Battlefield Bracket Challenge Voting Underway

Bracket Selection is now open, vote for Team 28 Guns!

Marshall Faulk is part of the ongoing Battlefield Bracket Challenge Presented by GameStop. Team Faulk has professional gamers BESTMAN & SK playing on his celebrity squad. Team 28 Guns will be taking on Team Can't Be Faded in the first round.

Professional players will play Battlefield: Bad Company 2 on behalf of the 16 celebrity teams in the “Squad Rush” multiplayer mode, which is the special 30-day GameStop pre-order exclusive. The winning celebrity team will receive a prize of $25,000 to donate to a charity of their choice. Consumers nationwide can fill out tournament brackets online at www.gamestop.com/battlefieldbc2 from February 18 to March 4. GameStop will award random winners with prizes, such as GameStop gift cards throughout the contest period, as well as the grand prize of $10,000.

Watch Videos from the event:

Chad Ochocinco Playing Battlefield Bad Company 2 - Squad Rush Gameplay

Chad Ochocinco and Hal Sparks Playing Battlefield Bad Company 2 - Squad Rush Gameplay

Chad Ochocinco, Greg Grunberg and Perez Hilton at Battlefield Bad Company 2 Launch Party

Tristan Wilds Playing Battlefield Bad Company 2 - Squad Rush Mode Gameplay

DeSean Jackson and Matt Lanter Playing Battlefield Bad Company 2 - Squad Rush Gameplay

Faulk in GameStop Battlefield Bracket Challenge

Marshall Faulk is part of the ongoing Battlefield Bracket Challenge Presented by GameStop. Team Faulk has professional gamers BESTMAN & SK playing for his celebrity squad. Team Faulk with be taking on Team Berto (Professional Boxer Andre Berto) in the first round.

Professional players will play Battlefield: Bad Company 2 on behalf of the 16 celebrity teams in the “Squad Rush” multiplayer mode, which is the special 30-day GameStop pre-order exclusive. The winning celebrity team will receive a prize of $25,000 to donate to a charity of their choice. Consumers nationwide can fill out tournament brackets online at www.gamestop.com/battlefieldbc2 from February 18 to March 4. GameStop will award random winners with prizes, such as GameStop gift cards throughout the contest period, as well as the grand prize of $10,000.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is one of the most highly anticipated games of 2010, and will take the online warfare experience to a spectacular new level. Featuring the evolution of DICE's celebrated Frostbite engine, the game delivers intense game play with vehicular warfare, destruction, a variety of weapons and huge, highly detailed sandbox environments. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 will be available in stores on March 2, 2010, in North America for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and the PC. The Limited Edition can be pre-ordered now on all platforms at no extra cost (while supplies last).

The Week After aka The Worst Sunday Ever

Well this is it, the worst Sunday of the year is here. With the ending of Super Bowl XLIV the 2009 NFL season is over. So now what? Normally we would all be awake early this Sunday morning pumped up for some football. If your team is playing a home game you may be up as early as 5AM packing up food and drink and getting ready to head out to your favorite tailgate party spot. If your team is on the road no worries it is time to get up and watch NFL Network, followed by some ESPN GameDay, and possibly some Fox Pregame with good ole boy Terry Bradshaw before your squad takes the field. Your biggest concern is are the wings defrausted and is the beer cold?

Well that was then and this is now, the first Sunday after the season, also known as the worst sunday of the year. To compound matters the cruel trick of this being Valentine's Day is really like a kick to the groin. As fate would have it we can't even sleep in, we have new honey do lists, and a romantic day to plan. I ask the football Gods how can this be?

I have to blame someone on a day like this, so I have selected Roger Goodell for my wrath. Roger I don't care about the NFL Pro Bowl but how could you move it in front of the Super Bowl? We have all lost our buffer which was the Pro Bowl after the Super Bowl, another week to see our stars and imagine how great next season will be. Way to go Roger!

We now all face six LONG months without NFL football. Well never fear, as all true NFL fans know the NFL season is never over. The NFL Scouting Combine will be starting next Wednesday February 24th in Indianapolis. Over three hundred of the very best college football players will be on NFL Network all day long everyday for a week. This will quickly be followed by the start of free agency. The free agent period will lead to the 2010 NFL Draft in late April. From there we will wait for our teams to sign the newly signed stars and have some OTAs. This is a great time to start getting your 2010 fantasy football draft plans in place. From there we will head into training camp in late July followed closely by preseason football in early August. Can't you almost smell the brautwurst cooking already, I can!

2009 Rams Draft - A Look Back

Jason Smith - Jason Smith appeared to be a project to start with and still may be going into the 2010 season. Jason played in eight games in 2009, starting in five of them. Jason still appears to be more suited to play RT than LT, he is also still way better at run blocking than pass blocking.

James Laurinaitis - James was a great pick right out of the box. James filled a huge need at MLB. Laurinaitis started all 16 games and was outstanding. Laurinaitis made 120 tackles had two sacks a forced fumble and two interceptions. James needs some better cover skills but other than that he had a great year. Laurinaitis fell to the Rams as did Rey Maualuga, looks like the Rams made the better choice here.

Bradley Fletcher - With the surprising release of Tye Hill Fletcher got an early chance to play. Fletcher played in seven games and started in 3. Bradley was having his best game of the year against Indianapolis when he was injured. Bradley suffered two torn ligaments in his right knee and missed the final nine games of the 2009 season. Fletcher will try to return by 2010 training camp after recovering from a couple of knee surgeries.

Dorell Scott - Dorell did not get much playing time in preseason. Late in the season coach Steve Spagnuolo gave some of the younger players more oppurtunities and Scott made the most of it. Dorell started five of the last 6 games the Rams played recording 18 tackles and playing very well inside. I would love to see the Rams draft offensive weapons in the upcoming 2010 NFL Draft, and continue to develop Clifton Ryan and Dorell Scott inside.

Foster Brooks - A preseason injury to Foster Brooks sidelined him for the whole 2009 NFL season. Brooks suffered a serious ankle injury against the Jets requiring surgery. While Foster is a great athlete I still do not understand drafting the 3rd best receiver on the North Carolina Tar Heels. As a senior Brooks only caught 30 passes and in 2007 Brooks did not start in any game. Brooks will most likely have a hard time making the 2010 Rams roster.

Keith Null - With the injury to Marc Bulger and Kyle Boller's lack of production along with the Rams terrible record Keith Null was pressed into service. For a late round draft pick from West Texas A&M, it is pretty impressive that Keith could do as well as he did. By NFL standards he failed but he did not seem overwhelmed by being in the NFL which is a great sign. Keith completed 73 of 119 passes for 566 yards, including 3 TDs and 9 interceptions for a QB rating of 49.9. Keith probably did enough to earn his way onto the 2010 Rams.

Chris Ogbonnaya - Chris had a hard time making the Rams squad bouncing between being cut and being on the practice squad. Ogbonnaya was finally given a chance and promoted to the active roster on November 28, 2009. Chris was on the Rams active roster from week 12 through the end of the season. Chris was able to get into two games were he had 11 carries for 50 yards and one reception for 19 yards. Steven Jackson spoke highly of Chris several times about his work ethic. With the lack of backup running backs on the Rams Chris will have a chance to once again be on the roster in 2010.

Super Bowl XLIV Prediction Contest Winner

Congratulations to DeRon Strickland for winning our Super Bowl XLIV Prediction contest. As the winner of the Super Bowl XLIV Prediction contest DeRon has won the Hughes Sports Publications 2010 Draft Notebook. The 2010 Draft Notebook includes over 1,000 of the best prospects for the 2010 draft, listed by position, graded by ability, with their real heights, weights, 40 times, and what round each man should be taken. It also contains write-ups on the top 300 players.

Way to go DeRon!

Our Final Weekly Wup Ass Award

We have granted our last Weekly Wup Ass Award of the 2009 NFL season. Click HERE to find out who won it!

Odds to win the 2011 Super Bowl XLV

You have to love Las Vegas. One day after the biggest betting day of the year Las Vegas has released their Odds to win Super Bowl XLV. Numbers below courtesy of Bodog.

Indianapolis Colts - 13/2
San Diego Chargers - 8/1
New England Patriots - 10/1
New Orleans Saints - 10/1
Pittsburgh Steelers - 11/1
Dallas Cowboys - 12/1
Green Bay Packers - 12/1
Minnesota Vikings - 12/1
Philadelphia Eagles - 16/1
Baltimore Ravens - 20/1
New York Giants - 20/1
New York Jets - 25/1
Tennessee Titans - 25/1
Atlanta Falcons -30/1
Cincinnati Bengals - 30/1
Arizona Cardinals - 35/1
Chicago Bears - 35/1
Houston Texans - 35/1
Carolina Panthers - 40/1
Miami Dolphins - 45/1
San Francisco 49ers - 45/1
Seattle Seahawks - 45/1
Denver Broncos - 50/1
Jacksonville Jaguars - 50/1
Washington Redskins - 50/1
Buffalo Bills - 100/1
Cleveland Browns - 100/1
Detroit Lions - 100/1
Kansas City Chiefs - 100/1
Oakland Raiders - 100/1
St. Louis Rams - 100/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers -100/1

Indianapolis Colts Doomed By Four Plays

The New Orleans Saints may have won Super Bowl XLIV 31-17 Sunday in Miami Florida but the game was much closer than the score would indicate. Most NFL games come down to turnovers and execution and this game was no different. I have broken down this Super Bowl game into just four plays. These four plays alone were the doom of the Indianapolis Colts on this day.

In the 2nd Quarter with the Colts up 10-3 they completed a 1st down pass to Joesph Addai for 9 yards, I believe Addai made a first down on the play but it was marked just shy. On 2nd down the Colts lost 3 yards. This set up the first of our crucial plays, a pass down the middle to Pierre Garcon was dropped. Garcon was wide open on a crossing pattern and Peyton Manning hit him right in the hands while at full speed. Garcon had the first down and would have been well into Saints territory. If the Colts go up 13-3 or 17-3 on this drive I believe the Saints are in big trouble.

Late in the 2nd Quarter with the Colts still up 10-3. The Colts have 3rd and 1 with 51 seconds to play in the first half. A first down here and the Colts go into the locker room up 10-3. After the Saints call timeout the Colts handoff to Mike Hart for no gain and the Colts are forced to punt. The Saints get a field goal to end the first half of play with the score 10-6. Mike Hart had a total of 26 carries for 70 yards the ENTIRE season! This was a very conservative and surprising play call by the Colts and it cost them.

Perhaps the biggest play of the game was the onsides kickoff by the New Orleans Saints to start the 3rd quarter with the Colts up 10-6. First I would like to point out the balls it took Sean Payton to plan for and actually call for this kick to start the 2nd half. According to the NFL this marked the first time a team attempted an offside kick before the fourth quarter of a Super Bowl. Even with the balls this play was all about execution or lack there of in this case. Everyone credits Thomas Morstead with a great kick but it actually went to almost the 45 before touched so the Colts should have recovered. The lack of execution was all Hank Baskett who let the ball bounce twice before attempting to dive on it. Not only did he miss the ball he knocked it forward into a pile of awaiting Saints players and also failed to dig the ball out when it was laying right next to Chris Reis. I bet Hank holds on to Kendra Wilkinson better than that.

The Colts still had a chance in the 4th quarter with the Saints up 24-17. The Colts faced a 3rd and 5 from the Saints 31 yard line with 3:29 left to play. Coming out of a time out Manning gets picked off by Tracy Porter who returns it for six. On the play instead of running a slant or a crossing pattern which is almost unstoppable with Peyton's accuracy the Colts had Reggie Wayne basically run a 5 yard stop. Wayne who did not have one of his better games was slow to the ball and made no effort to wall off Porter. I am still not sure if Wayne was supposed to settle or drift over on that play, either way it was the final dagger through the Colts heart.

For those of you that have chosen to label Peyton Manning a choke artist you have no idea what you are talking about. Peyton is 9-9 in the playoffs and has won a Super Bowl. You must be the same people that believe Dan Marino is not a top QB because he never won a Super Bowl. In closing I would also like to point out that Peyton is know for calling about 90% of their plays. Two of the worst plays in the game for the Colts happened after timeouts when out of character they ran the ball with Mike Hart and the short stationary pass to Wayne. Did Peyton call those plays, we may never know.

Super Bowl XLIV Prediction Contest

Welcome to our first St. Louis Rams Fan Contest

Please send your Super Bowl XLIV Predictions to me stlvinnie@yahoo.com before the game begins. The winner will be the one that comes closest to predicting the final score of the game, along with selecting the winning team. If your score is higher or lower than the actual score it counts the same. Example you select Colts 35 Saints 20 and the final score is Colts 20 Saints 17 than you are 18 points off. In the event of a tie those contestants will have their names placed in a hat and the winner will be drawn from there.

The Prize - As the winner of the Super Bowl XLIV Prediction contest you will win the Hughes Sports Publications 2010 Draft Notebook. The 2010 Draft Notebook includes over 1,000 of the best prospects for the 2010 draft, listed by position, graded by ability, with their real heights, weights, 40 times, and what round each man should be taken. It also contains write-ups on the top 300 players.

Winner will be contacted by email by Monday evening. Good Luck!

Super Bowl XLIV Prediction - The Simple Truth

Well the fourteen day wait for the most overhyped sporting event in America is almost over. Super Bowl XLIV between the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts is only hours away. Earlier in the week we took a look at a ton of stats and comparisons between the two teams in our comparison article. As we draw closer to kickoff you can throw all the stats out the window. This game like every other will start tied at zero and one team will need to outplay the other on that given day to win. Who will win Super Bowl XLIV? Without going over the stats ad nauseam again, I am simply going to break down what I see as the keys to this upcoming Super Bowl.

First I like to say that is just Peyton Manning being Peyton Manning. What does that mean? Well it means he is simply the best. He dominates every football game he plays in. Peyton seems to know what all 22 players on each play are going to do. In addition to that even if you have perfect coverage on a Colts receiver he can place the ball with robot like accuracy for a completion. Peyton just won his fourth NFL MVP to go along with his Super Bowl MVP, 10 Pro Bowl selections and 50,000+ career passing yards. No matter how good your team is only the Indianapolis Colts have Peyton Manning.

Secondly the New Orleans Saints secondary is going to be burnt. The Saints were 26th against the pass during the regular season and even though they beat the Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings in the playoffs the Cardinals did complete 67% of their passes and Brett Favre passed for over 300 yards. The Minnesota Vikings dominated the Conference Championship game and simply lost from turning the ball over. The sure handed Colts receiving core and accuracy of Peyton Manning should move the ball at will against the New Orleans Saints.

Thirdly the Indianapolis Colts play nearly perfect football. The Colts simply do not beat themselves. The Indianapolis Colts won 23 straight regular season games in a row prior to pulling players in week 15 of the 2009 season against the New York Jets. 23 straight games! I don't think people understand how hard it is to win 23 straight games in the NFL, that does not happen by accident. The Indianapolis Colts Peyton Manning was only sacked 10 times during the season. Manning only threw 16 interceptions on almost 600 passing attempts, and the Colts lost only 5 fumbles. Simply put the Colts are a machine that you have to beat with a better machine because they will hand you nothing.

As I have read and analyzed this upcoming game more and more I am getting a feeling that the New Orleans Saints should win this game, however an NFL football game is not about numbers and stats it is about what actually happens on the field on Sundays. The Colts have possibly the best quarterback to ever play football and they win the close games and have been here before. No matter how many stats point me towards the Saints I just can't do it. I hope the Colts put up a point for every time I am forced to hear someone say Who Dat! The phrase for one can be considered racists due to its background, and for another is there anything more hoosier than listening to someone saying it. So I leave you with this, Who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints? The Indianapolis Colts are going to beat those Saints, that's who!

Super Bowl XLIV Prediction

Indianapolis Colts 34 - New Orleans Saints 24

NFL Draft Trade Chart Value Calculator

With the 2010 NFL Draft just around the corner many believe it is a no brainer that the St. Louis Rams will draft Ndamukong Suh, DT out of Nebraska.. However since the Rams are holding all of the cards they should hear quite a lot of trade offers from other teams that may want to move up to take Suh, or the player of their choice. So what is Ndamukong Suh worth? The NFL draft trade value chart is used by all of the NFL teams when trying to determine fair trade value. You can see the #1 overall pick of the draft is considered quite valuable. Just trading down to #3 with Tampa Bay should garner the Rams an extra 1st round pick. The questions is should or will the St. Louis Rams trade their #1 pick in the upcoming 2010 NFL Draft. We have to wait until April 22nd to find out.

Super Bowl Squares Odds

Sure everyone loves to watch the Super Bowl, the Super Bowl commercials and to buy Super Bowl squares. The day comes when the person in charge picks the numbers to fill out the squares and you hope that this is the year you get the "good" numbers. Well below is the information you are looking for, your odds of actually winning a square. Hopefully you have a 7 and a 0, and even then you have to have those numbers connected to the correct team. The numbers below are from the past four years (consists of all 1,067 regular season and postseason games from 2006-07 and through the 2010 playoffs, Good luck to all you are going to need it.

Super Bowl XLIV Team Comparisons

With Super Bowl XLIV only five days away many of you are working on your Super Bowl betting. I will post my preview and prediction for Super Bowl XLIV later this week, for now maybe my strengths and weaknesses will help you make some Super Bowl betting decisions.

Indianapolis Colts

Offense

Strengths - Clearly Peyton Manning is the top strength of the Indianapolis Colts. Peyton is clearly one of the best quarterbacks in the history of the NFL. Peyton just won his fourth NFL MVP to go along with his Super Bowl MVP, 10 Pro Bowl selections and 50,000+ career passing yards. Peyton Manning keeps the Colts in every single game and is the clear reason they win many of their contests. Manning single handedly dictates everything in an NFL game, not only does he call most of the plays, but he also dictates the pace of the other teams offense because most teams want to play keep away from him. The Colts are very methodical on offense and are hard to stop as they converted a league high 49% on 3rd down during the season. The Colts receiving core features some of the best hands in the league. Wayne, Clark, Garcon, and Collie combined for 31 touchdown receptions during the season. The Indianapolis Colts play very smart and do not hurt themselves, they were 7-0 in games decided by 7 points or less. Peyton Manning was only sacked 10 times during the regular season. In addition the Colts were 31st in penalties and penalty yards, and they only lost 5 fumbles. Simply put to beat the Colts you have to outscore them because they are going to put up 24+ points no matter what you do.

Weaknesses - The Colts were dead last in the NFL in rushing yardage. This led directly to the Colts finishing 31st in time of possesion. Joseph Addai and Donald Brown combined for only a 3.7 yards per carry average. The Colts have allowed Peyton Manning to be sacked four times in the playoffs but that is still only twice per contest. Clearly the Colts greatest offensive weakness is if they have to play their backup quarterback Curtis Painter.

Defense

Strengths - The Colts defense is lightning quick. I love the stat that they were 18th in yardage allowed but 8th in points allowed. This means they bend but don't break and will take the ball away from you as well. The Colts had 34 sacks led by speed rushers Mathis and Freeney. The Colts keep everything in front of them and play great team defense, and are outstanding on artificial turf.

Weaknesses - The Colts managed to win 23 straight regular season games without safety Bob Sanders, but I still think it is a weakness that they will be playing without the heart and soul of their defense. The Colts also have one of the smallest if not the smallest defenses in the NFL. During the playoffs the Colts pass rush has been anemic recording only 1 sack, and this is further troubling with the fact that Dwight Freeney has a serious ankle injury. The Colts defense may not break but it does bend allowing opponents to convert 45% of the time on 3rd down, dead last in the NFL.

New Orleans Saints

Offense

Strengths - The Saints simply had the best offense in the NFL in 2009. The Saints racked up an amazing 6461 total yards which was tops in the NFL, and helped them to a league leading 31.9 points per game. The Saints have continued their high scoring ways averaging 38 points per game in the playoffs. The Saints scored 30+ points in 9 of their first 12 games. Drew Brees set an NFL record with a 70.6% completion percentage, and also led the league with a 109.6 QB rating. Drew has continued with a fabulous postseason throwing 6 TD passes and no interceptions, and has an exceptional 116.1 QB rating. The Saints have amazing offensive stats like their 6.3 yards per play, 4.5 yards per rush, and a 45% 3rd down conversion rate. The Saints offensive line protects Brees very well as he was only sacked 20 times while throwing 514 times, and has only been sacked once in the postseason. Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bushed combined for 11 rushing touchdowns and an outstanding 5.5 yards per carry. At the receiver position Marques Colston, Devery Henderson, and Robert Meachem all averaged over 15 yards per reception. Robert Meachem averaged a TD every 5 receptions that he caught. The Saints are very balanced and almost impossible to stop. Even the special teams returners Reggie Bush, Courtney Roby, and PierreThomas are explosive and give the Saints even more chances to score.

Weaknesses - On offense the Saints are basically unstopable. Other than the lack of a marquee running back this offense is simply great. Their only concern right now should be the disappearance of Shockey, Meachem, and Moore who only have 9 total receptions in the playoffs.

Defense

Strengths - The number one strength of the Saints defense is the offenses ability to give them a lead week in and week out. That enables the Saints defense to play down hill and make plays. The Saints had an amazing 26 interceptions, including 9 by Darren Sharper who returned three of them for touchdowns. The Saints +11 turnover margin was 3rd in the league. The Saints have continue the trend in the postseason with a +6 turnover ratio through their first two contests. Behind Will Smith the Saints recorded 35 sacks during the season. Jonathan Vilma is a tackling maching and the leader along with Darren Sharper.

Weaknesses - The defense is the weak link of this team. The Saints were in the bottom third of almost every defensive statistic during the season. The Saints cornerbacks Jabari Greer, Tracy Porter, Malcolm Jenkins, and Randall Gay are all small and will have their hands full against the Colts receivers. The Saints were 26th against the pass, combine that with their inability to rush the passer in the post season and it could spell disaster. When the Saints defense is not causing turnovers teams are marching up and down the field on them. During the playoffs the Saints are allowing 400+ yards of offense including 5.2 yards per carry.