With Madden 2009 coming out in less than a week, it’s hard for me to focus on work, my social life, or really anything at the moment. Truth be told, I’m just counting down to that day, because it’s the new Christmas in my book, and has been for years now.

This year the cover is graced by Brett Favre, who was thought to be retired (EA was the only silly idiots to fall for this ploy), so there couldn’t be much of a “Madden Curse,” unless it involved a serious injury doing yard work or maybe a head-on car collision.

Just today, though, I thought to myself: If Madden comes back, and it looks like he’s going to, could the out-of-retire legend be one of the many to suffer the Madden Curse?

If he goes to Tampa Bay, as it looks like he will, my guess is yes. I feel the team was pretty lucky to get to the playoffs last year, and it wasn’t so much a statement of their greatness as it was an echoing resoundment of how bad the NFC South was.

My question: Is getting Brett Favre, someone who’s notorious for drive ending interceptions, really the answer to the Bucs question? Jeff Garcia wasn’t bad, and is getting someone who’s had one good year in the last four really going to solve all their problems?

Word to Brett, who often griped at Green Bay because of their talent: The Bucs don’t have much on offense. They’ve got a running back who will never be full strength again, a wide receiver that’s a hundred, and an offensive line that, quite frankly, has stunk over the last three years.

Tampa Bay, enjoy the pill you may be acquiring. You’ll be dealing with it for a while, even if you do think he’s going to retire.

It’s the early odds on team’s chances to make the Super Bowl. What are your team’s chances? Just look below. My team, the Falcons, well, they’re pretty much as long a shot as there is, and at 100-1, I think that’s kind of unfair (this one should be somewhere in the thousands or millions). Pats at 7-2? Chargers at 7-1? I like that action. . .

Arizona Cardinals 50 - 1
Atlanta Falcons 100 - 1
Baltimore Ravens 75 - 1
Buffalo Bills 50 - 1
Carolina Panthers 40 - 1
Chicago Bears 35 - 1
Cincinnati Bengals 60 - 1
Cleveland Browns 25 - 1
Dallas Cowboys 6 - 1
Denver Broncos 50 - 1
Detroit Lions 80 - 1
Green Bay Packers 25 - 1
Houston Texans 60 - 1
Indianapolis Colts 7 - 1
Jacksonville Jaguars 12 - 1
Kansas City Chiefs 100 - 1
Miami Dolphins 100 - 1
Minnesota Vikings 18 - 1
New England Patriots 7 - 2
New Orleans Saints 25 - 1
New York Giants 15 - 1
New York Jets 35 - 1
Oakland Raiders 50 - 1
Philadelphia Eagles 20 - 1
Pittsburgh Steelers 15 - 1
Saint Louis Rams 75 - 1
San Diego Chargers 7 - 1
San Francisco 49ers 80 - 1
Seattle Seahawks 25 - 1
Tampa Bay Buccanneers 40 - 1
Tennessee Titans 40 - 1
Washington Redskins 50 - 1

There’s never enough Madden 09 previews, and with that said, I present you with yet another. As long as these things keep popping out, I’m going ot keep showing them.

I posted the original trailer, but this one seems to be the actual gameplay, which is so much more revealing than the closeups that come out at first. Enjoy.

Here’s a look at Madden 09, which features Brett Favre on the cover, which is probably bad for Brett. Before, Madden only ruined a person’s statistics. Now, it’s gonna mess up sonmeone’s fishing trip on a nice Saturday.

The day after the draft, and it’s time to see who the winners and losers are. I’m not one who believes you can pick winners and losers the day later — I think it takes two years, not three, like most of the experts say to see who really won — but with that said, I will say this: Tennessee, m’friends, you were losers. They drafted Chris Johnson in the first round, a halfback who’s fast, and that’s about it. In the fourth round, they drafted William Hayes, who wasn’t a player expected to be picked in the full seven rounds.

Aw, such is life; we’ll know more of who won and who lost when the season starts, but for now I cling to the hope that Matt Ryan’s a combination of Michael Vick (without the animal abuse, of course), Brett Favre (without the interceptions, of course), Tom Brady (without being a dick, of course), Dan Marino (without the anger, of course), and Peyton Manning (without being a, you know, a Manning, of course).

It’s hard waiting for the football season, given that it’s baseball and that’s it for quite a while, but the NFL does do whatever the NFL can do to try and pass time. They have a combine, they have a draft and, as little as it may seem, they’ve got the releasing of the NFL schedules (not to mention fantasy drafts, which are always nice). The schedules were released today, and while I won’t go through each game, I will go through some games that are sure to be some fun to watch this year.

Sept. 4
Washington Redskins @ New York Giants
-Super Bowl Champs have a history of sliding off the year after. We’ll get a good idea in week one how New York will handle the pressure of being a Champ.

Sept. 7
Kansas City @ New England
-Wonder what the spread will be for week 1? Remeber: Last year, for the first eight weeks, the Pats covered every Sunday. Vegas finally adjusted and they wore down. Like I said last year, I’ll say it for this year: Pound that ATM until they fail you. Pound it.

Sept. 14
San Diego @ Denver
-Remember Philip Rivers, Jay?

Sept. 21
Jacksonville @ Indianapolis
-The Colts will win, they always do against the Jags, but these matchups are always close.

Sept. 28
Cleveland @ Cincinnati
-Let’s see if one of these defenses can hold the other to under 40 points.

Sept. 29
Baltimore @ Pittsburgh
-It’s a fun rivalry, and based on the other MNF games leading up, it’ll be the best of the first five.

Oct. 5
Pittsburgh @ Jacksonville
-Last year, Pittsburgh was thought to be one of the best in the AFC, and then Jacksonville steamrolled them at home, then did it again in the playoffs. The Steelers should have a sour taste in their mouths, and will hopefully have some kind of plan to stop that Jaguars running game.

Oct. 12
New England @ San Diego
-Let’s hope a Super Bowl berth isn’t on the line and LT doesn’t have a stubbed toe. Let’s also hope Tom Brady throws to Wes Welker more than he does Antonio Cromartie, who terrorized him in the AFC Championship.

Oct. 19
Tennessee @ Kansas City
-Around this time, you’ll hear fans saying V-Young should be benched. Mark my words.

Oct. 26
Cleveland @ Jacksonville
-A strong defense and strong running game vs. no defense but one ridiculous passing game. Makes for a fun matchup.

Nov. 2
New England @ Indianapolis
-May want to mark this one on the calendar. ESPN is licking their chops for this Sunday Night game.

Nov. 8
New Orleans @ Atlanta
-Just kidding.

Nov. 16
Philadelphia @ Cincinnati
-Two good offenses, though one has to wonder just how good the Bengals offense will be without Ocho-Cinco. Guy’s a douche, I get that, but he’s a douche that’s really good at catching and then running.

Nov. 23
Indianapolis @ San Diego
-Peyton plays his worst games against the Chargers. Every time I say it’s a fluke. I’m starting to just think they know what they’re doing against the guy. He won’t have six interceptions in this one, but I don’t see him winning.

Nov. 30
Indianapolis @ Cleveland
-Two good offenses. Who doesn’t want to watch that?

Dec. 8
Carolina @ Tampa Bay
-It’s one of the few MNF games that I think will have playoff implications. I said it last year, and I was wrong, but I think the Panthers do win the NFC South, and NFC overall, this year.

Dec. 15
Cleveland @ Philadelphia
-If you haven’t noticed, I’m looking forward to seeing Cleveland this year. They’re young, they’re fast, and they don’t play defense. It’s everything I love in watching a game in which I bet the over.

Dec. 22
Green Bay @ Chicago
-Eh, it’s a rivalry. But I don’t see either team being over .500 at this point.

Dec. 28
Cleveland @ Pittsburgh
-Let’s hope the Browns are good, or else half the games I’ve said to watch will be no fun to watch.

When Keyshawn retired, I figured he’d be back. He was still young, slighly good, and he’s Keyshawn: If you asked him right now who the best receiver in the NFL was, he’d gladly answer himself.

Well, Keyshawn appears to be making a comeback, or at least getting any shape for any buyers that may be dumb enough to shell money out for a guy that wasn’t great 10 years ago, and certainly isn’t great now.

Keyshawn Johnson, who spent the 2007 season as a studio analyst with ESPN after being released by the Carolina Panthers, apparently is feeling the urge to demand the ball again.

Johnson, who has been working out regularly, is contemplating resuming his playing career, according to reports in Yahoo! Sports and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He is a three-time Pro Bowl pick with 10,571 career receiving yards, and in his last season with the Panthers caught 70 passes for 815 yards and four touchdowns. He might decide before the end of the month, when the free agency period opens.

As much as I think he’ll bust where he goes, it’s hard to disagree with him. Who really wants to be the guy that talked up Dwayne Jarrett, told the world how you would mold him into a pro, “>and then get cut because of him.

Like I said, I’ve had some to drink. I had a big interview for a big position, and the result was no results but a lot of drinking. That said, I currently can’t drink. So I’m posting anything I can, wherever I can. The following is from With Leather, and I’d be lying if I said I watched it. But they generally put up funny shit, so I’m following their cue. Apparently someone gets knocked in the balls, which is always funny, unless, of course, you’re the one being knocked in the balls.

With New York and San Diego both winning today, we’ve officially concluded the first round of the NFL playoffs. Eli played a solid game with moderate numbers, but the biggest number to the Giant faithful was zero interceptions thrown. Philip Rivers and the San Diego offense looked rough most of the game, but, thankfully, they were playing the Titans, who have demonstrated all year that they’re not much of an offensive threat themselves.

So, next week’s card will feature Seattle @ Green Bay, New York @ Dallas, Jacksonville @ New England, and San Diego @ Indianapolis.

Some intrigue:

• With Tony Romo spending a week in Mexico with Jessica Simpson, will the quarterback be distracted? He loses this year in the playoffs, he’ll be “that guy” that always chokes in January, whether it be not being able to handle a snap or not being able to focus on football when you’re dating a goddess.
• Mike Holmgren will face Brett Favre, which will make for some cute Sportscenter segments throughout the week. It’ll also be fun listening to Jaws scream about how Green Bay is untouchable at Lambeau. And how Brett Favre is the best quarterback ever. Ever.
• The Chargers forced Peyton into 6 interceptions last time they faced. This could happen again if: They take the dome off in Indy, make it rain, and then have Marvin Harrison, Dallas Clark, and anyone else who has previously caught a ball in the NFL get injured. Throw in a punt return and kick return for a touchdown, and have Adam Vinatiari miss two field goals, one from 29 yards away, and I think the Chargers will win.
• There’s going to be a lot of talk that the Jags are the hottest team in football, and they may be the guys to beat the Pats. Let me make one thing clear about what this weekend told us:

It just set us up for another Pats/Colts game, a game that will decide who’s going to win the Super Bowl. The other teams are just playing to play. At least Tony has Jessica to go home to.