Weekly Picks

Bounced back last week thanks to the Patriots, who true to form, followed up two good performances with a near-loss to the lowly Jets.

DETROIT -2 new orleans
I'm not convinced that the Saints don't stink, and I am starting to believe the Lions are pretty good.

SAN DIEGO -3 1/2 kansas city
This seems like a small spread for a team playing as well as the Chargers against an opponent that isn't all that great.

new york giants +6 1/2 DALLAS
You wanna crown em, then crown their ass, but I'm going to pick the Giants as a big underdog. Again, looking for both teams to perform contrary to how they did last week.

houston +3 PITTSBURGH
I like any team with JJ Watt on it.

BEST BET
seattle -6 ST. LOUIS
If you had any doubt that the Seahawks would be my best bet then I just want to thank you for making it this far down in one of these posts for what is likely the first time ever.

Last week: 3-2 (4 points)
Season: 15-15 (13 points)
Best Bets: 1-0 (2-4)
Home Favorites: 0-2 (3-8)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (1-1)
Road Favorites: 2-0 (4-3)
Road Underdogs: 1-0 (7-3)

Song of the Week

"Come Get It Bae" - Pharrell Williams
In contrast to last week's SOTW, this song shows what kind of progress we've made in 35 years, we've dropped the second B from babe.
Which I suppose is better than dropping the first one because I'd feel weird calling Mrs. Poop "Abe."
The song mostly sucks, but it doesn't have a funky beat, so I would definitely prefer the instrumental.

The Process is Working, Let It Work

Believe me Mets fans, I understand the frustration and the impatience, unfortunately, you can't just will a team to be better and you can't just buy free agents to make it so.
Every time the Mets have tried this (Jason Bay, Curtis Granderson, etc), it has been a disaster. And now, with more and more teams locking up their best players before they reach free agency, there are fewer good players even reaching this point. There are no Carlos Beltrans out there.

Note: This is also a big reason the Yankees missed the playoffs two years running. You just can't buy a playoff team on the open market anymore. Teams hold on to their good young players so only older, damaged veterans make it to free agency.
What the Mets have to do is accumulate good, young players and hold on to them. The Mets are well on their to building what could be an outstanding starting rotation with Harvey, deGrom and Wheeler already in the majors and others on the way. The bullpen is also stocked with great arms like Mejia and Familia and Rafael Montero.
And I am very excited about Akeel Morris who in the last two years at A-ball has struck out 149 batters in 102 innings (13k/9) and 0.79 ERA.
I also like what the Mets have up the middle with Largares (who has the potential to be a legendary defensive player) and D'Arnaud who seems to have come around. Duda, Murphy and Wright could also be positive contributors. And though I think Granderson stinks, we have him for 3 more years like it or not.
What I would like to see the Mets do is sign a left fielder to a 1-year contract and give Wilmer Flores or Dilson Herrera a chance to be an everyday shortstop.
I think the Mets can follow the Royals blueprint of a long, slow rebuilding process that bears fruit when hard-throwing young pitchers combine with speedy defensive players plus a few guys who can hit. That style of team would do well and at CitiField and be poised to do well in the playoffs when runs become harder to come by.

It's a Rare Condition In This Day and Age To Read Any Good News on the Newspaper Page -- When It Comes to the NFL

The story of Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Devon Still is one of the few things that makes you feel good about being an NFL fan this season. Still's 4-year-old daughter, Leah, has neuroblastoma, a form of cancer.
He has tweeted about her progress, instagrammed videos of his pep talks for her and the NFL has started selling his jersey and giving some of the profits to charity.
In fact, there are no more #75 Still jerseys available a check will be presented to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital for OVER $1 million dollars. Even the New England Patriots cheerleaders wore them.

That produced a single tear from Still's eye, which dripped on his faux-eye black which bears his daughter's name.

Weekly Picks

Another miserable week as I banked on a team I thought was good (New Orleans) but probably isn't. Still near .500 for the season and 11-9 on not best bets. Don't know why I always struggle with those.

TENNESSEE -4 1/2 jacksonville
I think the Titans are bad but it's a lot to expect for Jacksonville to win a road game. They are the only team I beat on a best bet all season.

baltimore -3 1/2 TAMPA BAY
I keep picking against the ExpensiveCornPrices but they keep burning me. Maybe Mike Glennon really did make a big difference for this team.

CINCINNATI -7 carolina
This seems like way too many points to be giving to a good team like the Panthers, but I'm going to go with it anyway.

detroit +2 1/2 MINNESOTA
I'm sorry but I just don't think the Vikings are any good. I do like the Lions players but they never seem to play up to their potential.

BEST BET
new england -1 1/2 BUFFALO
I thought we were over this New England dynasty is dead crap. Tom Brady is going to play. There is nothing to worry about.

Last week: 2-3 (1 points)
Season: 12-13 (9 points)
Best Bets: 0-1 (1-4)
Home Favorites: 0-2 (3-6)
Home Underdogs: 1-0 (1-1)
Road Favorites: 0-0 (2-3)
Road Underdogs: 1-1 (6-3)

Song of the Week

"Babe" - Styx
"You know it's you Babe
Whenever I get weary and I've had enough
Feel like giving up
You know it's you Babe
Giving me the courage and the strength I need
Please believe that it's true
Babe, I love you."

At Least I'm Memorable

I was in the cafeteria at work and I see this woman I know I recognize, so I’m staring at her trying to figure out who she is, and I can tell at the same time she’s trying to figure out who I am. She says “you don’t remember my name do you?” I said her name and asked "do you remember my name?” She said “no, but I know something about you. Something you don’t like. Dogs in costumes.”

Weekly Picks

I knew this would happen, I followed up a 5-point Week 3 with a zero point stinker last week, perhaps helping to usher in the demise of the New England Patriots dynasty.

NEW ENGLAND +1 cincinnati
Speaking of the New England dynasty, I think all that stuff is a little overstated. The Bengals are a bad opponent to try to bounce back against (could use the Raiders, like the Dolphins did, but they already beat them this year) and I thought the Pats would be getting 3 or 3 1/2 but I've learned not to let those things bother. I believe that they will win.

atlanta +3 1/2 NEW YORK GIANTS
I am trying to get in sync with Atlanta who I believe is still a good team with a lot of good players. I am not convinced about the Giants. I never pick against them and when I do they normally make me pay. But we will see.

Note: I heard a stat that Eli Manning is 2-1 at home in his career against the Falcons. I was at the one loss in his rookie year. It was the Sunday after the Malice at the Palace the previous Friday night. I listened to David Stern's press conference on the radio and when he was asked if the decision to suspend Artest for the entire season was unanimous and he said "yes, one-nothing."

PHILADELPHIA -6 1/2 st. LOUIS
The Eagles offense looked terrible against the 49ers. And the Rams have a good defense, but my overriding theory is that the same things rarely happen two weeks in a row.

houston +6 1/2 DALLAS
All of the sudden the Cowboys went from horrible to great. This is way too many points to give to a pretty good Texans team with a great defense that should be able to slow Dallas's running game and force Tony Romo into mistakes.

BEST BET
NEW ORLEANS -10 1/2 tampa bay
I've gotten one best bet right all year and it was the Colts coming off a loss and playing the Jaguars. Now we have the Saints coming off a blowout loss to the Cowboys playing the ExpensiveCornPrices who just pulled off a miracle win against the Steelers. If the Saints lose they fall to 1-4 and the season is lost. Doubt that will happen, so we just have to hope they win by enough.

Last week: 1-4 (0 points)
Season: 10-10 (8 points)
Best Bets: 0-1 (1-3)
Home Favorites: 0-0 (3-4)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (0-1)
Road Favorites: 0-3 (2-3)
Road Underdogs: 1-1 (5-2)

Marching Bands and Solemn Holidays Don't Mix

Syracuse has had to move its normal pregame festivities for tonight's game against Louisville so as not to interfere with students observing Yom Kippur in Hendricks Chapel.

For those of you unfamiliar with the Syracuse campus consult the above picture.
Normally, pregame festivities including tailgate parties take place on the quad and in surrounding parking lots. And the marching band marches through the quad to the game, right past Hendricks Chapel.

A marching band and a bunch of loud drunks are certainly not fitting with the solemn attitude needed on Yom Kippur.

In respect to the Jewish students the University changed the plans to keep the quad and the area in front of Hendricks Chapel (the steps of which are a very common meeting/sitting spot on campus) clear.

"The pregame festivities will be held in the north area of the Carrier Dome between Gate D and the Heroy Geology Building and the marching band will play on the east side of the Dome by Irving Ave. Fans walking to the game will be directed around the quad and Hendricks Chapel."

Contrasting Styles

Chase and Julian have the same parents. They have grown up in the same house with the same rules. Yet somehow nature and nurture have turned them into two completely different kids.
Chase is shier, eager to please and sensitive. Julian is a bull who doesn't give a fuck.
Chase is quiet, Julian is loud.
Chase has brown hair and brown eyes. Julian is blonde with blue eyes.
Chase is small (though this is a more recent development), Julian is a giant among 4-year olds.
When Chase falls down (such as on the way to the school dance) he cries for a long time (30 minutes in the school dance incident). When Julian falls down, he says "I'm ok" before he even hits the ground. Once he said "I'm ok" before assessing the situation, and after a few seconds of silence he realized that he wasn't ok, and he started to cry.

Mrs. Poop gave them pennies to throw into a fountain. Later they told us what they wished for. Chase wished for a modest $28 toy. Julian wished that there would be no more rules.

In one incident Julian got his finger stuck under the booster seat attached to his chair. He very calmly told me his finger was stuck. Too calmly. I didn't act with necessary urgency. When I got his finger unstuck and he saw it was cut and red, he cried hysterically. Chase gave him a toy to make him feel better.

My favorite story about Chase's easy-going nature is from Tali's birthday party several years ago. A man was giving the kids temporary tattoos. Each time he warned the children that the water would be very cold. Chase replied "I love cold water." Now, I'm not saying Juju would have decked the guy, but he certainly wouldn't have been as accepting of freezing cold water on his arm.

I could go on forever about the differences between them (which in general are great, I am glad they are unique and distinct individuals) but I think I will leave it here.

This is a picture of Chase being scared on a roller-coaster.

And this is a picture of Julian being scared on a roller-coaster.

Song of the Week

"Latch" - Disclosure featuring Sam Smith

What a Coincidence

It just so happens that in Derek Jeter's last game at Yankee Stadium he hit a walkoff single to give the Yankees a 6-5 win.
In an even further coincidence, the Yankees had a 5-2 lead entering the 9th and somehow David Robertson gave up 2 home runs to knot the game at 5-5 entering the 9th, with Jeter due up third.
Evan Meek gave up a single, Brett Gardner bunted the runner to second, and then Jeter came through.
In the annals of faux achievements, this has to rank third.
First, Nykesha Sales limping out on the court on crutches to make one basket and set UConn's all-time points record.
Then comes Michael Strahan's sack record, when Brett Favre took a dive for his buddy.



Then comes this. The game meant nothing to either team, but I can't be sure the Orioles were in on it. Maybe the Yankees just decided to allow 3 runs to give Jeter a chance at something.
I'm not sure, but I know there is no way all these things could have "just happened" not even for someone with as many "intangibles" as Jeter.

Postseason Predictions

AL Wild Card: Oakland over Kansas City
Division Series: Los Angeles Angels over Oakland, Detroit over Baltimore
Championship Series: Los Angeles Angels over Detroit

NL Wild Card: San Francisco over Pittsburgh
Division Series: Washington over San Francisco, Los Angeles Dodgers over St. Louis
Championship Series: Washington over Los Angeles Dodgers

World Series: Los Angeles Angels over Washington

Weekly Picks

Finally got off the schneid last week with a 5 -- and a best bet! -- but I've gotta put 2 or 3 good weeks together and I don't feel confident this week. Certainly nothing as gimme as Colts vs Jags last week.

jacksonville +13 SAN DIEGO
They can't get blowed out in every game, can they?

atlanta -3 MINNESOTA
I still have a soft spot for Atlanta though I can't been picking them at the right times so far this year.

philadelphia +5 SAN FRANCISCO
This looks like a lot of points to give a team that looks unstoppable on offense, especially against a Niners team that hasn't shown much so far this year. If I were drafting a team from scratch and my QB choices were Nick Foles and Colin Kaepernick, I would pick Foles.

new orleans -3 DALLAS
They're not going to get another miracle this week. Dallas is still a bad team even though they've won two in a row.

BEST BET
new england -3 KANSAS CITY
I still have a lot of faith in the Patriots not to lose games against bad teams.

Last Week: 4-1 (5 points)
Season: 9-6 (8 points)
Best Bets: 1-0 (1-2)
Home Favorites: 2-1 (3-4)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (0-1)
Road Favorites: 1-0 (2-0)
Road Underdogs: 1-0 (4-1)

Song of the Week

"I Wanna Be Rich" - Calloway

Weekly Picks

Followed up my disappointing start with another bad week in which I lost two close games (Green Bay and Indy) and of course, my best bet (Atlanta), But I feel a little heartened in that I correctly identified a trend 0-1 teams vs 1-0 teams that managed to work in most cases. Sticking with a similar philosophy this week and hoping for better results.

NEW ORLEANS -10 1/2 minnesota
I hate picking against a team that has some intangible thing like this Adrian Peterson deal hanging over its head because people make way too big a deal out of it when it really has no meaning. But I can't see the Saints falling to 0-3, so I will just hope they can hang a big number on the Vikes.

SEATTLE -4 1/2 denver
I feel very ambivalent about this game but the Seahawks lost last week, they're at home and I don't believe the Broncos have something to prove.

MIAMI -3 1/2 kansas city
Miami laid a stinker in Buffalo last week but I expect them to rebound against a Chiefs team I don't think is very good.

chicago +2 1/2 NEW YORK JETS
I wanted to throw one underdog into the mix and wanted it to be one I felt had a good shot of winning the game outright.

BEST BET
indianapolis -7 1/2 JACKSONVILLE
I really believe that Andrew Luck is going to be the next great NFL QB, but he's started the season with two tough losses. I expect the Colts to rebound in a big way against a really bad Jacksonville team.

Last Week: 2-3 (1 point)
Season: 5-5 (3 points)
Best Bets: 0-1 (0-2)
Home Favorites: 0-2 (1-3)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (0-1)
Road Favorites: 1-0 (1-0)
Road Underdogs: 1-1 (3-1)

A Few Random Thoughts

I figuratively cut the cheese while literally cutting the cheese. Strange but true.

I was taking Chase to the bathroom before his tae kwon do banquet started. One of his friends wanted to come with us. But he was with his mom and she told him he had to go to the ladies' room with her, I almost said "don't worry, I'll watch him" but thankfully I stopped myself.

At the same tae kwon do banquet, there was a self-defense demonstration. One man in a blue ghi fended off four "attackers" wearing black. Julian screamed out "he killed all the black guys."

If there are too many female main characters in TV, movies and books could you call that a "heroine overdose?"

Lolo Jones got kicked off "Dancing with the Stars" before she could completely disprove the stereotype that all black people are good dancers.

Words Mrs. Poop never thought she would have to say: "don't pee on your brother!" She did have to say them. But she was too late.

Jameis Winston, Finally Punished

Jameis Winston is a good quarterback. Jameis Winston never gets punished for the bad things he does. These things are not unrelated.
Jameis Winston sexually assaulted a girl, stole soda from Burger King (drinking out of ketchup cup), stole food from a grocery store, and fired BB guns on campus breaking windows of the complex where he lived.
Winston avoided any real punishment for any of these incidents.
But now he has gotten his comeuppance. For what?
Let me first start with a video (NSFW language, ok with headphones):



That is a fake video, purportedly of a reporter working a missing person story saying when they find the woman that he will "fuck her right in the pussy."
Harmful, mildly funny, if juvenile, internet video.
As those things tend to do, it went somewhat viral and became a meme.
A meme Jameis Winston must have found funny.
He stood on a table in the middle of the Florida State student union and shouted "fuck her right in the pussy."
Florida State has reached its breaking point. They could take no more of Winston's behavior. He had to be punished and punished severely and swiftly. Florida has suspended him for one half, that's 30 minutes of football time, of Saturday's game against Clemson.

Now I suppose it's possible that FSU could get down big to Clemson early and lose the game, costing them a national title and him a second Heisman.
But more likely FSU will make the new playoff, even with a loss, and if he plays well enough in the other games he has a good chance to become only the second player to win 2 Heismans.
And he will do it while knowing that nothing he does wrong ever has serious repercussions.

Haven't we recently seen the downside of this entitle attitude from athletes manifest itself in the despicable actions of Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson and to a lesser degree Dwight Howard (27 traffic violations).

For his part, Winston seemed contrite in his apology, and didn't try to lie his way out of it. Maybe he is growing up.

Song of the Week

"Flawless - Remix" - Beyonce featuring Nicki Minaj
This is not an endorsement of this song. I think it is kind of bad, but good compared to most of the shit Nicki Minaj puts out there.
The reason it gets SOTW treatment is because of the sample at 2:06. Yes, that's right, the amazing riff from "SpottieOttieDopaliscious" (SOTW, 11/11/09).

Quarterback Controversy

The Redskins may soon have a full-blown controversy on their hands.
Robert Griffin III is going miss at least 6 weeks after injuring his ankle against the Jaguars.

Complicating matters even more, Kirk Cousins came and performed great in relief, completing 22 of 33 passes for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns, and setting up 2 other touchdown drives (converted by Alfred Morris).

Note: the last drive, capped by a Silas Redd TD was meaningless though some team with running back issues should offer the Redskins a pick for Redd. He looks fast and strong.

Complicating matters even further is that RGIII has not shown enough (hardly any) progress to believe that he is going to develop into the quarterback the Redskins hoped he would be when they used the second pick in the draft to select him.

Scenario #1: Cousins plays the next 6-8 games as well as he did yesterday. If so, he would be a serious contender for league MVP.
Scenario #2: Cousins has some good games and some bad games. He makes some good plays and some bad plays. The Redskins win some and lose some.
Scenario #3: Cousins plays poorly, throws more touchdown than interceptions and the team loses almost every game he starts.

Scenarios #1 and 3 are easy, it's scenario #2 that's hard. And here's why: After Cousins starts 6-8 games, maybe more, it's going to be hard to bring both quarterbacks back next year for their 4th season.

But unless Cousins is spectacular or even very good, it will be hard to give up on RGIII after one great season and two seasons restricted by injury.

My thoughts: Kirk Cousins has almost zero advantages over RGIII. But he is a more accurate passer, and perhaps more importantly, he seems more willing to "pull the trigger" and throw the ball before mentally confirming the receiver is open. Too often RGIII misses open receivers by waiting an extra half-second. Also, Cousins as yet makes none of the bad decisions that RGIII makes that often lead to penalties, turnovers and injuries.

I think you need to be a star quarterback to win in this league. If you are going to follow the Seahawks model and develop a QB who is a skilled game manager (no QB throws fewer pass attempts than Russell Wilson -- yes, they're winning most of the time), then you need an awesome ball-hawking defense and a solid ground game. Both of which the Redskins might have someday soon.

But if you don't, want you want to win titles you need a star QB. A guy who can make plays and win games on his own. In his only healthy season we saw RGIII do that. I don't think 3 years is enough to permanently write him off as injury-prone or not good enough.

But RGIII had his chance. Now Cousins is getting his.