Now or Never

Desperate times calls for desperate measures and for the Milwaukee Brewers this is desperation.  Trying to earn a playoff spot in the National League with only 12 games left on the schedule, the ownership committed one last desperate act to try and get them over the hump.  They fired manager Ned Yost with only 12 games left!  I can’t stress that enough; this is unheard of in baseball or any sports for that matter.  The Brewers haven’t made the playoffs since 1982 and it’s apparent that owner, Mark Attanasio, is not going to stand for another late season let down.  Last year they had an 8 and a half game lead in the NL Central division in late June only to slide out of playoff contention at the end of the year. 

I don’t agree with the decision to can Yost with only 12 games left in the season, but I can understand the reason.  After years of disappointment something had to be done, something drastic and ridding the club of Yost was exactly that.  This is a team that made all the right move during mid season trades; there is no excuse for them to not make the playoffs.  They brought in CY Young winner CC Sabathia  to try and get them over the hump and up until September it look like he was going to do just that, but then the late season slump and it looks like it’s going to be another early vacation again for them.  After this season Sabathia will be a free agent and there will be lots of teams with big wallets trying to sign the talented pitcher.  For the Brewer it might be now or never.

TO and The Cowboys Ride On

If there was a game to decide the NFC East title, then this would be it. Monday Night Football on ESPN, the Cowboys hosted the Eagles at Texas Stadium and came up victorious landing the final punch in the last half. The Eagles started the 1st quarter with a field goal leading the Cowboys 3-0, but Romo and Owens answered back with a 72 yard touchdown pass putting the Cowboys 7-3. Owens, being penalized for last week's touchdown celebration, simply flapped his arms in mockery of the eagles away from the end zone (the no fun league rule, i was hoping to see a lot more). The Eagles responded to Owen's TD with another field goal kick to shorten the lead from 7-6, but then the rookie, Felix Jones, ran a kickoff return for a 98 yard touchdown to put the Cowboys at 14-6.

The Cowboys simply took over and dominated the 1st quarter hands down. Things was looking good and it seems that the Cowboys will take an easy win, that is until Romo's pass was intercepted by Asante Samuel. With the interception, the Eagles quickly played Brian Westbrook for a 6 yard touchdown to close the gap on the lead to 14-13. Things fell apart even more for the Cowboys when Isaiah Stanback caused them to begin on their own 5 yard line on a kickoff return (due to his "mishandling"). To think being on the 5 yard line wasn't enough, the Cowboys was then called for a false start. After the call, Tony Romo snapped and fumbled the ball on his way to hand it off to Marion Barber causing a string of unneeded incidents that ended up with the safety Brian Dawkins of the Eagles picking up the loose ball in the end zone giving the Eagles their first lead of the night at 20-14.

What seemed to be a back and forth game, with 7 lead changes, the Cowboys came back to take the lead after Romo connected with Marion Barber for a 25 yard pass and then later with Jason Wittin for a 32 yard pass as well. The score is now 37-34 in favor of the Eagles. The last play to put the Cowboys on top again was a 1 yard run from Marion Barber for a TD with a little over 4 minutes left to play in the 4th quarter.

McNabb was playing like he did when he led the Eagles to the NFC titles and the Super Bowl back a few years ago. He was taking his time surveying the field while the Cowboys tried unsuccessfully to bring him down. Each time someone had their hands on him, he would slip through and allow for quick passes. But in the final moments of the game, McNabb seemed to have looked like he was tired out and eventually the Cowboys' linebackers, Greg Ellis & DeMarcus Ware, both sacked him.

The Eagles came out fighting and almost defeated the Cowboys but the fumble on their last possession caused their demise. The Cowboys seemed to have overcome the adversities in the game but their focus now is on the still undefeated, 2-0, Green Bay Packers. Even though they came out victorious with this win in Week 2, I'm pretty sure they're anxiously waiting for their next meet in Philly in December. This to me was one of the best Monday Night Football games I've seen, and to think, it's only Week 2 in the season.

Was the Chargers robbed?

It was the 4th Quarter, San Diego up 38-31, with a little over a minute left to play the Denver Broncos had the ball on the Chargers' 17 yard line..Cutler rolled right and lifted his arm to pass, what happened next is the topic of discussion amongst everybody watching the game this pass Sunday. The Chargers, challenged the play, but came up with an explanation that made them sick. Cutler rolled right and was ready to pass, but before he could even extend his arm back, the ball popped out of his hands and fell somewhere around the Chargers' 10 yrd line and San Diego recovered it.

That was the situation, here's the results:
For it to be a fumble - the QB must have his arm back and the ball is knocked out, or in this case, popped/slipped out of their hands before a passing emotion. We've all saw the replays from all angles and yes, it was a fumble. However, when the ball landed on the field, one of the referees (Hochuli) blew his whistle and just like that, the play is now dead. The play cannot be challenged and the call stands.

My knowledge of football isn't as deep as some other NFL fans, but if a QB loses a ball like this and the whistle is blown then the play is basically over, done for. Well, my questions is, why isn't it the same if this happens to a receiver or a running back??

But in conclusion, Denver had possession after the ruling, scored a touchdown and ended the game with a 2-point conversion. San Diego did try to come back but the pass was deflected in the end zone with no more time on the clock. The second game in the season where the Chargers fell short of a play.

Brady Out for Season

The New England Patriots' QB, Tom Brady, tore both the ACL and MCL in his left knee. The MCL typically needs at least 4-6 weeks to heal so Brady's ACL will not be reconstructed about a month later. After surgery, he will need about 9 months of rehabilitation and recovery, the Patriots' training camp for the 2009 season starts sometime in July, hopefully he can make that. So basically, Brady is out for the season.

With Brady out, Bill Belichick made some changes that he thought would be beneficial to the Patriots. Matt Gutierrez is now signed and could possibly be quarterbacking for New England this weekend against the Jets, plus punter Tom Malone is now joining the squad. Its only the 2nd week in the regular season so anything is possible in the upcoming games.

Wie Going To School

It was only 5 years ago when Michelle Wie (then 13 years old) won her first big tournament playing against the pros. Ever since then, things just hasn't been the same. Wie had a lot of controversial issues that just seemed to increase throughout the years. Some find that Wie dressed inappropriately during the golf tournaments and the issue only increased even after she wore the Nike-provided clothing in 2006. From the use of exemptions to dropping out in the middle of a tournament, I think the best thing Wie can do is go back to School and hopefully that will help (save) her career.

As for me, I don't see nothing wrong with the way she is dressed on the course. Even if she is one of the youngest (the 11 yr old boy broke her record for being the youngest) to win in a tournament against the pros and rise to stardom, she still has a lot to learn about the sport. And about the caddie she fired (one of the many), he probably didn't see it coming because it's up to Wie to sign the scorecard not the caddie. Maybe after Wie is done getting schooled, she could get somewhere with golf, if not then there are options outside of golf.