fantasy football roster.

welcome to my 2010 fantasy football opening day roster:

qb - drew brees - new orleans saints
qb - matt schuab - houston texans
qb - vince young - tennessee titans
rb - deangelo williams - carolina panthers
rb - cedric benson - cincinnati bengals
rb - jerome harrison - cleveland browns
wr - desean jackson - philadelphia eagles
wr - johnny knox - chicago bears
wr - dwayne bowe - kansas city chiefs
wr - arrelious benn - tampa bay buccaneers
wr - terrell owens - cincinnati bengals
wr - antwaan randle el - pittsburgh steelers
te - visanthe shiancoe - minnesota vikings
te - jeremy shockey - new orleans saints
d/st - packers
d/st - browns
k - neil rackers - houston texans

quarterback is an obvious strength, but running back leaves a bit to be desired.

picked up the packers defense/special teams early and added the browns defense/special teams (mainly becuase of return man josh cribbs).

my receiving core is decent - led by desean jeackson - i'm putting a lot of hope in t.o. and rookie arrelious benn.

i won our league last year. here's to shooting for a repeat. yikes.

-apc.

jay cutler versus the referee.

this happened yesterday afternoon: chicago vs pittsburgh. i wish he was still a bronco though so i could hate him more. ha.

-ap.

my fantasy football team.

i've never played fantasy football before. i always get to about week 3 and think "ah crap, i forgot to talk to some guys and get a league together." but this year, those guys came to me. the graduated seniors from hillcrest asked me to join their league before they ditched next week for college.

the draft was tonight at buffalo wild wings (which, by the way, gives your draft group $100 free food and a draft packet with stickers of all the players' names to stick on a sweet draft board). here is the team i ended up with:

QB:
peyton manning - ind
joe flacco - bal
kerry collins - ten

RB:
brandon jacobs - nyg
joseph addai - ind
fred taylor - ne
dominic rhodes - buf

WR:
larry fitzgerald - ari
steve smith - car
lee evans - buf
santana moss - was
devon hester - chi
hakim nicks - nyg
laverneus coles - cin
robert meachem - no
antwaan randle el - was
jordy nelson - gb

TE:
kellen winslow - tb

K:
rob bironas - ten

DEF:
baltimore ravens
indianapolis colts

better hope kellen winslow stays healthy. but would you look at my tight receiver core? i even added randle el and jordy as my own feel-good picks. i can't wait til this season kicks off.

also you'll notice i have zero members from the AFC West. two reasons: 1. i can't root for the other teams that i hate and 2. my confidence in the chiefs is minimal.

i feel more than confident about my team however. i feel like rolling sixes all over these dudes. no mercy anymore fellas, you're out of high school now. you're in the real world. i'm all business and you best get out of the way.

-ap.

sports bit.

i haven't talked about sports in a while. let's do that today.

1. john buck is batting .434 with a .525 OBP in spring training. mike macfarlane eat your heart out.

2. it's looking very likely that the chiefs will do one of two things in this year's nfl draft: with the third overall pick they will either take linebacker aaron curry from wake forest (#1 ranked player overall) or - if the lions really take OT jason smith over QB matthew stafford - they may trade down with a team like the 49ers for a later round pick and pull someone totally different. i have a feeling the chiefs may be looking to simply draft the best player available - curry, michael crabtree, eugene monroe, brian orakpo, etc. we'll see.

3. my bracket is decently intact. 12/16 isn't bad. especially when my elite 8 are all still around. pitt looks like a bum pick to win it though. favorite games so far: siena over ohio state and oklahoma state over tennessee. also i'm proud of my WKU pick. i'm also proud of my VCU and NDSU picks even though they couldn't pull it off.


4. have you guys seen how josh freeman has rocketed up the QB prospects list? he's jumped pat white and graham harrell and is now listed #3 in QBs behind stafford and mark sanchez (who's draft stock is slowly sliding). it's fun to say that i hung out with him in my Wealth, Power and Privilege class just three months ago.

just a couple quick thoughts. i'll quit blogging now. i have a life you know.

-ap.

quick thoughts on chiefs hiring todd haley.

1. good.

2. our defense is still gonna suck.

3. coming from arizona, todd haley will look normal wearing red on the chiefs' sideline.

4. will haley have the approval of tony gonzales so TG won't whine all season?

5. will haley sign/draft a QB?

6. will haley - a WR coach for a decade and an offensive coordinator for the last 3 years - draft michael crabtree with the chiefs #3 overall pick? oooooooo a sexy question indeed.

-ap.

i went to the superbowl.

whenever something ridiculously huge happens in my life, i always find myself really struggling to blog about it. i know that my writing and words cannot do the experience justice - i just can't put down words that can convey the utter thrill and excitement accompanied with certain events.

such is the case with Superbowl XLIII.

yes. i was there. i was sitting 21st row at the 50 yardline...no, not CLOSE to the 50 yardline. AT the 50 yardline - seat 1. if i leaned to the right, then the NFL logo at midfield was on my left, and if i leaned to the left, the NFL logo was on my right. we're talking dead center. somehow my life went from struggling poor college student scrapping for rent money to VIP member at the West Bungalo pregame extravaganza.

i could bore everyone with highlights from the game, but i'm going to focus on the things that people might not know just watching it on tv. ready break.

1. there was like a 4:1 steelers to cardinals fan ratio. the terrible towels were out constantly. it might as well have been a home game for pittsburgh - which makes sense - pittsburgh actually has a history of success and something to cheer for, the cardinals...not so much. so people paid the dough and drove down the east coast to watch their team win the lombardi trophy. all the cardinals fans were people like me who just happened to be in the right place at the right time and needed someone to root for - so they chose the underdog because everyone likes a cinderella story (go relish). as rick reilly put it: "most arizona fans you met in tampa had been lifelong cardinals fans for a least three weeks."

2. when i go watch games in person as opposed to on television i've always been so surprised at how small everything seems. 100 yards is not that big and 10 yards for a first down looks so simple. but on tv when i hear "3rd and 15" it seems like the most impossible task in the world. i expected it to be "bigger" than it was, but in reality it was just normal sized. it wasn't disappointing or anything, just a strange observation.

3. raymond james stadium isn't anything special. they've got a neat little pirate ship in the stands of one endzone but it's not even that impressive, but the sound system suuuucks. they only have speakers on one end of the stadium and since there were so many raucous steelers fans i dont know if i ever heard the referee make a call clearly.

4. the end of the game was completely anticlimactic - at least for anyone hoping the cardinals would drive down and score again. warner gets sacked and fumbles the ball. it was extremely questionable whether it was a forward pass or a fumble. in the NFL, under two minutes there is ALWAYS a booth review about anything questionable. so warner fumbles and the steelers recover and pitt sends out its offense as fast as they can to kneel the ball. everyone in the stands and on the field - excluding the pittsburgh offense - is standing around waiting for a booth review. but the whistle never came and the review never happened and everyone was just puzzled. it wasn't a moment of jubilation and fist-pumping madness - it was a moment of curiosity and uncertainty. arizona had about 26 guys out on the field when the ball was snapped to end the game. the confetti started coming down and it just seemed...really uncomfortable. i dont know if you guys got that sense at home, but the game ended in a not-so-triumphant fashion.

5. okay i said i wasn't going to say anything about the actual game itself, but there are two large mistakes that the cardinals made that led to their loss. let me mention them now:

- they won the coin toss and chose to kick. when your offense is your strength and you're the underdog in the game, you need to employ your strength to gain momentum early. instead they choose to kick to start the game so they can recieve in the second half. the cardinals should never have chosen to kick it away. they needed to start the game off in their control, but instead you got a steelers crowd pumped up for their offense and it was an uphill battle the entire game.

- moments before the harrison interception for a TD that ended the first half - the cardinals made a huge mistake. 1st and Goal at the 1 yardline with 18 seconds on the clock - arizona calls their final timeout of the half. this is where they blew it. they no longer had a chance to run the ball or kick a field goal at that point. had they spiked the ball on first down they could have taken two shots at the endzone - a quick fade to fitzgerald in the corner on second down, a run up the middle on third down - called timeout - and kicked a field goal if they both failed. but instead, the cardinals panicked and used their timeout on first down. so now they dont have the option to run so the steelers drop back in goal line coverage instead of pounding the line. and wouldn't you know if james harrison wasn't staring down kurt warner and jumps the route for an INT and runs it 100 yards for an TD. bad decision on the part of coach wiz and todd haley.

anyway. if i write anymore then no one will read it. it's already too long probably. just ask me about it if you want to know more and i'll probably tell you. one of the biggest experiences of my life, and i'm sorry if my words can't convey that truth.

also, did anyone tape it or tivo it? cause i want to see if i got on tv. and i want to see that warner fumble played back in slow-mo.

-ap.

quick! last minute prediction!

bcs championship game prediction:

OU 42 UF 33

-ap.

why tim tebow will win the heisman.

because this season has boiled down to the following question:

SEC or Big 12?

and the heisman voters will pick according to which quarterback is the BEST in the BEST conference. half pick the SEC. half pick the Big 12.

colt mccoy and sam bradford will split the votes given to the Big 12. and tim tebow will get all the votes given to the SEC. and tim tebow will reign for the second season in a row.

thats my take. have any thoughts? comments? concerns? i don't have a tumblr so feel free to leave any of them here.

-ap.

most obvious reason why ou probably deserves it.

this stat was really surprising to me. no other team comes close to OU's winning percentage against Top 30 teams. their 6-1 record is by far more impressive than any other team (only loss to texas on neutral turf).

i'm peeved by the bcs just as much as the next guy - but i think they got it right this year.

-ap.

bowl thoughts.

the bcs still sucks, but whining about it does nothing. so...

good things about this year's national championship:

the winner of the big xii is playing the winner of the sec. these were the most dominant conferences in football this year. florida handled alabama for their spot, and oklahoma handled missouri for their spot. both of these teams deserve their shot at the bcs championship game.

the big ten is not in it. finally we have a game between two evenly matched teams. ohio state will not get rolled over in the national championship game (though they will likely get rolled over by the longhorns in the fiesta bowl instead). that ought to be fun to watch.

bad things about this year's national championship:

the longhorns got screwed. if oklahoma wins and the longhorns destroy the buckeyes like they should, then texas will have a serious argument for why they should have been in the championship game. texas beat oklahoma on neutral field earlier this season, but oklahoma dazzled the bcs voters enough to get them a shot against mizzou in kc yesterday. (the bcs vote was the 5th tie-breaker in the big xii south.)

why'd it have to be ou and florida? i'm so tired of seeing the gators in championship games, and (besides ku) the sooners are the last team in the world i'd want to root for.

i will be rooting for the sooners against the gators this year. the big xii deserves this one this year. sure alabama and florida are great teams, but after that the league stinks. imagine if florida had texas, oklahoma state, missouri, and texas tech on their schedule. you think florida ends 12-1 with THAT schedule? looks a lot tougher than florida state, georgia, lsu, south carolina.

that having been said, i will be rooting for the big xii and against the sec in every bowl game. except maybe for ku against whoever they play in the insight bowl (probably minnesota) - man i hate ku.

-ap.

hope for the jefes.

since everyone else is talking about the election on november 4th, i'll try and bring some fresh air to the currently politically saturated world wide web. lets talk chiefs football.

players i need to address:

1. tyler thigpen. if anyone wants to hear some thigpen encouragement - you can hear it on the AM radio (everclear ref). 610 sports callers are praising him as our solution at QB forever. there isn't anyone getting more encouragement than t-square. no wonder he's performing with so much more confidence. when the world believes in you then you start acting like you're supposed to be there - heck, a couple people have called in claiming he could be the next tom brady. i'm reluctant to go that far, there is quite a difference between the michigan wolverines and the coastal carolina...chanitcleers. main difference: i didnt have to look up "wolverines". do i believe that tyler thigpen is the quarterback of the future in kc? not yet. but do i believe he's got a shot depending on how he plays in the next 8 games? absolutely. i'm not even sure we need to draft a QB this year seeing that this year's QB class sucks and next year's will rule. we could suffice with signing some washed up veteran as a back up. maybe. it all depends on t-square's performance from here on out. also, when the nickname "t-square" takes off - you heard it here first.

2. larry johnson. haven't missed him at all the last few weeks. is he a better rusher than charles and smith? you bet he is. but when you've got the opportunity to be an example for these new guys and you're spitting alcohol at women instead? pitiful. charles ran for over 100 yards on sunday and kolby smith looked terrific before he got hurt, and for the first time this year i actually agree with the complaints and beliefs that the chiefs ought to just ship him elsewhere. maybe the cowboys would take him. not that they need him with barber back there, but they seem to have a distinct interest in players with off-the-field issues.

3. the brandons: carr, flowers, and (branden) albert. we've got two stellar corners in carr and flowers. the injuries to flowers and johnson in the second half is why we lost the game to tampa. they picked on flowers side the moment he went out and the chiefs couldn't stop garcia and galloway. when we're healthy and older we're going to have one of the best secondaries in the nfl. you wait and see. flowers, carr, page, pollard. i think they're all future pro-bowlers. and branden albert ruled this sunday. thigpen had plenty of time and albert is the main reason. he's getting better and healthier every game, and it shows.

4. chan gailey. funny name, great play calling on sunday. it helps when you have the same quarterback for two consecutive games, but i was so excited to see the chiefs mixing it up on offense. wildcat formation? loved it. i was sprinting around my house declaring the play below as the "play of my life." also, when we had the ball late in the game we didn't go super conservative (instead tony g got called for a bogus offensive pass interference), but we didn't just hand it to charles off-tackle 3 times and punt like last week. high five chan. your report card landed its first A this week.

5. mark bradley and devard darling: bradley for that unbelievable pass (see below) and darling for finally making a case for him as the #2 receiver after bowe. i had begun to think DD was a bust - don't act like that isn't hilarious. also some props to brad cottam for existing. i'm not certain that i'd even heard his name through week seven. the receivers were open for thigpen on sunday and that was encouraging. and how about bradley's pass. wow. just please watch the video below and visualize me stomping around utilizing the double fist pump to it's utmost potential.

play of my life:


ahh. i could watch it over and over. all in all - we're making strides. after watching us play atlanta, tennessee and carolina i was certain that this "youth movement" was more of a "youth stagnant". it's good to see that i may stand corrected. there is hope in kansas city. maybe next year we can keep it up for 4 quarters instead of 1 1/2.

go chiefs.
-ap.

what? heroes? seriously?

it blows my mind that people would rather watch heroes than monday night football. cmon, really? fake drama over real drama? that don't make no sense to me.

-ap.

1-15 is just fine with me.

don't act like i never told ya.

the guys that needed to perform actually showed up - larry, tony, huard and bowe - but, more importantly, the defense looked extremely solid at times: derrick johnson especially. despite a couple unfortunate big runs, we forced turnovers and had decent pass coverage throughout. holler.

and how about that 12th man?! i haven't heard arrowhead like that against denver since dante hall's wickedly famous punt return in the 03-04 season. it felt like we wanted to win for a change.

don't expect them to go on the road at carolina and post up numbers like they did today, but i actually feel like i can watch on sunday with a hope for the future. also, don't everybody run to huard like he's a hero. this is the same damon huard who suffered from "mild head trauma" two weeks ago against oakland...mother faker.

but anyway. today i am proud to be a chiefs fan - not that i wasn't for the last 12 games- but i can finally say it without expected scoffs in return. this is going to be a good week. a confident week. things will happen this week. (you probably weren't aware that i rate my success as an individual based solely on the success of the kansas city chiefs - not entirely true, but it has a surprisingly large impact. too bad it couldn't've happened last week when i had three exams. this week must store something even more rewarding...my mind is doing backflips with anticipation.)

i don't care if we lose the final 12 games of the season - 1-15 is great as long as today is our only win. we won the one that really matters. talk about already exceeding expectations.

-ap.

nfl draft.

ok lets talk about the draft and how kc rocked the ally and freaked the oop.

glenn dorsey?! boom goes the dynamite. in retrospect i shouldn't be too shocked he fell all the way to us at #5, i was confident that either oakland or new york would come out of there with mcfadden. i guess the surprising thing is that atlanta took matt ryan. i didn't know they were that desperate to replace vick*. i would've thought a better idea would be to take dorsey and then trade up for matt ryan. he wasn't going to go until baltimore anyway at number 8, and new england was looking to trade out of the #7 spot anyway. instead the falcon's divisional foe, the saints, traded up and picked up Sedrick Ellis (who i am predicting records at least one sack on Matt Ryan in 08).

I was expecting to have to hop on here and complain all about how disappointed i am with the Chiefs' picks, but i find next to nothing wrong with them. We're still weak at DE - the dude we picked up in the 7th round will fill the spot - but with dorsey on the line...who really cares?

The Chiefs pretty much pulled three first-round quality picks. dorsey, branden albert, and brandon flowers in the second round - but he's good enough to have gone middle of the first round i think.

I'm most intrigued by the Chiefs' third-round picks in RB Jamaal Charles and TE Brad Cottam. I'm confident that charles can make an impact next year. I'm nervous about cottam though - he had five serious injuries in college in four years. that scares me. hopefully he's a quality blocker too cause his numbers are nothing to be excited about, but everyone seems to think he's got tons of untapped potential, so i'll hope that too.

i give the chiefs an A+++. the jared allen trade is an afterthought now - dorsey is a beast, will be better than allen and ALMOST as exciting to watch.

first round trade questions i have of two other teams:
1. how did the lions benefit AT ALL from trading us #15 for #17? they picked up a late rounder, but they also missed out on branden albert and took godser cherilus instead? both albert and jeff otah were better options than cherilus and with the 15 pick detroit had their shot at both of them. i'm just confused. maybe they see something in godser that i dont. maybe its just his name. i'd rather have godser cherilus than jeff otah. otah ust sounds moron.
2. the jacksonville jaguars traded up to the number 8 spot with baltimore. baltimore wanted matt ryan probaly, but when atlanta swiped him they were able to wait for a while. but the jags gave baltimore a 1st, 2nd, and 4th rounder so they could pick Derrick Harvey. Thats essentially what Jared Allen just went to minnesota for. unless you're trading up to take mcfadden - no way you give up that much for anyone in this draft. my guess is that harvey will turn out to be worth it, but i'm still shocked at what they had to give up for it.

i wish the chiefs had looked into a quarterback though. namely dennis dixon. i can only DREAM of a mobile quarterback. elvis grbac, rich gannon, steve bono, trent green, damon huard, brodie croyle. are we joking? those are the quarterbacks since joe montana in 94. i want a quarterback who can do something. bring me someone with another dimension besides 'thrower'. someone who can avoid a sack or even roll out. or even run for a first down without getting mentally destroyed by robert geathers**. but if they're not going to draft one, maybe they'll pick one up in free agency or trade for one. i propose byron leftwich - he's available, and i'm a fan. naturally they should take him immediately for those two reasons. but the chiefs probably want to establish a long-term quarterback. croyle isn't it though guys. sorry.

overall: high five to the chiefs. makes me excited to be a football fan around 2012.

-ap.

* - apparently since michael vick is being held at leavenworth prison in kck, the kansas city t-bones are having "Michael Vick Day". players will wear prison uniforms and they will have special mini-events between innings and all proceeds go to dog fighting awareness or something. i think its hilarious, but i can understand how people wouldn't be happy about it - its borderline supporting vick, and thats not too cool. i think he's supposed to be pulled out so he can throw out the first pitch. i might've made that last part up though, not sure.

** - that sounds like a book. Mentally Destroyed by Robert Geathers.