Redemption

I love sports for the fact that anyone, at anytime can receive redemption. Miss a kick, next week you get a fresh start. Miss a pitch, next one you see..... gone good-bye. I have been away for a while for personal problems but all I ask for is redemption. And why not?! Ali got his with Foreman. Wilt received his with Russell. The Red Sox exercised their demons with the Yanks. Sports are alot like life when it comes to things. Redemption, redeem. Get a second chance. I may have thrown a bad pass, but heck, next one is going for six. Unitas was a classic when it came to redemption. He had his bad moments, but when it was all on the line he would look you in the face and tell you he had. Pride is gone, it is down to who wants it the most. Why do I want to be the best? Good, better, best, I will not rest until my good is better and my better is best. I have seen it a thousand, no a million times over. Times are down, things are tuff.... who cares we have all been there. It is what you do when you have the chance, the game moment. Life and sports are like a ballet of opportunities. They are interchanging, more over then over. The question is what will you do for redemption? How far will it take you? How far will you go? 1-2 curveball, will you swing? If Unitas let Rooney off the hook we may never know he was the greatest, the better. Give me 5 guys who need it the most and we can take down anything. It is not about what you do when things are down but what do you do when things are bleak. Quit? That is the easy way out. The Bills did that, they are 0-4 in the big game. The Mets choked down the stretch, why? Who wants it more?! It is not the dog in the fight but the fight in the dog. My bite is not as big as my bite, but I will never quit. I want to raise up the trophy. Ask the Pats, ask them. The Giants wanted it more. They needed the fight. The spotlight. I love sports, they are the most realistic glimpse at life. Where else can a person go from happy, to sad, to defeated, to "Oh man!! We won!!". I am back. I am here. I want to report what I think and feel (I know, bad rhyme, but who cares. Redemption.) Good, better, best. I will not rest. Until my good is better and my better is best,

I Thought I Knew, But Who Does?!

Ok, were to begin:
1)Brady done for the year..... no problem we will just start some guy that hasn't started a game since high school and win!!
2)Did somebody switch the Jags team with the University of Jacksonville? Can we wake up and do what you do best, pound the ball and make people wish they were playing anybody else.
3)Minnesota needs a fix in the passing game. Adrien Peterson is going to waste up there don't ya know.
4)I know the refs blew the game San Diego, but come on you shouldn't have been in that spot to begin with. You are way better then Carolina and Denver, wake up and stop crying.
5)The Rams, Seahawks, Dolphins, Bengals, Browns, Chiefs, 49ers, and Lions stink. I know the 49ers won yesterday but they are awful. These teams are a combined 1-15! Who is gonna get that number one choice? The next question would be, would you want to play for any of these teams if you were drafted?
6) Hello Bills! I called this one, probably one of my few good picks. They are 2-0 and coming off a big come from behind win at the Jags. Trent Edwards has a lot of moxie and guts. That D also plays with an enormous chip on it's shoulder. Good for the Fightin' Dick Jaurons!
7) Can the Jets get some guts and throw a pass when you are at the goaline? You only have Brett Farve at QB! Man, they let the Pats win even though they knocked Matt Cassell into next week.
8) How about Justin Tuck! Two sacks, an interception and a TD. Man, this guy is a true talent and think he is doing it with nobody on that line, besides him, who is worthy of a double team.
9) Romeo, Romeo, where for art thy fourth down try? Down 7 with 3 minutes to go and you send in the field goal team?!?! Great now the score is 10-6 and you need to stop the Steelers from running the ball to score, get this, a TD?!?! Have some balls and go for the zone. What faith they showed in their own Offense.
10) Good call by the NFL to postpone the Texans v. Ravens game in Texas. Not only did nobody want to watch this game, I am kidding Texan and Raven faithful, but Ike took out part of the Stadium's roof and made it a dangerous venue. Also, there are more important things then football. Good job for once putting people first and not the money.
I know I stole this bit from Peter King at Sports Illustrated, but I would like to think of it as a homage to him because he is one of my idols. I wish I could write half as good as the stuff he throws out. That is the NFL 10 Things I Thought I Knew.

NFC Picks

NFC East: I have to pick the Cowboys. I hate saying this but what is there not to like? There are complete on Offense, the D front 7 is as good as anyone in the league, and they, well, their just lighting fast everywhere. The addition of Adam "Don't call me sophisticated" Jones is a great one as long as he keeps his nose clean (don't hold your breath). I really hate giving the Cowboys credit so I am making this short. Marion Barber is a beast at RB. Done.
NFC North: The Vikings. I know they already lost to the Packers, but something tells me this team will get better over the year. I love the ground game with Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor in the backfield. The QB needs to get better but I think he will do enough to win. The D is one of the top 5 units in the NFL. They are so stubborn against the run and the pass D will get better with a pass rush. One of their receivers needs to step up his game and help Tarvaris Jackson mature as a QB. This team can make a nice push by taking positive steps in their offensive game.
NFC South: The Saints. I love the offense. Brees is so underrated I think I may start to reference the word by saying "Man, he is so good he is Breesed." The D is revamped but getting better. This division, except the Falcolns, is a crap shoot. I chose to go with the Saints. In the end I just like their QB better then Carolina's or Tampa Bay's. A lot of my pick has to do with Reggie Bush and his ability to become the impact player he was suppose to become when he was draft 2nd overall. Sean Payton might be the best mind when it comes to coaching the Offense side of the ball.
NFC West: Do I overrate the Cardinals and count out the Seahawks? Maybe I take the safe bet and go with the Seahawks? I am gonna go with my gut, I just think that the Cardinals will shine and make the quantum leap into the leader of this rag tag pack. The Cards have a former NFL MVP as their QB and the best, without a doubt, WR tandem in the world. Boldin and Fitzgerald are so gifted. You would need an extra 4 guys to cover them both. The D will be hit or miss. They are too inconsistent on that side of the ball to really contend but they will make enough big plays on the Defensive side of the ball.
Wild Card Teams: The Panthers and the Giants. Did you really think that I was gonna leave the G-men out in the cold? The Panthers are always a playoff team when healthy, but that is the problem. They are never healthy. Finally though, they are. Delhomme is due for a bounce back season, the O-Line is revamped and talented and that D is young and feisty. John Fox is still a great NFL mind, but can he still coach? Julius Peppers is due for a great season and that Jon Beason is a tackle machine.
Now, my Giants. I love the Offense. Eli is ready for a breakout season so is Brandon Jacobs. The O-line is one of the best in the NFL with Chris Snee as the anchor (and the underrated Shawn O'Hara). Justin Tuck is posed for an overall dominant season. The Super Bowl wasn't a fluke, he is ready to make the leap to the Pro Bowl. Aaron Ross is a stud CB and Webster is very solid on the other side. I am not ready to predict them to make another run at the Lombardi trophy, but I just don't think they will miss the playoffs.
I will be back very soon for my post-season picks. I have just been very lazy and nobody reads so what is the rush.

AFC Picks

Football started last night as the Giants beat the Redskins 16-7. With that said, I have my AFC picks for 2008. I will have my NFC picks and playoff picks soon.
AFC East: The Patriots will win the division again, yawn. They are still loaded on offense and we all know that no matter what they lose on D, they find a way to replace. They have the best QB/Coach combo in the NFL. They retooled the D with some youth and you would have to believe they may try to run the ball a little more this year.
AFC North: The Steelers will win by default. I don't think Cleveland is ready to contend, the Ravens stink, and well, the Bengals are about ready to implode. The Steelers will win with an old formula, Defense and pounding the ball. When the temperature drops in Pittsburgh the last thing you want is to have the ball crammed down your throat and the Steelers are known for this. They have played "Smash-Mouth Football" the best, historically. They have a tremendous RB combo with lighting (Fast Willie Parker) and thunder (Rashad Mendenhall). They have a tremendous and underrated LB corp and speed at the WR spot.
AFC South: The Jaguars will finally dethrone the Colts. Best unknown QB is David Garrard. Good ground attack and explosive depth at the WR position. They are the "No-Name-D" reincarnated. Stubborn defense, very good secondary. Coach Del Rio doesn't get enough credit. They challenged the Patriots, in case you forgot, in the playoffs last year. They can beat you many ways, either pound it on the ground, through the air, or flat out with D. Got to love the culture being built in Jacksonville, even if nobody shows up to watch them.
AFC West: The Chargers will win another division title. They might have the most all around talent of any team in the NFL. They are looking to make the next leap, and that is the Super Bowl. They fought tooth and nail, with out LaDainian Tomilinson, with the Patriots in New England last playoffs. The D will pressure you into mistakes if you let them. Phillip Rivers, their starting QB, grew up in the playoffs last year. Back up RB Darren Sproles is a slippery, quick back that can hit the home run with one touch. Great secondary, lead the league in interceptions last year. They get at the QB with the best of the D's in the NFL. If anyone can dethrone the Pats I feel it will be them, they are just so talented that it would be a waste if they never take the next step.
Wildcard Teams: Colts, and the Bills.
Colts will never be counted out with Eli's brother at the helm. Too much talent on the offense and they play on that turf (turf for the offense equals super hero speed). The D has too many questions. Dwight Freeney is coming off knee surgery and a guy who relies on his speed can really hurt his performance.
The Bills are my special pick. I just love the D and the RB is gonna be a special player. Marshawn Lynch is gonna explode on the scene this year with a breakout season. The D line is anchored by well over a quarter ton of beef with the two defensive tackles. Kyle Williams and Stroud are big old "Hog Mollies" in the middle. Trent Edwards will have growing pains at QB but he will do enough to get the Bills in the playoffs. Also, the best left tackle in football, Mr. Jason Peters, ended his holdout and will play this year.
These are my AFC picks. I will be back before the end of the weekend to finish up with my NFC and postseason picks.

My Captain, My Captain.......

Earl Morrall, former Baltimore Colt and John Unitas friend and teammate: "One of my best memories of him," Morrall said, "was after a game when he threw five interception. There were so many writers around John that I almost squeezed out of my own locker. I leaned in between arms and legs, straining to hear him. ' I threw five interceptions today,' he said, 'but we won. I'll be glad to throw five interceptions any day, if we win.' I wanted to cheer". Johnny U.

My Captain, my captain..... The quarterback is mythical. They stand 9 feet tall, 600 pounds, able to knock down buildings with their passes. Immortal, top dog, my captain. I love when all the talk about quarterbacks is brought to the stats argument. Marino would be the best, but that isn't how you weigh a quarterback.

After the Giants defeated the Packers on their way to the Super Bowl:

Michael Strahan: "Thank you for getting me there."

Eli Manning: "Now we have to win you one."

A quarterback has to be the most accountable individual on the field at all times. Everything is his fault even if it isn't. They must play with instinct, a sixth sense. Check off and make changes, they have to know where every player on his offense must be at all times. When they make a mistake, you can't throw your arms up and call out your teammates in clear sight. You do that quietly, then when the cameras and reporters ask you have to suck it up and say, "It was my call. The pass was thrown to the wrong place. I made the mistake." Quarterbacks have to be the leader, the Moses. He has to make you feel that your 11 can beat a whole army, navy, air force, and the Steelers all at once. The greats don't do it with robo-mechanics, they do it with instinct. John Unitas was asked once what the defense did on a certain play, he looked dead into that man's eyes and said "Shoot, I just threw to the open guy." Joe Cool, that was Joe Montana's nickname, not because he liked ice cream. Once (this is a true story) with the game on the line in the Super Bowl against the Bengals, in the huddle before the game winning touchdown, Joe got back to the huddle. Now this is what makes him cool, like a cucumber, instead of yelling and screaming or telling the play, the first thing he did when he got back to the huddle was look over to the endzone stands. Look back at the guys in the huddle and say, "Hey, isn't that John Candy over there?". The game is on the line and all he can do is try to ease the stress and the magnitude of the moment. That is a leader. John Elway, at the tender age of 39, decided to jump head first into two defenders just to get a first down in a Super Bowl. They will do whatever it takes for you to believe. As robotic as Peyton Manning may seem, he still checks off and calls plays he thinks will work when he has to. Great quarterbacks aren't built or grown on trees, they are natural born leaders. When you look at them, they make you feel like anything can be done. Look at what Eli did last post-season, you think the Giants didn't believe in him? They are the franchise, my captain. 9 times out of 10 you aren't winning the big game without them. Check back tomorrow for my football picks, and I promise I won't be a homer and pick the Giants to win it all just because they are my team. I will have solid reasons for my picks. Something tells me that the quarterback play will have alot to do with my picks.

"Do you need anything? How can I help? What can I do?

Johnny U

Who Left The Door Open And Let The Dog Run Off?

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH, GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD AFTERNOON EVERYBODY!! HOW ARE YOU TODAY? MIKE AND THE MADDOG HERE TO JOIN.

Chris "Maddog" Russo

Love them or hate them, Chris "Mad Dog" Russo and Mike Francesa made up the most popular talk show and reinvented how sports were talked. They would chat about anything sports worthy from 1-6:30 on WFAN 660 on the radio and were simulcasted on YES via tv. But, Doggie is gone, splitvilles. Oh man, will I miss him. Don't get me wrong I love Michael, but Doggie was the best. He would rant and scream, mispronounce names, and predict the Yankees wouldn't make the playoffs every stinking year. He was great. I actually got into a fight with Chris on the phone once about Ichro. I don't know what to do with myself. I loved listening and watching them. I loved when Chris would cry to Mike about how bad his Giants where or when they would just tease the producers of the show about anything. He was great. He had a way of making you hating him but still wanting to listen. He always made predictions that would never come true, he ranted about his kids, and he stepped all over the New York areas teams (his audience is primarily New York). But at the end of the day you just loved him. He was good for radio, he grilled guys in interviews. He once had a argument with Brian Cashman (New York Yankees G.M.) live on the air about some of his personnel moves. Doggie, doggie were will you surface. Rumor has it that it will be satellite radio, but that is just a rumor so far. What is Mike gonna do? I didn't get a chance to listen today to the show, first with the new developing news, because I am on a bus. I heard that Mike actually didn't care that he was solo, man I hope that isn't true after 19 years. I have been a devote fan for about 9 years, and I am broken up by this. I found out late last nite around 11:04 when I was playing Madden. Here I am riding high because the Mets are in first by a half game, full after the Phillies lost late last night, and I get this bombshell. If anybody is wondering why this is big news and why I even bloged about it then you don't get sports talk radio. They pioneered the whole method. They made the careers of alot of people. Go ask Mike and Mike what they did or see if the idiot in your town would be without these two. Love them and most people hate them, they made sports talk radio. They are part of New York pride, they are icons. Doggie, doggie where are you? So from now on I will never hear a grown man cry about his San Francisco Giants on the air, or hear about his weekend tennis outing. Below is a great clip from Doggie. It is a very amusing video, but the issue is very bad. It is when Adam "Pacman" Jones paralyzed somebody. The video is funning just because of how Doggie rants, the issue is very awful. To me, Adam "Thug" Jones should be in jail, but that is a whole nother can of worms. Trust me I will approach that topic now that Mr. Man has joined "America's Team", the Convicts or I mean the Cowboys. Just watch his anger, this was Doggie. These rants happen very often, especially when Michael wasn't in. Doggie, doggie.......



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zy6ShZYlj68

The Dog Days.....

"What you have to remember is that baseball isn't a week or a month but a season - and a season is a long time."

Chuck Tanner

Baseball takes forever. The season is a marathon, not a sprint. You could be leading the league in hitting or homers leaving April in the minors by May, just go ask Carlos Delgado and Chris Shelton. The season starts in Spring and ends in Fall! Think about that the next time you sip you lemonade on a hot summer day. I love it, I can't get enough baseball. I watch the Caribbean World Series in the winter. Baseball is the greatest gift to sports. I know, I know football is the new hotness. Give me baseball any day. I can watch the Mets over and over again ,even when they lose, and never tire. The stretch run, August is upon us. Last August I was coasting with the Mets in first place, then came September. Oh, September you bitch. What a collapse, I was in a month long nightmare. I didn't want to speak. I tried everything, I changed the way I watched, I tried lucky socks, I ate chicken (Ask Wade Boggs, that was all he ate before games. He landed in the Baseball Hall of Fame.), name it. Now I have this new season, but somehow that bitter taste is still there. It is official, the Phillies are my worst hated team. I actually rooted for the Braves against them, THE BRAVES!!!! Jimmy Rollins is public enemy. Chase Utley, I would walk straight up to him and punch him. I hate Philly, I truly do!
The "dog days", August is a long month. This is when arms start to tire and new heroes are made. Rookie call ups, or journey men flash in the pans. The win/lose column is broken down in every way imaginable. One game here or there and start making golf plans for October. So enjoy the last month in a half, and i will be there at the end to write about the start of the playoffs.