MINNESOTA JUST GOT A LITTLE LESS CHILLY

Today, head coach, or shall I say ex Brad Childress was “let go” by the Minnesota Vikings.  I have 2 words for the Vikings organization… TOO LATE.  After being waxed at home by the rival Packers, the Vikings have sunk to 3rd place in their division with an ugly 3-7 record.  They are 1 game ahead of the Lions and 4 games behind both the Pack and the Bears.  Why wasn’t this move made 1 month ago, when they could’ve salvaged their season?  Their wins have come against the Cowboys, Lions, and Cardinals.  Who would’ve thought that the Brett Favre of last year would turn into a pumpkin this year.  That’s karma for Brett and the Vikings.  Brett should have come to training camp this year.  He has been out of sync with his receivers all year.  Chilly and the Vikes should’ve never bent over for Brett.  They sent players to recruit him sent the head coach to the airport to pick him up.  Are you kidding me? The Vikings forgot that their most important player wasn’t Favre, rather it was Adrian Peterson.  Now they’ve wasted this year, AP’s legs and any chance to make the Superbowl in a weak NFC. Good luck Chilly, I’m sure you’ll find a job somewhere, just not as a head coach.

TITANS PLAGUED BY MOSS

Just when you thought that Randy Moss would take a team to the next level…BOOM! Wrong again.  They didn’t need him in New England after he kept mouthing off about his contract.  He turned the Minnesota Vikings into a bigger circus, if that’s even possible.  Then they released him too.  And now in his debut with the Titans, they lose to the hapless Miami Dolphins.  Sure, the Titans didn’t have Vince Young and Kerry Collins got injured in the game but they still had enough fire power to win this games.  I’m a big believer in team chemistry and locker room cancers.  Randy Moss is about to join the Terrell Owens club of “plenty of talent, but no takers…”  There is no specific event that triggered Moss’ fall from grace. He wasn’t happy in Minnesota when they had Chris Carter and Dante Culpepper.  He wasn’t happy in Oakland (understandably so). He barked up the wrong tree in New England and got traded for a measly mid-round draft pick.  He couldn’t get it together in Minnesota and now this.  I got a feeling that Jeff Fisher is going to regret this decision in a few weeks.  Moss is a sure fire hall-of-famer but his reputation is being tarnished.  It’s a good thing this is the MLB where players are judged on their character along with their stats.  Look what happened to Albert Bell. Stay tuned next week for the continuation of this soap opera, the saga continues.

Randy Moss: Home Sweet Home

Randy Moss was traded from the New England Patriots to the Minnesota Vikings.  GREAT trade for the Vikings.  With Sidney Rice out, the Vikings were struggling with their passing game.  We all know Brett Favre has had a huge crush on Randy.  Now he has him.  Now he has to get the ball to him or else face the same wrath that Daunte Culpepper, Tom Brady and Jamarcus Russell felt when they didn’t get the ball to him. Make no mistake that Randy Moss is a diva.  But he will make the Vikings INSTANT superbowl favorites in the NFC.  Brett Favre, Randy Moss, Adrian Peterson… WOW!

As for the New England Patriots, a 3rd round pick?  They could’ve gotten more but don’t think that this wasn’t done for a purpose. Belichek traded Moss just in time for the Vikings’ Monday Night showdown with the Jets.  He basically traded Moss for a Jets loss.  His offense will suffer though.  The Pats dismal running game will suffer, as will Wes Welkers’ numbers.  Moss is one of the players you have to scheme your defense around.  Moss was too big for the Pats and this move is gonna hurt them in the long run.  Moss still has some years left in him and if I was Tom Brady, I’d be pissed.  I don’t want to say they’re throwing the towel in but after trading away pass-rusher deluxe Richard Seymour last year, I’m not sure where this organization is headed.

NFL KARMA GODS WORKING OVERTIME

This NFL season has turned out to be AWESOME so far.  I don’t know about you guys, but Donovan McNabb and the Redskins beating the the Philadelphia Eagles felt so good for me.  Must’ve been nice for Donovan to rub it in his former employers’ face.  “Trade me to a division rival” is the same as saying “F-off, you’re no threat to us.” Well the Eagles lost Michael Vick to injuries after he seemed to resurrect his career.  Shouldn’t have harmed those dogs.  How about Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears? One of the biggest cry babies in the league getting sacks countless amount of times and knocked out of the game with a concussion.  I’m not even going to start with Brett Favre. Nothing more fun than watching NFL this year… well watching them and betting on the games makes it a wee bit more interesting.

Viking Not Who We Think They Are!

With Brett Favre coming back to the Minnesota Vikings in true dramatic Favre style, everyone thought that they were going to be a shoe-in for the Superbowl.  Ummmm…. think again.  This team has a couple holes to fill and that hole got deeper today with the loss of their #1 pro-bowl receiver Sidney Rice who’s going to be out for half the season.  Enter the highly touted Percy Harvin to take his place.  We all saw what happened to Brett over the weekend when he got knocked to the ground by the 49ers defense.  My suggestion, the Viking go back to what got them here in the first place, one Adrian Peterson.  Remember this guy, the best running back in the league for the past couple of years?  The Vikings need to start feeding him the ball to open up the passing game.  Brett certainly hurt the team by not coming in early for training camp and is frankly messing with the team’s mojo. First game of the season will be at the reigning champion New Orleans Saints.  The Saints are 4.5 point favorites and I LOVE that line.

NFL SEASON: WHO’S ON TOP OF THEIR GAME?

With the NFL season about to start, it’s time to pick my Superbowl favorites. But first we have to differentiate from the pretenders I’m not going to analyze every team but there are some out there that people need to get over.  The NY Jets for example are one.  Having been a USC fan for ever, I can tell you New Yorkers that the Mark Sanchez you saw last year isn’t going to get better. They got hot and lucky at the end of the season and made a respectable run in the playoffs. But if you want my opinion, they won’t even make the playoffs this year.  The Vikings are another team that will end up with a disappointing season.  Even if Brett Farve comes back, there’s no way he’s gonna play better than he did last year.  Assuming he doesn’t get too banged up in the regular season, I have a feeling that the Vikes aren’t going to be that offensive juggernaut they were in 2009.  Everyone’s picking the Cowboys to go all the way this year.  Clearly they haven’t realized that their #1 WR Roy Williams is an overrated diva.  Marion Barber has taken a beating over the years and it showed last year.  Their quarterback Tony Romo is a B+ at best and their coach, Wade Phillips is a joke. As for the rest: the Falcons and Ravens(not there yet), Chargers and Patriots (window closing fast), and the Steelers (too many off-field issues).

I hate to be THAT guy, but I love the Colts and the Saints to repeat.  Hear me out. The only thing both teams have done over the offseason is get healthier.  All the offensive weapons are there.  Each team has the best quarterback in their respective conferences.  Both teams play in the dirty South  where they’ll be able to rack up some easy wins and gain home field throughout the playoffs. I do have one sleeper pick, the Green Bay Packers.  I have to acknowledge my mancrush on QB Aaron Rogers.  He’s quickly become one of the smartest and accurate passers in the game.  The key to winning in this league is a stud at the helm.  A solid defense is huge, but look at the last few Superbowl winners: all quarterbacks at the top of their respective games.

NFL season is right around the corner and for those of you who gamble on football spreads, there’s no better time.  Aside from Monday Night Football, the games are all on Sunday giving you all week to research and prep for your “locks.” While there are thousands of online gambling sites, one of my favorites is PointSpread.com.  They even have preseason spreads just in case you can’t wait till the regular season kicks off in September. Are you ready for the football?!?!?

BRETT FAVRE ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT, I THINK

Brett Favre is allegedly calling it quits.  There is no confirmation yet, other than some alleged inside sources and text messages to teammates.  I’ve been the hardest Favre critic in the past, for letting his team hang until the last minute and not making his decision early.  Are you quitting or staying? If the team needs to go to camp, that means EVERYONE has to.  But today, I took a step back and re-evaluated my stance.  I was watching ESPN and someone mentioned that father-time has taken a toll on Brett’s body and as we all know, father time never loses a fight.  Now the reason that this struck home was that I too have been put in a similar position.  I tore my ACL recently (2nd time) and had surgery about 6 weeks ago.  The doctors have informed me that I can’t resume playing bball ’till the end of the year.  I’m not claiming that I’m a pro, but basketball is my first love.  The thought of never playing again is frightening.  But the thought of re-injuring the knee is worse. There’s not a day that goes by that I flip flop between playing and calling it quits.  Now imagine someone who plays at a level of Brett.  A future hall of famer, playing in front of thousands of people, let alone millions on TV.  Of course this guy is going to have a hard time making this decision.  I’m sure if he wasn’t hurting, he would be back already.  Remember, this guy has started in 309 consecutive games, an NFL records.  That’s 300 games as a quarterback, a position where you’re constantly getting knocked down and/or chased around. The only position that touches the ball EVERY offensive possession. So let’s cut the guy a break, it’s tough to say goodbye.  And while the gunslinger has done this twice before, we all know that the league and the Vikings would be better off with this guy in the league.

Remember the Titans?

Well, they lost on Sunday, 34-13, at home, to the Jets.  I watched this game and for some reason, the Titans never looked like they were in it. That potent running game… 47 yds total.  That defense… 34 points to the Jets.  That passing game… 1 td, 243 yds.  Look, I’m not gonna dig on them now that they’ve lost their first game of the season, I mean they’re still 10-1.  But I want to hear from someone outside of Tennesee who’s picked these guys as Superbowl favorites. The Jets on the other hand, KEEP ON surprising me.  Brett Favre, Thomas Jones, Laveranues Coles, it’s a nice three headed monster but I’m just not shakin’ in my boots. Fortunately for them, they have the Broncos, Niners, Bills, Seahawks and  Dolphins to finish the season, which should leave them with at least a 12-4 record, and a possible first round bye. The game between these two teams was a solid ball game, but didn’t seem like the CLASH that everyone has been hyping all week. Then again, I guess in the NFL, anything can happen. This year is anyone’s year.

LOCK of the

Now that we’re back on the right track, 6-3 on the season, time to get down to business.  After perusing through this week’s lines, I’ve got the winner for you: NY Jets at the New England Patriots -3.  After what the Pats have been doing this season, they’ve proven to me that they still have some fight in them. With all of the history between these two clubs, NO WAY Bill Belichick will let his team lose this game in Foxborough, on a Thursday night in front of a national audience to his rival Eric Mangini and his fellow Jets. As for the Jets, they’ve become the poster child for inconsistency.  I’m not saying Brett Favre is to blame, but hasn’t inconsistency followed him throughout his career. They’ve lost to the Raiders, beat the Bills in Buffalo, lost to Chargers, beat the Chiefs. Oh, and most importantly, already lost to the Patriots earlier in the season at home. You tell me who you like? Or shut your mouth, listen to the boss, and e Enjoy your winnings…

LOCK of the Week

5-0!!! 5-0!!! 5-0!!! For those of you who haven’t been following/profiting from my picks over the past month, I’ve hit a career high 5 “LOCK of the Week”s in a row.  Yeah, I’m bragging and jinxing but I do know at least one person has been profiting from my “advice.”  The secret to my success…well, I can’t tell you or else it wouldn’t be a secret and you wouldn’t need me anymore.  Enough of the boasting, time for business. This week’s spreads are pretty tough. There aren’t that many games that I like but you know me, I haven’t let you down in over a month and I don’t plan on doing so now.  So without further adue, the LOCK of the Week is NY Jets -3 at the Oakland Raiders.  Take the Jets -3, take it now, take it before the spread moves.  Vegas has the line at -3 and well, that’s where I’ve placed my bets.  These two franchises are going in two different directions.  The Jets are serious playoff contenders and the Raiders, well I hate to use a cliche` but they are MAJOR pretenders.  The Jets are coming off a solid performance against the Bengals while the Raiders, just another embarrassing 34-3 loss at the hands of the Saints.