By Hot Rod! The Rowdy One

The world of sports has been a busy one, as always, for past few days and there looks to be no stop any time soon. The NFL is entering their tenth week tonight with a match-up of two teams who need a win in a bad way.

The NBA has been very interesting with a couple of  teams surprisingly making some noise (just look at the Phoenix Suns and their 8-1 record. Who knew?). The MLB Hot Stove is always cooking with free agency news. College Football is wrapping up their season, as they get ready for the bowl games and the crowning of a new BCS Champion,  and men’s College Basketball is beginning to roll with a momentous win for Syracuse Men’s Basketball Coach, Jim Boeheim. Congrats Coach.

I love Week 10 in the NFL for a number of reasons:

1. No more Bye Weeks: After this week, all the teams are playing, for the next seven weeks,  until the end of the regular season. YIPPEE!!!
2. The NFL’s Flex Schedule: Now the league will start having television networks televise games that people want to see that are better match-ups and may have playoff implications. Once again, YIPPEE!!!
3. Thursday Night Football: Although, not everyone has the NFL Network, there’s pro-football on television or on the internet, on a Thursday Night and it’s not the UFL. By the way, UFL isn’t that bad. Hey, it’s better that XFL. Actually, a bunch of kids playing football in an abandoned field is better than the XFL.

As always, there’s a few things I need to get off my chest before we look at my picks for Week 10 in the NFL.

Chiefs to Larry Johnson, “No Thanks for the Memories”
This week, The Kansas City Chiefs released troublesome and disgruntled running back Larry Johnson.

The last time we spoke about Johnson in Out of Bounds, I mentioned it would be a good idea for the Chiefs to let him go. I guess other people in the organization felt the same way. I just didn’t expect for it to happen this soon.

This is a  good thing to happen for both sides. As I mentioned before, Johnson wasn’t happy with the Chiefs (his words spoke just as loud as his actions) and the Chiefs weren’t happy with his behavior. It was time for both sides to split. The question you have to ask yourself is this: who’s willing to pick up Larry Johnson now?

I can see him going to the New England Patriots. This is right up Bill Belichick’s alley. Belichick and the Patriots are known to take players who have been problematic in the past, Corey Dillion and Randy Moss for example, and have made them model citizens on and off the field. I can see Johnson with the Patriots, now that he’s a free agent, before the end of the season and contributing to the Patriots during a playoff run. If the Patriots can get Johnson’s mind right and utilize his talents on the field, the Patriots will be a problem for teams, and probably  Super Bowl favorites, once the playoffs start.

While you’re at it, check out the blog A Negro and A Keyboard with their take on the Larry Johnson situation. It’s a riot.

Back and Better than Ever?
While one athlete was leaving their respective team, another one was welcomed back.

The “Knockout King” from the University of Oregon Ducks football team, RB LeGarrette Blount, has been reinstated to the team after being suspended, for the season, for punching a player from Boise State during their September 3 matchup.

Here’s my problem with this situation: what was the point of the suspension?

Mr. Blount’s situation was touched on in last week’s edition of Out of Bounds. I was fine with the suspension because it was a violent act on Blount’s part and the school, not the Pac 10 or NCAA governing body, suspended the young man. His suspension was an example of what happens when you can’t display sportsmanship and keep a level head. It set a tone for not only the Oregon Ducks, but for the NCAA. Now it means nothing because you let him back on the team. It wasn’t like you needed him to play. The Ducks record is 6-2 with three games left to play in the season and they’re eligible for a Bowl Game.

I think the suspension was a waste of time on everyone’s end and Mr. Blount was cheated of valuable playing time that would have helped his draft stock. I do hope he has learned a lesson from his suspension, and I hope that the next time a team suspends someone for a length of time, they stick to it no matter what the situation or status of the team is at that time.

Now that I’ve got that off my chest, let’s look at the picks for Week 10 in the NFL.

, 11/12/09, 8:20pm
(4-4) @ (3-5)

My Pick:

Sunday, 11/15/09, 1pm
(8-0) @(1-7), My Pick:
( 1-7) @(3-5), My Pick:
(1-7) @(7-1), My Pick:
(4-4) @(4-4), My Pick:
(3-5) @(2-6), My Pick:
(6-2) @(6-2), My Pick:
(6-2) @(2-6), My Pick:
(5-3) @(3-5), My Pick:

Sunday, 11/15/09, 4pm
(1-7) @(2-6), My Pick:
(5-3) @(5-3), My Pick:
(3-5) @(5-3), My Pick:
(6-2) @(4-4), My Pick:


8:20pm
Game of the Week:
(6-2) @(8-0), My Pick:

For the past few years, there’s two things football fans can count on: the indecisiveness of Brett Favre’s retirement, and the Patriots and the Colts squaring off either during the regular season, post-season, or both. In addition, each time these two teams meet, one question always come up; Who’s better, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning? So the Out of Bounds Question of the Week is this; which quarterback would you want to start for your team? Tom Brady or Peyton Manning?

, 11/16/09, 8:30pm
(4-4) @(1-7), My Pick:

Bye week teams: ,

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