Top 10 Ochocinco Moments: Why He Will Add To It Today

How in the world will Chad Ochocinco get revenge on “Revis Island” and his Gang Green of tacklers this week after getting the smackdown the week before?

Oh, I know. Check his recent twitter post:

OGOchoCinco: Watching the movie Gangs of NewYork-who’s the better actor-Daniel Day Lewis or Johnny Depp<–they play some of the weirdest roles

Bingo. When “Darrelle-Day Revis” has taken something from you (your father or your consecutive catch record) its time for revenge. What better way to get back at your enemy than to channel your inner Leo DiCaprio in Scorsese’s epic period piece?  If you want to take down Bill the Butcher, or Darrelle the Dictator, you have to study them, think like them, and then penetrate their inner circle. None of this war of words Twitter crap. You have to make them think you respect them. Then when they’re not ready, you catch a touchdown over them, leave the blood on the blade, and U-stream about it. Let’s just hope he doesn’t pull a Jack Dawson version of Leo and end up sinking in the Atlantic.

Our friends at YepYep have a great top 10 list of Chad’s best moments to date, such as my favorite, the “Pylon Putter.” But if Chad has been thinking about Johnny Depp and Daniel Day Lewis and their handful of crazy characters lately, I’m sure its crossed his mind how to incorporate one of them into a TD celebration. I could see it. Maybe he turns Kerry Rhodes into a million little particles and shrinks him in the television room only to have him stretched out later by the taffy puller. Or maybe he walks around the aisle of Paul Brown Stadium threatening to drink Jets fans Milkshakes, or Frosty Malts. Or are frosty malts just at baseball games? I don’t remember, but I want one.

Whether it’s Wonka, or Scissorhands, or Hawkeye of the Mohawk, There’s a good possibility that Chad adds to this top moments list today. Bengals fans just have to hope Revis didn’t just watch The Bodyguard or something.

2009 Tecmo Bowl NFL Player Awards

Based on the video game’s legendary stars, check out what current NFL players are worthy of the 2009-2010 Tecmo Bowl Awards:

1. THE WARREN MOON AWARD - Presented to the player/team who you wish had the ability to have more than 4 pass plays.

Winner: Matt Schaub – Remember the days of Warren Moon slinging the ball around the field to the likes of Haywood Jeffries, Ernest Givens, and co. This would have been a lot easier if you could keep the defense off balance with 8 pass plays, because lets face it, Lorenzo White and Warren Moon run #4 were not going to get you anywhere. For the amount of times I’ve seen run, run, run, Kris Brown missed field goal inside the 20 this year, I think Gary Kubiak would be happy if Pass #8 was an option.

2. THE THURMAN THOMAS AWARD - Presented to the best Wildcat Running Back

Winner: Ronnie Brown - I can hear the conversation now: Jim: “I think we are a good team, but we may need a little bit of an extra push to get us over the hump and to the Playoffs.” Marv: “Well our best player is Thurman Thomas, what if we use the element of confusion and try a direct snap to Thurman?” …And there you have it, Bills Run #4. Now, fast forward to 2008. I’m not sure, but I’m thinking that Ronnie Brown, Tony Sparano and I are on the same page. We’ve got the best player on the field, snap the ball right to him, the defense will be so confused. And wait, he can throw the ball too? Welcome to the playoffs Miami.

3. THE CHRISTIAN OKOYE AWARD – To the most punishing runner with a power/speed combo

Winner: Adrian Peterson - Right now all I can picture is AD running down the field headed directly for Roman Harper thinking in his head “AAAAAAAAA.” If Peterson had the same ability to popcorn the defender as Okoye did I don’t think even Ronnie Lott would want to see him the open field. Take a look at Peterson looking video game-like on this blow he delivers to William Gay…Beast.

4. THE DERRICK THOMAS AWARD – To the player with an uncanny ability to block kicks

Winner: Ed Reed - Although stats for blocked kicks are not kept for the individual players I’m going to give this award to notorious special teams all star Ed Reed. I mean, if there were a player in the NFL who could be the fourth man from the top of the screen and break through the long snapper and block nearly 90% of all extra points and field goals ala D.T. it would have to be Mr. Reed. Honestly the only thing that could stop D.T. was a simple slip of the finger off the down and right arrows.

5. THE BARRY SANDERS AWARD – Most carries for negative yards and still lead league in YPC

Winner: Chris Johnson – He may be the only player in the NFL who could actually pull off the zig zag run and score a TD with all eleven defenders chasing him as if he were a scared golfer and the defense a pissed off alligator. Much like Barry Sanders I’m pretty the defense could pick Johnson’s play and he could still get back to the line of scrimmage. These guys are freaks of nature.

6. THE BRAD MUSTER AWARD - Player who has no business being on the field yet is always successful

Winner: Brian Leonard – I’ve never seen a player who can pick up a 3rd and 14 with such ease. Leonard in a landslide for the Muster Award. If you don’t remember Brad Muster, wipe the dust off the old NES and give him the rock on a flair pass on 3rd down. You’ll quickly understand what I’m talking about. Leonard doesn’t have the greatest skill set as a running back, but he always seems to find a way to make his opportunities count.

7. THE MEL GREY AWARD – To the most Prolific Kick/Punt Returner

Winner: Josh Cribbs – Another great NES Tecmo Super Bowl special is to grab a team like the lions, let Mel Gray hold onto the ball on the one yard line, wait for the coverage team to get to the 10 and run directly north around the gunner and then bust it upfield. Guaranteed 40 Yard Return. Josh Cribbs is the only athlete who could pull this one off, and for that reason he is the 2009 Mel Gray Award Winner.

8. THE ANDRE RISON AWARD – An Arrogant receiver who will never be on a winning team because he’s not as good as he thinks he is.

Winner: T.J. Houshmandzadeh – Sure they’ll always catch the ball, and sometimes it will result in a first down, or even a touchdown. But the Falcons never won any big games with Mr. Rison around, and any team carrying Houshmandzadeh seems to be suffering the same fate, just ask the Bengals and the Seahawks. Minnesota probably wouldn’t have grabbed Harvin if T.J. signed with them instead, yikes.

9. THE PAT LEAHY AWARD - The Longest field goal award

Winner: Sebastian Janikowski – I once saw my cousin make a 72 yard field goal on TSB with Pat Leahy of the NY Jets. The wind must have been blowing, but never before have I seen that horizontal moving triangle land so squarely in the middle of the screen. That was until I witnessed The Polish Cannon knock down a 61 yarder in week 16 this year. Go back and look at the replay, you’ll see the worlds smallest triangle right in the middle of your TV’s. Just Sea-Bass kickin’ ass.

10. THE VIKINGS PASS #4 AWARD – To the coach who made the Smartest/Dumbest high risk, high reward playcall

Winner: Bill Belichick – Whether you like it or not you have to hand it to Bill Belichick for his decision to go for that 4th and 2 on his own 28. If he gets it his team wins the game for sure, and if he is stopped Peyton Manning is almost certain to beat you. This is not unlike Jerry Burns’ decision to call Vikings Pass #4 on 2nd and 6 from his own 40. I mean the worst thing that happens is that the defense tackles one of the first 2 reversing receivers or your QB throws a critical pick, but if the defense called a run play you’re in like Flynn.

ABC’s The Bachelor: How A Guy Throws a Football Tells A Lot About Him… Or Not

Here’s a quality pigskin moment that I stumbled on from ABC’s The Bachelor.

“I feel like you can tell a lot about a guy by the way he throws a football,” says the attractive 29 year old Elizabeth Kitt, a contestant on the show who’s here most likely to find true love, not fame.

Well this ought to be interesting. A girl who claims she can tell a lot about a guy from the way throws a ball. I like it, and I agree. Athletically, you can spot natural talent after just a throw or two. Jake The Bachelor was apparently up for the challenge, so we’ll join in with Elizabeth and help her grade out his pigskin prowess.

Can Jake throw a football well? Is Elizabeth a good judge of talent? I doubt it. But lets break down 5 different throws from this clip and find out for sure.

Elizabeth Throw # 1 (0:15 seconds) Pretty solid. A bit short armed, but a nice fluid motion. The ball rolls off her hand nicely as she breaks her wrist. Impressive quality for an attractive female.

She might have a decent idea of what an athlete looks like after all. Plus she mentions she’s from an athletic family. I’ll believe her for now. Pretty shaky catch from Jake I should mention. Let’s see how he throws it.

Jake Throw # 1 (0:19) Winds up.. Annddd.. Eh, well that was odd. That was more of a guided shot put toss than anything resembling a fluid throwing motion. He kept his wrist and elbow pretty stiff and he also stopped pretty abruptly on the follow through for whatever reason. That was pretty un-athletic looking. First throw though, could be just warming up, we won’t judge him yet. Let’s hear what Elizabeth has to say about it:

“He looked perfect throwing the football”

Ehhhh… ha, ok then. That puts a slight dent in her credibility, but let’s move to another throw to get a better better sample. No sense judging either of them after one quick clip.

Jake Throw # 2 (0:30) Winds up and… Oh man, what in the Helen’s house was that? Did he just try some kind of sidewinder cross-body swing throw? Who taught him that? And then that goofy little leg whip to finish it? And he missed his target by 5 feet and she had to go chase it. Wow. Ugly. Let’s hear what our Judge, the lovely Elizabeth has to say about that one, she’s probably changed her tune.

“He looks athletic, he looks comfortable, he looks like he knows what he’s doing.”

What?! C’mon, that was terrible. I’m not sure you know what your talking about anymore. You clearly have no idea what an athletic throw looks like because that one was awkward, un-athletic, and uncomfortable to watch, and I bet it only gets worse.

(At this point, all the girls have come out to join the fun. They’ve split up into blonds vs. brunettes and Jake has volunteered to quarterback on both sides, which means both teams will end up losing this game.)

Jake Throw #3 (0:57) Jake drops back, scans the…courtyard, gets flushed to the left, and… Wait, did he just heave his entire body 5 feet forward and into the air just to complete that short pass. What the..? Was he just launching a javelin? Was there a bear attacking one of the girls and he was firing a spear at it to save her? That was the most ridiculous looking throw ever. That was more unnecessary than an Eric Byrnes flip throw to home plate.  Jakester with the ol’ body heave hailmary javelin throw on a 10 yard out. Awesome.

Earlier you heard Jake mention that he played football in high school. That’s becoming hard believe. Maybe he kicked? I don’t know, let’s move on to the 4th throw though, which is the best throw of all time. Here’s the breakdown:

Jake Throw #4 (1:08) Jake takes the snap, does some sort of weak playaction fake, takes 3 kangaroo hops away from some mild pressure, then, for whatever reason, he opts for the Tebow jump pass! He fires the most awkward looking shotput spin pass straight up into the sky… and go figure! It’s intercepted, by a small girl in a dress.

Are you kidding me Jake? You just freaked out and hopped like a kangaroo and launched a jump throw straight up in the air because a 5’2 girl in a dress was in your face? And then you got picked off? Aw Jake, buddy, you’ve just earned yourself a seat on the hard wood. You might be the nicest guy alive, and after watching more of the episode, eh, you unquestionably are, but you are not quarterbacking again anytime soon. You can play in the next game, but only as an all-time pass rusher, because, well, you’re borderline terrible. And that’s what I can tell by the way you throw the ball, you are not very good it. Lucky for you though, Elizabeth would disagree. And if your looking for someone who will overlook any flaws the rest of your life, you should definitely give her a rose.

Which Conference Dominates the Playoffs?

Check out this in depth research in this great article from Simon On Sports (scroll down for links) where he breaks down the amount of players each collegiate conference currently has in the 2010 NFL Playoffs. The SEC has the most representation, (104 players) while Michigan has the most of any school. (20) Go Blue!

Here’s his breakdown of the Big Ten:

Big Ten (97)

The Big Ten is storming in this playoffs. With 97 players they have the second most of any conference. They also have the team with the most alumni in the postseason. That team is the Michigan Wolverines with a whopping 20. The Wolverines beat out the Buckeyes for the first time this decade in something related to football as the Buckeyes have a respectable 14 players in the mix. Each Big 10 member has at least one player in the dance with the Jets having the most Big Tenners at 13.

Most Notable Players: Tom Brady, Dallas Clark, Bob Sanders, Steve Hutchinson, Derrick Mason, Braylon Edwards, Nick Mangold, AJ Hawk, Aaron Kampman, Leon Hall, David Harris, Charles Woodson, Marlin Jackson, Marion Barber, Beanie Wells, Antoine Winfield, Will Smith, Steve Breaston

Biggest School Contributor: Michigan with 20

Schools Without Representation: None

NFL Team With Most Players: Jets with 13

Click here to see every conference: Which Conference Dominates the Playoffs?

simononsports.blogspot.com

Top 10 NFL Players Who Wear Number 10

At the beginning of each new year up until 2099 I will highlight the top 10 players who don the jersey number of the year.  So remember to keep checking back each year you’re still alive.

We’ve finally arrived at the year of the 10! 10 is the perfect score in competition. Its the number of commandments in the Bible, the atomic number of neon in science, and in life, it’s the number of days it takes to lose a guy. In football, the number 10 signifies a quarterback, kicker, and most recently, a receiver. Below are the top 10 number 10′s currently in the NFL. Take a look.

10. Olindo Mare – Mare connected on 92% of his field goal attempts in ’09 for the Seahawks. He represented Dolphins in the pro bowl in 99 and has been one of the top kickoff kickers for 13 years.

9. Jabar Gaffney -  Gaffney became one of Orton’s favorite targets in Denver this season. He hauled in 54 grabs on the year including a 14 catch 213 yards performance in week 15.

8. Brady Quinn - The former Notre Dame star has shown signs of promise but has yet to put it together. Injuries and a lack of talent around him have all contributed to his slow start.

7. Marc Bulger – The Rams have been underwhelming of late, and Bulger’s mediocre season ended prematurely with a finger injury. But, over the course of the decade, Marc has been an excellent player with two pro bowl selections in ’04 and ’06.

6. Nate Kaeding – Currently the most accurate kicker in the history of the NFL, Kaeding is the only player who wears his age as his number.

5. Chad Pennington – Another #10 who lost his season, and possibly his career, to a shoulder injury, Pennington’s game management and pinpoint accuracy helped him finish as an MVP runner up in 2008. In 2006 he won the comeback player of the year award and it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he comes back strong next season.

4. Santonio Holmes – The 2009 Super Bowl MVP racked up 79 catches for over 1200 yards in his 4th season with the Steelers, good for 7th in the league.

3. Vince Young – The Future Hall of Famer has certainly been playing like one. After regaining the starting job from Kerry Collins, Young went 8-2 and nearly took an 0-6 team to the playoffs.

2. Eli Manning -  When you play in the largest media market, you’re a former number 1 pick, and the brother of a living legend, you’ll always be the target of criticism. But Eli has performed. The former Super Bowl MVP finished in the top 10 in touchdowns and yards passing in 2009 and has plenty of room to improve.

1. DeSean Jackson - The most electric player in the NFL had 8 TDs over 50 yards in ’09. It seems every time he has the ball in space, he’s going to score. This year, he’s the first player ever to make the pro bowl at two positions in the same year. (Kick returner and a receiver) That should really help his shaky confidence.

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