Monday, March 8, 2010

Weekend Hangover - Love/Hate: Oscars!!

LOVE

- I think I can smell the desperation from the Bears all the way out in New York. The Bears stole all of the headlines at the opening of the free agency period by throwing money around like they were trying to make Avatar. And as we saw how that worked out last night during the Oscars…….the big winner was the low budget Hurt Locker. What did the Bears actually get for all that money? A defensive lineman that has never played hard consistently and does not play hard when he isn’t playing for a new contract? Check – Julius Peppers. A backup running back that has only been a starter for 1 year even though he’s 31 years old to compete with a guy who has rushed for over 2,100 yards in his first two seasons? Check – Chester Taylor. A tight end that hasn’t been relevant since 2003 to compete with one of the better tight ends in the league? Check – Brandon Manumaleuna. (I don’t care if that’s spelled wrong – I’m not looking it up, and I’m not typing it again) Wait – I just looked up his stats and he has NEVER been relevant. His career year was 2003 (great guess by me) when he had 29 catches for 238 yards. And the Bears are excited about this guy?!?!

None of those moves address the Bears problems which include offensive line, wide receiver, defensive backs, linebackers, a QB who might be color-blind, a clueless coaching staff, and the fact that they are the Bears. I think the Bears might be worse than the Lions next season.

- The Wisconsin Badger basketball team continues to roll, and is now well positioned for at worst a #4 seed in the NCAA tournament. They head into the Big Ten tournament next weekend with confidence and after they put the Illinois tournament hopes on life support, they have a chance to pull the plug completely on Friday in the Big Ten tourney. Interesting that according to this site, the Badgers, as the #4 seed in the tournament has better odds to win the conference tournament than Michigan State, the #3 seed. Considering Wisconsin would likely get Ohio State, and Michigan State would likely get Purdue in the semifinals, I can’t say I agree with those odds.

- Loved watching Alec Baldwin & Steve Martin hosting the Oscards. They were the perfect tandem in that the lines are always stiff and awkward during the awards shows, and the two of them excel at sarcasm, and acting awkward. Question about Baldwin – was he actually appreciated before 30 Rock? I mean, he was phenomenal in old movies like Glengarry Glen Ross, The Hunt For Red October and Beetlejuice among others. Yet, it doesn’t seem like he wasn’t nearly as famous until the past few years.

- Another quick note on the Oscars – it was great to see Jeff Bridges win an Oscar. I don’t know much about him, but he just seems to be a fairly down-to-earth kind of guy and a hard-working actor. Maybe I just project his character in The Big Lebowski on him, but either way, I like the guy. I actually think that his best work was in Arlington Road – a great, great movie that is not widely known. Put it on your Netflix – you will not be disappointed. It’s also worth pointing out that his movie credits also include Tron – an 80’s icon movie. Awesome.

HATE

- Does anyone want the 4th #1 seed? Duke lost to Maryland last Sunday, and then Kansas State lost to Iowa State this weekend. Has Purdue stabilized enough to get the spot? Does Duke still get it due to their wins over top RPI teams? Was Kansas State coach Frank Martin more focused on his contract extension (announced Sunday) than on Iowa State? Isn’t it annoying when I keep asking questions? Anyway, I still think Ohio State can get the top seed if they win out the Big Ten tourney. Seems like the other 3 top seeds are more of a lock than Sandra Bullock was to win her Oscar last night.

- While I am already sick of the Clash of the Titans movie promos, for this year’s NCAA tournament, you will notice a lack of “titans” in the brackets. UNC is having one of the worst seasons they have ever had, UConn will be in the NIT tournament, and Arizona has been awful in the worst of the big conferences. It’s kind of like an Oscars ceremony without Meryl Streep being nominated. She has been nominated like 16 times and only has 1 win.

- RIP Arizona Cardinals chances of making the playoffs next season. Once Kurt Warner retired, did the team throw in the towel in free agency? They lost their best linebacker (Carlos Dansbury) to the Dolphins, their best safety (Antrelle Rolle) to the Giants and traded away their second-best receiver (Anquan Boldin) for a warm beer. Was that really the best deal they could get for Boldin? They gave up Boldin & a 5th round pick for a 3rd and 4th round pick. Seems like a bargain price for a guy who has 5 seasons with over 1,000 yards in 7 years. Though he has only played a full 16 game season twice.

- I will mostly reserve judgement on Ben Roethlisberger until the legal process runs its course. Yet, no matter what the legal result is, he’s guilty of poor decision making. Ben is 28 years old, so why was he at a college bar doing whatever he was doing with a 20 year old? And this is now the second accusation in 2 years against him (though no chargers were ever filed in the first case – there is a civil case), which makes you wonder – why is he always in the wrong place at the wrong time? At some point, its no longer a coincidence that bad things happen to you if you keep putting yourself in bad situations. On the flip side, if you put yourself in better situations, you can have more success. Kind of like that Giuliana Rancic that went from being a random E! reporter to suddenly having her own reality show with her husband – who won the first apprentice show.

- If the Nets are able to avoid setting the record for the worst record in the history of the NBA, they may have the Knicks to thank. They have beaten the Knicks for 2 of their 7 wins on the season, and on Saturday night, New York went out and and missed all 18 of their three-point attempts in the loss. It is just another chapter in ineptitude for the Knicks and another reason that LeBron James will not sign there this summer. That was a serious Toilet Bowl at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.

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