MNF Week 3

Well, the Aints came marching in last night, complete with a fan covering his face with his shirt. All that was missing were the paper bags. Do quarterbacks have expiration dates, like milk? It seems some are great one year and stink the next, never to return to their former glory. Drew Brees was a Probowl player last year and now he can't seem to throw enough interceptions. I hope it's temporary like Brett Favre, but I don't know. Maybe there was a good reason San Diego kept Phillip Rivers.

I alway liked Vince Young, especially after seeing him in the Rose Bowl playing for the national championship. I'm not surprised at his success. However, last night was not a do-over of that Rose Bowl game. That was the NFL, not college, and most of the players from then are at home, their playing days long behind them. It's just like I said before - those California players are mostly overrated - just ask Kurt Warner who came back to play by replacing Matt Leinhart and Marvin Lewis who's watching the slow return of the Bungles. Did they ever leave, or were they lost in the California hype? Time will tell.

NFL Week 3

The Niners aren't there yet. The Steelers rolled over them yesterday with a healthy Ben Roelisbeger. The Steelers seem to be the ones to beat in their division. The defense did a great job containing Frank Gore.

The Giants won when they needed to. The defense stepped up in the second half over the Redskins who wore an early seventies throwback uniform. Way better looking than the Eagles' early thirties uniforms - ugly, but not so much as to make them the worst person in the NFL on the NBC SNF halftime show. I still think that segment is a bad idea what with that goofy red phone that reminds me of the Power Puff girls' phone with the clown head being that Keith guy's noggin. He sure looks foolish enough in that segment to be a clown, in my opinion.

What about them Cowboys? They're the team to beat in the NFC. I don't think the Bears will be in the playoffs this year because of the massive injuires in the defense and the inconsistency of Rex Grossman. The Bears really need to draft a QB next year. What about Andre Woodson of UK? The Wildcats are awesome this year, unlike the dundering turd of Marshall who'll be lucky to win one game this year.

New Issue ol Afterburn SF Live

The September issue of Afterburn SF went live on September 17, 2007. Stories in this issue are:

Twenty-One by Michael Merriam
These Arms, and Her by Rupert Merkin
The White Devils by Jason Gross
Forever Underfoot by Larry Hodges
Heirloom by Nyki Blatchley
Battle Brothers by Sarah Wagner
Joyriders by Chris Ward
Eee by Jonathan C. Gillespie
Plague Chalice by Christine Lucas
Belvedere's House by Daniel I. Russell

Check them out at http://www.afterburnsf.com.

MNF Week 2

I liked Charles Barkley in the booth last night. Not only was he entertaining, he had interesting insight on Philadelphia fans. According to him, if the Eagles don't win, McNabb is in trouble. I agree it's not fair. Don't get me wrong, I have no problems blaming QBs; just read my past posts. However, I don't think McNabb is to blame this time. Last week it was special teams. Andy Reid took care of that. Now it's the defense, so porous as to allow huge runs by Clinton Portis, and the receivers dropping balls that was to blame last night. Randy Moss should be in Philadelphia. His playing for the Patriots is like greasing a fat hog in the ass - totally unnecessary. The Patriots won three Super Bowls without him. The Eagles only got there through a big-name receiver, T.O.

I noticed Sunday that Randy Moss said he was from Rand University, not Marshall University. Rand was a playoff on his hometown, Rand, WV. I can see why he didn't mention Marshall - it's a paperbag (over your head) season, yet again. Snyder has had three years to get Marshall winning again. Instead he insists on playing Morris who can't lead a winning team. The NFL even looked at a QB that the coach never even played. What does that say about his talent assessment skills? Snyder had his chance. Time to find a new coach next year.

NFL Week 2

The Bengals are bungling again. How they could beat the Ravens last week and then blow it with Cleveland is unbelievable. Carson Palmer couldn't get it done. Looks likes he's been a bit overrated unlike Ben Rothlisburger, who shone in the Steelers' win over the Bills. The Bills need a new QB, in my opinion. Losman hasn't done the job. How many more chances can he get?

Brett Favre is hot. I'm glad Eli played, although I didn't see that game. I watched the Cowboys and the Dolphins. The Dolphins have never recovered since Dan Marino retired. I saw some of the Bears and Chiefs game. What's up with KC? They used to be a playoff team. Herm Edwards is a good coach, at least at the Jets. They have talent, so you wonder.

The Patriots' cheating scandal rocked the NFL this week, even making NBC Nightly News. Various opinions were given Sunday night on the fines, but one important aspect was never discussed - Belichick's Hall of Fame chances now that he's been labeled a cheater. Before this week he was a shoo-in. Now, who knows? Michael Irving was very grateful to have gotten in as he mentioned in his induction speech, for things he did wrong after he left the game. Belichick accepted responsiblity for spying while as a coach. Maybe that's why Goodell didn't suspend him. If Belichick had gotten suspended, that could really ruin his Hall of Fame chances. If Coach Belichick does eventually get voted in, the Pete Rose debate will soar, even if it's baseball and not the NFL. If one so-called cheater gets in a hall of fame, why not Rose who just bet on games?

MNF Week 1

The Bengals got lucky last night. They blew most of their opportunities and fortunately held out on a goal line stand. That Chad Johnson celebration wasn't much. Like Tony I expected more from the hype. Congrats to ESPN for getting rid of the 'Tony Tony Tony' email segment. The show was much better for it. The Ryan and Julia Parker video from Flatwoods was great. They're not far from where I live. The local paper had a small article about it. Evidently he's a song writer and has his own website.

The second game was a yawner. Matt Leinhart, I feel, is overrated, like a good number of the California players hyped by sports media. The SEC doesn't get the respect it deserves. Frank Gore wasn't shown to potential last night, but I don't believe it's his fault. Alex Smith to me seemed mediocre. The Cards need a bigger offensive line. Those players looked like receivers to me. They need more bulk.

NFL Week 1

That Brett Favre can still play. He made something out of nothing several times yesterday. It looks to be a long season for the Eagles - their special team was far from special; it was downright awful, so much so it cost them the game. One bright point was that Donovan McNabb looked good.

I expected a more exciting game from the Chargers and Bears. The Bears looked lackluster on offense. Seems like sending their running back to the Jets was a mistake. I hope Chad Pennington is OK. I agreed with Keith Sunday night. The Jet fans were the worst for cheering Chad for being hurt. That's just plain mean in anyone's book. I can see why now why Tiki won't come back.

Paging Byron Leftwhich, paging Byron Leftwich, the Falcons need you. He'd certainly be an improvement over Joey Harrington. At least Byron won football games, even with the ankle injury.

Eli Manning looked great last night. It's a shame he was injured, sadly along with other Giants. It's going to be a long season for them. I'm predicting you can kiss Coughlin goodbye in February. I hope the Bills' TE recovers from surgery. It's terrible to have such a horrible neck injury.

Wade Phillips had a good debut. Romo also looked sharp, focusing on football instead of Carrie Underwood. Maybe after Jerry Jones pays him, they can date again.

NFL Season Opening

The Cotls came to play and it showed. It seemed like the Saints weren't conditioned enough to last the entire game. I missed Pink singing the opening song, although Faith Hill did a good job.

If I were Toyota, I'd demand a refund. During the halftime show Ford ads dissing Toyotas ran. It looked more like the Ford halftime show. The guys at halftime were like limp dishrags. They hung around making limpid comments. The worst man in the NFL segment was poor. The obvious choice there was Michael Vick. I dread that part now each week.

Two Reviews and Poem Published

My reviews of the IDW Publishing comic books Spike: Old Times and Spike: Lost & Found are in issue 12 of Night To Dawn. You can buy a copy of the magazine at http://www.bloodredshadows.com.

My poem (haiku) "rings of Saturn" is in the July/August 2007 issue of Star*Line. You can buy a copy of the magazine at http://www.sfpoetry.com.