Thursday:
8:25 ET Philadelphia -3 At Seattle
BMack: Seattle
DP: Philly
Sunday:
1:00 ET At Buffalo -2.5 Tennessee
BMack: Tenn
DP: Buff
1:00 ET At Chicago -7 Kansas City
BMack: Chicago
DP: Chi Town
1:00 ET At Miami -3 Oakland
BMack: Oak
DP: Oak
1:00 ET At Pittsburgh -6.5 Cincinnati
BMack: Pitt
DP: Pitt
1:00 ET NY Jets -3 At Washington
BMack: NYJ
DP: Jets
1:00 ET Atlanta -2.5 At Houston
BMack: Houston
DP: ATL
1:00 ET At Tampa Bay -3.5 Carolina
BMack: Carolina
DP: CAm Newton
1:00 ET At Minnesota -1.5 Denver
BMack: Denver
DP: Denver
1:00 ET At New England -20 Indianapolis
BMack: NE
DP: Indy
4:05 ET Baltimore -6.5 At Cleveland
BMack: Balt
DP: Balt
4:15 ET At San Francisco -13 St. Louis
BMack: SF
DP: SF
4:15 ET Dallas -4.5 At Arizona
BMack: Dallas
DP: Dallas
4:15 ET Green Bay -7 At NY Giants
BMack: GB
DP: GB
8:30 ET At New Orleans -9 Detroit
BMack: Det
DP: Who Dat
Monday Night Football Point Spread
8:35 ET San Diego -2.5 At Jacksonville
BMack: SD
DP: SD
Last Week:
DP: 8-8
BMack: 10-6
Year to Date:
BMack: 96-73-3
DP: 103-65-3
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Dueling Couches' Weekly NFL Picks
McNabb To Be Cut
According to sources the Minnesota Vikings will be cutting Donovan McNabb soon. This should be really interesting. McNabb hasn't been good in awhile now, but there are 2 teams that really need a QB to finish out the rest of this year and have a real shot the playoffs (Texans/Bears).
I think one of them will take a shot at him. I am just not sure anymore about how much he has left in the tank. Then again, he has to be better then what they have right now.
Dear Danny Ainge, Here's A Crazy Idea
Well, since I've already gone crazy and jumped on the Bobby Valentine bandwagon why not makes this day completely insane. So, Danny Ainge this one is for you. I have done your offseason work for you. It will either be awesome, so the fucking worst thing ever, but it will be damn entertaining, and whatever there is only one year left of this anyways.
1. SIGN JEFF GREEN - You have no choice. You can use Bird Rights and you need someone that can actually run the floor with Rondo. I hope he is a lot better then he was last year, but at this point you just have to.
2. SIGN CHUCK HAYES - An undersized center, who loves to get double-double's and is very solid on the defensive side. Hmmm, sounds like Leon Powe. Love it, get him.
Would probably have to do some kind of sign and trade with Big Baby.
3. SIGN ALLEN IVERSON - I know. I have fucking lost my mind. I have screamed for years no one should touch this guy, but the Celtics need scoring off the bench and Iverson even at his worst is good for 13 ppg. Plus, the Celtics have guys like KG that will stab him if he gets out of line.
4. SIGN CARLOS ARROYO - I have no idea why, but he seemed fine last year, and I am just not sure Bradley is ready to run point for the 2nd unit.
5. SIGN GRANT HILL - This should be Hill's last year. He has made a ton of money, it's time for him to make one last run. The Sun's aren't even close to competing, time to join the old timers to each these young whippersnappers a lesson.
6. SIGN DELONTE WEST - He has a hard time staying healthy, but when he does he was good for the Celtics. Plus, he gives you another option at PG off the bench.
7. SIGN JOEL PRZYBILLA - He is over 7 feet, and plays decent defense. You have to have some kind of size off the bench.
Here's you roster:
PG: Rondo - Arroyo - Bradley
SG: Allen - Iverson - West - Moore
SF: Pierce - Green - Hill
PF: KG - Hayes - JaJuan Johnson
C: Jermaine - Przybilla
See Danny it's not so hard...
Jump On The Valentine Bandwagon There's Plenty Of Room
I am sick of being miserable about the Red Sox. Since they haven't signed anyone, and the last thing we saw of them was a bunch of fat, overpaid, choking, con artists, I understand it's tough to get that bad taste out of our mouths.
But let's just ease back the throttle a little bit and get excited for Bobby Valentine. Last year's team (even when they were winning) was fucking boring. There was no personalities. I mean think about it, what were the personalities of this team last year? Lackey was really good at being a douchebag, Pedroia has his little funny comments, Ortiz I guess has a little bit, but even Papelbon had toned it down a lot. The rest of the squad? Nothing. Not a damn interesting thing about them. Remember the good old days? When the team would tape Pedro to a poll in the dugout? When Manny would go pee in the Green Monster? Damn looked more like Jesus and was banging strippers? Derek Lowe looking like he was hungover 90% of the time? Remember those days?
Now the Red Sox get drunk and weird and it's not even fun. The Red Sox went from the crazy high school kids that acted like they were getting drunk for the first time, to a team that is kind of like those same guys 30 years later. Drinking in a dark basement by themselves, ordering from the same delivery place, and packing on pounds like it's going out of style. Not that I would know anything about that.
So, what do the Red Sox do? They bring in a kickass manager. Say what you want, but Bobby Valentine is fucking cool. He discovered the wrap, he was awesome on Baseball Tonight, people in Japan signed petitions against their team when they sent him packing, even when he gets kicked out of games he comes back with a mustache and glasses. So, fuck it. I'm jumping on the bandwagon. It seems lonely and there is probably a bunch of reasons why it is, but at the very least at he will be fucking entertaining, which is more then I can say about this team over the last 2+ years.
Plus, the Red Sox only gave him a 2 year deal. You know who else's deal ends in 2 years? John Ferrell's. Coicindence? I don't think so.
Bruins Give David Krejci 3 Year Extension (UPDATED)
We have not got how much the deal is for yet, but the Bruins have given David Krejci a 3 year extension, which ensures them he will be with the team through the 2014-2015 season. We have seen time and again the Bruins are going every thing they can to keep their core here for as long as they can, and this is just another step in that process.
To be honest though, I think David Krejci has been an underachiever. For a first line center he really doesn't put up the stats you would think he would (13 goals 49 assists last year), and he really has never got back to what he did back in the 2008-2009 season when he scored 22 goals and had 51 assists (although he did lead the Bruins in scoring during the playoffs last year). Still, he is only 25 years old and is no way is a bad player. I guess it's hard to judge the deal until I see the money he got.
Either way, you have to love the run the Bruins are on now, and after what they did last season keep this core as close to intact as you can is always a smart move.
***UPDATED***
The deal is for 3 years, $5.25 million a year meaning the total is $15.75 million. Seems a little high to me.
Will BC Basketball Win More Games than BC Football?
It's a rebuilding year for BC basketball, as second year coach Steve Donahue tries to resurrect a program that was left in a shambles by a lack of recruiting by Al Skinner.
BC football, meanwhile, went 4-8. They even lost to Duke. The one bright spot was junior linebacker Luke Kuechly. He was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, and is projected to be the top LB in the Draft, should he decide to leave early. He recorded an astonishing 191 tackles this season.
Not to diminish Kuechly's accomplishment, but BC's offense was hardly ever on the field. Kuechly also played punt coverage, and BC punted a lot. In other words, he had more opportunities for tackles than most players.
BC's offense was without Montel Harris for most of the season. But even with him, they would have struggled to score. And if you're an offensive high school recruit, why would you want to play at BC?
This is a tough time to be a BC fan. Unless you like hockey. And this is the time that you'll see many BC fans find other things to do. At last night's basketball game, the student sections were almost empty. BC fans follow their team when it's trendy. Then forget them when it isn't. I guess that's the case with most sports teams, but the effect is even more dramatic at BC.
-The Commodore
More Robot Terror
A robot able to detect a human in its path then step out of the way to avoid her. All while holding in a crap.
If people want to make robots more human, they still have a long way to go. I'll be impressed when a robot can do that "which way are you gonna go" shuffle when two people meet in a hallway. Or if he can do the High School Shoulder Bump while passing another robot. Or if he's programmed to subtly cop a feel when "accidentally" bumping into a woman. These are the things that make men men.
-The Commodore
One Good Thing About Valentine
And that's good.
I don't want the clubhouse malcontents to be happy. So while I don't think Valentine is a long-term solution, and don't like how Ben Cherington is a puppet GM. But anyone who displeases the chicken eating, beer guzzling, complaint happy Red Sox can't be all that bad.
-The Commodore
Little Wiggle Room For Celtics To Setup Roster
As much as most Celtics fan will not want to admit it the 2011-2012 season could very well be a bridge year. Then again, it could be the last year the Celtics are good for a long time.
We all know after this year KG, Allen, and Jermaine all come off the books. It gives the Celtics a ton of cap space, but the problem will be who they get to come here. If my predictions are correct and Dwight Howard goes to the Nets or Lakers, and Chris Paul goes to the Knicks it is going to be very hard to find those "top" free agents to make a run. I do trust Ainge though, and I love our coach. I think Doc could be the key to getting people to play here, but this is all for a later discussion.
For now, let's try to focus on what's in front of us. I am not going to discuss Rondo getting traded, because I don't think he is going anywhere. So, what can the Celtics do with what they have?
As for today the Celtics have 6 guys under contract. Jermaine, Pierce, Allen, KG, Rondo, and Bradley. Let's assume they will use Bird Rights and resign Green. That leaves the Celtics with about $3 million to use (new mid level exception). Other then that the Celtics really only other option to sign someone above the league minimum is to to use Bird Rights on Big Baby and either keep him or do a sign and trade.
That really leaves the Celtics with very little wiggle room. They are going to have to convince players to come here based on a chance to make one last run at a title (Grant Hill?). The bottom line is the Celtics have 4 really good players, 3 of them could really use their minutes being cut back. A backup PG that we aren't sure can play backup PG yet, and a center that plays about 20 games a year. To say Ainge has some work to do between now and Christmas is an understatement.
Bruins 6, Maple Leafs 3
This streak has seen everyone step forward and contribute in some way. Sometimes with big goals, sometimes with the little things, but it's all added up to a 12-0-1 month of November.
The Bruins entered November in dire straits. They were wallowing. They weren't skating. It seemed like only Seguin, Thomas, and Rask were showing up to play. And now they leave November atop the Northeast Division, only a point behind Pittsburgh for the best record in the NHL, and tied with Detroit for the most wins (15).
One word I'd use to describe this Bruins team is "resiliency." They don't quit, they don't stop, they're relentless. And in this streak, that resiliency has shown. The 6-0 cruise control wins against the Islanders are nice, but the 1-0 grinders against Montreal, and the comeback wins against Buffalo and Toronto, those victories show this team's character. This team occasionally falls down, but they don't stay down.
They're actually -1 in the first period this year. And are the best team in the NHL in the second and third periods (+32). This is a team of Rocky Balboas.
The Cup isn't won in November. But if the Bruins had continued their October horror show into November, they may have lost it. They turned things around, they're back on track, now let's sit back and enjoy the Champions once again playing like champs.
-The Commodore