Big Record For Big Z

Playing defense in the NHL is a tough job. You have to have a physical presence, play a solid game in your own end, and provide some offensive punch when needed. Being able to do it for over 1,500 games is a pretty impressive feat. Only six men in the history of the league have played that man games. Nick Lindstrom (1,564), Ray Borque (1,612), Larry Murphy (1,615), Scott Stevens (1,635) Chris Chelios (1,651) and just tied Wednesday night Zedeno Chara (1,651). Chara moves into sole possession of first place in that games played list tonight in San Jose. 

What this man has been able to do during the course of his career is really staggering. Twenty Four season in the NHL, two tours of duty with the Islanders. In between was a four year stop with the Ottawa Senators and a fourteen year stretch with the Boston Bruins and one season with the Washington Capitals. And through it all, he put up good numbers.  207 goals, 467 assists for 674 points, to go along with 2,068 penalty minutes. He won a Stanley Cup as captain of the Bruins in 2011. He's been a finalist for the Norris Trophy as the league top defenseman six times, winning it once in 2009. He's played in the All Star Game six times, been a first team all star three times and a second teamer four times.

It really is amazing that the tallest player in the history of the league has now played more games on an NHL blue line than any other player in this league. And he's still going. The Islanders gave up on his first go around and sent him to Ottawa along with the pick that turned into Jason Spezza in the Alexei Yashin trade. It turned out to be a huge move for Ottawa as it was there that Big Z really came into his game. The rest as they say is history.

Chara can do a little bit of everything. Had the hardest shot in the league five times. He can dish the puck pretty well. Knows how to throw his weight around and fight when needed. From everything I've heard, Chara has a work ethic, on and off the ice, is second to none.  What makes this even more impressive is the quiet way in which Chara goes about his job. He does it, does it very well, and moves on. Chara is good very good.

Hats off to Big Z for playing the most games by a blue liner in league history!

Bronx Bomber Gets Honored

Playing for one of the most iconic franchises in all of sports is a pretty big deal. Getting your number retired by that franchise is another huge honor. When that happens for the New York Yankees, you know you made one hell of an impact. That's what Paul O'Neil did. He is the next Yankee to get tabbed for that honor. His number 21 will be retired on August 21st, when the Yankees play host to the Toronto Blue Jays.

All of this of course is pending on whether or not we will actually have baseball this season, but that's for another time. Now we just look at the body of work for Paul O'Neil as a Yankee.

November 3rd, 1992. That's the day that O'Neil got traded by the Reds to the Yankees for Roberto Kelly. The rest as they say, is history. O'Neil was a four time All Star and won four World Series while playing in the Bronx. During his time in New York, O'Neil had a .303 batting average. He had 1,426 hits, 304 doubles, 185 home runs, 858 runs batted in, a .377 on-base percentage and an .869 OPS. To top it off, he hit .359 in 1994, which won him the AL Batting Title. It was more then just that.

O'Neil was fondly remembered by Yankees fans as a warrior and is considered by many to have been the heart and soul of those dynasty teams of the Yankees in the late 90s. He had such a passion and love for the game and that came through every day on the field. As of this, half of the Yankees numbers have been retired between one and thirty.

Congrats on a big honor for a hell of a ball player,

Honoring The Best Of The Best

Every season, right before the Super Bowl, the NFL hands out its hardware. it honors the best of the best in individual achievement in the great team sport of Football. They not only gave out the awards for players, but also announced the Hall Class for 2022. So lets not waste any time and get right into it. Here's the highlights from NFL Honors.

2022 Pro Football Hall of Fame Class: Tony Boselli (OT Jacksonville Jaguars/Houston Texans), Cliff Branch (WR Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders), Leroy Butler (DB Green Bay Packers), Sam Mills (LB Cleveland Browns/New Orleans Saints/Carolina Panthers), Art McNally (Official), Richard Seymour (DE New England Patriots/Oakland Raiders), Dick Vermeil (Head Coach St. Louis Rams/Philadelphia Eagles/Kansas City Chiefs) and Bryant Young (DT/DE San Francisco 49ers)

Walter Peyton Man Of The Year: Andrew Whitworth, OT Los Angeles Rams

AP Comeback Player Of The Year: Joe Burrow, QB Cincinnati Bengals

AP Defensive Rookie Of The Year: Micah Parsons, OLD/DE Dallas Cowboys

AP Offensive Rookie Of The Year: Ja'Marr Chase, WR Cincinnati Bengals

Pepsi Rookie Of The Year: Ja'Marr Chase, WR Cincinnati Bengals

AP Defensive Player Of The Year: T.J. Watt, OLB Pittsburgh Steelers

AP Offensive Player Of The Year: Cooper Kupp, WR, Los Angeles Rams

AP Assistant Coach Of The Year: Dan Quinn, DC Dallas Cowboys

AP Coach Of The Year: Mike Vrabel, Tennessee Titans

AP Most Valuable Player: Aaron Rogers, QB Green Bay Packers

So we stick with looking at the big awards, and honestly there aren't too many surprises here. Look at Ja'Marr Chase, who took home both offensive and overall rookie of the year. When he was taken by the Bengals 5th overall in the draft, he went on record of saying that he was going to re write the record books for the Bengals in receiving. He pretty much was spot on. He set Cincinnati's team record for most receiving yards in a single game (266) and a single season (1,455), hauling in 81 receptions for an 18.0 yards per reception average. Oh and he became the first Bengals player to have multiple 200-yard games in the same season (ESPN). Those were eye popping numbers and Chase was a big reason why the Bengals, a 10-7 team, won the AFC this season. Then there's what Cooper Kupp did for the Rams. He lead the NFL in catches (145), yards (1,947) and touchdowns (16). He's only the fourth wide out in league history to win the receiving triple crown, joining Jerry Rice (1990) and Sterling Sharpe (1992) and Steve Smith (2005). Kupp was Mr. Everything in the passing attack for the Rams and look where we ended up over the weekend. There was nobody better in the air attack in football this year than Kupp.

What Micah Parsons did for Dallas on the defensive side of the ball, being as versatile as he is, allowed for the Cowboys defense to throw off the opposition on quite a few plays this year. He finished the year with 84 tackles and 13 sacks, which were the 3rd most by a rookie since that became a stat in 1982. Then there's what T.J. Watt did for the Steelers. It makes this even more impressive what Watt did for the Steelers this year. He missed two full games, and parts of other games as well due to injury. He still finished the year with 22.5 sacks, which tied the single season record for sacks. This coming off the year when Watt signed a deal making him the highest paid defensive player in the league. He had something to prove, and he went out and did it.

Giving out coach of the year to Mike Vrabel seemed like the general way to go this year with the award. I mean think about what the Titans had to go through this year, finishing with the best record in the AFC during the regular season. They had to use 91 different players on a game day this season, which was a league record. And they missed a chunk of time from players like Derrick Henry, Julio Jones, A.J. Brown and Bud Dupree. And they still managed to finish with the AFC's top record. Hats of to Vrabel for doing what he managed to do with this team.

And then there's Aaron Rogers winning MVP this year. I had a feeling that, going into this year, Rogers was going to go off and have a big year and he did. Rogers threw 38 touchdowns and just four picks. FOUR. That's one less then he threw all of last season are you kidding me. This guy did it all while missing a game to to the controversy over his vaccination status in the middle of the season. I had this feeling that going into the year he was going to come out angry from the start due to what he felt was shall we say a low offer from the Packers heading into the year and he wasn't happy with the team. He still went out and showed us all that he was the best player win the league this year. Oh and he also became the fifth player in league history to win the MVP in consecutive seasons.

So what do you guys think? Any wrong choices for awards this year?

Super Bowl Preview

The day has finally arrived. We started this back in September with 32 teams. Eighteen weeks of a regular season, then three more weeks of playoff football, and outstanding playoff football, have lead to this. We now have two teams left standing. The Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals. One team has never won a Lombardi Trophy, while the other one is seeking its second title in five tries. So lets not waste more time and lets set this game up.

Los Angeles won the NFC West at 12-5. They beat the Cardinals in the Wild Card Round, Tampa Bay in the Divisional Round and beat the 49ers in the NFC title game. This will mark their 5th appearance in the big game, winning one title back in 1999. As for the Bengals, they finished 10-7, winning the AFC North. They beat the Raiders in the Wild Card round, then topped the Titans in the Division round, before beating the Chiefs in overtime in the AFC title game. This is the 3rd ever appearance in the Super Bowl for the Bengals, who are looking for the first title.

Cincinnati has a lot going for it. Their last two games they beat the top seed in the AFC and a team who's considered by many to be the best team in football, despite the record. Burrow and his young teammates have been killing it all playoffs and have turned a lot of heads. And with the way Evan McPherson has been kicking all playoffs and kicking well. That's going to be huge.

But they are going up against a team that has been a modern version of the Greatest Show on Turf. And a small part of me really feels good for Matthew Stafford. Stafford is finally get a shot to show what he can do in the playoffs. He's taken advantage of it and run with it. And he's got a ton of talent around him to do it with too. If Cam Akers can actually hang onto the football. Oh and the Rams have a great defense as well. Nothing against that defense that the Bengals have, which is pretty good in its own right. But the Rams is on on another level.

Its going to be an entertaining football game on paper, there's no doubt about that. And with the way this year's playoffs have gone that comes as no surprise to anybody. At the end of the day, there's just too much talent on the NFC side of the field.

Prediction: Rams 34, Bengals 21

Trade Deadline Fallout

The trade deadline in the NBA has come and gone and there's plenty to talk about and plenty of fall out coming from this deadline. Big names got moved and we got the end of a ton of drama in Philly. So lets not waste time and dive right into some of the fallout from the trade deadline in the NBA.

There was no doubt that the biggest deal at the deadline was between the 76ers and the Nets. Philadelphia finally got rid of that headache they been dealing with in the form of Ben Simmons. Full trade was Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and a couple of draft picks for Paul Milsap and James Harden  (Who's now been traded in back to back season). Harden never really reached the level in Brooklyn that the Nets wanted him to with Durant and Irving. To be fair, Kyrie wasn't on the floor for much of that time due the well documented vaccine stance, but that's for another time. Harden was good in Brooklyn, so this is huge for the 76ers, who got an All Star for a guy who's given the Sixers nothing but problems all year. Its no surprise that Philly wanted to get rid of him and they did so this turned out be a fantastic move. Harden cost the Nets a steep price. They gave up four first rounds for two picks and decent young guys (If Simmons can actually show up and produce). The price tag was too high for the deal.

Oh there's more deals than just this that went down. KP is on the move again. Porzingas was dealt, along with a second round pick, to Washington for Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans going to Dallas. Dallas got the short end of the stick on this trade, according to some observers. There was and still is worry about KP with his injury history, and that's been very well documented. But when he's healthy and on the floor he's one of the best around the rim, again also well documented. All in all, it was and still is a huge risk for Dallas. Washington is getting KP and could be good should he be able to stay healthy and stray out on the floor.

Serge Ibaka and picks going to the Bucks in a four team trade was another big move worth of note. In that trade, Donte DiVincenzo getting shipped to the Kings with Jackson and Lyles is good for the Kings. Yes Donte has had injury bugs he's been dealing with during his career, but when on the floor, he'd be a really good fit for the Sacramento offensive system. Then we have the Spurs trading Thadduss Young and picks to Toronto for Goran Dragic and picks.It was huge for San Antonio, who got rid of a vastly under performing Young and bolsterd their future by stockpiling picks.

Those were the biggest names moved during the trade deadline. There were also teams who shockingly kept quite. Like the Lakers. They are four games under .500. They sit 9th in the West. Even with LeBron (who is 37 years old), they have injuries and a lot of roster holes, despite on paper looking at the beginning of the year like a solid team. One that could go deep again in the playoffs.

Then there's the Knicks. They kept quiet and stayed put at the deadline, which I know upset a lot of fans of the team. They have been stumbling badly as of late, winning just three games in their last ten outings. This was a team that finished 4th in the East a season ago and now, as of this writing, they sit 12th in the East, outside the playoff final spot. It leaves one to wonder

NBA All Star Roster Announced

The best of the best will gather at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland. The annual gathering of the NBA's best will hit Cleveland on February 20th for the 71st All Star game. This marks the third time that the game will be held in Cleveland, following the 1980 and 1997 games.

Here's what the rosters look like for this years game.

Western Conference: 
Starters:
Guard: Stephen Curry, Warriors (8th)
Guard: Ja Morant, Grizzlies (1st)
Center: Nikola Jokić, Nuggets (4th)
Forward: LeBron James, Lakers (18th)
Forward: Andrew Wiggins, Warriors (1st)

Reserves:
Guard: Devin Booker, Suns (3rd)
Guard: Luka Dončić, Mavericks (3rd)
Guard: Donovan Mitchell, Jazz (3rd)
Guard: Chris Paul, Suns (12th)
Forward: Draymond Green, Warriors (4th)
Center: Rudy Gobert, Jazz (3rd)
Center: Karl-Anthony Towns, Timberwolves (3rd)

Eastern Conference:
Starters:
Guard Trae Young Atlanta Hawks (2nd)
Guard: DeMar DeRozan, Bulls (5th)
Center: Joel Embiid, 76ers (5th)
Forward: Kevin Durant, Nets (12th)
Forward: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (6th)

Reserves:
Guard Darius Garland, Cavaliers (1st)
Guard: James Harden, Nets (10th)
Guard: Zach LaVine, Bulls (2nd)
Guard: Fred VanVleet, Raptors (1st)
Forward: Jimmy Butler, Heat (6th)
Forward: Khris Middleton, Bucks (3rd)
Forward: Jayson Tatum, Celtics (3rd)

Thoughts on the rosters?

GOAT Calls It A Career

Twenty Two year playing career. Seven Super Bowl victories in ten appearances. Three MVP awards. Fifteen Pro Bowls. Most of the major passing records are in his name. Tom Brady has pretty much done all that their is to do for a quarterback in the game of football. And now he's hanging it up, for real this time. Da G.O.A.T has hung them up

Brady started as the backup to Drew Bledsoe. He took over in week two of the 2001 season after Bledsoe was knocked out of a game after a hit by Mo Lewis of the Jets. The rest, as they say, is history. Brady's name, twenty two years later, is all over the record boo0ks. Seven wins in ten title game appearances. Three league MVP's, five Super Bowl MVP's. Fifteen Pro Bowls. He holds the records for: Most career quarterback wins at 243, career passing attempts at 11,317, career passing completions at 7,263, career passing touchdowns at 624, career passing yards with 84,520, and pass completions in a season with 485 (2021).

Sure the records that Brady set speaks volumes (and for themselves) just how good he was. But there's more to it then that. You knew, as a fan of the game, that if there was a fair amount of time left on the clock, and Brady has the football, there's a chance his team can win. On countless times out of those 243 wins Brady had in his career he was able to make the big throw and control the game to suit him. That's a quality that so few that have ever played this game have had.

He did just about everything you could as a player in this game. For a guy who was taken 199th overall in the 2000 NFL Draft out of Michigan, he shattered every single expectation. He tortured a lot of opposing fans and fan bases, including myself and my fellow Jets fans. He always found a way to kill the Jets. I dreaded every time we would play the Patriots, just because of how good this guy was, and what he could do. Sure, it was just ALL Brady, but man that guy knew how to be able to dominate a team. And when it came to the Jets, he knew how to dominate them more than anybody.'

I said it all the time that Brady drove me nuts, but naturally that was the Jets fan in me. As a football fan, this guy was amazing to watch. There's no doubt in my, or anybody else's mind for that matter, that the guy was brilliant. There's been plenty of debate as to who ranks as the greatest QB to ever play. Manning, Staubach, Montana, Young, Farve, Akiman, Elway, Marino, Unitas. The list goes on and on. But the one name that's usually at the top of all of them is BRADY.

Congratulations on one hell of a care #TB12