Trending East

Week 17 in the NFL is approaching and it’s more than just another game for 13 out of the 16 matchups. Teams are playing for conference and division bragging rights, but eight teams will play for a shot at postseason action. HA, and we all thought Roger Goodell didn’t know what he was doing. Ending the season schedule with division rivals should keep ratings up for all teams except for the 2-13 Houston Texans and the 3-12 Washington Redskins.

The Texans were 12-4 last year and the Redskins were 10-6. Both teams reached the playoffs and were expected to be in the postseason this year.

So as a Redskin fan, what could I possibly be looking forward to, besides the embarrassing season to end as quickly as possible? I was talking with a friend of mine who is an Eagles fan (he’s one of the few Eagles fans that I don’t want to punch in the face) about how the Redskins have helped determine the past three Super Bowl Champions. I then learned that the Eagles also have a similar Super Bowl trend but they are on a four-year streak.

Factor in the entire NFC East and its gets more interesting. The past four Super Bowl Champions have all played at Philadelphia for the Eagles first home game of the regular season. The Redskins have beaten the past three Super Bowl Champs in FedEx during the regular season. Dallas played and lost to the past three Super Bowl Champs. The Giants played and lost to the past three Super Bowl Champs.

Being the nerd that I am, I put it into excel for a visual.

 

The scary trend is that the San Diego Chargers are trending to the Lombardi Trophy.

But, in order for the Chargers to get into the playoffs this year, they will need to pray to the sports gods for losses from both the Dolphins and the Ravens. Miami will host the Jets and the Ravens will be visiting the Bengals on Sunday.

We’re still five weeks away from Super Bowl XL VIII (48) and while I still have not seen Te’o’s girlfriend, I do have my eyes on the Chargers. Phillip Rivers & Co. have won the past three games and Rivers was impressive during the Chargers upset over Peyton Manning’s Broncos in Denver.

It might be a long shot, but if the San Diego Chargers make it to the post season, they too will be trending east.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

While the holiday season is in full swing of spreading holiday cheer there is not much to cheer about if you’re a Washington Redskins fan. It was obvious when Santa’s little helpers (from Kansas City) dropped off a big red stocking full of coal at FedEx last week that said RG3-10.

Coaches, players and fans may have given up on this dysfunctional team, but there are still some of us fans who are still trying to make the last home game fun, even when our team is the 2^nd worst team in the entire NFL.

I have been extremely blessed by being invited to every home game for the past five seasons from the White family.  Clearly, they are saints to put up with my shenanigans. (For the record. Jim provokes it and Tom instigates it.) Last year Jim lost a bet to me and had to dress up like Santa for the Dallas game.  So naturally, we bet on who would dress like Santa for this years Dallas game. I won, again and Jim would be Santa (even though he looks more like Willie from Bad Santa).

Somehow the bet changed during the Atlanta game.

I was clearly bad luck as I watched the game. I saw all of Atlanta’s 17 points in the first half, but then I saw Moss drop balls and three consecutive fumbles for the Redskins. I managed to miss all 21 of the Redskins points in the first half. (Potty break, first turnover had to change into a different Redskins shirt, threw the remote and knocked over my Diet Mt. Dew so I was cleaning up my mess instead of looking at the TV). At halftime I realized that I had to keep distracting myself when we were on offense and then we would score. “Labels Out” just like the Bud Light commercial, superstitions work, right?!

When Atlanta went up 24-20 in the 3^rd I was told during a group text to shop for a Mrs. Claus costume. So I did. I now know where the ‘ho’ in holidays comes from. But I managed to find a costume that with boots will cover most of my skin. (We were going for Mrs. Claus, not Granny Claus.) Costume approved by Jim and a shipping confirmation later I was wondering how I just agreed to dress up as Mrs. Claus? I didn’t lose the bet! What just happened? And just as I looked at the TV and Atlanta drills a 51 yarder to go up 27-20. Seconds later the group text-er’s yell at me to stop watching, busted!

With three minutes left in the game I had to leave my house. I’m not sure what was worse, the Redskins or my decision to go to the mall during the holiday season on a Sunday. #Fail #Fail #Fail I live two miles from the mall and it look me 33 minutes to get there. I listened to the game on the radio and my horn honking in celebration of Santa Moss’s TD blended in with the other “friendly” drivers horn honking in traffic. Then, I hear they are going for two and trying to go for the win with 18 seconds left. My fist thought was is Shanahan trying to get fired? If Kia made the extra point and the game was tied then the Redskins still had a chance to play and win in OT. But leave it to those Shananhan’s to make a statement by saying if they go for two and win, then they look like they are trying to win. If they kick the extra point and tie, they still have to coach/work and go to OT. Both teams have no chance at a post-season appearance so the game meant nothing to the NFL.

But WINS mean everything to the fans and Mike & Kyle made a statement by saying it’s time for them to go. 

Pictures of Mrs. Claus may or may not be posted on Instagram: ALISONSTCLAIR4

Have You Hurd…

All I'm Thinking About! (Jalen Hurd Instagram post)

The University of Tennessee football, team 117, ended their season 5-7 and will not play in a bowl game. The seniors won their final SEC game on the road and left a small spark of what it feels like to win on the road in the SEC.

This program, University, fan base, and all of Vol Nation have witnessed the crash to rock bottom over the past six years. A program that was once revered in the world of college football had now become a somber, stagnant team in the SEC.

But that tiny spark from a win on the road is all team 118 will need to carry the torch and revive one the most hollowed programs in all of college football.

Following recruiting classes hasn’t been one of my focus points. Mostly, because I think high school kids have commitment issues and they can change their decision daily. With enough disappointment in Knoxville, I just wait it out and see who makes it to the first game of the season. But this year has been different.

In March, I got a text alert that Todd Kelly Jr. had followed in his fathers’ footsteps and committed to be a Vol For Life (VFL). My twin brother sent me text a few minutes later that said this is only the beginning; magic is about to be restored in Knoxville. Byron (my twin) treats National Signing Day like a national holiday and takes off work to witness the letters of intent. If there was going to be year to follow recruiting, he assured me that this was the year. So I’ve committed to following the recruiting class of 2014. 

Byron was right. This recruiting class has already changed the future without even stepping in Neyland stadium.  

The momentum of this recruiting class is astonishing. A program that is 14-34 in SEC games over the last six seasons is also the program with the second best recruiting class in the country. Clearly, recruits are not committing based on the win-loss record. These recruits are recruiting each other. After TKJr, UT signed Rivals 5-star RB (ranked #1 in the state of Tennessee) Jalen Hurd. Maybe it’s all the high light videos I’ve watched of this stud, but I’ve got my eye on this gem. Based on his athletic ability alone, he is going to be something special.

Hurd received offers from some of the best programs in country (Alabama, Florida, Stanford, Ohio State, LSU, and Georgia just to name a few), but he was only interested in playing for the Orange and White.

If you haven't Hurd of the UT Legacy Class 14’ here’s a shot list of the caliber of talent the future holds: Vic Wharton*, Dillon Bates*, Evan Berry*, Elliott Berry*, Orlando Brown, D'Andre Payne have all committed and Neiko Creamer*, Josh Malone and Jarran Reed (JUCO) have all declared early enrollment. The (*) = the recruit is a Vol legacy.

Most top recruits are still young kids. And coming out of high school the easiest way to a career in the NFL is by choosing a powerhouse university where the road has already been paved for them. But these kids who are committing to be a VFL are the athletes who are determined to pave their own route from scratch, brick-by-brick. Together, they share a vision and a bond that will forever make them teammates and brothers. These young men are leaders who embody the foundation of teamwork and success. Choosing to wear Orange isn’t just making a statement. It’s committing to working harder. It’s dedicating their collegiate career with a passion to win as a team and inscribe champion back in the Power T.

They have coined themselves as the UT Legacy Class 14’. But their legacy will not be who their father is. Their legacy will be written as the class who laid the foundation to rise to the top and restore a dynasty back in college football.

Creepin for Mo

Aaron Rodger, Danny Amendola, and Sidney Crosby

After a busy day at work I stopped by my local bar to watch the Caps/Penguins game on Wedneday. I didn’t make it to the 3^rd period of the game.

Not because of the score, but because I felt so uncomfortable looking at Crosby’s terrible, child-molester-ish mustache. PUKE! It’s creepy; it’s gross, and just flat out disturbing. I bet he drives the ice cream truck around downtown Pittsburgh during the summer too.

And then later that night I get an email from a friend asking me to donate money to “Movember” and attached is his picture with Crosby’s-Creepy-Stash on his face too. Evey future boyfriend, Aaron Rodgers, has also been a victim of this horrible face growth. WHAT is going on?!?!

I’ll be honest and say that I thought ‘No shave November’ was just a saying for lazy males to have an ‘excuse’ and not shave their face. Good thing his picture was at the end of the email or I would have deleted it before actually reading it.

Turns out that Movember is actually a global fundraiser to raise awareness and funding in the fight against prostate and testicular cancer. Saving the balls, now you’ve got my attention! The Mo-movement encourages men to grow a mustache for the entire 30 days of November. Participants register and ask friends to donate to their creepy sprouts growing on their face.

Men and women wear pink to support breast cancer awareness, but ladies- we should not play no-shave November, EVER! Instead, we should just donate to the cause. I’m sure you all know someone with a ‘to catch a predator’ look on this face. Ask them if they are what I like to call “Creepin for Mo” (participating in Movember) or if they just think that their mustache is just a good look for them. If they don’t say Movember- RUN, run fast in the opposite direction. If they are Creepin for Mo, then creep into your wallet and make a donation. Seriously, it takes a lot of balls- literally, to go in public with a Mo on your face.  

Protecting the stones has always been near and dear to my heart. Mostly, because when I was little and saw all those commercials about “always having to pee” (anyone who knows me, knows that I’m pretty confident that I have the world’s smallest bladder or I’m allergic to water) so naturally, I thought the commercial was speaking directly to me. Then I leaned in 6^th grade health class that while mentally, I have bigger stones than a lot of males I’ve met, however, physically, I didn’t make the anatomy checklist. Still, the bruises I encounter on a nightly basis from “my frequent tips to the bathroom” and refusing to turn on a light is my own fault. It’s not a man’s fault that testicular cancer is the most common cancer in males between the ages of 15 and 35. Or that 1-in-6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime.

Mustaches of any kind, will forever give me the creeps, but you’d rather I have the creeps, than someone you know lose their manhood. Just turn your head and cough boys, everyone’s doing it.

Oh and if Sid-the-Kid is trying to be a man with his mustache, it’s stillll not working. But if he’s trying to grow a Mo, I won’t mail him a razor until December.

Here’s the link to help support my friend’s CREEPY MO!

http://us.movember.com/mospace/3756997

November Rain…

There’s a saying in life that when it rains, it pours. This also applies to what it’s like to be a fan of the Washington Redskins.

The Redskins are 3-6 and haven’t been able to beat a decent team on the road. The good news is that the NFC East is so awful that mathematically, the Redskins are not out of the playoffs just yet. However, it took nine, NINE games for the offense to score in the first quarter! Seriously?!?! Based on that stat alone I’m not feeling the optimism to spark an NFC East comeback like we did last year after we gave the game to a Minnesota team that had not won a game on American soil this season until Thursday night.

What are the chances we win the next seven games and win the division? We were in the same position last year and pulled it off. The real question is, is it too soon to ask Santa for Redskins to play at least ONE game for a full 60 minutes? Just one game so we can see our true potential.

The Redskins had a 27-14 lead early in the 3^rd against the Vikings. Then, it all fell apart. (The red flag was early in the 1^st when the Skins couldn’t score on first-and-goal on the ONE-yard line.) Seeing former UT stud, Cordarrelle Patterson scored his first NFL receiving TD as a Viking really made me wish he was still playing in Knoxville. Down seven points with 34 seconds left in the game, Kyle Shanahan called three pass plays on the five-yard line. Reed, Garcon, and Moss couldn’t connect and Redskins took home anther road loss.

It’s hard to watch other teams throw & catch the ball and make it look so easy. And then Garcon makes an incredible one-handed catch and you wonder, how come we can’t do the little things, the fundamentals of the game correctly? How do we make bad teams look good? Why do we choke in the red-zone?

Is it weird that DeAngelo Hall is making it rain on the field and not at a strip-club? Hall being Virginia Tech alum isn’t the only reason he has been on my unimpressed list. It was more of his actions on & off the field, a lot talk, and his inconsistency to catch AND cover. But the truth is that I was at a Redskins charity luncheon earlier this year and I told him, “don’t be a duchebag this season”. Well… maybe I didn’t say those exact words, but the look on my face when he sat at our table said it all. On the field, he can be Hall-way robbery with his hands and off the field his ego has turned into a more humble team player. This season Hall has 3 interceptions, 2 TD’s and 2 Forced Fumbles. (In 2008-2012 combined he only had one TD and 3 FF.)

If I send former special teams coach, Danny Smith a huge tub of bubble gum do you think he would come back to Washington? That fake punt attempt against Minnesota was a complete debacle that exposed how much we miss Danny Smith on the sideline.

Eventually, every storm runs out of rain so as a Redskins fan, I’ll put on my arm swimmies and doggie paddle until this flood passes.

But if you really want to turn on the waterworks, grab a tissue and watch this video of Veterans returning home. They are America’s true heroes. Happy Veterans Day!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dKWq0CzK-k