The Jets' season in one .gif....

[via Deadspin]

At some point I think we'll have to admit Mark Sanchez is just not that good a quarterback.  Here's the erstwhile golden boy on what appeared to be a called QB sneak, running straight into his own blocker's...{ahem}...big ol' backside, falling flat on his back and fumbling the football, which was promptly returned for a touchdown:

Kobe Bryant: Olympic Correspondent

I’m a “fan” of only two athletes on Facebook, Derek Jeter and Kobe Bryant. While Jeter’s “fan page” is almost certainly written and updated by someone else, it sure seems like Kobe handles his Facebook duties himself. Now, I know there are a lot of Kobe haters out there (and I understand why!), but I’m telling you he is absolutely killing it with his posts from the Olympic Games. 

He’s put up a steady stream of thoughtful posts about his experiences in London, from heartwarming photos with fellow [less-well-known] athletes to updates from obscure events where he's been supporting American competitors, from a picture of his uniform laid out on his bed like a 10-year-old the night before a big game to his wondering how Sergei Bubka stayed motivated enough to break his own world record 35 times, it sure seems like Kobe is making the most of this Olympic experience. 

Kobe's Facebook page. 

Who knew?

Two BILLION Dollars...

...will buy a lotta bling. You'd think it would include the parking lots and land surrounding Dodger Stadium.

"I Spent Most of My Money on Whiskey and Women. The Rest I Just Wasted."

Ever notice how many athletes start out with "agents," but end up with "attorneys?" How long did ex-Mrs. Rodman #3 really think The Worm was going to be able to keep paying $9,500 a month in spousal and child support? Shouldn't these guys be permitted to renegotiate with their baby mamas/gold-diggers once their earning power dries up at the ripe old age of ~40? I guess the marriage to Carmen Electra is probably actually working out as a financial plus for Rodman, since she's still making her own money and was presumably never looking to fleece him for anything more than a few kicks, a good time and tons of free publicity.

I remember once we ran into Dennis Rodman at a strip bar in Vegas business establishment staffed with naked dancing girls women providing elaborately choreographed entertainment and he was throwing around hundred-dollar bills like they were Monopoly money. He had a couple of guys with him that seemed to be running interference. At first we thought they were just assholes, but they turned out to be bodyguards.

NFL Notes: Colts Dismiss Peyton Manning

Been hearing all over today that the Colts "cut" Peyton Manning. Maybe it's just me, but I'd think we could find a gentler term for this particular parting of the football ways.

Can't Make 'em All

Nine Reasons Why That Was a Great Super Bowl

Here are nine reasons why yesterday's was an exceptionally great Super Bowl:

1) The first score of the game was a safety, but not your typical safety. This time it was an intentional grounding call that came on the longest intentional grounding pass I can ever remember seeing. Some dude in Vegas bet a thousand bucks the first score would be a safety and won $50-grand before his seat got warm.

3) Motley Crue's KIA commercial: Adriana Lima, Chuck Lidell, and the Crue. What more do you need?

4) Despite being completely out-played for almost the entire 1st half, the Patriots clawed their way back and scored a game-leading touchdown with 8-seconds left in the half.

4) Madonna and her cast of thousands killed it.

5) Clint Eastwood does the voice-over on a Chrysler commercial that gets the whole country buzzing and, despite its overwhelmingly inspirational message, still exposes the deep political divisions that split our nation. Good Lord people, we can't even agree on a positive message about America?

6) The Samsung commercial featuring Justin Hawkins from The Darkness.

7) Mario Manningham makes what is arguably the best catch I've ever seen in the Super Bowl. Surely it was as good as any Lynn Swan ever made, although the one by Santonio Holmes is probably still the best I've ever seen.

8) There was a concession touchdown with under a minute left. [BTW: I heard Ahmad Bradshaw interviewed about this play. He said no one discussed not scoring, during the timeout or in the huddle. Bradshaw said when Eli Manning handed off the ball he saw the Patriots were going to allow the touchdown and yelled, "Don't score!"]

9) Suspicions are that the Giants had 12 men on the field on purpose for Tom Brady's first Hail Mary, as the penalty ate a precious 11 seconds off the clock that the Pats never got back.

What a great game.

This Story is Not About Newt Gingrich.

"One rarely gets so clear a glimpse of moral bankruptcy."

On Sports Stars and Getting Old

Anyone trying to suss out what's happening with the whole Peyton Manning situation need only look back on the late-career experiences of Johnny Unitas (traded), Joe Namath (waived), Brett Favre (traded), Willie Mays (traded) and -- to a lesser degree -- Joe Montana (traded), to understand that no sports icon is safe from the ravages of time and the cruel calculations of big business.

In addition to the looming arrival of #1 draft pick and alleged "sure thing" Andrew Luck, Manning has two strokes against him: The $28-million the Colts will owe him if he's on the roster in March and that fact that he's 35-years-old and has undergone three neck surgeries (because the first two didn't work) in less than 2 years.

No one is sure that if Manning makes it back onto the field he might not get hurt again the first time he gets body-slammed by a large, fast, NFL-sized human being. That's just too much money amid too much uncertainty for the Colts to swallow.

American Football

Eli Manning may look at times like he's wearing his big brother's helmet and play-acting at the whole pro football thing, but if yesterday's overtime is any indication, he's one tough sum'bitch.

Can't Make This Up Either...

The NCAA, a worse organization than the Gestapo.

Who Doesn't Love Marcos Baghdatis?

Here's Baghdad in some fierce sideline action at the 2012 Australian Open. You have to admire his good form and tenacious follow-through, though I fear he may have some trouble when his endorsement contract with Tecnifibre rackets comes up for renewal.

Playing the Race Card

Perhaps some teabaggers out there can explain to me how this isn't racist.

Anger Management

The two best quotes Serena Williams directed at the chair umpire during today's US Open final:

1) "Aren't you the one that screwed me over a couple of years ago?"

2) "If we pass in the hallway you better stay out of my way."

[ADDING: Photo above is not from today's match.]

Priorities, American Style

If America gave half as much of a shit about the economy and the unemployment situation as they do about the NFL Lockout we'd be down to a 5% jobless rate by now. Good Lord, how many people out there do you think know more about the legal implications of the union decertification or the impact of the reduced rookie salary cap than can even name their own congressman?

Don't even get me started on the debt ceiling nonsense -- the limit was raised 8 times during the Bush Two administration and 18 TIMES during the Reagan years. This is a false crisis drummed up by the teabaggers in an attempt to destroy Barack Obama's presidency.

One can only hope the Republicans' ridiculous obstinacy has the same result as it did when the crybaby Newt Gingrich led his party over a cliff with the 1994 government shutdown. Bill Clinton played that sap like a cheap fiddle.

In the meantime, now that the lockout has been settled, sports talk radio is lousy with 24/7 free agent speculation. For the record, the whole damn country is about to go BK and I don't give a shit where Nnamdi Asomugha ends up playing football next year! All I know is...he should be paying higher taxes than he already is.

Kareem is Lacking in the Social Graces

Coming on the heels of his criticism of the LA Lakers for giving Magic Johnson, Chick Hearn and Jerry West their own statues before him, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has lodged his foot firmly into his mouth yet again, this time chastising Scottie Pippen for having the temerity to compare LeBron James to Michael Jordan.

The funny, odd, and totally transparent subtext of this latest controversy is that, in defending Wilt Chamberlain (whom Kareem could not have hated more nor criticized with greater vitriol during their playing days), Abdul-Jabbar is clearly propping up a player he considers his inferior as a back-door means of burnishing his own pedigree. Two words can describe Kareem's newfound appreciation for Wilt Chamberlain: lame and awwwwkward.

The Big Fella would probably better serve his own legacy, and his prospects for future employment in the NBA -- not to mention ever seeing a statue outside Staples Center -- by just keeping his Big Mouth shut.

Barry Bonds, Humanitarian

Well here's one way to begin rehabilitation of your shattered public image....

Donations, contributions and other efforts have poured in after San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow was beaten in a Dodger Stadium parking lot on Opening Day.

But one quiet gesture has especially touched Stow's family, something that will affect his two children years down the line.

Former Giants star and embattled figure Barry Bonds has volunteered to pay for the college education of 12-year-old Tyler and 8-year-old Tabitha.

"It was extraordinary of Barry Bonds, I thought," Stow family attorney Thomas Girardi told NBC Bay Area KNTV. "He didn't say anything about it to the press. This was just a gift he gave the family because he knew that it was going to be pretty important to the kids."

The Big Fella

While I can understand Kareem's frustration, he needs to remember that he came to the Lakers by trade. Chick, Magic and Jerry are dyed-in-the-wool from birth Lakers. Sorry Big Fella, that's just the way it is. We'll get to you my man, hang tight.

Celebrate Bike Month

This 12' Native American statue doesn't normally have a bicycle in his hands, but we take "Bike Month" pretty seriously around here.

Lakers Get Swept: Less Than Zero

Laker shellacking. On TV, Magic Johnson kept saying the Lakers are going to have to blow up the team. Blow up the team?!?

Isn't that what they did yesterday?

I was listening to the whole fiasco on the radio in the car and only just now saw the replay of Andrew Bynum's incredibly bush league body-slam of that pesty little Maverick what's-his-name. I'd just like to comment, I don't know where Bynum got this high opinion of himself (yes I do...from people kissing his ass and throwing millions of dollars at him), but let's face it, he's one more knee injury away from being Greg Oden.

During the pre-game interviews, Bynum's went like this: "I just have to play my game...I just have to get the ball...I just...me...me...I...me." Kobe Bryant's interview, on the other hand, went like this: "We just have to play our game...We just have to...we...we...we." And there's your ballgame right there.