I am Car Gazing for some time now as i plan to sell my 1998 Honda Civic for a new Car and its been a hard to decide on a new Car.I am totally confused on what car to buy. Initially i thought i will go for a beamer-BMW 3 series looked cool and then i calculate the expenses i need to pay to maintain the car: $600 loan + $200 insurance + $200 gas ...oooph...and there goes $1000 of my salary. I then scaled down after my colleagues, well-wishers and also my mental calculator let me decide that lesser loan to pay is the way to go. Considering the possibility that i may sell the car in 3-4 years i had to consider depreciation value. Here were the factors i looked at:
1) Looks
2) Comfort
3) Driving Experience
4) Standard Features
5) Cargo Room[ Especially considering that i may do some road trips]
I am comparing the new Honda Civic 2006 with Subaru Impreza 2.5 L Si, Toyota Scion tC, Acura RSX and Mazda 3 and Scion Tc. So far, my favorite has been the Scion tC.I test drove a Scion TC and I was flabbergasted by its speed at low rpms. It has amazing brakes, great steering control, look and feel and the only drawback being cargo space. Next week will be time for some actual hands on experience comparison.
Sports Update:
NFL Tidbits:
Peyton Manning got over the hump on MNF? Yes he did. I am still not convinced about Indy's defense. How good are they will be known when they face the Cincinniti Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers! I still think they are the best team in the league till proven otherwise.
My Mid Season Awards:
MVP: Peyton Manning/Steve Smith. If i were giving this award, i would give it to Steve Smith but Peyton will win it because voters prefer QBs
Offensive MVP: Steve Smith. You remove him from Carolina and their offense is as good as dirt
Defensive MVP: Dwight Freeney. He has single handedly troubled all quarterbacks and made Indy's defense look menacing.
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Ronnie Brown
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Demarcus Ware
Comeback Player of the Year: Steve Smith. I considered Mark Brunell, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Mike Anderson but SS impact is too significant compared to the others.
Coach of the Year: Mike Shanahan. Check out all the preseason ratings of AFC West. Whether it was ESPN or SI.com or anyone else, nobody thought that Denver will succeed with the Cleveland Castoffs in defensive line. Tom Coughlin was a close second. I think he has done a great job in NYC but if you look at the schedule- Denver beat SD,NE,Philly,Jacksonville,Washington[ All possible playoff teams]
Surprise Team of the Year: Cincinatti Bengals. Giants are close second.
Disappointment of the Year: New England Patriots/ Philadelphia Eagles.
Watch out for next year- T.O will have a new team and contract.
NBA Observations:
Entire League to Mr Stern: Please hand the trophy to the Spurs. Lets all play for academic interest and for showing off our suits.
Regaring Miami Heat: Mr. Riley- why do you think everyone was surprised at the roster makeover?
Surprises: LA teams winning and Nuggets losing:)
Predictions of the year: Lebron finally will make the playoffs and Carmelo Anthony may be an All-Star.
Saturday, November 05, 2005
Wednesday, October 05, 2005
Why Champ is the real Champ!
Last Sunday, Denver Broncos played Jacksonville Jaguars and it was the first game Champ Bailey missed as a starter due to injury. I have followed the footbal circles of Denver Broncos for quite a while and I did not know much about Champ's skills till he came to Denver. Since then I watched the following elite cornerbacks:
Chris McCallister, Ty Law, Patrick Surtain, Dre Bly, Troy Vincent, Nate Clements, Lito Sheppard, Samari Rolle, Dunta Robinson,Gary Baxter, Fred Smoot, Shawn Springs and some more. I have not see Deion Sanders in his prime, hence I will state that this article covers last 2-3 years span only.
I thought when Champ came to Denver and I saw his first game as a Bronco,he was really over-hyped. I kept observing Champ each and every game, constantly comparing him to the other corners. After 2 years of observation I can safely say that Champ Bailey is the true "Champ" of all corners in NFL today.
What makes a great Cornerback( Guy who covers the Wide Receiver):
1) He has to be Physical and Strong
2) Quick feet and Recovery Speed on slight errors in judgement
3) Positioning and Poise
4) Anticipation
5) Ability to tackle/blitz effectively when required
I analyzed and rated each cornerback on the above factors on a scale of 1-10. After my observation, Champ Bailey got a 9, 10, 10, 9, 10 on the 5 factors above and McCallister is the next best at 10,9,9,9,9. I wont divulge details of all other corners unless specifically requested.
Most of you may argue with my analysis, but take a consensus judgement from Wide Receivers, Quarterbacks, Coaches in that order and you will see Champ will be right on top of most of them, if not all.
I am also impressed by Champ's leadership qualities evident in the Jacksonville game encouraging the rookie cornerbacks in the game and also helping them on their technique. My hats off to you Champ Bailey.
Chris McCallister, Ty Law, Patrick Surtain, Dre Bly, Troy Vincent, Nate Clements, Lito Sheppard, Samari Rolle, Dunta Robinson,Gary Baxter, Fred Smoot, Shawn Springs and some more. I have not see Deion Sanders in his prime, hence I will state that this article covers last 2-3 years span only.
I thought when Champ came to Denver and I saw his first game as a Bronco,he was really over-hyped. I kept observing Champ each and every game, constantly comparing him to the other corners. After 2 years of observation I can safely say that Champ Bailey is the true "Champ" of all corners in NFL today.
What makes a great Cornerback( Guy who covers the Wide Receiver):
1) He has to be Physical and Strong
2) Quick feet and Recovery Speed on slight errors in judgement
3) Positioning and Poise
4) Anticipation
5) Ability to tackle/blitz effectively when required
I analyzed and rated each cornerback on the above factors on a scale of 1-10. After my observation, Champ Bailey got a 9, 10, 10, 9, 10 on the 5 factors above and McCallister is the next best at 10,9,9,9,9. I wont divulge details of all other corners unless specifically requested.
Most of you may argue with my analysis, but take a consensus judgement from Wide Receivers, Quarterbacks, Coaches in that order and you will see Champ will be right on top of most of them, if not all.
I am also impressed by Champ's leadership qualities evident in the Jacksonville game encouraging the rookie cornerbacks in the game and also helping them on their technique. My hats off to you Champ Bailey.
Sunday, October 02, 2005
The last few weeks at work and the world of NFL!
It has been the most unforgettable month of my life. This is partly because work has kept me so much occupied that i cancelled my workout schedule i planned to have. We had a delivery date on Friday and it was m first big responsibility. My team lead was out on vacation and it meant more load on me and my other colleagues shoulders and also an opportunity for me to showcase my abilities. I must admit that i did ok and I have lots of room for improvement.
Lesson for life i learned last few weeks:
1) Prioritize- My best pal in Foster City, Ca has been constantly emphasizing me on this. Though i will keep her name anonymous, her words of professional advice echo in my head all the time :)
2) Take every thing one step at a time-however big your goal is, look at the very next step, try to achieve that keeping your goal in perspective and then reevaluate your goal.
3) Promise only what you deliver, and give room to satisfy your promise, expect the worst case scenario and make the best case happen.
With all this advice to myself and others who read this, i feel i am aging too quickly :) However, my love for sports and movies dont ever diminish.
I saw Kill Bill Vol 2 for the 3rd time last week and every time i see a QT movie, i become a more ardent fan of his. His movies have some rare addiction, that sleek style that no other director has that makes his movies worth-buy DVDs. I also saw average comedy flicks like Taxi and Starsky + Hutch. But the movie that made my week was 21 grams. Its a classic. For those who love great movies, add this one to your list.
Regarding my NFL analysis after week 4:
AFC Teams:
Bengals,Colts,Denver,SanDiego,New England(Jacksonville),Pittsburg are going to come out of AFC.
Philadelphia, Falcons, Giants( or Carolina), Seattle, Chicago(or Minnesotta) and Tampa Bay will come out of NFC.
Offensive MVP of the year(so far): Carson Palmer
Defensive MVP of the year(so far and may be all the way): Dwight Freeney[ He is a monster to cover]
Special Teams MVP: Adam Vinateri[or David Akers]
My early impressions of AFC:
AFC West: The Broncos and Chargers will be top contenders. Chiefs lost to Broncos on MNF and Philly at home. I dont think they will win the West. Raiders dont have enough weapons other than Moss/Lamont Jordan.
AFC South:
Colts all the way. Jaguars dont have a reliable run defense or a consistent offense.
AFC East: New England or Miami. I hope the champs enter the playoffs. Lets see if Peyton can answer them now?
AFC North:Its either "Who dey" or Blitzburg. I think "who dey" bengals will make the playoffs this year either winning the division or as wildcarders.
NFC:
Except Eagles, Falcons, Panthers are the best teams. No one else has a legit superbowl chance. Less talk on them the better.
Most dissappointing teams of the season( so far):
1. Packers
2. Ravens
3. Vikings
Surprise-Surprise teams of the season( so far):
1. "Who-dey" Bengals
2. "Cadillac" Bucs
3. Sabphins
4. Browncos[ The Browns coaching staff must be scratching their heads now for letting their D-line go]
Lesson for life i learned last few weeks:
1) Prioritize- My best pal in Foster City, Ca has been constantly emphasizing me on this. Though i will keep her name anonymous, her words of professional advice echo in my head all the time :)
2) Take every thing one step at a time-however big your goal is, look at the very next step, try to achieve that keeping your goal in perspective and then reevaluate your goal.
3) Promise only what you deliver, and give room to satisfy your promise, expect the worst case scenario and make the best case happen.
With all this advice to myself and others who read this, i feel i am aging too quickly :) However, my love for sports and movies dont ever diminish.
I saw Kill Bill Vol 2 for the 3rd time last week and every time i see a QT movie, i become a more ardent fan of his. His movies have some rare addiction, that sleek style that no other director has that makes his movies worth-buy DVDs. I also saw average comedy flicks like Taxi and Starsky + Hutch. But the movie that made my week was 21 grams. Its a classic. For those who love great movies, add this one to your list.
Regarding my NFL analysis after week 4:
AFC Teams:
Bengals,Colts,Denver,SanDiego,New England(Jacksonville),Pittsburg are going to come out of AFC.
Philadelphia, Falcons, Giants( or Carolina), Seattle, Chicago(or Minnesotta) and Tampa Bay will come out of NFC.
Offensive MVP of the year(so far): Carson Palmer
Defensive MVP of the year(so far and may be all the way): Dwight Freeney[ He is a monster to cover]
Special Teams MVP: Adam Vinateri[or David Akers]
My early impressions of AFC:
AFC West: The Broncos and Chargers will be top contenders. Chiefs lost to Broncos on MNF and Philly at home. I dont think they will win the West. Raiders dont have enough weapons other than Moss/Lamont Jordan.
AFC South:
Colts all the way. Jaguars dont have a reliable run defense or a consistent offense.
AFC East: New England or Miami. I hope the champs enter the playoffs. Lets see if Peyton can answer them now?
AFC North:Its either "Who dey" or Blitzburg. I think "who dey" bengals will make the playoffs this year either winning the division or as wildcarders.
NFC:
Except Eagles, Falcons, Panthers are the best teams. No one else has a legit superbowl chance. Less talk on them the better.
Most dissappointing teams of the season( so far):
1. Packers
2. Ravens
3. Vikings
Surprise-Surprise teams of the season( so far):
1. "Who-dey" Bengals
2. "Cadillac" Bucs
3. Sabphins
4. Browncos[ The Browns coaching staff must be scratching their heads now for letting their D-line go]
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