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Week 2: Jets Recap / It Must Suck

This week’s Jets game was about as boring (in a good way since the game was never in any doubt) as I can remember.

Luke McCown might as well have been wearing a throwback Titans jersey because he was the best player on the field for the Jets. Four interceptions in three quarters. Really appreciate it, Luke.

So instead of an in-depth NYJ recap, let’s try something new called “It Must Suck...”:

-It must suck ... to be a Chargers special teamer. Adam Schefter tweeted this tidbit over the weekend.

That's 21+ straight games without a miss. If it were any other team besides the Chargers, I'd chalk it up to bad luck. In this case, it must be Norv Turner's fault.

-It must suck ... to be a Panthers linebacker. First it was Jon Beason (torn Achilles), now, Thomas Davis tears an ACL for the THIRD STRAIGHT YEAR.

Unreal.

-It must suck ... rooting for the Bengals. At least, I imagine it would, and I couldn’t find any of their fans to disprove this theory, meaning it must be true. Good luck with Andy Dalton for the next few years.

-It must suck ... actually it definitely sucks that Jason Hill wasn't “healthy” enough to back up his smack talk this weekend against Darrelle Revis.

There's a 100% chance Hill would have been shut down if he did play. Man up, Jason Hill - whoever the hell you are. If you talk smack, at least play.

-It must suck ... to be LB Lofa Tatupu. Why is this guy a free agent? The whole NFC East can use a former Pro Bowl linebacker. Is it roids? Did he age that quickly? Did all teams lose his numbers? Someone sign this guy.

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One more quick Jets thing. As a fan, I think it is incredibly dumb to have Antonio Cromartie play offense. They have four running backs and five wide receivers on the roster, and they ask AC to play offense AND run back kicks? That's just begging for something bad to happen. Please end it, Rex.

Monday Mullet

The Undertaker

11 Things I Know I Know: Week 2

1. I know Tony Romo saved the season today with his fourth quarter/OT comeback win. His play, namely the goal line fumble, last week against the Jets was indefensible, but he completely redeemed himself in my eyes and likely the eyes of many others when he played the second half with a broken rib.

I broke a rib in college, and it was one of the most painful experiences for two straight weeks. I struggled getting into bed, and I can't imagine the pain he was in during the game.

2. I know the two teams whose fans need them most in these difficult economic times - Detroit and Buffalo - have made their cities proud and given them hope with their 2-0 starts.

Detroit looks amazing through two weeks, and Ryan Fitzpatrick looks more than capable of leading the offense.

The Bills host the Patriots next Sunday in the only game of the week featuring two undefeated teams.

3. I know the seasons ended today for Kansas City, Indianapolis, Minnesota, and Miami. Nice knowing you, and good luck in your quest for Andrew Luck.

4. I know we learned a lot about the Packers and Cam Newton during today's game.

The Packers need help in the secondary. Drew Brees lit them up last week, and now Newton had his way with them today. Adjustments need to be made if they want to repeat as Super Bowl champs...and I assume they do.

Newton has now thrown for 400+ yards in his first two career NFL games. He deserved a better fate today, but then again, he only has himself to blame as the Panthers had a chance to tie in the last three minutes but could not do so.

5. I know Bill Belichick's cockiness will cost the Patriots a game at some point this season. With a six-point lead and 11:46 left in the fourth quarter, New England faced 4th-and-4 at the Chargers' 49. BB went for it, but the Pats were stopped. San Diego took over on downs with great field position. Unfortunately for them, Mike "Rhinoceros" Tolbert fumbled three plays later. Still, it seemed like a risk that wasn't worth taking.

6. I know the Jets took care of business as any team should when Luke McCown is the opposing quarterback. It's a good thing too because they face a daunting schedule over the next seven games: at Oakland, at Baltimore, at New England, Miami, San Diego, at Buffalo, and New England. They will need a healthy Nick Mangold in order to win the majority of those games.

7. I know QB Jason Campbell and the Raiders deserved a better fate after putting up 35 points despite a) missing their top three wide receivers (Jacoby Ford, Louis Murphy, Darrius Heyward-Bey) and b) traveling across the country to play the 1pm EST.

8. I know we shouldn't judge teams based solely on Opening Week. See: Steelers, Pittsburgh and Ravens, Baltimore. We still can't be sure how good the Steelers are because Seattle is terrible, but their defense will finish at the top of the league again. Baltimore's defense performed poorly in their first road test, and they clearly aren't as invincible as it seemed seven days ago.

9. I know I was pretty shocked to see the Bears throw out a stinker in New Orleans today on the heels of an emotional week that included the passing of Brian Urlacher's mother. I can't really blame him for having his mind elsewhere, but his teammates need to pick him up.

10. I know the three dumbest headbutts of the weekend were:
1. Falcons CB Dunta Robinson on Eagles WR Jeremy Maclin
2. Victor Ortiz on Floyd Mayweather (even dumber was trying to overapologize)
3. Every fantasy owner of Broncos WR Brandon Lloyd on the wall when they realized too late he was inactive

11. I know the Giants will beat the Rams tomorrow night, 27-17. Like the Steelers, the Giants are not as bad as they played in Week One. The crowd will be raucous, and I don't see how St. Louis can stop the Giants rushing attack.

Where Have You Gone, Ike?

On May 10th, Mets 1B Ike Davis sprained his ankle when he collided with 3B David Wright while trying to catch an infield pop up. This was not a full speed collision. The two were camped under the ball and bumped into each other near the pitcher’s mound.

Result:

David Wright to the 15-day DL

Ike Davis: out for the year

Ike was mashing before the injury: 7 homers, .302 BA, .383 OBP, .543 Slugging…and then he was gone. Not only did Davis miss the rest of 2011, but now sources (hopefully these sources are more reliable than the completely inept Mets training staff) are hinting Davis might not even be ready for the start of 2012.

Please tell me this is some kind of cruel joke.

A 162-game Baseball Season Can Swing on One Game

The Red Sox lead the Rays by three games in the Wildcard hunt heading into tonight’s game, but the situation would have been a whole lot more interesting if their game on July 17^th ended differently. On that day two months ago, Boston won a 16-inning marathon, 1-0. Josh Beckett - who happens to start tonight after an 11-day layoff - and others combined on the 3-hit shutout.

(The game lasted 5 hours and 44 minutes, about the average time of a 9-inning Yankees-Red Sox game.)

The Rays came to bat 54 times on that day and blew every opportunity to knock in a run. Evan Longoria, Reid Brignac, Johnny Damon, and Justin Ruggiano all left runners in scoring position in the 9^th inning or later.

At one point, 24 consecutive Rays were retired.

Scoring a run in any of the first 15 innings would have won it. But, they couldn’t deliver.

Had they won that game, they could have been 1-game out which would have made tonight even more exciting than it is.

Unfortunately, a July choke-job will almost definitely cost the Rays a taste of October and us a really meaningful game tonight.

A lot of this going on in the AL East this year.

Babb Note: Leadoff walks will kill you. The only run of the game (Josh Reddick) scored after being walked to start the 16^th.

Did You Know?

Since winning the 1985 World Series, the Kansas City Royals have not made it back to the playoffs. They are 0-for-their last 26 seasons.

At least the fans in KC have the Chiefs…. oh wait. (Too soon?)

College Football: Week 3 Picks

Feeling pretty good so far about my college football picks as I'm batting .750. Going to be hard/impossible to keep up this pace, but let's try. It's going to be a light week because the games are so uninspiring.

North Texas +47: North Texas' Lance Dunbar can keep this under a seven-touchdown game, right? Seven touchdowns?

Pick of the Week - Oklahoma -3: Until Florida State wins a big one, I'm not buying them as national title contenders. I would call this a big one.

Upset - Michigan State +6: The Spartans have the straw in their hands. Will the Irish allow it to break their backs? I'm guessing yes. Plus I.m two-for-two betting against the Irish.


Record: 9-3 (PoW: 2-0; Upset: 1-1)

NFL: Week 2 Picks

Last week, I made my picks on Thursday morning. At the time, the Titans were +3. However, by the time the Hilton sent out their weekly spreads, the line dropped to +1.5. Because we run an honest show here at The Banter and because I want to see how I would have done in this year’s SuperContest, I am giving myself a loss even though I would have won the bet had I made it (final score was Jags 16, Titans 14).

Glad that piece of housekeeping is done. Now on to the week two picks.

Jaguars +9: The Jets looked shaky at home in Week 1, albeit against an opponent that will make the playoffs when all is said and done. Somehow, the Jags were able to beat the Titans with Luke McCown at the helm. Their D looked solid, and MJD looked healthy. This Jets team is going to win a lot of defensive battles, and I think this one stays close throughout.

Colts +2.5: The Cleveland Browns are road favorites in this game. The Cleveland Browns are road favorites in this game. The Cleveland Browns are road favorites in this game. The Cleveland Browns are road favorites in this game.

Bengals +4: The Bengals proved last week they won’t be intimidated on the road against teams that absolutely suck. Cedric Benson’s line on Sunday will probably look something like this: 44 carries, 98 yards, 2 touchdowns. It’s never pretty when we are talking about the Bengals, but against the Broncos, you don’t need much to win.

Speaking of not pretty, the Bengals starting tandem of Benson and QB Andy Dalton has to rank second on the ugliest backfield list (behind Marshawn Lynch + any QB in the league).

Lynch and Benson: neither models, nor model citizens.

Cowboys -3: Tony Romo’s bounce-back game. He cost Dallas the game in Week One; now he makes amends. I’m still not convinced the 49ers are not the worst team in the league.

Cardinals +3.5: A little crazy to think that after two weeks one of these teams will be undefeated. I think it will be a high-scoring affair and when that happens, I like to take the team with the better quarterback (Kolb), running back (Wells), and number one wide receiver (Fitz).

Record: 1-3-1

How Bad Is This Weekend's Slate of College Football Games?

Alabama is a 47-point favorite over North Texas. 47 points. 47!!!


The actual woodshed behind which UNT will be beaten on Saturday

In case you are wondering, there is a 100% chance I'm taking the 47 points. I might need every last one of them to cover, but UNT RB Lance Dunbar is actually a very good player, single-handedly capable of leading the Mean Green to a couple scores.

(Thinking...)

Really, the "Mean Green"? That has to be the worst nickname/mascot/whatever you want to call it in all of college athletics.

Guess the Location

Is this pimp indoor pool at:



A) The Playboy mansion
B) The Four Seasons Hotel of Honolulu
C) The University of Missouri
D) Heaven



If you guessed C, you are a winner. Seems necessary.

Vegas Mullets

So Ricky P over at Swagstein claims this gentleman has the best mullet in the northeast. Really can't disagree.



I would like to suggest a contender for the Mountain West / WAC mullet division:


Ricky P poses with Mullet Man West.

No humans were harmed in the taking of this picture. MMW actually agreed to be photographed.

Man, I love mullets.

The Reason Buck Pierce...

...is in the CFL: negative pocket presence.

MNF Football Predictions

The Banter: 36-23, Patriots
Actual: 38-24, Patriots

The Banter: 20-19, Raiders
Actual: 23-20, Raiders

Solid.

This is Awesome

A Madison, Wisc. firefighter Robert Verhelst wore 65 pounds of fire fighter gear Sunday in the 2011 Wisconsin Ironman to honor the victims of 9/11.


Hero.

See the rest of the story here.