Archive for 2008

WATERCOOLER CHAT: DOLPHINS CLINCH AFC EAST, LIONS MADE HISTORY

On Vacation this week…..back on Monday Jan. 5th. Enjoy the Weekend Wild Card Games

NFL

Darius Rucker, lead singer of Hootie and the Blowfish used to sing about the Dolphins making him cry. Well, not this season. After a 1-15 2007 season, the Dolphins under a brilliant executive vice president of football operations Bill Parcells,  clinched the AFC East title with a 24-17 defeat of the Jets. Dolphins QB Chad Pennington was under a tremendous amount of scrutiny and pressure this season and particularly in this game as he was released from the Jets when they brought in QB Brett Favre from the Packers. According to ESPN, before the game Chad told his teammates that he loved them. All Dolphin fans are loving their team today as well….particularly my buddies the two Michelles. For more on the Dolphins, check out their site!!!!

Oy, the Detroit Lions did it….they made history with a legendary 0-16 season. With a 31-21 defeat at the hands of the Green Bay Packers, the 2007 Lions have secured their place in history as the first NFL team to lose 16 regular-season games.

In Dolphin/Lions news, there is report this morning that Bill Parcells may leave the Dolphins and look for a job…possibly with the Lions. The Lions already fired head coach Rod Marinelli after three seasons with the team.

Here’s the wild card playoff scenario for January 3rd and 4th

Saturday

Atlanta Falcons at Arizona Cardinals, Saturday at 4:30 pm
Indianapolis Colts vs San Diego Chargers at 8:00 pm

Sunday

Baltimore Ravens vs Miami Dolphins at 1:00 pm
Philadelphia Eagles at Minnesota Vikings, Sunday at 4:30 pm

Share
No comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: NFL PLAYOFF SCENARIOS AND TOM BRADY AND GISELE ENGAGED

NFL

Playoff Scenarios

NFC

NY Giants: #1 seed
Arizona Cardinals: #4 seed

AFC

Tennessee Titans: #1 seed
Pittsburgh Steelers: #2 seed
Indianapolis Colts: #5 seed

The Falcons and the Panthers are also assured of a playoff berth, but other than that all the other spots are up for grabs. What does this mean? In the AFC, the San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Denver Broncos, Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots are all in contention. And in the NFC, the Chicago Bears, Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings, Tampa Bay Bucs and the Philadelphia Eagles all still have playoff hopes.

Click here for playoff scenarios.

In more NFL news, New England QB, Tom Brady proposed to Super Model Gisele Bundchen on Christmas Eve on a private jet.

Share
No comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: THE INFAMOUS 2008 LIONS?

NFL-WEEK 17

This is the weekend we’ll see who’s playoff chances are destroyed and who looks strong heading into the post season. We could also see a record broken and history made….although no one wants this to happen. All eyes will be on the Detroit Lions vs the Green Bay Packers Sunday. The Lions are currently 0-15 and if they lose again on Sunday, they will go down in history as the only team (so far) to record a 0-16 season. The only other team to achieve this infamy was the 1976 expansion team, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, although this was prior to a full 16 game schedule, so the Bucs only went 0-14 for the regular season.Tune in 1:00 pm (est) Sunday if you’re prepared to see grown men cry.

Share
No comments

NO WATERCOOLER TODAY: HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Share
No comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: TEIXEIRA TO YANKS, PLAXICO IN TROUBLE AGAIN

MLB

The Yankees are flexing their economic muscles again with a $180 million contract for eight years with first baseman Mark Teixeira. The Yankees have now spent a remarkable $423.5 million on three players: CC Sabathia (pitcher) received $161 million seven-year deal and A.J. Burnett (pitcher) secured a $82.5 million, five-year contract. Yankees management hasn’t confirmed the trade yet, but apparently it’s pretty close to closed (assuming Teixeira passes his physical).

NFL

New York Giant’s wide receiver Plaxico Burress just can’t keep his name out of the news. The New York Post reported that authorities seized a bundle of weapons (unclear if they’ve been registered) from his home. They also found a suitcase full of cash (odd…..wonder what that’s all about?). If the weapons haven’t been registered, Plaxico could face even more trouble (and possibly jail time) from his accidental shooting (of his leg) with an unregistered gun last month in New Orleans.

Share
81 comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: BEARS BEAT PACK TO STAY IN PLAYOFF RACE

Chicago Bears playoff hopes are still alive after their overtime win against the Green Bay Packers Monday night. The Bears, who are (9-6), came back from a 3-14 halftime to win their third game in a row.  Robbie Gould kicked the game winning 38 yard field goal.

Chicago could win the NFC North next weekend if they beat Houston and the Vikings lose to the Giants. (Chicago 20, Packers 17)

Click here
for the rest of the playoff scenarios

Share
76 comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: NFL WEEKEND UPDATE

NFL

The Atlanta Falcons secured a playoff spot with their win over the Minnesota Vikings Sunday. With their QB in jail and coming off of a 4-12 season, no one expected the Falcons to be so good this season. But, with rookie phenomenon QB Matt Ryan leading the helm, the Falcons are now 10-5 and creating tremendous excitement in the NFL. (Falcons 24, Vikings 17).

New York Giants clinched home-field advantage in the playoffs with their win over the Carolina Panthers. This is a big deal as they are 7-1 this season at home…is there another Super Bowl in the Giants’ future? (Giants 34, Panthers 28).

Tennessee Titans secured home-field advantage and the number one seed through the playoffs in their convincing win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. (Tennessee 31, Pittsburgh 14)

The Dolphins clinching AFC East? I know it sounds crazy after their 1-15 season last year, but they are one game away! If the Dolphins beat Brett Favre and the New York Jets next weekend, they could be on top of their division. This is huge, not just because the Dolphins were so awful last year but also because the Dolphins QB is Chad Pennington (who was discarded by the Jets). Dolphins beat Kansas City Sunday 38-31

Share
2 comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: JAZZ CURSE STILL WORKS ON DETROIT, WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC, ZORN STILL EMPLOYED, RAVENS BEAT DALLAS

NBA

The Detroit Pistons continued a very interesting streak.  Over the past couple seasons, Detroit has been a consistently tough team to beat.  But, they just can’t seem to beat the Utah Jazz.  It’s known as the Jazz curse in Detroit.  Utah matches up very well with Detroit’s big men, and seems to have their number.  Last night was no different, as Utah won their 7th straight game over the Pistons.  Jazz point guard Derron Williams led the way with 29 points and 8 assists.  Meanwhile, Iverson lit it up with 38 points for the Pistons, but it just wasn’t enough.  Utah 120, Detroit 114.

Elsewhere in the NBA, the Celtics keep on steamrolling through their competition.  They won their 17th straight game against Chicago.  But the guy who really stepped up wasn’t one of the Big 3 (Garnett, Allen, Pierce), nor was it their up-and-coming speedy point guard, Rajon Rondo.  Nope, it was center Kendrick Perkins.  He looked fantastic with 25 points and 8 rebounds.  These guys are jelling to the Nth degree, and don’t seem like they plan to stop anytime soon.  Now, the Celtics are 25-2, and just one win away from tying the franchise record win streak of 18 games.  Boston 126, Chicago 108.

BASEBALL

In some off-season baseball news, the World Baseball Classic is upon us.  This is a new event, and is essentially the World Cup of baseball.  Basically, major league baseball consists of so many nationalities that people wanted to see which nation would reign supreme if there was a former competition.  However, three of last year’s biggest stars, Brad Lidge, Cole Hamels, and Ryan Howard, all members of the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies, have officially told Team USA that they do not want to be considered for the roster.   They basically said they’ve had enough baseball for a while, and need to rest this off season.  Bad news for Team USA, but it’s understandable.

NFL

First year Washington Redskins coach, Jim Zorn, the heir apparent to the great Joe Gibbs, seems to be keeping his job.  Many thought he might be ousted after only one year, partly because the Washington head coaching job is historically difficult to keep (given the demanding nature of their fan base), but also because Clinton Portis, their star running back, has publicly called him out for being a bad coach.  On the flip side, the Skins had a pretty good season this year, and Zorn just might be in the safe zone until the end of the season.

The Dallas Cowboys lost to the Baltimore Ravens in their last game at Texas Stadium. The Cowboys got close in the final minutes, but it wasn’t nearly enough and the Ravens pulled out a 33-24 win.

Share
1 comment

WATERCOOLER CHAT: COLTS CLINCH, TYLER SET RECORD, TEIXEIRA ON THE BLOCK

NFL

Some Thursday night, playoff clinching action in the NFL as the Indianapolis Colts took on the Jacksonville Jaguars.  The Colts are the hottest team in the NFL right now.  They got off to a slow start this season, with Manning coming off a surgery, but they have found… their… groove.  Jacksonville was ahead most of the game, but Manning led them back in the 2nd half.  He had a masterful night with 364 yards and three touchdowns.  The rest of the Colts team looks decent, and therefore Peyton is practically carrying them on his back.  And with this win, the Colts clinched the No. 5 spot in the playoffs, and nobody is going to want to play them in the first round.  Indianapolis 31, Jacksonville 24.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

A huge scoring mark was set.  North Carolina’s Tyler Hansbrough set the scoring record at North Carolina last night, giving him the most points in UNC history.  This is a remarkable achievement considering that star players such as Antawn Jamison, Rasheed Wallace, Jerry Stackhouse, and of course Michael Jordan spent their careers at UNC.  Now, Hansbrough stands alone as UNC’s scoring champion.   Tyler finished the game with 20 points, and has his sights set on winning it all this year.  #1 UNC 91, Evansville 73.

NBA

It was the Portland Trailblazers v. the Phoenix Suns, and anybody tuning in knew it would be an absolute scoring volcano.  And this game belonged to former Rookie of The Year — the Blazers’ Brandon Roy.  He was an inferno last night, just draining shots from everywhere.  He even hit the essential game winning 3 pointer with under 3 minutes to go.  Roy finished the night with a career high 52 points, and the Blazers finally finished off the Suns.  It’s safe to say… Brandon Roy has arrived.  Portland 124, Phoenix 119.

Finally, in baseball, with C.C. Sabathia off the free agent market, the new hot guy-to-get is the Los Angeles Angels’ Mark Teixeira (pronounced Tee-Share-uh) He’s talking to all the big teams, but in the last couple days a few teams have dropped out of the running.  The Orioles need Teixeira badly, as he could give them a bat they desperately needed, but they had to drop out of the running.  And today, another AL East team backed out:  The Boston Red Sox.  They got outbid.  The favorite now looks like his team, the Los Angeles Angels who want to re-sign him to an eight year deal.  But, alas, these things are never final until the free agent is wearing the winner’s jersey.

Share
3 comments

WATERCOOLER CHAT: CELTICS STILL WINNING, PAUL SET RECORD, NFL GREAT WEEKEND

NBA

The Celtics are at it again.  They looked to extend their winning streak to 16 games against the (pretty good) Atlanta Hawks.  The Celtics came into this game like it was just another game on the schedule, but for the Atlanta Hawks, having their first good season in many, MANY years, this game was GIGANTIC: a chance to test their true strength against the best team in the league.  Joe Johnson put up a great game for the Hawks with 20 points, and the Hawks even led going into the 4th quarter.  But in the last minute of the game, Johnson missed a key free throw that would have given them the lead.  The Celtics hung on to win their 16th straight.  This team is absolutely on fire right now.  Boston 88, Atlanta 85.

Elsewhere in the NBA, a record was set by one of the league’s best players.  Chris Paul, point guard for the New Orleans Hornets, set the record for most consecutive games with a steal.  The record now stands at 106 games, and this is a milestone that has been in place since set by Alvin Robertson in 1986.  So with this achievement under his belt, Chris Paul is definitely beginning his campaign as the greatest point guard ever, albeit he’s got a way to go.  Paul had 19 points and 12 assists on the night, and the Hornets took care of business to beat the always-difficult Spurs.  New Orleans 90, San Antonio 83.

NFL

This weekend is shaping up to be absolutely incredible.  When making the NFL schedule, nobody knows who’s going to be good or bad at the end of the season, but every now and then you accidentally get some marquee match-ups this close to the playoffs.  In the NFC, it’ll be the first place NY Giants v. the first place Carolina Panthers.  This game could easily be the NFC Championship in a couple weeks, and it’s a rare treat to get this kind of preview this late in the season.  The Giants have been struggling lately, and the Panthers have looked fantastic.  We’ll see which team has more to prove come Sunday.

In the AFC… another incredible match-up, as the Pittsburgh Steelers will take on the Tennessee Titans.  These are two of the top defenses in the league, and these squads could definitely meet for a pass to the Super Bowl in the very near future.  Question is — which team’s lagging offense will step up on Sunday?  They both look raw.  And in Tennessee’s case, there’s a chance that Vince Young just might see the field.  Probably not, but Kerry Collins has been sub-par lately, and Young could be ready.  Big emphasis on ‘could’ — ‘probably won’t’ is probably more appropriate in this case.

Share
5 comments

Next Page »