Teams in the NFL often sign a player that was cut from a division rival or team they’re about to play so they can get some insight into how their enemies are scheming. The Pittsburgh Steelers recently signed former Raven cornerback Corey Ivy although his inside information on his former team is expected to be of little use.

The New York Giants were hoping for some valuable info when they signed rookie defensive back D.J. Johnson who had recently been cut from the Broncos. Johnson gladly gave up what he knew.

From Newsday:

“It’s to be expected,” he said of the questions he’s been asked. “But they didn’t have to corner me into it. I’m kind of snitching this week. I’m going to volunteer it. After all, they pay my checks now.”

Johnson said he’s been breaking down film since he was signed by the team.

“All I’ve really been doing is watching film and trying to give them my best analysis of what the corners and secondary are doing,” he said. “If you can figure out what they’re doing just by watching film, you’ll know how to run your routes and design your concepts against it.”

Johnson’s tips helped the Giants passing game as proven by Eli Manning’s 24 of 40, 230 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception performance in New York’s 26-6 loss in Denver. D.J. knows he was likely picked up for his insight and that he could be cut at any moment. He should start packing his bags since it seems he brought nothing to the table.

Ex-Bronco Johnson spills beans on Denver’s strategy [Newsday]

You probably remember the chunky but funky New York Giants fan that was left in tears after the G-Men were eliminated from last season’s playoffs. His friends ridiculed and recorded him and then put the video on Youtube for the world to get its laugh.

Daniel Tosh, the host of Tosh.0 on Comedy Central, gave the blubbery Giants fan a chance to redeem himself. First he introduced him to a Detroit Lions fan and then a cancer survivor to show Baby Boy Blue he cried over nothing. Then the New York media got a shot at the crybaby.

“Two part question.. Eli Manning sucks *beep* and go *beep* yourself,” was my favorite question but the one about the Barber brothers is a close second.

Quarterback Eli Manning of the New York Giants was honored with a wax statue in his likeness. Check out this video from The Record and see if you can tell which is the real and which is the wax Eli Manning.

Too funny. Midway through last season New Yorkers were ready to run Eli Manning out of town… David Tyree makes an incredible catch in the Super Bowl and Eli gets a statue. Rumor has it that a Plaxico Burress statue was made, but nobody can seem to find it.

Running back Ryan Grant of the Green Bay Packers had a breakout season last year which earned him the honor of being roasted. Phil Simms was the emcee for the evening together with Justin Tuck and Brandon Jacobs of the New York Giants servings as roasters. This clip features Grant’s high school buddy Steve Fortunato taking shots at Ryan and the special guests.

Fortunato wasn’t too funny but he had some moments. I thought the crack on Phil Simms about Jeff Hostetler taking over was alright, and the part about Ryan Grant leaving the Giants and they win the Super Bowl and him joining the Packers and Favre retires was pretty good. Since it was a roast, and Ryan Grant went to Notre Dame, I’m surprised he didn’t get Dana Jacobson to emcee the event. Fighting Irish head coach Charlie Weis must have killed the idea.

Former Penn State and NFL linebacker LaVar Arrington is out to prove that there’s life after football. He’s trying to make his mark as a businessman with knowledge he gained from Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder. Lavar’s already been dabbling in the fight game by sponsoring some boxers, and now he’s taking over a bar in the State College area.

From The Daily Collegian Online:

Former NFL and Penn State linebacker LaVar Arrington has applied to take over the liquor license at the Sports Café & Grille at 244 W. College Ave., the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board confirmed yesterday.

An orange piece of paper bearing Arrington’s signature hangs in the window of the bar that has been closed since December.

LaVar Arrington plans to call the bar Linebacker U, after Penn State where he was a two-time All-American. I don’t know if the bar will be a success but hopefully LaVar teams up with Biz Markie again for his marketing campaign.

Lavar Arrington, NFL, Penn State, Linebacker U

Eli Manning married his longtime girlfriend Abby McGrew over the weekend. The couple wed in Mexico in a small, private ceremony made up of close friends and family.. Speaking of the friends..

The ladies look good but I gotta ask.. Who took this picture? Bill Belichick and co.? I can picture the Patriots head coach in a camouflage hoody, snapping pictures and muttering something about a lucky catch… Eli and Abbey should’ve reached out to the person that handled Pat Burrell’s proposal photos.

Nobody asked him but Drew Rosenhaus has a little pre-marriage advice for Eli Manning. Make her sign a Prenup.

Abby’s been with Eli since college so I’m guessing she’s in it for the long haul. If she stuck by him while everybody in New York hated him, she’s not leaving him now that he’s on top.. Speaking of the top, somebody needs to explain to me what’s going on in New York. What’s the use in being the king of the city if you’re not gonna abuse enjoy your power. First Jay-Z gets married, now Eli Manning. Whatever’s going on, I guarantee Derek Jeter won’t be leaving the game anytime soon.

Eli Manning and Abby McGrew Wedding Photos Jacked from DotSpotter

Eli Manning, New York Giants, King Of New York, Abby McGrew, Wedding Pictures

A nude photo of Gisele Bundchen(NSFW) is set to be auctioned on April 10th at Christie’s in New York. You can settle down right now because the picture is expected to go for $30-40,000. I know a rich NFL qb is probably much more “secure” than I am, but Tom better get down to the auction and make sure he leaves with Gisele’s picture. While that price is beyond the reach of the ordinary man, I know one guy that will be bidding heavily. Eli Manning. The Giants quarterback isn’t gonna let a chance to stick it to his family’s sworn enemy pass him by. The miraculous game winning Super Bowl drive followed by throwing Gisele’s nude pic up in the Giants locker room would take the Brady-Manning Bros./Boston-New York rivalry to the next level.

Tags: Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Nude, photo, auction

I’m not down with how the ’72 Miami Dolphins sit around hatin’ on anybody getting close to their record, but it is kinda funny. I wanted the Patriots to win, you know, so I could say I was watching when.. Well I was watching when.. When the Giants defense punked Tom Brady and the Patriots offense for 60 minutes. This is a great victory for New York, and Eli Manning played like a Super Bowl vet when it mattered most, but I would’ve given the MVP to the defensive line. Those dudes played their asses off and set the tone for the rest of the team.. Either way, congrats to the New York Giants, The Super Bowl XLII champions.

Tags: Super Bowl, ’72 Dolphins, New England Patriots, New York Giants, Perfectville, video, youtube, utube

This is what it all comes down to. One game to settle it all. Am I a football picking loser or do I half way know what I’m talking about? The answer is clear but humor me for a few minutes.. I’m 8-2 straight up but only 6-4 against the spread in the NFL playoffs. My two straight up losses were both courtesy of the New York Giants. I picked the G-Men to cover but lose to Dallas and Green Bay.. Keep that in mind.

If you don’t have confidence in my football point spread skills, check out these 32 free Super Bowl picks from other bloggers.. But here’s how I see it:

The New England Patriots are gonna win Super Bowl XLII. They haven’t walked this far to let their dream get away at the last second. Figuring out that the Patriots will win the game is the easy part. The better team wins the Super Bowl 98% (official YBB stat) of the time.. If you’re still reading at this point, you wanna know who’s gonna cover.

The Super Bowl point spread opened with New England as 12-14 point favorites. The line I’m going with has the Patriots -12 over the New York Giants. The Pats have never won a Super Bowl by more than 3 points, so a big victory would be the exclamation point to the greatest season in NFL history. The New York Giants are getting a lot of credit for playing the Patriots tough in the final game of the regular season, and people are saying that New York has gained from playing the Patriots once already. Why hasn’t New England learned anything from that game? It was the Patriots that came into the game physically and mentally tired from carrying the undefeated load. They took the Giants best shot and still won the game. Now they have two weeks to rest and prepare for the one game that puts them in the elite of the elite, and they’re not going to blow it.. Or cover the game.

Prediction: Patriots 35 Giants 24

24 Super Bowl predictions from around the web. Courtesy of The Hot Route
Super Bowl XLII Proposition Bets

Tags: Super Bowl, NFL, New England Patriots, New York Giants, NFL Odds, NFL Betting Lines, Free Pick

The best part of the Super Bowl, other than the game itself, the parties, and the hoopla, is the gambling. There’s betting on the game with one of your boys, buying squares, or you can place some prop bets. The casinos in Vegas and cyber bookies like Bodoglife.com come up with proposition bets to get every last penny from the gamblers spice up the Super Bowl betting lines.

Here are some of the prop bets for Super Bowl XLII:

Predict the 2008 Super Bowl XLII – Coin Toss
Heads (Coin Toss) -105
Tails (Coin Toss) -105

2008 Super Bowl XLII – Team to score first in the game
New York Giants +150
New England Patriots -180

2008 Super Bowl XLII – Team to score last in the game
New York Giants +130
New England Patriots -160

2008 Super Bowl XLII – Longest Touchdown in the game
Over/Under 47.5 yards -115

2008 Super Bowl XLII – Will there be a successful 2 point conversion?
Yes (Successful 2 Pt conversion) +300
No (Successful 2 Pt conversion) -500

2008 Super Bowl XLII Props – Michael Strahan – Total Tackles (Solo + Assisted)
Over/Under 4.5 -115

Historical Matchup – Most Passing Yards
Eli Manning in Super Bowl XLII vs. Peyton Manning in Super Bowl XLI
(Peyton Manning had 247 Passing Yards)
Eli Manning +5.5 (-120)
Peyton Manning -5.5 (-120)

Historical Matchup – Most Pass Completions
Eli Manning in Super Bowl XLII vs. Peyton Manning in Super Bowl XLI
(Peyton Manning had 25 Pass Completions)
Eli Manning +2 (-110)
Peyton Manning -2 (-130)

Historical Matchup – Most Passing Yards
Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLII vs. Tom Brady Super Bowl XXXVIII
(Tom Brady had 354 Passing Yards in SB XXXVIII)
Tom Brady Super Bowl XLII +50.5 (-120)
Tom Brady Super Bowl XXXVIII -50.5 (-120)

Historical Matchup – Most Passing Touchdowns
Tom Brady in Super Bowl XLII vs. Tom Brady Super Bowl XXXVI
(Tom Brady had 1 TD Pass in SB XXXVI)
Tom Brady Super Bowl XLII -2 (-120)
Tom Brady Super Bowl XXXVI +2 (-120)

Super Bowl Player Props. Courtesy of Bodoglife.com
Super Bowl Team Props. Courtesy of Bodoglife.com

Tags: Super Bowl, New England Patriots, New York Giants, NFL, Betting Line, odds, Prop Bets