Monthly Archives: December 2009

December 31, 2009

Doin Lines Week 17

By chappy81

I made it through my first published season here on Doin Work (minus one week when I was gone). I have to say that I’m pretty happy with the results considering I made myself pick a few here and there just because I knew they’d be on TV and interesting. I found that when I was a more avid gambler, I never really won or lost much, which probably wasn’t a bad thing! This season pretty much reflected that. I went (3-2-1) last week bringing my season record to (45-42-3). Unless this week goes terribly wrong, I should end the regular season above .500. I’m extra scared of this last week of the season, because you never know which playoff teams will rest guys. It’s almost like betting on pre-season games… Obviously the teams that need to win to get in are full throttle, but the teams that are already in and have a limited need to win this week are kind of scary. Kind of like wondering what the new year will bring tomorrow scary. As always the home teams are in bold.

Buffalo (+8) Over Indianapolis

Will Peyton pout on the sideline this week too?

Will Peyton be pouting on the sideline again this week?

With headliners at the franchise quarterback spot, we have a hall of fame duo of Fitzpatrick versus Painter. If you aren’t already extra excited about this one, you might be the type of person that needs to cancel their Antiques Roadshow on the DVR, so you can re-watch this epic battle over and over for weeks to come. I forsee this being a battle for which QB can keep his rating over 50! I know that the Bills have locked up last place in the AFC East, and the Colts have locked up the 1st seed in all of the AFC which might make some think it’s a meaningless game. I guess I’ll agree, but it DOES look like a good game to bet on. The Colts laid down for the Jets last week with a pissed off Peyton strolling the sidelines, so I think the Bills can cover this one. Speaking of the Jets, if they make it in the playoffs, they are the luckiest potential playoff team out there. They play the best team in the league (Colts), who rest guys, and then another playoff team (Bengals), that will likely rest up for their first round match up. Talk about a cake walk schedule at the end of the year against playoff teams! The Bills will be playing all their starters, and whether they play good or not it shouldn’t matter too much since they should easily beat the Colts 2nd team.

Texans (-8) Over New England

The Texans have a shot at making the playoffs for the first time in their franchise history (8 years). I figure they are going to give it everything they have, and pull out victory. They’ve been playing very well as of late, and have given themselves an opportunity to make some history for themselves. Andre Johnson has been nothing short of unstoppable, and pulling in over 450+ yards in the last three games has him atop the league leader board in receiving yards. The Patriots on the other hand, will be a guessing game on what Bellichick will do. He’s been very evasive on what his plan is with his players and their playing time. My guess is he doesn’t  play his starters for that long, and that would mean the Texans could put up huge points on a very weak 2nd defensive unit from New England. I see the Pats going into pre-season mode. If they rest Brady, Moss, and Welker for most of the game, this one shouldn’t be all that close as the Texans run the score up in their home finale.

San Francisco (-7) Over St. Louis

There is no game on the slate I feel more comfortable picking. The Niners desperately want to end the season 8-8. They had a few unlucky breaks this season that kept them from being within reach of a playoff spot, but Singletary won’t let them lay down for the final game of the year. He’s instilled a strong sense of pride, that this organization was lacking since Mariucci left. The Rams desperately want to lock up the #1 overall pick. Tanking this game would give them just that. It’s hard to pick the Rams in any situation, but here it would be plain ridiculous as they seemed to have taken the last seven weeks off after nabbing their sole win of the season. The only buzz in St. Louis is: What’s up with Holliday? Did the Cards sign him yet? The 49ers do have a lot of weapons aside from Frank Gore now. Crabtree and Davis are good complements to Gore, and have shown that they can efficiently work within the passing game. Problem for them is Alex Smith isn’t the answer at QB. I think even if they still only had Gore and Patrick Willis, they could cover the spread without breaking a sweat. Mark this as a lock on your gambling slate!

Chicago (-3) Detroit

Speaking of not messing with draft pick chances, why wouldn’t the Lions lay down for one more game to secure the #2 pick in next years’ draft? I tried to answer this question, and figured that since there isn’t one reasonable answer, this has to be a safe pick. The Bears pretty much sucked for most of the year, whether it was Cutler, injuries, or bad coaching they looked like cubs not bears more often than not. Cutler has a chance to hit 30 interceptions for the season if he can throw four this week, but I think they’ll end this year on a high note as much as I don’t want to see it. A two game winning streak might give them a little confidence going into next year. I’ve tried to look at any possible bright side for them to this season, and there aren’t many. Last week, when they looked pretty good against the Vikings most likely was, their brightest moment of the year. It also gave me hope that the Vikings could get knocked out of the playoffs sooner than later, and end all of the Favre talks for a few months, until he decides if he wants to keep playing! I could never see Detroit beating the Vikes, so the Bears must be halfway decent. This is my 2nd favorite pick of the week!

Oakland (+10.5) Over Baltimore

The Charlie Frye era in Oakland hasn’t been anything to write home about. I hope this era will mercifully end at the conclusion of this season. He played bad last week including 3 interceptions against a pretty bad Cleveland Browns team, but the Raiders play surprisingly better at home, and keep it close. Last season they ended Tampa Bay’s playoff hopes with an upset victory that had people hoping that Jamarcus had finally taken the next step. Sadly Raider Nation was given some false hope, and he regressed into oblivion. Frye did have a bright spot last week as he threw for 333 yards. If he can keep from throwing picks in the redzone, they should at least cover the spread. Hopefully they’ll come back with a heavy dose of Michael Bush, since he looks like their best running back. Baltimore’s playoff hopes hinge on a few things happening, but they need this win to get in. I think they might be watching what is happening in the other games more than the one they are in, and get upset. I’m not sure why, but I just don’t see why everybody likes Flacco so much. He’s more hot and cold than a bi-polar Texan without his gun. There’s always at least one WTF kind of upset game each week, and I’m predicting it will be this one!

Tennessee (-4.5) Over Seattle

The Titans played really bad against SD, or it could be that the Chargers ARE that good. I’m thinking that was the case, so there’s no reason not to pick them this week. I’m sure they’d love to end the year at 8-8 giving them plenty of hope for next season in the rejuvenated Vince Young era. Not relying on old man Collins to lead the way can only do wonders for this team. I see Chris Johnson getting his 128 rushing yards this week to get to 2,000 rushing yards on the season. I’m betting he will break a couple 50+ yard runs, that is unless, the endzone is too close when he breaks them! The Seahawks are a team that regresses each week, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that they’ll get blown out. Forsett still isn’t getting enough touches! When will this change? I guess not for this season, since they’ve all but mailed it in. Watching them play it’s amazing that they’ve even won 5 games this year. Julius Jones is not as good a play maker as Justin Forsett, get it right over there Jim Mora Jr.

Philadelphia (+3) Over Dallas

I’m not sure why, but lately I’ve become somewhat of an Eagles fan. Maybe it’s because they are on Fox every week or it might have something to do with one of my favorite college players (Desean Jackson) coming into his own in Philly. He’s been making a huge difference every time he gets the ball. Mcnabb looks like he’s moving into the been there done that mode, which he has, and has to be pretty comfortable playing that role by now. He also looks like he loves his latest crop of offensive weapons that he’s been given. Celek has even been making huge strides, and even though Mcnabb couldn’t quite make good on his promise of getting him into the pro bowl, Celek still had a great season either way. I keep waiting for Dallas to fall apart at the hinges, but it keeps not happening! It’s that empty feeling of hoping that your getting something for Xmas, but in the end you don’t get it. That’s how I feel every time I watch the Cowboys hoping for a loss. Maybe it’s more rooting for Romo to fail. Maybe it’s disliking Jerry Jones. It’s just fun to them fail I guess. I’m sure both these teams will be playing everybody, so if they happen to meet in the playoffs they will have home field over the other team. Let’s hope Romo fumbles another field goal attempt!

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December 31, 2009

Sometimes Small Victories Keep Us Warriors Fans Content

By chappy81

On the heals of beating the Celtics, the Warriors battled tough with the Lakers in a much closer than expected contest yesterday in the second portion of their back to back. It was good to see the Warriors playing with a mostly healthy lineup for a change. It looks like the bigs ARE making a difference in the games so far. I guess it’s a given that starting Radmanvic and Maggette at the 4 and 5 isn’t a winning combo, but with Biendris and Turiaf now back, we seemed to have picked up the confidence level. Randolph even looks rejuvenated as he has gone back to playing the 4 instead of the 5. Even throwing in a little point forward action from time to time. Ronny Turiaf sent the above Kobe dunk back last night, which got me pretty fired up! I guess it’s just nice to finally see some interior defense after giving up layups and dunks all year to EVERY team! Cali4Dre said that I shouldn’t put the clip up unless I showed the other 50 shots he didn’t block, but every victory over Kobe or the Lakers is a good sweet one, and this was no different! Who cares what the final outcome was, we aren’t going anywhere this year anyways…

3 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 30, 2009

State of the Athletics’ Nation

By mceezy

The Classic A's fan paradox: 1/2 maybe this is our year, 1/2 wake me up when the season's over.

The turn of the decade is nearing us, and the Oakland Athletics are in a different position than they were in last year. Around this time a year ago, the A’s had made a blockbuster deal to acquire Jack Parkman Matt Holliday. This move had A’s fans excited that their team had taken the express lane on the rebuilding highway. Gone were future centerpieces Carlos Gonzalez, Huston Street, and Greg Smith, and the arrival of Matt Holliday lead to the signings of veterans Jason Giambi, Nomar Garciaparra, and Orlando Cabrera. The moves had the A’s poised to challenge for the division crown, just two seasons after the rebuilding process had begun. Well, things obviously didn’t work out as planned, so we’re back to square one. Let’s take a look at the moves the A’s have made so far this offseason.

Signed Dallas McPherson – This was the first noteworthy move of the offseason for Oakland, as the A’s added some depth at Third Base, where the incumbent has become an enigma after injuries have sidelined Eric Chavez for a good portion of the last three or four years. The only real 3B prospect in the farm system, Brett Wallace, wasn’t projected to stick at third, but we’ll get to that later. The A’s took a flier on McPherson, who once was considered a top prospect. However, numerous injuries, mainly to his back, have derailed his career somewhat. Interesting that GM Billy Beane went after a third basemen whose biggest downside is his back. Hmm, thought we already were set there. Nonetheless, McPherson should play a key role in returning to the championship. The AAA championship that is.

Traded for Jake Fox and Aaron Miles – The A’s didn’t give up much in this deal. Relief pitcher Jeff Gray dominated AAA as a closer, but for some reason, never really fit in with the big league team’s plans. Outfielder Matt Spencer has produced above expectations since being acquired in the Joe Blanton deal, but never really figured to be a major league prospect. So, to get players with big league experience, such as Fox and Miles seems like a precursor to more short-term moves. The A’s got a power hitting third baseman, who, surprise, has been called a liability defensively at third. But, no one questions Fox’s power, which is the primary reason the A’s acquired him. He should see more time at DH or OF than 3B while wearing the green and gold. Miles, meanwhile, was considered a throw-in from the Cubs, since he apparently turned out to be a clubhouse cancer. Players with spotted pasts always seem to clean up their act in Oakland, largely because they’re out of the spotlight. Since the middle infield basically consists of Mark Ellis and a handful of AAAA players, such as Cliff Pennington and Gregorio Petit, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Miles play a bigger role than Fox when the season gets underway.

Released Santiago Casilla – One of my favorite A’s of the last few years, Casilla threw heat and for the most part was largely effective. He lacked control at times, however, and he always seemed liable to give up the big hit. He even closed some games out nicely when called upon. Casilla, like many A’s, was on and off the shelf with injuries, but proved to be a key asset in the bullpen. The A’s have no shortage of depth in the bullpen, so he became expendable. I have little doubt that Casilla will catch on elsewhere and play a big role as a setup man.

Declined to Offer a Contract to Jack Cust – This might be the biggest move of the A’s offseason. The Jack Attack was a mainstay in the A’s lineup, leading the team in home runs    each of the last three season. His “Custian” bombs won over many A’s fans, but his strikeouts and defensive shortcomings turned off the rest. He had a love/hate following from the Oakland faithful, and many, including yours truly, are happy to see him go. Sure, his power was nice, but the A’s are forming a new identity as a speedy, defensive team. Cust, believe it or not, is neither. There is, however, still a chance the A’s could bring him back at a reduced rate, but at this time, Cust is out of the picture.

Traded Brett Wallace for Michael Taylor – In case you forgot, Wallace was the key piece in the deal that sent Holliday to St. Louis. He was considered one of the best third base prospects in baseball. Though his defensive abilities there were question, the A’s insisted they would keep him at third, as opposed to moving him to first. They kept their promise, but clearly weren’t sold on him sticking at the position. Once Toronto acquired Taylor from Philadelphia in the Roy Halladay deal, they promptly sent him to Oakland in exchange for Wallace. Taylor seems like a slight upgrade skills-wise, but he comes in at a position of strength (in numbers at least) for the A’s. I see this deal working out well for the A’s, but fear that Wallace will turn into the Blue Jays’ franchise third baseman in the coming years.

Signed Coco Crisp – This deal seemed like it was years in the making. Over the last two full seasons, we’ve heard Crisp’s name circled around the rumor mill as a potential trade target for Beane. Now that he was a free agent, the A’s were able to get him for a mere $5.5 million, instead of giving up precious prospects. What’s interesting is he was signed for the same, if not more money than they would’ve had to shell out for Cust. Instead, they’re getting a smaller, faster, better defensive player. You know, basically like another Rajai Davis. Wait, they still have Davis don’t they? Well, perhaps there are more moves in the making, but the A’s now have four quality outfielders in Crisp, Davis, Ryan Sweeney, and Scott Hairston. By the way, I use the term “quality” loosely. I just mean they’re probably too good to spend any time in Sacramento. Anyway, at this point, many figure Hairston to be the odd man out, but I still wouldn’t surprised to see Davis moved. As it stands, Crisp would take over center field, with Davis moving to left, and Sweeney staying put in right field. While not very intimidating on the offensive end, the A’s would go into the season with one of its best defensive outfields in club history.

Re-Signed Justin Duchscherer – This move was a no-brainer, just as long as you can wipe last season out of your memory. The Duke was coming off his second all-star appearance, and was penciled in as the staff ace, as he was really the only starter who had significant big league experience. Offseason surgery, however, delayed his start to the season. By the time he was ready to play physically, he had dug such a deep mental hole, that the only K’s he was throwing were to his therapist. The contract he got was a Billy Beane special, meaning it was largely incentive based. Those deals have tended to work out well for the A’s in recent memory – see Frank Thomas. Duke’s base salary is $2 million, but incentives can balloon it to upwards of $3.5 million. This signing doesn’t look too notable on paper, but if we get the old Duke back, that’s a huge addition.

This guy lost his banjo. If you find it, please return it to him.

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December 28, 2009

The Best and Worst of the Double O Decade in Sports

By chappy81

Conan told us what to expect in the year 2000

It has been one wild decade full of fraud, juicers, womanizers, gamblers, cheaters, dopers, racists, and pretty much everything else in between. I’m not sure what to make of this decade, but the sports world has never been present more in our society. The economic hardships will undoubtedly change the landscape in the next decade as teams and leagues face bankruptcies and lockouts. Maybe we can blame the easy access of the internet/blogoshpere, and TMZ for coming along and showing us everything that is wrong with the athlete’s we adore making every one of their moves into a Michael Jackson type fiasco. It’s tough to see how diluted and foggy our perception of sports and athletes has become as the bad seemed to heavily outweigh the good. Many great things happened over the decade which kept us happy content after having to hear all the wild buzz on the athlete’s personal lives. Since nobody likes to listen or watch things about how the NBA Cares and United Way commercials for the NFL, we are stuck hearing the controversies that plague our sports including wild semi sports related stories like the Erin Andrews reverse peephole video. Here’s what stood out the most on what I liked and disliked in the world of sports! Continue reading

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December 27, 2009

Why I’m Done With XBox

By mceezy

I know this has little or nothing to do with sports, but I need to vent and this is my forum. Over the last 10 years, I’ve been an avid XBox user and supporter. When all my playstation friends questioned my allegiance, I had no reasons to back it up. I just liked it better. But today, I’m officially retiring from the XBox world. It’s obvious that they don’t care, but perhaps you will, as you’re probably in the same boat if you’ve ever owned an XBox. There’s definitely no shortage of bad press out there along these same lines, however if anyone can manipulate the search results to make those harder to find, it’s Microsoft. I’d even go so far as to guess that Google does it for them. Anyway, here’s the series of events that lead up to my resolution.

  1. One year after purchase, my console stops working and the working green lights are replaced with scary red ones. I go online for some support, and the message is basically “The red lights are inevitable. Without fail (for lack of a better word) the console breaks after a given time. Fortunately, it was still under warranty, so I got it “repaired” free of charge. Although, I had to wait a few weeks to get my “new” console returned.
  2. Upon signing up for XBox Live, I’m offered a free month of Netflix service. However, within 2 weeks, I’m charged for the first month of service. Oddly enough, the more I deal with XBox support, the less I blame Netflix for this misleading offer.
  3. I sign up for a 1 month XBox Live membership with the card I received to make up for the repair I needed. After a couple weeks, I’m impressed with the service and purchase a 3 month subscription. It says it will just add on to the end of my current subscription. Instead, my new expiration date is exactly three months from the date I redeemed my new card, as opposed to the final date of my existing membership. I really wanted to continue with my service, but I wanted to make sure I got those extra two weeks back that I paid for. I called support, explained that I fully intended on extending my membership, but wanted to get those two weeks back first. The dickhead on the phone said he wanted to explain why it was like that but insisted on my answering ONE specific security question. He asked me what my grandfather’s occupation is. I explained to him that my grandfather died when I was six, and I had no idea what he does for work in the afterlife, therefore, there is no way I would’ve chosen a response to that question. I told him I’d be happy to provide any other information about my account. You know, relevant stuff. He stuck to his guns, insisting on me telling him what my deceased grandfather does for a “living.” Trying to get passed this nonsense, I tried to tell him I simply wanted to extend my membership, but wanted those two weeks back before I could continue with my service. He didn’t budge, and was happy letting me hang up the line even after I told him this had discouraged me from continuing with the service. I guess they lost that sale right?
  4. WRONG. A couple weeks later I noticed my credit card had been charged for another month of service. What’s odd is I never used my credit card for Live service. I was using prepaid cards. The only thing I used my credit card for was to purchase Points. Somehow they used that information and enrolled me in automatic payments. When I called, they told me to sign into my XBox Live account and it shows where automatic payments were set up. That’s great and all, but I never did that. They refused to reverse the charges, so I had to resort to my bank. What’s worse is the guy never took to the time to show me where I could cancel automatic payments – something I had to discover on my own after they charged me again for two more months.
  5. Couple weeks later, my console stops displaying on my TV screen. I do everything listed in the customer support section to no avail. I’m basically told I have a faulty A/V cable and need a new one. A/V Cable = $40
  6. Fast forward to today. I plug in my new A/V Cable and I have sound! But, no picture. I try it on my other TV and get nothing. Since I have a brand new cable, I go back to the support page and try everything they suggest. When that doesn’t work, I call tech support. Dickhead #2 wastes 10 minutes asking me questions like “is my tv turned on” and “are the components plugged in.” Now, trust me, as much as I wanted to be a dick, I understood that they had to ask these questions first, so I complied. Ultimately he told me I’d have to pay another $100 – $120 if I wanted to request the repair over the phone with him – and send it in yet again, and wait another month or so to get it back. I expressed my frustration with the ongoing issues and told him this was pretty much the last straw. I’d blindly supported XBox for 10 years but I just didn’t feel like I was getting anything in return. I was blown away by the complete disregard for customer retention. He let me walk.

In conclusion, XBox has taken over the number one spot on my shitlist right above Comcast. I’m going to make one last ditch effort to take apart my console to see if I can make it work. When that fails, I’m going to take my old friend out on the balcony and liberate myself by sending crashing violently to the ground. I plan to capture it on video as well. I’ll post it here if and when it comes to that. Anyone else have some ridiculous experiences with XBox they’d like to share?

3 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in News, Random, video games

December 26, 2009

More Fun With Tiger

By chappy81

Yeah, I know that you’ve probably heard millions of Tiger jokes by now, but at our annual Christmas Eve party I was shown this Billy Dee Williams clip from the Jimmy Kimmel show that was pretty funny! If there’s one thing Tiger has given us for the holidays, it is plenty of new jokes and skits from all the great comedians out there. I guess it’s a little too late to get this fabulous plate set and meat clever for Christmas, but it would be a solid birthday gift that keeps on giving! Happy Holidays!

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December 25, 2009

Lakers (and Fans) Come Unwrapped

By mceezy

If NBA teams were publicly traded companies on the stock market, shares of LAL would be plummeting right now. It’s easy to pile on the Lakers after a pathetic showing like the one they had today, but let’s face it, we don’t get those opportunities very often. Keeping it in perspective, the Lake Show will surely rattle off plenty more wins this season and still be a force in the postseason. Today, however, we saw a glimpse of just how bad they can be. Perhaps they were caught up in the Season of Giving, because they all but giftwrapped that victory for the Cavs. The trainwreck we all witnessed today was more than just poor play. We also saw the team, and even the fans, self-destruct. Kobe Bryant broke his own record for crying in one game, Lamar Odom got thrown out for no reason, Derek Fisher had a Fisheresque cheap shot or two on Mo Williams, and even the fans showed their lack of appreciation by throwing their Christmas gifts on the floor. Continue reading

1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 25, 2009

Did the Kings Have Their Best Draft Ever?

By chappy81

Derrick Rose trails the play wondering if Tyreke is indeed the best guard out of Memphis

We all know about Tyreke, and how he’s been nothing short of spectacular in his short NBA career. He made a few more believers when he lead the Kings from a 35 point deficit to beat the Bulls. MCeezy has more than covered him on our blog, as he looks to be a lock for the ROY award if he continues to put up the numbers he currently has, and continues to impress by putting up the seemingly effortless average of 20, 5, and 5. He is obviously their future, and probably their best draft pick in a long while for Sacramento. Maybe they were lucky to not get the first pick and draft rights to Blake Griffen who hasn’t played a single game this year. The reason for this post is mainly because of their 2nd choice in this year’s draft, Omri Casspi, who has been surprisingly good too. I’ve seen him in the top five of most rookie of the year polls, which shows you how great this draft was for Sacramento. He was the 23rd overall pick, and has made it into the starting lineup, maybe due to injuries and bad/inconsistent play by others, but still a starter nonetheless. Continue reading

5 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 24, 2009

Brass Bonanza!!!

By mceezy

Presenting the greatest hockey song EVER. Brass Bonanza, the theme song of the former Hartford Whalers, as made famous in NHL 94 on Sega Genesis. Even though the Whalers are dead, the Bonanza lives on!!!

4 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Random, Sports

December 24, 2009

Doin Lines Week 16

By chappy81

Last week left much to be desired from my picks. Going (2-3-1) is like watching the Raiders or 49ers play, they look good for a few plays, but by the end we usually met with disappointment because of our overpaid 1st round quarterbacks. I’m still happy that I’ve stayed over .500 on the year, because I’ve never kept track for a full season, and am now starting to know why I never really win or lose much on betting on sports. I’m (42-40-2) on the year, so hopefully I can finish out this season strong! As always the home teams are in bold.

San Diego (-3) Over Tennessee

Could Santa bring me two presents this year? A Lakers loss coupled with a Chargers loss would make my sporting Christmas! Probably not. I think the Titans are a solid squad, but the Chargers don’t do a whole lot of charitable work this time of year. They are an amazing 17-0 in December with Rivers at the helm. Man, that was tough to write, since there might not be another guy in the league I sports-hate more. I guess I’m still completely shocked that Norv hasn’t blown a late game decision. When will it come!?! I doubt it will this week, since they would like to give themselves a Merry Christmas by earning that first round bye as the #2 seed. I hope I’m wrong and Chris Johnson puts up 270 rushing yards to get him to 2,000 on the year, and helps Vince go to 8-1 as a starter on the season. Either way this should be a fun game to watch, and hopefully Santa will bring the Bolts a lump of coal!

Green Bay (-14) Over Seattle

Last week was a fluke at least I think it was. The Pack lost a tough road game to the Steelers in a game that Big Ben set career game records that I don’t see him beating anytime soon. I think after being thoroughly outplayed the Packers D will step it up this weekend against a Seahawks team that has regressed, even with very low expectations going into the season. I know that they are waiting to get out there and re-establish everything that was going right before their meeting with Pittsburgh. Why do the Seahawks keep giving the ball to a uninspiring Julies Jones over a budding star in the wings in Justin Forsett is beyond me. I guess Jim Mora Jr. is as clueless as we all thought he was. If Green Bay can’t roll up the score on this terrible Seattle team at home, then they don’t deserve to make the playoffs.

Cincinnati (-13.5) Over Kansas City

I guess I was wrong last week. Cincy wasn’t overly emotional to hang with SD. I think I make the outside factors out to be more than they really were. Thinking back to the worst times in my life, I guess it didn’t really affect my work all that much. Maybe I might not have wanted to be there, but I still did what I needed to do just like the Bengals performance. I think KC officially gave up on this year about week 12. They decided to start just letting teams score at will. Three of their last four opponents have hit the 40+ point mark, and the only game that was remotely close was against the lowly Bills where they still lost by 6 at home. I can proudly say that the Raiders aren’t the worst team in the division for once! I was happy to see the NFL didn’t fine any of the players that paid tribute to the fallen Chris Henry. If they had, the NFL would get three lumps of coal in their stocking from Chad himself! Continue reading

7 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 23, 2009

Cross Country Snowboarding

By mceezy

Not sure what these guys are smoking up the mountain there in Tahoe, but they created a new, umm, sport. I don’t know if they’re serious or not, but either way, they produced a pretty funny video here. I doubt I’ll ever try Nordic Snowboarding, out of fear of getting “skootch leg.”

5 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Comedy, Sports

December 23, 2009

NorCal Sports Tonight

By mceezy

There are some pretty big games for Northern California teams tonight, starting with the Pointsettia Bowl, where Cal will face off against #23 Utah.

Pointsettia Bowl – California vs. #23 Utah. 5:00pm PST

Utah is the better team, finishing the season at 9-3. Their 3 losses came to good teams; Oregon, BYU, and TCU. Cal, on the other hand, is without superstar running back, Javhid Best, but Shane Vereen has filled in pretty nicely since Best went down with a back injury. Vereen ran for over 400 yards in his last three games, and Utah doesn’t have the best run defense, so the Golden Bears should at least be able to move the ball, which should keep them in the game.

St. Mary’s vs. USC. 2:00pm PST

USC was struggling, losing three straight, before winning their next four, including a blowout of #9 Tennessee. St. Mary’s, meanwhile, is off to an impressive 10-1 start, but they’re lacking some defining wins over quality programs. They do have a win over Oregon in Eugene, but beating the Trojans would be huge for their NCAA Tournament resume.

Sacramento Kings vs. Lebron James. 7:00pm PST

The Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of a four game roadtrip that concludes with their Christmas Day showdown with the Lakers. Tonight, though, they make a stop in Sacramento to take on Tyreke Evans and the surprising Kings. Sacramento is one game under .500 at 13-14, already within three wins of last seasons total. It should be close to a full house with Lebron in the building, so expect to see another throwback, loud Arco Arena.

University of San Francisco vs. CSU-Bakersfield. 5:00pm PST

Okay, so this isn’t really a big game at all, but the Dons have lost 8 of their last 9, and they travel to Seattle to take on #22 Washington on Sunday. They’ll need to handily defeat the Road Runners of Cal State Bakersfield (1-8) if they’re going to have any momentum whatsoever going into West Coast Conference Play.


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December 22, 2009

Oakland 49ers?

By mceezy

We hear about the Raiders moving back to LA. We hear about the 49ers moving to Santa Clara. We hear about the A’s moving to San Jose. Here’s one you probably haven’t heard. The 49ers have revealed a potential interest in moving to *gasp* Oakland? That’s right, the more spacious side of the Bay has a few things the Southeast corner of San Francisco does not; namely multiple freeways and BART access. Like all these discussed moves, however, the Niners to Oakland is purely talk at this point. If the scenario were to evolve, we’d likely see the Raiders and 49ers sharing a stadium, like the Giants and Jets in New Jersey. What’d be interesting is how many San Francisco and Marin County fans would make the trek to the East Bay. I’ve met more my than my share of folks who avoid Oakland like the plague. The ironic part is, in my opinion, Candlestick Park is in a far worse location than the Oakland Coliseum. The only SILVER lining to all of this is the possibility of seeing a new stadium built in Northern California, since two teams may just be enough to get it done. Let’s just hope the A’s don’t get any ideas about trying to share a ballpark with the Giants!

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December 22, 2009

Roy Halladay Pitches One Last Complete Game For Toronto

By mceezy

No, this one didn’t come from the mound of the Rogers Centre. The recently traded Roy Halladay took out a full page ad in the Toronto Sun today, thanking the Blue Jays organization and the fans of Toronto for all their support during his 15 years north of the border. Halladay has flown relatively under the radar up in Canada, but nonetheless you still never hear anything bad about the guy. The pitcher best known in Major League Baseball for his ability to finish what he starts, Doc closed out his Toronto chapter in classy fashion. Blue Jay fans have had a lot to be frustrated with over the years, but it’s moments like these that make you remember why you stick with your team during the down years. Give credit to Halladay for recognizing the importance of this. Here’s an image of the letter…

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December 21, 2009

Will The Lakers Play the Grinch on Christmas Day?

By chappy81

I guess it’s much like having the Lyons and Cowboys on Thanksgiving, that the Lakers have to be on prime time for Christmas. It’s the perfect amount of time to fill in the void between opening presents and dinner on Christmas day. I for one, have seen more Lakers basketball than I ever wanted to living in Southern California. I’ll admit that I’m not the biggest on celebrating Christmas probably because I’m past the years when I found it fun, and now I have became the type of adult that feels like it’s more like of a hassle than fun. Every year I find myself watching the Lakers win on Christmas marking the ending of celebratory part of the day. It’s not enough that we have to see them get call after call during games all season and in the playoffs, but the Stern lead league gives them the Christmas premier match up too. It gets old fast to the rest of us non-Laker fans… Continue reading

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