AFC North Projections

Now I have been very conservative with my first projections to get into the swing of things.  Not in this league. I see 2 very good team, a decent team, and a very bad team.

Baltimore Ravens - 12-4
Pittsburgh Steelers - 12-4
Cincinnati Bengals - 6-10
Cleveland Browns - 3-13

Let's start with the Ravens.  They have a chip on their shoulder every year because everyone thinks the Steelers are the best in the division. So far they have been.  With Flacco out to prove his worth, the Ravens will be the team to beat this year.  I see them only losing to the Patriots, Steelers once, Broncos and Texans. With an old, but dependable defense, and the top producing RB in the league (Ray Rice), They are built to beat the real easy teams and be dangerous for the Patriots and Steelers and Texans (I'd say the three favorites in the AFC).  I think this can be the Ravens year to go deeper than they have recently in the playoffs.

Next stop Pittsburgh.  The steelers are a proven winning team with a born winner at QB and the toughest D in the league..STILL.  With and easier schedule this year, I expect Big Ben (I call him that because I forget how to spell his last name) will have the breakout year numbers wise we have been waiting for.  Mike Wallace and a solid #2 in Antonio Brown will help him produce, as well as a healthy Rashard Mendenhall. They have tended to have trouble with scoring against the easier teams in the past, if they do that this year they are in trouble.  Their must wins: week 2 vs. Jets, week 3 vs. Raiders, weeks 5-10 against the Eagles, Titans, Bengals, Redskins, and Chiefs.  The Steelers could go 14-2 if the start 7-2 in the first 10 weeks. They have a very easy schedule down the stretch which should allow them to rest some key players here and there and push them for home field advantage through out playoffs.

The Cincinnati Bengals are so close to being a 12-4 team with the Ravens and Steelers.  Losing a productive back in Cedric Benson I think hurts their chances a lot. Andy Dalton surprised everyone last year, I hope he can keep up the mojo with his Sophomore partner in crime in A.J. Green.  If their defense plays as good as it did last year (and is on my fantasy team again), I can see a change in their record a little bit, but I think the Ravens and Steelers are still a little to good. Next year I can see a little shift in the powers in this league.  If they start out strong with an easy first 6 weeks, they can contend for the final play off spot with other 8-8 teams in the league.

Now for the lowly Cleveland Browns.  I had a very hard time giving this team 3 wins.  Looking back at their schedule, it is one of the toughest. or it just looks that way because they don't have a good defense, drafted a 28 year old QB, and their star rookie already has had 2 knee surgeries this year.  Trent Richardson will have high production games, which will drag them to winning 3 times this year, but I look for him to start his career much like Darren McFadden, fast, btu won't finish the whole year out. I can see them beating the Bengals once, and Maybe steeling one from a playoff bound team in mid season games like the Cowboys or Raiders.

When healthy and playing to potential, the Steelers and Ravens are two of the top 8 teams in the whole league and will be out to win the championship this year. As for the Bengals, next year is best...and the Browns....In a couple years (Work on that Defense!)

The much anticipated AFC East is next on the docket.

AFC South Projections

Next in line for projections is what used to be a pretty good division, the AFC South. Good teams gone south in the AFC South. One dominant team with 3 rebuilding teams.

I think competition will be close between 3 of the teams with one winning out right and early in the season.  The Jaguars, Titans and Colts will all be close together but the Texans are by far the best in this division and will look to build on how well they played last year.

Houston Texans: 12-4
Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-8
Tennessee Titans: 7-9
Indianapolis Colts: 6-10

Let's start at the top, The Houston Texans are one of the best teams in the conference with a decent schedule. Given that Arian Foster, Matt Schuab and Andre Johnson stay healthy, they can make a push pretty deep into the playoffs. Look for Ben Tate to play a roll deep into the season as well. They did lose a big defender this off season but have plenty around him that can step up with Brian Cushing and Glover Quinn. To prove they are good, they need to win the easy match-ups and win some key match-ups against: Week 6 vs. Jets (No one wants to lose to the Tebow Mania this year), Week 7 vs. Packers (Not sure they can win but this would be a great way to make some noise), Week 8 vs. Ravens, week 12 vs. Lions, and week 14 vs. Patriots (After this game, the road gets easier into the playoffs).  Texans will sweep their division, well maybe a Chris Johnson break out game could prevent that.

While the Jaguars are just as bad as the other 3 teams but do have a solid offense core. Blaine Gabbert will be a reliable QB in the future and MJD has proven he can carry the load when needed. Drew has one more good season in him unless he gets injured.  If MJD can't provide what they are looking for, they have a more than capable back up in Rashard Jennings. Having said that, in order to have a chance, they need to sweep the Colts, and beat all the teams to the likes of the Dolphins, Raiders, Bengals and Vikings.  Who knows, if a couple teams don't live up to their moxie, they could fall into the last playoff spot.

The Titans have one of the hardest schedules in the league and a not so good offense and defense. Just because they have one good individual player doesn't mean they are good as a team. Chris Johnson will break out again this year, but they have a real issue at QB.  They still have faith in Hassleback, but if they want to move on, they need to trust Jake Locker for the year and see if he is the direction they are going in. Hassleback is not the answer, never was for any other team he played for.  They are not in the  talks or anywhere near it this year and not worth a paragraph in my opinion.

Th Colts are the talk of the town in this division with the acquiring of the "Next Peyton Manning" in Andrew Luck and his partner in crime from Stanford, Coby Fleener.  They don't have a terribly hard schedule but I think in experience will hurt them in close games with other average teams, especially in the beginning of the season.  Their schedule ends roughly with two out the last three against the Texans, so they could possibly hurt the Texans chance at a bye week in the play offs if they work into a nice routine by then.

All-in-all not a very good league anymore. Transition is the word to explain this league.

The chalk full AFC North is next.

AFC West Projections

On the day the preseason starts I wanted to start a little series of my predictions, starting with each division and working into the playoffs. I will of course start with the best division (said with huge bias), the AFC West.

This division, like the last few years will be the closest and most competitive with each other. Keep in mind I am not saying it will be the best league, just very competitive with each other.

Denver Broncos: 10-6
Oakland Raiders: 9-7
San Diego Chargers: 9-7
Kansas City Chiefs: 6-10

The Broncos, given that Peyton Manning has no issues, will win this division. Half of me thinks he takes them to a 13-3 record, but I do not think that would be an accurate projection. They might hit 11-5.  They will do it one of two ways, with a very slow start, or a very slow finish, either way they will limp into the playoffs like last year, but be a little more competitive with an MVP caliber QB. There interesting match-ups are: Week 1 primetime vs. the Steelers (Peyton's first regular season game back in 18 months against a hard hitting defense), Week 5 vs. the Patriots (Tom Brady - Peyton Manning rival renewed), Week 8 primetime vs. the Saints (Can the Broncos D stop Brees...can anyone?), week 10 vs. the Panthers could be a high scoring run n' gun match in the 40s, and week 17 vs. the Chiefs could be the game to decide whether or not they make the playoffs or get a First round Bye.

The Raiders, with a healthy Darren McFadden, could be the best team in the division.  With an explosive offense and a pretty easy schedule.  Carson Palmer will now have a full off season to prepare with his offense and should be back to how he used to be, and has a deep, young, talented pool of WRs that include: Darrius Heyward-Bay, Denarius Moore and Jacoby Ford (all showed they could be dangerous last season). Some key match-ups include: week 3 vs. the Steelers (McFadden needs to kill it in this game), Week 10 vs. the Ravens (Ravens/Joe Flacco play with huge chips on their shoulder in their division), week 11, vs. the Saints (this could be their high scoring game, they will have to in order to keep up with Brees torching their pathetic defense), and week 17 vs. the Chargers playing for the playoffs. I think this could be the first year in a little while 2 teams could come out of the West into the playoffs.  In order for the Raiders to do so, they have a lot of must-wins out of division like: week 2 vs. Dolphins, week 7 vs. Jaguars, week 9 vs. Buccaneers, week 12 vs. Bengals, week 13 vs. Browns, and week 16 vs. Panthers.

I am not sold on the Chargers this season, losing a few key players in the off-season (i.e. Vincent Jackson and Mike Tolbert) and an aging TE that can't play a whole season anymore.  Having said that, they know they have lost respect in the league and could come out hot to start. The Chargers also have a fairly easy schedule this year and have just as long of a must-win list as the Raiders: week 2 vs. Titans, week 8 vs. Browns, week 10 vs. Buccaneers, week 13 vs. Bengals, week 15 vs. Panthers, and week 16 vs. Jets.  If the Chargers want to take 2nd...or God help me...even 1st, they will have to finish 4-2 in the division, and would have to sweep the Chiefs and split with Broncos and Raiders.  I like their defense this year with Weddle and Jammer as DBs and a BIG D-Line.  Look for the Chargers to play upset in some games this season.

Last...and least...is the lowly Chiefs.  There are a lot of pieces missing on their team. As a Broncos fan, I hope Peyton Hillis wins out over Jamal Charles.  Charles, coming off an ACL injury won't be the same explosive back in the beginning, making them rely on Hillis and their less then stellar passing attack. I am not sold on Matt Cassel...never was...He gets a lot of credit for doing well with the Patriots that surrounded him with players to make it hard for him to not succeed.  Dwayne Bowe will be likely their only bright spot playing for a contract at the end of the season. Having said that, the Chiefs have a fairly easy end to their schedule, with some key wins and a little luck could flip flop their record I have posted on the top.  They have a tough first 6 weeks against (Falcons, Bills, Saints, Chargers, Ravens, Buccaneers) where if they come out at .500 could be okay to finish along side the Raiders and Chargers. Coming down the stretch, they would have to finish winning 5 of 7 of their last games to be competitive...I don't see them finishing that strong but you never know.  They would have to play winnable games against the  Bengals, Panthers, Browns, Raiders and Colts as well as two tough match-ups with division fo Broncos.  I don't see it happening.

Look for the Broncos for sure out of the West and maybe another depending how the AFC North and East finish.

Next is the AFC South.

Olympic HIghlights

I am officially on Vacation with my Wife (soon to be kid) and the rest of my family.  It hit when i had my iphone on the NBCOlympics app watching the 1500m finals...at the beach...getting my tan on, and the occasional swim myself. Although I'd rather have swam in a pool than the ocean. I wanted to be able to touch on some Olympics before it was over so I didn't totally ignore this wonderful event that only takes place every 2 years (if you count the Winter ones). I wanted to first congratulate NBC on the intense coverage through Mobile, web and TV. The coverage (while I haven't been a huge fan of the commentary) has been the best since I have been alive, thanks in part to the growth of technology in my young life.  I haven't been able to watch as much as I have in the past because I have to work during the week, but this year I have broadened the types of sports I have watched

Usually I stuck to the Gymnastics, Track & Field, Swimming, diving, Beach Volleyball.  This year I have watched the likes of Archery, Judo, Badminton, Canoe/Kayak, Handball, Water Polo, Shooting, Tennis, Sailing, Equestrian, as well as my usually favorites I already listed.  While my favorite sport has just got underway, in case you haven't watched any Olympics I wanted to touch on some USA highlights and low lights so far.

Highlights:
Michael Phelps becomes the winningest Olympian ever with 22 Medals (18 of which Gold)
Serena Williams wins gold by crushing Maria Sharapova in the finals
Dana Vollmer Gold Medals
U.S. team nabs Silver behind Great Britain in Cycling
15 Year Old Katie Ledecky takes home gold in the Women's 800m freestyle
Missy Franklin wins gold and sets a world record for the 200m Backstroke
The one MIANER Elle Logan was part of the US Women's Crew Gold medalists
Gabby Douglas wins gold in both individual and team all-around gymnastics competitions
USA Mens basketball beats Nigeria by 83 points, more points than Nigeria actually scored
Kayla Harrison makes history by winning Gold for the first time ever in Judo for USA
Rebecca Soni sets the 200m Breaststroke world record by 2.5 seconds in a Gold Medal win

I am sure I have missed some events, sorry I didn't mention a bunch of Badmintoners getting kicked out for losing on purpose...wait I just did. There are still some sweet stories out there for the next week.

I am unbelievably excited for the 100m Mens dual between Usain Bolt and Justin Gaitlin to see who is the fastest man in the world.  as well as every other track event.  Although I refuse to watch the Mens basketball, I will still keep an eye and see if they can step up and prove they are better than 1992. Still a week of greatness to be had.  Although John Isner was kicked out, the Andy Murray Roger Federer finals tennis I believe will be a match for the ages.

What a great thing to have take our minds off the bad in the world right now.  Olympics couldn't have had better timing if you ask me.

The Main Event

Of course I started with a picture of Peyton, if anyone knows me, they know I enjoy the Denver Broncos a little bit.  On to some serious talk though. Who to take and when to take them.  I am in a keeper league so I am currently looking at QBs in a different light (I am also very biased and have trouble separating). But, if I'm not in a keeper league here's how I view the pool.

I am a high buyer on Peyton Manning, but I also like to take high risks that don't always work out for me.  But at best, I wouldn't think to pick him until the 3rd round. He will still be there.  There are 4, maybe 5 QBs that are worth taking in the 1st round. If you don't get these QBs, fill other important positions like RB until the second.

1st Round Quarterbacks: (The Obvious Ones)
Tom Brady - No brainer
Drew Brees - Better play for the money he just made
Aaron Rodgers - will be tops until he decides to take a dive
Matthew Stafford - With Megatron and his arm, Madden curse or not, someone will always be open for him
Eli Manning (Maybe) - After his last season, how can you pass on him

2nd Rounders:
Cam Newton - Not sold, Rookie luck, but I think he can still produce and put up big fantasy points
Tony Romo - has 2 diesel wide outs in Dez and Miles and one of the best tight ends in the league.
Matt Ryan - Also has 2 rediculous Wideouts in Julio and Roddy(Yes I am on a first name basis with all WRs) and no running game, so he has to throw the ball this year.
Joe Flacco - Has a huge chip on his shoulder, I look for him to have a big season.
Ryan Fitzpatrick - Had a good season going last year and has the arsenal to do it again

3rd Rounders:
Matt Shaub - with a healthy Andre Johnson, BIG numbers
Josh Freeman - Tampa has upgraded their team with drafting Doug Martin and adding Vincent Jackson and Dallas Clark can only help a decent QB put up good fantasy numbers.
Alex Smith - Could have the best season out of any QB. I'm not sold on the 49ers but I am sold on Smith being a winner.
Peyton Manning - Has the BIGGEST chip on his shoulder and is out to prove he is better than his little brother. Not being bias here, I think the Broncos make a run at the promise land and can only do that with a BIG season from Peyton.

4th Round: filled with unproven or might bes
Michael Vick - I would stay away altogether, but some seem to think the Eagles are going to be something special this year.
Andy Dalton - can be really good. not sure he is ready yet and needs some roster spots filled around him.
Matt Flynn - Showed promise last year, but with arguably the best offense in the league (I could be QB on the Packers)
Matt Hasselback - always puts up good numbers

If you don't get a QB in the first 3 rounds, you better have an arsenal of high scoring RBs and WRs.  There are a few hidden gems in the draft for later though that could be good picks.

Andrew Luck - The obvious one
Roger Griffin III - the other obvious one

I try to stay away from rookie QBs but I did that last year and missed out on Cam Newton.

Kevin Kobb - Should succeed with Larry Fitz
John Skelton - if Kobb fails with Larry Fitz
Carson Palmer - could be a late round steal if you decide to skip over QBs for a while


A couple to stay away from

Mark Sanchez - Hopefully will be passed by Tebow
Whoever starts for the Dolphins
Christian Ponder - Vikings  suck with a healthy or unhealthy AP
Blaine Gabbert - will need time to grow with Blackmon but could be a good tandem in a couple years

Matt Cassel - Eh
Sam Bradford - Won't be passing very much with a healthy Steven Jackson around


I'm sure I missed a couple Gems but this makes sense to me.

A Lack of Running Backs

There aren't a lot of full time RBs out there, teams have seemed to like to split time and change pace in order to control games better.  Which is understandable from a coach POV.  But from the fantasy football fans POV, it sucks and makes drafts and week-to-week very tough.  My solution, draft early and stay away from the split backs.  The obvious picks are keepers in many leagues but will be taken before QBs, in most leagues because of their importance to their team.  Ray Rice will be relavent for a couple more years as the workhorse, look for Arian Foster to have another wonderful season if he stays healthy, but if you draft him, I would draft Ben Tate as a safety net so noone else can have him.  Lesean McCoy Will kill it this year, and Ryan Matthews, since getting rid of Mike Tolbert, is the lone back at San Diego.  I think Chris Johnson will bounce back nicely, and I am super sold on Demarco Murray coming back, he is one of my keepers and I look to ride him all season (stay away from the sexual innuendoes here...pervs). McFadden will be good the first half of the season, but make sure you have something on the bench to fill in, Trent Richardson will be able to contribute right away in a depleted (to say the least) Cleveland Browns team. MJD will be important, if he signs and stays healthy, high risk player though.  Willis McGahee will do work in Denver but THeir rookie will make some noise somewhere this season.

A list of people I am not sold on
Adrian Peterson, because he is injured and wont be 100% all year
Matt Forte, I see Jay Cutler passing a whole lot this year, so Matt will be involved more in passing if he can get open in the flats
Marshawn Lynch, never been sold on this Skittle of joy
Jamal Charles, sucks and is not used correctly in KC
Fred Jackson, getting old and I look for CJ Spiller to make his mark this season.
Any Carolina Running Back (DeAngelo Williams, John Stewart, Mike Tolbert) They will all share time together and Cam Newton will be more importnant in the Red Zone over the others...If forced though, I would take Tolbert, he proved valuable in goal line instances.
Any Redskin RB for the open of the season...Hightower and Helu will share time the beginning of the season, I think Helu will win out the starting job though.
Frank Gore, Because I said so.
Beanie Wells, injury bug

Some Season Surprises to look for in later rounds
CJ Spiller as mentioned before
Peyton Hillis, I look for him to be the workhorse and Jamal Charles to take a back seat again
Doug Martin will win out eventually over a fumble ridden Legarret Blounte
Ahmad Bradshaw is the only RB to note in NY. Look to him when Eli isn't throwing the ball
Reggie Bush is going to be off the chains again after finding his legs again last year.
Mark Ingram will be the feature back in NO but look for Darren Sproles to be a very high scorer in PPR leagues.
I think the the biggest surprise will be Rashard Jennings out of Jacksonville, I forsee MJD getting injured when he signs and Rashad stepping in nicely.

Thats my view on RBs, QBs will be next time.  Chime in if you think I'm wrong or agree with my views.

Tiger Talk

I am going to take a quick break from fantasy talk here and touch base on some Tiger Woods, this is for you Burke Lord.  Mr. Eldrick Tont Woods. Actually having a pretty successful come back this year despite critics.  The only criticism for Tiger is his lack of winning at a Major.  Lets take a look at his Major finishes:

Masters: Tied 40th at +5
US Open: Tied 21st at +7
British Open: Tied 3rd at -3

Slowly getting better and it's only a matter of time until he takes home another Major...It might have to be next year, but I see a green Jacket in his future.  The issue is not him sucking, its the field around him getting better as well; the fact that there has been 18 different champions in the last 18 different Majors, Tiger being one of them (2008 US Open). Which ultimately, I think, is good for the sport overall.

Major status set aside, let's take a look at some different stats this year. Tiger is number one on the money list by about 250,000 bucks. Tiger is number one in FedEx Cup points by 32. Tiger has the most wins in the season with 3. He is tied for 9th with 5 top ten finishes and has made 10 of 13 cute this season.  All in all, a pretty damn successful year so far. oh...AND...Tiger is #2 in the World, working towards his #1 ranking again.

Tiger is now just as good as the rest of the top players in the league. He is still the reason I started playing (as well as most any male my age) and I will defend to the end.  Tiger will be on top soon enough.

Deep Field for WIde outs

Interested in fantasy football? My life becomes consumed by it in about another week...haha just kidding I am already consumed in it, running a competitive keeper league, and always researching.  I've decided to share some of what I have come across in my research as of this far.

The most obvious is how how deep the field is for wide outs this year. Starting with Megatron himself (Who unfortunately is on the Madden Cover...ruh roh) and goes to the likes of veterans like Randy Moss who show promise for a sweet come back year. The deep field of Wide outs allows you to search for other needs in the early rounds, especially in a keeper league.  One of my keepers is going to be a dependable wide out in either Miles Austin - DAL(Healthy and the dependable one with LR leaving to JAX and Dez being troublesome) or Hakeem Nicks - NYG (pending how his recovery goes).

I will look into other positions in a later post, but for now let's stay with wide outs.  If, like me, you are willing to wait on wide outs to fill other importnat positions there will be plenty of late round gems out there.  My boys (Broncos) have 2, I am not sure who will have a better year with Peyton at the helm, but you have Eric Decker(A solid POV on Decker and a decent mock draft) who is a route running phenom and Demaryious Thomas who is dangerous for big plays.  in a PPR(Points per reception) league, my bet is on Eric Decker getting the most looks, and a mid round steal.  With Andrew Luck QB in Indy, I think atleast Reggie Wayne - IND and Austin Collie - IND will become more consistent targets.  Dwayne Bowe - KC, looking to test free agency next year, looks to be someone with a huge upside (considering WRs on a contract year usually over perform).  I am not totally sold on Torrey Smith - BAL  but he will be the Number one and will for sure get his looks from Flacco and will be available in the 7th or 8th round. In my eyes he would be one of those "I missed every other receiver I wanted, guess I have to settle with him" picks. 

Other Names to look for in the mid to late rounds: Desean Jackson - PHI, Pierre Garcon - WAS, Justin Blackmon - JAX(because Jax has noone else), Randy Moss - SF (Huge upside and can only go up from where he last ended things), Nate Washington - TEN (because Titans will be Britt-less it looks like), 

(HAHAHA JUST KIDDING, He(Terrel Owens) will get on a team, but will maybe have a touchdown and a couple hundred yards at most)

A couple late round super sleepers: Greg Little - CLE, Chad Ochocinco - MIA, Brandon Gibson - STL (There is noone else in STL and Bradford has to throw to someone. 

Running Backs are the next to be disected. I wanted to get the easy grouping out of the way first.

Sad Day

Now I know my blog is labeled "Just Sports" but a tragedy has happened in the last 24 hours in Aurora Colorado.  Seeing as how my favorite NFL team is the Denver Broncos I thought I would send my condolences to the families who lost their loved ones at the movie theaters in Colorado.

People like this shouldn't have the right to live, let alone a fair trial.  He will get his...like I said with Sandusky, everyone gets what they deserve in the end.  This Dark Knight won't be rising anywhere but the noose he has created himself.  I wanted to go ahead and highlight the tweets I have come across on twitter from my favorite NFL team as well as across the nation to show how we feel about the situation and how tragedy has brought America closer together.
Broncos tweets are courtesy this link

Ben Garland (‏@BenGarland63) – I was planning on attending that exact movie in that theater but changed my mind. Thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims.

Demaryius Thomas (‏@DemaryiusT) – Everybody keep Colorado in your prayers.

Ryan Clady ‏(@RyanClady) – Thoughts and prayers to the victims in the shooting in Colorado. Sad day.

David Bruton Jr. (‏@D_Brut30) – Thoughts and prayers go out to the family members of the victims. Such a tragedy. Insanity. The 6 year old In the tragedy makes me think, I take my son to late night movies when I can. Let’s bond together and pray.

Wesley Woodyard (‏@WoodDro52) – Saddened to hear about the news of the shooting in Aurora Co! My prayers & thoughts are w/the victims&their families! We have to pray!

Robert Ayers (1_900_‏ayersjr) – My prayers go out to the family and friends of the victims of the Shooting in Aurora.. So sad.

Brock Osweiler (‏@BrockOsweiler) – My greatest condolences go out to all the families affected in last nights #AuroraShooting. My thoughts and prayers will be with you.

Tony Carter (‏@tonycarter904) – Pray for the families in Denver who were lost or hurt during the shooting.

Virgil Green (‏@VGreen85) – Heart and prayers go out to the families of the shootings.

Zane Beadles (‏@zanebeadles) – Deeply saddened by the Aurora shooting. A bit of anger too. Prayers to all those affected. #tragic

Mitch Unrein (‏@MitchellJUnrein) – Prayers 2 those who lost their lives in the shooting in Aurora.

Ed McCaffrey (‏@87ed) - Such a sad & difficult day here in Colorado. Please join us in praying for the victims & their families and friends. #staystrongcolorado.

Mark Schlereth (‏@markschlereth) – Please join me in prayer for the victims and families of the Colorado shootings!

Terrell Davis (‏@Terrell_Davis) – My heart goes out to all of the victims of the Aurora, Colorado movie theater shooting last night. Just a senseless act by a coward #tragic

Brian Dawkins (‏@BrianDawkins) - I pray 4 HEALING, RECOVERY, STRENGTH among other Graces Father, 4 those victims in the Aurora Movies shooting in CO. The families included!

The Hill ‏@thehill

Obama leads moment of silence, calls #Batman #theatershooting'senseless' (by @amieparnes) 

mark schlereth ‏@markschlereth

Please join me in prayer for the victims and families of the Colorado shootings!

Denver Broncos ‏@Denver_Broncos

New blog post: Broncos Mourn Aurora Tragedy

Erin Hamill ‏@erin_hamill1

prayers and thoughts go out to the victims and families of the Colorado #theatershooting

Jared Sullinger ‏@Jared_Sully0

Prayers to the colorado families. Also to the ppl that are in the hospital around the world prays for you too. Y'all don't go unnoticed.

Denver Broncos ‏@Denver_Broncos

Our deepest, most heartfelt condolences go out to the victims of this horrific tragedy in our community.

CNN Breaking News ‏@cnnbrk

Obama on #theatershooting: "Such violence, such evil is senseless. It is beyond reason." 

Byron Tau ‏@ByronTau

Obama calls for a "day for prayer and reflection," crowd starts clapping.

Terrell Davis ‏@Terrell_Davis

My heart goes out to all of the victims of the Aurora, Colorado movie theater shooting last night. Just a senseless act by a coward #tragic

Dick Vitale ‏@DickieV

My God what a disaster in Colorado- just learned of this tragedy - heart pains 4 all of those innocent ppl .Sad that u can' go to a movie.

Fox News ‏@FoxNews

President Barack Obama said Friday he was "shocked and saddened" by deadly shooting at #Aurora, Denver movie theater

BrianChalifour ‏@BrianChalifour

Terrible news out of Aurora Colorado as 12 killed and many more injured in a shooting at the midnight showing of "The Dark Knight Rises"

As the biggest mass murdering in the US since the Va Tech shooting, I go out and say my thoughts and prayers go out to the children, teenagers, adults, American soldiers, who lost their parents, loved ones, friends in this horrific tragedy. Time will heal, have faith in our system to have this COWARD get what he deserves for ruining the lives of so many.

Ray Who??

After waiting a week or so, I think I am ready to talk about how I feel about Ray Allen and the future of the Celtics and why I don't think we will miss him.  It was a great five years with Ray.  I will miss him and what he brings to a/any team.  But we milked him for what he had left in the tank, took everything the Celtics needed from him.  His production and ability to perform this past year was in question. While he was still hitting his treys and free throws, he just wasn't able to play the amount of time needed.

(Courtesy Boston Globe) 

After Ray's heartfelt thanks for the great time in Boston, he is off to a team that won't ask much from him at all. He will be able to be saved for late game situations and to come off the bench.  He will most likely be very successful in doing what he needs to do as well, and the Heat will capitalize as well and, pending where Dwighty goes this offseason, will be on their way to another title.

Why we don't need him?

The Celtics have had a busy and successful off season in my eyes. Starting with a man who is already on our team, but just needed to have surgery and get healthy. The man who replaced Allen the second half of last season, Mr. Avery Bradley (What Bleecherreport.com thinks of Avery). As long as Rondo is at the helm, Avery Bradley will be successful because he won't necessarily need to create his own shot(Which he DOES have an issue with) and will have time to build his talent while Pierce is still around taking the big shots.  Speaking of big shots, A signing I like is Jason Terry, an identical player type to Ray Allen. A good shooter, clutch shooter, three-point shooter, reliable 6th man (exactly what we needed).

Now time to talk draft.  There was speculation of trading the picks to move up in the draft (Thank God they didn't). As big of a Dukey and Celtic fan I am, Austin Rivers wasn't the right fit. 2 big clunkers for the inside, however, equals recipe for success.  Sullinger will be a guarantee, just needs to stay healthy. Melo, I think, is a brilliant pick. He will be a work in progress early, but, under the supervision of Kevin Garnett the next couple of years, will lose his lazy, dumb habits and be the rebounding, blockig machine he has the potential of being.  Which brings me to Garnett, with how he performed last year, he deserved to resign for whatever he wanted so he could retire along side Paul Pierce as a Celtic in the (Probably) near future. I think Garnett will embrace the roll of teacher as well. If I wanted anyone teaching a lanky 7 footer how to play and be intimidating, I would choose Garnett.

Competitive Wiffle Ball

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of competing in an organized wiffle ball tournament for the first time in my life, hard to believe since I used to be so good at the "beer in hand, trash talking, homerun derby" style of wiffle ball. The tourney I attended was the Lincoln Homecoming Wiffle Ball Tournament (home page of tournament) which is run by my friend Jason Clay.  All money raised went to the local Lincoln recreation department.

(Pictures courtesy official facebook page)

In doing this tournament, I learned a few things: I'm not as good at pitching as I used to be (apparently if you take a few years off, you forget how to pitch), Fast pitching helped teams win (movement of the pitch helped a lot as well), not everyone just uses the standard yellow bat anymore and, finally, WOW AM I SORE TODAY; most likely from the lack of activity I have in my life.  Literally can't even walk today. 

It was interesting to see the rules and everyones honesty to the rules, there were no umpires so each game was trusted to the teams involved to make the right calls. This current tournament is 16 years in the making and most of the competitors have competed for all the years so they were mostly on the same page.  It was a fun, competitive atmosphere.  The team I was invited to play on, the Long Balls, did pretty making to the second round of tournament play losing to the "Master Batters" a fast pitching squad we couldn't hit off of... therefore had no runs and few base runners. The eventual winners of the tournament were "Warning Track Power" 

Congratulations! The weather was great, it was amazingly organized, stats were all recorded and should be available on their website at some point (the link I provided above).  This is something I hope to be lucky enough to compete in next year ( if the team will have me back) I will be working on my pitching all summer/winter and vow to be able to help my team more than last time! 

There is also another tournament coming up soon in August ran by one Wayne Harvey of WABI.  This one is Wiffle for a wish and has grown fast in the current years. I am assuming most of the teams who are involved with this past tournament are attending this one as well. I don't currently have a team or any prospects for a team but if anyone needs the help of a very mediocre player, I am your man. I will at least be attending to see what it is all about. And I will for sure be back to Lincoln next year. Thanks to all involved and congratulations if you scored a limited edition autographed photo of "The Annexation of Puerto Rico" I hear they are valuable.  

I also believe there is still time to sign up for the up and coming wiffle tournament in Bangor. GET ON IT!! all proceeds benefit the Make a Wish Foundation. here is a link to the official page.

1992 vs. 2012

Who is a better "Dream Team"? There has been much debate and a whole lot of trash talk between the two sides, each supporting their own team in the matter. So let's break it down like it was 1992 Team playing against the 2012 team in the Gold Medal Game. First let's take a look at each roster:

1992 (wiki info on team)                   2012(this years team info and stats)
Christian Leattner                     Carmelo Anthony
David Robinson                       Kobe Bryant
Patrick Ewing                          Tyson Chandler
Larry Bird                                Anthony Davis
Scottie Pippen                          Kevin Durant
Michael Jordan                        James Harden
Clyde Drexler                         Andre Igoudala
Karl Malone                            Lebron James
John Stockton                         Kevin Love
Chris Mullen                           Chris Paul
Charles Barkley                      Russell Westbrook
Magic Johnson                       Deron Williams

1st of all, Is this really a debate?? 2nd of all...Is this even a debate. Every player on the 1992 Dream team is an eventual hall of famer, if they already aren't in the HOF.  I can see 4 maybe 5 hall of famers on the 2012 team.

Size wise, 1992 takes the cake easily with Leattner, Ewing and Robinson all 7 feet tall. Then you have the bruiser Barkley, who is a little shorter but 250 pounds of Get the F*%$ Out of The Way.  Tyson Chandler, Kevin Love and experience-less Anthony Davis are not as impressive by any means. The one area where the 2012 team is stronger is the 3 spot. With Lebron and Durantula, they are just too athletic for the likes of Bird, Pippen or Mullen.

But then you think about JORDAN(wiki info), coming off his second straight 30ppg MVP season, repeat champion, and most dominant player in the league then.  Jordan would take up most of the defensive time and would easily free up Clyde the Glide or Malone(King of the pick and roll) in pick and roll situations.

The newest generation of Point guard isn't even a point guard anymore, the more successful, talked about PGs are the ones who do most of the scoring for the team, Chris Paul, Westbrook and WIlliams, all very good at scoring but inconsistent with passing or sharing...Wait isn't that important for the point guard to do, share?... Bring into the conversation, the two best point guards of the 1992 generation, Stockton and Magic, who were poetic with their moves and passes. It was an art form to pass like Magic did.  I just don't see an instance where this years Olympic team can beat the 1992 Dream Team. Im my eyes, there will only ever be 1 Dream Team.

Is there a possible group of 2012 players that could beat the Dream Team(1992 obviously), I will give it a shot to assemble the best of 2012 and You can let me know how I did:

Rajon Rondo (not because I'm a homer, but because his court vision is unreal)
Steve Nash (not sure if he can play for USA or not, He is Canadien eh)
Chris Paul
Dwyane Wade
Kobe Bryant
Lebron James
Kevin Durant
LaMarcus Aldridge
Blake Griffin
Dwight Howard
Andrew Bynum
Roy Hibbert

I can't think of anyone else. I still can't see this team beating the "old team" but It would be closer. Hands down the 1992 Olympics team would beat this years olympics team 19 out of 20 times. The 20th game being the one they hand over because they feel bad.

JoePa's Big Secret

Today's press conference with Former FBI agent Louis Freeh hurt the reputation of both the Penn St. and Joe Paterno(ESPN's coverage of the press conference). No matter how great of a legacy JoePa left behind, it will forever be tainted by the fact he didn't go to the max to save these children's lives. 

"In order to avoid the consequences of bad publicity, the most powerful leaders at the university -- Spanier, Schultz, Paterno and Curley -- repeatedly concealed critical facts relating to Sandusky's child abuse,"


I feel bad For Louis Freeh who had to be the one to bring the news to everyone about how whenever you think of Joe Paterno now, you think of him letting the monster Jerry Sandusky ruin the young lives of so many children like he did (With his rough housing in the showers and what not).  Louis Freeh will now forever be known as the man who determined Penn St. had this huge cover up and put their football ahead of these children's lives. Gambling against your own team doesn't look so bad anymore now does it Pete Rose?


 "The most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14 years to protect the children who Sandusky victimized." 

(Man Takes A Great Mug Shot)


You would think that now Freeh has unveiled that Penn State stood behind and hid Sandusky and his "Extra-curricular activities" there will be punishment not only for the 3 out 4 who are in jail for a long time (the fourth, JoePa, passed away and can't quite attend prison) but for the school as well.  Now I hear that the Alumni has donated extra money in the recent past and the University has built this huge buffer for any lawsuits that come their way (Like from every child who was hurt or touched by Sandusky). My thought is a starting point for the Alumni/University is to donate a chunk of money towards something that benefits children who were sexaully abused/harassed. Next would be to punish the school by taking away scholarships, or at least punishing the football program with the usual no postseason BS.  Make an example of an organization that chose to hide a monster and try to save face rather than save children's lives. 


Then again a lot of people can argue that Penn State(good article from bleacherreport.com) will be punished enough. I think we should bury the University and the football program with the life sentences Sandusky will be serving. I also believe Sandusky will be treated like he deserves by all the inmates he will share a cell block with (AKA, He won't have to exactly drop the soap if you know what I mean). I'm a man of faith and I have faith the organization and the people involved will get what they deserve. 

Dwight Saga Continues

As promised, I will stay away from the Red Sox...for now.  I figure we switch to the news that is covering most of the sports world lately, the inevitable super team that could form in Los Angeles.

Since the Nets have officially bowed out of the race for Dwight Howard a new 3-team trade has started to be worked on. It includes the Lakers, Rockets and Magic.  The Lakers would of course get Dwight Howard, The Rockets would get the "Just as whiney" Andrew Bynum, and the Magic would get a bunch of worthless picks and players that would not add up to the talent of Dwight.

Yes you heard this right, The Lakers would only give up Bynum for Dwight Howard...Are you $%^&ING kidding me.  A co-worker (Channel 7 WVII's Sports Nut Brian Sullivan) and I were talking of this last night.  Think of the SUPER team the SUPER man would join.  I've already come up with their name "THE FANTASTIC FOUR"

  With the addition to Steve Nash, the Lakers will have an intense starting group with a half-way decent bench.  My Projected starting 5 (Of course if Dwight is traded) with last years important stats
          1. Steve Nash (12ppg, 11apg)
          2. Kobe Bryant (28ppg, 5rpg, 4apg)
          3. Metta World Peace (???Do his stats matter)
              (He has to succeed with this talent around him...Right??)
          4. Pau Gasol (17ppg, 10rpg)
          5.Dwight Howard (20ppg, 15rpg)


If they all mesh together, that, my friends, is an unstoppable force. That starting group mixed with a bench that includes Matt Barnes, Ramon Sessions, Josh McRoberts, Jordan HIll, and Steve Blake (some have to be resigned as Free Agents).  In the words of Brian Sullivan, "This could rival the Bulls 72 win team in 95-96 with Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, Harper, Kerr, Kukoc and Longley.


Who cares if Dwight doesn't sign an extension with the Lakers after this one season, they (If all goes to plan) would go down as arguably the best team ever to play.  And think of the Finals match up between  Miami and LA (again if this all works out) , 7 games, bloody noses, broken limbs.  I am glad that I don't see the Celtics having a huge chance to win this year with what has already taken place in the off-season...They are a whole different story(P.S. I still have faith) I don't have time for at the moment. Maybe next time...All I can say is glad the Nets don't have a BIG THREE. 

Red Sox Minors

      Reaching back on what I touched on yesterday (that's what she said), My POV on the Red Sox is the pitching needs an over haul.  From my understanding in order to bring someone up from the team affiliates a roster spot must open up, a team is limited to 40 spots.  In a perfect world, I think we have milked Josh beckett for all he is worth, maybe trade him for some money or future picks...Maybe a little Cole Hamles action.  Dice-K will be gone by the end of the year, Dubrount is expendable, maybe some sort of trade bait if he continues to be successful in 5-7 innings of work.

      Now you would think there could be some bit of prospect in the minors but there is only one that really stood out to me.  Justin Germano was just brought up and pitched almost 6 scoreless in relieve the other night and could prove to take a spot in the rotation if Bobby sees that Clay, Felix, or whoever is fifth in rotation (whether is be Cook, Morales, Bard) is not working out. Matt Barnes is also good for the future, but not right away. He was just drafted last year and seems to be tearing up whoever the Salem Red Sox play.

      Most talent is in their batting, which I wouldn't get rid of unless it was for a star.  They got a young'n in Jackie Bradley who is hot hitting right now for the Seadogs, that could prove valuable to an OKAY outfield. And of course Jose Iglesias is almost there, along with Bryce Brentz and of course Ryan Lavarnway who has already seen some time in the Bigs.

      All this research has led me back to the same thought that I ended the last Blog with....Be patient through what could be a rough year. There are some bright spots to look forward too

      But for the year, I think something like these standings makes sense to me, Baltimore will probably move down but other than that, I see no change...These two blogs about the Red Sox have depressed me a little, I will change the topic next time, Maybe a Little Dwight Howard drama or some Celtics talk. I will wait to bring up the Sox until something positive happens. 

WHY YOU CAN’T BLAME THE INJURIES

There are lots of issues with the Red Sox to blame their poor start.  Injuries are the one that shows up the most. In case you didn’t know the list: Carl Crawford, Andrew Bailey, Jacoby Ellsbury, Rich Hill, Clay Buchholz, Diasuke Matsuzaka, Dustin Pedroia, Will Middlebrooks to name the important ones.

My theory is pitching, how else can you explain the fact they have scored the second most runs in the whole league and are still tied for last in the American League East. The Sox are in the top 10 in runs allowed and in the bottom ten for worst ERA in the league.  Its great that Big Papi is having another breakout season, and players like Cody Ross, Daniel Nava and Will Middlebrooks are stepping up, but you can’t get far when you don’t have a consistent, reliable pitching core.

Jon Lester (our number one) has a 4.49 ERA half way through. He has given up 4 or more runs in half of his starts. Our second ace Josh Beckett has been just as impressive (sarcasm) posting a 4.43ERA, given up 6 or more runs in 3 games, has yet to pitch a complete game, and hasn’t been able to reach late in the game like we are used to in the past. Clay Buchholz (when healthy) is 8-2 on the season but posted a 5.52ERA, further proving that the offense and injuries haven’t affected the Sox all that much. He has given up 5 earned 9 times thus far this season. Felix Dubrount, while inconsistent has been one of the better performers, although he hasn’t pitched past 6 innings. Dice-K Sucked before he got injured again, BIG surprise, Daniel Bard will be back in the pen when he returns to the big leagues, no one could’ve called that. (Can you taste the sarcasm yet?) I will leave the Bullpen alone for now because, honestly, I am okay with how they are performing. I’d rather have Papelbon closing than Aceves; I even like to see Atchison in that role.  Sox also have 7^th fewest errors in the league, can’t blame fielding.

How to fix the problem: Is there a way to fix the problem this year? Other then getting back a couple key players in the lineup and keeping them healthy, I can’t see much else being able to help.  You can attack the trade market; the only recognizable pitcher on the market is Cole Hamels, which would be a nice upgrade, only if the Sox could dump some salary with Beckett.  I like moving Bard back to the bullpen, not sure why he was a starter to begin with. Maybe Bailey can be the one bright spot of the Sox rough off-season acquisitions.

In short, Sox fans might just have to weather a rough season to be able to re assess and add some new talent to the rotation next off-season.  Who knows, Beckett could put his golf career on hold and show up once in while and Lester could find his skill again. While this season is not lost yet, I have low expectations.  Hopefully a little vacation is the right prescription for this team.