Whitt's End: 10.12.12
Whether you've reached the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End:
*Can't believe such non-sense made it to Deadspin this morning. But then again, I can't believe a purported journalist wouldn't correct an error when it's made unequivocally clear that he's wrong. You know the story: Cowboys' quarterback Tony Romo is on a conference call with Baltimore media. Phone line gets disconnected by, um, technical gremlins. Romo is clearly still on the line, wondering what happened. But on the other end two media members from the Baltimore Sun decide Romo has hung up on them because, somehow, their big, bad questions scared him. They immediately take to Twitter, even calling Romo "Sensitive." To his credit, Jeff Zrebiec admitted his error and offered an apology to Romo. But Aaron Wilson yesterday on 105.3 The Fan was stubborn and irrational even in the face of facts. In our "conversation" – instead of attempting to explain his reasoning for maliciously lying about Romo's actions – Wilson instead asked me "Are you my dad?" and continually threatened to "Google" my radio partner, Greggo. I asked Wilson a simple questioned that mirrored his injustice: If I hung up on him and then took to Twitter and claimed he hung up on me because he was sensitive, would he consider that fair? I still haven't gotten an answer. Here's the play-by-play.
*Josh Hamilton is dead 'n gone from the Texas Rangers. No doubt one of the Top 10 players in franchise history. And they'll let him walk. For zero compensation. Legacy? Will he be remembered as Danny White, a great player eternally underrated because he got his team close, but not quite to a title? Or will he be remembered as Terrell Owens, full of empty stats and saturated with off-the-field distractions that stunted his team's ultimate growth?
*I know Felix Jones hasn't wowed us as a kick-off returner. Of the 11 kicks he's returned, only 5 times has he gotten past the 20. But Lance Dunbar is somehow the savior? At North Texas he returned 11 kickoffs for a whopping 118 yards. By my math that's under 11 yards per return. Where's Bob Hayes when you need him?
*Don't take this Dirk Nowitzki potential knee surgery lightly. He's 34, and coming off his worst year since 1999. He was supposed to be in great shape after a long summer away from hoops. This is scary.
*I've supported Lance Armstrong all along, but unless he responds to the latest mountain of evidence – including damaging testimony from George Hincapie, his best teammate and only rider to be with him for all 7 Tours de France – I'll from here on consider him merely the best cheater in the history of sports. The guy has done good regarding cancer that will never be undone. But the indomitable spirit who never gave up decided to ultimately surrender defending his legacy, and that's damning.
*HOT
*NOT
*What kind of girlfriend is Sexy Sidekick Sybil? The kind that will – on Oct. 7, mind you – start scrapbooking her way to homemade Christmas cards and then, four days later, drag me to a Burlesque show benefitting a charity for dogs. Eclectic, to say the least. Think I'll keep her.
*If the Cowboys are to get to 3-2 they'll have to accomplish something Sunday they've never done: Beat Baltimore. Ravens are the only team Dallas has never defeated. Cowboys are 0-3, including the embarrassing loss in '08 that closed Texas Stadium.
*QUARTERBET 2012: The NFL, more than ever, is a quarterback league. Gonna try an experiment. Regardless of site or line or team, I'm going to bet a mythical $100 on every NFL game versus the spread this year merely by picking the best quarterback in the game. 8-6 again last week. Through 5 weeks the theory is 38-35-3. After WEEK 5: -$50. So far, so bad.
*Tony Romo is 15-16 in games he's started against NFC East foes Washington (6-5), New York (4-7) and Philadelphia (5-4).
*With neither team ranked in the Top 10 for the first time since '99, Texas-OU Weekend has lost something. Kansas State and West Virginia are better than the Sooner and Longhorns. Feels like a consolation game on Saturday.
*When Greggo asked Cowboys' linebacker Sean Lee who his favorite serial killer was, he didn't flinch: "Ted Bundy." Don't know if I'm impressed or scared.
*Michael Vick owns a dog. I'm supposed to be outraged, but I'm not. He's not breaking any laws and I believe in second chances. Vick is now a spokesman for The Humane Society and says "This is a chance for me to break the cycle." I know what he did was heinous, but are we now a country totally devoid of forgiveness?
*More fuel in the tank for my White Truck Wednesday theory, that is, that our roads are dangerous because angry drivers are taking out their displeasure at having to be behind the wheel of cheap, soulless vehicles. In 2012 22 percent of all purchased vehicles are white, and 55 percent of vehicles sold are pickups. Bottom line: They're everywhere.
*If you're a March Madness fan you should know that tickets to the 2013 tournament games at Cowboys Stadium go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. right here www.NCAA.com/mbbtickets.
*Happy Birthday, Jerry Jones. He turns 70 on Saturday. Speaking of age, you woke up today as old as you've ever been, and simultaneously as young as you'll ever be.
*Ravens 24, Cowboys 20: Only way to beat Baltimore is to run the ball and the Cowboys have proven they can't.
*Sorry, with the Rangers out I can't begin to get excited about baseball playoffs. Even if A-Fraud is failing historically.
*This weekend? We'll be at GT Distributors (Northwest Highway and Shiloh in Dallas) today. Tonight it's DFWRescueMe.com's Burlesque Show at The Boiler Room. Saturday it's Texas-OU pre-game at 9 a.m. and watch party at the Fan Sports Lounge. Saturday night it's UFC 153 watch party at Baby Dolls Dallas. And Sunday, bright and early, it's Cowboys-Ravens pre-game at 9 a.m. back at the FSL followed by the game. Whew. Don't be a stranger.
Also Check Out:
