Sunday Action Open Thread
Last night…ugh. I was up on the club level at the Verizon Center and a bunch of frontrunning Pink Sox yahoos were screaming things like “You’re in Boston now!! What’s up!!” For anyone with lingering doubts as to why all right-thinking Americans hate the Red Sox and their fans, there you go.
At least the Caps-Penguins matchup was fully awesome. Moving on to today’s slate:
It’s an eight-something first pitch in the deciding game of the ALCS, with Jake Westbrook taking the hill against Dice-K. When the Indians lose this one you can all go ahead and blame me. I jinxed the hell out of the Tribe when I put up that stupid post about how this Red Sox squad wasn’t a memorable one. Idiot.
The Ravens are in Buffalo with their b-squad looking to step up on the road. The Bengals host the Jets, while Pittsburgh travels out to Denver for Sunday Night Football. Down I-95 in Raljohn the Redskins host Arizona.
Should you find yourself in need of any context for that Bills-Ravens game, I present you willisistrash.com. Awesome.
And in case you need a break from football, Baltimore’s own Bucky Lasek and the rest of the world’s top skaters will wrap up the AST Dew Tour season today in Orlando. Lasek, alas, will not win his third consecutive Dew Cup — that honor has already been wrapped up by carrot top Shaun White.
So far I’m perfect on upset predictions (Browns over Ravens, Cards over Pittsburgh).
I hate to say it but the Ravens are going to lose in Buffalo, putting their season on the brink. To me, they have too many injuries at key positions (eight I think?) and Buffalo probably sees one big McGahee head when they look at the Ravens across the field. The Bills are also better than people think, playing in a rabid stadium, Boller’s accident prone on the road, blah blah blah.
The shitty thing is I also feel that the Steelers are going to lose tonight and it will be a lost opportunity for the purple.
Boy, the blackbirds look terrible, don’t they? Just awful with the 3 and out offense and the 5 penalties on the defense! Jesus!
I hate when I’m right.
BBM, do you agree with some of Baltimore – including WNST – that if they can’t beat Buffalo, they don’t have any chance at the playoffs?
I would say that’s accurate.
That’s some patented Baltimore-style Chicken Littling. I’m not even a Ravens fan but no way do I write them off if — still a big “if” — they lose this game.
It’s easy to chicken little this team when they’ve scored like 6 touchdowns all year. The Patriots have this season wrapped up regardless, I can’t wait for basketball.
Looks like your were right, AiG
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/sports/baseball/017487.html
Screw Kevin Millar.
I hope he needs Tommy John surgery after that ceremonial first bitch.
Yeah, anyway, why don’t you just stay in Boston, Millar? THat’s obviously where you want to be.
Maybe he’s not coming back next year after all? Is this enough to negate all the positive things he did/said for the O’s this season? Remember, he did defend the O’s against the ridiculous John Kruk comments. I’m not sure I care all that much about this, but it is kind of a bitch move.
Meanwhile in Buffalo, it’s false start after false start for the Ravens. Playoff teams don’t do that.
Neal’s ridiculous jab aside, I think the Ravens have to win this game to build as much of a cushion as possible given that they play the Steelers twice, and have that three game stretch against NE, Indy, and Sand Diego. They also have to travel to Seattle in that time.
Of course they could shock the world and win say, four out of six of those games. But that prospect is completely retarded.
Also the Bills just scored to go up 19-7.
Haha Sand Diego.
Season high 11 penalties.
Man, Kyle Boller is the man. Dude has no fear.
I love Kyle Boller as a backup. Not many teams have that quality.
Billick’s play-calling makes me want to nuke my television.
i shake my head at you, the ravens
Kyle Boller’s a good backup only if the starter is expected to be healthy and competent on the field, and we don’t have that at the moment, which makes Boller the de facto starter, which is weak. It’s a real problem. Not as big as the penalties, but this is a team that just doesn’t perform on the away field very well at all. Any thoughts as to why?
BRIAN BILLICK IS TRULY FUCKING STUPID. I’VE DEFENDED HIS STRONGPOINTS FOR TOO LONG. 3RD AND 1 AND 4TH AND 1 AND YOU FUCKING PASS IT? FUCK YOU FOREVER FUCK FOOTBALL FUCK THE WORLD.
Seriously I hope that you guys realize I’m pretty level headed about shit. I have NEVER, I repeat NEVER seen poor play-calling like I’ve seen from him the last few years. For a while it was just like “well our personnel is this and that” and “he’ll get it right when the offense has continuity”. NO MORE.
FUCK BRIAN BILLICK. Nothing will change my mind.
Well, maybe a victory in Pittsburgh.
Well, that was a strong showing by Baltimore. Very impressive.
Ben, it could also be that Willis McGahee is just not Jamal Lewis (not this year Lewis, but Baltimore-era Lewis where he would get hit and keep chugging in and it would take four guys to bring him down). Our running game might just suck, and that’s why they’re shying away from it. Certainly McGahee’s first quarter today was dreadful, so it’s not too be a leap to make.
That said, the passing game is horrifying, too. Perfect for Halloween.
Times like this I wish the Ravens were a New York team. If I worked for the Daily News I’d put PASSHOLE on the back cover in a World War font size. I’m so disgusted I can’t even see straight.
It wasn’t a jab and it wasn’t ridiculous. Counting them out at this point is just silly.
Of course you can never count a team out that has as much talent as the Ravens (when healthy).
What you can do is look at the fact that the Ravens are 4-3 against teams with a 13-24 record and now get to face teams with a 28-9 record. That also includes a 3-3 Chargers team on the road that could beat either the Pats or the Colts in my opinion and a road game at the 3-3 Seahawks which is at the tail end of the Ravens (longest in the NFL) travel schedule.
By the way I took out the shitty Bengals from both columns because they just muddy the waters at this point.
The Ravens will need six wins to get to the playoffs. Let’s say they beat the Browns and Bengals at home – funny doing that considering they both beat us. Say they beat Miami on the road. Say they split with the Steelers. In this absolutely perfect scenario they’d have to go 2-2 against four other division leaders, three of which are considered the best in football, one of which is probably the best team ever assembled. Drop ONE game from my first list and you have to take three of four from those teams, etc.
Maybe it seems silly counting the Ravens out. But I know what I see.
Tell you what – the Ravens have to beat the Steelers next week. I’m glad they’re going to lose tonight. I gotta start betting my predictions.
Top of the 8th…5-2 Pink Sox…2 on, nobody out for the Tribe…
A comeback here would certainly sit well, but I think it’s safe to go ahead and say it:
Go Rockies.
Fox just showed a pretty wide crowd shot at Fenway, probably good for a couple hundred people. I shit you not when I say that there wasn’t a single non-white face.
Tell you what, BBM: you could have won a rack of cash today.
Tell me about it. As soon as I bet my predictions will fail though.
That Iron City bet goes both ways btw.