Thoughts On Super Bowl
-What a ballsy move by Sean Payton to open the second half with an onside kick. Don’t recover it, and you probably lose the game. I thought it was the emotional turning point of the game. Sure, after the Saints scored, the Colts came right back, but now the Saints were in it. I can’t believe Payton did it, though. An onside kick? In the Super Bowl? Unheard of, unless you’re trying to win the game in the waning seconds. Can’t believe he did, but it worked out. He looks like a genius now.
-Can we say Drew Brees is the best QB in football? Sure, Manning (Peyton) is tremendous, but Brees was masterful. Absolutely masterful. 32-39. 288 yards. Just incredible. Well deserving of the MVP
-Tracy Porter made a great play on that interception (and honestly, is there a better feeling than that? Running back that interception, to seal a Super Bowl win?), but Reggie Wayne didn’t break out of his cut fast enough. I don’t know if he got mixed up, or if he was just lazy, but he could have at least knocked it down.
-Pierre Garcon’s drop on that third down in the second quarter was huge.
-Garret Hartley has a hell of a leg.
-Time to hang it up, Matt Stover
-I was utterly convinced that Manning would tie the game up. Convinced. Sure of it. And, they were moving. But, one play, one interception, changes everything.
-Saints run defense isn’t that good. I like Joseph Addai, but he’s not that good. Saints are helped by their offense and a great pass defense.
-I watched the game with a bunch of people who don’t like football. It was an interesting experience. First, they just talked during the game. And not about football. About random things. That made it harder to concentrate. But, it was nice actually teaching football to them. I will say, it’s better to watch football with fellow football fans.
-Best Super Bowl ad? Click here
-I liked The Who. Some didn’t. I did. Laser show looked pretty sick.
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Super Bowl Prediction
Saints. Colts. Brees. Manning. This is a pretty evenly matched game. Both great offenses. Pretty good defenses. However, the injury to Dwight Freeney is a huge blow to the Colts defense. If he does play, he will have a hard time getting to Drew Brees. No pressure on Brees means he’ll have time to pick apart the defense. For the Saints, they’ll have to blitz Manning like there’s no tomorrow. Make him as uncomfortable as possible, and hope the pressure affects his passes. On offense, both teams will have to keep doing what they have been doing, although, on the Saints side, I would like to see Reggie Bush play like he did against Arizona. I think, however, that the Saints won’t be able to get a consistent pass rush on Manning, which gives Indy the slight edge.
There’s the emotional factor, which gives the edge to New Orleans. They are playing for a city, not just for themselves. Is that enough to help them stop Manning? I don’t think so.
Saints are a great team, and I’ll be rooting for them. But, they just don’t have an answer for Manning. He is too good. He’s going to make that extra play to win the game.
FINAL SCORE: Colts 24, Saints 21
Top 10 Super Bowl Foods
In honor of the upcoming Super Bowl, I thought I would share with you one of my other favorite pastimes: Eating. Yes, I love food, and the Super Bowl food is one of the best. So, here is my list of the Top 10 Super Bowl Foods. And yes, you must eat all of these on Super Bowl Sunday (just kidding.)
10. Vegetables and Dip
I'm not a big vegetable guy, but if you give me some ranch dressing, I'll eat it up. My favorite is carrots with ranch dip. Tip to newbies: Don't fill up on vegetables. I've made that mistake more than once. Eat a few, but save room for the better stuff.
9. Sushi
Sushi may be not be typical, but one year, when my house had a leak, sushi was the most convenient. It's easy to eat, and it tastes very good.
8. Popcorn
Popcorn may be more of a movie food, but it serves its purpose well. Easy to eat, easy to fill up on as well. Be wary of eating too much.
7. Nachos
I'm not a big nacho fan in general, but I make an exception for Super Bowl Sunday. This is a halftime food; too messy to eat while watching the game on the couch. Devour it during halftime.
6. Chips and Salsa
I'm not big into spicy food, so the salsa has to be mild, or else I won't eat it. I tend to fill up on chips and salsa, which doesn't leave room for much else. I prefer the Tostitos "Hint of Lime" chips.
5. Peanuts
Has to be the salted, roasted kind. But, I devour these. Almost too much. They are very addicting.
4. Buffalo Wings
Yes, Buffalo wings are a bit low on the list. But, like I said, I don't like things too spicy. Buffalo wings tend to be very spicy. But, one or two and I'm okay. They are tasty.
3. Chex Mix
I love Chex Mix, and always have. I'm not exactly sure what's in it, but I know it's good. Really good
2. Chips and Guacamole.
I love guacamole. A lot. Use Rotel for a more authentic taste.
1. Fried Chicken
The Must-Have at all Super Bowl parties. Can be homemade, from a local deli, or from KFC. I don't care. I just want it. A lot of it.
What are your Super Bowl must have foods?
AFC, NFC Championship Game Picks
Just wanted to throw my two cents in on who’s going to go to the Super Bowl.
JETS AT COLTS:
At first glance, the Colts are the clear favorite. Great offense, pretty good defense. And you have Peyton Manning. To paraphrase Stephen A. Smith, quite frankly, that’s all you need. But, the more and more I think about it, the more and more I lean towards the Jets. The Jets remind me a lot of the 2007 Giants. Great defense, great run game. They don’t ask the QB to do too much, but when they do, he delivers. Jets are hot. They have that magic about them. The Colts are good, but the Jets’ mojo may be too much.
FINAL SCORE: Jets 24, Colts 17
VIKINGS AT SAINTS
This should be a fun game. Saints can score on anyone, but so can the Vikes. It all comes down, in my mind, to whoever can make the most stops. I think it’s the Saints. They will have to make some big plays–I’m looking at you, Darren Sharper–but I think that their defense is better than the Vikes. The Saints will have to find a way to stop Jared Allen, mostly by putting a tight end on him.
FINAL SCORE: Saints 24, Vikings 14
Enjoy the games!
Pete Carroll to Seattle: Does The Rooney Rule Even Matter?
By now, you know that USC coach Pete Carroll is heading to Seattle to coach the Seahawks. From a football standpoint, the move is questionable. While Carroll has been great at USC (albeit with some great talent) his last venture to the NFL did not work so well. What makes him think it will work with a less talented team in Seattle? But I digress. The main part of the post is this: Does the Rooney Rule even matter?
The Rooney Rule states that all NFL teams must interview one minority candidate before filling a coaching or front office position. Sounds like a good idea. There are not enough minorities in top positions in the NFL. But, in the Seattle case, it barely even applied. Sure, the Seahawks interview Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier (an African-American), but that was after their interest in Carroll had been identified, and the deal had been reported to be all but done. So, for all intents and purposes, the Seahawks interviewed Frazier because they had to.
If teams are going to do this, if they are going to interview a minority candidate just because they have to, then why have this rule? Why string minority candidates along for no reason? This rule is just there for publicity. It's not there to help minority candidates. In fact, it seems to hurt them. Frazier didn't need to go through that 4 hour interview. He has a game to prepare for next week. If he was being seriously considered, than fine. But with Carroll seemingly the only choice, there's no reason to interview Frazier.
The NFL needs to ensure that minority candidates are getting a fair shake, but the Rooney Rule needs to be better designed. Why not have NFL teams publicly state their interest in potential coaches? That way, we know when interest in a minority candidate is just for show. Whatever does happen, the NFL needs to make the Rooney Rule stronger, and better.
I Want NFL Network
I wish I had NFL Network. My cable provider, Cablevision, doesn’t provide it. It sucks. I miss games. I miss features. Why can’t a deal get done?
Jake Delhomme Done
Jake Delhomme is done in Carolina. Now that he’s on IR, I can’t see him returning. He’s been great for them, but his recent play has been downright ugly. You can’t have 5 picks in a playoff game. You just can’t. Carolina will be in the market for a big name QB. As for Delhomme, you would think he would latch onto a team as a number 2.
RIP Chris Henry
This morning, Bengals receiver Chris Henry died after falling out of pickup truck during a dispute with his fiancee. Henry's fiancee tried to drive away, and Henry attempted to jump on the back of the pickup truck. He fell out. The injuries sustained were too much to recover from. Our thoughts and prayers are with his families.
"We knew him in a different way than his public persona," Bengals owner Mike Brown said of the player who was suspended five times during his career. "He had worked through the troubles in his life and had finally seemingly reached the point where everything was going to blossom. And he was going to have the future we all wanted for him. It's painful to us. We feel it in our hearts, and we will miss him."
Chris Henry is a story in redemption, a story in a comeback ending far too soon. Henry had been arrested five times. He has been called a "one man crime wave". He had been suspended for half a season. He had been released by the Bengals. The Bengals were the only team willing to take a chance on him. He was the poster boy for what was wrong in the NFL, his talent be damned. He was a risk. No team would touch him. No team would go near him. He was a cancer.
But, after his release, Henry changed. When the Bengals brought him back, he was determined to live up to his potential. He spent more time working out. He spent more time with his fiancee and with his kids. He was a changed man. The Bengals noticed.
"He's a great kid with a great heart," (Bengals QB Carson)Palmer said as training camp started. "He's changed his life around. He ran into some trouble, made some bad decisions, and realized that. He's sorry for them, apologized for them, and has done everything he can to make himself a better person. I'm just proud of him."
"If you only knew him by hearsay, you'd think he's some kind of ogre," Brown said during the Bengals' appearance on HBO's "Hard Knocks" series this summer. "It's not true. He's a good person. When you see him up close, you'll find that you'll like him. He'll be a soft-spoken, pleasant person."
"I kind of felt like I dug myself out of the hole and started doing the right things," Henry said in an interview with The Associated Press as training camp opened. "People say, 'How you feeling now Chris? You doing all right?' I just tell them I'm blessed. That's why I got it."
He did get it. He did understand the consequences of his poor decisions. He dug himself out of a deep hole, a hole deeper than anyone could imagine. And then, just like that, he's gone. Just like that, a comeback was ended. Just like that, another athlete died far too young.
You can talk about what the NFL can do to help troubled players. But in the end, there is no justification for this. There is no answer as to why this happened. No one can know what this domestic dispute was about. No one can know what caused Henry to jump on the back of the pickup truck. No one can know. No one can ever know. What we do know is that Henry was a changed a man. A family man. 3 kids. All under 3 years. They'll never see their father again.
Chris Henry, for all intents and purposes, is a marked man. He's the trouble maker. He's the poster boy for bad behavior. No one will remember his comeback. No one will remember his struggle for redemption. No one will remember that he turned around his life. Because, we focus on the negative parts. We focus on what someone did wrong, not what someone did right. Chris Henry won't be remembered as a family man. He won't be remembered as a hard worker, as a good teammate. He won't be remembered as someone who turned his life around. He'll be remembered as the guy who fell out of a truck, a trouble maker. That's his legacy.
It's times like these that we reach into our moral conscious. We reach deep down, to find emotions, to find understanding. In Chris Henry's case, there is no understanding. There is only confusion. There is only sadness. There are only questions: Why does the one who turns his life around die? Why doesn't the one who can't turn his life around? What did Chris Henry do wrong? We will never know the answers. And that's what frustrating.
Chris Henry was 26. He had a fiancee, 3 kids. He was an amazing talent, who, though hurt, was anxious to get back on the field. Chris Henry is dead. He won't see his fiancee again. He won't see his 3 kids. Maybe the mistakes of his past caught up to him. Maybe they never left. Whatever happened, I will remember Chris Henry as someone who changed. I will remember Chris Henry as a family man. I will remember Chris Henry as a hard worker, as a good teammate. Rest in Peace, Chris Henry. I guess heaven needed a wide receiver.
Play of the Year?
The Saints sure are charmed. After coming from behind to beat the Redskins, they are still undefeated. In that game, WR Robert Meachem made one of the greatest plays I've seen in awhile. Check it out:
Time To Take The Lions Off Of Thanksgiving
I know the Lions and Thanksgiving go together like turkey and gravy (couldn't help myself). But, for years, the Lions have been abysmal. Atrocious. Does the nation really want to see the Lions? Why can't we see the upper echelon teams? Or rivalry games, like Giants-Cowboys? That would be terrific. Instead, we're stuck with the Lions. And, frankly, Lions and Thanksgiving go together like turkey and butter. Not good.
