Hollywood Donahoe

I think he says "how did Bodden do, guys?" Leigh Bodden picked off the pass on the play where Johnson was hit.

What kind? Calvin pissing on the logo? A photochop of Pennington performing fellatio? I'm not sure what you're after. Sadly, I do not. And I'm not a fan of toilets, I just use them when I have to crap. Jeez.

Seattle's still rocking it.

Additionally, Manning didn't win a conference championship or Super Bowl in the first few games of any of those seasons, and sure enough, he didn't win one at the end of the season either.

Your fancy HDTV probably realized Theismann was in the booth and muted the sound for your protection. If it happens again, think of it as your TV advising you to listen to a radio feed.

One part horrific offensive playcalling (2 runs, pass. 2 runs, pass.). One part flukey occurrence (Cotchery getting laid out and having his knee land on another player). One part pathetic tackling (on the Coles TD).

The Jets aren't 0-2.

ESPN, 11 PM Eastern. Don't forget the earplugs.

Pssssst...look seven posts up.

I can set my watch to you guys. Congrats on the win today.

Glad I could be of service.

No, he didn't.

Me too, actually. I wish I could see the play now, but I had no way to record the game. NFL.com has him going out of bounds at the NE 46. Does that seem an even remote possibility to you from looking at the tape?

I'd say it was mostly better execution by the Pats, and probably a very little bit of hometown calls.

I also appreciate Branch's talents. Value, though, is a combination of both talent and salary. Branch was a great value on his rookie deal. He would've been a good value on the contract offered by the Patriots. The Patriots evidently felt that, if given much more money than they were offering, Branch would become a poor value.

They didn't. The contract includes a poison pill that jacks up and guarantees the salaries if Burleson plays a certain number of games in Minnesota (which he won't as a Seahawk, but he would've as a Viking) so that the Vikings wouldn't match. In reality it's much less (I can't remember the exact numbers, but something about 3 years $14 million sticks in my head).

You're completely missing the point. This trade is the result of a simple cost-benefit analysis. Branch has produced, certainly; and for four years, he was a tremendous bargain playing on a rookie contract. His holdout, however, meant that he wouldn't be willing to produce for the Patriots again until the team signed him to a contract of a value that exceeded Branch's production. Thus, to get Branch back on the field, the team would have to make an unsound financial decision, which is not beneficial. A 1st round draft pick, conversely, is likely to match or exceed Branch's relative production (at least the player taken should, given Belichick and Pioli's track record in that round), and will be producing under a highly economical 5-year contract. The move is a sound one from a long-term perspective. Obviously, the Patriots could've caved to get Branch on the field this year, but the negative consequences would eventually far outweigh the positive - Branch would be receiving more money than his production warrants, there would be less money for other players, and a precedent would be set that any contract can be altered before it expires.

False. The Patriots declined only one penalty that was called on Buffalo. You can count them yourself here.

Your numbers are off. The Patriots had one fewer penalty than you say, and the Bills had SEVEN fewer. http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/teamstats/NFL_20060910_BUF@NE

No. McGahee lunged past the marker, but only after his knee was down.

I'll say it was. I was planning my "you guys were the better team" post.

Hey, how'd the refs miss this? To all those kvetching about the officiating, do you feel that the Bills first 7 points were a gift from the refs? Obviously, the fumble recovery should've been negated, and the Patriots should've been moved up 5 or 15 yards.

Nah. Pats vs. Bills. I didn't much care for it. Was I supposed to?