The Keyboard Quarterbacks blog, written by Mark La Monica, Mike Casey and Adam Abramson of newsday.com can now be found at this address:

http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/KBQB_blog/

Please update your bookmarks.

Get the grill out! It's time to tailgate !

Slap some bacon, eggs and sauzeech on there for the early morning session. Fire up the burgers, hot dogs and sauzeech for the late-morning session before the game.

Who cares if you're not actually at a football stadium today, it's the first NFL Sunday of the season and it requires the proper apprecation.

The first Sunday of the NFL season is the fourth best sports day of the year. It fits all the criteria for inclusion on this list:

- Occurs every year around the same time.
- Is completely worthy of all its hype.
- Gets sports fans around the country fired up.
- Has a national scope to it.
- Is considered a worthy news event for the regular front-of-the-newspaper readers.
- Every team involved has hope, excitement and a chance to win it all.

So put on that jersey of this year's big free-agent signing or top draft pick. Or maybe you like it old-school and still have the jersey from your team's 1983 Pro Bowl linebacker. Heck, even wearing a Curtis Conway No. 81 Jets jersey would be acceptable on this day.

Throw those Nerf Turbos all over the stadium parking lot or the street in front of your house. Run across your neighbor's lawn, cut around the tree, then use your dad's car as a pick to get open for the touchdown.

Football is back.  Every team has a chance to make the Super Bowl today, even the Jets. And with the salary cap era of the NFL, no one really knows who will be good enough to get to Miami in February.

Every sport's season opening deserves some pomp and even some circumstance.  Only Major League Baseball's Opening Day carries more excitement.

Today, we get nine games in the 1 p.m. slot, three at 4:15 and the Sunday Night game. Then, a Monday Night doubleheader, which is my opinion, is a complete travesty but the networks paying hundreds of millions to broadcast the games would disagree.

Every game matters in the NFL. It's not like baseball or the NBA or the NHL where a two-game losing streak is acceptable and understood.  In the NFL, a two-game losing streak can be much more brutal.

The NFL has positioned itself as a truly national sport. They've made Jaguars fans care how the Cardinals did last week. Eagles fans need to know if the Broncos won. Or whatever combination you prefer to use. The point is football fans are interested in everything NFL.

And it all begins today, the fourth best sports day of the year.

The Best Sports Days of the Year
1. Opening Day for baseball
2. The start of March Madness
3. Pitchers and catchers report
4. NFL Sunday Week 1
5. Selection Sunday
6. TBA
7. NFL Draft
8. TBA
9. Sunday at The Masters
10. First televised spring training game*

* Inclusion under review by the replay booth.

It's the Colts vs. the Panthers in the Super Bowl this year. Or maybe the Patriots against the Seahawks. 

Way to go out on a limb, NFL "experts" and "analysts." Why don't you go actually take candy out of a baby's hand next. Hey, maybe you could even tap in a 3-inch putt after your professional playing partner in a charity pro-am nailed the 211-yard approach shot from the rough.

It gets no easier than picking the chalk to win the Super Bowl.  Anyone can walk up to the betting window and play the 2/1 horse in an exacta with the 3/1 horse.

You receive no points for chalk in Keyboard Quarterbacks land.  Here, we play for value and bragging rights if and when that value pays off.

Here is my Super Bowl XLI prediction: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Dallas Cowboys.

You may say to yourself right now, "What sort of access to hallucinogens does this La Monica kid have?"

None is the answer to that question.

The Chiefs will reach the Super Bowl for the following reasons:

- Larry Johnson ran for 1,750 yards last season and only started 9 games.

- With Herm Edwards as the new coach in KC, Johnson has a great chance to become the sixth running back in NFL history to rush for more than 2,000 yards in a season.

- Edwards coached the Jets last season then left. Anyone remember Bill Belichick, the one-time HC of NYJ?

- This is just the type of luck for the New York Jets: run a coach out of town, then watch him achieve glory elsewhere.

- Edwards can fix a defense pretty quickly.

- Even he can't mess up this offense.

- He has a quarterback to work with.

- The Midwest will eat up Herm's motivational magic.

- Jake Plummer will not match his 2005 season for Denver; Philip Rivers is the QB in San Diego and the Oakland Raiders should have to submit their defensive scheme to an NFL committee for approval before the game.

The Cowboys will reach the Super Bowl for the following reasons:

- Terrell Owens.

- Bill Parcells has precious little time left in his coaching career before he bolts and leaves another franchise in salary cap hell.

- Drew Bledsoe is the starting quarterback, making this prediction even higher in value if it pans out.

- Terrell Owens.

- Their defense.

- The Giants are supposed to be very good this year, which traditionally means they will underachieve. The Eagles have Donovan McNabb and lesser known receivers than your town's high school team. Washington will lose a lot of close games.

- Carolina has some hamstring issues with Steve Smith and the rest of the league might have finally figured out how to defend those quick hitch passes.

- Seattle Seahawks? Three words: Super Bowl Hangover.

- Terrell Owens.

Prediction: Chiefs 24, Cowboys 20.

How it plays out: "Idiot kicker" Mike Vanderjagt misses a field goal at the end of the first half, which forces the Cowboys to go for it on fourth down at the Chiefs' 24-yard line. Bledsoe's pass to Jason Witten falls incomplete.

Well, there goes my college football season. Washed away on the first weekend of the season as my Miami Hurricanes decided to forget how to play football in the second half and lost to archrival Florida State on Labor Day Night.

Such a disappointment to have nothing to look forward for the next three months. One loss destroys a college football season. It's quite painful to end a season three hours and 40 minutes after it started. It's quite, quite painful to end it against the Seminoles.

Why Sam Shields chose to drop a pass late  in the fourth quarter on third down when he was wide open and the ball was thrown perfectly and he was beyond the first-down marker is mind-boggling.

Miami, for a second straight season, lost its opener to Florida State by a field goal. Miami, for a second straight season, lost its national title aspirations in the opener to Florida State.

The best 'Canes fans can hope for now is the NCAA changes the rules before this Saturday and allows two teams to lose the same game. This way, maybe Texas and Ohio State can both chalk up a loss on the same weekend. Then, we'd need Penn State and Notre Dame to do the same thing.

Otherwise, the 'Canes have no shot at anything except maybe getting a chance to play Florida State in the ACC championship. A loss then for FSU would be more devastating than a loss now for Miami. Of course, there's the little matter of Virginia Tech, USC and those pesky SEC schools named LSU, Auburn and Florida, and my darkhorse pick Michigan.

Oh, the gravity of such a negative start to the season. So many angles to have worry about just to get a chance to be close to the outside looking in. This stinks.

After the game I sent a text message to Hurricane fan friend Fletcher, who was unfortunate enough to be in the Orange Bowl for this awful display of football. It read: "My name is Kyle Wright and I don't know how to read a defense."

His response: Unprintable!

The season is over before it barely began.  Oh well, at least the NFL starts soon. Then I can cheer on my Jets and Raiders. Oh lord, this is going to be an awful football Autumn. Maybe I'll just watch reruns of "Entourage" this fall.

Let's be honest. No one came to Arthur Ashe Stadium last night expecting Andre Agassi to win. We knew all about his balky back, his 36 years, and what little we knew about his opponent, Marcos Baghdatis, was enough for many of us to consider last night's match a grand finale for a brilliant champion.

Well, a funny thing happened. Three hours and 49 minutes later, Agassi was blowing kisses to the crowd, celebrating one of the most shocking outcomes in U.S. Open history.

But what made the match so great was not just the unexpected result. It was that the unexpected kept happening... Over, and over, and over again, until there wasn't one ounce more of drama to be squeezed out of the 23,000-seat stadium.

Agassi took the court to flashbulbs and thunderous applause, with many fans believing it would be their last chance to salute the 21-year pro.

But he quickly dispelled any notions that his 'final match' would be a walkover, breaking Baghdatis to go up 4-3 in the first set. Almost immediately, you could sense something special happening.

When Agassi broke Baghdatis again in the second set, the crowd finally allowed itself to believe their favorite had a chance to win. Baghdatis looked lost; nothing like the up-and-coming player we'd heard about leading up to the match. Agassi was in control, poised to end the match in straight sets if he could get another break, which by this point, seemed inevitable.

But instead it was Baghdatis who broke Agassi in the third set, taking it by a score of 6-3. It was a match again. . . or so it seemed.

Agassi roared back, winning the first four games of the fourth set, twice breaking Baghdatis' serve and again looking the dominant player. I briefly contemplated an escape to the parking lot to beat the traffic. 'Do tennis matches even have traffic?' I wondered. I decided they didn't and remained in my seat.

I'm glad I did, because 15 minutes later, Baghdatis had turned the match completely around again. Cheered on by a small rooting section in the upper deck, he evened the set at 4-4, and now it was Agassi who looked lost and helpless. Suddenly, he was as old and slow as we expected him to be.

Baghdatis finished off the fourth set, and then broke Agassi's serve in the first game of fifth set. The capacity crowd, raucous all night, grew quiet, sensing impending disaster.

But here again, an unxpected turn. Agassi broke back to tie it at 1-1. The two traded service holds until it was 4-4 in the fifth.

That's when things got even more strange/bizarre/dramatic/(you can come up with your own word here, because at this point, I'm out of vocabulary).

At the end of a rally, Baghdatis' right leg gave way. He rolled around on the ground for a few seconds before a trainer finally approached him. The problem was obviously a severe cramp, but Baghdatis had already used his injury timeout, so the trainer could do very little to help him.

The anticipated climax of a fifth-set tiebreaker between the two combatants was shattered in an instant. "Is that it?" people asked one another. "Will he be able to go on?"

Incredibly, Baghdatis made it to his feet, and putting up his hand, indicated to Agassi he was ready to continue. Think Rocky vs. Apollo Creed in the 15th Round.

But even with Baghdatis back on his feet, it seemed an unfair fight. Agassi would surely exploit the Cypriot's lack of mobility. The match which had been building to a satisfying crescendo would end with a sudden thud.

That's when Agassi's concentration disappeared. Obviously distracted by his opponent's plight, he began missing his first serves -- badly -- and suddenly found himself down a break point. Baghdatis, meanwhile, had summoned the inner strength to return ball after ball after ball, with most of his shots off of one leg.

Agassi fought off that break point, forcing a deuce. And then another break point. And another deuce. And another break point. And another deuce. Eight in all, until finally Agassi held serve.

Minutes later, Agassi took a 30-40 lead and held a match point. But again, the wounded Baghdatis found a way to survive. He won the 10th game, tying the set at 5-5. Agassi held again to make it 6-5, and then earned double match point on Baghdatis' serve.

The 21-year-old saved both those points, sending his supporters into a frenzy.  The tiebreaker fans had been preparing themselves for was just two Baghdatis points away. But the final plot twist had already unfolded.

Agassi gained the advantage and finally finished off his young opponent, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 5-7, 7-5.

When the match was over, I did something I probably shouldn't have done -- I broke the sacred code of "no cheering in the press box." (Then again, I wasn't in a press box, I was in the stands amongst cheering fans.) I clapped not just for Agassi, but for Baghdatis too. After what I had just seen, I figured a little applause from an embedded journalist wouldn't draw much attention anyway. Everyone else was caught up in the moment, and so was I.

Moments earlier, I had heard an older gentleman sitting behind me say, "This is the best tennis match I've ever seen."

It may be the best tennis match any of us ever sees. I'm just grateful I was there to see it.

E-mail me.

Driving into work on Thursday, I heard about A-Rod’s day in the Yankees' 6-4 rubber-game win over Detroit: 3-4, two runs, two RBIs and a home run. Not a bad day at the ballpark. However, Rodriguez filled two lines of the stat sheet that won’t appear on the page: one plate appearance littered with boos and one plate appearance that ended with a curtain call.

As an outsider, I don’t get the A-Rod barrage of insults. I’m not from New York, so maybe that’s the problem. But it has gotten out of hand.

The guy won an MVP award last year and fans have been throwing him under the bus driven by Carl Pavano. I’ve been to Yankee Stadium six or seven times this summer and each time I wished I had a bullhorn so I could yell "IT’LL GET BETTER, ALEX."

It wasn’t long ago that I was part of a fan base with a golden child like Alex Rodriguez. My senior year at Virginia Tech was filled with hopes of the school’s first national championship with Marcus Vick at quarterback. My beloved Hokies jumped out to an 8-0 start and boasted a No. 3 national ranking. The fate of Tech rested on the shoulders of one of the top passers in the country.

When the mighty Miami Hurricanes came to town on Nov. 5, 2005, our prodigal son turned the ball over six times (four fumbles, two picks) in a 27-7 loss. Sure, we were all enraged as passionate fans and many were quick to place the blame on Marcus, but in the coming days we rallied around our quarterback and team knowing much more football was left to be played.

Vick ended up leading Tech to an 11-2 mark and a Gator Bowl victory, which was some solace for a season gone awry.

This is what I don’t understand. The Yanks’ season hasn’t gone awry and everyone is up in arms over a slump. If the entire Tech community had turned its back on Vick after his ... mishap… a berth to the Klondike Bowl in Vancouver could have been very possible.

Considering we’re not talking about peewee leagues, it’s safe to say sports are about winning, not having fun. And because it’s about winning, you need to keep in mind there’s plenty of baseball left to be won.

I guess I am just in awe at the fickleness of so many Yankee fans who are jumping all over a .280 hitter with 27 home runs and 96 RBIs. I know what you’re thinking, "His home runs come at meaningless points in ball games." Do all 96 of his RBIs (which rank in the Top 10 of the AL, by the way)?

The guy is a vital part of the lineup when he’s not slumping and the unnecessary pressure put on him every time a fastball is coming his way or a ground ball is hit to him isn’t helping. I heard someone on TV the other day say "A-Rod has always motivated himself by the fear of failure."

I’ve thought about that a lot lately, and I truly believe it. It’s almost the same thing that fueled the younger Vick. I always believed what motivated him in Blacksburg was the fear that he wouldn’t live up to his brother, Michael.

If A-Rod is a normal human being, like I think he is, the curtain call he took after his home run on Thursday didn’t mean much to him. The cheers from the Yankee faithful don’t mean anything now because the steady stream of intense criticism resonates inside of him, just like it would with any of you.

You better hope that tune isn’t ringing in his ears come October when the Yankees really need him.

The bottom line is this: your open season of insults at A-Rod don’t help the situation. In the three months I’ve lived in New York I have seen that sports fans here are among the best in the world. I understand that much of the anger people carry comes from the passion that makes them such great fans, but sometimes people need to fill the proverbial chip on the shoulder with some humility because it’s actually better off that way.

Then again, maybe you don’t and that’s the problem. Maybe it’s just a New York thing and I don’t understand. At least you still have hopes for a championship.

Some observations from my day at the U.S. Open:

*What percentage of U.S. Open fans do you think actually know all the rules of tennis? 50 percent? 60? My guess is 60 percent.

*Where else can you pay $18.50 for a corned beef sandwich and $7.50 for a plate of nachos, and still go home feeling satisfied? (Put your hands down, Yankees fans.)

*Where else can you pay $13 to park two miles from the stadium and still go home feeling satisfied? (Put your hands down, Mets fans.)

*Sometimes I wonder whether it was a good idea to take the top bowl off of Louis Armstrong Stadium. One of the best matches of the day (Martina Hingis vs. Shuai Peng) was played on that court, but within minutes of start of the match, the stadium was filled to capacity. A long line of fans gathered outside, but eventually were shooed away by a public address announcement.

*Tennis instant replay is awesome. How awesome? Fans actually root for players to challenge calls. The chair umpire makes an announcement, and everyone looks up to the big screen to watch the digitally reproduced replay. You can actually hear everyone  holding their breath. If the ball is in, the crowd goes nuts. You've gotta love impromptu moments of drama.

*Instant replay moment of the night: On a close 'in' call along the baseline, Andy Roddick asked nearby fans for "a little help." The fans gave him the right advice, because the ball was clearly in, and he didn't challenge.  If players are going to rely on fans for help with decisions on challenges, I hope tennis fans are a little smarter than the football fans who yell "GO FOR IT!" on every 4th and 1.

*The crowd for the night session at Arthur Ashe Stadium certainly was a late-arriving bunch. When Maria Sharapova's 7:30 p.m. match against Michaella Krajicek began, only 1/4 of the stadium was filled. Maybe it had something to do with that terrific parking situation.

*Maria Sharapova served her way into the ongoing fashion show that is ladies' tennis, wearing a sparkly black tennis dress and carrying a matching black tennis bag onto the court. 

*Best interview comment of the day? "No comment," from Maria Sharapova, who was asked whether she would stay to watch Andy Roddick's match after she defeated Krajicek, 6-3, 6-0.

*Funniest moment of the day? The winners of the "Continental Seat Upgrade contest," who stood up to reveal they were sitting on Delta seat cushions.

*Second funniest moment of the day? The chair umpire in the Sharapova-Krajicek match nearly getting clocked with an errant shot.

*I still think it's crazy that opponents warm up against each other before the match. Maybe this is bad tennis etiquette, but I would definitely try to psych my opponent out with some wicked shots, or maybe pretend a certain part of my game is weaker than it is. Then again, I don't play tennis, and now you all know why.

*Question: If you were Michaella Krajicek, would you elect to serve first against Sharapova? Answer: No, because you know you're going to get broken and start the match in a big hole. I'd try to break the better player's serve first and put some pressure on. But again, I don't play tennis, and maybe this is why.

*Happy Birthday to Andy Roddick, who will never forget his birthday as long as he plays tennis. He can thank the hundreds of teenage girls in the crowd who kept yelling "Happy Birthday, Andy!" Ahhh, to be a tennis star.

Put Carl Pavano in the game tonight. And tomorrow night. And the night after that. And the night after that. And, just for fun, the night after that.

Wouldn't you just love to have the Boss hand down that edict to Joe Torre? Better yet, wouldn't it be great if Torre just did it on his own?

It's painfully obvious to fans -- more painful than his strained ear lobe or whatever lame yang he's using this week -- that the wimp has no desire to ever pitch in pinstripes again.

Torre and his braintrust should just put Pavano in the bullpen and make him pitch every night.  Why not, that's what they do with Scott Proctor and Ron Villone (and Paul Quantrill, Mike Stanton and Jeff Nelson in years past).

But this would be malicious and it's time to act. Who cares if he blows out his shoulder and never pitches again? He's not going to pitch for the Yankees again anyway, so why not at least get a few $3 million innings from the wimp.

Seriously, I haven't seen a chump this bad since Jesse "The Body" Ventura used to call Hulk Hogan "The Chump" instead of "The Champ" in the mid-1980s.

Yankee fans would be so excited to hammer Pavano when he's on the mound that they wouldn't even care if the team lost all those games. Just more fodder for the bloodthirsty maniacs in the Bronx.

And, just an aside, fans may start to cheer A-Rod again just because he's not Carl Pavano.

Start dancing, Yankee fans. The boys just swept the hell out of those pesky Boston Red Sox.

There are things you know you want to say to those obnoxious, annoying Red Sox fans in your office but you're afraid to because you have to work with these people and you fear repercussions down the line. Understandable. I'm here to help. Just print these out and send it via interoffice mail so they can't figure out who it is.

"Ortiz really had an MVP performance this weekend."

"Youkilis hitting behind Manny is the worst protection I've seen since Pagliarulo hit behind Balboni in 1989."

"Hey, Red Sox Nation, you've got a top-notch bullpen up there!"

"And Carl Pavano isn't even off the disabled list yet!"

"Big Papi gets big hits."

"Boy that Coco Crisp is one heck of a player. And a much better value than Johnny "10-for-23, 8 RBIs" Damon. Good call."

"I'll have to double-check the box scores, but I'm fairly certain I saw Alex Rodriguez deliver a few key hits in important spots."

"You know, it's funny [insert name of Sox fan you about to mock], but I was somewhat perturbed when the Yanks passed on drafting Craig Hansen last year. I mean, he was a Long Island kid who played college ball at St. John's. Now, not so much."

"The way your Sox played this week, I'm wondering if Dan Duquette is still in charge up there."

"Did the Patriots' season start yet?"

"Keep an eye on that pesky AL Central. They could snatch that wild card right out from under you."

"Dude, Kyle Farnsworth got the save. Kyle Farnsworth! It hurts, doesn't it?"

"We pants'd Wade Boggs!"

Vendors tossing bags of peanuts and crackerjacks into the stands and not asking for money in return. Bob Sheppard being heard and not seen. Robert Merrill singing the national anthem (previously recorded, of course).

Hey, maybe this new Yankee Stadium thing won't be so upsetting after all.

But as Gov. George Pataki, Mayor Mike Bloomberg and 1,134 other local politicians recounted their favorite tales of going to Yankee Stadium -- the one they still play in on 161 Street and River Avenue -- today at the ground breaking for the new stadium -- the one they'll begin play in 2009 in Macombs Dam Park -- the accoutrements of a sunny summer morning lost their appeal.

Is this really such a good thing for Yankee fans? Are we so willing to throw away the Stadium we've all come to love for the moments it has provides us in our lives. If you look closely, Joe Girardi's triple off Greg Maddux in Game 6 of the 1996 World Series is still rolling around out there in right-centerfield.

When George Steinbrenner first yanked up a few inches of ceremonial dirt with his shiny new shovel, I saw myself sitting in Row W of the upper deck on Don Mattingly Day.

When Steinbrenner and the rest of the photo op-crazed politicians lifted a second scoop of dirt, I recalled sitting two boxes to the left of Rudy Giuliani when Tim Raines, Derek Jeter and Paul O'Neill went back-to-back-to-back in Game 1 of the 1997 ALDS against Cleveland. I still remember the shirt I wore that night.

That third scoop hurt as I clearly viewed a Mark La Monica frozen on the Diamond Vision screen on his 11th birthday. I remember that shirt, too. (Aqua blue golf shirt and white pants. Hey, we were all dorks at that age.)

And the fourth hoisting of dirt in the air? That was seven playings of "New York, New York" before leaving my seat after the Game 5 win over Oakland in the 2001 ALDS. Restaurant friend Rob and Consultant friend Jay can testify to that. Artist-in-Italy friend Jenny still talks about the voicemail I left her that night.

Change and progress are inevitable in this world. They bring the promise of a better tomorrow and hope for the future and all those catch phrases politicians love to throw around when a podium is put in front of them and they know the media is listening and taking pictures.

Embracing change is a good thing. Just not this time.

I love Yankee Stadium just the way it is. From the lack of luxury boxes to the lack of modern amenities. It's called "character." Thse little quirks that make a place feel like home. It's like that old barbecue in the backyard that only Dad knows how to light. You don't question why it's like that, you only know that is and you accept it and revel in it.

I don't need wide-open concourses so I can watch every pitch live while trying to buy a hot dog at the concession stand. Part of the fun of going to a game is trying to guess which top half of an inning will be uneventful enough to miss live in pursuit of ballpark fare.  Besides, the TVs at the concession stands are just fine.

I don't need a Yankee Hall of Fame and Museum in addition to Monument Park. Just seeing Donnie Baseball's retired number on the wall in left field is enough for me.

I want to sit awkwardly just to feel comfortable in the hard plastic seats from 30 years ago. Leg room? Ha! That just gets us farther away from the field.

No doubt, this new Yankee Stadium will be a beautiful place, a new "American monument" as MLB Commissioner Bud Selig said at today's ground breaking. But it's going to be really, really weird. And it won't feel like home for a long time.

And if the Yankees somehow reconcile with themselves to sell naming rights to the new stadium, good luck enjoying a night at "Netflix presents Yankee Stadium Part III with Special Features."

It's not about the money (Ha, that's funny!) associated with a new stadium. Those who complain about increased ticket and concession prices are just whining for the sake of whining. If you really want to go to the game, you'll save some money or pinch elsewhere and go.

I'll be more than happy to pay the increased prices in 2009. I just prefer it to be at the old Yankee Stadium.