Fantasy Basketball Forumla

Many people have attempted a fanatasy basketball forumla, but most have failed. A successfull formula can lead you to fantasy victory. I have seen it first hand, a guy who knew nothing about basketball used a formula sheet with rankings, drafted, traded and picked up free agents accordingly, and won the league in a blowout. As it is every fantasy players dream to have an accurate ranking sheet, I am attempting one of my own.

So I sat down thinking, how can I develope a ranking system based on each statistic. I would have to weight each category, develope a point system for each category, then accumulate those points for an overall ranking system.

When you think of a good fantasy team, you think, Balance. You must account for the forgotten stats, turnovers, steals, fg%, ft%, and even 3pts. Each of the categories is worth one point, so blowing someone out in points is essentially the same as blowing him out in turnovers.

I wanted to make my player rating out of 100, for obvious reasons. Since there are 9 categories, each category must account for 100/9 points, or 11 1/9 or 11.111... So a perfect player would get a rating of 100.

Now, how to assign 0 to 11.11 points for each category? Well, what would make someone deserve a 11.11, if they are the best in the league. So, I take leader of that statistic, and use his number as a standard of measuring. At this moment in time, Redd leads the league in scoring with 356 points. Thus he would get the full 11.11 points.

But how to measure this, and how to assign lower points? So I use 11.11 as a multiplier, and I divide the Players pts by the maximum pts, and multiply that number by 11.11. So for Redd, 356/356 * 100/9 would give 11.11, the maximum points availible at that category. Now alittle lower on the list, Paul Pierce has 307 points. So 307(his pits)/356(pts leader) * 100/7, and this equals the points Pierce would get from the points category.

I did that for every category, except turnovers, in which the least number is the best. What I did to save myself the work is, I used the same formula with maximum turnovers being the standard, and I subtracted that number from the players overall rating.

I made a spreadsheet to calculate all of this, and use http://www.dougstats.com/ for the latest NBA statistics.

Here are the rankings that my ranking sheet generated as of today. And just for comparison, I listed Yahoo's Current Ranks:

My Formula Yahoo Rank

1. james,lebron		1. james,lebron
2. arenas,gilbert		2. arenas,gilbert
3. lewis,rashard		3. lewis,rashard
4. allen,ray		4. allen,ray
5. marion,shawn		5. marion,shawn
6. okafor,emeka		6. okafur,emeka
7. garnett,kevin		7. billups,chauncey
8. billups,chauncey		8. garnett,kevin
9. davis,baron		9. davis,baron
10.nowitzki,dirk		10.redd,michael
11.redd,michael		11.nowitzki,dirk
12.artest,ron		12.pierce,paul
13.pierce,paul		13.artest,ron
14.barbosa,leandro		14.barbosa,leandro
15.kidd,jason		15.wallace,rasheed
16.carter,vince		16.kidd,jason
17.martin,kevin		17.carter,vince
18.mcgrady,tracy		18.williams,deron
19.boozer,carlos		19.mcgrady,tracy
20.stojakovic,peja		20.martin,kevin
21.ginobili,manu		21.miller,mike
22.jamison,antawn		22.boozer,calos
23.terry,jason		23.ginobli,manu
24.o'neal,jermaine		24.stojakovic,peja
25.ridnour,luke		25.wade,dwayne

My overall rating generated is accurate to the hundred-millionths decimal place. Now I know that is not perfect, its FAR from it. I need ways to improve the formula, and I would love your suggestions.

The flaws I see are, it doesn't take into account the margin of the lead. If Okafur dominates blocks, and leads by a large margin, then how would I take that into account? I'm not even sure what standard deviation does, haha. I might be able to use Calculus. Too bad I never too Statistics in school.

Matt Bryant Kick Video

This was an amazing kick, 62 yards as time expired. It was win or lose, as they were down by 1. And he nailed it. Amazing.

Edited on 10/26/06

So the NFL saw the video that I posted and they made YouTube take it down for copyright infringment. I was very pissed off, the video was extremely popular. It got over 10,000 views in 2 days, and almost 30 comments, favorited many times, and 8 honors.

Because of that, I made a new video. But this time, its Madden style...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svYnQmKVbKU

Fantasy Baseball Recap

Back in April I posted my baseball team. My draft was very bad, I got ARod in round one, who failed to live up to expectations. Randy Johnson in round two, we all know how that went. Well I said with proper managing I could win it all. Well I managed in the beginning and at the end. Like most people, I completely forgot about my team in July and August. In late June I figured I'd make the playoffs, so why waste my time with this team until then. I ended up 2nd place in the regular season with a total of 56 moves, and ended the playoffs in 3rd place.

In the 2nd round of the playoffs, I ended up tied with my opponent and he got the victory because he had a lower ERA. This is complete bullshit. Its basically saying that ERA is the most important stat and more important than others. Techincally speaking, the point value of ERA becomes 1.1, the 0.1 addition coming from the fact that era is a tiebreaker. If thats how it is in the playoffs, why not give it that point value in the regular season? Because its not the most important. Infact its one of the worst stats to judge by. Pitchers can have bad games very easily. If a reliever gives up 2 runs and loses the game, his Era will be through the roof. Does that 1 game accurately measure the quality of the player? Hell no. Era is one of the most inconsistant stats because of that. The tiebreaker should be regular season record. That way the most deserving team goes on.

Next, heres my 3rd place team:
C: I. Rodriguez
1B: A. Dunn
2B: T. Iguchi
3B: A. Rodriguez
SS: J. Lugo
OF: M. Holliday
OF: Del. Young
OF: B. Bonds
Util: H. Matsui

SP: R. Hill
SP: C. James
RP: Jo. Nelson
RP: S. Torress
P: J. Suppan
P: M. Timlin
P: Jo Johnson
BN: C. Hamels
BN: B. Myers
BN: Ra. Johnson
BN: Roy Halladay

That might look like crap, but it got me the win. After 1 week I realized I had Strikeouts locked up and needed Saves, so I picked up some hot closers. The guys I had to end the season whom I dropped later were: Billingsley, Beak, Hillenbrand, Liriano, Juan Rivera, Todd Jones, Brad Penny, Carmona, Griffey, and Mathews Jr.

Well my lesson has been learned. Get at most two baseball teams, because no matter how excited you are in the beginning, it will wear down on you by July and you will get bored of baseball fast.

Screw Oklahoma

Oklahoma has the right to complain about the officials the call is one of the worst calls ever, but they're taking it too far. Its near the end of the week and they're still complaining. Its the coach's job to get his team to forget the previous game and focus on the game ahead, and it seems as if he's failing to do that.

Oklahoma had plenty of chances to win the game. Their defense had 2 chances to stop the Oregon. But they just stopped playing with 3 minutes to go. After the kickoff, they gave up a 3 play touchdown drive. Still they had a chance to win it at the end with a field goal, which they had blocked. From the way they played at the end they didn't deserve to win.

Now they're talking about not playing Washington next year. If stoops has the power to boycott Pac-10 games, then college football is on a slipery slope. Whats next, coaches picking whoever they want to play, No interconfrence play...

I say force him to play, if he doesn't, they forfeit the game, and it would count as a loss. He gets to show his disliking of the Pac-10 as well as get his point across, but has to take the hit for it. OU signed the contract to play those games, they have to live up to it.

Nothing is going to change, no records are going to be cleaned, the game counts as a loss for them. If anything they should use the loss as motivation and whup Washington next year as a revenge game. Because of Oklahomas constant complaining and threats to not play Pac-10 teams, I'm officially putting Oklahoma on my wall of shame.

Are You Ready For Some Football?

I would watch every game if I could and still be left wanting more. But I don't have the NFL network, all I have is cable and internet. If you're like me, heres some sites that you'll love:

http://www.gribblenation.net/nflmaps/ - This site shows which games are televised in which areas.
http://www.thegamelive.com/ - This site has links to online radio stations that broadcast the games. I'm a Dolphin fan in California, and that is the only way I can be updated on the game live. The gametrackers on Yahoo and NFL.com just aren't that exciting.

Here are my predictions for the season. I realized that they are probably impossible, and I did not look at their schedules. I went by pure instinct. 11-13 wins is elite, 10 wins is playoff caliber but no more, 9 wins is not quite good enough for the playoffs, 8-7 wins is still have work to do, some big pieces of missing, or the team is disrupted by injuries. Under 6 means the team flat out isn't going anywhere.
East
Miami 10-6
New England 10-6
Buffalo 7-9
NY Jets 4-12

North
Cincinnati 11-5
Baltimore 10-6
Pittsburgh 10-6
Cleveland 8-8

South
Indianapolis 12-4
Jacksonville 10-6
Houston 5-11
Tennessee 2-14

West
Denver 11-5
Kansas City 9-7
San Diego 9-7
Oakland 5-11


East
Philadelphia 10-6
NY Giants 10-6
Dallas 10-6
Washington 8-8

North
Chicago 12-4
Detroit 8-8
Green Bay 7-9
Minnesota 7-9

South
Carolina 11-5
Atlanta 10-6
New Orleans 9-7
Tampa Bay 9-7

West
Seattle 13-3
Arizona 9-7
St. Louis 8-8
San Francisco 5-11

Championship Games
AFC
Indianapolis vs Cincinnati
NFC
Carolina over Seattle

Superbowl
Carolina over Indianapolis

Stephen A. Smith a Bit Rusty

I've always liked listening to Stephen A. Smith especially on his show Quite Frankly. I may not always agree with him, but I respect the fact that he speaks his mind no matter how sensitive the issue is, he asks the questions that everyone wants answered in interviews, and most of all, he's never on the fense on any issue. He always puts up good arguements, but in todays show you could see he was very rusty from his long vacation.

First he started the show talking about golf. To summarize it, he basically said he knew almost nothing about golf and he stinks at playing golf. Then based on that, he said Tiger Woods is the greatest golfer ever. Very nice Stephen A., very nice.

Later in his show he talked about fantasy football. This is where he really killed it. As I was reading the list of players in his league, I noticed a bunch of random people like John Rocker, along with Mariotti and Michael Smith who were the only guys that knew what they were doing. It seemed like a below average league. Then I saw another name that made me lose any tiny confidence I had in the league. In my eyes the league went from mediocre to complete garbage when I read the name...Sean Salisberry.

To compliment the list of people who knew nothing about football was Stephen A himself. He had a team of advisors tell him who to pick. In the first round, he said he was thinking about Quarterback. The advisors were quick to tell him otherwise. When they were talking about tight ends, he brought up Shockey. He even picked Domanick Davis in round 8. Any normal football fan would know about that injury in a day, two days at most. Why he didnt know, and why his advisors didn't tell him anything is a mystery to me.

Some more evidence of the league being a joke, Rocker picked Chad Johnson with the 3rd pick. The 2nd pick chose Manning. Edge dropped to round 2 while Harrison dropped to late round 3. I wish I was in that league.

Stephen A. should stick to what made the show so good, talking about controversial issues in sports, and not trying to analyze the sports he knows nothing about.

Madden 07 Review (PC)

Two Strong Gamemodes Make the Game As Good As Ever

It is time once again for Madden to take its spot in the sports gaming limelight. As always there are new features that add new dimensions to the game, some that the fans will love, and some that fans won't. Every year, the PC version is one of the worst versions of Madden. This year is no exception, the PC version is missing a few features, which will cause more and more fans to turn away. But overall Madden 07 is an upgrade from Madden 06, and in fact has better gameplay than the 360 version.

Audio: 6/10

The sound track is compiled of Rock and Pop songs along with some classic NFL Films music. The NFL films music was featured last year as well, and it is great that EA brought it back. But the Rock and Pop songs simply are bad. You'll find yourself trying to get the game started, or even listening to the Tony Bruno Radio show more often, instead of listening to the music. The sound quality is fine, however in superstar mode, the commentary seems to lag about five seconds behind on some occasions. The in-game announcer in the superstar mode is a pain to listen to, regardless of the significance of the play, the announcer’s voice is flat. But the on-field sounds that you will hear are great. They really make you feel like you are in game.

Video: 7.5/10

Although many gaming computers can handle next-gen graphics, Madden PC gamers are stuck with current generation graphics once again. The graphics are about the same as Madden 06. Graphics should not be a reason to buy this game, nor should it be a reason to reject this game. They are good enough. As for player visuals, the rookies in the game do not look anything like themselves in real life. All of the rookies have the same hair style and color, and the faces are not at all accurate. This is not a huge problem, as the faces are never even seen in the helmet, but it would be nice to see A.J. Hawks' hair coming out under his helmet, or Vernon Davis' dreadlocks just to add to the realism.


Gameplay: 9.5/10

One of the big new features in the gameplay is Lead Blocking in which you can control a blocker and lead the runner. Whether you try to turn the corner or run between the tackles, this feature can help you run for huge gains. This is a very fun new feature, but gets old fairly quickly. You'll find yourself forgetting that it ever existed. There are not many flaws with the blocking system, you either like it or you don't. Another big addition is the highlight stick, which gives smaller elusive runningbacks moves to get by defenders, while big power runningbacks can continue to run people over. This feature really advances the running game. It gives users a strong running option if needed, unlike the past Madden games where passing was the easiest and most efficient option. A strong running game makes gameplay more complete. The highlight stick is a much bigger feature than Lead Blocking. However EA left the new kicking meter out of the PC games, PC gamers get the traditional kicking meter. Just like Madden 06, PC gamers still cannot make their own plays.

The franchise mode is the same as the past maddens. The training camp is the same, regardless of what you may have heard, however scouting is different. For scouting players you must put them through certain combine mini-camps, some of which are new, to get information. This basically makes the scouting more personal. It's nothing special, but it's certainly an upgrade. In addition to this new scouting, you can play the college all-star game and really get a feel for the prospects. This is a great feature, 40-times, bench reps, and Mel Kiper can only tell you tell you so much, but there is nothing like actually playing with the players. You can really get personal with the prospects. The franchise mode is still strong.

Superstar mode has been significantly upgraded from last year. Anyone who has ever had a dream of playing in the NFL will love this mode. Like in franchise mode when you put the prospects through training camp tests, in superstar mode, you are put through those tests and eventually drafted. The in-game play of superstar mode has been greatly improved. You only have control of your player only, but you control the whole team on the other side of the ball. The camera angle changes, and is in the player's point of view. The whole point of a football game is to give you the player experience, and nothing does it better than this. Superstar mode is as good as franchise mode this year, if not better.

The actual football gameplay has been improved also. Many players move and seem just like their real life counterparts. The animations of juking are great. Playing with Reggie Bush is almost as exciting as watching him in real life. This is where alot of criticism comes in. Some say that the highlight stick is too powerful, that users can easily get by three or four defenders which makes the game unrealistic. However it is not powerful enough to be considered a cheap move. It was just like the truck stick last year when weaker guys could run over big linebackers. It was like Madden 05 when small defensive backs could take out power runningbacks. The same flaws come with the highlightstick. Maybee they'll perfect it next year. There are some noticable glitches here and there, but nothing that will significantly take away from the game.

Overall: 8/10
The only reason for buying this game on PC should be for the gameplay. The gameplay is improved over last year's Madden, and the two strong gamemodes make the game great. I recommend this game for one of two conditions, one, if you haven't had a Madden in a while, and two, if you've loved the past two Maddens you'll love 07. If you thought Madden 06 was mediocre, you probably won't like 07.

Madden Curse Preview

So as I was playing superstar mode, I started browsing my website, and I noticed the list of injuries. I checked to see who was injured the worst, and it was none other than coverboy Shaun Alexander. He was out for career with a complete PCL tear. Is this a preview of what is to come?

In all seriousness, Alexander is a great guy, I really hope nothing happens to him.

Baseball: Who's Hot

Here are some unknown guys who've been hot recently. They're worth checking out and maybee picking up, as most of these guys are probably still free agents.

Shin-See Choo, OF - In his last 10 games he's had 14 RBIs, 6 runs, and is hitting .395. He's really young and still learning, but this is a very nice hot streak.

Mark DeRosa, 2B, OF - In his last 10 games, he's hitting .385, 20 RBIs, 11 runs, and 5 homeruns.

Joe Saunders, SP - He's 4-0 with a 1.67 ERA, with 18 Ks and a whip of 1.04. Hes on the Angels who are making a run at the division, so he'll be a good pickup.

John Maine, SP - In his last 4 games, he's had 3 shutouts and 21 strikeouts.

Chad Billingsley, SP - He had a slow start but has been hot recently. Its not certain if he'll continue to be in the rotation, but as long as he is, he's a good pitcher.

Madden NFL Films Miami Dolphins 2005

Took me about 10 hours total to script, film, and edit. Its an NFL films type movie about the Dolphins last year. Almost all of the plays in the movie are real plays. If not exactly real, similar to real. It was pretty fun making it. I'm definately going to do one for this upcoming season. What you guys think? What did you guys like/dislike? This is my first ever movie, I'd appreciate some feedback.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1lu9DJUG9s

Steve Nash Shaves His Head

"I don't really have a rhyme or reason. I felt like taking it off." Not much to say about that. Now he looks like a old man who just came out of the hospital. Personally, I liked the hair better.

My Cheatsheet

Rankings first, then explanation, then some other stuff. I play in Yahoo leagues with default settings. 6 points for any touchdown, 50 yards passing is 1 point, 20 yards rushing or receiving is 1 point.

1. Larry Johnson, RB
2. LaDainian Tomlinson, RB
3. Shaun Alexander, RB
4. Clinton Portis, RB
5. Tiki Barber, RB
6. Peyton Manning, QB
7. Steven Jackson, RB
8. Edgerrin James, RB
9. Rudi Johnson, RB
10. Steve Smith, WR
11. LaMont Jordan, RB
12. Ronnie Brown, RB
13. Terrell Owens, WR
14. Carnell Williams, RB
15. Chad Johnson, WR
16. Brian Westbrook, RB
17. Marvin Harrison, WR
18. Torry Holt, WR
19. Randy Moss, WR
20. Larry Fitzgerald, WR
21. Anquan Boldin, WR
22. Julius Jones, RB
23. Chris Chambers, WR
24. Hines Ward, WR
25. Willis McGahee, RB
26. Tom Brady, QB
28. Antonio Gates, TE
29. Domanick Davis, RB
30. Reggie Wayne, WR
31. Carson Palmer, QB
32. Eli Manning, QB
33. Tony Gonzalez, TE
34. Plaxico Burress, WR
35. Reuben Droughns, RB
36. Corey Dillon, WR
37. Darrell Jackson, WR
38. Roy Williams, WR
39. Jeromey Shockey, TE
40. Willie Parker, RB
41.Warrick Dunn, RB
42. Matt Hasselbeck, QB
43. Jamal Lewis, RB
44. Joey Galloway, WR
45. Santana Moss, RB
46. T.J. Houshmandzadeh, WR
47. Reggie Bush, WR
48. Donald Driver, WR
49. Nate Burleson, WR
50. Thomas Jones, RB

The Chargers lost Drew Brees last season and Philip Rivers is new starting QB. LT will get alot more carries, he'll also be a nice target for Rivers. With Yahoo's messed up default scoring settings, Manning will be money. With a much weaker running game, Manning will need to pass to score and win games. Rhodes and Addai are both small guys, they won't be pounding it in the trenched very often. Alot of people have Barber as the number 4 guy. But he's getting older now, and the Giants will be using powerback Brandon Jacobs more and more in goalline situations. Theres not really much else to explain.

Guys to Avoid
Willis McGahee-The offense has no passing game and a bad offensive line. McGahee is a playmaker, but in the situation he's in, no playmaker can shine. Defenses will stack the line, he'll be mediocre.
Antonio Gates-He's been one of the most productive TEs for the past two years. But he had Brees throwing to him. With Rivers now in the drivers seat, Gates won't be as good as past years.
Domanick Davis-In 2004 he had 13 TDs, but only 1100 yards and less than 80 yards per game. In the next year, he had 2 touchdowns. Although his yards per game increased to 88, the Texans won't be seeing the redzone very often. You'll need to pray every gameday for him to get 10 TDs. However, if he falls past the 4th round, he'll be a steal. If you really have no one to pick, you should get him in the 4th.
Kevin Jones-Just like McGahee, theres no QB, and the line isnt very good. They both had down years last year for this reason.
Denver Wide Runningbacks-First, they all split carries. Although Bell will probably get around 15-20 carries a game. Second, the denver o-line isn't built for the goaline runs. Most of their TDs will come on long runs. Bell will probably go somewhere in the 6, 7, or 8th round. He'll be a good pick in the 7th, 6th if you need a RB.

Sleepers
Jamal Lewis-He spent last years training camp in jail. He's back 100% this year. With an actual threat at QB, lewis will have alot better runs. We all know what he is capable of, he's only 26 years old. He'll probably go in the 5th to 6th round.
Chester Taylor-The Tony Richardson from the Chiefs to block, Hutchingson, one of the best run-blocking lineman. They have an average offense, and he will be carrying it.
Fred Taylor-When he was healthy, he produced. He's had a yards per carry in the high 4s all his life. He'll be healthy this year. He's 30 years old, and the way he runs, he's got plenty of seasons left in him.
Steve McNair-Everyone thinks he's done. He knows this is his last chance in the NFL. He's fragile, but hes healthy. Plus he'll be reunited with his old widereciever. And now, unlike the last few years, he'll have a running game to take off pressure. He'll be an excellent backup QB.
Aaron Brooks-He didn't play badly when he had Deuce. Now he has a chance to ressurrect his career. He's only 30 years old, and has 4 good receivers to throw to, 2 of which are great. If Kerry Collins can get 3700+ yards, and 20 TDs, anyone can. Plus Moss is completely healthy this year. And what Moss said was true, Brooks can run around and that gives time for Moss to get open deep and make plays.
Braylon Edwards-This will be his 2nd year, and he will be Fryes 2nd favorite target. He's a decent backup WR for the late late rounds or even free agent.
Deuce McAllister-He's been injured every year for the past 3 years so people really have low expectations now. Bush and Deuce on the field at the same time will give defensive coordinators headaches. They can split in the backfield, or Bush can lineup as WR. Either way, it'll open up lanes for Deuce, he'll be better than previous years.

Best Dunks Ever

On the And 1 Tour, a guy named "Air Up There" made one of the best dunks ever, a 720. It was really more of a 540, but he eventually landed having done 2 full spins. This is a MUST see. Is it the best dunk ever? You can decide that for yourself.

Butthead Headbutt by Zinedine Zidane

In sundays World Cup final match with France against Italy, superstar Zinedine Zidane was red-carded for headbutting an Italian player. Supposedly the Italian player said racial slurs to Zidane.

*Updated* First defender Marco Materazzi spoke in Italian - a language understood by Zidane who once played for Italian side Juventus - grabbed his opponent and told him 'hold on, wait, that one's not for a n***** like you.'

But she saw that as the players walked forward Materazzi said: 'We all know you are the son of a terrorist whore.'

Then, just before the headbutt, he was seen saying,: 'So just f*** off.' Full Article.

Materazzi has a long history of playing dirty. Heres a highlight reel of his dirty moves. What he said was very low. Its completely understandable what Zidance did. It definately wasnt smart, but it was reasonable. Hopefully in a few years, or decades, people will forget about the headbutt and remember Zidane for the great soccer player he is.

Miner League Manager Goes Berserk

The Asheville Tourists(minor league team) manager Joe Mikulik went absolutely crazy when the runner stole second base and was called safe. There've been some pretty crazy meltdowns in baseball, but this tops it all. Some pull out the base, some spread dirt onto the plate, and some just scream at the umpire one centimeter from his face. But he did it all, while inventing some new antics.

While refering to pouring water on home plate he says,"This ain't my first rodeo. ... I didn't touch anybody. I never bumped anybody. ... I actually cleaned home plate for them, so they should give me a tip for that."

Lou Pinella would be proud.

Players to Pick Up

Francisco Liriano, SP - He's been a reliever up to now this season, but is finally ready to be a starter. He gets his first start on friday. He is going to be one of the elite pitchers in the league. Jim Thome said of him, "That is as good a stuff from a left-hander as I've ever faced. The only comparable stuff I can think of is Randy [Johnson] when he was young. That kid is unbelievable."

Kerry Wood, SP - He makes his first start of the season this thursday. He pitched perfectly in the minors to get back into pitching mode. His fastball was clocked at 97 MPH. He's probably taken in most leagues, but theres always a few where you can find him in the free agents.

Brett Tomko, SP - He's been pitching great so far. He's not worth picking up and replacing a good pitcher, but if you have someone to get rid of on your team, then get this guy.

Wily Mo Pena, OF - He had that long 9 game hitting drought that messes up his total stats. But he's been hitting well ever since. Learning from Manny and Ortiz makes him a much better hitter.

Cole Hamels, SP - If he's still availible, get him. His first start was great. He doesn't have amazing speed like some of the other young pitchers, but he has amazing command and control. His stuff is great and his numbers have always been amazing, they say he can turn out to be the next Johan Santana.

Reggie Evans Has His Hands Full

"He went behind my back, went through my legs and grabbed my nuts and tried to pull them backwards,’’ Kaman said. "In my mind at first I? wanted to punch him. I wanted to hit him. I thought to myself, ‘Don’t be stupid.’’’ Well if I was him, I would've socked him right on the face multiple times. This was just uncalled for and one of the dirties moves I've ever seen. Reggie Evans, welcome to my Hall-Of-Shame.

My NFL Mock Draft

The NFL Draft is next saturday, a chance for teams to gamble for their future. They might pick a 6th round QB who leads they're team to 3 superbowls, or a 1st pick player who ruins the franchise. Everyone has predictions on who will be taken by who, but thats all mostly bullshit stolen from ESPN. I can gaurantee two things about my mock draft, Reggie Bush will be first, and my draft will be twice as good as Sean Salisberry's.

1. Houston - Reggie Bush, RB USC - Its basically either Bush or Young. Bush is perhaps the greatest college runningback ever. With Bush, pressure will be taken off Carr. With a second round offensive lineman, they're offense will be set.

2. New Orleans - D'Brickashaw Ferguson, T Virginia - Ferguson is one of the highest rated lineman in the draft in a while, they can't go wrong here. Ferguson can play on the right, while Brown can switch to the right, where he played in college. With those two elite lineman, they will have the foundation of the team set for the next decade.

3. Tennessee - Matt Leinart, QB USC- The Titans are disrespecting McNair and McNair deserves better. He'll most likely end up in Baltimore. Titans have to pick between Young and Leinart. Neither would start in the first week and both need work. Leinart already knows the offense of Norm Chow, his former offensive coordinater at USC, so the transition will be much easier for Leinart.

4. N.Y. Jets - Mario Williams, DE North Carolina State - He's been compared to Peppers by many, and already stole the nickname 'freak' from Kearse. He's a playmaker on defense, and with the loss of Abraham, Williams will be a perfect pick.

5. Green Bay - A.J. Hawk, OLB Ohio State - This is the most obvious pick in the draft. Packers need defensive support. They need an outside linebacker. It looks as if Arrington is going to sign with the Giants. They're pass defense was the best in the league infact, but thats probably because they couldn't stop the run.

6. San Francisco - Vernon Davis, TE Maryland - Alex Smith showed some potential in the last few games of the season. He needs support around him to develop. Davis has great speed and hands. He will Smith's best friend by the time the season ends.

7. Oakland - Vince Young, QB Texas - Al Davis could care less about already having signed a QB. Still, Young will be perfect for Oakland. He has the big arm, and oakland has the stretch receivers. Plus, Young is the kind of explosive guy that fans can get excited about, and trust me, if Oakland gets young, there will be parties all over the bay area. Young jersies will sell faster than you can say Marquis Tuiasosopo.

8. Buffalo - Winston Justice, OT USC - The Bills pass protection has been horrible, one of the worst in the league. Lossman and Holcomb got sacked a total of 43 times. Justice is a big powerful guy who can block for both the run and pass. He's the best tackle that the Bills can get.

9. Detroit - Michael Huff, CB Texas - The Lions need some help in the secondary. Huff is a hardhitting, fast playmaker. He flys all over the field, and will improve the secondary dramatically.

10. Arizona - Jay Cutler, QB Vanderbilt - The only think lacking in the cardinals' offense is a QB. Warner obviously isn't they're future. Cutler can learn under warner and take over the year after. He is a carson palmer type of QB, and has all the tools around him to succeed. He had basically nothing around him at vanderbilt and still put up great numbers. This will be a perfect fit.

11. St. Louis - Jimmy Williams, CB Virginia Tech - The Rams need defensive help. Williams is the best man-to-man corner availible. They could also be looking at Jason Allen in round two.

12. Cleveland - Chad Greenway, OLB Iowa - The Browns need a good linebacker next to McGinist. Greenway is a fast linebacker with great tackling skills. He's all over the field, and fill be a good fit in the 3-4 defense.

13 . Baltimore - Haloti Ngata, DT Oregon - Ngata is a huge defensive tackle. He is exactly what Ray Lewis is asking for. Lewis wants a big guy up front to occupy the gaurds so he can rome free. They need either a defensive lineman or offensive lineman, and because of Lewis' recent comments, they will go for D.

14. Philadelphia - Santonio Holmes, WR Ohio State - The Eagles need a replacement for Owens. Holmes is a Santana Moss or Steve Smith type of player. He's small, quick, fast, and has great hands. He would be a good fit in that west coast offense.

15. Denver (from Atlanta) - Chad Jackson, WR Florida - The Broncos need another target for Plummer. Jackson is an ideal wide receiver for the Broncos.

16. Miami - Ernie Sims, OLB Florida State - The Dolphins need an outside linebacker with the departure of Seau. Sims is an explosive hardhitting linebacker. He is somewhat undersized, but when has size ever held a dolphin linebacker back

17. Minnesota - Bobby Carpenter, OLB Ohio State - The Vikings have a good secondary, but need linebacker help. Carpenter is the best linebacker availible, better than any other inside linebacker. This will be a good pick for the vikings.

18. Dallas - Donte Whitner, S, Ohio State - Next to Roy Williams, the Cowboys need a saftey. Whitner can cover extremely well. He's alot like Ed Reed. This will be the ideal pick for the Cowboys.

19. San Diego - Antonio Cromartie, CB Florida State - Cromartie is an excellent cover corner. The Chargers need help at corner and Cromartie will be perfect. They struck gold last year with defense, this year they will too.

20. Kansas City - Tye Hill, CB Clemson - The Chiefs need a good corner opposite of Surtain. He's one of the fast players in the draft, and will be a good cover corner. He is somewhat undersized, but his effort more than makes up for it.

21. New England - DeMarco Ryans, OLB Alabama - He is a really smart player, one who belichick will ike. They need outside linebacker with the departure of McGinist. Ryans will be a good fit.

22. San Francisco (from Washington through Denver) - Mathias Kiwanuka, DE Boston College - He is an overall excellent defensive end. He has all the physical tools to be great, and the instincts. He will be a good pick for the niners.

23. Tampa Bay - Marcus McNeil, OT Auburn - McNeil is a huge offensive tackle, and exactly what the bucs need. Be blocked for Cadillac two years ago, and will do it again. He is raw, but has the tools

24. Cincinnati - Marcedes Lewis, TE UCLA - The Bengals don't have a star tight end as most winning teams do. Lewis has great hands, alot like heath miller of last years draft, and we all know how that turned out. Lewis will definately be on the board by this pick.

25 . N.Y. Giants - Tamba Hali, DE Penn State - The Giants need another defensive end. Hali is a good replacement for Strahan in a few years. The giants already improved they're pass defense with Sam Madison, and are probably going to get Arrington. With Hali, that defense will surprise alot of people.

26. Chicago - Sinorice Moss, WR Miami - The Bears need a widereciever opposite of Muhammad. They've been extremely inconsistant. Moss is a playmaker that the bears desperately need.

27. Carolina - DeAngelo Williams, RB Memphis - The forgotton runningback of the draft. Carolina has had too many injuries at runningback, infact its the only reason they didn't go to the superbowl. Williams will probably be behind Foster, but even then he'll definatly see at least 5 starts.

28. Jacksonville - Eric Winston, OT Miami - The Jaguars need an offensive lineman like Winston. He'll improve their offense overall. This will be a good pick is Winston falls this far.

29. N.Y. Jets (from Denver) - Ashton Youboty, CB Ohio State - With the departure of Law, the Jets need a corner. Youboty is a good corner who can get the job done. Hes a smart player who can make plays.

30. Indianapolis - Lawrence Maroney, RB Minnesota - With James gone, this will be a perfect opportunity to snag a great RB in the draft. Maroney is 1st round material. Hes a balanced runningback who will be perfect for the colts.

31. Seattle - Jonathan Joseph, CB South Carolina - Other than Trufant, the Seahawks don't have a reliable corner. Joseph is ideal size and has everything you look for in a cornerback. He will be a starter from week 1.

32. Pittsburgh - Lendale White, RB USC - Big smash mouth runningback on a smash mouth football team. This is probably the draftee-team fit in the entire draft.

I Actually Used to Like the Titans

The other day Steve McNair was told to go home by the Titans. He is no longer allowed to workout in the team facilities. McNair has 28.46 million dollars on the salary cap, 9 million this year. If he gets hurt this season, the Titans have to pay him the whole 9 million. The Titans tried to restructure his contract, but McNair and the team aren't coming to any agreements.

This is a classless move by the Titans. I've lost almost all respect for the team. McNair is a guy who gave 120% every game. He's played through injuries, all for the team. He led them to the super bowl, coming one yard shy of leading one of the greatest comebacks ever. He was MVP of the league just 3 years ago, and he's been the face of that organization for so many years.

McNair has all the rights to refuse giving up more money. He had repeatedly restructured his contract in the past just to get the Titans under the cap. He's been playing for less than he's worth for all these years, less salary, less bonuses, all because he was promised his money in the future. McNair has earned his money, so why would he restructure his contract again, only to get screwed next year?

I actually used to like the Titans, all because of one guy, McNair. The Titans front office just can't manage the team, and McNairs getting screwed because of it. The Titans are officially the first members of my Wall of Shame.

My Elite Fantasy Baseball Team

C: Ivan Rodriguez
1B: Adam Dunn
2B: Ricki Weeks
3B: Alex Rodriguez
SS: Omar Vizquel
OF: Ken Griffey Jr.
OF: Hideki Matsui
OF: Jeromy Burnitz
Ut: Sean Casey
BN: Julio Lugo

SP: Roy Halladay
SP: Randy Johnson
RP: David Weathers
RP: Dan Miceli
P: Brad Penny
P: Esteban Loaiza
P: Justin Verlander
BN: Orlando Hernandez
BN: Jarrod Washburn
BN: Aaron Harang
BN: Todd Jones
DL: Eric Gagne

My team is not great, but its pretty good. With good managing, I can win it all. I have inconsistant batters with Casey and Burnitz. Vizquel is my expendable player, hes only had 2 games with RBIs. He hits second in the lineup, so he'll mostly be getting runs and steals. But those are stats that Lugo or other free agents can give me. He won't be on my team much longer. Weeks is also interesting, hes the same as Vizquel, he gets steals and runs, but not RBIs. Weeks is supposedly an emerging star, which is the only reason I'm keeping him, hoping he gets hot. However, if I drop him no one will pick him up, so I might just do that. I'll probably pick up Jose Lopez and Khalil Green. One Burnitz gets cold, I'm going to drop him too.

Obviously my weaknesses are steals and saves. One Todd Jones is back I'll start generating more saves. Jones is only going to stay on my team if he's the starting closer when he comes back. He's old, but if he starts, he'll get many save opportunities. Gagne has a while to go, but I need to keep him for the second half of the season and playoffs. The two pitchers I'm seriously questioning are Washburn and Loaiza. What really made me keep both those players are Mariner and A's biases, Mariners, my favorite team, and A's, my home team and second favorite team.

Detroit Tigers

As I was reading a blog entry on the debate over a salaray cap in baseball, I thought to myself, every bad team becomes good eventually. I thought of the Brewers, a young and confident team that can surprise many people, then I thought of the Tigers, and that got me thinking, the Tigers really aren't that bad any longer.

What really amazes me is the Tigers' pitching. Their rotation includes Kenny Rogers, Bonderman, Robertson, Maroth, and the young superstud Justin Verlander. This is the type of rotation a team that an elite team has. Plus they're all under 30, except Rogers. This team has sucked for so long, now they are finally ready to make their run for the playoffs. All of these pitchers can win 10 games and get 150+K this year. Whats more impressive is their bullpen. Rodney has pitched perfectly thus far. The young Zumaya is a great setupman. Not to mention they have three relievers injured, two of which are able to be closers, Jones and Percival. The bullpen's average WHIP is 1.03, with a 3.17 ERA. Just to show how impressive those numbers really are, the whitesox average 4.75, the redsox average 4.31, and the brewers average 4.11.

But on the other side of the ball, the hitting is mediocre. However it is good enough to take them to the playoffs. Shelton is the hottest player in the league right now. Old players cool down, guys who are 26 and lead the league in homeruns, BA, and RBIs, do not. They also have the future star Granderson. He's only 25 years old and producing average to good numbers. Later in the season when analysts begin realizing that the Tigers are a force to be reckoned with, he will heat up. Plus they have my man Pudge. You can't go wrong with Pudge. The Tigers will be a world series caliber team in 3 years tops. They have the pitching. A few big name signings are all they need. They're a confident team and they believe they can win, and they will.

Milwaukee Brewers

The first thing I think of when I hear of the Brewers is failure. They've only won the division once in their history. They've been just another small market team who can't get it straight. But over the course of spring training and preparing for my fantasy drafts, I realized that the Brewers can no longer be ignored. This is a young team that will probably make the playoffs in the next few years.

They're pitching is as deep as any team in the league. Ben Sheets, Doug Davis, and Chris Capuano are all great pitchers who can win 15+ games a season. Davis is in a contract year, which means he'll have a great season. Then theres Dave Bush and Tomo Ohka who are good too. The Brewers' old closer, Dan Kolb, who got traded to the Braves last year, is back as a setup man for Derrick Turnbow who hasn't allowed a run all season. With starting pitchers who'll take the lead deep in the ballgame, and a setup man like Kolb, Turnbow will be best closer this year, fantasy-wise. Vice-versa, with a setup man like Kolb and a closer like Turnbow, the starting pitchers will be getting alot more wins than people expect. Under pitching coach Mike Maddox, the Brewer pitchers will carry this team far.

As for batting, the team is not as great. But like the whitesox last year, they have enough to win games. They have guys that can get the job done, but no outstanding players. Carlos Lee and Overbay are good cleanup hitters, and Weeks, the future star, is a guy who can get on base and score. The Brewers are doing it all with their great farm system. They have one of the best farm systems in the league, and now after years of sucking, they are seeing it payoff, and are proving that it doesn't just take money to build a winning team.

Automotive Wallpaper

Have you ever searched for high quality automotive wallpaper but couldn't find any good pictures? This site is the answer to your problems. It has wallpaper above 1280 x 1024, and they're good angles too. Check it out:

http://www.dieselstation.com/archives.html

The Da Vinci Code

One of the most controversial novels today is the Da Vinci Code. People criticize it for being "fiction based on fiction", that it is very decieving to the layman reader who doesn't know much about christian history. It is also being sued for breaking copywrite laws. However I am with the majority when I say, this was a book.

The book starts off with the murder of Jacques Sauniere and three other gatekeepers of the holy grail. His granddaughter, teamed with harvard professor Robert Langdon, is on a quest of biblical proportions to find the holy grail. We find out that the grail is not a chalice as everyone suspects, but rather the tomb of Mary Magdelene, the alleged wife of Jesus Christ who gave birth to Jesus' child, continuing the bloodline of Christ. This is one of the places where the critics get upset.

For evidence of the marriage of Mary Magdelene and Jesus, Brown uses the Gospel of Philip and the Gospel of Mary Magdelene, where it says Mary Magdelene was a "companion" to Jesus. Brown suggests that the word companion meant spouse in those days. But the Gospel of Philip was written in Coptic, where the word companion doesn't mean spouse but just companion. The only arguement I can make is, maybee the word in the actual scrolls was a word in coptic that could mean companion or spouse. Companion is a broader term, so whoever translated it could have just used that word.

Another claim that upsets people is prior to AD 300 something, Jesus was a normal man. He was a great man, but just a man. Some argue that he was called theos (meaning God), and in several texts he was called Lord. But people say "lord" to high status people all the time. How many times have you seen a servent refer to his master or king as "my lord"? Many times.

A simple mistake in the Da Vinci code is that he says the dead sea scrols were found in the 1950s. The real date is 1947. But using this arguement for anything is Staw Man, a logical fallacy.

Others say it is poorly written. I don't know about that, I'm not an english major, and quite frankly, I don't like literature class. But if the book had my heart was pounding faster after every chapter, was on the NY Times best seller list for 37 straight weeks, and inspired a movie, I would say otherwise.

The book however did falsely portray the Opus Dei. It showed them as power hungry sect. I would like to clear the fact that there are no Monks in Opus Dei. (No I'm not catholic) But look on the bright side, it put them on the map. Honestly, had you ever heard of Opus Dei before you read the book? I for one hadn't.

Now the Dan Brown is being sued by the authors of The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail on the grounds that Brown made "extensive use of their research", rearranged the letters in the authors name for one of the characters, and made on of the descriptions of the characters similar to one of the authors. This is one of the stupidest court cases I've ever heard. If anything the Da Vinci Code will increase interest in the subject and more people will read The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail. I've talked to a copywrite lawyer about this issue, and he told me that there is a universal rule in copywriting, ideas can't be copywrited. So techincally someone write a book exactly like the Da Vinci Code in their own words and it would not violate copywrite laws. Star Trek tried to sue Star Wars for similar reasons and that case went no where.

There are many other errors in the Da Vinci Code, which you can read about on wikipedia. But after all, this book is just a fiction thriller. Its meant to give the reader an "edge of the seat" experience, and leave the reader thinking "hey, can this really happen?", and that is exactly what it did. I loved this book. It was alittle slow in the beginning, but half way through it picked up and I literally couldn't put the book down, I finished the last 200 pages in one sitting. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galexy

Every book has a climax where the hero brilliantly prevails. In Hitchikers Guide to the Galexy by Douglas Adams, everything is flipped upsidedown. The most random twists happen, most of the time generating a small smirk on your face and a few times making you laugh.

However this book reaches cult status with many readers, as evident by all of its nicknames, HHG, HGG, HHGG, HHGTTG, H2G2, HG2G, The Hitchhikers Guide, Hitchikers', and just Guide.

The story begins with the main character, Arthur Dent, whos house is about to be demolished. Apparently he had time to protest, but no one told him about it. Ironically the same thing happens with the whole planet. The earth is about to be demolished and he manages to escape. The whole story goes on with his adventure.

In one part of the story, it talks about how scientists created a computer program just to answer the golden question: What is the meaning of life? *Spoiler* The computer gave the answer: 42. As all of our science teachers have said, a number without a unit is meaningless.

It definitely didn't live up to my comedic standards. I've seen far funnier TV shows and movies. However there was a joke or witty comment in almost every other sentence. It was an easy read because of that. It was good, not great. I recommend it to anyone who is looking for a quick enjoyable read.

Superbowl XL

There seems to by alot less hype over Superbowl 40. When I ask people who will win, I get the "ehh I don't really care" answer. You can thank Pittsburgh for that, they knocked off Indy, the most exciting team to watch and superbowl favorite all throughout the season. Whether it was Indy or Pittsburgh, the seahawks will be defeated. BOOK IT.

The Seattle Seahawks had one of the easiest schedules in the league. They played Arizona twice, San Francisco twice, St Louis twice, Tennessee, Green Bay, Houston, Philadelphia in the second half of the season, and a careless Indy team. No wonder they only lost 2 games. But its a new season in the playoffs where they had a first round bye to get rested, and then again played the worst offense in the playoffs, and then played another beat up team with a 4th string running back. Which is why their defense looks so good.

Pittsburgh on the other hand had a tougher schedule. They had went through the number 3, 2, and 1 seeds in the AFC, on the road. Which is easily the most difficult road possible in the playoffs, and they dominated those games (Although the score doesn't show it).

However, I have to give the seahawks credit. They did everything they were expected to do, you can't ask for more. We all know defense wins championships, and the caliber of offenses that Pittsburgh has played and shut down are much greater than those that Seattle played. Pittsburgh has stars on defense. Mr Amazing Troy Polamalu, Joey Porter the Thug, but the weakness has always been the cornerbacks. So far they have been playing great, which makes that defense always unpenetrable. Seattle on the other hand has a softer defense, like Indy. Seattles really doesn't have any stars on defense, just some players who have been playing pretty good.

In the end Pittsburgh is a smashmouth team who have beaten every type of opponent, Seattle is a team that had an easy road to the superbowl and really are facing their first elite opponent now. I think the genious playcalling of the Steelers will win them the game. Final Score: Pittsburgh 30, Seattle 20.