C'mon Cincinnati

NFL: Thanksgiving Edition

2010-11-24T23:22:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, and not because you can sit in front of the television and watch football all day while stuffing your face with food, but because I get to spend time with my family. The few people that read this blog and who know me, very few, probably think that all I do is watch sports all day long. Well, guilty as charged.

I mean, I get up earlier because I have to catch a little bit of SportsCenter before I go to school. Nothing worse than going to school, not knowing what has been happening in the world of sports, while you were asleep. Then on the way to school, I listen to Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio and on the way home, I listen to Mo Egger also on ESPN. I have to know what's going on in the world of sports or I just feel different, it starts to eat me up inside. I'm addicted to sports and sorry, but I can't help it.

Sports have always been a major part of my life and sports bring me a lot of joy in life. Granted the Reds and Bengals have both been to the playoffs the past year, but for the most part, they have sucked for most of my 19 years. Despite this, I can't imagine rooting for any other teams than the Cincinnati Reds and the Cincinnati Bengals. They have brought me so much joy, excitement and great memories over the years that I'm a fan for life. No matter how bad they are.

But the one thing that sports has never done and never will do, is love you back the way you love them. I can love the Reds and Bengals all I want, but they will never love me back. My family has, and always will.

That's why this Thanksgiving, the thing that I'm most thankful for is, my family. I have a great family and theirs nothing in this world that I love more than my family, with the Reds and Bengals a close second of course. We have always been close, but over the years we have grown apart. The number of people that come to Thanksgiving dinner gets smaller every year, as we have drifted apart for stupid reasons that I have no control over. It's a long story.

But my family has always been there for me and always will, sports can't say that. Some of my best childhood memories have been at sporting events though with my family, from Reds and Bengals games, Moeller football games, fishing at the cottage, and having my family come watch me play sports in school. But the best memories are past Thanksgivings, Christmas' and other family functions. With every family get together, their is a great memory and I can't say that when it comes to sports.

I have a great family, from my parents, my brother, aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents that are watching from above. I am very lucky and that's easy to forget sometimes. So, this Thanksgiving I'm so very grateful for sports, the Reds and Bengals, but most of all, my family. They are a one of a kind bunch and they drive me crazy sometimes, but I wouldn't trade them for anything else in the world. Not even a Reds or Bengals championship.

Week 12 Thanksgiving Picks
Three football games this Thanksgiving and I will no doubt be in front of the television most of the day, watching the football with the family. Here are my Thanksgiving Day picks and enjoy the day with your family and don't be ashamed if you overeat and need to unbutton your pants after dinner just like Frank Barone. I may even need a pair of his stretchy pants.

New England over Detroit: The Patriots are one of the best team in the league and even though the Lions have played better, their still not very good on Thanksgiving or any other day of the week. Lions will give the Patriots a game though.

New Orleans over Dallas: Cowboys are a whole different team with Jason Garrett as head coach and they can play the spoiler role the rest of the season. The Saints (7-3) are a game behind the Falcons in the NFC South and with Tampa Bay, Green Bay and Chicago all 7-3, the Saints need a win to help their playoff chances. Saints win a very close one on Thanksgiving.

NY Jets over Bengals: The Bengals flat out stink. As hard as it is to say, it's the truth. I thought this team had talent, but they don't. Marvin Lewis was Coach of the Year last year and he sure hasn't been one this season. Time for the Bengals to yet again, blow up the roster and start all over again. Seems like we have been down this road before. The Jets have been on thin ice the last three weeks with games coming down to the wire, but a win is a win. At 8-2, the Jets are tied for the best record in the NFL and in the two meetings last year between these teams, the Bengals got embarrassed. Bengals will probably play well for a little while then find another way to lose the game. Jets dominate the Bengals and win easily.

NFL: Week 11 Recap

2010-11-23T12:24:00.000-05:00

To quote Michael Scott from The Office, "I'll tell you how it went. It sucked, it blew chunks." Well, it was the Bengals blowing chunks yet again on a Sunday afternoon and after scoring 31 points in the first half, they scored none in the second. Once again the Bengals failed to play a full 60 minutes and after a 49-31 loss to the Buffalo Bills, they are now 2-8. And in the loss, the Bengals set another NFL record, by becoming the first team to lead by 17 at halftime and then end up losing the game by 18 points. Another Bengals record to be proud of.

Penalties were a huge factor once again, a Dhani Jones interception that would have given the Bengals the ball in the red zone was nullified by a roughing the passer penalty. Then, T.O. made a juggling touchdown catch, but a Andrew Whitworth holding penalty brought it back. Turnovers hurt the Bengals yet again. A Cedric Benson fumble was returned for a touchdown and two more picks from Carson Palmer, including one in the endzone.

I didn't see any of the game because of the blackout and thank God, because it sounds like a didn't miss much. Here's what T.O. said after the game, courtesy ESPN, which just about sums it up.

"What's crazy is the fact that we're just terrible. That's just plain and simple. When I say we, that's me included. Let me look you in the eyes and emphasize, we are terrible. Terrible. I have no answers for you. I have no sound bytes for you. All I know is, right now, we are terrible."

Think about that 2-8 record, 2 and 8. Their is now a distinct possibility of the Bengals going 2-14, which I would not be surprised at all if that happens with the way the season is going. That would tie the franchise record for most losses in a season. Unthinkable coming into the season, but now it's a very possible reality.

The 2010 Cincinnati Bengals have the chance to go down as one of the worst teams in franchise history. And with a franchise that has been losing for decades, the Bengals clinched their 18th non-winning record in the last 20 years on Sunday, that's saying something.

Now the "Holy Crap" and "C'mon Man" players for Week 11.

"Holy Crap"
Chicago Bears Defense: The Bears have always been about defense and on Thursday night, their defense looked the defense that has helped them go to Super Bowls. They allowed only 187 yards of total offense, forced a turnover, held the Dolphins to 1 for 11 on third down, recorded six sacks, with DE Julius Peppers having three of them and they shutout Miami 16-0. If the defense keeps playing like this, the Bears will make a serious playoff run.

GB-QB Aaron Rodgers: 22-31, 301 yds, 4 TD; QB Rating 141.3

GB-WR Greg Jennings: 7 rec, 152 yds, 3 TD

BUF-QB Ryan Fitzpatrick: 21-34, 316 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT; QB Rating 107.0

BUF-WR Steve Johnson: 8 rec, 137 yds, 3 TD

BUF-RB Fred Jackson: 21 car, 116 yds, 2 TD

JAC-RB Maurice Jones-Drew: 24 car, 132 yds, TD; 3 rec, 87 yds

DAL-QB Jon Kitna: 18-24, 147 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 129.7. Dallas is now 2-0 under Jason Garrett.

New York Jets: The Jets now have three straight wins that have come in overtime or in the last minute of the game. Mark Sanchez (22-38, 315 yds, 3 TD, INT; QB Rating 100.2) hooked up with Santonio Holmes (7 rec, 126 yds, 2 TD) once again, as the Jets make it interesting yet again. They are going to steamroll the Bengals on Thursday.

PIT-QB Ben Roethlisberger: 18-29, 275 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 127.8. Best part of the Raiders/Steelers game, Big Ben getting slapped to the ground by Raiders DE Richard Seymour. He got ejected from the game and was fined $25K, but I'm sure it was worth it. Watch the highlights here at http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5835336

BAL-LB Ray Lewis: Ray, Ray, had quite the game. 10 total tackles (8 solo) and a interception that he returned for a touchdown. Ray Lewis is still the most feared player in the league after 15 seasons and still one of the best.

NO-QB Drew Brees: 29-43, 382 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT; QB Rating 106.9

NO-WR Marques Colston: 8 rec, 113 yds, 2 TD

ATL-RB Michael Turner: 28 car, 131 yds, TD

NYG-DE Justin Tuck: 7 total tackles, but the 3 sacks and a forced fumble on Michael Vick are impressive.

SD-QB Philip Rivers: 15-24. 233 yds, 4 TD, INT; QB Rating 116.8. If Rivers keeps playing like this he has a chance to not only break Dan Marino's record for most passing yards in a season, but lead the Chargers tot he playoffs and win MVP.

"C'mon Man"
Cincinnati Bengals: A 49-31 loss to the Buffalo Bills and a record that now stands at 2-8, beyond disappointing.

Brett Favre and the Vikings: At 3-7, the Vikings can kiss their season goodbye and Favre (17-38, 208 yds, INT; QB Rating 51.2) only has six more games in his NFL career. Time to hang them up Brett and call it a career. A very disappointing season for Favre and the Vikings, which resulted in head coach Brad Childress getting fired on Monday. Frankly, I'm surprised he lasted this long.

TEN-QB Vince Young: 12-16, 165 yds, QB Rating 107.6, 3 car, 20 yds; not a bad game, but Young got hurt and then lost his temper. Young hurt his thumb when he hit it on a helmet while attempting a pass and when head coach Jeff Fisher, would not allowed Young to go back into the game, let's say he was not happy. He threw his shoulder pads into the stands and refused to talk to any of the media about it. Fisher said that Vince Young has lost his job as starting quarterback."C'mon Man," your a professional football player, no reason to threw a temper tantrum after getting benched. Show some class and professionalism and deal with it. After a 19-16 loss to the Washington Redskins, Tennessee sits at 5-5 and are in trouble of making the playoffs. Read the story and see the highlights here at http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=5835429

After 11 weeks, we now have a better idea of who the contenders are for the Lombardi Trophy. So, in edition to "Holy Crap" and "C'mon Man" here are the teams that can either kiss the season goodbye, are on-life support, still in the hunt and are playoff bound.

Kiss the Season Goodbye
Cincinnati Bengals 2-8
Carolina Panthers 1-9
Detroit Lions 2-8
Cleveland Browns 3-7
Buffalo Bills 2-8
Minnesota Vikings 3-7
Dallas Cowboys 3-7, can still be a major spoiler

On Life-Support
Houston Texans 4-6
Washington Redskins 5-5
Miami Dolphins 5-5
Arizona Cardinals 3-7
San Francisco 49ers 3-7
Denver Broncos 3-7

Still in the Hunt
Jacksonville Jaguars 6-4
Kansas Chiefs 6-4
Tennessee Titans 5-5
Oakland Raiders 5-5
New Orleans Saints 7-3
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7-3
Chicago Bears 7-3
Indianapolis Colts 6-4
Seattle Seahawks 5-5
St. Louis Rams 4-6, the NFC West is bad
New York Giants 6-4
San Diego Chargers 5-5

Playoff Bound
Baltimore Ravens 7-3
Pittsburgh Steelers 7-3
New York Jets 8-2
New England Patriots 8-2
Atlanta Falcons 8-2
Green Bay Packers 7-3
Philadelphia Eagles 7-3

Remember three football games on Thursday for one of the best days of the year, Thanksgiving. A special Thanksgiving post still to come, just in time for turkey day.

NFL: Week 11

2010-11-18T19:01:00.001-05:00

Much like the Bengals season, my picks last week, stunk. After going 6-8, for the second time this season, my overall record now stands at 81-63. Which is not bad, but not the best in my household. Yea I know, a college guy still living at home, how sad. Give me a break, I'm saving money living at home and if it worked for Robert Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond, it can work for me. I just hope I'm not still living at home when I'm 40.

Anyway, the rest of my family picks games every week with me and whoever has the best record at the end of the season wins $20. Well, my picks have been so bad that my dad, who picks right before the games are about to start and does no research what so ever, now is in the lead at 84-60. "C'mon Man," really? I spend, God knows how long, deciding who to take in which game and writing this blog about who I think will win, and I still can't get the games right. No disrespect to my dad, bravo to him, but c'mon. The NFL has been so unpredictable this year and it's starting to cost me, but that's what's so great about the NFL. Any team can win on any day of the week. Except for the Bengals, who have lost six in a row, but seems like a lot more.

This week I see the Bengals finally pulling out a win, the first since Week 3 against Carolina, which was on September 26th. Has it really been that long? More on the Bengals in a minute, but first my Week 11 picks, that will boost me back into first place.

Week 11 Picks
Chicago over Miami: The Dolphins made the switch to Chad Pennington last week and he got hurt on the first series and is out for the year. Chad Henne came in and also managed to get hurt. Now the Dolphins turn to Tyler Thigpen. You know its bad when Miami has JaMarcus Russell come in for a try out. Jay Cutler may be turnover prone, but he's better than Thigpen. Bears win Thursday night.

Dallas over Detroit: The Cowboys looked like a totally different team last week with Jason Garrett at the helm and I think that the Cowboys could maybe finish the season at 8-8. It will not be easy, but it's no secret that this team has some of the best talent in the league. The Lions have been improving, but Dallas has the better players. Jason Garrett leads the Cowboys to their third win of the season.

Tennessee over Washington: After getting embarrassed on Monday Night Football by Michael Vick and the Eagles, the Redskins are looking to rebound and turn their season around. As for the Titans, I think that Randy Moss will be a larger factor this week and look for QB Vince Young to target him a lot. Redskins have a load of problems and Tennessee should win.

Kansas City over Arizona: The Chiefs got kicked around last week by Denver, but the Cardinals have lost four in a row and are tied for last place in the worst division in the NFL. Chiefs win.

Green Bay over Minnesota: Brett Favre and the Vikings are still alive statistically, but there season is pretty much over. It's pretty bad when players anonymously tell the media they hate their head coach and don't want to play for him. The Packers are still banged up, but the Vikings have too many distractions. Aaron Rodgers and Clay Matthews lead the Packers to victory against former Packer, Brett Favre and the Vikings.

NY Jets over Houston: It's hard to win when you have the worst pass defense in the league and Houston's 4-5 record is evidence of that. QB Matt Schaub spent a night in the hospital with a bursa sac injury in his right knee, but should play on Sunday. The Jets have needed overtime to win the last two weeks and they win another close one this week.

Pittsburgh over Oakland: Even though the Steelers have lost two of their last three, they still are one of the best teams in the NFL. The Raiders have surprised everyone at 5-4, but they have a very difficult schedule remaining. I hate the Steelers and I want them to lose every game, but theirs no way they lose two in a row.

Baltimore over Carolina: Baltimore will most likely make the playoffs and Carolina certainly will not. The Panthers are the worst team in football and will have Brain St. Pierre at quarterback. He has thrown only 5 passes in the NFL and was a stay-at-home dad a month ago. How he beat out backup Tony Pike is beyond me. Baltimore is one of the best teams in the NFL and the Ravens win easily.

Cleveland over Jacksonville: David Garrard led the Jaguars to a win last week with a Hail Mary pass to end the game, and believe it or not, Jacksonville is a playoff threat. I really like the way the Browns are playing and they let one slip away in overtime against the Jets. QB Colt McCoy and RB Peyton Hillis lead the Browns to an upset over the Jaguars.

San Francisco over Tampa Bay: The 49ers had a horrible start to the season, but at 3-6, they can still win the NFC West, which again shows just how strange and unusual this season has been. Tampa is 6-3, but have yet to beat a team with a winning record. 49ers stay alive for another week.

New Orleans over Seattle: The defending Super Bowl champs are quietly having a good season at 6-3. Odd that no one is talking about the defending champs, but it's true. The Saints will get RB Reggie Bush back this week, who has been out since breaking his leg in Week 2. Bush will be facing his former USC head coach, Pete Carroll and I wonder if USC will come up in their conversation. The Seahawks are a much better team when QB Matt Hasselbeck is under center, but it's hard to win in the Dome. Saints get a boost on offense with the return of Bush and beat Seattle.

Atlanta over St. Louis: Last week I thought the Falcons would be over matched by the Ravens, but once again I was wrong. The Falcons are the best team in the NFC, in my opinion, with the Eagles a close second. The Matt Ryan/Roddy White combination is the best in football and I see the Falcons cruising to victory in St. Louis.

New England over Indianapolis: Behind the Steelers, the Patriots are my second least favorite team and as much as I like Peyton Manning, I don't see him beating Tom Brady, Bill Belichick and the Pats. If the game were in Indy, maybe, but too many injuries for the Colts. The Colts did not play that well last week against the Bengals and almost lost, while the Patriots destroyed the Steelers and Tom Brady made the Steelers defense look silly. Brady and Belichick beat Peyton and the Colts, but it should be a great game.

Philadelphia over NY Giants: One of the best games of the Week 11 and if Michael Vick plays like he did Monday, the Giants are in trouble. I was disappointed with the way the Giants played against Dallas and they can't play like that on Sunday. We will finally see which team is the best in the NFC East. I doubt Vick will duplicate his numbers from Monday, but he does enough to help the Eagles win.

San Diego over Denver: Despite their 4-5 record, I think everyone is waiting for the Chargers to go on a run and win the AFC West. They are only a game back of the Raiders and Chiefs and have four division games remaining. Expect QB's Philip Rivers and Kyle Orton to throw a lot, they are the top two passers in the NFL. A lot of points and yards will be put up in a Chargers win.

And...
Bengals over Buffalo: Is their a more meaningless game in the NFL this Sunday than Bengals v Bills? The teams are a combined 3-15, with the Bills winning their first game last week and the Bengals not having won since the end of September. Right now, it's a safe bet that both of these teams will have top ten draft picks. The Bengals haven't beaten Buffalo in I don't know how long, but they should win this Sunday. Because to quote Mo Egger, "This is a must win game."

I hope the Bengals play well and I want them to win and I think they can, but who knows. This year has been so disappointing, that myself and the rest of the fans, could probably care less if the Bengals win another football game this season. That's probably a good reason why the game failed to sell out, which resulted in the game being blacked out on local television. One of the stupidest rules in the NFL, but at least you can't get upset watching the Bengals play this week because, their not on T.V.

Here's to hoping my picks and the Bengals, get better in Week 11. Enjoy listening to the game on the radio, because more blackouts are to come I'm sure.

NFL: Week 10 Recap

2010-11-16T08:33:00.000-05:00

Even though it's football season, a Marty Brennaman phrase just about sums it up when it comes to watching the Bengals lose their sixth straight game. As Marty would say, "It's a sad, but true tale." The Bengals just continue to shoot themselves in the foot and these self inflicted wounds end up being too much to overcome. The 5 turnovers in the game were huge, when are they not, and they ended up costing the Bengals the game. It's hard to win every week when you not only have to beat the other team, but also yourself.

I give a lot of credit to Chad and Gresham though this week as they both gave 110%. Ochocinco (7 rec, 86 yds, TD) hurt his shoulder in the game, but continued to play well and some of the catches he made in the game were nothing short of spectacular. Gresham (9 rec, 80 yds, TD) did have the costly fumble at the end of the game, but at least he was trying to get a couple extra yards to help his team win the game. But these moral victories, if you will, mean absolutely nothing if you don't win the game. As for Palmer and T.O.'s performances, they were "C'mon Man" worthy and more on them below.

Bengals are now 2-7, Mike Brown now has 201 losses as owner, and more to come I'm sure. The good news is, Reds pitchers and catchers report for Spring Training in three months.

Now for the performances in Week 10 that were worthy of a "Holy Crap" or "C'mon Man." And their were a lot of them.

"Holy Crap"
ATL-WR Roddy White: 12 rec, 138 yds, 2 TD. Is anyone going to cover this guy? In his last three games, White has 27 receptions, for 338 yards and 4 TD.

ATL-QB Matt Ryan: 32-50, 316 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 101.8. Ryan and White are emerging as the best quarterback/receiver duo in the NFL.

BUF-RB Fred Jackson: 25 car, 133 yds, TD; 6 rec, 37 yds, TD. Jackson helped lead the Bills to their first victory of the season.

HOU-QB Matt Schaub: 22-32, 314 yds, 2 TD; QB Rating 121.1

HOU-WR Andre Johnson: 9 rec, 146 yds, TD

JAC-QB David Garrard: 24-31, 342 yds, 2 TD; QB Rating 134.1

JAC-RB Maurice Jones-Drew: 24 car, 100 yds, 2 TD. A great game between Jacksonville and Houston, as the Jaguars won on a last second Hail Mary.

TB-QB Josh Freeman: 18-24, 241 yds, 2 TD; QB Rating 134.2. Freeman and the Buccaneers are now 6-3 and still in the thick of things in the NFC.

KC-QB Matt Cassel: 33-53, 469 yds, 4 TD; QB Rating 116.0

KC-WR Dwayne Bowe: 13 rec, 186 yds, 2 TD

DEN-QB Kyle Orton: 22-34, 296 yds, 4 TD; QB Rating 131.5. A lot of scoring in the Kansas City/Denver game, as the teams combined for 936 yards of offense and 78 points in the Broncos win.

DAL-QB Jon Kitna and the Cowboys: Kitna played well, (13-22, 327 yds, 3 TD, INT; QB Rating 124.1) and the Cowboys won their first game under interim head coach Jason Garrett.

SF-QB Troy Smith: 17-28, 356 yds, TD; QB Rating 116.7. The 49ers are 2-0 with Troy Smith under center and despite the bad start, are still in the NFC West race.

NE-QB Tom Brady: 30-43, 350 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 117.4. Brady and the Pats put up 39 points and 453 yards of offense in a win against the Steelers.

PIT-WR Mike Wallace: 8 rec, 136 yds, 2 TD

PHI-QB Michael Vick: The "Holy Crap" player of the week. 20-28, 333 yds, 4 TD, QB Rating 150.7; 8 car, 80 yds, 2 TD. The best performance all year and one of the best performances you will ever see. If Vick continues to play like this, he will not only win MVP, but the Eagles will win the Super Bowl. "Holy Crap" it's good to see Michael Vick dominate a football game again.

"C'mon Man"
CIN-QB Carson Palmer: 31-42, 287 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT; QB Rating 78.2. I have always really liked Carson, he is a really good guy and a very talented player, but I don't know what happen to the guy that led the Bengals to the playoffs in 2005. He has never been the same since tearing up his knee in the playoff game against Pittsburgh and the injuries he has taken over the years are catching up to him. Not having a good offensive line to protect your star player is critical. The Bengals line has been terrible for years and it probably has cost Palmer his career, which is a shame.

Palmer's three picks, including one being returned for a touchdown, really hurt the Bengals Sunday. Palmer continues to hurt his team with turnovers and you just can't do that in the NFL. Bengals fans are going to continue to call for his head and I really feel for the guy, because he really is a good player. He won the Heisman Trophy at USC and was one of the top five quarterbacks in the league a few years ago. Who knows what kind of career Palmer would have had had he ended up somewhere else than Cincinnati. My guess would be, probably better.

CIN-WR Terrell Owens: Dammit T.O., what the Hell man. Once again T.O pulled up on a ball that was intercepted, he did the same thing against Miami, and it's unacceptable. Who cares if your going to get hit, its the NFL, not flag football. T.O. has played great at times this year and has had a good career, but he will never be in the conversation as one of the best wide receivers to ever play the game. A receiver should never pull up on balls and not give a full effort on every play. Jerry Rice never gave up on a ball and neither should T.O., "C'mon Man."

Detroit Lions: Not only did they lose to the winless Bills, but set the NFL record for losing their 25th straight road game. The Lions are almost as bad, maybe even worse, than the Bengals.

MIN-QB Brett Favre: 18-31, 170 yds, TD, 3 INT; QB Rating 44.5. The Vikings season, and maybe Favre's career, are over.

Indiana University Football Team: The "C'mon Man" performers usually come from the NFL, but this week I have to give a big "C'mon Man" to the Indiana football team. On Saturday, the Hoosiers gave up 83 points to the Wisconsin Badgers. The 83-20 loss was the highest scoring Big Ten game, in the last 60 years. Indiana has never been known for their football team, but my God. A Big Ten team giving up 83 points is just ridiculous, I mean Portland State only gave up 72 when they played Oregon and their not even in the FBS. I would not want to be a defensive player in the Indiana film room this week. "C'mon Hoosiers."

A very interesting week of football and the surprises just keep on coming. Bears and Dolphins kick off Week 11 on Thursday.

NFL: Week 10

2010-11-11T16:19:00.003-05:00

The Bengals season may be over, but it must go on. Week 10 starts early this week on Thursday night and it starts with a great matchup between two of the top teams in the league, the Ravens and Falcons. Last week I went 9-4, bringing my season total to 75-55. For the first time this year I will not be taking the Bengals. It's hard not to pick them, but and I just don't see them beating the Colts in Indy. More on that in a bit, but first my Week 10 picks.

Week 10
Baltimore over Atlanta: Falcons QB Matt Ryan is a career 17-1 at home, but I really like the Ravens chances this year and I think they are the best team in the AFC. Ray Lewis and Ed Reed led the Ravens to victory.

Buffalo over Detroit: The Lions will be without QB Matthew Stafford, but will get QB Shaun Hill back. The Bills have to win eventually and this will finally be the week.

Minnesota over Chicago: Brett Favre saved the Vikings last week, even though some players have expressed their dislike for head coach Brad Childress. In this battle between turnover prone quarterbacks, Favre and the Vikings are better than Cutler and the Bears. Vikings keep playoff chances alive with a win.

NY Jets over Cleveland: The Browns have upset the Saints and the Patriots in their last two games, but I think the streak comes to an end against the Jets. QB Colt McCoy will face his toughest challenge yet, against Rex Ryan and the Jets defense, and may struggle. Give me the Jets on the road.

Tennessee over Miami: Randy Moss is now a Titan and look for him to get involved early. Even if he doesn't, defenses have to respect the threat of him going deep, which will open up running room for Chris Johnson. CJ has his break game of the season and Randy helps the Titans win, against Chad Pennington and the Dolphins, who gets the start over Chad Henne.

Tampa Bay over Carolina: Panthers are the worse team in football and Tampa is still in the playoff hunt, so Buccaneers win at home.

Houston over Jacksonville: Hard game to pick, but has the potential to be one of the games of the week. Even though the Texans have the worst pass defense in the league, I think their offense will put up enough points to beat the Jaguars.

Kansas City over Denver: The Broncos are the worst in the league at running the football and the second worst at stopping it. The Chiefs are the best at running the football and in order to be successful in the NFL, you must run the football and be able to stop it. Chiefs do both and that's why they will win.

NY Giants over Dallas: Dallas is 1-7, they quit on their head coach Wade Phillips and got him fired this week, so things aren't good in Big D to say the least. The New York Giants might be the best team in football and they will win easily.

Arizona over Seattle: Neither one of these teams are very good, but no one in the NFC West wins on the road. I'll take the Cardinals at home.

San Francisco over St. Louis: Again, no one in the NFC West wins on the road. San Francisco played well in London with Troy Smith at the helm and I think the 49ers win again, for only the third time this season.

Pittsburgh over New England: The Steelers and Patriots had their hands full last week with the Bengals and Browns respectively, the Steelers won their game, but should have lost if the Bengals knew how to play football. New England might be 6-2, but their offense has struggled since trading Randy Moss. Steelers defense stops Tom Brady and the Pats.

Philadelphia over Washington: Michael Vick has the Eagles flying high and has ended the QB controversy in Philly, while the Redskins might be having a QB situation of their own. It will be interesting to see how McNabb plays after getting bench two weeks ago. Eagles are a very good football team and they beat McNabb and the Redskins.

And...
Indianapolis over Cincinnati: I can't believe that I'm not taking the Bengals, but their 2-6 and in last place. Maybe if I set low standards and expectations for the Bengals, I won't be disappointed when they continue to screw up and lose. I've said it before and I will say it again, until Mike Brown dies or retires this will be one of the worst run franchises in all of sports. I mean the guy just lost his 200th game as owner of the Bengals and it only took him 314 games. That's only a .361 winning percentage, which is a disgrace. Mike Brown should be ashamed, but he's not and probably never will be.

This year the Bengals have lost to quarterbacks like Chad Henne, Seneca Wallace, and Josh Freeman. The Colts have the best quarterback in the league, Peyton Manning, and with a lack of pass rush, he will rip the Bengals defense apart. Bengals will keep it close, but like they have all season, early mistakes will be too much to overcome. Manning and the Colts beat the Bengals and Mike Brown gets loss #201.

NFL: Week 9 Recap

2010-11-09T14:00:00.001-05:00

At least the Bengals gave the Steelers a game in the second half, but yet another disappointing result. I was naive to think that the Bengals would come into a Monday Night Football game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and pull out a win. During the boradcast I think ESPN analyst Jon Gruden explained it best, the Bengals have potential and the Steelers have production. The Bengals came into the season with probably the most potential in football, but that means nothing if you don't produce wins.

You could write a book about all the things the Bengals do wrong and what they need to do to get better, but it looks like it will be at least another year, if not longer, until the Bengals are a relevant football team again. Mistakes on special teams, turnovers and not playing a full 60 minutes, will not win you many football games and the Bengals 2-6 record is evident of that.

I give the Bengals credit for coming back and making a game of it on MNF, but another losing season is imminent, and it's only the second week of November. The Bengals season is over, which is a shame, and it just flat out sucks.

A lot of good games in Week 9, saw three games go into overtime, teams come from behind and win, underdogs pull out victories, and a wide receiver and defensive tackle attempt an extra point. The 2010 NFL season just continues to amaze and surprise every week and Week 9 was no different. Now for the Week 9 edition of players that would have Frank Barone saying, "Holy Crap," or the guys on ESPN Monday Night Countdown saying, "C'mon Man."

"Holy Crap"
HOU-RB Arian Foster: 27 car, 127 yds, 2 TD; 4 rec, 70 yds. Foster has statiscally been the best running back this season.

SD-QB Philip Rivers: 17-23, 259 yds, 4 TD, INT; QB Rating 137.2. Rivers continues to be one of the few bright spots for the Chargers.

SD-WR Seyi Ajirotutu: 4 rec, 111 yds, 2 TD. No idea how you say his name or what he looks like, the Chargers were so depleted at receiver, ESPN doesn't even have a picture of him. Seyi came up big though, as the Chargers beat the Texans.

Cleveland Browns: The Browns out-played the New England Patriots in every facet of the game, physically and statistically. RB Peyton Hillis was unstoppable (29 car, 184 yds, 2 TD; 3 rec, 36 yds), rookie QB Colt McCoy looked like a veteran and the Browns look like a team on the rise. GM Mike Holmgren and the front office have done a great job and the Browns keep getting better every single week.

BAL-QB Joe Flacco: 20-27, 266 yds, 2 TD; QB Rating 129.6

ATL-RB Michael Turner: 24 car, 107 yds, 2 TD

Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings: The Vikings were down 24-10 to start the 4th quarter, but Brett Favre led Minnesota to come from behind victory, 27-24 in overtime. Favre set a career high with 446 passing yards (36-47, 446 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT; QB Rating 101.9) and the Viking defense recorded 6 sacks to, for now, save their season.

DET-DT Ndamukong Suh: Suh recorded 3 tackles, but one of the most surprising things I've seen all year, Suh attempted an extra point. After Lions kicker Jason Hanson got hurt, the Lions called on 6'4", 307 lb, defensive tackle and former soccer player, Ndamukong Suh, to kick an extra point. He shanked it off the right upright, but impressive and worthy of another "Holy Crap," to say the least.

NYG-QB Eli Manning: 21-32, 290 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 125.8

NYG-WR Hakeem Nicks: 6 rec, 128 yds, TD. The G-Men are the playing better than any other team in the NFC.

OAK-WR Jacoby Ford: 6 rec, 148 yds; 94-yd KO return TD. The Raaaaaaaaaiders, are 5-4 and have won 3 games in a row for the first time since 2002, when the went to the Super Bowl.

GB-QB Aaron Rodgers: 27-34, 289 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 131.5. Rodgers and the Pack just flat out embarrassed the Cowboys 45-7, on Sunday Night Football.

CIN-WR Terrell Owens: 10 rec, 141 yds, 2 TD. T.O. is having a Pro Bowl year and without him, the Bengals would be even worse.

CIN-DT Domata Peko's hit on PIT-S Troy Polamalu: "Holy Crap," lined up as the fullback on the goal line, Peko led the way for a Cedric Benson touchdown, by absolutely running over Polamalu. About time someone put him on his ass. Thanks Peko. "Holy Crap," that was a nice hit.

"C'mon Man"
ARI-S Kerry Rhodes: Why can't defensive backs hold on to the football? After picking off Brett Favre, Arizona safety Kerry Rhodes has reservations for six, until Vikings WR Greg Camarillo came from behind and stripped him on the goal line. Sound familiar? Just like Roddy White stripping Nate Clements earlier in the season, Rhodes lost control of the football and it went out of the back of the endzone for a touchback. "C'mon Man." Looks like defensive backs need some more time in ball security drills during practice.

MIA-QB Chad Henne: 22-34, 231 yds, 3 INT; QB Rating 47.5

DET-LB Julian Peterson: The Lions blew a 20-10 lead and a 15-yard personal foul penalty by Peterson led to a Jets field goal that tied the game. And in overtime, the Jets would go on to win 23-20.

Carolina Panthers Passing Game: The Panthers used all three quarterbacks on Sunday, which is never good, against the Saints, in a 34-3 loss. Matt Moore got hurt, Jimmy Clausen threw for only 47 yards, including an INT that was returned for a touchdown and a QB Rating of 28.5. Former Cincinnati Bearcat QB Tony Pike, saw his first NFL action going 6-12, for 47 yards. Even though the Buffalo Bills are 0-8, at 1-7, the Panthers are the worst team in football in my opinion.

Dallas Cowboys: Got embarrassed on national television 45-7, and head coach Wade Phillips was fired on Monday. It looks like the players have just given up on the season and they quit on Wade Phillips. "C'mon Man." They just might go down as the most disappointing team in the history of the NFL.

Ravens and Falcons battle it out on Thursday, so football will be back before you know it and so will my Week 10 picks.

NFL: Week 9

2010-11-05T21:49:00.000-04:00

The second half of the NFL season starts on Sunday and much like the Bengals, I'm looking for a fresh start. I went 14-13, the last two weeks with my picks, 7-6 last week, to bring my season total to 66-51. Week 9 features a couple of duds, like Patriots vs. Browns and Arizona vs. Minnesota, but still some intriguing games. For example, Kansas City vs. Oakland and Tampa Bay vs. Atlanta being games featuring the top two teams in their respective divisions. Didn't think I would be saying that in Week 9. The Bengals play on Monday Night, which gives the nation a chance to see how bad they are, but they did beat the Pittsburgh Steelers twice last year and I might just pick them to win this week. Before that game, the rest of my Week 9 picks.

Week 9 Picks
Atlanta over Tampa Bay: Even though Raheem Morris' Buccaneers are 5-2 and they might think they are the best team in the NFC, their not. Atlanta has too much fire power on offense and in my opinion, and is one of the top two teams in the NFC.

Buffalo over Chicago: That's right the Buffalo Bills will get their first win of the season Sunday, against the Bears, in Toronto. The Bills are playing harder than any other team in the league and the Bears have been on a downward spiral since starting 4-1. Cutler will probably throw some costly interceptions that will help the Bills get win number one.

New England over Cleveland: The Patriots have the best record in the league at 6-1 and the Browns are tied with the Bengals at the bottom of the AFC North with a 2-5 record. QB Colt McCoy will start again for the Browns, but Tom Brady and the Pats win again.

NY Jets over Detroit: QB Mark Sanchez and the Jets were shutout by the Packers and I will be stunned if they are shutout again. The Lions have been better than advertised, but the Jets are one of the top five teams in the league and they get the win on the road.

New Orleans over Carolina: Drew Brees and the Saints are coming off a victory over the Steelers and if they can beat Pittsburgh, they surely can beat the Panthers. Saints will big.

Baltimore over Miami: Wasn't that impressed with Miami against the Bengals last week, and even though Baltimore lost to Cincinnati, they are a much better football team. Ray Lewis and the Ravens defense will play well and lead the Ravens to a victory.

San Diego over Houston: There's a great possibility that this will be the best game on Sunday. Houston's pass defense is terrible and QB Philip Rivers and the Chargers offense are number in the league in passing and have the number total offense. Despite their 3-5 record and being 0-4 on the road this season, I like the Chargers to out score the Texans in a old style shootout in the Lone Star State.

Minnesota over Arizona: The Vikings dumped WR Randy Moss, who is now a Titan, and try to turn their season around against the Cardinals. QB Brett Favre got knocked out of the game last week, but I think his streak will continue at 293 consecutive games. Arizona's quarterback situation is a mess and as bad as Favre plays sometimes, I will take him any day of the week over who ever Arizona has under center. Vikings crush the Cardinals at home.

NY Giants over Seattle: The Seahawks got blasted last week by the Raiders and if they get beat that bad by Oakland, imagine what the New York Football Giants will do to them on Sunday. Eli and the G-Men get the win on Sunday.

Indianapolis over Philadelphia: Week 9's Game of the Week. Peyton Manning and the Colts go into the City of Brotherly Love to face Michael Vick and the Eagles. Two very good teams, led by two good quarterbacks and this one will not disappoint. Vick will be starting his first game since missing some time with a rib injury and it will be interesting to see if Vick continues play like he did earlier in the season. Vick actually has a higher QB rating than Manning, but Peyton is the better quarterback and has the better offense. Going to be a close one, but I like Manning and the Colts to knock off Vick and the Eagles on Sunday.

Oakland over Kansas City: The Raaaaaaaaaaaaaiders, my most surprising team of the first half, are in the thick of things in the AFC West. Division leader Kansas City, is also a surprise team and have played very well this season, but I like the Raiders. They have a very good offense, never thought I would say that, and a underrated defense. The Raiders are a tough team to beat at home, because they have Cable and have scored 92 points in the last two games, they win on Sunday.

Green Bay over Dallas: At the beginning of the season, this probably was one of the marquee matchups for the upcoming year. Now, not so much. The Cowboys are 1-6 and without QB Tony Romo, they have very little chance to beat the Packers at Lambeau Field.

And...
Cincinnati over Pittsburgh: The Bengals flat out stink, but I just can't pick the Steelers. I hate them more than anything else in life and their is no way I'm picking them to beat my Bengals on Monday Night Football (MNF). If you remember last year when the Bengals were good, they went 6-0 in the division and beat the Steelers twice. For some reason the Bengals get more fired up for the Ravens and Steelers. They should get fired up for every game, but for some reason they usually give the Ravens and Steelers a competitive game.

If the Bengals play like they did in their only good game this year, week two against Baltimore, they can beat the Steelers. A commitment to the running game, I would give the ball to Cedric Benson 30 times and let him carry this team. He is the only guy on the team worthy of going to the Pro Bowl, maybe besides K Mike Nugent, and when he runs the ball effectively, the Bengals win.

If the Bengals don't commit stupid penalties, limit the turnovers, play with some toughness on the offensive and defensive lines and physically out play the Steelers, the Bengals can win. A lot of things need to be done in order to win, maybe too many, but at 2-5 all the Bengals have to play for is pride. The season might be over, but knocking off their arch rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, on national television, would make the season.

This is the Bengals Super Bowl, no bigger stage during the season than on MNF. C'mon Bengals, play with some god damn pride and let's try not to embarrass ourselves in front of the entire country. WHO-DEY.

NFL: Mid-Season Awards

2010-11-03T21:10:00.000-04:00

Today I was listening to Mike and Mike in the morning on ESPN Radio and they were doing their Mama's, (Mike and Mike mid-season awards), for the NFL and it got me thinking. I should have been thinking about the Accounting and Spanish tests that I had coming up back-to-back, but my mind easily wanders. So, as a bonus to my Week 9 preview, here are my mid-season awards for Offensive MVP, Defensive MVP, Coach of the Year, Most Surprising Team and Most Disappointing Team. And of course, the Bengals will be included in one of these categories. Can you guess which one?

2010 NFL Mid-Season Awards
Offensive MVP, IND-QB Peyton Manning: MVP stands for Most Valuable Player and in opinion, there is no player more valuable in the NFL than Peyton Manning. The guy is flat out amazing and the best quarterback I have ever seen play the game. The Colts have been hampered by injuries, yet are still 5-2 because of Manning. Guys like TE Dallas Clark, RB Joseph Addai, WR Austin Collie and WR Anthony Gonzalez have been injured at some time this season, but it has not hurt the Colts. Manning finds the open man no matter if it's Reggie Wayne or Jacob Temme, who became the 27th player to catch his first touchdown pass from Peyton Manning last week. Peyton is in the top five in almost every statistical category with a QB Rating of 101.4, 65.9 completion percentage, 2,184 passing yards, 15 TD, and only 2 INT. The Colts are poised for another Super Bowl run, just like they are every year, because of Manning. This guys defines MVP.

Defensive MVP, WSH-CB DeAngelo Hall: I was between Hall and Packers linebacker Clay Matthews, but Hall has been a "Holy Crap" performer several times this season and has basically won two games for the Redskins. Remember in week one when he stripped the ball from Dallas RB Tashard Choice and returned it for a touchdown to end the first half. That ended up being the difference in the game and then theirs his game against Jay Cutler and the Bears. Hall was Cutler's favorite receiver that day, recording 4 INT and returning one for a touchdown in a 17-14 win against the Bears. Without Hall the Redskins are 2-6, not 4-4, which makes him a MVP in my book.

Coach's of the Year, Raheem Morris and Todd Haley: This one's a tie. Not many people, including me, thought the Buccaneers and the Chiefs would be in first place at 5-2. I had Tampa going 4-12, and the Chiefs going 6-10, guess I was wrong. Raheem Morris was almost fired last year, but now he thinks Tampa is the best team in the NFC, which I love to see from a head coach, and they just might be. Todd Haley and the Chiefs have done a great job coaching their young players and the Chiefs are going to be good for years to come. Don't be surprised to see both Kansas City and Tampa Bay in the playoffs.

Most Surprising Team, Oakland Raiders: The Chiefs, Bucs, and Rams have been nice surprises, but not as much as Oakland. I know their only 4-4, but let me explain. They have won their past two games by a combined score of 92-17 and have lost three of their games by a combined 16 points. They rank 2nd in the league at running the football, are the 4th best at stopping the pass, 8th in total yards per game, 2nd in total points, 4th in points per game, I think you get the point. I never would have thought that the Oakland Raiders would be one of the better offensive teams in the NFL. They haven't been this good on offense since the early 2000's when they had Rich Gannon at quarterback and before then the 1970's. The Raiders can still catch the Chiefs in the AFC West and we just might be starting to see the resurgence of the silver in black.

Most Disappointing Teams, Dallas Cowboys and Cincinnati Bengals: Let me first start by giving myself a "C'mon Man." I indeed had the Cincinnati Bengals and Dallas Cowboys going to the Super Bowl. Won't make that mistake again. Being a Bengals fan, I want them to go to the Super Bowl every year, but I really thought they had a chance this year. After drafting guys like WR Jordan Shipley and TE Jermaine Gresham, and acquiring T.O., everyone thought they could have the best offense in football. All their offense has managed to do is under perform and with the defense not playing like they did in 2009, the Bengals are 2-5 and were out of it by Halloween. Meanwhile, in Dallas things are actually worse. A 1-6 start has buried any chance of being the first team to play in a home Super Bowl and has owner Jerry Jones apologizing to Cowboys fans. I would kill for an apology from Mike Brown, but that won't happen till Hell freezes over. The Bengals, Cowboys and your truly get a big "C'mon Man."

Stay tuned for a Bengals-Steelers preview for Monday Night Football and the rest of my picks for Week 9, later in the week.

NFL: Week 8 Recap

2010-11-02T08:37:00.001-04:00

As Vince Lombardi use to say, "What the Hell is going on out there?" That just about sums it when it comes to the 2010 Cincinnati Bengals season. At 2-5, the Bengals season is pretty much over. They could still win out and finish 11-5, or get on a hot streak and finish above .500. Stranger things have happened, but I really doubt it. A brutal schedule remains with the first place Pittsburgh Steelers coming to Cincinnati next week to play on Monday Night Football.

I could complain about the offense, the play calling, the defense, turnovers, penalties, Marvin Lewis, Mike Brown, but what's the point. Until changes are made in the front office, you could have Vince Lombardi coaching, and I still don't think the Bengals would be any good. Maybe if fans stop coming to the games and Mike Brown's wallet isn't as full, he will finally get the point and sell the team or retire. That day just can't come soon enough.

As frustrating as it is to be a Bengals fan, I still can't imagine rooting for anyone else. No matter how good or bad the Cincinnati Bengals are, I will always be a fan, but it sure is getting a lot harder. The expectations for this season were so high, and after only 7 games, those expectations are laughable and a distant memory. Maybe the Bengals will come out and play with some pride Monday night. However, it's on national television and for the sports team in Cincinnati, that's a death sentence.

Now for the Week 8 edition of "Holy Crap," and "C'mon Man."

"Holy Crap"
JAC-QB David Garrard:17-21, 260 yds, 5 total TD (Rush TD); QB Rating 157.8

JAC-WR Mike Sims-Walker: 8 rec, 135 yds, TD

Green Bay Packers Defense: Despite the numerous amount of injuries, they allowed 360 yards of total offense, but forced 3 turnovers and shut out the Jets, in New York, for a 9-0 victory.

DEN-WR Brandon Lloyd: 7 rec, 159 yds, TD

SF-QB Troy Smith: 12-19, 196 yds, TD and Rush TD; QB Rating 115.2

DET-QB Matthew Stafford: 26-45, 212 yds, 4 TD, INT; QB Rating 90.2. Good game for Stafford in his first game since injuring his shoulder.

DET-WR Calvin Johnson: 9 rec, 101 yds, 3 TD

KC-RB Jamaal Charles: 22 car, 177 yds

TB-RB LaGarrette Blount: 22 car, 120 yds, 2 TD

TB-CB Aqib Talib: 5 tackles and 2 INT, returned one pick for a touchdown and the other one sealed the win.

NE-RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis: 17 car, 112 yds, 2 TDs

OAK-QB Jason Campbell: 15-27, 310 yds, 2 TD, QB Rating 120.9; The Raiders continue their dominating performance on offense by putting up 545 total yards and 33 points on the Seahawks. "Holy Crap."

"C'mon Man"
DAL-QB Jon Kitna: 34-49, 379 yds, TD, 4 INT; QB Rating 64.9. The season for Dallas just continues to get worse.

NYJ-QB Mark Sanchez: 16-38, 256 yds, 2 INT; QB Rating 63.3, the Jets put up 360 yards of total offense against the Packers, but were shut out 9-0.

Arizona quarterbacks Max Hall and Derek Anderson: Hall 8-16, 71 yds, TD, 2 INT, QB Rating 43.5; Anderson: 16-24, 234 yds, TD, 2 INT, QB Rating 77.4; Two of those picks were returned for touchdowns, as the Cardinals lost to the Buccaneers 38-35 and fell to 3-4.

WSH-Head Coach Mike Shanahan: I have always had a ton of respect for Mike Shanahan, but I lost most of it on Sunday. After falling behind to the Detroit Lions, Shanahan decides to pull starting QB Donovon McNabb in favor of Rex Grossman. What, the, Hell? The Redskins are in their two minute offense trying to come back after blowing the lead, and McNabb gets benched. Why, because Grossman has a better understand of the formations for the two minute offense. That was Shanahan's excuse for pulling McNabb. Give me a break. No disrespect to Grossman, but he is not, and never will be, the caliber quarterback that McNabb is. If you don't trust your start quarterback to run the two minute offense, than something is seriously wrong. I don't know what else to say. McNabb's contract is up at the end of the year and after the incident on Sunday, I doubt he will back with the Redskins next year. I know I wouldn't.

Minnesota Vikings: A few week ago, Minnesota traded a third round pick to the New England Patriots for future Hall of Famer WR Randy Moss, and now he's gone. I don't understand why you would trade your third round draft for a guy and then waive him a few weeks later. It just doesn't make any sense. The Vikings are a mess and much like the Cowboys and Bengals, things just keep getting worse.

It's been a strange year of football and who knows what will unfold next week.

NFL: Week 8

2010-10-29T19:45:00.001-04:00

Before getting to the Bengals game here my Week 8 picks. Last week I went 7-7, bringing the season total to 59-45. A lot of byes this week, so only 13 games, but still should be a good weekend of football.

Week 8 Picks
Washington over Detroit: I almost picked the Lions in this one, but Washington is the better team. Last year the Lions beat the Redskins at home, but they didn't have QB Donovon McNabb. The Lions will get back QB Matthew Stafford, but I don't think it will be enough. Redskins in a close one.

Dallas over Jacksonville: Jacksonville stinks, in my opinion, but Dallas isn't much better. Even without QB Tony Romo, I like the Cowboys in this one. Ex-Bengal Jon Kitna will get his first start in almost two years and he is better than whoever is at quarterback for the Jaguars. Dallas finally gets win number two.

Kansas City over Buffalo: The Chiefs are atop the AFC West and the Bills are in the basement of the AFC East. Bill's QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, also an Ex-Bengal, has played well, but the Buffalo is still 0-6. Chiefs have better and younger talent and will win at home.

St. Louis over Carolina: Even though Carolina won last week, they are still pretty bad. Rams QB Sam Bradford has been playing well and I like them at home.

Denver over San Francisco: The NFL will send the Broncos and 49ers across the Pond to London, England this Sunday, as the NFL tries to expand the game overseas. Their has been a game over in London for the past few seasons and it's a shame that the English have to watch the Broncos, who lost 59-14 last week, and the 49ers who are 1-6. I'll take the Broncos over the 49ers in London, because you know it's bad when San Francisco will be starting Troy Smith at quarterback.

NY Jets over Green Bay: The Packers have been hithard by the injury bug and that will be tough to overcome against, maybe the best team in the league, the Jets. New York is at home and they have been the best team in football since Week 1. J-E-T-S, Jets, win.

San Diego over Tennessee: Even though the Chargers are 2-5, they lead the league in passing and are the best at stopping the pass. Turnovers and penalties have doomed San Diego, sound familiar, cough, cough Bengals. Tennessee is coming off a victory against the Eagles, but the status of QB Vince Young is still uncertain. With a healthy Vince Young I would take the Titans, but if he's still not 100%, Philip Rivers and the Chargers will get it done this week.

Tampa Bay over Arizona: How the Cardinals are 3-3 is beyond me. Their quarterbacks are terrible and they have been outscored by 62 points. Tampa on the other hand, is 22nd in the league at running the football and 31st in the league at stopping it. Yet, they are 4-2. Can't figure these teams out, but give me the Buccaneers. Hard to win without having a good quarterback.

New England over Minnesota: Brett Favre's consecutive game streak might come to an end this week, as Favre is nursing an ankle injury. I still think Favre will play, but New England has been playing well since they traded Randy Moss, who will be on the other side line this week. Turnovers will doom Favre and the Vikings and the Patriots win.

Oakland over Seattle: As Chris Berman likes to say when he gets excited about Oakland, "The Raaaaaaaaaadiers." I'm excited because Oakland scored 59 points, that's right, 59 point last week. I can't even remember the last time they scored 30 points in a game, yet along 59. "The Raiders finally got Cable," a few year ago, another Berman saying since the Raiders head coach is Tom Cable, and now they might finally have a good offense. The Seahawks stink on the road and I like the Raiders to win in the Black Hole.

Pittsburgh over New Orleans: Until someone finds a way to beat the Steelers with Big Ben and that number defense in the league, they might not lose another game this season. The Saints lost to the Browns last week and it doesn't get any easier with the Steelers coming to town on Sunday Night. The Bayou will be hopping, but I like the Steelers. To win that is, I hate their team, but they are pretty damn good.

Indianapolis over Houston: The Texans were lucky to beat the Colts in Week 1 and Peyton Manning and the Colts never lose to the same team twice in the same year. The Colts will be without TE Dallas Clark for the rest of the season, which is a blow to the offense, but Peyton will still be able to spread the ball around. Colts win by a slim margin on Monday Night.

And...
Bengals over Miami: I'm giving the Bengals one more chance. It does seem like things are over at 2-4, but you never know. Every game for the past few weeks has been a must win game, well every game needs to be a must win game. No matter who you are playing or when you are playing them, as Herm Edwards says, "You play to win the game."

I don't care if Carson throws for 500 yards and the Bengals put up 42 points, because it doesn't matter if you don't win. If the Bengals can find a way to play an entire 60 minutes they might have a chance. They are banged up in the secondary with CB Adam Jones going on injured reserve, S Roy Williams is doubtful and S Chinedum Ndukwe and CB Jonathan Joseph are questionable. With all these injuries Moeller alum, CB Rico Murray, was signed off the practice squad and could see some playing time.

God only knows if the Bengals will win this week, but I think they can pull it out. All they have to do is not turn the ball over and don't commit stupid penalties. The Bengals will, repeat, will win a close one on Sunday, probably by no more than a field goal. WHO-DEY.

NFL: Week 7 Review and NBA Prediction

2010-10-26T13:49:00.002-04:00

32 points scored, 469 yards of total offense, Carson threw for 412 yards and 3 TD, Shipley, Chad and T.O all have over 80 yards receiving and all three had touchdowns. Leon Hall had an interception that led to a touchdown and Adam Jones forced a fumble and returned it for a touchdown. Scored 22 points in the third quarter alone and yet the Bengals lose once again.

After falling behind 24-3, I thought the game was over, but the Bengals actually came out inspired to start the second half and scored 22 unanswered points to take a one point lead going into the 4th quarter. That's a first. The Bengals inability to play a full four quarters though, has continued to hurt them and is one of the main reasons why they are now 2-4.

The penalties are still there, 7 for 36 yards, includes having 12 men on the field twice. Only one turnover, but the Cedric Benson fumble was costly. They looked very unorganized and uninspired in the first half, the coaching staff is mostly to blame, but is still unacceptable, especially after a bye. Their were some encouraging moments, but a lot of things that had fans shaking theirs heads and wondering why. Until the Bengals can figure out a way to play an entire 60 minutes of football as a team, they may not win a game the rest of the season. The defense and offense have yet to ball their best football at the same time and if they both play up to thier potentials, this team can be dangerous. But until then, a lot more losing.

The season may seem like it is over, but there is still a lot of football to be played. The Bengals have a murderous schedule remaining, but they can still play with pride and finish above .500. But I have a feeling that things are going to get worse before they get better. It's a shame because this is a very talented football team and it hursts seeing your favorite team continue to fall short week in and week out.

I believe you need three things to win in football, talented players, a good coaching staff and an owner committed to winning. Right now the Bengals are 1/3 at best and that just doesn't cut it.

The Dolphins come to PBS next week, more on that later in my Week 8 preview. Now for the Week 7 edition of "Holy Crap" and "C'mon Man."

"Holy Crap"
ATL-WR Roddy White: 11 rec, 201 yds, 2 TD

ATL-RB Michael Turner: 23 car, 121 yds, 2 TD

CIN-QB Carson Palmer: 36-50, 412 yds, 3 TD; QB Rating 116.4. Carson has started to turn things around and it was nice to see him fired up and yell and scream at teammates for a change.

TEN-WR Kenny Britt: 7 rec, 225 yds, 3 TD

PIT-QB Ben Roethlisberger: 19-27, 302 yds, 2 TD; QB Rating 132.0. Hate to do it, but a good game from Ben, despite the controversy at the end of the game, which went the Steelers way yet again.

CLE-LB David Bowens: Returned 2 INT for touchdowns against the Saints. Raise your hand if you know who this guy is...Yea that's what I thought, me neither.

Cleveland Browns: Beating the New Orleans Saints on the road by 13 points has everyone saying, "Holy Crap." Mark my words, in a year or two the Browns will be one of the best teams in the league, because they are doing things the right way and it all starts with the front office and GM Mike Holmgren.

CAR-WR David Gettis: 8 rec, 125 yds, 2 TD. This guy ring a bell, nope. Once again never heard of him. Good game for Gettis though, as Carolina gets their first win of the season.

Buffalo Bills QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and WR's Lee Evans and Steve Johnson: Fitzpatrick: 29-43, 374 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT, QB Rating 106.2; Evans: 6 rec, 105 yds, 3 TD; Johnson: 8 rec, 158 yds, TD. All of this in a losing effort, but against the Baltimore Ravens defense is pretty impressive.

WSH-CB DeAngelo Hall: 7 tackles, 4 pass deflections, 4 INT and returned one pick 92 yards for a touchdown. One of the best defensive performance all season and DeAngelo Hall is up for "Holy Crap" performer of the year.

OAK-RB Darren McFadden: 16 car, 165 yds, 3 TD; 2 rec, 32 yds, TD. The Raiders put up 59 points on the Broncos and I had McFadden on my bench for fantasy football. Won't make that mistake again.

"C'mon Man"
CHI-QB Jay Cutler: 26-40, 281 yds, TD, 4 INT; QB Rating 54.3. Cutler was also sacked 4 times, as the Bears and their offensive line, continue to struggle.

Philadelphia Eagles: The Eagles were winning 19-10 with 13 minutes to go in the 4th quarter and lost the game by 18 points. Allowed 27 unanswered points, committed 4 turnovers and 10 penalties for 100 yards. That will not win you very many games in the NFL.

NO-QB Drew Brees: 37-56, 356 yds, 2 TD, 4 INT; QB Rating 65.8. A very uncharacteristic game for Drew Brees and the Saints at home. The Saints have yet to look like the team that won the Super Bowl last year.

ARI-QBs Max Hall and Derek Anderson: Hall: 4-16, 36 yds, INT, QB Rating of 13.5. Anderson: 8-17, 96 yds, QB Rating 64.8. A rough day for the Cardinals quarterbacks, as Arizona losses again on the road.

Denver Broncos: A 59-14 defeated at the hands of the Oakland Raiders, including being down 38-0 in the 2nd quarter, speaks for itself.

MIN-QB Brett Favre: 16-29, 212 yds, TD, 3 INT; QB Rating 50.4. One of those interceptions was returned for a touchdown, which ended up being in the difference in another loss for the Vikings. Favre's mistakes just continue to hurt the Minnesota Vikings, who are now 2-4.

Dallas Cowboys: After a 41-35 loss to the NY Giants Monday night and QB Tony Romo getting hurt, the Cowboys season is pretty much over at 1-5.

NBA Preview
I know it's football season, but probably the most anticipated NBA season ever starts today and I have to give my prediction for the season. Not many people know that I am a huge Los Angeles Lakers fan, Kobe Bryant is the best player in the NBA in my opinion, not to mention my favorite player. I would love to see the Lakers three-peat, but it will be tough.

The Boston Celtics now have Shaq (aka The Big Shamrock) and are a very talented team, who lost in the NBA Finals to the Lakers last year. The Oklahoma City Thunder are a hot team on the rise and they have one of the top five players in the NBA with Kevin Durant. The Orlando Magic should be good and they have Dwight Howard. And oh yea, the Miami Heat. They should be pretty good and will win a few games.

It is going to be really interesting to see if the Heat can live up to the hype with new all-stars Chris Bosh and LeBron James, joining Dwyane Wade in South Beach. They might challenge the Jordan led Bulls that won 72 games during the 1995-96 regular season. I doubt the Heat will win 72 games, but they should win at least 65, if not more.

I do see the Heat going to the NBA Finals against my Lakers, of course, and I like the Lakers in 7. The Lakers and Celtics are the only teams, in my opinion, that match up to the Heat and I think the Lakers are better than Boston. Kobe and head coach Phil Jackson have been there and done that, winning 5 NBA titles together and I think they make it 6 this year. Should be a great NBA season filled with a lot of good baseketball.

NFL: Week 7

2010-10-22T12:10:00.001-04:00

Can the Bengals turn it around? Well, first the other games for Week 7. Last week I went 8-6 with my picks, bring the season total to 52-38. Still room for improvement, but a lot of tough decisions to make this week with so many games featuring evenly matched teams.

Week 7 Picks
San Francisco over Carolina: These two teams come into Sunday's game a combined 1-10. Ouch. Carolina QB Jimmy Clausen is back on the bench and Matt Moore will be back at quarterback. Despite the 49ers 1-5 record, they are the better team no matter who is quarterback for the Panthers.

St. Louis over Tampa Bay: I am a big believer in the Rams and at 3-3 they are still in the thick of things in the NFC West. Tampa did beat the Bengals, big accomplishment, but got kicked around last week by the Saints. Rams QB Sam Bradford is better than Tampa QB Josh Freeman and I think the Rams will finally win a game on the road, something they don't do very much.

Baltimore over Buffalo: The Bills are 0-5 and with every passing week they get closer to having a top pick in the draft come April. Baltimore let the lead slip away last week in a loss to New England, but they are still one of the top ten teams in the league. Ravens by more than a touchdown.

New Orleans over Cleveland: The Browns received a knock out blow from the Steelers last week, literally. Browns WR's Joshua Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi were knocked out of the game by Steelers linebacker James Harrison, who received a $75,000 fine for the hits. QB Colt McCoy got his feet wet in the NFL and the Browns are headed in the right direction, but the Saints are the defending Super Bowl Champs. Browns will keep it close though, like they have all season.

Pittsburgh over Miami: I hate to say it, but the fact of the matter is the Steeler might be the best team in the NFL. They have the best defense in the league and with Big Ben back at quarterback the Steelers might be the team to beat. I thought SI's Peter King was crazy for picking Pittsburgh to win the Super Bowl, but so far King might be right. It makes me sick to say it, but its true, the Steelers are a damn good football team, and better than Miami.

Tennessee over Philadelphia: Eagles will have QB Kevin Kolb at the helm for the second straight week as Michael Vick is still recovering from rib injury. Titans QB Vince Young is still a game-time decision, but backup Kerry Collins played well in relief last week. No matter who the quarterbacks are, the Titans have a better team and Philly will miss WR DeSean Jackson, who is out after that violent collision last week with Falcons DB Dunta Robinson. Titans win a close game at home.

Kansas City over Jacksonville: Kansas City has a lot of young talent and at 4-2, are atop the AFC West. Jacksonville got the snot kicked out of them Monday night against Tennessee and QB David Garrard left the game with a concussion. Arrowhead Stadium is one of the toughest places to play on the road and I like the Chiefs at home.

Washington over Chicago: The Bears have given up a league high 27 sacks this season and you can't win with your quarterback on his back. Jay Cutler's career might come to end this season if he continues to take the beating he has so far this season. Washington has been a lot of close games this season and they will win another close game on Sunday.

Seattle over Arizona: The Cardinals still have no real quarterback, a 1-2 record on the road, been outscored by 50 points, yet they are tied for first place with Seattle. Seattle was able to win on the road last week in Chicago and I think I underestimated Pete Carroll's Seahawks. The NFC West is the worst division in football, but Seattle gets it done at home in the Pacific Northwest.

New England over San Diego: The Chargers are one of the most disappointing teams this season after a 2-4 start. The Chargers and Cowboys are very similar in the fact they look good on paper, but stink on the field. New England proved they can win without Randy Moss and I like them to win on the West Coast.

Denver over Oakland: The Broncos and Raiders are both 2-4 and are tied for last in the AFC West. The Broncos have QB Kyle Orton, who is having a great year and QB Tim Tebow scored his first touchdown of the season last week, finally. The Raiders still do not have a good quarterback, Jason Campbell was a "C'mon Man" performer last week and Campbell and QB Bruce Gradkowski are nursing injuries. So, Kyle Boller might get the start. Kyle Boller, remember him, use to play for the Ravens. From what I remember, he wasn't very good, yet which Raider quarterback has been good the past few seasons. So, give me the Broncos at home.

Minnesota over Green Bay: Brett Favre returns to Lambeau on Sunday night as he takes on his former team the Green Bay Packers. The Vikings started turning things around last week with a win against Dallas and even though it wasn't pretty, they won the game. Green Bay is dealing with so many injuries and it caught up to them last week in an overtime loss to Miami. The Packers are too banged up and I like Brett and the Vikings to get back to .500 with a win on the road.

Dallas over NY Giants: Dallas is a desperate team and they have to win this game. The Giants have been playing well, but if Dallas can cut down on the mistakes, like turnovers and penalties, they can win. A great NFC East battle on Monday night and this one will not disappoint. I like the Cowboys, who I picked to go to the Super Bowl, by a field goal at home in Big D.

And...
Bengals over Atlanta: I almost picked the Falcons this week, but a true fan never picks against his team. No matter how bad the Bengals play and look sometimes, I still think they can beat any team in the league if they play the way they are capable of playing. If Carson Palmer can cut down on the interceptions and if the Bengals can stop committing stupid penalties, they will win Sunday in Atlanta.

Atlanta might be without CB Dunta Robinson, who knocked DeSean Jackson and himself out last Sunday in Philadelphia, and that will be to the Bengals advantage. Chad Ochocinco sent the Falcons defense a box of t-shirts promoting his new video game and Chad has a touchdown celebration planned. So, the Falcons will be gunning for him, but who isn't. The guy is funny, but sometimes I wish he would just shut up and play football.

The Bengals had two weeks to prepare for this game and a good team comes off a bye and plays well, well enough to win. Will the Bengals? God, I sure hope so, can't take much more losing. This is a must win game for the Bengals, almost like a playoff game, because either win or go home. A loss on Sunday will almost undoubtedly end the Bengals season and I'm sure not ready to start talking about next year already, it's not even Halloween yet.

Bengals will turn it around on Sunday and I have a feeling that it will be a great day to be a Bengal fan. If not, there are going to be a lot of people in Bengals group therapy.

NFL: Week 6 Review

2010-10-19T14:41:00.001-04:00

Nothing to complain about with the Bengals this week, but it was nice to watch football without getting all worked up about the Bengals. After watching teams like Baltimore, New England, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Dallas and Minnesota this past weekend, the Bengals have a lot of work to do. The Bengals aren't even close to being on the same level with those kind of teams. I don't know, maybe the bye week gave them a chance to turn things around and we will soon find out Sunday in Atlanta.

Now for the "Holy Crap" and "C'mon Man" performances for Week 6.

"Holy Crap"
PHI-QB Kevin Kolb: 23-29, 326 yds, 3 TD, QB Rating 133.6. Let the discussion begin for who should be the Eagles QB, as Michael Vick might be back next week. It's a nice problem to have though.

PHI-WR Jeremy Maclin: 7 rec, 159 yds, 2 TD

New Orleans Saints offense: The Saints finally get it together on offense by scoring 31 points, as Drew Brees throws for 263 yds and 3 TD and RB Chris Ivory ran for 158 yds.

Houston QB Matt Schaub and WR Andre Johnson: Schaub: 25-33, 305 yds, 2 TD, QB Rating 123.9; Johnson: 8 rec, 138 yds, TD.

Kansas City QB Matt Cassel and WR Dwayne Bowe: Cassel: 20-29, 201 yds, 3 TD, QB Rating 122.9; Bowe: 6 rec, 108 yds, 2 TD.

IND-QB Peyton Manning: 25-38, 307 yds, 2 TD, QB Rating 108.1

IND-RB Joseph Addai: 17 car, 128 yds, 7.5 yds/car, TD

"C'mon Man"
San Diego Chargers: The Chargers fall to 2-4, after losing on the road to St. Louis, and with all that talent, it is a real shame. I will be shocked if head coach Norv Turner is back next season.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Bucs came into Week 6 at 3-1 and everyone was wondering if they were for real or not. A 31-6 lose to New Orleans will end the speculation.

OAK-QB Jason Campbell: 8-21, 83 yds, 0 TD, 2 INT, QB Rating 10.7. Another less than steller performance from a Oakland quarterback.

Dallas Cowboys: A loss to the Minnesota Vikings drops the Cowboys to 1-4 and gives them a very slim chance of making the playoffs. They can just about kiss good-bye any chance of playing at home in the Super Bowl. And head coach Wade Phillips' coaching seat is more than hot, it's on fire.

A lot of very intriguing matchups in Week 7, my picks along with what the Bengals need to do to win in Atlanta, later in the week.

NFL: Week 6 and Review of a Disappointing Week 5

2010-10-15T11:36:00.002-04:00

It's that time in the school year when exams and papers are all due at the same time, which means that school has been taking up most of my time. But what's more important, school or football? School duh, but I love football, even though my favorite team is falling apart. But nevertheless my Week 5 review and Week 6 preview all in one.

I haven't had time to do my "Holy Crap" and "C'mon Man" players of the week for Week 5, so they will be included in my Week 6 preview as well. Not as much to talk about in Week 6, since the Bengals have a much needed bye.

Speaking of the Bengals, they get my "C'mon Man" performance of the week. The team I picked to go to the Super Bowl looks like absolute garbage and it looks likes no hope in sight. This team continues to find different ways to lose, it's amazing. A 21-14 lead in the 4th quarter and you lose? "C'mon Man." I just don't understand how they lost that game on Sunday.

The Bengals have a 7 point lead in the 4th quarter and they have the ball. All they have to do is run down the clock and play defense. So, on 3rd and 13 they decide to throw it. Dumbest coaching decision by Marvin Lewis as Bengals head coach. Instead of giving the ball to Cedric Benson, who ran for 144 yards and averaged 6.3 yards a carry, and let your defense hold the lead, you pass??? "C'mon Man!" Carson ends up throwing his 3rd pick of the game that leads to a Buccaneers touchdown. It was bad enough Palmer throw a pick 6 early in the game, but why he was even passing to begin with?

Just when everyone thinks the Bengals are on the right track, then they lose to the Browns. Then things get worse with a loss to Tampa Bay. The headaches and anger with this team, just never end. At the beginning of the season everyone was talking about maybe going to the Super Bowl. Not anymore after the last two weeks. At 2-3, the Bengals still have a chance, but a very, slim one. As games against the Colts, Saints, Jets, Chargers, Ravens, Falcons, Dolphins and Steelers (twice) still remain. Not the easiest of schedules for a team that is trying to turn things around. They play Buffalo and Cleveland too, but they may not even win those games the way they are playing.

A lot of things are wrong with the Bengals from Carson Palmer playing the worse football of his career, the offensive and defensive lines needing to get better, penalties, the list goes on. Our coaching staff has let everyone down too and looks unprepared for games. Bottom line, Mike Brown needs to step down and sell the team.

My dad has been a life long Bengal fan, he as seen the highs and the many lows this team has had. He said that until Mike Brown dies or retires, the Bengals will continue to be one of the worst run organizations in professional sports. And he's right. Mike Brown is only interested in making money, not whether or not his team is any good. You can't win with an owner like that, I don't care who you are.

Marvin Lewis needs to go too, he has been here 8 years and only two playoff appearances to show for it, with no postseason wins. I do feel for the guy, I mean Mike Brown is probably one of the worst owners to work for, behind Al Davis of the Raiders. But enough is enough and it is time to move on.

I can go on and on about what the Bengals do wrong or what they need to fix, but what's the point. I think Cincinnati Bengals fans are tried of talking about their team and discussing ways, in which to fix it. Whether or not the Bengals will ever be good again is the million dollar question, but the way things are looking, it might be a while.

The Bengals need to take a page out of the Reds playbook and start to turn their franchise around. Will they ever turn it around, like the Reds have, God only knows. At least this weekend, their will be nothing to get upset about when it comes to the Bengals, because they have a bye.

Enough about the Bengals, now for my "Holy Crap" and "C'mon Man" performances for Week 5, along with my Week 6 picks. Had my worse season of the year last week going 6-8 with my picks, bringing my overall record to 44-32. I'm going to bounce back, but this has been a strange football season so far. No undefeated teams remain and it's only Week 6. It looks like 8-8 or 9-7 might be good enough for the playoffs, which is good for the Bengals I guess, but unusual.

"Holy Crap"
CHI-RB Matt Forte: 22 car, 166 yds, 2 TD

CIN-RB Cedric Benson: 23 car, 144 yds, 6.3 yds/carry. One of the few Bengals that is playing well.

BAL-RB Ray Rice: 27 car, 133 yds, 2 TD

SD-QB Philip Rivers: 27-42, 431 yds, 2 TD, QB Rating 114.3

SD-WR Malcom Floyd: 8 rec, 213 yds, TD

NYG-WR Hakeem Nicks: 12 rec, 130 yds, 2 TD

"C'mon Man"
Cincinnati Bengals: To say it has been a disappointing season would be an understatement.

CIN-QB Carson Palmer: 21-36, 209 yds, 2 TD, 3 INT, QB Rating 58.7. If the Bengals are to win another game this season, Palmer has to play better.

CHI-QB Todd Collins: 6-16, 32 yds, 4 INT, QB Rating of 6.2. "Holy Crap" but in a bad way. One of the worst performances you will ever see from a quarterback, I guess that's why he's the Bears backup. But despite the Bears only having 29 yards passing as a team, they still won over Carolina. Carolina is 0-5 by the way. I wonder why?

San Diego Chargers Special Teams: Allowed two blocked punts, one went through the back of the end zone for a safety and the other was returned for a touchdown. They also allowed two kickoff returns for touchdowns earlier in the year in the same game against Seattle.

Week 6 Picks
Chicago over Seattle: No one in the NFC West can win on the road and the Bears get QB Jay Cutler back. The Bears defense is also pretty good, so give me the Bears at home.

Green Bay over Miami: Looks like QB Aaron Rodgers will play and that's good news for the Packers, who have been plagued with injuries so far this season. The Dolphins are coming off back-to-back losses to the Jets and Patriots at home and have a new special teams coach after the debacle against New England. Despite the Packers injuries, I like them at home, even if Aaron Rodgers is not 100 percent.

San Diego over St. Louis: The Rams got blown out last week against a 0-4 Lions team. The Chargers are only 2-3, but have a lot more talent than the Rams. QB Philip Rivers leads the Chargers to victory in this one.

Baltimore over New England: The last time these teams met, the Ravens embarrassed the Patriots in the playoffs. The Patriots are better offensively, but that was with Randy Moss, who's now a Viking. I think the Patriots will miss Randy and Baltimore's defense wins them the game.

New Orleans over Tampa Bay: Tampa is 3-1 but has beaten the Bengals, Browns and Panthers. The Saints have missed RB Reggie Bush and after a lose in Arizona, the defending Super Bowl champs are 3-2. Saints have too much fire power on offense to be 3-3, but we should find out this week if Tampa is for real.

NY Giants over Detroit: The Giants have played like the best team in the NFL the past two weeks, but will it continue? The Lions are coming off a 44-6 victory over the Rams, for their first win of the season and have been in all of their games. Giant WR Hakeem Nicks is an emerging star and look for him to have a big game in a victory for the GGGGGGG-Men.

Atlanta over Philadelphia: The Eagles beat the 49ers last week without Michael Vick, but that was San Francisco, not Atlanta. The Falcons might be the best team in the NFC, with their only lose coming week one in overtime against the Steelers. Atlanta continues to roll.

Pittsburgh over Cleveland: The Steelers will finally get QB Ben Roethlisberger back, after his four game suspension, this Sunday against the Browns. The Steelers are 4-1 and are lead by the number one defense in the league. Now that Big Ben is back, the Steelers might be the best team in football. The Browns are going to start rookie QB Colt McCoy as QB's Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace are nursing ankle injuries. It's going to be a tough start to a career for McCoy. Steelers win big.

Houston over Kansas City: The Chiefs have surprised everyone this year with their 3-1 start, but I'm still not convinced. Houston is trying to recover from the thumping they took last week against the Giants. The Texans have the worst pass defense in the league, but that won't keep them from winning this week.

San Francisco over Oakland: Are the 49ers ever going to win a game? An 0-5 start has shocked everyone and yet I continue to pick them. They have to win eventually, right? I think this is the week they finally get it together. Oakland will keep it close though in the Battle by the Bay.

NY Jets over Denver: The J-E-T-S, Jets, just continue to impress. LT still has it, they get back Santonio Holmes from his suspension and the defense is one of the best in the league. Broncos QB Kyle Orton, who leads the league in passing, and his favorite target, WR Brandon Lloyd, are having great seasons, but it won't be enough against a very dangerous and good Jets team.

Dallas over Minnesota: I forget who it was, but one of the NFL analysts called this the "Panic Bowl." A great title for a game that features two teams that were favorites to go to the Super Bowl when the year started. Dallas and Minnesota, both 1-3, have tough schedules remaining and the loser of this game, might start having to play for next year. Brett Favre elbow is hurting and all the off the field distractions he brings are too much for the Vikings to handle. I picked Dallas to go to the Super Bowl, so give me the Cowboys in a very close one, but this should be a great game.

Indianapolis over Washington: The Colts were able to knock off the undefeated Chiefs last week, despite a mediocre performance from the offense. Washington was able to hold off Green Bay in overtime last week and are still in the thick of things in the NFC East. Peyton Manning and the Colts offense are playing better than Donovon McNabb and the Redskins offense, so I will go with the Colts yet again. Sorry, but it's hard to bet against Peyton Manning.

Tennessee over Jacksonville: Both teams are 3-2 this season and most have been surprised with the Jaguars. They were able to knock off the Colts at home, so the Jaguars can beat the Titans on Monday night, but I don't see it happening. Titans in a close game.

A good weekend of football ahead, even without the Bengals, and some great college games as well. In the game of the week I like #1 Ohio State to go up to Madison and pull out a win against #18 Wisconsin. Should be a great game nonetheless. Enjoy the games this weekend.

Thanks for a Great Season Reds

2010-10-11T16:41:00.001-04:00

It was a sad end to the Reds season Sunday night and it's always hard to see your team finish the season on a losing note, but the Reds had a great season. Back in April, when the season began, I thought they had a decent shot of making the playoffs, but never winning the division. I saw them maybe winning the wild card, but never overtaking the Cardinals in the division. The Reds went on to prove me and just about everyone else wrong. This has been the best year of baseball I have ever witnessed and the best Reds team I have ever seen.

Their hasn't been much to get excited about in the last 15 years when it comes to Cincinnati Reds baseball, but 2010 was different. This was a team that was in the hunt the entire summer, something Cincinnati fans aren't use to. Usually by July or August, the Reds are out of it and everyone is talking about the Bengals and the upcoming football season. For the first time in 15 years, the city wasn't talking about the Bengals, they were talking about the Reds deep into September and early October.

Even though the Reds were no-hit and swept by the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLDS, this season has been full of ups and downs, but so many exciting moments and memories. After a 7-11 start to the year, I thought the Reds were done, but they ended up going on a tear that led to a NL Central Division Championship. There are so many highlights too numerous to mention, but are some of the ones that stand out in my mind.

The debut of Mike Leake and his 5-0 start to the season.

Travis Wood taking a perfect game into the 9th inning against the Phillies.
Aroldis Chapman's much anticipated debut and his continuous throws of 100+mph, including a 105 mph pitch, which is the fastest pitch ever recorded.

The Cuban Missile

Johnny Cueto and Homer Bailey throwing back-to-back complete game shutouts against the Pirates in early May.
Jay Bruce's home run off Roy Halladay to beat the Phillies.
Games at Wrigley against the Cubs where the Reds won 12-0 and scored 14 runs twice, including Drew Stubbs three home run game.
Jonny Gomes hitting two three-run homers against the Royals.
Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, Scott Rolen and Arthur Rhodes being named to the All-Star team.
Tons of great defensive plays from the best defensive team in the NL with a .988 fielding percentage. For example, Chris Heisey's throw home in the 9th inning against the Cardinals, Jay Bruce robbing a home run to end the game against Arizona and Drew Stubbs robbing a home run the night the Reds won the division.
The fight against the Cardinals in August, that was the turning point in the season.
Joey Votto's at bat against closer Jonathan Broxton in L.A. against the Dodgers.
Votto's walk-off homer on the same night that Hit King Pete Rose was honored on the field.
Numerous come from behind wins and walkoffs, with the best moment coming September 28, 2010 against the Houston Astros, when Jay Bruce hit the first pitch he saw out of the ballpark to clinch the NL Central for the Reds. One of the greatest moments in Reds history and the best moment for me as a Reds fan.

Vote Votto T-Shirts in support of Joey
Votto's All-Star bid.

So many great memories, I'm sure I missed some, but some of the best moments of my life as a Reds fan. Moments that I will remember for a long time and ones that Reds fans will be talking about for years to come.

I can't tell you how enjoyable and thrilling it was for me to watch the Reds this year. My summers usually consist of watching television, sleeping and working. Well, this summer I had Reds Fever. From
staying up to one in the morning when they were on the West Coast, to having my brother text me the score of the games while I was at work. No matter what was going on in my life, I always had to know what the Reds were doing if I couldn't watch or listen to the game myself. School, work and life can be very stressful and so many times you just want to just quit, but after a hard day, hearing Marty Brennaman say, "And this one belongs to the Reds," just makes everything right again.

So, thank you Reds for a great season. I will admit I had many doubts throughout the season and sometimes I wanted to give up on you guys, but I never did and neither did the Reds themselves. Thanks for giving, not just me, but the city of Cincinnati something to cheer about and be proud of. It's no secret the sports in this town have not been great the past 20 years, but the Reds got everyone excited about Cincinnati sports again.

The 2010 Cincinnati Reds are the best Reds team I have ever seen and they will only get better. The Reds return a lot of young talent and now those young guys have some playoff experience. I mean Joey Votto, Jay Bruce, Brandon Phillips, Drew Stubbs, Scott Rolen, Mike Leake, Travis Wood, Johnny Cueto, Edinson Volquez, Homer Bailey, Aroldis Chapman, the list goes on and on. 2011 is going to be the Reds year, I can feel it. 2010 is going to be hard to top, but I really think this Reds team is the new version of the Big Red Machine and I have a feeling we ain't seen nothing yet.

Link to Jay Bruce's walk-off home run, I still get chills when I hear Marty or Thom Brennaman's calls. Just copy and paste to watch. And Go REDS.

http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=12550307&topic_id=players&query=type%3Djson%26player_id%3D457803%26start%3D0%26src%3Dvpp%26sort%3Ddesc%26sort_type%3Dcustom%26hitsPerPage%3D60&c_id=cin&playerName=Jay Bruce

NFL: Week 5

2010-10-07T17:01:00.105-04:00

It's been a tough week for my favorite sports team and much like the Bengals and Reds I'm trying to recover from their pitiful performances. The Bengals lose to the Browns and then the Reds get no-hit by Roy Halladay in their first playoff game in 15 years. I guess the bright side is I will never forget the first Reds playoff game I ever saw. Hard to forget seeing your team get no-hit in the postseason.

Anyway back to football, the Bengals try and bounce back from a loss to the Browns against 2-1 Tampa Bay. Before I get into the Bengals game, my picks for the rest of the NFL. I went 9-5 last week, bring my overall record to 38-24, which is respectable, but I can do better.

Week 5
Jacksonville over Buffalo: The Jags got lucky with a 59 yard field goal to beat the Colts last week and Buffalo got shellacked by the Jets. Both teams aren't very good an probably will have Top 10 picks in the draft. Jacksonville has Maurice Jones-Drew and he will be the difference.

Atlanta over Cleveland: The Browns are better than their record appears, but the Bengals played like crap last week, leading to Cleveland's first win. RB Peyton Hillis is a very underrated back, but he is just about it for the Browns on offense. Atlanta has too many talented players and will win on the road.

Detroit over St. Louis: The entire NFC West is a combined 1-8 on the road so far this season and that does not bode well for the Rams. Detroit has played well, despite a 0-4 record. Lions RB Jahvid Best is in for a big game and I like the Lions to get their first win of the season.

Indianapolis over Kansas City: The two teams playing in this game have records of 3-0 and 2-2. Most would think that the Colts have the 3-0 record. Nope, the Chiefs are the NFL's last undefeated team and the Colts are 2-2. I think the Chiefs lose their first game of the season this weekend in Indy. I don't know if anyone has noticed, but I really like Peyton Manning. He is too good and the Colts are too talented to go to 2-3.

Green Bay over Washington: Donovon McNabb won in his return to Philly, thanks in large part to Eagles QB Michael Vick getting hurt. Green Bay lost linebacker Nick Barnett to a season ending wrist injury and as the Packers injuries start to pile up, it's a cause for concern. The Packers are the better team though and they win a close one in the nation's capital.

Chicago over Carolina: The Bears will be without QB Jay Cutler who had the snot kicked out of him last Sunday night against the Giants. Cutler was sacked 10 times and suffered a concussion in the process. The Bears will turn to backup QB Todd Collins in Carolina. The Panthers were able to stick with the Saints for the most part last week, but they are still a young team with a lot of inexperience. The Bears win without Cutler behind their defense.

Baltimore over Denver: The Ravens needed a touchdown pass from QB Joe Flacco to WR T.J. Houshmanzadeh late in the 4th quarter to knock off the undefeated Steelers last week and improved to 3-1. Denver was able to hold off Tennessee and held RB Chris Johnson in check for most of the game. Baltimore's defense usually wins the game for the Ravens and even though Bronco QB Kyle Orton has carried Denver with his arm, the Ravens win.

Houston over NY Giants: The Giant defense was outstanding last week, but the real question is can they do it two weeks in a row? Houston has a better offense than the Bears and it will interesting to see what Giant defense shows up. Even though Texan WR Andre Johnson did not play last week, due to injury, he should be back Sunday. I see the Texans scoring a lot of points and putting up a lot of yards in a win.

New Orleans over Arizona: The Cardinals are going to start undrafted rookie Max Hall and the Saints will be starting Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees at quarterback. Advantage Saints. Even with Drew Brees not 100% the Saints should win easily.

San Diego over Oakland: The Black Hole is never an easy place to play, but the Chargers have been playing better and are coming off a 31 point victory over Arizona. Raiders will keep it close, but not long enough. The Bolts win.

Dallas over Tennessee: Dallas has had two weeks to prepare for the Titans and they will be ready to play. Dallas is a very good football team and they are trying to save their season after a 1-2 start. Chris Johnson might have a big day, but Dallas is going to bring a lot of pressure on Vince Young. Cowboys win, but this game might come down to the final two minutes.

San Francisco over Philadelphia: If QB Michael Vick was playing in this game the Eagles would have a much better chance. Kevin Kolb has not looked very good this season and it's a long flight to San Francisco for the Eagles. The 49ers are desperate for a win and I think they finally get one at home.

Minnesota over NY Jets: The Vikings have a new weapon on offense in WR Randy Moss. That's right, Moss is back in a Vikings uniform after the New England Patriots decided to trade Moss and get what they could for him. I still don't understand why the Patriots would trade their most dangerous weapon, but Bill Belichick has been known to trade players in the last year of their contract. Brett Favre and Moss will finally get to play with each other and with or without CB Darrelle Revis the Jets will not be able to stop the Viking offense. Moss is the best deep threat receiver in the league and with him getting a lot of attention, look for Adrian Peterson to have an even bigger impact. Now that's a scary combination.

And...
Bengals over Tampa Bay: If the Bengals don't win on Sunday, they might as well pack it in and call it a season. Falling to 2-3 is just to hard to over come and the Bengals schedule only gets tougher as the season goes on. It's only Week 5 and this is a must win game for the Bengals, Carson even said so himself. The Bengals have to win or expect for everyone to be calling for Marvin's job and the Mike Brown sucks t-shirts to resurface.

The keys for the Bengals will be how the offensive and defensive lines play. Cedric Benson has to be able to run the ball and Carson needs to throw the ball the same way he did last week. The only way those guys have success is if the line blocks for them and controls the line of scrimmage. On the defensive side of the ball, Tampa Bay will be handing the ball off to RB Cadillac Williams and the defensive line must also control the line of scrimmage and force Tampa to throw the ball. Controlling the line of scrimmage and stopping the run will win the game for the Bengals. Let's hope they cut down on the penalties too, those have been a killer so far this season, especially in the red zone. Bengals will go into the bye at 3-2 and stay alive for the playoffs.

NFL: Week 4 Review

2010-10-05T13:08:00.001-04:00

If I told you that the Bengals would put up 413 yards of total offense, score 20 points, Carson would throw for 371 and 2 TD and T.O. would have 222 yards receiving, you probably would have thought the Bengals had won. Well, you would be wrong.

Sunday's game was anything but pretty. They put up 413 yards of offense, Carson and T.O. play their best games of the season, they scored 20 points, yet still lost to the Cleveland Browns, who were 0-3 coming in. Flat out, pathetic. Every time the Bengals look like they are headed in the right direction they take a GIANT step back. I just can't figure them out, they have the talent to compete and they know it, but they still manage to lose to the Browns, who have been one of the worst teams in the NFL for the past few years.

Everyone has been blaming Carson and the offense the past three weeks, but this one is on the rest of the team. Carson and T.O. played lights out and did what they need to do to help this team win and their teammates let them down. The party to blame this week are the offensive and defensive lines. Yes, Carson threw for 371 yards and the offense had over 400 yards of offense, but only being able to run the ball for 67 yards won't win you many games.

This team is "built to run the football," and whose identity on offense is to run the football, but Cedric Benson only got 15 carries for a measly 60 yards. The Bengals were down by 10 and 13 points at different times in the game, but you still have to give Benson the ball. The main reason the Bengals were 6-0 in the division last year was because of their ability to run the football. So, far this season they rank 23rd in rushing offense. Sure doesn't look like a run first team to me.

Then their is the defense, who carried this team the last two weeks, that laid an egg on Sunday. The were unable to stop RB Peyton Hillis from reaching 100 yards and they allowed QB Seneca Wallace to basically stand in the pocket and make throws. The Bengals continue to fail at getting pressure on the quarterback, which a team has to do in order to win the the National Football League.

The Bengals only recorded one sack and only had 3 QB hits on Wallace. The Browns don't have to best line in the NFL, they have some good linemen like Eric Steinbach and Joe Thomas, but that is still no excuse for not getting any pressure on the quarterback. The Browns sacked Palmer three times, hit him 7 and he fumbled twice. The Bengals have to be able to not only protect their quarterback, but get to the other team's quarterback. The defense is still very good, but they need to get better at rushing the passer. The Bengals have given up 7 sacks on the season and have only recorded 3. Those numbers have to change if this team is going to win any more games this year.

I could give you more stats and go on a rant on why this team is not performing, but the fact of the matter is I don't see the Bengals winning the Super Bowl anytime soon under owner Mike Brown. Until he sells the team or dies, the Bengals will not be able to compete with the front office and coaching staff that they have. From poor front office decisions to draft picks being busts, aka Andre Smith, Jerome Simpson, Odell Thurman, and David Pollack. Mike Brown continues to make poor decisions and until a change is made the Bengals will never be more than a mediocre team that will occasionally make the playoffs, like twice every 20 years.

The Bengals drive me crazy and as much as I want to give up on them and root for another team, I won't. The Cincinnati Bengals are my favorite football no matter how good or bad they are. Let's hope the season gets turned around, they are still 2-2, and their is a lot of football still to be played.

As for the players that had you saying, "Holy Crap," or "C'mon Man," this week, I will only give a few shout outs. I have had long lists in the past and I really want to focus on those outstanding and not pathetic performances. This week there are some really good performance and some really bad ones. Let's just say that the "Holy Crap," and "C'mon Man" performances of the year might have taken place in Week 4. Enjoy.

"Holy Crap"
CIN-WR Terrell Owens: 10 rec, 222 yds, TD. Passed Issac Bruce for 2nd all time in receptions and receiving yards, trailing only the great Jerry Rice in both categories. He also became one of just a handful of guys to have three 200 yards receiving games in a career and T.O. did it with three different teams.

CIN-QB Carson Palmer: 25-36, 371 yds, 2 TD, 121.4 QB Rating. That will shut up some of the critics in Cincinnati.

NYJ-RB LaDainian Tomlinson: 19 car, 133 yds, 2 TD. Another old guy that the Chargers thought was done, well LT is still a good back.

DEN-QB Kyle Orton: 34-50, 341 yds, 2 TD, INT. Orton has played well this year and he was also the leading rusher for Denver is this week's game. He only had 11 yards though.

IND-QB Peyton Manning: 33-46, 352 yds, 2 TD, INT that wasn't his fault. Peyton is lights out and he also passed one of my all-time favorite players, John Elway, for second all-time in passing yards. Peyton only trials Brett Favre in most passing records and when he finally retires don't be surprised if Manning holds every passing record.

New York Giants Defense: This one will have you saying "Holy Crap" a couple of times and so far is the "Holy Crap" performance of the year. The G-Men recorded 9 sacks in the first half against the Bears Sunday night, which tied an NFL record and ended up with 10 in the game. Bears QB Jay Cutler and backup Todd Collins were knocked out of the game because the punishing hits they took from the Giants as New York rebounded with a 17-3 win. I got to say it again, "Holy Crap."

NE-S Patrick Chung: 5 total tackles, blocked a punt that ended with a touchdown, blocked a field goal that was returned for a touchdown and returned an INT for a touchdown. Another potential "Holy Crap" performance of the year.

"C'mon Man"
Only two this week, but two really good ones. These will have the guys on ESPN Monday Night Countdown saying, "C'mon Man."

Chicago Bears Offensive Line: I would not want to be in the Bears film room this week. The O-line gave up not one or two, but 10 sacks Sunday nights against the Giants. Last time I checked one of the main concepts of the game are to protect your best and highest paid player, the quarterback. The Bears failed in this big time and it got not only Jay Cutler, but backup Todd Collins knocked out of the game. "C'mon Man."

SF-CB Nate Clements: The performance by the Bears offensive line is a tough one beat, but CB Nate Clements of the San Francisco 49ers was able to top it. Clements intercepted a Matt Ryan pass late in the 4th quarter, which would have sealed the 49ers first win this season, had he not fumbled the football. All Clements had to do was fall to the ground or run out of bounds and the 49ers could have ran the clock out. Instead, for some stupid reason, he decides to try and take it to the house. While running for the endzone, he is holding the ball out like a loaf of bread and sure enough, Atlanta WR Roddy White comes up from behind and forces him to fumble. The Falcons recover and end up getting a game winning field goal to send the 49ers to 0-4. If that doesn't have you saying "C'mon Man," as a 49er fan I don't know what will. So, the bone head play of the week, maybe even the "C'mon Man" performance of the year, belongs to Nate Clements. Think head coach Mike Singletary is mad about that one?

NFL: Week 4

2010-10-01T12:19:00.001-04:00

Going into Week 4 of the NFL season, fans have a better sense of knowing if their team is a contender or a pretender this season, but some still have no idea. Only three undefeated teams remain, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, and Chicago, but their are also five teams that are still looking for their first win. Dallas, Kansas City, Minnesota and Tampa Bay have byes, so only 14 games this week, but their are some intriguing matchups. More on those in a second.

Last week I went 10-6 in my picks, bringing the my season total to 29-19. Not bad, if I do say so myself. The Bengals won last week, and I did well with my picks. I like to think their is a correlation between the two, but probably not. So, without further adieu my Week 4 selections:

Week 4 Picks:
Atlanta over San Francisco: The 49ers start to the season has not been what everyone expected. They were the favorites in the NFC West and maybe even a Super Bowl threat, not anymore. Atlanta was the first team to knock off the defending Super Bowl Champion Saints, with a win in New Orleans last week, but needed overtime to do it. I like Atlanta at home, but it's hard to believe that San Francisco would start 0-4.

NY Jets over Buffalo: The Jets have been impressive since Week 1 and I thought they would lose in Miami last week, but they continue to prove me wrong. Buffalo almost beat New England last week, but the Patriots defense is no where near as good as the Jets. Jets win big.

St. Louis over Seattle: St. Louis have the same amount of wins as they did last year and its only the fourth week of the season. The Rams played well last week against Washington and just might be starting to turn it around. Seattle was able to beat San Diego at home last week, thanks in large part to Leon Washington returning two kickoffs for touchdowns. The Rams are better than people think and I like them to win a division game at home.

Tennessee over Denver: Chris Johnson will have a big day against Denver in my opinion and I was not impressed watching Denver last week against the Colts. Peyton Manning picked their defense apart and I think Chris Johnson will be too much for them to handle. Denver QB Kyle Orton has played well, so far this season and it might be a shootout down in Tennessee. Titans win though, behind Chris Johnson.

Green Bay over Detroit: If it weren't for the penalties, Green Bay would be undefeated. The Packers just continued to shoot themselves in the foot with dumb penalties, which ended up costing them the game Monday night in Chicago. Detroit is likely to get QB Matthew Stafford back, but Green Bay is the better team. The Packers cut down on the penalties and beat the Lions at Lambeau Field.

Baltimore over Pittsburgh: One of the best games this weekend will sure to be a hard fought battle. Whenever the Ravens and Steelers get together it's always hard hitting and dominated by defense. This week will be no different, as the Steelers look to go 4-0 without Big Ben. Pittsburgh's defense has carried them so far, but they will face the best offense they've seen this year in the Ravens. Ray Lewis and the Ravens-D will be ready to play, but so will the Pittsburgh-D. I like the Ravens in a very close one.

New Orleans over Carolina: No way in the world the Saints lose two in a row. Drew Brees will be in for a big day and Carolina QB Jimmy Clausen will be in for a long one. If he thought last week was rough against the Bengals defense, just wait until he sees all the blitzes coming from the Saints. Saints by at least a touchdown.

Indianapolis over Jacksonville: The Colts have a better defense, a better offense, better coaching, overall better players and oh yeah, Peyton Manning. Need I say more. Jacksonville RB Maurice Jones-Drew has yet to catch fire this season and he might have a big game against the Colts, much like Arian Foster did in Week 1. But still Colts win big, as Peyton probably throws at least two touchdowns.

Houston over Oakland: Houston lost to Dallas last week in the Battle for the Lone Star state, but don't think they aren't as good as the looked the first two weeks. The Texans are a very good football, especially on offense, but the defense must get better if the Texans are to make a run at the playoffs. Oakland should have won last week in Arizona had kicker Sebastian Janikowski not missed three field goals, including the game winner. The Texans have too much talent and will win.

Philadelphia over Washington: The marquee matchup this weekend as QB Donovon McNabb returns to Philadelphia. The Eagles have played really well since Micheal Vick took over at quarterback and Vick has looked better than ever. As for Washington, an overtime loss to Houston and a loss to the Rams has the Redskins 1-2, when they easily could be 3-0. Whether or not McNabb receives cheers or boos from the fans is still a question, but I think that the Eagles are better than the Redskins. The Eagles beat McNabb in his return to Philly.

San Diego over Arizona: The Chargers were shocked, no pun intended, by the Seahawks last week mainly because the special teams allowed two touchdowns. As usual, the Chargers are off to a slow start. No cause for alarm though, as San Diego is still a good football team and they are better than the Cardinals. Arizona is 2-1, but beat Oakland and St. Louis, big accomplishments. Too much talent for the Chargers and they start to turn it around with a win.

Chicago over NY Giants: The Bears could easily be 1-2 if it weren't some calls going their way. Week 1 they got by Detroit because WR Calvin Johnson did not maintain possession of the ball in the endzone and the touchdown was taken off the board. Last week Green Bay committed 18 penalties and still almost one the game. Don't get to wrong the Bears are a very good football team and new offensive coordinator Mike Martz has done wonders with QB Jay Cutler. The Giants on the other hand are a mess and head coach Tom Coughlin's seat just keeps getting hotter and hotter. Bears win behind Cutler and their defense to remain undefeated.

New England over Miami: Another great one on Monday night and if the Dolphins are to make a run in the AFC East, they need to win Monday. New England's defense is a major cause for concern though. Beside the first half of the Bengals game, the defense has played very poorly. Buffalo put up 30 on them last week, after only scoring 22 points in the first two games combined. Despite the Patriots woes on defense, they are too talented on offense. Patriots win, but closer than the experts think.

And...
Bengals over Cleveland: The Bengals have won their last 8 division games and this week they push that number to 9. The Browns have been in every game, losing by only 12 combined points, and they have had the lead in the 4th quarter in all three games. The Browns always play the Bengals tough, but the Bengals are the better football team.

Cleveland ranks 22nd in the league throwing the football and 21st in the league in stopping the run, two things the Bengals can take advantage of. Cedric Benson is the best running back the Browns have faced this season and the Bengals defense is just as good as Baltimore's, who the Browns played last week. Cleveland QB Jake Delhomme should be back after missing the last two games, which is good for the Bengals because he is very turnover prone. In the Marvin Lewis era, when the Bengals win the turnover battle, they win hands down. If Delhomme turns the ball over, the Bengals will take advantage like they did last week in Carolina. Browns RB Peyton Hillis was able to rush for over 100 yards against the Ravens, which is no easy task, but look for the Bengals to load the box and stop the Browns rushing attack. Mike Zimmer and the defense will be ready for whatever the Browns throw at them.

The Bengals offense needs to start getting it into gear if the Bengals are to compete with the Ravens and Steelers in the division. Carson has to play better, because the Bengals need him and any more bad performances might get him run out of the city by the fans. And I think he will, look for Palmer to have his best game of the season. Benson is in for a big day as the Bengals to get back to running the football, something they excelled at last year in division games. As the saying goes, "If it's Brown, flush it down." The Bengals flush down the Browns on the road and improve to 3-1.

Reds Clinch NL Central

2010-09-29T16:34:00.002-04:00

This has been a moment I have been waiting for my entire life, to see the Cincinnati Reds in the playoffs. It has been a long 15 years, since the Reds last visited the postseason, I was four years old at the time, but the wait is over. The Cincinnati Reds are National League Central Division Champs and are going to the playoffs.

Going into the season no one, outside the city of Cincinnati, gave the Reds any chance of making the postseason. No one thought they could over take the St. Louis Cardinals in the division and everyone had them missing the playoffs. No one thought they had the pitching, the hitters, the veterans, or the skills needed to win the division. Well, the Reds went out and proved all the critics wrong. This is hands down, the best Reds team I have ever seen, and when the season is over, they might just might be one of the best Reds teams ever.

There were many points throughout the season, that people started to give up on the Reds. I will admit, I thought they were done when they started the season 7-11. Everyone was waiting for the Reds to fold and the Cardinals to run away with the division. But that never happened. The Reds stayed neck and neck with the Cards the whole summer. With the turning point in the season happening against those Cardinals.

In my opinion the defining moment of the season was the game against the Cardinals in August, yeah that one. The game in which the benches cleared and their was a brawl on the field for almost ten minutes. I was fortunate enough to go to that game and even though the we lost, it was one of the best Reds games I have ever been to. That game showed me, and I think the rest of Cincinnati, that the Reds were not afraid of the Cardinals. The defended each other and fought back against a team that everyone thought was better than them, everyone except the Reds.

After the Reds were swept by the Cards in August, most thought this was when the Cardinals would finally pull away and it was all but over for the Reds. Instead, the Cards had a cold streak that ended up costing them their season. The Reds, meanwhile dusted themselves off from the fight and ran away with the division crown.

This Reds team has surprised a lot of people with their play this season from being the best defensive team in baseball, just look at what Drew Stubbs did last night. The best hitting team in the NL and they have a very underrated pitching staff that doesn't get the credit they deserve. People think the Reds don't have the stars like A-Rod, Derek Jeter, Joe Mauer, Josh Hamilton, David Price, Roy Halladay, or the payroll to compete. Instead, they have young stars in the making like, Jay Bruce, Drew Stubbs, Johnny Cueto, Travis Wood, Mike Leake, Edinson Volquez, Aroldis Chapman, Homer Bailey and MVP Joey Votto. The country has no idea who these guys are except for maybe Chapman and Votto, but no one knew who they were before this season. They have veterans like, Orlando Cabrera, Scott Rolen, and Arthur Rhodes that most teams thought were washed up, but they have carried this team through their experience and leadership. A mix of guys nobody wanted, to guys no one has ever heard of, make up the 2010 Cincinnati Reds, pretty damn remarkable. It just proves you don't need to have the highest payroll or the best players to win, you just need some young talented players, some solid veterans and good coaching. The Reds have all three.

I said earlier this the season that I thought this Reds team was a newer version of the Big Red Machine from the 1970's. Well, 40 years ago in 1970, the Reds won the NL Pennant and the Big Red Machine was born. So far, 40 years later, the New Big Red Machine has followed in their footsteps by winning the division. People always say that history has a tendency to repeat itself, sure hope it continues this season.

For me, seeing the Reds in the playoffs is a dream come true and it's been a fantasy of mine for a long time. The great thing about a fantasy is the possibility that it might come true. Well, my ultimate fantasy is to see the Reds win the World Series and that is a distanic possibility this year. No matter how the rest of the season turns out, this has been the greatest season of Reds baseball I have seen. And I think that the best is yet to come.

NFL: Week 3 Review

2010-09-28T13:33:00.001-04:00

It wasn't pretty, in fact it was ugly, but a win is a win. The Bengals were able to pull out a victory in rainy Carolina 20-7, against a struggling Panthers team. To say the offense looked terrible would be an understatement, Carson threw two interceptions and probably should have thrown at least two more. The offensive line did a poor job at pass protection, but the run blocking was good enough for Cedric Benson to rack up 81 yards and two total TD. The offense ran 17 more plays, gained more yards and held the ball for almost 13 mintues more than Carolina and still looked bad.

Everyone is probably ready to run Carson Palmer out of town, but give the guy a chance. The guy won a Heisman Trophy and has been to the Pro Bowl, so don't think his is not talented enough to be the quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals. He has never been the same since suffering that knee injury in 2005 and he has been bother by a bad elbow and thumb the past few seasons. That's a lot of wear-and-tear for a guy who is in his 8th season.

Carson has a line that has maybe two decent players on it, Bobbie Williams and Andrew Witworth. Witworth is really a guard playing tackle and Nate Living, Kyle Cook and Dennis Roland, are probably not going to a Pro Bowl anytime soon. God only knows if Andre Smith, a top 10 pick, will every become a guy the Bengals thought he would, and him not panning out has really hurts the Bengals.

If you look at the other great quarterbacks in the NFL like, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, and Tom Brady, they all have at least two, maybe even three Pro Bowl caliber players on the offensive line. You put Carson on the Colts, Steelers, or Patriots he has at least one, maybe even two Super Bowl rings. Palmer doesn't have that luxury though and it can be seen in games like against Carolina. The Bengals offense would be a whole lot better if they had a line that was good at both run blocking and pass protection. Their line is built to run the football, not pass protect. That works against teams in the AFC North, like Pittsburgh and Baltimore, but not the rest of the league. Be thankful that our defense is as good as they are, or we would be in real trouble.

The Bengals defense played outstanding yesterday, forcing four turnovers and dominating the line of scrimmage. They have won the last two games for the Bengals and if they can contiune to play well, they can and will carry this team. Just look at the Steelers, they are 3-0 without Big Ben, because their defense has been the best in the league. Give the offense some more time to figure everything out and the Bengals will be unbeatable with their defense. Carson Palmer is a good quarterback and everyone calling for him to be benched needs to realize that this team would not be where they are today without Carson Palmer. They never would have stopped being the "Bungels" and wouldn't have won two division titles without him. I have 100% faith in Carson and so should the rest of Bengals fans. He is the only guy I want running the Bengals offense and in the big moments, I want the ball in his hands, because the guy is pretty damn good.

Now for the guys that had us either saying, "Holy Crap," or "C'mon Man," in Week 3 and there were a lot of them.

"Holy Crap"
MIN-RB Adrian Peterson: 23 car, 160 yds, 2 TD

BAL-QB Joe Flacco: 22-31, 262 yds, 3 TD. A much better performance from Flacco than last week.

BAL-WR Anquan Boldin: 8 rec, 142 yds, 3 TD

CLE-RB Peyton Hillis: 22 car, 144 yds, TD. The Ravens don't give up many 100 yard rushers, so a impressive game from Hillis, who also caught 7 ball for 36 yards.

NO-WR Lance Moore: 6 rec, 149 yds, 2 TD

PIT-QB Charlie Batch: 12-17, 186 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT. Despite the 2 picks, Charlie Batch played a lot better than most thought he would, as the Steelers won again.

TEN-RB Chris Johnson: 32 car, 125 yds, 2 TD

NE-QB Tom Brady: 21-27, 252 yds, 3 TD; 142.6 QB Rating

Dallas Cowboys: They finally got a win and beat a very good 2-0 Houston Texan team. QB Tony Romo and the Boys showed the rest of the league they aren't done yet.

Kansas City Chiefs: No one had the Chiefs going 3-0 to start the season. They have shocked everyone and they already have a two game lead on everyone in the AFC West. Watch out for K.C.

IND-WR Austin Collie: 12 rec, 127 yds, 2 TD

IND-QB Peyton Manning: 27-43, 325 yds, 3 TD; 109.2 QB Rating. Told you here would be in section every week. So far, 3-3 on the season.

SEA-RB Leon Washington: Returned two kickoffs, 101 and 99 yards, for TDs and help the Seahawks improve to 2-1.

NYJ-QB Mark Sanchez: 15-28, 256 yds, 3 TD; 120.5 QB Rating. A night and day difference from the Sanchez and Jets offense everyone saw in Week 1.

"C'mon Man"
Carolina Panthers: The Panthers had opportunities to get back into the game, but they were dominated in time of possession and total plays ran. Not to mention four turnovers did not help rookie QB Jimmy Clausen, who had a long first day at the office.

CIN-QB Carson Palmer: 19-37, 195 yds, TD, 2 INT. It's hard putting Carson here, but Palmer did not play well at all. Palmer and the Bengals offense need to fix a lot of things if they are to compete for the playoffs. Palmer will figure it out and he is due for a breakout performance, trust me.

MIN-QB Brett Favre: 23-34, 201 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT. Minnesota is still waiting for last year's Brett Favre to return and I will go ahead and say it now, no matter what happens, this is Brett's final season. Well...maybe not.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The hype over Tampa Bay's hot start faded fast as the Bucs were blown out by the Steelers.

San Francisco 49ers: A team that most, including myself, picked to win the NFC West, is off to an 0-3 start. QB Alex Smith has no played well and the 49ers have a lot of work ahead of them. The good news, an 8-8 record can still win the division.

Stay tuned later in the week for my Week 4 predictions and what to watch for in Cleveland, as the Bengals battle their in-state rivals, the Browns.

NFL: Week 3

2010-09-24T10:57:00.001-04:00

The only good thing about starting back to school is knowing that their is football to watch on the weekend. After starting school this week all I can say is, Thank God for football, or starting back to school would be an even bigger pain between the back pockets. There are some very interesting games this weekend and like I said in my Week 2 Review, some teams, aka Dallas and Minnesota, are already playing must win games in only the third week of the season. Several teams have already made changes at quarterback, which is never good after two games, and we will find out soon enough who the real contenders and pretenders are in the NFL.

Last week, like the Bengals, I bounced back with picks going a solid 11-5. It has only been two weeks, but the trend has been when the Bengals play well, I pick well. Overall, I'm 19-13 and let's see if the hot streak can continue for both me and the Bengals in Week 3.

Week 3 Picks:
Tennessee over NY Giants: This should be one of the better games this weekend and is a real toss up. If the Titans can stop from turning the ball over 7 times, like they did last week, they can win. The Giant defense was torched last Sunday night by Peyton and the Colts, so expect RB Chris Johnson to have a good game. Vince Young is no Peyton Manning, but I'm not sold on the Giants defense. Titans win a close one in the Big Apple.

Pittsburgh over Tampa Bay: I don't know how, but the Steelers are 2-0. Thanks mainly to their defense, who forced 7 Tennessee turnovers last week and got Titan QB Vince Young benched, the Steelers have won without Big Ben. The offense though has not looked pretty the past two weeks. Since Big Ben is still suspended, Dennis Dixon has been the quarterback, but he suffered a knee injury and is out indefinitely. The Steelers had QB Bryon Leftwich on the team in preseason, but decided to cut him, then sign him again once Dixon went down. Leftwich also suffered a knee injury in the preseason and his overall health is not 100%. So, will it be Charlie Batch for the Steelers on Sunday. Charlie Batch??? Most of you have no idea who he is and those of you who do probably didn't even know he was still in the league. He probably is better at making a batch of cookies, than he is at playing football at this point in his career, but with the Steelers defense they can just about win any game. Tampa is also, 2-0, but not for long. Steelers win a defensive struggle.

Baltimore over Cleveland: Even though Baltimore did not play well last week against the Bengals, they still should have no problem with the Browns. Cleveland couldn't beat Tampa Bay or Kansas City at home, so don't expect an upset this week. The only way Cleveland wins, is if return man Josh Cribbs returns three kicks for touchdowns, because the offense will probably not score on the Ravens defense.

Dallas over Houston: The game of the week in my opinion, as The Battle for the Lone Star State will not disappoint. Houston comes in with a 2-0 record after winning in overtime last week and Dallas is a surprising 0-2. All Hell will break loose in Big D if the Cowboys fall to 0-3. Dallas is the better team on paper, but they haven't played like it on the field. It should be a high scoring game as the Texans defense has struggled against the Colts and Redskins, even though they are undefeated. The Cowboys will be ready to play and I just can't see them going 0-3. It will be a shootout down in Texas.

San Francisco over Kansas City: The 49ers are 0-2 and the Chiefs are 2-0, but I like the 49ers in this one. Frisco looked great Monday night against the Saints and the Chiefs barely got by the woeful Browns. San Francisco can still win the division after an 0-2 start and they right the ship this week in K.C.

Minnesota over Detroit: I figured the Lions would be 0-2 at this point, but not the Vikings too. A goal line stand for the Dolphins denied Minnesota of their first win last week and Brett Favre has taken most of the heat for the Vikings poor start. He still looks like he is not all the way their yet, but I think the Vikings finally put one in the win column Sunday. The Lions have played well and RB Jahvid Best is an early Rookie of the Year candidate, but QB Matthew Stafford is still out with a shoulder injury. Another loss for the Lions.

New England over Buffalo: The Bills are 0-2 and QB Trent Edwards will take a seat on the bench this week as, former Bengal QB and Harvard product, Ryan Fitzpatrick will get the start. Fitzpatrick is good, but no good enough to knock off the Pats. QB Tom Brady and the Pats struggled against Jets in the second half last week, but they will return to form this Sunday. Patriots win big.

New Orleans over Atlanta: The Saints have started the defense of their Super Bowl crown with a 2-0 record, but they lost RB Reggie Bush to a leg injury Monday in San Francisco. In Atlanta, the Falcons crushed the Cardinals and have looked good in their two games. But the game is in New Orleans and the Saints are pretty tough to beat at home. Saints win a close one without Reggie Bush.

Washington over St. Louis: The Redskins were a timeout away from going 2-0 last week, but a timeout by the Houston Texans to ice kicker Graham Gano lost them the game. Gano made a game winning field goal in overtime, but Houston had called timeout right before the snap. After the timeout, Gano missed on his second try and the Texans ended up winning the game. The Rams on the other hand, have played well enough to win their first two games, but are still 0-2. QB Sam Bradford will play well, but doesn't have enough talent around him to beat the Skins.

Philadelphia over Jacksonville: QB Michael Vick has been named the starter for Sunday's game in Jacksonville and everyone has an opinion on the quarterback situation in Philly. Vick has played well filling in for the injured Kevin Kolb and the Eagles are playing well. So, as the old saying goes, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." I would go with Vick because he gives the Eagles the best chance to win, because as Herm Edwards said, "You play to win the game." Jacksonville got smoked last week in San Diego and they lose this weekend in front of a half empty stadium.

Arizona over Oakland: A tough one to pick let me tell ya. It has been keeping me up at night trying to decide who will win this game. Okay, not really, but this is a tough one to pick. Arizona has not looked good this year and got blown out last week versus Atlanta. As for Oakland, they beat St. Louis at home, oh boy. In fact both teams are 1-1, with each winning games against the St. Louis Rams. I will have to take Arizona in this one since they are at home. Bruce Gradkowski will get the start for the Raiders and he brought a spark when he came in last week, so watch out for Oakland.

San Diego over Seattle: The Seahawks looked good in Week 1 and not so great in Week 2. The opposite can be said for the Chargers, bad Week 1, good Week 2. The Chargers have a lot more talent than Seattle and they will win. 50% chance of showers Sunday, according to the Weather Channel, in Seattle, shocker. So, I guess the Chargers will win in the rain.

Indianapolis over Denver: QB Peyton Manning picked apart the G-Men last Sunday night in the Manning Bowl and the Colts bounced back after losing in Week 1. Peyton Manning the greatest player I have ever seen play the game, the guy is flat out amazing, played almost perfect football. What makes him so great is that he's just not the quarterback, but the offensive coordinator for the Colts. Watching him run the Colts offense is a thing of beauty and I was really impressed last Sunday. As for Denver, CB Champ Bailey was seen leaving Sunday's game with his foot in a boot, which is not good for the Broncos. He is one of the best cover corners in the league, but even with him the Broncos don't stand much of a chance. They will have however, be playing with heavy hearts, as they grieve the lose of WR Kenny McKinley, who was found dead in his home earlier this week. It's always hard to lose a teammate, just ask the Bengals, they went through the same thing last year after the death of Chris Henry. One thing is for sure though, the Broncos will put up one hell of an effort, but I think they fall short.

Miami over NY Jets: I really like the Dolphins and the Jets haven't impressed me yet. Yeah, the Jets beat the Patriots and they put up some points on their defense, but big deal. The Bengals put points up on New England also, it was just in the second half. Miami needed a goal line stand to win last week in Minnesota and although they've yet to won in convincing style, they are still 2-0. I like the Dolphins to show that they are a legitimate AFC threat with a win on Sunday night.
Green Bay over Chicago: Both the Bears and Packers come into Week 3 with a spotless record and have already gained a two game lead on the Lions and Vikings in the division. The Bears have played very well and QB Jay Cutler has played much better football under new offensive coordinator Mike Martz. The Packers have also looked good in their two games and continue to look like Super Bowl contenders. Another good one on Monday night and I like the Packers to pull one out in the Windy City.

And...
Bengals over Carolina: Panthers QB Jimmy Clausen will get his first taste of the NFL against the Bengals and let's hope it will be a game he will want to forget. He will be going up against a Bengals defense that picked off Joe Flacco four times last week and shut down the Baltimore Ravens offense. Look for defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer to dial up a lot of blitzes and put a lot of pressure on the rookie Clausen. The Panthers will probably run the ball quite a bit with RB's DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart to help Clausen. So, the Bengals must stop the run and force Clausen to beat him with his arm, which might cause him to make some mistakes.

On offense the Bengals were unable to get the ball into the endzone last week against the Ravens and they look to fix that this week. The Panthers rank 19th in the NFL against the pass and 14th against the run, but quarterbacks Eli Manning and Josh Freeman have both looked good against the Panthers so far this season. Carson Palmer is due for a breakout day and the offense, Chad, T.O., Benson and everyone else can and will put up a lot of yards and points on the Panthers. If the Bengals come out with the same intensity on defense like they did last week and score touchdowns, instead of field goals, the Bengals win. Prediction, Bengals win by at least a touchdown. Enjoy the games this weekend and WHO-DEY!

NFL: Week 2 Review

2010-09-21T11:17:00.002-04:00

WHO-DEY! A great weekend to be a Bengal fan, as the Bengals got their first win of the season with a 15-10 victory over the Baltimore Ravens. No touchdowns for the Bengals, no problem. The defense carried the Bengals to a win and looked the defense that was so good last year. The offense was able to move the ball against an excellent Ravens defense, but penalties (9 for 56 yards) derailed some drives and they were only able to muster up 5 field goals by Mike Nugent. A lot more confidence with Nugent kicking this season, than Bengals fans had last year with Shayne Graham, that's for sure.

As for the defense, they looked like a totally different unit than the one that played last week against the Patriots. They were able to get some pressure on Ravens QB Joe Flacco and held him to only 154 yards passing, including no passing yards in the first quarter, and picked him off four times. Under Marvin Lewis, when the Bengals win the turnover battle, they win games. Sunday, they were +4 in the turnover department.

A great win for the Bengals no doubt, but they still need to work on some things. Starting with cutting down the penalties and taking advantage of turnovers and good field position. If they can end drives with more touchdowns and less field goals, it will put less pressure on the defense and result in more W's.

As for the stars and duds of Week 2, instead of Impressive Performers, I think their is a better name for those stars on the gridiron. How about, as Frank Barone always said, on the popular television sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, "Holy Crap." Sounds better in my book. Now for those who put on performances that had use either saying, "Holy Crap," or "C'mon Man," in Week 2:

"Holy Crap"
HOU-QB Matt Schaub: 38-52, 497 yds, 3 TDs, 114.1 QB Rating (158.3 is a perfect QB Rating)

HOU-WR Andre Johnson: 12 rec, 158 yds, 1 TD. Big day for the Texans offense, as they win in overtime over the Redskins.

MIN-RB Adrian Peterson: 28 car, 142 yds, 1 TD

PHI-RB LeSean McCoy: 16 car, 120 yds, 3 TDs

CHI-QB Jay Cutler: 21-29, 277 yds, 3 TDs, 136.7 QB Rating

ATL-QB Matt Ryan: 21-32, 225 yds, 3 TDs, 117.3 QB Rating

ATL-RB Jason Snelling: 24 car, 129 yds, 2 TDs; 5 rec, 57 yds, 1 TD. Came in after RB Michael Turner went out with an injury.

DET-RB Jahvid Best: 17 car, 58 yds, 2 TDs: 9 rec, 154 yds, 1 TD. Only his second career game.

Pittsburgh Steelers Defense and Special Teams: I hate to do it but, they won the game for the Steelers. 7 turnovers forced, count'em 7, recorded 4 sacks, and returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown. Just a dominating performance to say the least.

IND-QB Peyton Manning: 20-26, 255 yds, 3 TDs, 145.5 QB Rating in a victory, over his brother and the Giants, in the Manning Bowl. I think you can almost bet on seeing Peyton Manning in this section every week. "Holy Crap," is this guy good.

"C'mon Man"
BAL-QB Joe Flacco: 17-39, 154 yds, 1 TD, 4 INTs, 23.8 QB Rating

ARI-QB Derek Anderson: 17-31, 161, 2 INT, 42.5 QB Rating, pulled from game.

MIN-QB Brett Favre: 22-36, 225 yds, 3 INTs, 44.3 QB Rating. The Vikings fall to 0-2 and not the way Brett envisioned the season when he decided to come back.

CAR-QB Matt Moore: 6-16, 125 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT, was benched later in the game in favor of Jimmy Clausen and probably lost his starting job in the process.

TEN-QB Vince Young: 7-10, 66 yds, 2 INT, 48.3 QB Rating, a fumble lost and was benched in the second half.

Tennessee Titans: Allowed the Steelers to return the opening kickoff for a touchdown, turned the ball over seven times and had 11 penalties for 72 yards, not to mention they lost the game to the Steelers who only had 127 yards of total offense.

Dallas Cowboys: 0-2 start for a team that was a popular favorite to go to the Super Bowl. Doesn't get any easier as they face the undefeated Houston Texans next week.

Next week has some very interesting matchups, with some teams already facing must win games in only the third week of the season. A trip to 0-2 Carolina is next for the Bengals, but more on that matchup and the rest of NFL games in my Week 3 post, so stayed tuned.

NFL: Week 2

2010-09-17T13:35:00.007-04:00

An exciting weekend of football would have been a whole lot better had the Bengals shown up in New England. It was not a great start to the 2010 season for the Bengals, it's never good when before halftime you are already down 24-0. The defense did not play like the defense of last year as QB Tom Brady had enough time in the pocket to make a sandwich. The Bengals recorded no sacks and only hit Tom Brady twice. Not a great recipe for success on the defensive side of the ball.

Now for the offense. The Bengals offense came into the game with loads of talented players and looking to put up big yards on an inexperienced Patriots secondary. Instead the Patriots looked like a Top 10 defense in the first half, holding the Bengals to only three points on a Mike Nugent 54 yard field goal. Patriot LB Gary Guyton also intercepted a Carson Palmer pass, which hit him right between the numbers, and returned it 59 yards for a touchdown. A Cedric Benson fumble also led to points for the Patriots and at the half the Bengals down 24-3. Chad and T.O. left for the locker room early before the first half was over, which would have been fine, if the offense didn't have the ball. I won't go into that, better off forgetting about it and moving on. The offense played better in the second half, which was encouraging, just wish the game wasn't out of reach by that point.

All in all the Bengals played well, after the game was pretty much over, but it still was promising. I was upset at the way they came out, as were a lot of Bengals fans, but it is still only the first week of the season. This is a good football team and they are better than what they showed last Sunday. The offense racked up 428 yards and 24 points, which is very good. If they can do that every week, the defense will come around and we will win some games. Give the Bengals some time. You have to wait until week 5 or 6 before you find out who the real contenders are. Their are a lot of negatives that came out from Sunday's game, but their are also a lot of positives. They have a tough task this weekend against the Baltimore Ravens, but they are up to the challenge. They are still the reining division champs and the beat Baltimore twice last year. The season had only just begun and the Bengals still have a lot more football to play.

Each week their are some teams or players that give very impressive performances and some not so great. So, here are those who went above and beyond the call of duty, Impressive Performers, and as the guys say on ESPN Countdown a, "C'mon Man," for those who played rather poorly.

Impressive Performers:
CHI-RB Matt Forte: 17 car, 50 yards; 7 rec, 151, 2 TDs

TEN-RB Chris Johnson: 27 car, 147 yds, 2 TDs

JAC-QB David Garrard: 16-21, 170 yds, 3 TDs, 138.9 QB Rating

IND-QB Peyton Manning: 40-57, 433 yds, 3 TDs

HOU-RB Arian Foster: 33 car, 231 yds, 3 TDs

Baltimore Ravens Defense: 6 first downs allowed, 176 yards of total offense, forced one fumble, 9 points given up against the NY Jets.

Houston Texans: Beat the Indianapolis Colts for only the second time in team history and looked very good doing it.

"C'mon Man"
NY Jets: The Jets were supposed to be one of the top teams in the NFL this year, but they got the crap kicked out of them on Monday Night Football. The offense looks like it needs a lot of work before they play the Patriots.

MIN-QB Brett Favre: 15-27, 171 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT. Looked rusty, ankle and other injuries might be starting to take their toll on the veteran QB.

Detroit Lions: QB Matthew Stafford hurt his shoulder, only had 168 yards of offense, 3 turnovers, and Calvin Johnson had his game winning TD reception overturned because he did not maintain possession. Another rough weekend for the Lions.

San Francisco 49ers: Allowed 31 unanswered points to the Seahawks, sure didn't play like a team that was suppose to win the division.

Dallas Cowboys: My pick to go to the Super Bowl in the NFC did not play well against the new and improved Washington Redskins. A turnover on the last play of the first half led to a Redskins TD, when all they had to do was take a knee and go into halftime. Then a holding penalty, one of 12 penalties, at the end of the game negated a game winning touchdown and sent the Cowboys home with a loss.

Week 2 Picks:
Like the Bengals I got off to a rough start last week with picks, going 8-8. It's still a .500 record and just give me a few weeks to figure it all out. There were a couple of upsets like, San Francisco, San Diego and Indy, which I didn't see happening. Better luck next week I guess and here are my picks for Week 2, saving the Bengals for last of course.

Tennessee over Pittsburgh: The Steelers got lucky last week and I doubt they will have the same success against the Titans as they did the Falcons. The duo of Chris Johnson and Vince Young will be too much for the Steelers defense. And I hate the Steelers, just like I always have, but I will pick them to win at least one game this year.

Minnesota over Miami: Miami barely got by the Bills last week and the Vikings are on a whole other level than the Bills. The Vikings had a tough opener in New Orleans and I like Adrian Peterson to return to season form against the Dolphins in a win. Brett will should play better too.

Atlanta over Arizona: The only reason Arizona won last week was because they were facing the St. Louis Rams and a rookie quarterback in Sam Bradford. And they still almost managed to blow it. Atlanta gets a win at home after losing in overtime last week to the Steelers.

Kansas City over Cleveland: I was shocked by the performance that the Chiefs gave on Monday Night Football against the Chargers. Their rookies really made an impact on special teams, Dexter McCluster and Javier Arenas, and the defense, under new d-coordinator Romeo Crennel, played excellent against a good Charger offense. Jake Delhomme threw two INTs, which he is prone to do, and it cost the Browns the game against Tampa. Chiefs win in Cleveland.

Dallas over Chicago: Dallas did not play well in D.C., but the Bears barely got by the Lions if it weren't for Calvin Johnson's TD being overturned. The Bears are better than they were last year, but Cutler will make some mistakes against a good Dallas defense. Dallas wins a close one at home.

Philadelphia over Detroit: The Eagles will be without QB Kevin Kolb, who suffered a concussion last week against the Packers, and Michael Vick will get his first start since 2006. Lions QB Matthew Stafford is also out with a shoulder injury, which is not good. The Lions will lose another one, after losing a heartbreaker last week, and maybe many more if QB Matthew Stafford is out for a while.

Green Bay over Buffalo: Even though the Packers lose star RB Ryan Grant to a season-ending ankle injury, they should still have no problem with the Bills at Lambeau Field.

Carolina over Tampa Bay: The Buccaneers won last week and the Panthers lost, but Tampa beat Cleveland and Carolina lost to the NY Giants. Two totally different teams and don't buy into the early success of the Bucs. Panthers win, but it might be closer than you think.

Denver over Seattle: Denver lost a close one to Jacksonville last week, but the offense looked good under QB Kyle Orton. Seattle shocked everyone by crushing the 49ers 31-6, but I still think that Seattle is not as good as they looked. I like Denver to win at home and I think Time Tebow will have a larger impact this week.

Oakland over St. Louis: This is a toss up. St. Louis played well at home against Arizona, but they still are a young team and QB Sam Bradford is only making his second career start. The Black Hole in Oakland is a tough place to play and Oakland bounces back from a Week 1 lose.

Houston over Washington: This might just be the best game Sunday, as the Texans go into the nations capital. Houston shocked everyone by beating the Colts, pretty convincingly, last week and the Redskins squeezed by Dallas. Everyone is already starting to buy into Houston, so I guess I will too. Texans in a close one.

New England over NY Jets: The Jets were suppose to be one to the teams to beat this year and they got more than man handled on Monday night. The Patriots had no problems with the Bengals and the offense was almost unstoppable. CB Darrelle Revis can't cover both WR Randy Moss and WR Wes Welker and who knows what to expect from the Jets on offense. I hate to say it, but Patriots win again.

San Diego over Jacksonville: The Chargers were surprised by the Chiefs last week, but they will not be surprised by the Jaguars this week. Chargers by at least a touchdown.

Indianapolis over NY Giants: The Manning Bowl, the second ever meeting between brothers Peyton and Eli Manning, should be a great game Sunday night. The Colts rarely lose a game, yet alone two in a row. Peyton and the Colts are just too good, but Eli and the G-Men will keep it close. Peyton beats Eli for a second straight time.

New Orleans over San Francisco: The Saints started off defending their Super Bowl crown with a win over the Minnesota Vikings and the 49ers got off to a rough start. The 49ers will be better prepared this week, but the Saints are still a damn good football team and they come out the City by the Bay with a win.

And...
Bengals over Ravens: If the Bengals come out and play like the did in the second half against the Patriots, they can win this game. Baltimore played really well against the Jets, but still managed to only score 10 points. The Ravens have an excellent defense and they showed that in New York, but the Bengals have a lot of weapons for them to cover. The Raven secondary will be playing without S Ed Reed, who always kills the Bengals, so that will be to Cincy's advantage.

Key Matchup: The battle in the trenches between both offensive and defensive lines might just decide the game. If the Bengals can win the battle up front on both sides of the ball, they will win.

Corners Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph can cover Raven WR's Boldin and Houshmanzadeh, the key to success on defense will be up to the front seven. The linebackers have to play better and must not bite on the play action like they did last week. Defense coordinator Mike Zimmer is a great coach and he will have the Bengals prepared on defense. On offesne, if the o-line can block for Palmer and Benson, the offense will have no problem scoring points. These division games are always tough, but the Bengals went undefeated last year in division play. Last year these games came down to the final drive and it just might happen again this Sunday. C'mon Bengals, let's get off to a good start in the division and get back to winning. Who-Dey.

Reds Stars Shine on 9/11

2010-09-12T11:02:00.002-04:00

9/11 is a day that every American will always remember from that events that happened 9 years ago, but 9/11/10 is a day that I will remember for a long time to come. ESPN was calling this Saturday, "Monster Saturday," because of all the great football games, but their was a game on the baseball diamond that this die hard sports fan could not miss.

On September 11, 1985, Pete Rose broke Ty Cobb's hit record, by getting hit number 4192 and becoming baseball's all-time Hit King. Since then, Pete has been banned from baseball for betting on the game as a manager. Having not stepped onto a baseball diamond since his ban, Pete was allowed to come back and celebrate the 25th anniversary of hit #4192. I never saw Pete Rose play one out of baseball and finally getting to see him on a baseball diamond, is something that I will remember for years to come.

Rose entered Great American Ballpark from the Reds bullpen on a golf cart, to the sound of cheering fans, with the theme song from the movie, The Natural, playing in the background. I can only imagine what Pete must have been thinking as he finally got to return to a major league field. I know that more me, seeing Pete come onto the field and hearing The Natural song being played, it started to bring a tear to my eye. Even though I never got to see him play, I know what he means to baseball and to the city of Cincinnati. He is probably the most popular and most beloved person in the history of the Queen City and seeing him on the field at GABP was, well, you almost had to be there to know just how special it was.

Pete Rose was one of the stars of the Big Red Machine and him being able to return to the field, allowed him to finally pass on the torch to Joey Votto. Yes, their have been many stars since Pete Rose and the Big Red Machine, but today's star is Joey Votto. Votto is hands down the best player on the 2010 Reds and is turning into one of the best players in the game, just like Pete.

As for the game, the Reds had a 3-0 lead going into the 8th, but the bullpen had to blow it, again. Another star in the making, Aroldis Chapman, took the hill for the Reds, my first time seeing him in person, another site I will never forget. Flash, after flash, after flash. I have never seen so many flashbulbs at a Reds game in my life and the first pitch I ever saw Chapman throw was a warm up pitch. A warm up pitch that hit 100 mph.

After tying the game in the bottom of the 9th at 4 all, MVP candidate Joey Votto came up to bat in the bottom of the 10th. Votto has had a great season, an MVP caliber season and I'm sure Reds fans everywhere were thinking, watch Votto hit a walk-off homer here. Sure enough on a night were a former star shined, the current star shined as well. Votto crushed a homer into left-center field stands sending the Reds fans home with a win and adding to the NL Central lead. To tell you the truth I was, of course excited that Votto hit the home run, but I wasn't as excited as I though I would be. I guess that I almost excepted Votto to hit a walkoff homer because Joey and the Reds are just having that kind of season. It was a great ending the a special night and Hollywood couldn't have wrote a better scrpit.

The Reds NL Central lead is back up to 7 games and their magic number is now 15. I can almost taste the playoffs. And the first Sunday of football is today. Get your popcorn ready. WHO-DEY.

NFL: Week 1

2010-09-09T22:12:00.016-04:00

Being brought up Catholic and going to Catholic school all my life, I was always taught to honor the Ten Commandments. No Commandment is greater than another, but my favorite one has to be, "Thou Shall Honor the Sabbath." It's no coincidence that God put football on Sunday. He knew ever man would honor at least one of his Commandments this way and he would get a lot of prayers too. From, "I will do anything God, if you let us score here," or, "Oh Lord, please let the Bengals kick butt," and begging the Almightly for two touchdowns and a field goal. Every man honors the Sabbath in front of the television or at the stadium rooting on his favorite team, praying for victory. That's why I asked off for the next three Sundays and plan to not work another Sunday until February. I said I needed off because I needed to watch the Bengals games and I did not want to be at the Big F serving burgers and fries, but I guess I could say it conflicts with my religion too.

Anyway, besides praying for a Bengals win this Sunday, the NFL season gets underway and here is who I seeing winning in Week 1. Each week I will do a preview of each game and give you what teams I think will win. No one probably cares who I think will win cause no one reads my stuff, but I will keep track of how many I get correct and incorrect. At the end of the season we will see if I really know as much about football as I think I do and maybe more people will tune in.

The NFL season gets underway Thursday night as the defending Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints take on the Minnesota Vikings in a rematch of last year's NFC Championship Game. I like the Saints to beat the Vikings again, as New Orleans should be electric. Drew Brees and the Saints offense might struggle with the Viking defense, but I think Brett Favre might be a little rusty and will struggle...again.

As for who else will win in Week 1:
NY Giants over Carolina: Not sold on Carolina QB Matt Moore or the Carolina defense. Eli and the Giant offense will be too much for the Panthers to handle.

Atlanta over the Roethislberger-less Steelers: Big Ben is suspended for the first four games, so the Steelers will look to Dennis Dixon to lead the offense. The Steelers defense will yet again be good this year, but I don't think they can score 14-21 points a game for the Steelers. I picked the Falcons to go to the playoffs and I'm sticking with them, plus as some people know, I hate the Steelers. I mean I really hate the Steelers.

Cleveland over Tampa Bay: Let's just say I will not be watching this game. I think both the Browns and Bucs are in for long seasons and this will be a meaningless game in the grand scheme of things. I will have to go with the Browns as they do have some good players, better players than the Buccaneers at least.

Denver over Jacksonville: A lot of people like the Jaguars here, but I think that Denver can have a good season. Jacksonville should have a sell out crowd, at least I hope so, it's the first game of the season for crying out loud and former Florida QB Tim Tebow will be there. Denver has a good defense, even without Elvis Dumervil, and Maurice Jones-Drew will get his yards, but he will be it. I think that Denver QB Kyle Orton will play good enough to help the Broncos win and I would not be surprised to see Tim Tebow in on a few plays.

Indianapolis over Houston: The Texans are 1-15 lifetime against the Colts and as far as I know Peyton Manning is playing. Need I say more, Houston will keep it close though.

Miami over Buffalo: I really like the Dolphins this year, with the addition of wide receiver Brandon Marshall, QB Chad Henne in his first year as a starter and the all the Wildcat formations, it's a lot to prepare for. The Bills will not be able to handle it all, but rookie running back C.J. Spiller should get some touches as the starter and might surprise the Dolphins.

Chicago over Detroit: The Lions are a lot better team than last year, but without having seen them play yet, all I have to go with is what they did last year, which was not much. Detroit is better on both sides of the ball, but the youth at some positions and Bears QB Jay Cutler are too much for them to handle in Week 1. I think Cutler will rebound from last year's disappointing performance and will beat the Lions with his arm.

Tennessee over Oakland: It's the Raiders and I can't remember the last time I picked them to win a game. They are better with QB Jason Campbell and they have a good defense, but no one can stop Titan RB Chris Johnson. Vince Young will have a solid game and Johnson runs for at least 100 yards and 2 TD in a win.

Arizona over St. Louis: This is a tough one. Matt Leinart and the Cardinals parted ways and he is now in Houston, so QB Derek Anderson gets another chance as a starter in the NFL. My advice to him, hand the ball off to Beanie Wells a lot, look for WR Larry Fitzgerald on every pass play and don't turn the ball over. St. Louis is very young and QB Sam Bradford might have some butterflies in his first NFL start.

San Francisco over Seattle: Really like the 49ers. They are built to win, like I said in my NFC Preview and I love linebacker Patrick Willis. He is almost an exact model of his head coach and former linebacker great Mike Singletary. Seattle got rid of T.J. Houshmanzadeh, think that's spelled right, which was a mistake and the Pete Carroll era will start with a loss.

Green Bay over Philadelphia: The Packers are the sexy Super Bowl pick for a lot of people this year and if they are Super Bowl contenders, they go into Philly and come out with a win. The Kevin Kolb era will officially start in the city of Brotherly Love and he will play well this season. But the Eagle defense will not stop MVP Candidate QB Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay offense.

Dallas over Washington: The Cowboys face a familiar foe in QB Donovon McNabb, he is just in a Redskins uniform this time. I picked the Cowboys to go to the Super Bowl, so they better win and I think they will on Sunday night.

Baltimore over NY Jets: Even though the Ravens are in the same division with the Bengals, I really like their team. They will yet again have a great defense, but this year they have the offense to go along with it. The Ravens added WR T.J. Houshmanzadeh to complement Anquan Boldin and Derek Mason and Darrelle Revis can't cover all three of them. The Jets have a great defense too and it will be a low scoring game, but any mistakes by Jet QB Mark Sanchez will be costly. Ravens in a close one on Monday night.

San Diego over Kansas City: Charlie Weis is back in the NFL, as the Chiefs offensive coordinator, but he does not have the same caliber players as he did when he was in New England. And the Chargers are pretty damn good. Chargers win big.

And of course the Bengals over New England. I hate New England, which is one reason, but there is no way in Hell that I will ever pick against the Bengals this season. The Patriots defense is not as good as it has been in the past and the key to winning the game will rely on the defense. If the defense can stop the Pats offense, the Bengals will win. The key match-ups on defense will be corners Leon Hall and Jonathan Joseph against New England receivers Wes Welker and Randy Moss. Hall and Joseph need to shut down the Pats passing attack if the Bengals have any chance of winning. The Bengals defensive line must get pressure on Tom Brady if Hall and Joseph have any chance of stopping Moss and Welker because Brady will pick them apart if he has time to throw. I hope Ochocinco scores too, just so I can see his shoot off one of the rifles the Patroits mascots fire after every New England score. Benson will have a big game and T.O. will make his presence felt as well. The Bengals will begin their road to the Super Bowl with a win on the road. Football is back...Thank God. Who-Dey!