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Two Minutes for Life

Collusion

col⋅lu⋅sion - noun

1.	a secret agreement, esp. for fraudulent or treacherous purposes; conspiracy: Some of his employees were acting in collusion to rob him.

2.	Law. a secret understanding between two or more persons to gain something illegally, to defraud another of his or her rights, or to appear as adversaries though in agreement: collusion of husband and wife to obtain a divorce.

So Mike Vrabel, a former Buckeye and Pro-Bowl player, and Matt Cassell, a breakout quarterback, for a 2009 second round draft pick.

Something smells funny here.

Listen, I know that shedding cap space is a must with today's academy. The Patriots have Tom Brady, one of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the NFL (coming back from major knee surgery, but still). They have a good linebacking corp, featuring Adalius Thomas and Jerad Mayo. They're dealing from positions of strength to enable themselves to focus their cap space to areas that need attention.

I understand that, I really do. However, you can't help but notice the disparity in that which the Patriots gave up to what they are getting in return.

Let's go back a month and a half ago. Former Patriots assistant general manager, Scott Pioli, left his post in Massachusetts for the head GM position with the Chiefs. He inherited a weak team, with no clear-cut quarterback and a pathetic defense. He also inherited the number three pick overall in the upcoming draft.

In one swift weekend, he changed the complexion of his team. For just a second rounder he solidified his quarterback position, added a valuable veteran defender, and with the number three pick in the draft, will more than likely draft linebacker Aaron Curry of Wake Forest, arguably the best defender in the draft.

NFL analysts see this as a great overall trade for both sides, with the Chiefs bettering themselves with players and the Patriots dropping payroll like mad. I look at this as collusion. This is obviously a case of Pioli and Patriots staff working something out behind the scenes, maybe before he officially left. The trade implications are in no way equal. A second rounder for two valuable players? Not even. This trade will go down as lopsided, for sure, but the Patriots wanted it that way. They are so loaded with excellent players, and with them, large contracts, that it made sense for them to sell the players at a bargain basement price.

I see something significantly wrong with this. It screams that you don't have to be accountable for contracts that you sign with players and that backroom deals, while a fixture in the NFL, have become even shadier. I know they won't, but I don't understand why other teams protest this trade.

For me it's just another reason to prefer college football over NFL.

Oh and another reason to hate Bill Belichick and Tom Brady.

And it begins... : Fantasy Baseball 2009

Any of you that know me know that I love fantasy sports. Every sports season, I draft three or four teams. So with baseball season right around the corner, I am proud to present my first team:

Two Burrells One Cup

Here's the team in draft order:
1. (6) José Reyes
2. (19) Ryan Braun
3. (30) Justin Morneau
4. (43) Brandon Webb
5. (54) Jake Peavy
6. (67) Álex Ríos
7. (78) Brad Lidge (a Phillie drafted purposely for my girlfriend, a Philly native)
8. (91) Ryan Zimmerman
9. (102) Rich Harden
10. (115) Jonathan Broxton
11. (126) Robinson Canó
12. (139) Chris Young
13. (150) Matt Capps
14. (163) Lastings Milledge
15. (174) Chris Young
16. (187) Jorge Posada
17. (198) Jonathan Sánchez
18. (211) Brad Ziegler
19. (222) Casey Blake
20. (235) Jerry Hairston Jr.
21. (246) Chris Ray*

*Strike the last pick, as I dropped Ray for Chris Carpenter, who I am hoping will rebound back from injury.

Obviously, one of my steals was Chris Young with the 174th pick in the 15th round. But, in my humble opinion, the gem of my draft class is Ryan Braun. Getting maybe the best outfielder with the 19th pick overall is a downright steal. He went 6th overall in ESPN's experts mock draft. Downright thievery.

I'm not really set on Posada as my catcher and am trying to swing a trade to acquire another catcher. Maybe a prospect like Weiters (who may start the season in AAA evidently) or Sandoval.

Overall, I'm pretty happy with this team. I'll post additional teams as I draft. Look for plenty of smack talk about my work league when that starts up.