KarateKen

Another unfortunate story connected to the NFL, this one about former WR Antonio Brown.  Brown has been arrested on an attempted murder charge from back in June.  He was in Dubai and is being brought back to the US to face the charge.  Brown allegedly attempted to shoot and kill a man in Miami with a handgun, firing a bullet that grazed the alleged victim but did not kill him.  The charge is second degree attempted murder.  Brown has had several serious off the field issues over the years, none more serious than this one.  Many have pointed to a hit Brown took while he was with the Steelers.  It was a playoff game against the Bengals and LB Vontaze Burfict.  A very nasty and illegal hit to the head.  Someday I hope research is done on Brown's brain, very possible he has an extreme case of CTE. 

The Broncos are winning a lot of close games this year, and they did it again Thursday night, beating the Raiders 10-7.  Broncos are now 8-2, best record in the NFL, Raiders fall to 2-7. 

Allegations that at least one fighter was betting on himself to lose, then lost on purpose. Dana White has said the FBI is looking into it.  Two weeks ago, we saw the arrest of a current NBA player and coach for an alleged gambling scandal, and now this.  Bad timing for the UFC. 

Any thoughts? 

Fox Sports has hired former Saints QB Drew Breese to be part of their broadcast team, likely replacing Mark Sanchez who is facing legal problems.  Breese and Brady on the same network talking football.  

Another trade to discuss, the NY Jets have sent DT Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys in exchange for a 2026 second round pick, a 2027 first round pick, and DT Mazi Smith.  Many are critical of the Cowboys for this trade, saying it is way too much to give up for Williams, who has one sack this year.  Bill Simmons called the trade "bonkers," with his guest saying that Cowboys fans should be livid.  Dallas is 3-5-1 this year and ranks 31st in the league on defense.  

Has anyone noticed that when you do a Google search now the first thing at the top is Google AI?  Not sure what to make of that but I don't think it is good.  The AI is not reliable. I will give you an example.  I did a Google search about actor Harland Williams, a popular comedy actor from the 90s, asking a question about him.  Google AI stated something that he said as sarcastic but put it into the AI search as factual.  The computer can't tell the difference between jokes and truth, and if people read that and take it at face value they will be misinformed.  Can we get a fact check for AI? 

The Raiders have traded WR Jakobi Meyers to the Jaguars for two draft picks, 4th and 6th round, both in 2026. 

The Saints have traded WR Rashid Saheed to the Seahawks for two draft picks, a 4th and 5th round, both in 2026.  

Jaguars and Seahawks trying to improve their roster for a playoff run, Raiders and Saints planning for the future.  Good trade for all teams involved.

Greed is ruining everything.  

50 minutes ago, sensei8 said:

 

Btw, that 1 ticket will cost you $46,219.20. You do get to take your chair home with you.

 

How about NO.

6 minutes ago, sensei8 said:

Raiders…Raiders…Raiders!! There’s a saying that goes something like this…”Can’t win them all.” How appropriate when talking about the Raiders.

In O/T…

Raiders 29

Panthers 30 

Carroll went for the 2-point conversion but the throw was blocked.

Here’s what I don’t understand. Tie is better than a lose…or is it?!?

The Raiders aren’t one of the best 2-point conversion teams in the NFL:

This year, the Raiders have a 33.3% success rate. Last 3 games, they have amassed 0.00% 2-point conversion percentage, as well as last 1 games. At home, 0.00% success in 2-point conversion. Away, 50.00% 2-point conversion. Last year the Raiders had a 40.00% 2-point conversion overall.

Was Carroll gambling the percentage when her decided to go for the 2-point conversion instead of the extra point to tie the game.

Technically speaking, a tie is better than a loss. However, there are many factors to consider when deciding whether or not a tie is better than a loss.

In the NFL, a tie is better than a loss. That's what the data says, at least. In the past 20 years, there have been 191 tied games in the NFL. In those 191 games, the teams that tied ended up winning 55.6% of the time.

That’s what the data shows…before.

Nowadays the data says that it’s better to lose than tying.

This argument won’t ever be satisfied. I’m good with that.

I don’t question Carroll’s decision because after all, he’s the coach, and a darn good one, and who am I to question him!?!

As an armchair quarterback, I would’ve went for the tie!!

What do you think??

 

A tie is not going to get it done for the Raiders.  They are in a tough division and behind the eight ball after a terrible start.  Going for the win makes sense there. 

Colts lost to the Steelers, dropping them to 7-2, Patriots and Broncos both won, lifting them to 7-2, so three teams are an NFL best 7-2, and all in the AFC.  However, there are several teams sitting at 6-2.  One of them is the Bills, who beat the Chiefs on Sunday, drop the Chiefs to 5-4, third in the AFC West.  That is a tough division, and we could see three playoff teams from there, Chiefs, Broncos, and Chargers. The Vikings kept their season alive by beating the Lions, but at 4-4 Minnesota is still last place in the NFC North, another division that might produce three playoff teams.  There were high expectations from the Washington Commanders this season, but have been a disappointment, they lost to Seattle on Sunday, four losses in a row, and are 3-6.  The Cardinals have lost five in a row; seems they have not recovered from that fourth quarter meltdown against the Titans.  They face the Cowboys Monday night in hopes of ending that long losing streak.  The Falcons, who had a big win against the Bills a few weeks ago, suddenly are on a three-game losing streak of their own and find themselves in trouble.  

It is the middle of the season; this is where the contenders start to separate from the pretenders. 

7 hours ago, Patrick said:

It's funny when I saw the title of this, at first I thought it was an old movie from a long time ago, but we're talking about the 2019 film, right? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_Self-Defense_(2019_film)

I've never seen it, but it sounds interesting. Where you can watch it: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/the-art-of-self-defense

It does have a title that sounds like the 70s, but yes, that is the one. 

Not an MLB fan anymore, but I have to admit that this game was worth watching.  It was one of the greatest games I have ever seen.  It was wild from start to finish, and the Dodgers beat the Blue Jays 5-4 in 11 innings, winning after being down 4-2 in the 8th.  Toronto had chances, runner on third with one out in both the 9th and 11th but did not score. Would have been nice if they had won, it has been 32 years.  Amazing game, disappointed in the result.  

Note: This was only the third time a WS game 7 had gone to 11 innings, the last one was in 1997 when the Marlins beat the Indians.  The other was in 1924! 

Game 7 tonight AND an extra hour of sleep?? COUNT ME IN! That sounds like a great combination to me. 

The Wild are 3-6-3, losers of five in a row, and the second longest losing streak in the league right now behind the Blues at 6.  Islanders and Maple Leafs are also off to a slow start.  The Flames have six points, worst in the league, while the Penguins and Avalanche both have 18 points, top in the NHL. 

Original Halloween is a good movie, Halloween 2 is popular and well liked, though I never got into it.  Halloween 3 is a different animal.  Halloween 4 is a movie that I like early on but it falls apart, Halloween movies five and six are terrible.  

Slap on the wrist for the Ravens as the NFL continues to make questionable decisions on handing out punishment.  Ravens were fined 100 grand for their injury report violation last week, a situation that should have been looked at more seriously after what we just saw in the NBA, though I can't say I am surprised.  No loss of a draft pick so the Ravens avoid any major consequences. No fine for the head coach, just the organization.  Great job, NFL.  

Colts RB Jonathan Taylor has been named AFC offensive player of the month.  The Colts are sitting pretty at 7-1, best record in the NFL, and are getting ready to go into Pittsburgh and face the Steelers on Sunday.  Though the game of the week is in Buffalo as the Bills host the Chiefs.  KC has come on strong of late after starting slow, while the Bills are 5-2, one up in the loss column on the Chiefs.  Very possible that this game will be the deciding factor on who gets home field if these two meet in the playoffs.  

The night game is Seattle at Washington, and Monday night is Arizona at Dallas. 

14 hours ago, sensei8 said:

Maybe I’m way too old but for some reason I just don’t enjoy horror movies as much as I use too!! Jason, Freddie, Micheal, and Chucky are predictable characters and quite humorous to me!!

Final Destination movies are the most predictable to me; quite boring although my wife loves them all. Speaking of my wife, she won’t watch Chucky, Micheal, Aliens, and Predators. She also loves Children of the Corn.

I love Escape Room movies mainly because I’ve done Escape Room attractions, like the ones here in Las Vegas, Denver, and Bakersfield. Maybe my love of chess might have something to do with that.

There’s one that I’ve tried to watch with my brother 9 times when I was in high school that starred Linda Blair!! I won’t even type that movies title!! It took my brother those 9 times to watch the entire movie, and the more we went, the more time I spent in the lobby playing video games than seeing that movie but I saw enough to know that I’d never forget what I did see to last me a lifetime!! For the longest time my brother had a hard time sleeping because every time he closed his eyes to go to sleep he’d see her face and couldn’t sleep!! Even today, I hate seeing that movie advertised in any shape, way, and form, and they love to play it a lot in the month of October.

I’ll take a black and white monster movie over today’s horror movies anytime. 

There is something extra enjoyable about the black and white in classic horror movies like Psycho, Night of the Living Dead, Frankenstein, ect.  

Holy jumping Jack-O-Lantern's look at the date!  Happy Halloween everyone! 

The Dodgers were off their game on Wednesday night, and the Blue Jays took advantage, winning 6-1 and taking a 3-2 series lead back up to Canada.  Game six is on Friday. 

On 10/27/2025 at 3:34 PM, KarateKen said:

The Ravens are being investigated for possibly violating the injury report rules.  Jackson was listed as a "full participant" in practice on Friday, but he wasn't.  Then on Saturday he was ruled out.  Why does this matter? Because it changed the betting lines.  The Ravens went from 6.5-point favorites on Friday, to 2.5 after Jackson was ruled out. This coming just two days after the bombshell NBA betting scandal that rocked the sports world.  A current NBA player and head coach were both arrested for illegal gambling, and further accusations of players giving inside information about player injuries to bookies, and players faking injuries to rig bets.  Goodell should come down hard on the Ravens to send a message that this is not going to be tolerated.  John Harbaugh claims that it was an honest mistake, but the league could still punish the team with a fine and a loss of a draft pick.  In the eyes of many fans the integrity of sports have been compromised due to the increased interest these leagues have with the gambling world, where the gambling ads seem to get more common every year. The timing on this could not have been worse for the Ravens and this could prove to be a very costly mistake. 

 

 

 

No update on the investigation yet, however Lamar Jackson is expected to start on Thursday night when the Ravens play the Dolphins.  The Dolphins are coming off a big upset win against the Falcons.  

Watched a terrible B-movie last night called Cherry Falls.  It is a slasher film from 25 years ago where a serial killer is attacking teenagers in a small town.  Britany Murphy and Jay Mohr are in it.  

Big game for both teams tonight, winner will go up 3-2 and be one win away from the title.  Bigger game for LA imo because if they lose, they will have to win the next two on the road.  But if they win, they put pressure on the BJs and have the momentum going back to Toronto, where they already split the first two. 

4 hours ago, Zaine said:

I share your worries, Bob. The negative impact of AI use aside, as a writer and scholar I hate what it's doing to academia and creative writing. AI should be a tool to assist us, not take over. I don't want to see AI videos, I don't want to read AI stories, I want human interaction. In this, I saw someone post either last year or early this year that "AI accidentally made me believe in the concept of a human soul by showing me what art looks like without it."

There was an AI model that, despite not being initially designed to do so, learned how to detect cancer far earlier than we could. That's what AI needs to be used for. 

Sadly, that much like many other good ideas, there will be people who abuse it.  It seems like every time technology solves one problem; it also creates another. 

3 hours ago, Zaine said:

Excited to see what you think about it! The language can take a minute to get used to, but once you do it's smooth sailing.

Unfortunately the language was a problem, and I stopped reading shortly after starting. Sounds like I needed to give it more time.  I am now reading Framed by John Grisham, but I might try Frankenstein at a later time and will let you know my thoughts if I do.  Thanks for your interest.  Do you read a lot of science fiction? 

Crazy game three that went 18 innings and saw the Dodgers win 6-5.  It was only the second game in World Series history to go 18 innings.  The other being the Dodgers Red Sox in 2018.  Ohtani reached base nine times, a WS record.  Hard to imagine even getting nine plate appetences in a game, but he reached on all of them.  He was 4-4 and had five walks.  That would be a good series for many players, he did it in one night. The win could swing momentum strongly in favor of LA, as the pressure is on Toronto to win game 4.  Dodgers have a 2-1 series lead.  I rarely do this, but I am cheering for Canada.  The Blue Jays have not won a WS since 1993 and teams like the Dodgers have such a big advantage because of their payroll.  I am not expected the Jays to win, but I hope they do. Anyway, game four is tonight. Let's see what happens with this one.  

Watched the classic Night of the Living Dead last night.  It had been years since I'd seen it.