Top 10 signs the Jets are forcing the trash talk this week

How sad has the Jet Hate been this week? So sad that the NY Times had to research a story on Johnny Semple, a trash-talking Jet player from 40 freaking years ago, rather than have the players write their copy for them. Why the sudden reticence? Maybe it's because the Jets actually have respect for this opponent, or don't want so much rancor coming from the stands, since the Steelers actually have them, unlike the Patriots. And just in case you aren't convinced, here are ten more signs of substandard rancor...

10) Haven't actually mentioned anyone other than Hines Ward

9) Rex Ryan did not invent a personal rivalry

8) Antonio Cromartie has somehow forgotten to call Ben Roethlisberger a particular profanity

7) Santonio Holmes hasn't vowed vengeance on anyone in particular

6) Bart Scott hasn't talked about how he CAN'T WAIT for Chris Kemoeatu to try an after the whistle cheap shot

5) Darrelle Revis not talking about how Mike Wallace only catches balls near the sidelines

4) Braylon Edwards refusing to mention how much taller he is than Bryant McFadden

3) Nick Mangold not talking about how Ziggy Hood never wears pants in his daily comic strip

2) LaDanian Tomlinson has yet to call out the San Diego management for keeping him from playoff success for all those years

1) For the first time this season, Jet Fan is finally talking more trash than Jet Player

The FTT Movie Review: True Grit

Man Movie Night returned tonight as the Ninja and a couple of other True Wariers went to see the Coen Brothers latest. It's a good time, and proof, not that anyone really needs it, of the following two points.

1) When you cast a (fairly) unknown actor in a lead role (in this case, Hailee Steinfeld, the 14-year-old female protagonist), it's almost always a win, provided the director is quality, and

2) Maybe this is just a place you get to when you are older, but damm, a Coen Brothers Western is just freaking beautiful to look at. Here, take a look at it.



Excellent dialogue and comic timing is rife in this, along with a gritty realism that's welcome. Mattie Ross, the protagonist, does not have Buffy-esque super powers, performs no great feats of shooting, and otherwise doesn't come off as anything but credible. The outlaws are not mustache-twirling evildoers, and the heroes are not paragons of virtue. Everyone is incredibly watchable, and the timing and pace never seems rushed or slack. Other than a final scene that I think the film could have been better without, I wouldn't hav changed a thing.

Jeff Bridges is flat-out brilliant in this movie as the one-eyed, drunken, overweight and abusive US marshall Rooster Cogburn, who takes a bounty job to bring the killer of a headstrong girl's father to justice. It's a relatively simple plot, like most Westerns, but it has a weight and momentum of any good Coens brother movie, especially since it's just so beautifully shot. See it on a good screen if you go, appreciate Matt Damon for not giving his Texas Ranger character a Boston accent, and plan on watching Steinfeld for the next 20 to 30 years.

Top 10 things to look for at Barry Bonds' upcoming trial for perjury

10) Whether or not Barry's head has shrunken down to near human size, since we're presuming he's not taking any more drugs in his post-baseball career

9) ESPN to pull Pedro Gomez out of cold storage for his lone reason for being

8) Giants Fan to finally turn on Barry, seeing how they proved that they could only win a World Series without him

7) Absolutely no writers to change their mind in regards to Bonds' fitness for Cooperstown

6) Marvin Benard to become relevant and useful to anyone for the last time in his life

5) Bonds to lobby, in a particularly pathetic but increasingly half-hearted way, that he can still hit and is ready to work

4) Federal prosecutors to put him down for perjury, because they are actually pretty darn good at that sort of thing

3) Jeremy Giambi to visit the Bay Area, probably under an alias, large hat and false mustache

2) Any number of former teammates get the opportunity to detail, under oath, just what a wonderful experience it is to be in the same locker room with the man

1) Greg Anderson to continue his bizarre life-long devotion and willingness to take the fall for a remarkably useless human being

A Good Washburn

The Eagles' hiring of former Titans defensive line coach Jim Washburn has gotten the kind of local and national press coverage that only a pre-free agency hiring can get, really, but in case you missed it, there's really a lot to like here.

First off, Washburn is a major reason why Jeff Fisher has been able to hold the job for the better part of two decades. The Titans defense has been front driven for years, and Washburn has gotten the best out of people like Jevon Kerase, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Albert Haynesworth and Jason Babin -- yes, Jason Babin. By the simplest and best measure of a position coach -- has he gotten the most out of his talent -- Washburn qualifies on every level.

Secondly, he fills Andy Reid's recent strong history of poaching top coaches from distressed organizations. Last year it was special teams coach Bobby April from the Bills, and while I don't have the coverage or kicking numbers in front of me, just from watching the games, I liked the units more this year than last. Besides, that unspeakably nifty 10 man onside kick execution against the Giants, not to mention the DeSean Jackson walk-off punt return, tells me that April was the winning move.

Third, this does more than any other possible move to jump-start the career of some of the most important players on the roster -- DE Brandon Graham and Daniel Te-o-Nesheim. The pass defense doesn't work out without a corresponding sack threat on the other side of DE Trent Cole, and they just haven't had one. LB Chris Clemons got to the QB plenty in Seattle, while the man they traded for him, DE Darryl Tapp, just didn't provided the same push.

Fourth and finally, and while this seems hardly even in the realm of possibility given the team's tastes in the post-Terrell Owens era... well, Haynesworth is absolutely devoted to Washburn, and says that he owes his fame and fortune to him. If the Skins are so over the Fat Albert Era as to just let him walk, and if he were to come north and get back to his previous levels while wearing midnight green... well, not to put too fine a point on it, but there is a reason why Albert attracted a nine-figure salary in the first place. And sure, the Skins overpaid and have done everything possible to ruin his value, but a motivated Albert was still one of the best in the business in Nashville. I doubt he gets back to that level, but he could still be a force. (And no, he's really not a DE, or the single biggest thing the defense needs, which is a lockdown LB or three. But still, it's nice to dream of yet another ex-Redskin going to glory one he leaves the team)

Top 10 reasons why the Angels traded for Vernon Wells

10) After not being able to overpay for Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth, decided they needed to overpay for someone

9) Certain that if they put him in warmth, grass and pennant races, Wells won't ever get hurt again

8) By trading Mike Napoli and his huge power production behind the plate, they get to finally play defensive catchers that won't help them win games

7) By pairing Wells with Torii Hunter, they can have an outstanding defensive outfield in 2005

6) Think that his contract can't nearly be as bad in lousy American dollars

5) By moving Wells from the AL East to the AL West, it's almost as much of a probable performance boost as going to the NL

4) Vernon's career and attitude may take an upswing when he gets to play in front of people during home games

3) While Wells is hopelessly overpaid with one of MLB's worst contracts, being hopelessly overpaid in Southern California is far less socially off-putting

2) Just spent $23 million on Hisanori Takahashi and Scott Downs (no, seriously), so money clearly has no meaning to them

1) After paying in the past for Gary Mathews Jr. and Hunter, it's kind of an annual tradition for them to blow big dollars on an outfielder that won't work out