Monday, September 18, 2006

MMBSD: Huh?

Week 2 of the NFL is in the books and if you're anything like me (which means your not wearing pants at the moment) you're looking over the scores with a look of utter confusion. When did Michael Vick learn how to throw? Are the Vikings good or lucky or both? Where did San Francisco purchase an offense and when will the robot devil be collecting their souls? How did the Eagles blow the game against the Giants? Are the Patriots going to win every game by less than a touchdown? Don't you hate pants? Why is Denver so bad?

If your looking for answers from a guy not wearing pants that probably means your in state of desperation (for example the Colonel due to some untimely bets). Here's a few thoughts on the subject of the NFL in no particular order.

1) Minnesota is vastly improved. The addition of Steve Hutchinson to the mountain of man Bryant McKinnie gives them a left side of a line that anyone with a pulse (read Chester Taylor) can run behind.
2) Michael Vick does look better but hey any QB looks good when your rushing game is getting 250 yards per week. Starting in week 6 Atlanta plays the Giants, Pittsburgh and Cinci. If Atlanta looks good after that then you might want to hand over the NFC South crown then and there.
3) In the NFL in order to win late you need to be able to punish the other team through the ground. The three yards and a cloud of dust is time consuming, demoralizing and typically low risk. The Eagles don't have that option given Andy Reid's playbook and that their running backs are slightly more fragile Brady Quinn (more on him in a moment).
4) I'm not sure whether to read that New England still can pull off the close games or that they barely beat the Jets and Bills using smoke and mirrors. New England's ridiculously easy schedule could mean that won't be tested that much but look for the Bengal's game in week 4 as a marker for how this team will do in the playoffs.
5) Denver is crashing and burning at the moment. Part of me is a little annoyed at ESPN (explain why QB controversies erupt in Denver after week 1 according to them. How often has a starting QB been benched and a rookie put it in and it worked out?) However Plummer needs to pick up the pace. Marty ball has solid teams during the regular season and Denver is letting a golden opportunity slip through their hands if they hand the division to the Chargers.

Some College Thoughts:
1. A lot of Michigan fans and Notre Dame bashers may have hoped for a blowout but very few expected that level of beat down. Lloyd Carr, who had struggled so mightily in the shadow of touchdown Jesus, simply demolished press nominated MENSA for life man in Charlie Weis. Weis still hasn't corrected for the pressure that was/is getting at Brady Quinn and the former heisman hopeful doesn't have the mental toughness (yet?) to handle a pounding. Notre Dame's championship ended Saturday while the Wolverines are now in a position to make a run. The health of Mike Hart will determine exactly how far this team can go.

2. That said I'm not entirely convinced Auburn is going to lose and if that's the case the NCAA should publicly announce now that there's a spot open for them in the championship. I'm sorry but if you go undefeated in the SEC (the toughest conference) you should automatically get a shot at the undisputed heavy weight championship. Auburn's defense is simply punishing and if I was an offensive player I would simply refuse to go back into the trenches against them.

Random Thoughts
1. I was skimming the channels and I came to CNN and I saw Steven A. Smith talking with a panel and not your TNT panel but a panel of people that are smart enough to operate microwaves. The topic was on future trends and in particular the US. I have never seen Smith so lucid, so insightful, and frankly so convincing. The act of Steven A. Smith was replaced by a very bright and talented man who looked a lot like Steven A. Smith. Maybe it's more a critique on American public viewing habits but I like the Steven A. at 5 instead at 11.

2. If Peyton Manning was seen hatching out of a football, drinking Gatorade, would you really be scared?

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