Just Brutal.

Sadly, this isn't a book review. It isn't even a movie review. How much of a coincidence is it that on the day I go see the film version of probably my favorite novel of all time, the Chicago White Sox sit a half game back in a division that they led almost wire to wire? Doing their best Victor Mancini impression, the ChiSox went into Minnesota with a chance to finally put the Twins away and start preparing for the postseason, but left beaten, defeated and embarrassed. (Well I'm embarrassed anyway.) All they needed to do was not get swept...but they did.

Last night's game was especially brutal because they had a two run lead in the eighth inning and Bobby Jenks gave up a single and a triple allowing the Twins to tie the game and go on to win it in the 10th. It's his first loss of the entire year. For the series, they got out hit 36-22 and outscored 19-11. How did this happen? Well for starters, you know things probably aren't going to end well when Ozzie Guillen (rightfully) called out Javier Vazquez before Friday night's game and said that he has never been a big game pitcher. Sure, he gets a lot of strikeouts but ever since the All-Star break, Vazquez has been terrible, highlighted by his 4.94 September ERA. Which of course includes his stellar 4 IP, 7 H, 5 ER performance on Friday. Great, really set the tone there Javy.

Of course, Chicago's problems go a little deeper than Vazquez not being a clutch performer. (I guess this is around the time where anyone who is reading this will probably ask a) Who gives a rat's ass about the White Sox? and b)Didn't they just win the World Series in 2005?) Their bullpen has absolutely fallen apart. Scott Linebrink, one of their big free agent signings this year was phenomenal until he got hurt and missed all of August. Matt Thornton has been fairly consistent but guys like Boone Logan and Mike MacDougal have been awful. Octavio Dotel apparently forgot how to pitch over the last two months as well.

Oh yeah, having a potential American League MVP break his wrist down the stretch isn't going to help the cause. Carlos Quentin was having just a monster of a year before he got hit by one pitch too many. He hasn't played since September 1st. He still leads the AL in home runs. Yes, you read that correctly. Also, fun stuff like 100 RBIs and a .965 OPS. He carried the team on his back offensively for most of the year when Crede inevitably went down and Konerko looked like Jason Varitek at the plate. And the Griffey trade? Yikes. I know they didn't give up much for him but he hasn't done jack squat for the team besides look old.

You knew this picture was coming.

Anyway, the whole season, Minnesota never gave up and went on some nice winning streaks. But Chicago managed to stay ahead of them for the most part. Granted, both teams have looked pretty bad over the past few weeks, but looking at the schedule, I knew the division race would come down to this series. Maybe if it was John Danks' turn in the rotation, they could have gotten a win. Who knows. I do know that he's pitching tonight against the Indians in Chicago. If things go down to the wire, Chicago will have to play Detroit on Monday in a make up game, also in Chicago. Minnesota on the other hand hosts the Royals for their final three. (C'mon Gil Meche! Yes, this is what I've resorted to. Rooting for Gil Meche.)

I suppose I can look at all this in a positive light. I mean, every "expert" on the planet had Cleveland and Detroit on top of the Central. Minnesota just lost Johan and Toriiiii Hunter. The White Sox were coming off a dismal 2007 and didn't look like they did much to improve the team. Many of those same experts are claiming that the White Sox and Twins are simply overachieving. That could be the case. I mean, I'm obviously a huge Sox fan and I sure as hell didn't expect Quentin to have the year he's had. But Danks and Gavin Floyd have really stepped up and my boy Alexei Ramirez, .295 20 73 in 131 games, would definitely get Rookie of the Year honors if it weren't for Evan Longoria. Jermaine Dye is having another tremendous year as well.

In the end, I still can't help but feel really disappointed about how the past three games turned out. I mean, Quentin might be ready for the playoffs and with a rotation of Danks, Mark Buehrle and Floyd, the team has a chance to make some noise in October. But their chances of getting in now are severly diminished. They still control their own fate by winning the last four games. Do they have anything left? Can Ozzie pull a rabbit out of the hat? Or will all that time they spent in first place this year be for naught because of a choke job in Minnesota? I don't know. I gotta go clear my head by seeing a movie about a sex addict who works in a colonial theme park.

EDIT: According to Phil Rogers at the Chicago Tribune, Chicago has been in first place for 145 days this season. Nice.

Honestly... This Is Turning Into A Crapshoot

All you have to know about the 2008 NFL season so far is that Kate and I are starting Trent Edwards in a combined 3 fantasy leagues this week... and we couldn't be happier. Oh that and Brady Quinn should be a starting QB soon, and people think this will save a football team. Oh and that Reggie Bush might actually be incredibly good after all. Oh, and that I have a man-crush on Felix Jones. Wait, one more... Ronnie Brown is looking like the best QB on the Dolphins roster.

It's funny, every year, everybody (myself included) gets overwhelmed by all the wacky things happening in the NFL. We all act like it's never happened before, like THIS is the first time it hasn't gone according to plan. But that's exactly why football is so fun... because EVERY year is bizarre. The Bills and Broncos are still undefeated, and definitely should be after this week (facing St. Louis and KC, the Missouri suck-twins). The NFC East, who everybody knew would be good, is a combined 10-2, and 8-0 outside their division! I'd add more, but you've probably read all the interesting anomalies all week long, instead I'll share two new sections...

Interesting Fantasy Trades of the Week:
1) Aaron Rodgers and Antonio Bryant for Fred Taylor, Chad Ocho Cinco, and Jeremy Shockey:
This was between myself and fellow SPLP writer Bullock. Ok, so maybe this one was just interesting to me because I was a part of it. Still, if somebody asked you before the season about this trade, it would probably look incredibly unbalanced in favor of the players on the right. But I had the good fortune of drafting both Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers, and with them both sitting in the top-4 of QB ranks so far this season, I felt the need to move when they had their peak value. Plus, my 3rd best RB was DeAngelo Williams. Freddie will be an upgrade, and I'll take the risk of Oucho-Stinko since he won't be in my top-3 WR's. I know Shockey's hurt, but with Brees as my QB, he's worth shelving for now

2) Peyton Manning for Eli Manning, straight up:
I was pretty speechless when I first saw this. It's noteworthy that this trade happened between one of the most fantasy-savvy members of our league and probably the least fantasy-savvy members... and that the savvy one is a ginormous Colts fan. C'mon Laura, I know Peyton's struggled a bit early on, but you forgot the most important rule about Eli Manning, that being that HE IS STILL ELI MANNING. The best way I can describe this trade is that you just traded ass-cancer for ball-cancer.

NFL Headline of the Week:
"Quick-healing Favre walking with only slight limp"
Drink it in Jets fans. Your encouraging news is that your geriatric QB is only sightly limping.

Runner Up:
"Warrant issued for Bengals defensive lineman "
Surprise Factor: negative a hojillian.

Before we get to the picks, I just want to give a fond farewell to Troy Brown, the epitome of New England Patriot football from '93-'03. An undersized, late-round pick with less than blazing speed, he scratched and fought to make a place for himself in the league, morphing from kick return specialist to #1 receiver for a Super Bowl championship team, and all-time team leader in receptions. He worked hard, stayed humble, and did whatever he needed to to help the team. It's nice in today's sports world to see a guy who's easy to root for stick with one team for his entire career. Good luck in the next stage of your life Troy.

WEEK 4 PICKS

Vikings @ Titans (-1.5)
As predicted here last week, the Vikes hopped on the Gus Bus and rode to their first victory. The Titans, meanwhile, are quietly undefeated and atop the talented AFC North, all without their suicidal QB. This game could go either way, but I see it going similarly to Week 1, where the Titans shut down a great running game and pulled off a win at home.
Prediction: Titans, 20-14
Fantasy Love: Bo Scaife, Chris Johnson, Tennessee DEF, Adrian Peterson
Fantasy Hate: Gus Frerrotte, LenDale White

Broncos @ Cheifs (+11.5)
One of the most deserving double-digit dogs at home, ever. There's not a single thing I like about KC outside of Dwayne Bowe, and the Broncos offense has looked scary good so far, scoring 38 per game. With the way Denver's D has been playing though, at least KC will have a chance to put up a few meaningless scores.
Prediction: Broncos, 34-21
Fantasy Love: Brandon Marshall, Jay Cutler, Eddie Royal, Dwayne Bowe
Fantasy Hate: Tyler Thigpen, Larry Johnson, Selvin Young

49ers @ Saints (-2.5)
The Saints have lost two in a row coming into this one, and San Fran is riding high at 2-1. I just don't see them stopping Brees and Bush though, even with Colston and Shockey injured. Especially not in New Orleans. I have a feeling San Fran is going to be one of those completely unpredictable teams all year long. Hey Bay-area fans... that's better than being predictably bad again, right?
Prediction: Saints, 31-28
Fantasy Love: Drew Brees, Devery Henderson Reggie Bush, Frank Gore, JT O'Sullivan, Bryant Johnson
Fantasy Hate: David Patten, Vernon Davis (so much hate)

Cardinals @ Jets (EVEN)
I really really REALLY hope this isn't the game we get stuck watching with the bye-week. With the Giants also on bye, it seems likely though. At least we get a really old QB showdown. Expect lots of graphics referring to this from FOX... you can just feel it coming. I'm not convinced on either of these teams, so I'll give it to the home squad.
Prediction: Jets, 21-17
Fantasy Love: Kurt Warner, Anquan Boldin, Chansi Stuckey, Thomas Jones
Fantasy Hate: Edgerrin James, Laverneous Coles

Packers @ Bucs (+2.5)
Without Warren Sapp and Brett Favre, this matchup doesn't have the sizzle it used to. Still, it's 2 of the better teams in the NFC facing off. We're getting far enough into the season to get confidence in Rodgers, and Brian Griese is single-handedly resurrecting the careers of Antonio Bryant and Ike Hilliard. Yes, that sentence actually happened. Also noteworthy, Earnest Graham and Warrick Dunn are averaging 6 and 5.2 YPC, respectively. Still, I see the longball beating smallball in this one. This seems like a good time to mention that Lil Wayne has a blog and is a Packers fan.
Prediction: Green Bay, 28-20
Fantasy Love: Aaron Rodgers, Greg Jennings, Donald Driver, Antonio Bryant, Earnest Graham
Fantasy Hate: Ryan Grant, Ike Hilliard

Falcons @ Panthers (-5)
This game is surprisingly being played for first place in the division. The Falcons have taken advantage of an early schedule, and you can see them getting confidence. Meanwhile the Panthers seem to only play well when nobody is telling them they should. Steve Smith is back and had 70 yards last week working his way into game-speed. Expect a big day here against an unproven secondary. Also, I went to the ESPN page for the Falcons, and saw the image to the right. Way to keep things up to date.
Prediction: Carolina, 24-14
Fantasy Love: Michael Turner, Steve Smith, Jonathan Stewart Fantasy Hate: Mike Jenkins, DeAngelo Williams


Texans @ Jaguars (-7.5)
I give credit to the Jags, they pulled off a big road win last week... but let's face it, the Colts are slipping. I think the Texans are a lot better than 0-3, but because of their rough schedule, that's where they might end up. I can see myself being completely wrong here but...
Prediction: Jaguars, 27-24
Fantasy Love: Fred Taylor, MJD, Andre Johnson, Steve Slaton
Fantasy Hate: David Garrard, Ahman Green

Browns @ Bengals (-3.5)
Check that, THIS is the game I don't want to be seeing. I guess you can at least hope for some offensive fireworks, or that Brady Quinn will come in mid-game, or that Ocho Cinco will actually live up to his own hype for a week. Still, things just aren't pretty in the land that's high in the middle and round on the ends.
Prediction: Bengals take it, 34-24
Fantasy Love: Kellen Winslow, Braylon Edwards, Housh, Carson Palmer, Chris Perry
Fantasy Hate: Derek Anderson, Ocho Cinco, Jamal Lewis

Chargers @ Raiders (+8)
The whole Oakland clubhouse tormoil thing isn't even interesting anymore, it's just annoying. Meanwhile the Chargers finally got back on track against a bad team last week. I expect that trend to continue.
Prediction: San Diego, 34-14
Fantasy Love: Tomlinson, Rivers, Chambers, Gates, McFadden
Fantasy Hate: JaMarcus Russell, Vincent Jackson, Michael Bush, Ronald Curry

Bills @ Rams (+9)
This is my pick for Survivor Pools this week. The Rams are just gawd-awful, and shell-of-a-man Trent Green is now starting. Also, have we ever had a game with both starting QBs named Trent before? Once again, we're in a world where the Bills are clear AFC East front-runners. It's giving me childhood flashbacks.
Prediction: Bills, 34-10
Fantasy Love: Trent Edwards, Lee Evans, Marshawn Lynch, Torry Holt
Fantasy Hate: Trent Green, Steven Jackson

Redskins @ Cowboys (-7)
At 2-1, the Skins might be this years version of the '07 Giants... in that I am convinced they're no good but they keep winning anyway. Still, I don't see them rolling into Big-D and toppling the Cowboys this week. With the emergence of Felix Jones, Dallas has a scary amount of weapons now.
Prediction: Cowboys, 34-21
Fantasy Love: Romo, TO, Witten, MB3, Felix Jones, Clinton Portis, Santana Moss
Fantasy Hate: Patrick Crayton, Antwan Randel-El

Eagles @ Bears (+6.5)
After two very tough weeks, the Eagles head to Chicago to face a team that's looked better than expected. Last week's bloodbath leagues McNabb and Westbrook banged up, and Correll Buckhalter might be the main man. If that's the case, the Bears have a chance... but I'm going to assume McNabb and Westbrook play and say...
Prediction: Eagles, 24-17
Fantasy Love: McNabb, Hank Baskett (whos apparently dating Kendra Wilkinson), Matt Forte
Fantasy Hate: Greg Lewis, Kyle Orton

I'm going to wait until Monday for injury updates to predict the Monday Night game. Have a great weekend everyone.

Credibility Check
Last Week: 10-6
Season: 27-20
Predictions I Almost Nailed: Seahawks 31 - 13 (Actual: 37-13), 49ers 31-21 (Actual: 31-13)

Everyone just stay calm. We gotta KEEP our COMPOSURE!!

I understand that there are only 16 regular season games in the NFL and every game gets put under a microscope. And heading into Week Four (when there are already bye weeks) there are indeed a few teams that everyone can safely say their future's bright or they look worse than George Brett's pants after some bad crab legs. But overall, let's just slow things down a bit, take a step back and objectively look at the state of the league.

Okay, so there are four teams that have no business even taking the field for the rest of the year. Kansas City, St. Louis, Detroit and Cleveland (wtf Braylon Edwards! catch a friggin pass)are seriously just embarrassing themselves and while the Bengals are also 0-3, Cincy at least showed some heart yesterday against the Giants.

Looking at most teams, it appears that there's going to be a lot of 7-9 and 8-8 teams. We can't have teams finishing 15-1 and 14-2 every year. Injuries have already ravaged a number of rosters. It kinda takes the wind of out the "excitement sails." (I don't really know what that means.) For instance, that Philly/Pittsburgh game yesterday? How insanely boring was that? Westbrook, McNabb and Roethlisberger were all knocked out of the game with only McNabb coming back. 15-6 was the final score. Was it great defense or just poor execution offensively? I don't know about you folks, but watching Byron Leftwich, Correll Buckhalter and (gasp!) Matt Cassel doesn't exactly find my lost remote. Also, back up quarterback play leads to lack of production from wide receivers. Tomlinson, Colston, the list goes on. Yeah, I realize that it's the nature of the beast in the NFL that key players get hurt every year and some miss significant time. But three games into the year? The Brady injury might have been a bit of foreshadowing in relation to the entire season.

Getting back to individual teams, Dallas has looked pretty damn good. But some of the other undefeateds haven't won me over by any means. The defending champs barely beat Washington and Cincinnati and beat up on the Rams. Wow. Denver? They put up an ass ton (actual measurement) of points but were a blown call away from being 2-1. Tennessee's competition so far has been laughable. Buffalo...hmmmm. They have proved they can win close ones and Lynch hasn't even rushed for over 100 yards in a game yet. Their defense and special teams are pretty impressive. Definitely a team to keep an eye on but I wouldn't exactly put a lot of money down on them each week. If I had any.

Yes, I'm getting to the RB23 show. What else can you say really? With Brady out, the New England defense needed to put the rest of the team on their back and power through the regular season in the hopes that Cassel would improve and give the Pats a decent shot in the playoffs. Yesterday, Bill Belichick's team flat out stunk. In every way. One would think that Brady's injury would inspire them to step up and be even more motivated than a team that barely missed out on a 19-0 season. If that's even possible. But nope, they were beaten down essentially by one dude. Granted, he looked great doing it but after the first time he lines up for a direct snap, couldn't you, I don't know, adjust. Isn't that what Belichick specializes in? Being down 21-6 at half time ain't the worst situtation to be in at your home stadium.

But again. IT'S JUST ONE GAME. The Patriots are still 2-1 and the Dolphins are still 1-2. So much can happen between now and the end of the year. More stars can and probably will miss multiple games due to injury. J.T. O'Sullivan will remember that he's J.T. O'Sullivan. The Titans will play someone with a pulse. Come talk to me after Week 8 and maybe I'll listen to some of these proclamations.

Oh and then there's the "balance of power switching" argument. I can't stand to hear this in any sport, the NFL in particular. In the finals of all the major sports, it's still one team from the East/AFC, etc. versus one team from the West/NFC, etc. And in football, they only play one game for the trophy! Any Given Sunday right? So what if the NFC East might have three (four?) teams with double digit wins. How many of them are getting to the Super Bowl? It gives the countless drones on all the tv shows to run their yap about but at the end of the day, it's meaningless. Besides, who really pays attention to football until after the World Series anyway...