Obviously this isn't serious, and it's rare that Joe Buck makes me chuckle, but here is his latest tweet about the guests on his September 22nd show. Via the JBL Twitter feed....



Pretty darn funny, but there's no way that Buck would subject players of that magnitude to that kind of comedy. Michael Irvin and Chad Johnson, yes....but not Elway and Montana.

(FYI- Buck is also hinting at an appearance from Vin Sculley as well)

I understand that a lot of the stuff that we post here is very 12 year old humor'esque, and most of the time it's a stretch, but there are some that just speak for themselves. Like this clip of Phillies' announcer, Sarge Matthews, talking about jerking off balls! Via HHR....

Hey....if it comes, it comes. I don't know if I've heard better advice in my life.

Audio: Sarge Mathews on Jerking off the Ball (Hugging Harold Reynolds)

We already knew that John Saunders, Bob Ley and Chris Berman, would be hosting, but ESPN has now released most of the details surrounding their 30th Anniversary Sport Center show. Via ESPN PR....

On the eve of ESPN’s 30th anniversary, its three SportsCenter anchors of longest service – Chris Berman, Bob Ley and John Saunders – will team to host a special edition of SportsCenter Sunday, Sept. 6 at 11:30 p.m. ET.

The show will be reaired the following morning, Labor Day Monday, Sept. 7, starting at 4:30 a.m. and will be seen five times through noon. Live updates with the latest sports news will be inserted.

The 90-minute show will primarily focus on the sports news of the day, and will also include retrospective segments on three decades of ESPN, the trio of veteran anchors and the sports they covered. Ley joined ESPN two days after its September 7, 1979, launch, while Berman soon followed in October. Saunders came to ESPN in 1986.

“These ESPN pillars are three of the most respected professionals in our business,” said Norby Williamson, ESPN’s executive vice president, production. “Their contributions to ESPN are endless and it’s great to have them together on this special day.”

I really like this approach to this event. It's great to have the three elder statesmen on the show, and even better that their sticking to that day's games and highlights. You only really need a small retrospective, and then you keep the train plowing forward.

There was a rumor, that started from a Deadspin podcast, that Bill Simmons would be filling in for Tony and/or Mike on PTI this summer, but apparently that's not the case. Dan LeBatard told the Deadcast that he and Simmons were all set to host the show together, but according to show producer Erik Rydholm, that's not the case. Via The Sporting Blog....

When Tony and Mike came back from vacation this week, the question became if, not when, Simmons and Le Batard would have their chance to pardon and/or interrupt one another. Usually the fill-in weeks are during the dog days of July, and with August just around the corner and football season starting, there may not be time for Simmons to do a full week of PTI.

I emailed with Erik Rydholm, executive-producer/creator/genius behind PTI and he told me that he would like to make it work, but scheduling isn't cooperating. He wrote:

"Very few upcoming stretches when both Tony and Mike are off. A couple of single days and it makes little sense to fly Dan and Bill in from forever away for one day. Hope to get something (scheduled) down the line."

It's surprising to me that Simmons has never had a stint on the show, especially when you think of all of the random people they've had as fill-ins. I mean, Patrick McEnroe was a co-host at one point! Personally, I think it would be a fun experiment to have Simmons on, but I guess if it ain't broke, there's no need to fix it.

Don't Expect Bill Simmons Pardoning Any Interruptions This Summer (The Sporting Blog)

Create the Caption is back by popular demand! I took a little hiatus from posting the captions, and sure it's hokey, but it's all in good fun. The CtC is back with a vengeance, and your comments are greatly appreciated.

Monday's Winners....


"And if you look over to my right, this is where I'll throw you under the bus by Halloween."- Mike

"No seriously, Jeff Garcia is this tall."- The PayDirt

"See, when I had got tangled in that net, what had happened was..."- Alan

"5 seconds later...Trent grabs TO's hand and together they say "Red Rover, Red Rover we dare Marshawn over.""- Mal
_______________________________________

Are you funny enough to create a caption for this photo of Tony Romo being introduced at aCowboys' kickoff party in San Antonio?


Your Daily Links:

Peter King talks with Favre (SI)
Stephon Marbury is full of amazing quotes (Bootlegger Sports)
Harry Caray made an appearance on Sports Nation (NESW Sports)
Delaware takes on everybody (RTC)
An ode to Strength Shoes (LOCG)
Tiger is statistically better than the field (Sparty and Friends)
Homeless Man offers advice to the Penguins (Puck Daddy)
Whtie Sox have officially thrown in the towel (Luol's Dong)
Welcome back, Michael Vick (Ryan Parker Songs)

In this day in age, especially in the NFL, up to the minute reporting is a must. CBS has long come in fourth place (behind ESPN, FOX and NFL Network) in the "breaking news" department, but they are making changes to catch up with the other networks. Starting this season, CBS has started an initiative called "Rapid Reports", and will be placing a reporter with every NFL team. Basically they're adding 32 bloggers to file reports throughout the day. Via CBS PR....

CBSSports.com today announced the creation of an innovative new way to cover the NFL. RapidReports will be a network of 32 correspondents, one with each NFL team. These reporters will file multiple bite-sized updates per day from each team's practice facility or stadium that will appear at the top of the CBSSports.com (www.cbssports.com) homepage.

CBS will be the first media outlet to cover the NFL, or any sport, in this manner, with one embedded reporter attached to every team working solely for one entity. Additionally, the style of coverage, with a constant stream of short, original news updates has never been used in the world of sports and CBSSports.com users and highly engaged NFL fans around the world will undoubtedly embrace this new mode of news delivery.

"With RapidReports, CBSSports.com will provide the rabid NFL fan base with the one thing they crave most – the absolute latest breaking news and updates from around the league – and deliver it in a way that will distinguish our service from the competition," said Jason Kint, Senior Vice President and General Manager of CBSSports.com. "We’re thrilled that CBSSports.com was able to find reporters for this initiative with a deep resume of sports experience and combine them with burgeoning new talent for a perspective and approach that fans won’t find anywhere else.”

CBS has also teamed up with Bleacher Report, and many of the correspondents will be coming over from their network. Obviously it's a good move, given the fact that CBS is so far behind the game at this point, but it will be interesting to see if it works. If they use it as a Fantasy tool, then I see it succeeding, but any other use and it might not pan out.

ESPN decided to pull off an interesting idea the other night, by placing both of their Monday Night Baseball analysts in opposite camera wells, while the PbPer stayed up in the booth. I thought the plan had some promise, but after watching some of the game, I quickly figured out that wasn't the case. It wasn't that the reports from the wells were bad, rather that they were just boring. Others, namely Diane Pucin of the LA Times, seemed to agree as well....

Anybody watching ESPN's Dodgers-Cardinals television broadcast, where analysts Orel Hershiser and Steve Phillips are working the game from photo wells near the dugouts? Has it been noticeably bad or good?

Seems kind of neutral. Not at all like when Chicago Cubs broadcaster Harry Caray used to take off his shirt and report from the Wrigley Field bleachers with some beery-headed observations that often didn't make sense. But Caray always had the professional Steve Stone to lead the fans gently back to the action when Harry was having too much fun.

Honestly, if ESPN hadn't told us this was happening would you have even noticed Dan Shulman was alone in the booth? At least, so far, neither Hershiser nor Phillips have been nailed in the chin by a baseball a la Erin Andrews a few weeks ago.

Zing! Good one, Diane. As far as the whole sideline analyst thing goes, the reason this setup works for Hockey and NBC in particular, is because there's so much action between shifts. That and Pierre McGuirre actually talks with the players on the bench, as the game is going on. It just doesn't work with the slow pace of Baseball. Hershiser and Phillips, just did their same old analyst jobs, but from a different location.

No harm, no foul. It was worth a shot, didn't work, and now you move on.

ESPN's announcers in the photo well experiment (LA Times)

And no....it's not with his writing. In yesterday's Around The Horn Showdown, Jay Mariotti decided to bring out a prop, an actual baby, and the kid did not seem to like being held by Jay. Fast forward to the one minute mark of this clip to watch the hilarious action....

My favorite part is after he get the win, and hands the kid back, that he says the baby is from Nebraska. Like it isn't his fault that the baby cried....it's a Cornhusker! Too funny.

I know this has nothing to do with announcing, but I post this collection of songs every single year. Once again, EA Sports has put together an amazing collection of songs and artists for Madden '10, and here's who you can listen for when the game comes out on August 10th....

2Pac - Can't C Me
Airbourne - Heads Are Gonna Roll
Alice In Chains - Them Bones
B.o.B - Created A Monster
Bang Camaro - Revolution
Beastie Boys - Sabotage
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Cypress Hill - Get ‘Em Up
Helmet - Unsung
Iron Maiden - Aces High
Judas Priest - Painkiller
Kid Rock - I Am The Bullgod
Killswitch Engage - Reckoning
Korn - Blind
Mastodon - Divinations
Nas feat. Puff Daddy - Hate Me Now
Nirvana - Breed
Pantera - Walk
Public Enemy - Shut Em Down
Rage Against The Machine - Guerrilla Radio
Set Your Goals - Gaia Bleeds (Make Way for Man)
Slipknot - Duality
System Of A Down - Sugar
The Vanity Plan - Before I Die
Young Dre The Truth - Cheah Beah

If you want to check out the songs for the rest of EA's 2010 releases, click below....

EA Announces Fall Music Line Up for Sports Franchises (PR Business Wire)

Create the Caption is back by popular demand! I took a little hiatus from posting the captions, and sure it's hokey, but it's all in good fun. The CtC is back with a vengeance, and your comments are greatly appreciated.

Last Thursday's Winners....


"This couldn't go any worse than the Ricky Williams experiment."- Tommy

"Ironically, the most famous and talented singer associated with the Dolphins didn't show as he was busy wasting away in Margaritaville."- Cason

"Anthony! Lopez! It's "Necessary Roughness 2: The Pros!"- Bayma

"Landshark stadium sounds so stoopid. Soon the Tunas will be playing in beautiful Fly Girl stadium!"- Lammy
_______________________________________

Are you funny enough to create a caption for this photo of, T.O. and Trent Edwards, chatting it up during their first practice together? (Thanks to WV for the photo)


Your Daily Links:

Lou Holtz got it done! (Online Sports Guys)
Clinton Portis is back, baby (BSO)
Davud Arquette Owns Derek Fisher (That NBA Lottery Pick)
Great names in Sports Movie equipment (Uncoached)
Why Tom Hamilton could be the worst local announcer in Baseball (Stiles Points)
Agreeing with T.O. (LOCG)
Syncronized swimming team gets crunk to "Stairway to Heaven" (Awesomely!)

I think we've established that ESPN should have reported on Ben Roethlisberger's lawsuit last week, and that we've all moved on. Well apparently the Sports Reporters haven't. The civil suit was the opening topic on the show over the weekend, and it sparked a war of words between, Mitch Albom (Detroit Free Press) and Bill Rhoden (NY Times). Tom Jones of TampaBay.com took notes....

ESPN's Sports Reporters got a little testy Sunday when Detroit Free Press columnist Mitch Albom and New York Times columnist Bill Rhoden got into an argument about Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger who is being accused in a civil lawsuit of sexually assaulting a woman. The argument essentially started because Rhoden came off highly critical of Roethlisberger. Albom, who made a point of saying he didn't know whether Roethlisberger was guilty, brought up the possibility that the allegations are false, saying, "There are many women who make false claims.''

To which Rhoden said: "Many? Name five.''

Albom said, "You sound as if you already presume he has already done this.''

Rhoden: "I'm presuming he put himself in a bad position.''

Jones notes that Mike Lupica then pulled the reins in on the argument, and the topic was quickly switched (presumably to Brett Favre). It's actually a bit ironic that ESPN decided to ignore the fact the whole week, and then when it's finally brought up in a debating format, the kibosh was quickly put on the topic. To say ESPN's stance and reporting on this has been schizophrenic, is an understatement.

Shooting from the Lip/Monday edition (TampaBay.com)

I know it's taboo to call Brett Favre annoying these days, and it's probably best to try and ignore him, but the guy makes it virtually impossible. You all know about the Wrangler ads, where the "childlike" Favre plays touch Football in the mud with a bunch of white dudes, right? Well Favre is filming a new commercial for Sears, and get this....he plays a guy who can't make up is mind about a television. Brilliant!

The TV spot, scheduled to air in early September, launches the Sears Blue Electronics Crew campaign, which includes print, events marketing, social media and public relations. The TV commercial features Favre agonizing over selecting a new LED television. The scene unfolds through a discussion between Favre and a member of the Sears Blue Electronics Crew (actor Brad Morris from "The Second City" comedy club in Chicago). The two banter as Favre is undecided on his decision about a Samsung LED TV. In one scene, Morris describes Sears "real time price checks - no regrets"(SM) - as a way to help guys who have a tough time making decisions. "You know the type, right?" Morris says. "Yeah, I hate those guys," Favre quips.

"This commercial uses humor to communicate messages about what differentiates Sears and the Sears Blue Electronics Crew from the competition," said Karen Austin, president of home electronics for Sears. "From our real time price checks to selection of top brands to our expert sales consultants, financing options and installation, there are very compelling reasons to choose Sears for your next TV or electronics purchase. And Brett is a terrific sport in having fun with the topic of choosing a TV. Brett embodies the excitement and passion that our customers feel as they anticipate the start of football season and that comes through in the commercial."

I guess Sears doesn't realize that just about all of America is sick of Brett Favre. I mean, I would have personally gone with something along the lines of the salesman punching him in the face after he went back and forth for the twentieth time, but whatever you think works.

Baseball announcing has rarely ever deviated from the norm. You usually have two or three announcers in the booth, and an on-field reporter. That's the way it's been for years, and very few networks have tried something different. Well that's until ESPN airs its Monday Night Baseball game, between the Dodgers and Cardinals tomorrow night.

The "Leader" plans on dividing up its three man team of Shulman, Hershiser and Phillips, by putting the two analysts in the camera wells beside each dugout. Via USA Today....

ESPN will formally announce Monday that it will experiment Monday night on its Los Angeles Dodgers at St. Louis game (7 ET). ESPN will keep play-by-play announcer DanShulman in the booth, but analysts Orel Hershiser and Steve Phillips will be stationed in the camera wells beside each dugout.

Matt Sandulli, ESPN senior coordinating producer, says the Cardinals preferred ESPN use the camera well on the outfield side, rather than home plate side, of its dugout to reduce chances its analysts might somehow interact with players. Sandulli says that won't happen anyway — "we're not supposed to talk to players and wouldn't do it" — and hopes to get the Dodgers to allow access to the well on its dugout's home plate side.

TV sports commonly station reporters along sidelines, in pit road or on golf fairways. But putting main game announcers in separate locations rarely has been done, such as NBC's Pierre McGuire being rinkside on NHL games or ESPN having Paul Maguire chime in on football from a sideline camera cart. Says Sandulli: "There's lot of non-verbal communication in the booth. We joked that maybe (the analysts) will will send signals from dugout to dugout."

Sandulli says its possible that ESPN could send more baseball announcers out of the booth on future games, depending partly on whether Monday night's experiment delivers a "wow factor."

While my initial reaction is that this might become a bit distracting, the intrigue almost outweighs that. The Pierre McGuire idea has worked wonders for NBC Hockey, and the same could potentially work for Baseball. Besides, it's Monday Night Baseball, why not?

ESPN baseball announcing team goes separate ways (USA Today)

Back when the U.S. National Football Team upended Japan at the 2007 IFAF World Championship, few people even realized there was such a competition. Well Lou Holtz isn't just a regular person or coach, so the former Notre Dame coach decided to challenge the gutsy Japanese team to a game. Their national team versus a collection of Notre Dame alums.

Now you would think this wouldn't fair with names like Tim Brown, Jerome Bettis, Reggie Brooks, Raghib Ismail and Rick Mirer, but none of those "youngins" are involved in the contest. Well Reggie Brooks and Tim Brown are coaches, but that doesn't count. No, Holtz thinks he can beat the Japanese with elder statesmen like, QB Tony Rice (41), WR Bobby Brown (32) and RB Ray Zellars (36). Via the AP....

TOKYO – Lou Holtz expects his players to uphold the Notre Dame football tradition when they face Japan in the Notre Dame Japan Bowl.

Holtz will coach a selection of alumni from the Notre Dame college team against Japan's national American football team and expects a tough game from the hosts.

"Their football has improved tremendously," Holtz said Friday at Tokyo Dome. "They've looked at film, they understand the game ... if we have an advantage it's in the lines, but they are quicker and in better shape so I'm a little worried about the second half."

The Fighting Irish alumni had only six practice sessions to prepare for the game and Holtz said avoiding injuries will be a key challenge.

"It's been a zoo," said Holtz. "When you get older players its tough but we're ready to go. It's Notre Dame football and we'll play the way Notre Dame is supposed to play."

If Lou Holtz gets out a samurai sword for his motivational speech, someone HAS to get tape of that to me IMMEDIATELY! The kickoff is this Saturday night at 4pm (3am in the States), but unfortunately it won't be aired live. However, you can see the game at 10pm, on August 10th, on CBS' College Sports Network. Check your local listings, and good luck, Lou!

Saturday, July 25th:

St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies (FOX, 4:10, 73%) - Dick Stockton, Tim McCarver and Ken Rosenthal

Markets Include: Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Birmingham, Boston, Buffalo, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Denver, Fort Myers, Greensboro, Greenville, Hartford, Houston, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Knoxville, Las Vegas, Louisville, Memphis, Miami, Milwaukee, Nashville, New Orleans, New York, Norfolk, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Providence, Raleigh, Richmond, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, St. Louis, Tampa, Tulsa, Washington, West Palm Beach

Minnesota Twins at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (FOX, 4:10, 16%) - Kenny Albert and Eric Karros

Markets Include: Dallas, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Portland, Seattle

Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tigers (FOX, 4:10, 10%) - Chris Rose and Mark Grace

Markets Include: Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis

Sunday, July 26th:

St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies (TBS, 1:30pm) - Chip Caray, Ron Darling and David Wells
Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tiger (ESPN, 8pm)- Jon Miller, Joe Morgan and Steve Phillips

Monday, July 27th:

Los Angeles Dodgers at St. Louis Cardinals (ESPN, 8pm)- Dan Shulman, Orel Hershiser and Steve Phillips

Having run this site for awhile now, I've learned quite a few things about implementing video into posts. Or at least I thought I knew a lot. Yesterday, Mike Francesa tried to explain how the Erin Andrews video made it to the Internet and here is the awesome result. Pay attention, because I think you'll learn something....

Ear marking....of course!!! How could I have been so foolish?!?! Everything will run much smoother now.

(Thanks to The Mike Francesa for the clip)

I'm pretty sure this one doesn't need a setup (click for larger). Thanks to SF for the pic....


Shame on you, Mark Buehrle!!!

You knew it was just a matter of time, but starting next April, the NFL Draft will be moving to a three-day format. Both ESPN and the NFL-N will still be covering those days, but they now have an extra day to work with, and will also be given a Thursday primetime starting point. Via John Clayton at ESPN....

The audience for the NFL draft has been growing, and the league has responded by expanding the event from two to three days.

Commissioner Roger Goodell notified teams Thursday that the draft will be spread over three days in 2010, running Thursday, April 22, through Saturday, April 24.

In addition, the first round will start in prime time at 7:30 p.m. ET.

"We continue to look for ways to make the draft more accessible to more fans," Goodell said in a statement. "Moving the first round to prime time on Thursday night will make the first round of the draft available to fans on what is typically the most-watched night of television."

ESPN and the NFL Network will televise the entire show.

The second and third rounds will start at 6:30 p.m. ET on April 23.

Rounds 4 through 7 will be on April 24, starting at 10 a.m. ET.

So there you have it. Obviously it's the right decision on multiple fronts, with the two biggest being ad revenue and ratings. It's the right decision, and should cause more media outlets to cover it, with the start time being on a Thursday evening.

Draft to expand to three days (ESPN)

Mark Buehrle threw a perfect game this afternoon, and while that feat is amazing in its own right, the play that kept it going in the ninth was even more amazing. The first batter of the ninth, Gabe Kapler, sent a drive to the centerfield wall, and Dwayne Wise went up and robbed the would-be first baserunner of the game. Here's your look at the play and the final out....

Just unbelievable performances by both Buehrle and Wise, and an absolutely amazing ending to the 18th Perfect Game thrown in Major League history.

Ever since ESPN decided to make a non-issue of this, I've been intrigued by the Roethlisberger civil lawsuit. Well today, Roethlisberger made a short, yet very confident statement, denying the allegations of Andrea McNulty. For as much as ESPN ignored the story, they predictably aired the press conference, and discussed the issue with one of their many law consultants. Here's a clip....

He was pretty adamant there, and since Nevada authorities aren't pursuing criminal charges, you can expect either a trial in the near future or a dismissal of the case. I'm personally expecting the later to happen.

Create the Caption is back by popular demand! I took a little hiatus from posting the captions, and sure it's hokey, but it's all in good fun. The CtC is back with a vengeance, and your comments are greatly appreciated.

Monday's Winners....


"Cink: Someone scratched "Open 77 was boss!" on here..."- Allen

"I wonder if the Antiques Roadshow is in town."- Cason

"Look, you can still make out "Jean Van de" on here."- Sean

"Tom Watson learns the technique for giving oneself the Heimlich Maneuver in an effort to stem future instances of choking."- NG
_______________________________________

Are you funny enough to create a caption for this photo of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Marc Anthony, Jennifer Lopez, Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and ESPN President George Bodenheimer?


Your Daily Links:

Keyshawn is fabulous! (Outside the Boxscore)
A-Rod = Patrick Bateman (Youtube)
Everyone missed the opening of the new Cowboys' stadium (Gold Cup)
Jeff Francoeur is awesome! (Sports Hernia)
The 2013 MLB HOF Class is looking very Mitchell-like (Hall of Very Good)
More on ESPN and Big Ben (SoB)
A look at Baseball's best facial hair (Awesomely!)
Manny is still Manny (Josh Q Public)

It's an all ESPN day today, with the main stories being the EA fallout, and the "Leader" denying to report on the Ben Roethlisber sexual assault lawsuit. Well last evening, not only did ESPN make the decision to ban Post writers, but they also decided to report on Big Ben....at 11:27pm....


ESPN had taken the stance that they don't report on civil lawsuits, only criminal, and for the most part....they've stuck to that. Two years ago, the "Leader" didn't report on Randy Moss' alleged "dating violence" case, until a restraining order was filed.

As far as Roethlisberger goes, ESPN's Bill Hofheimer had this to say to PFT today, "Based on the sensitive nature of the story and other factors we mentioned, we initially exercised caution and did not report it. Since then, we've been observing how the story has progressed, monitoring other news outlets, and doing our own reporting. We decided to report the story tonight."

Obviously, it's a tough spot to be in, but there are ways to handle it without upsetting the people involved. As long as you report it as "alleged", and add that authorities don't plan on looking into it, you've got your bases covered. If they had just done that days ago, none of this would have been an issue.

In the end, I don't think ESPN entirely "swept this under the rug", but they have to understand that it will (and can) be perceived that way. It's also amazing that the web can now force ESPN's hand, when it comes to matters like these.

Update: Ben will speak on the lawsuit at 2pm, but won't be taking any questions. You can bet ESPN will air the press conference live.

ESPN explains position on Roethlisberger (PFT)
Authorities won't look at Roethlisberger (ESPN)

In lieu of the NY Post "posting" photos of the infamous Erin Andrews hotel incident, ESPN has decided to ban all NY Post staffers in the immediate future. The Post ran images both online and in print, and the "Leader" did not take to kindly to that. Via Watchdog....

ESPN retaliated Wednesday against the New York Post for its decision to use still images of Erin Andrews from a surreptitiously obtained videotape, banning Post staffers from its various outlets, including its TV networks and 1050 ESPN Radio.

"In light of the New York Post's decision to run graphic photos of ESPN reporter Erin Andrews, we have decided to stop utilizing Post reporters on any of our outlets," ESPN's senior VP of communications, Chris LaPlaca said.

"Erin was grievously wronged here, and while we understand the Post's decision to cover this as a news story, their running photos obtained in such a fashion went well beyond the boundaries of common decency in the interest of sensationalism. This is not a decision we undertook lightly, but we feel it is an appropriate one."

It is not yet clear where the video was shot or who shot it, but Andrews' attorney has promised legal action against any media outlet that publishes the material.

It has not been determined how long the ban on Post employees will remain in place.

As Neil Best points out, the two people most affected are Kevin Kernan and Lenn Robbins, who appear regularly on First Take. There is no word yet on whether other outlets that used similar images, like CBS and FOX, will receive similar bans.

ESPN bans New York Post staffers from its outlets (Watchdog)

Man, color me disappointed after viewing this one, and why Lebron allegedly had this clip confiscated is beyond me. The dunk is pretty good, but nothing really to write home about. If Lebron had just laughed it off, and wished the kid well, it wouldn't have been an issue. Here's the clip if you haven't seen it yet....

Update: Here's a much better angle via Barstool Sports....

The Secret Dunk Exposed! (TMZ)

(Thanks to GITG for the heads up)

Bear with me, because this post is going to get a little long. ESPN released their announcing teams for College Football two weeks ago, and today they've dropped the entire schedule of games on the network's family of channels. Not only does ESPN take over the five BCS games in 2010 (thank God!), but this year they've acquired the rights to the Texas Bowl, which gives them a total of thirty Bowl Games. Obviously every game isn't set in stone, so there are a lot of holes (I left out the TBDs), but here's an early look at some of the matchups.....

Thu., Sept. 3

South Carolina at N.C. State (ESPN, 7pm)
North Texas at Ball State (ESPNU, 7:30pm)
Oregon at Boise State (ESPN, 10:15pm)

Fri., Sept. 4

Tulsa at Tulane (ESPN, 8pm)

Sat., Sept. 5

Navy at Ohio State (ESPN, Noon)
Minnesota at Syracuse (ESPN2, Noon)
Kentucky vs. Miami-OH (ESPNU, Noon)
Jacksonville State at Georgia Tech (ESPN360, 1pm)
Northeastern at Boston College (ESPN360.com, 2pm)
Georgia at Oklahoma State (ABC, 3:30pm)
Western Michigan at Michigan (ABC, 3:30pm)
Baylor at Wake Forest (ABC, 3:30pm)
Jackson State at Mississippi State (ESPNU, 3:30pm)
Missouri vs. Illinois (ESPN, 3:30pm)
Middle Tennessee at Clemson (ESPN360.com, 6pm)
William & Mary at Virginia (ESPN360.com, 6pm)
The Citadel at North Carolina (ESPN360.com, 6pm)
Oklahoma vs. BYU (ESPN, 7pm)
Louisiana Tech at Auburn (ESPNU, 7pm)
Alabama vs. Virginia Tech (ABC, 8pm)
Maryland at California (ESPN2, 10pm)
LSU at Washington (ESPN, 10:30pm)
Prairie View A&M at Texas Southern (ESPNU, 10:30pm)

Sun., Sept. 6

Grambling State vs. South Carolina St. (ESPN2, 2pm)
Mississippi at Memphis (ESPN, 3:30pm)

Mon., Sept. 7

Cincinnati at Rutgers (ESPN, 4pm)
Miami at Florida State (ESPN, 8pm)

Thu., Sept. 10

Clemson at Georgia Tech (ESPN, 7:30pm)
Florida A&M at Winston-Salem State (ESPNU, 7:30pm)

Fri. Sept. 11

Colorado at Toledo (ESPN, 9pm)

Sat., Sept. 12

Fresno State at Wisconsin (ESPN or ESPN2, Noon)
Central Michigan at Michigan State (ESPN or ESPN2, Noon)
North Carolina at Connecticut (ESPNU, Noon)
Marshall at Virginia Tech (ESPN360.com, 1:30pm)
Kent State at Boston College (ESPN360.com, 2pm)
Notre Dame at Michigan (ABC, 3:30pm)
BYU at Tulane (ESPN2, 3:30pm)
TCU at Virginia (ESPNU, 3:30pm)
UCLA at Tennessee (ESPN, 4pm)
Jacksonville State at Florida State (ESPN360.com, 6pm)
South Carolina at Georgia (ESPN2, 6pm)
Vanderbilt at LSU (ESPNU, 7pm)
USC at Ohio State (ESPN, 8pm)
Utah at San Jose State (ESPNU, 10:30pm)

Thu., Sept. 17

Georgia Tech at Miami (ESPN, 7:30pm)
Howard at Florida A&M (ESPNU, 7:30pm)

Fri., Sept. 18

Boise State at Fresno State (ESPN, 9pm)

Sat., Sept. 19

East Carolina at North Carolina (ESPN or ESPN2, Noon)
California at Minnesota (ESPN or ESPN2, Noon)
Louisville at Kentucky (ESPNU, Noon)
USC at Washington (ABC, 3:30pm)
Nebraska at Virginia Tech (ABC, 3:30pm)
Arizona at Iowa (ABC, 3:30pm)
Utah at Oregon (ESPN, 3:30pm)
Indiana at Akron (ESPNU, 3:30pm)
Middle Tennessee at Maryland (ESPN360.com, 3:30pm)
Navy at Pittsburgh (ESPN360.com, 6pm)
Louisiana-Lafayette at LSU (ESPNU, 7pm)
Georgia at Arkansas (ESPN or ESPN2, 7:45pm)
West Virginia at Auburn (ESPN or ESPN2, 7:45pm)
Texas Tech at Texas (ABC, 8pm)
Hampton at North Carolina A&T (ESPNU, 10:30pm)

Thu., Sept. 24

Mississippi at South Carolina (ESPN, 7:30pm)

Fri., Sept. 25

Missouri at Nevada (ESPN, 9pm)

Sat., Sept. 26

California at Oregon (ABC, 3:30pm)
Notre Dame at Purdue (ABC or ESPN, 8pm)
Iowa at Penn State (ABC or ESPN, 8pm)
Texas Tech at Houston (ESPN2, 9:15pm)

Wed., Sept. 30

Hawaii at Louisiana Tech (ESPN, 8pm)

Thu., Oct. 1

Colorado at West Virginia (ESPN, 7:30pm)
Alcorn State at Arkansas-Pine Bluff (ESPNU, TBD)

Fri., Oct. 2

Pittsburgh at Louisville (ESPN2, 8pm)

Sat., Oct. 3

USC at California (ABC, 8pm)

Tue., Oct. 6

Middle Tennessee at Troy (ESPN2, 8pm)

Thu., Oct. 8

Colgate at Princeton (ESPNU, 7pm)
Nebraska at Missouri (ESPN, 9pm)

Fri., Oct. 9

Louisiana Tech at Nevada (ESPN, 9pm)

Sat., Oct. 10

Michigan at Iowa (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, 8pm)

Tue., Oct. 13

Arkansas State at Louisiana-Monroe (ESPN2, 8pm)

Wed., Oct. 14

Boise State at Tulsa (ESPN, 8pm)

Thu., Oct. 15

Cincinnati at South Florida (ESPN, 7:30pm)
Howard at Morgan State (ESPNU, 7:30pm)

Fri., Oct. 16

Pittsburgh at Rutgers (ESPN, 8pm)

Sat., Oct. 17

Oklahoma vs. Texas (ABC, Noon)

Wed., Oct. 21

Tulsa at UTEP (ESPN, 8pm)

Thu., Oct. 22

Prairie View A&M at Southern (ESPNU, 7:30pm)
Florida State at North Carolina (ESPN, 8pm)

Fri., Oct. 23

Rutgers at Army (ESPN2, 8pm)

Sat., Oct. 24

Oregon State at USC (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, 8pm)

Tue., Oct. 27

East Carolina at Memphis (ESPN2, 8pm)

Thu., Oct. 29

North Carolina at Virginia Tech (ESPN, 7:30pm)

Fri., Oct. 30

West Virginia at South Florida (ESPN2, 8pm)

Sat. Oct. 31

Michigan at Illinois (ABC, 3:30pm)
Penn State at Northwestern (ESPN or ESPN2, 4:30pm)
USC at Oregon (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, 8pm)

Sun., Nov. 1

Marshall at UCF (ESPN, 8:15pm)

Tue., Nov. 3

Bowling Green at Buffalo (ESPN2, 7pm)

Thu, Nov. 5

Virginia Tech at East Carolina (ESPN, 7:30pm

Fri., Nov. 6

Boise State at Louisiana Tech (ESPN2, 8pm)

Sat., Nov. 7

USC at Arizona State (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, 8pm)

Sun., Nov. 8

Nevada at San Jose State (ESPN, 8:15pm)

Tue., Nov. 10

Ohio at Buffalo (ESPN2, 7pm)

Wed., Nov. 11

Toledo at Central Michigan (ESPN2, 8pm)

Thu., Nov. 12

South Florida at Rutgers (ESPN, 7:30pm)
Texas Southern at Grambling State (ESPNU, 9pm)

Fri., Nov. 13

West Virginia at Cincinnati (ESPN2, 8pm)
Temple at Akron (ESPNU, 8pm)

Sat., Nov. 14

Notre Dame at Pittsburgh (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)

Sun., Nov. 15

East Carolina at Tulsa (ESPN, 8:15pm)

Wed., Nov. 18

Central Michigan at Ball State (ESPNU/ESPN2, 6 or 8pm)
Buffalo at Miami-OH (ESPNU/ESPN2, 6 or 8pm)

Thu., Nov. 19

Tennessee State at Eastern Illinois (ESPNU, 6:30pm)
Colorado at Oklahoma State (ESPN, 7:30pm)

Fri., Nov. 20

Akron at Bowling Green (ESPNU, 5:30pm)
Boise State at Utah State (ESPN2, 9:30pm)

Tue., Nov. 24

Ball State at Western Michigan (ESPN2 7pm)

Thur., Nov. 26

Tuskegee at Alabama State (ESPNU, 4pm)
Texas at Texas A&M (ESPN, 8pm)

Fri., Nov. 27

Nebraska at Colorado (ABC, 3:30pm)
Rutgers at Louisville (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
Illinois at Cincinnati (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
Pittsburgh at West Virginia (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
Nevada at Boise State (ESPN2, TBD)

Sat., Nov. 28

Notre Dame at Stanford (ABC, 8pm)

Thu., Dec. 3

Oregon State at Oregon (ESPN, 9pm)

Fri., Dec. 4

Marathon MAC Championship Game (ESPN2, 8pm)

Sat., Dec. 5

Southern at Texas Southern (ESPNU, 2pm)
Arizona at USC (ABC, 3:30pm)
Dr Pepper Big 12 Championship Game (ABC, 8pm)
Dr Pepper ACC Championship Game (ESPN, 8pm)
South Florida at Connecticut (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
West Virginia at Rutgers (ABC, ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
Conference USA Championship Game (ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)
Wisconsin at Hawaii (ESPN or ESPN2, TBD)

A few weeks ago, I shared a clip of Charley Steiner botching an end of game call. Well over the weekend, Dick Stockton had a call that could quite possibly top the Steiner confusion. Stockton got confused on the final pitch of the game, and called the throw both "ball four" and "strike three". Here's the short, but hilarious, audio....

Too funny. I've thought that Baseball was the perfect Sport for the elder Stockton, because of the pace, but apparently even the slowest game is too much for ole Dicky. Such a shame.

(Thanks to JH for the clip)

The infamous dunk on Lebron has been acquired by the gossip site, TMZ, and will be aired tonight on their website at 6:45pm. Co-executive producer of TMZ, Charles Latibeaudiere, broke the news on JT the Brick's radio show on KLAC, and also mentioned that they are trying to get a hold of Lebron for a reaction. Via Sports Radio Interviews....

“Nike went around and confiscated the video that they knew was shot, what they didn’t know is there was someone else there who shot it just on their cell phone. Apparently, Nike guys haven’t discovered that cell phones have video cameras as well; this person had it on a cell phone. I wish it was a camera that was right underneath the hoop where you could see the look on LeBron’s face, but it’s awesome. You can see Jordan come down the lane, and after he gets dunked on, LeBron is kind of standing there and you can tell something just happened that he didn’t wanna have happened, and ‘Oh crap. It’s on video too.”

Well it's about time! I can't believe it took TMZ this long to acquire the footage, but thank god they did. I'll try to get it up later on tonight.

Charles Latibeaudiere: The Dunk Was Awesome (Sports Radio Interviews)

ESPN lets a lot of athletes through their "carwash" of interviews on a regular basis, and there's obviously some that they have cushy relationships with. However, it's honestly rare that they choose to ignore certain items, about said athletes, entirely. According to a few websites, Fang's Bites and PFT, the "Leader" is completely ignoring the fact that Ben Roethlisberger is being sued by woman in Nevada. Obviously saying that a pro athlete "sexually assaulted" you, has become taboo at this point, but there should absolutely be a mention of it somewhere. Via FB....

Despite news outlets picking it up, ESPN remains steadfast in its stubbornness to ignore the Ben Roethlisberger lawsuit story. Last night, it was reported by various media outlets including CBSSports.com, Yahoo!, Pro Football Talk and others that the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback is being sued by a woman who alleges she was sexually assaulted by Roethlisberger in a Nevada hotel last year.

Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio wonders if ESPN is attempting to protect a relationship with the quarterback. In the story, it's pointed out that Roethlisberger is appearing on ESPN corporate sibling ABC next month in Shaquille O'Neal's new reality show.

But shortly after 1 p.m. ET today, Florio discovers that ESPN has issued a strict "DO NOT REPORT" order, baffling its staffers. Thanks to the Sports Media Watch for the link.

So is ESPN protecting Roethlisberger to maintain a corporate relationship and access to the athlete? If it is, it's another arrow for critics to shoot at ESPN as allegations continue that the network gets too close to certain athletes it covers.

In addition, the network's silence on the story while others report is a hole too big to ignore. And the fact that ESPN jumped all over the Pacman Jones story while refusing to mention Ben Roethlisberger now gives the African American community fodder that the Alleged Worldwide Leader caters to white athletes.

While I don't think race is an issue in this case, I do think ESPN caters to the athletes that give them more appearances than others. I thought the "Leader" had made inroads last year when they hammered their darling Patriots during the whole "Cameragate" months, but apparently they've reverted back to their old ways.

ESPN Will Not Report Roethlisberger Story (Fang's Bites)
Source: ESPN issues "do not report" alert on Roethlisberger story (PFT)

This is just about the toughest argument in the history of Sports, but Charles Barkley knows where he stands. The AZ Central asked Chuck about the careers of Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods, and while you'd think someone who played against Jordan in his prime would pick "His Airness", Barkley decided to throw a curveball....

On Tiger Woods missing the cut at the British Open:

"It bothers me right now that people make such a big deal out of that. He missed one other cut in a major, and that was after his dad died. So that doesn't really count. And to go 13 years and miss one cut in the majors has to be one of the most remakrable achievements out there. That's really impressive. And it shows you the stupidity of certain people who are questionging him. I'll bet every pro has missed 10 or more cuts. but it just shows you the double standard. Some of those guys have probably missed 25 cuts. This is really his first one, and when I talk to him, I'll tell him, 'Bro, you're probably down and have the red ass right now, but to go 13 years and only miss one cut, that's one of your major accomplishments. You're talking about the world's hardest golf courses, and to go 13 years and only miss one cut is remarkable."

On who's more impressive, Tiger or Michael Jordan:

"I think Tiger is more impressive. He has to play against 130 guys or more every week. He can't control what other people are doing. He can only do his thing. They're the two greatest athletes I've seen in my generation. For me, it's cool to have competed against Michael and watched Tiger in his prime."

That's a tough one to answer, and Charles makes a couple of great points, but I would call it a dead heat. Michael Jordan was flat out unbeatable from age 23 to 33 (minus the attempt at Baseball), and Tiger just turned 33 himself. My personal view is that Tiger is starting his decline at the same time as Jordan's, and now that he has an injury to wrestle with and a growing family, winning might not be everything. Still though, it's a great topic to debate.

Sir Charles Speaks (AZ Central)

I linked to the story earlier, but now there's video of the incident thanks to WL. During a World Team Tennis match, McEnroe got upset with a shot by Washington’s Leander Paes. The shot hit his teammate, Robert Kendrick, and the group got together for a small tet-a-tet. Well four points later, Paes sent a serve right at Kendrick, and that sent everyone off. Well as "off" as you can get during a meaningless Tennis match....

The extra dude that showed up in the blue shirt is actually New York's Coach, Chuck Adams, and he has since been suspended. It doesn't take much in Tennis apparently. Also, if someone sent a 100mph serve at me when I wasn't returning it, I think I would do a lot more than just chat with the guy. That's just me though.

You Can't Be Serious, Man (With Leather)

Create the Caption is back by popular demand! I took a little hiatus from posting the captions, and sure it's hokey, but it's all in good fun. The CtC is back with a vengeance, and your comments are greatly appreciated.

Last Wednesday's Winners....


"Albert, if I bounce this pitch, go around Busch Stadium and round up all the video tapes."- Walrus

"No, really....My new healthcare plan will pay for all of your steroids."- IH8DOOK

"Having learned to be more discreet about ogling teenage Brazilian girls, President Obama merely whispers about the brunette in the third row to Albert Pujols."- General Malaise

"Why yes, those are Bugle Boy jeans I'm wearing...."- Rex Banner
_______________________________________

Are you funny enough to create a caption for this photo of Stewart Cink checking out the Claret Jug while second place finisher, Tom Watson, and Matteo Manassero of Italy look on?


Your Daily Links:

Tennis Fight! (DC Sports Bog)
Strahan might not be so bad at this sitcom thing (Watchdog)
Michael Jordan and his giant inflatable penis (SbB)
A double backflip gone wrong (TPS)
Richard Jefferson paid of his ex-fiancee (Black Sports Online)
Watching the NBA Summer League is like getting drunk (That NBA Lottery Pick)
Brett Favre is a tragic hero (Grand National)
An interesting post on various BCS team's strength of schedule (LOCG)

The fact that Shaquille O'Neal hasn't starred in his own reality show at this point, is a complete travesty. ABC is planning on changing all that when it will air "Shaq Vs." this August. O'Neal has already lined up competitions against athletes in their own Sport with the likes of Michael Phelps, Ben Roethlisberger and Albert Pujols, and is looking to add Lance Armstrong to the list. Via USA Today....

Filming begins Wednesday in Pittsburgh, where Shaq takes on Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in football. Future hour-long episodes will pit him against Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, retired boxer Oscar De La Hoya, St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols, tennis pro Serena Williams and beach volleyball Olympians Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh.

O'Neal, 37, says he also hopes to book pal Lance Armstrong for a cycling competition once the Tour de France ends. The series is set to premiere Aug. 18 and will air Tuesdays at 9 ET/PT.

O'Neal says he came up with the idea as a fun way to help train for the NBA season and figured sports fans "would really want to see an athlete play another sport." He knew most of the athletes and recruited some of them on Twitter.

ABC was immediately interested. "He's very playful, almost everyone can relate to him. He has a fun sort of childish persona, and at the same time he's a superstar," says John Saade, co-chief of ABC's reality programming, says of the 7-foot-1 O'Neal. "Our real hope is you come for the absurdity but you stay for the sport."

Up until now, I've thought every reality show possibility had been explored, but apparently I was wrong. This seems like a light-hearted and definitely fun idea, and I can't imagine anyone who would choose to skip Shaq acting like a fool with other famous athletes. Great work, ABC!

O'Neal courts competition on new reality show 'Shaq Vs.' (USA Today)
Shaq Steps Into the Reality TV Realm (WFNY)

A month ago, it was announced that Chris Berman would be introducing Bills' Owner, Ralph Wilson, into the Hall of Fame. Well today, the NFL is releasing the news that Rich Eisen will be hosting the festivities, thus putting him on ESPN's broadcast of the inductions. Via USA Today....

Former SportsCenter anchor Rich Eisen, dropped by ESPN in 2003, will next month be back on the channel. But Eisen, now an NFL Network anchor, will just be making a single appearance — albeit one that will last several hours. He'll replace Chris Berman as the host of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's induction ceremony on Aug. 9, which will air both on ESPN and NFLN. Longtime ceremony host Berman will have a new role as a presenter for inductee Ralph Wilson, owner of the Buffalo Bills.

Eisen, who says he has "no idea" who'll host next year, says it was "an absolute thrill" to get the assignment. And he's thinking what he could bring to a show that could last five hours: "Maybe I could be the first Hall MC to do wardrobe changes. But I don't think it would fit the day."

I had an irrational hatred of Eisen for years, but I have to admit, his time on the NFL Network has actually been good for him (and my impression of him). He's actually the perfect person to host the event, and should provide some levity in between grown men crying at the podium. Besides, would you rather have Berman do it, or Rich? Exactly.

Back on ESPN (USA Today)

I'm still not sure why ESPN chose to start their local website launch in Chicago, but obviously it was successful enough that they decided to expand. The "Leader" announced the addition of three new local sites in New York, Los Angeles and Dallas. Via ESPN PR....

ESPN announced today that it will roll out three more city-specific sports sites in the months ahead, with Dallas, Los Angeles and New York joining the successful ESPNChicago.com. ESPNDallas.com is slated to launch this Fall, followed by ESPNNewYork.com and ESPNLosAngeles.com in the first half of 2010. Like ESPNChicago.com, each site will feature an integrated home for ESPN’s news and information, online video and digital audio powered by the flagship ESPN Radio station in each market, giving local fans a destination for their sports on-air, online, on-site and on mobile devices.

“Our commitment to expand ESPN’s network of localized sites is a testament to our dedication to serve sports fans and their passions,” said Marc Horine, vice president digital partnerships and sales development, ESPN Digital Media. “We understand that local sports interests ignite strong passions, and Dallas, New York and Los Angeles have some of the most storied franchises and fan bases in history. We’re excited by the early success we’ve had with ESPNChicago.com and the opportunities that lie ahead.”

Like ESPNChicago.com, each site will have its own short-form SportsCenter, hosted by SC anchors and providing an original 3-6 minute roundup of the city’s sports news, teams and figures each day.

According to the figures, ESPN Chicago is the city's most popular website by attracting almost 600K worth of traffic. Obviously if other local sites by ESPN could put the same amount of a dent in the market, then this is another death blow to the flailing newspaper industry. You can look for ESPN Dallas this fall, and NY and LA to launch shortly after that.

See what happens when you take a few days off? Apparently some hotel employee takes a peephole video of America's favorite sideline reporter, and said sideline reporter has since threatened a lawsuit against the maker of the video. Both the lawyer and ESPN have made statements, and here they are....

LOS ANGELES, Calif., July 17 /PRNewswire/ — With respect to recent Internet postings of Erin Andrews, she has authorized her attorney, Marshall B. Grossman of Bingham McCutchen LLP, to issue the following statement:

“While alone in the privacy of her hotel room, Erin Andrews was surreptitiously videotaped without her knowledge or consent. She was the victim of a crime and is taking action to protect herself and help ensure that others are not similary violated in the future. Although the perpetrator or perpetrators of this criminal act have not yet been identified, when they are identified she intends to bring both civil and criminal charges against them and against anyone who has published the material. We request respect of Erin’s privacy at this time, while she and her representatives are working with the authorities.”

ESPN's statement: "Erin has been grievously wronged here. Our people and resources are in full support of her as she deals with this abhorrent act."

Obviously there's a way to download the video, but there's not a chance in hell that I'm going to promote a criminal act like this on this site. It's a flat out violation of a persons rights, and the person who filmed it should definitely be charged with assault. I hope this goes away quickly for Andrews, and hopefully anyone who gets their hands on such filth, has the decency to not give it any play.

Last year the NFL Network aired 53 preseason games throughout the Summer, but this year they're amping it up a bit. In fact, the league's channel will be airing every single game at some point during the month of August, and will include all 11 nationally televised games. Via NFL-N PR....

NFL Network is home to all the NFL preseason games for the first time with 65 games airing on the only network dedicated entirely to football. In addition for the first time, the entire NFL preseason schedule will be seen in high definition nationally including 12 live preseason games, the most in the network’s history.

Week 1 of the 2009 NFL preseason on NFL Network features five live games highlighted by the debuts of first-round quarterback draft picks MATTHEW STAFFORD and MARK SANCHEZ. The live coverage kicks off with a doubleheader on Friday, August 14 at 8:00 PM ET with the St. Louis Rams vs. New York Jets, followed by Denver Broncos vs. San Francisco 49ers. Saturday, August 15 features the first-ever live tripleheader with the Atlanta Falcons vs. Detroit Lions beginning at 4:00 PM ET, followed immediately by Chicago Bears vs. Buffalo Bills and Seattle Seahawks vs. San Diego Chargers.

There’s no better place for Fantasy Football fans to prepare their picks and depth charts for the 2009 regular season than with NFL Network and NFL.com’s all-encompassing coverage of the 2009 preseason. All 12 live preseason games will include halftime shows featuring NFL Network’s team of analysts from its Los Angeles studios and five-minute NFL Network Now updates between game broadcasts reporting the most up-to-date news and information. NFL Network’s schedule includes a total of 162 telecasts as it includes every game, live games and game replays of all the preseason action.

I'm so stoked that Comcast and the NFL Network worked out that deal to keep the channel on their programming. Get your calendars out folks, because here is the entire list of games, and times that they're being aired (*- indicated live telecast on NFL-N)! Many thanks to Ken at Fang's Bites for the release....

Monday, August 10

Buffalo Bills at Tennessee Titans (9am)

Thursday, August 13

New England Patriots at Philadelphia Eagles (11pm)

Friday, August 14

Dallas Cowboys at Oakland Raiders (2am)
Washington Redskins at Baltimore Ravens (3pm)
St. Louis Rams at New York Jets (7pm)*
Denver Broncos at San Francisco 49ers (10pm) *

Saturday, August 15

Minnesota Vikings at Indianapolis Colts (1am)
Cincinnati Bengals at New Orleans Saints (7am)
Arizona Cardinals at Pittsburgh Steelers (1pm)
Atlanta Falcons at Detroit Lions (4pm)*
Chicago Bears at Buffalo Bills (7pm)*
Seattle Seahawks at San Diego Chargers (10pm)*

Sunday, August 16

Cleveland Browns at Green Bay Packers (1am)
Houston Texans at Kansas City (10am)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Tennessee Titans (1pm)

Monday, August 17

Jacksonville Jaguars at Miami Dolphins (11pm)

Wednesday, August 19

Carolina Panthers at New York Giants (1pm)

Thursday, August 20

Cincinnati Bengals at New England Patriots (11pm)

Friday, August 21

Philadelphia Eagles at Indianapolis Colts (1pm)
Kansas City Chiefs at Minnesota Vikings (1pm)

Saturday, August 22

Atlanta Falcons at St. Louis Rams (2am)
Tennessee Titans at Dallas Cowboys (1pm)
Pittsburgh Steelers at Washington Redskins (7:30pm)*
Denver Broncos at Seattle Seahawks (10:30pm)*

Sunday, August 23

San Diego Chargers at Arizona Cardinals (1:30am)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Jacksonville Jaguars (7am)
Detroit Lions at Cleveland Browns (10am)
Carolina Panthers at Miami Dolphins (1pm)
Buffalo Bills at Green Bay Packers (4pm)
New York Giants at Chicago Bears (7pm)
Oakland Raiders at San Francisco 49ers (10pm)

Monday, August 24

New Orleans Saints at Houston Texans (1am)

Wednesday, August 26

New York Jets at Baltimore Ravens (1pm)

Thursday, August 27

Jacksonville Jaguars at Philadelphia Eagles (11pm)

Friday, August 28

St. Louis Rams at Cincinnati Bengals (2am)
Miami Dolphins at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1pm)

Saturday, August 29

Green Bay Packers at Arizona Cardinals (1am)
New England Patriots at Washington Redskins (7am)
Indianapolis Colts at Detroit Lions (1pm)*
New Orleans at Oakland Raiders (4pm)*
Seattle Seahawks at Kansas City Chiefs (11pm)

Sunday, August 30

Baltimore Ravens at Carolina Panthers (7am)
New York Jets at New York Giants (10am)
Buffalo Bills at Pittsburgh Steelers (1pm)
San Francisco 49s at Dallas Cowboys (4pm)

Monday, August 31

Tennessee Titans at Cleveland Browns (12am)
San Diego Chargers at Atlanta Falcons (7am)
Chicago Bears at Denver Broncos (4pm)

Tuesday, September 1

Minnesota Vikings at Houston Texans (10am)

Thursday, September 3

Philadelphia Eagles at New York Jets (7pm)*
Oakland Raiders at Seattle Seahawks (10pm)*

Friday, September 4

Kansas City Chiefs at St. Louis Rams (7am)
Baltimore Ravens at Atlanta Falcons (10am)
Miami Dolphins at New Orleans Saints (1pm)
New York Giants at New England Patriots (4pm)
Dallas Cowboys at Minnesota Vikings (8pm)
Green Bay Packers at Tennessee Titans (11:30pm)

Saturday, September 5

Arizona Cardinals at Denver Broncos (1am)
Houston Texans at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10am)
Cleveland Browns at Chicago Bears (4pm)
Washington Redskins at Jacksonville Jaguars (8:30pm)
Indianapolis Colts at Cincinnati Bengals (11:30pm)

Sunday, September 6

Detroit Lions at Buffalo Bills (7am)
Pittsburgh Steelers at Carolina Panthers (4pm)
San Francisco 49ers at San Diego Chargers (2:30am)

(*- Live NFL-N Telecasts)