Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl

  Now I probably know what your thinking, what a funny name for a bowl game. Well it might be but this game should be pretty interesting. Its the Louisville Cardinals and the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles. Southern Mississippi did good in the last month of the season going 3-1. The Golden Eagles are 8-5, being 5-3 in the Conference USA conference. Louisville on the other struggled down the stretch losing 2 of there last 3 games. The Cardinals are 6-6 overall, going 3-4 in the Big East. Louisville has lost 5 of there 6 games by 8 or less points. The only game they lost big in was @ Pittsburgh 20-3 on October 30th. Southern Mississippi has also lost there games close. Two of there loses were by one point and the other was by six. There only big loss was against South Carolina 41-13 the first week of the season. This should be a close game all the way and now I will show the stats leaders of the Year:
 Southern Mississippi:
 Passing: Austin Davis- 2898 passing yards, 18 TD'S, 6 INT'S 134.10 QB rating.
 Rushing: Kendrick Hardy- 855 rushing yards, 7 TD'S 6.7 Yards per Carry, no fumbles
 Receiving: Kevin Bolden- 667 receiving yards, 6 TD'S, 16.3 Yards per Catch
Southern Mississippi has one of the most explosive offenses averaging 37.6 points per game, but have been giving up 29.4 points per game.

                                            Southern Mississippi QB Austin Davis

 Louisville:
 Passing: Adam Froman- 1633 passing yards, 11 TD'S 4 INT'S 136.46 QB rating.
 Rushing: Bilal Powell- 1330 rushing yards, 10 TD'S 9.3 Yards per Carry, no fumbles.
 Receiving: Cameron Graham- 439 receiving yards, 4 TD'S 11.9 Yards per Catch.

                                          Louisville RB Bilal Powell

 Louisville's offense is decent averaging 26 points per game while giving up only 18.7 points per game.
 In my mind it will be a close game. These two teams a different in many ways. One is better at passing and the other is rushing. One has a good offense, the other has a better defense. I think this game will come down to Bilal Powell and how Louisville controls the Time of Possession. i think Louisville wins 24-20.

Bowl Season Begins

 The best time of the year in College Football is about to start, Bowl Season is beginning tomorrow 12/18/10 official begins the Bowl Season with three games: BYU vs. UTEP in the New Mexico Bowl, Northern Illinois vs Fresno State in the Humanitarian Bowl and Ohio vs Troy in the R & L Carriers New Orleans Bowl.
 BYU vs UTEP: this should be a decent game. Both finished the season 6-6 overall. The BYU Cougars are led by junior running back JJ Di Luigi. He led the team in both receiving and in rushing this year. He is an all-purpose back who did pretty good this year. Their quarterback Jake Heaps, who has had 2,052 passing yards and 11 TD'S, has been a big drop off from last year's quarterback Max Hall. UTEP, who has a great receiver in the senior Kris Adams who has 917 yards and 11 TD'S. There senior quarterback, Trevor Vittatoe, has had his worst season passing-wise in the four years he was there. I think the game will be decided by Adams or Di Luigi and I think UTEP will win 31-24.

                                            BYU Running Back JJ DI luigi

Northern Illinois vs Fresno State: This will be the best game of the day. Northern Illinois is 10-3 and undefeated in the MAC. Fresno State is 8-4 and 5-3 in the WAC. Northern Illinois is led by senior Chad Spann who has 1,293 yards and 20 TD'S. this proves they are a running team since there leading receiver has 514 receiving yards, which is junior Willie Clark. Fresno State, who is coming off of a big win against Illinois, is led by Sophomore running back Robbie Rouse, who will be likely playing in the game with a cast. He has  1,097 rushing yards and 8 TD'S. their quarterback Ryan Colburn has 2,529 passing yards 21 TD'S and 9 INT'S. I think Northern Illinios will win this 34-24.

                                           Northern Illinois Running Back Chad Spann
 The last game of the day will be Ohio vs Troy. Ohio is 8-4 overall and 6-2 in the MAC. Troy is 7-5 overall and 6- in the Sun Belt conference. Ohio doesn't really have a great offense but they have a running back by committee. They have Vince Davidson who has 509 rushing yards and 6 TD'S and QB Phil Bates has 508 rushing yards and 3 TD'S. They haves Senior Wide Receiver Terrence McCrae who has 481 yards and  8 TD'S. Troy is led by freshman Corey Robinson who has 3,339 passing yards and 24 TD'S. Troy has one of the best passing offenses in the game, being 12th overall in the nation. Due to this, I think Troy will win because they are the only real passing team of the day. This will be an exciting offense to watch and Troy will win 35-23.

                                          Troy Quarterback Corey Robinson

Three Idiots

 Now this is a new article that I will try to make at least once a week. In this article, I will write about the three people we either laughed at because it was so bad, or shook our heads at in dissapointment. I will start in reversus or with three and go down to one.

  3. Santonio Holmes- the reason why I put Santonio on this list is because he lost the Jets the game versus the Dolphins. In the second quarter on a third and ten from the Dolphins 17 yard line QB Mark Sanchez threw a pass to a wide open Santonio Holmes. There was only one problem, Holmes never made the catch. If he made the catch the Jets would of trailed 10-7, instead they went in at halftime trailing 10-3. This was important because the Jets lost 10-6, if Holmes makes this catch it would of been tied 10-10. Knowing the Jets luck this year, they would of won the game in overtime and would of remained only a game behing the New England Patriots in the AFC East. Instead, the Jets are 9-4 and are looking at the 6th seed in the Playoffs. With the Jets remaining schedule:@ Pittsburgh Steelers, @ Chicago bears and at home against the Buffalo Bills. The next two teams records are a combined 19-5. The Jets needed this win knowing the tough strecth they are now looking at. If the Jets don't change things, they will be going into the final week 9-6 and wondering if they will make the playoffs. If the playoffs started, the Jets would be playing @ Kansas City, which I think would be a hard game to win. Do I think they will have the same drive them launched them into the playoffs last year. I'm not sure about that but it is the Jets were talking about.

  2. Nate Robinson- As all of us were probably watching the New York Knicks- Boston Celtics game, You might of saw Paul Pierce hit the game-winning shot. But after that, Celtics guard Nate Robinson decides to jump on top of Pierce and he falls flat on his face. Robinson, a former Knick who was traded during the season last year, made two attempts on jumping on Pierce's back. The first time he landed on his feet so he decided to do it again and it was disgraceful. I guess Robinson didn't realize that jumping in the air to get on someone's back doesn't work if the person is moving foward. Robinson, who finished the game with nine points, will probably be remembered for falling on his face than any of the points he scored that night. He is just lucky he didn't end up hurting himself because that would of been a big blow to the Celtics second-team group.

And now for the #1 idiot of this week you probably know who it is since I already wrote a blog about him this week:

  1.Sal Alosi- Since I wrote the article about him, it has been proven that Alosi did tell a couple of inactive players to line-up on the sideline in that position. Zach Taylor was right and he gets the credit he deserves for being right. I'm still mad about the whole topic so if you want to know why Alosi is the idiot of the week you can read my first blog about him at:

usasportsblogger.blogspot.com/2010/12/idiot-on-sideline.html.

So these are your Idiots for the week of December 12th, hopefully we will not see as bad of people being idiots and not harming others.

Knicks on the Rise

It's holiday season, and Santa Claus has brought the New York Knicks, along with its fans, a nice early holiday gift. That gift being a 16-9 record, had astounded and marveled all NBA fans, along with Knick fans. They have already exceeded expectations for the season, and have surpassed the win total of last year's New Jersey Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves. They are rolling right now, and are in 2nd place in the Atlantic Division behind the Boston Celtics(19-4). After recording a 6 game losing streak to drop their record to 3-8, the Knicks have been on a roll ever since, posting a 13-1 record within the past 30 days.An even bigger surprise, they're tied for 4th in the Eastern Conference with the Orlando Magic. That's right, Dwight Howard and his team. But why is New York so good now after being mediocre the past decade?





There are many reasons to support the Knicks 16-9 record, the largest being the signing of C Amar'e Stoudemire, considerably the leagues MVP presently. Stoudemire has put on a show both offensively and defensively. Ever since he has re-joined coach Mike D'Antoni in New York, has put up 26.1 points per game(3rd in the NBA) and 9.1 rebounds, as well as 2 blocks per game. He has been an absolute force, and continues to dominate, with the emergence of his jumpshot. Not only that, but Stoudemire has been able to pass the ball out to his teammates, since he almost always draws a double team. He hasn't just gotten better himself, but his teammates as well. His best game came against the Detroit Pistons on November 28th at the Palace of Auburn Hills in a 126-116 win. Stoudemire put up very impressive numbers, scoring 37 points, recording 15 rebounds(5 offensive rebounds) and recording a season high 7 assists. The Knicks' success almost certainly depends on the health and and success of Stoudemire, and has been proven so thus far.

The other big player this season for the Knicks has been a quite smaller name in the NBA, PG Raymond Felton, whom the Knicks signed in free agency as well, but for 7 million dollars, rather than Stoudemire's 17 million dollars. Felton has become one of the biggest surprises of the year thus far, after a decent 4-year stint with the Charlotte Bobcats. He entered the fall as the likely candidate to be the point guard for Amar'e Stoudemire. The last point guard Stoudemire played with happened only to be 2-time MVP Steve Nash in Phoenix. Well... Felton has played great, scoring 18.4 points per game, grabbing 4 rebounds per game, and recording 8.4 assists per game, along with an even 2 steals per game. He is in line to be an All-Star, and is becoming a fan-favorite among New York. He makes Stoudemire look even better, and vice-versa. Felton has a great sense for the game, as well as ball-skills, along with a beautiful shot. He, along with Stoudemire, can be the new Batman and Robin duo in the NBA if they continue their recent success. Felton's best game came during a 125-119 win against the Golden State Warriors on November 19th. Felton posted 35 points on 13-17 shooting, while grabbing 5 rebounds, and posting 11 assists and 4 steals.

Along with the duo of Stoudemire and Felton have come many other breakout stars, those being forwards Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler, both averaging above 15 points and 5 rebounds per game. A big surprise has been possible contender for rookie of the year, 2nd round draft pick SG/SF Landry Fields. Fields. Fields has averaged 10.6 points per game, but has been a rebounding machine, grabbing at least 5 rebounds in 20 of 25 games, including 17 against the Denver Nuggets in a 120-118 loss on November 16th.

All in all, look for the Knicks to become a breakout team within a few seasons. Now they won't win the NBA title right away, but with the right pieces, they will become not only a playoff contender, but a championship contender. Oh yeah, guess who is sure to be a Knick next year, after expressing great interest in becoming a Knick? Don't know? It's only superstar SF Carmelo Anthony, who has twice rejected a trade to the Nets, only to say he wants to be a part of the Knicks organization.

Baseball's LeBron "takes his talents to Philadelphia"...

This is definitely one of the more sad days of the year, by far. SP Cliff Lee shocked the baseball world last night by signing with his former team, the Philadelphia Phillies. This was an outrage to both the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers, as they were both bidding for Lee's services. The deal offered by Philadelphia is a 5-year deal worth 120 million dollars, with a 6th year player option worth as much as 27.5 million dollars based on performance incentives. The people even more upset were the fans of the Yankees and Rangers, as they lost the opportunity to watch one of the best pitchers in the game pitch for their respective team 30+ times per season.

Now it definitely comes to a surprise to all baseball fans that Lee signed with Philadelphia, but how much does it matter? Well, if you wondered why... IT DEFINITELY MATTERS! The Phillies are now led by a starting rotation of Roy Halladay(perennial All-Star), Cliff Lee(perennial All-Star), Roy Oswalt(perennial All-Star on the right team), and Cole Hamels(would be a #2 starter on any other team). Between the 4, they share a total salary of 70 million dollars alone. Then the Phillies have to pay for the other 26 players on their roster. The Phillies are now one of the top 3 teams among team salary per season. The other 2 being the Yankees and Mets.

Living in New York and being Yankee fans ourselves, both I(The Foz) and Ocho Cinco have been hearing it from all the Met fans out there, laughing at how the Yankees couldn't come up with Lee. There's a problem with their taunting... THE PHILLIES ARE IN THE METS' DIVISION, THE NL EAST. If anything, that's worse for all the NL teams out there, rather than the AL teams. Only a handful of AL teams will have the "luxury" of facing Lee and the star-studded Phillies. The siging of Lee affects the Mets and all the other NL East teams more, for they each play the Phillies 15-18 games per season.

Cliff Lee with Texas

Many have questioned the importance and severity of the Cliff Lee Sweepstakes, since it was heralded more than the CC Sabathia Sweepstakes, or even the Roy Halladay Sweepstakes. Well, a large reason of his importance is due to his postseason career. Lee, who has only pitched in the postseason the past 2 years of his career, and through 10 games, has pitched his way to 7 wins, a 2.13 ERA, a 0.82 WHIP, and 80 strikeouts in 76 innings, including 3 complete games pitched. He has dominated teams the past 2 years in the postseason, receiving consideration, along with former SP Curt Schilling, as the greatest postseason pitcher of all time. Lee has shown complete dominance, and leading up to the World Series in October(he pitched for the Rangers at the time), he was 7-0. The San Francisco Giants out a "giant" blemish on Lee's postseason numbers, as they clobbered him for 10 runs over 2 starts(both being losses). Previous to Lee's 2 starts vs the Giants, he posted a 1.23 ERA in 8 starts. His ERA inflated by almost a whole point. However, Lee hasn't just been dominant after September. Lee's success officially began in 2008, his breakthrough Cy Young award winning campaign. Lee went an astonishing 22-3 that year, and threw for 170 strikeouts and a 2.54 ERA. In 2009, he had a sub-par half-a-season, as he ended his stint with the Cleveland Indians and was traded to the Phillies. He then led the Phillies to the World Series but lost to the Yankees. This past season, Lee, even though he missed the first month and a half of the season, recorded 12 wins and 185 strikeouts, and led the MLB in WHIP(walks and hits per inning). Lee's biggest feat was his ratio of strikeouts-to-walks. Lee threw for 185 K, but only threw an astounding 18 walks, a 10.3 to 1 ratio.

Since people are puzzled on exactly how Lee signed with the Phillies, I'll tell you...
    Well, yesterday afternoon, Lee told agent Derek Braunecker to inform the Texas Rangers and GM Jon Daniels that Lee would be signing with the Rangers. Braunecker and team president Nolan Ryan later on phone called the New York Yankees and Yankees GM Brian Cashman that Lee had made a verbal agreement to sign with the Rangers. The deal was a 6-year deal worth up to 140 million dollars. Then, last night came along, and in the black of the night, a phone call was made to Ryan by Phillies GM Ruben Amaro that THEY had signed Lee to a 5-year, 120 million dollar deal. The Rangers were outraged, and confronted Braunecker. Braunecker confessed to back-stabbing Lee and so-fort, Lee verbally committed to an agreement to become a Philly.

Here are some possible motifs to why Cliff Lee signed with Philadelphia:
1. Salary per season- The Phillies offered the most salary per season, but only by a million dollars or so. This seems unlikely, because they didn't offer as many years as the Yankees or Rangers did.

2. He simply hated the Yankees, and loved his time with Philadelphia more than he did with Texas. He did reach the post-season with both clubs, but seemed to enjoy the atmosphere of Philadelphia a bit more.

3. The Phillies have a better team, as well as a better pitching staff than the Rangers. The Phillies are loaded with talent, more than the Rangers.

4. Mrs. Lee... If you don't quite remember, Lee's wife was spit on and booed during the ALCS between the Yankees and Rangers in Yankee Stadium. She may have played a role on Cliff's decision

5. Last, but not least, and probably the REAL deciding factor... competition. If Lee were to sign with either the Yankees or Rangers, his team would have to deal with the other team, as well as the Red Sox, Rays, White Sox, Twins, and Angels, all teams being considered contenders. Lee formed a monopoly in the NL with the Phillies, just like LeBron pulled one with the Miami Heat. Lee is now surrounded by 3 other All-Star calibur pitchers, as well as one of the best infields, if not the best infield, in all of baseball. There seems to be no true team able to match Philadelphia's power. The NL looks weak this season. The only true team able to contest against the Phillies will be the Atlanta Braves, whom reside within the same division as the Phillies. Even with the Braves' powerful line-up thanks to the acquisition of 2B Dan Uggla, the Braves don't nearly have enough pitching to out-perform that of the Phillies' rotation.

All in all, in conclusion, or whatever you want to fill in the blank with, this is not a good day for baseball, just like July 9th was a terrible day for basketball. A monopily has formed in the NL, and it seems that no one will be able to stop Lee and the Phillies, that is, until they possibly reach the World Series.

Idiot on the Sideline.

 During the Miami Dolphins-New York Jets, which most of us watched on Saturday, during the third quarter I witnessed one of the dirtiest moves I have ever seen during a game but it was on the sideline.

 As you may know, during a punt returner, Dolphins Cornerback Nolan Carroll was the gunner and he was running down the sidelines out of bounds. Well when he was running down, he got tripped by the Jets Strength and Conditioning Coach Sal Alosi. This is a pretty big deal because when Carroll fell to the floor, he was down for a little while. In my mind this one one of the worst things I have ever seen in my life. Not only did Alosi trip Carroll but if you look at it, he did it intentionally. He stuck out his knee while Carroll was running down and Carroll hit it and flipped. Now Alosi did apologize after the game when he called Dolphins Coach Tony Sparano, Owner Woody Johnson GM Mike Tannenbaum, and the Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan. Alosi said he "wasn't thinking" and "if he could go back again, he would of taken a step back." Alosi is fined 25,000 and suspended the remained of the regular season without pay.

    Now if I was the GM of the Jets, I would be looking for a new Strength and Conditioning Coach. What Alosi did is inexcusable and no coach in the game should ever think about doing this. What would of happened if Carroll, who has had knee problems in College at Maryland,  blew out his knee. Would Alosi still be the Coach, if he would be the Jets front office should be ashamed of themselves. If it was up to me, Alosi would of been fired at eight o'clock that night. They went to light on him. After a while, everyone will forget about this and no one will remember who Sal Alosi is. If he got fired, everyone will remember he was the idiot who got fired for tripping a player. Also the league has agreed that the Jets gave Alosi enough punishment, they didn't. I would suspend Alosi at least a year without pay and in his press conference to me, it wasn't sincere enough. I think Alosi just wanted people to believe he is remorseful, but if he did regret it he would of never of done it at all.

Zach Taylor, a former Dolphins Linebacker, accused the Jets of forming a human wall on their sidelines. Also, inactive D-lineman Marcus Dixon leaned his shoulder out, preparing for impact. Also, the punt before when Reshad Jones went out of bounds, they were lined up the same way. Did they know that Carroll was going to go out on the sideline, probably not but even though they did this intentionally or unintentionally, it was the worst thing I have ever seen in an NFL Game in my life. I think it reflects the whole Jets organization that a ut on their coaching staff would actually do this. It disgusts me to no end and I hope I will never have to hear the name Sal Alosi for the rest of my life.

MNF: Ravens vs Texans

It's time for Monday Night Football, and what's better than watching a high-powered offense vs a high-powered defense. Tonight's game will feature the 8-4 Baltimore Ravens and 5-7 Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas.  Let's not waste any time, and get right on to the preview...



Ravens FS Ed Reed





Ravens MLB Ray Lewis



Baltimore Ravens: The Ravens have had a successful season thus far, coming into tonight's game at 8-4, and are in the 6th spot and last wild-card seed in the playoffs right now. Coach John Harbaugh brings a tenacious defense to Houston, led by future Hall-Of-Famers LB Ray Lewis and FS Ed Reed. Both Reed and Lewis have had illustrious careers. Reed has recorded 50 INT, and hold the record for longest INT return for a TD in history(108 yards) and has been to 6 Pro Bowls. Lewis has had an even more illustrious career than Reed, becoming the 2nd player to record 30 sacks and 30 INT in his career(former Chargers and Patriots SS Rodney Harrison was the first). Lewis has been elected to 11 Pro Bowls. They are also led by a talented group of youth including DE/DT Haloti Ngata, QB Joe Flacco, and RB Ray Rice. Flacco has matured as a QB, and has developed pin-point accuracy, adding to his cannon arm.  He has especially improved through the Ravens' acquisiton of WR Anquan Boldin from Arizona. Boldin is one of the most explosive WRs in the NFL, and has proven so thus far in his first year in Baltimore.

Team Leaders:

Passing: QB Joe Flacco- 2988 passing yards, 19 TD, 8 INT, 62.3 completion %, 92.8 QB rating.

Rushing: RB Ray Rice- 844 rushing yards, 3 TD, 4.0 yards per carry, 49 receptions, 410 receiving yards.
Receiving: WR Anquan Boldin- 56 receptions, 770 receiving yards, 7 TD, 13.8 yards per reception
Defense: MLB Ray Lewis- 108 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 INT, 4 passes defended, 1 TD
Defense: FS Ed Reed- 18 tackles, 9 passes defended, 4 INT, 1 forced fumble, 1 TD assisst(lateral)
Defense: OLB Terrell Suggs- 55 tackles, 9 sacks, 7 tackles for loss, 2 passes defended, 1 forced fumble

Highlight of 2010:
Week 1:  The highlight of the Baltimore Ravens' season was the their week 1 victory over the New York Jets in the Meadowlands. The Ravens won 10-9 and suffocated the Jets' offense, holding them to 176 yards of total offense and only 5 offensive first downs. This game set the tone for the season, and has been a motivator since. The Ravens held Jets QB Mark Sanchez to 60 passing yards on 10 completions. The Ravens forced 14 Jets penalites and many bad decisions by Sanchez.

Texans RB Arian Foster

Texans DE Mario Williams

Houston Texans: The Texans have had a sub-par season, after recording their first ever winning season at 9-7 last year. They stand at 5-7 right now, which is 3rd in the AFC South, behind the 7-6 Indianapolis Colts and 8.5 Jacksonville Jaguars. The Texans are led by a very explosive offense, the usual suspects being All-Pro WR Andre Johnson, QB Matt Schaub, and TE Owen Daniels. The Texans' defense had been very good last season, led by defensive rookie of the year OLB Brian Cushing, and former defensive rookie of the year MLB DeMeco Ryans, as well as former #1 draft pick DE Mario Williams. However, the loss of CB Dunta Robinson has seemed to have a lasting effect, as the Texans are last in passing defense, due to an absence of experience in the secondary. The MVP of the Texans so far has been none other than... RB/poet/preacher Arian Foster. Before the season, you would've scratched your head and said who??? Foster, who played his college ball at Tennessee, has been arguably the best offensive player this season, let alone best running back. He has rushed for 1230 yards and 13 TD(both lead the NFL coming into this week), and has been explosive ever since the season began, starting with a 231 yard, 3 TD at home in week 1 vs the Indianapolis Colts.

Team Leaders:

Passing: QB Matt Schaub- 3089 passing yards, 17 TD, 8 INT, 64.0 completion %, 92.3 QB rating.

Rushing: RB Arian Foster- 1230 rushing yards, 13 TD, 5.0 yards per carry, 50 receptions, 479 receiving yards, 2 TD, 9.6 yards per reception
Receiving: WR Andre Johnson- 71 receptions, 1018 yards, 5 TD, 14.3 yards per reception
Defense: DE Mario Williams- 28 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 2 passes defended, 1 forced fumble
Defense: CB Kareem Jackson- 54 tackles, 9 passes defended, 2 INT
Defense: SS Bernard Pollard- 90 tackles, 1 sack, 4 passes defended, 2 forced fumbles

Highlight of 2010:
Week 1: The highlight of the season for the Texans was the breakout performance by Arian Foster in week 1 vs the Colts. Foster had 231 yards and 3 TD on 34 carries. It was a shock, but nonetheless against a sub-par Colts defense. Ever since the performance, Foster has rushed for 999 yards and 10 TD, and has never looked back.

Ravens OLB Terrell Suggs

Keys to Victory:

Ravens: The key to success for Baltimore must be to stop Arian Foster. Foster has been on a tear this season, and coach John Harbaugh must match MLB Ray Lewis on Foster. Lewis is a great enough player to take down even the best of backs. The Ravens must also be able to put pressure on QB Matt Schaub, especially DE Haloti Ngata and OLB Terrell Suggs, their 2 best pass rushers.



Texans WR Andre Johnson



Texans: The key to success for Houston is to control the clock. The Texans must be able to run the ball, and run it often. Because of their lack of defensive presence this season, coach Gary Kubiak must rely on his offense to control the game. Running the ball will eventually open things up for Matt Schaub to hit WR Andre Johnson for several passes. Johnson is arguably the best WR in the NFL presently.

Prediction:
The Foz: Ravens win 23-20
Ocho Cinco: Ravens win 24-13

Cliff Lee Sweepstakes

2010 Free Agency Grand Prize, SP Cliff Lee

 As you might now both of the best two hitters in the free agent market have been signed. Jayson Werth has signed a seven-year 126 million dollar contact with the Washington Nationals and Carl Crawford has signed a seven-year 142 million dollar contract with the Boston Red Soxs. Meanwhile, the two best pitchers Cliff Lee and Carl Pavano have not yet signed a deal.

 Cliff Lee has been one of the most coveted pitchers over the last couple of years. In the last three years, Cliff Lee has been 48-25 with a 2.98 ERA. Now I know the loss total is high but think about this, when he played with the Cleveland Indians and Seattle Mariners(in my mind two of the worst teams in the league) Lee was 15-12. He has been more than that because in his last two postseason appearance(with Philadelphia and Texas) Lee has made it to the World Series both times with those teams. Lee's pitching record in those Postseason is 7-2 with an amazing 2.13 ERA. His strike out to walk  ratio this year was a 10.28, which in my mind is amazing for a pitcher who pitched 212 innings this year. In his career he has a 62.6 winning percentage as a pitcher. The two main teams that are going after him are the New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers, both team in my mind needs Cliff Lee it just depends on who wants him more.

Yankees SP CC Sabathia

  New York Yankees: The Yankees need Cliff Lee in my mind for many reasons. First, besides C.C. Sabathia, the Yankees didn't have one consistent pitcher the whole year. C.C. went 21-7 with a 3.18 ERA. Then the next best pitcher was Andy Pettitte who didn't qualify for the ERA title since he was out for a month, with a 11-3 record and a 3.28 ERA. Of the pitchers who started at least five games(which is 7) only three of them have a winning record(Sabathia, Pettitte, and Phil Hughes.) A.J Burnett who started off the season well with a 6-2 record with a 3.28 ERA, went on a nose dive from there finishing the year 10-15 with a 5.26 ERA. As you can see, there starting rotation was a big reason why they didn't do as good as they should of. Also, Pettitte has been thinking about retirement. If he retires, the Yankees projected rotation would be Sabathia, Hughes(18-8 4.19 ERA), Burnett, Dustin Moseley(4-4 4.96 ERA) and Ivan Nova(1-2 4.50 ERA) That is also a young rotation with Hughes, Moseley and Nova being all younger than twenty-eight. They could use Joba Chamberlain in the rotation, but he hasn't been the same this year, posting a 4.40 ERA. If the Yankees do not get Cliff Lee, there rotation and pitching staff could have another tough year that Yankee fans won't like.

Texas SP CJ Wilson

  Texas Rangers: The Rangers need Cliff Lee because they already wasted so much on him. They traded highly touted prospect Justin Smoak, RHP Blake Beaven, RHP Josh Lueke, and INF Matt Lawson just to get him. If he only stayed there for half of a season in my mind that is a lot to give up. Also, they don't really have a big name pitcher for them in that market. There best pitcher was C.J. Wilson, who went 15-8 with a 3.35 ERA.This was his first year as a starter, so you don't know how he will rebound next year. They also have Tommy Hunter, who did great his rookie year, Colby Lewis a journeymen pitcher for ten years, Rich Harden who is hurt every year and Scott Feldman, who just had knee surgery. They don't have any stability in that rotation and I think that will hurt them this upcoming year. If they keep Lee, they have a big name in a small market. Since the Rangers are bankrupt right now, they don't have that much wiggle room for his contract. If the Rangers are able to re-sign Lee that is good for them. I think they can do it but it will be hard.

 I honestly don't know who will sign Cliff Lee, with him not making a decision, it is making people apprehensive. So if you want to know who re-signs him, you will have to stay tune and find out who gets him for a Holiday gift.

NFL week 14

Its week 14, and we've got a great game preview for you, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Washington Redskins. Both teams are in the NFC, both 3rd in their respective divisions. The Buccaneers are 7-5, and have had a very respectable bounce-back season after finishing 3-13 last season. The Redskins were just as bad last season, finishing 4-12, but are 5-7, and are coming off a big blowout loss to the NY Giants 31-7. Here's our official preview, and we'll start with the home team...

Redskins DT Albert Haynesworth

Washington Redskins: The 'Skins have had a very rocky season. They have been plagued by inconsistency, injury, and All-Pro DT Albert Haynesworth. Haynesworth has caused enough trouble within the Redskins locker room to make someone explode. During training camp, he failed the conditioning test 4 times, and missed over a week of action. He was suspended for most of preseason football as a result. Throughout the season, Haynesworth has been benched, replaced by back-ups, asked for a trade, and now... suspended for the final 4 games of the regular season. He has been a menace both to the team and also head coach Mike Shanahan. This will likely be Haynesworth's last season as a Redskin.

The 'Skins have been plagued also by injury, most notably at the RB position. Former All-Pro RB Clinton Portis has repeatedly strained his groin, and has missed a total of 8 games. Back-up RB Ryan Torain had missed 4 games due to a foot injury. Torain returns today to face a young, healthy, up-and-coming Buccaneers defense led by players such as MLB Barrett Ruud and top 3 draft pick DT Gerald McCoy. Due to these injuries to RBs, the Redskins rank 27th among all teams in rushing yards.

Redskins LB London Fletcher

The biggest problem for the Redskins this season has definitely been defense. The Redskins are last in defense(31st last week), and the question is, why? They are loaded with talent, and are led by players such as CB DeAngelo Hall, S LaRon Landry, MLB London Fletcher, and OLBs Rocky McIntosh and Brian Orakpo. There seems to be no definite answer, but the probable cause is the void left by Albert Haynesworth.

TEAM LEADERS:
Passing: QB Donovan McNabb- 3149 passing yards, 12 TD, 15 INT, 57.9 completion %, 75.2 QB rating.
Rushing: RB Ryan Torain- 391 rushing yards, 3 TD, 4.3 yards per carry, 2 fumbles.
Receiving: WR Santana Moss- 64 receptions, 802 yards, 3 TD, 12.5 yards per reception.
Defense- MLB London Fletcher- 102 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 9 passes defended, 1 INT, 2 forced fumbles
Defense- CB DeAngelo Hall- 79 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 6 INT, 2 TD
Defense- S LaRon Landry- 85 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT, 8 passes defended, 1 forced fumble

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs have certainly passed expectations after free-falling to a 3-13 record last season. They've climbed a tall mountain, and have once again established themselves as a playoff contender. The Bucs, through the acquisitions fo DT Gerald McCoy(draft), and RB LeGarrette Blunt(free agency, but is a rookie) have been able to climb back atop the NFC's best. They currently stand at 7-5 right now, which is good enough for 3rd in the NFC South(possibly the best division in football), and are 8th in the NFC(thats a very high record for 8th in a conference). Unfortunately, they stand behind the best 2 teams in the NFC, the 10-2 Atlanta Falcons and defending Super Bowl Champions New Orleans Saints. The Bucs are not in the best of situations, as they are on a 2-game losing streak right now, last week losing to the Falcons and the week before to the 8-4 Baltimore Ravens of the AFC.

Bucs DT Gerald McCoy

The only problem so far this season has been the run-defense, due to the inexperience of the Bucs' weakness at OLB, as well as inexperience at the defensive line. The Bucs lack a dominant pass rusher, as they rank in the bottom 10 teams in sacks. There leading sacker is DE Stylez "Don't Call Me Greg" White. He has recorded 4.5 sacks. The next highest sack total is 3, by DT Gerald McCoy and DE Tim Crowder. This problem will be surly assessed by head coach Raheem Morris in  next year's draft.

Team Leaders:
Passing: QB Josh Freeman- 2442 passing yards, 16 TD, 6 INT, 58.4completion %, 86.7 passer rating
Rushing: RB LeGarrette Blount- 599 rushing yards, 5 TD, 4.5 yards per carry, 26 first downs
Receiving: WR Mike Williams- 51 receptions, 769 receiving yards, 7 TD, 15.1 yards per reception
Defense: MLB Barrett Ruud- 89 tackles, 1 sack, 4 passes defended, 1 INT, 1 forced fumble
Defense: CB Ronde Barber- 58 tackles, 3 INT, 9 passes defended, 3 tackles for loss
Defense: DT Gerald McCoy- 27 tackles, 3 sacks, 5 tackles for loss, 4 passes defended

Bucs WR Mike Williams



Redskins CB DeAngelo Hall



Best Match-up: The best match-up will be between Buccanneers WR Mike Williams and Redskins CB DeAngelo Hall. Both players will most likely make the Pro Bowl, and both players are having outstanding seasons. Hall's highlight of the year was intercepting Bears QB Jay Cutler 4 times during a win at Chicago. Williams has been outstanding, and is only a rookie. He will most likely win Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Prediction:

The Foz- Buccaneers

Ocho Cinco- Buccaneers

Heisman Presentation

 We are a day away from knowing who will win the Heisman Trophy for the Year 2010. A lot of people know who will win because QB Cam Newton of Auburn last night won the Davey O'Brien trophy for the nation's top quarterback, the Maxwell Award for the nation's most outstanding player  and the Walter Camp award for the Player of the Year Award. He took the three best Awards given last night and every Award he was nominated for. This and the fact that he led an undefeated Auburn team to the National Championship is the reason why I think he will win the Heisman Trophy. Now I'll give you a preview of each of the nominees:
 
 Cameron Newton QB #1 Auburn Tigers 13-0 SEC Champions: In my mind, Cam has this all locked up. He started the season against Arkansas State and went 9-14 186 Passing Yards 3 TD'S 15 Attempts 171 yards and 2 Rushing TD'S. His best game was probably a week ago when he played #20 South Carolina. He went 17-28 335 Passing Yards 4 TD'S 14 Attempts 73 Rushing Yards 2 TD'S. The best part of the way Newton plays is he doesn't turn the ball over a lot. He has six interceptions and no fumbles on the season. He leads the NCAA in Quarterback rating with 188.2, first in the SEC in rushing with 1409 yards and 20 rushing TD'S, sixth in the SEC in passing yards with 2589 yards(for a total of  4040 yards) and 49 TD'S. Since Cam played in the hardest division in the SEC, he played against good teams every week that's why he should win as well. He also led Auburn to many comebacks including the comeback of the year against Alabama. The one thing that shy's people away from voting for Newton is the accusations made against him by Mississippi State. The NCAA ruled him eligible to play but the Heisman voters don't want another Reggie Bush. That's the only way Newton has a chance to lose it.

  LaMichael James RB #2 Oregon Ducks 12-0 Pac-10 Champions: LaMichael has a shot of winning the Heisman Trophy. He is the most dominant Running Back and he is the only Running Back who was nominated for the Heisman this Year. He lead's the NCAA with 1682 Rushing Yards and 21 TD'S. The reason why he isn't as considered is because he has a dominant passing game to. If his offense was as one-dimensional as Auburn's, James would probably have over 2,000 Rushing Yards. His best game was against #4 Stanford when he went for 257 Rushing Yards and 3 TD'S. Like Newton, he hasn't had a lot of turnovers by not having a fumble the whole year. The only thing that hurt him was the game against Cal. He had only 91 Rushing Yards in a 15-13 win. If he had a 200 yard game, it might be closer than it is. If James stays for another year, he might be the front-runner for next year's Heisman Trophy. It would be nice to see a Running Back win it, but James has a slim chance of winning it.

 Andrew Luck QB #4 Stanford Cardinals 11-1 Pac-10 Runner-ups: You really can't blame Luck for the loss against Oregon. He had 2 TD'S but he also had 2 interceptions. He had 341 Passing Yards and a Rushing TD. Since that game against Oregon, Luck has been close to unstoppable. He has had a 75.7 Completion % and hasn't had a game lower than 70% in the seven games since that loss. He has had 15 TD'S 3 INT'S since then. He started the season of by playing Sacramento State and having 316 Passing Yards 4 TD'S and no interceptions. His best game was against Oregon State having 305 Passing Yards, 4 TD'S and no interceptions(even though his stats are better against Sacramento State, Oregon State is the better team.) He probably has the worst chance of winning the Heisman in my mind. He has 3051 Passing Yards, 28 TD'S and 7 INT'S,  Luck also has 438 Rushing Yards and 3 TD'S. He is 21st in the Nation in Passing and 1st in the Pac-10. He has a QB rating of 166.1 which is seventh in the NCAA. Luck has the worst shot in my mind of winning this and I don't think he will receive a first or second place vote.

 Kellen Moore: QB #10 Boise State 11-1 Tied 1st in the WAC: The same here goes for Moore, you can't blame him for the loss against Nevada( you can blame Kyle Brotzman for that.) In that game, Moore went 20-31 348 Passing Yards, 2 TD'S and no interceptions.Besides that loss, Moore has had a very productive season by having 3506 Passing Yards and 33 TD'S and 5 INT'S. His best game was against Hawaii, Moore had 507 Passing Yards 3 TD'S and 2 INT'S( even though he had two interceptions, it was his best passing game by 137 Yards.) He started the season off in impressive fashion by beating then #10 Virginia Tech 33-30 in a thriller in which Moore led them back to win with time winding down. He had 215 Passing Yards 3 TD'S and no interceptions. He and Boise State were looking good to make yet another BCS Bowl Game before their loss to Nevada, who is now ranked #15 in the BCS Standings. He would of had a better shot if Boise State didn't lose to Nevada, but I still think he'll finish third in the Heisman Voting. like James, if he comes back for his Senior Year(which he really should) he will be a Heisman Front-runner(That is if Cam Newton doesn't come back either.) So now I'll say the order in which I think they will finish in tomorrow night:
 Winner: Cam Newton
 2nd Place: LaMichael James
 3rd Place: Kellen Moore
 4th Place: Andrew Luck
 You can see it all happen tomorrow night at 8 P.M on ESPN.

Urban Meyer Steping Down As Florida's Head Coach

Today in the afternoon, the whole country was let known that Florida Head Coach Urban Meyer was stepping down as the Head Coach. This comes after Florida's worst season with Meyer as their Head Coach. This season, even though Meyer won his 100th game on September 25th against Kentucky, was the worst he had at Florida. They went 7-5 this year, Florida's first five loss season since Ron Zook's last year in Florida in 2004. They lost all their games against the SEC West, the better half of the conference and lost to in-state rival Florida State, the first loss to Florida State in the five years Meyer was there.
 This is the second time Meyer said he would step down.After the SEC Championship Game last year which they lost 32-13, Meyer entered a Gainesville hospital with chest pains and dehydration. The day after Christmas, Meyer revealed his medical scare and announced his resignation from Florida. The next day, he announced he wouldn't resign, but would take a leave of absence. Then on March 17th he went back to coach the Florida Gators. He said he will coach in this year's Outback Bowl against Penn State and then leave after that.
 Urban Meyer has one great coaching career. He is 103-23 since becoming a head coach in 2001. His first two season's were at Bowling Green in which he went 17-6. Then he went on to Utah in which he went 22-2, he won the 2004 Fiesta Bowl 35-7 over Pittsburgh. While there, he coached NFL Players QB Alex Smith, who went on to be the #1 overall pick of the San Francisco 49ers in 2005, Jets NT Sione Pouha and Chargers Safety Eric Weddle and Cincinnati Bengals Defensive End Jonathan Fanene. He then went on to Florida in which he became one of the most successful coaches in Florida's history. He won two National Championships in 2006 and 2008, and made a bowl game in every season there. He coached great players there like  QB Chris Leak, WR Chad Jackson, DB Reggie Nelson, DE Jarvis Moss, DE Derrick Harvey, WR'S Percy Harvin and Andre Caldwell, TE'S Cornelius Ingram and Aaron Hernandez, LB Brandon Spikes, CB Joe Haden, DE Carlos Dunlap, Center Maurkice Pouncey and most notably QB Tim Tebow. He was 64-15 and had the second best winning percentage in Florida history with a 81% Winning Percentage. The only coach better was Steve Spurrier, who went 122-27-1 with a winning percentage .8167. In my mind even though Spurrier had more wins in more season's, Meyer had a better tenure with the Gators because he won two championships with two completely different teams. The first team was mainly players recruited by Ron Zook(22 of the 24 starters were recruited by Zook) and in 2008 it was a team that was recruited mostly by Meyer himself. He won his first National Championship against previously undefeated Ohio State 41-14 and then in 2008 against #1 Oklahoma 24-14 to win his second Championship in three years.
 Urban Meyer has a record of 6-1 in bowl games. The only one he lost was in Tim Tebow's Sophomore Year when he lost to Michigan 41-35 in the Capital One Bowl in Lloyd Carr's final game as a college coach. He has won 4 BCS Bowl Games, 3 at Florida and 1 at Utah. Even though he has only coached for ten years he has been the best coach in College Football in those ten years. You can argue with it, but in my mind he was the best coach of the 2000's. This is coming from a person who didn't even like Tim Tebow and the three years he was there. I think Urban Meyer won't be retired for long. He's only forty-six and what is he going to be doing for the next ten years. I think he'll be retired for two years and then come back. He is to good of a coach and I believe some university will offer him a contract he can't refuse. The only thing I hope is if he returns to coach, he will be as good as he was. He's a great coach and a great person. I hope the best for him and hos family and whatever decision he makes in the future. I just hope whatever decision he makes is the best for him and his family. I know I'm speaking for a lot of Florida Gators fans when I say that Urban Meyer will be truly missed as the Coach of the Florida Gators.

Albert Haynesworth vs. Mike Shanahan: The Saga Continues.

Redskins DT Albert Haynesworth

As you might of heard, the Washington Redskins Head Coach Mike Shanahan has suspended the 100 Million dollar man, Albert Haynesworth for the rest of the season without pay. Even though Haynesworth is going to appeal, this has been the latest in a long chain of controversies Shanahan and Haynesworth had since Shanahan became the Head Coach.



It first started off by Shanahan switched the Redskins to a 3-4, which Haynesworth doesn't want to be a true Nose Tackle. Then when Haynesworth took his 21 Million dollar bonus, Shanahan expected him to show up on time to mandatory Mini-Camp, which he didn't. Then when he did show up to Camp, he failed the Condo test four times and miss seven days of camp. Then during one of their pre-season games, he didn't start the game and he went out with their second unit and then play the entire pre-season finale. After in the season, he has missed four games for having a sprained ankle, attending the funeral for his late brother, and being put on the deactive list twice. Then today, he was suspended for the rest of the year without pay but haynesworthh will more than likely appeal this.



Redskins HC Mike Shanahan



 On this matter, I would have to agree with the Coach on this one. He has given Haynesworth so many chances to show up and not have any problems but he keeps on refusing. If I was in his position, he would'nt be on the team anymore. I wouldn't have the patience for a person like that who isn't maximizing his potential. Two years ago when he got the contract, Haynesworth was probably the best Defensive Tackle in the NFL. Now, it looks like Dan Snyder has yet again made another bad mistake by signing Haynesworth to such a big contract. Haynesworth has to realize that he is the bad guy in all of this. If he goes to another team, he will always be regarded as a waste of a big contact and he will be regarded as a lazy player who only plays if he gets what he wants.

 The only way I think Haynesworth can help his reputation is by doing something like another outcast, Michael Vick. It doesn't have to be as radical like going and preaching about working hard, but he has to be the first one there everyday and the last one to leave. He can't do this for only a week or a month, but for the rest of his playing career. He also can't be out for reasons that aren't good enough. Like having a sprained ankle it depends how bad of a sprain it is but for an illness, come on man.people play through injuries all the time and you can't play even though you the highest paid DT in NFL History. He is the biggest laughing stock in Football right now even more then the Jets which is sad. The only advice i have for Haynesworth is if he really cares about the game and not the money then he should start showing he cares

SMH New York Jets

Last night, we witnessed a complete massacre of one of the best teams in the NFL, the New York Jets, by one of the best teams in the NFL, the New England Patriots. Both teams came into last night's game at an AFC-best 9-2 record, the winner will have held the tie-breaker over the other in the AFC East. The Patriots absolutely mauled the Jets, led by an all out burning of the Jets defense and crushing of their offense. The 45 points surrendered were the most given up by the Jets since 2008 in week 3 to the San Diego Chargers in a 48-29 loss. The Jets played morbid all around, and the highlight of the game was a 12 yard Steve Weatherford punt in the 1st half from deep inside the Jets' own territory.

Patriots QB Tom Brady

The Patriots were led by an MVP performance by sure-to-be NFL MVP Tom Brady. Brady threw for 326 yards and 4 TD and a 148.9 QB rating. He hit 7 different receivers and only threw 8 incompletions(21 of 29 passing attempts completed). RB/WR Danny Woodhead, whom had been a Jet during training camp, caught 4 passes for 101 yards, including 2 breakout plays of 35 and 50 yards. RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis ran for 72 yards and 2 TD, and a TD was each caught by WRs Wes Welker, Deion Branch, and Brandon Tate, as well as TE Aaron Hernandez. Brady played amazingly. as he has done all season. Through the last 7 games, he has thrown for 17 TD and 0 INT. That's right, it's been 8 games since he's thrown an interception. He hasn't thrown an interception in 228 pass attempts, which is a career-high for him. Overall this season, he has thrown for 27 TD and only 4 INT(all 4 came in 2 games with 2 INT each), throwing for 3029 yards and a 109.5 QB rating. He is definitely the MVP frontrunner right now, as his team has the best record in the NFL(shared with the Atlanta Falcons) and leads the highest scoring offense in the NFL as well. He has been virtually unstoppable, and has completed nearly 67 percent of his passes.

The real reason for this article is the Jets. They played awful last night, and didn't look like a team. The offensive line mishandled blocks, receivers dropped passes, defensive backs blew assignments and misseed tackles, and the front 7 couldn't touch Tom Brady. The biggest culprit of it all had to be QB Mark Sanchez. Sanchez played like a pee-wee player, completing only 17 of 33 passes for 164 and threw 3 bad interceptions. His QB rating last night was 27.5(the average for a QB is 86), bringing his overall QB rating to a 77.4, which is sub-par. His completion % dropped to 54.9, which is just abysmal. The standard for a QB is about 60 %. Anything less is bad, especially 5 points below. He hasn't played as bad all season, but has had his butt saved by many lucky plays from superhero WR Santonio Holmes, who had the only bright spot last night for the Jets, catching 7 balls for 72 yards. Holmes has been a superhero this season, saving 4 wins against BAD teams this season. However, I don't think he can save the Jets from a 42 point deficit... especially against a GOOD team.

The Jets are 9-3 right now, which is good for the top wild card seed in the AFC, and are a game behind New England for 1st place in the AFC East. However, they will NOT exceed Super Bowl expectations, for they are the most overrated team in the NFL... here's why:

Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan

1. Strength of schedule: The Jets have faced the 5th easiest schedule in the NFL to date, thus making it easy to see that the Jets stats and record are milked. They have, without a doubt, played some of the worst defenses in the NFL such as the Patriots(31st), Bills(30th), Bengals(29th), Texans(28th), Broncos(27th), Lions(24th), and Browns(20th). The only respectable defenses they have played have been those of the Green bay Packers(1st) and Baltimore Ravens(4th), and scored a combined total of 9 points(shut out by Green Bay). The Jets lost both those games. The 2 teams with winning records remaining on the Jets schedule are the 9-3 Pittsburgh Steelers and 9-3 Chicago Bears, with the 2nd and 3rd ranked defenses respectively. This won't be pretty for Rex "Chubbs" Ryan and his loud-mouth team.

2. They were taken to the brink of defeat by the worst of teams. The Jets almost suffered overtime losses to historically terrible teams Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns, and won within the last seconds of games against the 3-9 Denver Broncos, and Houston Texans, who have never made the playoffs. This doesn't prove that the Jets are clutch, or can come back from late deficits, or even that they can beat bad teams in dramatic fashion... it proves that the Jets are beatable... VERY beatable.

3. There are 4 better teams than the Jets in the AFC: the Indianapolis Colts, Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, and New England Patriots. These teams may not be better record-wise(the Pats are, Steelers have same record, Ravens have one less win, Indianapolis is 6-6). They all have better QBs, better special teams, and they all have iconic players on their team. The Jets lack an icon of some sort to lead and guide the team.

After the game, Santonio Holmes, in an interview, said it was only one game, and that they would be looking for revenge in the playoffs. Guess what... the Jets need to stop running their mouths. For some reason, only CB Darelle Revis has backed up his words this year, and only uses one line, "You're a slouch". Santonio(odd name), my friend, it was NOT just one game. It proved to America that your team has been a bunch of misleaded hype. The Patriots are for real, and you do NOT want to face them in the playoffs, because the outcome of that game may wind up just like it did last night... 

ESPN Recap of last night's game: http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/recap?gameId=301206017

NFL 2010 GAME OF THE YEAR

ESPN has predicted that whoever wins this game tonight will have an 80% shot at winning the AFC East champions. The game of games is tonight, the New York Jets will take on their arch-rivaled New England Patriots at Gilette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. The game will feature the top 2 teams in the AFC, both in the AFC East. The implications of the game are extremely high. The winner of this game will control the AFC East, as well as the entire AFC itself. If the Jets were to win, it would be the 2nd time this year they defeat the Patriots, holding a head-to-head tiebreaker over them. If the Patriots were to win, they would hold a strength of schedule tiebreaker over the Jets, for the head-to-head matchup between themselves and the Jets would be split at 1-1. The Jets previously defeated the Patriots 28-14 in a week 2 thriller in New Jersey. Jets QB Mark Sanchez threw for 200 yards and 3 TD and TE Dustin Keller caught 7 passes for 115 yards and a TD. Here's an outlook on tonight's game:

New England Patriots:

Patriots WR Deion Branch

The Patriots, as usual, are out-performing just about every team in the NFL. Coach Bill Belichick always finds a way to muster up schemes to beat the best of the best. They have beaten teams such as the Baltimore Ravens, Minnesota Vikings, San Diego Chargers, and Pittsburgh Steelers. Somehow, even though they have the worst defense in the NFL, they managed to maintain a 9-2 record. The main reason why is because they lead the NFL in points per game with 30.3. They are led by future Hall of Fame QB Tom Brady, and his arsenal of emerging WRs, rookie stud TEs, and mixed group of youth and experienced RBs. The Pats have amazingly done so well without star WR Randy Moss, who was traded to Minnesota in exchange for a 4th round draft pick in the 2011 NFL Draft. He had led the team in receiving the past previous season, but caused trouble with his big mouth and was not liked by many teammates.

Team Leaders:

Passing: QB Tom Brady- 2703 passing yards, 23 TD, 4 INT, 66.3 completion %, 105.89 QB rating

Rushing: RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis- 637 rushing yards, 9 TD, 0 fumbles, 4.3 yards per rush

Receiving: WR Wes Welker- 65 receptions, 592 yards, 6 TD, 9.1 yards per catch

Defense: ILB Jerod Mayo- 132 tackles, 1 sack, 3 passes defended
CB Devin McCourty- 61 tackles, 5 INT, 12 passes defended
S Patrick Chung- 71 tackles, 2 INT, 6 passes defended, 1 TD

MVP: QB Tom Brady- Brady has been unreal this year, even without his favorite target, Randy Moss. Brady has thrown for 23 TD and only 4 INT, and has helped to emerge 3 new stars in the New England offense; those players being TEs Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski as well as RB/WR Danny Woodhead, and has also re-created a spark with his former favorite target WR Deion Branch, whom the Pats re-acquired from the Seattle Seahawks after trading away Moss. Brady seems to be unstoppable, as he does every year. He won't put up numbers like in did in 2007(50 passing TDs) but has been just as good in the clutch.

New York Jets:

Jets ILB David Harris

The Jets have just been clutch this season, recording 5 comeback wins. They are led by sophmore QB Mark Sanchez, Captain Comeback himself. Sanchez has exceeded all expectations, and has grew as a QB. Sanchez has become more accurate, more poised, and most importantly... more confident. He continues to grow as his team grows around him, and he has a GREAT team. He, like Brady, as an unsung number of heroes, as his backs and receivers continue to make him look even better than he's playing. The Jets have been playing great overall, as they rank 9th in total offense and 5th in total defense. They are well-rounded, and are led by many break-out stars such as CB Darelle Revis, ILB David Harris, S Jim Leonhard(injured in practice this week, broken leg), OL Nick Mangold, and OL D'Brickashaw Ferguson. They also have a mix of stud veteran players such as ILB Bart Scott, OLB Jason Taylor, RB LaDainian Tomlinson, DT Kris Jenkins(injured in week 1, torn ACL). 

Team Leaders:
Passing: QB Mark Sanchez- 2472 passing yards, 16 TD, 8 INT, 55.2 completion %, 81.9 QB rating
Rushing: RB LaDainian Tomlinson- 741 rushing yards, 5 TD, 1 fumble, 45 receptions, 329 receiving yards
Receiving: WR Braylon Edwards- 35 receptions, 618 receiving yards, 6 TD, 17.7 yards per reception
Defense: ILB David Harris- 74 tackles, 2 sacks, 3 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble, 2 passes defended
CB Antonio Cromartie- 33 tackles, 15 passes defended, 3 INT, 1 fumble recovered
OLB Jason Taylor- 28 tackles, 4 sacks, 4 passes defended, 4 tackles for loss, 2 forced fumbles

KEYS TO GAME:

Patriots: The Patriots must utilize their passing attack as well as possible. Because of the variety of options Tom Brady has, the Jets will be forced to use a lot of zone schemes, and knowing Rex Ryan, he will send a lot of blitz packages in zone. Brady must be able to locate his main targets: slot WR Wes Welker, who can dig into the hearts of defenses and move the chains; the duo of Aaron Hernandez and Rob Gronkowski, for this duo has combined for 9 TD, including 7 redzone TD; and the wideout duo of Deion Branch and Brandon Tate, both guys can stretch the defenses and open things up for other receivers. The Jets will have a hard time being able to cover all these guys, as well as being able to put pressure on Brady.

Jets: It's all about defense. The Patriots defense has been nothing but putrid this season, making it almost automatic that the Jets will put a lot of points off. Rex Ryan must be smart with his defense. He must switch it up, keeping the offense worrying on what the Jets will do next. Don't let Brady be able to predict what you'll do next, or else he'll pounce on the opportunity. 

Difference Maker:

Patriots QB Tom Brady

Patriots: It's simply Tom Brady. He is the key to the Patriots. Like all great QBs, such as Dan Marino, Roger Staubach, Joe Montana, and rivaled Peyton Manning, if Brady does well(usually), the Pats will play well. If he does not... well then it's downhill from there because the Jets are NOT a team you want to slip up on.

Jets QB Mark Sanchez

Jets: Mark Sanchez must be the difference maker for the Jets. He must be able to maintain his pocket presence and keep cool under pressure. He needs to be clutch, like he has been all season. The team depends on his play, and will grow as he grows.

Prediction:
The Foz says Jets win 24-21

Reason: The Jets are just clearly a more defined, more balanced team, contributing on both offense and defense, unlike the Patriots.

Ocho Cinco says Patriots win 24-17

BCS Bowl Games

Alabama RB Trent Richardson

 To my surprise, I am not as mad at this year's BCS Bowl Games as I thought. The only thing I really can't stand is why Ohio State is in a BCS Game over Michigan State.If you look at their schedule, it is a no brainer who should be in a BCS Game. The best team Michigan State beat was #4 Wisconsin 34-24 at Michigan State. You might think, well Ohio State is ranked ahead of Michigan State in the BCS Standings, honestly I don't care about the BCS Standings because to solve these problems it would be better if College Football had a playoff system. The BCS system isn't always right. Virginia Tech, who you all remember starting off 0-2 after a lost to James Madison has since then gone on to win 11 straight one of the hottest teams in College Football, but there only ranked 13th in the BCS Standings. I think they should be a Top 10 team and in my mind if they rematch Boise State, I think Virginia Tech would win that.

MSU ILB Greg Jones

 Otherwise, I think all the BCS Games are right. I think there will be a lot of close games besides two in my mind, you could probably guess those games. I think in most of these games, the favorites will win. But there are good non-BCS Bowl Games. The best in my mind is Michigan State against Alabama. This game has a lot of good players on both sides of the ball.For Michigan State they have Kirk Cousins, Edwin Baker, Le'Veon Bell and Mark Dell. On defense they have standout Greg Jones. Alabama has their usual suspects in Greg McElroy, Mark Ingram, Trent Richardson, Julio Jones and Dont'a Hightower. This game should be filled with fire power and i think it will be a great game.

 There are many great bowl games this year. Later on. I'll make my prediction for each and every bowl game from BYU against UTEP in the New Mexico Bowl to Auburn against Oregon in The BCS National Championship Game. If you don't believe me on  December 17th I will write an article about every Bowl Game and a preview of each one. Stay tune to see who I think will win in all thirty-five bowl games. I hope you enjoy watching them as much as i will