The Divorce is Final...The Thrill is Gone

With a blues song whining in the background, the Green Bay Packers finally signed the divorce papers. Can't you just hear B.B. King singing "The Thrill is Gone"? After 16 years with the same girlfriend team, Brett Favre is a free man and will soon hit the mean streets of New York as the NY Jets new QB. The soap opera is over.

According to a Sports Illustrated article:

After some hope for reconciliation between the franchise and perhaps its most beloved player earlier this week, the final split between the Packers and Favre became obvious Tuesday evening.

Packers coach Mike McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday that after approximately six hours of what he called "brutally honest" conversations over two days, the coach had determined that Favre doesn't have the right mind-set to play for the Packers.

McCarthy said Favre couldn't seem to get past emotional wounds that were opened as tensions mounted in recent weeks -- even with the chance to win his starting job
back potentially on the table.

"Brett has had a long and storied career in Green Bay, and the Packers owe him a tremendous debt of gratitude for everything he accomplished on the field and for the impact he made in the state," Green Bay officials said in a statement.

"It is with some sadness that we make this announcement, but also with the desire for certainty that will allow us to move the team and organization forward in the most positive way possible."

Jets chairman and CEO Woody Johnson issued a statement early Thursday.

"I am looking forward to seeing Brett Favre in a New York Jets uniform," Johnson said. "He represents a significant addition to this franchise, and reflects our commitment to putting the best possible product on the field. Mike Tannenbaum and his football administration staff did a great job of navigating this complex process. I am excited about welcoming Brett, Deanna and their family to the Jets organization."

Within an hour of the announcement, Favre's #4 jersey was on sale on the New York Jets' website.

In the News

If you're suspended for smoking weed If at first you don't succeed - try, try again. Former/current(?) Miami Dolphin running back, Ricky Williams wants another shot at playing football in the NFL so that he can clear his name.

Williams has had a slew of problems. A bad contract negotiation and injury in his first season, a premature retirement in 2004, a comeback attempt in 2005 and soon a 4 game suspension for smoking weed. A full season suspension in 2006 (in the immortal words of Rick James, "I'm in love with mary jane. She's my main thing."). A reinstatement in 2007 only to be injured after 6 carries. Well, every dog dolphin has it's day, and maybe in 2008 the stars have aligned and Ricky will get another chance to live up to his potential. He's 100% healthy, in good standing with the team, and the Dolphins' starting QB (that's lingo for quarterback, ladies) has not fully recovered from knee surgery.

"Number one, it's a good salary. There's not many jobs where you make this kind of money,'' Williams told the Miami Herald when asked why he continues to play football at age 31. "Plus, the way I left made it difficult. To come back and clear my name was important to me." (source)

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He had no idea that 5 months later he's still be crying.

One of the greatest QBs of all time, Brett Favre, announced his retirement in March after playing his entire career with the Green Bay Packers. Now, after spending the summer integrating into life-after-football, he decided that he's not ready to retire. Only problem is that his career-long team doesn't quite feel equally as sentimental. The Packers have a thing for Brett and they can't let go. It's kind of like breaking up with a long term boyfriend or girlfriend. At the time, it felt like the right thing to do, but after a while you forget the reason you broke up in the first place and try to revisit getting back together. Then you work on getting back together and figure out you hate each other and you break up all over again.

The Packers are basically telling Brett, "If I can't have you no one will." See, Favre is still under a three year contract with Green Bay and they would rather pay him for not playing than to release him and he go to a rival team and possibly lead the new team to a superbowl over his former team

There's so much drama in the NFL. They should turn this into a reality TV show.

How the Game Works, Part 1

Okay Ladies, first things first. In order for you to watch the game and not get dirty looks for asking too many questions, you need to know the basics. I'll start with the structure of the game.

A football field is 100 yards long and 160 feet wide. The middle of the field is the 50 yard line (and if you ever buy tickets to a game, try to get your seats as close to the 50 yard line as possible...the view is the best from the middle!). The lines are labeled every 10 yards descending in both directions from the 50 yard line. Thus there are two 40 yard lines and no 60 yard line. Each team owns half of the field (they switch sides every 15 minutes of play). Thus, the two 40 yard lines are distinguished by who owns them.

In a football game, two sides are always being represented: Offense & Defense. Each of these sides are only allowed to have 11 players on the field at a time. If more than eleven players are counted on the field, then the guilty team will suffer a penalty (more about penalties and referees to come in a later post).

The object of the game is to move the football down the field into the defense's territory and score points. This can happen 3 ways: a touchdown (6 points), a field goal (3 points), or a safety (2 points). I know you're asking what a safety is. Just put that on the shelf in the corner of your brain and we'll come back to it later. Extra points can be gained after a touchdown is scored. The scoring team can opt to kick a field goal for 1 point or try to run into the endzone for 2 points.

The team that has the ball is called the Offense. It consists of a quarterback (the main guy on the field...the one who calls the play and calls for the ball to be hiked); offensive linemen (they block and keep the defense from stopping the play); running backs (they run the back); and wide receivers (the ones who run down the field to catch the ball). Depending on their positioning on the field, running backs and wide receivers go by many subnames like Slotback, Wideout, Tight End, Split End, Fullback, or Tailback. The names at any moment depend on the play being run and the offensive configuration.

The team who is on the other side of the ball is called the Defense. They consist of defensive linemen, linebackers (middle and outside), cornerbacks, & safetys. Again, you may hear interchangeable terms for the cornerbacks and safetys (ex. strong safety, free safety, or defensive backs).

The last component is the Special Teams. Special teams are the ones who come on the field to kick-off at the beginning of the game or after a touchdown. They also come on to punt and kick field goals. At these points in the game, both offensive and defensive players are referred to as special teams. For example: kickers, punt returners, ball holders, kickoff returners - are all considered part of special teams, though they may also hold another position on either the offense or defense.

It is rare for a player to be allowed to play both offense and defense on the same team, though very common for them to be on offense and special teams or defense and special teams. There are a few players who have excelled at playing both offense and defense. Deion Sanders is probably the best known. He played at cornerback (defense), punt/kickoff return (special teams), and occasionally at wide receiver (offense).


That's enough for now. We'll pick up with part 2 later!

NFL Teams, Conferences & Divisions...oh my!

There are 32 teams in the National Football League (NFL). The teams are separated into two conferences based on geographical location. The American Football Conference (AFC) and National Football Conference (NFC) are each separated into four divisions: North, South, East, and West.

You are likely to recognize teams by their symbol and color as opposed to just remembering the name. That makes it easier for me, and in a strange way, has a lot to do with whether or not a team is my favorite. To be honest, I won't even watch a game if the jerseys blend in with the grass (sorry New York Jets). It doesn't hold my attention. I need to see lots of colors on the field...LOL!

Anyway, here is a listing of the teams, broken down by division.

The first televised game of this season (actually preseason) will be Thursday, August 7th at 8pm EST on ESPN. New Orleans Saints vs. Arizona Cardinals at Arizona.

The first regular season televised game will be on Thursday, Sept 4 on NBC at 7pm EST (Washington Redskins vs. New York Giants at NY). Regular season games will follow every Sunday thereafter and of course Monday Night Football.

Score some points by planning around his favorite team's schedule. You'll be suprised what he'd be willing to do in return for your thoughfulness.

Preseason Starts This Thursday!

Ladies, the clock is ticking! The NFL preseason kicks off on Thursday, August 7th, which means that some of you will be saying goodbye to your man for the next month (preseason) and then for 17 more weeks (16 regular season games) and then for an additional 4 weeks if his team makes the playoffs! That's about 5 months of isolation for you if you haven't learned how to embrace his favorite game or at least give him the space to watch without you trying to get his attention!

Well, have no fear...you've come to the right place! We'll give you a crash course in Football 101, show you how to impress your honey with your new-found knowledge of his favorite game, post recipes that can be used to feed frenzied football fans who have converged on your home to watch the game, and of course a weekly MVP for your eyes (what's a girls' site without a little eye candy?!)

Assignment #1 - go find out his favorite team and unless you already have your own favorite team, ADOPT HIS TODAY! He'll love you for it. Get a jersey, tie it up at the waist and get ready for some FOOTBALL!!!! (you'll thank me for it later)