>> four movement talking reporters. today, how about the stadium open losses? how about the j-e-t-s? how about a ochocinco leap with a order of dirty bird? [captioning made possible by espn, inc.] >> mute button, check. let's meet the panel. plaschke. >> i'm a smooth operator. >> no you are not. paige? >> i don't know what cowlishaw's problem is but i bet it is hard to pronounce. >> drive from columbia, missouri

to dallas. >> i was 4-0 this weekend. >> and nobody cares. let's go to work. >> it's "first word." >> how about the cage girls and 50-yard line lounge and the 1 160-foot scoreboard. there was scoreboard watching, attendance, 105,000. a football game which the cowboys pretty much gave away. three picks toro mo for romo. is romo theç biggest of the cowboys problems? >> he is a problem, moving toward being tied for the biggest. he is not there yet. >> what is the biggest? >> the defense and wade's coaching but tony wasn't in the discussion in mid season last year. he was just the next great thing, $60 million deal. a lot of those opinions have gone sour since then. we saw in the interceptions, he

threw three last night. only one was touchable by a could you be and witten deflected it off his foot. >> you still think the cowboys have biggerç problems? >> they have a defense that has no turnovers around no sacks after two games. >> pai >> paige? >> it is wade phillips. he was ordered last year to retake the defense and what has he done? they have a defense after two games that is 26th or lower in all the defensiveç categories. did you see the way he handled time-outs at the end of the game? did you see the way he called the mike shanahan freezing time-out that didn't work. he gave the opportunity to practice the kick. did you see the way he managed the game? they are in this big new stadium, largest crowd -- >> i hear that but tony romo threw lee interceptithree inter there wasn't a cowboy near them.

>> this is about wade phillips. 11-10. i wonder if he will survive the season. you look at the grandeur, contrast that with wade phillips's body language on the sidelines. you see how he reacted. like he lost his best friend. coaches don't do that. they keep a stiff upper lip. his language is defeatist. that is the culture he creates. i think it is going the wrong direction. they don't play defenseç and me turnovers. he seems out of place in that new stadium. >> you are talking about more than ever a quarterback's league. look at what andrwhat drew bree doing. row snow not a big game quarterback. jerry jones laid out all his pressure, look guys this is bigger than the super bowl and romo wilted in the face of that. construction that possessihat p -- juxtaposed against eli, he is

making something of his receivers. two of them had 10-catch games and coin r-- tony is throwing i the other team. >> however can he take them? >> 8-8, 9-7. not to the playoffs. not this year. they didn't get better in any areas. >> paige? >> he could take them to 31 points a game but when you have a defense that gave up 33 points and is 30th in scoring defense you won't take them far by himself. >> as long as wade flichs is there they a-- phillips is there her not going to the playoffs. >> eight yards a rush. use the running backs. >> they came, they saw, they left voicemails, they promised embierment and they conquered. jets delivering the win of the season so far he says after week two. too easy for joe willie sanchez and weeb ryan. do you ever remember seeing the

patriots looking as lost as they did yesterday? credit to kerry rhodes and rex ryan or blame to the pats? >> this is about rex ryan. this is the best story in the nfl right now. you know the giants have always ruled new york and they are still a real god franchis good . the fans are finally in it. he is calling season ticket holders and giving them a game ball. i never heard of that. and the defense was good coming in but they tweaked it. >> this is all about -- >> against new england and houston. >> i said this last week, there is something wrong with new england. the patriots are not the same. tom brady 41 passer rating on third down.ç 48 in the red zone. he was not çsacked, he was hurried but not really touched. he had time to make plays. he didn't make plays. i watched that game. he had every chance toç winç game and defensively they miss mayo up the middle.

they really miss seymour. defensively sanchez a 110 passer rating against them. something is wrong in new england. the jets are a great team. new england is not the same. >> bill, you have a good argument but it is the wrong side of the argument. the jets obviously rex ryan and kerry rhodes knew something and that is why they were trash talking. rhodes said we will get to him six times. they got to him seven times.ç they had as many as southern and eight guys -- as many as seven or eight rushing tom provided. something is right with the new york jets this year. that means they have a tougher defense, sanchez playing the game and managing it well, not showing rookie mistakes. it was about the jets and ryan who i have loved and in the offseason he started on the patriots and the reason why he did is he knew how to defend them and showed it yesterday. >> i'm with jay and woody. it is about the j-e-t-s jets.

i didn't think rex ryan could do it that quickly. i didn't think they made enough changes and rookie çquarterbac not great receivers. i saw her a team that wouldn't score a lot. they don't have to score a lot when they play the defense they played not only credit but last week -- not only yesterday but lastç week. >> so is this jets team for ç real? is this division within grasp? >> i think it is legit because they have overcome the disadvantage against new england. they had won 12 of 14. he wins out of the chute and he is not afraid to start a rookie quarterback. >> absolutely, it is about the jets. because new england, something is wrong there. they are back to normal. >> the jets weren't lousy last year but miami came in and took over. the jets are the team in the division that you have to pay attention to. >> you have to pay attention to both teams from new york in that division. don't sleep on the buffalo bills.

>> coaches and rookie g.b.'s have done so much. falcons and ravens last year, now this year with the jets. that hype machine on sanchez on a scale of one to 10 is about 43. coming up in "buy or sell," breeziness is next to godliless. field goalness next to loneliness. when four top plays have no shot at working. that is when ray lewis is on the field. . .

>> "buy or sell." >> "buy or sell" for all of your "buy or sell" needs. >> i'm right here. >> drew brees's world, everybody counting his stats. nine t.d.'s it two games.

93 points in two games. the question i ask seriously, will anybody keep them under 40 this season? "buy or sell" the new orleans saints, plaschke? >> they are championship caliber. fourth team in history to score at least that the first two and fifth in rushing defense. they are doing it from all angles. coming together at the right time. >> you are right, second most points in the first two games. drew brees on pace to throw 96 touchdown passes this year. of course you have to buy them. this was my team to be most improved. they are going to be a super bowl contender. you have to buy it. >> i like it, they started without pierre thomas supposed to be the top running back. they could lose a receiver and it wouldn't matter because they have so many weapons to go to. they have that kind of talent. >> drew is prolific. had he a huge year last year,

completing 75% of passes. that defense with six interceptions but they are at the jets in two weeks. that sets up already as an offense versus defense game. >> but the eagles have a pretty good defense. you see what they did to the panthers a week ago? jay cutler game two a lot better than game one of the two touchdowns, no picks.ç robbie gould's field goal and you have a bears win unless you are the type of person that says jeff reed's skunked two and the steelersç yacked this one away. what type of person are you, woody paige? >> i go with cutler. that was the game with the most attention on it because of what he did the first game. four picks, none yesterday. threw a touchdown pass off the wrong foot. got them down in field goal range. people had kind of pulled off him, have to get back on that bandwagon becauseç he is a gre

quarterback. >> cowlishaw? >> i gave you the bears friday but i think this is a bigger loss for the steelers because they are in a situation they could have lost the first game and won in overtime. they will be in tight battles all year the way they play. they will miss polamalu. >> jeff reed, after the game, said if i make one of the two we win the game and i'm going to take his word. this is the 10th most accurate kick are in nfl history. that was a fluke and the bears didn't lead until the last 15 seconds. pittsburgh blew it. >> you say you take jeff reed's word for it. you don't need to take his word for it. plaschke, go ahead. >> as much as you ripped jay cutler you have to give him credit. it was a huge game for the bears. they bet the defending super bowl champions. when do you that after the horrible week he had the week before they needed this. bigger win for him. skraeshgs how come you >> how come you never talk about

the baltimore ravens? >> who? >> playoff team last year. we all know about the defense. but nobody ever mentions joe flacco. rivers throws for 436. flacco left with the win. what do we think of the play call on fourth down here? >> norv. >> more about the chargers or ravens? >> i think it is more about the ravens. i think it is more about joe flacco last year. they tried to be as careful as they can. he can make plays. they have the defense. they have a deeper running game. ravens will be tough. >> flacco has five touchdown passes. he didn't do that until week nine a year ago. he is managing games very well. and defensively ray lewis, they were fighting with him over a contract in the offense season. he makes one of the best defensive plays i have ever seen on darren sproles. >> he keeps harping on this but wade phillips, norv turner, same. he made the bad call.

on that situation rivers has a record day, sproles is incredible and you have to win that game. >> woody? >> you are sending sproles up the middle on fourth down and two when you have a great pass er just proves that norv turner is, along with wade phillips, destined to not finish the season. we knew about the ravens. but the chargers we assumed would be a super bowl -- >> you never talk about the ravens on this show. i give you the opportunity. >> i talk about them in bars and hotels and airport. s -- airports. >> first cut. great two rounds of play. sorry to say we have to send someone home. mariotti. >> this is not a great show. you need me to go o i went 4-0 over the weekend. >> that is what happened. you started with minus four points because you are bragging about your 4-0 record. "out of bounds" is next. the weekend that was in college.

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>> we play to get to showdown. woody paige looking pretty good right now. cowlishaw and plaschke still in it. mariotti was 4-0 this weekend, 0-1 this week. >> it is "out of bounds." >> trojans' annual lossç to an unranked pac-10er earlier this season, huh, bill plaschke? dropping toç number 12. fall for b.y.u. bigger, number 19. 9 game you felt was most compelling going in maybe not the outcome you expected.

10-point loss for lane and the vols feels like victory, no? what was theqç biggest development, plaschke shesh? >> the u.s.c. loss. this is a game everybody says it is the same old thing. it is not. this is worse than before. i think this is a rebuilding year now. u.s.c. has never gone 0-10 on third down. fewest passing yards ever under pete carroll. he said he did a terrible job coaching. >> but they were without barkley. does that have anything to do with it? >> no, because they outgained washington and stuffed them on defense. they turned it over three times in the red zone. they looked like a poorly coach. >> so sad, bill plaschke. >> that is the truth. they could lose another game to or two. >> we accuse jim tressel of not being a big game coach but pete carroll is not a little game

coach. he can't win the little ones. then you have monty kiffin who is the difference in the florida-tennessee game. the father of lane kiffin. lane could have stayed home but monty did a job on florida and tebow. but you have to come down to b.y.u. losing at home to florida state. the b.c.s. and tim cowlishaw's favorite topic of conversation is setting up a little better because b.y.u. no longer is in the picture. we only have boise state to clear for. >> cowlishaw. >> as the only panelist at the missouri-furman game -- wait. i agree that the tennessee--- >> why did you say that? >> because it was a great showing by the tigers. florida and tennessee was great because we learned after that game florida is not this invincible, you know, godzilla team everybody thought. you saw them interviewing lane kiffen on espn before the game and they practically wanted him to admit they were going to go out there and get killed. it didn't happen.

tennessee can play with them in florida and anybody can be beaten and everybody will be taking a loss. >> you think less of florida? >> absolutely not. it is the s.e.c. every team plays tough there. they did what they had to do. >> woody paige? >> you have four teams in the top 10 in the s.e.c. of course they are going to play close games. they are not playing in tim cowlishaw's conference. >> what is my conference? >> what is your conference? >> whatever conference furman is in. >> this is an intervention. nice weekend of college fastball you go to missouri-furman? not that there is anything wronwrong >> big win over the paladins. i thought i would get more air time. >> showdown is next. plaschke and paige enter. one brings us that much closer to world peace. straight ahead, the titans come out losing despite chris johnson going techmo bo jackson.

and ♪ ♪ i always feel like (announcer) it's right here, it's easy... ♪ somebody's watching me. ...it's the money you could be saving with geico. ♪ who's watching? ♪ tell me who's watching. (muffled music) (announcer) it's right here, it's easy...

♪ i always feel like somebody's watching me. ♪ it's the money you could be saving with geico. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. game. >> welcome back to "around the horn," i'm michelle tafoya with this team report. the colts have been one of the most stable franchises, but this season a major change as jim colwell takes over for tony done gee. the transition has been seamless. colwell can get a little more fired up than dungy

used to. peyton manning said one of his best qualities -- players wants to play hard for him and he says colwell is having that same effect. here's suzy for a report on the dolphins. >> chad pennington believes there's a misconception to playing quarterback in the nfl. pennington is known for his leadership, and few interceptions and says that all the attention to fantasy football and individual numbers has skewed the way the game is played. he said a quarterback's job is to win. it's not about stats, it's about execution and understanding who your team is and what it takes for them to win. his steadying force was what led the dolphins to their success last season. many believe tonight will be a true indication of whether he can do it again. your team reports will continue until kickoff, 8:30 p.m. eastern. right now back to "around the horn."

>> mondays are jam packed loaded shows. can't get to everything like the u.f.c. and boxes so check us out on twitter.com/around the horn. now it is a stairdown with face. number one, bengals had their hearts ripped out last week and were in position for it to happen again but timing got in the way. and then the highlight of the game, ochocinco with the lamp -- lambeau leap. should packers . . and have a seat on the edge you u he was going to rye to do it. how hard is it to keep a guy from jumping in. >> bill, you are missing the big story. it wasn't about the lambeau leap. it was about the fact that the

packers lost at home to the bengals. that is the question. packers came in as a team with a chance to go to the super bowlç and that is what it is about. >> he didn't ask that question.ç leodis gets some love and bills get a win. raiders so close last week, this week seal it late. cardinals a win after a loss and how about the texans surviving chris johnson's track meet.çç whose bounce meant most to you woody? >> cardinals, seven of the last eightçç teams to lose in the r bowl havezç not made the playo. they started badly, came back. kurt warner had the highest completion average in the history of the nfl. he only missed on two passes. >> jacksonville state winning there is no big deal.

tennessee is huge. houston winning at tennessee was the bounce back. houston didn't show up in the opener and they showed andre johnson. >> part of me agrees with you bill plaschke pleasure but i would like it to be interesting. give it to paige. possess p pot pourri. gold golden tate's stage dive and the fan that made the penalty cook in russia and panthers and falcons game this referee got the business all afternoon long. what most did it for you, bill plaschke? >> i love the michigan state band. golden tate jumping in there and wants love they today there. that is the human reaction to catch him or be part of the action. they stood like he was something falling from the sky. it was tremendous that they didn't help him. >> how in the world can you overlook the game of soccer says

it is so difficult to make a penalty kick, a guy comes out of the stands and he comes out and in his business shoes and blue jeans goes through and makes the kick. >> just like the lambeau leap the packers fan should have pushed ochocinco out of the way and gold under tate jumped into the wood wind section and they did what they are supposed to do. 30 seconds to bill plaschke. >> saw something in football that has to end and calling of a time-out at the last second before a field goal attempt. there has to an rule that the nfl has to say from now on once the game game clock is to five second cutoff, no more time-o time-outs. we saw wade phillips call it. it went through and they had to rekick it because of the time-out. it is schooli] yard and playgrod a great game turned into almost a game of nah nah nah nah nah andççç that is notç right. besides, it is stupidñr to call and let him kick, he got a

practice kick. >> say >> "pardon the interruption." it's the last day of summer. how did you spend it? >> it's the last chance to even out my bikini line. >> in the buff, in the buff? >> you know, you don't want to give that secret away to people, because then they're going to want to know where did you do it, can we spy owe, was it in your backyard, was it on the roof. >> i've got plenty of sun here. i have h-come and join me. >>ist's 2,000 degrees where you are. welcome to "p.t.i.," boys and girls. in today's episode, the jets beat the patriots, the bears beat the steelers and another pac-10 weakling in the face of u.s.c. we begin today with the dallas cowboys, losing in their debut in jerry jones'

new magical pleasure palace. there were girls dancing in cages, there were players walking through liquor barns just to get to the field, and there was tony romo throwing killer interceptions -- three of them, each one leading to giants' touchdowns that gave new york the lead. wilbon, go ahead, crush tony romo. >> you know, i don't want to crush him, tony, because he's such a likeable person and clearly he has a lot of talent. you wouldn't want to throw the baby away with the bath water. but too many turnovers. this just in -- tony romo turns it over. we've been watching this now for a couple of postseasons. we've watched it in the regular season. the bigger the game, the bigger the stage, the better the defense. seems like his decision-making goes awry, and that has to be questioned. a lot of people have always said, oh, this guy is the next and fill in the blank. not exactly. >> i liked him a lot as a quarterback. but what you say is undeniably true. there are a lot of mistakes, that he's never

won a playoff game and his record in december is terrible. to my way of thinking, if you score 31 points -- i think the cowboys scored 31 -- you ought to win in the nfl if you score 31. what happened to their defense? i wouldn't let romo off the hook. bill parcells fell in love with him. then jerry jones fell in love with him. then jessica simpson. now they're all gone but jerry. jerry's still there, and you wonder. i still think he's between seven and 12 in the league as a quarterback, but i know what you're saying. >> you're not going to suggest that the giants scored all those points off the dallas defense when your boy coughed it up as many times as he did. >> i'm just saying he scored 31. if you score 31, you're supposed to win. they had zero sacks. >> why are you supposed to win when your guy gave up 21 >> they had zero sacks. >> what? he gave them 21. you're not going to acknowledge that? >> i've acknowledged it nine times. >> not really. >> i don't like him because he plays golf. >> it doesn't make sense to

say that when he -- >> if you score 31, you should win. >> you should if you don't give up 21. >> so you hate him. >> few things in sports are as impressive as calling your shot. ok, the jets didn't embarrass the patriots, but they did everything else they promised. they harassed the golden boy, tom brady in some uncharacteristic mistakes. they smothered randy moss, held the patriots to a touchdown. jets' rookie mark sanchez was composed. what's the biggest story here, the jets' uprising or the patriots taking a beatdown? >> i'm going to do something i don't normally do, which is take the optimistic turn. i'm going to say it's the jets' uprising. i'll tell you, look at new york right now, because i know you hate what i'm going to say. >> what? >> the jets are 2-0. the giants, i think, are the best team in the nfl right now. new york is looking like they've got two very good teams. >> they do. and a lot of people do.

>> chicago doesn't. >> bigger story here is the patriots, who guys like you said will go 16-0. >> no, no, no, no. >> close, close. you said they'd win the super bowl, famptse. >> no, i didn't. i actually didn't. check the papers. when they went 16-0, i said they would win it all, and i was wrong. i said they would be contenders again with a bunch of other teams. there's something not quite right so far with tom brady. he's thrown about 100 passes in two games, and their offense just isn't there at all. >> 100 passes. too much expected. where is the running game? >> they don't have one. but when they were at 16-0, they didn't have a running game either. but when you consider sanchez and rex ryan, rookie-rookie, this is beginning to look like atlanta. this is beginning to look like baltimore. >> they have a defense that can harass you and was a blueprint for how to attack. >> i know, you love everybody named ryan. jay cutler would appear to be redeemed today.

he went from a loss to a win. he went from four interceptions to zero interceptions. he had a 105 passer rating and he beat the steelers. does all this get jay cutler off your hook, wilbon? >> for today. but you know, it changes every week. i'm not going to pretend to be rational when it comes to the team i root for all the time. i'm not going to be rational about the bears. i'm emotional about the bears. but he played very, very, very well, and i thought overcame some of the play-calling he was saddled with. i don't know how good the bears are, but that was a great victory to come off of losing to a division rival, and then come back home and beat the champs. people can say, well, troy polamalu wasn't there, neither was urlacher. so that sort of cancels itself out, even though i think polamalu is one of the best in the league. >> he's a very, very good passer. shanahan saw how good he was and handed him the team at a ridiculously young age. i know he didn't get to the

playoffs, and i understand that part because i think their defense was crippling in denver. on the other hand, you turn around and you say, well, kyle orton is 2-0 in denver. >> good point. >> but this is more like the cutler that they traded for. >> yes, no turnovers yesterday, tone. two touchdown passes made plays when other things broke down. we've talked about the 2-0 jets and giants, but there are a bunch of other teams off to impressive starts. the saints' offense looks unstoppable. the falcons seemed to have picked up where they left off last year. the 49ers have bought into mike singletary, even if tony hasn't, and the ravens might just have recorded the best victory of the season when they went west yesterday and beat san diego. tone, the vikings and broncos, who you pronounced dead, are also 2-0. so which of these teams do you like the best? >> i don't know why you'd even ask me, since there's a referendum on all the stupid things i've said over the last five years.

i'd like to like new orleans, but i'm not crazy about the defense just yet. the two i like the best are the ravens and the vikings. and the difference in the ravens -- ray lewis made a great play, but they're giving up too many yards and tomb points. flacco looks great in his second year. >> he does. >> that's a very, very big win. and i like the vikings because of the running back, because of the offensive line, the defense, and favre's numbers yesterday were spectacular. favre is 22-27. they win the super bowl. >> well, tony, there's no reason not to like -- the vikings seem to have it all. >> yeah. >> now that you have a veteran quarterback who's not frying to do everything, he's handing the ball off to adrian peterson, which is smart. i picked atlanta to go to the n.f.c. championship game. i'm going to stay with them. >> that's fine. >> but baltimore, first of all, if ray lewis is going to play like he's 27 years old and flacco cannot just manage the game but go down the field and make them a diverse offense, that's a lot. >> flacco -- it's fun to watch these teams early.

by the ninth week we'll have different opinions. a funny thing happened to u.n.c. on its way to the national title. u.s.c. lost to an unimposing pac-10 rival. this time it was washington, which had lost 21 games in the last two years. the score was 16-13. it was the biggest shocker of the week. wilbon, how do you explain this yearly phenomenon? >> tony, there are teams in every sport, usually in the pros, not necessarily in college, who get up for big games and big events. and they love the big stage and the big moment. and then, you know, they can't get themselves ready for something mundane, and that's the coach's job, especially in college, where you have these emotional situations. and u.s.c., which has succeeded at almost everything, has failed in this. >> so you put this directly on carroll. >> in college, you have to put it on -- >> 100% on the coach, pete carroll. >> yeah. >> i think part of this is sarkisian was an assistant to carroll.

he brought people with him when he went to washington that understand the system. to me it's almost inexplicable. this team usually competes for the national championship, and to do this so early every year not just once, five straight years in a row, and i don't get it. now i understand why he didn't want sanchez to go to the pros. because if they had sanchez, they win. >> they had experienced quarterbacks and lost games anyway. i don't think that takes him off the hook. you know, we laugh when guys go highs and lows, and we don't get too high or too low. there's truth to that stuff, and u.s.c. seems to get too high when they win those big games. >> let us take a break, when we come back, jaws joins us to discuss a near perfect day. >> and ochocinco's leap went well. golden tate, not so much. >> no, not so much, now that i see it. >> "pardon the interruption," presented by guinness. so celebrate 250 remarkable years.

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>> many more nfl games to get to with our great friend, squas, who's in miami for "monday night football." "monday night football" seems like it would be a fun gig. let me get to the first question. >> south florida, tony, south florida. sunshine, sunglasses. >> look at you. you're going undercover. "c.s.i: miami" with jaws. let's start with fabulous days for two old quarterbacks, jaws. brett favre, 23-27, kurt warner, a record 24-26. who were you more impressed with? >> well, i was impressed with both quarterbacks. but i find it interesting with this first question, because i was with bill parcells at the dolphins' practice on saturday. we were talking about wily old veteran quarterbacks,

and he thought quarterbacks whon they get 35, 36, in that area, they lose anticipation. they're afraid to pull the trigger. i guess he was wrong in talking about kurt warner or brett favre. i think both guys still get it. they understand how to anticipate throws and throw the single-cover receiver. i think they're both playing terrific football. >> we're going to go to a team that may be playing terrific football, denver, 2-0 now after beating the browns. are they just beating bad teams, or are they better than we think? >> well, i think they're getting better. i think you have to look at the schedule, first off and say, yeah, they're beating teemings that we don't consider the quality football teams yet. but it's hard to win in the national football league, no matter who you play. so you've got to give josh mcdaniels some credit. can you believe the way this defense is playing? they're playing awesome defense right now. maybe they weren't successful as a head coach, mike newell, but he can go to defense now. >> wilbon and i talked in the first segment about the jets and the patriots, and

he thought the headline was it's not the demise of the patriots, certainly the leveling out of the patriots at this point. let's look at tom brady. what is missing there? >> you know, first of all, i couldn't disagree with you guys more. after two games we want these decisions on where the team stands. and i think bill bill belichick knows where he wants this team to be the last two games of the season, not the first two games of the season. there's a huge turnover on defense. brady coming off an injury. wes welker out of the game. joey galloway being acclimated in the defense. it's going to take time for the patriots to come together. but i do have an issue with 100 passes from tom brady coming off a very serious knee injury. only 43 runs. i'd like to see more balance in this offense. protect tom brady and let that defense kind of mature a little bit slower. >> but let me narrow in once again just on brady. do you see anything with brady that concerns you? >> nothing, nothing. i was concerned opening night against buffalo when

i thought he was favoring that injured knee. mentally, he's got to get over a very serious knee injury. i think by the end of the season you'll see the patriots' offense humming. there's too much talent there not to. >> i want to ask you about, of all teams, the raiders. they won a game yesterday, but jamarcus russell, the numbers are just so bad consistently. do you think he's ever going to justify his pick in the draft? >> no, i really don't. when i see jamarcus russell, i see a big, strong-armed guy that seems to have a howitzer on his shoulder. but the inconsistency, the inaccuracy, really bothers me. i'm not sure how much time this guy is spending in the off-season, working on mechanics, working on fundamentals, working on his accuracy. when you're throwing the ball and throwing the ball on the ground and missing guys wide open, that concerns me. this game is about consistency, not only having a big strong arm, but reading coverage, throwing the ball accurately, throwing to the single-coverage guy,

throwing the ball away when you have to. he is struggling with all those parts. >> it is so stunning to see you not wearing something with a golf club logo that i'm taken aback. [laughter] i know i can't ask you to pick the game that you're doing, but i'm searching in your clothing to find some tip. what is the tip that we need to see, jaws? >> all right. you know i love south florida and all the beautiful weather year-round. you can play golf all the time. >> so miami, then. >> wait, i was a former dolphin. they paid me for a couple of years. i had a cup of coffee. >> we'll read between the lines on that, and as always, thank you for joining us. >> thank you, jaws, appreciate interest. >> thanks, guys. >> we're taking a break. when we come back, with utah and b.y.u. losing, will wilbon continue to beat his mid-major drum? >> you know i'm going to keep beating the drum. and how good should lane and hthis is nine generations

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>> it's "mail time!," where we let you take control of the show. don't choke, people. >> "mail time!" >> tennessee kept it close against florida, losing 23-13, moral victory for lane kiffin's squad? >> tony, normally i don't believe in that sort of thing. but if you're lane kiffin

and you're still trying to get your players to do exactly what you want them and have control over a program the way college football coaches want, maybe this can work. >> maybe, maybe? both of us thought that urban meyer would take lane kiffin back to the stone age and beat them by 100 points. >> i did. >> and now urban meyer is saying, well, tennessee wasn't trying to win. well, i think this is a huge moral victory in knoxville. lane kiffin ran his yap and lane kiffin and his great dad, monty, held florida down, did they not? >> they did. does this mean something about florida to you? do we look at the other side? >> no, not yet, not yet. >> all right. >> not yet. >> b.y.u. ant utah lost to big schools in weekend. is the b.c.s. dream over for your mid majors this year, wilbon? >> no, shoub, undid you feeted, ranked 17. clemson, another notch in

the bed post. number 15. that's three, quote, unquote, mid majors still vying for it, tone. >> you are beating a dead horse on this. i gave you boise weeks ago. they're not a mid-major, they're a major program, but these two teams, utah and b.y.u., lost to one-loss teams already. b.y.u. got crushed by florida state, which you say is not a good team in a bad conference. >> crushed, got killed. >> right. so i think reasonable people will look at this and they would say boise state is the one, not all these others. >> so t.c.u., do you think they'll beat clemson? they don't get any love from you? >> if they beat themson and clemson, yes, they do. >> golden tate, celebrating a score by leaping into the michigan state band. fair or foul? >> i mean, it's totally foul. and if you were the michigan state van, you'd do just what they did, which is let him belly flop like he's in a poofment by the way, tony, michigan state choked on this like you cannot believe.

they had this game won multiple times, twice in the last possession. notre dame ought to be 1-2. they won the game, but michigan state, oh -- >> what is this kid thinking? he leaps up. you know they're not going to catch him. he ends up eating dirt. michigan state's band does exactly the right thing. >> of course. >> exactly the right thing. get out of the way. you're on your own, kid. >> by the way, golden state is pretty darned good. >> very good name. >> ochocinco nade good on his pledge to do the lambeau leap. grade his effort. >> i don't particularly like this, but ochocinco, chad johnson, does have a flair. he found some bengals people and some packer people, too. i give him an a for being smart enough not to go into the dead end zone. >> i'll tell you something. he is lucky they didn't drag him upwards and pummel him. this is like twen terrell

owens went out to the star before he was a cowboy. >> they're not going to do that in green bay. >> who's the world's foremost authority on leaping? who decided that we would make the case? >> because i had some hops. >> you did. >> it's been 25 years. maybe more. >> try 45. time for a break. but on the way, the cubs shut down problem child milton bradley for the season. >> now? it's almost october. and the 49ers accused the jets of tampering with michael crabtree. >> the guy o'on my fantasy team. i'm getting killed. cordless multi-tool.

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>> "pardon the interruption," presented by guinness. celebrate arthur guinness day on september 24. >> let's get happy. happy 69th birthday, bill kurtis! who says there are no second acts in america? bill kurtis, having disappeared as a newscaster, has reinvented himself as that dope who finds the internet and uses it to challenge sports figures, like andy roddick, michael phelps and floyd mayweather. it's a good gimmick, isn't it, wilbon? >> it is, tony. if bill kurtis was the anchor on the cbs affiliate in chicago when i was growing up. watched him every night. >> happy anniversary, miami dolphins! on this day last year, you beat the patriots behind

ronnie brown's five touchdowns -- four rushing and one passing. this was the coming-out party for the wildcat offense. that led to almost every team in the league putting in some version of a wildcat offense last year. >> if too many people have the wildcat, can it be effective if defenses can practice it all week? >> yes, it can be effective if you have the right people running it. happy trails, milton bradley! bradley was suspended by the cubs for the rest of the season after publicly criticizing the team and its fans. bradley's career is strewn with troublesome behavioral incidents. in some ways, though, he's not as good a player as terrell owens. he's the t.o. of baseball. >> i like with jim hendry has done with the cubs over the last few years. it's been very good as a g.m. but to let mark derosa go, in effect to have the cancerous milton bradley come in is a disaster for the cubs from go. >> and it was a disaster this year. time to find out what we messed up, reali? >> you guys were so good, i wrote nothing down. cecil cooper fired as manager of the astros. >> all right.

running out of time. old school big finish! the 49ers accused the jets of tampering with michael crabtree. your thoughts? >> just trade him for a number one pick if you're not going to sign him anyway. floyd mayweather scored a unanimous decision over juan manuel marquez. i guess drinking his own urine didn't work for marquez. >> works for me. that's how i got this show and radio back. greg paulus and syracuse beat northwestern. nice job by your boys. >> we had them on the last drive. the quarterback had a great game except for the last interessential. the twins took two of three from the tigers. was it enough? >> no, but they get four more games with the tigers at detroit next week. last one. herschel walker has signed a contract to become an m.m.a. fighter. good idea? >> world class athlete, tony. but doesn't have a mean bone in his body. i don't like this. >> we're out of time. we'll try to do better the next time. i'm tony kornheiser. >> and i'm michael wilbon. same time tomorrow, you [captioning made possible by espn, inc.] >> golic, put the food