Life In The DPC!

My Pick: Chicago Bears
Reality: Indianapolis Colts

I picked the Bears and I am going to scrutinize and dissect this one for a couple of decades or so. The last time a defeat bothered me this much was when Nevada lost to Georgia Tech in the 2004 NCAA Tournament. This Super Bowl and that tourney game bother me too much because they were both winnable games and my squads tanked when they needed to rise above the rest.

In all honesty the Bears should have never been in this one. They couldn’t move the ball. Almost half of their points were courtesy of Devin Hester and Rex Grossman played to every Bears fans greatest fear. But despite themselves they were in it to win it until the real Rex shined through.
I hate to blame one man for a collective defeat but Grossman played the Bears out of contention in the second half and made it impossible for them to win. Lovie Smith also receives a good chunk of the blame for not getting the hook after Grossman’s pick was taken to the house. The offense was dilapidated and maybe Brian Griese could have provided a spark.

So where do we go from here? A part of me believes that Grossman’s career in Chicago might be over. He took a lot of flack throughout the season and now he will be the guy who cost the Bears a championship and I don’t think anyone has thick enough skin to handle that pressure. The Bears are not inclined to go in another direction because Grossman got them this far. Many questions to answer and now there are only seven month until the 2007 season kick offs to answer them.

Bears, 21-7. How you can go against the Monsters of the Midway defense? I’ve given some of my best performances in Chicago. It’s always been my kind of town! - Wayne Newton’s recent Super Bowl prediction

I have used lesser reasoning to pick games and this week I will lean on Wayne Newton for some supporting candor to pick the Chicago Bears to win Super Bowl XLI. Wayne Newton and his mind bending logic aside I believe the Bears will win and this isn’t me being a homer. My logic in this prediction is based upon the usual notion that defense overwhelms offense in the championship game. The Colts have a tip top offense and this will never be denied but keep in mind that the two key figures of this juggernaut are Marvin Harrison and Peyton Manning who are not known as clutch and big stage performers. If Tom Brady is the NFL’s Mr. October then Manning is the pigskin equivalent to Donnie Moore (T.R.O.Y.). I realize that the Bears have no clutch performers but they might be naive to the pressure of the biggest day in sports wherin the Colts have tanked in numerous big games and will always be victims of self doubt.

The Colts defense has played well in this playoff run but keep in mind they shut down such scoring juggernauts as the Chiefs, Ravens and Pats with a D that finished 23rd in the NFL in points allowed per game. Ultimately and despite injuries to two key starters the Bears are better suited to shut down the Colts scoring after giving up an average of 15.9 ppg. Please keep in mind Chicago was tied with the Colts for second in the NFL in scoring per game, 26.7.

I hate to use a numbers ploy to show my pick’s strength so I’ll side with Wayne Newton’s logic. But I must keep mind that champions can smell their own and even more so when they are from my hometown of Oak Lawn, Illinois.

“Bears, 28-24,” Dwyane Wade. “Because we’re the best!”

Simple and true the Bears will win according to me, Wayne Newton and Dwyane Wade. I’m thinking Devin Hester will come up large in the game’s grandest stage as his hero Deion Sanders would.

My Pick: Chicago Bears

“Player acknowledges and agrees that an indictment for any criminal act under [that section] … is proper grounds for termination of this contract…Player also acknowledges and agrees that he will not grieve, appeal or otherwise challenge any club action to terminate this contract as a result of player’s indictment for any criminal acts [specified] … nor will he cause or authorize any third party, such as the Major League Baseball Players Association, to grieve, appeal or otherwise challenge any club action to terminate this contract as a result of player’s indictment for any [specified] criminal acts.”  - A provision of Barry Bonds proposed contract with the San Francisco Giants

 Public enemy number one at DavidPatrickCastro.com, Barry Bonds, has am ambigously written clause in his latest contract proposal that could void the deal if he is indicted on criminal charges related to the BALCO steroid fiasco. Bonds could be facing perjury charges if it is found that he knowingly injested performance enhancing drugs and then subsequently maintained that he was a stooge during the Balco proceedings.

At this point the clause in his latest contract may be moot because the collective bargaining agreement and/or the player’s union would bar the Giants from dumping Bonds and his ample salary. In a strange way the San Francisco Giants have brought in a bit of the existentialist’s plight and ideology to the bargaining table.

In its simplest terms Bonds is, if the aforementioned contract stipulation was validated and binding, responsible for the life and legacy he chooses and will never be a victim of tainted flaxseed oil again.  Bonds finds himself as DPC.com greatest villian for two reasons: 1. He is a bit of an asshole. 2. He never owned up to his cheating ways despite the fact that it was plain as day. Only Mussolini got lynched for his crimes and I assume Bonds would be granted some level of exoneration if he had said what had gone down with the juice.

He was free, free in every way, free to behave like a fool or a machine, free to accept, free to refuse, free to equivocate; to marry, to give up the game, to drag this death weight about with him for years to come. He could do what he liked, no one had the right to advise him, there would be for him no Good or Evil unless he thought them into being. - Sartre

Ultimately Bonds is a victim of his own choices and personal misgivings. Though he may have always been a bit of a prick there was never any denying his supreme talent but at a certain point he went over the edge in search to satisfy his vanity. By virtue of his actions, ingesting illegal and immoral enhancements and then trying to maintain that he was a victim of another man’s lies, Bonds show that he made his own plight in the eyes of Sartre. Even if he was a victim of other people’s illicit desires he was ultimately responsible.

Bonds dug his own hole in one way or another and the Giants are trying to make him responsible for the last chapter of this twisted saga. But we have recently seen Bonds defy existential value and blame a teammate when he tested positive for amphetamines and I can’t fathom whom he would pass the buck off to if he was convicted of perjury.

If man, as the existentialist conceives him, is indefinable, it is because at first he is nothing. Only afterward will he be something, and he himself will have made what he will be. Thus there is no human nature, since there is no God to conceive it. Not only is man what he conceives himself to be, but he is also only what he wills himself to be after this thrust toward existence. - Sartre

I held off writing my recap of the 2006 Arizona Cardinals until I had a vague idea on how they were going rebound from their morbid 5-11 campaign that started with the promise of an opening day win against the 49ers and ended with the dismissal of Head Coach Dennis Green. I assumed the Cards would dominate a weak NFC West and cruise to a 10-6 record and I would like to blame alcohol for my prediction but I was stone cold sober when I wrote it.

The optimism was based upon their talent at the skill positions. Two Pro Bowl caliber wide receivers in Boldin and Fitzgerald. The Edge was supposed to solidify a fomerly weak ground game. Kurt Warner is a two time MVP and would be back in a dome throwing darts every which way and the Valley would have its own version of the Greatest Show On Turf. Alas this never happened. Warner fumbled and tanked. The Edge looked a step slow and was left tap dancing to defeat behind a deplorable defensive line. Boldin and Fitzgerald played at their normal levels but it was to no avail. Honestly this was another disappointing Cardinals team and will only be remebered for Dennis Green’s tirade after the Bears’ game.

But there were signs of hope as they finished the season 4-3. Matt Leinart showed why he led the Trojans to consecutive National Championships (AP and BCS, 2003 & 2004 respectively). The offensive line became somewhat solid as the Edge plowed for three 100-yard games in their last five contests. Considering that they started the season 1-8 this was quite an improvement and most importantly they had their energy back after being deflated by three strange and very close defeats (St. Louis, KC and Chicago by a total of six points).

2007 Arizona Cardinals Football. Smart. Tough. Disciplined. - http://www.azcardinals.com/ 

Coach Green was immediately fired after the 2006 came to a thankful end and was replaced by former Pittsburgh Steelers offensice coordinator Ken Whisenhunt. The new head coach has a Super Bowl ring and Ben Rothleisberger as a protege on his resume. High pedigree for sure and comes in as another offensive minded coach (I wanted Mike Martz but that is another tirade for another time).

“What we learned is that quite a few people used the word ‘innovative,’” said Rod Graves, Arizona’s vice president for football operations. “We wanted to make sure that it was his offense, that he was making the calls. We were confident, having researched that.”

Whisenhunt has brought in many of own people, but retained defensive coordinator Pendergrast. His biggest coup was bringing in Russ Grimm in the dual roles of assistant head coach/offensive line . Grimm was on the Steelers staff with Whisenhunt and was in the running for their head coach vacancy and also interviewed for the Cardinals head coaching position.

The new staff seems hell bent on shoring up the offensive line issue and their new motto seems to hint at their 2006 tendency to blow late leads in creative ways rarely seen by the sporting public. Will it work? Maybe, they need the ‘O’ line help and their is slight possibility that Joe Thomas out of Wisconsin might be available as the Cards select fifth in the 2007 NFL Draft.

In all actuality the Cards need to shore up their DB’s and linebackers just as much as their offensive line and some savy pick ups in the draft and in the free agent market could do this. Their won’t be as much optimism in the Valley next fall and this will likely favor the team. No expectations means no disappointment.

The President of Venezuela Hugo Chavez responded to American intervention in foreign affairs recently by decrying; “Go to hell, gringos! Go home!”  The controversial leader of Venezuela made the remarks during his weekly TV show.

Chavez has been very critical about US policy and action in the Middle East.

“What does the empire want? Condoleezza said it. How are you? You’ve forgotten me, missy … Condoleezza said it clearly, it’s about creating a new geopolitical” map in the Middle East, Chavez said.

Chavez maintains a political ideology based upon Democratic Socialism. His main political ally has been Cuban leader Fidel Castro and many of their social and political ideologies run the same course (Anti Empirialism, Anti Colonialism and Latin America run by Latin Americans).

I do not personally side with many facets of Chavez and his ideologies. What I do like is any man, powerful or weak, that stands upto the United States government because they believe that our government is not always right (Bin Laden does not fall under this notion because his acts have been cowardly. If you declare war then go after the military not the innocent bystanders) Chavez has many problems with the U.S. and I can assume that many are valid. His most important stance has been against the Bush Regime. He called out Bush after 9/11 and reiteratted the point that the Bush and Bin Laden families are close. He referred to Condoleeza Rice as a “complete illiterate” when it comes to comprehending Latin America. (Which is likely true. Why would a black American women have any understanding of a culture she is not part of. I mean can she even, kind of relate?)

Fidel Castro and Che Guevara have always gotten my love by standing tall when they did not agree with the American government even if it adversely affected their country. Chavz is essentially doing the same thing but unlike Cuba he has a great ally in the vast oil reserves of Venezuela.

After the divisional round of the playoffs last week I made preliminary picks on the conference games. My initial choices were the Chicago Bears and New England Patriots and I stand by them. These picks were made shortly after everything was said and done after the Patriots game and I will follow the ethos of Kerouac, Your first thought is your best thought. 

New Orleans Saints at Chicago Bears: I’ve been trying to put my loyalty to the Bears aside in their playoff run when making gambling choices. I try to view them in an impartial light and not fall to the nasty comments made by the meda. It worked in their win over the Seahawks but in reality that wasn’t a hard game to pick. Going into the conference championship game the often maligned Rex Grossman has been cast as the Bears weak link and to a certain degree this is true. If he falters and turns over the ball more than three times I don’t see the Bears winning. But if any of these QB’s give up the ball a lot their respective squads aren’t going to win either.  Grossman played well against Seattle and they won but he is still viewed as a liability and he shouldn’t be. The Bears’ achilles is their defense. If the Bears are going to win they need to shore up the middle in the abscence of Tommie Harris and their offense needs to control the ball with their two headed monster: Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson.

I am taking Chicago for a few reasons. It is a home game and the Saints’ offense is predicated on speed and Soldier Fields’ turf is not built for the slashing and cutting style of the Saints burners.

“Coming from turf to Soldier Field is very big difference.” Bernard Berrian said recently. ”Out here I’m still slipping around and I’m use to it all season so it’s a big advantage for us. We know that we’ve got to keep our feet underneath us and some of the cuts they’re used to making, they’re going to have to slow down and their cuts aren’t going to be as fast or as sharp.”

The Saints’ DB’s aren’t the best and Bears’ receivers should be able to make just enough plays down field to open up the running lanes. And most importantly for playoff football in harsh elements: the Bears are built for this. Their style is predicated on defense and running the ball. Grossman has opened up the air attack but this squad will never be confused with Daryle Lamonica and the Vertical Stretch. The game will be close but the Bears will prevail.

My Pick: Chicago Bears
Reality: The Bears

New England Patriots at Indianapolis Colts:

Well it comes back to my gambling ethos again and I will stick by it even though many flaws have come to the surface the last few weeks (Thank you, LaDanian Tomlinson and Ray Lewis). For reasons that are beyond me Peyton Manning can’t beat Tom Brady. Pure and simple. Some dudes have your number in life and this is no exception.

The game will be close because they usually are. It is in Indianapolis but a part of me thinks the Colts will be over confident after two straight wins over their nemesis.  Hopefully I will get my predicted rematch of Super Bowl XX.

My Pick: New England Patriots
Reality: The Colts

Finals Thoughts On The Conference Championship Games: The strategy of the Saints kind of threw me for a loop. They needed to adjust their game to the elements. Use heavy dosages of Deuce McAllister and Reggie Bush and try to hammer a succeptible Bears defensive in unforgiving elements and yet they relied on Drew Brees and an air attack. Strange strategy and it likely cost them a trip to the Super Bowl.

Peyton Manning beat Tom Brady, plain and simple. It hurts me to type this but the Bears matchup better against the Colts than the Patriots. That aside, I just don’t think I can handle two weeks of Manning’s redemption angle from all forms of media.

Early Prediction that could likely change between today and Super Bowl Sunday: The Bears

Lindsey Lohan has checked herself rehab recently and has been attending A/A meeting since December. The 20-year old maintained, “”I have made a proactive decision to take care of my personal health.”

We at DavidPatrickCastro.com have supported Lohan before and  now we feel the need to send our love as one of our favorite debutantes deals with the horrors of chemical dependency. We assumed it was other chemicals but we have been wrong before and wish her all the best as she attempts to slay a demanding demon of the soul. Get well soon.But we’re wondering what Tara Reid will do without a partner in crime…

In a recent a statement issued on her behlaf by her publicist she maintained that she doesn’t need booze to have fun and feels better when sober.

“I haven’t had a drink in seven days. Or anything,” Lohan said. “I’m not even legal to, so why would I? I don’t drink when I go to clubs. I drink with my friends at home, but there’s no need to. I feel better not drinking. It’s more fun. I have Red Bull.”

From my experience that’s pretty much a load of jive. I’ve been drinking since I was in high school and it can act as an anti depressant during the bad times. A magic elixir to squelch your inhibitions and my only means of surving the last half of the 90’s and the first five years of the new milenium. Was life more fun when  I was loaded? In hindsight, yes and this is likely due to the simple fact I lead a very boring life and getting drunk was a menas to a little more excitement. After I graduated from college and left Reno to my current abode Phoenix I swore off alcohol except for the imporant gatherings as opposed to when I was thirsty and playing Madden and yes Life In The DPC! has been really boring the last year or so. I guess my inherent tendency to say and/or do dumb things whilst loaded is gone and because of that there are less hijinks in my days. I can not tell Lohan to continue to booze and in all likelyhood have a better time. That is an unjust act by a website but I will say that  if she truly does have a problem and she is getting the help she needs, well DPC.com sends nothing but our love. Yet, if this a PR stunt to clean up her decadent image, well for shame. Hell either way we still adore you because we don’t know if you are the Madonna or Evil-Lyn.

Indianapolis Colts at Baltimore Ravens: I didn’t watch this game. I had the Yahoo! game cast on because I was at work. It is rarely noted that a claims adjuster’s work is never done. Truthfully I’m kinda glad I was chained to my cubicle because the game seemed boring. This is the norm with the Ravens. They grind you to death and I assumed they would use this MO and force Peyton Manning into mistakes and alow scoring victory. The game was a grinder but Steve McNair turned it over and Adam Vinateri showed why he is going to Canton when everything is said and done.

My pick: Baltimore Ravens
Reality: Indianapolis Colts

Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints: I got home from work in plenty of time to catch this one. Truthfully this was the Saturday match up I wanted to see and it was fairly entertaining. Jeff Garcia’s Cinderella run ended to a Saints squad that are rightfully America’s team in this playoff run. Deuce McAllister was the MVP and overshadowed Reggie Bush and proved that the Saints can play ground control football, which is neccesary for a championship. Of course they have a tendency to give up big plays and this might be the Achilles of this talented squad. (Note: The Saints turn around from last year’s 3-13 season has been attributed to  the additions of head coach Sean Payton, Dree Brees, Reggie Bush and Marcus Colston but I give all the credit to Aaron Brooks. He was dumped and ended up in Oakland  with a 2-14 record. If the Raiders go with Andrew Walter or grab Brady Quinn or JaMarcus Russell I predict an Oakland renaissance.)

My pick: New Orleans Saints
Reality: Ditto

Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears: I’m not going to lie this was a hard game to pick due to my allegiance to the Bears but I’m trying to be more logical as opposed to emotional. I now realize that putting money on Nevada, with no spread, on the road against Arizona State is dumb. With that said, I took the Bears in this one but a part of me has no faith in Rex Grossman and never will. In my lifetime the Bears have had one good QB but Jim McMahon was never healthy so I guess they never had one over a long stretch. The Bears had the chance to take Byron Leftwich but dumped the pick and took Michael Haynes and Rex Grossman. Leftwich isn’t the gretatest QB in the league but he is more consistent than Grossman and he is also my prototype QB in Madden so I might be a bit biased. Anyway Grossman played well and made no mistakes and the Bears won but their defense looked very vulnerable.

My Pick: Chicago Bears
Reality: Ditto

New England Patriots at San Diego Chargers: One of my gambling tenets is to never bet against Tom Brady and today was no exception. Despite the fact that the Chargers are a tip top squad and the game was in The Murph they had two things going against them that no squad could overcome. One is the fact that Marty Schottenheimer is at the helm and two is Tom Bady’s mere presence. The Chargers are loaded with LT, Merriman and Philip Rivers but they were in over their heads and even though the Pats were behind most of the game I was sure that the Bolts would blow it and they did. I feel bad for Tomlinson because he will never win a big game because of Martyball. He could be this generations Gale Sayers in both performance and championships.

My PicK New England Pattriots
Reality: Ditto

Super Bowl Pick (An early one that will likely change before the conference championships are played): Chicago Bears vs. New England Patriots in a rematch of Super XX and Brady becomes the new milleniums Joe Montana after garnering his fourth Super Bowl ring.

In my 2006 NBA Draft analysis I made a few assertions and unlike most journalists I will admit when I am wrong but I also like to keep tabs on some of my predictions.

I said it before (http://davidpatrickcastro.com/nba.html), and I will reiterate Adam Morrison is the future of the Association. He will likely have the best career of anyone involved in this recent draft.  -July 1st, 2006 Life In The DPC

Adam Morrison is second amongst rookies in scoring , 13.7 ppg, and based upon NBA.com Rookie Rankings he is second behind Jorge Garbajosa of the Toronto Raptors. My statement was quote bold but I stand by it because there is a derth of pure shooters in the league and the 6′8″ variety are rarer. Also keep in mind that the core of the Bobcats is young with lots of NCAA Tournament experience and that they are substantially under the salary cap after this season. As goes the Bobcats so will Morrison.

Paul Millsap was a steal…The guy has a nose for the ball and seems to be driven in the same vein as Ben Wallace or Dennis Rodman. The Utah Jazz lucked out. - July 1st, 2006 Life In The DPC

Paul Millsap is averaging 6.4 ppg and 4.2 rpg in only 15 minutes a night. The 47th pick in the draft has been a consistent rebounder in limited minutes. Millsap was the only player in the WAC that could shut down Nick Fazekas and keep in mind he is the only player in NCAA history to lead the nation in rebounding three straight years.

Hopefully as the years go by I will be vindicated by these predications. Or as Fidel Castro would be apt to say;”History will absolve me.”

I’m on a good gambling run these days. I picked the Arizona Cardinals over the 49ers and in the BCS I had Florida over Ohio State but since I just wrote these words I will likely doom myself on this NFL playoff weekend. In an earlier prose I put forth the ethos to bet like DPC and hopefully I can use my own logic to  keep this run alive.

Indianapolis Colts at Baltimore Ravens: Ray Lewis is on my list of aforementioned of players I will never bet against and Peyton Manning is on my list of players I will never bet on. Pretty cut and dry. Ray Ray and the Ravens beat the crap out of a very soft Colts squad.

Philadelphia Eagles at New Orleans Saints: The Eagles are riding a strange wave of good fortune with reserve QB Jeff Garcia at the helm. I don’t puch much stock in a Philly squad that squeeked a three point win against a NY Giants team in perpetual turmoil. The Saints are the feel good story of the year and the game is in the Bayou so I must say the Saints win this one running away.

Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears: I realize one of my rules is to never bet on Rex Grossman but as I stated when I wrote the rules; It hurts me to write this as a Bears fan but the guy is young, erratic and inconsistent and as soon as I publish this he’ll probably play like an MVP just to spite me and my gambling system.  So I’m sticking with the Bears because their defense, though beat up, can contain the Seahawks but it will be a close one.

New Patriots at San Diego Chargers aka The Game of the Week:  This one is a toughie. On my list I have LaDanian Tomlinson ahead of Tom Brady but I noted that the list of rules was in no particular order. I fear Tom Brady the same way I feared Joe Montana and it is because of that simple idea that pushes the Pats over the Bolts. Also I have absolutely no faith in Marty and his inability to win a meaningful game. He is the Peyton Manning of coaches.