Chi Town @ Minnesota (-3.5)
Good ole fashioned SMASH mouth NORRIS football baby! I really fucking hate Chris Berman. Oh well. Dude, I don't understand how half of the Minnesota Vikes are still playing. Their entire DT tandem should be suspended now for Merriman'ing but Goondell continues to be selective with the ole rules. Oh right, i forgot, he's only in bed with Robert Kraft. My bad.
Anyway, the Vikes are poised to go on a roll not seen since DCULP was riding shotgun with his roll on. It's about time. The Vikes were the ones supposed to come out of the division with relative ease right? but they haven't yet. Here comes the Kyle Orton Experience to battle it out but alas, poor Kyle doesn't have the goods to keep this going. Sure it was a feel good hit of the Fall but this is winter now bitches and Adrian Peterson will run amuck like he did last year.
Will I watch some of this game? Probably but dude DEXTER is kicking ass in season 3 and will likely occupy most of my time.
Minnesota - 27
Chicago - 17
Jacksonville Jaguars @ Houston Texas (-3)
WHOA WHAT A GREAT MONDAY NIGHT GAME. JEEZ I might as well just TIVO this insta-classic and relive this monumental contest for the foreseeable future. For god's sake can we get some flex scheduling on this too? I'd rather see Giants vs. Skins or Jets/Broncos or Steelers/Pats but nooo. We get HOUSTON!
YIPPY! Jacksonville has more or less packed it in this season. They got crushed by Tennessee and than smacked upside the head by Minnesota at home. Houston meanwhile has crawled back from the dead and march toward respectability after some stunning wins over... Cleveland.
Oh jeez. Even Kordell Garrard can't screw this one up.
Jags - 27
Houston - 21
Say hello to the only thing that Jeff Garcia will ever have over Elisha Manning.
And for the record Devo, this Jet fan has no beef with the Giants....currently. I even have an "18-1" t-shirt, which is probably the closest thing to a Giants jersey I'll ever own. I'll usually root for the Giants if the Jets season is pretty much done (which it has been many of times). I think the dream of beating the Giants in the Superbowl is every Jet fan's dream. I'm sure it works the same for Giant fans as well (stop me if I'm wrong).
Execution
The Jets clearly dominated this game from the start and never looked back. During this current 6 game winning streak they have successfully scored everytime on their initial possession. I've been a Jet fan probably since the early to mid 90's and I can't recall ever witnessing such a delicacy. Coming into the game both defenses were in the top 5 against the run. Jets stood up to the task and held the Titans to 45 yards on the ground. Tennessee's front 7 however were overpowered by a Jets offensive line that gets better and better each week, yielding 192 yds to Washington and Jones. Jets lead the Titans in some important key categories:
Time of Possession: 40:30 19:30
3rd Down Comp: 7 / 13, 4 / 11
First Downs: 28, 16
Favre was great at spreading the field and using the short passing lanes and finding his open targets. With that and the running game the Jets just wore the Titans defense down. Albert Haynesworth still showed why he's probably the best defensive player in the NFL but Mangold and company did a great job on containing him for a good portion of the game.
Kris Jenkins and company did a great job at getting their hands in Collins' face and applying pressure. This forced Kerry to rush some of his passes, throw behind some of his receivers and leave him uncomfortable in the pocket all game. It also didn't help that in the first half alone his receiving corp had 6 dropped passes. And the Jets are only going to get better. David Harris has been out the last 4 games with a leg injury and he's due to return when the Jets host Denver. This will move Bowens back to DE where he's a much better pass rusher than inside linebacker.
Moving On
Do I think it's a statement to the rest of the NFL that the Jets are a team to reckon with? I sure hope so. But the Oakland game is still a burdon in my memory. Jets have a favorable schedule for the rest of the season with 2 games against the Seahawks and 49ers who combined are 4-19. Something in my gut is telling me that one of these teams can hurt the Jets. All I'm saying is that I really hope their success doesn't go to their heads and they get too overly confident for the rest of the season. When it comes to the Jets, there's a lot for which to be thankful (Kris Jenkins, Leon Washington , Dustin Keller etc.). Happy Thanksgiving SUS and to all my 1 readers out there
I’M A JET FAN
- I, like the rest of Jet nation, cheered when Pennington got hurt in the 2007 season opener against
I grew up a Yankee fan. I know I know, being a Yankee fan in general should automatically necessitate that I’m a douchebag but as a kid, I didn’t know better. Steve Sax, Pat Kelly, Danny Tartabull, Don Mattingly, Mike Stanley, Jim Abbott, Paul O’Neill etc. were some of my favs. After the 1994 baseball strike I simply just lost interest in the sport all together, but I did develop a strong hatred towards the Yankees. Maybe it was because I hated Joe Torre and Derek Jeter. (Editor's note: Do you also hate newborns and little puppies?) Or maybe it was because my brother was a fan and all of a sudden everyone around me became fair-weather Yankee fans (f’in freeloaders). Everywhere I went I was surrounded by pinstripes and NY ballcaps. So why am I a douchebag? Well, I currently don’t have a favorite baseball team. I pretty much just root against the Yankees and all these other overspending teams that can’t win. So I sometimes get the “that’s not fair” comments because they can’t brag about their 26 championships to my teams far less championships. That’s fine by me. Eat me!
- I rode in the back of Devo’s convertible celebrating the Devils 2000 Stanley cup victory. No one in our hometown really cared, nor were they awake. The most logical thing we should have done was try to score some booze and drink in my backyard. Instead, I think we cruised around 7-11 like 10 times and once stopped for Slurpees….faaags.
- I take part in about 5 fantasy football leagues every season (since 2002). People call me crazy. My overall winning percentage is 70% with 17 total football trophies (12 of them in 1st place). I’ve ignored a lady the next morning to steadily watch my stat tracker during the 1:00 games. (Editor's note: For not caring about baseball, you end up in 4 or 5 fantasy baseball leagues each year.)
- I hate losing in video games. I think I've retired after losing in NFL Blitz at least a dozen times. Don’t get me started with my Madden franchises. The TV in my parent’s basement has taken quite a lot of beatings over the years, including once when my Dad got angry at me and my brothers and threw the system out the window. Even with my superb drafting skills, free agency pickups, and completion of all training camp fundamentals I still cannot stop the Patriots from winning the AFC East. I don’t even think HBO would air some of the words and insults that come out of my mouth when I lose.
- If you want to know what SHMUCK really stands for, shoot me an email by sending it to straightupsports@gmail and I’ll tell you.
-SHMUCK
Sorry to those of you Tale of Two Cities fanatics out there. There is no “Worst of times” for the 2008 calendar year Giants. This group is 14-1 and is by far the league’s best team. Every possible area it can be assessed in is a strength when compared to the average unit of its kind in the league. For example, even the secondary, which most experts consider the Giant’s weakest unit, is still better than at least half of the secondaries in the league. You know things are going good when Madison Hedgecock catches a pass! I wonder if Kurt Warner thanked G-d after the game for giving him the strength and courage to commit two turnovers and lose to his former team? To be clear, I have no problem with someone being a deeply religious person, but when someone asks you to assess your on field performance, this interviewer is not asking you about your religious beliefs, rather this person is asking you to discuss how your football skills helped you succeed during a given game. With this little Kurt Warner rant aside, I now will grade the Giant’s performance on a unit by unit basis.
Offense= A: This was as flawless and as dominant a performance by an offense as can possibly be had. New York put up 37 points and did so without the services of its two best offensive players. Eli played one of his finest games ever achieving an impressive 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions while amassing 240 yards through the air. The running game, although not its usual 190 yard plus attack, was effective when it had to be on clock killing drives at the end of the game. Gilbride even joined the solid coaching party with a great call on third and 1 having Eli roll out off a play action fake and hitting Boss over the middle for a big gain.
Defense= B: This was not the most impressive defensive performance this season. Spagnuolo’s boys gave up over 300 yards through the air and 29 points overall. However, it did force “Jesus Statue” into turning the ball over twice including a beautiful pass to a wide open Tyrell Thomas. The defense did just enough to win.
Special Teams= B: The Special teams played a big role in this game. Dominick Hixon had two returns into field goal range and the Cardinals seemed to start half of its possessions inside the Giant’s 50. The difference, The Giants took advantage of these opportunities and the Cardinals did not.
Coaching= A: Coughlin and Gilbride both had phenomenal days. Coughlin showed his savvy by having Arizona re-kick just prior to Hixon’s kick return to the 13 of Arizona. Gilbride intelligently relied more on his passing game with Jacobs not in. Spagnuolo succeeded in his goal of limiting the Cardinals to a minimal YAC and in his ultimate goal of doing enough to win. The Giant’s bend but don’t break philosophy proved effective against the greatest show on grass.
Another city, Eindhoven, said it would start issuing permits to marijuana growers in order to better regulate the trade — if the national government approves.
The plans were announced as 33 major Dutch cities held a "weed summit" to discuss the nation's long-standing policy of tolerating marijuana use while routinely arresting growers.
I will start this little sports popuri with a Keith Olberman style special comment on the Knicks. Today, the Jamal Crawford era ended in New York. Perhaps if he was traded at this time last season I might have written this headline as "end of an error" but I like Jamal. I am sad to see him go. He was having his best season of his career to date averaging a tick under 20 points per contest and nailing an impressive 45.5% of his three pointers. He has even managed to make 43% of his field goals; the latter two percentages are the finest he has put up in those categories in his career. However there is one statistic that I am quite glad Jamal is leaving behind....his career winning percentage is a pitiful 30.6%. While I think part of the reason for this is that he has played all but 1 year of his career with the horrid, out of shape, and weak minded Eddy Curry, he surely shoulders some of the blame for his teams always being awful. He does hog the ball at times and often takes circus shots. Still, there have been many nights the last few seasons where his scoring sprees have kept us truly die-hard Knick fans interested in the games. I will miss his exciting albeit erratic play. Okay now New York just traded Randolph for the immortal Tim Thomas and the role player Cuttino Mobley. Damn.... as Devo has told me now twice today, 150 games till Lebron.
Sorry, now the real reason you guys read this blog, because you want to know what games to lose money on this weekend...
Gold Miners at Evil Football (-10)- I truly loathe Dallas fans. They are, by far, the most front running, least authentic and most arrogant fan base in professional sports. How a New Yorker could associate himself or herself with a team in Texas is beyond my comprehension. If you are a New Yorker who loves New York, how you don't root for one of your own teams is also beyond my comprehension. This is before I even delve into how obnoxious the Cowboy's owner is. The worst part about Cowboy fans though is that if there is any hope at all for them, they act like they should automatically be assumed to be amongst the NFL's elite because they are the Cowboys. The Giants, Titans, Steelers and maybe the Jets are the big 4 right now in the NFL, your team is not in the same planet as any of these teams. Shut the fuck up! All of this being said, your team is playing the horrid 49ers at home so a big win is in the cards. THE PICK: DALLAS (31-13)
Washington the City (-3) at Washington the State - The Skins are predictably (by me, a rare correct midyear prediction) fading as the competition gets tougher and the teams it plays get better. 2 of its 4 losses are to lock playoff teams (Giants, Steelers) and its other loss is to wildcard contender Dallas. The Skins had a nice run but it’s over. It might even lose this week when playing at the suddenly not so loud Questec field (something like that right?). However my guess is skins hold on to win by 5-7 points and therefore cover the number. However expect it to finish with 9 wins or less. THE PICK: WASHINGTON THE CITY (16-10)
Carolina - 24
These last 2 weeks Keller has been a beast for the offense. I like many other Jet fans questioned the move to trade up and draft him late in the 1st round but he’s certainly starting to earn some respect. All that mismatch talk experts talked about in the spring is finally starting to come true and it couldn’t come at a better time.
RECAP
The excitement from the Jets win over the Patriots is just starting to level off for me. It’s been awhile since I can recall the Jets being atop the AFC east in 1st place (November 19th, 2001 to be exact). Overall the game wasn’t pretty (especially the 2nd half) but it’s definitely a psychological boost in the right direction. In the end it was too painful to be pretty. There were enough mistakes, blown calls and heartaches to fill all the cardiac hospitals in New England and some in New York.
On a personal note, I will now watch all Jet games at BIG SHOTS! The ladies are quite attractive and the fan-base, along with me, is very amusing. I also come to a realization; I don’t have many friends that are Jet fans. I actually have more Giant fan friends than I do Jets. Any Jet fans out there that actually read my blog want to be my friend? (You know how I know I’m gay? Read last sentence)
YOUNG GUNS LEAD THE WAY
The first half of football was exciting to watch (well for Jet fans at least). It showed how dangerous the Jets can be when they are clicking on all cylinders. The Jets started the game off great, moving down the field and scoring a touchdown on the opening drive. I can’t recall the last time they were able to do that against the Patriots so you could imagine my excitement. Dustin Keller is a Golden God. Finally Schottenheimer is utilizing his best weapons by spreading Keller in the slot and Leon Washington in the backfield. When LW took that kickoff and ran it back 92 yards I was in a state of pandemonium. Devo and I were high-fiving anyone who put their hands up. At this moment I really thought, “Oh Sh!t, they could do it.”
Now it was no David Tyree catch-in-the-hat but damn, Cotchery deserves a lot of credit for that grab he made. With Cotchery well-covered and much interfered with Favre threw a 55 yard toss up in the air. Falling down Jericho reached out his left arm and caught the ball behind his back while falling over. It was remarkable, I had no idea he had even caught it, I was glad that the Patriots got a penalty on the play. But he wasn’t done there, no sir. My man went ahead on the next play scored a touchdown reaching across the goaline while being tackled at the 4. It was a truly superb effort on his part to help give the Jets a 24-6 lead going into halftime.
3RD QUARTER BLUNDERS
Why do the Jets struggle so much in the 3rd quarter? After the quick Jabar Gaffney touchdown the Jets needed to strike back to put the game almost out of reach. Instead, the spark that they had going into halftime was now gone. They punted on the next possession and all of a sudden the game was in reach by merely a field goal. It’s been the same story for the Jets all season, Arizona was trailing 34-0 in the 3rd but rallied with a 21 point 3rd quarter to make the game just a little bit more interesting.
Why do we call Eric Mangini “Mangenius?” He must think that the opposing team won’t make any second half adjustments, so, nor should he. But we’re talking about Bill Belicheat here. Regardless of the Spygate accusations he is still a very smart coach. After the Ben Watson gift-fumble the Patriots began running a no-huddle offense. This would keep the Jets defense on their heels (especially the weak secondary) and it would also tire out the defensive line, mainly Kris Jenkins. And it worked. Jenkins was getting tired and Mangini had no way to counteract and stop the Patriots through the air.
BIG PLAYERS MAKE BIG PLAYS
The 2nd to last New York drive in the 4th quarter is why the Jets brought in Favre. He took the ball and drove it expertly down the field and gave the Jets a 31-24 lead, managing the game using all but 3 minutes of the clock. Its times like these were you’re no longer sitting at the bar, you’re standing.
Now it was the defense’s turn to respond. If they could force the Pats to punt here the game would be a wrap! And MVP Kris Jenkins responded with a burst up the middle and a big sack to force 4th and long.
But even without Tom Brady, these are still the New England Patriots and they know how to win. With less than 2 minutes left the Patriots stopped the Jets and forced them to punt. At this point I am kicking myself and have become a nervous wreck. I know it’s not Brady under the huddle but every time the Patriots touch the ball I become apprehensive. Slowly but surely the Patriots moved the ball downfield. This was it, 4th and one with 8 seconds left. This is where leaders come up and make big plays. This is where the Jets defense has to be clutch and hold their ground. This is when the Jee………
My heart dropped. For 59 minutes and 52 seconds of this game the Jets were consistently bumping and shoving Moss at the line of scrimmage. So what does Law do? He decides to fall back and play 8 yards deep. WHY!!!!!!! You can argue that it almost looked like Moss’ foot was coming off the ground before he had possession of the ball but you can’t overturn a call like that, it’s just way too close. Now the game is tied and a demoralized Jets team has to go back out on the field for overtime
Had the Jets lost the coin toss I think it’s safe to say they would have lost the game. The defense was tired; they just gave up that last second touchdown to send the game into overtime, there was no way they were physically and mentally ready to go out and try and stop that offense. After the first incomplete pass and then the sack I knew this game was all but over. Still, all that money spent on free agent signings and they’re still the same god damn Jets. Favre, facing 3rd and 15 found a wide open Dustin Keller for 16 yards. I’m not used to seeing the Pats defense and a blown coverage, especially against the Jets but this certainly was the case. Now it was all on Favre’s shoulders. Pass after pass he moved the chains and the ball closer to a suitable range for my cousin Jay Feely. And low and behold we all know the outcome, JETS 34, PATS 31!
MOVING ON
It was a fantastic game to watch (and drink a lot of $2 Sam Adams too). I knew it would be a close contest but I never would have guessed that it would have been so dramatic. The Jets still have some work to do. They gave up a total 511 yards to the Patriots offense and over 400 of those yards were threw the air. If the Jets want any chance on staying atop the division and securing a possible playoff bye they need to play better and coach better. Maybe now they too have learned how to win.
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