Is Joe Webb in the Vikings' Future?

Joe Webb -- no one had really heard of him until a few weeks ago when they found out he'd be starting for the injured Brett Favre against the Bears, or a couple days ago when he was again behind center in Philly on the first Tuesday Night Football since 1946. But after a 17-26 performance for 195 yards and guiding the Vikings, two-touchdown underdogs, to a win against the Eagles, does Joe Webb have any chance to keep the starting job?

Let's assume Brett Favre actually does retire. The Vikings will have Tarvaris Jackson, the former starter and now No. 2 quarterback who's just 27, the 24-year-old Webb, and probably either a draft pick, a free agent QB (Donovan McNabb), or someone they'd traded for. Will Webb have a chance at the permanent job? The Vikings haven't put much support into Jackson, as they picked an ailing Favre over him. Both he and Webb are scramblers, Webb looking more like Mike Vick than Vick did in Philly the other day, showing some pocket potential as well.

On that Tuesday Night game I heard Cris Collinsworth say how out of college, Webb ran the exact same 40 as Vick, a 4.33. Just a coincidence? Maybe. But there's a chance there's more to Joe Webb than being a career backup QB, or the scout team receiver he was drafted as.

Rams or Seahawks to Make Playoffs

The St. Louis Rams are 7-8. The Seattle Seahawks are 6-9. After a head-to-head matchup in Week 17, one of these two teams will be headed to the playoffs as the NFC West Champion.

Is there any fairness to this, a possible 7-9 team making the playoffs over a possible 10-6 team, either the Tampa Bay Bucs or New York Giants? Not really. Could it be exciting? Sure. How cool would it be for the casual fan to see the St. Louis Rams make a Super Bowl run, even though realistically there's not really a chance. That would sound weirder than the phrase "The Arizona Cardinals are going to the Super Bowl!" of a couple of years ago.

While many fans may not mind it, this could be devastating to a city, in this case the those of the Giants or Buccaneers. Since their records are better, don't they deserve the spot? Well remember when Matt Cassel, in place of Tom Brady, led the Patriots to an 11-5 record, only to have them left out of the postseason after it was all said and done? It happens. Maybe the Giants shouldn't have let that Eagles game get away from them, or played better vs. Green Bay today. It's not like they didn't have chances.

Christmas Showdowns

On the day I'm going to be eating Chinese for dinner, the NBA has its annual Christmas marquee matchups planned. Tomorrow's slate includes the Bulls at the Knicks, Boston at Orlando, Miami at the Lakers, the Nuggets at the Thunder, and Portland playing in Golden State. But the one everyone is really looking at is the Heat going to LA. The Big 3 of LeBron, D-Wade and Bosh going up against Kobe and his boys.

Phil Jackson and LeBron have already complained about the games on Christmas, saying how it should be a day they get to be their families, but they will be played nonetheless. Lakers point guard and vet Derek Fisher has downplayed the significance of the game, how it is still a great matchup, but doesn't determine anything in June, or whenever the NBA season finally ends.

My prediction is that tomorrow the Heat will get the best of the Lakers, 96-92. Down to the wire. The Big 3 will do most of the scoring for Miami as always, but expect either LeBron or Wade to struggle from the field. Defensive specialist Ron Artest will most likely be glued to the former King of Cleveland. But Kobe, Pau Gasol and the Lakers will be able to pull one out.

My other predictions include, Chicago slaying the Knicks, the new-look Magic taking down the Celtics and ending their 14-game win streak (gasp), Durant's boys beating Melo and the Nuggets, and who cares about the last game. Blazers will win, though. Have a Merry Christmas, 99% of the country. I'll enjoy my Chinese chicken.

Fantasy Finale

Week 16 starts in just two days, and for many intelligent/lucky fantasy football players, this means the fantasy finals. The many Americans with a team still alive will spend the next two Sundays with their eyes glued to their computer screens (more than usual), begging their players to put up points. For some devoted fantasy team managers, they've been out for awhile, missing out on the postseason entirely, like most of my teams did. But I've still got one of my five teams in the finals of an ESPN league, but since it's a free one, as much as I'd like to win, I'll be paying much more attention to the real matchups. You know, the ones that count towards something, the NFL.

Saturday is the day when sweating fantasy managers also sit in front of their computers, spending a ridiculous amount of time deciding who to start. My only controversy, a good one to have, is whether to start Mike Vick vs. the Vikings or Philip Rivers facing Cincy. (Yes, I got to Vick first off waivers.) Even though the Vikes D has been better, I have to go with Vick because I can't see anyone stopping him. For many others it's much harder.

There's also the issue of guys that might not play due to injury. The guy I'm going to face has Arian Foster, who's questionable. He has to stay up to date til the very last second to know whether to keep him in, or face the consequences. My friend lost this past week because he elected to take the chance and keep AP in the lineup, even though he was questionable on the Monday night game. He was down four points before the game, and the other guy had Matt Forte. Sure enough, AP sat out, and since it was the Monday night game, he had no one else to put in, so he ended up getting eliminated.

The fantasy world is, for all passionate players, a mind-grueling one. And then you know what happens? The mom who picked all the players by their looks always ends up winning in the end.

A Game for the Ages

DeSean Jackson's 65-yard punt return completed the Eagles' comeback against the Giants. Scoring 28 points in the 4th quarter, a franchise record, the Eagles took over division rival New York to move to 10-4 and gain sole possession of first place in the NFC East.

Down 21 with seven minutes to play, the game looked to be the Giants'. But Mike Vick and the Eagles showed why you can never count them out, scoring three explosive touchdowns. However the Eagles needed up until the final play to conquer the G-Men. Apparently, rookie Giants punter Matt Dodge was told to boot it out of bounds, to avoid the dangerous DeSean Jackson. Instead, he kicked a 39-yard line drive to Jackson, which he promptly muffed. But the speedster picked it up off the ground, found a few holes, and the rest was history.

I must admit I was scared to death when Jackson had everyone beat and was in front of the endzone, when he decided to run parallel to it. I had no idea whether he was going to add to his list of boneheaded plays in some way. But once he came to his senses and trotted in to complete one of the most spectacular comebacks in history, me and the rest of Philly went berserk.

The Giants, at 9-5, are still very much alive in the playoff hunt. But they are a second-place team right now. For the sixth straight time they fall to the Eagles. But they have what the Eagles don't; a Super Bowl ring. Anything but that for this year's Eagles, as always, would be regarded as a failed season.

Celts and Knicks "Rivalry"

With the Knicks improved play, has the rivalry between the Boston Celtics and New York Knickerbockers returned? Paul Pierce declined the claim it was renewed, before his team's close two point win over New York, the Celts' 11th straight win.

Honestly, whether it's currently a rivalry or not doesn't really matter, because it will be, since the Knicks are back. Amare Stoudemire has led the Knicks back into Eastern Conference relevancy, where the franchise should be. And his supporting cast, guys like PG Raymond Felton, are overachieving.

Let's face it. The Celtics Big Three is old, and everyone knows their best player isn't part of it, Rajon Rondo, who will be out for two weeks. Although currently they're playing well, and have a Finals shot for this year, as of right now their future is foggy.

I'm not going out and saying the Knicks will win the Finals, because they won't; however, they are playing better than they have all decade, which isn't saying much but it's something. The NBA isn't right with the Knicks in the basement, and those days seem to have ended.

Oh, and Paul Pierce, after last night's dogfight, claimed that "the Knicks have arrived."

Reunited

Cliff Lee is back in Philadelphia. With his acquisition, the Phillies rotation for 2011 is regarded as one of the best ever. His Phillies contract is approximately for 30 million less than what he was offered by the Yankees, but Lee wanted to play in Philly.

The Phillies rotation now features Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, and Roy Oswalt. With this rotation, three game losing losing streaks will almost disappear entirely, regardless of offensive slumps. The Phillies have turned into most people's pick to win the Series.

I know I was one of those fans who, when the Phillies traded away Lee in order to acquire Halladay, with wishful thinking thought of how awesome it'd be for the Phillies to keep both. Now the dream of many fans in Philly has come true. Lee, from day one, was a fan favorite over here, and him taking a 30 mil pay cut will only endear him to Phils fan even further.

With now sky-high expectations in Philly, what does this mean for the Yankees, whose 7-year offer for Lee didn't happen? Well, now they go into the spring with only two definite starters, C.C. Sabathia and Phil Hughes. It does free up more space in terms of signing other players, but the depth of 2011's free agent class is especially weak.

Lee's deal surprised almost everyone in the baseball world, and the Phillies couldn't be happier with the return, this time for five long years.

Is This the Year for the Eagles?

The fans in Philly have been waiting forever. The Andy Reid era has consisted of perennial winning seasons with numerous playoff and NFC Championship appearances. Of the five NFC Championship appearances, the Birds have only gone to the Super Bowl once, in which they lost by a field goal to New England.

Every year, when it looks like the Eagles have another strong team, fans in the City of Brotherly Love get their hopes up for a Super Bowl run. Every September, as the NFL season comes around, people ask "Is this the year?" But it never has been. They've always found a way to come up short in the end. There's always been some fatal flaw. Every year, the season ends a failure.

Fans continue to flock to the Linc, selling out game after game, in hope of a Eagles victory. More times then not, they deliver. But not in the end. Someone always gets the best of them, whether it be the Cowboys like last year, or any other team.

The failure to go all the way brings change. The former faces of the team, Donovan McNabb, Brian Westbrook, and Brian Dawkins are all somewhere else. New, young talent has taken their place, with the likes of DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and LeSean McCoy, as well as numerous other changes. Trent Cole remains a game-changer on the defensive side of the ball, and corner Asante Samuel, who has been in Philly a couple years now, jumps routes with the best of them.

And then there's Michael Vick. No one could have mapped out his path back, as Kevin Kolb was the presumed starter. Vick's game is better than ever, and he's taken this offense places McNabb never had.

So as a Birds fan, I have my hopes up once again, while expecting them to be deflated, but always knowing there's a chance, that this could finally be the year.

Kevin Love is a Beast

Is Kevin Love the next Kevin Garnett? Or better? Love has emerged this year as an early-season MVP candidate, a 22-year-old who is one of the few bright spots on a struggling Timberwolves roster.

Love's rebounding this year, over 15 and a half a night, is better than Garnett's career high of 13.9 back in his 04-05 MVP year. And in December, Love is scoring 24 per game while pulling down an astronomical 17 boards. He put up a 30-30 game against Amare Stoudemire and the Knicks November 12.

Right now, the only thing separating Love from being the best big man in the game is the fact that he plays for the lowly T'Wolves. He isn't yet at the level of Dwight Howard quite yet because Howard leads the now perennial contender Orlando, as well as the fact this is Love's breakout year, so he isn't established yet like Howard.

Will Love play the role Garnett did for the main part of his career as the standout PF for the Timberwolves, the face of a basement team? Their paths could end up being virtually the same if in the later part of his career leaves for a contender and gets a ring.  It doesn't look like he'll get one in Minnesota anytime soon, but what the young rising star guarantees every night is a 20-15 performance.

It's Getting Ridiculous

As a Yankees fan, I will say this: It's starting to get ridiculous. The Yankees are targeting both Carl Crawford and Cliff Lee, the two most prized free agents this offseason, and will likely offer each of them lucrative contracts. It's getting out of hand. There's just too many insane free agent signings and contracts in New York. It's getting harder to be a fan, as the brass is, and I will say it, trying to buy a championship. People have said it for years, but now it really is coming true.

Imagine the Yankees with Crawford and Lee. It isn't unrealistic to say every man in their lineup could make the all-star team, if Gardy can break out and Jorge has some bat left in him. I mean I honestly don't know what I'd say, as a Yankees fan, when someone comes and tells me the Yanks try to buy championships, because it's a reality. Last year their payroll was roughly seven times that of the Pirates, who's $34,943,000 million was the lowest of the 30 teams. And here's something that might not surprise anyone, but is ridiculous nonetheless. Alex Rodriguez's salary last year was 33 million. What that means is the whole entire payroll of last year's Pittsburgh Pirates team was less than two million more than one player's salary.

And then there's Teixeira and Jeter and Sabathia and Granderson and Burnett and Cano and Rivera and Posada and Swisher.....all, either currently or at one point, all-star caliber players, all with huge salaries. Speedster Brett Gardner, at 452K last year, was the only value player in the lineup, the only guy getting paid below the league average. Shouldn't all these players be able to bring a 28th parade to the Bronx?

Sure. The Yankees need starting pitching. They have two solid starters heading into this year, if you count Phil Hughes who began to fall apart as the home stretch of the season rolled around, and wasn't any better in September. But you figure he's still a solid starter with great potential. Sabathia is in the Cy running annually. So that's two guys. Pettitte has most likely thrown his last pitch.

Then there's A.J. Burnett. Huge contract. Analysts talked about how overpaid he was the day he signed to play in pinstripes. He was said to be barely above average by some. But what none of the Yanks brass predicted was his season in 2010. 10-15 record, which, if you can believe it, was inflated by his solid offense, considering: 5.26 ERA, 1.51 WHIP. Yeah. That'll make Brian Cashman think twice about that move.

But it's all okay in the Bronx, because the Yanks can just pick up yet another superstar in Cliff Lee for some 7 years/150 mil. And since the above-average outfield isn't good enough, Crawford can be included in the budget as well.

Hines Ward Is 100% Correct

Yep. The NFL is hypocritical, exactly in the ways explained by veteran Steelers WR Hines Ward. As Ward put it, they say they are protecting the players, then want to go and increase the length of the season. Because the season would be longer, it creates more opportunities for injury, many more than they are "preventing" by fining defensive players who either touch a quarterback or put a hard hit on a receiver.

I loved the other point Ward made, about the hypocrisy regarding the league's advertising. He explains how the league discourages the players from drinking, which does make sense, but then half their ads are beer commercials. Also, the league discourages players from gambling, which also makes sense, but is affiliated with gambling sites. This relates perfectly to, for example, a teacher telling a class not to chew gum while they are themselves. Obvious hypocrisy.

The fining of players makes some sense. But the system in which the fines are decided is terrible, at least it seems. No one except the league knows exactly what it is, or even if there is one. There needs to be a definite process developed, and explained to the players. It is flawed in another way as well; only defensive players are targeted. Running backs, more than a few times, have lowered their helmet and crushed into defenders, many of which are similar to the plays defensive men have been fined on. These don't warrant fines, because it's an offensive player.

The relationship between the league and the players and their association currently in shambles. The league has been suing players regarding benefits and the such. There are the behind-the-scenes aspects no one really hears about, the confusing things not interesting to the common fan. Basically, the fact of the matter is the state of the league is not as good as it was a few years ago, and football still isn't definite for next season.

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