Category Archives: sports

The White Boy’s 2009 NBA Mock Draft

The most exciting part of the NBA season is this week, the NBA Draft. Don’t get me wrong, I love the playoffs and think it’s great, but the NBA Draft is a time where every fan can feel great about their upcoming season, unless your a Knicks fan. This year’s draft is perceived to be a very weak draft, but it is very deep at point guard. As many as 8 PGs could be taken in the first round. I would expect a lot of trade this year, since many of the teams at the top of the draft are hurting for money and would rather invest that money in a proven talent, rather than wait three seasons for the prospect to mature.

Here is my mock draft for the 2009 NBA Draft.

1. Los Angeles Clippers – Blake Griffin (Oklahoma) – This is a no-brainer. Giffin is the best prospect in the draft and most think that he’s a lock. If the Clippers pick Griffin, they will find some way to turn him into Michael Olowakandi.

2. Memphis Grizzlies – Ricky Rubio (Spain) – The Grizzlies would much rather pick Hasheem Thabeet here, but he cancelled his workout. If Memphis picks Rubio, expect a trade of Mike Conley Jr. or even Rubio. They will be loaded at PG and that is not what their need is.

3. OKC Thunder – Hasheen Thabeet (UCONN) – Thabeet makes Dwight Howard post moves look great. In OKC’s offense, he wouldn’t need to put in many points. He isn’t a strong rebounder, but the Thunder needs some defense in the paint. The Thunder would be a great fit for Thabeet.

4. Sacramento Kings – James Harden (Arizona State – The Kings need a scorer and Harden can put a basket in about anywhere on the court. They are re-building and need a star, something that Harden could turn into rather quickly.

5. Washington Wizards – Brandon Jennings (Italy) – The Wizards need a lot to re-gain their form, but Jennings will help them deliver the ball. He didn’t do well in Europe, but his ceiling is higher than most. I’m hoping that he is still sporting his Kid N Play flat-top; I would buy his jersey.

6. Minnesota Timberwolves – Jonny Flynn (Syracuse) – Flynn came out of nowhere during the last month of the season. He had a great Big East tourney and went on to have a great NCAA tourney as well. He has pure point-guard skills and would be an improvement over Sebastian Telfair.

7. Golden State Warriors – Stephen Curry (Davidson) – Don Nelson’s days are numbered in Oakland, but Curry fits the mold of his type of player. He can score from all over the place and his point guard skills have tripled in just one season. Curry will be a great fit at Golden State, but look for a possible trade here.

8. New York Knicks – Tyreke Evans (Memphis) – If Curry is not on the board, Evans makes sense for the Knicks. He could either be an All-Star or become a very steady bench player in the NBA. He is young and can’t really put my finger on if he is going to be great. Evans had flashes of greatness at Memphis, but most of the season he played against sub-par talent.

9. Toronto Raptors – Jordan Hill (Arizona) – Hill has been climbing up draft boards over the last few weeks. Toronto needs to come to grips that Chris Bosh is heading out of town after this year. They need to rebuild their front-court and Hill would be a great start.

10. Milwaukee Bucks – Demar DeRozan (USC) – The Bucks are a few pieces away from being a playoff team. DeRozan is tall (6’7) and is a physical guard. He struggled at times at USC, but Tim Floyd was his coach, that could have been the reason.

11. New Jersey Nets – Terrance Williams (Louisville) – Williams was great for the Cardinals last year. He led them through the Big East and is a great indicator of how he will do in the NBA. The Nets would love to get Williams at #11, they are hoping that no other team will take him earlier.

12. Charlotte Bobcats – Gerald Henderson (Duke) – Henderson had a great workout and he fits the need for the Bobcats. Charlotte needs fans in the seats, by taking a local Dukie, it may help with attendance.

13. Indiana Pacers – Eric Maynor (VCU) – With Jrue Holiday and Ty Lawson still on the board, it would be ballsy for the Pacers to pick Maynor. Maynor is more of a pure point-guard than Lawson and Holiday at this point. VCU isn’t the best place to play, but Maynor made the most of his opportunities when facing top talent. His performance against Duke, a few seasons ago, helped cement his status of a future Lottery pick.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

2009 Un-All-Star Team

Last year, I did my 2008 Un-All-Star Team post in early May. A lot of my team ended up turning things around and a few of them actually ended up with career numbers. I wanted to do this year’s post a little deeper into the season. They are currently about 70 games in right now and some great players are looking like they need some extended spring training to regain their usually consistent form. About this time of year you can throw out the term “slow-starter” and begin using “bad year.”

Some of these players do have some power numbers, but I’m looking at average mostly. If you are still floating around the Mendoza Line and it’s almost July, you are having troubles. A few of these players have been trying to play through injuries (Alfonso Soriano), but his season isn’t living up to expectations.

Here is my list of the 2009 Un-All-Star Team sorted by position. The number next to the position players is their batting average as of today and the number next to the pitchers are their ERA.

Catchers
Kelly Shoppach .194
Dioner Navarro .218
Geovany Soto .222

First Base
Conor Jackson .182
Carlos Guillen .200
Chris Davis .200
Jason Giambi .212
Lance Berkman .241

Second Base
Alexi Casilla .180
Dan Uggla .216
Howie Kendrick .231
Kelly Johnson .227

Third Base
Garrett Atkins .205
Alex Rodriguez .212

Shortstop
Mike Aviles .183
Khalil Greene .213
Jimmy Rollins .223
Orlando Cabrera .235

Outfield
Ken Griffey Jr. .220
Grady Sizemore .223
Alfonso Soriano .229
B.J. Upton .229
Ryan Ludwick .234
Pat Burrell .236

Starting Pitchers
Chien-Ming Wang 12.30
Oliver Perez 9.97
Scott Kazmir 7.69
Fausto Carmona 7.42
Ricky Nolasco 7.15
Andy Sonnanstine 6.60
John Lackey 6.10
Francisco Lirano 5.91

Bullpen
Brad Lidge 7.27
Troy Percival 6.35
B.J. Ryan 5.71
Manny Corpas 5.40
J.J. Putz 5.22

If anyone has any recommendations for the 2009 Un-All-Star Team let me know.

I’m sorry if you found this post in hopes of trying to find shirtless photos of Grady Sizemore of any other of our players. It’s kind of a running joke on this blog, since it seems like I get a lot of hit from google from people trying to find shirtless photos from players from Grady Sizemore and Ryan Braun to the confusing duo of C.C. Sabathia and Prince Fielder.

Designated Hitter
David Ortiz .207

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

My Girlfriend Has A Blog!

After dating me for a year, my addiction to writing has finally infected someone else. She signed up for her blog a few months ago, but she really got motivated today and she write her first post. I am happy for her and would like for some people to go check it out.

She is in grad school at Ohio State studying pharmacy, she also has done biological studies at the University of Missori and University of Illinois. She’s a smart girl who knows her stuff. There are a lot of novelty items that are sold in pharmacies and she finds them intriguing. She will be writing about homeopathic remedies and high-calorie foods. It will be a good read for people who may think homeopathic medicines like “HeadOn” actually work…as well as a possibly what a 12-egg omelet challenge at a local greasy spoon would do to a person’s body.

Her blog is check it out!

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

A Cubs Fan’s Perspective: Sammy Sosa

I have been a Cubs fan for as long as I’ve been alive. I am 28 years old and some of the earliest memories involved my dad and I watching afternoon games on WGN. I remember Jody Davis, Leon Durham, Rick Sutcliffe, and Lee Smith all fighting the Chicago summer heat. The times were special and moments that I wouldn’t change at all. The teams were bad and most of the crowd didn’t care, and I didn’t care too much either. I was a little kid who idolized the players with dreams of one day playing professional baseball too. Those dreams never came true, but I am still a Cubs fan, although I am a little confused of how happy I am about that today.

I was in middle school when the Cubs traded George Bell to the White Sox for a young outfielder, Sammy Sosa. I liked Bell for the few seasons that he was with the Cubs, but I kind of understood that they needed to get younger. I didn’t know much about Sosa, other than owning a few of his rookie cards. My lone opinion was that he looked extremely happy. Almost immediately, the trade for Sosa started to pay off. He was stealing bases and hitting more homers than I expected. The first season, I thought that he may be a better version of Shawon Dunston, since he didn’t strike out as much, which didn’t say much.

The Cubs didn’t win many games the first few seasons that Sosa was around. I can still hear Harry Caray yell out Sosa’s name after he jacked a 400+ foot home-run. Those moments gave me joy, about as much as an actual Cubs victory. Sosa’s home-run total kept creeping up, but the whispers of the ball being juiced calmed my fears of anything fishy going on. It wasn’t until the summer of ’98 that the homers were getting out of hand. I have to admit, I still didn’t care. Mark McGwire was hitting just as many homers as Sosa and he looked noticeably huge. I didn’t suspect much about steroid use, the only thing that was written was something new to me called “Andro.” I read about it and saw that it wasn’t illegal. I didn’t think anything was wrong, but I wanted Sosa to beat him. I think most people wanted Sosa to beat McGwire, if not for the fact that he was more likeable.

Every time that Sosa took the field in the first inning, he would run out into right field like a perfectly choreographed play. Everything Sosa did was more of a show for the fans. After 9/11, he hit a homer and ran around the bases with a little American flag.

Sosa’s numbers stayed the same as McGwire began to breakdown. Sosa’s average took a hit, since he looked like he was wanting to knock it out of the park with every swing. Finally, his behavior the last year with the Cubs was too much for the club to handle. They dealt him to Baltimore for a few young players. Sosa’s career was never the same, mainly because the cloud of suspicion was too great. To this day he denies all claims of using PEDs, but the revelation of a failed test in 2003 makes it all clear. Sosa apparently cheated, it doesn’t surprise many, but I’m just confused.

I believe that a large number of players used some sort of performance-enhancing drug during the same period of Sosa’s career. I believe he wanted an edge and once he had a taste of success, he couldn’t leave it alone. If he didn’t do it for himself, he did it for the fans. As I said before, my first opinion of Sosa was his smile. He didn’t lose his smile until the end of his career. He didn’t have his smile when he was testifying in front of Congress. If Sosa’s number isn’t retired and he doesn’t make the Hall of Fame, Sosa may never smile again. A decision to forgive and forget has to be made at some point. Some purists still have a big problem with “Shoeless” Joe Jackson and the Black Sox. I say that we still need to decide on what kind of punishment would suit the crime.

My opinion is for the Baseball Writers of America to have a conference. Everyone should take sides and maybe come to a conclusion. I would like to see all the alleged steroid users, that have Hall of Fame numbers, be inducted in the same class. You would be able to put that on Pay-Per-View and it would have a high buyrate. I don’t think it’s right that they used PEDs, but enough is enough. I want to move past this. It may take the player’s union to allow blood testing, it would be a step in the right direction.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

What If: NBA Team In Columbus, OH

The rumors of many NBA teams having financial problems have been floating around for the last few months. The NBA borrowed tons of money to try and keep the league afloat during the economic depression that we are facing. I personally think that they could rid themselves of the WNBA and get companies to sponsor NBA jerseys and the league would be as stable as the NFL. Many of the teams that could be moving look towards cities with a new NHL stadium as an easy fix. Columbus, Ohio has a great NHL stadium and was even in the conversation when the Sonics were moved to Oklahoma City (sorry Bill Simmons). What would happen if a team would move to Columbus, Ohio?

First I wonder what they would name the team. I think when the city of Columbus was given an NHL team, they had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to get “Blue Jackets.” I can’t think of a logical team name right away. I would think that the term “Buckeyes” would work, but The Ohio State would like that very much. Here are a few names that I would like, but probably never get past the first brainstorming meeting.

– Columbus Hop (named after the Gallery Hop)
– Columbus Not Buckeyes
– Columbus Construction (see High Street)
– Columbus Twitter (first ever NBA team named after a company)
– Columbus Capitols

There are really no great names for a team here, but I do think that they should have a company buy the team’s name. Unfortunately for Columbus, Nationwide Insurance, Ohio Health, and Huntington Bank are three major players in town and none of them sound like a good team name.

I can’t see an NBA team flourishing here in Columbus. It has taken the city 10 years to really get behind the Blue Jackets. It took one season of making the playoffs for it to happen, but this city loves a winner. They kind of turn their backs on teams that don’t win, the people here are used to Ohio State winning football games.

Columbus is too close to Cleveland and with Lebron still there, I don’t see the Cleveland fanbase in Columbus jumping ship. Columbus would have to get a phenom in the first 2 or 3 drafts in order to stay here.

I do agree that Columbus is a great short-term fix for an NBA team that is struggling (New Orleans, Memphis, Milwaukee), but Kansas City would be more of a longer-term city to maintain an NBA franchise. I went to KC last month and walked by the new Sprint Center. It looks like a mix between a UFO and a diamond. I would like to throw out a name for a Kansas City….The KC Masterpieces. You like?

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

ESPN’s "Outside The Lines" Ibanez Video

I had a post earlier today about Jerod Morris at Midwest Sports Fans. I thought that I would embed the video of his appearance. If you actually read his article and then watch the video, you can question Ken Rosenthal and the reporter from the Philadelphia Inquirer if they have even read his article.

At points in the interview, Rosenthal rolls his eyes. I believe he may have just read the Inquirer’s article and not the source, which would have been at Midwest Sports Fans site.

Check it out and gather your own opinion.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

Why Your Team Didn’t Win The Super Bowl – NFC

Everyone has a team that they are loyal towards and most fans had their dreams crushed at some point this season. Some teams had a tough defeat in the playoffs and some teams never really had any shot at the Super Bowl. It was a long season with many ups and downs and some team’s seasons could have been salvaged by one single play that didn’t go their way or a string of bad GM decisions. Here are the reasons why your NFC team didn’t win the Super Bowl.

Arizona Cardinals – They thought the Super Bowl was only 58 minutes long. I can’t imagine how it feel to be Kurt Warner. He has been on the sideline while two, almost all three, of his Super Bowls were lost.

Atlanta Falcons – They were just happy to make the playoffs, but when they got there, they didn’t give Arizona any credit. The Falcons should be good for years, they won’t make this mistake again.

Carolina Panthers – They thought that Jake Delhomme was good enough to still be their quarterback. Like the Falcons mistake, they probably won’t make this mistake again.

Chicago Bears – They depend on a quarterback who thinks a neckbeard is fashionable. I know Rex Grossman isn’t any better, but they had a chance to trade for Donavon McNabb at some point last off-season and didn’t do it.

Dallas Cowboys – Tony Romo met Jessica Simpson. I know this didn’t happen this season, but seems like all the tabloid coverage has really hurt his on-field ability to win games.

Detroit Lions – Barry Sanders retired. It has been that long since the words Lions and playoffs have been in the sentence or paragraph.

Green Bay Packers – They let the Brett Favre saga drag on for too long. All the drama that surrounded the Packers was counter-productive to their growth as a team.

Minnesota Vikings – They have no other offense weapons other than Adrian Peterson. I know Visanthe Shiancoe has a weapon, but we can’t talk about that on this blog.

New Orleans Saints – They drafted Reggie Bush. That draft choice should have went towards a defensive player, in hindsight, but aren’t we all a genius when hindsight is in involved?

New York Giants – Plaxico Burress bought a gun. If Plax didn’t shoot himself, I’m sure that they would have beat the Eagles in the playoffs. Hixon couldn’t handle the burden of being the #1 receiver.

Philadelphia Eagles – Donovan McNabb’s conditioning. It is a trend that McNabb becomes gassed as the game goes on. He can’t finish games and needs to lose the extra 20 pounds of Chunky Soup weight he has put on over the last few seasons.

San Francisco 49ers – Mike Nolan was their coach at the beginning of the year. Mike Singletary proved his worth as a coach and will be the best sound bite in the NFL over the next few years.

Seattle Seahawks – Their entire offense was in the hospital by Week 3. Not only was their entire receiving squad on injury report, but Matt Hasselbeck barely played.

St. Louis Rams – Orlando Pace retired. Pace was a major reason for all the success the Rams had during their prime. He kept the quarterback upright and once he was gone, Bulger was eating more grass than a cow.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers – The team was distracted by Jeff Garcia’s hot wife. I can’t think of any real reason why they didn’t even make the playoffs, but they collapsed the last few weeks of the season. Jon Gruden wished he knew the reason too, he may still have his job.

Washington Redskins – They hired Jim Zorn. The first game of the year, they were killed by the Giants, then they went on a run, but then they hit a wall. Zorn is probably the least qualified to be a head coach and his play-calling was mind-boggling at times.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

Why Your Team Didn’t Win The Super Bowl – AFC

Baltimore Ravens – Their offsense was too erratic and relied solely on their running game to score points. Joe Flacco will end up being a good NFL quarterback, but they just asked too much of him in his rookie season.

Buffalo Bills – They drafted Trent Edwards. Edwards spent most of his college career injured and can’t seem to stay healthy.

Cincinnati Bengals – Carson Palmer’s injury made the Bengals regress in 2008. I’m not sure if they would have been a playoff team if Palmer stayed healthy, but his injury made them look like amateurs.

Cleveland Browns – Romeo Crennel was their head coach. I know that most of the Browns recent draft picks haven’t lived up to the hype, but a coaching change will do them well.

Denver Broncos – A Pop Warner team could pass on their secondary. A team with Dre Bly and Champ Bailey shouldn’t be this bad.

Houston Texans – They are in the same division as the Colts and Titans. If doesn’t help their record or confidence when you face two of the best teams twice a year.

Indianapolis Colts -They can’t beat the Chargers in the post-season. They had a long winning streak going into the playoffs, but San Diego has their number.

Jacksonville Jaguars – They let Marcus Stroud leave. The Jaguars defense wasn’t the same without Stroud clogging the running lanes.

Kansas City Chiefs – I’m not sure if they have rebounded from being on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” two years ago. An injury to Larry Johnson didn’t help, but their season was derailed long before training camp.

Miami Dolphins – Having Chad Pennington as their quarterback finally caught up to them. Pennington may have had a much better season than expected, but he can only get you so far in this league and the first round of the playoffs seems to be the limit.

New England Patriots – This one is easy, Tom Brady’s knee. Brady is the one player on the Patriots that they couldn’t overcome losing. Matt Casell did a spectacular job, but he wasn’t Tom Brady.

New York Jets – They traded for Brett Favre. I don’t think the Jets would have won the Super Bowl with or with Favre, but he didn’t help the cause.

Oakland Raiders – Rich Gannon retired. I could have chosen many reasons for this, but seems like all their problems started a few years ago when their team got really old within a few months of going to the Super Bowl.

San Diego Chargers – They didn’t retain Lorenzo Neal. LaDainian Tomlinson needs a fullback to lead the way for him. Jacob Hester didn’t cut it and Tomlinson had one of his worst years.

Tennessee Titans – They stomped on the towel. I do believe in karma and Big Fat Lendale White didn’t earn the Titans any extra points by stomping on a Terrible Towel.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

Why Manti Te’o Signed With Notre Dame

Manti Te’o, who is considered to be the best defensive recruiting prospect, decided that he will attened the University of Notre Dame. This is a huge shock to many experts who had him going to either USC or UCLA. There are many reasons why Te’o should have signed with either of those Pac-10 schools, but I will explain one main reason why Manti Te’o signed on to wear a golden helmet during his college career.

There are so many reasons why a top defensive recruit wouldn’t choose Notre Dame, especially a guy like Manti Te’o. For starters, he is a devoted Mormon and Notre Dame is one of the large Catholic universities in the U.S. He is so devoted that he wants to go mission work when he turns 19, which could delay his arrival to Notre Dame. Also, Notre Dame hasn’t had a decent defense since Chris Zorich and Bobby Taylor were in college. And lastly, Notre Dame seemed to be inches away from firing Charlie Weis and he could be playing for a different coach by the time he is finished with his college career. Those are all huge reasons why Te’o shouldn’t have signed with the Irish, but yet he did.

Going into last season, the Irish expected to make some sort of bowl game by the end of the year. I’m not sure if they were thinking that they would end up playing Hawaii in the Hawaii Bowl, but it could have been a blessing. Manti Te’o is from Hawaii and I’m 100% sure that he watched the Hawaii Bowl very closely. The Irish looked very polished and made easy work of the Rainbow Warriors, it could be considered that it was their best overall team goal. If the Irish didn’t up in the Hawaii Bowl or any bowl game period, they wouldn’t have had a shot at Te’o.

USC should have snatched Te’o up very easily. They have a long lineage of Pacific-Rim descendants have very good careers as a Trojan. Troy Polamalu, Junior Seau, and most recently, Rey Maualuga, to name a few, played in huge games and made the USC program what it is today. One negative about playing at USC is that they are extremely stacked at every position. Te’o probably wouldn’t have had any trouble breaking into the starting line-up, but at Notre Dame he could start as a freshman.

Congratulations to Notre Dame for landing a top defensive recruit. This speaks a lot about the recruiting skills of Charlie Weis and proves that the Golden Dome can still attract top-flight athletes. If Te’o ends up on campus next season, it could catapult the Irish into a top-25 ranking at some point next season. They were a very young team last year and most of their starters will be back next year. Expect big things in South Bend in 2009, even if they do have two Golic boys.

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A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

Fox Sports Radio Is Evil!

I usually don’t write posts where I completely bash people, but I have to stand up for a guy who kept me company on many late nights. I don’t mean in any homo-erotic way at all. I have the weirdest sleeping schedule of anyone I know. I spend many late nights awake trying to sleep with little or no success. I found an FM talk radio station here in Columbus, OH, 103.9FM. About 6 months ago, I started listening to programming there on a very regular basis. I found that they had the Dan Patrick Show and also Fox Sports Radio programming. I mostly listened to late nights with JT The Brick on air from post-primetime to 2am and Ben Maller and the Third Shift crew from 2am-6am. I ended up listening to Ben Maller’s Third Shift program the most and I really enjoyed it.

I read today that Ben Maller and the rest of the Third Shift crew (Karen Kay, Vlad, and Bergie) were all fired on January 20th of this year. Maller is still employed by Fox, he is in charge of the rumors section at Foxsports.com/rumors. I was stunned, he was very brazen, but loyal to his return callers. I know the economy is bad and advertising is hard to come by, but Maller and the rest of the Third Shift crew made my sleepless nights tolerable.

I have called the show 3-4 times, using the nicknames of “Pacer Bob” and “Bobby The Temp.” He put me on the air every time I called, ’cause I have a “hot sports opinion.” I would tease him about Manny Ramirez and say that the Dodgers owner would build new youth parks instead of signing him.

Some of Maller’s antics included letting the audience vote on an NFL team that he root for in the upcoming season, letting the listener’s call in unscreened at times to give advice to a sports figure who was in trouble, and even sabotaging Bergie’s wikipedia page with false information once he realized that Bergie had a page. He would call listeners a “jackass” on a constant basis, but it was because many of the callers would be drunk or buzzed when they called in. It was truly a must-listen if you are up from 2am-6am EST.

I wish Ben Maller, Karen Kay, Vlad, and the loverboy, Bergie all the luck in the world and would like to thank them for many hours of entertainment. I hope to hear them “in the air, everywhere,” very soon.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

2009 Off-Season – AFC Team Needs

2008 was a great season for the NFL. The entire season was filled with drama and stayed competitive until the final week of the season. Some teams came from obscurity (Dolphins) and and some teams took a step back (Patriots). Here are the needs of all 16 AFC teams for the 2009 Off-Season. Let’s hope it’s very active and teams get what they need in the draft and free agency.

Pittsburgh Steelers – Offensive Line – “The Steel Curtain” was back on the defensive side of the ball, but the offensive line looked like tin foil. Big Ben needs to stay upright to stay healthy and lead this team.

Cleveland Browns – Defensive End – The Browns couldn’t get any pressure on the quarterback this season. They were decent on short yardage situations, but they gave up too many 3rd and long first downs.

Cincinnati Bengals – Cornerback – Teams lit up the Bengals secondary in 2008. Injuries plagued the team, but Ndukwe can’t be your best defender. They need to upgrade with more than one new face covering wideouts.

Baltimore Ravens – Wide Receiver – Baltimore took a step in the right direction last season by drafting Joe Flacco. He has a huge arm and can spread the field with long passes. They don’t have any deep threats on the team currently and it would even help their running game by signing an #1 receiver.

Indianapolis Colts – Defensive Tackle – This has been a need for the Colts for a few years. They have been taking their early draft picks on offense and taking fliers in the late rounds with DTs that don’t work out. They need to lighten the run-stopping load from Bob Sanders and get a large body to plug up running lanes.

Tennessee Titans – Wide Receiver – Whomever the quaterback is in Nashville next season, they need someone better than Justin Gage catching footballs. Bo Scaife is their best receiver and he’s a top-15 TE, at best.

Houston Texans – Defensive End – Mario Williams is a great pass rusher and they are very fortunate to take him over Reggie Bush and Vince Young. He is often double-teamed and they would could be a playoff team if they had a book-end pass rusher on the other side to help him out.

Jacksonville Jaguars – Defensive Tackle – In 2007, the Jaguars had one of the best defenses in the NFL. Marcus Stroud, left via free agency, and they Jaguars couldn’t stop the run. If Jacksonville is going to compete, they need a good defense. Their offense isn’t built to consistently score 30 points a game.

Miami Dolphins – Wide Receiver – Chad Pennington had a good season for the Dolphins. He deserves all the credit for their success. If you step back and realize Greg Camarillo was his #1 receiver for most of the year, it’s even more amazing.

Buffalo Bills – Quarterback – I’m not sold on Trent Edwards. I think he will be a decent quarterback eventually, but he needs more grooming. Dick Jauron has one more season in Buffalo and he needs to win or he’s out of there.

New England Patriots – Linebacker – Jerod Mayo will be a great linebacker for many years. Unfortunately for the Patriots, the rest of the linebacking corps has an average age of 38. If they sign a few linebackers and stay healthy, the Patriots will be back on top of the AFC East, if not the entire conference.

New York Jets – Quarterback – Brett Favre has a 10% chance he’ll be back and the Jets have to ask themselves if they even want him. Kellen Clemens is their next best option, but Matt Cassel could be a free agent and he could be a nice addition to open the new stadium.

Oakland Raiders – Offensive Line – After drafting many offensive linemen and none of them working out, Oakland has to get better fast. They spent a lot of money on JaMarcus Russell and he can’t live up to his potential if he is running for his life.

Kansas City Chiefs – Linebacker – I would have mentioned quarterback for Kansas City, but Tyler Thigpen started looking like Len Dawson the last half of the season. The Chiefs have to get better at linebacker to help their young defensive line out.

San Diego Chargers – Fullback – After letter Lorenzo Neal leave last off-season, the Chargers realized his worth during the 2008 season. L.T. didn’t look himself and needs a fullback to clear a path. If they sign a fullback, L.T. should go back to his normal numbers and scoring nearly 20 touchdowns a season.

Denver Broncos – Cornerback – Dre Bly and Champ Bailey looked good on paper, but when they are together on the field, it’s quite scary. The Bly/Bailey duo looked old when they faced better-than-average wideouts. If they get younger and faster at this position, it should help them out, but they clearly need much more help in a variety of areas.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.

2009 Off-Season – NFC Team Needs

In 2008, we didn’t have the one dominant team like we had last season. We did have a lot of good teams (Giants, Panthers, Eagles), but they still all had more than three losses each. Every team in the NFC has needs and this off-season will be full of free agent signings, trades, and drafting young talent. Here are all 16 NFC teams and their main need going into next season. I could write and entire post about the Lions needs, but I’ll spare everyone’s eyes and just list one.

Detroit Lions – Defensive End – I could go quarterback or every other position here, but they need to get to put pressure on the quarterback.

Chicago Bears – Wide Receiver – Devin Hester and Brandon Lloyd aren’t #1 or #2 WRs in the NFL.

Green Bay Packers – Cornerback – Their secondary is getting older and they need some youth to keep up with the speed of the WRs.

Minnesota Vikings – Cornerback – Their defensive line is one of the best in the NFL, unfortunately teams can pass all over them.

New York Giants – Wide Receiver – Plaxico Burress will not be back in 2009 and this team will not go far with Domenik Hixon as your #1 option.

Philadelphia Eagles – Wide Receiver – If Donovan McNabb comes back in 2009, remember how he played with T.O.? The Eagles need a legit #1 receiver to catch passes, not Reggie Brown or Kevin Curtis.

Dallas Cowboys – Offensive Line – Tony Romo was on his back after every snap the last four games of the season. If you protect Romo and give him time, he can help get this team to the playoffs.

Washington Redskins – Offensive Line – With Jim Zorn as the head coach, the Redskins will be a run-first offense. Clinton Portis will have a monster season if you give him some holes.

Carolina Panthers – Tight End – Jake Delhomme is stacked with every offensive tool but Tight End. If they work on a short passing game, the long ball will be there for Steve Smith.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Linebacker – Derrick Brooks is getting older and I’m not completely sold on Cato June. If they want to keep the Tampa 2 intact once Monte Kiffin leaves, they need to get better at Linebacker.

Atlanta Falcons – Cornerback – The Falcons have a nice defensive line and linebacker personnel, but lack an elite corner. They have to fill the void that DeAngelo Hall left, back when he was good.

New Orleans Saints – Safety – The Saints were passed on in every game this season. They need a good safety to help cover when their corners get beat.

Arizona Cardinals – Running Back – If Arizona had a decent running back, they wouldn’t have staggered into the playoffs. Tim Hightower and his sub-3.0 yards per attempt isn’t going to cut it in the desert.

San Francisco 49ers – Defensive End – With Mike Singletary as their coach, the 49ers need to take on the personality of the ’85 Bears. They don’t have anyone to put pressure on the quarterback. I hear Julius Peppers is a free agent, he would look good next to Patrick Willis.

Seattle Seahawks – Running Back – Matt Hasselbeck may only have a few more seasons left in him and he’ll do in this re-building period. A running back tandem of Maurice Morris and Julius Jones deserves an upgrade.

St. Louis Rams – Left Tackle – The Rams have to replace the spot Orlando Pace stood for many years. If there isn’t any left tackles in free agency, Alabama has a couple nice tackles that could be available with the St. Louis pick.

A Sports & Entertainment blog that focuses on absurdity in sports, snarky banter, updates on Tim Tebow’s virginity, and decent sports gambling advice.