tonytalkssports My Take on Sports, particularly the Yankees, Maple Leafs and Browns

Tuesday’s Thoughts

While wondering if anyone cares who Todd Palin endorses for President, here is what's on my mind this morning:

* The Toronto Maple Leafs begin a home and home series tonight against the Buffalo Sabres at the Air Canada Center. The Leafs have won three in a row, including a 4-3 win against the Detroit Red Wings. With 9 games this month in January, the Leafs have started that stretch off well with the 3 home wins. Tonight they face a team that has historically given them problems. The Sabres are reeling right now and the Leafs really need to come out flying tonight and take it to the Sabres early. With Leaf-nemisis, Ryan Miller in goal, it won't be easy. The puck drop is 7:05.

* Last night's BCS Championship Game was boring as hell. Those that say this is what football is all about need to get off the BCS bandwagon. There were only 3 plays of twenty yards or more, hardly the makings of a classic championship game. Alabama wins 21-0, however that includes 5 field goals. I still say that the more intriguing game would have been Oklahoma State against one of these two SEC teams.

* The total ineptness of the LSU offense made the game less than a classic. The LSU defense needs to be given full marks for keeping their team in the game and limiting Alabama to 5 field goals before Trent Richardson's late 35 yard touchdown run.

* http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news?slug=dw-wetzel_alabama_lsu_bad_bcs_title_game_010912 This article says it all.

* Trent Richardson last night rushed for 96 yards on 20 carries, with 35 of those yards coming off of a late fourth quarter touchdown run. Richardson did nothing to impress me to the point where I believe that the Cleveland Browns should take him with the fourth pick overall. Unfortunately most recent mock drafts have wide receiver Justin Blackmon being taken before the Browns pick. If that is the case, they should trade their pick down to Washington's 6th pick overall and draft Ashley Jeffries, wide receiver from South Carolina.

* Congratulations to Jorge Posada on his retirement. I'm glad that the former Yankee catcher decided to forego playing with any other team. For Yankee fans, Posada's retirement is a stark reminder that the 1996-2000 championship run is slipping farther and farther away in history. There are only two players remaining from those great Yankee teams: Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. The critical question is: will we ever see a team like that again and if so, when??

* I just have a feeling that the New York Giants are going to give the Green Bay Packers all they can handle on Sunday. Even though he plays in the largest media market in the country, Eli Manning does not get all the notoriety that some other quarterbacks receive and he is deserving. The Giants are a more complete team right now than the Packers: they can run, pass and play defense. The Packers can't run or play defense. If the Giant front four can pressure Aaron Rodgers, New York may be headed to the NFC Championship Game.

* Browns fans watching the Pittsburgh Steelers-Denver Broncos game featured two teams that have tortured us for years. However, we can take solace in knowing that the Browns contributed to the Steeler defeat with the ankle injury that Ben Roethlisberg sustained on December 8th against the Browns. By the way, do you think Denver wins if Big Ben was healthy???

* WGR Radio 550 is the new radio voice of the Buffalo Bills and yesterday Schopp & The Bulldog had Bills General Manager Buddy Nix on to discuss the state of the team. Nix sounded like a pretty solid old school football guy. He also sounded like Foghorn Leghorn.

* I have to give Paul "Gasbag" Hamilton credit for his objective analysis on the Sabres. While Jeremy White and Howard Simon were begging to hear that the Sabres were going to make a move, Hamilton explained that the team believes that they have the right players and that injuries are the reason why the team is in 11th place in the Eastern Conference. Simon and White were heartbroken. Actually kind of funny.

* And finally, does anyone have any idea when the MSG-TWC stalemate will be resolved?? Once again, the fans suffer so what else is new.