Chargers Pummel Broncos; Holiday Cheers

It has a been a pretty good vacation...almost too good...

Christmas Eve the Chargers thoroughly pounded the Broncos. I find personal satisfaction any year the Chargers beat the Broncos twice and with the 2 ass-kickings the Chargers gave to the Broncos this year will give me some joy after the inevitable playoff loss that looms in the Chargers future.

So far on vacation I've played a ton of video games, some by myself and others with my 5 year-old son who, of course, received several new games to play. I've been drinking way too much every day, eating way too much every day and staying up way too late every night. I need to go into work for a brief period today and I am not sure how my body will respond...but I will attempt to remedy any afflictions by pigging out and having some beers later...

Hopefully everyone that reads this is also enjoying the holiday season...

Steroids Admissions

First Andy Pettitte comes out and admits to using steroids and now Brian Roberts does the same. And I think you will probably see even more players doing so with of course an 'excuse' ... it was to recover from injury or I just tried it once or whatever they can do to try and separate themselves from being labeled as chronic steroid users like Bonds and Clemens. And like Bonds, Clemens has come out to deny that he has ever used steroids... you see, Bonds and Clemens never even used steroids even once and to even mention that they did will bring out denials and tirades from these two players to think that achieved their 'greatness' in baseball with the aid of steroids.

But I do believe that there has yet to be an athlete that was accused of using steroids and then later vindicated by some means. In fact, when Jose Canseco's book came out a few years ago claiming Mark McGwire, as well as others, used steroids folks in the media scoffed at Canseco and his book was merely about money. But as time has passed, Canseco's allegations are being proven true with each passing day and what many thought was a book that should be placed in the fiction section holds more truths than lies.

Dick In A Box

What do you get the girl you want to impress? A dick in the box of course...

From SNL last year, here's the uncensored version of "Dick In A Box", a pretty good digital short with Justin Timberlake and Andy Samberg. Merry Christmas.

Chargers Destroy Lions; Clinch AFC West

The Lions looked like a team that had no desire to compete this past Sunday. Jon Kitna threw 5, yes 5(!), interceptions as the Chargers gave the Lions a 51-14 ass-kicking to clinch the AFC West. Tomlinson played in only the first half but still had 116 yards and 2 touchdowns. Antonio Cromartie continues to set the NFL interception pace with his 10th of the season...and he hasn't even started all year, imagine if he had!

It will be interesting to see what the Chargers do down the stretch. Pittsburgh lost to Jacksonville and as a result the Chargers moved up to the number 3 seed and if they win out, obviously would hold that spot which would mean a delayed meeting with the Patriots...if they were to make it that far. Listening to the sports talkers yesterday...who of course were off the Charger bandwagon 4, 5 weeks ago but now are back on...point out that if things remain as they are in the AFC, the Chargers would face the Browns in the first round of the playoffs, which seems to be a favorable matchup for the Chargers. I still don't know what to expect of this team... it seems like the defense has really stepped up lately but the offense has yet to perform as it was expected too. Games the Chargers have won in lop-sided fashion have all been because the defense has forced turnovers and given the offense opportunities. A Christmas eve game against the Broncos is next up for the Chargers and then on to Oakland... I would think the Chargers would want to play their starters and win these games for playoff positioning, but I have no faith in Norv Turner and am just waiting for the wheels to come off...

In the meantime...my vacation has begun! My son and I are loving every second of not doing anything and have absolutely nothing planned for the remainder of the Christmas break!

Lazy Sunday

(Originally posted 12/21/05)

Just found the video for the Chris Parnell and Andy Samberg SNL rap sketch "Lazy Sunday"...

I think Chris Parnell's raps are pretty good as well as funny...

And most importantly:

Mr. Pibb + Red Vines = Crazy Delicious

UPDATED 12/14/07

NBC has had all of it's videos removed from unauthorized sources and started it's own video service through Hulu.com...which is good/bad. Bad because all my video links that I've posted in the past of SNL sketches are no longer viewable. Good, because hopefully now that I am using their service, they will remain on my blog! Here's a repost of Lazy Sunday...

Thanks Texans, Christmas Hiatus

Last night the Houston Texans helped the Chargers out by giving the Broncos a 31-13 beat down. The Chargers have to win just one of their last 3 games to clinch their 2nd straight AFC West championship. I watched the game last night and other than watching the Broncos get their ass kicked, which is always worth watching, the other real pleasant part of the game was no Bryant Gumble! Tom Hammond was doing the play-by-play and he is 1 billion times better than Gumble...it would be great if that was a permanent change.

And a holiday note... I am on vacation starting on Sunday until next year so posting will probably taper off a bit...but I'll try to check in. My 5 year-old son is already really stoked because he won't have to go to daycare and it will be him and myself hanging out for a little more than 2 weeks...

So, hopefully everyone has a safe and happy holidays!

Mitchell Report: A Dud Of A Bombshell

So the Mitchell Report is out and to say it is nothing but a bunch of crap is to say the least. Sure, it named names, but with the exception of Clemens, Pettitte and Tejada the rest of the list is filled with a bunch of already known roid users, has-beens, retired players or nobodies. No, I wasn't expected 60-80 All-Stars named in the Mitchell report, but I was thinking I would see more active players, more 'big' names and not the same big names like Bonds, Sheffield and Palmeiro. Sure, you got Miguel Tejada and Paul Lo Duca but the number of 'nobodies' compared to big names is very disproportionate. Which leads me to believe that the roid use was even more widespread than anyone could have imagined because if the players that sucked were on roids, how many of the 'good' players were also on them, just clever enough to not get caught. Plus, no Ivan Rodriguez, Sammy Sosa or Mark McGwire - just to name 3 roid-boys off the top of my head - are all missing? What? Just proof that this entire investigation will amount to little, if anything, actually happening to most of the cheaters...what a sham and, likely, exactly what Selig wanted. I find it highly doubtful that Selig will do anything other than implement 'better' drug testing and will allow the cheaters to go unpunished and reap their rewards for their tainted performances.

The Bombshell Hits Today: Proving MLB Is A Joke

If you follow sports and unless you are living in a cave you know that the Mitchell report is coming out today and is going to name names. Just listening to the radio talk this morning already some things are being 'leaked' out. Whether or not they are included in the Mitchell report or not, but one such rumor is that Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte were on steroids as well as many more Yankees... in fact, the word is that A LOT of Yankees were on the juice.

Of course, that could be just the tip of the iceberg and really does prove once and for all that MLB is a freakin' joke. With baseball's biggest stars all being named as juicers the likelihood that any actual 'punishment' towards any of them will be unlikely because they are too numerous to punish and what is the spineless Selig going to do? Wipe the books of 60-80 of baseball's stars? Of course not. He will come out and say that because so many cheaters were found and many weren't found that no action can be taken and the stats of all these cheaters will remain intact because it was just cheaters playing other cheaters so everything is relative.

Then we fast-forward 5, 10, 15 years from now when these players will all be up for Hall Of Fame induction... because no punishment was issued, their stats and records able to stand and because of that, have to be inducted into the Hall Of Fame. And then you go to the most notable cheater, Barry Bonds...how can baseball do anything against him? All he allegedly did was perjure himself and obstruct justice (as well as use steroids), so how is he any worse than any of the other cheaters? He isn't at all...

In the end, I have the hunch, that Selig will come out and verbally admonish all the cheaters and say that this was a dark time for the MLB. But the end result will be nothing but the proof that players cheated and nothing else...whoopie-fucking-doo. It means that the cheaters will get away with cheating and I even have the feeling that a campaign of 'acceptance' will begin that will try and get fans and the public to accept the cheaters. In the end, Selig and MLB will try and sweep this under the rug and in 10 years from now the only way anyone will know who cheated or not will be by looking at the unbeatable records the cheaters set during the steroid era.

I also foresee ESPN loving every second of this and I see ESPN taking it's typical approach towards this controversy...at first, today and in the short-term, ESPN and it's "analysts" will all be appalled at the extent of the Mitchell report and call for radical action. Then in a month, maybe two, they will be part of the p.r. campaign to get people to forget about it or to accept it...and of course they will because ESPN has MLB on it's airwaves and needs to save it's product. If this was the NHL, ESPN would call for the league to fold or expelled from the U.S.

Charities: The New Scam

I really need to become the governing entity of a charity because I think, without question, that if the charity 'appears' heart-warming I could easily retire. Now, let me say that not all charities are a total sham but more and more are becoming so.

The one that caught my eye... Mike Ditka's Hall Of Fame Assistance Fund, which was set up to help retired NFL players that are getting jack-squat from the NFL Player's Unioin and are literally impoverished. Seems like a worthy cause, especially for sports minded donors, but like many charities of today, the charity takes in a truckload of money and then distributes a pittance of it...in this case, the Hall Of Fame Assistance Fund took in $1.3 million and distributed less than $200,000.

So where does the rest of the money go to? Oh sure, you need office supplies, have to pay the rent, heat and electricity and so on...but there is no way that costs even a million bucks a year. So where does the rest of the money go to? That's right the caretakers of the charity itself...the administrator and those employed by the charity are likely making the lion's share of the donations which clearly shows that the charity really doesn't care about making sure the donations that were received are actually given to those that they promised it would get too. United Way and PETA have both been noted in the past as to having elaborate banquets, salaries and extravagant employee 'perks' just to point out a couple of other notable charities.

So as soon as I can figure out the 'feel good' charity that I wish to start, I will begin accepting donations and hopefully retire shortly after that... so stay tuned and give generously to those in need!

The Non-Computer User Needs The Computer

I have to believe everyone knows a person that openly scorns the computer, the internet and technology in general. Anytime in general conversation someone mentions any 'tekkie' term, like the word computer, the non-computer user (let's refer to them as ncu from this point on) is usually very quick and will very confidently "I have no use for the internet or computers. Nothing but a waste of time and I don't have enough time for all that shit. Don't need them anyways." And go through life blissfully on...for they have defied the world and prove that you don't need a computer or the internet to survive in today's complex world. But let's get right down to the bottom of this... any ncu is basically proclaiming that they are stupid is what they really are doing.

So then, of course, the day comes...whatever the event may be, but it has and/or will happen again. That is, there is something on the internet or that needs to be done using a computer that the ncu will eventually need, and then what happens? Well everyone knows of course...the ncu, who has openly defied and cursed the magic electronic box, now gains so much reasons to hate computers and the internet because whatever they seeking to do using the computer will no-doubtedly not go well because the ncu doesn't even know the basics of computer use. So they will make a phone call to someone that may help them and their conversation may resemble something like this:

NCU: Where's Microsoft Works? That's the only program I've ever used and I know how to use
it!
Smart People: Uh, Works? That hasn't been made in almost 10 years, everyone uses Microsoft Word now.
NCU: Word? Well, where can I get Works, that's the only program I know.
Smart People: Try using Word, it's pretty much the same thing. Besides, does it really matter? If you haven't used a newer program than Works, are you sure you really know it that well anymore anyways?

(next conversation)

NCU: I'm on the internet and can't see the web site I want to go to.
Smart People: Ok, have you updated your web browser to make sure it is the most current?
NCU: What's a web browser? I'm just using the internet?
Smart People: Well, you need the web browser to view content on the internet...what program are you using to view web pages?
NCU: How can I find out?
Smart People: Click the help button and go to the about button.
NCU: Hey that's cool, it tells you right there... I am using Internet Explorer... oh, I could have told you that, that's what was printed under the little icon that I clicked, you should have just asked what icon I clicked...geez.
Smart People: Ok, looks like your version is up to date...is your connection to the internet working properly?
NCU: What connection would that be? I followed the instructions and have my printer and keyboard plugged in...even got the mouse to work.
Smart People: That's great...but no, you should be paying for some sort of internet connection...you usually have a modem that plugs into the phone jack or possibly the cable that you get your cable tv from.
NCU: I guess I don't follow you. I got my computer and set it all up and turned it on, wouldn't the internet come with a brand new computer?

These are just 2 of the typical conversations you would get from a ncu and in both cases, the ncu would leave their computer experience with more disgust and disdain for computers and the internet than they had prior too each experience. They will loudly and proudly gloat with other ncu's "So I bought this new computer and it didn't even come with Microsoft Works or the internet so what good are the pieces of shit?" An agreeing ncu will reply, "I hear ya. I had an email address for a while and I still haven't gotten any money from Bill Gates, Amazon.com and a bunch of other places that said that I would get money if I forwarded their emails to all my contacts...which I did. The internet and computers are just for morons!"

Winter Drivers

With winter in full gear in the barren wasteland one might think this area becomes a 'Winter Wonderland'. That might be true for a day or maybe even 2 days, but after a few weeks of snow and cold, anyone that spends anytime in the barren wasteland during winter quickly tires of sub-zero temperatures, wind and snow. Then to add to the misery of cold, wind and snow, if you live in any sort of metro area in the wasteland you then add the 4th element you must battle all winter long...that being other drivers. For you see, when the roads get covered in snow and/or ice some folks in this area alter their normal driving habits...and I guess maybe some don't alter their driving method at all and are just naturally crappy drivers. So what kind of winter drivers are they? There are 2 basic 'winter drivers' with the rest of use subjected to their driving skill, or lack thereof.

The first winter driver is the "I'm scared to be even driving in these conditions" driver. A person can easily recognize these drivers because they will typically be driving a 4-wheel drive vehicle with all the wipers (both front and rear) on high-speed and driving as slowly as possibly, preferably slower than 10 MPH. For you see, their entire energy is focused on keeping their SUV on the road...they fear if they get stuck on some road that they will never be found and die in a matter of moments. Never mind that behind these people is a line of traffic that stretches as far as a person can see. When the scaredy cat driver finally does turn off the road there is much joy and rejoicing as the following drivers can then at least resume their travels at a rate that is faster than a person walking. The scaredy cat driver also doesn't realize that going 5 MPH into a snow drift guarantees you getting stuck...but going thru a drift at a normal rate of speed is usually all that is needed to prevent you from getting stuck.

The other winter driver is the "I'm not scared of driving in these conditions" driver. Very recognizable driver as well. This person will typically have a jacked-up 4x4 truck... and usually not a 'cute' SUV but a full-sized truck or suburban. These drivers have no patience for anyone on the roads because, you see, these conditions are exactly what the driver has been waiting for... finally a reason to lock into 4 by mode and drive thru snowdrifts as if you were in an off-road rally race set in the snow. They scoff at speed limits... sure, they'll drive 25 mph in the summer down a road but in the winter time, with snow drifts and ice means that they now need to do 45 to exhibit their lack of fear towards snow on the streets. If they happen to be following you, regardless of how fast or slow you will be traveling at, they will instantly drive up onto your bumper and make sure to 'rev up' their motor at every opportunity to keep you informed that they are impatiently waiting behind you to drive somewhere...for you see, if you have a huge 4x4 truck and you are driving it in a blizzard, your tasks are by far more pressing than anyone else's. Because during a winter snowfall/blizzard the 4x4 driver will often times utilize 'alternate' routes to get by a slower moving vehicle...by alternate routes, I mean it is not uncommon to see one of these dolts driving on sidewalks or cutting corners by going over the curb and because everything is snow covered, they feel justified.

Now, I am by no means advocating people to drive in an unsafe manner or be inconsiderate to anyone in any driving conditions. But with the large amount of snowfall this area got last week has had me in traffic with some of the finest 'winter drivers' this area has. I also must note, that I traded in my SUV 2 years ago (gas money) and at first was a little apprehensive about driving a car around in the winter time...but the 3, maybe 4 times a person actually had to have their vehicle in 4 wheel drive really proves that sure, 4 wheel drive in the winter almost guarantees a person not getting stuck, but a person can drive safely and at the posted street limits with few problems if they just drive in a manner that is safe for everyone. I think the scaredy cat drivers and the winter rally racers are both types of people that add stress to winter driving and there is usually nothing more comical than being behind a rally racer who is behind a scaredy cat driver because the rally racer will sometimes contemplate driving right over the vehicle in front of them...because again, they have somewhere important to go regardless of the driving conditions.

Chargers Rally, Beat Titans In OT

The Chargers had to score 14 points in the 4th quarter, with the last touchdown coming with little time left, to send the game into overtime. The Titans' defense looked as if it was dominating the Chargers for the entire game until the final quarter when the Chargers, down 17-3, had to muster up some offense if it wanted to make a game of it. The Chargers did just that. The final drive of regulation wasn't without some controversy for the Chargers... 2 plays were reviewed, one where Tomlinson clearly was out of bounds when he caught a 3rd and 5 pass and the following play, on 4th and 5, a pass to Chambers was reviewed, but because there was no clear view, the catch and subsequent first down stood and the Chargers would score the game tying touchdown on that final drive.

Tomlinson scored on a 16 yard touchdown run to nix any field goal attempt and end the game in an overtime that both teams had the ball but the Chargers were able to keep the Titans pinned in and win the field position battle.

The Chargers defense played just as well as the Titans. Merriman played the first half and then got dinged up on what he suspects was a 'dirty play'. He was having a good game up to that point with a couple of sacks and an unrelenting pass rush. And that has been the big difference for the Chargers today than it was at the beginning of the season...the pass rush. The Chargers didn't seem to have any sort of rush until recently and it seems to be really effective.

Philip Rivers was playing absolutely horrible for most of the game but seemed to gather things together for the final quarter and gained more passing yards in one drive then he did for the rest of the game. He had 2 interceptions, was knocked out briefly in the 2nd quarter, in which Billy Volek came in and threw an interception of his own, and Rivers was sacked 4 times...the most of his career. Tomlinson, too, was having an unimpressive game until the 2nd half and then finished with over 100+ yards and had a rushing and receiving touchdown with, of course, the rushing td the game winner.

Both teams seemed to have players dropping like flies and at times the game seemed to get a little 'chippy'. Fullback Lorenzo Neal, for the Chargers, is likely out for the rest of the season, Gates was injured but came back and scored the game-tying touchdown.

The Charger offense still is hit and miss. The defense seems to be playing better, but that may likely be because the offenses they have been playing lately are not that good or, in the case of the Indy game, the opponent handed the game to the Chargers.

Funny Pics

Just surfing around I stumbled across a collection of 100 funny 'internet' pics. And by 'internet' I mean you need to understand the humor of cats, signs and Japanese Hentia...

The one I've posted is one of the better ones, if you ask me...you can view the full collection here.

Zappy Live At Dempsey's 11-21-07

So the infamous band Zappy performed on Thanksgiving Eve, which is out of character for the trio. They typically only play once every 5 or more years and here they are, performing twice within the past two years...maybe they are going big time? Just how big? You'll note the throngs of fans in the following video clip... the entire show was allegedly recorded and if I get a copy of it, I will post the entire show that will show that there were indeed people present to see Zappy perform other than myself. But this was the only clip that I took on my cell phone and of course I did so just before they kicked me out the show ended.

American Idol Star Arrested: Who Would Have Guessed

For two years I have railed against American Idol on it's crappiness and I made a (not so) bold prediction in my original rant "Why American Idol Sucks":

I'm just waiting for the headlines "Former American Idol Star Arrested..."

And low and behold, wouldn't you know it, a former American Idol finalist was just arrested all liquored and doped up. So of course I needed to instantly come back and record the obligatory "I told you so!" blog entry...

But of course no one needs to go back to July of this year to view my thoughts of Moss and Garnett going to the Patriots and Celtics because they both have proven me wrong...to this point. And then when you get down to it, is it really that tough to predict the demise of karaoke television stars? But regardless... it will not prevent me from reveling in my predicting prowess.

Every Cuss Word We Know, And I Feel Fine

Here's a fun video for you...

Set to REM's "End Of The World And I Feel Fine" song, "Every Cuss Word We Know" ... Obviously language not appropriate for children, but a fun video nonetheless...

Let It Snow

As I have recently mentioned the past few days, winter is here and the snow is a plenty.

Here are 2 pics of the recent snowfall. I stuck a yardstick in the snowpile that amassed on top of my kid's small picnic table. The second pic is, obviously, a close up of the yardstick to show it's measurement of 12 inches.

Friday night there was exactly 0.0 inches of snow on that picnic table.

Ron Paul In '08

It looks like the Ron Paul Revolution is beginning to pick up some steam. Even though national polls seem to have Paul at a consistent 5% for the Republican nomination, Paul has consistently won viewer call-in polls after debates and has won many straw polls in several states.

One only needs to go to YouTube and type in Ron Paul to view any number of clips that have Paul's comments on his platform...all of which are very appealing to liberty-loving Americans. John McCain openly attacked Paul in the last debate - which, as Paul states, means that the front runners are beginning to become aware of his following.

The million dollar question, of course, will be whether or not the politician that becomes the 'internet sensation' has any chance of being a legitimate contender. Howard Dean was the '04 internet sensation and was done in short order.

Paul does have a 'fall back' option if he does not get the Republican nomination...that is, he could run as a Libertarian and although that likely won't do anything to help his chances, it at least keep him on the ballot and maybe the Libertarian party could benefit from the exposure Paul has given to many of the philosophies of Libertarians and more importantly, our the founding fathers of this country.

Weekend Recap

As I posted last week, winter has hit the barren wasteland and the forecasted snowfall of 3-5 inches was an underestimation. The official snowfall total was 7 inches but I think that is a conservative call to keep it close to their forecast... in my front yard, there is at least 10 inches of snow. And the forecast is for more snow starting tonight thru tomorrow for a total of 6 more inches... so that could mean no snow to a foot...

And what was the deal yesterday? For some reason I felt the need to party like a rock star... sure, I like to enjoy a beer or two on Sundays while I watch football, but for some reason I drank like a fish yesterday... don't feel too bad today with the exception of being fairly tired... I can hardly wait to go to sleep tonight!

Chargers 24 Chiefs 10, AFC West Leaders

The Chargers resembled the team that many have been waiting to see since the preseason. The Charger defense had 7 sacks and Antonio Cromartie had 2 interceptions to increase his NFL leading total to 8, Shawne Merriman had 2 sacks and a fumble recovery, LaDainian Tomlinson had 177 yards rushing and 2 touchdowns and overall, the Chargers looked good... Gates had a quiet day and Rivers did have an early interception to slightly mar the Chargers victory, but overall a good day for the Chargers.

To add to the Chargers win, the Broncos lost to the Raiders and now the Chargers have a 2 game lead in the AFC West. The Chargers have a road game against the Titans up next with the Lions, Broncos and Raiders down the stretch. The Chargers could gain some confidence and momentum with a good finish to the regular season and it that may be enough to help them in the playoffs...but I am still not convinced that the Chargers can beat a 'good' team.

Dogs And Cats Living Together...

One of my favorite expressions to adequately describe a chaotic situation or a situation that will become chaotic is to steal a line from Bill Murrey and Ghostbusters, that being "Dogs and cats living together." But to truly enjoy the line you need to first hear the line delivered by Bill himself in the movie and to my delight, I have stumbled across that clip...enjoy!

NFL Week 12.1 Review

I've missed a few weeks of my NFL reviews, but I think my opinion's on the NFL are about as good as anyone else's this year and that is not worth shit. The NFL is all over the board and with a week in between each game, that each game of every week in the NFL is under such open and intense analysis, a person can seemingly be swayed by the 'trends', something I tried not to fall into...but at the same time, even not following the 'trends' a person can still be misguided by their perceptions of the NFL...

Like the Detroit Lions. Here's a team I thought was playing well and looking good. Once 6 and 2 but after a 3 game losing streak are now 6 and 5. Sure 2 of the 3 last loses were against winning teams but the lose to Arizona may have been the clock striking midnight for the Lions. They now travel to the Metrodome to take on a Viking team that has won its last 3 out of 4 and completely embarrassed Eli Manning and the New York Giants. The murmur of 'playoff possibilities' are beginning to perculate in Vikingland because after Detroit the Vikes play San Fran, Chicago, Washington and Denver. A win versus Detroit puts them at .500 and one could think that a good team could go 3 for 4 against their remaining opponents and that would put the Vikes at 9-7 which may just be enough to eek in as a wild card in the NFC. How's that for crazy? Do I think this is likely? No...but it could be possible. Let's face it... the Vikes aren't that good...but San Francisco is awful, the Bears aren't good and the Broncos are fodder on any given Sunday. Then you even consider the Redskins, who likely will be fighting for a wild card spot as well, that game may be the ticket to the playoffs for both teams.

Indy-Jacksonville, probably the game of the week. If Indy wins they have all but secured their ticket to the playoffs. If Indy loses, they are in a dogfight for winning the AFC South with the Jags. I think Indy is pretty banged up and losing Dwight Freeney may be costly for the Colts against good opponents. The game is in Indy and that may be the intangible that the Colts need to win the game.

Of course the Green Bay-Dallas game was last night. A very entertaining game and I do have to give the Packers credit...I thought they were going to get pwned but they play very well. And after watching last night's game, I realized why the Packers are able to do so well...their offensive line. Favre and Rodgers both, for the most part, had ample time in the pocket and the Packer wide receivers are extremely athletic. Both Driver and Jennings had good catch and runs against the Cowboy D. But I also think that the 2007 Packers could very well be the 2006 Bears, that being a one-year, one-hit wonder.

Dolphins favored by a point at home against the Jets. I have Thomas Jones on my fantasy team and is a reason why my fantasy team sucks...the Jets suck are are actually underdogs in a game against a winless team...how sad is that for a team?

Chargers play in Arrowhead...Chargers suck on the road...big time. I picked up Kolby Smith on my fantasy team...the last rookie running back the Chargers faced broke the NFL single game rushing record...I'm expecting big things from Kolby.

The Patriots go to Baltimore and are favored by 20 points. I'm thinking I would take the Pats and give the points. Baltimore can't score if it tried and their defense is a shell of what it was...the Patriot defense will be battling the Patriot offense for the most scores in that game.

The only other game that even remotely interests me is the Broncos-Raiders game and of course I am pulling for the Raiders. Go Raiders!

Just In Time For Christmas: Winter

So the weather has finally broken and warmth can no longer be found on the barren wasteland. And now that it has finally been cold for a good week now, it's time to add some snow. The forecast is for 3-5 inches by tomorrow night. Of course I don't believe meteorologists are ever right in this region and like to 'over-hype' the weather, I wouldn't be surprised if we get a zero to a dusting...but of course they could be ultra-low and the next thing you know we got 16 inches of snow...either way, they probably aren't right and can't be trusted. I will believe any forecasts for cold weather because it is freakin' cold already...

TV Show Finds Mysterious Footprints

I was just skimming through the internet news when I came across this story about a television production crew, doing an 'investigative' show on the Yeti...likely trying to prove it's existence or not. And wouldn't you know it...they stumbled across some, thought to be, some Yeti footprints. The Yeti, like Bigfoot, are 2 creatures that about 12 people on the planet believe in and as a result, 1,000,000 television documentaries are made about Bigfoot, Yeti's, the Loch Ness Monster, UFO's and aliens. And what does every single television documentary have in common in it's investigation about any of the above listed fictional entities? They can present enough circumstantial, non-physical evidence to warrant another television documentary.

Footprints? Gee, I wonder where they came from and how fortunate it was for a television crew that just happens to be doing a documentary on Yeti's to stumble across them. Surely these footprints weren't fabricated by a human for publicity...that would be very deceitful and surely no one in the media would be so nefarious as to do anything as such.

Cowboys-Packers On NFL Network

Last year I mentioned how great it was to have DirecTV and the NFL Network rather than cable when I heard the whining from all the Viking and Packer fans when one of their games was on the NFL Network.

Well now you hear the pleas on a more national level because this week's Thursday night game is the 10-1 Dallas Cowboys versus the 10-1 Green Bay Packers is on the NFL Network. Apparently my local cable provider is just one of almost all cable providers that do not carry the NFL Network, which then means that anyone that does have cable television most likely does not get the NFL Network ... and of course are whining. Well, all I can say is HA HA!

Week Of Excess Concluces

Today I am back at work from essentially a week off, a week of where I was drinking too much and staying up too late almost every night. Here's a quick recap of my break...

Saturday: A friend from out of town is here, a group of us check out his brothers band and drink until 3 AM.
Sunday: Up by noon and watch NFL from noon until 11 PM ... drinking.
Monday: Worked 1/2 day, took it somewhat easy in the evening, a few beers during the Monday night game.
Tuesday: Day of rest...Took it easy.
Wednesday: Saw Zappy perform at Dempsey's Public House and then partied like rock stars until 4:30 AM.
Thursday/Thanksgiving: Grilled Turkey, played some poker at night, dead tired and passed out at 2 AM.
Friday: Stay home, drank and screwed around on the computer until 3 AM.
Saturday: Played poker and stayed up until 3 am...drinking.
Sunday: Up by noon, watched NFL all day and drank...

And now today... I am actually fatigued from my break and I didn't do anything except stay up late and drink... boy do I need a break! To make coming back to work seem even more sucky is that the weather for the past week was relatively pleasant and mild but the forecast has that all ending today with the weather beginning to turn colder and crappy.

Chargers Manhandle Ravens

The Chargers looked as sharp as they have all year and pounded the Ravens 32-14. Shawne Merriman, who must have seen the numerous replays of Maurice Jones-Drew laying him out last week, came to play. The Ravens forced Phillip Rivers to beat them and Rivers did just that...Gates had 2 touchdowns and Chambers had one as both were essentially wide open for all touchdown receptions. Rivers had no turnovers, probably a huge reason the score was so lop-sided. LaDainian Tomlinson had 77 yards but did finally crack 10,000 yards for his career. The Charger defense looked good...something that can't be said for most games this season.

The Bears beat the Broncos and the Chiefs lost to the Raiders so the Chargers have sole possession of first place in the AFC West. The Chargers play in Kansas City this week and is a big game for both teams. The Chargers can all but eliminate the Chiefs with a win whereas the Chiefs can get back into the playoff hunt with a win.

Thanksgiving Break Starts Early...For Me :)

I had originally planned on taking Wednesday thru Sunday off for the Thanksgiving holiday, but my son became ill and I was needed to stay home with him starting today... I know, it's a tough assignment, but the upside is that I had an extra day off from work prior to the Thanksgiving day holiday...which is always nice.

Posting will be light during this time...

But I hope everyone has a nice Thanksgiving holiday...

Chargers Lose To Jags: No Longer Even 'Good'

The Chargers have fully descended to being a mediocre to a poor team. The Chargers have shown that they can not win on the road against any team and that any team can beat the Chargers, regardless of the location.

The Jaguars didn't have to punt at all in the first half and had the ball almost twice as long as the Chargers. The 2nd half, the Chargers had multiple opportunities to come back in this game and even a chance to tie the game at the end...but Rivers, who was playing fairly well, ended up throwing an interception with well over a minute left on the clock and a timeout left.

There is absolutely no game left on the Chargers schedule that a person can look at and say that it is a guaranteed win for the Chargers...the Chargers are really that bad. A person doesn't have to look too hard to begin blaming certain people, and I have stated numerous times, it is Norv Turner and Ted Cottrell. It seems that the entire team is never playing well, Phillip Rivers has looked downright awful at times this year, the offensive line is disgusting, Tomlinson, to this point, has had his worst NFL season, Shawne Merriman is becoming more vocal about his discontent with the team but that may be because a 5 foot 2 inch, 1/2 the size of Merriman, Maurice Jones-Drew absolutely planted Merriman on one of the Jags touchdown scores and that very play will likely be on many highlight shows so Merriman will be the subject of much criticism and the entire defense is a joke - thanks Ted Cottrell.

There isn't many 'secrets' any more as to how to beat the Chargers... Phillip Rivers can't throw on the run or under any sort of pressure, the Charger defense is full of holes and you can attack them either with the run or the pass and the offensive line is very easy to over power and the defense can dictate the game rather than the Charger offense.

Being a Charger fan in an area where I am oftentimes the only Charger fan a person may see, I have grown tired of the question asked to me by strangers every week...that being, "What's the deal with the Chargers?" because I get asked that at least 5 times every Sunday as I watch the Chargers lose. I need get a card printed up that says "Norv Turner and Ted Cottrell have ruined the Chargers" so that I can simply hand out those cards because I have literally grown tired of answering that very question multiple times every Sunday and throughout the week...

The Chargers host the Ravens next week... I really don't know how the Chargers can win this game because the Raven defense won't even have to break a sweat against the 3 and out Charger offense and on the flip side of the coin, the Charger defense has shown that inept offenses can still be effective... this game will likely be a boring game to watch filled with plenty of punting and field goal attempts.

Bonds Tested Positive In 2000

So I read the indictment against Bonds and the prosecution has a failed drug test taken by Bonds in November 2000 which is even earlier then when Bonds admits to taking 'flaxseed oil' and using a cream in 2002. And the use of the flaxseed oil and cream was to help him cope with his father's bout with cancer, so that he could sleep. Yeah, that's the ticket... Even if I knowingly was cheating, the reason was to help me cope with my father's fight with cancer, yeah that's it...and after he passed away, I still needed the 'recovery' items to help me with the pain...yeah that's it...so even if it is cheating, which it isn't, it wasn't because I knowingly wanted to cheat it was because of external circumstances...Why can't you understand this?

Bonds Indicted

Well, well, well...

Bonds was just indicted for perjury and obstruction of justice. There is a glimmer of hope that justice might yet be served. I think the most telling line of the article is this:

"During the criminal investigation, evidence was obtained including positive tests for the presence of anabolic steroids and other performance enhancing substances for Bonds and other athletes,"

Which has me to believe that the prosecutors have to have the goods on Bonds...and if they have anything but the 'smoking gun' it will probably, unfortunately give Bonds supporters one last gasp. Not sure if Greg Anderson is finally going to roll on Bonds and provide first hand knowledge of shooting Bonds up and get an accurate description of how much and how frequently Bonds was shooting up during his home run chases...

Of course Selig will follow the case and takes this very seriously... serious enough to erase all of Bonds' records?

SNL: Brian Williams

Yes, I know I am behind in reviewing the Brian Wiliams SNL episode...but with last week's episode being a rerun with Bon Jovi and the writer's strike in full swing, odds are we will be seeing plenty of reruns for a while...also, because local programming went long and my DVR stopped recording at midnight, I did miss the last 15, 20 minutes of the show...

But, overall, I think the Brian Williams show has likely been the best SNL of the season so far... none of the sketches were insanely funny, but they also weren't just stupid, which is what many sketches are.

Of course the show started with an Amy Poehler as Hillary Halloween sketch. Pretty unfunny and to insure it not ever being funny, ended with Barack Obama getting to say "Live From New York..." to kick the show off.

Williams monologue was alright, as he mocked his appearance of being a news man reading words off a teleprompter, they show you that he is a news man reading words off a teleprompter...

Maybelline for men...a fake commercial that is trying to increase makeups demographic by 50% by appealing to men. The commercials this season have all been not very good, including this one.

I was actually somewhat impressed at Williams' performance...playing the fireman character during Bronx Beat wasn't too bad and it seemed almost natural for Williams. I think I've mentioned this before, but does Amy Poehler have to be in every sketch? Bronx Beat has been done before... in fact, I enjoyed it better when it involved Adam Sandler and Jay Mohr and part of the show was a give away (like free dinner at a steakhouse) if you gave the fink of the week (or something like that) 'a beating'.

Next up was a Publisher's Clearing House prize give-away sketch where the entire sketch is Kristen Wiig providing the humor as Brian Williams is an excitable, mult-million dollar winner. The sketch seemed a little too long and after a while, it just seemed as if Wiig was a little over-exaggerating to the point of not being funny...there is a fine line between just the right amount of physical comedy for a sketch and over-the-top. Wiig was precariously close to over-the top.

The SNL Digital Short was a look at a 'typical' day for Brian Williams. Although many of the gags in the short seemed predictable - like Williams leaving an encouraging message to someone but is actually left for himself to listen to at the conclusion of the day - but was still pretty good. Having Williams throwing pennies out of his window at Matt Lauer and Al Roker was likely the highpoint of the sketch.

The Weekend Update was fairly unmemorable... Armison did have a somehwhat funny bit about the writer's strike... we producers make $20 million and the writers make $200,000, we are not sure if they can find anywhere in the middle... I admit that I am not fully informed as to the exact numbers involved in the writer's dispute, but this sketch did seem to best simplify the situation...the writers are getting screwed and want to get some residual money from continued profits from their created content...seems fair to me...

There was a quick iPhone spoof which wasn't too bad and the last sketch I got to see was a democratic debate sketch that didn't have Hillary or Obama featured in it, but essentially all the 'losers' sitting around talking about how they were going to attack Hillary. Overall a pretty weak sketch.

According to the episode recap, I missed one sketch and the musical act Feist...which means I probably didn't miss much but will have to wait for the rerun in a week or two to catch the final minutes.

As a final comment on Brian Williams' performance, I had read that he would do his nightly news each night and then work with the SNL crew almost all night for the week leading up to his show. I think he really wanted to put forth his best effort and I think he did really well.

NBC is no longer posting clips of their shows on YouTube, so to get videos of the episodes is a little tougher and rumor is that NBC is going to provide the clips again but using their own site rather than YouTube. But I did find a couple of clips, enjoy them while you can...

Colts Lose To Chargers

The Chargers should be the laughingstock of the NFL for 2 consecutive weeks but can thank Adam Vinateria for finally missing a chip-shot, game winning field goal. The Chargers picked off Peyton Manning 6 times, ran a kickoff return and a punt return for a touchdown...saying that, one would think the Chargers would have crushed the Colts... but no, because Norv Turner is a moron the Charger offense has yet to take the field since before the bye week and the Chargers only score a win against the Colts because the Colts lost the game and the Chargers had nothing to do with winning the game.

Charger optimists point quickly to the Chargers 5-4 record and first place in the AFC West... but Charger realists, such as myself, see the Chargers as an inept team that, if they should luck out and make the playoffs will be a non-factor at all this season.

NFL Week 9 Review

It's taking me a while to get back after still being shell-shocked from witnessing the Charger debacle that was last week....but we must move on...

The line for the Colts at San Diego is the Colts at -3 1/2... are you kidding me? I have just put every cent I have on that game and of course my money is on the Chargers covering... ha ha... of course not... The Colts should absolutely destroy the pathetic Charger defense. The Charger offense hasn't had a good game since prior to the bye week...

The Steelers are having a season that reminds me of other years when the Steelers are just laying in the weeds and are kind of forgotten until the next thing you know they are in the Super Bowl.

Dallas plays Green Bay in it's second consecutive Thursday night game a week after Thanksgiving. That game may be the NFC's version of the Colts-Patriots game of last week with the top 2 teams in the conference hooking up for a regular season game.

I think Detroit isn't necessarily a good team, but I think they are proving that they are not a bad team... and a lot of times bad teams beat themselves, and by just being competent, they are better than several NFL teams. They got Arizona this week and then the Giants and Packers... if the Lions are going to try and be contenders they need to take care of the Cards and prove their mettle against the Giants and Packers.

Cowboys-Giants, a big NFC East showdown. I haven't given any credit to the Giants because I think they aren't that good...but I do think they are better than they were when the season started. The game is in the Meadowlands and could very likely be the game of the week...

Finally, we will get a little break from the non-stop story of the Patriots being the greatest team of all-time ... at least until they get beat... but only because the Pats are on a bye before they resume kicking every other team in the NFL asses.

Witnessed: Vikes' Peterson Runs Over Chargers

What a great game this was going to be. My friend that we were staying with scored us some awesome seats for the San Diego - Minnesota game. Visitor sideline, very close to the visitor tunnel, right on the 20, 15 rows up. Have to give Chad some mad props for that score. And I was really excited to get to see the San Diego Chargers live...something that is very hard to do living the Barren Wasteland that I do.

So me and the 'crew' (4 of us total) get to the Metrodome about an hour before kickoff, we get to watch the teams warmup (I do enjoy watching the warmups...you never know what you'll see). But after the warmups the San Diego Chargers couldn't be found. The offensive and defensive lines were horrible. Rivers was pressured all game, Tomlinson had but 50 yards, Gates had 1 catch for 10 yards and Vincent Jackson dropped an easy long pass. Shawne Merriman was a total non-factor.

On the flip-side of the coin, the Vikings had to run but one play...handoff to Adrian Peterson. Peterson would barely be brushed at the line and then would run the rest of the field untouched and did so 3 times for touchdowns and set a single game rushing record of 296 yards.

What this proves more than anything is that Ted Cottrell is incapable of adjusting his defense. Once the Vikings found the 'magic play' (handoff to Peterson) they run it multiple times and the Chargers looked hapless every time. It was noted after the Kansas City game how once the Chargers were exposed on slant patterns Kansas City just kept running slants.

Did I mention how both the offensive and defensive lines were absolutely horrible for the Chargers? The Chargers are now in the history books as being the single-worst rushing defense in a game...Congratulations and I got to witness that LIVE!

Cromartie's 109 yard field goal attempt-runback to end the first half was fun but even at that point the Chargers had done nothing. There was absolutely no Charger offense for the entire game.

This game wasn't really which team was better but more of which coach is dumber because Viking's fans aren't pleased with their coach right now but it is fairly evident that Childress is probably an upgrade from Norv Turner and Ted Cottrell.

Anyways, I still had a good time... I took a ton of pictures with this pair of binoculars that is also a digital camera...well, the quality wasn't as good as I would like so it is probably the last time I use them with the purpose of taking pictures...but they still worked pretty good as a small set of binoculars.

And in case I forgot, both the offensive and defensive lines for the Chargers were awful! Shawne Merriman had a great non-tackle that Peterson brushed off with little effort as he then ran for one of his long touchdown runs.

Bonds Boycotting The HOF?

Could Barry Bonds actually do something I would love to see happen? That is, he says he would boycott the MLB Hall Of Fame if they displayed his record setting homerun ball branded with an asterisk. If I was the Hall Of Fame I would begin construction of an entire addition that would simply display the asterisk-branded ball, complete with asterisk laden wallpaper, carpet and, if possible, lighting. That would hopefully insure that Bonds will never be inducted into the hall of fame.

ESPN's Monday Night Commercial

In my continuing quest to bitch about ESPN and what a joke of a 'sports' channel they have become, I also have noticed that their Monday Night Football game is nothing more than a commercial for something with a football game being played in the background. Last week they had Russell Crowe on pimping his rugby team. Last night they not only had Brett Favre's wife on pimping her book during the first half but then had Vince Vaughn on during the second half. And of course, while these people are being interviewed, promoting their product(s), the football game goes on and little mention of what is actually happening in the game unless a big play happens...then they will break away from the interview just long enough to mention the football game and then get right back into the interview/promotion.

It will not be long before ESPN will not even have play-by-play or commentators doing any of their events, but rather have interviews booked for the entire game and have the game as a 'backdrop' to their full-time promotion.

I truly believe that the 'Sports' in the ESPN initial should be removed and they will be more accurately referred to as the Entertainment Programming Network...with the term 'entertainment' used extremely loosely. And even better yet, they should rename themselves YRSPN, which of course stands for the Yankees and Red Sox Programming Network.

World Series Over, A-Rod Upstages BoSox?

Thank god the World Series has ended and ESPN can devote more coverage to the Yankees...and just to show you how 'Yankee-oriented' ESPN is, the 'big story' on (and according to) ESPN Monday morning wasn't really that the Red Sox won the World Series but the fact that A-Rod is opting out of his contract with the Yankees, thus upstaging the Red Sox World Series win...even though several players all came out yesterday to announce their free agency but because A-Rod is a Yankee - and I am beginning to think ESPN loves the Yankees but not A-Rod. Give me a freakin' break. If a player can 'upstage' a team's World Series victory, then it's pretty obvious that the World Series victory a team just won wasn't that big of a story. But of course ESPN will use any Yankees news as 'big news' and thus, this is why ESPN has the mentality that A-Rod upstage the Red Sox because it has forced ESPN to spend most of it's sports coverage time devoted to A-Rod and how he is a free agent rather then celebrate Boston's World Series victory.

The only good thing about the World Series ending is that means the MLB season is over and ESPN can begin it's countdown to Yankees spring training and their first regular season meeting with the Red Sox in 2008... I can hardly wait.... (Saying this as I try to keep from vomiting)

SNL 2007 Season: 3 Episodes, Watch Them Again

The only bright spot with me being a little bit busy here lately is that I haven't had to use any of my spare time to watch any new SNL's lately. Is this how network shows operate these days? Have 3 new episodes to start out the season and then repeat all three episodes again? I am almost confident we will see these same episodes at least one more time this season...seems extremely weak to me.

NFL Week 8 Review

I am very busy this week and will just have my quick recap of NFL week 8...

The big story this week has nothing to do with last week's games...most seemed fairly low-key and almost predictable outcomes...but the big story is the big Indianapolis-New England game this week. The two undefeated goliaths of the NFL will square off in Indy for what could potentially be a very big game for both teams. I don't think the loser of this game has to abandon their quest for the Super Bowl but this game could likely determine who gets home field advantage for the playoffs and that may be key.

I was pleased to watch Green Bay beat Denver on a 1 play bomb in overtime to give the Broncos the loss. The Broncos have gotten lucky in all their wins, with maybe the exception the week prior vs Pittsburgh, and almost screwed up the game last night by trying to go for the game winning touchdown on a Cutler keeper with no timeouts left and then he comes up short. But the Broncos have the 'rush the kicker on the field and snap the ball in 8 seconds' fire drill down and were lucky enough to send the game to overtime. But was that Dre Bly that got burned for the game-winning touchdown? The same Dre Bly that many sports 'experts' said would make sure no one could pass on the Broncos because Bly and Champ Bailey are the best in the business? And by all appearances, Brett Favre had no problems throwing the ball around last night.

How bad are Miami and St. Louis? They don't play each other and by the way both these teams are playing, they may both be winless this year...although St. Louis is in the weaker division and may luck out against San Fran or even any of their NFC West rivals.

Paper tigers, teams I think have a really good record right now but are nothing but fodder for good teams... NY Giants, Tennessee and Detroit. All three teams have at least 5 wins and only 2 losses but I think all three teams are very beatable if all the chips are on the line. But the first part of being successful in the playoffs is to get to the playoffs.

As I mentioned in my Chargers-Texans recap is that I will be at the Vikings-Chargers game this Sunday. One of the 'storylines' I have heard from Viking fans is how many think Adrian Pederson is the best runningback in the league and even some of their local media talkers say that Pederson is the best runningback EVER... of course the Vikes have little to cheer about right now and are pinning their hopes onto anything they can. I hope Tomlinson has a good outing and shows these Vikings' fans who the reigning, greatest NFL runningback currently is...and he isn't playing for Minnesota.

Chargers Rout Texans

This game was all but over after the first half with the Texans doing all they could to lose the game.

After the Chargers take a 7-0 lead on a TD reception by Antonio Gates the Texans then perform the classic blunder of the long-snapper snapping the ball over their punter's head, the punter fails to kick the ball out of the end zone, in a laughable attempt, the Chargers cover the ball and get a gift touchdown and the rout is beginning. After another Gates touchdown, Antonio Cromartie, who recovered the botched punt for his first career touchdown, intercepts Matt Schaub and returns it 70 yards for a score and the rout is on. 35-3 was the halftime score and the Chargers essentially run the clock out to win 35-10 over the Texans.

Up next the Chargers go to Minnesota in a game that I will be attending...I hope to have some pictures to post and hopefully it is a good trip...I still haven't secured tickets but with it being the opening weekend of deer hunting in Minnesota and the Vikings sucking right now, the likelihood of getting tickets should be good.

Game On! Chargers-Texans

Wow, what does a few extra days do to save a game at Quallcomm? There was some word that an announcement about this week's game between Houston and San Diego would be moved to a different location or possibly played on Monday and that decision was to have been announced yesterday, but obviously was not. But today the announcement came that the game will go on as scheduled at Qualcomm in San Diego. I think the team will be relieved to know that they will be playing in their 'home stadium' rather than having a 'home' game in some other city or stadium.

Just Great - Red Sox and Yankees

ESPN Radio morning headlines today and every day until maybe opening day of next year unless the Rockies can win the series...

Lead Story: Red Sox World Series....blah, blah, blah
Next Story: Yankees manager blah, blah, blah

If the Rockies would happen to win the World Series then they will flip their stories and lead with the Yankees and have a story about the Red Sox next. God am I tired of the Red Sox and the Yankees and I don't even watch or listen to ESPN much at all...but the brief periods I am exposed to it, that is all I ever hear... I had no idea no other teams in any other sport have absolutely no relevance at all anymore...

Chargers vs Texans: Game Likely Moving

With the fires in southern California wreaking havoc it is becoming more likely that the Charger home game against the Texans this Sunday will be moved. The article is stating that the Cowboys have a bye week and would probably be the best place for the game. The team has been practicing in Arizona all week and the Cardinals have a bye week as well...but apparently the financial loss to the Chargers would be less if it is played in Dallas rather than Phoenix...seems odd to me that would be the case... I would think there would be a fair amount of Charger ticket holders that would have made the trip from San Diego to Phoenix to see the game their and less likely to do so if the game is in Dallas...but what ever... it sure does suck that the Chargers will probably lose a home game regardless.

Chargers Practice In Arizona: Game May Be Moved

Fires in Southern California are so bad that Qualcomm Stadium is being used as an evacuation shelter for those being displaced by the fires and the Chargers have had to move their practices to Arizona for the week and their upcoming home game may also have to be played in Arizona.

Several Charger players have also had to evacuate their homes, including LaDainian Tomlinson.

It was 4 years ago to the week that the Chargers had to play in Phoenix because of fires then as well. If my memory serves me corretly, it was against the Dolphins and their freshly acquired Junior Seau...the game was boring, Chargers lost and the stadium was filled with nobody but drunken hooligans.

NFL Week 7 Review

A look back at week 7 in the NFL...

Indy and New England continue to win games with seemingly little effort. Likewise, St. Louis and Miami continue to lose games with seemingly little effort. Of course New England was playing Miami and you could see the difference between the best team in the NFL and the worst in the NFL. AFC East teams have a total of 10 wins, 7 of them are New England's and if Buffalo hadn't won this past week New England was the only team with more than 1 win in the division. New England could have their division clinched by Thanksgiving...unbelievable.

Steelers and Ravens both lost ... two teams that are seeking some credibility both lose to sub-500 teams. Not ready to be elite yet.

The Titans had no business winning against the Texans ... and of course I end up playing the guy who had Bironas on his team in fantasy football... I lose. Titans and Jacksonville are both paper tigers at 4-2. Likely little obstacles for a good team. Matt Schaub gets hurt and that may end any serious run the Texans had planned.

I gave no credit to the Giants early in the year but in their soft part of the schedule they continue to roll... they got Miami next before their bye and then a game against Dallas where they can even up the yearly series if they can win that game at home.

Speaking of the Cowboys, how were the Minnesota Vikings even in that game? The Vikings have little offense and as long as you don't beat yourself it should have been little work to take on and beat the Vikes.

With the exception of the AFC East and South all other divisions are very tightly contested...but as what is being seen in the NFL, there are a couple elite teams and the rest of the NFL teams are just mediocre and even having an impressive record at this point is little proof of how good a team may or may not be.

Cleveland Chokes - Crowe On MNF

Just a couple quick tid-bits from this past weekend...

First, thanks to the Cleveland Indians we now have to tolerate the Boston Red Sox media storm for at least another week and if the Red Sox win the World Series (god forbid), ESPN will have some fill in for a break in the non-stop, minute-by-minute Yankee's manager search and offseason. I really wanted only teams from the 'small markets' so that the major sports media would ignore the world series all-together...but now that the Red Sox are in, the Sox will get all they hype.... Go Rockies!

Last night if you were watching Monday Night Football on ESPN you saw Russell Crowe join the 'boys in the booth' for a while in the third quarter. Right when I heard that Russell Crowe was going to sit in for a bit, I figured he must have a new movie or television show that Disney/ABC/ESPN is trying to shamelessly shill, but no. Crowe, who was given plenty of time to schlep his 'goods', was schlepping his rugby team. So my question is this then, what stake does Disney/ABC/ESPN have in Crowe's rugby team? Is Disney a part owner of the league? What is the deal? Or was Crowe merely 'cashing in a favor'? Someone in a high position within the Disney empire had to owed Crowe some free pub ... because unless the Disney empire has a stake in rugby now, I can't imagine the amount of time Crowe was allowed to pimp his team was insane. In fact, the interview was going on as Indianapolis was sacking the Jags for a safety and the game was still in the balance ... yet, the viewer was treated with Crowe talking about rugby during a football game...

NDSU Beats Minnesota

The "Super Bowl" for North Dakota football fans happened over the weekend... North Dakota State beat the University of Minnesota in what is likely the biggest win for NDSU ever. NDSU has won Division 2 championships in the past and were even a perennial division 2 powerhouse. But that and a nickel won't even get you cup of coffee. Beating a Big Ten team, Minnesota, in the Metrodome on the national stage is likely a bigger win than any division 2 championship game for NDSU.

The aftermath of the game says a lot too... the NDSU Bison were suppose to be 'chumps' and an easy win for the mighty Gophers. The twin city sports media had the Gophers winning this game with little after-thought. The Gopher head coach, Tim Brewster, came out and said how this is likely the last time Minnesota will play NDSU because he sees no advantage in playing the Bison - even though the Gophers will likely have only 1 sell out game every year, when they play the Bison.

The Bison dominated the entire game. Tyler Roehl ran for over 200 yards and the Gophers seemed too scared to get in his way. If Roehl hadn't fumbled after a long run the game would have been way more lop-sided than the 27-21 final. The Gophers are an undisciplined, poor tackling team. The Gophers had a running into the kicker penalty that nullified them getting the ball for what would have been their final drive to win the game.

Super Bowl In London: Goodell Ruining The NFL

Why does Roger Goodell want to ruin the NFL? He, for some reason, wants to see the NFL go international, and why wouldn't he? With the World League Of America football all folded up the European market is just itching to see some American football...oh yeah, the World League was subsidized by the NFL and the only success the World League saw was in cities that had large American military bases and was primarily attended by Americans, and even then the word 'attended' is used loosely...but don't let that stop your grand vision. So first, you schedule a regular season game in London, which promptly sells out in minutes - all tickets likely purchased by displaced Americans. Then you come out today with the great idea of potentially playing a Super Bowl outside of the American borders. I mean what a great idea to take the greatest event that Americans have right now... a guaranteed, mega-sold out event that has always been played in America and ship that overseas to any country that couldn't give two-shits about American football. That idea sounds great! I mean what city in America wouldn't be pleased to find out that it lost it's Super Bowl bid to Barcelona, Spain that will be the opening act for some soccer match. The only thing that could make this idea even more stupid is to play the game at 3:00 AM in the morning in America because of the time change and I am sure Roger is counting on that.

How many 'experiments' need to be done with the NFL before someone finally gets it? Americans love the NFL the rest of the world loves soccer... I say let the rest of the world have soccer and leave the NFL alone. I think it is retarded to play any regular season (or playoff) game outside of America and is robbing some city a home game and when they only get 8 guaranteed home games to start with, to take one away seems downright vindictive towards that city and their fans.

I think Goodell is trying to build his legacy and he is hoping it is one that is expanding the NFL across the American borders...unfortunately he is willing to rob fans of their NFL teams of games in America to try and attempt it and that is disgusting, in my opinion. The reason the NFL is as successful as it is, is because the fans of America are so passionate towards the sport and their teams...now Goodell is forcibly ejecting some teams overseas with absolutely no regards to the fans of the sport in America, thinking that an overseas fan base is better than the one it has now... well I say fuck you Goodell! You are treating fans of the NFL in America as if we are 2nd class citizens. You want to take away our home games and our Super Bowl and why? It can't be for the money because the NFL makes a trillion dollars a year (or more). The only reason is for his own selfish reasons ... so he can have a legacy. No other major sport would even consider doing something so foolish as to deprive it's hardcore fans of access to the biggest game of the year, the championship. But for some reason this man, who has barely even got the commissioner's seat warm, seems it is fit to do so. It will be a sad day if owners of the NFL agree to this insane and idiotic idea.

Chargers Acquire Chris Chambers

Big news to start out the bye week for the Chargers... it is being reported that Chris Chambers has been traded to the Chargers for a 2nd round pick. Chambers could give the Chargers a legitimate receiver on their roster. Vincent Jackson has been nothing but a disappointment and rookie Buster Davis hasn't done much either. Chambers seems like a player that could be a 'big play' option and at receiver would be a huge acquisition for the Chargers. Although my expectations are a bit tempered because the rumor and 'word' on why the Dolphins let Chambers go in the first place is because he was dropping balls for the Dolphins...all that means to Charger fans right now is that he was at least open to get a pass thrown to him to drop...the Charger receivers are rarely even heard from this season.

SNL: Bon Jovi

Bon Jovi hosted this last week's SNL and I was surprised to hear/see that the Foo Fighters were booked as the musical guest...so that means only one thing...lots of music and fewer sketches than normal because Bon Jovi was sure to perform at least once, if not more, along with the Foo Fighters.

The show starts out with, guess what, an Amy Poehler sketch. It is a 'flashback' sketch to the 1980's and Amy dreaming about Bon Jovi and John magically appearing in her bedroom to give her words of advice about the future. Isn't this just a rehash of the Seth Rogan monologue except now it is an actual sketch? The writers of this show are lazy and lazier.

John comes out for his monologue, which as anyone could have guessed, which was just a transparent intro to Bon Jovi playing a song...must have new album out, huh? Richie Sambora fucked up his one line...Bon Jovi did cover it well. What is ironic about this monologue is that it begins with Bon Jovi stating how he was only on the show for the comic/acting part and not for any musical portion, yet in less than 2 minutes they are performing a tune.

Then was what is becoming a SNL staple, an unfunny, mock gameshow. I'll give this one credit, it wasn't as unfunny as other recent mock game shows, but still, not funny.

Then was Darrell Hammond as Al Gore in Gore's 'trophy room'. This sketch was really lame and got old quick. It begins with Al showing all his awards he received from his movie, "An Inconvenient Truth" and goes on to show all the awards that Al won that didn't involve the movie...which were immunization records, a participation award for punt, pass and kick as well as O.J. Simpson's Heisman Trophy that he bought. Overall, pretty boring... I have really tired of SNL's attempts at mocking politicians.

Andy Samberg's digital short "People Getting Punched Just Before Eating" was probably the best item in this last week's SNL, even though the ending was pretty lame. And I continue to say that this is Samberg's best stuff and they should just relugate Samberg to his digital shorts just as it seems as if the only time you see Seth Meyers now is on Weekend Update.



The Vinny Vedecci sketch, which was on last season and not funny, makes an appearance in this episode and still lame. It is just a sketch where they can allow the host who is pimping a new album, movie or show be 'themselves' and Vinny (Bill Hader) speaks Italian and lack of comedy ensues.

Weekend Update was nothing spectacular. Maya Rudolph had a part as a 'immigrant' that was to become a new writer due to an impending strike. If there is indeed a writer's strike on SNL, I doubt it could get worse with any fill-in writers.

Iconoclasts sketch seemed like it would have a funny premise and I actually liked Kristen Wiig as Bjork but Keneen Thompson in any sketch is almost a buzzkill right there, and it just didn't pan out. Again, Wiig as Bjork was mildly entertaining and then after her setup, Thompson's line would kill any momentum the sketch had.

I did enjoy Jason Sudekis as Dane Cook mocking the MLB Playoff promos. Just short and ridiculous enough to make you laugh...and maybe short enough is the key here! Sudekis is probably the funniest guy on the show that gets any consistent airtime.

The final sketch of the night was almost as obvious as it gets...making fun of how the band named itself Bon Jovi. Again, fairly unfunny and seemed as if the show was just trying to fill time in between Bon Jovi songs and Weekend Update.

The show then concludes with, yes, a Bon Jovi song. The Foo Fighters got to play one song and Bon Jovi had 2 songs...why even book a musical act unless your intention is to give the writers a week off.

NFL Week 6 Review

Week 6 in the NFL has came and gone... what have we learned this week?

Well, Chicago and Cincinnati - can these two teams really be that bad? I think yes. Chicago's run last year was a one-year fluke...add the fact that Bob Babich steps in as the new defensive coordinator and the Bears defense, all of a sudden, matches it's inept offense. The Bears are likely to win another game or two but as far as being a factor in the NFL this year...forget about it. Chicago had it's chance to make a move in the NFC North and instead have all but surrendered it's title as NFC North champs.

Then there's Cincinnati, which internally deemed this week as the week they were the most focused and prepared to play in a game they also deemed as a 'must win' for themselves, then promptly go out and get beat by Kansas City - a team I continue to think isn't that good. Cincinnati's problems start with their defense but are compounded by their offense. The Bengal offense has all the hype of a high-powered offense but has yet to even resemble a competent offense. Ocho-Cinco, or whatever Chad Johnson is calling himself this week, is no where to be found and Carson Palmer is turning the ball over more than throwing touchdowns because they have no running game.

What can a person say about the Patriots? Their cheating scandal seems to have fueled the Patriots' machine and they had little problems with what appears to be the NFC's elite team in Dallas. Tom Brady is likely to be the next, great quarterback after Joe Montana. The Dolphins may be the worst team in the NFL but will have 2 chances to stop New England from going undefeated and save their '72 undefeated record...I think the 2nd time around may be their opportunity but I'm not holding my breath.

I look at the NFC West and see the Arizona Cardinals tied for the lead with Seattle, who were New Orleans' first win of the season. Boy, I thought the AFC West was filled with shitty teams but the NFC West is trying it's best to be shittier.

And really, the NFL is like 3 leagues, the top-tier which is exclusively New England and Indianapolis right now, the middle tier, which is every team with at least 3 wins and then the shit-tier which is teams with 2 wins or less. I think any team could move from the middle to the lowest or vice-versa but that won't win you shit. Unless New England or Indy fall from the top the rest of the league, right now, are just pretenders.

Chargers Handle Raiders

LaDainian Tomlinson has had a slow start to the season but quickly erased any doubts some may have had as to whether or not he has 'peaked' yet or not. Tomlinson rushed for 198 yards and all 4 Chargers touchdowns.

The Charger defense looked much better and it may seem that Norv Turner and Ted Cottrell may have 'clued up' and are using the Charger personnel that better utilizes their strengths. Namely the linebackers Shaun Phillips and Shawne Merriman. Both had good games and were pressuring Culpepper all day. Previously it seemed as if Phillips and Merriman were either in pass coverage(???) or on the sideline when their talent is rushing the quarterback.

I still have little to no faith in either coach... I think Turner and Cottrell are not smart enough to have this team beat anyone good. The Chargers are on their bye week this week and the schedule looks to be a little easier - at the moment - which lends me to think that the Chargers should post a semi-respectable record, look like a team that could do something in the playoffs but will fall short...but of course, first they need to make the playoffs and I still think Turner and Cottrell will make sure the Chargers lose a few games they should have won on coaching alone. But for at least one week it was good to see the Chargers play well and are currently tied for the AFC West lead.

Gore Wins Nobel Price

Al Gore was named a co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize today. Are you f'n kidding me? A person doesn't have to search too hard to find that Al Gore is a total hypocrite about most everything including environmental issues. I dug up these findings without too much effort:

From M.I.T.'s newspaper:

During the 1992 election campaign, for example, a Nashville television station obtained footage proving the existence of a dump filled with aluminum cans, old tires, and filters of waste oil - a dump Gore insisted did not exist - on property owned by Gore's father. The close proximity of the dump to a river suggested that it was an environmental hazard. More recently, in March 1996, the Denver Water Department released an extra 96 million gallons of water - enough for 300 families for a year - to improve the backdrop for a campaign photo-op for Gore in front of the South Platte River. Finally, even though he has supposedly long been a foe of logging the old-growth forests of the Pacific Northwest, shortly after being sworn in as Vice President, Gore added a verandah made of old-growth redwood and Douglas fir to the Vice President's mansion. Clearly, Gore should learn to listen more closely to the rhetoric that his speech writers have given him.

From GNN:

During Clinton’s campaign for president in 1992 Gore promised a group of supporters that Clinton’s EPA would never approve a hazardous waste incinerator located near an elementary school in Liverpool, Ohio, which was operated by WTI. Only three months into Clinton’s tenure the EPA issued an operating permit for the toxic burner. Gore raised no qualms. Not surprisingly, most of the money behind WTI came from the bulging pockets of Jackson Stephens, who just happened to be one of the Clinton/Gore’s top campaign contributors.

From Texas Rainmaker:

Gore is the same guy that warned us that global warming was more dangerous than terrorism, while simultaneously maintaining a toxic waste dump on his own property.

At Sierra Club meetings, he advises Americans to conserve, then promptly leaves in a gas-guzzling Cadillac Escalade.

And while he “lectures Americans on excessive consumption,” he lives “in two properties: a 10,000-square-foot, 20-room, eight-bathroom home in Nashville, and a 4,000-square-foot home in Arlington, Va. (He also has a third home in Carthage, Tenn.)… none of which use “green energy” offered by the local utility companies.

Many more examples of Gore's hypocrisy can be found without much effort... it's too bad the Nobel Prize committee didn't bother to do any research about Gore prior to handing him an award for nothing more than being a glorified hypocrite.

Landis' Last Stand

In the story that won't end, Floyd Landis is using his 'last resort' and appealing his guilty verdict to the Court of Appeals for Sport (CAS). Of course the basis of Landis' case is that the French lab used flawed techniques that caused a false positive result for Landis. The problem here, though, is that the testing procedures and subsequent results are calculated from such complex science, I think it is very plausible that an athlete with enough resources can attempt to refute the results by merely submitting their own 'math' and procedures that may seem just as accurate as anyone else's. Even if Landis is exonerated and given back his 2006 Tour de France victory, I think most will only remember him as the guy who cheated to win the Tour de France...especially since by the time this entire case is fully resolved, most of us have already forgotten about it and the Tour de France long ago.

NFL Week 5 Review

Week 5 in the NFL has concluded and what do we know this week?

Well, the Cowboys sucked out last night and win against Buffalo...a game they had no business winning. Tony Romo had 1,000 interceptions yet the Bills were unable to capitalize on many of them...the Bills even had a kickoff return for a touchdown yet and stopped a Dallas 2-point conversion that would have tied the game up late...but fail to recover an onside kick and Dallas wins with a field goal to steal the game. Dallas may have a little bit of 'over-ratedness' in them, but good teams find a way to win and win games like Dallas did last night... I will give them that.

Miami and the Rams are both the only 2 teams that have yet to post a win and both teams may not do so anytime soon. The Trent Green for the Dolphins got his 300th concussion this past weekend and I would think that his days are now numbered, if not over, for being in this league. The Rams just seem to be getting worse and no luck...Bulger - out, Stephen Jackson - out, their entire defense - worthless. Sure both these teams may get a win or two sometime this season and it will feel like the Super Bowl for them.

Every team in the AFC West has 2 wins, with Oakland having a bye last week lead by 1/2 game. Clearly that division will be up for grabs amongst the 4 crappy teams in that division.

Right when I think the Redskins and Giants are 2 crappy teams they both win. The Lions don't look to be a good road team and the Jets did everything they could to help the Giants win. Eli Manning wasn't impressive in any way and yet the Jets lose the game. Pennington, who I thought would begin to play better, had interceptions that were key for the Giants win.

New England just keeps destroying their opponents and the Colts win every week, now without Marvin Harrison. Dallas Clark seems to be Peyton's go-to guy with Harrison injured.

The Packers' bubble finally burst. A weak Bears team played the Packers tough and come out with a win. Reading some fan reaction on that game, it seemed as if refereeing may have assisted the Bears in that game, but I did not watch the game but have read that comment on a few fan forums.

Jake Delhomme is out for the season...great, my starting fantasy QB who was having a great year is now out for the rest of the year...that's my team...I'm sure the Panthers are more distressed than I am.

The Buccaneers lost another running back for at least a month or two (and coincidentally on my fantasy team as well) Micheal Pittman.

With the Seahawks losing to Pittsburgh and the Cardinals beating the Rams, the Seahawks and Cards are tied for the NFC West lead right now... wow, both the NFC West and AFC West titles are going to be won by a team that probably won't win their first playoff game...talk about 2 crappy divisions...