The Second Round of Predictions (It has to to better than the first)

Looking back at last weekend the wild card round of the playoffs was just brutal for me. We won't even bother talking about the horrible Patriots game, instead we will focus on this week's playoff games and hope we improve.

We will start with the early game on Saturday where the Arizona Cardinals will come East to take on the New Orleans Saints. I really favor the Cardinals in this one if they remember to play defense. If Arizona decides to play another game like they did last weekend I don't think they survive. The Saints just limped down the stretch and I think that will hurt them come Saturday. Cardinals 41 Saints 21.

The late game on Saturday has the current Baltimore team the Ravens heading to Indianapolis to take on the former Baltimore team the Colts. This game comes down to whether the Colts can make Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco have to make plays. If the Colts can do that I don't see Flacco coming through and thus the Colts will win. Colts 24 Ravens 14.

On to Sunday where at 1:00 ET the Dallas Cowboys will tangle with the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings will be at home and that is a good thing, because they will need any advantage they can get. The winner of this game will be the team that has the quarterback that makes fewer mistakes, and to me that is a real toss up. I'll take the Cowboys 31, Packers, er Vikings 28 with Favre throwing a late interception the costs the Vikings the game.

The final game of the weekend has the New York Jets traveling across the country to take on the San Diego Chargers. I just don't see how the Jets are going to be able to match up quarterbackwise, (yes I made up my own word). Philip Rivers versus Mark Sanchez is an unfair fight. Chargers 24, Jets 14.

There you have my breakdown of the upcoming week of football. If these predictions aren't any better than last week's than my cat, Mittens, will take my place for the league championship round.

The song of the blog: I forgot this part last week, but the song this time around is a classic by Elton John, Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word. This song came out in 1976, back when Elton was still quite relevant. Another pretty simple song that actually speaks the truth.

Please feel free to leave your comments below, or suggestions on ways I can punch this blog up for 2010. As always I would appreciate it if you checked out my novel 33 Summers at: http://www.amazon.com/33-Summers-Darren-Pare/dp/1608602605/ref

Wild Card Predictions

Well we have finally reached the playoffs in the NFL. The wild card round will be played this Saturday and Sunday, with three of the match ups being repeats of games in the final week of the regular season. So here we go with a game by game preview and prediction.

The first game on the schedule will pit the New York Jets up against the Bengals in Cincinnati. The Jets throttled the Bengals 37-0 this past Sunday. I'm going to go out on a limb and say this week's score will be closer. The Bengals need to get their offense going and keep the ball away from the Jets corner back Darrelle Revis. While on defense they must slow down the run and put Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez in a position to make plays. If the Bengals do as I say above I have little doubt that they can force Sanchez into at least a couple of turnovers. Predictions Bengals 20, Jets 13.

Game two on Saturday features the Dallas Cowboys hosting the Philadelphia Eagles. Dallas won their match up against Philly this past Sunday 24-0. As much as I would like to find a way for the Eagles to beat the Cowboys, I really don't see it. The Cowboys are just more talented than the Eagles, plain and simple. The lone hope for the Eagles is that they can get in the head of Tony Romo and he will become a turnover machine. I just don't see it happening, I hate to say. Prediction Cowboys 27, Eagles 10.

On to Sunday where the first game will have the Baltimore Ravens facing the New England Patriots. Now as a Patriots fan I don't really fear the Ravens like I may have in the Past. Their defense isn't as stout as it used to be and the passing game isn't scary either. The Patriots will need to stop the running of both Ray Rice and Willis McGahee, no easy task for this defense. The Patriots defense will also need to play all 60 minutes rather than taking their usual fourth quarter nap. Randy Moss will need to be heard from if the Patriots are to win. Prediction Patriots 23, Ravens 20.

The final game of the weekend will have the Green Bay Packers traveling to the desert to take on the Arizona Cardinals. This season has been a nice quiet little coming out party for Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers and it will continue this weekend. As much as I like Larry Fitzgerald and the Cardinals I just think that they have too many injuries to overcome and win. The game will be close and Rodgers will lead the Pack to a game winning score late in the fourth quarter. Prediction: Packers 27, Cardinals 24.

Well there they are and if these predictions are as good as my regular season ones we may be looking at a Ravens vs. Cardinals Super Bowl.

Hey all if you like this or heck if you hate it at least go and check out the first few chapters of my baseball novel 33 Summers at: http://www.darrenpare.com/Announcements.html Or if you just want to go ahead and by one you can go here: http://www.eloquentbooks.com/33Summers.html

Ward Just Doesn't Get It

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was made to sit out Sunday night's game against the Baltimore Ravens. The Steelers coaching staff along with team doctor's determined that Big Ben shouldn't play because he was suffering headaches when exerting himself, a symptom of post concussion syndrome. Wide receiver Hines Ward still wanted Roethlisberger out there because it was a big game. Ward said that in the past he has lied to doctors about how he felt after a concussion and intimated that Roethlisberger should have done the same thing for the sake of the team. Now I am not a Steelers fan and I really didn't have any good or bad feeling towards Ward, until now. Hines Ward let me tell you this you are an idiot. I am all for playing through pain and "manning up," except when you are dealing with the brain. Do you really think Roethlisberger and his family would care if the team beat the Ravens if in the process he received another concussion and suffered permanent brain damage? This is his fourth concussion since 2006 should he really be taking any chances with his future health? For Ward to suggest that he lie to doctors just proves he doesn't care about Ben the person only about wins and losses, what a great team captain. I think Ward owes Big Ben an apology and should be made to look up the names Mike Webster, Justin Strzelczyk, and Merrill Hoge all former Steelers who had issues with concussions. Two of the three are dead, is one game against the Ravens really worth it?

Today's Song of the Blog: Promises in the Dark - Pat Benatar. Benatar is one of my favorite all time female singers and the song is one of her best. I love the way the song starts off nice and slow and builds. Just one of many quality songs from the height of her career.

Hey all if you like this or heck if you hate it at least go and check out the first few chapters of my baseball novel 33 Summers at: http://www.darrenpare.com/Announcements.html Or if you just want to go ahead and by one you can go here: http://www.eloquentbooks.com/33Summers.html

A Dozen Sports Things I am Thankful For.

Well as we all know Thursday is Thanksgiving Day and so without further ado I bring you the sports things I am thankful for.

I am thankful for:
1. The one handed catch football, except when that catch is being made against the Patriots or by any member of the Colts.
2. A curveball that makes a hitter's knees buckle.
3. Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson running over would be tacklers.
4. The Yankees pinstripe uniforms, to me they are classic and classy.
5. A nice clean solid board and bone rattling check in hockey.
6. A basketball player that drains a three and instead of cheering for himself hustles back on defense.
7. Watching a right fielder with a cannon for an arm throw a seed to home and snuff out a potential run.
8. The flea flicker in football, especially when it is Tom Brady and the Patriots.
9. That my brother is a Red Sox fan. We cheer for the same team in every other sport, but we are polar opposites in baseball, yet we find a way to discuss baseball and be civil, which I can't say about too many fans on either side.
10. The shine of the ice at a hockey game after the zamboni has been out.
11. Guys like Kevin Faulk that don't put up the biggest numbers, but are there when the team needs them.
12. The MLB Network. I watch this channel way too much, but if my cable company took it away I would revolt.

I hope you all enjoy time with your family and friends this Thanksgiving, and maybe next year the NFL will give us better games to watch on turkey day.

The Song of the Blog: Today's tune is Misery Business by Paramore, a rocking song by a a strong female lead singer.

Hey all if you like this or heck if you hate it at least go and check out the first few chapters of my baseball novel 33 Summers at: http://www.darrenpare.com/Announcements.html Or if you just want to go ahead and by one you can go here: http://www.eloquentbooks.com/33Summers.html

The Biggest Problem Facing the NFL

This past week two star running backs have visited the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and that isn't good news. The Philadelphia Eagles Brian Westbrook and the Washington Redskins Clinton Portis both went to Pittsburgh because of problems after suffering concussions on the field of play. There is much debate on the long lasting effects of multiple concussion on players, but there have been links to depression, dementia, and a decline in cognitive skills. Names from the past such as Andre Waters, who committed suicide, and Mike Webster, who died at age 50 not being able to care for himself, are the horror stories that show what can happen when concussions aren't treated properly. Stars like Steve Young, Troy Aikman, and Merrill Hoge have had their careers shortened by multiple concussions, but seem to be doing well in their post NFL careers in broadcasting. The main thing it appears is knowing when to hang them up and even though I am not a doctor I think that time has come for Brian Westbrook. Westbrook suffered two concussions in the span of three weeks among numerous other injuries he has had during his career. Obviously it is a decision that is up to Westbrook, the Eagles, his doctors, and his family, but I really hope I won't hear Westbrook's name on ESPN ten years from now in a story comparing him to Webster and Waters.

Song of the Blog: A slow sappy song is today's Song of the Blog, Everything I Own by Bread. You might say what 38 year old man would ever confess to liking such a song, well that would be me. I remember this song from way back in the 70's when my older siblings would be listening to WJBQ out of Portland, Maine. I've always liked it and still do, so let the taunting begin.

Hey Guys check out the first few chapters of my baseball novel, 33 Summers at: http://www.darrenpare.com/Announcements.html

Another Strange NFL Weekend

Another week of NFL football is in the books and there are plenty of stories to talk about that I won't even bother to touch on the biggest one Bill Belichick's fourth quarter call. We will start off with the Cincinnati Bengals who went into Pittsburgh and took care of the Steelers 18-12. The win put the Bengals one game ahead of the Steelers in the AFC North. The Bengals then fortified their running back corps by signing former Kansas City Chief Larry Johnson. I don't blame the Bengals for signing him, but I do hate to see a guy get rewarded for acting like a complete ass and leaving the Chiefs with no real option other than to cut him. Instead of playing out the string for the woeful Chiefs, Johnson is now in the middle of a playoff race. Is it wrong of me to hope that he blows out a knee on his first play with the Bengals. Speaking of the Chiefs today it was announced that wide receiver Dwayne Bowe will be suspended four games for using performance enhancing drugs. Of course since this is the NFL and not Major League Baseball this will be a story for a day and will quickly be swept under the rug. Only baseball gets screwed by the media for drug violations. Finally we check the crazy old person file and find Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams. While his team was playing the Bills in Buffalo the 86 year old owner starting flipping the bird several times to Bills fans. One would think at 86 years old that the guy would have grown out of such childish behavior, but maybe like his fellow owner Al Davis he has gone over the edge with no hope of coming back. Adams was fined by commissioner Roger Goodell $250,000 for his antics. Some will say the old dude was just having fun. I say the old dude needs to realize that there are kids around and maybe its time he acted his age and set an example.

Song of the Blog: Today's random song of the blog is Cumbersome by Seven Mary Three. A good rocking song from the 90's grunge scene. The band had a few other hits but this is the only one that struck a chord with me.

Hey all if you like this go check out the first few chapters of my baseball novel 33 Summers at: http://www.darrenpare.com/Announcements.html Or if you just want to go ahead and by one you can go here: http://www.eloquentbooks.com/33Summers.html

I'm Baaack!

Sorry about the long break between posts was dealing with a little H1N1, but now I am back and we can take a quick trip around the sports world. The most important thing from this past weekend, at least in my world, was the Patriots winning against the Dolphins, 27-17. The best part is they completely shut down loud mouth Joey Porter who recorded zero sacks and zero tackles. Porter is such a blowhard that it is great to see him avoid the media after the game. I guess he couldn't come up with anything clever to say about his double bagel. I was happy to see that Manny Ramirez picked up his $20 million option with the Dodgers, at least we won't have to hear how Manny thinks he is worth $30 million a year for five years and how 31 teams in MLB are interested in him. Even though I am a Celtics fan I was kind of happy to see them lose on Friday night to the Suns 110-103. People were getting carried away saying that the Celtics might not lose until the new year, well now all that talk can cease and the C's just go about their business and work on improving the team game to game. Okay new blog feature: The Song of the Blog. This will just be a random song from my MP3 player. It may be some lame 70's song or some hair band from the 80's, or even a country tune. You may hate it you may like it, we welcome your opinions.

The Song of the Blog is Desire by Ryan Adams. I first heard this song used on an episode of House and was hooked right away. I don't have any other Ryan Adams tunes on my MP3 player and I can't I have listened to many, but at least this one is a good song.

Hey all if you like this go check out the first few chapters of my baseball novel 33 Summers at: http://www.darrenpare.com/Announcements.html Or if you just want to go ahead and by one you can go here: http://www.eloquentbooks.com/33Summers.html