Courtesy of mcmilkd through Webshots.com

If Drew Brees was still the Charger quarterback, I wonder what might have been accomplished, especially with LT at his prime and Antonio Gates blowing up?  Ah might a Super Bowl or two been in our midst?  We can only speculate now.  I know the Chargers and A.J. Smith were concerned with taking a risk after Brees injured his shoulder at the end of 2005-2006 season, but its the type of risk, I’m calling it the Tom Brady risk, that makes a champion.  Now I will have to wallow in mystery and hope the rascal from NC state (who ain’t bad but no Drew Brees), Philip Rivers, and a gimpy LT can pull out even a chance at making the Super Bowl.  I’m aiming low and not even thinking about a trophy at this moment.

But I shall try to keep it positive.

With that said, it is not an understatement when I say the quarterback is the critical central figure of a football team and often this is the reason why teams win championships (unless you were the 2000-2001 Ravens who did it almost exclusively on defense and a right moment right time quarterback aka ESPN analyst Trent Dilfer).  Without a solid quarterback, your team’s season is going to be a long, excruciating painful one.  Though I hate to say it, Philip Rivers actually give me hope .  Too bad I can’t say the same to the Ragin’ Cajun Jake Delhomme.

Everybody has an opinion on where their favorite quarterbacks rank in comparison to others, but is that opinion based on any solid evidence?  Of course CBS Sportsline and ESPN rankings are right?  Yeah right! Not by a mile.  That’s why I’m here, to give you my view after two weeks of football, based on a ranking system decided by performance.  They may not agree with other rankings, but at the very least, its factually based.

My rankings are based on my fantasy football league’s stat performance on Yahoo Fantasy Football.   (I know, a bit corny but I’m not going to pay tons of money for stats when I can get decent ones through Yahoo).  Not to get too much into the technical information, but points are allocated based on yardage and TDs and adversely affected by interceptions, sacks and fumbles.  The total amount of points is a summation and the person with the most points is the best player.  By each rank, I will give a little blurb or explanation why they rank the way they rank (with my Quackster style of analysis).  I hope you will enjoy it as much as I like discussing them.

Now without further adieu, the rankings for quarterbacks:

1. Drew Brees – My oh my, who would’ve known?  Just kidding, this is obvious as Brees is launching dive bombs left and right like nobody’s business.  Lucky for me, I’m his fantasy handler and obviously he’s a must start every week.
2. Peyton Manning – The man is more cerebral then even some PhDs out there!  Did you see that winning drive where he pulled an audible out of thin air after taking stock of the Miami defense?  This is the stuff of legends.
3. Joe Flacco – Joe cool is moving up in this league.  The surprise for the Ravens this year is having an formidable offensive to go along with that stout defense headed by evergreen Ray Lewis.
4. Tony Romo – I know he’s a bit high considering his “fail” moment at JerryWorld’s grand opening.  Better shore up kid, or Jerry’s going to ship you out.  Don’t worry, he’ll do that to the Pillsbury Dough Boy Wade Phillips first.
5. Eli Manning – I know he dissed Chargers in the draft way back when, but you’ve got to hand it to him for his solid play, especially taking out JerryWorld and his large LED screen.  He’s my backup in fantasy.  Trades anyone?
6. Matt Ryan – He’s continuing to take flight and now that he’s developed a go to guy mentality with Tony Gonzalez and continues to throw those long bombs comfortably to Roddy White, the sky’s the limit.
7. Byron Leftwich – Really?  I have to follow where the data leads me and this is very unlikely.  All I can say is he’s managing the game and doing somewhat a decent job.  Too bad managing doesn’t always lead to wins.
8. Matt Schaub – Always under the radar, but he’s ready to take the next step into stardom with the help of Andre Johnson.  Only problem, we’ve been saying that these last couple years.  A little defense could help.
9. Philip Rivers – May the force be with you young Anakin.  Just make sure you don’t get all crazy darkside on me.  Hold yourself together long enough for a Super Bowl ride.  Please don’t pull a Ryan Leaf on me.
10. Trent Edwards – Underrated for sure, but the stats don’t lie.  He’s a top ten quarterback.  A smart guy that won’t turn the ball over.  Does going to Stanford have anything to do with that?
11. Tom Brady – Wow, not even in the top ten?  Okay, its only been two weeks, but he’s struggling out there.  If he doesn’t get it together, does that mean the dynasty is over?  For me I hope so and I’m sure the rest of you agree with me.
12. Ben Roethlisberger – Big Ben, so aptly named, can take a tidal wave of sacks.  However, he can only take so much and without a decent running game, he’ll topple soon enough.  Timber?
13. Kurt Warner – I thought the hip surgery messed things up and then he went schizo on me.  Completing 24 out of 26 passes last week means all is probably well in the desert.  The thermometer is just heating up.
14. Kyle Orton – Sometimes, all you need is luck and this guy seems to have tons of it up his sleeve.  Is he Irish by the way?  The softy AFC West schedule should provide inflation of grades for sure.
15. Jay Cutler – After a disaster at Lambeau, he’s beginning to get his act together.  It helps when you have decent receivers such as Johnny Knox to help.  Funny how party boy Orton is ranked  higher than Cutler at this point.  Must be Coors Light.
16. Kerry Collins – He’s doing his part.  How bout the rest of the team, especially that once vaunted defense.  Oh yeah, I guess Albert Haynesworth really made a difference ey?  Should’ve paid him the money!
17. Carson Palmer – I wonder if he is thinking of moving closer to Carson, CA right now?  Those winters can be so long out in Ohio, especially with a double-covered Chad Ochocino and a slow poke Laveraneus Coles dropping passes.
18. Aaron Rodgers – The heir apparent is apparently a work in progress .  The first week was spectacular.  Now the defense needs to catch up, Rodger that?
19. Jason Campbell – Though he won last week, the critics continue to build as he’s totaled only 1 TD thus far.  I like the guy, but he’s got to perform.  Interpretation:  his career as a starter is in jeopardy.
20. Mark Sanchez – Who is this guy?  Is this the same Mark that started at USC?  He has great accuracybut where did that arm strength come from?  Is that why Pete Carroll went all mad crazy last year when Sanchez announced he was leaving?  Betcha he still is after that pitiful loss to Washington.
21. Matt Hasselback – I thought those protein drinks are supposed help buddy.  I guess not as he goes down again this year now with a back injury.  Is it time to hang up the jersey yet?  I guess it depends if the wifeyis still on the View or not.
22. David Garrard – Even a bottleneck on the 405 freeway looks faster than the Jags offense.  The season looks bleak at this point in time.  Are the TV blackouts signaling an omen?
23. Kevin Kolb – He is filling in just nicely even with Jeff Garcia looking over his back.  Good experience for him as he might be able to parlay a starting role either in Phili or elsewhere if he can put out a solid game next week.
24. Brett Farve – Can you believe he has only thrown 265 yards after two games.  Not like old times for sure, but that’s not why the old man is playing for the Vikings.  A sleeper pick for the Super Bowl for sure!  Nothing to loose when AP is running for you.
25. Matthew Stafford – Welcome to the NFL.  No wins so far, but gutsy performances make for a brighter future.
26. Shaun Hill  – He doesn’t produce the gaudy numbers we expect out of our tradiational 49er quarterbacks, but he’s not your typical 49er quarterback is he?  Its all about the W and simply, the W is what he’s producing. 9 wins out of 12 to be exact.  Enough said.
27. Marc Bulger – Oh how the mighty have fallen.  This team needs wide receivers man!  Maybe I should try out for the team.  The Greatest Show on Turf has turned into The Gangly Show of Smurfs.
28. Donovan McNabb – This is not fair I know, but if you’re not on the field, you do your team no good.  Eagles hope he comes back soon.  I’m predicting that Phili will trade him if all does not go well this season.  To run for a TD or not, that is the question.
29. JaMarcus Russell – He’s got the right arm strength for Al Davis’ vertical passing game.  Too bad he can’t throw for crap, even if his life depended on it.  JaMarcus makes Shaq’s free throws look good and I’m not talking about the ones he makes either.  Its the ones he clanks off the rim.  Russell isn’t even close.
30. Brodie Croyle – Croyle has stated his case that he’s the quarterback for the future on somebody’s team.  His first week stats are better than Matt Cassel, the appointed one.
31. Matt Cassel – Would he rather have Todd Haley or Belicheck running the show?  This speaks volumes for the Evil Back East as I would like to refer to him.
32. Jake Delhomme – Is the game past him already?  How do you underthrow Steve Smith man?!  Week two is much improved but the INT at the end of the game was costly.  One more outing like that and it might be time to join Trent Dilfer on the sports desk.
33. Brady Quinn – Does this guy really want to play quarterback or does he want to be a male model ?  So far he hasn’t proved anything and the clock is still ticking nevertheless.
34. Chad Pennington – Did you see how he threw yesterday?  Especially at the end of the game?  I didn’t know Chad had arm strength!  Too bad he doesn’t do that for the whole game. Well then again, maybe there’s a reason for the Wildcat.
35. Seneca Wallace – I didn’t know you were still backing up Hasselback.  Poor guy always playing second fiddle.
36. Julian Edelman – I thought you were a WR.  Oh wait you are!  Hey you’re a QB too?  I wonder if he is going to pull a Brady on Tom Brady, if you know what I mean.

There you have it.  It is my quacky rankings.  Let’s havea look later in the season and see how this QBs have progressed. Until next time, let’s hope for a Charger victory!  Am I biased.  You can bet your socks on it!

For those who are like me, average Joe’s, this also signals the season of fantasy football.  Sure, there is fantasy NHL, MLB, NBA, etc, but fantasy sports was essentially made for football.  Why?  It does not require too much attention like those other sports which play schedules that vary between 82-162 games.  The successes of one’s fantasy team (as well as its downfalls) are magnified by the 17 weeks of football.  It creates an excitement that sometimes rivals the actual football game itself.  Want proof?  Drew Brees did not have to throw 6 TDs last weekend and could have sat down for the game after 3 or 4 TDs, but for those owners (your truly) who were playing an opponent (like I did) who happened to have Adrian Peterson (and his monster 180 yards and 3 TDs) on their team, that was the equalizer as well as the icing on the cake that helps one (like myself) win the game.

So much is involved in fantasy football nowadays since its inception.  They now have fantasy football insurance.  If your player such as Tom Brady like last year gets knocked out of the season, you get to recoup your investment.  Obviously for a person like me who does not spend more than a friendly $20 wager with buddies, this insurance deal is wack.  However there are fantasy leagues now that have $100,000 buy-ins.  That’s ludicrous!  I suppose for an investment like that, insurance is a must.  Let’s just hope fantasy owners don’t get out of hand with the actual players themselves such as the unfortunate event of vandalism at Buffalo Bills CB Leodis McKelvin’s property yesterday.

Its an alternate, virtual reality for fantasy owners.  Fantasy football is a chance to escape the perceived boredom at the office (luckily I love what I do which is what I’m doing right now, writing).  Companies are definitely locking on to this trend and we have not only the regular sports analysis such as ESPN and CBSSportsline, but the companies are hiring fantasy football analyst or gurus.  One can make a living predicting and partaking in the analysis of an imaginary concoction.  That is only part of the story too. You  can also  buy trophies to display like real athletic trophies as a testament to your imaginary managerial prowess where in real life you could just be a paper pusher.

All I can say is what will they think of next?  If the following movies are any indication, we might be in not for only a change in sport but life as it is.  Please do enjoy:

Courtesy of 1127sg from Webshots.com

The Pro Bowl played its final game in Hawaii for the foreseeable future and so, I decided to catch the game on TV to see “history”.  If it wasn’t for the rain (yes, in SoCal we have rain sometimes in the winter time), I’d miss this “monumental” event.  Unlike the Super Bowl which has a rich family tradition, one of which I have not missed since the beginning of time (a.k.a when I first discovered football in 1994), the Pro Bowl seems like a leap year experience.  The game is normally sub-par in comparison to a regular season game and this year did not “disappoint.”  The defenses are hampered for safety’s sake and the players seem to “chill out”.  I don’t blame them because they are in on vacation in Hawaii for “allstar” efforts this past season .

Okay, so I actually found the game somewhat edible. Larry Fitzgerald proved again why he was a beast of a receiver and so fittingly deserved the Pro Bowl MVP.  (Hey did you know that the award is called the MacGuire?)  Every quarterback and their dad was trying to lob it to Fitzgerald to test him out.    I’m sure he’d rather be hoisting a different type of hardware right now, but having a Pro Bowl MVP will come in handy come salary renegotiation time.  The NFC won for the second straight year, but unlike the Mid Summer Classic, the game has no meaning (of which I fully support).  Other then these obvious points that you can find at other news media outlets, I’d like to show you some interesting points worth noting:

• The rallying cry for 45:  What is that you say?  45 means the $45,000 given to each individual player on the winning side.  I guess that is one way to inject excitement in the players to play a “competitive” game.  However, I think the NFL undermined itself in this respect by giving the loser half that much ($22,500).  The disparity between winner and loser is such that it is easy to call it a day and take the loser’s share.  Why even give the losing team any money.  Don’t they already have their trip and tab picked up by the NFL for being their anyway?
• Penalties:  Unless you’re blatantly offsides or moving really early on the offense, Offside and False Start Penalties were at a minimum.  There were some obvious infractions, but they let the players play for the most part.  This made the game much smoother, except near the end of the 4th quarter where an illegal defense was called.  It came up from on top of the “video booth.”  Now, it is quite funny that the NFL allows officials to correctly add a penalty after a play has ended in a Pro Bowl game after review from “up top” on a obvious penalty, but in a “real” game, such as the final play of the Super Bowl or the Ed Hochuli incident, they do not review the play.  Why such a discrepancy?
• Fumblerooski:  The original play is illegal, but this newer revised edition for the 2009 should definitely be tried in a regular season match.  Then again, the play took too long to develop and most likely, the running back or quarterback would’ve been creamed in a real game.  I guess the play is limited in its usefulness, unless you’re playing against the Oakland Raiders.

So the Pro Bowl was not a total snoozer, but it was not up to par on quality either.  I guess maybe I’ll you next year in Miami?  And a week before the Super Bowl?  A fumble by the NFL?

Anyway, what I’m really discussing in this “aftermath” post is the analysis of the spectacle that is known to be called the Super Bowl.  So my predictions, er I mean Lucky’s predictions were close but alas I did not end up with the cigar.  I guess I’ll have to try my luck in basketball then.  Not to give an overly blatant excuse in support of the prediction but, if you looked at the Las Vegas odds hovering around 6 to 7 points this past weekend in favor of the Steelers, you’d say my prediction was on cue.  Since the game ended with a 4 point victory by the Steelers, people betting on the Cardinals actually won.  In essence, the predictions were actually projected for the betting cr0wd..hehe.

Okay despite my efforts to mold the results in my favor, the predictions were actually pretty good. If you look back at the “SuperBowl Sick’ems” post, you’ll find that I did say Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu would not have effective games and that foresight came true.  My only downfall, ahem I mean Lucky’s downfall is that I forgot to factor in James Harrison, only the NFL defensive player of the year, and Santonio Holmes, now known as the Super Bowl MVP.  I guess defense indeed wins champsionships and a good team has players to always take over the game when their stars are injured.  Hey what’s going on with the Steelers and their recievers getting MVPs at the big game (Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes)?  Is this a conspiracy?  Are they actually better then Randy Moss and T.O.?

As for the game itself, it was Super Bowl worthy.  It was a delight that we would have such a good game right after last year’s momentous Giants vs Patriots  game.  As I was referring earlier about Super Bowl MVPs, it reminds me of last year’s award recipient, Eli Manning. He did not deserve the MVP trophy, rather it should have been awarded to the Giants Defense or at the very least, David Tyree with his incredible catch.  Hey that catch was better then Holme’s catch and that netted Santonio with the MVP trophy. (Plus, David had 2 TD touchdowns in last year’s game).  As you can see, I believe the NFL has a consipiracy to mold its image in a certain manner by interfering with the game (see Karlos Dansby’s supposed Roughing the Passer Penalty).

As for the entertainment outside “the game,”  I’d say with the economy tanking, the commercials generally tanked as well.  Some were funny (see CareerBuilder’s spot:

), but most were a big disappointment.  The trailers for some upcoming movies such as GI Joe and Star Trek looked too good to be true (and might still be when they come out).  Here’s the trailer for GI Joe again for those who like me thought that trailer went too quick, you can find it here.

Bruce Springsteen probably played a good show, but he looked old and tired on stage.  At least he didn’t make it “too” boring like Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (truly heartbreaking).  I guess the NFL is playing chicken and putting old acts out there for its halftime event, thereby completely ignoring the 18-25 crowd.  I know, they’re scared from what happened with the “Janet” incident, but at least make the show relevant to the fans that will make their enterprise grow for the upcoming generations.  Now that’s true marketing.  That is the coveted age group.

Well that is my aftermath analysis of the past Super Bowl.  I hope you enjoyed the season as I did.  I look foward toward next Fall (and not the fake football of the Pro Bowl), but for the time being, let’s hope Andrew Bynum recovers soon for the Lakers.  We need a championship in LA.