincy returned the favor by scoring with the sisters of every Cleveland player.
Hey, at least I was right about Cincy not having a good defense.
AFC South
Well, I'm right about Indy so far. I must admit Houston is a pleasant surprise, but we'll see how they do without stud WR Andre Johnson for however long he's out. Jax and the Titans are 1-1. The Titans showed me something against Indy last week, but they still have alot of holes to fill. I don't think Jax is going anywhere now, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see Jack Del Rio get fired during the season if things don't improve dramatically.
AFC West
How 'bout them Raiders? This is the team with the most defensive, vocal and downright ornery fans. This was the team they swore would be much improved, and would definitely make the playoffs. So far, they're 0-2. But hey, they signed JaMarcus Russell...finally.
San Diego has looked bad on offense in both games, and worse on defense against the Patriots last week. Maybe now teams will realize Norv Turner is a terrible head coach, and that maybe Marty Schottenheimer wasn't so bad.
Denver should get better, but I hope not. That goes against my prediction for them, but I'd really like to see them fall flat on their faces after all those offseason trades and signings.
KC is right where I thought they'd be, fighting it out with the Oakland/LA/Middle California Raiders of Al Davisville.
What's it all mean?
Well, it means absolutely nothing, except that I'm still here, and I'm not afraid to admit when I'm wrong (in the case of Houston, Pitt, GB, Detroit, Washington, and Dallas).
The question now is, will the angry fans of the Raiders, Titans, Vikings, and Browns have it in them to do the same?
Also, will fans of Dallas, Washington, GB, Pitt, Houston and Detroit be classy enough not to rub it in my face for being wrong?
I never had a problem with any fan who believes their team will be better than the experts (or myself) thought. The only problem I have is those fans who believe their team will be better, and can't say it without calling everyone who disagrees a laundry list of names...names that are easy to throw around while sitting behind a computer screen, and knowing absolutely nothing about the person (or people) they're directed at.
I think everyone knows the drill. If you want to comment, have at it. Don't have anything nice to say? That's cool too. But before you start tossing accusations and names around, look in the mirror and ask yourself if it's worth getting all p!$&ed off over some anonymous blogger's opinions, or if you're better off just clicking the back button in the upper left of your screen, or the red "X" in the upper right.
It's all up to you now. Do with it what you will. 'Til next time, Blog it like you mean it.
I've been watching the ESPN coverage of this fiasco, and there are alot of opinions about the severity of the violation, and what the punishment should be.
My favorite thoughts are those that go something like this: The Patriots are so much better than the Jets, that it shouldn't matter that they broke the rule, so why is it even a big deal?
Well, I have a couple reasons why.
For starters, if the Patriots really are that much better, why did they need to break the rules to try and gain an advantage over the inferior Jets? I can think of a couple reasons. One is that the Pats accused the Dolphins of studying game film and learning their signs and formations last year and didn't get in trouble, so they thought they'd take it one step further, either to prove a point or just because if one team can do it, why not them too?
The other reason is simply because Uncle Bill hates everybody, and Eric Mangini is pretty close to the top of the list. Why not stick it to him once again if given the chance? I don't know what Belichick's damage is, but I'm pretty sure it starts somewhere in the frontal lobe.
Now, the other reason the Pats' rule-breaking is a big deal is because the commissioner apparently made it pretty clear to teams before the season started to NOT try stealing signs or video taping the other team on the sidelines.
So, the reasons why it's a big deal are: If the Patriots are clearly better than the Jets, they shouldn't need to break silly rules to beat them. They also should know better than to violate a rule the Commish JUST made clear to them that he would not tolerate being broken.
I don't know what the punishment will be, but for the first time in my life, I think Tony Kornheiser may be right about something. If the league hands them a hefty fine, the team will pass the buck (actually, it'll be the other way around) on to the fans who buy tickets, concessions, merchandise, etc.
Forget the fines, that just costs the fans. Take away 2 draft picks that matter (maybe the extra 1st rounder they have, and just for kicks, give it back to the team who traded it to them in the first place), and the Pats forfeit the game against the Jets.
Oh, and for the record, I used to like the Pats, but I've grown sick of the constant bragging about them, and Belichick is just a....well, lets just say I don't like him at all. And I DON'T like the Jets, so before claiming I'm a homer, hater, or whatever, that's not the case at all.
Athletes making false reports after accidents, lying about taking performance enhancers, etc.
We all know about Lance Briggs. Schmucked his car, called the cops and claimed his car was stolen. Then he changed his mind and admitted it was him. Anything happen to him? Not that I'm aware of. You don't put a pro athlete behind bars for breaking petty laws like that, just regular joes like us get that kind of treatment. What amazes me is all the regular joes who do get that kind of treatment, who defend these people for breaking rules, laws and regulations and getting away with it.
Do you not realize that every time a pro athlete gets away with breaking a law, it makes it cost us more when/if we break the same law?
How about all the baseball and football players (maybe others) now being found to have ordered HGH via the internet?
Yeah, I know, "when they did it, it wasn't illegal" or they "were just trying to make their sex life better" or whatever. My problem is, if it wasn't illegal and there wasn't anything wrong with it, why all the secrecy? If it was for medical purposes or there just weren't any rules/laws against it, why wait until a federal investigation gets ahold of evidence that you were buying this stuff? Or, why, after they do find evidence, do you still pretend like it never happened?
If I know I did something 5 years ago that was legal then, but isn't now, and the feds are looking into it anyway, I'm going to want to talk to them and clear my name before the media and public get ahold of the information.
Since I can sense another "but" response coming, I'm not saying they should rat out anyone they might also know who bought the stuff. Just clear your own name, and move on with life. Like I said, if it was legal when I did it, what can they do?
Hammer time
I'm done for now, but for all my fans who somehow think I'm a paid journalist for foxsports.com, now's your chance to once again fill the comment section with your brilliant responses. Drop the hammer, bring the noise, or whatever the kids call it these days....I can't wait to see what wonderful, intelligent things some of you have to say on this subject.
This isn't totally sports related, but it is related to this blog site (bear with me or quit reading now)....
Recently I wrote 2 posts dedicated to my predictions for the upcoming NFL season. 1 post each for the NFC & AFC. This is not an attempt to get anyone to go read them, as I got plenty of recognition and comments already. Some interesting comments were made, and from those comments, I have some questions for you (particularly the more established bloggers).
Has anyone blindly concluded that, since one of your posts was featured by the site, that you are a journalist, or write for foxsports.com?
I think about a dozen people got this idea, and I just don't get it. Other than having a link to one of my prediction posts on the NFL page, I can't figure out where anyone got the idea that I write for the site. I mean, it even says "blog" in front of the link.
Why do fans get so irate if you don't pick their team to at least make the playoffs?
I'm just a random person with access to the internet, that a grand total of one person actually knows in "real" life. If my opinions mean that much to you, it might be a good idea to cancel your internet subscription, toss your computer out the window and seek professional help. On second thought, their opinions (although probably accurate) would probably anger you even more, as they'd probably include the words "emotionally unbalanced" or "clinically insane."
And why is it that fans of the worst teams (based on last year's records, and my prediction for them this year) believe with the most certainty that their team is the one that is going to be the biggest surprise in the league? It's one thing to be a fan, it's a whole new ball game to blindly believe your team is going to improve by several wins because they A) made 3 or 4 "big" free agent signings, B) hired a new coach, or C) just needed that 1 year of experience before putting it all together.
Why does it always seem like the least intelligent (common knowledge, not about sports) people have the most to say?
With all the expletives sprinkled in the comments of some of those who responded, I almost thought somebody microwaved a smurf and it exploded all over my blog. I could care less if you disagree with my predictions. I'm not going to win or lose anything based on how many of them turn out to be right or wrong. Is it too much to ask for people to refrain from having to use 4 letter words to try and prove their point? More often than not, you make yourself look like a person with anger management issues, and whatever point you were trying to make is completely overshadowed by your inability to act like a responsible human being.
If I was guilty of everything I was accused of.....
I'd be a female sports writer who copied and pasted last year's predictions (even though I didn't have a blog or a "column" at the time), took the final standings from last season and just flip-flopped a few teams in the standings, or didn't really make any predictions at all, and just picked teams I like.
Well, I can safely say I am not a female or a sports writer (at least not a paid one). If having a blog makes me a sports writer, then I guess I am guilty of that.
I didn't take last year's final standings and tweak anything either. If you asked me where most teams finished and what their records were, it's very likely I wouldn't know unless I looked them up. I do remember which teams were good, which teams were bad, and which teams I thought made moves in the offseason which I believe either made them better or worse.
I also didn't pick teams just because I like them. One person accused me of liking the Packers, I think because I mentioned that the Vikings have signed a few of their former players in the Vikings paragraph, and followed up with my thoughts on the Packers. Apparently that person couldn't read that I don't think they're a playoff team, but somehow still got the idea that I had them winning a game or two in january.
I can also tell you that I don't like the Colts (mostly Manning), Patriots or Ravens. Still, I picked each of them to win their divisions. I do like the Panthers, Texans (not sure why), Bills, Jags and Cardinals, but I didn't pick any of them to be all that good this year.
Now what?
For all the geniuses out there who think I'm stupid, I challenge you to make your own predictions on your own blog (that is, if you have one, or are man enough to create one), pick the Raiders, Cowboys, Browns, Texans and/or Titans to be playoff teams or win it all, and lets see how your predictions stack up at the end of the season.
I'm going to try to handle this all in one post, instead of two. I thought I'd get less flack on my AFC predictions, but I was wrong. Who knew Raider fans were as passionate, ornery and homeristic as Cowboy fans?
So, without any further hesitation, here we go....
NFC East....
The Cowboys are the cream of the crop. T.O. is like a big brother to everyone on the team. They will win it all because they're that good.
The Eagles, though slightly less talented (because Brian Westbrook had 160 fewer yards from scrimmage than the Cowboys' top TWO RB's), will be right there. McNabb won't finish the season, but Kevin Kolb will step in and win 5 of the last 6 regular season games. They will also win it all.
The Giants will also win it all. They have Eli Manning, who has grown a set since his verbal spat with former teammate Tiki Barber. Michael Strahan is finally in camp, so their defense is now one of the best in the league.
The Redskins will win it all. They have a young, hungry QB, and a bunch of high-priced free agents at their disposal. They got Fred Smoot back from Minnesota to team with Shawn Springs, and drafted LaRon Landry to rattle some helmets along with Sean Taylor.
NFC South...
The Falcons will win it all. They finally got rid of Michael Vick and replaced him with Joey Harrington. Their defense should be good. They play in a dome.
Tampa Bay has taken a look at 13 QB's since the end of last season, and they've got it all figured out. The defense added Cato June and cut ties with Simeon Rice. John Gruden is a smart coach.
The Carolina Panthers added former #1 pick David Carr. They have Steve Smith, Kris Jenkins and Julius Peppers. John Kasey will lead the league in scoring. They will win it all.
The New Orleans Saints will be good this year. Not as good as people say because they have no WR's (according to a reliable source). Reggie Bush may go through a sophomore slump, along with Marques Colston. Drew Brees can't possibly repeat his 2006 season. All that said, they will still win it all.
NFC North...
The Bears are really good. Rex Grossman is going to be a top 5 QB this year. 30 TD and 12 INT's (maybe less). Their defense is better than last year. Devin Hester will return 20 kicks (punts and kickoffs) for TD's. The defense will outscore some other teams. They will win it all.
The Packers...aren't very good. They made no improvements to last year's team, and their draft picks look bad. Brett Favre is old and has no weapons on offense. Still, they will win it all (but only because the NFL wants Favre to go out on top).
Detroit has Calvin Johnson, the first ever WR drafted in the top 10 of the 1st round by Matt Millen. Roy Williams (not the greatest Roy Williams, he's in Dallas) is good, and his predictions are even better. His influence is showing in John Kitna, who predicted at least 10 wins this season. I have to agree. They'll win it all this year.
The Vikings are good. Their QB is coming into his own in his 2nd season. They have Adrian Peterson and a good offensive line. Their defense is going to be awesome. They have Robert Ferguson, Ryan Longwell and Darren Sharper (all players GB let go in their primes), and they'll win it all.
NFC West....
San Francisco will win it all. In spite of trading for Darrell Jackson, who is a malcontent, their offense will be great. Alex Smith is a HOF QB in the making. Defensively, they're going to dominate teams. They will return to the glory days of when Bill Walsh, Jerry Rice and Joe Montana roamed Candlestick Park.
Seattle is going to return to their '05 form, get back to the Super Bowl, but win it this time. They have Shaun Alexander, Matt Hasselback, Deion Branch, and Mike Holmgren. Their defense is going to be very good. Their kicker is going to finish 2nd in the league in scoring.
The Arizona Cardinals are going to win it all. Matt Lienart, Anquan Boldin, Larry Fitzgerald and Edge (not the wrestler) will help the offense set a new league record for scoring. Their defense will kick butt and take names. They'll become great now that Dennis Green is finally gone, and their a$ $es can be crowned for a change.
The St. Louis Rams have a great offense. Steven Jackson, Marc Bulger, Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce are fantastic. They are going to have the defensive rookie of the year. They play in a dome. They will win it all.
AFC
AFC East...
The Bills are a playoff contender. Takeo Spikes? Who needs him. Willis McGahee? They've got Marshawn #### now. They're going to surprise alot of people. They will win it all this year.
The New England Patriots are a dynasty. In order to keep their dynasty going, they took a new approach this offseason and signed big name free agents for alot of money. They have Tom Brady. They traded for Randy Moss. Troy Brown will play every position on the field..on both sides of the ball. He'll kick the winning field goal in the Super Bowl.
The Jets weren't a fluke last year. Or were they? They'll win it all anyway. Eric Mangini is a smart coach. They play in the same stadium as the Giants. They'll win the Super Bowl.
The Dolphins are a great team. Trent Green? Jason Taylor? Zach Thomas? That's enough for me. They'll win it all. Oh, I forgot to mention Cam Cameron is their coach, and he....let Dom Capers coach their final preseason game so he could better evaluate talent for the final roster cutdown? Yep, they got it locked up.
AFC North....
The Baltimore Ravens are good. Ray Lewis is going to be the MVP of the league, not just on defense. Steve McNair will have his best pro season. Willis McGahee is going to rush for 2200 yards. They'll win it all.
The Bengals will win it all. Lawbreakers? We're not supposed to talk about that anymore, because the players who have been jailed, suspended or cut from the team for legal issues wouldn't have an impact this year anyway. Carson Palmer to Chad Johnson 37 times, and a new celebration each time! Yes, Bengals can change their stripes, to Championship stripes.
Pittsburgh is going to return to glory. New coach, no-huddle offense, punishing defense. They'll win it all. The Steel Curtain has returned. Prepare yourselves for another championship in Steel Town (and rumor has it Jerome Bettis hasn't retired, he's only nursing a nagging injury and doesn't want to be cut before the season opener).
The Browns will win it all! They have Brady Quinn, Joe Thomas, LeCharles Bentley, Joe Juravicious (sp?), Kellen Winslow, and Braylon Edwards. The defense is going to mirror that of the Ravens Super Bowl winner several years back.
AFC South....
Houston is very much improved. Matt Schaub, Ahman Green, Mario Williams, DeMeco Ryans and Dunta Robinson will be All-pro's this season. They're going to win it all. It's a new era in Texan football. Are you ready?
The Colts....I think we know about them.
The Titans will win it all. Vince Young is going to lead the NFL in TD passes, rush yards by QB's, and he'll catch 6 of his own passes for TD's as well. Wait, they lost some guy on defense....Nevermind, not important. They'll challenge for a 1st round bye, even though they'll finish in 2nd place in their own division.
Jacksonville is going to win it all. Byron Leftwich is gone. David Garrard will be the man. Jack Del Rio is still going to get fired after the season is over, but he'll have a championship to take with him.
AFC West....
Denver is going to win it all. Mike Shanahan is a genius. No, Raider fans know they stink. They'll finish last, but still win it all. Trust me, it's the new math.
The Raiders are going to win it all. Just ask their fans. I know nothing about football, at least when it comes to the Raiders. Seriously, ask their fans. They're that good.
The Chiefs....aren't very good. They won't win it all. Maybe they will though. Check back as the season goes on for more details.
The Chargers will....make it to the playoffs and lose their first game at home. Norv Turner stinks. They'll still beat the Raiders though, unless they don't.
*****please, do NOT take this personally in any way. I'm JOKING. Lighten up people, and enjoy life. Smack talk between fans is one thing, but hating each other because you root for different teams is just silly. Also, grow up. Enough with all the name calling and childish antics. Lose the homeristic attitudes as well. Nobody likes a hater, but they like homers even less.****
Let me start by saying, for those who missed the first installment, that these predictions are my opinions only. If you want to disagree, that's fine and dandy with me. Seriously, we are all entitled to our opinions....aren't we? All I ask is that we try to control the language and act like adults. If you're not an adult, try acting like one anyway.
AFC East....
The Patriots made a ton of moves this offseason. They plucked Adalius Thomas away from the Ravens with a big free agent contract. They also signed Donte Stallworth. Trade acquisitions included Randy Moss and Wes Welker. Call me crazy (and I suspect plenty will), but I'm wondering if the Pats think they're nearing the end of their dynasty the way they're spending all this money.
The Jets are trying to catch up, but I don't think they will this year. I thought they exceeded expectations last year, but I'm afraid they won't repeat that this year. Thomas Jones was a good pickup via trade from the Bears, but I just don't see them finishing better than 8-8. 7-9 might be more like it.
Miami has reportedly been considering cutting their top WR, Chris Chambers over the last few days. Let's see now, that means they're counting even more on (####?) rookie Ted Ginn Jr. to not only make a big impact, but be "the man" out of their WR unit. Not a single name aside from Chambers makes me think any team will fear their passing game, and if he's gone, I can only imagine how bad things could get. At least they have a young, up-and-coming QB....ooops, they have Trent Green, 37 year old coming off a major concussion last year, and now might have a lousy group of WR's to throw too. Here's to hoping their defense can dominate, because their offense isn't going to.
Buffalo.....Didn't they trade away half their roster in the offseason? I'm thinking their season highlight package is going to include about 8 long TD passes from Losman to Lee Evans, and that's about it. Maybe they can merge with the Jets and form a complete team. Maybe not.
AFC North...
I think this is the make-it or break-it year for Baltimore. Steve McNair isn't getting any younger. Neither is Jonathan Ogden, Derrick Mason, Ray Lewis, Samari Rolle or Trevor Pryce. They added Willis McGahee to be their feature RB, and Todd Heap will do what he does best. I think it's a 2 team race between Baltimore and Cincinnati, with the Ravens edging the cast from the latest "Longest Yard" movie by a game.
Speaking of the Bengals, their offense will be great. Their defense....not so much. Even without Chris Henry for half the season, the offense will be fine. I'm looking at the roster for the defense, and I'm not impressed. It's not that I don't think they have any talent, but I simply can't remember which ones are going to be in jail or suspended.
The Steelers have a new coach. They're going to run some no-huddle, judging by what I saw in a couple of their preseason games. The defense is going to hit people. I don't think they'll make the playoffs though. Maybe 8-8 in Mike Tomlin's rookie season as head coach.
That leaves us with Cleveland in the cellar. They signed alot of free agents last year, and it didn't help much. The drafted Joe Thomas #3 overall, and traded up to grab free-falling Brady Quinn later in the 1st round. That means they'll have a pair of 1st round rookies to go along with their losing record this year.
AFC South....
I'm picking the Texans to win this division. I'm kidding. Indianapolis will win it again. Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, etc. Their defense doesn't look any better than it did last year, but who needs defense when you can score 45 almost at will? By the way, how is it even possible that a Tony Dungy coached team doesn't have a defense?
2nd place is up for grabs if you ask me. Jacksonville needs to win 10 games and/or make the playoffs, or I think Jack Del Rio is gone. I think they'll accomplish both, but he'll get fired anyway after getting thumped in the playoffs.
The Titans will finish 3rd, and Vince Young will do what he does best, which is run with the ball. LenDale White almost looked decent against Green Bay tonight, but the Packers defense was awful, so his stats really aren't that impressive to me. I'll consider it a successful season if they can get through it without the top story every week being about Pacman Jones. Sadly, they won't be able to.
Houston. Matt Schaub has fans of 2 teams cheering for him this year. Texan fans of course, and Atlanta fans who wish he was still with them. Maybe this year Mario Williams can prove why he was picked #1 overall last year, ahead of Reggie Bush and VY. Even if he does, Houston loses at least 10 games.
AFC West...
I don't think anybody made more moves than Mike Shanahan and the Broncos in the offseason. For a while, I thought Isiah Thomas was running the show. Travis Henry, Patrick Ramsey, Daniel Graham, Brandon Stokley, Dre Bly, and I think they're planning on claiming Michael Vick if Atlanta waives him. It's not enough.
San Diego is still going to win this division. Norv Turner may be a terrible head coach, but not even he can screw up LT and Antonio Gates, or their defense. If he does manage to mess it up, I can almost see Shawne Merriman helping turn his "lights out."
Denver will finish 2nd though, and earn a wild card spot. They've got enough talent, now they just have to get a solid year from QB Jay Cutler to bring it all together.
Kansas City comes in 3rd (by default). Not much about this team impresses me, except Larry Johnson. It would be nice if they didn't ride him quite so hard this year, and let Michael Bennett carry the ball about 80-90 times. Donnie Edwards is back at LB. The defense could be good, but not good enough to get this team to the playoffs.
Who's left? Oh, Oakland. Ummmm (As I sit here completely at a loss for something positive to say.....). I got it! They drafted Jamarcus Russell 1st overall in the dra....oops, he hasn't signed yet. Ok....how about...."With the #1 pick in the 2008 NFL draft, the Oakland Raiders select......"?
There you have it....
Feel free to rip me to your heart's content. I expected about 3 comments on my NFC predictions, but people got so mad that I didn't pick their team to win, I'm closing in on 60. To heck with that old saying about if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all. Say whatever you want, this is America and you have that right.
I'll jump in the pool of (sometimes clueless) record prognosticating (I had to look that word up, as I thought it meant something else). I skimmed over a couple blogs regarding this subject, and learned a valuable lesson. I better make sure my combined records for all teams ends up being .500. I'm not going to give exact records, so that will help me a little bit.
I'm going to stick mostly to picking division winners and try to nail down the wild card teams in both conferences.
NFC (L)East...
I don't care much for any of these teams, whether it be based on talent or just not being a fan. When I was growing up, mom liked the pretty blue uniforms of the Giants, and the Redskins were her dad's (that'd be my grandpa) team, while dad was a big fan of Tom Landry's Cowboy teams.
Luckily, neither one of them will see this post, so I can safely confess my hatred for the Cowboys (I won't mention the one player on that team I absolutely hate, but you can probably guess, along with the owner, since there is only one) and how completely screwed up the Giants and 'Skins organizations are these days.
At any rate, I think the Eagles win this division. Of the 4 teams, I think they have the most talent, least amount of potential distractions, and until Andy Reid goes off the deep end because of one (or both) of his kids, I think they have the best coaching to go along with their talent. The division will probably be a slugfest again this year, so I think 10 wins might be all the Eagles can muster....or need....to come out on top. Both the Giants and Cowboys could battle for a wild card spot, but I think it depends on keeping the in-fighting and other distractions to a minimum.
NFC South...
Who's ready for another disappointing year by the Falcons, Bucs and Panthers? Even with Vick, I don't think the Falcons were going to be a playoff team this year. Now they're stuck with Joey Harrington along with a new coach who was going to open up the offense, and still a weak set of receivers (other than Joe Horn that is).
John Gruden has auditioned about 31 QB's it seems, and he could still end up starting Chris Simms. I think he'll go with Jeff Garcia and hope he still has some of the magic that he had with the Eagles last year.
Anybody pick Carolina to go to the Super Bowl again this year? If things get bad enough that they bench Jake Delhomme in favor of David Carr, it could be a long season, and a sign that the time has come to change coaches and rebuild.
Obviously, that leaves the Saints to win the division. It's still a bit strange to say that, but the team is legit. Solid QB (who had an MVP-caliber year last year, and would have won if not for some guy who goes by "LT" only), a 1-2 punch at RB, and a couple young receivers good enough to push Joe Horn right out the door.
As long as the defense can be in the top half of the league, there's no reason this team can't make it back to the NFC championship game, and maybe win it this time.
NFC North...
Who else is there besides Chicago? Well, unless Rex Grossman improves significantly (which he hasn't proven thus far in the preseason) or at least becomes more consistent, they could be their own worst enemy. The law of averages tells me their defense can't bail them out of jams like they did so many times last year.
If you listen to John Kitna, the Lions are going to be right there at the end. At least 10 wins? Only if the Bears forfeit both games to rest up for the following week's opponent and at least 4 other teams fumble (literally) their way to a loss from laughing so hard at Kitna's comments.
The Vikings have a talented rookie RB in Adrian Peterson. Too bad their QB hasn't proven he can throw the ball yet, and teams will load up to stop the run until he proves otherwise. Vikings fans are always so sure they've got a winner, that some of them think signing Packer-reject Robert Ferguson is an upgrade to their WR group. Either that, or he'll have all the secrets to stopping Brett Favre and the Packers offense to share with the defense. Judging by his last 2 seasons in GB, he's had plenty of time to study the playbook, and if he gets injured again this year, he'll certainly have the time to sit down with the defense and review game film and point out everything they need to know.
Speaking of Favre and the Packers, he's still honked off they didn't load up on new weapons for him to throw to in the offseason. As a matter of fact, they didn't do much of anything in free agency. Their notable free agent acquisition, according to NFL Network, was Frank Walker. In the 2 preseason games I happened to catch parts of, I seen him take part in 2 plays. One was a pass interference on a ball that was about 5 yards out of bounds, and I think the other one he fell down.
I'm not sure the defense needs him though. The big questions were at the safety spots, but from what I'm hearing those may be solved. A.J. Hawk is a beast in the making, and Al Harris and Charles Woodson should be one of the top CB duos in the league.
All that said, Chicago wins this division by at least a couple games, while Green Bay might be able to sneak up and finish 9-7, but just miss out on a wild card berth once again.
NFC West....
San Francisco has been getting alot of media and blogger love this offseason. Adding Nate Clements is supposed to be huge for them, along with twisting Darrell Jackson away from the Seahawks on offense. (I still wonder why the 'Hawks would make this move unless there was something wrong with Jackson...either physically or in the locker room) I'm not sold on them winning this division, or grabbing a wild card spot just yet, but I won't rule them out at this point.
Up in Seattle, folks are expecting a return to their '05 Super Bowl form. I'm not betting on that, but they should take the division unless SF really proves me wrong. If it's always sunny in Philadelphia, I guess that's why it always seems to be raining in Seattle. If they manage 10 wins, it should be enough to win this division.
The Rams have offense. They have plenty of it. Too bad their Defense is more of a swinging gate than an actual fence. They should battle the 49ers for 2nd place, at about 8-8.
Do I have to even talk about the Arizona Cardinals? Ok, they have a young lefty QB, a slightly past-his-prime elite RB and 2 very good WR's. The also have a new coach. 6 wins sound like reason to party? If so, then you understand why I didn't want to talk about them.
Man, this thing is getting long.....
For that reason, I'm going to save my AFC predictions for another day. We're getting down to the wire, so I need to get back and finish that in the next week. I promise to finish this, unlike my CFB top 25 that I started like a month ago and never finished.
Today I clicked on foxsports.com on my internet bookmarks, and found this thing about Jay Mohr, new featured (notice I said "featured" instead of "feature" since the site is obviously featuring their new star writer, rather than caring if his content is any good) writer whining about how the bloggers don't like him.
In order to defend himself against the masses that think he's a tool, what does he do? Well, he creates his own blog, rips on every blogger as being against him, and laughs at a few of those who attacked him with their comments on his column.
Wonderful way to respond there Jay. Forget the idea that some of the people on this site (not myself, but more established writers who really know their stuff...I won't mention any names, but we here in the community know who they are) actually write quality stuff, and don't stoop to name calling and baiting others into arguments to get their point across. Instead, just lump every blogger in the world into a group of clueless, classless, intellectually challenged baffoons with nothing better to do than start cyber wars with has-been stand-up comedians reduced to writing a column for foxsports.com (which, in case you didn't know, isn't exactly the standard for solid, informed writers).
I guess Jay isn't really that smart anyway. Afterall, to get back at all of us #### bloggers, what did he do? Well, Mr. Ghost Whisperer started....his very own blog. I guess that makes you exactly what you despise then, doesn't it?
Also, I see he has joined with the rest of the fox writers, in refusing to even attempt to respond to comments left on his blog (of course, after I read the first page of comments on his blogger hating post, I refused to click on the next page, or see if he had any other useless posts). Do any of these guys realize half the point of being here is to interact with others? Seriously, if you don't want to give the time of day to those who obviously don't like you, don't respond to them, and just concentrate on the rest. You're not going to gain clique acceptance (not mine anyway) without becoming more sociable. And if you simply don't have time to respond to each and every comment, that's ok too. Perhaps a simple "thanks for stopping by everyone, it's much appreciated" would suffice.
now that I've got that off my chest.....
This is probably the breaking news you were expecting to see at the top....
Michael Vick has reportedly agreed to accept a plea bargain in his dogfighting case. I don't know the details just yet, but according to that other sports network (also not real high on my list of great writers or personalities), he could be looking at a possible 18-36 months or more behind bars. Part of the lengthy negotiations apparently was from his lawyers trying desperately to get the jail time reduced to under 12 months, as well as to determine from NFL authorities (Roger Goodell and the NFL attorneys I imagine) what type of further punishment he would be facing once his sentence is complete.
Personally, I think they should ban him for life. If Pete Rose was banned from baseball for life for betting on games, Vick should be banned from the NFL forever as well. What some of us may have missed in this mess, is that NFL players have a similar policy as NBA officials, in that they are not allowed to gamble. This is partly due to the idea that gambling is a means for the mafia (even though some will tell you it doesn't exist) to get their claws into the sport and fix games. Add that to his plea bargain for the federal dog-fighting ring, and I think it's a no-brainer that he be banned for good.
Now, for those of you who still believe he's innocent, you'll still be able to tell us that, even though he pleaded guilty, he did nothing wrong. As we all know, the charges were "trumped up" anyway, and him pleading guilty was certainly only because it was his best option left, or face even more false allegations by a vindictive, racist prosecutor who is only out to make a name for himself by going after the biggest, most popular athlete he could sink his teeth into.
I wish this meant it was over, and we could move on with the NFL without him....
That's a nice wish. All year long we're going to keep hearing about this pathetic human being, and how he is the victim here, rather than the dozens (that we know of) of dogs he and his buddies tortured, murdered, and fought to the death. We're also going to hear from all the NFL experts every time Joey Harrington throws 3 INT's, and has a fumble returned for a TD in a Falcons loss, who just know that if Vick were allowed to play (and, like every other pro athlete, allowed to serve his sentence in the offseason), he would have won that game.
For those of you who think I'm crying over some useless animals....
I hope you figure out at some point in your lives that animals are not for our entertainment (at least not like that), and that because Vick is a famous athlete, doesn't give him the right to do what he did.
I also hope that you let go of the "So-and-so did this or that, and that's way more serious than what Vick did, so Vick should go free, and the other guy should burn in Hades" attitude. As you well know (since you obviously still believe Vick is innocent), the justice system is not perfect. Now, that does not mean I'm giving a free pass to the other guy, because I'm not. I don't defend anyone because of their celebrity status, or what team they play for, or how good he is. That's what you've been doing all along with Vick. You either like him because of his athletic ability, the team he plays for, or in some cases (even though I hate to bring this up) for the simple fact that he's a black man with money.
If Larry Bird had been doing this when he was playing for the Celtics, I'd want him to pay the price. Same goes for Brett Favre, Roger Clemens, John Stockton, Steve Nash, Pete Rose, Hulk Hogan, Vince McMahon or Peyton Manning.
Anyone notice the little green dot on some helmets?
NFL Network was showing the replay of last night's Green Bay @ Pittsburgh preseason game today. At one point, announcers Rich Gannon and Kevin Harlan started talking about a little green dot on the helmet of one of the Quarterbacks. I think it was Aaron Rodgers, but I don't remember for certain.
Apparently, someone believes that any QB who also holds on field goal attempts has an unfair advantage because of the communication equipment inside his helmet. Having this equipment means they could receive instructions for a fake field goal while preparing for the attempt, and make the necessary adjustments.
The league is going to require any QB who also holds for field goals to use a secondary helmet each time they go out to hold. That means, if the QB who is on the field running the offense has to hold, he will have to come off the field, switch helmets, and go back in. Even if time is winding down, he'll need to rush over, exchange helmets, and get back on the field before time runs out, OR he'll have to call a timeout if his team still has any.
I think I know what you're thinking....
Why is this a big deal? Well, think about your team driving down the field, and time is running out. You get within field goal range, but have no timeouts left, and the clock is still moving. Maybe it's even 4th down and you can't spike the football to stop the clock. Your QB will have to rush over, grab another helmet, or have one rushed out to him by another player...who by the way can't then turn around and run back off the field...before settling in where the kicker wants the ball spotted.
Now I realize that most NFL starting QB's don't have the responsibility of holding for FG's or PAT's, but a few do. Besides that, what if your starter gets hurt, and the backup QB is the regular holder?
What teams are going to have to do....
It's pretty silly I think, that any team whose QB on the field is also their holder, will have to appoint someone on the kicking unit (perhaps the kicker himself) the handler of the secondary helmet. Also, someone who is on the field will have to carry off the primary helmet.
If a team tries to run a guy out to both give the secondary helmet and retrieve the primary helmet, is he considered to be a 12th man in the huddle or on the field?
If the QB takes off his helmet between plays, will he be penalized for doing so? The league already has a policy in place where players are not allowed to remove their helmets while on the field. If this rule works like I think it will, an exception will have to be made to this rule.
What's the big deal anyway?
I really have a hard time believing anyone has been so distraught over the idea of a coach calling in a fake field goal because the holder has that speaker inside his helmet, that he needed to introduce this idea to the competition committee. I have an even harder time believing the committee would actually buy this line of Male Farm Animal Fertilizer.
Seriously, if a team wants to run a fake field goal, I don't think they're going to just do it on a whim because at the last second, they remember their holder has a speaker in his helmet, and that he can direct the group of blockers and the kicker to just wing it. If they can, it means they practiced the play and know it has a chance of being successful. If they spent valuable time practicing it during the week, shouldn't they get a chance to use it?
Another thing is, if the QB has to get a different helmet from the sideline, isn't it conceivable that, while he's over there getting it, the coach could whisper in his ear (or the player who runs out on the field to give it to him, or whoever) that the fake is on?
If the whole point of this ridiculous rule is to stop teams from running fake field goals, it's not going to work. The only things this rule is going to accomplish is costing teams penalty yards or the clock running out while the QB is making sure he has the right helmet on.
Another interesting side note to all this....
If a team gets penalized for having 12 men on the field during this helmet swap, and there is under 2 minutes, isn't it required that 10 seconds be run off the clock? In most situations, that alone is going to end the game.
This is a completely useless rule in my opinion. If a team wants to run a fake field goal and any of their QB's happen to be the holder, I say more power to them. Matter of fact, I say whoever the holder is (punter, WR, or the freaking nose tackle) should get to trot out there with a helmet that has a speaker in it.
Instead of trying to fool us into thinking teams won't be able to run a fake with these other helmets, why not just make sure that every holder has a speaker so that the possibility is always there? This way, whether it's the QB who was already on the field, the punter or anyone else who was on the sideline, they'll always be able to have it ready when the time comes to run the play.
This should be the time of year when teams at the top are making a serious push to show the pretenders who is boss. It's not exactly working out that way in 4 of the 6 divisions in all of baseball.
While the Yankees are trying to make a run at Boston, both teams are 7-3 in their last 10 games.
Over in the AL west, both the Mariners and Angels of Lower Unkton (bonus points if you can tell me what TV show I stole that from) are both 6-4 in their last 10, with the A's sliding back just a bit going 4-6 in their last 10.
In the other 4 divisions, things could get very interesting down the stretch, where teams are jockeying for position either by keeping pace, or barely treading water.
AL Central...
The Tigers were a favorite for not only the AL pennant, but a World Series championship at the beginning of the season. In their last 10 games, they're 2-8, and now sit a half game behind the Indians (as of the latest standings here on foxsports.com I have in front of me). Meanwhile, the Indians aren't so hot either, going 4-6 in their last 10.
If these teams aren't careful, the Twins could find their way back into the race come September with a nice streak in the next couple weeks.
NL East...
Who wants this one? The Mets were another favorite for a shot at the WS before the season, but are starting to feel the heat from both the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies.
Do the Braves have one more division title in them before the last of their 15 straight division winners move on? Andruw Jones is likely on his way out after this season, John Smoltz isn't getting any younger, Chipper Jones isn't getting any healthier, and Bobby Cox might not have any motivation left after setting the record for career ejections. They made a couple moves at the deadline that give me the impression that's exactly what they're doing. Making one last run before everyone goes their seperate ways.
The Phillies suffered a blow to their chances when Chase Utley broke his hand, but if they can stay close until he gets back, he could be the spark they need down the stretch.
NL Central...
Did anyone (besides crazy Cubs fans) think this was going to be a race at all around the middle of May? My how the mighty have fallen. They're 32-33 since Ryan Braun was called up, and probably wouldn't be that good if not for him. The kid is a monster with the bat. Too bad for him the pitching has been awful, the defense sketchy at best, and the offense inconsistent.
The Cubs are right on their heels, but may finally be coming back to Earth after playing out of their minds since Lou Piniella threw a temper tantrum back in early June. They're only 5-5 in their last 10, but the Brewers are 3-7, giving them more reason to believe the division is theirs for the taking.
The Cardinals were all but dead until they took 3 out of 4 from Milwaukee, all in comeback fashion. They're 7 games out, but can you count out the defending champs in early August? I'll give them a couple more weeks, and see if the Brewers and/or Cubs can open this thing up a little more before I read their last rights.
NL West...
How about them D-backs? A month ago this was between the Dodgers and Padres, with Arizona looking up at both of them. After going 8-2 in their last 10, they are now in 1st place all alone, 2 games up on the Padres and 4 up on the Dodgers. Even the Rockies (believe it or not) are still within striking distance 5 games back.
Who should we put our money on down the stretch?
NL
I'm going to go out on a limb and take the Dodgers out west. The D-backs might be a year away, and the Padres roster is filled with platoon guys, utility men and bench players. Their pitching is rock solid, but they'll have to be near perfect with not much offense to support them.
In the central, I still think Milwaukee will figure it out soon and get back on the winning track. If not, can the Cubs really keep playing at this level for the rest of the season?
The Mets are the team to beat in the east, and I think they will win it. If Pedro does make it back and has anything positive to give them down the stretch, they should keep the Braves down for the 2nd year in a row.
the Braves get the nod for Wildcard though with the additions they made at the deadline.
AL
The east is Boson's to lose. The Yankees have been playing much better of late, but they've still got 7 games to go, and I just don't think they have enough time to get it done.
In the central, the Tigers have the experience and the talent to take it. The big question is the pitching, with 2 starters on the DL right now. Put a patch on that, and I think their offense can make up for a bad pitching performance now and then.
The Angels should take the west. Too much talent not to. But I've been wrong before.
Cleveland gets the nod for Wildcard, just edging out the Yankees.
About time A-Rod and Bonds hit their respective milestone homeruns. Now, can we get on with life?
Bonds....
Bonds' record has more historical significance, but also a much bigger cloud of su####ion hanging over it. The Giants stink this year, and for the most part, only the San Francisco fans can stand the guy (And they probably wouldn't had Bonds signed elsewhere this past offseason.
Bud Selig finally gave in and agreed to follow Bonds around like a lost puppy dog looking for a meal, even though everyone knew he didn't want to be there, especially Bonds himself. Of course, Bonds did want Selig present, if for no other reason than to rub it in his face personally when he finally tied the record.
Can Bud get back to work now? Or does he need to keep following Bonds until he breaks the record? Assuming it doesn't happen tonight, it could be a while based on Bonds' recent lack of success at the plate.
A-Rod...
Last year everybody hated him. Naturally, if you aren't a Yankee fan, you didn't like him just for that reason. But he was struggling last year (to the tune of 35 HR, 121 RBI, a .290 BA and 113 runs scored. Looking at those numbers, it's hard to say the guy wasn't any good, but the reason for Yankee fans hating him so much was more due to situational hitting (hitting with RISP, and clutch performance, especially in the playoffs the last few years) and a severe case of the yips on defense.
This year his defense is much better (7 errors compared to a total of 24 last year), and he's much more consistent at the plate. Approaching the milestone of 500 career homeruns at a rapid pace hasn't hurt either. Even a recent slump hasn't hurt him too much in the eyes of the fans.
Rodriguez is the youngest player to reach the 500 HR plateau, and the general feeling is he'll eventually surpass whatever number Bonds is at when he decides to hang 'em up. Of course, he'll have to stay healthy, stay motivated, and not let any steroid allegations get in his way.
Now what?
Well, Bonds still has to pass Hammerin' Hank to be the lone record holder, so we still have that to look forward to....Some of us more than others.
Tomorrow could be another milestone day as Tom Glavine goes for win #300...again....against the Cubs at Chewing Gum Field, also known as Wrigley.
After that, I'm not sure what milestones are attainable this season, or by which players.
I'm sure Brett Favre has a few he's still pursuing, and could reach this season.
The Royals must have some sort of milestone about number of players traded after the regular deadline.
The popular TV series Law and Order must be ready to reach 8 billion episodes in the near future.
George Clooney could get plastic surgery, and give situation comedy another try. He must hold the record already for most sit-coms appeared in to fail miserably.
The Minnesota Vikings could (most likely not this year) make it to yet another Super Bowl, and still not win one.
Allen Iverson could become the all-time leader in practices missed. After all, we just talkin' 'bout practice.
I've seen this mentioned a couple times, and I don't get it. I can understand that some newer bloggers aren't going to be popular or "fit in" with the more established bloggers (heck, so far I'm one of them), but do they automatically have to assume there's a clique that is out to get them?
If you don't agree with the majority, does that mean they're all against you as a person, or just your opinion on a particular subject? Perhaps it's not even about your disagreement, but instead, it's the way you come accross when giving said opinion. If you start calling people names, or are defending certain athletes who are in trouble with the law for unspeakable crimes (alleged or otherwise).
The KG trade...
I was a bit surprised to see a few people share my point of view on the big trade. Now, I think all the angles have been covered. What surprises me is the Wolves fans who still think it was a bad move.
It's not like KG was going to stick around past next summer, or the Wolves were going to magically contend for a title this year, or even if KG did stick around, that Kevin McHale was going to figure out how to build a winner (without the help of Danny "Squirrel Balls" Ainge) any time soon.
Oh, and the extension that KG signed to help the C's cap situation...it was an extension that now makes him a Celtic for the next 5 years, but doesn't do anything to help them for the next 2 years, contrary to what I interpreted from a couple comments.
Barry Bonds/A-Rod milestones....
Can we officially say they're both slumping bigtime right now? I think twice since the break Bonds has gone yard, and both times I've read something like 'Bonds breaks out of slump in a big way." Unfortunately, those are about the only hits he has since july 1. A BA of .186 for the month is pretty bad for anybody. For Bonds, it must mean he's pressing.
As for A-Rod, he's still trying for HR #500. That's not going so well either. He's pressing too. Maybe if someone tells them their next HR doesn't count, they'll both go out and get it over with.
Respect my Authoritah!
Well, we've already established the BOTD selection process is a total cr@pshoot. Now I see paid Fox Sports writers are getting the nod. Wonderful. What is this? Some kind of minor league team they come to when they're struggling with their writing, in order to gain confidence in themselves again?
"Boss, I'm slumping. I've got writer's block, and I need to get back on track."
"Ok Perry...and you too Menefee. You're both getting sent down to Triple A (not to be confused with Triple H) to work things out. If you figure it out in a couple weeks, we'll see about bringing you back up. No pressure, but lisa4usc, Dudski and joshqpublic are mashing right now, and if they can do that with the big club, we might have to trade you to ESPN for the College Game Day crew. Of course, the 2 of you won't get that trade done, we'll probably have to throw in a couple prospects like cuziffer and Miracle to get the deal done."
Seriously, what gives? Are these guys lonely and just come over here to prove somebody does actually read their work? It's not like they respond to comments left on their posts or anything. Of course, in Perry's case, he'd actually have to GET a comment before he could respond to it.
Is it football season yet?
I was hoping with the start of training camps, my need for football would be fulfilled. I was wrong. Training camp is boring, and all we ever hear is the same old drama about certain un-named players who somehow end up in the news every year at this time.
Plus, preseason games are boring, and the games don't count for anything. I like football, but I'm not watching to break down which potential 3rd stringers have earned a spot on the team. I want to see plays being made, and big hits by the defense.
Give me football, or give me....5 virgins and $40 million. Ok, I'll settle for football...for now.
