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Brady’s Bunch
During the 1st QTR, I was hoping Najeh Davenport’s TD dance would include him dropping a deuce in the end zone. But then we get a flea flicker from Moss back to Brady, then downtown to native-to-San Antonio wide receiver, Jabbar Gaffney. Shut up, Anthony Smith.
Jim Rogash/GETTY IMAGES
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While most would think its a waste of time to talk $#!t to a “no name” DB, I was happy to see Brady defend his team by getting in the face of and having a chat with Steelers DB, Anthony Smith. Even after Brady was approached by a second Steeler player, he didn’t stop. The only problem I had with Brady was that he came out for the post-game press conference all primped and made up sporting a Gissele-insipred GQ coat. Collar popped. Well…his team IS undefeated. I suppose he can wear whatever he wants as long as he shuts the ’72 Dolphins up.
Jason and the Cowboys
Screw the Golden Fleece,
A Different Turf
This ain’t Hillman College. This is the NFL. With 1:22 left in the game, Jamal “Big Jada” Lewis used his Ram Man motion to break like 50 tackles on his way to a 31-yard score to put the nail on the Jets’ coffin. The playoffs are in the Browns’ future. They certainly have the personnel to do it. But with an improved Bills team ahead, they’ll need to step up.
Falcons Quest
Today, Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months by Federal judge Henry E. Hudson. With good behavior, he could be back on the streets by October 2009. Until then, the Falcons still have to sell tickets and win football games. So far, the Falcons have tried to replace Vick with Joey “Haha” Harrington and Byron “Keenan” Leftwich with no avail (I think we could have predicted that outcome). So what now? Coach Petrino calls on a former pupil — 30-year-old insurance salesman Chris Redman. His resume includes more than just sales experience. While at the University of Louisville…under Coach Petrino…he finished as the NCAA Division I-A career leader in passing completions (1,031) and attempts (1,679). His 12,541 career passing yards ranked third behind BYU’s Ty Detmer (15,031 yards) and Louisiana Tech’s Tim Rattay (12,746). Redman threw 84 touchdown passes and 51 interceptions and still holds virtually every single game, single season, and career passing record at the University of Louisville (Wikipedia.org). Monday night, Redman turned in a respectable performance going 23-for-40 and 298 yards…2 TDs and 1 pick. Um. Leave him in there. That’s better than Harrington and Leftwich combined this season (not really).
That’s So Ravens
Speaking of quarterback quandaries, Kyle Boller is something like 20-21 as a starter. Stick a fork in Steve McNair. Why not give Troy Smith a try? He’s not short on talent. What do they have to lose?
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As if Michael Vick needed anymore attention…thanks to Texas Tech University student Geoffrey Candia, Vick’s gaffe becomes his gain. The shirt was created for the Red Raiders’ upcoming game against Texas A&M this Saturday. The game will be nationally-televised on ABC. As the Texas Tech Red Raiders attempt improve its 5-1 record, the last thing they need is negative attention.
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The front of the shirt says “Vick ‘Em” — a play on words to the Aggies’ “Gig ‘Em” — and the back includes a silhouette of what appears to be Michael Vick (thanks to the #7 jersey) holding a dog that resembles Aggie mascot, Reveille, by her leash.
One of my friends — and Texas Tech alum — Matt, had the following reaction to the shirts:
This is disgusting on every level imaginable, and some fool is gonna make a profit on these cause college kids, teenagers many of them, are influenced to the highest level [especially in Lubbock, where there is nothing to do but drive out past the county line to get booze] by their surroundings.
I’m all for cool t-shirts to show off during the game against your arch-rivals, if you can call A&M and Texas rivals of that lowly school in Lubbock (of which I attended classes occasionally in 1990 and 1991), but show some class. In fact, I have a great one that simply states WRECK ‘EM TECH with some lyrics from the fight song on the back. No pokes at other schools or players from Va Tech.
The thing about this one though, only a small portion of kids will be donning these as the majority of fans at the game and the team won’t acknowledge it at all, but it will take away from the atmosphere if they’re shown by the ABC cameras. Hopefully the production team gets the memo on this and refuses to air a shot of the crowd with these shirts to save us all from having to hear about this after Saturday night in what should be a great game.
The game is what matters most if you’re Tech. Defeating A&M at home is what gets you noticed and moves you a step closer to the rival status you so desperately crave, but kids will be kids.
Remember, they let me into that school, too, so they’ve already got a “standards” problem going on 17 years now. Now, let’s talk about the game. I got Fran’s latest insider email and it said he needed more money to start up a new web site, pleasekeepmeeventhoughiamanidiot.com
I’ll admit…I let out a little snicker at first, but this is definitely a bad idea. What are your thoughts?
Get pre-approved and buy a home with no money down!
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Getty Images
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While browsing through my usual sports links for the day, it seems like I’ve read nothing but negative stories about several sports figures. We have all read about Michael Vick and his dogfighting scandal. I’m not going to defend his actions, but he gave a seemingly sincere apology. I mean…he didn’t use notes, he didn’t sound coached. And best of all he’s willing to take responsibility. That doesn’t justify his actions, but he’s on the right track to redemption…even if it takes him a lifetime.
Enter Lance Briggs. Wrecks his beautiful Lamborghini Murcielago into a light pole, flees the scene, reported the car stolen, then fessed up, and returned to the scene…all because he “panicked”.
Yahoo! Sports reported that there are drug allegations against Tim Couch. In the story, they quote Couch as saying,
“The bottom line is I was not in the NFL during any of the period of time (when the regimens called for the use of steroids), so that also makes me feel like, what’s the story?” Couch said. ” I don’t know where this stuff comes from. I don’t know where you got any of this.”
Well, “Mr. Football”. This comeback talk makes me feel like, “Dude, give it up already!”. Besides, he wasn’t in the NFL at the time, so it’s all good. Right?
And then there’s Houston Rockets guard, Rafer Alston, who allegedly shanked some poor schmuck in the neck. This about a month after he apparently applied the jounce to some valet guy’s arm at a Houston nightspot after his car was towed…not to mention he spit on the guy. Can you say “anger management”?
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My friend and namesake, Derek, poses the question “Have athletes been conditioned to think that the law does not apply to them?” in his post, Above The Law. I agree that most public figures wield this attitude primarily because people let them. But I definitely think that in the case of these four instances only Ron Mexico and Tim Couch fit into this category since their actions were premeditated. Alston is included for not having learned his lesson the first time he thought he was above the law, and Briggs just gets a Darwin Award nod.
This brings up another observation — why are we talking about dogfighting, a car crash, and a Miss Teen USA contestant that speaks in tongues? Ok. I’ll leave her out of this. While listening to sports talk radio today, all anyone wants to talk about is whether or not Michael Vick is sincere and what was going through Lance Briggs’ mind eaarly this morning. Seriously. Put these into order of severity. All are bad to some degree, but I think neck slashing takes the cake. How about you?
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Don Banks. Your logical assessment of Matt Schaub is wrong!
This weekend in my fantasy football discussion, I chose Matt Schaub to be one of this season’s sleepers. I’ll admit…my estimation is based on his college experience and a little hope. And I like to pull for the underdog. Last year, my rants involved J.P. Losman who actually didn’t have such a bad season last year. Of course, the constant ribbing from my friends only added to the satisfaction that I by the end of the season, I wasn’t completely full of it.
No doubt he has alot of weight riding on his shoulders. I mean…this is the team that passed up on Reggie Bush and Vince Young to draft Mario Williams. No offense, Mario (hey, man…you mind if I ride in your Veyron sometime?). This is the team that hasn’t made any notable improvements to its offense line. The Texans even remark at the offensive line issue on their website. These unexplainable moves (or lack thereof) give new meaning to the phrase “Houston, we have a problem”.
Don Banks is a sports writer for SI.com. Today he writes about “Schaub’s tough task” in Houston as the Texans’ QB.
[Matt Schaub] is getting his first shot as a starter in his fourth NFL season. Schaub started two games for the Falcons in his three years in Atlanta, but he made his name as a starter-in-waiting, largely based on his performance in one game, just as Johnson did. In October 2005, Schaub started at home in place of Michael Vick against the defending Super Bowl champion Patriots, whose defense was fairly well decimated against the run at the time, with the likes of Monty Beisel and Chad Brown in the starting lineup.
Schaub was boffo in a 31-28 loss, throwing for 298 yards and three touchdowns, for a eye-popping 112.1 QB rating. But he owns just one other start in the NFL (also a loss), and his six career touchdown passes and six interceptions have helped result in a ho-hum 69.2 passer rating, with a 52.2 completion percentage.
Let’s throw out those solid facts for a second and just say I have faith in the guy. And basing his future on his performance in 2 games isn’t necessarily practical either. With a slew of weapons to throw to, I think Schaub will have ample opportunity to move the ball down the field effectively…once he learns to throw the ball within 2 seconds. 
I think I took offense when Don compared Matt to Brad Johnson. Don, please don’t compare Matt Schaub to Brad Johnson again. And I won’t compare you to Ethan Skolnick. Be sure to read the rest of Don Banks’ article at SI.com.
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Speaking of QBs From Atlanta…
Just when you thought Michael Vick has been picked on enough…enter the Vick Dog Chew Toy. At $10.99 plus $2.00 for shipping & handling, it’s a steal. The creators of this doggie knickknack are donating a portion of these proceeds to various charities. Which charity remains to be seen as “squabbling over charitable donations” has occured.
Unlike Vick, our manufacturer is so sure of its durability they guarantee it against the most playful dog destruction. It Bends. It Bounces. It Flies. It Floats. And best of all, it lasts through the whole season and more!
I completely expect to see these guys on The Big Idea With Donnie Deutsch. Why didn’t I think of that???
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In case you missed last week’s SNL, this Weekend Update skit about Michael Vick’s recent troubles at the Miami International Airport after trying to smuggle a water bottle through the gate…and it’s contents. And as you know, water bottles are no longer allowed past airport security.
Saturday Night Live: Michael Vick, Really? – See more funny videos.
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