Sunday, November 28, 2010

49ers x Week 11 x Bucs Pillage San Fran

Photobucket
With an overtime win against the St. Louis Rams in the rear-view mirror for the 49ers, San Francisco hosted the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Given how poorly Tampa Bay has fared in the past when playing on the road in SF, the 49ers would be a perfect test for those still doubting the Bucs as a legit team. No one would like to guarantee that more than Josh Freeman who has developed the potential to become one of the game's up and coming star quarterbacks in only his second year. Meanwhile, 49er QB Troy Smith came into Sunday aiming to add to a resume of his own. Hoping to extend San Francisco's current winning streak of two games and improve his career mark to an undefeated 3-0 when being named the starter, Smith would have his work cut out for him and had a hard time getting anything going with his offense.

Though that wouldn't appear to be the case in the game's early going. After being awarded good field position on almost every offensive possession thanks to Ted Ginn's good kick returning and an early gamble by the Bucs deciding to fake a punt, the 49ers were unable to find an answer as Smith struggled mightily. The combination of San Francisco's lackluster offense and a number of miscues including a Josh Morgan fumble, spelled doom for the 49ers, as Buccaneers running back Cadillac Williams scored on a 6-yard run, giving Tampa Bay a lead that would only increase. Heading into the locker room behind 7-0 at half time, the contest remained a one possession game before Josh Freeman took control. Hoping to rally late, Troy Smith was intercepted by veteran cornerback Ronde Barber, ending the threat.
Photobucket
For Barber who has played for the Buccaneers his entire career since being drafted in 1997, the pick-off was the 40th of his career, and solidified a place in the history books for the 5-time Pro Bowler. While Barber stands alone as the Bucs all-time leader in interceptions, he also stands tall in a club of his own, becoming the first and only player in NFL history to record 40 interceptions and 25 sacks in a career. With neither teams offense putting up eye-popping numbers, Freeman clearly had the better game, passing for 136 yards and 2 touchdowns in route to a 21-0 win. The blowout loss was the first time the 49ers were shut out at Candlestick Park in 33-years. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay logged their first win at the Stick since 1980 and only their second ever.

Week 12 Preview - With little positivity to poke at regarding the loss, I think I speak for everyone when I say Monday can't come any sooner. In spite of the poor 3-7 records heading into Week 12, the division foe Arizona Cardinals will host the visiting San Francisco 49ers for a Monday Night game on ESPN. Although the records are nothing to brag about, the game could very will determine one teams Playoff fate, depending on how Seattle and St. Louis fair against their opponents this week. Regardless of the game being on the road, I expect to see Mike Singletary and co. get back on winning track, or else we might be seeing another change at the quarterback position. That however remains up to this man:
Photobucket

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

How Kobe Plans To Steal Christmas

Photobucket
Kobe to wear Grinch inspired sneakers on Christmas - For years now, we've grown accustomed to watching Kobe Bryant and the Lakers showcase both their talents and their special edition sneakers on live television for Christmas. Watching one of the most anticipated match-ups the NBA has to offer has become just as significant as opening presents on December 25th. However, one thing that we've been yet to see during the holiday extravaganza, is a shoe that garners as much attention as the game itself. Not only will we finally get to see one of the highest regarded regular season games in quite some years as the Lakers host the Heat, but we'll also get to see some of the more flashy footwork to step foot on the hardwood.

Making its debut this Christmas, is the newest installment of the Zoom Kobe sneaker that Team Nike and Bryant put together for this very occasion. While most basketball sneakers nowadays follow the color scheme of their team uniforms, Kobe's latest choice of footwear is definitely out of the ordinary, breaking all rules. Last Christmas we saw the debut of the "Chaos" Zoom Kobe V which had little to no comparison to the holiday. This year, #24 takes a much more appropriate approach to the holiday spirit. Behold, the Nike Zoom Kobe VI "Christmas" edition:
Photobucket
Serving as the inspiration behind these yet to be released sneakers, is one of my personal childhood favorites -- Dr. Suess' 'How The Grinch Stole Christmas'. Given the Lakers' uniform colors consist of white, purple, and gold, the vibrant color of electric green throughout will be sure to catch your eye. Unfortunately for those of you hoping to land these joints just in time for the holiday, will have to wait 'til the 26th when they're expected to hit selected Nike retailers. The good news for all you sneakerheads and basketball enthusiasts is you won't have any trouble trying to figure what to spend all that leftover Christmas money on. Look for Kobe to sport these bad boys as he and the Lakers hope to redeem themselves after the 102-87 blowout loss L.A. endured to the Cleveland Cavaliers last Christmas.
Photobucket

Sunday, November 21, 2010

49ers x Week 10 x Smith Silences Lambs

Photobucket
Heading into Week 10, the 49ers would face a division foe for the first time since Week 1 when they opened the season with a loss in Seattle. Coming off a BYE and in need of a win, San Francisco would need an overtime thriller in order to keep it a tight race within the NFC West. Entering the day at an even record of 4-4, the Rams opened the game with a nice drive led by their former Heisman Trophy winning Quarterback Sam Bradford, resulting in a field-goal. 49er QB Troy Smith who is also a former recipient of the Heisman (2006), was named the starter on Friday just days before the two teams met.
Photobucket
Similar to his counterpart, Smith was sure to get things going right away, as he connected with his tight-end Vernon Davis for 40-yards on San Francisco's first offensive play of the game. After marching all the way down to the Rams 21-yard line, a number of sacks knocked 49er kicker Joe Nedney out of field-goal range, ending in a punt. The 49er defense seemed to have made a stop of their own by intercepting a pass from Bradford, but would be erased due to an off-sides call. The self inflected penalties plagued what looked like an easy visit to the red-zone, but wouldn't haunt SF all that much, as they were able to get on the board a drive later thanks to another deep pass to Davis on the first play of the drive, this time a 65-yarder which set up an easy 1-yard Touchdown ran in by Frank Gore.

The 49ers appeared to be on their way to an early 14-3 lead when Smith found Davis in the end-zone, but the TD was whipped out on a delay of game call, resulting in a FG. Sam Bradford would then begin to utilize his young wide-receiver Danny Amendola who has looked a lot like a poor man's Wes Welker given how he's been used. The two would eventually connect in the end-zone, tying the game at 10-10 heading into the half. A slow start to the second half would see an array of punts before Stephen Jackson finally found an opening for a 10-yard TD run. San Francisco would inch closer with a field-goal, before making a stop on defense that set up for some late game heroics.
Photobucket
While traveling all the way into Rams territory, Smith threw two touchdowns, but were both negated by penalties. Before you knew it, what began at the 20-yard line was soon brought back to mid-field. However, a big 4th down conversion 18-yards out would save both the game and quite possibly the season, setting up a go-ahead Touchdown caught by the 49ers' Michael Crabtree with 2-minutes left in the game. Those 2-minutes remaining would be all Bradford needed to get his team in field-goal range, as St. Louis kicker Josh Brown chipped in a 33-yarder, sending it into overtime. After winning the coin toss and selecting to receive, the Rams failed to convert a first down, giving Troy Smith a perfect chance to lead his team to victory in only his second 49er start. Moving his team down field some 55 yards, Smith would do just that, setting his kicker up for a game winning 29-yard field-goal.
Photobucket
Noteworthy & Week 11 Preview - The back-to-back wins for the 49ers were their first consecutive wins this year, and featured a career high in the passing department for Troy Smith, who finished the game with 356 passing yards to go along with a touchdown. Frank Gore totaled 87 yards rushing and a Touchdown on 22 carries. Week 11 will see the vising Tampa Bay Buccaneers who have been one of the bigger stories in the NFL this year, carrying a surprising record of 6-3. Even more surprising, the Bucs have already surpassed their 2009 overall record when they finished the season dead last in the NFC South, at 3-13. Coming off a close win against the Rams, I expect to see a similar game this week, with the 49ers edging out another win at home.

Friday, November 12, 2010

Heat Lookin Cold

Photobucket
Significant or not, the Miami Heat are off to a slow start to begin their 2010-2011 campaign of bringing an NBA title back to South Beach. After losing the first game of the season to the defending Eastern Conference Champion Boston Celtics in which Miami scored a whopping total of 9-points in the first quarter and 30-points in the first half, many believed it would take a game or two for the "Miami-thrice" to click. That appeared to be the case once they went on to win four straight, but now things are beginning to look gloomy.

Coming into the season as the highly favored team out East thanks to the return of D-Wade and the acquisition of LeBron James and Chris Bosh, Miami fell to the Celtics for the second straight time in two games, this time in Miami, dropping their record to 5-4. As if 25-points wasn't enough, after the game Paul Peirce shitted on LeBron and the Heat by tweeting "It's been a pleasure to bring my talents to South Beach", of coarse mocking LeBron's choice of words when he made his decision a world wide spectacle that turned out to be more of a mockery and a waste of our time.
Photobucket
In other Twitter news, after the 2-time defending World Champion Los Angeles Lakers endured their first loss of the season by losing on the road to the Nuggets, 'Lakers Lost' became an instant trending topic amongst the Laker haters and users of the social network alike. As usual, I gave my two cents and made the suggestion that 'Heat Lost Again' should also make the cut as a trending topic. Then again, the Lakers falling for their first loss of the season might not be as believable as Miami adding another loss to their record, right? After all, it was the Lakers that were projected to threaten the Chicago Bulls 1995-1996 single season record of 72 wins, wasn't it? Wrong! Unless they go on a number of 20-game winning streaks throughout the season considering their only 6-losses away from failure, anyone's hopes of this Miami Heat squad surpassing the Bulls 72-win mark can be put to rest.

Also worth mentioning, is the LeBron-less Cleveland Cavaliers who stand at a record of 4-4, only one win less than James' new team. Boy would it be a sight to see if the Cavs were to host their former hometown hero on December 2nd, sporting a record similar to Miami's, let alone beat them. That might sound like somewhat of a far cry, but who knows, at this point it looks like anyone can after the Utah Jazz erased a 19-point lead heading into the second half, led by Paul Millsap's 46-point outburst. Sure we're still in the first month of the NBA season, but is the slow start in South Beach a cause for concern, or are the Heat just setting themselves up to silent the critics and turn this whole thing around?

I'm not counting this talented Heat squad out, but like I said before the season started, it's going to take at least one year playing alongside one another before LeBron and company gel and play to their full potential.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

49ers x Week 7 x Carr Gets Clawed

Photobucket
Fresh off their first win of the season by beating their Bay Area rivals -- the Oakland Raiders, the 49ers payed a trip to Carolina to face the win-less Panthers. What looked to be an easy win for Mike Singletary's boys, would prove to be anything but. San Francisco would claw first, as QB Alex Smith connected with TE Vernon Davis for a touchdown, putting the 49ers up early. The early visit to the end-zone took only 3-plays and looked like one of the better drives put together by the 49er offense. Carolina would respond with a field-goal, before San Francisco exchanged for one of their own. WR David Gettis would then make a name for himself, catching an 18-yard pass from Panthers QB Matt Moore to tie the game at 10, as the first half concluded.

The second half would start off on a sour note for the 49er offense, as Smith was taken down for a sack, just several plays into their first possession. After being slow to get up, Smith was pulled out of the game in favor of back-up QB David Carr. While Smith rushed to the locker room to get his shoulder checked, Carr began having troubles of his own, as he began trying to find his rhythm. After being forced to punt, kicker John Kasey would give Carolina their first lead of the game with a 55-yard field-goal putting the Panthers up 13-10. Despite a 102-yard performance from 49ers running-back Frank Gore, the rest of the day for the 49er offense would be nonexistent. The only scoring on the offensive side of the ball for San Francisco would come via the field-goal.
Photobucket
With the game tied at 13-13, 49er defensive-end Ray McDonald ran back an interception 31-yards to put the 49ers up 20-13. As the San Francisco personnel began celebrating on the sideline, the 49ers looked almost destined to win their second consecutive game. However, Matt Moore and the Carolina offense refused to lie down. With the chance to tie it midway into the fourth quarter, David Gettis who caught his first career TD reception in the second quarter, dropped what would've been a game-tying touchdown in the end-zone. But after a three and out, the 49ers were forced to punt, giving the Panthers another shot at tying the game. It wouldn't take long for Gettis to make up for that dropped touchdown earlier in the quarter, as Moore found him in the end-zone, tying the game at 20.

With just over a minute left on the game clock, David Carr was given a chance to win it for the 49ers, but instead threw a pass into double coverage resulting in an interception. Moore made the most of it and got his team into field goal range, connecting on a 35 yard pass, setting John Kasey up for a game winning 37-yard field goal with 39 seconds remaining. As Carr continued to struggle, the final seconds ticked off the clock, giving the Panthers their long-awaited first victory of the season. Meanwhile, the 49ers continue to struggle, dropping to a disappointing 1-6 record and into the cellar, owning last place in the NFC West.
Photobucket
Week 7 Preview - The 49ers make a trip across the pond to face the Denver Broncos in London, England in what will serve as one of San Francisco's home games. With their only win of the season coming against the Oakland Raiders, the 49ers hope to repeat their success against another AFC Western division foe. For San Francisco's sake of somehow making the playoffs, let's hope a change of continent will get the 49ers back into their winning ways.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Off The Wall

Photobucket
After being selected out of Kentucky as the first overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Washington Wizards, point-guard John Wall took some heavy criticism for playing only one year of college basketball. Similar to every short-lived college career, the skeptics weren't sure Wall was ready to transcend his game to the professional level. However, it wouldn't take long for the 20-year old rookie sensation to showcase his tremendous talent on the court away from the collegiate level, and turn those skeptics into believers. After averaging 23.5 points, 7.8 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.5 steals, Wall was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2010 Las Vegas Summer League.

Wall's biggest impression though, would come in the Wizards' home opener against the 76ers. Not only was his minute-long impersonation of the dougie impressive during player introduction, but so was the 29-point, 13-assist performance he put on in the overtime win over Philly. Wall came just one steal shy of a triple-double, and two turnovers short of a quadruple-double (joking). With only a handful of games into the 2010-2011 NBA season, Wall is already looking like the future All-Star Washington was hoping for when they drafted him.

Will the hot start allow Wizards head coach Flip Saunders to keep Wall in as the everyday starting point-guard, or will a return from the injured Gilbert Arenas damper his predecessors chances of stealing the spotlight? A trade involving the one formerly known as 'Agent-0' is also worth keeping an eye out for. But until then, I'll be riding the wave while doing the John Wall dance as seen here:

Photobucket

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Moss' Unhappy Reunion

Photobucket
For football fans around the globe, the thought alone of Brett Favre connecting with Randy Moss has been dreamt about for years now, but was only seen when the two clicked up in Hawaii for the Pro Bowl. Less than 4 weeks ago, those dreams finally came true as a trade was made between the New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings that sent Moss back to the team that jump started his NFL career, in exchange for a 3rd round Draft pick. Although the world no longer had to live through Fantasy Leagues in order to see two of the games best playing side by side, the relationship wouldn't last as long as one would hope. Less than a month into his new tenure with the purple and gold, uncertainty was in the air after Minnesota put up a disappointing 1-3 record since the acquisition took place on October 6th.

After enduring their most recent loss on Sunday to his former team in New England, Moss stood in front of the media where he told his former Patriot teammates that he missed the hell out of them and called coach Bellicheck the greatest to ever coach the game. Vikings head coach Brad Childress didn't take it likely and held a team meeting the following day where he told his players that Moss was no longer with the team and would be waived, leaving the future Hall of Fame WR jobless for the time being. The news caught both Moss and his agent by surprise. However, his Viking teammates would tell you otherwise. While many begin to speculate just what happened behind closed doors, some are pointing at an altercation Moss had encountered two days prior to Sunday's loss. After being served a buffet dinner by a team caterer in the Vikings locker room on Friday, Moss was unhappy with the meal and went on a tirade.
Photobucket
"Who ordered this crap?, I wouldn't feed this to my dog!" Moss said out loud while sitting at his locker. An unnamed Vikings player told the media it was an uncomfortable moment and that Moss deserved to be cut after that. If this was the Moss of several years ago, teams would be lining up and picking a number for the 7-time Pro Bowl wide-out, but now that his desire to give it his all on every play is in question, it looks like most teams will avoid falling into a potential disaster similar to the one Minnesota fell into. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Rams, SeaHawks, Chiefs, and Patriots are among the teams showing most interest in Moss. If New England hopes to recapture what was recently theirs, they'll have to hope no one else claims him on waivers, as they're at the bottom of the order.

While Vikings fans and Fantasy owners of Moss are both at a loss for words regarding the news of #84 no longer with the team, former teammate Tom Brady is getting reacquainted with his good pal Deon Branch who was signed in place of the recently departed Moss. How have the Patriots done since the post-Moss era you ask? Brady and company sit atop the division, riding a 5-game winning streak with the best record in the NFL at 6-1. Meanwhile Minnesota finds themselves tied with Detroit for last place in the NFC North. The mediocrity that has been seen thus far from Minnesota, has to make one think the Moss pick-up isn't the only acquisition the Vikings organization regrets making... *Brett Favre...cough cough*

Monday, November 1, 2010

Proceed With Precaution

Photobucket
Since the dawn of time, or at least since the good 'ol game of Football has been played, we've seen hard hits in the NFL whether they were put on by bad boys Dick Butkus, Ronnie Lott, etc. But never have we seen a handful of devastating hits in one day like we've seen this past Sunday. A number of players including Brandon Mariweather of the Patriots, Dunta Robinson of the Falcons, and James Harrison of the Steelers all received fines on Tuesday for their helmet-to-helmet hits. While Harrison's fine was the largest out of the group ($75,000) for his two hits against the Cleveland Browns, Robinson's hit was by far the most crucial, as Philadelphia's DeShawn Jackson who received the blow, was sent off the field on a stretcher to the hospital where they confirmed he had sustained a concussion. Robinson was also shakin up on the play.

With so many unnecessary hits and injuries taken place in one day, it was only a matter of time before commissioner Goodell put his foot in the door and began to crack down on the helmet-to-helmet hits. Hoping to better the safety of the league and its players, Goodell and his cronies made it clear that fines will be issued for those who tackle with their helmet. As players around the league begin to voice their opinions on the new rule, Harrison who's a former NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2008), is threatening to retire from the game of football, saying he doesn't know if he can be effective without playing the way he's been taught since his childhood. But just like the repetitive Brett Favre retirement talk we heard about countless times during the offseason, I'm not buying it.
Photobucket
If the NFL plans to change its culture of hard hitting Football, they're going to have to dig a lot deeper into the archives and begin to can footage of the hard hits profited off of and embraced through highlight reels for years now. And just in case that doesn't get the point across, they ought to consider removing the 'hit-stick' button off of the Madden games while they're at it. Despite his distaste for the new rule, Harrison wasn't he only one opposed to the league outlawing the helmet-to-helmet contact. Players around the league were interviewed and a majority said they're going to play the way they've been coached to play since high school. Making their point across to the rest of its players, the league sent out videos to teams containing footage of both legal and illegal hits.

While the league was busy trying to outlaw the illegal hits and throw away all its evidence, the NFL unknowingly had pictures of the Harrison and Mariweather hits up for sale on its website -- NFL.com. That was until they were taken off early Wednesday morning, thanks to a fan who noticed them. Prices of the photos ranged anywhere from $16 to $250. The league has since issued an apology, but the truth is, a number of fans that the hard hitting aspect of the game attracts, will be lost. And unless they begin to play two-hand-touch or start wearing belts with flags hanging around their waists, the hard hits need to be kept in the game of football. Whether or not you agree, the NFL called the first week since adopting the new rule a success, as no helmet-to-helmet fines were issued in 13 games this week. But the question is, will it continue?
Photobucket