Saturday, December 04, 2004

Image Hosted by ImageShack.us He's ba-ack!

Yep, that's good ol' Jeff George, the über-talented QB who's as good as it gets from the neck down, but from the neck up, well...I don't know. All I do know is that he wore out his welcome with 5 teams, and while some of it wasn't completely his fault, still, he now has this reputation as a headcase, a prima donna, locker room poison, et cetera, et cetera, which is why his last job was with Washington, almost three years ago. He was the quarterback for my beloved Falcons for three years in the mid-90s, with neophyte coach June Jones and the misbegotten run-and-shoot offense, and it was while in Atlanta that George had his infamous shouting match with Jones (or actually at Jones; Jones had his back turned for most of the argument while George kept on and on and on...) on a nationally televised game, which led to his suspension and benching and the Falcons' season swimming straight down the crapper that year. QBs and coaches going at it on the sidelines was hardly an unheard-of thing, but the timing couldn't have been more wrong. Both George and June Jones were gone not long after. Anyway, his 3 year vacation (I hear) has given him a lot of time to pause and reflect, and he's said to be a new man and ready to play football again, so we'll see. The Bears' QB situation was so bad that this may turn out to be a great move, especially since nobody's really out of it in the mediocre NFC right now.

Also, before I commence with the predictions, I'd like to note that yes, I'm aware that last Sunday wasn't Throwback Weekend like I said, which made my entire post last Saturday irrelevant. Actually, Thanksgiving Day was the only day Throwbacks were in effect, so I apologize for misleading anyone. NFL.com confused me by putting almost every teams' retro logo on their site, and promoting the Turkey Day games like that.

Enough wit'da preliminaries, time now for the Week 12 edition of Johnny B's Fearless NFL Pigskin Prognostications! The obligatory disclaimer: Standard disclaimer first: These picks are FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY. I'm not betting illegally with these, and NEITHER SHOULD YOU...and I take no responsibility if you lose your house.

BALTIMORE over Cincinnati (I wanna take the Bengals, but I don't think they'll put 58 on the Ravens, whose bad defensive showing last week was an aberration)

MINNESOTA over Chicago (Will we see George come in for mop-up duty?)

NEW ENGLAND over Cleveland (I think the Pats have enough to overcome the turmoil-troubled Browns)

DETROIT over Arizona (Dennis Green, by playing QB shuffle, has killed 'Zona's already fleeting playoff hopes)

INDIANAPOLIS over Tennessee (No stopping Indy right now)

BUFFALO over Miami (Buffalo is strong right now, and while Miami has been better lately I go with the team with the hotter hand)

CAROLINA over New Orleans (Carolina has picked themselves up, big-time. When are the Saints gonna clean house and get those headcases out of there, including their ineffectual coach?)

NY JETS over Houston (Another choose 'em game, to me. I like Houston, but the Jets are like the Falcons- winning with smoke and mirrors)

ST. LOUIS over San Francisco (I'm never picking the 49ers again)

ATLANTA over Tampa Bay (This one makes me nervous, but all Atlanta games make me nervous. If Vick can do anything at all, and if the running game stays strong, then the Falcons can win)

OAKLAND over Kansas City (I was impressed with the Raiders last Sunday, so I take 'em at home over the disappointing Chiefs)

SAN DIEGO over Denver (Going with the Chargers at home...if they lose this game, the Denver faithful will be a little restless, I think)

PHILADELPHIA over Green Bay (I think the Eagles have too much for the pack at home)

WASHINGTON over NY Giants (A mild upset, I know- this will be a low-scoring game)

PITTSBURGH over Jacksonville (This one could be close, and Pittsburgh is due to lose eventually)

DALLAS over Seattle (I've kinda lost faith in the Seahawks, and Dallas seems to have gotten their bearings a bit)

Last week: 11-5. Year to date: 105-71, .597.

Fantasy: Won 69-44 in the Cut-Throat money league. Record: 5-7, 3rd in a 4-team division. Too little, too late but it's always nice to win.

In the freebie Yahoo league, my up-and-down season continues with a 102-40 loss. It sounds bad, and it is, but it's easier to score points in this league than it is the other. Anyway, I'm now 6-6, tied for 5th. 8 teams make the playoffs, so I'm still in for now.

And that's it for sports this week!

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