The Days Are Getting Longer

yep.

Roomofzen Podcast Episode #8: Stay Classy Tampa Bay

On today's snowed in Super Bowl week edition, Babcock and I breakdown the matchups between the Steelers and Cardinals, review some of the prop bets available for Sunday's showdown, offer some creative marketing ideas for the 43 strip clubs (as reported by the AP) within the Tampa city limits, and make our bold predictions as to which team will hoist the Lombardi Trophy (and, unlike our last episode, we actually disagree).

We also concede that Kurt Warner is more than just a figure for us to mock, remember some of Babcock's harder years, make our predictions as to how the Eastern Conference will shake out in the NBA, and ponder the identity of the Phoenix Suns.

Please enjoy....



Subscribe Free for future posts  Add this player to my Page


We also discuss 2001 Odyssey, which according to the AP article is a Tampa Strip club with a space ship shaped VIP room on top of it. Here is a photo:







Apparently Sonic does exist:



Also, here is the story of Bernie Notte, the 43 year old Mons Venus waitress who pulling her stilletos out of the closet in order to bring in the super bowl week cash.




Drive By Truckers: Never Gonna Change

Hauhili ka `ai a ke kawele`â!

In the latest example of the pro bowl being a joke Kerry Collins has been chosen to replace Brett Farve on the AFC roster. Now I can appreciate the fact that Collins had a solid year taking over for the drastically overrated Vince Young but lets get serious here, he was the QB of a team that relied heavily on defense and a punishing ground game to win. This is a good way to win football games but bad for creating pro bowl QB's. Now resisting the urge to politic for Matt Cassel's inclusion in the game I want to go too bat for the guy who is truly getting screwed here, Chad Pennington. Pennington beats Collins in every imaginable statistical category. When you compare completion % (67.4 to 58.3), yards (3,653 to 2,676), yards per game (228.3 to 167.3) and TD (19 to 12), it becomes painfully obvious who should be the AFC's fifth choice for a Pro Bowl QB. Did I mention that Pennington had the second highest QB rating in the entire league and finished tied for second in the MVP voting. This type of stuff is exactly why nobody gives a shit about the NFL's version of an All-Star game. There is no reason that a die hard Pats fan such as myself should have to go to bat for some ex-Jet Miami QB but that is the situation the NFL has put us all in by ignoring the plan facts. There is talk of the NFL moving the pro bowl to the week in between the conference championships and the superbowl in order to raise interest in the game. While I fully support this decision it will make no difference if the players who deserve to be there are not included. If Chad Pennington never makes a pro bowl (which he never has), at least he'll be able to tell his grandkids about the time he just missed it. If only he had a better year than Kerry Collins.

Rollin Down the Street...

"Snoop Doggy Dogg...Need to get a Jobby Job". The Good Old Days...

Bubble Toes?

Now announcing the 12th head coach of the Denver Broncos... ladies and
gentlemen Jack Johnson.

State of Emergency

President Obama needs to declare a National State of Emergency ASAP until this problem is fixed:

Do You Guru?

He has returned.

The Conference Championship two team tease of the century:

Arizona + 9 and Baltimore +12.

The Guru says take the points on both of these uderdogs. Arizona in Arizona is the opposite of ARod in the postseason. When snow flakes fall in Pittsburgh it is unlikely that either team will even score 12 points in the first place. May your buffalo wings be seasoned correctly, and the jalepeno poppers filled with warm cheese. Do not ask why, the path of the Guru is shrouded in mystery.

Weekend Predictions...

Obviously, what I say here means nothing. There is no way to predict this NFL season, which has been one crazy twist after another. I would just say that I am looking forward to enjoying all four games as an impartial observer (I am even going to work hard not to root against the Eagles in the NFC Championship). I have a lot to say about one game, and not much to say about the other.


First....



That still happened, and I need to keep reminding myself of that in order to keep a healthy perspective on things.




Here we go:


NFC: Cardinals (+3) over Eagles: It's becoming more and more clear that the Cardinals started leaving their playbook at home on Sundays after they clinched. We thought they had abandoned the run. Teams were blowing them out because they knew exactly what to expect and Arizona wasn't showing anything new. I've heard them scorned by a lot of people for this over the past week, and I can't understand why. They play in a shitty division. That's not their fault. Every little edge counts in the NFL, and this was a brilliant move.

I love the type of momentum that Arizona has heading into this weekend. Larry Fitzgerald has looked like Spiderman. Even with Anquan Boldin out of the lineup, Fitzgerald has elevated the level of his play (which I didn't think was possible given the great year that he had) in the playoffs. Boldin will be back this week, and frankly I don't see how the Eagles secondary can stop these guys.

Don't get me wrong, the Philly secondary has been good for a long time. But, you can beat them with size. That's always been the case. That's why Plaxico Burress was such a big signing for the Giants in 2005 (and such a huge loss in 2008). Fitzgerald and Boldin are mutants. Remember the receivers that Warner had with the greatest show on turf? These guys are bigger and better.

On the other side, the Arizona defense has been underrated all season long. They were among the top units in the entire NFL in takeaways. They already have 7 interceptions so far in the postseason (although I'd be shocked if Donovan McNabb helped them out the same way Jake DelHomme did). I love the way they play, and every time I watch them I'm shocked at how underrated they are (Dansby, Okeafor, Berry, Wilson, DR-C).

Finally, the Cardinals always play well at home. This game sold out fast, so it should be loud. We all know that Kurt Warner requires near-artificial conditions, completely free of any wind, cold, or precipitation to throw the ball well. There could not be a more perfect place for this game to be taking place than in Arizona.

The Cards offense looks unstoppable. They will be playing at home. They'll be getting one of their superstars back. I just don't understand how they could be underdogs in this one.


Pittsburgh (-1) over Baltimore: I hate to say it, but I just don't see Baltimore winning this one. You could talk to me all day about the Raven's defense (which I respect a great deal), and you will not convince me that they are better than this Pittsburgh defense. Joe Flacco has a bright future, but he will not move the chains against these guys. That Baltimore defense looks beat up. I get the sense that Baltimore has proven their point. People were ignoring them. Now they have their respect. In a snowy, frigid night game in Pittsburgh, I'm taking the Steelers. I hope I'm wrong.

The Roomofzen Tries To Live Up to Its Name: Why Is It So Hard To Repeat?

I've always heard it said that repeating is the hardest thing to do. I guess I really never understood. I figured people thought it was hard because the team wouldn't be hungry. I figured that people thought it was hard because the team would feel so satisfied from winning that they wouldn't come in to training camp with the same desire. I thought people figured after winning a Super Bowl, most guys would spend their whole off season sitting in a beach chair with a cocktail. I had no fears like that about the Giants this season, because so many guys on the team were young. They would still be hungry, and eager to prove that last season was not a fluke. Well, I have been humbled, and now I understand more.

What makes repeating so hard is not a lack of desire in the returning players. It actually has more to do with the timeline of the season. There were all types of questions swirling around the Giants in the preseason. People wanted to know if they were going to be a legitimate threat to defend their title. This put a lot of pressure on them to come out perfect when the year started. The situation created by winning a Super Bowl forced the Giants to treat the first few weeks of the season as though they were must-win statement games. And, they did. But very few teams (New England last year) can maintain a level of play that high throughout the season. When you work so hard to convince the critics and yourself that you are for real at the beginning, how could there not be a let down, especially when everyone annoints you immediately? We see it every year. It's all about how you play at the end of the season.

On the day that the Giants beat the Ravens, I decided that I was not going to set lofty expectations for the team. They were playing at a higher level than I could ever remember, but I just didn't feel like they were as good as people in the media believed. Remember, this was a team that was playing without arguably their two most important defensive players from the season before (Strahan, Umenyiora). I decided that regardless of what happened I would just enjoy the fact that I got to see them defend their championship so honorably during the season. It's a good thing that I made this decision, because nothing could have prepared me for how the season ended.

I will not disrespect the Eagles or the rest of the Giants' offense by blaming yesterday's loss on the absence of Plaxico Burress. However, I will say that losing him made it nearly impossible for this team to repeat. No matter how good the chemistry is, you need a big playmaker. We had all gotten to the point (partly because the media said so) that we thought maybe they could keep winning despite a huge downgrade in talent. People were actually saying "with Domenik Hixon in there instead of Plaxico Burress, this team might actually play better." That's ridiculous.

Think about the throw down the field yesterday in which Eli Manning and Hixon connected. It was one of Eli's few good throws of the day. He dropped it perfectly into Hixon's arms. There was a very small window for error. If that had been Burress he was throwing to, all he would have needed to do was get it somewhere in the vicinity. On top of that, having Burress on the field would have totally changed the way that Philly played defensively and it would have allowed the Giants to get more on the ground.

In the end, I can't be upset. At the start of the season, I was worried about the loss of Strahan and Umenyiora. If you had told me then that we'd lose Plax as well, I would have expected that the Giants would be sitting in third place in the NFC East. But, an exciting season filled with victories over teams like Dallas, Washington, Philly, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and Arizona plus the top spot in the NFC......I can't be upset. What hurts more than anything is that it came at the hands of the Eagles........


As my closing thought, I'd just like to say that I've always wanted Donovan McNabb to do well. But, I've always wanted it to happen with another team. I didn't want the Giants to draft Eli Manning, but I certainly got on board when they made the move. The fans in Philadelphia have treated McNabb like dirt despite the fact that he's given them the best years in the organization's history. I'm happy for him. Only him.

Can Steph Help the C's Get Their Swagger Back? Plus..the Playoff Picks

Don't try and convince yourself, that was not a close game last night. The setting was perfect for them to make a statement, and because of that it would have been nice to see a sense of urgency. Even if they hadn't been sliding, this was a huge game. I had it circled in December, during the midst of a huge winning streak, because I knew Cleveland was right on our heels (those were good days..) and I knew that this was a possible Eastern Conference Finals matchup. This should have been one of the most epic games of this regular season. And yet, the only player on the court that seemed to grasp the magnitude of the night was LeBron James.


Now, I'm not panicing by any means. Kelly Dwyer has been saying this week that what we're seeing from the Celtics is "regression to the mean". I like the way that sounds. Normal NBA teams go through these types of skids. But, something happened this morning that I never expected:


I woke up, got out of bed, and said to myself "man, we NEED Stephon Marbury."


I was livid when I first read the reports that the Celtics were interested in bringing Marbury on board. But, this morning, it makes sense. They said on the radio last night that Rondo has been in a lot of pain from being knocked hard to the floor so many times. We're not even halfway through the season. He's going to need some stretches in which he plays fewer minutes. On top of that, although he did have a stretch earlier this year where he looked like the best point man in the East, Rondo is still a work in progress.

Marbury would give the Celtics a guy that could play a lot of minutes when Rondo struggles. Additionally, he will keep defenses more honest than Rondo or House can. Teams cannot leave him open to shoot as they do with Rondo, and yet he can create offense and handle the ball better than House can. In fact, he could be very dangerous on the floor with the starting unit.

Marbury's "cancer" effect is well documented (if you haven't read this yet, get on it!). But, I'm not really concerned that he will be able to negatively change the chemistry of this team. The leadership is too solid. On top of that, who in the NBA has more to prove than Marbury (you could argue several people here, but just stick with me)? The guy DOES NOT WANT to be a cancer. He grew up devoting his life to basketball. I'm sure it kills him that he has developed this reputation. I think the sense of rejection that he felt from the Knicks this season really hurt him and led to the actions that we're seeing (sorry, I've been attending native american peacemaking circle training for the past two days and I am going for the final day in about 15 minutes). I think he will be ecstatic to be joining such a great organization, and I think he will be happy to contribute.

I have heard several people on the radio make the "Manny to the Dodgers" comparison. That doesn't work that well for me. I think Randy Moss to the Patriots is a more accurate comparison. The Oakland Raiders and the New York Knicks parallel one another in many eerie ways. Marbury is a real talent, and I think he would relish the opportunity to join forces with guys like KG, Pierce, and Ray Allen (as Moss felt with Tom Brady). This is a shot at redemption for him.

So, there it is. I'm crying out for Stephon Marbury. We need some swagger back. We need to shake it up. I also really, really hope PJ Brown is working out right now and that he and Danny Ainge have already had phone conversations about when exactly he will be joining the team, but only time will tell.






The Picks:

TITANS OVER RAVENS: This is going to be a battle, but I expect the Titans to run on Baltimore. The Titans will lock down McLain and Mcgahee.

CAROLINA OVER ARIZONA: The line is something insane (I think 9.5) on this one. I don't expect it to be that lopsided, but Williams and Stewart will keep Carolina's offense on schedule.

GIANTS OVER EAGLES: A new season starts now for the Giants. If you've actually been watching the Eagles, they aren't that scary. If Philly plays the game they played last week, the G-Men will run away with this one.

SAN DIEGO OVER PITTSBURGH: The Steelers can't protect Ben Roethlisberger, and I don't think their offense will be able to do anything against the Chargers, who have just the right kind of momentum right now.

Hump Day Spectacular

Classy.

Without a team in the NFL Playoff mix and with the Celtics sliding to the brink of Stephon Marbury I have had a lot of time to reflect over the past two weeks. In many ways, not having to deal with the stress of putting all of your hopes and dreams into a professional sports franchise in the hunt for a Superbowl has been a calming and interesting experience. I can watch the games for what they are: pure entertainment.

LaRocque and I, in a serious display of solidarity hit on 50% of the games during that "Wild" Wild Card weekend. A few points:

-I love the Saturday/Sunday combination. When you mix in the Rose Bowl this made for excellent viewing that carried itself throughout the weekend. Just when you get tired of watching the NFL you can switch into "Big 10 getting dominated mode" without leaving your seat at the sports bar. And when you've seen enough shots of Joe "The Puppet" Paterno you can put yourself right back into the NFL mix in time to see Chad Pennington begin his quest for an unprecedented 3rd comeback player of the year award. My money says that Paterno continues to coach past 90, calling in plays from that strange life support capsule that Arthur Digby Sellers was seen in in The Big Lebowski. Naturally, his headset will be plugged into an old shoebox, and occasionally an intern would show him some of those laminated black and white formation photographs in a 3 ring binder.

The bulk of the series...

-Indy displayed a miserable running game. Oddly enough, Edgerrin James had his best game of the year the same weekend despite being a non factor the entire season. What if the Mannings mated with the Williams sisters? I think about these things all the time.

-Ed Reed is Nasty.

Moving along...

Rather than focusing on the fascinating New England Patriots offseason that might see the loss of Coordinator Josh McDaniels and Serious Personnel Guru (my own terminology) Scott Pioli, along with an unprecedented Franchise-and-Trade maneuver featuring Matt Cassell I have been thinking about this:

Unnecessary Scarf on the Offense, number 12...

I have determined that from now on I will refer to Giselle Bundchen as "Gis". I will pronounce it as "jizz", however, not "jiss". I invite you all to join with me. Imagine reading thinking or saying this line: "Tom Brady was spotted courtside at last nights Celtics game with Gis on him arm". Or "Tom Brady was photographed picking up Gis outside of a trendy SoCal salon." We can make this happen.

Seriously though, Happy New Year.

Playoffs

Pop quiz hot-shot: what's the single most annoying thing you'll hear on Sports Center today?

Answer: "WILD CARD WEEKEND WAS WILD, BABY!"

As much as I hate to hear that phrase, it's true. So for those of you still watching the NFL and not upset about Tom Brady missing another three seasons because of a leg injury, you had the pleasure of watching:

1. A team that wasn't expected to make the playoffs versus a team that should have made the playoffs for the past three seasons. Remember how everyone from Larocque to Mark Schlereth kept talking about "how the Cardinals were going to make the playoffs" or "how much they've improved from last season"? It took the Cards three to four years of "rebuilding" to finally make the playoffs, which is really just short-hand for saying they finally hired a competent GM. They hired one and look what happened (Redskins take note -- more on the 'Skins later this week).

Speaking of solid management -- look at the Atlanta Falcons. Who in their right mind would have predicted a playoff birth for the Falcons this year, especially with a rookie QB and physic wounds from the Vick affair? Arthur Blank, the guy who started Home Depot, clearly knows how to run an organization / football team. If they gave out an Owner of the Year Award, I would think Blank is at the top of the list, although the Dolphins' owner has to be a close second.

2. Chad Pennington reminding us he's Chad Pennington. When a guy wins two "Comeback Player of the Year" awards in the span of eight years you have to wonder: what happened to his game which enabled him to comeback not once, but twice? While the awards are cool and impressive, something about winning "comeback player of the year" twice reminds me that Chad is extremely inconsistent. Throw in Ed "Ballhawk" Reed and you have a nightmare for Pennington, which is why the Ravens crushed the Dolphins yesterday. In retrospect, way too predictable.

3. Speaking of which, do Minnesota and Brad Childress suprise you at all? The Vikings esentially gave up in the fourth quarter even though they had a legimate shot to beat the lifeless and offense-less Eagles. I got the distinct impression that Jared Allen was the only guy hustling yesterday. Even though he plays defensive end, he was ten to twenty yards downfield making plays yesterday which is impressive. The rest of the Vikings? They gave up with 8 minutes remaining! That, my friends, is pathetic. I would expect that type of performance from the Redskins, not from the Vikings!

5. Norv Turner still looking constipated. Despite a fourth quarter comeback, playoff win, solid quarterbacking, and stellar defense, the Chargers' coach still looked like he hadn't taken a shit in weeks. And while the Chargers mounted a gutsy fourth quarter comeback shutting down Manning and his patsy semi-mullet, good-ole Norv could barely crack a smile.

Tommy Heinsohn is a Homer and Other Thoughts

It's been months since my last post and a lot has gone on in that time. However, on the heels of the Celtics losing 3 of 4 out west, Charles Barkleys' stunning mug shot/surreal explanation and LaRocque's ground breaking mid podcast beer run, it felt like a good time to start writing again. In lieu of a coherent post I'll go with a random list of unrelated points.

- Before LaRocque pulled a homer move and gave his pick for the Defensive Player of the Year he should have held out for Antonio Pierce's defense at the pending Plaxico Burress trial. That joke made more sense in my head.

- If I were a Philadelphia Eagels fan I would not care that Donovan McNabb did not know a NFL game can end in a tie. To be fair I did not see the game and if McNabb played conservatively down the stretch banking on a second overtime it makes sense to a degree. But it still gets my vote for the most overblown story of the NFL season. Furthermore, for all of the criticism McNabb and Andy Reid take I'd still take them over half, in not more, of the QBs and head coaches in the NFL.

- The fact that Caron Butler's brilliance is flying under the radar is the underrated downer of the complete implosion of the Washington Wizards. I know he's been an All Star, but people don't realize how good he is. Meanwhile, when that team is moderately healthy it is one of the most entertaining squads in the entire league to follow.

- Over the last 5 years blogs have completely transformed the way die hard fans follow their respective teams. As a sophomore in college I read Bill Simmons, Peter King, Dr. Z, and...that's it. Things have changed for the better. And yet television coverage lags painfully behind. I've given up on all pre and post game shows and have a hard time listening to most announcers. Granted it's not entirely their fault. Television executives push certain agendas. However, we continue to grow increasingly savvy as sports fans and television coverage shows few if any signs of keeping pace.

- The numerous proclamations of "The Dunk contest is back!" is one of my least favorite aspects of the NBA All Star weekend. That's mainly because I've always loved the Dunk Contest. Off the top only the Fred Jones, Desmond Mason, and Nate Robinson Dunk Contests did not do it for me. And that brings me to my point. I hate the fact that Robinson is in this year's edition. If they hadn't retired his summer league jersey I'd really be up in arms.
- Maybe I'm the only one but I'd be far more worried if the Yankees picked up David Price, Scott Kazmir, and Evan Longoria this off season. Taking into account that I probably always undervalue Mark Teixeira, I still don't fear the C.C. Sabathia/A.J. Burnett/Teixeira triumvirate. And that's saying something because A) Teixeira was instrumental in my first fantasy league championship and B) Price and company all play for the Rays.

- For entirely different reasons I can't speak rationally about the Hanley Ramirez to the Red Sox and Stephon Marbury to the Celtics rumors. Moving on...

- With all due respect to LaRocque, Kobe Bryant couldn't take a team of scrubs past round one...in the Western Conference. LeBron did it with a tremendous defensive team in a significantly weaker conference. Granted I'm terrified of LeBron. But in 07' and 08' the Eastern Conference was not strong. Having said all that I encourage you to check out the end (final 12 minutes or so) of the most previous ROOMOFZEN podcast for the LeBron/Bolt debate. Babcock's jacket argument and Bolt commercial idea were fantastic.

- I caught Matt Cassell in an intense conversation with Steve Pagliuca during the Celtics/Wizards game and I really wanted to know what they were discussing.

- Every now and then Tom Heinsohn somehow brings his homerism to a new level. For example tonight he argued that a goal tending should have been overlooked because of the hustle that went into it. In the old days they would have let the fans enjoy it. I defended Gerald Green on numerous occasions and yet even I'm at a loss with Heinsohn at times.

- 7 footers are sort of like lefty pitchers in the sense that someone will always give them a shot. I bring this up because Patrick O'Bryant is starting to remind me a little bit of Matt Young. That's not a good thing.

That's it for now.