Back in college they called me "The Cream"
Before I delve into the meat of the Friday football picks, I have a few more thoughts on the BALCO issue, especially the addition of Barry Bonds’ name to mea culpa list. As has been widely reported (first by the San Fran Chronicle, then by every other major news outlet in the country), Barry Bonds has admitted to using several non-injected steroid supplements, including a lotion and a liquid that were supplied to him by Greg Anderson from the BALCO labs. But, of course, Barry was quick to state that he was unaware of the contents or the effects of the steroids he received from Anderson.
Now as soon as I started hearing tell of this story (even up to a year ago, when the grand jury hearings took place) I was suspicious, as I assume any other logical sports fan would be, or Bonds’ professed naïveté. When the details were released this morning, my doubts really crystallized:
If Barry Bonds really thought that “the clear” he was being sent was flaxseed oil and that “the cream” was some sort arthritis medication, as he’s claimed, then he is an absolute fool. If he did know they were THG and/or testosterone supplements and is now claiming ignorance to avoid persecution, then he is a liar and a coward.
If Barry Bonds took these meds without asking Anderson specifics about the supplements or understanding what they were and what exactly they did, he is guilty of being reckless with own his body, the very tool that built his fame and fortune. If he did know what they were and what they did, he was being both reckless AND shortsighted.
Throughout the course of his career, Barry Bonds has never stuck me as someone who hasn’t had absolute control over what goes into and comes out of Barry Bonds. He is an extremely private, controlling and hubristic individual, and the thought of Bonds ceding complete control over his body to Anderson, no matter the degree of “friendship” the two claim to share, is preposterous. Barry Bonds won’t eat breakfast without finding out the name of the pig they took the bacon from. He sure as hell wouldn’t ingest or use a medication without having an armada of lawyers, doctors and trainers look at the label.
Unless he knew. Unless he had something to hide.
I sincerely doubt this will be the last you hear from me on the subject.
On to the picks:
Another winning record last week (second in a row since the full slate of 16 games returned to the pick sheet) but neither has been enough to snag the top prize on the MGM pool. This week looks to have some real tough picks, a few toss-ups combined with some possible spoilers and late season surgers. Needless to say, Ben will not be taking a trip to Sin City this weekend.
Home team in CAPS
ST. LOUIS over San Francisco – At the time this is typed, the Rams have a 5-6 record and are slotted for the sixth seed in the playoffs. ‘Nuff said about the NFC this year.
Buffalo over MIAMI – I know. I know. I said I’d never pick Drew Bledsoe on the road again, especially against a top rated defense (Phins are #1 against the pass) and DEFINITELY not in December. But this Miami offense is just that bad and their run defense (29th in the league) could let Willis McGahee run for more than Bledsoe throws for.
Carolina over NEW ORLEANS – This one is a certified Dean’s Home Furniture no-brainer. The hot as hell Panthers coming to town to meet Jim Haslett, Aaron Brooks and the Saint(Nick)s for an inter-divisional December matchup where the winner stays in the playoff hunt and the loser begins the January vacation in Hawaii tickets hunt? The Saints were MADE to lose this game.
Houston over N.Y. JETS – How can the Jets get excited for home games when they play in a stadium named after another team in their own league? I mean sure, the Giants used to play at MFY Stadium, the Oilers in the Astrodome and the Eagles at Veterans Stadium (named in honor of the Phillies inability to develop home grown pitching talent), but those locales are all named for teams in other sports, not direct rivals for fans, merchandising and advertising. In fact, I hypothesize that playing home dates at Giants’ stadium has had such a demoralizing effect on the poor Jets, they have been unable to perform to the extent of their abilities as a team. Remember, the last time they won the Super Bowl was in 1967 when they played home games at Shea Stadium—a baseball field.
Atlanta over TAMPA BAY – Toughest pick of the week for me. The Bucs are surging and they always give Mike Vick fits. But Atlanta is staring at a first round bye in the playoffs and if they can’t get up for this game against their division rival, they could be in trouble.
BALTIMORE over Cincinnati – I don’t think the Bungles will be dropping 58 again this week.
Minnesota over CHICAGO – We want Jeff! We want Jeff! Chad who? We want Jeff!
New England over CLEVELAND – The eleven-point spread could get a little hairy here, but is there any doubt that this Patriots team will dismantle the Butchless Browns without breaking a sweat? The 24-3 final score of the Pats win over Baltimore last week was a lot of puff: the game was over before Jarvis Green’s fumble recovery, before Corey Dillon’s rushing dominance, before Adam Vinitieri’s two third quarter boots in muddy mess of the Razor. The game was over when the Pats’ defense held the Ravens to a measly three points in the first half, those three coming on a last second field goal by Matt Stover after a botched punt coverage and thirty inexplicable yards of penalties. The Ravens truly never had a chance against this Patriots team—and Baltimore is a playoff team, four games ahead of Cleveland in the standings. Yipes.
DETROIT over Arizona – In my preliminary picks this week (which I completed roughly six minutes before my final, set in stone, lead pipe lock picks were decided) I had the Cards winning this game. I’d picked the Cards to win each of the past two weeks, owing to their young athletic defense and the reemergence of second-year stud Anquan Boldin from the injured list. I picked them in spite of the fact that their starting offensive backfield consisted of Shaun King, Larry Croom and Obafemi Ayanbadejo, who I believe recently won his race for Senate in Illinois. I picked them despite the fact that they were playing the Panthers and the Jets, two superior teams with quarterbacks that have played in the league over the past two years. So of course, thinking third time’s a charm, I penciled in ‘Zona to beat the Lions in Detroit on Sunday. Then I looked at their team site and I saw their starting lineup for this week: “QB 16 John Navarre (R).” The ‘R’, it seems, doesn’t stand for ‘Republican’, but rather ‘rookie’. And John Navarre, it seems, a 6’6” 250 lb. rookie from Michigan, a guy who wasn’t even active for Mr. King’s opus against the Jets, will be starting this Sunday for the Cards. Good luck, ‘Zona faithful. Navarre say die (sorry, I couldn’t contain myself).
INDIANAPOLIS over Tennessee – The quote of the week comes from the estimable Peter King’s Monday Morning Quarterback column, where he says of Manning:
“Do you realize that if he continues throwing 3.7 touchdown passes a game, he'll finish the season with 59 1/2 touchdown passes? That means he could be the only player ever to throw a fraction of a touchdown.”
And with all that success, dude still can’t find a cure for that acne?
OAKLAND over Kansas City – If you thought Dick Vermeil was crying during the MNF halftime piece a couple weeks ago, just wait til his team finishes 4-12.
SAN DIEGO over Denver –
WASHINGTON over N.Y. Giants – The Redskins have yet to score twenty points in a game this season.
Read that sentence again and tell me that Joe Gibbs hasn’t lost a step.
Green Bay over PHILADELPHIA – Mebbe it’s because they clinched their division in frickin’ November, or mebbe because they are head and shoulders above the rest of the competish in the NFC and are a virtual lock for home field in the playoffs, but I just can’t see Philly running the table the rest of the season. But with the rest of their schedule looking the way it does (@ ‘Skins, Cowboys, @ Rams, Bungles) this might be their last chance for a loss before garbage time.
Pittsburgh over JACKSONVILLE – This is the upset of choice for the “there’s gonna be some spoiler games” crowd this week. As much as I’d like to see the Stillers drop back a game in the playoff hunt, it just ain’t happenin’, folks.
SEATTLE over Dallas – There was a time when Bill Parcells and Mike Holmgren were at the pinnacle of their profession, media anointed geniuses of the game of football and first ballot locks for the Hall of Fame. Now Holmgren’s Seahawks (preseason Super Bowl picks for not a few so-called experts out there in the sportswriting world) are clinging to a slim one game lead over division rival St. Louis (who own the tie-breaker edge thanks to two humiliating defeats: one the 21-point fourth quarter comeback in week 4 and the other a 23-12 defeat thanks to a crunch time Shaun Alexander fumble in week 10). And Parcells’ ‘Boys are playing quarterback roulette with 41-year old Vinny Testaverde and erstwhile third baseman Drew Henson after jettisoning an above-average QB in Quincy Carter (2-1 as a backup for the Jets) that led them to the playoffs last year and praying that 9-7 (or even 8-8) will be good enough to qualify this year.
If my experience watching football over the past 15 years has taught me anything, it’s that the only thing worse than thinking you’re a genius is proving that you aren’t.
Now these two geniuses may be coaching for their jobs.
Last week: 10-6
Overall: 103-73 (58.5%)
Now as soon as I started hearing tell of this story (even up to a year ago, when the grand jury hearings took place) I was suspicious, as I assume any other logical sports fan would be, or Bonds’ professed naïveté. When the details were released this morning, my doubts really crystallized:
If Barry Bonds really thought that “the clear” he was being sent was flaxseed oil and that “the cream” was some sort arthritis medication, as he’s claimed, then he is an absolute fool. If he did know they were THG and/or testosterone supplements and is now claiming ignorance to avoid persecution, then he is a liar and a coward.
If Barry Bonds took these meds without asking Anderson specifics about the supplements or understanding what they were and what exactly they did, he is guilty of being reckless with own his body, the very tool that built his fame and fortune. If he did know what they were and what they did, he was being both reckless AND shortsighted.
Throughout the course of his career, Barry Bonds has never stuck me as someone who hasn’t had absolute control over what goes into and comes out of Barry Bonds. He is an extremely private, controlling and hubristic individual, and the thought of Bonds ceding complete control over his body to Anderson, no matter the degree of “friendship” the two claim to share, is preposterous. Barry Bonds won’t eat breakfast without finding out the name of the pig they took the bacon from. He sure as hell wouldn’t ingest or use a medication without having an armada of lawyers, doctors and trainers look at the label.
Unless he knew. Unless he had something to hide.
I sincerely doubt this will be the last you hear from me on the subject.
On to the picks:
Another winning record last week (second in a row since the full slate of 16 games returned to the pick sheet) but neither has been enough to snag the top prize on the MGM pool. This week looks to have some real tough picks, a few toss-ups combined with some possible spoilers and late season surgers. Needless to say, Ben will not be taking a trip to Sin City this weekend.
Home team in CAPS
ST. LOUIS over San Francisco – At the time this is typed, the Rams have a 5-6 record and are slotted for the sixth seed in the playoffs. ‘Nuff said about the NFC this year.
Buffalo over MIAMI – I know. I know. I said I’d never pick Drew Bledsoe on the road again, especially against a top rated defense (Phins are #1 against the pass) and DEFINITELY not in December. But this Miami offense is just that bad and their run defense (29th in the league) could let Willis McGahee run for more than Bledsoe throws for.
Carolina over NEW ORLEANS – This one is a certified Dean’s Home Furniture no-brainer. The hot as hell Panthers coming to town to meet Jim Haslett, Aaron Brooks and the Saint(Nick)s for an inter-divisional December matchup where the winner stays in the playoff hunt and the loser begins the January vacation in Hawaii tickets hunt? The Saints were MADE to lose this game.
Houston over N.Y. JETS – How can the Jets get excited for home games when they play in a stadium named after another team in their own league? I mean sure, the Giants used to play at MFY Stadium, the Oilers in the Astrodome and the Eagles at Veterans Stadium (named in honor of the Phillies inability to develop home grown pitching talent), but those locales are all named for teams in other sports, not direct rivals for fans, merchandising and advertising. In fact, I hypothesize that playing home dates at Giants’ stadium has had such a demoralizing effect on the poor Jets, they have been unable to perform to the extent of their abilities as a team. Remember, the last time they won the Super Bowl was in 1967 when they played home games at Shea Stadium—a baseball field.
Atlanta over TAMPA BAY – Toughest pick of the week for me. The Bucs are surging and they always give Mike Vick fits. But Atlanta is staring at a first round bye in the playoffs and if they can’t get up for this game against their division rival, they could be in trouble.
BALTIMORE over Cincinnati – I don’t think the Bungles will be dropping 58 again this week.
Minnesota over CHICAGO – We want Jeff! We want Jeff! Chad who? We want Jeff!
New England over CLEVELAND – The eleven-point spread could get a little hairy here, but is there any doubt that this Patriots team will dismantle the Butchless Browns without breaking a sweat? The 24-3 final score of the Pats win over Baltimore last week was a lot of puff: the game was over before Jarvis Green’s fumble recovery, before Corey Dillon’s rushing dominance, before Adam Vinitieri’s two third quarter boots in muddy mess of the Razor. The game was over when the Pats’ defense held the Ravens to a measly three points in the first half, those three coming on a last second field goal by Matt Stover after a botched punt coverage and thirty inexplicable yards of penalties. The Ravens truly never had a chance against this Patriots team—and Baltimore is a playoff team, four games ahead of Cleveland in the standings. Yipes.
DETROIT over Arizona – In my preliminary picks this week (which I completed roughly six minutes before my final, set in stone, lead pipe lock picks were decided) I had the Cards winning this game. I’d picked the Cards to win each of the past two weeks, owing to their young athletic defense and the reemergence of second-year stud Anquan Boldin from the injured list. I picked them in spite of the fact that their starting offensive backfield consisted of Shaun King, Larry Croom and Obafemi Ayanbadejo, who I believe recently won his race for Senate in Illinois. I picked them despite the fact that they were playing the Panthers and the Jets, two superior teams with quarterbacks that have played in the league over the past two years. So of course, thinking third time’s a charm, I penciled in ‘Zona to beat the Lions in Detroit on Sunday. Then I looked at their team site and I saw their starting lineup for this week: “QB 16 John Navarre (R).” The ‘R’, it seems, doesn’t stand for ‘Republican’, but rather ‘rookie’. And John Navarre, it seems, a 6’6” 250 lb. rookie from Michigan, a guy who wasn’t even active for Mr. King’s opus against the Jets, will be starting this Sunday for the Cards. Good luck, ‘Zona faithful. Navarre say die (sorry, I couldn’t contain myself).
INDIANAPOLIS over Tennessee – The quote of the week comes from the estimable Peter King’s Monday Morning Quarterback column, where he says of Manning:
“Do you realize that if he continues throwing 3.7 touchdown passes a game, he'll finish the season with 59 1/2 touchdown passes? That means he could be the only player ever to throw a fraction of a touchdown.”
And with all that success, dude still can’t find a cure for that acne?
OAKLAND over Kansas City – If you thought Dick Vermeil was crying during the MNF halftime piece a couple weeks ago, just wait til his team finishes 4-12.
SAN DIEGO over Denver –
WASHINGTON over N.Y. Giants – The Redskins have yet to score twenty points in a game this season.
Read that sentence again and tell me that Joe Gibbs hasn’t lost a step.
Green Bay over PHILADELPHIA – Mebbe it’s because they clinched their division in frickin’ November, or mebbe because they are head and shoulders above the rest of the competish in the NFC and are a virtual lock for home field in the playoffs, but I just can’t see Philly running the table the rest of the season. But with the rest of their schedule looking the way it does (@ ‘Skins, Cowboys, @ Rams, Bungles) this might be their last chance for a loss before garbage time.
Pittsburgh over JACKSONVILLE – This is the upset of choice for the “there’s gonna be some spoiler games” crowd this week. As much as I’d like to see the Stillers drop back a game in the playoff hunt, it just ain’t happenin’, folks.
SEATTLE over Dallas – There was a time when Bill Parcells and Mike Holmgren were at the pinnacle of their profession, media anointed geniuses of the game of football and first ballot locks for the Hall of Fame. Now Holmgren’s Seahawks (preseason Super Bowl picks for not a few so-called experts out there in the sportswriting world) are clinging to a slim one game lead over division rival St. Louis (who own the tie-breaker edge thanks to two humiliating defeats: one the 21-point fourth quarter comeback in week 4 and the other a 23-12 defeat thanks to a crunch time Shaun Alexander fumble in week 10). And Parcells’ ‘Boys are playing quarterback roulette with 41-year old Vinny Testaverde and erstwhile third baseman Drew Henson after jettisoning an above-average QB in Quincy Carter (2-1 as a backup for the Jets) that led them to the playoffs last year and praying that 9-7 (or even 8-8) will be good enough to qualify this year.
If my experience watching football over the past 15 years has taught me anything, it’s that the only thing worse than thinking you’re a genius is proving that you aren’t.
Now these two geniuses may be coaching for their jobs.
Last week: 10-6
Overall: 103-73 (58.5%)
posted by bd @ 12/03/2004 05:35:00 PM
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