Dustin Pedroia was voted the 2008 AL MVP today, becoming the first Red Sox player to do so since Mo Vaughn did it in 1995. Scrappy, clutch, and as many are quick to point out, short in comparison to his peers, Pedroia is also only the third player ever to win the award in the season after winning the Rookie of the Year, along with Cal Ripken and Ryan Howard (only way to beat that is to do it in the same season - oh, right, that's been done, twice. Ichiro and Fred Lynn in case you were wondering).
Some say those who vote these days have become slaves to numbers, but I think this year they got it right.
TLM and I got back not that long ago from Our House in Allston where the 2008 BAmBUu Awards were being held (and a Patriots game was being watched). It was a nice place, and with any luck they may turn out to be a team, or even a league, sponsor next year. They gave us a cordoned off area and a buffet of wings, salad, pasta and tater-tots, so we certainly had nothing to complain about.
The BAmBUu Cup was there and presented to the 2008 Champion Hustlers, and those members of the team in attendance also got a medal commemorating the achievement. Gold gloves awards were also handed out, as well as an MVP award and the equivalent of a Cy Young award.
Dan W and I were also honored (and humbled, by the way) as the first two inductees into the BAmBUu Hall of Fame, currently represented by a plaque to be held on to by the commish. Had I enough forethought I would've had some words ready, but instead I fumbled through some acknowledgments, including some thanks to "Our Place" (note: name of establishment is "Our House"). At least we managed to get a picture for posterity:
Sports Radio. It's probably my #1 preference as far as what I listen to when I'm driving (TLM can attest to that). However, Now that I have more time to listen thanks to a lengthier commute to work in the morning, it seems to have all but disappeared. In lieu of listening to discussion about whether Matt Cassel is getting better or if the Celtics look poised to win another Championship, I'm instead barraged with political rhetoric and moronic condemnation from and of both callers and politicos.
I want my Sports Radio back.
I know the election is right around the corner, and I know that lots of people like to talk politics. My complaint is simply that there are other stations for that. It's like buying a newspaper, turning to the sports section and getting nothing but op-eds about everything except that in which you are interested. Enough already.
To make matters worse, the stuff I'm listening to is typical of the times: aggressively close-minded hosts who think they know best arguing with equally know-it-all callers. Is this entertainment? No, it's fuel for the [ratings] fire, and the fact that people like me who tune in to get their sports fix and end up reluctantly listening to these buffoons is testament to why it's currently allowed (and probably encouraged) by those in charge.
I'll give it a few more days. I suppose there will be a lot of airtime spent after the election filled with either intense gloat or warning of impending doom, but I'm holding out hope that all will be right by Friday.
I just hope they can remember how to do it.
Still can't put anything into words, but these can help:
...bright and early at 6AM tomorrow morning. I can't think of a better way to start a day (other than a little later, maybe).
In case you missed it, Jayson Stark's column about the Red Sox was the lead on ESPN.com for a good part of the day today. An image similar to the one below was proudly displayed, followed by nothing less than the clear proclamation that "The incumbent Red Sox are favored to repeat in October. Any questions?"
Yowsa...there was actually a time I'd feel nervous about such bold predictions. Such is not the case anymore, and it feels good.
 image from ESPN.com
So it'll be the Pats versus the Giants for Super Bowl XLII, and we all know that there'll be an overly excessive amount of hype between now and the big game in two weeks, so I'll keep this short.
So what happened yesterday? Well, the Patriots proved they can win even when their All-Pro quarterback is having a bad day and their number one receiver is limited to one catch. The Chargers proved they can still hang with the big boys even with LT limited to just two carries and their QB had surgery just before the game. The Giants proved they can overcome not one but two shanks late in the game to win a ticket to the Super Bowl in overtime (luckily for the other LT, Lawrence Tynes, it was with a field goal). Lastly, Brett Favre proved even a man in the twilight of a glorious career can still give away big football games.
We also learned that LT isn't the only player to hate on the Pats; Chargers center Nick Hardwick went off about patriots DE Richard Seymour, ranting:
"There are 10 (bleeping) good players on that team. But Richard Seymour is a dirty, cheap, little pompous (expletive)."
"He’s cheap and dirty and the head man just let him get away with it the whole time. They’ve got 10 great players on that team and when Jarvis Green comes on the field, they’ve got 11 great players who compete how you’re supposed to play. But Richard Seymour is the biggest (expletive) I’ve ever played."
"Head slapping, foot stomping in the pile, running by and throwing punches in your back. He’s a (expletive)...There were a lot of things he did. There’s a field goal where he was stomping feet. Who stomps feet? And the officials weren’t doing anything about it. He plays like a punk."
-Nick Hardwick, San Diego Chargers starting Center Sorry Nick. Your (bleeping)(expletive) excuses aren't going to change the outcome of the game yesterday. Maybe next year. On a small tangent, what is this business of Paul Pierce congratulating Plaxico Burress and other Giants players at Madison Square Garden this afternoon? I suppose New York sports fans need something to cheer about, but seriously, Paul, seriously...
So the Pats took another step towards the Super Bowl (and a perfect season) by beating the Jags in Foxboro yesterday. Brady set another record too, for good measure, this time setting the passing accuracy mark at 92.9% surpassing the previous bests of 91.3% in a regular season game held by Vinny Testaverde and 88% in a playoff game held by Phil Simms (who was a commentator in the booth, by the way).
Moss was essentially a non-factor, though his one catch was a 4th down conversion to keep the first drive alive. I thought lots of players stepped up (as is usually the case), though I give special recognition to our running backs, particularly Kevin Faulk. He may not have had 100 yards like Maroney, but he made big plays when we needed them, and in my opinion is the most underrated part of the Patriots' offense.
Next in line: the Chargers, whom the Pats have beaten once this year already. They just put the finishing touches on a victory over the Colts in Indy, where Peyton Manning and company couldn't find a way to stop a San Diego offense that lost both Phillip Rivers and LaDanian Tomlinson during the game. Nice...
Adam Vinatieri, I told you you were making a mistake.
Wuhoo!!!! Damn, Dick Clark doesn't sound too good these days, but it was sorta nice to see him there in (or around) Times Square.
Here's to hoping 2008 will bring us new adventures, amazing stories, and more wonderful events and celebrations.
A Super Bowl, an NBA Championship and, oh, I dunno, a World Series wouldn't hurt either...
It was fun reading all the articles today revolving around the Patriots win last night that capped off a perfect regular season. Many featured speculation about the upcoming playoffs, some basically hated on the achievement altogether, and most touched on the various records the team set during the game.
Around halftime last night, we tried to bring up an actual listing of all of the records that could have potentially been broken during the game...and it took longer than expected. Although Boston.com has a nice pictorial review of most of these records, I decided to compile a listing of all of the NFL team and individual player records the Patriots either set or tied during this 2007 regular season:
- The Patriots set the record for most wins in a regular season (which I suppose they would have had even if they finished with a 15-1 record, right?)
- Tom Brady set the single-season record for most touchdowns in a season with 50, breaking Peyton Manning's mark of 49 from 2004.
- Randy Moss broke the record for most touchdown receptions in a season with 23, surpassing Jerry Rice's total of 22 set in 1987 (in 12 games!).
- The Pats scored 589 points in 2007, more than any other team scored in any other regular season. The previous record was 556 points by the 1998 Vikings.
- Last night the Patriots broke their own record set in 2004 by winning their last 19 consecutive regular season games (and counting).
- Tom Brady connected with Randy Moss for more touchdowns this season than any other quarterback has to any other receiver in any single season, ever. With 23 touchdowns, they shattered the previous high of 18 held by Dan Marino / Mark Clayton and Brett Favre / Sterling Sharpe.
- The 2007 Patriots also set a record for most touchdowns scored in a season with 75, breaking Miami's record of 70 (breaking Miami records seems to becoming a theme here...)
- Randy Moss became the first receiver in history to get 100 yards in his first 3 games with a new team (oh, and he then got 102 yards receiving in week 4 as well).
- In the now infamous "spygate" game against the Jets, Ellis Hobbs returned the opening kickoff of the second half 108 yards for a touchdown setting the NFL record for longest kickoff return.
- During the 2007 campaign, 21 different players scored a touchdown for the Patriots, tying the record also held by the 1987 Rams and the 2000 Broncos.
As if that weren't enough, the Pats almost set the record for most points per game as well as the biggest average margin of victory this year too. Oh, and how 'bout them Celtics?
Unreal. How anyone thought this was going to be a cakewalk is a mystery to me. Somehow the Giants came out fully Red Bulled and put the pressure on early. At one point in the game they had the biggest lead any team has had on the Patriots all year: 12 points (in the 4th quarter!)...yet somehow Brady and company prevailed.
"It's a great win for our team." -Tom Brady
"This is one for the ages." -Chris Collensworth After Moss dropped that pass I dropped to the floor, laying there silently staring at the ceiling until TLM wasn't sure if something was medically wrong. She then urged me (sorta forcefully) not to count Brady out. Naturally, on the next play, Brady connects with Moss to break both the single season TD passes record and the TD receptions record simultaneously...oh, they took the lead on the play too, by the way. All records possibly achieved in the game were reached, and there's only one major goal left for this 2007 Patriots team: THREE MORE WINS
Point One:The Patriots game against the Giants this Saturday night can now be watched by more than just people in the Boston market (no, not the restaurant chain) and subscribers to the NFL Network, as originally slated. In what will be an unprecedented simulcast, the game will now also be broadcast by CBS and NBC. "It'll be like the State of the Union address, you can flip to every channel and see it." -Bill Belichick I'm sure of two things: the people over at ABC must be fuming unless they've already received some kind of compensation for no longer having the exclusive rights to the local market, and that we'll be seeing p-l-e-n-t-y of NFL Network ads and general hype during the game. Believe me when I say that all of those records, starters playing or sitting, even the score in the game will at (most) times be playing second fiddle to NFL propaganda.
Point Two:It's good to finally see at least one Patriot break away from this "our only goal is to win the Super Bowl" mantra and tell it like it is. Tom Brady laid it out in a locker room interview the day after Christmas: "We've got a lot of records at stake, the most important one being the 16-0...I hope we achieve that. It would be a great feat for the team. We'd go down as the only team to be 16-0, so that's the goal I've got in mind." -Tom Brady Though I'm sure winning the Super Bowl is still the supreme goal, it's nice to see a little honesty from the players (if only one so far publicly). Here's a thought: if realizing what they are on the verge of as a team is sinking in, what about all those other records, particularly the individual ones? What will happen if the Patriots score three defensive touchdowns in the first quarter and essentially lock up the game by the half? Will Brady, Moss et.al. come back to take the field for the third quarter, risking potential injury? What if the team they are facing has already (and most likely will have) pulled their starters? How important are those records, even if only secretly to the individuals themselves? I know this: we care. We want to see all those records broken. We want to see it happen, no matter what it takes, because we know these types of seasons and these types of chances don't come by everyday. So, Coach, give them a chance to do it, even if it's in the second half.
Point Three:What is it that is making the Patriots so hated outside of the New England bubble? ESPN Page 2 ran a story yesterday that asked readers if the Patriots could go down as the most hated team in history (they had a poll too, if you're interested). Sports Illustrated's cover this week features a Photoshopped Bill Belichick grimacing in a Santa Suit...not exactly the picture of a person beloved. "Being associated with Santa Claus...there is a lot worse, so I'll take it...When you're a kid, sometimes you dreamed of being on the cover of Sports Illustrated, but that's not the [cover] I pictured." -Bill Belichick Is it jealousy? Spite perhaps? It's no secret that right now Boston is the place to be a sports fan, what with the World Champion Red Sox, the undefeated Patriots, and the NBA-best Celtics, etc. It's simple: the Patriots (and Boston sports in general) are no longer the underdogs, and subsequently it is no longer hip for peripheral sports fans (if you can call them that) to root for them. Instead, the American way dictates the common moron to shout "down with the victors" and mock guys like Belichick and Brady. I can't wait for Saturday. 
The weather held off, but it's fifteen down, one to go. The Patriots are too far along now to not achieve this. I know they'll preach the "15 one-game winning streaks", but I doubt in the locker room next week they'll be thinking about moving on the the playoffs. Next week is about a lot of things, but what will be on the mind of everyone is nothing except one thing:
Number 16.
The New England Patriots became the second team in history to start a season 14-0 after beating the Jets 20-10 today in a wet and rainy Gillette Stadium. Though the weather may have limited much of the Patriots' game plan to a ground attack, it proved not to be a factor in terms of the outcome.
In a game that also featured two blocked punts, the Jets seemed poised for a comeback late in the game. Chad Pennington, in for an injured Kellen Clemens, threw what was initially ruled a TD that would have made it a 3-point game with just under 3 minutes left. The play was reviewed and overturned, however, as receiver Justin McCareins clearly didn't have possession when his first foot hit the ground. I'm sure the New York media will cry foul, but it was the right call, without a doubt.
The closest the Pats came to losing today was when the game was temporarily suspended because some meatheads were slinging snowballs onto the field with the Pats in the end zone in the 4th quarter, bringing me to the edge of my seat wondering, albeit for a moment, if their perfect season would end with a forfeit.
Thankfully, it didn't.
The only other team to win their first 14 games was...you guessed it...the 1972 Miami Dolphins. For them, the 14th game marked the end of the regular season and clubhouse pat on the back. For the Pats, it's just a step closer to their ultimate goal (no, not a perfect season...another Super Bowl Championship) and a broad smile on the face of Bill Belichick.
The Patriots will face the 2007 version of the Miami team next week, who up until today were the polar opposite of the Pats; that is, they had yet to win a game. The Dolphins beat the Ravens in overtime 22-16 after Baltimore tied the game with a field goal with 8 second left in the 4th quarter. The Ravens kicker Matt Stover couldn't put the potential game winner through the uprights when given the chance in overtime, though, and Cleo Lemon found Greg Camarillo for a 64 yard game winning TD.
The Dolphins finally winning may not be all that bad. It may be the old Red Sox fan in me, but I for one was worried that karma would somehow intervene next week if an 0-14 Dolphins team were to face a 14-0 Patriots team, potentially spoiling the breaking of their own franchise's record, no matter how daunting the task may be. Now that they won a game, I'm back to reality and pretty confident that New England will be playing the NY Giants with a 15-0 record.
Who says the Yankees can't win anything anymore? After the release of the Mitchell Report today, the New York club proved they can be still tops of at least one thing: the number of players mentioned in the report who play or have played for them. You go guys.
Oh, and as for Clemens: sorry buddy. Eight pages in the report is awfully convincing to me. Maybe the Duque was right about you; that is, your best days were behind you...until you started juicing.
image (mostly) from ESPN.com
This week was said to be the biggest test left for the Patriots on their way to an undefeated season. However, the mighty Pittsburgh Steelers and their #1 rated defense were still 10-point underdogs going into today's game, even after two weeks where the Patriots seemed to scuffle a bit.
It turned out the bookies were wrong...way wrong. Their pick for a winner was right, but the spread was more than doubled as the Pats trounced the Steelers 34-13, clinching a bye in the first round of this year's playoffs. Tom Brady threw for 399 yards and 4 touchdowns today, giving him 45 on the season. He needs 5 more over the next 3 games to pass Peyton Manning's single season record of 49, set in 2004. Considering that Brady passed Dan Marino's record today for most games in a season with 3 or more touchdown passes (11), this doesn;t look to be a problem.
A couple of those touchdowns were caught by Randy Moss (go figure), who almost caught a third on the Patriots' last drive. He now has 19 on the year and is another Patriot on pace to break a single season record, that being the one for receiving touchdowns in a single season currently set at 22 by Jerry Rice.
There were some great plays in the game as well. The Patriots found the endzone with 1:05 left in the first quarter when Brady slung it in to Moss for a 4 yard touchdown, and subsequently highlighted, by the way, by a post-catch jabbering match between Brady and some of the Steelers' secondary. On their very next play from scrimmage, the Pats went long and scored on a 63-yard play-action pass from Brady to Moss. In the third quarter, there was another long passing touchdown, but this one was the result of a play that started with Brady throwing across field to Moss, Moss dropping it, picking it up, then passing it back to Brady who then found Jabar Gaffney 56 yards downfield in the endzone. Because the only forward pass was the last one, the play was entirely legal, and had Moss not picked up the ball quickly enough a Steeler may have recovered what would have been considered a fumble.
After the play the cameras showed image after image of Patriots' coaches, players and fans smiling and laughing, perhaps at the fact that the play worked, perhaps at the Steelers in general.
Oh, and of course there was backup-turned-starter Anthony Smith's bold guarantee of a Steeler victory. As with most declarations of the sort, he was wrong.
13 down, 3 to go.
As if TLM wasn't the best already, she arranged for us to have a
"secret date night" tonight. I write you now from halftime at the TD
Banknorth Garden, where the the C's have a 22 point lead over the
Raptors. Oh, did I mention she's the best?
Did the Patriots get any extra help last night in their victory and quest for a perfect season? If they did, it was from the Ravens, case closed. Consider these plays:
- With a 7 point Ravens lead, Kyle Boller launches a pick into a pack of Patriots with 10:37 left on the clock on a 3rd and 14 on the NE 30. Consider this: had the play been a running play, or even a short passing play out to the flat, the clock would have continued to tick and Baltimore might still have had a shot at a field goal (albeit a 47 yarder from that line of scrimmage), or at least a coffin-corner punt otherwise. Instead, the Pats return the interception to their own 43 and march 37 yards in 1:36 o kick a field goal and cut the difference to 4. McGahee had been running all over the Patriots front all day, so why stop then? Fault here: Baltimore.
- On the Patriots' final drive, the first time they faced a 4th down came with 1:38 left in the game. Brady had just thrown a short pass on a 3rd and 10 to Kevin Faulk who managed to gain 9 yards to make it 4th and 1, and Brady subsequently hurried to the line and tried a QB sneak only to get stuffed by the Ravens' perfectly positioned front line, seemingly ending the Patriots' drive. The play is called back, though, as "someone" (Rex Reed) on the Ravens' sidelines called timeout just before the snap. The Ravens' defense on the field is livid with their coach. Once again, fault: Baltimore.
"I heard the whistle blow and I stopped...I would've made the first down if the whistle didn't blow." - Tom Brady on the 4th and 1 QB sneak - On the very next snap (thanks again, Rex!), Heath Evans is slammed for a one yard loss. Here is the only place where Baltimore may have gotten some help as Russ Hochstein jumped off before the snap, nullifying the last play (again) and making it 4th and 6. Was this a bad thing, though? No, not at all, and for three reasons, the first being the aforementioned voiding of the Evans play. The second reason is that I believe it contributed to rattling the Ravens, and the third was what came on the next play, with the Ravens' looking for a pass, sleping on Brady who sprinted(?) for 12 yards to get the 1st. Fault: Baltimore.
- Oh, on that same play, Samari Rolle tacked on 5 yards after an illegal contact call, giving the Pats now a 1st and 10 on the Ravens' 18. Fault: Baltimore.
- The last 4th down for the Patriots on the drive came with just 55 seconds left on the clock and the Patriots still needing a touchdown. After a New England timeout, presumably to draw up just the right play, Brady tried to find Ben Watson in the endzone, but to no avail as the pass went incomplete, bouncing off three sets of hands. The play (and end of the drive) was once again revoked, however, as a penalty was called for holding on Jamaine Winborne (incorrectly, though, as it was Bart Scott was tackling Jabar Gaffney as Brady was releasing the ball), resulting in a Patriots 1st and Goal on the Ravens' 8 yard line. Fault: Baltimore.
- Next play: touchdown pass to Gaffney on an in-route-turned-out-route. Both feet were clearly in, and the ever-vague "did he have possession" question came into play when the replay official wanted to look it over. Where was the pass rush the Ravens had been so successful with all night? OK, really this was a great play by the Patriots, and the following is for the sake of consistency. Fault: Baltimore.
- An absolute meltdown of linebacker Bart Scott followed with a 15 yard unsportsmanlike conduct, then another one for throwing an official's flag into the stands. That's 30 yards assessed on the ensuing kickoff, Bart. At this point Baltimore was only down by a field goal and had one timeout. Scott's two penalties, along with another 5 yards for an offsides on Ed Reed, put the Patriots point of kickoff on the Baltimore 35 yard line, essentially making sure the Ravens' next drive would start at best on their 20. Fault: Baltimore (specifically Bart Scott)
Let's see if the Steelers can learn from Baltimore's mistakes. Actually, I hope they don't. Go Pats.
Bugman's text message at 11:40 PM (as the last Patriots touchdown was being reviewed) says it all:
"My heart can't take this!" -Bugman Mine can't either....more on the game tomorrow.
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