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Spear-it NFL Thursday Total
First - I wanted to reprint this poem after a 0-3 night that I had. :angryfire My confidence is shaken but I will take it in stride. In Golf- it is best not to think of your last bad shot- so it is with capping.
As the Kapt says "Lock and Load" and I will certainly take it to heart
The feelings within me -of the loss tonight- are simply tearing -me apart.
See-Folks -its different when you give these out for free to friends and e-mail others
It makes you feel so low to miss this 10 play - and let down so many brothers
If now I was a service - and I gave these plays to you-
I would tout my record once more and then sleep much better too
I would have your money in my bank and continue onto the next day-
where unsuspecting foolish gamblers will buy my new car -plus- my yaught -on the bay.
Now - lets get down to business.
100-Oakland/ New England Under 50
Grab this late, as the line will rise to 52 or more- I believe--even sweeter if faded.
This should be quite a game tonight. The Over sure looks tempting with the matchups and I suspect the services will be all over it. Therefore- expect Rip to possibly fade the over as well.
OAKLAND: Oakland fell far short of the expectations that accompanied last spring’s huge spending spree, finishing the disappointing 2004 campaign at 5-11, just one game better than the miserable 2003 season. The team was bad on both sides of the ball, as the defense ranked a or near the bottom of the AFC in most categories and first year Head Coach Norv Turner’s offense never really took off. That group scored just 20.0 PPG and ranked dead last in the NFL in rushing. However, QB Kerry Collins had a strong season stepping in for injured Rich Gannon, and WR Jerry Porter also emerged as a big-time player. Adding WR Randy Moss to the mix in 2005 offers fresh hope for a return to Raiders glory, as early as this season. Between Moss, DT Warren Sapp, and CB Charles Woodson, this team is as loaded with stars as anyone, and should have enough complimentary players again to contend.
Obviously anytime you add a player of Moss’ talent to the mix, that story is going to be the big news of the offseason. He is the deep threat that this organization has always coveted and should have a huge impact on opening up all facets of the offense. The running game should also be bolstered by the versatile abilities of free agent signees RB’s Rob Konrad (MIA) and LaMont Jordan (NYJ). However, there were also some key moves made on the defensive side of the ball where CB’s were added with both of the top two picks in the draft, and three key free agents were signed. Of those, DE Derrick Burgess of Philadelphia figures to have the biggest impact. Frankly though, this organization’s free agent class of 2004 failed it miserably, and the Raiders will be counting on bigger contributions from players like Sapp and LB Dwayne Rudd in 2005.
It’s amazing to consider how vastly different the 2005 Oakland team shapes up from the AFC title group of just three years ago. The ironic thing is that this team may be more talented overall. Collins is one of the best long ball passers in the league so Moss should have a huge impact. If the defensive unit can improve even slightly, the Raiders could be one of the pleasant turnaround stories in the NFL in 2005.
NEW ENGLAND: New England’s recent success has been touched upon at several spots - already so here we’ll try to just take a closer look at the numbers this team produced last season, and focus on its prospects for repeating in 2005.
Quite simply, New England was simply dominant again in 2004, matching the 17-2 won-lost mark of the previous season. In addition, the 13-4-2 ATS mark fell just shy of the ’03 performance. The Patriots improved immensely on offense last year, both in terms of production and balance. The addition of RB Corey Dillon had a great deal to do with that as he gave the unit a dimension it had lacked on the prior two championship teams. In fact, his final numbers of 1,635 yards and 13 TD’s were franchise records. Defensively, they were off a bit on the pace set in 2003, but the final rankings of 3rd in points and 9th in yardage allowed were still very respectable.
The Patriots top assistant coaches were the ones garnering the headlines in the offseason, as OC Charlie Weis left for the college ranks and Notre Dame while DC Romeo Crennel was named Cleveland’s new head coach. The organization was able to lock up stability though at one critical position, as QB Tom Brady was given a six year extension. Because of that, New England was forced to make some tough financial decisions elsewhere, and among the well-known casualties were WR-CB Troy Brown, CB Ty Law, WR David Patten, and G Joe Andruzzi. They may also face life without LB Tedy Bruschi, who fell victim to a stroke since February. New on the scene for 2005 will be DE Chad Brown, as well as WR David Terrell, both coming over via free agency.
New England has now reached the pinnacle of professional football three times in four seasons, doing it the old fashioned way with a team first approach. In no other season will that way of thinking take on more importance than in 2005, particularly as HC Bill Belichick adapts to life without his top assistants and several reliable contributors. Still, the race for the AFC title figures to come down to home field advantage, and if the Patriots get it, we could be watching them hoist the Lombardi trophy again in Detroit.
Brady and the New England Patriots posted a 16-13 overtime victory over the Raiders in a snowstorm in the January 2002 divisional playoffs en route to winning their first of three Super Bowl titles.
Of course, the Patriots are now 9-0 in the postseason under coach Bill Belichick with Brady at the controls and are trying to become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls and four in a five-year span.
But the first postseason win for the NFL's first dynasty of the 21st century was quite controversial and is known in playoff lore as the "The Tuck Rule Game." For the Raiders, it was more like a snow job.
With Oakland leading 13-10 late in the fourth quarter, Brady fumbled after being hit and the Raiders recovered. That essentially would have sealed the win for Oakland. However, a replay review overturned the fumble, calling it an incomplete pass.
The ruling by the replay official will forever be known as the "no-tuck rule" since Brady was in the act of throwing the ball forward when he stopped his motion and did not tuck the ball back into his body, hence it was called an incompletion rather than a fumble.
Adam Vinatieri took advantage of the reprieve for New England, drilling a 45-yard field goal through the heavy snow to tie the game and then kicked a 23-yarder in overtime.
The blizzard didn't bother Brady, who completed 32-of-52 passes for 312 yards and scored on a six-yard run.
The Patriots have plenty of players left from that Super Bowl team, including Brady, Vinatieri, wide receiver Troy Brown, left tackle Matt Light and linebackers Mike Vrabel and Willie McGinest.
But the Raiders are quite different. They no longer feature Rich Gannon, Jery Rice and Tim Brown. Now their stars on offense are wide receiver Randy Moss, running back LaMont Jordan and quarterback Kerry Collins.
Fittingly, renegade Raiders owner Al Davis pillaged Moss from Minnesota for starting linebacker Napoleon Harris, a first-round pick (seventh overall) and a seventh-round pick. Moss has five years left on an eight-year, $75 million contract.
"His range, his speed, his feel for the game is better than anyone I've ever been around," Collins said of Moss.
Belichick had to contend with superstar receiver Terrell Owens in Super Bowl XXXIX. He's not looking forward to facing Moss.
"He (Moss) pretty much has all the skills you could look for in a receiver," Belichick said. "He can do it all, intermediate routes, deep routes, makes plays after the catch. Just an exceptional athlete."
Davis also signed Jordan, who was stuck behind Curtis Martin with the New York Jets and averaged 4.9 yards per carry.
But if the Raiders hope to be a playoff contender they will need to upgrade a defense which ranked 30th and yielded 30 or more points in nine games last year. Former Patriots Ted Washington and Bobby Hamilton start on the defensive line.
The Patriots start the season with a 20-game home winning streak, including playoffs. They are 24-3 overall at Gillette Stadium.
New England lost both coordinators - Charlie Weis on offense and Romeo Crennel on defense - along with linebackers Tedy Bruschi, Ted Johnson and Roman Phifer and cornerback Ty Law. Bruschi is not playing this season after suffering a mild stroke in February.
Belichick will call the plays on offense and defensive backs coach Eric Mangini was promoted to defensive coordinator. Linebackers Chad Brown and Monty Beisel were signed as free agents to complement McGinest, Vrabel and Rosevelt Colvin.
The Patriots won their third Super Bowl title last year without Law, who suffered a broken foot in an October 31 game at Pittsburgh. He signed with the New York Jets last month.
Matchup to watch: Moss matches up against right cornerback Asante Samuel. A five-time Pro Bowler, Moss caught 49 passes for 767 yards and 13 touchdowns in 13 games last season. Samuel, a third-year player from Central Florida, emerged as the team's best cover corner after Law and Tyrone Poole suffered injuries last year.
Series: The Raiders lead, 15-14-1 and won the last meeting, 27-20 at Oakland on November 17, 2002.
Next week: Oakland hosts Kansas City, September 18 New England visits Carolina, September 18
Now with that all said- I figure Moss will be double teamed. I also figure a pass rush is in order. Both teams will want to run the ball- but passing is their main goal. NE is great at eating up the clock. Final predicted score 28-21 - Yes that is close to the mark. So make your bets low.
CFB Record-
100-5-6
200-6-0
300-1-0
7-0 on 200 and Over
BaseBall Record:
100= 36-19
200= 23-17
300= 12-15
400= 6-5
500= 4-2
600= 4-1
1000= 3-2
88-60 on Totals Alone
17-10 on 4 and above plays
As the Kapt says "Lock and Load" and I will certainly take it to heart
The feelings within me -of the loss tonight- are simply tearing -me apart.
See-Folks -its different when you give these out for free to friends and e-mail others
It makes you feel so low to miss this 10 play - and let down so many brothers
If now I was a service - and I gave these plays to you-
I would tout my record once more and then sleep much better too
I would have your money in my bank and continue onto the next day-
where unsuspecting foolish gamblers will buy my new car -plus- my yaught -on the bay.
Now - lets get down to business.
100-Oakland/ New England Under 50
Grab this late, as the line will rise to 52 or more- I believe--even sweeter if faded.
This should be quite a game tonight. The Over sure looks tempting with the matchups and I suspect the services will be all over it. Therefore- expect Rip to possibly fade the over as well.
OAKLAND: Oakland fell far short of the expectations that accompanied last spring’s huge spending spree, finishing the disappointing 2004 campaign at 5-11, just one game better than the miserable 2003 season. The team was bad on both sides of the ball, as the defense ranked a or near the bottom of the AFC in most categories and first year Head Coach Norv Turner’s offense never really took off. That group scored just 20.0 PPG and ranked dead last in the NFL in rushing. However, QB Kerry Collins had a strong season stepping in for injured Rich Gannon, and WR Jerry Porter also emerged as a big-time player. Adding WR Randy Moss to the mix in 2005 offers fresh hope for a return to Raiders glory, as early as this season. Between Moss, DT Warren Sapp, and CB Charles Woodson, this team is as loaded with stars as anyone, and should have enough complimentary players again to contend.
Obviously anytime you add a player of Moss’ talent to the mix, that story is going to be the big news of the offseason. He is the deep threat that this organization has always coveted and should have a huge impact on opening up all facets of the offense. The running game should also be bolstered by the versatile abilities of free agent signees RB’s Rob Konrad (MIA) and LaMont Jordan (NYJ). However, there were also some key moves made on the defensive side of the ball where CB’s were added with both of the top two picks in the draft, and three key free agents were signed. Of those, DE Derrick Burgess of Philadelphia figures to have the biggest impact. Frankly though, this organization’s free agent class of 2004 failed it miserably, and the Raiders will be counting on bigger contributions from players like Sapp and LB Dwayne Rudd in 2005.
It’s amazing to consider how vastly different the 2005 Oakland team shapes up from the AFC title group of just three years ago. The ironic thing is that this team may be more talented overall. Collins is one of the best long ball passers in the league so Moss should have a huge impact. If the defensive unit can improve even slightly, the Raiders could be one of the pleasant turnaround stories in the NFL in 2005.
NEW ENGLAND: New England’s recent success has been touched upon at several spots - already so here we’ll try to just take a closer look at the numbers this team produced last season, and focus on its prospects for repeating in 2005.
Quite simply, New England was simply dominant again in 2004, matching the 17-2 won-lost mark of the previous season. In addition, the 13-4-2 ATS mark fell just shy of the ’03 performance. The Patriots improved immensely on offense last year, both in terms of production and balance. The addition of RB Corey Dillon had a great deal to do with that as he gave the unit a dimension it had lacked on the prior two championship teams. In fact, his final numbers of 1,635 yards and 13 TD’s were franchise records. Defensively, they were off a bit on the pace set in 2003, but the final rankings of 3rd in points and 9th in yardage allowed were still very respectable.
The Patriots top assistant coaches were the ones garnering the headlines in the offseason, as OC Charlie Weis left for the college ranks and Notre Dame while DC Romeo Crennel was named Cleveland’s new head coach. The organization was able to lock up stability though at one critical position, as QB Tom Brady was given a six year extension. Because of that, New England was forced to make some tough financial decisions elsewhere, and among the well-known casualties were WR-CB Troy Brown, CB Ty Law, WR David Patten, and G Joe Andruzzi. They may also face life without LB Tedy Bruschi, who fell victim to a stroke since February. New on the scene for 2005 will be DE Chad Brown, as well as WR David Terrell, both coming over via free agency.
New England has now reached the pinnacle of professional football three times in four seasons, doing it the old fashioned way with a team first approach. In no other season will that way of thinking take on more importance than in 2005, particularly as HC Bill Belichick adapts to life without his top assistants and several reliable contributors. Still, the race for the AFC title figures to come down to home field advantage, and if the Patriots get it, we could be watching them hoist the Lombardi trophy again in Detroit.
Brady and the New England Patriots posted a 16-13 overtime victory over the Raiders in a snowstorm in the January 2002 divisional playoffs en route to winning their first of three Super Bowl titles.
Of course, the Patriots are now 9-0 in the postseason under coach Bill Belichick with Brady at the controls and are trying to become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls and four in a five-year span.
But the first postseason win for the NFL's first dynasty of the 21st century was quite controversial and is known in playoff lore as the "The Tuck Rule Game." For the Raiders, it was more like a snow job.
With Oakland leading 13-10 late in the fourth quarter, Brady fumbled after being hit and the Raiders recovered. That essentially would have sealed the win for Oakland. However, a replay review overturned the fumble, calling it an incomplete pass.
The ruling by the replay official will forever be known as the "no-tuck rule" since Brady was in the act of throwing the ball forward when he stopped his motion and did not tuck the ball back into his body, hence it was called an incompletion rather than a fumble.
Adam Vinatieri took advantage of the reprieve for New England, drilling a 45-yard field goal through the heavy snow to tie the game and then kicked a 23-yarder in overtime.
The blizzard didn't bother Brady, who completed 32-of-52 passes for 312 yards and scored on a six-yard run.
The Patriots have plenty of players left from that Super Bowl team, including Brady, Vinatieri, wide receiver Troy Brown, left tackle Matt Light and linebackers Mike Vrabel and Willie McGinest.
But the Raiders are quite different. They no longer feature Rich Gannon, Jery Rice and Tim Brown. Now their stars on offense are wide receiver Randy Moss, running back LaMont Jordan and quarterback Kerry Collins.
Fittingly, renegade Raiders owner Al Davis pillaged Moss from Minnesota for starting linebacker Napoleon Harris, a first-round pick (seventh overall) and a seventh-round pick. Moss has five years left on an eight-year, $75 million contract.
"His range, his speed, his feel for the game is better than anyone I've ever been around," Collins said of Moss.
Belichick had to contend with superstar receiver Terrell Owens in Super Bowl XXXIX. He's not looking forward to facing Moss.
"He (Moss) pretty much has all the skills you could look for in a receiver," Belichick said. "He can do it all, intermediate routes, deep routes, makes plays after the catch. Just an exceptional athlete."
Davis also signed Jordan, who was stuck behind Curtis Martin with the New York Jets and averaged 4.9 yards per carry.
But if the Raiders hope to be a playoff contender they will need to upgrade a defense which ranked 30th and yielded 30 or more points in nine games last year. Former Patriots Ted Washington and Bobby Hamilton start on the defensive line.
The Patriots start the season with a 20-game home winning streak, including playoffs. They are 24-3 overall at Gillette Stadium.
New England lost both coordinators - Charlie Weis on offense and Romeo Crennel on defense - along with linebackers Tedy Bruschi, Ted Johnson and Roman Phifer and cornerback Ty Law. Bruschi is not playing this season after suffering a mild stroke in February.
Belichick will call the plays on offense and defensive backs coach Eric Mangini was promoted to defensive coordinator. Linebackers Chad Brown and Monty Beisel were signed as free agents to complement McGinest, Vrabel and Rosevelt Colvin.
The Patriots won their third Super Bowl title last year without Law, who suffered a broken foot in an October 31 game at Pittsburgh. He signed with the New York Jets last month.
Matchup to watch: Moss matches up against right cornerback Asante Samuel. A five-time Pro Bowler, Moss caught 49 passes for 767 yards and 13 touchdowns in 13 games last season. Samuel, a third-year player from Central Florida, emerged as the team's best cover corner after Law and Tyrone Poole suffered injuries last year.
Series: The Raiders lead, 15-14-1 and won the last meeting, 27-20 at Oakland on November 17, 2002.
Next week: Oakland hosts Kansas City, September 18 New England visits Carolina, September 18
Now with that all said- I figure Moss will be double teamed. I also figure a pass rush is in order. Both teams will want to run the ball- but passing is their main goal. NE is great at eating up the clock. Final predicted score 28-21 - Yes that is close to the mark. So make your bets low.
CFB Record-
100-5-6
200-6-0
300-1-0
7-0 on 200 and Over
BaseBall Record:
100= 36-19
200= 23-17
300= 12-15
400= 6-5
500= 4-2
600= 4-1
1000= 3-2
88-60 on Totals Alone
17-10 on 4 and above plays
It's always noon somewhere! 
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