Here are my quick hit sports thoughts for the moment:
1. This weekend’s game against the Raiders is a huge game for the Niners. I thought KC last week was going to be the game where the Niners established themselves as a team moving in the right direction and not to be taken lightly. Instead, they went out and got killed. After a couple days, I’ve had sufficient time to fully rationalize the loss. First, KC is better than it played in the first couple weeks and had a bye to fully plan and remotivate itself. It was still a bad loss, but not quite as bad as it first seemed. That said, the Raiders are that bad. They aren’t as bad as they looked in the first 2 weeks against 2 of the best Ds in the league, but they are still really, really, really bad. That is a game the Niners have to win. If they don’t it is going to be hard to see how they have made any progress from last year. Gore has to hold onto the ball and the defense has to show up. I’m predicting an ugly game as both teams are still finding themselves with the better 49er team victorious in the end. My buddy Scot is an Oakland fan (apparently there are some still out there in spite of Al Davis’ best efforts) and I’m hoping he takes my offer of a lunch bet on the game.
2. Speaking of big games, how about the Ducks/Bears Pac-10 showdown. That game could end up being 48-42. Both teams have very good offense. Unfortunately for the Bears, the Ducks are better tacklers. The Bears miss a lot of tackles and the Ducks, while they have some issues, especially stopping the run, are a physical D that wraps people up and gets after the QB when they need to. I think both teams score it up, but the Ducks come out ahead. While we’re on the Pac-10, SC should kill Washington this weekend, but it is also the type of game that if USC comes in overconfident, they could leave looking up at the Ducks in the Pac-10 standings. And wouldn’t that be nice….
3. I can’t get into the baseball playoffs at all. There is not a single story line or team that draws me in at all. I haven’t watched a minute of any game so far and I could see this being the first year in many that I don’t watch an entire game at all. Pretty sad. Of course, I do hope the Yankees and Dodgers lose. After today’s surprising Detroit victory, both of those things could happen. Here’s one prediction. The Yankees will not win the world series. To win in the playoffs in baseball, you need pitching and no lineup makes up for that. That’s just not how it works. It is like defense in hoops. No matter how good the O is, you still have to play D in the playoffs. I don’t know who it will be, but it won’t be the Yanks. You can bet on it. And bet lots if you want. Afterall, this isn’t just for entertainment, it is investment advice.
4. Did you see the Contender finale? Snooz. It is a great show and great concept that could end up saving the entire sport if it could catch on a bit more, but the championship fight was a major disappointment. Where was the energy from Forbes? Had he not slept since they stopped taping? I expected much more from him. Sad. Oh well, still enjoyed the show and hope they bring it back. If they are going to match up the Latin Snake with Grady, they better do it fast before Grady is collecting social security. I mean, that fight has to happen though, right? I sort of care about boxing again for the first time since Haggler and then Tyson. I’m pretty pumped about it really.
5. I am soooooooooooooo tired of all the TO going back to Philly hype. What a made up story. Who cares? The Eagles? Doubt it. TO? Maybe, but who cares what he cares about? The media has to find one game every weekend to over hype and they ruin it in the process because the games can never live up to it and after it’s over everyone remembers that it is just week 5 and these games don’t mean that much unless you are a team that should have been a contender and only has one or two wins so far.
6. For those of you who tune in to get a fantasy update on my team (the thousands of you out there know who you are), I lost both games last week. Not only did I lose, but I posted the low score of the weak for my league. But that’s not all, I also lost to my bitter fantasy rival Chitwood. Add that to the Niner’s embarrassing loss and it was a bad week in football for me. Oh yeah and Fumblin Frank coughed up another one to make it 4 games in a row. Ugh. Now I’m 5-3 with an important week ahead of me. Losing both games would drop be down to .500 and leave me worried and stressed about missing the playoffs again and probably take years off my life. I need at least a split. This week, I go up against Adam and my brother Enoch. Only one of us has a significant player on the bye…me…Hassleback. Though after his stink bomb last week it is hard to call Hassleback a significant player. Since I have Alex Smith as my back up, he still is. Smith is going to have to come through for me big for me to have a chance. Fortunately, as luck (and a schedule review when I picked him up) would have it, he plays the Raiders this week so I have a chance. My big dilemma was who to start at RB. I have Gore, Deuce and Caddilac. All 3 have been up and down and all 3 have intriguing matchups. I think I’m going with Gore (for the Raider factor) and Deuce against Tampa as I think they will move the ball and get closer to the endzone than will Tampa and will also be able to play with a lead which always helps the running game. Oh and I also need Leinert to be able to find my man Fitz or my WRs could tank again. Keep your fingers crossed.
7. You know what happened this week? Something fun and exciting. Still can’t guess? NBA teams opened camp this week of course. It may not seem like a big deal to you, but as one of the last few die hard NBA fans who just happens to be completely disinterested in baseball, I’m pumped. This week I sent out about 50 emails to get my fantasy basketball league back up and running for another year. I should right a book someday on how to run a fantasy sports league. It is way more complicated than people think if you want to get it right. But I love it, so I don’t mind. Our draft will take place right before the season starts. Like in football, it is a keeper league. I have to choose between Brand, Marion and CP3 which is a nice dilemma to have. Marion is a lock as he is one of the top 5 players in fantasy hoops. Brand had a huge year and could be just as good and you probably know how much I love Paul who may very well be my favorite player in the NBA. I’m telling you again, he is Jason Kidd with a jumpshot and will end his career as one of the top 10 PGs of all time. That said, I think Brand has slightly more value in fantasy right now because he is so great on blocks which are hard to come by. Unfortunately, most teams have great keepers and the draft will be critical. Since I was actually good last year, I will likely draft near the end of the order. By then, with roughly 30 or so of the best players gone, there will be no obvious choices. I can’t wait.
8. Speaking of hoops, I’m planning to take both of my sons to the Blazer Fan Appreciation day this year. Last year Gibson had a great time and while Griffin isn’t old enough to enjoy it yet, he is old enough to realize that he’s being left behind and I can’t have that. I may even talk my lovely wife into going this year which would be great fun….for me…and the boys…and probably not a whole lot for her which will require copious amounts of cotton candy.
Ok, that’s all I have time for at the moment.
Gore for fantasy MVP
Alex Smith for comeback player of the year
And Roy for ROY!!!
1. This weekend’s game against the Raiders is a huge game for the Niners. I thought KC last week was going to be the game where the Niners established themselves as a team moving in the right direction and not to be taken lightly. Instead, they went out and got killed. After a couple days, I’ve had sufficient time to fully rationalize the loss. First, KC is better than it played in the first couple weeks and had a bye to fully plan and remotivate itself. It was still a bad loss, but not quite as bad as it first seemed. That said, the Raiders are that bad. They aren’t as bad as they looked in the first 2 weeks against 2 of the best Ds in the league, but they are still really, really, really bad. That is a game the Niners have to win. If they don’t it is going to be hard to see how they have made any progress from last year. Gore has to hold onto the ball and the defense has to show up. I’m predicting an ugly game as both teams are still finding themselves with the better 49er team victorious in the end. My buddy Scot is an Oakland fan (apparently there are some still out there in spite of Al Davis’ best efforts) and I’m hoping he takes my offer of a lunch bet on the game.
2. Speaking of big games, how about the Ducks/Bears Pac-10 showdown. That game could end up being 48-42. Both teams have very good offense. Unfortunately for the Bears, the Ducks are better tacklers. The Bears miss a lot of tackles and the Ducks, while they have some issues, especially stopping the run, are a physical D that wraps people up and gets after the QB when they need to. I think both teams score it up, but the Ducks come out ahead. While we’re on the Pac-10, SC should kill Washington this weekend, but it is also the type of game that if USC comes in overconfident, they could leave looking up at the Ducks in the Pac-10 standings. And wouldn’t that be nice….
3. I can’t get into the baseball playoffs at all. There is not a single story line or team that draws me in at all. I haven’t watched a minute of any game so far and I could see this being the first year in many that I don’t watch an entire game at all. Pretty sad. Of course, I do hope the Yankees and Dodgers lose. After today’s surprising Detroit victory, both of those things could happen. Here’s one prediction. The Yankees will not win the world series. To win in the playoffs in baseball, you need pitching and no lineup makes up for that. That’s just not how it works. It is like defense in hoops. No matter how good the O is, you still have to play D in the playoffs. I don’t know who it will be, but it won’t be the Yanks. You can bet on it. And bet lots if you want. Afterall, this isn’t just for entertainment, it is investment advice.
4. Did you see the Contender finale? Snooz. It is a great show and great concept that could end up saving the entire sport if it could catch on a bit more, but the championship fight was a major disappointment. Where was the energy from Forbes? Had he not slept since they stopped taping? I expected much more from him. Sad. Oh well, still enjoyed the show and hope they bring it back. If they are going to match up the Latin Snake with Grady, they better do it fast before Grady is collecting social security. I mean, that fight has to happen though, right? I sort of care about boxing again for the first time since Haggler and then Tyson. I’m pretty pumped about it really.
5. I am soooooooooooooo tired of all the TO going back to Philly hype. What a made up story. Who cares? The Eagles? Doubt it. TO? Maybe, but who cares what he cares about? The media has to find one game every weekend to over hype and they ruin it in the process because the games can never live up to it and after it’s over everyone remembers that it is just week 5 and these games don’t mean that much unless you are a team that should have been a contender and only has one or two wins so far.
6. For those of you who tune in to get a fantasy update on my team (the thousands of you out there know who you are), I lost both games last week. Not only did I lose, but I posted the low score of the weak for my league. But that’s not all, I also lost to my bitter fantasy rival Chitwood. Add that to the Niner’s embarrassing loss and it was a bad week in football for me. Oh yeah and Fumblin Frank coughed up another one to make it 4 games in a row. Ugh. Now I’m 5-3 with an important week ahead of me. Losing both games would drop be down to .500 and leave me worried and stressed about missing the playoffs again and probably take years off my life. I need at least a split. This week, I go up against Adam and my brother Enoch. Only one of us has a significant player on the bye…me…Hassleback. Though after his stink bomb last week it is hard to call Hassleback a significant player. Since I have Alex Smith as my back up, he still is. Smith is going to have to come through for me big for me to have a chance. Fortunately, as luck (and a schedule review when I picked him up) would have it, he plays the Raiders this week so I have a chance. My big dilemma was who to start at RB. I have Gore, Deuce and Caddilac. All 3 have been up and down and all 3 have intriguing matchups. I think I’m going with Gore (for the Raider factor) and Deuce against Tampa as I think they will move the ball and get closer to the endzone than will Tampa and will also be able to play with a lead which always helps the running game. Oh and I also need Leinert to be able to find my man Fitz or my WRs could tank again. Keep your fingers crossed.
7. You know what happened this week? Something fun and exciting. Still can’t guess? NBA teams opened camp this week of course. It may not seem like a big deal to you, but as one of the last few die hard NBA fans who just happens to be completely disinterested in baseball, I’m pumped. This week I sent out about 50 emails to get my fantasy basketball league back up and running for another year. I should right a book someday on how to run a fantasy sports league. It is way more complicated than people think if you want to get it right. But I love it, so I don’t mind. Our draft will take place right before the season starts. Like in football, it is a keeper league. I have to choose between Brand, Marion and CP3 which is a nice dilemma to have. Marion is a lock as he is one of the top 5 players in fantasy hoops. Brand had a huge year and could be just as good and you probably know how much I love Paul who may very well be my favorite player in the NBA. I’m telling you again, he is Jason Kidd with a jumpshot and will end his career as one of the top 10 PGs of all time. That said, I think Brand has slightly more value in fantasy right now because he is so great on blocks which are hard to come by. Unfortunately, most teams have great keepers and the draft will be critical. Since I was actually good last year, I will likely draft near the end of the order. By then, with roughly 30 or so of the best players gone, there will be no obvious choices. I can’t wait.
8. Speaking of hoops, I’m planning to take both of my sons to the Blazer Fan Appreciation day this year. Last year Gibson had a great time and while Griffin isn’t old enough to enjoy it yet, he is old enough to realize that he’s being left behind and I can’t have that. I may even talk my lovely wife into going this year which would be great fun….for me…and the boys…and probably not a whole lot for her which will require copious amounts of cotton candy.
Ok, that’s all I have time for at the moment.
Gore for fantasy MVP
Alex Smith for comeback player of the year
And Roy for ROY!!!
Comments
2. You should tune in to the Tigers. I agree that the playoffs are dishearteningly boring this year, but Detroit might be worth watching. They are channeling the 2002 Angels in so many ways, it is downright bizarre. I know that may not do much for you, as the 2002 Angels probably rank among your most hated teams of all time, for any sport. That said, they have an uber-aggressive lineup that makes up for its lack of power threats and ability to take walks by attacking at the plate and on the base paths. They have a couple of emerging young pitchers playing the John Lackey role. They are on the verge of upsetting the hated Yankees in the ALDS (while Oakland-Minny play in the other series, which is just downright creepy), and - most importantly - they have the New K-Rod in the bullpen. Like Frankie, Joel Zumaya is a witch on the mound, completely owning more experienced and higher paid players. He is so good and throws so hard that he has a chance to join the likes of K-Rod and 1996 Mo Rivera as the few rookie setup men to completely dominate an entire postseason. I'm telling you, tune in for the 102 mph heat.
3. Does the fact that the "rookie you were in love with last year" (Chris Paul) worked out so well for you make you more inclinced to reach for "the rookie you are in love with this year" (Brandon Roy)? I would think so. I dare you to take him in the first round.
1. I agree about Gore and he came through with flying colors. I think I'm comfortable buying my sons matching Frank Gore jerseys
2. I took your advice about the Tigers and tuned in to watch them spank the Yankees and now I'm being drawn back into the baseball playoffs. And what did I find? Some pretty interesting teams still in it. The As have some fun guys to watch and the rebirth of Frank Thomas. Detroit looks built for the post season, St. Louis is going to waste another year with Pujols and the Mets are about to be completely exposed. Yep, it got me back.
3. I might have to. That's the size of the man crush we're dealing with here. I've been emailing with a couple of the guys who follow the Blazers for our local paper about training camp and the word is that Roy barely even missed a shot and that Nate is playing him in 3 different positions mostly to find a way to keep him on the floor. I love him.