Hi guys, I haven't written in a while but want to keep u up to date as to what I'm ranting about lately. My first rant has to do with, of coure, the IPL. Before the league began, I was full of jubilation, teams of cricket all stars that would help propel cricket into a mainstream sport worldwide. Names like kallis, Gibbs, Afridi, Tendulkar, that would help the sport gain worldwide fame and entertain the masses in the process.
Well, shit hit the fan. My adopted favorite team, The Deccan Chargers, fell flat on their face in the tournament, embarrasing performances which I think I could top to be completely honest here. As a proud Pakistani, I have witnessed embarrasing performances from Salmon Ass, Shahid Afridi "Kuch Karega", and Misbah "I wish I was Inzamam" Ul-Haq. Let's take a moment to thank bowlers Umar Gul, Shoaib Akhtar, and Sohail Tanvir for restoring our pride, and reminding the world where the most talented bowlers come from.
But back to the Chargers, how the fuck can a team perform so badly? Afridi fell flat on his face, not doing jackshit in the entire tournament. His bowling doesnt make up for anything, and if that's the only reason he represents any team nowadays, put him at number 11 so that he can't hinder a team's innings. Gibbs, one of my favorite players, has showed us why South Africa have given up on him. Styris, shoudln't have even been drafted in the first place, the guy has never shown much value with the bat, and his medium pacers are not particularly threatening to anyone. And of course, we have our sri lankans, Chaminda Vaas "Deferens", and Nuwan Zoysa. Zoysa maybe can strike fear in the batsment based alone on his face, and Vaas should work on his english since he won't be busy playing in the IPL next season.
Perhaps we need to look at positive. The Indians, such as Rao, Sharma, ravi teja, vinjay kumar have all performed above and beyond expectations. They were the backbone of this team that prevented them from crashing to 70 or 80 all out. 2-3 of those players will represent the national team, no doubt about it. Gilly was also outstanding throughout the tournament, but his partners' instability caused him to try to play too many shots, resulting in some batting failures. I strongly believe to improve this team, we have to get James Marshall or Jamie How, either player would benefit this team in a strong way. Afridi, Vaas, Zoysa, Styris should be given the money of the remainder of their contract and be released, which I think is expected anyways. Gibbs should be given another chance. We should also get Fidel Edwards or Jerome Taylor, these bowlers are vastly underrated and would definetely strengthen the team, I'm shocked these guys weren't drafted either. here's my 09 team:
1. Gilly
2. I like Rhoti and Shorma
3. Venugopal Rao "Iftikhar Injum"
4. Andrew "don't call me Gene" Symonds
5. James Marshall/Jamie How
6. Ravi Teja "Mahal"
7. Fidel Edwards
8. Vijay Kumar
9. "Pregnant" Ohja
10. RP Singh
11. Kalyankrishna
Notes: Ravi Teja has the ability to save a team ala Michael Bevan. I like him at number 6.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
What goes around comes around
Oh what a sweet feeling it is to watch the Pats go down in the only game that mattered! Nobody will remember this team 5 years from now, and this season is essentially meaningless. Were they the greatest team ever assembled? No, I don't think so, because they didn't win the big one, and secondly, because they had no class in winning. Constantly week after week, Belibitch ran up the score on hapless, overmatched opponents (yes that includes the Bills), scoring like they were USC playing Dartmouth. In college football, it's ok to run up the score, in fact, encouraged, as strength of schedule and margin of victory are key to climbing the BSC ladder. But in the NFL, not so much.
Now, the fact that the Pats were able to run up the score, in itself is amazing. Their linebacking and safety core, probably juiced, are in their late 30's and probably wouldn't make many NFL rosters. That includes Bruschi, Harrison, Vrabel, etc. Now that's absurd, ur saying, THEY WENT 18-0! Yes, but you have to realize that teams had no idea how to prepare for the Patriots and their monster offense this season, but later in the season we finally saw blueprints by the Ravens, Eagles, Giants, and Giants again, this time succesfully, on how to beat their video game system. The Patriots rely on the short passing game, with Welker and Benjamin Watson key in picking up those quick routes and short gaines. The fact that Wes Welker had more receptions than anyone this year, by a wide margin, despite falling well short in total yards (compared to Moss, Chad Johnson, T.O.), shows you how effective he was, and no team could match up with him, including the Giants, who won on hard defense and a little luck. Welker, in my opinion, is the MVP of the Patriots, not Brady, not Moss. Besides the quick routes, Brady's only other real threat was Randy Moss, who tore up defenders left and right on a weekly basis, but really just by sheer talent, as Brady's passes were always long and deep (get your mind out of the gutter) to Moss, in which Randy just jumped up and got it over mediocre corners. Moss is the best wideout in the league, better than T.O., and Brady is the best QB in the league, better than both Mannings. But the fact is The Patriots won based on their Offensive Line, which I believe is the best in history. The O-line gave Tom the time to double pump for those long passes, and time to scan the field for 20 minutes before finding Welker down the middle. I don't believe this is the best offense ever, just the best executed (Belibitch, despite being a horrible human, is a first ballot hall of famer), as the Jim Kelly Bills had a good one with Thomas and Reed, as did dozens of other teams, but the Patriots were very lucky this season to remain perfect, ironic as the Giants were lucky to outlast them in the superbowl! But their defense lost them the superbowl, as despite an all pro secondary with Asante Samuel and Ellis Hobbs, they really don't have much else to offer.
While I will always hate the Pats, it is refreshing that they were very humbled by the loss, and mature about it. If Tom Brady was playing on any other team, I would probably by a ticket to see him play, and this Patriot team is definetely one of the best in history, despite losing the big one. But I am very happy for the Giants, and Micheal Strahan, who has waited for this for a long time. Sooo, where does all of this talk lead me? Well, first of all, I think for my Bills to compete with the Pats next season, we need to draft a stud wideout to support Evans, add a playmaking tight end (funny how much sexuality is in football lingo), add a Defensive End to replace the dissapointing and indisciplined core we have, and allow Edwards to grasp the system and I have NO DOUBT we will make the playoffs, while probably not as the AFC east championship, as the Pats will own that for a cppl more years, but as a wild card.
Now, the fact that the Pats were able to run up the score, in itself is amazing. Their linebacking and safety core, probably juiced, are in their late 30's and probably wouldn't make many NFL rosters. That includes Bruschi, Harrison, Vrabel, etc. Now that's absurd, ur saying, THEY WENT 18-0! Yes, but you have to realize that teams had no idea how to prepare for the Patriots and their monster offense this season, but later in the season we finally saw blueprints by the Ravens, Eagles, Giants, and Giants again, this time succesfully, on how to beat their video game system. The Patriots rely on the short passing game, with Welker and Benjamin Watson key in picking up those quick routes and short gaines. The fact that Wes Welker had more receptions than anyone this year, by a wide margin, despite falling well short in total yards (compared to Moss, Chad Johnson, T.O.), shows you how effective he was, and no team could match up with him, including the Giants, who won on hard defense and a little luck. Welker, in my opinion, is the MVP of the Patriots, not Brady, not Moss. Besides the quick routes, Brady's only other real threat was Randy Moss, who tore up defenders left and right on a weekly basis, but really just by sheer talent, as Brady's passes were always long and deep (get your mind out of the gutter) to Moss, in which Randy just jumped up and got it over mediocre corners. Moss is the best wideout in the league, better than T.O., and Brady is the best QB in the league, better than both Mannings. But the fact is The Patriots won based on their Offensive Line, which I believe is the best in history. The O-line gave Tom the time to double pump for those long passes, and time to scan the field for 20 minutes before finding Welker down the middle. I don't believe this is the best offense ever, just the best executed (Belibitch, despite being a horrible human, is a first ballot hall of famer), as the Jim Kelly Bills had a good one with Thomas and Reed, as did dozens of other teams, but the Patriots were very lucky this season to remain perfect, ironic as the Giants were lucky to outlast them in the superbowl! But their defense lost them the superbowl, as despite an all pro secondary with Asante Samuel and Ellis Hobbs, they really don't have much else to offer.
While I will always hate the Pats, it is refreshing that they were very humbled by the loss, and mature about it. If Tom Brady was playing on any other team, I would probably by a ticket to see him play, and this Patriot team is definetely one of the best in history, despite losing the big one. But I am very happy for the Giants, and Micheal Strahan, who has waited for this for a long time. Sooo, where does all of this talk lead me? Well, first of all, I think for my Bills to compete with the Pats next season, we need to draft a stud wideout to support Evans, add a playmaking tight end (funny how much sexuality is in football lingo), add a Defensive End to replace the dissapointing and indisciplined core we have, and allow Edwards to grasp the system and I have NO DOUBT we will make the playoffs, while probably not as the AFC east championship, as the Pats will own that for a cppl more years, but as a wild card.
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