Favre, Vick and a muddled NFC

Before you proceed too far into the literary brilliance that is my blog, I want you to check out this video I happened upon last night while Kate and I weren't having sex. It'll be worth the price of admission, I promise. This is especially true for all my northeast, Ohio friends.

I'm talking to you Ables, Alan and Geiser.

So, the big headline-grabbing NFL news recently has centered around the fact the St. Louis Rams will be without cornerback Eric Bassey for the entire season because of a knee injury suffered last week.

Beyond that, there isn't much going on in the NFL lately.

Except for that pesky Brett Favre story, of course.

The Brett Favre saga is sort of like a B-rated horror flick, you know, when the bad guy just will not die at the end of the movie no matter how many times he gets shot in the head or stabbed in the heart. Whatever. I'm reasonably certain this move makes my old high school friend, and die-hard Viking fan, Jenny Bachelder extremely happy.

As well it should, because here's the thing.

Say what you will about Brett Favre the person; Lord knows there's plenty to be said. But, the fact of the matter is that with a healthy Brett Favre under center the Minnesota Vikings are the best team in the NFC and the reasons for this are plenty.

The Vikings won 10 games last season largely with a quarterback who once gave himself a concussion after head-butting a wall!

A defense that allowed the fewest rushing yards per game a season ago accompanies a potent offensive attack that doesn't need a Hall of Fame quarterback to be successful because it features the best running back in the game.

Furthermore, the addition of Percy Harvin as a change-of-pace guy adds another wrinkle to an offense that scored 28 points or more in a game seven times last season. Finally, there's Favre who's usually good for two or three howtheheckdidhedothat?! plays a game.

My point, of course, is the Vikes don't need Favre to be in the "best team in the NFC" conversation. However, the fact they were able to sign him, in my opinion, ends the whole damn conversation.

Now, for those out there just spit out their coffee reading the idiocy I just published, I have a question for you:

If a Brett Favre-led Vikings team is not the best club in the NFC, who is?

The aforementioned "best team in the NFC" conversation probably focuses on teams like the Eagles, or Cowboys, or Giants or Bears or Packers or maybe even the incumbent Arizona Cardinals.

All those teams have major question marks as the season looms. This is not to suggest the Vikings do not have looming questions, too; but as far as I can tell, that list of questions is much shorter than most.

I suppose the Vikings had to settle for Favre after the Eagles scooped up Michael Vick last week.

The Philadelphia Inquirer greeted the Michael Vick signing with a headline last Friday that read "Hide Your Dogs!", a headline that I find to be both journalistically irresponsible and borderline libelous. I understand what Vick did was terrible, but that doesn't mean he should be treated like a second-class citizen and it doesn't mean he should be prevented from playing football in the NFL.

I overheard one person say last week that because she loved dogs, she could never support Vick's return to pro football.

Look, I love strippers, but that doesn't mean I believe Pacman Jones should be kicked out of the league, either, which brings us to the part of this Michael Vick conversation that just irritates the hell out of me.

All this false indignation over Vick makes me want to kick something really, really hard; it's not that Vick committed a crime, it's not even that the crime was committed by Michael Vick, it's the novelty of the crime itself that has everyone's panties all wet.

If Vick had mugged a stripper or beat his girlfriend like a normal famous athlete than we would not be having this conversation, trust me.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending what Michael Vick did, but what I am saying is that Vick absolutely, positively, unequivocally paid his debt to society and is now a free man and if he wants to pursue a career in the National Football League he should be allowed to do so.

Andohbytheway, the Philadelphia Eagles are significantly better with Michael Vick than without him. In fact, I'd contend the Vick signing makes the Eagles one of the two or three best teams in the NFC and certainly the favorites to emerge from the NFC East.

I'll leave with you this tiny anecdote before I bid you a fantastic Friday.

I had tickets to yesterday's afternoon matinee at Great American Ballpark between the Redlegs and the San Francisco Giants. I elected not to make the trek to GABP largely because I had better things to do with my time than watch my favorite baseball team cap off another pitiful homestand with, yet another, humiliating performance; additionally, Judge Mathis is on at two o'clock.

As it turned out Aaron Harang pitched a gem and centerfielder Drew Stubbs, in just his second career start, belted a walk-off homerun off the foul pole in left field in the 10th inning to procure a 2-1 Reds win in 10 innings; sometimes sports are positively ironic.

Around the college football world in 30 minutes

Before we begin, I'd like to dedicate this column to Franz Ferdinand who's quickly climbing the ladder of my favorite artists of all time, a very exclusive club currently reserved for only a scant, few other bands including Oasis, Modest Mouse and The Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Another brief note before we jump too far into our topic de jour, I am the newest news and sports correspondent for WPKO/WBLL out of Bellefontaine, Ohio. This job marks the closest thing to a tangible career I have ever had and I wouldn't have had the nerve to pursue such an opportunity were it not for my incredible inner-circle of friends/family who have supported me the entire time.

Those people include, but are nowhere near limited to: Zach, Ian, Yutz, Alan, Marcus, Adam and, of course, my beautiful bride-to-be, Kate.

Now, on to the piece...

The USA Today Top 25 Preseason Coach's Poll has been released and Florida is the top-ranked team in the country. Why not? The Gators return many of their starters from a season ago, including Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow.

Texas comes in at number two and Oklahoma three--for similar reasons as Florida.

Of course, The 'Horns and Sooners had virtually identical seasons a year ago and enter this campaign with many of those similarities.

The poll might as well read:
2a. Texas, 2b. Oklahoma

USC is four, Alabama five and our beloved Ohio State Buckeyes are the sixth-ranked team in the nation.

The thing about preseason polls, though, is that they are completely and utterly irrelevant.

Head coaches from every BCS conference might as well get together on a Friday night in July, throw back more Captain Morgan than anyone should and draw names from a hat. The impact on the regular season would be the same.

Don't believe me?

Four of the top-10 teams from last season's preseason poll were not in the final top-10 rankings and two of those four teams (LSU and Clemson) were not ranked at all by season's end.

By contrast, Utah and TCU were not in the preason top-25 at all and were both top-10 teams by the end of the year.

These were just top-10 patterns, too. The rankings top to bottom were completely ridiculous. Michigan was ranked 24 in last year's poll and finished unranked as did Auburn, Kansas and Wisconsin--all top-15 schools entering last season.

In the spirit of those unpredictable trends, I submit to you a couple of my own predictions as we prepare to embark on another riveting college football season sans any kind of discernible method to crown an overall champion.

Nebraska will play in the Big 12 Championship Game: The Cornhuskers enter this season ranked 22nd in the nation, it's the team's highest preseason ranking since 2007 when they were ranked 19 entering the year. Of course, the team stumbled its way through '07 and finished unranked. Head Coach Bill Callahan was fired at the end of the season and the Bo Pelini era began. The team enjoyed a degree of success last season and earned a spot in the Gator Bowl.

It is the not-so-humble opinion of this aspiring sports columnist that Nebraska will be much better this season, despite its freshman-laden roster which includes well over 100 under-classmen and only 16 seniors.

The biggest reason for this claim is the team's schedule. Other than a home game against Oklahoma, the 'Huskers only other real test is a road game in Lubbock against the Mike Leach led Texas Tech Red Raiders, or, as I like to call him, That Guy That Looks A Lot Like Vince Gill

Beyond that, coin-flip games like Missouri, Kansas and Iowa State, games the Cornhuskers have lost in recent memory, should fall in favor of Nebraska this year; 10 wins is not, at all, an unreasonable win total this season.

Jevan Snead will be a household name by season's end: When SEC coaches voted for their preseason Offensive Player of the Year Tim Tebow received all but one of the votes; Steve Spurrier voted for Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead. I suppose it's possible that Spurrier voted that way in some passive aggressive attempt to stick it to Florida, his former employer, but regardless of his rationale it's not an altogether ridiculous thought.

Florida lost only one game a season ago, a heart-wrenching one-point defeat at home to none other than the Snead-led Rebels. The game was an SEC classic in which Snead willed his team to victory with a gritty performance that saw him throw for 185 yards, two touchdowns and rush for another.

Ole Miss closed out last season with six consecutive victories including a comeback win over Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl and is ranked 10th in the aforementioned completely meaningless preseason top-25 poll.

USC will lose at least two games this season: I am keenly aware of the fact that "USC" and "rebuilding" are not two terms that have often collided in the same sentence for the better part of the last decade. However, this season may be the closest thing Trojan Nation has seen to a rebuilding year since I was in junior high.

The team lost eight starters from last year's punishing defense and serious questions at the quarterback position loom as the season begins. Junior quarterback Aaron Corp will enter the season as the Trojans starter, however, freshman Matt Barkley is the unquestioned Carson Palmer/Matt Leinhart/Mark Sanchez in waiting and if Corp struggles this season, especially if he struggles in a loss, do not be surprised if Head Coach Pete Carroll turns to Barkley and when he does, it'll be for good.

Finally, I feel like I should make the clarification that I believe USC will lose two games and the team's trip to Ohio's Capitol City on September 12th may not necessarily be one of those games. Even if USC escapes Columbus with a victory, it still plays road games at California and at Oregon as well as its annual rivalry showdown with a much improved UCLA club to close out the regular season.

Speaking of USC vs. Ohio State...

On two completely separate occasions last weekend I was asked whether or not I thought Ohio State could avenge last season's beatdown at the hands of the Trojans. Since everyone seems to be so concerned with my opinion on that game I'll offer it here.

The Buckeyes have a much better chance at beating USC this time around, and even if they don't the final score will be nothing like the 34-3 butt kicking given to the Bucks last season.

In many regards USC/OSU II resembles Texas/Ohio State II from the fall of 2006.

In fact, this edition of Ohio State football is a lot like the 2006-2007 Buckeyes. That is, a team, with a few question marks on defense beginning to come into its own with a potentially All-Universe quarterback entering his first full season under center.

Furthermore, USC, as previously mentioned, will not be nearly as good as the team Ohio State saw a season ago, just like in 2006 when Texas was without Vince Young and started an inexperienced Colt McCoy at the quarterback position.

An added bonus for the Bucks, just like in '06, the game will be played in The 'Shoe, as opposed to the hostile environment found in Southern California.

Finally, the Big 10 isn't that deep of a conference this year. Other than the Buckeyes and Penn State, the only other team in the top 25 as the season begins are the consummate underachievers that comprise Iowa University football.

Don't you love how I spent, like, four full paragraphs at the beginning of this blog downplaying the importance of preseason polls and have subsequently referenced those very polls several times since in an effort to validate my points?

Anyway, if Ohio State can pull off a win against the Trojans the opportunity to run the table this season certainly exists.

I would be remiss if I didn't close this column by pointing out the fact that I am pretty much full of crap most of the time about most things, so taking my predictions to Vegas and betting the family nest egg on the claims I make in this space is an extremely stupid thing to do.

That said, one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that this college football season promises to be positively fascinating and I, for one, cannot wait for the games get underway.

Catching up with Al

Since we're talking football today I feel compelled to point out that Madden 10 is due to be released in approximately 11 hours and nine minutes. I asked Kate this morning about the plausibility of purchasing the video game and an XBox 360 to play it on.

"Just how're you going to pay for it?"

Touche.

What she doesn't know is that I'm thiseclose to donating sperm in an effort to offset the cost.

So, I promised a football column today and I had several strong insights all ready to post. Then right as I was preparing to blog I started talking to my good buddy Alan via the magic of Facebook chat, and as the conversation progressed we ended up touching on most of the same topics I planned on covering today anyway.

As a result, I've decided to post our chat transcript from this morning.

Kornheiser and Wilbon ain't got nothin' on us...

Nathaniel
hey man, whats crackin?

Alan
hey! Just crawled out of bed. what are you up to today?

Nathaniel
not much, man; trying to find the motivation required to do some dishes

Alan
Yeah I have laundry on tap myself. I'm catching up on PTI as we speak too.

Nathaniel
haha nice. ive got caddyshack on the golf channel

Alan
Yeah I saw that. I was trying to see who has first round coverage of the PGA today. TNT in case you're wondering.

Nathaniel
haha. good looking out, man...i checked first thing this morning while i was listening to mike and mike. i didn't think u were a big golf guy

Alan
I usually watch the majors. watson story was great last month. I'm glad you finally blogged again, I'm reading it right now. I missed it.

Nathaniel
thanks, man...im getting prepped to write again today. there was just a ton of stuff going on in july and finding the time and motivation was sometimes difficult. i've had a little more free time this week, however. lol

Alan
good, I look forward to it. It's fun to hear a sports voice that isn't biased to east coast teams and doesn't have to keep the language and references up to Mickey Mouse's standards

Nathaniel
haha. it's funny u mention that because i definitely dont wanna be too vulgar (my mom reads it, kates parents read it, etc) but i definitely try and be kind of edgy. how's business at the erma?

Alan
pretty much the same. it's actually a little better than the huge drop off that happened when everything crashed in the fall. i cracked 130 last night so it can't be too bad. I'm just happy to be working at a place I enjoy being at again. what are your plans for work now?
on a side note, am I obligated to care about the little league world series?

Nathaniel
not one bit. i don't. it was fun to watch when we were that age, but there's just too much going on in the sports world to devote any level of energy to the llws right now

Nathaniel
i have a pretty good lead on a job at a local radio station. a lead that, ironically enough, i happened upon while i was working at the erma a few weeks back. but i have a final interview there tomorrow morning; suffice it to say ive put a lot of eggs in that basket

Alan
man that sounds ideal. is it talk radio?

Nathaniel
no, its not. i'd be the evening news guy, covering pta meetings and local courts. but, i feel like there's a lot of room for advancemant. if they end up hiring me i'm gonna try and find a niche covering some hs football or something, maybe see if they'll let me blog for the website

Alan
yeah that's awesome. everyone starts with something like that covering local.

Nathaniel
exactly....especially in this job market
hows the wife?

Alan
she's great. she picked up a bartending job at that place that tammy works at and has climbed the ladder there fairly quickly. she's all but done with the erma as well. she's been making cakes for weddings and baby showers on the side too this summer. we both couldn't be happier.

Nathaniel
thats pretty cool, man.
really cool, actually. good for her

Alan
btw I'll say at least two wins for the lions, zero arrests for the bengals this year.

Nathaniel
haha. nice
i hope the whodeys can stay clean this year
and im thinking closer to five or six wins for the lions...matt stafford may just channel his inner matt ryan

Alan
i don't see a micheal turner in that backfield

Nathaniel
touche

Alan
I don't really know what's going to happen with the nfl season this year. other than pitts winning the north I feel like most divisions are wide open.

Nathaniel
yea. im inclined to agree. the nfc north is what really fascinates me. gb, minn, and chi all have a serious chance

Alan
yeah all three teams have talent, but showed flaws in different areas last year. who do you like in baseball? the consensus in my circle is that is seems to be the yankees year.

Nathaniel
yea, thats not an awful bet. i really, really like philly though. hammels and lee are a dynamic 1-2...not that the same cant be said for burnet and sabathia...i just cant bring myself to pick ny--even if it is the smart bet

Alan
NY-Phi is my world series pick.....which makes me want to jump off my balcony.
I'm focusing my energies on hockey and college football from here on out...

Nathaniel
not too excited about the brownies this year, huh?

Alan
they went four games last year without an offensive touchdown and the only thing they did to address that was draft a center! and the saying goes, if you have two quarterbacks, your have no quarterback. I'm not giving them any ticket money unless they're competitive. They don't deserve it.

Nathaniel
strong words. thats a good point, though. and i agree with you, mangini would be a damn fool to drag this qb controversy out into the preseason. the job is brady quinn's good or bad

Alan
my feeling is that eric knows quinn will start, he's just not tipping his hand to other teams yet.
derek anderson couldn't beat out charlie frye in camp two years ago and apparently no one remembers that.

Nathaniel
ah, good ol charlie frye. i bumped into him last week when he pumped my gas

Alan
did seattle eventually cut him? I lost track of him after they traded him.

Nathaniel
ya know, i couldnt tell ya. hes no higher than their 3rd stringer, seneca wallis is the backup for matt hasselbeck

Alan
signed with the raiders in june, according to wikipedia

Nathaniel
hm. interesting. i think i'd rather pump gas, dude. oakland is an absolute greasefire

Alan
ha ha yeah. oakland will be better this year though. I think they may actually finish ahead of denver

Nathaniel
now THERE'S a greasfire.

Alan
lol

Nathaniel
im somewhat interested to see how jamarcus russel plays in oakland

Alan
that's pretty much what their year boils down to. they already have an established defense and all the talent in the world at rb.

Nathaniel
we'll both see the raiders...the west is one of the outside divisions played by the north this year

Alan
that's right. what's the nfc division we play? north?

Nathaniel
yea
which is why im reasonably excited about the bengals. as far as im concerned, the toughest game on our ledger are the two we play against pittsburgh.
i think that division will be close, but i dont know that it'll be all that good

Alan
yeah it won't be as brutal as last year at least. bears and viks will be tough too.

Nathaniel
yea, i dont know cleveland's schedule offhand, but i know we go to gb and minn, two very tough places to play

Alan
its not bad. other than in the division the only tough road game is chicago. other than that, at buffalo, kc, and denver.

Nathaniel
yea, thats not dreadful.

Alan
what do you think of cowherd's show sportsnation?

Nathaniel
oh, its terrible, man...
which is kind of a shame because i really enjoy the herd

Alan
really? i like it. plus that blonde is smoking hot

Nathaniel
hmm. maybe i should give it another chance, then...
because not only did i think the show was kind of ho-hum, i thought the blonde was only like a 5.5 or 6

Alan
ha ha. c'mon her sports knowledge alone makes her a seven

Nathaniel
thats a fair point. i am exponentially more attracted to a chick that can talk sports intelligentially. it's a huge turn on for me. i called one of those 900 numbers last week and when the chick asked me what i wanted i told her to moan loudly pete rose's career hit total!

Alan
ha ha nice! picturing pete rose though would kill my erection faster than chasing three zolofts with a half a bottle of whiskey.

Nathaniel
that's true. look at it this way, at least i didnt say marge schott!
so, were u pleased or disapointed that brett favre didnt come back this year?

Alan
what a joke. I'm so over that guy. we all saw how horrible he was down the stretch last year right? didn't they start 8-3 last year and he tanked so bad they missed the playoffs?

Nathaniel
thats right. but if u listen to major news outlets in ny favre injured his shoulder and was playing hurt down the stretch

Alan
then he shouldn't have been in and i have one more reason to doubt mangini. they have a decent enough back up in clemens
well i need to get things done sometime today

Nathaniel
have a good one, buddy...send my best to the wife

Alan
will do, good luck with the job

While I was away...

Before I begin, I owe you an appology for my extended abscence from this space. I have not posted in far too long, for a myriad of reasons, some of which we'll get to during this column today.

Despite my hiatus I want you to know that I will absolutely make a more concerted effort to post. After all, there are at least three people who anxiously anticipate a daily Pressbox update.

In an effort to prove my newfound dedication, I'm playing hurt today. I'm reasonably certain I have come down with a nasty case of bronchitis. I am usually good for one nasty bout with bronchitis each year, usually during the winter. I guess that's what I get for doing those bong hits in the Max & Erma's freezer.

I really should go to the doctor; too bad I'm one of the approximately 46 million Americans without health insurance.

Speaking of Uncle Max, though...

I had an epiphany during another brutal shift and quit my job Sunday afternoon. It was both invigorating and completely horrifying at the exact same time. On the one hand, serving overpriced food to ungrateful patrons had absolutely run its course. On the other hand, the bills won't stop rolling in just because the money does.

I guess it's a good thing I have a sugar momma.

Obviously, I don't mean (all) of that. No, really though, Kate is totally cool. She even has her own blog now, too.

www.cooking-with-kate.blogspot.com

OK, let's get to the sports.

Pennant races are heating up and football season is right around the corner. Other than the second week of March during March Madness and spring training, this is the best time of the year.

Just because My Favorite Baseball Team has totally collapsed does not mean my interest in baseball has at all subsided. There are still a ton of cool stories out there and they should be embraced.

So, if you're an Indians fan, Pirates fan, Royals fan, Nationals fan, Orioles fan, Padres fan or Reds fan I'm going to toss out three stories to keep an eye on as September draws near and the playoffs loom.

The NL Wild Card: This is a fascinating race that could very well end up going to down to the last week of the regular season. The Rockies were done like dinner six weeks into the regular season as they floundered near the bottom of the NL West and fired manager Clint Hurdle. Since then the Rockies have caught fire a la 2007 when they steamrolled all the way into the Fall Classic.

Meanwhile, the San Francisco Giants have overachieved all season long and have embodied everything I hoped to see out of the Reds this season. That is, a suspect offense carried by a dominant pitching staff, a solid 'pen and a bonified closer to finish games. Unlike the Reds, of course, the Giants offense has been better than advertised and its pitching staff has not been rot with injuries. Furthermore, nice acquisitions like Freddie Sanchez and Ryan Garko could very well end up paying huge dividends down the stretch.

While much of the attention has gone to the Giants and Rockies the Marlins and Braves continue to stay in the hunt, doing just enough to stick around long enough for a possible September run.

The Boston Red Sox: Not that I want to give the Boston Red Sox any more attention than the major media outlets already pay them, but this team truly is a fascinating storyline down the stretch--especially if it ends up folding like a cheap lawn chair on sale at Target.

I'm positively embarassed to admit this, but 10 years ago the Red Sox were my favorite American League team. They were consumate underachievers and perenial underdogs, I related to them in this way. That is simply not the case anymore. The team won the World Series and almost immediately became a cliche. Now, they spend as much money as the Yankees and the fan base is twice as obnoxious.

That said, the fact that the Red Sox were swept last weekend at Yankee Stadium amused me. What really got me going, though, was the group therapy session that commenced in Beantown lacking only cyanide-laced fruit punch.

I believe a Red-soxless post-season would knock Red Sox Nation down a peg or two...maybe. But, that's not even the point. The point is that sometimes it's nice to see some fresh faces in October. In this case, the Texas Rangers, who trail Boston by only a game-and-a-half in the chase for the American League Wild Card.

The National League Central: A month or so ago there were four teams right in the hunt for the NL Central crown. Now, there are only two. The St. Louis Cardinals lead the Chicago Cubs by three games and thanks to a couple savvy July trades have put themselves in prime position to claim the division title. There can be little question the Cardinals have the offense required to make an October run, but the starting pitching may not be deep enough to support the potent attack.

On the other hand, the Cubs boast some of the best starting pitching in all of baseball, but the fact of the matter is that the offense may not be consist enough to catch the front-running Cardinals down the stretch.

Maybe, just maybe, the pain of watching your favorite baseball team completely fall from contention has been too burdensome and you simply cannot watch any more baseball until the World Series. If that is the case, I can hardly blame you.

As a result, tomorrow will begin a week's worth of football previews as we gear up for gridiron season.

Before I go, I'll leave you with one question in an effort to compel you to come back tomorrow for the answer: Which number will be higher this upcoming NFL season, the number of victories for the Detroit Lions or the number of Cincinnati Bengals arrested?