This is why Jets fans should never be optimistic or have high expectations about the team. It will only result in disappointment. All I heard the past week from many of them was how the Jets are the best team in football and the odds on favorite to go to the Superbowl. They did not look like any of those against the Packers. Their pathetic performance resulted in a 9-0 shutout.
It was painful to watch and made you want to rip every hair out of your head. They played like they were still on their bye week as they slept walked through the entire game. Turnovers, stupid penalties, a missed field goal, numerous dropped passes, dumb coach challenges, moronic play calling, and no sense of urgency describe the Jets performance.
The entire offense as a whole was miserable. Mark Sanchez looks like he has taken 10 steps backwards. He threw two more interceptions and completed only 16 of 38 passes. The wide receivers did not help Sanchez out with dropped passes. They were also out fought for the ball on the 2 interceptions. They had little success running the ball, and they are dependent on the running game for their offensive success.
Rex Ryan was terrible too, challenging two plays in the first half which he had no chance of winning, giving them no challenges for the rest of the game. Whoever told him to challenge those plays should lose their job. Additionally, as the head coach it is your job to have your team ready to play, and the offense was a no show. The defense played very well, but who cares about that when you can't score any points.
The worst news for the Jets was division rivals Miami and New England both won. New England now has a one game lead on them for the division title. The Jets will be on the road the next two weeks facing opponents they should beat, but after the way they played today there are no guarantees. They face Detroit next week and former coach Eric Mangini and the Cleveland Browns the week after. They need the offense to get back on track in order to come out of this road trip with two victories.
This is the second year in a row that Sanchez has gone backwards. He got off to a good start last year and then began to struggle. He is continuing the same trend this season. The receivers also might want to start thinking about putting super glue on their hands because they forgot how to catch the ball. Overall, it sucks to be a Jet fan right now. All your expectations and good feelings are gone. Every time they get off to a good start, they find someway to ruin it.
I found my new favorite player in the NBA. His name is Blake Griffin. Part of my man crush might be the fact that his last name is Griffin, possibly making him a long lost relative of Peter (Family Guy reference). Griffin is a beast. NBA fans lost out seeing him play last year because of a season ending knee injury, but he is back and better than ever. We can refer to him as the new human highlight film. There is now a reason to watch a Clippers game. They always said white men can't jump, but Griffin is proving the theory wrong (he is actually half white). Just watch these highlights from his first game.
What sucks for Griffin is that he is a Clipper. Being a Clipper might be one of the worst possible things to be in life. Only a terrorist and a Nazi rank as worse. I am a Met and Knick fan and even I would not trade places with a Clipper fan. Maybe Griffin will overcome the miserableness and make the Clippers into a winning organization. He is so good that he might be the one to do it. Showtime is back in L.A and it is not the Lakers.
Want to watch the World Series? Want to watch the Jets play the Packers on Sunday? If you are a Cablevision subscriber you can not watch either. Fox and Cablevision are at odds with one another and ultimately the customer must suffer. The entire situation sucks. Those that have Cablevision will be forced to find somewhere else to watch the World Series and the NFL on Fox.
I will blame Fox for this one. Cablevision is willing to go to arbitration and attempted to make other deals with Fox, and they constantly refuse. When a company is not willing to go to arbitration, it proves they are trying to get every possible dollar they can get. Fox is looking to make more money because they are not making the money they used to on advertising. Is is obvious that Fox could care less about the people that are unable to watch their programming. Nobody really cares about their crap shows, but the NFL and World Series are a big deal. Additionally, the Yankees not making the World Series really hurt this deal from getting done or at least politicians stepping in and forcing something to get done.
If it was me, I would just cancel my Cablevision subscription, refuse to pay the cancellation fee, and get another cable company. Even if Cablevision is not to blame, the fact of the matter is that they are not getting the channel. There is no chance I am going somewhere else to watch a game. I want to watch my games on my 52 inch 1080 HD television. My sports channels are like family members. You do not mess with them and if you do, I go absolutely crazy. Luckily, I have RCN and I get every channel I want. Sucks to have Cablevision. You can always put on the radio and listen to the games. It saves you from having to deal with Joe Buck.
This may be a shocking statement to some, but the Giants might be the best team in football. They totally dominated the Cowboys and are tied for the best record in the NFC. Since the disappointing Tennessee game, they have won 4 in a row heading into the bye week. The offense looks great and the defense is basically taking out the opposing teams quarterback each week.
Offensively, you can not look any better. Eli looks great. After 2 early interceptions against the Cowboys, he came back to throw 4 touchdown passes. They have 3 of the best young wide receivers in the game. Hakeem Nicks is an absolute beast and can not be covered. The running game is back. Ahmad Bradshaw has been one of the best running backs in the league. It seems like he has at least 2 or 3 huge runs a game. The offensive line is back to playing at the high level they played at two years ago, and even Brandon Jacobs looks like he has finally woken up.
The defense has looked dominant at times. They are beating up quarterbacks to the point where they are not coming back onto the field. Osi and Tuck might be the two best defensive linemen in the league. Michael Boley has quietly been playing like one of the best linebackers in the game. He totally destroyed Tony Romo, breaking his shoulder blade. The defense has a swagger that we have not scene in a while. All the hype has been about the Jets defense, but the Giants d has been far superior. They have the best pass rush in football and when you have that, you become incredibly hard to defeat.
The biggest weakness they have right now is their special teams play. Even during this 4 game win streak, they have continued to struggle. They give up at least one big punt or kick return a game. They gave up a 93 yard punt return to Dez Bryant in the Cowboy game. If they do not correct their special teams problems, it will prevent them from being as good as they could be.
It should be a very interesting football season in New York. Both football teams sit on top of their divisions and have championship expectations. Is a New York New York Super Bowl possible? Maybe, but it is still early and the NFL changes each week. For now, both teams look great and they will give the city an exciting season.
I am going to make a bold prediction right now for the upcoming NBA season. Amar'e Stoudamire will lead the league in scoring. I really believe this is possible and there are several factors leading me to make this statement. He is the healthiest he has been in years and is playing to prove he is worthy of the contract he just received. In the preseason he averaged around 26 points while playing only 27 minutes per game. That was the highest scoring total for anyone in the league. I know it is only the preseason, but that is still very impressive.
In the regular season he wilIl be playing close to 40 minutes a game and he is the main offensive threat on the Knicks. He shoots over 80% from the foul line and over 50% from the field. He is also playing in the Mike D'Antoni offensive system which will give him more opportunities to score than any other system in basketball. While playing under D'Antoni in Phoenix he flourished and since then his offensive game has evolved greatly. He has added a jump shot to his game and can even hit a three once in a while. Furthermore, the Knicks play no defense and will be forced into a lot of high scoring games, resulting in more points scored for Amar'e
Many of the big scorers in the league might have their point totals come down a bit this season.
1. LeBron is now playing with Wade and Bosh and will be more of a point-forward type of player. He will score his points, but the offensive production will not solely be on him like it was in Cleveland.
2. Wade will have his scoring totals come down for the same reasons as LeBron. He is also always hurt.
3. Kobe is getting older and will share more of the offensive load with Pau Gasol. As he has gotten older, he has become more of a team player.
4. Carmelo is unhappy in Denver and might not be at his best. He also could be traded and his scoring totals could be affected depending on the team he goes to.
The main threat to Stoudamire winning the scoring title will be defending scoring champ Kevin Durant. Durant is an offensive beast and is only getting better. He carried the U.S team over the summer in the World Championship games, leading the team in scoring. My hope is that he becomes more of an all around player and some of the young players on the Thunder help him out with the offensive load. It might be a long shot to hope for this, but that is why they call it a bold statement.
Regardless if he wins the scoring title, he will be the best player the Knicks have had since Patrick Ewing, and makes them a playoff contender. For Knick fans, that is much more than anything they have received from the team in many years.
The Yankees lose, the Yankees lose. I wonder how that final call sounded by Yankees radio announcer John Sterling. It probably was not as cheerful as his usual obnoxious home run and Yankees win calls. Ron Washington and Josh Hamilton, take the cocaine and crack needles out and celebrate because you are going to the World Series.
My dream as a Met fan came true, and his name is Colby Lewis. Colby freakin Lewis. The big bad Yankees could do nothing against him. Cliff Lee is one thing, but Colby Lewis? It was very enjoyable to watch the Yankees lose a series that most people thought they had no chance of losing. I was one that thought the series was over after the Yankees came back and won game one. This is one time I am glad to be wrong.
I am so happy I will not have to puke my guts out when nauseated by a Yankee ticker tape parade. Two years in a row would be too much to take. The Yankees will have to hold off on a 28th championship. This loss to Texas probably means this off season they will sign Cliff Lee, Jason Werth, and any other free agent they could get their hands on. Lee would be the most obvious pick up because if you can't beat him, sign him. The Yankees will give him a nice 150 million dollar pay check and attempt to buy themselves another title. That is next year though, and for this year, they will watch the World Series from home. As Yankee television play by play announcer Michael Kay would say, See Yah!!!
It seems like the NFL is becoming a powder puff two hand touch league. First they took away hitting the quarterback. Then they said you can't touch the receivers. Then they got rid of touchdown celebrations, and now they are taking away helmet to helmet hits. Why wear a helmet if you can not use it to hit another player? That is why they are wearing the helmets. The NFL loves the sounds of the game with the loud bang made from the hard helmets. If you really want to stop helmet to helmet hits, just take the helmets off the players heads and they will stop going head first.
Football is a violent sport and the fact of the matter is players will get hurt. We do not like seeing it, but it is inevitable and there is no way to prevent it. Concussions are a problem, but again, it is football and it's a risk each player takes when they go out on the field. What part of the body are players allowed to tackle now? If you can't hit up high, then should they hit low and take out the legs? What is better, a brain injury or not being able to walk again? Why not just put flags on the players and we can stop hitting all together. We need to just let these guys play the way the game is supposed to be played.
These are some of the hits from last weekend that sparked the NFL cracking down on helmet to helmet hits.
For those that enjoy the hard hits of the NFL, here are some of the best. Enjoy them because you might not see this anymore:
This series has been a major shocker. The Yankees were huge favorites to win it, and after game 1, seemed like a sure bet. The Rangers have proved to be a worthy opponent. Down 3 to 1 in the series, the Yankees managed to win game 5 and force the series back to Texas. Despite the win, it did not feel like the Yankees got the momentum back in the series. Game 5 was a struggle and Texas was a hit or two away from making it into a game. They had 11 hits off of Yankee starter CC Sabathia, but only managed to score 2 runs. I consider that luck. In most games where a team has 11 hits, it usually will result in more than 2 runs. The Yankees need to pitch much better in games 6 and 7 or else their luck will run out.
The Yankees will now depend on Phil Hughes to pitch well enough to get them to a game 7. Hughes was awful in his first start of the series and needs to be much better in this one. It will be interesting to see how he does because he have never pitched this deep into a season. If he is not 100% on his game, the Yankees season might be over. All he needs to do is give them a solid six innings. If he does that, the Yankees will have Kerry Wood and Mariano Rivera to close it out. I would also expect the Yankee offense to step it up and beat up on Colby Lewis.
Even if Hughes pitches well and manages to lead the Yankees to a game 6 victory, Cliff Lee awaits them in game 7. The Yankees have never been able to beat Lee in the playoffs, so it will be a difficult task for them to achieve. Lee was masterful in game 3 shutting down the Yankee offense going 8 innings with 13 strikeouts. Andy Pettitte will be on the other side of the match up and he was almost good enough to match Lee pitch for pitch in game 3, but ultimately came up short. The Rangers will be ultra confident knowing they have Lee in game 7. Right now he is Goliath and the Yankees have not proven they could slay him. More importantly, I do not think that the Yankees think they could beat him.
After game one of the Yankees and Texas series, I wrote that the series was over. I guess I was wrong. Many felt the same way as I did after seeing Texas blow a 5-0 lead and manager Ron Washington looking like Jerry Manuel as he used 5 pitchers in one inning. The Yankees looked like the Yankees and Texas looked like they did not belong. Boy have things changed. Texas has come back to win the last two games and now the Yankees will depend on AJ Burnett to rescue them. AJ Burnett and rescue really do not go well together.
What this all goes to show you is I am an ultimate jinx. I have no luck when it comes to sports. I root for the Mets, Jets, and Knicks. Once I wrote an article about the series being over, it was the kiss of death for the Yankees. My Yankee fans friends all got mad at me for writing it because they all know how terrible my luck is. In college, I bet on the Yankees to win 3 different games in a playoff series against the Angels, and lost every one.
Maybe I purposely bet on the Yankees and write articles stating the series is over for a reason. I know I am a jinx and my hidden agenda is to bet on the Yankees knowing it will cause them to lose. Am I that disturbed in the head to do something like that? The answer is yes I am that disturbed. I hate the Yankees so much that I would bet money on them knowing they would lose because of my bet. I am actually willing to lose money to see them lose. My thought process was if they win, I win money, and if they lose, I win by seeing them lose.
My personal passion is to see the Yankees suffer and their fans to be miserable. I do not root for New York. Rooting for New York is for losers. Life is about making choices and I choose to take in the joy of a Yankee demise. Unfortunately, this article will probably be a jinx and the Yankees will end up winning the series, but for now I will enjoy their pain.
The Jets got one of the biggest bail out calls in the history of football and because of it, defeated the Broncos 24-20. The situation was 4th and 6 and Mark Sanchez threw a prayer to Santonio Holmes, and the ref called pass interference on the defender. Yes there was contact, but that is a call you never see made. It is an unwritten rule to never make a call like that to decide a game. Additionally, Holmes made just as much contact on the defender. The only rationale for making the call had to have been the defender grabbed Holmes' face mask. The pass was literally a prayer because there was no possible way Sanchez could think anyone was coming down with that ball. That prayer was answered by the football gods. What made the call worse for Denver was it gave the Jets the ball on the one yard line. They scored on the next play. They got a lucky break, and to have a big season, you need the breaks to go your way. This was a huge one.
The penalty call makes me continue to think football games are fixed. The Jets were a 3.5 point favorite and the touchdown gave them a 4 point lead. They ended up winning the game by the 4 point total. If no penalty is called, Denver wins the game and the Jets do not cover. The ref that made the call must have taken the Jets to cover. Yes it is a crazy theory, but why not, it really is not unrealistic.
I will compare this to the break the Jets got in 1998 when Vinny Testaverde was clearly short of the goal line and the refs ruled he scored a touchdown. That beneficial call propelled the Jets to win the game. It led them to a 12-4 record and a division title. This years Jet team will hope for similar fortunes.
I will say it now after game 1. The series is over. I don't care that it is only one game, we all know the inevitable. There is no point in having any faith in Texas. They beat up CC Sabathia and had a 5-0 lead and still lost the game. What a choke job. It proved they are not ready to compete with the big boys. If they could not win this game, how will they win any other games in the series?
It was like watching game one against Minnesota all over again. After Minnesota blew the game, you could see all the life taken away from them. I had the same feeling watching this game. Both stadiums had so much early excitement, only to have it end in misery. Minnesota totally collapsed, so why would Texas be any different?
Like usual, the Yankees proved why they are the Yankees. No lead is safe against them. Texas had many opportunities to expand their lead and they didn't. That is death for a Yankee opponent in a playoff game. They had two awful base running plays that even a little league kid would not make, preventing them from scoring more runs. You could just sense the Yankees would come back, and the Texas bullpen helped by being terrible. It was a typical Yankee performance. Once they took the lead, Texas had no chance of coming back. I have watched too many Yankee playoff games and realize teams like the Texas Rangers will not beat them. This was the worst possible way for them to start the series and they will not recover.
Despite having a gimpy hamstring, Darrelle Revis showed he still had the ability to do something fast. He was pulled over for driving 80 miles per hour in a 40 mile per hour zone. He probably wishes his car moved more like he did Monday night when trying to cover Percy Harvin; looking like he was in jog mode because of his lame injury. The police officer did give him a ticket, and Revis actually did not give him the typical athlete "do you know who I am" line. I will give him some credit because he did admit he was wrong and did not make any excuses for his dangerous act. Jets players are not having much success driving cars. The players really need to start taking advantage of the driving services which the team offers.
His excuse for doubling the speed limit was he was late to a meeting. Revis must have got confused and though he was playing for Giants coach Tom Coughlan. I guess he did not watch Hard Knocks over the summer because if he did, he would have seen Jason Taylor show up late numerous times and have the entire situation turned into a big joke. Everyone thought it was so funny that Taylor had no sense of direction and his GPS never worked. It was one big laugh. There was no punishment for being late, so there was no need for Revis to rush. Rex would have yucked it up and all would have been forgotten. Not watching the show and sitting out all off season cost him a traffic violation.
College players having agents? No way. College players being paid and receiving gifts? Oh my god!!!. I am obviously being facetious. This weeks Sports Illustrated featured former agent John Luchs admitting to paying college football players. In all honesty, are we really that surprised? Those that believe college players are not being paid by agents are clueless. How do you think these agents get the guys to sign with them once they turn pro? They are obviously giving them something. Why else would the player choose the agent once they became a professional. I laugh when these stories come out and people react with such shock and denial. Are we that naive of a society?
One of the players accused of taking money is former Ohio State Buckeye and current Jets wide receiver Santonio Holmes. Holmes has denied taking any money or benefits. I doubt he is telling the truth. Why wouldn't he take the money and benefits? Many of these athletes come from poor families and have never come close to any type of wealth. Athletics is their way out and they want to be paid. If they get a major injury in college, they are screwed. One injury can cost a player millions of dollars. If an agent can give these players something, it is very difficult for them not to accept it. These are young kids and they do not know any better.
The NCAA makes billions of dollars from college football. The players that are making money for the schools see none of it. The colleges will say they provide them with an education, but we all know most players are not there for the education. The players agents are going after are can't miss pros. They are going to school to become professional athletes. As long as the colleges are not paying players, the NCAA should stay out of it. Additionally, this is something they will never be able to stop. It is impossible to prevent agents from going after players. The NCAA really needs to find more important things to do than worry about football players having agents.
I was listening to WFAN all day and Yankees fans have had way too much time on their hands. It was so bad host Mike Francesa wanted to stop taking calls. I have to admit, I felt like kicking these people in the face when hearing the stupidity of their comments. I understand it has been almost a week since they defeated Minnesota and have nothing else to think about, but the insanity needs to end. All the time in between series has made many Yankee fans paranoid and idiotic. Just get me to game one so I can hear them talk about something else.
Their main fascination has been on the pitching rotation in the Texas series. The Yankees plan on pitching Andy Pettitte in game 3 against Cliff Lee. However, some fans actually think AJ Burnett should pitch game 3 against Lee instead of Pettitte and have Pettitte pitch game 4. The rationale is they can't beat Lee so they might as well pitch Burnett against him and sacrifice the game. That might be the dumbest thing I ever heard. Why would you want to throw your worst starter against their best? It gives you less of a chance to win the game. Burnett has been awful and it is bad enough that he even gets to start one game. Andy Pettitte needs to be matched up against Lee. Lee is very good, but he is not unbeatable, and there is no reason Pettitte cannot go toe to toe with him. Pettitte has only been one of the best post season pitchers of this generation. Lets also throw in the fact that the Yankees probably have the best line up in baseball. No pitcher should intimidate them.
Additionally, if Burnett starts game 3, the Yankees will be forced to throw all their pitchers on 3 days rest. We know CC Sabathia is very capable of this, but Pettitte and Hughes are not. Pettitte is coming off an injury and has never been good on short rest, and Hughes has never done it. I also doubt the Yankees would have Hughes pitch on 3 days rest when they babied him all season with the amount of innings he was allowed to throw. Now if they happen to be down in the series 2-1, Sabathia will most likely pitch game 4, skipping Burnett. At that point, they will be forced to go to a 3 man rotation the rest of the series. That however, is a worse case scenario and something they should not worry about at this point.
Yankee fans just need to relax. They are over analyzing this way too much and it is making them crazy. They are the defending champs and should have no problem beating the Texas Rangers. I mean it's the Texas Rangers for god sakes. This is an organization that never won a post season series before they defeated Tampa. Yankee fans need to get their confidence back and not be so worried. Stop acting like a bunch of Met fans.
They won the game and are in first place with a 4-1 record, but I will always find something to complain about. I am the king of negativity. That is what makes me a true Jet fan. The defense was awful in the second half and has been very overrated all season. It looked like the Dolphins game with receivers wide open all over the field. I was waiting for them to blow it. They were finally bailed out by a typical Brett Favre pick six to clinch the game. He owed the Jets a gift after his awful end to the season two years ago. I would normally blame the interception on him being distracted because of "junk gate", but interceptions at the end of games are a usual habit for him.
Favre still managed to throw 3 touchdown passes in the second half. Two of the touchdowns came on 3rd down and 18. I understand that Rex Ryan is a very aggressive defensive play caller, but blitzing on 3rd and 18 makes no sense. It especially makes no sense when you are winning the game and the Vikings barely moved the ball the entire first half. You would think he would have learned his lesson after the first touchdown. A defensive genius like Rex should realize blitzing does not work when the quarterback is not touched. It only leaves your defensive backs exposed to the big play. I also do not want to hear how the Vikings were finally due. Favre is a broken down old man that had a hard time holding onto the football. The Jets defense allowed him to get back into the game, and it almost cost them.
Hurting the defense even more is this Darrelle Revis debacle. He sat out all off season and finally came back only to get injured in the second game. He sat out the past few games and was brought back against Minnesota only to re-injure his hamstring again. What a surprise. The Jets need to sit him out next week against Denver. Denver stinks and they can beat them without him. They then have a bye week. Hopefully the two weeks off will help him recover. If he is still not 100% after the bye, they can not allow him back on the field. Revis at less than 100% is not doing anything to help the team. He looks like an ordinary player and for the Jets to be great, Revis has to be back at his 2009 form.
We have learned that Brett Favre has a little Tiger Woods in him. The difference however is, Woods has a lot more game with the ladies than Favre does. Tiger was a man of words. He liked the dirty talk. Favre is not really good with the words (probably because he is a hick from Mississippi). He is more into sending pictures to the ladies. His picture of choice is of his junk. He is the male version of Britney Spears with the crotch shot.
Someone needs to tell Favre to watch re-runs of Seinfeld. If he did, he would learn about "good naked" and "bad naked". The female body is "good naked". It is beautiful, soft, and tender. On the other hand, the male body is "bad naked". It is gross, ugly, and hairy. The male junk itself is the worst type of bad naked. Whether it is big or small, no one really enjoys the sight of it. Farve would be better off sending a picture of himself with his shirt off wearing a nice pair of Wranglers. They all watch the commercials of him throwing the ball around in his rugged jeans. That probably drives the ladies nuts. Old saggy gray haired Brett Favre, the definition of sexy.
I always knew Favre was a douche and now America is beginning to learn it too. He is a married man. I understand he is not the first professional athlete to cheat on his wife (or attempt to). What makes him worse though is how he has always been portrayed as a great family man. Every time he spoke about retirement, it was about spending time with his family, blah, blah, blah. Additionally, his wife was recovering from cancer. What a great guy he is cheating on his cancer stricken wife; a real American hero. I would bet he was cheating on her, or trying to cheat, because she was too sick to put out for him, so he went else where. What a nice message to send to all women dealing with cancer. Just spit in the face of all of them. He enjoyed cheating so much that it continued even when she recovered. This all led to his personal harassment of every woman he saw when playing for the Jets. He will probably confess to sex addiction too. Douche.
The Favre story only adds to the numerous headlines for the Jets and Vikings Monday night game. In addition to his junk, it has been reported that Favre is dealing with a gimpy elbow. This is the same gimpy elbow he had when playing for the Jets. At least that was the excuse used when he was awful down the stretch of the season. Lets only hope the Jets defense becomes acquainted with that elbow, while slamming it on the ground numerous times. The female cancer victims and survivors will all be applauding.
Are you serious, a hockey article? Yes I am writing a hockey article. I have heard hockey fans still exist and I want to be there for them. I am versatile and can throw in a hockey article every now and then. I loved the Mighty Ducks movies and wore my New York Rangers jersey proudly in 1994. Hockey is a great sport and deserves its due. So what if it's a Canadian sport. I love Canada. The drinking age is 19, they have great beer, and some of the best strip clubs in the world.
In the midst of the baseball playoffs and NFL season, the NHL season has begun. The New York Rangers, coming off a disappointing season, began their season with a bang. They went up to the beautiful city of Buffalo (not really serious about Buffalo being beautiful) and defeated the Sabres 6-3.
Six goals for the Rangers is an amazing achievement. This was a team that had major problems scoring one goal in many games last season. What was even more impressive was scoring all those goals against star goalie Ryan Miller. It is one thing to score that many goals against a scrub, but to do it against a player of Miller's caliber should give Rangers fans something to be excited about. It seemed last season if Rangers star Marion Gaborik did not score goals or goalie Henrik Lundqvist did not shut the other team out, the team had no chance of winning. Neither of those occurred for them opening night, yet they still won the game. The biggest surprise of the night was rookie Derek Stepan scoring three goals in his first ever NHL game. He is only the 4th player to ever accomplish this. ,
Stepan, a 2008 second round pick, hopefully can provide consistent offense for the Rangers this season. They are a team that is desperate for offensive production. It is also nice to see a young player like Stepan, stepping up. Rangers fans are so used to overpaid and underachieving aging veterans making up a large portion of the teams roster. They have made a couple of playoff appearances the past few seasons, but have not been able to get past the second round. An influx of young talent is greatly needed for this franchise and might be what they need to make them into a Stanley Cup contender. 1994 seems like a very long time ago. Rangers fans are some of the best fans in the world and have been salivating for young talent to make up the core of the team. It was only the first game of the season, but maybe it was a sign for more good things to come.
Does anyone else think the Patriots purposely traded Randy Moss to the Vikings because they are playing the Jets on Monday Night? We all know how much Patriot head coach Bill Belichick hates the Jets, and is always looking to stick it to them. I was stunned when I first heard Moss was traded back to the Vikings (he played the first 7 years of his career in Minnesota- they got sick of him and traded him). How could the Patriots trade their best receiver? It came down to the fact that Moss wanted the Patriots to extend his contract and they said no. Moss, who is a headcase, would be even more difficult to coach with a contract he is not happy about. It was also reported that he had a huge argument with the Patriot's quarterback coach during their Monday night game against the Dolphins. Moss had no catches in the game. Belichek must have finally decided he had enough of him and might as well trade him to the Vikings before they play the rival Jets. When you have won 3 Superbowl titles, you can basically do whatever you want. He also made the trade with the intention to try and get unhappy star receiver Vincent Jackson from San Diego. If they can land Jackson, it will ease the loss of Moss.
Moss will now play against the Jets once again. The last time the Jets saw Moss, he was burning Darrelle Revis for a one handed touchdown catch. We also saw Revis go down with a hamstring injury on the same play and has not returned since. It was very convenient for Revis to pull a hammy after getting beat. I like to call it the old act like your hurt because you don't want to look bad. Maybe if he did not sit out all off season, he would have never got injured. As of now, Revis is questionable for Monday nights game. He should probably stop talking trash considering he might not even play. I know that is a difficult task for a Jets player. All he does lately is talk smack about Moss, yet he might not be on the field to back it up. If you're not going to be out on the field, just zip your lip. Moss is still a phenominal talent, and if motivated, he can dominate a game. For the Jets sake, I hope they did not awaken a sleeping giant.
The Yankees continue to beat down the Minnesota Twins. It doesn't matter if it's the Metro Dome or Target Field, they smack them around anywhere they play. The Twins could be winning the entire game and the Yankees will still figure out how to win. Basically, the Twins find new ways to lose these games and the Yankees continue to find ways to win them. Some times in sports, a team can not get over that hump, and for Minnesota, that hump is pinstripes. The Twins are the Yankee's bitch.
Things are so bad for Minnesota that Lance Berkman is beating them. It is one thing if it's A-Rod or Jeter, but Lance freakin Berkman. We are not talking about the Lance Berkman that used to be a big time player for the Houston Astros. We are talking about the old washed up Berkman. He did nothing after being traded to the Yankees and looked like he should retire at the end of the year. Many Yankee fans felt he did not even deserve a start in the series. He had one home run as a Yankee in the regular season, yet managed to knock one out of the park in game 2. It just proves anyone wearing a Yankee jersey becomes a superstar against the Twin.
The Twins now trail the series 2-0 and must fight off elimination in Yankee Stadium. It seems very unlikely. If they can't beat them at home, how will they beat them in New York? This series is basically over and as of now it looks like the Yankees will face Texas in the next round. Just like the Yankees, Texas went on the road and won their first two games. The Tampa offense has done nothing and I would be shocked if they came back and won the series. Texas will be a much greater challenge for the Yankees. With Cliff Lee leading the rotation and a ridiculous offense, the Rangers are a force to be recking with. Texas proved they could beat the Yankees in the regular season and even beat up on closer Mariano Rivera. That was the regular season though, and the playoffs are a totally different game. The best teams raise their level of play and the Yankees proved that last season. The Rangers will have to raise their game to a higher level in order to knock out the defending champs.
Not too bad for his first ever post season start. The only way it could have been better would have been if he did not walk a batter. Roy Halladay proved why he is the best pitcher in baseball, throwing a no hitter in game 1 of the playoffs against the Cincinnati Reds. This was his second no hitter of the season. He threw a perfect game earlier in the year against the Marlins. This performance is even more impressive considering it came in a playoff game. This was only the second no hitter in the history of the playoffs (Don Larson's perfect game in the 1956 World Series). Some wondered if Halladay would carry over his regular season dominance into the post season, and he proved to be ready for the challenge. It was an amazing performance and the Philly crowd was electric.
With Halladay, Oswalt, and Hammels, the Phillies are the favorite to win the World Series. Each one of them is a legit ace. Oswalt was great when pitching for Houston in the playoffs and Hammels was the World Series MVP two seasons ago. We also should not forget how awesome their offense is. What makes them even better is how mentally tough they are. They raise their level of play in the biggest games. That is why they have been to back to back World Series. As a fan of the National league New York team, I am used to seeing a team choke when the games get bigger. The Phillies continue to embrace the challenge, and it will be very difficult for anyone to defeat them.
The New York Yankees will begin another playoff run and attempt to gain their 28th World Series title. They are probably still the favorites to win the American League, despite being the Wild Card team and not having home field advantage in any series. They have Minnesota in the first round, who has been their personal whipping boy the past few years in the regular season and playoffs. Some might think the Yankees will continue their success over the Twins, yet others might believe the Twins are finally due. It was only a year ago when the Yankees overcame their personal demons against the Angels. The Twins play in a brand new stadium now, so maybe their luck is about to change. They also catch the Yankees in a year where they are very vulnerable in the starting rotation. It is a major weakness, and could result in their downfall.
One thing not holding back the Yankees will be A.J Burnett. It was a great decision by them not to start him. He has been awful this year and does not deserve to pitch in the series. It is amazing to think a guy making $80 million can not get a start in the playoffs. His contract is almost Met-like. It is almost as bad as the Oliver Perez contract. However, unlike the Mets, the Yankees banish their mistakes. The Yankees are all about winning championships and will never let a players contract get in the way of it. They will not risk Burnett going to the mound and having one of his usual meltdowns. We always hear how he has such great stuff and so much potential, but reality tells us that he is an average pitcher. For every great start, he will have 3 or 4 terrible ones. There is no way they can risk starting him in the series. He will sit on the bench and do what he does best; give cream pies to teammates after victories. He will have plenty of time making them in the clubhouse.
I like to think of myself as a real man and as a man I am willing to admit when I am wrong. I will admit that so far I have been wrong about Ladanian Tomlinson. I was very critical of the Jets cutting Thomas Jones and signing Tomlinson. I really thought Tomlinson was done. He showed nothing to prove he still had game his last few years in San Diego. He has actually looked like his old self. Maybe he jumped into the Fountain of Youth. He has taken over as the starting running back and is leading a lethal running attack. He even upped his game against the Bills running for 133 yards and 2 touchdowns. On his second touchdown, he put a Madden-like ankle breaking move on the defender, which was beautiful to watch. I still refuse to call him LT though, because Lawrence Taylor is the only LT, but I am eating my own words.
After a bad loss in their opener against the Ravens, the Jets are now 3-1. An even more important number for them is 3-0 in the AFC East. The news will continue to get better for them with Santonio Holmes coming back off suspension, and Calvin Pace and Darrelle Revis coming back from injury. All three should be in the line up for Monday nights game against the Minnesota Vikings. The Jets will be reunited with their old, and I mean old, quarterback. Yes, Brett Favre will be back in the Meadowlands. We will all be honored to have his presence with us once again. Lets hope he "plays like a Jet". For him, that was not very good.
The end has come to another disappointing New York Mets season. It will also be the end of the Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya regime. Manuel will be fired as manager and Minaya will be removed from his position as general manager (Minaya might choose to stay in the organization because he is still under contract). Met fans can look forward to another new direction for the franchise. As a Met fan, people might think I would be happy about these changes, but I am not.
I will first start with Manuel. I will not lie and say he is a great manager or even a good one; however he was never dealt a full hand. He took over in the middle of the season for Willie Randolph 3 years ago as the team struggled. The team played better after Manuel took over. The year did not end well with the Mets choking away another post season opportunity, but it is hard to blame Manuel. Closer Billy Wagner was lost to season ending Tommy John surgery and the bullpen became a disaster. It was so bad, Luis Ayala was closing games at the end of the year. Last year the entire team was injured. Jose Reyes missed almost the entire year, Carlos Beltran missed half the year, and Johan Santana missed the last two months. This year the injuries continued. Reyes has been in and out of the line up, Beltran missed more than half the season and struggled when he returned, Jason Bay struggled and then got a concussion missing almost half the season, K-Rod injured himself for the year after beating up his girlfriend's father, and Santana went down with another season ending injury. No manager can survive that much.
Now for Minaya, he has made some bad moves. His contracts to Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo are two of the worst contracts in the history of the sport. He has also done some good things. He brought in players like Pedro Martinez, Carlos Beltran, Billy Wagner, Johan Santana, K-Rod, and Jason Bay. Not all of those moves worked out perfectly, but I did not hear many Met fans complain about any of them. He also traded for Angel Pagan and gave up practically nothing. Many were critical of him not improving the pitching staff over the off season, yet it has been the strength of the team. R.A Dickey and Hisanori Takahashi turned into great signings. The minor league system which was criticized by many, has shown a lot of potential. Is he the best general manger in the league? No, but he is not as bad as people have made him out to be.
I put most of the blame on ownership. Ownership has not always allowed Minaya to do the job he was hired to do. Omar does not sign the pay checks. He needed ownerships permission and I believe they held back on him. This is New York City, not Kansas City. If your are going to own a team in this town, you need to be in it all the way. I criticize the Jets a lot, but at least they are willing to take on the Giants. The Mets have never been willing to take on the Yankees. When the Yankees did not make the playoffs two years ago, they went into the off season and spent over $300 million on CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira, and AJ Burnett. Would the Mets ever come close to doing anything like that? Not a chance. They make one move every off season trying to put band aids on a team that has way too many leaks. They go halfway. They don't even take on the Phillies. Last year the Phillies traded for Cliff Lee, and in the off season they traded for Roy Halliday. The Mets did nothing. When the Mets were still in the hunt after the all-star break, they did nothing to make the team better. The Phillies went out and traded for Roy Oswalt.
Right now I can't even say who they should bring in as manager and general manager. I know for manager there is a lot of talk by Met fans about bringing back Bobby Valentine. If I remember well, it was not too long ago when Met fans were calling up WFAN wanting Valentine fired. Valentine did do a great job with the Mets, taking them to a World Series. The only issue I see with Valentine is he will want a lot of money, and I do not know if the Wilpons are willing to give it to him. Wally Backman might be another option. He was a member of the 86 Mets and would be a popular pick for the fans. Despite that, he is very unproven and has a shaky history (Wife beater). Hiring him might be too risky for the conservative Wilpons.
It will be very interesting in the upcoming weeks to see what happens. In my dreams, the Wilpons would sell the team to Mark Cuban. Imagine him as the Mets owner. It would be all the Avion tequila you can drink at Citi Field. He would go head to head with the Yankees and spend whatever it took to make the team better. Unfortunately, dreams do not always come true. The Wilpons will probably own the team past the day I die. If their financial problems are as accurate as they have been reported, it will be very difficult for the Mets to make any improvements, and they will continue to be second class citizens.
Don't jump off the bridge though. Maybe next year will be the year. Here is a classic video to remember the good old days (Lots of mullets, very 80s).
LeBron James and his manager Maverick Carter believe race played a major role in reaction to last summers "The Decision". Someone should tell LeBron and his manager the only thing that played a role in the reaction was how big of a douche he was. I never saw an athlete pull the shenanigans that LeBron pulled. In the history of free agency, players announce their decision in a 5 minute press conference and that is the end of it. LeBron made his free agency decision into a reality television show. Did we really need an hour and a half show of garbage to hear him say "I'm playing for Miami" (He actually said he "is taking his talents to South Beach). "He did it for the Boys and Girls Club of Connecticut". Give me a break. He could have donated that same money without the entire show and production. He does have the money. Furthermore, did people need to see him coming out with Dwane Wade and Chris Bosh to a WWE-like entrance the next day? Everything he did was so unnecessary and gave him negative publicity.
Cleveland had every right to be angry. LeBron totally embarrassed them in the national spotlight. Is he really dumb enough not to understand why they reacted the way they did? Cleveland fans and their owner were obviously furious because they went from being a championship contender to a 20 win team. They went from a team that was on national television all the time, to a team that won't be able to sell out their own building. Just think about how much the value of the franchise dropped and how much the area surrounding their arena will suffer economically. I never saw a team so dependent on one player. Even the Jordan Bulls of the early 90's had Scottie Pippen. The Cavs have no one. LeBron was the entire franchise.
I hate when the race card is thrown around. Brett Favre is white and the media kills him for all his dramatics each summer when deciding whether he is retiring or coming back. Roger Clemens is white and the media kills him for all his lies about steroid use. LeBron would have been criticized if his skin color was purple. He acted like a jackass and people called him out on it. Many thought LeBron was not that type of guy and were disappointed when seeing who he truly was. He should just keep his mouth shut. People do not want to hear an almost billionaire complain about anything. He has already lost a lot of his popularity, and bringing up race will only make it worse.
