USA USA... Oh wait soccer's over

Let me tell you a story about a 14 year old kid and his dad. You see, this kid loved his dad and looked up to him. Both father and son are big sports fans. The son always talked to his dad about sports and obviously liked the same teams his dad did. Baseball, football, some hockey and a little big of basketball. It was great. There was one thing that the son never understood. How could his father love SOCCER more than any of those sports?!?!  It's slow, it's boring, the rules are a little complicated and I don't understand why the clock never stops?!?  But looking up to his dad, the son wanted to learn why he loved it so much. So when his dad asked him to go to a World Cup game at Giants stadium that year, he was happy to go. Upon entering Giant stadium that day he saw 2 groups of fans that loved their countries and teams, he saw passion that was unmatched from any sporting event he had ever been too, he saw competitiveness but comratery. But what he saw that touched him most of all was has Dad, a person he looked up too for his entire life, watching a sport he loved so much with a look in his eye like a little kid. At that moment, that 14 year old boy was hooked on soccer, and especially the World Cup. 

That 14 year old boy was me many moons ago. Even though I may never have the love for soccer my dad did (mine will always be baseball), I went on to learn, love and play soccer. Learning this wonderful game is not easy but in doing so I have some insite on why Americans can not embrace this wonderful game because I needed to come to grips with a few things to do so. Below you will find the list  

1. There is no clock:  Americans are so used to structure, clocks stopping, out of bounds, time outs incomplete passes and whatever else that will stop a game clock. It's something we can control, use and even minipulate if we want to (kneeling down at te end of a game). With soccer you don't have that. A clock runs but it's not official. There is only one person that has the official clock and that's the ref on the field. Everything else is an estimation and a guess. You can't stop the clock when it goes out of bounds,  when a goal scores, to call a time out, at a 2 minute warning, or when someone "injures" themselves. You need to except that not only is the clock not your friend, it's your enemy and there is no way you can stop it, speed it up or minipulate it. Except the ref will stop play when the time is up in his watch and that he will not call a "play dead" and end a game in the middle of a chance to score if his time runs out. Play will only ever stop at a neutral point not in the middle of someone trying to score.  

2. 1-0 games and 0-0 games are the norm:  Soccer is not built to be a high flying lots of scoring type of game. It's a game a skill and finesse that needs to have a perfect situation for a scoring play. As Americans, we hate this. 90% of people hate pitchers dules, don't like the defensive football games with low scoring, if a basketball team plays good defense first before scoring it's not an enjoyable game and low scoring is the reason no one really likes hockey. Unfortanetlaly we are trained to expect action to be entertained. We need to except/appreciate the skill over the action

3. MOST IMPORTANT... We are not the best in the world:  Baseball, Basketball, Football, Hockey, even Tennis, Golf and the Olympics. We expect excellence out of all of these sports. The top leagues play here (for the most part), more importantly, even if the best players aren't American, the goal is to get to America to play here, make the most money, and showcase your ability. With soccer, this will never happen. The best players/league is set up in Europe. This game is older than us.  We can play it here but we will not get the top players until they are done with the leagues over in Europe. MLS is like the retirement league that helps older players extend their playing carrer. We need to except this and not be upset with players from

America that go to these European teams to play. They are just doing what foreign players have done for so many years by coming here to play in the NBA, NHL, MLB, and NFL. 

4. Soccer Players are sissys:  Listen, just because players are diving like they just got shot in the leg ever time someone touches them doesn't make them a sissy. It makes them an actor. They are trying to draw a penalty (falsely) to get a free kick in order to put their team in a better position to score and win a game. Anyone that basically is running for 90 minutes strait is not a sissy. Get that sissy thing out of your head. 

Once you understand all of this and except this as fact, you can start appreciating this game that has been played before our time and that the entire world embraces. Alas I know the answer to this. 90% of America can't get past the fact we are not the best at something, the rules are not what we are used to, and no one is willing to "change things" to appease us.  Watching my dad's passion for a sport, since he is from Italy and has played soccer there as well as here in the US, was one of the greatest things I remember as a young teenager. I learned and played, wanting to make him proud. Hope I did. I leave you with this. Give soccer a chance. Open up your mind and except it's rules, with and without its flaws and you will see an amazing sport, with amazing passion. #JustSayin

FU Robbie Cano

Good riddance Robbie. You may have ended up being the best 2nd baseman to ever play the game but instead your gonna be that guy that took the money and went to a team that never won. 

I'm not saying Robbie won't be missed, I'm saying this signing (or lack there of) is surprising.  The guy talked about the Yankee history, how important it was to him to be a Yankee and and the right things but in the end I guess he was just talking to ARod too much about his phyilospoy on baseball. 

For everyone having a baseball cow right now you need to look at it this way... We just got Brian McCann and Elsbury for the price it would have cost to keep Cano and Elsbury and McCann > Cano and Steward. Especially when you add Beltran in there as well (would not have been signed without a no Cano signing). But this leaves the question of who will play 2nd base for the yanks. 

We need to remember that this is a business and not personal so when I say this, your gonna get pissed but your gonna have to deal with it.  We need to move Gardner for a second Basmen. I want Beandon Phillips from the Reds (owner wants him moved so he will go). Of course for Philips it will take a lot more then Gardner but I feel like this is a move that needs to be made. 

Brandon Philips is not only one of the top 5 second basemen in the league but everyone talks about his character and how great of a guy he is in the club house (just like McCann). We need these kind if guys to be the future leaders of our team. Jeter isn't gonna be around forever you know and Mo is already gone. 

Whatever needs to be done to get Phillips should be done. Then add a Pitcher (tanaka ?) or two (colon) that will solidify a rotation. Anyone know if Tim Tebow can pitch? #justKiddin #Maybe 

Bill Madden is a joke

The Daily News was my favorite paper to read. I'm obviously a sports guy and they did a better job then everything else around. DID is the key word. Thanks to Bill Madden, I now will put them will the NY Post and Enquirer; Clown paper. 

I normally kill this guy for being an "Egotistical Maniac" (he still is), but I have to give him credit. Mike Francesca was fed up with what he was reading in the paper so he went to the source, or as he says it "sauce".  He just asked Bill Madden to put his money where his pen and mouth are and Madden folded like a house of cards. 

When asked why the focus on ARod, Maddens answer was because he was the worst offender of the current "Steroid Era".  So after some bickering back and forth, Big Mike asked why ARod was worse then Braun. Brain ruined a guys life last year and ARod has only ruined his. Bill had nothin. He asked what ARod did that was worse then everyone else that took steroids. Bill had nothin. He asked why is ARod getting killed when his name came out on the "102 anonymous" list and he did the right thing and admitted he did steroids but Ortiz, the only other guy that got leaked off that list, said I didn't so it and is a God. Bill had nothin. Big Mike then asked if MLB is serious about cleaning up the game and the players are serious about cleaning up the game why don't we get to know the other names on that list so we don't wonder who used or who we should or shouldn't put into the hall of fame cause they used. Bill again had nothin. 

Bill also is accusing ARod's camp of conspiring to commit insurance fraud. He  reports that ARod was willing to take a 100 game suspension and retire after that on the PUP list to collect his money from the insurance company. ARod's camp had denied this. 

If this isn't a witch hunt then I don't know what is. I've said this a million times and I will say it again. Everyone hates him for making so much money from baseball and that's not his fault. He asked and a team gave it to him. If your boss offered you a million dollars a year to do your job, you wouldn't turn it down or say no that's ok I feel as though 100k a year is what I should make. 

And don't feel sorry for the Yankees. I'm a Yankee fan and I have a question to ask that you should give yourself an honest answer too. If the Yankees got out of ARod's contract tomorrow, do

You think they would lower their ticket prices? Their concession Prices? Their merchandise prices?  If your answer is No then what do you care what they are paying him.  And if you don't care what they are paying him then let me know a better third baseman out of the 10 that have played their this season you want to see everyday and not ARod. 

I'm not saying he didn't use PED's or Steroids. I'm also not saying he shouldn't be punished for that. What I am saying is I'm pretty sure everyone else got 50 games. Braun, who ruined a guys life last year by accusing him of tainting his failed test, got 65 and ARod got 211.  Anyway you look at it, that math doesn't add up. Or is Bud Selig using the same calculator to get that number that he used to count the money he made when baseball was saved by Steroids in '98 with a homerun race that brought fans, revenue, and life back into a dying game?  Maybe who know. "If you live in a glass home, you shouldn't throw stone"

#JustSayin

A-Roid vs. MLB/Yankee Frauds

Ughhhh.  What a joke this all is. Let me start this out by stating I am an ARod supporter. Was before this, during this and may be after this but with that said, this post is NOT written to support ARod and his "yes/no" steroid activity. We can get into that on another post. This is written to call out the joke of a commissioner Bud Selig is and what MLB has become.

I believe the proper term for what is going on is "witch hunt". I understand MLB's frustration with Ryan Braun's arrogance.  He got off on a technicality and MLB wanted to prove a point. He is relatively young took his suspension in a year the Brewers stink and will come back next year to a team that will hopefully improve and 7 years left on a 10 year deal with around 100 million left on it.  Good job MLB. You sure showed him. 

I'm not sure what evidence MLB has on ARod, or what they plan on releasing in a few hours. I'm not important enough to have that information as most of us aren't including the arrogant reporters and their "sources". But this is what I see. 

- MLB bought information and testimony that ARod refused to buy from a few shady characters. 

- MLB was mentioning a 100 game suspension to lifetime ban for a guy that has never failed a required drug test (the test he did fail was supposed to be and stay anonymous, which 102 players failed and his name and ortis were the only 2 linked). 

- MLB has mentioned using the CBA instead of the drug agreement to "assure" he can't play during an appeal

- Brian Cashman refused to allow ARod to come back and play when he declined himself ready to play, citing "protocol" that needed to take place (that wasn't there when Jeter hurt himself the week before) and coincidently that extra week helped assure ARod wouldn't play in any games until his "suspension" is announced by the MLB

Fact is after baseball's strike in '94 it was sinking. They were talking about closing teams down and were in a main stream panic.  Steroids brought the fans back with the HR chase.  We all assumed the players were using and MLB had to know they were, but they turned a blind eye. Now they want to clean it up because someone called them out (Reminder that Cansaco's book is the only reason they decided to clean things up). I want a clean game as much as the next guy and I truly think believe MLB should apply a "1 or 2 strike then lifetime ban" when it comes to steroids.  Players would think before they act when it pertains to steroids if that was the case. Your never going to get Steroids completely out because there are always going to be guys that want to cheat and get that edge. But 2 wrongs don't make a right. Being shady to get answers or evidence on shady players is never going to be right. 

At this point with the "Biogenesis" case I feel like its more of a witch hunt to prove a point for Bud Selig before he rides off into the sunset then actually catching cheating players. Bud, no matter how many big names you catch, you will never wipe the guilt away for letting it go on for so long with no action. It wasn't ok then and you knew it but you did what you felt you needed to to help drive revenue back into a sport so many of us love.Remember Bud, people in glass houses shouldn't throw stone

#JustSayin

My football teams "cross breeding"

Nothing makes me happier when some of my favorite players from one of my teams get signed by my other team.

Example: Vilma from the Jets to the saints
Nick Toon (Al's kid) signs w/ saints
Jimmy Lenard signs with saints
Ivory from saints to Jets

Stuff like this just makes me smile. But, I feel as though there needs to still be one more "cross signing"

The Jets did some work the past few days and I love it. They addressed some of their defensive issues in the first round. Got some solid players that we will
have to see if they are the real deal
. The departure of Revis will be survived. No matter what some people think, you don't pay a corner that much money. To be honest, the Defense is the last thing I am worried about. Defense is Rex's thing. And if he doesn't produce a decent defense then he doesn't deserve to coach. PERIOD!

The jets did something I have been asking for them to do for the past 6 months. They have solidified their running game with 2 legit running backs. Ivory (baring an injury) is a meaner version of Marshion Lynch. And Goodson is a good 3rd down back. Other teams need to respect our running game this year. And when you have to respect a running game, it opens up the passing game (just ask Flacco).

They drafted a number of offensive lineman so lets assume some of them
pan out there. The drafting of Geno in the second round was an interesting move. If this kid is as "football smart" as a lot of people say then this may not be awful. I think they still have a hole at tight end they need to fill (Would love it to be Tebow but probably won't be). And then of course, Wide Receiver.

Holmes should be back and he will be our one. Now I know he's prob a 2 at this point but he will be out 1. Kerely proved last year that he is a legit #3 slot receiver They Like Steven Hill and if he could catch, wouldn't be a bad option but he needs to "develop" (learn to catch the ball). So I feel the Jets need a good Veteran receiver that will be cheaper, sign a one or 2 year deal and be able to be a #2 wide out and teach Hill. So my final cross signing would be, the Jets should sign Devery Henderson.

Dude can play. He's a big big target, fast and can hold on to the ball. Saints are moving on with some younger talent and the Jets need a player like him.

Will this fix everything, No. Will this give us a good foundation, yes. Will this give me something to look forward to, yes. And if they pay Sanchez 12 million to go away and figure out the Geno, Garrard situation, then they may be able to have a little fun this season.

By the way CHIS IVORY IS A BEAST. YOU ARE ALL ON NOTICE!!!
#BeastMode!

Deserted Island

Alight so I felt as though I needed to blog about this because a simple post wouldn't do. So here are my thoughts and rant on the Revis Trade.

Let me start of by saying I loved Revis. He was my favorite Jet. He IS the best at his position in the game today and can maybe rival Deion for the best corner all time.

This trade is smart. The Jets were never going to resign him. They need to get players out of this before he walked. It's hard to give a corner back, quarterback money. The Jets were never going to do that. In the end Revis gets his money and the Jets cling to a hope that whomever they draft will be half as good as Revis.

Now for my rant to Revis and everyone that's upset he's gone. GET OVER IT! Yeah he's great but this is a guy that held out when he was drafted. Held out after his first great season and would have left at the end of the year anyway. And Revis. I loved watching you man. And I will be lucky enough to continue watching you since I am a Saints fan as well. But here's some advice. And LISTEN CLOSELY:

Being in coverage 6 times a year verse Brady, Moore/Henny, and Fitzpatrick and being in coverage 6 times a year against Brees, Ryan and Newton are 2 totally different animals. We'll see just how good you are now.

If Revis makes it through to the 4th year of this deal without them releasing him, I'll be impressed. No guarantee is just that. Ask Amni. So Good luck my man and god speed. The Island has moved. Lets see if its as affective down south.

#justsayin
#RevisIsland
#whodatnation

Ryan Brothers

OK maybe it's Just me... Maybe my Love of the Jets and Saints is skewing what I am thinking but I will list my reasoning and you can see what you think for yourself. 

I may be one of the few that didn't want the Jets to fire Rex Ryan, and am happy that he seems to be a fixture in the Jets organization. I also loved the OLD REX.  The guy that talked about winning a Superbowl every year. They guy that didn't want to be the "little brother" in New York, and the guy that talked his players  up like they were the greatest things since slice bread. 

Most of you either clicked away or are like "your an idiot".  I could be, but my personal opinion and taste is for a guy that goes for the gold every year and tells you he is doing it and not someone that has no personality, doesn't talk or gives you the organizational answer.  You can call my way "classless" or "loud mouth" or whatever but to me that's what i want to see. 

THE OLD REX was all of that.  Did i get tired of him saying he was going to the Superbowl every year for the first 3 years? NO... he made it to the championship game 2 years in a row and if Victor Cruz didn't make the Jets look silly with a 96 yard catch and run for a TD, who knows what would have happened 2 years ago.  This year was bad but he was also given nothing really on offense to work with to be honest.  If he would have been 8-8 i would have been impressed  6-10 was about right. 

Everyone here in NY says Rex should be a defensive coordinator and not a head coach.  Well his brother is not a bad Def coord. in his own right.  "the apples didn't fall far from the tree"

Rob has done a good job everywhere he has been.  In 2 years he did help the cowboys get back to being a respectable defense and if he didn't get hit with a ton of injured (I know thats part of the game), his def was an upper tier def.  The lack of turnovers is troubling, I will say that.  You need to win the turn over battle to win games and it is hard to do that if you aren't creating any.  But when a def player that seems to be consistently hurt and is getting older (Ware), says you are one of the best coaches he has ever had and that Rob made him think and see the game from his position like he has never seen before, that means a lot (31 sacks in 2 years btw)

Rob is a good 3-4 guy... and that's what the Saints are switching to.   It was reported that he was offered and then fired from the job but I read that he turned it down (making more sense... you don't offer someone a job you know is outspoken like Ryan and then fire him for being outspoken). Read that Ryan thought if he failed in St Louis with the 4-3 (which he is not as comfortable with) he wouldn't get another job as easy.  He also wasn't allowed to hire his own coaches as well. 

The saints played will under Greg Williams (bounty or not), until the end.  They sank (to my surprise) with Spags.  2 different personalities totally. I think the saints need that fiery passionate guy. Someone that will stand up, scream, make promises, and be confident that his def will be the best.  Not a guy that tells you "it's a process".  BTW I like how the Saints were ok with putting Joe Vitt in charge of the entire team this year but has never been mentioned as a coord candidate this time around.
#JustSayin