Sounds Observations - Absurd Pregame Interviews

Hi everybody! I watch a bunch of crap on Sundays to give you myopic insights into relatively mundane topics. Shall we begin? Abridged version today:

NFL Week 9

1. I talk a lot about the different pregame shows on here, and I typically neglect the NFL Network's show, which begins at 8 am here in the central timezone. There's a reason for this: I avoid Deion Sanders and Michael Irvin like the plague, and they both are employed by the Shield's Propaganda Machine. But, I decided to take a look on Sunday morning, and found it to be... not so bad.

The highlights are Warren Sapp and Marshall Faulk, who have astute, cogent and relatable insights into the NFL's inner workings, from off-the-field issues (holla at Fantasy Unsports) to play-calling and player personnel. However, I could not look away from this interview by Faulk with Ray Lewis. Go ahead and watch it; I'll wait.

Ok?

Alright, the main thing that got me is that the man (Lewis) makes absolutely no sense when he talks. It's as if he thinks if he makes a point passionately, he doesn't need to worry about what that point is. My favorite part is when he's asked about the Bengals (who ended up trouncing the Ravens later in the day) regarding respect for them. Lewis says "I don't need to respect nobody. I just don't disrespect anyone."

This is akin to the classic Vanilla Ice interview regarding the "Under Pressure" riff. "Our joint goes da da da daga da da... DA da da da daga da da. It's different!"

2. Ok, I went 6-6 so far this weekend. 6-6! This was an absolutely absurd week for picking games. Houston tried to scare Indy but lost the closest thing to an upset lock as there's been all season, Green Bay losing to TAMPA BAY? Carolina easily covering against the Saints and almost winning? I don't understand.

3. Against my better judgement, I was listening to Colin Cowherd this morning, and I heard two interesting things:

A. He made a point that was mentioned on the pregame shows (must've missed it myself) on why Miami is the only team that can properly execute the Wildcat formation: You must commit to it. It's why it doesn't work in Philly with Michael Vick, because they throw it in there as a gimmick, rather than a useful part of your offensive scheme. Good stuff.

B. Trent Dilfer was on, and I'm amazed that he's become a very talented and informative analyst. He made a defense of the Notre Dame coaches that actually almost convinced me that it's not their fault for the way things have been going for the Irish. Unbelievable. Watch, cause he's going to be either the next Tom Jackson or the next Sean Salisbury. Either way, it'll be entertaining.

MLB

4. Yankees won. A-Rod redeemed. Rivera and Jeter enter the Pantheon of greatest ever discussions. I remain unmoved.

College Basketball

5. It starts tonight with the defending champs (North Carolina) playing Florida International University. If that sounds like a game you're very likely to miss, keep in mind Isaiah Thomas is the fresh-faced coach at FIU, and it'll be worth tuning in solely for the facial expressions when the score's 157-9.

That's it for this week. I'm tired and there'll be plenty more next time. Cheers!