I was daydreaming about how nice it would be to catch the season opening game in Cleveland so checked out the prices on EBAY and STUBHUB.  There are some good deals as can be expected but when I went to the Browns website I was stunned to see that there are tickets available at every price level directly from their ticket office. (as low as $32.00 each)

For those of you who are out of state and within driving distance of Ohio, this is an excellent opportunity. (It's a 10 hour drive for me but very hard to turn down because my only other chance to get to a game this year will be in Pittsburgh.  I think that I would like to keep my firstborn son rather than attend that game)

3 more weeks!

I know that we have (over)analyzed the entire spectrum of Brett Favre possibilities and that we will probably continue to do so until Mississippi finally spews him forth at some time in the coming months.  The thing that concerns me the most is "The Streak".

Favre was playing at levels exceeding respectability (yes, that was an intentional backhanded compliment) prior to his injury but once his shoulder fell apart he did not take one for the team and sit his butt on the pine.  THE STREAK will always be in the forefront of any discussion when he suffers an inevitable collapse.  I don't believe that Chilly has the testicular fortitude to forcibly remove him from a game when it becomes apparent that he is hurting the team due to injury, erosion of skills, or bad decision making. (It will happen, mark my words)

We all saw what happened to the Jets last year when he was playing in diminished capacity and it completely derailed their season.

Hmmm.. I seem to be missing $.02

We all know that Harvin tested positive for pot at the combine so I am wondering if he is already subject to discipline under the NFL player code of conduct. 

Does anyone have any idea how this is going to shake out?

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Has anyone heard anything about the StarCaps suspensions to Pat and Kevin Williams? Or is there any news about a counter suit against the NFL due to their failure to disclose knowledge of a banned substance on their approved supplements list?

I've been waiting for news and I can't shake the feeling that someone is dragging their heels on the issue.  I would like a resolution sooner rather than later so that the team can be prepared for their absence in the event that the suspension is upheld.

Please feel free to discuss any Cutler rumors too!

Even a sportswriter knows what to do... (From ESPN.COM page 2)

Philadelphia at Minnesota Analysis: Two weeks ago, TMQ warned that, for good or ill, Adrian Peterson is the Vikings' meal ticket -- and it would be a big mistake to think the team has a better chance to win with Tarvaris Jackson passing than with Peterson running. So what happened Sunday? With Philadelphia leading 16-14 and Minnesota facing second-and-13 on its own 35 with 7:12 remaining, Peterson came out of the game. The Vikes went incompletion, incompletion, punt. Philadelphia scored in one snap; then Minnesota got another possession and went incompletion, incompletion, incompletion, punt, with Peterson still sitting out. Up to the point with 7:12 remaining when Minnesota abandoned the run, the Vikings had 131 yards rushing and 123 yards passing. Peterson didn't carry the ball again, or even catch a screen pass. He couldn't, because the meal ticket was off the field for much of the fourth quarter.

When I checked the stats at the end of the game, I saw two touchdowns by Peterson and no touchdowns by any other Viking. Sure, he is a feast-or-famine meal ticket, often getting bottled up or even losing yardage before popping a big gain, such as his 40-yard scoring run Sunday. But Jackson had yet another awful day passing the ball -- Minnesota would have been better off handing the ball to Peterson, especially since he often performs best in the fourth quarter when defenders are tired. Defensing Peterson requires "stringing out" -- a lot of fast lateral motion -- which is more tiring than defensing runs up the middle. Yet Peterson stood on the sideline as Minnesota crumbled. The Vikings finished the regular season fifth in the NFL in rushing, and 25th in passing, yet the Vikings went pass-wacky when down by just two points in the third quarter. And Peterson was the -- what's the phrase I am looking for? -- oh yes, the NFL's leading rusher in 2008. If I had the NFL's leading rusher on my team, my super-sophisticated strategy would be to let him play. Minnesota's second-half possession results: punt, punt, punt, punt, punt, fumble, end of game.

Philadelphia blitzed on 20 percent of Minnesota's offensive downs -- not "constant" blitzing, as the announcers said, but slightly above the league average of about 15 percent. The difference was that most Philadelphia blitzes included a safety -- frequent safety blitzing means the defense does not fear the opposing quarterback. When safeties are coming, the center of the field is inviting. Yet most of Minnesota's deep passes were thrown to the sidelines, which requires less quarterback skill than going down the middle. Philadelphia offered Minnesota the middle, and the Vikings declined to throw there. Twice early in the contest, Philadelphia cornerbacks "jumped" a Minnesota curl or comeback pattern and came close to an interception. It is not a state secret that Jackson telegraphs his passes; surely the Eagles' coaches saw that in film study, and told their defensive backs to jump certain types of throws. Trailing 9-7 in the second quarter, Minnesota had a third-and-4, and Jackson threw an interception returned for a touchdown. Asante Samuel saw Jackson telegraph his target and jumped a short comeback route. Jackson was being hammered by a pass-rusher as he threw wildly, thus making two fundamental errors on the same play. Good thing they didn't just hand off to the league's leading rusher!

As for Philadelphia, its front seven -- Juqua Parker, Mike Patterson, Brodrick Bunkley, Trent Cole, Akeem Jordan, Stewart Bradley and Chris Gocong -- are playing as well as the Giants' front seven was when the G-Persons rolled to the Super Bowl last season. Plus the Eagles' defensive schemes have become less predictable lately, as Philadelphia now shows blitz and then backs off more than it did in the past. If we can't have a Manning-Manning Super Bowl, at least a Pennsylvania Turnpike matchup of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh remains possible.