racingmeridian.com

GRIDIRON..I don’t often agree with the giddy Sport Illustrated scribe Peter King, but I sure do today. After Sage Rosenfel demonstrated sterling play both in camp and in preseason action, it is unnecessary and unwise to topple his confidence at this time with the signing of Brett Favre. King makes the salient point, namely that if Rosenfel had faltered, the Packer legend would have been available. He wasn’t going to sign with another team. It was, for whatever reason, revenge or whatnot, Vikings or bust. Essentially Favre has brokered a deal that gets him maximum cash with minimum preseason toil. Remember, this is a Favre that collapsed in the latter part of the New York Jets 2008 season. My argument is that the value of the signing is diminished at a time when Rosenfel began to demonstrate genuine leadership and talent. Now, of course, Rosenfel singlehandedly blew a couple of games for the Houston Texans last year. If he had coughed up a hair ball early in the 2009 season, Favre could have been approached. And the shorter season would have been beneficial to a QB who publicly questioned his own ability to play an entire season. The timing of this signing is peculiar and speaks very poorly to the management skills of the Viking organization…that said, this is the best team, by far, Favre has quarterbacked since the Superbowl winning Packers of 1996. It is going to be interesting to see if partnering with all-world Adrian Peterson allows the veteran to turn back the clock…the worst running game in the AFC last year, at 79.6 yards a game, belonged to the Indianapolis Colts. The poorest running game in the NFC, at just over 73 yards a game, belonged to the Superbowl finalist Arizona Cardinals…finally some good news from Raider Land; running back Darren McFadden, largely forgotten after injuries marred his rookie season, has been sensational for the troubled franchise. While it is doubtful he can continue to average 15 yards a carry, his current tally, it would be a solid development for JaMarcus Russell if McFadden strikes terror in opposition defences…Miami Dolphin running back Ricky Williams carried ten times for 31 yards last night in a 12-9 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars…ICE..St Louis Blue defenseman Erik Johnson, the No 1 overall pick in 2006, is talking a big game as he gets set to return from a one year layoff. Johnson, who has bulked up to 235 lbs, is targeting a spot on the USA Olympic team. We’ve already tabbed Johnson as the comeback player of the year and view his selection to the games in Vancouver as inevitable…reports surfaced today that 47 year old Chris Chelios approached Brian Burke about joining the Leafs. Guess he doesn’t read the Hockey News. Defence is the one position where Toronto is stacked…man, what a buzzkill from Motown; the Red Wings have brought back the abominable Todd Bertuzzi (the dirtbag played eight games for the Wings in 2007). That seals the deal, this prodigal son has retuned to Leaf Land; slaughter the fatted calf, break out the wine, my dalliance with Motor city is officially over…TURN LEFT..when is Jeremy Mayfield going to get a Reality Show? Hell, that’s a TV show I would actually watch. The adventures of the suspended NASCAR driver rocketed off the “bizarre” charts with the latest instalment of his ongoing battle with Lisa Mayfield, his step mom. Jeremy has accused Lisa of murdering his father; Lisa has accused Jeremy of being a persistent abuser of methamphetamines. Apparently Mom showed up at her son’s residence at 8.30 pm Saturday night. She may have been under the influence. Lisa banged on the door, punched a worker, kicked Jeremy’s wife in the crotch and then punched at least two girls also on site. Whhoooeee!!! Sounds like a NASCAR Saturday night to me! Before Momma left, she threatened to kill Jeremy and his wife. The police have set a Sept 14^th date to address a series of charges…PONIES..the English sensation Sea The Stars knocked off his sixth straight win this afternoon, relegating the wonderful Mastercraftsman to second place. Sea The Stars is simply the best horse out of Britain in a decade. His next engagement is expected to be at Leopardstown, in Ireland, in the Irish Champion Stakes. After that, hopefully, a trip to Santa Anita and the Breeders Cup will be in the cards…the New York Racing Association is attempting to match superstar females Rachel Alexandra and Zenyatta in the Oct 3^rd Beldame Stakes from Belmont Park. The race would have its purse bumped to one million dollars if the two camps send their runners to battle stations. The Belmont track would provide a fair surface for the legends to throw down. I’ll tell you, Zenyatta will not be able to come within lengths of Rachel…PUG LIFE..Australian media are proclaiming the Roy Jones Jr-Danny Green November showdown as the biggest fight in Australian history (Tommy Burns - Jack Johnson, anyone?). They are anticipating a crowd greater than 50,000. What a shame Jones didn’t undertake to fight the best fighters in the world a decade ago. He’d be revered if he, like Muhammad Ali, had been determined to fight the best at exotic locations around the world. Instead the short-sighted pugilist elected to fight nondescript journeymen in sterile casinos. Who will remember Roy Jones a decade from now?…MEDIA..AM 640’s Mike Stafford claims PGA Championship winner Y E Yang’s initials stand for “Yukon Eric”. I’m waiting for AP to pick up this revelation…