Rex Ryan, How Do You Like Them Apples?!

In what was supposed to be the game of the year the New England Patriots annihilated the NY Jets. Led by Giselle's boytoy, Tom Brady, the Pats kicked the game off with a field goal followed by 6 touchdowns.  The Sanchise and his Jets could not keep up. After days of smack talk from Santonio Holmes, I think my good friend Joe put it best when he said, "Maybe the Jets should spend less time yapping at the mouth and more time studying the playbook".  I'd say so when the final score is 45-3.  How embarrassing!?!

I was lucky enough to be at tonight's game and have to give credit to the feisty and loud Pats fans. Witnessing first hand the energy and enthusiasm of the crowd (secondary only to a Michigan vs. Ohio State crowd, but with a Bahston accent), it only made this awesome ass-kicking that much better. I have to give credit to the Pats fans starting with the number of rockstars who tailgated in 25 degree weather and started my night off by providing free beers. The crowd was feisty and amped from the start. Whether cheering for "Tommy" (Tom Brady) or "Woody" (Jets castaway, Danny, "bring the" Woodhead), or getting Jets fans kicked out of sections above their ticket caliber, I could not have asked for a better crowd. Our fearless leader of section 239 never let us down and ensured that the crowd never missed a cheer for "another Patriot's first down" with his elaborate arm gestures and animated facial expressions. Every good play was met with 360 degree high fives and ample celebration.

Hey Rex Ryan, how do you like them apples?!

The New York Jets: Have been and always will be classy...

I don't know about you guys, but I feel 90% of recent NFL storylines or gossip is produced by the New York Jets. Disregarding the fact that it seems like they play on Sunday or Monday Night Football every single week, there was also the whole Hard Knocks series, Braylon Edwards getting another DUI (it's okay Braylon, we still love you), Antonio Cromartie getting a second chance to show he (and his seven kids) deserves all that child support money, and the controversial confrontation between Jets coaches and players and TV reporter Ines Sainz.

In retrospect, one would have thought that the Jets would have learned their lesson about having an attractive female reporter in close proximity of the team. That's because as the Jets play (yet another) Monday night against the Vikings, Brett Favre, formerly of the Jets and currently with the Vikings, is at the center of another controversy with a young curvacious reporter. On Thursday, Deadspin reported that Favre, while he was on the Jets, sent pictures of his pee pee to Jenn Sterger (yes the former Florida St. and South Florida cowgirl). The NFL has only begun to look into the matter, and nothing is confirmed, but man Brett, if it's you, how desperate can you get?? (Here's the video judge for yourself if it's Favre).

But Brett is not the only one at fault in these female reporter incidents. They should have expected a bunch of 20 to 30 year olds (and 40 year olds too apparently) with raging hormones to at least make a few remarks. And while I understand the positive media benefits of having attractive reporters such as Sterger work for the team, why do they need to be in the locker room!? Everybody and their mom knows that male locker rooms are about the most immature location on Earth, and bringing a smoking hot female into the equation will at best case result in nothing. That much has applied since high school. And it's not like it's just me saying that. A Seton Hall University poll says that even most women believe that female reporters shouldn't be in the NFL locker rooms. It seems to me the remedy to this situation is obvious: Keep the ladies lookin fine, but not during male locker room time.

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Jets Coach Fined $50,000 for Flipping the Bird

Rex Ryan, head coach of the New York Jets, was fined a cool 50 G’s for flicking off a member of the audience at an MMA event last weekend. I guess in comparison to Bud Adams, owner of the Tennessee Titans, he got off pretty easy. Adams was fined $250,000 back in November for giving the finger to fans at a game.

Whatever the reason for his behavior, Ryan apologized saying that his gesture had been “stupid and inappropriate”. Maybe it was inappropriate, but I think the stupid part was keeping it up long enough for a rando to bust out their phone, get to the camera and snap a picture. Now that’s just moronic.

NFL News: Prince writes a song for the Minnesota Vikings...

The Minnesota Vikings play at the New Orleans Saints this weekend in a matchup of the top two seeded teams in the NFC. It should be a good game, with two high-powered offenses and their Pro Bowl QBs going at it down in the Bayou for a shot at the Super Bowl. While I normally don't have a vested interest in either team, I know that I'll be rooting for Drew Brees and the Saints to pull this one out. While some might be rooting for New Orleans primarily because they don't want to see the 40 year-old dinosaur Brett Favre get another ring, I will be rooting for New Orleans so that I don't have to hear Prince's new Minnesota Vikings song, "Purple and Gold".



Yes. Prince wrote a song for the Minnesota Vikings. And don't get it confused with Purple Rain, because this song is awful. I feel bad for Prince, who was once one of the best performers out there (but, as this song has shown, has clearly experienced some tough times recently). But I feel worse for the Minnesota Vikings, who have to identify with this song, which sounds like a patriotic hymn gone wrong. At least the Vikings also have Brett Favre's signature hit, "Pants On the Ground", to offset this dud.



Now, in regards to actual football, I will give my picks for this weekend.

New Orleans 31 Minnesota 27 (see above)
Indianapolis 24 New York Jets 14 (Mark Sanchez can't keep it going forever, and Peyton Manning has been in this situation before)

Don't hate the player, hate the...

Across all professional sports, contract negotiations, player-coach relationships, retirement, and player-player conflicts result in athletes changing their uniforms. The popularity of the player is positively correlated with the outrage of the old team and the excitement of the new team. Switching teams is not, by any means, a new sensation. Usually, a trade makes a small wave within the organization that ripples out into the public for a week at the most. When great players are traded, however, it is a different story. Over the course of five weeks, we are taking a look at five significant cases. The first was Brett Favre, the second was Wayne Gretzky, the third was Patrick Ewing, and the fourth is Michael Jordan. The fifth, and final, is Junior Seau.

San Diego Chargers: 1990-2002

Miami Dolphins: 2003-2005

New England Patriots: 2006-present

Junior Seau joined the Chargers in 1990 fresh out of USC, and he became an instant fan favorite, earning the nickname “Tasmanian Devil.” Seau played in 12 consecutive Pro Bowls, becoming a star of the franchise. Then Seau requested to be released so that he could sign a deal as a free agent and ultimately increase the size of his paycheck. Seau was traded to the Miami Dolphins for the 2003 season with aspirations of winning a Super Bowl ring. He played well but could not carry the team to a championship. Injuries in 2004 and 2005 caused Seau to end both seasons prematurely. This ultimately resulted in his release from the Dolphins in 2006, after which he retired.

But Seau was not done playing football. Four days after his retirement Seau signed with the New England Patriots, but a broken arm ended his season early. He stayed on for the 2007 season, but retired again at its conclusion. Most thought this was the end of Seau’s spectacular career. Then, during the 2008 season, injuries plagued the Patriots’ linebackers, and coach Bill Belicheck asked Seau to return to the team. He signed on for the last four games of the season, making it clear that he probably would not have done so if he had previously won a Super Bowl, which is the only thing missing from an otherwise impressive career. The undefeated Patriots entered the Super Bowl with over $111 million in free agents, but were unable to beat the New York Giants.

Seau “retired” again after this stint with the Patriots, but then in October he announced that he would be returning to the field for the 2009 season in hope of finally winning a Super Bowl ring. This season, Seau has played in two games (he did not play this Sunday, 11/8), without any particularly memorable occurrences. 2009 marks his 20^th year in the NFL. The Patriots are 6 and 2, and are in first place in the AFC East. It remains to be seen as to whether Seau will finally procure the Super Bowl ring that seems to evade him and that he so desperately desires.

2 Kick Off Returns Against the Jets Wins My Vote

Ted Ginn Jr. ran 2 kickoff returns in for touchdowns during Sunday’s game against the Jets. He also happens to be pretty damn hot. If it wasn’t for the World Series, I would without a doubt nominate TG Jr. for our strapping jock of the month. However, since we are in the middle of the Series, Ted wins the honor of being the topic of my first non-ranting blog post! Congratulations Ted…it’s kind of a big deal.

Pierre Woods: Finally A Pro Athlete With Something To Say

I am getting so sick of listening to spoiled, whiny athletes mouthing off to the media about whatever stupid shiz pops into their over-inflated heads. That is why I am so please to share with you this thoughtful quote from Pierre Woods, Patriots linebacker: “I don’t knock guys for wearing jewelry…but why you got floss around kids? It sends the wrong message…because those kids can’t afford it and their parents can’t afford it.” http://www.bostonherald.com/blogs/sports/rap_sheet/index.php/2009/11/02/why-patriots-linebacker-pierre-woods-is-against-flossin/

Woods also gave the Boston Herald a very compelling interview about growing up in Cleveland (stealing and selling drugs) and the positive impact his coach, Ted Ginn Sr., had on his life. http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/football/patriots/view/20091101out_of_the_woods_patriots_lb_saved_from_trip_down_wrong_path/

On behalf of CCUB, I’d like to thank Mr. Ginn Sr. for his admirable work as a football coach and mentor! I’d also like to thank him for creating Ted Ginn Jr., who played a pivotal role in the New York Jets’ loss on Sunday.

Don't hate the player, hate the...

Across all professional sports, contract negotiations, player-coach relationships, retirement, and player-player conflicts result in athletes changing their uniforms. The popularity of the player is positively correlated with the outrage of the old team and the excitement of the new team. Switching teams is not, by any means, a new sensation. Usually, a trade makes a small wave within the organization that ripples out into the public for a week at the most. When great players are traded, however, it is a different story. Over the course of five weeks, we’ll take a look at five significant cases. The first is Brett Favre.

1992-2007: Green Bay Packers

2008: New York Jets

2009-2010: Minnesota Vikings

Brett Favre was the starting quarterback and face of the franchise for the Green Bay Packers from 1992 to 2007, when he retired from the NFL, crying on national television. Four months later (July), Favre decided to return to the NFL and formally requested a release from the Packers when he found out he would not be a starter. The Packers tried to pay Favre to remain retired, but a month later (August) he was reinstated into the league. However, Favre and the Packers parted ways when general manager Ted Thompson decided that he did not want to take him back. (To their credit, the Packers had taken steps to overcome Favre’s retirement, including finding a new quarterback to replace Favre). Instead, Favre was traded to the Jets and welcomed to New York by Mayor Bloomberg.

After a successful start to the 2008 season, Favre and the Jets won only one game out of their final five. He retired again soon after…claiming that this time, it was for good. That turned out to be false. Favre signed a two-year contract with the Minnesota Vikings on August 18, 2009, joining the same conference as his old team, the Packers. Thus far, Favre has led the Vikings to a 5-0 record, including a victory over Green Bay.

So now, the question remains…will Favre return to the Vikings for the second year of his contract, will he request yet another trade, or will he retire for a third time?

Next Week: Wayne Gretzky

Super Bowl XLIV - 9.20.09

The Jets dubbed this weekend's match-up against the Pats as "their Super Bowl." The plan is to "embarrass" the Patriots. But isn't it embarrassing enough that they have conceded that this will be their biggest game of their season? I mean, they've essentially conceded that they have no hope of playing in the real Super Bowl. And while I don't think anyone expects or wants them to kiss Belichick's rings, let's face facts, accepting that you're facing the best team in the league is really more of a compliment than an insult! So thanks guys!

And the age old lesson holds true--sometimes it's better to keep your mouth shut. My brother learned that lesson in '03 when he and his friend came to Ann Arbor screaming "GO IRISH!" at the top of their lungs, and Notre Dame had negative rushing yards at the half and didn't score a single point. He learned it again in '06 when all I heard on the ride from Chicago to South Bend was something about a "Return to Glory" and a National Championship. Funny that at the end of the game the scoreboard said 21-47 with touchdown Jesus in the background.