The Blame Game Starts at Home

It’s easy to blame the scapegoat for the New England Patriots season. But let’s be honest…Brett Favre throwing wounded pelicans to the Miami Dolphins yesterday isn’t the sole reason why the Pats are playing golf. Hey, I’m as pissed as anyone else at Favre and the Jets pathetic performance yesterday…but it shouldn’t have had to come to that.

The New England Patriots have nobody to blame but themselves. They had opportunities this season, and blew them. I’m mean come on…the Pats even forced us to cheer for Brett Favre. God, that makes me sick.

Here are just a few incidents that you can blame way before yesterday’s debacle.

Tom Brady Injury: Hey, Matt Cassel was solid, but it took about six weeks for him to get comfortable.

Getting Run-over By the Wildcat: The Coaching staff couldn’t figure out how to adjust to Miami’s Wildcat formation, in an early season beat-down.

Jabbar Gaffney’s “Gaffe”: It would have been a wide open touchdown against the Colts…it could have changed the face of that game:

David Thomas Penalty: Knocked New England further away for a FG against the Colts.

Overtime Blunder: Losing the toss in the overtime period against the Jets…then New York converting on a 3rd and long on the winning drive.

Complete Second Half Meltdown Against the Steelers: I’m still hearing about that one from the old college friends.

The bottom line is that the Pats had their opportunities, but it just wasn’t meant to be. It’s very easy to blame the Jets for losing yesterday, but New England put themselves in that position. They can only blame themselves.

Monday Morning Quick Hitters

The Black Bears Hockey Team skated to a 3 – 3 tie in the consolation game with St Cloud State in the Florida College Classic in Estero Florida.

The Women Black Bears Basketball Team loses the opening game in the Hawk Classic, falling to Saint Joseph’s, PA 74 – 46.

The Pirates blasted the Worcester Sharks 7 – 1 Sunday at the Cumberland County Civic Center.

As you all know by now, The New England Patriots took care of business Sunday, by beating the Buffalo Bills 13 – 0. On the other hand, Brett Favre screwed the Pats again, as the Jets lose to the Dolphins 31 – 24, eliminating the Pats from the playoffs. Don’t forget to join our Boycott Brett Favre movement. Just Click the Link to Learn More!

The Sacramento Kings payed for the Celtics 2 games of sin on Sunday. The Boston Celtics routed the Kings 108 – 63

The Bruins just keep winning, beating the Atlanta Thrashers in Atlanta 2 – 1.

Dartmouth edged out the Army Hockey team in the 1st game of the ledyard Bank Hockey Classic in New Hampshire Sunday, beating Army in overtime 5 – 4.

God I Hate Brett Favre

What are you in town for? Oh, to play the Dolphins like a dumbass? Right….

For the second time in 6 years, the New England Patriots needed Brett Favre to defeat Chad Pennington in a Week 17 matchup to gain a playoff spot. In 2002, Favre and the Pack walked into the Meadowlands and got thumped 42-17-in no small thanks to a god-awful 16-33, 1 TD 1 INT performance from Favre. This time, Brett looked even worse throwing three picks (great thinking on that last pick by the way) as the Jets fell to the Pennington-led Dolphins, 24-17.

With that the Pats season is over. From Brady going down early, numerous other injuries that required the Pats to bring back Rosey Colvin and Junior Seau, the solid play of rookie LB Jerod Mayo to the emergence of Matt Cassel, 2008 was a great season given the adversity, a season we Pats’ fans had not seen in, well, 6 years, when no game was a given. Regardless, there are too many emotions to give a comprehensive recap of the season and I can only muster this….

Brett, you suck. I can’t even write the rest of this, so Matty is going to take it from here…

Editor’s Note:

Well, we all knew it would happen. Like he did in the Meadowlands against the Jets in 2002 (see above entry), Brett Favre broke Pats fans hearts again tonight with a horrid, putrid, washed-up, “should have stayed retired” performance that propels the Miami Dolphins to the playoffs, and keeps the 11-5 Patriots at home. Tonight and from here on out, Pats fans should blame Favre. So with that The CMSB suggests “The Favre Boycott”. As Patriots fans, we boycott anything Favre shills, be it Wrangler jeans, Prilsoec OTC, or anything else he gets commercial dollars for. I think a massive Wrangler burning is in order, if anyone has any ideas how we can make this happen, email the editor at editor@centralmainesportsblog.com. Can we boycott Favre and hopefully send him away for his sins against Patriots Nation? Yes we can Patriots nation, yes we can.

Brady’s 2009 May Be In Jeopardy

Photo Courtesy Boston Globe

Tom Curran, formerly of the Providence Journal, and currently of MSNBC, reports an NFL league source tells him Tom Brady is far from ready to rehab his knee.

NFL Week 17 Final Injury Report

These Injury reports are for the three games that matter to the New England Patriots and there playoff chances…

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS at BALTIMORE RAVENS

JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

Status Report

PROBABLE RB Maurice Jones-Drew (knee)

BALTIMORE RAVENS Status Report

OUT LB Antwan Barnes (chest), WR Marcus Maxwell (hip)

QUESTIONABLE T Willie Anderson (foot), LB Jarret Johnson (calf), WR Derrick Mason (shoulder), S Ed Reed (thigh), RB Ray Rice (calf), CB Samari Rolle (ankle), T Adam Terry (knee), CB Fabian Washington (toe)

PROBABLE WR Yamon Figurs (head), DE Trevor Pryce (illness)

MIAMI DOLPHINS at NEW YORK JETS

MIAMI DOLPHINS

Status Report

QUESTIONABLE

CB Will Allen (groin), LB Channing Crowder (knee)

NEW YORK JETS

Status Report

QUESTIONABLE

WR Laveranues Coles (thigh), T Wayne Hunter (shoulder), LB Bryan Thomas (shoulder)

PROBABLE

LB Eric Barton (knee), WR Jerricho Cotchery (shoulder), LB David Harris (groin), DE Kris Jenkins (hip)

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS at BUFFALO BILLS

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

Status Report

OUT

LB Tedy Bruschi (knee), S Raymond Ventrone (jaw), G Billy Yates (hand)

QUESTIONABLE

LB Gary Guyton (ankle), T Mark LeVoir (ankle), CB Deltha O’Neal (ankle), LB Vince Redd (ankle), S James Sanders (abdomen), CB Lewis Sanders (shoulder), DE Richard Seymour (back), DE Ty Warren (groin)

PROBABLE

CB Ellis Hobbs (shoulder), T Matt Light (shoulder), DT Vince Wilfork (shoulder)

BUFFALO BILLS

Status Report

OUT

CB Jabari Greer (knee), WR James Hardy (knee)

DOUBTFUL

LB Teddy Lehman (groin), WR Roscoe Parrish (knee), T Jason Peters (knee)

QUESTIONABLE

RB Marshawn Lynch (shoulder), LB Kawika Mitchell (knee)

Big Game Brett? We Hope.

New England needs a Superhero………ugh

So the New England Patriots’ season comes down to this; win and hope for some help. While the Pats are taking on a Bills team they handled in Week 10 20-10, they need either the Jacksonville Jaguars to beat a very good Ravens team that has something to play for, OR the New York Jets to beat the surprising Dolphins. Neither prospect is very promising.

The Jags have won just 2 of their last 9 games (one against the hapless Lions), while the Ravens need to win to assure themselves a playoff spot, and with their second ranked defense the Ravens should have little trouble punching their ticket for the playoffs. That leaves the Pats needing Brett Favre and the New York Jets to beat the Fins–oh boy. The Fins have won 8 for their last 9 games–though just one win against a team with a winning record–while the Jets have looked as bad as those throwback jerseys they for whatever reason decide to pull out from time to time. The biggest reason for this tail spin? The man who was suppose to save the Jets–Brett Favre.

After winning 7 of 8 games from Week 4 through their stomping of the Titans in Week 12, the Jets have looked terrible in dropping 3 or their last 4. Over that stretch Favre has been one of the worst QBs in the league, completing fewer than 60% of his passes, averaging under 200 yards a game while throwing 6 picks to just 1 TD pass. The Jets are still in a position to win the AFC East only because of their Week 15 win over the Bills in which the defense scored 10 points in the fourth quarter while Favre and the offense mustered zero first downs. While Favre’s play has been the primary cause for the Jets’ recent struggles, the coaching staff also deserves to shoulder some of the blame.

That’s because another trend that has coincided with the Jets recent and season struggles–Thomas Jones’ carries. While most in New York have called for the ball to be in Favre’s hands more often, the Jets need is to get the ball into Jones’ hands–New York is 5-1 when he gets 20 or more rushing attempts, 4-5 when he is a pedestrian. Part of the reason for this correlation between the Jets’ commitment to a running game and their winning football games is because of the problems the offense faces when it gets in 3rd and longs (6 yards plus). Favre’s numbers in those situations are decent except that he often turns the ball over; 44/71, 478 yards, 6.73 YPA, 2/7 TD/INT. For whatever reason the coaching staff in New York decides at times to go away from the running game and Jones–as they did in Seattle where they rushed a total of 25 times during the game, with just 9 in the second half (3 more than they had on their first drive of the game, their longest of the game).

So, here is what we Pats fans need. First, show up and beat Buffalo. Though the Pats should win this game, the Bills will be looking to be the spoiler and keep the team that posted 56 on them the last time they met in Buffalo out of the playoffs. Next, we need Mr. Magini and company to commit to a running game that is third in the league in yards per carry at 4.8 and keep the offense (Favre) out of third and longs against the Fins. Otherwise we will probably see Favre hand the Fins the division, and the hatred for Favre will only increase in the northeast.

NFL Playoff Scenarios

Here are your 2008 Week 17 Playoff Scenarios

CLINCHED: Tennessee – AFC South and homefield advantage.

Pittsburgh – AFC North and first-round bye.

Indianapolis – Playoff spot

ELIMINATED: Buffalo, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Houston, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Oakland.

Miami clinches AFC East Division with:

1) MIA win OR

2) MIA tie + NE loss or tie.

Miami clinches a playoff spot with:

1) MIA tie + BAL loss.

New England clinches AFC East Division with:

1) NE win + MIA loss or tie OR

2) NE tie + MIA loss.

New England clinches playoff spot with:

1) NE win + BAL loss or tie OR

2) NE tie + BAL loss.

NY Jets clinch AFC East Division with:

• NYJ win + NE loss.

NY Jets clinch playoff spot with:

1) NYJ win + BAL loss.

Baltimore clinches a playoff spot with:

1) BAL win OR

2) BAL tie + MIA loss or tie OR

3) BAL tie + NE loss or tie OR

4) NE loss.

Denver clinches AFC West Division with:

1) DEN win or tie.

San Diego clinches AFC West Division with:

1) SD win.

CLINCHED: N.Y. Giants – NFC East and homefield advantage.

Arizona – NFC West.

Carolina – Playoff spot.

Atlanta – Playoff spot.

ELIMINATED: Detroit, Green Bay, New Orleans, St. Louis, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington.

Dallas clinches a playoff spot with:

1) DAL win OR

2) DAL tie + CHI loss or tie + TB loss OR

3) DAL tie + MIN loss or tie + TB loss OR

4) DAL tie + CHI loss + TB tie OR

5) DAL tie + MIN loss + TB tie.

Philadelphia clinches a playoff spot with:

1) PHI win + TB loss + MIN loss OR

2) PHI win + TB loss + CHI loss.

Atlanta clinches NFC South Division and a first-round bye with:

1) ATL win + CAR loss.

Carolina clinches NFC South Division and a first-round bye with:

1) CAR win or tie OR

2) ATL loss or tie.

Tampa Bay clinches a playoff spot with:

IF CHICAGO BEATS GREEN BAY:

1) TB win + DAL loss or tie OR

2) TB tie + DAL loss + MIN loss or tie OR

3) TB tie + DAL loss + CHI loss or tie OR

4) TB tie + DAL tie + MIN tie + CHI win or tie OR

5) TB tie + DAL tie + CHI tie + MIN win or tie.

Minnesota clinches NFC North with:

1) MIN win OR

2) MIN tie + CHI loss or tie OR

3) CHI loss.

Minnesota clinches a playoff spot with:

1) MIN tie + DAL loss + TB loss.

Chicago clinches NFC North Division with:

1) CHI win + MIN loss or tie OR

2) CHI tie + MIN loss.

Chicago clinches a playoff spot with:

1) CHI win + DAL loss or tie + TB loss or tie OR

2) CHI tie + DAL loss + TB loss.

Helmet Graphics Courtesy MGHelmets.com

What not to do at a Patriots game

This past Sunday Patriots’ linebacker Junior Seau recorded the 1500th tackle of his NFL career, and was involved in Todd Kobus’ first, and probably last, NFL tackle. No, Mr. Kobus is not an NFL player, he is a Patriots fan who decided part way through the 4th quarter that he needed to get into the action. So, the 31 year old Attleboro man decided to get out of his seat, jump over the wall separating players and fans, make his way to the Pats bench area and tackle the 19 year vet who stands 6’3″ and tips the scales at roughly 250 to the ground–stats on Kobus unknown.

Despite concerns over player safety in the wake of several off field incidences in recent years that has claimed the lives of Sean Taylor, Darrent Williams and others, Seau took the incident lightly:

“I thought it was one of my players that was enjoying the win. As I was laying on the ground I saw this guy in street clothes,” said Seau. “Obviously, it was not one of the players or any of the employees of the Patriots. Therefore, security came over and took care of him. I wish him a Merry Christmas.”

That’s one person who can make light of the incident. Kobus was taken into custody on Sunday and arraigned early Monday morning on the charges of assault and battery as well as trespassing. An Iraq veteran, Kobus stated that he only meant to hug Seau, whom he is a fan of, and is concerned how this will affect his military career, calling his actions “a stupid lapse in judgment”. (Could’ve been worse, he could’ve picked Brandon Meriweather and been treated like an FIU player).

While you feel badly for someone who served our country possibly having their career damaged because of one stupid action on a Sunday afternoon, you have to ask the question–what the hell were you thinking?!?! Did you think about the possibility that your actions would be misconstrued, and possibly wind up eating your teeth at the hands of Seau’s teammates who thought you were some deranged fan with a weapon and the intention of causing harm to someone? No, okay then.

Luckily no one was injured (and I am talking about Kobus), and while Kobus may be a great person who bravely served in the service, this has to be one of the least well thought out ideas in the history of sports fans–still behind the guy who ended up in the penalty box with Tie Domi 8 years ago mind you.

So here’s a thought kiddies–stay in your seats, drink beer, throw snow, cheer on the Pats, and you too can avoid jail, public humiliation, the risk of having a large man push your face out through the back side of your head…….and oh yeah, having your relative’s season tickets revoked by New England. Next time Todd, just send him a letter.

Monday Morning Quick Hitters

Now that that is all over with….here are your quick hitters.

Both Maine Black Bears Basketball teams were in action Sunday in Orono. The Men lost to Harvard 76 – 63.

The Women lost to Fairfield 64 – 56.

The Portland Pirates, down 2 – 0 halfway through the 2nd Periods, stormed back for 3 straight goals, beating the Worcester Sharks 3 – 2.

The Boston Celtics made history, joining the 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers and the 1969 – 70 New York Knicks as the only teams in NBA history to have a 26 – 2 record by beating the New York Knicks 124 -105. Rajon Rondo continued his blistering December scoring 26 points on 12 for 14 shooting. The Celtics look to make history by beating the co-record holder Philadelphia 76ers tomorrow night. Big Baby missed the game after getting into a car accident on the way to the game.

David Krejci had 3 assists, Blake Wheeler scored his 10th and 11th goals of the season and Phil Kessel assisted on 2 goals to bring his scoring streak to 18 games as the Bruins beat the St Louis Blues 6 – 3.

The New England Patriots continued to do all they could do to make the playoffs by blasting the playoff bound Arizona Cardinals 47 – 7. The Patriots must win next week against the Buffalo Bills and then rely on other teams to make the playoffs. The Jets must win the season ending game Sunday Night against the Miami Dolphins or the Baltimore Ravens must lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Either one of those scenarios and the Pats make the playoffs. Otherwise, the Patriots could be the 2nd Wild Card era 11 – 5 team to NOT make the playoffs. The 1985 Denver Broncos went 11 – 5 and as it happens, the AFC East was a powerhouse as the Miami Dolphins went 12 – 4 to win the divisions and the Patriots and Jets went 11-5 to take the Wild Card spots. Of course, 1985 was the season the Patriots Squished the Fish to go to Super Bowl XX.

VMI used a strong 2nd half to beat the Army Black Knights mens hoops squad 62 – 55.

Tuesday Morning Quick Hitters

The Boston Celtics won their 15th straight game (franchise record) , and are the 4th team to go 23 -2 to start an NBA Season. Rajon Rondo outplayed Deron Williams, almost going for a triple double scoring 25 points, 9 Rebounds and 7 Assists as the Celtics dispatched of the Utah Jazz and avenged last seasons worst loss, beating the Jazz 100 – 91 at the Boston Garden.

Black Bears Hockey Freshman Goalie Scott Darling was named Pro Ambitions Hockey East Rookie of the Week yesterday. Darling was 2 – 0, 1.00 GAA and .937 save percentage.

Former Maine Black Bear Teddy Percell got his 1st goal of the season for the Los Angeles Kings against the NHL leading San Jose Sharks. Teddy was called up last week from the Manchester Monarchs.

Dustin Pedroia and Daisuke Matsuzaka will be the only Red Sox participating in the WBC this spring.

Ron Borges and John Tomasi (ummm) report that Matt Light has a separated shoulder.

Army Black Knights Women’s Basketball Guard Alex McGuire wins Patriot League Player of the Week.