NFL drafts are sad

There's a lot of talk here in Philadelphia about how Donovan McNabb hasn't ever had any help. I thought I'd take a look back and see which receivers the Eagles could've had to go with McNabb (drafted in 1999) instead of the bums that they keep ending up with. I'm only comparing guys who didn't last and guys who went after them:

2000: They drafted Todd Pinkston in the second round (36). They could've had: Jerry Porter (47) or Laveranues Coles (78).

2001: They drafted Freddie Mitchell in the first round (25) and Quintin Carver (LB, 55) in the second. They could've had: Reggie Wayne (30), Todd Heap (31), Chad Johnson (36), Chris Chambers (52) or Steve Smith (74).

So already after two drafts, instead of having Todd Pinkston, Freddie Mitchell and some LB who never made it, Donovan could have been throwing to Jerry Porter, Chad Johnson or Reggie Wayne, and Steve Smith.

2002: Best draft of the decade. Iggles' first four picks were Lito Sheppard, Sheldon Brown, Brian Westbrook, and Michael Lewis. No problems here, might have switched Lewis (58) for Deion Branch (65).

2003: Eagles take Jerome McDougle (15) in the first round. They could've had: Dallas Clark (24) or Anquan Boldin (54).

It's a little bit hard to tell what's what after this list, since guys take a little while to develop and some from these later drafts might still perk up. But just consider that in the Superbowl in 2004, just by drafting differently, they could have switched the Pinkston/Mitchell/broken TO/LJ Smith bunch with Porter/Johnson/Smith/Clark. That kind of knowledge is what curdles Philadelphia fans into the bitter, jaded, black-hearted, miserable jack-asses that we are. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go put on my Flyers jersey and ram into a light pole.

The Baltimore Ravens

As a New England Patriots fan, I'm happy about last nights outcome, but I can imagine how incredulous the Baltimore Ravens fans must feel this morning. Not because of the officiating or the time-out or Tom Brady's good looks or the final score, but because it is all too apparent that the Baltimore Ravens have given up on the season.

I kept hearing during the game that the Ravens were treating the Monday night game with the Patriots as "their Super Bowl," but my question is, "What have the Ravens been treating every other week as?" The coaches and players led us all to believe that they worked extra this past week, preparing and perfecting everything about the game plan to beat the Patriots. The coaches had the right mindset, the players had the right mindset, everyone was ready to win. So my question remains, why haven't the Ravens been doing that every week? Clearly they are a good football team and have played the Patriots closer than anyone else this season, save maybe the Colts. So how can they play so poorly in past weeks and yet show up for the Patriots game?

All I know, is that the Ravens are better than they have been playing and they showed this week that if they treat every week like it's the Super Bowl, they can compete with anyone. My problem is that by bragging that they worked so hard this week, they admitted to not working their hardest in past weeks. The reason the Patriots and the Colts are so good is because they treat EVERY week like it's the Super Bowl. Not just the big games under the big lights. So Ravens fans, call up the organization and ask for a refund of your tickets because clearly, you were not receiving what was promised, that is, the best from every player and coach on your team every week.

New England Sports Update

The Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics have won 23 combines straight games, and none of them have lost for a month.

Pats - Indy Refs

This is from the great sports writers over at boston.com

Randy Moss was walking off the field after the game against Indy, when he saw a cell phone on the ground near the tunnel.
Moss picked it up, looked at it, and ran over to the referee walking off the field.
"You dropped your cell phone," Moss said to the ref.
"Thanks, Randy. By the way, how'd you know it was mine," the ref replied.
Randy smiled and said, "Easy. There was nine missed calls."

It's good to be from New England.

The current Patriots winning streak: 9 games, began September 9th, 2007.
The current Red Sox winning streak: 7 games, began October 16th, 2007.
The current Celtics winning streak: 5 games, began November 2nd, 2007.

The point? A New England based sports team has not lost a game since October 17th. I haven't checked the facts, but I don't believe a fan base has ever had such a run of victories. Enjoy it Red Sox/Patriot/Celtic faithful.

F the Cowboys

Ugly androgynous Eagles fan say CRUSH THE COWBOYS!!!

8 Weeks of NFL Action

Here we are half-way through the NFL season, and it's time to answer some questions.

MVP:
Tom Brady - There is just NO way that it could be anybody else. I don't need to gush anymore about Brady because his stats say everything. He's on pace to have the greatest statistical quarterbacking season in the HISTORY of the NFL. If he can keep this up, we will look back and ask ourselves if this season really happened.

Randy Moss - Sure, all he does is run down the field and catch those beautifully thrown balls from Brady, but Brady wouldn't be the same without him. Wherever Randy goes he is always a top talent. He's been great with Randall Cunningham, Cullpepper, Aaron Brooks, and now Tom Brady. Brady has never put up great stats like this before Moss arrived, but now that he has the best receiver in the NFL, things have changed. Just imagine what the Packers would look like right now if they had Moss. Or the Cowboys. Or the Chargers. Or the Colts. Or anybody in the league who would have had the marbles to trade a FOURTH round pick for the guy.

Brett Favre - What an amazing ride this guy has taken Packer's fans on for the last 10+ years. Everybody wrote him off, and despite not getting Moss, he has taken a .500 team and turned them into a potential home field advantage, first round bye caliber team (in the NFC). I don't care what his numbers are because all he is doing is win games. Much like Vince Young, so much of what he does will never show up on the stat sheet, but golly, it's fun having Brett Favre in the NFL...unless your name is Aaron Rogers.

Offensive Player of the First Half:
See Brady, Tom. But let's give some credit to the other guys in the NFL. Big ups to Braylon Edwards (seriously), Derek Anderson (the Cleveland Browns quarterback), Adrian Peterson (you think he'd still go 7th?), Tony Romo (minus the Bills game), T.J. Houshmandzadeh (the Bengals have actually thought about trading Ocho Cinco), and Ronnie Brown (prior to his season ending surgery).

Defensive Player of the First Half:
Mike Vrabel- I know what you're saying. What a freakin' New England Patriots homer. Yes, but name me another played with better stats right now. 42 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles and an overall monster for the Patriots D. Maybe he's a good player in a great system, but his stats are top notch right now.

Trent Cole- Trent Cole? That's right. Why? With 38 tackles, 9 sacks (leads the league) and 2 forced fumbles, Cole is wreaking havoc on opposing quarterbacks. He was an absolute steal in the 5th round and is helping a wounded Eagles team stay alive in the NFC.

Elvis Dumervil- He currently has 6 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and an interception. He makes all the plays on the line for the Broncos.

Barrett Ruud- The man who makes all the tackles for that lovely Tampa 2 defense.

Champ Bailey - He should win this award every year for the way he changes every game he plays, but I can't give an award to a guy who has less interceptions than Junior Seau.

Most Surprising (Good) of the First Half:
Willis McGahee - 3rd in the league in rushing yards and has a solid 4.4 yards per carry.

The Cleveland Browns - Derek Anderson is 2nd in the league in TD passes. Braylon Edwards has turned into a man beast and is currently on pace for an 18 TD season. Maybe they are overachieving, but imagine if this team somehow wins enough games to go the playoffs.

Brett Favre - 4 more years! 4 more years!

The Buffalo Bills - I know they are 3-4 and that's neither surprising or good, but this is a team that lost to Denver and Dallas by a single point on game winning field goals. If this team was getting any breaks this season, they would be 5-2, with losses to Pittsburgh and New England, and would sitting in the final playoff spot in the AFC.

Most Disappointing of the First Half:
Vince Young- At least Michael Vick looked like he could pass once in a while. The Madden Curse continues.

Matt Leinart- Most CFL ready quarterback to come out of the draft in a long time. Maybe he should spend more time practicing with Archie in the backyard.

The Running Backs (Steven Jackson, Larry Johnson, Laurence Marroney, Frank Gore, Thomas Jones) - For whatever reasons, these guys have been duds this year, and you know, because you drafted them for your fantasy team and now you are relying on Earnest Grahm and Kenny Watson.

The NFC West - Looked like it could be an up year for this division with a good team (Seattle), a great offensive team (St. Louis) and 2 teams ready for their closeups (Arizona and San Fran), but golly, these teams stink.


But forget all this and enjoy the second half of the season where anythings possible. Except for the Patriots not winning the AFC East crown.