Final Thoughts Before Kickoff

My posts have been sporadic lately, but I had to get this in before kickoff to lend it any credibility.

Really, this post consists of a single question aimed at a single group.

To those who have been saying:

Yeah, I think the Chiefs are probably an 8 or 9 win team.

Not "if everything goes right and Denver and Oakland are wretched and Philip Rivers gets hurt".

Not "best case scenario".

But with a matter-of-fact tone that suggests a sentiment of, "Yeah, that sounds about right. I'm making a statement with a reasonable level of confidence."

My question is this:

What the hell have you seen that makes you think it is likely that this team will win half its games?

Todd Haley is still a pompous prick who sounds constipated when he talks inanely about guys "caring" and "buying in".

Romeo Crennel and Charlie Weis are nothing special; they are simply reputations created as underlings in New England.

Though Eric Berry can't hurt, our defensive front is the same one that allowed a Cleveland Browns journeyman to run for almost 300 years last year.

And last I checked, Matt Cassel was our quarterback.

Enlighten me - what the hell have you seen that suggests doubling last year's win total? I would even have accepted a preseason performance as evidence at this point...but there's not one to point to.

I really hope I'm wrong.

Posted at 8:13pm, FWIW.

Super Bowl Thoughts

-The onside kick to begin the 2nd half will likely be the ballsiest thing you'll ever see in a Super Bowl.

-Everyone praised the onside kick because it worked out for the Saints. They would have called it the stupidest thing you'll ever see in a Super Bowl if the Colts recovered.

-Peyton Manning is by far the most valuable player in the NFL. He is the only reason the Colts were in the Super Bowl. There is not a single playmaker on that offense, yet he makes Dallas Clark and Reggie Wayne into Pro Bowlers. The Colts are an 8-win team with, say, Carson Palmer or Eli Manning. With Peyton, they've won at least 12 games SEVEN YEARS in a row.

-Somewhat related to this fact above: if you watched even a little sports coverage in the week preceding the game, you'll hear former NFL players-turned-analysts talk about how Peyton Manning can't be considered the greatest quarterback of all time unless he wins this Super Bowl. How Drew Brees is a very good QB, but becomes an ELITE QB if he wins this game.

It's all about championships for a quarterback.

This one game will determine his legacy.

This argument is STUPID. By this rationale, Trent Dilfer > Dan Marino. (And yes, Dilfer is one of the people making the argument.)

There is no other sport in which a player is more dependent on his teammates. I liken the Colts to the early Broncos teams led by John Elway. Now we can look back and say the Broncos really had no business even being in the three Super Bowls they lost--that Elway incalculably elevated those teams--but that wasn't what people said at the time. The rub? John Elway was no Joe Montana because he didn't win championships.

Let's get real here: Joe Montana was good, but he couldn't hold Elway's jock.

Of course, the whole "Elway can't win the big one" argument has been resolved because the Broncos won a couple championships at the end of Elway's career...but what if Terrell Davis and the rest of the team weren't there? How would we think of Elway today if they didn't win those games?

-I thought the Who had a good showing, which contrasts with a lot of stuff I've seen. I thought they sounded good and looked good. There's never a really good way to do 12 minutes of music when you have the back catalog of the Who, and I'm sure CBS contractually obligated them to play "Won't Get Fooled Again". Still, at age 65, Daltrey has lost only the top end of his range, and Townshend still windmills. They didn't take a single song down a half- (or full-) octave like most musicians fifteen years younger tend to do.

-The commercials, yet again, were meh. I think they've simply run out of ways to surprise us, shock us, or wow us visually.

New Career for CoCo?

I was reading Joe Posnanski's piece on the Washington Generals' owner. It's a great column/post about Red Klotz, a former professional basketball star who has coached a team of no-names against the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters for some 58 years.

In the comments section, someone alertly posted that Red attempted to contact a certain deposed redheaded talk show host about playing some ball for the Generals.

Here is the result (click to enlarge):


I love the comment about Andy at the end.

Random Sports Note - Derek Jeter

Derek Jeter. Yep, I hate the Yankees. Hate them. Jeter's a fine player, but I've never liked him, mostly because he’s smug, spoiled, and overrated.

(An aside—I swear I’ll lose my mind if I ever again hear how amazing his play was against Oakland in the playoffs several years ago. You know the one: he runs over to redirect the lousy off-line throw from the outfield, tossing the ball to Jorge Posada who tags an inexplicably non-sliding Jeremy Giambi. People talk as if it was the smartest, most magnificent play in history. Whatever. I did the EXACT SAME THING playing kickball in 3rd grade. Laugh if you want, but at 8 years old in the Hazel Grove gym during PE class, I ran over and deflected a poorly-thrown ball right into Randy Kussatz’ legs as he tried to score, thus retiring the side. I’m not saying this to toot my own horn, or pretend I was some wunderkind athlete. What I’m saying is that while Yankee fans want to anoint Derek Jeter the messiah of baseball for his incredible smarts and instincts, a chubby 8-year-old in KCK had those same smarts and instincts.)

Anyway, did you see how much coverage they devoted to him breaking the Yankees’ career hits record? There’s a one-minute sports update on the radio, and 10 seconds of it is being used to let me know Jeter’s 6 hits away from tying the record? It’s the lead story on SportsCenter? There are people actually suggesting this makes him an MVP candidate?

It’s a franchise record. Not a major-league record. Not even an American League record.

He’s now got the 52nd most hits in major league history. BFD.

Random Sports Note - Football

-Why does every new young coach in the NFL feel compelled to act like he’s a hardass? They have to instill a “culture”, make an example of the standout players on the team, and generally just get into a pissing match every chance they get. It’s stupid.

I hear the Kevin Kietzmans of the world talk about how much they love that Chiefs coach Todd Haley is a disciplinarian and doesn’t put up with anything. Why is that impressive? Alienating your best players is a horrible way to motivate them long-term. They don’t respect the coach more because he takes their parking spots away or cusses at them all the time.

Even more annoying is that I hear the talking heads on ESPN swear up and down that every team’s woes are due to a lack of a winning culture in this clubhouse, or this other team has heart and that’s why they’re successful.

Bull.
Shit.

Teams win because they are more talented. Teams win because their coaches have figured out where there is a talent mismatch and go on to exploit it (or compensate for it).

You ever wonder why every NFL-player-turned-analyst never talks about talent?

Why the result of every game, nay, every PLAY is the result of something intangible?

Why it’s always heart and “never giving up” and “wanting it more” that win games?

Because professional athletes THINK THEY ARE BETTER PEOPLE THAN YOU ARE.

Their egos will not allow them to admit that they made it to the NFL because they were simply born with more talent, size, and athleticism. No, it had to be their superhuman drive to be the best. It had to be their work ethic and attitude. You know, something they can attribute to themselves and their own inner greatness. Seriously – listen to any one of these guys and tell me they aren’t utterly convinced of this.

Random Sports Note - Women's Tennis

-The U.S. Open Women’s tennis tournament was rather interesting. First, you had the Serena meltdown:

She definitely threatened to shove an effing ball down the judge’s effing throat. For two days she avoided any display of remorse or contrition (Serena has never held herself accountable for anything). She finally apologized two days later, probably while her PR person held her at gunpoint.

More impressively, Belgium’s Kim Clijsters went on to beat Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in the final. Clijsters was playing in only her 3rd tournament since taking a 2-1/2 year hiatus to have a child.

Even more impressive than that? I was actually able to watch the match without hitting MUTE, thanks to a complete lack of grunting. Seriously—neither woman in the finals sounded like a buffalo being speared. It was highly refreshing to see/hear.

McCoy's 12th Anniversary Dubbel, Plus a Good Read

We both had some work to do last night, but the last two weeks have been hectic and we really just wanted to have some beer.

What's a guy to do?

Go to the Foundry, of course. There's beer there, as you may know. What you may not know is that the Foundry also has WiFi.

Their 12th anniversary beer, an abbey-style dubbel was on tap. If you're a fan of the style, don't miss this one! It is superb. The caramelly finish will bring a smile to your face. But don't let the smoothness fool you--it packs a punch.

(Unfortunately, we just missed the aged release of their 11th anniversary Triple B...you snooze, you lose I guess.)


Totally unrelated, but Joe Posnanski wrote an article about Andy Roddick that's really about all of us who have ever aspired to be great. Long read, but totally worth it.

Braggin' Rights Follow-Up

As mentioned previously, four friends and I taped a week's worth of Braggin' Rights, a sports trivia show that airs on Metro Sports. We didn't know the results because our group and their group, the "Posse", tape our segments at different times in different locations. Each episode consists of 10 questions that both teams try to answer.

It turns out that we did quite well: We tied 7-7 the first day, then 9-9 the second day.

The third day they beat us 9-8.

Finally, on the last day, they missed the last question, giving us a 10-9 victory (yep, we aced the last "day's" worth of questions).

I'm very satisfied with our showing, considering their team consists of guys who do nothing but sports--ringers, in other words. We're just some people who thought it would be fun to be on TV.

How's that taste, Posse?

Random Notes

1. With KU and Mizzou both in the Sweet 16, at least one of them has to lose in the next two weeks. For any sports fan with emotional connections to his/her team, Bill Simmons' Levels of Losing is required reading, if only for commiseratory reasons. It's a long article, it's been around for a while, but it's worth the time.

2. I went to Barley's Brewhaus last night and discovered what I thought was a misprint. Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout was listed on the menu at $4.25 a pour. Turns out, it was correct! This is their regular price for a full goblet of this fantastic beer! Even more surprising, this was the least expensive craft beer on the menu--even cheaper than the beer brewed at their sister company (75th Street Brewery). For that price, you're getting one of the better beers you'll ever quaff (99/100 at RateBeer.com), and it's even served at the right temperature.

Their Windy City Pies are also the best take on Chicago-style pizza I've found in Kansas City.

3. Pete at Feel Me Don't You posted about Succotash in the River Market. Every single person I know says the same things about that place, right down to the creepy painting. I want to like it, but...well, see the first comment (mine).

Sprint Center: Tha Conspiracy Theory

So yesterday, The Pitch's Justin Kendall posted a report that the NBA's New Orleans Hornets had met their attendance thresholds, thus guaranteeing they cannot breach their lease. This is news because every year, at least a couple NBA or NHL franchises let their local governments (read: landlords) know that Kansas City has a spiffy new arena, and it's ready for a team, and by golly, attendance hasn't been so good lately and oh I could use some new suites and other "revenue streams", and Kansas City has those things, hint hint.

It really got me thinking:

What if the Sprint Center is the focal point of massive sports ownership collusion?

Think about it.

The arena is run by AEG, which owns the NHL's LA Kings and has an interest in the NBA's LA Lakers. They obviously have the ears of the other owners.

What if AEG said, "All right, people. Check this out--we put an arena construction issue to a vote in Kansas City."

It'll never pass; there's no trust in city government to actually use taxpayer money responsibly.

"But here's the great part--the citizens of KC will barely be taxed at all! We'll fund it with a hotel and rental car tax so TOURISTS can pay for the arena! In fact, that's how we'll sell it."

Hmm...that might work. But why Kansas City?

"Think about it--it has neither a hockey nor a basketball team, but an arena could house either one. It's also a big enough city that an outsider could believe that, conceivably, a franchise could draw well enough to be supported there. For crissakes, we have a basketball team in Salt Lake City!"

Where are you going with this?

"We get the arena built. For a good ten years, those of us who need a few more skyboxes, or concession stands, or hell, a whole damn new arena can hold our fanbase hostage. Fix our shit or we leave."

Brilliant! And none of us really ever have to leave! Sweet, sweet leverage!

"Yep--everyone wins. You get your new amenities, your fans keep their teams, and Kansas City gets Elton John, Garth Brooks, and Nickelback."

After ten years when the arena is not so state-of-the-art...?

"We do it again. Vegas, baby."

UPDATE: Apparently the latest team to make us their patsy is the Indiana Pacers. (/nod Justin Kendall @ the Pitch)

UPDATE: Now it's the Columbus Blue Jackets. (/nod David Martin @ Pitch). It never ends.

Braggin' Rights: I'm (Going To Be) On TV!

Yesterday I took a couple hours off work to film Braggin' Rights, a local sports trivia competition on Metro Sports. I didn't know what to expect.

It was a blast!

On television it looks like this. If you don't feel like clicking, there are two teams--a guest team (us) and "The Posse" (sports guys/ringers). The other team isn't present; we are taped at different times and locations.

After both teams are introduced, a question appears on the TV. They show us giving our answer, then the Posse gives it a try, then the correct answer is revealed. Each episode is ten questions long, and we taped four total episodes that will run on consecutive days (probably next month).

The actual taping simply consisted of us being asked all 40 questions in succession. The rest is editing.

We talked a lot of the questions out and came up with the right answer more often than not. In fact, we scored a more-than-respectable 34 out of 40. That may not be enough to unseat the Posse, but we definitely didn't embarass ourselves.

I'm really eager to see how this turns out.