NFL Picks Week 8

Left it to the last minute again so I'll just be posting picks...

(Picks in bold)

TB at MIN
MIA at NYJ
SD at CLE
IND at TEN
NE at STL
JAC at GB
ATL at PHI
WAS at PIT
SEA at DET
CAR at CHI
OAK at KC
NJG at DAL
NO at DEN
SF at ARI

NFL Picks Week VII

Rushing today...
Will put up scores etc and some more analysis later...

Picks in bold

SEA at SF
ARI at MIN
DAL at CAR
NO at TB
GB at STL
WAS at NYG
BAL at HOU
TEN at BUF
CLE at IND
NYJ at NE
JAC at OAK
PIT at CIN
DET at CHI

Looper

Instead of reviewing Looper, I'd much rather like to write, at length, about the various issues surrounding the portrayal of time travel in the movie. Looper doesn't necessarily add anything new to the time-travel genre, but it does make for an engaging experience. Looper doesn't end up being anything like the movie you'd think it would be based on the trailers, and is a better film because of this. Both Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis portray deep, engaging characters, with Bruce Willis playing a much more complex character than his younger counterpart. The setting for the film was awesome, with the films events taking place across a decaying city and the rural setting that surrounds the city. I don't really want to discuss the time-travelling elements of the film, but it's fair to say that not much about it is that new. The time-travelling in the film is something like an upside-down version of Terminator with  interweaving timelines.

I think the film was really well done, but perhaps could have been a bit more polished. Time-travel is an enormously complex topic, and is well fleshed-out in Looper. Some blogs seem to be talking about multiple paradox's in the movie, but I think these paradox's only exist if you are making assumptions about what is happening or will happen from the moment you start watching. Watch the movie with an open mind, otherwise you will end up having been disapointed.

Rating: 8/10

NFL Picks: Week VI

It really is getting easier to pick games now that it's becoming clearer wear teams stand. Teams like Green Bay, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are still really hard to place. The match up between the NFC North and AFC South this season has been thoroughly confusing, with the only two certainties to have come out of the match up is that Detroit will come last in the NFC North and Houston will come first in the AFC South. Last week I did well with my tips, getting eleven of the fourteen games correct.

Here are my picks for this week (picks in bold):

PIT at TEN
KC at TB
IND at NYJ
CIN at CLE
DET at PHI
OAK at ATL
STL at MIA
DAL at BAL
BUF at ARI
NE at SEA
NYG at SF
MIN at WAS
GB at HOU
DEN at SD

I've only tipped two away teams to get a win. Don't know what to make of Minnesota as three of their four wins came against the Jaguars, Titans and Lions. Their one loss came against the Colts, and their other win was away against San Francisco. This game will go along way in understanding how their season will shape up.

I hope I'm wrong about Green Bay, but their is no way you could tip against either the Falcons or Texans right now, especially when they're playing at home.

Results last round: 11-3
Results so far (since round two): 38-23

NFL Picks: Week Five

It's starting to become easier to determine who to pick, with the confusion of the first three weeks flowing into a more predictable week four. Philadelphia, San Francisco and Atlanta all look like near certainties to find their way into the NFC playoffs. Yet again, the NFC North looks congested with Minnesota and Chicago both being 3-1 from the first four games, but both don't yet look like favourites to take out the division, let alone make the playoffs. Minnesota look the better of the two, having beaten San Francisco and Detroit so far, but a loss against the Colts raises a few questions. Chicago have looked impressive in their wins against the Rams and Dallas, but looked pathetic against Green Bay. Green Bay are still the biggest unknown in the division. They have incurred losses at the hands of NFC West teams (Seattle and San Francisco), but got wins against Chicago and an improved New Orleans. Green Bay have the toughest schedule in the division, but should still take out the division, being only one game behind the Vikings and Bears.

Here are my picks for this week (picks in bold):

ARI at STL
PHI at PIT
GB at IND
CLE at NYG
ATL at WAS
MIA at CIN
BAL at KC
SEA at CAR
CHI at JAC
DEN at NE
BUF at SF
TEN at MIN
SD at NO
HOU at NYJ

Results last round: 11-4
Results so far (since round two): 27-20

AFL Free Agency: Look to the NBA for renewal

The current AFL Free Agent system is truly remarkable. Remarkable in how outdated and complex it is compared to sports around the World. Today has seen a couple of shifts in the player market, with West Coast Eagle veteran Quentin Lynch electing to sign a contract with Collingwood, while Kurt Tippett of the Adelaide Crows has signalled that he will not be signing a contract renewal with the Crows.

To be honest, I barely understand the AFL Free Agency system. I always think that the NBA Free Agency system works the best of all sports, especially when mixed with the flexible salary cap that provides an incentive for resigning players. In the NBA, players in their final year of their rookie contract are considered restricted free agents and can be offered contracts by any club. Only the club where the player is currently under contract can exceed the "soft" salary cap in signing the off contract player. If an opposing team makes an offer for the player, the player may sign the "offer sheet" to signal their intention to move to that team. The players original team then has the opportunity to match that offer. Once matched, the player instantly joins the original team and can no longer field offers.

Veteran players, like Quentin Lynch, would likely see more money from the West Coast Eagles (assuming West Coast did want to re-sign him) under the NBA free agency system. In the "NBA" the "Bird Rule" would apply allowing players to resign veterans above the soft salary cap. This system would help teams not only retain their players, but would make these players more easily available to struggling teams who are more likely to have room beneath the soft salary cap. This was the case in the NBA where Miami had enough money in their salary cap to sign both Lebron James and Chris Bosh, while no dominant team like the Lakers or Boston would have had a chance at signing either of these players. In this instance both James and Bosh had a choice with remaining at their original team, who could spend above the "soft" cap in re-signing their star players, or join another team who has to have all the space in the "soft" cap in order to be able to make a competitive contract offer to that player.

A criticism of the NBA Salary cap system is that it makes it too easy to hold onto players and previous NBA results show an uncompetitive competition where only a few franchises can actually win the competition. This is partially true, but the NBA system would be more ideally suited to the AFL where there are significantly larger rosters than the NBA. Teams dominate continually in the NBA because you only need one or two top class players to dominate the competition for years. A mixed salary cap system would be ideal for the AFL, allowing teams to better promote player loyalty, while allowing enough flexibility for signings by struggling teams promoting competitiveness throughout the league.