Fantasy Football PantsCast Sept 28

Week 3 awards and we look ahead to week 4 where no one knows what's going on. Plus, a voyeur doing his thing in the wrong place on What's Wrong With Humans.

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Fantasy Football PantsCast Sept 22

Week 2 awards, Week 3 preview and some doozy games that went down with the wire. The insanity of certain NFL coaches and I coin a new word. Just like Shakespeare does.

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Who To Follow

So I'm sitting here in Dallas waiting for the sky to fall after the Cowboys lost again. So far it still seems to be up there, but I have a mattress over my bathtub just in case. Okay, the mattress is always there because I sleep in the bathtub. It's just my thing.

There was a moment during the Cowboys humiliating loss to the Bears on Sunday when an agitated Jason Witten was on the sideline desperately trying to argue his way back into the game. He had a possible concussion and the Dallas medical staff smartly didn't allow Witten to man up and go do further damage to his brain.

As I watched him though, I found myself wishing I could clone him to put on other parts of the team. I don't mean that because Witten is possibly the most complete tight end in the game, I mean that because Witten possibly has the most character of anyone wearing a star on their helmet. I think that scarcity of leadership is the biggest issue facing this 0-2 team. Talk about the offensive line, Tony Romo, or Roy Williams all you want, to me it keeps coming back to the same issue.

This team generally needs a General.

Look at the past Super Bowl winners. The Colts and Saints have unquestioned quarterback leadership from Peyton Manning and Drew Brees. The Giants rallied behind Michael Strahan to win the Super Bowl. The Steelers had the defensive wizardry of Dick LeBeau and the no excuses preaching of Mike Tomlin.

The Cowboys have...what? Tony Romo isn't that type of leader, he's just one of the guys. That's his personality and it's not a knock on him, Eli Manning isn't a big leader either and he has a Super Bowl ring. DeMarcus Ware isn't a leader in the locker room, he's a beast you let loose on the field to destroy an offense. Miles Austin isn't the leader, he's all smiles because he remembers when he didn't even have a spot in the staring lineup. Keith Brooking is a good leader, but he's at the end of his career. He's not a dominant star.

Jay Ratliff? Nope. Over achiever in the middle of the defense

Terrance Newman? Nope.

Mike Jenkins? Brash young player. Not a leader

Roy Williams? Okay, now I'm getting ridiculous.

The point is that the Cowboys have no on field studs who not only play well, but inspire others to play well for them. Imagine Ray Lewis screaming at his defense. Imagine Tom Brady directing his receivers to the right place. Look how excited Jared Allen got the other Vikings during their playoff run last year. The Cowboys have no one like that. Either the Cowboys have to get lucky in the draft one year and just grab a super stud player without the character issues or they have to change the one position where they can pick a guy to lead the team.

The Cowboys need to get a new head coach.

This isn't a Wade Phillips bashing segment. I like Wade, he's nice to people. He doesn't walk around with a permanent scowl on his face like Todd Haley in Kansas City or refuse to talk to the media like Eric Mangini in Cleveland. He is a genuinely good guy, but he's not the guy this team needs.

This team needs a leader as head coach. They need a guy who will not make excuses and not accept excuses either. No more blown assignments, no more dropped balls, no more celebrity personalities, and no more talk. You either get it done, or you don't. That's the nature of the NFL. If you need an example, look no further than the New York Jets. Rex Ryan changed the culture of that entire team virtually overnight.

The question is, will the one person who is capable of this move make the right call? Jerry Jones owns this team and he wants to be in charge. He hired Bill Parcells for a few years and though the Tuna turned this team around, Jerry was miserable the entire time. Jerry like the media, he likes people to talk about his team and he likes people to talk about him. If he brings in a forceful personality at head coach, there will be inevitable clashes. It won't always be fun for Jerry, but that's what this team needs if they are to make the next big step.

So there it is. The only way for this team to really take a step towards another Super Bowl title. Jerry's in charge, will he pick promotion or the playoffs?

Fantasy Football PantsCast Sept 14

Week 1 awards and a look ahead to who will be naughty and who will be nice on your team. Plus, Sears needs a new marketing department on What's Wrong With Humans.

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Old Vs New

I was watching a college football pre-game show today from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where tonight the Penn State Nittany Lions will attempt to upset the Crimson Tide at home. Personally, I don't think Penn State has a shot, but that's not what this post is about.

Behind the commentators was a crowd of pro-Alabama fans (who would have thought.) One gentleman held up a giant sign that said "Clash of the Titans." Below the title were two pictures: one of Penn State head coach Joe Paterno and one of Alabama head coach Nick Saban.

My first reaction was anger. How dare this kid compare flavor of the year Nick Saban to a legend like Joe Pa! Paterno is an institution. He is as much the identity of Penn State as the bland uniforms or the Happy Valley crowd. He graduates kids and he makes them decent citizens. You don't hear of shoplifting and drug selling on his teams.

Saban? His loyalty is to one place: himself. He goes where the money and fame is. He keeps his kids in class mostly, but have no doubt, he's there to win football games. Well, unless he decides to go down the street to your rival school and coach there. He disgusts me.

And then I thought about it and realized that is what a college football coach has become. And it's our own fault. As much as I love Joe Pa, when is the last time I stopped down just to watch a Penn State football game? I know they've had a recent resurgence, but they are still a boring team and I've personally never seen them as a national title contender for over a decade. The Penn State teams are just like their coach: solid.

Saban? He's one of the most successful coaches in college football right now. He's won two national titles this decade. His teams are usually in the top ten. His defenses are legendary. Ask fans and they'll take that any day. Solid citizens can't be bragged about at the bar. Championships can.

So I stand corrected. This game really is the clash of the titan coaches. But instead of a heavyweight fight, it's more like the lightsaber battle between old Ben Kenobi and Darth Vader from the original "Star Wars." One man is noble and a beacon of light, but he's old and losing power. The other is a dark lord who is at the top of his game. Saban is the new face of college football: a mercenary coach for a money making machine. And it's exactly what most fans want.

Go Penn State.

NFL Season Predictions

The NFL season has begun and I just realized I haven't given you my season predictions yet. Since I know you've just been dying to hear from me, I'll go ahead and give them to you now although you would have heard them weeks ago if you'd just download the PantsCast.

One thing to remind you of: in today's NFL, playoff teams from a year ago only return to the playoffs at about a 50% rate. You'll see some new faces in the playoffs this year.

My Division Winners:

NFC

NFC West- San Francisco: By default really. Arizona has a quarterback who has the touch of a refrigerator shot out of a cannon. He looks like he attempts to put holes in his receiver when he throws it to them. The Seahawks have a bunch of players who are either too old or too young to be successful right now and the Rams are the Rams. They're terrible. So congrats 49ers, 8-8 should get you into the playoffs this year.

NFC South- Atlanta: Just a gut pick really. New Orleans is on a roll already, but I can't shake the feeling that everything just came together for the Saints last year. They'll be good this year, but just not dominant. I also pick the Falcons because no team has repeated as champions of the NFC South. Carolina is right up there with the other two, but I can't pick them until I know what Matt Moore has at quarterback. If he throws it to his teammates, he'll be a step ahead of Jake Delhomme. And bringing up the rear is Tampa Bay. They're way back there trying to get the anchor up to the pirate ship.
NFC North- Green Bay: This division once again comes down to Green Bay and Minnesota. I pick Green Bay this year because they look like they're ready to roll. It won't be easy though, the Vikings will still be powerful. I pick the Lions to overcome the Bears this year. Detroit has been a division joke for so long, but now they have hope and while they know they can't catch the top teams, my guess is that they'll target the Bears and go after them. Chicago has zero line and an aging defense. The entire coaching staff will be gone by the end of the season.

NFC East- New York Giants: This is always the most difficult division to pick. I'll say the Giants because they'll be motivated. They sucked at the end of last year and it was embarrassing considering they started 5-0. Dallas is the chic pick to win this division, but the schedule is harder and the offensive line is way too banged up to be excited about them. Philadelphia could be a sneaky division pick, but that means you'd have to ignore new quarterback Kevin Kolb completely bombing during the pre-season. More offensive line troubles too.

AFC

AFC West- San Diego Chargers: Again, who else can you pick? The Raiders dumped fatty JaMarcus, but I'm not picking them to win a division. I have no idea what the Broncos are doing, but it isn't going to help them this year, especially since their best pass rusher tore his pectoral muscle. Ouch. Kansas City is just too bad to win a division yet. Vomit.

AFC South- Tennessee Titans: Not the Colts?! I don't know why I'm picking Tennessee. To me both the Titans and the Texans are desperately trying to catch up to the Colts. I just think Tennessee might do it this year. The Texans could do it too, but they melt down so much late in gmaes, that I just can't trust them. Then there's Jacksonville. Forget about them. You'll never see them on television since they don't sell out their home games, you want hear about them in the playoff picture, and you probably won't see them in Jacksonville much longer. So...fun!

AFC North- Baltimore: Ignore the ridiculous problems in the defensive backfield (I think Chris Rock was brought in at one point to play cornerback) and just look at the rest of the team. The offensive line is solid, the back field is tough and Joe Flacco is knocking on the door of QB stardom. On defense, the front seven are beasts so if the secondary can just not be pathetic, the Ravens will be tough. The Bengals are the ex division champs and are basically a halfway house for NFL morons. I really want Cincy to win the division and I really want them to enter the stadium in a clown car and have all 22 starters fall out. It fits. Pittsburgh can't be counted out, but you have the Big Ben supsension for a month, you have offensive line troubles, and you have a rough late schedule. Not good. Cleveland...thanks for showing up this year. Maybe in 2011. Maybe.

AFC East- New England: While the Jets are Hard Knocking, the Pats are getting ready for the season. The Jets definitely have the talent to take this division, but I get the feeling the team has the arrogance of a Super Bowl champ and yet they haven't even been to the Super Bowl since the Beatles were still a band. That's not a good sign. Get the attitude after you show up, guys. Miami is some wierd mix of Parcells guys (big, unassuming guys) and freaks (Brandon Marshall and Ricky Williams). They should be tough, but something is missing...oh right, a secondary. The Bills are basically the NFL version of the Phantom Zone. They won't be easy to beat, but they aren't winning anything.

Playoff Wild Cards:

NFC

Minnesota: The Vikings won't beat the Packers out this year, but they know this probably Brett Favre's last go around for real, so they'll be desperate to win.

New Orleans: You can't totally write off a Super Bowl champ. Especially when they have Drew Brees.

AFC

Indianapolis: You can't totally write off a Super Bowl runner up. Especially when they have Peyton Manning.

Cincinnati : I just really want the Bengals to win. It's good entertainment value.

I'll say Ravens over the Packers in the Super Bowl though I hope I'm wrong. I don't want the Ravens to win.

NFL MVP: Aaron Rodgers. He's gonna light it up like Christmas tree.

Rookie of the Year: Ryan Matthews. He'll just get more chances than other rookies.

So there you go. A quick run through the NFL 2010. Luckily, I can edit this when my picks go flaming out of contention.

PantsCast September 6- Fantasy Draft Fun

Want some entertainment? I give you the PantsCast from September 6, 2010, complete with live audio from our fantasy draft. We have some naughty words bleeped out, arrogant smugness, panic moves during the draft, and all sorts of live reactions in our draft.

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As a bonus, here is what the three PantsCast members ended up with for their teams. Who do you think won?

Brad (SportsPants):
QB: Matt Schaub
RB: Maurice Jones Drew
RB: Jonathan Stewart
WR: Calvin Johnson
WR: Terrell Owens
WR: Jabar Gaffney
TE: Jermichael Finley
RB/WR: Jerome Harrison
K: David Buehler
D: Philadelphia
BN: Cadillac Williams
BN: Donovan McNabb
BN: Nate Washington
BN: Nate Burelson
BN: Julian Edelman

Joe ( Shakespeare):
QB: Tony Romo
RB: Adrian Peterson
RB: Ronnie Brown
WR: Brandon Marshall
WR: Malcolm Floyd
WR: Devin Aromashodu
TE: Dallas Clark
RB/WR: Reggie Bush
D: Cincinnati
K: David Akers
BN: Kevin Kolb
BN: Fred Jackson
BN: Mike Williams (SEA)
BN: Leon Washington
BN: Toby Gerhart

Jason (Scrooge):
QB: Jay Cutler
RB: Steven Jackson
RB: Jahvid Best
WR: Larry Fitzgerald
WR: Steve Smith
WR: Mike Williams (TB)
TE: Jason Witten
RB/WR: C.J. Spiller
D: New Orleans
K: Matt Prater
BN: Justin Forsett
BN: Donald Brown
BN: Matt Stafford
BN: Dexter McCluster
BN: Kenny Britt

August 31- NFL Season Preview

We preview the NFL season and give our picks for playoff teams and Super Bowl contenders. Plus, a Hawaiian guy falls victim to the evil video game industry on What's Wrong With Humans.

I foresee you clicking here to download the PantsCast.