Please join the ESPN tournament challenge group. The Poop, as always. Vote early and often. Do one for the kiddies, one for the wife, one for the family dog.
Minka Kelly, the hottest woman alive, absolutely killing it in another photo shoot, this one from GQ.
This is all to promote her newest movie, "The Roommate" co-starring Leighton Meister. It's an updated, college version of "Single White Female" only with hotter chicks.
The strange thing is, Meester who plays second fiddle to Blake Lively on "Gossip Girl" now plays the less pretty friend of Minka. But in a strange way she kind of looks like her. If this works out she could play her psycho sister in the next movie.
During a recent girls' high school basketball game in Utah Christian Heritage High beat West Ridge Academy 108-3. This called up the usual questions of sportsmanship, self-esteem, competitiveness and the wussification of America. But the one thing no one is talking about is which is the worst part, allowing 108 points in a 24 minute (I think) game, or scoring only 3.
I think the answer has to be scoring only 3. I'm sure there was a great physical difference between the two teams, which made it impossible to stop them on defense. But unless the ball got stolen everytime and every shot was blocked, they should have been able to make at least two baskets. Let's say they only get 10 shots off the entire game. They only needed to make 2 of them to get 4 points. Scoring only 3 points, blame yourself.
Ohio Congressman and former Presidential Candidate Dennis Kucinich is suing a Congressional cafeteria for $150,000. Three years ago Kucinich ate a sandwich and bit down on an olive which still contained a pit. Kucinich says he suffered serious dental problems as a result, and according to his lawsuit "a loss of enjoyment." Throw out the amount he's seeking, because you always ask for way more than reasonably should be awarded, fully expecting the judgment to be reduced. Consider only the merits of his claim. And forget the loss of enjoyment too, though I guess it makes sense, you would enjoy food and life a lot less if you had a broken tooth requiring serious oral surgery to repair. Focus only on his claim: he expected everything in his sandwich to be easily edible. I agree with him. No one should put a olive with a pit in a sandwich, that's negligence on the part of the cafeteria's food preparers. And he suffered actual damages as a result of that improperly prepared sandwich. I say this is a legitimate lawsuit.
Today I said good-bye to an old friend. A friend I have spent lots of time with. A friend who was with me when I got in a bad accident on Christmas Day. A friend who drove me and my new bride home from our wedding. A friend who was with me when I drove around the block trying to get Chase to stop crying. A friend who has seen both my kids and my dog when they were tiny little babies. A friend who has been with me for nearly 10 years and more than 70,000 miles.
A long time ago we asked Would You Bang Sarah Palin?, last night Tracy Morgan answered. Walking by the set of the TNT pregame show before the Knicks-Heat game, Kenny and Charles stopped him to ask him an important question.
We've all had moments of uncontrollable laughter, where you just can't stop laughing no matter what. Most of us aren't on TV when it happens to us though. A recent incident at work (which I can't post video of due to google alerts) reminded me of the king of the on-air meltdown, Charley Steiner.
Notice how he touched his right ear every time? What was he doing? Signaling to his wife and kids? Telling the director to go to break?
Btw, I'm pretty sure the reason he was laughing at Mitch Green is because they played the soundbite of him saying of Mike Tyson "like a sissy, a homo, he ran."
"Me and Mrs. Jones" - Billy Paul One of the most soulful songs of all time. You can really feel his pain. And you can't go wrong with the combination of Billy and Paul.
Tradition! The NFL couldn’t have planned a better matchup of two storied franchises to play in the Super Bowl. Both the Packers and Steelers have rich traditions, loyal fan bases and small markets. And their combined 9 Super Bowl titles is the most of any two teams to ever meet in a Super Bowl. None of that will matter once the game starts, but the similarities will continue. Both teams have good quarterbacks, fast wide receivers and aggressive defenses led by long-haired maniacs. The early spread of Packers by 2 ½ indicates oddsmakers think as I do. This is going to be a close, exciting game along the lines of some great Super Bowls we’ve seen in the past 10 years.
Where Did the Jets Go Wrong? A lot of hand-wringing this week about strategic calls by Rex Ryan and Brian Schottenheimer on the 4th quarter drive which led to a goal line stop. Without the benefit of hindsight I said the Jets should have kicked the field goal instead of going for it on 4th and 1 from the 20. But once they got to the 1, they needed to keep going even on 4th down, but I too disagree with the play calling. But one of the benefits of going for it so close to the goal line is, even if you miss, you put the other team in a very disadvantageous position. And that’s exactly what happened. Sure, they missed, but they forced a safety and after the free kick drove for a touchdown. So I don’t think the mistakes on that previous drive really cost them. They lost the game in the first half. And it had slammed shut on them when the Steelers were aggressive late in the game and completed two big passes when many teams would have just run into the line.
Jim Nantz is Gay…and Wrong Jim Nantz gently suggested the Jets should have gone for 2 on their final touchdown, to make the game 24-20 instead of 24-19. He is blatantly wrong. First of all there was very little time left so his scenario of Jets stopping the Steelers, scoring a touchdown and then giving up a field goal seems unlikely. More plausible, Jets miss the 2, trail 24-18, give up a field goal and have no chance. Extend the game, don’t chase points, and use it only as a last resort. Those are the rules of 2-point conversions.
Caleb Who? A valiant effort by the Chicago Bears behind 3rd string quarterback Caleb Haine to score 2 touchdowns (with a little help from passive Packers defense) and be in position to tie the game late. The big story in this game of course was Jay Cutler not playing in the second half. No one really knows how injured he was. If he thought he was too injured and someone else could do a better job, then maybe he made the right decision to give way to Haine. But because it’s only a ligament sprain, because things weren’t going his way and because he has a reputation for being a petulant prima donna, no one is giving him the benefit of the doubt.
Now the Whole Franchise is in Disarray The Bears should be celebrating a season in which they won their division and hosted the NFC Championship game. They made major strides on offense late in the season, to go with an already strong defense. And had they lost this game under normal circumstances, hopes could be high for next season. Instead, Bears fans, coaches and players may never be able to trust their quarterback again. I think the Bears are going to trade Cutler in the offseason. To the Redskins for the 10th pick in the draft, which could very well be Cam Newton.
Well I am limping to the finish, three straight missed best bets and the games are even harder this week.
PITTSBURGH -3 1/2 new york jets I flip-flopped on this game during the middle of the week for a few reasons. First of all, too many people are loving the Jets. Second, it seems the Jets made last week's game against the Patriots their Super Bowl. They will need the emotion Bart Scott had in the postgame interview, for 60 minutes against the Steelers. But the biggest reason I changed my mind is because I don't trust Mark Sanchez against a defense as strong and aggressive as the Steelers. But if the Jets win it'll be because of injuries on the Steelers offensive line.
BEST BET CHICAGO +3 1/2 green bay This is once again a pick against common convention. I can't see why everyone is picking the Packers in this one. Yes, Aaron Rodgers is playing great right now, but I think Jay Cutler is doing pretty well. The Bears will have to protect him though, and they will need to establish some kind of running game. But I really love the 3 and a half points here and I haven't lost with a home underdog all season. Btw, the Redskins beat both of these teams in the regular season.
Last week: 2-2 (1 point) Season: 49-44 (50 points) Best Bets: 0-1 (10-9) Home Favorites: 2-2 (19-17) Home Underdogs: 0-0 (2-0) Road Favorites: 0-0 (17-18) Road Underdogs: 0-0 (11-9)
This woman actually gives me a good idea. I am going to pretend to be texting while walking through the mall, and fall in the fountain. Except when I do it, I'm going to grab a handful of change.
The woman is angry at mall security for posting the video online. Understandable. She is also angry they laughed at her instead of helping her. Understandable, on the part of mall security. And now she is considering a lawsuit because she became an international laughing stock as a result of the video being leaked. That is going too far. And it earns Cathy Cruz Marrero the oversensitive babies and frivolous lawsuit tags.
"I Don't Want to Go" - Freddie Jackson So nice to see this guy back. It's been 20 years since he rocked it with hits like "Rock Me Tonight" and "You Are my Lady." He looks a lot different (skinnier) and sounds different (like Ronald Isley or something) but he's still awesome.
Look Who’s Talking Now The Jets backed up all their trash talk by beating New England 28-21 in New England. The key was the pressure the Jets were able to get on Tom Brady. It wasn’t only the 5 sacks, it just seemed like they really rattled him. Even in situations where the Jets didn’t get pressure on him, he still wasn’t able to hit the big play. Revis of course was Revis, but Cromartie didn’t get burned as they thought he would. The Jets meanwhile were able to ride a very balanced offense to the victory. While Mark Sanchez will get (and deserve) a lot of credit he owes his receivers a debt of gratitude. Great plays from Santonio Holmes (sick catch in the corner) and Jerricho Cotchery (hurdle along the sidelines) helped Sanchez look a lot better.
This Isn't Nazi Germany Bill Belichick is a hardass. He has his way, and he rigorously sticks to it. And of course he thinks his way is best. And he was willing to hurt his team in a playoff game to prove his tight-lipped policy is superior to Rex Ryan’s open mouth. He benched Wes Welker for the start of the game because of his pre-game press conference.
I thought that was quite funny, “foot soldiers,” “quick feet,” and “toe in the water.” Cheesy puns but under the circumstances quite funny.
My Favorite Moment of the Weekend Bears cornerback Charles "Peanut" Tillman's self-inflicted punishment after dropping a sure interception. Tillman gets down and gives me 20 push-ups, like Willie Mays Hayes.
The Bears Don't Suck All season long I have derided the Bears as being a bad team that got lucky. This assumption was based on the controversial win over the Lions in Week 1, another win over the Cowboys in week 2 in which the offensive line got destroyed, the offfensive line getting historically demolished against the Giants, and a turnover laden mess against the Redskins. Somehow, some way the offensive line improved, Jay Cutler stopped taking bad chances and the defense reasserted itself as a championship caliber unit. Now the Bears are hosting the NFC championship game.
I Don't Believe in Momentum, But... The interception return for a touchdown by Tramon Williams at the end of the first half was the closest thing I've seen to a game-changing play. The Falcons seemed likely to cut the Packers lead to 21-17 at the half, trailing, but definitely still in the game. That play made the lead 14, silenced the crowd and turned the Falcons desparate. 48-21 seems like a game the Falcons had no chance to win, but they did, until that interception.
Play to Win the Game We saw a few plays this weekend (the above pass by Matt Ryan, the fake punt by the Patriots) that showed teams thought taking big chances was necessary to win these games. While some of them didn't work out, either for imprudent decision-making or poor execution, the Pittsburgh Steelers put their victory away with a huge gamble. About two minutes left, 3rd and 19 on their own 38. Instead of trying to kill time and punt the Steelers went for the jugular with Ben Roethlisberger nailing a 58-yard pass to Antonio Brown setting up the game winning touchdown.
Play to the Whistle One of the most bizarre plays I've ever seen occurred when Terrell Suggs knocked the ball out of Ben Roethlisberger's hand from behind, sending the ball flying forward, and appearing to anyone who didn't see where it came from, to have been a forward pass. That's why a couple players on each team looked down at the ball and didn't fall on it. Cory Redding was aware and scored a touchdown that did turn the game -- for a while -- until the Ravens own turnovers turned the game back.
Play The Game the Right Way The Ravens-Steelers game was marred by two things, turnovers and penalties. Nearly every play of the game was followed by pushing and shoving by the two teams. No one was more guilty of chippiness than Hines Ward. He is a dirty player and is always involved in something.
I'm choosing the wrong time to start missing best bets. We saw 3 favorites and 3 road teams win last week. This week we see all 4 favorites hold serve.
ATLANTA -1 1/2 green bay Basically a pick'em game and since the Falcons are home and they have a win over the Packers already I'm going to expect them to ride a conservative offense to another close victory.
PITTSBURGH -3 1/2 baltimore Complete toss-up. I really like the Ravens but something about the Steelers says they aren't going to lose this one. I could see it being a field goal game but I'm going with the Steelers because of the perceived strength of their home field advantage.
CHICAGO -10 seattle Too much attention on Seattle this week. One game cannot erase a whole season of mediocrity -- or worse. Their offense played well last week but the Bears defense is a whole level about New Orleans. I also think Cutler will play a good game because he won't fall behind and have to take a lot of chances.
BEST BET NEW ENGLAND -8 1/2 new york jets The trash talking has nothing to do with it. The Patriots are just a better team. I think they will be able to stop the run and Brady will pick on Cromartie and the Patriots will get another big victory.
Last week: 2-2 (1 point) Season: 47-42 (49 points) Best Bets: 0-1 (10-8) Home Favorites: 0-1 (17-15) Home Underdogs: 0-0 (2-0) Road Favorites: 1-1 (17-18) Road Underdogs: 1-0 (11-9)
Throughout my education I was convinced I was smarter than most of my teachers, few of whom cared about their jobs, they were just in it for the pension. Obviously many people including my parents disagreed (hard to fathom a 9-year old being smarter than Mrs. Manifold, but I was) with one notable exception. By far the dumbest teacher to ever disgrace the profession was our 7th grade math teacher Mr. Bailey. There is a website that allows you to look up salaries and pensions of New York City and State public employees. Master Bates and I have been feverishly looking up old teachers and other personnel ($57k per year for David Dinkins? really?) but the one person I couldn't find (maybe that's good because I would be outraged that even a dime of taxpayer money is going to that asshole, is Mr. Bailey, because I don't remember his first name. I tried George but that didn't work, even though it sounded right. I guess the reason it sounded right is because of James Stewart's character in "It's a Wonderful Life." So I still don't know how much the city is paying that incompetent hack for his years of service playing hardball.
