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Sunday, January 16, 2011

28-21 win by the Jets. What a victory. Confidence omnipresent, the trash-talking was finally backed up. Tough battle but they reigned victorious. Aside from a team standpoint, this game was one of the most entertaining playoff games in recent memory. This 28-21 win reeks of the Giants' Superbowl upset over the undefeated Patriots in '08. Jets can't relax now as they have the current Steel Curtain next week in the AFC Championship game featuring always confident Big Ben. There's going to be bloodshed. The game will be brutally physical. Enjoy Ladainian Tomlinson after the game in this clip.

The first video consists of an impressive array of athletes using a spring to defy gravity. It's curious to see how they would perform without the trampoline but this is still entertaining... the second video is unbelievable.




Seeing these guys fly isn't as jaw-dropping and phenomenal as watching the professional basketball players effortlessly leaping from the foul line without a spring to propel them. The dunker, James White, is in the NBA D-League, considered the minor leagues of the NBA, which makes this slam more astonishing.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

"Three of the four NFL playoff games this weekend figure to be played in arctic conditions and the results could lead to the ultimate showdown — Green Bay at Chicago."                                 

                                                                               ~ Chris Erskine, LA Times

As football fanatics salivate in preparation of the second week of playoff football, Chris Erskine of the LA Times presents the possibility of the NFC championship game out-doing the Superbowl. He predicts the Packers to beat the Falcons and the Bears to beat the Seahawks, giving fans the chance to witness another January rivalry game in the tundra that will be nothing short of hard-hitting with a plethora of blood stained jerseys walking off the field in the end. Personally I do see the Packers overcoming the highly-touted Falcons but the Seahawks defeating the Bears, not allowing Erskine's duel to occur. To read the full article, click here.


Baltimore @ Pittsburgh... A hard-nosed rivalry, this one will be fought  hard on both sides, with plenty of blood and bone-breaking. Watch for hard hits by Harrison and Reed, two hungry veterans who know what it takes to win. Ray Lewis will be his usual self, riling his teammates and letting loose on blind-sighted tight ends, while Roethlisberger will find gaps in their vulnerable secondary and will take this one with a 20-17 win.





Green Bay @ Atlanta... With the week off Atlanta loses momentum. The Packers resemble the 2008 Giants who surged through the playoffs as the underdogs with a 10-6 record to beat the undefeated Patriots. The Packers are hungry, humble and ready to make noise. Aaron Rodgers will get routine pressure from John Abraham and the Atlanta defense but will elude it by scrambling as he does so well and finding Jennings consistently. Packers win by 10.




Seattle @ Chicago... Seahawks are on a roll and Chicago has a streaky offense and an overrated quarterback in Cutler. This picture resembles the face Mike Martz will have after seeing his quarterback face constant pressure and throw consistently wild chucks to his receivers. Seahawks win in their second upset of the playoffs, finally reaching .500 at 9-9. Win by 7.

New York @ New England... Jets have a chance to make a statement and Rex Ryan has them believeing, albeit talking too much (Cromartie). In the game of the week, there will be hard hits and emotions flying high. Jets win by 3 and propel themselves into the AFC Championship, having to face yet another elite team in the Steelers.

Thursday, January 13, 2011

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Call in number: (619) 393-6509
"Breakfast: Three fried-egg sandwiches loaded with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, fried onions and mayonnaise. Two cups of coffee. One five-egg omelet. One bowl of grits. Three slices of French toast topped with powdered sugar. Three chocolate-chip pancakes.
Lunch: One pound of enriched pasta. Two large ham and cheese sandwiches with mayo on white bread. Energy drinks packing 1,000 calories.
Dinner: One pound of pasta. An entire pizza. More energy drinks."
                                                                                                                                 Ben Smith, Times Online
While it is remarkable that Phelps can consume this gargantuan amount, it is more impressive that he can be as skinny and fit as he is, consistently winning every Olympic competition. He was caught smoking pot in 2009. One can only fathom how much larger his diet became. Needless to say his diet is unique and his workout routine complements the gorging perfectly. All in all, Phelps is an amazing swimmer and a model athlete. Enjoy the article.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

On Saturday night, the only person as unhappy as the New Orleans Saints and their fans was Buffalo Bills General Manager Buddy Nix. Nix surely watched angrily from his couch, as the running back he traded away railroaded one of the NFL's more vaunted defenses for a 67-yard touchdown run, all but sealing one of the greatest postseason upsets of all time.

Lynch started off strong in the NFL with consecutive 1,000 yard seasons after being drafted number 12 overall by the Bills in 2007, citing being in "Beast Mode" during games as the reason for his success. However, the beast was tamed in 2009 when he ran into legal troubles and injuries, resulting in a meager 450 yard season on 125 carries.

The legal issues and slowed production caused Buddy Nix to trade him to the Seahawks 3 games into the 2010 season, where he again had a subpar year as the Seahawks went 7-9 and miraculously won their division. However, Beast Mode emerged once again with 3:37 to go in the Wild Card game against the heavily favored Saints. In a play designed to run the clock down, the Beast decided to break out of its cage. Trucking through linebackers and defensive linemen, Lynch roared into the secondary, tossing Tracy Porter with a powerful stiff arm and putting on a burst of speed to roll into the endzone, looking like the back everyone knew he was at Cal. The run caused such an uproar at Qwest field that a nearby seismic monitoring station registered it as a small earthquake.

The Seahawks can only hope that the Beast is here to stay as they travel to Chicago to face the 2-seed Bears. The fans, the coaches, the teammates, everyone wants to see that moment this week where the Beast will roar, and somewhere in Buffalo, I'm sure Buddy Nix is using a photo of C.J Spiller as a dartboard.


Here is a compliation of fantasy football commercials, featuring some of your favorite (Or obscure and irrelevant) NFL players doing some seriously crazy stuff. Watch, enjoy, believe it, and remember to pick your jaw up off the floor.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

While their specific examples may beg for an explanation, this list is unique to say the least. Comedy Central's new show SportsDome came out today and here is a portion of the type of personalities on the show. We welcome recommendations for best Stan's. Enjoy.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Facing constant pressure all game, Michael Vick was as contained as the Packers could have hoped for. Without a spark for most of the game, consistently killing themselves with penalties and watching young James Starks run all over their defense, the routinely high-flying Eagles found themselves in a predicament. David Akers, their future hall-of-fame kicker who misses less than a lunar eclipse occurs, missed two field goals that changed the dynamic of the game and Michael Vick through an interception in the end zone with :33 seconds left on the clock. As the Packers head to Atlanta to face the Falcons, the Eagles will watch from home and reminisce on the season it was.

The game started gingerly for the young Chiefs, with a 7-3 lead early in the game thanks to the speedy running of Jamaal Charles. That would be all they would score though as Joe Flacco found his groove and picked apart the Chiefs defense for 265 yards and 2 touchdowns, with his own defense standing their ground against the meager Matt Cassel, who appeared overmatched and timid during the majority of the second half. The Ravens will head to Pittsburgh for next weeks brutal match-up against Big Ben and the gritty Steelers.

Saturday could not have presented two better finishes than the biggest upset in NFL history and a brutal, tight game that ended in a last second field goal. It's fair to say that most Jets fans were wary of kicker Nick Folk because of his early season inconsistency. He did finish the year with his career percentages however and has been subtly consistent late in the season. Finishing 30-39 for the year (76.9 percent) and kicking a franchise-record 56 yard field goal against the Broncos on October 17th, he was ready for last night's chip shot of 32 yards. Can he continue his success against the Pats next week? Here is the kick he made last night in case you missed it.

Clinging to life with 3 minutes remaining, running back Marshawn Lynch took the team on his back as he bullrushed 67 yards to put the icing on perhaps the biggest upset in NFL history. Becoming the first team with a losing regular season record to win a playoff game, the Seattle Seahawks proved their doubters wrong, if only for one day. As Lynch stiff armed Tracy Porter and threw him 10 yards in front of him, it was clear he wasn't going to be stopped. See the highlights below.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

“I’m not sure that the recession is over,” said David Stern, commissioner of the NBA, whose attendance has fallen in certain markets. Others say high unemployment figures and a reluctance of companies to hire have led to greater uncertainty among fans.
The glut of games–35 bowls this season, with many suffering from empty seats–shows that the handful of super-wealthy college programs may be the only ones truly immune from economic pressures.
Marketers are spending again, and TV advertising and sponsorship are reportedly back to pre-recession levels, SportsBusiness Journal reports. But many companies and consumers seem more willing to pay as they go, rather than to commit to long-term deals. 
                                                                                        ~ Brad Wolverton, The Chronicle
As the economy continues to progress and improve from the recession that crushed so many businesses, the omnipresent question is how future individual strategies have changed as a result. This article makes it clear that the recession has indeed altered the way business leaders in sports are more inclined to "pay as they go" rather than commit long term. With the obvious fear of future economic depressions, this mindset is having a crucial effect on sports. Once vigorous and aggressive in their pursuit, owners are now afraid of commitment and, while they acknowledge the obvious improvement of the economy, are more protective of the assets they have. It is curious as to how this short-termed ideology will affect the athletic industry in the future, in college and the pros. Enjoy the article.

Monday, January 3, 2011


Read NY Times Article: Losses Aside, Giants Unlikely to Fire Tom Coughlin by Judy Battista

     Hey there, gang! Bill Eckert here. I wanted to give a quick blurb regarding the Giants’ season deflation. Clearly there were too many factors in play this week that kept them from making it into the post season. With their collapse in the Eagles game two weeks ago, their loss last week to the Green Bay Packers and their need for Rodgers and the Packers to lose to the Chicago Bears this week, the G-Men were forced to take the long trip home from their victory in Washington to sit out the post season. This, however, isn’t about the Giants’ losses. This is about the effect those losses will have on the future of the coaching staff.
     As you faithful JZ Sports readers may recall, my pop threw the Giants and their Christmas ornaments out the window (figuratively) after they embarrassed their fans in their loss to Philly. He has since expressed his desire to see the G-Men’s coaching staff hit the bricks. This isn’t news, as Giants fans have been screaming for Coughlin’s release, saying that the Giants need a severe change in their philosophy.
     Judy Battista wrote a wonderful and very comprehensive analysis of where Coughlin and his crew stand and why in Saturday’s NY Times. She believes that they’re safe at home and after reading it through, I can understand why (though I don’t see change as a bad thing). 
     Pop said that he finds it, as a fan, embarrassing and disheartening to see this team start with such promise, only to fall apart. “All the lost opportunities,” he said, his voice changing its pitch with a twinge and a crack. “The interceptions, the fumbles, lost yardage . . .” It’s been three years since their Super Bowl Championship and they have had deconstructive seasons since, pop said in a tone that was just slightly strained for a fella who has ceased emotional attachment to the G-Men and now watches as a free agent. It’s OK, pop; we can’t just easily toss our feelings aside after years of investment. He did have one bit of advice for the Big Blue’s front office. “As an owner, you have to get a contract that gives them (the coaching staff) two years to get a [Super Bowl] Championship, otherwise they have to go. If they get the Championship, they get a renewed contract.”
     Dear ol’ dad might be on to something. It might make for a more exciting franchise to see these coaches truly fight for their positions. Hell, we wonder where Andy Reid would be today, as a guy who has never won a Super Bowl. What’s he doing in Philly to keep his job?
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Sunday, January 2, 2011

As morbid as this may be to Brett Favre's fan base, it is creative and comical in its accurate portrayal of the final years of Favre's football career. Might the rest of his life consist of indecisive and regrettable decisions that clog the media year after year or will he finally put all the omnipresent retirement talk to rest and live his life in private? Only time will tell. The first article is an obituary, followed by his indecision. Enjoy.



3 Months Later...


Saturday, January 1, 2011

This may not be classified as a sport but this man is out of his mind, seemingly the most flexible man alive. This had to be posted and shared with the world. It must be no more than one foot off the ground. The lowest limbo height was conquered by Dennis Walston in 1991 and was recorded by the Guinness World Records. Watch and enjoy.

Happy New Years to everyone from JZ Sports. As we start fresh in 2011, let's rewind and check out the top 10 plays of 2010. While the quality of the video is poor, it will have to suffice. The video is still riveting and exciting. Thank you SportsCenter for the top 10 plays. Enjoy!

The unique sport of dwarf-throwing originated in Australia in the 1980s and has become an entertaining and popular bar attraction. Having dealt with legal issues in the past, dwarf-throwing is becoming omnipresent internationally. Ironically, the United States wasn't represented in the 1986 World dwarf-throwing championships held in Australia. Team GB won and hold the world record of 17ft 9in. Here is the article about circus escapee Cuddles and his thrower Lenny the Giant of the Oddballs


Tuesday, December 28, 2010


With soccer and basketball being the two main sports in Israel, the commissioner of the Israel Football League (I.F.L.) wants to take football to the next level. Uriel Sturm is attracting players from all over the country and has them feeling like a family and feeling healthy, offering them an exciting escape from the mundane routine of their daily lives. Many believe the I.F.L. will bring football to a professional level in Israel but at the same time football has been omnipresent their for 22 years, albeit flag football and not professional. Only time will tell where it goes but it is exciting to see the influence that the sport is having on the world. Read the article from the NY Times: Tackle Football Gains a Following in Israel by Ben Solomon

Monday, December 27, 2010

According to the Onion SportsDome, the retired safety, once known as the NFL's dirtiest player as the leader of a dominating Patriots defense from 2003-2008, has no idea he ever played football. The two-time Pro Bowler claims he never knew he was part of a complicated game but rather just thought he was chasing and hitting people, preferably in the head. He also added that if he forced them to drop anything they were holding then all the better. Interesting comments from a player who revolutionized the safety position. Watch Host Mark Shepard and analyst Ronde Barber discuss.


Saturday, December 25, 2010

Ho, ho, ho, everyone! With the Steelers dominating the Panthers 27-3 this Thursday, they opened themselves an early Christmas gift in the form of a clinched position in the playoffs, putting them in a merry mood. Here's something from Daniel Tosh and the crying Giants fan that should get your holiday spirit going with a laugh. I can only imagine how he reacted after last week's meltdown against the Eagles. Enjoy and have a great and safe holiday from JZ Sports! 


Tosh.0Tosh Tuesdays 9pm / 8c
Web Redemption - Crying Giants Fan
www.comedycentral.com
Tosh.0 VideosDaniel ToshWeb Redemption


Thursday, December 23, 2010

The New York Jets are on the brink of a playoff berth, only needing a win over the Bears on Sunday to clinch. Unfortunately, there appears to be another off the field issue clouding the team, Rex Ryan's foot-fetish. It seems elementary and unimportant to the game of football and it is. The videos Ryan and his wife made are slightly disturbing and make it clear he has a foot fetish... but who cares? Can the media just leave the Jets alone? His foot fetish, true or not (seemingly true when Ryan labeled it a personal matter), has nothing to do with football. Braylon Edwards' arrest earlier in the season wasn't football related but it was a legal issue, which can affect one's status in the NFL. A foot fetish doesn't apply. Let the man live his life and let his personal matters stay between he and his wife. Just another shot taken at the Jets, they'll look to silence everyone this coming Sunday. If they beat the bears, the media will go in a frenzy but this time it won't be a personal matter.

     In searching for the perfect holiday gift, a new plasma television for the family or Nike Zoom T5 White and Yellow soccer cleats on become.com, shoppers can explore all opportunities. Similar to amazon.com, become.com is a user-friendly site that has all products that one needs for the home, as well as anything else one yearns for. From outdoor lacrosse wall equipment to a mini foam basketball set, the prices beg for attention, competing with all the cheap shopping sites. 
     It's the walmart of shopping sites. To help shoppers, the site has editor's picks and top 10 lists, as well as user-friendly tabs and searches for any product a shopper wants to pursue. It's a pleasure to experience become.com with your family and friends in searching for gifts and house supplies, as well as video games and watches. The site has it all and doesn't lack any products. 

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

The women's basketball team at the University of Connecticut set the NCAA basketball record for most consecutive wins with 89 straight after beating Florida State on tuesday. Coach Geno Auriemma had a less than stellar view of the record, claiming that nobody truly cares because it is the women that accomplished this feat, beating the men's record of 88 straight, set in 1974 by UCLA His comments are borderline controversial, albeit honest and direct. He might have a point as he brings sexism into the picture. Watch what he says as Jemele Hill and Skip Bayless discuss his comments. 


Watch: Boomer Esiason on Behind the Mic talking about Tim Tebow.
The University of Florida legend played with poise and fervor in his first NFL start, becoming the third player to throw a touchdown pass of at least 30 yards and run for a score of at least 40 yards in the same game. While Tim Tebow only finished 8/16, 138 yards and no interceptions, his critics still doubt him. He is a scrambling quarterback. The Broncos can force him to throw as much as they please but it is his legs and his drive that got him drafted and in the NCAA history books. The ubiquitous question continues to be whether he is the future and how high is ceiling is as far as being a top-notch signal caller. Underneath is the highlight reel from his first start, enjoy. 


JZ Sports welcomes our new contributor, Bill Eckert. This is his first piece for us, with more to come. He discusses his love for the Steelers and his expectations of the Giants, who he was raised to follow by his father. It's a dichotomy of one team's expectations to win and the other team's expectations to blow it in the final seconds. Enjoy the article and thanks Bill. 
A Steelers’ Giant Curtain
W.T. Eckert
     I knew I was going to write this column before I watched the games this Sunday. I wanted to compare the two teams that I watch most. Two teams that I believe couldn’t be more different. I discussed the teams and my plans for this column at length with Zack of JZ Sports Inc. and hung up at the start of game one: New York Giants vs. Philadelphia Eagles. The winner would top their division. The game went just as I expected. Game two came after: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. New York Jets. If the Steelers win they would claim their place in the playoffs and clinch their division. This was a game that could have gone to either team, but the match up also went as I expected.
     I blame my father for putting me in the situation of following two teams, however it is a situation I have grown comfortable with. You see, my pop is a diehard New York Giants fan. His love of the game spread throughout my family and every Sunday I’m subjected to the screaming and moaning that comes along with watching the Giants lose with disgrace or scrape by, winning by the skin of their teeth, possibly fumbling their way into the playoffs and Super Bowl. I say I’m “subjected” to this because, though I am supportive in the G-Men’s struggle to make the playoffs and Super Bowl, I am a Pittsburgh Steelers fan at heart.
     Sometime in the early eighties my folks bought me a Pittsburgh Steelers Starter coat (the ones with the zip-up hoods, very old school). I have never been a guy who could wear a team’s colors and not support them. I went through a long-standing period where I could have cared less about sports and enjoyed the hard hitting sounds of 80’s Metal. It wasn’t until the mid to late 90s, with a little help from John Madden’s video game that I reemerged interested in the NFL and the Steelers.
      Having watched the two teams over the years, I couldn’t help but notice what polar opposites they have become, more so now then ever. Interesting, for a team that has a shared ownership through actress Kate Mara’s parents. The Steelers are a solid team. They are the kind of team that other teams use to test themselves against in order to find out what they are made of. It’s what the Jets did this week. The Giants have become, I feel, a team that the opposition isn’t as concerned with. As Desean Jackson said after the Eagles embarrassed the Giants this week, “No worries, I got nothing to say. We’re a dominating team.”
     The quarterbacks for each team couldn’t be more different: Eli Manning, who at times doesn’t seem he could run a bath, never mind an offense, does, at times, display serious heart by fighting off defenders while remaining in the pocket. His snap decisions, however, seem faulty at best. Though he had overall success in their remarkable loss to the Eagles this week, any success he found in his snap decisions were deeply rooted in luck, or receivers who knew they have to make a faulty play work.
     A prime example where Manning was fortunate enough not to give the ball away on a snap decision occurred this week when the blitz pressured Manning into quickly throwing the ball away, off of his back foot. But he doesn’t just throw the ball away; he bombs the thing down field into a flock of Eagles surrounding a singular Giant. The play should have resulted in a turnover. It didn’t out of luck, I say. I always get the impression that a hit is something that Manning is running away from.
     Ben Roethlisberger, on the other hand, comes off as the gladiator type, welcoming any and all defenders to have a try at taking him down. He stays in the pocket as long as needed but he is an unusually large QB. The greatest example of his toughness came in the matchup against the Ravens in week 13. With an already injured and taped ankle, Roethlisberger received a broken nose during a sack by Haloti Ngata. Carrying on like a leader, he finished the game and the Steelers walked away victorious. His snap decisions are designed to move his team forward and often times he finds success in these decisions.
     Though they lost against the New York Jets this week, they battled through. Going into this game, I knew the Jets were going to have something to prove, especially after the way they have embarrassed themselves over the last few weeks.
     Watching the game was exciting. It was a true battle with neither team resting on their laurels. The absence of the Steelers’ Safety Troy Polamalu (due to an ankle injury) always makes a difference in their secondary, but I can take nothing away from the kind of game the Jets played.  In the end, the Jets worked harder. From the opening kick return by Brad Smith to the Jets defensive damage with a safety during the last three minutes of the game, putting them ahead by 5.
     I’ve always had a problem with making plays with your backfield while in the end zone. And if you are going to make a backfield play, why wouldn't you have your explosive starting back who is going to get out of the end zone fast with a few yards. Granted Mewelde Moore is quick and elusive, but what the Steelers needed was a hole-puncher and a few yards and that would have been easily found in starting running back Rashard Mendenhall.
     The Giants played a very different kind of game. After being exposed to the Giants’ style of football, I have come to understand that, no matter how great their lead may be, the game isn’t a sealed deal until the final seconds have been completely removed from the clock. Their game against the Eagles proved my point perfectly. New York was so dominating throughout the first half of the game and then something happened; they played Giants football. The 24-3 lead at the start of the second half improved to 31-10 and it says a lot about the Giants when coach Tom Coughlin is as excited to see his team wax successful as I was from my living room couch. It wasn’t the only view that Coughlin and I shared.
     Giants’ football is a very special kind of football. It’s the kind of football where they have the ability to blow a 21-point lead in seven and a half minutes. Coughlin knew it too. When Vick made that 65-yard score with the help of Brent Celek, Coughlin folded his arms and had that “Oh no, not again” look on his mug. He knew what I knew. I said it before the game to Zack, Coughlin said it after the game to the press, “The game’s never over until it’s over.”           
     It should make my pop glad to know that Coughlin feels the same way he does. “It’s about as empty you get to feeling in this business,” Coughlin said in his response to the disastrous meltdown his team had. Of course Coughlin did the right thing and took the blame for this Giants tragedy, well, I thought he did until he followed, “I’ll take full responsibility for the last play,” with talking about how punter Matt Dodge was “a young punter. He was told to punt it out of bounds and he got a high snap and didn’t feel like he could.” Way to take the blame coach!
     In both games the death knell came in the sign of a punt return. For the Steelers it started the game and for the Giants it ended the game, both in time and in success. Between the two teams, I got what I came to expect. The Steelers can’t win every game, but they put up a fight and did so until the bitter (and it was bitter) end. The Giants had a great first 3 and a half quarters. Eli did an overall great job putting points on the board but Vick got the best of the Giant defense in the waning minutes of the game. He just, as Coughlin put it, “slithers his way out of there. Whether he ducked down or however he did it . . .” Yeah, however he did it. It’s all right coach, your head was probably so cocked off to the side in disbelief, as usual, that you probably missed that play. But hey, I’ll explain that to my father who, after 50 years of calling himself a Giant’s fan, decided to rip down all the NY Giants ornaments from his Christmas tree and call himself a free agent of football fandom. “I’m watching the game for the love of the sport with no specific attachments,” I recall the phone statement.
     Between my pop and my brother, I thought they had never watched a Giants game before the way they get that Coughlin reaction of bewilderment when the Giants cough up a win. I’ve since learned to keep my NFL emotional attachments in Pittsburgh where, if we lose, we know we did so taking no guff, some busted appendages and we leave with some heart. And pop, there’s room for you on my couch if you ever want to wear the ol’ black and gold while wielding a Terrible Towel!

Friday, December 17, 2010

Is this what most young athletes miss out on during their early years? These are clearly trained athletes, yet they seem to be exerting as much effort as if they were taking a stroll in the park. This is their typical boring wednesday. Time to start saving for a trampoline. Seems to be an exuberant way to kill time, albeit detrimental to one's blood flow to the head. Enjoy the video...


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