I started playing fantasy football this year and I’m finding that I need another reality check. Rooting for your fantasy team takes watching football to a new level and puts a whole new spin on it. If you’ve read my posts, you know I’m not a big Philip Rivers fan. However, he’s my fantasy quarterback so I find myself actively rooting him on. And I feel like a traitor the whole time, but I’m competitive enough that I’d rather win my week in fantasy, albeit with a player I despise. One of the pluses that has come from my foray into fantasy football? I now watch games I wouldn’t have cared about before. And because Rivers is my QB, I’m watching him more closely and realizing that he’s got some talent. Still hate the attitude, but he’s got some talent.

So, I’ve been criticized for caring more about my fantasy team than my reality teams. This season in particular, I’m grateful for the distraction. Had Tom Brady gone down last year, I would have been devastated. It would have been the horror to end all horrors. I’m not going to say I barely noticed when it happened this year, but the level to which it crushed me was lessened by the focus on the fantasy team. And while I watch games with a different perspective, I haven’t abandoned my first love, the Patriots. Now, I still root for them to win but if one of my guys is playing against them, I root for my guy to also have a good game. I believe the two interests can co-exist. Just don’t let me make the playoffs and have Phildelphia play NE in the Super Bowl. I have Philly Defense. I’d have to root for the final score to be NE 3, Philly 0…

It seems as though I’m not the only one in need of a reality check already at this point in the season. Brett Favre appears to need someone to remind him that he’s almost 39 and that he probably should have stayed retired. And the San Diego defense seems to be all-too-willing to serve as that reminder. Favre has made some terrible throws tonight and has gotten sacked a few times. I literally watched him botch a 2-point conversion after benefitting from 4 SD penalties that actually placed the ball on the 1/2 yard-line!! As if I needed more of an argument against those who feel he had plenty left in the tank. Favre needs to remember that, while he will occasionally throw a frozen rope that will land neatly in the hands of his receiver, ever so slightly in front of the defender who has his hands all up in the receivers face, the reality this season is that this throw will most likely be a pick. 

As I write this, I’m watching my fantasy team wrap up the week with a W. Rivers got me almost 20 points and, more importantly, LDT and Vincent Jackson helped one of my friends win their week by beating a guy who was 2-0 on the season. My friend was 0-2 so while he picks up his first victory, he’s also prevented this other guy from being 3-0. Fantastic for me since I’m 2-1 (well, technically in 1:48 I’ll be 2-1). So the Patriots lost their game this week. To the Dolphins. By a large margin. With Ronnie Brown scoring 4 times and actually throwing for a touchdown. And to borrow the title from a great Gen-X movie–reality bites. But with fantasy this good? Who needs reality?

The regular season technically kicked off on Thursday with the Giants-Redskins game.  I couldn’t tune in for the kickoff and when I picked up the game, it was 16-7. And that didn’t change for the rest of the game. Not exactly the blockbuster match-up I’d be hoping for as the season opener but hey, it was football. I’m not complaining too much! Especially since I have Brandon Jacobs on my fantasy team. He rushed for 116 yards, though he didn’t score any touchdowns. Stupid Eli Manning. That kid is bound and determined to screw me over, season after season! He couldn’t have handed off to Jacobs for the only TD of the game, could he? No, Eli’s Coming had to run it in for the 1-yard score. And my dislike for him continues to grow, no matter how many Manning brothers commercials they run on TV.

So now’s a good time to mention that I’m playing fantasy football for the first time. I certainly watch enough football, I figured I may as well put that attention span to good use and join a league. My league was supposed to do a live draft (which I pushed for), which then got cancelled, and we then had an auto-draft at 5 in the morning the other day. I wasn’t happy. I got my quarterback in the very last round (round 15) and the computer drafted me Trent Edwards. Really? The computer thinks I wouldn’t have drafted a QB until the very last round? I mean, I know I’m a girl, but even I would have known to draft a QB by, oh I don’t know, the 3rd or 4th round!! Who waits til the last round to draft a QB? Apparently, ESPN’s auto-draft, that’s who. I made a trade for Phil Rivers, since I had about 12 RB’s to deal, and I now have to root for a quarterback that I despise. I know he’s got the question mark of the knee injury but you know, Luis Castillo certainly thought Rivers was brave and who I am to disagree with that?! He’ll be fine. 

So not only does the NFL season really get going in a matter of minutes, but so does my first fantasy football match-up. It’s a big day! Some may say I take these games too seriously, but I say pooh-pooh to that notion. You can never take football too seriously. And if any of my neighbors ask you that question, just back me up because I’m sure they get tired of listening to me yell at my TV. Football baby!! I’m a happy girl.

Now, I don’t mean that I’m a dominatrix in the typical sense of the word. No, we won’t get that personal. But I have learned that I absolutely love dominance. It’s why I love the Yankees. Sure, they’re not in top form at the moment, nor have they been in the last few years. But I started watching the Yankees in the mid-90’s when they were at their peak. You just knew every season that they would contend. And it’s only been in the last 3 years that it’s even been a question of whether or not they’d make the post-season. Their hitting was phenomenal. Their pitching was lights out. The team chemistry was off the charts. They basically could not be stopped. 

My love of dominance is why I root so hard for the New England Patriots. Granted, last season was really a failure since they couldn’t win in the one game that counted. But for the regular season they man-handled their opponents. Sure, they took a lot of flack for that since the domination sometimes resulted in an embarrassing loss for their foe. I happened to love watching them, week after week. 

I had never really stopped to find the common thread in the teams that I follow. I’ve been accused of being a band-wagon fan. And on the surface I can see that argument. But it’s not that only root for the winner. Quite the opposite actually; I love a good underdog story! But I love to see one team rise above all the others in the field and those teams do usually go on to win overall. 

What lead me to my self-discovery was the beginning of the 2008 Olympics. Every time the Olympics are approaching I think “eh, who really cares?” I had fully planned to watching almost nothing but football this weekend. But I tuned into the Olympics on Saturday just in time to watch Michael Phelps win his first gold medal. And by win, I mean absolutely demolish anyone else in the pool with him. You want to talk dominance? He is the definition. He is head and shoulders above his competition, and not just because he’s freakishly tall. Then, I had the immense pleasure of watching the men’s 4×100 relay last night. Phelps lead off and got the team off to a great start. The middle two swimmers did their parts, though Cullen Jones did leave some length to be made up at the end of the 3rd leg. And then Jason Lezak entered the pool. All evening, the announcers kept saying that, no matter how many times they ran the scenario on paper, they just didn’t see how France loses that relay. Cut to the video of the French team warming up with the footnote that, weeks prior, they were quoted as saying that they’d smash the Americans. All of this is in the back of my mind as Lezak makes the final turn and begins the final lap. Somehow, he managed to overtake his French rival in the last 25 meters of the lap and wound up beating him by 7/100 of a second. That, my friends, is dominance. To watch the elated expressions on the American team in direct contract to the anguish on the faces of the French swimmers was a great feeling. And hearing the National Anthem play as the four men stood on the podium, gold medals around their necks, really reminded me of how much national pride I feel. 

Tonight, Phelps continued his quest to be the most decorated American swimmer of all time. He easily won the gold in the 200 freestyle. Personally, I think he’ll beat Spitz’s record for most gold medals in an Olympic game. And it doesn’t hurt his status in my eyes that he swam for Michigan. I’m not sure that he can be beaten. Certainly Ian Thorpe would beg to differ, but this year, Thorpe is watching from the stands while Phelps dominates in the pool. And that may be the most disappointing factor of all. I would love to watch Phelps out-swim him this year. To prove that he truly is the most dominant swimmer in the sport.

Yes, it takes one of the greatest players making one of the largest mistakes to draw me out of relaxation mode. I can’t seem to wrap my brain around what Brett is doing with his current stunt. Two seasons ago, when he hemmed and hawed for months during the off-season about whether or not to return, I was annoyed but figured he had earned the right to take his time with the decision.  I thought it was fairly clear at the end of last season that he was going to retire, and retire he did. And at the time I thought “good for him! It was a heck of a career and you ended it in good fashion”. Why, then, dear Brett, have you decided less than 6 months later that you still have the competitive drive and want to play the game? Really? You miss the game that much based on 6 months of off-season? You miss it more now than when you ended the season with a loss in the NFC Championship game? One would think that the ubiquitous fire in the belly would burn strongest right after a loss like that and would die down the further removed one got from that game. Apparently Brett defies logic. He’s decided he wants to come back and has been officially reinstated by the league.

That alone is enough to draw my ire and place him atop my “persona non grata” list. What earns him a life-long space on the list is the fact that he’s even considering taking the “marketing agreement” he’s discussing with Green Bay brass, where he would receive approximately $20 million over the next several years just to remain retired. If the whole point of this dramatic exercise is that he just can’t stay away from the game, then this wouldn’t even be on the table. If what he really wanted was to play the game he loves so dearly, he would have requested a trade at the end of last season. But to allow Green Bay to go through the draft and get nearly to the beginning of training camp and then decide it’s time to think about coming back is just poor taste at best. I might even deem it calculated and malicious. And thus, if he does come back to play this season in the NFL, I will actively root against him and will hope he shows his age with every throw.  

Another person on the dislike list is Manny Ramirez. I can’t stand that guy! Yes, he’s an amazing hitter and a pretty good outfielder. He has won the Red Sox more than a few games this season. What I dislike the most about him is that you can actually see that he’s bought into his own hype. He stands and admires his handiwork when he knocks one out of the park. He apparently finds it acceptable to knock down the support staff of the team when he doesn’t think he’s getting the star treatment. And he speaks out publicly to air his grievances with his team instead of keeping them a private matter. I guess Boston finally took the Roberto Duran route and said “no mas”. Because Ramirez is now in Hollywood, which really is a good fit for him, and Jason Bay has replaced him on the team. I’m frankly a little surprised at that move. Most of the analysts figured the Bo Sox would deal him when the season was over so they could get more for their money. I guess the situation deteriorated faster than expected and the deal is now done, making Manny persona non grata in Bean Town. 

Watching the Hall of Fame game brought me a surprising amount of joy this evening. Normally in a Colts-Red Skins match-up I’d be pulling for the Colts but since Manning wasn’t playing past minute 2, my interest swung to a different colt–watching Colt Brennan lead the Skins.  He looked surprisingly sharp! I think out of the group of QB’s from this year’s draft, Brennan’s stock dropped the most at the NFL Combine. I really figured he’d be a bust, and not the kind you find in the Hall of Fame there in Canton. But tonight he ran an efficient offense and completed some impressive passes. Granted, that was while facing the second-or third-string Indy defense, but a good pass is a good pass. Last season we had a bit of a Todd Collins resurgence there in DC which, by law, I should support seeing as how he played his college ball at U of M. With the Brennan performance tonight, you can’t help but wonder if Collins won’t become persona non grata in our nation’s capital. 

So, while the vacation mode was nice, I’m all too happy to return to the blogosphere for another season of my favorite sport. I will be attending the Cowboys-Texans pre-season game on August 22 which should be quite interesting, since I may openly root for the Texans. There will be a full report as it will be my first change to get a feel for the Boys this season. Now let’s just hope I can manage to unpack my suitcases by the time the game rolls around! 

I admittedly haven’t followed hockey all that much since about 2000. The Stars have been fairly bad up until this year and really I just had other sports to watch and didn’t miss it.  This year, however, things changed. Being born and raised in Michigan, I was naturally rooting for the Red Wings to re-claim the Cup. But even with them in the finals, I didn’t start watching until game 4. But boy did I get sucked in at that point! Game 4 was nearly wrapped up with about 60 seconds to go and Pittsburgh had pulled their goalie. Somehow they managed to score with about 30 second remaining and forced the game into overtime. Which lead to double-overtime, which lead to triple overtime…where, sadly, the Penguins won the game. Now, I can stay up late if a game is holding my interest but even I have limits. So when the second over-time ended and my clock was nearing midnight, I thought “I’ll have to read about the end of this game tomorrow on-line”. But lo and behold, the eyelids only fluttered a few times during the intermission between double-and triple-overtime. The rest of the time I was literally on the edge of my seat and my heart was racing as I gritted my teeth, willing the puck not to cross the goal line on the Red Wings side. Every time Osgood got a save, I let a little breath out, but never completely relaxed. The time in each period seemed to fly by and I was genuinely excited watching the skill required to score a goal.  

Now, that’s one of the reasons people cite for why people in America don’t follow hockey more closely. Frankly, that argument just doesn’t hold water with me. Baseball is supposedly America’s Past Time, and one of the most amazing feats to witness in a baseball game is a no-hitter. We cheer the concentration and cool that it takes to record a no-hitter or even a just a scoreless game from a pitcher. And yet that type of low scoring performance is not appreciated when it comes to hockey, and really soccer too, for that matter. So it seems hypocritical.

You really don’t need to know all the rules to follow a hockey game. About the only requirement is good vision because it’s nearly impossible to keep up with the whereabouts of that little round puck gliding back and forth on the ice! And the action is as fast-paced as it comes. In terms of physicality, it rivals football. Every other time someone’s vying for the puck they’re getting checked into the glass and that doesn’t hold a candle to the glove-dropping, all-out fights that break out in every match!  

You can tell that the NHL is desperately trying to show that their sport should be included in the sports that even a casual fan watches. I got a good laugh out of the “Wired” feature that they had going on during the games. It’s the same concept as when the have players wired for sound in football. They put a mic on someone and try to capture the sounds of the game, but it loses it’s effectiveness in hockey. They would cut to the “Wired” segment during time outs in the game and the idea is that you’d feel closer to the action. It fell flat because all you really heard was the sound of someone’s stick moving around on the ice and some heavy breathing. I guess they don’t trash talk in hockey like they do in football. So they may want to dial that back next season because it’s really not adding anything to the viewing experience.  

It helps too that I was able to watch the playoffs in HD. Hockey is a sport that is best viewed in person. More so than maybe any of other the other sports. And not just for the hotdogs and nachos.  The level of action in a hockey game is so intense and you do lose something just watching that on tv. But the HD experience helps you see the game clearly and that helps in terms of following the puck.  

I contrast that viewing experience with Game 1 of the NBA Finals because Game 1 just felt like a regular-season game. It felt like, “oh yeah, the Lakers are playing the Celtics this week”. Now, Game 2 just wrapped up as I write this, and that game had a little more drama built in, but it’s not as though the basketball vibe blows away the excitement level of hockey. So I fail to see why more people don’t watch hockey, and if they’re not watching now, I’m not sure when they’ll tune in again. Sidney Crosby is pretty darn amazing to watch and he’s only 20, so there’s your young phenom with the hype. The level of play in the finals was as good or better than any hockey I’ve seen. And the Red Wings are the marquee team and they just won the Cup. So I doubt it’s ever going to cross into another plane. And that means that most of the casual fans will continue to choose something like “The Mole” to watch when they could easily tune in a hockey game.  

One random, final thought, speaking of programming on ABC. Supposedly ABC will begin airing a show called “Wipeout” this summer. The concept, given the commercial I saw, appears to be people competing in an obstacle course where the object is to see them wipe out in dramatic, kick-in-the-crotch type fashion. Correct me if I’m wrong, but this show is called MXC and they’ve shown it on Spike for years. MXC has been the source of many a tear-filled belly laugh late at night for me. The main difference I see so far is that MXC is a Japanese show where they dub in American voices, which adds to the sheer joy of viewing. The ABC version appears to be filmed in America, so I’m guessing it will be in English, and that will kill some of the entertainment.  I shake my head at the whole thing. If we haven’t learned by now that our sense of humor in this country is very different than the rest of the collective world, I don’t know when we will. The Office is the only show that originated in another country that really works with American humor. Yet another source of tears-of-joy laughter in my day. Needless to say, I’ll be checking my TV Guide to see if Spike still shows MXC, just as a back-up plan in case this Wipeout lives up to it’s title…

First things first. I’m becoming a bit of a baseball fan. Surprised even me! I actually sat down tonight and turned on my TV only to watch the end of the Twins-Red Sox game instead of immediately tuning into the Celtics-Cavs game that was in full swing. And it’s not like I have any particular affinity for the Twins. Can’t stand the Red Sox, and maybe that’s what made me tune in. I wanted to be sure they lost. But this strange compulsion actually caused me to watch the game the night before from about the 3rd inning on. And contrary to my own popular belief, the games actually held my attention. 

So between the baseball and the NBA playoffs, I find myself in a place I’ve never been before–satisfied with the sports scene sans football. I have a few selections of sporting events to watch every night and for the most part, it’s good quality stuff. Ok, I did find myself getting annoyed by the announcers in last night’s BoSox game repeatedly telling us the differences between natural grass and Astro Turf fields. But beyond that, the on-field–or on-court action depending on the night–is truly entertaining. It’s a bit difficult to root for the Yankees right now since they kind of suck. I’m sticking it out though. And the Tigers have been showing some signs of promise, with the AL Central sort of up for grabs.

Since I’m on a bit of a roll, I suppose now is as good a time as any to divulge that I don’t, under really any circumstances, root for the Rangers. And worse than that? I actually have started rooting against almost all the Dallas teams! I’m glad the Mavs lost. There, I said it. I was rooting for the Hornets the entire series. And as proof that that was the right decision, the Mavs went and fired Avery Johnson at the end of the season, which in my book was a big mistake in a long line of mistakes this season. From everything I’ve heard, the major force behind the Kidd trade was Cuban, not Johnson. If they would have kept Diop and Harris, who knows how they would have fared against New Orleans. But they didn’t, and they lost, and I was glad. And now I’m hoping the Hornets win it all. I want them to crush San Antonio (yes, my lack of love apparently extends to all Texas teams right now), though I’m a little surprised that there’s such a discrepancy between how they play on the road and at home. And frankly I couldn’t care less who’s coming out of the East. I already don’t want them to win.  

But wait! The hate doesn’t stop there! I’m actively rooting against the Stars in favor of the Red Wings! The city of Dallas will likely ask me to move, no doubts. I have been a Red Wings fan since I was a kid, so really this isn’t such a bad thing. I don’t necessarily hop on the hometown band wagon. But it makes it tough to talk a little water-cooler talk when you are cheering against the team that everyone else lives and dies by. Guess I’ll have to work on my neutral stance. 

And with that, my sins have been exposed. Just don’t tell football that I’m getting along fine without it. We’ve had such a good thing going all these years, I don’t want to ruin it just yet.  

Let’s start, for proximity’s sake, with the picks made by the Dallas Cowboys. Overall, I’m pleased. I had a feeling they’d take Felix Jones and I’m glad that they didn’t trade up to get Darren McFadden. I know he’ll be an impact player, but the Boys already have Marion Barber and Jones will fill the role that Julius Jones was playing. I also had a suspicion that they’d look to take Mike Jenkins if he were still on the board when they had their second pick. The only thing that taints this pick is knowing that Jenkins will be playing along side Pacman Jones, assuming he’s reinstated. I questioned the Tank Johnson signing and things have seemed to work out so far on that deal. This one though? Whole other ball game. I don’t trust when Jones says he’s learned his lesson. I don’t trust that he’ll stay out of trouble.  The third player they drafted today was Martellus Bennett, the TE out of Texas A&M.  When I first heard his name called, I thought it was odd that they were drafting at that position in the second round, as they have quite a few options to go to. But then I remembered that they struck a deal with Miami to send Akin Ayodele and Anthony Fasano for the second and fourth round picks. And that got me thinking. Where is Jerry Jones’ head?

First he loses Tony Sparano to the Dolphins which, I suppose, is easy enough to defend because you can’t really hold a guy back from an opportunity to be a head coach. But wouldn’t you naturally be suspicious when the man who was coaching your team last year is now the VP of Operations there in Miami and he seems to be systematically stealing your staff and players? Does Jerry really have so little regard for Parcells’ football acumen that he honestly thinks he’s getting the better end of the deal on his stuff? I was impressed with Fasano this season. I think he’s going to grow into a really good player. And to only get two picks for those two players? Something seems strange. With the way Miami drafted today, and the players they’ve acquired this off-season, I honestly think things could be turning around for them. And Henne and Long are Michigan guys so I may just have to start paying attention to the Dolphins!    

For only having two picks in this first day of the draft, I think New England fared pretty well, which is par for the course for that franchise. With their first pick, they got Jerod Mayo, which led to one of my favorite moments of the draft. Chris Berman did his best deadpan when asking what other teams would get flagged for next season. The answer? 15 yards for holding the Mayo…classic. This is why I love Boomer! Everyone has mentioned that New England needs to get younger on defense so I’m not going to point that out. But I think Mayo is a versatile player who will work well in the New England defensive scheme. They also selected Terrance Wheatley who will compete to replace Asante Samuel, which is not a small set of shoes to fill. Ok, well, maybe size-wise they’re small shoes, I mean Samuel isn’t exactly the biggest guy, but still, you get my drift…All in all, it was a rather unremarkable draft for the Pats, but that’s just how they roll, so we’ll just have to wait until the season begins before we can evaluate if they made the right choices.  

A few miscellaneous highlights from Day 1. I was really pleased to see Arizona select Rodgers-Cromartie. I think he’ll be a good player and AZ could use some help on defense. I like Ken Whisenhunt and want to see him succeed. And there seem to be so many good pieces in place for them that I’d loved to see that all gel. There will be a debate raging up until the season begins, and likely well into it, on whether or not Matt Ryan was the right selection for Atlanta. I think Atl couldn’t win with that pick. If they didn’t draft a QB, who are they going to pick up to lead that team? If it wasn’t Matt Ryan, who would be a better fit for that franchise? Brian Brohm? Um, no. And with them drafting a QB to replace Vick, they have no room for error because they already failed once in that department. So really, because that franchise has suffered enough, I’m hoping Ryan pans out. I liked him at BC, I thought the drive he engineered to come back and beat Va Tech was fantastic, and all you hear on him is that he possesses the intangibles needed to win games on the field. I think Baltimore got it right taking Joe Flacco at the 18-spot and good riddance to Brian Brohm in Green Bay. That was maybe my least favorite move of yesterday’s action. He’s no better than Aaron Rogers. So now you’ve got two so-so QB’s vying to replace a legend. Great move Green Bay. 

And now, the things I didn’t like from yesterday’s coverage. I didn’t like how ESPN essentially ruined the element of surprise on some of these picks. When Matt Ryan was taken, about 2 minutes before the announcement the cameras were focused on him as he was taking a call on his cell phone, then he hung up, hugged his mother (who was tearing up) and hugged his dad. Gee, let’s see, maybe he just saved a bunch of money by switching his car insurance to Geico, but I’m thinking the more realistic answer in that case is that the Falcons called and said they were taking him. So then we had to wait another 2 minutes while the analysts pretended to debate who Atlanta was going to take.  And this happened on quite a few occasions. I was already disappointed that we knew who the #1 pick was, even though I was ecstatic that it was a Michigan guy. For ESPN to ruin the picks multiple times was poor. They even managed to do that with players that weren’t sitting in the green room! I would think to retain maximum viewership, you’d hold everyone in suspense as long as possible. But alas… 

I also was nearly blinded by the atrocity that was Keyshawn Johnson’s outfit. It was bad enough that I had to text my best friend to see if he was watching and was as blown away as I was. And the combined verdict was that Keyshawn has lost it. I’m all for pushing the fashion envelope, but that green checked shirt was just bad, no doubts about it. We did however both  enjoy the hostility between Keyshawn and Steve Young. The dislike between the two is palpable and makes for quite an interesting time. Keeps things lively! On a separate note, I am officially hoping that we had a preview to next season’s MNF booth combination with ESPN pairing Tirico and Jaws with Kirk Herbstreit. Don’t know if Herbie would leave college ball to step up to the pros, but I think it would be a great combo. Anything would be an improvement over Kornheiser, but Herbs would really be a good addition. 

Who knows what Day 2 has in store. Mario Manningham is still on the board so I’d like to see where he ends up. We’ll see if the Cowboys pick anyone up to improve their offensive line. Day 2 is never as exciting as Day 1, but at least when the draft is done we can start looking ahead to the new season. It’s definitely going to be a good day! 

The baseball season is tough for me. My favorite way to watch a game is in person, but I can’t quite bring myself to root for the Rangers. I’m really an Astros fan but ever since they welcomed back Roger Clemens with open arms, I question their leadership. Well, actually, I questioned their leadership well before that, but whatever. I question the Rangers front office even more. The Rangers had one good season about 5 years ago where everyone really believed that they could make the post-season. After that, they haven’t been close. Maybe I’ll wait until a good team comes to town and then I’ll get tickets. I’m not the biggest baseball buff to begin with, so watching a crummy team doesn’t help matters.

I hate to say it, but I don’t honestly care about women’s basketball. I’d sooner watch the Rangers play the Kansas City Royals than watch a women’s game, college or pro. And I realize that’s probably traitorous to my gender, but I can’t help it. I don’t find the level of competition to be nearly as compelling. I fully support the womens’ programs and i don’t discount that those women are excellently conditioned. But it doesn’t capture my interest. Sorry.

Is it wrong of me to be excited about the NFL draft? I’m positively giddy to see who ends up going #1. Mel Kiper and Todd McShay keep moving that projection around. Maybe Jake Long, maybe Glenn Dorsey, maybe Matt Ryan. Forget about NBC’s line up, the draft is what I deem must-see TV. This year’s NCAA tournament has been the most exciting tournament in my recent memory. So many of the games went down to the final seconds, even in the early round. When filling out the bracket every year, I try to anticipate the upsets. Like most, I think I hold the crystal ball when it comes to predicting the Cinderella story. I will pat myself on the back for taking Xavier down to the Elite 8, especially considering that I seriously toyed with the idea of picking Georgia over them in the first round!

I’ve got Memphis winning the whole deal, so I’m nervously watching to see if they can pull it off. The support I showed for Kansas in the football season is gone. I’m over the whole Roy Williams saga. And I’m over the multi-colored hanky he thought he could rock in the pocket of his oddly flecked suit tonight…

So hopefully the lack of blogging will be remedied by the ramp-up of the baseball season. I may not be there in person but baseball in HD is only a hot dog and cold beer away from being the real deal. And that’s close enough for me.

Speaking of SportsCenter, I tuned in for a late-night episode the other day and was struck by the number of things that just didn’t jive. There was a story running about Carl Edwards  being penalized 100 points for his missing oil tank lid, which caused him to lose his first-place standing in the Sprint Cup chase. ESPN had some guy, Marty Something-or-Other, on to discuss the harshness of this penalty. (shows you how closely I follow NASCAR when I can’t even remember the kid’s name) This poor fellow looked like he was about 12 years old, and his hair was coiffed in a way that created more peaks than the best of lemon meringue pies! And he was dressed in a suit. Now, at face value, I would have listened to him discuss how to punch up my bland living room on some home re-do show. But he was classic Texan in his speech patterns and something about that just did not match up to the appearance. Not to mention, in this same discussion, they had Rusty Wallace share his thoughts on the situation, also clad in a suit, and I found myself just shaking my head. Put these guys in some boots and jeans for goodness sake! It just wasn’t right.

Later in the episode, they showed highlights of that night’s Phoenix Suns game. Shaq Diesel in a Suns uniform? Not right! It doesn’t fit. And I don’t just mean because it’s difficult to find a jersey big enough to fit that giant beast of a man. I would have loved to see Shaq and Kobe bury the hatchet and re-team to win 3 more championships. Wait, I’m supposed to be a Mavs fan, right? Hmm, well that’s another thing that’s just not fitting this season…

I HATE the Kidd trade. I don’t see how it makes the Mavericks a contender for this season. I understand some feel that Devon Harris is overrated but I say he is every bit as effective as Kidd is at this stage of his career, only Harris is younger and you’ll get more years out of him. And really, the big shame of that deal was losing DeSagana Diop. He was a quality big-man who made a contribution. Plus all that cash…for Kidd? 5 years ago, not a problem. I understand the “win now” mentality that drives this NBA, (or really all sports leagues for that matter) but I can’t see how Kidd helps the Mavs win now. And because of that fact, I have boycotted my fan-ship for this season. And before you say it, I know, that ain’t right. But cut me some slack.

And alas, poor Brett Favre, we knew him well. But he has made the tough decision to retire. He says it’s for good. I believe him, for now. I don’t think it would be smart for him to retire now and come back in two years. But it wouldn’t shock me if he did. I know it’s cliche, but when I heard he announced his retirement, my mind immediately went to the infamous Monday night game right after he lost his father. Not too many games stick with me the way that one does. Even I teared up at the post-game interview. Favre is one of the greats, though I am shocked that some polls show him as the overwhelming fan selection for greatest of all-time. To see the Green Bay Packers led by their fearless starting QB, Aaron Rogers, just ain’t right.

I will say, as March rolls along, I am finding the excitement growing as the selections begin for the NCAA tourney. for the length of the tournament, I turn into a rabid college basketball fan. I’ll follow every game, eagerly watching my bracket. Invariably, the bracket is busted after the first two days, but it’s still so much fun to tune in. I’m a sucker for a Cinderella story, as I’ve discussed before. Is San Diego the new Gonzaga? I’d love to see a smaller school win this year as opposed to a Duke or UNC taking home the trophy. Of course I can’t actually pick a smaller school to win the tourney on my bracket, because, you know, that just ain’t right.

And the reality of the moment is that our US Senate is actively involved in the sports world. This is not a good thing. We are embroiled in the Spygate controversy and are also being treated to the hearings on the steroid issue as it pertains to Roger Clemens. It’s a stretch, but I don’t begrudge Congress for investigating the steroids issue as much as I whole-heartedly resent any investigation into the Patriots taping mess. And before you start saying that if it were any other team being investigated in the Spygate debacle I would support the Congressional intervention, let me dispel that myth.

My annoyance over the Congressional involvement in dredging up an issue that was dealt with stems from the rest of the pressing issues that our nation faces at the moment. It’s only a matter of technicality that we can’t officially declare the economy to be in recession; there’s this small thing called the Economic Stimulus Package that has been put together to help pull the struggling credit lenders out of the depths of despair they’ve been mired in for the last 6 months; there are a myriad of other issues I’m sure to which our Senate could devote their attention. Consider this bullet point taken from Mike Fish’s column on ESPN.com in regards to Sen. Arlen Specter’s interest in the video taping practices of the New England Patriots–”Specter is particularly concerned about how the taping might have affected New England’s games involving teams from his home state in the 2004 postseason. ” Since when can the Senate use their elected position to settle a case of sour grapes? Give it up Specter! Your Eagles suck! That’s not Bill Belichick’s doing. I don’t buy his excuse of the NFL receiving special consideration on the anti-trust/monopoly laws as the impetus for the witch hunt.

And just what is his overall vision here? What is Specter hoping to accomplish that hasn’t already been achieved? The franchise being publicly embarrassed? Check. The coach known for being a student of the game having to squirm uncomfortably in his press conferences while dodging questions about his involvement in this? Check. Both coach and team paying dearly for the frowned-upon practice? Check. So in my book we’re done. And I don’t say that from the perspective of a Patriots fan; I say that from the perspective of someone who feels the matter is closed and now it’s time to move on!

Speaking of moving on, at the moment, I feel for Andy Pettitte. He’s reporting to Spring Training today and will have to contend with the barrage of media that he is sure to face, this being his first public outing since he gave his deposition for the steroids investigation. I know Clemens is on record as saying that they’ll always be friends (this is a good thing?!) but the word strained comes to mind. Pettitte should be the example to any athletes who are implicated in the scope of this investigation. He admitted, almost immediately after the Mitchell report was released, that he took HGH to rehab from an elbow injury. The fever pitch died down. It comes out that he took it a bit more frequently than first confessed. He cops to it and once again, the questions he dodges pertain to Clemens’ use, not his own. Anyone else taking note of this point? Sounds to me like admitting what you’ve done is the way to go.

I predict that Bobby Knight takes a moment to at least consider returning to Indiana to coach the rest of the season (and possibly beyond) once/if Kelvin Sampson is dismissed. That seems like an inevitability at this point. The minute the story broke that the NCAA was charging Sampson with 5 recruiting violations, my first thought was that this may answer the question of why Knight retired so suddenly from Texas Tech. Let’s face it, that was not a characteristically Knight kind of move to quit on his team. And from what I’ve heard about the Sampson saga there at Indiana, it was known that the NCAA was going to accuse him of these violations prior to the story being formally released to the public. Coincidence? Perhaps. Who knows…maybe the House of Representatives will feel behind the times and will decide to hold some hearings on the matter.

Pitchers and catchers have officially reported to Spring Training. The Mavs and the Nets finally appear to be close to a deal to send Kidd to Big D. We’ll all be paying close attention to see if Kobe decides to have surgery on his pinkie, thus putting him out of commission for 6 weeks or so, or if he’ll gut it out and play through the pain, and what effect each choice will have on the Lakers’ chances of making the playoffs. Todd McShay just shook up his draft board (thank goodness for Insider access on ESPN!) and now shows Matt Ryan going #1 to Miami. So you see, I’ve got plenty to hold my attention without worrying about the fact that the Patriots let perfection slip through Asante Samuel’s fingers. In fact, I won’t even give it another moment’s notice.