Did Ya Miss Me?

I fully deserve the shots Walsh has thrown at me over the past few weeks. This whole "real job" thing is working me to death. But, for you fans who eat up every word I say, I made a vow this weekend to actually put something up that I hope is relatively coherent... Lots of things to get to, so let's get rolling.

MLS:

1. DC United's season is mercifully over. The worst season in the team's history ended with another loss, a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Toronto. Jaime Moreno gets a goal in his final DC appearance. Anybody notice the irony that it was from the penalty spot? Regardless, farewell to Moreno and his fabulous career. If he isn't the best player in MLS history, he's at least in the top 3. So where does DC go from here? And, as Walsh accurately pointed out to me last week, they don't even have the #1 pick because of the expansion teams, who have numbers 1 and 2. Just keeps getting better, doesn't it?

2. L.A. Galaxy win the Supporters' Shield - They struggled down the stretch, which could mean trouble against a good Seattle team in the 1st round of the playoffs. However, Bruce Arena is one of the best postseason coaches in MLS history, so I fully expect him to have his boys ready to play.

3. Columbus loses Will Hesmer - A broken shoulder in a collision with Danny Califf (maybe the dirtiest player in the history of MLS, and yes, I know about Dema Kovalenko and Danny Pena) really hurts the Crew. This is still a very good team, but how quickly can they regroup after a big loss? And do they trust Andy Gruenebaum in goal?

4. MLS Playoff Predictions -

Let's see how poorly I do with this (remember, I'm the one who said DC United would finish 3rd in the Eastern Conference back in April). I just hope teams score some goals in the playoffs. Historically, the games are really defensive and low-scoring. And I think this might be the most evenly matched group of playoff teams ever. All 4 of the lower seeds could legitimately beat the higher seeds, and none of them would be stunning upsets.

Columbus Crew vs. Colorado - As I mentioned above, the Crew will miss Hesmer, but I think they enough talent to get past a very good Rapids squad. Schelotto is the glue for the Crew, it looks like Eddie Gavin and Robbie Rogers might be ready to fulfill their potential, and never underestimate the playoff experience and grit of defensive midfielder Brian Carroll. The Rapids counter with arguably the league's best 1-2 punch in Omar Cummings and Conor Casey, but I'm not sold the defense will hold up over 180 minutes. Colorado needs to make this a track meet of a series, and I'm not sure the Crew will allow it.

Columbus wins 3-2 on aggregate

FC Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake - I said a little more than a month ago that it would be a crime for these two to meet in the 1st round, because both teams are good enough to win the whole thing and 1 will be out in just 2 weeks. Dallas' run through the last half of the season is one of the most impressive in recent memory, and they have been playing ridiculous defense. Can relative youngsters Brek Shea and Dax McCarty step up in their game in the playoffs? The defending champions in Salt Lake City were almost as consistent as Dallas in the 2nd half of the season and almost overtook L.A. for the Supporter's Shield. Jason Kreis has turned out to be a great coach (more imagination that Bob Bradley? Just askin'...) and will have the team ready to go. Nick Rimando has played lights out this season, and Alvaro Saborio can light up the scoreboard. Kyle Beckerman and Javier Morales will make the difference and lead this team into the next round in a low-scoring series. Overtime might even be necessary to decide it.

Real Salt Lake wins 2-1 on aggregate

New York Red Bulls vs. San Jose Earthquakes - On paper, Red Bulls should win this series easily. Angel, Marquez, and Henry resemble the legendary DC United "Magic Triangle," but they haven't won anything yet. Dane Richards and Tim Ream lead a solid supporting cast. San Jose has the best player you've never heard of in Golden Boot winner Chris Wondolowski. After a terrible season last year and the rough start to this one, people wondered if Frank Yallop would last the season as the man in charge. Now, he should be in the running for Coach of the Year. This is another interesting series that could be decided late.

The guess here...(gulp): New York winning 3-2 on aggregate

L.A. Galaxy vs. Seattle Sounders FC - The final of the 4 compelling and largely equal playoff series. L.A. won the Supporter's Shield but face a Seattle team that will open the playoffs in front of 35,000 screaming fans. Can't think of a tougher opening road game for any team in any major U.S. sport. L.A. has arguably the best player in the history of MLS in Landon Donovan, a fully fit David Beckham, and as I mentioned previously, has Bruce Arena as coach, and the underestimated Dave Sarachan as the "X's and O's" guy. Seattle counters with their own great head coach in Sigi Schmidt, the legendary Kasey Keller in goal, and the explosiveSteve Zakuani. The addition of Swiss international Blaise Nkufo took a little time to work itself out, but he seems to have found his role on the squad and will be dangerous to L.A.'s back 4. I think this could be the highest scoring matchup of the 1st round.

L.A. wins 4-3 on aggregate

Guess we'll just have to see how I did in 2 weeks.

In other quick news and notes:

1. How badly do Florida fans wish Cam Newton had stayed there? Can't blame him, though. He was too good to be stuck behind Tebow and waste another year of eligibility.

2. If you're down by a score and have the ball with 2 minutes left, there are about 15 NFL QB's I trust with the ball in their hands over Brett Favre right now. And how pissed was Brad Childress last night in the postgame press conference?

3. In a local note, Jen Woodie is going to be the W-League Coach for the expansion Fredericksburg Impact in the 2011 season. Jenn has a ton of experience and credibility for the job, and the people outside of the organization I talked to have all said she is the perfect hire for the team.

4. Don't care for baseball, but a San Francisco/Texas World Series is perfect. No Yanks or Phillies this year. Although the suits at Fox have got to be upset that their ratings will more than likely suck.

Can't think of anything else, so I'll sign off with that. Thanks as always for reading, and we'll see you soon!

What A Wonderful World...

To Quote Mr. Roarke from Fantasy Island, "Smiles, everyone...Smiles!"

This is my favorite time of year for sports. There's so much going on right now it's almost impossible to keep up with...but darned if I don't at least try, much to my wife's disgust. She has basically been the total sports widow the past few weeks, and it doesn't help that we bought a new widescreen high-def tv so I can watch said sports. And I assure you I did plenty of it this weekend. I'll give you the rundown of my observations from multiple sports.

First, thanks to the Red Zone from the NFL Network (greatest channel ever, and it's not even close), I was able to watch large chunks of every game yesterday. My thoughts on each game.

Jaguars over Colts - When you let a team like Jacksonville score 31 on you, Indy, you have some serious issues to address on defense. I'm not sold on Jim Caldwell as the coach of this team.

Ravens over Steelers - Looks like Baltimore's offense is coming together. Pittsburgh doesn't usually give up points late at home.

Redskins over Eagles - Is it just me or does every Redskins game seem to be decided by the last possession?

Chargers over Cardinals - Arizona might have the worst QB situation in the NFL.

Browns over Bengals -I went against T.O. in my fantasy league. Oh, well. And when was the last time a featured NFL RB was white? Just sayin...

Texans over Raiders - Maybe Arian Foster should be benched for the 1st quarter in every game?

Jets over Bills - Tomlinson, playing with a chip on his shoulder, shows he still has plenty left in the tank.

Broncos over Titans - Kyle Orton is playing as well as any QB in the league right now.

Saints over Panthers - New Orleans is missing too many playmakers right now to score a lot of points.

Falcons over 49ers - I don't care what Jimmy Johnson said on the Fox postgame where the NFC West is so weak, nobody is out of it. San Francisco is 0-4. Trust me, they're out of it.

Rams over Seahawks - Well look who might be the most improved team in football?

Giants over Bears - Jay Cutler was sacked 9 times in the first half last night. No that is not a misprint.

Packers over Lions - Green Bay hasn't been nearly as dominant as most experts (myself included) predicted.

MLS -

1. I've said it a few times now, as has Walsh; DC United needs to take a serious look at Ben Olsen for Head Coach in 2011. He doesn't know everything, but he can learn on the job and get better. It's not like DC will be an instant contender next year anyway. The need to rebuild...again.

2. L.A. seems to be getting back into form. The problem is, Real Salt Lake and FC Dallas have been in form for the past 3 months. Oh, and what a SICK goal from Beckham last night against the Goats.

3. When did Dwayne DeRosario become an a-hole? I've known the guy for 10 years and I've never seen him act like this.

4. Nice job Christopher Sullivan, when asked Saturday on FSC if Jeff Cunningham is the greatest MLS striker as he tied Jaime Moreno's mark Saturday night. "No, Jaime Moreno has accomplished more and was a more complete player."

5. For the first time in years, I'm looking forward to the U.S. Open Cup Final. Should be a raucous crowd in Seattle for it, which will give it the feel of a meaningful match, not just an "oh, by the way" midweek game all-too familiar to the tournament the past several years.

College FB

1. I'm a Florida Gator fan. I hate it when they lose, but I can't be too upset about their crushing defeat Saturday evening. Alabama is the best team in the Nation, and I don't even think it's close. They passed their biggest road test against Arkansas last week, and committed a felony beatdown of Florida Saturday. The road to the National Championship will once again go through Tuscaloosa...God I hate Nick Saban.

2. LSU is the luckiest team in the country. They had no business winning against Tennessee on Saturday. How do you have 30 seconds to run a play from the 2 and DON'T GET ONE OFF? Horrible clock management by Les Miles, and had it not been for 2 UT players doing a u-turn and coming back onto the field instead of going out like they were supposed to, that untimed down would not have happened.

3. I don't care what Michigan's record is at the end of the year. If DeSean Robinson continues to put up those kinds of numbers, he should win the Heisman; hands down. It seems like the past several years the trophy has only gone to a player whose team is in the hunt for the National Championship. It used to go to the best player (see: Andre Ware). They need to get back to that.

4. In addition to being a Gator fan, I am also a Maryland Terp fan, and they won their 4th game of the season Saturday against Duke. "Two more wins from a bowl," I texted Walsh. His reply: "And another year of Fridge." Advantage, Walsh.

Okay, I've pontificated enough for today. Notice how I took the high road and didn't respond to Walsh's repeated insults against me on Friday? I am by far the better man.

Hoping to get a Capitals season preview from our hockey expert Scott Morath sometime this week.

Thanks for reading!