Why 'Moneyball' is Still Relevant

With the release of ‘Moneyball’ (my review should come through in the next few days on The Reeltime Report) this coming weekend there has been a spike in interest in the whole Sabermetric debate.  The Sabermetric debate of course, has always been between the difference of what’s on paper with what’s seen by the “scout’s eye.”  Somebody may be hitting for a high average, but the kinds of pitches they are getting are not what they can plan on seeing consistently.  Adjustments can be made by all players to counteract success, yet the numbers don’t lie, if somebody is hitting a high average with a high on-base percentage (OBP), then they’re helping their team.  Around and around we go.

People who aren’t into baseball statistics and find them confusing and/or annoying (I’m looking at you Jason Whitlock), have decided to take this opportunity to talk about why statistics are ruining baseball.  According to Whitlock Sabermetric honks have “conspired to remove much of the magic and mystery from baseball.”  His inherent point is that the fan loses the “fun” aspect of being a baseball fan if everything can be explained away in numbers.  His argument is that he doesn’t need On-base Plus Slugging to tell him that Albert Pujols is one of the greatest hitters of all time, he doesn’t need WHIP (walks + hits per inning pitched) or xFIP (expected fielding independent pitching) to tell ham that Justin Verland can throw the baseball.

Would You Care About the World Series if...

My Thoughts on How to Fix Baseball

My previous post talked about everything I didn’t like about baseball.  I had to reach deep down in my mind to find the true reasons why I don’t like baseball, but in all fairness, now I’m going to talk about what baseball could do to fix the situation and make a casual (barely) fan like myself more interested in baseball and keep my attention all summer long.  This is a tall order, but if I was commissioner of baseball this is what I would do to get a fan like me to get more and more into baseball.

First of all, let’s talk about the standard size of the field.  We don’t need to go into why this bugs me, I talked about it ad nauseum in my last post, but it’s seriously ridiculous.  Let’s get one thing straight, the intensity of baseball comes from a couple scenarios:  late in a close game with a stud pitcher against a stud hitter, a close game in which there is a hit deep into the outfield and there is a throw for a play at the plate, a close game in which a stud hitter hits a high jack and it’s the “will it go!?!?” scenario.  These are all affected by the size of the field.  If you standardize the size, and make it a little bit further out, these types of exciting plays happen because homeruns are harder to come by and it becomes easier to play defense when you practice on the same field with the same dimensions every day.  Also, hated phrases such as “hitter’s park” will be completely abolished if there are no differences in field size.

The World Series Starts Tonight - Does Anybody Care?

Why is Baseball Disinteresting?

All loyal Jeff Reporters know that baseball is one of, if not the, least favorite sports that are popular in this country.  Despite my feelings towards baseball, there are so many people out there that are extremely passionate about it.  As much as I love football and the Chiefs, there are people who love baseball that much and their respective teams.  This has lead me to question why I detest baseball so much, it would make sense for me to like it, lots of stats involved, lots of analysis, longest season of any professional sport, etc.  So what is it exactly that has turned me off to baseball.  Well I have searched long and hard to find the answers of why I dislike baseball, and since this is the Jeff Report, I have done one better and given you the ways I think you could improve baseball and make me interested again.

The biggest thing that I think people don’t often talk about and has perplexed me for years is the difference in the size of the baseball diamond.  Seriously?  Is this for real?  How do people not talk about this more?  Let’s put this into perspective and compare it to other sports.  Every other sport has rigid rules about exactly how large the playing field should be.  A football field is 100 (with 10 yard end zones on either end) yards long and 53 1/2 yards wide, everywhere.  A basketball court is 94 feet and the goal is 10 feet high, everywhere (this is played up in the movie “Hoosiers” where Gene Hackman measures the goal and makes everyone realize that it’s the same height as the one they use back home).  Finally, hockey rinks are 200 feet long by 85 feet wide.  All of these are standard sizes for their sports.

Baseball has no standard.  Now, granted, they standardize the size of the infield diamond itself, how far each base is from each other and how high the pitching mound is off the ground (more on that later), but the outfield wall is not standardized.  It would be one thing if the game was played mostly in the infield, but the outfield wall represents the ability to score.  The idea of sports is supposed to be that what you can do in one place, you can take that to the bank and do it in any place you play.  That is not true in baseball.  A homerun in one ballpark may not be a home run in another.  So if you are playing in the 7^th game of the world series, down by one with a man on in the bottom of the ninth and two outs and you stroke the ball, but the park you’re in is 10 feet further than your home park, then you lose and it’s game over, but you would’ve won in another park.  How is that in any way fair or equitable?

The NBA Starts Tonight - Which Side are You On?

 You're either a "Kobe guy" or a "Lebron guy" - you can't be both

For those of you who frequent the Jeff Report, you know that I don’t really care all that much for the NBA.  I don’t think the players play as hard as college (overall), I don’t think it’s as compelling as College Basketball, and finally, even if all that wasn’t true, there is no team in KC so I have nobody to root for.  However, being the sports enthusiast that I am, and in recognition of the start of the NBA season tonight, I will delve into an issue that is paramount for most NBA fans.

If you are a follower of the NBA then you are in one of two camps.  Every fan puts themselves into noe of these categories and stands proudly by it no matter the circumstance.  So whether it’s being accused of rape or “taking their talents to South Beach,” whatever camp they’re in NBA fans will stand strong in their ardent support.  Those two camps are Lebron James and Kobe Bryant, and every NBA fan, regardless of their team, is either a “Lebron guy” or a “Kobe guy.”

A Sad Day in Sports

The Nostradamus of Sports has left us...


The prognosticator of all prognosticator's, Paul the Octopus has passed away.  The cephalopod correctly predicted the winner of all of Germany's games in the recent World Cup, including their loss in the semi-finals to the eventual champion Spain.

Inspiring a litany of copy cats, none of whom ever quite matched the majesty of Paul, this 8-armed wizard will be sorely missed by the sports world.  Going into the pantheon of famous sports animals, such as the Angles rally monkey, Paul will live on forever.

College Football - Should Reggie Bush be Stripped of his Heisman?

Reggie Bush May be Stripped of His Heisman Due to Inappropriate Dealings While at USC

Apparently Reggie Bush took rough $400,000 while at USC including cars, cash, gifts, and a house for his family.  As this was determined USC was stripped of all the victories they obtained where Reggie Bush played while he was ineligible. 

USC's athletic director ordered that their copy of his Heisman trophy get sent back and all likenesses of him removed, completely distancing themselves from Bush as a player.

Now, the Heisman trust is contemplating completely taking away Reggie Bush's Heisman and striking his name from the record books.  I am gonna go ahead and say this is completely stupid.  Reggie Bush won the 2005 Heisman, done and done.

NFL - Elite Quarterbacks

What makes an NFL QB "Elite"?

A question was posed recently to The Jeff Report of what makes an elite QB in the NFL? The question stemmed from a recent preseason game pitting the Indianapolis Colts against the Green Bay Packers. Everyone knows Peyton Manning has been an NFL elite QB since he was studying game film in the womb. That is no surprise. Now, the chic thing to do has been to gush about Aaron Rodgers and talk about how he is an elite QB in the league now (let's not talk about how The Jeff Report made this statement a year ago, well before it was the "in" thing to do).  During the broadcast Jon Gruden said he thought Rodgers was an elite QB, while Ron Jaworski did not agree. Jaws said he was close, but not there yet, and pointed to playoff success as one of the reasons why he is “not there yet.” With this as my inspiration I have decided to dive into what exactly makes an elite quarterback in the NFL (bear in mind that this is the opinion of The Jeff Report, it is a very well informed opinion, but opinion nonetheless).

First, let’s go over the size requirements. I think size is slightly overvalued in the NFL as far as evaluating QB’s is concerned. If you asked any scout the ideal size for a QB is going to be 6’3” 230lbs. This allows for size to see over the increasingly taller offensive linemen, take some hits and be durable, while still allowing the appropriate mobility and footwork that is necessary for the position. Durability is a must, but one must not conform to the rigid size requirements to prove durability or to prove viability as an NFL QB. Footwork is more important in the NFL than it is in college because with the increased speed of defenders and their better ability to read QB’s and passes it is important to make sure one is properly set to make a strong, accurate pass. Footwork can be taught and is not exclusive to the taller set. Drew Brees at 5’10” can put good zip on the ball with great precision in large part due to his footwork. QB’s like Vince Young get in trouble with lackluster footwork relying too much on their God-given arm strength. Improper footwork can mean weaker passers to the majority of the field (especially when throwing across one’s body) and effectively means the QB can only throw adequately to one quarter of the field, which the defense keys on and makes the QB’s life difficult. This illustrates why size is something that is desired, but overvalued. Good mechanics, smarts, and toughness make up for a lack of size.

Whitlock is No More...

Love Him or Hate Him, Jason Whitlock is Gone for Good from the KC Star

Ding dong the witch is dead…no doubt that is how some will view the departure of Jason Whitlock from the KC Star. Over his career the man has obtained the ire of many KC sports fans, specifically Chiefs fans. However, love him or hate him Jason Whitlock was integral to the rise of the KC sports reporting scene. Whitlock put KC sports on the map and was the rock star of the sports page that helped turn the KC Star sports section into perennially one of the best sports sections in the country.


Despite his ability to make the natives restless Whitlock could always be counted on to present a topic and provide a different angle on things than most people were putting out there. Even when the Chiefs were in their “glory days” in the mid-90’s to early 2000’s Whitlock did not just accept the status quo and let the Chiefs slide by because they would win 9-11 games every year and flame out in the playoffs. Before it was the chic thing to do Whitlock pointed fingers and demanded people like Carl Peterson were held accountable for the failure of the Chiefs many promising seasons in that time frame. This is when Whitlock started to divide the fanbase. There were those who agreed and wanted to question “King Carl” and then there were those who were happy with the status quo and thought Whitlock was just stirring the pot. Either way, he made people stand up and take notice.

While he was provoking people with these new topics, Whitlock was doing it all in style. His topics were divisive and not necessarily always completely factual, but they didn’t have to be. He was a columnist and was being paid to express his opinion, which he did with great bravado. Every article Whitlock wrote was written with great style and interesting prose. There is a reason he was nationally recognized and sought out by ESPN, FoxSports, and the like. Whatever the topic was, he wrote about it with intelligence and skill. He was widely recognized as one of the best sports writers in the country.

Lebronathon 2010 - Thank God it's over

So it's had a little bit to sink in now and there are many thoughts I have regarding Lebron James and "The Decision" to go to the Miami Heat from the Cleveland Cavaliers.  Lebron put the American public on oversaturation watch the week and a half leading up to his announcement.  Everyone had an opinion and everyone had heard something from somewhere about where Lebron was going to go.  It's all moot now as it has been decided and Lebron is in south beach.  

Having no team in Kansas City and no NBA team I really root for or care for, it made me an instant bystander in this whole scenario.  This decision does not affect my team or who they play against, all it does is make the NBA offseason (that I otherwise would not care about) interesting.  

I will admit, when I woke up on the morning of the "The Decision" I did not feel the same way Lebron did.  I thought for sure he would stay in Cleveland.  His heart and family are in Cleveland and he has never been away from home.  Why would he leave?  He had endeared himself to that fanbase and they to him.  He is a complete and utter legend in Cleveland even if he never won a championship he would still be revered for making the city relevant for something in the sports world.  Also, Lebron seems to be a pretty good guy, a businessman, but a good guy, would he really schedule a one hour special to slowly twist the knife deeper and deeper each second into the backs of Cleveland fans?  Apparently he would.

It was my hope when I heard about the show that it would be like high school signing day.  Lebron would walk up on stage and have the hats of the Cavs, Nets, Knicks, Bulls, and Heat all in front of him and would make his decision by pulling out the cap of his choice and wearing it.  I mean come on, Lebron was never recruited in high school so this would be his signing day seven years removed.  But I digress.

The USA's run at the World Cup is Ended by Ghana for the Second Cup in a Row

The USA's run is over.  The first group victory in 80 years and matching up well against all competition in their bracket doesn't matter now.  Just like in 2006 Ghana has ended the US's run yet again.  

It took overtime to do but the same problems that have plagued the US in international competition in the past came back to bite them.  They gave up a goal early both in regulation and in overtime and that is what ended up costing them the game.

There are really only a few things to say.  I thought the US played well in the tourney but has showed they still have a lot of catching up to do with the rest of the world.  The US has showed they can compete but they are still a ways away from contending for the Cup.

I will also say something about Landon Donovon.  There have been a lot of Donovon haters out there (The Jeff Report included) over the last 4 years.  Donovon was given most of the blame for the US's no-show in Germany in 2006.  People have been hating on him ever since.  However, people should hate no more.  Donovon played extremely well in this version of the tourney.  Donovon scored three goals and rescued the US from certain doom 3 straight games.  He sparked the Slovenia comeback, won the Algeria game with a goal in stoppage time and almost saved the Ghana game with a PK in the second half.  The man who is supposed to be the face of American soccer showed why.  He came up big time in multiple games and showed he can play with elite worldwide competition.  This may have been his last chance at a World Cup, but he can't be blamed for the US going home after the round of 16.

World Cup - USA ties England 1-1

Well the first game for the 2010 World Cup is in the books and the Americans have surprised many by ending it in a 1-1 tie. Pretty much nobody gave the US a chance, especially after falling behind 1-0 in the fourth minute. It looked like it might make for a long day for the US. However, they were able to regroup, get a gift of a goal and surprise the world. Many of you probably don't realize but do to my many years of playing FIFA soccer on my playstation I am a bit of a soccer expert. As I have never been one to keep my expertise all to myself i will give my expert thoughts on the game.

First of all, the defense played great, mainly Demerits ability to hold international superstar Wayne Rooney in check the entire game. Rooney didn't get a touch till the 17th minute and didn't get a shot on goal until the 72nd. This is the kind of solid D USA will have to play if if wants go make some noise. Not only did Demerit do well but Oguchi Onyewu showed why he is so valuable as he played amazing.

Cherundolo also played great as he was everywhere showing up on offense and in the midfield. Tim Howard was phenomenal in the net and as a leader of the defense.

I was also very impressed with Bobby findley as he showed great speed played very well under the pressure of his first world cup match. Him and akticore together really provided a team speed element that will come in handy as the tourney rolls on.

All in all the best part about the game was that the US didnt crumble under the pressure and showed that they can play well as a team and that allows them to compete with anybody in the world. I am excited to see what happens the rest of the way.

From the Mount - Conference Realignment Edition - Wait a tic, what?

Could this really happen?

In a word: Yes. This is something that is a hot button issue right now. The issue has far reaching implications and the shake up will be interesting to see and I am kind of excited to se how things play out, even if KU might get screwed in everything.

As of right now, rumor has it MU and Nebraska are gonna sneak away to the Big 10 and the Pac 10 is courting Texas and Oklahoma. Only, with Texas you would have to take Texas A&M, Texas Tech, and Baylor and with Oklahoma you would have to take Oklahoma State. Ultimately I would put Baylor into the Fredo hall of fame for their ability to ride Texas into possibly two new conferences in the last 20 years, even though they bring nothing to the table in football and only recently something in Basketball. Right now though, these are all options, what could really happen here?

Well, Texas and those schools are being courted by the Pac 10 for the lucrative TV money they would bring in, however, those schools, specifically Tech and Ok. St., would significantly bring down the academic prestige of the conference. Stanford will not stand for this as they would whine like the lead singer in 'That Thing you Do' about being "alone in their principles." As such, it seems it would be terribly hard to get all six teams to move to the Pac 10.

Here is what I imagine happening, since a six team move will be too hard to pull off, the Big XII south teams will stay (especially since talk of this move has died down). It also appears that the talk of MU has cooled off and it will only be Nebraska to leave. This would end Big 10 expansion as nobody wants to split shared revenue even further and they get the conference championship game which will mean more money for the whole conference.

Why I'm Excited for the World Cup

As most of the world knows, but few Americans do, the FIFA 2010 World Cup begins this Friday, and I am totally stoked about it.  Soccer is the worlds most popular sport but you wouldn't know it in America.  The sport is a distant fifth behind the four majors and NASCAR and finds itself jockeying with lacrosse as the most popular "alternative" sport in America (although if you ask the Jeff Report, lacrosse wins out every time).

However, regardless of how much people in the US care the World Cup starts this Friday and it is every bit as popular worldwide as the Olympics, if not more so.  There are a few reasons why I care so much and why you should care and I will outline them for you all:

First, and definitely most important - Everyone is on the same page.  By this I mean everyone is rooting for the same team and the same cause.  With the teams I root for I spend a large amount of my time rooting against their rivals.  The likes of the Denver Broncos and the Missouri Tigers don't get much love from The Jeff Report and a lot of time is spent arguing with opposing fans of my teams.

The World Cup is not like that.  The greater majority of people in this country are born and bred Americans and, as such, all like to root for America.  This means that no matter what teams you root for during football, basketball, baseball, or hockey season, we can all root for the same team here:  the United States of America.  This is one of the great parts about the World Cup, the nationalism it fosters for the countries involved.

Why I think Sam Bradford will be a bust...

Don't believe the hype...

Sam Bradford by all accounts was a phenomenal college quarterback, winning a Heisman trophy and leaving multiple records shattered in his wake.  Let's not think about the fact that he didn't win a National Championship and won a rare few meaningful games in his career.

Sam Bradford has everything scouts look for in an NFL quarterback.  He has the size, the athleticism, the accuracy, (almost) the arm strength, and the "intangibles" that everyone loves to talk about but nobody describes (because they're intangible, duh).

However, despite what many say, I'm not buying what Bradford is selling. People will point to the fact that QB's like Matt Ryan, Joe Flacco, Mark Sanchez, and Matthew Stafford all came in and had success that was unheard of for rookies but I don't think that argument holds much water.  What is the common denominator for those QB's who had a lot of success?  They all ran pro style offenses in college.

Bradford is one of the only players to come out with this much hype coming from a true college spread offense.  QB's at Texas Tech put up numbers that blow away Bradfords every year, but they never amount to anything.  People will point to arm strength being the deciding factor for Tech QB's, but I point to Chad Pennington.  Let's look at other QB's who have come from spread system's and been drafted high, Alex Smith, David Carr, Vince Young, and Rex Grossman.  The jury is still out on Young, but the rest are busts (although I think Alex Smith can resurrect his career).

Golf Wars - Episode III: Return of the Tiger

Will Tiger be back in time for the Masters?  Will he be anything like he was before he left?


Can anyone comprehend what it is like to be Tiger Woods?  The most ridiculously talented, hyper-competitive, transcendent athlete on the planet has everything come crashing down all in one fell swoop.  Thanksgiving night will never be quite the same for Tiger woods after 2009.  Tiger will never be quite the same after the fallout.  Tiger will have to live with what he did and how will impact his wife, and more importantly, his kids, for years to come.

We all lived through the event that seemingly came out of nowhere.  We all lived through the aftermath.  Tiger was unfaithful to his wife?  With countless women?  This has been going on for years?  It all came out and Tiger was shamed to the general public.  News kept flowing in in the following months and it became much more clear how despicable Tiger had behaved in his personal life.  Then came the guessing game of what Tiger had to say about everything and when he would say it.  Then we all lived through the apology.

Watching Tiger's "apology" The Jeff Report was personally insulted.  Never have I seen such a ridiculously scripted and PR riddled speech.  It was as painful to watch for us as I'm sure it was for Tiger to give.  Tiger has lived his life in strict distance from the media.  He didn't play by the normal rules and was seemingly the only athlete of his caliber able to keep his private life private.  Now he was forced to play by the rules that everyone else had to.  He not only had to be accountable to himself and his family for his actions, but to the media and the American public as well.  Now we are left with the next question in the ever unfolding saga of Tiger Woods:  when will he come back?

NFL Labor Dispute - What does it mean for America's favorite pass time?

It's the Owners vs. the NFLPA...who's gonna blink first?

**So this is a pretty long post, but it is also comprehensive for those looking for info about the whole situation**

Most people have heard rumors and whispers and the occasional sportscenter story surrounding the labor dispute, but few people truly know the entire scenario surrounding the impending uncapped year in 2010, and the possible labor stoppage in 2011.  My hope is to give everyone an idea of the implications this will have on our favorite sport and why it is bad news if you love football as much as The Jeff Report does.  We will start from the beginning (note:  all information was obtained from my internet research as well as a very informative article from the latest issue of ESPN the Magazine by Seth Wickersham).

The NFL is currently (until March 5th anyway) operating under the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) as orchestrated and put into effect through negotiations between the owners and the NFLPA in 2006.  Some highlights of the current CBA include, rookie and veteran minimums, a salary cap (limiting how much a team can spend), a salary floor (mandating a team spend a certain percentage of the salary cap, at the very least), one franchise and one transition tag per team, 4 year unrestricted free agency, and most importantly a mandate that 60% of league revenues go to players salaries.  These points will be discussed in depth as we continue on.

AFC 13-3 Curse Strikes Again!!!!

In my consultation with Wikipedia Triskaidekaphobia is described as fear of the number 13.  This can manifest itself in the form of a debilitating phobia, a superstition, or mere amusement.  So what does this have to do with our attractive, heartbroken, friend to the left here?  Well, I'm glad you asked.


Many people may not buy into the myth (Dan Marino, Kurt Warner) but nobody can deny it's existence.  Superstitions have been around for years regarding the "unluckiness" of the number 13.  For myself, it is a possible slight superstition that periodically slides into mere amusement most of the time.  However, the power of the number was brought to my initial attention by my beloved Chiefs back in 1997 and I have been paying close attention ever since.


You see, I grew up in the glory days of the Chiefs resurgence under Marty Schottenheimer.  The apex of this resurgence occurred concurrently with my rise to awareness of my sports life.  I liken this experience to the same as being born except instead of cutting the cord, getting slapped, and meeting my mom it was 7 sacks in one game by Derrick Thomas, a 76 yard touchdown run by Steve Bono, and Joe Montana making his way to the midwest.  Comparable, right?  Right.

The (Wandering) Eye of the Tiger -- My Theory on Tiger Woods

Recently over the past year and a half or so people have been wondering, "what is the deal with Tiger Woods?"  He has won his tournaments sure, but since the 2008 US Open, he hasn't won a major and he choked away the PGA Tour this year which is soemthing Tiger NEVER does.  What could possibly be the difference in Tiger over this time period?  Well, I submit that Tigers infidelity had gotten out of hand, he knew it, but was powerless to stop it, and began to affect all facets of his life including his golf game.

You look back at him during the play over the last year or two and it is quite obvious, he is struggling with something.  We have all been so accustomed to what we "know" of Tiger everyone just assumed the same thing.  "Tiger is just so competitive he is not happy even if he is doing better than everyone, if he's not meeting his own standards he is not happy."  Recent events have made The Jeff Report wonder if maybe the weight of his infidelity had been increasingly consuming his mental capacity over the last couple of years.  It is apparent to this blogger that Tiger knew everything was spinning out of control, but he was in so deep now there was no way for him to stop it.

Watching Tiger play golf over his career one thing always struck me that never really seemed to get national attention.  The man clearly has a temper.  When he hits a bad shot he viciously will slam his club down, and the scowl on his face makes him look as though he will literally eat a small puppy if he hits another bad shot.  After slamming his club he proceeds to curse.  I was always told never to use coarse language or throw clubs on the golf course.  Golf is a gentlemen's game and gentlemen don't do that.  Now, I will admit, I have slammed (or even thrown) a club or two in my day and a few cuss words have been uttered on the course.  However, Tiger, unlike myself, has legions of fans, plenty of which are kids who are greatly influenced by how he golfs.  His success has opened up the game of golf to an entire new world of golfers and they are learning these habits from him.  What does all this tell us?  Well it tells us that Tiger has very little self restraint.  For someone who markets himself so much, he is so brazenly not careful about how he presents himself when in the public eye at tournaments.  If he can't control this, which could have an affect on how much money he makes, how can we expect him to control certain aspects of his private life?  We can't, is the answer.

5/16 Thoughts and Awards - My Thoughts on the 2009 NFL season at the 5/16 mark

Since the one NFL team I root for isn't having the greatest season (perhaps you've heard) I thought I would throw out my thoughts on the rest of the NFL, after 5 games of the season.  Don't know if I will have any real order to this so it will mostly just be random thoughts I have had as the season has gone on, as well as give out my "5/16 Season Awards."

-Leading the way at the moment will be my current love for the Wildcat. Now, I have always been a fan of the triple option and if I was a coach it would definitely take a lot for me not to Wing-T it.  I think they would call me Wing-T-bone (but it would probably be Koko...).  This past Monday watching the Dolphins play just extended my love for the Wildcat/Triple Option even more.  The Dolphins ran it so efficiently it was amazing, and funner than hell to watch.  However, I remember when Arkansas revolutionized this style with this formation a couple of years ago, and they would call it the Wild-"hog," you know, cause they are the razorbacks (I geet et, es funny cos--ahh nevermind).  So naturally, I feel every team that runs it (cause they all pretty much do) they should personalize it a bit...like so:

-Miami Dolphins = Wild-"Phin"
-Texas Longhorns = Wild-"Horn"
-Kansas City Chiefs = Wild-"Chief", Wild-"Arrow", or my favorite Wild-"Badasses"
-Denver Broncos = Wild-"Horse", or my vote Wild-"Flaming Turds"
-San Diego Chargers = Wild-"Bolt"
-Kansas Jayhawk = Wild-"Hawk"
-Kansas State Wildcats = Wild...cat (it's Kansas State)
-Pittsburgh Steelers = Wild-"Beam"
-Baltimore Ravens = Wild-"Bird," Wild-"Crow"
-Tampa Bay Buccaneers = Wild-"Buc"
-Miami Hurricans = Wild-"Swag," Wild-"Cane"
-Indianapolis Colts = Wild-"Co-wait, would you ever take Peyton Manning out of the game?  Me either.
-Alabama Crimson Tide = Wild-"Tide"
-Minnesota Vikings = Wild-"Brett Favre is a douchebag"

-The Chiefs.  See my ongoing "State of the Franchise" posts to get my feelings on that.  Moving on.

-As with every year, there are many mediocre teams in the NFL, a fair amount of bad ones, and some elite ones.  I will not go through all of them, but I will start by talking about the really bad ones.  The worst team in the league...the St. Louis Rams.  As much joy as I got writing that sentence, it is tempered by the fact that the Chiefs are not that far behind.  The Rams are like the guy who played Cameron Diaz's mentally challenged brother in "There's Something About Mary" trying to do Shakespeare "Where fore art my baythball"...it just doesn't work.

Next, I would put the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  What goes around comes around.  Just over 30 years removed from their historical ineptitude and here they are again, at the bottom of the league.  They had a great run and even won a Super Bowl, but those days are over.  At least they have Kellen Winslow II.  That man is a bad tight end soldier.  After the Bucs, I would say the Cleveland Browns, even though they have a win (albeit one of the sloppiest in history) they are terrible and have no real direction.  Eric Mangini cannot coach.

Now I know the Oakland Raiders actually beat us, but I still think they are worse.  The Chiefs should have won that game.  The Raiders are run by a puppet an abusive coach and I hear they have already sent in their draft pick for 2010...Ussain Bolt.  Sidenote: if you re-did the 2006 draft is there anybody on this planet you wouldn't take over Jamarcus Russel as the first pick?  Is Maurice Clarrett out of jail yet?  Does Tony Mandarich wanna make a comeback?  Can we just re-draft Daunte Culpepper?  Honestly, bang up job Raiders.  Your fan base calls itself the "black hole" and that accurately describes your franchise, players go there never to be seen again until you get fleeced of them for a low round draft pick (see: Randy Moss).

Then it would be the Chiefs.  See above.

There are a whole slew of below average, to average, to mediocre, to above average teams in the league before we get to the elite group.

"Man-Crush" Weekend Preview - Who's Next?

Jacory Harris and the Cane's try to keep things rolling against Florida A&M in South Beach

Coming off last week's more than impressive showing against Oklahoma Harris looks to continue his inspired play and pick up another victory against Florida A&M. 

There really isn't much analysis needed here, Florida A&M isn't even in the same stratosphere as the 'Canes.  This should get ugly real quick. 

I am expecting a big game from Harris and the rest of the squad as they cruise to a victory over one of the "little brother" Florida schools.  I fully expect Harris to be seated comfortably on the bench in the 4th quarter with the game well in hand.

Prediction:  Miami (FL) 56 - 17 FAMU; Harris' line:  17/24, 277 yds., 4 tds