Online sports news, handicapping and sports picks by Charles Jay

– One must applaud the Vikings for making progress as quickly as they have under Brad Childress, especially as the style of play has changed so much. They’re emphasizing the run, exploiting the left side of that offensive line, doing a good job of taking care of the ball, and playing good defense. The flip [...]

Pro Football
– One can argue that San Diego’s front seven is formidable, and that the offense has benefited from the steady leadership of first-year starter Phillip Rivers. But road romps over weak sisters Oakland and San Francisco showed us little, and Rivers was shut down in visit to Baltimore. Kansas City comes out an angry [...]

Pro Football
� — Miami does not have the kind of offense these days that’s going to pull away from many people. The Packers have shown some vulnerability to opposing offenses. But is Joey Harrington (63% but just 5 yds/attempt and just one TD) capable of exploiting it? Ronnie Brown’s 127 yards against the Jets may [...]

Pro Football
– Opposing rushing attacks has shredded the Bengal defense, to the tune of 4.7 ypc. Cincy’s stop unit is just too banged up, as is the receiving corps. Meanwhile, things are looking up for the Panthers, who have won four straight games, and have Steve Smith back to full strength, to say the least. [...]

– The Oakland Athletics’ All-Star pitcher for Game 1, Barry Zito, comes in here having put together a couple of solid performances of late. In his last five games, he’s given up 33 hits and 13 earned runs in 34 innings, and in his last two outings he’s been very tough, with just two runs [...]

– You hear it from everybody - they talk about how much more confidence the Baltimore Ravens have in their offense now that they have Steve MvNair at the helm. Not that Baltimore has gone high-tech in its offense - that doesn’t look like it will happen under Brian Billick. But McNair’s presence gives the [...]

– We’ve still got faith in the TCU defense, despite the thrashing it took at the hands of BYU’s John Beck in last week’s 31-17 Cougar romp. And Brett Ratliff, who looked very promising after leading Utah to wins over BYU and Georgia Tech last year, has not come close to expectations. Ratliff was 5-21 [...]

On the surface, it’s quite simple – TO WIN. But looking at it more analytically, to accomplish that end, the player must realize some “sub-objectives”, if you will. They are:
* NOT necessarily to pick the best team in a game, but to recognize SITUATIONS which are right for a play, and to exploit those situations. [...]