Football and Futbol

I'm watching the second half of U.S./Mexico while contemplating my upcoming keeper draft. There is no sport as alternatingly boring and exciting as soccer. They key to soccer is you know how long the game's going to be. You get 45-minute halfs with no commercial breaks.

The U.S. has never won in Mexico. In fact they scored one goal in 25 years until the first half of this contest. Before I could find a feed online (in Spanish, no less), Mexico had tied the contest. So far from what I've watched, the U.S. seems to be in bunker mentality. They're trying to get out with a tie. Mexico's controlling the ball.

Can you imagine going to a football game with the crowd blowing horns that sound like my nephew playing the recorder (think loud and shrill) for two hours straight? That's just nuts. I don't know how many people are at this game but it's well north of 100K.

My thought on my draft is whether I can get value out of trading down from the two slot. I see about eight guys who are similarly valued, after which I'd have to go for the top wideout. I initially thought of this idea because I could trade down in the first, trade up in the second and get a better wide receiver and the same RB as I would have taken at 1.02.

A Mexico guy trapped the ball in the box, had time to blow dry his hair and still missed the wide open shot. Tim Howard is a beast. I'd like to see a little offensive time for the U.S. besides in a counter attack. When I saw the U.S. make a push in the first half, it seemed like Mexico had 15 players.

All soccer players are like wideouts in our football. They can play off the refs by pretending to get hacked when they were barely touched. It doesn't always work.

Back to the trade concept. I'd trade my high first and low second for a low first and high second, along with switching picks in the fourth round. But, as I look at my values versus the "expert" rankings, I think that my best move would be to hold still. I'll have an easy decision at 1.02 but a tough one at 2.11 and 3.02. The question would be whether I go WR/RB or WR/QB. Philip Rivers is nice but unlikely to duplicate his 2008 high TD total.

When I did a mock draft last night, I did WR/QB. I figured that with my 3.02 pick I could take Carson Palmer or Willie Parker. Palmer seemed like the better value. He seems like a great buy low QB this year. With my fourth round pick I would have gotten Eli Manning (as unexciting as QBs get) or LenDale White. White's not quite a strict goal line back. He can score two touchdowns or have three carries for two yards. He'll either fade out or have a higher role whether due to a Chris Johnson injury or some other unforeseen issue.

One thing I know for sure is to not focus on the guys outside the first five picks. I know who everyone is and will have a decent list. There are going to be up to a dozen waiver wire guys who outperform fifth rounders. With small rosters, you can't afford to pick up a guy who "might" come in later, like a Michael Bush.

Number nine for the U.S. just made a full out dive, missing the ball by an inch. That could have been the game winner. An offside call negated a sure goal. It's tense for sure. I think Mexico needs to win while the U.S. will be OK with a draw. I can't look at the current World Cup standings because I'm watching the game on TiVo.

Ugh. Direct kick for Mexico right outside the box. Twenty minutes to go. I like how two guys stand out so the goalie doesn't know which way the shot's coming. Mexico misses. A U.S. player is injured, and when a Mexico guy stops to say hi, a fight breaks out. I'd say that the crowd goes wild but they can't get any louder.

Tim Howard makes another save. He's wicked good.

I hear Vince Young's willing to take a pay cut in 2010. Anything other than the veteran minimum might be too rich.

Has there been a big fistfight in a soccer game like a baseball brawl? I think it may happen in this one.

And Mexico scores. Dude. I guess it just seems like they have more players. At least we beat them in the World Cup. With less than ten minutes left, it's going to be tough sledding.

Now every player on the team is going to fake an injury for the next ten minutes. This is not cool.

They showed the standings. U.S. is only one point ahead of Mexico. So this game is huge. Still, the team that's winning is on the offensive.

They just can't control the ball. They make a few passes then lose possession. Corner kick time. Three, maybe four minutes to go. Fans are throwing crap at Donovan.

It's over, folks. The U.S. officially can't hold a lead. Lame.