Clippers slip: Sign of things to come for Celtics?

If there's one thing I've learned about Boston sports, it's that just when you think you have them where you want them, they defy all odds (and I mean ALL odds) to make some sort of miracle comeback. The Celtics may not be an exception, but it's hard not to revel in last night's 93-91 loss to the lowly Clippers in L.A. No Kevin Garnett, but no excuses. The Celtics have won with players out, so you can't have it both ways, Boston.
The Eastern Conference is still soft, which is what mainly benefited Boston last year in their ridiculous turnaround. But Cleveland needs to capitalize on what looks like it could be a mini midseason swoon by Boston.
I'm sure that something like this won't happen again, so let's enjoy it while it's here. Boston was 66-16 last year, a record they likely will not match this year. Cleveland has one loss at home all year. The sagas of the two cities are well-chronicled, with Cleveland being a notorious choke town and Boston being a charmed town. But if just this once there is no miracle left for a Boston team, perhaps such an inexcusable loss is in fact a good sign.

Message to 31 teams: Don't mortgage the farm for Cassel

It almost might work out in what looked like the worst of circumstances for the resident cheaters of the NFL. Sacrificing one year of making the playoffs may let them earn some depth and security for years to come. Why? Because their so-called "system", the one whose legitimacy has still yet to be verified, allowed a mediocre quarterback to look like an elite one. Matt Cassel is just that, mediocre. But he will be making the most money in a one-year tender for a franchise player in league history next year, because the Patriots used their franchise tag on him. That means that if some team is foolish enough to try and snag him, they will owe the Patriots two first-round draft picks. Meanwhile, it's not like the Patriots won't be in good hands at quarterback without him.
So if a team like, say, the Minnesota Vikings finally wakes up and realizes Tarvaris Jackson can't cut it at this level and decides to sell out for Cassel, they will be handing the Patriots two first-round draft picks for a player who shouldn't even command one seventh-rounder. It will also save the Patriots plenty of salary cap money, rather than keep them financially constrained. The money freed up by Cassel's possible departure could allow them to land a malcontent like Julius Peppers and turn him into the second coming of Corey Dillon.
So to those other 31 teams, even those with dicey quarterback situations, please, please don't fork over more than $14 million for the product of a strong offensive system whose receivers push off and whose line cut-blocks as if it was going out of style. Save the money and the draft picks and keep Cassel where he belongs, on the New England bench chewing up valuable cap space.

NFL gaffes with moving Pro Bowl to Miami

It's not that the people of Hawaii are any more deserving to have the Pro Bowl than a city like Miami, but the tradition has been around for 30 years and the players love it. It needs to stay. Roger Goodell is always looking for the extra buck, but he really doesn't need to tinker with the Pro Bowl. Playing it before the Super Bowl doesn't make it any less anticlimactic, especially considering players from the Super Bowl teams won't be participating, and quite possibly players who played in the previous week's championship games.
Playing it in Miami also cheapens to game. The players love going to Hawaii to be away from the distractions. Miami is hardly a getaway considering many players are from there or spend their offseasons there. Having it Miami merely makes it an side note, and perhaps just a way to ease the sting of the dreaded Super Bowl "dark week" that also needs to go. But nonetheless, having it after the season and in Hawaii is what the players want, and quite frankly what the fans want.
Having it before the Super Bowl doesn't mean anyone will care any more than they do or don't now. Attendance will likely be low; the fans in Hawaii get one game a year, as opposed to those in Miami, who get 8. Celebrities and other VIPs in town for the Big Game don't figure to spend a Sunday afternoon watching a meaningless game that very well will be missing some of the game's biggest stars.

I stand corrected: Parity may be fading

Super Bowl XLII should have been seen as an aberration, not a sign of the times. The Patriots were 18-0 going into that game, and even though the Giants became the fourth team in four years to win the Super Bowl, it should have been clear that the balance of power had not really shifted.
Fast forward to last night, Super Bowl XLIII. I can hear Dennis Green this morning saying the Cardinals "let them off the hook". The Steelers, with yet another ludicrous comeback against a super-prevent defense, and the Patriots have now combined to win five of the past eight Super Bowls, and the joy of last season's game seems miles away.
Who besides those two teams, and perhaps the Colts and Chargers, feel that they have a chance to win the AFC next year? The NFC is wide open, but they are a cut below the AFC and don't figure to win as many Super Bowls as the AFC in the next decade or so.
The ending was brutal, because it was the underdogs that got kicked in the gut when it looked like they were destined for glory. It seems we now must allot at least one season out of every two or three for either the Steelers or Patriots to have their celebratory parades and what not. It was nice to see Jerome Bettis get his ring I suppose, but last night was not fun too watch. Dynasties are back in pro football until further notice.

A fist full of Lions jokes, even after the season

No one is better than Jay Leno at keeping the Detroit Lions fresh in our memories, even a month after their dubiously historic season ended. The jokes just keep on coming, and each is just as funny as the one that preceded it. So without further do, here are five of my favorites. Keep in mind, Leno has been doing these for years, even since Johnnie Morton exclaimed, after the Lions won a game after being 0-12, "I want Jay Leno to kiss my ass!" (Leno actually did, because Morton sent a donkey out to L.A. for Leno to plant one on). And now the jokes (These are not verbatim, but as close as possible):

- On the Super Bowl and the NFL Experience provided for fans: "The Detroit Lions have a section, fans actually just put on a uniform, stand there and fans boo them and throw beer at them."

- On the upcoming NFL playoffs: "Well it's NFL playoff time... or as the Detroit Lions call it, 'Fantasy Football'.

- On the divisional round of the playoffs: "Lot of good games this weekend, Ravens are playing the Titans, Chargers are playing the Steelers, Lions are playing Guitar Hero."

- Relating the Presidential election: "According to Newsweek, sociologists believe that nine months after election day, there could be tens of thousands of what they call 'Obama babies.' Psychologists say this is not unusual, because a lot of people celebrate a big victory by having sex. That's true. See, that's why there's never been any Detroit Lions babies."

- On their accomplishment of becoming the NFL's first 0-16 team: "I don't want to say they're getting cocky, but some of the players are already starting to talk about doing it again next year."

Despite Steelers' sixth, 2008 was still a decent season

Let's establish one thing right off the bat: Come Super Bowl Sunday, the Arizona Cardinals will be what we thought they were, and always have thought: they are losers. They have had a great season and deserve credit for their run, but they are overmatched by the Steelers. That said, the new Pittsburgh dynasty is an unwelcome nuisance in this age of supposed parity.
But 2008 had a lot of good things to remember. There was some parity, like the 1-15 Dolphins turning around into division champions. The Ravens qualifying for the AFC championship game with a rookie quarterback. The Falcons unscrambling the mess left by Michael Vick.
For the first time in a long time, all four finalists did not win a single playoff game the previous year. The Titans' 13-3 record was the best in football, the first time since 2002 that the NFL didn't have at least a 14-win team. And the Cardinals removed themselves from a dubious list, those who have never appeared in a Super Bowl. Only the Lions, Saints, Browns, Texans, and Jaguars have never appeared in the Big Game.
The Steelers had a lot of numbers and laws of averages on their side Sunday against Baltimore, much like they did the previous week against 8-8 San Diego, a team essentially playing with house money after a 4-8 start. And on Feb. 1, the Cardinals will be up against not only the league's best defense, but bad history. Seven of the past nine teams making their first Super Bowl appearance have lost, with only the Ravens and Buccaneers being the exception in that span. The Cardinals happen to be going against the team with the most Super Bowl wins, not an enticing proposition for a team that has look extremely pedestrian at times this year.
The Seahawks had a much stronger team than Arizona does, and the Steelers team that defeated them was not as dominant, at least on defense, as this one. Uh-oh.
Oh well. At least there were a lot of positives in 2008, even if the end result did not show it. Did I mention the Patriots were absent from the postseason?

L.T. could miss most of 2009 with sore fingernail

LaDainian Tomlinson might not spend the 2009 season in a San Diego Chargers uniform. He has had a phenomenal 8-year run with the Chargers, a record-setting run in fact. But with the way his play has declined and the way his previous two seasons have ended, it has left a bitter taste in the mouths of the fans and perhaps of management as well.
The lasting images of what was a great run in 2007, when the Chargers went from 1-3 to the AFC championship game, was Tomlinson sitting on the sidelines in New England with his parka pulled over his head and his eyes hidden behind his tinted visor. This after it was believed he would be able to play in the most important game of his career.
This past season, when the Chargers reeled off four straight wins to capture the AFC West title, Tomlinson injured his groin in the season finale and was only able to play on a limited basis in the wild card round against Indianapolis. In their toughest game of the season at Pittsburgh in the divisional round, Tomlinson once again was M.I.A. In his absence, backup Darren Sproles rushed for only 15 yards as the Steelers rolled. Once again, with his team needing him, Tomlinson was nowhere to be found as the Chargers' season came to an end.
Tomlinson is slowly turning into either a prima donna, a machine with failing parts, or just a running back with extremely bad timing when it comes to injuries. His legacy may be one of greatness, but only in the regular season. He has never excelled in the postseason, either due to injury or ineffectiveness, and ultimately that may spell the end of his time in southern California.

Steelers: the new Patriots?

Should the Pittsburgh Steelers win two more games en route their NFL-leading sixth Super Bowl title, can they be considered a 21st-century dynasty? It would be their second in four years, and more importantly, give them two more in the past four years than the New England Patriots, thought to be the first (and only) dynasty this decade to date.

The Steelers are not a flashy team, nor are they even a dominant team. They are easy to dislike for me as a Ravens fan, but nowhere near Patriot-hatable. They aren't exactly world-class guys, but they generally don't possess the bend-or-break-the-rules-at-cost mentally that Bill Belichick's squad does.

The Patriots videotaped their way to three Super Bowl titles at the start of the decade, while the Steelers fielded strong teams, but not championship-caliber teams. They suffered two AFC championship game losses to New England before finally breaking through in 2005.

What would a second Lombardi trophy in four years mean? The good would be that they would supplant the Patriots as the current NFL powerhouse. The bad is that it's the Steelers, a team that won four Super Bowls with the help off avid steroid use in the 1970s. While this team doesn't closely resemble the Steel Curtain teams, history is far too appreciated in the Steel City to go unnoticed and be disconnected from the modern-day group.

I am, as usual, pessimistic about the banged-up Ravens' chances this Sunday, and the Steelers would figure to be considerable favorites against either the Eagles or Cardinals in the Super Bowl, meaning we could be heading down a familiar, and painful, path once again.

A grim baseball season approaching in 2009

Is there any point in watching baseball in 2009? The competitive balance was already going to be any issue, and that was before the Yankees spent half of America's economy in free agency and the Red Sox added another half-roster to their already loaded squad just to stick it to the Yankees. As we know, that's all that matters in Boston.
Unfortunately, the rest of baseball has been virtually idle. The Rays are headed for a major downfall, and while the Cubs threw some money at some more players, the best they can hope for is to take the weak National League before getting smoked in the Series by one of the Evil Empires.
The Blue Jays and Orioles will duke it out for 4th place in the AL East, and both will be lucky to crack 70 wins in another broken-record of a season. The Phillies may have broken the city's mini-curse, but that's all they'll get, as it's likely back to reality next year. The NL West is simply dead weight to baseball.
So, when do NFL training camps start?

No Pats? Great. Wild Card Weekend? Odd.

A Sunday unlike too many others for me transpired and I was thankful. December 28, 2008: the day that my hometown Ravens qualified for the postseason while the Patriots did not. To make it sweeter, New England wasted an 11-5 season, becoming the first team in 23 years to win 11 games and miss the postseason. The playoffs can now be enjoyed without the Patriots being able to cheat and terrorize as they have six of the past seven seasons.
But how about this for an oddity? For the first time in recent memory (and probably ever), all four road teams are favored in the Wild Card round. So much for home field advantage in the postseason, right? While it can't be expected for that to happen in the division round, it is a resounding statement that this year is a free-for-all. No Patriots, no problem. Now other teams don't have to worry about succumbing to divine intervention, just old-school, smash-mouth football.
The oddity of four road teams being favored is due in large part to the fact that two of the games feature road teams with three and four more wins than their home counterpart. The Ravens and Dolphins have identical 11-5 records, while the Eagles and Vikings are separated by just a half game.
The feeling here is that at least one home team will prevail, considering two of the visiting teams are starting rookie quarterbacks and the Chargers have always had the Colts' number. The Vikings, meanwhile, are the largest of the four underdogs at a full three points (same as Baltimore-Miami), but are 6-2 at home this season.
But alas, this is a weekend to truly rejoice. January is here, and New England is not. Junior Seau once again will go ringless, as will Randy Moss and how-many-4-yard-out-patterns-can-you-run-and-call-yourself-great Wes Welker. Bill Belichick will not stalk the sidelines in his hoodie, nor will he have any hidden cameras at any games (that we know of).
Truly odd, but great nonetheless.

CC why people hate the Yankees?

Okay so let me get this straight. The New York Yankees, the original Evil Empire (hard to use that term because Larry Lucchino of the Red Sox coined it), just threw the fattest contract at a pitcher in MLB history just days after asking New York taxpayers to fork over more than $100 million in tax dollars for their new stadium? The moment I learned this, I thought of some of my friends that live in New York who are NOT Yankees fans that will be seeing their tax money in part end up in Sabathia's suddenly-oversized pockets.
Now it's known that anyone who signs with the Yankees, especially when their offer is the largest, is automatically deemed a sell out. But when you preach about the importance of playing close to home, playing somewhere where your family is comfortable living, and THEN end up taking the ridiculous dollars, that is truly something to despise.
Sabathia gets credit for being a workhouse last year, for consistently taking the ball on three days rest when the Brewers' rotation was depleted. But now that is all a distant memory. Sabathia has done what sadly was inevitable anyway, but with the dwindling economy, and the knowledge of the Yankees' request for more taxpayer money for their billion-dollar stadium, this has simply pushed me farther away from the game I grew up loving.
I feel secure in saying I'm not alone here.

Hasselbeck sits, cites “conflicting emotions”

I don't care that Seneca Wallace threw 3 touchdown passes on Sunday, nor that former Patriot Deion Branch found the end zone twice. Because the lasting image from Seattle's choke-job on Sunday was Wallace getting decked by an untouched blitzer, fumbling to end a half-hearted comeback effort by the now 2-11 Seahawks. Wallace has, is, and always will be a backup.
Naturally, Matt Hasselbeck sat this one out. His presence likely could have been the difference maker. Instead, the proud Boston native cited an earlier back issue as a means for not having to go against his secret favorite team, the one his father played for in the 70s.
As the Patriots now coast through the rest of their schedule and a gift AFC East title, this is the game we will look back on as the one that got away. The grueling images of Seattle allowing a 4th-and-goal, go-ahead touchdown after having outplayed New England all day. Wallace putting the ball on the turf at crunch time. And most of all, bald number 8 wearing civvies on the sideline.
There is little doubt it was predetermined he wouldn't go in this one. Heaven for bid he took a few hits on Thanksgiving day in Dallas. His absence is eerily reminiscent of the Patriots' opponents last season, when seemingly every week the team it was facing was without several key players.
Lucky for us, that won't be an issue next week when the Patriots travel to Oakland to take on the NCAA Raiders, a sad-sack team in utter disarray. JaMarcus Russell's injured ankle will be a blessing, if anything, as he is prone to some of the worst throws possible.
The overrated Cardinals follow in Week 16, and then the Bills, who haven't found the end zone against a team other than the Chiefs in nearly a month, to close out what once was a promising regular season for Patriot-haters like myself.
Hasselbeck, you got your wish.

Additions of Colvin, Seau raise more than just eyebrows

This is suspicious and disgusting at the same time. Rosevelt Colvin is suddenly cut from the Houston Texans before their dreadful season begins and goes unemployed for three months. Junior Seau, who was never believed to be retired (although ESPN will spin it to make you believe he was, and thus his return is somehow courageous), jumps immediately when Bill Belichick calls and asks "How high?" Seau, the ringless one, clearly has had a desire to return to the Patriots, as Colvin likely did too. I am beginning to wonder if Belichick, who is no stranger to not just bending the rules, but completely shattering them, paid them under the table to avoid signing with other teams in case New England needed them.

Colvin is a very dirty player, who like many before him, has presented a mirage of half-decent numbers thanks in large part to his knowing the opposition's plays before they are run. Seau, meanwhile, is one of my most despised athletes ever. And yet both are back in New England trying to create last year's "magic". Seau was certainly sitting by the phone twittling his thumbs and stroking the large framed photo he has of Belichick sitting by his bed. If either of these washed-up, just-in-it-for-an-easy-ring slimeballs has any impact on the Patriots' stretch run, it should make fans everywhere sick.

In other Patriot-related news, proud Boston native and closet Patriots fan Matt Hasselbeck is conveniently sidelined for this week's game, as is the Seahawks' All-Pro left tackle Walter Jones. That means Seneca Wallace will be called on to slay the demons known as the Patriots this week. Funny how that works. Good luck, Seatte, you'll need it. Actually, "miracle" would be a better word.

Goodell's “International Series” aides Patriots

Let's say you're the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and you glance ahead to your schedule opponents for next season. You know you're playing the AFC and NFC East in addition to the regular brutal slate of divisional games in the NFC South. Tough sledding. At least one of your toughest games, against the New England Patriots, is at home – right?
Wrong. Because greedy, money-hungry commissioner Roger Goodell needs extra pocket cash so once a year, a team gets shafted out of a home game and gets to “host” an opponent overseas. Unfortunately for football and the Buccaneers' fans, their toughest opponent will no longer have to face the Bucs on their home turf, but rather at a “neutral” site. And let's face it, with the Patriots and their never-ending horde of bandwagoners, there's never such thing as a “neutral” site.
So to sum up, the Patriots don't have to play one of their toughest road games so the commissioner can make a few extra bucks he doesn't need. Conveniently when selected two teams, he miraculously picked this matchup, instead of, say, the Detroit Lions, who could probably play on the Moon while their opponents have no oxygen masks and still not have an advantage.
My opinion of it, Patriots-biased or not, is that this idea royally sucks. Not only does one team have to forfeit a home date, but their opponent gets one of their road games played at a neutral site. The Dolphins, they of 1-15 infamy in 2007, and the Saints, they of missing out on the playoffs yet again, have been victimized by it. Now it's the Buccaneers turn. Advantage, as usual, Patriots.

Primary reasons why people hop the Sox bandwagon

What prompts someone to pull for the Boston Red Sox? Before delving into that question, let's clarify this: There is no such thing as a Red Sox fan that isn't a fan of all Boston sports. If you are supporting one entity, then you may as well support them all, because your face is already covered in dirt. So none of this, “Well I've always loved the Sox but the Cowboys are my NFL team.” No no no, please don't try and get classy and save face.
The “B” [for Bandwagoner] hats are selling like hot cakes these days. Is it because people once felt sorry for the Red Sox because of the curse? (No need for caps on “curse”, it doesn't warrant it). Is it because they feel the pain of Boston always being inferior to New York, whether it's the Yankees or the city itself being far more prestigious than anything Boston ever will? Maybe it's just a fad, and people tend to love fads. The point is, there is no acceptable answer.
That said, here is a closer look at some of those sad-sack excuses people come up with in regards to their undying support of the Red Sox:

The “curse”. Can't hear that one enough, can you? 86 years when they couldn't win a World Series. The ball through Bill Buckner's legs in the '86 series? Bucky “F***ing” Dent? Who knows? Who cares? There is a false sense of “lovable loser-ness” here that doesn't belong (much more suited to the Chicago Cubs). That always wins over some slimy hearts.
The underdog mentality garnered from being slapped around by the Yankees for years on end. Again, underdog is going overboard. Title or not, the Red Sox always had money to spend and seasons to remember. No one likes the Yankees; I can't stand them. But they are the standard of excellence in baseball, with 26 World Series titles to boast and countless daggers into the hearts of Boston fans (no complaints from me about the latter).
The fad. The hats are pretty basic. But then again, cigarettes are pretty nasty. And yet people smoke to look cool, or because it's a habit they can't kick. The Red Sox gain so much media attention thanks to their personal sports network, ESPN. Media attention is the primary reason for the grisly fad that doesn't figure to fade anytime soon.
“Red Sox Nation”. Another media creation. I don't pay much attention to Raider Nation, as entertaining as Black Hole in Oakland is. But any time a group of sports fans utilize this label, it diminishes their credibility greatly. Especially when the title was crowned by a television station, and not even the fans themselves.
Hatred of the Yankees. Might seem repetitive. I can't stand the Yankees, but I would stand behind them under an attack of whining Red Sox fans who are envious of the prestige and glamor of New York. The Giants are Super Bowl champions, and the Jets are on their way. The Mets and Rangers are always competitive. And New York, simply put, is the city that never sleeps. And for good reason. It is one of the best places to be in the world, with everything in every facet of life and culture to offer. Many hypocritical Bostonians end up moving there, like people from all over the globe. When it comes to sports, like it or not, New York is the cream of the crop. And the dislike for the Yankees (and this is what really gets my goat) automatically steers people to pull for the Red Sox, as if it's “If you're not cheering for one, it's the other.” This small-mindedness can again be largely attributed to the overdose the media provides of these two organizations.
You need to feel good about yourself. Sometimes sports act as an escape for us. We wrap ourselves up in our teams. If they win, we win. If they lose, we get down as if we lost. Like the countless Lakers and Cowboys supporters, it's always a safer bet to back a team that constantly wins. Therefore we (well, not me, speak for yourselves of course) are more likely to be satisfied. With that little psychoanalysis comes the striking reality that this is the poorest excuse yet. You really can't hold an intelligent sports conversation with someone like that because it is hard to really take them seriously as a sports fan.

Completing the monopoly: Bruins rising

Figures, doesn't it? Actually, not to me. I don't consider myself much of a gambler, so betting $1 on the Boston Bruins at 50/1 well before the hockey season started was a minimal investment with a nice potential return. I know very, very little about hockey, except that one thing was evident: The Bruins play in Boston, so they will get enough breaks to have a chance to win.
So far, I am looking pretty smart, for a change. All the Bruins have done is rack up 32 points, tops in the Eastern Conference and one shy of the San Jose Sharks' NHL-leading 35. I couldn't tell you much about the Bruins other then that their goaltending is considered among the game's elite. I believe they have a number of big-time fighters on their team, so foul play, as per usual with Boston sports, is likely a factor. I know that the Red Sox didn't win it in 2008, so A.J. Burnett is a likely candidate to end up there to make sure that doesn't happen again in 2009. For now, the Celtics are running away with a pitiful Eastern Conference in the NBA, and in case they slip, the Bruins likely will get enough luck on their side to more than make up for it.
Me, I am predictably disgusted, but hardly surprised. I don't really follow hockey enough to invest the same energy I do into baseball and football, but if a Boston team is winning, I'll take notice. If the Bruins do in fact rise to prominence and win the Stanley Cup, I will feel vindicated in one sense. There was little rhyme or reason why the Celtics became so dominant last season, and even less if the Bruins do the same this year. Except for the obvious theory that there is a higher being watching over Boston sports.
The $50 would be a nice “Sorry for your troubles” pocket cash if the Bruins complete the Boston sports monopoly, but it would continue a despicable trend of absurdity in the first decade of the 21st century. Canadian teams are supposed to rule hockey when the de facto powerhouse Red Wings slip, but Boston has the kind of charmed existence that automatically supersedes that. When the Bruins stand on the Fenway Park field before the Red Sox season opener in April hoisting the Stanley Cup trophy, it will put the cap on the complete takeover of sports. A scary thought indeed.

The 5 Most Enraging Moments Of Boston's Sports Decade

Throughout the enduring pain of Boston's sports gods smiling down on them this decade, there have been many moments that stand out for the frustration and anger they created. For every lucky break or inexplicable comeback they had, the sports world suffered just a little bit more. Take, for example, the infamous Tuck Rule. Now at the time, Boston sports had not gotten on their karmic run, so who knew then that the Notorious Raiders' misfortune would become the Patriots' everlasting treasure. Looking back on it, Oakland was cheated and the Patriots actually cheated. That unfortunate event, as well as Drew Bledsoe's untimely injury in Week 2 of that season, changed everything for the worse. A look back (and hopefully, not forward from this point on) at the 5 most grueling and despised moments in Boston's recent run in sports, in no particular order:

Game 5 of the 2007 ALCS. The end does not justify the means here. The Rays may have won the series in 7 games, but lest we forget that Game 5 may have emotionally and psychologically drained them for the World Series, in which they came out flat against an inferior but rested foe in Philadelphia. The 7-0 meltdown suffered by Tampa Bay was one of the most painful things I've ever watched. It figured Boston was back at their old cheap tricks, coming back from a deficit in a series to prove their place in baseball lore. The Rays (and the fans) had to gut out such a gruesome thought until Matt Garza finally turned out the lights on Boston's 2008 season in Game 7. But the days between Games 5 and 7 were terrifying, to say the least.


Game 4 of the 2008 NBA Finals. As if the Red Sox and Patriots' successes weren't enough, the Lakers got to experience what many past victims of those aforementioned clubs had in Game 4 of the NBA Finals last season. A complete and utter choke job only explainable by means of divine intervention ensued, as the Celtics erased a 24-point deficit to rally for a command 3-1 series lead. They went on to win in 6 games to make it a grisly trifecta in sports titles in the present decade. Perhaps the worst part about the Celtics' title run was that very few people saw it coming. Alas, that's how it always seems to be, doesn't it?

Super Bowl XXXVIII. So many little things that could've changed the game but didn't. Either it was the two failed, ill-advised two-point conversion attempts by Carolina, or it was their kicker, John Kasay, kicking the kickoff following the game-tying TD out of bounds, setting up a short field for Tom Brady to claim to be a hero by leading a truly-defining, 47-yard drive to set up a field goal. When Carolina took a short-lived, 22-21 lead in the fourth quarter, it was the first time we had the pleasure of even seeing the Patriots trail in a game in over two months to that point. The Panthers gave up a touchdown and never led again. Adam Vinatieri, who gets props at least for bolting to the rival Colts after the '05 season, got to experience deja vu and hammer the final nail in the Panthers' coffin.

Marlon McCree's fumbled interception, 2006 Divisional Playoffs. This is the one that killed me to almost no end. Even though it paved the way for Peyton Manning's heroics the following week in the championship game, the annual Patriots charade should never have gotten that far. Tom Brady was picked off for the third time in the game, but McCree carried the return like a loaf of bread, only to be stripped by prehistoric receiver Troy Brown. IT gave the announcers and media a chance to laud a “truly selfless” effort by the overrated Brown, when really the focus should have been on McCree's utter stupidity, as well as Marty Schottenheimer's constant postseason failures. Mercifully, Schottenheimer's career ended after this debacle, but the Patriots luck did not. Predictably, the botched interception set up the tying touchdown and ultimately the 24-21 victory, which the classless Patriots followed up by mocking the Chargers at midfield after the final seconds ticked off.

May 13, 2007. This was possibly the worst of them all because it involved my beloved Orioles being victimized by the Boston terrorism. The Orioles were well on the verge of taking two out of three at Fenway Park, leading 5-0 in the bottom of the 9th. Jeremy Guthrie had pitched lights-out to that point, and got the first out of the inning before catcher Ramon Hernandez mishandled an infield pop-up that ignited a brutal 6-run rally by the Red Sox. The horrendous nightmare culminated with Julio Lugo hitting a ground ball to the right side of the infield. Former Sox hero Kevin Millar made an errant flip to pitcher Chris Ray at first, allowing the winning runs to score. I immediately wen to the gym and took out my frustrations on the punching bag.

Manning's 2004 trumps Brady's 2007*

Again, notice the asterisk. Tom Brady may have thrown 50 touchdown passes to set a single-season record* in 2007. Peyton Manning held the legitimate previous mark at 49, breaking Dan Marino's mark that had stood for 20 years. But there are some facts worth noting that in this Patriots-hater's mind make Manning's record-breaking season a more impressive one.
Consider, first of all, that having the class that he does, Tony Dungy sat Manning in the fourth quarter of a number of blowouts to let backup Jim Sorgi take some reps. Bill Belichick, meanwhile, not only usually left Brady in, but once even brought him back out to throw one more scoring pass just to rub it in Miami's face because the winless Dolphins got to within 21 points.
Unlike when New England went for the jugular with nothing on the line other than a record in the final game against the Giants (who won the only matchup between the teams that mattered last season), Dungy pulled Manning after just one series of the Colts' season-finale in Denver. Sitting on 49 against a defense that just two weeks prior had been scorched for 45 points by a sub-.500 Chiefs team, Manning easily could've topped 50. Even with Marino's record gone, Manning should have figured it wouldn't be safe with cheaters still on the loose. But still, Dungy is a class act and wanted to make sure his top-notch players were healthy when the Colts met the Broncos again the next week in the first round of the playoffs.
Brady undoubtedly knew what plays the Jets were running in the 2007 opener, and it wouldn't be much of a shock if he caught some illegal video footage of some of the other opponents the Patriots played. There were games, like the aforementioned Miami contest and a game against Washington the following week in which, despite a massive lead, Brady was still in slinging it against a hapless, defeated foe. Brady connected with Wes Welker in the Washington game for a score to make it 45-0 in the fourth quarter. The pint-sized Welker, beneficiary of double- and triple-teams on Randy Moss all year, spiked the ball like he had just won the Super Bowl (something he will hopefully never experience). What did Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne do after a touchdown? Hand the ball to the official, even if the score put the Colts ahead in the fourth quarter.
All told, Brady maxed out with 50 scoring tosses. Manning probably lost more than a game's worth of action to rest because many of the Colts games that year were out of reach early. No need to rub it in, right? But had slimy Belichick been pulling the reigns, Manning's record would probably still be standing in the mid-50s.

More obnoxious fans: Patriots or Steelers?

Good Will Hunting, Jason Bourne and Entourage whole-heartedly support the New England Patriots, cheating, scumminess, and all. Of course, that's easy when it seems that 97% of the popular universe hails from the New England area. But the Steelers may smoke the Patriots in that department – literally. That's because they have the D-O-Double Jizzle in their corner, the one and only Snoop Dogg. Rumor has it that Billy Madison, Adam Sandler, is a Steelers supporter as well.

The Patriots are more of a “woodwork” team. That means that due to their recent success* (notice the asterisk), many of their so-called “fans” are still coming out of the woodwork (I actually met a guy who claimed to be a die-hard because he just ordered a Matt Cassel jersey over the Internet). The Steelers, admitted cheaters due to excessive steroid use during their reign of terror in the 70s, at least are more steeped in tradition that the team that was almost shipped off to Hartford by Robert Kraft prior to the turn of the 21st century.
These teams have met many a time in recent years, with much at stake every time. The Steelers are still trying to figure out what they are more steamed over, the cheap film the Patriots had of their sideline from the 2001 championship game or Deion Branch gloating to the all the Terrible Towel wavers after the 2004 title game. They played last year during the Patriots run at imperfection, when rookie safety Anthony Smith of the Steelers virtually guaranteed a win. The result, an inevitable 34-13 drubbing.
Pittsburgh is a blue collar, hard-nosed town. They haven't had much to cheer for in the last 15-20 years with their Pirates. The Penguins came up just short last year, while the Pitt football and basketball teams have been competitive if not glorious. But it's all about the Steelers. The terrible towels alone make them an easy target for fans of anyone else, especially their division rivals. The difference is, the Patriots should be despised by all. Especially their so-called “fans”.

Patriots' Welker only benefiting from Moss' presence

Maybe the most misleading stat in the history of football is that New England Patriots' receiver Wes Welker is the first player in NFL history to catch at least six passes in his team's first nine games of a season. Let's forget that he has a paltry 9.4 yards per catch, one touchdown, and his longest gain this year is 27 yards. Welker is among the most overrated receivers in football. All he does is run five-yard patterns out of the slot, which are usual open because defenses are so afraid of lackadaisical Randy Moss they usually assign two or three defenders to him.
Welker getting yardage is like taking any generic fast player and throwing him quick passes that any Average Joe could catch, and because the Patriots' lineman are generally holding and cut-blocking, he can pad his stats with so-called yards after the catch.
One friend of mine claims that although Welker and Moss may not be the most dynamic one-two punch in football, they complement each other better than anyone. I then compared that theory to an over-sized bully and his pint-sized sidekick. The sidekick can still command respect and get his licks in on the helpless victim because he is protected by his mammoth partner-in-crime.
Of course, no one even remembers that Welker was once a member of the Miami Dolphins. He did very little to command any respect of his own, which only furthers my claim that he is hardly anything special. But with Brady last year and Moss still around this year, Welker can reap all the benefits and claim he's the real deal.