Where does Melo go?

Carmelo Anthony is doing his best to force his way out of Denver.  He can opt out of his contract at the end of the upcoming year and we all know he won’t be winning any titles in Denver anytime soon.  Today there is speculation that there is a 4 team deal that will bring Melo to the Nets.  We’ll take a look at that proposed deal and talk about other possible teams that are interested in the Denver Nuggets star.

Proposed Trade:

New Jersey Nets get – Carmelo Anthony (DEN)

Charlotte Bobcats get – Devin Harris (NJN)

Utah Jazz get – Boris Diaw (CHA)

Denver Nuggets get – Derrick Favors (NJN) and Andrei Kirilenko (UTA) plus picks

Fallout:

New Jersey Nets – You give up your point guard in Harris and you give up your prize rookie for Carmelo.  What is a top 5 NBA player worth?  Maybe that’s the better question.  If you make this move, you are essentially the Denver team of the East.  You could compare the two easily:  B. Lopez/Nene (even), T. Murphy/Andersen (Nets), A. Morrow/J.R. Smith (even, lean Nets), J. Farmar/C. Billups (slight edge to Nuggets).  For what you’re giving up, I think the Nets have to make this move.

Charlotte Bobcats – You get to give up Boris Diaw who’s desire has been openly questioned?  And you get Devin Harris at really the same money?  Done!!  Do this deal today and twice on Sunday.  You get a point guard (distributor), which is something that this team has needed for years.  If this deal happens, I can imagine that Shaun Livingston may be shown the door.  

Utah Jazz – You get Boris Diaw who’s desire has been openly questioned, but who happens to also be a great facilitator for a big man.  The system that the Jazz run is more closely in line with the type of player they’ll get.  On top of that the Jazz will get $5M.  That’s not part of the deal, it’s just that Kirilenko’s salary is presently putting the Jazz in luxury tax threshold.  Taking away AK’s $17.8M from the Jazz and they will save about $5M and get the $5M payout.  For a small market team, $5M is $5M.  Do this deal today.

Denver Nuggets – You lose Carmelo, but you get more than what the Cavs got for LBJ.  You get Favors, a young big that can be your power forward of the future and you pair him with Nene and that’s something to build on.  Add Kirilenko, and you have an expiring contract that you can use to bring in a point guard after you do Billups a favor and trade him out of Denver too.  You’ll also get picks, probably from Charlotte and the Nets.  Do the deal. 

Other possible destinations:

Chicago Bulls – This one is pretty much dead with the Bulls not wanting to include Noah in the deal.  I for one can’t blame them.  Noah is their emotional leader and the Bulls should be pretty good without Melo.  But, Melo is arguably a top 5 NBA talent. 

Los Angeles Clippers – Chris Kaman and some change for Melo?  I think that Nene and Kaman would be duplicating big men, but it’s available for the taking.  This works very well for the Clippers if they only gave up Kaman and some small change or picks. 

Where do you think Melo should go?  Should he just ride it out in Denver and then pick his new team, ala LBJ?  Or should he try and get his new deal now under the present collective bargaining agreement (more money)?     

Nelly Going Bye-Bye

 

It’s about time.  I can’t say that I haven’t ever enjoyed watching Don Nelson coached teams run and gun to many W’s, and their fair share of losses, but over the last few years, it’s been dreadful.  The new owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber have decided to pay Nelly $6M (the final year of his contract) and send him back to Hawaii for the rest of the year.  Keith Smart is probably going to be named as his successor and word is that he’ll get a new multi-year contract.  With the team that the Warriors have put together, they have to make sure that they have someone that can mold their talent.  With pieces like Stephen Curry, Monta Ellis, David Lee, and Andris Biedrins, this team has a good core.  With Ellis’ contract coming off the books in a few years, this team will have more flexibility.  Look for good things to be coming out of the Bay in the near future now that Nelly is out. 

NFL 2010 Week 3 Picks

 It's on this week.  We're trying to ride the wave of a successful 12-4 week.  Let's see how it goes.  

Tennessee @ New York Giants – It’s too early in the year to start this song of ‘is you is, or is you ain’t my baby (QB)’.  VY was pulled last week for being ineffective and we had a Kerry Collins sighting.  Fisher, in my humble opinion is looking for the first opportunity to get rid of VY.  Fisher lost how many games last year with Collins at QB before he went to VY?  I digress, the Giants are in need of a win and I think that they get one, in the New Meadowlands.  How high can Brandon Jacobs throw his helmet into the stands this week?  Winner – Giants.

Pittsburgh @ Tampa Bay – Which team is for real?  The team with the suspended starting QB which has found a way to win behind a good defense as they line up just about anyone serviceable at QB, or is it the young team who has shown some flashes on offense while their defense has made a few plays here and there?  Both teams are 2-0 and The Bucs get an opportunity to play the Steelers at home.  Someone has to win.  Winner – Steelers.

Cincinnati @ Carolina – I’ve gotta be a sage or something.  The Jimmy Clausen era begins in Carolina this weekend.  You normally want your rookie to open at home (check) and with a decent ground game (ummm,….) to help him manage.  The Bengals will be looking for blood in the water.  I expect a lot of blitzing and a lot of stunts to confuse the rookie.  Good luck Jimmy.  Winner – Bengals. 

Cleveland @ Baltimore – This will be a slugfest, regardless of records.  The Ravens have got to get their offense rolling and get Flacco to stop throwing to the wrong color jerseys.  This Browns team ought to offer somewhat of a cure.  There was word that the Ravens are not going to kick away from Josh Cribbs, please tell me it ain’t so.  If the Ravens kick to Cribbs, this will be close, otherwise a nice win for the Ravens.  Winner – Ravens. 

Dallas @ Houston – Best game of the week.  Well, maybe.  The Cowboys are 0-2 and 0-3 might mean some heads start to roll.  They get a Texans team that is coming off a great win against the Redskins and for some reason, no one feels that putting 3 people on Andre Johnson is a good idea.  I got a feeling that the Cowboys finally wake up and put it all together.  Expect big games from Felix Jones and Jason Witten.  If the Cowboys lose this game, Jerry may want to fold up camp.  Winner – Cowboys. 

San Francisco @ Kansas City – I feel sorry for Mike Singletary.  If his team played with half his passion, they’d be 2-0.  Alex Smith didn’t look bad last week and this team’s success sits squarely on his shoulders.  If he can somehow limit his mistakes, this team makes a big turn for the better.  Kansas City is 2-0 and that’s about as good as it gets for them this year.  They have already exceed expectations.  Winner – 49ers.

Detroit @ Minnesota – Just what the Vikings needed, no not a WR, a cupcake.  The Vikes need to right their ship and get this team back on track like they were last year.  Continue giving AP his 20+ carries and for goodness sake find a healthy WR, somewhere.  Winner – Vikings.

Buffalo @ New England – The Bills come to New England and hopefully they enjoy the trip there because the outcome of this game is going to make for a long trip home.  Winner – Patriots.

Atlanta @ New Orleans – The best game of the week.  The Falcons finally showed what kind of team they can be and now they get to go to a different dome and prove just how good they are.  The Saints got by last week against the 49ers and they have to adjust to life without Reggie Bush.  I could see the Falcons winning this game,…..Winner – Falcons. 

Washington @ St. Louis – This should be an opportunity for McNabb to have a good game and not have to throw for 400+ yards.  The Rams just aren’t ready for primetime yet.  Winner – Redskins.

Philadelphia @ Jacksonville – Once again back it’s the incredible, Mike Vick.  Many people are saying this is a bad move, but let’s think back.  The Eagles brought in Vick when they had McNabb and Kolb.  We all knew they weren’t going to pay McNabb to stay so we knew he was gone.  Vick was supposed to be insurance, but we all saw how bad Kolb was as a substitute.  Andy Reid’s job is on the line, and he’s gotta win.  Shouldn’t we have seen Vick being the starter, until he loses?  He’ll continue the trend this weekend.  Winner – Eagles.   

Oakland @ Arizona – Somebody has to win.  I don’t think that Derek Anderson is a starter for any team and I can’t even spell Gradkowski, but the Raiders get it done this week.  Winner – Raiders. 

San Diego @ Seattle – Are we done with the Pete Carroll era yet in Seattle?  I think that they could use a good possession receiver who could help their QB, but they let him go.  The Chargers haven’t looked real good yet so I expect them to get it together on this road trip and put some numbers on the board.  Winner – Chargers.

Indianapolis @ Denver – After the debacle that was Manning Bowl II, the Colts look to be on the same page.  They get to go to Denver and I imagine that they are going to start pounding the Broncos upfront by running the ball and then let Manning take over from there.  Winner – Colts.

New York Jets @ Miami – After their first big win, Braylon Edwards decides to tie one on and get caught by the police.  From a fantasy impact, I’m mad as he77.  You gotta do better.  I will say this again, Miami is a team you don’t want to play.  They play fundamental ball and if you make a mistake they normally capitalize.  The Jets defense is going to have to pick up the slack from Edwards’ mistake.  Winner – Dolphins.

Green Bay @ Chicago – Ok, the guys at Union Station that manage the traffic (and our buses) have been on me all week about the Bears and how they are going to beat the Packers on Monday night.  I say that the Bears are now sitting on 1 loss (that was a Detroit TD) and ½ a W (the Cowboys beat themselves).  There is no way that the Bears are going to beat the Packers on Monday Night even if they played in Maui.  Even if I have to walk from the train station all week long,……Winner – Packers.  

Who you got?  

NFL 2010 Week 2 Wrap Up

This was a good week!!!  The word of the week is turnovers, underlying the fact that unless you’re Baltimore and you have a lot of them, you should lose. 

Pittsburgh @ Tennessee – The Steelers find ways to win.  That defense is playing extremely well even though we don’t know who will start for the Steelers at QB next week, I still think they are ok.  Dennis Dixon hurt his knee which brought in Charlie Batch and the offense couldn’t get going.  After a great Week 1 performance, Vince Young looked terrible (I think the Steelers D had something to do with that) and even he was benched for Kerry Collins.  Sloppy game with lots of turnovers, but the Steelers lasted through it all.  Good hard fought win.  Inquisitive Mind 1 – 0 for the week.  

Miami @ Minnesota – I’ve said that Miami is a team that may not beat you but they won’t beat themselves either.  They are always fundamentally sound and it showed against a listless Vikings team.  AP got his 28 carries (maybe someone in Minny was reading this?), but Favre looked terrible.  He kind of has that snowball effect thing down pat.  Once it went bad, it kept getting worse.  He needs receivers and barring a miraculous healing effort by God, Sidney Rice will be too late.  Vincent Jackson is free and he’s available.  Inquisitive Mind 1 – 1 for the week.  

Arizona @ Atlanta – This is the Falcons team that I was looking for in Week 1.  The Falcons struck early and often and ran up the score on the Cardinals.  Ryan had a low total of passing yards, 225, but had 3 TDs.  Plus when you rush for more than 200 yards as a team, you don’t have to throw far.  Hopefully Michael Turner’s groin injury is as minor as they say.  This team has a chance to do somethings in the NFC this year. Inquisitive Mind 2 – 1 for the week.  

Baltimore @ Cincinnati – For those that follow, I trust in Ray and it hurt me to have to pick against him and the Ravens, but after seeing what I saw yesterday,……you gotta feel that somewhere, the nonsense has to stop.  I tripping penalty on a LB that gets blocked into a QB, a roughing the passer call on a LB when he is tackling a QB before the QB is in his throwing motion?  6 points.  The Ravens shut down the Bengals the entire game.  Flacco had an equally bad game with 4 INTs, and his team still should have won.  Ray will get a fine, but as he said, sometimes you just gotta be honest about things.  Inquisitive Mind 3 – 1 for the week.   
Kansas City @ Cleveland – Another good showing by the defense for the Chiefs and if not for them, this would have been an ‘L’.  Cassel looked terrible as this looked like a game between two bad teams.  Seneca Wallace showed that he’s better than Delhomee as he moved the Browns up and down the field pretty well.  I guess we’ll see him starting next week too.  All you can say is that the Chiefs are 2-0 (E. Wise, I know you’re somewhere smiling today).  Wow!!!  Inquisitive Mind 4 – 1 for the week.  

Chicago @ Dallas – Wow!!  Did these teams switch jerseys before the game?  The Cowboys looked terrible, at home.  I think we can go ahead and quash any of that playing the Superbowl as the home team talk.  Both teams stopped the others ground game which would normally give the edge to the Cowboys, but Jay Cutler played pretty well with a 21 for 29 for 277 yards and 3 TDs.  Jason Witten was knocked out of the game, but looked poised for a return, but it’s probably good the Cowboys erred on the side of caution.  Can the Cowboys cut Roy Williams now?  At least I was right about Dez Bryant showing up.  Inquisitive Mind 4 – 2 for the week.  

Philadelphia @ Detroit – Mike Vick looked good in (21 of 34 for 284 and 2 TDs) and out (7 carries for 37 yards) of the pocket.  I think this one came down to LeSean McMcoy having an equally good game.  McCoy ended the game with 120 yards and 3 TDs on 16 carries.  A Shaun Hill led Lions team didn’t go quietly in the night.  Jahvid Best (17 carries for 78 yards, 2 TDs) and Shaun Hill put up nice numbers and given a stop or two by the defense may have had a chance to win this game.  A lot closer than many thought.  Detroit might be on the way back to being good.  Inquisitive Mind 5 – 2 for the week.  

Buffalo @ Green Bay – No contest, period.  The Packers weren’t able to run the ball as much as I thought, but it really didn’t matter.  Inquisitive Mind 6 – 2 for the week.  

Tampa Bay @ Carolina – The Bucs came out and did work against the Panthers.  They controlled the game and Josh Freeman had a good outing (12 of 24 for 178 yards and 2 TDs).  The Panthers looked terrible and we saw both QBs (Moore and Clausen) look equally bad with the telling sign being John Fox saying that ‘it’s too early to tell who the starter for week 3 will be’.  I know already.  Inquisitive Mind 7 – 2 for the week.  

Seattle @ Denver – I knew I shouldn’t have gone with Pete Carroll on this one.  The Seahawks looked as bad as they looked good in Week 1.  If you didn’t see this game and you wonder how the Broncos won, you just have to look at one person’s stat line, Kyle Orton:  25 of 35 for 307 and 2 TDs.  Inquisitive Mind 7 – 3 for the week.  

St. Louis @ Oakland – Talk about an ugly game.  Bruce Gradkowski replaced Jason Campbell after halftime and the Raiders held on to a win.  Darren McFadden may have finally proven that he can carry the load with an awesome game (30 carries for 145 yards).  Somebody had to win, right?  Inquisitive Mind 8 – 3 for the week. 

Houston @ Washington – This was an amazing win for the Texans.  They were down 17 to the Redskins at home in the 3^rd quarter and many thought this was going to be a Redskins 2-0 start.  Then, boom, boom, boom and the Texans tie the game on a beautiful catch by Andre Johnson.  Matt Schaub ended up throwing for 497 yards (38 of 52) while McNabb threw for 426 yards (28 of 38).  This was gut wrenching for the Redskins, but I might have to say that the Texans are for real this year.  Inquisitive Mind 9 – 3 for the week.  

New England @ New York Jets – This game didn’t necessarily live up to the hype, but the Jets found a way to throw the ball downfield and I think, actually surprised the Pats.  Mark Sanchez looked like the better QB and there was a LT sighting (11 carries for 76 yards) for the Jets.  Moss got a touchdown reception, but other than that he had 2 catches for 38 yards.  Revis did end up leaving the game in the 2^nd quarter as his hammy tightened up on him.  This was a completely different Jets team from Week 1.  Good win, or it could have been trouble for the Jets.  Inquisitive Mind 9 – 4 for the week.  

Jacksonville @ San Diego – We had a Luke McCown sighting.  If you’re a Jaguars fan, that’s terrible news.  Phillip Rivers was efficient as ever with his 22 for 29 for 334 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 INTs (so he was really 24 of 29).  McCown replaced Garrard in the 4^th but got shaken up himself.  Garrad ended the game 15 of 23 for 173 yards, 1 TD, and 4 INTs.  Looks like the same ole Jaguars team that stunk last year.  Inquisitive Mind 10 – 4 for the week.  

New York Giants @ Indianapolis – This turned out to be a laugher.  I still have no idea why people continue to put Eli Manning in the discussion as a good QB?  The only thing that he and Peyton share is blood.  Peyton proved, yet again, that he is the best Manning around with a 20 of 26 for 255 yards and 3 TDs performance.  He controlled the game and the Colts defense continued to acquaint themselves with Eli.  The funniest part of this game was Brandon Jacobs throwing his helmet into the stands and pleading that ensued to get the helmet back.  How do you throw your helmet into the stands?  Inquisitive Mind 11 – 4 for the week.  


New Orleans @ San Francisco – This was a great game.  The 49ers had the game plan and pretty much executed that game plan, minus the 4 turnovers, and they almost pulled it off.  They were 3 inches from a win and that has to hurt.  So now we know how to beat the Saints:  1) Wind 2) Great mix of run and pass to keep Brees on the sideline 3) Some luck.  How many people will talk about the Heisman curse with Reggie Bush breaking his leg?  Inquisitive Mind 12 – 4 for the week. 

After that terrible last week, a 12-4 record really helps you bounce back.  So for the year we are at 19-13 and not in bad shape with the professionals.  WHO DAT?!?!?!?

Change is Coming

I want to thank all of those people that come through and enjoy the commentary that we provide.  We are in the process of rethinking some of the things that we do here on Melting Pot Thoughts and we expect some new changes to be implemented soon.  Some of the things on the list are possibly a new name, new contributors, and maybe even a new look.  Stay tuned. 

P.S. - If you have any ideas for our new name, feel free to float them to me.


Thanks.

NFL 2010 Week 2 Picks

We definitely started the season off with a bang with our 7-9 record, so let's see if we can make less noise and some better picks.  

Pittsburgh @ Tennessee – Well Dennis Dixon gets his next test in Tennessee.  We all know from Week 1 that the Steelers defense can get them out of a lot of trouble, but the offense is going to have to step it up this time around.  The Titans will give the Steelers large doses of Chris Johnson, and I imagine that VY is going to have to throw the ball more than 17 times.  This ought to be quite the game.  Winner – Steelers.    

Miami @ Minnesota – Miami travels all the way to Minnesota and I imagine that their ground game will be ready to test the Vikings front 7.  The Saints seemed to run well against them in Week 1 and I think the Dolphins have a more dynamic group of runners.  I hope someone in Minny tells Childress that Chris Johnson got 27 carries in a laugher of a game last week for the Titans,…….give AP his carries!!!!  Winner – Vikings.

Arizona @ Atlanta – After giving away last week’s game to the Steelers, the Falcons are at home and hopefully they’ve implemented more than one pass play and more than 4 running plays or it’s going to be a long season.  The Cardinals can be tough against the run upfront, but I expect the home cooking to work in favor of the Falcons and give them their first win of the season.  Winner – Falcons.

Baltimore @ Cincinnati – When I look at this game, the one thing that comes to mind is that Cedric Benson was the first back in 61 games to get 100 yards on this Baltimore defense.  That’s a gauntlet being thrown down to this defense.  The Ravens on offense looked pretty good with Boldin last week and I expect some more work for Houshmandzadeh this week.  Which receiving core are you going to pick, Ocho and Owens or Boldin and TJ?  Winner – Bengals.

 

Kansas City @ Cleveland – The Chefs, they got their ‘i’ back so I’ll say the Chiefs surprised last week with a pretty good performance by beating the Chargers.  Cassel looked decent and the surprised play from the defense shocked me.  The Browns are already on quarterback number two with Seneca Wallace getting the start.  I can’t say much more about the Browns.  I think this one is closer than most expect, but I imagine that the Chiefs come out on top.  Winner – Chiefs.

Chicago @ Dallas – One team got a W with an asterisk (Bears) and the other got an ‘L’ for not showing up (Cowboys), so something’s got to give.  Hillenmeyer is out for the year with the Bears with a concussion, and DeMarcus Ware is coming back from a mild concussion himself.  What’s the over/under on the number of games Urlacher plays before he gets hurt?  There’s no way the Cowboys let the Bears come in and spoil the home opener for them, right?  Lots of running by the Cowboys and I expect Dez Bryant to show out.  Winner – Cowboys.

Philadelphia @ Detroit – Mike Vick, glad to see you back in the saddle.  The Eagles finally announces that Vick would start (we knew this was going to happen, right?) and he has been practicing with the 1^st team all week long.  Vick should be a lot better prepared and the game plan should be wide open.  Shaun Hill will get the start for the Lions, so I expect that he’ll see a lot of blitzing from the Eagles, but they will double Calvin Johnson (they are smarter than the Bears), so this one may end up being a blowout.  Winner – Eagles.

Buffalo @ Green Bay – The tundra isn’t quite frozen yet, but the Packers are feeling a little sick from losing their starting RB, Ryan Grant, in their first game.  Because of Aaron Rodgers, they can pretty much insert running back X and keep that machine moving.  The Packers defense seems to be close to mid-season form and the Bills don’t have anyone.  Winner – Packers. 

Tampa Bay @ Carolina – Well, Week 2 and it seems as though Matt Moore will start this game, but if he does, I don’t expect him to end it on the field.  We will probably end up with a Jimmy Clausen sighting preparing for his Week 3 start.  Neither team is loaded but I bet against the Bucs last week and lost.  Winner – Bucs.

Seattle @ Denver – I don’t think many people outside of Pete Carroll’s office thought they would play like they did last week.  Is this a sign of things to come or an anomaly?  They go to Denver who may be able to provide them with some issues on the defensive side of the ball, but I’m not sure anywhere else.  I don’t actually believe this, but I’m going with,…..Winner – Seahawks. 

St. Louis @ Oakland – Talk about two bad teams (at least right now).  The Raiders will once again turn to Darren McFadden to see if he can pull the load, which he should against this defense.  Maybe they’ll even open things up a little for Jason Campbell and this one should be over by halftime.  Winner – Raiders. 

Houston @ Washington – This is the test for the Texans.  You come off a game where many thought you couldn’t beat the Colts and now you get a team in the Redskins that everyone expects you to beat.  Are the Texans going to step up?  We know Arian Foster won’t get 231 in this game, but I expect a better performance out of Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson.  I liked the Redskins on defense last week and if they can keep that up, this won’t be the cakewalk that many think it will be.  This is the Texans year.  Winner – Texans.

New England @ New York Jets – I love the trash talk.  We all know that Moss plays when he wants and this is probably one of those where he plays.  Revis has a built in excuse with his sore hammy, but this will come down to whether the Pats can protect Brady.  As we saw in their game against the Ravens, they are going to bring it all day.  The Jets are just limited on offense with Shonn Greene (the dropsies) and Sanchez not wanting to complete a pass for more than 9 yards.  Winner – Patriots.

Jacksonville @ San Diego – Chargers, are you ready to start the season yet?  You are already looking up to the Chiefs in your division, and that should never happen.  Jacksonville surprised last week with a decent performance, but I expect the Chargers to be extra motivated after that debacle last week.  Winner – Chargers.

New York Giants @ Indianapolis – I guess this is Manning Bowl Part Deux.  Normally the better Manning should win this game and I think that holds.  Note to insurance agents, if an individual named Bob Sanders applies for any type of insurance, you probably want to deny him, he’s accident prone.  The Colts defense will be okay with Bullitt back there, but Peyton seemed to be already in mid-season form.  I’m just not a believer in Eli.  Winner – Colts. 

New Orleans @ San Francisco – I can already see it, Mike Singletary addressing the media after this game,…’I’d like to thank the Saints for kicking our a$$ like that because it’s something we need to learn from’.  Winner – Saints. 

Who you got?

NFL 2010 Week 1 Wrap Up

I’m not sure what happened, but this week started well and then just went into the tank. I guess the underlying theme of Week 1 is wait until Week 2 before we start playing. Oh and another thing, let’s make sure that it’s not close to have a referee decide a game. Let’s get the tale of the tape.

Minnesota @ New Orleans – After an aggressive first drive for the Saints, this turned out to be a yawner. Not much excitement on either side of the ball, and each team seemed a little rusty to say the least (maybe there is an argument for an 18 game season). The Saints won, but I imagine that both teams will be better over the remainder of the season. Just one questions popped out during this game, I know Peterson had 19 carries, but this is game one of the season, why not give him 25? He didn’t put the ball on the ground. Sounds like Chilly is over coaching already. Inquisitive Mind 1 – 0 for the week.

Carolina @ New York Giants – We all knew that the Panthers had no chance in this one, but it just took the Giants a little while to wake up. Eli had 3 INTs to go along with 3 TDs, but we all know that the ground game will be the key for the Giants this year. And, I said it, Clausen will be the starter by week 3. After that hit that Moore took, we’re one step closer. Inquisitive Mind 2- 0 for the week.

Atlanta @ Pittsburgh – Talk about crying in your beer. This was a slugfest. The Steelers stopped the Falcons ground game and the Falcons stopped the Steelers air attack (yes, limited with Dixon back there). This came down to 3 things: 1) Polamalu’s pick in the 4th. The announcers were saying a great call by Dick LeBeau, no way. Polamalu jumped that route after he saw White catching it all day long. Beautiful play to get his toes in. 2) Jeff Reed’s two missed field goals (and one with the win on the line?) and lastly 3) Atlanta, is this all you got on offense? I mean Ryan can’t throw that deep out every 7th play and hope that it works and no running game to speak of. Falcons, you let me down. Also, I love it when I’m right about Ward. Inquisitive Mind 2 – 1 for the week.

Cleveland @ Tampa Bay – Maybe the Panther fans were right to laugh when I mentioned the best QB in this game being Delhomme. He proved that he’s a decent QB, but oh my goodness he is mistake prone. Freeman looked decent and the defense showed glimpses of years past. The Bucs snuck one out. Inquisitive Mind 2 – 2 for the week.

Denver @ Jacksonville – I’m going to go out on a limb and say this is the best game that Garrard has played in 2 maybe 3 years. The Jaguars had a balanced attack and the defense was teeing of on Orton like he was a piñata. Denver might be in trouble. Orton can’t keep taking hits like that. Inquisitive Mind 2 – 3 for the week.

Indianapolis @ Houston – The Texans beat the Colts. I think everyone in Houston is still partying. Yes, it’s the first game of the year, but 231 yards rushing by Arian Foster and a good/great defensive unit spells good things for the Texans. Even with Manning throwing for 433 yards (a career high) and having a 109 QB rating, this game wasn’t as close as the final makes it seem. If the Texans can play like this all year, that AFC South is going to be interesting. Inquisitive Mind 3 – 3 for the week.

Miami @ Buffalo – Somebody had to win this game and the Dolphins just eeked it out. Not much else to say. If you watched this game, I apologize for the 2 ½ hours of your life you won’t get back. Inquisitive Mind 4 – 3 for the week.

Detroit @ Chicago – WHEW!!!! What in the halibut is going on here? I’m sorry, this was a loss for the Bears. Johnson caught that pass and was getting up when he lost the ball. I’m waiting on the NFL to review this one. Bears fans have a lot to be happy about: 1) a win is a win 2) Urlacher played pretty well and didn’t get hurt 3) and they may have found their #1 receiver in Matt Forte (well, this is really a joke). Forte rushed for 50 yards and had another 151 yards in the air. How can Lovie be so arrogant? Doesn’t he know that he has exactly 15 more games to be the head coach of the Bears? Inquisitive Mind 5 – 3 for the week.

Oakland @ Tennessee – Can I take get a do over on this one? Yes, I used big IFs earlier but the Raiders looked horriawful, with the exception of Darren McFadden. He did prove that he can carry the full load (even if only for one game). The Titans will end up a lot better than some guessed if they can play like this the rest of the year. VY had a decent game and only had 17 attempts, while Chris Johnson did his work. Inquisitive Mind 5 – 4 for the week.

Cincinnati @ New England – If this game were another 2 quarters long,……the Bengals didn’t start playing football until after halftime. You can’t do that and expect to win at Gillette Stadium. Wes Welker looked good in his return to the big stage and I’m still trying to find how Ochocinco had 12 receptions for 159 yards. Did I turn the channel or something? Maybe the Bengals will wake up and start playing now. Inquisitive Mind 5 – 5 for the week.

Arizona @ St. Louis – How quickly the mighty have fallen. It’s going to be a long year for the Cardinals if they are going to play like this. Both teams looked horriawful, but one of them was a few inches from a Superbowl two years ago and the other team was starting a rookie QB and if you watched the game, you couldn’t have picked which team was which. Bradford might actually be the real deal. Inquisitive Mind 6 – 5 for the week.

San Francisco @ Seattle – I bet you a dollar to a donut that no one on that 49ers team slept well last night. They probably won’t sleep at all this week. They looked worse than horriawful. 2 field goals is all they could get? From a 49ers standpoint, I point to one stat line: 26 of 45 for 225 yards and 2 INTs. Alex Smith, please pack your bags. Happy to see Hasselbeck play well since he’s been beaten up so much the last few years. I wonder if the NCAA would take some of Pete Carroll’s money he made as coach of USC because he knew guys were cheating (old bone to pick)? Are the Seahawks for real is the question? I guess we will know if about 3 more weeks. Inquisitive Mind 6 – 6 for the week.

Green Bay @ Philadelphia – I never root for anyone to get hurt, but I have to say that Kolb playing the way he did and leaving the way he did is ‘KARMA’. You don’t get rid of McNabb just because. Kolb sustained a concussion right before halftime (hopefully he’ll be ok) and then we got Mike Vick. The pack played well, but may have lost Ryan Grant for a significant time after the injury to his ankle. Brandon Jackson more than filled his shoes while Aaron Rodgers was throwing to just about everyone all day long. I guess we’ll have to see if Andy Reid was right by saying that ‘Kolb is his QB when he’s healthy again’. Inquisitive Mind 6 – 7 for the week.

Dallas @ Washington – You’ve got to be kidding me?!?!??!? This came down to a final play with the Cowboys throwing a TD and they lose. Somewhere, Daniel Snyder is smiling so hard his face is cracking. If the Cowboys don’t get an O-line and soon, all of this home team for the Superbowl stuff isn’t going to happen. Which Cowboy coach made that play call before the half? He should be cleaning the all the bathrooms in the new Cowboys Stadium. The Redskins snuck this game away from the Cowboys, but a win is a win. Inquisitive Mind 6 – 8 for the week.

Baltimore @ New York Jets – This was a smash mouth game that should have been a joy to watch for those that appreciate defense (and some bad offense).  The Jets brought all of the bravado but no offense to speak of.  I doubt they completed a pass for more than 10 yards at any one time.  The Ravens defense, led by Ray Lewis smothered and hit the Jets all night.  Shonn Greene may not touch the ball for a week or two after letting it hit the ground so much last night.  In the end, the better offense won.  Flacco to Boldin looks like a good pairing.  Is it me or does Flacco always seem to throw off of his back foot?  The scary thing is that both teams will get better.  Bad omen for the Jets is that they may have lost Kris Jenkins for an extended period of time.  Inquisitive Mind 7 - 8 for the week.


San Diego @ Kansas City – This is reason #4080 that Norv is NOT the coach that the Chargers need.  This was a loss to the Chefs (still the funniest commercial ever).  The Chargers looked lackadaisical and not ready for football.  The Chiefs didn't really have that much on offense and they still won.  If anything I was surprised that the Chiefs defense is actually starting to look like a unit.  Great kick return by rookie Dexter McCluster.  Great upset by the Chiefs.  Inquisitive Mind 7 - 9 for the week. 

Well, that's Week 1 down and I think that I'm happy it's over.  A 7-9 record is not how you want to start the season, but hey, we have a long way to go.  I'm not too far off of the professionals.  

NFL 2010 Week 1 Picks

Here we go,….Week 1 of a new season.  Let’s see if we can’t start the year off with a bang.

Minnesota @ New Orleans – Rematch of last years NFC Championship game.  My biggest question is, are the same refs working this game?  Those refs that allowed the Saints players to get a few extra hits in on the old QB (Favre).  Both teams are a little worse for wear from last year, the Saints defense isn’t going to be the same without Sharper back there and the Vikings still haven’t solved their defensive backfield issues.  Toss up, because I expect this to be a close game.  Home team.  Winner – Saints.

Carolina @ New York Giants – Nice new field, and you get a Matt Moore led Panthers team on a plate.  How many of you even know who the Panthers starting QB is?  I expect Clausen to be starting by week 3.  Too much Giants, too early.  Winner – Giants.

Atlanta @ Pittsburgh – A much better game if Big Ben is around.  Pittsburgh at home is a dangerous squad and they are ready on the defensive side of the ball.  We all know that this game is going to come down to Dennis Dixon and how he fares.  I actually think he plays decent.  Expect a big ground game for the Steelers along with a big game from Hines Ward (security blanket for Dixon).  Winner – Steel,……..Falcons.

Cleveland @ Tampa Bay – One of these teams has to win, right?  Tampa Bay has been on the decline for a few years and it’s not looking much better right now.  The Browns lost Hardesty to an injury but they have a healthy Jake Delhomme (all the Carolina Panthers fans are laughing in unison) and a decent offensive line to protect him.  Cleveland won’t have many wins this season, maybe this is the first.  Winner – Browns.

Denver @ Jacksonville – I like Kyle Orton, I really do, but the Tim Tebow clock is on.  Over/Under on him starting by week 10 or 11, I’m taking the over.  Jacksonville used to be good and David Garrard has got to step up his game for the Jaguars to make some noise.  Denver just might be too good for this team.  Winner – Broncos.

Indianapolis @ Houston – Is this finally the year for the Texans?  Do they take that next step?  All the pieces are there,…and this is the time.  A mild upset here.  Winner – Texans.

Miami @ Buffalo – No snow, no cold, no chance for the Bills.  Miami should dominate this game, period.  Winner – Dolphins.

Detroit @ Chicago – This is the beginning of the end for Lovie Smith.  Lovie, look over your shoulder and see the new head coach of the Chicago Bears (1 of the 3 former head coaches on your staff).  The Bears are bringing in a new offense that requires their QB, who threw 20+ interceptions last year, to throw to spots and not to people.  Sounds like another 20+ interception year again.  Defense is older, and oft injured Urlacher is already hurt.  The Bears should gut this one out.  Winner – Bears.

Oakland @ Tennessee – IF (notice how big) the Raiders can protect Jason Campbell, they will be the surprise team in the AFC.  They have a two pronged running game (when Bush comes back) and they actually play pretty well on defense.  The Titans may end up getting back a lost bag in Haynesworth, which will definitely help their defense.  Another mild upset.  Winner – Raiders.

Cincinnati @ New England – There are going to be some points scored in this one.  The Bengals actually have claws this year as they get both Ochocinco and TO to go along with Cedric Benson.  Palmer has a chance to redeem himself as a top QB.  The Pats return most of an average defense, but we all know that their offense can score.  I don’t care how many steps Randy Moss has lost, he’s still faster than most DBs out there.  Winner – Bengals.

Arizona @ St. Louis – Who’s starting at QB for the Cardinals?  It may not matter since most of the defense is intact.  Sam Bradford, welcome to the NFL.  Winner – Cardinals.

San Francisco @ Seattle – Hmmmm, I wonder what the 49ers would look like with a decent QB?  The 49ers defense is there and they have weapons for Alex Smith, but they need Alex Smith to play ball.  Hasselbeck is finally healthy for the Seahawks, but I’m not sold on Pete Carroll’s system.  Not sure if it works in the NFL, but I guess that’s why they play the game.  Winner – 49ers.

Green Bay @ Philadelphia – The Packers are probably one of the teams at the top of the NFC.  They seem to have everything on both sides of the ball.  They run the ball well and they have a young Aaron Rodgers who is finally ready to get completely out of their old QB’s shadow.  The Eagles got rid of Donovan McNabb because they felt that Kolb is the future and some felt that Kolb was better than McNabb.  Sometimes you get what you ask for.  Winner – Packers.

Dallas @ Washington – This is all the Cowboys needed, McNabb in a Redskins uniform.  McNabb has been a Cowboys killer and with his relocation to DC, he may have that opportunity to do this to the ‘Boys yet again (maybe twice).  Cowboys are a good regular season team, I’m not sold on Romo and for some reason, people forget about Marion Barber.  The Redskins are old and have very few playmakers on the offensive side of the ball.  Winner – Cowboys.

Baltimore @ New York Jets – The Jets have Revis back which is huge for them.  That defense doesn’t work as well without a lockdown guy at one corner spot.  The Ravens found a way to pick up TJ Houshmandzadeh for the veteran’s minimum, but now have two guys that fill the same role (possession receiver) in Boldin and TJ.  With that said, Joe Flacco is probably peeing the bed at night with the weapons he has at his disposal.  Winner – Ravens.

San Diego @ Kansas City – Another year, another loaded Chargers team (even without their two holdouts), another disappointing season.  The Chiefs are still wondering if this whole Matt Cassel deal was worth it as he feels his way into his second year of starting.  They have put some talent around Cassel and it looks like they will be good in the near future.  That future just doesn’t start now.  Winner – Chargers. 

Thos are my picks, who you got? 

Are You Ready?????

Well, it’s that time of year again. You can smell it in the air,….it’s football time!!!! We here at MeltingPotThoughts aren’t big NCAA Football fans, but when the NFL starts, it’s on. As usual, I will be updating you guys on my Fantasy Football squad (the Cold Ones) and I’ll also be picking against the ESPN Football panel on a weekly basis. In previous years I’ve done a pretty good job, but hey, I need a new career so I’m in this to win it. Each week, I’ll give you my picks for the week and some brief commentary, while you all get to tell me if I’m crazy or not. You'll also get a wrap up each week so we can see how well I actually did against the professionals. I might even try to get our resident basketball Stat Guy, NYSTOM, to work on some formulas to help you with Fantasy Football. I’m looking forward to a great year this year and hopefully you’ll come along for the ride.

Enjoy!!!!!

P.S. – If you win money off my picks, I want half of the winnings. If you lose, you shouldn’t be betting anyway.

Luck of the Hoosier?

Well, it’s happened again. Isiah Thomas has been hired by the New York Knicks. Take a moment, and yes we haven’t Hot Tub Time Machined back a few years. Thomas, who is presently the head coach at FIU, has been hired as a consultant for the Knicks by his former boss James Dolan. This story has so many angles, I’m not sure where to start. Maybe right here:

- The last time Zeke worked for the Knicks it cost them $11.6M for Anucha Browne Sanders. No she doesn’t play for the Liberty, she just happened to be someone that Zeke sexually harassed.

- Zeke gave out several terrible cap limiting deals that further hurt the organization: Eddy Curry, Jerome James, and Jared Jeffries come to mind.

- As a coach for the Knicks they ended up firing him because the team was terrible under him and at one point they told him to not even speak with Knicks players.

I guess my biggest question is how does this happen? Zeke has only been able to do one thing and that is find talent. So how does he go from being lambasted out of NY and then right back into NY on a cushy deal? Some people say that Zeke was instrumental behind the scenes with getting A’mare Stoudamire to come to NY in the off season ($100M would have done that) even though his pitch to LBJ didn’t work. Maybe he found a way to look good to Dolan again and thus this signing. With the present GM, Donnie Walsh, possibly heading off into the sunset in 2 years, has Zeke been promised the GM position again? For New York fans, I hope not.

The next biggest thing is where is the NCAA? With this position Zeke is allowed to recruit for FIU and the Knicks, all in one fell swoop? Who is he representing when he walks in the door? This could mean higher recruits might find their way to FIU knowing that Zeke has a pipeline, that all of us can see, directly to the NBA. This reeks of something unfair and I’m waiting for David Stern or the NCAA to nix this whole thing. If this passes the muster, I imagine that the Lakers will be reaching out to (insert your favorite college basketball coach) Coach K for a similar kind of engagement. The possibilities would be endless.

What’s your take on this move? Does it make sense? How did HE get a job with the Knicks again?