RANDOM THOUGHTS:
The following were on my mind between Thursday, November 19th and Monday, November 23rd:
- Pretty good to the season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm." Pretty...pretty...pretty good. I thought the flow between the "Seinfeld" and the world of the show was really well done and I liked how it all came out in the end. Plus, Larry and Cheryl got together (I think, because what happened at the end with the whole respecting wood bit may have gotten Cheryl to remember whys she left him in the first place and she called the whole thing off) and their were some nice moments in it too like Larry trying to play George Castanza, the stare-down between Larry and Jerry Seinfeld and the tipping by Larry to Mocha Joe.
Having said that (see what I did just now?) it wasn't as great of a season finale as the previous three were and since most of the moments from the Seinfeld reunion* script was recycled from last week's episode, it wasn't that funny. Also, no Leon OR Marty Funkhouser? The show was 40% less funny because of that. Overall, while it was not the best episode of the season, it was still in the top five, along with "Vehicular Felatio," "Denise Handicapped," "Officer Krupke," and "The Table Read," and I can't wait for the next season (whenever and ifever it happens).
- "What are they doing?!" "WHAT ARE THEY DOING?!" Geez, Verne Lundquist, tell us how you really feel!
- Boy, how great was that Browns-Lions game? You almost forgot for a second how both these teams suck. I also feel kind of sad for the Lions, as this game happened the Sunday before Thanksgiving, when the game was being blacked out in Detroit, and not on Thanksgiving itself, when most football fans in the country will be watching it.
- Al Gore sounds very drowsy while narrating the end of "An Inconveniant Truth," as if he hadn't slept for hours.
- The safety is the most important position in football, next to the quarterback. I mean, look how bad the Steelers are without Troy Polamalu, or how worse the Colts are defensively without Bob Sanders, or how bad the Bears are without Mike Borwn, or how the Ealges secondary is worse without Brian Dawkins.
- I hope the Bears don't play on Sunday Night Football anymore this season. Not only do the Bears struggle while playing during the games, but I'm also tired of hearing Al Michaels saying the same things about the team (mostly about Jay Cutler), like:
"Jay Cutler and Earl Bennett were teammates at Venderbilt when Cutler was a senior and Bennett was a freshman"
" Jay Cutler" blah, blah, blah "savior" blah, blah, blah "not working out"
" So far, Jay Cutler has not been ready for Sunday Night"
- Thanksgiving is just simply awesome. You can spend time with your loved ones, eat as much food as possible, do anything you want after that AND you get a day off the next day for no real reason whatsoever.
- Dear NBC, FOX, CBS, ESPN and the NFL Network,
When showing coverage of a Bears game, please stop showing reactions of Lovie Smith after every bad play against Chicago. All he does is look up into space and act like nothing just happened. That's it. Don't expect a moment where he actually shows some emotion. Also, I'm sick of looking at his dazed and confused face. That is all.
And that's that (man, I've got to make better concluding sentences!). I'm not sure if I really want to do another random thoughts post this week, with Thanksgiving break and all that, so just keep out for lookout later this week. Until then, enjoy your Thanksgiving planning.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
End of the Week: 11/15/09- 11/21/09
END OF THE WEEK:
You know, I normally don't say this, but thank goodness this week is over! No offense to this, the 46th week of 2009, but now that it's over we are officially in Thanksgiving week, one of the best weeks of the US calendar along with the week of Christmas, New Year's Day week, Spring Break and the first week of the NCAA basketball tournament (with Shark Week as a close runner-up). Still, the week was pretty okay and, yes, it did have some interesting moments. The following, to name a few, are some of them:
Word of the Week: "Rougue"
as in, one of the two words on the title of Sarah Palin's new book, "Going Rogue." While no one probably read the book, it was talked about everywhere from the former Alaskan governor's TV interviews to mainstream media everywhere. Personally, I don't care for the meaning of the word, but after this week I just don't want to hear it for a long time.
Controversy of the Week: The ending to the Ireland/ France World Cup qualifying game.
Okay, so here's what happened. On Wednesday, France and Ireland play a game in which the winner would go to the World Cup and the loser wouldn't. Ireland needed to win to get the spot, but if they lost or tied then France would get the spot. So when Ireland was leading in overtime 1-0, you could imagine things were going pretty okay in Ireland. That, is until the French scored this goal a few minutes later that led to a tie and eventually the spot in the World Cup:
As you can see, Henry not only used his hand to set up the goal, but he was also offsides, two things that are illegal in soccer for those who don't know. As you can expect, supporters of the Ireland soccer team were not happy, and some even comparing it to the "Hand of God" goal:
---The Irish Independent: "We needed that slice of luck and dammit, we just didn't get it. The French,
much maligned and booed off the pitch at half time in the regulation 90
minutes, literally nicked it.
Like master burglars, after being bossed and tossed around their own stadium
by a superb, defiant Irish team, France
stole the win in extra time.
And stole would be the operative word."
---Ireland defender Sean St. Ledger: “We got robbed, you can tell by the boys’ reaction it hit his hand blatantly.
---Some commenters from The Sun:
-"There's nothing to debate here - Henry is a cheat, a disgrace and his
legacy will be that of a flat-track bully who went missing in the big
games, and didn't have the guts to do the right thing when it mattered.
Shame on him. Shame on France. Shame on Fifa."
- "Such a wonderful example to set the young future Sportsmen ? What a
role model Mr Henry is! How can he look himself in the mirror? I tell
you what if they are in Cape Town this is one guy that will have ALL
his french expletives ready for him and his bunch of cheats!"
-"Theirry Henry has lost my respect from now on! HOW DARE HE CHEAT
IRELAND OUT OF THE WORLD CUP? Im part Irish so it is hurting me as well
as the Irish team! From now on, no matter where Henry goes or what he
does, (or that bloody Gelette advert he appears on!) he will be forever
more remembered as a cheat with football. The best player in the world?
EAT MY SHORTS! HE'S A BLOODY CHEAT AND ALWAYS WILL
BE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
- "Were you watching Mr Blatter? Were you watching Mr Platini? How many
more blatant referee errors must football fans endure costing millions
of dollars to the unfortunate clubs and countries before video replays
are introduced? The technology is available, the injustice to Ireland
could have been avoided in a matter of a few seconds as many other
recent injustices in other matches could have been. But NO, the two of
you are simply being obstinate! I cannot wait for the day when somebody
has the balls to sue FIFA, EUFA and yourselves personally for the
millions that your stubborn refusal to introduce the simple available
technology cost the injured parties. PLEASE, move with the times or GET
OUT OF OUR GAME!"
--- Commenters from The Independent:
- "Its good to see that thieves stick together.........the french and english hand in hand."
- "I for one feel Ireland were robbed.Thief Henry admits as much
Playing against former chamomps and the ref Ireland held on for 3 hrs play .
Hardly surprising they couldn't compete with Maradona style robbery,he too will be in RSAdevalued FIFA finals and concentrate on following Alan Bates Cycling World record .Perhaps
after 800 year loan UK could return the 6 counties provided they agree
to take the tinkers, The Nolans and themed pubs too."
- It just goes to show cheating pays what a great message to give to young people football has been let down if this result is allowed to stand.
Man, those are some angry Brits and Irishmen! Now, the controversy isn't with the goal, because Thierry Henry himself said that it was handball. The controversy mostly involves the fact that basically everyone in the world (even the French) wants a rematch between the two but FIFA won't let that happen. Apparently, they've been copying the "how to handle controversy" handbook from the SEC and MLB.
Video of the Week: "Today Show Contest Winner Reaction"
So, the contest reactions on Radio Disney are real. (Warning: if heard between 0:25- 0:35, this video can cause ringing, or even deafness, to your ears. Viewer discretion is advised):
Story of the Week: Marv Albert Gets In a Scuffle With 50 Cent and His Posse Backstage of "Jimmy Kimmel Live" Studio
Why was this my story of the week, you ask? Because it's not very often you hear the words "Marv Albert," "50 Cent," and "fight" together unless it involves them watching the same boxing match at an arena. Also, there hasn't been any weird story with Marv Albert since that 1997 incident, so there. By the way, I wonder how the incident started? Must've been quite fascinating.
Person of the Week: This anonymous cop from Seattle
who gave ESPN.com and part-time douche Bill Simmons and his friends a speeding ticket. On his Friday column for the website in which he used at least 2,000,000 words to talk about that 4th and 2 call by Bill Belichick that everyone was already sick of hearing, wrote about this little thing that happened during his "The Book of Basketball" book tour in Seattle:
"Seattle loves me for defending its Sonics after Clay Bennett
hijacked the team and moved it elsewhere. If there was ever a place I
could get out of a speeding ticket, it's Seattle. Or so I thought.
Me (big smile): “Were you a big Sonics fan? Because-”
"It’s one thing to pull the “Do you know who I am?” bullshit with a cop.
It’s another to assume that people will find that story charming. Oh,
and Simmons also uses his column to brag that he used to watch 12 hours
of football every Sunday when he was in elementary school, which is
funny because Sunday Night Football didn’t start until 1987, when he
was 18 years old."
And, that's all folks! Now, of course, there were some other notable things that just missed the post, such as Oprah Winfrey's teary announcement that her show will end in 2011, the release of "New Moon," the story of the possible Eggo Waffle shortage, the Oxford dictionary announcing that "unfriend," "teabagger," and "birther" were the top words of 2009 and the news that the season premiere of Chuck will be back on January 10th (yay!). But, I ended up choosing these becuase I really felt that these stories stood out the most. Anyways, enjoy the rest of your weekend, everybody!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
You know, I normally don't say this, but thank goodness this week is over! No offense to this, the 46th week of 2009, but now that it's over we are officially in Thanksgiving week, one of the best weeks of the US calendar along with the week of Christmas, New Year's Day week, Spring Break and the first week of the NCAA basketball tournament (with Shark Week as a close runner-up). Still, the week was pretty okay and, yes, it did have some interesting moments. The following, to name a few, are some of them:
Word of the Week: "Rougue"
as in, one of the two words on the title of Sarah Palin's new book, "Going Rogue." While no one probably read the book, it was talked about everywhere from the former Alaskan governor's TV interviews to mainstream media everywhere. Personally, I don't care for the meaning of the word, but after this week I just don't want to hear it for a long time.
Controversy of the Week: The ending to the Ireland/ France World Cup qualifying game.
Okay, so here's what happened. On Wednesday, France and Ireland play a game in which the winner would go to the World Cup and the loser wouldn't. Ireland needed to win to get the spot, but if they lost or tied then France would get the spot. So when Ireland was leading in overtime 1-0, you could imagine things were going pretty okay in Ireland. That, is until the French scored this goal a few minutes later that led to a tie and eventually the spot in the World Cup:
As you can see, Henry not only used his hand to set up the goal, but he was also offsides, two things that are illegal in soccer for those who don't know. As you can expect, supporters of the Ireland soccer team were not happy, and some even comparing it to the "Hand of God" goal:
---The Irish Independent: "We needed that slice of luck and dammit, we just didn't get it. The French,
much maligned and booed off the pitch at half time in the regulation 90
minutes, literally nicked it.
Like master burglars, after being bossed and tossed around their own stadium
by a superb, defiant Irish team, France
stole the win in extra time.
And stole would be the operative word."
---Ireland defender Sean St. Ledger: “We got robbed, you can tell by the boys’ reaction it hit his hand blatantly.
---Some commenters from The Sun:
-"There's nothing to debate here - Henry is a cheat, a disgrace and his
legacy will be that of a flat-track bully who went missing in the big
games, and didn't have the guts to do the right thing when it mattered.
Shame on him. Shame on France. Shame on Fifa."
- "Such a wonderful example to set the young future Sportsmen ? What a
role model Mr Henry is! How can he look himself in the mirror? I tell
you what if they are in Cape Town this is one guy that will have ALL
his french expletives ready for him and his bunch of cheats!"
-"Theirry Henry has lost my respect from now on! HOW DARE HE CHEAT
IRELAND OUT OF THE WORLD CUP? Im part Irish so it is hurting me as well
as the Irish team! From now on, no matter where Henry goes or what he
does, (or that bloody Gelette advert he appears on!) he will be forever
more remembered as a cheat with football. The best player in the world?
EAT MY SHORTS! HE'S A BLOODY CHEAT AND ALWAYS WILL
BE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
- "Were you watching Mr Blatter? Were you watching Mr Platini? How many
more blatant referee errors must football fans endure costing millions
of dollars to the unfortunate clubs and countries before video replays
are introduced? The technology is available, the injustice to Ireland
could have been avoided in a matter of a few seconds as many other
recent injustices in other matches could have been. But NO, the two of
you are simply being obstinate! I cannot wait for the day when somebody
has the balls to sue FIFA, EUFA and yourselves personally for the
millions that your stubborn refusal to introduce the simple available
technology cost the injured parties. PLEASE, move with the times or GET
OUT OF OUR GAME!"
--- Commenters from The Independent:
- "Its good to see that thieves stick together.........the french and english hand in hand."
- "I for one feel Ireland were robbed.Thief Henry admits as much
Playing against former chamomps and the ref Ireland held on for 3 hrs play .
Hardly surprising they couldn't compete with Maradona style robbery,he too will be in RSAdevalued FIFA finals and concentrate on following Alan Bates Cycling World record .Perhaps
after 800 year loan UK could return the 6 counties provided they agree
to take the tinkers, The Nolans and themed pubs too."
- It just goes to show cheating pays what a great message to give to young people football has been let down if this result is allowed to stand.
Man, those are some angry Brits and Irishmen! Now, the controversy isn't with the goal, because Thierry Henry himself said that it was handball. The controversy mostly involves the fact that basically everyone in the world (even the French) wants a rematch between the two but FIFA won't let that happen. Apparently, they've been copying the "how to handle controversy" handbook from the SEC and MLB.
Video of the Week: "Today Show Contest Winner Reaction"
So, the contest reactions on Radio Disney are real. (Warning: if heard between 0:25- 0:35, this video can cause ringing, or even deafness, to your ears. Viewer discretion is advised):
Story of the Week: Marv Albert Gets In a Scuffle With 50 Cent and His Posse Backstage of "Jimmy Kimmel Live" Studio
Why was this my story of the week, you ask? Because it's not very often you hear the words "Marv Albert," "50 Cent," and "fight" together unless it involves them watching the same boxing match at an arena. Also, there hasn't been any weird story with Marv Albert since that 1997 incident, so there. By the way, I wonder how the incident started? Must've been quite fascinating.
Person of the Week: This anonymous cop from Seattle
who gave ESPN.com and part-time douche Bill Simmons and his friends a speeding ticket. On his Friday column for the website in which he used at least 2,000,000 words to talk about that 4th and 2 call by Bill Belichick that everyone was already sick of hearing, wrote about this little thing that happened during his "The Book of Basketball" book tour in Seattle:
"Seattle loves me for defending its Sonics after Clay Bennett
hijacked the team and moved it elsewhere. If there was ever a place I
could get out of a speeding ticket, it's Seattle. Or so I thought.
Anyway,
I shot out of Seattle like a bat out of hell. We were weaving between
lanes and going about 90. Twenty minutes into the drive, still in the
outskirts of Seattle, we were arguing about why navigation systems
don't come with different voices -- for example, we should be able to
have Morgan Freeman be our nav-narrator-or, even better, Sam Jackson as
Jules in "Pulp Fiction" ("I told you to take a motherf---ing right, you
dumbass!) -- and I stopped paying attention to things like "Is there a
cop car behind me?" Which there was. He pulled us over, walked over to
my driver's side and somewhat angrily asked why I was going so fast. I
explained that we were trying to get to Portland and apologized for my
speed. He asked for my license and registration. Then we had this
exchange:
I shot out of Seattle like a bat out of hell. We were weaving between
lanes and going about 90. Twenty minutes into the drive, still in the
outskirts of Seattle, we were arguing about why navigation systems
don't come with different voices -- for example, we should be able to
have Morgan Freeman be our nav-narrator-or, even better, Sam Jackson as
Jules in "Pulp Fiction" ("I told you to take a motherf---ing right, you
dumbass!) -- and I stopped paying attention to things like "Is there a
cop car behind me?" Which there was. He pulled us over, walked over to
my driver's side and somewhat angrily asked why I was going so fast. I
explained that we were trying to get to Portland and apologized for my
speed. He asked for my license and registration. Then we had this
exchange:
Me (big smile): “Were you a big Sonics fan? Because-”
Him (frowns): “No.”
And he walked away with my license. "
Whoever that cop is, he should receive some big reward and a thank you from America. I mean, I like Bill Simmons and his columns, but as Kissing Suzy Kolber.com on Friday put it best:
"It’s one thing to pull the “Do you know who I am?” bullshit with a cop.
It’s another to assume that people will find that story charming. Oh,
and Simmons also uses his column to brag that he used to watch 12 hours
of football every Sunday when he was in elementary school, which is
funny because Sunday Night Football didn’t start until 1987, when he
was 18 years old."
And, that's all folks! Now, of course, there were some other notable things that just missed the post, such as Oprah Winfrey's teary announcement that her show will end in 2011, the release of "New Moon," the story of the possible Eggo Waffle shortage, the Oxford dictionary announcing that "unfriend," "teabagger," and "birther" were the top words of 2009 and the news that the season premiere of Chuck will be back on January 10th (yay!). But, I ended up choosing these becuase I really felt that these stories stood out the most. Anyways, enjoy the rest of your weekend, everybody!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
| |
Random Thoughts: 11/16/09- 11/19/09
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
The following were on my mind between Monday, November 16th and Thursday, November 19th:
- Turkeys, pumpkin pies, THREE football games on a Thursday and an extra day off after it. I can't wait for Thanksgiving next week!
- How come it costs less to make prescription medicine than McDonalds beef, but it costs more to buy it? I'm not sayin', but I'm just sayin'.
- The freshman kid from "Dazed and Confused" that plays for the Giants is the best pitcher in baseball.
- For some reason, college basketball's annual return is more unsuspecting than any other league in sports. That, or MLS.
- From Leon's talk with Micheal Richards to Marty Funkhouser's joke, last week's episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" was terrific, possibly the best out of this great season. Can't wait for next week's season finale!
- Great, just what you need: a bunch of angry Irishmen! (http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=700747&sec=worldcup2010&cc=5901)
- Fact: My school is having a special week commemorating the movie release of "New Moon." We've even got a countdown clock and posters of it in our library!
Opinion: This is yet another reason why the majority of my school sucks.
- You think Pats fans were angry when they lost to the Colts? Wait until you see some of the comments from Ireland about the France- Ireland soccer game:
(http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/hand-gaul-ireland-furious-as-henry-snatches-victory-1823317.html)
Even though I have dozens of more thoughts about the Ireland-France controversy, I'm going to end it there. New random thoughts return this Monday! Until then, here's another great edition of the "Beatle-tastic Song of the Week" for you. Tonight, we bring you a classic from the year 1969 that I really can't believe it took until now to bring it here. Ladies and gentleman, from the Beatles' 1969 album "Abbey Road," I give you, "Come Together." Enjoy:
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
The following were on my mind between Monday, November 16th and Thursday, November 19th:
- Turkeys, pumpkin pies, THREE football games on a Thursday and an extra day off after it. I can't wait for Thanksgiving next week!
- How come it costs less to make prescription medicine than McDonalds beef, but it costs more to buy it? I'm not sayin', but I'm just sayin'.
- The freshman kid from "Dazed and Confused" that plays for the Giants is the best pitcher in baseball.
- For some reason, college basketball's annual return is more unsuspecting than any other league in sports. That, or MLS.
- From Leon's talk with Micheal Richards to Marty Funkhouser's joke, last week's episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" was terrific, possibly the best out of this great season. Can't wait for next week's season finale!
- Great, just what you need: a bunch of angry Irishmen! (http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=700747&sec=worldcup2010&cc=5901)
- Fact: My school is having a special week commemorating the movie release of "New Moon." We've even got a countdown clock and posters of it in our library!
Opinion: This is yet another reason why the majority of my school sucks.
- You think Pats fans were angry when they lost to the Colts? Wait until you see some of the comments from Ireland about the France- Ireland soccer game:
(http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/internationals/hand-gaul-ireland-furious-as-henry-snatches-victory-1823317.html)
Even though I have dozens of more thoughts about the Ireland-France controversy, I'm going to end it there. New random thoughts return this Monday! Until then, here's another great edition of the "Beatle-tastic Song of the Week" for you. Tonight, we bring you a classic from the year 1969 that I really can't believe it took until now to bring it here. Ladies and gentleman, from the Beatles' 1969 album "Abbey Road," I give you, "Come Together." Enjoy:
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
2009 NFL Predictions: Week 11
No cute little title or article for this week's column. I'm trying to sober up for this week's post after last week's season worst 7-8 record. I still can not believe I actually had that kind of record, especially after I was starting to improve on a weekly basis (mj50 finished 8-7 by the way, winning for the third time this season). I will comment, though, on how good some of these games are. Seriously! You can easily put seven of these afternoon games on primetime. But that's it. Anyways, here are my picks for the games for week 11 (the first week with all thirty teams playing for the first time since week 3, by the way) of the 2009 NFL season.
Let's begin (note: game times are based on the Central time zone):
Miami Dolphins vs. Carolina Panthers (-3): Thursday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Carolina
All right, so on we go this week with what you can call the first "normal" Thursday night game of the season between some pretty good sleeper teams. You have the Dolphins, who are 5-5 but we all know could easily be 8-2 if things had gone their way on a few occasions, and the Panthers, who despite struggling early have rebounded with a running game and a defense that's actually showing sign's of last year's greatness. Now, I could go many ways defending my pick. Instead, I'm going to give you four words: Ronnie Brown's foot injury. That's right, folks, the general of the only thing the Dolphins are great at, the Wildcat offense, is out for the season because of it. That big loss which will no doubt decrease their play significantly, plus the fact that Steve Smith will have a big week against the 27th ranked passing defense, is why the Panthers will win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Carolina
Jimmy Clausen/ Ndamukong Sun Bowl II
[a.k.a. Cleveland Browns vs. Detroit Lions (-3.5)]: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Detroit
Or at least that's how the NFL should name this game because the losing team will most likely end up taking one of these two players when they get the #1 pick in April. It will definetly make this game more interesting to watch by 2000%. (Rams beat the Lions in Clausen/ Sun Bowl I in week 8, by the way). Anyways, due to both teams failures it was really tough for me to think of a reason to defend my pick of the Lions. I ended up puting the homefield advantage of the Lions "despite sucking one week, the Browns manage continue sucking worse the next week" as my only two reasons, so there you go.
mj50s' pick: Cleveland
Buffalo Bills vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-8.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Jacksonville
This game can be best summarize as a game between two teams going in two completly different directions. The Jaguars are currently 5-4, which is behind only the Chargers for the 6th place spot in the playoffs. The game though at home? Still not sold out, meaning another blackout is possibly on it way (note that the team is 3-1 at home this season). The Bills, meanwhile, can be best summarized by new head coach Perry Fewell: "We are who we are," which is a team that can't play offense, lacks team leadership and, above all, is inadequate at best. Jacksonville will win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Buffalo
Pittsburgh Steelers (-10) vs. Kansas City Chiefs: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Pittsburgh
If the Steelers were to play any good team this week, I would've given you the record with Troy Polamalu starting (5-1) and Troy Polamalu not starting (0-3), then I would've picked the other team. But the Steelers' opponent isn't a good team. Instead, it's the 1-8 Kansas City Chiefs, a team the Steelers can beat with Polamalu out 99 out of 100 times. So I'm picking the Steelers to clobber in this one.
mj50's pick: Pittsburgh
Indianapolis Colts (-1) vs. Baltimore Ravens: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Baltimore
Great! Last week it was the whole "Ravens coming back to Cleveland" stroyline that was talked about nearly 30% of the Ravens- Browns Monday night game last week, and now we're going to see the whole "Colts are coming back to Baltimore" storyline 25% of the game this week. You know it's coming. Now onto my pick: If there's one thing that we saw the last few weeks from the Colts is that the great offense has time and time again saved Indy from the bad play of the Colts defense. Unfortunately for Indy, I see that luck stopping for them this week against the 7th ranked defense, 11th ranked offense, Joe Flacco led, Ray Rice as running back, and homefield advantage-ing Baltimore Ravens. Count on it.
mj50's pick: Indianapolis
Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Giants (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New York
New York is coming off a bye-week well rested (Eli Manning says that the ankle injury is feeling much better) and well focused (they know they're better than their 5-4 record and they're readt to show it). Atlanta and Matt Ryan have significantly decreased in performance on the road. Who do you think I'm picking?
mj50's pick: Atlanta
San Fransisco 49ers vs. Green Bay Packers (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Green Bay
These two teams coming off with big victories against the Bears (still mad) and the Cowboys respevtively. The question is, who's victory (besides the talent and stats) will help more in this game? I say the Packers. Most of America knew San Fransisco was going to win, nut not the Packers. The had to win it, and they did, and the way they did will get the entire team (especially the defense) feel more confident heading into this mathcup. Besides, do you really believe that a West Coast team playing a 12:00 game with Alex Smith as the quarterback will win the game, or ANY 12:00 game in that matter? I don't think so.
mj50's pick:
Seattle Seahawks vs. Minnesota Vikings (-10.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Minnesota
The West Coast team playing a 12:00 game theory has only been proven wrong twice this season. It shouldn't fail for a third time against Brett Favre and the 8-1 Vikings. It really shouldn't.
mj50's pick: Minnesota
Washington Redskins vs. Dallas Cowboys (-11): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Dallas
Dallas will win. No doubt. Romo and the boys are terrific before Thanksgiving and the Redkins, well, let's just say they were pretty lucky Kyle Orton was injured or they probably would've lost again. However, it will be pretty close. After all, the Redksins- Cowboys is so big in DC, the Redsking will definetly prepare with more focus and awareness than usual.
mj50's pick: Dallas
New Orleans Saints (-11.5) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tampa Bay
That's right, I said it! I'm predicting that the Saints will fall to the Bucs! Go ahead, criticize me! I wouldn't mind, considering that you might be right. But there's something about Josh Freeman that makes the Bucs such a sexy pick. Plus, the Saints usually have a tough time in Tampa. Take last year, for example. Drew Brees had a 5,000 yard season last year and then could barely throw 100 against the Bucs in Tampa in which the Saints LOST. Besides, I have to have at least one pick this season in which everybody questions it, right? Right?
mj50's pick: New Orleans
Arizona Cardinals (-9) vs. St. Louis Rams: Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: Arizona
Kurt Warner is just on a tear right now, getting 8 touchdowns since teh five interception game two weeks ago. And, I don't know if I'm just crazy or something, but I think the hot streak just might continue against the 25th ranked pass defense. Again, I might just be crazy.
mj50's pick: Arizona
New York Jets vs. New England Patriots (-10.5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: New England
Before I made this pick, I had to ask something. How should I feel about the report that Jets head coach Rex Ryan cried during a team meeting this week? Am I supposed to feel sad for the Jets? Am I supposed to see this as his trash talking from August and September coming back to haunt his struggling team? Am I supposed to see this as a technique to try to get his team to start winning games? Becuase I really believe that this news is the true way to determine how the Jets will de the next six weeks. But most importantly this game, because I had a slight feeling that this little moment could give New York just enough emotion to give the team the victory on Sunday.
And though it might be, I then quickly diverted my attention to the fact that the Patriots will come to the game angry and with a chip on their shoulder after the Colts (or even the refs) stole a victory from them last week. They're also at home and also lost once to the Jets at home this decade with Tom Brady at QB. PLus, the Jets just simply cannot be trusted. Just when you think they could get on a roll or get a win, they dissapoint you like last year or the past month. In conclusion, I'm taking the Pats in a close one.
mj50's pick: New England
Cincinnati Bengals (-9.5) vs. Oakland Raiders: Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Cincinnati
Poor Oakland. Just when you think the Raiders will finally get a win, they end up having a rookie wide receiver catch the ball, then drop it and have it intercepted on the final drive of the game. Not to mention the fact that this came just when Bruce Gradkowski was going to become a hero in Oakland. As for the Bengals, everything just seems to be going right for them as they continue to win against some of the best teams in the AFC, including the Steelers and Ravens twice. In short, Bengals will win... BIG, even without Cedric Benson (Larry Johnson is still a pretty good backup and, last time I checked, they have Carson Palmer).
mj50's pick: Cincinnati
San Diego Chargers (-3) vs. Denver Broncos: Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: San Diego
If you're still reading this (and I applaud you for it) you may have noticed a reoccuring answer to most of my picks. Last week, it was "Look. At. The. Records." This week, it is that one team has been on a pretty good roll while the other is just having bad luck all over. This theme continues with this game. The Chargers have one three straight and has found a way to get back in first place. The Bronco, since I went on their bandwagon (weird, you'd figure I'd did that on purpose) have lost three straught, lost their three game lead in the division and possibly lost their starting quarterback to the same injury that effected him in a bad way here in Chicago last year.
But that's not why I picked San Diego. I picked San Diego because they're probably the best team in the NFL when they're on a roll like they are right now. Also, Kyle Orton might not play, ehich means that Chris Simms, who laye the biggest egg this NFL season last week, will start. That is why I picked the Chargers to win.
mj50's pick: Denver
Philadelphia Eagles (-3) vs. Chicago Bears: Sunday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Philadelphia
This was really hard to do because I haven't picked against the Bears in two years. So, believe me, you knwo that I'm serious about this pick. Two reason why:
1. Jay Cutler has thrown 11 of his 19 INTs in night games. Expect to see at least one this week, possibly one that will cost the team the game.
2. Donovan McNabb against the Bears defense is a matchup just too mismatched in favor of the Philly QB.
3. The Bears are done. Period. They have no shot.
Then again, Philadeplhia is still in the middle of their cycle in which they start playing badly and the entire population of Philadelphia starts acting like it's the end of the world, so I'm not sure.
mj50's pick: Chicago
Tennessee Titans vs. Houston Texans (-5): Monday- 7:30 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tennessee
Before I begin, since we're talking about Tennessee, I just want to show you this video of Titans owner Bud Adams (in his 80s I might add) flipping the bird to fans in the stands. No reason whatsoever, just think it's funny:
Anyways... Wow! What a game this should be against two teams that are simply on a roll. The Titans are just incredible withe the play of Chris Johnson and the Texans are still making those people who never gave up on them (like a certain someone) proud. It was so hard fo me to pick a winner in this one because I see scenarios in which each of these teams can win. Now, while, I don't see the Titans win all their remaining games this season. However, the fact that they won two of their last three Monday Night Football games and have a 5-2 against the Texans. Plus, I still have this slight feeling that Vince Young still hasn't forgotten the Texans for passing on him in the draft, so I expect to see him putting up his best performance of the year. In conclusion, I expect to see the Titans beat the Texans in one of this week's most exciting and nail biting games.
mj50s' pick: Houston
RECAP
The Undertaker at "WrestleMania" "Lock of the Week":
Pittsburgh over Kansas City
The Miracle on Ice "Upset of the Week":
Tampa Bay over New Orleans
The "Goodfellas" vs. "The Godfather" "I'm Not Sure" Pick:
Tennessee over Houston
Week 11 recap, week 12 picks and a nice, long opening topic (if this week works out for me) next Wednesday! Until then, enjoy... well, not your weekend because it's Wednesday. Ummmm... how does end of the workweek sound instead?
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If
you have any opinions on the week ten predictions or anything else on
this post, or if you have any suggestions to mj15 on his next blog
entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
Let's begin (note: game times are based on the Central time zone):
Miami Dolphins vs. Carolina Panthers (-3): Thursday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Carolina
All right, so on we go this week with what you can call the first "normal" Thursday night game of the season between some pretty good sleeper teams. You have the Dolphins, who are 5-5 but we all know could easily be 8-2 if things had gone their way on a few occasions, and the Panthers, who despite struggling early have rebounded with a running game and a defense that's actually showing sign's of last year's greatness. Now, I could go many ways defending my pick. Instead, I'm going to give you four words: Ronnie Brown's foot injury. That's right, folks, the general of the only thing the Dolphins are great at, the Wildcat offense, is out for the season because of it. That big loss which will no doubt decrease their play significantly, plus the fact that Steve Smith will have a big week against the 27th ranked passing defense, is why the Panthers will win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Carolina
Jimmy Clausen/ Ndamukong Sun Bowl II
[a.k.a. Cleveland Browns vs. Detroit Lions (-3.5)]: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Detroit
Or at least that's how the NFL should name this game because the losing team will most likely end up taking one of these two players when they get the #1 pick in April. It will definetly make this game more interesting to watch by 2000%. (Rams beat the Lions in Clausen/ Sun Bowl I in week 8, by the way). Anyways, due to both teams failures it was really tough for me to think of a reason to defend my pick of the Lions. I ended up puting the homefield advantage of the Lions "despite sucking one week, the Browns manage continue sucking worse the next week" as my only two reasons, so there you go.
mj50s' pick: Cleveland
Buffalo Bills vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-8.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Jacksonville
This game can be best summarize as a game between two teams going in two completly different directions. The Jaguars are currently 5-4, which is behind only the Chargers for the 6th place spot in the playoffs. The game though at home? Still not sold out, meaning another blackout is possibly on it way (note that the team is 3-1 at home this season). The Bills, meanwhile, can be best summarized by new head coach Perry Fewell: "We are who we are," which is a team that can't play offense, lacks team leadership and, above all, is inadequate at best. Jacksonville will win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Buffalo
Pittsburgh Steelers (-10) vs. Kansas City Chiefs: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Pittsburgh
If the Steelers were to play any good team this week, I would've given you the record with Troy Polamalu starting (5-1) and Troy Polamalu not starting (0-3), then I would've picked the other team. But the Steelers' opponent isn't a good team. Instead, it's the 1-8 Kansas City Chiefs, a team the Steelers can beat with Polamalu out 99 out of 100 times. So I'm picking the Steelers to clobber in this one.
mj50's pick: Pittsburgh
Indianapolis Colts (-1) vs. Baltimore Ravens: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Baltimore
Great! Last week it was the whole "Ravens coming back to Cleveland" stroyline that was talked about nearly 30% of the Ravens- Browns Monday night game last week, and now we're going to see the whole "Colts are coming back to Baltimore" storyline 25% of the game this week. You know it's coming. Now onto my pick: If there's one thing that we saw the last few weeks from the Colts is that the great offense has time and time again saved Indy from the bad play of the Colts defense. Unfortunately for Indy, I see that luck stopping for them this week against the 7th ranked defense, 11th ranked offense, Joe Flacco led, Ray Rice as running back, and homefield advantage-ing Baltimore Ravens. Count on it.
mj50's pick: Indianapolis
Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Giants (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New York
New York is coming off a bye-week well rested (Eli Manning says that the ankle injury is feeling much better) and well focused (they know they're better than their 5-4 record and they're readt to show it). Atlanta and Matt Ryan have significantly decreased in performance on the road. Who do you think I'm picking?
mj50's pick: Atlanta
San Fransisco 49ers vs. Green Bay Packers (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Green Bay
These two teams coming off with big victories against the Bears (still mad) and the Cowboys respevtively. The question is, who's victory (besides the talent and stats) will help more in this game? I say the Packers. Most of America knew San Fransisco was going to win, nut not the Packers. The had to win it, and they did, and the way they did will get the entire team (especially the defense) feel more confident heading into this mathcup. Besides, do you really believe that a West Coast team playing a 12:00 game with Alex Smith as the quarterback will win the game, or ANY 12:00 game in that matter? I don't think so.
mj50's pick:
Seattle Seahawks vs. Minnesota Vikings (-10.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Minnesota
The West Coast team playing a 12:00 game theory has only been proven wrong twice this season. It shouldn't fail for a third time against Brett Favre and the 8-1 Vikings. It really shouldn't.
mj50's pick: Minnesota
Washington Redskins vs. Dallas Cowboys (-11): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Dallas
Dallas will win. No doubt. Romo and the boys are terrific before Thanksgiving and the Redkins, well, let's just say they were pretty lucky Kyle Orton was injured or they probably would've lost again. However, it will be pretty close. After all, the Redksins- Cowboys is so big in DC, the Redsking will definetly prepare with more focus and awareness than usual.
mj50's pick: Dallas
New Orleans Saints (-11.5) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tampa Bay
That's right, I said it! I'm predicting that the Saints will fall to the Bucs! Go ahead, criticize me! I wouldn't mind, considering that you might be right. But there's something about Josh Freeman that makes the Bucs such a sexy pick. Plus, the Saints usually have a tough time in Tampa. Take last year, for example. Drew Brees had a 5,000 yard season last year and then could barely throw 100 against the Bucs in Tampa in which the Saints LOST. Besides, I have to have at least one pick this season in which everybody questions it, right? Right?
mj50's pick: New Orleans
Arizona Cardinals (-9) vs. St. Louis Rams: Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: Arizona
Kurt Warner is just on a tear right now, getting 8 touchdowns since teh five interception game two weeks ago. And, I don't know if I'm just crazy or something, but I think the hot streak just might continue against the 25th ranked pass defense. Again, I might just be crazy.
mj50's pick: Arizona
New York Jets vs. New England Patriots (-10.5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: New England
Before I made this pick, I had to ask something. How should I feel about the report that Jets head coach Rex Ryan cried during a team meeting this week? Am I supposed to feel sad for the Jets? Am I supposed to see this as his trash talking from August and September coming back to haunt his struggling team? Am I supposed to see this as a technique to try to get his team to start winning games? Becuase I really believe that this news is the true way to determine how the Jets will de the next six weeks. But most importantly this game, because I had a slight feeling that this little moment could give New York just enough emotion to give the team the victory on Sunday.
And though it might be, I then quickly diverted my attention to the fact that the Patriots will come to the game angry and with a chip on their shoulder after the Colts (or even the refs) stole a victory from them last week. They're also at home and also lost once to the Jets at home this decade with Tom Brady at QB. PLus, the Jets just simply cannot be trusted. Just when you think they could get on a roll or get a win, they dissapoint you like last year or the past month. In conclusion, I'm taking the Pats in a close one.
mj50's pick: New England
Cincinnati Bengals (-9.5) vs. Oakland Raiders: Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Cincinnati
Poor Oakland. Just when you think the Raiders will finally get a win, they end up having a rookie wide receiver catch the ball, then drop it and have it intercepted on the final drive of the game. Not to mention the fact that this came just when Bruce Gradkowski was going to become a hero in Oakland. As for the Bengals, everything just seems to be going right for them as they continue to win against some of the best teams in the AFC, including the Steelers and Ravens twice. In short, Bengals will win... BIG, even without Cedric Benson (Larry Johnson is still a pretty good backup and, last time I checked, they have Carson Palmer).
mj50's pick: Cincinnati
San Diego Chargers (-3) vs. Denver Broncos: Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: San Diego
If you're still reading this (and I applaud you for it) you may have noticed a reoccuring answer to most of my picks. Last week, it was "Look. At. The. Records." This week, it is that one team has been on a pretty good roll while the other is just having bad luck all over. This theme continues with this game. The Chargers have one three straight and has found a way to get back in first place. The Bronco, since I went on their bandwagon (weird, you'd figure I'd did that on purpose) have lost three straught, lost their three game lead in the division and possibly lost their starting quarterback to the same injury that effected him in a bad way here in Chicago last year.
But that's not why I picked San Diego. I picked San Diego because they're probably the best team in the NFL when they're on a roll like they are right now. Also, Kyle Orton might not play, ehich means that Chris Simms, who laye the biggest egg this NFL season last week, will start. That is why I picked the Chargers to win.
mj50's pick: Denver
Philadelphia Eagles (-3) vs. Chicago Bears: Sunday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Philadelphia
This was really hard to do because I haven't picked against the Bears in two years. So, believe me, you knwo that I'm serious about this pick. Two reason why:
1. Jay Cutler has thrown 11 of his 19 INTs in night games. Expect to see at least one this week, possibly one that will cost the team the game.
2. Donovan McNabb against the Bears defense is a matchup just too mismatched in favor of the Philly QB.
3. The Bears are done. Period. They have no shot.
Then again, Philadeplhia is still in the middle of their cycle in which they start playing badly and the entire population of Philadelphia starts acting like it's the end of the world, so I'm not sure.
mj50's pick: Chicago
Tennessee Titans vs. Houston Texans (-5): Monday- 7:30 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tennessee
Before I begin, since we're talking about Tennessee, I just want to show you this video of Titans owner Bud Adams (in his 80s I might add) flipping the bird to fans in the stands. No reason whatsoever, just think it's funny:
Anyways... Wow! What a game this should be against two teams that are simply on a roll. The Titans are just incredible withe the play of Chris Johnson and the Texans are still making those people who never gave up on them (like a certain someone) proud. It was so hard fo me to pick a winner in this one because I see scenarios in which each of these teams can win. Now, while, I don't see the Titans win all their remaining games this season. However, the fact that they won two of their last three Monday Night Football games and have a 5-2 against the Texans. Plus, I still have this slight feeling that Vince Young still hasn't forgotten the Texans for passing on him in the draft, so I expect to see him putting up his best performance of the year. In conclusion, I expect to see the Titans beat the Texans in one of this week's most exciting and nail biting games.
mj50s' pick: Houston
RECAP
The Undertaker at "WrestleMania" "Lock of the Week":
Pittsburgh over Kansas City
The Miracle on Ice "Upset of the Week":
Tampa Bay over New Orleans
The "Goodfellas" vs. "The Godfather" "I'm Not Sure" Pick:
Tennessee over Houston
Week 11 recap, week 12 picks and a nice, long opening topic (if this week works out for me) next Wednesday! Until then, enjoy... well, not your weekend because it's Wednesday. Ummmm... how does end of the workweek sound instead?
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If
you have any opinions on the week ten predictions or anything else on
this post, or if you have any suggestions to mj15 on his next blog
entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Random Thoughts: 11/12/09- 11/16/09
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
I almost couldn't make this random thoughts column in its usual Monday timeslot after a pretty interesting and very tiring weekend. It started out on Saturday, when I played a football game with my cousins that lasted nearly three hours, mostly because of the 22 college-rules overtime (which I still haven't recovered physically from) we played. When we were done, we watched the Chicago Fire eventually lose in the Eastern Conference Championship to Real Salt Lake, which I'm still mad about (why in the hell did they keep kicking it to the right during penalty kicks? Jesus Christ!). Then yesterday, I caught a 102 degree fever as well as had to finish the five hours of homework I had remaining.
Despite all the pain and emotions I suffered the last two days, I have found a way to slightly prevail. And by slightly, I mean having just enough energy left to go to school and write this post. So here we go! As you may have guessed, the following were on my mind during Thursday, November 12th to Monday, November 16th:
- What happened to Smash Mouth? Did they just die in a plane crash in 2005, or something?
- According to the Nielsen ratings, Scottish comedian Craig Ferguson's "Late Late Show" led the week at the 11:35 p.m. time slot for the first time since it premiered. Great! Another foreigner taking over American jobs (honestly, I'm pretty happy. Ferguson is at least 30x funnier than Fallon and Kimmel).
- If the NFL continues their streak of hiring people to host the Super Bowl halftime show that were older than last year's singers, expect to see the Comets (or what's left of them) play next year.
- What's up with Albert Haynesworth? Either he really does get hurt a lot, or he really loves to be dramatic and pretending to get constantly injured.
- I don't care what you say. Bill Belichick made a good call going for it on 4th &2 with the team up six in the 4th quarter last night. He just trusted his offense enough to believe that they could win the game on that play. It was really Tom Brady's fault to throwing it to Kevin Faulk and Faulk for not having getting full possession of the ball once he immediately caught it. Glad thet didn't convert it though, because we got to see this priceless 4 second clip:
- Great, another green week on NBC and NBC Universal. I wonder what kind of a big product placement "30 Rock" will do to honor it?
- I don't care if the Dolphins lost, I'm still voting Chad Henne's INT with less than two minutes to play in the 4th quarter with the team up by five as the "What Were You THinking?" play of the year.
I expect to be fully recovered by the middle of the week, so there should be no problem in posting my next random thoughts then. See ya then!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
I almost couldn't make this random thoughts column in its usual Monday timeslot after a pretty interesting and very tiring weekend. It started out on Saturday, when I played a football game with my cousins that lasted nearly three hours, mostly because of the 22 college-rules overtime (which I still haven't recovered physically from) we played. When we were done, we watched the Chicago Fire eventually lose in the Eastern Conference Championship to Real Salt Lake, which I'm still mad about (why in the hell did they keep kicking it to the right during penalty kicks? Jesus Christ!). Then yesterday, I caught a 102 degree fever as well as had to finish the five hours of homework I had remaining.
Despite all the pain and emotions I suffered the last two days, I have found a way to slightly prevail. And by slightly, I mean having just enough energy left to go to school and write this post. So here we go! As you may have guessed, the following were on my mind during Thursday, November 12th to Monday, November 16th:
- What happened to Smash Mouth? Did they just die in a plane crash in 2005, or something?
- According to the Nielsen ratings, Scottish comedian Craig Ferguson's "Late Late Show" led the week at the 11:35 p.m. time slot for the first time since it premiered. Great! Another foreigner taking over American jobs (honestly, I'm pretty happy. Ferguson is at least 30x funnier than Fallon and Kimmel).
- If the NFL continues their streak of hiring people to host the Super Bowl halftime show that were older than last year's singers, expect to see the Comets (or what's left of them) play next year.
- What's up with Albert Haynesworth? Either he really does get hurt a lot, or he really loves to be dramatic and pretending to get constantly injured.
- I don't care what you say. Bill Belichick made a good call going for it on 4th &2 with the team up six in the 4th quarter last night. He just trusted his offense enough to believe that they could win the game on that play. It was really Tom Brady's fault to throwing it to Kevin Faulk and Faulk for not having getting full possession of the ball once he immediately caught it. Glad thet didn't convert it though, because we got to see this priceless 4 second clip:
- Great, another green week on NBC and NBC Universal. I wonder what kind of a big product placement "30 Rock" will do to honor it?
- I don't care if the Dolphins lost, I'm still voting Chad Henne's INT with less than two minutes to play in the 4th quarter with the team up by five as the "What Were You THinking?" play of the year.
I expect to be fully recovered by the middle of the week, so there should be no problem in posting my next random thoughts then. See ya then!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
End of the Week: 11/08/09- 11/14/09
END OF THE WEEK:
You know the drill. Let's get started.
Picture of the Week:
So, what if it might have been face cream. He still looks like he's trying to become the Latin Michael Jackson. This picture is so popular, the Chicago Tribune talked about it in, like, fifteen of their columns this week (it was actually, like, four, but this column by John Kass makes it feel like more).
Video of the Week:
"300,000 Birds in the Sky"
A. Maz. Ing. However, how do we know it's really 300,000 birds? Who counted? Oh well, it's still great nonetheless, even if it was 300,000, 200,000, 234, 978, etc.
Story of the Week:
South Korean Woman Passes Drivers Test in 950th Try
Or at least that's what she believes. The people who monitored her driving tests were probably just tired of seeing the woman, so they probably just gave her the license as a way to never see her again. Still, though, I'd hate to be driving on the road next to her. After all, she did make bad driving decisions 949 out of 950 times.
Person of the Week: Former Miss California Carrie Prejean
for still finding a way to get her name in the public spotlight, even though her fifteen minutes were up two months ago. It started on Tuesday, when promoting her new book. She appeared on the Today Show, where she admitted that she did make a rumored "sex tape"* when she was a love-stricken high school student.
Then, if that wasn't enough to make her news-worthy (?), she appeared later that night on "Larry King Live." This was, yet again, a way to try to promote her book. Let's just say, things didn't go as well as planned:
Yes, it was was pretty unnecessary for her to do. And, yes, it does make her look like a spoiled brat or, as other would put it, a cunt. But, it all worked out for Prejean. The day after, she became one of the most talked about and searched female in America and on the Internet. Don't believe me, take a look at her Google Trend since it happened:
And that's the way it is! Once again, I want to thank you, precious reader, for viewing this post. I also want to thank you for the record turnout this week as a record 25 views were record this past week, including a single day record 9 views on Tuesday. It's truly an honor. Until then, enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
You know the drill. Let's get started.
Picture of the Week:
So, what if it might have been face cream. He still looks like he's trying to become the Latin Michael Jackson. This picture is so popular, the Chicago Tribune talked about it in, like, fifteen of their columns this week (it was actually, like, four, but this column by John Kass makes it feel like more).
Video of the Week:
"300,000 Birds in the Sky"
A. Maz. Ing. However, how do we know it's really 300,000 birds? Who counted? Oh well, it's still great nonetheless, even if it was 300,000, 200,000, 234, 978, etc.
Story of the Week:
South Korean Woman Passes Drivers Test in 950th Try
Or at least that's what she believes. The people who monitored her driving tests were probably just tired of seeing the woman, so they probably just gave her the license as a way to never see her again. Still, though, I'd hate to be driving on the road next to her. After all, she did make bad driving decisions 949 out of 950 times.
Person of the Week: Former Miss California Carrie Prejean
for still finding a way to get her name in the public spotlight, even though her fifteen minutes were up two months ago. It started on Tuesday, when promoting her new book. She appeared on the Today Show, where she admitted that she did make a rumored "sex tape"* when she was a love-stricken high school student.
Then, if that wasn't enough to make her news-worthy (?), she appeared later that night on "Larry King Live." This was, yet again, a way to try to promote her book. Let's just say, things didn't go as well as planned:
Yes, it was was pretty unnecessary for her to do. And, yes, it does make her look like a spoiled brat or, as other would put it, a cunt. But, it all worked out for Prejean. The day after, she became one of the most talked about and searched female in America and on the Internet. Don't believe me, take a look at her Google Trend since it happened:
And that's the way it is! Once again, I want to thank you, precious reader, for viewing this post. I also want to thank you for the record turnout this week as a record 25 views were record this past week, including a single day record 9 views on Tuesday. It's truly an honor. Until then, enjoy the rest of your weekend.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
Random Thoughts: 11/09/09- 11/12/09
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
The following were on my mind between Monday, November 9th and Thursday, November 12th:
- Craig Ferguson should get som reward for being the first late night talk show host to recognize Polish Independence Day.
- Update of a previous story of the week winner: Remember the guy I mentioned back in my second blog post that was arrested for having sex with a horse? Well, he just got a punishment of three years in prison. Just thought I'd let you know.
- Michael Vick's return in the NFL has to rank as one of the most disappointing in sports history.
- If peer pressure is bad, then why do commercials do it all the time?
- Since when has women's soccer become so UFC. First Elizabeth Lambert, now this! (http://deadspin.com/5400583/girls-soccer-is-now-the-ultimate-combat-sport)
- I know I may have said this before, but Thursday is by far the most underrated day of the week. Not only because of the great shows that are on, but is there any other day of the week where you go to sleep as late as you can and still wake up refreshed with that glorious Friday feeling?
- Just watched the Spongebob Squarepants 10th anniversary special that was on Friday. Let me put my thoughts on it this way: you knwo the term "jumping the shark"? Well, this show has not only jumped the shark, but it's been bitten by the shark and barely clinging on to life. In other words, if I were creator Stephen Hillenburg, I'd seriously consider stopping this show before it sucks even more.
- Jason Reitman's (director of "Thank You For Smoking" and Juno") directing , with George Clooney as the lead actor and guys like Jason Bateman and Zach Galifianikis are supporting actors. And I just heard about "Up in the Air" NOW?! Why didn't I hear about this before the "Mad Men" season finale? (Sighing) Looks I found another reason why the movie industry sucks.
- Wow, "Sesame Street" is 40 years old? Really? I had no idea. If only someone had told me. Oh well, I still congratulate them for their success, and the Cookie Monster for going through 40 years without being diagnosed with diabetes. Now that's what I call a miracle!
More random thoughts to come (as usual) on Monday! Now, once again, to wrap up this post is another song from our "Beatle-tastic Song of the Week" (This might have been the title I've been looking for). This week, it's "Eleanor Rigby." Enjoy:
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
The following were on my mind between Monday, November 9th and Thursday, November 12th:
- Craig Ferguson should get som reward for being the first late night talk show host to recognize Polish Independence Day.
- Update of a previous story of the week winner: Remember the guy I mentioned back in my second blog post that was arrested for having sex with a horse? Well, he just got a punishment of three years in prison. Just thought I'd let you know.
- Michael Vick's return in the NFL has to rank as one of the most disappointing in sports history.
- If peer pressure is bad, then why do commercials do it all the time?
- Since when has women's soccer become so UFC. First Elizabeth Lambert, now this! (http://deadspin.com/5400583/girls-soccer-is-now-the-ultimate-combat-sport)
- I know I may have said this before, but Thursday is by far the most underrated day of the week. Not only because of the great shows that are on, but is there any other day of the week where you go to sleep as late as you can and still wake up refreshed with that glorious Friday feeling?
- Just watched the Spongebob Squarepants 10th anniversary special that was on Friday. Let me put my thoughts on it this way: you knwo the term "jumping the shark"? Well, this show has not only jumped the shark, but it's been bitten by the shark and barely clinging on to life. In other words, if I were creator Stephen Hillenburg, I'd seriously consider stopping this show before it sucks even more.
- Jason Reitman's (director of "Thank You For Smoking" and Juno") directing , with George Clooney as the lead actor and guys like Jason Bateman and Zach Galifianikis are supporting actors. And I just heard about "Up in the Air" NOW?! Why didn't I hear about this before the "Mad Men" season finale? (Sighing) Looks I found another reason why the movie industry sucks.
- Wow, "Sesame Street" is 40 years old? Really? I had no idea. If only someone had told me. Oh well, I still congratulate them for their success, and the Cookie Monster for going through 40 years without being diagnosed with diabetes. Now that's what I call a miracle!
More random thoughts to come (as usual) on Monday! Now, once again, to wrap up this post is another song from our "Beatle-tastic Song of the Week" (This might have been the title I've been looking for). This week, it's "Eleanor Rigby." Enjoy:
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
2009 NFL Predictions:Week... 10? Woah!
Wow, week 10! This season went by pretty quickly, no? Just think, when the season started, the Detroit Tigers appeared to have locked up the AL Central, shows like "Trauma" and "The Beautiful Life" still had a promising future in the TV business, Lamar Odom and Khloe Kardashian were single and have yet to date each other, no NFL player has yet to be fired because of his Twitter comments, this blog was only in it's second month and had yet to reach the ten posts mark and Patrick Swayze was still alive. And yet it only felt like yesterday.
Now, on to the picks!To recap, for the second straight week in a row, me and daddy-o tied with an 8-5 record. As for the overall record through week 9, I'm currently leading with a record of 83-44, five games ahead. It's pretty good, though anyone could've always done better. Anyways, the following are my picks for this extended week of football (as always, the game times are based on the Central time zone):
Chicago Bears vs. San Fransisco 49ers (-3): Thursday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Chicago
So, in the first non-opening week Thursday night game of the season, we have the 4-4 Chicago Bears against the 3-5 San Fransisco 49ers. Pretty sexy on paper, am I right? Anyways, while last week's lost to the Cardinals was embarassing for Chicago, we can all agree that Alex Smith isn't as good as Kurt Warner or that Isaac Bruce is as good as Larry Fitzgerald (they do have a better running back than Arizona had last year, and the Cards rushing game put up 123 yards). I expect to see a rebounf game for the Bears and most improtantly the Bears defense as they put a pretty okay showing against San Fran.
mj50's pick: Chicago
Buffalo Bills vs. Tennessee Titans (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tennessee
This Tennessee team definetly has the same type of mojo they had in 2006 when Young played in his rookie season. They're sort of tough to beat again. And the reason: Chris Johnson. He has definetly been on beast mode with his "running from the cops speed" as Gus Johnson likes to call his quick feet. If Tennessee can give him at least 20 touches against the 32nd ranked rushing defense, the Titans should be able to get their third win. BIG.
mj50's pick: Buffalo
New Orleans Saints (-13.5) vs. St. Louis Rams: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New Orleans
Four words: Look. At. The. Records.
mj50's pick: New Orleans
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Miami Dolphins (-10): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Miami
Congratulations, Tampa Bay! You guys finally got your first win of the season. Now, let's see you get one without those throwback uniforms. Personally, I see this as all-Miami, even with Josh Freeman as Tampa's newest savior at QB. Expect to see quite a performance by the wildcat.
mj50's pick: Miami
Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings (-16.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Minnesota
Poor, Las Vegas. They just couldn't put the odds any higher for people to pick Detroit. Anyways, I've said this before in this post and I'll say it again: Look. At. The Records. Vikings will win. BIG.
mj50's pick: Minnesota
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New York Jets (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New York
Did you know, that despite being third in their division and depite the low attendances in their home game, the Jaguars have a 4-4 recordd. This should definetly be discussed more. Anways, while the Jags have been on sort of a roll lately, the Jets are at home with two weeks to prepare and with a chip on their shoulder after losing to the Dolphins (I wonder how caoch Rex Ryan feels about the "gimmick" Dolphins now?). I expect to see the Jets actually bring a good effort into this game and win against Jacksonville.
mj50's pick: New York
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (-7): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Pittsburgh
And now onto the game of the early afternoon, as the Bengals and Steelers battle it out for first place in the AFC North after their thrilling game played back in September. Yes, Cincinnati is a good. In fact, I believe they are the team not named the Steelers, the Colts and the Patriots that can run the table. They're defense is great, rushing game is terrific with Cedric Benson and Carson Palmer is back to his old self. But as I might have given a clue a little earlier, the Steelers are still one of the best teams in the NFL. Besides, Pittsburgh has one thing in this game that they didn't have the first time these two played: Troy Polomalu.
Trust me, Bengals fans. You may think it had nothing to do with it, but your victory was mainly becuase of #43 not being in the game during your team's game winning drive. In a close one, I expect to see the Steelers to win and to be back on top of the division (as they should be).
mj50's pick: Pittsburgh
Denver Broncos (-4) vs. Washington Redskins: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Denver
Yes, Denver lost the last two games and have proven themselves to be the team that they thought they were. And yes, it appears more and more that they will once again blow the division to the Chargers who had an impressive victory against the Giants. But they aren't as bad as the Redskins, who are so ashamed by their suckiness, they won't even let their fans bring signs to their stadium. Denver will win this one. No doubt.
mj50s' pick: Washington
Atlanta Falcons (-1.5) vs. Carolina Panthers: Sunday- 12: 00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Atlanta
This one was really tough for me to pick. Even more tougher than the Pats- Colts game (which we'll get to in a few paragraphs) if you believe it. While Atlanta does look like the better team on paper, Carolina has played sneakliy weel the last few weeks. In fact, they outplayed New Orleans in nearly every way last week despite the lost. Eevntually, I made a decision to pick the Falcons. It just comes doen to the QB and the intangibles, and I felt that Atlanta was better in both categories.
mj50's pick: Atlanta
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Oakland Raiders (-2): Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: Oakland
Really terrible game to think about because both teams suck so badly. I'd rather see footage of Tom Cable beating up his ex-wife than watching this, or even talking about this. I ended up choosing Oakland because their defense is slightly better and they won the last tiome they met back in September. Than again, I just flipped a coin and it went to Oakland. So....
mj50's pick: Kansas City
Dallas Cowboys (-3) vs. Green Bay Packers: Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Dallas
How 'bout them Cowboys? They have a three game win streak going and are first place in the NFC East. Aside from that, I still don't see them being a real contender. As you may have known, the team doesn't really tend to do well in the later months of the season for the past few years. But this column isn't about predictions of months to come. It's about predictions of games in the next seven days. In this case, I like the Cowboys to make it four straight wins in a row. The passing defense is no match for the hot streaking Tony Romo.
mj50's pick: Dallas
Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals (-8.5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Arizona
Okay, so maybe I was wrong about Seattle winning the division and Arizona getting into one of those Super Bowl hangovers. But, in my defense, it was September. Also, how would I have known that Kurt Warner wasn't going to break down of old age, that the defense was going to be pretty okay and that Seattle's bad year last season wasn't just some fluke, that indeed they maybe are mediocre. Then again, this is the NFC West, where usually teams remain the same spot in the standings for years.
mj50's pick: Arizona
Philadelphia Eagles vs. San Diego Chargers (-2.5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: San Diego
I actually picked the Eagles to win this one in the beginning. But then I remembered that this was the period of the Eagles usual cycle of games where things start to fall apart and the city begin to worry before they go on a hot streak starting somewhere on Thanksgiving. Also, when you're a team with a lot of things going their way like the Chargers have, they're like Tiger Woods in the final round of the Buick Invatational. You can't stop it.
mj50's pick: Philadelphia
New England Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts (-3): Sunday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: New England
Yeah, baby! This is the matchup you want to see. Tom Brady facing Peyton Manning for the first time since the highly proclaimed Super Bowl 41.5 two years ago. The Colts are trying to continue their unbeaten season and their 17 games regular season win streak. The Patriots trying to make this a big statement game. It's got all the formulas in there for what should be another great game in the decade's best rivalry.
All right, so as usual I had to think very hard about this. And while I do think this game will go down to the last few moments, I picked the Pats. Here's why:
1. Bill Belichick. Do you really believe that a rookie head coach like Jim Cladwell will beat one of the NFL"s greatest mastermind in a head-to-head duel? I don't think so.
2. The injuries for the Colts. Thanks to injuries of players like Bob Sanders and Marlin Jackson, they have barely been able to get past teams like the 49ers and the Texans.
3. The trends of games played between this rivalry. First, it leaned toward New England. Then, it leaned toward Indy. Then New England again. Then it went back to Indy again. I expect in this case, the rivalry will shift towards New England again.
4. Tom Brady only lost twice to Peyton Manning. The guy has his number.
mj50's pick: Indianapolis
Baltimore Ravens (-11) vs. Cleveland Browns: Monday- 7:30 p.m.
mj15's pick: Baltimore
In a game that ESPN questionably and regrettably picked as their week 10 matchup, we have the old Browns against the new Browns meeting each other for the 9th year in a row in Browns Stadium. You know, I could spend a few sentences discussing why the Ravens will destory Cleveland. Instead, I'm going to only give the same four words I've already said twice thius post (I like repeating myself): Look. At. The. Records.
mj50's pick: Baltiimore
RECAP
The Undertaker at "WrestleMania" "Lock of the Week":
New Orleans over St. Louis
The Mine That Bird Winning This Year's Kentucky Derby "Upset of the Week":
New England over Indinapolis
The "Goodfellas" vs. "The Godfather" "I'm Not Sure" Pick:
Atlanta over Carolina
And there you have it! As always, I want to thank the Internet and my seven years of watching the NFL for helping me make these picks. Honestly, though, if I were you these would be one of those weeks where you should just stay away from my picks. There are quite a few games I picked that I wasn't necessarily confident about. Then again, you probably don't gamble on picks anyway, so it doesn't really matter. Week 11 picks and a week 10 recap coming next Wednesday! Until then, enjoy the rest of you Veterans' Day.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
Now, on to the picks!To recap, for the second straight week in a row, me and daddy-o tied with an 8-5 record. As for the overall record through week 9, I'm currently leading with a record of 83-44, five games ahead. It's pretty good, though anyone could've always done better. Anyways, the following are my picks for this extended week of football (as always, the game times are based on the Central time zone):
Chicago Bears vs. San Fransisco 49ers (-3): Thursday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Chicago
So, in the first non-opening week Thursday night game of the season, we have the 4-4 Chicago Bears against the 3-5 San Fransisco 49ers. Pretty sexy on paper, am I right? Anyways, while last week's lost to the Cardinals was embarassing for Chicago, we can all agree that Alex Smith isn't as good as Kurt Warner or that Isaac Bruce is as good as Larry Fitzgerald (they do have a better running back than Arizona had last year, and the Cards rushing game put up 123 yards). I expect to see a rebounf game for the Bears and most improtantly the Bears defense as they put a pretty okay showing against San Fran.
mj50's pick: Chicago
Buffalo Bills vs. Tennessee Titans (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tennessee
This Tennessee team definetly has the same type of mojo they had in 2006 when Young played in his rookie season. They're sort of tough to beat again. And the reason: Chris Johnson. He has definetly been on beast mode with his "running from the cops speed" as Gus Johnson likes to call his quick feet. If Tennessee can give him at least 20 touches against the 32nd ranked rushing defense, the Titans should be able to get their third win. BIG.
mj50's pick: Buffalo
New Orleans Saints (-13.5) vs. St. Louis Rams: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New Orleans
Four words: Look. At. The. Records.
mj50's pick: New Orleans
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Miami Dolphins (-10): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Miami
Congratulations, Tampa Bay! You guys finally got your first win of the season. Now, let's see you get one without those throwback uniforms. Personally, I see this as all-Miami, even with Josh Freeman as Tampa's newest savior at QB. Expect to see quite a performance by the wildcat.
mj50's pick: Miami
Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings (-16.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Minnesota
Poor, Las Vegas. They just couldn't put the odds any higher for people to pick Detroit. Anyways, I've said this before in this post and I'll say it again: Look. At. The Records. Vikings will win. BIG.
mj50's pick: Minnesota
Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New York Jets (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New York
Did you know, that despite being third in their division and depite the low attendances in their home game, the Jaguars have a 4-4 recordd. This should definetly be discussed more. Anways, while the Jags have been on sort of a roll lately, the Jets are at home with two weeks to prepare and with a chip on their shoulder after losing to the Dolphins (I wonder how caoch Rex Ryan feels about the "gimmick" Dolphins now?). I expect to see the Jets actually bring a good effort into this game and win against Jacksonville.
mj50's pick: New York
Cincinnati Bengals vs. Pittsburgh Steelers (-7): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Pittsburgh
And now onto the game of the early afternoon, as the Bengals and Steelers battle it out for first place in the AFC North after their thrilling game played back in September. Yes, Cincinnati is a good. In fact, I believe they are the team not named the Steelers, the Colts and the Patriots that can run the table. They're defense is great, rushing game is terrific with Cedric Benson and Carson Palmer is back to his old self. But as I might have given a clue a little earlier, the Steelers are still one of the best teams in the NFL. Besides, Pittsburgh has one thing in this game that they didn't have the first time these two played: Troy Polomalu.
Trust me, Bengals fans. You may think it had nothing to do with it, but your victory was mainly becuase of #43 not being in the game during your team's game winning drive. In a close one, I expect to see the Steelers to win and to be back on top of the division (as they should be).
mj50's pick: Pittsburgh
Denver Broncos (-4) vs. Washington Redskins: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Denver
Yes, Denver lost the last two games and have proven themselves to be the team that they thought they were. And yes, it appears more and more that they will once again blow the division to the Chargers who had an impressive victory against the Giants. But they aren't as bad as the Redskins, who are so ashamed by their suckiness, they won't even let their fans bring signs to their stadium. Denver will win this one. No doubt.
mj50s' pick: Washington
Atlanta Falcons (-1.5) vs. Carolina Panthers: Sunday- 12: 00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Atlanta
This one was really tough for me to pick. Even more tougher than the Pats- Colts game (which we'll get to in a few paragraphs) if you believe it. While Atlanta does look like the better team on paper, Carolina has played sneakliy weel the last few weeks. In fact, they outplayed New Orleans in nearly every way last week despite the lost. Eevntually, I made a decision to pick the Falcons. It just comes doen to the QB and the intangibles, and I felt that Atlanta was better in both categories.
mj50's pick: Atlanta
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Oakland Raiders (-2): Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: Oakland
Really terrible game to think about because both teams suck so badly. I'd rather see footage of Tom Cable beating up his ex-wife than watching this, or even talking about this. I ended up choosing Oakland because their defense is slightly better and they won the last tiome they met back in September. Than again, I just flipped a coin and it went to Oakland. So....
mj50's pick: Kansas City
Dallas Cowboys (-3) vs. Green Bay Packers: Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Dallas
How 'bout them Cowboys? They have a three game win streak going and are first place in the NFC East. Aside from that, I still don't see them being a real contender. As you may have known, the team doesn't really tend to do well in the later months of the season for the past few years. But this column isn't about predictions of months to come. It's about predictions of games in the next seven days. In this case, I like the Cowboys to make it four straight wins in a row. The passing defense is no match for the hot streaking Tony Romo.
mj50's pick: Dallas
Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals (-8.5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Arizona
Okay, so maybe I was wrong about Seattle winning the division and Arizona getting into one of those Super Bowl hangovers. But, in my defense, it was September. Also, how would I have known that Kurt Warner wasn't going to break down of old age, that the defense was going to be pretty okay and that Seattle's bad year last season wasn't just some fluke, that indeed they maybe are mediocre. Then again, this is the NFC West, where usually teams remain the same spot in the standings for years.
mj50's pick: Arizona
Philadelphia Eagles vs. San Diego Chargers (-2.5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: San Diego
I actually picked the Eagles to win this one in the beginning. But then I remembered that this was the period of the Eagles usual cycle of games where things start to fall apart and the city begin to worry before they go on a hot streak starting somewhere on Thanksgiving. Also, when you're a team with a lot of things going their way like the Chargers have, they're like Tiger Woods in the final round of the Buick Invatational. You can't stop it.
mj50's pick: Philadelphia
New England Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts (-3): Sunday- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: New England
Yeah, baby! This is the matchup you want to see. Tom Brady facing Peyton Manning for the first time since the highly proclaimed Super Bowl 41.5 two years ago. The Colts are trying to continue their unbeaten season and their 17 games regular season win streak. The Patriots trying to make this a big statement game. It's got all the formulas in there for what should be another great game in the decade's best rivalry.
All right, so as usual I had to think very hard about this. And while I do think this game will go down to the last few moments, I picked the Pats. Here's why:
1. Bill Belichick. Do you really believe that a rookie head coach like Jim Cladwell will beat one of the NFL"s greatest mastermind in a head-to-head duel? I don't think so.
2. The injuries for the Colts. Thanks to injuries of players like Bob Sanders and Marlin Jackson, they have barely been able to get past teams like the 49ers and the Texans.
3. The trends of games played between this rivalry. First, it leaned toward New England. Then, it leaned toward Indy. Then New England again. Then it went back to Indy again. I expect in this case, the rivalry will shift towards New England again.
4. Tom Brady only lost twice to Peyton Manning. The guy has his number.
mj50's pick: Indianapolis
Baltimore Ravens (-11) vs. Cleveland Browns: Monday- 7:30 p.m.
mj15's pick: Baltimore
In a game that ESPN questionably and regrettably picked as their week 10 matchup, we have the old Browns against the new Browns meeting each other for the 9th year in a row in Browns Stadium. You know, I could spend a few sentences discussing why the Ravens will destory Cleveland. Instead, I'm going to only give the same four words I've already said twice thius post (I like repeating myself): Look. At. The. Records.
mj50's pick: Baltiimore
RECAP
The Undertaker at "WrestleMania" "Lock of the Week":
New Orleans over St. Louis
The Mine That Bird Winning This Year's Kentucky Derby "Upset of the Week":
New England over Indinapolis
The "Goodfellas" vs. "The Godfather" "I'm Not Sure" Pick:
Atlanta over Carolina
And there you have it! As always, I want to thank the Internet and my seven years of watching the NFL for helping me make these picks. Honestly, though, if I were you these would be one of those weeks where you should just stay away from my picks. There are quite a few games I picked that I wasn't necessarily confident about. Then again, you probably don't gamble on picks anyway, so it doesn't really matter. Week 11 picks and a week 10 recap coming next Wednesday! Until then, enjoy the rest of you Veterans' Day.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
Monday, November 9, 2009
Random Thoughts: 11/05/09- 11/09/09
RANDOM THOUGHTS:
The following were on my mind between Thursday, November 5th and Monday, November 9th:
- This season of "Parks and Recreations" has to go down as one of the best season-to-season improvement ever. Basically, it has gone from just "The Office spinoff that really isn't a spinoff" to one, if not THE, best comedy on TV (and this is coming from a big fan of "The Office."
- Luke Russert better have gotten his gig as an MSNBC reporter becuase the network believed he's talented, and not because his daddy was a pretty good Washington bureau chief.
- Why is CBS promoting "NCIS" as "TV's #1 show." Okay, I get it: more people watch this show every week than any other show on TV. But I don't understand how this is gonna make me watch the show. Are you trying to peer pressure me into it? Haven't you guys heard that perr pressure is bad? Also:
1. If you don't count the people over 60 that watch CBS, you'd probably be TV's #9 show, not #1.
2. It's also not a very good show. In fact, I think it's one of the most overrated shows on TV and that I could name 15 others show better than it.
3. If it really is "TV's #1 show," then why did the premiere of "V" beat them in ratings?
4. You've promoted "CSI" as "TV's #1 show" for years, and I still have yet to watch it. so, naturally, this won't work for me again.
- Did you ever get one of those "thank God this didn't happen to me" moments whenever you hear a news story? Well, folks, this is one of them!
- Well, everyone, it's finally here: the season 3 finale of "Mad Men." Now, I won't give you some long, 16,000 review about it (though I might next season). But, here are some that you can read if you want to:
Alan Sepinwall's (always terrific)
TV Squad's
Maureen Ryan's
Tim Goodman's
Best Week Ever's
However, I do have some quick thoughts about it other that it was incredibly terrific.
1. For a guy as selfish and arrogant as Roger Sterling, the man does have some of the show's best lines.
2. What will the start of S.C.D.P mean about how much we'll see guys like Ken, Paul, Sal and the teacher Don did it with?
3. Betty Draper is yet again proving herself to be one of the worst suburbian mothers ever. Leaving Don for a guy she only spoke to for five hours and then going away to Reno for six weeks without her two oldest children? Really?!
4. I still can't believe they managed to put so many great things in only 48 minutes. It was so good, I can't remember how many times
5. Sure he may have lost his children, but I bet that Don has to be happy he's single again, right?
6. "We've been robbed!" = Definetly the best quote to describe how awesome the escape of the main characters from Sterling-Cooper was.
7. It's kind of ironic how for weeks, we've been hearing of how Pete, Peggy and Harry felt they were unappreciated in the workplace and now they're working for S.C.D.P.
8. Roger and Joan sounded like an old married couple when they were talking about her handwriting.
9. I'm kind of glad that Lane Price will remain on the show. I've gotten used to him as a character.
10. I hope Betty and Don remain divorced. I'm actually really tired of the he cheats, she leaves him, she get's pregnant with his baby, they go back together, he cheats, she scheats, she doesn't love him anymore and leaves him again storyline.
11. Poor, Bobby. He actually believed that his parent's separation was his fault.
12. If I were to predict Emmys for them already, it would be Best Drama (as expected), best actor for Jon Hamm (though Bryan Cranston will be hard to beat), best supporting actress for January Jones, best writing for "The Gypsy and the Hobo," and best directing for this episode.
13. It was actually quite nice to not see the Kenndy Assasination as the season finale. Though it was big in America, it wasn't that big in the Sterling Cooper universe.
Can't wait for next season. Already preparing myself for it!
- Bill Hader's facial expressions is by far the best thing on "Saturda Night Live" other than hte Digital Shorts.
- So, the Bears lost. And the defense was terrible (again). But it could've been worse. At least they didn't lose to the winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers like the Packers.
More random thoughts to come later on this week! Until then, here's the all-of-a-sudden highly-searched song of the day because of yesterday's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (which was yet another terrific episode of their best season ever), West Side Story's "Officer Krupke":
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
The following were on my mind between Thursday, November 5th and Monday, November 9th:
- This season of "Parks and Recreations" has to go down as one of the best season-to-season improvement ever. Basically, it has gone from just "The Office spinoff that really isn't a spinoff" to one, if not THE, best comedy on TV (and this is coming from a big fan of "The Office."
- Luke Russert better have gotten his gig as an MSNBC reporter becuase the network believed he's talented, and not because his daddy was a pretty good Washington bureau chief.
- Why is CBS promoting "NCIS" as "TV's #1 show." Okay, I get it: more people watch this show every week than any other show on TV. But I don't understand how this is gonna make me watch the show. Are you trying to peer pressure me into it? Haven't you guys heard that perr pressure is bad? Also:
1. If you don't count the people over 60 that watch CBS, you'd probably be TV's #9 show, not #1.
2. It's also not a very good show. In fact, I think it's one of the most overrated shows on TV and that I could name 15 others show better than it.
3. If it really is "TV's #1 show," then why did the premiere of "V" beat them in ratings?
4. You've promoted "CSI" as "TV's #1 show" for years, and I still have yet to watch it. so, naturally, this won't work for me again.
- Did you ever get one of those "thank God this didn't happen to me" moments whenever you hear a news story? Well, folks, this is one of them!
- Well, everyone, it's finally here: the season 3 finale of "Mad Men." Now, I won't give you some long, 16,000 review about it (though I might next season). But, here are some that you can read if you want to:
Alan Sepinwall's (always terrific)
TV Squad's
Maureen Ryan's
Tim Goodman's
Best Week Ever's
However, I do have some quick thoughts about it other that it was incredibly terrific.
1. For a guy as selfish and arrogant as Roger Sterling, the man does have some of the show's best lines.
2. What will the start of S.C.D.P mean about how much we'll see guys like Ken, Paul, Sal and the teacher Don did it with?
3. Betty Draper is yet again proving herself to be one of the worst suburbian mothers ever. Leaving Don for a guy she only spoke to for five hours and then going away to Reno for six weeks without her two oldest children? Really?!
4. I still can't believe they managed to put so many great things in only 48 minutes. It was so good, I can't remember how many times
5. Sure he may have lost his children, but I bet that Don has to be happy he's single again, right?
6. "We've been robbed!" = Definetly the best quote to describe how awesome the escape of the main characters from Sterling-Cooper was.
7. It's kind of ironic how for weeks, we've been hearing of how Pete, Peggy and Harry felt they were unappreciated in the workplace and now they're working for S.C.D.P.
8. Roger and Joan sounded like an old married couple when they were talking about her handwriting.
9. I'm kind of glad that Lane Price will remain on the show. I've gotten used to him as a character.
10. I hope Betty and Don remain divorced. I'm actually really tired of the he cheats, she leaves him, she get's pregnant with his baby, they go back together, he cheats, she scheats, she doesn't love him anymore and leaves him again storyline.
11. Poor, Bobby. He actually believed that his parent's separation was his fault.
12. If I were to predict Emmys for them already, it would be Best Drama (as expected), best actor for Jon Hamm (though Bryan Cranston will be hard to beat), best supporting actress for January Jones, best writing for "The Gypsy and the Hobo," and best directing for this episode.
13. It was actually quite nice to not see the Kenndy Assasination as the season finale. Though it was big in America, it wasn't that big in the Sterling Cooper universe.
Can't wait for next season. Already preparing myself for it!
- Bill Hader's facial expressions is by far the best thing on "Saturda Night Live" other than hte Digital Shorts.
- So, the Bears lost. And the defense was terrible (again). But it could've been worse. At least they didn't lose to the winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers like the Packers.
More random thoughts to come later on this week! Until then, here's the all-of-a-sudden highly-searched song of the day because of yesterday's "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (which was yet another terrific episode of their best season ever), West Side Story's "Officer Krupke":
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
End of the Week: 11/01/09- 11/07/09
END OF THE WEEK:
A jolly good Saturday to you. Before I start, I just want to thank you guys for you continual mini-support of my blog. In the past ten days, I've had a record 16 views of my page. It doesn't seem like much to you, but it's like two million views for me. So, thank you for that. Now, as always, here are some of the moments that really stood out over the past seven days.
Recommendation of the Week: Guess What Else Andre Agassi Wrote in His Book
He already promoted this book by saying that he took meth, took ccocaine, hated tennis, wore a wig during the 1990s, hated Pete Samprass and Jimmy Connors and that he was jealous at Matt LeBlanc for lgetting licked by Brooke Shields in the hand during an episode of "Friends."
Video of the Week: "Manu Ginobili Swat Bat During Spurs Game"
Raiders head coach Tom Cable would've taken care of this easily. Problem is, it was a male bat. Anyways, I'm surprised PETA didn't get involves in this. If they were pissed that President Obama killed a fly, then I'm pretty sure they would 've started World War III over this.
Story of the Week: It's a tie! It's between:
Stephen Colbert's "The Colbert Report" Becomes Main Sponsor of the U.S. Speed Skating Team
In a related story, the US Winter Olympic team received an additional $100,000,000,000,000 in a mere hours after the donation, making this the #301 reason why Colbert is awesome.
AND
Yankees Coach Joe Girardi Helps Car Accident Victims Mere Hours After His Team Won World Series
This is really weird if you think about it of the unwritten law that anyone who's won the World Series get a free pass at one horrendous crime. He probably must not have known.
Person of the Week: New Mexico University Women's Soccer Player Elizabeth Lambert
for making the most entertaining highlight of a Mountain West conference playoff game ever! For those who haven't read, seen or heard of his, on Thursday BYU and New Mexico played a conference semifinal game in the Mountain West. BYU ended up winning 1-0, but that wasn't the most memorable part. It was when #15 herself started turning this harmless soccer game into an underground fight club with these antics she displayed:
Wow! Either she's one of the most angriest and most passionate soccer players to ever grace the Earth, or she really hated Mormons. A day later, she was suspended indefinitely from the soccer program. But some things went well for Lambert. Vince McMahon is starting to scout her as we speak.
And there you have it! Of course, there were other things I could've added. I could've put the Ft. Hood shootings in the post, but I just don't like putting up sad stories like that. Tim Lincecum being (unshockingly) caught with marijuana, Oprah possibly leaving her show for her new cable network and the announcement that Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin hosting the Oscars were also reaaly close to being added. Nonetheless, these are the few things I chose and I hope you liked it. Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
A jolly good Saturday to you. Before I start, I just want to thank you guys for you continual mini-support of my blog. In the past ten days, I've had a record 16 views of my page. It doesn't seem like much to you, but it's like two million views for me. So, thank you for that. Now, as always, here are some of the moments that really stood out over the past seven days.
Recommendation of the Week: Guess What Else Andre Agassi Wrote in His Book
He already promoted this book by saying that he took meth, took ccocaine, hated tennis, wore a wig during the 1990s, hated Pete Samprass and Jimmy Connors and that he was jealous at Matt LeBlanc for lgetting licked by Brooke Shields in the hand during an episode of "Friends."
Video of the Week: "Manu Ginobili Swat Bat During Spurs Game"
Raiders head coach Tom Cable would've taken care of this easily. Problem is, it was a male bat. Anyways, I'm surprised PETA didn't get involves in this. If they were pissed that President Obama killed a fly, then I'm pretty sure they would 've started World War III over this.
Story of the Week: It's a tie! It's between:
Stephen Colbert's "The Colbert Report" Becomes Main Sponsor of the U.S. Speed Skating Team
In a related story, the US Winter Olympic team received an additional $100,000,000,000,000 in a mere hours after the donation, making this the #301 reason why Colbert is awesome.
AND
Yankees Coach Joe Girardi Helps Car Accident Victims Mere Hours After His Team Won World Series
This is really weird if you think about it of the unwritten law that anyone who's won the World Series get a free pass at one horrendous crime. He probably must not have known.
Person of the Week: New Mexico University Women's Soccer Player Elizabeth Lambert
for making the most entertaining highlight of a Mountain West conference playoff game ever! For those who haven't read, seen or heard of his, on Thursday BYU and New Mexico played a conference semifinal game in the Mountain West. BYU ended up winning 1-0, but that wasn't the most memorable part. It was when #15 herself started turning this harmless soccer game into an underground fight club with these antics she displayed:
Wow! Either she's one of the most angriest and most passionate soccer players to ever grace the Earth, or she really hated Mormons. A day later, she was suspended indefinitely from the soccer program. But some things went well for Lambert. Vince McMahon is starting to scout her as we speak.
And there you have it! Of course, there were other things I could've added. I could've put the Ft. Hood shootings in the post, but I just don't like putting up sad stories like that. Tim Lincecum being (unshockingly) caught with marijuana, Oprah possibly leaving her show for her new cable network and the announcement that Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin hosting the Oscars were also reaaly close to being added. Nonetheless, these are the few things I chose and I hope you liked it. Enjoy the rest of your weekend everyone!
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If you have any opinions on today's post, or if you want to suggest anything to mj15 on his next blog entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
NFL Double Dip: 2009 Mid-Season Review and Week 9 Picks
I'll get to my NFL column in just a paragraph. But before I start, I just want to make a quick note about the future of this weekly column, Due to the return of Thursday Night Football (which, by the way, is one of the NFL's best inventions this decade) and my continually busy weekend schedule, I will now begin posting my weekly NFL picks column on Wednesdays starting next week. Adjust your plans accordingly.
So, as you may know we are in the early November stage the year, meaning not only that the holiday season is dead approaching, but also that we are are halfway through the NFL season. It's basically the time of the years where we actually know which teams are good, mediocre, bad and just terrible, which players are on top of the NFL pantheon, who's coaching job is in jeopardy, etc. Here's some of my opinions:
The Teams
Alright, so basically if your team's names aren't the Colts, the Saints, the Vikings, the Eagles, the Broncos, the Steelers and the Patriots, they're probably a wildcard playoff team at best. I mean, teams like the Cowboys, the Giants, the Bengals, the Texans and the Falcons are okay, but do you really expect that they're going to win the close games against good teams in December and January? Also, I you are a fan of the Raiders, the Bucs, the Browns, the Rams and the Redskins, I would really hope for, at best, a high wildcard pick.
The Players
This year especially has become the year of the veteran QB, as experienced winning quarterbacks like Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlesbeger and (gulp) Brett Favre are having some single perfirmances this season. Besides the QBs, though, there really hasn't been anyone that you would say is having quite the career and/or breakout year. The few that aren in that catergory are the ones you usaully expect, like Adrain Peterson, Reggie Wayne, Maurice Jones-Drew and Chris Johnson with Matt Schaub, Ray Rice and Cedric Benson being the only breakout stars. As for these years rookies, I mean really? Besides Mark Sanchez, this year's class has been uber- weak (considering last year's class where really ten guys could've won the ROY award).
The Games
Musch like this year's rookie class has been this year, thisa year has also been one with a lot of blowouts and just an overall lack in great moments. In fact, there were really two games that stood out, the 12-7 Broncos- Bengals game in week 1 and the 33-31 Ravens- Vikings game in week 6. That's it. Last year, you could've probably named at least 5 at this point of the season.
Miscellaneous
- If you had said that Josh McDaniels and Jim Caldwell would be one of the best rookie head coaches in NFL history to anyone, they might have you thrown out of the discussion you were having. But looke what we have here: we have McDaniels leading a 6-1 Denver teams and Caldwell becoming the first coach/zombie to start of his career 7-0.
- Truly a big flip-flop this season in terms of teams with the best defense. Seriously, who would have thought that the Saints and the Broncos defense would be just absolutly superb, considering that last year the teams they played against at least had 20 points, and that the Giants and the Chargers would be struggling to find an identity.
- Not much of a change in big fantast performers. Like, I mentioned, you have players you'd expect like Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Adrian Peterson, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlesbeger, MJD, etc. leading in terms of performance with only Matt Schaub, Ray Rice and Cedric Benson having the only breakout season. Then again, this happens nearly every year in fantasy, so really not much has changed.
- A record turnout in TV ratings for the networks. You have the big networks like CBS and FOX averaging at least 25 million viewers every late Sunday afternoon, NBC continually leading the ratings every Sunday night (making it the best program the network has not named "The Office" and "The Biggest Loser") and ESPN just had the Packers-Vikings game a few weeks back as the rating rated program in their networks history, as well as in cable TV history. And they said that TV was hurting due to the economy?
- There seems to have been a change in the way the defintion of a good offense is in the NFL. Usually, a good offense consists of a good QB, one great WR and an okay running back. This year, you have the best offenses including teams that have no running game, yet gain success by spreading the ball around like the Saints, the Colts and the Patriots.
- I have mentioned the Saints and the Broncos a total of 10 times while only mentioning the Patriots, the Giants and the Chargers a combines seven times in my midseason recap. If that's not an example to show how the NFL has been so topst- turvy this season, I don't know what is.
Overall, it was quite an NFL season you wouldn't expect to happen and it will be interesting to see how this will all unflod in the next three moth
Anyways, on to the picks! To recap, I finished the week 9-4, tied with mj50, who also went 9-4. However, I still currently lead lead hime with a 77-39 overall record. As for this week's games... most were actually pretty easy pick. There were some that took some time, but I think I'm going to do pretty well. Of course, that's my feeling every week, so I don't think you should feel confident of the following picks just yet.
Let's begin (note: all game times are based on the Central time zone):
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Jacksonville
Interesting read by ESPN.com's Greg Garber about the bleak state of the Jacksonville Jaguars (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=garber_greg&page=hotread8/Jacksonville/Main). It will be interesting to see how the next few years play out for the franchise. Anyways, problems aside, the Jax still have to play a home game against the Kansas City chiefs. Now, I know that Matt Cassel has a 7-3 record as a starter on the road. However, the Chiefs have the 26th ranked rshing defense, and with Maurice Jones-Drew running like a mad man the last few weeks (I think he rushed for, like, 21 yards per carry last week) expect him to receive the ball as much as possible and single-handily defeat the Chiefs.
mj50's pick: Jacksonville
Baltimore Ravens (-3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Cincinnati
Yes, I know how great the Ravens defeated the then undefeated Broncos last week, specifically the defense and Joe Flacco. However, over the last few years the Bengals seem to have had the Ravens number when playing at home. They just seem to bring their A-game every time. Seriously, watch highlights of these teams playing each other at Paul Brown stadium over the last ive years, and you know what I mean. And for that reason and that reason alone, I'm going with the Bengals in this one. Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut.
mj50's pick: Cincinnati
Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts (-9): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Indianapolis
I have been a big Peyton Manning fan since 2003. And I gotta say, this is arguably the greatest season he's ever had. Seriously! The number don't lie: 6 out of 7 games with 300+ yards passing, 15 TDs, a 100+ passer rating in nearly 75% of his games, etc. Makes you think how good of a coach Tony Dungy really was. Anyways, though Indy and Houston have played some close games lately, the injury to Owen Daniels, plus the weakened secondary of the Texans will be used in the Colts advantage. In conclusion, I believe that before we head to the tenth week of the season, the Colts will be 8-0 after this Sunday's win over the Texans.
mj50's pick: Indianapolis
Washington Redskins vs. Atlanta Falcons (-10): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Atlanta
Could this be the week? Could the bye week and the supposed increase in team chemistry help the Redskins start a good winning streak starting this Sunday? In one word... no. The point is, Washington is still as bad as they were two weeks ago. Also, why would anyone to expect a pretty good team like Atlanta to lose after already having lost two in a row. Falcons win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Atlanta
Green Bay Packers (-9.5) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Green Bay
And then there was one. One winless team that is, in the form of the 2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Not shocking, despite they're mini success in recent years, considering they're still the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which have a history of sucking. Now, while I do believe that they won't go 0-16 (it takes a special kind of suckiness like last year's Lions team and, quite frankly, they still have some talent ), I do beileve that they'll lose this week to Green Bay. Aaron Rodgers (NFL leader in passer rating) alone should give you a reason to believe why. Besides, didn't I mention how much they suck? Packers win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Green Bay
Arizona Cardinals vs. Chicago Bears (-3): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Chicago
I'll get to the game in about a paragraph. But first, let us remember the last time these two teams met. It was a Monday night in October, 2006. Heading to the 4th quarter, the Bears were trailing 23-3 in a game in which Matt Leinart (if you still believe it) was playing like Tom Brady and Rex Grossman was having a terrible day, having only a 6.0 passer rating and 6 INTs. But, for some reason, after two TDs by the Bears defense after making two turnovers and a Devin Hester punt return for TD with less than 3:00 left, the Bears took the lead. For some reason. they were able to miraculously win in one of the biggest comebacks in Bears history and Monday Night football history. THis, of course, led to then Cardinals coach give one of the greatest postgame rants in history.
Classic. On to the game though: Arizona just plain confuses me. One week, they defeat the Giants, the next week, they lose to the Panthers. However, the Bears aren't that good either. The red zone offense is putrid, the secondary is still weak (anyone can play well against the Browns) and Ron Turner is still one of the worst playcallers in the NFL. It actually took me a while to make this pick. After deliverating, I ended up picking the Bears. The West Coast team playing at 12:00 theory is still as reliable as it always has been.
mj50's pick: Chicago
Miami Dolphins vs. New England Patriots (-10.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New England
No way the Patriots lose at home after having two weeks to prepare, no matter how good Miami's Wildcat offense actually was the last time the two teams played each other. Period.
mj50's pick: New England
Carolina Panthers vs. New Orleans Saints (-13): Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: New Orleans
This definitely has an upset alert in the making. I mean, think about it: divisional rivals, Panthers just came off a win over the Cardinals, the Saints are undefeated and everyone is singing their praise, etc. I really wouldn't be surprised if the Panthers wouldn't pull a victory out of the bag in this one. However, I'm still picking the Saints. They just play on a greater level when they're at home. Not to mention that they have the better quarterback and a better defense.
mj50's pick: New Orleans
Detroit Lions vs. Seattle Seahawks (-10): Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: Seattle
This could be one of those Matt Hasselback-single-handily-gives-your-fantasy-team-the-victory type of game for the Seahwks QB. Add the fact that this game is in Qwest Field, and you got yourselves a Seahawks victory waiting to happen. Count on it.
mj50's pick: Seattle
Tennessee Titans vs. San Fransisco 49ers (-4): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tennessee
How come is it that 3 out of the last 4 season, the Titans have seemed to play better when they replaced the starting QB? In 2006, they were 0-4 before replacing Kerry Collins with Vince Young eventually finishing 8-4 with Young. In 2008, Young was replaced by Collins after the second game and they went 12-3. Now this year, after starting the season 0-6, the Titans replace Collins with Young again and they ended up winning last week for the first time this year. And, with that in mind, I expect them to see them win again this week on the road against San Fran! Though, if I were you, Vince Young, I'd consider practicing extra hard for next season.
mj50's pick: San Fransisco
San Diego Chargers vs. New York Giants (-5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: New York
The Giants just can't lose four in a row. They won't. For goodness sakes, they were the kings of the league at one point this season! Besides, they're at home. What more can I say?
mj50's pick: New York
Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles (-3): Sunady- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Philadelphia
In what is by far the cream of the crop in this week's slate of games, we have two NFC East divisional rivals, the Cowboys and the Eagles, fighting for first place in the division. Perosnally, I don't see how you can't pick the Eagles. They have basically owned the NFC East since mid-season last year. McNabb and the Eagle offense have been unstoppable, the the defense is scary good. Eagles will win, and clinch first place in the NFC East... BIG.
mj50's pick: Dallas
Pittsburgh Steelers (-3) vs. Denver Broncos: Monday- 7:30 p.m.
mj15's pick: Denver
It's amazing how a week can change people's perspective of an NFL team. All of a sudden, the Broncos went from comparison of last year's Titans to last year's Jets. Look, they weren't going to win all the times and Kyle Orton was going to be eventually exposed as what he was last year, a game manager at best. On to the game though: though things are looking in Pittsburgh's favor, keep in mind that Orton is a winning percentage beast when playing a game at home. Also, keep in mind that the Steelers defense is statistically worse on the road then at home. With those in mind, plus the homefield advantage with the Broncos will feed off of, I'm taking the Broncos in a slight, but not really, upset.
mj50's pick: Denver
RECAP
The Undertaker at WrestleMania "Lock of the Week":
Atlanta over Washington
The New York Yankees winning this year's World Series (NOT) "Upset of the Week":
Cincinnati over Baltimore
The Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock "I'm Not Sure" Pick:
New Orleans over Carolina
Week 9 recap, plus week 10 picks coming at you this Wednesday (remember the day change). Until then, enjoy another good week of football, everyone.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If
you have any opinions on the week nine predictions or anything else on
this post, or if you have any suggestions to mj15 on his next blog
entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
So, as you may know we are in the early November stage the year, meaning not only that the holiday season is dead approaching, but also that we are are halfway through the NFL season. It's basically the time of the years where we actually know which teams are good, mediocre, bad and just terrible, which players are on top of the NFL pantheon, who's coaching job is in jeopardy, etc. Here's some of my opinions:
The Teams
Alright, so basically if your team's names aren't the Colts, the Saints, the Vikings, the Eagles, the Broncos, the Steelers and the Patriots, they're probably a wildcard playoff team at best. I mean, teams like the Cowboys, the Giants, the Bengals, the Texans and the Falcons are okay, but do you really expect that they're going to win the close games against good teams in December and January? Also, I you are a fan of the Raiders, the Bucs, the Browns, the Rams and the Redskins, I would really hope for, at best, a high wildcard pick.
The Players
This year especially has become the year of the veteran QB, as experienced winning quarterbacks like Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlesbeger and (gulp) Brett Favre are having some single perfirmances this season. Besides the QBs, though, there really hasn't been anyone that you would say is having quite the career and/or breakout year. The few that aren in that catergory are the ones you usaully expect, like Adrain Peterson, Reggie Wayne, Maurice Jones-Drew and Chris Johnson with Matt Schaub, Ray Rice and Cedric Benson being the only breakout stars. As for these years rookies, I mean really? Besides Mark Sanchez, this year's class has been uber- weak (considering last year's class where really ten guys could've won the ROY award).
The Games
Musch like this year's rookie class has been this year, thisa year has also been one with a lot of blowouts and just an overall lack in great moments. In fact, there were really two games that stood out, the 12-7 Broncos- Bengals game in week 1 and the 33-31 Ravens- Vikings game in week 6. That's it. Last year, you could've probably named at least 5 at this point of the season.
Miscellaneous
- If you had said that Josh McDaniels and Jim Caldwell would be one of the best rookie head coaches in NFL history to anyone, they might have you thrown out of the discussion you were having. But looke what we have here: we have McDaniels leading a 6-1 Denver teams and Caldwell becoming the first coach/zombie to start of his career 7-0.
- Truly a big flip-flop this season in terms of teams with the best defense. Seriously, who would have thought that the Saints and the Broncos defense would be just absolutly superb, considering that last year the teams they played against at least had 20 points, and that the Giants and the Chargers would be struggling to find an identity.
- Not much of a change in big fantast performers. Like, I mentioned, you have players you'd expect like Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Adrian Peterson, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlesbeger, MJD, etc. leading in terms of performance with only Matt Schaub, Ray Rice and Cedric Benson having the only breakout season. Then again, this happens nearly every year in fantasy, so really not much has changed.
- A record turnout in TV ratings for the networks. You have the big networks like CBS and FOX averaging at least 25 million viewers every late Sunday afternoon, NBC continually leading the ratings every Sunday night (making it the best program the network has not named "The Office" and "The Biggest Loser") and ESPN just had the Packers-Vikings game a few weeks back as the rating rated program in their networks history, as well as in cable TV history. And they said that TV was hurting due to the economy?
- There seems to have been a change in the way the defintion of a good offense is in the NFL. Usually, a good offense consists of a good QB, one great WR and an okay running back. This year, you have the best offenses including teams that have no running game, yet gain success by spreading the ball around like the Saints, the Colts and the Patriots.
- I have mentioned the Saints and the Broncos a total of 10 times while only mentioning the Patriots, the Giants and the Chargers a combines seven times in my midseason recap. If that's not an example to show how the NFL has been so topst- turvy this season, I don't know what is.
Overall, it was quite an NFL season you wouldn't expect to happen and it will be interesting to see how this will all unflod in the next three moth
Anyways, on to the picks! To recap, I finished the week 9-4, tied with mj50, who also went 9-4. However, I still currently lead lead hime with a 77-39 overall record. As for this week's games... most were actually pretty easy pick. There were some that took some time, but I think I'm going to do pretty well. Of course, that's my feeling every week, so I don't think you should feel confident of the following picks just yet.
Let's begin (note: all game times are based on the Central time zone):
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (-6.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Jacksonville
Interesting read by ESPN.com's Greg Garber about the bleak state of the Jacksonville Jaguars (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=garber_greg&page=hotread8/Jacksonville/Main). It will be interesting to see how the next few years play out for the franchise. Anyways, problems aside, the Jax still have to play a home game against the Kansas City chiefs. Now, I know that Matt Cassel has a 7-3 record as a starter on the road. However, the Chiefs have the 26th ranked rshing defense, and with Maurice Jones-Drew running like a mad man the last few weeks (I think he rushed for, like, 21 yards per carry last week) expect him to receive the ball as much as possible and single-handily defeat the Chiefs.
mj50's pick: Jacksonville
Baltimore Ravens (-3) vs. Cincinnati Bengals: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Cincinnati
Yes, I know how great the Ravens defeated the then undefeated Broncos last week, specifically the defense and Joe Flacco. However, over the last few years the Bengals seem to have had the Ravens number when playing at home. They just seem to bring their A-game every time. Seriously, watch highlights of these teams playing each other at Paul Brown stadium over the last ive years, and you know what I mean. And for that reason and that reason alone, I'm going with the Bengals in this one. Sometimes, you just have to go with your gut.
mj50's pick: Cincinnati
Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts (-9): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Indianapolis
I have been a big Peyton Manning fan since 2003. And I gotta say, this is arguably the greatest season he's ever had. Seriously! The number don't lie: 6 out of 7 games with 300+ yards passing, 15 TDs, a 100+ passer rating in nearly 75% of his games, etc. Makes you think how good of a coach Tony Dungy really was. Anyways, though Indy and Houston have played some close games lately, the injury to Owen Daniels, plus the weakened secondary of the Texans will be used in the Colts advantage. In conclusion, I believe that before we head to the tenth week of the season, the Colts will be 8-0 after this Sunday's win over the Texans.
mj50's pick: Indianapolis
Washington Redskins vs. Atlanta Falcons (-10): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Atlanta
Could this be the week? Could the bye week and the supposed increase in team chemistry help the Redskins start a good winning streak starting this Sunday? In one word... no. The point is, Washington is still as bad as they were two weeks ago. Also, why would anyone to expect a pretty good team like Atlanta to lose after already having lost two in a row. Falcons win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Atlanta
Green Bay Packers (-9.5) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Green Bay
And then there was one. One winless team that is, in the form of the 2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Not shocking, despite they're mini success in recent years, considering they're still the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which have a history of sucking. Now, while I do believe that they won't go 0-16 (it takes a special kind of suckiness like last year's Lions team and, quite frankly, they still have some talent ), I do beileve that they'll lose this week to Green Bay. Aaron Rodgers (NFL leader in passer rating) alone should give you a reason to believe why. Besides, didn't I mention how much they suck? Packers win... BIG.
mj50's pick: Green Bay
Arizona Cardinals vs. Chicago Bears (-3): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: Chicago
I'll get to the game in about a paragraph. But first, let us remember the last time these two teams met. It was a Monday night in October, 2006. Heading to the 4th quarter, the Bears were trailing 23-3 in a game in which Matt Leinart (if you still believe it) was playing like Tom Brady and Rex Grossman was having a terrible day, having only a 6.0 passer rating and 6 INTs. But, for some reason, after two TDs by the Bears defense after making two turnovers and a Devin Hester punt return for TD with less than 3:00 left, the Bears took the lead. For some reason. they were able to miraculously win in one of the biggest comebacks in Bears history and Monday Night football history. THis, of course, led to then Cardinals coach give one of the greatest postgame rants in history.
Classic. On to the game though: Arizona just plain confuses me. One week, they defeat the Giants, the next week, they lose to the Panthers. However, the Bears aren't that good either. The red zone offense is putrid, the secondary is still weak (anyone can play well against the Browns) and Ron Turner is still one of the worst playcallers in the NFL. It actually took me a while to make this pick. After deliverating, I ended up picking the Bears. The West Coast team playing at 12:00 theory is still as reliable as it always has been.
mj50's pick: Chicago
Miami Dolphins vs. New England Patriots (-10.5): Sunday- 12:00 p.m.
mj15's pick: New England
No way the Patriots lose at home after having two weeks to prepare, no matter how good Miami's Wildcat offense actually was the last time the two teams played each other. Period.
mj50's pick: New England
Carolina Panthers vs. New Orleans Saints (-13): Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: New Orleans
This definitely has an upset alert in the making. I mean, think about it: divisional rivals, Panthers just came off a win over the Cardinals, the Saints are undefeated and everyone is singing their praise, etc. I really wouldn't be surprised if the Panthers wouldn't pull a victory out of the bag in this one. However, I'm still picking the Saints. They just play on a greater level when they're at home. Not to mention that they have the better quarterback and a better defense.
mj50's pick: New Orleans
Detroit Lions vs. Seattle Seahawks (-10): Sunday- 3:05 p.m.
mj15's pick: Seattle
This could be one of those Matt Hasselback-single-handily-gives-your-fantasy-team-the-victory type of game for the Seahwks QB. Add the fact that this game is in Qwest Field, and you got yourselves a Seahawks victory waiting to happen. Count on it.
mj50's pick: Seattle
Tennessee Titans vs. San Fransisco 49ers (-4): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: Tennessee
How come is it that 3 out of the last 4 season, the Titans have seemed to play better when they replaced the starting QB? In 2006, they were 0-4 before replacing Kerry Collins with Vince Young eventually finishing 8-4 with Young. In 2008, Young was replaced by Collins after the second game and they went 12-3. Now this year, after starting the season 0-6, the Titans replace Collins with Young again and they ended up winning last week for the first time this year. And, with that in mind, I expect them to see them win again this week on the road against San Fran! Though, if I were you, Vince Young, I'd consider practicing extra hard for next season.
mj50's pick: San Fransisco
San Diego Chargers vs. New York Giants (-5): Sunday- 3:15 p.m.
mj15's pick: New York
The Giants just can't lose four in a row. They won't. For goodness sakes, they were the kings of the league at one point this season! Besides, they're at home. What more can I say?
mj50's pick: New York
Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles (-3): Sunady- 7:20 p.m.
mj15's pick: Philadelphia
In what is by far the cream of the crop in this week's slate of games, we have two NFC East divisional rivals, the Cowboys and the Eagles, fighting for first place in the division. Perosnally, I don't see how you can't pick the Eagles. They have basically owned the NFC East since mid-season last year. McNabb and the Eagle offense have been unstoppable, the the defense is scary good. Eagles will win, and clinch first place in the NFC East... BIG.
mj50's pick: Dallas
Pittsburgh Steelers (-3) vs. Denver Broncos: Monday- 7:30 p.m.
mj15's pick: Denver
It's amazing how a week can change people's perspective of an NFL team. All of a sudden, the Broncos went from comparison of last year's Titans to last year's Jets. Look, they weren't going to win all the times and Kyle Orton was going to be eventually exposed as what he was last year, a game manager at best. On to the game though: though things are looking in Pittsburgh's favor, keep in mind that Orton is a winning percentage beast when playing a game at home. Also, keep in mind that the Steelers defense is statistically worse on the road then at home. With those in mind, plus the homefield advantage with the Broncos will feed off of, I'm taking the Broncos in a slight, but not really, upset.
mj50's pick: Denver
RECAP
The Undertaker at WrestleMania "Lock of the Week":
Atlanta over Washington
The New York Yankees winning this year's World Series (NOT) "Upset of the Week":
Cincinnati over Baltimore
The Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. The Rock "I'm Not Sure" Pick:
New Orleans over Carolina
Week 9 recap, plus week 10 picks coming at you this Wednesday (remember the day change). Until then, enjoy another good week of football, everyone.
Sincerely,
Your pal: mj15
If
you have any opinions on the week nine predictions or anything else on
this post, or if you have any suggestions to mj15 on his next blog
entry, e-mail him at: mj1599@aol.com. Your e-mail might be addressed on a future post.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)