NFL Week 5 Games to Watch

While the Pats have a bye (well, they play the Browns at home), Tampa Bay will have its 3-1 record tested by Coach Dungy & the Colts

Sorry I've been gone for a bit again (I know, I promised I wouldn't do that anymore), but the 1-2 combination of a new job and coaching my son's little League team has left me precious little time for my beloved blogging.

Throw in the fact that I still have to track the Sox as the proceed in the MLB playoffs for my other blog, and you can see how it can be a little tough to keep up with this particular site.

Anyway, I'll quit with the excuses and get to the previews. As we enter Week 5 of the NFL schedule, there are a number of surprises throughout the league, namely the fact that the Saints (0-3), Bears (1-3), Chargers (1-3) and Rams (0-4) have been HUGE disappointments, while the Packers (4-0), Lions (3-1), Steelers (3-1) and Bucs have been major overachievers, making for a league rife with parity and giving more credence to the term "on any given Sunday..."

The teams that are not surprising anybody continue to be the Pats and Colts, both sitting pretty at 4-0, exactly where every expert expected them to be before the season began.

New England has been absolutely dominant, averaging 37PPG while holding its opponents to a meager 12PPG as the defense has been stifling and Tom Brady continues to utilize his new BFF, Randy Moss, like a kid who just got a Nintendo Wii for his birthday.

The rejuvenated Moss has torched the rest of the #1 receivers in the league to the tune of 505 yards (1st in NFL) and 7 TDs (1st) on 31 receptions (4th), a 16.3 YPC average that doesn't even begin to tell the story of the grace, style and effortlessness with which he makes most of those catches.

While New England should have no trouble dispatching with the upstart Browns (2-2), the Bucs will have their hands full with former coach Tony Dungy's Champion Colts.

That game is just one of five games to watch this week, although I'm not sure how much of the Browns game New Englanders are going to catch with the Sox going for a series sweep against the Angles in the ALDS this afternoon at 3:00.

1. Buccaneers (3-1) at Colts (4-0)
Jon Gruden has not only laid to rest the talk of a possible coaching change after this season by getting his upstart Bucs right in the thick of the playoff mix in the lackluster NFC.

Behind a revitalized defense that is leading the conference in yards allowed per game (291.8), points allowed (44), and bone-jarring hits, and on offense that is finally capable of putting the ball in the end zone with veteran mercenary QB Jeff Garcia at the helm, the Bucs find themselves tied for the second best record in the NFC at the quarter pole one year after finishing with a miserable 4-12 mark.

But this game will be a true test of where the Bucs are at against strong competition. So far Tampa Bay has beaten three teams that are a combined 2-9, and a trip to the RCA Dome isn't exactly a place you want to test your young defensive and offensive players.

Peyton Manning and Co. have barley missed a beat after winning the title despite losing several key players to injury and free agency, and much like the Pats as long as they have Mr. Madison Avenue and mild-mannered genius Dungy they will be able to overcome most NFL obstacles.

Still this match up of the recent Super Bowl champs, laced with the subplot that everyone believes Gruden won his title with Dungy's players in his first season in Tampa lingering in the Dome like fireworks smoke, should make for an intense early season match up, with the deciding factor possible coming in the running game, as Tampa Bay lost starting RB Cadillac Williams last week for the season to a knee injury, a devastating blow to a unit that was averaging 137 YPG, good for 8th in the NFL, one spot below the Colts.
MY PICK: Indy 28, Bucs 24

2.) Browns (2-2) at Pats (4-0)
The only thing mildly interesting about this match up is the return of former defensive coordinator and current Brons head coach Romeo Crennel to New England for the first time since he left the organization for the browner pastures of C-Town three years ago.

Crennel has avoided the hot seat this season by guiding the Browns to a surprising 2-2 start, despite the distractions of signing #1 draft pick QB Brady Quinn just days before the regular season began, and then trading incumbent starter Charlie Frye after Week 2.

Backup-turned-starter Derek Anderson has made the denizens of the Dawg Pound stop clamoring for pretty boy Brady to take the helm of the floundering franchise by leading his team to a 51-45 upset of the cross-state Bengals, and after a loss to Oakland, an impressive 27-13 victory over the hated Ravens, using former Baltimore running back Jamal Lewis as a battering ram against the vaunted Ravens defense.

None of that will matter today. New England is locked and loaded, and you can bet the farm they're not about to fall victim to the upset bug that has been plaguing contending teams throughout the NFL and college landscape this season. The pats will win and win big, and they'll be up by so many points before the start of the Sox game that everyone will be able to tune out in time to catch the opening pitch.
MY PICK: Pats 45, Browns 13

3.) San Diego (1-3) at Denver (2-2)
The reeling Chargers take their sorry sideshow of a squad into the Mile High city fresh of the embarrassing home loss to the mediocre Chiefs, but with the Broncos having trouble living up to their own preseason Super Bowl expectations and learning they may be without the services of starting running back Travis Henry for a drug suspension, this game should be up for grabs.

Which disappointing team will want it more is what this one comes down to, and something tells me the wounded pride of guys like Phillip cry me a Rivers, LaDainian Crybaby Tomlinson and Shawne Merriroid will be enough of a motivator to overcome the offensively inept Jay Cutler and the Broncos. whose two wins have come via last-second field goals.
MY PICK: Chargers 27, Broncos 17

4.) Bears (1-3) at Packers (4-0)
The Bears have gone from cream of the NFC to the bottom of the barrel in just a matter of months, but it's not the anemic offense that is totally to blame for the sudden decline. The top-rated defense of a year ago has sunk to unfathomable depths, allowing a staggering 34 4th-quarter points in a 37-14 loss to the Lions last week, that coming on the heels of a 34-10 shellacking at home by the Cowboys the week before.

The Packers, meanwhile, have been the Saints of the 2007 season, riding the rejuvenated arm of record-setting quarterback Brett Favre to its best start in a decade and playing with the poise and confidence of a team with a veteran leader and a bunch of guys who have no business being one of only four undefeated teams in the league but don't know any better.

This ancient rivalry could take an ugly turn today, as the pack express looks to steamroll the stumbling Bears out of the NFC playoff picture in early October.
MY PICK: Packers 31, Bears 19

5.) Dallas (4-0) at Buffalo (1-3)
The Cowboys look to extend their season-opening streak of scoring at least 34 points in every game when they travel to rowdy Ralph Wilson Stadium for the first Monday Night game in Buffalo since Buffalo Bill was a star vehicle for Dabney Coleman.

With former franchise savior JP Losman relegated to spectator due to injuries and ineffectiveness, Buffalo will look to young QB Trent Edwards to lead the way. the rookie signal caller out of Stanford might be motivated by his alma mater's stunning upset of USC Saturday night, but that won't help his defense stop Tony Romo, running back Marion Barber, T.O. and the rest of the Dallas offensive juggernaut.

This one could be interesting--for a half--but much like Dallas' win at Chicago two weeks ago, look for the 'Boys to salt this one away in the second half and win easily.
MY PICK: Cowboys 41, Bills 24

That's the latest from the blogosphere, and I promise I will try to get back here before Halloween rolls around.

Go Sox!

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NFL Week 3: With Videogate behind them Pats look to go 3-0

New England hosts the Bills, the Bucs are home for the disappointing Rams, and three other games to keep an eye on

1.) Buffalo (0-2) at New England (2-0)
After last Sunday night's absolute ass-kicking of the San Diego Chargers on national television, coupled with the historic fines laid down on Bill Belichick and the franchise PLUS the announcement that the league has destroyed all evidence related to the Pat's video taping scandal, I think it's safe to say New England is ready to put the embarrassing Videogate incident behind them.

At least until they face Man-snitcher and the Jets again.

Today they Pats should be distraction free when they take on the hapless Bills at Gillette. Buffalo was predicted to be a darkhorse playoff contender this season by many 'experts', but after suffering a last-second loss to Denver in Week 1, the Bills got clobbered 26-3 by the Steelers last week.

Buffalo quarterback J.P. Losman, whom many are still holding out hope will turn into a good NFL QB, has been horrid, as usual, and his days as an NFL starter are most likely numbered. In two games Lostman has thrown for 251 yards with no TDs and one pick, and those numbers don't figure to get any better as he goes up against a defense that has allowed just 28 points in two games and decimated the high-powered Chargers attack last week.

Tom Brady is having a field day now that he finally has some targets to throw to downfield who aren't smurfs or geezers. Couple that passing attack with a solid ground game anchored by Lawrence Maroney and capable backups Kevin Faulk and Sammy Morris, and you have the makings of a prolific offensive unit.

We already know the defense is good (just ask Ladainian Tomlinson), we know the offense is loaded, and now that the coach has shed the remnants of the first scandal that has somewhat tainted his legacy, New England can get back to doing what they do best: destroying other NFL teams hopes & dreams.
MY PICK: Patriots 38, Buffalo 14 (hey, third time's a charm, right?)

2.) St. Louis Rams (0-2) @ Tampa Bay Bucs (1-1)
This was supposed to be the year, right? The year that new coach Scott Linehan got awoke the offensive juggernaut that used to be known as The Greatest Show on Turf and made the once superior St. Louis Rams relevant again on the STML-afflicted NFL landscape.

Not quite.

After two games the Rams are going backwards. Despite a hefty new contract, Marc Bulger has been as invisible as Whitey Bulger as the starting slinger has totalled just 535 yards and 2 TDs in losses to Carolina and San Francisco, not exactly Super Bowl-caliber teams.

To make matters worse, stud running back Stephen Jackson is already upset that he didn't touch the ball enough in the loss to San Fran, and with just 118 yards on 39 carries and no TDs in two games, you can bet there are a lot of FF geeks who are pretty pissed off that his production is down, too.

All this turmoil could make for a rough day when the rams travel down here to sunny Tampa Bay, where the teams will have a hard time believing it's the first day of fall.

Much like the Saints last week, you can bet the dome-bound Rams will not take too kindly to the stifling 88 degree heat beating down on them at Ray Jay this afternoon, but the temperature should be the least of their worries.

Tampa bay bounced back from a lackluster loss to Seattle in Week 1 with an impressive 34-10 victory of the saints last week at home. Jeff Garcia is a marked improvement over the cavalcade of weak-armed losers Chucky Gruden trotted out behind center last season as the Bucs already have more plays of over 20 yards than they had in the first 10 weeks of last season.

That the offense would be improved with the fiery veteran quarterback leading the offense was no surprise, but it was the re energized defense, which swarmed Drew Brees, Reggie Bush, et al last week that has really surprised the Bucs fans this season.

Led by ageless leaders Derrick Brooks and Ronde Barber, youngsters like Barrett Ruud, who was named NFC Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts last week, Jermaine Phillips, rookie safety Tanard Jackson and rookie linemen Jovan Haye and Greg White, the unit punished the Saints offense, hearkening back to the stout D corps of the 2003 Super Bowl team.

So today will be a real test to see which of these teams is for real and which one can start making excuses as to why they aren't better than advertised.

But at least the Bucs had low expectations going into the season.
MY PICK: Bucs 27, Rams 24

3.) San Diego (1-1) at Green Bay (2-0)
Before the season began this game looked like a mere blip on the Charger's way to the Super Bowl. Then San Diego got steamrolled by the Pats, and Green Bay upset the Giants at home behind the rejuvenated Brett Favre, and suddenly the trip to the not-yet-frozen tundra bodes as a tough test for the playoff-minded Bolts.

Favre passed John Elway as the all time wins leader in the NFL with the victory last week, and coach Mike McCarthy's edict to have Favre curtail his gunslinging ways, i.e. cut out the costly INTs that have plagued him the last few years, has seemed to work, Favre has thrown just two picks in 80 attempts, and if he can continue to keep himself in check, the star-less Pack could be this year's surprise team.

It may not be frozen, but the Chargers won't have an easy day in Green Bay.
MY PICK: Packers 28, Chargers 27 **UPSET SPECIAL**

4.) Detroit (2-0) at Philly (0-2)
Who woulda thunk it? This early season battle between intra-conference rivals means more to the championship-starved Eagles than it does the perennially horrible Lions?

But with Philly adjusting to the newer, slower Donovan McNabb, who inflamed the NFL community when he pulled the race card as the reason for his struggles, and Detroit off to its first 2-0 start since the Eisenhower administration, POhilly desperatley needs this game to remain relevant in the city of brotherly love as the Phillies make a late-season push for the playoffs.

Detroit, behind surprising QB Jon Kitna and stud rookie receiver Calvin Johnson, has been the surprise of the league so far, while the Eagles have looked old and unimpressive. I'm not sure the young lions are ready to win a big game in a hostile environment like this, but it should be fun to see them try.
MY PICK: Eagles 24, Lions 17

5.) Dallas Cowboys (2-0) @ Chicago Bears (1-1) SNF
This should be a classic case of what's more potent: Dallas' offense, which has scored 82 points in two games, or Chicago's defense, which has yielded just 24 points in two games despite losing its first game 14-3 to San Diego.

The Bears unit will be put the test by Tony Romo, TO & Co. tonight at Soldier Field, and it better be up to the task because the Super Bowl runners up cannot afford to drop another game this early in the season.

Then again, this is the NFC, so I guess a handful of losses really shouldn't matter.

This one promises to be an entertaining game as a national audience will get to see just how good Dallas is this season and just how bad the Rex Grossman era can truly be.
MY PICK: Bears 17, Cowboys 14

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NFL Week 2: The Results

Patriots leave Videogate behind with pasting of Chargers while the Bucs lay a beatdown on sorry Saints

New England silences critics with dominating 38-14 win over San Diego

What better way to answer a week loaded with scrutiny, criticism, and enormous expectations than by waylaying your most vocal and bitter opponent on national TV?

The Patriots took care of business and took out their frustrations over answering thousands of questions about the video taping scandal the way they always have throughout the Belichick regime, by treating an opponent like O.J.'s memorabilia dealer, and the end result left no doubt as to whether or not New England needed the aid of stolen game tapes to win their three titles.

Consider the answer a resounding "no".

With the hanging commissioner breathing down their necks, the eyes of the pigskin-loving planet trained on their Sunday Night Football contest, and a snarling bunch of crybaby Chargers ready to rip the Pats a new one, New England came out of the locker room and shoved the football down the throat of the vaunted San Diego defense, then let their own defensive unit lay the hammer on league MVP Ladainian Tomlinson (42 yds), over matched QB Phillip Rivers, the artist formerly known as Antonio Gates and Co.

The revamped defense, playing without suspended safety Rodney Harrison and lineman Richard Seymour, was led by blanketing corners Assante Samuel and Ellis 108 yards Hobbs and versatile linebackers Rosie Colvin (2 sacks, 5 tackled, INT) and Adalius Thomas (3 tackles, INT, TD); those four anchored a furious attack that limited the high-powered Bolts to a mere 201 total yards, a paltry 52 coming on the ground.

Meanwhile the much-hyped retooled offense ran like a well-oiled machine for the second week in a row, racking up an excellently distributed 400 total yards as Tom Brady was a Manning-like 25-31 for 279 yards with three TDs and one pick and New England cranked out 144 yards on the ground.

The Randy Moss experiment continues to get rave reviews as well with the reformed wideout grabbing 8 passes from Brady for 105 yards and two more slick touchdowns, bringing his two game total to 17 receptions for 288 yards (17 Y/C) and three scores, once again proving to be a fantasy geek's wet dream.

Not bad for a guy who missed the entire preseason.

That offense would thrive with Tom Terrific incorporating weapons like Moss, the invaluable Wes Welker and Dante Stallworth into the mix this year was a given; it's the defense that has been the surprise thus far with all the turmoil and uncertainty surrounding the unit coming into the season.

Samuel's holdout, Seymour's continuing health problems forcing him to the sidelines for the first six games of the season, and Harrison's embarrassing suspension for receiving HGH were all factors in pundits questioning whether this year's defense would be able to hold up to the challenge of taking a team to the Super Bowl.

After two weeks, 28 points and 428 yards allowed, I'd say those questions have been answered.

Thomas, the free-agent acquisition from the Ravens, proved that his speed, size, and versatility should be a perfect fit in Belichik's ball-hawing defense, and his interception that he returned 65 yards for a touchdown was a effective reminder that the addition of this physical freak may count just as much as that of Mr. Moss when all is said and done.

And if Rosie Colvin can come back from years of injury and ineffectiveness to play like he did Sunday--punishing the passer, roaming the field from sideline to sideline and crushing people whenever possible--this unit could really turn out to be something special.

Bottom line is that as the furor of Videogate dies down, the focus will return to what this season has been about since the beginning of training camp: how easily the Pats cruise through the regular season, and who's going to stop them on their way to their fourth title in six years?

Bucs send Saints marching back to New Orleans with a demoralizing 31-14 lossThis is why it's so hard to predict what team is going to the Super Bowl year after year--you just cannot base the estimation on what a team did the previous season.

Falling one game short of the ultimate game last year, the high-octane Saints were the chic choice to make it to the Bowl this season, what with Drew Brees, Reggie Bush, Marques Colston and Deuce McAlister all having had a year to refine their already potent offensive attack.

So far, not so good.

For the second week in a row the Saints got blindsided by an opportunistic offense while its own offense struggled to move the ball down the field, only this time it wasn't the defending Super Bowl champs doing the damage, it was the backsliding Bucs, who despite the addition of Jeff Garcia looked lackluster in losing to the Seahawks last week.

Don't let the final stats fool ya; New Orleans may have finished with more total yards (343-330), passing yards (244-243) and rushing yards (99-87) than the Bucs, but much of that came in garbage time as Tampa Bay had already jumped out to a 21-0 lead by halftime, and after adding another TD to make the score 28-0 with minutes to go in their third, Chucky called off the dogs on a stifling late September day in the Bay.

Everyone here expected the veteran Garcia to provide an immediate upgrade to what was a young and anemic offense, and the fact that he's been willing to butt heads with Gruden in order to run the plays he wants to run and not just the ones Chucky thinks will work has been icing on the cake.

The fact that 57-year-old receiver Joey Galloway is still able to toast DBs and corral 4 passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns as he did in this game is a miracle(of modern science?) in of itself.

But the way the aging defense has regained its Super Bowl swagger while upgrading at most of the key positions has been nothing short of amazing. Against the Saints Monte Kiffin's squad, led by a rejuvenated Derrick Brooks (perhaps still pissed that peter King left him off his Topp 500 players list), patrolled the field like Leonidis and his Spartan army.

Up front Brooks (9 tkls) and emerging stud linebacker Barrett Ruud (11 tkls, 1 fumble recovery), along with newcomers Greg White & Jovon Haye (1 sack each), walloped Bush, Brees and McAlister while Ronde Barber, Jermaine Phillips and Tanard Jackson combined for 18 tackles and kept Brees from connecting with targets Colston, David patten and deep threat Devery Henderson until the game was well in hand.

And so two weeks into this season these two teams sit at 1-1, yet one team is looking like an up-and-comer, while the other is looking like a one-and-doner.

Other games of note:

-Cleveland 51, Cincy 45
In the "WTF?!" game of the week, the offensively-challenged Browns, who jettisoned their starting quarterback following last week's season-opening loss, rolled up 554 yards of offense and hung half a hundy on the reeling Bengals.

Cincy has now allowed 883 yards and 71 points in two games, including a Coltish 337 on the ground, and lost for the first time in five trips to C-Town despite 6 touchdown passes from Carson Palmer and 209 yards and 2 TDs from Chad Johnson, who got doused with beer after jumping into the Dawg Pound following his second TD.

He's lucky they didn't pee on him.

- Green Bay 35, NY Giants 13
The surprising Packers ran their record to 2-0 for the fist time in six years as Brett Favre became the winningest quarterback in NFL history, recording his 149th win to pass John Elway in an absolute pasting of the disgraceful G-Men.

While the star-free Pack continue to win behind the gritty play of their grizzled leader, New york continues to spiral down into an ugly abyss. Although injured QB Eli Manning did play and played pretty well, the Giants defense has allowed 846 yards and 80 points in two games, and the more they lose the more likely Commander Coughlin will be made the scapegoat for this mess sooner rather than later.

-San Fran 17, St. Louis 16 the Rams continue to disappoint fans and pundits who had them pegged as a potential sleeper team
-Indy 22, Tennessee 20 another close, exciting game between these emerging division rivals, this time won by the Mannings
-Pitt 26, Buffalo 3 so much for that turnaround season by the Bills
-Houston 34, Carolina 21 the Carr-less Texans are 2-0 for the first time ever
-Jax'ville 13, ATL 9 the Vick-less Falcons are 0-2 and the question is will they ever win one?
-Detroit 20, Minny 17 Kitna helps 10-0 boast by returning from concussion to lead game-winning drive
-Dallas 37, Miami 20 think Tony Romo, T.O and Co. are glad to be out from under the thumb of the grand Tuna? 41PPG says yes
-Arizona 23, Seattle 20 the Cards use a late FG to get over unimpressive Seahawks
-Chicago 20, KC 10 Devin Hester did it again, returning a punt 73 yards for a score as the Bears toppled the weak Chiefs
-Denver 23, Oakland 20 a late Raider FG was nullified by a Denver timeout, and after Oakland missed the new kick, the Broncos marched down the field and hit the game-winner
-Baltimore 20 NY Jets 13 with two backups QBs battling it out on the field, the Ravens defeated the Jets in an ugly, uninspiring game

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NFL Week 2: Sacks, spies and videotapes

With the specter of Videogate hanging over their heads, Bill Belichick and the Pats must focus on knocking off the bloodthirsty Chargers

We enter the second week of the 2007 season with the New England Patriots occupying a familiar place on the NLF landscape: the most despised team in the league.

But this season, something's different, and I'm not just talking about the revamped receiving corps and the addition of all-everything defender Adalius Thomas.

No, this year in addition to putting together one of the best teams on paper since the Dunder Mifflin crew, the Pats, and coach Hoodie Belichick specifically, have been saddled with the worst label in all of professional sports--cheaters.

When a Patriots assistant coach was busted in the opener for videotaping defensive signals being used on the New York Jets sideline last week at the Meadowlands, the repercussions sent shockwaves rippling throughout the league and further polarized its fanbase.

Jets coach and Sopranos co-star Eric Mangini, a former Belichick assistant who dared leave the Pats fold for the dark side of the Jets before last season, apparently had inside knowledge of the Patriot's cheating ways, but he waited until the fourth meeting with his former team to expose his longtime mentor and his habit of trying to gain a competitive advantage over his opponent at all costs.

The fallout has been a shitstorm of biblical proportions heaped upon the franchise that had become the model for contemporary NFL supremacy, and especially the coach who had always rubbed people the wrong way with his surly demeanor, cryptic quotes, and hideously ugly choice of sideline garb.

After a meeting with Commissioner Roger The Hammer Goodell Belichick was slapped with a fine of $500, 000 bucks, the organization was hit with a $250K tariff and also must suffer the painful loss of a first-round draft pick next April if New England should happen to make the playoffs this year.

Which is like saying Lindsay Lohan must go back to rehab if she ever drinks again.

But the monetary admonishment and loss of a valuable draft pick pales in comparison to the public relations hit the team has taken since the news broke that New England has resorted to such bush-league tactics for much of the dynasty years. Universal respect for what the team has accomplished has turned into an "I knew they were up to something" avalanche, with players, coaches and analysts coming up with instances of examples where the Pats players on the field seemed to know too much about what the plays their opponent was trying to run.

So where do we go from here? The Patriots were already despised by many for beating up on the league for the past six seasons, for stockpiling talent the way Angelina Jolie stockpiles adopted children, and for becoming the standard bearer for the perfect franchise from the ownership to the front office to the coaching staff to the players.

Now they've got a quarterback who had a baby out of wedlock and is getting ready to tie the knot with Leo DiCaprio's leftovers; a wide receiver who was one of the most talented-yet-despised players in the league just a year ago until he found football God and decided to clean up his act for the good of the jewelry; and a coach who has proven that just having the best team and smartest coaches doesn't mean you can't resort to the ancient art of gaining a competitive advantage over your opponent by any means necessary.

My analysis? Patriots overcome the newfound adversity and ride the fuel of widespread hatred all the way to title #4.

NFL WEEK 2 GAMES TO WATCH:

1.) San Diego (1-0) at New England (1-0) SNF 8P NBC
Oh you think this one won't be a doozy? The two teams that slugged it out in last year's AFC Wild Card game, resulting in a late Patriots win and subsequent crying by many of the Chargers players including league MVP LaDanian Tomlinson, will meet again under the lights at Gillette for a must-see showdown tinged with revenge and redemption.

Tomlinson and other Chargers have been very vocal about the role of Videogate in that playoff victory last January, and you know he, Steroid Merriman and Phillip Rivers, who was horrible towards the end of that contest, want to exact a small measure of revenge by taking New England down in their own crib on national TV.

Too bad it ain't gonna happen. Brady and Randy Moss proved they are already on their game despite no preseason time together, and the defense, though smarting from the HGH-induced suspension of Rodney Harrison, will be up to the challenge of stopping Tomlinson and forcing Rivers into more foolhardy mistakes that will cost his team the game.
MY PICK: Videogate be damned, Pats 27, San Diego 21

2.) New Orleans (0-1) at Tampa Bay (0-1)
The saints are one of the trendy favorites to reach the Super Bowl from the weak NFC this year, but after getting torched for 41 points in the season opener against the Colts a week ago Thursday, people might want to readjust their opinions.

The Bucs, meanwhile, looked like the same old middling Bucs of four of the past five years, failing to score a touchdown in a 20-6 loss at Seattle despite upgrading the offense with QB Jeff Garcia and with the fire under Chucky Gruden's ass hotter than it has ever been. But something tells me the Bucs are going to make a game of it against their NFC South rivals in what could be the final home opener of Chucky's regime, and although they may not win, look for Tampa Bay to at least keep it close, and possible even get in the end zone.
MY PICK: New Orleans 34, Tampa Bay 24

3.) Cincinnati (1-0) at Cleveland (0-1)
The Bengals may have defeated the hated Ravens last week, but a lackluster performance where Carson Palmer only threw for 192 yards and the defense forced 6 turnovers yet the team barely squeaked out a 27-20 win wasn't exactly the impressive opening effort Super Bowl-starved fans in the Queen City were hoping for.

The Battle of Ohio has been a lopsided affair of late, and when Cleveland traded starting quarterback Charlie Frye to Seattle following their 34-7 loss to Pittsburgh in the opener, they sent the message that the time is near to hand the reigns of the franchise over to hometown hero Brady Quinn. It could be another lopsided outcome, but one thing's for sure, with the Dog Pound clamoring for Brady to guide the team and Chad Johnson ready to bust out a new TD celebration, things won't be dull in C-Town this afternoon.
MY PICK: Cincy 37, Cleveland 19

4.) Indy (1-0) at Tennessee (1-0)
These two AFC Central rivals have seen their fare share of tough battles over the last few seasons, especially last year when the Champs barely knocked off the upstart Titans at home, 14-13, in Week 5 last season, then dropped a stunning 20-17 decision to Tennessee in Week 13 when the Titans kicked a 60-yard FG with time expiring to hand the Colts their second loss of the season.

With Vince Young more comfortable in the offense and Tennesseans once again supporting a football team other than the Vols, this game will be no cakewalk for television personality Peyton Manning and his shuffled band of title seekers. In fact if I were a gambling man I'd look for Tennessee to pull off another upset today. Of course I'm a lousy gambler, but it's always fun to pretend.
MY PICK: Tennessee 24, Colts 23

5.) Minnesota (1-0) at Detroit (1-0)
Two teams vying for this season's most surprising team go head-to-head at Ford Field today and both are coming off impressive wins highlighted by outstanding performances from their number one draft picks.

Vikings running back Adrian Peterson rushed for 103 yards on 19 carries in his first game since being selected with the seventh pick back in April, and for Detroit heralded rookie receiver Calvin Johnson validated his #2 selection when he lit up an awesome Oakland defense for 4 catches for 70 yards and a touchdown in Detroit's see-saw 36-21 victory over the Raiders. Both talents will be on full display today in a game that could be one of the most exciting in the league this week.
MY PICK: Detroit 27, Minnesota 24

Other Game Predictions:

-Pittsburgh 31, Buffalo 17
-Carolina 24, Houston 13
-Jacksonville 19, Atlanta 6
-Green Bay 23, NY Giants 20
-St. Louis 28, San Fran 21
-Dallas 31, Miami 14
-Arizona 27, Seattle 24
-Baltimore 16, NY Jets 3
-Denver 34, Oakland 17
-Chicago 13, Kansas City 10
-Philly 28, Washington 17 (MNF)

Enjoy Week 2, and remember, don't take any of these picks seriously-after all, I am the World's Worst Gambler!

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Summer 2007: A quick look back

I'm baaaacck! And unlike Britney Spears I know this could be my last chance, so I don't intend to screw this up.

I know it's been a while, but I've finally decided to stop neglecting my original site after spending so much time with its newest sibling this summer, you know, my other blog (shhhh!)

Point is I guess I never really realized what a full-time obsession the Red Sox could be.

But now that summer is over, the baseball regular season is winding down, and all the good things like NFL & college football, the new Fall TV seasons and the Oscar contenders are taking hold of the public conscience, I thought I'd better get back to my eldest blogchild lest it disable itself and disown me forever.

And what would an "I'm back"/end of summer post be without a Top 10 list? You're right, it would be original and creative, but I thought it would be shit. So without further adieu here are the Top Five Best & Worst things about Summer 2007 (see, add the two Top 5s and you've got a Top 10--cut me some slack, I've been away for a couple of months)

FIVE WORST THINGS ABOUT THIS SUMMER

5.) Britney's MTV Awards show appearance

This "performance" had to be the most embarrassing thing the former Mouseketeer has ever done, and that's saying something for a woman who routinely flashes her cooch in public, shaved her hair to avoid a drug test (upstairs & downstairs evidently) and attacked a throng of helpless paparazzo with a street sign.

But when a Haagen Dazs and Halcion-fueled Brit took the stage last weekend to perform her newest single, which was supposed to resurrect her flagging career, no one on Earth could have predicted the tragi-comedy that would follow. Looking like a reject from Josie & the Pussycats, Brit Brit stumbled across the stage, mumbled a few of the lyrics playing in the background, then tumbled from the pedestal of fame right into the sewer of infamy.

4.) Barry Bonds HR chase By now most of you know that Barry Bonds became major league baseball's all-time home run king when he blasted career shot #756 on August 7th, and if you don't know you must have been vacationing at Lake Cuomo all summer.

The fact that Bonds was on the verge of breaking the most hallowed record in all of sports did not bother me one bit (you say he took 'roids, I say who didn't?), but it was the incessant, non-stop coverage of the chase and everyone's reaction to the chase. Which begs the question, if every sports TV show and news outlet didn't clog the airwaves and page space with so much anti-Barry content, don't you think fewer people would have paid attention in the long run?

3.) Entourage
HBO's feel-good surprise hit was enjoying a third season filled with interesting conflicts, hilarious dialogue and witty storylines, and then HBO decided to mess with the mojo and jump onto the aggravatingly popular " mid season hiatus" bandwagon and split the season in half.

When it resumed something felt...different, like either the writers had run out of ideas or started reading their press clippings, and when the fourth season premiered a mere three weeks after the third one ended with a stale "Office"-esque episode centered on the filming of the fictional Medellin, the wife and I immediately looked at each other in agreement--one of our favorite shows had officially jumped the shark.

2.) Mike Vick is fucking sick In what has to be the worst case of an athlete gone wild since Orenthal carved up his ex-wife and her sunglasses steward, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was busted for and plead guilty to running an illegal dog fighting operation from a property he owned in rural Virginia.

Vick is now facing a potential 1-5 years in federal prison for inhumanely killing dogs that did not perform well for him, and also a possible lifetime banishment from the NFL due to gambling violations. It's safe to say no one, not even OJ, who was a has-been at the time he became a double-murderer, has fallen farther faster than the always overrated and never understated Vick, who at the recent draft in April was quoted telling ESPN "I love animals." Enjoy being a wide receiver in the slammer, you sick fuck.

1.) The Minnesota bridge collapse
As a resident of Florida, a state with approximately 15 zillion bridges, the collapse of the I-35W bridge that spanned the Mississippi River outside of Minneapolis was a senseless yet seemingly all-too-plausible tragedy that really hit home.

Every year we as Americans deal with catastrophic events that leave us both horrified and amazed at the same time--hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires & flash floods--but there's something about the sudden collapse of a structure that thousands of people utilize and take for granted every day that really causes the average citizen to step back and think "that really could have been me or someone I loved."

...and on the lighter side...

FIVE BEST THINGS ABOUT THIS SUMMER:

5.) Knocked Up
The wife and I might not have seen it until it was already a month old, but that didn't diminish the gut-busting power of this raunchy-yet-lovable comedy from the demented genius behind "The 40 Year Old Virgin", Judd Apatow.

In this romantic comedy with a terrific twist goofy Seth Rogen has a one-night stand with sexy Katherine Heigel, and the end result is a bun in the oven that's good for an hour and a half of "will they or won't they" banter as well as a ton of hilarious rotten marriage jokes from the indispensable Paul Ruud and Leslie Mann. Like Virgin, Knocked Up has plenty of sick humour and classic lines mixed with a smidge of tenderness, and in the end you're left saying "I can't wait for this guy's next flick to come out."

What's that? It did? Oh, Superbad? Oh, my bad.

4.) Celtics sign Kevin Garnett

After a few flirtations with the 10-time All Star and former league MVP, the Boston Celtics finally landed the Big Ticket on July 31st when it sent five players to Minnesota in exchange for the leanest, meanest, hungriest big man in the league.

Coupled with the addition of 7-time All Star sharpshooter Ray Allen and C's team captain Paul Pierce, the Celtics have put together its best troika since Bird, McHale and the Chief ruled the parquet a couple of decades ago, and in the weak Eastern Conference this trident of talented future Hall of Famers could bring the NBA title back to Benatown for the first time since 1986.

3.) Flight of the ConchordsBand meeting! Just as the Sopranos came to a perplexing conclusion and Entourage was beginning to royally suck, HBO slipped an odd little half hour comedy about a folk band from New Zealand under our noses, and wouldn't you know after a few weeks of sniffing it out it grew on me like nosehair.

Don't get me wrong, this dry brand of quirky humor is definitely not for everyone, as I had to practically bribe the wife to watch it a couple of times, but make no mistake all you non-believers will rue the day you didn't jump on the Jemaine and Bret bandwagon in the early stages, and if you don't believe Murray will get the guys an actual paying gig some day soon well then you're just a bunch of mothaflippin' idiots!

2.) NYC trip
I did a complete post of this experience right before I went on hiatus, so if you want a more detailed account of the experience just scroll down a bit. But I have to include it here because the combination of my sister's awesome wedding and the entire family gathering in New York City was an experience that will never be duplicated or imitated. Great wedding, great city, great time with the family all added up to an all-time memorable summer event.

1.) 1 month child-free
As good as Melissa & Paul's wedding was, I would be remiss if I did not place this extremely rare occurrence at the top of my summer of fun list.

For one whole month, or a full one-third of my son's summer vacation, he went to spend time with his relatives in Ohio, where he got passed around like a bottle of Ketel One at Promises Malibu, and the wife and I took full advantage of the freedom.

How did we spend our time you ask? Well if you have to ask, then...let's just say it involved a little bit of this...

...and some of this...

...still more of this...

...and then finally, this.

Well, we did a little more than that, but those pictures are not available on this site. You know what they say, when the kid's away, the dearly beloved will play.

Stay tuned for more posts--I promise it won't be two months in between.

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Under Construction

The TBBostonian is undergoing an extreme makeover and will return shortly. Please click to my other blog until we are up and running again. Thank you.

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Catching up: Chris Benoit, the NBA draft and Entourage

Hey, remember me?

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but having a blog devoted to a baseball team really takes up a ton of time during the baseball season.

Who woulda thunk it?!

Since my return from New York there have been a few topics I've wanted to cover, and I know I might be coming late to these stories, but hey, it's my blog and I'll post what I want to.

Or something like that.

Just bear with me. I'll try not to slack off so much in the future.

Benoit tragedy highlights the real dangers of steroids
Everytime I hear another news item or police reveal another sick & twisted detail of the horrible crimes the former wrestling star committed, I start to tear up and feel mortified; yet, I cannot stop reading about it.

What took place a week ago in the Benoit home in suburban Georgia played like a ghastly storyline straight out of one of Vince McMurder's retarded WWE scripts.

The 40-year-old Benoit reportedly bound his wife Nancy's feet and hands on Friday and then suffocated her; he waited a day before strangling their seven-year-old son Daniel in his bed sometime Saturday night, perhaps after the pair viewed a Pay-Per view match Benoit was supposed to take part in, and then hung himself with a weight machine cord on Sunday.

To absolutely no one's surprise (except McMahon's & his WWE lackies), he investigators found anabolic steroids present in the Benoit household in the ensuing investigation.

Of that revelation I have just one thing to say to US legislators: forget about Barry friggin Bonds and his pursuit of a meaningless home run record and start focusing on the real dangers steroids present to the American population, namely how the side-effects of the muscle-enhancing hormones are killing men, women & children.

While Bud Selig and George Mitchell hunt Bonds for his obvious use of performance-enhancing drugs to reach Hank Aaron's sacred career homer record of #755, and pro football players, cyclists, tennis players, and even golfers are now being accused of rampant use of synthetic steroids in hopes of achieving maximum (earning) potential, that tells me it's time for Congress to start an all-out investigation as to how, why and where these drugs are making it into the marketplace, and start a crackdown akin to the "Say No to Drugs" or anti-Mafia campaigns of decades past in order to put a halt to all the death & destruction these drugs are causing.

After all, what's more important--finding out how a hulking home run hitter broke a significant sports record, or preventing another geeked-out musclehead from murdering his family for no damn reason?

Celtics blow another draft, yet Ainge & Rivers enjoy long-term security
How can a couple of men fuck up a historic franchise as badly as Celtics president Danny Ainge and coach Doc Rivers have? Yet, both men sit back secure in the knowledge that neither one of them is leaving the Causeway St. offices of the C's anytime soon?

The list of laughable draft picks (Marcus Banks & Kendrick Perkins instead of Boris Diaw & Josh Howard?), terrible trades (Antoine for Raef LaFrentz!) and silly signings (Brian Scalabrine!!) Ainge has made over the past few years is so lengthy and prolific that he has succedeed in turning the once-proud Green Machine into the laughingstock of the league in under four years.

Rivers, meanwhile, coaches like he's trying to lose his job, with a turnstile rotation, players playing out of position, and patchwork lineups right out of a bad Martin Lawrence movie, yet he just signed a one-year extension in May despite guiding the team to a 102-144 record in three seasons.

Did I mention he's led teams to not one but two 19-game losing streaks?

The latest magnificent maneuver by Ainge was to trade Boston's 2007 first round pick, slotted at #5 thanks to some unfortunate ping pong balls, to the Seattle Sonics for aging, ailing shooting guard Ray Allen.

Hmmmm. Trading a potential building block/solid complimentary starting player like Jeff Green, whom they selected for Seattle, or Brandon Wright for a guy who will turn 32 in three weeks and is coming off of double ankle surgeries that caused him to miss 27 games last season seems like a hair-trigger move at best and a recipe for disaster at worst.

I choose the latter.

Will Allen be able to give captain Paul Pierce relief from the innumerable double-teams he currently receives as the team's only All Star caliber player? Sure.

But a more likely scenario has an uncomfortable (he's a low-key guy who enjoyed playing in the cozy environs of the pacific Northwest) and recovering Allen struggling to adapt to his new surroundings and teammates. I guarantee that he and Pierce both suffer some nagging/ lengthy injury that will force them to miss considerable time during the season, thus ensuring another lottery-bound campaign for the former kings of the hill.

Maybe then these clowns will be ousted from office.

HB-No: Former Sunday Night kingpin rapidly spiraling into oblivion
It was bad enough when we bade farewell to our favorite family drama with a bad Journey song and a maddening, open-ended conclusion a few weeks ago, but ever since the Sopranos swan song, its seems as if the HBO network has made a decision to whack itself.

Once the perfect mood-lightening compliment to the morose and intense Mob drama, the buddy series Entourage has apparently gotten wind of how popular and important it is to the Sunday night lineup, because in its fourth season it has officially jumped the shark.

Premiering just two weeks after the third season concluded the same night as the Sopranos ended, the show's writers took a risk and did an on-location shoot of the boys filming their dream project, Medellin, somewhere in the jungles of South America.

As if taking the big fish out of their little Hollywood pool wasn't risky enough, the creators decided to mock/parody/impersonate another hit series, The Office, by having the main players talk directly to a documentary filmmaker who was supposed to be garnering clips for the DVD version of the movie.

Cute idea in theory, but my wife & I thought it went over like Vince's hideous, Ron Jeremy-like Pablo Escobar getup.

That is to say not well.

The next ep followed the exploits of neurotic but brilliant director Billy Walsh, whose crazy behavior and manic mood swings probably embody many of Tinseltown's directorial elite, but his schtick of tyrannical tics and tawdry tackiness is already wearing thin, and it's just the beginning of the season.

Throw in a new & improved (?) Johnny Drama and Turtle's going nowhere, doing nothing character (he doesn't even smoke a lot, crank rap music and play video games anymore for crissake!), plus the kinder, gentler Ari and not only has the show failed to get me excited for Sunday nights at 10:00, but I've actually started to look forward to the awesome Ice Road Truckers on the History Channel a bit more.

Now there's a bunch of ballsy, non-ironic dudes just being real and having a good time.

And don't even get me started on John From Cincinnati or Flight of the Conchords...

Put it this way, if things don't improve shortly it will be so long, HBO Sunday nights.

Better start opening up that checkbook for Chase & Gandolfini soon.

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Picture Post: My Sis' Wedding in The Big Apple

Sixteen floors up in our hotel I was introduced to the glory that is the New York skyline

Sorry I've been away for so long but the family & I took a trip to New York City last weekend for my sister's wedding and I'm just getting back up to speed following our return Tuesday.

First of all let me say that the wedding was INCREDIBLE. My sister Melissa, who works for NBC Sports, and her hubby Paul, who is a writer/producer for the Glenn Beck Show, are truly a match made in heaven as they share the same interests, talents, and goals, and the love they have for each other could be felt by all those around them.

Being in the entertainment industry they decided to go all out for their nuptials, the first plunge for each.

This included choosing a spectacular historical venue called the Angel Orensanz Center, which the rabbi informed us is the third oldest temple in the country and the security guard informed me that it has hosted events ranging from the wedding of SJP & Matthew Broderick, a concert by Kevin Bacon's band, and a porn convention.

The Rabbi was bucking for a TV called show 'The Rabbi'; he was like the Judge Seidlin of the temple. I kid you not.

Being in the entertainment industry, that's where tradition went out the stained glass window.

Meliss & Paul decided to buck regular wedding standards and go with the rapidly growing trend of non-traditional weddings, which take the conventional wedding themes and toss them on their stodgy ears, the highlight being the opening dance by the bride & groom.

The entire wedding party (of which myself & my son were included) walked out to movie & TV theme songs, such as the Love Boat and "Eye of the Tiger", and while the ceremony itself followed tradition, such as the couple being wed under the chupah (hoopah) and Paul crushing the glass to shouts of 'Mazal Tov' at the end, many other aspects of the event defied normal conventions.

After the cocktail hour and before dinner, Melissa and Paul had their first dance. Only it wasn't your typical stiff, awkward snoozer. Instead they made like Mr. & Mrs. Smith, engaging in a mini spy sketch, dancing stealthily around each other with finger guns blazing to the tune of "Nobody Does It Better" by Carly Simon.

The were the spies who loved each other.

It. Was. Awesome.

In fact, Melissa explained after the audience had been floored by the "Dancing with the Stars"-like production, they had been featured on an NBC Nightly News piece a few weeks ago covering the new craze that is sweeping the wedding nation. Here's the link featuring Paul & Melissa telling how they feel about what could be the death of the Chicken Dance as we know it.

Anyway, not much else went on that night, except my mom almost broke her ankle on a wicked set of steps, nearly everyone in attendance danced at some point or another, and six people, including yours truly, got up in front of everyone and toasted (or like my Uncle Tony said, more like "roasted) the happy couple, including Melissa's good friend Mary who went so far as to pen & sing a little ditty about love & TV.

Mary always knows how to make a room full of people laugh

All of that combined with seeing family members and friends that I hadn't seen in anywhere from 10-30 years made for an awesome, emotional experience, one that no one in attendance shall forget any time soon. We all walked away from it saying it was the best wedding we had ever been to, and to think there was no garter belt, no bouquet toss, and not even a cake!

That's my sis, always on the cutting edge!

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The other great part of our trip was that my wife, son and I got to visit New York City for the first time. Being from Boston I'd always assumed that I'd hate the Big Apple, you know cause I friggin can't stand the Stanks and Mets and every one of their fans.

But surprisingly I (we) loved the city and our brief stay in it. One of the benefits of having family live there is they can help everything run smoothly.

We had a great hotel, the Shelburne Murray Hill, located 3 1/2 blocks from the Empire State Building and featuring a hip staff and scenic rooftop bar, and Melissa guided us to what we could & could not do according to our limited time frame.

In fact from quick airport trips to friendly cabbies & cops, the only time we had a bad moment was when it rained as soon as we got to the top of the Empire State Building (of course.)

Even that bit of disappointment wasn't enough to spoil our time, and although we didn't get to do a lot of things due to time constraints, we did & saw enough to enjoy the time we spent and want to go back again to do the rest.

Hey, I got an idea-why don't I shut up now and let some of the 557 pictures I took do the rest of the talking. Good idea.

It may have been overcast, but the view was still spectacular

This was the view from one side of the rooftop bar...

...and this was the view from the other

My son looked smashing in his first wedding tux...

...and my sis looked stunning in her gorgeous gown

We were all blown away by the rustic beauty of the historic Orensanz temple

That's me, the short bald one in the back

Here comes the bride with Mom & Jesse

I now pronounce you...

...husband and wife- hey Paul, watch the tongue!

Is it just me or did Paul's mom look scared to death on this chair ride?

My great Aunt Ruthie & Uncle Normie were the hits of the night

My wife & son cut a mean rug

My Uncle Tony & Aunt Nancy try not to wake my Uncle Phil

Me and my (not so little) cousins Gina & Lauren

My Aunt Annie and (little) cousin Greg, a hotel magnate in the making

Me and my Aunt Deb and Uncle Jimmy and cousin Courtney...

...and Courtney's brother Ryan, who's headed to UMass in the fall

I thought I'd better include some of Paul's family in these pix. I chose these sisters-in-law for no particular reason

As I stepped outside the venue for a breather...

...I noticed this building at the end of the street. Look very closely, that's an actual statue of a Russian dictator on the roof. Note the clock face and the street signs as well. Very odd.

The next day we walked the city from the hotel all the way to Times Square,

...spying some world famous landmarks along the way

My wife & son took it all in

We made it all the way to Central Park

Where Drew loved to climb the rocks

But even after taking in all the historical grandeur of the city...

...the highlight for me had to be meeting the one and only Rupert Gee!

Congrats Meliss & Paul and may you have a long & healthy marriage.

And as a native Bostonian I hate to say this but...

I loved New York!

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Who's your daddy? Spurs sweep Cavs

LeBron became a father (again) early Thursday morning, then he & his team got bitchslapped like newborns by the Spurs en route to their 4th title

The giddy yet reserved Spurs raise another championship trophy

Thank you, Cleveland.

Thanks for not dragging this lopsided series out any longer than absolutely necessary, because if these teams had to play any more games over this weekend, the television ratings would have given new meaning to the phrase "friends & family only."

Instead of making the American public go through that kind of misery, Cleveland did the right thing and succumbed to the inevitable eventuality of San Antonio achieving its fourth title in the last nine years (1999, 2003, 2005, 2007), putting up a fight till the end but ultimately coming up just short, losing 83-82.

Tony Parker, a.k.a. the Luckiest Man on the Face of the Planet, was named the Finals MVP after he averaged nearly 24 points/game and was a major offensive catalyst in three of the four Spurs wins.

3-time champion, Finals MVP, and engaged to one of the hottest women on the planet-dontcha just fucking hate this guy!

LeBron scored 24 points after his girlfriend gave birth to their second child at around 1:oo am, but he was 10-30 from the field and did not shoot the ball well all series (36%)

Tim Duncan racked up his fourth title while Parker notched his third and first MVP trophy just a few weeks before his Paris wedding to Eva Longoria, who wept court side when her man's name was announced as the MVP.

Everybody now- awwwwwwwwwww! (Lucky bastard!)

Anyway, so now that's over and everyone can get around to doing whatever it is they do when the NBA isn't on. And judging by the abysmal ratings for this series, that would be exactly the same thing they do when the NBA is on.

King James and his paupers surprised everyone and had a nice run, but unfortunately it all came to a crashing halt. Now all they need to do is find a coach with balls, a guard who can distribute the rock so James doesn't always have to, and a big man who doesn't have lead feet (Ilgauskas), hands of stone (Varejao) or a stupid tuft of hair on the back oif his neck (Gooden.)

Until then, here's some more pictures from the last NBA game of the 2006-07 season.

Enjoy.

Move over Ashley; we have a new "Hottest Sports Fan"

Do you think she was taking a picture of me?!

...maybe...

NOT!

Spurs: 2007 NBA Champions

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