Here’s your bikini of the day from bikinibeat.org:

On Fan 590 Tonight-

- open phones with McCown from 4:05 to 4:40
- Grapeline with Don Cherry & Brian Williams at 4:45
- co-host from 5:00 to 7:00 is John Shannon
-5:20 Stu Mandel, SI.COM
-5:40 Dr. Charles Tator on Spinal & Head injuries in hockey
-6:06 Patrick Flatley, Formerly of the NHLPA
-6:30 Matt Stairs, Phillies Free Agent
-6:45 Jarrett Bell, USA Today

On 640 with Brady and Watters:

TBD

TSM Take: There is no one better on spinal/head injuries in sports than Dr. Charles (”Husky”)Tator. I remain puzzled why we don’t take this issue more seriously in hockey, I guess it’s the good old Milbury caveman philosophy. If you want to hear the realities on what is happening to people playing hockey from a medical- but not alarmist point of you- you should listen to that interview.

College of Sports Media Game of the Night:

I’m guessing the people who are in charge of making the NFL schedule felt that Cleveland would be a far better team. How else can you explain the Monday night-er tonight? The Baltimore Ravens (4-4) making the trip to the Mistake by the Lake to take on the Browns (1-7). These two teams are at the bottom of the AFC North and are far from any post season aspirations. Cincinnati leads the division with a 7-2 record and Pittsburgh trails the Bengals by a game. Getting back to the Ravens and Browns, the last time these two teams met was in week 3 and Baltimore cruised to a 34-3 win. A similar result is expected tonight. The Browns are so bad, management has decided to give quarterback Brady Quinn a second chance at starting. In three starts this season (including week 3) Quinn has one touchdown pass, three interceptions and has been sacked 10 times. The Ravens haven’t been great either. They started the season strong, but have lost four of their last five. Running back Ray Rice has been one of the lone bright spots for the team. He’s rushed for 573 yards, caught 46 balls for another 436 yards and has scored six touchdowns. You can be sure he’ll get a lot of work tonight.

If this game doesn’t get you going you can also check out some NBA action. Two young and talented teams battle it out as the Portland Trailblazers are in the ATL to take on the Hawks. Atlanta (8-2) has the best record in the East, while Portland (8-3) is number two in the West.

On the ice it’s on Atlantic division battle as the top seed New Jersey Devils take on the Philadelphia Flyers in the City of Brotherly Love. If the Devils win tonight they open the season winning nine straight on the road, tying a league record for most wins on the road to start a season.

So the buds are 3 and 15. We are nearly at the quarter pole and these three games will take us that point. It’s by this time that GM’s complete their inital assessments of their own teams, and that should mean that Toronto maple leafs Gm Brian Burke should have the answers he needs on his own squad. What exactly he believes to be true is the key to our future right?

First up this week, the anti-Christ Senators, talk about a must win! No matter how bad things are a win against the Sens is a must. The buds have been brutal their last three outings ( ok, especially bad) and nothing would clear that up quicker than a victory over gene’s team.

Follow that up with the coach who has never coached a more talented group of players. Mo’s team just won their first game in 15 so this should be an interesting test.

Wrap that up with the Caps and well, it’s one he’ll of a week. Here’s hoping we get better coverage then we did in today’s papers.. Man it was weak especially in the Sun

They were some real eye-openers Sunday afternoon, none more so than the Cincinnati Bengals. With their 18-12 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Bengals have moved to 7-2 on the year, but more importantly control the AFC North. They’re a combined 4-0 against the Steelers and Baltimore Ravens this year, and enter a very easy stretch in their schedule. With the way their defence is playing, they should be able to keep the division lead for quite a while.

THE GOOD

Two teams have done an excellent job turning their seasons around – the Carolina Panthers and the Tennessee Titans. Carolina moved to 4-5 with a tough win over Atlanta, thanks in large part to Jake Delhomme. The embattled quarterback was dreadful earlier this season, but has been able to right his game enough to get some wins. Sunday afternoon he threw for just under 200 yards and two scores. With wins in four of their last six (and they should have been able to capitalize against New Orleans last week), the Panthers are still in the race for an NFC wildcard spot.

Tennessee, meanwhile, has won three straight games with Vince Young back under centre. Chris Johnson has rushed for just under 500 yards in those three wins, and their defence seems to be restoring some of its swagger from last season. Word of caution to their next opponents: the Titans are out to show their 0-6 start was a fluke. Word of caution to Titans fans: the three wins have come against Jacksonville, San Francisco, and Buffalo.

THE BAD

Maybe it was just a case of looking past a weak opponent, but the New Orleans Saints need to be careful. I’ve watched the team four weeks in a row now, and I haven’t been impressed with their performance in any of the contests. A narrow five point win over the St. Louis Rams, a game in which the Rams deserved a better fate, tells me that Head Coach Sean Payton needs to get his team better prepared for games. As I’ve said before, come playoff time, the Saints aren’t going to go far if they keep allowing inferior teams to stay in the game.

THE UGLY

The Dallas Cowboys had a great opportunity to open up a two game lead in the NFC East, and went out and had a pathetic outing versus the Green Bay Packers. The Cowboys offensive statistics may look adequate, but most of their effectiveness came in garbage time when the Packers were up 17-0. The ‘boys didn’t convert a third down until the fourth quarter, and Dallas running backs managed only 45 yards on 11 carries. So much for Tony Romo’s November magic.

I know they’re still three games over 500, but this is the Denver Broncos team I thought I’d see. I give full marks to Kyle Orton for finally throwing the ball over 20 yards (he did it twice!),  but even with Orton going down, they have to beat the Washington Redskins. With three straight losses, the Broncos are now tied with the San Diego Chargers in the AFC West.

TWO POINT CONVERSION

- I know the games generate a lot of revenue for specific markets, but can’t the league switch the Monday nighter if it looks like a dud? I’m sorry, but Baltimore @ Cleveland just doesn’t rev my engine as a Week Ten matchup this season

- Josh Freeman had another nice outing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Count me as surprised. Freeman actually leads the Bucs on scoring drives – a nice change from the quarterback play they were getting earlier in the season

Don’t let anyone tell you that global warming isn’t having an effect on sports.

The CFL Playoffs are usually as much about the game as how the teams will adapt to the playing conditions. With four of this year’s five postseason games being held outdoors (the East final in Montreal being the exception), I assumed that Sunday’s games would be much of the same: frozen turf, the visible breath of ten linemen in the trenches, hits that hurt more than usual, you know, what makes the CFL the CFL. I checked out The Weather Network for game-time forecasts and wound up very disappointed.

Hamilton: Variable clouds with a high of 13
Calgary: Variable clouds with a high of 8.

Pardon?!?!?!

I guess if there’s one positive to draw from this unfortunate situation, it means the quality of play will be better. For the few who watched Saturday’s Yates Cup, the above average temperatures in Kingston allowed Queen’s’ Danny Brannagan and Western’s Michael Faulds to pass for 515 and 509 yards, respectively. (The game was the best football game I’ve seen since the 2007 Fiesta Bowl featuring Boise State and Oklahoma, but that’s another debate for another day.)

The point I’m making is that with so many playmakers at Ivor Wynne and McMahon Stadiums on Sunday, there’s potential for some classics to occur.

East Semi-Final — BC @ Hamilton

Hamilton linebacker Otis Floyd was pretty motivated after last week’s win in Winnipeg, when he got into the face of Bombers’ coach Mike Kelly. He was reminding Kelly about how the quarterback he cut in training camp, Kevin Glenn, will be starting on Sunday. Now he’s the source of his own motivation.

He’s one of five former Lions on the Ti-Cats’ roster, so don’t think that a win wouldn’t be sweet in more ways than one.

“[Teammates] call us the rejects. Hey, the rejects are getting ready to play,” he said. “It’s a little bit of added motivation going against your former team.”

The game also marks Casey Printers’ return to Steeltown after signing a lucrative deal in 2007 that made him the CFL’s highest paid player. After a miserable stay that lasted for a season and a bit, he was released in early 2009. He’s out to prove that he wasn’t the problem, and that is was more due to a lack of support.

Be that as it may, this Ti-Cat team is not just the best they’ve had since 2007, but perhaps the best since they last won the Grey Cup in 1999. Western teams crossing over to the East are 1-4 since the system was implemented. Look for that trend to continue.

Hamilton 24, BC 20

West Semi-Final — Edmonton @ Calgary

The best rivalry in the CFL is home to the two best quarterbacks in the CFL. The weather will allow for an absolute shootout, but will one or two teams take part?

The two Battles of Alberta held at Commenwealth in Edmonton were classics, won on essentially the final plays of the game. The Eskimos took the first 38-35 in mid-August. Henry Burris gave Calgary the lead in the final minute, only to see Ricky Ray lead the Esks back down the field on a touchdown drive of his own.

The Labour Day rematch was just as exciting. Edmonton lead in the final minute, but Burris found Jeremaine Copeland down the middle for a sensational game-winning major and a 35-34 win.

The two games in Cowtown? That’s a different story. The Stamps crushed their rivals 32-8 on Labour Day, and throttled them again 30-7 three weeks ago. So this game is a no-brainer right?

I love stats more than anyone, but as the old cliché goes, throw them out the window: It’s playoff time. Ray led the league in passing this season with 4,916 yards, and as much as Henry Burris deserves accolades for being last year’s Grey Cup Most Outstanding Player, Ray still doubles him in championships.

Calgary has a lot to prove after they had first place in the West pulled from underneath them last week in Saskatchewan, but this won’t be a cakewalk for them. They’ll just be lucky enough to get the ball last.

Calgary 35, Edmonton 34

-Marc Tessier

Wow, was it ugly early tonight. Right after another delayed start to honour the 1980’s Toronto maple leafs, the game ended. Before glass tiger front man sang oh Canada it was 2-0 and Colton Orr and Jamal myerss were in 2 staged fights. In a flash it was 3-1 and that was that.

3 and 15.

3 and 15!!!!

Has this team hit bottom yet? Is there any reason for hope?

Here, is the question leafs fans, we got the Gm everyone said we needed. What should Brian Burke do? Forget what he will do, what do you think he should do?

The reality I think is that he can’t make a trade right now. He will only overpay.. Does he throw vets to the minors? Does he call up kids? How much longer can Burke sit idly by and watch this train wreck? He must to a degree feel totally powerless. What’s a man to do?

Personally, I think the problem is one of perception. I think Burke should have kept selling extreme patience, I think people wouldn’t mind losing if there was a solid core of kids playing hard and learning. He went out and brought in vets and none withthe exception of Kessel has shown anything. What, it would seem is the point???????

So, your Burke, what would you do?

Ugly ugly ugly. If toskala didn’t stand on his head this one would have been way worse than it was.

Folks, forget panic, it’s time for reality, the good ship maple leaf is all but sunk this year. The hole is too deep. This team has to find somethig else to play for as the playoffs are nothing more than a pipe dream. Brady pointed out on Twitter tonight that if the lose to the flame tomorrow night in regulation they have 11pts in 18GP. They will need 84 pts of a possible 128 to get to 95pts. .656 hky. Talk about longshot.

The biggest question I have is how long does the architect sit by and watch the underperformers. This has to be killing Brian Burke..

Oh well tomorrows another night.

TSM

Forget Deion Sanders. A current player has taken over the title of “Primetime”. Unfortunately for this player, it’s for all the wrong reasons.

Jay Cutler has played in three primetime games so far for the Chicago Bears, and each start has been forgettable for the man who was supposed to be Chicago’s football saviour.  It all began in Week One, when the Bears faced off against NFC North rival Green Bay at Lambeau Field. Cutler, in his Chicago debut, tossed four interceptions to a new-look Packers defence, and the Bears fell 21-15.  Skip ahead to Week Six, and Cutler was at it again, this time tossing two picks at the Georgia Dome as the Bears fell 21-14 to the Atlanta Falcons. And then there was last night. On the NFL’s first Thursday-nighter of the year, Cutler throws five interceptions, and the Bears can’t even muster a touchdown in a 10-6 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

If you ask anyone watching those games, the Bears were the better team on the field. Not to say they were perfect, but Chicago could and should have come away with those wins. In those three games, Cutler has thrown three touchdowns and 11 interceptions. That ratio won’t even cut it in Cleveland. In Chicago’s non-primetime games, Cutler has 11 TD’s and six interceptions – three of which came trying to play catch-up against the Bengals in Week Seven.

In a discussion last night with some friends, I was asked if I’d rather have Kyle Orton at the helm, or Jay Cutler. It took me less than a second to answer: Cutler. The difference is simple. Jay Cutler can win you games, and he can lose you games (see Exhibit C – Week Ten vs. the 49ers). Kyle Orton can play games. He doesn’t win a game on his own, he doesn’t lose one for you – he just plays.

Any fan of the Chicago Bears has every right to be livid after watching last night’s game. Cutler tried to force the ball into too many dicey areas, and he was burned (picked off by a nose tackle? You’ve got to be kidding me). But before they go calling for General Manager Jerry Angelo’s head for making the move to get Cutler, consider watching the Denver Broncos passing attack. If Kyle Orton throws a ball over 20 yards, I’ll be amazed.

Chicago still has two more primetime games to go – next week versus Philadelphia Sunday night, and Week 16 versus Minnesota for the Monday nighter. For his sake, I hope Jay Cutler is able to handle himself a little better and cut down on the INT’s. If not, we may be looking at the NFL record holder for most interceptions in a season.

TWO POINT CONVERSION

- I don’t care if you hate both teams with a passion – watch the Bengals at Steelers Sunday afternoon. It will be the tough AFC North matchup the Ravens were supposed to give the Bengals last week

- ESPN’s John Clayton took a real chance when he predicted his Super Bowl match up earlier this week: New Orleans vs. Indianapolis. Wow, thanks for that John. Anyone can take the two undefeated teams and schedule them for the big game. Me? Right now I like the Steelers to play the Vikings

Here’s your bikini of the day from bikinibeat.org:

On Fan 590 Tonight-

- open phones with McCown from 4:05 to 4:40
- Grapeline with Don Cherry & Brian Williams at 4:45
- co-host from 5:00 to 7:00 is Stephen Brunt
5:20 Mark Cohon, CFL Comish
5:40 Jack Armstrong
6:05 Rob Becker,Legal analyst
6:30-7:00 Andre Agassi IN STUDIO

On 640 with Brady and Watters:

4:30 – Happy Capitalism with Lou Schizas

4:40 – Hamilton Tiger-Cats Owner Bob Young

5:30 – Happy Capitalism with Lou Schizas

5:30 – NFL Prognosticator Bob “The Bear” Cowan

5:40 – Leafs Head Coach Ron Wilson

6:10 – Inside the NHL with Darren Dreger & Scott Morrison

6:40 – Rinkside with AM 640 Leafs Reporter Jonas Siegel

forgiveness

Hey all, I am back in Toronto and happy to report that I am back in the saddle so to be speak. I apologize for not getting a post up yesterday as I was in the air and then passed out due to the time change. Lot’s going on and I have lot of opinions. I am really intrigued to see how Toskala does tonight, if for example he lays and egg, how do they keep throwing him out there? On the Jays, I find the news that AA is hiring lots of scouts terrific. I do however get the feeling that they have to trade Halladay in order to move on. Keeping Cito around as manager in mind is waiving the white flag on yet another season. I am prepared to live with that provided there is evidence of a plan and execution on it as well.

More later.

TSM