Pats/Giants game will be on the NFL Network.  The ‘Network’ folly began Thursday and it was bound to happen - games that we care to watch are out of the ‘free’ (because we do pay cable bills) TV’s sphere of influence.  If it was on regular TV, the Pats’ last game of the season, the Giants game, (if their season continues on its current path) would likely break viewership records for in-season, and some postseason, football games.

They are cutting out the casual fan in an attempt to convert them to zealous fans.  They may not be cutting off their nose, but they are appearing pretty ugly, with a shaved eyebrow or two.  In this ADHD world of a million different media outlets, I’m saying their strategy will have the opposite effect and they will lose more than they gain (although, possibly increasing bar & pub attendance on these gamedays).  This will in effect cut out literally millions of the casual fans.  130 million watch the Superbowl - 20 million watch in-season games. 

It seems, the NFL would make more money with all its future contracts (TV, licensing, etc.) if it could show the increase in viewership for in-season games; now two of the mostly likely games to help that cause have been taken away. 

It’s all marketing and numbers of impressions for the companies connecting themselves to the game, and now the number of people watching - at the perfect time to market to the widest audience - will dwindle.  If the NFL isn’t careful, that may not be the only thing that diminishes.

There may be some NFL dollar-in/dollar-out formula that steels itself against this argument, but for longevity, between absolute dollars and absolute people numbers, I’ll always take the fans.  Everything else will follow.

As I’ve mentioned previously, I think the NFL Network is a bad idea that is purely a revenue generation scam by the NFL.

My problem this week is that I actually want to watch the game “featured” on the NFL Network. The Packers vs. the Cowboys is the biggest game this year, this side of the Patriots vs. Colts game a few weeks back. This game means a lot. Granted, it’s only one game, but it is most likely a preview of the NFC championship game. It’s a big deal. And the fat cats over at the NFL probably think that this will prompt the average NFL fan to go out and get the NFL Network. What they fail to realize is that it’s actually pissing off their most loyal fans… again. Cowboys and Packers fans are some of the most loyal, and most annoying (at least to me) fans in the NFL (btw, Oakland gets the nod for the Most Annoying). Just because they’re loyal doesn’t mean they’re going to bow down to whatever crazy idea the NFL has. They’re loyal, they’re not stupid (most of them).
The NFL needs to remember that the fans pay the salaries, and line the lunatic owner’s pocket’s with cash. You don’t need to alienate them. Sell the broadcast rights to a network. Even ESPN, it’s pretty widely available these days.

 Loading …

Woody’s coming back! Monday, the Cubs signed Kerry Wood to a one-year deal worth $4.2 million. He’ll be in the thick of the Cubs closer debate. He worked in 22 games in 2007 out of the Cubs bullpen. He had a 3.33 ERA and a 1-1 record. If Wood can regain the “stuff” he had early in his career, he would be a great closer. We all know he can’t throw more than 25 pitches without his arm falling off. So the closer role might be perfect. Whether or not he can change his outlook will be the key to his success. He didn’t pitch in back-to-back games at all this season. If he’s gonna be the closer, the Cubs are going to need him to do that. All that being said, I’m glad Woody is back in the fold. Anyone who smashes Sammy Sosa’s boom box is alright in my book.

The Chicago Bears did not deserve to win on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. The Bears were outplayed on both sides of the ball. The only reason they were even in the game was that Devin Hester is an amazing returner. For some reason, teams think that they can stop him. Todd Sauerbrun said that the Broncos were not going to be afraid to kick to Hester. I wonder if he thought that after the first time Hester ran by him to score on a punt return. Surely it couldn’t happen twice in one game Todd, could it? Well, I’m sure he was thinking that when Hester blew by him on his kickoff return for a touchdown. Truly amazing.

Besides Hester, it seemed like Brian Urlacher and Peanut Tillman are the only Bears who actually want to win the football game. Sure there were good plays by Adewale Ogunleye, and tying touchdown from Grossman to Berrian was a thing of beauty, but none of those players played with a sense of urgency.

I do have to say, Rex Grossman cannot continue to take the fall for the terrible offense. Their offensive line is horrible. HORRIBLE. Rex was running for his life every time he went back to pass. And even though the running backs the Bears throw out there are below average at best, even LT couldn’t run behind that line. I grew weary of watching Adrian Peterson (the bad one) run into the back of an offensive lineman. It’s just not the most productive way to run the football. And the dropped passes? Muhammed, Olsen and Berrian all dropped makable catches for first downs. That’s unacceptable. Grossman is getting the ball there. It’s hitting them in the hands people. Make the catch.

The defense looked lifeless in the first half, and tired in the second. I can’t blame them too much. They’re on the field way too much. I know Ricky Manning Jr. is not supposed to be a number one corner… but he got torched. And torched. And torched. Adam Archuleta can’t tackle, or cover. It turns out safeties in the NFL should be able to do both.

This team is not a playoff team. I know that Lovie thinks that if they run the table, and finish with 10 wins they’ll make the playoffs. If you ask me, they’ll be lucky to win one more game. Oh yeah, Ricky Manning Jr. just got torched again.

(or, why New Englanders give thanks every Sunday)… 

How scary are the Patriots?  Think Nosferatu meets The Shining without the suspense, because, after all, you know what’s coming.  Besides the obvious, how about… 

- They are the only NFL team that has given up exactly zero points against every single opponent’s opening drive.

- Some of the consistently largest point spreads game in and game out and the Pats have beat it nine out of ten times.   

- Heard on ESPN’s Mike & Mike in the Morning - Vegas gives the Pats a 47% chance of going undefeated, while laying 17% odds of the Dolphins going winless.

 - T.O. caught four touchdown passes for Dallas Sunday and he’s not even a bad joke’s-distance near the Offensive Player of the Week award.

- How’s that second-half-of-the-season-colder-weather scenario working, in regards to slowing down the air attack?  At gametime it was 36 degrees in Buffalo - the warmest part of the evening.  Brady threw for 5 TDs.

 - I don’t remember any other season when I’ve actively looked forward to the mid-field, post-game coaches meeting, just to rate Belicheck’s icy-handshake meter.

“no really, nice game…”

 

Following Michigan’s loss to Ohio State on Saturday, Lloyd Carr will announce his retirement on Monday. This became increasingly apparent as the season wore on. Carr is 62 years old and has been the head coach at Michigan for 13 years. Michigan is 121-40 under Carr, but he has been lost 4 in a row to arch-rival Ohio State. Something that had to have factored into Carr’s decision.

Lloyd has definitely done a lot to continue the legacy of Michigan fooball, but they have fallen on hard times, and it’s time for a change. Now the talk will turn to who comes in to replace Carr. Most of the talk has been about Les Miles, currently the head coach of the #1 ranked LSU Tigers. Les Miles is a Michigan man who played under Bo, coached under Bo, as well as former coach Gary Moeller. Miles coached at Michigan, Colorado, Oklahoma State, in the NFL for the Dallas Cowboys, and currently at LSU.

Three things stick out for me about Miles.

1. He’s a Michigan man - Not the most important thing to me, but I know that the athletic department and boosters care about it. So he fits in that way.
2. He’s a winner - Obviously, he’s the coach of the #1 team in the country. He inherited a strong program, and he has kept them at the level that they were at.
3. He can recruit the south - It’s just a fact, the south is home to a huge amount of high school football talent. Miles has shown that he is able to bring that talent in. It remains to be seen if he could transfer that ability if he moves up north to Ann Arbor, but I’m willing to let him try.

Bonds is a narcissitic rat that started taking steroids when he saw what McGuire & Sammy did in ‘98.  There.  I think we’ll be able to read anything and everything about the indictment and the coming defense pretty much everywhere; after (and during) the deluge of any media glut, I just end up thinking about some of the peripherals…

- Isn’t it funny (sad) that the reason Bonds started his Steroid Mile, was that he wanted to get the numbers, and presumably the adoration & attention of his peers and Joe Public.  At least he got the attention part…

- Can you picture how hard the prosecutors were trying to put this case together, before Bonds passed 755?  I picture them weekly huddling together with Selig and voodoo dolling Bonds’ knees, in hopes that he would have to sit this season, ’saving’ himself for ‘08…

- Don’t you just hate Greg Anderson?  He holds out forever - locked up and probably enjoying an ever-growing Swiss Bank account, thanks to his silence, and Bonds still ends up being brought up on charges.  If he’d have stepped forward eary on, Aaron would still hold the record that we all know is truly his anyway.  Besides the fact he probably could’ve made more green marketing his story… he’s a trainer for jeezum’s sake!  There’s no Trainer-Client privilege.  Now that he’s out, I expect to see some ’ski trips’ to Switzerland in the semi-near future…

- There are some that worriedly opine about the zealous hunt to penalize Barry, saying that ‘yes, he’s probably guilty’, but ‘c’mon, the legal system is going to insane lengths to catch him — they haven’t gone this far to catch other reputed ‘Roid-rangers.’  To which I’d say that their mission to indict Bonds was proportionate - if even that - to his (prior to today) place in statistical history in baseball…

- When MLB figures out an HGH test, they should keep it under wraps and just say they are testing for Amphetamines – a little tougher to mask when you don’t know there’s a need… 

- Did Vegas have a line on if or when Bonds would be indicted?  Did Pete Rose bet the over?…

- Using the precedent of Rose (just by the law of averages, using steroids, if after ‘03, illegally changed the outcome of some games, after all)…

     * Bonds should be outlawed from the game (he’s done anyway)

     * Bonds name will never appear on a HOF ballot (never gain majority anyway)

     * Bonds should have a card table reserved for him, 3 blocks from the HOF induction ceremony, for autograph signings (I see a Rose/Bonds/Michael Moore docu-comedy in the making)   

______________________

On a totally different topic, the discussion on the Patriots should no loger be about whether they can go undefeated this season.  Barring injury, I cannot see anything but a gadfly argument that can oppose this fact:  The Pats will go undefeated in ‘08. 

    

Well ladies and gentlemen, the shit finally hit the fan for Barry Bonds. He was indicted Thursday for lying during his testimony to a grand jury about his use of steriods. In the testimony he said that he never knowingly use steriods.

This will definitely taint his all-time home record set this year, when he eclipsed Hank Aaron for career home runs. There has been talk of what the fall out from this will be. Will a team take a chance on Bonds even though he’s now been indicted? Will this affect his Hall of Fame campaign?

For me, this has been a long time coming. I am glad that he was busted for lying. Obviously Major League Baseball can’t take his records away and can’t punish him for something that wasn’t against the rules at the time, but I hope that the general managers around the league will not offer him a contract. What do you think about the Bonds situation? How should MLB respond? How about the fans?

These teams are in unfamiliar territory. They both enter this game following a loss. Last week Michigan lost to Wisconsin on the road, and the then number 1 ranked Buckeyes got upset when they visited the Fighting Illini. The last time Michigan came into the OSU game following a loss was 1996 (they lost to Penn State) and the last time Ohio State came into the game after losing was 1987 (when they lost to Iowa). The last time both teams entered the game following a loss was 1959. The Wolverines were led by first year coach Bump Elliott and Woody Hayes was just in his 9th year at the helm for the Buckeyes. Incidentally, Michigan won that game 23-14.

As usual, there is a lot at stake in this years game for both Michigan and Ohio State. Michigan can salvage a tough season by taking care of the Buckeyes at home, and Ohio State can maintain their recent dominance (folks, it’s just hard for me to say) over Michigan. Since Jim Tressel took over for John Cooper, the Wolverines have only been victorious once against their bitter rivals. That fact adds another layer of complexity to this years game.

There has been a lot of speculation about Lloyd Carr’s future. Most believe that if he (and Michigan) lose this game against OSU that he will lose his job. And he probably should. 1-7 is not acceptable against Ohio State. After Michigan started the season with it’s historic loss to IAA Appalachian State, followed by a drubbing by Oregon, they ran off 8 straight wins.

Michigan has definitely seen better days. They are banged up all over the place. Mike Hart, Chad Henne are both questionable for Saturday’s game. Historically, that has not been a good sign. Mike Hart is the leader of this team. Other people have had to step into that role because throughout his career he has consistently struggled to stay on the field (something that will hurt his chances to play on Sunday). While Hart has been out, his replacements Travis Minor and Carlos Brown have filled in admirably. Their biggest downfall is that they’re not Mike Hart. They’ve both played well. They haven’t stepped into the leadership role that Hart has.

Since Chad Henne went down, first with a knee injury and then with a shoulder problem, freshman phenom Ryan Mallett has stepped into the role of starting quarterback and seems to be developing into the teams leader. I love this for next year. This year, I can just remember the 2 picks that he threw at Wisconsin. If Henne and Hart can’t go on Saturday, Mallett needs to win this game. If he does, he’ll be the toast of the town. If he blows it, he’ll be the goat (hopefully that won’t stop him from progressing).

No matter who lines up under center, they need to get the ball to Mario Manningham on the outside. No one has been able to stop the deep out this season. For some reason Lloyd Carr and Mike DeBord have not exploited that. The play is set up with the running game. For the most part Michigan hasn’t had trouble getting that set up. Once the running game has been established, on every series they need to call Mannigham’s number. He’s the top wide out in the country. Let him prove it.

On the defensive side of the ball, Michigan has made marked improvements. Donovan Warren still scares the hell out me at corner. All that I hear about him is comparisons to other Michigan corners who started as a freshman (Ty Law, Charles Woodson and Marlin Jackson). I just want to let everyone know. He’s not that good yet. He might get there… but those guys dominated, even as freshman. Warren has showed some potential, but he’s been exposed as much as he’s dominated. Other than Warren, I think the defense has progressed nicely. Shawn Crable is amazing. The rest of the defense is getting the job done. Nothing too outstanding, but they’re playing well.

Notice I haven’t mentioned Ohio State’s team this year. It’s mostly because I don’t care. But to give them unequal time… James Laurinaitis is the best college linebacker (sorry Shawn Crable). Their defense was really stout heading into last week’s game against Illinois, but the Buckeyes come out of Champaign with a lot of video evidence that they can be beat. I would imagine Lloyd and the boys have watched that a few times.

On offense the Buckeyes feature Beanie Wells, Todd Boeckman and Brian Robiskie. Of the three, Beanie Wells is the best. He’s a powerful downhill runner with a burst. Boeckman and Robiskie have stepped into their roles this year and have been servicable. They haven’t set the world on fire, but the haven’t laid any eggs either. What worries me is the tackling of Michigan against Wells. If he breaks a couple long runs, Shawn Crable is gonna get tired.

Time to get to the nut-cuttin. This is a game that features the two best teams in the Big Ten (no surprise there), both are having off years. Hard to say that with OSU being ranked number 1 for a few weeks this year, but they have lost a ton of guys to the NFL. They were number 1 because no one else has been able to hold onto it.

Keys to the Game

• Turnovers - Whoever has the edge in turnovers wins the game. If Michigan can force Boeckman to give it up, or Mallett gives a repeat performance, their teams will suffer.
• Henne and Hart - With them, Michigan is the better team, without them, Michigan will struggle to move the ball.
• Manningham deep - If Michigan can get the ball to Manningham on the outside, it won’t be close.

My prediction
Ohio State 17
Michigan 24

 Loading …