Talk about NFL highlights and disasters. | | | Interesting Article | | Just more than two years ago, the World Heavyweight Championship came to SmackDown when then-champion Batista was selected in the 2005 Draft Lottery. As the richest prize in sports-entertainment, the World Heavyweight Championship instantly became the object of desire for the SmackDown Superstars.But since becoming the (pun intended) gold standard on Friday nights, the title has seemingly become a curse to anyone who holds it.Okay, so after reading that statement, you’re probably wondering the same thing everyone else is: How the hell can reaching the pinnacle of your profession actually be a BAD thing? Well, really, it’s not…if you’re a surgeon, that is.Since Batista brought the gold to SmackDown, EVERYONE that has held it has been put on the sidelines within six months of their title reign. From The Animal on down to most recent ex-champion Edge, the infirmary has become SmackDown’s most popular post-championship destination.Think that idea is a little bogus? Sorry, but the following chronology doesn’t lie:January 2006: Batista suffers a torn triceps during a match with Mark Henry at a WWE live event. As a result, The Animal surrenders the World Heavyweight... | |
| | Play Off Predictions! | | This is perhaps the most exciting week of any football season, the divisional round of the playoffs, in particualr this year (especially in the AFC) is about as even matched and full of potential classic matchups. Let's take a closer look as I also give my predictions up to this year's Super Bowl champion.divisional Round:
AFC:
San Diego vs. New England PatriotsThis one has two teams that are not superior in any particular way but are very good in all three areas, offense, defense, and special teams. I belive this one will come down to a steady dose of LT2 wearing down the Patriot defense while Rivers goes to Gates and Mccardell to convert crucial 3rd downs until they give it to Tomlinson to finish off the drives. The Patriots won't be able to run and have no reliable receivers to consistantly keep drives alive, so unless they can break at least 5 huge plays this one won't be as close as some people think. The intriguing matchup is wiley veteran Tom Brady against essentially a rookie QB in Rivers.Indianapolis vs. BaltimoreWOW what a match up in this one (and it doesn't matter where you look either, you will see a great battle). Dungy matching wits against... | |
| | Hasselbeck's return not such a warm, cuddly Seahawks feeling | | Seattle's citizens couldn't wait for Matt Hasselbeck to get back playing. They've been in a Chicken Little fuss over the Seahawks' so-so season following a trip to the Super Bowl. But no one was looking forward to the Pro Bowl quarterback's return Monday from being out four weeks with a sprained right knee more than Hasselbeck's teammates. Next time, they may not be quite so anxious to get him back. Even before his first full practice back for the prime-time matchup with the Packers, Hasselbeck was chastising teammates to practice harder, prepare better and just plain buck up. By Wednesday, he was back running the offense at warp speed, compared with the pace at which never-used backup Seneca Wallace operated while going 2-2 in Hasselbeck's place. "In fact, some of the guys were complaining that he was going so fast, they couldn't make their (line) calls," quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn said. "Yet that's the tempo of the game. That's where the game's played." That hasn't been where Seattle had played entering Monday. The Seahawks are counting on a six-game surge back to their expected selves now that Hasselbeck and league MVP Shaun Alexander... | |
| | Green Bay (4-6) at Seattle (6-4) | | Shaun Alexander and Matt Hasselbeck haven't played together in almost two months. The Seattle Seahawks might have to wait a bit longer as the NFC West leaders play the struggling Green Bay Packers on Monday night. Alexander and Hasselbeck have been sidelined with injuries for much of the season. Alexander -- who returned last Sunday -- suffered a broken foot which had sidelined him for seven weeks, while Hasselbeck has missed the last three starts for Seattle (6-4) because of a sprained knee. Hasselbeck tested the knee Monday in drills and ran the first-team offense efficiently Wednesday, but Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren refused to name Hasselback the starter for this game. "Hasselbeck worked pretty well this morning. I think there's a good chance he'll play," Holmgren said. "We're going to put him through the tests. ... I've got to see him move and get out of trouble, run around a little bit."
Hasselbeck and Alexander haven't played together since Sept. 24, when the team was 3-0. Holmgren also expressed doubt about center Robbie Tobeck, right tackle Sean Locklear, tackle Rocky Bernard and receiver Bobby Engram.... | |
| | Young, Leinart make their marks | |
Vince Young and Matt Leinart showcased the skills that made them first-round draft picks after super college careers. Young even got a win -- in record-setting fashion. The third overall pick in this year's draft, Young rallied Tennessee (4-7) from a 21-point deficit in the final quarter Sunday for a 24-21 win over the New York Giants. It was the biggest fourth-quarter comeback by a rookie quarterback, topping John Elway's 19-point rally with Denver on Dec. 11, 1983, against Indianapolis. "The legend of Vince Young began a long time ago," said Titans receiver Brandon Jones, who caught the TD pass that tied the game. Young agreed. "It's a sneak peek of what's to happen not just for me, but this team in general," Young said of a club that has won four of its last six in matching last year's victory total with five games left. Leinart wasn't so successful for Arizona. He completed 31 of 52 passes for a career-high 405 yards, but had two interceptions and only one TD -- a 9-yard pass to Anquan Boldin with 39 seconds to play -- in a 31-26 loss at Minnesota. Larry Fitzgerald Jr., had 11 catches for 172 yards. Boldin made nine receptions for 136 yards for... | |
| | Sunday's NFL Capsules | | November 26, 2006BALTIMORE (AP) -- Any chance the Pittsburgh Steelers had of returning to the Super Bowl was seemingly laid to rest by the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens sacked Ben Roethlisberger nine times Sunday and coasted to their fifth straight victory, a 27-0 blowout that left the Steelers with only a mathematical chance of reaching the playoffs. ADVERTISEMENT
Baltimore (9-2) limited the defending NFL champions to 36 yards in the decisive first half. The nine sacks, which totaled 73 yards and matched a Ravens franchise record, included a vicious hit by Bart Scott that forced Roethlisberger out of the game in the second quarter. Roethlisberger missed only one play, but for the rest of the afternoon he was harassed by a relentless rush. It was the second time this year that the Steelers were shut out; the last time Pittsburgh was blanked at least twice in a season was in 1989. The Steelers (4-7) had won two straight following a 2-6 start, but their resurgence was emphatically squelched by the hated Ravens, who lead Pittsburgh in the AFC North by five games with five to play. Roethlisberger went 21-for-41 for 214 yards and two interceptions.... | |
| | Bears can clinch division title in Week 12 | |
The Chicago Bears can clinch their second straight division title on Sunday. Tom Brady and the New England Patriots know all about winning divisions. The interconference battle between the Bears (9-1) and Patriots (7-3) is the marquee matchup of Week 12 in the NFL.
The Sunday night meeting between the Indianapolis Colts (9-1) and Philadelphia Eagles (5-5) was supposed to be another intriguing interconference game featuring quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Donovan McNabb. But the contest lost much of its luster when McNabb suffered a season-ending knee injury last week. The Bears can become only the fourth team since the advent of the 16-game schedule in 1978 to clinch a division title by its 11th game. The other three are the 1985 Bears, the 1997 San Francisco 49ers and 2004 Eagles. Chicago can seal the NFC North crown with a win at New England, coupled with losses by the Minnesota Vikings (4-6) and Green Bay Packers (4-6). The Vikings host former coach Dennis Green and the Arizona Cardinals (2-8) on Sunday and the Packers visit the first-place Seattle Seahawks (6-4) on Monday night. But beating the Pats will be difficult. New England has won three of the... | |
| | Green Bay (4-6) at Seattle (6-4) | | Shaun Alexander and Matt Hasselbeck haven't played together in almost two months. The Seattle Seahawks might have to wait a bit longer as the NFC West leaders play the struggling Green Bay Packers on Monday night. Alexander and Hasselbeck have been sidelined with injuries for much of the season. Alexander -- who returned last Sunday -- suffered a broken foot which had sidelined him for seven weeks, while Hasselbeck has missed the last three starts for Seattle (6-4) because of a sprained knee. Hasselbeck tested the knee Monday in drills and ran the first-team offense efficiently Wednesday, but Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren refused to name Hasselback the starter for this game. "Hasselbeck worked pretty well this morning. I think there's a good chance he'll play," Holmgren said. "We're going to put him through the tests. ... I've got to see him move and get out of trouble, run around a little bit." ADVERTISEMENT
Hasselbeck and Alexander haven't played together since Sept. 24, when the team was 3-0. Holmgren also expressed doubt about center Robbie Tobeck, right tackle Sean Locklear, tackle Rocky Bernard and receiver Bobby Engram. Tobeck was expected to be... | |
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