thankgiving leftover sandwich

Back on June 5th, I dreamed up the ideal Thanksgiving leftover sandwich:

And then I came across this page of layered Thanksgiving leftover sandwiches. As I said before I'm usually a simple leftover sandwich guy. But if I were to think about such things, I wouldn't be a fan of cranberries or mashed potatoes on mine. Instead I would go with turkey, dressing (aka stuffing, but we don't stuff ours) and a little bit of brown sugar sweet potatoes. Mmmm.

So on Black Friday, while everyone else is crowding into Best Buy, I was making this:

(click for HD!)

I started with a generous layer of white and dark meat turkey. The middle layer is stuffing, this one of the cornbread variety. The top layer is roasted sweet potatoes, with a noticeable lack of brown sugar sauce. I thought about putting mayo on it, because of the turkey, but ending up going without condiments because I didn't think it would jive with the other layers. The result? It was a warm, delicious endeavor. It was plenty moist and didn't need condiments. It was in fact better than just a plain turkey sandwich. The only thing that it was missing was the brown sugar sauce. Maybe next year.

rocky's photo session

home field advantage

It's good to be back after a week of using computers on the road. Internet Explorer is terrible. It doesn't underline misspelled words, the simple editing functions in Blogger like bold and italic just don't work, and it takes 3 seconds to open a new tab. I want that new tab now!

playoff picture

This will become more clear by Tuesday morning, but here's how I see things right now.

Mark will win and clinches a spot with 8 wins. Doyle is in based on two-game lead and head-to head records.

Kirat and I will win. That puts Kirat at 7, Niraj at 7, and me at 6. Edit: Boss will also be at 6.

So...

Kirat 7
Niraj 7
Dave 6
Boss 6

Kirat and Niraj play each other in week 13, putting that winner at 8 and in. But both Kirat and Niraj own the H2H tiebreaker over Boss, eliminating him anyways.

If two teams split their head-to-head, does it go by overall points next? If so, it would seem my only path would be to beat Mark, hope that Niraj beats Kirat, and that I can pass Kirat for overall points. It's a lot to ask.

At this point it seems that Mark, Mac, and Niraj are in. And it's me vs Kirat for the last slot. Did I miss something?

three touchdowns? i'll take it

Illinois Football +21 over Cincinatti $50

#1 vs #2

Hypothetically, is it possible that the two best teams in the country are in the same conference?

Yes.

In the eleven BCS National Championship Games, there has never been a intra-conference title game. But could there be? And should there be?

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In the case of 2009, the top two ranked teams are Florida and Alabama. They have been ranked this way for most of the season. Are they the two best teams in the country? The people who are in charge of voting for the top teams seem to think so. So why is it impossible for them to play for the National Championship?

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There exists a belief that when one team loses, it must fall in the rankings. But since there must be a victor between Florida and Alabama, does that necessarily mean that both teams are not the two best teams in the country? I say no. Logic dictates that if you pair the two best teams against each other, just because one wins, that doesn't mean that these are not the two best teams.

And yet Texas is licking it's chops at #3 because it is confident that there will not be an all-SEC title game.

My argument is not based on these teams specifically, but rather on the concept that losing in a #1 vs #2 matchup means that you are not worthy of keeping that ranking.

- - -

Of course, that doesn't mean you should automatically keep that ranking either. Obviously, if either Florida or Alabama wins by three touchdowns, it's fair to say the loser cannot hang with the top teams in the country. But I don't think it requires a 7OT game to say that the two teams we thought were the best before are still the best.

I am aware that there are other factors at work when selecting the title game participants. There is the belief that in lieu of an actual playoff, that the schedule is a de facto playoff. While seemingly convenient, this is ridiculous. Some conferences play conference title games, some don't. You're rewarded more for losing early instead of losing late. And a team like Texas gets rewarded because they don't have a team like Alabama to play against in their Big 12 title game. If this is a de facto playoff system, it stinks.

- - -

What about a couple years ago when Michigan and Ohio State were #1 and #2. If they weren't scheduled to play each other in the regular season, were they not supposed to meet in the Nat'l Championship? Or what if the SEC didn't have a Conference Championship this year?

Furthermore, the Saints could very well lose to the Patriots this upcoming Monday night. Does that mean that the Saints are not the #1 or #2 team in the league? Are they still not deserving of a Super Bowl spot?

- - -

Chances are Alabama will lose to Florida by 17 and this will all be moot. But if we think these are the two best teams now, I don't see why they might not be the two best teams even after the SEC title game.

thanksgiving slate

Lions at home are a double-digit underdog.
Cowboys at home are a double-digit favorite.

Would it kill them to give us a competitive game on Thanksgiving? (And no I don't even get NFL network on the road, so I'm stuck with just the two early games).

Over the last 5 years: Detroit is 0-5, Dallas is 4-1.

The last game to not follow this trend was Denver over Dallas in 2005, 24-21 OT.

And yet for Pigskin Pickem, I'm taking the points with the Lions. Why? Because I hate getting picks right. I'm laying the Cowboys because I hate the Raiders.

playoff picks: week 11

AFC

Clearly In
Colts
Chargers
Pats

Likely In
Steelers
Bengals
Jaguars

Likely Out
Texans
Broncos
Jets
Ravens
Dolphins

Clearly Out
Titans
Bills
Raiders
Chiefs
Browns


NFC

Clearly In
Saints
Vikings
Cardinals (only because of their division)

Likely In
Cowboys
Packers
Eagles

Likely Out
Giants
Falcons
Bears
49ers

Clearly Out
Seahawks
Bucs
Panthers
Rams
Lions
Redskins

- - -

A little moving around. The Broncos are who we thought they were! Earlier it looked like there were an abundance of solid teams that deserved the playoffs, but after seeing the Giants, Falcons, and Packers play stinky, I'm not even sure there are 5 playoff worthy teams in the NFC.

How great would it be for the Titans to start 0-6 and then finish 10-0? Definition of team that no one wants to play in the playoffs.

board: week 11

The Board Completed Bets
Week 5: Mark wants Bloopy +20 (+3)
Week 6: Mark wants Boss +20 (+17.5)
Week 6: Mark wants Niraj -15 (-37.5)
Week 6: Mark wants Himself -25 (-26)
Week 6: Mark wants Savan +7.5 (+7.5) push
Week 7: Mark wants Doyle +12.5 (-5.5)
Week 7: Mark wants Swag -12.5 (-61)
Week 7: Mark wants Savan -20 (-11.5)
Week 7: Mark wants Boss +32.5 (+18.5)
Week 11: Mark wants Forsett over 7.5 (18)
Week 11: Mark wants AD over CJ (CJ)
Week 11: Mark wants Andre J. over 18 (15)
Season: Mark wants Delhomme over Flacco (Flacco)
Weeks 5-15: Mark wants Kevin Smith over Westbrook (Smith)

Mark is up 9-4, with only 4 active bets.

chiefs game balls: first of Haley era

I started the Chiefs Game Balls series in 2007, the point being to celebrate the wins during the rebuilding era. The Chiefs went 4-12 in '07 and I wrote posts for every game. Last year, they went 2-14 and by the time they beat Oakland to get to 2-10 I didn't think the team's effort was worth it.

This victory was the third of the season, but the first two were ugly wins over the Redskins and Raiders, games where neither team really deserved to win.

The last time I gave out game balls was 9.29.08: KC was 1-3 coming of a victory over Denver.

- - -

The Steelers were 9.5 favorites at Arrowhead. They've beaten the Chargers, Broncos, and the only team to beat the Vikings. These are still the defending champs and they've got the fans that travel the best. This is not a team like the Redskins or Raiders.

I read the theory that the Chiefs followed the Bengals blueprint for beating the Steelers. They did not. The Bengals played solid defense and played them close throughout, splitting the time of possession. The Chiefs gave up over 500 yards and got dominated in T.O.P. (44min-22min) The Bengals only forced one turnover. The Chiefs forced three turnovers, only giving up one. The big similarity was that they both got kickoff return touchdowns in the first quarter.

So how did the weak Chiefs beat the Steelers?

- - -

Hon. Mention: Matt Cassel 15/30, 248 yards, 2 td, 0 int, 1 fumble

These are typical Cassel/KC QB numbers. But we improved in one big area: 3rd down conversions. Up to 40%, down from our previous lows. He made the right plays at the right time, including a double move deep ball and even when throws a pick or fumbles, he never makes you doubt that he is THE quarterback for the Chiefs.

Hon. Mention: Jovan Belcher. Who? Rookie linebacker. He made the play that set up the winning drive. With the Steelers having a 3rd and 2 from the KC 35, a overtime field goal is moments away. And then Belcher comes up with a game saving tackle, pushing the Steelers back to the KC 38. On 4th and 5, they could have tried a long field goal, or went for it, but they punted.

Hon. Mention: Andy Studebaker. Who? Basically rookie linebacker in for injured Vrabel. Gets two interceptions and half a sack. Might have gotten a game ball if he had stayed along the sideline taking it to end zone. He cut back in and got tackled inside the 10, and the Chiefs only got a field goal.

#3: Chris Chambers


This is his third game with the Chiefs. He grabbed two 4th quarter TD's in a loss to the Jaguars and had solid games in back to back wins. He caught the over the top deep ball for a 47-yard gain to setup the Charles game-tying touchdown. And then in overtime he caught a ball over the middle and got all the yards after the catch setting up the game winning field goal.



#2: Jamaal Charles

The Chiefs scored three touchdowns. One was Cassel to Pope. The other two were Charles. Starting the game with a kickoff return and sending the game to overtime with a touchdown reception, he made the plays that made everyone forget about Larry Johnson and kept us in the game.

#1: Todd Haley

Along with Pioli, he got rid of LJ and got Chris Chambers. He designed the new Charles TD play this week and called all the right plays at the right times. This is his first signature win and it feels like, for the first time, that the players have really bought in and the team is going in a solid direction.

- - -

More good pictures:

Chambers with the fingertip grab on the overtime catch and run.

fantasy update: 2 weeks to go

Wild week. I'm on the road, so I'm blogging without my home-field advantage. It's a little rough but I'm playing through it.

The two biggest fantasy scorers of week 11 were in the same game, the game of the year. And they were both on waivers. The Lions got down 24-3, making Brady Quinn look like Joe Montana. Actually that's not true, his receivers were so wide open, Brady Quinn looked like a Jugs machine throwing the ball up and letting his receivers navigate the open field. But the Browns made a fatal mistake: You DO NOT challenge Matthew Stafford. He will destroy you. Except for those interceptions and that safety.

But the ending was spectacular. With over 30 yards to go, Stafford ran around and let the clock run out and threw it to the end zone for an interception. But wait, flag on the play and that means two of the best words: Untimed down. 1st and goal from the 1, no time left, and you're down 6.

Stafford to Pettigrew and it was tight window to win the game. Nice job Lions. You beat the Browns.

But back to the fantasy leaders, it's full of surprises: Ricky Williams, Eli Manning in November, Brett Fave in 2009, Terrell Owens. Wes Welker puts up 29.5 WITHOUT a touchdown. Snelling for 21.5, Forsett for 18, Bernard Scott for 17.5.

- - -

So in our league with only 2 games to go, we've got 3 teams at 7-4, 1 team at 6-5, and 4 teams at 5-6. (And two teams at 4-7, more on them later.)

Next week it will be easy to project scenarios. Right now I'm assuming the 3 teams at 7-4 will make it in. Kirat at 6-5 plays Harlan and Niraj, and controls his own destiny. But one defeat and he would get passed by just about anyone that wins their last 2 games, based on his weak points scored. There's really no way I can make the playoffs, but I'm pretty pleased that I've gone 5-2 over the last 7 weeks, although I'm surprised I'm still in 8th place.

- - -

At the other end, based on points scored and record, Matt has a stranglehold on last place. To be eligible not for last, he either needs to get to 6 wins, or get to 5 and hope that Harlan stays at 4. Basically he needs to win more than Harlan. Looking forward to next week, when I can construct win and you're in scenarios.

an unbelievable birthday present

9.5 point home dog and I took the Steelers. In fact, I took Pittsburgh as my Eliminator pick. The Chiefs have trouble beating Oakland, no way they could hang with the defending champs.

- - -

The Chiefs cut Larry Johnson on November 9th, 2009. With him on the roster, the Chiefs were 1-7. Johnson averaged 2.7 yards a carry.

Since then the Chiefs are 2-0. Last week Charles had 117 offensive yards and a rushing touchdown. This week Charles had 66 offensive yards, a receiving touchdown to tie the game in crunch time, and a kickoff return touchdown to start the game. He's averaging 4.9 yards a carry on the season. Larry Who?

- - -

This is the first win of the season that deserves a full breakdown with game balls. Plus, I'm going to watch all the highlights I can and provide some commentary. And hey, congrats to the Lions as well. Not too many times Detroit and KC both pick up a win.

me, me, me

I proofed the Sports Guy's Friday NFL Column.

Screenshot from when the column originally went up:

Hmm. Looks like one of my favorite soundbites got messed up. Here's the current article:


All better. But how do I know that it was me and only me?

That twitter screenshot is from 12:46 CST. Searching on twitter for any tweets sent to Simmons since the column went up reveal that I'm the one that tweeted the correction to him.

Between inspiring the Deadspin Hall of Fame, debating BCS playoffs with Bomani Jones and Dan Shanoff, and proofing Simmons' column, I'm a regular who's who of interacting with sports personalities.

new age girl

I heard this song in 1994. I was 11. I liked it a lot, but didn't realize there were any sexual references. I was 11.

Between the crystal necklace and being a vegetarian, this song from the Dumb and Dumber soundtrack was very prophetic.

France is in the World Cup

but shouldn't be.