So it’s August, the dog days; time to see who’s for real and who’s not in baseball. Time for the NFL to sort out it’s mess and head towards a September kick off, and time to soak up the rest of the summer and plunge headlong into autumn, my favorite time of year. So it’s safe to say that I’m anxious, and excited about what’s about to happen. But before that, we need to settle August which has started with a bang, so enough with the waxing poetically about autumn, and let’s get on with the dog days.
*The REAL reason Nnamdi signed with the Eagles – Money. Flat out, dirty, green money. Please don’t believe this crap that Nnamdi wanted to be a part of the “winning tradition” the Eagles have. If that was the truth, the Cowboys were begging for his services, that is a true “winning tradition.” The Eagles haven’t won a championship since 1960. Shit, the Jets have won since then and even with their recent success, I would in no way claim that the Jets have a “winning tradition.” So that reason is crap. The REAL reason is the Eagles offered 500K more per season and that was it; as simple as that. At first I was livid as a Jets fan, and texted our silent partner Ant, as I so often do when sports matters piss me off, and said that I thought Nnamdi was a p***y and he bailed when he realized the expectations that would be put on him if he came to the Jets. You see, Nnamdi has been great in Oakland, where nobody cares about you at all. If Nnamdi were to be a Jet, he would be expected to be at least as good as Revis, and that’s a large task. So couple the pressure of being a part of the Jets D, with 500K more, and you have yourself your newest Eagle CB. Because here’s the deal in Philly, the pressure will never be on Nnamdi, it’s about Vick in Philly. This may be sour grapes, but I don’t expect to hear Nnamdi Asumogha in the “best cover man in the NFL” conversation after next season; but I do expect Revis to be there and the Jets to go further than the Eagles this season.
*Skip Bayless is an Unbearable Douche Part Deux – Dude, will you please give the Jets SOME credit ever. Explain to me how a fat, self-centered, cry baby douche like Haynesworth and another self-centered, past his prime receiver in Chad Ochocinco make the Pats that much better than the Jets who are more or less the same as last year. Last year’s Jets team can only get better with another AFC Championship Game run under their belts, and the confidence to know that they can beat anyone in the AFC. Skip actually said that he believed this Jets team was closer to the “45-3 loss to the Pats” Jets, than the “20-14 playoff win over the Pats,” Jets. I’m sorry, I respect the Pats and I think Ocho was a great player and Haynesworth has potential to be a great player, but Skip Bayless I have no respect for. His hatred for the Jets is so transparent, it’s just sad. How can you honestly say that the Pats are head and shoulders better than the Jets based on the analysis of the potential of a player who had under 70 catches and 831 yards last season, and another who could barely get his fat ass up and down the field from play to play last season? It’s because you HATE, and that’s all you do. Watch the games douche. I want to start a campaign to shut Skip Bayless up!
*Is it Bush League…….. – to try and win a game? Justin Verlander was pitching a no-hitter into the 8th inning yesterday against the Angels when Erick Aybar came up and tried get on by bunting. After the game Verlander said the play was “bush league.” I would agree, if it was Tigers-Royals and it was 9-0 in the 8th with a Power Hitter like Jeff Francouer up; but this is another team (Angels) trying to fight for a playoff spot down 3-0 in the 8th. Aybar trying to get on and potentially trying to WIN the game was not bush league, it was the most professional thing you could do and Verlander is just coming off as a crybaby. Wouldn’t you want a hitter to try and do everything possible to break up your no-no? As a competitor, wouldn’t you want to know that you faced it all and went 27 up/ 27 down? To me, the only thing Bush League here is Verlander’s quote.
*Call this Theory a Conspiracy – Ed Wade, the acting GM for the Houston Astros, traded his best player, Hunter Pence, to the Phillies on Friday afternoon. I say “acting” GM because I truly believe he’s a Phillies operative in disguise. The former Phillies GM (from ’98- 2005), Wade has been with the Astros since 2007. In that time he has traded Brad Lidge (All Star closer), Roy Oswalt (All Star Starter) and Hunter Pence (All Star Outfielder) to the Phillies at the deadline for very little. The only players of note to come out of those three trades were Michael Bourn (recently traded to the Braves and a quality player) and JA Happ who has yet to become anything yet. Now I give him NO credit for getting Bourn back because he wasn’t even the main component of that trade, Geoff Geary, a middle reliever was; Bourn was a throw in. So for three All Stars, the Astros got back a bag of balls, some ace bandages and Michael Bourn. If he was fleeced by other teams I would say he’s just a terrible GM, but the Phils always seem to get these breaks from the Astros. The Braves had to give up way more for Bourn than the Phils did for Pence. The Braves had to give up a guy that would have been on the field for them if he wasn’t injured, the Phils? Only prospects I’m afraid. I think Wade knows his days are numbered in Houston and has decided if he was going to have to watch baseball on TV next year, he should be able to watch his beloved Phils win, right? Wow, it’s good to be the king.
*…..and finally – Randy Moss has decided to retire? This, to me, is a very interesting development. Not many people seem surprised by this move whereas I am shocked by it. An ego the size of Moss’s can’t just walk away from the game like that, can it? Especially with the likes of one Chad Ochocinco taking his spot in New England, I would have figured Randy would’ve been chomping at the bit to play for the Jets or the Dolphins to show Chad what’s up. I guess not because today, Randy hung them up, at least for now. Which brings me back to a point I had made last week when talking about Tiger Woods; there just comes a time in some of these guys lives when they’ve done it all already and they see no reason to abuse themselves or just simply work THAT hard anymore. No one can dispute the amount of work it takes to be the best of the best in anything, especially pro sports; talent will only get you so far. So for Tiger, he’s been doing this since he was in utero; so maybe he’s tired of the grind. He’s got what, a thousand championships, more money than he could ever spend, and any woman (except his ex-wife) he could want; why work so hard? Maybe Randy is in the same place; especially when you’re dealing with a team sport such as football where getting along with your teammates is essential to your success. Maybe Randy, who has yet to win a championship, has had enough with the TEAM concept, and playing for just a championship is not enough for him to want to do the “grind” again. It’s happened before. How else do you explain Barry Sanders? Some guys don’t have the forever killer instinct like a Jordan or a Brady; or the everlasting work ethic and indestructible body of Brett Favre. Some guys turn 35 or so and just want to chill. See, Tiger plays Golf; he can just take some time off and relax; then come back and work to be the best again. Football is pushing your body to the limit, and actually taking physical punishment to be great at football on the pro level. Randy Moss will be missed for his antics, his sound bites; but mostly his play on the field. If you want to know how great Randy Moss was, here’s a stat line from his first ever appearance on Monday Night vs. the Green Bay Packers. Randy caught 5 balls for 190 yards and 2 TD’s; that was Randy.
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