What do we really know about the NFL after 6 weeks? No team has come out and put together a perfect 6 weeks. Yeah, the Falcons are undefeated but if you have watched any of their games (the last 2 being last second wins at home vs Carolina and Oakland), you would agree there was nothing perfect about them. This season has not followed the same script as last year’s for a number of teams.  Four of last year’s top teams during the regular season (Packers, Saints, Patriots and Steelers) have a combined 9-16 record. So much changes week to week in the NFL and this is an update league. Given the events of Week 6, I ‘m updating the Giants to best team in the NFC.

On Sunday, the Giants played the best 60 minutes of football that they have played since the Wild Card game vs Atlanta in last year’s playoffs. The 49ers were coming off 2 dominant victories in which they outscored their opponents 79-3.  The Giants didn’t seem to care about what San Francisco had accomplished this season and came out west with their own chip on their shoulder. The defense played fantastic and the pass rush reappeared causing Alex Smith to make some very poor decisions. The result was 3 interceptions and just 3 points from an offense that had 300 rushing yards and 300 passing yards in the same game last week.

Eli and the offense did it’s thing and most importantly they established the run. Bradshaw became the 1st visiting player to rush for 100 yards at Candlestick since ’09. The line deserves a lot of credit for Bradshaw’s performance and for keeping Eli upright when he went back to throw. Manning got sacked 6 times and knocked down on almost every dropback in last year’s NFC championship game. Sunday’s rout was a much cleaner performance (literally) for both Eli and the line. If the running game can continue to balance out the offense and the line can continue to give Eli time, this offense is as potent as any in the league (including Green Bay).

This was a statement road win that without a doubt reasserts the Giants as the cream of the crop in the NFC. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Giants and Niners met again in the postseason. It’s a long season and it often takes time to figure out what type of your team you are going to be. When the Giants get that inevitable identity complex due to their stacked schedule later in the season, they can look back on Sunday’s dominant win and remember just how good they are capable of being.

Sports is pretty important to people – at least as evidenced by this photo…

That’s the scrum surrounding Nationals’ closer Drew Storen’s locker after the Cardinals came back to beat the Nats last night.  Storen is 25 years old and had just completed one of his worst outings of his career on the biggest stage he has ever pitched in. It can’t be easy to stand there and answer questions immediately following that loss. I know it’s part of the job but I give credit to Storen for standing up there, taking responsibility and answering every question.

Based on the faces of the reporters, you might think this is a matter of national security but in reality it’s just a closer fresh off a blown save he would love to forget. If nothing else, for good or bad, this film-noir like photo proves the prominence and relevance of sports in our culture.

How many jokes can you fit into 22 minutes? Someone must have posed that question to Tina Fey and the writers before this season started because they are shattering records. 30 Rock has always delivered an unbelievably high volume of jokes per episode, but right now it feels like everyone involved is at the top of their game. The first 2 episodes of this final season have been so hilarious that I’ve needed to pause the show while laughing to make sure I didn’t miss the next joke, which inevitably came when the next words were spoken.

The second episode,which aired on Thursday, even satirized the “politician looks too much like a cast member of your show” experience that Tina Fey knows all too well and it was a huge success. The jokes/physical actions with Governor Dunston were funny on their own, but layered on top of the normal Liz-Criss, Liz-Jack, Liz-Tracy lines made for an especially enjoyable episode.

As 30 Rock continues it’s farewell season, the guest stars are coming fast and furious. Bryan Cranston was a great reveal as Kenneth’s mom’s friend Ron… I just wish we got more of him.  Matthew Broderick reprised his role of Cooter Burger from Season 2 and was just as smitten with Jack and incompetent as I remember.

I honestly don’t know what I’m going to do when this show ends. I’ll probably go back and watch the early seasons on Netflix, even though I have done that numerous times during the show’s “off-seasons.” Everything it does works for me, whether its exploring how cartoon-ish it can be or simply just ripping on its own network, NBC. It’s the best comedy on TV and I’m going to make sure I enjoy every last second of this final season.

Last night’s Cardinals/Nationals game was a microcosm for the 2012 Divisional Round, complete with team’s fighting until the last strike, late lead-changes and crucial 10+ pitch battles between pitchers and hitters.  The Cardinals erased a 6-run deficit over the course of the game and a 4-run 9th inning secured their place in the NLCS for the 2nd straight year. All 4 series went 5 games and each Game 5 could have gone either way. The winning teams earned their champagne celebrations, while the losing teams no doubt had a bad taste in their mouth.

That bad taste must have been especially terrible for the Nationals.  After jumping out to an early 6-0 lead, they watched St. Louis chip away until the Cards got back to their old tricks and pulled off a historic comeback.  No team in MLB history had ever come back from a 6-run deficit in a winner-take-all game.  Fans at Nationals Park sat in their seats long after the game ended with their heads in their hands – in pure disbelief of what they had just seen.  Now the Nationals season is over and although they had a fantastic regular season and earned their franchises’ first playoff birth since 1981, the fans and team must turn their attention to next season.  An email season ticket holders received at 7 AM the next morning (about 7 hours after the game ended) didn’t make it easy for fans to turn the page.

World Series tickets!? Talk about rubbing salt in a fresh wound. The Nationals are going to be fine and may even make it to the World Series as soon as next season, but there’s no doubt it will take a little time to get over this loss. If you asked Nationals fans right now if they would rather be bad during the regular season and know they’re out of it or go out like they did this year, I think many would choose the slow death over last night’s surprise killing.  Before you win it all, teams usually go through this sort of experience it makes them extra motivated for next season.  I expect Washington to come back next year and be the favorites to win it all.  This year, they came up short to a team that knows it is never out of a game.

Give credit to the Cardinals organization because they lost their best player (who also happens to be the best player in the league) in Albert Pujols before the season, their iconic manager Tony La Russa before the season as well and they lost their shortstop Rafael Furcal to injury towards the end of this season, yet they continue to win.

The NLCS features two historic franchises in the Cards and the Giants while the ALCS has a rematch of last year’s ALDS between the Tigers and Yankees. This postseason has already been superb as is, but I definitely expect some more classic games with these match-ups.  The last two World Series’ winners squaring off on one side and the 27-time World Champs taking on the 1st Triple-Crown winner in 45 years on the other.  And oh yeah there’s the winner of the NL batting title Buster Posey and the reigning AL Cy Young and MVP winner Justin Verlander involved in these series as well.  Like I’ve said a number of times during this postseason, what more can a baseball fan ask for?

I have been listening to a lot of different types of music recently thanks to Pandora’s mega-shuffle feature (where you can shuffle songs from every station you have ever created).  In light of my recent musical diversity, I thought it would be a good idea to post a song every once in a while.

Today’s song… Apache by Incredible Bongo Band

The hook has been sampled many times – most famously by hip-hop creators The Sugar Hill Gang. I hadn’t heard any version of this song in years so I was especially surprised when it came up.  It’s a fantastic instrumental with an infectious bongo rhythm that I will be sure to keep in the rotation for the immediate future.  Great work Pandora.

First the Yankees and Raul Ibañez putting on a postseason performance for the ages – a Kirk Gibson like performance. He came in cold in the 9th to pinch-hit for Alex Rodriguez (the $29 million, #3 hitter) and belted a game-tying solo HR.  Then, 3 innings later, he outdid himself with a walk-off no doubter to secure a 2-1 series lead for the Yanks.  The Bronx was alive last night and it was  joy to watch.  Surprisingly, I even enjoyed Sterling’s call.

Along with A-Rod being out of the game at the time of all the heroics, Derek Jeter was no longer in the game either.  He left due to a bone bruise on his foot in the 9th.  More credit to the Yankees for coming through with their 2 most iconic players on the roster on the bench.  40 year-old Raul Ibañez is reminding me of another “older” Yankee postseason hero. The last time the Yankees won the World Series, Hideki Matsui (age 35) won World Series MVP. The Bombers have had their share of postseason memories and Wednesday’s is the latest highlight to add to that long reel.

Later in the evening, the walk-off magic continued in Oakland.  Trailing by 2 runs in the bottom of the 9th, the A’s tied the game with a Seth Smith 2-run double and won it on a Coco Crisp walk-off single.  It has been a special season for the A’s and it was fitting that they extended it in dramatic fashion.  Completing the series comeback and advancing to the ALCS will be no easy task with Justin Verlander on the hill for the Tigers in Game 5.  But crazier things have happened in sports and I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the A’s popping champagne with their fans on Thursday night.  I also wouldn’t be surprised if it happened in dramatic walk-off fashion.  It’s how they have done it all season, so why deviate from the formula in the postseason.

What a postseason it’s been so far and as I’m writing this Jayson Werth just hit a walk-off HR to force a Game 5 against the Cardinals.  Already 3 of the 4 series have gone 5 games and if the Orioles beat the Yankees tonight, all 4 will go the distance.  Every game has been entertaining, even the blowouts.  The close ones have been extra tight, littered with 10-pitch at bats and manager decisions to second guess.  The stakes are high and the players are answering the call.  Can’t ask for much more than that as a fan.  Maybe the league knew it was doing with this Wild Card and 2-3 format after all.

Would you spend years saving up enough money to buy a brand new, 80-inch LCD-3D TV and then decide to watch the Super Bowl on your old 42-inch plasma instead?  Neither would I, but that’s exactly what the Washington Nationals have decided to do with their ace Stephen Strasburg.  Well, not exactly but investing in the best possible talent out there and then deciding to put him on the bench when the stakes are highest is just as asinine as the television scenario.

The Nationals had their best season since moving to Washington and made the playoffs for the 1st time since 1982 (when they were the Montreal Expos).  Yet, after today’s loss to the defending World Champion Cardinals, the Nats will be faced with a must-win game Game 4 on Thursday.  In elimination games, teams usually turn to their best pitcher.  Strasburg is well-rested and hasn’t pitched since September 7, but since GM Mike Rizzo shut down Strasburg a month ago, Ross Detwiler will start Game 4 tomorrow instead.

I understand that the team did not want to overuse Strasburg in his first full season back after having Tommy John surgery.  I also understand investing in the future, but the future is now in D.C. and there is absolutely no excuse for not having Strasburg available for the playoffs.  If they knew that he was going to be on an innings limit this season (which they did), then they should have delayed the start of his season.  Another viable option would have been to shut him down in August, keep him on a throwing program and allow him to use those last innings of the limit in the postseason.

I also find it very hard to believe that Strasburg pitching 2-3 postseason games would cause any damage to him in the future.  He is at just as much risk for an injury now as he is any other time he takes the mound.  His absence also leaves a big, inescapable “what-if” hanging over the entire series.  The fans know it and the players know it – an unknown Nats player said after Game 2 that the Nationals would be up 2-0 in the series if Strasburg was on the roster.  Why put yourself in this situation and make such distractions a possibility?

Shutting Strasburg down has severely diminished the Nats’ chances of accomplishing the goals they laid out at the beginning of the season.  The joy from the 1st postseason game in Washington D.C. since 1933 has quickly become panic with the realization that the Nats could be eliminated on Thursday with their ace in their back pocket.  Give credit to the Nationals for a great regular season and for putting together a roster of good, young, home-grown talent.  They definitely deserve to be in the postseason – it’ just sad that they are not using all of that roster to ensure they advance beyond the NLDS.  How long before you take the new, expensive toy out of the box and begin to reap the benefits of your purchase?

The 1st ever Wild Card one-game playoffs are in the books and it’s safe to say that the inaugural NL Wild Card game will be one that is remembered for a long time, especially in Atlanta. Baseball has a little bit of a problem on its hands in my opinion. In an effort to create the excitement of do-or-die elimination games every season, I’m afraid that the league has severely diminished its 162-game season.

Here’s what I like about the new Wild Card format:  It rewards division winners by giving them a couple extra days off while the Wild Card teams play a one-game playoff. It also forces the Wild Card teams to use their best starter in their do-or-die game, leaving the 2nd best starter to go up against the Division winners in Game 1 of the Division Series. After a 162-game season, this makes sense to reward the teams who excelled the most over those long 5 months.

However, the same thing that I like about the new Wild Card format is also the thing that I don’t like. Under this new format, four teams’ 162-game, 5 month-long seasons come down to one game. Why play 162 games just to settle the final playoff spot with 1 game? These Wild Card teams, which are one of the top 5 teams in their league, are at a severe disadvantage and it undermines the integrity of the league to play such a long season and then eliminate 2 teams after 1 game (or .6% of the season).

In time, I’ll get used to it and the new Wild Card format is fantastic for the fans. As a fan, I appreciate drama that comes with win or go home situations. However, I did have a bad taste in my mouth after watching the Wild Card games yesterday. That also might have something to do with the controversial call that played a huge part in the outcome of the Cardinals/Braves game. The operative word in the rule applied to this play is “infield,” and to me that play clearly took place in the outfield. The infield fly rule is in place to prevent fielders from intentionally dropping pop ups in order to set up double plays. I understand that the rule can be applied to outfielders but in this specific case short stop Pete Kozma had no intention of dropping a pop up to set up a double play. He made an error while trying to field a shallow fly ball and the miscommunication caused the ball to fall. The Braves should have had bases loaded and the error should have been charged to Kozma.

If the rule is a judgment call made by an umpire, than the umpire should have used his judgment to realize that Kozma was trying to catch this ball and was not “under control” as fielders usually are when the call is made. Secondly, this play took place in the outfield. I doubt the writers of the infield fly rule intended for it be called clearly in the outfield.  

If an outfielder is able to make a play on a fly ball/pop-up, which Holliday was in position to do in this case, then the infield fly rule should not be called. Let’s say the ball was hit to shallow left center field (same depth as the play in the question) and it’s the left-fielder and center-fielder who have a miscommunication over a ball that one or both could have easily caught. Is the infield fly rule applied here? We’ve seen that before and the infield fly rule is never applied in this situation, even though the rule book states that the infield fly rule applies to infielders and outfielders (presumably in shallow outfield). The fact that an infielder traveled into the outfield to try and make a play does not grant him the security of the infield fly rule. Finally, even if the umpire’s controversial call was correct based on the rules as written, then I believe we should change the rules. In my opinion, what happened in the 8th inning last night was in no way the infield fly rule.

I feel the Braves got rooked on this particular play and it’s unfortunate that the call can not be protested, which manager Fredi Gonzalez tried to do. Atlanta still trailed by 3 runs and there was no guaranteeing they would come back, but this poor call certainly hindered their chances. Furthermore, it created the worst situation for fans: “the what could have been had the call been made correctly” feeling. However, that does not excuse the fans classless act of littering the field with debris.

The Braves did not hit well with runners in scoring position and they uncharacteristically committed 3 errors after committing the fewest errors in the NL during the regular season. Just goes to show you the craziness and randomness (both by the umpires and the player’s execution) that can ensue in a one-game playoff. Ultimately, the Braves did not perform like they needed to throughout the game and although they were 6 games better than the Cardinals over the 162-game season, they were worse than them last night – and with the MLB’s new Wild Card format, that is all that matters.

Every little boy dreams of playing major league baseball.  Very few get to live out that dream.  3 pitches is all Adam Greenberg saw in what will be his only official MLB at bat on Tuesday.  They were all knuckleballs thrown by a Cy Young candidate in the final start of a storybook season and they were all strikes.  That doesn’t sound like how the fantasy usually goes for little leaguers but those 30 seconds were everything Greenberg could have dreamed of and more.

Greenberg grew up in Guilford, Connecticut and was a high school sports standout.  He was a 4-year letterman in baseball, basketball and soccer and was even named Connecticut male athlete of the year in 1998-1999.  He went on to play collegiate baseball at the University of North Carolina and won ACC Rookie of the Year.  As a junior, he hit .337 with 17 HR, stole 35 bases and scored 80 runs en route to being named to the All-Conference team.  His impressive college numbers caught the attention of the Chicago Cubs, who drafted him in the 9th round of the 2002 MLB draft.

Greenberg’s baseball future was bright and and after 3 seasons in the minor leagues, he got the call to the majors on July 7, 2005.  In the 9th inning of a nationally televised Sunday Night Baseball game, Greenberg walked up to the plate to make his major league debut.  Batting left-handed, he stood in the box eager to see his first major league fastball.  Marlins left-handed pitcher Valerio de los Santos wound up and threw a 92 mph fastball that hit Greenberg square in the back of the head.  Greenberg was able to turn his head just enough so that the ball avoided his face, but it struck him directly on the back of the helmet and he fell to the ground.  He suffered a minor concussion and was immediately removed from the game.  It was not an easy replay to watch.  De los Santos later said “The first thing going through your mind is, ‘This guy’s dead,'”

After a few weeks of rehab, Greenberg tried to return to the minor leagues and of course hoped to eventually return to the majors.  He continued to suffer severe headaches and realized that the effects of getting hit by a pitch in the head had not yet faded.  After bouncing around the minors for a couple of years in a couple of different organizations, Greenberg played in an Independent League until 2011 – excelling and even leading the Independent League team in triples, walks and stolen bases.  He also faced de los Santos again in that Independent League – coming full circle in his career.

Greenberg’s story was far from over though. Matt Liston, a filmmaker in California and a Cubs fan, remembered Greenberg and his place in baseball history as 1 of 2 major leaguers to get hit by a pitch in their only plate appearance without playing in the field.  Liston started a campaign to get Greenberg one major league at bat.  (Getting hit by a pitch, like Greenberg did, counts only as a plate appearance and not an at bat).  It quickly gained steam and the Marlins signed Greenberg to a one-day contract.

Tuesday, he got his at-bat against the Mets right-hander R.A. Dickey.  Dickey was the perfect supporting cast member to be a part of this uplifting story.  His narrative is an unprecedented one of patience and perseverance that rivals Greenberg’s.  He also happens to be one of the nicest, smartest and well-spoken players in the league – like Greenberg.  Dickey treated him like a big leaguer because Greenberg earned that respect.  Unfortunately for Greenberg, not many big leaguers have been able to hit that knuckle ball this year as evidenced by the fact that Dickey leads the NL in strikeouts.

The outcome of his at bat doesn’t matter all that much.  His will to continue playing baseball and determination to achieve his goal of getting back to the big leagues inspired millions.  After striking out to a standing ovation, he sat down in the dugout next to Marlins hitting coach Eduardo Perez.  Perez, who has been around the game for his entire life, told him that he had never experienced anything like what he just witnessed.  It was a special moment that made a meaningless October game the talk of the sports world.

Greenberg will donate his paycheck of $2,623 to an organization that researches brain trauma in athletes.  He will have a Topps baseball card and finish his MLB career with .500 on base percentage.  He fulfilled his dream and overcame extreme adversity that stemmed from nothing else but sheer bad luck.  His story will continue to inspire and when any kid asks him what it’s like to play in the majors, he will be able to give a first-hand account.  You can bet it will be the first time that those kids hear a story about a ballplayer who was such an inspiration that he received a standing ovation after striking out on 3 pitches.

The end of Monday’s Packers/Seahawks game was unlike anything I had ever seen in sports.  Aside from being a great finish, it was everyone’s biggest fear with the replacement refs coming to a head.  It also yielded 2 of the most must-see sports hours in recent memory.  Sportscenter received a 4.5 rating (it’s highest rating in 17 years) at midnight on a Monday night and they only talked about one play.  Everyone craved post game comments, reaction and needed to share in the unbelievable finish that had just occurred.  It also really felt like anything could be said by the players after that game.

Twitter was an entirely different outlet that became must-see in the 2 hours following the outcome of the game.  I watched the game by myself, but after reading twitter, I had already heard the opinions of an entire nation.  From bad gambling beats to snarky replacement refs jokes to clever memes and images that summed up the evening’s events.

The replacement era was a disaster and although they were doing the best they could, it was not good enough.  The league was going down a bad path – an unsustainable path that was doing the impossible and making the NFL not that fun to watch.  Everything was exposed Monday night (also on Sunday night as some questionable calls prompted the loudest “bullshit” chants I’ve ever heard) and the problem needed to be solved immediately.

I will miss the replacement ref era because it was entertaining but I’m also grateful that the games will be back to normal and the outcomes will be decided by the players.  The chaos surrounding the replacement refs and the clear lack of control they had on the field did make the NFL feel like the WWE or possibly what Vince McMahon envisioned for the XFL – and that was entertaining.   In the end though, I’d rather be entertained by the players and outcomes of games and not by the refs. This week when I watch football, for a second or two, I will miss the “on-edge, anything can happen” feeling the replacement refs brought.  Then when I see the games back under control and players focused solely on their responsibilities, I’ll remember what makes the NFL so great in the first place.