Weekend Observations

Cleavie Wonder's ego took a beating over the weekend in the world of fantasy football. This was by far my worst weekend of the season. In my trash talking league I lost by 57 points. and I am in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. My receiving corp is worse than the Carolina Panthers and me and Carson Palmer are no longer on speaking terms after his ridiculous performance. In my 2nd league I lost by 3 points despite a breakout 30 point day from Dwayne Bowe. Pro bowlers Reggie Wayne and Randy Moss combined for a total of 5 points. They're not on suspension, but I am monitoring their progress very closely. In my non-trash talking that I converted into a trash talking league I got beat by the last place team by 47 points. My hall of fame quarterback (Peyton Manning) and the best running back in football (Adrian Peterson) both scored less points than my kicker Olindo Mare. If the Bentley's aren't rolling my team is very mortal. After the shellacking I took this weekend it's time to channel my inner Gary Payton and my inner Michael Irvin. The trash talking won't stop. If I stop now they win by shutting me up. They will not turn off my voice! I will make the necessary adjustments and victory will be mine. If I didn't believe that then I shouldn't have opened my mouth in the first place. My motto is talk the talk and walk the walk till you can't walk it anymore. I'm still standing for now. Here are some observations from the weekend.

College Football:

There is a formula for beating Oregon. Play them when they're on the road, play then when their offense is a little flat, run it down their throats, and make clutch field goals. Cal came within 2 points of pulling it off. I doubt the stars will align like that again this season however.

All the allegations swirling around Cam Newton and improper benefits he may have taken doesn't make it any easier for defensive backs to tackle him in the secondary (more on him tomorrow). Oregon and Auburn will meet in the national championship game. Let's hope Cam is still eligible by then.

The NFL:

Jason Garrett has been holding back the offense in Dallas so that Wade Phillips would get fired and he could inherit the Cowboy's coaching job. There's no other explanation for the dramatic turnaround witnessed on Sunday. I had to check ESPN 4 times to make sure I was reading the score and the stats correctly. 3 touchdowns and 300 yards for Jon Kitna still sounds like a misprint.

It's time to factor in the intangibles when picking a winner. Watch out for warm weather teams going to cold weather climates. Watch out for turf teams playing on grass. Watch out for rookie quarterbacks. Watch out for road teams.

If Troy Smith began the season as the 49ers starting quarterback they would have made the playoffs.

Boxing:

Manny Pacquiao no longer needs Floyd Mayweather Jr. to solidify his place in history as one of the greatest fighters ever. After beating the snot piss out of Antonio Margarito breaking his orbital bone and swelling up his face like Christmas ham public opinion has swayed towards Manny. When the super fight happens Pacquiao will be the favorite. Floyd will still win though.