***PetrinoInAlbany***

K-9 ... I wish I knew how to post photos in here so I could show you my nephew / Godchild. But I'm too much of a techno-spaz. (If the phrase 'Techno-Spaz' ever gets used commonly, I demand copyrights!) Nice to hear from oe of the old-time Wallers, and I hope life is treating you well!

K-9, thanks for smacking this one down. You beat me to it.

About the ONLY positive thing I can find to say about the Maybin situation is this: Defensive players get up to speed much faster than offensive players. If the kid was an offensive tackle and held out this long, I'd forbid him setting foot on the field until week six ...

Hey, question for anyone who may see this and know the answer ... I gave the Bears tickets away to a friend of mine whose nephew plays for Chicago. Also, I recently got high-speed internet. Any on-line options available to view or listen if you're 400 miles from B-Lo? (I'm not a techno-freak, and I attend almost every home game, so believe it or not I have no idea. Help!)

Oh great, another hall monitor. (*sigh*)

I wouldn't support the NFL any more. It would be my protest against the idea of "franchise free agency." The phenomenon of franchise free agency killed the NHL, and will cost the NFL one more paying fan if the Bills move. A meaningless protest in the scheme of things, I know, but you did ask.

Hung dogs from trees ... Electrocuted dogs to death with jumper cables ... Held dogs underwater until they slowly drowned to death ... Threw a family dog into a fighting pit and laughed while fighting pit bulls killed it slowly by tearing it to shreds while it was still alive and feeling every tear of the flesh ... Read the goddamned indictment, it'll ease some of your confusion. Personally, as a Bills fan I'm glad we don't have the Eagles on the schedule, because now I CAN attend every game this year. I have no use for the scumbag. Never will. Stuff your "remorse" ... it's value can be measured in the fact that it didn't surface until he got caught.

I have to get this on record, but anyone who's spent five minutes with me knows this already ... I don't want him here. I still can't forgive the nature of what he did. I am an animal lover. All three of my cats ae rescues. A crime against a domestic animal is particularly aggregious because they are ... well, DOMESTIC. They are bred to trust us. It's not like shooting a bear or a deer while hunting. You don't say "Here, bear..." and the bear comes running - eyes wide with unconditional trust - to be shot. What Vick did would not allow me to ever pay money to support a team that signs him. Including my beloved Bills. And again, if you know me, you know what it takes to say that... Fan since '68 ... attended 275 games (so far) ... It would take a LOT to get me to boycot. This would qualify.

OK, so I know we had two rooks at guard, and I know there wasn't one guy as a starter playing the same position he played last year. And I know Butler was out. But that Levitre play was a first for me. I've never actually seen an opposing pass rusher pick a guy up and beat our quarterback with him. On the plus side, Wood was conspicuous by his quiet excellence and we didn't hear his name. So that's good. But Collinsworth said it best .... "Their offensive line is NOT ready."

Three years? Isn't that longer than he was with the Bills? AAHHH!

You know, it's funny ... I was watching NFL Classic Games earlier and they showed Green Bay at the 49'ers in the 98 NFC classic ... T.O. dropped four passes in the game, but his team stuck with him, and Young went to him with four seconds left for "The Catch II" and the win ... A sign, perhaps>

I read the story and immediately figured "Lamb is somehow involved."

I miss being able to go to Schwabel's any time you wanted and getting a real beef on weck and knowing that - for what you were eating - that was the center of the universe. - I miss the family home back in Snyder, not to mention Snyder itself. It ruined me for life in that a "yard" isn't really a yard unless you have at least four trees 150 years old or older. If you look up, all you should see is a green canopy ... - Everyone knew how to make wings. In Western New York, it wasn't hit-and-miss trying to find good wings. Plus back home they didn't get all creative and try to serve you double-sesame-Southwestern-chipotle-raspberry wings cuz if they did we'd have stormed the kitchen and cooked our own. - Eddie at the City Bar (but we remember it as Bill's Grill) on Kensington yelling "Foooouurrrr THIIRRRRT-TEE!!!" at precisely 4:30:00 AM ... Often, if the Bills were home the next day, you'd be back in four hours for the game day "breakfast". - Waking up on game days. (*sigh*) In those days, you woke up thinking about partying, not traveling. I miss that!

Try it now! Sorry ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=okhiJjuefPw

The only additional comment I'd offer is that with the birth of Ticket Exchange, people like us (season ticket holders who live a LONG way from the Ralph, 400 miles in my case) can often sell the unused tix at a profit. Due to family commitments back in 2007, I was only able to make three home games. But as a rsult of being able to use Ticket Exchange (with the team's blessing and very little hassle or charge) I sold the unused tix for typically 1.5 - to - 2.5 times what I paid. Even after giving away the pre-season tix (I do every year) I still wound up attending three home games INCLUDING the Monday-Nighter against the Cowboys for a total cost of like $18 ... Last year, again, I did attend the MNF game against the Brownies, and a total of four games, and my season tix were virtually free. If people are cancelling their seasons due to disgust with the product, that's one thing, and I can respect that. But if anyone reading this is thinking about dropping their seasons because of geography & distance, my advice is don't. On the internet, the world is only as big as your keyboard ...

The team statement angered me, because it featured a now-standard statement that always pi$$es me off. It featured the following, now standard statement: - " (INSERT @SSHOLE ATHLETE'S NAME HERE) has accepted responsibility for his actions..." - Oh, really? Does anyone understand that "accepting responsibility" is NOT a synonym for"got caught"? Idiot Micheal Vick's lawyer really made me mad when he said it, AFTER Vick tried to throw up every disclaimer imaginable. "Um, OK, I'll admit that I might have been somewhere else in the same state when the dogs were being killed ... but I was most definitely NOT involved." But he "accepted responsibility," according to his lawyer. Yeah, after eyewitnesses placed him at the scene and involved in the acts. - In Marshawn's case, to "accept responsibility" could involve, oh, I dunno ... maybe showing up for the damn hearing? Maybe making a statement about the weed, and asking for drug counselling? Maybe even not sitting in an unregistered car smoking weed with a loaded gun in the trunk in the first damn place. - Anyhow, to answer the original question posted in this thread ... Will he stay out of trouble for three years? HIGHLY unlikely. I quit smoking grass myself last year. But I can tell you one thing ... I remember the situations it sometimes put me in. If you hang out in unplated vehicles, smoke weed in public, stash a loaded sidearm in the trunk while doing so, and (in ML's case) possess the intelligence of a styrofoam cup, there's - shall we say - at least a CHANCE it won't turn out well. - Oh, and don't kid yourselves for a second that the Commish will say, "See? He beat the gun rap, AND they didn't even CHARGE him for the weed! No harm, no foul..." Trust me on that one.

I think LvBills nailed it. The Saints would be the most likely choice. Katrina only delayed the inevitable.

I disagree. I've read the New York State gun laws beginning-to-end, and re-read them again today when this broke just to make sure. They don't say word one about exclusions for the wealthy. I'm sure it's the same in Cali. The firearm laws apply to everyone.

Yeah, but if it is him (and I'm 99% sure it is...) then I DO blame him. Why? Simple... You don't get arrested for LAWFULLY carrying/posessing/discharging/concealing/displaying a firearm. If you own one, you're responsible for knowing & following the rules. That simple. Do I hope it's all a misunderstanding, hell yes. But sadly I consider that unlikely. (*sigh*) - Next question: Can Freddie Jackson be a 1500-yard back? I say 'yas...

Since H20 mentioned Florio (in the post below about the combine) I just wanted to point out that Florio is on this story. I just came from his site (Pro Football Talk) and an LA reader sent him the link and he's checking his sources as we speak. So someone's digging, and I'll post the link when he updates/confirms/squelches it...

Only 49?!? Wasn't Vinnie like 54 the last time he played for the Jets? You don't suppose ... ?

I would bet right now that, trades non withstanding, they take Maybin or Pettigrew. DE or TE. MY choice would be the TE, but the last time they listened to me was in '69 with the bow-legged, flat-footed HB from USC. After that, I've been wrong every year since 1970. But, hey, tell me YOU saw Bucky Brooks coming ...

I dunno, I think it may be real. Consider this: A pro football player could 1) expect some 'professional courtesy' as far as discretion, and 2) quietly post a 35G bail bond, in cash...

Hey, Ramius ... I love the "some white FB" you've got at Round 4. Classic!