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By Sonny Palermo
I don't know what ethnic background Bill Belichik comes from. I don't know where his ancestors hail from or what his heritage is. But I damned sure know what he isn't - Italian. This boy has not got one drop of Sicilian blood in him. I was much disappointed when this past weekend he was faced with an opportunity for revenge - and he wussied out. I understand the weather played a part in his feeble ten point victory over the New York Jets, and he didn't want to risk damage to any of the cogs of the magnificent machine he has built, but did he have to greet Mangenius the Rat at mid-field and offer a congenial post game handshake??!! I wanted to puke! You don't shake a rat's hand, you cut it off at the wrist and feed it to him.
Beli showed signs of weakness, and now the rest of the league will look to take advantage of it (hopefully, this week, when he has to face that juggernaut of victory known as the Miami Dolphins.)
And what was that crap in Miami this weekend? I'm not talking about how bad Baltimore stinks, I'm talking about the public display of post game celebration by the Dolphins. "Hey, we don't suck anymore!" Have a little pride fellas, take it in the locker room. Too much "butt patting" type of behavior going around the league these days, and not enough "butt kicking."
At least I was able to rely on old reliable, the Walrus, to lose when he was supposed to. A seven and a half point favorite? On the road? East coast time zone, early start? The week after clinching the division? Yeah, sure. This spot had "SLACKER" written all over it!
Before I get to the next topic, let me make one more point on the Pats pick. Someone wrote, "Only idiots would lay 20 points in this game!"
OF COURSE it was written AFTER the game ended. But here's my point. The Pats failed to cover by 10 points. I wanted to write back "Have you ever bet on a 3 point favorite that lost SU by a touchdown or more? Of course you have, we all have. Well, it's the SAME THING." Considering that the Pats average margin of victory this season has been over 20 points, and factoring in that the Jets ratted on him, I don't think it was that bad of a spot to look for a blow out.
I didn't bother to write back though, I am making a conscious effort to spend less of my life debating with people of the sort who need to use a lifeline on the $20 opening question on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?"
With just two weeks of ball left, I am anxious to get to the post season. The AFC is set, with the Jags and Cleveland in the wild card spots, which robs us of the possibilities of meaningful games in these next two weeks (I speak realistically here, not mathematically.) In the NFC, only one spot remains to be filled, with Minnesota clearly the front runner and in charge of their own destiny.
I can't remember a season where the playoffs were decided so early, although it may have happened as recently as last year and I just don't care enough to retain such knowledge (or I smoked too much pot in the seventies and my brain is now showing the effects.)
So, the challenge over these final two weeks is to seek out the least motivated team in a contest and bet against them. Hmmm, I smell Walrus blubber boiling . . .
Next great fighter - Jorge Linares. Watch for him. Youtube him if you are interested in seeing the next big thing before he becomes it.
Review and selections - OK, got my butt kicked with the Pats last week (but, who's your buddy, who's your pal, who gave you a 2-1 money line winner and banked three units total with the 49'ers on Saturday? Check the home page at www.everyedge.com for my weekly columns and picks!)
11-8 in this space now, this week . . .
Baltimore at Seattle:
In accordance with the previously mentioned "figure out which team is less motivated' theory, here we have two highly (un)motivated squads. Seattle is a dicey bet as a fav when they need to win, even more so when they don't. Their destiny is already decided - no home field after the wild card, and the inevitable trip to Green Bay where the Walrus and Hasselback will snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and blow it in OT again!
On the other hand, we the Ravens, the laughing stock of the league, the only team that was beaten by the lowly Fish. That game, their 8th loss in a row, clearly signals that they have hit rock bottom, which is GREAT NEWS for us as there is only one way to go from here - back up! No line on this one yet, no matter - I'm taking the points, how ever many they offer. Getting points is a bargain when you have a team that can win SU, and the Seahawks are certainly capable of losing here. Baltimore team owner Bisciotti (I'll bet a guy named Biscotti would have murdered the Jets if he was the Pats head coach last week) announced this week that Billick will be returning (don't ask me why, I don't understand these things either) which means any player who thought he could mail it in over these last two while playing under a lame duck had better think again. Take Baltimore plus the points and hope these next two weeks go quickly so we can get to some real ball . . . .
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