I normally love NFL Draft Weekend, but this year's draft has just been odd.  While I love the idea of cutting the first round picks down from 15 to 10 minutes (cuts the first round down from around 8 hours to 5 1/2), starting the draft at 3 P.M. ET (instead of Noon ET) and only completing two rounds on the first day just seem awkward.  This means they have five more rounds to complete tomorrow, which I usually find more interesting because that's where teams are built for the long-haul of the NFL season.

As for my take on the first day of the 2008 draft:

• Atlanta got a good deal getting QB Matt Ryan at #3 overall.  The guy accomplished a whole lot with almost nothing around him at the skill positions while playing at BC, and he definitely should have more to work with at the pro level.
• Jacksonville clearly seemed to reach for Florida DE Derrick Harvey.  I really don't think he's going to be worth the two third rounders and the fifth rounder he cost them.
• I was surprised to see Carolina pick Oregon RB Jonathan Stewart at #13.  I know they needed a RB after losing Foster, but they also had other needs that could have been addressed at this spot.
• Baltimore played the yo-yo team this year, moving down 18 spots in their trade with Jacksonville, and them back up 8 spots to #18 to pick QB Joe Flacco of Deleware (and formerly Pitt).  Looking at how things played out, he probably would have been there for them at #26.  However, they have a record of moving up for mediocre QBs (say hello to Kyle Boller, Joe).
• The Steelers selected a solid RB in Rashard Mendenhall of Illinois with their first round pick, and then followed that up with big WR Limas Sweed of Texas in the second round.  They're good picks, but seem out of character for the team, especially when their most pressing need appears to be the offensive line.
• Five teams (Cleveland, Green Bay, Philadelphia, Washington and Indianapolis) traded out of the first round altogether.  I'm not sure if that's indicative of the quality of the draft class, the depth of the draft class, or the needs of each team.  We won't know that answer for a few more years, but I'm pretty sure that number has to be some kind of record.
• The "experts" and the teams didn't seem to see eye-to-eye much beyond the first ten picks in the draft this year.  There's a lot of predicted first rounders who fell into the second round or are still on the board.  For example, Limas Sweed was predicted to be the first or second wide reciever picked on the day, when he ended up being the ninth wideout picked at #53 overall.

There's still a lot of draft to go, and the remaining five rounds will likely have as much or more impact on their teams as the picks of these first two rounds.

Nope, not because they've been playing games for over three weeks now.

It's because I finally found the time to watch Major League last night! Ah, how that makes me pine to have more announcers like Bob Uecker (as opposed to the likes of Joe Morgan or Tim McCarver, who announce the game with all the grace of Lennie from Of Mice And Men).

But one of the best lines came from the DVD extras, when Chelcie Ross (who played aging pitcher Eddie Harris), spoke to Uecker at one point during the filming, who asked "Was that you down there hurling? Absolutely inspirational! It made me want to hurl myself."

Play ball!

Well, we've come to the end of another curling season at the Pittsburgh Culring Club, and after 15 weeks of ladder play and two weeks of playoffs, I'm pleased to say that my team managed to come out as White Division Champions!

Thanks to everyone at the club for a great season, and I'm already looking forward to next year's season!

So, Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Spectre seems intent on wasting more of Congress' time and taxpayer money into figuring out why the NFL destroyed the "Spygate" videos.  I mean, it couldn't be as simple as not wanting other teams to be able to get their hands on them as well to the expense of the Jets.  Nope, they had to be trying to cover something up.  Instead, he has to take a vendetta on behalf of Steelers and Eagles fans (who, by the way, don't particularly care any more) to take down the Patriots and the league.

Glad to see that our government is taking the time to focus on the big issues instead of getting into issues like Spygate and Roger Clemens' performance enhancing drug use...

As a Pitt alum, I just have to say that current football coach, Dave Wannstedt, who has never done anything but make teams worse, needs to be fired (as others seem to agree).  Since he was hired, I have done my duty to help the team improve by cheering against them in every game, as a loss means one step closer to hiring a real coach.  I will continue this until he is fired.

Oh, and Steve Pederson will be on my bad list too, even though he's only been on the job for a day.  He reportedly wants to give Wannstedt a 3-year extension to ensure that the team will remain uncompetitive into the next decade.

For all the talk about improving Pitt athletics, they sure aren't taking any steps to get it done!

Well, after a 3 year hiatus, I've rejoined the Pittsburgh Curling Club!  I'm very glad  to be back and playing, and seeing many familiar faces as well.  Technically, this is old news, as we're already 5 matches into the season, but I hadn't written about it yet, so I thought I'd let y'all know.

In our league, I'm with a group of relatively inexperienced curlers, so we're struggling a little bit.  However, I did get to spare in a few matches this past Saturday and I was reminded that I can throw some nice stones still.

Hopefully I'll get a chance to hit up some bonspiels in the coming year.  It's always fun to meet curlers from other areas (and get a chance to curl on some real curling ice instead of converted hockey ice).

Anyway, if you're interested in curling and live in the Pittsburgh area, feel free to contact the club on their site listed above.  It doesn't matter if you haven't played before, as they'll arrange a session for you to come an learn.  Plus, the leagues almost always need subs, so you could even get into some competition relatively quickly.  So drop them a line and tell them Greg sent you!

In a game that was closer than I expected, I was very relieved to see the Pats walk away with the win.  It really looked like the cards were stacked against them, with the Colts playing well defensively at home and the refs making a number of questionable calls and no-calls (the major one being the long pass interference call that gave the Colts their second touchdown of the game).  In the end, the Pats were able to overcome all them.

But I came away very impressed with Joseph Addai.  If it weren't for his ball skills, the Colts wouldn't have even been in the game.  He could be good in the Marshall Faulk role for a number of years for the Colts.  Hopefully Belichick will be a little more prepared for his role next time around.

Yes, I'm two days late in posting this, but I've been busy relishing the second World Series Championship in four seasons by the Boston Red Sox. Good times to be a fan of the New England teams!

Congrats boys! You just completed one of the most dominant seasons in Red Sox history!

Oh yea, and I hope that those pricks Boras and A-Rod pay for trying to piss all over one of the biggest moments of the baseball season, as well as Fox for actually dealing with it there and not just ignoring it until later.

Boy was that a tough game to take...felt like getting punched in the gut, especially after getting the big lead early. As good as the Patriots played in the first half, they played that bad in the second.

Now I've got to hope that they address some of their problems this off-season, like linebacker and secondary depth. I'm sure the two first-round picks will help (thanks Seattle...how's that workin' out for ya?).

All in all, it was pretty amazing that they went 12-4 anyway, and then beat two solid teams to just get to the AFC Championship. It's a testament to how well coached the team is and how committed it's players are. Hopefully, they'll be right there again next year with a few extra weapons!

Well, that was pathetic. Tressel has been a good coach at OSU, but he got completely outcoached by Urban Meyer today. There really wasn't a big talent gap between the two teams, but Florida looked confident and the Buckeyes looked confused.

That was one of the most frustrating games I've watched in a while. I'm used to being on the winning side of those ourcoaching situations, thanks to Belichick and my Pats. It sucks to be on the other side and see your coach making all the wrong moves, like they were posessed by Herm Edwards.

Pathetic...