Chan's The Man

The Buffalo Bills made it official and announced Chan Gailey as their next coach. Needless to say, Bills Fan is not impressed. Gailey may end up proving everyone wrong but after a few uninspired choices in the past, you'd think the Bills might try a different approach. And how do they not interview Brian Billick when he was practically advertising his interest in a sea of guys who didn't have interest? What, his resumé including a Super Bowl was too good for them? More likely, he wouldn't work for peanuts. Marty Schottenheimer also badly wanted the job, and while not a playoff commodity, he has repeatedly turned team's around, but Wilson nixed that idea. Mike Florio tells Bills Fan they could've done a lot worse than Gailey.

From the Lunch Bag Letdown Dept.: an article in yesterday's Toronto Star on Ana Ivanovic winning at the Aussie Open, coupled with a picture of Justine Henin.

Peter King at SI.com says it'll be an "upset" if there isn't a work stoppage in the 2011 NFL season and ProFootballTalk says a deal in the short term would give the owners what they want - a claw back on salaries and make up for what they've given up in the current deal - as the players would have to cave. Can't imagine that an 11th hour deal is much better, though surely the owners don't want to lose a season. I can't see Jerry Jones in Dallas risking hosting a Super Bowl that year, can you? Jones is one of the power brokers for the "have" side of ownership.

The same guy that told me how great he thinks fighting in hockey is with bare hands also told me he thinks MMA is essentially barbaric. Uh-huh.

After seven weeks with the public spotlight glaring down on him, Tiger Woods should be thanking NBC for the current Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien fiasco for pushing him into the background. For the record, Jay Leno is not funny, and if you like him, you're a loser.

The Seattle Mariners continued a productive off-season by inking King Felix Hernandez to a five-year $78 million deal. Hey, aren't they a "small" market team?

MacGruber, the movie. Enough said.

I find it hard to imagine that people take All-Star games seriously, especially when you see that in the NBA, Allen Iverson and worse, Tracy McGrady, are about to be voted in as starters. Pathetic. Fan voting sucks.

We are barely into 2010 and AskMen.com is already giving us the Top 99 Most Desirable Women for 2010. Definitely hard (that's what she said!) pressed to pick anyone over the #1 they've got in place.

Check out the dumbest, funniest quotes in sports. Or at least one take on that. Awesome stuff. Suppose none of these should surprise in the mental wasteland that is sports.

Get ready to buy some new gear, Liverpool fans. The Reds are moving from Carlsberg to Standard Chartered Bank, giving them the largest income from any shirt sponsor in the English Premier League at 4 years and £80m.

Have a great Wednesday.

39 shots?

Says Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun via Twitter: "The NBA, MLB and NFL all gave 1 mill to Haiti. The NHL only gave 100,000. The reason - they already donated to the disaster in Phoenix." Awesome stuff. Love Simmons.

In ESPN The Magazine, an article on the NHL's concussion issue says that hockey players are five times more likely to suffer a concussion than an NFLer. What is the NHL's policy on returning to a game after a head injury again? Oh, nevermind.

For all the big names mentioned as potential head coaches of the Buffalo Bills, that the rumor is they're going to hire Chan Gailey is pretty underwhelming, to say the least. Most won't remember Gailey, but he was the in-over-his-head coach that once had the Dallas Cowboys job. Decent offensive co-ordinator, but hardly a guy that will inspire the best and brightest to head to Western New York. Typical Bills. Go for the cheap hire rather than the powerhouse hire. This ought to sell almost no tickets.

A producer at the CBC was suspended for criticizing Don Cherry on his Twitter account. Absolutely ridiculous that they'll take up for a xenophobe - among other "phobes" - and dinosaur who is living on the public teet.

Golden State Warrior Monta Ellis took 39 shots in the Warriors 114-97 win over the Chicago Bulls yesterday. Guess when Ellis was hitting shots like these last week in New York in practice, he's going to feel pretty good about his stroke. Seriously, be sure to check the video out.

15 hotties in NFL jersey's, some which will be familiar to you. Kendra Wilkinson first? Don't think so.

MLB commissioner Bud Selig is of the opinion that the steroid era is dead and buried at this point thanks to several revelations of guys who used, and some testing that has nailed guys at the highest levels and profiles. Except for one thing, as pointed out by Roy Johnson at ESPN.com: Selig hasn't come clean with the owners knowledge of the use of performance enhancing drugs. Helluva point, Roy.

The world is filled with bad people and bad actions, but I didn't realize a guy simply chanting "J-E-T-S Jets! Jets! Jets!" was arrest worthy like it was Sunday in San Diego. Pathetic.

Mangold!

Pretty obvious why I went with that as the picture of the day, no? If not, check out #74's name and the title above.

What a beatdown in Minnesota yesterday. The Dallas offensive line was as stout as Haitian architecture and it is a wonder Tony Romo is able to walk after that pounding. After three solid but ultimately wasted drives for the Cowboys to open the game, it was all Vikes the rest of the way and a 34-3 final. Personal hell for this hater of #4. Here's hoping the New Orleans Saints save the day next weekend.

Jim Nantzzzzz, Phil Simmszzzzz, Mark Sanchezzzzz and Phillip Riverszzzzz conspired for a very dull game in San Diego for the most part, though the end result that saw the New York Jets win 17-14 is sure a stunner, until you remember that it is the San Diego Chargers and playoff flameouts are synonymous with them. Pretty sure that LaDanian Tomlinson's days as a Bolt are done and he'll have to take his Electric Glide elsewhere.

Norv Turner and Wade Phillips, as losers of the games yesterday, will go on to coach the Pro Bowl on January 31st. What are the odds both are unemployed by then? Pretty fair chance, no?

Both championship games next weekend will be played in domes. Lame.

The AHL all-star "Classic" goes the next two nights on TSN. Two? As if all-star games weren't joke enough, two nights for a minor league all-star game? What's the MVP get, best seat on the bus for his team the rest of the year?

If you haven't seen this goal from the East Coast Hockey League, prepare to see the best goal you'll see this year, if not ever. Pure artistry on the ice.

I don't "believe" that the "Believe" Olympic ads are overexposed, I know it. Enough already. And how many people do you figure blew by the front page of the Toronto Star's Sports section this morning with figure skating and snow boarding getting the entire page?

Did I read right, a 22-point win for the Toronto Raptors over the Dallas Mavericks? Can't be true, can it? Bad day for Dallas in multiple sports.

Have a great Monday.

Light up the Old Has Been!

Ignoring that Dallas historically owns Old Has Been (9-2 against him in his career), and that the Old Has Been typically fades come playoff time, I still think Dallas has too much for the Vikes to handle. D-Ware and the rest ought to hammer a soft protection on the Old Has Been and drive his immobile self into the turf at will. Best stat though? Dallas hasn't given up 100 yards rushing to anyone this year, and if they can keep that pace, and the corners keep locking down like they have, then they'll have a field day here. Cowboys, and big. I suspect it comes in right around 46 with a 30-17 score, which could set into motion a permanent retirement by the Old Has Been.

Love the Bolts. I think the Jets had a good dose of luck to make the playoffs, and then rode a great matchup to a Wild Card win, despite their great D and rushing game. The Bolts are playing as well as anyone right now, both sides of the ball, and if they can force Sanchez to have to make a play or three, they'll capitalize on his mistake prone ways. Rivers and his receivers will need to have a good day, but they've had a lot of good days the last two months and change. I think the Jets have exceeded their expectations. 2 road games in a row is tough and this is not a good match-up for their rookie QB. If the Chargers get out front early, this one will get ugly. Chargers 36-14.

The New Orleans Saints put to rest the idea that they were flatlining in a total beatdown of the Arizona Cardinals. Reggie Bush had perhaps his best game as a pro, and Drew Brees was his typically impressive self. How awesome was that hit on Kurt Warner? In the end, a 45-14 win for the Saints, who will host the NFC Championship game next Sunday against the Dallas/Minnesota winner.

The Indianapolis Colts took care of the bumbling Baltimore Ravens with ease yesterday, and had a little help from the referee's who would make a call for Indy but not call the same thing for Baltimore. That interception by Ed Reed called off for roughing the passer when Peyton Manning was barely touched, and certainly not excessively late, was a joke. It was a 20-3 Colts win.

The Sports Pickle has a great piece on how the WWE is going to investigate the long-term effect of concussions on its referee's, a move applauded by referee Mike Chioda who was knocked out 450 times last year alone. Sports Pickle rules.

If the NFL saw fit to keep anything that could be remotely controversial off the Super Bowl after the Janet Jackson nipple shield a few year's back, what are they going to do if it ends up being an Indianapolis and Minnesota final? Seriously, is there anyone that could stomach the verbal felatio of both teams QB's?

What do the three worst teams in the NHL have in common? All are coached by either a current or a former Toronto Maple Leafs coach. No, seriously. Paul Maurice has coached the Carolina Hurricanes to 35 points, Edmonton has 37 points under Pat Quinn, and the Leafs sit at 41 under Ron Wilson.

If someone like Terrell Owens went mental on a teammate the way Peyton Manning does on Jeff Saturday here in this video, he'd be crucified. But St. Peyton gets a pass because He's Just Such A Competitor.

Another day of Premier League action saw Chelsea hammer Sunderland 7-2 while Manchester United kept pace with a 3-0 win over Burnley. Up at 11am today on The Score are lowly Bolton taking on Arsenal. Should get ugly for the Wanderers.

Divisional Championship Weekend

Quick one today amidst a flurry of house projects.

The New Orleans Saints were bulletproof, especially at home, until four weeks back and after losing their first game, pulled the chute on Brees and others for the most part, and it is dicey wondering if they've been too rested and have become rusted. I cannot imagine Arizona Cardinals QB Kurt Warner playing as great a game again ever, much less two weeks straight, as he did last week. I'm thinking the best home field advantage in the game helps some for sure. I think the short week for 'Zona after a huge energy sapping game has to hurt them. 30-10 Saints.

The Baltimore Ravens pounced on a Patriots squad that wasn't ready, and the Indianapolis Colts have been cooling off since late December and should be ready to explode after all the talk of how they were making a mistake resting players and throwing in the towel on a perfect year. I'm buying Tony Dungy's idea that they'll have a major chip on their shoulder for the abuse their coach/management had to take, and can't see the Ravens turning around with another road win in a tough place to play. Colts 34-17.

The road teams in the Division round of the NFL playoffs the last few years: 3-1 in 2008, 2-2 in '07, 2-2 in '06, 2-2, and 2-2 in '05. Guess home field isn't all it cracked up to be.

What better way to get ready for the World Cup in South Africa than to get your very own body armour rocking your fav teams flag?

If you missed Jimmy Kimmel annihilating Jay Leno on the Jay Leno Show on Thursday, to his face no less, check it out here. Fantastic stuff.

Cracking on lames since birth

Clearly, the NFL is not playing games when it comes to implementing salary control on rookies, judging by the fact they're going to move to have such a system in place effective in this year's draft.

Emmanuel Adebayor, Togo international and Manchester City striker, was on the bus that was attacked last week in Angola. In the wake of that, we've got video of Adebayor being interviewed for his thoughts. Hey, isn't that Arsenal gear - from his old team? Adebayor, you're clueless. Thanks to GBVH for passing that on.

If there is such a thing as karma, then New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees probably deserves as much or more than any other pro athlete. Check out this great piece on the work he is doing in New Orleans to help rebuild that city, literally raising millions and giving tonnes of time to make it happen.

Check out these 25 Great Moments in Brutal Honesty.

Clark Judge - what kind of name is that? - at CBSSportsline.com rates the road teams in this weekend's divisional round of the NFL playoffs to sort out who is likely done, and who could go on.

As predicted yesterday, the Old Has Been is backtracking on comments he made intimating that he'd be shocked if the Minnesota Vikings didn't beat the Dallas Cowboys. Shocking. Old Has Been changing his tune...weird.

GQ ran a piece detailing what happened that night in Philadelphia in April 2008 that led to talk that former Indianapolis Colts wideout Marvin Harrison - he of the once sterling reputation - unloaded a gun, or in this case, two, into a man's car with the man in it. Crazy stuff. The FBI is now looking at the situation. April 2008? At least they're not taking their time.

Hugh Hefner and his 21-year old twin girlfriends have broken up. Is there nothing to believe in in 2010?

If Jerome Bettis was as accurate picking games as he is predicting what his former coach Bill Cowher will do next, he'd never have to work a day in his life. Bettis' latest call is that Cowher is laying low waiting for the New York Giants job to open up.

Guessing Gilbert Arenas is finally figuring out that this whole "bring your guns to work" thing isn't a joke anymore, not when he's facing a felony gun charge that could land him in the crow bar motel for five years. Arenas is said to be working a plea deal.

Speaking of jail, Theo Fleury went to Winnipeg police and detailed his sexual abuse at the hands of Graham James as a teenaged hockey player for coach James. Now, if only the cops could actually find James to bring him in and face charges. Maybe - hopefully - he's in hell.

Ari Fleisher, the genius behind George W. Bush's ill-advised "Mission Accomplished" speech under that banner on a battleship year's ago, also advised Mark McGwire. Guess that explains the "steroids didn't help" take Big Mac is working. 0 for 2, Ari.

Five NHL teams were shut out last night, another four scored only a goal, three of those losing. Where has the offence gone?

He said, he said...

The Old Has Been is making indirect guarantee's for the Minnesota Vikings, saying they'll take care of the Dallas Cowboys this weekend. He's expected to change his mind at least twice before gametime Sunday and give interviews on the subject that will be fawned over by whatever Monday Night Football crew is in place as well as John Madden, before having it changed for him. I don't often hope for guys to get hurt, but if DeMarcus Ware folds him up like a cheap tent on Sunday afternoon, I vow that I will celebrate. Old Has Been...I hate you. Sorry for telling you all what you already know.

Liverpool dropped a 2-1 decision to Reading in the FA Cup. So much for their coach Rafa Benitez' declarations that they could salvage their season with an FA Cup win.

Sports Pickle offers up Jose Canseco's latest book proposals. Great stuff from SP, as always.

Also from the Sports Pickle, they offer up the suggestion that Blake Griffin, top pick in last year's NBA draft and now out for the year, faked a rehab setback to avoid playing for the LA Clippers.

Michael Wilbon, columnist this time and not PTI talking head, looks at how the Washington Wizards and the NBA are attempting to erase Gilbert Arenas, including not being able to buy his jersey's, even if you try to customize one in ordering. Pathetic. Dude made a bad mistake, but he's not OJ Simpson. Is it me, or when leagues get over the top heavy-handed, do you end up having sympathy for the player?

The New York Mets are in the middle of another bad run of press, after centre - that's the way we spell it here, for my American friends - fielder Carlos Beltran took his treatment into his own hands after not being satisfied with the Mets care and is having the knee operated on, putting his start of the 2010 season at risk. The Mets disapprove of him having the procedure.

The more you listen to the Alex Burrows accusations that a ref had it in for the Vancouver Canuck, the more you hear about a guy who is a notorious whiner, ref baiter and one time speared a referee in the East Coast Hockey League. He may well be telling the truth, but he'd have been wise to keep his mouth shut in the absence of a witness. Wonder if referee's will now really paint a target on him? By "wonder", I mean "he is totally screwed".

Been saving these up for a bit of a slower day, as they'll still be relevant for a bit. The picture for the NFL's labour arrangement is getting bleaker by the day ahead of a rumored 2011 lockout, and the union paints a picture of a rookie wage cap, blood testing, benefit cuts, a nearly 20 percent "giveback". I'm not sure the players need to be giving back 20% or losing benefits, especially when the schedule looks like it'll be longer soon, but there's nothing wrong with a rookie cap or salary slotting because there's no way a guy who has never done a thing on the field - think JaMarcus Russell at $13 million this year - should be making more than many other proven pivots, and just $800k less than Tom Brady. Russell has earned $33 million his first three year's in the league. Blood testing? Sure, why not if you've got nothing to hide?

Have a great Thursday.

Refs targetting players?

You're a baseball player of legendary status, recognized among the top handful of players of all time. You used something banned by the government of the day. You performed against less than the best. You injected extract from sheep's testes because you had heard its healing properties were great. Belong in the Hall of Fame? If you say no, you just booted Babe Ruth out of the Hall of Fame, because he routinely used alcohol in an era of prohibition, never faced the best of the best but the best of the white best, and injected something of questionable, non-approved pharmaceutical value. The point being is don't get too caught up in the sanctity of the Hall of Fame and ignore there are plenty of guys in there of questionable character too that performed incredibly well including legendary racist and accused murderer Ty Cobb, or spitballers like Don Sutton and Gaylord Perry. Sure, Barry Bonds might not get in first ballot (he should), or A-Rod (he should), but look at it in a vacuum of what they did in their given era that didn`t have testing until 2006. No brainer Hall of Famers, both. Mark McGwire isn`t good enough even with his apology in my opinion. Speaking of Big Mac, some photos of him through his career.

If the NHL is thinking that somehow Vancouver Canucks Alex Burrows allegations that referee Stephane Auger targeted him for a dive that embarrassed the ref in a previous game is much better than having a referee on the take like the NBA's Tim Donaghy, they're dreaming. Augar getting personal with it and calling his shot is the epitome of a lack of professionalism, and good of Burrows I say for bringing it to light. That Augar could be swayed that easily is a sign of a guy who would bend for much greater motivation (read: cash).

With an uncapped year looming in the NFL next year, and talk that the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys would go on a huge spending spree, the Skins are in the position of cheering for a Cowboys win this weekend. Why? Seems that there are rules in place about who teams that finish in the top eight can sign, categorized as anyone playing this weekend, and further restrictions on teams that move to the final four.

He - insanely - got shut out of MVP voting despite rushing for over 2,000 yards, but the Tennessee Titans Chris Johnson did manage to nab offensive player of the year honors.

The story about Lane Kiffin bolting Tennessee for USC after only a season isn't about what is right, it is about how a guy with a career 12 wins as head coach between the pros and college has such a sterling reputation.

Somewhere, Scott Boras is smiling. After years and years as baseball's lowest spending team, the Florida Marlins have listened to the player's union complaints and agreed to boost payroll. What does it say about a team that it could so easily, and artificially, just jump payroll? The move will keep the team from violating revenue sharing rules. Now, if only they actually used more of their revenue to keep the Josh Johnson's of the world.

Best of Fails 2009, courtesy of JB.

RM returns by 3pm

3:49, game over

I know steroids can do some nasty damage to your nut sack. That's about the only explanation I've got for Mark McGwire taking years to tell us what we've already known for a decade or so, that he did in fact use steroids.

The Atlanta Hawks are now 3-0 against the Boston Celtics on the season after last night's 102-96 win. If you're not considering them in the East picture, you're kidding yourself.

Speaking of telling us the obvious, Curtis Joseph is announcing his retirement. Clearly, he's the last to know.

Who but the Toronto Raptors could take a 23-point lead and turn it into a loss? The Raps soiled the bed 105-101 in Indiana last night. So much for Sunday's moral victory in a loss to the Boston Celtics.

If you're the NFL, do you not want Dallas and Minnesota in Prime Time on Saturday night? That one will go at 1pm Sunday instead.

If you've never watched Entourage, you've got a great chance to start tonight on Spike TV when the series starts in syndication with the first episode at 9pm with limited commercial interruption. Love that show.

Finally today, what is more noteworthy in this KHL footage:
(A) That #68 Jaromir Jagr is in a fight
(B) That the red team's backup goalie is wearing #69, that staple of slo-pitch teams everywhere
(C) That the team's combined for 691 penalty minutes in 3:49 of play to open the game
(D) That the DJ was rocking tunes during the brawls
(E) That the penalty boxes emptied to rejoin the brawl
(F) That the game was called after 3:49.
Must see stuff here.

Last one to score wins

The Wild-Card Weekend is done, and saw three teams lose that only scored 14 points, and then one wild game that saw an NFL playoff record for points set with 96 points in a 51-45 overtime win for the Arizona Cardinals. Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers used his hand to knock the ball to his foot, then kicked it to the guy who scored. He wears #12. So does Thierry Henry. Just sayin'. For Packers fans, it had to feel very familiar to go out in a playoff game on the back of a huge turnover to close the game. Very Old Has Been like. Guess the refs missed the facemask tug on Rodgers in the picture, huh?

As for the New England Patriots, they came out like a win was a foregone conclusion and were throttled by the Baltimore Ravens 33-14. I'm sure it wasn't Bill Belichick's fault.

In somewhat related news, word is that Derek Jeter is engaged to marry Minka Kelly next November. I'm begging, Jeter: don't do it. Look what happened to Tom Brady since he got hitched to Gisele: season ending injury, repeated playoff losses, and an end to a perfect 7-0 playoff record at home. Nothing good can come of this D.J. Has your Gillette compadre Tiger Woods not taught you anything? Think of the Maxim cover girls you are forgoing!

Are the LA Lakers looking to deal for Chris Bosh? Word is they've got an offer of Andrew Bynum at the ready ahead of the February 18th trade deadline. Interesting times ahead in the next four or five weeks.

Tom Hicks Jr., an exec for his dad who owns the Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars and Liverpool responded to charges from a fan group that the team was being stingy in player acquisitions at Liverpool and more concerned with managing their debt than winning, responded via email: "Blow me fuck face. Go to hell. I'm sick of you." Classy.

The Chicago Cubs have offered to retire Andre Dawson's #8 if he goes into the Hall of Fame as a Chicago Cub. Two things. First, what hat he wears isn't up to him now anyways as the Hall took over that territory after Wade Boggs agreed to go in as a Tampa Bay Devil Ray when he signed his last contract as a pro there. Second, your number is already retired as a Montreal Expo, Hawk. Enjoy it. The Expos are the right choice. Period.

There's a UFC Fight Night Live card tonight on Spike at 8pm (Eastern) - free, in other words - and the main event should be a good one with Gray Maynard taking on Nate Diaz. More on that, and the rest of the card, here.

Anybody figure on the Cincinnati Reds to land Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman? Seems six years and $30 million will get that done. So much for the rust belt teams not having any money. Somewhere, Scott Boras is making notes.

LaDanian Tomlinson dances. I haven't a clue if this is hilarious, or a disaster.

The number of the beast!

This is the 666th entry by yours truly. Make of this what you will.

Two dominant performances in yesterday's Wild Card games. The New York Jets trailed early but turned the tables on the Cincinnati Bengals and ran away with a 24-14 win to move on to face Indianapolis next weekend for the second time in three weeks. We had the Jets 21-10 here so not a bad pick on the score when you're four points off on each and had the margin right. In the night capper, the Dallas Cowboys throttled the Philadelphia Eagles 34-14 and send more than a few Eagles into the locker room early with some crushing hits. Loved seeing Donovan McNabb with his trademark "what happened?" look. He'll likely be taking that look elsewhere next season. DeSean Jackson's ass got stung. We had it 31-17 Cowboys here. Hope you were wagering! Tony Romo won't be hearing how he can't do it after November anymore. The Cowboys will be in Minnesota next Sunday afternoon and I'm salivating at the thought of Koko D. Ware knocking The Old Has Been into retirement.

Two more games on NFL Wild Card Weekend go today. At 1pm, Baltimore visits New England in what should be a hard hitting game as are all Ravens matchups. The Pats, despite losing Wes Welker, have been playing great in the last couple months with Tom Brady really finding his legs. Mix in home field, and Bill Belichick no doubt having something to surprise the Ravens, and I think the Pats squeeze out a win 24-17 and cover the -3.5. The 4:30pm start has the Green Bay Packers visiting the defending NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals who have had an up and down season. Word is the Cards will be minus Anquan Boldin, which will help an already stout Packers defence lock in on Larry Fitzgerald and pressure old man Kurt Warner. I'm throwing out last week's blowout win by the Packers when I say this, but still think the Packers smoke the Cards in this one. They've been playing great save for a speed bump in Tampa Bay, and Aaron Rodgers gets it done in Phoenix, with the Packers rolling to a 34-17 win.

New York Jets coach Rex Ryan, who a couple weeks ago thought his team was eliminated from playoff contention when they weren't ,was saying a few days ago that he thinks his Jets should be the Super Bowl favorites now. Not sure which is more ridiculous, even if the Jets go the distance.

Stewart Mandel at SI.com thinks that Carroll is positioned to succeed at Seattle, given he never stopped keeping tabs on the pro game. If he can go anywhere near 97-19 like he did at USC, the Seahawks will be thrilled with that hire. Fark.com uncorked this gem on Pete Carroll's move to the Seahawks: Pete Carroll may coach the Seahawks, a team with significantly less payroll than USC. New York Jets QB Mark Sanchez took an awesome dig at his former coach's decision to go to the pros. Of course, it was Pete Carroll who said Sanchez wasn't ready to go to the NFL a year back.

Brutal news coming out of the African Nations Cup soccer tourney this month in Angola. The team Togo bus was ambushed by some Angolan separatists, and four in the entourage were killed. Cannot begin to imagine what kind of security there will be in South Africa come June for the World Cup. Togo pulled out of the tourney.

It would only be fitting if I close today by thanking DW, PF and especially PB for being my personal ATM's last night. Your hatred of the Cowboys was tremendous fun to take advantage of.

Have a great Sunday, enjoy the games.

Wild Card Weekend

It is Wild Card weekend in the NFL today, and like most sports, the first round is usually the most interesting in terms of upsets and wild games. Up at 4:30, the New York Jets are 2.5 point underdogs at Cincinnati. It would be easy to take the Jets on the strength of their 37-0 whitewash over the Bengals last week but that assumes the Bengals were 100% invested in that game, which they weren't. That said, the Jets will ride their fantastic defence today and pounding run game over a one dimensional Bengals offence that can't pass, and an up and down defence that struggles against the run. Jets win 21-10. The 8pm game is an NFC East battle that sees the Philadelphia Eagles visit the Dallas Cowboys. The 'Boys won both games against Philly this year, both unders if you care, including a 24-0 shutout last week. The Eagles are likely to throw the kitchen sink at Tony Romo this week unlike last week, but Romo seems to know when they're blitzing and is calling the right plays out of it. With a great rushing game going and a defence that hasn't given up a point in 8 quarters, hard not to love Dallas at -3.5, which I do in a 31-17 Cowboys win. Romo gets his first playoff win and goes on an A-Rod playoff cleansing this year. Downside? Likely means another year of Wade Phillips as coach.

Speaking of Wade Phillips and the Buffalo Bills, never heard about the Curse of Doug Flutie until yesterday. Seems neither Phillips nor the Bills have won a playoff game since then Bills coach Phillips yanked Flutie in favor of Rob Johnson with the playoffs at hand, and that ended up being the wrong end of The Music City Miracle for the Bills. For his part, Flutie wishes Phillips all the best, so hopefully that does it for the Cowboys.

MLBTradeRumors.com sums up the latest on Cuban defect Aroldis Chapman, now believed to be heading to the Toronto Blue Jays on the strength of a $23 million offer. If there is silence coming from the big boys in the division, they're either not interested for a material reason that doesn't include money, or they're waiting to quietly pounce.

Make that eight of nine for the surging Toronto Raptors after coming back from a double digit deficit in Philadelphia last night for a 108-106 Raptors win. Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani had big nights to lead the way. Next up: the Boston Celtics tomorrow at The Hanger.

Five snowed out EPL fixtures this week, including Hull City v Chelsea, Burnley v Stoke City, Sunderland v Bolton, Fulham v Portsmouth, and most disappointingly, Liverpool v Tottenham. That leaves only a couple games today, with Arsenal and Everton the more appealing.

Manny Pacquiao has agreed to fight someone named Josh Clottey. Boxing does it again.

Pete Carroll is suddenly out as USC coach, which has to mean that there is serious trouble around the corner coming from the NCAA for some bevy of violations, and has already agreed to become next coach of the Seattle Seahawks. He must really have wanted to stay on the left coast to move that quick, as he'd surely be a hot candidate for any vacancy despite a less than stellar NFL head coaching resume from his time in New England. Yes, there was a time when Bill Belichick wasn't in charge.

This one comes from GBVH, and features the 12 strangest soccer stadiums. The last is an absolute gem.

Roll Tide!

When Texas QB Colt McCoy went out before most found their seats in the National Championship game, you'd have thought it would be an Arkansas blowout, and while it ended up that 37-21 in the end thanks to a few late turnovers, it was a lot closer than you'd have initially thought. How funny was it seeing Texas QB Gilbert picked off by Arkansas' Arenas?

Senator Chuck Schumer from New York went to Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson looking for assurances that the Bills would remain in Western New York and got what he was after. Of course, Schumer would've preferred a healthy donation to his campaign funding but in the abscence thereof, appeals to the common man by talking to the uncommonly rich old man will do.

Atlanta Falcons fullback Ovie Mughelli is allegedly gay. And the world continues to spin on its axis.

More details of how the Gilbert Arenas gun incident went down are emerging and as stupid as he and Javaris Crittenton both are, it seems that Agent Zero is taking the hit for the latter. While Arenas left four guns out for Arenas with a letter for him to pick one, it was Crittenton that responded to Arenas' action by busting out his own firearm, loading the gun and chambering a round. Smart.

Check out this list of the Top 20 Most Despicable Coaches. Really, the word "despicable" doesn't get enough play, don't you think? Some surprises on here, but really hard to argue with the top two, who I'm sure you've heard of. Hint: they're not professional coaches.

The anonymous "Player X" continues his behind the scenes articles for ESPN The Magazine with a look at 10 playoff lessons heading into the NFL playoffs. Interesting stuff for sure.

If the talk is true, we could see the MLB World Series Champion play the JapaneseWorld Champion. champion to determine the true Doesn't this strike you as a bad idea if you're MLB? There's no doubt that they should win, but do you really think teams would take that much pride in it and treat it as more than an exhibition?

NFL cheerleaders aren't wearing nearly as little as they did earlier in the season when it was a lot warmer, or here when these 25 top cheerleaders were photographed.

Tony LaRussa is musing about adding Mark McGwire to the St. Louis Cardinals roster late in the 2010 season if they're in contention. Clearly, LaRussa is about to fail a field sobriety test again.

Back in the morning. Have a great Friday.

Crimson Tide

Today's RandoMango is brought to you in 3D. Strap on your goggles and get ready to go.

Had to go with two pictures today because I'm torn as to which is better. Gilbert Arenas "finger guns" which surely forced NBA Commissioner David Stern's hand into suspending him indefinitely without pay for his locker-room gun play, costing him $150k per game, or the screen cap from Boise State's Fiesta Bowl win earlier in the week featuring Jeron Johnson - and what else could it be but Johnson? - who apparently majors in porn judging by the picture below.

Alabama and Texas are playing the mythical National Championship bowl game tonight. Sorry, Longhorn, this one is Crimson Tide in a blowout, covering the four. Kickoff is 8pm Eastern. Yes, GS, I lifted your team name shtick. Love it.

Pardon The Interruption's Tony Kornheiser calls the New York Jets "the luckiest people since Ringo Starr." If you're not aware, that is pretty freaking lucky.

There's never, ever a dull moment when you're in Buffalo to see the Bills, but judging by this article sent my way from GBVH, this past Sunday's game was something special. As an added bonus, some Canadian content too.

More Bills news. Seems Brian Billick contacted Mike Tice, one of his former co-ordinators about joining him in Buffalo should he land the job. Tice in Buffalo? You know what this means...you can buy tickets to sit among the player's families come playoff time!

Tony Dungy figures the talk of how the Indianapolis Colts tanked a shot at perfection only to play some key players - Reggie Wayne, Dallas Clark, Peyton Manning - the week after in a blizzard in Buffalo so they could set some individual records will motivate them the way SpyGate motivated the New England Patriots in 2007. If you say so, TG.

Chad Ochocinco says that his knee feels fine after testing it out during a bout of sex earlier in the week. Whatever you say, 85.

The bidding on Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman is expected to go to $20 million. ESPN's Buster Olney notes that there is concern in some quarters that he is better suited for relief than as a starter. That's a boatload for a guy to get out of the gate as a reliever. Olney also says the New York Yankees are out, and the Toronto Blue Jays or Anaheim Angels are the likely landing spot.

The Hall of Fame votes are in for baseball and they got it both right in finally admitting Andre Dawson, who is the sole entrant this time around, and wrong in leaving Roberto Alomar, only three votes shy of the required 75%, out. The good news for Alomar is that since 1968, 13 players have polled 50% of the vote but failed to make it on their first try, and all 13 got in eventually. The NY Post's Joel Sherman offers his take on the voting process and results here. I'm not a fan of how political some voters get and think nobody should get in first year unanimously or sending in blank ballots, but the baseball Hall of Fame is the most legit of them all. It is strictly the best of the best. Dawson is said to be unsure which hat he'll be enshrined with. Hawk, it starts with "Montreal" and ends in "Expos".

Good to see boxing take something that would've been universally applauded - a huge fight - and turn it into a joke. After back and forth from both camps, and then mediation to try to bring them together for a March 13th fight, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will apparently not be getting it on, according to promoter Bob Arum. Way to go, Boxing.

Have a great Thursday, back in the morning.

The U.S. wins gold

The U.S. are the World Junior Hockey championships after a thrilling 6-5 overtime win last night that saw Canada rally from two down late to force overtime. Some horrible goaltending from Canada. At the opposite end, Jordan Eberle. In a word, "man". Does anybody in the U.S. know? Care?

Strange but true: my jersey sales contact tells me that even before Canada's Olympic hockey team was announced, he saw jersey's that had Crosby with an "A" on the front. If Nike has that kind of information before the rest of the world, that is truly stunning.

One reason for the Dallas Cowboys to be nervous, despite beating the Philadelphia Eagles twice this season: they did the same in 2007 to the New York Giants before getting bounced in the playoffs by the Giants, who went on to win the Super Bowl.

The Boston Red Sox have now signed Adrian Beltre and Mike Cameron to go with David Ortiz as those with drug ties. Nice. Beltre, set to make $9 million, had all of 44 RBI this season.

Oakland Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell blew off the team's year end meeting to hang out at The Palms in Las Vegas. I'm sure Raider Fan won't hold that against him the next bad throw he makes.

Not content with his offence and thinking it is too vanilla, South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier is looking at ways to make his offense more dynamic. With some colleges and pro teams running the "Wild Cat" or variations thereof, Spurrier is going with a tweaked version that, in honour of his schools team name, he's calling the "Wildcock". Amazing. South Carolina's squads are the Gamecocks, of course.

Baseball's Hall of Fame announcement will be made today and if the voters get it right, the Toronto Blue Jays will see their first entrant in Robbie Alomar.

Randy Johnson announced his retirement from baseball last night rather than mess with the Hall of Fame announcement. Uncharacteristically classy of him. The Big Unit was as dominant as they came in his prime, and in his 22 seasons chalked up 303 wins and 4875 strikeouts, and will also be remembered for blowing up this seagull in spring training one year.

More news coming out of the Edmonton Oilers rookie dinner. Seems the $8,000 portion on booze has attracted the attention of regulators. So very incredibly lame.

Bill Cowher is said to have met with the Buffalo Bills again yesterday, and the talk that he's backing out for the year is now being viewed as a bargaining ploy. Eventually, somebody will guess right.

Karl Malone writes a piece for SI.com letting the world know his thoughts on the Washington Wizards locker-room gun play. And as an avid hunter, he's none too pleased, and this is something a lot of would be gangsters in the pro-sports ranks would do well to read.

With the Jacksonville Jaguars said to be for sale, and the Buffalo Bills not far off, the company building the would-be NFL stadium for Los Angeles is said to be targeting those two to fill their stadium, along with five other possibilities.

The audio book of Sarah Palin's autobiography has some seriously harsh language from the former Vice Presidential candidate. Not for sensitive ears.

Have a great Wednesday.

Gold Medal frenzy

The Oakland Raiders are said to be contemplating firing Tom Cable. Well, at least they weren't rash in their decision making process. The Raiders have lost 11 or more games the last seven years. That is a serious Commitment to Excrement...err...Excellence.

If you forgot Chad Ochocinco's word last week ahead of the Cincinnati Bengals visit to the New York Jets, they went something like this: "Revis has put a lot of great receivers on him this season. That will not happen [this upcoming week]. Darrelle Revis couldn't cover me in a brown paper bag on a corner of a Manhattan street in a phone booth. It's impossible.'' Of course, Ochocinco went on to post exactly zero catches on Sunday, and also told Bob Costas of NBC that he'd change his name back to Chad Johnson if Revis shut him down Sunday night. When asked by a reporter after the game if he still planned to change his last name back, Ochocinco said, "Child, please.''

In the final 11 games of the season, the New York Giants went 3-8 and allowed 48, 40, 45, 41 and 44 points in five of those losses. This from a team that does much talking of how great its defence is. Best characterization I've heard of the Giants came on yesterday's Jim Rome Show, when one emailer likened the Giants to France.

All four bye teams from last year -- Carolina, the New York Giants, Pittsburgh and Tennessee - failed to make the playoffs this year. Not sure that kind of parity is a good thing, it doesn't hurt to have good and dominant teams here and there methinks.

Congratulations, Denver Broncos! You're the first team in NFL history to blow a 3.5 game lead in your division.

After a 24-0 beatdown and getting swept in the season series, Philadelphia Eagles mental heavyweight DeSean Jackson says "we gonna sting they ass". Very clever.

With the Buffalo Bills punting their entire coaching staff - good move, for starters - the talk of who the next head coach will be is heating up. Some names: Marty Schottenheimer, Brian Schottenheimer, Ron Rivera, Brian Billick, and more. Sounds like Bill Cowher will be sitting this one out, which with a lockout a possibility in 2011, would have him on the sidelines for a good five years if he doesn't land another gig.

Was that enough NFL talk for you?

Starting with the opening game at this summer's World Cup, ESPN is launching a 3D network. No, really. The future is coming real fast.

Canada faces the U.S. today in the gold medal game at the World Junior Hockey Championships tonight in Saskatoon. That one starts at 8pm and ought to be a great one, given the entertaining game they played on New Year's Eve. If Canada comes out in those green jersey's, I may be forced to cheer for the U.S. I'm not entirely kidding there either.

Check out these two St. Louis Rams fans falling from the stands trying to grab some players equipment being lobbed into the stands. Of course, when your team goes 1-15, a suicide attempt is also a possibility:

To the playoffs we go...

I don't know what the odds on this are, but three of the four Wild Card games this coming weekend are Week 17 rematches. If familiarity breeds contempt, then it should be extra interesting.

Safe to say Tony Romo has shut up some of the can't-do-it-after-November talk with his current run, even in the two losses they had to open the frame. The Cowboys are perhaps the hottest team entering the playoffs in the NFC, posting three wins and back to back shutouts including back to back shutouts after yesterday's 24-0 no-doubter over Philadelphia. They'll renew hostilities on Saturday night in Dallas, and anything other than a Dallas win will stun me. What was Wade Phillips doing leaving his starters in with the game well in hand? Romo took a nasty shot and was working through a back injury to close.

The Cincinnati Bengals laid down like a porn star in Chatsworth last night, handing the New York Jets an easy 37-0 win. Those two will get it on again in Cincinnati in Wild Card round. I suspect the result will be a little tighter the next time around.

Green Bay and Arizona will play again on Sunday after yesterday's 33-7 beatdown win for the Packers. Don't figure it'll be by that margin again next weekend, but the Packers are rolling of late.

The other Wild Card game will be a great one with Baltimore slated to visit New England. Patriots QB Tom Brady has been playing the last month or so with a broken finger and three broken ribs. The Pats lost wideout Wes Welker yesterday when his ACL and MCL blew up early in their loss to Houston.

Tennessee Titan Chris Johnson became the sixth player in NFL history to have a 2,000+ yard rushing season, finishing six yards over the mark. He also was the second youngest to achieve the number.

Only one team in NFL history - the Green Bay Packers decades ago - lost its last two games and went on to win the Super Bowl. That means you're in trouble, Indianapolis and New Orleans.

Another year, another fired Washington Redskins coach in the form of Jim Zorn. Are the Oakland Raiders really that much more of a joke? Hard to say.

Canada was never threatened in a comfortable 6-1 win over Switzerland in their half of the World Junior Hockey semi-finals. They'll face the U.S. in the finals tomorrow night after they beat Sweden 5-2. If the final approaches their New Year's Eve tilt, won by Canada 5-4 in a shootout, we're in for a treat. That one goes at 8pm tomorrow on TSN.

Bill Cowher is said to be making calls to round out a coaching staff. Sounds to me like a guy who is real close to making a comeback to the coaching ranks. With the season now over for the majority of teams, might just be a day or two before a vacancy is created and filled by Cowher. In related news - perhaps - Cowher is said to have had a secret second meeting with the Buffalo Bills last week.

To anyone looking to quit their job this year, just tell your boss you're going New York Giant. They'll know what you mean. The Giants gave up 44 and 41 the last two games in coach killing performances. The good folks at ProFootballTalk figure a change is in the offing.

Are the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox not really spending this off-season to earmark their money for Joe Mauer, Albert Pujols, Adrian Gonzalez or Prince Fielder in the next couple years? More than a few MLB execs seem to think so, as this article notes, and hints that a run at Mauer is why the Yankees have not dealt killer catcher prospect Jesus Montero to date. Interesting theory, to be sure.

Sounds like the NHL is eyeing New York City for the next Winter Classic, with Citi Field the likely spot with Yankee Stadium tied up for a college football bowl game most likely. How can they not look at Central Park? That'd be incredible.

Seems we'll get the Rashad Evans/Rampage Jackson fight after all, next summer after Rampage's obligations to the A-Team movie - he's playing B.A. Barracus - are wrapped up. If you caught the last season of The Ultimate Fighter, these two had a serious hate on.

Can you feel the excitement, Uganda? Evander Holyfield will be fighting Francois Botha on January 16th. How boxing allows this is beyond me.

The Edmonton Oilers had their rookie dinner in Calgary on New Year's Eve and after initially asking for a 50% discount - who does that, anyways? - they then decided that paying $12,381.45 of a bill of $16,796.39 - before tip - was good enough. Stay classy, Oil. If an NBA/NFL/MLB team tried that, they'd be crucified by the media.

Rashad Evans survived a late onslaught from Thiago Silva to win a decision in a wild Light Heavyweight fight at UFC 108. More here.

Add Brian Billick to the list of people interviewing for the Buffalo Bills job. That's quite a few high profile names, it'll be interesting to see if the notoriously frugal Ralph Wilson pays up for a name.

Kristian Jack at The Footy Blog put together his list of the Top 100 players in the English Premier League. Impressive, and prolific. A couple things I'd object to. One, how is Niko Krajncar at #63 behind guys like Anderson (Man Utd) and Louis Saha (Everton)? And as great as I think Michael Essien is, and he is Chelsea's best for my money, I don't rank him ahead of Wayne Rooney. My top three today: Cesc Fabregas, Wayne Rooney, Fernando Torres. I'd put Torres behind Rooney simply because the former is out with injuries too often this season.

Seems hard to figure out how a 6'6" guy dates a 5'1" girl, but that's the case with the IBF, WBO, IBO Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Klitschko dating actress Hayden Panettiere.

And this right here is why Dallas Cowboys coach Wade Phillips isn't a championship coach. Phillips plants his nose firmly in owner/GM Jerry Jones' posterior in praising his dual role as being efficient, despite Jones lack of football experience in terms of scouting and coaching.

What is old is new again for the Denver Broncos. Brandon Marshall has been benched for an "accountability" issue. With their other two wideouts also out, the Broncos are in tough today, even if it is only Kansas City.

Barely into 2010 and already we've got 15 WAGs for you to watch for this year.

Are you sitting down? Switzerland beat Russia in the quarterfinals at the World Junior Hockey Championships, 3-2 in overtime. The Swiss will now move on to face Canada, who could not have seen this coming, in a semi-final game this afternoon, 4:30pm (Eastern) on TSN. Sweden takes on the U.S. in the other semi-final at 9pm.

Going to be a wild day in the NFL with playoff positions to be sorted out. Only thing for certain is the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts, and San Diego are locked into their spots and will have byes when the playoffs starts. The rest is wide open.

Have a great Sunday.