Archive for September, 2010

WATERCOOLER CHAT: BUSH RETURNING HEISMAN, GRANT OUT FOR SEASON, MARONEY ERA OVER

FOOTBALL

In the NFL and college football, it’s official:  Reggie Bush is officially returning his Heisman Trophy.  Bush has been under investigation of receiving major gifts from USC and has decided that it is time to finally put the past behind him.  By handing over the Heisman Trophy, Bush hopes that the media will leave him, his family, and his friends alone and let him re-focus on winning games for the New Orleans Saints.  USC meanwhile is doing everything it can to separate themselves from Bush. It’s almost as if the Bush/Leinart era didn’t exist.  However, some people believe that even though Bush may have participated in illegal recruiting activity, it shouldn’t disregard his remarkable achievements on the field.  Either way, Reggie Bush is now Heisman-less.

Elsewhere in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers got a piece of very bad news yesterday.  They have lost their star running back, Ryan Grant, for the remainder of the season.  This puts the Packers in a quandary.  They have one of the most explosive passing attacks in the NFL, but without a solid running game that doesn’t mean as much.  Having a good running playbook is paramount to passing success because you can lure the defense closer to the line of scrimmage, and thus get your receivers open down field.  Now, back-up running-back Brandon Jackson finally gets a chance to start after several years with the Packers.  It’s his time to shine.

And, the Laurence Maroney era is over in New England.  Maroney was drafted to be the Patriots star-running back for a number of years.  He was highly touted coming out of the University of Minnesota and Bill Bellichick thought he was the solution to replace their hold at RB.  Well, over the years, Maroney has been plagued by injuries, and definitely hasn’t made  the most of his carries when he gets a chance.  So… the Patriots shipped him to the ailing Denver Broncos in exchange for a 4th round draft pick next year.  This means that Fred Taylor and BenJarvis Green-Ellis, and Sammy Morris will be taking the hand-offs on the Pats this season.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: DOUBLE HEADER IN MNF, IVERSON READY TO PLAY IN CHINA

FOOTBALL

In the NFL — Monday Night Football.  And ESPN had a double-header for us.

First up, it was a much anticipated showdown between the mighty New York Jets and the always rugged Baltimore Ravens.  These are arguably the two best defenses in the league, and many anticipated a grueling defensive showdown.  Plus, the NY Jets have been featured on HBO’s Hard Knocks the last few months, and everybody wanted to see how this team would fare.  Well, a defensive show is what they got.  Both teams wouldn’t let the other do anything, and the Jets run defense was absolutely stifling — holding Ravens star running back Ray Rice to under 50 yards.  But, alas, the Jets offense looked horrendous.  They only had six first downs, and didn’t get a touchdown all night.  In the end, the Ravens edged out the Jets by 1.  Baltimore 10, NY Jets 9.

Next up, it was the San Diego Chargers vs. the Kansas City Chiefs.  This game was a little more unpredictable.  The Chargers are typically dominant in this match-up, but they were without their star receiver Vincent Jackson and defense tackle Marcus McNeill.  Meanwhile, the Chiefs were truly hoping to turn things around.  In the off-season, they brought in Charlie Weiss from Notre Dame as offensive coordinator and Romeo Crenell from the Cleveland Browns as defensive coordinator.  And if you didn’t know, these were the coordinators surrounding Bill Belichick during the Patriots dynasty.

San Diego jumped out to an early lead, but then the Chiefs came surging back and showed what they could do.  Jamaal Charles burst out for a big 56 yard touchdown to tie the game.  And a Chargers turnover led to an easy touchdown pass to Tony Moeaki in the back of the end zone.  And, in the 3rd quarter, Chiefs speedster rookie Dexter McCluster ran back an electrifying punt return for a touchdown.  The crowd was going crazy!  Suddenly football was back in Kansas City.  However, the Chargers rallied back and even found themselves with the opportunity to tie the game with under a minute left in the 4th quarter.  But, the Chiefs applied defensive pressure and Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers couldn’t find an open man in the end zone.  And the Chiefs won their opening game.  The fans didn’t have to worry this year — the Chiefs should actually be competitive.  Kansas City 21, San Diego 14.

BASKETBALL

Finally, in basketball, Allen Iverson’s career is essentially on its last legs.  He tried to comeback last year, got a stint with the Memphis Grizzlies and was cut.  He couldn’t find a job after that, but the Philadelphia 76ers decided to sign Iverson for marketing reasons.  Basically, they thought having Iverson back might reignite the better days of Sixer basketball in the early part of the decade.  Didn’t work though.  And after that, Iverson couldn’t find a job.  Well, he’s still not ready to quit, and is reportedly considering playing ball in China.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: OPENING DAY IN NFL

FOOTBALL

Well, it finally came — opening day in the NFL.  Everybody has had NFL fever all summer, and yesterday we all got our fix.

First up, the Detroit Lions looked to finally break their 20 game opening day losing streak.  The Lions are predicted to be much better this year, with former #1 overall pick Matt Stafford in his promising second year, plus a much improved defense.  The game started out all Lions with two running touchdowns from their first round draft pick, Jahvid Best.  Best looked fantastic out there, and should continue putting up decent stats all season long.    Unfortunately for Detroit, they lost their star quarterback Matt Stafford in the second half because of a shoulder injury.  Then, Chicago came surging back with a short pass from QB Jay Cutler (my QB on my fantasy football team by the way) to Running Back Matt Forte who ran it 89 yards for a touchdown. Another Cutler touchdown gave Chicago the lead and the Lions had one last chance.  Well, they marched it down field and back-up quarterback lobbed a pass to their star receiver Calvin Johnson for a touchdown.  BUT — the play was called back in a very controversial call saying that Johnson didn’t have possession.  This play is the talk of the sports world right now… because it cost the Lions their 21st consecutive loss on opening day.  Chicago 19, Detroit 14.

Elsewhere, Tom Brady (and his new haircut) looked to return to top form against Terrell Owens/Chad Ochocinco and the Cincinnati Bengals.  Well, Brady wasted no time hitting Wes Welker for two consecutive touchdowns.  Then, more Patriots with both an interception return for a touchdown and a kickoff return for a TD.  The Bengals, however, just couldn’t get their offense together and it looks like they still have some kinks to be worked out.  The Patriots look like they’re back.  Even their defense looked pretty decent.  Oddly, the Patriots are a sleeper Super Bowl contender.  New England 38, Cincy 24.

And in Houston, the Texans are hoping that this is the year that they finally become a serious contender in the AFC.  They have Super Bowl dreams, which are justified because of their explosive offense and much improved defense.  However, in order to truly prove you’re for real in the AFC South division… you have to beat Peyton Manning and the Colts.  This wouldn’t be easy.  Matt Schaub had a decent game, but the true hero for the Texans:  Their new running back Arian Foster.  He was an absolute BEAST rushing for 231 yards and 3 touchdowns.  Uh-oh, the Texans can finally run the ball.  Meanwhile, the Colts looked sloppy (for the Colts that is).  They dropped passes and their star defensive back Bob Sanders went out with an injury.  Without him, the Colts are a much more disorganized.  Finally, the Texans took care of business and beat the Colts.  They are a force to be reckoned with this year.  Houston 34, Indianapolis 24.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: NFL KICKOFF, TEAM USA LOOKING GOOD

FOOTBALL

In the NFL, it was the kickoff to the 2010 season between Brett Favre and the mighty Minnesota Vikings against Drew Brees and the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints.  Football fans have been anticipating this game for months.  The nation has football fever and this match-up was going to satiate that.  What better way to begin to the season than a rematch of one of the best games of 2009:  The NFC Championship.  So how would it play out?

Well, Brees and the Saints came out and did what they do best — unleash their offensive firepower.  On their first drive, they easily marched the ball down the field and Brees connected with Devery Henderson for a touchdown.  7-0 Saints.  Then, the Vikings couldn’t get anything done on offense.  This game looked to be a one-sided blowout, but suddenly, the Vikings got their footing on defense and were able to stop the Saints for the remainder of the first half.  And, Brett Favre even connected with Visanthe Shiancoe for a beautiful touchdown, but the extra point was blocked and it was 9-7 Vikings.  In the second half, the Saints came bursting out of the gate, and this time it was their running game that got them another TD, as Pierre Thomas muscled his way into the end zone.  After that, the Vikings offense just wasn’t clicking, and the Saints were able to hold on for the win.  Their title defense begins.  New Orleans 14, Minnesota 9.

Elsewhere in the NFL, it was a very big and strange day for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.  BIG because Tom Brady signed a huge contract extension that will keep him in New England until 2014, when he will be 37 years old.  Brady said he would like to stay in New England and play until he’s 40.  Certainly they will re-assess in 2014, but until then, Brady is the guy.  The deal is worth $72 million with a $48.5 million guaranteed.   However, the day was also quite ‘strange’ for Brady because he got into a car accident that was covered by the media.  Apparently, he wasn’t hurt in the crash.

BASKETBALL

Finally, in basketball, Team USA continues to roll.  They took on Russia and Kevin Durant simply caught fire.  He had 33 points on the night and propelled Team USA into the semi-finals.  The US hasn’t won a world championship since 1994.  The national team has slipped in recent competitions and the US is hoping to continue their success on the heels of an amazing win at the 2008 Summer Olympics.  With the way Durant has been playing, this shouldn’t be a problem.  Team USA 89, Russia 79

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: PHILLIES IN FIRST, BUSH IN SPOTLIGHT, NFL FINANCIAL STRUGGLE

BASEBALL

There’s a new team in first place in the NL East — the Philadelphia Phillies.  They have been surging the last few weeks, and much of it is due to the tremendous play of slugger Ryan Howard.  Well, last night Howard was at it again against the Florida Marlin.  He had a 3-run home-run in the 4th inning and then drove even more runs in the 7th.  Howard finished the night with an incredible 6 RBIs (which stands for Runs Batted In) as the Phillies topped the Marlins.  Philadelphia struggled at the beginning of this season, but The Phillies are clearly playing in top form again and fully intend to make a World Series run.  Philadelphia 10, Florida 6.

FOOTBALL

Reggie Bush has been in the spotlight recently because of the possibility of getting his Heisman trophy stripped.  Bush is in trouble for taking illegal gifts while at USC, which would make him ineligible for the top individual prize in college football.  When asked for a comment, Bush simply said that the decision to take away his Heisman is completely out of his hands.  He’s essentially at the mercy of the Heisman Trust committee.  Bush continued by saying that he’s barely even thinking about the trophy, as all of his focus is on tonight’s opening day game against the Minnesota Vikings.  We’ll see what happens to Reggie Bush in the coming days.

Finally, in more of an all encompassing sports story, it appears that the NFL may be facing it’s first financial bump in the road.  The NFL has been wildly successful this decade with the demand for football rising every year.  This country has a pure craving for football and absolutely eats it up during the season.  Pre-season games are getting higher ratings than even hit TV shows.  People simply WANT their football.  And now with DirecTV’s season ticket and the Red Zone channel, they can see almost everything in HD right from their living room.  Well, while no one can argue that the NFL is as popular as its ever been, fact is… season ticket sales are down for the 3rd year in a row.  What does this mean?  Basically, we’ve been in a terrible economy since 2008 and one of the first things on a ‘cutting-the-fat’ list are pricey season tickets.  However, this may have more to do with the viewing experience.  Going to games is very expensive and quite tedious.  It’s cold, far, and you have to pay for parking as well.   With HD TVs, watching games has never been better, and many think that fans just don’t see the overwhelming benefit of going to the actual game anymore.  Sure, people show up, but when season ticket sales are down, it’s indicative of a change in audience habits.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: MCNABB TO START, PARTING WITH HAYNESWORTH, BRADY REMAINS PATRIOT

FOOTBALL

In the NFL, Washington Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan has declared it official:  Donovan McNabb will start on Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys.  There was a lot of concern that McNabb wouldn’t be ready to to go on opening night for the Skins.  This would have symbolized ‘more of the same’ for the team, as they would have to start the season yet again with an ill-prepared quarterback.  But, with McNabb on the field, the Redskins will actually be competitive against a very tough Dallas team.  They will have home field advantage for the match-up and a win would show that the Redskins are going in the right direction.

However, in other news for the Redskins, it looks like they just might be parting ways with their defensive superstar Albert Haynesworth.  Haynesworth was brought in as a free agent to Washington in a $100 million deal from Redskins owner Dan Snyder.  Many criticized the deal saying it was a gross overpayment — especially given that position.  It’s hard to think someone would care to play extra hard in a bruising position of defensive tackle.  What incentive do they have?  They already have the money.  Well, Haynesworth has been the talk of the Redskins organization since training camp started, and they are apparently tired of it.  There are trade talks between Washington and Tennessee to kick Haynesworth out of town to his former employer.  The Redskins would probably get the short end of the stick, but they would improve their team chemistry tremendously.

Finally, in some more off-season news before the season officially starts on Thursday, it looks like Tom Brady will remain a Patriot for at least the near future.  Brady has almost completed negotiations that would keep him in New England until 2013.  The deal is worth around $58 million per year, but according to some sources, Brady wouldn’t accept making less than Giants quarterback Eli Manning.  There was an offer on the table for slightly less than Eli Manning, and, on principle, Brady wouldn’t accept.  Remember, Eli and the Giants beat Brady in the 2008 Super Bowl and there’s no way that Brady can let Eli get the best of him yet again.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: REVIS HOLDOUT OVER, CHARGERS NOT BUDGING OVER JACKSON, LEINART FOUND NEW TEAM, IMPORTANT GAME IN COLLEGE BALL

FOOTBALL

In the NFL, some major news.

First, the holdout is officially over for Darrelle Revis.  Revis has refused to play this season because he felt he was being grossly underpaid.  He’s the best cornerback in the league and they were paying him essentially a rookie wage.  After many long weeks, the Jets finally came to terms with Revis giving him a 4-year $46 million dollar contract.  This is a fantastic deal and should keep the star cornerback happy this season.  Plus, the Jets sorely need him if they intend to make a legitimate Super Bowl run.

Elsewhere, in an opposite tone, the Chargers Vincent Jackson also decided to holdout, except San Diego isn’t budging.  Jackson may have overplayed his hand hear thinking he’s better than he actually is, and now… he’s definitely out for three games.  There was talk that Jackson might play for the Rams, but the Rams said they weren’t interested.  Because Jackson hasn’t been signed nor found a new home, it’s very likely that a clause in his contract will kick in not allowing him to play the first six games.  He may really have shot himself in the foot by not just showing up to practice.  We’ll see how this develops.

And Matt Leinart, well, he also got some bad news and then… some good news.  The Arizona Cardinals decided to release Leinart this weekend, shocking everyone, especially Leinart.  Leinart was poised to take over starting duties for Arizona this season.  He clearly didn’t imagine he wouldn’t even make the team.  Apparently there were some political issues between Leinart and head coach Ken Whisenhunt and that led to Leinart’s dismissal.  Well, Leinart found a new home pretty quickly, signing a 1-year deal with the Houston Texans.  Leinart will back-up Matt Schaub and take over for one of the best offenses in the NFL if there is ever an injury.

Finally, in college football, Sunday night gave us one of the best and most important games in quite a while.  It was #10 Virginia Tech vs. #3 Boise State, and here is why it was a big deal:  Boise State gets very few opportunities to play major conference powerhouses.  They usually go undefeated, but never get the opportunity to compete for the National Championship because people think they have a weak schedule.  However, major teams are afraid to play them because if they lose, it severely tarnishes their own Championship run.  Well, Virginia Tech took that risk.  If Boise State were to lose the game, they would be immediately out of the National Championship conversation, and it would set back small conference schools many years.  If they win, it shows that they are utterly for real, and that smaller conference teams actually should be considered in Championship discussions.  So how did it play out?

Boise State got out to a commanding 17-0 lead, but then Virginia Tech battled back behind the superb play of running-back Ryan Williams and incredible arm of their quarterback Tyrod Taylor.  But, the hero of the evening was Boise State’s Heisman Candidate QB — Kellen Moore. Trailing by 4 with just over a minute to play in the game, Kellen Moore tossed a beautiful touchdown pass to Austin Pettis in the back of the end zone.  Amazing!  VT had one more chance, but couldn’t get it done, and Boise State sealed their reputation as a team to be reckoned with.  Boise State 33, Virginia Tech 30.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: OFFICIAL START OF THE COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON

FOOTBALL

Thursday night marked the official start of the college football season, and there were some important games on display.

First up, #2 Ohio State took the field against Marshall.  The Buckeyes have high hopes this year, and even have a Heisman candidate in their quarterback, Terrelle Pryor.  Pryor was a highly coveted recruit coming out of High School, and while he’s played very well, he hasn’t lived up to the extreme hype.  Yesterday, Pryor showed what he could do throwing for three touchdowns in a pure massacre of Marshall.  And Ohio State’s running game looked fantastic too with their highly touted freshman Jamaal Berry running for 80 yards in just 7 attempts.   Ohio State will be very tough to beat this year.  Ohio State 45, Marshall 7.

In other action, USC took the field with the Lane Kiffin era officially under way.  USC has dealt with some very serious problems this off-season.  The most notable:  They are banned from appearing in a Bowl for two seasons.  Basically, that means this season doesn’t count.  But, USC and its star players are still determined to show what they could do.  Matt Barkley took the reigns at quarterback and thew a very impressive five touchdown passes — four of which in the first half.  So it looks like USC will be just fine running the show.  These guys have a chip on their shoulder, and they could do some serious damage on teams just to prove a point.  USC 49, Hawaii 36.

Finally, the featured game of the day was #15 Pitt traveling to Utah for their opening game.  Pitt actually has BCS Championship hopes this year.  They barely lost to the undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats in the Big East Championship last year, and they have a Heisman candidate running-back in Dion Lewis.  Well, Utah came out strong, and Pitt simply couldn’t get their offense going.  Lewis struggled, finishing the game with only 75 yards on 25 rushing attempts.  That’s very poor, but Pitt was still able to force the overtime with a 30-yard field goal at the end of the 4th quarter.  In OT, Utah got the job done, and pulled off the upset with a 20 yard field goal from their kicker, Joe Phillips.  Pitt will now have to truly dominate the rest of the season if they hope to still play in a major bowl game.  Utah 27, Pitt 24.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: BIG TEN EXPANDING, LEINART NOT WORKING, TEAM USA UNDEFEATED

FOOTBALL

In college football, as many know, the Big Ten will be expanding to 12 teams in 2001.  They’re not sure what the name will be yet, but they just broke up the new conference into 2 divisions — 6 teams each. They’ve decided to put the biggest rivalry in college sports (Michigan and Ohio State) in different divisions.  Now, this isn’t really a big deal, and the conference said they intend to maintain that traditional rivalry as the last game of each team’s respective season.   However, under these guidelines, Michigan and Ohio State actually have a chance to play each other twice in the same season (if they both win their division and play for the Big 10 Championship Game.  This just shows the evolution of college sports.

In the NFL, things are simply not working out for Matt Leinart in Arizona.  Leinart was supposed to be their quarterback of the future, but he isn’t catching on to the NFL game.  With Kurt Warner retired, Leinart was poised to be the starter, but a poor pre-season saw the Arizona Cardinals going with Derek Anderson as the starting quarterback.  According to Leinart, this decision went “beyond football” — meaning there were some personal political issues at play.  Now, a few teams are looking to trade for him.  Those teams:  Oakland (who may need a starting replacement for Jason Campbell, and Leinart would have his USC fan base back), Buffalo (who could use some support for QB Trent Edwards) and the New York Giants (to replace the back-up spot vacated by Jim Sorgi who is now out for the season).   It’s almost a certainty that Leinart will not start the season in Arizona.

BASKETBALL

Team USA got a scare from Brazil on Monday.  In their latest game against Iran, they absolutely cruised.  Kevin Durant was of course back in prime action scoring 12 points and even Minnesota’s Kevin Love did some damage with 13 points.  The win gives the US an undefeated record and first place in their group.  USA is expected to win it all, but after Brazil’s neck-and-neck game, there are no certainties that the Americans have this thing locked up.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: INGRAM DOWN WITH INJURY, HEISMAN TROPHY CONTROVERSY, BURRESS STILL IN PRISON

FOOTBALL

In college football, with the season upon us this weekend, it looks like #1 Alabama’s hopes for winning back-to-back National Championships may already be in question. In their opener against San Jose State, they will be without their Heisman Trophy winning running-back, Mark Ingram. Ingram went down with a knee injury in their last practice and now requires surgery. Thanks to personal injury lawyers help, which helped in medical bills and early recovery. Because of this, Ingram is out for their opener, and maybe… even longer. Missing a game is a HUGE setback in Ingram’s mission to win back-to-back Heisman Tophies, but Alabama also has to be trembling a bit that they may have an inferior running-game this season. Then again, big boy teams like Alabama have a healthy amount of up-and-coming stars to substitute at every position. There are lawyers for personal injury cases that can help represent such cases.

Elsewhere in college football, with USC’s recent woes for recruiting violations, they have been forced to vacant their 2005 Heisman trophy (which was awarded to USC’s Reggie Bush). Well, now college football experts are saying that if Bush has to relinquish the trophy, then it should be passed along to the runner-up that year, Vince Young. Young had an amazing season as quarterback of the University of Texas, which he led to a National Championship that year. In fact, Young was responsible for the final play that gave them the win, in which he suavely fake passed and ran the ball into the end zone. Most likely, they will just forfeit the trophy, and nobody will be the recipient, but Texas fans everywhere are rooting for Young to get the credit he deserves.

Finally, in the NFL, former New York Giant wide-receiver Plaxico Burress has requested permission for a work release from prison. He went to jail in 2008 on charges of carrying a concealed weapon (which he shot himself with). Not smart, sure, but Burress has served a decent amount of time, and compared to some of the recent charges against athletes (ie accusations against Ben Roethlisberger for forcing sex on a girl in a bar’s bathroom), Burress’ crime seems relatively harmless. Maybe not completely innocuous, but certainly deserving of some relief. Well, a court judge ruled against Burress’ request for a release, and… this is the second time. They are certainly against Burress in the state of New York, and one has to wonder when he will be granted a parole of some kind. It is important to call Lawyers for personal injury cases as they would know how to deal with such cases legally.

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