Oh, It's On!

Here we go. At 3 ET the 2008 NFL Draft will begin. I will be in my own personal war room with my daughters and wife, with one eye on a game board of my girls choosing, the other on the flat screen. I will have one hand on my green Candyland man, the other on a slice of pizza. With my butt on my couch, my mind on the tracker and my heart in the Dolphins war room, I will sit on edge with anticipation. Will the Dolphins trade Jason Taylor? I think so. Will Jeremy Shockey become a Saint? Yes. Will Chad Johnson get dealt. I believe so, but I hope not. I'd love to see what happens if he is forced to play for the Bungles this year. Who will the Rams pick? Will the Packers actually pick up Culpepper? Will the J-E-T-S pick an under achieving lineman, a player no one else has been talking about or a kicker with their first round pick (they better take McFadden if he's still there). Will Matt Ryan fall to the Ravens or further? I'm so excited I will probably vomit all over myself before the day is through. Here's to fantasy geeks, Papa John's and the NFL! After this weekend, I promise everyone I will try to get a life!!! 

What happened LeBron?

If you had told me that the final score of Thursday nights Cleveland vs. Washington match up would be 108-72, I would have said either Cleveland beat the Wizards or maybe Cleveland beat the Hoyas or Terrapins. One thing I wouldn't have said was that Cleveland received, in the words of Cavs head coach Mike Brown, "a good old-fashioned behind kicking." DeShawn Stevenson was showing LeBron the "can't feel my face" gesture while the crowd chanted "overrated." I doubt it will really make a difference to LeBron - I still like Cleveland in 6. Nonetheless, kudos to Washington, the Wizards came to ball last night. Houston and Toronto made their playoff pairings a bit more interesting as T MAc and the Rockets shocked the Jazz in Utah and Toronto notched a solid victory over the Florida Boys behind TJ Ford and Jose Calderon.  

Pacman is a Dallas Cowboy

The Tennessee Titans and Dallas Cowboys agreed in principle on a deal that sends troubled Adam "Pacman" Jones from Music city to Big D. The Titans part with Jones (who is still serving a suspension imposed by Roger Goodell) and will receive the Cowboys 4th round pick, pick #126 in this weekends draft. In addition the Titans will receive one of Dallas' picks in 2009 unless Jones fails to be reinstated by the league. I believe this is potentially a win-win for both teams. I think the Titans have done the right thing. Living here in Nashville, the locals "don't take too kindly" to the kinds of problems that Jones has constantly had. People here want players their community can be proud of, not players they are afraid of. Dallas is taking the real risk here. I believe it's only a matter of time before Jones is in the middle of bullets or strippers or punches or chickens or fist fights or some other bad situation. To quote Tweety Bird, "Once a bad puddy tat, always a bad puddy tat." At the same time, to quote Jack Nicholson in the 1989 version of Batman, "You can't make an omlette without breaking a few eggs." If Jones could stay out of trouble, and if he is reinstated, and if he plays the way he did a year ago in Nashville, Dallas will benefit greatly. For me, there are too many "if's." What say you?  

Great start to the NBA playoffs

Pau Gasol went nuts on Sunday. Who would have predicted the Gasol would upstage Kobe, Melo and AI. Gasol's line of 36 points, 16 rebounds and 8 assists was one of the best performances of the weekend and the Lakers had no problem with the Denver Nuggets. The Spurs game one victory in double-overtime over Shaq and the Suns was the best game I've seen in a first round match up in a long time. Duncans 40 and that 3-pointer earn him equal praise with Gasol. Philadelphia downs Detroit? Wow. I feel like the teams that will survive the first round are; Cleveland, Boston, Detroit and Orlando in the East and L.A., Phoenix, New Orleans and Utah. Anybody up for an eight game challenge? Your thoughts ... 

Chiefs are on the clock ...

The Chiefs are in need of help on their offensive line, their corners on defense and another playmaker at wide receiver. I believe the Chiefs will take a couple of linemen to get back to the power running game that they love. With the departure of Ty Law and given Pat Surtain will be 32 this year, they will draft a corner. However, having said that, and after listening to several sources close to the team, I think they will take USC DT Sedrick Ellis (provided the stars align with Jupiter and my previous picks are dead on).

The Oakland Raiders

At number four the Raiders have been saddled with Arkansas running back Darren McFadden by nearly every mock I have seen. I don't see this as a pressing need on Oakland's roster. With Justin Fargas, LaMont Jordan, Dominic Rhodes and Michael Bush on the roster, I could see a curveball here by Al Davis and company. At the NFL owners meetings a couple weeks ago, Lane Kiffin said, "Running back is not really a need for us." If so, where are the Raiders most glaring needs and whom should they pick to become a better team? Keep in mind the Raiders only have five picks in the entire draft. I see them looking for line help on both sides of the ball, a quarterback and a linebacker. I'll trust my instincts here and say, "With the fourth pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, the Oakland Raiders select Vernon Gholston, defensive end, Ohio State."

522 for A-Rod

Alex Rodriguez hit a solo homerun in the first inning of New York's 15-9 thumping of Boston on Wednesday night. The shot was the 522nd of his career and pushed him ahead of Ted Williams and Willie McCovey into 15th place all-time. Rodriguez is only 32 years old and should have a legit shot at making a run at Barry Bonds homerun record. He is in the first year of a 10 year contract; if he plays all ten years he could make a run at 800 and possibly 900.