Is there any doubt that this year’s Celtics squad can’t win it all? The last two games have arguably been the best back-to-back games since the ‘Big Three’ roamed the fabled parquet. Seriously, one blogger termed it the ‘best 30 hours in the last two decades’ and why not?

Two games… Make that… two BIG games and two resounding wins! After the last 72 hours does anyone NOT have the C’s atop their NBA power rankings? We’re not talking beating up the Sonics and Grizzlies here- we’re talking about the defending World Champion Spurs and the mighty Houston Rockets on back-to-back nights and on the road no less! There was a time in my life when I don’t think the Celts ever beat the Spurs. I mean, I think the streak lasted a decade or something. Tim Duncan had never even felt threatened by us, and now we’ve won three straight against the Riverwalk Ballers. Who knew?

Monday’s twenty-two point come from behind win was the first this season for the Celts facing a deficit of 20 points or higher… and we did it against the Spurs… and on the freakin’ road! As Matt Damon said in ‘Good Will Hunting’- “How do you like them apples?” Then, on the following night in Houston…

I’m bored. Either give me the NBA playoffs or bring on opening day… Seriously, if I have to spend another Saturday and Sunday afternoon choosing between college hoops and golf- I don’t know what I’ll do. You can only do so much work around the house in the winter. Trust me, the college hoops scene blows when your alma mater is 4-11 in conference play which is good for 13th in the standings and won’t even make the Big East tourney. As a result, here’s some of what’s been floating through an angry sports mind as I still try to shake the Tyree hangover…

So Kevin Faulk likes to chill the old fashioned way… Does anyone really care? The bigger question is why was he at a Lil’ Wayne show? Didn’t he have some crony who could do the dirty work for him? Oh wait- this just in- Faulk grabbed someone else’s jacket! The drugs weren’t his… Where’s Ty Law’s cousin? I love the jacket excuse. Did Faulk just see the old episode of ‘The Brady Bunch’ when Greg accidentally grabs someone else’s jacket and gets busted for having a pack of butts. Unreal! Or maybe he watched, ‘Meet The Parents’ last night and saw how Greg Focker accidentally grabbed the jacket with the pipe… Totally classic! Regardless, he’s next year’s Rodney and will now miss the first four games of the year. I don’t think we’ll even notice him being gone. Typically, the September weather in Foxboro is ideal for passing and Tom will being doing just that as he and Randy begin to hook up for another record-breaking season.

Manny Ramirez.

The man…
The myth…
The legend…

Just the name alone, makes me smile… I don’t know why, but it just does. The perennial All-Star showed up at camp this week and he actually did so on time. It marked the first time since 2005 that the quirky left fielder reported by the scheduled reporting date. As it seems virtually every year, the much debated status of Ramirez’s contract should be an on-going theme now until the completion of the Sox 2008 season. Unless of the course, the Sox decide to go-ahead and pick up the 35-year old’s option before the season ends. However, that situation remains about as unlikely as Mike Huckabee winning the Republican nomination. All indications point towards the club waiting until the final pitch of the Sox season is thrown before a decision is made.

Not everyone is going to want to read this but personally it’s an article I had to type. It’s almost like seeing a psychologist- it’s basically therapy for me. If I have any chance of jumping back into the C’s and Sox anytime soon- I’ll need to cleanse myself and a get the following off my Irish chest…

In this very space, I penned the following last year on January 23^rd:

“All in all, it was a great year. This team, in my opinion, overachieved and overcame a ton of adversity, especially the defense. Hey Rodney, if you’re listening- we’d love to have you back for another season. Hopefully, in the off-season, we can get Brady some more weapons and truthfully, I don’t see why we can’t be right back here next year. Our foundation of core players is that strong. Indy deserved it. Peyton deserved it. I’m not sure about that roughing the passer call, but as Berman would say, “Hats off to Peyton Manning and the Colts!” I wasn’t one of those people who could hit the hotel bar after the loss. Not me, I needed some alone time back in the room in front of the tube to fully debrief. I needed a controlled environment in which I could guarantee silence and be assured that I wouldn’t cross paths with any more Colts fans. Seeing Brady speak after the game was devastating. I mean he just looked so lost and hurt. He looked completely spent and just mentally and physically drained. I must say the fans were gracious for the most part even after the win as we dodged trouble left and right trying to find a cab back to the hotel. I can’t say that about some of the other places I’ve been to see big games and wound up being on the losing end.”

As I was waiting for my connecting flight to board in Atlanta on Saturday morning en route to Tucson, I heard a Giant fan cackle at the sight of me carrying one of my replica Vince Lombardi trophies. “That’s a bit presumptuous, wouldn’t you say?” he said in front of the boarding crowd.

“Not really,’ I responded. “Look at the trophy,” I shot back. “It doesn’t have a final score etched on it quite yet. That’s what this sharpie is for.” I pulled a black sharpie from the front pocket of my jeans. “When the game is over, I’m gonna take the sharpie out like this (mimicking my post-game move) and inscribe this thing accordingly. It will probably read something like 42-17 the next time you see it.”

Most of the crowd laughed but one gentleman in the back, wearing an NFC Champs t-shirt yelled, “Whoever gets the ball last will win!” To which I responded, “Yeah and then you woke up from your dream and your pants were wet!”

Little did I know the guy was right- he was dead-on!

I couldn’t resist. I just couldn’t.

The Thursday before the Chargers game, I booked my ticket. After hitting Houston and then Jacksonville for the Pats’ past two triumphs, I couldn’t help myself. I had to find a way to get to Arizona. Rather than waiting for the boys to seal the deal after the final bell of the AFC Championship sounded- I followed protocol just like I did for the last two Patriot Bowls and I booked my flight early. For three hundred and forty bucks I’m leaving at the crack of dawn on Saturday morning and coming home Monday night around midnight. You can’t beat the price and to top it off, I’ll be back in the bay state in time for the victory parade on Tuesday.

How was I to pass on this opportunity? Let’s be honest, the Pats have one game left to do the impossible and go 19-0. They have one game left to prove that they are the best team to EVER step foot on a football field. Seasons like this come along once in a lifetime.

Here’s a bulletin board of quotes for the Pats and our fans to use as motivation this week against the Chargers:

“I think the Patriots actually live by the saying, ‘If you’re not cheatin, you’re not trying,’… I mean, I think that’s the way … they live off that statement. You keep hearing the different stories of people complaining about stuff that they do. So I’m not surprised.”

- Ladainian Tomlinson

“I would never, ever react in that way… You guys know me, I’m a very classy person. I wouldn’t have reacted like that, so yes, I was upset. Very upset. When you go to the middle of our field and you start doing the dance that Shawne Merriman is known for, that’s disrespectful to me and I can’t sit there and watch that. And so yeah, I was very upset. And just the fact the way they showed no class at all, absolutely no class, and maybe it comes from the head coach. There you have it.”

- Ladainian Tomlinson

So here we are… AFC Championship weekend is upon us, and the Pats are still alive for a chance to make their fourth Super Bowl in the last seven years. Last year at this time, I was gearing up for my trip to Indy where I thought the Pats would roll on their way to the big game in Miami. I’m not gonna lie. A part of me was really disappointed when the Chargers upset the Colts this past weekend.

I wanted the Colts bad.
I wanted revenge, and I wanted it on our turf and on our terms.

Beating the horseshoes once wasn’t good enough for me, I wanted to do it twice in a season and on the biggest stage the AFC has to offer. I wanted those fans to fully realize that last season was a fluke. PERIOD!

Am I still bitter? A little bit.
Am I still scarred? You betcha!

For a number of weeks now, all we’ve heard about is how tough and physical the Jacksonville Jaguars are. All we’ve heard about is what a force they are to be reckoned with come playoff time. I’ve had people at work, friends, and even fellow tailgaters warn me about their hard-nosed, smash-mouth style of play. I just don’t get it. I really don’t.

Maybe all of these people are being cautious… Maybe they’re taking the Belichick school of thought and simply treating our opponent with only the highest level of respect… But I’m just not buying it.

I remember hearing the same line of crap coming into our playoff game against Jags in 2005. I also remember the pre-game hype leading up to our late December meeting in Jacksonville last year. In both instances, the Pats won out and without much of a struggle. In 2005, Byron Leftwich was coming off his best year as a quarterback and the Jacksonville defensive line was lauded as one of the strongest and biggest in the game. The Jags were 12-4 that year and the result was a dominating 28-3 win by the Pats. In last year’s contest, the Jags needed a win to keep their playoff hopes alive and all the Pats did was escape with a 24-21 win at AllTel Stadium. Brady carved the secondary apart completing 28 of 39 passes on his way to throwing for 249 yards. Let me remind you that OUR passing attack didn’t have the likes of Randy Moss, Wes Welker, or Donte Stallworth for that matter, yet Brady still completed passes to eleven different receivers. The leading receiver that day was none other than rookie tight end Dave Thomas. Who? Some of you may ask… To which I respond, “Exactly!”

So if you are sitting there on the couch and wondering why 2007 was such a stellar year in Boston sports, hold on a second, I’ll remind you…
It’s…