DISCLAIMER: This post is about sports. This post is only about sports. You have been warned.
Around the Horn is off the air due to the MLB Playoffs, so here is your cheap ripoff! Around the Horn, Bloggers edition! I am your host MrNFL, in the bold font, and here are today's contestants.
First up, we have NeoAC, in the Red font.
Yeah, I'm back again, but rivjo nowhere to be found, I will be sure to take it
this time! *cue evil laughter* Neil Patrick Harris got nothing on me!
Alrighty then, next is Burger21, in Green font
Hi everyone, I’m burger21, and I only took 20 pills before I got here so ignore
those 911 calls from my publicist. Drugs are bad, M'kay. Next up is Bengals9. And some where along the line, there was a miscommunication, so don't expect much from Bengals.
Finally, making his Around the Horn debut, Demonicume...who didn't write an opening. He'll be in blue font. With that, lets go!
THE FIRST WORD
It is week 5 in the NFL, and as always we have some good games on tap. But if you look at the 4 teams not playing this week, you've got three pretty good teams. Among those teams, the Bengals, Seahawks, Falcons, and the Texans. My question gentlemen, of these 4 teams, which is the best and why? We'll start with Demon.
The Falcons, plain and
simple. But first, lemme tell
you why these other teams aren't the best.
The Patriots pulled
the cover off the Bengals last week and showed the entire
league their soft, creamy. They have a very balanced offense, but they also have
some serious issues. Carson Palmer has 6 TDs in 4 games, but he also has thrown
the ball to the other tram 4 times. When he isn't throwing the ball to the other
side, he's putting it on the turf. He's got 7 fumbles, 4 for a loss. (+2) But the
problem isn't Carson, the problem is the Offensive line. The guy just came off a
serious injury and his line has let him get tagged for 15 sacks already. That's
4 sacks shy of the 19 knock-downs he took all LAST SEASON. (+2) Yup the O-Line isn't
pulling thieir weight; and if things don't change very soon, Carson will see the
turf more times that Drew Bledsoe did last season.
The other Bengal
problem is Run Defense. They can't seem to stop anyone. A supposed
superbowl contender, they are ranked in the bottem half of the league in every
meaningful category: Run Defense (26th), Totsl yards (23rd) and Points Against
(19th). It's a simple fact, you cant expect to get far in the play-offs giving
up nearly 150 yards on the ground and 21 points a game. (+3)
Keys to
fix:
they need to grow some big hairy balls in the middle of that Defense and they
need to find a way to keep their QB off his buttocks.
The Seahawks are the
perfect example of why I hate the Pack-10 : soft scheduling. I
know its not their fault that their division sucks, but I wont ignore the fact
either. Here are the teams they get to thrash twice every year:
the Cardinals, 49ners, Raiders, and the Rams. For decoration, we toss in
defensive powerhouses like the Packers and the Chiefs. The toughest team they
have left to play is Denver and that'll be after they've gone 12-1. I'm furious
because I benched Thomas Jones last week. I fell into the hype that Seattle was
for real. Then I watched Jones – who is every bit as soft as his sissy little
brother in Dallas – put up career numbers. The Bears haven't been able to run
against anyone all season, but Thomas Jones looked like Bo Jackson against
Seattle. They're fakers. They'll have a 12 or 13 win season and get blown out in
the playoffs. I don't know how they made it to the Superbowl. But now that the
Madden Curse has scrubbed their only superstar, we'll see how well they
do. (+4)
As a Dallas fan, I
hate the Texans. No real Texan can
ever truly accept the existence of another football team in our state. It's
blasphemy. The Texans are the Taiwan to our China. We'd crush them if we could,
but no one else will let us. Fortunately, the Houston front office is doing its
best to kill its own chances at every succeeding. (+1)
The worst part is that
David Carr is a good QB. Last season, he
played well enough to win a Superbowl if Big Ben is any indicator. In the right
system, with maybe 1 solid offensive lineman, this kid could be great. His QB
rating is over 100, his TD to INT ratio is great. But he's been sacked over 200
times in his last 4 seasons. I don't know when the Houston front office is gonna
wake the hell up and get this man some protection, but if were I David Carr, I'd
be trying to move to a team that would appreciate the highest rated QB in the
AFC. Yo, DAVE! Tampa is a great place to live. Beautiful beaches, beautiful
women, great weather… (+2)
The Falcons are my
pick.
It isn't because they rank in the top 15 in every meaningful category on both
sides of the ball except passing yards per game. It isn't because Vick is one of
the winningest QBs in the recent history. It's because they win my way: solid
running and great defense. John Abraham – SC in the house baby! – is back from
his groin pull and should solidify an already solid defense. They have 2 solid
backs in Dunn and Norwood – who racked up 106 yards on 6 carried as a backup
last game. And… they run the Spread Option 5 to 8 times a game. Not to kick a
dead horse, but when ever a black QB comes into the league, you always hear
whispers of intelligence. Theyre all dumb. We saw it here in Carolina, Syvelle
was to dumb to be a pocket passer. Ask Auburn hjow domb he is. Vince Young was
the only QB to have his Wonderfukt Score leaked. Analysts are always on the edge
of saying Mike Vick is too stupid to run the west coast offense. Instead they
say it's too complex. Maybe the West Coast offense doesn't suit
his skillset. Or maybe Mike never had a WR who could get open. (+6)
My only issues with
the Falcons are PLAY CALLING and WRs. Are these guys gonna catch any balls? I
watched Alge Crumpler drop 2 TDs on the same drive. The receivers they have can
not, or will nont, get open. Were I Coach Mora, I'd run the option down the
throats of every team we faced. I'd run it the way FLA is running it this year,
which allows for more passing and less getting knocked out. (+2)
Downside? The Dirty Birds face
big defenses this year – Eagles, Carolina, Redskins, Cowboys – but I can see
them running all the way into the play offs.
Good Stuff Demon, Neo, you?
Well, lets take a look at who we have sitting out.
There's the Texans,
but unless the Colts and Jaguars both suffer a massive case of collective
botulism, they aren't going to be anywhere near the playoffs. Heck, I think they
would still manage to come in third to those two. (+3)
Then we have the other
teams, who have looked extremely good in three out of four games. Atlanta
has pounded the ball successfully against Carolina, TB and Arizona, but they were
abysmal against the Saints in the Superdome. I know there was a lot of emotion
in that game, but there was no excuse for the way the Falcons played. Vick
completes only 38% and leads in rushing? Its almost like they threw that
game.......nah. Couldn't be. (+3)
The Bengals took control of the conference
in their first three games, mauling Kansas City, Cleveland and Pittsburgh.
However, they were mere pussycats when playing the Patriots, practically rolling
over for them. They clearly tried to attack New England's secondary with a pass
to run ratio of slightly over 2:1 and it didn't work. The Patriots played
smashmouth football, and Cinci's line couldn't cope with Maroney busting for 125
yards and 2 TDs. And with Baltimore continuing to roll, the North may soon be
out of Cinci's reach. (+4)
Therefore, the best out of the four bye teams is
still the Seahawks. They are lucky that Shaun Alexander is getting the effects
of the Madden curse out of the way early. In the NFC West, its not going to
matter that Mo Morris is running the ball for them, they can coast until the MVP
is back up and running. (+4)
OK, My god I hate Fox's formatting....Burger you?
While the sexy pick is the Bengals, the folks who are falling over
themselves trying to get on their bandwagon are ignoring some glaring
weaknesses, namely their defense. They’re giving up 345 yards per game, barely
ahead of SanFran and Cleveland; 60 yrds worse than Oakland; and over 100 yrds
more than the Chiefs! (+4) In the last two games they’ve yielded 406 yds and 5 TDs –
on the ground alone! And on offense, while everyone has this image of a
powerhouse scoring machine, few visualized Carson Palmer dribbling more balls
than an NBA point guard. (+3) He’s put the pill on the carpet 7 times this year and
looks very rattled against competent defenses. The have played only one good
complete game – in the opener against a Chiefs team that everyone had
over-rated. Cleveland and Pittsburgh both gift wrapped wins via turnovers and
the Pats put a woodshed wuppin’ on them. (+3) You could say much of the same for
Seattle in that Matt Hasslebeck has not looked anything like a Pro-Bowl QB, and
they were strangely ineffective against Detroit of all teams. (+2) I’m going against
the grain here and saying that the best team among these three is Atlanta, with
their power ground game (ranked #1 in the NFL) and ball hawking defense (+6
turnover ratio). And while no one will confuse Mike Vick for Peyton Manning as a
passer, Vick has only two interceptions and is playing with freedom and fun in
Atlanta’s potent offense (+3)
And Bengals?
The Best is definetly the bengals. why, two words carson palmer. (+2)
Ok then...Onward...
As you are probably all aware, the MLB Postseason is underway. Very simple question, who wins the World Series and why? Burger?
I’m really not sold on anyone in the National League because both
the Mets and Cardinals have huge pitching concerns. While the Tigers look like
they’re going to make a scrap out of things, it would appear that the Yanks and
A’s will match up in what will essentially be the championship. The A’s
certainly have the pitching to make things interesting, and they seem looser and
less uptight than in previous showdowns with NY. While NY has the lineup full of
All-Stars, I feel Oakland’s arms will prevail against what is a shaky Yankees
rotation. The A’s will win it all. (+6)
Going with the A's eh? Speaking of Eh, Neo, go my Canadian friend.
In the blue corner we will have the New York Mets who score first round
knockouts of the LA Dodgers and the St. Louis Cardinals without so much as a
scratch.
In the red corner we have the Oakland Athletics who after
surprisingly getting rid of the Minnesota Twins, dispatch the exhausted winner
of the Tigers-Yankees series (My money's on NY). This is sure to be a
barnburner.
In the first game, Tom Glavine will get the better of
popular Met target Barry Zito, but Rich Harden will even the score over Steve
Trachsel, and send the series back to Shea knotted up at one.
Oakland
will take advantage of a ####-up Mets rotation as emergency starter Oliver Perez
gets shelled, making a winner of Danny Haren, but John Maine and Tom Glavine
come in and shut down the A bats, and head back to the Bay with a three-two lead
In Game Six, Macha plays a hunch and goes with Joe Blanton against
Trachsel, but Trachsel pitches his career-defining game, a three-hitter, and
Carlos Delgado belts a two-run shot off of Blanton in the fourth to send the
Mets to a 4-1 win, and their first Series win since 1986. (+7)
Interesting answer, Demon?
World Series? Oh,
yeah, its STILL baseball season. Damn. Is there any way we can shorten the
season at all? I don't know who wins. When the Mets had Pedro, I was a Mets man.
But now I'm going with my team from the 80's and 90's: the Oakland A's. The AFC…
ummmm, American League allows you to bat a guy who doesn't even field, and Frank
Thomas is making the most of it. The A's ride The Big Hurt all the way to a
champagn bath. (+2)
Ok then...and Bengals?
The Oakland Athletics because of there excellent pitching and good hitting. (+2)
(HORN) Wait a minute, coming into the playoffs, no one had the A's doing anything, and now everyone is picking them to get to the World Series? All a bunch of bandwagon jumpers (MUTE) With that, we'll take a commercial, Buy or Sell is next.
Mmmmmm, Pizza.....
Ok, welcome back, and it is Buy or Sell Time!
BUY OR SELL?
This weeks Monday night game should be a good defensive showdown between the Broncos, and the Ravens, who have yet to be beaten. Buy or Sell the Ravens remaining undefeated? Demonicume?
Sell: Until the Ravens
find some meaningful offense, I'm picking against them every week. You can't make it to the playoffs riding a TE. Eventually you have to score. The Ravens *may*
shut down Denver's offense, but since they cant find the endzone themselves, I
got Denver by a touch down. (+4)
Burger?
I’m selling this. The Ravens have beaten three teams (Tampa, Clev.,
Oak) with 1 combined victory, and their win over the Chargers was a border line
fluke. Their defense is not as good as the young QB’s they’ve faced are making
them look, and they’ve yet to face some one who will consistently stay committed
to running against them, as we know Denver will. Denver showed patience and
diligence to their scheme against NE and this is the type of game they always
win to make everyone believe they’re good before choking in the playoffs. The
Ravens get exposed for the fraud they are. (+6)
Neo?
I'll BUY this. Denver has looked mighty weak this year. Their offense has failed
to get anything going so far, averaging a mere 12 points per game and against
Baltimore's defense, points are going to be even harder to come by. It may be
another 9-6 squaker but I'd rather have Matt Stover than Jason Elam. (+3)
And Bengals?
I'm buying this. The broncos looked weak in there games agianst the cheifs and
rams and the ravens have looked great in all of there games. (+3)
Ok, onward...
Of course, ESPN is going to hype "Terrell Owens' Big return to Philly" My question is, Buy or Sell 100 yards reciveing for The Player. Bengals?
I'm selling because there is no love lost between the Eagles and with his broken
hand i think he loses a step or two. (+3)
Demonicume?
Buy: What do you do when
you cant stop the run because you've let your best defensive players go
elsewhere? You blitz, blitz, blitz. The Eagles have a soft pass defense,
giving up nearly 300 yards a game thru the air to the likes of David Carr and
Alex Smith. Bledsoe tossed for near 500 yards against defenses like JAX and WAS.
Will TO get his 100 yards? Ummm, yeah, and easily. As long as Jimmy Johnson
keeps blitzing, The Dallas receivers will be wide open. Witten, Glenn, Owens…
pick your poison, who you gonna double cover? If you don't blitz, Julius Jones
will run down your throat. With people like The Lesser Manning and his feeble
receiving corps coming back to embarrass the Eagles Defense, I just don't see
anyone on that defense stopping TO. I'll give Dallas the benefit of the doubt
that Glenn and TO are as good as Plexi-glass Burress and Alligaor Arm-ani
Tooner. They both got their 100 yards. (+7)
Good answer, Neo?
I'll BUY this one too. T.O. always seems to get out a little something more for
the big games, and this is a big games in his mind. If Lito Sheppard sits again,
he's going to have Sheldon Brown on him most of the game, or even Dexter Wynn
when Brown needs a breather. Brown's only an average CB, and Wynn a pre-season
cut, so T.O. should be able to get those 100 yards. (+4)
And Burger?
Terrell is one of those guys who can get 100 on limited touches
because of his ability to take it to the house from anywhere on the field, but I
am selling this. Dallas has done a good job so far in taking what the defense
gives them, as evidenced in the big season Terry Glenn is having. When teams
focus on TO (and I believe the Eagles will be just a little focused on him don’t
you think?) the Cowboys have exploited their other options. (+4)
Alright...We continue...
The Big college football game this weekend is the matchup between #9 LSU, and #5 Florida. Buy or Sell Florida coming up with a victory? Demon?
Sell, FLA has no run
game. None. I don't know how you run the spread option without a serious run
attack. If DeShaun Wynn – the closest thing they have to a RB at FLA – aint in
the game, they don't have a shot. Chris Leak is the best passer in the nation,
but LSU has the nastiest secondary in college football. The D-Line will be after
him all game. I got LSU smacking FLA down by 14. (+5)
Bengals?
I'm Buying this. Why. Honestly i don't know but i just think Florida is the
better team. (+1)
Going with your gut I see. Burger?
Again, I’m in a selling kind of mood! This may be an even better
game than LSU-Auburn, but this time LSU comes out on top. Florida’s RB is ####ed
up and if they get the Gators one dimensional, LSU will show why they’re the #1
overall defense in the nation. Offensively they have the 5th ranked
passing offense in the country behind Russell and they will be too much for the
Gators. (+4)
And Neo?
I'm almost out of money, but I'm still going to have to BUY this as well.
Florida's on a roll right now, and although LSU some very impressive offense in
check, they haven't played one as versatile as the Gators. Urban Meyer is
starting to get his kind of player in, guys like Tim Tebow, and his defense has
been playing very well as well. I think the Gators will win, but their
undefeated season ends next week against Auburn. (+4)
(HORN) Ok, we're done with two rounds, and looking at the scores, Bengals is no where close, so (MUTE), and done. Out of Bounds is next...
Sponsored by Chris Berman...seriously, why do people dislike this guy?
And two down, here's the scores. Demonicume leads with 40. Burger in 2nd with 35, and Neo behind with 32.
OUT OF BOUNDS
This Wednesday was the return of the NHL. Only the 2nd season since the lockout two years ago. My question is, what do you see for the NHL's future? Neo?
I think the NHL can have a very bright future, but some changes need to occur.
First, ditch the OLN. I don't know why they even bothered signing with them in
the first place. Even a discounted contract with ESPN or ABC would have been
smarter. (+4) Second, start promoting the young guns more. Get Crosby, Ovechkin,
Cheechoo and others out into the mainstream, be it with Bud Light, Coke or
Viagra (hey, how could Ed Belfour turn that offer down?). A little promotion
goes a long way. Finally, make going to game more affordable for the fans. I
mean I tried to go to a preseason game a couple weekends ago. One ticket cost
$75! How can the NHL expect to attract the average man, when the average man has
to fork over a third of his weekly pay to see a game? (+4)
If the NHL's
lucky, we could have a repeat of 1994. The Rangers won the Cup that year, and
America's biggest market loved it. This year, they ae poised to strike again,
and even Chicago could be in the mix, with their impressive 8-6 win over
Nashville. A Rangers-Blackhawks series would be a great thing for hockey in
America (no offense, Hurricanes, but nobody outside Carolina cares that you
won.) (+3)
Good stuff, Burger?
The NHL season is only two days old and already we’ve seen some
exciting action. The league has to provide a product that makes fans anxious for
more, and there are numerous young stars on the horizon able to deliver. I think
part of the recent demise of interest from the more casual sports fan came not
only from the Labor disaster and instability of teams and the League as a whole,
but also from a generation of front line stars fading away. (+3) The league has tons of work to do and
can’t realistically be mentioned among the Big Three, but new stars like Sydney
Crosby could go a long way toward bringing the excitement back, and I for one
hope that hockey has a rousing revival. (+2) Hockey zealots know
the players on their teams and most others, but the league has been void of the
names that everyone knew – the Marios and Gretzkys. Yes, those two are probably
the two greatest ever and they can’t truly be replaced but with many of the good
young players coming up having names that can barely be pronounced it has been
increasingly harder for fans to relate.(+2)
I agree there, and Demon?
Hockey? I'm in Carolina, and I had no clue they won the Stanley Cup last year.
They did win, didn't they? I don't even know what city the team plays in. What
would make me interested in Hockey? I'd love to be more involved with the
players. We don't need a NHL T.O. Saga, but I'm not interested in Hockey because
I don't know any of the players. I don't have to be in the city with the team to
like them. Future? I see no future. Until the NHL finds a way to market their
product in a more appealing way, I'll be changing the channel whenever its on
TV. (+4)
(HORN) Alright lets look at the scores, and we have a close one. Demon, with 44 you are safe, Neo has 43. And Burger, barely short with 42. Gonna have to say goodbye to you Burger.
I’m out…like downtownrob’s blogging career!
Yes indeed you are. Showdown up next between NeoAC and Demonicume. Two enter, and one gets to feel happy for the day. The Punching bags of Division 1-A football...
SHOWDOWN!
Showdown time now between Neo and Demon, Let's do this!
Texas plays Oklahoma Saturday in a classic rivalry game. Who ya got? Demon?
Oklahoma – Peterson is a GROWN man. He
wont win the Heisman because voters love pretty boy QBs. Advantage for Peterson
in the Heisman race? Good Ole Boy voters. If Troy Smith scrambles for more than
a a few hundred yards this season, its guaranteed some of them will write him
off as a typical running *cough* (black) QB – cuz that's what happens in the
NCAA. ESPN will show all his running highlights, and the slower voters will vote
for a guy who plays his position 'as it should be played.' Mark my
words. Texas, all the way. Colt McCoy's finally getting confident, and getting more
comfortable in that Longhorn offense, and that is bad news for the Big 12. He's
just going to get better and better as the season goes on, and I don't believe
Oklahoma will be able to handle him.
Not sure how the race card got pulled up in this question, point goes to NeoAC.Next...
Nascar at Talladega this Sunday, who ya got? Neo?
Talladega is a #### shoot. You never know what is going to happen here, as the
Big One lurks around every corner. The restrictor place, levels the playing
fiels as well, so any number of teams could logically win this thing. I;m just
going to spin the ole Wheel of NASCAR in my head and come up with a random name.
And the winner is........Little E, Dale Earnhardt Jr., who uses this win to
climb back into the Chase hunt.
I got Jeff Gordon. I like him cuz everyone hates him. He should have won earlier
this year… I don't know why anyone hates him. But it's time for Jeff to win,
smash that stupid bottle of Pepsi or milk or whatever, grab his manhood and tell
everyone to swing low.
Great NASCAR knowledge here, LOL. I'll give it to Demon, for having a reason for picking his winner.
Finally, Many MLB managers were canned at the end of the season. Of all of those managers, who goes on to have the most success? Demon?
Robinson. He's gonna move into retirement. He should find him some sweet young
thang (or two) and move to a sunny place with no ESPN. Then he wont have to be
ashamed of the what his game has become. No Grim-sley reaper. No posting Bonds.
No Roger –I'm stronger than I was at 20 but I'm clean – Clemmons. No knucklehead
Administration that somehow manages to own a team and promote competition at the
same time.
Mr. Robinson, its time
to come home, old boy. Kick back with a lager of choice, a girl 1/3 your age, a
HUGE DLP TV with a DVR that lets you skip Enzyte commercials. Then you can
subscribe to ESPN Classic and watch Old –School baseball all day.
Well, the rather obvious choice would have to be Joe Girardi. I mean he didn't
do anything wrong when managing the Marlins. The only question is will he go to
the Cubs like everyone is predicting, or will Tom Hicks try and lure him to the
Lone Star state? It wouldn't be a bad venture oppertunity. Every team that has
fired Buck Showalter has won the World Series the next year.
Sorry Neo, Demon's answer was too freaking hilarious to pass up, point goes to Demon, win goes to Demon. Face time is yours.
I'm taking a break
from ESPN. Everyday I power on my TV in hopes of getting news coverage. And
every day I am sadly disappointed. Here are my top 3 reasons for putting down
the remote and reading a good blog:
3) The don't report.
'Report' is defined as 'an account brought by one person to another." Its from
the Old Fench 'rapport' "to tell, relate" and from the Latin
'Reportare' 'to carry
In that definition, I
see no room for spin. I see no room for opinion or supposition or guesswork. I
don't know why ESPN claims to report the news when its integrity is so obviously
compromised. ESPN suckles at the #### of any company looking to sell something to
a male aged 18-45. To do this, they need story lines. To get story lines, they
need heroes and villains. We need debacles and saviors. Every week someone,
somewhere, is on the brink of losing it all. Or panicking. Or if they aren't
panicking they should be. ESPN is just as sensational as FOX news – the
conservative news channel that tried to spin a government official soliciting
sex from young boys – or MSNBC which should officially chance its name to
MSNBConspiracy TV. I'm sick of it. I just want box scores and replays. Thanks a
lot.
2. Jesus, would someone please put something big in Joe Theismann's
mouth? My zipper is stuck... damn. or Joe Walton. or Charles Barkley. They hire
any jack off the street to be a newscaster. I'll take any one of the bloggers
out here ahead of the pricks ESPN throws up there. I'm tired of 'Rumblin and
Stumblin.' i'm tired of 'BOO-YOW!' i'm sick to death of trying to guess the
width of the stick that's a foot deep in Steve Young's ####. i hate Mark May. the
only guys that interest me are the guys everyone else hates: Lou Holtz – fake
teeth, lisp and all – and Michael 'it wasn't my pipe' Irvin. I also like John
Madden, though he rarely makes sense. But sometimes, when the moons are in
alignment, he makes some HUGE points between bits of applesauce and turkey.
1. there are Warriors out tonite. in every part of the world, men, women
and children are striving to do great things. They aren't sullied by political
backgammon. They don't do it for the money or the nookie or anything else beyond
the joy of achievement. People are striving against the limitations of their
bodies and minds in pursuit one brief moment of true achievement. They say a
lifetime of misery is worth a second of enlightenment. ESPN's cameras are
supposed to be there when that second happens…
You've failed us all,
old friend, and I have outgrown you.
Interesting Demon, but a mute for taking so much time with your face time. Neo anything you want to add?
Round of Keith's on me! Don't forget to check the Pickoff!
I take it that Keith's are some form of Alcohol, and you get a (MUTE) for that.
Well thanks everyone for checking this out. I'm MrNFL, and you can re-watch this by clicking the refresh button.
Well it is time for some random ####-ed-ness-icity-ness. Yeah, I think I just made up the biggest word ever. Let's go.
First I will start off by saying that Bloggers Around the Horn will not return this week, as I am crazy busy. Plus it was meant for only when ATH is bumped from the air, and this week it will be on each day. The next time Around the Horn is off on a Friday, it will return however. Onward...
Have things gone from bad to worse for the Tampa Bucs? The last 3 weeks, the defense has been ####, the running game non-existant, and passing game also weak. Now quarterback Chris Simms is now out indefinetly after a spleen injury. Now, their QB is a rookie in Gradkowksi, and the amazingly average Tim Rattay, who is average at best. They likely will be at the bottom on the division.
Odell Thurman is an ####. Last year, with a 2nd round pick, he came in and had a great rookie season for the Bengals. He had 106 tackles, 5 forced fumbles, and 5 interceptions, certainly great numbers for any linebacker, e####ally a rookie. But because of drugs this schmuck is ruining a promising career. He already started the year with a 4 game suspension for violating the leagues substance abuse policy, which is already stupid. Now he's been charged with drunken driving, which is even stupider. This guy needs to wake up, and realize he is throwing his life away. And for what? Alcohol? What a ####....
Ken Griffey Jr. is now 10th on the all time home run list. A great accomplishment, but does anyone wonder how much higher up this guy would be if he could have stayed healthy? Also, unfortunatly for Griffey, he played in the "steroid era." and because of that, he will be among those labeled a juicer, when there is not any proof he ever did anything. It's a shame that those players who were clean the last 10 or so years will be labeled cheaters just because others did.
The Louisiana Superdome re-opens tonight, which is truely remarkable. But the question is, how long will the Saints stay in New Orleans? It's a sad question to ask, but a reasonable one, as owner Tom Benson wanted to move the team before the Hurricane. Los Angeles would certainly make him more money. It would be a heartless move, but lets be real, the Almighty Dollar runs all...
Which makes me add, I hope the NFL doesn't add any teams. Right now, the 4 teams in 8 divisions system works perfectly. Adding a team would off balance the schedules among other teams, so right now I want to see 32 teams. If LA gets a team, it might be a relocated franchise...and unfortunatly it might be the Saints.
So Jeremy Shockey is running his mouth again. It's amazing that if Terrell Owens would have said what Shockey said, the media would be talking 24/7 about it and calling T.O. the biggest #### on the planet. Yet Shockey can rip his coaches, and it doesn't get too much attenion. A shame.
Seemingly everyone is already shooing in the Yankees to be in the World Series, but do people forget about the Tigers and Twins? Sure, the Yankees lineup is better, but I don't think anyone would say that the Yankees pitching is better than the Tigers or the Twins. Just food for thought.
The NHL regular season will be back soon, which unfortunatly few people notice. Hockey really is an exciting sport, but the league is mis-ran. For one, the games are on OLN, which 1 out of every 2000 people basically have. It's hard for anyone to watch your product, yeah that's smart. Also, isn't it supposed to be Canada's sport? Why are only 6 of the 30 teams in Canada? And why do some cities like Anaheim, San Jose, and Columbus have teams? The league has been horrible managed, and it's a shame, because it's an exciting sport. It is a total sham that poker gets more TV time on sports networks then a true sport. A total sham...
It is time for Excuse the Distraction! As PTI is off for the week, I always provide your dose of sports in my cheap ripoff. Let's start it off!
Week 3 starts this Sunday for the NFL season, and as always, there is some interesting games. The Jaguars are a team with a great defense, and are often forgotten and neglected by the fans and media. They have a chance to prove their worth against the powerhouse of the AFC South, the Colts. You've got the Bengals and the Steelers, high powered offense vs high powered defense in the division. You've got Bucs and Panthers, two teams that were supposed to be good, but have flopped to this point. You've got the Saints first game back in New Orleans against a hot Falcons team. Once again, it is looking to be another great week in the NFL. (Picks coming next)
The college football season is low on the ranked team matchups, only with one game between two #20's, and the Ohio State vs Penn State game. I think Ohio State, like any other highly ranked team early, is over-rated. Penn State I don't is like what they played in South Bend, but that game is at Ohio State, which makes it tougher. But at the end of this week, I think there will be a huge upset in college football. Maybe it will be Arizona over USC, maybe Kentucky over Florida, maybe Wisconsin over Michigan, or some other upset. I don't know which one, but there will be a big upset.
Well, a lot has been made about a possible "Subway Series" featuring the Yankees and Mets in the World Series. I'm not totally sold on it for different reasons. The Yankees do have a crazy good lineup, but is a little weak with the starting pitching. Plus they play incredibly tough competition with the Twins/TIgers. The Mets don't have as tough of opponants, but they also have starting pitching issues. Of course the big markets get the coverage, but in the postseason, it's all about getting hot at the right time. I'm not sure about any team being better in the NL than the Mets, but the Wild Card has advanced to the World Series the last two years. (Ironically both times the Astros). While football season owns, baseball season is just heating up.
Time for commercial...
Sponsored by the Bloggers edition of Around the Horn, tommorow, featuring Rivjo, Wiseguy7, NeoAC, and Burger21.
It's now time for my NFL Week 3 picks! I got 14 of 16 right last week....so this week I'm bound to get them all wrong...
Redskins (0-2) at Texans (0-2) Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
The Redskins may actually have a running game this week, as Clinton Portis is at full speed. The lack of running game has killed the Redskins to this point. I think the Redskins secondary shuts down the pass, and the Texans have no running game to speak of.
Redskins win 20-10
Jets (1-1) at Bills (1-1) Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, NY
The Bills defense has been tough the last few weeks, and are looking to regain the 2004 form when they were one of the best. They also have Takeo Spikes coming back. The Bills defense won't allow Pennington to throw for 300 yards, and the Jets running game is beyond terrible. Even with a weak offense, the Bills win this one.
Bills win 13-3
Packers (0-2) at Lions (0-2) Ford Field, Detroit, MI
The question is, which Lions D are we going to get? The defense which shut down the Seahawks, or the defense destroyed by Da Bears? The Packers D is bad, and I think Kevin Jones will run well. The Lions lack offense, but against the Packers, they should get good field position off of Brett's INTs.
Lions win 16-10
Jaguars (2-0) at Colts (2-0) RCA Dome, Indianapolis, IN
It's great defense versus great offense. The Colts running game is pretty bad, and the Jaguars killed Willie Parker last week. The Colts will not be able to run the ball, forcing a lot of passes. However, I'm not sold on the Jaguars offense doing much even against a very shaky Colts defense. I think this one will be incredibly close, but home field advantage will pay off in that loud dome for the Colts. (And it is LOUD, I've been there)
Colts win 20-17
Bears (2-0) at Vikings (2-0) Metrodome, Minneapolis, MN
The Bears D is crazy good again, and I don't think the Vikings offense will good enough to put up very many points. I don't think Grossman and the Bears offense will play great, but I think 17 points will be all the need.
Bears win 17-10
Titans (0-2) at Dolphins (0-2) Dolphin Stadium, Miami, FL
The Titans are the team we knew would stink, but the Dolphins we thought would be decent. So far, they've had no offense, but the Titans defense is pretty bad. I think Culpepper gets his act together, and the offense does something. Plus, they are at home.
Dolphins win 27-17
Bengals at Steelers Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, PA
Another battle putting high powered offense vs high powered defense. The Steelers offense is weak, but I don't buy great things from the Bengal D, after a lot of injuries last week. The Steelers D is still the Steelers D, even against a great offense with the Bengals. Once again, home field will be the ultimate factor for me in this game.
Steelers win 21-20
Panthers (0-2) at Buccaneers (0-2) Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
The battle of two teams everyone thought would be good. The Panthers will have Steve Smith back, and he boosts that offense incredibly. The Bucs D has proven soft the last two weeks, and the offense is pretty bad. The Panthers will shut down Simms like everyone else, and finally win.
Panthers win 24-10
Ravens (2-0) at Browns (0-2) M&T Bank Stadium, Balitmore, MD
The Browns offense is bad, and the Ravens defense is good. The defense will give them good field position enough to squeak out a win over a lackluster Browns team.
Ravens win 10-3
Giants (1-1) at Seahawks (2-0) Qwest Field, Seattle, WA
The Seahawks offense has to get going at some point. The Giants defense is weak, the Hawks should score a lot on them. The Giants offense is also solid, but they will be facing a serviceable defense, and a loud Seattle crowd.
Seahawks win 34-24.
Rams (1-1) at Cardinals (1-1) Cardinals Stadium, Glendale, AZ
I really don't know with the Rams, one week they destroy the Seahawks, the next week the 49ers beat them. The Cardinals offense should be good, and the Rams offense should good. This should be high scoring, and I will go with the home team.
Cardinals win 34-30
Eagles (0-2) at 49ers (1-1) Monster Park, San Francisco, CA.
The Eagles just melted down last week. Other than that, they have been passing very well and they face a weak 49ers secondary. However, Frank Gore is showing signs of being big time back. I'm tempted to pick the upset, but the Eagles D will be too tough.
Eagles win 27-20
Broncos (1-1) at Patriots (2-0) (SUNDAY NIGHTER) Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, MA
Both of this teams have yet to play like they are supposed to play. The Broncos have stopped the run, and I think they will stop Maroney, forcing Brady to pass against a solid secondary. The Broncos need to run the ball, a lot. Passing the ball has been their downfall, and if they run, I think they will get this upset.
Broncos win 16-10
Falcons (2-0) at Saints (2-0) (Monday Nighter) Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, LA
As much as I'd like to think that being back in New Orleans will carry them to victory, I have to go the other way. No one has stopped the Falcons running attack, and I don't see the Saints doing it. The Falcons defense has also played great, I think they will stop Bush, and end up pulling this upset. I do kinda hope I am wrong however.
Falcons win 24-14
That's it for the picks.....Commercial...
Sponsored by the NHL. "Hey, remember us?" Season starts October 6th....
On that note, let's go to the Big Finish!
Tigers only lead by hal####ame on the Twins as I write this, who wins the division? Tigers, overall a better team.
Ryder Cup started today, who ya got? Gotta root for my USA! Plus, they've angered Tiger Woods...
NASCAR at Dover, who ya got? Let's make this fun, I predict a win for Dale Jarrett
Finally, I start my playoffs on Madden tommorow, can I win it all? With the Colts I can, with my 49ers, well.....
WELL THAT'S ALL FOR THIS EDITION OF ETD, I'll try to do better next time. I'm MrNFL, and this re-airs by clicking the refresh button.
MAKE SURE TOMMOROW TO TUNE IN TO THE 2nd EDITION OF BLOGGERS AROUND THE HORN!
And remember, don't spam categories, and spay and neuter your pets...
Welcome everyone to the first edition of the Bloggers Around the Horn. I'm your host, MrNFL, and I be scoring the banter tonight. A note that my comments will be in bold, everyone elses will not be. With that, lets get to the contestants. First we've got Bmoynahan, who's text will be Red,
Bmoynahan: Hey MrNFL, I hope my
backup doesn't stab me in the leg to try to take my place on the
show. I hope not for your sake either. Next up we've got Bengals9, who's text will be Bengal Orange.
Bengals9: I'm just looking for a few good men.... to agree
with about meaningless ####. Well done, you get an extra point (+1) 3rd, we've got Chorizo245, who will get green.
Pig: I'm FlyingPig and I'm a 44 year old IT Manager and retired sailor. I
live just outside Detroit with my wife of 21 years and two
daughters...although one of them is away at Western Michigan
University. I am a sports addict but I have never worn a wig, painted
my face or bought a jersey with another mans name on the back. My
favorite athletes of all time are Steve Yzerman, Muhammad Ali, Tiger
Woods, Walter Payton and Joe Dumars. Love dogs, hate cats. (MUTE) I didn't ask for your life story FP, Ok, let's start it up!
THE FIRST WORD!
The National League is heating up, many teams in the wild card race, and the NL West is still up for grabs. Gentlemen, give me your National League Playoff teams. We'll start with Bengals.
Bengals: For the national league East i'm picking the Mets.
Shocker huh? The best team in the national league and will probably represent
the NL in the WS.
As for the West i'm picking the Padres. They're
Peaking at just the right time and the Dodgers are slumping just a little bit.
Jake Peavy is back to his dominate self and will carry them into the
playoffs (+2)
For the Centeral im going with the Cardinals. They
have been terrible as of late but thankfully for them so have the
reds. With pujols on a tear as of late they will limp into the
playoffs. (+1)
As for the Wild Card im picking the Phillies. Why?
Simple really with Ryan Howard and Chase Utley having monster seasons the
phillies have caught fire and as of right now are two back of the WC lead. Also
take a look at the schedule. All of the rest of their games are teams that are
under 500. (+3)
Lookin at the schedule I see, okay, Chorizo, your take?
Chorizo: Ok. Right off the bat, I'm going to say the Padres DON'T make it. No Division, No, WC, Nothing. Also, the NL West, for that matter, will not have the LA Dodgers win the Division OR The Wild Card. I will recieve some NASTY hate mail for that. (+1) Schedule-wise, The Absolute EASIEST Schedule remaining is for the Cincinatti Reds. Their only remaining games against winning teams is against the Florida Marlins. And it's only three games. Yup. Three games. I'll say it once more, Three games. Out of 16, that is. The Toughest goes to the Marlins. No more games against winning teams. That's kinda sucky. (+3)
So, right now, the Marlins, Padres, and Dodgers are out of the race.
Next, we'll take a look at the Phillies. They probably have the second easiest schedule, with their only remaining games against winning teams is 6 against the Marlins. Yup. Everyone LOVES the Marlins!! (+1)
Now, We'll look at the Astros. They've been in it for a better part of a month, if that. I don't see them getting a WC 3-Peat.
So, we'll eliminate the Phillies and the Astros. Surprised? You should be.
That leaves 2 teams.
The NL West winner.....THE GIANTS!!!!!! Yes, they're six RGAWT are against the Cardinals and the Dodgers. Ow. But, the other 10 are against the Rockies, 4 on the Brewers, (Sorry, no love there), and the D-Backs.
The NL WC winner........THE REDS!!!!!!! Yup. Easiest schedule. Makeable ground. I see the Playoffs in the future. (+1)
Going out on a limb, ok. Flying Pig, what say you?
FP: National League East is obviously the Mets who have already clinched. The Central is St. Louis at 5 games up right now. The West will be the Dodgers based on their pitching and bull pen. It was a huge move getting Maddox with his playoff experience and ability to rub off on the younger pitchers. The wild card will be the San Diego Padres. Once again because of pitching and experience. Mike Piazza has lost a little bat speed, but he is able to make the pitching staff better and is still a good defensive catcher. (+5)
Short and sweet, I like that, Bmoynahan you?
Bmoynahan:
You know, I remember
Bob Costas wrote a book a few years ago, called Fair Ball, in which he said that
the creation of the wild card would take the excitement and suspense out of
pennant races. That's true
sometimes, such as last season's tie in the American League East when the Red
Sox and Yankees finished with the same record and both made the playoffs, but no
so in this case. (+2)
First, the NL West
champion is going to be, for the second season in a row, the San Diego Padres, theylre hanging tough, lurking 1 &½ games behind the Dodgers after winning 8 of
their last 11, and their pitching is solid. Best setup man in the league in Cla
Meredith, best closer in Trevor Hoffman, and Jake Peavy has finally returned to
his role as staff ace over the past two months. The key might actually be not how they
fare in this weekend's four game set against the Dodgers, but how they do in
seven September games against the Diamondbacks, against whom they are 4-8 so far
this season. (+3)
Team number two? Could've been the Philadelphia Phillies
- who have been absolutely carried by Ryan Howard over the past month, but
they're only 7-5 in September, or the Florida Marlins, who might have the best
starting rotation in the game next season, but I'm going with the Dodgers. They'll lose out on the division to the
Padres, but a pitching staff that includes Brad Penny, Derek Lowe and future
Hall of Famer Greg Maddux will get them into the postseason. (+2)
Ok, good stuff, onward.
Some great games this upcoming week in the NFL season, among them the Monday Nighter between the Steelers and Jags, the Cowboys and Redskins, and the Panthers vs Vikings among others. My question, of all of the Week 2 games, which will be the most interesting? We'll start with Flying Pig.
FP: I would like to say that the Bears-Lions game will be the most
interesting bacause of Roy Williams imitation of Rasheed Wallace with
his guarentee. We now call him RoySHEED Williams. I think that the
most interesting matchup will be Pittsburgh and Jacksonville. The Jags
have flown under the radar for the last few seasons while sporting one
of the best defenses in the game. Byron Leftwich reminds me of Dante
Culpepper, only smarter. Leftwich is dangerous in the red zone because
of his speed and size. Fred Taylor is healthy and Ernest Wilford is
turning into a fine receiver. Pittsburgh brings their solid
"all-around" team and they are the defending champs. This is the most
intriguing game of the week. (+7)
Good stuff FP, next, Chorizo?
Chorizo:
The best NFL Game this weekend will be The Giants at The Eagles. First. The Giants never saw McNabb last year. The Eagles have the advantage there. Also, the Giants do NOT want to start out the season 0-2. That would be extremely unfortunate, seeing as how they are stuck with the beasts from the East. (+3)
On The Eagles side of the ball, McNabb had a great time last week, throwing for 314 yards and 3 TDs. However, the Eagles OL won't have such a great time with the pass rush. With Giants stars like Micheal Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, McNabb will get sacked more than once. (+3)
I'm sorry for this not being long, but I have my typing deadlines. Ok, so I don't, but Nike really wanted a photo shoot today. I couldn't. They got mad. (-1)
The winner is....The Giants...24-16.
I'll have to Mute you for the shilling to Nike again. No schilling to sponsors allowed. Bmoyhanan, you?
Bmonyhan:
I was tempted to go
with Chicago-Detroit after a
Detroit player guaranteed a win this week, but
it'll probably end up being a 21-3 yawner.
Then, of course, there's
Denver-Kansas
City, usually a pretty good rivalry, but
both teams suffered disappointing losses in Week 1 and the early season meeting
removes some of the luster. Talk to
me Week 12, when they play the late game on Thanksgiving
Day. (+3)
There is one game with
too many side stories to ignore: the New England Patriots heading into the
Meadowlands to take on the New York Jets.
Yeah, these teams play twice a year and Pats have taken eight of the last
ten, but that was before Bill Belichick disciple Eric Mangini left
New England to become Jets head coach. And before New England filed tampering
charges against New
York following the Deion Branch saga. And before New England was pushed to the
limit last week by a
Buffalo team that was widely regarded as
inferior. Playground rules here:
lots of issues and we're gonna settle 'em on the field. (+4)
Going out on a limb, interesting. Finally, Bengals?
Bengals: The most interesting game of the week will be the
Cowboys and Redskins. Both are coming off tough week one losses and will be
looking to make a statement against each other. And let's not forget that it's
probably the greatest rivalry in all of the NFL and the two teams absolutely
hate each other. (+4)
I'll give you 3 for a good answer, but a MUTE for writing almost nothing.
There's the first horn, Buy or Sell next. As of now, FP has 12, Bengals has 9, Chorizo has 11, and Bmoynahan has 14. Commercial time!
.....
Ok, welcome back, it's time for Buy, or Sell.
First up, The Minnesota Twins are hot in a race with the White Sox and Tigers for 2 playoff spots. Unfortunatly for them, young ace Liriano is now out for the year. Bloggers, Buy or Sell the Twins still making the playoffs. Bengals?
Bengals: I'm buying this. When Liriano went down on july
28th many said that would be the end of the Twins amazing run. But since
then they have gone 24-17. And while Liriano was a major part of the Twins
rotation Johan Santana has more than picked up the slack and is arguably the
frontrunner for the AL Cy young. (+4)
Good stuff, Bmoynahan?
Bmoynahan: I'm buying
this, MrNFL, for two reasons: the Twins still have a great lineup with Morneau,
Mauer, Cuddyer and Hunter mashing the ball, and they still have a guy named
Johan Santana taking the ball every fifth day. And if you want a third reason, they
were 20-14 after Liriano was hurt the first time, they didn't fall apart
without him then, they won't fall apart without him now, especially with the
Tigers still sliding. (+5)
Nice, FP?
FP: BUY - the Twins are on fire and they still have Santana who shuts down
everyone. They have Joe Nathan to close. Add in their formidable line
up from top to bottom. Mauer and Morneau are monsters in the 3-4 hole
and Torii Hunter is a perennial all star. Nick Punto is playing beyond
anyones expectatins at third and the supporting cast is solid. (+4)
Ah, a Joe Nathan mention, Chorizo?
Chorizo: The Twins with Liriano had a great shot at the playoffs. Without...not so much. No matter what Joe Mauer and Johan Santana and Justin Morneau can give to this team, they will falll short in the race they call the AL Wild Card. Sell. (+1)
Ok, next!
One of the biggest rivalries in College Football takes place Saturday, pitting #11 Michigan against #2 Notre Dame. Buy or Sell the Irish beating Michigan? FP?
FP: BUY - This is tough. I'm from Michigan and you ask two in a row that
affect my teams. Notre Dame is too strong on both sides of the ball
and they play tough in South Bend. Michigan will play them tough and
score some points, but Charlie Weiss motivates much better than Lloyd
Carr. Look for Brady Quinn to light up the Michigan secondary. (+4)
Going agianst your team, tough thing to do, Chorizo?
Chorizo: I really don't like the Fighting Irish much, but I they do have my respect. It's at home, and Brady Quinn is still Brady Quinn, so I give them a Thumbs up over #11 Michigan. (+2)
Ok, Bengals?
Bengals: I'm buying this as well. Norte Dame is overated in
the polls as usual, but for that matter so
is Michigan. Michigan Is a good team but nobody jumps out at
you when you look at them. Also let's not forget that Norte Dame
has beaten them twice in a row, and with their huge win against Penn State
they will be riding high when Michigan comes into
town. (+3) Ok, and Bmoynahan?
Bmoynahan: Sell, sell, sell. Notre Dame has proven the past two
Saturdays that they are a very good football team. But
Michigan is also 2-0, with a defense that is
allowing just 29 rushing yards per game.
If they can limit Notre Dame's ground game and prevent Heisman Trophy
candidate Brady Quinn from making an appearance, they'll have a good shot at
avenging last season's 17-10 loss. (+4)
Going against the favorites, gutsy. Onward...
The biggest game this Saturday may in fact not be ND and Michigan, as two SEC Giants, #6 LSU and #3 Auburn face off. Buy or Sell Auburn winning this game? Bmoynahan?
Bmoynahan: I'm buying, listening
to some of the Auburn players during the
build-up to this game, they're hungry, not only to beat a rival team but also to
show that they belong among the upper echelon of college programs. To them, two first place votes in the AP
poll and one in the coaches poll is not enough. And the road to adding to those totals
begins with LSU, a team that dealt them a tough, tough loss last season. It'll be a good one, but
Auburn's gonna take
it. (+3)
Ok, Chorizo?
Chorizo: Auburn is not as good as they were last year. LSU is still in the SEC. Auburn may be too, but I don't see them winning. And I actually answered this one without Nike telling me!!!! Yay me!
(MUTE) Ok....FP?
FP: BUY - Auburn at home against LSU. College game of the week. Number 3
going against #6. I would take the home team in this game and not bet
money. This game will be decided in the fourth quarter. Both teams are
strong and focused. Add in the revenge factor for Auburn who lost at
LSU last year where Auburn lost by a field goal. The last two meetings
have been decided by four points and both teams are feeling the
National Championship ramifications. Look for Auburn to win by 4. THis
is the biggest game of the weekend. (+5)
And Bengals?
Bengals: I'm selling this. This is a classic
match between two SEC heavyweights, and will argueably be better
than the OSU Texas game a week before. Both teams are pretty
evenly matched on offense and defense so you look for a difference maker on
either squad. Kenny Irons one of the best RB in the country but i
think LSU's defense can contain him. So it'll all come down to Jamarcus
Russell and he has always responded well under pressure (see 2005 capital one
bowl) (+4)
Ok, there's the horn, first cut time. Flying Pig has 25, Bengals has 20, Bmoynahan has 23, and Chorizo has 14...Sorry Chorizo, you're the low man, see ya later. Out of Bounds up next...
....
Welcome Back, two down here's how they stand. The Flying Porker leads with 25, Bmoynahan has 23, Bengals is Bringing Up the Rear with 20, and Chorizo had a meeting with the folks at Nike, He Gone!
OUT OF BOUNDS.
We've already mentioned two of the big college football games this week, however there are 5 other matchups also featuring 2 ranked teams. Which game is the biggest and why? Bengals, you start.
Bengals:
The biggest game of the week will be LSU and
Auburn. The SEC is the best conference in the
country and whenever two
of the teams meet it is always a tightly contested game. Auburn has not
forgotten the 2005 heartbreaker that they lost and will be looking for revenge.
There is also the fact that Auburn and LSU are both in the top ten so that gives
the game a little extra meaning. Kenny irons will be looking for a huge
game to make him one of the frontrunners for the heisman. I see LSU winning
a tight one (+4)
Ok, Flying Pig,
Well FP didn't write this seperately, he did answer it in buy or sell with this.
Auburn at home against LSU. College game of the week. Number 3 going
against #6. I would take the home team in this game and not bet money.
This game will be decided in the fourth quarter. Both teams are strong
and focused. Add in the revenge factor for Auburn who lost at LSU last
year where Auburn lost by a field goal. The last two meetings have been
decided by four points and both teams are feeling the National
Championship ramifications. Look for Auburn to win by 4. THis is the
biggest game of the weekend.
At least Bengals re-wrote it, you get a MUTE, Bmoynahan?
Bmoynahan:
We've mentioned a couple of potentially great games so far, but
the biggest game of the weekend might just be #19
Nebraska at #4 USC. Both of these teams are unbelievably
dangerous on the offensive side of the ball,
Nebraska is third in yards per game, USC
eleventh, and neither defense is in the top twenty nationally, which means we
could see a good old-fashioned shootout. (+2)
The Huskers use a
nice, balanced offense, three backs with over 100 rushing yards through two
games for a total of 256 per. The
heart of the offense, however, is Zac Taylor, the senior quarterback who is
currently completing 73 percent of his passes and has thrown seven touchdowns
with one interception so far this season.
His 184.2 passer rating is fourth highest for any 1-A quarterback with
more than fifty passing attempts this season. (+2)
They've only played
one game, but the Trojans also spread the ball around, gaining 192 yards on the
ground and proving that they don't miss Reggie Bush and LenDale White as much as
we all thought they might. Like
Nebraska , the key could be their quarterback:
John David Booty, a junior who completed 68 percent of his passes and looked
very good in the opener against
Arkansas . (+3)
This game is huge for
both teams:
Nebraska gets the opportunity to prove that
they have returned to national prominence, while USC needs to show that they can
beat a quality program after losing Bush, White and Matt
Leinart. (+2)
Great job going out on a limb.
Well that's the horn, and it looks like Flying Pig is the low man. Whether he meant to or not, not answering the question seperately ends his day. Showdown up next, Bengals9 vs Bmoynahan. Two enter, and one wins some unimportant bragging rights.
...
It's showdown time now, Bengals and Bmoynahan. Let's go.
The NFL ruled that Robert Geathers hit on Trent Green was not illegal. Do you agree?
Bengals: I agree. Geathers was pushed into Green by a kc
lineman. also we have to remember that the games are not played in slo mo
they're played at real speed and its hard to control what you're doing when
you're going at full speed.
Bmoynahan: I disagree, though
Geathers was simply making a football play, he hit Green after the quarterback
was off his feet, which the rule book says you cannot do. I'll also say this: to Geathers credit,
he was clearly not trying to cause harm to Green: the replay shows that he
turned his head and caught Green
with the shoulder pads, which snapped Green's head into the turf. Still, ill intent is not required for it
to be an illegal play.
I don't think it was illegal, point goes to Bengals. Onward.
The NASCAR Chase for the Cup starts this weekend, who ya got to win it all?
Bmoynahan: I'm going with the guy
who fought his way into this thing, Kasey Kahne. He tied for the second in
poles won, his five race wins were the most of anybody this racing season and he
finished tied for fifth with nine top five finishes. Throw in the fact that he had to battle
just to get into the Chase and he's my favorite.
Bengals: I'm going to go out on a limb and say whoever has
the most points at the end of the season.As for who i think that will be it's
Dale Jr. Every since he's been in the league he's been looking to live
up to his father and i think this is the year he does it.
Bmoynahan brought the stats, he gets the point. And finally...
You've probably heard that the New York Islanders signed goalie Rick DiPietro to a 15 year deal. My question, How many of those years does he actually play?
Bengals: I'll say around 6 or 7 of those years. If he
becomes a bust after the mamoth contract there going to wait a little while
before trading or realeasing him because that is a huge contract and be hard to
get rid of. And if he becomes a success he's not going to want to stay with the
ISLANDERS!
Bmoynahan: Considering DiPietro
won't turn 25 years old until next Tuesday, his chances of playing out the life
of the contract don't look too bad.
But if he does play all fifteen seasons, the end will almost certainly
come with a team other than the Islanders.
Don't believe me? I'll just
say this: Magic Johnson, Wayne Gretzky, Alex Rodriguez.
Tough call, but I'll going to give the win to Bmoynahan. Face Time, give your victory speech...
Bmoynahan: The
University of
New Hampshire walked onto the Northwestern
campus last weekend and left with a convincing 34-17 win and the number one
ranking in Division 1-AA. But the
most important thing to come from this game was the continued solid performance
of UNH wide receiver David Ball.
Who's David Ball? Just a kid
from Vermont
who caught his 46th and 47th career touchdown passes on
Saturday to move within three of tying Jerry Rice's all-time Division 1-AA
record of fifty. Unrecruited out of high school to college great in three
short years? Amazing.
Good stuff, Bengals anything you want to add?
Bengals: I know we all probaly chuckled when we heard about
the Backup Punter situation at Nothern colorado but it carries a message with
it. We all tend to take sports a little to seriously some times and it's things
like this that remind us that its only a game and things like this should never
happen.
Well said. Well that's all for the Bloggers Around the Horn. It re-airs by clicking the Refresh button. I'm MrNFL, and I'm off to play Madden...
Well it's been a while since PTI was bumped. Altough over the last few weeks we've had to suffer through the occasional Le Batard, Whitlock, and/or Ryan, PTI was still there. Well today, it's bumped by golf. And whenver PTI isn't on, I choose to give you, the sports fan, your dose of sports with my cheap rip-off...
Ok, I had the cheap logo up, but now Fox is being stupid, and I can't get anything to work with font's and such, so no cheap logo.
LET'S BEGIN!
OPENING RANTS
Kevan Barlow already proved that he is a lackluster running back by strug-a-ling to get 4 a carry in San Francisco. Now apprently, this guy is also an ####, as he in an interview compared 49er coach Mike Nolan to who? ####, Adolf freakin ####. Umm Barlow, when Nolan starts senselessly murdering people on your team, then say something, but a hard-#### coach is nothing compared to a real dictator. And now he's playing for Eric Mangini, who also is a very tough no nonsense coach. Have fun Kevan...
So the Dodgers got 3 people ejected Wednesday. Brad Penny thought it was a strike, when the ump called a ball. Also the manager got tossed, as well as outifelder Lugo, who was mad he got called out, and threw his helmet. Hey guys, your team has a legit shot at the World Series, why are you acting like idiots? Yelling at umpires doesn't make them change their mind. These guys do not realize how tough calling balls and strikes is, and yelling at the ump doesn't make him change his mind. If you don't like the call, calmly ask the ump why it went the other way, then regardless of the response, go back out, and finish your game. Quit acting like schmucks.
This week in the world of NASCAR, they race at the short track Bristol. It's always a good race, fulled with tons of lead changes, and LOT's of caution flags. My beef is, Why isn't Bristol in the Chase schedule? As many of you know, I think the "Chase" is incredibly stupid, but that's for another day. I look at the schedule for those last 10 races, and I laugh. New Hampshire? Dover? Kansas? Come on, these tracks aren't worthy of these races and neither is Texas. Now looking at the others, I agree with Talladege and Martinsville, but I still think for this thing to be legit, Daytona and Darlington deserve to be in there, along with Bristol. Phoenix, Charlotte and Homestead, meh. I also think a road course should be in there, those races truely take talent to win and not just money. If this is the schedule they want to use, then the NFL will destroy them in the ratings, and that's why this "Chase" was made. But NASCAR wants to get away from the unique tracks, and get to the in-original boring tracks like Kansas, California and Texas.
We are a week away from college football, and I am pumped. I've never been one to watch much of the college game, but this year, I will watch, and I will enjoy. But one thing I find interesting is former Arizona State quarterback Sam Keller sitting out an year and transferring to Nebraska because he lost the starting job. I don't know a lot about the college game, but this seems a lot like the college version of demanding a trade. But hey, I'm probably wrong.
Now, let's do some Oddsmakers!
ODDS that everyone is making too much out of the Terrell Owens injury. 100% Come on people, the guys injured! He's not trying to frustrate Parcells and they aren't going to have a fight anytime soon. Altough ESPN likes talking about it 24/7. That's one of my two problems with ESPN, the other is poker, but that's for a different day.
ODDS that the Phillies get the wild card 17% I chose them because they won't win the division, while all of the other wild card contenders can. They have decent batting but not so much from a pitching staff. They also have to worry about the Reds, Padres, Cardinals, Dodgers, but 2 of them get bounced out because they win the division.
ODDS the Red Sox still win the wild card. 8% They are only 4 games back, but they looked terrible against the Yankees, and not only would they have to do well, but the White Sox and Twins would have to struggle.
ODDS that Pat Riley retires after this next year. 45% He is pretty old, and if the Heat win again, he may feel that he has accomplihsed all he can. However if they don't win, he still may hunger for the title.
ODDS that Sidney Crosby wins the NHL MVP award this upcoming season. 33% His team was bad last year, but he played great. But he does have to worry about Ovechkin, and any other player who decides to have a great year.
THAT'S IT FOR ODDSMAKERS!
Finally
OVER/UNDER
Over/Under Julio Franco playing to age 50. OVER. This guy is now 48, and he is still serivceable. As long as someone gives him a job, he'll still play.
Over/Under 1 more field goal kicked in the regular season by Martin Gramatica. Well he got tossed from the Pats, however people always need kickers. Even crappy ones like him may get a game or two if a starter gets injured. OVER.
Over/Under 5th place finish this year for Jeff Gordon. I say UNDER, meaning less than 5th, like 6th-10th. The way this chase is, if he has one bad race, he's screwed, and I just don't like his odds.
Over/Under 30 games started for Dominik Hasek. Hasek is still good, but he is old, and had injury problems last year with the Senators. UNDER.
Over/Under -10 for Tiger Woods in the Bridgestone Invationial. Well Tiger is really good, and will probably do better than that in the end, I say OVER.
OK lets do the Big Finish! Deion Branch thinks contract negotiations will work out, do you agree? Yes, he won't hold out too long.
Bloggers taking shots at other bloggers, will it last? I hope not, it's pointless.
Mike Mussina on the DL, big deal? As long as he's back for the playoffs they will be fine.
Last one, Cardinals vs Mets tonight, who ya got? Dave Williams is a weak starter, Cards in upset.
Well that's all the time I got, I'll try better next time. I'm MrNFL and you can catch this again by clicking on the refresh button at the top of your browser.
