Can't Miss Television

This morning at the end of ESPN First Take, host Jay Crawford made all the Superbowl hype worth it.

Crawford let the viewers know that tomorrows guests will be John Elway, Dan Marino, and Joe Montana. Seriously I can't describe how lucky Jay Crawford is to get these three together. I also have to say this qualifies as can't miss television. I will gladly wade through all the pre-Superbowl hype for the gold nuggets like this.

I have to say that the Joe's Diner, series of commercials that have been running all year long are hilarious. I hope they touch on that tomorrow. Though they may not with all three of them there due to the fact that all Marino would have to talk about as far as commercials is Nutri System, and Elway only has local Denver commercials for his car dealerships.

I guess instead of commercials they could discuss the fact that those are three of the greatest quarterbacks of all time and easily the top three in the modern era. Slightly more important than Nutri System

Johann Santana Will Get Whatever He Wants From the Mets

ESPN is reporting that we should not expect the Johann Santana to the Mets deal to be finalized by Friday Morning. I have no idea why they picked that as a when we shouldn't expect a deal, when they are the ones reporting in the next breath that the cut off for the deal to be negotiated is by 5pm Friday evening.

All of this anticipation and conjecture is waste though. The Mets and Santana will come to a deal. I know this and I can even tell you what the deal will be-- WHATEVER SANTANA WANTS IT TO BE.

Let's remember that Mets nation is in a foul mood after the historic collapse that ended last season, with them watching the playoffs. Now they have the best offseason free agent on the way to NY, their NY. So that would solve the problem of all those ugly late season losses. Mr. Met is shining up that big white head of his right now, and Mets fans are salivating at the possibilities.

So now when Santana and his people are holding their tough line on the 6 years they want and the Mets give em that stern look and say it's 5 years or it's no deal. Do you really expect Santana to buy the Mets willingness to turn around at this point and tell their fans "you know that championship that you could feel in your hands, now you can feel it slipping through your fingers"

Not gonna happen, see you in New York Santana.

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Update: Who's Picking The Giants Jan 31st

Ok so I have two new addition to the list o'people picking the Giants to win the Superbowl, but these two might count for more than most

Jan 31st -
Tony Dorsett - Hall of Famer this morning on First Take
Jerry Rice - Greatest receiver of All Time today on Mike Tiricos Superbowl special

Jan 30th -
Bill Plaschke - LA Times Columnist today on Around the Horn

Jan 29th -
Shockingly the less interesting pick is Jon Stewart. With the more intersting pick title going to this guy errrr fella uhhh one

This Brings the list to
Tony Dorsett - Hall of Famer this morning on First Take
Jerry Rice - Greatest receiver of All Time today on Mike Tiricos Superbowl specialBill Plaschke - LA Times Columnist on Around the Horn
Jon Stewart - Host of The A Daily Show
The Camel - Popcorn Park Zoo
Fran Tarkenton - Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback on the Mike and Mike show.
Dr. Z - SI.com
Sean King - ESPN Analyst on First Take
Mike Weiss - Forum Guest on Jim Rome is Burning

I'll keep updating this as the week progresses.

Did I miss anyone who picked the Giants

Who do you think will win the Big game




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A Thanks to theEOC.com

I would like to thank the people at www.theEOC.com. It is with their help that I am able to do somethings to help make Just One Man's Opinion an even better blog.

Take some time to head over and check them out. They are a social networking/dating site, which is completely free. They have some great features you need to check out like:

FUGG Off Challenge - Two people go head to head...members vote of which person they think is better looking.

Snuggly or Fuggly - Lets people rate the pictures you put up for judgement, so if you want to know if your as hot as you think. Try that out.

Badvice - Just flat hilarious

Go check it out and let me know what you think.

Kidd Three-Way Deal Isn't Gonna Happen

Ok so there is a lot going on with this deal but here is the short version of the ESPN Breakdown
Portland Gets: Mav's guard Devin Harris and forward Brandon Bass
New Jersey Gets: Draft picks, Cash, Mavs' Jerry Stackhouse, and Portlands' Travis Outlaw, Channing Frye and Jarrett Jack
Dallas Gets: Kidd

You have got to be kidding me. Portland is not in a rebuiling mode, they do not need to cut salary, in the way that the Nets do. So why would the Trailblazers trade away Outlaw, Frye, and Jack for Harris and Bass. This just doesn't make sense for Portland, don't expect to see this deal happen the way it looks right now.

Outside Shot
Just have to relay a Trailblazers bit I heard recently. When Trailblazers assistant coach, and Trailblazers legend, Maurice Lucas was asked why there was some much trash talking back and forth on the court today. Lucas calmly threw back, "because in my time it was only a $50 fine if you socked a guy in the face"

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Superbowl Media Day

So Superbowl Media day has come and gone, given time to think about it I have come to one sure realization.

There is a reason this isn't called Player Relations day. This really is a day for the Media. I don't mean media in the traditional sense of doing their job and being a conduit for the public. No it is more an instance of them being real fans. Check out the end of this post by David Kindervater of EveryMorningQuarterback(EMQB.com). I just found it refreshing to see him going "Look I'm on the news, I'm on the news" Newsflash, you ARE the news.

I am sure some of the older guys, who have been there a few times, don't see it with the same joy. But I really enjoy the perspective of a guy like David who writes well, has professional experience, and is still a fan.

Now we only have less than 4 days until kick off.

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Odds and Ends to Start Your Day

I have nothing to add this one stands-up for itself











Tom Brady said today in referance to Randy Moss becoming a free agent, that he hopes the Patriots wil resign him because he goes where Randy goes. Wow talk about an endorsement. Guess who just gained all the leverage at the bargaining table.





What you would notice if you were court side





Favre says he is still unsure about returning, apparently he hasn't read my letter yet

Ohio St. or Michigan What Will Terrelle Pryor Do

So National signing day is just around the corner. No one seems to know what Terrelle Pryor is going to do. The simple fact that we haven't gotten one solid leaked rumor so far leads me to believe that Pryor himself may not even be sure at this point.

This Saturday Pryor will play in home game for his Jeannette High basketball game. In attendance you'll find Buckeye's Head coach Jim Tressel and new Wolverine's head man Rich Rodriguez. Some how I don't think they'll be sharing popcorn. Maybe Rodriguez could ask Tressel for a loan since he can't seem to pay his bills.

If you care about the feelings of some one closely related you can check out his prep coaches "gut feeling"

I honestly don't get the whole draw of either of these schools. They have been hammered by every high profile opponent they have faced, other than Michigan sending Lloyd Carr out on a high note against Florida. They are Hawaii and Boise st. The Big-10 errr 11 is the WAC. They both play thier own weak conference and even weaker out of conference schedule. OSU is going to get throttled when they actually face a real team in USC.

Trailblazers Use Tech Toys to Promote Brandon Roy

The Portland Trailblazers sent out 75 iRoys. What is an iRoy, you ask. It the their own iPod Nano that is pre-loaded with Brandon Roys clips and clips of people endorsing him. The Trailblazers are doing this in an effort to get thier man into the All-Star game. I love to see Technology creeping in to other aspects of our life. I think this is a great marketing scheme, now lets see if it works.

Here is an opposing view that I found interesting

Odds and Ends

2008 Final Hall of Fame game - This bums me out, I don't know why. I am not a purist or a huge fan of small NY towns

Norman Chads Rise - A nice piece about a guy who's self depricating humor kept me watching the World Series of Poker two years longer than it was interesting

Grey Ruegamer - Apparently not named for Gray Matter.

Damon Stoudamire to the Spurs

Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express-News is reporting the Damon Stoudamire could end up in San Antonio instead of the expected Boston.

I love this, while Stoudamire has at times shown a lack of effort and hustle that certainly would not fit into the Spurs style of play. I think with a change scenery and a shot at actually going somewhere with his talent he would find motivation to hustle the way he did early on in the NBA.

I don't like him for the Celtics or really an Eastern team because he is just a horrible mismatch to guard the Pistons point position. At this point that is how GM's need to look at bringing someone on. Are you a guy who is gonna help me get to the Finals. I just don't think he is in the East.

Update: Who's Picking The Giants Jan 30th

Ok so I have only one new addition to the list o'people picking the Giants to win the Superbowl

Jan 30th -
Bill Plaschke - LA Times Columnist today on Around the Horn

Jan 29th -
Shockingly the less interesting pick is Jon Stewart. With the more intersting pick title going to this guy errrr fella uhhh one

This Brings the list to
Bill Plaschke - LA Times Columnist on Around the Horn
Jon Stewart - Host of The A Daily Show
The Camel - Popcorn Park Zoo
Fran Tarkenton - Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback on the Mike and Mike show.
Dr. Z - SI.com
Sean King - ESPN Analyst on First Take
Mike Weiss - Forum Guest on Jim Rome is Burning

I'll keep updating this as the week progresses.

Did I miss anyone who picked the Giants

Who do you think will win the Big game




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What To Do With Your Patriots 19-0 Book When They Lose Sunday

I figured out the best plan for what I am going to do with my "19-0: The Historic Championship Season of New England's Unbeatable Patriots."

First off I haven't actually ordered one and I won't because after sunday I will need two. They should be about a nickel on Ebay by Monday morning. The short sighted will attempt to dump their now useless book. Hey they might even throw in some useless Patriots Superbowl Champion swag.

So I am going to take one copy and get is signed by all the current Giants. Shouldn't be too hard right.

Now the hard part. I am going to try and get it signed by as many current Patriots as I can. With Belichick being the holy grail of signatures.

Tell me that isn't a conversation piece on your trophy shelf.

Superbowl Parties

Check out the list of Superbowl parties you just can't miss(or get into)

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Johan Santana to the Mets, Not As Bad As I Thought

So initially I am just baffled, how do four guys I've never heard of get the Mets the best pitcher in the game right now.

Oh, I get that baseball is about prospects and teams build themselves up for the future. While teams like the Atlanta Braves have built long standing consistency with their farm system constantly building a good club. There are the Yankees on the other side spending as fast as they can to go after talent. Somewhere in between is a club like the Angles who relies heavily on thier farm system and is somewhat reluctant to trade up-and-coming talent but is still willing to go after a good player if they're out there. All of these are good models and clearly have there own levels of success.

The Twins model I don't understand. For the last decade they have been developing for the future and then trading that future away, or just flat letting it leave once it gets to a level where it can demand money.

So while I was initially baffled, I now understand. Why not carry these for guys as hope for the fans. Knowing full well when they get good the only question will be, Beantown or Pinstripes?

Stop Challenging Tiger Woods

I have mentioned before how I feel about Tigers dominance, as well as my complete lack of authority on the subject. So I wont delve to much into that.

However I have a particular need on a related topic. I need Rory Sabatinis muzzle, I mean he has managed to not say anything dumb in what like two months errr weeks. The last time was when he said he was leaving Tigers tournament a day early, in the first real action this season. I didn't post about it then because it isn't really much in my sports world, plus Sabatini makes a fool of himself often enough that it just isn't worth posting about.



Now Ian Poulter has not only managed to poke a sleeping dragon (I really wanted to go sleeping Tiger right there. but it seemed a bit much) when he said that he can challenge Tiger. He actually challenged the rest of the field by saying he is THE ONLY PLAYER capable of challenging of Tiger.



Seriously Ian, borrow Rorys muzzle, lock that thing down tight and don't take it off until myself and every other non-golf fan have heard of you for something other than being a moron. I know Rory definitely needs his muzzle but it seems ha can contain himself to pissing off Tiger. Poulter just can't seem to keep his golfers who hate me club that exclusive, openinng the doors to everyone.

Chris Webber Going Back to The Warriors

Oh, the potential. I have been hoping and pining for the last few weeks to get Chris Webber into Los Angeles to shore up the Bynum-less Lakers. I think he would have fit nicely, though I have developed more questions lately as I considered his resume of going to teams and not helping them win.

It really doesn't matter anyway because the door for his return began to swing shut with the signing fo DJ Mbenga and then slammed tight when it became known that he was retunring to Golden State and Don Nelson.

It turns out what I am getting out of Webber returning is even better than anything I had hoped for. Nelson was the coach who butted heads so frequently with Webber in his former run with the Warriors. This led to Webber leaving town and both sides being that much happier about it. Now though, it's all peace, love, and let's bury the hatchet. Yeah we'll see.

The most exciting part of this for me is the potential for this to become a trend. I mean I am sitting here on pins and needles waiting for the Latrell Sprewell comeback story Starring the Seattle Supersonics and one PJ Carlesimo

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Mark Cuban Courting Clippers #1 Fan

For those of you who don't see Clipper games, (that would be just about everyone not on the team). There is a Clipper fan, Clipper Darrell AKA Darrell Bailey who wears a half blue and half red jacket with a whole Clippers color scheme in his clothing. He goes out of his way to get the fans involved and cheering at the right times. He also is very loyal he is working a 280+ streak of home games. He creates such a stir in the stadium that he came to Mark Cubans attention in a game against the Mavericks.

Now he has met with the Mav's marketing department about the possibility of performing the same duties in Dallas. He would all of a sudden be paid to do the task he has done out of passion in the past.

There are really quite a few ways to look at this and I can't really nail down even what my own opinion is. So you're getting all of em.

Mark Cuban: Once again this Maverick (Ahhh I am hilarious) of sports franchise ownership, has siezed on a brilliant opportunity. I am not a real big Mavs fan, but you have to acknowledge what their owner brings to the table.

Clipper Darrell: This is where my feelings start to get torn. I mean is your fanhood for sale. You probably can't say because I doubt anyone has ever offered you a job to switch your fanhood. The simple fact that his fanhood was at such a level that someone is basically offering him money for it, puts him beyond being questioned in my book.

Donald Sterling: Now here is the real goat in all this. Where is Sterling, why not step in and give the guy a position similar to what Cuban has proposed. You know he would do it cheaper in the city he currently resides, for the team he really loves. Instead of stepping up though in typical Sterling fashion, he is sitting back with his lips sealed tight and his purse string even tighter

Annual Jason Kidd To A Contender Story

So it is that time of year again. As the trade deadline approaches it's time for the trade me to a contender story out of Jason Kidd in New Jersey.

Looks like that migraine earlier in the season might require a little more than a couple Advil. Looks like it might just require a change of scenery.

The real difference in this years story is the fact that it might actually happen. The Nets are not a contending team in the East. Kidd has two years left on his contract. A period of time which coincides with the teams rumored plans to go to Brooklyn. So figure Kidd wont be a part of the Brooklyn team. He is bound to leave. The team would be better suited to get what they can and then build towards a good start in their new arena. I like him going to Cleveland but they would have to pretty much mortgage thier future, but because they don't have much to offer in the way of current players.

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Help Rudy Gay win the Dunk Contest

Rudy Gay is asking for your help. So break out that 8 foot rim and show him what you've got.

I like this clip and this clip if he could pull it off

Jerry Jones don't let Cleveland Browns Out Smart You

Alright Jerry, that trade you made last year didn't turn out to be as sweet as you thought it would be.

When you gave up your pick last year for the Browns’ 2nd round pick in 2007 (#36) and their first round pick in 2008. You know you weren't thinking that pick would be #22. So you already lost a little on your investment. Let's try and get as much as we can for it.

If you can't get the value you expected in draft selection, let's get that value in life lessons. Look at the Browns. They have the guy they took with that pick they got from you last year, Brady Quinn. They also stumbled on a gem in Derek Anderson, but they have the good sense to keep both, this is the NFL you know.

Do you really want to let Marion Barber and a few draft picks out the door to Miami to get the #1 pick for one guy. Don't let that Razorback alumni blood of yours get so hot you can't think clearly. Let's look at the success rate of the two major trades for big time running backs.

The Saints traded away every pick they had in one year in order to get Ricky Williams, but hey at least they got a Superbowl out of it. Oh wait nope they never really got a return on thier investment.

You might actually remember the other trade considering you sent away Herschell Walker and in turn got several Superbowl rings, errr I mean you got several picks and players. Some of those picks shored up your defense but the key pick got you Emmit Smith. The Vikings on the other hand have yet to celebrate a Superbowl.

Don't let the Cleveland Browns pull smarter offseason moves than the Cowboys

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Bulls Owner Clarifies?? Scott Skiles Firing

Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf clarifies his statements regarding the firing of head coach Scott Skiles.

Reinsdorfs was recently interviewed by WGN-TV where he stated "Something didn't mesh right this year, Scott came to us eventually and said, 'I think the team needs a new voice.' ... Scott realized that he wasn't getting through to them. It was time to do something else."

ESPN is reporting that Reinsdorf claims that he regrets his choice of words and wanted to clarify saying ""I can't believe I was so sloppy with my words. Scott did an excellent job here."

What exactly were you sloppy about, the team stinks he knew it, the inmates are clearly running the asylum over there and he wanted out. Don't let a rare breath of fresh air called honesty be overpowered by the stink of you back peddling (quite poorly I might add).

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Update: Who's Picking The Giants

Ok so I have two new additions to the list o'people picking the Giants to win the Superbowl

Shockingly the less interesting pick is Jon Stewart. With the more intersting pick title going to this guy errrr fella uhhh one

This Brings the list to
Jon Stewart - Host of The A Daily Show
The Camel - Popcorn Park Zoo
Fran Tarkenton - Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback on the Mike and Mike show.
Dr. Z - SI.com
Sean King - ESPN Analyst on First Take
Mike Weiss - Forum Guest on Jim Rome is Burning

I'll keep updating this as the week progresses.

Who do you think will win the Big game




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Ways to Enjoy Super Week

List of ways to enjoy the overhype all week long

I Want To Hate Him But He Is Growing On Me

I Want To Hate Him But He Is Growing On Me

I have spent the time prior to this year with no real feeling on Bill Belichick. I mean he was a good coach but not for my team so not to big a blip on my radar. Since the begining of this year though, his profile his risen (maybe fallen would be a better word). Between the Spygate scandal, his chippy attitude about it, and the fact he was punishing the other teams for even questioning him. I really wanted to hate him, and I succeeded through out most of the year.

Things have changed, he is getting funnier and funnier over the past few weks. Partially I think it is him opening up alittle and partially I think it is the fact that as you get to know someone with that sense of humor(extremely dry, like say oh I don't know-Arizona Desert dry) it takes a bit to pick up on it.

Tha latest installment of humor was good, with him somewhat tounge in cheek about the media clamoring over Tom Brady and his ankle. Him giving them a little ribbing about there desire for the Injury Report and how excited he was to give it.

The real topper came this morning when I heard a recap of his comments shortly after landing in Arizona, to begin preparing for sundays big game. He was questioned about the fact he seemed bothered by the media and thier constant clamoring for information. I expected to hear how he fired off about how it just got in the way of the game. That wasn't even close. He first started by acknowledging that they had a job to do and what they interpereted as him being bothered was just him doing his job as well. He also acknowledged the usefulness of the media as a conduit to the fans.

I think interesting thing, is the part that goes unspoken here. The media has constantly been at odds with him buthe hasn't felt that way about he media so maybe they are the ons who need to do some re-evaluating. So here is my part of that re -evaluation.

Bill Belichick. I am sorry for a lot of the shots I fired.

Let's not get carried away though, I am still pulling for the Giants.

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Tigers Personal Tournament

I am gonna be up front here. I don't know golf. I have played one course, I shot 218 and I didn't even bother with the last 2 holes. I also don't know much about the professional tour. I couldn't name 5 courses and I couldn't describe one. But I do know domination.

As Super Sunday approaches I just don't see Strahan saying he is happy to win the NFC in half time interview. I stopped watching the NBA Finals last year after game three but I am guessing that the Cavaliers went ahead and played the game out.

But that is just what happened at Torrey Pines over the weekend. With Tiger Woods competitors making statements like; "There's no mercy rule,", "We're not playing Little League baseball. We'll see what happens. We might get lucky" and finally "I'm going to try to win the tournament that Tiger's not playing,"

Seriously when you are beating guys at a level that they are satisfied to win second it is getting out of hand. The one thing I do know is when you remove the competitiveness of a sport you are ruining it.

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NFL Teams Offseason

Here is a compilation of the offseason breakdowns I have done so far. Check out your team and let me know what you think they ought to do.

Note: These were all projected prior to Free Agency.

Miami Dolphins

St. Louis Rams

Atlanta Falcons

Oakland Raiders

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Jets

New England Patriots (from 49ers)

Baltimore Ravens

Cincinnati Bengals

New Orleans Saints

Buffalo Bills

Denver Broncos

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Detroit Lions

Arizona Cardinals

Minnesota Vikings

Houston Texans

Philadelphia Eagles

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Redskins

Dallas Cowboys

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tennessee Titans

Seattle Seahawks

Jacksonville Jaguars

San Diego Chargers

Dallas Cowboys

San Francisco 49'ers

Green Bay Packers

New York Giants

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Miami Dolphins Offseason

Trade this pick, NOW. It doesn't even have to be that good fo a deal. With the talent evaluating skills of Bill Parcells and Jeff Ireland, you will make more out of several later picks than you can out of one early one.

Ok, Now that we have my opinion slightly clarified. Let's talk about what they need to do in either situation.

The whole complexion of the team has changed due to the fact that Bill Parcells was brought in to run the franchise. He promptly hired Jeff Ireland away from his director of talent evaluation with the Cowboys. They then announced the forgone conclusion that Cam Cameron would be leaving, and as soon as he was available they brought in former Dallas Cowboys offensive line coach Tony Sparano. With all this change it is easier to determine the plans for the future of Miami by looking to Dallas than it is looking back at Miami

If they stick with that #1 spot, they need to shore up their defensive front. With aging Joey Porter and Zach Thomas, they need to strengthen the defensive front in order to pull some focus off of those two. They still have the skill to play, but they can't be the guys getting doubled and focused on by the other teams blocking scheme.

The popular talk is to have them take Darren Mcfadden. I don't like this and I know Parcells wont do it. For starters they have some talent in the backfield already. If they can keep that talent on the field and out of the trainers room. ALso looking at Bill Parcells past drafting strategy, he clearly feels you can get good backs later on in the draft. Neither Julius Jones or Marion Barber were picked very early.

If the Dolphins are capable of getting deper in the draft through a trade they will be able to select multiple players throughout these positions of need. If not then they will take a defensive player. While Glann Dorsey(DT-LSU) is the bigger name , slightly than Chris Long(DE-VA). I think the Dolphins are more likely to turn to Long in the draft. He is a much nicer fit for the 3-4 defense that Parcells will likely have team running.

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This Week In Sports January 28, 2008

Check out this weeks headlines that were either major or eye catching here

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St. Louis Rams Offseason

Though it has little to do with the on the field plans, I can hardly begin this without acknowledging the pasing of long time team owner Georgia Frontiere. I posted shortly after her passing so I wont re-hash it here.

The Rams have needs, not as many as a lot of teams, but you don't get the second pick in the draft without having some needs. The bright side is they are getting a better pick than they probably need only because the number of injuries they suffered caused them to lose more games than their talent probably dictates. In fairness to the situation though not all of those injuries were fluke. Old people get hurt, old people who play football get hurt often.

One of the areas where the Rams age was most pronounced was on the offensive line. When you are signing guys like Brandon Gorin and Todd Steussie off the street, you are in trouble. In fact let's just set that as the bar for your having a bad year on the offensive line. The Rams need to draft early on this side of the ball.

The other side of the trenches is not much stronger. When you starting defensive ends, combine for 3 sacks. That's all year folks. There are guys who pulled that many in a game. Hell, Patrick Kearney did it 3 different times this year. Obviously they need to shore up this spot. they also need to take some attention of their Linebackers who were underwhelming all year.

With thier needs they could take Jake Long (OT-Mich), or they could look to defense and go with Glenn Dorsey(DT-LSU) or Chris Long (DE-VA). If Miami is able to move the #1 pick then all three will be available. If Miami is still at #1 on draft day then one of those defensers will likely be gone. Either one that remains would be a good choice though and with this draft a lot deeper with offensive lineman as opposed to defense they could always wait til the second round to draft for the O-line.

Whatever the draft choices end up being you can expect Scott Linehan to be coaching for his job next season.

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Saints and Chargers to London in 2008

So it appears we now know who will have the unfortunate luck pleasure of playing in 2008. According to ESPN the Saints and the Chargers will face off in London during this coming season. If you missed my rant about international play in the NFL you can check it out here.

In addition to my numerous problems I stated there I have developed a new one. In the interest of parity, why not have the Raiders and the Chargers or even the Broncos or Cardinals. Just pick any two teams that are at least reasonably geographically close. Traveling around the world isn't enough they needed to add an extra two timezones for the Chargers.

As far as the Saints side of things are you trying to tell me there is a huge clamoring in europe for the New Orleans Saints, somehow I doubt it. I mean there isn't even a clamoring for the Saints in New Orleans.

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Blogger Alan Johnson is giving away over $1000 worth of prizes

In a contest you can check out on his site, The Rating Blog. Alan Johnson is holding a contest where he will be giving away over $1000 in prizes. If you like winningor free stuff go check him out.

Ptizes include

1. $500 via Pay Pal
2. a promotional Bidvertiser account with $200 in free clicks (you won’t even have to provide credit card information)
3. a $100 Amex card offered by Copeac
4. free hosting for one year offered by LunarPages (each prize is worth $95.4)
5. free hosting for one year offered by LunarPages (each prize is worth $95.4)
6. free hosting for one year offered by LunarPages (each prize is worth $95.4)

What to do with your not so super Sunday

So it is a football free not so super sunday. What to do? Don't worry I got you.

To Do list here

Who is picking the Giants

Ok so I have been keeping a running tab of who is picking the Giants. So far we've got

Fran Tarkenton - Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback on the Mike and Mike show.
Dr. Z - SI.com
Sean King - ESPN Analyst on First Take
Mike Weiss - Forum Guest on Jim Rome is Burning

I'll keep updating this as the week progresses.

Who do you think will win the Big game




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Heat or the Dolphins Who ya got?

So the Heat finally pulled out of a 15 game slide, by defeating the Indiana Pacers in a close one. The coincidence of the losing streak hitting 15 begs the question.

Which is worse Dolphins 1-15 season or the Heats 15 game losing streak?

My initial reaction was to go Dolphins being worse. I mean the heat lost 15 games out of 82 that isn't nearly as bad as the Dolphins losing all but one of thier games. Right?

After I started looking at the two teams I think I would take the Dolphins scenario. I mean why sit here and figure out which season is worse. Neither are going to the playoffs this year so at that point there is no worse , there isonly didn't get the job done. Now the Dolphins have the number one pick in the draft a new core of executives and a new head coach. A head coach who said in his introductory press conference that he didn't care about what came before he only cared about now.

The heat on the other hand have almost exactly the opposite situation. They have a Coach/GM in Pat Riley who has another year on his deal and he will fulfill that obligation at least upstairs if not courtside as well. The player situation doesn't look much better. They have another year of ridiculously over paying Shaq and they have only that same year to convince Dwayne Wade to stay.

No after giving it some thought, I got the Dolphins.

Daniel "East Coast Al Davis" Snyder

It's time for this weeks edition of who is crazier than Al Davis. This week we will look at Daniel Snyder.

Snyder is the owner of the Wasington Redskins.Snyder has been hunting for a new coach since Joe Gibbs retirement just days after the teams season ended with a loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the first round of the playoffs. The initial hot favorite was Greg Williams who was the Redskins defensive coordinator under Gibbs.

Snyder has had Williams in for four seperate interviews. Also interviewing Jim Fassel, and Jim Mora.

Now out of nowhere they have hired an offensive coordinator in Jim Zorn, they have also promoted Gregg Blache tolead the defense. This conicided with the firing of Al Saunders and Gregg Williams.

Hey it's his team right, he can hire and fire whoever he want. But he made these two guys the highest paid assistants over the last few years, now he isn't even willing to keep either of them on the staff. Another thing I love is how he keeps selling the continuity from the Gibbs era. So what, he is going to ram a bunch of underling staff members on a new coach and not let him hire his own coordinators. Sounds like a plan.

Since he bought that team I have felt that he made some of the worst decisions an owner has ever made. Cough::Steve Spurrier::Cough. Gibbs had turned things around and even had helpes you make better player decisions. As much as I have blasted him I have always thought hey at least he is spending money, he is trying. Now this move just screams of saving money.

Can't wait to see what you do with that top 5 pick next year Dan, cause that's where you are headed

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This Just In: Vince WIlfork might be a little dirty

Vince Wilfork was fined for the fourth time this season. This time it was for a face mask penalty that occured against the Chargers. I understand that the Patriots are going out of their way to crush people in order to erase the cheating scandal. Wilfork on the other hand is a one man wrecking crew of the Patriots cleaned up image. On the bright side I mean at least this time he didn't take out a knee or blatantly jab a guy in the eye. I already posted about the incident with the eye gouging

Now this is what the U stands
for. Football is a physical sport. Everyone who has been involved in the
game knows, things happen in a pile. The weight bearing down on a guy, the extra
elbow nudging, the pinching and grabbing, it happens. But Vince Wilfork out of
the pile and face up with a guy and you reach inside of his face mask and poke a
guy in the eye not only is that just bush league, it's soft. I am not surprised
to see a guy from the U get dirty but I am surprised to see him be so weak about
it. Then again who’s surprised I mean it isn’t like it’s the first time Wilfork took a weak shot at someone

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Atlanta Falcons Offseason

The Atlanta Falcons will probably be the easiest review I do this offseason. They need a quarterback, and with thier number coming so early in the draft they will have their choice of the signal callers coming out this year. The scariest thing about this is that I believe they will take Brian Brohm(QB-L'Ville). I just don't think Brohm will end up being a starter in the NFL. I think Matt Ryan(QB-BC) will be a leader and a presence in the huddle. One huge thing in Ryan's favor, or more acurately. One thing going against Brohm is that you have to assume Bobby Petrino was singing Brohms praises for that whole 5 minutes he spent in Atlanta. I don't know this first hand but I am guessing that Petrino's opinion is about as valuable as Michael Vick's right about now.

The coaching situstion was recently settled with the hire of Jags Gopher to Jack del Rio defensive coordinator, Mike Smith. I am not sure about this hire. I like it from the media perception. I mean after the parade of candidates turning Arthur Blank down, all the high profile "Hot" hiring prospects were gone. At that point I think you can't go with a regular off the coaching carousel. By going with a guy like Smith they either make out like genuises or we all get what we are expecting and it's no harm no foul. I do have some doubt, beyond the fact he has no real name in the NFL. Several of his former players have said that Jack del Rio actually ran the defense. They also mentioned that he didn't always get along with players. I can't wait to see how him and always vocal, DeAngelo Hall mix with eachother.

In the later rounds the Falcons will need to address a line to protect their new QB. Between the injury to Wayne Gandy, which will likely lead to his retirment or ineffectiveness, and the fact that left tackle is not nearly as strong in free agency as left guard this year. They will likely go with a strong left tacke in the second round.

The Falcons need to be realistic, it isn't going to be pretty in the Georgia Dome anytime soon. A real bright spot is wide receiver with Joe Horn there as a clutch player, and even more so as a mentor. Along with the youth and talent of Roddy White, who I think could develop into a premier guy.

The running back situation isn't as strong as wide receiver, but I really think it could be. If the Falcons will just commit to Jerious Norwood I think he will develop along with the teams overall development and be ready to be a feature back as the team grows into contention. THis is actually a possibilty, while Mike Smith is defensive guy I am sure he noticed the run-first strategy in Jacksonville. He may be likely to copy that.

ESPN's Around The Horn

For those of you who watch Around The Horn -



Is it me or have you noticed the Jay Mariotti has begun recently just blatantly sucking up to Tony Reali for points. I know that Tim Cowlishaw has always had this shtick of scoreboard watching, but that is what it is shtick. Mariotti actually is whining for points and throws in as many suck up to Reali compliments and blatant reaches of movie references to get points.


For those of you that fon't watch - Get a hold of your life




Since it is semi related here's a little extra post



JA Adande dropped the following gem regarding the fact that Jose Canseco telling all about steroids may have actually helped baseball



"Just because you're right, does not mean you're righteous"



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Welcome Americandles.com

Wanted to put out a welcome to Americandles the newest advertiser here at Just One Man's Opinion.

I actually asked for this ad. I am certainly not a productivity expert (my wife can confirm that repeatedly if you'd like. She certainly tells me repeatedly). In the interest of helping my readers out though I thought I could give you guys an easy way tha you could get a little something for Valentines Day.


If you are interested in advertising on this site feel free to contact me at rondeanblog@hotmail.com

San Diego Super... Heroes?

This is just getting out of hand. I love a good story, as much as the next guy. I just can't stand playing Topper. You know Topper, you and your friends are talking about this or that. You tell a story about how you once a had a threesome with two friends who were on vacation (and by tell I mean make up). One of your buddies can't let that go without mentioning(fabricating) the fact he once had a threesome and they were twins. Bam, there you go Topper. Someone always has to spice thing up to the next level.

It seems the Chargers are now developing a home game version of Topper with San Diego licensing.

First Antonio Gates goes down with a Toe injury, but he toughs it out and plays.

Then Philip Rivers has surgery to get his knee in a postion to play a week later.

Now news comes that Nate Kaeding played with a Broken leg.

I am actually glad the Chargers missed the Superbowl, otherwise we would be anticipating a story about Shawn Merriman being deceased but deciding to go ahead and give it a go anyway.

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Bits and Pieces

Heat get their 15th loss- Seriously this is just getting unbearable to watch. In a related story...

ESPN has 4,000 widgets - The next widget currently in development will show a coutdown to the next heat loss with a running total of how far they are from the record of 23 losses in a row

Kevin Johnson for Mayor - Apparently Sacramento is need of an assist.

Cyclist DQ'd for 'Severe' Headbutt - I am sorry I wasn't aware there is an acceptable level of headbutting in cycling. Maybe I should give it a second chance. Ok a first chance.

Update on Ron Hunter coaching Barefoot - Coach managed to get 110,000 shoes more than doubling his goal of 40,000. See my previous posts about this here.

Suns plan outdoor preseason game - A sure sign you are moving in the wrong direction, You are copying the NHL.

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Sasha Pavlovic enrolls in the Lebron James school of sprain recovery

I wrote the following towards the end of the two weeks Lebron missed earlier this season after spraining his finger.

Written December 08, 2007 - I hate to disappoint but this is not Gilbert Arenas’
new blog. I am not a professional athlete. I cannot speak to the toil of an
eighty-two game season. But I have sprained my finger before. Either LeBron
James is very soft, or there is something more severe going on. In either case
the situation as it is currently is terrible. You can’t miss like 2 weeks with a
sprained finger on your non-shooting hand. Sam Cassel 15 years older and is only
missing two weeks with a strained calf muscle. Man up and be the leader you are
supposed to be LBJ.

Now Pavlovic is going to miss 8 weeks with a sprained foot. Really!?, 8 weeks. You are going to have to be a little tougher than that, especially in the East.

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Sports Nicknames Lists

I wrote a post the other day that I needed to find some NASCAR nicknames for. That got me to thinking of some of the best Nicknames in sports...See lists

Oakland Raiders Offseason

I know this isn't going to work. I mean I have lived in California for quite a while and I know more Raider fans than anything else. However, it is my breath so I will waste it. "Raider fan-You are not going to win the superbowl in 2008, you are not going to make the superbowl, You wont get to the playoffs, you might want to start rooting for .500."

The raiders have problems everywhere. It starts at the top, I posted earlier today about Bat shit crazy Al Davis trying to talk Lane Kiffin out of 4 million. So first off they need to get a head coach. Right now the rumor mill has ground out Dennis Green as Al Davis' choice for successor. Sounds great but doesn't Denny get a choice. I mean he hasn't sunk so low has he. I would love to hear a reason he would take this job because I can't think of one. So we'll see who ends up in that r'ole(r'ole:Initially a typo but now an abbreviated form of RAT HOLE).

On to bigger problems, the NFL carries a 52-man roster. Of that 52-man total the Raiders are facing 20 guys going into free agency, not to mention losing Warren Sapp to retirment. That's about 40% folks. I can't really decide if this is terrible becuase the new coach will have such little continuity to work with, or if it is great because who really wants a bunch of guys who went 4-12 back from last year.

A couple of the key Free agency guys are:

Nnamdi Asomugha: Easily a top 5 corner in the NFL. So don't worry about him being gone, all that really needs to be determined is can they work out a deal or is it "oakland Raider fans meet your new Franchise Tag player, Nnamdi Asomugha.

Justin Fargas: Sign him. He isn't gonna break records but he is reliable and seems relatively happy on the Raiders. There is a lot of talk about the Raiders taking McFadden if he is still on the board at thier pick. I think they will but I tihnk it will be a mistake if they do. I don't think McFadden is a bust. Quite the opposite actually I'll be shocked if he doesn't work. However there are a lot of positions where they could improve a lot more than they would at running back by taking McFadden.

Josh McCown: He turned out to be a surprisingly servicable quarterback. I mean he is no Derek Anderson(I never thought I'd be using that line), but he could be a good back-up to Russel

So if by some miracle Al Davis doesn't go for the big name. Which is something he has always done in the past. They will take Chris Long(DE-VA) if he has lasted that long or they may reach a little for Vernon Gholston(DE-OSU). I seriously doubt they would take Jake Long(OT-Mich) so soon after the Robert Gallery bust. Though knowing Al's mentality he may take him just to spite people.

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Al Davis doesn't want to open the coin pouch

Al Davis made small moves suggesting that his current head coach, Lane Kiffin, should resign. Most notable of these hints was the fact that he kept defensive coordinator Rob Ryan despite Kiffins desire to get rid of him.

We have now moved past the stage of hints and suggestions. According to ESPN Al Davis has drafted a letter of resignation for Kiffin. I wonder does Al think so much of himself and so little of Kiffin that he figures the only reason Kifin hasn't bowed to him yet is the fact he is incapable of writing his own letter. No Al, I am guessing the reason he hasn't fired off that letter just yet is that it would free you of the $4 million you would otherwise owe him if you did the firing. Al if you want to be done with him go head and squeeze that little coin pouch and pull out that thing you pass of as a head coaching salary and move on.

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Kansas City Chiefs Offseason

Kansas City has a lot of work to do this offseason. Probably a lot of work to do over the next few seasons. Unlike most teams that are in such bad shape (See: Dolphins, Ravens, and Falcons), the Chiefs are at least keeping the head coach, and have already made huge progress in one key area.

They hired Chan Gailey to be their offensive coordinator. Herm Edwards gave Gailey high praise saying "Wherever he’s coached, he has designed dynamic offenses to take full advantage of his players’ skills." Bill Cowher also piled on the praise saying "Of all the coordinators that I’ve had work for me, Chan Gailey was, if not the best, one of the best, and as resourceful an offensive mind that I’ve been around" It will actually be a combination of the two mens praise that will make or break Gailey (and possibly Edwards) in 2008.

The Chiefs have had a reputation under Edwards of being to flat and predictable on offense, so that dynamic offense sounds like just what the Doctor ordered. That isn't a turn key fix though because the Chiefs don't have dynamic talent so Gailey is going to need to be resourceful in order to get the most out of his talent. Both Edwards and Cowher took time to mention his teaching ability. Which chould come in handy with the amount of young players they will need to step up in 2008.

As far as the draft the first real question will be what holes do we need filled. A lot of them, so much so that the Chiefs will be in a postion to draft the best player since it is most likely a position of need. One spot they wont need to fill is that of 2007 NFL sack leader Jared Allen. His contract is up this offseason, but the team has already said if they can't work out a new deal they will franchise tag him to keep him in Kansas City.

The Chiefs will pick between 3-5 depending on the results of coint toss that will be held prior to the combine. It will only half matter since the other two teams in the 3 way tie are Oakland and Atlanta. While Oakland and Kansas City could compete for some of the same prospects, Atlanta needs a quarterback a position both the Chiefs and Raiders aren't looking to draft at (though in my opinion the Chiefs are a lot more confident in their QB than I would be). This will all be solved if Jake Long(OT-Mich) makes it past the first two picks. Oakland is not about to repeat the Robert Gallery expirement with Long. Long, on the other hand, fits the Chiefs number one need. Without Willie Roaf and Will Shields, that offensive line needs a serious upgrade.

Everything changes if Long goes off the board in the first two picks, which is possible depending on who ends up with the #1, to some one looking to get Darren McFadden(RB-ARK). If Parcells is unable to move the first overall pick he is more likely to take a big man on either side of the ball. Either Jake Long, Chris Long(DE-VA) or Glenn Dorsey(DT-LSU). With the Rams at the second pick they would likely take one of the three left, they desperately need help on thier offnesive line but probably need defense even more. The Chiefs then would be looking at who ever remains between the two Longs(not related), Dorsey, and Mcfadden. If the Raiders select before them Mcfadden will be gone if not that will be their second choice after Long.

No matter what they do at the drafte expect the Herm Edwards on the hot seat talk early and often. He will most likely be coaching for his job next year.

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NBA Midseason recap (Eastern Conference)

Boston - I am not as impressed as I thought I would be. I know they are leading the NBA but it is a long season and the longer the season the more pronounced the lack of depth becomes an issue.

Detroit - Looks like they Pistons aren't quite ready to pass the Eastern conference over to the Celtics just yet. Which is a good thing becuase Flip Suanders is coaching for his job this year.

Orlando - Ladies and gentleman your up and comer in the east. Led by the emergence of Dwight Howard, the revival of Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglo. I am sure Seattle and Sacramento are glad to be rid of all that dead weight.

Cleveland - Speaking of up and comers I'll bet King James and Mike Brown wish it was a year ago. All these pieces can't seem to fit together and what do the Cavs do. Extend Mike Brown, I heard a lot of how this was an endorsement of Mike Brown because they must have cleared it with Lebron James. First off I hope that isn't how decisions are made, by running them through James. If it is I still don't by the endorsement. I am more likely to think that means James wont be there long. If he is leaving anyway who cares who runs that team.

Washington - As Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison have risen to the occasion and then some, since Gilbert Arenas went down with an injury. Now with his looming return the question becomes, whata boutthe fact they were winning a lot more often since Arenas went out.

Toronto - While they definately need to solve the point guard question. They have the entertainment question answered between breakout Jomario Moon's high energy act on the court and Chris Bosh's High comedy act off of it.

Atlanta -They're not there yet, they probably wont get there this year, but they are so young and so talented across the board. The future is as bright in Atlanta as it has been since Dominique left town

Indiana - Between O'neal making his mediocre presence felt in only about a third of the games played, and the fact that Jamal Tinsley can't seem to make it home before 3 in the morning. The only real bright spot has been how well Dunleavy has played in O'neals absence.

New Jersey - All of a sudden supposed headache the Jason Kidd missed a game with earlier this season has become a very real one due to the Nets poor play.

Chicago - First the players get the coach bounced (on christmas eve no less) then they decide a fellow teammate needs tohave his suspension extended. Dear (whoever is coaching the bulls by the time I hit post), please stop letting the inmates run the asylum

Charlotte - With the addition of Nazr Mohammed, looks like Jordan might finally be turning that losing as a manager trend around. Also Jason Richardson seems to be fitting in very well. Though that Emeka Okafor versus Dwight Howard comparison seems to be developing a Grand Canyon between the two of them.

Milwaukee - Don't worry at leat you guys are number one in China. Oh, whats that... Houston. Hey number two ain't bad

Philadelphia - Larry Brown is basically begging in public for a coaching gig. But he felt the need to specify that he was interested in caching the team he currently works for. Not a good sign.

New York & Miami - Who will win the don't finish dead last track meet.
Miami

Happy about that Romo-Simpson split... Not so fast Cowboy fan

Ok Magazine reported that Tony Romo called Jessica Simpson to let her know they should go back to being friends.
Sounds great, right Cowboy fan... Not so fast.

The Playoffs are n't coming through the door. That trains has come and gone.

Story time. stick with me there is a point.

See I have a friend, who's girlfriend at the time didn't like me ( I know it's hard to believe but that's another discussion). She made things hard for me (I felt) and I disliked her, and I was vocal about it. What does my friend do? he says to me "look she is a part of my life, and doesn't really affect you" adding"yeah, she is involved but that doesn't affect me or us really so just bear with it".

I think to myself "you know you're right". It really is his relationship and not mine. I will deal with my issues with it in the interest of his long term happiness.

What happens, they split up.

I don't think there is a Cowboy fan out there who would have resented sacrificing the playoffs for the relationship had they gotten married, or even made that second christmas together. Nobody says this or that is more important then your wife. But now she isn't your wife, she is some chick you dated for 3 months.

3 months!? You probably could have squeezed that into the offseason there Tony.

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Winter X Games

I really can't explain this to you, just watch it is literally addicting. I still watch clips of all the past X games that I have on my iPod.

Today is the opening day of the winter X games. The Games will open up with the snowmobile speed and style as well as the ski superpipe men’s final.

Two new features of the games this year are the fact that the X games are going green (not surpising with the number of granola lovers in Colorado). Much more significant to me is the fact it will be in HD. The complete TV schedule is here.

What to watch for

I personally love the Snowboard events but that is partially personal preferances I am a snowboarder.

Some of the snowmobiling events are new and tweaked so I can't wait to see how that play's out.

The Shaun White show, with all his over the top everything is gonna be great

Update on Ron Hunter coaching barefoot

Today, Jan. 24th, is the day that Head Coach Ron Hunter, of Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis, IuPuI will coach barefoot. I posted about this Jan 17th.

I wanted to bring this issue back to people's mind today, also I have few updates.

Hunter was on Mike and Mike this morning where he announced that Nine West had called him recently to donate 5200 shoes. It was nice to hear such gratitude and appreciation on his part as he acknowledged that this brought him to 30,000 shoes which is only 10,000 shy of his goal. He then appealed to Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic to go the rest of their show barefoot to show support. They then said they could do even better than that. They then brought on a representative from Converse who donated 15,000 shoes on the spot.

The big question at that point was whether or not Ron Hunter should go with the pedicure . Greenberg, and The Converse representative (a female) said yes, Mike Golic said No. What do you think, should a man who is going to be barefoot on national television get a Pedicure?

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Knoblauch in Hiding?

In what has to qualify as just plain wierd, Chuck Knoblauch is missing. Not missing exactly, I mean he isn't a 5-year old who wandered away from his mother.

According to ESPN Federal Authorities have been unable to locate him to serve him with a subpoena. The subpoena realtes to the Senate investigation od the Mitchell report.

Way to go with that third grade logic. If thay can't find you then you don't have to show up. Don't worry the Fed's love it when you have them doing extrawork and try to outsmart them. Way to best foot forward. Say Hi to Michael Vick for me.

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NBA Mid-Season recap (Western Conferance)

New Orleans -Chris Paul has managed to find the Tyson Chandler, we all expected him to be. As a duo the two have combined to more than double the next pair in ally-oops. Not the most solid stat but it does show Paul's direct involvement in Chandlers emergence .

Phoenix - I love to watch em play and that offense is fun, but I doubt the Suns sit down every year in the offseason and say "I really hope we entertain bloggers everywhere" No they are in it to win, and they really need to accept the fact that their system just wont take it all the way, and it isn't getting any better with age.

Dallas - Avery Johnson said last year they were spent by the time the playoffs cane around, and he wanted to pace himself. So far so good. Maybe mix in a pinch more rest (see:losses)

Denver - Not impressed there in 4th in the division. I am impressed they are there with the string of injuries.

Los Angeles Lakers - Everything was roses until Andrew Bynum went down. Now let's see which Kobe leads them through this stretch. GO GET CHRIS WEBBER. I don't think he is the cure-all that everyone seems to think he is but he is sure better than DJ Mbenga.

San Antonio - Every year they turn it on later and later. Seems like this might be the year it is to late.

Portland - Thanks to the addition of Greg Oden, Even with out Oden, Trailblazers are going to be a force in the west. How nice does this get when next year they add Oden into the mix.

Golden State - Ever since the return of Stephen Jackson , the Warriors have been rolling. Who knew all those Captain Jack jokes would fall so flat. Jackson has even had the good sense to defer the praine to Baron Davis, who is a headcase very emotional player

Utah - In need of spark for the team, the Jazz went out and signed... Kyle Korver?? Really, that is your big solution. Keep on trying. I love Jazz coach, Jerry Sloan, (if you find the opportunity, watch film of him playing. TOUGH) but you have to acknowledge the fact that he is not getting the potential from all the talent he has. The game may be past him.

Houston - I am not a Rocket(s) scientist. But even I can see simple math. Yao is a great player. T-Mac is a great player. T-mac and Yao are an average (I'm being generous) team. Trade T-mac, get what you can get and move on.

Sacramento - With all the injuries the team has suffered, the Kings have to be happy to be where they are. Now that Kevin Martin, Mike Bibby, and Ro Artest are back, thing are looking good. with a strong push, they are playoff bound. I also think they could get a good return on trading Beno Udrih in a PG point league.

LA Clippers - The most interesting thing for LA's step child is the developing drama between, owner Donald Sterling and Coach Mike Dunleavy. Sterling all of sudden decided that after 20+ years of mediocrity now he needs a winner and if Dnleavy can't do it then there will be changes. Really you have been in the bottom of the NBA for my entire life and now that you have two major players in Elton Brand and Shaun Lvingston out for the year and Sam Cassell missing a few weeks with back problems. Now he expects success. Stering, go back to sleep.

Memphis - Pau Gasol is starting to play the pre-season hype predicted. Instead of like he has the last few years. At this point it is to little to late. When you are supposed to be one of the top players in the league, you shouldn't get outplayed by a guy on your own team. Rudy Gay is talented but he shouldn't be leading your team.

Seattle - Kevin Durant will be really exciting to watch. As he fills out a little to help his defense he will be a real force. Notice all these statement are future tense, see you next year Sonics.

Minnesota - Whew, thankfully you unloaded all the Kevin Garnett baggage. Seriously, does Kevin Mchale get another ring if the Celtics win.

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Cowboys WR Terry Glenn needs surgery... Again

Lost under the noise of the Terell Owens extension with the Dallas Cowboys, was the fact that Terry Glen will require surgery once again.

After missing pretty much all of 2008, Glenn made a small attempt at a comback during the regular season finale against the Redskins. This played out in a way that can only be described as disappointing.

While this isn't a huge concern due to the fact that the Dallas Cowboys receivers seemed to step up as the year progressed. At least until the last few games when the entire franchise under performed.

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Dodgers Get A Head Start on the Rest of Baseball

Rather than waiting for their typical post all-star game collapse, the Dodgers are already experiencing unexpected losses.

Due to undisclosed family issues, Don Mattingly is taking a reduced role with Los Angeles this season. He had been previously announced as the hitting coach, a position which will now be filled by Triple-A hitting coach Mike Easler. Don Mattingly will now hold the exceptionally vague title of Special Assignment Coach.

Seriously if you know what that is feel free to let me know because I have no idea.

Full story

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Why Philip Rivers playing was a mistake

While much of the world, myself included, heaped praise on Philip Rivers. For his gutly performance. Rivers had arthroscopic knee surgery Monday following the divisional playoffs. He took the stop gap measure in order to be able to get on the field for the conference championship against eventual AFC Champion Patriots. While I still feel as strongly as I did about the impressiveness of Rivers actions, A cooling off period to let the emotion of the thing fade has led me to something not so impressive. The San Diego Chargers coaching and medical staff.

Rivers will now have to go through reconstructive knee surgery. They will either use a cadavers ligament or one from his hamstring. This is no small task. While the surgery itself has what the medical community would describe as a high success rate. As far as football performance it isn’t so high. The American Journal of sports medicine put out a study of NFL players who went through the same injury, may of whom did not require the extent of surgery that Rivers will need. What result did they find...

Nearly four fifths of National Football League running backs and wide receivers
who sustain an anterior cruciate ligament injury return to play in a game. On
return to competition, player performance of injured players is reduced by one
third.

I understand a players desire to play. I even admire it. What I do not admire is Norv Turner being crystal clear on the fact that his job hinges on success in the playoffs. Him allowing Rivers to take the steps he did are questionable at best. At worst it will cost Turner his job and Rivers his career down the road.

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More of the packers dedicated Bikini Girls

If you want to see more of the True Fans(and raving lunatics), the Bikini girls, that I mentioned earler this week. Maxim has you covered

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Is Holmgrens return better than Dungy's?

Mike Holmgren announced today that he will return as the head coach of the Seattle Seahawks. He also made it very clear that this will be his final year. I have to wonder what that means for Shaun Alexander. Holmgren had said even before announcing his return that during the offseason Seattle’s running game would require “a major offseason fix”.

Holmgrens announcement followed a similar one made by Tony Dungy of the Indianapolis Colts. Dungy held a press conference Monday afternoon announcing he has decided to stay on and coach the team. Dungy mentioned the fact he takes a week at the end of each season to decide if he will return. He was surprised by the attention it drew this year. He also made no statements regarding next year other than the fact he plans to take the same week for decision making a year from now.

Both men explained the facts of their respective future plans. They told the truth and should have done nothing different. There is however a key difference in the two scenarios. The real difference lies in next years plans. Seattle finds itself in a win won for the Gipper scenario. Holmgren has , intentionally or not, created a Ra Ra scenario that players can rally around. Dungy and the Colts will face questions from around mid season on regarding whether or not the coach will remain and how each win and loss in the week will affect the outcome of Dungy’s possible decision.

Don’t misunderstand me, both teams are lucky to have these two men back. I just think the facts are what they are and happen to favor Seattle. Thankfully for Indianapolis talent still seems to favor them.


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Ladanian Tomlinson responds to Deion

Ladanian Tomlinson responded to Deion Sanders comments questioning the fact LT missed all but a handful of plays in the Chargers loss to New England. LT basically said “you weren’t a running back in this league and don’t know what it’s like.”

LT is right, Deion didn’t play running back. But now does ESPN have to fire half of the talking heads? A lot of them have not played the sport they are commenting on, or any sport professionally for that matter. I don’t know if I agree with Deion or not. But I definitely think he is paid to put his opinion out there, I would be disappointed if he didn’t.

As for LT playing or not playing, I think that is his call. But he knew more about Rivers situation (watch for my post on Rivers playing) than we did. If he didn’t think the comparisons would be there, I have to call that just plain naive.

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Superbowl Preview - New England Patriots

Posted Monday Jan 21:
I was going to roll out a paragraph or two about Tom Brady’s demeanor, in my piece on the New England Patriots. Looks like we might have an explanation. You know I go to TMZ for my sports news. And ESPN reports the entertainment gossip sight has a video of Tom Brady in a walking cast on Monday.

Posted Monday Jan 22:
So I posted about the walking boot TMZ caught Brady in yesterday. Now they have a picture of him in cowboy boots .All of my cowboy friends (count: 00) have told me that if he can hit a club in those boots, he ain't hurt that bad.

The patriots are masters of distraction. Actually they are masters at dealing with it. Make no mistake Randy Moss is part of that Patriot philosophy. The legal issues coinciding with his sub-par performance in the last two weeks are not actually related. Those games weren’t just against the Jaguars and Chargers. They were against Antonio Cromartie and Resheen Mathis; 6’2’’, 203 and 6’1’’, 200, respectively, versus Moss’s 6’4’’, 210. In the NY Giants he will match up against Aaron Ross 6’0 193 and Cory Webster 6’0’’ 203. Obviously Webster is close to Mathis but that inch is a big deal, and Webster is not nearly the athlete that Mathis is. Randy Moss has waited his whole career for this and he will deliver.

The Patriots defense will not want to here this. Unfortunately, the reality is, a few of these guys are making their last run at a championship. they probably know they need to get it done now, not to say their age is going to hurt them in this game , I don’t think it will. Belichick always has a scheme put together to make them very effective against the strengths of the other team.

It is interesting to note though that against the teams they have faced twice this year the Patriots have not had the results I expected. I figured with a mastermind like Belichick familiarity would breed greater success, however it was a mixed bag. Against the Jets the margin of victory dropped by two touchdowns in the second meeting, against Miami they were even, winning by twenty-one points each time. Against the Bills they saw a 15 point increase in the second game. No real definitive proof to be gained from that. I also think that while Coughlin doesn’t get the same press as Belichick (some of which I am sure Coughlin is glad to miss) I have some confidence in the him, knowing that he get’s the same two weeks as Belichick, in order to prepare.

One of the interesting angles to the meeting of the minds as far as the coaches go is the fact that Belichick and Coughlin are both old school Parcells disciples. Nothing really important but if you needed one more storyline to think about there you are.

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Canadians ask Tom Brady "what’s that all aboot?"

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Tom Brady walks into a bar an apartment building and the bartender supermodel says "why the big boot?"

Ok, the bad jokes are over

So I posted about the walking boot TMZ caught Brady in yesterday. Now they have a picture of him in cowboy boots.

All of my cowboy friends (count:0) have told me that if he can hit a club in those boots, he ain't hurt that bad.

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Al Davis seen crying in his Geritol

The Tampa Bay Bucs gave Jon Gruden a 3-year extension that will take him through 2011. You have to wonder what Raiders Owner, Al Davis, thinks every time he sees Gruden.

Davis who is notoriously cheap couldn’t keep Gruden who he consistently gave win or you’re out ultimatums. All the while paying him in the neighborhood of 1 million a year. Gruden left the Raiders to go to Tampa Bay who he promptly led to a super bowl victory over his team Davis has torn through 4 coaches in 5 years since letting Gruden leave.

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Albert Pujols takes his ball and goes home

According to an ESPN report Pujols was upset that A St. Louis television station, KTVI, had reported that he was a part of the Mitchell report in error. Pujols had the cameraman and reporter removed from a press conference Monday

Seriously!?, are you a 5-year-old. How long do you get put in the corner for throwing a tantrum like that. Why didn't you just shout "I am taking my ball, and going home" that's how the little kids did it in my nieghborhood, I mean until they hit about 7 and grew up.

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New York Jets Offseason

The Jets are in a good situation. The Jets are in a good situation. The Jets are in a good situation. Just keep saying it and it’ll start feeling true. Ok nothing is good, but we can find one good thing about that. The Jets can pretty much draft the best player on the board every time they come up, because they need to get better everywhere.

This extends to the sideline where the Jets recently hired Bill Callahan. I already posted about how impressed I am not by this move, so I wont go to far into it here.

I know the knee jerk reaction is to attack the quarterback spot on the Jets roster. They have a good starting quarterback, and they have a knowledgeable veteran to mentor and to back up if necessary. They need to accept the facts and put both guys in their appropriate place and stick with it. The musical spot under center game isn’t a road to success. Kellen Clemens is a good quarterback he just needs some time to build experience and confidence that he wont be sitting after the first pick. I love Chad Pennington, I do. But he just has no push in that shoulder anymore. As I watched him this last year, he is still a good quarterback. You can watch him make the right decision, use good mechanics, throw on time. Then as the ball comes out it looks like an 8-year-old girl threw it.

The Offensive line will see three starters return, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Nick Mangold and Brandon Moore, that is good, there performance this year was not. The should improve with the time together. My personal belief is that no matter the talent compiled on an offensive line, nothing is as important as time together building chemistry, timing, and communication. As far as replacing Adrian Clarke and Anthony Clement who both showed no potential for improving on their sub-par performance, the Jets will first look to free agency. Alan Faneca would be my first choice (I can’t believe the Steelers didn’t do something to keep him) I would then look at Max Starks and Floyd Womack

The other side of the line looks a little better. The linebacking core of the Jets 3-4 defense looks strong. They do need to shore up the 3 down lineman. They will not find much help in free agency on this one. Albert Haynesworth will likely be resigned by Tennessee, Terell Suggs is a little more likely to hit the Free Agency pool. If that happens though it will be because he doesn’t see Baltimore as a likely winner. With that in mind, New York (at least in Green) doesn’t seem like an upgrade. With those two out of the picture they are likely to look to the draft for these spots.

As far as the Corner position, I love Darelle Revis, but his strength just puts more and more focus on the fact that they don’t have anyone worth mentioning on the other side. The other team can pretty much attack opposite Revis unless they look to get someone the other team at least has to respect.

As for the draft, Vernon Gholston (DE-OSU) isn’t a perfect fit for the 3-4 defense. He was a Defensive End in college, but he could transfer to OLB in the Jets scheme. On the second round they could go with Jack Ikegwuonu (CB-WIS) or Brandon Flowers (CB-VA Tech) if they are looking to help Revis. If they are unable to find help for the Offensive line in free agency they may use the second round to look at Carl Nicks (OT-NEB) and Chris Williams (OT-Vandy)

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