2010 NFL Season Week 1 Live Blog: Capricorn (A Brand New Name)

"So I run, hide, tear myself up Start again with a brand new name."

CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE WEEK 1 LIVE BLOG!

Villanova Football To Join The Big East?

Villanova is a member of the Big East in every sport but one. Obviously that one sport is college football. Although with the Big East extending a formal invitation to the now perennial FCS title contender, that could all change for Villanova. From CSNPhilly.com.

Villanova says the Big East has informed the school it wants to add its football program to the conference.

The Wildcats compete in the Big East in all other varsity sports except football. Villanova won the FCS national championship last year and would move up to the Football Bowl Subdivision.

Villanova President Peter Donohue wrote a letter to Villanova alumni saying the university will evaluate the opportunity. There was no immediate comment from the Big East.

"This is a complicated issue with numerous, multi-dimensional factors that come into play, and it is important that we investigate scenarios related to making -- or not making -- such a move," Donohue wrote.

The Philadelphia Daily News reported Friday that the conference was interested in Villanova.

Donohue did not say when the program would make a decision, but it won't be until the board of trustees "conducts a careful and complete analysis" of all the factors. Among the decisions would include upgrading their football stadium or finding somewhere else to play.

For Villanova, this should hopefully be a no-brainer. For the Big East, this is clearly an act of desperation. It is no secret that the Big East is the laughing stock of the BCS football conferences and they want to do whatever they can to try and change things. Now Villanova football is unlikely to change that. All season long, they drew a mere 52,717 fans in attendance. That is not a per game basis, that is a season total at their home stadium. That being said, if you are Villanova, you could do wonders for your program by moving straight from the FCS to the BCS. Granted, they are not going to turn into a BCS national championship contender overnight, that is at least a good 10 years down the road from now, but if you are given the opportunity to jump from the FCS to the BCS, wouldn't you take it? Then again, unless Big East football can make a big move and grab a big name (*cough*cough*NotreDame*cough*cough), the odds that the Big East is a BCS conference in 10 years is probably sitting at quite slim right about now.

(For additional reading, please check out Dan Levy's article at Press Coverage)

Meet The "Calvin And Hobbs" Fantasy Football Team

The good news: My computer did not overheat causing my browser to crash during the fantasy draft! The bad news: I have come to the conclusion that I need a new computer, one with a faster processor, more than 2 GBs of memory, and one that is not 3 years old.

Even though people that did not join the league probably do not care about this, I am posting it anyway. Here is my 1st ever fantasy football team, Calvin And Hobbs! And for those wondering, yes, Jorrick Calvin did survive the final day of cuts. Jorrick Calvin and Ellis Hobbs are still Eagles, at least for now.

QB
Peyton Manning
Carson Palmer

RB
Chris Johnson
C.J. Spiller
Marion Barber

WR
DeSean Jackson
Mike Sims-Walker
Robert Meachem
Michael Crabtree

TE
Brent Celek
Heath Miller

K
Ryan Longwell
David Akers

TM
Minnesota Vikings
New Orleans Saints

If I can make it to the playoffs, I'll be thrilled beyond belief. Even though it is my first time playing, I decided to not go on the safe side with everything. Sure I got Peyton Manning, but I have a feeling Mike Sims-Walker and Michael Crabtree can be real fantasy sleepers. Also, I am taking a chance and hoping that C.J. Spiller lives up to the hype. Certainly some risky picks and if they pay off I hope I can get into the playoffs, if not, then I guess being the Detroit Lions of fantasy football is not the worst thing in the world, right? That distinction goes to having a fear that your computer is showing early signs of death.

Update: I dropped WR Robert Meachem and added WR Kenny Britt, although I put in a claim to another WR that I hope will soon replace Britt. My first fantasy rookie mistake: I cut Meachem thinking I could claim the WR I wanted right away. I did not realize I needed to wait. So I cut Meachem, made the claim, realized he won't be on my team for a week if I even get the claim, and filled out my roster by adding Britt, a WR I had my eye on but did not select.

Celebrate The Phillies Triumphant Return To 1st Place By Grabbing A Boob!

I'm fucking high on life right now. Wow. What a game.

(Hat tip to The Shibe Times)

NFL Week 1 Schedule

Football season is just 3 days away from starting! Just like last year, I will be posting the schedules and the links to the506 maps for the games each week. Also just like last year, the games I will be getting on cable here at Bloomsburg will be put in bold.

Thursday Night Kickoff

Minnesota Vikings vs. New Orleans Saints 8:30 (NBC - Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth)

Map of who gets what CBS game

Cincinnati Bengals vs. New England Patriots 1:00 (CBS - Jim Nantz and Phil Simms)
Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans 1:00 (CBS - Greg Gumbel and Dan Dierdorf)
Oakland Raiders vs. Tennessee Titans 1:00 (CBS - Ian Eagle and Dan Fouts)
Denver Broncos vs. Jacksonville Jaguars 1:00 (CBS - Kevin Harlan and Solomon Wilcots)
Miami Dolphins vs. Buffalo Bills 1:00 (CBS - Gus Johnson and Steve Tasker)
Cleveland Browns vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1:00 (CBS - Spero Dedes and Rich Gannon)

Map of who gets what Fox early game

Carolina Panthers vs. New York Giants 1:00 (Fox - Kenny Albert, Daryl Johnston, and Tony Siragusa)
Atlanta Falcons and Pittsburgh Steelers 1:00 (Fox - Dick Stockton, Jim Mora, Jr., and Charles Davis)
Detroit Lions vs. Chicago Bears 1:00 (Fox - Thom Brennaman and Brian Billick)

Map of who gets what Fox late game

Green Bay Packers vs. Philadelphia Eagles 4:15 (Fox - Joe Buck and Troy Aikman)
San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks 4:15 (Fox - Sam Rosen and Tim Ryan)
Arizona Cardinals vs. St. Louis Rams 4:15 (Fox - Ron Pitts and John Lynch)

Sunday Night Football

Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Redskins 8:20 (NBC - Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth)

Monday Night Football

Baltimore Ravens vs. New York Jets 7:00 (ESPN - Mike Tirico, Ron Jaworski, and Jon Gruden)
San Diego Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs 10:15 (ESPN - Brad Nessler and Trent Dilfer)

Eagles Turn A Scrapheap Linebacker Into A Starting Offensive Guard

I'm beginning to really like Howie Roseman. This is his 1st year as Eagles GM but he certainly knows what he is doing. At the very least, he is one bad ass wheeler and dealer. A couple of months ago, Howie Roseman dealt useless scrapheap linebacker Joe Mays to the Denver Broncos for RB J.J. Arrington with the condition that should Arrington be cut this season, the Broncos would compensate the Eagles with a 6th round draft pick. Earlier today, the Eagles cut J.J. Arrington. The Eagles then turned to the Cardinals, waved a 6th round draft pick in their face, and the Cardinals responded by giving us offensive guard Reggie Wells, who has been a solid offensive line starter for the Arizona Cardinals for the past 7 seasons but lost a starting job this pre-season to Alan Faneca.

The 6th round draft picks cancel each other out, J.J. Arrington was not good enough to make the team, and you are left with the Eagles swapping an at-best back-up linebacker for a starting offensive guard, something that the Eagles bloody well needed. All in all a very good trade for the Eagles. The only question now is what will become of the guy who was originally penciled in at that position, Stacy Andrews? Per Adam Schefter, Andrews is on the chopping block. And with the way Roseman has been dealing these past few months, I fully expect the Eagles to trade Stacy Andrews to the Jets for Darrelle Revis.*

*Slight hyperbole

2010 NFL Football Season Predictions

Over the past week or so, I have become a bit of a psychic on Twitter. The number of things I correctly predicted, including a game-winning touchdown catch by Riley Cooper 2 minutes before it happened, is beginning to scare me. That being said, do not be surprised if all these predictions are right. Then again, don't be surprised if I just jinx myself and I put up an embarrassing 0 fer. I'll make my division picks, followed by wild card picks, followed by conference championship predictions and Super Bowl predictions.

NFC

East: The NFC East is one of the more interesting divisions this year. The Redskins acquired Donovan McNabb, the Giants maintained a relative status quo after last year's major disappointment, the Eagles overhauled everything on the field after a decent season that was soured by the last 2 games, and the Cowboys maintained a relative status quo. McNabb needs weapons to function. Redskins lack weapons. This division will come down to the Eagles, Cowboys, and Giants. This one pains me. NFC East Champion: Dallas Cowboys

North: The moment that the Bears find Jay Cutler a coach who does not treat him like a pocket passer is the moment I can begin to take the Bears seriously. This division is a 2-team race between the Vikings and the Packers. Aaron Rodgers is entering the prime of his career, whereas Favre is well past his. Vikings are being ravaged by injuries; Packers are not (yet, anyway). Adrian Peterson fumbles too much. NFC North Champion: Green Bay Packers

South: The Bucs suck. The Panthers could be a sleeper team. The Falcons could challenge for the title. The Madden curse could rear its ugly head on Drew Brees. I don't see any of these teams really stepping up and overtaking the Saints in this division. NFC South Champion: New Orleans Saints

West: The Rams are terrible. The Cardinals might be starting Derek Anderson this year. The Seahawks are terrible and getting more terrible. The 49ers are mediocre. A mediocre 8-8 record is all it will take to win this wholly pathetic divison. NFC West Champion: San Francisco 49ers

AFC

East: Anyone of 3 teams could conceivably win this division. The Bills are pathetic, but New England, the Jets, and Miami are all decent, football squads. Mark Sanchez is entering a 2nd year with a great defense to once again bail him out of his mediocre QB play. Ever since, 18-1, the New England Patriots have never felt the same with Brady and Belichick. Then again, Brady did have a knee injury that put him out all of 2008. I think Chad Henne and the Dolphins are going to surprise a few people this year. AFC East Champion: Miami Dolphins

North: The second that Big Ben learns to control Little Ben is the second that the Steelers will be much better off in life. His missing a 1/3 of the season is all the Steelers will need to knock them out of legitimate contention. The Browns better hope Colt McCoy can play in the NFL. The Ravens are a decent team, but Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are in the twilight of their career and I don't know how their bodies, with all the physicality they play with, will hold up over the course of a season in this stage of their career. I think people are honestly underestimating the Bengals. They have Chad Ochocinco, T.O. (granted it is not 2005, but the guy can still play football), and Jordan Shipley (who has been having an excellent pre-season) in the slot. The Bengals have the best QB, offense, and defense in this division. This division won't be as close as some people think it will be. AFC North Champions: Cincinnati Bengals

South: I doubted Peyton Manning last year.  I thought that his window had closed. I will not doubt Peyton Manning anymore. The rest of this division has no hope. AFC South Prediction: Indianapolis Colts

West: With the release of JaMarcus Russell, the Oakland Raiders are instantly 1,000% better. Jason Campbell has always been some sort of enigma for me. Everytime I see him I get the feeling that he has potential to be an NFL QB but the constant change of coach he had endured throughout his entire football career was taking a toll on him and bringing it down. Granted, there is another chance this change is no better, but I think this total change of scenery might be good, provided Tom Cable does not get fired this year. The Broncos will fool everyone into thinking they are great at the start of the year......and will end the year trying Tim Tebow as starting QB. The Chiefs are meh. Contrary to what everyone on ESPN thought in 2008, Matt Cassel is not a great QB. The Chargers lost LT, but have been able to win with LT declining the past year or 2. Norv Turner needs to be fired yesterday. AFC West Champion: San Diego Chargers

NFC Wildcard

Philadelphia Eagles and Minnesota Vikings

AFC Wildcard

New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens

NFC Championship

Green Bay Packers vs. New Orleans Saints

AFC Championship

Indianapolis Colts vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Super Bowl XLV

Green Bay Packers vs. Indianapolis Colts

Super Bowl XLV Champion

Indianapolis Colts.

Peyton Manning will get his 2nd Super Bowl ring in Arlington, Texas and Jerry Jones won't even live out his lifelong dream of seeing the Cowboys play a Super Bowl home game.