The Revenge Bowl: Sept 14, 2008

Bring on the J-E-T-S! The Patriots will now face Eric Mangini & Brett Favre this season with the chance to avenge both the Super Bowl XXXI loss and SpyGate!

Notes from the Coast:

Spring training finally opens this week! Pitchers and Catchers all report by the weekend and the rest of the team a few days later. Let's hope the sight Johnny Pesky signing autographs and the sounds of wooden bats and Japanese reporters will alleviate the pain of a bad Super bowl loss.

• On that note, good thing I didn't watch the NFL Pro Bowl game last Sunday. Asante Sammuel dropped a game saving pass in the Super bowl but had a great hit in the Pro Bowl. Also, Logan Mankins, Matt Light, and Dan Koppen played terrible in Arizona but I heard they played great in Hawaii. That said, had I been watching the Pro Bowl I probably would have put my fist through the TV.
• Hard to believe that everyone from the Nanny to the Clemens' dog was using HGH, except Roger. Clemens may never come back to pitch again but he does have a chain of sports bars called "Rocket's" in development. Even though jell-o shots out of a syringe could still work nicely within the bar's theme, this may be another reason why Clemens is holding so tight to his lies.
• Senator Arlen Specter is not content with NFL Commisioner Roger Goodell's answers on Spygate and now wants the Senate Judiciary committee to investigate further. My first thought is doesn't Congress have better things to worry about like the war, terrorism, and the recession than spygate and HGH? My second thought is bring it on. Now we will find out how trivial this practice of 'taping' truly is, how many teams also do it, and how reputable Matt Walsh is as a witness.
• How bad are the Knicks? The Celtics were up by 27 points on Wednesday night with only one big man left on the roster...and Leon Powe is only 6' 8"!
• Must see TV: After the All-Star break this weekend, it will be a mad scramble for the NBA crown. KG, Perk, and Pollard come back for the Celts; Jason Kidd will soon be wearing a Dallas uniform; Andre Bynum joins a new Laker line-up with Pau Gasol in March; and Shaq's first game in a Phoenix Suns uniform will be against Phil Jackson, Kobe Bryant, and the Lakers.

Spygate part deux

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says the league has already investigated the Patriots taping of the St. Louis Rams walk-through before Superbowl XXXVI and came up with evidence to the contrary (whatever that means). Also, NFL writer Michael Holley said on WEEI that he followed-up with multiple sources around the league and found that the allegations by former Pats’ employee Matt Walsh are absolutely false.

Matt Walsh didn’t even work in the Patriot's Video dept and could have a major axe to grind with his former bosses. However, if he does have evidence to support his claim, then you have to feel bad for the Kraft’s. This is the same family that wouldn’t draft certain players due their lifestyle in college, yet they could be caught in the biggest NFL scandal since Alex Karras and Paul Hornung were caught gambling on games 45 years ago.

Similar to what the NBA did when they found out their referees were gambling, I suspect NFL owners and possibly other Senators will pressure Arlen Specter to wrap-up his investigation quickly in attempt to avoid an embarrassing black mark on America’s newest pastime. You know Belichick will never ever attempt these covert opps again, so whatever the truth is, let’s find out soon and not let it drag on like steroids in baseball. The worst case scenario would be that the Patriots have to give back all their Super bowl victories but that is highly unlikely. However, if it should happen, then the Pats would set another NFL record, albeit a dubious one, of appearing in 6 Superbowls without a victory.

Superbowl XLII Notes:

I thought I would pass along a couple of great articles regarding the Tom Brady. The Superbowl hero's path to icon status is chronicled in this piece by CNNSI's Lee Jenkins called "Self-made Man" and an ESPN article by Greg Garber called "Almost Perfect". They both show how Brady had his setbacks each step of the way but just kept working harder and never gave up his dream.

• Also, CNNSI.com's Dr. Z breaks down the Giants' and Pats' personell to show who has the edge position by position. Quick recap; the Pats dominate on Offense while the Giants have the edge on Defense.
• ESPN has an interesting article on Ernie Adams . The mystery man behind Bill Belichick and the Patriots' success.
• On Saturday of Superbowl weekend it will be announced whether former Patriots' Linebacker Andre Tippett will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Here outlines a good case for his enshrinement.
• Finally, it seems Spygate won't die. In this NY Times article, Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania now wants NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to explain why the confiscated tapes were destroyed. Seems ridiculous on so many levels.