BMer's Rant

The Season of Fantasy Leagues

2011-08-08T08:34:00.002-07:00

Aiight, it's that time again, when NFL and PL fantasy leagues get into full swing, so here's the info:

Fantasy Premier League (soccer)
This is our salary cap style fantasy English Premier League game. it's a lot of fun, lasts until May. There's usually one game a week (like NFL) so it's not a ton of work. Join our league!

Homepage
League code: 39325-16153

NFL Pick'em Skins

This is our Pick'em Skins game, its costs $20 to play. The person with the most correct games wins the pot, week-to-week. All you do is pick a winner from each NFL game.

Homepage
Group ID#: 10352
Password: browns

NFL Survivor
This is a fun game where you basically pick just one team each week that you're sure is going to win. you can only pick each team once. Try to make it through the season without getting any wrong

Homepage
Group ID# (5657)
Password (browns)

Last Night's Dream

2011-01-11T11:11:00.002-07:00

So last night i had a very vivid dream. I dreamt that i was near the ocean, it felt and looked like Monterrey or San Francisco and i was walking down to near the water with Addie. The area we were at was a little inlet and we had to walk over this little patch of land, maybe 10 yards long, to get to the side where we could walk along the water. Addie was running along the water and i was walking behind her, it was overcast and chilly, i was wearing shoes for some reason.

The water was starting to roll in a little higher than when we first started walking, so i concluded that the tide was coming in and looked back at our little land bridge to see that it would be covered by water soon. One of my biggest fears in life is water, more specifically murky water which ocean water always qualifies for. I began to panic a little and grabbed Addie and headed back to our land bridge to cross back to safety.

As i was starting to cross over the water was rising quickly, up to my knees now, and Addie was riding on my shoulders. I looked out towards the deeper water and noticed something swimming, sort of like when you see carp near the shoreline. This is another fear of mine, fish in the same water i'm in, freaks me out. But this wasn't a fish, it was very large, in my dream i thought it might be a hippo or something (sounds dumb now but i was freaked). All you could see was it's back as it went under water about 20 feet from us. I really panicked and started for shore in almost waist deep water when suddenly i felt something touch my foot.

I have never jumped out of bed so fast. Kassie apparently was readjusting and her foot touched mine, i must have flown 2-3' out of bed and gasped! I was breathing so hard, kassie was shocked. i told her what happened and she went back to sleep. i couldn't calm down and it took me another 15 minutes before my breathing was back to normal.

good times.

Books I Read in 2010

2011-01-06T10:00:00.003-07:00

2010 was a year that re-discovered my love of reading thanks to an old friend of mine, Barbara, who recommended some awesome books. As you can see i enjoyed The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell so much that i read the entire series. The book are fictional-history books about the West Saxon wars in England around 900 AD, most of the characters and battles are real, only the main character is fiction. It was a fun way to read about real history and i enjoyed the books, they were easy and quick to read.

I'm really enjoying Atlas Shrugged, i can't put it down.

Screwtape Letters - C.S. Lewis

The Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas

Let Them In - Jason Riley

The Last Kingdom - Bernard Cornwell

The Pale Horseman - Bernard Cornwell

Lords of the North - Bernard Cornwell

Sword Song - Bernard Cornwell

The Burning Land - Bernard Cornwell

In Progress

Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand

Outliers - Malcom Gladwell

Next on Shelf

The Archer's Tale - Bernard Cornwell

The Last Jihad - Joel C. Rosenberg

Sacred Marriage - Gary Thomas

"You should of just asked"

2010-09-23T10:49:00.003-07:00

I've been thinking about this lately and i've decided to throw my thoughts down on paper, er, keypad.

You know how when a friend of yours gets busted for a DUI, and you tell them "hey man, you should have just called me, i would have given you a ride." or maybe a friend of yours gets busted for stealing something small at a grocery story "hey dude, if you needed some food you should of just asked." Maybe your friend nabbed a few bucks from your ash tray, or from the offering plate, or the cash register at work and lost his job - "bro, you could of just asked me for a few bucks, i would have gladly given some to you. If you need some cash just ask me."

Yea, hindsight is always 20/20. of course now that your friend is in jail for a DUI, or lost his job for a measly $20 you would gladly have offered to change his course. Well why didn't you intervene before the problem got worse? Why did you wait until your friend asked for help?

If your friend calls you at 1225a and asks for a ride from some downtown bar would you shrug? probably. and that shrug is probably why your friend doesn't call you. If your friend never pays for lunch, you always get stuck with the bill, would you start avoiding eating out with your friend? that's probably why they don't ask you for cash. When you receive a real-life phone call on your cell (not a text, email, notification, DM...) do you avoid a real-life conversation and let the call go to voicemail? that's probably why your friend didn't call you when they needed some help or food, they never get a hold of you anyway.

Have you ever been in need? the first thing most people feel when they're in need is shame, or embarrassment. "crap, i don't have a well-paying job like my friends, i can't afford a house or a car like my friends. i don't have a nice little family and a great spouse like my friends." this friend already feels bad about their situation and now we expect them to also put aside their pride and approach us first and ask for a handout? no wonder they conclude "my house isn't that far and i'm only buzzed, it'll only take a few minutes to drive home. better than calling BMer at midnite and pissing him off."

If you're a caring friend you should welcome these situations. you should care enough about your friends to know whats going in their lives. you should be helping them out without putting them in their place, if they're in need they already know it. you should be pro-active about help, you should SHOW that you care enough to pick them up at midnight, or get them some supplies that might ease their weekly needs, instead of just SAYING that you would have done that, if only they asked.

Friendship is about loving one another, about truly caring about each other. stop wasting time poking friends on facebook, or retweeting them, and actually get involved in their life, and show that you're there for them all the time, whether they're in need or not. Next time they're in a tough spot they shouldn't hesitate to call you. Next time they're in need they should feel confident that they can rely on you without being reprimanded, judged, reminded, instructed, lectured...

in the midst of a tight-spot, the first thing a friend needs is support, you can worry about addressing the problems later.

join my Fantasy Football and Soccer leagues

2010-07-29T12:28:00.002-07:00

Here are all of the different leagues i'm running this Fall. sign up for one of them, or all of them.

NFL Pick'em w/Skins

This is just basic Pick'em, pick all of the winners every week. We've added a Skins element where for $20 you can be eligible to win weekly cash. Each week is worth an amount of money, like $10, the person who picks the most games right wins the $10. If two or more people tie for the most right picks the money from that week rolls into the next week, making it worth $20. It keeps rolling over until there is an outright winner. Last year Kassie won $65 over 2 weekends! it's a lot of fun. You don't have to join the Skins part, you can just play the Pick'em in this league but you won't be eligible for the cash unless you choose to pay up-front!

Join Here

Group ID#: 862
Password: browns

Last years winner: Noah with 176 correct games

NFL SURVIVAL

This is a game where you basically pick one team to win every week. Once you pick a team you can't pick them again. No one ever makes it through the season perfect so you get three strikes. super easy and challenging.

Join Here

Group ID# (442)

Password (browns)

English Premier League Fantasy (salary cap style)

Basically you have a set amount of money to fill your roster, you can make changes every week, players value go and down based on performance. good way to learn about the EPL and which players are good, trial by fire!

Join Here - click "Leagues" then enter our league code: "300825-78876"

World Cup Game with Friends

2010-06-02T14:09:00.005-07:00

okay, so a friend of mine just introduced me to this cool game you can play while watching the World Cup. If we can get 16 people together this will be a blast, with a pretty good payout.

Basically you throw all 64 teams into a hat, each player gets 2 teams by a random draw. If one of your teams wins the World Cup you win the Pot! i think we'll have smaller payouts too for the following:

$25 for most goals scored combined
$20 for the least amount of goals scored combined
$10 for second place in the Final

We'll say everyone pays in $10 and that way we'll aim for 16 people, $160. the winner of the World Cup will get $100 and the other $60 will be split above.

Player Teams (Total Goals)
DaveM - spain / italy: (0)
NoahV - south korea / chile: (2)
DerekM - nigeria / france: (0)
ScottW - germany / serbia: (4)
GregM - argentina / usa: (2)
BrianL - paraguay / netherlands: (2)
BMer - mexico / brazil: (1)
TravisM - japan / slovakia: (1)
AaronB - algeria / new zealand: ( 0)
Tahoe - ivory coast / portugal: (0)
ChrisC - uruguay / england: (1)
SeanN - greece / honduras: (0)
ScottH - ghana / cameroon: (1)
JeffS - australia / slovenia: (1)
JordanH - south africa / korea dpr: (1)
JoshO - denmark / switzerland: (0)

Josh Cribbs is like Birdman!

2010-01-07T09:07:00.002-07:00

So in case you haven't been following the headlines surrounding the Cleveland Browns, our best player Josh Cribbs is asking for a new offer. This started last year after Cribbs established himself as the best kick returner in the league. This season he not only continued that, but he inserted himself into the offense as a WR, and the QB of the Wildcat Offense, showing that he could throw and run the ball in for points. No doubt that Cribbs was the best player on the Browns this season, but i think that is more telling of the lack of quality skill players, not so much Cribbs.

Cribbs is not a good WR, just like Devin Hester of the Bears is not a good WR. Cribbs was the default #2 WR after Braylon was traded because we don't have anyone else, you can't even name the Browns the WR's. Now Cribbs wants a new contract after he signed a relatively cheap one 2 years ago, that goes through 2013. Yes he has outplayed his contract, but what is he worth to the Browns?

I compare this situation to Chris "Birdman" Anderson of the Denver Nuggets. A great story no doubt, recovering from drug addiction (being kicked out of the NBA) and working his way back into shape and returning to his first team, the Nuggets. The Nuggets scored Birdman really cheap from the Hornets and last year he established himself as the fan favorite. He was playing out-of-his-mind for the 2nd half of the season, blocking shots and bringing the energy. After the Nuggets failed to reach the Championship, Anderson was a free agent. Everyone in Denver said to pay the man, but honestly, he doesn't do that much for the team. He doesn't score often, he is an average rebounder, he's slow in defense, and he blocks shots out-of-bounds instead of grabbing the ball for a turnover. But Kroenke and Denver caved and paid him good money. Now this season he's been hurt (he has a history of injuries) and hasn't played at nearly the level of last season.

This is why Cribbs is the new Birdman. Cribbs doesn't have much value. Do you remember want Dante "the X factor" Hall did after being dominate at kick returning for 2 seasons? nothing! What has Hester done in Chicago the last 2 years? nothing. consider this:

Recent history suggests that explosive kick returners (see Dante Hall and Devin Hester) don't maintain their productivity for much longer than three seasons, and Devin Hester's $5.45 million-per-year contract with the Bears has become something of a laughingstock. Hester hasn't returned a kick for a touchdown in two full seasons since signing his new deal. -Cleveland Frowns

Cribbs is "offended" by the Browns offer of $1.4 million, a raise from the $700K he's making now. Consider this from Cleveland radio host Will Burge on Twitter:

Players who made appx $1.4M in 2009:Dwayne Bowe $1.4M, Miles Austin $1.5M, DeSean Jackson $1.1M, Vincent Jackson $900K, Santnio Holmes $1.8M

Now tell me Josh Cribbs worth so much more than ANY of those WR's that the offer is insulting. You just cant do it...

I love Cribbs, but i don't think the Browns will break the bank for him, and they shouldn't. Just like how everyone now like coach Eric Mangini after he ended a terrible season winning 4 games in a row (against OAK, KC, JAC, and PIT), but i believe that new team president, Mike Holmgren, is going to still fire him, and he should.

Sentiment doesn't win games, it just costs a lot of money.

Why I Don't Listen to Movie Critics

2010-01-04T21:41:00.002-07:00

I've often thought about this theory, but now it has affected me in a new way. I've never thought movie reviews by official "movie experts" were very valuable, they seem to be too close to their product. All they do is watch and critique movies, so they're looking at much more than the average person looks at. they're looking for themes, character development, camera work, plot, etc, whereas i'm usually just looking to be entertained for 2 hours. If i want to know if a movie is worth seeing i'd rather ask a few of my friends about it instead of looking up the review from the LA Times.

It's the same with "expert" reviews of books, food, music, video games, and tons of other stuff. I would rather hear from people who are more like me, the common blogger, message boards, people who enjoy these things as often as i do, rather than some elitist critic who is never happy. but everyone feels this way, why am i blogging about it?

Because i'm now the "expert" rather than the casual fan when it comes to Fantasy Football. I really enjoy fantasy football, i follow about 5 fantasy "experts" on twitter, i read numerous fantasy related articles every week, and i follow team beat writers for numerous teams just to have an edge. i love the information regarding NFL, and i'm more than ready to apply it to my fantasy teams.

I only play in 2 leagues each year, i've learned that having too many teams can ruin the whole season for you, but apparently thats not the only thing that can ruin it. This year i played in my friend Alan's league, which i've played in for the last few seasons. I prep for the draft, making my own lists and spreadsheets, reading everything i possibly can, scoffing at my opponents draft picks, drafting players that are "sleepers" while ignoring the obvious names, and everything else that makes me feel like i'm way ahead of these other dudes. well this season, that didn't work out so well for me.

This past weekend was the last weekend of the Fantasy Season in the "Roethlishotdog" league and after making a league-high 67 moves (picking up players from the waiver-wire, trades...) i finished in 8th place, out of 8 teams. But thats not all, our champion, Pete Deusterman made a league-low 17 moves, scored 1521 points (150 points more than 2nd place) and rolled through playoffs relatively easy. why is that impressive? well he didn't have access to our fantasy website almost all season. he would email me on tuesday morning and ask me if i could look on the page to see whether or not he won his matchup that week. The dude drafted a team of well-known players like Randy Moss and Steven Jackson and stuck with them. Meanwhile i'm drafting sleepers like Matt Forte and Calvin Johnson who were basically worthless this year.

Pete didn't get caught up in all of the hype around the players, he stuck with the players that most people know, his draft was what most average football fans would draft, and he owned our league. he didn't just survive and do alright, he owned us all, and i tried everything. i even offered him a trade that i thought would look good, but turn in my favor eventually, but no, giving up Joseph Addai midseason for T.O. hurt me even more! ouch.

This is a case of me trying to be too close to the product, and not just going with the obvious. it's like ripping Transformers for a lack of plot, yes it doesn't have much plot but hey, i was really entertained, and the movie is a hit!

2009 NFL Playoff Predictions

2009-12-28T15:15:00.004-07:00

with one week to go i'm going to put my predictions out there so i can say "i told you so".

I have already made my picks for Week 17, so with that i can figure out who will be in the playoffs (the AFC is really confusing, but i tried my best to figure out the scenarios based on ESPN's playoff breakdown, so hopefully i'm right).

NFC

1. Minnesota
2. New Orleans
3. Philadelphia
4. Arizona
5. Green Bay
6. Dallas

Dallas @ Philly = Philadelphia
Green Bay @ Arizona = Arizona (i'll be rooting for GB though)

Arizona @ Minnesota = Arizona
Philly @ New Orleans = Philadelphia

Arizona @ Philly = Philadelphia (if this game is in Arizona i think i might still take Philly)

so the NFC representative in the Super Bowl is Philadelphia

AFC

1. Indy
2. San Diego
3. New England
4. Cincy
5. Baltimore
6. Pittsburgh

Pitt @ New England = New England (great game!)
Baltimore @ Cincy = Cincy

Cincy @ San Diego = San Diego
New England @ Indy = Indy

San Diego @ Indy = Indy

AFC representative is Indianapolis

Superbowl is Indianapolis vs Philadelphia with Indianapolis taking it all!

just my opinion but i think it'll be pretty close to this!

Tedy Bruschi is an Idiot

2009-11-16T14:04:00.002-07:00

In case you missed it (and i did don't worry) the Patriots and Colts played on Sunday Night Football this past weekend. This is the best rivalry in football for the last 10 years, the teams have essentially split the series, playing each other at least once a season, they've both won Super Bowls and MVPs, and they're both playing great football again this season. Sunday night's match up was no different, the undefeated Colts hosting the streaking Patriots.

I watched this game, as a big fan of the Colts, until 6 minutes to go in the game, Manning just threw another interception and the Patriots jumped up to a 17 point lead. NBC showed a stat that the largest 4th-quarter deficit that Manning had overcome was 14 points, so i'm thinking that 17 points by the dominate New England Patriots would be too much.

i was wrong.

Apparently (since i read about it the next day), Manning and the Colts decided to get serious and with cool efficiency brought the team back within reach. The Colts score a TD with 2:23 to go in the game, down 28-34. The Patriots then get the ball back and fail to kill much clock time, leaving them with 4th down and 2, with 2:02 to go in the game on their own 28 yard line. At this point the Colts have scored 21 points in the last 17:00 of the game, so New England coach Bill Belichick decides to go for it, 2 yards, Tom Brady / Wes Welker / Randy Moss, instead of punting and giving Peyton Manning / Reggie Wayne / Dallas Clark a whole 2:00 to move down the field, again, and score the winning TD. His decision was right, although they didn't get 2 yards, and gave the Colts the ball back with a short field.

You can find more reading than you want about this decision and whatnot, you don't need me to point you to articles (first, try Google!). But one article i wanted to call out was former Patriot and now ESPN sellout Tedy Bruschi's.

Tedy says: "As a former defender on that team, I would've cared less about the result of that fourth-down attempt. The decision to go for it would be enough to make my blood boil for weeks. Bill Belichick sent a message to his defense. He felt that his chances were better to go for it on his own 28-yard line than to punt it away and make Peyton Manning have to drive the majority of the field to win the game...Sure, Tom Brady and the offense loved the vote of confidence that their head coach was giving them, but the message sent to the defense was loud and clear. It was a message of doubt."

so what you're saying Tedy is that the defense needed another chance? What about the 17 point cushion that the defense was given (by the offense)? All New Englands defense had to do was stop the Colts from scoring 3 touchdowns. not one TD, but 3. The defense knew that Peyton had to throw the ball, the defense knew they could give up field goals but not TDs, and yet the defense failed. Belichick had seen enough and decided 2 yards would be easier than letting the Colts score again. it didn't work out, but i don't think punting to the Colts and giving them 2:00 to operate would have worked either, it wasn't like the defense was stopping them before.

Tedy Bruschi, you're an idiot.

BMer's Midseason Rant

2009-11-13T08:12:00.002-07:00

well, the NFL has reached it's midpoint, a time when predictions should be made, so i'll make mine.

I don't want to get too crazy here, but here are a few things that i'm pretty confident will happen the rest of the way. I'm having a terrible Pick'em year, and my 2 fantasy teams aren't doing much better, so maybe i don't have a good pulse on the league this season, but that won't deter me!

1. State of the Browns: Yes it has been a tough start to the season for my Brownies, but i'm not as discouraged as the most of the Brown Backers. Unlike 90% of the sports media out there i actually watch the Browns games, and i've seen a team that was better than Chicago, should have beat Green Bay, and shut down Minnesota until the 4th quarter. The Browns have 8 games left, 5 home and 3 road games. i predict they will go 4-4. They will go 4-4 with Brady Quinn the rest of the way, ending the season 5-11 and essentially saving Eric Mangini's job (and he won't be fired).

2. As for the AFC North, it feels like Cinci is going to win the division, they've already swept the Ravens and this weekend they will beat the Steelers again to end up 6-0 against the division. shocking, i can't believe it.

3. The Superbowl will feature Indianapolis. They are the best team in the league this season, and they will win the Superbowl. They'll have to go through New England and Pittsburgh, but i think they handle that.

4. The NFC representative won't be the Saints. I like the Vikings to get to the big game this year, they have good pieces and its seems like Favre's story keeps going his way, going 2-0 against Green Bay, and he seems to be playing better in Minnesota than he did in New York.

5. The Bronco's will win their division as well, but won't make much noise in the Playoffs, going out in the first round. Unlike most of the Denver fan base, i am not unsettled by the last two Bronco games, they played Baltimore and Pittsburgh, the standard for defense in the entire league. they'll be just fine.

6. No team from the NFC East is a contender, they'll beat each other up and none of the teams (NYG, PHI, and DAL) are solid this season. the best 3 teams in the NFC are Minnesota, New Orleans, and Arizona. The prediction? how about no team from the NFC East makes the NFC Championship game.

7. How about some upset picks for the next 4 weeks:

Seattle over Arizona (Week 10)
Kansas City over San Diego (Week 12)
Miami over New England (Week 13)

8. and lastly, my lovely wife Kassie will pick more games right this season than i do even though she missed a week when she was giving birth to our little man Mason. right now she's correctly picked 79 games, and I've picked 80 games right. In week 6 Kassie missed getting her picks in and went 1/14 that week. that's pretty incredible that she's still only 1 game behind me, and currently beating a few of my friends (Eli, Big Red, Nuccio, Chase Powers...).

It's almost time for the Browns post-season, which is full of Mock Drafts. Who should the Browns draft next season?

Hillary Clinton & Sarah Palin

2009-10-13T10:08:00.002-07:00

I'm going to take a cue from my friend Aaron's blog and post something that i read that i felt would be interesting to you guys. This is an entry from the ESPN Tuesday Morning Quarterback, an intricate look at the past weekends football games, with some political/scientific/pop culture entries added in. i totally recommend reading this articles if you get a chance.

anyway, here's an entry about Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton:

What Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton Have in Common: Sarah Palin has an instant book out next month, and in keeping with the Unified Field Theory of Creep, it's already on bestseller lists though no volumes actually have been shipped from the warehouse. Is the real reason she quit the Alaska governorship that she wanted to be free to promote the book and keep the royalties? If so, that makes her sound like just another political phony.
Palin is presenting herself as the author of "Going Rogue," though a ghostwriter named Lynn Vincent is the actual author. It is perfectly respectable to use a ghostwriter -- so long as this is disclosed. George W. Bush's "A Charge to Keep" declares on the cover, "by George W. Bush and Mickey Herskowitz." John McCain's several books all prominently declare on the cover that the actual author is his longtime associate, Mark Salter. This is called honesty. To pretend to be the author of something you did not write is deceit, and indicates egotism. Celebrities and athletes pretend to be authors of books actually written by someone else. But they're airheads! People with important roles in public life should be honest.
When Hillary Clinton ran for president, she pretended to be the author of the books "Living History" and "It Takes a Village." The former was actually written by Lissa Muscatine, Ruby Shamir and Maryanne Vollers; the latter was actually written by Barbara Feinman, a fact the publisher even announced! Yet Clinton masqueraded as the author. Even today, Clinton's official State Department biography includes the phrase, "Secretary Clinton is the author of bestselling books, including her memoir, Living History, and her groundbreaking book on children, It Takes A Village." This statement is simply false, and has no business in U.S. government information. That the former governor of Alaska pretends to be something she is not reflects poorly on Palin; that the current secretary of state pretends to be something she is not reflects poorly on her. Both claims cheapen public understanding of the value of writing, and devalue honesty.
Palin handed in "her" manuscript to the publisher in August, three weeks after leaving the Juneau statehouse; Clinton signed to "write" her latest opus just after becoming a senator representing New York. This means that if they actually are authors, then they cheated the taxpayer. No one could possibly write a 432-page book ("Going Rogue") or a 592-page book ("Living History") while carrying out the duties of a governor or senator. To pretend for ego reasons to be what you are not is a worrisome trait in someone at a high level of public responsibility (Clinton) or who seeks an even higher level (Palin). That Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin pulled the same self-aggrandizing stunt is distressing on too many levels to count.

Denver Sports Radio Sucks

2009-09-28T17:33:00.002-07:00

So a long while back i ranted and raved about the sports scene here in my new home of Denver. I am still impressed these days, Denver is a great sports town, 5 major teams in every popular league in America (Broncos, Nuggets, Avalanche, Rockies, Rapids). Combine all of those sport teams with the highest concentration of micro-breweries in the country and you will understand why people are moving to Colorado in a hurry. This town is great!

My rant today though, was something i just couldn't ignore anymore. 5 years ago when i was impressed with the sports scene here, there were 2 fulltime AM sports station, one was purely local, The Fan, and the other was an extension of ESPN having some national shows, and some local shows. Since then though, the ESPN extension has left, and The Fan has taken over everything sports radio out here. And i hate The Fan.

The local talent here in Denver is terrible. Well at least the talent that is put forward. Apparently the masterminds that are pulling the strings behind The Fan, Altitude, and Fox Sports Rocky Mountains think that washed up former Denver notables are the people who should be telling me about the Nuggets. I'm sorry but Scott Hastings is an idiot. He is nothing but a blow-hard fan, he brings no new info to the table, doesn't keep tabs on the rest of the league (NBA) and talks more about his time in the league than anything else, and we don't care. But he's not the only one that sucks here, Reggie Rivers and Dave Logan could ride the train outta town as well.

Today though, The Fan reminded me why i turned off sports radio in Denver about 3 years ago. For some reason i decided to tune into The Fan for my ride home, apparently during the Alfred and D-Mac show, Tagline: "Former Bronco Alfred Williams brings his "A" game to afternoon drive. He played the game...He knows the game...He can even talk a good game...". The topic of the afternoon was whether or not the 3-0 Bronco's are for real. I'll get to my feelings on that in a minute, but first i want to touch on what got me all riled up.

A caller called in to rave about he believed in this Broncos team, and how their Defense is dominating. the Caller said that he looked at the paper and was "surprised" to see that the Broncos were leading the league in Points Against, giving up only 19 so far in 3 games. the next closest was the Jets with like 31 points. Alfred, who "knows the game", totally agreed and went on a 5 minute rant about how the defense was shutting teams down, dominating and whatnot.

Really?

The Broncos opened the season against the Bengals and the game was ugly. The Broncos defense was good, i'll give them that. but then week 2 was in Denver, against the Browns. The same Browns that hadn't scored 1 meaningful touchdown since November of last season. The Browns who are the worst team in the league, no question. The dominating Broncos defense gave up 3 points. congrats. Well i'll give you a free week, so who did they play in week 3? oh, Jamarcus Russell?! If the Browns are the worst TEAM in the league, then Jamarcus Russell is the worst QUARTERBACK in the league. His passer rating on Sunday was 22. he threw for 1 yard in the 2nd half. You think that was the Denver Defense?? c'mon!

Meanwhile, the 2nd best defense, according to Alfred, was the Jets, but they've given up a whopping 31 points!! who did they play? Oh week 2 against Tom Brady and the Patriots. The Jets shut the Brady/Moss train down! a real team. How about week 3? The Jets hosted the 0-2 Titans, a team coached by a top coach in Jeff Fisher, a team that went 13-3 last season and wasn't about to roll over this season. The Jets basically shut the Titans down in the last 5 minutes to seal the game and go 3-0. The Broncos haven't even played a real team yet.

These Broncos could be legit, and that's cool, but c'mon Denver, lets just be a little realistic. Until then i'll stick to Mike & Mike and continue to boycott the local media!

Empathy Event

2009-09-03T07:43:00.002-07:00

As most of you know i have been trying to stay involved with the issue of human trafficking. It's a serious problem in the world today, and it seems like people either don't know about the issue, or are choosing to ignore it. Sometimes it's easy to ignore problems when they're not in your home/state/country but human trafficking and slavery are very present even here in the USA.

A few months ago Joy Orf and John Boyle from Calvary Bible Church asked me to join them while they met with an organization called iEmpathize. I was very interested and excited about this opportunity to present this issue to our church community.

After a few meetings and a lot of emails we've setup an Empathy Night to happen at Calvary Bible Church in Boulder. This will be a powerful night and i'm hoping to bring as many people as i can to the event.

iEmpathize is a group that matches up churches with in-field programs that are already in place. This event will not be a fundraiser, but it will be to learn about human trafficking. There will be plenty of opportunities to help and get connected during the event. There will be music, artwork, and a few quick speakers.

Please consider attending this event, if you need more info or you have questions please contact me.

EMPATHY ENCOUNTER: a worship and justice event.

An interactive night of

awareness, art, worship, justice, and prayer. Come see how you can engage and make a difference in the issue of child sex trafficking.

September 9th at Calvary Bible Church in Boulder at 7p

Here's a link to the information from iEmpathize's webpage

if you twitter:
@iempathize
@nowhere2hide
@not_for_sale
@IJMcampaigns
@thesoldproject

Empathy Encounter Sept 9, 7pm @ Calvary Bible Church

2 children per minute are trafficked for sexual exploitation. Come see the iEmpathize Art Exhibit & Film on human trafficking where you can explore and engage in this issue of injustice in a profound way. This will be an interactive night of awareness, art, worship, justice, and prayer. Learn how you can engage and make a difference in the issue of child sex trafficking.

iEmpathize (iE) is an Arts and Advocacy non-profit (501c3) working on the behalf of vulnerable and victimized children. iE creates opportunities for people to explore and engage in issues of injustice. Our current efforts are focused on what we believe to be one of the darkest human rights violations to exist…child sex slavery. Through a movement of empathizers we join together to end this heinous crime against children and humanity.

Sympathy is feeling badly for the suffering of others. Empathy is diving into the suffering of others. It is active, compelling the empathizer toward action. Jesus is the essence of empathy. Empathy is the essence of iEmpathize.

Visit www.iEmpathize.org to explore our media, advocacy programs, blog, links, and more. You may also sign up for our e-letter, view the calendar, and contribute. Don’t forget to add us to your Facebook and Twitter.

God? Is That You?

2009-08-20T09:17:00.002-07:00

i had a pretty eventful day yesterday. Actually, i've had a pretty wierd 2009 in terms of my health. anyone that knows me knows that i try to be pretty healthy, playing soccer and other sports, and staying active. But you also might know that i've had my share of health problems including multiple knee surgeries and heart surgery, all before turning 30! no big deal though, i feel great.

Yesterday, however, i experienced the worst pain i might have ever felt. that's a pretty big deal considering i've had knee problems forever, broken bones, stitches, concussions and turf toe! yesterday i had a toothache that was intense, there was no way to relieve the pain, no pressure points or pain meds could help me. no way to help ward off the pain or prevent it from happening. i had this pain a few weeks ago and went to the dentist on the spot (something i'm not fond of - dentist), i explained my pain and he determined i had a cavity and decided to fill it on the spot. i was not convinced, but he said it should feel better. well it didn't, and after 3 weeks i couldn't take it anymore. yesterday the pain got so bad that on a few occasions i had to bolt outside thinking i was going to throw up. i jetted over to the dentist again and got an on-the-spot appointment set for 2p. i hadn't slept much the previous nights due to the pain, and i wasn't eating because i didn't want to aggravate my tooth more.

As i sat in the waiting room, thinking i was going to die either from the pain, or from the anxiety that accompanies me on my dentists visits, i began to shake a little. i was just out of strength and i was shutting down. just then on the overhead speaker, very faintly, i heard a female DJ talking, she says "...if you're getting a root canal, don't worry, they're no sweat. i just had one and i'm back at work today, i was really nervous but it didn't hurt at all. i feel great, no problems!. and now back to 25 consecutive minutes of music..."

At first i thought it might be an in-house radio station, you know, like you might hear at a McDonalds or Starbucks. but no, this was KOZY 101, here in Denver, an oldies station.

Now just to give a little back story, my walk with Christ has been on fire lately. i have been reading a ton, and really getting into The Word, and as a result i've really challenged my self and my prayer life. After reading through most of Blue Like Jazz i realized that i had some pride issues that were preventing me from accepting the fact that i am loved, and that i need to ask for prayer for myself. i started emailing some really close friends asking for prayer about some of the things going on my life, and about my tooth. I was praying a lot yesterday, just for strength and for comfort knowing that i would be alright.

I really feel like this little incident with the radio DJ was God telling me that he's listening, and that i'll be alright. It could be a reach, or just a coincidence, or whatever you want to make of it, but to me it was my God letting me know he's here! This is the first time i've had an incident just like this, and its funny that i just told the story about being at a summer camp and having a similar incident happen to me, to Alan this summer, reliving the experience again.

I'm a skeptic just like most people, my wife has told me some amazing stories and i've always been skeptical, and i regret that all the time. People focus in too much on what or why would God do these things, and to be honest, we're never going to be able to figure that out all the way. It doesn't matter that God was telling me that a root canal is easy, the fact that He comforted me in that moment is what is important, at least to little ole me.

So, not to be more long-winded, but a few hours later a dentist was able to do my root canal on the spot. the procedure was really easy, and it was aided by the fact i got to listen to Comeback Kid on my ipod during it, really loud, drowning out the drills! I drove home and i have felt great ever since. i couldn't believe the pressure that was relieved on my head from the root canal. i feel awesome today.

Living in a fallen world is very tough sometimes, i feel like i've been dealing with a variety of dramas and stressful situations lately, stuff that might make someone else fall apart or want to just take timeout and hide. i'm feeling encouraged that my God is there for me, love me for who i am, and has surrounded me with awesome awesome people that support each other no matter what, starting with my amazing wife that has to deal with my failings more often than she deserves.

thanks everyone for the prayer and for being great people in my life.

Vick vs Stallworth

2009-08-11T14:35:00.002-07:00

There seems to be a ton of opinion being thrown around about the outcome of the Donte Stallworth DUI / manslaughter case. If you haven't been paying attention, Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth has been given a 30-day jail sentence after he struck and killed a 59-year old pedestrian in Miami. Stallworth was over the legal limit and was tagged with a DUI on top of the accidental manslaughter charge.

You should already know everything you want to know about Micheal Vick, he served a 2-year prison sentence for the felony of running an illegal dog-fighting ring, transporting dogs over state lines, and killing dogs in the process. he is also in trouble for lying to investigators and not being cooperative.

Typically, when news like these stories hit and seem to get the same reaction from everyone, which in this case seems to be (as my buddy Nuccio puts it): "Vick gets 2 years in prison for killing dogs and Stallworth gets 30 days for killing a human?? WTF?!" . When this happens i try to go against popular opinion and figure out the other perspective.

In this case, i wanted to know why Stallworth got such a short sentence, as of today the judge has allowed him to train for football during his house-arrest, he's trying to play this season for the Browns. After a little research i came across this article, and instead of trying to re-word it, i'm just going to point you to it.

Look At The Facts

"The reality is they're [the two cases] apples and oranges," Alex Levay, a top Virginia criminal lawyer, told me on Thursday. "One is an accident [Stallworth] and the other [Vick] is a conscious decision to engage in an illegal act."

Humbled

2009-07-20T08:55:00.003-07:00

This past weekend i had the pleasure of attending the Sonshine Festival in Wilmar, Minnesota with my good friend Alan. We took a pop-up camper and camped out for 3 days and enjoyed a heavy dose of Christian music, most bands of the metalcore genre. it was awesome.

Some of you might know that i have a tendency to be judgemental, not so much to people's face, but judging of style/musical choices. i love to pick apart people at shows, even the bands, and do it from a distance. You might say that a Christian music festival is the pinnacle of targets to be judged from the youth-group leaders to the "cool" parents to the young awkward kids. This past weekend was no different, as the first night of metal bands were playing i stood there with my arms crossed and critiqued each kid's choice of shirt, or tight-pants, or dancing "style", or a band's tendency to by a little preachy, and so on. at one point during this, Alan and i got a chance to sit down and relax while waiting for the next band. We were talking about our history getting into music and whatnot, and i started to criticize some more kid's choice of style when Alan asked me a most impactful question:

"Were you always so cool?"

...uh...

i doubt Alan knew the impact of the question at the time, but i couldn't stop running the question through my head the whole night. Why did i think i was so cool? when i was in high school i started developing my "style", based off of bands that i enjoyed at the time; H20, Sick of It All, punk bands. I took a lot of criticism from everywhere, youth group, adults, fellow classmates, for sagging my shorts and wearing longer shorts that some said looked like capri's. i didn't care though, i was comfortable and confident.

and so are most of these kids at the shows, who am i to judge? here i am 27 yrs old going to metal shows with a bunch of 15 yr olds!?

so after a lot of thought i decided to let my criticism go, these kids love these bands and that's what mattered. after that first night i was really able to enjoy the weekend, worshipping with the Glorious Unseen and David Crowder, hardcore "dancing" with August Burns Red and Norma Jean, gettin' low with Big Al, even enjoying the Sunday morning church service at my wife's home church that is a little charismatic (and i've hated on a few times here and there). It was a great weekend, very humbling yet i felt so much better, and honest.

thanks Alan!

Can You Handle It?

2009-07-10T09:36:00.002-07:00

so let me first say that i really enjoy being a part of the social-networks; Twitter and Facebook. i love connecting with friends from High School and staying involved with people's lives. i also love having an easy medium to share my thoughts/work/ideas with people i think would be interested in the content.

One of the elements i've noticed about being on Facebook is that you start to understand what type of character your friends have. it used to be that i only saw so-and-so a few times a month/year, maybe an email here and there and whatnot. it was a little difficult to fully judge what kind of person so-and-so was from those infrequent visits, but now with Facebook and multiple status updates, i can really get a feel for my friends personalities.

is this good or bad?

none of my friendships have really changed due to Facebook, but i am starting to think that they might in the future. on the negative side, i've discovered that i have a friend who is on the Debbie Downer level of pessimism. I have a friend who is not clued into the real world. i have a friend who is elite-ist, and they think they're better than everyone else.

I've also been connected to friends from the past who have great qualities, and i've "socialized" with them more than i thought i ever would. But i guess my question is this; can my friends handle the truth? if i told them that i thought they were overly negative would they break-down, would they get super defensive and fire a flaw right back at me? would that end the friendship? should it end the friendship?

I know i have many flaws, no doubt about it, but i don't have too many people in my life that will just come out and tell me whats up. apparently i'm that person for a lot of people, good or bad, i usually let my emotions show, i'm usually easily offended (apparently), and i have said things to my friends that were a little blunt. i still have the same core-group of friends that i've had basically since i got married so maybe that's a good sign!

would you want someone to tell you if they thought you were making terrible financial decisions or would you rather them mind their own business? I feel like i need my friends to let me know when i'm being distant, or offensive, or stupid, or irresponsibly, but i don't know if they ever really do tell me that. i love to critique things; music, sports, stories, whatever and i feel like i would like someone to do that for/to me to let me know where i stand.

what do you think? if one of your friends told you that based on your "tweets" that you're a whiner, how would you take it?

Buy Coffee - Help stop human trafficking

2009-05-06T14:33:00.003-07:00

the International Justice Mission has teamed up with Storyville Coffee to help raise money against human trafficking.

The IJM is one of my absolute favorite organizations and Gary Haugen's team does great great work helping those who are oppressed in third world countries.

Storyville Coffee has decided that 100% of the revenue they collect in May will go to IJM! so not only do you get some great coffee, you get to help a great cause. please take a minute and check it out!

Here's my stuff (i ordered on May 1st, coffee roasted on May 4th, sent priority mail which they do with every order, received May 6th. pretty awesome turnaround time!)

RANT: Spoilers

2009-05-05T14:22:00.002-07:00

Okay, so i'm gonna rant a little here.

We've all known about Spoiler Alerts for awhile, and basically it's in bad taste to spoil a movie or whatever for someone else, especially if it's something that doesn't have a set date, for example, a movie. people can go see that movie anytime, whereas a sporting event happens on a certain date or time.

With the popularity of Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and social networking it is very easy to find out the results of an event, maybe even before you want to. here's a hint, if you don't want to know who won a game, who got voted off American Idol, who won the Presidential Election - DON'T GO ON FACEBOOK.

If you are DVR'ing, Tivo-ing, recording an event, and you don't want to know what happens, YOU need to put out the effort to stay away from places where you might find the result, like the internet, or a phone call from a friend who likes the same event, or co-workers. You can't blame somebody else for ruining it for you.

We've learned this a lot in this day-and-age, with so many reality TV shows like American Idol, Top Chef, Dancing With the Stars, etc that you just cannot go on Facebook or Twitter because most likely one of your friends have updated their status with "I can't believe that Danny Gokey just won Idol, yes!!".

Unfortunately for me, i follow European Football, which takes places right about noon our time, so it takes a lot of effort to make it half a day at work without most of the Internet. then getting home, ignoring my soccer friends, and firing up the DVR about 8p (since Addie could care less about soccer). but its something i have to do if I want to watch something "live".

Do you get it? don't blame me if i post an update with the result of something you're trying to hold out for, especially if my status update starts with ***SPOILER***. sheesh.

My Feelings on the Browns Draft

2009-05-01T14:05:00.002-07:00

This year wasn't nearly as dramatic as 2 years ago, when the Browns passed on Adrian Peterson and Brady Quinn to take left tackle Joe Thomas, and then traded to also get Brady Quinn. I liked that pick, and i like this year's pick as well.

If you didn't follow the draft, the Browns were picking #5 after their terrible season last year. A lot of buzz was being created about the Browns trading out of that spot, and it eventually happened, trading with the NY Jets and their 17th pick. From there, the Browns traded to the 19th pick, and finally to the 21st pick, picking up later picks as they went. In the end the Jets took the highest profile player in the draft, Mark Sanchez from USC, and the Browns took a center that no one had really heard of, and about 10 other players, and got 3 players from the Jets (the Jets that new Browns coach Eric Mangini coached for the last 3 years).

WPB Dawg Fan broke it down the best anyone could, at The Browns Board so i'll let him do all the talking:

When we traded from #5 overall down to 21 (eventually) the Browns got a lot more than just 3 players and a pick. A LOT MORE!!!

All total, the Browns got:
#21 Alex Mack, C
#52 David Veikune, LB
#191 Coye Francies, CB
#195 James Davis RB
Brad Ratliff, QB
Kenyon Coleman, DE
Abram Elam, S

Coleman and Elam are likely to be starters for the Browns...but at the very least they will be key rotational players. Mack is also likely to be a starter....and Veikune is expected to challenge for the OLB starting roll.

So, instead of getting ONE starter (Raji or whomever) at #5...the Browns filled 3 to 4 positions.

BUT THAT IS NOT ALL!!!

The thing that nobody is talking about is the fact that the Browns ALSO saved about $40M on the rookie salary to their first round player. And this may actually be the most important component of the trade!!!

That means that the Browns will be in a position to make contract extensions to key FA's next year:

RB Jerome Harrison UFA (likely starter)
FB Lawrence Vickers UFA (starter)
WR Braylon Edwards UFA (starter)
OT Ryan Tucker UFA (starter)
OL Isaac Sowells UFA
LB D'Qwell Jackson UFA (starter)
LB Leon Williams UFA
SS Brodney Pool UFA (starter)

The Browns have 5 starters that will be FA's next year, and 1 that is a likely starter (Harrison will likely play often).

That is a lot of talent the Browns need to lock down going into next year....and that $40M will go a long way to making sure we are able to keep the talent we want to keep.

We will also have a full slate of draft picks in 2010 (and an additional 5th)...in what is shaping up to be a much stronger draft than this years.

So...the Browns actually got at least 3 starters (maybe 4), were able to keep options open for trading a QB (DA) or WR (BE), and saved enough money to keep the 5 starters we stand to lose to FA next year.

I would say...for the price of ONE PICK...

THAT WAS AN AWESOME TRADE(S)!!!

Feeling much better about this season than all of the Bronco fans here in Denver!

Addicted to Twitter

2009-03-02T12:07:00.002-07:00

so i haven't posted in awhile because i've discovered Twitter, and i am hopelessly addicted.

Also because of the lack of interesting things to talk about lately. The NBA is finally closing in on playoffs races, with the Nuggets trying to hold off the Jazz and the Blazers (and the Kings are nowhere to be found). The NFL offseason has seen the Browns essentially ruin the only 3 players i like by trading Kellen Winslow, ticking off Shaun Rodgers who now wants out, and not showing any love to Brady Quinn. ugh.

So in the midst of all that, i've given in to Twitter. if you don't know already Twitter is basically a place where people update their status, in a short sentence or two. like "Brian is going to lunch at Red Robin" or something like that. you can follow whoever you like (if they're also on Twitter that is) and my current favorite Twitter-er is Shaq, he's hilarious, and he updates all day.

I have this on my work PC so now i'm updating way too often. you can also post links, pictures, and other content as well, so that makes it interesting when you follow people like Mark Driscoll or the Emergent Village.

You should check it out, you can use programs like TWhirl to update your status and it will automatically update your facebook status as well (facebook-ers probably don't like people who update their status this often). A lot of people are on twitter, famous or not, so check it out.

my screen name is BMer916 , check me out here: http://twitter.com/bmer916

More Ugliness!

2009-02-17T12:31:00.002-07:00

With the recent trade of Sam Cassell to Sacramento for, well, about nothing, i noticed that a high amount of players with exceptional ugliness have either played for my beloved Kings, or my adopted team, the Nuggets.

Back in 2007 Aaron and I came up with the All-Ugly Team, and now, i've seen most of the these players join my 2 favorite teams:

-Reggie Evans (Nuggets)
-Mikki Moore (Kings)
-Chauncey Billups (Nuggets)
-Hedo Turkgolu (Kings)
-Sam Cassell (Kings)

man there are some ugly players in the league!

I'm On A Boat

2009-02-10T12:26:00.001-07:00

i love Digital Shorts on SNL, this was last weeks and its hilarious! T-Pain is gangsta!

You Can't Deny Beckham!

2009-02-01T14:13:00.003-07:00

Alright, enough people in the world have written articles about David Beckham, almost everyone has an opinion, and most "true" soccer fans don't like him, or at least think he's overrated. thats fine, but i like the dude.

He's played for the best club teams in the world in Manchester United and Real Madrid, won hardware with both teams, was a captain for ManU and a captain for the English national team. he's played in three World Cup (they're every 4 years) and he's got a legit chance playing for the next one in 2010. He had some success in MLS here in America but i don't think he realized how bad the talent level is in the league and there's only so much one man can do.

For the last month David Beckham has played with AC Milan, the top club team in Italy, in a league that boasts some of the worlds best player including the best in the world, Kaka, and former World Player Ronaldhino. And Beckham has earned a starting spot and has already scored twice and had numerous assists.

Hate on him all you want, but its almost the same as Shaq being the best center still, or Ray Allen leading the Celtics in scoring, or Brett Favre still competing, or Curt Schilling, Micheal Jordan his last few years...

These guys didn't just play late into their thirties, but they were among the best in their prospective leagues. Beckham is the same, AC Milan would not be offering the amount of money (11 million) or a starting spot on an amazing team if Beckham was washed up. He still is among the best at his position (right mid-field) and will be on the English national team for at least a few more years.

I enjoy watching Beckham plays, he's a hard worker and he good looking...what?!

And yes, i'm actually watching the games, not just going on highlights, as i'm writing this i'm watching Milan v Lazio and Beckham has gotten 2 assists on crosses to Ambrisoni and Pato, and a third goal from Beckham to Pato was called back on offsides.

He's good, just enjoy the fact we still get to watch him play! You only hate on him because you're jealous of him, just like you hate on Leonardo Dicaprio, Tom Brady, Brad Pitt, and Micheal Jordan (i was a hater in high school).

Beckham today with two assists:

Rant: TV Conversion

2009-01-29T08:13:00.003-07:00

I have to get this off my chest.

This whole TV conversion drama is overrated. If you don't know what i'm talking about, well, then you probably don't care because you're one of millions who have either digital cable or satellite, so this doesn't affect you.

But for the rest of the people complaining about this conversion, about the old folks on 9News complaining that they don't have money to buy a converter box or the know-how to hook it up, get over it! TV isn't a right, it's not promised, and if you can't take the time to use the resources available to you, then maybe thats your own problem. If you don't know about the conversion or how to get info, then maybe you aren't watching TV already, so this shouldn't change much.

I have no sympathy for people who can't figure this out, you've had plenty of time (i'm talking months here) and there's no reason that now, a month before it happens, that you can't figure it out.

The media needs to stop their fear-mongering as well. Last night 9News ran a piece on this, interviewing numerous people who were affected, and claiming that doing the conversion in the "dead of winter" wasn't helping. really?! first off, last i checked it was like 70 degrees last week, cold weather usually doesn't stick around longer than 2 days here in Denver, so drop that crap.

Secondly, i heard it reported that Obama's plan to push back the date was going to cost news stations a ton of money to keep the regular analog signal going. Right now, in this economy, news station don't have extra money, didn't you hear that Nick Carter and Bob Kendrick got canned, and that channel 7 & 9 are now sharing their traffic helicopter? If you're a news anchor spreading the dismay about this conversion, because Obama says its bad, then maybe when your station can't afford to keep the regular signal going they'll can you so they can afford it!

why is the government involved in this situation anyway? aren't there better things they could spend their time on? When are American's going to take responsibility for their own problems and not lean on the government for help?

Adam Schefter on Derek Anderson

2009-01-28T10:33:00.001-07:00

there's only one NFL reporter who gets almost everything right, and thats Adam Schefter of the NFL Network. He said that Cowher wouldn't coach the Bronco's and that it would be McDaniels, and now he's saying that there is no chance that Shanahan will coach the Chiefs, despite ESPN running an article saying that deal is almost done.

More importantly though, Shefter has weighed in on the Minnesota Vikings QB search, and it includes Derek Anderson. Yes!

"

Question: What do you think the Vikings will do about their QB situation? Any free agents (Garcia)?

Schefter: The good thing for the Vikings is, it's an intriguing off-season for quaterbacks. Matt Cassel, Derek Anderson and Donovan McNabb could be available in trade. Kerry Collins, Kurt Warner, Jeff Garcia, Rex Grossman are scheduled to be unrestricted free agents. And Michael Vick also could be in play.

But if you're the Vikings, and you want to solidify the position, you have two primary options to me: trading for Anderson or signing Garcia. Garcia would be a short-term solution, Anderson a longer-term but pricier one. To get Anderson is going to cost at least a second-round pick, and maybe a first, and that's a steep price. Then again, Minnesota traded its 1 last year and that worked out pretty well, didn't it?

Week 1 Recap

2009-01-26T10:34:00.004-07:00

So week one definitely did not go as planned.

I stuck to my schedule, waking up at 545a to ride the stationary bike, and spending time working on Wii Fit. Unfortunately my right knee swelled up majorly after riding the bike, so bad that i spent a good chunk of time icing my knee for the remainder of the week in prep for indoor soccer on Friday night.

I'm not sure what to do about this, part of me wants to try and work through the swelling, and thats my plan for this week.

I stuck to my new diet of no fries, soda, or food after 9p. the only problem now is that i over-compensated for the lack of fries with other bad food (it was my bday last week so i'm excused!) and our friends the Dunns left a dozen Krispy Kremes at our house and well, i couldn't let them go to waste.

suffice to say, i gained weight this past week!

Current Stats:
Weight: 172.5lbs
BMI: 26.75
Blackout Scale (1 is good, 10 is blacked out) 6: i played a lot in our game on Friday night, and felt really good. i was still tired most of the game, but i was able to recover quickly and played effectively.

Less food this week, that's my goal.

Promise to Myself

2009-01-19T12:38:00.003-07:00

I'm been wanting to get "in shape" for a couple of years now, ideas come and go, but nothing really sticks. ever since having heart "surgery" I've felt like it's been tougher to hang with the youth like Noah and Travis, and frankly, its embarrassing. anyway, I've got a lot of tools at my disposal and I'm determined to shed some pounds.

Some people might think that I'm in fine shape, thanks for the sympathy, but I'm tired of the tunnel-vision i get after running 20 yards in soccer. My wife deserves a better looking and healthier husband, and i want to be able to keep up with Addie as she gets older (not to mention we're hopefully going on another Mexico vacation this year and i gotta look better than this).

Here's my 6-week plan, i vow to do these things, and update every Sunday. I'll start with my stats as of right now (Monday morning) and we'll see how it goes. i want to get to 165lbs if i can.

-No soda, fries or food after 9p (an occasional soda, but less than 2 a week)
-30 minutes on Wii Fit at least twice a week
-30 minutes on stationary bicycle at least 3 times a week

Current Stats
Weight: 173lbs
BMI:
Blackout Tendency (scale 1-10): 8; i can play soccer/football for a little bit before my chest feels like its going to explode.

i know its not much, but i think its enough for me to drop a few pounds and feel better health-wise. if i do reach my goal I've promised myself a gift that I've wanted for a few years, and that I'm saving up for so that's my last bit of motivation.

if anyone else wants to join me, either in this setup or just in a weight-loss challenge i welcome the competition!

Way To Go Denver!

2009-01-12T14:55:00.003-07:00

Let us be the first to say 'great signing' Broncos, ex-Patriots coaches has been very successful these last few years! -Eric Mangini and Romeo Crennel

PS: Let me also say that my NFL fantasy is that Denver hires Bill Cowher next year, and we get Mike Shannahan, and Cleveland kicks the crap out of Denver for the next 5 years. Only in my dreams though!

Superbowl Predictions

2008-12-19T08:03:00.002-07:00

After predicting that that Browns would go 5-11 (currently 4-10 with 2 to go) and also predicting that if the Browns had a bad season Romeo Crennel would be to blame (and he will be fired after the season no question) and leading my office pool Pick'em league with 150 right picks (i'm currently up 3 games with two weekends to go, i've won 5 weeks straight up already this year) i feel like i should make some Superbowl predictions as a heat-check.

So here we go, i'm just going to list the teams in order, 1. team being most likely to win the superbowl (IMO) and so on...:

1. Indianapolis
2.Pittsburgh
3. Carolina
4. NY Giants
5. Philadelphia
6. Tennessee
7. New England
8. Dallas
9. Minnesota
10. Denver
11. Miami

After pick 5 theres really no way of separating the teams. I guess we'll see what happens!

Bernie Kosar Interview

2008-12-09T17:09:00.002-07:00

thanks to the Browns Board, they found these youtube clips of an interview by Steve Sabol (NFL Films) and Bernie Kosar, the great Browns QB. these are pretty cool, even for the non-Browns fan, and especially for Bronco's fans, since Bernie was the QB when the Broncos were the anti-Browns (the Fumble, the Drive...).

anyway, i love Bernie Kosar, so check these clips out. Oh, and thanks to my pops for giving me the heads up about the post.

Part II

US Soccer Game at Dicks Park

2008-12-04T18:15:00.002-07:00

About 3 weeks ago Noah, Scott, Nuccio and I braved the cold weather to take in a rare chance to see the Men's National Soccer Team play live. They played a World Cup qualifier game against Guatemala, unfortunately for us the US team had already qualified for the next round so this game wasn't that important.

It was great though to see some of the best US soccer players play live, including Jozy Altidore, Freddy Adu, Brad Guzan, and Kenny Cooper. It was cool to see a lot of new players getting some attention like Kenny Cooper, Connor Casey and Ricardo Clark. Guatemala was really no match as the US won 3-0 with scores from Cooper and Adu.

The most notable thing about the game was the lack of support from fans. We attributed this to the fact that it was a Tuesday night, it was cold, and the game wasn't that important. The Dick was maybe 20% full, some sections were completely empty.

The other thing i noticed was the size of the players; they were much larger than i anticipated. Players like Cooper and Altidore are huge, and much stronger than they look on TV. it was impressive. It was a great time, its not that often that players this good play here in Colorado, luckily, we went to the Celtic vs MLS All-stars game a few years ago so we've seen a pretty impressive group of players.

Going to the Auction

2008-12-03T19:59:00.003-07:00

so this is a little late, but i thought i'd share it anyway.

I've always been a fan of the auction, specifically Pacific Auto Auction on Denver. I was about it back in the day and decided to check it out. Its free to go, you can basically just check it out with no obligations. Well i ended up buying a 1991 Ford Bronco Fullsize that did me pretty well, i got it for $2200 back in 2003.

I've been telling all of my friends to check out the auction for cheap cars, i mean for $2000 or less you can get a commuter car no problem. Well finally someone took me up on the offer, Aaron, and so we headed down there with $1000 after his other car died.

We had some pressure to come home with a car, for cheap, and Aaron has some requirements, but i think we did alright, he got a 93 Volvo 850 for about $1100.

i think Kassie and i are going to check it out a little more often, maybe get a car and resell it. If anyone is interested in going, its every saturday morning, the auction starts at 10a and goes until about 1p. You can walk through the cars all day friday, and early saturday. It's pretty entertaining. here are some pics:
Here's Aaron pondering something

Heres the little book, its a listing of the cars in order

Here's what it all looks like, thats the auctioneer in the high booth, we're all checking out some minivan.

2008-12-01T12:13:00.003-07:00

Last week i blogged part 1 of some posts about the Mocha Club. This is the follow-up to that post. Today Mocha Club is launching their website and have asked a handful of bloggers to help generate some traffic, you can see the blogroll at http://www.mochaclub.org/ .

Here is some text from the directors of Mocha Club:

When I think of Africa, the following images immediately come to mind: Starvation. AIDS. Child soldiers. Genocide. Sex slaves. Orphans. From there, my thoughts naturally turn to how I can help, how I can make a difference. “I am needed here,” I think. “They have so little, and I have so much.” It’s true, there are great tragedies playing out in Africa everyday. There is often a level of suffering here that is unimaginable until you have seen it, and even then it is difficult to believe. But what is even harder is reconciling the challenges that many Africans face with the joy I see in the people. It’s a joy that comes from somewhere I cannot fathom, not within the framework that has been my life to this day. [read more]

Sometimes its tough to be a Brown's fan

2008-12-01T09:19:00.002-07:00

in case you haven't read or seen, the Brown's have lost both Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson for the rest of the season. This leaves Ken Dorsey as the long QB on the roster, with Joshua Cribbs backing him up, and i'm sure we'll pick somebody up this week.

Now i've been rooting for Quinn to play QB all season, nothing against Derek Anderson the person, but i think the management got this wrong. Whats worse is that the fans always take out their anger on the wrong person. It is not Derek Anderson's fault that the Browns have sucked this season. Just like when Tim Couch was the QB, even though he struggled, he didn't deserve the blame.

In another disappointing moment in Brown's fans history, the Browns cheered Derek Anderson's injury on Sunday. I know that the fans who cheered do not reflect the opinions of most of the fan-base, and i know that almost every team in the league would have the same result (some Bronco fans would have cheered a Jake Plummer injury) but i hate the fact that this is what Brown's fans are known for.

From James Walker of ESPN:

In an ugly scene Sunday, some Browns fans cheered when Anderson was injured.

"They were cheering the fact that I was hurt," Anderson said, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "They don't like me. That's well known."

Mocha Club

2008-11-24T12:59:00.002-07:00

So about a year ago Kass and I went to Boulder and got to see the Two Birds/One Stone tour featuring Matt Wertz, Dave Barnes and the Gabe Dixon Band. During the show, Matt and Dave took a few minutes to talk about Mocha Club, which is basically an organization that they put together to help raise money for projects in Africa. It was very interesting, the title implies that for the cost of two mocha's ($7) you could help this project (and cut back on expensive mocha's). A few weeks ago i was emailed and asked to help bring more attention to Mocha Club by blogging about it. I'm always a fan of easy/affordable/faith-based/passionate organizations, so i jumped at the chance to write about the program.

The first blog entry about Mocha Club is supposed to be about the concept of why 'I need Africa more than Africa needs me'. I think this brings me personally, back to the concept of short-term mission trips, trips i took in high school to Mexico over spring break or to Scotland for 10 days. While there is only so much one person can do in such a limited time, i personally was changed more than i anticipated.

I have been reading these blogs over at Compassion International, from some people who were asked to write about a short trip to Dominican Republic. One of the constant themes that comes up when people reflect on mission trips is the simple hope and faith people have even though they live in desperate situations. they're not caught up in theology, religion, or many of the issues that derail American Christians today, but they just simply believe, they have faith like a child. It's quite a lesson to be learned and this is why i think that i need Africa more than Africa needs me.

I need to get back to basics. I need to remember the poor and the oppressed. I need to not get caught up in the many materialistic things of our world, not get side-tracked with politics, not be distracted by different opinions, but to love others. I need Africa to show me what faith like a child looks like, what real suffering is, what hardship really means.

Share your thoughts in my comments, and even blog about it yourself. Join in the worthwhile cause of recasting the damaging images that force pity over partnership. I am one of many bloggers writing about Mocha Club, and i will be writing again on December 1st. I really encourage you to check organizations like Mocha Club out.

Why Quinn, Why Now?

2008-11-05T11:03:00.002-07:00

I think i'm as surprised as anyone that the Browns have switched QB's to Brady Quinn on this short week, having a game Thursday night against the Bronco's. I figured they would make the switch eventually, Derek Anderson hasn't played well for over 10 games, and it was only a matter of time before Romeo Crennel's seat got hot enough.

Despite the record and the wins, Derek Anderson hasn't played well since about halfway through last season. I'm not going to drop all the stats here since a ton of other writers have already done that, but basically DA has been riding his surprising 6 game span from the beginning of last season. He couldn't get the Browns into the playoffs last season despite only needing 1 win at either Cincinnati or SF at the end of last season. He's had numerous chances to put the Browns over-the-top this season, including a 27-14 2nd half lead last week at home against Baltimore. He isn't delivering, a good amount of the Browns points have come off of special teams plays, interceptions/fumbles, and 54-yard field goals by Phil Dawson. Braylon Edwards has also dropped at least 3 touchdown passes that probably would have saved DA's job, but he didn't catch them, and DA is the scapegoat.

I like DA, and i hope we're able to move him for something valuable, there are quite a few teams that need a QB, i mean, Daunte Culpepper might be starting for the Lions this week, and we've already seen awesome QB's this season like Brad Johnson, Gus Frerrotte, Charlie Frye, Seneca Wallace, Rex Grossman, Trent Green, JT O'Sullivan, Patrick Ramsey, Damon Huard, Dan Orlovsky...

A quick look at the stats shows DA with a QB rating of 68.9, and that puts him 3rd from the bottom against other QBs, only better than Griese (TB), Hassellbeck (SEA), Thigpen (KC) and Fitzpatrick (CIN) and just behind Palmer (CIN) and Russell (OAK). DA's completion percentage is 49.8%, which is only better than Russell's 48%. I can understand Russell's terrible rate, since Oakland is a terrible team, but Cleveland has one of the best offensive lines in the leagues, and WR's like Braylon, Cribbs and Winslow. There's no reason he can't be better.

As for the Browns decision to go this week, i think it has to do with a few different factors. First of all the division is not out of reach; Cleveland is 3-5 while Balt is 5-3 and Pitt is 6-2. Although i think they only have about 2-3 more "easy" games, things could still change, especially in the wildcard race. Another factor is Denver's defense. Denver is terrible, they were terrible to start the season and since then they've lost both Bailey brothers, DJ Williams, Marlon McCree, and many other starters. Those loses combined with the fact that they'll be on the road in cold Cleveland with a rejuvenated fan base (last week's game ended with the stadium chanting BRA-DY BRA-DY) means this will be a tough game for Denver. The short week also gives Denver less time to plan for a QB that nobody really knows about, but that is two-sided since it only gives Brady Quinn a few days to prepare as teh starter.

Romeo Crennel should be fired by now, and if this season continues to be bad, he'll surely be fired by the end of the season. There is too much talent on this roster for the Browns not to make the playoffs. Hello, is this Bill Cowher?

Side Bets - reasons to get excited for the NBA

2008-10-21T21:06:00.002-07:00

So i ran across this post on my favorite Sacramento Kings blog, SactownRoyalty.com , and thought it was awesome.

Seriously, the side stories around the NBA are more interesting than the actual games. Stories about Charles Oakley/Michael Jordan, Barkley, betting, parties, video games, big houses and too many cars...

I think the NBA is clearly the standard when it comes to interesting side stories.

From the article: "Kevin Martin knew he netted more than a sweet YouTube clip Monday when he crossed over Rudy Fernandez to dunk on Greg Oden and LaMarcus Aldridge in the Kings' 112-98 loss to Portland.

Martin also won a $1,000 bet with teammate Mikki Moore on who would be the first to dunk on Oden.

Cuban Soccer Defectors

2008-10-14T14:11:00.002-07:00

I've told a few people about the Cuban soccer players that defect whenever Cuba comes to the US to play soccer. I follow the US Mens Soccer team, and they're currently in the qualifying rounds for the 2010 World Cup. Currently they are in the group stage with 3 other teams, Cuba, Guatemala, and Trinidad & Tobago, the top 2 teams advance to the next round.

Back in March the Cuban Soccer Team was in Florida to play Honduras in an under-23 Olympic qualifier. 7 players escaped from the hotel they were staying at, seeking political asylum. Again last weekend Cuba was here to play the US team in the World Cup qualifying and 2 more players defected.

Its a very sad situation, i feel, that Americans tend to take their freedom for granted, demanding more of this great country when they already have so many blessings. These players are all risking their lives to escape a country that has a terrible past, and their stories are very remarkable. Please read the links, they're very interesting.

"Of course, my heart will be in Cuba with my family, but I want to have the freedom to better my life, to play professional soccer, to be the best I can be, and for that we had to make this sacrifice," Bermudez said in The Herald. "The key now is to get the legal paperwork out of the way as quickly as possible so we can get on with our plans."

Brady Quinn, When?

2008-10-09T09:15:00.001-07:00

People are always asking me if i think Brady Quinn will be playing QB for the Browns anytime soon, and I, just like other Browns fans, don't know why he hasn't started playing yet.
But i think i figured out what might be holding the Browns staff from pulling the trigger on Quinn, here's an excerpt from an article by ESPN's James Walker:

"There is a lot of money involved between these two players as it pertains to playing time.

Anderson signed a three-year, $24-million contract before the season with incentives that could increase the deal to $26 million. The Browns gave Anderson $7 million up front in a signing bonus and their immediate returns would look feeble if Cleveland permanently benched him five games into the season.

Meanwhile, Quinn is sitting on the bench as one of the lowest-paid quarterbacks in the NFL this year. After the 2007 NFL draft, he signed an incentive-laden deal that could pay him up to $30 million over five years as the No. 22 overall pick. But through almost a year and a half of inactivity, Quinn has not met any of those incentives and the overall value of the contract continues to plummet. This year he is making the second-year minimum of $370,000. Quinn's salary would increase significantly to $1.693 million -- more than quadruple the original amount -- if Quinn plays 45 percent of the snaps this year.

It should only take Quinn eight starts to reach those playing-time incentives."

Browns Prediction

2008-10-06T09:40:00.003-07:00

So, after a terrible start (1-3) the Browns might only win 2 or 3 more games. Romeo Crennel has destroyed this team, Derek Anderson has shown that he can't hang with the big boys, and Braylon just dropped his paycheck, among other things. After the first 1/4 of the season, the Browns have lost 3 games against pretty good opposition in DAL, PIT, and @BAL, and squeaked out a win @CIN.

i think i will start prepping my brown bag because the rest of the schedule is brutal. my prediction for their record is in the parenthesis:

NYG (1-4)
@WAS (1-5)
@JAC (1-6)
BAL (2-6)
DEN (3-6)
@BUF(3-7)
HOU (4-7)
IND (4-8)
@TEN (4-9)
@PHI (4-10)
CIN (5-10)
@PIT (5-11)

awesome, 5-11, thats just great, after a 10 win season we're going 5-11. ugh. Could we have gotten a tougher schedule? this is what happens after a season where the Browns played the NFC West, then this season we got the ridiculous NFC East. When's the draft?

JWill Retires

2008-09-30T08:31:00.008-07:00

Jason Williams has called it quits. I can't say i'm surprised, but i am disappointed. Jason was my favorite player while i was in high school, and i followed him through Memphis and Miami. It's obvious that he has to retire earlier than he anticipated, but his body just seems to be breaking down faster than usual.

Jason was drafted by the Kings as a sort of unknown player, a gamble since he'd already been in trouble a few times in college for pot and other things. He instantly became a fan-favorite with his ridiculous ball skills and a sense for the dramatic with his 3-pointers which he would launch anytime he felt like it, even on fast breaks. His run-n-gun style quickly spread throughout the Kings roster and a year later we were playoff bound with what Sports Illustrated called the "Greatest Show on Court", the lineup included JWill, CWebb, Peja, Christie and Vlade.

Jason found himself on Sportscenter almost every night with his fake behind the back passes to himself, pop-up 3's, and creative dribbles, his high-point coming in the Rookie Game with a behind the back - off the elbow pass to Pau Gasol. But with the highlights came the criticism. Jason was pinned as a guard that took too many chances and had too many turnovers. He was later traded to Memphis for Mike Bibby. There, under the direction of Hubie Brown, Jason was slowly molded into a typical boring point guard, stressing defense and control. For the rest of his short career Jason would never really open up his game, though improving his assist/turnover ratio greatly, Jason appeared to give up his need to showboat and entertain people, instead just trying to get along with coaches like Hubie Brown and Pat Riley, in boring systems that didn't allow for creativity.

I don't think we ever really got the chance to see Jason in a great situation after Sacramento, where Rick Adleman's system allows players to flourish and score, sacrificing defense. It seems like the NBA sometimes forgets that its entertainment first and suppressing one of the most entertaining players ever has to be regrettable.

Check these highlights out, you'll see why Jason
was amazing! After you watch the elbow pass, just keep clicking on links of Jason Williams highlights, you'll get the idea (search Jason Williams Gary Payton and watch JWill cross-up Payton).

Elbow Pass:

Best NFL Fans

2008-08-29T12:41:00.002-07:00

ESPN just posted a story ranking the best fanbase in the NFL. As much as it pains me to see Pittsburgh as #1, i'm happy the Browns are in the top 3, thats pretty impressive considering how bad the Browns have been.

Now it's time to see some playoff success to make this fanbase happy!

Browns Prediction

2008-08-26T11:13:00.002-07:00

i just want to go on record here before the season starts and state that if the Browns are terrible this season, it is because of Romeo Crennel.

This guy is a terrible coach. he was almost fired at the end of the 06-07 season, and then was saved only by the miracle that was Derek Anderson last season. You didn't forget that yes the Browns started Charlie Frye at the beginning of last season right. If Derek Anderson doesn't come out and shock the world, Romeo Crennel doesn't have a job. seriously, how are you going to fire a guy after the best season Cleveland has seen since they were reinstated?

on paper, the Browns are one of the best teams in the league. But after a disappointing preseason i can conclude that Romeo is holding this team back. We have a QB who has proven he can go crazy, a backup who's better than some teams starters (arizona, chicago...) an offense that can throw the ball down the field and then slam it in behind the best O-line in the league. a top-flight receiver, the best tight-end, solid running back, dependable number 2 receiver. we have a reliable special teams with a good FG kicker and the best return guy in the league.

We have an okay defense, which was improved in the offseason yet has failed to show any real improvement on the field. we have good coordinators, especially Mark Chudzinski as the offensive coordinator.

so whats left? the head coach, and he's terrible, and yet he has the final say on everything that happens. if we don't make the playoffs this year we have totally under-acheived. heck, if we don't win in our first 2-3 games i'd fire Crennel right there.

Seriously Done with the NBA

2008-06-10T15:51:00.002-07:00

i'm not joking when i say i'm over the NBA. after Tim Donaghy brought to light that the Kings/Lakers series of 2002 was fixed, i decided that was the last straw.

i wasn't so upset about the betting scandal, i mean, you have to think that this is happening in most sports on some level. But a team i spent my young life following, loving them even when the going was bad (it was never good), and for them to finally make the playoffs was awesome! the fact that we got to the Western Conference Finals and were playing against our rivals, the Lakers, and had the series lead 3-whatever, all we needed was a win and to lose was bad enough. through all of the bad calls, Robert Horry 3's, and media bias i was heartbroken, seriously, ask anyone around me that year, Kass, Tahoe, Isaac, my dad, anyone.

but now, after all this time wondering why Bibby was called for a foul after being hit in the face by Kobe we find out that the fix was in. its too much to take. the fact that this happen to my team, in my once in a lifetime chance to go to the Finals (and be the favorite) and to find about this scandal is too much. i hate the NBA. i hate the longer season, the playoffs setup, i hate slacker players, i hate the Spurs, i hate the ego's and gangsters, and now i really hate the history. there is no way to fix this, the NBA did a permanent thing in fixing this series and Kings fans, who could lose their team any time now, also lost out on a finals berth, among a million other things.

NBA, eff you.

Bibby Knows Whats Up!

2008-04-23T14:05:00.003-07:00

so one of my favorite players, Mike Bibby, who has been banished to the derrty south, and with a losing record has made the playoffs in the east, has been talking some mean smack about Boston fans.

and rightfully so

I don't care if rajon rondo scored more points than Bibby, or got more assists, Rondo is playing on a stacked team whereas Bibby was moved midseason and has a bunch of scrums (who are being guarded by recently crowned defensive player of the year Garnett) to support him. if Bibby gets better stats than Rondo in any game that an achievement in itself

anyway, back to the smack

here's Bibby calling the Boston fans fair weather:

(sunday's crowd)“kind of loud at the beginning, but a lot of these fans might be bandwagon jumpers. They try to get on this now. Because I played here last year, too. I didn’t see three-fourths of them so it might be that."

“I remember them having bags on their heads,” he said. “Are they the ones that had bags on their heads last year? It’s just a different look, but I guess that happens when you win.”

I love Bibby, and i think he's developed a devil-may-care attitude this year since he was betrayed by Sacramento, where he wanted to retire. I mean he's like a 10-year vet, and he's a place in his career where he's past his prime, but still very very good. now he's on a team that is very young and might not be serious contenders for another 2-3 years.

As for the smack-talk this series, why not? if the Hawks win one game in this series that'll be amazing.

Playoffs!

2008-04-15T13:35:00.002-07:00

no, i'm not writing about how the Nuggets managed to squeeze into the playoffs this season with a mere 49 (50?) wins. ps: good luck in LA LA Land!

I'm writing about the release of the NFL schedule! BAM! Cleveland Browns with 5 PRIMETIME GAMES:

9/14 vs Sunday vs Pittsburgh
10/13 Monday vs New York Giants
11/6 Thurs vs Denver Broncos
11/17 Monday at Buffalo Bills
12/15 Monday at Philly

Ah yea

It's time to get on the band wagon if you're a Bronco's fan, or any other team for that matter. and now you'll see why. its about time we got the spotlight. i just know (hope) that we'll be awesome and people will become Browns fans!

Kansas v Memphis recap

2008-04-08T07:37:00.002-07:00

this is a post of anger/passion, so forgive me if the details are a little off

Last nights NCAA championship game got a little more interesting than i had anticipated. in what has been my best year ever in picking the tourney, it came down to the championship game, and coincidentally enough, me versus my wife, i having memphis.

So lets just recap what happened last night.

I had picked North Carolina over Memphis in the final, and could win the title if anyone but Kansas won, so suffice to say, the last few games have been brutal.

Last nights game was great. but everyone is wrong about why Memphis lost. Memphis point guard, Rose, was great, he was playing through a stomach ailment and was pretty much invisible through the first 3 quarters of the game. About midway through the second half, he decided to take over and that was when Memphis pulled away to get about a 10 point cushion the rest of the way.

As the game was coming to a close, highly touted memphis small forward, CDR, 1st team all-american, all-conference, all everything, decided to choke worst than anyone ever. People want to tak about Rose's desperation shot that was changed from a 3-point basket to a 2-point basket as the changing point in the game, but those were free points afterall. there's no way that shot shoould have gone in, so basically memphis got a break, whether it was 2 or 3 points. 2 plays later CDR misses an open layup, talk about that?

or how about with 15 seconds to go in the game, about this time, Kass realizes that she could beat me in the bracket contest if Kansas wins. so now not only am i frustrated with how the game is going, but kass has become quite vocal in her new-found love for the Jayhawks. In her diehard passion for Kansas she decides to invoke the "Mercer Curse", which if you don't know what that is, see Robert Horry 3 pointer to beat kings in conference finals, or Dennis Northcutt drop on 3rd down for the Browns, or...

so back to 15 seconds to go, Mercer Curse is on, and Memphis' lead had dwindled to 2 points after multiple blown offensive possessions. Trying to kill the clock, having the ball, memphis begins to pass the ball around, making Kansas chase. The ball gets to CDR, who could pass, but would rather pad his own points and hold it so he can shoot free-throws. so with 15 seconds to go, a 2 point lead, and your supposedly best player at the line, this game is over

nope, he misses both. but wait, somehow, the memphis tigers are given yet another chance to seal the game by getting the rebound from the missed free-throw and killing 5 more seconds before Rose is fouled and sent to the line. now Rose also appears to fold under the pressure and only makes 1 of 2 shots, pushing the lead to 3 and allowing Kansas to come down and sink a pressure-filled clutch 3 pointer and send the game into overtime.

This game is over before overtime starts. CDR hadn't made a basket in 20 minutes, memphis big man Dorsey fouled out before regulation, and Kansas has the momentum. woohoo. my dad and i find more misery yet again.

at least the NFL Draft is in like 2 weeks.

Rapids 4, Gals 0

2008-04-01T11:22:00.003-07:00

Yes, the opening day that everyone is talking about: MLS!

The Footy Crew and I went to the Rapids opening day game against the LA Galaxy at the Dick, and it was awesome! The place was sold out, including standing room only tickets, and we had 8 seats near midfield, we got to see a ton of action.

The Rapids looked great, Terry Cooke (ex-Man United) played solid with 1 goal and 2 assists, Bouna Time had a great game in goal and Christian Gomez, the Rapids big name signing this summer, played good in the midfield and scored a goal, which totals 4 goals for the night!

as for the Gals? Beckham looked alright, but he has seriously no help. he's like a QB with no receivers or running backs. Landon Donovan was terrible, he had chances to show us that he's good but he failed. Ruiz was invisible all night, except near the end of the game when we were front row to an almost-brawl

Abel Xavi, the Galaxy high-profile, over-the-hill defender was burned all night. apparently he got fed-up and told the ref how he felt about it, resulting in a dismissal from the match. a few minutes later, (90 minute mark), Rapids rookie Ciaran O'Brien decided to wipe out Carlos Ruiz from behind. the tackle was bad, but not meriting the red card ejection that O'Brien got (Beckham later said he thought it was worthy of yellow, but not red). The situation was calm and fine until Little Landon ran across the field and tried to pick a fight. nobody picks on little kids so no fight happened.

anyway, the game was great, loved the atmosphere, the seats are great, and the Rapids came through. now just if we can get Rapidman back we'll be alright.

oh, and we were commenting on how everyone was booing David Beckham, and my lovely wife input that yes, they are booing while taking his picture. that pretty much sums that up!

Beckham, #23, frustrated after a 4th goal against

Nuggets = Browns

2008-03-25T13:44:00.002-07:00

yes its true. After emailing with my sports-buddy Aaron all day about the Nuggets and their situation, i've concluded that i've heard all these arguments before:

but we've won alot of close games, and we've beaten just as many "big" teams as has GS

it will be the first time in the HISTORY OF THE NBA that a 50 win team has not made the playoffs.

We are 14 games over .500 and it's the best Nuggets record since 1987-88

Even if we don't make the playoffs,. . . it's a freak year

Toronto, the 4 seed in the east is 20 games out of first place. We, the 9 seed in the west are 7 games out of 1st. Crazy.

...um, oh yea, the Browns won 10 games and didn't make the playoffs. 5th team even in NFL history to do that. No one had sympathy for me and the Brownies when that happened, it was all about "thats a good season, but they just weren't good enough..."

At the end of the day, the Nuggets are the 9th best team in the west, and probably the 11th best team in the league. i don't care if they win 70 games, if 8 other teams have better records, it don't mean nothin.

Chucky Atkins: the REAL answer

2008-03-25T08:38:00.003-07:00

hahaha

The Nuggets have been struggling all season, and they seem to have an excuse at every turn/loss. First it was losing Nene, or not having good chemistry yet, or JR Smith's late-game turnovers, or not having a point-guard. did they address any roster moves at the trade deadline? hell yea, Von Wafer to Portland for Taurean Green!!

So then it was "just wait for Chucky to come back". really? chucky atkins? career backup? where did he play last year.....memphis? I mean we're running a team with all stars at every position, Melo, AI, KMart (i think he was an allstar once), Camby. they brought in Anthony Carter and Chucky Atkins to run/direct/lead this group of allstars?? haha

anyway, everyone said just wait til Chucky comes back and it will be fine. so what has changed? we're still in 9th place, we can't win games we need, we struggle against the Raptors and the Grizzlies needing "late game heroics" from Melo? no ... AI? no.... JR SMITH? oh yea. all while the Warriors are actually competing and beating worthy teams. If Dirk doesn't get injured, the Nugz are watching the playoffs from home

But back to Chucky, so did he save the Nuggets? well, lets check his gamelog since he came back:

sorry it's so small, but it says this: no, it didn't help, he hasn't scored in his last 4 games

in other news, the Colorado Mammoth (lacrosse) average over 500 more people at their games than the Nuggets, they both play at the Pepsi Center. (according to the Rocky Mountain News)

Ginobili Top Ten??

2008-03-11T13:03:00.004-07:00

So the increasingly impressive ESPN decided to wiegh-in on the Best 2-Guard debate that has everyone comparing Kobe and Jordan. I've stated on here that i think Kobe will be the best 2-guard ever, if not the best ever. I'm a Laker-hater so don't forget that, i don't like Kobe, but he's amazing, seriously.

read it here

Anyway, the article struck me as losing all credibility when i read the small print. Basically they had all the "NBA Experts" at ESPN including Greg Anthony, Jon Barry and Jemele Hill vote on their Top 10 2 Guard in NBA HISTORY, 10 points for the best and 1 point for 10th. obviously Jordan was #1 and Kobe #2, but Kobe isn't done yet, remember.

Here's the best part, Dwayne Wade, Manu Ginobili and Mitch Richmond all recieved votes! are you serious?? someone things Manu is among the TOP TEN 2-GUARDS OF ALL-TIME??

so weak ESPN, you have seriously discredited yourself. Freakin Ginobili isn't even the best player on his team, he doesn't even start!

weak

NBA Stuff

2008-03-06T09:18:00.002-07:00

Last night Aaron and i got to go to the Nuggets-Suns game, so in honor of that, i thought i'd post my thoughts about the closing run of the season. By the way, the Nuggets destroyed the very flat Suns 123-111. JR Smith is going to make or break this team, he has a terrible shot selection but he redeems himself by making these ridiculous 3's. if he misses 2-3 three-pointers last night this game could have ended a lot different

anyway, lets talk about the West

Here's how i'm feeling about everything going on in the West. First, the trades

I like the Shaq trade even though it hasn't really produced results yet. Shaq is old, so is Grant Hill and Steve Nash so i'm not surprised when i see games like i did last night, these guys just don't have enough gas to play 82 games plus playoffs. I think as long as the Suns get in they'll be fine, Shaq will play better and D'Antoni has 20 more games to figure out how he'd like to play this squad. Remember, Shaq isn't going to fill up the stat sheet, he's more of a creating/holding player and he totally opens up the floor for Amare.

I don't like the Mavs and Jason Kidd. Kidd didn't do anything with Vince Carter and Jefferson in New Jersey in a weaker Eastern Conference so whats to say he's going to do anything with basically Dirk and Josh Howard? I'm not scared of the Mavs this season at all

Now the Lakers are looking great. Rumor is Bynum might not be on the fast track to recovery so that could suck for them, but they've shown they can win without Bynum for now. The thing i'd be worried about with the Lakers is peaking too early. They can't play a ton better than they are now, 9-1 in their last 10, but Kobe does carry the load and come playoff time he's gonna be a little worn out.

Now what about PLAYOFFS?

Well, the West is ridiculous! I think the Nugz might be in trouble, people thought Houston would fall apart without Yao but remember, this team has played so many stretches without Yao and/or McGrady that they can handle it just fine, especially with Scola playing awesome. Plus they have the greatest coach ever to get teams into the playoffs in Adelman so they'll get in.

I think the race for 8/7 will only be between Denver, Golden State and Dallas, with Denver being left out of the dance. None of these teams will be a factor in the later rounds of playoffs anyway.

As for the newcomers to the playoffs this season, the Hornets and Jazz, wouldn't bet on these teams either. I love both these teams, i really enjoy watching Derron Williams and Chris Paul play, and it looks like both of these teams will be around for awhile, but i just don't think you can do it with a PG as your key player, at least not in todays NBA. We're seeing the Nuggets suffer without a PG so yes, it's vital to have a good one, but you can't get points as easily through a PG as you can a PF like Duncan, Dirk, Amare, Carmelo. The Jazz do have Boozer but i'm just not excited about that. The Hornets have Peja, Chandler, and West but i don't know, none of those guys have shown the maturity to take a team far in playoffs.

Who does that leave? the Spurs and the Lakers and the Suns. You can't really discount the Spurs until they don't succeed in the playoffs, and this season has given us no reason to think they're any worse than they've been in the last few years, its the same team and they're all healthy.

The Lakers are my pick to represent the West, i'm just hoping that Kobe proves to everyone how good he is and carries this team to a championship.

The Suns will be competitive, but not good enough, Amare is too emotional to handle the playoffs and i'm not sure if Shaq and Nash are as motivated this year as they've been in the past.

So you heard it here first, i'm thinking a Lakers/Spurs western conf. showdown with a nod to history with a Lakers Celtics final. how amazing would that be? Go Celtics!!

2008-02-06T14:25:00.000-07:00

Lots of stuff going on today in sports:

Apparently Shaq is on his way to Phoenix for Shawn Marion. This could work very well for both teams considering Marion is a free-agent this summer and Shaq, well, lets just say that Lebatard puts its best: "Shaq's style doesn't work in Phoenix? Taking passes from Nash kind of works for anyone. And dunking and shooting 60 percent fits just about anywhere."
Tonite the US Mens soccer team is playing a 'friendly' against Mexico at 7p on ESPN2. This is turning out to be a great rivavlry and this game will defintley be worth watching, even if you're not totally sold on soccer. look for Landon Donovan to have a big game, this is about the only team he plays well against.
speaking of soccer, US rising star, Jozy Altidore was apparently almost tranferred to English Premier League bottom-dwellers Reading this past January. The deal fell through, which is both good and bad; Jozy is young and he's awesome and he brings a high-level talent to the MLS, but he would have been thrown into a starting role in England in arguably the best league in the world which would help him as a play instantly
in NFL news....Patriots suck, and looks like they're in more trouble, no sympathy from me
The Browns now have SIX pro-bowlers, and deservedly so, now that Brady and Moss have backed out. Derek Anderson, Kellen Winslow, Braylon Edwards, Joe Thomas, Ryan Pontbriand, and Josh Cribbs.
In the best commentator news, still in soccer-mode, ESPN has dropped Eric Wynalda, who basically sucked as a soccer announcer and could be at fault for people not liking soccer.

Well that was fun

Nuggets Fans Beware

2008-02-01T17:17:00.000-07:00

the Lakers just got a ton better. For a quick fix and showing that they're going for a championship this season, the Fakers just traded for Pau Gasol.

this is a pretty good upgrade to the lakers, i have always thought Gasol was good, and people don't know much about him because he's been stuck in Memphis since he was drafted.

did anyone catch the line about what the Grizzlies got in return?:
"The Grizzlies will get the Lakers' first-round draft choices in 2008 and 2010; guard Aaron McKie, signed earlier Friday for salary cap purposes; cash considerations, and the rights to Gasol's brother Marc, a 2007 second-round pick of Los Angeles."

thats wierd

anyway, if the Nuggets don't make a move for Ron Artest, i'd be surprised. The Nugz have a roster of people who are built to win right now, before their window closes. Camby, KMart and Iverson aren't getting any better, so get Artest and make a run!

Problems in the MLS

2008-01-30T15:45:00.000-07:00

man, problems with Major League Soccer? no, tell me it can't be!

its true

I follow MLS because i like soccer, and i like to know who the players are that are playing for our National Team. Even though the average joe still thinks that players from the USA don't/can't play in Europe, most of our national squad is playing in the top level in England including:

Demarcus Beasly
Freddy Adu
Micheal Bradley
Tim Howard
Kasey Keller
Clint Dempsey
Eddie Johnson
Bobby Convey
Brian McBride
Bocanegra

and quite a few others, and they're getting starting minutes even

so here's the problem with MLS. last week they had the 'Superdraft', in which the MLS teams drafted the best players from college, just like every other sport. But unlike every other sport in America, drafting first is not good. The top players in college are trying to get jobs overseas and so if you draft Joe Schmo from UCLA, the best striker in the country to turn around your franchise, and then he signs with some Football club in Sweden, well, you're out of luck.

that sucks. if you pass on that kid, and he doesn't get a job overseas well then you miss out on some great talent.

it reminds me of when all of the good basketball players were skipping college to play in the NBA, colleges would sign these kids and then they'd get burned.

Drafting the right player is hard enough, but then for that player to skip out to Europe, that makes it even harder. i don't know how to fix this, but i hope the MLS continues to improve and our homegrown talent sticks around.

What Is There To Talk About?

2008-01-30T15:35:00.000-07:00

ugh

I hate the time around the Superbowl, nothing going on. I'm not really looking forward to the big game for any reason, except maybe a Patriots loss which would be hilarious.

I've determined that there is no reason whatsoever to follow the NBA before the All-Star game every season because there are so many freaking games (82 in case you didn't know). But the All-Star game is coming up and i'm still not excited.

The Kings are playing way over their heads which is awesome and Reggie Theus is turning out to be a good coach, though i think it has to do with coaching scrubs and not stars. But that will change now that Bibby, Artest and KMart are back, lookout!

Some names you'll be hearing in the Association for the next 5-10 years are Chris Bosh, Chris Paul, Kevin Martin, Dwight Howard, Derron Williams, and Spencer Hawes. Bosh is amazing! i love that kid. Same with Dwight Howard, this guy is only getting better. Spencer Hawes, well, that just hopeful.

At least Manchester United is on top of the table in the English Premier League, barely topping Arsenal. The league doesn't end until May, but its already intense. Arsenal and ManU are playing each other on Feb. 16 for the FA Cup which will be the most hyped game of the year so far!

And last but not least, the Rockies seems to be nailing down all the big names, Tulo, Holliday, Atkins. so its good to see O'Dowd spending some cash on a World Series calibre team!

The Birdman Could Fly Again

2008-01-26T12:28:00.000-07:00

ex-Denver Nugget fan favorite, Chris 'Birdman' Andersen has begun the reinstatement process to get back into the NBA

Birdman's last flight was with the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornet and missing dunks in the Slame Dunk Contest before being 'excused' for drug-related reasons.

The Hornets supposedly want him back.

i'm excited

more ugly white-dudes in the NBA, yes!

Go Giants?

2008-01-23T15:10:00.000-07:00

well, we finally have the Superbowl teams. talk about a disappointing playoffs. first my Brownies don't make it in along with the Vikings and/or Donkeys so i don't really have a team to follow.

My backup team is always the Colts, i love 'em, and i love the whole Colts vs Patriots debate. When we look back on this era it was all be about the Manning vs Brady, and i'm hoping Manning can put it together the next few seasons.

But anyway, i was talking to my homies, and basically if i have to pick my 5 least favorite teams in the NFL it would be the Patriots, Giants, Packers, Chargers and Steelers. well that made for an interesting Championship weekend since 4 of 5 of those teams were playing, but above all, i'm anti-Patriots, so whoever beats them, i'll support.

So that brings me to the Superbowl, Giants vs Patriots. I've got to go with the Giants. i kind of like them now. and let me explain why.

I didnt like the Giants because i felt they were vastly overrated. i still think every team in the NFC is terrible, and the fact that the Giants came out on top isn't much to celebrate, but they did come up with some huge wins, including at Lambeau which is pretty crazy. gotta support that!

so Go Giants, but those evil Patriots and make history forget about this season.

oh, and watch out for the Kings, they're healthy and on a roll!

2008-01-07T13:31:00.000-07:00

So a majority of my friends in Denver are part of the blind masses that are bowing down to Devin Hester, who in my opinion, is the most overrated player in the NFL. He's terrible, and this whole "Game changer" tag he gets is worthless if you consider that he's only the field for maybe 2 minutes the whole game.

the fact that the bears WR corps is so bad and Hester actually gets on the field during the game is embarrassing. Yes, he scored 6 touchdowns this year, but did you noticed the muffs, the fumbles, the mistakes, the times he should have just done a fair catch but didn't. he's too much risk for reward, and if he's the guy the Bears look to take over games for them, well, they're not going to make the playoffs, oh wait, they didn't.

Here's a comparison of Devin Hester, and the best returner in the game Joshus Cribbs from Cleveland:

Fantasy Recap

2008-01-02T19:40:00.000-07:00

here's my 2007 Fantasy recap for football, and more proof you shouldn't listen to anything i say

Fantasy Football, Roto leagues:
i was in 3 separate leagues this year, big mistake. After starting the season 3-0 i went 8-42

8-42

i went 1-14 in my dad's league. i royally sucked this year.

Pick'em:

i picked 163 correct winners out of a possible 256, which is 63%. i'm actually proud of that, anything over 50% is considered good. I picked 13 games right on two separate weeks, and i also got 6 right on two different weeks.

Survival:

I survived 12 weeks out of 17. weak, very weak.

Recap:

i guess i left room for improvement. i'm going back to only playing in one league next year, i can't handle multiple teams. oh, and i'm 11-16 in picking bowl games. man i'm having a tough season.

NFL Playoffs and the Browns

2008-01-02T12:29:00.000-07:00

This is all i'm going to post about how i feel about the Browns not making playoffs:

Cleveland is now the 5th team ever to win 10 games and not make playoffs. the last team was Kansas City in 2005 (remember, the year the Bronco's and Charger's made it and KC didn't). Only could Cleveland pull this off this season. Next year we play the AFC South (Ind, Jac, Ten, and Hou) and the NFC East (NYG, Phi, Dal, and Was). it was fun while it lasted.

2007 Top Ten

2007-12-31T09:15:00.000-07:00

so instead of the usual Best Moments of 2007 or whatever, i'm going to list the Top 10 Things that Annoy Me In Sports Right Now. (I'm bitter, thanks Jim Sorgi you tool)

After a weekend in which i watched the Giants totally blow it against the Patriots, then the Vikings get eliminated from the playoffs, then the Titans eliminate the Browns from playoffs, then the CU Buffaloes lose to 'Bama, i'm bitter.

Here's the Top 10 Thing in Sports that Annoy Me:

10: Soccer in the USA: Okay, so i'm a total soccer-nut. i love it. i play it, i follow it, and i invest in it by going to MLS games and watching the games on TV. I even purchased an English soccer channel earlier this year to watch just one game.

But the truth is that you can't sell soccer to NFL fans. so stop trying. The MLS is good, better than some people will admit, but let the product sell itself, stop over-producing it, when you do that, the american fans fell let down and well, soccer loses. so just stop pushing it here, let the league and it's players prove they're worth watching without the 'Beckham Cam'.

9. Coors Field: How stupid was it when the Rockies made it to the World Series and still the announcers know nothing of Coors Field. Seriously, this is the World Series, you should everything about the 2 teams that are there. But the humidor or whatever, and the announcers still thinking (outloud) that its the easiest park to hit homeruns out of is just stupid. there were at least 2 other parks that were easier in the playoffs alone including Boston and Philadelphia.

8. Rockies Awards: Staying with MLBA for a second. The fact that Holliday didn't get MVP, Tulo didn't get Rookie of the Year, Francis didn't get the Cy Young and Hurdle didn't get Coach of the Year is wrong. Seriously, we're the 2nd best team in baseball and we go 0-4 in awards. And on top of that, we broke the record for in-fielding percentage and got no Gold Gloves. really?

7. Barry Bonds Haters: If you're whining about Bonds, please stop, or at least refocus your effort to something more original like Shawne Merriman.

6. NBA Downfall: This could be several different points on this list, but i'll put them all together. The NBA is getting lame, the gambling ref scandal doesn't help. The talent is too spread out so you have superstars with no help, see Lebron James, and the TV coverage is terrible. Who wants to see the Spurs play 5 nights a week? seriously, show some other teams.

5. Hockey Highlights: I don't follow NHL, i never will. The fact that season is so long just pains me. then, when i watch Sportscenter's top 10 and see 5 hockey highlights, lame. seriously, maybe 1 or 2 but with the NBA going on, plus NFL, golf, soccer and everything else, lets cut the lame hockey highlights out

4. Impatient Owners: Stupid owners making stupid decisions and ruining teams. I won't dwell so just see Rick Adelman firing in Sacramento or Marty Shottenhower...in San Diego.

3. New England Patriots: I hate them. I hate that everyone talks about Tom Brady and forgets about Peyton Manning. I hate Rodney Harrison. I hate seeing Junior Seau not in a Chargers uni. I hate that we'll have to hear about this team forever now. I hate Belichick and how he apparently used Cleveland as a practice stop before becoming a good coach in other places. I hate all the coverage and interviews with the Patriots. i like Randy Moss

2. New York Giants: This is pretty much the east-coast bias issue, but this team is so overrates its not even funny. how do they get so much publicity? Eli is terrible, Shockey is terrible, he'd be the 6-8th best TE in the AFC if he played there. Tiki was never really that good. The only good part of this team is Plaxico and the D-Line. But still, the NFL shows talk about this team like they're good or something. they're terrible in a weak conference. Imagine some of the AFC teams playing the NFC like Jacksonville, San Diego, Cleveland.

1. ESPN: this company has been going downhill fast. their website is 90% fluff, they're tv stations are full of blow-hards like Steven A Smith, and about the only thing still worth watching is the Top 10 Plays. They're even jacking up ESPNews now, i used to go to that station just for numbers and scores, but now they have shows on there as well. This is slowly going the way of MTV where now MTV doesn't actually play any music at all. At what point will ESPN stop showing sports and just show Madden Nation and WSOP?

NFL Draft Rumors...

2007-12-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

already?

More awesome stuff from Yahoo! who is now reporting that Bill Parcells wants Romeo Crennel to be the coach for the Dolphins next years. Well, speaking for Dawg Nation

you can have him

Seriously, the dude is a terrible head coach, and this year's turnaround has very little to do with Romeo and has a lot to do with underachieving last year, making this season look ridiculous.

Also, the Big Tuna apparently wants a quick turnaround in Miami, and knows he can't do that drafting a QB, so he wants Derek Anderson, which would then surrender the #1 pick to the Browns, who in turn would turn that into Darren McFadden and go on to win the Superbowl for the 2nd year in a row.

I wish all this came true. We'd replace Crennell with someone like Bill Cowher and destroy everyone.

Go Jim Sorgi!!

2007-12-26T10:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, so the Browns completely dropped the ball last weekend against the Bungles, literally. And no, the Bungles didn't beat the Browns, the Browns beat themselves. 4 interceptions, fumbles, Romo-quality field goals, and after all this, the Browns still had the ball on their 30 with 1:35 to go in the game, down 19-14. The Bengals really didn't capitalize at all on the mistakes the Browns were making, and we almost won, should have.

Anyway, this brings us to Week 17. The Browns miraculously still in the hunt. It doesn't matter what the Kardiac Kids do this weekend at home against the 49ers, the only thing that matters is the Colts beating the Titans.

So GO JIM SORGI

I hate Vince Young and yet here i am again, rooting against him just like the Rose Bowl, just like the Draft.

I think Tony Dungy learned his lesson about resting players, but when Peyton finally takes a seat, the Browns playoff hopes will rest with Jim Sorgi, and i feel pretty good about that, bring on the Squeelers in the playoffs!

Kidd to Denver?

2007-12-26T10:49:00.000-07:00

the latest most awesomely reliable rumor from Yahoo! Sports has Denver as the front-runner to get Kidd over the Lakers.

interesting

Considering the Nets want a center, and we're apparently offering Camby which makes the Nets like Denver since LA is offering Mihm and won't part with Bynum.

Why would Denver trade away its only defense, on a team that has no defense at all? why would Denver want to trade away and aging center, who's been a true leader these past few seasons for an aging PG who hasn't really been getting good publicity lately?

it makes no sense. but remember, Yahoo! loves to post crap for rumors, Artest and Bibby still play in Sacto so there ya go.

Purple People Eaters

2007-12-21T08:29:00.000-07:00

The NFL Flex Scheduling has finally worked, the Vikings home game against the Redskins has been moved to Sunday night. Originally it was going to be the 49er's and the Buc's. good thing they changed it!

Now just if the Browns can get on national tv. one week left to see.

Getting Back on Track

2007-12-20T07:58:00.000-07:00

So it's been awhile, life is crazy

Mitchell Report: this is what i think about this whole steroids thing. i really think we're going after the wrong people. Yes the players have responsibility, but why aren't the coaches getting ripped apart? the trainers? the owners? the commissioner? oh wait, he is already getting the finger pointed at him

but seriously, these coaches are just as guilty as the players. Tony LaRussa totally turned a blind eye to Jose Canseco back in the day, he put winning first. these players aren't even smart enough to know what crap is legal and illegal, and some trainer is gonna tell them hey, take this, it'll make you heal faster.

the players are wrong, but they aren't close to being alone in this. oh, and if your kids is taking steroids to get ahead in junior high basketball, it isn't some pro athletes fault, it sounds like a parenting problem to me

NBA: i'm still not really into the season at all right now. all i know is that the Nuggets are boring, the Kings have a better record than like 10 teams, which is crazy, and i'm sick of turning on TNT or ESPN to see the same 5 teams playing. no one wants to watch the Spurs, seriously.

NFL: the real sport. The Browns vs Vikings superbowl is still on. with two weeks left, i can't believe this is still a possibility. The Browns got absolutely jacked on the Pro Bowl considering the fans voted Eric Steinbach the best guard in the AFC and he doesn't even make the roster. nor did Kellen Winslow, Jamal Lewis, Derek Anderson or Joe Thomas. seriously, the AFC is stacked at TE, but Gates was not the best this year, Winslow and Gonzo were better, and Dallas Clark was as good

I don't think the Pats are going to lose in the regular season, and that sucks. but they won't win the superbowl

Adrian Peterson is ridiculous

I really have no idea who's gonna make it out of the NFC. the Cowboys and Packers are obviously the best 2 teams, but they have both shown weakness that any team can exploit. If the AFC doesn't win the Superbowl this year, they should be embarrassed.

the Bronco's need help

i don't like Devin Hester. not because he's supposedly good, but because i think he's severely overrated. he's a punt returner. he's a reject WR. he cannot take over games because he only spends about a total of 2 minutes on the field. QB's take over games. RB's take over games. Punt Returners don't

Fantasy Football: i'm terrible. i think my record was a combined 6-40 between my 3 teams. seriously bad. i'm only playing in one league next year, with Alan, Tahoe, Justin and the boys. i'm so bad. at least i'm above average at Pick'em.

How I Watch Football

2007-11-11T14:32:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to show you guys how i watch football on Sunday mornings.

I have a 42" LCD tv with Picture in Picture and a VGA input (computer moniter). So i hook up kassie's laptop to the tv, and watch the gamecast of the Browns game. In the Picture-in-Picture i'll put on any other game, usually the Vikings or Bronco's.

As you can see, this was before the Browns broke my heart and lost on a missed 52 yd field goal, 31-28 to our hated rivals, the Squeelers.

NBA Predictions

2007-11-07T09:48:00.000-07:00

very quickly, before the season gets too far

-I like the Grizzlies a lot, but only if they're healthy. i love the addition of Mike Connely to an already tough team, always been a Mike Miller fan! Kings will regret not taking Connely, especially after the injury to Bibby, and Spencer Hawes sucks

-The Hornets might look good now, but its like Team Glass, and it will break (Paul, Chandler and Peja)

-The Nuggets will be fine, maybe even a top 4 seed in the west. just don't run into the Spurs in playoffs

-i wouldn't get comfy with the teams just yet, especially with some big names on the trade market right now like Mike Bibby, Ron Artest, Kobe Bryant, Ben Gordan, JR Smith. these are players that could change the landscape of any team drastically.

-the kings are terrible, and there is no hope.

-the hawks new jerseys are terrible

-sonics to Oklahoma is terrible

-the Heat will be terrible

-the Celtics are not terrible, they are a blast to watch, and if they figure this Big 3 thing out, it could be really scary, or really anti-climatic

-Lebron will not be in the playoffs this season with teams like Orlando, Boston, Toronto, New Jersey, Detroit, Charlotte all having better rosters. don't forget Miami or Indiana, they always make a run.

-Phoenix, Dallas and San Antonio are getting old, like literally, but they haven't slowed down yet

-um...Denver on '08?

Instant replay and more...

2007-11-06T12:42:00.000-07:00

-Baseball is considering using instant replay to determine whether balls leave the park or clear the foul poles. also in this article, the GM's are considering limiting the number of times a player can leave the batter box during an at bat

-Good sign for the Bronco's, first Larry Johnson likely won't play this weekend which might mean we seem Priest Holmes, and, Jay Cutler doesn't have a broken leg. now if Travis Henry can stop smoking pot and making babies.

-If you didn't catch this youtube clip of the Colts apparently pumping in crowd noise against the Pats on Sunday, the NFL has stepped in and claimed that the skipping crowd noise actually came from the CBS broadcast and not the Colts.

-infamous US Mens Soccer coach Bruce Arena, who lost his job after sucking at the 2004 World Cup, has now been fired from his MLS gig as well. i told you this guy sucked.

-Also in MLS, Frank Yallop, the coach for the Galaxy taxed with handling the pressure of coaching one David Beckham, has left LA to coach the expansion San Jose team. good for him, Beckham needs a coach who can handle the spotlight.

-Rockies update: this article states that the Rox are seriously looking at Jason Jennings and Shawn Chacon for pitching help since Fogg is likely gone. Garrett Atkins is major trade talk right now. Also in trade talk is Yorvit and Kaz. Brian Fuentes might be going to the White Sox for John Garland, which would be sweet!

Quotes from Gilbert

2007-11-05T13:52:00.000-07:00

So i am reading Gilbert Arenas' blog and well, it's hilarious. here are some snippets:

On his preseason game: "Truthfully, I'm playing like terrible trash right now. I don't want to make an excuse, but the rims are broken in every arena I'm playing in. "

On wearing a leg-sock: "I'm wearing it on my leg for compression. It's not like the one A.I. has on his arm because A.I. wears that for fashion"

On getting a DNP because of his toe: "After a shower...I never wanted to touch the floor because once you touch the floor your feet are dirty again. So in the shower I used to put my socks on already without drying them off"

On teammate DeShawn Stevensons new tattoo: "He has that big "STEVENSON" on his back. I've seen a lot of players that are getting their names on their backs. I guess it's a way of them letting people know what their names are when they're on the beach -- I don't know"

About Kobe getting traded to the east: "Personally, I really don’t mean to be selfish about the whole trade thing, but personally I hope Kobe stays on the West because if he comes here, that takes away from me and All-Star appearances."

And there's a great story about what athletes do in their free time. seriously, they get paid and this is what they do. i love how Gilbert references his 'surveillance system' as if everyone has one. anyway, scroll down on his blog to an entry titled "Adventures of Chuck and Larry"

All Over the Place...

2007-11-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

okay, i've been scouring the blogs today, and there's quite a bit of news, i'll try to do this more often:

-Seattle Supersonics look to be moving to Oklahoma. This is sad.
-The Rockies are considering bringing back Jason Jennings and Shawn Chacon.
-Speaking of Rockies, Yorvit Torreabla and Josh Fogg opt for free agency.
-Sacramento Kings sign Beno Udrih, and oh yea, the Kings are terrible.
-Arsenal and Manchester United play tomorrow morning at 645a.
-Carmelo is keeping a blog this season, it's very deep, so take your time to read it.

that was fun

Athletes Blogs

2007-11-02T08:20:00.000-07:00

I've updated my Athletes Blogs section on the right hand side of this page. Thanks to Yardbarker.com it now includes Carmelo Anthony, Donovan McNabb, Ray Lewis, Baron Davis and a few more.

Also already up there is Gilbert Arenas, Barry Bonds, Curt Schilling and Mark Cuban. You've got to read Gilbert Arenas' blog, it's awesome.

Let Me Explain...

2007-10-25T08:49:00.000-07:00

So with the Rockies making it to the World Series, and everyone in Colorado talking about how the Rox are going to destroy the Red Sox, let me explain something to you.

First, i'm totally a Rockies fan, i think i'm proved that, and i'm rooting for them. But that doesn't mean i'm naive to the facts.

The American League is vastly better than the National League.

"oh but its just a game, it's just baseball, anyone can win"

Not really, here's why;

In the major sports leagues today, there is a dominate conference, and a weaker conference. Its the same in baseball. The American League is much better. How do i know? well i've come up with a simple way to tell.

Take the top 3-5 teams in each conference, then compare them to see who you'd rather take with the game on the line. Lets start with NBA of this year.

Western Conference Team:
Phoenix
San Antonio
Dallas
Denver
Utah

Eastern Conference Teams:
Boston
Miami
Detroit
New Jersey
Washington

I'd take Phoenix, San Antonio and even Dallas before i took any Eastern teams, and even then it'd be a wash. The Eastern Conference is catching up after years of being terrible, but they haven't caught up all the way, and don't give me the Pistons crap, i've got reasons why they were able to win but thats a whole other theory.

NFL. This one is even easier than the NBA.

AFC:
New England
Indy
Pittsburgh
San Diego?

NFC:
Dallas
Philly
Green Bay
Seattle?

NE and Indy are tops in the league, maybe Pittsburgh and Dallas are a wash but all of the teams in the AFC group are better than 3/4 of the NFC group.

So back to MLB. I would have taken any of the American League playoff teams to win the World Series before i backed the National League

American:
Boston
Cleveland
New York

National:
Colorado
Arizona
Philly

No competition. Now consider these points:

-Both the NBA and MLB have seven game series, therefore, the better team is afforded a chance to make a mistake, and still win the series. Only the Superbowl really evens the playing field, no home-field, and its a do or die game, no mistakes are allowed.

-The reason teams like the Pistons or Heat, or weaker NFC teams or whatever win every once in awhile is the playoffs. think about it, the years that the Seahawks or Philly got to the superbowl, the path was somewhat easy, but in the AFC the Colts had to go through New England along with someone else like Pittsburgh or San Diego or Denver. Same in the NBA, if you win the western conference, you've gone through San Antonio, Phoenix, Dallas, Denver versus Orlando, New Jersey, Washington, Boston.

-When a conference has a dominate team, like the Spurs, the other teams will do everything to bring superstars to their teams to compete. This is why the dominate conference stays dominate. The Nuggets, Suns, Mavs, Jazz, Lakers and everyone else is doing everything they can do to be competitive. it shifts because the weaker conference gets the top draft choices, so after a few years, those picks become all-stars and slowly shifts the power, like Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Dwight Howard.

So hopefully this helps explain why the Rockies might be in trouble. sure they're good, but can they really compete against the Red Sox? they might win a game or two, but a 7 game series will allow the best team to win, and i think think the Red Sox are the better team. Go Rox!

A New Day is Upon Us!

2007-10-18T12:54:00.000-07:00

For those who have known me for the last few years will know me as a formidable Madden opponent, aka, none of my friends can beat me. I take pride in this. I love playing Madden, and i've been successful on multiple platforms including Playstation 2, XBox, and Gamecube.

For the last few years i've gotten the new season of Madden the day it came out, celebrating the Maddenoliday by myself, by nonetheless celebrating.

This year is different however, with the addition of my wonderful daughter Addie, i've yet to get Madden '08. Not only that, i've failed to introduce John Madden to Addie and i haven't been playing, well, at all really.

A few weeks back my homie Alan invited me over to see if he could take advantage of me in my weakest time, but he failed as i demolished him, on NCAA '06 for that matter (my first time playing)

But that means nothing now. Last night i invited Alan to my house for some more Madden, on my turf, with my profiles, my controllers, my music....and i was destroyed, twice in a row. I didn't even make it to halftime in the second game.

boo

Alan, you have proven yourself my friend, i need help!

So much stuff!

2007-10-16T11:45:00.000-07:00

so, man, the Rockies in the World Series!! the Browns are 3-3! The Nuggets are looking good in preseason! Its a good time to be a sports fan!

Anyway, i think i will start with this golden nugget! I can't remember the last time the Browns were ranked higher in the ESPN Power Rankings than all my friends' teams, or not 30th for that matter. Today the rankings came out with the Browns at 19th, ahead of:

Broncos at 21 (Thomas, Gary, and the rest of my homies out here)

Vikings at 22 (Kassie, Alan, Matt/Andrew and our homies in Minnesota)

Bears at 23 (Ross, Josh Reibock)

49ers at 24 (JoeyD and my friends in Cali)

Raiders at 25 (my little brother and Big Red)

and the

Rams at 31 (this ones' for Aaron Britton who, yes, once was a Rams fan, though i'm not sure who he roots for now since they suck)

The only team we need to jump ahead of now is the Lions, Chris Chase and Ralphie.

Anyway, sorry to gloat, this is just too cool having a read football team for once.

The Rockies are Amazing! If you aren't watching these playoffs you're really missing out, i love it, they're such an exciting team. I think it has to do with how loose they play, they remind me of the Red Sox. It so much more fun to watch loose teams rather than rigid teams like the Yankees.

Oh, i know i emailed this to some people yesterday, but i though i'd post it here. Here's proof that i was a Rockies fan from the beginning, and that being the season of 1993. I was in 7th grade and i had an infatuation for the colors Black and Purple, therefore i was an instant Rockies fan.

Too bad those colors are pretty lame in this day and age, maybe the Sacramento Kings should get a clue and go back to the throwbacks!

Apparently i suck at Fantasy Football by the way. I'm 8-10 combined in my 3 leagues. I've been racked by injuries but who hasn't? I think i'll stop giving advice out on Fantasy Football, especially after i dropped Ronnie Brown in week 2.

St Louis gets their first win this week when they go into Seattle and squeek one out against the lame Seahawks. you'll see.

Hilarious Soccer Player!

2007-10-11T10:32:00.000-07:00

So i don't usually post soccer news, but i couldn't pass this one up.

Last week in the Champions League, the defending champions AC Milan from Italy played the Glasgow Celtic in a first round game. This game was in Glasgow. After the Celtic scored they were celebrating in the corner of the field. A fan jumped from the stands on the opposite side and ran up to the AC Milan goalie, Dida, and tapped him on the shoulder. Dida turned to chase the fan, then apparently after a few strides decided to fake an injury.

i have no idea why Dida did this but the whole incident is on film and its hilarious. Whats even better is that the Champions League Board got together to review the incident and ended up suspending Dida for 2 games for faking an injury. I mean Dida went the point that he was stretchered off the field with an ice pack on his face.

too good!

here's the video, it's only a minute long

NO!!!!!!!

2007-10-10T10:08:00.000-07:00

Gollum....i mean Sam Cassell wants to play for George Karl and the Nuggets next season!

Please, don't do this to us. The Rockies are playing great baseball, the Avalanche look to make some noise this season, the Rapids are still in the playoff race, and the Broncos are...well... they'll be good again someday.

Leave Carmelo Alone!!

Don't ruin the Nuggets with Cassell, he's so terrible!

i guess i should take Yahoo! rumors with a grain of salt, they've been saying the Mike Bibby and Ron Artest would be traded for well over a year now, so how much truth can there be with this rumor?

Crown Their @sses

2007-10-09T07:52:00.000-07:00

they are who i thought they were!

I told you the Packers were fakers. how do you lose at home to the lowly Bears with Griese at QB? i don't know, you tell me.

Anyway, i gotta give it to my Browns for putting up a decent fight against the consesus #1 team in the NFL on their home-grass. The Browns put up 17 on the Pats and forced Brady to have his worse completion percentage of the season, and while shutting down Randy Moss. Oh, and in the process, forgetting to cover Ben Watson, but hey, can't win em all.

I'm still on record as saying the Browns will challenge the Bronco's for a better record this season, and i'm feeling really good about that right now. Bronco's are in trouble. Thank goodness they have a bye this week.

I love seeing people freak out in fantasy football, this week i was able to either pick up or attempt to pick up these players because they were cut by their owners; Steven Jackson, Andre Johnson, Dwayne Bowe, and Alge Crumpler. i still think both Andre Johnson and Steven Jackson will have very good fantasy seasons so we'll check back on this one.

Speaking of fantasy football, 2 weeks ago i completed a trade where i sent McNabb to another owner for Donald Driver. Now i had a few reasons for this. First i think McNabb is going to struggle this season and i had Matt Schaub on my bench who's playing great. I was able to get good value for McNabb because i proposed the trade right after he went off for like 400 yards or whatever. Secondly, good recievers are really hard to come by, and Driver had been solid and mostly injury free for the last few years. Plus, with Farve playing so well he's bound to consistently put up good numbers. So take that you haters.

So lets look at this coming week's games and talk about some tough choices:

Philly at the Jets
Cinci at Kansas City
Tenn at Tampa Bay
Washington at Green Bay
New England at Dallas
Giants at Atlanta

You can't tell me these are easy picks. I'm not going to pick these games for sure until later in the week but my gut says Jets, Cinci, Tenn, Green Bay, New England and the Falcons. i guess we'll see.

Browns back to .500 this week after taking care of the Dolphins.

Even YOU can play QB for the Bears

2007-10-01T09:35:00.000-07:00

How bad does Chicago have to feel right now?

Last year they make it to the Superbowl, only to lose to the Colts. Rex Grossman is either the worst qb in the league, or in the bottom 3, so what does that mean? Possibly that with a middle of the road qb, like Boller, Trent Green, Kurt Warner, Schaub, Harrington or even Derek Anderson, this team would be a lock for the Superbowl again this year.

These guys are one mediocre qb away from a championship.

did everyone really think Griese was the answer? please, this dude is so washed up. i loved him in Denver back in the 90's.

If you just glance at Greise's numbers they're not bad, 34/52 for 286 yards and 2 tds...but throw in 3 interceptions, 2 fumbles and 6 sacks and ouch, this isn't good.

how dumb does the front office feel? they didn't make one move this off season, one that saw Matt Schaub get away, John Joseph Harrington, and hell, they could have made a move for Charlie Frye....

In other news, the Browns stick it in your face again you doubters

As for my recap, i feel pretty good about that, considering i said that Pittsburgh would have it tough in Arizona. Also i touched on a bunch of people going back to a place where they either started or were let go, and how did they fare?

Jamal Lewis against the Ravens: J Lewis wins. even though his number weren't stellar, 65 yds 1td, he was a rock, though MacGahee isn't that bad!

Matt Schaub against the Falcons: This one's tough because Schaub put up good numbers against his old team, but they lost. Still i think the Falcons are really kicking themselves on this one

Ken Whisenhunt against the Steelers: ha, this one made me laugh, Steelers suck

Daunte Culpepper against the Dolphins: not only did the Raiders go into Miami and win, Daunte decided to show the Fins what they were missing by rushing for a td and then taunting them with a point to his knee and an okay sign. His number would have been better had Miami at least attempted to stop the run, i mean, Culpepper had no reason to even throw the ball.

hey, more later!

NFL Recap

2007-09-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long, life is crazy!

Go Rockies! Tulo for Rookie of the Year no doubt, and let me say, i've been repping Matt Holliday since two years ago, so i'm driving the band wagon.

anyway, NFL recap, what do we know. i could write a book right here, but i know i'd lose all 5 of you readers, so lets just hit some quick notes.

-The Cleveland Browns will make a run at going .500. I said this before the season started and while i really didn't expect Derek Anderson to be our QB, i'm not that disappointed. I feel like we've gotten better every week, even though we lost last week at Oakland, but we had that game, on the road. I thought it was a gritty performance, and i expect we'll give Baltimore a run for their money this weekend.

-As i said a month ago, Denver is in trouble. This weekend won't be any better. Having the best secondary doesn't mean crap if you can't stop the run, or score touchdowns.

-Pittsburgh and maybe even Dallas are fake. Indy and New England are the class of this league, and right now, i'd put New England on top. Why is Pitt fake? well even though they'll probably be 4-0 after this weekend, lets recap their opponents the last 3 weeks; @ Cle (w/frye guy), BUF, and the SFO. So they beat both the Buffaloes and 49ers at home. woohoo.

-Steven Jackson and Tomlinson will be fine, they'll put up 1200-1500 yards this season whereas Larry Johnson is in trouble. Do i have to explain why?

-I also think the Packers will come back down to earth, i don't even think they'll win that division.

-this weekend has Jamal Lewis playing against the Ravens, Matt Schaub playing against the Falcons, Ken Whisenhunt coaching against the Steelers, and Daunte Culpepper playing against the Dolphins. welcome home.

-upset special of the week? how about St Louis giving the Cowboys a game without Steven Jackson.

-for those of you surprised at how bad the Saints are, quick, get off the bus! they are terrible, and will be even worse now without the Deuce! why are they terrible? well, i think it goes back to last year when they majorly overachieved, and now they're just playing to their own talent level.

-and i gotta say, the Dolphins passing on Brady Quinn to draft Ted Ginn Jr is looking so dumb these days, 0-3 with Trent Green at QB and a bust for RB with Ronnie Brown. You would think that with the other options still available in the draft, what were the Fins thinking? me too, but i love it, cuz we got Quinn.

-can we say again how good the qb class was with Cutler, Leinart and Young? I mean, i know Leinart is struggling right now but i'm sure he'll be fine, same with Cutler. and Vince, as much as i can't stand him, he has a serious will to win games.

-and last but not least, my smart sports bet of the year. Every year, about a month before the NFL season starts i go on to Betus.com and make some bets. i like to take some risks, but in the big picture i don't really bet that much. my great move this year, i put $10 down to win $50 that Micheal Vick would rush for at least 3 tds in one game. ouch.

For Those Who Hate the Patriots

2007-09-10T13:37:00.000-07:00

I know i'm in the majority when i say that i hate the Patriots, i hate Tom Brady, I hate Bill Belicheck and his stupid hoodie, i hate Rodney Harrison, i just hate 'em (but i like Moss so this is going to be tougher this season, and Maroney).

So when news broke today that the Patriots are cheaters i instantly thought "where's the outrage?"

why are we not comparing the Patriots to Barry Bonds like all of you love to do? Why not throw them under the bus instead of worshipping them?

They are cheaters and now we all know, their "dynasty" should have an asterisk next to it!

here's the proof!

HAHA

2007-09-07T09:56:00.000-07:00

So last nights Colts - Saints game was dedicated to all of the Reggie Bush lovers who took Bush in the first round of their fantasy football drafts.

the dude is way overrated!

especially when he's not even the number 1 option on his team, think, Drew Brees, Deuce McAllister and Marques Colsten.

People have got to be kicking themselves today!

Prediction - Denver loses in Buffalo, Oakland makes the playoffs, and Larry Johnson/Bush have terrible fantasy years.

Bronco's Are In Trouble

2007-08-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

So here are my predictions for the Bronco's with some extras.

First i want to say of the many forseen QB changes that might/will happen this season, and a few from the past year, i think the Bronco's will win the award for "most fans regretting running their qb out of town".

This isn't a shot at Jay Cutler, i really think the kid is going to be good, but when will Denver realize that Jake Plummer was getting the job done?? They were in the AFC Championship game like 2 years ago. Plummer was a top 15 qb, not injury-prone, and a total gamer. Now the Bronco's are back to square-one and i think they're in trouble. Think about it, all of the leadership is gone, Plummer, Al Wilson, Rod Smith (too old), Kubiak. I just isn't the same team.

According to the preseason, the Bronco's are terrible on defense. I feel like every year Denver makes up more and more excuses rather than just own up to the fact that they're aren't good anymore. Can you name one D-Lineman for the bronco's? And if you said Sam Adams, well, he's just human-interest.

I'd say the only bright spots for this team are the secondary, Javon Walker, and the tight-ends. I like Travis Henry in Denver but he's pretty injury-prone, i like Jay Cutler but he's yet to show me something. The linebackers are great atheletes, but that only gets you into the league, they just don't seem that smart. And the O-line is just getting older and older.

You tell me, i think the Bronco's will end up fighting for second in this division and could easily end up third. but i've been wrong.

Fantasy Football is Upon Us!

2007-08-28T13:59:00.000-07:00

NFL is right around the corner and this last week i was involved in 2 different Fantasy Football Drafts.

I usually shy away from Fantasy Football Player games becuase i feel like it takes away from watching the overall game on sundays, but i coundn't resist the urge to get back into it.

So anyway, i was reading an article by ESPN Fantasy guru Matthew Berry and he had this to say about drafting Cleveland Browns players. (let me remind you, this was a list of individual players, and he lumped the Browns together);

The Cleveland Browns: Pick a Brown, any Brown. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Braylon Edwards have some talent, but who is going to throw them the ball? I hate Jamal Lewis here and anyone who lines up at quarterback. This is a bad team.

Oh, and guess who drafted all three of the players mentioned above?

David Beckham - First Goal for LA Galaxy - Free Kick v's DC

2007-08-16T06:48:00.001-07:00

In case you missed it, Becks scored last night after starting for the Galaxy in the semi-final Superliga game against DC United.

He also got an assist later in the game on Landon Donovan's goal.

I watched the game, and he played very well, he's not as active but he's solid.

NFL Predictions

2007-08-15T08:26:00.000-07:00

SO it's easy to guess who's gonna be on top this season, and you can listen to any NFL pundit talk about, so lets get that out of the way

Indy
New England
Philadelphia
San Diego

i think thats the class of the NFL right now with these teams almost there

Pittsburgh
Seattle
Chicago
Denver

but thats boring and easy, how about who i guarantee will be the worst teams in the league and why:

MIAMI: this team is terrible, Trent Green? Really? combined with no offensive weapons, sorry Ronnie Brown. New coach, new qb, this just isn't getting better in Miami, makes you wonder why they drafted Ted Ginn Jr

TAMPA BAY: This team is even worse, Jeff Garcia? The league could combine Tampa and Miami and still not have a .500 team

HOUSTON: I'm sorry but i think Schaub is going to flop this season and Ahman Green is way done. I like Kubiak but this team is an uphill battle

MINNESOTA: TJack is no NFL quaterback and they have no receivers, the defense is getting older, and no one even knows who Brad Childress is

GREEN BAY: this who division is bad, but it will be a battle for last place. Brett Favre is good in battle

Teams very close to the bottom:

Washington
Cleveland
Oakland
New York Giants

I can almost guarantee that at least 8 of these 9 teams will be in the bottom 8 of the league come January, sorry to all my Vikes fans but that team is terrible.

The Browns will have a better record than the Vikes this season, count it!

DaMarcus Beasley Vs FK Zeta

2007-08-09T10:23:00.001-07:00

Beasley's goal for the Rangers, helping them advance in the Champions League

Racism in Sports

2007-08-09T09:56:00.000-07:00

So i know that i'm often talking up European Soccer as something everyone could get into and should check out, but this latest run-in with racism makes me sick.

In America we have problems with issues like steroids, dog fighting, DUI's, crooked refs and paying college athletes. In Europe i'm sure they have some similar issues, but the one that sticks outs is racism. A lot of black athletes in Europe get taunted during game, FIFA and UEFA have done a lot in squashing this problem, but it still remains. It makes me sad to think that people still find this acceptable.

Maybe America will step up and do something as well considering the last incident involved American National player Demarcus Beasley.

if you're sick of reading about steroids, or ESPN's sympathy article for referee's (which I'm sorry, i have no sympathy for refs who make 6 digits to ref basketball for a career), or how Michael Vick's indictment is actually racist and not about dog-fighting, then read this article about Beasley and i think you'll see a real issue, one that everyone can agree on, everyone is on the same side when it comes to racism, that it's wrong.

2007-08-07T20:24:00.001-07:00

hey guys, here is the fantasy football info that you need. get in on this, the preseason starts this weekend!

go to http://football.fantasysports.yahoo.com

Survival Football:

Group ID#: 123
Password: browns

Pick 'em:

Group ID#: 5856
Password: browns

A-Rod Juiced?

2007-07-30T05:03:00.000-07:00

so says Jose Canseco

it will be interesting to see how this is perceived. Everyone hated Bonds and was looking for a way to justify and along came steroids. Everyone loves Alex Rodriguez not to mention he's on the east coast, therefore everyone sees him, and if he gets dragged into the steroids talks, well, i think the media will be split.

everyone loves A-Rod, he can do no wrong.

wait and see

Thanks Guys!! - mls

2007-07-23T10:39:00.001-07:00

Could the timing of Beckham arriving in America be any better? Here's the recent headlines in case you missed them:

NFL: Michael Vick Indicted on dog fighting charges

NBA: NBA referee being investigated for affecting outcomes

MLBA: Bud Selig not present as Barry Continues chase (not to mention steroids)

If soccer was really going to catch on in America you couldn't plan a better setting around you in terms of other sports. Don't get me wrong, i'm not rooting against other sports, but i am rooting for soccer.

Not to mention, David Beckham is one of the most stand-up guys in sports. A true family-man who takes prides in representing his country, (96 appearances for the England National Team not to mention he was captain for over 50 of those games), seems to have a strong marriage and is just a great ambassador for to the sport. He reminds me of Tiger Woods more than Jordan.

Yea, go Soccer!

We're the Best in the World!

2007-07-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

well not quite

On Thursday we got to go to the MLS All Star game, a game in which the All Stars from MLS played FC Celtic from Glasgow, Scotland. FC Celtic is a great team they've been a force since their inception and are constantly on top of the Scottish Premier League as well as playing in the Champions League.

But they were not match for Juan Pablo Angel and the MLS All Stars who came away with a 2-0 victory.

Not to mention the MLS is halfway through their season playing on their home turf while Celtic just started pre-season training about a week ago, are on Scottish time, not able to handle the heat very well and playing without a few of their big names.

either way it was a blast, we got to see David Beckham up close along with most of the all stars Landon Donovan, Dwayne DeRosario, Juan Pablo Angel, Pablo Mastroeni, Marcelo Balboa, Cobi Jones and more.

Great times, here are some blurry pics from my cell phone.

Dwayne DeRosario being interviewed

Game Action

the Mercers

Landon Donovan and company

and David Beckham, yea, right there next to the flag

Brazil shows us how it is done

2007-07-16T11:56:00.000-07:00

I know many of you aren't following soccer, but maybe you should

If you're one of the people that says that the reason USA Basketball has been failing the last few years in the Olympics and whatnot because of lack of chemistry and not enough practice, Brazil Soccer shows you that you're wrong.

The common excuse given when the US Mens BBall team loses to Argentina or some Euro team is that we don't have enough practice together as a team and these other nations spend hours a day just practicing to beat the US. Well, i don't think that true at all, in fact, i think its a cop-out.

This past week in soccer, South America held their Copa America tournament with teams from the North, South and Central Americas competing to win a place another important tournament to be played in 2009. The tournament is important, but not as important as the World Cup so some teams elect to use the tournament to scout talent for their official national team (like the US did going 0-3 and getting killed with a terrible roster).

The big names in this tournament besides the USA team were Argentina, Mexico and Brazil. Brazil was like the US and brought essentially a "B" team (no Ronaldo, Ronaldhino...) while both Mexico and Argentina fielded the best team possible, and both of their rosters were world class.

Here's the parallel to US Basketball. Brazil won this tournament against Argentina in the Final. Argentina is a top 5 team in the world as is Brazil. The players on the Brazil squad rarely play together since most of em play somewhere in Europe, and don't travel back to Brazil for friendlies. So this team won solely on talent and the way they're taught to play soccer.

So this begs the question on why US Basketball, clearly the top in the world for talent pool and athleticism, can't win the Olympics.

I think its because our players don't care and they don't take the tournament seriously enough which would be a coaching problem as well

They are a lot of parallels between world soccer and the NBA/US Basketball. All the best soccer players play in Europe, specifically the English Premier League whereas all of the best BBall players play in the NBA. You'd think that this would mean that America is the best in basketball and England is the best in soccer but it never ends up that way.

The other hilarious aspect to Copa America and Brazil winning is that Argentina lost with their most stacked team in the last 15 years.

Joe Buck is an Idiot!

2007-07-12T07:49:00.000-07:00

So everyone should know who Joe Buck is by now. If you don't know who he is, he's the announcer for Fox that was announcing the game where Randy Moss rightfully fake-mooned the Packers fans in Lambeau Field. Joe Buck about died in the booth from being offended.

Anyway, Joe Buck was announcing the MLB All Star game on Tuesday and i decided to tune in to see my boy Matt Holliday. I should have known that it wouldn't even take an inning for Joe Buck to go off about Barry Bonds and steroids.

who cares anymore?

really? he spent 3 innings talking about steroids and baseball. this is why no one watches baseball anymore, no one cares about listening to some stupid announcer spout off about steroids, they can't do anything about the record, so give it up.

Let me tell you what is really going to happen. Americans tend to root for underdogs. Now I'm not saying the Barry Bonds is an underdog, but, but so much of the media against him, Bud Selig against him, other players against him and most of naive sports fans against him, the gang-up mentality is starting to build.

eventually sports fans will actually begin to feel sorry for him and all of the crap he deals with from the media like Joe Buck, Mike Greenberg, PTI,...

Face it, he's going to break the homerun record, no one can stop him. Bud Selig is showing his immaturity by whining about how he has to go watch the game when he should be supporting Bonds and everything Bonds has brought to baseball lately. you can't tell me people are interesting in the Bonds chase for the record.

either way, i've always supported Bonds. why not? its easy to go with the crowd and rip Bonds for supposedly using steroids, and so what if he did. So what is our best American skier smokes pot before he ski's, so what if Romanowski was on crack, did you not enjoy watching those guy play? what matters here?

Breaking the homerun record is remarkable, drugs or not, and people should be excited to actually witness it while they're alive, just like we're witnessing the best golfer ever in Tiger Woods, the greatest basketball player in Michael Jordan (soon to be Kobe Bryant) and the rest of these impactful players.

So Joe Buck - Shut up! no one is going to remember you or care that you were an announcer, just like refs, they're better when they're not noticed.

Does anyone enjoy this:

Ski-Ta Go Home

2007-07-10T13:47:00.000-07:00

So the Rocky Mountain is reporting that Skita wants to "come home" and play for the Nuggets again. For those of you not following the Summer Leagues,( i have no idea why you aren't) Skita is on the Nuggets summer league roster.

Currently there are only 2 open roster spots and with the Nuggets in need of some 3-pt shooting you can guarantee that at least one spot is going to someone like Lamond Murray or Von Wafer.

Anyway, i would love to have Skita back, he's beefed up and well, i love watching him play, he's hilarious.

Oh, and here's the current roster for the Nuggets summer league team

Someone had to do it!

2007-07-10T06:56:00.001-07:00

What goes around comes around, 'Toine has been robbing the league for years.

Antoine Walker Robbed at Gunpoint

Where was deputy Shaq when you need him?

Fallling off the face...

2007-07-05T14:09:00.000-07:00

So i have to confess as to why i haven't been updating as often as usual.

I have been following US Men's Soccer and their trip to South America in Copa America

I know I know, most of you could care less about soccer, and especially don't want to read about it, and thats fine. I don't plan on writing too much about it so i won't bore you.

This combined with the lack of NFL stories, NBA offseason and the offseason for European soccer has left me searching for worthy stories. Baseball never cuts it. NBA offseason moves are all hype unless you're stoked about Jason Kapono signing with the Raptors. NFL training camp doesn't start until the end of the month.

So in the meantime, thanks to good soccer friends Noah and Damilola, my pops, and my little brother, i've thrown myself into the soccer world head first, and i'm enjoying it.

As for the Mens Soccer team, they're not that bad, they just won the Gold Cup which is a small tournament with teams from North America, US brought their A team and beat Mexico in the final in a great game.

We brought our B team to South America for a much bigger tournament, Copa America (Argentina, Brazil, Mexico...) and basically have shown up as the worse team in the tournament, and its embarrassing. It'll be over after tonite, thankfully.

Either way, i'm enjoying these games on the splendid Uni-vision with the mute on.

"gol - gol - gol - gol - gol - gol - gol - gol - gol"

so if ya wanna talk soccer, or you have question about US soccer, David Beckham, EPL, Champions League, Colorado Rapids or anything else, hit me up!