That’s how any Cowboys fan is feeling right now. It’s never an easy proposition to win in Philadelphia, but this game was just ridiculously bad. Four fumbles — all lost and two returned for touchdowns —by the Cowboys was about as sloppy as I’ve ever seen them play. And I was a fan during the Quincy Carter era. It’s fairly obvious that this team needs a disciplinary coach at the top of the totem pole and not a softie like Wade Phillips. There shouldn’t be receivers calling for more looks every week and there shouldn’t be players yapping at each other on the sidelines after miscues. I don’t care what Jerry Jones has said about Phillips’ status for next year, he has to go.

The lone bright spot of my day was the Dolphins’ triumph over the Brett Favre’s Jets, meaning the 11-5 Patriots won’t be in the post-season like my Cowboys. I’m actually a bit surprised nobody has brought up the Madden jinx yet regarding Favre’s and the Jets collapse; cover boys are usually in blogosphere cross-hairs more often than not. And if you tell me that Favre wasn’t playing through some sort of shoulder problem, well you’re an idiot. I found it quite surprising that the Jets gassed the Great Mangini after missing the playoffs. It’s not his fault that Favre fell apart.

And what a sight the weather was at Ralph Wilson Stadium, just outside of Buffalo. Both uprights were slanted at a 45 degree angle due to the crazy strong wind, but the oddest thing was that one was bent towards the East while the other was bent towards the West. I never would’ve thought that kind of swirling wind could happen.

Even worse news for the Pats and their loyal fans that Tom Brady’s knee is doing so hot. I’ve even heard that he’s on a fluid bag every second day to help it heal and stave off infection. It’s hard enough for QBs to come back from a devastating knee injury like his and these setbacks might have New England questioning Brady’s future with the team.

Speaking of concerns at QB, after watching Big Ben get crumbled by two Browns yesterday and seeing him lay on the field for 15 minutes, the Steelers better be thankful they have a bye week for Roethlisberger to shake off that concussion.

Then there’s last and certainly least, the Detroit Lions. It’s nice to see that they didn’t give up on their fans and actually went through the season winless — making history in the progress. This is truly (and obviously) one of the worst teams assembled in any sport and as much as pro teams are getting closer to excellence (Patriots last season), the bottoms are falling out to match. I guess the price you pay in a balanced league is lower lows to go with those higher highs.

Unsurprisingly, Romeo Crennel and Rod Marinelli were both fired yesterday. Fingers crossed that Wade Phillips is next but there are several guys on the chopping block ahead of him. I wouldn’t be surprised if three out of Jim Zorn, Marvin Lewis, Herm Edwards and Dick Jauron were all out of jobs within a week.

And what an improvement in picks over last season (below). By the way, it turns out when tallying my picks record week-to-week, I had actually forgotten to include two weeks. Further, doing the math, I’ve even misplaced a few games throughout the season, picking five less games than the possible 240 (remember, I don’t pick Dallas games). Anyway, a more than respectable .555 is great in my books.

This week: 8-5-2.
This season (2008): 126-101-8.
Last season (2007): 111-117-10.

No Comments »

No opening shpiel today, let’s get right into the picks so I can go out Boxing Day shopping.

All of the lines are from Vegas and all the home teams are in CAPS.

Oakland (+13) over TAMPA BAY
It’s always risky taking the Raiders since they stink, but Tom Cable is coaching to keep his job and I’m sure anyone on the Raiders is going to try to step it up to show other potential employers that they can actually play. The Bucs are strong at home but 13 points is a bit too much to pass up.

Detroit (+10) over GREEN BAY
The Lions win! The Lions win! The Packers are having the unluckiest season in the history of the NFL so why wouldn’t it be capped off by giving the Lions their only victory? Do you think Lions fans would rather go 0-16 and be in the history books of infamy forever, or win the game and be just a sad 1-15 squad? I think they want the 0-fer

Dallas (+1.5) at PHILADELPHIA
Why are people griping about this game being moved to the 4 o’clock spot? It’s not like the Eagles would ever let up against the Cowboys, their hated division rivals. The Eagles will be going all out, no matter what the outcome of the earlier games.

New York Giants (+6.5) over MINNESOTA
Remember last year, when the Giants played all out in week 17 and nearly beat the Patriots to give them a 15-1 season? Well, do you really think that Tom Coughlin is going to rest everyone in week 17 this year when playing all-out and keeping their momentum up led them to a Super Bowl last year? That not.

Chicago (+3) over HOUSTON
A must-win for Chicago against an over-rated Texans team. I can’t wait for everyone to pick Houston to make the playoffs next year. Hell, I’ll probably be suckered into it. But they really aren’t better than a .500 team in my mind and that’s how they’ll end this season: at .500.

NEW ORLEANS (+3) over Carolina
Drew Brees need a bit over 400 yards to break the single-season passing record and playing on their home-field fast track is perfect for that. Look for the eliminated Saints to be throwing ever chance they get. The Panthers are pretty secure and probably won’t be playing too much more than a straight defence.

ATLANTA (-14) over St. Louis
Poor Rams. Will their defence ever come around? It seems like they’re building it up but it always disappoints. Now with their offence a mere shadow of what it used to be, it may be a while before the Rams return to prominence – even if they’re in the NFC West.

CINCINNATI (-3) over Kansas City
Ugh. Really? Well, everybody has to play somebody in Week 17. This game will be one of those out-of-town scores where they don’t show highlights for the game and the announcer basically says, “In Cincinnati today, T.J. Houshmanzadeh caught two TD passes in the Bengals 17-10 win over K.C.”

BALTIMORE (-12.5) over Jacksonville
Thus concludes a very disappointing Jaguars campaign. They will now realize how much they need better receivers and how much a healthy offensive line really means in football. The Ravens have something to play for so they’ll probably light up the “Wait til next year” Jags.

Tennessee (-3) over INDIANAPOLIS
Well this is a waste of a perfectly good matchup. With both teams locked into where they’re seeded for January, there’s no sense in either of them going all-out. Especially when there’s a chance they could meet again in two weeks time. I like the Titans’ backups more than the Colts in this one.

PITTSBURGH (-10.5) over Cleveland
Would you say that Bruce Gradkowski is lucky to be getting the start this week for the Browns, or that it’s unfortunate? Either way, the Browns are toast this week, just like coach Crennel is toast before the playoffs even end. There is no way that he should be keeping his job.

New England (-6) over BUFFALO
The Patriots showed last week that they can play no matter what the circumstance. It was against the completely beleaguered Cardinals, but it was still a very impressive performance. How stupid do you think that Bills management feels now about giving Dick Jauron that contract extension earlier this season? He is so fired.

Miami (+3) over NEW YORK JETS
Since New England is going to toast the Bills, the Jets can win and send the hated Pats to the playoffs or they can lose and send the Dolphins. As much as I hate thinking about seeing a team literally roll over for anyone, I can’t help but think it’ll happen here. The Jets really hate the Pats that much.

Seattle (+6) over ARIZONA
Goodbye Mike Holmgren, I can’t wait to see you in two years, patrolling the Toronto Bills sidelines. Either that or the Redskins’ if they can’t lure Bill Cowher.

SAN FRANCISCO (-3) over Washington
The Redskins didn’t beat the Eagles, the Eagles beat the Eagles. The Redskins are a decent team but the Niners have looked better and better every week with Singletary at the helm. I’m glad he’s getting an extension, he deserves it.

Denver (+8) over SAN DIEGO
What’s this? A Norv Turner coached team that has a must-win, clutch game? Would you seriously bet on him to cover eight points? I said earlier this week that I’d take the Chargers to win the game, but eight points is just too much to be giving, even if the Broncos lost to Buffalo last week.

Last week: 9-6
This season: 102-87-6

No Comments »

The New York Yankees got their man, again. By throwing even more money around, they’ve now landed Mark Teixeira for a whopping eight-year, $180-million deal. Honestly, I’m just happy that the Red Sox didn’t sign him. While the Yanks needed a big bat at first base to move Nick Swisher to a corner outfield spot, the Sox would have had four guys (Tex, Ortiz, Youkilis and Lowell) to play three positions (DH, 1B and 3B). What sense would that make to spend Tex-money for an extra piece?

Quickly, if you ever believed for a second that the Orioles and Nationals had a shot at Teixeira, well you don’t know much about baseball. Guys will only take hometown discounts if it’s towards the end of their career of if they’ve built a rapport with a team they’ve been with for a long time. They won’t turn down hundreds of millions of dollars in their prime because they were born near Baltimore.

Now, the Bronx can bat A-Rod and Tex back-to-back and have two of the best hitters in the league powering their lineup. But who bats in the cleanup spot? Who will drive in more runs? This move might actually make Tex a bit less valuable fantasy-wise since A-Rod will hoard some of the potential RBIs.

The most ridiculous part of this signing is that they still have cash available to spend! After losing several big contracts from their last wave of ludicrous spending, the team has said it would like to stay at the $210 million payroll range. Basically, they’re fine with paying another $25M-plus of luxury tax next year. That tax sure did a great deal in levelling the playing field, eh?

No Comments »