The Final State of All the Babies

CHAMPION!

Tom Brady's Babies won the Going Deep Championship by a score of 72 to 72 over The Smithereens. Steve Smith led the team in scoring in the championship round and Drew Brees led the team in scoring for the season. Congrats once again to Tom Brady's Babies on a terrific Fantasy football Season. Hope to see you all next year!  Yes indeed my dear readers, this was the headline on my Dad's league page this morning.  Your very own Tom Brady's Babies won!!!!!!! I'm going to take a minute to gloat.  I kind of rock.  I beat my own Dad, who made it to the playoffs this year and lost in the first round and who has won his leagues the last two years.  And I beat a whole bunch of random boys.  I didn't know any of these people, it was a public league, but I was pretty sure they were all men.  I'm proud of myself.  The last day was utterly torturous.  The Eagles happened to be playing the Saints so I didn't particularly want the Saints to win, but I was expecting my boys Brees and Colston to put up their usual monster numbers.  A couple hours later the game is over, the Eagles had won, and Drew Brees hadn't thrown a touchdown pass in the entire game.  Colston had left the game in the first half with some strange injury (apparently he was coughing up blood...not good).  So at this point I think I am toast.  My savior was Steve Smith, who I had stopped even playing every week because of Carolina's painful quarterback situation.  Low and behold Smith had basically his best game of the season and caught for over 100 yards.   Luckily, I watched excitedly as most of my opponents players punked out on him as well.  Plaxico Burress laid a goose egg, as did his tight end Heath Miller.  That was helpful.  Ryan Grant was the only bit of light from that horrible Packers game and was my only other single player to get me double-digit points.  Going into the afternoon games I was ahead by only about 3 points, with both of us still having significant players left to play.  I began to panic when Kurt Warner's numbers kept growing.  This guy had switched last minute from Favre to Warner and boy was that the right decision.  If only I'd gone with my gut and put Marshawn Lynch in over Earnest Graham.  When the night game began I was a few points behind, with his team completely done and only Chris Cooley left for me.  I was sure Cooley could lock it up for me, he'd been awesome all season.  Early in the first half he catches a 33 yard touchdown pass and that ties the game 72-72.  All I need is for Cooley to get 7 more receiving yards and I've got it, but for some reason I decide to not watch the game.  A little while later my dad appears from his bedroom screaming, "Lisa oh my god!"  What what??  Cooley drops a 2-point conversion pass in the end zone.  That would have won it for me.  The Redskins lead by double digits in the second half and I know I am through - there is no way they are going to do anything but run the ball the rest of the half.  The game ends and we're left with the same score - tied.   I try in vain to find the rules on a tied championship game.  Are we co-champs (unacceptable), or is there a tie-breaker?  I check the standings.  I'd beaten him in the regular season, so I've got that tie-breaker.  I also had more total points than him - there's the second possible tie-breaker.  I've won!!!! Now you might be asking, what about the Boys' league game?  What happened there?  Well, it was over before it began.  My main man Willie Parker broke his stupid leg in the first quarter at St. Louis on freaking Thursday night!  There is no way to win a championship with only production from one running back. Not only did Willie not get me anything, he left me with a lovely NEGATIVE .10 POINTS.  Thanks, Will.  So I basically gave it up there.  I got spanked, particularly after my second running back, Willis Mcgahee, also decided to get hurt in his game and leave quickly.  It was so disappointing - these guys were two of the top running backs in the entire NFL the whole season!  They got me to the end and then they lost it for me.  Poetic, isn't it?  I admit, though, I think I'm happy to not have won that league.  I fear what would have happened to me when I got back to LA and the Boys realized they'd created a monster.  I'd have probably come back to many "sarcastic" barbs, and I wouldn't have been given an ounce of room to gloat.  I'd get upset and then the Boys would try to tell me that they weren't really being serious and I shouldn't be so sensitive, and I'd say fine, even though I wouldn't really believe that they weren't.  I'm plenty proud of a second and a first! I'm a bit sad that its over.  Fantasy football was such a nice little side distraction for a few months.  And it inspired this blog (yay)!   This Week's Favorite Things About the NFL 1.  Philadelphia is pretty amazing.  I've been at home this week and the press is pretty hypocritical (though I know I am about to hear crap for this).  All season they are calling for Reid and McNabb's heads, and suddenly a couple wins have everyone talking about how great they are. Suddenly the same people who wanted Reid to quit mid-season are talking about how much of a stand up guy he is.  Interesting. 2.  You knew I wouldn't go a week without talking about the Patriots.  First team to ever go 15-0 consecutively!  Saturday is it!  Not only could they be the first team to go 16-0, Tom and Randy Moss could both break their respective positions' touchdown records.  I can't wait!!! 3.  I really hate the Redskins and would rather them not get into the playoffs, but the Todd Collins story is one of those that I just love.  The guy has ten full years pass since his last start and wins every game he plays.  Now the Redskins only have a second-string Cowboys team in the way of their playoff hopes.  Its just incredible that things like that can happen in this league.  People can step up out of nowhere. 4.  While it was very disappointing to see Cleveland beat themselves into a hole at the worst possible moment, I was a little happy to see the Bengals finally step up and win an important game.  They have nothing to play for but they didn't just roll over to their division rivals.  Maybe its a glimmer of hope for next year from the one of the league's most disappointing teams this season.   5.  I know I go on and on about Brett Favre but there was a really adorable article about Favre and Greg Jennings on ESPN.com this week, discussing their relationship.  For those more sentimental fans, like me, its a good read. Random Thought of the Week You know what I really don't care about?  College bowl games.  I know they are tradition, and maybe I just can't get into it because I didn't go to a school with a football team (a fact that our Boston College rivals loved to constantly point out to us, yet I never really understood why, that's not really an insult).  But they just seem so pointless.  Half the kids get suspended after their semester grades come out and suddenly we're supposed to be shocked that they didn't really study.  Then the majority of the teams play meaningless games with titles like the Papajohns.com Bowl, or the San Diego Credit Union Bowl.  I guess the BCS bowls are supposed to have meaning but I'm really not sure what that is beyond the national championship.  I like Ohio State so I guess I'll watch that game but otherwise, I could not be more bored by a sport right now.  Well, I guess except the NBA.  I won't be rolling this blog over to basketball anytime soon. I hope you all had wonderful Christmases and Hannukahs!  See you next week!

It Is So Very On

I can't quite believe I did it...but I did it! I am officially in the championship game in not one, but both of my fantasy leagues. I'm actually pretty surprised at myself but I don't know why. I have two things going for me that help you win in fantasy - a lot of downtime to fiddle with my lineup and the fact that during said downtime I watch and read a whole lot of ESPN. Basically I just pay attention. But I'm not going to start the horn-tooting quite yet. I want to WIN. I have to win at least one league. So we're starting with the State of the Babies (quite good).

I don't think the Boys are surprised that I have gotten this far but I think all of the sudden the alarm bells are going off that I could realistically win. I honestly don't think I will beat my opponent, Silence of the Rams. He's been dominant the entire season and never fell from the first seed (though in support of myself, I never fell from the two spot either). He's got LT so that makes him dangerous no matter what. Right now the league matchup function projects him beating me by only about 10 points, so it could be anyone's game. Its probably good for me that we'll all be apart this weekend for the championship battle, everyone in their respective home towns for the holidays. I am not sure what the reaction will be if I do win. I hope they'll talk to me afterward.

In my Dad's league, I am playing some team called the Smithereens, who I must take down because he's the one who beat my dad this past weekend in the first round of the playoffs. I had so wished for a family matchup, particularly since we'll be watching together this weekend, but alas it didn't work out as planned. So now I must win one for the family. My dad has a pretty impressive record though - championships two years in a row and a first seed playoff berth the third. This is the game I think I can really pull off. This guy scored 79 points total last week...I scored 141. The Smiths have some players capable of breaking out though (Favre, Addai, Burress, McGahee), and he's got a couple favorable matchups. But I do too and if my team can keep rolling like it has been then I can pull off the win. Its been a strange season with that team...my running backs are Ryan Grant and Earnest Graham - two guys I had never even heard off at the beginning of the season and who are now having regular 100 yard games and most weeks are scoring at least one touchdown.

And now, in a very special guest blogging appearance, my very own Dad! He'd just like to revel and share in my awesomeness. Trust me, you'll notice family resemblance quickly as he shares his weekly highlights.

I am delighted to make a guest appearance in Lisa’s Blog.

I must congratulate her on her stellar debut performance in Fantasy Football. Regardless of the outcome of this week’s championship games, she has done a great job. I can assure you as her father that she knew almost nothing about the NFL until she started following the Patriots in college, despite cheering for the Patriots in high school. To be this savvy and successful is a great accomplishment, even though you only get bragging rights out of it. Seeing your child succeed in something is the best thing for a parent. Those of you who are not parents yet will understand someday. So well done Sasa. Ask her what that means.

And now for some random thoughts on the NFL and Week 15:

- I am now seriously rooting for the Packers. One reason is Lisa’s Grandfather, a cheesehead who has stayed loyal despite not living in Wisconsin since the Korean War. The other reason is that they will hopefully defeat the hated Cowboys in the NFC Championship.

- Where does one start in talking about the Cowgirls? There is the whining T.O., there is Jessica Simpson, there is Wade Phillips standing on the sidelines with no one paying attention to him because they know that Jason Garrett and Jerry Jones run the team. There is Romo, who despite doing a good job is not the second coming of Brett Favre yet. And, of course there is the whole America’s Team thing.

- Jessica Simpson, please. It is a football game, not E! News. It was a very good game so we did not need to see her on a regular basis. I love watching sports and do not need the extra crap that the networks bring in. I think most people agree with me on this. Just show us the game.

- One other thing about the Cowboys. Can they keep Roy Williams in the lineup forever? He is good for a personal foul every game and he cannot cover to save his life. Glad to see that he is being suspended. What a fraud.

- Unstoppable- Eli Manning. Have you seen his ad? I would say he was Citizen’s spokesperson but he does not speak in the ad. He really is getting worse. Again, the downside of their slide (they are at Buffalo and home against New England and could fall out of the playoffs) is that Coughlin would be fired. We need him in the NFC East. Coughlin could make people like Bobby Petrino.

- Finally, the Eagles. It has been a sad year for them. If they catch a punt in Green Bay and stop Brian Griese from going 97 yards in less than two minutes with no timeouts, they are in the playoffs. I have to blame the coach for this. He is a fine fellow (let’s not talk about his parenting skills, something I know about- see Lisa and Betsy) but a real stubborn guy. The team has no top rate receivers, poor return game and does not draft well. Please, Andy, get in a personnel guy and concentrate on the game. Also, look at the films. When you run well, you win. Stop calling passes on third and 1 or 2nd and 3 in field goal range late in the fourth quarter down by 3 with AJ at the helm. With the right play call there, you Patriot lovers might be looking at 18-1.

I'm not sure if you could tell but my dad really hates the Cowboys. I thought for a second, oh no, what if by some crazy chance the Cowboys beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl? What would I do? My life would be over, how could I ever watch football again? The thought is just too frightening. I am also so glad someone brought up those ridiculous Eli Manning watch ads...dear lord, what on earth would make you hire Eli Manning for an ad whose theme is being unstoppable? I know he's a lot cheaper than Peyton but its not even close! There is no way and no how Eli is unstoppable. It makes you wonder if those ad execs ever watched him play a game.
Also today was the Pro Bowl lineup announcements. Honestly not very much to comment on. People are apt to be up in arms about Fred Taylor yet again not making the team (or I guess as an alternate). But really, how do you argue against the 3 running backs - LT, Willie Parker, and Joseph Addai. I am however quite happy that Brian Westbrook finally made the roster, because it would be a travesty if he didn't. He's a top 5 back this year. I'm also a bit surprised that Drew Brees didn't get the third NFC quarterback spot but I guess the Saints just haven't been consistent enough. The Cowboys managed to squeak in a league-high 11 players, which I guess in the NFC isn't surprising, though its nauseating. I guess they're still popular or whatever and people vote for players they know, sometimes regardless of stats.

I know I promised my NFC Playoff Preview this week but in light of my guest I am pushing that to next week. By then most of it should be wrapped up. I can only hope that by this time next week, the Giants will have lost their previously-almost-guaranteed playoff spot. I would LOVE that. At least if the Saints got in instead we'd have a game in the first round, instead of wasting our time watching yet another Giants one and done playoff embarrassment. And with any luck, Tony Romo's thumb boo-boo will provide the Cowboys a one-way ticket to Lambeau Field in January. Here's hoping!

Random Thought of the Week

You heard it here first (ok well courtesy of Perez Hilton) but Britney Spears' younger 16 year old sister is pregnant!!! Can you even believe this? Well yes of course we can because we can now be more sure than ever that the Spears' are pure trash. This girl stars in her own Nickelodeon series that is the most watched show on the network. Way to screw that up. Have these girls never heard of the birth control pill? My lord! What a royal idiot.

That's all for this week. I wish all my friends and family a wonderful holiday and a relaxing vacation (if you are taking one). I'll be traveling back to Pennsylvania tomorrow for about 10 days. Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah!

AFC Playoff Preview

How can you not be in love with this man...he's too perfect. Earlier this week he'd made this comment in response to Steeler's safety Anthony Smith's "guarantee" of a Pittsburgh win:


"Well done is always better than well said. That's been the motto of this team.''


Peter King, who everyone knows my favorite NFL writer, admired Tom just as much as I did in making such a profound comment in reaction to something that could have caused other players to be pretty upset. So he asked him where he got it from, and this was his answer:

"Ben Franklin said that. I learn from where we all have, my dad!"


The man quotes Ben Franklin. I could just fall over from love.


I won't go on too much about this weekend's game. I think the game has said all that is needed to be said itself. I really feared the worst, because the Steelers are basically the better versions of the Eagles and Ravens. But I should not have feared, because Belichick knew exactly what to do with the team to get them back in the right place. A little anger and a little rest were all they needed. Now Tommy is five touchdown passes in three games away from breaking that record. Randy Moss is only four touchdowns in three games away from breaking Jerry Rice's record of 22 receiving TDs in a season - a record that has been previously thought to be untouchable. The amazing part is that I will be more surprised if they don't make these records than if they both do.


I am skipping over the State of the Babies section this week because it was an unimportant week in fantasy. Playoffs begin next week and both of my leagues are locked up already. I will be the number two seed in the Boy's league and I am not sure about the other one, but I think I will be three. The only thing I care to point out is that the first place Boy decided this week to "rest his starter" and still beat the piss out of his opponent with Kellen Clemens. That was pretty funny.

Instead, I'm going to do my first annual Playoff Preview, starting with the AFC!


Currently, the AFC playoff picture looks like this:


1. New England Patriots (13-0, AFC East, home-field, and 1st round bye already locked)

The only question is undefeated or not!

2. Indianapolis Colts (11-2, playoff berth locked, should win AFC South this week)

Barring a total collapse the next few weeks and massive Jacksonville surge, the Colts will tie up the other 1st round bye. And considering their rout of Baltimore this week, we should all be slightly scared of them.

3. Pittsburgh Steelers (9-4, should win AFC North)

The Steelers lucked out in that they've swept their division games against the Browns, who are just a game back. They have another very tough game against Jacksonville next week. They need to win that and keep those pesky Jags away from them in the playoffs.

4. San Diego Chargers (8-5, should win AFC West this week)

Scaring the crap out of their fans weekly. They've gotten some lucky breaks and managed to pretty much secure the West. The rest of the division has faltered and that has certainly helped because this team can be lucky to be called mediocre. If they can run the table, they have an outside chance of moving to the 3rd seed. They should hope so, because I don't think the Jags would be a very good matchup for them.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars (9-4)

The Jags have all but locked up this first Wild Card seed. They shouldn't even need to win at Pittsburgh next week to do it, considering how easy their last two games are. I tell you - I wouldn't want to have to play them in the first round.

6. Cleveland Browns (8-5)

Well, well, well. Cleveland - what are you doing here? Next week's game at Buffalo will be key, but their other two games are also very winnable (at Cincinnati, SF). I think if they can take 2 out of 3 they will remain in the 6th spot. Buffalo is the next team below them and they have a tough ending schedule.

I really like what is going on in Buffalo these days but I think they are too young and too banged up to move above the Browns. They also have a much harder schedule, facing Cleveland, Philly, and the Giants in the last three weeks.


So this means that the first round games would be Cleveland at Pittsburgh and Jacksonville at San Diego. Pittsburgh beats Cleveland in a close one, where the Browns make it a game but aren't able to close it up. They are young and this will be the first postseason game for almost the entire team. They won't be quite ready. Jacksonville beats San Diego on the road. Don't they always say that defense and a good running game wins in the playoffs? Jacksonville is about as good on both of those fronts as a team can be. San Diego (possibly lacking Shawne Merriman and Lorenzo Neal - huge losses for them) won't be able to take away the Jags run game. San Diego loses again in the playoffs, at home.


That makes round two Pittsburgh at Indy, and Jacksonville at New England. From what we saw of Pittsburgh this weekend, I think Indy will pick them apart, especially at the RCA Dome where they have a massive home field advantage. New England beats Jacksonville because well, they just do. Though admittedly I don't think it will be an easy win. I predict the Pats giving up a lot of yardage, but outscoring the Jags with their incredible passing game. The Jags receivers aren't good enough for them to be able to outscore the Pats.

Of course that brings us right back to yet another Indy at New England AFC Championship game. The Pats win in a for-real shootout (not the same battle as their regular season game, due to the Colts defensive injuries).

Come on, did you really think this would lead to anything but the Pats going to the Super Bowl? NFC next week!



This Week's Favorite Things in the NFL:

1. The crowd at Gillette Stadium chanted "Guarantee!" at the end of the game last weekend. I love it! They say the crowd there has gotten complacent, so it makes me happy to hear them stay in it like that.

2. I'm officially kind of into the Vikings. They can still win even when Adrian Peterson gets 3 whole yards? That's what I call a turnaround. Say what you will about the parity issues in this league, but I love the fact that teams can come out of nowhere.

3. The Bears are going to start Kyle Orton next week, the guy who started the season as the number 3 on the depth chart. Then Rex Grossman comes out and says he'd love to be back with the Bears next year. Sweetie...its over. You were benched, for a guy who is almost 10 years older than you, then lose the job yet again (ok fine he's hurt but its clearly not that bad). Just move on, with the utter lack of decent quarterback play this year, some team will take a gamble on you.

4. Through all the turmoil this year, I still really like Drew Brees, a lot. I just watched that ESPN commercial where he can't get through the security gate on his Mardi Gras float and he's really funny. And if you watched any of the horrible MNF game yesterday, you saw his absolutely sick performance. Accurate is an understatement. And he happens to be one of my fantasy QBs :)


Random Thought of the Week

On the complete opposite end of football, I think I am officially over The Hills (its an MTV show for anyone who doesn't know). They made this huge deal over the finale episode last night, only to have nothing remotely surprising or interesting happen. Oooh Lauren goes to Paris for what, 2 weeks? Then they make another huge deal about Lauren revealing some kind of "secret" after the show, and the secret turns out to be that they are doing more episodes. Um, lame.

This Week in Review

What a fun week! Don't you love having three days of football games in one week? Considering the utter wasteland that television is right now, it certainly helps to add a day on. It was an action packed week, so lets take a look at the highlights through the week...

THURSDAY

Ooh boy, I was excited for this one. Packers at Cowboys - the Sheriff versus the young gun (GRRR Romo). I didn't truly believe that the Packers could win this one on the road but an NFC Championship game at freezing cold Lambeau Field sure did sound like an exciting way to end the season, and would hopefully set up my ideal Super Bowl - a 1996 rematch of Patriots versus Packers. Alas, it did not quite go that way. Brett Favre got HURT. It was painful to watch him on the sidelines. His eyes were hollow and at times he couldn't even put his helmet down. One look into those eyes and you understood why this man cannot retire - he does not know what to do with himself when he isn't playing football. Aaron Rodgers came for Favre and surprised everyone who witnessed his half of a game played last year, where he looked like crap and went on to break his leg instead of assuring Packer Nation that he was the heir apparent. The kid played well and I am no longer completely concerned that the Packers will be flushed down the toilet when the Sheriff does eventually retire. He has to sometime, right? I think? Read his profile for SI's Sportsman of the Year, its fascinating.

SUNDAY

I was up late on Saturday night for a friend's birthday party but I thought, hey, I'll still set that alarm for 9:55am, and I'll lay in bed and watch the Eagles. This should be a good game, right? The Eagles played well against the Patriots, there was some hope if they could do it again and pull out a win, right? That would be a big old no. I definitely should have stayed asleep. I think its safe to say that Philadelphia's one-week love affair with AJ Feeley is officially over. When you stare down your receivers and throw continually into triple-coverage, that ball will be picked off. Multiple times. And with those picks goes the Eagles playoff hopes. The game was flat-out ugly, not helped by the vicious sleet and wind, and the play-calling was horrendous. I said to one of my friends earlier this week that Seattle had a speedy secondary, and they'd need to run the ball a lot to get anything done. Yet again, the Eagles insist on throwing entirely too much when they have one of the best runners in the game, Brian Westbrook. A couple of the Boys came up with a theory that Westbrook isn't taken seriously because Brian is too wimpy of a name for a running back. Maybe he should change it to Bryondo or something.

MONDAY

I knew I put that dang bracelet on for a reason. Something pulled me to my little silver jewelry box and I took out my little leather Brady bracelet (the leather looks like a football - its adorable) and put it on before I left my house to watch the game on Monday night. I was actually nervous not wearing my jersey. Last week I hadn't worn it for the first half, and after I left my location and went home, I put it on again just to try to change the cosmic vibes. And it did work (well, I think AJ Feeley just made a crappy play but still). Somehow we kept those cosmic vibes and some way, some how, remain undefeated, a proud 12-0! I know I sound like a greedy fan to say this but, the Pats didn't look good. They looked like crap actually. Randy Moss had 34 yards. We gave up 166 rushing yards because we could not tackle at all. The offensive line struggled and Brady got sacked several times. My friends and I prepared ourselves mentally to lose. We started talking about how it meant nothing to have one loss and that it wouldn't change our playoff stature. And then came the stupidest time out on the planet.

As a very special addition this week, I have a guest-blogger! My friend Lauren can continue on to tell us about this game, as she was in attendance. She's a Raven's fan, but we'll forgive her this once.

Tommy Can You Hear Me? Tommy Can You See Me?

For those of you who don’t know me – I’m Lisa’s good friend from college. I like to think that her passion for football started when she attended my Super Bowl party freshman year in which the Ravens played the Giants. Being from Baltimore, I have been a true Ravens fan through and through…Lisa saw me that day in probably one of my most intense moments… let’s just say I am a passionate fan. While I don’t think it’s appropriate to give myself full credit for Lisa’s love of football, I like to think I had something to do with it. So, thank you Lisa for letting me be your first guest blogger.

That said. I have to admit that this season for me has been all about the Patriots. Yes, I am admitting to being a fair weather fan or more accurately, fair weather Tom Brady fan. (I also just love how cute Tom Brady and Randy Moss are together. Boy love. Gotta love it). When my Dad told me I was invited to the Ravens/Pats game (he’s a season ticket Ravens holder) I looked at it as an opportunity to meet my future husband (the child out of wedlock – just a blip on the radar, of course).

Nothing was going to stop me from going to that game. Not 50 mph winds. Not a cold. Nothing was going to keep me in the way of my Tommy…except maybe the Ravens. At the start of the game, I informed those around me that I would be making my love for Tommy known throughout the game – the cheer I came up with is the title of this entry.

Something got in the way. The Ravens decided to show up.

We had planned to leave the game at halftime – expecting the score to be 20 – 0. Now mind you, all throughout the game deep down I knew it was going to be a heartbreaker, but part of me started to think could
the impossible really be possible? Emmitt Smith had said yes on Monday NFL Countdown… maybe he was right.

WRONG.

We forgot I think… us Ravens fans… that Brian Billick is our coach.

Now, I know defensive coordinator Rex Ryan called the time out. I know we had a lot of stupid penalties (and have the most in the NFL), but in my opinion Brian Billick is the worst coach out there:

Time Management: Do I really need to elaborate on this?
Play Calling: Do I really need to elaborate on this?
Stupidity: Do I really need to elaborate on this?

The truth is if the Ravens are going to get me to leave my Tommy for good – and move on, they are going to have to let Billick go…We all Know Kyle Boller isn’t the best, but he certainly is hot… and let’s face it, he doesn’t have a child…at least that we know of.

With all that said, I would like to congratulate MY Ravens on a hard-earned effort. You fell just short of knocking off one of the best teams – and quarterbacks to ever play the game.

Wow, I feel for ya girl. And you should be proud of the first 55 minutes that the Ravens played. You definitely managed to scare the beejesus out of us Pats fans.

Can't you see why Lauren and I are friends?



The State of the Babies

I'm just going to gloat for a minute. I have to. I told everyone at the beginning of the season that I'd be good at fantasy football. Well, I AM GOOD AT FANTASY FOOTBALL. I sit at a computer and answer phones all day. I have plenty of time to be updated on everything happening in the NFL. I drafted well, I made some good pickups throughout the season and now I have made the playoffs in both of my leagues! Wooooohoooooooooooo!

Ok so now that the gloating is over, I will admit that I lost both my games this week. Oops. I was playing the number one team in the Boys' league this weekend and I was pretty sure that I'd actually win up until yesterday. This team had LT, who scored him over 30 points, but I'd gotten almost as many from Peyton. Going into Sunday night, I still had both of my running backs (Willie Parker and Willis McGahee) to play as well as the New England defense. My opposition had one player left - Ravens receiver Derrick Mason. Do you see where I am going with this? Both of us thought that Mason would do nothing, and my remaining players would each get me a bunch of points. Well as we know, it didn't quite go that way. The Ravens are just cramping my style this week.

I also lost in my Dad's league, again to someone who had LT. I just had to be playing both of these teams in the week he finally breaks out, huh. I was sure I would win, so it was a big letdown. I thought I was doomed when I got to the point where I had to start Ryan Grant and Earnest Graham, but they've been great. Ryan Grant has had a touchdown every week I've played him. Receiver was my issue yet again. I chose to not start Kevin Curtis this week and of course he had over 100 yards. Colston has been hot and he had one catch (granted it was a pretty awesome catch). Still though, I'm going to be a division winner and will get into the playoffs. My dad is winning the entire league at 9-2. He's won his leagues the last two years as well. I can't argue - he's the man.

Now if only we can make a last surge in our Family Pick-em League.


This Week's Favorite Things in the NFL:

1. Brian Billick's kisses. Please tell me you all saw this moment. Rodney Harrison makes a clutch defensive play almost directly in front of where Billick is standing on the sideline. Turns right to him afterward and says something in his face. As he turns away, Billick, so smug, looks right at him and blows him a single kiss. Then moves his mouthpiece away and gives him two more. Priceless.

2. Tom Brady's postgame interviews. Whew, man does NOT like to play badly. He was downright salty and smartass to the reporters. You could tell he was mad at himself more than anyone else out there, but not exactly beaming with pride toward his teammates. Ok, am I the only one who things the anger was kinda hot? Anyone?

3. Adrian Peterson (the good one) is unreal. Just unreal. He's also just kind of adorable, he's this beast but he's a baby.

Random Thought of the Week

STRIKE. END. PLEASE.

This Stupid Game

For months, I dreaded the game between the Eagles and the Patriots that took place this last Sunday. I dreaded what it would do to my friends - most them incredibly die-hard Patriots fans and a few of them die-hard Eagles fans. I had long ago told them that my initial plan was to watch this game at home, alone. I didn't want to get involved on either side and I didn't want to be there to see the carnage. I was also a bit torn about who to really root for and I didn't want to get crap from either side as to what to do. Of course this was long ago when the schedule was announced and we thought that the Eagles would be having a better season. Because the spread was so big and the Eagles weren't even starting their first string quarterback, I figured it would probably be ok to go to my friends' place anyway.

My fellow Pats fans decided to watch it on their own, which in the end proved to be a wise choice. I went with my gut and chose to just blatantly root for the Patriots, and turned out basically to be on my own while my Eagles fan friends happily FREAKED OUT at what their team could do. I was happy that the Eagles did put up a fight, they at least got some dignity out of it and a bit of hope for the season - I wish them well always though I'm glad they lost. I literally got up and left as things got tighter. I didn't want to put myself in a position to say or do something stupid. I just know that it would have gotten ugly if everyone was in the same room. It sounds a little ridiculous that I was so stressed while watching this game but come over once to watch a game with my friends and you'll get it. They're all, well, lets use the word passionate. We also had a couple guests over that I don't know so well, and I really preferred not to embarrass myself. The game was definitely a scare for the Patriots but I expected that would come at some point. It is just not possible to be blowing out teams for 12 straight weeks in the league as it is right now. Any team can turn it on at any time. People still seem to think that the Pats can remain undefeated and I think its possible. I am sort of glad that this Eagles game was a bit tougher than we all thought, because it makes the Pats realize that they cannot get too comfortable. Every team has at least one game where they just aren't "on" and I'd rather this game come now than later.

Again, kudos to the Eagles for a great performance. It certainly will be interesting to see what happens to this team in the offseason. I am not sure I am ready for an Eagles team quarterbacked by AJ Feeley.

For those of you wondering, the Turkey Bowl was quite a game. My team, the Booschmasters, lost to the Rats, but it was a close game. At least we all got some exercise before our massive meal. I caught one ball and therefore am happy with my performance. It doesn't take much.


The State of the Babies

I am playoff-bound baby! I have proudly clinched a playoff berth in the Boys' league, even though I lost this week. My team did pretty well but the team I was playing had Chad Johnson and the finally awoken Frank Gore and that was just too many points to overcome. Each of them had about 30 points, which is ridiculous. This week Andre Johnson didn't come through like he has in past games but hopefully that is only one game.

I also killed it in my Dad's league. I had a magical weekend where every player I put in except one, Steve Smith, got a touchdown. Brees had three passing TDs and one rushing TD. My kicker made three field goals and four extra points. I dropped the Titans waning defense (stupid Albert Haynesworth!) and picked up the best option I could find, which was the Bucs. Well that paid off in the form of 20 points including two sacks and two interceptions. All in all I hit my highest point total yet this year and I think I will also make the playoffs in that league. So should my dad, maybe even as the top seed. Wow, how mad do you think these dudes will be if the championship is me versus my dad? How cool would that be?? I'd be at home during that time so we'd be able to sit there all day and goof on each other. If we can pull that off it would be incredible.


This Week's Favorite Things About the NFL:

1. Devin Hester is pretty nuts. Nuts is the only way to describe him. The all-time record for combined punt and kickoff returns is 13 and its through 200 and some games. Hester now has 11 through two seasons. Not even 30 games.

2. Having at least one good game on Thanksgiving. Packers at Lions was actually pretty entertaining to watch while I made my stuffing and attempted to cut two large butternut squash. Have you ever tried to do that? It was impossible! I tried to buy pre-cut but it was $7!

3. Ricky...oh wait, he got hurt, already.

4. Eli Manning flat out regresses with Peyton watching from above. Having played on Thursday, the older Manning brother takes the trip to New York to watch baby bro play and baby bro throws 4 interceptions. The Giants get blown out. Its going to be quite interesting to see what happens in the NFC playoff picture. It is one hot mess right now.


Random Thought of the Week

I am incredibly saddened by the death of the Redskin's Sean Taylor. What an immensely tragic story. There has been far too much violence associated with the league this year, and I hope that maybe the death of a very talented colleague can make some of these players realize that they need to watch themselves more carefully.

The Turkey Bowl

Someone asked me yesterday if I too was on a writing strike since I didn't post last week. I'm not at all, it just happened to be an uninteresting week, and really why make you read something completely boring. Anyway, we're back in business this lovely Thanksgiving week. Thanksgiving day will feature two completely lame games: Indy-Atlanta, which I'm sure everyone thought would be awesome when it was going to be Michael Vick playing...now he's spending his holiday in jail...how sad, and Dallas-Jets, which is just lame because the Jets will literally get stomped. The only good game is Green Bay at Detroit, and we all know I am there for any game featuring this year's Brett Favre. Plus Detroit is actually, well somewhat, good this year. That will be fun to watch while I make my Grandma's stuffing and prepare for our annual Turkey Bowl game.

My friends and I will be preparing our third Thanksgiving on our own this year. Really I have been in Los Angeles for four of them but the first one was a bit different. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. Its based around eating - what is not to like? We've made a lot of effort over the years to make our day as fun and homey as possible, so that no one gets too sad that they aren't at home with their families. Everyone cooks the dish that is the most traditional for their families and in the afternoon we play a football game. This football game has gone back and forth between really fun and excrutiating. Lets just say that some people in our group take it much more serious than others. Some people in our group are rather athletic, and some leave something to be desired in that area (you will be shocked, shocked! to hear that one of those people is me). It all starts out fun until there are one too many dropped balls and people start getting frustrated. Last year it seemed that we couldn't get anyone to move ahead and actually win the game, and finally everyone got so tired and bored that we called it a tie. The highlight of the game for me was when my team was driving and I ran straight up to my largest friend, who is well over 6 feet, and just threw my whole body at him to attempt to block him. He was in such shock that I had the balls to go at him that he just stood there staring at me. That's as good a block as any for me - he didn't get to that ball! We have a real trophy and everything that goes to the MVP. Its all very Friends (though I know the boys hate when I say that). We go back and retreat to our own corners to shower and bring over the last of the food, and by time we get back to the homestead the glow of what we are about to eat takes over and everyone is happy again. In the end, I'd really rather cook and watch parades and NFL games all day, but I play anyway. Or try to, at least.

NFL Things I Am Thankful For:

1. The Pats are 10-0 baby! Statistic - only 9 teams have ever gone 10-0 and 5 of them have won the Super Bowl. Interesting. I was one of these people who thought, yeah sure, Buffalo at home will at least give us a bit of a game. Maybe if they'd had Marshawn Lynch in but boy was I wrong. Next week they will play the Eagles at home, which before the season I had thought would be so stressful to me as a fan of both teams, I'd told everyone I was probably going to watch the game at home alone and refuse to answer my phone. But that was when I believed the Eagles were in contention...and we've seen how that's going. At this point we're aiming more for them to just not get embarrassed. Apparently the Eagles are 22 point underdogs. Jeez.

2. Pittsburgh lost to the JETS. Hahahahahahhahahhahahahahaha. Beatable.

3. The Colts almost lost to the Chiefs, at home. Adam Vinatieri misses 4 field goals in 2 games. HAHAHAHAHA. I like Adam a lot, he still means something to us Pats fans, but don't you feel just a little bit vindicated?

4. Tom Brady (of course) and his new pal Randy Moss. Both are close to breaking all-time season records for touchdowns. I want them both!

5. Brett Favre and Vinny Testiverde started against each other last week, resulting in the oldest QB combination ever. I believe it was 81.


The State of the Babies

I'm pretty happy with the state of the teams right now. In the Boys league I am still in second place and I think I can keep a hold on it for now. I'll definitely make the playoffs, as I also will in my Dad's league, where I am leading my division and I'm pretty sure I'm ranked about 5th overall. The Boys' league Babies absolutely crushed my opponent this week. I took a chance and put Andre Johnson back into my lineup because in the first few games he played before getting hurt, he was amazing. It paid off big time and he got me 18 points! I hope he can stay healthy the rest of the year. That helps my receiving corps so massively, who had been solid but not spectacular. I'd usually been playing Brandon Marshall, Donald Driver, and Reggie Wayne. Now I can interchange Driver and Marshall. Someone also dropped DeMeco Ryans, who I grabbed immediately, and has been just the right addition to my defense.

I also got Deion Branch back in my Dad's league but that didn't pay back the same dividends as Johnson did. But with Seattle passing as much as they are, I have to believe that once he's back in the swing of things that Branch will produce better. Now I am a bit concerned about my running back situation though. Larry Johnson and Marshawn Lynch both got hurt and didn't play, so I'd picked up Ryan Grant and also played Brandon Jacobs. However, both of them also got hurt in their games last week and now I am very thin at the position. Grant appears to be planning to play on Thursday, but Jacobs isn't as optimistic. I stole back Earnest Graham this morning but I don't know how much that will help. I just have to hope one of them gets healthy enough to return. My dad is also going to make the playoffs, so I better have my team in tip-top shape!

Random Thought of the Week

It really is the little things in life that can make you so happy. For me one of those is Gingerbread lattes arriving at Starbucks. You can only get them for a few months of the year but they are my favorite coffee drinks ever. Today I stopped at my first ever drive through Starbucks to get one. It was so cool! Really fast and easy. Just a nice way to start a morning.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! I am thankful for all of you :)

Whaaaaa?

I don't believe it. Hours upon hours later, I still don't believe it. Did that game happen? Was it real? Did we really WIN? I'm told we did but I'm still in shock. The Pats-Colts matchup was one of the most emotional and insane experiences I have had in a long time. How?? How, Bill, how did you do it? Sunday was a roller coaster. I'd spent all week telling myself this game really didn't matter in the end. We'd still win our division with a loss, even several, and we could still even get home-field advantage in the playoffs with the right combination of events. One loss to Indy wouldn't cost us a Super Bowl. But when the game rolled around, all sense of logic went completely out of the window. Right around the end of the first half, the Boys and I had to stop ourselves for a moment. We realized that we'd never had to experience this feeling this season. The feeling of losing a game. The feeling of watching your team make, gasp!, mistakes. Coming down to earth, we laughed at how silly that concept was - how could we honestly think that we'd never have a game like this? However, as soon as the game started up again, I could barely watch. Luckily we were grilling and I could distract myself by helping to set up lunch. I needed to back up a bit. We were going to lose.


Then miraculously, the Pats started to come together. "Just throw the ball to Moss," one of the Boys kept saying over and over. And they did. And...it worked. A succession of passes to Moss, including one of the most incredible one-handed catches I have ever seen, got us down into scoring position and tightened up the score. The defense massively stepped up and forced the high-powered Indy offense to punt late in the game to get the ball back. Following another nasty bomb to Stallworth, Kevin Faulk punches it in. We're just about at two minutes left, but I fully believe that Manning can produce a score in that time, even with no timeouts. He takes the snap and out comes Jarvis Green (who isn't even a full-time starter always by the way), who sacks Manning and forces him to fumble, which we're later told is Manning's first fumble in the RCA Dome since 2005. We've got the ball and all Tommy has to do is kneel. We've won. We've won? It all went so fast. We won.


I'll hand it to the Colts - they are damn good. I think we could play them 10 times and at least 5 of those times they would win. Their defense is head and shoulders above any level its been in the current rivalry era. I honestly don't know what will happen if and when the teams meet again in what everyone expects to be the AFC Championship game. I certainly don't feel 100% sure that the Pats would win. The only thing that has changed now is that the Colts have one loss and Pats have none, and probably will get home-field for the next game. Important yes, but not a guarantee by any means. This win will of course, bump up the excitement of the possibility of going 16-0. Realistically, I am not one that believes this will happen, as much as I'd like it to. Though our most difficult test has been passed, anything can happen. We still play the Steelers and each of our division teams again. Any team can and does have bad days in the NFL and that can happen to us too. My guess? We drop one totally stupid game late in the season and end up 15-1.


Other teams did play this weekend, though I'm not sure anyone remembers, and one of them was my other favorite team, the Eagles. Watching them play last night made me remember why I am neglecting them....they stink. They just stink. They look distracted and completely lack chemistry. McNabb seems constantly nervous in the pocket and is taking too long to release the ball. They don't show the receivers on TV enough so I can't tell if this is his fault or if the problems is that his receivers can't get open. But he seems to just run away all of the time. The big Eagles story this week was Andy Reid's kids getting in trouble and a judge calling their home a "drug emporium." Now I like Andy Reid, I do. I think he's given Philadelphia nine great years and has been ultimately incredibly successful in a very hard division. However, I find it hard to believe that he can or should continue to coach this team. The team hasn't gelled and you can't blame that on anyone but the coach. The team had a pathetic offseason that didn't do anything to enhance the team. Bottom line is that as good as a coach as Reid is, I don't want him if he can't give the team 100% and its clear that he can't. Nor should he. In talking with my mom this week, she as a parent said that as tragic as this situation is, she can't help but feel like the Reid's parenting is to blame, and I agree. To have so many drugs and guns in your own home means that you aren't looking. They have younger kids in that house! To have your kids regularly traveling to the poorest and most dangerous part of a city to deal drugs means you aren't watching them. These kids are crying out for help and instead their father is running back to his team. It is just incredibly sad to watch.



On to happier things, my Favorite Things About the NFL:


1. Adrian Peterson sets the single-game rushing record. What a kid. I saw his post-game interviews and he was so humble, I was touched. We need more of him in this league.


2. Brett Favre (clearly a Favorite Things mainstay) joins Tom Brady and Peyton Manning on the 31 Teams Beat list, after another stunning game in one of the hardest stadiums to play in, Kansas City. The Pack is fo' real!


3. Cleveland and Buffalo. Two teams I am utterly enjoying right now. Cleveland is 5-3! This is a team that we thought might fire their coach mid-season. Buffalo was left for dead after being ravaged with injuries and are now 4-4. I think they'll give the Patriots a bit (only a bit) of a game when they play in 2 weeks. By the way, the best part? Brady Quinn won't play a down this year.

The State of the Babies

Ok, first thing, my big fantasy pet peeve - don't join a league if you don't want to keep up with it! The league I am in with my dad is a public league, and I won this week by playing against a guy who was starting Matt Leinart. Clearly he hasn't touched his lineup in ages. But then again, I got a win and am now tied for the lead in my division, which is always a good thing. I think I could have beaten almost anyone in the league anyway because Drew Brees had just a sick day (445 yards passing!) and a lot of them were to my man Marques Colston. Marshawn Lynch also had a high scoring day, and the Titans defense I picked up is going to definitely remain my starter. They didn't exactly have a challenge against the pathetic Panthers but they are a hard-hitting team. Going back to the Panthers, I think I might be considering sitting Steve Smith next weekend. I feel strange doing that, considering he's supposed to be a top 5 receiver, but with David Carr throwing to him, I don't know what else to do. I was completely right about Carr - he sucks no matter what city he's in. He might go down as one of the all-time draft busts. My other options are Dwayne Bowe, Kevin Curtis, and maybe Deion Branch. He'd been having a great season until he got hurt, but I am beginning to hear that he might be coming back soon.

Speaking of injured receivers, I really want Andre Johnson to come back. He'd been my star in the Boys' league and my receiving core has never recovered. Everyone I have has been adequate but not quite good enough to secure me weekly wins. This week I lost to Jon Kitna's Rabies, and pretty badly at that. Granted this team had Randy Moss, Derek Anderson, and I couldn't keep up. Peyton was average, my receivers were average, and I played Tony Scheffler at tight end while Jeremy Shockey was on bye and Denver got just slaughtered. Oh well, you can't win them all. I'm still somehow in second place but if I don't win again this week then I am in major danger of beginning to fall in the standings. A couple teams in the league are surging and I have to be able to hold steady. Come back Andre...

Random Thought of the Week

As I am sure many of you have seen or are experiencing, the film and TV writers have gone on strike. Folks, its not a good time in Hollywood. Everyone is angry and doesn't see a quick end in sight. My office is actually getting picketed. It is a very strange, depressing, and confusing experience to work in an office that is being protested. Personally, I'm angry at the situation. I'm watching people like Tina Fey go on strike. Do you have any idea how much money Tina Fey makes? A good friend of mine (and blog reader -wooo!) is from Detroit and comes from a GM family. She told me yesterday how her grandfather was part of the "sitdown strike" at GM many years ago. They were fighting for basic labor rights, i.e. to be able to receive livable wages, basic health care, and general safety in the factories. They were striking to not DIE at their jobs. Now decades later, people are using the union concept to turn their millions into more millions, ironically stepping on the little people to get it. People like me who will be paid less during a strike, or the production assistants on shows that will get shut down, just in time for the holidays. Everyone should be paid fairly for what they do, but I wish there could be a little more perspective on these issues from both ends.

I'll be pretty bored until the strike ends...maybe that means more posts...see you next time!

We Are the Champions!

My friend Nolan (one of The Boys) is just about the only person that I have ever spoken to who can actually say he's an arena football fan. Yes, that's right, arena football. Personally, as much as I like real football, I can't get on board with the arena version. The poor league is trying so hard to promote it and make it a legitimate league in this country - I mean they've got an arsenal of John Elway, Ron Jaworski, and freaking Bon Jovi people! What about that doesn't make you want to watch arena football? I've tried to watch a full game but failed miserably. The game is so fast that you can't keep up with it. You look away for two seconds and someone has already scored a touchdown. The scores more closely resemble college basketball than the NFL. A running game and this thing called defense barely exist. The only amusing thing is that sometimes a player brutally crashes into the sides of the arena field and some drunk idiot gets clobbered along with him. But no matter what, Nolan remains a fan of his hometown Philadelphia Soul (Bon Jovi is a part-owner...get it...he's got...soul). Well Bon Jovi my friend, let me tell you that my buddy is doing everything he can to promote your team. Check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsTSXqFbhmg

There you go Jovi - we don't care if its a Boston bar, or its baseball that we're watching...Nolan will wear his darn Soul hat. But Nolan also gets props for finally getting himself some sort of Boston sports clothing and becoming probably the only person in Sonny's to proudly wear a Dustin Pedroia shirt. I got a Youklis shirt after discovering that strangely enough, we are kind of connected. My family is originally from Cincinnati though we left when I was only 7. Youklis is also from Cincinnati and just this year my dad told me that he'd grown up with Kevin's dad and funny enough, played on softball teams with him. Then I find out that they lived in the same area as I did as a kid and he went to the same high school that I would have if I'd stayed past elementary school. Then to top it off, I find out that my childhood friend's husband was one of his best friends in high school - he was the quarterback of the football team and Kevin was the big baseball star. In light of us basically being from the same stock, I always root hard for him and decided he should be my first j-shirt purchase. My next one is an Ellsbury. We returned to Sonny's on Sunday night following the Red Sox amazing sweep of the Rockies and it was so much fun. Championship one, done. Now onto number two....

The State of the Babies

Ahhh, everything is as it should be...I am winning again. Wins in both leagues this week, again cementing me in a comfortable second place in the Boy's league. Everyone performed nicely this week - Peyton got himself a bunch of touchdown passes, Reggie Wayne finally had that sick game I've been waiting for, and my rock, Willie Parker, again had over 100 yards. Add to that a nasty beatdown of the Redskins by my Pats defense and it all added up. We only have eight members in this league so we've started to play everyone the second time. Next week I have what should be a hard matchup with Jon Kitna's Rabies (yes, its the Rabies vs. the Babies), though funny enough he's not even starting Kitna anymore. He picked up Derek Anderson so we've discussed that they really should get their name changed to Derek Anderson's Blandersons. Its all we could come up with.

I also finally, FINALLY, got my big numbers from Brees and Colston in my Dad's league. I knew they'd come around at some point and they both had huge games. I picked up the Titans defense this week because I'd had to drop the Chargers on their bye week and someone snagged them before I could get back there. I'd had the Redskins last week but I made the smart decision not to keep them this week because they were playing the Pats, and well, we see how that turned out.

This Week's Favorite Things About the NFL:

1. Shaun Alexander is a nice person. He came into my office last week! He's really good looking in person actually and shorter than I'd have thought. Still a big guy though. I was pleasantly surprised to hear that he was very nice to my friend who walked him to his meeting and even commented on how the security guard had given him a bottle of water really quickly. I love it when celebrities act like humans.


2. Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, on the same day, at the same time, became the first quarterbacks ever to beat all 31 teams. I love this stuff, I think that is just incredible. Granted there have only been 32 teams for a few years now, but still, its pretty amazing. To add to it, Brett Favre can do the same thing next week.


3. Which leads me to...how awesome, again, is Brett Favre. That Monday night game was great all the way through, but to win with an overtime touchdown pass over one of the better corners in the game is top notch. Vinny Testiverde's dad is still rockin it at 38.


3. The newest addition to my sports wardrobe. Yes, I realize it is a completely a-hole shirt, but I come from Philly and Boston...I'm an a-hole. It will arrive just in time for Pats-Colts this weekend.

Random Thought of the Week

I don't think anyone who reads this is in the Writer's Guild, but if anyone is listening, please don't go on strike. Please don't cause tons of young, poorer people than you to lose their jobs or their pay for a couple weeks or the overtime they desperately need for you to make more millions. I get it, I know that there are issues to be dealt with and that the big studio corporations can be total d*cks but really, it just sucks. My job might literally come to a halt. All these 22 year old PAs making $500 a week will just get nothing. So you can make more money than you already do...as in much more than us. Can't we all just get along????

Thanks for reading! Pats vs. Colts this Sunday - its a big showdown! I'm sure I'll have lots to say!

The Father-Daughter Matchup

Work was painfully boring this week. My office is in a weird lull period where we just finished up a busy time and are about to go into another busy time, so I spent a lot of time watching TV, baseball games, and surfing the internet. Therefore my head is in all sorts of places this week.

I think I watched too much ESPN. I have a television with cable at my desk at work (you know, because I work in TV) and a couple of months ago I realized that on the west coast, NFL Live airs at 1pm, which happens to be when I take lunch. I started just watching that while I ate and then got into the habit of leaving it on for a while afterward in the background. Then earlier this week I had a dream that I went out on a date with this guy I really liked, who randomly had a baby that also came on the date. I think the mother had died. I woke up thinking, who was that guy, I think it was someone I know. I later figured out it was Tony Reali - the guy who hosts Around the Horn and makes occasional appearance on PTI. Like I said, I think I watch too much ESPN.

I know that in an earlier post I kind of bashed the NFL's new line of women's apparel, but I did make one disovery this week that quite excited me - that Reebok is now making a women's size Bill Belichick grey Patriots hoodie! Anyone who knows the NFL knows that Coach Belichick wears this hoodie almost every week and last season several of the boys purchased them. I am so tempted. Now I just need the Writer's Guild to not go on strike so that I can actually continue to have a job to go to every day.

Luckily, with all this time I had last week, I had the chance to really watch this ALCS series, which was a complete emotional rollercoaster. The Sox can be so torturous, though luckily I am new to really being interested in baseball and haven't had to suffer this for my whole life unlike some of my other friends. But man, I get it. Every game was a challenge and I really was doubting it would happen, but my friends, the Red Sox are going to the World Series! It sucks that the games start at 5pm here, because now I will be forced to watch game one and two in the office while I embarrass myself incoherently screaming at the TV. I try to stop but its hard! I can't decide how I feel about the Rockies. Part of me thinks that they have been lucky and haven't had to match up against a team like the Red Sox yet in the playoffs (apologies to the Diamondbacks and Phillies but I think its true), and the other part is completely frightened of them and their destiny-filled postseason. We all know that Boston fans also know a lot about that fate and destiny stuff.


The State of the Babies

It was a big week this week - the first time my dad and I played each other in fantasy. To say he was excited would be a massive understatement, considering the text I got midday Friday:

"I am favored and u r going down. Reading your blog when u get
trashed by the old man will be a hoot. By the way I now have a
Blackberry so it will be easier to text smack to you. Love Dad"

Now that is a throwdown challenge if I have ever heard one! I was happy though because I text my dad many times on Sundays and then usually don't hear back until I get woken up at 5am by my cell phone, which means he isn't responding until the next day at 8am. I had no doubt that this week we'd text-war all of Sunday.

It is true that according to our website preview, my dad was favored, but only slightly, by something like 8 total points. That basically meant it was wide open. Here is the roster comparison, with my team first and the edge player in bold:

• QB - Drew Brees vs. Matt Hasselbeck
• WRs - Kevin Curtis, Marques Colston, & Dwayne Bowe vs. Reggie Wayne, Jericho Cotchery, & Donte Stallworth
• RBs - Larry Johnson & Brandon Jacobs vs. Marion Barber & Frank Gore
• TE - Chris Cooley vs. Eric Johnson
• K - Kris Brown vs. David Akers
• D - Redskins vs. Jaguars

So yeah, I could see where my dad would have a slight statistical edge but really, any of those players can have an up week or down week easily. The morning started out quite pleasantly. At about 10:30 I got a text from my dad - "U r going to kill me." I hadn't even checked yet but at the time, I was up on him 36-1, mostly due to the Redskins defense! But I am smart enough to know that nothing is close to decided that early. Through the day I was leading by 6-12 points. Drew Brees had a great game, and Brandon Jacobs, replacing my beloved hurt Sammy Morris, ran for over 100 yards and 2 TDs. But again my Achilles heel was my stupid receivers. Completely mediocre days for Kevin Curtis and Marques Colston (who I think I'm close to dropping - thoughts?) and a decent-ish day for Dwayne Bowe. To top it off I got no production from Chris Cooley, who before now had been on a great run. We really didn't watch much of the Pittsburgh-Denver game at night due to baseball, so I didn't look at what had happened until the end. And the score was 94-93, favoring my dad, with my players done and his defense yet to play.

Final score after the Monday night game - 111 to 93. Congrats, Dad. The student has yet to overcome the teacher.


This week's NOT AT ALL Favorite Things About the NFL (I hate to be negative, but a lot of things are bothering me):

1. The deafening silence that the Eagles' heartbreaking loss has caused. The game that the Eagles played was flat-out depressing. Do they not understand how to score a touchdown??? Three drives ending in field goals is not ok. You don't win games like that in this league. The officiating was also incredibly suspect, even though usually Ed Hochuli is one of the best, but there were some weird calls. But if you ask me, you should never put your team in a position to have a game come down to referrees. Score points. The season is over for them, considering the strength of their division. I just watched a full several minute highlights package on NFL Primetime and they didn't even talk about the Eagles, they only talked about how awesome the Bears are. Barf.

2. That the rest of the NFC East all won on Sunday, and all have winning records. Every team I just despise.

3. There are too many injuries this year and its scary. Maybe we say this every year but the number of relatively severe injuries to marquee players is getting out of control. This weekend Matt Schaub and Ronnie Brown among others got hurt enough to leave games permanently.

4. People getting pissy at the Patriots for scoring more 2nd half points in Miami. Give me a freaking break. They are a football team and they are there to play, not sit around waiting for the game to end. Everyone knows that crazy things can happen at any time - I mean look at the way Houston scored all those points in the 4th quarter with their 2nd stringer! Its not their fault that no one can stop them. You don't want them to score more points, then make them stop.

Random Thought of the Week

Considering that this blog is mostly read by people who know me already (I'm not quite egotistical enough to think that strangers are checking it out), I had to put this video clip in. Many of you have seen it, but many of you have not. I have a twin, and she's a French pop star.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ceSxEjwXHcM

We Do Mess With Texas

I am sure many people are tired of hearing about the Patriots-Cowboys "Duel in Dallas" game but seeing as its basically all I have thought about all week, I don't care. I couldn't help but dedicate this week's entry to the game. It was a very interesting week in the NFL, that is for sure.

First us poor football fans were made to suffer through Dallas' six turnover, come from behind, last second win in Buffalo on Monday night, a game that literally made my blood boil. Being also an Eagles fan, I HATE the Cowboys. I hate them with a passion I don't think I have for any other team. I was angry after that win. I know some people are saying, oh we should be so IMPRESSED by Tony Romo that he could turn the ball over so much and still find a way to win. On what planet should I be impressed?? If Dallas had been playing a good team, even a slightly better team, there is no way that would have happened.

Then of course no week could go by without some sort of T.O. event, and we were forced to sit through a week of intense media scrutiny about his infamous letter, stating that he would not answer any questions until after the game and that we should "get our popcorn ready." Impressive.

To add to all this, Peter King appears on Inside the NFL on Wednesday night and says that Wade Phillips made comments to him about feeling like the Patriots had a black mark on their success due to the spying controversy. Then Phillips later denies saying it. Good work, Wade. That is exactly what you need - for the Patriots to get angry again. Hasn't anyone learned yet that the Pats love to be the underdog, they love to be told they aren't good enough? They use it, they feed off of it. I have heard a lot of commentary on this issue through the week, and the thing that struck me was that not one journalist even considered the idea that Phillips had been misquoted by PK. You do not mess with PK.

And you know what else you do not do? YOU DO NOT MESS WITH THE PATRIOTS. The game was a rout, a gem, a clinic in how to be the best team in football. I'll even give Dallas a bit of credit and admit that they did not play a bad game. Romo and T.O.'s stats were quite respectable and they only committed one turnover (the inevitable "Romover," as The Boys are now calling his interceptions), which can be commended after such a mess of a game last week and considering the level of pressure they were under. But respectable wasn't going to cut it. The Patriots are absolutely frightening and Tommy Brady is going to finally win his league MVP this year.

The Boys and I have been noticing that since the whole Spygate thing happened, Chris Collinsworth and a few other notable commentators have seemed almost mad at the Pats. They begrudgingly admitted they were good but always had this tinge of anger. Well Sunday night there was none of that anymore, there was only shock and awe and the admission that this may be the best team that anyone has seen in the NFL in years. I don't particularly like that people are starting to seriously talk about them going 16-0 - I am just too superstitious - but how can I fault them for bringing the idea up after that game? Maybe we'll lose to Indy, maybe we'll fall to our divisional nemesis at Miami (there's something about Dolphins Stadium) but maybe we won't. All I know right now is that Tom Brady is on pace for 56 touchdown passes and a 72% completion rating (both would be league records), and that Randy Moss is leading the league in touchdowns caught (8), and that our two "other" receivers both had over 100 yards in Dallas, and that the team is on pace to score the most points EVER in a season. That is all I know.


The State of the Babies

Not a good week for the Babies, my friends, not a good week. Mental note for next year - PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT WEEKS YOUR PLAYERS ARE ON BYE! This week I was missing a substantial amount of my team - Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, Brandon Marshall, Willie Parker, and my best backup RB Marshawn Lynch. Adding to that, my beloved Andre Johnson is still hurt. So it was time to make some moves. My backup QB had been David Garrard, who is playing well but doesn't get a whole lot of points. Midweek I found that Eli Manning had been dropped from someone else's team so I am going start him this week. Baby Manning has actually been pretty solid and they are playing Atlanta this week. The receiver position became a bit more of a problem because I was missing not one but two starters. Since I refuse to drop Johnson, I was forced to start Bernard Berrian (ok he didn't turn out that bad) and find someone else, who ended up being Jerry Porter (who stank). It was a best available situation and I wasn't expecting much. I also had to find another running back and again landed in a best available situation, which became DeShawn Wynn, who actually scored as well. But this was all to no avail. I had absolutely no expectation to win the game, which was unfortunate timing because this was the week that I went up against the other 5-0 team, Silence of the Rams. He's got LT and that was all he needed to absolutely trounce me. I know he is reading this so hats off to you - you've managed to unseat the girl.

My Dad's league Babies are getting incredibly frustrating, and for different reasons this week. I had very low expectations considering Deion Branch got hurt, which was such a disappointment, and the fact that I'd just had such low production so far from all of my other offensive "stars." This week some of them actually woke up! LJ had a great game, and Steve Smith and Marques Colston both caught TDs. And of course, I draw the guy who has Adrian Peterson. All 40 points of Adrian Peterson. To add to the suckfest, Vince Young again gets me zero points and then gets hurt, and Brees finally has a decent day. I scored the 3rd highest amount of points in the 12-person league and I still lost. UGH! This weekend my dad and I are playing each other for the first time ever. Smack talk has already begun.


This Week's Favorite Things About the NFL

1. Not many people may care about this, but for my female readers, Tom Brady is the new face of Stetson. HOT




2. Vinny! Vinny! Vinny! 43 year old Vinny Testiverde joins Carolina 4 days ago, ends up starting and wins against a good Arizona team. Check out PK's Monday Morning Quarterback this week for the story of how this all happened, its the feel-good sports story of the season so far if you ask me.

3. It was Old Man Week in the NFL. Quarterbacks playing this week - Vinny Testiverde (1987 draft, last started in since 2004) Kurt Warner (1999 MVP), Gus Ferrotte (1994 draft), Kerry Collins (1995 draft), Trent Dilfer (1994) and Jeff Garcia (undrafted in 94), Damon Huard (1996), and Brett Farve (1991) in their normal roles, all giving a beat down to quarterbacks of tomorrow (Vince Young, Carson Palmer, and Jason Campbell respectively). It ain't good but at least it provides some entertainment.

4. Tony Romo's post-game press conference. Couldn't someone from the Dallas PR team at least have grabbed Romo before he went out and turned his collar out? Romo looked like a zit-covered 17 year old in his dad's shirt. Cut to Tom Brady, perfectly coiffed in a designer suit. Don't even try, Tony, don't even try...(yes, I know, I'm biased. I promise further blogs will not be so Brady-focused)

Random Thought of the Week

Airfare is the biggest mystery on earth. Can someone please explain to me why it now costs so much to travel? I just want to go home to Philadelphia over Christmas, and a coach seat, with stops on both segments, is costing $700 and up. $700! I should be able to fly to Europe for that, not between two major metropolitan areas in the U.S. Half of my friends can't even afford to go home this year. It is so depressing.

Thanks again for reading and see you next week!

Life Without Daddy

Last weekend my parents came to visit me in LA from Philadelphia and since the NBC night game happened to be an Eagles game, we thought it would be fun to cook dinner for The Boys and watch the game all together. The Eagles took a devastating loss (sigh) that made the night completely depressing in the end, but at least the chili was good (great recipe, Mom!). My parents love to talk, which is probably where I get it from, and also love to share childhood stories about our family whenever possible. Its endearing but of course provides an ample amount of embarrassment for me. As we watched the NBC halftime show last week, my dad couldn't help but share a story about me and noted ex-player and commentator, the Chris Collinsworth.

I was born in Cincinnati in 1982, when Collinsworth was a star on the Cincinnati Bengals. He was young and a Pro-Bowler, and from what my mom has indicated to me, a full-on heartthrob at the time. When I was only a few months old, my mom found out that Collinsworth was making a personal appearance at an electronics store in our area, and for some strange reason decided that it would be fun to go meet him and take a Polaroid with the baby. Yes folks, a Polaroid...it was the early 80's. I can't quite figure out why my parents wanted to go because never once when I was a kid did they ever let us go to something like this, you know, when I would have been old enough to actually say hello. In any case, they showed up only to find a giant line. They attempted the line but soon realized the absurdity of waiting hours to take one picture of their tiny baby with some football player and left. The story should end there. But, as my dad told it last weekend, as they packed me up to go, they realized that something had happened to my diaper and I had somehow peed all over my dad as he'd held me in line! The moral of the story is that had that line not been so annoyingly long, I would have peed on Chris Collinsworth. But thank the lord, I didn't. Someone up there liked me enough at 3 months to say, no Lisa, you will not have to suffer hearing about that time you peed on Chris Collinsworth for the rest of your life. I rarely get these sort of breaks, so I really appreciate it!

This story led me to think about other random connections I might have to the NFL. There weren't many. I went to high school with a current NFL player named Bryan Scott. He was our big sports star and I knew him very casually from being a cheerleader and singing in the school choir with him. He was just a very talented guy and incredibly nice. He went on to play at Penn State and was drafted as a safety to the Falcons a few years ago. Now he's playing for the Bills, I think mostly doing special teams.

The only other thing I could come up with was the time I was less than 5 feet from Tom Brady's unborn child. Bridget Moynihan happened to be in my office and was a few months pregnant. She walked right by me and I could care less that it was her, I just wanted to see the bump! Ok that kind of makes me sound like some sort of crazy-stalker-babynapper person. I'm not, by the way, I just love Tom Brady, a lot. Something happens to me when I see him and I am unable to function. I really wish Bridget would stop making him look like such a dead beat. She's chosen to conveniently ignore the fact that she got pregnant after they had broken up and that she is significantly older than him (maybe even older than she says she is), and had told friends that she wanted a family now. By many accounts that is why they broke up!!! So now I am supposed to believe that a 36 year old woman accidentally got pregnant by her ex-boyfriend who had already told her he wasn't ready for kids? After several years together, wouldn't they have the whole birth control thing down? Then she gets pregnant, moves to LA, and ends up selling photos of her and John Edward Thomas Moynihan to OK Magazine, who makes the cover headline, "Life Without Daddy." Does anyone ever think about the child when they do these things? He's going to see that someday. She's the one who chose to move 3000 miles away, and if that is what she felt was best for her then anyone can support that, but she knows that Tom can't move. And yes, I know that Tommy spent most of the pregnancy traipsing around with Gisele, and I would have preferred them stay low-profile too, but don't use the kid as ammunition for your own fight. You might hate Daddy, but he doesn't even know Daddy.


Now on to The State of the Babies.

I went 1-1 this week in my leagues - winning easily in the Boys' league and losing, but not too badly, in my Dad's league. Both of my defenses were stars - New England and San Diego - but particularly in my Dad's league I think I need some major offensive upgrades. I am pretty close to benching Marques Colston, particularly considering I am now benching Dwayne Bowe, who many people are calling the most impressive offensive rookie right now. I also went back to starting LJ instead of Sammy Morris but that backfired. Sammy had another 100 yards; LJ is officially dead to me. The only significant move I made this week was picking up Michael Pittman of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on my Dad's league Babies. He looked good replacing Cadillac Williams last week but he didn't do much either this week and now is also injured and out maybe 6 weeks. Poor Cad. I had a hard time even watching his injury happen - his knee literally went the wrong way. They are saying its career-threatening. It is just always sad when you hear that about such a young, promising player.

I finally got to start Vince Young this week. I am a big Drew Brees proponent and I don't believe his problems are all his fault, but I had to try Vince instead. Once we went into negative points it was time. I am still amazed at how I got VY. My Dad's league has 12 people in it and everyone but me drafted two quarterbacks. I am still unsure as to why I didn't. When I realized that Brees was on bye last week I also noticed that someone was offering Young up for trade. I offered Brandon Marshall for him and for some odd reason the guy accepted. He must have been pretty desperate for receivers. Of course I missed the fact that my new QB was also on bye the same week...leading to last week's Trent Green debacle. Well this was kind of a debacle as well because even though the Titans won, VY threw 3 interceptions and there went all his points. I am not pleased.

I'm still very happy with the Boys' league Babies and I think I am going to remain in first place again this week. No one scores me a ridiculous amount of points but everyone is solid. Of course I have yet to be hit by the bye week and that comes this week. I lose Peyton, I lose Reggie Wayne, Brandon Marshall, and Willie Parker. I am in big trouble because this week is the battle royale of me versus the Silence of the Rams, the only other 5-0 team in the league. Ut-oh.


Week 5's Favorite Things About the NFL

1. Ricky Williams is applying for reinstatement again and a Denver group trying to legalize marijuana in Colorado put up a billboard encouraging Williams to come play in Denver. Hilarious. Somehow I don't think Mike Shanahan was pleased by that. I also hear that Ricky is mulling the idea of putting out a yoga DVD. I will buy that.

2. I didn't see this game but these sort of events just fascinate me - Houston kicker Kris Brown became the first kicker ever to kick 3 field goals over 54 yards, including the game winner! Its amazing to start that he would even be called on to do so (not a great offensive performance for Houston clearly) but the fact that anyone could make all of those kicks is pretty incredible. This is why we watch.

3. At the Angels-Red Sox ALDS game on Sunday afternoon, I finally found someone wearing the I HATE PEYTON MANNING t-shirt that was sold on the street near Fenway park last year. On the back it says ELI SUCKS TOO. I have been hunting for one of these shirts for months! I don't really hate Peyton but its a great shirt. Check it out...

4. This guy. Enough said.

Random Thought of the Week

Usually I would keep this spot open for something non-sports related but since I went to a special event this weekend, I can't help but talk about the Red Sox ALDS sweep that I saw this weekend. What a great game. When you get back-to-back home runs out of your two power hitters, there isn't much more you can ask for. My friends and I ran down to the dugout area for the last inning and celebrated with the tons of Sox fans also in attendance. I am blown away by the fact that in 2007, both the Red Sox and the Patriots have come to SoCal for playoff games and I have been able to see both of them. I will never forget either game. I was pleasantly surprised about how nice Angel Stadium is - easy, not too pricey parking, decent food, lots of bathrooms - very fan-friendly.

Thanks again for reading...I'll back for a very exciting week 6 including the big showdown of Dallas versus New England. I can't even bear to talk about last nights Dallas experience, so we'll just leave it with the thought that the Patriots better CRUSH them.

Welcome!

The NFL seems to be making a big push for female fans this year. So far all we have learned about these elusive female fans is that many of them reside in Pittsburgh, and that apparently they enjoy wearing logo-adorned tube tops and slapping their girlfriend's asses (see the NFL's new women's apparel ads). Well, we're not all like that. I definitely do not own any Patriots tube tops, nor do I plan to.

I am a girl. I am a serious football fan. I am here to say that yes, you can be both. Every week I'll be talking about my experiences watching football and playing fantasy football with all men, and just sharing the things that I love about the game and the league.

Not long ago I was more likely to be shopping or watching endless reruns of LAGUNA BEACH on a Sunday than watching football. But I moved to Los Angeles with a bunch of my close friends from college, all of whom happened to be men, and football became a part of my life. I call them The Boys, and you will hear much more about them in the future. The Boys are all crazy football fans. One of them even happens to be the son of one of the more legendary football radio announcers in the country. I became the only girl in the group somehow, and when last season they started a fantasy football league, I asked if I could be in it, just for fun. I couldn't really name many football players beyond the superstars but I just wanted something to do. They said absolutely not. Instead we struck a deal - if I spent the season learning everything I could about the NFL, next year if I was up to snuff I could join the league. It started off as more of a fun challenge for me but I found myself falling in love with the game. Soon I was flat out obsessed and there was no more HILLS episodes on Sunday.

Like many girls, I never had much inclination toward sports when I was a kid. I was pretty small and I just couldn't keep up. One foray into soccer at age 5 ended after one season where I believe my team lost every game and several included us scoring into the wrong goal. I just kind of ran around and hoped no one would notice I was terrified of the ball. At least we got some really funny home videos out of it. I danced, sang, and did theater instead and enjoyed myself immensely. I didn't have brothers or that many boy friends, so football just became that thing that made my dad lock himself in the office every Sunday and scream a lot.

After a full year of reading Peter King's Monday Morning Quarterback (you will see a lot of PK references in this blog, he is the man) Bill Simmon's Sports Guy, and endless ESPN articles while rolling calls at my assistant desk, and watching NFL Live every day at lunch, I had shocked even myself. I was in, baby, all the way. This ridiculous war game had won me over. I am now the proud owner of a Tom Brady jersey (my favorite player and also the hottest man alive), and a Fathead that my friend Nolan thought was a hilarious gift for my 25th birthday. Do you know how huge those things are? Its insane. And yes, I had won entry into the 2007 fantasy league. In addition, my dad wanted to do one with me, so I added a second team. And our friends and family Pick-em League....and a survior league for good measure.

Four weeks into the season, my team Tom Brady's Babies is in first place in the Boys' league at 4-0, and I am doing well in other league after having my first loss last week (3-1, stupid Drew Brees). I am pretty sure everyone is mad that I am winning. I've already been told it will be unacceptable for me to win the league outright. I plan to do so. On Sunday one of them called me "the Tony Romo of our league." By the way, we all despise Tony Romo (I am from Philadelphia), so this was a monumental insult...but he is leading Dallas to their first 4-0 start since 1995....which happened to be a year they won the Super Bowl. Just saying.

Anyway, on to The State of the Babies:

Another week, another win for the Babies...we're rollin! I won both leagues this week. The Boys' league Babies won pretty easily - having Peyton Manning and the New England defense is pretty helpful week to week, though my receivers were painfully ineffective. Can someone wake up Reggie Wayne? He caught a TD but especially with Marvin Harrison going out he should have been catching more passes. But at least he's doing better than Steve Smith, who I own in my Dad's league. Apparently we have learned that David Carr's problems weren't just that horrible Houston line....he just sucks. And that new long haircut isn't making you look cool, dude. Smith got me zero points last week, and only 3 this week.

I also finally pulled the trigger and sat LJ. I picked up Sammy Morris this week and to my pleasure, he had a career game! Laurence Maroney didn't play and Morris ran for well over 100 yards and a touchdown. He actually scored about the same amount of points as LJ did but at least the decision paid off. Turns out three people I know played Morris this week. What a pickup that was for the Patriots. At the very least, it did not turn into a second bonehead move of the week for me, following my first error in choosing to pick up Trent Green for this week instead of Daunte Culpepper. Daunte was a risk, so I decided to go with the safe choice. No risk no reward must be true! One game later Daunte had run for three touchdowns and thrown two more. Lesson learned.


This Week's Favorite Things About the NFL:

1. Brett Favre. An obvious one but seriously, how can you not love what is happening in Green Bay right now? I read the other day that Favre is 13 years older than some members of his O-line (thanks PK)! And he is proudly rocking the gray hair and the whole grizzled thing. I love the Packers. My grandfather is a life-long Pack fan. He told me not long ago how he went to his first game at age 10 in 1936, the same year the legendary Don Hutson came to the team and they won a championship. Amazing!

2. That the Chargers and the Bears are tanking. I really enjoyed the Chargers electric (no pun intended) team last year until they lost in the playoffs to the Patriots and chose to be sore losers about it. Then they wait until both of their coordinators have been hired away as head coaches to finally fire one of the best coaches in the league. Now they are paying for that mistake. No matter how talented a team might be, play calling and leadership win games. The Bears are incredibly frustrating as well. I was offended last year that they made it to the Super Bowl last year featuring Sexy Rexy, the league's worst quarterback. The blind support they held for him was utterly baffling. Now they have been forced to transition to a new QB midseason and at a time when they are riddled with injuries. Just bad decisionmaking.

3. Tom Brady is completing almost 80% of his passes. Trust me you will hear a lot about Tommy. Doesn't get much better than this. The Patriots look unstoppable.

Random Thought of the Week

So Britney finally lost the kids. How sad. You never want to see someone's life go down the toilet and this is becoming a freak show. I pray she isn't such an idiot that she failed one of those drug tests she was going to have to take weekly, but I wouldn't be surprised. I only hope that Kevin can take better care of them. They are so little and their lives are completely unstable. Poor things.

I have a pretty intense match-up next week in the Boys' league but I'll be at the Angels-Red Sox playoff game in Anaheim during the games! Baseball on a Sunday?! Crazy I know, but it is the playoffs. Hope to see you back here next week!