PSoTD

The play which ended it, in Week 11:

Last Play: 1-10-SEA 42(5:55) R.Grossman sacked at SEA 44 for -2 yards (P.Kerney). FUMBLES (P.Kerney) [P.Kerney], RECOVERED by SEA-D.Tapp at SEA 44. D.Tapp to CHI 47 for 9 yards (J.Tait).

Whee.

I remember listening to him doing radio broadcasts of the Cincinnati Reds games back in the late 1960s and early 1970s. One summer, I almost always went to bed with my little AM radio on, listening to the Reds game. Reds fans know how good they had it with Joe Nuxhall. RIP.

I don't know if this is a general practice for any college team that has uniforms, but it seems like a very good idea - send them somewhere that they're needed and will be used.

From Sign On San Diego:

LT_TCU(Q) Is rivers better than grossman?

NickCanepa(A) On the worst day of his life.

Canepa is supposedly the expert. You know, I'm not a big Rex Grossman fan, but Rex Grossman has been to the Super Bowl as a starting QB. I don't see any way that a team with Philip Rivers as a starter goes to the Super Bowl - seriously, why would you keep a GM that gets rid of Drew Brees in favor of Philip Rivers?

I'll admit, I've seen Rivers play in maybe 4 or 5 games so far. He's 100% for being terrible in those games, however.

I've never really watched him as a coach before. Has he always mimicked a parrot so much in how he cocks his head during different sideline situations?

Not vouching for quality, but there's quite a few linked here.

Viking fans ought to figure out a way to support Troy Williamson. This is the kind of family-first behavior communities should want in their area.

The Vikings mean business in 2007. But few knew they would take it this far.

The team has informed wide receiver Troy Williamson that he will be docked one game's pay for missing three practices as well as last Sunday's game against San Diego in order to attend his grandmother's funeral.

Williamson stands to lose $25,588.24 of his $435,000 base salary, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported.

"It's really kind of out of my realm," coach Brad Childress said, according to the Star-Tribune. "It's a business principle, organizationally. If you don't show up, how does that work? We talked about that today."

Williamson, who returned to the team Wednesday, said he did not regret his decision to spend the time with his family.

"I'd throw this football thing away for my family," Williamson was quoted as saying in the newspaper. "I know it's a business and I know (the Vikings have) got other obligations when it comes to them and their family also.

"I know how I feel towards mine. ... I feel like I wouldn't have been overdoing it if I had stayed home a little longer but you've got other people and their opinions."

Williamson took charge in coordinating arrangements for the funeral of his maternal grandmother, Celestine Williamson, who died in Aiken, S.C. As many as 75 family members returned to South Carolina for the funeral, with Williamson funding the trips for nearly 30 of them.

It's hard to see how Williamson's behavior really hurt the Vikings, other than their ability to blindly follow structure. As for the "business principle", it seems really silly to not have acceptable leave reasons - almost every business has such.

Curious about those teams you've never heard of making waves at the Big Dance in March? Almost every NCAA tournament some time surprises, and grabs all the underdog interest. Who might it be this year? You might know ahead of time with the Mid-Major Top 25 then...

They should just keep trading them for more picks and players. Angelo is pretty good at assessing later talent, but can't seem to pick a marquee first round player, although we'll see what Greg Olson can do.

For a franchise that has had to struggle through Salaam and Curtis Enis, watching Cedric Benson is bitter deja vu. For that reason, and if only for that reason, Benson has to go.

I play hoops every Wednesday night in a 35 and older basketball league, and have been doing so for probably close to 10 years. Many of the guys in the league have been in for several years as well, although each season we get some new blood, some which stays with us over a haul, and some that don't.

I've posted before how much I look forward to this evening of sports. One of the things that has come to my attention as I've aged is the variety of "basketball characters" I can be, depending on the night. I can be Lazy Wayne, or Crappy Shooting Wayne, or Slow Wayne, or Sneaky Pass Thief Wayne, or Mister Outside Shooter, or Guy That Keeps Fouling Everyone, or Pass It To The Other Team Guy, or The Guy Stuck Playing Center Against Guys 5 Inches or More Taller Than Him, or Long Bomb Pass Dude, or on too rare of occasions, The Guy Playing Really, Really Well Tonight. And a whole multitude of other characters, and I usually play more than one during an evening, although one version of me usually dominates my opinion of how I played afterwards.

The funny thing is that I almost never know which ME is going to show up on a Wednesday night. It's a surprise, sometimes good, sometimes not so happy. And confidence, particularly in shooting and passing, is something that happens early or not at all.

Somebody asked me last week if I ever get tired of playing hoops with the same guys, because you get to know their game. Doesn't it become predictable? And the answer is no. I never know which ME is going to show up, let alone which version of THEM will be there. Teams change throughout the night, and the chemistry of play changes. It's always a surprise.