I Make The Call

We should be use to it by now.

No wonder Favre keeps us wondering and getting all of this media attention. I would also, if given the opportunity.

Free publicity, and no 2 a day workouts in the sweltering heat.  I can do that for a mere $12 mil per year.

Childress and the Viking organization are spineless to keep this charade going with Favre.

What about the other players who get fined and ostracized for not showing up to camp on time?

Okay, so the man has had the ankle worked on three times, and it appears it is not getting any better. If this is the case, put him on the injured reserve list and move on.

I know that if I were one of the Vikings quarterback waiting in the wings, I would be having some serious thoughts about the situation.

Unfortunately, there is nothing that they can do about it. Favre gets his way while the rest of the football world takes a seat and wait for his return. I MAKE THE CALL.

Reality or drama has come to the Bengals.

I don’t know who hogs the spot light the most, but I do know that Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco are two of the best at it.

T.O. coming to the Bengals leaves one unanswered question: how many balls will Carson Palmer be tossing around  to satisfy both of them?

Unfortunately, the league allows only one ball at a time, and I am certain there will not be enough for both of them in any game. I am only waiting to see who breaks out first.

Two ball hoggers, one ball; tha’s a lot of drama.

I guess Antonio Bryant’s knee not healing as expected gave T.O. the opportunity to play this year. What I am looking at is the $28 mil over 4 years that Bryant was signed to.

Well, I think that the Bengals got T.O. at bargain basement money, a mere 2 mil with another 2 mil in incentives. T.O. has a lot left as a player. If he drops the me and add the we, this Bengal team can be a threat to the likes of the Ravens, Colts and Chargers. I MAKE THE CALL.

Most sport writers have the Saints, Colts, Vikings, Cowboys and Ravens ranked as the best 5 teams in the NFL.

While I have no quarrel the Saints and Colts being ranked number 1 and 2 since they were the players in last year’s superbowl, I do have feel like they have the rest of the top 5 teams out of order.

Following the Saints and Colts, I think that the Chargers, Cowboys, and Jets should be ranked in the top 5, followed by the Vikings and Ravens.

The Packers in my opinion are a much better team than the Vikings, but because they went out early in the playoffs they deserve a lower pre-season ranking.

In the final analysis, it will be the Jets and the Cowboys in 2011, playing in Dallas’s own stadium. I MAKE THE CALL.

If Dez Bryant’s signing and showing up for work earlier than any other cowboy, then I do believe Jerry Jones made the right decision when he drafted Dez 24th overall and Dallas’ first round number one pick.

Dez has to live up to the hype, especially now that he has been assigned the number 88 worn by two hall of famers, Michael Irvin and Drew Pearson.

There was some concern about Dez not signing before the start of training camp because he has the same agent as Crabtree who held out last year from San Francisco well into the season. This did not happen.

All is well in Big D and Dez will live up to the hype. He will be pushing Roy Williams for playing time, if not the starting job Roy currently holds. I MAKE THE CALL.

Chris Paul wants out of New Orleans, but where will he be heading, and who can afford him? There are several teams expressing interest in Chris, most of them don’t stand a chance in getting a championship ring in the next 2 to 4 years. It appears that Chris is of the mindset like King James and his two princes. He wants a ring and he wants it now, not later. We can rule him out of going to Miami, and if he is serious and has taken the time to do his due diligence, then the only team that should perk his interest should be the Orlando Magic.

What a combination it would be having Superman Dwight Howard and Chris Paul playing together! Now that is a championship team in the making since the Magic is one of the 4 elite teams that can really compete for a title next season.

Chris, if you are truly serious about leaving the Big Easy, then the City Beautiful should be your next stop. Come on down to Orlando where the sun is hot, the fans are loyal and you can just about guarantee a ring within 2 years. I MAKE THE CALL.

Anybody with the lease bit of common sense knows that the NCAA is a money making machine for the colleges and universities.

You can blame the student athletes for any and every infraction imposed on their respective institutions, while coaches and athletic directors walk away free with big increases in salaries and even bonuses.

The student gets nothing but suspension or dismissal.

When are we going to stop blaming the athletes for what goes wrong and begin placing the blame exactly where it belongs?

The blames lies soley with the people in charge. Do you really think that Pete Carroll wanted to leave his cushy job at USC and move to Seattle? I don’t think so. He saw the hand writing on the wall and he knew that serious sanctions were coming down, so he bolted to the NFL. I would also if I knew that I was going to be caught with that many infractions.

Reggie Bush’s Heisman Trophy is being returned. A championship season will become null and void, Mike Garrett will get his full retirement with  benefits, and Pat Haden will now be asked to cleanup the mess.

I have one question for the NCAA: are you ever going to learn? I MAKE THE CALL.

The last time the Cubs won anything worthwhile was in 1908. Lou Piniella the current coach has put in his resignation, and the flood gates are opened as to who will be the next manager of the Cubs.

Ryan Sandberg, the Cubs’ own protege appears to be the leading candidate and he says he wants the job.

Be careful what you ask for. Having no major league coaching experience on your resume might be a bit more than you can chew.

There are no more readily available Bobby Cox, Tony LaRussa or Joe Torre to draw from.

I suggest that Cubs’ management take a long hard look at former Marlin’s manager Freddie Gonzalez. With Freddie, you can turn the Cubs around sooner than later. I MAKE THE CALL.

Next year Tom Brady will be a free agent. I don’t think so.

New England will have Brady signed by opening day regardless what the Rams do with Sam Bradford, or Peyton Manning does with the Colts.

The Labor Talks will not have any impact and Brady will get the kind of money he deserves.

If Tom holds out during training camp, it will be the biggest gaff in his professional football life, and he is not that type of player. He is the leader of that team and he will not let his team mates down.

On the other hand, Bret Favre has drama. As a matter of fact he really deserves an Oscar for the part he plays so well come training camp time every year. His team does not know if he will be in camp or if he is healthy enough to play, or does he want to play. He literally holds his team hostage until he decides if and when he will play. Talk about a diva. He certainly has star power, and come opening day against the Saints who knocked him off in the championship game last year, Bret will be dressed to play that Thursday night in the big easy. I MAKE THE CALL.

Neither Phil or Tiger was able to tame the old course. Neither threatened to take the Claret Jug.

An unknown from South Africa, simply played flawlessly and took it away from the big hitters and the higher ranking players. Louis Oosthuizen, came from out of no where and simply destroy the field with his precise play.

On the final day, when Paul Casey was the closest to him, he simply eagle the 9th hole, birdied the 12th which Casey triple bogeyed and the rest is history.

His closest competitor was crushed. Louie ended up winning by 7 strokes.

Phil and Tiger were never a threat. Woods ended up shooting a 72, finishing tied for 23rd. After the birdy on 12th, you could have turned out the lights and just wait for the fat lady to sing, LOUIE, LOUIE. AT THAT POINT, IT WAS TRULY OVER. I MAKE THE CALL.

With hardly any wind or rain, the old course was there for the taking.

John Daly and Rory Mcllroy did just that.

It has been a long drought for JD, but today, he showed signs of the old JD when he won on this same course back in 1995.

Young Rory Mcllroy blistered the links in shooting a 63 and tying the record set for a major championship tournament.

Rory joined players like Vijay Singh, Greg Norman and Tiger Woods when he equaled the record 63. Hopefully, he can sustain this moment over the next 3 days.

While all of this was going on, the number one golfer in the world, Tiger Woods shot a 67, but could have easily shot a 65. Using a new putter, he missed a couple of short putts and made his first bogey on the 17th hole when he missed a putt of less than 4 foot. If Tiger is to get his game back to stay in contention, he has to go low the next 3 days.

Looking ahead, the course and the elements will not be as forgiving as it was today. I MAKE THE CALL.