Each week The Schnoz Report will get you ready for the upcoming slate of games in the NFL, providing angles (both acute and obtuse, but never right) that you won’t get anywhere else. As always, if you hate sports, especially football, then reading this post will only make you bitter and angry. Why don’t you go read about the tragic story of the cat shot in the head with a crossbow (that actually lived!).

First Thing’s First

The Schnoz’s observations on the league at the halfway point.

+ The AFC West might be the worst defensive division we’ve ever seen in the league. Out of the 32 teams in the league, check out these rankings:

Yards allowed per game: OAK(26th), SD(28th), DEN(30th), and KC(31st)

Points allowed per game: SD(23rd), OAK(24th), KC(28th), and DEN(29th)

+ The NFC West isn’t much better. In fact, 8 of the worst 11 teams in the league in defensive PPG are from the NFC West and AFC West.

+ Only 5 of the 16 NFC Teams are under .500 right now. None in the NFC East or South. We could see a 10-6 team in the NFC miss the playoffs this year. I’m looking at you, Philly Eagles.

+ In the AFC, 9-7 will probably be good enough for a team to make it in this year. Hi, Denver Broncos.

+ In my opinion, the only playoff locks right now are Tennessee in the AFC South and Arizona in the NFC West. TEN because of the lead they’ve built (and they’re amazing defense). And Arizona because of the turdliness of the rest of their division. You can make a case for the Giants, but they’re division is so tough, that they’ve still got to win some tough games. And I’d listen to you on Pittsburgh too, but they need to stay healthy to finish strong.

+ My random stab at the NFC Playoffs: NYG, CAR, ARI, GB, WAS, DAL

+ For the AFC: TEN, PIT, BUF, DEN, BAL, NE

+ Oh and remember, if you hear someone telling you that a Redskins win at home against the Steelers on Monday night ensures a win for the encumbent party, tell them that they’re wrong. While this crazy little predictor actually rang true for the 17 elections leading up to 2004, it was nullified by the Redskins loss to the Packers in 2004 (coupled with John Kerry’s failed bid at the White House).

This has Nothing to Do with Football

Here’s an interesting little political endorsement for you. MMA fighter Matt Hughes is endorsing John McCain. Knowing only a little about Matt, I’m not surprised by this at all. Though I have to say, I’m not sure I’m tracking with him on his reasons. He mentions the “won’t put his hand over his heart during the anthem” thing about Obama more than once. I thought this was sort of debunked at this point. He also claims that McCain has shown more respect to Obama, citing the way they address each other. Funny, because to me Obama has come across as less condescending and more respectful (guess that’s in the eye of the beholder). Hughes also mentions that he’s a born-again Christian and that most of his views line up with the McPalin ticket. And finally, Hughes says he can “look past the fact that McCain was against my sport.”, which is sort of fascinating.

All that being said, Prayers For Blowouts officially endorses no candidate, and hopes you all go out there and vote for the person you want to vote for, not the person you think someone else wants you to vote for. And if you’re a Christian and you’ve put a lot of energy into endorsing one candidate or the other this year, I hope you give half as much time praying for whoever it is that gets into office. I have a feeling those prayers might do more good for the country than any of the rhetoric and arguing we’ve been doing over the past year.

I’m the Map, I’m the Map, I’m the Map, I’m the Map, I’m the MAAAP

Each week we’ll bring you the best of NFL Maps and Bible Maps. Who doesn’t love maps?

For those without the Sunday Ticket, here’s what games you’ll be getting on Sunday: CBS, FOX -Early, and FOX-Late.

For those of you interested in a map of the Battleground for Armageddon(???),  here you go.

Caption of the Week

Here’s this week’s photo from Mike Singletary’s head coaching debut. As always, best caption provided in the comments will be highlighted next week.

Upset Specials

Each week I’ll pick an underdog that i think can win its game outright. Why? Because America loves an underdog, that’s why.

Last Week’s pick: I chickened out and didn’t pick anyone.
Record for the Year:1-6

This week I am back and feeling refreshed. I was tempted to go wildcat and take the Dolphins in Denver this week, but I absolutely love the Texans catching points in Minnesota. This team could easily be 5-2 instead of 3-4 this year. Schaub has been good enough, Slaton has been a nice surprise, Mario Williams has been the beast Charlie Casserly knew he would be, and Andre Johnson is one of the top 3 WRs in football. Look for a high-scoring affair, and look for the Texans to move to 4-4.

Bible Character Who Should Have been a Football Player

This week’s BCWSHBAFP is Noah. Only, instead of casting him as a football player, I think it’s clear that Noah should be given the keys to the front office of an NFL team. Let’s say for the sake of an example, we put him in charge of the Detroit Lions. Here’s 5 reasons why he would have the Lions winning the Super Bowl in 3 years.

1 – There were probably lions on the ark, so he has experience with the king of the jungle. I know this was a terrible point, but it had to be said, so I figured we’d get it out of the way first.

2 – No project is too big for him. You think rebuilding the Lions would be tough? Try building a wooden boat the size of a the L.A. Coliseum without power tools or Home Depot. Noah makes Bob Vila look like Joey Gladstone.

3 – He’s not afraid to let people go. You think he’s going to let dead weight hang around his organization? I doubt it. This guy had to shut up the doors of his ark knowing all his neighbors were going for a fatal swim. Considering that, I have no doubt he’d fire Dan Orlovsky in 10 minutes without blinking an eye.

4 – He’s not Matt Millen.

5 – Clearly, organization was this guy’s gift. He figured out how to build a big boat, not only without Black and Decker, but with his family as his work force. That right there is more than most men can handle. Not only that, but he had the patience to wait for the water to subside before leaving the floating zoo. While he’s got the drive to make the quick changes he would need to make, he would also have the patience to see his plan come to fruition. He’d have Jon Kitna hoisting the Lombardi Trophy before we elect a president in 2012.

If Betting were Legal

Last Week: 7-7
Year to Date: 62-55

Every week I pick games against the spread. This year I’m also going head to head against a PFB Reader every week for fame, glory, and expensive prizes.

This week’s hapless contestant is Luke Gelinas. I grew up with Luke in Massachusetts. When we were in grade school we once walked 3 miles in the early morning to an overnight youth group event without telling our parents to see a girl we thought was hot. When we found out the police had been called to look for us, we knew we were in for it.

After a stint at Yale, Luke is now getting his Masters in theology or doctorate in divinity or something like that. He lives in Toronto, so I should be able to beat him with ease.

As always these spreads may differ from yours.

Here’s Luke’s inept picks (in bold) for Week 9:

STL +3.5 ARI
CLE -1.5 BAL
CHI -12.5 DET
TEN -5.5 GB
MIN -4.5 HOU
CIN +7.5 JAX
BUF -5.5 NYJ
KC +8.5 TB
DEN -3.5 MIA
OAK +3.5 ATL
NYG -8.5 DAL
SEA +6.5 PHI
IND -5.5 NE
WAS -2.5 PIT

Here’s my (more accurate) picks:

If you’d like to go up against the Schnoz, send an email to prayersforblowouts(at)gmail-com. I’ll pick someone at random every week and shoot you an email back to let you know you’ve been chosen.

Final Word

Happy to report that Prayers For Blowouts got a mention over at Stuff Christians Like this morning. It was due partly to the Sports Survey that we ran on Jon Acuff and partly due to the Halloween alternative that my old church used to put on called “HATCH Night”. If you’re curious to know what H.A.T.C.H. stands for (the C is for Carnal), you can read more about it here.

Happy Tooth Rot Day, enjoy Week 9!

-The Schnoz

The PFB Sports Survey is a feature here at Prayers For Blowouts where we throw a few sports related questions at some of the most notable voices among Christian authors, pastors, musicians, and roofers to see if they like sports as much as we do.

Today’s spotlight is on Jon Acuff, who would have you believe that a respect for all Frisbee-related sports should be a tenet of salvation.

Jon is the creator and sole writer of Stuff Christians Like, the extremely popular and always amusing blog that pokes harmless fun at the nuances and idiosyncrasies of the Christian subculture (although Jon does like to throw some “serious” curveballs in there from time to time as well). Jon also blogs at 97 Seconds with God.

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1. What number best describes the role sports play in your life on a scale of 1 to 10?

JA: I would say a 6. That number went up to an 8 when the Celtics won the championship last year and then dropped significantly when Tom Brady got hurt this year. Up until that point I was pretty sure God was a Patriots fan.

2. Rank your 3 overall favorite sports, college or pro.

JA: College basketball, NBA, NFL Football

3. What is the one team that you root for more passionately than any other, and is there a team that you hate, maybe a little too much?

JA: Love: University of North Carolina Tar Heels. Hate: The Yankees

4. Do you play fantasy sports?

JA: I used to play fantasy basketball and actually won a season. I remember that year as “championship year.” My wife remembers that year as “fantasy basketball widow year.” I stayed up until 3AM switching out players against our one friend that is a highly competitive auditor. He always wins every league he’s in and I knew that he was out there competing against me. I won the entire season by three rebounds or something that small. I kind of retired at that point.

5. What is the most memorable sporting event you have ever attended in person?

JA: Triple overtime game between UNC and Wake Forest. ESPN called it the best college basketball game of the year. Chris Paul was playing for Wake then. Sean May, Rashad McCants and Raymond Felton were playing for the Heels. Carolina lost but it was still an amazing game.

6. What is the best highlight and/or worst lowlight of your sports playing career as a child or as an adult?

JA: My worst? Everyone on the other team laughed at me when I stepped up on the scale in my tighty-whitey’s for the weigh in before a wrestling meet in the eighth grade. My best? Beating the kid I wrestled that day.

7. If you could change one thing about sports, what would it be?

JA: I would retire the phrase, “that’s just Manny being Manny.”

8. Do you have an opinion on Christian athletes who, without being prompted, talk about their faith in post-game interviews?

JA: I guess I look at that like I look at how Bono uses his celebrity equity to do what he feels is important. They’ve got the microphone for a minute and if they can honestly answer the question and give God a shout out, I’m cool with that. If the question is “who do you think is the toughest player to throw a curveball against” and they answer “sweet baby Jesus” I’m not sure I’m down with that.

9. High school gym class…your favorite 45 minutes of the day or the source of countless nightmares and embarrassments?

JA: Dodgeball? Favorite. Square dancing in the eighth grade? Nightmare.

10. Sports are often the whipping boy of pastors and clergy because so much passion, money, time, and energy is poured into them. Do you think this criticism is valid, or are sports okay as a diversion from the stresses of life.

JA: I think sports are like a lot of other things in life, they aren’t evil or pure. What we bring to them shapes them. Sports can be a great vehicle of worship. Sports can be a great hiding place for people that want to escape the responsibilities of life. It depends on the situation.

11. If you had to compete against other bloggers, in which of these 5 competitions would you have the best chance of winning? 5-mile run, 18 holes of golf, free throw shooting contest, arm wrestling match, or a game of bowling.

JA: Maybe the 5 mile run but when I saw that you left off both Frisbee golf and ultimate Frisbee from your list I got a little worried about your spiritual walk.

12. What is your favorite sports movie of all-time?

JA: I feel like I should say “Hoosiers” or “Chariots of Fire” but that’s not true. I’m going to have to say the 6 minute clip of the special needs high school kid hitting six three pointers. I know that’s not a movie, but I have watched that clip on youtube roughly 18 million times. I love it.

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You can click here for an exhaustive (but not exhausting) list of everyone who’s been featured as a PFB Sports Survey participant.

If you’d like to be considered for the PFB Sports Survey, or know someone who should be, send along a name and email address to prayersforblowouts(at)gmail(dot)com.

Congrats to the Philadelphia Phillies on winning their 2nd World Series Championship, congrats to the city of Philadelphia on winning its first Major Championship in 25 years, and congrats to the Matt Redman Phillies for winning our ridiculous World Series of Worship Leaders!

I’d write something up about the game and the World Series, but let’s be honest, everything’s already been written. The ratings were low, the weather was cold, and having Game 5 split over 2 days was bizarre. In the end, it was the Phillies pitching that won it for them. (It always is, isn’t it?) Philly relievers combined for 1 walk in the 5 World Series games. The Rays bullpen? 10 free passes.

Oh, I almost forgot the Brad Lidge interview right after the game, in which he thanked, among other people, Jesus Christ in his thank yous. I thought it came across as heartfelt and spontaneous, and gave it a thumbs up. Did you catch it?

Now everyone go out and buy yourself a Phillies T-Shirt and a Matt Redman CD!

Guideposts.com has an article written by David Tyree on the Helmet Catch, the marijuana arrest that woke him up to reality, and how God has changed his life.

Also, here’s a video of him talking about the play:

So the rumors are true. The NBA is back, and action starts tonight with the World Champion Boston Celtics taking on the Cleveland Cavaliers, followed by the Los Angeles Lakers squaring off against Greg Oden and the Portland Blazers of Trails.

When I first sat down to write this NBA prediction piece I had a great idea: tonight’s TV match ups are actually previews of the Conference Finals! It’s brilliant. The defending champs from each conference battle it out against two of the biggest young stars in the league! Kobe Bryant vs. Greg Oden in the Western Finals!. Boston’s Big 3 vs. LeBron James in the Eastern Finals! The match ups that opened the season would also close them! Wow, what symmetry! This will be the best prediction piece ever!

There’s only one problem: those match ups aren’t going to happen.

But here’s what will:

5 Predictions for the Eastern Conference

1. The Celtics WILL make it back to the playoffs, but WILL NOT make it back to the Eastern Conference Finals. I just don’t see the Big 3 Old 3 staying healthy all year. And yes, losing James Posey hurts them. It hurts them like it hurt when your junior high girlfriend broke up with you, only she did it by sending her friend over to your locker to tell you she didn’t want to go out with you anymore. That was the worst, wasn’t it? Before the friend even said a word, you knew it was coming. Please tell me I’m not the only once this happened to?

2. LeBron James can carve a turkey with only a dull knife and his left foot. He can find a a bible verse in the minor prophets faster than any pastor. He can set a basketball on his buttocks and break wind to force it up into the hoop (off the backboard, no less!). I don’t know…I’m just trying to say things about him that haven’t been said yet. It’s not that easy.  - insert clever segue here - and it won’t be easy for James to get to the Eastern Conference Finals this year. But he will. Oh yes, he will.

3. The Orlando Magic are THIS close. But they’re not there yet. Dwight Howard needs a little more help in the back court before they’re ready to challenge for the title. Then again, if Dwight Howard prays like he never has before, there is a chance. So really, this season for the Magic comes down to Dwight Howard’s prayer life. There’s something you won’t read in SLAM Magazine.

4. The Pistons are done with a capital ‘O-L-D’. So is Larry Brown, who, as you may have forgotten, is the new coach of the Charlotte Bobcats.  Neither Charlotte nor Detroit will be the worst team in the East, however. That role will be played by the Knicks or the Nets. (I tried to decide on one of them, but it gave me an instant migraine. So let’s go with both.)

5. The team that the Cavs will play in the Eastern Conference Finals? None other than the Toronto Raptors. That’s right, the red raptors, led by Bosh and Calderon, will play their way into the Semi-Finals to face off against LeBron and the Cavs. Will it be enough to beat them? Find out in 3 minutes…

5 Predictions for the Western Conference

1. The Spurs WILL NOT be playing in the Western Conference Finals. Why not? Because this is my preview column and I don’t want them in there. In an unrelated note, Manu Ginobili just walked by an elderly woman at a grocery store and flopped in the cereal aisle trying to draw a charge. This guy’s work ethic is amazing! Always working on his craft, that Ginobili.

2. The Lakers really are as stacked as everyone is saying. They’ve got the talent, especially with Bynum coming back, but what sets them apart this year to me is the chip on their shoulder. They were embarrassed in Boston in the Finals, and if you don’t think that’s going to play on the screen of Kobe’s mind in HD over and over again, you don’t know the power of the black mamba. I think the Lakers will finish the year with the best record, and make a beeline through the playoffs to the Western Conference Finals where they’ll play…

3. The Grizzlies. In the Finals? No. I’m crazy, but I’m not an idiot. The Grizzlies will be the worst team in the league this year. (We’ll get to the other Western Conf. Finals team in a minute.) The Grizzles, as I like to call them, are so bad, they will go through 4 coaches. They will average an attendance of 543 people. They will be shutout 6 times and no-hit once. They will be blamed for high gas prices and a struggling economy. They will beg Isiah Thomas to coach them and he will say no. They will play 1-on-5 against Rick Warren in a pick-up game and lose. They will find Osama Bin Laden and then lose him. They will hire Tim Donaghy as their team president. They will make it onto the next season of Survivor and immediately try to be the leader of their tribe and get voted out in the first episode. They will forward every chain email they get to everyone they know. They will lose. A lot.

4. The Blazers, Mavericks, Suns, and Rockets will be in the mix in the playoffs. But they won’t be the team who tries to take down Kobe in the Western Conference Finals.

5. That will be the Hornets, who will ride Chris Paul like Amtrak all the way to the semis. All Aboard the CP3 Train!

And for the Finals?

How about Kobe versus LeBron? No? Well, too bad because that’s what I’m going with. I like the Lakers to beat the Cavs in 6 games in NBA Finals.

Phil Jackson will win his record 10th NBA Title and smoke a cigar during the trophy presentation just to get under Red Auerbach’s skin, which is pretty sick considering Auerbach is dead.

Kobe wins the Finals MVP Award and asks Shaq to kiss it and tell him how it tastes.

Other Predictions

League MVP – Chris Paul (runner-up Dwight Howard, Kobe, or LeBron)

First Coach Fired – Lawrence Frank, Nets (though I don’t wish unemployment on anyone)

First Coach to Start Salivating Over other Jobs – Larry Brown (he’s already started)

First Person to Tell Me the Blazers Will make the West Conf. Finals – Jordan Green

Your Turn

So those are my predictions. Not very sexy, I’m afraid. In fact, this might be the worst season preview ever. But you can help! Make some educated guesses in the comments. Give us your matchups for the Conference Finals and who you think will win it all this year in the Finals. Throw in a league MVP if you’re feeling dangerous.

Go ahead, make me look stupid (as if I needed the help)

“Rain rain on my face. It hasn’t stopped, raining for days.” – Jars of Clay

Good morning everyone. This is Bryan Allain reporting live from my desk about 30 miles outside of Philadelphia. As of 9:42am DST this morning, it is 40 degrees and raining hard. The chances of the Phillies and Rays resuming game 5 tonight, in my opinion, are a coin flip. Then again, my meteorology degree is from the school of make believe, so what do I know?

Actually, that’s a good question. What do I know? Let’s run with that…

I know that it was MISERABLE last night. Sure, anyone could see that watching on TV, but I live an hour or so from Philly, and after watching the first 5 innings up the street at my brother-in-law’s house, I ran home to watch the rest of the game. Wow, was it nasty. It took me 30 seconds to get home, but by the time I walked inside I was soaked and freezing. I can’t believe they were attempting to play baseball in that weather. Worse yet, I can’t believe people were out WATCHING baseball in that weather.

I know that the MLB had decided already that the game would go a full 9 innings. You’ve probably heard the reports already, but MLB execs met on Saturday with execs from both teams and decided that the game would go the distance no matter the score. What we don’t know is who else knew. Apparently the players weren’t in the know (at least not all of them).

I know I mostly agree with Bill Conley, who came down hard on baseball this morning for even attempting to play the game. They should have been all over the weather situation, and when they saw that the strom was stalled and intensifying, they should have called it instead of crossing their fingers that they could finish it out.

I know the Rays must be annoyed that they got kicked out of their hotel. They were already checked out, anticipating a flight to Tampa no matter the outcome. But the weather forced them to stay in the area, and unfortunately their hotel rooms were already booked for a conference. The solution, stay in Wilmington, Delaware and wait it out.

I know the local weather man just came on the radio and said, in his opinion, there’s a 60% chance the rain will taper off and they will be able to have the field ready for tonight. So there you go, it’s essentially is a coin flip.

I know I agree with ticked off Phillies fans that stopping the game in the middle of the 6th inning was wrong. Why make the Phillies pitch and play defense in the 6th but not the Rays? If you knew you were going to resume the game anyway, why not just end it after the 5th? It seems to me that Selig was hoping the Rays would tie it up in the top of the 6th and that the Phillies would not score in the bottom of the 6th. Then he could suspend the game after 6 innings with it tied. He got the first half of his wish, when Pena singled in Upton with 2 outs, but when the Rays came out for the bottom, the field was laughably unplayable. He had no choice but to halt play. To me, the decision came 3 outs too late.

I know Philly fans are hoping they don’t play tonight. If the finish of Game 5 gets pushed to Wednesday, it could push a potential Game 7 back far enough where Cole Hamels could potentially start it. That is, as long as his left index finger didn’t get busted on his bunt attempt last night.

I know most people will blame a lot of this on television. I can’t blame them.

I’ll tell you what, these Philadelphia fans have been waiting a long time for a championship and just when it looked like they were on their way, [clever] things got muddy [/clever]. However this ends up playing out, you can expect baseball to address this in the off-season with a rule that says all World Series games must be played into the 9th inning. And hopefully baseball learns their lesson and is quicker to halt play when players are swapping their cleats for galoshes.

The season is so long as it is, they might as well wait an extra day or two to ensure the games are played in decent conditions. That’s my take on it. What about you? Do you think baseball handled this well?

PS…It’s 10:20am now and it’s still raining.

Sports Surveys

The PFB Sports Survey is a (somewhat) weekly feature at Prayers For Blowouts where we throw a few sports related questions at some of the most notable voices among Christian authors, pastors, musicians, and bloggers to see if they like sports as much as we do.

Here’s a list of the folks we’ve profiled.

• Anne Jackson, author/blogger
• Becky Garrison, author
• Brant Hansen, syndicated radio host
• Brian McLaren, author/speaker
• Chip MacGregor, literary agent/author
• Christian George, author
• Dillon Burroughs, author
• Donald Miller, author
• Ernie Johnson, Emmy-winning studio host
• Jason Boyett, author
• Jeff Miller, bassist for Caedmon’s Call
• Jim Palmer, author
• Jon Acuff, Creator of Stuff Christians Like Blog
• Jordan Green, writer/editor
• Larry Shallenberger, author/pastor
• Marcia Ford, author
• Mark Batterson, author/pastor
• Mark Scandrette, author
• Michael Spencer, The Internet Monk
• Sam Davidson, writer/speaker
• Scot McKnight, professor/author
• Shaun Groves, musician
• Stephen Brewster, Sr. Marketing Director at Integrity Music
• Susan Isaacs, actress/comedienne/writer
• Ted Kluck, author
• Tony Jones, author
• Travis Prinzi, author

If you are a notable voice in the Christian community, or you know someone who is, send their name and email address to prayersforblowouts(at)gmail(dot)com and we’ll consider them for a PFB Sports Survey.

The current issue of ESPN The Magazine has a quick 1-page article called “6 Things You Should Know About Being A Team Chaplain”.

Here’s “thing” #4:

4. PERSPECTIVE HELPS.
“I don’t discourage players from praying for wins. But I do stress that if God doesn’t answer that prayer, it doesn’t say anything about His purpose for the guy.”

You can read it in its entirety here.

Each week The Schnoz Report will get you ready for the upcoming slate of games in the NFL, providing angles (both acute and obtuse, but never right) that you won’t get anywhere else. As always, if you hate sports, especially football, then reading this post will only make you bitter and angry. Why don’t you go read about mice mutilating money.

This week the Schnoz Report is nothing more than a few observations and some picks because I’ve been out of town most of the week.

Random Thoughts on the NFL from the Schnoz

+ Could the Cowboys be the worst team in the NFC East? Yes, I think they could be.

+ The Broncos have given up more points than anyone but the 49ers, and they just lost Boss Bailey and Champ Bailey for the next 4-6 weeks. Not the best of times in Denver, despite the fact that they lead the AFC West.

+ How about this: The 5 top scoring teams in the league (points per game) are all in the NFC. (ARI, NYG, CHI, PHI, and GB). And not only that, but the Giants are also the #1 NFC team defense (yards per game). Tom Coughlin’s got things on track in New York right now.

+ The highest scoring team in the AFC is the 3-4 San Diego Chargers. Philip Rivers was having a quietly good year until last week. Well, I guess he still is having a good year, but his team is 3-4 and last week he threw a terrible interception deep in Buffalo territory that lost them the game.

+ Last week I said, “with a Colts loss to the Packers this weekend and the Titans next weekend, Tennessee would have a 4 game lead on the Colts. The Schnoz would be impressed by this.” Well, the Colts got trounced in Green Bay and the Titans took care of the Chiefs. All that’s left now is for the Titans to beat the Colts and Peyton Manning ain’t looking so hot.

+ Tom Brady’s knee is kinda starting to gross me out a little.

+ Last week’s “prediction sure to fail” was that the Chargers, Niners, and Seahawks would lose. Well, they did lose. And in retrospect, that should have been called “predictions that will absolutely come true and there’s not even a hint of doubt”.

+ I heard Sal Paolantonio talking about his book “How Football Explains America” on the Mad Dog Radio show earlier this week. It might have been the best 45 minutes of radio I’ve heard all year. Sal Pal knows his stuff, and Russo is a pretty good interviewer in my opinion. His book is now on my “Books I Just Might Buy” List.

+ Last week’s underdog pick was the Vikings. They lost and my record in underdog picks went to 1-6. I’m gonna take a week off and regroup on that front.

+ There’s some great matchups this week. The Bucs can go into Dallas and knock them down another notch without Romo at the helm. San Diego, who lost in Buffalo last week, has to travel to New Orleans and face the high-powered Saints offense – Oh wait! This game is in London. How ridiculous, anyway – Phil Rivers and Drew Brees might be the hottest QBs in the game right now. And don’t forget the Giants heading into Pittsburgh for a 4:15 EST start. A Super Bowl preview perhaps? Why not?

+ Last Week the Schnoz went 8-6 to go to 55-48 on the year. I was happy with that until I realized that Chris Hubbs went 10-4 against me heads up. 10-4! Who goes 10-4 picking against the spread? Who is this guy, Matthew McConaughey in Two for the Money? Geesh Chris, thanks alot for the ego boost. You’re the second Cubs fan to beat the Schnoz in NFL picks this year. Not sure what that means.

+ Here’s my picks for this week:ATL (+8.5), ARI (+4.5), MIA (+1.5), NYJ (-12.5), OAK (+7.5), STL (+7.5), NO (+3.5), TB (+3.5), WAS (-7.5), CLE (+7.5), HOU (-9.5), PIT (-2.5), SF (-5.5), IND (+4.5)

+ Guess who’s the last person standing in the NFL Suicide Pool? That’s right. The Schnoz wins again! With the Jets losing in Oakland last weekend, S. Martin was eliminated from competition and I’m the only one of the original 12 folks who is still alive. That and a 25 cents will buy me a newspaper. And on that newspaper the headline will be “The Schnoz Wins”.

Enjoy Week 8!

-The Schnoz

So I’m at this conference in Virginia Beach with some fellow leaders from our church for a few days. As I mentioned earlier in the week, I didn’t think I’d be able to post much from here. I thought it might be a good time forget about the sports/faith blog for a few days and just focus on the faith thing.

Well, after an inspired time of music led by Joel Houston tonight, the pastor of the church gets on stage and mentions we have a couple of special guests here tonight who play in the NFL. He introduces both players, who are members of the Washington Redskins: Clinton Portis and Shaun Alexander. Looks like I can’t get away from sports and faith! There they are sitting in the front row, about a Jason Campbell sideline post route away from me. As it turns out, Alexander is good friends with pastor Judah Smith, who was the main speaker for the evening. Portis, being Shaun’s new teammate, must have just come along for the ride.

Before Judah Smith began preaching he had Shaun come up and share a recent life lesson he learned about things happening in God’s timing. He talked about being cut from the Seahawks and how the circumstances worked out that led him to the Redskins. There were a few coincidental signs Shaun and his wife encountered as they prayed for God to show them direction and give Shaun and opportunity to play again. A few of these signs (a dream, a friend asking Shaun to be in Washington later in the year, a random gas station attendant telling Shaun he was going to play for the Redsksins) pointed to Shaun playing for the Redskins, so maybe they weren’t coincidences after all? Shaun feels like he is right where God wants him to be.

Here’s a photo of Shaun on stage. To the right you can see the arrow pointing to Clinton Portis sitting in the first row. This arrow does not exist in real life. I added it in photoshop. Though I like the thought that Clinton Portis walks around with a huge arrow floating above his head.

The message Judah Smith delivered was a good one. He talked about “tasting and seeing that God is good”. Not just observing the things of God like a spectator, but experiencing them also (Paslm 34:8). I think the message had an impact on Portis, who responded at the end to a call for those who would like to do just that. (yeah, I was supposed to have my eyes closed. But what can I say? I peaked. You would have too.)

I hoped to sneak down to the front and throw some hard-core PFB journalism in their faces after the service, but they snuck out before it was finished. Maybe they had to catch a flight to Michigan for their game against the Lions this weekend?

If anyone out there knows Jon Kitna, let him know that Clinton Portis was in the service tonight so he can do some follow-up with him once he gets to Detroit.