My List and Review of all of the Video Games I have owned

The following are all games I have owned for the following consoles: N64 and Xbox.  I share a quick thought on my experience with the game and give it a rating out of 10 (in parenthesis).  The rating reflects how much I enjoyed the game (with only a slight influence on the quality of the game) over my lifetime of playing it.  I will add more consoles as time goes on, including Xbox 360, Nintendo Wii, PC, Gameboy, and PSP.  Finally, each game that is bolded is a game I feel I beat/completed to its fullest playing ability.  If it was a sports game, then I played a full season with a team in franchise/season mode.  Without further ado, the games from the first console I ever owned, the N64.

N64:

1. Super Mario 64 (10) - One of the launch titles for the N64 and one most consider to be one of the N64's best.  I wasn't able to get all 120 stars until a few years ago, but this game, despite being 17 years old now, is still really fun to play.

2. Pilotwings 64 (6) - I don't think I ever really fully enjoyed Pilot Wings.  There's a lot of monotonous soaring and gliding involved.  The challenges were certainly challenging enough.  I've played this so little recently that my memories of this game are becoming few and far between.  Might have to play it again someday.

3. Wave Race 64 (8) - My friends were more into this game than I was growing up, but I still enjoyed it.  I wish there would have been more race courses and more racers.  Nintendo should come out with a Wave Race Wii (although that's a tongue twister). 

4. Star Fox 64 (8) - When I first played this as a young child, it scared me.  I also never was able to fully beat it.  This game was too difficult for me.  But I sure had fun in the multiplayer with my sister and friends.  Update: I played this game recently and beat it, twice.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to beat it on the hard path, but I took the easy and semi-hard paths.

5. Mario Kart 64 (10) - This is a game I still play a lot today (See my girlfriend and I play it below) and despite only 8 characters and 16 tracks, it still is so much fun.  This will forever be my favorite version of Mario Kart. 
6. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (7) - This game would get a 10 from me if it was about the game's quality, but it's not.  I was never able to get into this game as a kid.  I never became a fan of the Legend of Zelda series.  Someday I will put forth actual effort.  I did play this as a kid, but always got stuck at the same part. 

7. Mario Party (9) - The first Mario Party is hands down my favorite.  As a kid, the game I'd always suggest to play with others was Mario Party, and for good reason: It's a fantastic multiplayer game.  It's even a serviceable single player one as well.  The reason it is a 9 and not a 10 is because of the control stick spinning mini-games which caused several blisters on my hand as a kid (and caused me to ruin a pair of baseball gloves I had). 

8. Turok: Dinosaur Hunter (6) - This was the game I was most afraid of as a kid.  Perhaps my parents shouldn't have gotten it, given its Mature rating.  I often just watched my dad play.  But it had its moments.  I especially enjoyed using cheats to get all ammo.  Some of the guns you were supposed to get later in the game were AWESOME.

9. Turok 2: Seeds of Evil (5) - I never really played the single player version of this, something rare for me.  I mostly played this with my dad and sister in multiplayer mode.  I loved the Cerebral Bore, which caused an opponent's head to explode.  But other than multiplayer, this game held little for me.

10. Xena: Warrior Princess: The Talisman of Fate (3) - Again, a game in which I never really took advantage of single player mode.  Just played multiplayer... with my sister.  I never wanted to play this, but my sister sure did. 

11. NFL Quarterback Club '98 (6) - Boy football games in the 90's sucked.  I tried playing it recently and oh my word.  I got some use out of it.  The one thing this game holds is the ability to look and see past players and see how good (or bad) they were.

12. NFL Quarterback Club '99 (7) - I played this game slightly more as it was newer.  I really liked Mike Patrick and Randy Cross as announcers.  But again, football games have come a long way since then.

13. Major League Baseball Featuring Ken Griffey Jr. (10) - This might be my favorite baseball game ever.  Sure, the graphics are awful now, but the controls are ridiculously easy and this was when the Mariners were good.  The game also has a heavy favoritism towards the Mariners, having been made BY Nintendo, which I don't have any problem with, obviously.

14. Goldeneye 64 (9) - Considered one of the best N64 games.  The part I had the most fun with was multiplayer, playing it with my friends and family.  I can't give this game a 10 because it was too difficult for me at times (I was stuck on the "Control" mission for the longest time).  I did eventually beat the game on Agent mode, but never got to the Aztec level.  Oh well, maybe someday. 

15. NBA Hangtime (9) - An arcade game turned into an N64 game, and it worked.  To this day I love seeing players from the 90's like Dennis Rodman, Shawn Kemp, Dikembe Mutombo, and Scottie Pippen.  I just wish players like Michael Jordan and Shaq could have been in it.  I give it only a 9 because it's pretty much the same thing over and over and it does get tiring after a while. 

16. NBA Live '99 (5) - Again, sports games have come a long way since the 90's.  I never really enjoyed this game, as I enjoyed NBA Hangtime more.  But finally being able to beat Michael Jordan 1 on 1 was one of my biggest video game achievements as a kid.

17. Pokemon Stadium (9) - This was, as far as I remember, the first video game I purchased with my own money.  Bought it at K-Mart of all places, and it cost around 70 dollars(!) at the time.  However, I did get my use out of it, playing my Red, Blue, and Yellow versions of Pokemon on there and of course, the mini games.  Just can't give it a 10 because I just felt like the game was missing one thing--and the battles aren't as impressive as I thought they'd be.

18. Pokemon Stadium 2 (8) - The follow up to Pokemon Stadium was almost as good, as many sequels are.  The mini games were again good, but it was hard to figure out the mystery gift thing and in the classroom, having to answer certain questions and do certain battles was very tough--too tough for a 12 year old kid.

19. Hey You, Pikachu! (2) - I give this my lowest rating because it just downright sucks as a game.  It's got an interesting mechanic where you tell Pikachu what to do, but that only worked some of the time, and the gameplay got rather boring real fast.  There's no real ultimate goal or quest in this game.  I think I (or my parents--can't remember) paid close to 100 bucks for the entire package of this game--what a rip-off. 

20. Bomberman 64 (7) - Ah, Bomberman.  This was another one of the games I got more multiplayer use out of.  Laying bombs and then kicking them at your friends?  So much fun.  The single player missions were a bit too difficult for me, but I did eventually beat it after much determination.  I can't say I really enjoyed this game.  Part of the reason I played it was because it was one of only a few games I had at the time.

21. Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2 (7) - This is one of those games that takes a while to get the hang of.  But when you do, it gets really fun.  It sucks having to do a lot just to unlock 1 or 2 courses in the game (You only start out with 1), but the level designs were great for skateboarding.  And I did once pull off the 900.  Never really beat it and unlocked all the levels though.

22. Mario Tennis (8) - One of my favorite Mario games as a kid.  But there's only so much you can do with a tennis game.  It's basically just hitting the ball back and forth.  I liked the wide selection of characters, but on the harder difficulties, it would just take FOREVER to beat them.  Oh well, I still enjoyed it. 

23. Super Smash Bros. (9) - A game I put a lot of time and effort in, especially in beating the "Break the Target" and "Board the Platform" games for each character.  Sure, the Smash Bros. series has come a long way, but the original will always be my favorite. 

24. Pokemon Puzzle League (7) - Even when I'm into Pokemon, not really into playing this game too much.  However, when I was into this game, I was good and enjoyed it immensely.  Some of the harder levels... wow.  How can they expect a kid, or anyone, to beat them? 

25. Diddy Kong Racing (6) - For whatever reason, I always preferred Mario Kart over this, more than likely because I liked the characters more.  However, this game did have fun mechanics and came out with multiple vehicles before the Mario Kart franchise did.  It sure has been a while since I played this.

26. Pokemon Snap (8) - For a game where all you do is take pictures, it's surprisingly fun.  They unlock levels and the ability to throw food or pester balls at the perfect pace.  They were only able to include about half of the original 151 Pokemon, probably due to the size capacities of the N64 games.  Some of the shots I got were not too far off from being close to world records.  I would've loved to have seen another Pokemon Snap game, perhaps for the Wii, but would it work with motion control?  Hard to say.

27. Star Wars Episode I: Racer (4) - I recently got this game at a bargain store, and I haven't played it much yet.  It was surprisingly tough, even for an adult.  I will give this another go someday, perhaps after watching Episode I again.


Xbox:

1. NFL Fever 2002 (8) - I really liked the NFL Fever franchise.  I really wish they had been able to continue it, but unfortunately EA Sports won the sole rights to NFL players and their likenesses.  At the time, I really thought other games were better than Madden.  This one was no exception.  The players weren't really scaled right, but I had a lot of fun creating players (usually based on kids I went to school with) and of course, playing with the Seahawks. 

2. Star Wars Obi-Wan (8) - Pretty much Star Wars Episode I with some before and during battles.  You play as a young jedi Obi-Wan (duh) and you play in certain battles such as rescuing the Queen in Naboo and fighting against Darth Maul.  This would have to be one of my favorite third person Star Wars games ever.  The controls are a bit hard to figure out at first, but once you get the hang of it, it's not bad.  The graphics, however, do not hold up well today.

3. NBA Inside Drive 2002 (6) - Didn't really play this game much, as I've played its successor much more over the years.  The only thing it has better than the 2003 version is the intro. 

4. NBA Inside Drive 2003 (9) - To this day I still play this game.  For some reason, I can't get into any other basketball game.  I love the antics of Kevin Colabro, Marcus Johnson, and Kenny Smith as announcers.  Plus, creating players and getting them experience and making them better is really fun and easy to do in this game.

5. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell (7) - I've always found this game too difficult for me.  First time I played it, I got stuck a few levels in.  A year ago or so, I played it again and got a lot farther, but still couldn't beat the game.  Maybe after a while I'll try a third time to beat the game.  Fun to play for sure, but a bit too difficult for me.

6. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon (9) - What's not to like? The Campaign mode is fun, but the actual gameplay is awesome and simple enough.  I've beaten the campaign mode at least 10 times, each time still as fun as the last.  Multiplayer was fun while it lasted, too.  I wish the campaign was longer, but it has good replay value.  One thing I don't like: Some of the Dossier missions are downright impossible--recon on elite, firefight on elite using only a demolitions guy... I mean... wow.

7. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Island Thunder (8) - Had all the same, great features the original Ghost Recon had.  The campaign wasn't as long or enjoyable, but still fun.  I think there were some bugs in this game.  But the thing that hurt this game was that it was basically just an expansion to Ghost Recon, but it was marketed as its own game.

8. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (8) - Good continuation in the Harry Potter video game series.  Too many load screens bogged the game down a bit, but nothing beat free roam around the castle on a broomstick, being able to collect an infinite number of beans and trading them for prizes from Fred and George.  I think I've only beaten the game twice, so it's hard to give it anything higher than an 8. 

9. Halo (10) - Arguably the best original Xbox game.  When you think Xbox, you think Halo.  This game kicked ass and its only fault was lack of multiplayer, which was implemented in its sequel.  I don't think I'll ever like a first person shooter series more than Halo.  It was a huge part of my adolescence.

10. Halo 2 (10) - This game had a lot of hype and it certainly lived up to it.  The story mode wasn't as compelling but multiplayer was everything I expected and all the new features and weapons were amazing.  Energy sword FTW.  I still enjoy playing out the campaign every few years.  I even owned the PC version and played it on my PC as well.

11. Grand Theft Auto III (6) - This game came packaged with GTA Vice City when they were first released for the Xbox (see below), and I preferred Vice City, so I never really got into this version.  Maybe someday?  All I can say is I probably haven't put forth even 10 hours into this game in my life. 

12. Grand Theft Auto Vice City (8) - Played this quite a bit once GTA came out on the Xbox console.  I don't think I fully completed all of the missions, but I came close.  Fond memories of this game.

13. Grand Theft Auto San Andreas (9) - I don't think I spent as much time on this as GTA Vice City, but I enjoyed it more and most every gamer of GTA would agree it's one of the strongest in the series.  The map is larger, you do more exciting missions, and it's just a better quality game.  I'll definitely play this some more in the future.  The graphics don't hold up that well, however.

14. Midtown Madness 3 (8) - For some reason, we got rid of this game and I no longer own it or can play it.  But one time we did own it and it was a lot of fun.  I remember playing the first Midtown Madness games on the PC many years ago, and this game for the Xbox was just as good.  Good selection of vehicles.  Just been a while. 

15. Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic (10) - This is in competition with Halo and Halo 2 as the Xbox game I have spent the most time on.  I really have no complaints about this game.  The story is so compelling it could (and should) be made into a movie.  To this day I still play it and I may never grow old of it.  I have purchased and played the mobile version of this, and may just play it there in the future out of convenience.

16. Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (8) - This game actually improved slightly in gameplay and mechanics, but fell way short in story and characters.  I still love playing it and have beaten it many times as well, but I always feel dissatisfied when I finish it.  Like someone who just finished their plate of food and is still hungry.  The game was obviously rushed out, which it shouldn't have been.  People have been petitioning long and hard for a KOTOR III, but that may never come. 

17. Star Wars Battlefront (8) - I was thrilled about this idea of a game: Being a stormtrooper, Wookie, or even Trade Federation droid and fighting in some of the most famous battles in Star Wars.  It worked pretty well, but was almost too simple of a game. 

18. Star Wars Battlefront II (8) - This game had improvements from its predecessor in graphics and gameplay, but I can't say I enjoyed it more.  Loved being able to play as famous Jedi, but flying in planes was way too tough and some of the game types still don't make sense to me. 

19. All-Star Baseball 2004 (7) - Not my favorite baseball game ever, but it had its perks.  Creating your own team was fun, and the actual gameplay was pretty good, and the graphics were good, especially for its time.  Thom Brennaman and Steve Lyons weren't the best choice as commentators, though.  However, I loved the feature of exploring the unused ballparks they had in the game.  I would listen to the voiceover guy talk about the ballparks and that was entertaining enough by itself.

20. Major League Baseball 2K5 (9) - Up there as one of my favorite sports games... ever.  I've played multiple 162-game seasons on this game (usually as the Mariners, of course), and the display and graphics still hold up pretty well to this day.  Jon Miller and Joe Morgan as announcers?  Perfect choices.  Also, you can't beat the ESPN presentation for this game.

21. Bicycle Casino (6) - Enjoyable when I feel the urge to gamble and play casino games, which is rare, however.  But I could spend hours playing Texas Hold 'Em in this game.  It's just very basic with nothing really that stands out.  I never had enough patience to build up a lot of money in this game.

22. NHL Hitz Pro (6) - The only hockey game I've ever owned, really.  And I did enjoy it, for the most part.  It was too easy to score goals, and upping the difficulty only allowed the computer to score a ton of goals.  What happened to low-scoring contests?  Then again, this was made by Midway, who also made NFL Blitz.  I liked creating the Seattle expansion franchise most of all.

23. Medal of Honor Frontline (7) - Another game we've gotten rid of but I remember owning, Medal of Honor Frontline had a more war-like feel than any Call of Duty game I've played.  Very good difficulty.  Graphics kind of lacked and some tasks seemed weird, but I enjoyed it.  I recently re-bought this game and tried playing it, but it was surprisingly difficult.  I'll try again someday.

24. Destroy All Humans (5) - Played this a bit when we first got it, and it was fun, but it has very little replay value and doesn't hold up well today.  I've thought about giving this game another shot someday. 

25. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (8) - Definitely enjoyable with cut scenes from the movie.  I don't like the controls too much, basically making it a button-mashing game, but it holds up well today.

26. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (8) - Difficult, but fun and even longer than Two Towers.  I like all the characters you can play from.  Whenever I finish watching the Lord of the Rings movies, I have to play the games. 

27. Test Drive Off-Road Wide Open (5) - I had to look this game up because not only did we get rid of it, but I couldn't remember the title.  Found it, and one of the few things I remember was being able to race a Dodge Durango, which was the family car at the time.  This game was fun, but it didn't give me too many reasons to go back and play it, which is probably why we got rid of it.

28. ESPN NFL 2K5 (10) - Somehow, I forgot this game and I had to put this up a month after my original blog post!  This might be my favorite NFL video game of all time, and I forgot it.  The ESPN format is brilliant, with Chris Berman and his half- and post-game shows.  The announcers could be better (Who are Dan Stevens and Peter O'Keefe?)  But this game, to this day, stands up well even to the current Madden.  Imagine if EA hadn't won the monopoly to the NFL, how much this series of football games might have advanced.  And the best part about this game?  Even at release: It was just $19.99.  Yeah.

29. NASCAR Heat 2002 (8) - This is the only NASCAR game I've ever owned, but I sure enjoyed it.  Yes, it's just taking a bunch of left turns, but navigating past cars was fun enough.  I most had fun causing havoc and causing other drivers to spin out and crash.  I did an entire season and won, which I think counts for beating the game.

30. Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (7) - I have beaten the game once, but it was not that enjoyable.  It's a lot of button mashing just like The Lord of the Rings games.  But the alternate ending where Anakin kills Obi-Wan is almost worth the price of the game, if you can get that far.

Now there are a few games me or my family owned that I either spent little to no time playing, but I will list them nonetheless:

31. 007: Agent Under Fire: I expected this to be near as good or better than Goldeneye.  I was wrong.
32. America's Army: Rise of a Soldier
33. Harry Potter Quidditch World Cup: Boring after a short while
34. Half-Life 2
35. NCAA Football 2005
36. The Sims 2: There's a reason it was made for the PC primarily
37. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
38. Tetris Worlds
39. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter
40. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2
41. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2: Summit Strike


Xbox 360:
1. Backbreaker (5) - This game was fun to do the Gauntlet or whatever it was called, where you have 100 levels to evade or juke past defenders all the while staying inside certain boundaries.  It's animations were excellent, although the gameplay was limited.

2. The Bigs (3) - I just couldn't get into this game and don't know why I got it.  I guess it's fun to see the players all jacked up and cranking home runs at ease.

3. Call of Duty: Black Ops II (7) - I mainly got this game to play online with one of my friends, which I only did for a little bit.  I like the Call of Duty games, just never been a big fan of them.

4. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (8) - I beat this game because the storyline in the Modern Warfare games is my favorite of any CoD series.  I didn't play much online, however.

5. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (8) - I think I beat this game twice.  It's a heck of a lot of fun.  I did play a bit online, probably the most of any CoD game I've ever played.

6. College Hoops 2K6 (10) - This is the only College Basketball game I've ever owned because nothing for me will top this.  I got over a decade in to the franchise mode with the Gonzaga basketball team before I accidentally overrode its save with something else 😭 Boy that was not a good day.  The fact that you could edit any incoming players and make them better made it easy to keep on playing.

7. Crackdown (8) - I remember I got this game for free after doing a play test study for Microsoft way back when.  I wasn't sure I'd enjoy it, but I certainly did.  It was fun increasing your guy's attributes and leaping tall buildings in a single bound.

8. Crackdown 2 (9) - They improved Crackdown even more with its sequel.  I don't remember either game a ton, but I certainly want to replay them someday.

9. Dead Island (6) - I've played this zombie game a bit.  I wanted a zombie game to play a few years ago, one a bit more realistic than the one below.  But it was only okay.  I did not get very far at all.

10. Dead Rising (7) - Boy was this game tough.  I loved the story, which is what gave me motivation to keep trying.  I always thought they should have made this into a movie.  But I just couldn't get past certain parts.  When you just couldn't avoid getting attacked by a zombie over and over, that was very annoying.

11. Game of Thrones (4) - I got this game shortly after getting into the TV series, and I just can't stay focused to play it.  The better game is the Telltale Games version.

12. Gears of War (9) - This would probably be 2nd to Halo as my favorite shooter franchise of all time.  Playing as Marcus Fenix and battling the Locust horde just is so much fun.  I love the story too, and think it would make an interesting movie or TV series.

13. Gears of War 2 (8) - I give this a slightly lower rating, but it's still a great game.  It's often forgotten, being sandwiched between the first and third (which some consider to be the best).

14. Gears of War 3 (10) - What a great game.  The part that will always stand out to me is when Dom sacrifices himself to save Marcus and the rest, set to an instrumental of "Mad World".  I legit cried my first time playing through that part.  I will forever argue it's one of the saddest moments in video game history.

15. Grand Theft Auto IV (9) - Boy I loved playing as Nico in beautiful NYC.  The story of course, was really good.  My favorite mission was the bank robbery.  I also loved doing different challenges after beating the story mission.  I didn't get to 100% completion, maybe close to 80%.

16. Grand Theft Auto V (10) - Rockstar Games hit it out of the park with this one.  Three playable characters this time, all uniquely different.  The story was again top-notch and there's so much replay value in this. 

17. Halo 3 (10) - What more can you say?  Halo 3 is considered to be peak Halo.  The online experience, for once, was the highlight for me.  They introduced Forge which allowed players to create and share their own maps, which even I did a bit.  There was the Arby N the Chief series, which mainly related to this game.  I remember checking my stats online at Bungie.net constantly.  Good times.

18. Halo Reach (9) - This was an interesting game, to have a prequel to Halo.  I certainly enjoyed it, and I felt like it had the perfect difficulty.  I played it online a little bit, but not like Halo 3.  I loved the ending where your Spartan character fought to the bitter end at the Fall of Reach.

19. Halo 3: ODST (8) - Probably one of the weakest in the Halo series, but still a very solid game.  I thought it was cool playing as a soldier and not a spartan, for a change.  It definitely got tough in parts, but doable.

20. Halo 4 (8) - This was enjoyable and fun, but it just doesn't feel like Halo for some reason.  This was after Bungie sold the game to 343 Industries, so that has something to do with it.  I don't think I ever played it online.

21. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (9) - One of my favorite Harry Potter games ever.  It has the most open-world aspect to it of any HP game at that point.  I enjoyed finding all the hidden crests and even playing games with other students. 

22. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (8) - A very similar game to OotP, but for some reason, I just didn't enjoy the game quite as much.  Odd, because I enjoyed the book version more.  I definitely want to give this game another try some day because it's hard to remember what it's like.

23. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (7) - I think this game did away with the majority of the open world element, and in my opinion, lacked a bit as a result.  It's not the gamemakers fault, as the story didn't have the students in school.  Again with HBP, hard to remember, will have to play again someday.

24. LA Noire (10) - One of Rockstar's best.  They sure captured the 1940's Los Angeles so well.  Trying to figure out if people were telling the truth was equally challenging and fun to do.  This game definitely deserves a replay, and I will have to do that soon.

25. Lost: Via Domus (7) - I think this game gets a bad rap.  Yes it's short, simple, and slightly contradicts the show, but it's still enjoyable.  I hated avoiding the smoke monster; it's repetitive, annoying, and there's way too much of it.  Also, some of the voice actors were nothing like their TV show counterparts, mainly Charlie, Sawyer, and Locke.  But it was so cool being in the hatch and exploring it.

2014 NFL Preview and Predictions

The 2014 NFL Season is almost here, and as a Seahawk fan, I am extremely excited.  The Seahawks enter a season for the first time as defending Super Bowl Champions, and they are hungry for another.  Let's take a look at how I think each team will do, just so I can see how wrong I was come end of the season.  I have calculated each team's record so that there are an equal number of wins and losses throughout the league.  Some may surprise.  Here are my predictions for each team's record, by division:

* = Wild Card Team

AFC East
1. New England Patriots: 11-5
2. Buffalo Bills: 7-9
3. Miami Dolphins: 6-10
4. New York Jets: 5-11
Summary: The AFC East won't be a particularly strong division, and the Pats will get a good chunk of their wins from their division rivals.  The Bills may entertain thoughts of the post-season for a while, but their playoff drought will continue.  The Jets and Fins will struggle without having competitive rosters.

AFC North
1. Cincinnati Bengals: 9-7
2. Cleveland Browns: 9-7*
3. Pittsburgh Steelers: 8-8
4. Baltimore Ravens: 6-10
Summary: You heard it here first, folks.  The Super Bowl Champs from just a year and a half ago will finish in last place.  The Ravens will be inconsistent on both sides and struggle (And they'll regret that contract they gave Flacco).  Expect the Browns to compete with an improving D and a fierce QB battle. 

AFC South
1. Indianapolis Colts: 12-4
2. Tennessee Titans: 7-9
3. Jacksonville Jaguars: 7-9
4. Houston Texans: 5-11
Summary: The Colts will benefit from inferior competition in their division (6-0 in division play is a possibility) and Andrew Luck will get even better.  The Jags and Titans will compete but it won't be enough.  The Texans, without a legit starting QB, will be in rebuilding mode.

AFC West
1. Denver Broncos: 11-5
2. San Diego Chargers: 8-8*
3. Kansas City Chiefs: 6-10
4. Oakland Raiders: 6-10
Summary: I was gonna say this division will be decent, but seeing as they play the NFC West, I don't think they'll do too well.  The Broncos offense will have a drop-off and they'll lose a few close games, especially to the NFC West.  The Chiefs and Chargers are likely headed for slightly worse seasons, and the Raiders will be... the Raiders. 

NFC East
1. Philadelphia Eagles: 9-7
2. Washington Redskins: 8-8
3. Dallas Cowboys: 7-9
4. New York Giants: 4-12
Summary: Expect this division to be competitive, for the most part, but don't expect to have any really competitive teams to emerge and do some damage in the playoffs.  There will probably be a team that falls apart and does horribly, and I'll pick the Giants (watch me be wrong), because they're in real bad shape if Eli Manning gets hurt. 

NFC North
1. Green Bay Packers: 11-5
2. Detroit Lions: 9-7
3. Minnesota Vikings: 7-9 
4. Chicago Bears: 5-11
Summary: Green Bay is one of the better all-around teams in the league... if they stay healthy.  Which they should, after dealing with a rash of injuries last season.  Detroit will smoke a lot of teams out but lose some shootouts.  The Vikings should surprise some people, while I'm picking the Bears to really struggle, especially if Cutler gets hurt.

NFC South
1. New Orleans Saints: 12-4
2. Carolina Panthers: 8-8
3. Atlanta Falcons: 8-8
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-9
Summary: New Orleans will have an improved D and a solid team.  Carolina will have a bit of a regression and miss the playoffs.  Atlanta will be improved, but not enough for the playoffs.  And the Bucos underwent too many changes to succeed overnight, but they'll have their moments.

NFC West
1. Seattle Seahawks: 12-4
2. St. Louis Rams: 10-6*
3. San Francisco 49ers: 9-7*
4. Arizona Cardinals: 6-10
Summary:  I think the Seahawks will go 12-4, which surprisingly will give them a two game lead over the 2nd place team.  The Rams are going to be the surprise team of the west and shock everyone.  The 49ers will deal with injuries and off the field issues, but will remain competitive.  The Cardinals, meanwhile, will lose a lot of close games and be the hard luck team of the league, perhaps the best 6-10 team in history.

And now, for the playoffs.  Do the Seahawks repeat as Super Bowl champs?  Let's find out.

Playoff Seedings
AFC
1. Indianapolis Colts (12-4)
2. New England Patriots (11-5)
3. Denver Broncos (11-5)
4. Cincinnati Bengals (9-7)
5. Cleveland Browns (9-7)
6. San Diego Chargers (8-8)

NFC
1. Seattle Seahawks (12-4)
2. New Orleans Saints (12-4)
3. Green Bay Packers (11-5)
4. Philadelphia Eagles (9-7)
5. St. Louis Rams (10-6)
6. San Francisco 49ers (9-7)

Wild Card Games
(6) Chargers at (3) Broncos: Broncos win
In a rematch of last year's division round game, the Broncos again get the upper hand... barely.

(5) Browns at (4) Bengals: Browns win
In what might be their first ever playoff meeting, the entire state of Ohio shows up and Browns fans take over Paul Brown stadium and the Bengals again fail to win a playoff game.

(6) 49ers at (3) Packers: Packers win
In another rematch of a division round game last year, the Packers this time get their revenge and beat the 49ers.

(5) Rams at (4) Eagles: Rams win
The Rams D proves too much for the Eagles high-flying offense, and Foles gets sacked several times.

Division Round Games
(5) Browns at (1) Colts: Colts win
The Colts have just enough magic and offense to power past the Cleveland D.

(3) Broncos at (2) Patriots: Patriots win
In what may be the final matchup between Brady and Manning, Tom Brady gets the upper hand and the Broncos are sent home disappointed... again.

(5) Rams at (1) Seahawks: Seahawks win
This game will be close and low-scoring, but the 12th man is just enough for the Hawks to squeeze out a win to move to the next round.  The Hawks have faced the Rams in the playoffs before (the year before the Super Bowl appearance against the Steelers, I believe) and they barely lost that one.  The same won't happen here.

(3) Packers at (2) Saints: Packers win
Aaron Rodgers is gonna have a career year after an injury-riddled 2013.  He's gonna be determined.

Conference Championship Games
(2) Patriots at (1) Colts: Colts win
Lucas Oil Stadium will be electric, and Tom Brady will be mad at his teammates for some reason.  Colts prevail in a shootout. 

(3) Packers at (1) Seahawks: Seahawks win
For the 3rd straight time, the Packers will lose an exciting game at Century Link Field, and the Seahawks punch their 2nd straight trip to the Super Bowl.  Should be as exciting as last season's NFC Championship game between the Hawks and Niners. 

Super Bowl XLIX in Phoenix, AZ:
Seahawks 30, Colts 21

In what will be the matchup of the two best QB's from the 2012 draft class, Wilson will prevail over Luck because Wilson won't be facing that tough of a defense, and the Hawks repeat as Super Bowl Champions!!!

Now, for some awards:

MVP: Earl Thomas, Seattle Seahawks
Going on a HUGE limb here, but if Earl leads us in tackles and interceptions, all the while our defense being the best in the league, again... it'd be hard to not include him in the conversation. 

Offensive Player: Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay Packers
Rodgers will have a career year and will have plenty of support and protection to go with it. 

Defensive Player: Robert Quinn, St. Louis Rams
He might set the sack record.  Twenty sacks is a very real possibility for Quinn.

Offensive Rookie: Bishop Sankey, Tennessee Titans
A bit biased, but I'd love to see Sankey, a running back, win Offensive Rookie of the Year, instead of a quarterback.  The quarterback crop isn't particularly strong, so this is definitely a possibility.

Defensive Rookie: Khalil Mack, Oakland Raiders
Regardless of how the Raiders do, they know they have a good one in Mack.  He'll lead them in sacks more than likely.

Coach: Jeff Fisher, St. Louis
If the Rams do as well as I predict them to, Jeff Fisher deserves Coach of the Year. 

Comeback Player: Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins
His team may not too particularly well but I think RGIII will have a better season than the last.

Pepsi Rookie of the Year: Teddy Bridgewater, Minnesota Vikings
This always seems to go to a different rookie, so I'll go with Teddy Bridgewater to propel the Vikings... to 3rd place. 

Well, there you have it.  The Seahawks will repeat as Super Bowl champs, I predict.  If the 49ers somewhat struggle, and if the Hawks are able to win the division, a 2nd straight Super Bowl championship is a very real possibility.  Let's hope for a great season, and a 2nd straight Super Bowl win!  GO HAWKS!!!

Seahawks Predictions (NFL Preview Part 2 of 3)

For the first time ever, the Seahawks return to play as DEFENDING SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS.  Boy does that sound good to say.  The Seahawks open their season with tough opponents and finish with tough opponents, with a relatively easy middle part of their schedule.  How do I see them doing in each game?  Let's find out.  I'll go game by game, predicting the score for each contest.  Let's get to it!



Week 1 - Vs. Green Bay Packers: Win, 24-21
Hawks Record: 1-0

Opening night of the season, the Hawks fall behind early due to jitters and excitement and trail at the half 14-10.  But in the 2nd half the defense steps up and the Seahawks score two unanswered touchdowns to make it 24-14.  The Packers score in the 4th to make it close, and they are able to get the ball back, but the D stops them.  Should be close and hard fought, I don't see them possibly scoring more than the combined 45 points I predicted. 


Week 2 - At San Diego Chargers: Win, 28-13
Hawks Record: 2-0

San Diego was a playoff team a year ago, so this won't be too easy of a contest... you'd think.  But Philip Rivers will struggle against the LoB, not having seen them at their current playing ability.  Expect the D to make some big plays (turnovers, sacks) and the offense to only be ordinary at best in this one, which should be plenty enough.

Week 3 - Vs. Denver Broncos: Win, 31-24
Hawks Record: 3-0

In the rematch of Super Bowl XLVIII, the Hawks again get the upper hand and win.  Peyton Manning will struggle at first with the noise but will eventually settle down.  Broncos will get stopped on a last minute try to tie the game. 

Week 5 - At Washington Redskins: Win, 28-10
Hawks Record: 4-0

The Seahawks are even better than the 2012 team that made the playoffs, but the same cannot be said for the team from Washington.  Predicting easy wins on the first two road games is risky, I'll admit, but the team will be well rested after a Bye Week and should be hungry in this one to keep things going.

Week 6 - Vs. Dallas Cowboys: Win, 34-16
Hawks Record: 5-0

Tony Romo has nightmares about Century Link Field.  I don't think he's ever won in Seattle, and that won't change.  This should be similar to the 2012 home opener in which the Hawks won handily.  This should also be one of the offense's better games of the season.

Week 7 - At St. Louis Rams: Loss, 20-19
Hawks Record: 5-1

Hard to do... but I can't see the Hawks going perfect.  And I see the Rams as a much improved team.  Should be close and hard fought, but the Hawks haven't done too well in recent years in St. Louis.  If the Rams don't improve much in 2014 then I wouldn't be surprised if this was a win.  But I think the Hawks may underestimate them.

Week 8 - At Carolina Panthers: Win, 10-7
Hawks Record: 6-1

How come the Seahawks have had to play IN Carolina for THREE straight years?  I'd understand two years in a row, but THREE?  That should not be allowed.  But no matter, the Hawks should win a defensive bruiser of a contest, with both QB's not getting to 200 yards passing.

Week 9 - Vs. Oakland Raiders: Win, 34-9
Hawks Record: 7-1

A part of me thinks the Raiders will be an improved team, but even so, this is a game everyone circles as a win in their predictions.  A loss to the Raiders at home would be inexcusable.  Matt Schaub will have flashbacks to last season when he through a game-blowing pick to Richard Sherman, and so he'll likely throw a couple INT's here. 

Week 10 - Vs. New York Giants: Win, 24-15
Hawks Record: 8-1

Whenever I pick the Giants to do poorly, they do well, and whenever I pick them to do well, they do poorly, so I give up.  Regardless, Eli Manning's never had much success in Seattle, and while this may be a closer contest than what we'd like, it should still be a relatively easy win. 

Week 11 - At Kansas City Chiefs: Loss, 28-20
Hawks Record: 8-2

Funny thing is, I don't see the Chiefs being as good as last year.  But the Hawks, having played in their seventh straight game without an off week at a stadium that's always hard for the visitors, I think, will struggle.  Jamaal Charles might have a big game.  If he does, and Alex Smith takes care of the football, this will be a tough game to win.  It's not too bad losing to a team on the road when they're in the other conference, because that doesn't factor into tiebreakers.

Week 12 - Vs. Arizona Cardinals: Win, 19-17
Hawks Record: 9-2

Two years ago in Seattle, the Hawks thwomped the Cardinals 58-0.  Last year, the Cardinals got their revenge and stole a win from the Hawks in Seattle, the first home loss in quite some time.  This time around, the Hawks are the ones getting revenge in what should be a tight contest again. 

Week 13 - At San Francisco 49ers: Win, 21-16
Hawks Record: 10-2

It's about damn time we win in San Francisco.  It's not a long flight, their fans aren't particularly loud, and the weather never plays a factor.  Since this game is being played in the newly constructed Levi's Stadium, the Hawks might think of this as a neutral site game (especially since there WILL be some Hawk fans there) and forget that it's a road game.  The Hawks know this is one of the most important games on their schedule, and their failure to win in San Francisco should fuel their desire for this win.  Hawks in an upset. 

Week 14 - At Philadelphia Eagles: Loss, 28-20.
Hawks Record: 10-3

The Eagles are more than likely the best team in the NFC East, and while I see this game going either way, I think the banged up Hawks (from the Niner game) struggle to contain Nick Foles and LeSean McCoy.  This game would have some playoff implications, but it's not the end of the world if the Hawks lose.  With two road contests in a row against NFC playoff teams from a year ago, the Hawks would probably be ok with going 1-1 in these contests. 

Week 15 - Vs. San Francisco 49ers: Win, 27-13
Hawks Record: 11-3

The 49ers will be seeking revenge yet shall find none.  Colin Kaepernick (if he's healthy) will struggle and the Hawks will put themselves in great position with this win.  I expect it to be a close game for the most part, with the Hawks pulling away with a late score to make it a two-score game.

Week 16 - At Arizona Cardinals: Win, 24-14
Hawks Record: 12-3

Last season, the Hawks had a pretty resounding win against the Cardinals in Arizona, and I see a similar result here.  For the 2nd straight year at the end of the season, the Hawks play at the site of the upcoming Super Bowl, and like last year, they will win.  They'll look at this game as a Super Bowl dress rehearsal. 

Week 17 - vs. St. Louis Rams: Loss, 19-17
Hawks Record: 12-4

In their defense, I'm predicting the Hawks to not have to win this game to secure a playoff spot.  Sure, they'll give the Rams a good effort, but without 100% effort, expect the hungry Rams to take advantage.  They haven't won in Seattle in quite some time, and that's due to change.  But don't worry Hawk fans, this game won't matter to the Hawks at all.

Well, that's it.  What?  No post-season?  Of course the Seahawks make the post-season.  They're way too talented to miss them.  But guess what?  You're going to have to wait until part 3 of my NFL Predictions to see how they do in the playoffs.  Sorry!  Don't want to spoil too much.  I'll give you a sneak peak.  The first game the Hawks will play will be against...


THE RAMS.

"WHAT?!"

That's right.  The Rams. 

"So if the Rams make the playoffs, does that mean the 49ers miss them?"

You're going to have to wait and see. 

Update:

Here is who I think will lead the Seahawks in each of the following categories.  Passing and rushing leaders will obviously be Wilson and Lynch, respectively, but what about the other categories?

Receptions: Baldwin
Receiving Yards: Baldwin
Receiving TD's: Kearse
Sacks: Avril
Tackles: Thomas
Interceptions: Thomas

Surprising Predictions for 2014 NFL Season

With the NFL season getting closer and closer, training camps being under way, I thought (Before my official season predictions) I would make 20 surprising predictions for the 2014 season.  I did this before the 2011 season (didn't post it) and managed to get 7 out of 20 surprising predictions right.  None of these are going to be very predictable (Such as saying the Broncos will win the AFC West).  I'll try to go out on a limb for each one.

20. The NFC West WILL have a team lose at least 10 games... maybe 11 or 12.
Yes, the NFC West is good, and will have at least two playoff teams for sure, but I think one team might just succumb to the pressure of playing in the best division in football.  I'm not sure which team, but either the Rams or Cardinals are most likely, obviously.  I'm crossing my fingers that it's the 49ers.

19. Perfection will die early--No perfect teams after Week 7's games
There are plenty of very talented teams in football, which is exactly the reason why no one will be perfect after week 7.  Usually there's one team that starts 8-0 or 9-0... but not this year.

18. The worst division in football won't be the AFC South, but the AFC East
Just going on a limb, thinking the Bills, Jets, and Dolphins could all have losing records, one of which might have a top 3 pick in next year's draft. 

17. The Jacksonville Jaguars will shock the world and ALMOST go .500 for the year.
I think Gus Bradley's doing a really good job in Jacksonville and I think under first-year signal caller Blake Bortles the Jags will go 7-9, perhaps good enough for 2nd in the paltry AFC South.

16. The best rookie quarterback won't be Manziell or Bortles or even Carr.  It will be Teddy Bridgewater. 
Teddy has a running game in place, can run himself, and has an improving defense.  Sound familiar?  He also doesn't have too many tough defenses to deal with in the NFC North. 

15. The team with the worst record in the NFC will come from... THE NFC EAST?!
Yep, that's right.  Sure, the Bucs, Vikes, and Falcons could contend, but all are bound to have better seasons than their last.  The worst NFC team will come from the NFC East.  And that division won't do too hot this year, either.

14. A historically inept franchise will make the playoffs
So either the Raiders, Browns, Jaguars, Bills, Buccaneers, Cardinals, or Lions will make the playoffs.  I'll go with the Browns.

13. A recent perennial playoff team will finish in LAST place
So either the Ravens, Broncos, 49ers, Patriots, or Packers will finish in last.

12. Peyton Manning and the Broncos will have a slightly off year, be saddled with injuries, and not make it to the AFC Championship game
They'll probably still win the AFC West, but the Broncos won't do that hot. They'll probably get the 3 or 4 seed and lose before the AFC Championship.

11. The MVP will not be a quarterback
It will either be a defensive player (Kuechly?), wide receiver (Megatron), or running back (AD, Jamal Charles)

10. There will be a division separated by only three games. 
Which means the last place team will only be three games behind the first place team.  A lot of parity happening.  I'll lean towards the AFC North.  Division winner: 9-7  Last place: 6-10

9. The first coach to get fired will be Joe Philbin of the Miami Dolphins
Other possibilities: Dennis Allen of Oakland, Jason Garrett of the Raiders.  But I don't think the Dolphins will get off to too good of a start.

8. Bishop Sankey of the Tennessee Titans will be in the Top 5 in AFC rushing, at least come close to a Pro Bowl, and come very close to offensive rookie of the year. 
I think Sankey would've been close to a first round pick had he started his NFL career 10-15 years ago.  He'll show everyone that running backs, especially young ones, can be very valuable.

7. No team will get to 13 wins
There might be a few 12 win teams, but no 13 win teams.  Or 14, 15, etc.  Too much parity this season.

6.  The league leader in rushing will not be Jamaal Charles, LeSean McCoy, or Adrian Peterson.
Not sure who it will be (Lacy? Lynch?) but it won't be one of those big three.  Although they all might be close.

5. Johnny Manziell will start less than 4 games. 
A lot of people think he'll start at least half of the Browns games, but I'm putting my money on Hoyer doing a great job. 

4. The team that finishes with the worst record (and therefore the #1 pick most likely), will already have a franchise quarterback. 

3. There will be an 8-8 playoff team.
Probably in the AFC as a wild card.

2. The worst team in the NFC South will have an equal or better record than the 2nd place team in the AFC South. 
So if it was the Falcons in last place, their record would be better than or equal to say the Titans, if they finished 2nd. 

1. The Seahawks will at least make it to the NFC Championship game.
There will be football well into January in Seattle.

After the season is over, I'll go back and review how I did on each prediction.  Coming next (and soon): NFL Predictions and Seahawk Predictions!  Stay tuned!

Blackjack: Gone but Never Forgotten

               There's an emptiness in my heart that wasn't there two days ago.  Just 42 hours ago as of me writing this, my family had a cat.  His name was Blackjack, and he was the kind of cat you wouldn't change anything about.  Not a thing.  Because he was perfect just the way he was.  He was our kitty, and we loved him so much.  Somehow, even though he was just one cat, he was able to provide enough love to four different people.  Some people that live alone don't get that much love from two cats.  But Blackjack was the kind of cat any family would love. 
                Our family was truly blessed to have had a wonderful cat like him.  The interesting thing is, though, is that we weren't planning on keeping him.  When he and his siblings were born, he was the one we knew for sure we'd give away, provided they all lived.  We were going to give him away because there were enough black and black/white cats in the neighborhood.  We wanted a white cat with fleck of black or a multi-colored cat.  Unfortunately (and yet, in a way, fortunately) they didn't make it, and we ended up with the black and white tuxedo cat, naming him Blackjack. 
                I still am finding it hard to believe that he is gone.  He was the indestructible cat, the cat with a million lives, the cat we just couldn't and wouldn't imagine ever passing on.  He endured many attacks from raccoons and even other cats.  He had to go to the vet so much in his life the vets recognized his name and appearance instantly.  We spent a lot of money on him throughout his life, but every penny was worth it. 
                I keep wanting to wake up and realize this was all a dream (or nightmare), but I can't.  I want to live in a world where Blackjack is a constant presence in our lives for all of eternity, but I can't.  I want to see him one last time, hear him meow one last time, hear him go "urf!" and hear him purr one last time, but I can't.  There are so many things I would love to do with him one last time, but unfortunately in a lot of cases, you don't know when your last time will be.  I know in my heart in the past few years of his life, I really enjoyed every moment I had with him, because we all knew his time was starting to run short.  Despite that, I feel like something was taken away from me, a great joy in my life.  Blackjack was one of the greatest joys in all of our lives.
                As time goes on, we'll think about him less and less, as we inevitably do about lost loved ones.  But not for one second will we, any of us, forget about the kind of cat he was.  He was the best damn cat any of us will ever know.  To lose something as precious as him is heartbreaking and devastating no matter the circumstances.  The say that dog is man's best friend... well in our family, HE was our best friend.  He was the one thing we could all agree on that we loved.  He was our darling angel of a cat. 
                I'm forcing myself to try not to think about seeing his lifeless body or the hole that now resides in my heart.  I'm trying to think about the good times we had with him, like putting bows on him when it was presents-opening time or seeing him on the stairs when we'd get home from work/school.  There will come a time, years and years from now, when I am much older, that I will think of a fond memory of Blackjack and smile.  Sure, he may not be around anymore and won't ever come back, but the memories we were able to make with him and the love we shared, is priceless.  We loved him, and we know he loved us too, as much as a cat could have the capacity of love for humans. 
                Blackjack will forever have a special place in each of our hearts.  Myself, Gregg, Mary, and Kristin, all loved that cat to pieces.  He made our bad days a little better and our good days even better.  We have so many tuxedo cat things around the house, from a pillow to magnets to a rug.  Each of them serves, not as a reminder of a loss, but as a reminder that Blackjack left a presence.  He was here as our cat, for 18 wonderful years, and he was as much a part of our family as a cat could be.  Blackjack, you may have left this great, green Earth, but you will never leave our hearts.  We love you, Blackjack.  Rest in piece, Snack. 

Blackjack

Blackjack Macquaid Holland
April 17, 1996 - August 7, 2014

Blackjack was born on April 17, 1996 as one of three cats in a litter to our cat to the time, Tobi.  Blackjack got his name, not just from his black fur (the only one of his litter to have black fur), but because he was the only one to survive of the litter.  Therefore, we knew he was lucky and named him Blackjack. 

On September 10, 2002, we lost his mother, Tobi.  She was just 8 years old at the time of her death.  We tried getting Blackjack a new friend, Gabby, but she and him could not get along, so we had to give her away.  For the past 11 years, we lived with Blackjack as our only cat, and boy was he a great cat.

Blackjack had many quirks about him that made him so special to us.  He would get up on his back two legs and stand just for a piece of food.  He would always meow or "urf" as we called it, if you held his tail.  If he was asleep, and you pet him, he would always, without fail, wake up with an "URRRRRF!"  And boy, did he love his tuna.

About two years ago we found out he had kidney disease, so we had to start giving him special treatment the past couple of years, from sub-q (subcutaneous fluids) to medicine and a special diet.  He was semi-close to not making it, but even at 16, we knew it was too soon for him to go.

We lost Blackjack today because of an incident with a coyote, but the fortunate thing is that we were able to recover his body and say goodbye.  He is buried right next to his mother.  Burying him was one of the hardest things we've ever had to do. 

Blackjack may have been bothered by things we did to him such as holding his tail, but we all knew we loved him so much.  He was the fifth member of our family.  I feel like a lost a brother or a best friend, because that's kind of like what he was to me.  For 18 of the 25 years of my life, Blackjack was our cat, our friend, our companion, and he will be deeply and greatly missed.  I love you Blackjack.  RIP.

The Mariners Let Me Down... Again (And Z Should Be Fired)

If I were to die suddenly in the next few months, I'd want some of the Seattle Mariners to be my pallbearers, just so they could let me down one last time.  It's the 2014 season and once again, the Mariners let their fans down.  As I'm typing this, the Mariners only sit a 1/2 game out of a wild card spot, but have had a horrible start to the 2nd half.  They've lost 5 of their first 7 to start the 2nd half and lost their wild card spot.  Sure, they're not  far back, but we've seen this before so many times. 

This year felt different.  We had Cano, and Felix is having his best season.  Ever since the 8 game losing streak in late April, the Mariners had been playing really good baseball.  But there are just too many holes in the lineup and on this team to fix overnight.  Currently, there are roles to be filled at shortstop, DH, and ALL outfield positions.  You could almost say catcher as well, because Mike Zunino has struggled mightily at the plate to make contact. 

You would think almost 6 years into being a GM that over half of the team's lineup wouldn't need to be fixed or replaced, but it does.  Jack Zduriencik really has done a poor job of acquiring talent to fill needs.  James Jones is not the answer in centerfield.  He can get on base and wreck havoc, but he has zero power and doesn't play balls in the outfield too well.  He also needs to learn how to take a walk.  Ackley has really done nothing to live up to his #2 overall pick status, and Smoak and Montero continue to flop back and forth between the bigs and minors. 

The hitting on this team the past few seasons has been atrocious.  Since Jack arrived following the 2008 season, the team batting averages have been: .258, .236, .233, .234, .237, and .245 so far this season.  But, if you take out Robinson Cano, easily the team's best hitter and one of the very few competent hitters, the team batting average is just .233 for the year.  Other than Robinson Cano, why can't Jack Zduriencik recruit, find, sign, trade for, or acquire in any way some good hitting? 

Six years is long enough for a GM to put a team together, and the team Jack has put together is not good enough.  If the Mariners continue to slide and he cannot field us a winning (or even exciting) team, then he should be fired.  He has had long enough.  He has lost the faith of many Mariners fans, and he lost my faith long ago, when he signed a utility player to a $36 million contract. 

Hey, I may be wrong to give up on them at this point.  After all, they're only a 1/2 game out.  I could end up looking kinda silly for posting this when they play exciting baseball and maybe even make the playoffs.  But I know the Mariners.  I've watched them year in and year out since the late 90's.  This team is NOT built to win.  I cannot emphasize that enough.  Cano and Felix are elite players, but they are surrounded by cast-offs and minor league all-stars (which isn't a good thing).  Cano is just one man.  He alone cannot give us enough offensive support to stay competitive. 

Maybe help will get here someday with the last two first round picks in DJ Peterson and Alex Jackson.  But that won't be until 2016 at the earliest.  But this team right now is full of hitters who will NEVER be considered above average.  Let's count them, shall we?
Zunino, Sucre, Smoak, Hart, Morrison, Miller, Bloomquist, Romero, Jones, Ackley, Chavez.  That makes 11.  I almost counted Montero, and probably should have, but he's still young and needs to be given another shot.  But the players above are all poor hitters to varying degrees.  How bad, you ask?  Well let's look at their OPS.  A player's OPS is their on-base plus slugging percentage.  It is what I feel best determines a batter's worth to the lineup.  An OPS over .8 is above average, .7 to .8 is average, and under .7 is below average.  The players above have the following OPS's: .665, .364, .630, .626, .615, .599, .643, .557, .638, .653, and .618.  If that many guys are hitting below league average (most of them considerably below), then something is wrong in the front office.  You know what all of those players have in common?  They were all acquired by Jack Zduriencik. 

Unless the Mariners can miraculously start hitting and winning, it's time to fire Jack Zduriencik.  He may have saved our farm system, but he did not save the big league club.  Time for you to go, Jack. 


Update:

9/3/14: The Mariners still aren't out of it, being only 1 and 1/2 games out, but have given Jack Zduriencik a contract extension.  If this comes back to bite them in the bit, I refuse to be a fan of a team that hires boneheads like Z and Bavasi.  But, time will tell.  The Mariners still have issues, including hitting.  They gave Jack an extension just because he got lucky and the team is generating interest.  You wait until the season is over to assess.  If the Mariners slide in September, we'll all be thinking the same thing.  If they make the playoffs somehow, then call me wrong.  But this is not a playoff calibur team.