Randy Moss Is a Moose-Knuckle Who Will Destroy The Patriots posted by Colin Linneweber

New England Patriots players and coaches expressed their support for embattled wide receiver Randy Moss this week after he played like a pathetic moose-knuckle in their 20-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers last Sunday in Foxboro.

Moss, 32, a four-time All-Pro selection and six-time Pro Bowler, amassed one measly reception for 16 yards in a performance that reeked of unprofessionalism.

Moss’ effort was so blatantly poor that members of the porous 5-8 Panthers chided his lack of exertion on the gridiron.

“We knew he (Moss) was going to shut it down,” Panthers cornerback Chris Gamble told the Boston Globe. “He’d just give up a lot, slow down, he’s not going deep, not trying to run a route. You can tell by his body language.”

Panthers safety Chris Harris agreed with Gamble that Moss abandoned his Patriots teammates.

“That’s what it is with him,” Harris said. “You get physical with him, and I don’t want to say he quits, but he kind of doesn’t run the routes the way they’re supposed to be run. If you get a jam on him, he’ll just ease up.”

Moss has a notorious history of playing lackadaisically when things don't go his way.

The Minnesota Vikings selected the troubled Moss out of Marshall University with the 21st overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft.

Moss publicly seethed that twenty players were chosen ahead of him because NFL executives were worried about his past legal problems and alleged character issues.

Heisman Winners Who Couldn't Hack The NFL posted by Colin Linneweber

The 2009 Heisman Trophy will be awarded to the most outstanding NCAA college football player by the Downtown Athletic Club at an annual ceremony at the Nokia Theatre in New York City on December 12. 

In recognition of college football’s greatest individual accolade, I decided to rank the five Heisman winners who ultimately had the smallest impact playing in the National Football League (NFL) over the course of the past 25 years.  

1)      Jason White- White, 29, won the Heisman Trophy in 2003 as a quarterback for the University of Oklahoma Sooners. 

White finished his collegiate career as the Sooners all-time leader in passing yards (8,012) and touchdown passes (81). 

Despite his stellar achievements in Norman, White garnered very little interest from the professional ranks and he was not selected in the 2005 NFL Draft.  

To compound the frustration of not being selected, White was further disrespected when he was not even invited to tryout for any NFL squad after he was snubbed in the draft. 

The Tennessee Titans eventually threw White a bone and signed the former Sooners superstar as an undrafted free agent before the start of the 2005 season. 

White’s stint as a Tennessean was extremely brief and he prudently decided to quit football altogether because of his balky knees.  

2)      Gino Torretta- Torretta, 39, was awarded the Heisman Trophy in 1992 because of his stellar play at the quarterback position for the University of Miami Hurricanes. 

Jon Gruden Should Stay Off The Sidelines posted by Colin Linneweber

Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden announced this week that he intends to return to ESPN Monday Night Football as a color analyst next season and he will not seek any other job opportunities that would have him reappear on the sidelines in 2010.

“I love this game very much,” said Gruden, 46, who coached the Buccaneers to a 48-21 championship victory over the Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII. “This job gives me the opportunity to see the game at a different angle, and I’ll be honest – I just fell in love with it. I want to get good at it. I really like the team I’m on at ESPN. They’re really trying to help me be good.”

Gruden, who at 40 was once the youngest coach to ever win a Super Bowl, attended Clay High School in South Bend and his father, Jim, served as an assistant to Dan Devine at the University of Notre Dame.

Gruden’s connections to the Irish made him a popular and seemingly viable candidate to replace embattled Notre Dame Head Coach Charlie Weis at the conclusion of this season.

Additionally, Gruden was born in Ohio and he was raised as an enormous Cleveland Browns fan.

The Browns currently have a putrid record of 1-8 and their general, Eric Mangini, is one of the most loathed coaches today in professional sports.

Inevitably, many onlookers also predicted that Gruden would be an ideal fit to seize Mangini’s job once he is officially terminated.

“Look, I went into this with an open mind,” said Gruden, who was a backup quarterback in college at the University of Dayton.

Mike Tyson, Ricky Hatton, UFC, Tom Cable, Yankees, Raiders & Manny Pacquiao posted by Colin Linneweber

The Yankees, Not the Red Sox, Were the Team of this Decade

The New York Yankees defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 7-3 Wednesday night in the Bronx to win their record 27th World Series championship in team history.

The Yankees, who went 103-59 to establish the best mark in Major League Baseball in the 2009 season, simply outclassed the Phillies over the course of six games.

“I really believe in this club,” said Yankees Manager Joe Girardi, who was widely scrutinized for his decision to utilize a three-man rotation throughout the playoffs. “I’ve always believed in this organization, the job the Steinbrenner family has done, Cashman and his staff and it’s where we wanted to be and the guys did it.”

Despite New York’s exorbitant payroll that exceeded $208 million, Girardi stressed that the Yankees chemistry and perseverance is what ultimately brought another crown to the Bronx.

“It’s unbelievable how this team came together in spring training,” said Girardi, who decided when he was hired by the Yankees in October 2007 that the number on his jersey would be 27 to emphasize that his sole mission in pinstripes was to win another championship. “They just kept fighting and fighting and fighting.”

Hideki Matsui, who has twice been selected as an All-Star since he made his debut in the Bronx in 2003, was named the World Series Most Valuable Player after he batted .615 with three home runs and eight RBI.

The Yankees are an extremely deep and talented squad and Matsui, whose contract has now expired, expressed immediate interest in returning to the Bronx to help defend their title.

Pro Bowl Ben? posted by Randolph Charlotin

Pro Bowl balloting is open to the public. Choose wisely.

This year New England fans will have a tough time rationalizing Patriot players worthy of being selected. The offense’s big three of QB Tom Brady and WRs Randy Moss and Wes Welker will get their share of votes. Beyond them…good luck.

As much as we like ILB Jerod Mayo, his injury set him back. He’s eighth on the team in tackles. No one from the front seven has a chance of getting voted in.

And even though safetys Brandon McGowan and Brandon Merriweather are playing well, the star power at the position in the AFC (Pittsburgh’s Troy Polamalu, Baltimore’s Ed Reed and Indianapolis’ Bob Sanders) might keep either out, as well as costing each other votes.

There is one Pat besides Brady, Moss and Welker that actually has a slight chance of getting voted in. He would be the first Patriots tight end to be selected for the Pro Bowl since Ben Coates.

OK, so there’s no mystery that I’m referring to Ben Watson. I have to work on my foreshadowing.

Back to the point. At mid-season, Watson has just 15 receptions and 222 yards. His yardage puts Watson ninth overall, but his receptions drops him into a tie with Denver’s blocking TE Daniel Graham for 12th in the AFC. Not the kind of company a Pro Bowler is usually surrounded by.

Though Watson doesn’t get a lot of chances, he’s making the most of his opportunities. Of the tight ends with at least 10 receptions, only Oakland’s Zach Miller (15-yards per reception) has a better average than Watson’s 14.8. But like the Raiders, Miller isn’t going anywhere. Great players on bad teams typically don’t get little attention needed to draw votes.

Mid-Season NFC Championship Game? posted by Amari Harris

This Sunday the Cowboys will return to Philadelphia in an attempt to try and avenge last season’s beating (hence the word crime) against the Philadelphia Eagles.  There is a lot of hype leading up to this game and it is well deserved.  The winner of this game will gain sole possession of the NFC East.  Both teams are playing extremely well at this juncture of the season.  And, via the embarrassing loss to Philly at the end of last year, the Eagles are currently the Cowboys biggest rival.  In fact, since 2003 there is only one team in the NFC that has more wins than the Cowboys and it is most conveniently those hated Eagles. 

So what should we expect in this game?  Well, contrary to many of the “experts” I do not expect this to be a shootout.  I think that both defenses will come to play and both offenses will kind of feel around for a bit.  The two teams will slug it out initially but there will definitely be big plays to be had.  The question is which team will make those big plays when they count?  I think this will be a hard fought, hard-hitting game where both teams end up scoring in the mid to low 20s.  I am too superstitious to actually pick a winner, but here are the keys to victory for the Cowboys.

1. Eliminate the big play

All week long, analyst will talk about how Philly is a very explosive team.  They are absolutely right, but they have not shown the ability to sustain drives.  If you can cover their receivers man on man and you can keep them from scoring on a big play then you’ve done most of the dirty work.  Ask the Oakland Raiders.  Philly lost to a terrible football team despite not turning the ball over once.  How do you explain that?  Oakland has the personnel to cover and they did not allow the big play.  Dallas has done well against the big play this year and they will have to maintain that approach this week.

Tom Cable is a Scumbag and the Perfect Coach for the Oakland Raiders posted by Colin Linneweber

Embattled Oakland Raiders Head Coach Tom Cable was accused Sunday on the ESPN show Outside the Lines of physical abuse by both of his divorced wives and an ex-girlfriend.

Cable, 44, a former offensive lineman for the Idaho Vandals and a scab replacement on the 1987 Indianapolis Colts strike team, released a statement in which he admitted that he hit a woman “on only one occasion in my life.”

“More than 20 years ago, during my first marriage, I became aware that my wife Sandy had committed adultery,” said Cable, who has helped lead the Raiders to a sterling mark of 2-6 to date. “I became very angry and slapped her with an open hand. What I did was wrong and I have regretted and felt sorrow about that moment ever since.”

Sandy Cable, who was reportedly granted a temporary order of protection against Tom when they were married, said Oakland’s coach is dangerous and she is worried that he will badly injure someone again in the imminent future.

“On two occasions, one back in ’86 and the other in ’88, he hit me. The second time in the face, however on attempts to call law enforcement, my husband would rip the phone out of the wall.”

Sandy Cable, who is now an employed member of the fuzz, believes that her villainous ex is an utter menace and he will abuse anybody that he is empowered over.

“He’s going to hurt somebody,” said Sandy Cable. “More so than what he’s done to Randy Hanson, more than what he’s done to me, more than what he’s done to anybody else.”

With Shonn Greene and Danny Woodhead, the Jets Will Continue To Fly posted by Colin Linneweber

The New York Jets destroyed the putrid Oakland Raiders 38-0 Sunday afternoon at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

Unfortunately for New York (4-3), their dominating triumph came at a great expense.

One week after the Jets lost defensive standout Kris Jenkins for the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, offensive sparkplug Leon Washington fractured his right fibula on his first carry of the game.

Washington, 27, a 2008 Pro Bowl and All-Pro selection, had his lower leg snapped when he was tackled by Raiders defenders and the broken bone grotesquely pierced his skin.

“I could see blood spurting out,” said one player of Washington’s compound fracture. “I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

Running back Thomas Jones, who had shared carries with Washington in the backfield to date, said the Jets as a team are demoralized by the loss.

“The team is devastated; I know I’m devastated,” said Jones, 31, who rushed for 121 yards and a touchdown in the victory. “Honestly, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.”

Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan stated that he believes Washington will fully recover from the injury and be ready to play by the start of the 2010 season.

“It’s a pretty severe injury,” Ryan conceded. “We expect a good outcome. Hopefully, he’ll rejoin us sooner than later.”

The Jets will likely be a different and far less explosive team without their best playmaker on the offensive side of the ball.

Joe's Final Drive: Week 6 posted by Joe Anello

In a crazy week six in the NFL, we saw both New York teams fall, one squad completely give up, and three teams continue their undefeated ways. The Final Drive of week six starts right now! 

(3-3) Houston Texans 28
(4-2) Cincinnati Bengals 17 

Every once in a while, Houston goes ballistic and puts up mega-points. Matt Schaub once again proves he’s a fantastic fantasy QB… five games a season. The Bengals aren’t an elite team, so you had to expect a letdown eventually after winning four straight. Now they dropped back with Pittsburgh, who are also 4-2, but technically behind since the Bengals beat them head-to-head.  

(6-0) Minnesota Vikings 33
(3-3) Baltimore Ravens 31 

Why won’t anyone beat the Vikings?! Steven Hauschka’s missed 44-yard field goal keeps the legend of Brett Favre in Minnesota going strong for another week. Who thought that the Baltimore defense would be the team’s weakness this season? They don’t deserve to be called “good” with the amount of points they’re allowing. Take that Ray Lewis.

(5-0) New Orleans Saints 48
(5-1) New York Giants 27 

What was supposed to be the best game of the weekend was over by halftime. Drew Brees let loose with another four TD’s as the Saints pwned the Giants in Louisiana. But the football sky isn’t falling in New York… at least not for Giants fans. 

250 Miles between Austin & Kansas City posted by Amari Harris

Any Cowboys fan who watched Sunday’s game had to be ready to throw themselves out of a 3rd story window when they saw that the Cowboys were getting beaten by the Chiefs nearly the entire game.  I, myself, wasn’t able to watch the game but I constantly monitored the score which may be even more maddening.  

Fast forward to the 4th quarter and the Cowboys were deadlocked with the Chiefs at 13-13.  After coming up with a pivotal stop, the Cowboys had an opportunity to finally put away a team they should’ve beaten in the 1st quarter.  At this juncture, Miles Austin made the first big play in what would be the making of the legend of Miles Austin.  He caught the ball on a slant route, broke a couple of tackles and scampered 59 yards for what looked to be the game winning touchdown with about 2:15 left in the 4th quarter.

Against any other team, that would seem like way too much time to leave an offense on the field, but the Chiefs longest scoring drive for the whole game was 36 yards.  Barring some sort of monumental collapse, the Cowboys were going to shut the Chiefs down like they had the whole game and run the clock out for a hard fought 20-13 victory.  

Fast forward 1:54  and 74 yards, and Matt Cassel had just thrown a 16 yard touchdown to Dwayne Bowe .  Fantasy points for me, but potential doom for the Cowboys! At this point I was actually watching the game because the lowly Redskins had just lost to another winless team in the Carolina Panthers and this was “Bonus Coverage” from FOX.  I had just missed the Miles Austin touchdown, but I got to watch every second of the Chief’s scoring drive(

Raiders release WR Walker, DE Ellis (AP)

The Oakland Raiders released wide receiver Javon Walker and defensive end Greg Ellis on Monday in their latest dumping of veteran players. The moves follow Saturday's decision to cut ties with longtime running back Justin Fargas. Walker was a disappointment right from the start after signing a $55 million contract that included an $11 million signing bonus two years ago. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Raiders tender QB Gradkowski, 6 others (AP)

The Oakland Raiders tendered contracts to quarterback Bruce Gradkowski and six other restricted free agents on Wednesday. Gradkowski got a second-round tender, meaning he will get at least $1.759 million if he makes the team next season. The Raiders also have the right to match any offer sheet he signs with another team or receive a second-round pick as compensation. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Raiders place franchise tag on Seymour (AP)

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From Yahoo! Sports

NFL won't discipline Raiders coach Cable (AP)

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From Yahoo! Sports

Ex-assistant Hanson sues Cable, Raiders (AP)

Former Oakland Raiders assistant Randy Hanson sued head coach Tom Cable and the team on Tuesday for damages suffered during a training camp scuffle that resulted in Hanson being treated for a fractured jaw and broken teeth. The suit alleges that Cable "without warning or provocation" grabbed Hanson during an Aug. [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports