Author Danny Vinik

2010 Divisional Playoff Preview

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Saints' QB Drew Brees Throws a Pass

In last week’s predictions, I was 2-out-of-4. Saturday was a good day, but Sunday didn’t go so well. Here are my predictions for this week’s matchups.

Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints – Saturday 4:30

The Cardinals won last week’s shoot out with Green Bay, but if that same defense shows up this weekend, this game won’t be close for very long. The Saints finished the year weakly, but will be fresh and ready to go after the off week. Quarterback Drew Brees didn’t play in the Saints’ Week 17 loss to the Carolina Panthers while running back Reggie Bush had just five carries. The Saints will have to shake off any rust immediately since the Cardinals are in full swing after last week. The Saints’ defense has had holes at times this season and the three consecutive losses to end the season are alarming. Meanwhile, Cardinals’ quarterback Kurt Warner had an excellent game last week. This game will come down to scoring. I’m going with the Saints again, because I think their defense will step up and hold the Cardinals to a reasonable score. Warner proved me wrong last week, but I’m saying the Saints win 35-24.

Baltimore Ravens at Indianapolis Colts – Saturday 8:15

The Ravens upset the Patriots last week in a dominant performance that left many NFL fans in awe. Baltimore’s defense was just overpowering last week. Ray Lewis led the defensive attack and the Patriot offense had no answer for it. The Ravens’ offense played strong as well, putting up 33 points on a New England defense that isn’t nearly as good as it was in years past. Like the Saints, the Colts finished the year badly, losing their final two games while resting most of their starters. Even so, quarterback Peyton Manning had a terrific year. However, the Colts’ rushing attack was weak with no one rushing for over a hundred yards in any game this season. The Colts will be home where their only loss came to the New York Jets, but Baltimore proved that they have no trouble winning away from home after the destruction of New England this past week. I’m going with an upset here with Manning struggling to find his game and the Ravens win 24-17. Continue reading “2010 Divisional Playoff Preview” →

McGwire Admits Using Steroids

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When McGwire took the stand five years ago, he wasn't ready to talk about the past.

McGwire’s first statement showed some remorse, but was mostly factual. His interview with Bob Costas on MLB Network was much more sincere and showed a side of McGwire that fans hadn’t seen before. The tears, the sniffles, the red eyes, and his entire demeanor showed that he truly is sorry for what happened. 

Here’s the thing: As much as it is painful to say so, where would MLB be without that 1998 Home Run Race between Sammy Sosa and Big Mac? Would MLB be any where near the sports power it is today? The strike in 1994 had decimated baseball and the Sosa-McGwire competition revitalized the game. If McGwire hadn’t been juicing, what would baseball look like today? 

McGwire made a mistake and shouldn’t have used steroids. However, there is some part of me that’s glad that he did. He and Sosa revived baseball. They made it what is today – both the good and the bad. They were two of the main results of the steroid era and their success fueled other players to start using steroids. However, they also built up the sport into the huge industry it is today. 

So in one way, we should be condemning McGwire for his poor decision and ostracizing him from baseball. On the other hand, we owe him a debt of gratitude for bringing fans back to the diamond. 

In the end, I’m indifferent. McGwire’s statement is meaningless to me. Everyone knew he used steroids. Him confessing it confirms what everyone already knew to be true. It shows character to be able to come back and admit it, especially after his “I’m not hear to talk about the past” speech five years ago. In terms of baseball and how I view McGwire’s career, this doesn’t change my opinion of him at all. Continue reading “McGwire Admits Using Steroids” →

How Bad is the Pac-10?

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Oregon knocked off the Pac 10's only ranked team, Washington.

With Alabama capturing the BCS National Championship, the basketball season hits top speed. Today is packed full of marquee matchups in the ACC, Big East, Big 12, Big 10, and SEC. There is one major conference I left out of that group: the Pac 10. Washington is the only team ranked in the polls right now, but that will only last until Monday. The Huskies lost to Arizona State this week which will drop them out of the Top 25. 

Arizona State is 11-5 on the season and is 1-2 in conference. I don’t see them entering the polls on Monday. The only other teams that would have any chance of entering into the Top 25 on Monday are USC and Oregon. Those were the only two teams to receive any votes in the polls this past week (not many either). Oregon received just four votes in the AP Poll last week and did not play a game this week. The Ducks were blown out by Missouri and have bad losses to Portland, Montana, and St. Mary’s. They are entering the Top 25 any time soon. 

The Trojans received 46 votes in the AP Poll and 7 votes in the ESPN/USA Today Poll. Well USC has already lost to Stanford this week and faces California later tonight. As with Oregon, the Trojans won’t be breaking the Top 25 this week. 

So that leaves no one. The Pac 10 won’t have a team ranked in the Top 25. Even worse, since Pac 10 teams will almost exclusively be facing each other in the upcoming weeks, there won’t be many opportunities for a team to enter the Top 25. Only Oregon is undefeated in conference so it will have to win for a couple weeks in a row to prove that it deserves inclusion in the Top 25. 

The Big East is strong. The Big 12 has two of the remaining undefeated teams in the country while the other sits in the SEC. The Big 10 and ACC are both having down years, but each has a contingent of strong teams with Purdue, Michigan State, and Wisconsin in the Big 10 and Duke, North Carolina, and Georgia Tech in the ACC. 

When Selection Sunday comes around, I don’t expect to see many Pac 10 teams taking part in March Madness and for good reason.