Billingham

You know someone named Arsenio Billingham? No.

In light of the Donte Stallworth’s indefinite suspension for killing a pedestrian while driving drunk, ESPN is saying that there’s a carrot to go along with the stick here:

The league has a program in place that allows players to a call a car service in any major city that will pick them up if they’ve been drinking.

But:

It’s a great idea, except for the fact that some players don’t trust it. They believe too many phone calls to that service will lead to more hassles from franchises when contract negotiations begin.

If the NFL is using their free car service as a negotiating tactic, then it’s a pointless system.  Straight up - the NFL is offering you a chance to turn yourself in in exchange for a ride home.  The key point, however, is that these aren’t teenagers, they’re (mostly) millionaires.  I don’t think the expense of a car service is keeping them from calling for a ride if they’ve been drinking.

It’s how I likes my sports:

• The Mets had the bases loaded with no outs in the second and with one out in the eighth, but failed to score both times.

So, I was watching the Game Six between the Red Wings and the Anaheim Ducks on Versus last night, and man, it made my hockey-loving heart ache.

Hockey is a great game to watch on TV, with telegenic stars and exciting actions that really benefits from the chance to see a play again and again in slow-motion instant replay.  I accept that it’s not the most popular game in the world, but being relegated to the Versus network is an embarrassment to this fine game, and if Gary Bettman wanted to get serious about expanding the league’s popularity in the United States, he should buy the world’s most sophisticated broadcast tower and just beam Hockey Night in Canada to the entire continent.

Here’s what bugs me about the Versus coverage:

*Low video quality.  I mean, the puck’s not very big, it kind of has to be sharp.

*Low quality announcers.  Improved, but still not the kinds of guys you really want to see covering a major sport

*Number.  Yeah, it’s not the most important thing in the world, but Versus is channel #122 in New York City.  Between the Golf channel and the Speed channel, and behind the Jewish Live TV network (120).  The Discovery Channel has four channels ahead of Versus in the lineup.  

*The Rest of the Lineup.  Right now, the channel is showing WEC WrekCage.  It might sound like wrestling, but that would be optimistic.  WEC is the World Extreme Cagefighting organization.  The type of organization is not indicated in the acronym, which also was forced to sell off the letter C in Wreck.  And cagefighting is BACK after hockey tonight.  

NHL - please, please, do whatever ESPN asks to get back on that channel.   Or convince NBC to put you on USA - they carried women’s soccer a few years ago!  Or maybe, just maybe, you could buy some time away from the Jewish Docs show.  Stephen Weiss?  Jeff Halpern?  The talent is there!

Why, your Holiness?  Why?

http://flightaware.com/live/airport/KPIB

The flight from Minneapolis to Hattiesburg and back PROBABLY didn’t pick up newly released UFA Brett Favre, right?

Freddie "I’d Like to Thank My Hands" Mitchell has a blog.  4th and 26 Freddie.  FredEx.  Fourth Down Freddie.  First Down Freddie.  Hollywood. 

I started this blog to give you the REAL information about myself.

Everyday, I read old newspaper clips and blogs that are written by people who DO NOT know the real FREDDIE MITCHELL.

So, I remember doing this a few years ago, but it’s certainly time for an update.  The follow list is based on how much I like teams, those with an asterisk I openly hate:

1. Buffalo Bills
2. Pittsburgh Steelers
3. Cleveland Browns
4. Indianapolis Colts
5. Minnesota Vikings
6. Denver Broncos
7. Kansas City Chiefs
8. Seattle Seahawks
9. Detroit Lions
10. San Diego Chargers
11. Philadelphia Eagles
12. Carolina Panthers
13. San Francisco 49ers
14. Green Bay Packers
15. New Orleans Saints
16. Chicago Bears
17. St. Louis Rams
18. Arizona Cardinals
19. Houston Texans
20. Jacksonville Jaguars
21. Baltimore Ravens
22. Cincinnati Bengals
23. New York Giants
24. Atlanta Falcons
25. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
26. Oakland Raiders
27.  Tennessee Titans *
28.  New York Jets *
29.  Miami Dolphins *
30.  Washington Redskins *
31.  Dallas Cowboys *
32.  New England Patriots *

Cat runs on the field during the early going of the first game at CitiField.  I say it’s good luck.