X-Games, Bond, Conan, Fantasy, and Comics

I’ve been enjoying the X-Games this year. I was first introduced to the event a few years ago when my brother got me to watch a skateboarding event. I was intrigued and wanted to watch more, which led me to the X-Games. And I’ve watched every year since.

I’m not the kind of person one would think of enjoying sports, especially sports featured making up the X-Games. And there was a time I didn’t like sports. I mean really did not like sports. Yeah, I may catch the occasional UT football game and I always caught some of the Olympics. But I routinely tried to avoid having to watch the NFL or other major sports. That changed around the time I started watching the X-Games.  Now, I do watch and enjoy sporting events of many kinds.

Now, this brings me back to the X-Games. While I’ve enjoyed the games, I’ve been frustrated with the coverage of the events. ESPN has, in my opinion, done a pretty bad job of advertising when events take place, where they take place, etc. Yes, one can find the information on the website. But, that information should also be easily available on television as well. Who is going to take the time to go surf the net while watching?

Needless to say, my viewing pleasure has been tempered by these scheduling issues (I know, there are quite a few events going on this weekend). I don’t mean to single out ESPN. Last week, there was supposed to be Dew Tour coverage on my local NBC affiliate. Instead, both days were  infomercials. I was, understandably, very annoyed by this. And there have been other instances of skate, BMX, etc. events being preempted or on the wrong channel.

But the X-Games themselves have been a blast.

Moving on, this is a potpourri post day, after all.

I’ve set it in mind to reread all of the James Bond novels written by Ian Fleming. Hopefully, I won’t get too bored somewhere in there and decide to drop it. Will I do some kind of post series on it? I don’t know. Wait and see.

I’m also going to give reading all of the Conan stories by Robert E. Howard a shot. Don’t expect a post series on these. Instead,  look to Al Harron’s excellent blog The Blog that Time Forgot for his series “80 Years of Conan.” His multi part essay on “The Phoenix on the Sword” is an excellent read and you really should check it out at http://www.theblogthattimeforgot.com for more.

Next week, I’m aiming at having another go at writing a satisfactory post detailing my thoughts on fantasy and writing. And my own goals for both.

After a comics run (or two), I’m planning on doing a grand review, analysis, etc. of the comics I’ve decided to follow. So, that one should be fun.

 

I’m also thinking of redecorating the blog. I’ve had this design for about a year now, and I think it’s time for a change. I also want to add more categories, revisit some old posts, and, perhaps, look into providing images and other visuals. But, I want to give these proposed changes more thought before I implement them. Maybe even set up a poll.

Anyway, that’s it for now.

Super Bowl predictions!! (and alot more)

Today is the day before “The Big Game”, so I thought it’s only fitting I write this post today. This will not be one of my typical posts about football, this is more a celebration of the 2010-2011 season, followed closely by my “Big Game” predictions.

I would first like to celebrate the amazing turnaround the Dallas Cowboys had after firing Wade Phillips. It is astounding how much better an offensive unit can play once you fire the Defensive Coordinator. Just imagine how good they’re going to be once they have a full season under the new head coach/same offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, and how well Tony Romo is going to play once he watches game film and sees, well, even John Kitna can do Romo’s job pretty well. It’s always super bowl or bust in the big D, and I for one believe they should change that moniker to, lets say Bust or Super Bowl, there’s a lot less pressure that way.

Speaking of Teddy Bear Phillips, he was hired as the defensive coordinator for the Houston Texans, who I believe were ranked just below atrocious this season. Can he fix the defense? Honestly it can’t be much worse so I’d have to say yes. But I’m going to offer some outside the box thinking on this one…Draft or acquire a big time wide receiver, say 1B to Andre Johnson, move Kevin Walter to the slot ala Wes Welker, and always have Arian Foster in the backfield, just make the offense as unstoppable as possible, that way defense only has to hold opposing teams to say…27 points or so.

Now that I’m done talking Texas teams, I want to discuss the end of year awards that were handed out recently. I’m ok with Tom Brady winning offensive player of the year, if this means he won’t be the MVP. If he is the MVP, well I’m sorry, but I call bullshit. MVP stands for most valuable player, so it should go to the player who meant the most  to his team, and as New England proved the year Brady went down, he’s not really the most valuable player on that team. Unlike most people, I don’t buy into the bullshit the NFL and other sports broadcasting companies shovel out. As was proven a few yeas ago, the system in New England is more valuable than the players running it. Easy example, Brady gets hurt, Matt Casselll steps in, and the Patriots go 10-6, barely missing the playoffs. The last few years, Brady has been there, and they lost in the super bowl, then they lost two straight playoff games. Score one for me. On the other hand, without Michael Vick, the Philadelphia Eagles wouldn’t of had a shot this season, especially since Kevin Kolb went down with a concussion so quick into the season. I would have preferred Clay Mathews to have won defensive player of the year, but as usual, the NFL darlings got their wish with Troy Polamalu. Now I’m not taking anything away from Troy, he’s one helluva player, but Clay Mathews meant way more to that defense than Troy did this season. Coach of the year is a joke, sorry Bill. It’s hard for me to vote for a guy who got bounced in their first playoff game, at home, against a divisional rival…But the shining light for awards came in the form of the Rookie of the year awards. Both well deserved, I can totally agree with both.

That brings us to the grand finale, the Super Bowl, featuring the Green Bay Packers against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Obviously if you saw my previous Super Bowl quick post, you know I’m rooting for the Packers, and that is because I despise the Steelers. My dislike, and some would say hatred, for the Steelers comes from many different avenues, the main ones being, they Bitch and Moan and Cry too much. James Harrison break the rules, which were already set, no rules were changed, nothing was added, the NFL decided to actually start enforcing the rules, and James Harrison bitches and whines about it. Dude, I’m sorry, but there are tons of defensive players who play harder than you, and are quite better than you, not getting flagged or fined for illegal hits. And why is that Mr. Harrison? It’s because they play the game hard, not dirty, while you play the game dirty, simple as that. Hines Ward, who has been voted by other players as the dirtiest player in the game, comes out and complains of an 18 game regular season, Hey Hines, aren’t there 4 preseason games? You probably play about a full game and a half in preseason, so what the fuck are you complaining about? If you weren’t too busy blindsiding dudes, you would know if there are two more regular season games, that means two more regular season game checks, more games more money…simple as that. Oh yeah I almost forgot about “Big Ben”, that son of a bitch. I find it quite funny how a guy can go from being accused of rape, to being suspended for “personal conduct violations” to playing in the Super Bowl. It may be just me, but what better way for the NFL to clean up “Big Ben” and his horrible image, than to have him win the Super Bowl? And don’t give me that “ NFL is not rigged” shit, if it’s not, explain to me how only three teams have represented the AFC  since 2003, yet every year since the 1997-1998 season, it has been a different NFC team?(by different I mean no back to back, a few teams have gone to multiple Super Bowls in that time frame.) Lets get back on topic here, Fuck “Big Ben”. Yeah that’s it. All I’m going to say about this is, People are still angry and upset with the NFL for allowing Michael Vick to play Football, but everybody has forgiven Rottenburger for “being accused” of raping two women, admitting to at least having  relations with one.  At least Vick actually served his time, “Big Ben” was suspended yes, but in my opinion, he should have sat out the entire season, I guarantee that would have made him focus on his job, and appreciated all the things he was given.

And as for the game, Green bay 35 Pittsburgh 31, in Overtime. Pittsburgh kicks a field goal, new OT rules Green Bay gets the ball, scores a touchdown.

If you have any comments or complaints with this post, please feel free to comment, I will respond to any comments, thoughts or opinions.

Remember Me??

I’M BACK!!!! I’m not going to try to explain my extended hiatus in too much detail, all I’m really going to say is I got extremely burnt out on trying to justify my football predictions, not to mention the ridiculous state of professional wrestling from the past few months or so. I have decided that I am going to drop any filters I may have had on myself, and just start writing my honest opinions and thoughts toward certain subjects. But that can all start next week, this post is all about celebrating the greatness that I didn’t cover, and looking forward into this new year.

I would like to talk for a minute about the greatest thing that has happened to television in a very long time, and no, I’m not talking about Oprah’s ego-trip network. I’m talking about The Walking Dead. If you would have told me this time last year that a zombie apocalypse survival horror television show was coming, I probably would have laughed in your face, and said that it would never work. And boy would I have been wrong. The Walking Dead is now the measuring stick to which I will judge any new show. If I can’t say “Wow, that hooked me like The Walking Dead did.” then I probably won’t be tuning in for episode two.

Boy was I wrong about my NFL picks this year! I honestly hope no one took my advice to Vegas, because you’d probably would have had to take out a second mortgage on your house to pay the bookies. I still haven’t given up hope that I can still pick a winner, so here it is…..Philadelphia and Kansas City all the way!!! And before you say WTF!! Just let me say this, I picked a few of the favorites during the season ( I’m looking at you Dallas) and they’re now picking in the top ten in the draft…

The DC Universe Online beta was released a few weeks ago, so that also distracted me for awhile. You’re going to hear more about this later on today from my gracious and very knowledgeable co-writer in crime, who stepped up and took control of this here blog when I decided to take my hiatus. Where was I? Oh yeah, DCUO…I have never played an MMO, and I have little experience with the RPG genre of video games, but I felt like this game was extremely approachable, even for people with minimal experience, as my co-writer will touch on a bit more in his beta review. Also, the graphics were decent enough for me, and the create a character was quite deep, although it could have had more costume selections, but for the beta I was happy with the selection. I did find it frustrating at times, but I attribute that more to the lack of any shred of patience I have, especially when it comes to gaming. Overall, I found it to be quite enjoyable, both to play and to watch.

This concludes my happy fun time for all post about good things, next time you see me, it’s no more Mr. Kind- of- nice- at -times- guy. The gloves are coming off and going in the closet, I’m going to go bare knuckle on the things that I didn’t like during my hiatus, and there was a lot.

My most hated athletes, and why i hate them.(part 2)

Let’s start backwards from ten. Number Ten is NBA commissioner David Stern. One simple reason, and this might sound like a conspiracy theory or what have you, but since he has taken over as commissioner, only seven teams have won the championship, and only sixteen different teams have even made the finals in that time. Meanwhile, in that same time frame, sixteen different NFL teams have won the Super Bowl, and even more have won the World series in baseball. The same amount of different teams to play in an NBA finals series have won the Super Bowl. This is simply unbelievable to me.

Number nine is Bill Beliecheck, and no I didn’t google how to spell it, so it’s probably wrong. Why Bill we’ll call him? He knowingly cheated by videotaping opposing teams walkthroughs. That is obviously a major infraction, and the penalty should have been harsh and swift. But wait.. All they had to do was pay a fine, and lose a first round draft pick, which they got back through a trade. So you’re telling me they knowingly violated league rules and basically the only form of punishment levied were fines? That seems completely fair.(sarcasm implied) I guess it all worked out in the end though, because if you recall, this was the season they went undefeated to the Super Bowl, and lost. Cheaters really never do prosper huh?

Number eight is Peyton Manning, simply because he is the best quarterback in the NFL, and he is in the division with the Houston Texans. I will retract my hatred as soon as he retires.

Number Seven is Ben Rothlisburger…I assume that’s close. This is one of those where the off the field stuff does come into play. If I were given the opportunity to play quarterback in the NFL, you better believe I would make the most of the opportunity, not try my hardest to throw it away. Mr. Rothlisburger to me has tried his best to never play football again, from the motorcycle accident to the numerous sexual assault allegations, I just feel like he couldn’t care less about the NFL or the Steelers, all he cares about is the fame he has received from being in the NFL.

Which brings me to number six…NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. This pick to me was pretty simple, and he would have made the top five, but there are more important people ahead of this guy. And I believe that is the problem with this guy, he came out guns a blazing, suspending people, fining people, changing rules, adding rules, blah blah, blah. But the one thing he forgot to do was stay consistent, and that’s where I have the problem. Adam “Pacman” Jones was suspended by the NFL for violating Roger Goodell’s newly implanted rules. He was suspended an entire season for being questioned and detained by the police. He was never charged with any crimes, he served zero days in jail, and to my knowledge all the charges against him were dropped. He was subsequently suspended the remainder of the following year after about six games with the Dallas Cowboys for an incident that led to no criminal charges. He then played a year in the CFL because no NFL team would sign him, until this season when the Cincinnati  Bengals picked him up. Sound familiar? It should. Ben Rothlisburger had a very similar situation occur with him this offseason, but was only suspended four games. This to me is a perfect model of inconsistency, and honestly don’t get me started on that whole Patriots videotaping scandal, which I hopefully made very clear where I stand on that. The point I’m trying to make is, be fair. Rothlisburger was, in my eyes, given a pass because who he is, and Pacman Jones was screwed to be an example.

Number five is the BCS. When did College Football become a beauty pageant? I do not agree with the methods in which the “Best teams in the Land” are selected,  I do not agree with the idiotic system they have in place to determine these “best teams” and I certainly do not agree that one team deserves to play more than another because of a “stronger schedule”. I will use this year as an example. Alabama is ranked number one, and I will say it’s well deserved. They won the BCS championship last year, so that makes sense. Ohio State is ranked number two, because the people who poll are hoping they don’t screw up and lose. Boise State is number three, while TCU is number four or five, depending on which poll you look at. To me, this is a cop out to appease the people who say Boise State and TCU belong, and also for the detractors who believe they don’t. Let me throw out a scenario for you, if Boise and TCU both go undefeated, and Alabama and Ohio State lose two, who plays for the BCS title? If you guessed Alabama and Ohio State, you’re probably right. These non-conference will never get the respect they deserve without a playoff system, and I whole heartedly believe whoever decides who plays for the championship is scared to death to put Boise or TCU in the national title game, because what would happen to their perfect little world if by some miracle they won? College football is in desperate need of a playoff system, that way the teams decide who are the best, instead of random computer polls and other people’s opinions.

Number four will receive its very own post next time I do a special post, so I’m not going to touch on this one too much. Referees and Umpires. Be on the look out for that one, its going to be a good one.

Number three is Tom Brady. “Why him? He’s the best quarterback EVER!! He’s so handsome and wonderful and perfect.” “He’s the Golden Boy of the NFL, when he points, flags get thrown.” you say. I say, he is nothing more than an average quarterback who got a lucky break..(Sorry Drew Bledsoe.) He took said lucky break and ran with it, propelling him to superstardom and fame and fortune. But he’s still an average quarterback who will get flustered and make mistakes, just look at last year’s playoffs. But every year it’s the return of the Patriots, the sports media says, because he won three Super Bowls, the last one being five years ago. He’s no Elway, he’s no Marino, and he’s certainly no Peyton Manning.

Number two is Alex Rodriguez. I couldn’t care less about his off the field crap, the one thing I do care about is the steroids. And after admitting to using steroids, what happened to A-rod? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He wasn’t chastised in the media, he wasn’t blackballed by major league baseball, he wasn’t fined or suspended or anything of the sort. So apparently all you have to do to be forgiven for cheating in baseball is to apologize? I call bullshit. Good for him he apologized, I don’t give a shit, he cheated, plain and simple. Asterisks don’t make up for a career of lies, and every home run and rbi and any other various awards or records he gained while cheating are tainted. I understand that most of baseball history is tainted now because of the steroid era, but no other player is getting the acknowledgement for tainted achievements as this guy. Just watch coverage of his six hundredth home run, the sports media acted like nothing ever happened, like we’re all supposed to forget about it. Why? Because he apologized? Not this guy.

And this brings me to number one. No surprise here, it’s Kobe Bryant. I will keep this short, because I don’t feel like he deserves much time. He won three championships with Shaq at the helm, he doesn’t win another one until the Lakers bring in Pau Gasol. He now has five, and he is eying a sixth or seventh, that way he would have more than Michael Jordan. I don’t care if he wins five more rings, He’ll never be better than Jordan, even though in his egotistical self centered mind, he probably thinks he already is. Don’t get me wrong, he is one of the greatest players to play the game, but he will never be the greatest. Period.

That wraps up this special Wednesday post. I will have my weekly NFL predictions post up this Friday. Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments below.

The most hated athletes, and why i don’t hate them (part 1)

A recently released article about the most hated players in sports was brought to my attention. As I can’t find the actual list, I guess I have to go off the select names released. Although I don’t really agree with all the names released, I almost felt obligated to release my personal, opinionated, comprehensive list of professional athletes that I personally dislike the most. I will also touch on a couple of the athletes named on the most hated list, why they are on there, and why I don’t believe they should be. I will obviously start at the top of that list, which is Michael Vick.

Michael Vick was voted by whoever took the poll as the most hated athlete, this choice to me is honestly ridiculous. The man served his time in prison, therefore to me he is forgiven for the crimes he committed. “How can you even remotely begin to say such a ridiculous thing?” you ask. Simple. He was convicted of his crimes, he served most if not all of his prison term if I’m not mistaken, and to me that is really all society should ask of him, because we as a society ask for a lot less from “normal” criminals. I understand that he should be held to a higher standard or some crap like that, but I also think that is utter nonsense. Because he gets paid millions he should be held to higher standards than normal everyday people? Absolutely not, he should be held to the same standards you would want for yourself. So look at his situation, replace him with you, and then tell me he still deserves to be punished for the crimes he committed. it’s a little harder to do now when its you we’re talking about huh?

Another name on this list that I personally feel was sort of a ridiculous pick was Lebron James. Ok, if you live in Cleveland, I understand. Also, if you hated the way he handled “the Decision” I can also understand that, but to be honest, there isn’t much left to hate. Don’t get me wrong, the decision special was one of the biggest ego trip moves I have ever seen in the sports world, but on that same breath, we were all “witnesses” to “the decision”. Also, the decision show was just as much ESPN’s fault as it was Lebron’s. They could have just as easily said no, but that would have been a terrible business move on their part, so I guess you can’t fault them there. I mean I get it, you don’t like Lebron, well you used to when he played for Cleveland, but know he is a talent less egomaniacal grown up child who can’t win a championship on his own, you hate him with all your soul. One question, name me ONE basketball player who has ever won a CHAMPIONSHIP on his own? Give up? Here’s the answer: ZERO. Basketball is not golf or tennis, it is a TEAM sport, and people are mad Lebron went to Miami to form a better team, either that or they are simply mad because they didn’t think to do it themselves…I’m looking at you Charles Barkley.

Which brings me to my final ridiculous pick from the list, Tiger Woods. WHAT?? HOW ON EARTH CAN YOU SAY THAT!! You screamed. Because I’m talking about Tiger Woods the athlete, you hate Tiger Woods the person. Aren’t they the same thing? Absolutely not, especially in the sports world. Tiger Woods is one of the greatest golfers to ever play the game, but he is also one the sleaziest human beings alive. “Well you’re not making any sense, people don’t hate him for his golfing thingy, they hate him for cheating on his wife a billion times!” You said. That is EXACTLY the point I’m trying to make, the three athletes I listed are among the most hated, but what they are hated for has absolutely nothing to do with their athletic lives, but all to do with their personal lives. As a sports fan, the players I choose to hate has everything to do with on the field/court/racetrack etc. and little to nothing to do with off the field issues. Don’t get me wrong, off the field issues do come into play a little bit in my most hated, but not exactly the way you would think.

NFL Weekly Weekend Review!! (week 3..plus a little extra)

Whew! What a wild weekend in the NFL! By wild I do mean slightly out of the norm events that will have the media “buzzing” until next week. Nothing really to surprising this week for me, but I do want to touch on a couple “hot button” issues. But I will get to that after the weekly weekend roundup…I think I’ve finally found a name for these!

Cowboys Texans started out strong, but did fade kind of quickly once we got to halftime. The hilarious referee issue was probably the highlight of the second half for me. What? Not the Cowboys finally living up to all the hype they seem to generate every single season? Nope. Not the Texans sputtering on offense and defense to look like the team everyone naturally expects from them? Nope. The Texans have a very winnable schedule going into their bye week in week six. The Cowboys had to win this game, and they did, but the gauntlet of their schedule is coming up, and they will certainly have to play this hard or harder to get victories.

The Saints Falcons game didn’t surprise me. A division game against the reigning Super Bowl champs is motivation enough to play your asses off.

Like I previously stated, I believe the Giants are over hyped this year. They pretty much proved it to me yesterday against the Titans. A truck full of yards, and only ten points? They’ll be a tough team to beat, but they won’t accomplish too many preseason goals if they continue to play like they have been.

Buffalo versus New England was a wee bit surprising. Surprising in the sense the Patriots couldn’t blow them out.

The Vikings Win!! Cash it in baby we’re going to the Super Bowl!! Who’d we beat? The Lions? Crap…. Sorry Minnesota, until you beat a worthy opponent, I still believe your average at best.

Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs. 3-0! Could it be we are seeing the resurrection of the Chiefs? Potentially, but they will have to keep it up.

Also, a congratulation goes out to  Michael Vick. 2-0 as a starter and has the Eagles leading the division. I will touch more on this particular subject Wednesday, so be on the lookout for that.

Indy won again…not surprising at all considering who we’re talking about. Denver had there moments to close the gap, but they just couldn’t seem to convert when they needed to.

The Jets beat the Dolphins. For such a dominating defense they sure have given up quite a bit of points, except for the Monday night game. At least for them, they are finally living up to all the hype they gave themselves and seemingly everybody else in the universe.

There is one football related issue I would like to discuss briefly. That would be the arrest of Jets wide receiver Braylon Edwards for DWI.

I think it is disgusting and reprehensible to drive while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Accidents happen when not inebriated, so why would you add to the chances? I’m talking about everybody here, not just professional athletes or Hollywood celebrities or the TMZ celebrities. Please don’t give me that nonsense about “I drive better when I’m drunk.” If you believe in your idiotic selfish mind you drive better drunk than sober, you shouldn’t be driving at all. All it takes is one tragedy to completely change your perspective and outlook on the matter, trust me. As for all these famous because we make them famous people, you would rather risk your life and the lives of innocent people then take a cab or a limo service home? If you answered yes to that question, seek professional help as quickly as possible. Before I get off the soapbox I would just like to add this… taxi’s, limos and car services don’t cost nearly as much  as the alcohol or drugs your buying, and the cost is certainly less than that of an innocent life being taken away for your ignorance and stupidity.

Whew. Now that I got that off my chest I think I’m going to go ahead and wrap this up. I’ll be back with a special Wednesday post, so check that out. And as always, I will be back Friday for the NFL week 4 preview party!

NFL Sunday week 2 thoughts and opinons

I’m extremely tired as I’m writing this so forgive me if things sound a bit harsh. Week 2 in the NFL is almost done, so here’s a few noteworthy topics I’d like to touch on.

I know what your thinking, “He’s going to start with the Texans Redskins game…blah blah blah.” Nope. I’m going to start with the “Manning Bowl” a.k.a. the Indianapolis Colts versus the New York Giants. Indy looked about like one would expect, not too surprising. The Giants lack of offense or defense didn’t surprise me either, they honestly didn’t look at all impressive last week against Carolina, so I was far from shocked to see them lose that badly. And yes, I will address  the elephant in the room, or more appropriately the helmet in the crowd. Will Brandon Jacobs be suspended? Probably. Should he be suspended? Absolutely not. He should be fined a large sum of money, more so because he missed the bench than the actual helmet into the crowd part of it. I have no doubt if this were to occur again he wouldn’t miss the bench, since that’s where most of his time will be spent now. And for a side note, I am not in the party that believes that fan should have been allowed to keep the helmet. Just because an item goes into the stands doesn’t mean it belongs to the fans…this isn’t baseball.

Now that I’ve I got that out of the way…The Houston Texans against the Washington Redskins. I’m an admitted Texans fan, so I’ll just put it out there, last week wasn’t a fluke. I would have understood and been totally fine if the sports media deemed it that way if the Texans hadn’t battled back and won. The Redskins showed utter brilliance on offense, choosing to attack the weakest part of the Texans D, the very young and inexperienced secondary. I believe, even with this loss, the Redskins proved they are not the same “easy out” they have been these last few years, and they are looking more and more like contenders in this division. But wait! “Is he going to bring up that “icing” the kicker crap?” No, simply because it is not illegal to do. Just ask coach Shanahan.

Dallas looked almost terrible against Chicago. If they don’t figure out what is wrong, they might go 0-3… They play Houston next week, for my thoughts on that game, tune in Friday for my week 3 preview.

The Jets surprised me, I will acknowledge that. But this offensive explosion makes me beg the question “What happened last Monday night against Baltimore?”

Minnesota is EXACTLY what I expected to see, as I may be one of the few who believe Favre is almost certainly done. Don’t get me wrong, he’ll have big games, I believe they play the Rams next week, but I honestly believe they will miss the playoffs by a mile this season.

I believe that will just about wrap things up for today’s post. I will have a special post this Wednesday, giving my opinion on the recently released “Most Hated Players In Sports”.  Also, don’t forget to come by on Friday for the NFL Week 3 preview.

NFL Week 2 preview! (plus a little extra)

Hello Friday, oh how I have missed you. You signify the end of most work weeks, and you are only two days away from Sunday, meaning I’m only two days away from hopefully another great football weekend. A lot of teams across the NFL got off to good starts, a few off to great starts. Will they continue to roll, or slide right back down the ladder? Let me preface this by saying I won’t preview every game, and some that I do preview won’t be as in depth as others, and that is because I probably dislike the teams too much to really put any thought into it.

The most intriguing match up for me, at least for this week is the Houston Texans taking on the Washington Redskins. The Texans literally ran all over the Colts last week, while the Redskins scalped the Cowboys.(too soon?) I am a devout Texans fan, I’m just going to throw that out there right now. But what I saw from the Redskins defense sure does have me worried, as they held a capable Cowboys team to only a touchdown. The Redskins offense didn’t impress me in the least, and for them to win they will certainly have to play much better then they did against Dallas. The Texans offense was seemingly unstoppable last Sunday, and they didn’t really reveal much from their passing game which is capable of putting up huge numbers. In the end, I think the Texans just have too much offense to stop, Texans 28 Redskins 17.

The next matchup I would like to touch on is the Cowboys versus the Bears.(big surprise huh?) This one will be brief I swear. If the Cowboys tighten up the offensive line this week, they win. If they don’t, they lose. Simple as that. The Bears squeaked past a very game Detroit Lions last week, but the Cowboys aren’t the Lions, at least not yet. I think the Cowboys scrape this one out 17 to 13.

Another quickie coming right up. Indianapolis Colts versus the New York Giants. The blueprint to beat Indy has been revealed, sort of. I just don’t think the Giants have the right formula, and Peyton would surely retire if little bro beats him on national TV. Colts 35 Giants 28.

This one will be the shortest. Patriots versus Jets. I honestly couldn’t care any less then I already do who wins this game. Patriots 84 Jets 80.

Miami versus Minnesota is another intriguing game for me. I truly believe any magic Brett Favre had left from last season he left in Mississippi. The offense just isn’t there for him the wasy it was last year, whether it be because of injuries or recent acquisitions. The timing and confidence he played with last year seems to be gone. The Dolphins are a brain teaser of sorts. You have one of the best receivers in the game, a great  running game, and a manageable defense. Yet they only managed fifteen against Buffalo, hence the brain teaser comparison. I understand teams on paper look fantastic and they don’t always measure up to expectations, but come on! Miami takes this one, 42 to 21. side note: welcome to Miami Brandon Marshall. I’m calling breakout game.

New Orleans versus San Francisco. Monday Night Football. As some of you may read in my preseason division breakdown series, and even my playoff predictions, I had high hopes for the 49ers. Will I go as far as to say they were dashed last week by the hands of the surprising Seahawks? No. Am I concerned they won’t win the division? Absolutely not. Why you ask? Can you say over confident? They underestimated a very fired up team in Seattle. After last weekend though, I am convinced it won’t be as easy for them to win the division as I previously thought, but I know think 9-7 gets you that division. To start 0-2 will be a challenge to make they playoffs for most other teams, but not teams in this division. That being said, New Orleans 23 San Francisco 20 in OT.

I would also like to touch on Tom Brady’s recent comments about the home crowd leaving the game early last week.  This will be short too I promise.

Dear Tom Brady: the FANS paid to see a football game, when they had there fill of said football game, they left. The FANS aren’t there to see you…(though I’m sure there are some that are.) they are there to see the New England Patriots. You are not the Patriots, most people treat you as you are. The FANS paid for the right to be disappointed in you and your teammates, you in no way shape or form have any right to be disappointed in anybody who spends there hard earned money to pay you to play a game then decide to leave when said game is in hand.  I knew there were more reasons to why I dislike you as a professional athlete and celebrity figure, I will just add another one to the list.

That’s it for this week, I’ll be back on Monday for a weekend wrap-up and next Friday for the week 3 preview. And if your lucky, and I’m not too lazy this weekend, a special Wednesday post touching on the recent release of “The Most Hated Players in Sports.”

News and Notes: NFL Week 1

I’m still recovering from an exciting NFL Sunday, even though my excitement really took a hit last night during the late night game. I would just like to point out a couple newsworthy topics i saw coming from the first regular season weekend.

I was going to start with the Texans/Colts game, but I feel like I have to address the Lions/Bears game first.  Was it a catch? Absolutely it was a catch. Was it technically a catch?  By the NFL rules, apparently it wasn’t. I have seen a lot less being called a completion, whether it be in the end zone or not, hell i saw a few “completions” yesterday that looked less complete than that particular play.

Texans/Colts: Perfect statement game for the Texans, and as a side note, welcome to the NFL Mr. Foster. I have watched almost every game ever played between these two teams, and for the first time ever, Houston looked and acted like the better team yesterday. They controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, forcing Manning into almost 60 pass attempts. Indy will bounce back, probably at little bro Eli’s expense, but I am more focused on the Texans at this point. Is this the year they finally take the next step?

Cowboys/Redskins: Terrible game for BOTH teams. I watched the entire game, save for a couple channel flips to the MTV VMA’S, and neither  team looked at all impressive. The Skins can build on that game because they won, and the Cowboys can build on that game by well, doing everything better then they did last night.

Packers/Eagles: Packers looked like the same team that started the season last year, and that is not a good thing. Protection for Aaron Rodgers got better in the second half, but they won’t be able to get away with weak protection all season. As for the Eagles, Kolb looked terrible, Vick looked good…QB controversy? No. Kolb will start, and Vick will wildcat. The real question is, why? Why do it that way at all, one guy starts, the other sits, simple as that.

Bengals/Patriots: I couldn’t care less about this game to be honest. Good to see Welker back, although it does make me wonder how he got back so fast…(just saying.) Terrell Ochocinc Owens did pretty much what I expected. No playoffs if they don’t get that under control.

49ers/Seahawks: WOW. Except for fans of Seattle, who saw that coming?

Offensive player of the day: Arian Foster. 33 caries for 231 yards and 3 TD’s.

Defense of the Day: Washington Redskins

I’m excited for the Ravens/Jets game tonight, hopefully it will be a shoot out, but probably not. Chargers/Chiefs I will not watch, because I honestly don’t care who wins or loses, and I can catch the good stuff on Sportscenter after the game.

I’ll be back on Friday for a week two preview, and again next Monday for the weekend wrap-up.

Fantasy Football: O how I love Thee

The weather is starting to change. The leaves will begin to change. The kiddos are back to school. Baseball season is finally almost over. These are all inevitable signs that  football season is here. And with the return of football brings with it another season, that my friends, is fantasy football season.

I have gotten into fantasy football on a regular basis over the past few years. I really enjoy the entire process, and I feel like it has made me a bigger fan of the sport. Before I started playing, I would only root for my favorite teams. Now I cheer for many different teams, and most of my fantasy draftees. When I first began, I would only pick the players on my favorite teams, and I shouldn’t be the one to break it to you, but that is no way to draft a fantasy team. Over the past five or six years since I’ve discovered fantasy football, my team ownership has almost doubled every year. My initial thought process was there is no way to effectively manage more than one team, but after actually experiencing it, I found it pretty simple.

Over the years I have accumulated a brief list of rules that I play by, and I would like to share that with you, please don’t make me regret this.

1. Pick your homerun in the first two rounds.

This one is pretty obvious, if you have a player or two in mind, get them as soon as possible. Don’t bet on Drew Brees or Payton Manning being there in the later rounds, including the later picks in round two.

2. Pick skill positions first.

Again this one is pretty obvious, fill out your backs and receivers before selecting a defense, kicker, or your back up quarterback.

3. Bye weeks mean nothing.

I draft a solid starting lineup, and I fill my bench with veterans and rookies. Simply because you only need them for a couple of games, unless a lot of your team have the same bye week.

4. Don’t be afraid to draft rookies.

Rookies could potentially be the key to some peoples teams. For example, if C.J. Spiller has a monster year numbers wise, he would be a great pick up. Also, you could potentially draft them in the later rounds, freeing up earlier picks to go get other top players.

5. Don’t be afraid to bench a superstar.

Tom Brady wouldn’t know if you benched him, and if he’s having a terrible fantasy year, bench him. On the same token, if he is your back up and he’s having a monster year, elevate him to the starting position.

6. Tandems are optional, but recommended.

If you can draft a quarterback and his top wide receiver, you should be in pretty good position. Quarterback and receiver would both get the same points. Also, if a team as a “two-headed monster” running game, don’t be afraid to draft both guys.

7. Trade at your own risk…

I have never really had good luck with trades. Either I get rid of a quality player for bench players, or I get a superstar name who doesn’t produce much. You should know what the players values are before you consider trading them.

8. Don’t go by projections.

The projections are a guesstimate of how many points a player may make. I literally picked the “best available” players last year, and came in dead last. Granted, I did it on purpose, but you get the point.

9. Your defense is essential….sort of.

Most defenses don’t produce high point totals per week. Your defense pick should be a team that doesn’t give up too many total yards or touchdowns. The takeaways and special teams plays are a benefit, but are never guaranteed.

10. Remember, it’s just a game…

Have fun with it, get your friends and family involved. Place friendly wagers per week, or  for the entire season. Bet your buddies the first round at the bar you’ll score more fantasy points than them, or bet the cost of the pizza, just have fun with it.

Before I close for the day, I would like to give some thoughts on the Vikings/Saints game. Brett Favre looked forty, and appeared to really miss Sydney Rice. He looked about as good as he did at the beginning of last season, but remember Adrian Peterson did carry the team the first few weeks of the year. The defense looked surprisingly strong, considering they were missing key players in the secondary. The Saints looked like the Saints, albeit a less explosive version, but the defense is still there from last season, so I think they’ll be better once the offense gets over the hiccups they’re having. I will be back on Monday to recap this weekends round of NFL week one action, and again next Friday to do a preview for week two.