EARLY LINES, SOME NEWS & MY DAY AWAY FROM FOOTBALL
For those of you who are prone to make a wager on football games from time to time I will give you a chance to handicap the TV Guide, something I constantly criticize, just for entertainment purposes. The four best matchups opening weekend plus two of local interest:
Pitt at Utah -3 Absolutely the right number
Oregon State vs. TCU(in Dallas) -12 Have to admit, this one surprised me, I had it at 9 1/2
North Carolina -1 at LSU Laying points in Baton Rouge is a tall order but I think Tigers are bogus
Boise State -2 1/2 vs. Virginia Tech(at Washington D.C.) Could turn out to be the most important game of the year
UCLA at Kansas State -2 1/2 Looking forward to seeing Wildcat RB Daniel Thomas
Mizzou -13 vs. Illinois(at St.Louis) Are the Illini this bad? Answer: Yes they are
Don't be surprised if Larry Johnson gets the old heave-ho in Washington. LJ has been on his best behavior but he just looks slow, a problem Chiefs' fans watched for too long last season. Ryan Torrain & Keiland Williams have outperformed Johnson & former Steeler Willie Parker. Owner Daniel Snyder has never hesitated to spend money, but dumping LJ & Parker would save the Skins nearly $6.5 million this season.
I look forward to Florida's first two games versus Miami of Ohio & South Florida. The Gators should handle them easily, in fact they're a 36-point favorite in the opener. The reason for my interest is on Tuesday, Florida coach Urban Meyer moved All-America candidate C/G Mike Pouncey out to right tackle, where he will play for at least the first two games because of injury. After LT Xavier Nixon was injured, Meyer moved RT Marcus Gilbert to the other side. Gilbert's backup, Ian Silberman, is also sidelined, so Pouncey has been moved outside for the first time in his collegiate career. His twin brother, Markice, a first round pick of the Steelers was the center last year while Mike played RG, but in spring practice, Mike became the new center. This is a major move for a high-round prospect & how he responds could really affect his draft status.
Did you catch any of the Arizona-Tennessee game Monday night? Have to say Vince Young really out performed Matt Leinart. Of course the Cardinals no longer have WR Anquan Bolden & all-world Larry Fitzgerald is sitting out the preseason with a sprained knee, but honestly, Leinart looked pretty sad. LeGarrette "sucker punch" Blount looked good enough to make the Titans as the 3rd back. WR Kenny Britt continues to disappoint, the Titan's 2009 1st round draft pick has 2 receptions for 14 yards in two games while dropping 4 passes. This was the major question about Britt coming out of Rutgers, inconsistent hands.
I told you over the weekend about Cincinnati's Chad Ochocinco & his in-game Tweet the other night. The NFL made an impression on Chad Tuesday by fining him $25,000. He Tweeted this afternoon it wouldn't happen again. I agree, in-game Tweets from Chad won't happen again, but he'll find another outrageous way to get himself in the news. Hey, here's an idea, how about he goes out, runs flawless routes & catches everything thrown in his direction. No, that's too boring, even if it's why the Bengals pay him a 7-figure salary.
Chiefs starting right tackle Ryan O'Callaghan went down with a leg injury in Tuesday morning's practice & did not return for the evening session. Barry Richardson ran with the first team after O'Callaghan departed. Another tackle, Seattle's number one pick, Russell Okung sustained the dreaded high ankle sprain in Saturday's loss to the Packers. It remains to be seen if Okung will be ready by the season opener.
The Broncos, riddled with injuries since mid-May, got some very good news on Tuesday. Left tackle Ryan Clady will return to practice on Wednesday. He tore a patella tendon playing basketball in the off-season & his short rehab & return is quite remarkable, provided he's really ready for action. Running backs Correll Buckhalter & LenDale White will also return to practice on Wednesday. Starter Knowshon Moreno is still sidelined.
Washington quarterback Donovan McNabb won't play against the Jets on Friday night. Coach Mike Shanahan has a policy of "no practice, no play" & McNabb hasn't been able to practice since spraining his left ankle.
Colorado's departure from the Big-12 Conference just might be delayed until 2012. UCLA is one of several PAC-10 teams who don't want Utah & Colorado to jump right into their conference after this season ends. This could really muddle the Big-12's plans for their 2011 football scheduling. Nebraska is definitely jumping to the Big-10 for the 2011 season, but what will happen if they leave & Colorado stays? Stay tuned.
Tuesday was one of those good news, bad news kind of days for yours truly. I had an MRI on my deteriorating right shoulder, which I wanted so my orthopedist can see exactly what's wrong & tell me what options I have. The bad news came when they had to remove the 2" pads from the MRI table which caused my lower back to seize up as soon as the test was completed. Before another doctor's appointment in the afternoon, I finally sprung for a new desk chair. I bought it at Staples & it was on sale, but sadly it has no Chiefs' or Mizzou logo. So that was a good news, bad news deal too. After limping thru PetCo, I went onto my cardiologist's office for my semi-annual appointment. He was happy with my ticker, scheduled an October stress test & told me if it turned out well he would take me off Plavix, a drug that costs us $102 a month. Also good news. Came home, caught a quick nap, had a great dinner with Linda, my sister & bro-in-law followed by Rescue Me & Date Night down in the TV bunker. Not everything is about football, at least not on Tuesday it wasn't. Back to full time football on Wednesday.
Pitt at Utah -3 Absolutely the right number
Oregon State vs. TCU(in Dallas) -12 Have to admit, this one surprised me, I had it at 9 1/2
North Carolina -1 at LSU Laying points in Baton Rouge is a tall order but I think Tigers are bogus
Boise State -2 1/2 vs. Virginia Tech(at Washington D.C.) Could turn out to be the most important game of the year
UCLA at Kansas State -2 1/2 Looking forward to seeing Wildcat RB Daniel Thomas
Mizzou -13 vs. Illinois(at St.Louis) Are the Illini this bad? Answer: Yes they are
Don't be surprised if Larry Johnson gets the old heave-ho in Washington. LJ has been on his best behavior but he just looks slow, a problem Chiefs' fans watched for too long last season. Ryan Torrain & Keiland Williams have outperformed Johnson & former Steeler Willie Parker. Owner Daniel Snyder has never hesitated to spend money, but dumping LJ & Parker would save the Skins nearly $6.5 million this season.
I look forward to Florida's first two games versus Miami of Ohio & South Florida. The Gators should handle them easily, in fact they're a 36-point favorite in the opener. The reason for my interest is on Tuesday, Florida coach Urban Meyer moved All-America candidate C/G Mike Pouncey out to right tackle, where he will play for at least the first two games because of injury. After LT Xavier Nixon was injured, Meyer moved RT Marcus Gilbert to the other side. Gilbert's backup, Ian Silberman, is also sidelined, so Pouncey has been moved outside for the first time in his collegiate career. His twin brother, Markice, a first round pick of the Steelers was the center last year while Mike played RG, but in spring practice, Mike became the new center. This is a major move for a high-round prospect & how he responds could really affect his draft status.
Did you catch any of the Arizona-Tennessee game Monday night? Have to say Vince Young really out performed Matt Leinart. Of course the Cardinals no longer have WR Anquan Bolden & all-world Larry Fitzgerald is sitting out the preseason with a sprained knee, but honestly, Leinart looked pretty sad. LeGarrette "sucker punch" Blount looked good enough to make the Titans as the 3rd back. WR Kenny Britt continues to disappoint, the Titan's 2009 1st round draft pick has 2 receptions for 14 yards in two games while dropping 4 passes. This was the major question about Britt coming out of Rutgers, inconsistent hands.
I told you over the weekend about Cincinnati's Chad Ochocinco & his in-game Tweet the other night. The NFL made an impression on Chad Tuesday by fining him $25,000. He Tweeted this afternoon it wouldn't happen again. I agree, in-game Tweets from Chad won't happen again, but he'll find another outrageous way to get himself in the news. Hey, here's an idea, how about he goes out, runs flawless routes & catches everything thrown in his direction. No, that's too boring, even if it's why the Bengals pay him a 7-figure salary.
Chiefs starting right tackle Ryan O'Callaghan went down with a leg injury in Tuesday morning's practice & did not return for the evening session. Barry Richardson ran with the first team after O'Callaghan departed. Another tackle, Seattle's number one pick, Russell Okung sustained the dreaded high ankle sprain in Saturday's loss to the Packers. It remains to be seen if Okung will be ready by the season opener.
The Broncos, riddled with injuries since mid-May, got some very good news on Tuesday. Left tackle Ryan Clady will return to practice on Wednesday. He tore a patella tendon playing basketball in the off-season & his short rehab & return is quite remarkable, provided he's really ready for action. Running backs Correll Buckhalter & LenDale White will also return to practice on Wednesday. Starter Knowshon Moreno is still sidelined.
Washington quarterback Donovan McNabb won't play against the Jets on Friday night. Coach Mike Shanahan has a policy of "no practice, no play" & McNabb hasn't been able to practice since spraining his left ankle.
Colorado's departure from the Big-12 Conference just might be delayed until 2012. UCLA is one of several PAC-10 teams who don't want Utah & Colorado to jump right into their conference after this season ends. This could really muddle the Big-12's plans for their 2011 football scheduling. Nebraska is definitely jumping to the Big-10 for the 2011 season, but what will happen if they leave & Colorado stays? Stay tuned.
Tuesday was one of those good news, bad news kind of days for yours truly. I had an MRI on my deteriorating right shoulder, which I wanted so my orthopedist can see exactly what's wrong & tell me what options I have. The bad news came when they had to remove the 2" pads from the MRI table which caused my lower back to seize up as soon as the test was completed. Before another doctor's appointment in the afternoon, I finally sprung for a new desk chair. I bought it at Staples & it was on sale, but sadly it has no Chiefs' or Mizzou logo. So that was a good news, bad news deal too. After limping thru PetCo, I went onto my cardiologist's office for my semi-annual appointment. He was happy with my ticker, scheduled an October stress test & told me if it turned out well he would take me off Plavix, a drug that costs us $102 a month. Also good news. Came home, caught a quick nap, had a great dinner with Linda, my sister & bro-in-law followed by Rescue Me & Date Night down in the TV bunker. Not everything is about football, at least not on Tuesday it wasn't. Back to full time football on Wednesday.
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