Results tagged ‘ NFL ’
Oh No
This week has not been a very good week for me. If you pay attention to the NFL you probably saw Ben Roethlisberger get straight jacked up. The Steelers were playing a meaningless game and Big Ben got destroyed and suffered a “mild” concussion. I don’t really believe there is such a thing as a “mild” concussion as any concussion can ruin your playing career.
Do I blame Mike Tomlin for keeping Ben in? No, he was trying to win and that is what counts in the end. Roethlisberger should be fine for Pittsburgh’s first playoff game. That is all that matters right now. What I am really worried about is if the Steelers’ offensive line will be able to keep the defense off of Berger’s back long enough for him to throw a freaking pass.
Another depressing point of my holiday weekend came last night. USC man handled Penn State. The Nittany Lion defense didn’t show up in the first half, getting beat deep early and often. What is really making me mad though is how everyone on ESPN is saying that USC “destroyed, crushed, annihilated, rolled over, and burned Penn State.” Last time I checked they won by 14 points. Those adjectives selected by the “experts” would describe a win by at least 28 points. USC did however win every aspect of the game but in the end it wasn’t a horrible loss.
Penn State scored 17 points in the second half on a defense that had only allowed 3 second half touchdowns all year. How is that being rolled over? They say that Daryll Clark made horrible passes. One of his interceptions Andrew Quarless fell down, that is why the ball was picked. His throw was accurate, the receiver just fell down. That isn’t Clark’s fault. We should also remember that this was basically a home game for USC. Penn State had to travel about 2,500 miles while the Trojans traveled a whole 11 miles. You are kidding yourself if you think USC didn’t have home field advantage.
I have been finding this whole Manny Ramirez thing very interesting. Where will he go? The Yankees and Angels aren’t interested and Boston definitely isn’t. The Dodgers pulled their offer and the Giants are now in the mix. He isn’t going to get the money he expected to so this will be interesting to watch. I can see that the Giants are trying to get better but I think they are just going to end up shooting themselves in the foot. They are in no way shape or form a young team. They have a few very nice, young pieces that they need to build around.
I don’t like the Edgar Renteria signing and I think bringing in Manny will just be another Barry Bonds. He will cause drama and tear the team apart in the clubhouse. He won’t get his money and we all know that he will not be a happy Manny when he does sign. And we all know that a happy Manny doesn’t play and will give up on his team. Manny isn’t exactly young either and that is exactly what that Giants team does not need. If I was a Giants fan I would appreciate them trying to get better but I don’t believe they are picking the right players.
Till next time,
~Ben
I’m Ashamed To Be A Baseball Fan
I am ashamed to be a baseball fan. Freaking ashamed. Bud Selig needs to be fired right now for letting this madness go on. I don’t care who you are or what you think, this whole league is a joke. A freaking joke.
The reason so many people hate baseball is because so many teams suck. They suck because teams like the Yankees spend money like mad and sign all the best players every year. This year the Yankees have signed the top 3 free agents on the market, C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and now Mark Teixeira. This is in no way fair to the rest of the league. The Yankees also have the top 4 highest paid players in all of baseball now.
I am sick to my stomach right now, I am that angry. I have to sit and watch my favorite team sit and do nothing because they are out spent every single year. I sit and watch one team, just one, out spend the rest of the league while the commissioner sits and watches. I honestly think that Bud Selig is a Yankees fan. He has to be. He obviously doesn’t care that the rest of the league has to get New York’s scraps every year.
The NFL is full of really good teams every year. Every year the NFL has 8-10 teams in each conference fighting for a playoff spot. This is because there is a salary cap. It is really that simple. Teams have to draft smart and can’t just sign or trade for the best players because they can take on their giant contract. The best players are all over the league on different teams, not stacked on one team. You can find any team in the NFL and name at least one superstar. You can’t do that in baseball.
I am so mad right now I may give up on baseball all together. My dream was to be a baseball writer for ESPN one day. That is damn near gone. I don’t want to write about the Yankees signing every free agent every year. I don’t want to write about the Yankees winning the World Series every damn year. I loved baseball by far more than any other sport. I have defended baseball as a sport in arguments with soccer players for years now. I am just about finished. Baseball is a joke.
Screw baseball,
~Ben
How Far Can They Go?
My Pittsburgh Steelers are in the playoffs. They have clinched but now the question is, how far can they go?
We all know about the Steelers’ top notch defense. James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley wreak havoc off the edges while Troy Polamalu roams the secondary. This is great and all but I am legitimately worried about the offense. I know they have had a murderers row of a schedule, but they need to put up points to win ball games.
They have just slipped by on several occasions and they can’t keep winning like that. It won’t be like that in the playoffs. Everyone elevates their game in the playoffs so I expect the Steelers to also. Ben Roethlisberger can only lead his team on so many game winning drives before he fails. He is a great quarterback under pressure but it can only last so long.
This week is the true test. Pittsburgh will travel into Tennessee to take on the 12-2 Titans. This game can determine home field advantage throughout the playoffs. I think it is a must win for the Steelers. Locking up Heinz field throughout the playoffs would be huge. They play great at home, which is exactly where they need to be.
Tennessee’s defensive line and Pittsburgh’s offensive line would have been the key battle of the game. Tennessee’s D-line is great and Pittsburgh’s O-line, well, sucks. They can’t protect Ben and it shows. The fact that Haynesworth and Vanden Bosch aren’t playing is why I give the Steelers the advantage in this game.
The Steeler defense will suffocate Kerry Collins and hopefully Big Ben can pull some tricks out of his bag and score 20 or so points. This is by far the biggest game of the season for Pittsburgh. It may not keep them out of the playoffs, but it could very well be an AFC Championship game preview. If all goes well I believe Pittsburgh can ride this win all the way to the big time, Super Bowl XLIII. If not, there is always next year. But who wants to wait another year?
Cheers,
~Ben
MVP and the Heisman Trophy
I have pretty much given up all hope for Ben Roethlisberger
winning the NFL MVP. He started out great, then just tailed off after
that Philadelphia game. It isn’t really all his fault as it is pretty
hard to throw from your back. He has been sacked 33 times already this
year. That is unacceptable.
The offensive line as not played
the way they should and they all know it. There is all the talk about
them having to “gel” together but I’m not buying it. It comes down to
the fact that they are getting beat by the D-line every Sunday for most
of the game. The offensive line should be the first need addressed in
the upcoming NFL draft.
Speaking of the NFL draft. Looks
like we may have quite the group of quarterbacks. You have 3 Heisman
candidates in the Big 12 alone. Colt McCoy, Graham Harrell, and Sam Bradford
are all good picks. But who will win? My pick at this point is Sam
Bradford. Check out his stats, they are ridiculous. McCoy does have a
big advantage in the completion percentage but I will address that
next.
Everyone
goes crazy about McCoy’s amazing completion percentage. It is great and
all but he is only throwing 5-10 yard passes. He dumps the ball off
over the middle and his receivers run. Every once in a while he takes a
shot down field but not often. If Bradford and Harrell took those short
passes they would be just as good if not better.
Graham
Harrell is by far the best “passer” of the three. While McCoy is the
best runner and Bradford has the best combination of both. So this year
Bradford is going to walk away with the hardware.
So, has anyone been watching that whole Big 12 Championship debacle? Oklahoma got the bid to go in and smash Missouri in the championship. I am by no means a Texas
fan, but they got screwed. Oklahoma got the bid despite Texas beating
them straight up on a neutral site. Doesn’t make any sense to me. Sure,
Oklahoma smashed Texas Tech
but lost to Texas which is what really counts. I also think it is
hilarious that Mike Leach thinks the bid should go to the school with
the highest graduation rate in the conference (Texas Tech is 1, with
Texas at 11 and Oklahoma at 12). Nice try Mike, but it ain’t happening.
I suppose I could get back to baseball. It is so hard sense not
much has been happening. I know the winter meetings are coming up but
there is just so much excitement around football. I’m still waiting
around for Kevin Towers to come crawling back with Jake Peavy. I still believe that Yunel Escobar, Charlie Morton, Gorkys Hernandez, Blaine Boyer, and Jeff Locke is more than enough. It fills every need the Padres have and it is just pure greed on Towers’ part.
Escobar, Morton, and Hernandez were all hand picked by the Padres.
Escobar is a young superstar in the making that has tremendous talent.
Boyer is a major league ready reliever who just had to much on his
plate last year. He is also pretty young. Locke is a young pitcher who
has great potential. The Padres are getting the best of the deal here
so I don’t know why they haven’t done anything. To be honest it is just
plain stupidity on their part.
Will A.J. Burnett sign with the Braves?
If they trade for Peavy then yes. If they don’t then it seems unlikely.
Adding Peavy would give Burnett added motivation to come to Atlanta. He
wouldn’t even have to be the ace if he didn’t want to. A Peavy,
Burnett, Jurrjens, then later Hudson rotation would be dominant. Maybe
the best in baseball.
If the Braves trade Escobar then I see them turning around and instantly signing Rafael Furcal.
He wants to come back to Atlanta so welcome him with open arms. It
would also give them a lead off hitter with speed that the Braves have
lacked since Furcal left. It just makes sense. If the Braves don’t sign
Burnett and trade for Peavy I see them going hard for Jermaine Dye and Javier Vazquez. Dye would provide the power bat in the outfield while Vazquez would be a veteran, middle of the rotation pitcher.
If all else fails I would think Atlanta would turn to signing Jon Garland or Ben Sheets.
Garland would just plain eat innings while Sheets could end up being an
ace type pitcher. Garland doesn’t have great stats but he eats up
innings and keeps his team in the game. Ben Sheets can be lights out or
he can be on the bench with an injury. Sheets can either be a big game
pitcher or a monster bust. I’m afraid to find out.
Over and out,
~Ben
Busy Times
It sure is a busy time in the sporting world. It is crunch time for several of my favorite teams this week. This is a time to give shout outs to the other sports besides baseball. I think it is appropriate anyway since none of the teams are doing anything in the MLB anyway.
This week my Pittsburgh Steelers will be taking on the New England Patriots. Usually this would be an amazing game, Tom Brady vs. Ben Roethlisberger. New England’s offense going up against Pittsburgh’s defense. That would be a great game. But as we all know Mr. Brady hurt his little knee and is out of the season so Matt Cassel has to step up against the #1 defense in the league. Pittsburgh is #1 in the NFL in passing defense, rushing defense, and total defense. Yes, the Triple Crown in defense. It is going to be hard for Cassel to throw to Randy Moss from his back.
As for my Penn State Nittany Lions, they are already in the Rose Bowl. They smashed Michigan St. to end the season and get the Rose Bowl bid. Now all that has to be decided is who they play. The winner of the Pac-10 plays the winner of the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl. So, it is either Oregon St. or USC. If you happen to be a Penn State fan you are already aware that Penn State embarrassed Oregon St. already this year. I don’t want to watch that again. So I have actually found myself rooting for USC. Although it isn’t like they need my help against Notre Dame. What I do need to root for is for Oregon to beat Oregon St. That would make USC the Pac-10 champion and give them a bid to the Rose Bowl.
Never thought I would say this but, GO DUCKS!
Basically it comes down to the fact that I would rather see Penn State play USC and possibly get beat then beat down or even lose to Oregon St. I think it would just be a flat out better game. I have been wanting to see Penn State play USC for a while now anyway. There is no doubt in my mind that USC will easily embarrass Notre Dame, having Oregon upset Oregon St. is what the challenge will be. But, you never know, anything can happen. Any team can beat any other team on any given day. That is just the way it is.
Any college basketball fans out there? If so I take it you watched the Maui Invitational. All I have to say is damn, UNC is good. Hansbrough isn’t even healthy yet and he is still yammin on people. That kid is ridiculous.
He is going to win Player of the Year again. I am still a little shocked that scouts said he would be a late first round pick in the NBA draft last year. Are you kidding me? He is the freakin NCAA Player of the Year and he is a late first round pick? Doesn’t make much sense to me.
The rest of his team does need props though. Danny Green can knock down a 3 from anywhere over anyone. He is just obnoxiously athletic. Ty Lawson is ridiculously fast. He was running past Notre Dame defenders that were already down court.
As for the Atlanta Braves, they have still done absolutely nothing. They have so much money and are clearly waiting around for San Diego to come back. It is disappointing that there was so much hype for the off season and a whole bunch of nothing has happened. Oh well.
Till next time,
~Ben
Happy Thanksgiving
Thought I would finally join the trend and wish everyone reading a Happy Thanksgiving.
I am thankful for everything I have in life and never take what I have for granted. As they always say, you never know what you have until it’s gone. It’s the truth.
Basically, just have fun, be safe, and give thanks. Don’t eat too much that you get sick and be sure to watch some football afterward. The Eagles-Cardinals game preferably because we all know that the Titans-Lions game won’t even be competitive.
Anyway, Happy Thanksgiving everyone
~Ben
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