Week 4 in the NFL... MLB has a season that never ends

I'd really like to right into football, but I'm going to start with baseball. I'm a west coast kid myself. I would be more excited about what's happening in the baseball race, if I hadn't listened to all of the east coast sports groups (is that all sports groups?) talk about the Red Sox and Yankees for the last 6 months. Its numbing to hear about it for that long. When the focus is always on a particular group, you feel as if you know the group like family. I have never wanted to strangle my family so much.

There are so many stories that could be talked about that would allow the race this week as new news. Someone should have talked about them. A few would be:

i. Albert Pujols having his worst year since entering the league, and still being talked about for an MVP. That being said, Matt Holiday should run away with the NL MVP, with Hanley Ramirez in second place.
ii. Yadier Molina threw out 54% of his batters, hit 0.275 and will not be mentioned in most end of the year awards.
iii. Alex Rodriguez once again proved he's just better than most other players.
iv. The Twins could not hit, and Johan Santana, is REALLY unhappy with them. He'll likely be on a new team within a year, LIKELY.
v. The (I refuse to use their full name) California Angels, are playing monster ball. They are starting to hit and could use it into World Series, unless one of the other teams (Cle, NYY, Bos) don't slow them down.

Alright, enough baseball, that's all we'll hear about from ESPN until the Yankees and Sox are put to rest.

Week 4 in the NFL! Some things to look for this week in some games:

GB at Min: GB should win this game, but the Vikings defense could put enough pressure on Favre to cause some turnovers. However, until the Vikings can throw the ball, 125 yards on the ground won't win a game.
Bal at Cle: Cle will get some points, but I don't know if they'll reach double digits. Baltimore is going to put up a defensive show.
Chi at Det: If the Lions look at the Dallas tape, they'll realize that the Bears could not stop crossing patterns. Detroit has 4 receivers to run across the field. However, Griese may get everyone's hopes up by putting up passing numbers... against the worst pass defense around. A late turnover will give this to Detriot against an injured Bears team.
StL at Dal: Bulger should try to get right against the porous Dallas pass defense. Though not the worst in the league, they can give up yards. On a strange note, Roy Williams actually stopped some passes for the first time in the his career. Finally dallas is going to put a lot of yards.
Oak at Mia: Oak wins 2 in a row? Possible, Mia has not shown the ability to play consistent in any phase of the game. Though that usually means its time for them to put it all together for a single game to give their fans hope. Lamont Jordan is going to put Rhodes further in the hole, he may never get more than 5 carries this year, but then again this is Jordan we're talking about and the work 'injury' should be a perma tag.
NYJ at Buf: This was a Lee Evans gets well game until Losman went down. He may still do it, but you had best believe in Trent Edwards, scary. The Jets QB (whoever it is, likely Pennington) should destroy a half healthy Buffalo defense. Maybe next year Buffalo, maybe next year. I do have to send my regrets on Posluszny's loss of the Rookie of the Year due to injury... he's a freak and will be again. His injury should not affect him next year.
Hou at Atl: Harrington will struggle this week, despite what I'm hearing around the fantasy news. Houston will put up yards no matter how many receivers they lose, Atl has been that bad... other than Hall, who finally lost it with his teammates (rightly so?). He shuts down Steve Smith, and the rest of the team gives it away. I don't care how may penalty yards he lost in one drive, he played lights out, but will miss a quarter anyway.
Sea at SF: San Fran has played great against the pass, great. They will miss Manny Lawson more and more though, he could case down a cheetah if needed. Alexander will get a lot of work, or should, and Gore will too. San Fran should be tough at home, but Seattle pulled out a squeaker and should take that on through this game as well.
TB at Car: Garcia will go deep, and Galloway will be waiting. Carolina will struggle to run the ball. Delhomme will be the difference if he plays, and Steve Smith will be ready to play this week. Carolina pulls it off.
Den at Ind: Denvers corners have been great, but Manning at home will be too much... mostly with Addai's help. Indy's defense will look like championship material again.
KC at SD: Get will game for SD. Tomlinson will run okay, Gates will run away with this game.
Pit at Ari: Fast Willie will continue his push to being a top tier running back. He won't come by the yards easy, but he will come by them eventually. Neither QB for Ari will be able to run away with this game. Pit's D will continue to play well.
Phi at NYG: Both of these teams will run the ball, but both will get their yards through the air. One of the teams will game plan better, and my bet is the Eagles. Look for the winning team to put up a lot of yards, and the loser succumbing to the turnovers.

Truly, if you want to have an idea how the games will go, pick up Vegas odds and over/unders... they are the best in the business.

Now an apology. My first attempt was sub-par. No one wants the bland past... they want the future, present, and exciting past. Shouldn't make that mistake gain.

This has been a Matter of Fact.

The Beginning...

I've always wondered who would put themselves through this. Who would want to toss out all of those ideas, predictions, pondering, and opinions, just to have the world mock, ridicule, and scream about the shared information. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment.

This article is not like the 'unbiased' articles you'll find all over the internet. I won't lie about the facts and here they are.

1. I love football.
2. I follow professional Minnesota sports. (You'll notice that didn't claim to cheer for them.)
3. I believe in the Madden curse.
4. Most announcers annoy me to tears. (I'm inviting the worst phrases of the day to be sent in.)
5. When sports aren't holding my attention, I will likely ignore their existence.
6. I believe Soccer is an enjoyable sport, deal with it.
7. I should probably take remedial English at some point.
8. I love lists.

A few final points. I can't guarantee the occurence of this posting. Unfortunately, I have a job, wife, and life, and though they don't exactly come in that order of importance, they all come before this article. This would be, because I need to keep money in my pocket, my hearing, and some semblance of sanity. You can choose what leads to what.

On to the heart of the matter: the NFL season. Now, the one thing I want to start with, is my booms and busts for this year. Unfortunately, the season is going already, so you're just going to have to trust me on the honesty of the list.

Biggest busts this year:
1. Randy Moss: I figured he'd be gangbusters for a few games (not necessarily the first few), but had the idea in my head that his injuries would come hard and come fast. This may be, but I watched him in Minnesota play through injuries when he was winning. We may see this again, and Raiders fans are going to be angry, and rightly so. ESPN's Page 2 pointed this out today.
2. The Dallas Cowboy's offense: I was guessing that Romo would succumb to the missed snap, TO would implode due to it, and Julius Jones would finally show that he is not a starting back. Wade is holding them together so far, but the season is still young.
3. Plaxico Burress: Injuries and the loss of a running game, right? Well, maybe an injury, but it looks like anyone can run behind the Giants line right now.
4. Fred Taylor: How would he handle the loss of some carries to the young kid? How would the thought that it is his last year in Jacksonville treat him?
5. The NY Giant's defense: Strahan's holdout and a couple of brittle young guys around him (Osi and Kiwanuka). Their DB's have never scared anyone.
6. Ronnie Brown: He's taken a bit of a beating the last few years, and no one is fearing the Dolphin's offense with a new QB, porous line, and fading receivers.
7. The Baltimore Raven's offense: Unless Heap and McGahee could carry the team, it just seems like a team without a hope.
8. Rex Grossman: With or without a Superbowl visit, Rex is a stumble away each week from turning a 4 TD game into a 4 TO game.
9. Vince Young: On top of being the Madden cover boy (which Manning and LT passed on), it just appears he needs to make faster better reads to be successful. That is the case with everyone, but it is going to be near impossible for Young to live up to many people's expectations this year as a second year QB.
10. Frank Gore: This has nothing to do with Gore's skill. I just assumed defenses would finally give up on Alex Smith's passing and stack 8 and 9 guys in the box to stop Gore. Davis is fast, but runs pour routes and Darrell Jackson was great in Seattle, because Hasselbeck knew where Jackson was every hour of every day. It was magic, and he doesn't have that with Smith. Don't get me wrong, Smith might be good some day (he's 23 as a 3rd year player), but the magic 8 ball doesn't point to this year.

I won't claim to be a psychic, and that should be obvious when you read this list. The reasoning seemed sound at the time, but, like my attention span, it faded quickly. This is where I will stop for the day, but I will end with one request. If you read this, let me know. If not, at least visit www.vote756.com. I'll later go into why I think this is one of the greatest things done in recent memory, but I feel this deserves more time and focus than I have tonight.

This has been a Matter of Fact.