Nina Agdal

It really doesn't get much better!

Cardinals 23, 49ers 14

The Cardinals improved to 3-0 on the season today with a 23-14 win over the 49ers @ University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.  It really was a tale of 2 halves, the 49ers came out strong but the Cardinals really dominated in the second half.  I love this Cardinals coaching staff!  They did it without Carson Palmer too, making it even more impressive.  Nice win Cards!

Observations:

• I admit it, the way the 49ers started this game had me worried. 
• I'm like the Cardinals playoff chances every week!
• Drew Stanton had himself a pretty nice game.  18-33, 244 yards, 2 TD's. 
• I think that John Brown has a future for himself in the NFL.  
• The Cardinals could use a RB like Carlos Hyde.  
• Should Ray McDonald really be out on the field?  Just asking. 
• Dumb play Anquan Bolden, what were you thinking?  
• The Cardinals are really good at blocking field goals.  
• Todd Bowles is proving that last year was no fluke.  
• It didn't look like Andre Ellington's foot was bothering him too much. 
• Tony Jefferson had a heckuva game from the Cards secondary.
• Ted Ginn Jr has a pretty nice arm, I would not have expected that. 
• I really like the way the Cardinals have been finishing games. 
• Please be okay Antonio Cromartie!  
• The Cardinal fans have really stepped up their game over the past couple years.
• 3 more field goals for Chandler Catanzaro.  9 for 9 this season.  Nice find!
• I suspect that this will be Larry Fitzgerald's last season in Arizona.
• The 49ers really became unhinged in the second half.  
• I wonder where Jim Harbaugh will be coaching next season.  
• Up next?  @ Denver to take on the Broncos in 2 weeks. 

Saints 20, Vikings 9

The Vikings dropped to 1-2 today with a 20-9 loss to the Saints at the Superdome in New Orleans.  The Vikings dug themselves an early hole and just weren't able to dig out of it.  It was the start of the Teddy Bridgewater era though, I'm guessing he pulls a Wally Pipp.  Even Bridgewater couldn't provide a spark to this Vikings offense though as they once again struggled mightily.  Until that Vikings offense gets moving, they are going to struggle.

Observations:

• The Vikings really do miss Adrian Peterson.  
• Vikings need to turn those field goals into touchdowns.  
• Those first 2 offensive drives by the Saints were way too easy. 
• The Vikings did win the last 3 quarters 9-7 if that matters to anything 
• Teddy Bridgewater did okay in his first NFL action.  
• Total Yards:  Vikings 247, Saints 396
• I was not a fan of that roughing the QB call on Captain Munnderlyn. 
• The blocking in the back call on Josh Robinson was very questionable too. 
• Why no unsportsmanlike conduct call on Drew Brees?  
• Blair Walsh is a really good kicker indoors. 
• There were no turnovers by either team in this game, you don't see that often. 
• I wouldn't mind seeing Joe Banyard getting some of Matt Asiata's carries.  
• Matt Asiata had 35 yards rushing on 12 carries, that's a 2.9 yards per carry average.
• Vikings need to do a better job of getting the ball into Cordarrelle Patterson's hands.
• I guess this is why the Vikings held onto Christian Ponder.  
• Was that a MarQueis Gray sighting?  
• The Saints were much too efficient on 3rd downs for my tastes.  9 of 13.  
• Jimmy Graham is a load of a TE for the Saints. 
• You had to figure that the Saints wouldn't start the season 0-3.  
• Up next?  Falcons @ TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. 

Minnesota 24, San Jose State 7

The Gophers improved to 3-1 today with a 24-7 win over San Jose State from TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.  I cannot say that it was the prettiest win I've ever seen, Minnesota had only 1 completed pass the whole game for just 7 yards, they also had 10 penalties and 2 turnovers.  Still, the Gophers really had control of this game from their opening drive and their rushing attack was very impressive today, they really didn't need to throw the ball much more, they also forced 5 turnovers.  It was some good old time football.  If they want to win a few B1G games though, they will need to do a better job passing the ball (whether it's Leidner or Streveler).

Observations:

• I can't recall the last time the Gophers had a game with a weather delay.
• No Mitch Leidner today, that's not entirely a bad thing though.
• I like the way that Chris Streveler runs the ball.  Not so much passing it though.
• The Gophers defense played much better than last week. 
• David Cobb was in beast mode today.  207 yards on 34 carries, plus 2 TD's. 
• Eric Murray is a very good cornerback.  Sunday's are calling his name. 
• San Jose State was stacking the box but still couldn't stop the Gophers run game.
• Penalites:  Minnesota 10 for 80 yards; San Jose State 0 for 0 yards.  Huh?
• Rushing Yards:  Minnesota 380; San Jose State 68
• Passing Yards:  Minnesota 7, San Jose State 186
• Turnovers:  Minnesota 2, San Jose State 5
• Not having Maxx Williams didn't help Chris Streveler.  
• K.J. Maye did not have his best game.  
• Briean Boddy-Calhoun really impresed me today at CB.  
• Theiren Cockran is on the board!  Sack number 1! 
• Minnesota will not be able to stay this one dimensional on offense moving forward.
• Ryan Santoso kicked his first career field goal, I suspect there will be many more.
• Gutsy call by Jerry Kill on that 4th down Streveler TD run late in the 2nd quarter. 
• Jerry Kill ranked the 5th Most Underrated Coach in college football.  
• Up next?  @ Michigan next Saturday to kick off B1G play. 

Antonio Brown

Did you see this?  That had to hurt!  Ouch!

AZ Tidbits

• Do you know what Phoenix will look like in 2050?
• ASU QB Taylor Kelly injures foot, could be out 2-6 weeks. 
• Phoenix Suns are apparently in negotiations with Zoran Dragic. 
• Paradise Valley is the most affluent city in Arizona. 
• 10 things that you probably didn't know about Phoenix?  
• Arizona Cops endorse Fred DuVal & Terry Goddard. 
• Phoenix is still in the running for the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
• Ducey/DuVal Gubernatorial Debate I is in the books.  
• Arizona is on track to have one of the warmest years in history. 
• Polls show Ducey & DuVal still neck & neck. 
• Several Arizona cities named among best places to retire. 
• John Abraham set to return to the Arizona Cardinals.  Bad decision. 
• Top 10 Urban Legends that Arizonans believe in?
• Bill Clinton campaigns for Fred DuVal in Scottsdale. 
• Arizonans should look at results in Kansas tax cuts before voting for Ducey.
• Grantland is not a fan of the Phoenix Suns court design. 
• Is Arizona becoming the Cayman Islands of dark money?  
• Do you know who the richest people in Arizona are? 
• Arizona GOP wants nothing to do with Independents voting in primaries. 
• New solar wind project moves ahead in San Luis. 
• Is Fred DuVal really a career lobbyist?  Hardly!
• Tell me again why the Arizona GOP had hired Russell Pearce?  

ISIS Phonies

Islamic my ass!

TPSG Top 10 Movies of 1988

Continuing with my look at the best movies of years gone by.

Top 10 Movies of 1988:

1. Rain Man - Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise
2. Die Hard - Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman
3. Bull Durham - Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon
4. Big - Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins
5. The Last Temptation of Christ - Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel
6. The Naked Gun - Leslie Nielsen, Priscilla Presley
7. A Fish Called Wanda - John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis
8. Midnight Run - Robert DeNiro, Charles Grodin
9. Colors - Robert Duvall, Sean Penn, Robert Duvall
10. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - Steve Martin, Michael Caine

Dustin Hoffman was phenomenal in "Rain Man", his Best Actor Oscar was well deserved.   As is typical, the original "Die Hard" was easily the best in the "Die Hard" series.   "Bull Durham" is my all time favorite baseball movie.  I absolutely loved watching Tom Hanks play a child in a man's body in "Big", it was so much fun!  Would you really want anyone other than Martin Scorsese to make "The Last Temptation of Christ" movie?  Some people maybe I guess, not me though.  Leslie Nielson as Frank Drebin in "The Naked Gun" has to go down as one of the funniest characters in film history.  Outside of the Monty Python series, "A Fish Called Wanda" is probably my favorite John Cleese film.  "Midnight Run" is a fun road film, the chemistry between DeNiro & Grodin was great. "Colors" brought to life the brutality that is South Central Los Angeles.   "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" is a very underrated comedy, watching Martin & Caine scheme against each other is great fun!

Cris Carter on Adrian Peterson

Very emotional, very heartfelt, very passionate.

Cardinals 25, Giants 14

The Cardinals moved to 2-0 with a 25-14 win over the Giants in New York today.  Call them the Cardiac Cards!  That's 2 weeks in row now where they were trailing in the 4th quarter and came back to win!  I'm impressed, I don't know how they are doing it after all the top notch talent they are playing without (Carson Palmer, John Abraham, Darnell Dockett, Darryl Washington, to name a few).  First place with the 49ers coming in next week!

Observations:

• No Carson Palmer today, hopefully it's not a long term situation.  
• Drew Stanton hadn't started a NFL regular season game since 2010.
• Stanton was sharp early, but seemed to struggle as the game progressed.  
• Andre Ellington had a solid game for someone not at full strength. 
• I love the way the Cardinals are closing out games!
• 6 catches for 51 yards this week for Larry Fitzgerald.
• Turnovers:  Giants 4, Cardinals 0
• It was nice seeing Tyrann Mathieu on the field once again! 
• No John Abraham today.  For his sake, I hope he calls it a career though.
• The Cardinals pass rush was MIA for too much of the game. 
• I'm not a fan of the Cardinals going for 2 point conversions so early in games.
• Ted Ginn Jr proved his worth today on that punt return. 
• Calais Campbell played much better this week than last week. 
• Chandler Catanzaro appears to be a nice find at kicker.  
• Larry Foote continues to impress at inside LB.  
• It's always nice to win a road game that is 2 time zones away.  
• Is it possible that Patrick Peterson is a tad bit overrated? 
• Drew Butler needs to get those punts off if he wants a place in the NFL. 
• That was a remarkable touchdown reception by Rueben Randle. 
• Up next?  49ers @ University of Phoenix Stadium.  

Patriots 30, Vikings 7

The Vikings fall 30-7 to the Patriots today @ TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.  The Vikings drop to 1-1 on the season.  This was an ugly game from the Vikings perspective, too many penalties, too many dropped balls, too many missed assignments, and their QB play was just abysmal.  I didn't see many positives, it was a bit of a reality check too, given the Vikings 5-0 start (including that 4-0 preseason) under Mike Zimmer.  They are without a doubt, still a work in progress.

Observations:

• No Adrian Peterson today, and rightfully so.  He was missed though.
• The Vikings opening drive was a thing of beauty, after that though?  Blah. 
• Turnovers:  Vikings 4, Patriots 0
• The Vikings pass rush needs to do a much better job of getting to the QB. 
• Get the ball in Cordarrelle Patterson's hands.  
• Matt Kalil's second year slump appears to be carrying over to his third year. 
• The Patriots clearly won the battle of the trenches, both on the OL & DL. 
• Matt Cassel's throws down field are an adventure. 
• That pass interference call on Greg Jennings was awful.  
• Kyle Rudolph needs to hold onto the football.  
• The pass interference call on Xavier Rhodes was also awful. 
• The rumors of Tom Brady's demise are greatly exaggerated.  
• You need to play mistake free football to beat a Bill Belichick coached team. 
• Chandler Jones is a handful at DE for the Patriots. 
• The Vikings secondary will need to step up their game. 
• It appears that teams are going to be targeting Xavier Rhodes. 
• Matt Cassel is not going to hold onto his starting role playing like he did.
• The Vikings had nobody to contain Julian Edelman. 
• The Patriots special teams were impressive today. 
• Outdoor football in September!  Sweet!  
• Up next?  @ New Orleans to take on the Saints. 

Swimsuit Babes in Borneo

I'm not sure where Borneo is, but I want to go.

Arizona State 38, Colorado 24

The Sun Devils moved to 3-0 with 38-24 win over Colorado tonight in Boulder.  It was a strange game that was full of all sorts of momentum swings.  ASU came out strong, let the Buffaloes back into the game, pulled away once again, then held on for the victory.  It was in no way a thing of beauty, the young defense gave up way too many yards and they had a couple of potentially devastating injuries.  Still, a conference road win, is a conference road win, you take them however they come.

Observations:

• Arizona State has still not trailed in a game this season.  
• It may be time to start the D.J. Foster for Heisman talk. 
• Under Todd Graham, ASU is now 19-5 when scoring first. 
• Arizona State is now 7-3 in Pac12 road games under Todd Graham. 
• Taylor Kelly has thrown a TD in 26 of his 30 games as a starter. 
• Hopefully, injuries don't take a negative toll on the Sun Devils.   
• The offense did seem to stall with Mike Bercovici at the helm.
• Total Yards:  Arizona State 428, Colorado 545
• Turnovers:  Arizona State 0, Colorado 3
• The Sun Devils long snapping needs some work.  
• Jaelen Stron sure does have a knack for drawing pass interference penalties. 
• I love the big strike capabilities of the Sun Devils offense. 
• Was that a TE sighting by the Sun Devils?  
• Kalen Ballage is a load to bring down. 
• Matt Haack averaged 48.1 yards on 7 punts.  Not bad. 
• Jordan Simone had his best game at DB.  Nice story. 
• Arizona State was just 4 of 13 on 3rd downs.  
• Was Colorado stealing the Sun Devils defensive play calls?  
• Mike MacIntyre does appear to have Colorado headed in the right direction.
• Up next?  UCLA @ Sun Devil Stadium next Saturday night. 

TCU 30, Minnesota 7

The Gophers were throttled 30-7 by TCU today in Fort Worth.  The Gophers fall to 2-1 on the season.  It was not a good showing by the Gophers, they were clearly outgunned and outclassed by a superior team.  Jerry Kill & company's inability to develop a respectable QB is starting to get a bit troubling.  They've taken so many other steps, but without a QB they are not giving themselves much of a chance against quality opponents.  Today's game reminded me of how team's approached Christian Ponder and the Vikings the past several years, load the box, blitz a ton and make them beat you through the air, which Christian Ponder (and Mitch Leidner today) was not able to do.  Very frustrating.

Observations:

• That TCU defense may well be the best that the Gophers see this year.
• TCU was clearly the faster, more athletic team. 
• Set your feet on those passes Mitch Leidner.
• TCU won the battle of the trenches, on both sides of the ball. 
• Minnesota needs to stop coming out of the gate so slowly. 
• Chris Streveler provided some spark to the offense late.  
• Total Yards:  TCU 427, Minnesota 268
• Damien Wilson was all over the field once again.  
• After a rough start, Eric Murray looked good down the stretch. 
• I'm really starting to dislike all of these no huddle up-tempo offenses.  
• You cannot turn the ball over 5 times on the road and expect to win. 
• It was nice to see K.J. Maye get some catches.   
• Only 41 yards on 15 carries (2.7 ypc) for David Cobb. 
• Pete Mortell punted 8 times for a 46.6 yard average. 
• Minnesota was only 2 of 12 on third downs.  That won't cut it. 
• At least Iowa lost today.  It's the small victories.  
• Josh Doctson is a heckuva WR, he made the catch of the day!
• The Big Ten really stinks at football this year.   
• At least this bit of information provided a bright spot.  
• Up next?  San Jose State @ TCF Bank Stadium next Saturday. 

AZ Tidbits

• Phoenix Mercury win 2014 WNBA Championship!
• Arizona Diamondbacks fire Kevin Towers. 
• I knew that I should have gone to Lake Havasu over Labor Day.    
• Fact check the latest Doug Ducey distortion here.  
• The Diamondbacks minor league system had a pretty good year. 
• Welcome back to the show Daniel Hudson!  
• Are you comfortable with all the dark money flooding into Arizona?
• Scottsdale ranks fourth on list of the ten Snobbiest Cities.  
• Arizona State extends Herb Sendek & Charli Turner Thorne. 
• Doug Ducey comes with plenty of baggage.  October surprise? 
• Pizzeria Bianco once again ranked among top pizza in the U.S.
• Is Cardinals LB John Abraham's football career over? 
• How affluent is Phoenix?  Not very. 
• Arizona State Fair concert lineup can be found here. 
• Arizona fiscal conservatives pissing away money on a two tiered voting system.
• Ducey & DuVal are still running neck and neck.  
• HockeyNews.com loves the Arizona Coyotes logo.  
• Former Cardinals QB Max Hall arrested on drug & shoplifting charges. 
• Top 5 candidates to replace Kevin Towers as Arizona Diamondbacks GM?
• Arizona Republicans love their fake polls.  
• U.S. Chamber of Commerce endorses Arizona Democrat Krysten Sinema. 
• Phoenix experiences it's wettest day ever.  
• Are you really comfortable with all of the outside spending in Arizona?