Episode 2: The Last Decade of Football

I'm beginning a series of podcasts where I provide a brief history and what you need to know about the NFL, MLB, and the NBA. This first episode is about football and how the last decade has been controlled by the Patriots, Colts, and Steelers, and how the Vikings and Saints could finally swing dominance in the direction of the NFC.

First Podcast - Lost and World Cup Soccer

Behold, my first podcast! Please give it a listen. We talk Lost for the first 18 minutes, then switch over to soccer.



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Sports Predictions: The Bolder. US Soccer, The Mets, and the NFC's Resurgance

So I've really gotten after the sports writer within me over the past few days. I figured how to do podcasts, so I've posted a couple of those when I really want to explain something or I just don't feel like writing. The first couple aren't wildly entertaining, (I 'um' and 'uhh' my way through the second one). But they are worth a listen if you have some time on your hands. The first one is about the world cup and the second one is about the NFL over the past 10 years. In the coming days, I'm going to do one for the NBA and MLB. But for now, I'd like to get back to my predictions I started a couple of posts ago. I think we are now on to...

Bolder

1. The U.S. World Cup Team will make it out of the group stage this year and win their Round of 16 game.

One of my biggest beefs with soccer is that no one in America gives a shit about it when we (a nation with the largest entertainment and sports bankrolls) clearly should. I mean, we don't care as Americans because corporate sponsors can't get as much ad time with soccer as they can with baseball or football. So of course, they have coverage of all but the most important games assassinated so Americans will stick to sports where we can get bombarded with commercial breaks. Sorry, did I say that my beef was that no one cares? I meant that we aren't given a chance to care. This is why Nascar is covered on ESPN and MLS and EPL are barely covered at all.

Nascar. When the advertising in commercial breaks just isn't enough.

But, I digress. I go into this more in my podcast where I beg fellow sports-lovers to watch the world cup. My other beef is how superior and pretentious established American soccer fans act. Looking down on people for not knowing that Didier Drogba plays for Chelsea turns people off of soccer and makes them want to stick to sports they already know. As an established soccer fan, we need to make things easier for people just getting into soccer and be patient with them. We can't treat them like someone who has never seen Lost before, but watches a later episode with you anyway.

"Why are they calling him Ben? Isn't his name Henry Gale? Is this Ben guy his twin? Oh my gosh! He shot that bald guy! Why did he do that? What are all those bodies in the hole with the bald guy? What's his name again? Why aren't you talking to me? Do we have any snacks? Why do you guys even watch this show anyway? Can we do something besides watch this? Who is that kid talking to the shot bald guy? Why are you ignoring me?"

I guess my whole point here is that I think the US team will do really well this year I want as many supporters as possible behind them. Landon Donovan looked masterful in the last friendly match against Turkey. Clint Dempsey is making good breaks and looks like he will have a great world cup. Oguchi Onyewu is back and should be good for some critical defense. Most importantly, the US looks to be working very well as a unit. Let's not forget that during the last world cup the only team that the champion Italians didn't beat was the US, whom they tied. I predict them to not only make it out of their group along with England, but to win their first round of 16 game. Which will likely be against a strong German team. Frankly, I think we match up well (they will be without star midfielder Michael Ballack) and I really hope that everyone will watch the US-England match, in particular.

Bottom Line: The US will likely tie or lose to England, but will beat Algeria, Slovenia, and their Round of 16 opponent. (Probably Germany.)

2. The New York Mets will make the playoffs this year.

On second thought, I really should have put this in the 'Boldest' section of my predictions. But I'm not going to. Why? Because it's my blog and I want to write this right now while I can remember how I'm justifying this prediction.

When one thinks of tortured teams in the past few years, it's hard to think of a team that underachieves or collapses more horrifically than the New York Mets. The Mets perpetually have one of the highest bankrolls in baseball, not to mention some of the best young talent, yet still find themselves doing things like blowing a 7 game division lead with 17 games to go. The Mets also have the misfortune of sharing a city with the most successful franchise of any major professional sport in the New York Yankees, whom have won a over a quarter of all the World Series ever played. As far as getting a fan base is concerned, this is like trying to get a date to the prom when your older sister looks like Scarlett Johansson and has a reputation for putting out.

The Mets prom date fan base bailed to get head from the Yankees at the drive in movie theater. The Mets decide to stay true to themselves from now on and not "slut it up" with things like "decent pitching" just to get fans.

With the Phillies recent success (A world series and two straight NL titles) and the emergence of the Braves and Nationals this year, the outlook is bleak for the Mets faithful.

And yet...

And yet, I can't shake the feeling that this Mets team has a trick up its sleeve. That this Mets team will somehow actually overachieve and grab a playoff spot. That despite the spotty pitching and tough division, this years Mets will actually reward their fan base instead of kicking them in the balls.

"Well that's great, Sam," you all must be saying, "but what evidence and reasoning do you have for this?" The answer is none whatsoever. Everything from statistics to history points to this Mets team finishing 3rd or 4th in their division, let alone having the necessary record to grab a Wild-Card spot. So this is a big leap of faith on gut instinct, but I just think that this Mets team is due. Once they talk Oliver Perez into returning to the minors, things should get better.

"Wait a minute, Sam. You already predicted that three of D.C.'s four major teams would make the playoffs. So unless you are counting on the Nationals to be the team that doesn't, that would mean that you are saying that the Nationals and Mets are both making the playoffs. That means... *GASP*"

...That I'm saying the Phillies won't make the playoffs. Looking at this again, this prediction really does belong in the 'Boldest' post I'm going to write. I guess if you see a prediction in the 'Boldest' section that you don't think is bold enough, you can switch it with this one. I'm not going to come out and say the Phillies won't make the playoffs, (After all, I have stand by that Roy Halladay is the pitcher of this generation and adding him to an NL champion team shouldn't equal "miss the playoffs") but I will say that I think that the NL East is a much tougher division than it was last year.

I do however stand by the fact that the Phanatic blows Mr. Met out of the water.

Bottom Line: The Mets redeem themselves by snagging a playoff berth this year. Mets fans briefly rally behind this before a terribly crushing NLDS loss.

3. The New York Jets are the only team that can stop the NFC Superbowl domination that is on the horizon.

If you took the hour to listen to my football podcast, you know that I am of the opinion that the last decade was one dominated by the AFC. More specifically, the Patriots, Colts, and Steelers and their struggle for the AFC title. With the exception of the Raiders loss to the Bucs (weak year for the AFC) and the Giants upset of the Patriots (the single biggest upset of the decade), the AFC has controlled the Lombardi Trophy. That was until the Saints marched into Miami and thrashed the favored Colts team 31-17. This came after a 13-3 regular season that saw the Saints embarrass the Patriots in a fashion that hadn't been seen in the Brady era and march to 4-0 interconference record against the tough AFC East. Likewise, the Vikings put up a 3-1 record against the AFC North, a division with three "over .500" teams.

What does this mean? This means the NFC teams, which are getting better, are about to take the reigns on this decade's titles. With Peyton's team now shattered by their Superbowl loss, (unless you are the Broncos, Vikings, or Bills, you don't get back to the Superbowl after losing it. Even if you do, you still lose again.) the Patriots mired by Bill Belichick's determination to try to win with players who belong in a retirement home, and the Roethlisberger raping (literally) the Steelers out of serious contention, the AFC is suddenly a shadow of itself.

Roethlisberger has already had to attend a behavioral evaluation after he ate his trainer at Sea World.

The Chargers have proven that they can't handle the clutch as a team. The Ravens are a combination of too old and too young. The Broncos were revealed as "pretenders" last year. The Bengals won't be good enough to get past the rest of the AFC teams I've mentioned. So who does that leave? The New York Jets.

Behold, AFC fans. Your knight in shining armor.

As a Patriots fan, this is enormously hard for me to say, so bear with me. The Jets are simply the team with the most talent, the most playoff experience, and the can-do attitude to really be contenders. It starts with their defense and lock down passing defense headlined by Darrelle Revis. As history tells us in the NFL, defense win championships. The Jets have that defense. They were a young team last year, and are now a year matured. They grabbed experienced veterans like LT and Jason Taylor to balance out their youth. Now with talented (albeit troublesome) players like Antonio Cromartie and Santonio Holmes padding this already great team, it just seems like their time.

The Jets really are the only team I can see beating the Saints, Vikings, Cowboys, or whoever emerges on the NFC side of things. Though I'm reluctant to say Saints (I'm a believer in championship hangovers), I think they are too talented a team to fade into obscurity, particularly if they can sneak past the Vikings in that early match up. Brees and Payton will keep them focused, and I see a Saints-Jets match-up in the 2011 Superbowl. The question is, will the Saints establish the NFC as this decade's conference, or will the Jets defend the AFC tradition of the 2000s?

Bottom Line: The Jets will win the AFC this year and will play the Saints in a match up that is going to shape conference dominance for the next decade.

Sports Predictions: The Bold. Evan Turner, D.C., and Lebron's Coach

I can't fucking help it. I have to write something. If anyone has ever actually read my blog before, you know that I focus on writing things that I think will amuse others. Occasionally, however, the rabid sports fan part of me requires that I pretend that people give a shit about what I have to say in the world of sports. (Example: my prediction posts during the NFL playoffs.) Though I will sometimes make these posts funny, a lot of times they are written with the intention of testing my knowledge and seeing just how well I know sports.After my shattered dream of becoming a househusband or my other dream (currently on life support) of pitching a hit tv show, writing sports for a living is third on my list. When that is taken into account, it makes sense that I would want to have an accurate sense of what is going on in professional sports and have the highest prediction rate possible. Though my Beat the Streak record and previous sports related posts suggest the contrary, (I maintain that since I had Saints the whole way, that wasn't a tremendous bust.) I still would like to think I do this well. After all, if I split 50-50 I'm doing a much better job than the average sports writer.

How to predict sports better than ESPN Analysts.

Also, that's only counting team's win-loss predictions (I defend to the death that I have been saying Rajon Rondo is the most underrated player in the past 2 NBA seasons. It's fucking true. Ask Scott Friedlander. He'll tell you. He had to sit next to me during a Bulls-Celtics playoff game.) These past few days, as I've been desperately trying to formulate a plan to catch the attention of Bill Simmons (Put his name in every one of my Twitter posts?) and get him to make me his apprentice, I realized everyone is going to call 'bullshit' on me if I say things like "I knew Durant over Oden," and "I predicted the Blackhawks to win the Stanley Cup this year." (I like Boston sports, too, Bill. I also am a cross country runner, meaning I can fetch your vente two-cream one-sugar at least a minute faster than anyone else.) So I decided to make a list of sports predictions that I hold near and dear to my heart, to prove my sports worth.

I correctly picked the underdog in the Little Mac-Tyson fight. I knew the new Nintendo controller with turbo would prove too much for the champ.

I've clustered my predictions into Bold, Bolder, and Boldest, which I'm sure is not only different coffee flavors, but some sort of Fabio-endorsed cologne. (It has bits of real panther in it, so you know it's good.) Obviously, as we drift upwards and closer to to the superlative, the predictions are going to become crazier. But bear with me, and by the end you might see that I predict a Coach of the Year Award for Stan Van Gundy.

**Bursts into hysterical laughter for five full minutes, before recomposing himself.**

But seriously, shit that will actually happen.

Real coaches don't look like porn star Ron Jeremy... Jesus, that was way too easy.

Bold

1. The City of Washington D.C is about to become relevant in sports again.
When I think of cities plagued with shitty sports luck, Murdacap is near the top of the list. Particularly in recent years, the city has had plenty to complain about. The disappointing seasons the Redskins have had, the famous 'gambling confrontation' that landed star Wizard Gilbert Arenas in trouble, the Nationals constant death spiral, and most painfully, the Capitals' first round implosion at the hands of the Canadiens this past month.

However, this to me seems like a city that's about to turn it around. The Redskins' acquisition of Donovan McNabb gives them something they've never really had in an honest-to-goodness Pro-Bowl caliber QB. I'm of the opinion that you need a good QB to win games, much less win the Super Bowl, (Panthers and Bears fans shake their heads and/or throw their computers across the room.) so this will immediately make them contenders in my mind.

How to not win a Superbowl.

The Wizards surprise draft lottery win will almost certainly result in John Wall coming to the capital, which may not seem like a big deal at first glance. However, think of young, playmaking, early picks in recent NBA years, and how they've performed when arriving at the crappy teams that drafted them. Rose and the Bulls. Jennings and the Bucks. Durant and the Thunder. Even, (to a certain extent) Curry and Warriors. With the poisonous, me-first Agent 0 out, the Wizards can focus on putting together a team around Wall, much like the Thunder have done with Kevin Durant.

When it comes to the Nationals, don't look now, but they actually have a winning record and are only four games behind the NL leading Phillies. Not to mention that they have one of the most exciting and talked about pitching prospects in recent memory coming to the bigs this June. Here you can say, "Well yeah, but how important is one pitcher to a team, really?" To that I would say, "Ask the now Halladay-less Toronto Blue Jays", who have three times as many empty seats per game now.

That leaves only the Caps, whom I believe learned a lot from the humbling that Montreal unloaded on them and will return next year locked in for a title. Ovie is the most exciting player since Gretzky, and they have too much experience and talent to not make a big run next year.

The Bottom Line Prediction:Of the four teams, three will have winning records in the next year and two will make the playoffs and win their first round match up.

2. Evan Turner will be the biggest draft bust this year.
I am going to write this little blurb of information assuming (like I did in the last post) that the Washington Wizards front office are not retarded and actually take John Wall with their pick. This means that the 76ers will probably take Evan Turner with their pick. Ohio State fans probably want to know why I am knocking on their players so much. (Oden had red flags, guys. One leg shorter than the other? COME ON!) The simple fact of the matter is, I don't think that Evan Turner is an athlete designed for the NBA.

He looks phenomenal on paper. Even better than Wall does. But to truly get a measure of Turner, you have to watch some of the games he played in. The guy just simply doesn't play well against big, strong guys. In the Georgia Tech game, (a big, long team) Turner was only able to catch fire after flopping and getting Georgia's big guys in foul trouble. Something the more consistent NBA referees will catch. Ohio State were bounced the very next game, when they ran into Tennessee, another big team. Given that Turner scored 31, but being sent to the line 9times and taking 23 shots, I would hope that he scored at least that much. (The entire rest of the team took 35 shots) You could make arguments both ways, but this comes down to gut feeling, and I can't shake the bad one I have associated with Evan Turner.

The Bottom Line Prediction: Turner will not only have the lowest shooting percentage of any of the other top four draftees, but will also be the only one not starting for his team three years from now.


3. Phil Jackson will end up coaching LeBron, probably in Chicago.

Now given that I am a big Celtics guy and I am going to harsh on the Lakers and anyone associated with them. It's hard to argue that Phil Jackson isn't one of the greatest coaches of all time. I don't think you can go to Wooden levels with him and I would argue that what Auerbach did as a coach was more impressive, but with what he has done with the Bulls and Lakers teams.... Well, you can't argue with results.

I can, however, argue with the fact that no basketball player has ever given me a bigger sex offender vibe.






Oh.......

That being said, it's hard to argue when I make my point that he is the biggest primadonna that league has as far as coaches go. His feud with Kobe prevented the clearly loaded Lakers (arguably the most talented team in the history of the NBA) from building on the three championships that they started. Though, he came back and he coached the "new Lakers" to a championship, I believe his days in LA are numbered. With mutterings of the Lakers wanting Jackson to take a pay cut, I can't see Jackson staying in L.A., a city he doesn't think really appreciates him. As an elite coach, he is going to expect the money and appreciation that comes with that. No, I think if the Lakers don't repeat this year, Phil will leave.

And what better to draw him in than the player who draws so many comparisons to the great Micheal Jordan? Lebron is no Kobe. He is more coachable, team friendly, defensively able. (Kobe fans here go, "But that's not fair! Kobe is a scorer! That's what makes him great! And his team wins titles! Lebron's doesn't." Lebron plays with Mo Williams and Varajao. Kobe plays with Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum loosening up shots for him. Lebron still scores more. Nuff said.)

Lebron is the player of his generation, might be the most talented athlete to ever walk into his sport. I can almost hear PJ's boner ripping his pants in half at the thought of coaching Lebron. And with Chicago, a place where Phil knows he is loved, having the money, personnel (Derrick Rose could do a remarkable Scottie Pippen, I bet), and overall best chance to win for the two of them, it's easy to see the two of them going there. (Only Lebron's Ohio pride or fear of living in MJ's shadow could kill this move, and I don't think either are very likely.)

Bottom Line: If the Nets owner doesn't offer Jackson the most absurd deal of the century, (I can't see Lebron going there, even if the franchise is going to be Brooklyn, eventually) Jackson will be Lebron's coach next year. Cleveland and New York are possible, but Chicago makes the most sense.

As usual, my post is 5 times longer than I intended, so I'll put up the Bolder and Boldest predictions in subsequent posts.

To Be Continued...