Week eight.

On the heels of my best week so far this season in terms of picks, I'm looking forward to falling back to earth. It isn't a lack of confidence, it's more a grip on reality. But wouldn't it be nice if I could crack the .500 barrier? It would kind of vindicate myself in a way.

Browns (-3) over RAMS

There is a real possibility that the Rams can win this game but I really don't see it happening, even if it is in St. Louis. But, I'm probably wrong about this one since I've actually begun to think that the Browns have a good team.

BEARS (-5) over Lions

The last time these two faced off, Rex Grossman was still behind centre for the Bears and Detroit needed a late come back to get the win. I don't see it happening this time.

BUCS (-3.5) over Jags
 
Quinn Gray is starting at QB for the Jags. If you watched Monday night football when he was slaughtered by the Colts, you should know that his involvement in the game warrants a Tampa Bay pick. Although, I did say that about Derek Anderson a few weeks back.

Colts (-7) over PANTHERS

The Colts may look ahead to their battle with New England next week but the Panthers aren't good enough to really stand in their way of that undefeated show down.
 
Bills (+3) over JETS

This is Trent Edwards' first road start which is always a big test. He's looked poised so far, I think he can pull out a win here. Or at the very least this will be a tie.

Steelers (-3.5) over BENGALS

The Steelers WILL bounce back from that tough loss to Denver. The Bengals will continue stinking up the joint.

VIKINGS (+1) over Eagles

Here's hoping for another great Adrian Peterson game, much unlike the one he had in Dallas last week. And how much longer until Kevin Kolb gets some snaps? The whole losing thing may not be McNabb's fault but the kid should get some action if it continues.

Raiders (+7.5) over TITANS

The Titans almost blew it against the Texans last week and while the Raiders aren't quite as good as Houston, I would feel better taking the points in this one.

Saints (-2.5) over 49ERS

This game is not going to be very entertaining unless Reggie Bush and the Saints offense play like they did against Seattle a few weeks back. Even if they don't, they'll probably still beat San Francisco.

Giants (-9.5) over Dolphins

The NFL in London eh? Did the league learn nothing from NFL Europe? This isn't the type of football that European's like. They'll also continue being not so hot for it after watching the Dolphins get crushed.

PATRIOTS (-16) over Redskins

I see no reason why the Patriots won't win this game and cover. Even if they are evil. Jason Campbell isn't going to beat these Pats.

BRONCOS (-3) over Packers

Green Bay is coming off their bye week but Denver can ride the emotion of the Rockies and their World Series appearance, even though it could end the same night as this game.

Texans (+9) over CHARGERS

The Chargers are turning it around but with the wild fires burning around the San Diego area, one has to think that some minds might wander elsewhere.

Last week: 8-3
On the season: 38-47-8

Sox best Rox in close one.

Teams up 2-0 in the World Series have gone on to win 39 of the last 50 match ups. That’s what’s up against the Colorado Rockies when the series resumes Saturday night in Denver. But who, outside of people that actually knew who Ubaldo Jimenez was before the playoffs, thought this youngster would look good against this stacked Boston club? I certainly didn’t. If you had told me the scores of games one and two along with the starters, I would’ve thought for sure Jimenez was in for the 13-1 drubbing.

Even though the Rockies lost to the evil Red Sox, at least the game was close and exciting, much the opposite of game one. And seriously, how does Matt Holliday get picked off? Are you serious? Colorado is not getting any breaks in this one. And did anyone else think the umpire’s strike zone was huge? He was calling strikes above chest-high and below the knees. Somebody must’ve want to get out of the cold.

Curt Schilling may also have started his last game at Fenway for the Sox; at least if he retired he would have more time to bash people in his blog. He could also pull a Clemens and come back mid-season for a huge pro-rated contracted.

So with the Series shifting to the National League park, Boston faces a bit of a line up dilemma. How can they keep David Ortiz, Kevin Youkilis and Mike Lowell in the line up at once? Ortiz, bad knee and all, is one of the Sox best bats and could conceivably play first base adequately but that puts Youk out, who has been having an amazing postseason. Now Youk can play third, but that puts Lowell, another good hitter on the bench. What I would do is play Ortiz at first, Youk at third and possibly try Lowell in right field during practice and judge if he could play there.

Sox rock Rox

Wow, what an ugly beating that was. 13-1. You could tell it was over after Pedroia hit a home run to lead off Boston’s first. And the Rockies never had a shot with Beckett on the hill. Let’s hope that Colorado can at least make this Series interesting for the sake of good television.

It appears that the time off did have a negative effect on the Rockies who didn’t look very “in the game.” Their starter Jeff Francis looked rattled from the get go. Their supposedly superb bull pen gave up three walks in a row at one point.

And let’s just hope for some good weather for the rest of Series. Would that be too much to ask for? Or if there is inclement weather, at least make it more interesting with some hail or snow. Now that would be interesting. And yes, I do realize that no one can actually control the weather... yet.

Colts vs. Pats = Good vs, Evil?

It's not very often that you get two games over the course of two weeks that involve unbeaten teams this far into the season, but after sullying Dallas' record two games ago, the Patriots now will face the unbeaten Colts two Sunday's from now.

For all of those Patriots fans out there, Gregg Easterbrook has written the perfect argument to explain why your team are the bad guys now.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=easterbrook/071023&sportCat=nfl&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1

Unlike his ESPN.com colleague Bill Simmons, Easterbrook makes much more informed and incredibly more unbiased opinions. He takes the side of someone on the outside looking in, not a die-hard fan of the franchise like Simmons is.

Easterbrook's opinions may be over-the-top at times, but the man knows football and does in depth research into the numbers behind the game to make a well informed analysis.

Anyone who is on Simmons' side about the Patriots giving a big middle finger to the league as a good thing should read TMQ and re-evaluate their thought process in cheering for a team and being fine with such unsportsmanlike displays like the ones that New England are portraying every week.

Rox-Sox series set.

Well, you could sense it after Boston won game five that their series with the Indians was going their way. Cleveland were dead men walking after their ace Sabathia lost to Beckett's wizardry. Even Daisuke didn't pitch as awfully as everyone expected him to. There wasn't even a hope that the Indians could beat Boston at Fenway.

So the table is set for a Rox-Sox World Series. So there's Team A. A team that despite a week off that was full of massive press coverage and daily stories still is unrecognizable to the masses. Then there's Team B; a team with a payroll over a hundred million dollars and one of the most annoying fan bases in sports history.

This series will come down to small market values versus big market money. A team that could afford to spent fifty million dollars to just talk to a player about a contract versus a team whose entire payroll is around that number. A team that has two of the biggest name sluggers in baseball versus a team that has an MVP candidate you've never heard of.

I sincerely hope, for the sake of all of baseball, the Rockies win the World Series; if only just to prove that you don't have to spend money and have name players to win it all. To prove that small market teams like Colorado have the ability to beat the best. And most of all, to give Ubaldo Jimenez as many World Series rings as David Ortiz.

Week Seven round-up

You have no idea how much it can hurt when looking at a line and see something like "NFL record breaking eight field goals by Rod Bironas" and then knowing he's sitting on the bench for your fantasy team. It's as close as it gets to being punched in the stomach by an imaginary team. These things happen, I'll deal with it and now I'm not so mad at Mike Cameron any more. Cameron was the previous ultra goat in my fantasy experiences after he shattered a poor hitting slump by hitting four home runs while on my bench a few years back.

The Patriots beat the Dolphins. As if nobody saw that coming. Tom Brady also re-set his personal high with six TD passes after throwing five last week. It's just the Dolphins people; let's not get ahead of ourselves too much.

Buffalo knocked off the Ravens and did it by actually holding them off in the fourth quarter, something they're usually unable to do. Good for them and good for Trent Edwards. That guy has the potential to be a good NFL QB one day.

Adrian Peterson isn't as great as everyone thinks apparently. A week after blowing up the Bears defense he could only manage 63 yards against God's team and also lost a crucial fumble. Dallas rolled to a 24-14 win despite an early deficit and a minor injury to Romo.

New Orleans kept their winning ways going but Atlanta isn't much of a challenger. The Falcons didn't have much luck with Byron Leftwich starting at QB instead of Joey Harrington either. Leftwich was forced out of the game in the fourth quarter.

In the Sunday night game, Denver showed the life I expected from them when I picked the Broncos to win the Super Bowl. And they did it with Champ Bailey and Javon Walker sitting on the sidelines. Pittsburgh did try to stage a comeback but feel short at Mile High stadium.

It was a pretty lacklustre week in terms of stories but tonight's game between the Colts and the Jaguars figures to be a good one. Even if nobody outside of Jacksonville likes the Jags. Why haven't they played the "Nobody respects us" card like the Patriots (whiny bitches) always do? It actually applies here, unlike the way Brady played it during Super Bowl seasons.

Also, somehow, I had my best week ever in picks. Maybe I should start being busier and paying less attention to the little things.

This Week: 8-3
On the Season: 38-47-8

Week Seven Picks

Well, I’ve been running a bit late and busy so these picks may not be as solid as usual but, given my record on the season, it may be what I need.

Vikings (+9.5) at COWBOYS

How about that Adrian Peterson? I liked him in college, I like him now, but I still think a lot of his success this year has to do with that outstanding line blocking for him. This is a potential trap game for Dallas, coming off the loss to New England and going into a bye week. I've got a bad feeling about this one.

BILLS (+3) over Ravens

Trent Edwards should be the new face of the Bills. If they ever go back to Losman, they're dumbasses. They should've tried to deal him before the deadline expired. But then again, who would want him?

Bucs (+2) over LIONS

Sure, these Lions can pass the hell out of the ball, but can they do anything else really? Even with the Bucs heavily depleted back field I think they can win.

Patriots (-16.5) over DOLPHINS

This Patriots team is disgustingly good and this Dolphins team is disgustingly bad. It's well known that the Pats have always had trouble in Miami, but this is a lot better of a New England team than they've ever had.

GIANTS (-9) over 49ers

Do you think the Giants are looking forward to playing in England next week? I really don't think anyone would. Anyways, the Niners are not impressing anyone like everyone predicted they would.

REDSKINS (+9) over Cardinals

Tim Rattay or Tim Hasselbeck at QB for the Cardinals? This has Ewing Theory written all over it but those guys are really bad.

TEXANS (+1) over Titans

Vince Young will be fighting through his leg problem. It doesn't bode well for the Tennessee offense.

BENGALS over (-6) Jets

I can really see the Bengals breaking out against the Jets this week. Would you actually be surprised if they dropped 35 points on them? I wouldn't. Then I also wouldn't be surprised when they fall apart against whoever they play next week.

Chiefs (+3) over RAIDERS

Even though they're on the road, I can see the Chiefs continue on their roll. It might be because of the good karma from Priest Holmes' comebacks.

SEAHAWKS (-8) over Rams

The ‘hawks at home are always a good pick in my mind, even if they look poor this season. Bulger may be back for St. Louis but don’t expect too good of a performance.

Bears (+5) over EAGLES

So the Eagles blow out the Lions a few weeks back and everyone thinks they’re still great? I know the Bears aren’t very good but I feel better taking the points in this lacklustre match up.

Steelers (-3.5) over BRONCOS

Oh how the Broncos have fallen. This line should be a bit higher but I’m not going to complain.

Colts (-3) over JAGUARS

This will be the game of the week. The Jags traditionally give the Colts trouble, especially in Jacksonville, but with Addai back in the line up and coming off a bye, the Colts should pull this one out.

Last Week: 3-6-2
This Season: 30-44-8