Eli Manning

Joe Flacco Has A New Contract: Next Big Thing Or Next Cautionary Tale?

On December 16, the Baltimore Ravens lost their third game in a row, 34-17 to the Denver Broncos in Baltimore to drop to 9-5 on the season and virtually clinch a relatively ho-hum four seed in the AFC. On that day, their starting quarterback, Joe Flacco, completed 20 passes on 40 attempts for 254 l ... More >>

Good, Not Great: Why Texans Need A Daryl Morey Approach To QB Position

If good is the enemy of great, the Texans are in a lot of trouble as they map out a plan to break through their second-round ceiling. Owner Bob McNair and head coach Gary Kubiak are publically saying the happy, feel-good things. "We're very close," McNair said after the loss in New England, while K ... More >>

2012: The Year In Zapruder, A Recap Of My Detailed Video Recaps

I'm not sure when it happened, but somewhere along the line in 2012, the Zapruder-style analysis of viral videos became my thing. Much like you'd go to Clay Travis on SEC football or to Peter King's Monday Morning Quarterback for the weekend that was in the NFL, when you the reader needed hardcore ... More >>

Eagles QB Michael Vick's Brother Marcus Has A Twitter Meltdown

Since getting out of prison in 2009, it's been quite a ride for Eagles quarterback Michael Vick. Brought in as a backup quarterback and slash-style weapon in 2009, Vick eventually was tabbed the starter in 2010, and given a $100 million contract. Not bad for a guy whose career was thought to be over ... More >>

Bill Belichick in Super Bowl XLVI: "Make Him Go To Manningham" (w/ Sound FX VIDEO)

The play worked as designed, on both sides​I got home from my show this afternoon and, having just finished up talking about sports for five hours, I did what I normally do -- turn on one of the sports channels on television. Luckily (or perhaps not so luckily, if I had any designs on being p ... More >>

The Hair Balls Super Bowl Live Blog: Remember To Piss

In some alternate universe, the streets of Houston are currently bathed in Miller Lite, Reliant Stadium and every bar in town is a watch party, with even the homeless folks are wearing soiled Texans jerseys. But alas, our Houston Texans only made it into the second round of the playoffs, and here we ... More >>

Football! Six Prop Bets and My Super Bowl XLVI Pick (Includes Video Analysis of Kelly Clarkson Anthem-Singing)

Finally, the Super Bowl is upon us, and when you head out to that neighborhood party this Sunday, you may need some fabricated incentive to have a rooting interest in the game. I get that. Sure, you can do it the ultra-lame way by buying a couple squares for five bucks and hoping that you randomly ... More >>

4 Warnings -- Your Guide to Listening to Super Bowl Week Talk Radio

Super Bowl hype week is underway, and I know that many of you will be consuming sports talk radio this week in an effort to get ready for the big game. (I know many of you won't be, and I understand that as well. I hate me some me sometimes, too. It's okay.) The general public service announcement ... More >>

The Really Important Questions to Answer for the Super Bowl

So it's Super Bowl week. This game featuring a rematch between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots. There will be a lot of story lines, real and imagined, developed and discussed before and during the game on Sunday. Like, for instance, the 25 mentioned below. 25. Tim Tebow because ... More >>

Football! AFC and NFC Title Game Best Bets!

You can't spell "elite" without E-L-I. Really, you can't​We interrupt this Texans-grieving for an update on the Alabama tea bagger and my AFC and NFC title game picks! (I'm pretty sure when my parents sent me off to college, they didn't think I'd be typing that sentence in my job.) The main c ... More >>

Texans, Saints, Tebow and Eli! This Weekend's NFL Playoff Best Bets

The scarcity of games on these NFL playoff weekends is a huge reason why wagering in the postseason can be a death trap of second-guessing for me. Fewer games on the board means there's way more time to focus (and, frankly, OVER-focus if there is such a thing) on the scant few games being played. ... More >>

30th Anniversary of "The Catch": 5 Other Great Catches in Sports

Sorry, Everson Walls: It's not your day.​Thirty years ago today, Dallas Cowboy haters -- in other words, every right-thinking person in the world -- rejoiced when Dwight Clark of the San Francisco 49ers made what has gone down in history as The Catch to put the dagger in the Cowboys' title hop ... More >>

Texans, Saints and Tebow! This Weekend's NFL Playoff Best Bets

PLAYOFFS?!?!!? Oh, yeah​So is Houston ready for some playoff football? How about we go through the Reliant Stadium checklist for Saturday's game with the Bengals to find out. Notifications to season ticket holders to be in their seats 30 minutes before kickoff? Check. Colored placards in sea ... More >>

Texans, Pats & Tebow: This Weekend's Best Bets, NFL Edition

God, let these picks come through​Witness the go-to move for a blog contributor who is technically on vacation but still likes to keep his commitment of five posts a week to his freelance employer because he loves them and loves money. Not one, but TWO posts worth of football predictions! To ... More >>

Jets Fan Pooch-Punts Giants Fan's Skull (w/ VIDEO and Zapruder-Like Analysis)

Spending Christmas Eve in the emergency room, whether as a patient or a loved one of a patient, is no fun. Trust me, I've had to do it twice. Back in 2000, my son Sammy was only six months old and had to go to the emergency room and stay in the hospital overnight for some sort of breathing deal. ( ... More >>

Houston Texans Game 5 -- 4 Winners, 4 Losers (This Doesn't Go Well For Jacoby Jones)

Be sure to check out the rest of our pics from Sunday's game. As we were driving slowly down Murworth to park in the Teal Lot before the Texans game on Sunday, my girlfriend Amy and I noticed a father with two boys (presumably his sons) around the ages of nine or ten stopped on the sidewalk having ... More >>

2011 NFL Preview, Spoken In Wagering-ese

The betting window is open​I hope everyone who has had a chance to check out our Texans 2011 preview "The New Normal" has enjoyed it. Big ups to Monica Fuentes for coming up with the season-long interactive game card tracking Texans' results. You need to go check it out. If you haven't read ... More >>

NFL Conference Title Games: Douche-apalooza 2011!

This is not Roger Staubach​Ben Roethlisberger, Mark Sanchez, Jay Cutler, Aaron Rodgers. In an era where success in the NFL has never been more tied to quarterback play, those are your last four quarterbacks standing in the 2011 Playoffs. Most NFL fans see the elimination and subsequent absen ... More >>

NFL, College Football and Brett Favre's Wiener -- 5 Winners, 5 Losers

Brett Favre can't get out of the headlines​I hope everybody had a lovely Texans bye weekend (insert lame joke about "Texans giving up fewer than 300 yards passing to BYE" here), and that you're refreshed, rejuvenated and ready for the back half of the football season. I'm on vacation this week vis ... More >>

Giants 34, Texans 10: Another Tough Defense, Another Breakdown For The Houston Offense

Texans: Let's not get physical​We knew the Texans' young defense could have games like this. A second disastrous performance in five outings for the supposedly-elite Houston offense, however, is incredibly concerning.The numbers are baffling. 195 total yards. 1.6 yards per rush with what had been ... More >>

Our Year

Will Texans make it to playoffs?

Game Time: The Decade's Five Most Lucrative Miracles

​First, I want to wish everybody out there a very happy holiday, and thank all of you who have read my stuff here on HoustonPress.com since I started up a couple months ago, especially those of you who leave comments (even if you think what you've just read is utter drivel, and you're telling me ... More >>

Game Time: Texans' Playoff-Rooting Manifesto 2.0

​"So you're saying there's a chance..."  -- Lloyd ChristmasA couple weeks ago, when the Texans were sitting at 5-6, I spent the better part of about four hours constructing an easy-to-follow guide for Texans fans to know whom to root for in games throughout the balance of the season in order ... More >>

Experts Ask The Pressing Question Tonight: Are You Ready For Some Football?

​The NFL season opens tonight. We've already given you our astute and accurate take on the Houston Texans. (9-7, if you must know.) But what about the rest of the league? Do you actually want to sit through all the games, or learn what will happen in the next few grafs?We thought so.So here is how ... More >>

If There's A Watch List For QB Awards, UH's Case Keenum's On It

Photo courtesy UH​If the honor is in being nominated, then UH quarterback Case Keenum can just go ahead and shut it down before the season gets started. The junior QB, last season's Conference USA offensive player of the year, has had his name added to two more postseason watch lists, putting him ... More >>

Voodoo Child: He Ain't Not Heavy

Exploring the phenomenon of the lesser showbiz brother

John Royal's NFL Power Rankings

John Royal’s NFL Season Picks

Tax Break for the Rich II

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants: New York’s Super Win Gives Rockets Hope

Spygate Back in the News: Time for Another Look at the Patriots’ Illegal Looking?

Super Bowl XLII: Predestined, But Not in the Way Everyone Predicted

Giants Win. You’re Welcome.

Super Bowl TV: What to Watch Before the Big Game

The End: John Royal’s Super Bowl Prediction

Miss Cleo’s Fearless Forecast: Super Bowl XLIII Winner Revealed!

A Day in the Life of Cable Sports Programming

Double Standard: How Come Few People Bitch About Cheating in Football?

Jason Friedman’s NFL Picks: Looking for the Lambeau Laxative, Not Expecting Lightning to Strike Twice

Random Thoughts from a Stupendous Sunday of Sports

John Royal's Postseason NFL Picks: Jessica Simpson Edition

Jason Friedman’s NFL Playoff Preview: Hillary Clinton is to the New England Patriots as Chuck Norris is to Jessica Simpson

Pickin’ Aint Easy: Forecasting the NFL Playoffs

Jason Friedman’s NFL Picks, Week 17: Are the Texans Half Empty or Half Full of It?

Jason Friedman’s NFL Picks, Week 15: Tomahawk Chop, Baby Jesus and One Grisly Neck Beard

John Royal's NFL Picks, Week 14: Longest. Season. Ever.

John Royal’s NFL Picks, Week 13: Rushing More Than Ricky Williams

NFL Wrap: Losing Teaches Lessons, Except When It Doesn’t

John Royal's NFL Picks: Week Two

Feeling a Draft

Football season never ends