Monday Morning Mehta 1/31/05

Edition # 103
January 24, 2005

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Super Bowl Preview

As the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles land in Jacksonville, the week long hoopla for Super Bowl Sunday begins in earnest today. Countless hours of pre-game shows, previews, predictions and analysis.

Before we get into our version of all of the above, I wanted to comment on a few things:

First off, I spent a few days last week in enemy territory. Right outside of Providence, RI for a day and right outside of Foxboro, MA for another day. I could actually see Gillette Stadium driving into work Friday morning. The reason for my visit is because my 'other jobs' corporate headquarters are in Massachusetts. I often go there for meetings. In previous years it was very nice and pleasant. I've always loved Boston and in fact even thought of myself as a fan of some of their teams (see ugly Red Sox shorts). But lately it has gotten vomit inducing. The people there have transformed from the jovial, "Hey anything can happen in sports" type of fan, to a "We're the best and nobody can beat us" fan. In all honesty, the Boston fan has turned into the NY Yankee fan. There is no other way to describe it. You'd think a city that has won 2 of 3 Super Bowls on last second field goals, added to the fact that they were 14 point Underdogs in their first Super Bowl just 3 years ago, would realize that it's anyone's game. No, not these idiots. The whole feel, the whole talk of the town is that there is no chance the Patriots can be beat. It's not just people I talk to. It's the newspapers, the sports talk shows, the local news broadcasts, etc. An independent football fan living in Mass had this to say, "The Patriot fan has become extremely cocky. After beating Indianapolis the way they did it was like nobody could beat them. They won't even hear that this is going to be a close game".

Secondly, the New England fan and the players are begging...begging to find something an Eagles player says to latch onto for motivation. This can't be a good sign. I noticed this when Mike Vanderjadt said something a few weeks ago before the Colts game. The Patriots players made a big deal about that, in fact using it as motivation. Then came the Steelers and some things said by Plaxico Burress about the game earlier in the year. Now, they are latching onto something Freddie Mitchell said. If you actually watched him when he used the quote (and not read it in black and white) you would've realized it was absolutely not trash talking and Freddie was just, well, being Freddie. Then Rodney Harrison sends back an insulting jab back to Freddie, to which Freddie has actually retorted without any trash talking. The Patriots players act as if they're Gods. It's quite annoying. I guess they have earned the right to do so but it has gotten ridiculous.

Lastly, the Terrell Owens fiasco. Doctors can say whatever they want to but he's going to give it a try, that's for sure. Word is he'll play on third downs and 3 WR sets. If anyone has watched the Eagles they play 3 WR sets often so expect to see a lot of Owens.

Now onto the game preview:

Eagles on Offense/ Pats D:
This is the area I think the Eagles must exploit this team. The pass defense is very, very weak. You may ask well how did they only give up 3 points to the Colts. For those who saw that game the Colts rushed about 3 guys on Manning all game, dropped everyone else back into coverage on passing situations. The Patriots would never deploy such a defense against the Eagles because Donovan McNabb could run for about 200 yards against that scheme. So on first down this team must pass at least 60% of the time. This is a stat I will track for you next week. The Steelers did not do this, instead decided to run every first down and make the game completely predictable. The Eagles must also go downfield on first down. Not just 4 yard receptions. Todd Pinkston deep. Yes I said Todd Pinkston. The corners for the Patriots aren't very good and Pinkston may be able to make some plays downfield. Of course, the go to guy on 3rd downs will be Brian Westbrook. Westbrook should have 8 receptions or more in this game. The Patriots game plan of defense should take a page out of Jim Johnson's book and blitz, blitz, blitz. The Eagles WR's minus Owens will need some time to break lose from the CB's. They certainly aren't strong off the line of scrimmage.

Eagles on Defense/ Pats O:
The Patriots have played a very similar offense to the Eagles in the past few years up until Corey Dillon's addition. But they tend to use Dillon a lot more in the 2nd half of games, working in the pass in the first half. Look for the Patriots to go four WR's, which they do often early in this game. Bill Belichick is the master of finding your teams weakness and exploiting it. The Eagles weakness of defense? No, not the rush, it's Roderick Hood, the # 3 cornerback. I expect the Patriots to try to exploit Hood versus David Givens, David Patten or Deion Branch. Hood is going to need help, which means Michael Lewis and Brian Dawkins are going to play huge roles in this game. As for Jim Johnson's game plan, blitzing this team may cause some problems.

Special Teams:
This is an area the Eagles have an advantage over most teams. But Adam Vinatieri alone gives the Patriots a huge advantage. The Eagles can counter that with Brian Westbrook returning punts. If Westbrook can have one return that gives the Eagles either a score or changes the momentum of field position, etc, that will give the Eagles a big advantage.
Prediction: Obviously, as the homer that I am I will be picking the Eagles to win this one. It's tough to pick against the Patriots, but I had New England versus Philadelphia in the preseason with the Eagles winning, and I am not about to change that now. I've bashed Andy Reid for not running the ball more many times, but I think this is one game where his stubbornness to pass will help this team greatly. Eagles win handily, 38-20!

NBA - Derreck Sura

Since every team has played 41 games or more, it's time for my 2nd annual 'Mid-Season Report'. No need for more preamble, let's get right to it.

*Teams I had making the playoffs in the pre-season.

EAST (+/- leader for each team)

1. *Miami (33-13) Damon Jones +7.0

Good-The play of Dwyane Wade, who in only 4 more minutes per game is shooting better from the field and free throw line, as well as averaging more points, assists, rebounds, steals, and blocks then his rookie year.

Bad-They get little, or no, production off the bench.

Rookie-Dorell Wright, 19 year old has been on the injured list all season long, and has yet to see
even a second of game action.

Outlook-I see GM Pat Riley adding something to this roster before the trading deadline, but barring a major injury, the Heat should be the top seed in the East.

2. *Cleveland (26-17) LeBron James +10.6

Good-Kevin Garnett nicknamed Bron "The Gift", and I couldn't agree with that handle more. James has increased his field goal shooting, 3 point shooting, points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks while growing into his role as team leader, and is still only 20 years old.

Bad-Still lack a consistent outside shooting threat.

Rookie-Anderson Varejao, Brazilian big man is very active on the glass, and always plays with lots of energy and enthusiasm.

Outlook-The Cavaliers may stumble a little down the stretch of the season due to their inexperience, but a top 4 seed should remain a possibility.

3. *Boston (21-23) Paul Pierce +7.9

Good-Coach Doc Rivers has them running and playing an exciting brand of ball, much to announcer Tom Heinsohn's delight.

Bad-Mark Blount has been erratic at best after signing a 6 year 38 million dollar contract in the summer.

Rookie-Al Jefferson, high school big man is very active around the basket, has a nice low post game, and is a good rebounder. Probably deserves more minutes.

Outlook-The Celtics need to improve their defense and rebounding to make the playoffs, because they aren't consistent enough on offense to outscore teams every night.

4. *Washington (26-17) Antawn Jamison +12.0

Good-Gilbert Arenas, Larry Hughes, and Jamison breathing life into this once dormant franchise by being the only trio of teammates to average better then 20 points a game.

Bad-Kwame Brown only appearing in 14 games due to a right foot/ankle/arch injury, and the team not missing him.

Rookie-Peter John Ramos, 19 year old from Puerto Rico has played 12 total minutes, and is a big (7'3, 275) time project.

Outlook-If the Wiz can survive Hughes' absence, and a harsh schedule from mid-February through the end of March, home court might not be out of the question.

5. *Detroit (26-18) Richard Hamilton +10.3

Good-GM Joe Dumars' straight up fleecing of Utah for Carlos Arroyo.

Bad-The entire team caught a bad case of Laker-itis, and have been going through the motions most of the year.

Rookie-Carlos Delfino, Argentinean swing man has struggled all year with an injured right knee, but he looked like a very solid role player when he was healthy.

Outlook-The Pistons will be a very tough out come playoff time, and still can make a run at the top seed if they get their sh*t together in the near future.

6. Orlando (24-19) Hedo Turkoglu +5.3

Good-Grant Hill finally remaining injury free and becoming a productive player again.

Bad-One of only four teams that give up 100 points or more a night.

Rookie-Dwight Howard, has a chance to average a double-double, which would be a major accomplishment for a 19 year old. The sky's the limit on his "upside".

Outlook-The Magic can score points with the best of 'em, which should be enough to get them to the post season. I don't think they play enough D to advance though.

7. Chicago (22-20) Kirk Hinrich +9.2

Good-They play hard every night, and surprise teams with their defensive intensity. Coach Scott Skiles also deserves credit for pulling this team together after a very rough start to their
season.

Bad-Other then their 0-9 start, Hinrich's hair could use some work.

Rookie-Luol Deng, great versatility on offense and defense. Doesn't seem to have the makings of a star, but he could certainly be a quality #2 or #3 guy for many years.

Outlook-The Bulls hold their opponents to the lowest shooting percentage in the league (41.2%). If they can keep that up, the playoffs are a definite possibility.

8. *Indiana (20-22) Jamaal Tinsley +11.8

Good-Coach Rick Carlisle mixing and matching his lineups and game plans to get the most out of his team and keep them afloat in the wake of the 'Malice at Auburn Hills'.

Bad-Ron Artest. No need to elaborate.

Rookie-David Harrison, very patient on offense using his size and moves on the block to shoot 58.2% from the field. Made the most of his opportunity after the "brawl".

Outlook-With Stephen Jackson back, and if Jonathan Bender could ever stay healthy, the Pacers may have enough to win the East, even if Artest isn't reinstated.

*Philadelphia (20-23) Kyle Korver +11.9

Good-Allen Iverson's successful transition to PG. Which has led to him becoming more of a leader on and off the court.

Bad-Samuel Dalembert's inconsistent minutes. It'll be hard for Sam D to ever reach his "potential" until coach Jim O'Brien shows more confidence in him.

Rookie-Andre Iguodala, may never be a big time scorer, but has the athletic ability and basketball IQ to excel in all other facets of the game.

Outlook-The Sixers should win the Atlantic Division if AI stays healthy, only to be promptly dismissed in the first round.

*New York (18-25) Stephon Marbury +18.2

Good-Nazr Mohammed averaging career high's in points, rebounds, blocks, steals, and free throw percentage.

Bad-Lenny Wilkens "resigning" after only 81 games as coach over 2 seasons.

Rookie-Trevor Ariza, long and athletic swingman does a little bit of everything. He still needs some polish, but that will come with time. Thee steal of the draft.

Outlook-On paper the Knicks have the talent to make the playoffs in the East. So the question is, can they develop enough chemistry and heart to make a run?

New Jersey (18-26) Jason Kidd +12.4

Good-Owner Bruce Ratner admitting that letting Kenyon Martin go for 3 future first round picks was a mistake.

Bad-Richard Jefferson's season ending left wrist injury.

Rookie-Nenad Krstic, good scoring ability around the basket, and a decent rebounder, but very foul prone. Needs to improve his strength and defense.

Outlook-The Nets would be better served "coasting" their way to a high lottery pick, because they are not playoff material this year.

Toronto (18-27) Morris Peterson +8.0

Good-GM Rob Babcock making the decision to jettison a sulking Vince Carter, and build the team around 2nd year big man Chris Bosh.

Bad-No takers for Jalen Rose and the 3 years 47 million left on his deal.

Rookie-Matt Bonner, hustles, does the little things, and has a nice touch for someone his size with range out to 3. Should have a long career as a role player.

Outlook-I don't think the Raptors have enough to make the post season, but they can put points up in a hurry, making them the perfect "spoiler" in the East.

Milwaukee (15-27) Zaza Pachulia +3.1

Good-Desmond Mason and Dan Gadzuric blossoming into solid NBA role players.

Bad-Michael Redd's impending free agency.

Rookie-None.

Outlook-While the Bucks do always play hard, they just don't have the talent to compete with the top teams, even when taken lightly.

Charlotte (9-32) Gerald Wallace +4.5

Good-Their starting front line of Wallace, Emeka Okafor, and Primoz Brezec, while lacking experience, has been very solid none the less.

Bad-Just 27th in home attendance.

Rookie-Okafor, smart, hard working, team player that cleans the glass, blocks shots, plays defense, and can score with his back to the basket. A future All-Star.

Outlook-The Bobcats are still a few years away from contending for a post season berth, but I really like the blueprint GM/coach Bernie Bickerstaff used to build this team.

Atlanta (8-34) Peja Drobnjak +10.5

Good-Only 40 games left.

Bad-They let their opponents shoot a league worst 47.1% from the field.

Rookie-Josh Smith, above average shot blocker and rebounder for his size due to his insane vertical leap. Must develop some type of offensive game.

Outlook-The Hawks will have high draft pick, and a ton of room under the salary cap this summer, but recent history suggests they won't be able to put either to good use.

WEST

1. *San Antonio (36-10) Tim Duncan +15.7

Good-They still play some of the best defense in the NBA (#1 in points allowed 86 ppg & #2 in opponents shooting 41.8%), but this year's team is even more dangerous because they can score, as evidenced by their league leading +10.8 point differential.

Bad-The play of Brent Barry, who laid a similar egg after he signed a big money deal with Chicago prior to the '98-99 season.

Rookie-Beno Udrih, plays under control, makes good decisions with the ball, is a great passer, and rarely turns it over. Prototypical PG.

Outlook-The Spurs are thee team to beat. Only a serious injury to Duncan will keep them out of the Western Conference Finals.

2. Phoenix (36-10) Steve Nash +13.4

Good-Most entertaining team to watch in the entire league. They also score the most points (109.4 ppg), and Nash's play is the main reason for both.

Bad-Their starting 5 plays an awful lot of minutes, sometimes unnecessarily so as I see it.

Rookie-None.

Outlook-If Nash or Amare Stoudemire gets injured, the Suns could drop a few spots. The big question is, will their style of play translate into success come playoff time?

3. Seattle (30-12) Ray Allen +15.3

Good-Coach Nate McMillan taking the reigns off and letting this team play a helter skelter 3 point shooting style with very little play calling. Which makes them almost impossible to scout.

Bad-Will have 8 free agents this summer, including the coach, 3 starters, and their top 2 bench players.

Rookie-Nick Collison, very competitive, plays hard, won't back down from anyone, has plenty of post moves, and can rebound some. Could develop into a solid #3 option.

Outlook-I see the Sonics falling a few places (record wise) in the second half because their defense isn't good enough to carry them when their 3's aren't falling.

4. *Sacramento (30-13) Mike Bibby +10.8

Good-They still possess some of the best team chemistry in the NBA (#1 in assists 24.8 apg), and are seemingly flying under the radar for the first time in a while.

Bad-Losing Bobby Jackson for the season to a left wrist injury crippled their depth.

Rookie-Kevin Martin, hasn't played much, but is a nice athlete. Won't stick in the league unless he bulks up.

Outlook-I think the battle for the Pacific crown (and #2 seed) between the Kings and Suns will be the most fun division race to follow over the last month of the season.

5. *Dallas (28-14) Dirk Nowitzki +23.7

Good-They are finally playing some defense, holding their opponents to less points per game
(96.2-100.8) and a lower shooting percentage (43.3%-45.9%) then last year.

Bad-The injury bug has kept them from ever really having their full rotation of players together for an extended period of time.

Rookie-Devin Harris, has all the tools to be a top flight scoring PG. Just needs time to develop and gain experience.

Outlook-The Mavericks are the dark horse in the West. They can play fast or slow, have the depth to match up with any team, and have a superstar in Dirk.

6. Memphis (25-20) Shane Battier +11.4

Good-The team embracing coach Mike Fratello's defensive system 16 games into season, and only giving up 100 points or more 4 times since.

Bad-Pau Gasol going on the injured list with plantar fasciitis in his left foot.

Rookie-Antonio Burks, has only appeared in 5 games, but seemed to be a shoot first PG with
some quickness from what I saw.

Outlook-As long as Pau's injury isn't serious, the Grizzlies' depth, defense, and 3 point shooting should be enough to get them into the post season.

7. *Lakers (23-19) Jumaine Jones +11.3

Good-Kobe Bryant becoming a true team leader on the floor by making a concerted effort to
share the ball, and off the floor by finally trying to be one of the fellas.

Bad-Coach Rudy Tomjanovich not devising a scheme to take advantage of Kobe and Lamar Odom's assets when they're on the court together.

Rookie-Sasha Vujacic, must improve his decision making, defense, and strength. All he does is jack up 3's, and I have yet to see him display any playmaking skills.

Outlook-For the Lakers to make the playoffs, they must stay above .500 until Kobe returns, or else their daunting 2nd half schedule will be too much to overcome.

8. *Minnesota (24-20) Kevin Garnett +12.7

Good-Coach Flip Saunders moving Wally Szczerbiak to the 6th man role has seemed to improve
their team chemistry.

Bad-KG not stepping up to tell Latrell Sprewell to check his attitude at the door and start giving 100% again....or else.

Rookie-None.

Outlook-If the Timberwolves can play at a high level over the last month, they'll have a chance for home court in the first round, and be very dangerous in the playoffs.

*Houston (24-21) Tracy McGrady +9.1

Good-Coach Jeff Van Gundy adjusting his offense after approximately 1 month of play by making T-Mac the focal point, and Yao Ming the 2nd option.

Bad-Still one of the most painfully boring teams to watch league wide.

Rookie-Andre Barrett, very quick, good handle, and likes to penetrate and kick out to open
shooters. His jumper needs a lot of work.

Outlook-After starting the year very shaky, the Rockets appear to be headed to the post season. Howeva, they don't have enough overall talent to be title contenders yet.

Clippers (21-23) Elton Brand +12.5

Good-They have great chemistry, and play "team" oriented ball on both offense and defense.

Bad-Losing 19 year old phenom Shaun Livingston to a dislocated right kneecap after only 11 games.

Rookie-Quinton Ross, good defender, plays hard, and will help out on the glass. Not much of a scorer though. A future defensive specialist.

Outlook-The Clippers are still too young and inexperienced to make the playoffs, but they do have some nice pieces (that fit together) in place for the future.

*Denver (19-25) Andre Miller +5.7

Good-GM Kiki Vandeweghe moving swiftly to hire new head man George Karl when he saw that the team wasn't improving under interim coach Michael Cooper.

Bad-Losing starting SG Voshon Lenard for the season in game #1 to a torn left achilles tendon.

Rookie-None.

Outlook-If Karl can get the Nuggets to improve their defense and play with intensity every night, they may still have an outside shot at a post season berth.

Portland (17-25) Joel Przybilla +2.7

Good-Przybilla has posted career high's in points and rebounds, to go along with 4 double-doubles, since he was inserted into the starting lineup 10 games ago.

Bad-GM John Nash's inability to make the necessary trade(s) to improve team chemistry.

Rookie-Sebastian Telfair, extremely quick with the ball and can get by just about anybody. Needs to improve his decision making, jumper, and strength.

Outlook-The Trail Blazers perpetually need a major roster shake up/attitude change, and until that happens, they will continue to be a lottery team.

*Utah (15-30) Andrei Kirilenko +18.7

Good-AK-47 finally returning from an injured right knee after missing 26 games.

Bad-GM Kevin O'Connor allowing coach Jerry Sloan's old school principles to dictate a highly
questionable personnel move.

Rookie-Kirk Snyder, good athlete and defender who can do a little bit of everything. Has the makings of a solid role player.

Outlook-The Jazz have fallen too far behind to make the playoffs, but AK-47's return, coupled with the fact that they always play hard, makes them the West's "spoiler".

Golden State (12-32) Calbert Cheaney +4.5

Good-GM Chris Mullin locking up 24 year old's Jason Richardson and Troy Murphy for 6 years each (130 million total) before they hit the free agent market this summer.

Bad-Mullin signing Adonal Foyle (29) and Derek Fisher (30) for 6 years each (88 million total)
last off season.

Rookie-Luis Flores, PG size (6'2), with a scorer's mentality, but can't create his own shot on this
level. Absolutely has to develop some PG skills if he wants to stick.

Outlook-The Warriors are well on their way to their 11 consecutive lottery appearance, but they do have two solid pieces to the puzzle in J-Rich and Murphy.

New Orleans (8-35) Baron Davis +8.0

Good-Dan Dickau (4th team in 3 years) making the most of his opportunity, and becoming a fan
favorite for his play, rather then being the last man off the bench.

Bad-Baron, Jamaal Magloire, and Jamal Mashburn appearing in a combined total of 28 games.

Rookie-J.R. Smith, outstanding athlete with 3 point range, but tends to disappear at times. Needs to develop a mid-range game and become more consistent.

Outlook-The Hornets should have no problem "playing" their way into the most ping pong balls for the lottery.

NHL Week in Review By: Ed Wasser

- Just in case you've been drinking mind altering amounts of tequila while living in a cave on Pluto and you believe that the NHL is close to the NFL in popularity there's this; The Sporting News came out with it's 'Power 100 List' last week. The highest ranking hockey official on the list was NHLPA president Bob Goodenow at #39, followed by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman at #40. Wow, not a bad showing by the NHL. Yeah but guess who, or should I say what, was ranked #38? That would be Janet Jackson's right boob. Ummmm.....that's not a joke, I'm not clever enough to make that up.

- Hey Curt Schilling...why don't you take two minutes off from kissing that mirror to read this. I found this as a microscopic blurb in last week's 'The Hockey News'. Calgary Flames prospect Byron Ritchie scored a game winning shoot out goal, his second of the night, to win a regular season game for Rogle of the Swedish Elite League. When the game was over it was discovered that Ritchie played the entire game on a broken ankle. Not an injured ankle, a BROKEN ANKLE. I'm sure this story will be splattered all over the sports pages from coast to coast, from pillar to post, and all the ships at sea just like Schilling's injured ankle was.........any day now. Any day now.

- There was a great article in Saturday's NY Post by Larry Brooks. Essentially his point was that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman is holding his ground on this hard cap but the question is why? First off Bettman's job is to be on the side of hockey...owners and players...not just a few small market owners. Think about it, even with the old rules the profitable franchises were the Wild, Stars, Kings, Devils, Thrashers, Bruins, Blue Jackets, Predators, Lightning, Blues, Ducks, Blackhawks, and Sharks. The franchises that were making truckloads of dough are the Flyers, Rangers, Canucks, Maple Leafs, Canadiens, and Avalanche. So these profitable franchises are dying for what? The league is being held hostage by a handful of teams. That's insane. As they said on Star Trek..."the needs of the many out weigh the needs of the few".

- This will be a book so get ready. Here we go.....my mother works for ex-Temple University basketball great Bill Mlkvy. For those on the West Coast who may not know who he is, Bill Mlkvy was a star for the Owls in the late 40's. 'Sport' magazine dubbed him 'The Owl Without A Vowel'. Mlkvy also played for the old Philadelphia Warriors but his time as a professional was cut short by the Korean War. Mlkvy also served as the president of the Sixers/Warriors Alumni Association and he also happens to be a hell of a nice guy. Last Monday, at a gala banquet, Mlkvy received the 'Living Legend Award' from The Philadelphia Sports Writers Association and due to the fact that I have some low friends in high places my mother, Saurin, and I were able to score some tickets to the banquet. OK so the stage....she is set. We walk into the event and literally the first person we collectively lay eyes on is Temple University basketball coach John Chaney who was also scheduled to accept an award that night.
First of all, in person, Coach Chaney's face is not unlike that of the Black Eyed Gila Monster found in the lower portions of Caracas, Venezuela. It's an odd looking mug to say the least. Anyway, also attending the banquet were Flyers John LeClair, Keith Primeau, former Flyers Bernie Parent and Ron Hextall, Dallas Star Chris Therein, Phillies' manager Charlie Manuel and Phillie Jim Thome, Oakland Raider Rich Gannon, St. Joseph's University basketball coach Phil Martelli, Phillies' announcer Harry Kalas, ex-Villanova basketball great Ed Pickney, and every significant sports writer in the Delaware Valley including 2/3rds of the staff of MMM. But I digress; so Saurin, my mother and I make our way to our table and we find ourselves at a back row table but in the center, definitely primo seats. As we take our seats ex-Philadelphia Eagle/ex-Detroit Lion and current Philadelphia sports anchor Gary Cobb is at the podium giving a.....I guess speech is the word.

Now there's an undeniable law that is right up there with anything Einstein or Stephen Hawking have ever worked on. The law is NOT BEING PREPARED + NOT BEING CLEVER + NOT BEING WITTY = PUBLIC SPEAKING FAUX PAS. It never, EVER fails. If you want to test this theory find the least clever person you know and ask him to do a spur of the moment toast at a wedding...then watch the hijinks ensue. Anyhow Cobb's speech was a rambling hodge podge of nonsense that was starting to serve as annoying background music while everyone just ate their salads. Then out of the clear blue sky Cobb says, I'm totally paraphrasing this, that he is a staunch conservative and staunch supporter of the president. Saurin and I look at each other like 'ahhhh......well.......that's nice.....I guess'. The statement had nothing to do with anything. Then Cobb, again out of TOTAL LEFT FIELD mentions John Chaney by name saying that, by the way he runs the Temple University basketball program, deep down Chaney must be a conservative too. Chaney is at the head table SEETHING. A little background here; every Christmas Eve John Chaney appears on a local TV show called 'Daily News Live' and this past Christmas Eve he BLASTED George Bush, the war, and the state of Ohio for casting the deciding votes for Bush.

Chaney blamed Bush for having young people killed for no reason yada, yada, yada. In short Chaney, who is a volatile guy to begin with (just ask John Calipari) has been called out by Gary Cobb about an issue he's VERY passionate about. Cobb tried to make the comments he made to Chaney seem light hearted but war and death are not joking matters. So Cobb has lit a match, put it on the fuse and it's just a matter of time for this bomb to explode. OK...halftime.

- Allright I'm back. I needed a break to watch 'One Tree Hill'. Here I go again on my own....the banquet proceeds as normal. Ohhhh....one quick thing. Flyer Keith Primeau got an award for Philadelphia athlete of the year. During his acceptance speech Primeau says that he played every sport as a kid including football and baseball and in the middle of his speech he just froze. I mean he totally froze. Primeau says "I lost my train of thought".......................................followed.......................
by...........................the .....................longest...................
.......................awkward..................................pause
..............................................in........................the.............
.....................................history .......................................of
............................... the..............................................................world. It really made the whole room squirm. Back to the story. So the moment of truth. John Chaney is announced and he goes up to accept his award. By the way, Gary Cobb had already left because he had a shift to do on WIP radio in Philadelphia. So Chaney takes the mic. I gotta paraphrase Chaney's rant so I don't miss a thing. One of the first things Chaney said was when he died he wished he could come back as a football player so he could "kick Cobb's ass!" Chaney starts really tearing Cobb to shreds.
Chaney says that Cobb doesn't know anything about anything and he starts rattling of Supreme Court cases. 'He doesn't know about Yada vs. Yada and he doesn't know about So vs. So', it was at this point that the crowd started getting unruly. Chaney starts talking about the 1400 Americans that have died in Iraq and that the president lied when somebody in the audience yelled out 'the election is over!!' Now Chaney is fighting with the audience saying essentially that it's my party and I'll rant if I want to and if you don't like it, tough crap!! The rant continues and another guy yells 'sit down!!!' I believe it was at this point that Chaney realized that this had become a total train wreck. Saurin and I had a real sense that we were witnessing something that would be a major controversy. Chaney started calling off the dogs. Eventually he just said 'thank you' and 'when I speak, it's always from the heart'. Wow. This controversy was the talk of Philadelphia and MMM was there to report on it first hand.

- Few more observations from the banquet....I always find it strange seeing famous people doing mundane, everyday regular people stuff. I once saw actor Tim Robbins riding a New York City subway. At the banquet I saw Ed Pinkney at the ATM. I guess even ex-NBA players run out of cash sometimes. Ron Hextall looks like he aged 20 years since 1997. Jim Thome received the 'Good Guy Award'. After the ceremony he was bombarded by autograph seekers and eventually had to be whisked off by a bodyguard, a la Elvis, out of the hotel. By the way, message for Jim Thome, it makes no sense to have a bodyguard that is smaller than you. Ex-LaSalle coach Speedy Morris was dressed in a Jon Runyan jersey and pretty much did a comedy act on the mic. It killed. He was great. The Eagles, immune from bad press right now, failed to send a representative to the event. The Sixers were also unrepresented but they were beating up on Shaq and the Heat at the time so they had an excuse.

- Brace yourself because I'm fairly certainly this sentence has never been uttered before let alone written....OK....ready?....I'm am totally looking forward to the next season of the Ashlee Simpson Show. I just gotta see the backstage shenanigans behind the Saturday Night Live lip synching debacle and the live Orange Bowl performance that was so bad it is currently being used by hunters to lure in mating mountain goats.

- Just in case you didn't get the memo I'll just let you know that it just became official, the world as we know it revolves around ex-Philadelphia Eagle great Chuck Bednarik. At least that's what Bednarik believes. Never in my life have I seen or heard a more pretentious, bitter, crabby bastard than Chuck Bednarik. Bednarik feels like the Eagles owe him a living even though he's 40+ years past his retirement. A little background....Chuck's original beef with the Eagles had to do with not being asked to continue coaching during training camp when Jerry Williams and Ed Khayat were the Eagles head coaches back in the early 70's. Chuck got pissed because he believes the head coach should answer to him. So he made it loud and clear that he was at war with the Eagles. When Dick Vermeil became head coach he reached out to Bednarik and stroked his ego enough that he buried the hatchet. After Vermeil left Bednarik restarted the war with the Eagles because he was pissed that the organization didn't invite him to give a speech at training camp. All the while Bednarik constantly complained that at his peak he only made $24,000 and that the current day players, making millions of dollars, couldn't carry his jock. He even said Deion Sanders couldn't tackle his wife. I just looked it up....Bednarik was an offensive and defensive lineman and the Hall of Fame lists him at 233 lbs. That's only 33 lbs. more than current Eagles kicker David Akers and more than 100 lbs. lighter than current Eagles offensive lineman Jon Runyan. Maybe Bednarik could play linebacker in today's game but we'll never know because it's two different eras which makes his bitterness even more pointless. Now Jeff Lurie owns the team and again he reached out to Bednarik trying to bury the hatchet. Bednarik's ass was sufficiently kissed so AGAIN he deemed the Eagles worthy of his presence. Well, a few years ago Bednarik puts out a book called 'The Last of The 60 Minute Men' and at Eagles training camp he tells, not asks, TELLS Jeff Lurie to buy a 100 copies of his book (100 books @ $15 a piece = $1500) and give them out to the team. Lurie tells Bednarik that it would violate about 5 NFL rules starting with the fact that the CBA states that the owner is not allowed to give out gifts to the team. Bednarik says that the gift is not from the owner, it's from him. Hmmmm......$1500 for a "gift". Some gift. Lurie explains again he can't do it, it's against league rules. That seems easy enough to understand huh? Bednarik admits at this point he called Lurie a "sorry son of a bitch" and now he's going off on the Eagles every chance he gets. Bednarik is saying he wants the Patriots to win the Super Bowl and he hates the Eagles yada, yada, yada. Even Hall of Fame writer Ray Didinger, who is often on local TV and is a great guy, said Bednarik is a bitter old man that needs to bury this beef. Yo Chuck...GROW UP!!!

- Chad Lewis gets hurt and tells the Eagles to sign his buddy Jeff Thomason as his replacement on the Super Bowl roster. Wouldn't it be funny if Thomason had a huge game and the Eagles kept Thomason and cut Chad Lewis next year? 'Sorry pal, you can have my old job at Toll Bros. construction if you want. You start at $9.00 an hour'. Seriously, if Thomason scores a touchdown in the Super Bowl...win, lose, or draw...he'll be a legend in this town. If he scores the game winning touchdown William Penn's statue on top of City Hall will immediately be blown to smithereens and replaced by a statue of Thomason. I love the 'we're all in this together' aspect of this whole thing. If you're a citizen of the Delaware Valley and the Eagles call on you, you gotta go...no questions asked, like a draftee from World War II. This is only a step above losing an offensive lineman and the mayor of Philadelphia and Andy Reid finding the biggest bouncer at a strip club in the city and saying 'look Tiny, your team and your city need your help. What do you say buddy? Can we count on you?' Hell, I would do it. 'Look Ed, we know you haven't played competitive football since you were in 6th grade. We also know that everyone on the field will be bigger than you and out weigh you by 50 lbs. but we need you to play on the kick off and punting teams....just bust ass down the field and try and make a tackle. I'm sorry to tell you that league rules say we can't pay you a dime, in fact you have to pay for your own hotel room, air fare, and food. So, what do you say, you in?''Oh yeah....I'm in. Let's go!!'

- Fairway Miss was scheduled to run last Friday but was scratched by her trainer the morning of the race. Fairway has had some ankle swelling and the trainer believed running her on the frozen hard sand may make it worse. This is the toughest part of owning a race horse; it's not a race car, it's a race horse and problems can occur that can keep it off the track. But you know what doesn't stop...the bills. Food, trainer, veterinarian, lasix, etc. So while hanging around with toothless, greasy haired old men at the track and listening to stories about our exercise rider and our jockey fist fighting each other and cursing each other out while attending a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese (true story) may seem glamorous, it's not all peaches and cream. She'll probably run again around Feb.12th.