There is plenty of great stuff happening this time of year, so let’s look at some quick hits today and see what’s going on:
The Game’s Quick Hits
Preview: #14 Georgia Tech (2-0) vs. #20 Miami, FL (1-0) – For the second consecutive week, Georgia Tech gets featured in the Thursday night primetime game. They are taking a trip down to visit Miami, who are coming off a bye week after their impressive opening week win over Florida State. In that game, QB Jacory Harris seemed to grow up and turn into a star right before everyone’s eyes. He looked extremely poised and much better than at any point last season. The Hurricanes are slowly rebuilding and looking more like the dominant teams from the ‘90s. The whole team is built on speed and they look like a dangerous threat. Georgia Tech did not look as good last week as they blew a 24-0 lead against Clemson, but did find a way to pull out a 30-27 victory. The key for Tech is establishing the running game and consistently moving the ball with it all game. When Clemson forced Georgia Tech to pass last week, the Yellow Jackets were miserable. QB Josh Nesbitt was horrible as he only could complete 3 of 14 passes. I am thinking that Miami’s defense is good enough and fast enough to hold Georgia Tech’s running game in check. They also looked explosive on offense against Florida State and I would expect Harris and the rest of the offensive unit to exploit the holes that Clemson found in Georgia Tech’s defense. This is a huge game in the ACC Coastal Division and the winner will get a leg up in the division. The division features 4 ranked teams, so this game is a critical one. I expect Miami to rise to the occasion at home and pull off a win. I think they have slightly better talent than Georgia Tech and they also have had longer to prepare for this game. From what I have seen on the field so far this year, the Hurricanes just look like a better team.
- On Tuesday it was reported that TNA wrestling’s Kurt Angle was found not guilty of violating an ex-girlfriend's order of protection, and charges of possessing human growth hormone and driving with a suspended license were dropped. He still faces an assault charge, however. Angle’s attorney was able to prove in court that he had a legal prescription for the drug Hygetropin and apparently his claim that he was driving around looking for a hotel as opposed to stalking his ex-girlfriend was believed by the judge. Well I am glad to see Angle beat these charges if he did indeed not do anything wrong. We have all read the stories about Angle potentially being addicted to pain pills and how he works himself to the bone and has put himself in danger because of the physical demands of professional wrestling. Some of these stories could be overblown and I would like to think that Angle is taking care of himself and not heading down a dangerous path. Way too many wrestlers have passed away at a young age and many have speculated that Kurt Angle could eventually fall into that category. I sincerely hope that will not be the case. TNA caught a huge break here as it would not look very good on them if their World Champion was found guilty of these charges. I will hold out judgment on the assault charges, but I could find that as being believable. Angle is an extremely intense individual from most accounts, so I think he might be capable of losing his cool out of the ring. But he will have his day in court on those charges and we’ll just have to see what happens.
- The NFL handed down a fairly hefty fine to the New York Jets, general manager Mike Tannenbaum, and former head coach Eric Mangini for failing to report QB Brett Favre’s biceps injury last season. The league hit the Jets organization with a $75,000 fine and Tannenbaum and Mangini with a $25,000 fine each. By doing this, the NFL is sending a clear message that failing to report injuries will not be tolerated. It seems to me that Mangini’s “secrets” are not paying off too well. I have to agree with these fines because you need to keep the competitive balance of the league in order and it is a requirement of every team to report injuries, pure and simple. Favre is walking away unscathed in all this, but I have to say that if he had any hand in trying to tell the Jets not to report his injury, then I think he should reimburse Mangini and Tannenbaum for the fine. That seems like the fair thing to do if he had any part of all this.
- Reports indicate that the rising star linebacker of the New England Patriots, Jerod Mayo, will be out about 6-8 weeks after spraining the MCL in his right knee. There was fear that Mayo’s injury was season ending, but that does not appear to be the case. This is another big injury blow to be added to the list after the 1st week of season. New England’s defense was already struggling to improve and the injury to Mayo does not help. After the departures of Mike Vrabel and Tedy Bruschi, Mayo has been calling more defensive signals and his significance to the defense has only increased. His injury will hurt the team and now it might be that much easier for opponents to put points on the board against the Patriots. New England faces a stiff test this week as they travel to New York to play the Jets. They might catch a break facing a rookie quarterback in Mark Sanchez, but the Patriots could be ripe for an upset if they do not play better than they did against Buffalo.
- In other injury news, Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid said that QB Donovan McNabb is making progress in regards to his injured ribs, but his status for this Sunday against the Saints is still “iffy”. McNabb did not practice yesterday and QB Kevin Kolb worked with the first team. Reid made it clear that Kolb will start and newly acquired QB Jeff Garcia will back him up. If McNabb starts, Kolb will be the backup and Garcia will be the emergency #3 QB. I am not sure how much “progress” McNabb is making, but if he is able to play, the Eagles might need him to win a shootout with the Saints…It was also reported that Kansas City Chiefs QB Matt Cassel was looking better in practice and running more briskly. There is still hope that he will play on Sunday against the Raiders, but there has been no official word from the team…
- This just in: Bears QB Jay Cutler was disappointed with his performance against the Packers on Sunday and he vows to do better this week against the Steelers. Wow, really? Well gee Jay, you couldn’t do much worse. Even without Troy Polamalu in the lineup, things will not be any easier for Cutler when the Steelers come to town. Good luck…
- Ohio State coach Jim Tressel is catching flack from all sides for his conservative play calling in the wake of the Buckeyes’ 18-15 loss to USC. It was another failure for Tressel and Ohio State in a high profile game and fans are starting to get irritated and are suggesting that Tressel give up on calling the plays. Tressel’s philosophy is basically built on playing for field position, avoiding turnovers at all cost and relying on defense and special teams to win the game. This was evident in the USC game as he elected to kick a field goal on 4th and goal from the USC 1-yard line early in the 2nd quarter, punted on a 4th and 1 from the USC 45 in the 3rd quarter, and punted again in the 4th quarter instead of trying a long field goal attempt. Immediately, I am having images of Herman Edwards in my head and he’s yelling “HELLO! You play to win the game!” I think that the criticism is warranted because Ohio State definitely was too conservation against USC. Tressel has a dynamic quarterback in Terrell Pryor, yet he doesn’t let Pryor run around as much as he should to try and create plays. Pryor is not a pure pocket passer and he is better when he’s able to scramble and create. Just trying to run, run, run and then punt to protect a slim lead is not that great of a strategy. Without question, Tressel has a long track record of success and should not be in danger of being fired or anything. But at some point, he is going to have to find a way to win these big games because the fans, media, and the school itself will only be able to put up with the disappointments for so long.
- Floyd “Money” Mayweather made some waves yesterday by claiming his race is a factor in how he is viewed. He lashed out at his perceived unfair treatment from the public and the media by saying, "If you're rich, you're a rich n-----. If you're poor, you're a poor n----. If you're smart, you're a smart n-----. At the end of the day, they still look at me as a n-----." Mayweather also went on to say that if he was white, he would be the biggest athlete in America. Sorry Floyd, but you got this one wrong. It is not your race that is holding you back, it is your attitude and the way you carry yourself. I will simply offer up Tiger Woods as an example. Tiger is one of the biggest sports figures in America and the world and he is black. So does everyone view Tiger Woods as a n-----? No, they don’t. And that is because Tiger Woods carries himself with dignity and respect and he’s not out acting like a fool. Now I know a part of boxing is being a showman to try and sell fights and Pay Per Views. But Mayweather goes beyond that with an arrogance and cockiness that turns people off. He claims that anything negative a guy like Oscar De La Hoya does gets swept under the rug and no one criticizes him. Well maybe that is because De La Hoya is respectful, gracious and doesn’t run his mouth all the time. And maybe that is because people like De La Hoya and Woods don’t have police investigating a shooting outside a skating rink and seizing handguns, ammunition and bulletproof vests from their home and cars, unlike Mr. Mayweather. People perceive you as a “n-----“ Floyd because you tend to act that way. You are free to live your life how you please and have whatever lifestyle you want. But everyone else is also entitled to their opinions about you and they don’t like what they see. If you want respect, you earn respect from your actions and how you carry yourself, it’s that simple.
- As of right now, the long time manager of the Atlanta Braves, Bobby Cox, is not committing to return to the team in 2010 for his 25th season. Cox was supposed to retire at the end of the 2008 season, but that did not happen. The criticism of Cox has increased in recent years as Atlanta stares at not making the playoffs for the 4th consecutive season. This is a far cry from the glory years of the team which included 14 straight National League East titles, five pennants and a World Series title. He says that he still loves the game and the competition and that it would be tough to walk away. Cox is currently 4th on the all-time wins list for managers with 2,403 entering Wednesday’s games. I have to say that at this point, Bobby Cox has earned the right to walk away from the game whenever he chooses. He is one of the greatest managers of all-time and will most likely get into the Hall of Fame. I used to love watching the Atlanta Braves teams of the 1990’s. They were an exciting group to watch and their standard of excellence was only matched by the Yankees during that period. Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz were just beasts on their pitching staff and they had stars in Dave Justice and the “Crime Dog” Fred McGriff who could put runs up on the board. It is amazing they did not win more World Series titles with those teams, but I am glad they got the one. Without that title, history would most likely paint those teams as a failure and the players as choke artists. It is a cruel fate that the early 1990’s Buffalo Bills could not escape. If Atlanta did not win a World Series, the Bills would have company as the greatest “losers” of all-time. I wish Cox well on whatever he decides. He is one of the greatest managers in MLB history and he will have a lasting legacy when he finally calls it quits.
- And finally, Linda McMahon has stepped down as the CEO of the WWE and has announced that she will be running for a U.S. Senate seat. Really? Does anyone really think she has a snowball’s chance in hell of winning? I am sure that Linda is a smart woman and a highly capable person, but as we all know, politics and political campaigning is all about mudslinging and tearing the other person down. What is going to happen when her opponents try to dig into Vince McMahon’s closet and paint Linda as just part of some sideshow with wrestlers? Fair or not, I don’t see he standing much of a chance in all this and I don’t think it is a smart move.
Showing posts with label patriots. Show all posts
Showing posts with label patriots. Show all posts
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
WWE Breaking Point Review
WWE Breaking Point occurred on Sunday night and it seems like it was an interesting show. During football season, WWE PPVs take a back seat around here. So, my thoughts will be based only on reports of the show I have read and I will be comparing my predictions to what actually happened. If anyone who saw the show live wants to correct me on anything, please feel free to leave a comment. Let’s get into it:
WWE Unified Tag Team Championship
Jericho and Big Show (c) vs. MVP and Mark Henry
My prediction: Jericho and Show win and retain
Actual result: Jericho and Show retain via pinfall
As I predicted and expected, Chris Jericho and the Big Show get the win in this match and continue their tag team championship reign. It just did not make any sort of sense to throw the belts on a hastily made team of MVP and Mark Henry. Reports indicate that this match had some good action in it. You got the standard, fast paced chain wrestling from Jericho and MVP, while Show and Henry slugged it out with their power moves. MVP played the “face in peril” until he could make a hot tag to Henry. Henry was able to dominate and Jericho avoided losing the titles by getting a foot on the ropes. The finish once again saw Big Show hitting a knockout punch on Henry and Jericho scored the pinfall to retain. This was the correct finish in my mind, but I still have no idea what the WWE plans to do here. Having Jericho and Show dominate for a long period can be good, as long as they drop the belts to a team who could use the help. I still say Legacy or the Hart Dynasty should beat them and that would cement either team as serious players. I wonder how long it will be before we get tension between Jericho and Show and the team starts to crumble.
WWE United States Championship
Kofi Kingston (c) vs. The Miz
My Prediction: I stated via Twitter that I was pulling for Miz, but expected a Kofi victory to extend this feud
Actual result: Kingston retains via pinfall
This match was a late addition to the PPV and pretty much replaced the Intercontinental Title match between John Morrison and Dolph Ziggler. By all accounts, this match delivered and it was very good. From what I read, the action was pretty fast paced throughout the match and it was filled with counters and reversals. Both Kofi and Miz looked very even and the match could have gone either way. In the end, Kofi connected with the Trouble in Paradise to retain the U.S. Title. I am fine with this result for the time being and I expected it. I love Miz’s arrogant and cocky character and he has really developed in a solid performer. In my estimation, he should get a run with the U.S. Title in the near future and I am hoping this feud will continue. Miz did the job and was John Cena’s bitch, so I don’t see how he can come up short here. If he continues to lose to Kingston and does not get the title, Miz will look very weak and will be stuck in mid-card jobber hell. Kingston has done a really good job with the U.S. Title and I think he should eventually lose to Miz and have a few good rematches before they both more onto new challengers.
Submissions Count Anywhere
Legacy vs. DX
My prediction: Legacy
Actual result: Legacy via submission on Michaels
I could not be more thrilled when I read the result of this match. After thinking and evaluating things, I came to the conclusion that Rhodes and Dibiase could not afford to lose this match and I am happy WWE creative seems to have agreed. Triple H and Shawn Michaels are bulletproof and they could afford the loss. A win over Legacy would have only buried two potential stars and it would have been stupid. Everything I have read indicates that this was a damn good match. The action spilled out of the ring and all over the arena. They fought in the stands, in the arena concourse, backstage, you name it. Obviously, both teams tried to kill each other and Legacy actually was much more effective. After going back and forth for a long while, Rhodes and Dibiase used the help of a cooler and a sick chair shot to knock out Triple H backstage. Once they got back into the ring, Shawn Michaels did a valiant job of trying to fight off Legacy, but he was not able to overcome the 2 on 1 disadvantage. Michaels eventually tapped out to a combination of a figure-four leg lock on the ring post by Rhodes and a Million Dollar Dream by Dibiase before Triple H could get back to the ring to make the save. It seems like Legacy finally was allowed to look like a real threat and they came out looking like stars in this match. I am pleasantly surprised at this outcome and hope that Rhodes and Dibiase continue to be booked strong. I don’t think they will ever become megastars, but they have the chance to be solid main event level talent if they are handled correctly. I have a sneaking suspicion though that this feud will continue and I am fearful that Legacy will be destroyed by DX at the Hell in a Cell PPV, which would very much hurt the momentum they got from this match.
Singapore Cane Match
Kane vs. The Great Khali
My prediction: The Great Khali
Actual result: Kane via pinfall
Well I don’t mind being wrong with this prediction. Although, it saddens me this could indicate the feud might continue. As you would expect, this was a very ugly match. The Montreal crowd started up a boring chant in the middle of it, so there is all you need to know. Kane and Khali apparently stumbled through the match, hitting each other with the canes a few times and trying to pull off some spots with them. Runjin Singh eventually got involved again by hitting Kane with a cane, which only angered the Big Red Machine and made him harass Singh. As Khali checked on Runjin, Kane was able to drop Khali neck-first on the ropes and then hit a chokeslam for the win. I have no more patience for this feud and it is going nowhere. Again, since Khali is playing the face in this feud, standard booking says that he comes out on top in the end. So sadly, we might have to be tortured with more matches between these two. I am not sure what else either Kane or Khali could be doing, but this feud is just boring and uninspiring.
*Special note: After this match, CM Punk was given some interview time and he actually brought up the fact that Jeff Hardy got arrested! I am surprised the WWE even touched that subject, but you can’t deny that it is a brilliant heel move for Punk to do.
ECW Championship
Christian (c) vs. William Regal
My prediction: William Regal wins ECW title
Actual result: Christian retains via pinfall
Well the swerve happened before this match even took place as ECW GM Tiffany banned Ezekiel Jackson and Vladimir Kozlov from ringside. Well if I knew that before the PPV, I may have had different thoughts about the result of the match. I expected Regal to steal the title with the help of Jackson and Kozlov, but with them being banned from ringside, it greatly increased the odds of Christian retaining and that is exactly what happened. As you would expect, the reports indicate that this was a very solid match. Both Christian and Regal are very skilled wrestlers and they seem to have delivered a good match. Christian had the Killswitch blocked three separate times before he was finally able to hit it for the win. Now, I have no idea what will be going on in ECW. I really thought that Regal would win and Christian would have to fight through the “Ruthless Roundtable” to try and get the title back. But at this point, Regal is starting to look like a chump and I don’t see how he should be in line for yet another title match. If Kozlov or Jackson step in now, that is pretty logical and could work. A title win for either one would definitely elevate that person to a new level.
“I Quit” Match for the WWE Championship
Randy Orton (c) vs. John Cena
My prediction: John Cena wins WWE Title
Actual result: John Cena wins WWE Title
Surprise, surprise, surprise…what a shocker. I said there was no way in hell John Cena would lose this match and say “I quit” and I was dead on. Cena’s whole persona is based on a never quit, never give up attitude so this result seemed to be a foregone conclusion. The way the match seems to have gone down is pretty bad and was typical Cena booking. From what I gather, Orton spent about 10-15 minutes absolutely beating the hell out of Cena. He abused him with steel steps and then pulled out a pair of handcuffs. Orton placed the key to the cuffs around his neck and then proceeded to cuff Cena to the ropes, to the turnbuckle, and even to himself with Cena’s hands behind his back. Orton destroyed Cena with a Singapore cane and chair shots. However, Cena did not quit and was eventually able to wrestle the key away from Orton and then cuffed himself to Orton directly. After a little more action, Cena worked Orton into the STFU and Orton quickly tapped. WHAT THE HELL?!? I am seriously sick and tired of John Cena playing Superman and Hulk Hogan, version 2.0. The act is so very worn out and I am tired of it. I don’t need Cena’s toughness and never give up attitude continually shoved down my throat. We get the point already. I have no problem with Cena winning the belt, but I am to the point where the booking of his matches is just insulting. The STFU is treated as the most dangerous move on Earth and John Cena can just survive anything. Orton will obviously get his rematch, but unfortunately Cena will win it and we will be subjected to a lengthy title reign and more of this crap. I try not to complain to this extent with what the WWE does, but I am just totally tired of John Cena.
Submission Match for the World Heavyweight Title
CM Punk (c) vs. The Undertaker
My prediction: Somehow, someway CM Punk retains
Actual result: CM Punk retains via Montreal Screwjob, Version 2.0
Well I said that I didn’t know how the WWE would do it, but CM Punk would not be losing the title this soon. I was right on this, but unfortunately, the WWE had to go the cheap and cheesy route and pull out another “Montreal Screwjob”. Punk and Taker put on a pretty good match that was cruising along just fine until Taker tried to hit Punk with a chokeslam. Punk countered with a roundhouse kick that was then countered into Taker’s Hell’s Gate submission hold. Punk quickly tapped out and we were led to believe that the Undertaker was the new World Heavyweight Champion…that is until Smackdown GM Teddy Long came out and reminded us all that Vicky Guerrero had the move banned and that decision has not been reversed. So the win did not count and the match had to continue. Soon after the restart, Punk got Taker in the Anaconda Vice. Suddenly, the bell rang, but the Undertaker did not submit. Punk and the referee quickly left the ring and joined Teddy Long on the entrance ramp. So the fix was in and we had to relive the Montreal Screwjob 12 years later. While I applaud the WWE for continuity with the Hell’s Gate submission being banned, this is just not a good move. It seems extremely stupid and foolish to do. I think it is insulting to the fans and there was no reason for it. The WWE painted themselves into a corner with this match stipulation and this is the price we pay. I don’t think the outcome does anything for CM Punk and he deserved something better to escape with the title. I really can’t say what that might have been, but this was dumb. To look on the bright side though, the build toward a rematch at the Hell in a Cell PPV should be pretty good and that main event match will hopefully be strong.
The Game’s Quick Hits
Patriots 25, Bills 24 – This turned out to be a surprisingly competitive game to open up the 40th season of Monday Night Football and the Patriots ended up having to survive and steal a victory in the final minutes. After being in disarray on the offensive side of the ball and firing their offensive coordinator in the preseason, most people assumed that the Patriots would easily handle the Bills in this game. But Buffalo came to play and their defense played well in the 1st half. They got really good pressure on Patriots QB Tom Brady and held the running game in check. Brady was not particularly sharp early on and he missed some throws. He did engineer one good scoring drive for a TD and had another bog down right before halftime. The Bills did not do much better on offense, but they did get a 26-yard interception return for a TD from Aaron Schobel after Brady poorly executed a screen pass. This helped the Bills take a 14-10 lead into the half.
Things did not get much better for the Patriots in the 2nd half. They dominated in terms of time of possession and they were able to move the ball with two long drives, but one ended in a turnover on downs and the other in a field goal. Brady looked passive and tentative in many situations and things were not clicking. The Bills were only slightly better until there was about 10 minutes left in the game. QB Trent Edwards was able to engineer a long scoring drive which ended in a 10-yard TD pass to RB Fred Jackson. This gave the Bills a 24-13 lead with just over 5 minutes left and it looked like Buffalo was going to pull an amazing upset. But then, the Patriots turned back into the Patriots. Brady got the hurry up offensive going and he easily drove New England down the field and threw an 18-yard TD pass to TE Benjamin Watson to pull the score to 24-19 after a failed 2-point conversion. Then, the Patriots got the break they needed when Buffalo’s Leodis McKelvin elected not to take a touchback on the kickoff and then proceeded to fumble the ball away. It only took Brady 3 plays to hit Watson again with a 16-yard TD pass to give the Patriots a crazy 25-24 come-from-behind win.
So in the final analysis, the Patriots may not be as good as everyone thought and the Bills might not be as bad as everyone thought. You could attribute the poor performance to opening game jitters, but the Patriots’ defense did have some holes that can be exploited as the year goes along. But this is what good teams do. They find a way to win games even when they do not play their best. I do expect Brady and the rest of the offense to round into form though and they should be fine in the long run. Considering how bad Buffalo looked in the preseason, this was an excellent performance. The no-huddle offense actually did some good things, but Trent Edwards needs to get better and take more shots down the field. The defense will also have to play this well in subsequent weeks to give the Bills any chance to win some ball games.
Chargers 24, Raiders 20 – In the final game of week 1, we got another strange game and a shocking performance from the Oakland Raiders. Just like the Bills, the Raiders looked bad in the preseason and no one expected them to really give the Chargers a game tonight. But Oakland came out rolling and was able to dominate the line of scrimmage with their offensive line. They were able to run the ball effectively on offense and their defense was surprisingly stout as they held Chargers QB Philip Rivers and RB LaDainian Tomlinson in check. Richard Seymour looked great and delivered an immediate impact on defense for the Raiders. If not for a few mistakes, a near miss of a TD catch late in the 2nd quarter, and some bad coverage on kickoff returns against RB Darren Sproles, the Raiders could have had a 14-7 lead at halftime. Instead, San Diego was lucky to go into the half with a 10-10 tie. Things remained ugly as both teams struggled on offense to start the 3rd quarter and both defenses were in firm control, but it was clear the Raiders continued to look better than the Chargers. Things finally heated up in the 4th quarter as the teams traded touchdowns and the lead. Rivers hit WR Vincent Jackson with a 15-yard TD pass to put the Chargers up 17-13. Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell then responded with a beautiful 57-yard touchdown pass to WR Louis Murphy on a 4th-and-15 to give Oakland the lead back. But Rivers and the Chargers had the final say as they drove down the field and Sproles scored on a 5-yard run to give San Diego a 24-20 win. Once again, good teams find a way to win games. This win will now be a good confidence booster for San Diego and it should be one hell of a game against the Ravens this Sunday. The Raiders look like they are buying into Coach Tom Cable’s philosophy and are playing better fundamental football. They actually could win a few more games than expected this season.
Monday Night RAWind: I thought the WWE was able to put on a pretty good show last night, but some things left a great deal to be desired. The show opened with Batista coming out, still in an arm brace, to make a “career altering announcement”. He stated that he was there to tell everyone goodbye, but before Batista was able to say much more, Randy Orton came out to the ring. Orton mocked Batista and claimed that he was retiring because he wanted to get away from Randy Orton. This seemed to amuse Batista, who then swerved everyone by pulling off the arm brace and attacking Orton. He then told everyone that he was saying goodbye to Raw because he was going to Smackdown. He finished off the opening segment by saying that tonight’s guest host, Trish Stratus, gave him one final match on Raw: a no holds barred match with Orton.
I was pretty excited for the show after this segment, but that turned into major disappointment as we got to the main event. Looking at the time, I could see that the match would be short and it was. Batista basically threw Orton around the announce table a bit and then took advantage of John Cena coming out and throwing Orton back in the ring as he tried to run away. He hit a quick Batista Bomb and the match was over. So you mean to tell me that after a man injures you and puts you out for 3 months and costs you your title that you are happy coming back and winning a meaningless match before switching shows? Will someone tell how the hell that makes sense? I could give it a pass if Orton and Batista had a long, kick ass match and Batista ended up destroying Orton, but this type of stuff is crap. Batista looks like a chump as far as I’m concerned and now he will be going to Smackdown to try and ruin CM Punk. I can dream that Punk will go over Batista, but I know better and I expect Batista to make Punk his bitch in the near future and that is sad. I am tired of Batista at this point, at least the face version of “The Animal”. If they turned him heel and allowed him to be a ruthless badass, I could be interested again. But like John Cena, Batista is stale and not that entertaining anymore.
Luckily though, there were some other good things to be found on Raw. The 10 pm main event featured Ted Dibiase against Shawn Michaels. Legacy cut a pretty effective promo before the match where they put themselves over as being the only people to make DX tap out. This was a good move and Rhodes and Dibiase are starting to look better out there. Michaels and Dibiase had a good match that ended in a DQ when Rhodes interfered and then all hell broke loose. DX and Legacy brawled around the ringside area and it was later announced that the teams would face each other in Hell in a Cell at the next PPV (to go along with Orton’s rematch against Cena which was also announced). So there is confirmation of my fear that Legacy will just get destroyed and set back.
We also saw a tag team match between Kofi Kingston and Primo against The Miz and Jack Swagger. It was short, but the most important development is that The Miz stole Kofi’s United States Title belt and walked out with it. So it seems this feud will indeed continue. In other action, Alicia Fox defeated Gail Kim to earn a shot at the Divas Championship against Mickie James. Now why in the hell is Alicia Fox getting a push? That makes no sense to me and she should not be getting anywhere near that belt. I think Beth Phoenix should be challenging James for it, but at least Beth did get a good spot on the card last night. She got in Trish’s face about the #1 contender’s match and Chris Jericho made an appearance as well. This led to a tag team match between Stratus and MVP and Phoenix and Jericho. The Big Show and Mark Henry got involved and it became a 6 person tag. In the end, Trish showed that she still has it in the ring and she was able to pin Beth for the victory. All in all, Trish was a good guest host and this edition of Raw was passable.
- The injury bug bit the Chicago Bears particularly hard on Sunday night as LB Brian Urlacher dislocated his wrist. He was forced to undergo surgery for the injury and he will be out for the rest of the season. This is terrible news for the Bears and they will take a big hit on defense. Urlacher is the heart and soul of the Bears’ defense and the unquestioned leader of the team. He is responsible for being the coordinator out on the field and he communicates what the team is doing to everyone else. And beyond that, he is just a ferocious player and can dominate a game. Chicago has enough playmakers and talent on the defensive side of the ball to still be a good unit overall, but they will not be as good without Urlacher. This is the exact same situation that the Pittsburgh Steelers face when you take Troy Polamalu out of their defense. I expect the Bears to still be tough to score on, but now it becomes a little easier for everyone to score points on them. Through the course of the season, this could be the difference between making the playoffs and coming up a game short. Chicago is already behind the Vikings and Packers and things do not look that good without Urlacher. The Bears have already been talking to free agent and former Buccaneers LB Derrick Brooks, but it looks like they will not be signing him at this time. Brooks knows the defensive scheme that Chicago runs, but at his advanced age, he will not be able to come in and make an impact like Brian Urlacher can. This is a tough situation for the Bears and I’m not sure they can overcome it to make a playoff run. QB Jay Cutler will have to start playing MUCH better to give Chicago any chance.
- Coach Andy Reid says that Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb will try to play through the pain of a fractured rib this Sunday against the Saints. Reports indicate that McNabb was in a great deal of pain yesterday and he found it hard to even sit comfortably. He is not expected to practice on Wednesday and it seemed highly unlikely he will be able to play this week, but his health will be monitored by the Eagles and he is officially “uncertain”. I have heard reports that he could easily be out 2-4 weeks, but apparently McNabb is going to try and give it a go. If McNabb can’t start on Sunday, QB Kevin Kolb will have to assume the starting role. As I have said before, things will be tough for the Eagles without McNabb if he can’t play. Kolb has show an inability to get the ball to the Eagles’ playmakers and that will not get the job done. The Eagles signed free agent QB Jeff Garcia as insurance on Monday afternoon. This is a smart pick up considering that Garcia is a proven veteran and he knows the Eagles offense. At this point, Kolb is the back up but if he struggles, the team can now turn to Garcia. It will be interesting to see what happens if Kolb plays and really struggles this Sunday because Michael Vick will be eligible to play in week 3 and now Garcia is around. Without question, the Eagles will have to sail through some choppy waters.
- A definitive update has finally come in on Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu. It was reported that he will not need knee surgery and he should be out for 3-6 weeks as originally speculated. This is a bit of good news for Pittsburgh that it is not more severe, but they will definitely miss Polamalu while he is out. I am hopeful that the Ravens could catch a break and Polamalu’s absence could cost the Steelers a game that they should win. Hey, you have to take whatever you can get.
- Carolina Panthers Coach John Fox stated on Monday that QB Jake Delhomme’s status with the team is “unchanged” and he will remain the starting quarterback. Including last season’s playoff loss, Delhomme has turned the ball over 11 times in his past 2 games. Fox compared Delhomme to Tiger Woods and Roger Federer, saying that they don’t win every tournament. Excuse me while I have a chuckle with that one. Delhomme is no slouch, but he certainly is not on the same level as Woods and Federer. Regardless though, the Panthers really do not have much of an option behind Delhomme so they will have to stick with him. The evidence continues to mount that the Panthers will just not be that good this season. Delhomme will have to regain his confidence and his form to turn this thing around.
- On the college injury front, USC QB Matt Barkley is listed as day-to-day after suffering a bruised shoulder against Ohio State on Saturday. The injury does not appear to be anything serious, but Coach Pete Carroll said Barkley will be monitored. He hopes that Barkley will be able to play this Saturday and that QB Aaron Corp is ready to step in if needed. Considering that USC is playing Washington this week, I don’t think it matters who is starting at quarterback. Washington still has a long way to go to become a powerhouse again and USC should handle them easily, even on the road.
-U.S. Open Update: Due to rain delays, the men’s championship match was pushed to Monday for the second consecutive year. The wait was worth it as #6 seed Juan Martin del Potro shocked #1 seed Roger Federer and beat him in a 5 set classic, 3-6, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 6-2. Amazingly, Federer seemed to crumble down the stretch as del Potro punished him with strong forehands and played extremely smart by getting in a great percentage of 1st serves. Usually Federer wears down his opponent and brings his game to another level, but in this match it was del Potro who delivered. He came back from 2 sets to 1 down and denied Federer his 16th Grand Slam title, his 6th consecutive U.S. Open title, and snapped his 40 match winning streak at the Open. It was a great match and a huge win for the 20-year old from Argentina. Even the best find it hard to deliver every single time and it was Federer’s turn to not deliver the goods when it mattered.
Serena Williams also returned to the court after her profanity-laced tirade against a linesperson in her semifinal defeat to Kim Clijsters. She won the U.S. Open women’s doubles title with her sister Venus Williams. They defeated defending champions Cara Black and Liezel Huber in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 to capture their 10th Grand Slam doubles title and first at the U.S. Open since 1999.
And on a final note from the Open, Kim Clijsters’ amazing win in the women’s championship match propelled her all the way up to #19 in the latest WTA rankings. She had no ranking prior to the tournament and she would have come into the rankings at #181 if she lost in the first round after competing in a few warm up events.
WWE Unified Tag Team Championship
Jericho and Big Show (c) vs. MVP and Mark Henry
My prediction: Jericho and Show win and retain
Actual result: Jericho and Show retain via pinfall
As I predicted and expected, Chris Jericho and the Big Show get the win in this match and continue their tag team championship reign. It just did not make any sort of sense to throw the belts on a hastily made team of MVP and Mark Henry. Reports indicate that this match had some good action in it. You got the standard, fast paced chain wrestling from Jericho and MVP, while Show and Henry slugged it out with their power moves. MVP played the “face in peril” until he could make a hot tag to Henry. Henry was able to dominate and Jericho avoided losing the titles by getting a foot on the ropes. The finish once again saw Big Show hitting a knockout punch on Henry and Jericho scored the pinfall to retain. This was the correct finish in my mind, but I still have no idea what the WWE plans to do here. Having Jericho and Show dominate for a long period can be good, as long as they drop the belts to a team who could use the help. I still say Legacy or the Hart Dynasty should beat them and that would cement either team as serious players. I wonder how long it will be before we get tension between Jericho and Show and the team starts to crumble.
WWE United States Championship
Kofi Kingston (c) vs. The Miz
My Prediction: I stated via Twitter that I was pulling for Miz, but expected a Kofi victory to extend this feud
Actual result: Kingston retains via pinfall
This match was a late addition to the PPV and pretty much replaced the Intercontinental Title match between John Morrison and Dolph Ziggler. By all accounts, this match delivered and it was very good. From what I read, the action was pretty fast paced throughout the match and it was filled with counters and reversals. Both Kofi and Miz looked very even and the match could have gone either way. In the end, Kofi connected with the Trouble in Paradise to retain the U.S. Title. I am fine with this result for the time being and I expected it. I love Miz’s arrogant and cocky character and he has really developed in a solid performer. In my estimation, he should get a run with the U.S. Title in the near future and I am hoping this feud will continue. Miz did the job and was John Cena’s bitch, so I don’t see how he can come up short here. If he continues to lose to Kingston and does not get the title, Miz will look very weak and will be stuck in mid-card jobber hell. Kingston has done a really good job with the U.S. Title and I think he should eventually lose to Miz and have a few good rematches before they both more onto new challengers.
Submissions Count Anywhere
Legacy vs. DX
My prediction: Legacy
Actual result: Legacy via submission on Michaels
I could not be more thrilled when I read the result of this match. After thinking and evaluating things, I came to the conclusion that Rhodes and Dibiase could not afford to lose this match and I am happy WWE creative seems to have agreed. Triple H and Shawn Michaels are bulletproof and they could afford the loss. A win over Legacy would have only buried two potential stars and it would have been stupid. Everything I have read indicates that this was a damn good match. The action spilled out of the ring and all over the arena. They fought in the stands, in the arena concourse, backstage, you name it. Obviously, both teams tried to kill each other and Legacy actually was much more effective. After going back and forth for a long while, Rhodes and Dibiase used the help of a cooler and a sick chair shot to knock out Triple H backstage. Once they got back into the ring, Shawn Michaels did a valiant job of trying to fight off Legacy, but he was not able to overcome the 2 on 1 disadvantage. Michaels eventually tapped out to a combination of a figure-four leg lock on the ring post by Rhodes and a Million Dollar Dream by Dibiase before Triple H could get back to the ring to make the save. It seems like Legacy finally was allowed to look like a real threat and they came out looking like stars in this match. I am pleasantly surprised at this outcome and hope that Rhodes and Dibiase continue to be booked strong. I don’t think they will ever become megastars, but they have the chance to be solid main event level talent if they are handled correctly. I have a sneaking suspicion though that this feud will continue and I am fearful that Legacy will be destroyed by DX at the Hell in a Cell PPV, which would very much hurt the momentum they got from this match.
Singapore Cane Match
Kane vs. The Great Khali
My prediction: The Great Khali
Actual result: Kane via pinfall
Well I don’t mind being wrong with this prediction. Although, it saddens me this could indicate the feud might continue. As you would expect, this was a very ugly match. The Montreal crowd started up a boring chant in the middle of it, so there is all you need to know. Kane and Khali apparently stumbled through the match, hitting each other with the canes a few times and trying to pull off some spots with them. Runjin Singh eventually got involved again by hitting Kane with a cane, which only angered the Big Red Machine and made him harass Singh. As Khali checked on Runjin, Kane was able to drop Khali neck-first on the ropes and then hit a chokeslam for the win. I have no more patience for this feud and it is going nowhere. Again, since Khali is playing the face in this feud, standard booking says that he comes out on top in the end. So sadly, we might have to be tortured with more matches between these two. I am not sure what else either Kane or Khali could be doing, but this feud is just boring and uninspiring.
*Special note: After this match, CM Punk was given some interview time and he actually brought up the fact that Jeff Hardy got arrested! I am surprised the WWE even touched that subject, but you can’t deny that it is a brilliant heel move for Punk to do.
ECW Championship
Christian (c) vs. William Regal
My prediction: William Regal wins ECW title
Actual result: Christian retains via pinfall
Well the swerve happened before this match even took place as ECW GM Tiffany banned Ezekiel Jackson and Vladimir Kozlov from ringside. Well if I knew that before the PPV, I may have had different thoughts about the result of the match. I expected Regal to steal the title with the help of Jackson and Kozlov, but with them being banned from ringside, it greatly increased the odds of Christian retaining and that is exactly what happened. As you would expect, the reports indicate that this was a very solid match. Both Christian and Regal are very skilled wrestlers and they seem to have delivered a good match. Christian had the Killswitch blocked three separate times before he was finally able to hit it for the win. Now, I have no idea what will be going on in ECW. I really thought that Regal would win and Christian would have to fight through the “Ruthless Roundtable” to try and get the title back. But at this point, Regal is starting to look like a chump and I don’t see how he should be in line for yet another title match. If Kozlov or Jackson step in now, that is pretty logical and could work. A title win for either one would definitely elevate that person to a new level.
“I Quit” Match for the WWE Championship
Randy Orton (c) vs. John Cena
My prediction: John Cena wins WWE Title
Actual result: John Cena wins WWE Title
Surprise, surprise, surprise…what a shocker. I said there was no way in hell John Cena would lose this match and say “I quit” and I was dead on. Cena’s whole persona is based on a never quit, never give up attitude so this result seemed to be a foregone conclusion. The way the match seems to have gone down is pretty bad and was typical Cena booking. From what I gather, Orton spent about 10-15 minutes absolutely beating the hell out of Cena. He abused him with steel steps and then pulled out a pair of handcuffs. Orton placed the key to the cuffs around his neck and then proceeded to cuff Cena to the ropes, to the turnbuckle, and even to himself with Cena’s hands behind his back. Orton destroyed Cena with a Singapore cane and chair shots. However, Cena did not quit and was eventually able to wrestle the key away from Orton and then cuffed himself to Orton directly. After a little more action, Cena worked Orton into the STFU and Orton quickly tapped. WHAT THE HELL?!? I am seriously sick and tired of John Cena playing Superman and Hulk Hogan, version 2.0. The act is so very worn out and I am tired of it. I don’t need Cena’s toughness and never give up attitude continually shoved down my throat. We get the point already. I have no problem with Cena winning the belt, but I am to the point where the booking of his matches is just insulting. The STFU is treated as the most dangerous move on Earth and John Cena can just survive anything. Orton will obviously get his rematch, but unfortunately Cena will win it and we will be subjected to a lengthy title reign and more of this crap. I try not to complain to this extent with what the WWE does, but I am just totally tired of John Cena.
Submission Match for the World Heavyweight Title
CM Punk (c) vs. The Undertaker
My prediction: Somehow, someway CM Punk retains
Actual result: CM Punk retains via Montreal Screwjob, Version 2.0
Well I said that I didn’t know how the WWE would do it, but CM Punk would not be losing the title this soon. I was right on this, but unfortunately, the WWE had to go the cheap and cheesy route and pull out another “Montreal Screwjob”. Punk and Taker put on a pretty good match that was cruising along just fine until Taker tried to hit Punk with a chokeslam. Punk countered with a roundhouse kick that was then countered into Taker’s Hell’s Gate submission hold. Punk quickly tapped out and we were led to believe that the Undertaker was the new World Heavyweight Champion…that is until Smackdown GM Teddy Long came out and reminded us all that Vicky Guerrero had the move banned and that decision has not been reversed. So the win did not count and the match had to continue. Soon after the restart, Punk got Taker in the Anaconda Vice. Suddenly, the bell rang, but the Undertaker did not submit. Punk and the referee quickly left the ring and joined Teddy Long on the entrance ramp. So the fix was in and we had to relive the Montreal Screwjob 12 years later. While I applaud the WWE for continuity with the Hell’s Gate submission being banned, this is just not a good move. It seems extremely stupid and foolish to do. I think it is insulting to the fans and there was no reason for it. The WWE painted themselves into a corner with this match stipulation and this is the price we pay. I don’t think the outcome does anything for CM Punk and he deserved something better to escape with the title. I really can’t say what that might have been, but this was dumb. To look on the bright side though, the build toward a rematch at the Hell in a Cell PPV should be pretty good and that main event match will hopefully be strong.
The Game’s Quick Hits
Patriots 25, Bills 24 – This turned out to be a surprisingly competitive game to open up the 40th season of Monday Night Football and the Patriots ended up having to survive and steal a victory in the final minutes. After being in disarray on the offensive side of the ball and firing their offensive coordinator in the preseason, most people assumed that the Patriots would easily handle the Bills in this game. But Buffalo came to play and their defense played well in the 1st half. They got really good pressure on Patriots QB Tom Brady and held the running game in check. Brady was not particularly sharp early on and he missed some throws. He did engineer one good scoring drive for a TD and had another bog down right before halftime. The Bills did not do much better on offense, but they did get a 26-yard interception return for a TD from Aaron Schobel after Brady poorly executed a screen pass. This helped the Bills take a 14-10 lead into the half.
Things did not get much better for the Patriots in the 2nd half. They dominated in terms of time of possession and they were able to move the ball with two long drives, but one ended in a turnover on downs and the other in a field goal. Brady looked passive and tentative in many situations and things were not clicking. The Bills were only slightly better until there was about 10 minutes left in the game. QB Trent Edwards was able to engineer a long scoring drive which ended in a 10-yard TD pass to RB Fred Jackson. This gave the Bills a 24-13 lead with just over 5 minutes left and it looked like Buffalo was going to pull an amazing upset. But then, the Patriots turned back into the Patriots. Brady got the hurry up offensive going and he easily drove New England down the field and threw an 18-yard TD pass to TE Benjamin Watson to pull the score to 24-19 after a failed 2-point conversion. Then, the Patriots got the break they needed when Buffalo’s Leodis McKelvin elected not to take a touchback on the kickoff and then proceeded to fumble the ball away. It only took Brady 3 plays to hit Watson again with a 16-yard TD pass to give the Patriots a crazy 25-24 come-from-behind win.
So in the final analysis, the Patriots may not be as good as everyone thought and the Bills might not be as bad as everyone thought. You could attribute the poor performance to opening game jitters, but the Patriots’ defense did have some holes that can be exploited as the year goes along. But this is what good teams do. They find a way to win games even when they do not play their best. I do expect Brady and the rest of the offense to round into form though and they should be fine in the long run. Considering how bad Buffalo looked in the preseason, this was an excellent performance. The no-huddle offense actually did some good things, but Trent Edwards needs to get better and take more shots down the field. The defense will also have to play this well in subsequent weeks to give the Bills any chance to win some ball games.
Chargers 24, Raiders 20 – In the final game of week 1, we got another strange game and a shocking performance from the Oakland Raiders. Just like the Bills, the Raiders looked bad in the preseason and no one expected them to really give the Chargers a game tonight. But Oakland came out rolling and was able to dominate the line of scrimmage with their offensive line. They were able to run the ball effectively on offense and their defense was surprisingly stout as they held Chargers QB Philip Rivers and RB LaDainian Tomlinson in check. Richard Seymour looked great and delivered an immediate impact on defense for the Raiders. If not for a few mistakes, a near miss of a TD catch late in the 2nd quarter, and some bad coverage on kickoff returns against RB Darren Sproles, the Raiders could have had a 14-7 lead at halftime. Instead, San Diego was lucky to go into the half with a 10-10 tie. Things remained ugly as both teams struggled on offense to start the 3rd quarter and both defenses were in firm control, but it was clear the Raiders continued to look better than the Chargers. Things finally heated up in the 4th quarter as the teams traded touchdowns and the lead. Rivers hit WR Vincent Jackson with a 15-yard TD pass to put the Chargers up 17-13. Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell then responded with a beautiful 57-yard touchdown pass to WR Louis Murphy on a 4th-and-15 to give Oakland the lead back. But Rivers and the Chargers had the final say as they drove down the field and Sproles scored on a 5-yard run to give San Diego a 24-20 win. Once again, good teams find a way to win games. This win will now be a good confidence booster for San Diego and it should be one hell of a game against the Ravens this Sunday. The Raiders look like they are buying into Coach Tom Cable’s philosophy and are playing better fundamental football. They actually could win a few more games than expected this season.
Monday Night RAWind: I thought the WWE was able to put on a pretty good show last night, but some things left a great deal to be desired. The show opened with Batista coming out, still in an arm brace, to make a “career altering announcement”. He stated that he was there to tell everyone goodbye, but before Batista was able to say much more, Randy Orton came out to the ring. Orton mocked Batista and claimed that he was retiring because he wanted to get away from Randy Orton. This seemed to amuse Batista, who then swerved everyone by pulling off the arm brace and attacking Orton. He then told everyone that he was saying goodbye to Raw because he was going to Smackdown. He finished off the opening segment by saying that tonight’s guest host, Trish Stratus, gave him one final match on Raw: a no holds barred match with Orton.
I was pretty excited for the show after this segment, but that turned into major disappointment as we got to the main event. Looking at the time, I could see that the match would be short and it was. Batista basically threw Orton around the announce table a bit and then took advantage of John Cena coming out and throwing Orton back in the ring as he tried to run away. He hit a quick Batista Bomb and the match was over. So you mean to tell me that after a man injures you and puts you out for 3 months and costs you your title that you are happy coming back and winning a meaningless match before switching shows? Will someone tell how the hell that makes sense? I could give it a pass if Orton and Batista had a long, kick ass match and Batista ended up destroying Orton, but this type of stuff is crap. Batista looks like a chump as far as I’m concerned and now he will be going to Smackdown to try and ruin CM Punk. I can dream that Punk will go over Batista, but I know better and I expect Batista to make Punk his bitch in the near future and that is sad. I am tired of Batista at this point, at least the face version of “The Animal”. If they turned him heel and allowed him to be a ruthless badass, I could be interested again. But like John Cena, Batista is stale and not that entertaining anymore.
Luckily though, there were some other good things to be found on Raw. The 10 pm main event featured Ted Dibiase against Shawn Michaels. Legacy cut a pretty effective promo before the match where they put themselves over as being the only people to make DX tap out. This was a good move and Rhodes and Dibiase are starting to look better out there. Michaels and Dibiase had a good match that ended in a DQ when Rhodes interfered and then all hell broke loose. DX and Legacy brawled around the ringside area and it was later announced that the teams would face each other in Hell in a Cell at the next PPV (to go along with Orton’s rematch against Cena which was also announced). So there is confirmation of my fear that Legacy will just get destroyed and set back.
We also saw a tag team match between Kofi Kingston and Primo against The Miz and Jack Swagger. It was short, but the most important development is that The Miz stole Kofi’s United States Title belt and walked out with it. So it seems this feud will indeed continue. In other action, Alicia Fox defeated Gail Kim to earn a shot at the Divas Championship against Mickie James. Now why in the hell is Alicia Fox getting a push? That makes no sense to me and she should not be getting anywhere near that belt. I think Beth Phoenix should be challenging James for it, but at least Beth did get a good spot on the card last night. She got in Trish’s face about the #1 contender’s match and Chris Jericho made an appearance as well. This led to a tag team match between Stratus and MVP and Phoenix and Jericho. The Big Show and Mark Henry got involved and it became a 6 person tag. In the end, Trish showed that she still has it in the ring and she was able to pin Beth for the victory. All in all, Trish was a good guest host and this edition of Raw was passable.
- The injury bug bit the Chicago Bears particularly hard on Sunday night as LB Brian Urlacher dislocated his wrist. He was forced to undergo surgery for the injury and he will be out for the rest of the season. This is terrible news for the Bears and they will take a big hit on defense. Urlacher is the heart and soul of the Bears’ defense and the unquestioned leader of the team. He is responsible for being the coordinator out on the field and he communicates what the team is doing to everyone else. And beyond that, he is just a ferocious player and can dominate a game. Chicago has enough playmakers and talent on the defensive side of the ball to still be a good unit overall, but they will not be as good without Urlacher. This is the exact same situation that the Pittsburgh Steelers face when you take Troy Polamalu out of their defense. I expect the Bears to still be tough to score on, but now it becomes a little easier for everyone to score points on them. Through the course of the season, this could be the difference between making the playoffs and coming up a game short. Chicago is already behind the Vikings and Packers and things do not look that good without Urlacher. The Bears have already been talking to free agent and former Buccaneers LB Derrick Brooks, but it looks like they will not be signing him at this time. Brooks knows the defensive scheme that Chicago runs, but at his advanced age, he will not be able to come in and make an impact like Brian Urlacher can. This is a tough situation for the Bears and I’m not sure they can overcome it to make a playoff run. QB Jay Cutler will have to start playing MUCH better to give Chicago any chance.
- Coach Andy Reid says that Philadelphia Eagles QB Donovan McNabb will try to play through the pain of a fractured rib this Sunday against the Saints. Reports indicate that McNabb was in a great deal of pain yesterday and he found it hard to even sit comfortably. He is not expected to practice on Wednesday and it seemed highly unlikely he will be able to play this week, but his health will be monitored by the Eagles and he is officially “uncertain”. I have heard reports that he could easily be out 2-4 weeks, but apparently McNabb is going to try and give it a go. If McNabb can’t start on Sunday, QB Kevin Kolb will have to assume the starting role. As I have said before, things will be tough for the Eagles without McNabb if he can’t play. Kolb has show an inability to get the ball to the Eagles’ playmakers and that will not get the job done. The Eagles signed free agent QB Jeff Garcia as insurance on Monday afternoon. This is a smart pick up considering that Garcia is a proven veteran and he knows the Eagles offense. At this point, Kolb is the back up but if he struggles, the team can now turn to Garcia. It will be interesting to see what happens if Kolb plays and really struggles this Sunday because Michael Vick will be eligible to play in week 3 and now Garcia is around. Without question, the Eagles will have to sail through some choppy waters.
- A definitive update has finally come in on Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu. It was reported that he will not need knee surgery and he should be out for 3-6 weeks as originally speculated. This is a bit of good news for Pittsburgh that it is not more severe, but they will definitely miss Polamalu while he is out. I am hopeful that the Ravens could catch a break and Polamalu’s absence could cost the Steelers a game that they should win. Hey, you have to take whatever you can get.
- Carolina Panthers Coach John Fox stated on Monday that QB Jake Delhomme’s status with the team is “unchanged” and he will remain the starting quarterback. Including last season’s playoff loss, Delhomme has turned the ball over 11 times in his past 2 games. Fox compared Delhomme to Tiger Woods and Roger Federer, saying that they don’t win every tournament. Excuse me while I have a chuckle with that one. Delhomme is no slouch, but he certainly is not on the same level as Woods and Federer. Regardless though, the Panthers really do not have much of an option behind Delhomme so they will have to stick with him. The evidence continues to mount that the Panthers will just not be that good this season. Delhomme will have to regain his confidence and his form to turn this thing around.
- On the college injury front, USC QB Matt Barkley is listed as day-to-day after suffering a bruised shoulder against Ohio State on Saturday. The injury does not appear to be anything serious, but Coach Pete Carroll said Barkley will be monitored. He hopes that Barkley will be able to play this Saturday and that QB Aaron Corp is ready to step in if needed. Considering that USC is playing Washington this week, I don’t think it matters who is starting at quarterback. Washington still has a long way to go to become a powerhouse again and USC should handle them easily, even on the road.
-U.S. Open Update: Due to rain delays, the men’s championship match was pushed to Monday for the second consecutive year. The wait was worth it as #6 seed Juan Martin del Potro shocked #1 seed Roger Federer and beat him in a 5 set classic, 3-6, 7-6, 4-6, 7-6, 6-2. Amazingly, Federer seemed to crumble down the stretch as del Potro punished him with strong forehands and played extremely smart by getting in a great percentage of 1st serves. Usually Federer wears down his opponent and brings his game to another level, but in this match it was del Potro who delivered. He came back from 2 sets to 1 down and denied Federer his 16th Grand Slam title, his 6th consecutive U.S. Open title, and snapped his 40 match winning streak at the Open. It was a great match and a huge win for the 20-year old from Argentina. Even the best find it hard to deliver every single time and it was Federer’s turn to not deliver the goods when it mattered.
Serena Williams also returned to the court after her profanity-laced tirade against a linesperson in her semifinal defeat to Kim Clijsters. She won the U.S. Open women’s doubles title with her sister Venus Williams. They defeated defending champions Cara Black and Liezel Huber in straight sets 6-2, 6-2 to capture their 10th Grand Slam doubles title and first at the U.S. Open since 1999.
And on a final note from the Open, Kim Clijsters’ amazing win in the women’s championship match propelled her all the way up to #19 in the latest WTA rankings. She had no ranking prior to the tournament and she would have come into the rankings at #181 if she lost in the first round after competing in a few warm up events.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Is Oklahoma's Season Finished?
With Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford going down to a shoulder injury Saturday night, the big sports debate of the day is whether or not Oklahoma’s season is finished. Bradford suffered a sprain of his AC joint in his shoulder and was scheduled to undergo an MRI to find out the extent of the damage. This type of injury can keep someone out for at least 2-4 weeks, but in Bradford’s case, it could be longer because of the stress he would put on his shoulder throwing the football. Team doctors said on Sunday that they will continue to look at Bradford’s shoulder over the holiday weekend and there are a number of rehab options that could be done. At this point, there is no specific timetable for his return. So does this injury totally ruin Oklahoma’s season? To a certain extent, I think it does.
The injury itself already cost Oklahoma the game against BYU. Pollsters do take injuries into account, but without question, this loss stings. Oklahoma is now at a huge disadvantage in the chase to make it to the BCS Championship Game. The Sooners have lost their star player and leader and they now have to find another way to hang on and win some football games. Oklahoma does have two fairly easy games coming up. Idaho State and Tulsa will be traveling to Oklahoma to play them and the Sooners should be able to win both of those games. They will need their defense to remain outstanding just like it was against BYU. The Sooners also need their running game to produce and carry the load to help QB Landry Jones. Jones looked pretty much lost in the 2nd half against BYU, and he does not look like he can drive the Sooners down the field with his arm to put points on the board. The offensive line will also need to quickly gel because they are Oklahoma’s biggest weakness. Bradford was only hit 43 times last season and on the drive that ended with his injury, Bradford was hit 3 times alone. The unit will have to improve, or it could be a longer season for Oklahoma than many anticipated.
A bigger test for Oklahoma will come on October 3rd when they travel to Miami. Miami will play their first game against Florida State tonight, so it remains to be seen just how good the Hurricanes will be. But without question, Miami is improving and if they look good, a Sooners team without Bradford could be ripe for an upset when they travel down to Florida to face them. As of right now, it appears that Bradford would be able to make it back on the field by the time Oklahoma faces Texas on October 17th. This was expected to be the deciding game between the two teams in the Big 12 South, but now it takes on a much different look. Without Bradford, the Sooners would have no shot to win that game. But even if Bradford is back by then, how good will he be? Just coming out of camp and only getting one half worth of work, I am thinking Bradford could still be rusty and trying to develop a rhythm with the offense. I would expect Texas and QB Colt McCoy to be in top form by the time this game occurs, so even with a healthy Bradford, I now believe that Texas will be a big favorite to win this game.
The only chance Oklahoma has right now to even come close to the BCS Title game would be for them to run the table and win every single game and then hope that every other team out there suffers one loss. Oklahoma would have to look impressive in beating Texas and then they would have to regain an air of dominance by the time the end of the season rolls around. Even if they accomplish all of this, they still might get shut out of the title game. They still have an opportunity to make a BCS Bowl game, but that could be on shaky ground at this point.
With the way the offensive line looked last night and depending on how severe Bradford’s injury is, I think the Sooners will most likely lose at least one more game this season. Another loss would be devastating and it would kill any hopes of a BCS game. Oklahoma will still have to travel to Kansas and Nebraska and those will be tough games that they could lose. If Oklahoma State is the real deal this year and their defense improves, they could beat Oklahoma in the last game of the regular season. The uphill climb for Oklahoma to make it back to the National Championship game this year has now turned into a mountain. Bradford’s injury will cost him a shot at repeating as the Heisman Trophy winner and it may just cost Oklahoma a great season. Good is not good enough when it comes to Oklahoma football, but it might be all they can hope for now.
Today is Labor Day here in the United States, so I hope that everyone has a safe and relaxing day. As always, tons of things happening in the world of sports, so let’s take a look at what went down on Sunday.
The Game’s Quick Hits
#8 Mississippi 45, Memphis 14 – The score of this game does not indicate how close it was. Mississippi had a great deal of trouble hitting their stride and they did not look like the #8 team in the country until the 4th quarter. The Rebels were able to eventually wear down Memphis and overcome a subpar performance from star QB Jevan Snead. The running game and defense of Mississippi carried the team to victory. They were only up 17-7 heading into the 4th quarter. Memphis was driving and had a chance to get closer until they failed on a 4th and short play. From there, Mississippi turned on the jets and beat down Memphis until the final whistle. After the opening weekend, it seems as though Alabama has the inside track to win the SEC West. But remember, this was the opening weekend and there is a great deal more football to be played. There is no doubt that Snead will be better and there are some great SEC Conference games to come.
- Sunday got off to a surprising start as the New England Patriots traded defensive lineman Richard Seymour to the Oakland Raiders for a 2011 first round draft pick. Seymour is only 29 years old, is a 5 time Pro Bowler, and matched his career high in sacks last season, which makes this a very curious move. Obviously, Seymour still seems to have a great deal left in the tank, so I have no idea why the Patriots made this move. Seymour had become an anchor of the Patriots’ defense and to just deal him away for a draft pick in ’11 does not seem that smart. Maybe the Patriots see some bad things coming and they felt Seymour’s production would fall off really soon, but there is no evidence yet to support that. However, he is in the last year of his contract and will be crossing the age of 30, so maybe it is a calculated and smart gamble by New England. The Raiders get immediate help for their defense, but this has to really suck for Seymour. He goes from a team that will be making a run at the Super Bowl to a team that will barely make a run at staying out of the basement of the AFC West. The Raiders will still be a bad team this year and now the question will become: does the loss of Seymour have any ill effect on the Patriots? A healthy Tom Brady all year might be able to compensate nicely for any defensive drop off, so we will just have to see how it plays out.
- San Diego Chargers LB Shawne Merriman was arrested early Sunday on suspicion of choking and restraining his girlfriend, reality TV “star” Tila Tequila. Tequila was taken to the hospital while Merriman was arrested and charged with battery and false imprisonment. Wow, I wonder if Merriman was drinking too much tequila or maybe just ate the worm and started acting the fool. Obviously, this is an unwanted and unneeded distraction, especially when Merriman should be focusing on returning to top form after missing last season with an injury. I will not speculate or comment on what might have went down, but only say that it is disgusting if he did in fact choke and restrain her. There is no excuse for a man to physically assault a woman. This is just another case of piss poor judgment and I would not be surprised if Roger Goodell looked into this and suspended Merriman for a game or two. San Diego should have no trouble winning the AFC West, but this type of attention and situation is not what the team needs with one week until opening day.
- Recently fired offensive coordinator Turk Schonert took at shot at the Buffalo Bills and Coach Dick Jauron after he was fired on Friday with this choice quote he offered during a phone interview with Buffalo TV station WIVB: “He wants a 'Pop Warner' offense. He limited me in formations, and limited me in plays. He's been on my back all offseason." Damn, that is some great stuff. You have to love a team imploding and being in turmoil even before the season starts. I am wondering if it will even be much of a spectacle this year if WR Terrell Owens blows up after what has happened already. The Bills look like they are falling apart and will end up being pretty bad this year.
- Seattle Mariners OF Ichiro Suzuki became the second fastest player to reach 2,000 career hits on Sunday. He hit a double for his 2,000th hit and he did it in his 1,402nd major league game. Counting his hit total from his playing days in Japan, Ichiro has 3,278 hits in his baseball career. Without question, Ichiro is one of the best pure hitters the game has ever seen and he will certainly be a future Hall of Famer. He will get to the 200 hit plateau for the 9th consecutive year as well, which would be a new MLB record.
- Once again, the conditions were perfect for scoring at the Deutsche Bank Championship and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson could do nothing but watch as they struggled to find their games and made no charge on moving day. Woods and Mickelson both shot rounds of 1-over par 72 as they both moved backwards and fell out of contention. The course was slightly tougher on Sunday, but Steve Stricker, Retief Goosen, and Sean O’Hair navigated things just fine and they enter the final round tied for the lead at 13-under par. It should be a great finish as there are a dozen players within 3 shots of the lead. As I stated yesterday, Tiger is just not dialed in here and I predicted he would not be moving up to challenge for the win. He now needs to try and fix his inconsistent play if he hopes to win the FedEx Cup. Steve Stricker continues to look great and he is making a real charge to win the Cup. Stricker hit an amazing second shot with his hybrid club to within 5 feet and he drained the eagle putt on 18 to put him in a tie for the lead. A victory Monday will put him atop the FedEx Cup standings. Tiger usually rises to the occasion, so it would not shock me at all if he is able to find his game and win the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup. He won’t be winning today however.
- Sources indicate that suspended Oregon RB LeGarrette Blount made a phone call to Boise State coach Chris Petersen on Saturday to apologize for his actions and he was also able to apologize to Byron Hout, the Boise State player who Blount punched at the end of the Oregon/Boise State game Thursday night. It is good to hear that Blount has taken the first step to deal with this situation and hopefully will be able to benefit from it. It is a sad situation because Blount not only lost the rest of his college career, but he might have also lost his chance to make the NFL. It is a good lesson to others that you can not lose your cool and you need to always act in a respectful manner, especially when it comes to athletic competition. Hopefully Blount can work to become a better person from all this.
- Reports indicate that Allen Iverson has a face-to-face meeting with executives from the Memphis Grizzlies scheduled for Monday as the two sides seem to be coming closer to an agreement. Memphis is the only team that has actively pursued Iverson this offseason and it seems like it will be his last option. There is no doubt that Iverson is starting to enter the twilight of his career and he needs to accept the fact that he is going to have to come off the bench now. He is not getting any younger, but he still has something to offer to the game. Iverson has been one of the greatest players and scorers the past decade in the NBA, but his time in the sun is dwindling. Iverson should have been looking to get a championship ring and tried to sign with a contender and just accept the reality that his skills are starting to diminish at 34. But I guess every athlete has to cope with this and I hope Iverson can find some peace with it all and not turn into a distraction if he does go to the Grizzles, or anywhere else for that matter.
- U.S. Open Update: Well is seems as though with all the excitement of college football on Saturday, I missed noticing that women’s #1 Dinara Safina was bounced from the tournament. Wow, what a shocker. I was all over that and said there would be no way she would win the tournament. Kudos to me on that. The #3 seed on the women’s side, Venus Williams, was also upset on Sunday afternoon as unseeded Kim Clijsters beat her 6-0, 0-6, 6-4. Clijsters is making her return to the game after a two year absence and she seems to be in good form and is now a dangerous threat. Number 2 seed Serena Williams is now the highest seed left and she is still looking for a test as she easily beat #22 seed Daniela Hantuchova 6-2, 6-0. On the men’s side, #3 seed Rafael Nadal needed to take a 10 minute injury timeout to have his abdominals worked on, but he was still able to beat #32 seed Nicolas Almargo in straight sets to move into the 4th round. No other significant upsets occurred as the men hit the round of 16.
The injury itself already cost Oklahoma the game against BYU. Pollsters do take injuries into account, but without question, this loss stings. Oklahoma is now at a huge disadvantage in the chase to make it to the BCS Championship Game. The Sooners have lost their star player and leader and they now have to find another way to hang on and win some football games. Oklahoma does have two fairly easy games coming up. Idaho State and Tulsa will be traveling to Oklahoma to play them and the Sooners should be able to win both of those games. They will need their defense to remain outstanding just like it was against BYU. The Sooners also need their running game to produce and carry the load to help QB Landry Jones. Jones looked pretty much lost in the 2nd half against BYU, and he does not look like he can drive the Sooners down the field with his arm to put points on the board. The offensive line will also need to quickly gel because they are Oklahoma’s biggest weakness. Bradford was only hit 43 times last season and on the drive that ended with his injury, Bradford was hit 3 times alone. The unit will have to improve, or it could be a longer season for Oklahoma than many anticipated.
A bigger test for Oklahoma will come on October 3rd when they travel to Miami. Miami will play their first game against Florida State tonight, so it remains to be seen just how good the Hurricanes will be. But without question, Miami is improving and if they look good, a Sooners team without Bradford could be ripe for an upset when they travel down to Florida to face them. As of right now, it appears that Bradford would be able to make it back on the field by the time Oklahoma faces Texas on October 17th. This was expected to be the deciding game between the two teams in the Big 12 South, but now it takes on a much different look. Without Bradford, the Sooners would have no shot to win that game. But even if Bradford is back by then, how good will he be? Just coming out of camp and only getting one half worth of work, I am thinking Bradford could still be rusty and trying to develop a rhythm with the offense. I would expect Texas and QB Colt McCoy to be in top form by the time this game occurs, so even with a healthy Bradford, I now believe that Texas will be a big favorite to win this game.
The only chance Oklahoma has right now to even come close to the BCS Title game would be for them to run the table and win every single game and then hope that every other team out there suffers one loss. Oklahoma would have to look impressive in beating Texas and then they would have to regain an air of dominance by the time the end of the season rolls around. Even if they accomplish all of this, they still might get shut out of the title game. They still have an opportunity to make a BCS Bowl game, but that could be on shaky ground at this point.
With the way the offensive line looked last night and depending on how severe Bradford’s injury is, I think the Sooners will most likely lose at least one more game this season. Another loss would be devastating and it would kill any hopes of a BCS game. Oklahoma will still have to travel to Kansas and Nebraska and those will be tough games that they could lose. If Oklahoma State is the real deal this year and their defense improves, they could beat Oklahoma in the last game of the regular season. The uphill climb for Oklahoma to make it back to the National Championship game this year has now turned into a mountain. Bradford’s injury will cost him a shot at repeating as the Heisman Trophy winner and it may just cost Oklahoma a great season. Good is not good enough when it comes to Oklahoma football, but it might be all they can hope for now.
Today is Labor Day here in the United States, so I hope that everyone has a safe and relaxing day. As always, tons of things happening in the world of sports, so let’s take a look at what went down on Sunday.
The Game’s Quick Hits
#8 Mississippi 45, Memphis 14 – The score of this game does not indicate how close it was. Mississippi had a great deal of trouble hitting their stride and they did not look like the #8 team in the country until the 4th quarter. The Rebels were able to eventually wear down Memphis and overcome a subpar performance from star QB Jevan Snead. The running game and defense of Mississippi carried the team to victory. They were only up 17-7 heading into the 4th quarter. Memphis was driving and had a chance to get closer until they failed on a 4th and short play. From there, Mississippi turned on the jets and beat down Memphis until the final whistle. After the opening weekend, it seems as though Alabama has the inside track to win the SEC West. But remember, this was the opening weekend and there is a great deal more football to be played. There is no doubt that Snead will be better and there are some great SEC Conference games to come.
- Sunday got off to a surprising start as the New England Patriots traded defensive lineman Richard Seymour to the Oakland Raiders for a 2011 first round draft pick. Seymour is only 29 years old, is a 5 time Pro Bowler, and matched his career high in sacks last season, which makes this a very curious move. Obviously, Seymour still seems to have a great deal left in the tank, so I have no idea why the Patriots made this move. Seymour had become an anchor of the Patriots’ defense and to just deal him away for a draft pick in ’11 does not seem that smart. Maybe the Patriots see some bad things coming and they felt Seymour’s production would fall off really soon, but there is no evidence yet to support that. However, he is in the last year of his contract and will be crossing the age of 30, so maybe it is a calculated and smart gamble by New England. The Raiders get immediate help for their defense, but this has to really suck for Seymour. He goes from a team that will be making a run at the Super Bowl to a team that will barely make a run at staying out of the basement of the AFC West. The Raiders will still be a bad team this year and now the question will become: does the loss of Seymour have any ill effect on the Patriots? A healthy Tom Brady all year might be able to compensate nicely for any defensive drop off, so we will just have to see how it plays out.
- San Diego Chargers LB Shawne Merriman was arrested early Sunday on suspicion of choking and restraining his girlfriend, reality TV “star” Tila Tequila. Tequila was taken to the hospital while Merriman was arrested and charged with battery and false imprisonment. Wow, I wonder if Merriman was drinking too much tequila or maybe just ate the worm and started acting the fool. Obviously, this is an unwanted and unneeded distraction, especially when Merriman should be focusing on returning to top form after missing last season with an injury. I will not speculate or comment on what might have went down, but only say that it is disgusting if he did in fact choke and restrain her. There is no excuse for a man to physically assault a woman. This is just another case of piss poor judgment and I would not be surprised if Roger Goodell looked into this and suspended Merriman for a game or two. San Diego should have no trouble winning the AFC West, but this type of attention and situation is not what the team needs with one week until opening day.
- Recently fired offensive coordinator Turk Schonert took at shot at the Buffalo Bills and Coach Dick Jauron after he was fired on Friday with this choice quote he offered during a phone interview with Buffalo TV station WIVB: “He wants a 'Pop Warner' offense. He limited me in formations, and limited me in plays. He's been on my back all offseason." Damn, that is some great stuff. You have to love a team imploding and being in turmoil even before the season starts. I am wondering if it will even be much of a spectacle this year if WR Terrell Owens blows up after what has happened already. The Bills look like they are falling apart and will end up being pretty bad this year.
- Seattle Mariners OF Ichiro Suzuki became the second fastest player to reach 2,000 career hits on Sunday. He hit a double for his 2,000th hit and he did it in his 1,402nd major league game. Counting his hit total from his playing days in Japan, Ichiro has 3,278 hits in his baseball career. Without question, Ichiro is one of the best pure hitters the game has ever seen and he will certainly be a future Hall of Famer. He will get to the 200 hit plateau for the 9th consecutive year as well, which would be a new MLB record.
- Once again, the conditions were perfect for scoring at the Deutsche Bank Championship and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson could do nothing but watch as they struggled to find their games and made no charge on moving day. Woods and Mickelson both shot rounds of 1-over par 72 as they both moved backwards and fell out of contention. The course was slightly tougher on Sunday, but Steve Stricker, Retief Goosen, and Sean O’Hair navigated things just fine and they enter the final round tied for the lead at 13-under par. It should be a great finish as there are a dozen players within 3 shots of the lead. As I stated yesterday, Tiger is just not dialed in here and I predicted he would not be moving up to challenge for the win. He now needs to try and fix his inconsistent play if he hopes to win the FedEx Cup. Steve Stricker continues to look great and he is making a real charge to win the Cup. Stricker hit an amazing second shot with his hybrid club to within 5 feet and he drained the eagle putt on 18 to put him in a tie for the lead. A victory Monday will put him atop the FedEx Cup standings. Tiger usually rises to the occasion, so it would not shock me at all if he is able to find his game and win the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup. He won’t be winning today however.
- Sources indicate that suspended Oregon RB LeGarrette Blount made a phone call to Boise State coach Chris Petersen on Saturday to apologize for his actions and he was also able to apologize to Byron Hout, the Boise State player who Blount punched at the end of the Oregon/Boise State game Thursday night. It is good to hear that Blount has taken the first step to deal with this situation and hopefully will be able to benefit from it. It is a sad situation because Blount not only lost the rest of his college career, but he might have also lost his chance to make the NFL. It is a good lesson to others that you can not lose your cool and you need to always act in a respectful manner, especially when it comes to athletic competition. Hopefully Blount can work to become a better person from all this.
- Reports indicate that Allen Iverson has a face-to-face meeting with executives from the Memphis Grizzlies scheduled for Monday as the two sides seem to be coming closer to an agreement. Memphis is the only team that has actively pursued Iverson this offseason and it seems like it will be his last option. There is no doubt that Iverson is starting to enter the twilight of his career and he needs to accept the fact that he is going to have to come off the bench now. He is not getting any younger, but he still has something to offer to the game. Iverson has been one of the greatest players and scorers the past decade in the NBA, but his time in the sun is dwindling. Iverson should have been looking to get a championship ring and tried to sign with a contender and just accept the reality that his skills are starting to diminish at 34. But I guess every athlete has to cope with this and I hope Iverson can find some peace with it all and not turn into a distraction if he does go to the Grizzles, or anywhere else for that matter.
- U.S. Open Update: Well is seems as though with all the excitement of college football on Saturday, I missed noticing that women’s #1 Dinara Safina was bounced from the tournament. Wow, what a shocker. I was all over that and said there would be no way she would win the tournament. Kudos to me on that. The #3 seed on the women’s side, Venus Williams, was also upset on Sunday afternoon as unseeded Kim Clijsters beat her 6-0, 0-6, 6-4. Clijsters is making her return to the game after a two year absence and she seems to be in good form and is now a dangerous threat. Number 2 seed Serena Williams is now the highest seed left and she is still looking for a test as she easily beat #22 seed Daniela Hantuchova 6-2, 6-0. On the men’s side, #3 seed Rafael Nadal needed to take a 10 minute injury timeout to have his abdominals worked on, but he was still able to beat #32 seed Nicolas Almargo in straight sets to move into the 4th round. No other significant upsets occurred as the men hit the round of 16.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Monday Night FavreBall
* Note: I had planned to offer some thoughts on the documentary portion of WWE’s new DVD release, “The Rise and Fall of WCW”. However, today was so packed full of sports tidbits that my intended post grew to be very long. Therefore, I am deciding to delay posting the review until tomorrow. I will also offer up my thoughts on Monday Night Raw and ECW at that time. Stay tuned!
Monday Night Football Thoughts: Well tonight was really the big “debut” and test of new Vikings QB Brett Favre, but there was news even before Monday Night Football. Favre told ESPN that he believes he may have a cracked rib. Wow, that would be just a great omen already for the Vikings huh? The team had not officially examined Favre though and head coach Brad Childress stated right before kickoff that Favre was fine and ready to go. With all that swirling around, Favre was expected to play the entire 1st half of the game against the Houston Texans, so how did he look?
In my estimation, it was a solid performance for Favre, but it was not spectacular. But that is the whole point with this Vikings team. They have the pieces in place to be a great football team and they do not need spectacular QB play. All they require is solid and reliable efforts, which they have not had in years, and it looks like Favre will finally give it to them. He went 13-of-18 for 142 yards and 1 TD and did an effective job of moving the ball, not turning it over, and already showcased his ability to move the team and score points in the 2 minute drill. Not bad for a guy who has been with the team for 12 days.
I thought that Favre looked very good. He showed great mobility for a guy almost 40 years old and he actually was able to create a few plays moving his feet and escaping the pocket. The arm strength is still there and his accuracy was fairly decent last night as well. I would suggest that the Vikings try to work on their blocking however, because I thought Favre had to scramble a little too much and a few throws were rushed. To have a great season, the Vikings will need to keep Favre off his back and give him the time he needs to pick apart defenses. The only mistake Favre made last night was throwing a pretty bad crackback block, which he got flagged for. I don’t believe it was a dirty play at all, but it certainly was a bad decision for him to be trying that.
From what I saw, the Vikings could actually be real contenders after all if they play to this level. Adrian Peterson is an absolute beast and he will take a great deal of pressure off of Favre. If he improves in the passing game and players like rookie WR Percy Harvin develop as the season goes along, then the sky could be the limit. I saw Favre make some really nice decisions last night as well. That is another key to success. Favre does not have to be a reckless gunslinger on this team. If he manages the game and does not turn the ball over, the Vikings will be rolling. Throw in a stout defense and you have the makings of a dangerous team. The only big question out there now: can Favre stay healthy and not wear down like he did last season? I really did not notice any ill effects of a potentially cracked rib. Favre took 2 sacks and got hit numerous times and I did not see him wincing in pain at all. So I guess we will just have to wait and see if he can survive and if any new reports surface about the ribs.
On a final note, the Houston Texans still look like they will be a .500 team at best this year. QB Matt Schaub has had his own injury issues and questions and he goes out there and sprains his ankle just running out of bounds. The Texans do have weapons on offense but an injury to Schaub will not help, especially when the defense still looks like it has a ways to go. The Texans have a good pass rush with DE Mario Williams, but if they can not get pressure on the opposing QB, it looks like they will get picked apart in the secondary. I hear some people talking playoffs for the Texans this year, and I am not sure that I buy that yet.
The Game’s Quick Hits
- Word has finally come in that Kansas City Chiefs QB Matt Cassel has a sprained MCL in his knee and could miss 2-4 weeks. This puts him in jeopardy of missing the Chiefs’ season opener against the Ravens on September 13. While I don’t like seeing players getting hurt, this is certainly good news for Ravens fans. Baltimore didn’t really need any extra help to beat the Chiefs come opening day, but if QB Tyler Thigpen is behind center for Kansas City, it could be an ugly day out there for them and a dominating performance for the Ravens to start the year. The Chiefs also fired offensive coordinator Chan Gailey on Monday, seemingly in response to the team’s poor offensive efforts in the preseason and dating back to last year. Truly, it seems as if the Chiefs are in a bit of turmoil here.
- In more injury news, Baltimore Ravens CB Samari Rolle was placed on the physically unable to perform list and will miss at least the first 6 weeks of the season. Rolle continues to have problems with his neck that plagued him last year and he intends to have more surgery to stabilize it and allow him to continue his career and not retire. Obviously, this is not news that Ravens fans wanted to hear, but hopefully Rolle will be able to recover and rejoin the team for the stretch run. I have to say, the Ravens look like they do not miss Rolle with the way the defense has looked this preseason. He has not practiced with the team and did not even make it to training camp, so this news does not come as any type of blow to the team. However, Rolle would be able to provide more depth and tons of experience, so I hope that the Ravens don’t suffer a rash of injuries in the secondary. I would like to wish Rolle well on his recovery. He has always been an effective player and good citizen of the NFL, so here’s to hoping he makes it back this year.
- New England Patriots QB Tom Brady finally broke his silence and told Boston radio station WEEI that he expects to play in the regular season opener and is ready to play this week in the team’s final preseason game if he is allowed. Don’t expect that however since the Patriots usually sit their starters in the final preseason game. So slowly this story and injury seem to be much ado about nothing. Have to wonder if some of those defensive ends and linebackers try to target Brady’s shoulder though.
-And in other Patriots news, LB Tedy Bruschi retired today as expected. Bruschi told everyone that his work was finished in the game and he achieved everything that he wanted to achieve. Sources are also saying that Chiefs LB Zach Thomas will also retire. Being a Ravens fan and being able to watch the excellence of LB Ray Lewis for years has allowed me to have a great deal of appreciation for the linebacker position. Bruschi and Thomas are two class acts and were highly effective players, so they will be missed. Hearty congratulations to them both for excellent careers.
- It also seems like the injury story on Buffalo Bills WR Terrell Owens is coming to an end. Owens returned to the practice field on Monday and the Bills could start hoping he would revive an offensive that has looked dead in the preseason since he went down with a sprained toe. I still believe it is only a matter of time before Owens runs his mouth or blows up totally after the team struggles or QB Trent Edwards starts to not get him the ball.
- In an update to the story on possible NCAA rules violations by University of Michigan football, former Michigan WR Toney Clemons, who has since transferred to Colorado, went on record and told ESPN that the allegation about Michigan violating NCAA rules on limiting how much time players can spend on training and practice are true. In fact, upwards of 10 players have spoken out and none dispute the report. Clemons told ESPN that he spent upwards of 12 hours on Sundays doing team activity and regularly went over the limits of 20 hours per week and 4 hours per day. As I speculated yesterday, these players have no reason to throw their team and University under the bus unless this story is true and it seems like it is. I am not surprised at all because Michigan football has been on a downward trend recently and Coach Rich Rodriguez has to be feeling the pressure. At a press conference on Monday, Rodriguez got teary several times and became emotional and flatly stated that he cares about the players, the coaches and the University know the rules and abide by them, and all this speculation is just an attempt to “tear up” the rebuilding efforts of the team. The University will have to try and argue that much of this time being put in by the players does not count against the “organized” time allotted because it is voluntary and they can claim that strength and conditioning personnel are only monitoring the workouts for safety purposes, which is allowed. To me, this is obviously an excuse to skirt the rules, so it will be interesting to see what ultimately goes down here. I hate to be cynical and all and maybe Rodriguez had nothing to do with any of this, but it seems obvious that the players got some kind of message to put in longer hours than they should have been. Or maybe it was just confusion and the time these players are putting in really is voluntary. My guess is that Michigan may “self-report” themselves for “minor” violations down the road and probably end up losing a scholarship or two.
- Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey has stated that C Yao Ming is progressing well from foot surgery and there is a slight chance he could actually return during the 2009-2010 season. Doctors have also stated that the injury does not appear to be career threatening any longer. Not much else to say on this except I am pleased to hear that Yao’s career is not in danger. He definitely is a dynamic player when healthy and one of the top centers in the league. Houston has seemingly had trouble, along with bad luck, finding a way to build a championship team around Yao, so they can only hope that he comes back healthy and they can begin to make progress.
- The Minnesota Timberwolves failed to reach an agreement to buyout PG Ricky Rubio’s contract and his rights were traded to FC Barcelona in Spain and he will not be able to join the Timberwolves until the summer of 2011. I have no desire to get into the specifics of the money and dealings and only wish to reiterate that the Timberwolves look like fools in this, in my opinion. This now becomes a wasted draft pick for 2 years and for a team that needs immediate help, I believe they should have traded this headache to another team because they had to have knowledge that this scenario could go down. I suppose the only consolation is that Rubio can still work on his game and will only be 20 years old in the summer of 2011. If this guy develops into a star, then I guess the whole thing will be worth it.
- Recently released P Brad Penny has cleared waivers and intends to sign with the San Francisco Giants. He is expected to immediately go into the starting rotation and replace Joe Martinez. Considering that I have never heard of Martinez and he is sporting a 7.52 ERA this year, this seems like an upgrade. If Penny can pitch 5 innings per outing and keep the Giants in games, then it is probably a good move. The Giants are now tied for the Wild Card with the Rockies, so maybe this move will put them over the top. Only time will tell…
- And staying in the NL West, the Dodgers tried to keep pace with the wheeling and dealing and last minute acquisitions of their rivals by trading for Jim Thome and P John Garland. They completed these transactions before the midnight deadline so that Thome and Garland are eligible to be on the Dodgers’ postseason roster. Thome has been strictly a DH the past two years with the White Sox, so who knows how they will be using him. Without question, it seems like LA is determined to try and win it with offense though. Garland could be an effective pickup and any added help when it comes to the rotation is welcomed. Only one more month to go until the postseason and things are certainly heating up.
- U.S. Open Update: #1 seed Roger Federer extended his U.S. Open winning streak to 35 matches by beating wild-card entry Devin Britton 6-1, 6-3, 7-5. A little surprising to see Federer get pushed to 7-5 in the 3rd against a wild-card, but obviously it is nothing of concern. No other big upsets occurred in today’s action, with only a few lower 20’s seeded players losing on the men’s and women’s side. The biggest surprise was probably the fact that #3 seed Venus Williams needed 3 sets and 2 hours, 43 minutes to win her first round match against 47th-ranked Vera Dushevina 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-3.
Monday Night Football Thoughts: Well tonight was really the big “debut” and test of new Vikings QB Brett Favre, but there was news even before Monday Night Football. Favre told ESPN that he believes he may have a cracked rib. Wow, that would be just a great omen already for the Vikings huh? The team had not officially examined Favre though and head coach Brad Childress stated right before kickoff that Favre was fine and ready to go. With all that swirling around, Favre was expected to play the entire 1st half of the game against the Houston Texans, so how did he look?
In my estimation, it was a solid performance for Favre, but it was not spectacular. But that is the whole point with this Vikings team. They have the pieces in place to be a great football team and they do not need spectacular QB play. All they require is solid and reliable efforts, which they have not had in years, and it looks like Favre will finally give it to them. He went 13-of-18 for 142 yards and 1 TD and did an effective job of moving the ball, not turning it over, and already showcased his ability to move the team and score points in the 2 minute drill. Not bad for a guy who has been with the team for 12 days.
I thought that Favre looked very good. He showed great mobility for a guy almost 40 years old and he actually was able to create a few plays moving his feet and escaping the pocket. The arm strength is still there and his accuracy was fairly decent last night as well. I would suggest that the Vikings try to work on their blocking however, because I thought Favre had to scramble a little too much and a few throws were rushed. To have a great season, the Vikings will need to keep Favre off his back and give him the time he needs to pick apart defenses. The only mistake Favre made last night was throwing a pretty bad crackback block, which he got flagged for. I don’t believe it was a dirty play at all, but it certainly was a bad decision for him to be trying that.
From what I saw, the Vikings could actually be real contenders after all if they play to this level. Adrian Peterson is an absolute beast and he will take a great deal of pressure off of Favre. If he improves in the passing game and players like rookie WR Percy Harvin develop as the season goes along, then the sky could be the limit. I saw Favre make some really nice decisions last night as well. That is another key to success. Favre does not have to be a reckless gunslinger on this team. If he manages the game and does not turn the ball over, the Vikings will be rolling. Throw in a stout defense and you have the makings of a dangerous team. The only big question out there now: can Favre stay healthy and not wear down like he did last season? I really did not notice any ill effects of a potentially cracked rib. Favre took 2 sacks and got hit numerous times and I did not see him wincing in pain at all. So I guess we will just have to wait and see if he can survive and if any new reports surface about the ribs.
On a final note, the Houston Texans still look like they will be a .500 team at best this year. QB Matt Schaub has had his own injury issues and questions and he goes out there and sprains his ankle just running out of bounds. The Texans do have weapons on offense but an injury to Schaub will not help, especially when the defense still looks like it has a ways to go. The Texans have a good pass rush with DE Mario Williams, but if they can not get pressure on the opposing QB, it looks like they will get picked apart in the secondary. I hear some people talking playoffs for the Texans this year, and I am not sure that I buy that yet.
The Game’s Quick Hits
- Word has finally come in that Kansas City Chiefs QB Matt Cassel has a sprained MCL in his knee and could miss 2-4 weeks. This puts him in jeopardy of missing the Chiefs’ season opener against the Ravens on September 13. While I don’t like seeing players getting hurt, this is certainly good news for Ravens fans. Baltimore didn’t really need any extra help to beat the Chiefs come opening day, but if QB Tyler Thigpen is behind center for Kansas City, it could be an ugly day out there for them and a dominating performance for the Ravens to start the year. The Chiefs also fired offensive coordinator Chan Gailey on Monday, seemingly in response to the team’s poor offensive efforts in the preseason and dating back to last year. Truly, it seems as if the Chiefs are in a bit of turmoil here.
- In more injury news, Baltimore Ravens CB Samari Rolle was placed on the physically unable to perform list and will miss at least the first 6 weeks of the season. Rolle continues to have problems with his neck that plagued him last year and he intends to have more surgery to stabilize it and allow him to continue his career and not retire. Obviously, this is not news that Ravens fans wanted to hear, but hopefully Rolle will be able to recover and rejoin the team for the stretch run. I have to say, the Ravens look like they do not miss Rolle with the way the defense has looked this preseason. He has not practiced with the team and did not even make it to training camp, so this news does not come as any type of blow to the team. However, Rolle would be able to provide more depth and tons of experience, so I hope that the Ravens don’t suffer a rash of injuries in the secondary. I would like to wish Rolle well on his recovery. He has always been an effective player and good citizen of the NFL, so here’s to hoping he makes it back this year.
- New England Patriots QB Tom Brady finally broke his silence and told Boston radio station WEEI that he expects to play in the regular season opener and is ready to play this week in the team’s final preseason game if he is allowed. Don’t expect that however since the Patriots usually sit their starters in the final preseason game. So slowly this story and injury seem to be much ado about nothing. Have to wonder if some of those defensive ends and linebackers try to target Brady’s shoulder though.
-And in other Patriots news, LB Tedy Bruschi retired today as expected. Bruschi told everyone that his work was finished in the game and he achieved everything that he wanted to achieve. Sources are also saying that Chiefs LB Zach Thomas will also retire. Being a Ravens fan and being able to watch the excellence of LB Ray Lewis for years has allowed me to have a great deal of appreciation for the linebacker position. Bruschi and Thomas are two class acts and were highly effective players, so they will be missed. Hearty congratulations to them both for excellent careers.
- It also seems like the injury story on Buffalo Bills WR Terrell Owens is coming to an end. Owens returned to the practice field on Monday and the Bills could start hoping he would revive an offensive that has looked dead in the preseason since he went down with a sprained toe. I still believe it is only a matter of time before Owens runs his mouth or blows up totally after the team struggles or QB Trent Edwards starts to not get him the ball.
- In an update to the story on possible NCAA rules violations by University of Michigan football, former Michigan WR Toney Clemons, who has since transferred to Colorado, went on record and told ESPN that the allegation about Michigan violating NCAA rules on limiting how much time players can spend on training and practice are true. In fact, upwards of 10 players have spoken out and none dispute the report. Clemons told ESPN that he spent upwards of 12 hours on Sundays doing team activity and regularly went over the limits of 20 hours per week and 4 hours per day. As I speculated yesterday, these players have no reason to throw their team and University under the bus unless this story is true and it seems like it is. I am not surprised at all because Michigan football has been on a downward trend recently and Coach Rich Rodriguez has to be feeling the pressure. At a press conference on Monday, Rodriguez got teary several times and became emotional and flatly stated that he cares about the players, the coaches and the University know the rules and abide by them, and all this speculation is just an attempt to “tear up” the rebuilding efforts of the team. The University will have to try and argue that much of this time being put in by the players does not count against the “organized” time allotted because it is voluntary and they can claim that strength and conditioning personnel are only monitoring the workouts for safety purposes, which is allowed. To me, this is obviously an excuse to skirt the rules, so it will be interesting to see what ultimately goes down here. I hate to be cynical and all and maybe Rodriguez had nothing to do with any of this, but it seems obvious that the players got some kind of message to put in longer hours than they should have been. Or maybe it was just confusion and the time these players are putting in really is voluntary. My guess is that Michigan may “self-report” themselves for “minor” violations down the road and probably end up losing a scholarship or two.
- Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey has stated that C Yao Ming is progressing well from foot surgery and there is a slight chance he could actually return during the 2009-2010 season. Doctors have also stated that the injury does not appear to be career threatening any longer. Not much else to say on this except I am pleased to hear that Yao’s career is not in danger. He definitely is a dynamic player when healthy and one of the top centers in the league. Houston has seemingly had trouble, along with bad luck, finding a way to build a championship team around Yao, so they can only hope that he comes back healthy and they can begin to make progress.
- The Minnesota Timberwolves failed to reach an agreement to buyout PG Ricky Rubio’s contract and his rights were traded to FC Barcelona in Spain and he will not be able to join the Timberwolves until the summer of 2011. I have no desire to get into the specifics of the money and dealings and only wish to reiterate that the Timberwolves look like fools in this, in my opinion. This now becomes a wasted draft pick for 2 years and for a team that needs immediate help, I believe they should have traded this headache to another team because they had to have knowledge that this scenario could go down. I suppose the only consolation is that Rubio can still work on his game and will only be 20 years old in the summer of 2011. If this guy develops into a star, then I guess the whole thing will be worth it.
- Recently released P Brad Penny has cleared waivers and intends to sign with the San Francisco Giants. He is expected to immediately go into the starting rotation and replace Joe Martinez. Considering that I have never heard of Martinez and he is sporting a 7.52 ERA this year, this seems like an upgrade. If Penny can pitch 5 innings per outing and keep the Giants in games, then it is probably a good move. The Giants are now tied for the Wild Card with the Rockies, so maybe this move will put them over the top. Only time will tell…
- And staying in the NL West, the Dodgers tried to keep pace with the wheeling and dealing and last minute acquisitions of their rivals by trading for Jim Thome and P John Garland. They completed these transactions before the midnight deadline so that Thome and Garland are eligible to be on the Dodgers’ postseason roster. Thome has been strictly a DH the past two years with the White Sox, so who knows how they will be using him. Without question, it seems like LA is determined to try and win it with offense though. Garland could be an effective pickup and any added help when it comes to the rotation is welcomed. Only one more month to go until the postseason and things are certainly heating up.
- U.S. Open Update: #1 seed Roger Federer extended his U.S. Open winning streak to 35 matches by beating wild-card entry Devin Britton 6-1, 6-3, 7-5. A little surprising to see Federer get pushed to 7-5 in the 3rd against a wild-card, but obviously it is nothing of concern. No other big upsets occurred in today’s action, with only a few lower 20’s seeded players losing on the men’s and women’s side. The biggest surprise was probably the fact that #3 seed Venus Williams needed 3 sets and 2 hours, 43 minutes to win her first round match against 47th-ranked Vera Dushevina 6-7 (5), 7-5, 6-3.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Sunday Wrap Up
Just have some random thoughts going from Sunday, so let’s get to it!
The Game’s Quick Hits
- Heath “If ya Got ‘em” Slocum drained a 21-foot par putt on the 72nd hole to finish at 9-under par and win The Barclays by one shot over PGA heavyweights Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington, and Steve Stricker. The shocking win by Slocum vaulted him from 124th in the FedEx Cup standings to 3rd and got the playoffs off to a riveting start. I watched coverage of the entire final round and thoroughly had a great time. As I stated yesterday, Tiger lurking near the top of the leaderboard on Sunday makes for great TV and there was certainly drama to be had. I predicted that Woods would not win the tournament yesterday and even though I was right, he tried damn hard to make me eat those words. That is one reason why Tiger makes things exciting even if you are only a casual fan of golf. Even though he might not be playing his best, he always finds a way to keep grinding and scoring and then by the end of the tournament, he is always right there at the end. Once Stricker and Slocum both found a fairway bunker with their drives on 18, I thought for sure there was going to be a 5 way playoff. But I have to give Slocum major credit for rising to the occasion and draining a huge pressure packed putt.
If you watched the final round, Tiger actually should have won the event and just could not make enough happen at the end. He had a cruel lip-out from under 3 feet on the 3rd hole which cost him a shot and then he shockingly missed a birdie that was within 10 feet on the 18th. Draining either one of those would have gotten him into a playoff and both would have given him the win outright. You could also blame his play on the par 5’s, where he was only able to birdie one of them. Or just blame his slow start and poor putting in the first two rounds. However you slice it, it is just amazing how Tiger’s “mediocre” game can be better than other player’s best efforts. There was a huge pack of players trying to get the lead on Sunday and the tournament went right down to the wire. I really appreciate the drama that is created and the skill of the players. I realize golf is not for everyone, but when the best players in the world are playing, I honestly believe that spending a Sunday afternoon watching a golf tournament is some of the best time that you can spend as a sports fan.
- According to a report on the Detroit Free Press’s website, several University of Michigan football players alleged that the program has been violating NCAA rules limiting the amount of time they can spend on training and practice sessions. The players claim that the amount of time they are asked to put in by the program is mandatory and greatly exceeds the limits. Of course, Coach Rich Rodriguez and the University deny this and say there is nothing for them to self-report. In my estimation, I would have to believe these players because there is no reason to talk if it wasn’t true. They must have a bone to pick with the football program and what they are asked to do and I would have no trouble believing that Rodriguez and his coaching staff are pushing these players to the limit and beyond. Football at the University of Michigan is an institution and the program has been down in recent years. The pressure on Rodriguez to produce results is immense and I guess he thinks more practice and workouts will bring better results. That is generally true, but the NCAA sets limits so the kids aren’t run into the ground and they need to be followed. I’m sure it would be hard for the NCAA to really come down on the University for this, but Michigan had better be careful. And in fact, it seems as if they will at least give the appearance that they are. It was reported later on Sunday that the University would be looking into the allegations of the players. I guess we will have to wait and see if anything comes of that and also if this increased workload on the players helps because Michigan will struggle to get to 7 wins and be bowl eligible.
- Reports indicate that free agent LW Alex Tanguay has agreed to a 1 year contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning. A division rival getting a good player like this is definitely not good news for the Capitals. Tanguay is still young at 29 and has been a very consistent scorer, logging 580 points in 659 games played. He was limited by a separated shoulder last year but still got 41 pts in 50 gms. Tanguay will join Vincent Lacavalier, Martin St. Louis, and rising star Steven Stamkos on a team that is starting to look up. If the Lightning can get some solid goaltending, they will start to be a force in the Southeast Division. I still expect the Caps to be the class of the division this year, but a healthy Tampa Bay lineup will make it tough for the Caps to take any game against them easy this year.
- Let’s take a trip around the NFL and look at some of the news from Sunday: The Cincinnati Bengals finally signed top draft pick, offensive lineman Andre Smith. The #6 pick in the draft and the Bengals had been unable to work out an agreement due to the fact that Cincinnati tried to pay Smith less than the #7 pick, Darrius Heyward-Bey of the Raiders. You see, this is why the Bengals can never get to the next level. They needed help on the offensive line and they tried to be cheapskates with Smith. I actually side with Smith on this one because the sliding salary scale for draft picks is what it is, so I blame the Bengals on this. The signing now leaves that idiot Michael Crabtree as the only unsigned 1st round draft pick…
There is still no word on the severity of the injury to Kansas City Chiefs QB Matt Cassel, who left Saturday’s preseason game with a leg injury and is undergoing medical tests. As if there would be any surprise, the Chiefs and their fans are now very concerned as the team seems to be staring at another disappointing season. I am looking forward to the Ravens crushing the Chiefs come week 1…
The Patriots are still being tight-lipped on the severity of Tom Brady’s shoulder injury, but they could have given everyone a clue by the surprise release of QB Kevin O’Connell. O’Connell was the front runner to be Brady’s backup and it seems really strange that the team would cut him after Brady went down. So obviously, the speculation is now that Brady’s shoulder may not be too bad…And in other Patriots news, it is being reported that LB Tedy Bruschi will announce his retirement tomorrow. That is fairly surprising, so I can only assume he believes that his body or mind is not up for the grind of an entire season. I give the guy a ton of credit for coming back after his heart problems and wish him well since he seems like he was a class act…
And now time for your daily dose of Michael Vick news…today it seems offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg came out and told the media that Vick will not disrupt the flow of the offense and that he will help the Eagles and not be a distraction. Well if you ask me, I will believe it when I see it. If anything, the media will try to make this into a big story, so sooner or later, Vick will have to produce on the field and as I stated before, the Eagles need to define a role and package of plays for Vick and stick to it.
- And finally, just want to send out congratulations to Chula Vista, CA for defeating Chinese Taipei 6-3 to win the 2009 Little League World Series. This is always a fun event to check out every year and the California team was damn impressive, hitting a LLWS record 19 home runs during the tournament.
The Game’s Quick Hits
- Heath “If ya Got ‘em” Slocum drained a 21-foot par putt on the 72nd hole to finish at 9-under par and win The Barclays by one shot over PGA heavyweights Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Padraig Harrington, and Steve Stricker. The shocking win by Slocum vaulted him from 124th in the FedEx Cup standings to 3rd and got the playoffs off to a riveting start. I watched coverage of the entire final round and thoroughly had a great time. As I stated yesterday, Tiger lurking near the top of the leaderboard on Sunday makes for great TV and there was certainly drama to be had. I predicted that Woods would not win the tournament yesterday and even though I was right, he tried damn hard to make me eat those words. That is one reason why Tiger makes things exciting even if you are only a casual fan of golf. Even though he might not be playing his best, he always finds a way to keep grinding and scoring and then by the end of the tournament, he is always right there at the end. Once Stricker and Slocum both found a fairway bunker with their drives on 18, I thought for sure there was going to be a 5 way playoff. But I have to give Slocum major credit for rising to the occasion and draining a huge pressure packed putt.
If you watched the final round, Tiger actually should have won the event and just could not make enough happen at the end. He had a cruel lip-out from under 3 feet on the 3rd hole which cost him a shot and then he shockingly missed a birdie that was within 10 feet on the 18th. Draining either one of those would have gotten him into a playoff and both would have given him the win outright. You could also blame his play on the par 5’s, where he was only able to birdie one of them. Or just blame his slow start and poor putting in the first two rounds. However you slice it, it is just amazing how Tiger’s “mediocre” game can be better than other player’s best efforts. There was a huge pack of players trying to get the lead on Sunday and the tournament went right down to the wire. I really appreciate the drama that is created and the skill of the players. I realize golf is not for everyone, but when the best players in the world are playing, I honestly believe that spending a Sunday afternoon watching a golf tournament is some of the best time that you can spend as a sports fan.
- According to a report on the Detroit Free Press’s website, several University of Michigan football players alleged that the program has been violating NCAA rules limiting the amount of time they can spend on training and practice sessions. The players claim that the amount of time they are asked to put in by the program is mandatory and greatly exceeds the limits. Of course, Coach Rich Rodriguez and the University deny this and say there is nothing for them to self-report. In my estimation, I would have to believe these players because there is no reason to talk if it wasn’t true. They must have a bone to pick with the football program and what they are asked to do and I would have no trouble believing that Rodriguez and his coaching staff are pushing these players to the limit and beyond. Football at the University of Michigan is an institution and the program has been down in recent years. The pressure on Rodriguez to produce results is immense and I guess he thinks more practice and workouts will bring better results. That is generally true, but the NCAA sets limits so the kids aren’t run into the ground and they need to be followed. I’m sure it would be hard for the NCAA to really come down on the University for this, but Michigan had better be careful. And in fact, it seems as if they will at least give the appearance that they are. It was reported later on Sunday that the University would be looking into the allegations of the players. I guess we will have to wait and see if anything comes of that and also if this increased workload on the players helps because Michigan will struggle to get to 7 wins and be bowl eligible.
- Reports indicate that free agent LW Alex Tanguay has agreed to a 1 year contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning. A division rival getting a good player like this is definitely not good news for the Capitals. Tanguay is still young at 29 and has been a very consistent scorer, logging 580 points in 659 games played. He was limited by a separated shoulder last year but still got 41 pts in 50 gms. Tanguay will join Vincent Lacavalier, Martin St. Louis, and rising star Steven Stamkos on a team that is starting to look up. If the Lightning can get some solid goaltending, they will start to be a force in the Southeast Division. I still expect the Caps to be the class of the division this year, but a healthy Tampa Bay lineup will make it tough for the Caps to take any game against them easy this year.
- Let’s take a trip around the NFL and look at some of the news from Sunday: The Cincinnati Bengals finally signed top draft pick, offensive lineman Andre Smith. The #6 pick in the draft and the Bengals had been unable to work out an agreement due to the fact that Cincinnati tried to pay Smith less than the #7 pick, Darrius Heyward-Bey of the Raiders. You see, this is why the Bengals can never get to the next level. They needed help on the offensive line and they tried to be cheapskates with Smith. I actually side with Smith on this one because the sliding salary scale for draft picks is what it is, so I blame the Bengals on this. The signing now leaves that idiot Michael Crabtree as the only unsigned 1st round draft pick…
There is still no word on the severity of the injury to Kansas City Chiefs QB Matt Cassel, who left Saturday’s preseason game with a leg injury and is undergoing medical tests. As if there would be any surprise, the Chiefs and their fans are now very concerned as the team seems to be staring at another disappointing season. I am looking forward to the Ravens crushing the Chiefs come week 1…
The Patriots are still being tight-lipped on the severity of Tom Brady’s shoulder injury, but they could have given everyone a clue by the surprise release of QB Kevin O’Connell. O’Connell was the front runner to be Brady’s backup and it seems really strange that the team would cut him after Brady went down. So obviously, the speculation is now that Brady’s shoulder may not be too bad…And in other Patriots news, it is being reported that LB Tedy Bruschi will announce his retirement tomorrow. That is fairly surprising, so I can only assume he believes that his body or mind is not up for the grind of an entire season. I give the guy a ton of credit for coming back after his heart problems and wish him well since he seems like he was a class act…
And now time for your daily dose of Michael Vick news…today it seems offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg came out and told the media that Vick will not disrupt the flow of the offense and that he will help the Eagles and not be a distraction. Well if you ask me, I will believe it when I see it. If anything, the media will try to make this into a big story, so sooner or later, Vick will have to produce on the field and as I stated before, the Eagles need to define a role and package of plays for Vick and stick to it.
- And finally, just want to send out congratulations to Chula Vista, CA for defeating Chinese Taipei 6-3 to win the 2009 Little League World Series. This is always a fun event to check out every year and the California team was damn impressive, hitting a LLWS record 19 home runs during the tournament.
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