Football follies

AND THE BEST ACTOR OSCAR GOES TO...
Terrell Owens in The Crying Game!  Normally, this behavior would be considered just a bit tacky for "a man of his statue", as T.O.'s former hoochie-mama publicist once called him.  But then again, this headline-grabbing whore will stoop to most anything to keep the spotlight on him, including crying like Nancy Kerrigan.  Just a hunch here, but I bet Donovan McNabb and Jeff Garcia were out shopping for new TVs today after having thrown bricks through their existing ones while watching this load of malarkey.  Perhaps T.O. wouldn't have had to cry if he'd bothered to catch a pass or two in the second half yesterday.

For the record, I didn't buy Hillary Clinton's crocodile tears in New Hampshire last week, either...

BLAME JESSICA
And of course, we all know the real reason the Cowboys lost to the Giants was Tony Romo's girlfriend, two-bit bimbo actress Jessica Simpson, aka "Yoko Romo" to Dallas fans—after all, she practically was in on every snap of the ball yesterday!  Never mind that the Cowboys were outplayed on defense by the G-men.  The fans and the media have been making such a big stink over the little vacation the two them took during Dallas' bye-week—a trip that Romo's coach urged him to take, no less—and it's such a crock.  What, all the other players don't have girlfriends to distract them, too?  I picked the Giants to win, by the way, so there!

MAYBE NOT LIKE PEYTON MANNING'S TEAM, MAYBE
The only blemish on my postseason game prognostications was San Diego's surprise win at Indianapolis yesterday.  I suppose we should blame this on Peyton Manning's girlfriend, huh?  Nice job by the Chargers of hanging in there even after losing QB Phillip Rivers and RB LaDainian Tomlinson to injury and having TE Antonio Gates at about half-speed.  They don't have a hope in hell against New England next weekend, but it was a valiant effort all the same.  This also may well have been Tony Dungy's final game as the Colts' head coach.  Hope he stays—he's a classy guy and a good man—but if not, he's done himself proud.

ADIOS TO ANOTHER DOME
Yesterday was also the final Colts game at the RCA (nee Hoosier) Dome, as they move into their new joint across the street next season.  Not unlike Seattle's Kingdome, the Hoosier Dome will die pretty young at the age of 24 later this year when they tear it down (the Kingdome barely made it to 23).  Still, it's nice to see another dome disappear from the football universe, although their new house will be a part-time domed stadium.  However, I will say that of all the bubble-dome football stadiums I've seen in person (Metrodome, Pontiac Silverdome, Carrier Dome) the Hoosier Dome is probably the most stately-looking on the exterior.

JOHNNY PODRES, 1932-2008
Okay, this isn't football, but former Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Johnny Podres died yesterday.  Highly ironic that he later went on to become the pitching coach of the San Diego Padres in the early '70s.  I always thought his surname was misspelled on baseball cards and that it should've been Johnny 'Padres'.  Oh, dopey me...