GOODBYE!

This is my last post here at FNsports. Hey I tried, but I just couldn't keep it up. The field negro blog, my legal career, and various community involvements, have made it almost impossible for me to keep up with this blog.

I have learned that I love politics even more than sports, (which is saying something) and as a result, sports just doesn't inspire me to post about it over here anymore.

So play hard, play fair, and always watch the score.

Goodbye.

My thoughts on the big game.

That was a great Super Bowl game. Finally a game that lived up to all the hype.

I was at a Super Bowl party, but I left at halftime. There were quite a few Obamaholics there (the "O" man was in Delaware today by the way), but sometimes I just want to watch the game and not talk politics.

I guess the Spytriots won't be making history after all, and it couldn't have happened to a bunch of nicer guys.

The only down side of all this is that I will have to listen to these stinking Giant's fans here in Philly for the next year.

Here are some more of my thoughts:

All the commercials pretty much sucked. Except of course for the one with Naomi Campbell (I don't even remember what it was for) where she was dancing with those lizards.

Doesn't Jordin Sparks and Alicia Keys make the whole melting pot thing seem like a pretty good idea?

I lked Joe Buck's hook up. And I feel bad for Randy Moss, I would love to see him get a ring before his career is over.

I could watch that catch by David Tyree over and over again.

I think I won a square in my office pool. Of course I will be giving the money to charity.......OK that's bullshit, I will be spending that bad boy on lunch this week.

Doesn't the MVP, Eli Manning, remind you of Gomer Pyle?

Finally, let's hope that next year my "Iggles" will be holding up that Vince Lombardi Trophy.

A couple of things

since last night, and I feel a need to get the shit off my chest before I head out to my nine to five plantation.

First, I heard former NFL great Jim Brown on a local sports talk radio program last night, and I am going to have to revoke Jim's field Negro card for now. The shit he said about the Rutgers basketball dust up with Don Imus wasn't cool, and although I have some respect left for Mr. Brown, I have to call him on it. Mr. Brown basically said that the Rutgers controversy was no big deal, and he thought Don Imus was basically right. He thought the women from Tennessee were pretty and the ones from Rutgers were not. Brown went on to take issue with the modern African American athlete and their apathy towards political ans social issues (we agree on that one) and was all over Tiger Woods (more on him in a minute) for the way he handled this latest...ahem ahem, little racial problem in A-merry-ca. To Brown, the Golf Chanel's host an dher lynching comment is far more serious than the Rutgers incident and should have be treated as such.

Again, I think Brown was a great player, and I love the work he did with inner city gangs in L.A. But Jim never had the greatest reputation when it comes to the treatment of women, and I think some of his previous issues might have tainted his perspective here.
Now the second thing that keeps bothering me, is this shit with Tiger and the Golf Channel. I honestly thought the shit was over. Girlfriend got suspended for two weeks, Tiger's sorry ass basically said through his agent that it was no big deal, and A-merry-ca was ready to move on.
But then some dumb ass Golf magazine chooses to put a noose on their cover, and Tiger, being Tiger, felt the need to make yet another statement saying it's no big deal ("Kelly [Tilghman]is a friend and I saw no malicious intent in her remark..."). Yeah whatever Tiger. I used to cheer for your sorry ass in all those tournaments, because I admired your skills. But fuck you! I hope you never win another tournament on the PGA Tour. And real field Negroes like Vijay Singh, out drives and out putts your sorry ass every weekend from here on out.

Oh, and another thing, can we get another spokes person besides Al Sharpton for these types of issues? I think he is becoming irrelevant.

I'm off to fight this Philly traffic.

FNsports Round Up!

Can someone put a fork in the Sixers please? What is it now six in a row we have lost? But what the hell, let's just shoot for a number one pick at this point.

So the Spytriots are 17-0, that's impressive. Even though I know they caught some breaks along the way (think poor referees) but you have to be good to be in a position to win in the first place. I really thought Jacksonville had a shot at beating them last night, but they hung tough and won. I am starting to believe more and more than Green Bay might be legit. That rookie running back of theirs is the real deal. And Favre looks like he is enjoying throwing to his own players again.

I wonder how those fans down in "blue grass" country feel now that their Wildcats are 7-7? Be careful what you wish for is all I have to say about that. You ran Tubby out of town for this?

I still think Memphis and not North Carolina is the best college basketball team in the country. Derrick Rose is the real deal and is the best point guard in the country. (Sorry Me. Gordon) Don't sleep in UCLA or (god I hate to say this) Duke either.

Congrats on winning the National Championship LSU! My wife is an alum, so I will give you your props. I suspect that there will more where those came from in the coming years. Go on ahead and put yourself up there with Oklahoma, Michigan, and Ohio State as college power houses in this country. (Notice Penn State is not on that list) Your incoming freshmen class looks good!

Speaking of good looking freshmen classes; Notre Dame probably the best incoming class in the country. Now if Charlie Wies can't win this crop we will know that he is a fraud for sure.

Hey, what ever happened to Norm Nixon?

Good bye Kyle!

We will miss your three point shooting, but nothing else.

I know you are from Nebraska, but moving to Utah has got to be hard on you.

I must say that I love all the points in these bowl games. I guess West Virginia were for real. You just can't coach speed folks. If it were not for that stumble against Pitt, we might be crowning them National Champs and not LSU or Ohio State. Pat White will play on Sundays. Maybe not as a quarterback, but he will play.

I think Roger Clemens is lying. First he didn't shoot up, then he did. Why would you have to shoot up painkillers and B-12 vitamins? Come on "Rocket" you are better than that. And my advise to you would be to plead the fifth when you go before congress. Marion Jones and Barry Bonds could be heading to jail because they did not listen to that advise.

What ever happened to Mookie Wilson?

Ugly uni alert!

I caught the Nevada New Mexico bowl game yesterday, and WTF is up with those ugly unis the wolf pack wear?

Come on guys, you are trying to build your program, not tear it down. You can't attract recruits with those ugly duds. Players like to look good on Saturdays too.

Of course I am not one to talk; as an Eagles fan, I am still trying to get over those ugly ass throw backs my team sported against the Lions earlier this year.

And for you soccer fans out there/ New Castle United still gets the nod for the ugliest unis with their ugly ass prison striped black and whites. The look like eleven referees running around out there. Putrid!

Finally, can somebody beat the Patriots please?

This shit is getting old.

No asterisk needed*

Now that the Mitchell Report is finally out about steroid use in baseball, we will finally get to see what a bunch of hypocrites A-merry-can sports writers are. Remember how every one and their mama vilified Barry Bonds, and when they weren't doing that they were making fun of him? And remember how only Dick Cheney was less popular last summer as Bonds went after baseball's most hallowed record?

They said it was because he cheated; he didn't play by the rules like everyone else; he had an unfair advantage. Well now that we know that a bunch of other people were cheating too, including A-merry-ca's baseball darling, "The Rocket", I wonder if we will hear the same outcry from here on out?

Of course we won't. All we will hear and read about is a bunch of sports writers bemoaning the fact that this report had to come out in the first place. They will make all kinds of excuses for their darlings like Roger Clemens who got caught, but you won't hear about or read anyone saying that maybe, just maybe, Barry Bonds was doing what everyone else was; including all star pitchers. Hey, I am from Philly, and you would have a hard time convincing me that damn near everyone on that 1993 Philies team wasn't juiced up. But instead A-merry-ca picked on Bonds. Why? Because he was the surly non smiling, angry black man, that's why. If he could only have laughed and smiled like Sammy.

So they next few days should be fun. I will enjoy watching these guys moon walk away from this one like Michael Jackson before all the nose jobs. And here is one field Negro who hopes there is no asterisk beside all those Barry Bonds records. Because given all that was going on around him; those records were broken fair and square.

Sunday roundup!

I swear sometimes I am ashamed to be a part of Eagle Nation. These moronic fans screamed all week for A.J. Feeley to start and today he did. Well I hope you are happy with his four picks today. Two of them ending in touchdowns for the Hawks and one of them ending the game and probably the season for the birds.



The next time you morons go screaming for Donovan's head on a platter, just remember A.J.'s performance today.



And do the Cowpokes and T.O. look good or what? I swear the Eagles f****d up when they let him go.



$500,000! No wonder the folks in white had nation wanted to keep Jo Pa's salary a secret. I mean how cheap can you get? This is big time college football (Saben is getting 5 million at Bama) and you stiff the old man for half a million stinking dollars? No wonder he has been so cranky lately.



And speaking of college football, it looks like it might be LSU and Ohio State in the National Championship game, not sure what to think of that except if there was a season that we needed a playoff system this is it.



Finally, congrats to the Celtics. I didn't know this little three headed experiment could work, but it looks like it's working just fine. Let's just see if those old legs can keep this up throughout the season.

April

YOU WILL BE MISSED!

Say it ain't so Eddie Pope. Please tell me you are not retiring from MLS soccer.

Well, you will be missed. You were a class act that made a believer out of this sceptic about the potential of American soccer. You personified class on and off the pitch, and MLS soccer will be losing a great ambassador.

You could have played in Europe for bigger bucks, but you stayed here and carved out a glorious career.

Not bad for a kid from a small town in North Carolina.

This N That

Well it's official, my Eagles really do stink!

That performance against Dallas in front of a national T.V. audience was disgraceful. I am now officially joining the crazed Eagle Nation mob calling for Coach Reid's big head.
Sorry, the man has got some serious problems at home (Both sons in jail) and I think it's beginning to become a distraction. In case you missed it; even the Judge in Reid's sons case dressed down the coach and his wife, calling the Reid home a literal "drug emporium" and chastising the couple for a lack of supervision.

But honestly,the Eagles have been not only bad on the field, but they have been making bad draft choices as well, (They just cut a second round draft choice) so it's over.

Speaking of over, the Sixers were over before the season even started. And did you see that their first round draft choice has been moved to the "D"league? I was screaming for them to get the kid from Florida State but they ignored me and every other fan in this city and picked Thad Young, now looked what that got us.

And since I am killing Philly teams, I might as well go for the trifecta. The Phillies refuse to even consider bidding for A-Rod, yet one of their six owners just sold his cigar company for almost three billion. Yes, you read that correctly; THREE BILLION WITH A B. But they can't come up with 30 million for A-Rod? Give me a fucking break. And we are supposed to start next season with Wes stinking Helms at third base? I don't think so.

Oh well, such is life in Philly, doomed to a life of being a second rate city, trapped between New York and Washington. And until we get some owners with some vision around here, who will stop looking at this town as if it was Mayberry RFD, we will be nothing but a bunch of mediocre losers.

Hey is T.O. still catching balls at the Link?

I HAVE YOUR RED SOX NATION RIGHT HERE!

I am sick of Red Sox Nation already!

Are these clowns ever going to lose another post season game?

Geez!

And as if the saaax aren't enough; they now have the stinking spies ,(The Patriots) BC, and now it looks like the Celtics to cheer for.

Must be nice. Here in Philly, we would take one winner. Just one!

Oh well, at least the Flyer's beat the Bruins (2-1) last night.

Saaax in four.

Jason "Fatlock" Strikes Again!

I would like to send a big thank you to a couple of people for sending me this link. (Lakeisha in Wilmington comes to mind.)

But here is the latest from Jason "Fatlock" (Someone gave me that name too)

"You get one NFL Truth today. Watching Chad Johnson and Larry Johnson undermine their respective head coaches, Marvin Lewis and Herm Edwards, on Sunday gave me a singular focus, forced me to contemplate an uncomfortable truth.
African-American football players caught up in the rebellion and buffoonery of hip hop culture have given NFL owners and coaches a justifiable reason to whiten their rosters. That will be the legacy left by Chad, Larry and Tank Johnson, Pacman Jones, Terrell Owens, Michael Vick and all the other football bojanglers.

In terms of opportunity for American-born black athletes, they're going to leave the game in far worse shape than they found it.

It's already starting to happen. A little-publicized fact is that the Colts and the Patriots — the league's model franchises — are two of the whitest teams in the NFL. If you count rookie receiver Anthony Gonzalez, the Colts opened the season with an NFL-high 24 white players on their 53-man roster. Toss in linebacker Naivote Taulawakeiaho "Freddie" Keiaho and 47 percent of Tony Dungy's defending Super Bowl-champion roster is non-African-American. Bill Belichick's Patriots are nearly as white, boasting a 23-man non-African-American roster, counting linebacker Tiaina "Junior" Seau and backup quarterback Matt Gutierrez.
Chad Johnson's hip hop attitude is giving black athletes in the NFL a bad name. (Chris Graythen / Getty Images)

For some reason, these facts are being ignored by the mainstream media. Could you imagine what would be written and discussed by the media if the Yankees and the Red Sox were chasing World Series titles with 11 African-Americans on their 25-man rosters (45 percent)?
We would be inundated with information and analysis on the social significance. Well, trust me, what is happening with the roster of the Patriots and the Colts and with Roger Goodell's disciplinary crackdown are all socially significant.

Hip hop athletes are being rejected because they're not good for business and, most important, because they don't contribute to a consistent winning environment. Herm Edwards said it best: You play to win the game.

I'm sure when we look up 10 years from now and 50 percent — rather than 70 percent — of NFL rosters are African-American, some Al Sharpton wannabe is going to blame the decline on a white-racist plot.

That bogus charge will ignore our role in our football demise. We are in the process of mishandling the opportunity and freedom earned for us by Jim Brown, Walter Payton, Doug Williams, Mike Singletary, Gale Sayers, Willie Lanier and countless others. And those of us in the media who have rationalized, minimized and racialized every misstep by Vick, Pacman and T.O. have played an equal role in blowing it.

By failing to confront and annihilate the abhorrent cultural norms we have allowed to grab our youth, we have in the grand American scheme sentenced many of them to hell on earth (incarceration), and in the sports/entertainment world we've left them to define us as unreliable, selfish and buffoonish.

I take you to Arrowhead Stadium this past Sunday when two competent and respected black head coaches led the Chiefs and the Bengals in battle, and their efforts were periodically sabotaged by Chad and Larry Johnson, the two players Lewis and Edwards have defended the most.

Football fans are aware of Lewis' love affair with Chad Johnson, the Flavor Flav of the gridiron. Johnson's insistence on conducting a minstrel show during games has long been reluctantly tolerated by Lewis. Johnson, I guess, is just too talented, productive and well-compensated for Lewis to discipline. So Lewis has chosen to enable, going as far as making excuses when Johnson's selfish behavior extended to an alleged locker-room shoving match with coaches (including a swing at Lewis) at halftime of the Bengals' Jan. 8, 2006 playoff loss to the Steelers.
Coming off an 11-5 regular season and having been crowned the toast of Cincinnati, Lewis responded to that Johnson meltdown by vowing to cut the player who leaked the fight information to the media.

Since then, the Bengals have been one of the league's biggest disappointments, finishing 8-8 last season and starting 1-4 this season. Injuries have played a significant role in Cincy's troubles, but so has a lack of on- and off-field discipline and focus. Lewis' coddling of Chad Johnson has destroyed the chemistry that made the Bengals a playoff team in 2005.
On Sunday, with the Bengals trying to rally out of a two-score deficit, Johnson failed to finish a pass route, which contributed to Carson Palmer throwing an interception.

Not to be outdone, Larry Johnson continued his season-long pattern of immature behavior, spiking the football in frustration with 4 minutes to play and the Chiefs attempting to run out the clock. The Bengals were out of timeouts and the spike stopped the clock, giving Cincy one last chance to make a comeback.

Pacman Jones' off-field legal troubles are indicative of a larger cultural problem. (Brian Bahr / Getty Images)
Johnson, despite receiving a new $45-million contract, has brooded, pouted and complained all season. He spent the off-season promising to be a leader and has spent the first six weeks of the season spreading locker-room cancer. Edwards-coached teams have traditionally been the least-penalized squads in the NFL. This year's Chiefs are one of the most-penalized squads. Nickel back Benny Sapp drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Sunday, had to be dragged off the field by Donnie Edwards, and was spotted on the sideline arguing with players and coaches.

Race is not the determining factor when it comes to having a good or bad attitude. Culture is.
Hip hop is the dominant culture for black youth. In general, music, especially hip hop music, is rebellious for no good reason other than to make money. Rappers and rockers are not trying to fix problems. They create problems for attention.
That philosophy, attitude and behavior go against everything football coaches stand for. They're in a constant battle to squash rebellion, dissent and second opinions from their players.
You know why Muhammad Ali is/was an icon? Because he rebelled against something meaningful and because he excelled in an individual sport. His rebellion didn't interfere with winning. Jim Brown, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, etc. rebelled with dignity and purpose.

What we're witnessing today are purposeless, selfish acts of buffoonery. Sensible people have grown tired of it. Football people are recognizing it doesn't contribute to a winning environment.
Whether calculated or not, the Patriots and the Colts have created settings in which Brady and Manning can lead and feel comfortable. I remember back in the 1980s when some black sports fans accused the Celtics of being racist for having a predominantly-white roster when Larry Bird was the star. No one remembered that Red Auerbach occasionally fielded an all-black starting lineup during Bill Russell's heyday.

My point is that it makes sense to cater to your stars. And it makes even more sense to fill your roster with players who don't mind being led, even if you sacrifice a little 40-yard dash speed.
If things don't change quickly, we're going to learn this lesson the hard way. "

Mr. Fatlock; if Chad Johnson is the Flave Fav of the gridiron, you are the Flava Flav of sports writers. That was absolute rubbish. But I am glad you wrote it, so that the rest of us can see what a buffoon you are. NFL teams are picking white players because they want more character guys? What?

My man, your fat ass has just taken self hate to a whole other level.

Enjoy those Kansas City Steaks.

CHEATER!

Don't feel sorry for Marion, she will be fine. What about all her opponents who busted it by playing fair, only to lose to this cheater?

But I suspect many of these North American female track and field athletes have been cheating for awhile. (Flo Jo anyone?) And we used to rip the old East German athletes.

SPORTS IS A BITCH THESE DAYS

"Shawn Laidlaw Says: September 18th, 2007 at 6:24 pmWhen black athletes or black people in general fail at anything then the race card comes out. It seems nowdays that anytime they face any kind of adversity they cry that white america is keeping them down. This is why they will always get scrutinized. Some day they will realize that your accountable for your own success or failure in life. No one gives you anything easy, no matter what color you are. It’s also tough to have symapthy for black athletes who make 10 million a year and can’t stop getting arrested. Who’s fault is that?" ~~Lifted from the "Morning Buzz" blog.~~

Ahhh the delicate little problem that is race in America. It used to be that the one place we could get away from all this racial talk was on the athletic field. But now, I am not so sure. Vick,O.J., Bonds, NFL players behaving badly, and even "5" calling out the fans in Philly and American sports fans in general, for viewing African American QB's a little differently than the more melanin challenged ones in their fraternity. The racial hits just keep coming in even the sports world now. Geez, what is America to do? If we can't use sports to escape our real issues---like this damn war for instance---where else are we going to turn? I mean, after all, we can only look at Paris Hilton's narrow behind for so long.

And did I mention Isiah? Yes, it seems "Zeke" (His nickname from his playing days) was sued recently by an African American sister for creating a hostile working environment for her. The sister alleges in her complaint, that Thomas constantly referred to her in private as a bitch and a hoe. Now as a result, she is seeking serious damages from the Knick executive, and his organization. If Thomas was ignorant and insensitive enough to do what this woman is alleging, well, then, I hope the sister breaks the bank. If he didn't....(I am thinking of a Kanye West song here) Apparently allot of nasty things have already came out in this trial, (I am hereby revoking Stephan Marbury's field Negro status for his little ep, in his Jeep with that intern) and I suspect there will be more to come. I saw clips of Isiah's deposition today, and his statements about white men calling African American bitches, as opposed to black men using the "B" word was rather...how do I say this kindly? Strange. I mean, on some levels I understand what he was saying, I am sure on just a gut level it would piss me off more if I saw or heard a white man call one of my sisters a bitch. (Too much history and pain there, so I know it would affect me) Now fortunately for me, and the person who would have said it, I have never witnessed such a thing, and I doubt it many real brothers have. ( You don't think there were any real brothers around in Durham that night do you?) But I have to take issue with Isiah for seeming to imply that it's cool for "us" to call our women bitches. By saying there is a different standard, he seems to be implying that some "bitch" calling is better than others. It's not.

But this has already become an issue in the white blogosphere, and with the usual suspects like FAKE NEWS. "Why is there a different standard for calling a woman a bitch? I swear these arrogant athletes, not only are they racist, but they are sexist as well."

I know one thing, I hope O.J. won't think all the people converging on Jena , Louisiana Thursday will be there to protest his latest arrest. Unfortunately, knowing O.J., he probably will.

[cross posted at the field Negro blog]

CHEATER!!

Is Roger Goodell a joke or what? The penalty he imposed on that cheater,Bill Belichick, and the New England Parrots is a joke. $500,000 and some stinking draft picks? Are you kidding me? The lose a first rounder if they make the playoffs, but guess what? They have two number one picks for 2008, so in essence, the lose nothing.

Can you imagine if these were players the league caught cheating? They would have been three and four game suspensions at least.

The Commissioner should be ashamed of himself, and I would say the same about Belichick, but he has no shame.

Speaking of having no shame; you gotta love what his happening to the Irish Nation. All I can say is; after what you did to that classy Ty Wllingham, you deserve every thing you get with this fraud of a team. I love it, 0-3 and counting, if there is a God, the Irish will lose every single game this year.

Hail to the Victors?

"Hail to the victors" my ass. Yes, I am just now getting around to posting this, and I really don't have much to say. I mean what could I possibly say that hasn't already been said?

Michigan, your performance was disgraceful, there is just no other way to put it. You just don't lose at home to Appalachian State, a program that is not even supposed to be playing with the big boys at the 1-A level. I don't care if they won ten national championships in Division 1-AA , they shouldn't be able to beat you at home, away, on the moon, wherever.

All I can say is Lloyd Carr is toast now. And not only because of this embarrassment (from number 5 in the AP poll, to not even being in the top 25) but also because he is 1-5 against Ohio State. That is just not supposed to happen in Wolverine Nation. I guarantee you that if Carr was 5-1 against the Buckeyes their wouldn't be cries for his scalp now.

I have always said that the Big Ten is too slow, and it showed last Saturday. That QB from Ap. State was runnning away from Michigan defenders like he stole Bo Schembechler's head stone.

But believe it or not, that wasn't the best thing that happened Saturday. No, it was watching Fat Charlie and his stinking domers get hosed by Georgia Tech at home. Charlie, no wonder you wouldn't name your starting QB, they all stunk. The freshman is the best of the bunch so you mighty as well go with him. Mmmm, all of a sudden you ain't looking like such a genius now are you? See what having good players can do Charlie? I hoped you enjoyed playing with all Tyrone Willingham's talent last year, because I am guessing that it could be awhile before you see that kind of talent again.

And finally, I have a request to make: Please America, no more Payton Manning!

A sad ending to a troubled life.

It was a sad day in Sharon Hill Pennsylvania yesterday. A bright star with a troubled past was put to rest.

Everyone has heard by now how former NBA player,Eddie Griffin, drove his SUV into a train in Houston Texas. An accident so horrific, that it took days to identify his six foot ten inch frame. There wasn't even any skid marks at the scene.

Griffin always had potential, but he had a troubled NBA career, bouncing from team to team, and struggling with substance abuse problems. The news always focused on Griffin's problems, such as his volatile temper which got him suspended from Roman Catholic High School, and a fight that got him kicked off his college basketball team at Seton Hall.

But there was a warm side to Griffin too, and many people here in Philly talk about a real good soft spoken kid with a big heart. I remember a buddy of mine watching the Philadelphia high school catholic league championship game a few years ago, and raving about how good Griffin was. But something bothered him about Griffin even then. Even though he was doing some serious balling on the court, his head didn't seem to be really in the game. And after the game, when his teammates were dancing around the court in jubilation, Griffin seemed disinterested and distant, and didn't even seem to want to participate in the celebrations. My buddy said it then: "Something isn't right with that kid" Boy was he right.

But it was a nice and fitting funeral. Former teammates (such as Kevin Garnett) coaches, family, and his former counselor, John Lucas, were all there. Everyone talked about the sad tragedy of a talented and kind young man who lost is life all too soon.

On a lighter note; I see Tyson Gay beat my man Asafa Powell in the 100 meters at the world championships in Japan. Congrats to the American for a nice win. Now let's see if my man Asafa, can get his shit together in time for the Olympics.

On the women's side; my home girl, Veronica Campbell, beat the American, Lauryn Williams in a very close race. Nice revenge for that 1993 win by Gail Devers over Merlene Ottey. (Yes I still haven't gotten over it) Devers beat Ottey by 001 seconds in that heart breaker.

Two Giants feuding; I love it!

"ALBANY, N.Y. - Tiki Barber wanted a more intense, fiery Eli Manning. The New York Giants quarterback gave Tiki what he wanted in a loud ripping voice on Tuesday.
Two days after being criticized on national television by Barber for a lack of strong leadership, Manning ripped his former teammate and current NBC football analyst for distracting the team last season with his early retirement announcement and his criticism of coach Tom Coughlin.
'I guess I'm just happy for Tiki that he's making a smooth transition into the TV world,' Manning said. "You know, I'll be interested to see if he has anything to say (about a team) besides the Giants, and what his comments will be on that."

Normally reserved and never one to criticize a coach or teammate, Manning seemed to enjoy going after Barber, the Giants' all-time leading rusher who retired after last season at age 31 to pursue a television career.
Speaking during the halftime show of the Sunday Night Football game between the Giants and Baltimore Ravens, Barber had said that Manning's attempt to lead an offensive meeting in the 12th week of the last season was "comical" at times.
Manning didn't find the comment funny.

'It's just one of those deals. I'm not going to lose any sleep about what Tiki has to say,' Manning said. "I guess I could have questioned his leadership skills last year with calling out the coach and having articles about him retiring in the middle of the season, and he's lost the heart (to play).

'As a quarterback you're reading that your running back has lost the heart to play the game and it's about the 10th week," Manning said. "I can see that a little bit at times. But I'm not going to get concerned. I'm going to go out there and play ball.'

Barber was not immediately available for comment.
Giants teammates came to Manning's defense on Tuesday.
Wide receiver Amani Toomer, who played his entire career with Barber, was stunned.
'I thought Tiki and Eli were pretty good friends,' Toomer said. "It's kind of strange to have him say something like that and to make a point of it like that. Maybe he had somebody else in his ear kind of coaxing him into saying stuff, because I don't believe he really believes that. I don't know why he'd say something like that.'

Manning's father, Archie, said at a charity bowling event in Indianapolis for his other son, Super Bowl MVP Peyton, that he had not counseled the Giants quarterback on how to handle the situation.

'He talked to me a while ago and said Tiki got after him a little bit the other night, and he said it's not a big deal," Archie Manning said. ' He told me a whole lot of people in the Giants organization were proud of what he said.

'Eli's not a controversial guy and he's not going to be. I feel like if Eli did something like that, it would come from his heart.'
Center Shaun O'Hara said that Manning is progressing as a leader, especially for a fourth-year player. 'I don't have any problems with Eli's leadership and the way he does it,' O'Hara said. 'He's doing it his way. I think players appreciate that. It's a shame everybody wants Eli to be somebody they think he should be instead of just letting him be himself.'

O'Hara noted that Manning might be under the microscope more than most young quarterbacks because he is the brother of Peyton Manning. 'For me, you can be Johnny Rah-Rah, but if you're not doing your job, if you're not pulling your weight, it doesn't matter what you say," O'Hara said. "Being loud, that doesn't make you a great leader.'

Tackle David Diehl said Manning showed his leadership Sunday night, getting the offensive lined up right when the Ravens threw a couple of new looks at them on defense.
Giants new quarterback coach Chris Palmer added that Manning does everything a coach wants.
'Everybody leads in a different way," Palmer said. 'If you buy any business books, there are 101 ways to lead. He'll lead in his own particular fashion.'

While Barber praised Manning at times for his play, he also questioned whether he could be a leader of men and make plays when the chips were down.
'His personality hasn't been so that he can step up, make a strong statement and have people believe that it's coming from his heart,' Barber said on the show.
Barber then told the story about Manning being uncomfortable talking to the offense in Week 12.

'He didn't feel like his voice was going to be strong enough and it showed,' Barber said. 'Sometimes it was almost comical the way that he would say things.'
While Barber rushed for 1,662 yards last season, the second highest single-season total in Giants history, he also was a distraction in an 8-8 season that saw the Giants make the playoffs.
He went on record in early October saying that the 2006 season would probably be his last. He also created problems for Coughlin when he criticized him for pulling away from the running game too soon in a loss to Jacksonville in November.
It was the second time he went after his head coach.

After a playoff loss to Carolina in 2005, Barber said Coughlin was outcoached by Panther coach John Fox, a former Giants assistant. While Coughlin refused to get involved in the controversy, he was happy Manning defended himself.

'Well, he thought about what he was going to do, and he decided he would say exactly what he felt," Coughlin said. "More power to him.' "

I would like to thank the AP for the above story. I love it when two Giants are fighting. (God I hate the Giants!)

As an Eagles fan, this is a sad day for me, because the Trot man-Jeremiah Trotter-was given his release today. OK, that's a nice way of saying he was cut.

I sure hope the birds know what they are doing. From all accounts had lost more than a few steps, and teams were exploiting him when he was on the field. But the guy was a real leader in the locker room, and was a pretty good run stopper against North and South runners.

So Andy, I hope you know what you are doing, and I hope Omar Gaither will be able to step in. If not, I am afraid that those stinking Giants up the turn pike will have the last laugh.

Man he is good!

So Tiger hangs on to win his 13th major in 100 degree heat. The guy was just making pars all day and it was still enough to win. The more I watch Woods, the more I have to wonder if there aren't guys on the tour with just as much talent. The problem is, no one has that laser like focus and the determination that he does.

Do you see what usually happens to guys that play with him when he is in contention on a Sunday? They fold like a dress shirt in a Macy's display. Today some poor Canadian guy had to take his lumps under the scrutiny, and it was sad to watch. "Big Easy" (Ernie Els) made it fun for a minute, but you just knew it was Wood's day all along.

Nice to see that Roger Federer is human too. He finally lost a tournament today in Montreal to a guy with a name I can't even remember. Still, he is my favorite to win the U.S. Open.

Can anyone stop the Yankees? I promise you that if you asked people in Boston right now, if they would be happy just to make the playoffs as a wild card team, they would say yes. Why, because everyone in Beantown knows that the Yankees will catch them and take the division, that's why. Then they will have to hold off Seattle, Detroit, or Cleveland just to make the playoffs.

It should be a fun September.

756!!!

Way to go BARRY, you are, quite frankly, the greatest baseball player in my lifetime. Steroids or no steroids.

To all the Bonds haters out there, consider this: Before 1998, he had 3 MVP awards, 8 all star appearances, and 8 gold glove awards. So excuse me if he put up freakish home run numbers after 1998, when he was supposedly on the juice. I am going to guess that quite a few players doing that time period were juicing, including the happy twins; Sosa, and McGuire, not to mention a few pitchers. (Some quite famous ones included) Oh, and if we are going to put an asterisk next to Bond's accomplishments, why don't we just put one next to every payer who played before 1947? But somehow I doubt that will happen, because we are such hypocrites in America, and our memory can be so selective.

So America, get over the hateration [like that word woozie?] of Bonds. We know it's because he is supposedly a jerk, and not fan friendly, and he is mean to sports writers. Who gives a shit? Yeah that Ty Cobb was a real Prince charming wasn't he? The last time I checked, that racist jerk was in the Hall, and America still loves him.

If Bonds is not a first ballot Hall of Famer, it will say more about the frauds who run American sports than any steroid scandal ever could. I am just glad Hammering Hank acknowledged the whole thing via video, he was starting to come up pretty small.