Someone really needs to send DeAngelo Hall a memo to STFU. In response to Sunday's loss to the Texans in OT( the Redskins were up 10 pts in the 4th quarter), Hall had this to say about Texans WR Andre Johnson:
"This is my first time going against him in the league. I gave him a lot of props during the game. During the game, he didn't scare me. He didn't do anything that looked spectacular. He didn't do anything to make me feel like he was the best.
"Maybe the numbers indicate he is, but I didn't feel that way when I lined up against him. He caught a lot of balls in zone and was just kind of running wide open in zones, not really man-to-man.
"We were hitting Schaub. We had him rattled. I felt like we were dominating those guys, hitting Schaub whenever we wanted to. He was falling down, you know, without anybody even around him, like Peyton Manningdoes a lot."
Oh really?!
Hall had a whole lot to say, especially about an offense that put up 526 yards against his defense. But let's be clear, Andre Johnson is a beast. One of the best WRs in the league right now, but not talked about often, mainly because he doesn't run his mouth like others in his position. Your defense coordinator played zone defense for a reason. Had your DC played tons of man coverage, you better believe Johnson would've had more than 158 yards. So playing zone was the best option from being exposed to the player you are..... In the words of Warren Sapp, "What I Miss???"
"I mean, those are his thoughts. The scheme that they ran, if he wanted to play me man-to-man, he should have told his coaches before the game. That's not my problem. For them to be running zone coverages like that with the safety over the top, and for me to still have 12 catches for 158 yards, somebody wasn't doing their job."
*snicker*
Note to DeAngelo Hall: Anytime a guy can catch 158 yards in a game, and grab the game-tying TD pass, he's as advertised. Give Johnson his props, he's damn good at what he does. Talking like this makes you sound foolish!
Last night on Twitter, I saw Steelers S Ryan Clark asking (*cough*begging*cough*) for more followers. It seems as though Mr. Clark was looking for 10,000 followers for his page. (He should have asked his long haired teammate, Troy Polamalu. He rarely tweets, yet has 33K followers).
Clark started out his by having a simple incentive to following him:
What I found funny is that Clark followed up his tweet by giving reason why he may not be as successful as some on the social networking website:
WHOA!!!!!
Of course, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out, Clark is possibly referring to the oh so boisterous, Chad Ocho Cinco of the Cincinnati Bengals, who is Twitter royalty and just finished showing his reality show, "The Ultimate Catch" on VH1. This actually may have had more steam, had Clark had more followers (at the current moment he has 12,602 followers, while Ocho Cinco's page has 1,293,946 followers).
At least Clark surpassed his 10K mark like he asked.... I was uninterested in following him (The Ravens fan in me makes me petty like that), until I saw this tweet:
Hopefully this applies to Steelers AND Ravens fans alike! *Hits follow button*
Yesterday, Eagles head coach Andy Reid held a press conference, saying that QB Michael Vick will continue to be the Eagles starter, until further notice. I was elated to hear the news. Vick has waited a long time for a second chance at football, and this is now his time to shine. Vick also is a free agent after the season, so even if the Eagles decide not to keep him, his starting opportunity can be footage for the next team up, looking for a veteran QB.
But, as I saw the headline on the cover of the Philadelphia Daily News, I was highly disappointed in the selection of words:
Come on, now...................
How distasteful using such a poor choice of words. I can never understand how people cannot allow a person to serve his time and move on to start a new chapter in life. This cover is tasteless, period. Then again, this is the same city that booed Donovan McNabb, threw snowballs at Santa Claus and had a jail under their old stadium for disorderly fans.
I'm rooting for you as a QB Vick... and as a person. Good luck!
Last night's game between the Saints and 49ers was a great MNF game (Baltimore/NY Jets, are you reading this?!). That's what fans expect for a MNF game. Excitement, nail biting and good football. But last's night's game didn't come without injury. Saints RB Reggie Bush is expected to be out at least 6 weeks with a fractured fibula in his right leg.
MRI tests will be done today to confirm the injury. Keep ya head up, Reggie!
-Even being 0-2, I still expect the 49ers to win the division. Alex Smith grew up last night, something we expected to see from him 5 years ago, coming out of the draft. I guess it's better late then never. I added Smith in my Top 20 QB list for 2010, so he better not make a fool out of me!
-Braylon Edwards was arrested for a DWI charge last night. According to the NY Post, here's the skinny:
Jets wide receiver Braylon Edwards was busted on a drunken driving charge early this morning, after cops pulled him over on the West Side and found he had double the legal limit of alcohol in his system, police said.
Edwards, 27, was arrested at 5:15 a.m. and charged with DWI, after cops pulled over his Range Rover at 34th Street and 12th Avenue for having overly-tinted windows. Police said they smelled alcohol and Edwards blew a 0.16 on a Breathalyzer, or double the state's legal limit of 0.08.
I guess Braylon was still teaching folks how to dougie like the day before in the Pats game. Except this time there was liquor.. and maybe girls... and with a car..... Just look at this mugshot, courtesy of WPIX in NY:
Looking like a bad Rick Ross impersonator. Go sitcho azz down, Braylon. And take that beard with you!
-In other news, Kurt Warner made his appearance on Dancing With The Stars. He and dance partner Anna Trebunskaya came out swinging, doing the Viennese Waltz to start the season. If Warner can waltz NEARLY as good as he can Walk It Out, than he should be a Top 3 dancer when it's all said and done!
Denver Broncos WR Kenny McKinley was found dead, yesterday afternoon, by a female friend who found him after taking his child with her to run errands. Police believe the McKinley suffered from a self inflicted gunshot wound, thus ending his own life.
The irony of such a tragic event, is McKinley passed away the same day that Broncos CB Champs Bailey, former Broncos S John Lynch and other players attended a fundraiser that honored former CB Darrent Williams, who was killed New Years Day, back in 2007.
In addition to the deaths of McKinley and Williams, the Broncos have also dealt with the death of RB Damien Nash, who collapsed and died at a charity basketball game back in April, 2007... Three months after the Williams murder.
Prayers go to the family of McKinley as well as the Broncos organization. Dealing with suicide is never easy, especially when you think there is something you may have done to save someone's life. And for the players who've been there to see all 3 tragedies, this can't be easy for them to deal with.
Brown was being honored by being inducted into the Browns Ring of Honor this past weekend. Only Brown didn't show up. The reason? He was boycotting the event because he was unhappy with the reduced role with the team's administration. Brown even complained that he had been reduced to the likes of a team mascot.
This is America. Of course, everyone has the right to boo whoever they want, whenever they want. But booing Jim Brown is stupid. This is a guy who loves the organization, spoke out and fought to get a team back when the original Browns left for Baltimore and even tried to lure Ravens GM Ozzie Newsome to come back to Cleveland to run the operations of the franchise.
Jim Brown has never been known to be the quiet type. He speaks loudly and stands up for what he believes in. His personal beef with the administration is not a slap in the face to the fans, it's a way of standing up for what HE feels is right. If you were one of the folks booing in the crowd, then shame on you. Clap for Brown for all things he's done good for your team, not for the one thing that you don't like. He's earned that respect.
Last week, the Most Hated Athletes list was released and the Top 5 of the list was as follows:
1. Michael Vick*
2. Tiger Woods
3. Terrell Owens*
4. Chad Ochocinco*
5. Kobe Bryant
As you can see, not only are all 5 players of African-American decent, but 3 out of 5 of them are NFL players. Hmmmmmmm......................
In contrast, the Most Liked Athletes list was released and list showed the following:
1. Michael Jordan
2. Apolo Anton Ohno
3. Peyton Manning*
4. Steve Nash
5. Joe Montana*
One African-American (who is retired, BTW) and two NFL players, one of which no longer plays and hasn't in quite sometime.
Oh....... okay...............................
Does anyone else see something wrong with this picture? The race situation is another topic for another day and I'm going to try my harder to avoid that topic, so let's stick to specifically the NFL players selected. While I understand that some folks will never like Michael Vick again, due to his dog fighting fiasco, what did Chad OchoCinco and Terrell Owens do to you?
I'm probably the last person to say that I love Terrell Owens. He annoys me and acts like a guy who lacks deeply in social skills. But do I hate the guy? No. Chad OchoCinco is well liked by many of his opponents who he trash talks to weekly, so why is the love so rare amongst fans? Neither of them have been arrested, convicted or had allegations toward them. Yet they are Top 5 in most hated?
What I found interesting was that a guy like Ben Roethlisberger was not listed in the Top 5 Most Hated. He did make the list at #8, however he's been accused of sexual misconduct twice in one year, yet is ranked lower than 2 guys who have done nothing wrong off the football field. Where they do that at?
Also noted, Brett Favre was listed #8 in the Most Like Athletes list. As a former Favre Stan, I can admit that after the Green Bay fiasco (in which I totally sided w/ Green Bay and how they handled it), I became less and less of a fan of his. And after the yearly going back and forth of, "I'm retiring... wait! No I'm not", he inched more and more on my, "Players I Dislike" list.Maybe I'm the only person that doesn't care a whole lot for divas and bitchassness. Who knew!
The NFL is the cream of the crop in American sports, followed by the NBA. These players are put on pedestals. Things they do off-the-field are just as much newsworthy as the plays they make on-the-field. I understand that majority of the players we see are black, but I'm a bit baffled by this list. What say you?
Things that make you go, Hmmmmm.......................................
So, as I was on my way to BWI Airport to to windmill Flacco for his horrible ass play, I ran across this video on Black Sports Online, courtesy of WNST, from Ravens LB Ray Lewis about yesterday's game:
Now, by any means did the Ravens lose because of the penalties. But I agree with Lewis 100%. There were 2 BAD calls that accredited to 6 points the Bengals received because of it. The tripping call on Lewis was bull, because he was blocked to the ground and he was trying to get up. The Suggs call was bull hockey, particularly because Palmer had the ball still in his hand as Suggs was taking him to the ground.
More and more, the NFL is becoming too technical and too Charmin-esque when it comes to the way they protect their QBs. We get it- the league is a QB-driven league. But by any means, let these guys play!
But let's not get ahead of ourselves Ray, Joe Flacco is why you lost, my friend. 4 INTs cannot happen for a team w Super Bowl aspirations.
P.S.- If I see Flacco anywhere around town this week, I'm still gonna windmill him.
Dear Arizona Cardinals- Call Kurt Warner and offer him $100 million NOW! Maybe he'll reconsider. Without him you suck!
Did anyone see the Cowboys going 0-2?? Did anyone see Jay Cutler throwing ZERO INTs in a game??? What is the NFL world coming to?
Last April after Jason Campbell was traded to the Raiders, I suggested that Bruce Gradkowski should at least be able to compete for the starting job. I was told how dumb that was and how Campbell is better.. blah, blah, wonk wonk... but after yesterday's game, Tom Cable got my memo and finally got it right. He benched Campbell, put in Gradkowski and he helped lead the Raiders to a victory over the Rams. In the words of Shaquille O'Neal, "Tell me how my ass tastes".
Dear Mark Sanchez: Thanks for showing up at the party this week!
Dear Darrelle Revis: We saw you grab your hamstring after that Moss 1-hand TD. All I have to say is,
THAT'S the San Diego Chargers squad I know!
Aaron Rodgers, you are doing the damn thing, but your Lambeau Leap SUCKS! Work on that, mmmmmkay?!
The Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 2-0?????
The Texans-Redskins game is reason number 1, why I love the game of football. Just when you think you can count someone out, they find ways to come back and win games. That game was by far the best game of the week. And it paralleled last year's Saints-Redskins game. Down 10 points in the 4th Qtr, Matt Schaub hit Andre Johnson with the tying TD with 2 minutes left in the game. A blocked FG that would have given Washington a nice cushion was the leading factor into the game going into OT. I thought the Texans would lose for SURE after Gary Kubiak decided to punt opposed to kicking a 52-yard FG to try and win the game. But the Texans were given new life after Graham Gano missed his 52-yarder. That game was exciting, full of offense and nail biting. This is why I love football.
PS- Is it crazy that I am (quietly) rooting for the Texans, week after week?!
Giants looked bad, real bad, Michael Jackson
Vince Young gets benched- again! Hey look, the sky is blue!
Michael Vick is balling.... and not looking back. And if Andy Reid brings in Kevin Kolb next week, he might have to say goodbye to his head coaching job. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!
Maybe Favre should've stayed retired after all.................................
So I found this video on Yahoo Sports and thought it was pretty interesting and cool. A video in quadruple speed, showing how the stadium transforms from Giants stadium on Sunday afternoon to Jets stadium, ready for Monday Night Football.
The fake nerdy side of me is amazed by this video. I've always wondered the process of transforming everything for the 2 teams, but now we get to see it first hand (even though it's CLEARLY on speed mode and I don't mean how fast it's going).
Am I the only person that thinks this is a bit much and the Jets would have been better off getting their own stadium after all of this? By the time you pay all of the people doing the transformations, you'd probably buy a new stadium anyway.
I figured this was a cool insight on the makings of Giants/Jets Stadium in the new Meadowlands. Enjoy your weekend!
So..... I didn't do too well last week, with Week 1 of my picks. What had happened was....................... I over analyze everything. And even though I had a few close ones (like Calvin Johnson getting ROBBED and the Lions losing as a result), almost never counts. Hopefully this will be a better week for your girl. But I can't make any promises. The season is still early so the unexpected victories will be in play. Anyway, here's my Week 2 NFL picks. Wish me luck!
Pittsburgh @ Tennessee (-5) - Vince Young >>> Dennis Dixon, at this point. I like the Titans, but let's not kid ourselves w the point spread. It's still the Steelers, who has a great defense. Winner: by 3
Miami @ Minnesota (-5.5) -Old man Favre gets some much needed rest and lights up Minnesota up. Miami doesn't impress me at this point. Winner:
Arizona @ Atlanta (-6.5)- Atlanta gets it right this week. Winner:
Kansas City @ Cleveland (-2) - I'm gonna jump on the SEC of the NFL, AKA the KC Chiefs. They have a good running game, decent defense and possibly the next Dante Hall of special teams in Dexter McCluster. Sorry Cleveland, I don't believe you, you need more people Winner:
Baltimore(-2.5) @ Cincinnati- This is a hard pick for me. The Bengals always gives the Ravens matchup problems. Add Terrell Owens to the mix and it may be a long day for my boys on defense. I also can't see Cincy going 0-2. I think it'll be close, but no cigars for my Ravens :( Winner:
Chicago @ Dallas (-7.5) - I'm not a believer in the Bears, as long as Cutler is there. They almost let a Lions team beat 'em, so do you REALLY think i am picking them to beat the Cowboys?! PSSSSSHHHHH!! Winner:
Philadelphia (-6) @ Detroit- Mike Vick shows his ass this weekend. I want to pick Detroit, because I want them to not suck anymore. But Matt Stafford being out doesn't help much. Winner:
Buffalo @ Green Bay (-13)- Bufflao will let CJ Spiller loose. But it won't be enough because the Packers are THAT good. Winner:
Tampa Bay @ Carolina (-3.5) - Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Wake me when this one is over. Winner:
Seattle @ Denver (-3.5) - Okay, so Pete Carroll got his 1st NFL since returning to the league. Now he'll get his first loss this Sunday. Winner:
St. Louis @ Oakland (-3.5) - Oakland, this is your last chance to prove me right, dammitz! I said you were on a major rise this season. But so far you suck major ass. If you lose this weekend I won't be picking you anymore this season. And you know I'm petty, so I mean it Winner:
Houston (-3) @ Washington- The Redskins didn't have 1 offensive TD last week. The Texans, however, scored 34 points last week. I'm not saying Houston will have a field day against the Redskins. But I am saying Hall and Rogers are about to learn just who Andre Johnson is. Winner:
New England (-3) @ NY Jets- The way the Pats played last week, they look like they are on a mission. The way the Jets offense looked last week, they look like they are scurrred (not scared, but scurrred). I'm picking the quiet, confident group. Not the loud, obnoxious one. Winner:
Jacksonville @ San Diego (-7) - My boo and Co. will right the ship this week. But I still expect the Jaguars to try and spoil the party. It's a shame no one will be able to see it locally, because the game will probably be blacked out. Winner:
NY Giants @ Indianapolis (-5) - AKA, The Manning Bowl. Eli vs. Peyton... Big Head vs Jug Head. This should be a good one, just like the last time these two rock head brothers met. I expect a good game, but with the same results as last time. Big Bro Manning wins again.... in a good game. Winner:
MNF: New Orleans (-5.5) @ San Francisco- San Fran looked AWFUL last week. Playing against the world champs on Monday Night might not be the ego booster they need. Basically, I ain't picking 'em! Winner:
Earlier this week, I read an article about Tom Brady's thoughts regarding Patriots fans leaving the home opener against the Bengals, a bit too early. Brady admitted that he wasn't too happy about fans rolling out before the clock said 0:00 and even indicated that Jets fans probably don't hit the road before their team is done playing.
With Brady's comments(comments I agree with), I started to think about Fairweather fans. For the record, I'm not saying the Patriots have them, but if you're a Pats fan and was offended by my segue, then maybe the shoe fits more than you thought. Anyway, I wanted to know what teams did folks think were a "Fairweather Fan" team, a team that has support (or maybe not) when they are doing good, but they disappear into thin air when they do bad.
So I took the question to my Twitter and Facebook pages. I wanted to get an idea of what the general public thought about this. I calculated the Top 3 teams that were mentioned the most. Here's what I got based on my social networking survey:
#3
When asked why people mentioned the Bengals, I had one tweeter say the following:
The Bengals are a hard team to follow. They haven't been the most consistent team in terms of winning. And even though they won the AFC North last year, fans still haven't gone out and bought season tickets. One can blame it on the bad economy, but ticket sale problems were long before America faced such issues. As for the tweeter, maybe there is some truth to that. Neither the Bengals nor Browns have won a playoff game since the Browns came back to Cleveland in 1999. No excuses, but I understand.
#2 /
I found it ironic that I had an equal amount of folks say both the Jags and the Panthers. Especially since both teams became expansion teams in the same year, 1995. This is probably the one that's a head scratcher. The Jags have been pretty competitive and have even won playoff games. The Jags beat the Steelers at home, twice in one season in 2007, something that had never been done before they did it. The Panthers have been to the Super Bowl and was very close in beating the Patriots, a team that many consider a dynasty. But when asked about the reasoning behind the vote, one tweeter summed it up for both teams:
I disagreed with this initially, simply because the Ravens aren't 20 yrs old yet they have always had the backing of their fans at home. But I had to remember that Baltimore was and still is a football city, even when the Colts left town. These 2 cities, not so much. Jacksonville is Gator Country and Carolina fans already had teams they rooted for and have yet to fully converted. After further review, maybe she has a point after all.
#1
I received the most votes for the Falcons.... and it wasn't even close. The reasoning was pretty much the same amongst many: Atlanta is a transplant city, full of non-natives. So people already have a team prior to moving there. Even with the Braves and Hawks in town, it's pretty common to know that it's not just the Falcons, but all Atlanta teams struggle with the Fairweather syndrome. One person's response made me giggle a little:
>
Another person thinks it's more about fans liking a player and not the team that they play for:
The public has spoken. Falcon fans are as fairweather as they come. Not a good look when you have other cities that would rob and steal for an NFL team. The thing about it is, the Falcons have a pretty decent squad right now (on paper, at least). Time to get out and support them, people!
Honorable Mentions:
Many folks believes the city of Miami belongs to "The U", the University of Miami. So the loyalty to their NFL isn't strong.
Most people believe that before Brady, no one cared about the Pats. Need I remind folks that Drew Bledsoe was the QB before Brady and led his team to a SB, but I digress. It's also noted that Boston is Red Sox crazy, so there is No Country For Pats Football in Beantown.
The NFL has finally admitted to being impacted by a struggling economy. NFL attendance has been down, while the TV ratings are up 20% from a year ago. The NFL blames the emergence of HDTV as a reason why people are choosing to watch the game from the comfort of their own home, opposed to attending the games.
Yeah......... okay.
As a frequent game attender, I can tell you that's from from the truth. Ticket prices are sky high. A family of 4 going to a football game is about an average of $360 just for tickets. Add the high concession at the stadium, and we're talking about a possible $500 day, just to see your favorite team play live. In an economy where unemployment is still a big concern, one can't possibly think of going to an NFL as a viable option.
If the NFL wants to avoid this alarming trend, they must lower the tickets prices... at least for now. Allow discount packages to those who are PSL and/or season ticket holders, before releasing their tickets to the public. And for crying out loud, reduce preseason games to 50% and give half of the tickets to community little leagues. As much as I love going to football games, I refuse to spend a % of my salary just for the atmosphere. I could easily enjoy the game in the comfort of my own home.
The fans should be the top priority. Get with the times, the country is struggling. The NFL is a smart business, hopefully they will get it right.
This week, the Ravens head to Cincinnati to play the Bengals. This is a BIG divisional matchup against the 2 teams that made it to the playoffs last year. While both teams look to repeat last year's success, none of this would be interesting if it weren't for Twitter's greatest sports tweeter- Chad Ochocinco.
Ocho has started with his trash talking to Ravens players already. Tweets from 85 started yesterday evening with his good friend, Ray Lewis:
But it didn't stop there. Chad then went after Ravens RB Willis McGahee:
In the midst of this "Tweet War", Ravens FB LeRon McClain jumped in to defend his teammate. Chad wasted no time to turn his attention to #33:
Although I'm sure these guys are friends in real life, this is great entertainment for tweeters like myself. How can you NOT love Twitter. Hopefully Sunday's game is as good as the Twitter trash talk!
