Playbooks Don't Have Screenplays

Last night's Tennessee-LSU game reminded me of one of the things I love about sports: it's so maddeningly unscripted. Like most of the country, I've got a soft spot for LSU and their hurricane-ravaged fans. Last night's game was the first significant sporting event played in Louisiana since Katrina hit, so the nation wanted those fans to get a win. That provide everyone with a feel-good moment of resilience, right? Well Tennessee had other plans, plans that involved a 21-point comeback win in overtime. Instead of being uplifted, LSU fans were devastated by a crushing come-from-ahead loss at home in a game they were favored to win. Not exactly storybook.

But that's the great thing about sports: the games write their own stories. That's why it's so frustrating when prominent media figures so openly root for a storyline. Right now, journalists everywhere have been setting up (and practically begging for) storylines like "Yankees and Red Sox on collision course with 3rd straight ALCS showdown" and "McNabb and T.O. feud reaches breaking point; Owens cut from team, banned from football forever." But the games don't need screenwriters, and compelling sports plotlines will develop organically, thank you very much.

 
A Few of My Favorite Football Things

Now that we're past Labor Day it's time to start my favorite part of the sports year. With that, a few of my favorite things about this NFL season:

My favorite guilty pleasure: The NFL Network. I'm four months into a six-month digital cable discount deal, and the NFL Network is easily the best part of the package. All summer I've been wasting hours on fodder like Inside Training Camp, Hard Knocks: Baltimore Ravens and endless replays of week-old preseason games. Imagine all the junk that will be on once the season actually starts!

My favorite sleeper team: The Arizona Cardinals. The NFC West will be just as bad, if not worse, than it was last year. That's why this division is fertile ground for the annual Surprise Team that rises from doormat to playoff darling. I like Arizona to be this year's sleeper, as the rejuvenated Kurt Warner, the emerging young wideout corps and Denny Green's experience will result in a 9-7 division champion.

My favorite hypocrites: Media figures who criticize Terrell Owens. I love how these guys devote hours of talk-show airtime, repeated segments on Sportscenter and bushels of internet columns to the idea that T.O. should shut up. But of course, Owens is the straw that stirs the sports-talk drink. It's two-faced for the media to criticize him when they salivate every time he opens his mouth. Let's just accept T.O. for what he is: the most beloved villain in sports.

My favorite role-play: Fantasy Football GM. This is only my second year playing fantasy sports but I relish playing the role of GM on draft night. The preparation, the time pressure, the trash-talk... tomorrow night will be a good one.

My favorite rookie: Mike Williams, Detroit. We all know that the Lions have an embarrasment of young talent at receiver, but Williams will be the best of them all. Don't let the year off fool you- this guy will still be making circus catches in the NFL too. Especially since Joey Harrington will be the one throwing him off-target passes all season.

My favorite held-hostage uniforms: San Diego's powder blues. Nobody can fathom why the Chargers don't switch permanently back to their glorious powder blue uniforms. The last season that they wore them permanently, they won the '94 AFC championship. Why the Chargers hold on to the bland navy blue is one of sports' biggest mysteries.

My favorite talking-head: ESPN's Tom Jackson. I look through the ESPN on-air talent and it's a roster of blowhards that I can't stand: Sean Salisbury, Mark Schlereth, Michael Irvin, et al. But trapped in that shrill wasteland is Jackson, an insightful, frank, and (gasp!) classy analyst who makes NFL Primetime must-see viewing every Sunday afternoon.

My favorite reason to root for the 49ers: New coach Mike Nolan. Here's a guy who just acts like a man in charge. The son of a former Niners coach and an assistant for decades, he was literally born into this role. This is a man who actually requested to wear a suit on the sidelines, before being quashed by the NFL's contract with Reebok. But best of all, Nolan has gracefully guided the team through the death of a player a few weeks before the season. After the foundering Dennis Erickson era, I'm more than happy jump on board with Mike Nolan.


Mr. Predicto

NFC Playoff Teams
Philadelphia
Minnesota
Atlanta
Arizona
Carolina (Wild Card)
Detroit (Wild Card)

AFC Playoff Teams
New England
Pittsburgh
Indinapolis
Kansas City
Jacksonville (Wild Card)
Cincinnati (Wild Card)

Super Bowl: Colts 38, Eagles 27. I know this is the same pick I made last year, but now there's one more thing to motivate the Colts: Super Bowl XL will be played on a carpet. Peyton Manning still hasn't peaked as a quarterback, three receivers are all coming off 1,000 seasons, and most importantly, Edge James is in a contract year. With Corey Simon, the defense is bolstered enough to stave off the Patriots and the rest of the AFC contenters. As for the Eagles, the McNabb-Owens "feud" is a juicy personality story that has little effect on whether football games are won and lost. Philly will be just fine, but not good enough to race past the streaking Colts.