Tiger Woods: The Glaring Hole in his Resume

It's tough to criticize Tiger Wood's career. I mean he just might be the greatest golfer that ever lived. And if you don't agree with that statement (Ben Hogan, Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus lovers) then you at least have to admit that it's up for discussion. His record in major tournaments speaks for itself. He's won 12 of them and he's only 31 years old. If he played more tournaments a year (he takes quite a few off) his career tournament wins would be even sicker than it is currently. He's the greatest closer out there. If he's up in a tourney heading into Sunday you can forget about it. It's in the bag. Having said all this, if we wanted to nitpick (which I plan to do) there is one obvious area where Tiger Woods has failed. One place that he has yet to go. One striking statistic on his record that gives the naysayers a little ammunition when discussing the greatest golfer ever.

It's this: --Tiger Woods has never come from behind to win a major tournament. When he is behind going into the final day he has never won the Masters, U.S. Open, the British Open, or the PGA Championship. Look it up. He has always had the lead or a share of the lead.

Doesn't sound so bad does it? Well actually yes it does. When we measure greatness we tend to include that tiny matter of a champion being down and getting back up. Michael Jordan did it. Muhammad Ali did it. Joe Montana did it. It's the classic archetype. We love the story of the a champion who is down but not out. Unfortunately for us, as yesterday's Masters Tournament showed, Tiger Woods has yet to write that ending.

Still, his career is not finished. He has a few more entries to be made. I personally hope he fixes the rather gaping hole in his resume before he's done.

What if Pokey Chatman were a guy?

This LSU women's basketball coach scandal is very interesting. Interesting to me because I think about the idea of "what if it happened in the men's hoop game"? It would be story that is 100 times bigger. For those that aren't aware the former LSU's women's basketball coach, Pokey Chatman resigned under suspicious circumstances, and published reports are that those circumstances dealt with the fact that she was having sexual relations with a former player (while the player was on the team). Now LSU is in the women's Final Four. Think about if this was Florida's Billy Donovan that was accused of the same impropriety. We would be talking about nothing else! As it is, we hear about the LSU story but it's not really front page material. My guess is that has to do with the fact that people accept and even expect a certain amount of "gayness" in women's sports. Because of that we are glossing over the huge fact that Pokey Chatman was getting it on with one of her OWN players! Regardless of your feelings about homosexuality, coach/player intimate relations is a huge taboo and is an absolute outrage. She shouldn't have been able to resign with money still coming her way. She should have the book thrown at her. I don't care if she ever ends up partners or married to this player (who is an adult), it's still something that shouldn't occur in a team setting. If Billy Donovan did this he could never show his face again. Ever! Reports are out there that Pokey Chatman is basically in hiding over this. Sure she's facing some embarrassment and other negative press over this. In my mind she should be facing much worse.

Hoyas and Joe Theismann

-I was ecstatic about the Georgetown/North Carolina game. I've been a Hoya fan as far back as the Pat Ewing days and I absolutely loathe the North Carolina Tar Heels. People ask me how I can possibly like the Duke Blue Devils. I always respond the same way. "Because I hate NC". It's kinda of an either or with those teams. Anyway, I loved the game. I thought Hibbert and Jeff Green were the difference makers. I'm looking forward to the Ohio St. game.

- On a football note, I'm reading the rumors today that Joe Theismann is out at Monday Night Football. What? You mean the t.v. execs actually listened to fans and realized what almost all of us already knew (that Joe T sucked donkeys as a broadcaster). This piece of news makes my day.

Cinderella doesn't have to be a 15 seed

I keep hearing about how there are no Cinderella teams left this year in the NCAA tournament. I mean UNLV is the highest seed left and they are a #7. Still even though some mid-majors got respect in the tournament seeding (about time), that doesn't mean if they make it to the final four it won't be a "Cinderella"type story. Butler and Southern Illinois are great teams but a lot of us are still figuring out who they are. UNLV has name recognition but let's face it they haven't been in the national picture since the early 90's. And Vanderbilt, USC, Oregon, & Texas A&M may be from power conferences but they haven't been historically powerful basketball teams in those conferences by any stretch of the imagination. So in reality we have a whole lot of teams that have the opportunity to wear the glass slipper this coming weekend. I like that.

NCAA Tourney Thoughts: First Weekend

March Madness Thoughts:

1. I really whiffed on a few picks but I did get it right on 12 teams for the sweet 16. I had George Washington and Albany as sleeper Sweet 16 picks and both got crushed in the first round (Albany? I know...I know. I was on cold medication that day.... I was impaired) . I also should have seen a Duke exit in the first round. All the signs were there.

2. While the committee seems to have done a decent job on seeding they screwed up on seeding Duke at 6 and letting Stanford in at all, much less an 11 seed.

3. Xavier absolutely should have beaten Ohio St. but I'm still amazed that Gred Oden doesn't get called for a flagrant foul at the end of that game. It was right in front of the official. If it wasn't the final seconds of a game (officials get conservative at that time) it would probably have been a different story. Still, if Xavier makes a free throw we're not even talking about this.

March Madness: Armchair Bracketing

So my Alma mater, Utah State had a decent season this year (23-12) but again not good enough to make the Dance without a conference tourney championship. Oh well. I'll be rooting for two other home-state teams to do well (BYU, & Weber St) but honestly I'm not even picking them to make it out of the first round. My bracket looks like this:

Into the final 32:
Florida, Arizona, Butler, Maryland, Winthrop, Oregon, UNLV, Wisconsin, Kansas, Kentucky, Illinois, S. Illinois, Duke, Pitt, Indiana, UCLA, N. Carolina, Marquette, USC, Texas, George Washington, Washington St., B.C., Georgetown, Ohio St., Xavier, Tenn, Albany, Louisville, Texas A&M, Creighton, Memphis

Into the Sweet 16:
Florida, Butler, Oregon, Wisconsin, Kansas, S.Illinois, Pitt, Indiana, UCLA, N. Carolina, Texas, George Washington, Georgetown, Ohio St. , Albany, Texas A&M, Memphis

Elite Eight:
Florida, Oregon, Kansas, UCLA, N. Carolina, George Washington, Ohio St., Texas A&M,

Final Four:
Oregon, Kansas, N. Carolina, Texas A&M

Championship:
Kansas, N. Carolina

Champion: Kansas

NFL Free-Agent Thoughts.

The NFL offseason never fails to surprise me. There are always a few eyebrow raising guys that become cap casualties Joey Porter, Joe Horn, etc. Basically what teams are telling these guys is "you're good and we'd love to keep you but you cost too damn much". Essentially they are also telling them they can be replaced otherwise they'd cut somebody else or pay up. You can see why these guys will feel dissed. Nobody is cutting Payton Manning, Ladainian Tomlinson, Merriman, or Champ Bailey. At least not yet. So the only way you can make huge contracts in the NFL and stick around with the team who gave you that contract is to become irreplaceable. Any wonder why guys tend to be loyal to the dollar signs instead of teams these days? They learn from the best. NFL teams. It is what it is.

• My worst free agent nightmare came true with stud linebacker Adalius Thomas signing with the Patriots this week. What are the Patriots doing? I thought we had an understanding. They would continue to ignore needed areas on their team and sputter in the playoffs and I would continue to heave sighs of relief at the end of their seasons. It's worked two years running and now all of the sudden they wise up? Damn it.
  





• I've got mixed emotions on my Rams this offseason. Some of you may have read the several biased comments I've previously made towards free-agent wideout Kevin Curtis. I watched him when he was at my Alma maters, Snow College (J.C) & Utah State. He was the local guy who made good. My brother works with his brother so I would get updates and inside stories. I wanted him to do well in the worst way. When he landed with the Rams and had some breakout games in the past couple of years I had high hopes. But the Rams had two great receivers already in Torry Holt and Isacc Bruce. Curtis was always going to be the third guy. Here's what I don't understand: Bruce clearly hasn't lost it yet but he is aging and Curtis is younger. He's extremely fast and has good hands. He's short 5"11 but athletic and can go up and get balls. His brother indicated at the end of the season he had already packed up his house and moved away from St. Louis knowing that the Rams really had no interest in hanging onto him. What! I cannot figure this out. Now the Rams have signed Drew Bennett to play the slot receiver position Curtis had and I just don't get it. Curtis already had a good relationship with Marc Bulger and knew the offense. I know that Bennett is much taller and is a good receiver as well but still I can't help feeling that the Rams are letting a budding star slip through their fingers. Admittedly I am extremely prejudiced in favor of Curtis so I'm probably not thinking rationally about this. Bennett will probably work out just fine. But is he going to be ok with being a 3rd option?400 or 500 yards for the season if he's lucky? I wouldn't be. Curtis wasn't. Thing is now he may end up in Detroit with Mike Martz which isn't much of an improvement in his situation. They have Roy Williams and Mike Furrey (who had a breakout season and just signed a new contract with them) so Curtis could end up being the third wheel again. Depressing.

Paging Mr. Jones. You forgot to turn your brain on.

Some not-so shocking stuff from the newswire about the Tennessee Titan's All-Dumb Cornerback Pac-Man Jones. Apparently Jones during All-Star Weekend in Vegas got in trouble again at a nightclub (whenever he gets in trouble you can count on the words club and strippers being part of the story). He used over $80,000 in cash to shower strippers in what he called a "visual effect". Then the guy who's in charge of the strippers starts bagging all the cash and next thing you know a melee breaks out that ends in a shooting. I guess Pac-Man had no intention of tipping that well. He just wanted people to enjoy the sight of lots of cash. In other words he's staying true to what we have come to expect from "Mr. off-season nightmare". Ahh...you can't make up stuff like this.

Bolt Babies

It's amazing how adults can be so childlike at times. And I'm not talking about the innocence of childhood. The Schottenheimer firing in San Diego is another case of grown men acting like 10 year olds. Schottenheimer is fired because of dysfunctionality in his relationship with the General Manager A.J. Smith? What a couple of babies. Don't get me wrong, I'm not sure firing Mr. "Marty Ball" isn't such a bad thing. I mean the man has trouble winning in the post-season. It's a statistical fact. But come on, that ought to be the reason he is fired if any and not because he and the G.M. are immature dipsticks. It's pathetic. Oh well. I really need to get a grip if I'm thinking that maturity is going to become part of professional sports anytime soon.
So are the Chargers screwed next season with all the coaching changes that are coming? Who knows. This is a team that was capable of winning the Super Bowl the past two seasons. Instead they've failed to make the playoffs in 05 and been one and done this past season. Again, perhaps Marty Schottenheimer is a big part of that and a more game savy coach can take them to the next level. We'll see. At anyrate they still have A.J. Smith. And yeah he may be a good judge of talent. But he sure is an ass.

NFL Thoughts: Post-Super Bowl stuff

-Ever read ESPN.com's Tuesday Morning Quarterback? I've just started reading his stuff the past couple of months and although he can get a bit long winded he also can hit the proverbial nail on the head at times. His criticism of the monopoly that Direct TV has on NFL game viewership is right on. Why should I have to pay $200 every year just so I can watch the Ram's games. The NFL is huge but TMQ is right that it would be even bigger if most fans could actually watch the games they wanted on Sunday.

- The past couple of years have been odd in that the Colts and Steelers were two teams that I would have bet money against winning the Super Bowl 3 quarters of the way through the season. The 2005 Steelers looked like they weren't even going to make the playoffs and the 2006 Colts defense was the laughing-stock of the league. Then both teams go on playoff binges and come out Super Bowl champs. Go figure. That tells me that this has become a league where there are no absolutes.

- One note on the Pats/Colts AFC championship game. I have a friend who's a semi-Patriot fan (and yes we're still friends. Come on I'm not that superficial....yet). Anyway, he was whining about the roughing the passer penalty that helped put the Colts closer to the goal line for their winning score. It was barely shown on replay but clearly shows the Patriot defensive player grazing the head of Manning with his hand/arm. Should it have been a penalty considering he barely touched him. I don't think so. Could you call it a penalty based soley on the interpretation of the rule. Absolutely. It's one of those calls that shouldn't be made based on common sense. However the ironic thing about the crying coming from New England fans concerning this is that they are contradicting themselves and showing themselves to be hypocrites. When the Patriots benefited from the "tuck rule" in the 2002 playoff game against the Raiders (you remember the game where Brady essentially fumbles the ball, the Raiders recover, the game is over---but wait the strict interpretation of the rule says Brady was attempting to tuck it and his hand was moving forward, so Ta-Da--Patriots hang onto the ball and ultimately win the game--yeah that game) many New England fans tried to quell the outrage over what common sense said should have been a fumble by saying, "that's the rule--rules are rules". They jumped on the technicality of that rule so fast it made your head spin. So the next time a Patriot fan tries to whine about the roughing the passer penalty against the Colts, just tell them "rules are rules".

NFL Thoughts: The Super Bowl

I'm not sure what was more disappointing, the Super Bowl commercials or the rain that messed up what could have been a good game. Not that I'm complaining about the results. I mean I wanted the Colts to win and they obliged. In fact they put a beat down on what was supposed to be a physically dominating Bears team. It's just that the rain caused it too be much more sloppy than it would have been otherwise and helped mute the Colt offense. The Bears played pretty decent against the pass but they were beat up on the ground pretty good. I just think the Bears miss Brown and Harris like the Colts missed Bob Sanders. And Sanders is one bad dude. The effect of Sanders is probably overstated and a bit of an exaggeration but its weird how the Colts turned into the best smash-mouth team of the post-season after he returned. I'm thinking the entire defense strapped Bob Sanders down, extracted some of his blood and then drank it down with a cookie. Hopefully one of those girl scout cookies that have coconut in them. I love those. Other thoughts:

-I hate squib kicks--they usually give the other team great field position and almost always backfire. But in this game I have to admit the Colts were smart to not kick it back to Devin Hester after he burned them for an opening kick TD. He's scary.

-Manning played pretty well considering the situation. After his first quarter interception he didn't try to do too much. With his defense playing well and knowing that the Bears were doing nothing on offense, he didn't get greedy or crazy. He let Addai, Rhodes and his offensive line kick the Bears defense around. And they did. I liked the idea of the two running backs getting the MVP. A case could be made for the offensive line as well. Manning got the MVP trophy but it was a great team effort that dominated the Bears defense.

-Rex Grossman was in effect a first year starter so it's hard to judge him too harshly this season. Still, the Bears have the team in place for multiple Super Bowl runs right now so their fans and his teammates are not going to have much more patience for some of his poor decisions. He had a great start to the season and then somewhere around mid-season he fell apart. Next year he needs to improve significantly or even the loyal (to a fault) Lovie Smith will be forced to yank him.

-I'm depressed already about the end of the season. And don't tell me the Pro-Bowl is still coming up because that only causes me to use four letter words and eat my fingers off.

-I kept picking the Colts to lose in the post-season and the wins kept coming. I think I've disocovered my strategy for St. Louis next season.--Go Rams 2007!

So I think I'll watch the Super Bowl

There's a little game this weekend I might just have to check out. For the first time since the 2000 season I finally have a team to root for. Not that I haven't had an interest in the big game since then but it's only been an interest in rooting against certain teams. Like the New England Patriots. It's just not as fun rooting agaiinst teams as it is rooting for teams. I've been pulling for the Colts in the AFC for several years now so this is a Super Bowl I can get into. Although it is slightly annoying how everyone I know seems to be rooting for the Colts even though they have no idea who the hell Ben Utecht, Cato June, or Rob Morris is. But that's the Super Bowl. It's a day where many Americans reserve the right to enjoy a football game without knowing what 4th down means or the difference between a punt and a field goal. So whatever.

Who wins this game then? I would love to say the Colts. But Isn't it crazy how almost all the "experts" on the networks and websites, newspapers, etc. are all picking the Colts? I mean this is the Super Bowl for hell's sake. Underdogs often come out on top. Besides which, wasn't it the Bears who 5 weeks into the season seemed like the Super Bowl favorite? Sure Rex Grossman had his struggles (as I've pointed out many times) but the Bears won 13 games and have the type of opportunistic defense which can bail out many mistakes. Plus Grossman can suck for 3 quarters but if he manages to connect on a couple of big plays, the Bears are in business. I just see a lot of advantages for Chicago. Special teams seem big. The Colts have given up a lot of big returns this year so I'm particularly worried about Devin Hester running wild on them. It just seems really weird that the Colts are this favored when prior to the playoffs nobody (including me) gave them a chance to even be here. Now they are a Touchdown favorite?! Did I mention I'm worried.
So even though a Colt victory would be nice for me, my gut says the Bears will make enough big plays to win it.

NFL Thoughts: Championship Weekend

Bears 39 / Saints 14
Well I predicted a Bears win but I didn't see a blowout coming. Sort of sad to see for me. I was rooting for the Saints (like a whole lot of other people outside of Chicago) but I wasn't into the whole "team of destiny" crap. That's not a dig at the City of New Orlean's. It just means I think God has more important things to worry about. Still I would liked to have seen a closer game. Unfortunately, the Bear's defense just wasn't going to allow that. Damn them. They were aggressive and did what they do best: take the ball away. Turnovers killed Brees and his team. On the flip side, Grossman did what he needed to, namely hanging onto the ball. True, he pretty much sucked for almost 3 quarters. But then he got hot late in the 3rd quarter and made a few more key throws in the 4th quarter. When your defense was playing as well as Chicago's' was yesterday, that's all you need. So what if the Berrian TD was lucky and should have been intercepted by a better corner. Believe me after watching the Patriots for the last 5 years (and the Colts this year), you tend to understand how important luck is in the post-season. One other thing, what the hell was Reggie Bush doing taunting one of the best defensive players alive? I mean Urlacher is going to be prowling the middle for years to come and certainly Bush will quite literally be running into him again. What a dumb-ass high school type celebration. If I was Sean Payton I would be in his grill helping him understand how he just gave even more motivation to a dangerous defense.



Colts 38 / Patriots 34
First of all I didn't even watch this game until I knew who won. Why you ask? Well even though I'm a Ram fan, the Colts are the team I've been pulling for in the AFC for the past few years. I'm also about the biggest Patriots hater out there. Ever since they beat the Rams in a Super Bowl they had no business being in, let alone winning---and considering the Colts previous habit of coming up small in big playoff games (a couple against the Pats) I just couldn't stomach another 4 hours of agonizing twists, especially if it ended badly. So yeah I wussed out and watched my tivo version after I knew the score. Although the joy would have been much more intense watching it live, I found a certain satisfaction knowing that with a minute left Brady wasn't going to perform a miracle. And yet, a part of me (the non-rational part) thought, "dammit, they gave him too much time--he's going to win this thing". I found it really weird though that late in the game, both teams ran the ball on a third and long play. Really weird. Also strange was the luck factor. When the Patriots got an insanely lucky break with a goal line fumble and recover for a TD everyone had to be thinking, "well here they go again". But then the Colt's get the exact same break later in the game. The Pats also had a couple of other missed interceptions and near fumbles. What's going on? These bounces usually go their way. And maybe had the game been in New England they would have. Home field doesn't always mean victory but in the case of both games yesterday I would say it had a huge impact.

NFL Thoughts: Divisional Playoff Games

Colts 15 / Ravens 6
How does Brian Billick keep his job? I mean Raven fans (and the Ravens defense) have to be fed up with the continuing offensive crapola that this team displays year in and year out. McNair was supposed to change all that but it's pretty obvious after the season he had that Tennessee let him go for a reason. Even though many in the media made a lot noise all year long about the difference McNair's confidence and presence made to the team (based on a couple of early season 4th quarter comebacks), the fact is McNair kinda sucked all year long. The Ravens were a top seed in the playoffs for the same reason they have been competitive for years---their defense. They are freaking awesome. I watch them before the snap, moving around, --after the snap---flying to the ball---and I wonder why the hell other teams don't play the same way. But the point is, on the offensive side of the ball it's "same ol same ole". The 2001 Super Bowl was a great win for the Ravens but in a way it really screwed them for the next few years. Billick and the organization have fooled themselves into thinking that kind of magic can strike again. Well it won't. They need an offense.
Actually the Colts weren't much better on offense either (except for Adam Vinatieri and Dominic Rhodes) . Manning dodged a few bullets. He had at least two interceptions dropped and he looked flustered again. I realize they played the best defense in the league but to beat the Patriots next week he will have to play better than he has so far in the playoffs. The Colts defense has played significantly better but to be honest I really think they lucked out in who they have played so far. They got two offenses that are about as uninspiring and unimaginative as it gets. Next week we really see what they are made of. And I'm nervous as hell about it.


Patriots 24 / Chargers 21
I don't even want to think about this game. I hate-hate-hate-hate-hate-hate the Patriots. I realize they are great in the clutch but why do all the breaks seem to bounce their way? Why do they always get coaches that make dumb moves against them? I can't write about this. I'm going to go throw up.


Saints 27 / Eagles 24
Andy Reid is a great coach. But I was with everyone else saying "what the hell?" when he brought his punt team out with less than 2 minutes. I know it's 4 and 15 but you just went for it on 4th and 10. And made it (although a penalty brought it back). I can see his logic that if he gets a stop then all the Eagles need is a field goal to go to overtime whereas if they had not made the 4th down play and then made a stop they probably would have needed a TD to win it (assuming the Saints make a field goal). Still, I think he should have gone for it. I thought Garcia played well again. I'm still wondering if he made a pact with the devil. This is a different man the the guy who suited up for Cleveland and Detroit. The Saints were just a little better is all. Drew Brees has moved himself into elite QB status. Although there are many reasons why this team is a playoff team this year (coach, tons of new players), Brees is the main one in my eyes. Although Rivers was good for the Chargers this year I wonder how that Patriot game would have gone down with Brees in control? Rivers didn't lose the game for them by any means but still, it's a thought. McAllister was fantastic and it will be interesting to see if he can make the same kind of yardage against the Bears D. I won't mind if the Bears win next week's game but I would much rather see the Saints playing for it all. Just keep the camera shots of Saints Owner (and umbrella waver) Tom Benson to a minimum. He bugs me.



Bears 27 / Seahawks 24
Fellow bloggers the Zoner and Greg from Sportsblah.com are understandably happy about the Bears success this year. And they should be. Had it not been for some offensive hiccups by Rex Grossman, Chicago would have been everybody's flavor of the month all year long (the media were waiting with salivating mouths to heap praise on them--and did until Rex started his run of bad games). Grossman's mistakes and the fact that the Chicago defense was decimated with injuries during the season took a little wind out of the sails for those non-loyalists who were just riding the bandwagon. But still, this team won 13 freaking games! When they are on top of their game they can beat anybody---badly. They weren't their best against the Seahawks but made some key plays (many by Grossman) to win the game. The Patriots win like this all the time so I'm not sure why some national guys like Gene Wojciechowski are ripping the Bears. Can they beat the Saints? Absolutely. Their defense hasn't been as good as it was last season but they are still better than the New Orleans "D". And while I don't think their offense is near as good as the Saints, they do have good receivers and running backs. Additionally, Grossman has played poorly in many games this year but he made some great 3rd down throws against the Seahawks (and that Berrian TD was a thing of beauty) and he does have the potential to play well. We'll see how it goes but you can't dismiss this team based on Grossman. He may be hot and cold this year but at least he has the ability to be hot. You can't say that about every QB.

Predictions
I would like to see a Saints/Colts Super Bowl matchup. Do I think it will happen? No. My prediction is the Patriots and the Bears will be getting jiggy with it. I have to rely on history. History tells me that Manning will crumble and Brady will shine. Also in a tight game the Bears will make a key defensive play that will give them the victory.

NFL Thoughts: Last Week's Wild Card Weekend and this Week's Games

Last Week's Games:

Patriots 37 / Jets 16
First of all take a look at what Belichick is wearing. I showed this pic to my wife and she told me he should be a candidate for TLC's Extreme Makeover. That's a nice thought but I'm pretty sure if somebody showed up to Bill's door with cameras and a plan to improve his dress habits he would carve them up with steak-knives and stick them in his freezer. Anyway....turning to thoughts on Belichick's opponent--that being NY---The Jets were plucky this year. Mangini did a nice job of coaching and Pennington and others played pretty well all season long. Granted, they had an easy schedule and the only decent team they beat all year long was the Pats in week 10, but there are other talented teams out there that couldn't beat the guys they were supposed to (see Jacksonville, Atlanta, etc.). So while I thought the Bengals and Broncos were a better team than the Jets (and Chiefs for that matter), the bottom line is that the Jets won enough games to get in. Of course that didn't mean they had a shot at the Patriots. Even though the Jets beat them once this season, I never thought they had a shot on the road in the playoffs against Tom Brady. I've been saying all season long that you can't ignore the Patriots. They lost a couple of games badly and everyone wanted to bury them. Well you can't. Because this is a team led by a coach and a QB that have won 3 Super Bowls. It's that simple. They have some defensive stars, a couple of good running backs and dude that is one of the most clutch quarterbacks in the history of the game. I think they have an excellent shot of knocking off the Chargers next week and eventually ending up in the Super Bowl again. Damn them. Damn them to Hell.


Eagles 23 / Giants 20
This should game should be a wake up call for NY. Jeff Garcia was clearly the best QB on the field and even though he's been playing well this season that's quite an indictment of Eli Manning. He continues to pass the ball poorly. His mechanics are awful and he looks downright gunshy in the pocket. He's anticipating a hit evertime he drops back. The Giants aren't going going to significantly improve next season unless he does (by the way I think bringing Coughlin back is a mistake---His players are clearly so against him that next season is a guaranteed circus again). The Eagles on the other hand should give New Orleans a run for their money this week. Their surprising run after McNabb went down this season re-emphasizes the fact that in the NFL you never count your chickens (or playoff teams) before they hatch.


Colts 23 / Chiefs 8
Herm Edwards was an absolute joke in this game as a coach. He's stubborn to a fault and it cost him a shot at competing for this victory. Trent Green was not coming out of this game even had he thrown 5 interceptions in the first half. There are more than a few coaches out there like this that feel altering plans during a game somehow constitutes a loss of face. It's one of the reasons I think Edwards is not an top coach. Make no mistake, he's a decent organizer and motivator. He gets his teams to play hard. But he's similar to the NBA's Jerry Sloan in that his unwillingness to admit a new approach is needed is ultimately why they will never win a championship.
Turning to the Colts,--despite their inspired play last week, they should not get cocky about their defense (or uppity about people who have questioned them this year---I mean after all they have sucked donkeys and if the Colts defensive players can't admit then they are in need of therapy). I hope the Colts defense can do it again and I hope Manning doesn't choke again (he didn't exactly have a banner game against the the Chiefs) . I really do want to see the Colts in the Super Bowl this year. I just have serious doubts that it will happen.


Seahawks 21 / Cowboys 20
I like that the Cowboys lost but I hate to see Romo get scapegoated for it. He's one guy I actually root for. And I'll say it again---the Seahawks fortunes lay on the arm of Hasselbeck. When he finally started to get it together in last week's game, Seattle looked like a contender. They'll need much more of that to beat Chicago.


Upcoming Games:

Who I want to see win this week and who I think will win depends on the conference.

I want the Bears to beat the Seahawks. I think they will. My cautious guess is that Grossman doesn't meltdown this week.

I want the Saints to beat the Eagles. I'm going to say it happens.

I want the Colts to beat the Ravens. I've been underestimating the Ravens all year so I won't this week. Colts go down.

I want the Chargers to beat the Patriots (in the worst way). But it's a perfect game for New England to show us again why you never count them out. I think they will shut Tomlinson down and Rivers inexperience will doom Marty's boys.

2006 NFL Surprises

Biggest 2006 surprises (both good and bad) offensively for me in NFL

QUARTERBACKS

Damon Huard- his quality of play saved the Chiefs season. You could still make a credible argument that return of Trent Green brought the level of QB play down in the latter part of the season. Green's probably the right choice but besides Larry Johnson (and a whole lot of luck in the last week of the season), Damon Huard is the reason the Chiefs are in the playoffs.

Philip Rivers - He sure has tailed off to end the season (and that could doom them in the playoffs if he doesn't pull his head out) but 3000+ yards, 22 TDs, and a QB rating of 92 in his first year starting is certainly more than the Chargers could have asked for.

Tony Romo - Overhyped? Absolutely. His last couple of games especially have brought the Romo legend back to earth. I wouldn't be surprised if Carrie Underwood dumps his ass now. But you can't deny he played well for at least 5 games. His performance in those games gave the Cowboys enough victories to make the playoffs. He's a first year starter and we all know Bledsoe wouldn't have done any better.

Vince Young - I don't think he deserved the Offensive Rookie of the Year award (he had a passer rating of 66.7 , threw more interceptions than TDs, and completed just barely over 51% of his passes! How can you call that offensive excellence? Saints receiver, Marques Colston was the man in my opinion) ---but he definitely made a huge and somewhat surprising impact as a rookie QB. He's going to be overhyped just like Mike Vick was his first few years but if he continues to do what he did this year he'll do what Vick hasn't been able to: make significant improvement and win key games.

J.P. Losman, Steve McNair, & Chad Pennington --None of these guys were spectacular, but they had solid seasons and kept their teams in games every week. It's not a surprise that they have the talent (in McNair and Pennington's case they have had decent seasons before) but considering the situation and prior season each guy had coming into this year, their performances were still a bit unexpected for me.

Ben Roethlisberger - Talk about bad karma. First he almost killed himself then he went ahead and killed the Steeler's season. I'm not sure which hurt more, his mortorcycle crash or the Steeler's first 8 games. Both were a wreck.

Matt Hasselbeck - I know he's been hurt this season but when he has played he really hasn't played that well. Damn my Rams for not taking advantage of a down year for the Seahawks.


Other quarterbacks who while not surprising to me but who were most definitely disappointing surprises for their own teams include:
Charlie Frye, Rex Grossman, Brad Johnson, Jake Plummer, Eli Manning, David Carr, Jake Delhomme, & Mark Brunell.

RUNNING BACKS

Frank Gore- Holy crap Gore was a load to bring down this year. He just rambled all season long. I had no idea he was that good.

Travis Henry- Showed us that he wasn't done yet

Ladell Betts - He got over 1000 yards, and averaged 4.7 yards per carry. Clinton Portis has got some competition next year.

Maurice Jones-Drew- I'm not surprised he was good ( I said in the preseason that he would open a lot of eyes) but his 5.7 yards per carry was a bit eye popping.

Jerious Norwood - Another guy who surprised me with his excellent play. He broke a lot of long ones (6.4 yards per carry).

Edgerrin James - Sure he made it to 1159 yards. And it only took him 337 carries to do it (3.7 avg.) Terribly disappointing season for him and the Cards.

Shaun Alexander - After last season's awesomeness, he was pretty uninspiring even when healthy (3.6 yards per carry).

RECEIVERS

Marques Colston - phenomenal season for an unheralded rookie. Give him the three games back that he lost due to injury and he would have made it pretty tough for voters to still give the ORY award to glamour boy Vince Young.

Mike Furrey - 1000 yard receiver. Huh? Great year for a dude that has bounced back and forth between defensive back and receiver.

Kevin Curtis - I thought the Rams would incorporate Curtis a whole lot more this season. Alas, they rarely threw it his way and they squandered a valuable weapon. They may lose him in free agency next year.

Nick Saban. Super Dork

Sorry for not posting about the last couple of weeks in the NFL. Between trying to down as much holiday fudge as I could and spending some time with my kids and family, I ended up slacking in my posts.
Anyway I'll post some thoughts on the NFL season and upcoming post-season soon. I will say this regarding today's NFL news: Nick Saban sure is full of shit. I'm sick of these high and mighty coaches sneering at reporters when asked about job offers they are getting--- and then they go ahead and lie their asses off. Then once they've proved that they have no integrity they use the family trump card. Give me a break. Your not doing what's best for your family. You're doing what's best for your bank account. What a hypocritical dumbass. Hey nice job of leading the Dolphins back to the promised land Nick. They're as bad as they were when you came, plus you screwed them out of an all-pro QB. Thumbs up! Cha-ching$$$

NFL Picks: Week 16

As the playoffs get nearer I am starting to already getting cold sweats over the thought of a football season ending. I love and hate this time of year. Here's this week's picks:

^= home team
Packers^ over the Vikings
What should I expect out of Tarvaris Jackson as the Vikings new QB? It's a mystery. But I do know that the Vikes should have made this move 2 weeks ago. Brad Johnson has been awful the second half of the season and has solidified his washed-up status. Unfortunately, Brett Favre has officially joined Johnson in this sad category. Johnson's QB rating is 71.9 with 9 TDs and 15 picks. Favre has more TDs (17) but 15 INTs as well. And his QB rating is an abysmal 74.9. I'm a Favre fan but I've admitted the truth. Favre loyalists need to come clean as well and admit to themselves that if he was any other QB he would have probably been benched by now. Can he flash some of his old brilliance every now and again? Of course he can. In fact he might do it tonight. But that's all it will be: flashes. His last decent year was in 2004 and I don't see him being consistently good ever again. And please don't blame it on his supporting cast. I'm tired of hearing that one. While it has made it tougher, some of the silly decisions he's made over the past 2 years have nothing to do with who'son the field with him. Favre has flat out played bad. If you can't admit that then you're lying to yourself. Again, I root for Favre, but even if he is awesome tonight it won't change the fact that his season has been decidedly un-awesome. Sad, but true.

Chiefs over the Raiders^
Oakland can't score and thus they can't win.

Bears over the Lions^
Kitna is not a starting QB. Or at least he shouldn't be.

Bills^ over the Titans
I like the way Buffalo is playing. Losman and Evans continue to connect and their defense has been playing tough lately.

Falcons^ over the Panthers
I've lost faith in Carolina. Seems like they have too.

Colts over the Texans
If Manning plays well this should be a rout. Sad thing for the Texans is they have 4 wins so they are probably out of luck for Quinn or Troy Smith in the draft. They can't do another year of David Carr though.

Browns^ over the Bucs
For those who attend this game, I hope it ends up more exciting that it sounds.

Ravens over the Steelers^
Steve McNair hasn't been the difference this year for the Ravens, the defense has. It's again the best "D" in football. Having said that (and at the risk of contradicting myself) if Kyle Boller starts on Sunday this pick changes and goes in favor of the Steelers.

Patriots over the Jags^
The Jags are bi-polar but I I'll take Brady over Garrard any day. Garrard has once again failed to grab the starting QB job by the throat when he's had the chance. Leftwich may not be the answer in Jacksonville, but I don't think David Garrard is either.

Saints over the Giants^
Hopefully the Saints figured out what the Redskins did to them defensively and are prepared to counter-act it (cause you can bet the Giants were taking notes).

Rams^ over the Redskins
I'm mentally done with the Rams for the season, but if they play like they can, this should be a victory.

49ers^ over the Cardinals
Think about this: If Leinart had come out the year he won the Heisman he probably would be the 49ers starting QB in this game.

Seahawks over the Chargers
Not that the Seahawks are basement dwellers or anything but this will be the upset of the day.

Bengals over the Broncos^
Both need the win desperately. I just trust Palmer more than Cutler.

Cowboys^ over the Eagles
I'm as stunned as everyone else over Garcia and his resurrection, but I think the Cowboys at home will have an edge.

Dolphins^ over the Jets
It's over for NY but they sure suprised me (and probably you too) this year.


Happy Holidays everyone. Try not to puke at the in-laws house this year. Not that that's ever happened to me. I'm just saying..

Last week 10-6 (62%)
Overall: 144 -78 (63%)

Iverson to the Nuggets? Where was Isiah Thomas when I needed him?

So what do I (a Utah Jazz fan) think about the Allen Iverson trade? Frankly, it gives me the heebie jeebies. I'm nervous about it. Very nervous. I really didn't see the Jazz having a realistic shot at the division title this year before the season began. I thought Denver would take it and Utah might be able to make a late playoff spot. However, with the way the Jazz have started the season I began to rethink that idea. Then along comes this trade. Sure it might implode. I mean Iverson and Anthony aren't two of your more mature players in the league by any stretch of the imagination. Wildly talented? Yes. But can they co-exist? I hope not. Because like I said, the mere possibility that they can, scares the crap out of me.

NFL Picks: Week 15

The picks for this week:

Seahawks over the 49ers
This time last year the Hawks really kicked it into gear and that momentum propelled them to the Super Bowl. They have looked pretty average this year so I'm starting to wonder if they can regain that edge.

Cowboys over the Falcons
Dallas is the better team. Plus the Falcons backfield is decimated right now. They are going to rely on Vick's arm this week. That's usually not a good thing.

Jets over the Vikings
I'm really torn about this one. Both teams surprised me last week with their play (the Jets choked, the Vikes beat the Lions....wait...nix that part about me being surprised about the Vikings performance) . So basically I flipped a coin here.

Saints over the Redskins
I hope the Saints aren't taking this game lightly.

Patriots over the Texans
Exactly what the New England needs to get back on track.

Panthers over the Steelers
Another tough pick. I think Julius Peppers is going to harass Roethlisberger into some mistakes.

Bears over the Bucs
Unless Grossman give this one away, the Bears should rule.

Ravens over the Browns
Baltimore is just too tough.

Bills over the Dolphins
Losman and Evans are on a roll.

Packers over the Lions
I give up on the Lions. I've picked them several times to win and they always fail me. That's probably what Detroit fans say every week.

Jags over the Titans
This week the Vince Young magic is derailed.

Broncos over the Cardinals.
Because of the Broncos defense.

Giants over the Eagles
Garcia actually is playing better than Manning. But I'm going with the home team here.

Rams over the Raiders.
I'm depressed as hell over the Ram's season but I'm not yet willing to concede they're the worst team in the league. However, if they lose to the Raiders I'll be the first to announce the official news.

Chargers over the Chiefs
Bolts want revenge.

Bengals over the Colts
As long as they resist the temptation to win the game entirely through the air (I mean why not run all day long on the Colts?) Cincy should be able to expose what everyone else has.

Last Week: 7-9 (43%)
Overall: 134-72 (65%)